Page 89 of Hollow Child

“Paddle as fast as you can!” Serg shouted before giving the boat one final push, and he turned and ran back to the shore. “Lazlo, get in the truck and go! I’ll take care of the zombies!”

But I knew that wasn’t true. The zombies were going to take care of Serg. There were too many, and he was one man.

He raced at the zombies, not even a weapon in his hand, and he punched the one closest to him. Then another jumped onto his back and started tearing into his throat.

“Stop!” I screamed because Serg deserved so much better than this.

And to my surprise – and my horror – all of the zombies stopped. They didn’t freeze exactly, but they let go of Serg and straightened up so they were juststanding there.

Serg fell to the ground, blood pouring from his throat. Lazlo had been watching, and he ran over and attacked the zombies with a crowbar. None of them moved or flinched, not even when he bashed their heads in.

“The zombies listened to me,” I realized, and suddenly, I knew I couldn’t go on the steamboat.

“How did you do that?” Nova asked me in a hushed voice.

The raft was rowing slowly out into the river, and Lazlo had just dispatched the final zombie. Nova was holding Sage behind me, and right next to her was Eden.

I turned to Eden, handing her Minnie’s lead, my bag, and my sleeping daughter. “Please take care of her. Remy trusts you, so I will, too. I’ll come back if I can.”

“What are you talking about?” Eden asked in surprise and confusion.

Before anyone could stop me, I kissed Rafaella goodbye, and I jumped into the water. It was so cold, much colder than I would’ve guessed, and it sent shivers through me.

Nova and Eden called after me, but I didn’t slow or look back. Max, Remy, Boden, and Ripley were still in town, and the zombies had listened to me. Maybe I could protect them or the other survivors left behind.

Lazlo was crouched down beside Serg, holding his hand as he stared up at the night sky and gasped his last breaths. I raced over to join them and tripped on the heavy, wet length of my dress, so then I crawled over to him.

“Serg, you didn’t have to do that,” I said, already crying as I took his hand. “You should’ve gotten on the boat.”

“It was already too late for me,” he said feebly. “Go save yourself. Live your life.”

“I will,” I promised him, and I kissed his forehead. “I love you, Serg.”

He exhaled, and he was gone.

52

Mercy

I have always known that I was destined for greatness. As the time draws near when the whole world will know my name, it is important for everyone to understand how all of this came to be and how I saved all of humanity.

I am the product of two of the greatest lineages in all of Canada that existed at the turn of the millennia.

My mother was born Elmyra Zazel Wearghams, and she was of the Wonderous Wearghams. On her father’s side, going back generations, they were famed entertainers. Her ancestor Wilhelm Silvanus Wearghams founded W. S. Wearghams Hippodrome in 1873, and that eventually grew into the legendary Wonderous Wearghams Travelling Circus.

At the height of their popularity during the Golden Age of the Circus, they rivaled any other show on earth. My great grandparents performed to audiences of ten thousand, and they made millions of dollars a year.

Like all good things, the halcyon days eventually led to a decline as moving pictures dominated the public’s interest with cinemas and television. After a long and illustrious run, the Wonderous Wearghams closed their last tent in 1968. My mother was only a teenager at the time, and she went looking for a place that would appreciate her strength, tenacity, wisdom, and unwavering loyalty.

My father was born Ezekial Kaleb Loth at the tail end of the Silent Generation. He was the eldest son of the eldest son of the great Loth family of the prominent Loth Family Ranch and Cattle Company. His ancestor Lazarus Bly Loth founded the ranch in 1886 when he bought 300 acres to raise cattle and horses.

By the time my father was born, the ranch had grown to over 100,000 acres, and by the time thatIwas born, it was all the way up to 500,000 acres. Millions of cattle had grazed on the land, supplying the booming population in Vancouver with their demand for fresh meat.

Despite the name of “family ranch,” it was a huge operation, one that earned acclaim and respect all throughout the provinces. Not only did it provide high quality and essential services, but the ranch also employed over a hundred local men.

Even with all the wealth and prestige that the family and the business already had, it only grew when my mother joined the Loths.

In 1970, Elmyra finally found someone worthy of what she had to offer. Not only a good, strong, wise man, but one that had a powerful legacy to build on. Elmyra and Zeke (as she lovingly called Ezekial) married, and under their guidance, the ranch soon became the largest and the greatest in all of the Western Hemisphere.

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