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    Zombies! Episode 3.3: Conspiracies and Theories
    Zombies! Episode 3.3: Conspiracies and Theories
    Zombies! Episode 3.3: Conspiracies and Theories
    Ebook106 pages1 hour

    Zombies! Episode 3.3: Conspiracies and Theories

    By Ivan Turner

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    About this ebook

    At one time, the politics surrounding zombies was easy. Infections means death. Aim for the head. Shoot to kill. With the introduction of Olexynil, the treatment for the disease, the world became a much more complicated place. Companies like ZCF conduct experiments to try and capitalize on the industry of the infection while politicians like August Reuter work hard to eradicate all traces of it. On both sides of that coin, there is a deep warren of intrigue, and the players sometimes don't even know their roles.

    Denise Luco has been found out. Spying on ZCF has yielded no gains, but there seems to be no way out until Ms. Huang confronts her, exposes her. Relived, expecting to be dismissed, Denise is surprised by the choice Ms. Huang lays before her. You can work for them or you can work for us. And what seems a simple choice, is not quite so simple.

    In the City, John Arrick and Lily have arrived. They are quickly taken into custody by August Reuter. Arrick's reputation precedes him. Apparently, Reuter thinks that reputation can be put to good use. So what must Arrick do? Why, attend a party, of course, where he will see some very old friends.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherIvan Turner
    Release dateDec 29, 2016
    ISBN9781370315093
    Zombies! Episode 3.3: Conspiracies and Theories
    Author

    Ivan Turner

    A child of the movies, I was always consumed by fantastic stories told by others and translated into adventures to be retold by me through the action figure medium. As I grew older, I put the action figures away and moved into the realm of role playing. Though I never outgrew role playing, I certainly don't have the time for it anymore. Since I was eleven years old, I've been pouring almost every ounce of creative energy I have into writing.I graduated college in 1993 with a degree in computer science. I tried my hand at programming for a couple of years and found it pretty unsatisfying. I later became a partner at a comic book store, where I spent several years. Though it wasn't a financial success, the experience I gained from running the store and the people that I met (many of whom I'm still in touch with today) was priceless. After leaving the store, I settled into a career of teaching. I still teach at a public high school in New York. Ironically, I've picked up computer programming again, which is what I mostly teach.I've been writing the whole time.I released my first book electronically in 2010. Forty Leap was a turning point for me in both style and story building. The Book of Revelations, which was written earlier but released later, was sort of a midway point between the writer I was and the writer I've become. I experimented with a very odd style and a story that employed diverse characters and controversial situations.In September 2010, I released the first installment of Zombies! Zombies! has been a tremendous success for me that came very close to being made into a television series. Since Zombies!, I have written a five part miniseries called Castes and have been working on developing tabletops games, the first of which, ApocalypZe, was published in early 2014.Now, 6 years later, a 3rd Zombies! series is due to be released in September of 2016.

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      Book preview

      Zombies! Episode 3.3 - Ivan Turner

      Zombies Episode 3.3: Conspiracies and Theories

      Smashwords Edition

      Copyright 2016 by Ivan Turner

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      The people and events in this book are fictional. Any resemblance to actual people or events is purely coincidental.

      Special thanks to Chris Hanson for his brilliant cover artwork.

      Table of Contents

      Chapter I

      Chapter II

      Chapter III

      Chapter IV

      Chapter V

      Chapter VI

      Chapter VII

      Chapter VIII

      Chapter IX

      Chapter X

      Chapter XI

      Chapter XII

      Afterword

      Other Books By Ivan Turner

      Chapter I

      Denise Luco arrived at work late Monday morning to a summons from Ms. Huang. This was all she needed. It wasn’t bad enough that Lance had decided to throw the most royal of tantrums that morning (goddamn Christmas toy ads). It wasn’t bad enough that she’d been out of her favorite breakfast cereal, only remembering that she had intended to remind herself to get some but had forgotten. No, she had to go see the boss first thing in the morning forty five minutes late. What made all of that even worse was that the month she had spent working at ZCF had been awful. She hated the job desperately. She hated the people who worked there. She’d met Albert Chatham once and he seemed to be the single most plastic person she’d ever met. The receptionists were glorified Barbie dolls. They worried more about their hair and makeup than they did about their personalities. They dealt with people as if they were subhuman. Denise had had it out with one of them a week before. She’d been waiting for the prettiest, most confident one of them to mouth off to her and then let loose the most foul of retorts any human could have conceived of. That particular receptionist had taken the abuse in stride, but did not speak to Denise anymore. Denise didn’t consider it a win, though, because the bitch hadn’t quit.

      Oddly enough, she liked Ms. Huang. In her own smug way, she was no more genuine than any of the others. She gave off an odor of superiority but there was a quality about her that Denise appreciated, even related to. There was a time in her life when she could have become the person Ms. Huang was. She’d had the confidence and the intelligence, but never the patience. It was a real art, manipulating people the way Ms. Huang did. There was a whole lot more to it than just staring them down. Denise saw her relationship with Ms. Huang as a glimpse into the future that might have been. For all of her flaws and interpersonal difficulties, Denise was glad she’d walked a different path.

      She took another five minutes to compose herself before going up. She wasn’t apprehensive. Not in the slightest. The worst that could happen was that she’d be fired. Kraemer would be pissed, especially since Denise hadn’t learned a damned thing of value since starting with ZCF. Her departure, under the circumstances, would be premature. Well not premature enough for her. Not only hadn’t she learned anything, but she hadn’t done anything either. She’d been assigned to assist with some lab work regarding the various cocktails that were floating around out there, but that work was stale and mundane. When she wasn’t doing that, though, she was fed administrative paperwork. Bullshit to fill the time. It made her wonder why they had bothered to recruit her in the first place.

      Heading down the hallway, she checked herself quickly in the mirror, saw frayed hair and very little makeup, and decided she didn’t give a damn. She hadn’t become a scientist to win any beauty pageants. At the front desk, she saw her favorite receptionist. The pretty one. She was on duty alone, which meant she wouldn’t be able to pass Denise off to someone else. Good. Maybe this time she could get her to quit.

      Good morning, Dr. Luco, she said in a practiced tone. Ms. Huang said you should go right in.

      Denise looked at her as she walked by and said, Your eyeliner is smudged. It wasn’t, but she was satisfied to see the receptionist go right for her compact mirror as she walked by.

      Heading into Ms. Huang’s office, Denise took stock of the situation. She had learned to do that the very first time she’d been there. The office itself was designed to be intimidating. It was a giant, lavish affair with a four thousand dollar desk and matching chairs. It sat in front of a giant window that should have looked out over a towering cityscape, but instead revealed the flat lowlands of middle New Jersey. The other two thirds of the room sank into a carpeted area with white furniture on white carpet surrounded by gleaming white walls. Depending on the nature of the conversation, Ms. Huang took up different positions. For stolid, unfamiliar engagements, she sat behind her desk; this had been the the case when Denise had first come to see her about the job. For more personal discussions, Ms. Huang would sit on one of the white sofas. Whether she beckoned you to sit next to her or across from her on the other sofa determined the seriousness of the issue. It often occurred to Denise that this particular behavior was a little too predictable for someone like Beatriz Huang. Perhaps the predictability was what caught people off guard. Ms. Huang was nothing if not calculated.

      Sorry I’m late, Denise said. Trouble with Lance.

      Ms. Huang smiled. Denise hated it when she smiled. Please have a seat, Denise. She was sitting on the sofa and motioned Denise to the other sofa. Business personal.

      Denise moved to her spot and sat down, smoothing her skirt over her legs. She despised doing that, but it was necessary as a way of making sure it wasn’t riding up.

      We know you’re spying on us for Mr. Kraemer, Ms. Huang said, looking deep into Denise’s eyes, daring her to deny it.

      She never could have, not convincingly anyway. Denise was belligerent. She was egotistical. In many ways, she was just like Ralph Kraemer. But she was no liar.

      Ms. Huang leaned back against the plush white cushion, comfortable now in the fact that she had started the conversation exactly where she’d wanted it to start. It doesn’t matter, Denise. Albert and I knew this was how it would be when we starting trying to recruit you. Your research, especially the work you did with Dr. Ludlow, can be very helpful to us and we want you on board. Of course, we have our secrets, too. We can’t just lay out our plans without first knowing where your loyalties lie.

      Well, I’m sorry, Beatriz, Denise said. She was all of a sudden relieved to have been outed. The spy game didn’t really sit well with her. I don’t see that there’s anything left to talk about.

      Ms. Huang looked surprised, but Denise had learned too much about her to believe that it was genuine. The woman used facial expressions as tools. Her emotional responses were good. They looked very authentic. But Denise was too smart to be fooled.

      We have a lot to talk about, Ms. Huang said. For example, you took this job so that Mr. Kraemer would consent to your old company beginning human trials. Let’s talk about that.

      I don’t think so, said Denise.

      This time Ms. Huang’s look of surprise truly was genuine. So you just take him at his word?

      Denise took

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