The Death Fields Box Set [Books 4-6]

by Angel Lawson

  A wide screen rolls from the ceiling behind her as she steps to the microphone.

  “Good afternoon. My name is Andrea Miller and I’m the hospitality liaison for the city of New Hope. Colonel Hamilton extends his warmest welcome and hopes you find a path to the future in our designated Safe City.”

  A picture appears on the screen with the city’s logo. It includes an American flag and a seal that says “Safe City.” Andrea looks appraisingly at the image behind her and then turns back to face the crowd.

  “I’m aware that many of you have struggled long and hard to get to this day. You have lost family and friends. You’ve lost your homes and jobs and all sense of security. New Hope cannot replace the things close to your heart, but we can offer you a home and future in absolute safety. Where running water and electricity are the norm and not something to fight and scavenge for. Believe it or not, the government wasn’t totally unprepared for the E-TR virus. The likelihood of biological warfare was well known and documented by agencies like Homeland Security and the CDC. With the advent of drone warfare, anything was possible, and what was once a vague concept became a fast-moving reality. Six cities were finalized before the E-TR virus wiped out the southern states. Ten more were planned that never came to fruition. Of these six, three, including New Hope, are fully functional. The other three are struggling and we’re in the process of assisting them as they get on their feet.”

  The screen behind her flips through a series of images that look pre-crisis, apartments and single-family homes, school children walking out of a classroom. The nostalgia is thick. I spot a small movement near the door. Hamilton is observing the presentation. I nudge Wyatt and gesture to the imposing man.

  Andrea narrates the slides but I keep an eye on the man that brought us here. He looks to be in his mid-forties, with short, black hair. There’s gray at the temples, but he looks healthy. Honestly? Compared to those of us that came in from the battlefield, Hamilton looks robust. His cheeks carry the roundness that comes from steady meals. His brown skin is clear and he lacks the dark circles that I can’t seem to get rid of. It’s weird, because I know this man is dangerous. I watched him kill Erwin in cold blood, but he has an appealing, handsome face. There’s one thing that gives me pause. His dark eyes have a hint of something—mania? Excitement? I don’t know how to place it but it makes me uncomfortable.

  The slide show stops and Andrea looms on the stage, perfectly pleasant expression still intact.

  “Now that you’re in New Hope, we hope you take time to rest and recover. We’ll help you find a job and housing. You won’t have to sleep with weapons anymore or worry about your neighbors. This is truly a safe place to call home.”

  “I have a question,” a voice asks from a couple of rows over. I can’t see his face but his hair is gray.

  “Please,” Andrea says. “Go ahead.”

  “What kind of perimeter do you maintain? I saw the fence line but does it go all the way around the city? Have you had any breaches?”

  Amanda nods, her face showing the right amount of concern. With the remote in her hand she flips forward a few pictures to a diagram of a tall fence. “The city of Cincinnati had the barricades in storage. As soon as Florida was cut off from the rest of the country, the walls went up. Now, things weren’t perfect at first. Infected citizens were already here before the walls were secured. We lost people but our police and local National Guard were ready for them. They’d been trained for something like this.”

  “How do you train for cannibals?” another man blurts out. “And the panic and fear of not trusting your neighbors? Are you saying the government had a tip-off that this was coming?”

  Andrea’s calm expression falters, her lip twitching just a bit. “No, of course not—”

  “I lost my baby girl out there. Not from the cannibals, but from the bastards that hoarded and stole all the food in my town.” He nods to the boy next to him, he looks young, maybe ten or eleven. “My son had to see things he never should. Every day I wondered if we’d be better off dead. If I found out the government had a hand in this—”

  “Sir, I know you’re upset and we have many resources for you and your son—”

  “Thank you, Andrea,” a controlled voice says from off stage. Hamilton moves from his spot at the door and walks calmly across the front of the platform into the seating area. Andrea is doing her best to stay calm but the man is right; finding out now that a safe place like this exists is a little too late for most of us.

  It also hammers home that people do not know about my sister and the real cause of the E-TR virus. I worry in a whole new way about her safety.

  Hamilton does something surprising. He walks among the attendees and stops before the man. He’s wearing more casual clothing today, a V-neck sweater and olive green pants. Nothing about him reveals the deadly executioner we met last night.

  “What’s your name?” he asks the man.

  “Richard.” He nods at his son. “This is Liam.”

  Hamilton offers his hand to the son first and they shake, then to the man. Wyatt hasn’t moved an inch, watching the scene unfold.

  “The fact you are coming to New Hope this long after the crisis began is proof of how strong you are. Did you know that when we first started the orientations for new citizens, these rooms were packed with survivors?” He looks around the large room, compelling us to look ourselves. “Many were from the original city and suburbs, but for months we had a large influx of people rolling in, happy to be out of the Death Fields.”

  “We didn’t know you existed,” Richard says.

  “I know, and it was not widely advertised outside this area. It took months to get the city up and running. We welcomed in all the healthy people that came to the gates but we weren’t in a position to travel outside ourselves until very recently. Most of the other Safe Cities still aren’t.”

  “That’s not fair,” Liam says. “Leaving people out there—with the monsters and bad people.”

  “No, son, it isn’t.” Hamilton sounds sympathetic, his voice warm and welcoming. I can’t shake the feeling of watching something scripted, like a reality TV show or something. “But we’re doing the best we can and as a unified community, determined to eradicate the infected and dangerous, we’ll return as a country, stronger than before.”

  He pats Liam on the head, who actually does look appeased, and walks up to the podium. He adjusts the microphone to his height and says, “Now that we’ve stabilized and have eliminated much of the threat from down south, we will continue the cleanup of the countryside until we are free to come and go from the safe barriers of the city. It will take time and perseverance, but we’ll get there with the help of capable soldiers and fighters.” He glances in our direction. “We have a plan and a mission—both for the greater good. Rest, heal, and figure out the way you want to be part of the future of New Hope.”

  Richard jumps to his feet and starts to clap. I’m startled by the act but he’s followed by others in the room, many with a look of relief on their faces. Jude nudges my arm and stands with the others. I move to my feet and as a group we cheer on our new leader with the most recent citizens of New Hope.

  I feel pressure on my elbow and Wyatt leans close. “Where have I heard a speech like that before?” he asks.

  I keep my eyes fixated on Hamilton, who’s waving back at the small group, many who have left their seats to go greet him personally.

  “In a room like this, back at PharmaCorp,” I reply. “From my sister.”

  2

  Three days of rest. That’s what we’re given before our official assignment begins. The four of us are housed in a small apartment a block away from the processing offices. It’s a nice place with big windows. We all ignore the blood stain in the hallway just outside our door. I don’t know if it’s because we’re desensitized or it’s too hard to acknowledge. I’m pretty sure I fall into the former.

  I wake on the third day while it’s still dark outside with W
yatt’s warm arm clutching my waist. The door of our room opens slowly and I instinctively reach for my weapon—okay, not my weapon, that will be given back to me when we leave—but the knife from the kitchen that I keep on the bedside table. A face comes into view and I blink, recognizing the familiar gray eyes and dark hair of my sister. I frown and remove my hand from the weapon.

  She waves me over and I glance back, thinking I’m being quiet, but it’s no surprise Wyatt is already alert and aware. He probably heard her minutes before I did. Sighing, I squeeze his hand before walking out and closing the door behind me.

  When we’re both in the living room I pull my sister into a tight hug. She wraps her arms around me and it’s just the two of us for a moment. “Are you okay?” I ask. “I figured they tucked you into a lab or something.”

  “I’m fine and yeah, that was their plan, until I told them we had to go get Dad and the others in hiding.”

  “Is he okay?”

  “Yes, they’re all fine. They were in an abandoned evacuation shelter just outside the town lines.”

  “So he’s here?” I ask.

  “Yes. I’m not sure how safe we really are here, but I couldn’t leave him and the kids without protection. Catlettsburg is a ghost town. We passed it on the way back.”

  “I’m glad they’re all safe and yeah, I’m not exactly sure about this place either, but they’re targets for the Hybrids outside the walls.” We move to the small seating area. “So has Hamilton given you a job?”

  “He wants a pure vaccine. The people up here are not vaccinated and they have to be incredibly strict about quarantine and possible outbreaks of the E-TR virus. The parasites are still out there looking for a host.”

  “You guys can do that, can’t you? I mean, that was Dad’s original goal, right?”

  “Yes, with the right tools, which Hamilton has provided, we should be able to produce what he wants.”

  My sister is odd. She has strange mannerisms and an ability to make everyone feel lesser at all times. She’s brilliant with a touch of narcissism that must remain in check. She’s come a long way since she first unleashed the E-TR virus on the world, trying hard to redeem herself. Right now though, she’s twisting her hands together and I can tell something’s got her on edge.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I need you to understand that Hamilton is dangerous.”

  “I watched him execute Erwin and Green. I know that.” But that image has been softened by the display at the orientation meeting. That was just war, right? There’s more though, the familiar words he used at the close of his talk—the ones that matched Jane’s view when she unleashed the virus on the world. That makes me more nervous than anything else.

  She shakes her head. “He’s serious about getting rid of all the Hybrids and Mutts. I have faith in the EVI-3. He’ll never know but if something came up, a side effect or reoccurrence, he’ll kill you on the spot. I have no doubt.”

  “What about you? You took it too.”

  “He needs me and I can make sure he always does. Same with Dad, but you guys? You need to get out of here fast. Follow orders. Get on the road. Track down Hybrids.”

  “For how long?” Because that is not where I picture my life going in the long run—although to be fair, God knows how many of us have a long run.

  “Until we know the EVI-3 is not a problem. Until you find Paul and Cole and come up with a better plan. Just don’t fight back. Not now.”

  I lean back against the sofa. “I wasn’t planning on it. Wyatt and I already agreed to follow orders.” She gives me a wary look. I hold my hands up. “I’m serious.”

  “I know you think you’re serious but neither you or Wyatt are great at sticking to a plan or following directions.” Her next sentence comes out in a whisper. “Hamilton is dangerous—his ideas…”

  “They’re extreme.”

  “It took me a long time to understand why my actions with the E-TR virus were wrong. I was convinced I was helping the world with science and not emotion.” She looks at her hands. “It wasn’t until I created Chloe and she turned on me that I realized my mistake. You, Dad, Avi and the others…you helped me see that. Not everyone has a support system like you guys.”

  She’s tip-toeing around something but I sense she’s done talking. I take her hand and squeeze. “I promise we’ll be careful. You do your work—we’ll do ours.”

  Her face and shoulders relax and I think she finally believes me. I have a million other questions about why she’s so concerned about this—does she think the EVI-3 is going to be a problem? If so, she’s taken it, too. We knew it was a risk. It was a trial—rushed to fight Chloe and the Hybrids. But as of now I feel fine. Sleep and food helped.

  “Walker says we’re leaving in the morning. I’m not sure where we’re going or how all of this is going to work, but I think it will be fine.” I smile. “Just another day in the apocalypse.”

  “I’m sorry you’re having to clean up my mess.”

  My jaw drops. “Dude, it isn’t a ’mess’, it’s the freaking apocalypse. I’m on like, mutant-patrol or something.”

  “I know. I know.”

  “Make the vaccine and take care of Dad. That’s your job.” I bump her on the shoulder with my first. “I’ll take care of everything else.”

  “You’re an amazing little sister, did you know that?”

  “Honestly? I sort of did know that.”

  She laughs and I give her another hug. It feels like a goodbye.

  Maybe it is.

  The transport van sprays gravel in our direction as it heads down the road. We’re on the edge of the Death Fields, the thin line between civilization and ruin. The weird thing is, I feel a sense of relief at leaving the city behind. Chaos comes in different forms. At least out here I can identify my enemy. Back in the city it’s too hard to tell what people want from me. Even Jane’s last-minute warnings hang over me like a cloud.

  “So what? We’re on foot?” Jude asks. He says it to Walker’s back. Her red curly hair is in a loose ponytail and she’s headed toward a small garage attached to a worn down building. When she doesn’t reply, he shrugs and follows her, Mary Ellen right on his heels.

  “Any idea if we’ll meet up with Davis?” I reach out to straighten the straps on Wyatt’s pack. The bags had been waiting for us in the transport vehicle. I searched the contents and found everything inside—except my mother’s ring. I cursed myself for losing it along the way.

  Wyatt glances over at Walker and Jude, who are struggling to lift the garage door up. He scratches his forehead with his thumb. “I haven’t heard anything more than you have. I hope so. He’s definitely someone I’d like to have our backs while taking down Hybrids.”

  “Same.”

  The wind blows, making it clear winter is on the way. I spent most of spring and summer locked up in Chloe’s prison. I don’t take sunlight and fresh air for granted, but the chill runs through me. Wyatt notices and grips my hands with his, giving me a little bit of his warmth. I can’t help but smile and when he smiles back at me, a sudden sense of fear rolls down my spine. I remove my hands from him and walk over to the others.

  He trots behind me and says, “You okay?”

  “Yeah.” I don’t know how to express what I just felt. Things feel fragile right now. “I think we should keep the affection on the down low. I don’t want added complications.”

  Wyatt nods. “Sure, okay.”

  He walks past me and squeezes between Jude and Walker to help lift the door. His back flexes and the door rolls up, loudly shaking the hinges. A figure steps from the shadows and everyone but Walker pulls their guns.

  “Hey, hey,” she says. “It’s Jackson, don’t blow his head off.”

  I can’t describe the feeling in my chest when Jackson finally emerges, hands up. Part relief, part joy. These are the people I need in my life right now. People I know and can trust.

  Wyatt approaches him first, giving him a quick handshake. They don’t
know one another well, but any history is better than nothing in our world. I step forward and don’t even wait. I just throw myself at him and go for the hug. “It’s so good to see you. Things were a little crazy the other day. I was afraid you’d be sent somewhere else.”

  “Nope,” he says, squeezing me back. “Hamilton wanted me to go with you guys. And not just me.” He looks over his shoulder and I realize there’s someone else behind him. “This is Zoe.”

  Zoe steps out from Jackson’s shadow and I’m surprised to see a teenaged girl. She has caramel-colored hair and warm, brown skin. Her eyes are a stunning green that do not carry the jaded look of my partners. She looks young and remarkably clean, with barely a scuff on her shiny, black boots. My first thought is how I don’t want to have to carry the weight of someone inexperienced. We’ve already got Mary Ellen to contend with, at least I know she’s committed and understands what we’re up against.

  Wyatt nods but frowns as he assesses her size and the way she holds gun in her hands. Jude looks disappointed and I see him pull Walker to the side and whisper something to her. She replies and whatever she says isn’t what he wants to hear. Mary Ellen doesn’t look upset to see another girl enter our mix and goes over to speak to her.

  I point to the truck hiding in the garage. “Does that work?”

  Jackson nods. “Yep.”

  “Good, because I do not want to walk. Been there, done that.”

  He smiles and it’s nice to see. “So where do we go first?” I ask, tossing my bag into the back of the truck. I’ve already decided I’ll sit outside—again, those months Chloe kept me cooped up have made me dislike the indoors.