Flesh-Eater (Book 1): Fear the Fever by Stacey Broadbent Page B

to Zeke’s place.  Millie was cradled in his arms, her head tucked under his chin to stop it from lolling about.
    They didn’t speak.  There were no words left to say at this point, as each one mourned the life of the person who had meant so much to them.  The sweet, innocent girl who had been so full of life and love.  It was hard to comprehend that they would no longer hear her singing in the fields, or see her face light up in childlike wonder at the sight of a butterfly.  She would no longer grace them with her brilliant smile that could light up any room she entered.
    Even knowing what her fate was likely to be, they couldn’t just abandon her.  Her skin had begun to fade to a dull grey colour and her cheekbones were protruding from her face, but she was still Millie.  If you looked hard enough, you could still make out her gentle beauty.
    Once it had sunk in that she wasn’t coming back, they had decided to take her with them and bury her, along with Mary, under the big oak tree.  She would like that.
    Zeke had ever so carefully picked her back up and tenderly kissed the top of her head, whispering, “I know you’re still in there, Millie.  Please stay calm.  Try to fight it.”
    He had pinned her arms between his chest and her body so that he could feel the moment she began to reanimate.  He held his chin firmly against her forehead so that she wouldn’t be able to bite him.
    Never had the distance between their homes, felt so vast before.  He knew it was only a matter of time before she came back to life, so to speak.  What they would do when that happened… it didn’t bear thinking about.
    Harper was staring off into the distance, her fingers picking at the bottom of her sweater.  He knew he should say something to make her feel better, but he was struggling to find the words.  They had both lost so much today.
    “Do you think, if we pray, God will save her?” her voice was barely more than a whisper.  She turned to face him, her eyes glistening with tears.  “Do you think he could stop her from… becoming one of them?”
    “I don’t know, Harper.  It wouldn’t hurt to try,” he said to humour her, not really believing his words.  God? He thought, what kind of God would bestow this kind of plague upon us?  On Millie?
    “Will you pray with me?” she asked.
    “Sure.”  He stopped walking and she placed a hand on his shoulder, bowing her head.
    “God, we pray that you will look after my sister, Millie, and that you will guide her to you and not let her suffer in the hell that is on Earth at this time.  We pray that you will free her soul from this body and let her join you in heaven.  Don’t turn my baby sister into one of those monsters.  Please, God,” she begged, making the sign of the cross across her chest.  “Amen.”
    “Amen.”
    She looked up at him and smiled.  “Thank you for doing that.”
    “I’d do anything to save her, you know that.”
    “Yeah, I know.”
    Zeke turned back towards his house.  It was finally in sight.  “Not much further to go now,” he said, as he began to trudge along once more.
    A flicker of movement by the house caught his eye.  He squinted, trying to see what it was.  The last thing they needed was to run into more of the ‘undead’.  All he really wanted to do, was lay Millie and his mother to rest.  He didn’t think he could take much more today.
    Keeping his eyes focused on the house, he led Harper to the edge of the field, giving them a bit more cover.  He noticed a beat-up Ford Escort parked behind his car, making his heart jump into his throat.  That hadn’t been there before.
    “Get down!” he hissed at Harper, crouching as best as he could with Millie in his arms.
    “What?  Why?” she asked, confused.
    He pointed to the car.  “Someone’s there.  That car’s not mine, and I saw something move by the house.”
    Harper’s eyes widened, reminding him of her sister.  “What do we do?”
    “We need