Dead Series (Book 3): A Little More Alive Read Free

He’s studying us right now.
Learning. And we have to learn faster or we’re all dead.”
    “Oh, that’s
comforting,” she murmured, taking dead aim at the thing.
    “If you’re coming
with us, you have to know as much about them as possible.” He turned to
Rebecca. “This guy is more dangerous than the rest.”
    Her eyes flickered
between Paul and the dead man sneering at them from the front row. “What do you
mean?”
    He nodded to
Curtis and Billy. “Watch our flanks.” The men peeled their weapons and lights
off to the sides while Paul glared at the dead man with his chest rising and
falling beneath his black leather jacket. “Bring him.”
    Curtis put a hand
to the side of his mouth. “Yo Chris! You still owe me five bucks for Beverly Hills Ninja !”
    The guardsman
roared so loudly, Paul could feel the rumble through the bloodstained Adidas on
his feet. Then he was off, charging up the gradual ramp they don’t have in
movie theaters anymore, fists pumping, belly shaking, teeth clenching.
    Stephanie raised
her gun, nervously looking at Paul who drew his Beretta PX4 Storm and took aim
with the M4 hanging at his side like a guitar god. Rebecca backed against the
double doors, covering her mouth with bloodstained hands as the man thundered
closer, snarling and snapping, rage tightening his black, soulless eyes.
    “Paul,” Wendy said
softly, adjusting her aim with the moving target.
    “Wait!” he
ordered.
    The wretched thing
picked up speed. Blood ran from its eyes and nose. Foam bubbled from the
corners of its mouth. A young woman bolted from the velvet curtains covering a side
wall and Billy cut her in two with a three-round burst. Paul kept his eyes fixed
on Chris Farley, setting his jaw and squeezing off a single shot. The big man’s
head snapped back but his racing momentum carried him forward. Rolling, he
crumpled into a ball at their feet. A deathly silence was swift to follow and Paul
would never get used to it.
    Ears ringing, he holstered
the nine, grimacing when the smell hit him. He’d never get used to that either.
“Step back,” he said, using the M4’s barrel to nudge the guy in his meaty
shoulder. The guardsman fell onto his back, arms flopping out to his sides and
blood trickling from a hole in his forehead. Paul centered the weapon’s neck
strap and waited for Rebecca’s dilated eyes to rise from Chris’ outstretched
body. “The fat ones are fast,” he said, holding her unnerved gaze.
    Brow dipping, she
turned to the others for verification and the solemn looks on their faces did
the talking for them.
    “Way faster than
the skinny ones. Never forget that.”
    “But why?”
    He shrugged his
broad shoulders. “Maybe a muscle mass or pituitary gland thing. Nobody knows
for sure.” His eyes moved to the dead woman who was now completely
unrecognizable thanks to Billy’s generous offering. “They also work together to
set traps and ambush their prey.”
    “Like
velociraptors,” Billy panted, eyes darting around the theater like he just
heard something behind him.
    “Farley was the
bait.” Curtis spit next to the dead man staring blankly at the ceiling.
    “And she was
hiding off to the side.” Stephanie slowly lowered her gun and looked from the
dead woman to Rebecca. “Just waiting to make her move.”
    Curtis snorted. “When
they start setting tripwires, we’re really gonna have some problems.”
    Rebecca stared in
horror at the young man bleeding out on the carpeting. Foam oozed from his
gaping mouth like yellow lava while dark blood leaked from the corners of his
eyes and dripped to the floor. Her chest heaved. Words formed on her lips but
wouldn’t release. “When do I get a gun?” she finally asked, looking up to meet
Paul’s thin gaze.
    “Have you ever
shot a gun before?”
    She took a few
seconds to think it over, chasing her breath. “No,” she whispered, looking back
down at Chris.
    Paul turned to
Billy and arched an eyebrow at him, the stench stinging his