Zombiez! Read Free Page B

he really was innocent, but it
didn't matter. The community-leading Pastor knew that the important
cost-saving measures implemented by the first panel would continue
if Morty Greene went away quietly. The janitor quickly died before
he could be denied care; the Down Syndrome kid was moved to a
different hospital. Thank Jesus.

THE CONGRESSMAN
    The sweat on Albiers Burnett's gray-haired
brow glistened in the white Carolina sun. The sweat on the rest of
his body would have been glistening, too, were he not wearing a
dark suit that covered up everything except his damp, rosy, and
immaculately-coiffed head. He wore no tie, because his handlers
told him a tie would look too formal for the opening of a grocery
store. If you didn't count his constant presence in TV or radio
ads, he was in his old neighborhood for the first time in five
months. He would much rather have been in Washington sitting in his
air-conditioned office with his personal assistant, letting her
assist him in that way she always did. But it was election season,
so he was here with his family instead.
    There was a small mass of humanity, about
fifty in all, that stood hot and ready before the dais that held
Dr. Albiers Burnett and his well-manicured family unit. They were
all neighborhood supporters of Dr. Burnett and his upcoming
re-election bid, and many of them held signs emblazoned with his
name in their sweaty Republican hands. A man in the back with a red
beret was not holding a sign. He was, however, looking for one as
he watched the congressman and his family squirm in the heat.
    The President and CEO of Family Foodstores,
Inc., was also there. He was holding a giant novelty scissors and
was also very hot. He was a large man, both vertically (his
tallness being one of the things that helped him rise to the
proverbial and literal top of his business) and horizontally (his
love of food being one of the things that made him choose this
particular field of business in the first place), and being in the
heat of the day for this long always made him feel like he was in
imminent danger of having a stroke. He just wanted to get on with
this damn ribbon cutting, but the scheduled time was still two
minutes away. Political campaigns were managed to the exact second.
If you didn't, you'd never be able to control when the high-def
cameras from CNN or Fox News would show up.
    The Incumbent Congressman's wife and children
smiled for those cameras. Mrs. Edith Burnett, the wife, because she
wanted to keep her meal ticket intact for at least two more years;
Chumbley and Sarah Burnett, the children, because they were
ecstatic to be out of school and with both of their parents for a
whole day. Sarah was overheated and feeling a little faint, but she
was not about to ruin this Important Moment by tugging on her dad's
shirt or anything. She gritted her teeth and smiled like the
politician's daughter she was.
    At the appointed time, the CEO looked at his
watch, and spoke:
    “It says a lot that in this economy, Family
Foodstores is adding to its already-impressive lineup of grocery
outlets. This is due, in no small part, to our beloved congressman
here, a stalwart fighter against the special interests and
socialists in Washington...”
    People started clapping and cheering.
Everyone was smiling really hard, their teeth gleaming in the
merciless sun.
    Albiers Burnett's mind wandered as his friend
and sometime money-based influencer blathered on and on about how
great Albiers was. He didn't like being this close to his wife for
this long. He feared his facade would crack. I mean, how long could
their life last if it was just going to be like this, all cold and
yell-y and clandestine and outright fake? It didn't work for John
Edwards, and it surely wouldn't work for him. And John's wife even
got cancer! He'd lost count of how many times had he wished that
would happen to Edith. But he knew it wouldn't avail anything even
if it did happen, because...
    “Before us lies the most