Reynolds shook his head but said nothing.
“Xena didn’t make it,” Snake said.
“What happened?” Doune asked, surprised.
“She escaped over the wall, and the dead got her,” Lee finally said.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Doune said.
Loto looked surprised, too. “I was hoping she got away.”
Lee looked up at him.
“I saw you give her the key, bro,” Loto said. “I know we need this vaccine, but torturing someone for a name isn’t the way to go about it.”
“Torture?” Doune asked, frowning. “What are you talking about?”
“They didn’t want you to know what was going on,” Loto said. “You were being handled very carefully because you were valuable to them. They just wanted a name from Lindsey, and they were going to get it however they could.”
“We need to go,” Snake said. He looked at Doune. “I’ll update you on everything later.”
“Grab your guns,” Loto said. “We’re getting out of here.”
~*~
They made it about five steps from the house before Loto came to a dead stop.
Snake wasn’t sure what the problem was at first, but as he looked around Loto, he saw two armed men coming toward them.
“What’s going on, Loto?” asked a young man with red hair. “Who let these guys in here?”
“Don’t worry about it, Wayne,” Loto said. “It’s all over. Henry’s dead.”
“Wayne?” Lee asked, stumbling forward to get a better look. When he saw the red hair, he let out a growl and flew at the guard surprisingly fast for someone in such an inebriated condition. Reynolds slammed into Wayne’s mid-section and drove him to the ground. The guard’s gun spun away as Reynolds began to pummel the man with his fists.
For a moment, the others stood in shocked silence until the second guard started to lift his weapon.
“Bad idea,” Keith said, leveling his rifle at the other man. “Drop it.”
“Screw this,” the guard said, putting down his weapon and turning to run.
Blood flew from Wayne’s lips as Lee continued to hit him.
“I can’t watch this,” Loto said, turning away.
“If you ever even think about hitting a woman again,” Reynolds raged, pulling his arm back for another punch, “I’m going to hunt you down.”
“Hitting a woman?” Keith asked. “He’s the one who hit Lindsey?”
Loto nodded. “He bruised her up pretty good and gave her a black eye.”
“Kill the asshole,” Wolf said.
“He’s kidding . . . I think,” Snake said to the others. He reached down and pulled Reynolds to his feet. “If we do that, we ain’t any better than they are. Maybe he’ll learn something from this.”
“I hope you’re right,” Keith said.
Reynolds looked down at the unconscious man then walked over to where Loto was hunched over, breathing deeply.
“And what about you? You were going to torture her.”
“Wouldn’t have happened, bro,” Loto said, pausing to take a breath. “I get sick when I see blood, at least on living people.”
Snake raised an eyebrow. “You seemed to be okay with Henry killing Hawk and Jessica.”
“I wasn’t there to see any of that,” Loto said. “If I was, I probably would have hurled. Henry told me your bikers attacked him first. I was outside the door and I heard the gunshot when the woman was killed, but I didn’t hear the details until later.”
“This is a first,” Snake said. “A hit man who can’t stand the sight of blood.”
“I was just supposed to be a bodyguard,” Loto said. “Honestly, I’ve never hurt anyone, well, off the football field. I’ve never needed to. My size usually scares people away.”
He looked down at the battered guard. “Wayne was going to do the interrogation. Henry just told Lindsey I was going to do it because he thought it might make her talk to you. I think she was more afraid of Wayne than she was of me, though. He terrified her. I could see it in her eyes.”
“I tried to stay with her as much as possible for that very reason,” Lee said.
“How’d you get mixed up with this bunch anyway?” Snake asked Loto.
“I was working in Ann Arbor when all this happened,” Loto started. “I had to check on my parents, but the roads were all choked up, so I had to walk all the way to their home in Southfield. It took a couple days, but somehow I made it there without getting bitten. The house was full of those things, so I figured they were dead, but when I cleared the place out, they weren’t there. Luckily, I found them alive and well in the basement. We boarded the house up and stayed there a couple days until we heard a chopper. The military evacuated us and a few of our neighbors to a shelter, which wasn’t much better than being in the city, but at least there was food.”
Loto straightened himself up and shook his head as the blood returned to his face.
“One of the officers recognized me from my Michigan State days and took me to this place where they asked me a bunch of questions and did some medical tests. They even did an IQ test. For some reason, they seemed really happy that I had my degree. When they were done, they said I could come to a better place and work as a bodyguard. I told them I would, but only if my parents could come along. They agreed and said they would bring them later.”
“Did they do it?” Snake asked.
“No, that never happened. By the time I found out what Henry was really like, it was too late. They constantly reminded me that they were watching my parents and would protect them as long as I cooperated. I don’t even know if they’re still alive.”
Snake watched the man closely as he told his story. If he was acting, he was doing a convincing job of it.
“I guess if you wanted to kill us, you would have done it when we went to get the doctor,” Snake reasoned.
“No, way bro,” Loto said. “You know what that would have done to my stomach? Look, we were all told that the hospital was overrun by a bunch of gangsters who wanted to keep the immune person for themselves. I guess it just took me a while to see that Henry was full of shit.”
Reynolds looked at him for a moment, and finally nodded, satisfied.
“Let’s get you guys out of here,” he said, moving toward the helicopter.
~*~
Lansing, Michigan
Reynolds fumbled with the controls, and the chopper roared to life.
“You sure about this?” Keith asked Snake, who had a death grip on the seat.
“No,” Snake said, “but it can’t be any worse than going over the wall.”
“I’m not so sure I agree,” Keith said as the chopper began to move, lifting suddenly then dropping again.
“Stupid power lines,” Reynolds muttered.
“Maybe I’ll walk,” Keith said, looking out the window.
“I know right where I’m going,” the pilot promised, correcting when the chopper started to drop again.
When they finally landed on the street a couple blocks outside the walls, the dark night and occasional flesh-eater seemed like a welcomed relief compared to the bumpy ride Lee had served them in his drunken condition.
Loto staggered out of the helicopter and ran ten feet before bending over to vomit.
“You sure you don’t want me to take you the rest of the way to the hospital?” Lee asked.
“No,” Snake and Keith said in unison while Gunner, Wolf and the other two bikers scampered quickly out of the chopper.
Lee stepped out to where the others were standing, and Loto finally walked over to join them, wiping his mouth.
“What are you guys going to do now?” Snake asked. “You going back to that place?”
“Not me,” Loto said. “It seemed like paradise when they first brought me in to replace Henry’s old bodyguard. I was tired of struggling to stay alive outside, but honestly, I’d rather be fighting for my life out here than to be part of something like that place.” He nodd
ed in the general direction of the walled city, where gunshots could still be heard.
Snake turned and said something to Keith and Wolf under his breath. Both men nodded.
“We could use a good linebacker on our team,” the biker said. “You’re welcome to join us. Can you ride?”
Loto looked like a kid on Christmas morning. “Sure can.”
Snake looked at Reynolds, who smiled sadly.
“I guess I’ll be going back,” Lee said. “I wouldn’t dare show my face around the hospital after everything that’s happened. I’ve got some penance to do, so maybe I can help get the community on the right track. If that doesn’t happen, who knows? I don’t want to be part of it unless something changes.”
Snake looked up as a few of the dead began to wander their way, caught in the light of the chopper. Keith and the bikers began to take care of them while Snake wrote something down on a scrap of paper and handed it to the pilot.
“You can reach me privately on that channel with your radio. If you need help here, let me know, and I’ll see what we can do.”
“I’ll do that,” Reynolds said, trying to focus on the writing on the paper. Finally, he just stuffed it into a pocket.
“When you get a chance, let me know how things are going,” Snake said.
“I will. I’m sorry about everything,” Lee said. “If I could trade my life for Lindsey’s, I’d do it in a heartbeat.”
“I know you would,” Snake said, believing him. He watched as Lee turned and walked back to the helicopter. As the pilot took the machine back into the air, toward the chaos of the walled community, the men hurried over to their bikes. Keith rode with Gunner while Wolf invited Loto to sit behind him. When Loto mounted the bike, the suspension was maxed out.
“You might as well ride with me, Doc,” Snake said to Doune.
Doune looked at the motorcycle warily, but when more of the dead began to filter out of the alleys and buildings around them, he quickly climbed onto the seat behind Snake.
“Boys,” Snake said, “it’s going to be a long ride home.”
~*~
Lindsey felt herself drifting off to sleep almost at once, but her eyes blinked open when she heard the rumble of motorcycles in the distance. She sat up quickly, trying to pinpoint the location. They seemed to be coming from the direction of the walled city, which made her wonder about the explosion she’d heard. Had Snake and his posse come after her and Doune? Probably not, she thought. It wasn’t likely they’d have known where to look. This was a different part of the city, and there was no reason to think that they were the only ones getting around on bikes. It was easier than navigating a car through the streets.
The roar of the engines grew louder then began to fade away, finally smothered by the moans of the dead. It was one of the loneliest sounds she’d ever heard. She felt a lump in her throat as her thoughts moved to the others at the hospital. She wondered if they had buried the two dead bikers at the cemetery down the street, yet.
Lying back down, she wrapped the jacket around her a little tighter, feeling more depressed and alone than she’d ever felt in her life. With the moans of the dead in the background, Lindsey closed her eyes and let pleasant memories of Wombat fill her mind and eventually carry her off to sleep.
~*~
Whispering Springs, Nevada
By 9:30, the truck was packed and ready to go. Next to their packs, Miranda had placed two boxes of food and water.
“You don’t have to do that,” Dan said. “You’re going to need these supplies.”
“If it gets to that point, I’ll start going into other houses or maybe even the stores,” she said.
“I think you’ll be fine, Miranda,” he said, “but promise me that you’ll keep training, even if it’s just inside the house. Keep working out. Work on building endurance and strength.”
“I will. I’ve got the treadmill and weights, and I’ll use them every day. I’ll practice those moves you taught me, too,” she added, turning to grin at George.
“Right,” George laughed. “Don’t forget Dan’s moves.”
“Thank you for everything,” Dan said, pulling her into a hug.
“Thank you, Dan. I have a fighting chance now, which I wouldn’t have had without your help.”
He held her for a long time, and when they finally parted, Miranda gave George a hug, too.
“Take care of yourself, George,” she said. “Listen to Dan. He knows what he’s talking about.”
“Except when it comes to snakes,” George said.
“Right. Well, ignore anything he has to say about snakes,” she said.
She walked to the garage with them and got ready to open the door. “I’m going to miss you both, more than you know.”
“I’m going to miss you, too,” Dan said, his eyes lingering on hers.
Rayburn glanced back and forth between them, and finally said, “Maybe we’ll see you again someday, Miranda.”
“You never know,” she said, forcing a smile as she walked over to the garage door.
Dan looked outside and saw that it was clear, but Miranda kept her crowbar ready, just in case. When the door rolled up, there was nothing to greet them except the dark.
They drove out of the garage and waited until the door closed behind them again. Dan started down the road slowly, with the lights off.
“You kind of like her, don’t you?” Rayburn asked.
Remaining silent, Dan kept his attention on the road ahead of them. After a while, he finally answered. “Yes, I do.”
~*~
Lansing, Michigan
Lindsey was jerked from her slumber once more. Her heart raced as she strained to listen, trying to determine whether the threat was real or just imagined. A creaking noise caught her attention, causing her to envision dead feet trudging up the metal stairs to the roof. She carefully crept over to the fire escape and peered down through the darkness, unable to make out any movement.
Moans drifted up from the street below as the dead continued their siege of the building, and the pounding of rotting fists against the fire-escape doors did nothing to quell Lindsey’s anxiety. While it was doubtful that they could break through, it was still a concern. After several minutes, she decided that the creaking sound was coming from across the street. Crawling back to her spot next to the air conditioning unit, she closed her eyes again, desperately needing sleep.
When the dawn began to lighten the sky, Lindsey stood, stretching to take the ache out of her muscles before risking a peek over the edge of the roof. The scene below caused her to suck in a breath. There had to be over fifty walking corpses at the bottom of the fire escape. Dropping down into such a large crowd would be a huge risk under the best of circumstances, but in her exhausted state, it would be suicide. She had no idea what horrors the building itself might hold, but it couldn’t be much worse than what was waiting below. Picking up her tire iron, Lindsey swung it a few times, dismayed to realize how sore her arms were. She’d crushed more heads than she’d been able to count the previous day, and her muscles needed time to recover from the grueling workout. A glance at her shirtsleeve let her know that the blood had soaked through the bandage. She didn’t bother checking the wound since it would be pointless until she could find a clean bandage.
Using the fire escape to make her way down to the second floor, Lindsey knew she needed to keep her time inside the building as short as possible. There was no way to traverse the stairs quietly, and she immediately drew the attention of the dead below. Some of them reached up to grasp for her, and by the time she got to the second floor they were ravenous for her flesh. It was disconcerting to stand on the landing with only bars of rusty metal protecting her from the deadly predators. Doing her best to concentrate on the task at hand, she peered into the window to look down the hallway. There were only a couple of zombies in sight, but that didn’t mean anything. The corridor was full of doorways, and several of them were open. As she began to pry at the door with her tire
iron, more of the infected begin to emerge from the apartments.
Lindsey paused to rethink her strategy, knowing that the narrow confines of the hallway would make it difficult for her to take on too many of the dead at once. From what she could see, there had to be at least seven or eight of them, and there could easily be more inside the rooms. A quick look at the street revealed even more ghouls moving toward the building. She was running out of options.
Lindsey grabbed the metal rail at the end of the fire escape and tested it to see how strong it was. Keith had kicked away the end of the railing back at the hospital to help clear the second floor, but it had been difficult, even for him. It would probably be impossible for Lindsey to repeat the move, so if she opened the door and let the dead out, there would be no place for them to go but up the stairs. Then again, maybe that wasn’t such a bad idea. The roof was fairly open, with plenty of room to move around. While she wouldn’t dare fight the dead in the narrow hallway, she wondered if she could lead them up to the roof and make a stand there. Once the door was opened, there would be no turning back, but she didn’t see another choice.
Lindsey looked down at the crowd again and felt despair as even more of the dead came toward the building. Even if she succeeded in clearing the second floor, she would still have to make it down one more level and get past the crowd on the street. Her ankle still hurt from when she’d twisted it the day before, but she could walk on it. Running, on the other hand, might be a problem. Closing her eyes, she debated on whether or not to wait another day to see if the horde would eventually wander off. After some deliberation, it became obvious that it wasn’t an option. She was already dehydrated, and going without water for much longer would make it even more dangerous for her to be out on the streets with the dead. She needed to be as alert as possible, so it was now or never. She would either kill them all on the roof, or her life would end in the same manner that Wombat’s had ended. Becoming one of the mindless undead was not an option.
Dead, But Not For Long (Book 2): Pestilence and Promise Page 55