The Infected [Books 1-6]

by P. S. Power

  "Any leads as to where Shaw might have gone?"

  That got her to perk up, smiling a bit as she took a step forward.

  "Oh yes, dear. It seems very likely that he's run off to one of the local hate groups. Apparently it's a well known "secret" on the force, that some of their members are involved in such things. He appears to be one of the more active ones though, if my information is correct."

  That he was Infected would go over well then, wouldn't it? Of course it meant that he was done as a police officer for certain and if he used his power on purpose to harm anyone, or to get others to do so, the Death Warrant would have to be served as soon as possible. Even if he couldn't control it they might well have to take him out.

  For some reason Brian didn't feel bad about it at all. The man could have done anything in life, but he chose to hurt people. To fill the world with negativity. Unless he was being controlled of course. That... was still possible. The idea was a pain in the rear, but if Stillness had gotten to the jail guard, way back when, he might well have taken over Shaw as well. It didn't sound like he'd need to though. Not if the guy was a long term hate group member.

  "Great. Well, let's see if we can track some of these people down then. Carla, Shaw and any hate groups they might be part of. We need to be careful there though. I don't know how to approach it, to tell the truth. Anything we say will set them off most likely, they can't love the IPB. We also can't trust anyone else to handle it for us. Anyone have an idea?"

  Doug did, which was a little more unhappy than not.

  "Find Carla first? If she's changing people, it's bad. With a hate group where a lot of them might have powers now... How many actual groups are there like that in an area this size anyway? Five?" It was clear he didn't know, but Lancaster looked at Montrose who was covertly checking out Jan.

  Not that Brian blamed him. The woman was hot.

  The lead agent looked at Doug though.

  "It depends on how we parse for size. If we only count groups with more than say, ten members, then that's probably about right. With one of them probably being the main focus for the area. A cop probably wouldn't be involved in a thing that large though, because it would be too easy for their real life to run into things that way. I don't know about Carla. You said something about her being in something that sounded cult like to you? What do you mean by that?"

  Doug sat on the floor, a little laboriously, but without groaning or anything, even though his muscles had to be at least a bit sore. He wasn't making himself lighter either, which was probably a good habit.

  "Well, I guess that there were a few women with her and they got a lot of food from what I was told. I wasn't there, but to me that says they either have a lot of people or are making an effort to stock up. If it was a weekly thing, that's what, a cart for four people? If there were three that would be about twelve then, right? I don't know much more than that. Or how to find out. I don't think that Carla would have to hide or anything though. I haven't spoken to her since that night though, well, the next day, but that time."

  That got Lancaster to pull Doug aside and make some calls to the base, where someone could look up info for them. It turned out not to be that difficult of a problem really. They looked up her current phone number and address in about a minute, then did a background search that took longer, but only a few minutes more.

  Then Lancaster wrote it all out long hand, finding that the address was a property owned by Marv Richards, who was kind of a crank, from everything Brian heard. A hate group member that had once had high aspirations, but never managed the clout to do anything big enough to make the national scene. After a little more listening and writing the big Agent grunted.

  "Oh ho. That adds a wrinkle. All right, let me know what else you find." Hanging up he made a face, then looked at Doug, as if talking to him alone.

  "Marv Richards is her biological father. Did she ever mention that to you?" It sounded a little accusing, but Doug just shook his head and answered calmly.

  "Not at all. I know that her mother lives in Nevada, but other than that she never talked about family much. I don't really have any, and neither does Brian, so it didn't really seem that weird. Not everyone talks about family all the time anyway. I mean you haven't told me about yours or anything, right?" It was just a statement, but it got a glare from Lancaster, which was odd enough everyone noticed it, even Jan who didn't really know him at all.

  "OK, but it does mean that she's likely with that group. If we have it right and she's altering people, or even activating people already susceptible, we need to move on this both quickly and carefully. Montrose and I will go and case the house tonight, getting the lay of the land and then tomorrow we'll approach. I don't want to risk anyone being recognized and some of you are a bit high profile, or worse, known to her directly.

  That leaves Carl, Ellen and Janice to help us tonight. The rest of you need to stay out of sight and get ready. We have the two rentals now, so I'll take one, Carl can you handle backup for us? In case we have to follow someone or something. We need some equipment..." He looked at his watch and nodded.

  "I'll run and get it from the store. Not perfect, but we can make do. Let's move on that." He acted like everyone actually had a clue as to what it all meant. No one really did though. Brian tilted his head and sighed.

  "I'd lend you my charge card, but I lost it when I-" Argos held it out, standing beside him suddenly enough that Brian hit him with a back fist to the middle. It bent the man over, but only for about a second. Then he stood, rubbing his solar plexus.

  "Oh hey, thanks Jason! Very cool. I was afraid I'd have to get a new one. Sorry about that." He gestured at the impact site, but the guy just grinned.

  "Better reflexes than I figured. You got me before I stopped, so I didn't dodge. That's fast. Or something at least." He narrowed his eyes and looked around. "Like super-powered ability. Regular people can't just hit me like that. Not when I'm moving and I didn't even see it happen." It sounded a little suspicious, as if Brian had cheated.

  Which he probably had on some level. It was becoming clear that his power was still growing, wasn't it? He could do stuff and knew things that he hadn't before. Then things like this happened, even when they shouldn't.

  Lancaster ignored it, heading to the back, getting the Team Three trainer to come along with him. It was almost like the Agent didn't want any of the operatives to go with them, but it wasn't really true. Or, at least, if it was, Brian doubted it had to do with anything as simple as bigotry. Not from Daryl. He was pretty much on their side, even when they screwed up as individuals. No, it was something else.

  Maybe that he had about the lamest team possible for what they had going on? Their best operatives for the job were a woman that spoofed being an octogenarian and a noob so fresh she didn't even have her official sweats yet. She'd never even been to the base. Plus she was totally averse to conflict, which meant she was darned tough, having even gone to help Connie and her mother. A lot of Infected couldn't challenge their first modes at all, not without a lot of work and practice. It probably meant she was pretty brave too, somewhere inside.

  The rest of them though were just odd enough to be a problem. After the two agents left, Carl started breaking it down, being more than a little astute. After a second Brian understood. His power was causing him to look at the weaknesses of the team.

  "On the whole we're too new to each other and different to work as a real team. Not at the moment. The only one of us that really belongs here is Brian, of course. Ellen should be on a plane home about now. Not that you aren't a dear, but that's the problem if you start to get in trouble everyone here will try to protect you and we can't afford that right now. Hang back when you can." He didn't glare at her, but did make eye contact, which got a nod from the older looking woman.

  "Agreed." She said it a little primly. It was cute. She didn't mention the part about not flying either.

  Carl kept going, not leaving anyone out, including hims
elf.

  "Jan is purely defensive in nature. I'm not certain, but given her first mode I doubt she can fight. Is that about right?" He said it like he didn't already know the answer, but she looked away and nodded, not even wanting the bit of conflict that disagreeing with him would cause.

  "Then Argos... and Pixie, who are basically the same problem. Different reasons though. Jay is distinctive and too pretty. Georgia is simply alluring to almost everyone. People can't help but notice that."

  "Why, thank you Carl. I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me. I didn't know you noticed girls..." It wasn't snarky, she just meant it.

  "I don't, which is my point. That kind of thing gets attention we don't need right now. Great for working crowds, but not so much for covert work."

  Then he turned on Doug, who winced a little, expecting to be dressed down for his weight or appearance maybe, Brian knew. They'd been a bit hard on him that way, even though they had to be. It still wasn't easy to hear everyone tell you that you didn't measure up. He set himself though and waited.

  "Too nice, and known to one of the targets. My problem here is that I'm not a field operative by nature. I need a bit to study people and while that can be useful in a situation like this, I have to get close first. I'm not planning to walk into that house just for that."

  Brian kind of agreed with what he'd said, but Doug gave the man a look and made a face.

  "Um, Carla knows Brian too." He crossed his arms as he stood, looking at the guy. "And she keeps up on that stuff. So she'll know who Proxy is and probably that his real name is Brian Yi, which won't be lost on her. She's not nice all the time, but she isn't dumb either."

  Carl nodded.

  "Good points, but Proxy is a killer. The rest of us could kill, but he does. It makes a difference in a real fight. If we need to take people out, he won't hesitate. Even less than Montrose or Lancaster. If we need to take anyone out he's one of the best people in the IPB to have on this. Useless for stakeout duty though. If you're seen it would probably start a panic."

  "Wait, Brian's a killer? I mean, sure, I've heard of him having to take some people on in fights and some of them died, but that doesn't mean he just goes around doing it." It was a little defensive but Doug didn't back off from it.

  Georgia just agreed, looking like she was daring Carl to try and say otherwise.

  "That's right. He only goes after bad people. Killers, and we shouldn't forget that. He doesn't just do it for no reason."

  That got the skinny trainer to nod fast, then he... smiled. Brian hadn't been aware that was something the man could do on command.

  "Poor choice of words on my part. Rather, he's one of the most effective field operatives we have. I meant no insult. It's simply that of all of us here, he's the one that should be. The rest of us need to work together to make sure we don't get in the way. Provide unflinching backup when asked for and otherwise do what we're told. Basic stuff, but we've all seen this movie, haven't we?"

  He started walking around the room, checking the windows, cracking blinds with a finger and finally turning to face them all dramatically.

  "Think about it. Something goes wrong and we're told to run, how many of you are actually going to do it? No, you'll charge in and act like you're the brave soldier or the stupid kid that's the main character, who can't be hurt. We aren't main characters though, we're real people, and that kind of thing gets real folk like us killed. Normally I'm all for pushing into unknown areas, but only when we can control some of the variables. In this case we can't. Proxy is used to dealing with that. The rest of us just aren't. Not on this level." It didn't sound mean but Pixie crossed her arms again and looked angry for a second.

  That got Jason to put a hand on her shoulder, which helped her relax.

  "He's right. We're the fluff squad for the most part. Ellen is the real deal, but once we're into fighting she needs to be out of it. I guess the rest of us need some kind of strategy then. What do you think?" He looked at Brian and didn't blink for a second.

  "I've heard worse ideas. We don't know what we might be facing though. Until we get more information I think we should sit tight, keep a watch out for attack and have dinner. I can make Mac and cheese?" They had other things, but he didn't know how to make that much when it came right down to it. Luckily for them Jason did. Then, he ate a lot, so it made sense that cooking skills would be something he had. He also got the work done fast, cleaning the kitchen before they even sat down, holding plates on their lap arrayed around the room. The dining room table was too small for all of them. Brian and Doug took the floor though, and so did Carl, leaving the seats for the others.

  "This is really good Jay. Thanks." Brian took another bite of the steak on his plate, next to his salad which had a light vinaigrette dressing. Not his favorite, but it was good, and had been made just for the meal.

  "You should get Mark to put you on his show. I mean, if you can bake at all. If you can't I'm sure he or Warren can teach you how to do that." It made sense to him, Argos was good looking, and considered a star worthy person all around. It would only help the show to have him on it, at least part of the time.

  He shrugged, smiling.

  "I haven't mentioned it to them. It seems a little pushy and everyone else is already doing so well on it. Denis and Scott have a lot of good chemistry and Kerry is a sweetheart. I don't know if they need someone like me."

  Janice seemed to recognize the names at least.

  "Oh, yeah, I love that show. Especially when they make Denis do things without telling him how and then Kerry makes whatever it is blow up on him. I know it's mean, but the look on his face each time. Warren is pretty cool too. Think he's single?" She grinned and looked at Brian who shook his head.

  "Nope. He has a boyfriend. And since that boyfriend is Carl and he may well be in charge of part of your training you might want to steer clear there." He smiled though and then shrugged.

  "Jay is single though, right?" The man actually blushed and looked away bashfully, but Georgia answered for him.

  "That's right. Lots of single guys at the base. Girls too, but most of them are straight, so, you know, not a good pool for that. Some of the men are pretty exotic too. I've kind of set my sights on Tobin from Team Two, but he hasn't noticed me yet. A little shy."

  She sounded serious and given who she was, Brian didn't really doubt she meant it. Of course if she hurt him, there would be problems, and not just from him. Still, he wasn't going to keep the guy from getting lucky with her either. Popular or not, it was hard for a guy that looked like he did to get a date.

  Brian mentioned that Doug was single too, which got Georgia to turn her attention on him and beam, waves of interest coming off her strongly enough that Carl actually called her on using powers to seduce someone. It got a laugh, but she did pull back a bit after that.

  They spent a few hours bonding, which was fun. It was probably the most concentrated time with people that Brian could remember from the last year. After ten though he felt a sudden need to go and check outside. It didn't make a lot of sense, but Dharma, in full black, popped out so that he could see her.

  "We have guests coming." She growled the words, actually sounding pissed about it. "They have weapons. About twenty of them. They're coming from all sides."

  Brian... smiled.

  "Good news everyone! It looks like we're about to have a party!"

  Chapter five

  For some strange reason that actually got everyone's attention, even though it had all the hallmarks of just being a random statement, something said just to be sarcastic or funny. Brian sighed. He used to be humorous, or at least gave it a real shot most of the time. Now even when he tried everyone acted like he was insane or giving them life and death information. That kind of was the case here of course, so a real point.

  "We have hostiles incoming, about twenty of them, more or less. Given the atmosphere around here, my guess is that they're part of a hate group. What the heck they think they
're going to accomplish I don't know. You'd think that they'd have figured that part out by now... The best way to hurt the IPB is obviously to blog unkind things about us."

  This time he actually got a smile, from Ellen of all people. Everyone else just looked a little scared.

  That was an odd thing, he realized suddenly. He wasn't afraid. He should be, since there were twenty or more men, armed and ready to fight, coming for him at that very moment. He'd fought that many people before, and even regular people were kind of superhuman in large groups. It was mainly that the people outside hadn't brought guns to the party, as far as he could tell. More bats and gasoline cans. Probably a few Molotov cocktails if they were clever about it. Those were easy enough to make, if you planned even a little. A glass bottle of gas, an oily rag and a match. Then you threw it. Not hard to manage and really hard to beat unless you were fireproof, which no one there was.

  "OK, um..." He didn't know what to do with anyone else. Not that they weren't powerful and all that, but they weren't killers...

  Which was a good thing. He was the one they all had to watch here, wasn't he? The rest of them were way better suited for handling this without it being a huge issue. As annoying as everyone attacking was, they wanted them to be alive in the morning. Killing regular people would make the IPB look bad. It was probably the real point. They'd found out that Proxy was in town and figured that if they threw enough bodies at him, Brian would have to kill someone just to survive. Normally they'd be right too, so it was a good idea. At least if you weren't the pawn set up to die. It would kind of suck for them.

  Except this time he had a team. It made a huge difference, and no group of ordinary people could beat them very easily if they worked it right. Besides that, if the team work thing didn't do the trick, he could always kill the attackers later.