Contagious by Emily Goodwin Page A

twitched. “Yesterday.”
    “ It’s starting to set in, isn’t it? You’re having violent urges.”
    “ Yes, I mean, no! I know it’s wrong. I know she’s wrong,” he yelled, pointing at me. “She broke into that house. I had to shoot her. She broke the law.”
    Oh, was Padraic right. The craziness was setting in. Argos growled. We needed to leave, like yesterday.
    “ Well,” Padraic appealed. “I’m very sorry about that. Though I really don’t see how it’s relevant anymore.”
    “ I was doing what was right,” the half crazy droned. “She was wrong to break in. I had to make it right.”
    “ I don’t think we’re going to be able to reason with him,” I whispered to Padraic. “Listen, mister, why don’t you go inside and do what’s right and let us leave, ok?”
    “ Are there really others?” Padraic just had to ask.
    “ No,” the guy said. “They left me.”
    I knew that would pull on Padraic’s heartstrings. They were right leaving him. Obviously none of Mr. Almost Crazy’s friends couldn’t stomach killing him just yet. And I couldn’t either. Not when he was semi-lucid.
    “ I’m sorry,” I told him and really meant it. “You know it was the best thing though. And that’s why we have to leave you too.” I backed up.
    “ Do I have your permission to go in the house?” he asked, suddenly looking at me curiously.
    “ Yes. You have not only my permission, but my blessing. Please go in the house.” Argos growled again. Logan snapped in just minutes. We didn’t have long before this guy turned homicidal. Padraic carried the supplies back to the car, getting in without saying a word.
    “ Did you kill a zombie, Orissa?” Zoe asked me, her big green eyes almost alive with excitement.
    “ Yes,” I lied. “Two of them, actually.”
    “ Don’t lie,” Padraic said. My heart actually skipped a beat. “She killed one and Argos got the other.”
    “ Oh,” Zoe said and hugged Argos. “Good dog.”
    We drove back to the highway, making it only twenty minutes before we saw the line of unmoving cars. It was impassable, but not entirely impossible.
    “ Stop,” I told Padraic. Leaving Argos in the car, I climbed up on the roof of the Range Rover. “Hello!” I called, my voice echoing. Nothing came running out from under the cars, from the grassy median or the overgrown sides of the road. I jumped down, regretting it instantly. What I wouldn’t give for an ice pack right now. I opened the door to let Argos out.
    “ What are you doing now?” Padraic asked.
    “ Getting gas. Come on, I’ll show you.”
    Jason, Sonja and Hilary got out of their car, clueless as to what went down back at the fancy neighborhood. I told them the same lie we had told Zoe and then showed them how to siphon the gas from cars. It didn’t take long to fill up our containers and get going again.
    “ Turn here,” I instructed Padraic forty minutes later. I angled the map away from him, though I knew he could see the signs.
    “ Where are we going?” he asked, glancing at me.
    “ I went to school here,” I explained. “There was a disaster plan. I had forgotten about it until now. It’s worth a try checking out, right?”
    “ If you say so.”
    I hated that I felt guilty. I didn’t want to feel anything towards Padraic. I wanted to find her—if she was alive—and go to my grandparents’ farm. Padraic wasn’t in that equation.
    The campus was full of zombies.
    “ Damn it all to hell,” I swore under my breath. Padraic drove slowly, hoping to sneak by unnoticed. I kept my eyes focused on the glove box in front of me. I didn’t want to look at the faces, afraid of seeing someone I might know.
    We reached the dorm, passing a dozen zombies. Hilary pulled up next to us.
    “ What’s the plan?” Jason asked, too loud for my liking.
    I didn’t meet his eyes when I spoke. “Disaster relief planning. Might be inside. I went to school here.” Damn it, I was giving myself away. “I’ll go check it