Nightmare of the Dead: Rise of the Zombies by Vincenzo Bilof Page A

and tasted the memory of his mouth's destruction.
    She will never trust you. What happens when she regains her memory? She will never be at your mercy. She will never forgive you. You should have killed her when you had the chance.
    Saul sighed and spoke to Santiago. "The Collective wants you to ensure the job's completion. Despite what you may think, you're nothing more than a pawn, as am I. The weapon must be perfected. I no longer possess any more material. Everything has been rushed!"
    He could hear the hammer on a revolver click, as if being pulled back to the halfcocked position .
    In his cool, level voice, Santiago said, "You guaranteed she would become herself once again. You said she was naturally a cruel, sadistic person, and her natural instincts would take over."
    Saul didn't want to blabber, but frustration needled him. "I don't know! I don't know! She's evil incarnate, I tell you! Mother trained her, made her, and she made me! We don't know that she hasn’t changed back. You should have let me talk to her!"
    Santiago shook his head slowly with his gun pointed at Saul.
    Fearlessly, Saul licked at his lips and resisted. "I've already had to move my equipment twice. There're no more resources at the hospital camp near the river."
    "Are there still wounded men there?"
    "Are you asking a question?" Saul always struggled when it came to deciphering the man's tone.
    Santiago seemed to weigh his words. "You were gathering parts, but if there are wounded men, it's best that we return. That is where the woman will go to find you. We will wait for her, there."
    "You were never supposed to kill her. It was never supposed to be this way! It's against Mother's wishes, and you must obey. You must!"
    Santiago was clearly obedient to the Collective, but they were the ones who arranged for the hospital camp with President Davis. Saul had been given military command of an entire hospital near Big Black River; many parties were invested in Saul's weapon.
    "We have a very long history," Saul reminded him. "You and I never really got along, and you've known her for a very long time. Why do you want to kill her so badly? Whatever happened between the two of you cannot interfere with my goals."
    Santiago fingered the necklace made of human ears that lay against his chest. He disregarded Saul's comments, because there was something more important to discuss. He was still amazed that he hadn't transformed into one of the creatures. Saul's first test of the weapon had taken place in the Shenandoah Valley, and Santiago missed it.  Now, he'd witnessed its power, and began to contemplate his own desires.
    "The Collective wants your weapon, and we will scour the battlefields until we have enough materials. But first, you will tell me what we're dealing with. Then, you will tell me about the special mixture you've been preparing for her, because you will give it to me, instead."
     
     
    May 19th-20th: Damn the River
     
     
    They stumbled headlong through the darkness, their boots splashing through the soggy Mississippi swampland, their boots slogged with water, their exposed flesh assaulted by legions of mosquitoes.
    McPhee fell breathlessly along the edge of a ditch and nearly fell in. He flailed with windmilling arms until Bannan heaved him up by his armpits.
    "You're too damn fat to run!" she grunted. "But we have to keep going!"
    They couldn't stop. The creatures were on their heels, and she couldn't help but wonder what terror the fiends would unleash upon the unsuspecting citizens of the war-ravaged land. It wasn't up to her to hunt them all down and destroy them.
    The land around her was a wet abyss; she was running headlong through the cavernous stomach of an angry demon. Animals scurried and splashed away while they approached, and savage growls nipped at their heels. They certainly made enough noise to be found.
    Spider webs wrapped around their throats like sticky scarves, and they balanced themselves against invisible trees.