A wicked smirk replied. “Because they’re the distraction for us. We’ve got other plans.”
Chapter 21
Jessie, Yellow Springs, Ohio
“He’s stabilizing some. So are Weissman and Garcia.”
Jessie stared down at the three soldiers where they lay on their cots in a neat row. Dex remained unconscious, but Weissman and Garcia sat up on piles of pillows and watched movies on Paul’s DVD player. The unit rested on a stool between them, its flickering light illuminating their faces in a ghostly light.
“That’s amazing.” Jessie smiled. “Thank you.”
“I’m just sad I couldn’t have finished sooner,” Paul replied. “I couldn’t save Price.”
They stood in the center of the theater room, consulting after some initial patient observations.
“If it wasn’t for you, we’d all be dead,” Jessie reminded him. “Except for Miss Fiona, here.”
The girl stood by her side, holding her hand and waving at Weissman. It seemed she had a crush on the man. The big soldier waved back with a dry chuckle.
“Just keep that in mind when you start feeling down on yourself.”
“I’ll try,” Paul nodded, still looking glum.
“You’re a good guy.” Fiona patted Paul’s arm, drawing a haggard smile across the man’s face.
“Why, thank you my dear.” He leaned down with a slight bow.
“Why don’t you get some sleep?” Jessie encouraged him. “You’re dead on your feet.”
He turned his grinning face toward her, looking more like a madman than a famed mycologist. “You know what? I’m so tired I’m not sure I can fall asleep.” He patted Fiona’s head. “But it will be fun trying.”
The old man waddled to his lab door and disappeared inside. They’d set him up with a twin mattress, three pillows, and several thin sheets. She desperately hoped he took the opportunity to rest.
They were winning the war, but each battle crushed them a little more. Jessie didn’t know how much fight they had left in them. Her eyes lingered on Dex. His breathing had improved, which was the first step to recovery. But, she still had to keep a close eye on him.
For the thousandth time, she wished Kim were back. She could use the woman’s wild confidence and raw grit. She’d be happy just to have another person to share shifts with.
She looked down at Fiona with bleary eyes. “Speaking of sleep, it’s almost midnight. Why don’t you get into bed?”
“Okay,” the girl replied.
“Are you okay without your DVD player?”
Fiona’s eyes fell to the soldiers, and Jessie could see the wheels turning inside her head.
She looked up with a doleful expression. “They need it more than me. But maybe you can read to me?”
“Of course, I will.” Jessie beamed. “Paul said I could borrow a book from his shelf upstairs. So, why don’t you climb into bed, and I’ll grab it.”
“O-Kay!” Fiona cried, and she rushed over to a theater chair they used as a bed. She started to change out of her blue jeans and into the new pajama bottoms Jessie found for her at a local clothing store next to the food market.
She’d picked up some new threads for herself, and T-shirts and underwear for the soldiers. It had been an impulse grab, though she figured they’d appreciate it.
Jessie strode away from the cots to the stairwell and ascended to the home’s main floor. She stepped into the hall and quietly shut the basement door behind her, listening in the dark silence with her hand resting on her weapon.
All she heard was Bryant upstairs, talking to someone on the radio. The way he argued with the person on the other line, she knew it wasn’t Kim. He must have gotten hold of General Miller.
Satisfied no one lurked in the hall, she crept into the kitchen, breathing shallow as her eyes adjusted to the dim electric lantern sitting on a stack of canned goods atop the breakfast bar. The soldiers had boarded up the windows and doors before they’d gotten too sick to carry on, sealing them tight against the outside world.
She smiled at the stacks of supplies they’d found at the market. She and Bryant had both agreed to carry on and pick up more provisions after Lexi’s attack. The decision had paid dividends, and they’d acquired enough food and water to last the group well over two months.
Jessie’s eyes lingered on stacks of canned soups and meats, bottled juices, snacks, jerky sticks, and granola bars. They had oatmeal, rice, pasta, and sauces. At a nearby hardware store, they’d found a box of batteries, extra flashlights, five backpacks, tents, sleeping mats, rope, tape, chain, knives, three shotguns, and several boxes of shells.
Her new goal was to ensure the three surviving soldiers received plenty of rest and care. They’d gotten dangerously thin and sickly, but their appetites should pick up once their bodies began eradicating the infection.
It was all the hope they had.
She grabbed two jerky sticks and two bottles of water out of the supplies. Then she strode down the main hallway with her hand on her weapon, stopping at the foot of the L-shaped stairwell. She glanced over at the sealed front door, then slid her eyes to the boarded-up windows with slits cut into them to see out of. Garcia and Weissman had cut the plywood and drywall from Paul’s garage.
It might slow down a bullet or keep someone from sneaking in. Anything to make it harder for the mercenary.
Jessie took her hand off her weapon and turned right up the stairwell, following the sound of Bryant’s voice. Her boots fell heavy on the carpet so he would know it was her. When she reached the top, she gave him a little wave.
He sat behind the makeshift communication desk, holding a headset to his ear. His cowed speech pattern confirmed her suspicions it was General Miller on the other line.
“Yes, sir. We’ll keep you posted on Weissman, Dex, and Garcia. And as soon as they’re better, we’ll bring Burke to you. You have my word on that, sir. Mrs. Shields is fine as far as we know. I’m actually about to raise her on the radio. I wanted to brief you first.”
“Yes, sir. Good luck to you, too, sir.”
Bryant hit a switch on the receiver in front of him and gently placed the headset next to his pistol and ammunition pouch. His rifle rested against the wall behind him.
“That didn’t sound too bad,” Jessie quipped. She walked over and placed a jerky stick and bottled water on the table.
Bryant reached across and picked up the goods. Then he sighed and sat back in his chair, straightening his leg. He often complained of soreness and a lingering ache. Keeping it straight seemed to help.
“The DC camp is getting by,” he said. “Their numbers have increased to almost fifteen thousand now, and he says it’s starting to look like civilization again.”
“That’s great news,” Jessie replied, hope ticking up in her heart.
“It’s not terrible,” Bryant agreed. “The Florida camp is thriving, too. Their population is only sixty-six hundred, but they’re building several massive greenhouses and livestock facilities. And there’s a trucking route to trade supplies back and forth.”
“That’s amazing,” Jessie said. “It sounds like progress to me.”
“You’d think we could build on that and pull together.”
“What do you mean?”
“The Indianapolis camp has gone rogue. Or, at least they’re not following General Miller’s orders. Whoever’s running the show there is on a power trip. There’s a ragtag group of civilians giving them trouble, too.”
“Didn’t Kim get caught up in all that?”
The soldier nodded. “She did. Soldiers from the Indianapolis camp tried to trap her and bring her in, but someone from the rebel group got her out of there. I don’t know what to make of it, but Miller said he wants to build up his strength before he makes a move.”
Jessie nodded. “Sounds like the human race is getting back to its old warring self.”
“No kidding,” Bryant replied with arched eyebrows. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t come t
o that.” The soldier’s expression brightened. “Oh, yeah. They received a little rain out there. It seems the moisture agitates the fungus. It creates those spore clouds again, but not like the original ones. He’s got some people looking at it.”
It didn’t surprise her. The true power of Asphyxia would need to be studied for years to determine its long-term effects on the earth. “I’d go out and take some readings and dig around if I thought it was safe.”
“We need to get rid of Lexi and Burke.” Bryant said. “I’d almost do a trade with Lexi if I thought they’d go away. But Burke won’t leave it alone. He’s dead set on destroying our efforts here. I guess his life depends on it. If Miller gets hold of him...”
“He needs to pay for what he’s done.” Jessie pressed the words through firm lips.
“I know. I told Miller we’d bring the guy in as soon as we could, then it will be out of our hands. I’d leave today if I thought we could make the trip.”
“We could ask the general to send more infected soldiers. We could help them get better. It’s not a perfect solution, but--”
“Paul can’t keep this up forever,” Bryant shook his head. “He’s barely able to produce a vial or two of serum per day. And we can’t really set up shop in DC either. They don’t have the facilities we need. Hell, the old man’s basement is probably better equipped. No, we need a real facility with real capabilities. And we need to be able to protect it.”
“I know,” Jessie sighed, leaning against the desk with a thoughtful expression. “What if we sent Miller all the research? If we shared it widely, Burke would have no reason to stick around.” She bit her lip. “We could make a deal. Call off Lexi in exchange for Burke’s freedom. Believe me, that’s the last thing I want to do. But if--”
“Miller has all the data up to the point the lab crashed,” Bryant interrupted her again. “The general might have scientists in DC who could mimic Paul and Kim’s work, but I doubt it. It’s really specialized, and Burke knows it. He won’t fall for that. He wants us all dead and this house razed to the ground.”
She nodded, understanding the soldier’s line of thinking. “Well, we can’t do anything until we talk to Kim. And we can’t leave until the guys get better. I know Miller runs the show, and he’s got a lot going on, but our priorities are different.”
“At least he’s getting on board with the cure. He wants us to succeed.” Bryant held up his headset. “What say we give Kim a call?”
Jessie grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.”
*
She pulled up a chair next to the soldier and stripped her jerky stick of its wrapper. She took a bite and stared at the gaudy chandelier hanging from Paul’s foyer ceiling as she chewed.
The wind blew gently above her, flapping the tarp around in the tower.
Bryant flipped through his channels, searching for someone on the military line who could patch him through to Kim.
“Hello?” he spoke into the headset. “I’m trying to reach Kim Shields. “Yes, she’s part of the DC registry. She’s in Salina, Kansas. You’ll have to connect me via satellite. Yeah, I’ll hold. Thanks.”
He turned to Jessie to explain.
“With Dex’s gear, I can hit a relay station in Tennessee or Pennsylvania. From there, they can pipe me through a satellite to her.”
“They need radio relays?”
Bryant shook his head. “They’re consolidating and simplifying communication services. They want us to use the relay stations and radio dispatchers for long-distance calls. They can route the connections through satellite more efficiently that way. And I think they did it to throw a wrench at the rogue military groups like Indianapolis who might also be using satellite.”
Jessie took another bite of her jerky, gnawing on the salty-tough snack. She wanted to be excited about the new wave of organization, but weariness claimed her body and mind. Thankfully, Bryant had volunteered for the overnight shift, and she was anxious to put her head on a pillow.
“If we can hold things together— Yes, I’m still here. Great! Okay, you’re patching me through now? Thank you!”
He nodded at Jessie and grinned excitedly. “They’re patching me through now,” he said before someone on the other line caught his ear. “Hello? Hey, Kim. How are you? No, we’re fine. I’m here with Jessie. One moment.” The soldier flipped something on his receiver, and a flat hum issued from a wired-up speaker.
“You’re on speakerphone,” Bryant explained, proudly. “I rigged it myself, so I hope you can hear us.”
“I can hear you fine,” Kim replied, and Jessie could practically see her grin from across the miles. “What’s going on there? You went offline for a while.”
“It’s so good to hear your voice,” Jessie said, and she meant it. “We were offline because Burke called up more goons to attack us.”
Kim’s words were hushed and quiet. “Oh, no. Is everyone okay?”
“We’re all fine,” Jessie replied. “Took some knocks and dings, but we survived. Paul’s lab was destroyed. The gardens. All of it. Gone.”
Silence hung on the line as Kim absorbed the information.
“What about you?” Jessie asked.
“We’re just outside Salina, Kansas. And by we, I mean Bishop and the kids, too. They found me after Richtman caught up to me.”
“Where’s Richtman now?” Bryant straightened in his seat, a darkness crossing his face.
“That’s actually not so important,” Kim said, her voice shaking with excitement.
“What do you mean?”
Her voice dropped into a softer tone. “I, um, talked to your wife. I talked to Melissa.”
“What?” Bryant’s body collapsed forward, his head just four inches from the speaker. “Where is she? Is she okay?”
“She’s great. She’s alive and in Chinle, Arizona. They’re registered with the new military communication system now, and they’ve got a strong radio. I think she said it came out of her helicopter. You can call her yourself.”
“Send me the info.”
“You got it, buddy.”
Jessie watched the soldier’s frantic, shaky hand as he scribbled the information on his notepad. Sweat beaded on his brow, and his lips pursed. Once he finished writing, he shifted in his chair and turned to another radio console.
“I’ve got a second radio tied in.” He flipped a switch and turned a dial. “I can call her on this other line and tie her in.”
Jessie took a deep breath and waited as he punched in the number and tied the lines together. They listened as the call routed through the military lines up to the satellite and back down to Earth again.
The line finally buzzed and clicked open. “Specialist Hicks.” The voice was a young woman’s. “Who am I speaking to?”
“This is Lieutenant Colonel Scott Bryant,” he said in the authoritative tone he used with subordinates. “I’m looking for Captain Melissa Bryant. Is she there?”
“Negative, sir.”
“This is Chinle, Arizona, right?”
“That’s correct. But Captain Bryant is out on a mission right now.”
“A mission?”
“She’s out with the locals on a scavenging run.”
Bryant looked perplexed and disappointed. “Well, when will she be back?”
“Unknown. I’d estimate a day.”
“A day...” The soldier shook his head with a crestfallen expression.
“I’m going to assume you’re Melissa’s husband?”
“That’s right. I haven’t talked to her in weeks. Could you--”
“I’ll have her call as soon as she gets back. Priority one, sir.”
“Thank you.” Bryant disconnected the line to Chinle and deflated into his seat. He looked at Jessie with a hopeless expression. “Well, I can finally reach her, but she’s gone. What kind of luck is that?”
“Sorry,” Jessie tilted her head and pursed her lips. “It stinks.”
“I just hope she’s not putting herself
in any danger.”
“If she’s half as tough as you,” Kim said, “it won’t matter.”
Bryant stared past Jessie and blinked. Then, snapping from his trance, he leaned forward again. “Okay. I guess we’re back to Richtman.”
“He’s dead,” Kim stated flatly. “But it was close.”
Kim launched into her story about her final two confrontations with Richtman. She laughed when she described how she’d almost had him but missed badly. “I couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn.”
“Sounds like you’ve got the firing down, anyway,” Bryant said. He’d given Kim a brief lesson on the weapon before she’d left Paul’s.
“Yeah, but I could have used some target practice.”
Kim then launched into her escape.
The words came out faster through the small speaker as the tale grew more tense. Jessie’s stomach twisted in her gut as Kim told them about Richtman’s assault on the bus.
“You’re one brave lady,” Jessie shook her head
“Not brave,” Kim argued back, her voice sounding tight. “I didn’t have a choice. He would’ve ruined all my work and probably killed me. I just pulled up my big-girl britches and did what I had to do.”
Bryant gave an admiring laugh and shook his head.
Kim retold how he’d caught her stalling and beat her to within an inch of her life. Jessie leaned forward, angry as the story spiraled toward its tense conclusion.
“What happened next?” she asked, unable to bear the delay. “Come on. Chop chop.”
Kim laughed a little, then she took a deep breath and allowed a quiet, shaky sigh to escape. “I was on my knees, thinking I was dead. That’s when my family came.”
She told them the last, tantalizing bit. About how Riley had shown up out of nowhere, like an innocent backpacker, had distracted Richtman long enough for Bishop to sneak up behind him with a baseball bat and whack him across the back of his head.
“Then they hugged me,” Kim said with a sniffle of finality. “My family hugged me. They took me inside and patched me up. Oh, but you guys should see my face. I still have bruises. My lips and chin will have scars.”
Spore Series | Book 4 | Exist Page 21