Page 43 of Hollow Valley

I looked back out the window and realized the zombies were no longer shuffling about.All of them had turned their attention to the arched gate on the north wall of the courtyard.

In the barracks behind me, the others were frantically shouting over each other and at Alphie.I tuned them out as I focused on seeing what the zombies were about to do.

As I stepped closer to the windows, the distant but blood-curdling sound of someone screaming became audible.Then the north gate of the courtyard opened, and the screams were loud enough that everyone could hear.Everyone else in the bunkroom fell silent and slowly joined me at the windows to bear witness.

Four Revvers in armor tossed two women into the courtyard.The armor I only caught a glimpse of, and it looked like a metal trash can covered in spikes with a football helmet on their heads.What I noticed the most was the women and the way they were tossed into the zombies like a bag of trash into a pit.

As the women landed roughly on the hard cobblestones, the Revvers left and closed the north gate behind them.

From where I watched, I couldn’t discern the women’s ages.Somewhere between twenty and fifty, maybe.But they were both a little chubby in tattered, filthy clothing.There were fresh wounds on their arms and calves with bright red blood scenting the air.

The zombies were already lumbering toward them, having been summoned by the screams.The women turned, limping and running toward the door, but neither of them reached it before they were swarmed.

The entire horde of Loved Ones descended on the two women.At first the women screamed, somehow louder and more desperate than before, but soon they stopped.Then it was only the wet sound of tearing flesh and teeth gnashing on bone.

My mouth began to water, and I felt like throwing up and sobbing.I pressed my palm against the glass, and I breathed in deeply, inhaling the scent of rotting decay, coppery blood, and impending rain.

And then, almost all at once, the zombies straightened out and shuffled off again.When they cleared enough that I could see the women, there was nothing but bloody bones and rags left.

That’s when I finally noticed Nell, the Allmother, standing on a second story balcony outstretching over the courtyard.Beside her were at least a dozen other Revvers, all dressed in gaudy clothing.Each and every one of them had watched the zombies feast, and they all were smiling and laughing, as if it had been some wonderful play put on for their enjoyment.

“Boden,” I said, summoning him away from his attempted interrogation of Alphie.

“Are you okay?”he asked as he came over to join me at the window.“You shouldn’t have watched that.”

“I know how we can get out of here,” I whispered and looked up at him.“I need the Revvers to feed me to the zombies.”

26

Stella

It was dark when Alphie had finally calmed down enough to talk about what exactly expiation meant for the Revvers.She still sat in the corner, with Edie beside her and a blanket around her shoulders.I sat between Boden and Leandro on the closest cot while Fergus paced the room and chewed on his thumbnail.

“The Loved Ones require nourishment, as all living things do,” Alphie explained.“They prefer living food with humans being their only true craving.So, to appease and venerate the Loved Ones, they must be fed on a regular basis.

“Sentries are always patrolling the territory looking for outsiders,” she went on, speaking as if telling a charming bedtime story to us instead of explaining the cannibalistic rituals.“But even Nell can’t control how many people will cross our paths.That means that the Loved Ones are fed much more intermittently than is ideal.”

“How frequent are regular feedings if Nell had her wish?”Boden asked.

“Once every single day,” Alphie said.“The humans must be healthy, and never more than two at a time because the Loved Ones will leave too much meat on the bone.If a body isn’t entirely devoured, sometimes it rises again as a Revenant, and there is only room in the courtyard for Loved Ones.”

“Wait.”Fergus stopped and looked down at her.“What’s the tipping point, so to speak?Or how little flesh is needed for the virus to get it moving again?”

“A brain at least,” Alphie said.“But I don’t truly know.I hated to watch the expiation ceremony.”

“Yeah, so did we,” Leandro muttered.

“The Loved Ones haven’t been fed since we arrived,” Boden realized.“If Nell prefers to feed them daily, why weren’t they fed for three days?”

“Like I said, even the Allmother can’t control the supply.There was no healthy offering available,” Alphie said.“Nell wouldnevergive them anything diseased or unworthy.That’s why expiation isn’t the automatic punishment for everyone the Sentry finds.Not all outsiders are suitable.”

“What about us?”I asked.“Would we be deemed worthy and healthy enough to be an offering?”

Alphie thought for a moment, blinking as she stared straight ahead.“Yes.”

“Trust Dougal to be the one getting sick, not me,” Fergus muttered to himself.

“Do they take volunteers?”I asked.