Read Deadlocked 7 for Free Online Page B

and he had a pained expression as he examined her face. She could see him, but his visage split into multiples, and then reformed before splitting again. He started to speak, but she couldn’t hear him. It was as if he were mouthing words that never escaped his mouth.
    A deafening hum drowned out all of the sounds around her, and even the gunfire faded as her vision grew murky. Annie felt liquid on her eyebrows and tried to swipe her brow clean.
    Something was wrong.
    Her head throbbed.
    She set her face down in the growing pool of blood and closed her eyes.
    “Annie, stay awake!” Billy’s scream was barely a whisper, and his plea was of no use. She felt herself stop breathing.

Chapter Four – Kill Them All
    Thirteen years after the apocalypse
    Arthur Laporte is in his tent at the trader’s camp.
     
    “We got a tire for you,” said Jack as he peered into the tent.
    Arthur had been expecting Kim, and was surprised when Jack unzipped the flap. “Oh, okay, that’s great news.” He stayed beneath the thin blanket he’d been provided.
    Jack stayed in his spot, looking into the tent with a presumptuous expression. “Well, are you coming?”
    “Now?”
    “Yeah, now,” said Jack.
    “It’s snowing like a bastard out there,” said Arthur. “Let’s hold off until morning.”
    “Come on, you lazy ass. A little snow’s not going to kill you. I just want to make sure the tire will fit. If it doesn’t, I could use your help finding one that will.”
    “Okay, give me a minute to get dressed.”
    Jack leaned out of the tent, but left the flap unzipped. Arthur got his boots back on and then bundled up. He stepped out into the cold and was surprised by how bitter the wind felt. Jack looked haggard and freezing, his nose well beyond red and bordering on purple. He had his gloved hands over his mouth and nose as he breathed into them for warmth.
    “ Finally,” said Jack. “Come on, the car that looks like yours is down by the pit.”
    “What’s the pit?” asked Arthur.
    “The place down there where we toss our garbage. Benny and Paul will take you. They’re the ones that found it. You should thank them, they’ve been out in this cold searching for a while.” Jack introduced the two young, thin men that had found the tire. One of them had a smattering of hair on his chin and was gaunt, almost sickly, with a scar on his cheek that stretched back to his ear. The other one, named Benny, had a square jaw and a sturdier look than his friend, but was still much smaller than Arthur.
    “Thanks,” said Arthur, although he felt on edge. There was something odd about the situation, but he was comforted knowing there was a pistol tucked into his waistband next to his favorite blade.
    “Come on,” said Benny. He looked ill-suited for being out in the cold, protected only by a thin jacket and no hood. His arms were crossed, but Arthur could see the straps of a chest holster; he was hiding a gun.
    Arthur knew he was walking into a trap, but he didn’t want to attempt to escape yet. He assessed the situation and knew it would be better for him to get as far from the camp as possible before trying anything.
    “This way,” said Paul as he started to walk away from the campsite.
    Benny smiled and waited for Arthur to walk ahead. In that position, Arthur knew he was vulnerable to the man behind him, but he wagered that they wanted to get away from the camp before shooting him. They probably didn’t want to have to clean blood and brains off the tents, and fresh corpses tended to attract attention from any nearby Greys, so Arthur did as he was told and walked between the two men on the way out of the fenced camping area.
    The snow crunched beneath their feet and Arthur noticed that there were no tracks leading back to the camp from where they were headed. These men weren’t even trying to fool him anymore.
    “How did you guys get stuck with this job?” asked Arthur.
    Paul snickered but Benny was the one to answer.