Was she reassuring him? “I want you dead. You know that, right?” He mimicked her tone perfectly.
Her frown made her look years older. “I can see we need more electrical shock therapy. What a pity. It’s sad when you arrive at a new location already bleeding.” She stood up, red infusing her skin. “Why do you push me like this?”
He looked at her, forcing his expression to go blank.
Her smile showed the monster inside. “Ramirez? Please bring the tasers in here. Both of them. Let’s see how he handles that.”
It took several long seconds, but soon Ramirez came in, his beady eyes focusing on her tits. He wore a white lab coat with a shirt and tie perfect put together over his pressed pants. He blushed all the time when Georgia was around, but she didn’t seem to notice he was even male. “Here you go,” he said, not bothering to lift his gaze.
“You do one and I’ll do one,” she purred.
Marcus lowered his chin, letting them both see his plans for their deaths. Oh, they thought they were strong when he was shackled, but shackles always gave under pressure. One thing he knew how to do was apply pressure.
Georgia swallowed and hesitated, while Ramirez waited for her order, like an obedient lackey should.
Finally, Georgia set her stance in the ridiculous boots. “I’m sorry about this, Marcus, but you need to learn your place. You will love me, or you’ll die fighting. It’s really your choice.”
They fired at once, and the electrical nodes attached, shooting through his body. His head jerked back and impacted the wall. Electricity burned through him, shooting to his eyes and out his fingers. He yelled, the pain beyond belief.
“Marcus. Wake up. It’s just a bad dream.”
He sat up in bed, dislodging Penny. His chest moved with hard pants, and the blood raced through his veins. He dropped his head, and his temples hurt like he’d been hit with a hammer.
Her touch on his back was soft and soothing. “It’s okay. You’re here, and you’re safe.” She kissed his shoulder, caressing in small circles across his lower back, easing the ache there. “Take another deep breath. You’re in Vanguard territory, and it’s quiet outside. Still morning. Everyone is safe right now,” she crooned.
A slight breeze wafted in the open window, smelling like asphalt and the soap from the showers. Then the smell of raspberries hit him next, grounding him completely.
He came down, his breath evening out. “I remember the place with the yellow doors. It’s outside of Portland.”
24
The responsibility of moving six hundred people should be the heaviest weight on my shoulders. Instead, I have a traitor letting loose Rippers inside my territory, Lynne and Penny becoming obsessed with finding a cure for pregnant women, and my brother losing whatever mind he has left. Sometimes, in the dark of night, I wonder if I should’ve turned left instead of right and not formed Vanguard. Then I look at my people, my brother, and most of all, my Lynne. Yeah, it was the right decision. I hope we survive the next two weeks.
—Jax Mercury, Leader of Vanguard-Merc
Jax kicked back in his leather chair in his war-room, a rare cup of coffee in his hands. Once water had become scarce, coffee had become a luxury they couldn’t afford. He’d taken to eating raw grounds, but today, he’d ordered coffee made up. They needed it. His lieutenants were gathered around the table, and it felt good to have everyone whole and in one place, at least temporarily. A light afternoon breeze slid in through the open window, promising fall was finally arriving.
The group was quiet, but that might be because they were all mainlining coffee like they’d found heaven. It was interesting how his circle of leaders had expanded from Raze, Sami, and Tace to include Lynne, Marcus, Penny, Greyson, Maureen, Damon, April, Vinnie, and Quincy, each with a crucial part to play in their survival. He still felt the loss of Wyatt, one of his best, and he tried to lead with the wisdom his fallen friend had always shown. If he added any more lieutenants, he’d need to find a bigger conference table, and he’d become fond of the dark one they’d found at a rich lawyer firm.
He cleared his throat. “It’s been a long day, and we should get started. Let’s start with immediate concerns. Doc Penelope, what did you find in the autopsy?”
She regretfully set her cup down, and there was no doubt whisker burn had reddened her chin. Jax so did not want to think about his brother and Penny having sex in the showers that morning, but he wasn’t about to broach the subject. They hadn’t been quiet, so the place was abuzz with gossip. Served them right. “Penny?” he prodded.
“We have four people from Pure who look like they’re going to survive the fever. They’re all still in the clinic.” Her hand remained on her cup as though to make sure nobody filched it. “The autopsy of the Ripper didn’t reveal much. His brain and heart were slightly enlarged, just like most survivors. From the size, I’d postulate that he’d been a Ripper only for a month or so, which corresponds with Lynne’s test on his blood.” She perked up. “Something interesting, though. Well, sad and interesting. Once I got him beneath the spotlights in the morgue, I could make out ligation marks on his wrists and ankles, as well as what looked like burns from something like a cattle prod all over his body.”
Jax’s stomach rolled. “Somebody has had him tied up and tortured?”
She nodded. “Rippers have no thought process because of what Scorpius did to their brains, so maybe they’re trainable?” She paled. “For lack of a better word.”
“So trainable that they’d be quiet while being brought in to territory?” Raze asked, shaking his head.
That didn’t seem possible. Jax ran through scenarios. “All right. I know we already conducted a grid search, but we need another one. I want every inch of inner territory searched, top to bottom. Don’t forget the Pure church was connected to a tunnel that we closed.” Turned out there were tons of tunnels beneath Los Angeles from prohibition days. Who knew? “Lynne?”
Lynne nodded, her blue heart glowing through her shirt. “I agree with Penny about the Ripper. As for supplies, we’re getting low on everything, especially the vitamin B connection because of the sabotage. Penny and I consulted, and we might have to start a couple of trials with people to see if we can stop giving the injection after a period of time.”
Jax twirled his cup. “After we relocate. Let’s keep on course until then.” He turned to Marcus. “You have anything to report?”
“Well, there’s a Bunker just outside of Portland,” Marcus said, drinking his coffee.
The group went silent around the table.
“Excuse me?” Jax asked, sitting up.
Marcus stilled and turned to face him more fully as if surprised. “I had a dream last night and remembered that I was kept in a Bunker outside of Portland.”
Heat clawed down Jax’s throat. “You didn’t think you should lead with that?”
Marcus lifted one shoulder. “I thought I was supposed to wait my turn.”
Patience. Jax could have patience. Yelling at his brother wouldn’t help anything. His chin lowered. “Okay. New meeting agenda. Let’s talk about the Portland Bunker and come up with a breach scenario. Where is it in Portland?”
Marcus shook his head. “Dunno. I’d recognize the outside of the building if I saw it, though. It was more of a casual type of place. Not a skyscraper or anything.”
Jax nodded, his blood humming. “Okay. After this meeting, I want Marcus, Raze, Damon and Sami to come up with a plan. We need to go tomorrow.” Was it possible they’d find what they needed in Portland? He didn’t dare hope. Fate would kick the crap out of him. “Moving on. Sami, welcome back from the Bunker. What do you have for us?”
The curly haired spitfire held her cup to her chest. “The good news is that I finally hacked the flash drive we stole, and there’s plenty of data about Bunkers on it. The bad news is that they’re numbered with no hint as to location.” She shook her head. “The government truly underestimated the speed a pandemic could take us out.�
� She looked at Marcus. “Maybe we’ll find more in Portland.”
“How many numbers?” Penelope asked. “Of Bunkers, I mean?”
Sami’s eyes gleamed. “Thirty-five Bunkers. Can you believe it? There are thirty-five, and we’ve only found two. Makes you wonder if anybody survived in the other ones, considering we’ve heard no buzz.”
“One Bunker at a time,” Jax said, his hands itching to get to Portland. “All right. Tace?”
The blond Texan slipped an arm over Sami’s shoulders. “Medical supplies at the Century City Bunker are low as well, and I checked the water rations earlier. We’re good for a month, maybe longer if it rains again.”
Yeah, that’s what Jax had determined. He looked at Quincy. “All right. What did you find?”
Quincy stretched, his eyes dark. “We found a very nice series of subdivisions bordering farmland in the Willamette Valley that is vacant and would be plenty of room for Vanguard-Merc. We’ve drawn schematics and plans to enclose the entire territory like we have here, as well as a timeline to do so. We’ll need to move first and then build, I think. Since we’re almost out of water.”
Raze took Vinnie’s hand in his. “There’s substantial fire damage up the coast, as you all know, and we’ll have to veer off the main roads several times in a caravan. I have a map to give Marcus for his plan.”
Marcus slid his cup toward Penny, giving her at least half of his coffee. “I think we should move everyone at once and just get it done. I’ve made notes in what’s supposed to be my journal of the vehicles needed and how they should be arranged.”
It felt good to have his brother there and contributing. “Excellent.” Jax looked at Vinnie. “Doc? Anything?”
She nodded. “Yeah. We’ll have some issues with people not wanting to leave. This has become a somewhat safe haven, and the outside world is scary. I’ll take care of it.” She chewed on her lip, her blond hair in disarray around her face. “We’ll need to keep the Pure group as isolated as we can, just for their peace of mind. They’re really shaken after the attack last night.”
Who wouldn’t be? “Thanks, Doc.” Jax turned to Greyson. “Storm?” Greyson Storm was the leader of the Mercs, and he had to be worried about his pregnant fiancée, but he never forgot his job.
Grey rolled his neck. “The Mercs are used to moving and are ready to go. In fact, they want to go. After living by the ocean in Santa Barbara, it’s been tough being surrounded by concrete and old crappy buildings and houses. The Valley sounds nice, and we’re prepared to provide security on the road and then at the settlement.”
Damon nodded. “The integration of Vanguard and the Mercenaries has been difficult, but I think we’re getting there. I had to bust a couple of heads the other day, but that happens.” The ex-SWAT team leader was probably the most reasoned and solid man in the entire camp. He reached out to hold April’s hand, his dark skin a perfect contrast to her pale wrist. “Besides that, I’ve upped the patrols until we discover how those Rippers got in, and I’m going through all members of the territory for any hint as to who has turned against us and sabotaged the medical supplies. I’m going on the assumption that the saboteur and the person controlling Rippers is the same person or group. That’s all I have to report right now.”
Part of the reason Jax had wanted to meld with the Mercs was so he could get Damon in the fold. The guy was better than anybody else at getting two opposing groups to find common ground. “Thanks, Damon.” He smiled at April. “All right, Snyder. What do you have?”
April lifted her green clipboard with her free hand. She was in charge of all the kids and did an excellent job. “The kids are all good and will look at the move as an adventure. We’ve been prepping them for a few weeks.” Her frown made her look more like Cherry Valence from the old Outsiders movie even more. “Once we settle, we have to decide if we want them adopted into families or want to keep things as they are. Vinnie and I will consult on that and get back to you.”
Fair enough. “Maureen? Have you had a chance to look over the data Quincy brought back?” Jax asked. Maureen was the only food development specialist alive, as far as he knew.
“Still going through it all, but we’re going to be able to plant at least a couple of crops right away.” Her pretty blue eyes danced. “I believe there’s more than ample game for protein, as well. It’ll be a good move, Jax.”
It sounded like everyone was on board.
“One more thing,” Quincy said. “We ran across a few small settlements on the way north, and one guy mentioned meeting the Brigade a while back. Maybe they’re still alive?”
Lynne sat up, hope crossing her face. “Really?” She turned to Marcus and Penny, who probably didn’t know her story. “Remember that the Brigade was created right at the beginning of the pandemic to combat threats besides the bacteria, those that were more terrorist oriented? My friend Nora was part of that. She and I consulted on infectious diseases. I’ve been worried about her.”
Jax didn’t want to give Lynne hope, but he couldn’t help but encourage that in her. “It’s possible they’ve been fighting threats, which makes me wonder if they’re working with the president. They were commissioned by the government, and technically he’s the head of the government now, even though he’s nuts.” Jax couldn’t worry about threats from other countries yet. Perhaps the president would actually do his job there, but it was doubtful. “Speaking of whom, once we get settled, we need to come up with a consensus about him.”
“If he’d just leave us alone, it wouldn’t be an issue,” Greyson said wearily. “What are the odds he’s behind this new infiltration of our territory?”
“The odds are excellent,” Jax said grimly. “It’s a well-executed plan, and there’s nobody who wants us hurt more than him.”
Penelope leaned forward. “Except that the target was the Pure group.”
Jax reached for his mug again. “Yeah, but our vitamin B vials were dumped out.” He turned to Vinnie. “Doc? What do you think? I guess it’s possible that some psycho wants to make the whole world infected and maybe wants to create more Rippers?” He didn’t have enough damn time to deal with a Dr. Frankenstein in his midst.
“It’s possible,” Vinnie said, leaning into Raze’s side. “Regardless, there’s no doubt he or she will try again. We have guards on both clinics and should probably double the ones on the storage warehouses at the far north of the property.”
Jax had already put it on the schedule. He had six warehouses that stored vehicles, gasoline, food, weapons, mechanical devices and medical items. “Copy that. Since Mother Nature helped us out with some rain, which gives us more time to plan. Plus, with somebody inside trying to hurt us, I think we’d be too vulnerable on the road. We have to find that damn person.” He pushed away from the table. “Vinnie? Go dig into Marcus’s head again, would you? Let’s see what we can find out about the Bunker in Portland. We all have work to do. Get to it.”
25
My memories are a dark hole with only a few glimpses of a fleeting thought throughout. Where the hell is the Portland Bunker?
—Marcus Knight, Journal
Why did he prefer patrolling at night? Marcus had enough of introspection after an entire day of Vinnie flipping through his brain like she’d been shuffling cards. His head hurt and his energy was darker than the surrounding area. The need to hit something, anything, pulsed raw and hard inside him.
So he scouted the territory, starting with the cemetery and working east to the front warehouses that stored vehicles and fuel. Nothing there. He looked beyond the fence at the turned-over semi-trucks.
Maybe the Ripper storage place was just beyond the gates.
His stomach growled since he’d missed dinner, but he didn’t want food. Penelope was safe in the clinic under guard, still administering to the sick Pure members.
She should be in bed.
The moon rose bright tonight with the cloud cover having disappeared, so he saw easily outside. Inside, he used his Ma
glite.
“Slam? What are you doing?” Jax moved away from the barbed wire fence, a mending kit slung over his shoulder.
Marcus paused. “Just searching for Rippers. Why are you out alone?” Jax had a rule of everyone moving in squads of at least two people while there were Rippers on the loose.
“Why are you?” his brother countered.
Good question. “My head hurt after dealing with Vinnie all day, and I wanted space. Actually, I wanted to find a Ripper to tear apart.”
Jax’s eyebrows rose. “Can’t blame you. Having the doc hypnotize you for an entire day would be fucking painful. I haven’t debriefed her yet. Did you remember anything?”
“Not enough. Just that the Bunker was by a golf course and a massive river, which we figured was the Columbia. Lynne is going over any maps we have of Portland to narrow down places for us to look tomorrow.”
“Man, I miss the internet.” Jax reached him and looked toward the two rows of dilapidated houses covering the block before the buildings holding the kids and April Snyder. The building next to them had burned down recently. “You think you were kept at a golf course? Interesting. So far, we’ve found the a Bunker beneath a bank and one built into a new casino. I guess it’d make sense they used a golf course in the Pacific Northwest. As much as anything makes sense.” He glanced down at the burned grass and stiffened.
“What?” Marcus asked, looking down at dirt and grass.
“Is that blood?” Jax drew a flashlight from his pack and pointed it down at the grass.
Marcus crouched and squinted, feeling the rough scrub. “I can’t tell. Could be anything.” But it had rained just the other day, so the liquid was fresh. He looked at the row of falling down homes. “Nobody lives here, right?”
Jax nodded. “Yeah. Several Merc soldiers still use the houses on the west end of territory, but these were in too bad of shape. I’ve meant to take them down but haven’t had time.”
Knight Awakening Page 17