Foamers

by Justin Kassab

  “John, stop,” Kade said.

  He eased the Humvee to a stop. “Let them go?”

  “Let her go,” Kade replied. Victoria may have left them, but she was still one of his cohort. If she hadn’t asked for him to be tortured, he wouldn’t be alive. She had saved his life, so he would spare hers.

  “They shot Argos. We need to get him to the dorm,” Tiny said. “And you.”

  CHAPTER XVI

  NOT EVERYONE LIVES

  ___________

  The cohort licked its wounds after the fight with the Tribe. Victoria was probably on her way back to the Tribe. Kade hoped their victory would allow them some time before their next encounter.

  Outside of Lambian, X and Mick gathered the weapons and armor from the fallen Tribesmen. When Mick went to bring in the man he had handcuffed, he found the foamers had killed him. On the roof, Grace and John stood guard over the snow-covered landscape. In the med bay, Tiny fought to save Argos. Fenris sat whimpering beside them. In the next room, Kade lay recuperating on a bed.

  He had stripped to his boxers and been hooked to an IV drip, which had come from the hospital run. Ashton stood above him with a bucket and sponge, cleaning off his dried blood. The sponge on his body felt good, but the cold water made him miss heat. Ashton’s gentle touch, though, felt good enough for him not to complain.

  The sponge passed along his jawline and down his neck to his pectoral muscle, each new inch traveled revealing his skin under the red crust. Ashton’s hand shook as she made the next pass to peel away more of the dried blood.

  “Please stop almost dying,” she said as she fought the shakes.

  Kade placed his hand on top of hers, stopping the sponge. “Better to be almost dead than completely dead.”

  She wiped her forearm across her eyes and looked away. He patted her hand.

  “Sorry, sorry, that wasn’t a good time for a joke. I’m still breathing. I plan to for a long time.” He opened his eyes and smiled at Ashton. “Mom and Dad would be really proud of you.”

  A small laugh escaped her as she looked at the ceiling to stifle her tears before she looked back at him. “And what about you? You’ve gone from designated screw-up to saving your friends, leading them to safety, and outsmarting a military tactician.”

  Kade was still astounded that his plan had worked, step by step, even more perfect than he had imagined. Each of his tactical moves had landed in proper succession and at the right time. The only thing that didn’t go as he foresaw was the intervention of Alpha. He hadn’t told anyone else about that yet, because he wasn’t quite sure what to make of the foamer saving his life.

  Even with the military momentarily dispatched, their plate was still full. Argos needed to be mended, and they still had to find out if X was going to turn. There were defenses to prepare and a future to plan. As time passed, they would need more food than what they might find within the college dorms. The bottom line was, they would have a lot of work to do every day, from now until the day they died. Kade thought that was amazing. Each day, his own survival would depend upon him. He was somebody now. Somebody Primed.

  “I’m proud of you, big brother,” Ashton added.

  The room vibrated as what sounded like a tornado carried through the building. Before either could question what it was, John’s voice broke in over the walkie. “Military chopper!” The drone grew louder.

  Kade expected at some point the Tribe would retaliate, but he didn’t think they would be so fast. They weren’t ready for this.

  X spoke through the walkie. “It’s landing in the quad. We’ll go get eyes on it.”

  * * *

  X and Mick backed against one of the buildings surrounding the quad as they peered at the helicopter that had just touched down. A tall woman with golden-brown skin climbed out, wearing digital desert camo and looking like a tiger in an aquarium.

  X tucked the stock of the rifle into his shoulder as Mick drew his pistol. Then the next person exited the chopper.

  “Kade?” Mick asked, astounded.

  “It’s Damian,” X corrected.

  The pilot’s door opened and Jem jumped out. Jem was there. In Houghton. With a helicopter. X thought luck may be in their favor after all.

  Mick smiled like a kid who had just gotten his braces off. “Let’s bring them in.”

  * * *

  “We’ve done all we can,” Tiny said. “He’s comfortable.”

  Argos’s fur was soaked in blood as he lay on the bed, his chest slowly rising and falling. Tiny had done the best she could, but when she realized there was nothing more she could do, she gave him a shot of morphine. This would allow him to slowly fade into death without feeling pain.

  Jem had one hand on the side of the bed for support, and he stroked Argos’s fur with the other. He never made a sound as tears ran from his ice-blue eyes. His fingers scratched behind the dog’s ear.

  Kade’s voice carried in from the hallway. “Damian, great to see you. We’ll talk in a moment. Tiny, back off. My friend’s dog is dying; I’m going to be with him.”

  He burst into the room, carrying his own IV bag.

  He lightly tapped Jem’s shoulder, but avoided his line of sight. Fenris lay by the bed with her muzzle buried in her paws. For Jem, losing Argos would be as crushing as most parents would feel when losing a child. He had trusted Kade to take care of the dog for him, and Kade had caused Argos to get shot. He was prepared to bear any blame or anger that came his way.

  Argos lifted his head and stared with glassy eyes, first at Jem, then at Kade. He laid his head down and his eyes fluttered shut. His chest rose one last time before settling for good. Surprised by his own reaction, Kade wiped tears from the corners of his eyes. Jem threw his arms around Kade, who patted his back with one hand, while keeping his IV bag elevated with the other.

  “I found your brother,” Jem said.

  “I found out why the alien robots still fight,” Kade replied.

  Jem patted his back and pulled away. He stood at attention and saluted Kade. “I knew you would, sir. What are my orders?”

  “First order, don’t call me sir. Second suggestion, get some rest. We have a lot of work to do tomorrow.”

  “Good to see you, Chief.”

  Kade turned away and walked out of the room. They hadn’t spoken about Argos, and they never would. That was their way.

  As Kade moved into the corridor, he found his brother, as well as a tall woman with bronze skin exchanging awkward pleasantries with the little sister Damian hardly recognized. Even with the same blood in their veins, they were virtual strangers. A look of relief overtook Ashton when she saw Kade.

  “I’ll leave you two to swap notes,” Ashton said, pushing past Kade.

  Damian looked more like Kade now than ever before. He was scruffy and unshaven, which was total blasphemy for Damian. In their teens, Kade grew his scruff as soon as he could, and from then on, they had an unspoken agreement to always stick to their opposite roles. They didn’t shake hands or hug; they just looked at each other.

  “Kade, this is Number Five. Test subject success,” Damian said.

  “Number Five?” Kade a
sked.

  She smiled at him. “Apparently, I’m the key to your brother’s debacle.”

  “Who’d have thought I’d turn out to be the bigger screw-up?” Damian said in a tone reserved for funerals.

  “We’re all in it together now,” Kade replied. “How’d you find Jem?”

  “Number Five and I were trying to get to Houghton before winter arrived. We were captured by survivors just south of DC. Jem saved me, and we made a plan to fly here,” Damian replied. Kade could tell by the weight of his words that there was much more to his travels than that, but there would be plenty of time to learn the details—right now, what meant most was that they were reunited.

  “What about the rest of those survivors?” Kade asked.

  “They were planning to execute me, so we didn’t think asking permission to leave was wise.”

  “Glad you guys were thinking straight.”

  Damian stared at his feet and then back at Kade.

  “I know it couldn’t be easy, what you went through,” Damian said. “Thanks for listening to my letter.”

  “If you hadn’t sent it, we’d all be dead. We can stand here all day and toss the ball back and forth, but there are more important things to do. Do you know if your little pets are contagious?”

  “Who’s bitten?” Damian replied.

  “X.”

  “I won’t know until I look at some samples, but I think the chances of contagion are slim.”

  “I’ll rest better when I know for sure.”

  Damian gave him a nod and a pat on the shoulder. “I’ll leave her to you.”

  As his brother walked past, Kade wondered about this mystery woman standing before him. She was as tall as he was, like some sort of Amazon. Her posture was strong, solid, erect; not the form of a soldier, but of confidence in one’s self. On top of all that, she was Damian’s chance to cure the foamers.

  “What would you have of me?” she asked.

  “Head to the roof. I’m sure Grace or John wouldn’t mind some relief. They can fill you in on rooms and such,” Kade replied and pointed toward the stairwell.

  “Nice to meet you,” Number Five said as her stem-like legs carried her toward the end of the hall.

  The number of orders Kade had issued recently had him finally feeling ready to lead the cohort that had trusted him from the beginning. They were his and he was theirs. Allowing himself a moment of pride, he went to stick his hands in his pockets, only to discover he was still half-covered in blood, holding an IV bag, and wearing only his boxers.

  A door to his right opened and Tiny stood, leaning against the frame. She had her arms crossed as her foot anxiously tapped the ground. Her milky skin shone against her black tank top as her eyes met his.

  “What will it take for you to stay in bed? Tiny asked.

  Kade smiled at her; not his usual half smile, but a full grin. He knew exactly what he wanted.

  “You.”

  He stepped into her, wrapped his free hand around her back and under her shirt, where he could feel her warm skin against his hand. Practically pulling her off her feet, he yanked her body against his and kissed her deeply. Her hands ran around his neck and she twisted her fingers into his hair.

  She pulled away, but left her forehead against his as she smiled that smile he loved so much.

  “That would have been far sexier if you weren’t holding an IV bag.”

  “Shut up.”

  “Make me,” she replied, her smile turning to a wicked grin.

  So he did.

  * * *

  John and Grace sat beside one another on the roof. He wanted to say something to her about how much older he felt now than he did a day ago, but it didn’t seem like a thing someone who felt older would say. He wanted to tell her how beautiful he found her, but was afraid she wouldn’t believe him. He wanted to kiss her, but figured she would shut him down again. So he chose silence.

  The sky had faded to black, peppered with stars like an exotic spice on the surface of the world. With the amount of change the world had been through, for John, it was reassuring to see the stars were still in their same places.

  He wondered if his parents would be proud of him, this man he was becoming. In all his life, he never dreamed he could be someone like this. An astronaut, a doctor, even a lawyer had crossed his mind at times, but a survivor wasn’t something he had ever thought about. Thinking of his parents pierced his heart. The cohort had been firing at such a high speed that he hadn’t been given the chance to think.

  “What’s wrong?” Grace asked, making John aware that his face must have revealed too much emotion.

  “Just thinking about the Old World,” John replied.

  “Try not to. Your life is happening now, and you wouldn’t want to miss a moment by looking back.”

  She was right. His life was happening right now. All he could affect was what was to come. He wanted to kiss her. He needed to kiss her. He was going to kiss her. He leaned in, just as the door opened, and the woman who had arrived with Kade’s brother emerged, ruining his moment.

  “Grace and John?” she asked.

  “And you are?” Grace replied.

  “Everyone’s been calling me Number Five. Kade sent me,” she said.

  Grace placed her hands down on the wall and pushed herself onto her feet. “So long as you’re here, I can go finish the fireplace. John can fill you in on how things work.”

  “At least with you here, I’m no longer the Stray,” John said, trying to mask the bitterness he felt at his lost opportunity.

  * * *

  Mick opened the door to one of the dorm rooms with Jem behind him. The room, like all the others, had been stripped to just the beds and furniture.

  “Beds. Go to sleep. I’m going back to bed,” Mick said, stifling a yawn.

  “Nothing for me to do?” Jem replied.

  “There will be plenty. You just flew in; get some rest.”

  “How have things been for you guys so far?”

  Mick looked from Jem to his own feet. There was no simple way to explain everything that had happened since they had left home. So many things had happened. So many things that he didn’t want to remember. So many things he had to remember. When he’d buried Lucas, he created a regret he would never be able to escape.

  “We lost a lot. I lost Lucas and never told him …” Mick stopped and composed himself. “We’ve survived.”

  A look of confusion passed over Jem, then he flashed a smile at his old friend. “Get some rest. It sounds like you’re going through a lot.”

  * * *

  Damian wandered the corridors of Lambian Hall. It had taken him a minuscule amount of time to analyze the blood and saliva samples from the creatures. He arrived at a door marked with a duct tape “X,” and knocked.

  X opened, wearing only a pair of pajama bottoms and his cowboy hat.

  “Good news, it’s not contagious,” Damian said.

  “Thanks,” X replied as a smile slipped across his face; then he tipped his hat.

 
He turned to go back into the room, but Damian placed a hand on the door. “Is Victoria here?”

  “You thinking about getting back together?” X asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “No, I just haven’t seen her. Is she dead?” Damian’s face went slack as he felt the pain of his words.

  “She left us for another group of survivors.”

  “What do you do when what you want isn’t what’s best?” Damian asked, leaning against the door frame. “Sorry, it must be the sleep deprivation talking.”

  “No need for sorrys. It’s weird giving advice to the same shell with a different nut inside, but I believe when you want something, you need to go for it. However, if you’re like your brother, I doubt that’s in your cards,” X replied.

  “I appreciate the advice. That might just be one thing I have in common with Kade. Anyhow, neither the blood nor saliva is able to pass on the mutation. So you’re safe,” Damian said.

  “Thanks,” X said, looking over his shoulder. “If you don’t mind, I’m gonna get back to what makes me happy.”

  “I’m sure I’ll be seeing plenty of you,” Damian replied.

  X closed the door and returned to where Ashton lay hiding beneath the sheets.

  “Lose the pants,” she said with a smile. “Keep the hat.”

  * * *

  Beta and the rest of the foamers gathered around a Tribesman’s corpse and fed on the flesh. They had only lost two of their pack to the men in black with the cruel fire.

  Alpha and Pepper were not feeding with the rest because they were still lying in the underbrush. The two of them had dug down into the snow and lay together, the first time any pack members had slept apart.

  Alpha had no sense of what to make of the excessive beating in his chest. When he pulled away from Pepper, the pounding lessened. He pressed his body against hers again and the rapid patter returned.