by Annie Walls
“Tell her, or I’ll start shooting them off.”
Gray shakes his head and scowls. “He left after he talked to you. He goes around. He’s getting ready to go overseas soon.” He grins a bloody, horrific smile. “You’re not even asking the right questions.” His smile doesn’t last long before he sputters some more blood onto the concrete.
I gesture to Reece and he says to Gray, “You’re lucky I don’t kill you.” He stomps his head to the floor with his motorcycle boot. We grimace at the cracking sound. “Shit.”
“Yeah, ditto.” I say, feeling for a pulse, which was nonexistent. “He’s dead.” I shake my head at Reece, but he doesn’t look put out.
“He deserved it. Think of who else he’s raped.” I flinch. He sees it and his face softens. “Sorry,” he says with some strain in his voice. I shake my head, knowing he has a point.
“Looks like our only lead is Mago, and Julie said he goes to New Orleans a lot.” I say, weighing our options.
“Yeah, let’s go get that vaccine,” he pauses, and I know I won’t like what he’ll say next. “Or I can tell you where we set up camp, I’ll get the vaccine.” He switches tactics. “Glinda’s there. She’s been worried about you.”
The thought of seeing Glinda makes my heart soar, but I’ll see her soon anyway. “No.”
“Do whatever you need to do,” he sighs as he hands me my machete. It gleams with extra sharpness. He smiles and shrugs, “I borrowed it.”
I smirk as best as my swollen face will let me. “Uh-huh.” Right.
***
My body wants to collapse as we head outside, going on nothing more than sheer will. It’s dark except for the occasional explosion lighting up the sky. The stark white of the medical building rises in the distance. Shouts and screams interrupt the night as smells of gun powder and decay float through the air, thick and strong. Famished run around, and a snarling group spots us. My left hand grips the machete, the pistol in my right.
The sky lights up with another explosion, vibrating beneath my feet, more explosions burst and flash illuminating a zombie right in front of me. I jump back, startled at its sudden appearance as it groans. Gore spurts as I slash my machete. Squeezing the trigger, I put a bullet in its head. Gunfire rings in my ears. I haven’t taken down famished in what seems like a lifetime, but it’s just like riding a bike.
A guard comes out of nowhere. I assume he’s unarmed for lack of shooting. I shoot him in the leg. I don’t want to kill him, just get him out of the way.
Reece battles his own small group with one coming up from behind. I swing the machete around to slow the two about to attack me, and shoot the famished that grabs Reece by the shoulders. Immediately, I turn to shoot the two in front of me as one grabs my arm. The sounds coming from them make the hair on my arms stand. Teeth snap at me as I shoot one, and a sprinkle of famished blood rains down. Wiping my face with Rudy’s hoodie sleeve, it occurs to me they’re trying to eat us, not subdue us. I don’t really expect anything else, but once you see zombies touch the living without biting, well, it sticks with you.
One rushes out of the darkness, smacking into Reece. They go tumbling as Reece holds it by the neck, and by luck the sawed off shotgun flies from them. I smile to myself, pick it up, and cock it. Reece kicks the famished off him, and before he grabs a backup, I fire the shotgun.
After a hard blow to my lower shoulder and in my armpit, I fly backwards, barely feeling it. Maybe from shock? The headless famished goes down instantly. Well, half a head. I know why Reece wanted to wait before I shot his precious. I’m on my butt, blinking at Reece. He shakes his head, grinning at me. More snarls erupt, and we quickly go back into action, though, I’m slower than I was a few minutes before.
Famished come from all directions.
“Just get to the building!” he shouts. We shoot the closest ones and make a mad dash to the white building, barely visible in the distance. Reece turns to half run backwards. “Heads up!” he shouts, as he slings a lit bomb toward the famished. He grabs me, throwing me to the ground for cover. An explosion sounds in my ears and they pop. Heat radiates over my body in a massive wave. The air sharpens with the stench of a crematory. When the air cools, we stand and run.
I don’t see anyone but mad famished and the few guards they attack. We told the team weeks ago to stick to the shadows and stay low.
The white building is exactly where Julie said it would be. Shooting the door open, we make our way inside. Darkness surrounds us, and I don’t want to turn on a light and draw attention, either. Reece clicks on a small flashlight, careful to keep it away from windows.
We search for what seems like hours, breaking in every door before finally finding a room with heavy security. The door’s solid steel, and needs a key card to open.
“I don’t want to shoot at it. There could be oxygen tanks nearby,” I say. We avoided any shooting, except the main door, until now. Looking at the key card box, I have no idea what to do with it.
“Maybe we can get a guard with a keycard?” Reece suggests, but our luck changes as the box beeps, the little light turning green.
The world seems at a standstill as the door opens and someone with a biohazard mask stands there. My eyes automatically zero in on the smart pad in his hand. A smile rises to my face. Until now, the base did a good job of keeping me away from any kind of computer technology. The man looks at both of us. “What the –” He’s cut off by an arrow piercing his head, slumping to the ground as the smart pad slides from his grip.
Peeking behind me, Rudy’s form is a silhouette in the dark. Reece chuckles, “Good timing.”
I swallow. “No shit.” I bend and pick up the smart pad to look at it. Reece illuminates it with the flashlight. The smart pad’s one you would see at a doctor’s office in the old life. Slowly, doctors were turning to this technology instead of handwriting in medical charts. My doctor once wrote a prescription on one, sending it straight to my pharmacy. I don’t recognize the brand, but I can figure it out. Reece and Rudy eye me curiously. Another explosion sounds outside.
“Hurry,” Rudy says, “I have your backs.” He throws some empty canvas bags to us.
I don’t really know what’s in the room, but if the guy had on a mask, it can’t be safe. We enter a sterilization room with a biohazard closet full of suits where one should change before going into the next room.
“That can’t be good.” Reece says.
“The guy was in a hurry. He only had on a mask. I’m sure we can go in without the regular precautions.” Reece looks doubtful. I glance around, noticing all the medicine cabinets. They’re glass and completely stocked. “I’ll take one for the team. You get those.” I say, pointing to the cabinets. Going into the closet and shutting the door, I know I can’t really do this without a suit, and putting on one now seems strange. There’s a certain way one should be put on, but I don’t know the routine. Putting one on as best I can, I go to open the door to the next room but realize it’s all for nothing. The door sits ajar.
I kick my frustration at it, slamming it open. The room seems like a lab with steel tables, microscopes, and glass refrigerators. Heading straight for the fridge, I find it’s cold, but warming up quickly. Shit.
“Reece!” I pull off the mask, for all the good it’s doing me. Bursting in with no hesitation and no suit, he looks into the fridge full of unmarked vials.
Reece glances at me. “What did you expect? Did you want them to label it ‘zombie vaccine’?”
“Something similar to VX12-antidote might have been helpful.” I smirk, “I know what that man was doing. He cut power, and grabbed the only thing useful, the smart pad. It will have something on it. I’m just guessing here, but I think the vaccine won’t work if it’s not cold.”
He grunts, “It’s not like we’re going to shoot ourselves up with it.”
“True. We’ll take what we can get.” I say, grabbing the canvas bag, shoving in vials. I stop when it’s full. I don’t want to mix the vaccine
with useful medicine. Opening Reece’s bag feels like a kid coming across a wrecked ice cream truck. Yes! Yes, yes, yes. Pain pills. Swallowing one without water, it makes its way down my throat.
“We’ve been in here a while. It’s quiet.” Reece informs as we walk out to meet Rudy.
I discard the rest of the suit. “Where do we meet everyone?”
Rudy lowers his bow, glancing at me through the darkness. “We have a spot a few towns over. Everyone’s supposed to leave when either their cars are full, or they need a quick getaway. There’s tons of famished out there, Kan.” Yeah, I’ve seen it myself. He’s talking about on the outside. Without the bombs, they wouldn’t have gotten in.
“Did you bring your hog?” I ask Reece.
“No, it’s a town over. I just drove an old car,” he answers.
I look to Rudy, and he answers before I question, “The vehicle I had Jules, Dalton, and Kale drove away following Bunyan.”
I nod, having a quick plan. “All right. If we can get back to the garage, there is a light that drives away the famished. UV, Julie said. She was trying to get me to leave until we heard bombs. Then I shoved her into the closet.” I look away from Rudy’s silhouette. “We should be able to get away easily.”
“I only have two pipesters left. Better use them wisely,” Reece thinks out loud. We make it back to the door. Fires blaze with forms running around in the light and shadows.
“Reece you go first. Have them ready. Kan?”
“Yes?”
He steps up, looking down at me, strapping his bow to his back. “I’m right behind you.” I have both canvas bags on my shoulders as Reece makes a run for it, tossing a bomb toward a group of famished, mainly for a distraction.
The famished aren’t as bad this time, most seem to be feeding. Reece’s distraction works for a few minutes, but we’re still pursued. Rudy’s gun shots echo through my head. My body screams for me to stop, but I keep running. Holding on to the bags for dear life and praying none of the vials bust.
Luckily, I’m able to keep steady and Rudy doesn’t have to pick me up this time. He does push me through the door as we make it back to the guard’s dormitory. I catch my balance, and turn to scowl at him before seeing the door slam. Famished fingers catch, but Rudy pulls hard, jamming the door with them. Bones shatter and blood spills in the cracks. Seeing it, I’m relieved we made it. Another close call – no wonder he pushed me through the door.
Rudy turns to see me watching. “Come on. Not much further, then you can sleep.” I take account of myself. Breathing heavy, sweating, and hardly able to use my legs, I think the pill kicks in because my pain’s not as prominent.
No sound in the building, all the guards are either busy, or being eaten. With the light still on in the garage, Reece immediately goes to the Ducati. I roll my eyes at his smile, tossing him the keys that made it to the floor during my...scuffle.
Rudy takes in Gray’s dead body. His head’s flattened to match the floor, lying in a pool of his own blood. Rudy looks at Reece. Refraining from sighing, I look away, but not before the exchange of Rudy silently thanking Reece. Taking another pain pill, I swallow with water from the greasy sink this time, drinking until I can’t drink anymore.
Rudy heads to the driver’s side of the vehicle that I can now see is a Range Rover.
“No.” I say, “Not that one.” Rudy looks at me, then, Reece does too. They simultaneously notice the open back door. Going to the next vehicle, a Jeep Wrangler with a vinyl top, I can’t stand their silent assessments. The passenger seat feels comfortable as I lay the vials at my feet.
“UV switch is right there,” I show Reece, pointing next to the closed garage door. He flips it, and opens the garage door in one go. As the door opens a bright light spills in, but we hardly have to worry about famished. The ones near, scatter away from it, but most zombies are probably busy running around the base.
Rudy puts his bow in the back, and I watch as he uses his new skills to start the Jeep. He even has electrical tape. He smiles at me when it starts, dimples and all. I can’t help smiling back.
Chapter 32
The ride is hazy as the drug works through my system, I keep going in and out. Rudy finally speaks up. “Dalton said –”
“Don’t.” My voice sounds far away. I want to sleep and not think. “I don’t want to talk about that. Ever. The past two weeks never happened.” The jeep slows to a stop.
I peek over at him, the tendons of his knuckles stand out from squeezing the wheel. He’s not looking at me as he tries to suppress his emotions. I recognize this because I’m doing the same. The drug makes it easier for me, however.
“I’m glad you’re alive, Darlin’.” He finally gets out. Nice choice of words. He doesn’t say, “I’m glad you’re okay,” because he knows this isn’t true, and there’s nothing he can do about it.
“Right now, I can’t say I agree with you.” For the first time ever, he looks helpless. Endearing, and I would think about it more if I wasn’t high. “I’ll manage.”
A thought flickers. Rudy never speaks unless it’s important. When he does ramble, sometimes it comes out wrong, and he gets embarrassed. Rudy knows how he affects people, sometimes using that to his advantage, but he’s uncomfortable with it. His awkwardness on the dance floor, and the distress when Candy is around demonstrate this. Except for our incident at the archery targets, he avoids confrontation. The reason he never told me about Julie, most likely.
Rudy is socially inept.
It makes me really curious about him, and how he spent his childhood. I want to know everything about him. And the reason I haven’t realized it before now, is because he’s been comfortable with me from day one. Why?
Right now, though. I just start laughing. It hurts my throat, and pain slices through my midsection, but I can’t help it.
His eyes widen but his expression turns to a frown. “What’s funny?” Suspicion is heavy in his voice.
I giggle some more, “Nothing.”
“You can tell me anything,” he whispers.
He must think I’m going crazy. “Oh, I just realized that you’re socially awkward. You aren’t with me, I mean.” Damn drugs. I smile, “But I can still make you blush.”
He cracks a smile, knowing I’m not wrong. “You’re loopy.”
I shrug. “Maybe, but it’s true.” He fixes his gaze on road. My eyelids droop. “It’s adorable and charming,” I breathe, knowing I shouldn’t keep talking, should just shut my mouth. I choose middle ground. “You can tell me anything too, you know?”
The way he stares at me now makes me feel like he sees straight through me, to me. I’m vaguely aware of more talking, but I fall asleep.
***
He wakes me when we get to the town. They set up a camp of tents away from the withered road behind a full, mature tree line. The team rescued plenty of survivors. Looking around, most seem relieved. Some are wary. I guess it’ll take time to adjust. Reece meets us along the way to the tents. Neither one says anything, but they lead me to a tent, and Glinda’s there.
“Oh, Suga!” She hugs me tight and I ache. She must feel me stiffen. “Sorry. Just been worried ‘bout yo ass.” She takes in my face and doesn’t even try to hide her astonishment. Her red lips, glossy with a perfect pale face screw up in anger. A braid trails down her back, and it’s my first time catching her in sweatpants and a sweatshirt. “Oh my gawd! They said yew got the shit kicked out of yew. But whut the fuk?”
“Glin, I should speak with you,” Reece interrupts from outside the tent. “Kan, get some rest, little lady. We’ll talk soon.” Glinda ducks out of the tent.
***
I didn’t know I fell asleep until I wake up during the day. A pillow rests under my head as I lay across an air mattress. Sitting up, every cell in my body hurts. I swallow a pill with a jug of water sitting by the air mattress, wanting to take more, but I can’t afford the luxury right now. Voices grab my attention on the outside as I unzip the tent. My body cr
eaks from movement but I ignore it. The pill will kick in soon to relieve the worst of the pain. I pull the hood on the hoodie up. My hair hangs down the sides of my neck.
Dalton talks to Rudy, Reece, Thomas, and Bunyan. Feeling a pang in my chest, I already knew Mac wasn’t here, or he would have shot Gray in the head first thing. It still hurts, nonetheless.
“Good morning.” Reece greets me. I smile as he gives me a hug. He wears a thermal under his vest, clean of zombie gore. I grab his KD sunglasses from the top of his head and put them on. Bunyan hugs me lightly with a concerned face.
“I’m fine.” I state, my tone saying I don’t want to get into it.
Thomas just scoffs at me. When I eye him, he smiles. His way of a warm welcome.
“Good to have you back. Dalton tells us you’re married now.” Thomas jests. They all laugh, trying to lighten the mood. Except Rudy, and I avoid his gaze, looking to the ground. His steel-toed leather boots poke out of his frayed and stringy jeans. Apparently, Dalton didn’t enlighten everyone about the events at the cult. They don’t know I was drugged and almost raped there. If they did, they wouldn’t joke about it, I’m sure.
“Ha,” I say sarcastically as I shudder at the memory, but find myself not wanting to talk about that either. I can still see Joseph’s body, and the bleeding bullet hole in his head. “Did Reece tell you about the vaccine?”
“Dalton and I updated everyone. Don’t worry about anything right now,” Reece says in a stern voice.
Everyone nods their agreement. “Guess we’re all taking a road trip to Birmingham,” Bunyan says. Dalton nods, like this is a good idea.
“Kan, are you okay?” Dalton eyes me up and down. I do look horrible with blood, bruises, and a hoodie with Santa Claus boxers. My bare legs, chilled to the bone, are covered in goose bumps.
“Yeah, damn skippy. I need clothes.” I state, and look around for Glinda. Maybe she’s got something I can throw on.