by AJ Sinclair
The dumbstruck soldier followed her, turning his back to the hallway she’d come from and allowing Jack to creep up from behind and tap him on the shoulder. The man spun.
“Hey.” Jack smiled then punched him in the face.
The guard stumbled backward as Jack wrenched the gun from his hands, tossing it aside then throwing another punch to drop him to his knees. Jack wrapped his arm around the man’s neck from behind and squeezed until he slumped to the floor.
“Well done.” Indie smiled and golf clapped.
Jack snarled at her. “Don’t ever play dumb again.” A visible shudder rippled down his spine. “It’s not you.”
Indie shrugged. “It worked.” But the ditsy ploy had left a bad taste in her mouth.
Jack grumbled something rude and took his displeasure out on the doorknob, knocking it loose with one vicious kick.
Wow, I need to piss him off more often.
Cody tumbled out and caught himself on Jack’s collar. “I could kiss you.”
Indie hoped he’d kiss them both.
“Not now,” Jack grumbled and shoved Cody aside.
Austin appeared and glanced at his watch, calm and cool, as if he’d been only mildly inconvenienced by a late bus. “Took you long enough.”
“One guard, one lock, but you couldn’t break yourselves out?” Jack shook his head. “What the fuck, Eli?”
“No weapons.” Eli shrugged. “Did you see the massive hardware he was carrying?”
“I did,” Cody muttered with a touch of awe. “I’m scared and a little aroused.”
“Bunch of pussies.” Jack rolled his eyes.
Indie propped her chin on her fist and tapped her finger against her cheekbone. “Now let’s see…where did I leave my penis measuring tape? Oh, that’s right. It’s in I-don’t-give-a-shit land.” She whirled and stalked off, leaving four shamed, sputtering soldiers to scramble after her.
Men. Four of them, even. She’d nearly choked on the testosterone overdose. Had she really been thinking about romancing all of them? Hell yes. She’d have to find a way to rein in the man bluster from time to time. Seriously? What is wrong with me?
She marched around a blind corner and stopped short. Austin crashed into her back, and the rest of them froze as a rather pissed off soldier—the first one Jack had taken out—and a good dozen of his angry friends trained their guns on her company.
“Let me guess,” the man snarled. “You want to see Dr. Francis.”
Indie crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re damn right, I do.”
***
AUSTIN
Dr. Francis, however, wasn’t so happy to see them. Austin smothered a chuckle as the cornered scientist fumbled the file Indie had waved in his face. Dr. Francis tossed it on the general’s desk and glared at her. “You didn’t finish the cure?”
“No.” Indie jammed her fists on her hips. “We need to talk.”
Every man in the room groaned at those words.
But Dr. Francis ignored her and flipped through his clipboard instead, his face growing redder with each page. “How did you figure out how to kill it? I couldn’t. No one could!”
Indie narrowed her eyes and glared down her nose at him. “I never gave up.”
Dr. Francis threw the clipboard at the general’s feet and paced. “We tested every sample, every mutation, similar viruses. It was made to kill, and it couldn’t be stopped.”
“Made?” Indie glanced back at the men, each of them apparently as dumbfounded by the doctor’s ramblings as she was.
“Nothing could kill the bug we built!”
Indie gasped and staggered back a step, the soldier guarding her oblivious to her shock, and she caught herself on his arm. “You did what?”
General Kerr rolled his eyes and stood. “We built a weapon.”
All the crazy theories Austin had heard—terrorists, aliens, natural selection—flashed through his head. He’d suspected someone had been behind it, that the outbreak hadn’t been an accident, but he’d never imagined that the man who’d mentored him, the man who’d witnessed his private pain would be responsible for this.
“For what?” Austin shouted, taking a step forward and stopping suddenly when a muzzle was shoved in his face. He and his men had been forced to give up their weapons when the plow had been surrounded. Now soldiers guarded Indie and her men at a distance. No one from the outside dared touch anyone who’d been in the quarantine. “Killing everything on the planet?”
“For wiping out terrorists!” Kerr puffed himself up. A short but stocky man, people constantly underestimated his strength and agility. More than once, the man had knocked Austin on his ass before he knew what was happening.
“That’s bullshit!” Austin rolled his eyes. He hated terrorists as much as Kerr did, but they had specific tactics, long term plans. “I know you better than that. Terrorism is just an excuse.”
Kerr’s right eye twitched.
His tell. Austin had always beat him at poker. “We’re all dead men here, general. What’s really going on?”
More twitching. “You don’t know as much as you think.”
“Then tell me.”
“You were always a fool.” Kerr paced between his desk and Austin’s group, hands clasped behind his back. “I’m surprised you’re still alive.”
“That makes two of us.”
“You eliminate one terror cell and another springs up in its place.” He wouldn’t look at Austin, staring down at his feet instead.
Austin gritted his teeth, his fingers itching to get hold of a weapon. “So we keep fighting.”
Kerr continued pacing, seemingly lost in his thoughts. “We’ve become weak, frightened sheep hiding behind TSA checkpoints and government sanctions.”
“We’ve adapted. We’ve survived.”
“Not all of us.” Kerr slumped on the edge of the desk and rubbed his hands over his face.
“We’ve all lost so much.” Indie approached the general, her voice soft and soothing. “But we can end this now.”
“We could. If only it started here.”
“What do you mean?” She glanced at Austin, but he had no answer for her.
“My wife.” Kerr’s tone flattened. “My unborn son and daughter were on United Flight 93.” His voice cracked and his shoulders slumped. “They were coming to see me. My wife didn’t want to fly. Morning sickness had been really hard on her, but the doctor said it was safe for her to travel. I missed them all so much, so I bought their tickets.”
Austin had heard the general’s wife had died in a plane crash, but he didn’t know about the children—or which flight. “The passengers on that plane were heroes. They prevented more lives being lost.”
“They sacrificed my family!” Kerr leaped to his feet, his face turned purple and spit flew as he roared. “And for what? So the government could cower and play politics? I watched for years, helpless, while presidents did nothing. Now it’s my turn.”
“To do what?” Austin started forward, but rifles crossed in his path.
“To kill off the weak and the lame. Burn away the lifeless deadweight so the roots will grow back stronger!”
“You’re killing your own people?” The very idea went against all of Austin’s training, all the values drilled into him from the beginning of his military career.
“So we can live again! Surviving isn’t enough. Life is so much more. Was so much more.” Kerr deflated slightly but his eyes hardened again. “Sacrifices have to be made so others can live. I learned that lesson all too well.”
Dr. Francis tried to shush the man. “You shouldn’t be telling them everything.”
The general shrugged. “They’re all going to get sick and die anyway.”
“She’s not.” Dr. Francis angled his head toward Indie. “She’s immune.”
Indie’s eyes narrowed. “And just why do you know that?”
“You were supposed to be patient zero.”
Chapter 11
INDIE
This time the soldier guarding Indie caught her when she crumpled. He quickly righted her and let go, stepping back a presumably safe distance. Indie’s mind reeled. Dr. Julian Francis, the man who’d groomed her scientific career, guided her studies, even asked her out once, had wanted—no, had tried—to kill her. “Why me?”
Dr. Francis shrugged. “You were convenient, easily accessible, expendable. I could infect you with little effort and observe the results objectively.”
“I am not a lab rat!” Her hands clenched, and she jammed them into her hips to keep from pounding the man’s face.
“You all are.” He studied her group with the same unbiased gaze she might’ve given Rizzo and his rat companions.
Did he feel any remorse at all? Was this just another experiment to him? “You had to know this would get out of control.”
“I had everything under control until you left.” His stoic mask cracked.
“What are you talking about? You can’t cage me in the lab.”
“You had to go to that wine tasting with your sister, a non-work-related function. I tried to stop you, increased your work load, but you insisted.” His supposed objectivity crumbled, and he shot an accusing glare at her. “This outbreak is on you!”
What? “The tasting? I couldn’t have infected anyone there. I barely spoke to people.” She’d stayed close to Dallas, but her sister hadn’t gotten sick until after their mother died.
“What else did you do that night?” The general spoke up, giving credence to the idea that Indie had been an accomplice in their sick conspiracy.
Her mind raced, attempting to recall the details of that night. “I went home, had dinner—alone. I went to the…” Oh God. “I went to the gym. After my workout, I was heading to the shower, wiping my face with a towel. I didn’t see…Emily. I bumped into her. I apologized. She laughed and patted my sweaty back. Sweat.” Indie’s stomach rolled as the implications of her actions became clear. “She was patient zero.”
“I tried to infect you, but you turned out to be immune,” Dr. Francis snapped irritably. “So you became the carrier.” He practically glowed at that.
Everyone in the room took a step away from Indie, even the doctor and the general. But Austin, Cody, Jack, and Eli moved closer, touching her as they circled her.
“She’s deadly,” Dr. Francis gloated.
Austin stood between Dr. Jones and Dr. Francis. “This is what we do.”
“We protect people.” Eli stood beside the major. “Each other.” Both men were unarmed, but more threatening than anyone in the room.
“We’ll protect her from you as long as we have breath.” Cody stood beside Indie, pressed shoulder to shoulder with her.
Jack laced his fingers with hers, smiling as he squeezed her hand.
My company. My soldiers. Protecting her when just being near her put their lives in danger. She’d become the weapon. Maybe I should use it. She released Jack’s hand and stepped between Austin and Eli toward Dr. Francis. “But now they need to protect you from me.”
She licked the palm of her hand. She could slap him. Right across the face. That would be enough to infect him and ultimately kill him. Power surged through her as the idea of holding the bastard’s life in her hands—literally—blossomed with fertile vengeance. “He killed my entire family.” Her voice quivered, and she shook all over. Hundreds, probably thousands of families—gone. “He deserves to die.”
“Don’t do it, Indie.” Austin’s fingers circled her wrist, gentle, but as firm as his words.
When had she raised her hand? “But he killed so many people. He’s still killing them.”
“I know.” He kept his grip on her as he tried to lower her trembling arm. “Everyone will know.”
But she resisted. “I have to do something.”
Eli stepped up beside her. “You did. You saved people. Sarmi, Aradhana, Shekar.”
“Don’t be like this motherfucker. He’s an asshole.” Cody’s cocky grin sweetened as he brushed her hair back over her shoulder. “You’re our doc.”
“He’ll get what’s coming to him,” Jack growled, his eyes dark and dangerous.
The desire to slap Dr. Francis dried up along with the lick on her palm. “Promise?”
They all nodded, swearing vengeance on the men responsible and everyone who’d helped them.
Austin released Indie’s wrist, and she rubbed the feeling back into it. He’d held her tight, and she loved him for it. The guys gathered around her, whispering words of comfort accompanied by tender touches.
“Aww. What a happy, sick family.” The general sneered, looking as if he wanted to puke. “Take them back to the quarantine.”
“No!” Indie gasped. Guns pointed in her face, directing her toward the door. The other soldiers herded her men alongside her. She couldn’t go back to that hell, not when she couldn’t help anyone. “We’ll survive, and when the quarantine is lifted, you’ll all pay for this.”
Dr. Francis laughed. “No, the quarantine will last longer than you do. The government has left all of you to die.”
Indie halted, and a gun barrel poked her in the ribs. She ignored it and took a step back toward Dr. Francis. “Why are you doing this?”
“Because you’re annoying me.”
God, the man was so fucking self-centered! Why had she never seen it before? “No, why did you create this virus?”
He looked at her and frowned as if she’d asked the dumbest question on the planet. “Money. I got paid a boatload—no—an aircraft carrier load of money to do this.”
Someone else is involved? “Who paid you?”
“I really have no idea.” Dr. Francis shook his head. “All our communication was by messenger, a different one each time. They’re probably dead now.”
“I never met the man.” General Kerr scratched his neck. “Or woman. I just took the money.”
“More than I’d ever make looking through a microscope.”
“Science isn’t about money.” Indie refused to believe he could be so shallow. “It’s about helping mankind, making the world a better place. Isn’t that what you told me?”
Dr. Francis shrugged. “I changed my mind.”
She saw it now. He’d always been a heartless bastard. “If this virus gets out, it’ll destroy the world, and all your money won’t be able to save your ass.”
“You’re right.”
In a flash that seemed to last forever, Dr. Francis yanked the general’s pistol from its holster and fired at Indie, missing wildly. Bile rose in her throat, and she spit at him, hitting him square in the eye.
“No!” The doctor screeched and tried to wipe his eye. “What have you done? I’m infected!”
Indie couldn’t bring herself to care. Not about him. “Really? You never inoculated yourself?”
“You left and spread this thing before I had time to make one,” Dr. Francis whined.
“Get them out!” The general shoved his soldiers toward Indie and her men.
She allowed them to drag her out, and the guys, disarmed, put up only a token resistance. The last rays of sunset faded behind the mountains and darkness fell as they were escorted back to the fence, quickly being repaired and under heavy guard.
Austin attempted to reassure them. “Don’t worry. We’ll get through this somehow.” He lowered his voice, pressing close to Indie. “We’ll try again.”
“What’s the point?”
He couldn’t answer that. No one could.
***
JACK
Jack’s hands hung empty at his sides, his fingers itching to get on a weapon. They’d been dragged back into the quarantine and left with nothing, supplies confiscated, rifles taken. Vulnerable to any attack. And possibly infected. Indie carried the virus. But that didn’t scare him. He still wanted to take her in his arms and shelter her from this hell. When Dr. Francis had pulled the general’s sidearm, Jack reacted, too slowly. Fortunately, the man was as awful a shot as he was a human
being.
They wandered down a trash-strewn sidewalk with no particular destination in mind. Jack slid beside Indie and took her hand, but she pulled back.
“You shouldn’t touch me.”
He smiled and slid his arm around her waist. “I think we’re way beyond that.” He brushed a kiss on her temple.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know–” Her voice hitched. “What he did.”
“You couldn’t have. No one suspected it was one of our own.”
“I did.” Eli spoke up. “Domestic terrorists. Sort of.” He grew quiet, his eyes weary. “But I didn’t really believe it.”
“No one did.” Cody dropped back to walk beside Jack and Indie while Austin and Eli led them aimlessly.
“Where are we going?” Indie asked no one in particular. “We can’t escape. We can’t stay here. There’s nothing left…”
Except death. But no one said it out loud.
A cold wind howled through the high-rise buildings, rattling metal against metal. Shadows moved toward them. More shadows skittered away, desolation left in their wake.
“We need to find shelter.” Austin stopped and assessed their surroundings.
Eli stopped beside him. “For how long? We’ve got power and water now, but if this quarantine is going to be permanent, we need to consider fortifying a location for the long-term.”
“Gather supplies.” Cody listed their needs. “Batteries, heat sources for cooking. Food.”
“And weapons.” Jack scowled. Of course, he’d had to mention the obvious.
Austin nodded. “Abandon our plan to escape and focus on survival.”
“If you survive the infection.” Indie’s words deflated their hopeful plans and snapped them back to grim reality.
Jack’s heart raced. Would they all die and leave her alone? Shit. At the very least, they had to find shelter, supplies, and weapons to ensure Indie’s survival.
“Let’s focus on our immediate situation.” Austin resumed his wandering.