Twenty-Five Percent (Book 3): Vengeance

by Nerys Wheatley

  “We would have gone and checked the wreck,” Tracey said, “but we couldn’t get to it through the horde. But from the way it went down, I’d say it isn’t going to be flying again anytime soon. If ever.”

  Claire slipped her hand into Sam’s. “So does that mean the eaters aren’t coming here?”

  “We can hope,” Tracey said. “We’ll stick around though. If Boot sent them once, he might try again. It’s too dangerous on the streets now to move the spotters around.”

  “But he’s down to two helicopters now,” Rick said as he and Ben walked up to them. “That must slow him down. And if any come near here, we can just shoot them down.” He nodded at the machine gun mounted on top of the APV.

  Matt grimaced. “Well, not exactly. We’re out of ammo. It was a good thing that wire was there because we were pretty much defenceless by then.”

  There were a few seconds of silence as they all digested the fact that their best weapon was now useless. Claire squeezed Sam’s hand tight. He squeezed back in what he hoped was a reassuring manner.

  “Let’s get inside and lock it all down,” Ben said. “Just in case.”

  They settled in to wait. Ben and Rick took guard duty on the front door while the soldiers checked over the security of the facility. Hannah, Pauline, Larry and Dave continued their work on both the cure and the fake pheromones. To give Pat some time alone with Leon in the infirmary, Claire played with Emma and Katie in the lounge. Feeling a little useless, Sam stayed with them.

  Hannah had given them some red, blue, and black markers and they sat around a table and drew faces on latex gloves which Sam then blew up into hand shaped balloons, to Emma and Katie’s delighted laughter.

  Sam couldn’t prevent his thoughts wandering to what it would be like to have a family with Claire. With his lack of experience with the opposite sex, he’d never even considered he might one day be a father, but watching Claire with the children gave him a longing that made his heart ache.

  If only Claire liked him like that.

  He finished blowing up their latest creation, tied a knot to keep the air in and batted it through the air to Emma who gave it a tap to Katie. Claire gave him a smile he felt all the way down to his toes.

  The door opened and Sam dragged his eyes away from her face.

  “We’re all set at the back door,” Adam said as he and Sean wandered into the lounge.

  “Did you fix it?” Claire said.

  “No, but we’ve barricaded it with furniture. And the door of the shed and the entrance to the stairs are both locked.”

  Sean sauntered over to the kitchenette. “Hey, chocolate digestives.”

  “So there’s no way the eaters will get in back there,” Adam said, taking the biscuit Sean offered him. “Unless they have the entrance code.” He grinned and bit into the digestive.

  Katie squirmed out of her seat and ran over to Sean, holding one of the glove balloons up to him. Sam watched as the abrasive soldier went down onto one knee in front of her and took the balloon.

  “Thank you, Katie,” he said. “Did you make this?”

  She nodded, smiling. “I drew it. Sam blew it up. It’s for you.”

  Sean swallowed. For a moment, it looked like he was about to cry. “I love it. It’s my favourite balloon anyone has ever given me.”

  Sean’s response was astonishing. In the admittedly short time he’d known Sean, Sam had barely seen any emotion from him whatsoever, other than anger. On another person, the reaction he’d had to Katie’s gift was equivalent to bawling like a baby.

  Katie returned to her chair at the table and started work on a new glove.

  Sean stood, said, “I’m going to check on the doctors,” and strode out.

  Adam wandered up beside Sam as Sean disappeared around a corner along the corridor. “I think he misses his little girl. She’s a bit younger than Katie. It must be tough not knowing if she’s okay.”

  Sean had a daughter and he didn’t even know if she was safe. The thought made Sam want to give him a hug to make him feel better. Although he suspected if he tried anything like that it might get him punched.

  Adam took another biscuit and went to sprawl on one of the sofas. Sam returned his attention to Claire and the girls. It looked like his blowing up services were about to be in demand again as Emma wafted a colourful glove around to dry the marker ink.

  A faint sound made him sit up and listen. “Did you hear that?”

  Adam frowned, cocking his head to one side. “What?”

  Sam didn’t reply, still listening. The sound came again; faint, in the distance. It sent ice through his veins. “It sounds like gunshots.”

  Adam’s radio clicked on.

  “We need backup,” Rick shouted. “Boot’s men. We’re under fire.”

  36

  By the time he found a car with the keys in it, Darren was exhausted.

  He’d managed to give the horde the slip, but he’d had to sprint flat out for two minutes to do so. He’d then slowed to a jog for a further ten minutes, checking every car he came to and avoiding rogue eaters while always looking behind him, expecting any moment to see the horde catching up when he no longer had the energy to outrun them. Despite being in good shape, he felt on the verge of collapse.

  He was beginning to think he’d have to walk all the way back to the hotel when he finally came across the hatchback. He stood and stared at it for a few long seconds before beginning the awkward process of folding his six foot eight inch frame behind the steering wheel. Even with the seat pushed as far back as it would go, his knees stuck up too high to be comfortable. But it was transport.

  He held his breath as he rotated the key in the ignition, letting out a relieved sigh when the engine turned over and caught.

  Two eaters shuffled from around the side of a house ahead of him.

  Barely aware of what he was doing, Darren stared at them, tightening his grip on the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. He pumped the accelerator, revving the engine, and the eaters turned in his direction, lurching along the centre of the road. He jammed the gear into first, let up the clutch, thrust the accelerator to the floor. The car jolted forwards.

  He struck the first eater head on. It tumbled over the bonnet, hit the windscreen and flew over the roof. Darren squinted through the now cracked glass, still accelerating. The second eater impacted off centre, smashing the headlight and spinning off to one side. He slammed his foot onto the brake, bracing himself as the sudden loss of momentum threw him forward.

  Shifting into reverse, he focused on the wing mirror at the eater struggling to rise, and hit the accelerator again. It disappeared from view as the car bounced over it and stopped. Back in first, he bumped over the eater one final time, and drove away.

  Darren dimly became aware of the sound of roaring. It was a moment before he realised it was him. He stopped screaming and closed his mouth.

  His hands were beginning to ache and he loosened his grip on the wheel, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

  As the red around the periphery of his vision dissipated he headed for the edge of the city, the rising sun painting the sky orange behind him.

  37

  Tracey’s voice came from Adam’s radio. “We’re on our way. Porter, Ridge, Hud, to the front door now. Everyone else, get somewhere safe and hide, just in case.”

  Grabbing his rifle, Adam stood and walked to the door that led deeper into the facility and, ultimately, to the front entrance.

  From somewhere in the direction of the back door, something clattered.

  Sam started and turned to look at the door leading back there. “What was that?”

  Adam kept his voice low, making a u-turn to move in that direction. “Claire, take Emma and Katie to the infirmary and stay there. You too, Sam.”

  Claire picked up Katie and took Emma’s hand. “Come on, we’re going to go stay with your mum and dad.”

  “You can’t go by yourself,” Sam said to Adam, pu
lling his pistol from his waistband.

  “Sam, no,” Claire said, worry clouding her face.

  “It’s all right,” Sam said. “It’s probably nothing, just some of the furniture falling. We’ll be right back.”

  He smiled, trying to reassure her. He could tell she wanted to argue and his heart leapt at seeing her afraid for him. That meant she cared about him. Didn’t it?

  She glanced at Emma and Katie then back at Sam. “Be careful,” she said, then turned and strode out, Emma jogging at her side.

  “Sam, you don’t...” Adam began.

  “We’ll just make sure it’s nothing and then you can go to the front door and I’ll go to the infirmary,” Sam said quickly, before he could change his mind.

  There was another sound, this time like something scraping on a floor.

  “That could be more furniture falling all by itself, couldn’t it?” Sam was beginning to regret trying to be brave.

  Adam flashed him a smile. “’Course it could.” He walked to the door and opened it a sliver, peering through the gap before pulling it wide enough to get through. “Just as a precaution though, stay behind me.”

  Sam followed him into the corridor and reached for the light switch beside the door.

  “Leave it off,” Adam said, his voice soft. “We don’t want to be an easily targeted silhouette when we open that door.” He nodded towards the far end of the corridor. “In the unlikely event there is anyone in there. Which I’m sure there isn’t.”

  Sam lowered his hand and reluctantly let the lounge door close behind him.

  He knew it was a stupid thing to say before he said it, but he said it anyway. “I can’t see anything.”

  “Me neither,” Adam replied. “I have a torch. If we need it, I’ll use it.”

  Sam swallowed. “Okay.”

  They crept along the corridor to the door at the far end, Sam wishing he was a Survivor even more than he usually did. He didn’t even know they’d got there until he bumped into someone he hoped was Adam.

  “Sorry,” he whispered.

  “S’alright,” Adam whispered back, to Sam’s relief. “I’m going to open the door now. Stay back behind the wall until I tell you it’s safe.”

  Sam nodded, adding, “Okay,” when he remembered Adam couldn’t see him.

  He heard the soft movement of the door handle and the click of the latch disengaging. The door creaked a little as it opened. The light from a torch flicked on.

  Adam gasped. There was a brief flurry of gunshots and he fell back into the open doorway, his radio shattering on the concrete floor. The torch dropped from his hand and rolled towards Sam.

  “Adam?” Sam said.

  There was no response.

  More shots fired from inside the room and Sam threw himself to the floor, covering Adam’s body with his own. The soldier wasn’t moving.

  Sam heard heavy footsteps. Not stopping to think, he grabbed the torch and shined it through the still open door, keeping close to the floor. He glimpsed movement, a tall figure behind a pile of furniture.

  “Stop right there!” Sam screamed. “I’m armed!”

  The figure stopped and another shot fired. The bullet ricocheted off the door above Sam.

  He wanted to run and hide, but Adam still hadn’t moved. Sam couldn’t leave him.

  He grasped Adam’s pistol and fired twice, too terrified to aim, just wanting to drive whoever it was back. When the man ducked behind the stack of furniture they’d left there to barricade the broken door, Sam grabbed Adam’s arms and hauled him into the corridor, out of sight of whoever was shooting at them. The shirt at the front of his shoulder was turning red and there was a bloody streak on the floor where his head had been. Sam felt his neck like he’d seen on countless TV shows. It took him a few increasingly panicked tries, but he finally found a pulse.

  “Throw out your gun and I won’t hurt you,” a deep, gravelly voice said.

  “I don’t believe you,” Sam shouted back.

  What was he going to do? He couldn’t carry Adam, and even if he could he couldn’t let the man into the rest of the building. He wouldn’t let anyone harm his friends. He wouldn’t let anyone hurt Claire.

  He crawled to the door and peered around the frame, but it was too dark to see anything without shining the torch inside. Remembering the light switch was to the left of the door, he had an idea.

  He switched off the torch, plunging the corridor into darkness. He waited a couple of seconds then leaped up and slid his hand around the doorframe, feeling for the switch on the other side of the wall. Shots rang out. Sam flinched, trying to duck as low as possible while still reaching for the switch and expecting at any moment to feel the sting of a bullet piercing his body. Then his fingers found what he was feeling for and the strip lighting on the ceiling flickered into life. Momentarily blinded, Sam dropped back down, squinting into the painfully lit room.

  The man’s eyes came to rest on him. He aimed his gun.

  There was movement at the door behind him.

  “Behind you!” Sam shouted.

  The man laughed. “I’m not falling for...”

  The eater reaching for him uttered a moan as its hands grasped his shoulders. The guard cried out. Sam stood, trying to aim at the eater’s head, but the man was in the way. The eater yanked him backwards and they both fell out of sight.

  Beyond the furniture pile, more eaters were squeezing into the room from the narrow door leading to the outside.

  Sam pressed the trigger on Adam’s pistol over and over. A few eaters fell. More took their place.

  Gunfire from behind the furniture was followed by a scream of agony. The man reappeared, his neck covered in blood, and staggered into the open. After only two steps, he was caught by another eater. The woman sank its teeth into his arm and he screamed again. Sam shot at it, but only managed to hit its shoulder. It ignored the wound and kept chewing. Another eater walked up behind him as he struggled to get free and bit into his shoulder.

  A blank expression on his face, the man looked Sam in the eye, raised the pistol he held to his temple, and pulled the trigger. Eaters swarmed his body as he collapsed.

  Already more were looking in Sam’s direction. He bit back a cry, backed through the door and pushed it closed.

  Kneeling beside Adam, he shook the unconscious man. “Adam,” he whispered, “please wake up. Please.”

  The door rattled and Sam looked up to see a blood-covered face pressed to the glass. The corridor was still dark, but light was spilling from the room. The eater twisted its head, saw him, and began to scrabble at the door. More faces joined it, all of them focused on Sam and Adam. It was only a matter of time before they forced their way through.

  Sam shook Adam frantically, raising his voice. “Wake up! You have to wake up.”

  When he still didn’t stir, Sam pushed his hands beneath Adam’s shoulders and dragged him backwards towards the lounge.

  The door banged open behind him and Sam gasped, for a second certain the eaters must have got in that way too. He breathed out when he saw who it was.

  “I heard gunshots.” Claire’s eyes widened. “Sam!”

  “They’re going to get through,” he said. “Adam was shot and I think he hurt his head.”

  He expected Claire to help drag Adam to safety. Instead, she picked him up, settled him over her shoulder, and ran for the lounge, leaving Sam staring after her in awe. The sound of eater moans and the rattling of the door jolted him back to the danger-filled reality and he followed her.

  As they reached the door a crash came from behind them and Sam turned to see eaters lurching into the corridor. Claire carried Adam into the lounge and Sam shoved the door closed behind them. Moments later it shuddered under the strain of bodies hitting the other side.

  “Why don’t any of these doors have locks?” he said, looking around for something to hold it closed.

  Claire laid Adam onto one of the sofas and pushed another towards Sam. Together, they lo
dged it against the door.

  “It won’t stop them if they get the door open,” she said.

  Adam groaned and Sam ran to him as he opened his eyes.

  “What’s going on?” he said, his voice slightly slurred.

  “The eaters got in,” Sam said. “Can you walk? We have to go.”

  Adam’s gaze swivelled to the sofa lodged in front of the shuddering door. He sat up, grimacing and pressing a hand to his wounded shoulder. “Yeah.”

  They made their way to the infirmary, Adam leaning on Sam as he walked. The door opened as they approached and Pat ushered them in, closing it behind them.

  “What’s happening?” Leon said. He was sitting up and a pistol lay on the bed beside him.

  Adam slumped onto one of the empty beds and Pat went to a metal cabinet in one corner of the room, removing a selection of medical supplies. Claire unhooked Adam’s rifle from around him and placed it on Leon’s bed, then unbuttoned his shirt, exposing the bullet wound on his shoulder.

  “One of Boot’s guards got in the back,” Sam said, looking through the half glazed door into the empty corridor outside. “He shot Adam, but he must have left the back door open because eaters got in.”

  “There are eaters out there?” Pat said, glancing at the door.

  “We tried to block the door into the lounge, but we don’t know how long it will hold.”

  “Dad?” Emma said, her voice trembling.

  Leon beckoned her to him and she climbed onto his bed, helping Katie up with her.

  “It’s alright, baby,” he said, wrapping his arms around his daughters. “You don’t have to be scared. We’re going to be okay.”

  Pat turned back to Adam’s shoulder, surreptitiously wiping at her eyes.

  “What about the radio?” Leon said. “We can call for help.”

  “It broke,” Sam said. “I could go and bring the others back...”

  A sound interrupted him, a series of bangs and scrapes. Sam knew what they were. The horde had broken through. They were inside.