was I would have put her down on the spot."

  "Don't be too hard on yourself, Lee. These times have been

  trying on us all."

  Lori rolled her eyes again, pulling on the ropes. She felt another

  little shift. Tiny, barely any movement at all. But it was miles to Lori.

  "But it gets worse, I'm afraid," Gregory continued. "This

  woman has infiltrated our buildings and stolen our equipment. She has

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  access to our weapons and our maps. Which means that my attempt to

  call on the animals to defend us has had a tragic side effect. She knows

  where I am, or will very soon. She intends to steal my daughter from

  me. She broadcast her intent over the entire zoo. Using my equipment,

  Lee. Our equipment."

  "I heard, sir," said Lee's voice. "It's a terrible thing. The

  Keepers will fight to the last to defend you and your daughter, sir."

  "I know Lee, I know. But first things first. We must move. She

  knows where I am. She knows where the food is. We must consolidate

  our power somewhere else. Somewhere she isn't expecting."

  "Sir, if I may make a suggestion. We should retake the

  Communications Office. We could command the whole zoo from

  there."

  "No, Lee, no," said Gregory, shaking his head at the

  microphone. Lori pulled at the ropes. She heard rain pounding outside.

  Gregory drummed his fingers on the desk. "There's no point in that, I'm

  afraid. We don't know how many of her people are there. We can't risk

  good Keeper lives on what may be an ambush. Second, it is only a

  matter of time before the power goes out. The world has ended, Lee.

  Soon the outside resources will fail. All of our cameras and

  communicators will be useless. We will have to work on a more basic

  level."

  "What do you suggest, sir?"

  Gregory leaned forward, speaking lower than before. Lori could

  still make out what he was saying. She didn't care anymore. Gregory

  had lost his mind. Everyone had. She had to get out. She had to get

  free. The ropes wouldn't give anymore than they had already. She felt

  like crying. The rain outside pounded and Gregory's low voice

  muttered into the microphone. She hated him. She hated everything but

  Ella. She had to get out. She had to.

  * * *

  Lee lowered the communicator and looked around the kitchen.

  His heart felt large with pride. With purpose. The other Keepers

  looked back to him. Some looked confused. Lee knew they would

  come to understand.

  Gregory's voice came back over the communicator. "I know I

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  can count on you, Lee."

  Lee raised the communicator back to his lips. "Thank you sir. I

  won't let you down."

  A click came from the communicator, signaling Gregory had

  switched off his end. Lee hooked the communicator to his belt. He

  surveyed the Keepers.

  "You heard him. We have work to do. Which means we'll have

  to step things up here." He turned to the Keepers he'd already given the

  K. Blood smeared on their arms from where theyd wiped away the

  trickles. He indicated roughly half of them. "You guys, come over

  here."

  He led the group to the nearest stainless steel counter in the

  kitchen. He slid open a drawer, revealing dozens of steak knives like

  the one he was using. "Everyone take one," he said. Each of the

  Keepers reached into the drawer and pulled out a knife.

  Lee nodded to each of them holding a blade. Rain pounded

  outside. "Alright." He nodded at the others, the ones waiting in line to

  receive their K. "Give them all the mark. Be careful. Be neat. An injury

  would just make it harder for them to fulfill their duties. And that's one

  less Keeper to help you. Understand?"

  The others nodded.

  "And if any refuse, well..." Lee trailed off. The others nodded.

  "Just make sure to put a dart in their head afterwards. To be sure."

  They all nodded a third time. The young man with fat cheeks

  swallowed again. Lee noticed he did that a lot. He worried about the

  young man's resolve.

  "To work, Keepers."

  They all left Lee there and moved to the Keepers line. Lee

  watched them get started. They had Keepers rolling up their sleeves

  and were carving in no time. Lee felt proud.

  When he was satisfied in their work, he grabbed a handful of

  knives from the drawer. He moved back to the second half of the K

  Keepers. "The rest of you," he said. "Come with me."

  He led them across the darkened kitchen, out into the eating

  area. There was slightly more light here. Outside the rooms large

  windows, all was gray. Rain pounded down on the glass.

  He reached the front doors and turned to face the Keepers. He

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  handed each one a knife. "Alright," he said, turning back to the door.

  "Follow my lead."

  He opened the door and stepped outside into the pounding rain.

  It pelted his head and shoulders, soaking him in seconds. He ignored it.

  Today was a glorious day.

  Many people huddled outside, waiting for feeding time. They

  looked at Lee and the others, all hunched shoulders and hungry eyes.

  Lee smiled, holding the knife down at his side. "Who here

  would like some food?"

  * * *

  Angie lowered her rifle, watching the corpse of a small old

  woman fall. The dart embedded in her forehead bobbed up and down as

  she slumped. Angie shouldered the rifle and wiped rain from her face.

  It was immediately soaked again.

  Angie looked around, willing herself to go slowly. The rain had

  picked up and it was harder to see. She stared at the large figure in the

  area up ahead. She felt ridiculous, but she had to make sure it wasn't

  moving. It was still.

  "Okay," she said, nodding. She walked forward. Park grunted

  behind her, pushing the wheelbarrow.

  They walked slowly and the shape resolved into a large stone

  statue. A rich man looked proud and serene with bushes surrounding

  him. Richard Ashton IV, said a plaque underneath the statue. Founder

  of Ashton Memorial Zoo.

  "Here," she said. Park set the wheelbarrow down.

  "Fuck about time," he said. "Fucker was filling up with water."

  "I could have pushed for awhile."

  "I didn't say that," said Park, smirking. "I just wanted to bitch a

  little."

  Angie nodded, looking around. No corpses or crazed animals in

  sight. "Okay," she said. "Here goes nothing."

  She took the communicator from her pocket and held it to her

  mouth. She clicked the button. Her voice boomed from speakers all

  over the zoo.

  "Ladies and gentlemen," she said. "My name is Angela Land. If

  you are trapped in this zoo, or if you just want to free this place from

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  the madness that has overtaken it, please join me. Together we can

  make the Keepers give us food. Together we can force the madman

  who has taken over to step down. We have weapons but I pray we

  won't need them. Our numbers should be enough. We are waiting by

  the statue of Richard Ashton. Join us. Thank you."

  She lowered the communicator and switched it off, feeling

  ridiculous.

  "You know you just told the crazies where we are, too," said

  Park.

  "I know," said Angie. "I don't know how else to do this. We

  just have to risk it."

  They waited, staring silently into the pounding rain. Five

  minutes later the first people appeared. They were scared, confused,

  and alive. They looked at Angie questioningly. She nodded and

  motioned them to the wheelbarrow.

  * * *

  Lori sat motionless as Gregory opened the door and stepped out

  of the room. She stared at the floor, making her face as blank as

  possible. She wanted to look defeated, helpless. She wanted him to

  think nothing of leaving her alone. She wanted him to think he'd won.

  He told Lee where they were moving to. Right in front of her. She

  wanted him to think there was no point in hiding information.

  He shut the door behind him, leaving Lori alone. Lori grabbed

  the ropes on her legs with both hands, pulling as hard as she could. She

  kept glancing at her broken phone across the room. The more she stared

  at it, the more repairable it looked. She could see how the battery fit

  back in, how the keyboard could be snapped into place. If she could

  just get a message to Ella. If she could just tell her where they were

  going. It was possible she was being ridiculous. She knew it. But she

  had to try.

  She pulled, feeling hope when her leg shifted slightly. She'd

  heard that woman the night before. Her father was with her. Her real

  father, not the bearded monster who kept smiling at her. She hadn't

  heard from her real father in years. Ella hated him for it. Lori was

  indifferent about him, but at the moment he was preferable to Gregory.

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  Her leg shifted again and she risked a small hop. The chair

  inched closer to the corner. To the phone. She was crazy. She knew it.

  But she had to keep going. She'd heard the woman over the speakers.

  She'd heard her dad. They said they were coming for her. They said

  nothing about Ella. That meant Ella was with them. It had to.

  That, or...

  She forced that line of thinking to stop. She pulled at the ropes

  and hopped again. The chair slid forward, then tipped. For a moment

  her chest pounded and she teetered, then she fell forward. She put up

  her palms to brace herself.

  She hit the floor hard. Her palms smacked against the floor and

  the chair cracked against her legs. It hurt. It hurt a lot. But more

  importantly, it was loud.

  "What's that?" came Gregory's voice from outside the door. Not

  right by the door, but close enough.

  Panting against the cold floor, Lori reached for the ruins of her

  phone. Her shoulders and legs hurt. Her palms were raw and sharp

  pains shot up her wrists. She ignored it as her fingers closed on the

  mass of plastic and metal that had been her phone.

  She pulled the mass to her, working as quickly as she could.

  She heard Gregory approaching. She had seconds, if she was lucky.

  Her hands shaking, she snapped the battery into the back of the

  phone and pressed the keypad into place. For a moment she stared at

  the dead phone, feeling heartbroken and so very very stupid.

  Mom looks like something is wrong. She stares blankly at the

  road as she steers the car.

  "Are you okay, Mom?" says Lori.

  "No," says Mom.

  Then the screen lit up.

  Her heart leapt as the phone booted to a start in her hands.

  Gregory was close. She heard his footsteps right outside the door. She

  heard him fishing around in his pockets, looking for his keycard.

  As quickly as her shaking fingers could manage, she typed a

  text message.

  The sound of Gregory digging through his pockets stopped.

  Lori pressed send and watched as the message was delivered.

  The lock clicked open. Lori slammed her phone back onto the

  floor, shattering it. She flung the pieces away from her as the door

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  opened. He couldn't know what she'd done. He had to think his plans

  were still secret.

  She forced herself to cry as the door swung fully open and

  Gregory stepped inside. His feet walked over to where she lay on the

  floor.

  "What are you doing, Lori?" He said. His voice was cold,

  annoyed.

  "You broke my phone!" yelled Lori. She wanted to sound like a

  child having a tantrum.

  He reached down and pulled her to her feet. A little roughly. It

  scared Lori.

  "Grow up, Lori," said Gregory, reaching down to pull the

  broken chair out of the ropes. He left the ropes on her legs. He pulled

  the wood free and tossed it aside. The rope was looser, but not loose

  enough to fight. Or loose enough to run.

  He sighed and shook his head at her. "Well, I hope you're

  happy you broke your chair. You've got quite a walk ahead of you and

  you could have used the rest."

  Lori glared at him, glad at how wet and red her eyes were. She

  wanted him to think she was weak. Helpless.

  He shook his head. "You're in danger, Lori. You have to be

  more careful. You're the daughter of the ruler of Ashton Memorial. Try

  to start acting like it."

  He left her standing there, shaken and bewildered. She watched

  as he prepared to leave.

  Eighteen

  Angie held up her hand, motioning for the others behind her to

  stop. They did. They'd amassed a good-sized group by now. All the

  weapons Angie and Park collected from the shed were spoken for. The

  wheelbarrow was abandoned, and Park stood next to her, rifle ready.

  The Zoo Bites stood at the bottom of the hill.

  "We're hungry," said someone behind her.

  "I know," said Angie. "We all are. But we can't risk just

  rushing it. Who knows how the crazy zookeepers would react?"

  "They better react by giving us food," said someone else behind

  her. Angie heard the clank of tools being brandished.

  "The weapons are for defense against corpses or animals," said

  Angie. "Not people." She took the communicator from her pocket and

  made sure it was set to broadcast.

  "Keepers aren't people," muttered someone behind her.

  Angie ignored that and clicked the communicator on. She held

  it to her mouth. "Attention people in the Zoo Bites." Her voice echoed

  around. "My name is Angela Land. I have a group of hungry people

  here with me. We just want food. Please step aside and let us have it. I

  promise we won't take more than we need."

  "Don't speak for me," said someone behind Angie. "I'll take as

  much as I want."

  Park frowned next to her. "Think you're making a mistake

  thinking you can control these people?"

  Angie lowered the communicator. "I'm not controlling anyone.

  We're just trying to get food. Then we're going to get your daughter."

  "You think crazy-ass will just give her up?"

  "When he sees how many of us there are, he'll have to."

  "You mean when he sees the army you're raising," said Park.

  "I'm not raising an army," said Angie.

  "Like to know what else the fuck to call it."

  Down below, the Zoo Bites was quiet. No sign that anyone

  inside heard her. No sign there was anyone inside.

  Angie raised the communicator to her lips and clicked it on.

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  "We're coming down now. Please be ready for us with food. Thank

  you."

  She lowered the communicator and stuck it back into her

  pocket. She looked over at Park, then back down at the Zoo Bites.

  "What do you think?"

  Park shrugged. "Don't think we can keep your army waiting

  much longer."

  "Quit calling them that." She turned to the others. They all

  clutched tools and shovels. They all looked desperate and hungry.

  "Okay, everyone. We're going down. If they start shooting, don't panic.

  Everyone retreat back up here as quickly as you can. Got it?"

  They nodded. Angie nodded, both to them and to herself, and

  started down the hill. Park followed her. Then the rest of the group.

  Rain pattered down around them as they trudged down the hill.

  Everything was silent. No groans. No growls. No sounds from inside

  the Zoo Bites. It occurred to her that there were no people outside,

  either. When she'd been here before with Dalton, there were people

  milling around outside. Waiting to be fed. Where were they?

  They reached the doors and Angie held up a hand to stop.

  Everyone did. She hadn't planned on this. She'd assumed by this point a

  group of zookeepers would come out. She assumed they would argue.

  She assumed they would eventually bring food. She hadn't planned on

  opening the doors herself.

  She peered through the glass. Plastic tables and chairs sat

  empty. Gray light came from large windows and a skylight in the

  ceiling. No movement.

  "The hell?" she said. "Where is everybody?"

  She heard the people behind her getting restless. She pulled

  back from the glass. She adjusted the rifle on her shoulder. She looked