"We didn't say anything."
"Liar."
Something flashed in the harsh lights before the agent released a cry of pain, his body collapsing to the floor like a heap of clothes. The grip of a switchblade protruded from his chest, blood beginning to seep around it. Jess was on top of him in a flash, seizing the blade from his chest and driving it back in. He screamed again as she twisted the blade, blood splattering against her cheek.
His counterpart began to rush towards her but she was quicker. She propelled herself off the other man and snatched the chair she'd been restrained to, getting a firm hold before chucking it in the direction of the other agent. The chair smacked his face right as his finger touched the trigger, causing him to fire. Jess had anticipated this and dove to the left and ducked, the bullet pinging of the tiles spaces from her neck.
She was up on her feet in seconds, returning to the agent she'd stabbed and pulling her knife back out of his chest. Blood began to freely flow from the second wound, staining his clothing and pooling around him. He'd bleed out in a few minutes. She wasted no time in attacking the other man, her knife going into his neck. She seemed to hesitate to withdraw her blade for a few moments- it didn't take a genius to know that when she did his blood would spurt everywhere. She did so anyways, removing the knife as she threw herself backwards, just missing the spurt of blood that accompanied it.
All of this had happened in the span of a few seconds. Carson switched his eyes away from the carnage and back to Yancey, who was standing there with his gun trained on Jess. He had had no time to react either. She was on her feet again, running towards Yancey with one of the agent's weapons in her hand.
"You killed them! You bastards killed them! They weren't even ten years old!" The grief dripping in her voice was enough to make him tighten his jaw in discomfort. She was broken. He'd seen that look before in someone's eyes, moments after her best friend drowned.
Gunfire ripped through the room, and, for a moment, he believed he'd shot Jess. When he looked to see her frozen in place, no hole in her flesh, he skirted his gaze over to Yancey, finding him in the same state. Confused, he scanned the room for Shay, hoping she'd finally come. It wasn't until his eyes found the screen did he have the answer.
He felt stupid for not noticing it before, even if he'd been caught up in other things. It looked like a security feed but the quality was strikingly clear, every last pixel in high definition. He could see her clearly now. She was standing in the doorway to a long hallway, m-16 gripped tightly in her hands and long blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. She almost never pulls it back, he noticed. She means business.
Axel was beside her, his gun trained on something down the hallway. He heard the familiar pop of gunfire and watched them launch themselves into battle. Why aren't the others with them? Are they all dead? Even if he hadn't been close with the others, that kind of loss would be crippling.
"I hope you enjoy the show, Bradley. My agents will make sure Miss Claire is… welcomed." Yancey said behind his back, voice dripping with a kind of cold malice he'd only crossed a handful of times before. His cuffed hands clenched into fists and he slammed them against the chair, trying not to cry out as they dug deeper into his skin. He wasn't getting away. Not with Yancey right there. He ought to stop being foolish.
He snapped his head over to where Jess was standing. He stared at her, dark curls matted and splattered with blood, and he knew he'd rather have no one else fighting besides Shay than her. Whatever she'd been before she was a Carrier was paying off now- even if she wasn't a cold-blooded killer, the girl had presented her wicked ability for it, and if she harnessed the grief she would be unstoppable.
"Jess!" He shouted, snapping the girl's attention to him. "Run! Go help them!"
She nodded briskly and turned heel, sprinting towards the open doorway.
"Shit!" Yancey cursed and shot at her. The bullet clipped Jess's bare shoulder and she stumbled to the opposite side, hand instantly flying to cover the wound. She twisted her body around and returned fire, but she was not nearly as accurate with a firearm as with a knife. The two rounds she fired gave Yancey a wide berth, coming closer to hitting Carson than he.
For some reason he gave up, instead sprinting over to the nearest wall and slamming his finger against a small screen, furiously pressing a certain option. The open doorway began to slide shut with a groan. Jess increased her pace and scarcely made it, flinging herself onto the floor and sliding the rest of the way out, leaving a smear of blood behind. The door shut and the lock clicked seconds after her ringlets had disappeared from sight.
"I should have shot her when I had the chance, goddammit! She didn't seem like a threat at all!"
"Never underestimate Carriers."
Chapter 41
By the time Shay and Axel found the facility they were at each other's throats, spewing death threats and insults at the other like an old married couple. A two hour drive had turned into four and a half before they knew it, equally frustrating the both of them. I-70 could only have so many exits. It did, but it seemed like they'd taken every one but the right one. They eventually did find it after hours of bickering, both of them just ready to escape the truck.
"I told you we should have taken this one," she said smugly, crossing her arms across her chest.
"No, that was me." Axel shot back.
"Whatever floats your boat, buddy boy."
Axel rolled his eyes and swerved onto another back road, tires bouncing over a pothole.
"Damn Arkansas, I swear," she muttered, gripping her gun tighter as they bounced again. "We better find this place soon."
They did eventually find the facility, although not as quickly as they'd hoped. It took thirty minutes of selecting roads at random and turning around when they came to an end. The building had rushed past them in a white blur. Axel realized they'd found it and swerved violently on the road, almost flipping them over. He drove back a little ways before stopping and parking in the woods across from the facility, their vehicle camouflaged by trees.
That was five minutes ago. Now the both of them were standing outside, gearing up for their final battle. A heavy silence hung in the air, thicker than the humidity. The apprehension floating off both of them was easily read, but neither of them admitted to it. They had come too far to back down and both of them were aware of it- it wasn't like Shay planned on it anyways.
"You ready, Larson?" she asked as she stuffed three magazines into her backpack, throwing in a handful of 9mm ammunition as well. He sighed beside her and slung his bag over his boney shoulder, not bothering to turn and look at her.
"As ready as I'll ever be," he muttered back, leaning up against the side of the truck.
"If you flake out on me I will stick my foot so far up your ass you'll never walk straight again."
"Usually you just threaten to cut my balls off."
"Bailing means no balls, Axel. So I'll have to improvise," she said with a grin, slinging her bag over her shoulder. She gripped her M16 tighter in her hands, exhaling slowly to calm herself. She was a bundle of nervousness, her brain telling her to go back and her heart ordering her to keep pushing forward. She had to save Carson. She had to return and prove to the others she was a capable leader. Too much was at stake for her to back down.
"I'm not bailing, Shay." He said firmly as she began to walk away, grabbing her shoulder and turning her to face him. "If I trusted you enough to go this far I would never run in a battle, even if you don't need me. I can't think of many girls that are as capable of ass-kicking as you."
"Ass kicker or not, only an idiot would walk into battle alone. We're in this together, Larson."
After that there was a moment of silence between them, the two just continuing to stare. There was nothing romantic about it, as neither of them had any feelings like that for the other, but it seemed as if they were trying to drink in every last detail of the other's face. If things were to go wrong this might be the last good look they'd ever g
et, and neither of them ever wanted their comrade to eventually fade to the haze of memory. They both sensed it, a silent understanding- they both understood the odds were against them, but when did that stop them?
Eventually she turned and slunk to the shoulder of the road, remaining in the brush until Axel stopped behind her. She looked both ways before sprinting across the road, ducking behind a thick tree once she'd made it across. Axel pressed himself up against the one on her left, looking at her for the next command. She motioned with her hand towards the facility, every muscle in her body tensed. It was finally about to happen.
Shay stepped out warily from the tree line, hands gripped tightly on her m-16. Axel was close on her heels, his head turned in the opposite direction, both of them scanning, watchful. An ambush could come at any second- they were consciously walking into a trap, after all. It would be wise to expect the unexpected.
"All clear on left," she reported when she spotted no signs of movement.
"Right's clear, too."
"Roger." She noted, taking a few hurried steps forwards. She paused abruptly, Axel almost running straight into her.
"Warn me next time."
"Sorry, just testing something."
Standing out in the open was a dumb idea in any situation. Standing out in the open where highly trained government agents were waiting was a dumber idea, and, unfortunately, she figured that out the moment a bullet came whizzing inches past her head.
"Run!" she screamed, knowing it would be no use to try to return fire. That was a bullet fired by a sniper, and right now they were in their scope.
Her legs kicked into gear instantly, sprinting over the uneven terrain in a burst of speed. Axel was right beside her, keeping in pace with her every stride. Her heavy backpack jostled on her back each time her legs moved, the contents within bouncing and shaking. It was slowing her down. Every instinct screamed at her to ditch it but she didn't- it had all her clips, all her ammo, all the medical supplies. It was too vital.
Green grass shifted to black asphalt beneath her feet in a blur- they'd reached the parking lot. Cars were strewn about, cars they could take cover under, yet she kept pushing forwards and Axel kept following. If they stopped now they'd just be sitting ducks and she sure as hell wasn't going to die just sitting around waiting for oblivion.
The windshield of the car nearest to them exploded in a rain of glass, jagged shards raining down upon them. One sliced her cheek, leaving a thin, ragged line of blood across her skin. She veered to the side, almost tripping over her own feet.
Don't stop running, don't stop running, don't stop running. It will be harder for him to hit you. The white building was much closer now, rising up and dwarfing them in its shadow. Another bullet, this one hitting the rearview mirror of a Navigator directly left of her head. Too close Shay, run faster!
She made it to the sidewalk, the ground rising up an inch or so from the parking lot. They were in the home stretch now- thirty more seconds and they'd be safely inside. She released a short cry of relief the moment she was careened into from the side.
The force of the impact knocked her off her feet. She squealed in surprise, landing hard on her backpack seconds later. Her head lolled, coming down to smack the concrete. Pain instantly shot up from the back of her skull, numbing her brain for a few seconds. Her heart leapt into her throat when she discovered her gun was no longer in her hands. She pawed the pavement for it, blood roaring in her ears. That sniper would shoot her down any second now. She'd look just like Jaycee, brains and blood all over the concrete.
Her eyes connected with her gun, black metal glistening in the sunlight, a few feet away. She flipped herself over onto her knees, desperately crawling towards it despite the pain in her head. The moment her hand touched it so did another, the fingernails painted a delicate pink. That wasn't Axel.
She looked up and her eyes connected with the blue eyes of another girl, looking to be close to her age. Her long blonde hair was tied back into a high ponytail, wisps of it falling around her small face. For a moment she allowed herself to believe it was Kyleigh- no, this isn't Kyleigh. Kyleigh wouldn't be holding a high-powered sniper rifle.
Without thinking she lunged forwards, grabbing her gun in one hand and reaching for the girl in the other. Her hand found the gun but not the girl, as the enemy was just as quick- she was already scampering away, clinging to her big gun tightly. Shay reached out and clasped her hand around the girl's ankle, not strong enough to pull her back but enough to hold her.
"Drop your weapon!" She ordered, heaving herself up so she was closer to her. This girl was thin and petite and stood no more than five four. She looks like a cheerleader, not a government sniper.
A bullet pinged off the cement spaces from her hand. She shrank backwards, first instinct to grab her gun and point it towards the roof of the facility. She saw nothing. She began to fire in a blind panic, aiming her weapon in the direction she felt the bullet had come in.
"Stop wasting your ammo, you won't hit them!" The girl barked at her, turning and stuffing her hand in her face.
Another gunshot. The girl before her went rigid, body contorting before she collapsed against the pavement in screams of pain. The snipers had shot her. She wasn't the enemy.
"Axel, pick her up and carry her inside! She's on our side!" she barked as she regained her footing, the pain in her head snubbed by the massive doses of adrenaline her body was dealing out. Axel nodded and bent down, scooping up the screaming girl into his arms. Blood was streaming between her fingers from a bullet wound in her hip, hands covered with the red mess.
She fired blindly a few more times, praying that, by some odd, one of her bullets managed to strike one of the snipers. They returned fire, bullets exploding windshields. One buzzed right over her shoulder and went barreling into her backpack, too close of a call. They aren't shooting to kill us- we'd be dead by now. They're trying to incapacitate us. Yancey needs us for something, she realized. The realization only pushed her to go harder, intensifying her drive. You're not getting it, you old bastard. Not while I'm alive.
She burst into a sprint again, clutching her gun tight and praying she wouldn't get gunned down. She veered onto the sidewalk leading to the front entrance, trampling over the pathetic attempt of landscaping as she did. Axel was close behind, panting as he carried the wounded girl. Another gunshot. The roses by Shay's foot exploded in a mess of mulch and roots.
The glass doors were a few strides away now. She wasn't about to stop her momentum to have to wait for the automatic doors to peel themselves apart so she raised her gun and squeezed the trigger, sending several rounds into the glass. The panes shattered at once, more glass exploding inwards onto the white tiles below She threw herself through the empty space, feet landing with the crunch of broken glass underneath her shoes.
Axel came stumbling in behind her, sprinting to a corner free of glass and gently setting the girl down, propping her up against a wall. He knelt beside her, slinging the backpack off his shoulder and unzipped it, hand disappearing inside.
"Shay, I need some of the bandages!" he shouted but she was distracted by two oncoming agents, both of them grabbing 9 mms from the reception desk and sprinting at her.
"One sec!" She yelled back as she flipped the safety to auto and let loose, gunning down both the agents with at least three slugs each. It was brutal, quick and messy but at least it was over quickly for the both of them. An alarm was wailing now, a high pitched whine that made her want to cringe and cover her ears. One of the agents at the desk had likely sounded it off.
She stood, only a foot away from the bodies of the agents, catching her breath for the first time. At first they came in shallow, rapid succession, slowly turning into deeper, slower breaths as she got her heart rate down. The adrenaline was still flowing and she was nowhere close to being out of use for it- it was the end of the beginning now, hardly said and done. A lot more blood was going to be spilled.
"Shay, the bandages! Now!"<
br />
Axel's cry snapped her back into reality. She sprinted over to him and the girl, the metallic reek of blood striking her like an oncoming train. Both Axel and the girl were putting pressure on the wound, managing to marginally slow the bleeding. She slid the backpack off her shoulders and stuffed her hand inside, fumbling for the roll of bandages. She felt them, thin and rough against the palm of her hand she snatched them, sliding over to the girl's side.
"I need you to move your hands," she instructed calmly. She was no stranger to blood and gore. She'd seen far worse things than a bloody bullet wound to the hip, even with shattered chunks of bone visible once they removed their hands. She gingerly propped her leg up so she could get the bandage around, ignoring the screams of pain and protest the blonde girl released. She rolled the bandage four times around the girl's hip than another time as precaution- she was losing a lot of blood.
"Am I going to die? I don't… I don't want to die!" The girl whimpered, her lead leaned back against the white wall, eyes squeezed tightly shut.
"No." she said through gritted teeth. "The bullet missed anything vital. It was just high caliber."
"Why… Why did they shoot me? My Dad wouldn't have told them to."
Shay and Axel both turned to look at each other, their eyes wide. They both seemed to have jumped to the conclusion whose kid she was, and neither of them was feeling fondly towards it. She put her hand over her mouth, blocking the girl's view, and mouthed one word- Yancey.
"Who's your dad?" She barked, grabbing her gun and pointing it towards the girl. Her blue eyes widened in fear and she tried to scoot backwards, crying out in pain when her leg jerked the wrong way. If she's Yancey's kid I'll kill her, right here, right now. Show that bastard I mean business. No, the logical side of her hissed. The first thing he'll do when he sees you kill his daughter is kill Carson.
"Does it really matter?" The girl hissed through gritted teeth. "I know who you are and I know you know who he is. You'll kill me."
Carriers Page 31