by Damon Hunter
Barrington barely fit through the two windows, but he managed to wiggle inside the SUV.
“Go,” Vance told his daughter as he put the empty gun back over his shoulder and drew the Sick Slaying Stick.
Katelin dove through the window and joined the other two in the back seat.
“I’m in,” she said, expecting her dad to climb through and join them.
“Get out of here,” Vance yelled to Bo as he swung his Sick Slaying Stick.
“Dad, get in the car,” Katelin said as she reloaded her pistols.
“Drive, Bo,” Vance yelled.
“Don’t even think about driving, Bo,” Katelin said to him before yelling back into the hotel, “Get in the fucking car, dad.”
Vance, who was standing in front of the window now, turned his head for a second and said, “I don’t think I can climb through.”
The second he turned allowed a coyote to hit him from the side and sink rotten fangs into his hip. Vance used the spike ball to knock it off of him, but a second one was on him. A third bit down on the Sick Slaying Stick and tried to pull it away.
Barrington slid back into the front seat. He could see Vance’s back and was able to reach in and grab the collar of the fatigues Vance was wearing. He pulled him in as Vance was using one hand to try to hold on to his weapon and the other to keep the coyote on him from sinking its fangs into his neck. Barrington fell to his back with his head in Bo’s lap as most of Vance came into the Ford.
Barrington thought he had made a terrible mistake when the coyote he brought in with Vance looked his way with its diseased yellow eyes. Katelin reached over the seat and blew the animal’s head off.
She came up over the bench seat, telling Bo, “Drive,” as she fired out the window until the coyote hanging onto the Sick Slaying Stick fell off.
Vance pulled his legs in and he and Barrington managed to jostle into a seated position as Bo sped away from the hotel. Vance hit the buttons to put the sharp parts of the SSS back inside and then pulled the weapon into the cab. Once the weapon was inside, he hit the button to close the window.
Barrington looked at the Vance’s bleeding hip and said, “Are you alright?”
“I couldn’t walk before, so I guess I’m fine. Assuming the immunity holds up.”
“It should,” Barrington told him. “No one has lost it yet.”
“Good to hear. I just hope getting bit by a coyote isn’t different.”
“The rot is the rot,” Barrington told him, though despite his best efforts to sound positive, there was doubt in his voice. The fact was, the canine bites were new and they really did not know. He knew he had to keep an eye on his old friend and be prepared to act quickly if he started showing signs of infection.
Katelin looked over and saw Ana opening her door. Katelin reached across her. She grabbed the handle and slammed the door shut before Ana could tumble out of the moving vehicle.
“What the hell are you doing?” Katelin asked her as Ana immediately started reaching for the door handle again.
Ana stopped and rolled down her sleeve. Katelin saw the bite marks. Before Bo had pulled it away, the Chihuahua had managed to bite her.
“I can feel the sore growing on my back,” Ana told her. “I’m not immune.”
“No,” Katelin said to her.
“I need to get out before I hurt anyone,” Ana said.
Chapter 36
TMRT Checkpoint Command Center - Phoenix, Arizona
“Any survivors?” Carruthers asked the soldier manning the monitor. They had been watching feeds from both the helicopter and the transport and now all they could see was smoke and fire.
“No, ma’am. I’ve called every soldier on this operation both over the group channel and the individual line,” the soldier replied.
General Doctor Carruthers had been leaning over with her hand on his chair as she looked over the soldier’s shoulder. She stood up straight and clenched her teeth. She waited for the urge to scream obscenities to pass. She didn’t think throwing a temper tantrum would send the right message.
“Did I interpret the footage correctly?” General Doctor Thompson asked. “Does the vaunted anti-rot bio-weapon not work on infected canines?”
“Why are you even here?” Carruthers asked.
“I still hold the rank of General Doctor,” Thompson replied.
“Not for long. If I didn’t have more important matters to deal with, you might be under arrest.”
“So are you saying my interpretation of the footage we just had the misfortune of seeing is incorrect?”
“When the tests were set up, there was still some doubt dogs could be infected. There was no shortage of misinformation coming out of the quarantine.”
“We lost men just two days ago to infected canines,” Thompson said. “You should have known.”
Carruthers kept her mouth shut as she again tried to avoid spewing out a string of obscenities. Once the moment had passed, she turned away from Thompson and said, “Scramble another chopper. Sweep the area for survivors. Then pick up any remaining canisters of the bio-weapon. It has flaws but it is still valuable.”
“Can I make a suggestion?” Thompson asked.
“No.”
“You know, if you had listened to me last night…”
“Fine, what do you have to say, General Doctor Thompson?”
“I’d prefer to give this advice in confidence.”
Carruthers thought about it for a second and then pointed to the hallway.
Thompson met her and her assistant Miss Walter in the hall.
“It might be better if it was just you and I,” Thompson said as he motioned to Miss Walter.
“I trust her completely.”
“I would have said the same thing about Torrance.”
“I’m not Torrance,” Miss Walter said.
“Step back into the command center,” Carruthers told her assistant. Miss Walter did as she was told.
“If your rescue chopper should come upon any survivors who were not part of your team, I suggest they shoot to kill.”
“You sound like you have some particular survivors in mind.”
“I do.”
“I don’t think anything they have to say will implicate me.”
“Maybe not, but they stole a transport and escaped under your watch. A CIA agent was killed under your watch and a man who never should have been let out of prison died trying to commit murder under your watch. Had you solved the rot today instead of getting a team of soldiers killed because you were in a hurry to get yourself some glory, you may have gotten a pass on all of that, but you didn’t. The best thing for you is for these scandals to go away. The best way for those to go away is for the men and woman who stole the transport to never get out of the Quarantine Zone.”
“They probably died last night, or if not, this morning when the drone hit the transport again.”
“Maybe, but this group has proven to be survivors. It wouldn’t hurt to be sure.”
“I suppose you have a point. I’m not sure how to order a rescue team to murder people.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”
Chapter 37
Interstate 10 - Goodyear, Arizona
“At least let me stop the car first,” Bo said as Ana started opening her door again.
Ana paused and Bo stopped the Ford. The horde of canines was still descending on the hotel. The infected were quick to go towards gunshots but slow to give up on finding the shooters. A vampire rotter might give chase, but the average infected, whether dog or human, stayed in the area until something else drew them away.
“This seems wrong,” Katelin said.
“I don’t want you to have to kill me,” Ana said as she opened the door.
“Wait,” Barrington said. “Did we forget what we came here to do?”
“Not get killed by the TMRT?” Ana said.
“That, and test Talbot’s cure. He left six syringes,” Barrington told them as he
motioned for Katelin to hand him Talbot’s aluminum case. “You’re still lucid, if it is going to work on anyone it is going to work on you.”
Ana pulled down her sleeve to reveal a sore growing on her arm. “You need to hurry.”
Barrington handed Katelin a syringe and said, “Stick her anywhere and press the plunger.”
Katelin turned to see a sore growing under her friend’s yellow eyes. Ana opened her mouth and lunged at Katelin’s neck.
Bo reached back and got a handful of Ana’s hair, keeping her from trying to rip out Katelin’s throat. The infected seemed to be able to detect when someone was immune and often went to kill instead of infect.
Katelin jammed the syringe into Ana’s chest and pressed down on the plunger. As soon as the syringe emptied, Barrington handed her another.
“I thought you said I could inject her anywhere,” Katelin said as she took the second syringe.
“You can, we just don’t know the proper dose. It may take more than one. It may not work at all.”
Katelin watched as Ana continued to struggle to get free of Bo’s grip on her hair and asked, “How long?”
“From what Talbot told me, it should kick in right away.”
“Should I hit her with the second one? She doesn’t seem to be changing.”
Barrington was about to say yes when Bo said, “Wait.”
They saw Ana was no longer trying to get loose. Instead of popping, the sore growing on her face began to recede. They watched the yellow fade from her eyes.
Bo let go of her hair and asked, “Are you okay?”
Ana turned to look at him. Before she could speak, the yellow came back into her eyes and she shot forward to sink her teeth into her lover’s face.
This time Katelin saved Bo. She grabbed Ana by the collar and plunged the syringe into her back. She depressed the plunger and sent a second round of Talbot’s vaccine into her infected friend.
“Shove her outside,” Vance told his daughter. “If it takes, we can let her back in.”
“No,” Katelin said as she shoved Ana against the seat. “If I roll her out of the car, her stitches are going to open up.”
“If she makes it, then Barrington can sew her back up,” Vance said.
“It’s working,” Katelin said as the yellow once again faded from Ana’s eyes.
“Come on, Ana,” Katelin said. “Stay you.”
“Who else would I be?” Ana asked.
Katelin let go and moved away.
Vance turned with his pistol in his hand and said, “We don’t know if it is going to take yet.”
“She already made it longer than before,” Katelin said.
“That doesn’t mean she’s not going to turn again.”
“He’s right,” Ana said. “I will say this time I feel like myself. I know what the rot felt like and this is different. In fact, this is the best I’ve felt since that asshole stabbed me.”
Katelin smiled. “I think it works.”
“I’m going to keep the gun on her anyway,” Vance told her.
“I’m fine with that,” Ana said.
“This means if we can find Mom…” Katelin began.
“That’s a big if,” Barrington said. “The TMRT had a big head start and if the anti-rot bio-weapon works as well in the field as it did in the lab, I don’t think there will be anyone else to save.”
“We still need to try,” Katelin said.
“If they see us, they will shoot on sight,” Barrington replied.
“Dad,” Katelin said, “you agree, right? We have to try.”
“Dr. Barrington is probably right.”
“So you’re abandoning her again?”
“That’s not what I’m doing. That’s not fair and you know it.”
“Fuck fair. We have a chance, it’s just up the road.”
“They’re at least two hours ahead of us,” Barrington said.
“Does this anti-rot bio-weapon catch things on fire?” Bo asked.
“No,” Barrington replied. “Why?”
Bo pointed ahead, where two towers of thick black smoke were rising. “If I remember right, that would be Quartzsite.”
“It could be unrelated,” Barrington said.
“The infected don’t start a lot of fires,” Bo replied as he put the car into gear and started driving west.
“What are you doing?” Barrington asked. “I don’t think this matter is settled.”
“Sure it is,” Bo said. “I’m driving, so we’re going. Donna saved my ass too often for me to give up on her this easy.”
Barrington closed and locked the aluminum case before saying, “You may control the car, but I’m in charge of the vaccine. Did Talbot give any of you the combination to this case?”
“No,” Bo told him as he continued driving.
“Then we do it my way,” Barrington said.
“Why are you being such a dick?” Katelin asked.
When Barrington didn’t say anything, Vance said, “I think that’s a legitimate question.”
“Talbot had only one request and I think I should honor it,” Barrington replied.
“He requested we not test his vaccine on my mom?”
“No. He just wanted us to make sure people knew about it. I’m sorry, but I don’t see how using one, of what is maybe only two more doses, on your mom is going to do that.”
“Are you kidding?” Ana asked.
“Of course not.”
“You ever hear of YouTube or Instagram?” Ana asked.
“Yes.”
“You do know Killer Kate and Annihilation Annie have over a million followers between them?”
“No, I didn’t. Nor do I see what that has to do with anything.”
“Well, they’re sitting in the back seat of our car,” Bo said.
“I’m guessing if we both post video of my mom getting the vaccine, someone’s going to see it,” Katelin told him.
“Not to mention share it with their friends,” Ana added. “It sounds like a viral video to me.”
“I don’t know,” Barrington said.
“Do you have another way to demonstrate the vaccine to a million people?” Ana asked.
“No, I guess I don’t.”
“Good,” Katelin said, “because your other option is I put a gun to your head.”
“Fine,” Barrington told her. “We take a shot at finding your mom.”
Chapter 38
The TMRT Rescue Chopper - Quartzsite, Arizona
“Sir, I believe the hostiles we were warned about are just ahead. There is an unauthorized vehicle driving west on the interstate,” the co-pilot said as they sped toward Quartzsite.
“It could be,” Jenson, the captain of the mission, said. Normally, Captain Compton would be the be in charge, but because of his history with Vance, the mission was given to Jenson. The younger captain still brought Compton along, insisting a mission like this required the best and most experienced pilots they had available. He made it clear all Compton would do was fly and obey orders. Compton was reluctant, but he could not bring himself to stay at the checkpoint if his skills were needed.
“Should we engage?” the co-pilot asked.
Jenson, who was in a seat behind his two pilots, looked at Compton and gave him a slight nod before saying, “No.”
The co-pilot looked at Compton as well before saying, “Sir, the orders…”
“I know the orders,” Jenson interrupted, “but I don’t give a damn what the General Doctor said. Our priority is to find survivors and then pick up any canisters of the bio-weapon. If we have time, then we will go back and light up the so called ‘terrorists’ we are supposed to be looking for. At this time, I prefer our gunner save his ammunition for any infected we may need to take care of.”
“They seem to be headed to the same place we’re going.”
“Then it will be easier to complete all three phases of the mission. The priorities, however, have not changed.”
“I see wreck
age and fires, but no survivors,” the co-pilot said as they passed over the Ford and got a good look at the city below. Compton lowered the chopper to give them a better view and the co-pilot added, “Plenty of canisters on the ground. Plenty of infected still in the area.”
“Is that a man in a TMRT uniform?” Captain Jenson said as he spotted a man standing in the parking lot of a liquor store away from the pack of infected, which was still mostly in the road.
“Yes, it could be Walker, he was possibly thrown clear. The chances he is down there and not infected, however, are slim to none,” Compton said.
“We have to be sure,” Captain Jenson replied. “Can we get a look at his face?”
“The way he is standing so close to the store makes it difficult, we don’t have the angle. You’d think he would look up at us,” Compton told him.
“Yeah, but if he suffered a head injury or hearing loss, he wouldn’t look either,” the captain said.
“I suppose we have enough bullets to kill them all and then we can check him out, plus pick up the canisters,” the co-pilot suggested.
“They’re attracted to gunshots,” Compton suggested. “Let’s make this easy. Take us back to the east side of town. We’ll fire a few rounds and get the horde moving our way, then we fly back and pick up the canisters at our leisure.”
“What about Walker?” Captain Jenson asked.
“If he feels compelled to chase the sound of our guns, then we’ll know. This way, if he is infected, we don’t give him a chance to bite any of us,” Compton replied.
“Sounds like a good idea to me,” Jenson told them. “Make it so, Captain Compton.”
Compton swung the chopper around and they set down by the sporting goods store on the east end of town. One of the crew hopped out and started firing his sidearm into the air.
“Go ahead and empty the magazine,” the soldier manning the mounted fifty caliber told the crewman after he fired off four rounds. “I’ve got you covered.”
The crewman pressed the trigger six more times and then turned to go back into the chopper. The pilot took them up enough so they could see the horde. They watched as the infected roaming the streets started turning their direction. The pilot stayed hovering until the majority were below them and then flew back to the other side of town.