The Infected (Book 5): Battleground

by Zuko, Joseph

  They worked as a team and lifted the heavy ice filled box.

  The strange details of this exact moment conjured a memory for Leon, from long long ago in a galaxy, next door to this one.

  My first heist. Leon was filled with pride and a tiny amount of shame.

  Troy gave him an odd expression.

  I must be doing the ‘smile’. He tried to erase the grin from his face. It wasn’t really a story he was prepared to share. Not without a few drinks in his belly.

  “What’s so amusing?” Troy asked as they headed for the front door.

  “Ahh, nothing. It’s a funny thing I remember…”

  Shut up, you fool. Leon cursed his inability to properly lie. He kept his gaze focused on the melting ice inside the cooler, hoping Troy wouldn’t press for more info.

  “With the day I’ve had, I sure could go for a funny story about now.” Troy’s expression begged for a distraction. Anything to get his mind off the last twenty-four hours.

  Before Leon knew it, he was telling his tale. “Let me start by saying, I was young…”

  Am I so desperate for him to like me?

  I’m willing to embarrass myself for his entertainment? Leon knew the answer and the words continued to fall from his mouth. They headed for the front door as he cleared his throat.

  “…and I had won back to back stock car races at a local track. I was gaining a little fame in my neck of the woods and it caught the eye of some local thugs.”

  Troy awkwardly reached for the doorknob. “Desiree, can you help me with this,” asked Troy as he stepped away from the door.

  “Be right there,” she mumbled as a cigarette hung from her mouth.

  “And?” asked Troy.

  “They found me, said they needed an ‘Ace driver’ and claimed I could make ten large if I helped them empty a shipping container and be their driver. I desperately needed the cash. Races didn’t pay much, and my car had a blown rod.”

  “What was in the container?”

  Desiree opened the door.

  Leon continued as they stepped outside. “It was supposed to be a shipment of DVD players. Some top of the line Sony’s.”

  “It wasn’t electronics?” Troy angled for the door to the bus.

  Leon’s gaze drifted back to the ice. “Nope, not exactly. On top of that they didn’t have the cash to pay me what I’d make on the job. I had to sell off a few boxes myself to make the money I needed to fix my car.”

  They lowered the cooler next to the bus and Troy worked at the side door. “So, what the heck was in the container?”

  Leon grimaced. “Sex toys.”

  “Sex toys? Like dildos?” Troy’s grin grew bigger by the second.

  “Yeah and other stuff ladies and gents like to put in and on their bodies.” Leon ran his hands through his dark hair. “I was only nineteen at the time. I wasn’t sure what a lot of the devices were, but I had to learn fast, so I could unload the merch.”

  “What’d ya do, sell them door to door?” Troy did his best salesperson voice, “Howdy ma’am, may I offer you this top of the line dildo? Maybe one for your husband?”

  Leon played along and used his hands to circle his mouth, turning them into a megaphone. “Butt plugs here, get your butt plugs! Two for a quarter.”

  “Ha!” Troy opened the bus door and squatted to pick the cooler from the ground. “What did you really do?”

  Leon lifted his side. “I drove one state over and unloaded the shipment on a few adult stores.”

  “Smart.”

  Leon was surprised Troy wasn’t making more fun of him for being such an idiot. That’s when it hit him. These folks are different than the riffraff he normally hung out with. Smarter and more compassionate. They moved slowly up the bus steps, lifted the cooler into the front seat and positioned it so it wouldn’t fall to the floor.

  “What do you have there, gentlemen?” asked Jim as he eased himself from his seat and headed in their direction.

  “We got ourselves a couple cases of ice cold brew. You want one?” asked Troy.

  “Yes please.” Jim’s eyes were glassy, and he moved like a ninety-year-old man, but the promise of beer put some pep in his step.

  Troy plucked a cold one, twisted off the top and handed it to him. “This should hit the spot.”

  “Thank you, kind sir,” Jim took a long pull off the bottle. “Ahhh, just what I needed.” He faced Leon and said, “I heard through the window you’re having a sale on butt plugs?” He gave them a mischievous grin.

  Shawna checked Ryder’s heart rate once more as the other ladies gathered their full bags by the front door. It took her a moment to lock onto its beat, but there it was, clocking fifty per minute. At this proximity, she could smell that his deodorant had worn off and like her, he was in desperate need of a shower. A tattoo on his forearm grabbed her attention. She rolled it toward her to get a clear view. A crudely drawn, large breasted woman shook her round hips at her.

  What a piece of work. Shawna wondered how a man like this came to be. Did treating women like objects really work for him? He’s not hideous and if he acted like a human being Shawna might have been inclined to ride with him, if he was heading back to Vancouver. Why all the big dick swinging bravado?

  Was it his parents?

  Or too much TV?

  But before she could continue something else caught her eye. The tip of a key poked out from his pocket. Shawna had to force herself not to scream out in joy.

  It’s the key to his car. I should grab them and run!

  Sara carried four heavy bags to the front door. “Are we almost ready?”

  Desiree carried a bag full of cigarette cartons. “I’m all set. I don’t want to think about the mess Dad made in his britches, but I’m ready to hit the road.”

  Karen held two bags and pushed a third one across the floor with her foot. “I’m ready. Where are the guys?”

  Sara spotted them on the bus. “They’re still on the bus.”

  “What?” Karen leaned toward the glass window.

  As the three men came into view, Karen blurted out, “F-”

  A dark figure leaped at the window and smashed its bloody fist into the glass.

  “-uck!” She screamed at the top of her lungs and leaped from the store front.

  It was followed by another, then another. Until the window was full of infected monsters.

  Chapter 10

  Thousands! Paul couldn’t believe it.

  Why?

  Why would God do this to him?

  There wasn’t time to question His plan. Paul had to make some fast decisions.

  Do we stay and fight off this round of the infected but possibly lose people? It would give them more time to properly gather supplies.

  Or do we leave now with what we can carry? Insuring they don’t lose anyone else, and gather supplies later? Paul glanced from Doctor Bryant to Cooper, then the group waiting for orders by the door.

  “Cooper, get the transport vehicles pulled around to the front and load out the children first. Call our scouts back to the church. I won’t leave anyone behind.” He pointed to the group of five at the door. “Grab as much ammo as you can carry and get it onto the bus.” He faced the Doctor. “I’m afraid I don’t have time for stitches. Do you have a staple gun?”

  Cooper replaced his baseball cap and sunglasses as he keyed his radio, “I need all scouts to drop what you’re doing and report back to the church. We are minutes away from evac. Do you copy?” As he waited for their responses he made his way to the stack of metal cases that held the church’s cache of ammo. He lifted a sixty-pound box and raced for the door. Cooper weaved through the others as they snatched their own boxes and followed him out to the field at the rear of the church. The ground was soaked by the rain. Hundreds of dead bodies, each one oozing fluids, were scattered across the grounds. The bare patches of dirt had turned to mud. The whole expanse was now a slick and disgusting swamp. Cooper had to try twice as hard to keep his feet under
him as he ran.

  From the radio, the familiar voices of his friends and assorted congregation members, checked in, “Allan here, I copy…” “Donny here, I copy…” “Mary, I copy…” Half a dozen more scouts chimed in as he made a beeline for the first bus in the yard.

  Taggart, the church’s mechanic, was hard at work fitting the windows with metal siding. Cooper raced up the steps and dropped the box of ammo on the first seat.

  “Taggart, grab as many tools as you can and pull this rig around to the front!”

  Taggart raised his welding goggles to the top of his head, “What are ya goin’ on about?”

  “We are heading out! Now!” Cooper stomped away from the bus and headed for the military Humvee parked on the far side of the field.

  Taggart hollered after him, “Are ya yanking my leg? Where the heck are we goin’?”

  “Get moving!” yelled Cooper.

  A semi-circle of vehicles made a barricade at the center of the field. Snipers were stationed at the top of each rig. Cooper barked orders as he raced by. “Gather your supplies and head to a vehicle.”

  The muscles in his legs burned as he sprinted for the Humvee. He slowed his pace when he spotted her stepping out of the driver’s side door.

  “Lisa?” Cooper called to the woman.

  She stretched her spine and closed the door behind her. Lisa didn’t flinch as the rain pinged off her forehead. In fact, she seemed to enjoy it. She was tall, with broad shoulders and her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail. Her combat boots were covered in blood and she sported a stolen military jacket. It was one size too big, said she was a Sergeant in the Marines named Grant and it was splattered with someone else’s blood.

  Cooper skidded to a stop and heaved in a lungful of air.

  Before he could speak, Lisa pointed to his rifle and asked, “You finally get to shoot that?”

  Cooper glanced at his gun. “No… I…”

  “Your plan of sneaking around and pretending to be a ninja worked?” Lisa headed for a stack of gas canisters. She found a full one and got it ready to pour.

  He followed her, “Yeah, pretty much, did you-”

  “I wish it was that easy for us.” She lifted the canister, removed the Hummer’s gas cap, placed the nozzle in the tube and lifted the tank. Fuel chugged as she continued. “We get to the National Guard and the place is overrun. I’m talking every stinking person left on that base had been turned.”

  Cooped raised his voice, “Did you hear the radio?”

  “Nah, I turned it off and took a twenty-minute power nap. Anyways, me and the rest of the team are burning through magazines. Bang, bang, bang! Mowing down wave after wave of those creeps. We are neck deep in it, down to our last mags and that’s when we found this baby.” She patted the Hummer. Terror gripped his face. “What’s wrong? Did you find a snake in your bed?”

  Cooper grunted, “A gathering of a thousand strong are heading this way. We are leaving the church.”

  Lisa narrowed her gaze. “That’s orders from Brother Paul?” The canister ran dry and she replaced the cap. “Is he getting word from-”

  Cooper cut her off, “Paul has given the go ahead. Donny called in the horde. We’ve got to-”

  The radio on Cooper’s belt popped. Donny’s young voice screeched. “You’ve got to send someone to get me! I’m trapped at the corner of… Oh god, they broke down the door.” His radio stayed on as he breathed heavily into the receiver. It sounded like he was racing. Loud foot falls and chaos pulsed through the speaker. It seemed like he took a bad spill as the speaker blasted static and muffled groans of pain. A second later he was running again.

  Cooper raised the radio to his mouth, “Donny? Can you get to a safe point? Donny?”

  It was no good. Donny’s radio was either busted or his adrenaline-fueled body was keeping its thumb on the radio. Shots were fired. Followed by a scream. Broken glass. More gunshots. Donny panting and yelling unintelligible words. A few more shots. Clicking of an empty gun. He called for his Mother. Then for God, but neither were there to save him.

  There was a crunch. A cry of agonizing pain. Then silence.

  “Donny?” Cooper called into his radio. He lowered the transmitter and closed the gap between him and Lisa. “Gather your team. You’re leading the convoy in this thing.” He nodded at the Hummer.

  Lisa tossed the empty canister to the ground. “Taking a group this size safely out of the city is impossible. The roads are jammed. Throngs of the infected are around every corner.”

  “We don’t have a choice.”

  Scott scrambled to collect his gear. He was tempted to turn off his radio. The chilling audio struck him to the core. He knew Donny better than most and recalled when the young man joined their group. Like most new members, Donny first found the church online. He recently moved to the area and was after similarly minded people. He sent an email asking for more details and Scott was the one who replied. They met for coffee and he gave Donny the rundown on what they were all about. They had common interests with comparable backgrounds. Both were only children. They each had attended a Sci-fi convention dressed as a Klingon. Donny was fun and made everyone laugh.

  Now he is getting torn to shreds by the same things heading this way.

  The thought of leaving the church was terrifying by itself. Doing it under duress, while an even larger group of monsters were banging down the door, was maddening.

  Michael paced. He spoke rapidly as his hands wrung at the binding of his Bible. “What should I do? Did we have a plan for this? I… I… I can’t breathe.”

  Scott loaded a laptop into his duffle bag. “Go to the children. Help organize them. The buses will pull around to the front and they will be the first to board. Calm them. Get them to sing a song or say a prayer.”

  Michael came to a halt. “You’re right. I must shepherd the young lambs.” He headed for the hallway.

  “Pastor?” Scott called after him.

  “Yes?”

  “Grab a gun before you go.”

  “Oh… yes. That would be prudent.” Michael hurried down the hallway. Winding through the corridors. Repeating Scott’s instructions to himself, until he got to the armory. He held his bible close to his heart as if it were a bulletproof vest.

  Michael’s breath was taken away once he stepped into the room. Blood covered much of the floor and desecrated bodies appeared to be everywhere. “How did…?”

  He found Brother Paul with his back to Doctor Bryant. She held a device to his skull and spoke softly. “I’m so sorry.” She tugged at the trigger. The staple gun clicked loudly as it sutured the gash in Paul’s scalp.

  Paul grunted, veins bulged from his neck. He slammed his fist onto Bryant’s desk between each staple. She zapped him a few more times, set the gun on the desk and lifted a roll of gauze.

  Michael inched his way into the room skirting the pool of blood, not wanting to get a drop on his shoes. “Are you okay, Brother Paul?”

  He growled through the pain, “I appear to still be breathing.”

  Michael moved closer to the rack of guns, but Patrick’s splattered brains were between him and the weapons. “Oh dear.”

  Doctor Bryant finished Paul’s bandage. “That should hold. You want something for the pain?”

  “Save them for someone that’s really hurt.” He gently touched the bandage as he faced her. “Gather your supplies, I want you on the first bus out of here.”

  She nodded and grabbed a backpack with her name stenciled on it. She moved with haste and loaded medical gear into the pack.

  “Pastor Caruthers, can you and Doctor Bryant escort each other?” Michael was trapped by the chunks of flesh all around him. Paul stepped away from Lindsey’s area and headed for the gun safe. “Pastor?” Paul’s boots crushed blobs of gore, kicked through puddles of blood and smashed hunks of brains as he passed Michael.

  “Pastor?” Paul stopped in front of the holy man. “Do you need something?”

  “Scott su
ggested I pick up a weapon before leading the children to safety.” His gaze was fixed on the mess at his feet.

  “Well, you’re almost there.” Paul took the last few steps. The soles of his boots made a sticky squeaky sound, like he was walking the aisles of an old movie theater.

  Michael’s face turned green from the noise.

  Paul reached for a handful of loaded magazines and filled his tactical vest. He motioned toward Patrick’s dead body. “He can’t hurt you, he’s dead.”

  “It’s the…” Caruthers chewed at his bottom lip.

  Paul removed a fresh rifle, popped a mag into it and released the bolt. He angled himself toward Michael. “You better find a way to concuer that fear. Otherwise, you won’t last the day.” He moved for the hallway as the haunting words echoed through Caruthers. Paul exited the room and headed for his office.

  Michael felt a surge of embarrassment.

  Say something now that you have her alone. He didn’t want too much time to pass without a single word being uttered. Every second of silence was pure agony.

  Finally, he mumbled, “I’m not afraid.”

  Lindsey pushed the last item into her bag and zipped it shut. She slung the pack onto her shoulder and headed his direction. “Why not? I am?”

  He pivoted and for the first time saw her disgusting, blood soaked blouse.

  Michael stuttered, “You are?”

  “Absolutely,” she answered and moved quickly for a rifle with a scope. “Look at Miranda?”

  Michael scanned the room until he found the mutilated corpse. He gasped, “What happened?”

  Lindsey loaded the rifle. “She had me pinned to the floor. It was my first chance at studying this disease closely.” An awkward laugh escaped her. “Miranda was about to take a bite when I put a bone saw in her mouth. Never felt that level of fear before. Yet, I learned a powerful lesson.”

  “What?”

  “We can’t stop it. All we can do is run.” Lindsey pushed the bolt forward on the gun. “The blood doesn’t carry the disease. Only their bites can transform you. Move quickly. Grab a weapon and let’s go.”