Revenence: Dead Silence, A Zombie Novel Read Free Page B

in  here.  I'm sorry, but I had no choice but to pull in here."
    "Aw, shitstain!" she cowgirl hissed, stomping the ground with one boot. "No matter, they'd have been here eventually whether you came or not.  I ain't mad at ya.  I mean, no tellin' what they're using to sense us...scent...sound...hell, maybe even sonar for all we know?"  The cowgirl laughed .  "They obviously ain't people no more.  Well, I guess I might as well invite you in.  No point in lettin' you stand out here to get eaten.  Not my idea of a fun spectator sport."  She turned back toward the rope ladder, and motioned over her shoulder for Shari to follow. "I've got a pretty decent setup here in the loft, if I do say so myself."  She started up the ladder, and Shari gratefully followed right behind her. "I like to be prepared for anythin'.  I guess you could say I'm a survivalist of sorts.  It's not that I was really expectin' zombies, per se, but you never know when you'll need a hideout that's inaccesible to unwanted guests, know what I mean?" 
    Shari climbed up off the ladder and into the loft, looking around.  She grabbed the rope ladder and lifted it up into the loft, lest the zombies should try to join them.  This lady wasn't kidding about the survival thing.  There were weapons galore up here, plus some other staples to make the place somewhat liveable...some furniture, a refrigerator and deep freezer, microwave, even some books.  There was also electricity and running water, judging from the sink and makeshift shower. 
    "Yeah, me and a handful of people could hole up here for at least a few weeks, if not months, what with the fridge, freezer, and pantry all fully stocked. The electric won't go out if the grid goes down, since I have my own wind turbine and a few generators.  Huge propane tank out back fully filled, so the gas won't run out, not this year at any rate.  Water neither.  We got a large cistern and a few reliable wells, too.  I've got two stoves, one gas and one electric. You certainly picked the right place to wander in off the road, girl.  Couldn't find a better place under these circumstances, not if you tried."  She pressed a button on her keychain, and the garage door began to close.  "But keep in mind, you better not be lyin' about not havin' been bitten.  If I so much as suspect that you're thinkin' of eatin' me alive, I won't think twice before I push you off that balcony and let the zombies finish what they started," she warned, pointing toward the sliding glass door leading to the balcony.
    "Fair enough, but I'm telling you, I haven't been bitten."  Shari sat down on a loveseat in the middle of the large room.  "What makes you so sure it's the bite that does it?"
    "Well you've seen them, haven't you?  You see one suffer what should be a lethal throat-gougin', and it's less than a minute before they're on their feet, runnin' at you full-tilt.  This is when they were livin' and breathin' just moments before, the look of terror still shinin' in their eyes. I'm not sayin' I'm a zombie expert, it just seems like a logical deduction, is all."
    Shari thought back to that red Navigator, the mom and son.  "So you're thinking they're zombies too, huh?"
    "I guess that's what you'd call 'em, although I guess it don't matter much whether we call 'em zombies, ghouls, or murderin' sadists.  The point is, we can use our senses and our logic to see what they're doin', and react accordingly.  You can call 'em what you like, as long as you stay the hell out of their way."
    Shari looked around some more, taking in the contents of the room, the various weaponry.  "I guess you must be pretty good with a bow and arrow. There's got to be at least two dozen bows up here, and...what?...hundreds of arrows?"
    "Thousands, actually.  And yes, I'm pretty damn good with a bow.  Granddad taught me when I was a girl.  I've taught countless classes, trained a number of friends and family...even made it to the Olympics with my