Rise & Walk (Book 2): Pathogen

by Gregory Solis

  “They’re attracted to the noise.” Denkinger said.

  “Then make more.” Richardson said ominously.

  “Sir?” Denkinger asked.

  “Engage!” The old man ordered.

  “Aikman, Reiss, Smith, at the door. Lock and load.” Denkinger barked. Alexandra’s adrenalin began to boil in anticipation of what was about to happen. She saw Reiss drop onto a seated position with his legs hanging out of the sliding door. Two other men unclasped themselves from their seats and took similar positions in the door. The three men took aim with their automatic weapons on the clamoring crowd at the shore. The helicopter swung slowly closer.

  “Fire!” Denkinger said.

  Alexandra felt the rapid fire of Denkinger’s M-60 as the air inside the Blackhawk pulsed and soured with the stink of expended powder. Gunfire ripped into the infected mass as Denkinger walked his seven-point-six-two millimeter rounds from side to side at six-hundred rounds per minute, blasting golf-ball sized chunks of spoiling meat from their bodies. The raw force of the weapon sent slugs through the first row and still carried enough power to tear horrific rents into the second row of creatures. Alexandra saw the bodies start to flail and jerk as a thick cloud of reddish-brown debris rose where they fell. She turned away and saw that the other soldiers were smiling and hollering as if cheering at a football game. She looked around to the other men and saw that all were enjoying the scene, except for Lewis. The medic appeared to be astonished by the sight. Alexandra looked away as Denkinger stopped firing and spoke.

  “Headshots!” was his command. Under the noise of the engine and with her headphones on, she heard the staccato reports from the men in the door who began firing. What the hell am I doing here, she cursed in her head. She understood that despite whatever orders Colonel Borden might have been given, there probably wasn’t a cure for these people and that they were one-hundred percent deadly. There was no way to end their threat without violence and that’s what this machine was made for. For the first time Alexandra realized that this was the end result of her business; the manufacture of weapons for war. But this wasn’t a field test, firing at wooden targets. She was a in a flying chainsaw made to cut flesh en masse and the last thing Alexandra wanted to see right now was a team of ex-jocks who couldn’t cut it in the real military guffaw at the efficiency of a modern meat-grinder.

  Alexandra locked her eyes on a spot on the floor and just waited until it was over. She decided that she should leave as soon as possible. She would resign if she had to and just get the hell away from Richardson and his hirelings. The guns silenced and rather than look out the door, she looked up at the soldiers in the row facing her. Their smiles had fallen into serious expressions. One man swallowed, his Adam ’s apple jumping hard while his eyes were fixed on the camp. Alexandra looked to the shore.

  The scene was pure carnage. Bodies, none really whole but divided by the random hewing of machine gun fire were splayed all around an area twenty feet in diameter. In the center of this gory patch stood a young girl, perhaps ten years old, covered in small bits of unidentifiable muscle and bone from other bodies that must have shielded her until now. The surface of her right arm appeared jagged from many bites torn from her flesh. The little girl took a step forward and reached out her matted and mangled arm to the chopper while opening her beastly mouth. Her teeth were bloody and even from a distance Alexandra could see that the little girl, as one would expect for a child her age, was missing a tooth. The Blackhawk hovered for a moment with an unreal stillness.

  A single low-pitched “Bloop” sounded from Reiss’s Grenade launcher causing Alexandra to flinch. She saw the projectile lob in an arc through the air before the young girl suddenly exploded in an orange-white ball of fire. Reiss turned and smiled at the squad with a sickening look of accomplishment. The men sat dumbfounded for a moment then began to smile. A cheer erupted over the sound of the helicopter. Alexandra quickly felt around with one hand underneath her seat to see if there was an Air-sickness bag nearby. She breathed quickly and tried to choke back her vomit.

  “More contacts Sir at eleven o’clock. Looks like law enforcement.” Denkinger said.

  “Son of a bitch!” Richardson shouted into the microphone surprising Alexandra and giving her something to take her mind off her revulsion.

  “Chief Murdoch,” said Richardson. “Take us down, now!”

  “Sir, the area’s not secure.” Said Denkinger.

  “On the deck now!” The old man demanded.

  The Blackhawk glided sideways to the shore then forward for a landing that forced more water into the air. Alexandra thought Richardson was having some sort of mental breakdown when he began yelling over the intercom.

  “Murdoch! You had one simple job; to watch out for my boy!” he shouted as he released his seat belt. He was still yelling when he removed his helmet and left the chopper, breaking intercom contact. The three men in the door jumped from the Blackhawk and raised their weapons to escort the old man. Denkinger leapt out and the rest of the men followed forming a defensive half moon shape. She saw the policemen approach, noted their torn clothing and recognized them as infected. She saw Richardson reach into his jacket and produce an automatic pistol. He gestured to the three soldiers with him and they fanned out firing at two of the police, blasting their heads open so that their bodies fell back like rag dolls. Richardson appeared to be taunting the remaining police officer as he back peddled to stay out of its reach. Richardson fired his pistol at the creature, hitting it square in the chest. He did so while obviously yelling at the thing and fired as if to punctuate some statement. Alexandra recognized the name Murdoch as Whisper’s Chief of Police from the city files. The old man’s losing his mind, she thought, he’s chiding a God-damned corpse.

  Richardson fired a bullet into the Chief’s face at point blank range, turning the back of his head almost inside out. The body slumped to the ground and Richardson stood over him, still yelling. He fired eight more times directly at the Chief’s face, reducing his head into something that resembled crimson mashed potatoes. He then spit hard on the chief and holstered his weapon. Denkinger was soon at his side. They said a few words to each other and then Richardson casually, as if nothing odd had just happened, buttoned his jacket and walked back to the chopper surrounded by his men.

  What the hell was that? Alexandra wondered and looked away.

  Thirty-Seven

  “Where the hell’d they go?” Tony fumed. He closed the glass double doors and looked for something to secure them. He called to Billy.

  “Bill, there’s a tie down in the bed of the truck, grab it for me.” He said. Billy was ashen and made no acknowledgement. Mason sat Gabe on the tailgate and dug out a short nylon strap from the bed.

  “Keep an eye on him.” Mason said to Billy and then dashed to Tony where he started to wrap the tie down around the two door handles. He spoke to Tony.

  “Do you have any peroxide or alcohol?” Mason whispered.

  “I don’t think that’s gonna help?” Tony said quietly.

  “I know. Try anyway. Try anything.”

  Nikki tossed the diaper bag from her shoulder and held her gun at the ready, keeping the infant laden nurse behind her. She scanned the area.

  “Two, over there.” Nikki called out while training her pistol on the creatures. She dropped one hand and touched the nurse to steady her. “Its gonna be okay.” Nikki said.

  “Where did my Bronco go?” Tony called out while removing a bottle of Iodine from his pack.

  “Son of a bitch!” Mason said removing his hand radio and turning it on.

  “Veronica. Come in. Are you there?” he received no reply.

  The wound in Gabe’s neck wasn’t very large nor was it bleeding profusely. The ghoul had missed any blood vessels and only left teeth marks on the flesh. But Tony had seen someone bit before; that person died from a similar wound. The Iodine antiseptic he had could kill just about any sort of microbe. Tony wondered if it would keep Gabe fro
m turning. He poured the Iodine over the wound as Gabe gripped the truck bed hard and moaned.

  “I know it stings, but we gotta clean this.” Tony said and used a gauze pad to scrub lightly at the wound, working the iodine in. Billy put his hand on Gabe’s shoulder.

  “Hang in there man.” Billy looked at Tony.

  “Where’s the bag from the Pharmacy?” Tony asked.

  “Jack put it in the Bronco.” Billy answered, “Why?”

  “There’re antibiotics and shit in it that could help… maybe.” Tony frowned.

  Nikki noticed three more ghouls emerge from around the far corner of the building.

  “I got three more!” she shouted to no one in particular.

  Mason attached the radio to his belt leaving it on in case Veronica might reply. The corpse of a red-haired woman slapped against the glass from inside the hospital, startling Mason. She looked through the glass with a determined scowl and bared her teeth. Mason was taken aback by the shape of the woman who was clad only in a blue bathing suit; a matching sapphire stone earring glinted in the reflected sunlight.

  “I bet you were something two days ago.” He muttered. He took two steps away and swung up the shotgun. Aiming, he saw that the tie-down held the double doors together firmly. She shouldn’t be able to get through that.

  “Getting closer!’ Nikki’s voice wavered but she held her pistol steady. The closest creatures were further away then she thought she could hit accurately. Over her ear plugs she noticed a mechanical hum approach from the far corner of the building, increasing in volume. Suddenly, a blur of yellow shot out from the front of the building and side swiped the group of three ghouls. They spun and toppled into one another as Andy pulled away. The bronco swung around and pulled in close to its original position. Tony jumped down from the Chevy to meet them.

  Tony opened the passenger’s side and threw the seat forward. Denise, hiding behind the driver’s seat, lurched back in surprise.

  “Hand me that bag,” he said pointing. Panicked, Denise looked around through the windows, weary of more corpses. She seemed to register his request and complied slowly.

  “Make some room back here, we got more survivors.” Tony said.

  Nikki led the nurse and the infant to the Bronco. She saw how seeing the child brought an expression of relief to Denise’s face. She left the nurse in Denise’s care to help her get settled in the back seat. Nikki joined Tony at the tailgate.

  “Is he gonna be okay? She asked.

  Tony tore through items in the duffle bag, searching for something. She saw him pick up small boxes, read their contents and toss them back in. She noticed Gabe, his head lolled forward, sweat on his brow. Billy held his shoulders to support him, or was it in case he changed. Gabe lifted his head.

  “I’m gonna die.” He said.

  “It doesn’t look that bad,” Billy said. Tony continued his search without answering. Gabe looked to Nikki and forced a weary smile.

  “Hi. I’m Gabe.” He said.

  “I know, we met earlier.” She smiled back and put her hand on his arm. His skin was hot and moist.

  “Yeah, but Tony didn’t properly introduce us.” Gabe lifted his head with a single quiet laugh.

  “Here it is.’ Tony said opening a heavy plastic bottle. He looked at Gabe for a moment. “Let’s try three.” He removed three tablets from the bottle and gave them to Gabe with his canteen.

  “What is that?” Nikki asked. Gabe took the tablets.

  “Cipro. It’s the one the government people were given during all the Anthrax scares after Nine-Eleven. I remember it from T.V. It’s supposed to be pretty kick-ass.” Tony said and then indicated that Gabe should finish the canteen. “Drink it all, you want them to dissolve in your belly.”

  The strap holding the doors now stretched under the weight of four creatures pounding against the glass. Mason couldn’t tell how many more were behind the ones he could see but he knew the number wasn’t good. Andy tapped him on the shoulder.

  “Two of the guys I hit got back up.” Andy said.

  “Yeah, they like to do that.” Mason said assessing the perimeter. Four Biters in front, an unknown number being held back by a six-dollar tie down from Cycle Gear, an infant and a wounded man, wasn’t a good situation. If they started shooting, they would just call more dead. It was time to leave.

  “We gotta get moving.” Mason called out. Tony looked to him and nodded.

  “Try not to bump around a lot.” Tony said to Mason as he pulled the tailgate closed. Billy and Tony pulled Gabe further up into the bed of the truck. Tony cleared the heavier, more dangerous items, like Mason’s climbing axes, out of the way of his patient.

  “Don’t let me change.” Gabe said with some effort.

  “We got you man, its gonna be okay.” Billy said.

  Gabe shook his head, “No, I don’t wanna be like Travis.” Billy looked at Tony with an expression of desperation, as if Tony had some sort of answer. Tony tossed him the other tie-down.

  “Tie his hands, just in case.”

  Tony handed the pharmacy duffle bag over the bed of the truck down to Nikki.

  “Take this for me, its crowded back here.”

  “You’re riding with them?” she asked with a tone he thought was sadness.

  “Yeah; to keep an eye on Gabe.” Tony said.

  “We’ll follow.” She nodded.

  “Hey,” he said leaning over the tailgate, “I’m sorry we haven’t gotten to your parents yet.”

  “Oh, no, I know; things happen…” she said touching his arm, “Plans change, right?”

  Tony nodded and smiled. The truck started. Nikki felt the warm exhaust through the fabric of her pants. She jogged to the Bronco. She looked back and saw Andy in the passenger’s side of the Chevy with Jack at the wheel, Tony and Billy in the bed helping Gabe.

  “I guess we’re the girl’s car.” She said and closed the door.

  *****

  Alexandra sat stiffly in her seat staring at the grooved surface of the Blackhawk’s floor in order to avoid eye contact with others. As they flew back to the estate, she tried to console herself that the worst behind her. Though Richardson’s son was dead, the search was now over. She could soon get back to her facility and away from these armed thugs. Alexandra expected that she would have to stay with him for another day but in the safety of the estate. Perhaps she would stay in the spare house with the other guests rather than in the mansion with Richardson and his men. I’m not sleeping near any of those creeps, she thought as her jaw clenched.

  Suddenly a voice on the intercom squawked, startling her.

  “Alexandra” said Richardson, “I’d like to borrow your laptop now if it is accessible.”

  “Yes sir,” she tried to hide her exhilaration as she pulled the laptop from her bag, “I have it right here.”

  Denkinger poked out from the bulkhead and patted a man on the shoulder. Alexandra handed the laptop to the men next to her and it was passed up towards Denkinger.

  “It’s ready to go, just open the Firefox browser on the desktop.” She said, her heart beating wildly. This was it, she thought, the bastard is going to do it. His every move on the laptop would be documented, every character typed, logged and stored for Alexandra to access later. Perhaps this nightmare would yield something of value. If she could get his password and get into the most secure areas of the company database, she just might be able to bring the old man down.

  Thirty-Eight

  While nearing the edge of town, Nikki saw the Chevy’s brake lights and felt a shiver of foreboding from within. She followed Mason’s truck as it turned off the road and parked underneath the awning of a quiet gas station. She glanced over her shoulder and around the area and saw nothing alarming. Denise, her eyes bloodshot and squinting spoke over the low fussing of the infant.

  “What are we doing?” Denise asked.

  “I don’t know. But I don’t think it’s good.” Nikki said and grabbed her twenty-two from the passeng
er’s seat. She checked the safety and got out of the cab looking around wearily, eyes searching the area for movement.

  “Wait here, if something bad happens, we’ll get going.” Nikki said with her head in the door. She saw the look of fear in Denise’s face and on that of the nurse, whose name she still didn’t know, and nodded to them for reassurance. She paused for a moment and then removed the keys from the ignition and placed them in her pocket. The other women looked pretty scared and Nikki decided that no one was going to pinch her transportation ever again.

  Nikki approached the Chevy to see Tony quickly open the tailgate. She stopped in front of the Bronco not wanting to disturb the flurry of movement or get in the way. She thought that the best way for her to help would be to keep a look out. She held her rifle at her waist with both hands, ready if need be, and looked around to find no threats. The smell of gasoline was in the air but everything was quiet except for the activity in the Chevy.

  “Stretch him out.” Tony said as he jumped down from the bed. Billy supported Gabe’s head as he laid him flat on the tailgate. Nikki saw Gabe’s face, white as the paint on the Chevy, and glistening with perspiration. His head fell to the side where their eyes met for a moment. She saw no recognition in his eyes as if he looked past her without focus. Billy straightened Gabe’s head and placed a shirt under it. Jack emerged from the truck and Tony said something to him that Nikki couldn’t hear. She removed her ear plugs, forgetting that she still had them in. No wonder she had so easily ignored her passenger’s conversation on the drive. Mason handed Tony his canteen. She saw Tony pour water on Gabe’s face and pat at it with a gauze pad. Andy emerged and the men engaged in some discussion.

  No one who’s been bitten has made it, she thought. The strength in her arms failed her and suddenly the rifle felt very heavy. Tony looked to her almost as if he could feel her distress from ten feet away. She forced a weak smile. His eyes tried to reflect some optimism but she recognized his effort as being for her benefit. She nodded at him, appreciating his effort. Mason lifted his radio and spoke into it while pacing slowly towards her.