by Bianca D’Arc
“You think she had something to do with his going AWOL?” Mari asked.
“It looks like Tim ran off when Bartles came in to investigate. That’s a little too simple an explanation for my tastes. The more likely possibility to my mind is that Beverly sent him away or did away with him.”
“You think she’s capable of murder?” Mari seemed shocked by the idea.
“I wouldn’t put anything past her.” Matt backed off a little. “However, if she’s simply reporting back to Chester, then Tim might’ve been the real problem and he took off on his own. If she’s working for someone else in addition to Chester, well, that’d be the real problem. Frankly, I never thought Tim was bright enough to be much of a spy. Bev, on the other hand, is a snake.”
“Why so adamant?” Simon’s eyes narrowed.
“The conversation I just had with her. I’m convinced she knew the zombie waiting for Eileen was Jennings—or at least someone Eileen should have recognized. Bev was too curious. She came right out and asked if Eileen recognized her attacker.”
“Not a question that would have occurred to me right away,” Mari admitted.
“That’s what I thought,” Matt agreed.
“You think Chester is working with the rogue scientists?” Simon asked, clearly concerned but skeptical. “The man is an ass, but I doubt he’d try to sell a secret with this kind of destructive power. He’s all about covering his own ass and moving up in the chain of command. I don’t think he’s got the balls to do something like this.”
“Having worked with Chester for a while now, I’d have to agree. He’s got delusions of grandeur, but not megalomania. He wants to chair the Joint Chiefs. Power and prestige are more important to him than money. He probably wouldn’t sell secrets just to get rich.”
“So then who is Bev working for?” Mari looked troubled. “You think she’s passing information from your office to someone from the original science team, don’t you? A rogue member of the science team is the only one who could’ve put that poor creature in Eileen’s lab last night.”
Simon and Matt exchanged grim looks. Mari had put together the scenario that seemed most likely.
“So how do we find out who her contact is and how she’s passing the information?” Simon asked.
“I’m not sure yet,” Matt admitted. “I didn’t let on that Eileen had identified the zombie as Dr. Jennings.”
“Why not? You want to use Eileen as bait?” Simon’s eyes narrowed. Mari looked appalled.
“I’d rather not, but I also want to preserve the possibility of doing so. No sense tipping our hand. I’d rather keep Bev guessing.”
Simon shrugged. “Makes sense.”
“You two are the only ones who know about what happened last night, and I want to keep it that way for the time being. You are also the only two who know about Eileen’s immunity.”
“We’re the inner circle?” Simon sent Matt a quick grin.
“By default, but I’m glad it worked out this way. Both of you have been in on this with me since the beginning. I trust you not to let this go any further. Plus, it works out well since Mari and Eileen will be working closely together. If you’re up to it, I’d like you to keep an eye on her.” Matt knew what he was asking. Mari could possibly be in even more danger by sticking close to Eileen right now, and she was newly pregnant. If he’d had any other choice Matt would have taken it, but they all knew what was at stake here. This mission was too important to humanity.
Mari was up to the challenge. “I’m not much of a spy, but I don’t mind keeping my eyes open.”
“You know now that she’s immune, so don’t take any chances, Mariana. If more creatures show up, you get yourself out of there.” Matt didn’t like telling the other woman to leave Eileen on her own, but it was necessary. He wouldn’t be far. If Mari could sound the alarm, he’d be nearby to help Eileen.
“Do you expect more late-night visits from the undead?” Simon asked.
“She’s still in danger. She admitted she’s been approached twice before. Dr. Rodriguez asked her to join his team. He’s apparently the one behind the problems we’ve been having here at Bragg. He’s got a lab somewhere nearby and he’s been working to perfect his formula, sending out the resulting creatures one by one to test against our defenses.”
“He told her that?” Simon’s eyebrow rose in question.
“Not in so many words, but I put it together after she finally told me the truth. It makes sense. He’s trying to build a zombie soldier formula. It would only be reasonable to test the resulting creatures against real soldiers—especially since we’ve concentrated the troops here at Fort Bragg that have faced them before. What better place to test his new creations?”
“That’s sick,” Mari said with disgust. Matt agreed but didn’t say it out loud. What was the point? They all knew the depravity of their enemy.
“So Rodriguez is the man we’re seeking,” Simon mused. “Have you been able to get John Petit’s take on this? His CIA contacts may have good intel.”
“John and Donna are on their way to Tennessee. I got a call from him this morning.”
“I thought they were in California.” Simon seemed intrigued.
“They were. The lead they were following led them to Tennessee and another member of the original science team. So we’re going to be shorthanded for a little longer. Si, I want you to lead the combat team as you’ve been doing. I’ll be staying close to base in case the ladies have any problems. I want us all to gradually change our hours to more of a night shift, if possible. Perhaps you can come up with some scientific reason to work late?” He looked at Mari.
“I’m sure we can come up with something. Experiments don’t know how to tell time.”
Matt remembered Eileen saying something similar and was glad Mariana was on the same page.
“I don’t want either of you working alone. I’d like there to always be someone with Eileen in case Rodriguez tries something else. It’s clear he and his people have access to the base. Until we figure out how they’re getting in, we’ll have to be on our toes.” Matt didn’t like how many avenues of threat were in this scenario, but they’d have to deal with the problems as they came. “Si, I want you to watch the woods. Keep some patrols closer to the edges of the trees to keep an eye on our buildings, if at all possible. We’ve been focusing on the perimeter looking outward for threats. Let’s shift that to look at threats coming both ways.”
“We’ll be ready.” Simon nodded, his expression grimly serious.
Chapter Eight
Matt muscled through the rest of the day with difficulty, but he’d be damned if he was going to betray his fatigue to Bev. About an hour before quitting time, he sent her on an errand to the other side of the base and told her to go home from there. He waited only to make sure she was out of sight before he left his office and headed straight for his bunk. He had only a few hours before dark and he desperately needed sleep. His body was demanding it and he knew better than to push past this feeling knowing what he might have to face that night.
He had a bad feeling simmering in the back of his mind. By now, Rodriguez knew the surprise he’d left for Eileen had failed to kill her. Chances were, he’d try again. Matt had to be ready for anything. He spared only a moment to set his alarm to wake him just before sunset, and then collapsed onto his bed fully dressed. He’d change into dark BDUs when he woke. It was his turn—finally—for night work.
Matt’s eyes closed and he didn’t know anything more until his alarm began to chirp. He woke feeling only marginally better than he had before he’d gone unconscious but it would have to do. He stood and stretched, swapping his regular outfit for a more casual battle dress uniform—darker-colored fatigues.
One part of him couldn’t believe after all this time dealing with his career-ending injury, he might actually be fit enough to return to the field. Even if his back wasn’t perfect, it felt a hell of a lot better than it had just yesterday. He was in good enough sha
pe to protect Eileen. He had to be.
Matt clipped one of the small tactical radios to his ear. He’d kept tabs on the combat team a few hours each night using the link but hadn’t been part of the op, so he’d kept quiet for the most part. Tonight he’d do the same unless there was reason to do more. He hoped like hell there’d be no reason.
But shortly after sunset, as he slipped into the shadows outside his building, the miniature radio crackled to life.
“Multiple tangos in the woods.” A list of grid coordinates followed in Simon’s clipped tones.
Damn. The itchy feeling at the back of Matt’s neck intensified. Rodriguez wasn’t waiting. He was striking again before they had time to regroup—or so Rodriguez thought.
The most they’d had was one or two zombies at a time in the woods, but Simon was reporting multiple contacts. The stakes had just been raised.
Matt picked up his pace. He’d had to wait for full dark in order to escape his building without being seen. As a result, he was behind schedule in getting into position to keep an eye on Mari and Eileen. The two women should both be in Eileen’s lab, working together.
He hadn’t been pleased with the idea of them working in the lab. It had been breached once before, after all. But Eileen’s building was the easiest for him to watch without being seen. Mari’s lab in the hospital would have been too exposed. This building was near the outskirts of the base and the research wing was mostly empty at the moment except for a few day-shift projects. The personnel who worked in those offices and labs were long gone by now.
Matt listened intently as the combat troops faced more than a dozen of the creatures. They had their hands full and Matt was tempted to go help them, but the odds that the attack was another diversion kept him silent and on mission. Matt double-timed it to Eileen’s building, a shadow among shadows. He felt so alive in the night—active in a way he hadn’t been able to enjoy in far too long. He’d almost forgotten the feeling. If the circumstances hadn’t been so dire, he would have rejoiced in his returning ability to really make a difference in the field.
As it was, he was just grateful he could be an ace in the hole, should they need it.
Checking his ammo, Matt entered the building through a side door. He was armed with both conventional weapons and ammunition, and the special toxic darts and pistol that would deliver the deadly dose to any zombified creatures he might come across. He was as prepared as he could be as he made his way down a side stairwell to the lab area on the lower floor.
He heard raised voices as he headed down the darkened hall. Moving silently and swiftly, Matt checked the hall as he went. The only activity appeared to be in the lab itself. He could see a large man through the open door, standing menacingly over Eileen. She faced the man defiantly, a flask of some kind of colorless liquid brandished toward the man in her outstretched hand.
“Stay back, you creep!” Eileen yelled at the man. The guy’s back was to the open doorway and Matt caught Eileen’s eye as he stepped through. Thankfully, she didn’t give away his presence.
“Put down the acid, doctor. Make this easy on yourself. If you struggle, I’ll only hurt you more in the end. Either way, you’re coming with me.”
“Fat chance.” She sneered at the man, but Matt could hear the adrenaline-laced fear in her voice.
Matt advanced. He caught sight of Mariana. She was slumped in a corner, blood dripping down her head. She looked unconscious—or worse. It was time to act.
Seeing no other assailants in the room, Matt sprang at the guy’s back, knocking him cold in one fell swoop. He was out of the action and down for the count, but Matt took no chances. He secured the man’s hands and feet with heavy-duty cable ties he kept in one cargo pocket.
“Were there any more or just this one?” he demanded quietly as Eileen put the beaker back on the lab table.
“Just him,” she confirmed. “He bashed Mari on the head.” Eileen knelt at the other woman’s side, checking her pupils with a penlight as Mari tried groggily to push her hand away. “Bastard snuck up on her like you did to him. Poetic justice, I’d say.”
“Can she be moved?” Matt kept watch on the hallway. It was the only way in or out of the lab. He dragged the bound man out of sight of the doorway and deposited him behind a lab bench.
“Yeah. In fact, she’s coming around.” Matt looked over in time to see Eileen tuck her penlight into her lab coat pocket as Mariana held one hand to her temple. “Easy, Mari. You got bonked on the head.”
“By what?”
“Not what. Who.” Eileen pointed toward the unconscious man on the floor a few feet away. “Matt bonked him back for you.”
Mariana squinted at him. “Thanks, Commander. I owe you one.”
“No problem, doctor. How do you feel?”
“Terrible,” she replied, trying to push to her feet. Eileen helped support her as she stood while Matt continued to keep watch. “Who the heck is he?”
“He’s the goon who works for Dr. Rodriguez,” Eileen said grimly. She looked directly at Matt. “He was driving the car that ran me down on the road, and he was the guy you saw in the cafeteria that day.”
“What did he want?” Mariana looked from Matt to Eileen and back again.
“He wanted me to go with him,” Eileen replied. Matt could hear the anger in her voice.
“Kidnapping? Why?” Mari seemed confused, her motions slowed by the obvious pain in her head.
“To bring me to Rodriguez so he could try to force me to work with him. He’s attempting to improve the contagion. He’s approached me before, but I’ve refused.” Eileen sounded grim. “No doubt Rodriguez sent the creature last night and now this guy.”
“So he wants you dead? Or does he want you working with him?” Mariana sought Matt’s gaze, her confusion evident.
“One or the other, it looks like,” Matt confirmed. “Look, all hell is breaking loose in the woods. I can’t call anyone in. As long as Mariana’s okay, I think we should make our stand here for now. Until Simon can get free.”
He had the radio and was listening to the action still taking place in the forest that surrounded the base. He wouldn’t inform Simon that Mari had been hurt. Not yet. Matt had the situation under control, and Simon was in the thick of things.
One look at Mariana and Matt knew she understood. “Don’t distract him. I’m okay. I’ll be fine until he’s out of the danger zone.”
“I appreciate your courage, doctor. As long as Eileen concurs with your diagnosis, I’m inclined to say we’ve got this situation under control here for now. I’m monitoring what’s going on in the woods.” He tapped the small receiver in his ear. “They’ve got their hands full. I know better than to break Si’s concentration right now.”
Mari looked relieved as Eileen supported her. Matt met Eileen’s eyes, and a moment of silent communication passed between them.
“I’ll help her into the other room where she can lay down. I’ve got some monitors we can hook up to keep an eye on her condition, but she looks good. I don’t anticipate any major problems.” Eileen smiled at Mari encouragingly and they moved slowly toward the small back room.
Matt cursed the fact that Mariana had been injured. Simon would no doubt have a fit when he heard what had happened, and Matt mentally kicked himself for not arriving sooner. Simon had trusted him to look after the women, and he’d almost been too late. Matt was rusty, but he would never forgive himself if anything happened to Mariana or Eileen while he was around. He’d been sloppy. He wouldn’t let it happen again.
After tonight, things were going to change. Drastically.
Matt secured the prisoner in a corner of the room, fastening him to an old metal radiator. He wouldn’t be going anywhere soon. The man was still unconscious and Matt wanted to keep him that way until dawn at least.
“You got anything to keep this guy asleep until sunrise?” Matt asked Eileen when she emerged from the back room a few minutes later.
She rubbed her neck as she ca
me toward him, looking skeptically at the guy on the floor. “I shouldn’t sedate anyone with a head injury.”
“I didn’t hit him that hard. Plus, he was trying to kidnap you. Or kill you. I’d lay odds he’s the one dropped Jennings here last night.”
Her jaw clenched. “You’re right.” She turned resolutely toward a lab bench. A few minutes later, she returned with a filled syringe. She examined the man briefly, even going over his eyes with a penlight before efficiently administering the shot to the unconscious man. “That should hold him for a few hours.”
“Good. Now come here.” He shouldn’t give in to the impulse, but he had to put his arms around her and feel her against him. He had to know on some basic, physical level that she was truly safe.
Her head tipped to the side in question as she walked toward him. She seemed perplexed when he pulled her into his arms and tugged her against his chest, but she didn’t object or try to pull away.
“What’s this about?” She rested her cheek against his beating heart.
“Don’t ask. I’m not even sure myself.” He held her for a long moment, soaking in the feel of her in his arms. She was safe. She was with him. All was right with the world.
For now.
Damn, she felt good in his arms.
“I’m sorry I was late. Si’s gonna have my ass for letting Mari take a hit.”
“She’s okay. I wouldn’t leave her alone if I thought otherwise, even for a minute.” Matt liked the way Eileen’s hands smoothed over his shirt in an absent caress.
“But she’s pregnant.” To him that made all the difference.
“True, but she’s not disabled by it.” She made a scoffing sound. “We females are much more resilient than you men give us credit for.”
“Hey, I didn’t mean to bring up the whole war of the sexes.” Matt did his best not to laugh too hard. “I can only tell you what Simon’s going to say. He’s going to read me the riot act—commanding officer or not. And I don’t blame him. Damn.” He was mad at himself for not being there sooner or figuring a way to prevent what had happened to Mariana.