This Plague of Days, Season Two (The Zombie Apocalypse Serial) Read Online Free PDF Page A

blockade, you’ll set sail for Hamilton and join us. Soon, I don’t think we’ll have much need of warships anymore.”
    Finally, the Lieutenant’s face softened. The trio of sailors behind him looked at each other and grinned.  
    Hope, Shiva thought. That’s what keeps fools warm right up until they’re swallowed by an avalanche .
    “I have orders to inspect the ship, Mrs. Goldwater.”
    “That’s a delicate issue. Captain Tavish Price sends his regrets, but there’s a good reason I was sent to greet you alone. I’ve already had a touch of the flu and survived, you see. That’s why I’m your liaison. I’m immune to Sutr now and well past being contagious.”
    Wiggins looked to his men and removed his mask with obvious relief. Between their heavy body armour and the breathing apparatus, they were broiling. Sweat poured down their faces.
    “Touch nothing,” he ordered.  
    “Lieutenant, would you mind looking at the hold through cameras? With that precaution, none of you gentlemen can infect our only hope for the future. And, of course, nothing can infect you or your men.”
    Wiggins told his men to stand easy and took Shiva by the arm farther down the corridor. “My orders aren’t about Sutr-X. This is about the new strain. They call it Sutr-Z.”
    “Yes, Lieutenant. I know what you’re talking about. I saw it firsthand, in London.”
    “You were in London ?”
    “Yes, before we evacuated to Dublin. I saw London fall. I saw such horrors, I thought I’d lose my head.”
    He sighed heavily. “Dublin’s gone under, too, I’m afraid. Overrun. It’s spreading through the country as fast as a madman can run.”
    The ship rocked hard. “Oh! Oh, dear!” She leaned against him. He caught her weight. She buried her head in his shoulder and wiped away an invisible tear.
    “All those poor people. We couldn’t save more than we did. I wish we could have. We couldn’t.”
    “I’m sure you did all you could, Mrs. Goldwater.”
    “For everyone’s safety…and yours…please, make do with looking through the cameras at the passengers. With this new virus mutation, you’ll obviously be able to tell instantly if there’s anyone infected down there. If there were, you’d see nothing but panic and screaming and death.” She hugged him tight, whispering in his ear. “You should have seen London. It was mad. Even the children came to feast.” He couldn’t see her smile.
    “I’m sure I’ll be able to fulfill my mission by looking through your cameras, Mrs. Goldwater.”
    “Thank you, Lieutenant. For everyone’s safety…thank you for your understanding. So much is at stake.” Shiva squeezed him tighter before letting go. Wiggins stiffened in surprise, but she allowed her lips to brush his as she pulled away.
    It would be enough. But even Shiva did not realize all that she had unleashed. Something new, a revenant of something very old, had begin its journey back to life.  
    Revolution is temporary. Evolution is forever.  

T HE ANSWER IS UNDER THE STARS AND MOON SHADOWS CASTING
    B irds circled above in scattered clusters. On the road ahead, more carrion rotted. On the left, the cadavers of two men lay under a cloud of flies. Five birds worked at the bodies. Jack wanted to avert her eyes but found she couldn’t.
    One of the bodies lay atop the other. For a moment she thought it was a couple who had somehow died copulating. What am I seeing?  
    No. The men didn’t die in a twist of fornication in the road. Somehow, they had killed each other. She imagined steak knifes amid the rotting flesh, steel sunk deep, glueing the bodies together until decay and merciless sharp beaks finally pulled mortal enemies apart.  
    Jack shuddered. If people don’t begin to act better, will we be able to live with ourselves even if we survive? Had the world come to the brink of colonizing Mars and got smacked down for hubris? Did the future belong to birds, flies, insects and gluttonous bacteria?
    Jack stared