Determined To Live Read Online Free Page A

yes, the
slaps may have been a little harder than they needed to be, but damn !
    When he gets some
sense back and realizes he's laying on top of Jake, he flings himself
off and sits up a few feet away, rubbing his throat. I glare at him -
after making sure he's ok - and turn back to Jake. I slap him only
twice - yes, he got it hard
too, maybe a little harder - before he wakes up. He reaches for me, but I lean back out of his
reach and crawl back to the hole in the roof.
    "If you two
moronic jackasses are done trying to kill each other, we need to get
out of here. There are a whole hell of a lot more coming." Just
before I duck my head down, I add, "Unless you'd rather stay up
here and continue your nap and cuddle."
    I knew that would
get them moving, and before I can even get over the seat, they're
both inside with me. Jake pushes my butt to help me over the front
seat. Of course, that gets them fighting again when Will takes
offense to Jake's hands on my ass. This fight doesn't last very long,
probably because of the amount of zombies now surrounding the truck,
making it rock back and forth even harder, and making one hell of a
noise on the windows and body of the truck.
    We look around at
the zombies as Jake turns the screwdriver and starts the truck. We
pull away from the freaky undead and they follow. I give Jake
instructions to get to the highway by taking a back way. No matter
how fast they are, the zombies still on the highway - which I'm sure
most of them are - won't make it that far fast enough to beat us as
we cross the highway to the town on the other side. Beyond that town,
we can find and meet up with the others.
    I pull out the
picture Sara had made which has caused so many problems. At first,
Will refuses to look at the photo.
    "Put that damn
thing away. Seeing it once was enough for me. Are you wanting me to
get the hell back out of this truck?"
    I
sigh and say, "Will, stop being a stubborn ass! Just look at the
damn thing. It's not us! Look at my head."
    He finally does and
sees the problem.
    "Oh my God,"
he mumbles as he runs a hand down his face. "I'm so sorry. But
I― I thought―" he struggles for the words.
    "I
know what you thought, and I know why you thought it. It's ok, Will. But don't do this again without at
least giving me a chance to explain," I order him.
    He embraces me and
holds on tight, promising me he will. I wrap my arms around him and
kiss him deeply. He continues apologizing to me.
    "Stop
it, Will. It's ok. You're ok. We're all ok. That's all that matters now."
    "I'm sorry,
Canada. Jake." Will's apology to Jake isn't even close to being
as sincere, or as heartfelt, as his apology to me was.
    "Forget about
it. We got bigger things to worry about now," Jake says.
    I grab my phone off
the dash and notice a missed call from my sister. But first I dial my
brothers and all the others that are out looking for Will. They're
all relieved he's been found safe and alive, but my brothers threaten
to kick his ass when they see him. They're only half-joking.
    Then I dial my
sister.
    "Hey sis. We
found Will and are now on our way to Hill City. I'll call when we get
there to find out where you are. You did all get away safely, right?"
    "That's what I
tried calling you about." Her voice sounds strange, and it makes
my stomach dip.
    "What's
wrong? What happened?" I ask her. Terrified someone, a family
member - My kids! - were hurt.
    "Well, I went
to the barn to tell Sara to get her ass out of there, and get into a
vehicle," she pauses.
    " And ?"
I impatiently ask her.
    My interest or
concern for Sara, after all she's done, is sorely lacking.
    "Well, seems
she was beaten," Rose responds.
    "Yep. And ?
What the hell did you think was going to happen when I went out there?" I ask her.
    "Well, she was
also dead."
    My body turns cold
and my mind stops working for several long moments.
    How can that be?
    I didn't kill
her!
    She was beaten,
sure. But I didn't kill her!
    She was moaning
in pain.
    She was