Miller believed him. It was exactly the kind of over-the-top move that Williams would make. Miller’s blood felt like ice water in her veins. She nodded once and leaned closer. “Tell me what you need me to do.”
“You’ll have just over eight hours to get there and be ready,” Crespi whispered. “You’ll have to hurry. Bring the big guns, all your people, everything you’ve got, Sheriff. There is absolutely no margin for error. Kill the troops and destroy the virus they will have with them. Karl Sheppard will know how to safely dispose of it. You must do this. If you fail in this mission, we can all give up on the idea of ever containing the zombies. It will spell the end of this country as we know it, and quite possibly the entire world.”
“Wait,” said Miller. She was remembering her eerie conversation with Williams. “Are you telling me…?”
There came a soft, electronic beep. Crespi reached into his pocket. He lifted a phone to his ear. He held up a finger to secure Miller’s silence. “Yes, I see. You’ve done the right thing. Wait for me. I won’t be long.”
Without looking back, Crespi began walking faster, and Miller had to speed up to keep pace. Crespi turned down a different passage with elevators at the far end. The guard walked well behind them, still at a deliberate distance. Their footsteps picked up speed and volume in the deep silence.
In another part of the building a faint siren began to wail. Miller blocked Crespi with her arm and forced him to stop again. “Wait, what’s going on?”
“I need to get you out of here, Sheriff. Your male companions are in trouble, and I have only a few moments to help them. You’ll need them to be alive to go on the mission with you.”
She let him lead the way again. To Miller’s surprise, they stopped in front of a locked door. Crespi turned to face the guard who had been following them. “Open it up, Randall. Then get yourself to safety. If you’re stopped, this conversation never happened, and you saw me feed Sheriff Miller to the zombies.”
“I never heard a word, Miguel.” The guard punched in a code. He took out a ring of keys and opened the door. And like the good soldier he was probably pretending to be for the security cameras, he turned and marched down the hallway and went back the way they had come.
“Get inside,” Crespi said. “Hurry.”
Miller looked inside the small, sparsely furnished room. To her surprise, Piper and Judy were already waiting for her. It was stuffy in there with body heat and closed quarters and only so-so ventilation. Piper was sitting up, and Judy, who had been sleeping, raised her head. She had bleary eyes and tousled hair. She shot Crespi a look.
“The camera has been disabled,” Crespi said. “Tell them to follow us,” Crespi was starting to perspire again. The siren wailed and rose in volume. Miller could hear men shouting and running, going the other direction.
Miller sure as hell wished she knew what was going on, but there only seemed to be one play available. She took it. “Come on, girls. Let’s rock.”
Judy and Piper exchanged a glance, and then both got to their feet.
“What’s he doing here?” Piper asked.
“He’s helping us,” Miller said. “Hurry. We can discuss all this in more detail later. Move your asses.”
“Do you even know who he is?” asked Judy. Her sleepiness faded. She seemed frightened and angry at the same time.
“He sure as hell ain’t Santa Claus,” Miller said curtly. “I thought you people were military. Option one is to shut up and follow orders. Option two is to stay here and die. You have five seconds to choose.”
Piper and Judy stepped forward and came out of the door one at a time. Judy looked furious. “Where are we going?”
“Good question. Where are we going, Mr. Crespi?”
But Crespi didn’t answer this time. In fact, he was already moving away. He led them a short walk down the corridor to an open elevator. He waved his badge at the reader, and the car doors parted with a faint whoosh. Crespi indicated that the women should step on board. Miller went first, then Piper, and finally Judy. But Crespi did not step inside.
“What’s going on?” demanded Miller. “Where the hell are you sending us?”
“Go up to level 1, look to your right and you’ll find a warrant officer named Lankford. Tell him ‘Crespi says Happy Birthday.’ Say only that and then do exactly what he says. Lankford is your only hope of getting off base alive, so do what you’re told. Good luck to you all. Get moving.”
Miller nodded. Crespi waved his badge at the reader inside, and pressed the button for the first floor. Miller saw that they were on level B5 just as the door closed behind him. Miguel Crespi vanished. Miller’s last impression of him was that his suit was damp with sweat and he badly needed a shave. The women waited in silence. The elevator began to rise.
“That was Miguel Crespi,” Piper whispered in horror. “He is one of them. You’re not actually going to trust that piece of shit, are you, Sheriff? Judy, tell her!”
Judy shrugged. “Do you have a better idea?”
Miller didn’t look at Judy or Piper. Instead, she studied her torn, bloody clothing. She was glad that they hadn’t stuck her in one of those awful backless hospital gowns, she’d already endured that too many times, but at the moment she looked a lot like a zombie herself. The irony wasn’t lost on Miller. They would never get past security dressed like this. She sure hoped Crespi knew what he was doing.
The elevator rose slowly and complained a lot. In fact, it was downright pathetic for such a modern facility. It beeped faintly as it cleared each floor. They were apparently escaping, at least for the moment, but Miller took no joy in that fact. In her heart, she felt that she was only moving farther and farther away from Scratch. Of course, if Crespi was true to his word, he would already be busy helping Scratch, McDivitt, Scobee, and Rolf. Hell, they’d be escaping too, maybe at that very moment. But an awful lot rested on one scared individual, a man who was a complete stranger. Miller’s head was spinning. If she believed he had told her the truth about the water supply, then time was running out. They only had hours to save the world. At least now they had a plan, but…
This has to work, Miller thought. Everything depends on us. Of course this whole thing could also turn out to be some kind an elaborate trap, a way to collect and kill Miller and all of her resources. But Crespi hadn’t pumped her for any information at all, so how could this be a ruse? Something screwy was going on, but if Crespi was even half honest, things were finally going in Miller’s favor. She had a specific target and time to end the war once and for all.
Scratch, please be careful…
The doors of the elevator opened. The three women emerged in the well-appointed lobby of a rather ordinary-looking office building. Miller had expected the place to be empty, but it wasn’t. A few men and women in uniform and in civilian garb went about their business without looking up, and for some reason completely ignored Miller and her two companions. Maybe they were accustomed to seeing people who’d been through the wringer. They certainly did not seem alarmed. Outside the huge glass doors, the lights of the big runway were set off by the black of the night sky. They were close to freedom. Miller straightened her shoulders and tried to look like a woman on a mission. Piper and Judy did the same. Miller marched them right out into the open.
As Crespi had promised, at the center of the lobby was a reception desk manned by one lone soldier, a tall man wearing glasses. Miller walked purposefully over to the reception desk. The soldier looked up with nervous eyes. He kept his face blank and said cheerfully, “May I help you?”
His name tag said Lankford.
“Crespi says Happy Birthday.”
The solider stood up and said, “Follow me, please.” His voice was husky with tension but he seemed in control of the situation. He was scared but keeping it together.
Miller looked back at Judy and Piper. With her eyes she dared them to protest. Neither of them did. They fell into line behind her like ducklings on a lake. The three women followed
Lankford across the busy lobby to what appeared to be some kind of a conference room. They entered and Lankford closed the door behind them. The outside noises vanished. Miller stared. Tall windows covered the entire wall to the left of the meeting table, but the shades were drawn, though the occasional flash of light from a runway beacon seeped through the seams. Miller quickly closed the distance to stand near the soldier. He was not wearing a side arm. Too bad.
Lankford did not face her. He pointed to a door. “There’s a shower and a fresh wardrobe in there, ladies. Get cleaned up and dressed. You three will have exactly twenty minutes to look the part of a civilian contractor leaving work. Twenty minutes flat. If you’re late, you’re on your own.”
He left and shut the door.
“Sheriff, what’s going on?” Again, the question came from Piper.
“Beats the hell out of me but we’re almost out of here. The clock is ticking.”
Miller went through the indicated door, and found in a moderately sized bathroom with an attached closet. She opened the closet and found expensive women’s clothes, executive suits with long skirts, not pants, and conservative high heel shoes that must have cost a fortune. Whatever part they were supposed to play, this civilian contractor thing, it looked like they would have to do that looking like they were going on a job interview. And then Miller began to catch on to the plan.
She turned to look into the shower. It was a single stall, but large enough for more than one person at a time. There was a seat built into the wall at the back of the shower. Soap and towels were in evidence. Miller turned the handle on the shower faucet, and the water was instantly hot. She found a clock on the sink and noted the time. Nineteen minutes to go.
Miller turned to Piper and Judy. “Who’s first?”
To her surprise, the others were already stripping out of their clothes. Miller looked away at first, oddly embarrassed. “Okay, I’ll let y’all go, and I’ll go next.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Piper stepped into the shower, followed by Judy. She seemed calm and unashamed. Piper adjusted the water temperature as she said. “You heard that guy. We’ve got maybe eighteen minutes and change at this point. You’re wasting time, Sheriff. Get undressed and get your ass in here and let’s do this thing.”
“That’s okay,” Miller said. To her horror, she blushed. “I can wait.” All the shit I’ve been through these last months, and now I freeze about taking a high-school-gym shower with some other women?
“Look, neither one of us impressed with your embarrassment, Sheriff,” Piper said. “Come on. Get in!”
Judy held the door open for Miller. There was no love lost between them. Miller couldn’t see a way around the move. She hadn’t shared a shower with other women since her days at the Police Academy in Reno, and she hadn’t liked it much back then either. Something about washing your privates in front of other people, regardless of gender, just flat out made her feel uncomfortable. She didn’t like to think of herself as a prude, but there it was.
Chastened, Miller shook off the phobia. She unbuttoned her pants and dropped them. Piper was right. There was no time for any kind of delay. The wound in her leg stung as she undressed, and the places on her back where the vest had stopped the bullets still ached, but she managed to get undressed in about thirty seconds. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror over the sink. Her body looked battered and bruised and far worse than it felt. She stepped into the shower and closed the door.
Judy was already soaped up and Piper was in the process of rinsing her hair. Miller tried not to look at them, and waited patiently for Piper to move out of the way. They were making good time. Being naked was uncomfortable for a lot of reasons, not the least of which was that they were now entirely helpless if any soldiers burst in. Or a triad of zombies, for that matter. The thought insured that Miller showered quickly. She realized that she’d have been fine being naked if she’d just had a weapon handy. That’s how much she’d changed over the last several months.
“All yours, Sheriff.” Piper sat on the small seat and started soaping the rest of her body. They all looked. The clock was down to fifteen minutes.
Miller let the hot water rush over her. She had had a shower at McDivitt’s headquarters, but since then she had gotten the smell of zombies and gunpowder in her hair and on her skin, and she was happy to get those scents off again. She took a moment to enjoy the soothing heat. Only one sensual moment, no longer.
Judy tapped her on the shoulder. “Hey, you’re hogging the water.”
Miller flinched. She opened her eyes and moved out of the way. Piper thrust a bottle of shampoo into her hands. “Hurry up, Sheriff.”
Taking the shampoo, Miller quickly lathered up her hair. She hadn’t had a haircut in as long as she could remember, and her red hair now reached most of the way down her back. It took quite a lot of shampoo to cover it all. It felt indescribably sweet to have it squeaky clean again. No time to enjoy that either, though. By the time Miller had finished shampooing, Judy was already out of the shower, and Piper was rinsing off. Miller grabbed the bar of soap and ran it over her skin quickly and efficiently. After a moment, Piper stepped out of the shower as well, leaving Miller some privacy. The other women were ahead of her. Time was still of the essence, and Miller worked at getting the soap off of herself as rapidly as she could. They had to speed this up.
Stepping out of the shower, Miller grabbed one of the remaining clean towels and dried herself off. She had no idea what they could do about their wet hair, which would take more than the ten minutes they had left to try to dry. She wrapped hers in the last dry towel and squeezed hard. “I guess we’ll all just have to tie our hair back like business women. Maybe these people shower after work or exercise before going home.”
Piper was already standing at the closet. “What size are you, Sheriff?”
“Last time I went shopping, I was an eight,” said Miller, “but running from zombies is great exercise. I have no idea what size I am now.”
Piper handed her a pair of underwear—bikini style, but nothing too risqué—and pair of pantyhose. Without complaint, Miller stepped into the panties and then into the hose. They were a little big on her, but it would have to do. She was trying to get into the part, they all were.
“Shit,” Miller heard herself say, “I haven’t worn pantyhose since my wedding.” She tried not to think about that day, with poor Terrill Lee in a white tuxedo. He’d had been very handsome that day. And she had worn that same awful wedding dress that she had been forced to wear during the first few days of the apocalypse. The dress was long gone, and so was Terrill Lee. Miller swallowed grief. Her mind wandered and tears stung her eyes.
“Where’d you go, Sheriff?” asked Judy. Miller realized she had been daydreaming. Not a good habit in the middle of a combat situation. Judy was needling her. “We need your focus on our situation right now.”
“Got it,” Miller said. For once, Judy was right.
“We’re almost there,” Piper said.
Judy and Piper were mostly dressed, while Miller was still standing there in her panties and pantyhose. She sped up. Snap out of it, Penelope…
“How much time do we have left?”
“We have between seven and eight minutes,” Judy said. “Shit. No. That clock says five. Move it.”
Miller found a bra that didn’t appear to be too enormous and put it on. Then she found a suit in a size six. It was a little big, but she didn’t see a size four. It would have to do. The suit was grey, so she selected a pair of black pumps. They didn’t feel right on her feet, but she couldn’t exactly wear her jump boots, could she? The other women were busy and quick and damn near ready.
Miller checked herself in the mirror. She had no makeup on, her hair was still damp, and she looked like a bit too much like an office worker for her own tastes. She hadn’t liked wearing shit like this when she was a civilian, but if it meant getting off this fucking base, she’d wear a clown suit with a big red rubber n
ose. She’d leave naked if they wanted her to. She wasn’t alone in feeling awkward. Judy and Piper looked more than a bit like fish out of water as well. In fact, Piper appeared to be on the verge of tears, unusual for the tough woman. The three women were uncomfortable and hurried but otherwise ready to go. They all tied their hair up in a severe manner. Judy handed her a red lipstick that was much too bright. Miller put it on anyway. They looked the part.
Miller checked the clock. “Time.”
There was a brief knock at the door, and then it opened without further warning. Lankford was there. “Come on.”
The three women followed Lankford. Miller was pleased with how official and studious they’d all managed to look, damp hair or not. Lankford escorted them briskly out of the lobby and down another corridor, and then back toward the center of the building. Even though the clock had said it was a few minutes to 9:00 at night, there was a lot going on around the base and the office premises. Lankford took them to another room, empty except for a few folding chairs and a large table. He directed them to sit down. Miller studied him carefully. If he was going to betray them, this was probably the moment he’d try.
The soldier met Miller’s eyes but then his gaze slid away. He’s scared, Miller thought with no small amount of satisfaction. I don’t think he has the guts to cross Crespi. Good. Lankford walked to a nearby wall phone, spoke a few words, and put the handset back in the cradle. He released a deep breath and nodded at Miller. “We’re still a go.”
Lankford reached into his back pocket. He handed each of the women an ID badge that had a fake name on it and the word Contractor.
“Wait here for your escort.”
“How long will this take?”
“It shouldn’t be more than a couple of minutes.” Lankford turned to go. He paused in the doorway. He looked back. He had a strange look in his eyes. Perhaps he knew enough about what was a stake to be truly terrified. “Good luck, ladies. Sheriff Miller.”
The Hungry (Book 6): The Rule of Three (The Sheriff Penny Miller Zombie Series) Page 21