Dread Nation (Dread Nation #1)(94)

I shrug. “I don’t know. But we’re sitting ducks in the middle of the prairie here, waiting for all the shamblers in the Midwest to hear the call.”

“I think Jane’s right,” Gideon says. “The problem is that the sheriff and the preacher see Summerland as a safe haven, as do many of the other families. It won’t be easy to convince them to leave.”

My eyes meet Katherine’s, and I know that she’s thinking the same thing I am.

The only way we’re going to get anyone out of here, including ourselves, is if the sheriff is taken care of.





I’m not certain what else to say. Your silence these past few months has convinced me that either you are deceased, or I have earned your vexation. Just know that no matter how long it takes until you return to Rose Hill, you will always have a place here.





Chapter 35


In Which Trouble Comes to Call


After a sad lunch of stale bread, cheese, and a few berries grown in the lab by Gideon, Katherine and I set out toward her home. Just a couple miles past Katherine’s house is the site of last night’s battle. The sheriff claims the breach in the defenses has been repaired, but with the horde that Gideon described on the way, I want to see for myself. Katherine and I can use the time to lay our plans for the sheriff.

We’ve only gone a little ways when I glance over at Katherine and see that she looks a bit peaked. It’s hot out and the sun is making its presence known in a significant way. I’m sweating under my dress, which is still a mess from last night, and I know that Katherine must be suffering as well, especially since she’s wearing at least three petticoats.

“You going to be able to walk the whole way?”

We’ve cleared the last of the town proper and have reached the dusty road that leads to the barrier fences. Katherine glares at me but says nothing, a thin sheen of perspiration shining on her skin.

“Are you wearing a corset?”

“Dammit, Jane, what is your obsession with me and my undergarments? I’m fine, all right?”

I clamp my mouth shut, because I’ve never heard Katherine swear before, so I know her temper is short. The sound of a wagon trundling along comes from behind us, and I look back to see a drover sitting at the reins. He sees us and stops.

“You want a ride, Miss Deveraux?” he says, a smile on his lips.

“Miss Deveraux would love a ride, you are too generous,” I say before Katherine can answer. She sighs but, with a helping hand, climbs onto the seat next to the man.

I start to climb aboard as well and he shoots me a dirty look. “I think it would be best if’n you walked. The sheriff doesn’t like coloreds in the wagon.”

“Nice to see no good deed goes unpunished,” I mutter. I walk alongside, the big old horse setting a plodding pace that is easy to keep up with.

“I’m Alan, by the way. I brought you a rabbit yesterday for your supper.”

“Oh, yes, thank you, Mr. Alan; it made for quite a lovely meal,” Katherine says, a polite smile on her face.

“It’s just Alan,” he says, face red as a boiled beet. I can barely keep my eyes from rolling out of my head the way he’s fawning over her.

“What are you doing out this far, Miss Deveraux?” Alan asks.

“Jane was telling me all about the battle last night, and I wanted to see the repair of the wall for myself. She said there were at least two hundred shamblers, and that you faced them down all by yourselves! The thought alone is terrifying, and I will not rest well until I see that Summerland’s defenses have been rejoined.”

Alan’s jaw tightens and he looks straight ahead. “It was mostly the colored folks that fought the shamblers. No surprise there. Government pays to send them to those fancy schools while real men like me are left to fend for ourselves.”

Katherine and I exchange a look, but Alan keeps talking.

“If it wasn’t for all that money going to educate darkies, we’d have better weapons to fight the undead, and better training for real men, too. This is why that horde is taking out the East. Like the preacher says, ‘You reap what you sow,’ and the buffoons in Washington have sown this country’s ruin in their experiments with Negro enfranchisement.”

Katherine coughs delicately. “Taking out the East? You mean Baltimore, yes?”

He glances at Katherine in alarm. “I’m sorry, Miss Deveraux. I should have known it would be a bit of a shock since it’s where your people are from, but it’s not just Baltimore County. We received word that all of Maryland and Delaware have now been overrun by undead.”

“My goodness,” Katherine breathes, and Alan leans in just a bit, seeing her distress as an opening.

“Yes, ma’am. They say Pennsylvania is next; heard the rich folks there set out for sea instead of trying to save the city. Haven’t heard word on Washington yet, but the way the horde was heading it shouldn’t be long until it’s overwhelmed as well, despite its strong defenses.”

“Horde? You mean to tell me that there’s a single pack taking out the Eastern Seaboard?” I ask. It’s the stuff of nightmares—and precisely what Gideon had said was happening.

Alan looks down at me. “What, they didn’t teach you about hordes at your fancy government school?”