“Way too many,” Shitty Ritchie said with a shudder.
Getting a solid physical ID on the Higher Power wasn’t going to be possible. However, the Higher Power often looked like what a person consciously or unconsciously chose It to look like. “People,” I said. “Pick a douchey celebrity.”
“Ain’t got time for games right now, corn nut,” Candy Vargo groused. “Have you lost your dang testies?”
“I have,” I confirmed. “It usually appears as someone who we’ve thought about or discussed. I say we call it now, so if It shows up, we know it’s the Higher Power.”
“Brilliant!” Shitty Ritchie screeched. “I vote for…”
“Wait,” Tim said. “We need to pick someone none of us likes. It will be easier to end It if we have to.”
“We can’t end It,” Charlie ground out. “The third of the Trinity hasn’t revealed itself. If we end the Higher Power, we end everything.”
“FUCK,” Candy Vargo bellowed. “He’s right. Pick someone nobody wants to off. Someone un-off-able.”
I kind of doubted that the Higher Power would show up on the earthly plane, but at this point anything was possible. I might not want to believe it, but denying it could be catastrophic.
“Tom Hanks,” I said. “Everyone loves Tom Hanks. There’s nothing not to love.”
“Bingo, corn hole,” Candy said. “All you shart stains think about Tom Hanks.”
“Loved him inBig!” Shitty Ritchie gushed.
The time for chit-chat was over. I scanned the room. Heather held Alana Catherine in her arms. Catriona was at her side with Shitty Ritchie on her lap. Both of the women were armed and very dangerous. That was outstanding. June and Jennifer were with them.
Jennifer had an open laptop in her hands. She was waiting for news on her pappy. Since we weren’t leaving just yet, maybe I’d get to find out the name of her mysterious father. I’d make that my goal, along with keeping my loved ones safe and staying alive.
Having goals was good. Reaching them was better.
There were ten.Ten zombies. They didn’t look like the zombies from TV or the movies. The only reason that zombie was the correct term to use was because they’d been risen from the dead. All ten looked mostly human.
There were six of us. It wasn’t bad odds. We’d faced far worse and came out on top. My entire yard looked like a gutted-out war zone. Again, I was glad we lived in the middle of nowhere, far from the populated town. The chance of the cops showing up was slim.
The craters were deep, and most of the trees had been uprooted. Small fires smoldered and the air was thick with smoke. The scent wafting surrounding us was rancid. The light breeze carried the aroma directly to us. It smelled of dead and decaying bodies, which shouldn’t have been much of a surprise considering the enemy. The Higher Power was a sick and evil person. Reanimating the dead was atrocious. A small part of me felt sorry for the bodies standing in front of us. They’d had no say in this. They were being used.
I reminded myself that they were no longer human. Ending them wasn’t taking a life. They were already dead. For all I knew, their souls had gone into the Light. They might have been wonderful in their human lives. But now? Now, they were not wonderful. They were killing machines created by someone who should not be in charge. Someday, that would change. Today would not be that day. Today, we had to end the madness that wanted to end us.
“Those are some ugly bitches,” Candy Vargo whispered as we stood on the front porch and eyed the enemy.
The explosions had stopped, and they weren’t advancing. Tim and Zander had not joined us yet. They would wait for the right time. Each Immortal present was well-versed in battle. I stood between Candy Vargo and Gideon. Charlie was toGideon’s right. We were a formidable group, but the zombies showed no fear. They’d probably been programmed that way.
“Agreed,” Gideon said. “And we’re about to put them out of their misery and ours.”
“Hell to the yes,” Candy grunted.
The zombies stood shoulder to shoulder in my front yard. They looked exactly as described by Zander and Catriona. Their eyes were milky white and soulless. It was disturbing. Each was bald and each was toothless. They didn’t resemble cadavers, but they didn’t appear to have many human qualities left either. The Higher Power had chosen men—all men. They were large in stature and muscular.
One stepped forward.
“You think that’s the leader?” Candy questioned quietly.
“Doubtful,” Charlie answered. “The Higher Power is too smart to play that way. It knows that Zander and Catriona defeated Its minions recently. The jig is up on how they work. We’re going to have to end them by process of elimination.”
“Why aren’t they coming for us?” I asked, tightening my hand on the gun in my pocket. The air was calm but filled with impending menace.
Gideon answered without taking his eyes off the prize. “I surmise it will go as before. They will state their request. We’ll say, fuck you and then they die.”
My brows shot up. “That was succinct.”
