She threw herself into the workouts the same way she threw herself into learning Spanish, biology, and trigonometry: with one-hundred percent commitment.
By the time the third quarter of her junior year rolled around, she pulled out a solid A in PE. This had been a particularly epic feat because that had been the quarter of the timed mile. Amanda had knocked out a nine-minute mile, which had been enough to tip her grade from a B+ to an A.
Ever since then, Amanda had dedicated herself to her workouts. Her mom had faded off after a few months. But Amanda had Stanford, Cal Poly, and UC Berkley in her sights. Would she let up on chemistry studies? No way. And no way was she going to let a mediocre PE grade stand between her and her dreams.
Amanda liked weight training the best. She’d been surprised to realize she was actually pretty strong. Maybe big muscles came with being big-boned? She wasn’t sure. But she could knock out reps with the ten-pound weights and barely break a sweat.
She’d never told anyone about her workouts. Not even Cassie. She knew she didn’t look like the popular girls at school; they actually managed to look pretty even with sweat-smeared make-up and un-perfect hair.
Amanda knew what it looked like when a big-boned girl hopped up and down on an aerobic step. There was nothing pretty about it.
So she kept her workouts a secret. When Cassie and Stephenson congratulated her on pulling out an A in PE, she’d downplayed it so they wouldn’t ask too many questions.
When they’d been rescued by Dal and Leo at the beginning of the invasion, Amanda had been forced to ride a bike all the way from her house to the Cecchino cabin. Most of the way had been on dirt trails with lots of rolling hills.
She smiled to herself in remembered pride. No one had commented on the fact that she had no problem keeping up; everyone had been more worried that Stephenson might have a heart attack. Amanda had known it was her studious application of Jane Fonda videos that had given her the needed endurance for the feat.
No one really knew how much work went into the good grades kids like her got in school. Most kids assumed it was natural mental talent. But the truth was that those straight As were backed with a lot of effort and dedication. PE was no exception.
The truck rolled to a stop. They were on yet another hilltop in the middle of nowhere. Stands of redwood trees were now sprinkled in throughout the bay and oak trees, a clear sign they had entered Armstrong Woods. The state park was a local favorite for old-growth redwoods.
Amanda picked up the antenna from the back of the truck. Stephenson had rigged a PVC pipe with some duct tape to the back of the truck’s cab. That’s where the antenna was mounted during broadcasts.
Amanda had just settled the antenna into the PVC pipe when she saw something move in the trees. The tree line was twenty yards away down a steep hillside, leaving Amanda eye-level with the taller parts of the trees.
She paused, frowning at the trees. Something moved out there. Whatever it was, it jumped among the branches like a monkey. She tracked the movement by the ripple of leaves that moved from tree to tree.
Her heart rate spiked as she caught sight of the thing. It was big and earth-colored. There was no way it could be an animal. There was no animal that big in North America that lived in trees.
“Guys, there’s something in the tree—” She cut off in a scream as it materialized.
It was a mutant zombie. He had a lean face, a bushy beard, and was dressed from head-to-toe in khaki. He'd probably been a granola backpacking dude before getting infected.
He burst from the trees like a flying demon, coming straight for them.
17
Bird of Prey
“Look out!” Amanda cried.
The warning fell from her lips just as the mutant hit the ground. He landed no more than ten yards away from the truck. Dal stood next to the vehicle, the transmitter in his arms. He had only enough time to shove the transmitter back through the open door of the truck before the mutant hit him.
The monster slammed them both into the side of the truck. They ricocheted off the side and hit the ground, rolling down the hillside.
“Dal!” Lena screamed.
Dal’s gun still lay in the front seat of the truck. All he had for defense were his bare hands and his hunting knife.
Amanda jumped out of the truck, tearing down the hillside after Dal. She wasn’t sure what she planned to do; there was no way for her to shoot without risking Dal. All she knew was that Dal could die if she did nothing.
Both arms of the mutant had grown long from the nezhit virus mutation. The muscles were massive, looking as though they belonged on a man three times the size of the backpacker. No wonder he’d been able to move through the trees like a monkey. He practically had the upper body strength of a superhero.
Amanda felt another spike of panic shoot through her as Dal and the mutant continued to roll over one another. They gained momentum on the hillside, moving too fast for her to keep up.
Determination surged through Amanda. She had gotten an A on her timed mile. She might not be an All-State track star, but she wasn’t slow.
And she was running downhill. Every science nerd knew gravity pulled things downhill. She gave herself over to the natural pull of the earth, running as fast as she could after Dal and the mutant. Behind her, Lena kept screaming Dal’s name.
Dal and the mutant rolled to a stop in a shallow patch of earth, momentarily separated from one another. They got to their feet and rushed each other at the same time, smacking into one another.
They hit so hard, they both went back down. They continued rolling downhill toward the tree line. They fought each other like rabid gorillas, scratching and swinging at one another.
Amanda kicked on another burst of speed, thanking Jane Fonda for all those killer workouts. She’d nailed that nine-minute mile in PE. She could do this.
The cool morning air rushed past her as she pumped her arms, running as fast as she could. The machine gun bounced against her stomach as she ran.
Dal and the mutant crashed into a tall redwood on the edge of the tree line. Dal had his hands around the mutant’s neck. Amanda wasn’t sure if he was trying to choke the monster to death, or if it was the only way to keep the mutant’s bared rictus away from him.
The mutant had his hands wrapped around Dal’s head. Thanks to the mutation of the nezhit virus, he had superior reach and strength in his arms.
Amanda knew one thing: the last place Dal’s head should be was within mutant hands. If they didn’t act fast, the mutant would crack open his skull like an egg.
Amanda charged straight into the melee. The mutant was on top. She shoved as hard as she could, throwing all her weight against the monster.
To her shock, the mutant flew to the side, landing hard against a boulder that peeked up from the ground. He hit so hard, Amanda heard the dull contact of his bones against the stone. His head whipped back, connecting with the stone. The mutant lay where he was, momentarily stunned.
It was the opening Dal needed. He bounded to his feet, knife flashing. The blade buried all the way up the hilt in the mutant’s eyeball. He shuddered once before going still.
Amanda grabbed her gun and backed away from the tree line, anticipating yet more mutants. It was stupid to assume there was only one out here. Zombies often traveled in packs.
Lena caught up to them, breathing hard from the run. Her eyes were wild as she alternated between scanning the trees and assessing Dal. Her gun was aimed at the forest.
Dal yanked the knife free. Dark, sticky blood dripped down the blade and stained his hand. He dropped into a crouch, looking ready to spring at the first sign of danger.
The three of them stood in a tight line. Nothing moved. The trees rustled softly in the breeze. Birds chirped.
“Back away from the trees,” Dal said softly.
Not taking her eye from the brush, Amanda backed slowly up the hill with Dal and Lena. She kept her gun up the entire time, as did Lena. The three of
them didn’t stop until they reached the truck.
“Think that was the only one?” Amanda whispered.
“We’re in the middle of nowhere,” Dal said. “Maybe that guy was backpacking by himself.”
It was plausible. Armstrong Woods was a popular place among backpackers.
The three of them stood in a line next to the truck for another few minutes. When nothing else emerged from the woods, Dal turned to Amanda. “You saved my ass back there. Thanks.”
She both loved the praise and was embarrassed by it. “I just pushed him off you. Lena would have done the same if she’d reached you first.”
“No way.” Lena shook her head. “You threw that guy at least six feet when you shoved him. I couldn’t have done that. You’re strong, Amanda. Fast, too. I couldn’t catch up with you.”
“In football terms, you’d be a defensive lineman.” Dal studied her with a critical eye. “Did you play any sports in high school?”
“No. Just chess.”
A memory surfaced. Gym class. Sophomore year. Mrs. Fink made the girls do a timed ropes course.
This was before Amanda started working out with Jane Fonda. Even back then, she’d managed to get the third fastest time. She’d been vaguely aware that she was freakishly strong. This realization had been buried under the embarrassment of knowing every girl in class watched her climb the rope.
“I didn’t know girls like you could move so fast,” Mrs. Fink had said when she finished.
Girls like you. Fat girls. That’s what Mrs. Fink, with her perfect triathlete figure, had really been saying. Fat girls shouldn’t be fast at a ropes course.
Amanda focused on the part of the memory that mattered. “I guess I’ve always had pretty good upper body strength.” And then, overcoming a burst of shyness, she added, “I had the third-fastest time on the ropes course my sophomore year.”
“Fast and strong,” Dal said.
“Maybe we can have the guys teach you some moves when they get back from Luma,” Lena said. “They could come in handy, like they did today. Thanks for saving Dal, by the way.”
Amanda tried to hide how much those words meant to her. No one had ever, ever, complimented her for an athletic feat. At a loss for words, she said, “I wish I’d had one of you for a PE teacher. I wouldn’t have sweated my grades so much.”
“Mrs. Fink was a jerk.” Lena rolled her eyes. “If I had to hear one more story about her stupid triathlon workouts, I thought my head would explode. She gave everyone a hard time if they weren’t a sports star.” She turned to Dal. “Come on, let’s get this over with so we can get back to the cabin. I don’t want to stick around and wait for any more backpacking mutants to attack us.”
“Speaking of mutants.” Amanda cleared her throat, flushing when Dal and Lena both looked at her. “I, uh—” She was suddenly too self-conscious to tell them what she wanted to do. “Is it okay if I, uh, go check out the dead mutant?”
Dal and Lena stared at her as if she’d lost her mind.
“What for?” Dal asked.
“I just want to get a closer look at it. I, uh, thought maybe we could learn something useful. I mean, it’s not like we ever get a chance to study them. We’re always too busy fighting or running for our lives. The way their limbs and muscles distend is . . . interesting.” God, she sounded like a crazy girl with a fetish for dead bodies. “I’m just saying, we know next to nothing about the mutants. Maybe we can learn something.”
They were both frowning at her. Amanda wanted to disappear into the ground.
“Nevermind,” she said, a bit breathless.
“No, it’s a good idea,” Lena said. “We just never thought of it.”
“I’m a bit of a biology geek.” Amanda laughed to cover up her discomfort.
“Dal, I don’t think she should go back down there alone. Can you manage up here if I go with her?” Lena asked.
“Yeah.” Dal nodded. “Just don’t take too long. I want to get out here as soon as the broadcast is complete.”
18
Sample
Amanda crouched down and lifted one of the distended arms of the dead mutant backpacker.
Gosh, the arm sure was heavy. She prodded at the muscles with her forefinger. “Dense,” she muttered to herself.
“What?” Lena asked
“His muscles are really dense. Feel them.” She stepped to one side so Lena could get in closer.
Lena looked at her as though she’d lost her mind. “I’m not touching that thing. I can’t believe you’re handling it with your bare hands.”
Oh. Amanda shrugged. “This is nothing. You should have seen me in biology during the dissections. I was sort of a hog. Luckily, Cassie was my lab partner. She didn’t mind letting me do all the cutting and stuff.”
Thinking of Cassie made her feel anxious. She wished she knew where her best friend was, and if she was okay. She wished they had futuristic walkie talkies so they could keep in touch over long ranges. Like those portable phones they had in sci-fi movies.
“Lena?”
“Yeah?”
“I wasn’t being totally honest when I said I wanted to take a look at the mutant.”
“What do you mean?”
Amanda drew in a breath. There was no way to sugarcoat this. Neither was there a way to covertly steal a tissue sample.
“I want to get a tissue sample from the mutant.”
Lena’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. “You want to what?”
“I want a tissue sample.”
“Um, okay. What are you going to do with it?”
“Figure out a way to study it. The Soviets manufactured the nezhit virus in a lab. They developed a vaccine for it. This is a full-scale bio war and America is behind the eight ball. It’s worth getting a closer look at a tissue sample. Who knows what we might learn that might be useful?”
“Yeah, but how are you going to study it? It’s not like we have a science lab back at the cabin.”
Amanda swallowed her nervousness. In for a penny, in for a pound, she supposed.
She launched into the same plan she laid out for Stephenson the night before. Lena listened to it all. Unlike Stephenson, she didn’t interrupt—until Amanda got to the part about stashing the tissue sample in the freezer.
“I don’t think it’s a terrible idea, but I’m not sure Nonna will ever agree to letting you put zombie flesh in the freezer.”
“You don’t think it’s a dumb idea?”
“It couldn’t hurt. I’m not sure when we’ll make it back into Bastopol for a microscope, but we can ask Leo when he gets back.”
Amanda brightened. Stephenson might think she was crazy, but Lena didn’t.
“I’ll get the sample.” She paused as she pulled out her knife. “You might not want to watch this.”
Lena turned to the side, scanning the area and keeping her gun up. Amanda placed the knife against the side of the dead mutant’s arm and sliced.
The muscles were so thick and dense, it was difficult to get the knife through—and her Cecchino blade was sharp.
“Jeez.” Amanda shifted her stance, trying to get better leverage. She was forced to saw her blade back and forth.
“What?”
“The muscle mass is really dense.” She paused in her sawing. “I wonder if the nezhit virus started as a way to make a super soldier.”
“What do you mean?” Despite herself, Lena turned to study the mutant.
“The mutants are an unexpected side effect of the nezhit virus. Which means some part of this virus is designed to increase muscle size and density. Why would you design a virus to do that if you were’t planning to use the recipient in a fight?” This was getting more interesting by the second.
“Say you’re right. What does it mean?” Lena asked.
“I don’t know yet. But it’s more information than we had sixty seconds ago.” Amanda finally managed to get the knife all the way through. A chunk of muscle thunked to the ground.
&
nbsp; “You’re seriously not grossed out by what you’re doing?”
“No. Blood has never bothered me.” Amanda furrowed her brow as she once again squeezed the dense muscle of the corpse. “Do you think these guys can swim? Their body density must be off the charts. I wonder if they’d sink?”
“We can test out your theory if we’re ever running from mutants and happen to be near water. Is that all you need?” Lena gestured to the dead mutant.
Amanda considered the body. Honestly, it would probably be a good idea to get an organ for study. But even though she wasn’t bothered by blood, there was big difference between slicing off a piece of arm muscle and digging around in a body cavity. She definitely wanted gloves for that.
“Yeah, I think that will do for now.” She fished the Ziploc out of her pocket and used it to pick up the chunk of flesh. After compressing the seal, she wrapped the plastic up and tucked the whole piece into her back pocket.
“Is there a reason you wanted to get the flesh sample today?” Lena had returned her attention to the trees.
“It’s not like I can go out anytime I want to get a piece of mutant. I figured if we ran into any out here, we may actually have a chance to get a piece of him.” She glanced at the body. “Literally, a piece of him.”
They girls climbed back up the hillside to the truck. Dal had taken down the antenna and was sliding the transmitter back through the cab window.
“Everything go smoothly with the broadcast?” Lena asked.
“Yep. How’d it go for you guys?”
“We learned mutants have very dense muscle mass,” Lena said. “Amanda thinks the nezhit virus was originally intended to create super soldiers.”
Dal’s eyebrows rose. “Really?”
“Just a theory.” Amanda climbed into the back of the truck. “All information is good though, right?”
“Sure. Can’t hurt,” Dal said.
Lena shot Amanda a conspiratorial grin. “Now we just need to get you a microscope.”
Scattered (Zommunist Invasion Book 3) Page 9