As the door flung open, there stood a young dude in a crisp white shirt, his expression cool as ice. The three chefs gawked, eyes wide with pure terror.
"This..."
"Is this guy for real or another Zombie??"
Behind him, Jake and Zoe loomed, giving off some seriously bad vibes.
Among them, the chefs spotted a familiar face—it was Emma, who they thought was a goner. Their faces lit up with shock, their minds buzzing with disbelief.
"You... you're still kicking?"
"Yep, bet you didn't see that coming, huh?"
Emma's face was stormy with anger, ticked off at the chefs for ditching her earlier. Lucky for her, she bumped into her boss; otherwise, she might've been toast.
Just then, three Zombie minions crept closer.
Jake was still all riled up, growling non-stop, but even he had to tip his hat to Zane. The boss had popped the door open with just a flick of that little key. He'd been thinking earlier that if he got in, these chefs were gonna have a real bad day...
Zoe was still buzzing, his pale face twisted into a creepy, amused smirk.
"Emma, please, I can't be Zombie chow, I just can't go out like this!" The female chef dropped to her knees, begging, all her earlier bravado gone.
Turns out, she and Emma went way back and were pretty tight before all this.
Emma just shook her head.
"Your fate? That's for my boss to decide, not me."
All eyes snapped to Zane. This guy, with his sharp looks and killer charm, was the head honcho of the Zombies.
"Please, don't off me! I'll do anything, just name it," the girl blurted out.
The chef piped up.
"Look, I can cook! I mean, I can whip up some killer dishes; I've even snagged some awards back in the city!"
They figured sweet-talking Zane was a lost cause. They needed to show they were worth keeping around, maybe then they'd get a pass.
But Zane just eyed the chef and said slowly,
"No need for all that fuss, let's just chow down."
"Uh?"
The chef's eyes bugged out, finally catching his drift.
With a fierce roar, the three Zombie minions pounced, unable to hold back their hunger.
Screams filled the air but were quickly snuffed out.
What followed was the gruesome sound of flesh being ripped and devoured—a horrific display of the Zombies feasting.
Through this nightmare, Zane stayed spotless, wandering through the storage like he was on a casual stroll in the park, checking out the stock.
The place was loaded with beef, lamb, poultry, and fish—no shortage of grub here.
With a casual wave, Zane started packing everything into his magical storage, topping off what they'd used up over the last couple of days.
He was pretty pleased with the loot.
Meanwhile, the three Zombie minions were having a field day with their grisly feast.
Jake and Zoe were tearing into their food, creating a blood-soaked mess.
Nathan, though, was a bit more peculiar.
He was all about that precision, slicing up bodies like he was in a medical exam, picking out organs with a weird kind of care before chowing down.
Nathan might have looked a bit more highbrow, but his moves were even freakier than Jake's.
A Zombie doing surgery... Who could stomach that?
But the real MVP of suffering was definitely Emma, the only regular human in the mix.
Watching the Zombie buffet unfold, her stomach was doing somersaults, and she fought hard to keep her lunch down.
She bit her lip, keeping it all in because she knew Zane was a freak about cleanliness.
If she hurled, it might tick him off, and who knows? He might just off her on a whim.
Luckily, Zane wrapped up his shopping spree pretty quick.
He didn't just snag the fresh cuts from the cooler but also scooped up grains, oils from the back, and even raided the cafeteria and a convenience store—snagging beer, smokes, drinks, bottled water, and tons of munchies.
These items were gold, and outside, folks might off each other for a slice of bread.
Zane had room to spare in his magic stash, so he grabbed it all, figuring it might come in handy down the line...
Once the shopping was done and the three Zombie sidekicks had filled up, they started circling Emma, checking her out.
Zoe even gave her head a pat now and then, adding a creepy buddy vibe to the freaky scene.
Looked like the boss thought it was fun to keep this little human pet around, kinda like messing with cats or dogs, just for kicks.
Emma curled up tight, shaking like a leaf, her face ghost-white.
She never thought she'd be a sideshow for a bunch of Zombies...
"Let's roll."
Zane gave the word.
Zoe gave Emma's head one last pat before they all headed out.
Emma was scared stiff.
Thinking about hanging with these Zombies from now on, her mind was a mess of worries.
"Boss... you're not gonna kill me, right?"
"Hmm."
Zane nodded, feeling playful today.
"You forgot? I used to run industrial farms."
"Ah???"
Emma was lost.
What was that supposed to mean?
Was she now just livestock???
...
They left the campus behind.
On the drive back, Emma took the wheel, eager to show she was useful, hoping it might keep her off the chopping block.
She'd driven vans at her old job, so she handled it smooth as silk.
Jake in the back gave her props.
The streets were a mess, Zombies everywhere, but they were no match for the van.
At a crossroads, though, there was a big truck parked.
Two middle-aged dudes were up top, looking starved.
One with a beard kept sniffing a half-burnt cigarette, not lighting it.
"Man, didn't Liam go out for supplies? Where'd he vanish to?"
"He's probably Zombie food by now, no word for ages, he's toast."
The other skinny guy figured.
The bearded dude said, "No way! Mr. Loki said he got through to his phone, but the guy didn't talk and then just hung up, probably ditched his wife and bolted!"
"Shoot! Let's not sweat that now, let's find some grub, I'm dying here!"
The skinny dude frowned.
The bearded guy kept sniffing the cig hard.
"Where's there anything to eat left, it's all picked over!"
"Hey, wait..."
As they talked, the rumble of an engine grew closer, and from the left fork in the road, a van rolled up...