Life After Death

Chapter 9

~***~

"I heard my dad saying you're gonna become zombie food." A young kid says. They've got long brown hair in twin braids and a single teal streak in their hair. Something tells me this is Edwin.

"My dad wants us to move. That's not zombie food." I say. We're sitting in a cafeteria of sorts. I've got a granola bar, Edwin has a sandwich with jam and everything. I wonder where he got all the ingredients from. He always gets the best food.

"Same thing. Your dad is gonna have to protect all three of you, and he's missing an eye! You won't last a day." 

"That's not fair. Jane is blind and she's way better at fighting than you are. So my dad can be good too. And we can learn to be better at fighting. Or do other stuff to help. Vlad wants to be one of the healers. All the teachers are always saying how healers are more important than fighters." I say, taking a bite from my food and chewing angrily. Edwin is always saying how useless our family is, and I'm getting tired of it.

"He's just a kid, not a healer. That's not helpful. And what about you and Tyler? You've got nothing but a limp and Tyler is two. You two would be useless outside the walls." 

"You're just a kid too, not a fighter. All the people here used to be kids. We can learn to be better. Tyler might be a better fighter than you ever will be! And maybe I can be a healer too. Or a scientist! Or a builder. I've got more options than fighting, you know."

"You can't learn any of those things if you leave the walls and become zombie food. Your dad is dumb for wanting to leave. That's why my dad is gonna get rid of him." Edwin says with a grin. That's ominous. I stand from my seat and rush to find my dad, leaving my bar behind. I can't focus on eating when he had to go and say something like that.

I'd bet it's just a cruel prank, Edwin always is pulling those. Still, I need to make sure. After Vlad overheard my dad blaming Mr. Cove for my mom's death, I haven't trusted him or his son. I go through the halls and find my room, going to the next door to the right where my dad sleeps. I open it to find my dad on the floor with an arrow in his head and a man standing over him holding a crossbow. Mr. Cove.

~***~

I wake up, and the pain has mostly faded. My back and body are still aching, though I prefer the aching over the actual taser. I'm lying on a bed of sorts, similar to the one I had during my stay at the hospital. I go to jump from the bed, but a strap around my torso keeps me from doing so. I'm trapped. As I continue to struggle against the binding, a familiar face walks in. Edwin is now wearing a lab coat rather than his guard uniform. At least he doesn't have three tasers for me to worry about now.

"You bastard! You've always been a massive dick, haven't you? Even as a kid. You're a spoiled rotten piece of shit!" I curse at him, wiggling against the strap even harder. I may not have access to my hands, but I can still fight him if he dares to get closer.

"Are you going to keep acting like a rabid beast, or are you going to cooperate so you can be released from those straps?" He asks, hardly batting an eye at my thrashing. His tone is completely different than before. He's either a really convincing actor, or I'm way too gullible. I glare at him, but I rest my head back down and relax. If I cooperate now, I can get released and get revenge later.

"What's your deal? Were you just playing along to attack me?" I ask.

"Pretty much. I and everyone else in this place know about the cure, we're not idiots. Everyone is still here by choice because we're a much nicer and safer place to live than your Elysium. We've known about your hole for a while, we just were waiting for someone to come through to have the upper hand. It was just so much easier with you because you don't know anything about us anymore!"