by Jeff Olah
He didn’t respond.
Moving to the door and knowing that Sean was watching and listening, Mason pointed toward the hall. “Open it up.”
The airlock disengaged and as the door began to close behind him, he just made out Lockwood’s last request. “Mason, make sure my kids are safe.”
Passing in front of the window that ran the length of the room and continuing down the hall, Mason smiled and nodded. He gave Lockwood the thumbs up sign and mouthed the words, “Got it.”
Savannah shook her head as she peered into the hall. “He’s going crazy, isn’t he, Randy?”
Silence… Randy heard her question, although he just didn’t have a good answer for the change taking place in his friend. Turned sideways in the metal framed chair, he matched his cousin’s gaze and stared blankly into the hall as his right foot tapped the cold tile floor like an automatic rifle. He looked out of place. He felt out of place.
Filling a glass of water, Megan returned to the table and set it down in front of Randy. “You alright?”
Looking down into the clear liquid, he grabbed the glass and lifted it to his mouth. Taking a long drink, he placed it back on the table and slid it over to Megan. “I’m good.”
“You think Mason is seeing things?”
“I’m not sure what’s happening anymore, but I think Mason’s right.”
Megan sat up straight. “What?”
“Someone is out there beyond the wall… watching us. I saw them as well.”
160
Going over detailed instructions for what he had planned for the next few hours, Mason asked Sean to narrow his focus. A thirty-foot perimeter just outside the walls of Blackmore was established as a semi-safe zone and all access points were to be monitored. “Sean, no one gets near this place, no exceptions. This is our home and I’m way past rolling out the welcome mat for any strangers. As soon as they hit your monitors, I want to know.”
Adjusting the angles and focus of each camera, Sean pulled up each one separately and on its own screen. “Alright, but don’t you think we ought to find out what’s actually out there first? This isn’t the first time we’ve thought we’d seen someone out there.”
“You mean me,” Mason said. “You mean this isn’t the first time I’ve seen something that wasn’t there.”
“Not exactly, I just—”
“Listen, I get it. I’ve been wrong many times over the last few months, but we are all still here and I intend on keeping it that way. Today is different, though; there is someone out there.”
Moving to the door, Mason called for the others to join him in the Command Center. As they filed in, Randy moved to the bank of monitors and stood behind Sean. He turned to Mason and said, “What the hell is going on, what are we waiting for?”
Not addressing his friend’s question specifically, Mason spoke to the group. “We’ve got company. I don’t get the sense that there were more than a few of them, although they appeared to know this mountain. I was able to make out two or three of them as they took down a few Feeders just outside the treeline. They moved really fast through the trees and in silence.”
“And…” Randy said.
Cutting a look at his friend he continued. “And, although we don’t know who they are, we have to assume that they’re here to do us harm, so that’s how we are proceeding.”
“Proceeding?” Savannah said. “How are WE proceeding?”
“Carefully.”
Turning away from the screens, Randy said, “Mason’s right. There is someone out there. I saw them as well. The question is, what are we going to do with this information?”
Without losing his focus on the bank of monitors, now dialed in on their targets beyond the perimeter walls, Sean said. “I agree with Randy, what exactly is the plan?”
He didn’t hesitate. Mason realized there wasn’t time to debate over the many ways this could play out. Turning to Randy he said. “This is your area of expertise. What are we doing?”
Randy pointed toward the ceiling and smiled. “You and I set up at opposite ends of the roof and wait for them to show themselves. It won’t even be a contest.”
Sean spun in his chair to face the others. “So what, you and Mason are just going to start firing on these people without finding out who they are? Even if they are here to do us harm, we can’t just kill them because they didn’t come to the front door and ring the bell.”
“What do you suggest?” Mason said.
“Can’t we bring them into the yard and question them without having to kill anyone?”
“I think with everything that’s happened on this mountain, the time for giving people the benefit of the doubt is long gone. And more to your point, if these people intended to be civil, they would have announced their arrival. They’re trying to catch us off guard, and there is a reason for that.”
As he locked down the building, Sean still wasn’t convinced. He’d watched Mason and Randy walk through the door and make their way to the stairwell leading to the roof. With little more than a few boxes of ammunition, two rifles, and a pair of walkies, they marched in silence to their positions.
Staying out of view of the treeline, they rushed to their respective corners along the North and South ends of the building. Scopes sighted and the walkies left on, they were in continuous communication with one another and with Sean, as he sat alone in the Command Center, watching the monitors and waiting.
Mason’s hushed voice was the first through the line. He lay flat on his stomach, right eye through the scope, scanning the area just beyond the rear walls. “I’ve lost them. They must be on the move. Either of you have anything?”
“The gate is all clear,” Randy said. “I feel like I’m hunting a ghost. The only thing out in front are four or five badly beaten Feeders.”
Shifting his focus toward the West wall and following the trail of six Feeders as they moved out of the area, Mason said, “Sean, you picking up anything?”
Ten seconds of silence before Sean’s voice echoed through the line. “I’m here guys, the power just blinked out again, it’s back though… We’re good now. I’m just restarting everything.”
“How long?” Mason asked. “Do you still have eyes on the perimeter?”
“I do now, we’re good.” Sean said. “You find them yet?”
The midday sun warmed not only the darkened surface of the rooftop, but also his back and legs. Sweat ran down the sides of his face and dripped to the ground below. Mason paused before speaking as he detected movement along the Northwest corner. “Randy… off your left shoulder, just beyond the wall. Look into the trees, about fifteen, maybe twenty feet.”
“I don’t see anything, just a few… wait, I see him.”
“Whatta ya got?”
Randy whispered into the walkie. “One guy, he’s alone and sitting in the cover of that huge pine. Looks like he’s on a radio. Stay off the line for now, I’m going to see what he’s up to.”
Unable to get a line of sight on their mystery guest, Mason crawled on his stomach along the western edge of the roofline. Another sixty seconds and he had more or less the same vantage as Randy. He pulled the rifle into his shoulder, pushed his eye into the lens, and scanned the landscape.
“Mason.” Randy’s voice now slow and calm through the walkie. “I’ve got this guy sighted. He’s armed with at least a nine and possibly more. What’s the call?”
“Give me a minute; I want to see what you’re seeing.”
“Roger that, standing by.”
As Mason brought the young man into view, he closed his eyes, and shook his head. This didn’t feel right. None of this. The boy at the other end of his scope couldn’t have been more than eighteen years old and dressed in street clothes. He looked like the average high school senior with one very telling exception.
The weapon sitting on the young man’s hip forced his decision. “Randy… take him out.”
A long breath in, Randy pulled the boy in between his crosshairs a
nd fingered the trigger. Exhaling he locked his shoulders and as he began to pull back, the static through the walkie broke his concentration. The shot went wide left.
Mason slammed his fist into the concrete rooftop, as the young man scampered off into the trees.
“Mason.” Sean’s voice came through the walkie. “They’re in the building.”
161
Reaching the landing at the top of the stairs, Mason held out his right arm, asking Randy to stop without saying a word. Out of breath and not exactly sure what he was running toward, Mason gripped the door handle, slowly pulled it open, and leaned into the stairwell… darkness.
Had Sean powered down the building? Were their uninvited guest responsible or was this simply another outage? They had no way of knowing without walking into what both men figured would be a trap.
“Mason, this isn’t right,” Randy said. “We need to find another way in.”
“Listen, my family is down there; your family is down there. Whoever’s entered our building already knows we’re here. We’re not going back. These people know exactly where we are.”
“Your plan?”
“I don’t care who they are. I’ve had more than enough… we’re going to kill them all.”
Sitting on the floor under the desk, Sean stared at the door. Over the low hum of the CPUs’ cooling fans, he heard three distinct male voices, none of which were Mason or Randy. Pulled back against the wall, the blackness surrounded him. His sister and Savannah were somewhere out there and with the case of weapons more than twenty feet away, he needed to help.
“Five, four, three, two… one.” Sean pulled himself from under the desk, checked the window and moved to the door. Back into the hall, the emergency lighting kicked on, giving him just enough illumination to make out the lengthy shadows headed his way. Crossing the hall and kneeing next to the case, he slowly cracked the lid and reached in.
Removing two handguns from the case, he flinched as voices carried from the far end of the hall. “You two, get in here and keep your mouths… wait, what the hell? What are you doing?”
The faceless individuals moved quickly into The Cage and as the door closed behind them, the conversation dropped off. Muted voices, followed by an obvious disturbance, pulled Sean to his feet. He moved along the wall and readied both weapons as he stayed low and in the shadows.
The angered and passionate voices, now less than ten feet away, seemed to intensify. Through the wall, the exact words were still a mystery, although the familiar pitch of the individual screaming pulled him from a squatting position. Sean stood and turned toward the window.
He hesitated. Sean pressed himself back into the wall and took a deep breath. Raising his right hand, pistol loaded and ready for action, he slowly turned toward the room. Squinting through the dimmed lighting, he used his left hand to shade his eyes as the door at the far end of the hall parted.
His right arm extended, weapon trained on the individuals coming through the door, Sean stayed hidden and followed the two silhouetted figures. As they moved further along, backlit by the propped open door, he targeted the larger of the two men leading the way.
Stepping out of the shadows, he lunged forward and fired two shots. His heart rate rocketed as his trailing foot caught on an overturned trash can. Stumbling forward and unable to regain his balance, Sean crashed to the floor, dropping both weapons.
The blinding muzzle flash and ear-splitting explosion as the round exited the barrel tossed one man into another. The white-hot searing pain, followed by the stench of scorched flesh, sent Mason to his knees. He instinctively clutched his shoulder, pressing into the wound as he dropped his rifle.
Already moving around him and in a direct line to their aggressor, Randy knelt behind the boy and pulled him to his feet. “Sean?”
Light spilled into the hallway as Randy stepped forward and pushed Sean backward and into the wall. Releasing the boy, Randy looked past Mason and shouldered his rifle. “Get back!”
Through the pain, Mason also readied his weapon and stood to the right of Randy.
As quickly as he reacted, Randy pulled back and held up his right hand. “Mason… wait.”
The three men watched as Megan and Savannah were led out into the hallway at gunpoint. The extremely average looking, forty-something male smiled as he pressed the weapon into Megan’s ear. “So… I guess introductions are in order?”
“No need,” Mason said. “In a few minutes, you’ll simply be known as the dead guy that should have never shown his face inside these walls.”
Pushing forward, the older man’s battle scars became much more evident. His tan cargo pants and muted green button up looked as though they had been washed in human remains. If it weren’t for his upright posture and control over his own verbal functions, he’d have surely been mistaken for a Feeder. “Mason… correct? I am talking to Mason Thomas, aren’t I?”
“I don’t know you.”
“It really doesn’t matter,” the man said, “although we do have something to discuss.” He waved the women back into the room, and asked that Mason follow him as well.
Turning to Randy, Mason whispered, “I don’t care why they’re here; these guys aren’t walking out of this building. You good with that?”
Randy nodded and followed Mason down the hall and into The Cage. One at a time they filed in. First Mason, followed closely by Sean, and the last to enter was Randy, who still held his rifle at arm’s length. He didn’t make eye contact with the others and stood at the back of the room.
“Leave your weapon in the hall or pass it over here. Those are your only two choices… and I won’t ask twice.”
Randy eyed the two strangers, the second man with his weapon held to Lockwood’s head. The much smaller man, although slightly obese, perspired from every area of exposed skin. He swallowed hard and wiped the mixture of sweat and dried blood from his bald head.
Taking two steps around Mason, Randy raised his left hand and held it above his head, while laying his rifle on the stainless steel table. He looked to Eleanor, who’d been removed from the table and was now sitting in the corner with her back to the wall. He mouthed, “Are you ok?” And then waited for her to nod.
Blood flowed from the open wound along his right shoulder and ran down the length of his arm. It dropped to the white tile below, creating a pool as Mason stepped forward. “I know you’ve got at least one man left on the perimeter, waiting for the two of you. From what I can see, he’s likely your son.”
The man gripping tightly to Megan’s arm laughed at Mason’s attempt to draw him out. He instead went on the attack. “You have no idea what it took to get here and the lengths we went through to break into this place. It wasn’t easy, although it wasn’t very hard either. If you knew anything about the system that operates this place or the person who designed it, you’d have known that there’s always a way in from the outside… if you know what to look for.”
Another step forward and Mason was within a few feet. “You left that boy, your son, out there because you had no idea what you would find inside this building. I don’t blame you; I would have done the same, although my son is dead. Tell me why you’re here, what you want, and I may just let you walk out the door… alive.”
The bald man, now beginning to shake, turned to his accomplice. “Just get it over with so we can get out of here, this place is—”
He didn’t acknowledge his friend. The first man pushed Megan aside and took one step forward, raising his pistol to Mason’s chest. “We came for Marcus Goodwin, although the good doctor here tells me you’ve already taken care of him… personally. Now since you’ve taken away my meal ticket, we’re going to have to get something as a replacement.”
Mason grinned. “What’s on your mind?”
“We’re taking Dr. Lockwood with us. From what I understand, his special skill set may come in handy out there in what’s left of the world.”
Leaning forward, his grin fading, Mason spoke slowl
y and deliberately. “Last chance for you to leave this mountain on your own two feet. If you don’t lay down your weapon and apologize to these people, I’m going to kill you both in this room and then walk outside, find your son, and shoot him in the head.”
“Mason,” Eleanor shouted from the edge of the room. “Enough!”
The man pressing the gun into Mason’s chest turned to Eleanor. “Thank you, although it really doesn’t matter. We are walking out of this facility and taking the doctor with us. If you behave yourself, we may let you live.” He winked at her and turned back to Mason. “Say goodbye.”
As the man’s finger slid back along the trigger guard, Mason twisted to the left, the muzzle flash illuminating the room from top to bottom. The others dove to the floor as Mason reached out and pulled the syringe from Lockwood’s right hand.
The man twelve inches away fired off a second round. Ripping through the room, it buried itself in the wall at the front of The Cage. As Mason swung back around, his right arm like a jackhammer, he forced the syringe through the eye socket of the unsuspecting man.
The man’s lifeless body dropped to the ground as Mason released his grip.
Without turning, he felt Randy kneeling over the bald man. Mason nodded and with one quick movement, Randy torqued the man’s head to the left, breaking his neck and quickly extinguishing his life.
Through the shouts of anguish and the cries for him to stop, Mason exited the room. He marched down the long corridor, only pausing long enough to retrieve the weapon dropped earlier by Sean. He moved to the rear exit, pushed out into the warm sunlight and flinched ever so slightly as the first round nicked him just below the left ear.
Walking in a straight line toward the lone gunman sitting atop the West wall, he stared into the boy’s eyes. Four more misses and boy’s rifle was empty. Mason, none the worse for wear, fired his own weapon two times from a distance of not more than ten feet. Both wide. “I’m doing you a favor,” he said as he narrowed his focus and fired the third and final round.