Surviving The Virus | Book 9 | The Final Strain

by Casey, Ryan

  So why were they here?

  Especially if they weren’t interested in him.

  Unless they knew. Unless they knew what he was capable of. Knew what a danger he was.

  And that made him wonder about Jaan.

  Had he tipped them off somehow?

  Was this a setup?

  Was this...

  The helicopter people lifted their rifles and pointed them over at Noah, at his people.

  Fuck. There wasn’t time to think about what this meant right now. They just had to get the hell away from here.

  “Run!” Noah shouted.

  He turned. Ran down the road, ducking behind the cars.

  Almost immediately, he heard the bullets hit the cars. Gunfire rattled against them. Enough to convince him that this wasn’t any kind of bluffing. They were out to kill him. Out to kill everyone here.

  But why were they here?

  Shit. That was something to cross when the time came.

  “Where in the name of fuck did they come from?” Shel asked. Ducking down. Clinging on to her rifle, which wasn’t pointed at Renault anymore. Renault clearly realising this, glancing from her to the road, wondering whether there was time to get out of this mess, time to run.

  “Asking myself the same question,” Noah said, glaring at Jaan, whose eyes were wide and who admittedly looked just as surprised as Noah felt.

  Footsteps approached. More bullets peppered against the cars. Bruno growled, but his ears were back, and his tail was tucked between his legs. Clearly, he saw the danger they were in, too. He felt it, just as acutely.

  “You know what you have to do, Noah,” Jaan said.

  Noah looked around at him. Wasn’t sure where those words came from. But he knew Jaan was right. He recognised what he was saying immediately.

  “But I—”

  “No excuses. Not anymore. You know what you have to do.”

  He looked at Jaan. Those footsteps getting closer. More bullets hitting the cars. Time running out.

  And he knew unless Shel did something right now with that rifle—which would probably only get her deep in the shit—it was all on him, whether he liked it or not.

  He looked at Kelly.

  Thought about what’d happened when he’d used his abilities on the road with her.

  Saw the reminder of it in her vacant eye.

  And then he remembered Iqrah.

  For all his abilities, for all his attempts, for all his strength, the outcome had turned out the same.

  “You can do this, Noah. You can help us.”

  He felt that fear in his stomach. Felt his resistance. Felt every muscle in his body resisting this situation. Felt every instinct telling him to hold back.

  But then he closed his eyes, and he felt it, right away.

  First, Jaan. Strong. Close.

  And then the more subtle presence of the others, too.

  He leaned into it. Resisted that urge that was always there; that dark urge to destroy that he knew was the source of the virus screaming at him to act.

  But he pushed that away.

  And then he focused on the helicopter people, racing their way.

  He felt them all immediately. Felt them all as one. All five of them.

  And then he felt that dark energy inside.

  That voice telling him to destroy.

  He tightened his fist, and he crushed his fingers into his palm.

  He felt it.

  That burst of energy.

  That surge.

  So strong.

  That release...

  And then he felt a pain, right in the middle of his chest.

  He opened his eyes. Gasped. Stared up at the bright sky.

  Ears ringing.

  Heart racing.

  A feeling he hadn’t felt before.

  “Noah? Noah! It’s okay. You’re okay. We’ve got you.”

  He looked around and saw Kelly staring down at him.

  Jaan at his other side.

  Bruno wagging his tail, tilting his head either side.

  “What...” he said.

  “You did it,” Jaan said, eyes lighting up. “You did it again. It’s done.”

  Noah looked around, still a little confused.

  And then he saw them lying there on the road.

  The helicopter people. All dressed in grey.

  Blood splattered down their fronts.

  He wiped his nose, which was bleeding a little. His head ached. His ears rang. It didn’t feel right. He felt weak. Like he was running out of energy. Like...

  “Only there’s a bit of a problem,” Kelly said.

  Noah looked up.

  That’s when he saw Shel, standing there just up ahead. Shaking her head. Cursing.

  “It’s Renault,” Kelly said. “Looks like he had a few second thoughts about sticking around after all.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Shel wasn’t happy about what’d happened with Renault. Not one damned bit.

  The rest of them, they walked. Kept on walking. The morning was moving far too quickly for Noah’s liking, running away from them. He still hoped and believed they could reach Liverpool by night. Still knew they could get there if they threw everything at it.

  But there were doubts in the system. Fuck Renault. He was always going to be untrustworthy. Probably a bad idea even bringing him along on board at all.

  But Noah was more concerned with Jaan.

  Jaan hadn’t said a lot since they’d resumed their walk. They were still on the motorway. The usual sights of abandoned cars. Of crows swooping down, trying to find any minuscule scraps to feast on.

  The people from the helicopter. They’d tracked Noah down, somehow. That couldn’t be coincidence. They were hunting him, of that much he was certain.

  But what was Jaan’s involvement in this?

  Did he know more than he was letting on?

  “Something bothering you, Noah?” Jaan asked.

  Noah gritted his teeth. He didn’t want to bring shit up. Didn’t want to set Shel off or give her any excuse to act rashly here. He knew she was eager to take her anger out on someone after Renault bolted. Jaan seemed like the natural target.

  “Nothing,” Noah said. “Let’s keep walking.”

  “I know what it looks like,” he said.

  “What does it look like?”

  “Like... like I’m selling you out, somehow. I know how you feel. Like you can’t trust me or something. And I get it. Really. I know how it looks. But all I can do is promise I know nothing about what happened back there. I have no idea how they found us. Why they are even out here at all. Maybe they’re onto you. They have their ways. I don’t know. But I can only tell you what I do know. It changes nothing. For whatever reason—whether coincidence or whatever—they did what they did. But you can see what you are capable of now. You have seen just how strong you are. Now imagine that. Imagine that but on a far larger scale. A far wider scale...”

  “I’ll tell you something,” Noah said. “The way I felt after I did what I did. I felt weaker than before. I felt... exhausted. I felt like I’d been wounded, and I’m still not quite there yet. If I have to do that on a wider scale like you say... I just worry about what might happen.”

  Jaan’s face took a turn for the serious. He sighed. “Noah. I can’t promise you this will be plain sailing. I can’t promise things will be easy. I can’t... I can’t guarantee you’ll even be safe. That’s a reality you have to face up to. A reality you have to be willing to accept. Are you?”

  Noah had stared death in the face enough times. He’d spent all these years resisting it. All these years surviving against all the odds.

  He was still here because he’d done all he could to make it so.

  But it wasn’t because of himself. Not the bulk of the time. It was for the people around him.

  Truth is, he would’ve died for Iqrah if he’d had to. Or for Baby Edward.

  He would’ve died for Eddie or Jasmine.

 
For Zelda.

  For Kelly.

  “I’m not afraid of death,” Noah said. “I just want to know I’m not dying for nothing. That’d be a hell of a waste.”

  Jaan smiled. “Then you’d better make damned sure this works, hadn’t you? Or you’ll really be in the shit.”

  Noah smiled at that. He couldn’t help smiling at Jaan, at his comments. He wanted not to trust him. Wanted to resist accepting him or whatever.

  But he couldn’t help being drawn in by him.

  “I guess it’s like you say,” Noah said. “What choice do I even have? Really?”

  Jaan’s smile widened. “Pretty much put a gun to your head, right?”

  “Yeah. And I don’t appreciate it—”

  “Will you two shut the fuck up?”

  Shel’s voice cut through their conversation. He looked ahead. Saw her glaring at him. Red in the face. Rifle in hand.

  “Sorry, Shel,” Noah said. “We bothering you or something?”

  “You guys. You think you know people. You think you’ve got it all figured out. But you don’t know a thing. A goddamned thing.”

  Kelly rolled her eye. “This still about that Renault creep?”

  “You don’t know Renault,” Shel said. “He’s not like you. He’s not like me. He’s wired up different. Real different. And if you think he’s the kind of guy that’s just gonna sneak away from us and leave us be... you’re wrong. Very fucking wrong.”

  Noah frowned. “You really think he’ll come after us or something? He’s gone. No way he’ll come close. Not after what I did. Not after what he saw.”

  Shel just shook her head. “You’ve no idea about Renault. Really fucking no idea about Renault.”

  She turned away, then. Walked off ahead.

  And as much as Noah wanted to believe Renault was gone, that they didn’t have to worry about him anymore, he found himself looking over his shoulder.

  Staring down the road. Wondering where he was. And wondering whether Shel was right.

  “Come on,” Jaan said. “The sooner we get to Liverpool, the sooner we can forget this ‘Renault’ character, anyway.”

  Noah took a deep breath. Nodded. “Yeah. Let’s keep moving.”

  He saw Shel glare at him one more time.

  Such hate in her eyes. Such disappointment.

  And then she turned around and walked.

  Chapter Twenty

  Renault saw the sign to Liverpool and put his hands on his knees.

  He’d been running for ages. An hour at least. Hadn’t stopped, not for a goddamned second.

  ’Cause he knew he needed to get close to this place. Knew he needed to get himself far ahead of Shel, Noah, the rest of ’em.

  And then he had to wait.

  He had to ambush ’em.

  That’s what he had to do.

  He remembered what he’d felt when that Noah prick turned on him. Like he had some kind of power over him.

  He felt that strength. That raw strength. Fucking magic, that’s what it felt like. Fucking pure magic.

  And he felt so hungry.

  He felt a hunger even goddamned deeper than he’d felt before.

  He looked back down the road. He knew the group would pass by here in no time. He knew he’d have to wait for them. To ambush them.

  Specifically, Noah.

  Noah was the one he wanted.

  Noah was the one he needed.

  He imagined gorging on him. Feasting on him.

  Feeling his power run through his veins...

  A smile stretched across his face.

  Shel, too. That bitch had betrayed him. Stabbed him in the back. And for what? This miserable Noah bastard.

  He thought about this grand, self-centred mission he had. This inflated sense of self-importance he had.

  He was about to bring that fucker crashing right back down to earth, that was for goddamned sure.

  He took a deep breath, walked off towards the hills, and he smiled.

  He’d wait for them.

  And then he’d ambush them.

  And then he’d kill them all. One by one.

  But he licked his lips when he thought of Noah.

  He was the one he was looking forward to the most.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Noah and the group had been walking for a whole afternoon when the snow started to fall.

  It was bright. Fresh. Peaceful. Overhead, Noah heard birds singing now, adding to the sense of normality. He felt strangely calm about the task ahead. Weirdly optimistic, even though he still didn’t have a clue how it was going to go, what was going to transpire.

  He just knew that they were on the right path. The only path.

  As much as the prospect of sinking into that void again scared him.

  He thought about how he’d felt. Thought about the subtle connection to the people around him. Thought about the power. The energy. The strength.

  And he knew it was destructive. Destructive to him. Potentially destructive to those around him.

  He looked at the road ahead and saw the sign for Liverpool. Ten miles. Getting closer.

  “You okay?”

  Noah looked around. Saw Kelly by his side.

  Truth be told, none of them had spoken much on the road. It seemed like they were in a bit of a weird blur. Even Jaan, who they didn’t know much about at all, wasn’t the centre of attention someone of his background might once be.

  It was this journey. It cast a spell over them.

  And it was the silence, too. The silence that felt like it could break at any moment.

  And break hard, too.

  For a journey towards what felt like the end—an inevitable death march—things were all awfully quiet.

  Noah smiled. “Just thinking.”

  “About?”

  “Jasmine, actually. That first time we went to a gig over in Liverpool. How fucking freezing it was. She kept on telling me how cold she was. Sort of shuffling up to me. And I was too much of a terrified nerd to properly put my arm around her. So I ended up just handing her my jacket and freezing my bollocks off.”

  Kelly laughed. “Yeah. She told me about that.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “Yeah. Told me you were a right nervous prick.”

  “Charming.”

  Kelly chuckled again. “Nah. She was enamoured with you from day one. I was a bit jealous, to be honest. Never had a connection like that. Not really. And I guess that’s why I was a nob with you. I sort of worried you were the one for her. And I worried she might leave me behind. I know I’m supposed to say I was happy for my best friend. But I was jealous. Really fucking jealous. Not of you. Let’s make that clear right now. But of what you had.”

  Noah smirked. Pushed aside any thoughts of some kind of something with Kelly. “Funny you say that. I always thought you were, like, a bad influence on Jasmine.”

  “Charming!”

  “Like, I always thought she might just decide life was more fun with you. Partying. Drinking. And I guess in the end she chose her career over both of us.”

  “She didn’t make that choice lightly,” Kelly said. “She loved us both to bits. And in time… who knows? But hey. It’s weird, isn’t it? Like, ten years have passed, and we’re only just now having this conversation.”

  “Took us a while.”

  “You know what I think she’d want, though? More than anything?”

  Noah looked around at her. Into that one eye that caught the sunlight. “Go on.”

  She stared at him. A little more intensely than she’d ever stared at him before. Made him feel a bit uncomfortable in all truth.

  “What?” he said.

  “Would it be so wrong if…”

  She stopped.

  “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Not like you to stop mid-thought. You’re a changed woman.”

  She looked back at him again, and he saw a softness to her face. To her stare.

  “Sometimes, I think wha
t Jasmine would want more than anything is for us two to be there for each other. To look out for each other. Properly.”

  Noah didn’t understand. Not right away.

  And then his eyes widened. “You mean?”

  “Yes, Noah. Yes, ‘I mean’.”

  He looked ahead, up the road. At Jaan. At Shel. And at the spectre of Liverpool, this unknown entity waiting for them, right there in the distance.

  “I…”

  “Wow. Lost for words. Really made an impression on you, haven’t I?”

  “Kelly,” Noah said, looking around at her. He was tempted to make a joke. But he figured now probably wasn’t the time. “I… I can’t say it’s not something I haven’t thought about.”

  “‘Not something I haven’t thought about’. Okay that’s kind of confusing. Do you want me or not?”

  Noah laughed. “Kelly. You’re great. Really. And… and it’s like you say. I don’t see any reason why things shouldn’t work. Jasmine would probably go apeshit but in a happy kind of way. But… this journey. What needs to be done. Let’s just get this done with first. Okay?”

  He looked at Kelly. Saw her open her mouth. Go to say something.

  Then she closed her mouth and smiled. “Sure. Mr Sensible.”

  He smiled back at her. “Mr Sensible indeed.”

  He looked around. Looked ahead. Tightened his fist and waited for the next step.

  That’s when he felt it.

  The snow.

  Falling lightly at first.

  “Well, hey,” Kelly said. “Isn’t that just the perfect pretty scene? Shame we don’t have some mistletoe to add to this decidedly awkward moment right now.”

  “Too right.”

  They walked further down the road. Shel and Jaan ahead. Bruno by their side. The snow falling heavier and heavier by the second.

  And Noah got the feeling things were too calm. Things were too stable.

  Renault saw them approaching from afar, and he smiled.

  He tightened his grip on the knife.

  It was hunting time.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  The snow grew heavier and heavier, and by dark, it was too heavy and thick to keep walking through.