Invasion of the Dead (Book 3): Escape Read Online Free

with the drunk driver, or whether you… sleep with that boy who’s pressuring you. Every action has a consequence—some you can’t take back.”
    Jesus , he had been so right, she thought. Sleeping with Todd had been an impromptu action on the back of too many beers and the debacle that was Seth. She recalled thinking the moment before whether it was the right move. Stupid woman. It hadn’t been, and she was paying the price. Choices had to be made now though. She could push Todd’s behavior aside and deal with it all herself, or force him to pitch in and help. Make him accountable, as they had taught her in one of her management classes at university. Thinking about her father’s sensibility had calmed her.
    “Todd, I need you to cut the drinking for a bit and help get this place more organized. We’re out of food and I only have a half a tin of baby formula left.”
    Todd frowned, surprise quelling his humor. “What? Out? But we—”
    “There’s none. I know it might come as a surprise, but there are ten adults living in this apartment now. Food doesn’t go far when there are that many mouths to feed.”
    “You can’t count the baby,” he said in a whiny, slurred voice.
    “I’m not counting the baby, dipshit,” Lauren said, grinding her teeth.
    More laughter squeezed out. Todd didn’t bother trying to keep it in. He’d never taken life seriously. Most things were one big joke. He ran for the booze at the first sign of trouble. She found that out early. When she’d told him she was pregnant, he disappeared for two days. She got a call from the police station early one morning asking her to come and collect him. The truth was that they were better off without him. He offered no value to the group—he had no skill that someone else couldn’t provide. The only thing keeping Lauren from kicking him out was the fact he was her baby’s father.
    She bit down on her emotions. “You have to go at some point, Todd.”
    Lenny screwed up his face. “We went last time.”
    Claire stepped forward. “But you didn’t get enough food. You admitted that. You promised to go back out again and get more.”
    Lauren put a hand on her shoulder. “Feed the kids, and the oldest, first. Don’t worry about me, or these two, if there’s isn’t enough.” Claire appeared poised to protest, then nodded and left. Todd slunk back on the couch, rubbing his left leg. Lauren knew what was coming next. He was going to play the injury card. If he did that, she thought she might lose it.
    “My leg’s still sore,” Todd said, grimacing. Lenny dropped his eyes. The two girls watched her, oblivious. “And there are zombies all over the place.”
    Lauren ground her teeth. His weakness had reached a low point. Her anger fled in the face of his attitude. But she had had enough. “The zombies will always be there. We went out while they were there. Get over it.” He sneered at her. “If you can’t go out and get some decent food for all of us, Todd, I want you out. You can take your friends and leave.” He stared back at her, eyes wide, full of disbelief.
    “You can’t do that.”
    “It’s my apartment.”
    He glanced at Lenny. “What if we don’t want to go?”
    This time, Lauren raised her eyebrows, almost inviting him to try. In truth, Todd and Lenny could overpower them, but he knew she would always get him back, somehow. She wasn’t going to stand there and argue though. “You’ve got until dark to go out and get something.” Then she turned and walked away, waiting for him to shoot a smart remark, but it never came.
     
     

FOUR
     
     
    Jacob drove down the Hume Highway with a mouth full of bitterness, choking the wheel as he relived the previous night in Campbelltown. The blazing eye fell slowly in the west, taking with it some of the heat that had suffocated them for much of the day. He wouldn’t be sorry to see it disappear. The car had no air conditioning, and the hot wind did little to cool them.
    It