Read My Zombie Summer (Book 1): The Undead Road for Free Online Page A

slowed the car down even more. “Is that what I think it is?”
    “That’s horrible!” Mom gagged. “What happened?”
    “What is it?” Jewel peeked over Mom’s shoulder. “Eww! That’s gross!”
    “Sit back,” Mom said. “You shouldn’t see that.”
    But I wanted to see it. So did Kaylynn, apparently. I followed Jewel’s lead and freed myself from my seatbelt. Then, when I glimpsed over my dad’s shoulder, I doubled back and tried my best not to throw up. Stretched across the road was a line of human corpses.
    It didn’t stop with the road. A border of death went down both hills and deep into the neighborhoods. There had to be over a hundred, old and young, their dead gray bodies baking under the hot sun. Dad reached for his console and pushed the recycled air button.
    On the other side of the road was a painted sign:
    All Dead
    Dad sneezed. “That dog is getting to me.”
    The sign doubled as a warning. But then, why would someone go through the effort of making a sign like that or lining the edge of the city with bodies? We’d seen a few piles of dead people throughout Iowa now and then. I assumed the living had put their dead there and burned them. This was far too creepy. We drove on, carefully crossing over the squishy speed bumps.
    As we neared the middle of the city, it was clear that the place was empty—like a ghost town. Nothing but vacant cars, abandoned streets. There was no gas station in sight. We passed a supermarket, an old church, a fitness center, and more neighborhoods, but it wasn’t until we reached the north end of town when Dad found a station with a yellow shell. We pulled into it. Dad parked and cut the engine. We waited for about a minute, checking around for signs of movement.
    Dad opened his door. He stepped out and wiped his nose. I cracked my window. No funky smell. Yet.
    Dad made his way to the pumps. “No electricity.” Without power, we couldn’t pump gas—the normal way. “Come on out and stretch your legs.”
    We did. Mom checked the parameter and the convenience store windows. Dad went to the trunk and pulled out a five-gallon gas can, a hose, and a hammer.
    “I’ll siphon what I can from these cars,” he said. “If there’s any food and water inside, let’s stock up. And if you need a bathroom break, now’s the time.”
    “Finally!” Jewel cried. “I gotta take an epic pee!”
    She jumped out of the car and ran to Mom. They went inside the store together, leaving me alone with Moody Miss Two-Shoes. Her dog jumped out from the back and sat next to Kaylynn. The girl stared down the vacant road, like she was trying to make up her mind.
    “Mr. Barnes?” she said.
    Dad turned away from the pickup truck that he was inspecting. “Yes, Kaylynn?”
    “I know Chloe’s bothering you. Thank you for the ride, but . . . I think we’ll stay here.”
    That decision came out of nowhere. We had our misunderstandings, sure, but the dog thing could work.
    Okay, fine. I’ll be honest. I wasn’t ready to let her go yet. “Are you sure?” I asked with a straight face.
    Her eyes found me. She nodded with confidence.
    “I don’t like it.” Dad went back to prying the gas cap off the pickup. “You’re the first person we’ve seen in weeks, Kaylynn. Not much left of humanity now.”
    “I’m sorry, Mr. Barnes. You’re not my dad.”
    “You’re right.” Dad screwed the pickup’s gas cap open and fed the long hose into it. “I have my own to look after. We wouldn’t force you to stay with us.”
    Kaylynn turned down the street. “Good luck.”
    “And you.” Dad sucked on the hose and spat gas from his mouth.
    I stood dumbstruck as the girl walked the way we had come. Just like that, my dad was letting her go without trying to convince her to stay.
    Nope. I wasn’t about to let her go so easily. She was the first non-zombie girl I’d seen since May. Who knew if I’d ever see one again? Mom and Jewel came back from the store empty-handed, and Dad wasted