failure rate considering how closely monitored we all are?”
I can see several of them nodding in agreement.
“There is another option…”
All eyes turn back toward me. I hadn’t actually meant to reveal my thoughts but if I’m escaping tonight with my mom I might as well do a good dead and warn these people.
“A couple of you may have suspected that I like to take walks.”
“No shit,” Vaughn coughs into his hand in a poor attempt to conceal his comment.
I ignore him as I continue. “You are all right. I do see things. Things that I’m sure we aren’t meant to know. Why else would there be a need for the curfew? It’s bullshit and they know it.”
“Now that I agree with. Flynn, haven’t I been saying that same thing—”
“Shut up, Vaughn,” Ember hisses and slams her foot down on his. Vaughn’s eyes bulge but to his credit, he manages to hold in his cry of pain.
“As I was saying,” I pause to glare at Vaughn just in case he gets any stupid ideas about interrupting me again, “is that I have seen some strange things going on. I don’t think these extractions are totally legit.”
“Meaning what, exactly?” Tyrel asks.
“Meaning I think those Raider sightings that we’ve been told about are a bunch of bunk. I think the soldiers are carting own people out into the streets and slaughtering them in cold blood.”
“No. No way, man,” Flynn shakes his head and pushes back from the table. “They wouldn’t do that.”
“Wouldn’t they?” I finish the last bite of my turnover and crumple up the wrapper. “Then tell me why we haven’t seen a single raider since we arrived. Tell me where the bodies are going because they sure aren’t burning them in the town square. And how do we even know these people are technically infected at all? What if it’s all a ruse? What if these people are being used for something else?”
“Like what?” Ember whispers and I get another whiff of vanilla when she leans forward.
“I don’t know. Maybe that’s something you should think about, but let’s plays devil’s advocate for a moment. If this outbreak, or whatever it is, is in fact airborne like they claim, we should have all contracted it by now right? And if not, why aren’t we all wearing gas masks? Why only the soldiers?”
“Because we are expendable,” a voice adds from behind us and I look up to see Coleman standing over my shoulder. He has his hands deep in his pockets and his glasses falling down his nose as he walks around me to take the spare seat beside Tyrel. “It’s the basics of any good game. You protect those most valuable to you and let the rest be a distraction.”
“Wait a second,” Vaughn says, breaking his silence as he licks the last traces of gravy from his lips. “Are you saying that we are expendable?”
When I laugh I didn’t bother to hide the bitterness from my voice. “We have been that from day one. Why do you think we are even here, using resources that they should be using on their soldiers to fight the coming war, and trust me when I say a war is coming. What we saw out there by the fence today isn't going to be a single occurrence. What happens when more of them start to wake up? What happens if they start to get violent”
“What if they start to work together against us?” Ember says, her gaze too unfocused to notice my appraising look. I like the way she thinks.
“Exactly,” I chime back in. “You’ve all seen the movies and read the books. Those things out there, the Stiffs or Dead Heads...they aren’t done evolving. What happens if the zombies we all thought we’d someday have to face do finally show up?”
“Dude,” Vaughn blows out a breath and run his hands through his fine hair. In the fluorescent lighting overhead, powered by a military grade generator, he looks sickly. “I’m so not ok with something deciding to gnaw on me like a deep fried chicken leg.”
That is all it takes to break the tension and send
I can see several of them nodding in agreement.
“There is another option…”
All eyes turn back toward me. I hadn’t actually meant to reveal my thoughts but if I’m escaping tonight with my mom I might as well do a good dead and warn these people.
“A couple of you may have suspected that I like to take walks.”
“No shit,” Vaughn coughs into his hand in a poor attempt to conceal his comment.
I ignore him as I continue. “You are all right. I do see things. Things that I’m sure we aren’t meant to know. Why else would there be a need for the curfew? It’s bullshit and they know it.”
“Now that I agree with. Flynn, haven’t I been saying that same thing—”
“Shut up, Vaughn,” Ember hisses and slams her foot down on his. Vaughn’s eyes bulge but to his credit, he manages to hold in his cry of pain.
“As I was saying,” I pause to glare at Vaughn just in case he gets any stupid ideas about interrupting me again, “is that I have seen some strange things going on. I don’t think these extractions are totally legit.”
“Meaning what, exactly?” Tyrel asks.
“Meaning I think those Raider sightings that we’ve been told about are a bunch of bunk. I think the soldiers are carting own people out into the streets and slaughtering them in cold blood.”
“No. No way, man,” Flynn shakes his head and pushes back from the table. “They wouldn’t do that.”
“Wouldn’t they?” I finish the last bite of my turnover and crumple up the wrapper. “Then tell me why we haven’t seen a single raider since we arrived. Tell me where the bodies are going because they sure aren’t burning them in the town square. And how do we even know these people are technically infected at all? What if it’s all a ruse? What if these people are being used for something else?”
“Like what?” Ember whispers and I get another whiff of vanilla when she leans forward.
“I don’t know. Maybe that’s something you should think about, but let’s plays devil’s advocate for a moment. If this outbreak, or whatever it is, is in fact airborne like they claim, we should have all contracted it by now right? And if not, why aren’t we all wearing gas masks? Why only the soldiers?”
“Because we are expendable,” a voice adds from behind us and I look up to see Coleman standing over my shoulder. He has his hands deep in his pockets and his glasses falling down his nose as he walks around me to take the spare seat beside Tyrel. “It’s the basics of any good game. You protect those most valuable to you and let the rest be a distraction.”
“Wait a second,” Vaughn says, breaking his silence as he licks the last traces of gravy from his lips. “Are you saying that we are expendable?”
When I laugh I didn’t bother to hide the bitterness from my voice. “We have been that from day one. Why do you think we are even here, using resources that they should be using on their soldiers to fight the coming war, and trust me when I say a war is coming. What we saw out there by the fence today isn't going to be a single occurrence. What happens when more of them start to wake up? What happens if they start to get violent”
“What if they start to work together against us?” Ember says, her gaze too unfocused to notice my appraising look. I like the way she thinks.
“Exactly,” I chime back in. “You’ve all seen the movies and read the books. Those things out there, the Stiffs or Dead Heads...they aren’t done evolving. What happens if the zombies we all thought we’d someday have to face do finally show up?”
“Dude,” Vaughn blows out a breath and run his hands through his fine hair. In the fluorescent lighting overhead, powered by a military grade generator, he looks sickly. “I’m so not ok with something deciding to gnaw on me like a deep fried chicken leg.”
That is all it takes to break the tension and send
Similar Books
