900 Miles: A Zombie Novel Read Online Free PDF Page A

disappearing. A wave of black crept into my mind as I struggled to keep my eyes open. The pain blurred my vision. Everything went dark. I was only out for a moment before coming to. Kyle was triumphantly standing over the creature as he drove the finishing blow through its skull.
    It was always easy for Kyle. He knew death well.
    We could hear multiple footsteps from the stairwell. There were more of them on the way. Kyle and I made eye contact, and then our gaze shot over towards the alleyway facing the parking garage next door. Chauffer was in a hurry, crawling across the makeshift bridge. The bastard was leaving us behind.
    Kyle gripped my wrists and pulled me to my feet. My knees were still knocking violently but we dashed towards the bridge just as three more of them burst through the doorway. They joined us on the suddenly, seemingly very small rooftop. It was three of our zombie friends from the lobby: the one armed janitor, and two other nameless people in blood-soaked suits that I recognized. They must have spent all night trying to find us and trying to figure out the stairs.
    Kyle shot across the roof to the bridge; I was right behind him. The one armed janitor was frantically grabbing at my leg when I glanced at Chauffer for help. He was safely perched on the parking garage. In that split second, I could see it in his eyes. He was going to save his own ass.
    He reached over and started to heave the bridge off of the parking garage. Kyle screamed at him, but he didn’t even pause, giving another heave. I felt a jerk on my leg again. I reached for my hammer, twisting around, and dug the claw deep into the janitor’s head. Kyle and I shoved him backward , clambered over the now absolutely dead body, and back on to the rooftop.
    Just as Kyle scrambled off the bridge, our end skittered sideways and dropped off, and flipped Chauffer’s end upward. Part of it caught him right across the middle of his cul-de-sac forehead. He stumbled backwards, blood running down his face. Not a lethal blow, but it would leave a hell of a scar. Holding his head, he turned and ran into the depths of the parking garage.
    Looking back on it, if we hadn’t helped him, if we had let Chauffer die that day, so much misery could have been prevented.
    Kyle and I could hear more footsteps, and a lot of them in the staircase.
    Looking over at Kyle, as if reading his thoughts, I gave a brief nod. We took two steps back and started to run towards the gap separating that parking garage and us.
    Faced with certain death, people will do anything to escape, no matter how suicidal.
    My right foot landed on the ledge of the rooftop, and I pushed every ounce of energy I had straight through my leg. Even in mid-air, I could hear them screaming right behind me. Close enough to brush across the hair on my neck, but falling short to land on the pavement seven stories below.
    The pain shot through my knee as my foot connected with the parking garage roof. Just as my leg buckled, sending me into a bone-jarring tumble, I realized that I had made it. No time for pain right now. I crawled back onto my feet, trembling violently and scraped, but otherwise, unharmed.
    As I caught my breath, I looked around for Kyle. Oh, shit! He wasn’t with me. Fearing the worst, I shot a glance toward the rooftop. A swarm of them was there now, and some of the creatures were trying to jump across. I watched one of the dead make a tremendous leap, only to come just shy of its mark. The skull smashed on the edge of the cement. Blood shot across the garage roof, spraying my shoes. I staggered back a couple of feet. That’s when I heard a strained voice call out, “Pull me up!”
    I ran toward the ledge, peering over to see Kyle hanging on by his fingertips. I clasped his arms, and hefted him up. He was a heavy bastard. Evidently, one of the creatures had gotten close enough to trip him up just before he made the jump.
    Looking over towards a door that led to the entrance to the