His teammates wasted no time, held their weapons ready, and gave them the same offer he had given to those they had run into on the second level. They could climb out of their suits and run or stay and die.
To a man, the survivors chose the first option. There wasn't any amount of money that would convince them to stay when they could take the reprieve offered and get the hell away from the monsters. They left quickly, and Sal turned his full attention to the oncoming creatures. He noticed that they seemed to run almost in fear of the larger beast that remained the trees and refused to come out.
They wouldn’t be routed easily, but Madigan had already turned her full attention to them. Her rockets launched, the minigun fired, and tracer rounds were the only sign visible to the human eye of what decimated the creatures that surged in what seemed like a mindless assault.
"There's something wrong with these!" she shouted. "They have the same instinct but nothing is guiding them. There’s none of the tactical bullshit we see in the ones from the Zoo!"
"They're disconnected," Sal whispered almost under his breath.
"What?"
"Something bigger is driving them from beyond the tree line,” he shouted to cover his whisper. "Keep an eye out for that one with your next rockets."
"My next will be my last," she told him. "We're not flush on ammo at this point. How exactly will we incinerate this whole fucking jungle?"
"I'm…uh, still thinking about that."
"Think about it a little quicker, dammit!"
Before Sal could think of an appropriate or even witty response, his attention was caught by the sound of gunfire from above. He turned as the window the researchers had been watching through was suddenly shattered. A handful of bodies fell, their white lab coats spattered with blood. Suits were suddenly visible in the aperture—familiar suits, even if a little damaged.
"It looks like you guys have been busy," he called to where Taylor stood above them. "Is there any chance I can get you guys to come and help us, or will you simply stand there and watch?"
"It is a great view but I have always been more of a participant than a spectator," the man replied. It wasn't a huge drop, but he still needed the help of grappling lines to get to the bottom. They ended about ten feet from the ground and Taylor let go and executed a smooth three-point landing.
"I told you the superhero landing would be a thing!" Sal shouted.
"Get back to fighting the fuckers!" Madigan retorted. "We're not here for your goddammed amusement."
"And yet I can be amused, that's how easy I am," he replied and resisted the urge to wink as she wouldn’t see it. At least with the two teams together again, he could feel a little more hopeful about their chances of getting out alive.
"We need to get out of here," Taylor shouted. "They plan to burn it to the ground. They've lined the whole place with incendiary bombs that will obliterate the facility from existence and leave only the structure.”
"We can't let any of these creatures escape with us," Madigan shouted.
"They won't," Sal decided. "Not if they don't have that big fucker in there to egg them on. We need to get him out of the tree line and kill him."
Taylor nodded and took a grenade from his belt. It was the last one he had, although it looked like the others in his team had some that could be fired from the launchers under their assault rifles.
It wouldn’t be the best way for it all to start, but Sal didn’t want to wait around to find out if it would burn with them still inside.
The grenade was thrown, along with a handful of others from Taylor's team. All fell behind the tree line and forced the massive creature out from where it had remained hidden.
The rest of the animals fell away as if to avoid being too close to it.
Sal stared in amazement, not sure if his eyes interpreted it correctly. The mutant was about twice the size of a lion, but the skeletal and muscle structure was the same. Instead of fur, however, its body was covered with scales of pure black. In place of a mane, what looked like a stiff but flexible membrane expanded and retracted into its neck.
"Ain't he gorgeous," Taylor said and sounded almost in awe.
The creature didn't care for their surprise and attacked immediately. The size belied how quickly it could move, and as they opened fire, the membranes around its neck extended and stopped the rounds to leave the animal intact.
"Trond!" Maxwell shouted, but it was too late. His teammate’s shoulder was snatched by the monster and Sal winced as he was hurled almost casually into the wall. He made impact with an ominous crunch before the lion-like mutant turned its attention to the others. Taylor and Niki dove out of the path as it attacked again and rushed toward them. It struggled to skid to a halt as they evaded the charge.
Maxwell swung immediately into an assault and he bellowed his fury as he opened fire. The scales on its side provided less protection than whatever was on its neck, and the creature winced, twisted, and uttered another bone-shivering roar before it snapped its jaw at the agent and extended the shield membrane to block the fire.
Taylor and Niki added a combined volley that struck it on its side. Sal wasn't about to stand by and let them have all the fun and delivered a burst of fire as well.
The monster, now attacked from all angles, roared even louder than before. It sounded like it was calling for help, but the other animals balked and tried to stay as far away from it as possible.
Madigan chose not to wait for something to happen and launched her last salvo of rockets. The ordnance streaked into it and it fell as three smoking holes appeared along its body.
It was still alive and roared its fury and frustration when it couldn't stand. Sal realized that its hind legs weren't moving, which indicated something wrong with the spine.
"I'm so fucking glad that we didn't run into that bastard in the Zoo," he noted. "I can only imagine how well it would be able to fight when it has the rest of the jungle supporting it."
Taylor nodded, but he looked around quickly and noticed that the rest of the creatures, with their oppressor disabled, began to look less fearful and more curious. "Come on, we have to get out of here now!"
Maxwell helped Jansen to his feet. The man was still alive but the damage to his suit and deeper injuries made it difficult for him to walk without help. Once they reached the atrium where they’d started, Taylor paused.
"Vickie, do it now."
The wall that had lifted began to descend again and closed with a thud that created a vibration they all felt.
It wasn't long before the floor shuddered with consecutive blasts. Explosives were detonated inside the miniature jungle and they shook the foundations of the old base.
Even with one of their team wounded, they reached the top level in time, where Vickie waited for them.
"I have everything I need," she announced and gestured impatiently toward the door. "We need to get clear. Desk can only hold off the incineration for so long."
They hurried out and felt the heat on their backs as the facility sealed again. The foundations still seemed intact and there was no evidence to the contrary outside, but Sal doubted they would risk it for too long. The helicopter's rotors were already spinning where Gregor and his co-pilot waited for them.
Those mercs who had surrendered stood in silence. They looked afraid and unsure of what to do next.
"If you guys want to live out the rest of the day, I suggest you get in. Quickly!" Sal motioned them on and they scrambled in eagerly, not waiting for a second invitation.
The helicopter was practically already off the ground by the time they were all inside and none too soon. Those parts of the structure that protruded above ground suddenly sank as a column of flames roared up from the inside.
"I hope that burned everything in there to a crisp," Madigan stated and moved beside him at the window to watch with him.
Sal narrowed his eyes and could only nod as the chopper banked sharply and accelerated away.
"So," Gregor c
alled from the cockpit. "Does anyone know where we'll land?"
The teams exchanged a look of surprise, and Sal realized that none of them had thought about that. They obviously couldn't go back the way they'd come.
"Are there any landing zones nearby that we can use?" Taylor asked. "Within fuel range?"
"Sure," Gregor answered. "But we need to be cleared for landing first. I'll make some calls."
“Relax,” Desk interjected in a voice that sounded inordinately cheerful and highly amused—probably at their oversight. “Now that I no longer have to hold the flames of hell at bay single-handedly—”
“Hey,” Vickie protested. “Single-handed my ass.”
The AI chuckled. “We can debate that later and I’ll show you the errors in your logic. In the meantime, I’ll devote a teeny portion of my Earth-saving skills to land your asses in a safe location. No thanks necessary.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Sal leaned forward in his seat. "I don't understand. I didn't think any of the governments wanted to be involved in this mess. You guys made that very clear."
Jansen smirked, nodded, and adjusted the sling his arm was in before he took a swig from his pint glass. "Sure, we did and they did. If things went badly, they wanted nothing to do with it. But since it was a success, everyone wants to get in there to find out exactly what happened. They need to dot the I's and cross the T's, you could say."
The young researcher had no response to that and simply grimaced and shook his head.
Taylor grinned at the reaction and even Niki couldn't help a smile as she recalled the days when her response would have been similar. Life had taught her instead to expect people in high places to be as greedy as they were eager to cover their asses.
"Well, since it's a win, everyone wants to get involved with medals all around and a flurry of pats on the back," Taylor explained. "I'll bet you Jansen's taskforce and our involvement will barely warrant a footnote that will probably be redacted and covered in black ink to make sure none of the people signing the checks know about it."
"That's what we all signed up for," Maxwell agreed and took a generous sip of his beer.
The bar wasn't quite as full as Niki had imagined it would be, but a handful of booths were filled and the people inside were deep in their cups. She imagined she would do the same if she had to spend too long this close to the Zoo. American base or no, she would never feel safe with that fucking nightmare in spitting distance.
Kennedy pushed from her seat. "Well, I'll pick up the next round. Niki, do you mind helping me to carry all the glasses?"
"Sure." She wasn't sure what to make of the invitation but she didn't mind spending time with the woman. Most of her work had been with Jacobs, and while she was aware of the former sergeant's involvement in Heavy Metal, very little of it made it into the research Sal sent to her.
"So," the ex-sergeant started once the order for the next round of drinks was placed, "you and Taylor, huh? I never thought I'd see the day when the guy settled in for anything…uh, long-term."
She narrowed her eyes. "You and he never…right?"
Kennedy shook her head. "Don't get me wrong, I like them crazy but I draw a line at suicidal. Which was what Taylor was like when he was here. He was a great fighter, but I wanted to get the people in and out as fast as possible. I always got the feeling from him that he…well, he liked being in there, even if he didn't care to admit it. It's a matter of taste, of course, but it killed my lady boner but good."
"I feel like that was a dig at me."
The woman smirked. "Well, you chose him. I can only guess you're a similar kind of nuts and that makes you both feel comfortable around each other. Like I said, it's a matter of taste. There’s no accounting for that."
Niki turned to where Sal and Taylor were in conversation. There was something casual and calm about them, but the researcher was excited as he talked about something that was drowned by the din of the bar around them.
"What do you think they're talking about?"
"If I know Sal, I'd say he's commenting on Taylor's three-point landing technique." Kennedy sounded like she was only partially kidding. "Or maybe they're going over ideas on how to make better suits and stuff. Sal always has crazy ideas that sometimes pan out and sometimes don't. The fact that he listens to Taylor when the guy says something is a little too out there simply encourages him to talk about that shit when the two get together."
She turned her head to the woman and smiled. "You like them crazy, huh?"
"You know it."
"So you're saying you and Madigan never—"
Taylor shook his head firmly. "I don't think there was any interest from her side. I always thought she didn't like me—which, you know, fair enough—and when it's not there, it's simply not there. And, well…I was never her type, I guess."
Sal nodded and took another sip of his beer. "It's not that she doesn't like you. In fact, she asked me a couple of times about bringing you into Heavy Metal while we were setting up. Before you left, of course, but it never worked out. That's why I assumed…but yeah, I guess not."
The larger man shrugged. "I could never get a read on her. I'm very sure that fighting through a crazed swarm of Zoo critters with a plucked Pita plant in one hand and a machete in the other would be easier than understanding what goes on in her head. Niki, I kind of get, and I can more or less anticipate what she'll do next. Right up until she goes and does something crazy like not betting on me in a fight because she wants to make a point or something."
"She…wait, what? What fight is this?"
"Oh." Taylor drained his mug and set it down with a thud. "There was a situation with two mobsters in Vegas. They were assholes, and I wanted to knock a couple of their teeth out for it. Anyway, their boss agreed but realized he could make money off of it and turned it into this whole event, with a cage match and betting. Long story short, people didn't think I could beat two guys and lost a ton of money because of it. I, on the other hand, made out like a fucking bandit."
"So you won, then? Fighting these two guys?"
"Sure." He nodded. "And the whole team had the opportunity to make bets, but when it came to her turn, Niki turned it down and said that…she didn't want our relationship to seem transactional or some shit like that."
Sal was about to respond but his expression turned into one of instant panic and he nudged his companion in the ribs before he changed the subject. "So anyway, you need to make it look natural. Your landing looked like it was improvised at the last minute, right, but you should make it seem like that was what you planned all along."
Taylor looked around to see why the man had panicked and realized that Niki and Madigan were returning with their next round of drinks.
"Okay, fair enough." He went with the subject change. "But my suit was all kinds of damaged anyway after a killerpillar tried to French me. I'll try to make my next three-point landing look a little more natural."
The researcher nodded. "Sure, and if you want to film it and send it to me for pointers, I'd be happy to help you."
Madigan laughed and placed the glasses down on the table. "Do me a favor and don't encourage him with that. I'm still trying to break the news to him of how he might want to focus on other areas of his combat ability rather than how to land after a short drop."
"Killjoy," Sal muttered under his breath, took his glass, and winked at him.
Niki stretched gracefully on the bed, groaned softly, and turned to face Taylor who lay next to her.
"You can't deny the benefits of having a bed to do this in," she murmured and ran her fingers through his reddish beard. "We couldn't do what we did in that cot you call a bed."
He nodded slowly, took her hand from his beard, and laced his fingers with hers. "I guess you're right. We do need the space."
She propped herself on her elbow and narrowed her eyes. "I—wait, did you agree with me on that?"
“I never intended to live at the strip mall forever. It was p
ractical and served a purpose while I looked around for the right property where I could put roots down."
Niki dropped onto the bed and stared at the ceiling of the small apartment they had rented for the night on the American base. "Huh. So that's what it feels like to be right about something. It's strangely addicting. But moving on. Have you started to look for something already or will that process only begin when we get back?"
"I'm a little past that process." Taylor smirked and studied her face. "Weirdly, it was Rod who dropped me a line on the opportunity. A so-called friend of his had to liquidate his assets rather hastily and that included a nice home at Sunset Mountain. It's about forty acres and was built like a fortress by the owner who was…shall we say paranoid about personal security, which suits me fine. I can use the eighteen-car garage for mech work, and it also has a pool and other nice amenities along with the three bedrooms. On top of that, a few smaller living areas aren't connected to the main house but would be useful if we need them."
She raised an eyebrow. "You do have a tendency to pick up strays."
"Said the kettle."
With a grin, she nudged him in the ribs. "Okay, so Rod simply apprised you of this opportunity for cheap real estate? Just like that? Out of the kindness of his heart?"
"That and the hundred thousand dollars he’ll take as a finder's fee off of the top, I assume. Be that as it may, it's still cheaper than almost anything else in the area, so I took it."
Niki turned on her side and slid her fingers down his chest to trace idle patterns across his skin. "I guess it would be nice to have a location like that to work from. Plus, if Vickie ever needs somewhere to stay, it's probably best that we have a situation set up for her if she has to hide from people."
"You never did tell me exactly who has it out for her."
"That's her secret to tell."
"Huh. Yeah, I guess. Also, we?"
She smiled and leaned closer to place a light kiss to his cheek. "Sure. I'll need a place to stay if I move to Vegas. I have a property of my own, but I've been renting it out forever and I guess it's time to let go—to liquidate my assets, I guess."
Monster In Me (Cryptid Assassin Book 8) Page 24