Deadrise Read Online Free PDF Page A

flashlight in his hand. He activated it, casting a narrow lance of light through the darkness.
"There's a bomb shelter in this school. I know where it's at." David said excitedly.
    "Which way?" Matt asked. He walked beside Frank, rifle held ready to fire. It was taking all of his self-control to remain calm. The fight at the house had really tweaked him out. He was breathing quick and shallow, and his heart was pumping ninety miles an hour.
    Relax Matt. It's nothing you can't handle!
    He wished he could believe his own thoughts, but he was having a hard time coping with what had been happening. All the stress of the last several months had finally gotten to him and today had been the boiling point, where his brain and body had just about all they could take. He and Zack had both gotten less than ten hours of sleep in the last three days. He was exhausted both physically and mentally, yet so amped from adrenaline that he couldn't relax. His body was running on overdrive now, easily his fourth or fifth wind. He wished only to find the bomb shelter and lock himself in so he could unwind and try to sleep.
    "What's that?" Matt asked. David had told him where to go, but his mental exhaustion was so great that he hadn't even registered it until several seconds later.
    "I said go straight until you come to a large hall branching to the right." David repeated with a tone of adolescent condescension.
    "David." Frank said sternly.
    They continued down the hallway, Frank's flashlight sweeping across the darkness like a moat house beacon. They passed several classrooms. All the doors were locked and those with windows revealed rooms with empty desks and pulled shades, so only thin slivers of daylight seeped in through the edges. From out of the darkness came a hollow moan, echoing through the empty hallway.
    Matt felt his finger tightening on the trigger. "Where is that coming from?" He tracked the barrel of his rifle in an arc to cover the whole hallway. They heard a shuffle in the darkness, another moan, and Frank's flashlight swept across a scarecrow figure with a powdery white face, drooping head, dangling arms, and puckering wounds in its chest cavity. Everyone gasped with shock.
    "There it-" began David, but the roar of Matt’s assault rifle cut him off...three quick shots into the zombies face. The blast of the rifle in the empty hallway was near deafening, filling all of their ears were with a sharp ringing. Frank swung the light around in time to catch a glimpse of the creature crumbling to the ground, the wall beside where it had stood was dripping with brains and blood and bits of skull.
    "Are there anymore?" Matt shouted. Matt and Frank stepped out to peer down the hallway. The thin flashlight beam probed the recesses of the nearest shadows… Nothing. But one hundred feet down the hallway, standing in front of two large double doors that led outside, were three zombies. And they were coming this way!
"Plug your ears!" called Matt and took three careful shots, drilling all three zombies right between the eyes.
"We have to go down this hallway." David said.
"I knew you were going to say that." Zack said.
    They hurried along, David providing directions. He led them through a storage room to a set of stairs that took them down to the schools boiler room. It was as dark and silent as a tomb. The only light was from the single flashlight. They huddled together as Frank swept the beam across the large room.
    "Right there!" Exclaimed David. The beam of light froze. There was another large steel doorway that David said led down to the bomb shelter. But the door was locked.
"How the hell are we going to get in?" asked Matt.
"Just shoot it open" said Frank.
"Shoot it." Matt said.
"Everybody get back." Zack said.
    They moved behind him as he backed away from the door. He aimed and fired three quick shots into the lock. His head was a hall of ringing bells. Zack moved up to the door and tugged on the handle. It swung open in his