The Living Dead Boy (The Living Dead Boy #1)(32)

“You should be afraid I’d shoot you.”

With an even bigger grin, Chad tossed back his hair. “I knew you liked me.”

“Shut up.” Corina stood and walked over to where Josh was seated. Crossing her arms, she gazed toward the horizon with an annoyed look on her face.

“She doesn’t like you,” Troy informed Chad. “No one does.”

“Yeah, you suck.” Sam made a point of scrambling away from Chad.

Speaking to Danny in Spanish, Dulce sounded upset.

“I don’t think she likes him either.” Troy said, and Sam laughed.

“My cousin is worried about something else,” Danny replied.

“What’d she say?” Corina asked.

“That we need to keep moving. The storm is coming and it’s a bad one. It’s kinda green.” Danny pointed to the dark clouds.

“Yeah, she’s right,” Corina agreed.

“What does green mean?” Sam asked.

“A bad storm with hail and possibly a tornado,” Corina answered.

“And that’s bad.” Troy shoved the wrapper to his jerky in his pocket. “Time to go.”

Chad scoffed at Troy’s consideration of the environment. “Just throw it on the ground.”

“I don’t litter. Even at the end of the world.” Frowning, Troy joined Josh and Corina. “What a jerk.”

Grunting, Sam got to his feet.

“Don’t put yourself out, fat baby,” Chad teased.

Sam ignored the remark and picked up the stick he’d been carrying. It was forked on one end and fairly sturdy.

“Did you hear me?” Chad poked Sam’s arm.

Jerking away, Sam scampered over to Josh and Troy.

“Leave him alone!” Corina ordered.

“Eh. He’s going to die anyway. He’s a fat lard butt. I’m surprised he’s made it this far.”

“No thanks to you!” Corina stomped over to Chad. “You almost got us all killed back there. You didn’t think about anyone but yourself.”

“I outran all those zombies and I saved you!” Chad stared at Corina in disbelief. “I’m the hero here. I’m the leader.”

“No you’re not. Josh is,” Troy said in a firm voice.

“He can be the leader of you, loser, but I’m the leader of this group.” Chad straightened his spine to tower over everyone.

Danny and Dulce exchanged amused looks, and Dulce said something in Spanish.

“He’s smarter than you,” Danny said to Chad while pointing to Josh. “We’ll stick with him.”

“I outran the zombies!”

“The zombies you provoked by running like an idiot through a zombie-infested parking lot without a plan! You ruined any chance we had to get to the bus!” Corina clenched her fists at her sides. She appeared ready to smack him.

“I saved you at the fence!”

“I would have gotten away in just a few more seconds,” she retorted. “Josh was helping me, and the others were fighting off the zombies. Where were you then? You didn’t come back until the last second.”

Corina’s defense made Josh’s heart swell with pride. Finishing sharpening his spear, he climbed to his feet and faced Chad. Troy and Sam stood at his sides, both frowning at the older teen with disdain.

“I. Saved. All. Of. You.” Chad glared at the kids standing in front of him. “Losers.”

“How?” Troy folded his arms over his chest. Sarcasm edged every word he said. “Explain how you saved us?”

“Yeah. Cause you’re the one who almost got us all killed.” Sam copied Troy’s stance.

“Fatso, you’re lucky we let you hang with us. But we’ll use you for bait later.”

Corina poked Chad with one finger right in the center of his chest hard enough to make him flinch and step back “You will not. Sam is braver than you. You treat him with respect!”

“You’re all a bunch of losers,” Chad grunted. “And I’m the oldest. You have to obey me.”

“We’re done here,” Josh announced. “Let’s go.”

Without waiting for Chad to back down, Josh walked down the center of the drainage ditch holding his spear at his side. Danny and Dulce dropped into line behind him while Sam and Troy closely followed. Corina shoved Chad out of her way and hurried to catch up with Josh.

“Without me leading, you’re going to die!” Chad shouted after them.

The group of kids ignored him and kept hiking.

A few minutes later, Chad scurried past them and took up the lead five feet in front of the group.

“They’ll get him first,” Corina whispered to Josh loud enough for everyone to hear.

The kids burst into laughter.

Red-faced, Chad dropped back and trudged along behind Sam.

Without a word, Corina took Josh’s free hand and squeezed it.





Chapter 20


The drainage ditch between the woods and the field finally twisted away from the trees and sliced the field in half. The barbed-wire fences on both sides of the ditch didn’t have wires strung between posts, but instead had a wire mesh. Josh wasn’t too sure if that would make it easier to get over or not. Water trickled over the gravel in the center of the ditch, and the kids kept to the sides to avoid getting their feet wet. The water was probably from the storm. A thick band of rain slanted across the sky to the south, and Josh hoped it would avoid them entirely. The clouds were thick and a sickly color in that direction. Ahead was a peaceful blue sky with fluffy white clouds.