By the time Major Bradley had cleared the room and switched off the light, Bannon was already moving to the first door on the right side of the hallway. The door had a small rectangular window to look through. Major Bradley moved in next to Bannon and looked through the window. Stevens kept an eye on the hallway.
“The lab,” said Bannon.
Major Bradley tried the handle and found it to be unlocked. He opened the door and moved in quickly, raising his sidearm. Bannon followed while Stevens stayed in the hallway. The lab was enormous and as clean as could be. A long table cut through the center of the room filled with all manner of medical equipment, microscopes, and stuff that Major Bradley couldn’t identify on a bet. Most importantly, Dr. Sanderson was nowhere in sight.
They left the lab, closing the door behind them. Major Bradley pressed the button on his walkie.
“Sanchez, anything out of the doctor, over,” he said.
There was an uncomfortably long pause. He was about to repeat his question.
“Negative, Major … cat’s got his tongue … over.”
“Copy.”
Moving down the corridor, they passed the only door on the left side. A sign on the door read: RESTROOM. Moving on past, they stopped in front of the second door on the right. Major Bradley looked through the window. It appeared to be a patient room. A hospital bed sat in the middle of the room with a medical drip holder off to the side. He put his hand on the door handle and turned. It was locked.
He backed away from the window just as he thought he saw movement off to the right side of the door. Moving in closer he pressed his face against the window and looked as far right as he could. There was nothing there. Maybe it was his imagination. The fact the door was locked, however, was telling.
Major Bradley moved Private Stevens to the front of the door and ordered him to blow the lock and then step aside. He aimed and fired into the door handle, blowing it to pieces. Major Bradley charged forward without hesitating, kicking the door open, and raced into the room. Bannon was right behind him.
As soon as he entered the room he saw a figure with his peripheral vision standing off to his right. He turned quickly as Bannon burst into the room. Standing in front of him, behind a rolling metal tray used to hold medical instruments, with a fire extinguisher held precariously above his head as a weapon, was Dr. Lemuel Sanderson.
The Major held his fire as he immediately recognized the man he had come for. Bannon stopped in his tracks as a smile creased his face.
“Major Bradley … John …,” Dr. Sanderson said, relieved he didn’t need to use the fire extinguisher. “Was that you making all that noise upstairs?” he asked with a grin.
Chapter 10
Left Wide Open
Kim Walker sat at the kitchen table with Danielle helping her with her math homework. The children attended a makeshift school during the day, an attempt to keep things as normal as possible during these abnormal times. It was getting dark and although it didn’t need to be finished tonight, once night fell, she would have to finish it tomorrow. Most of the activities around the house ceased as soon as the sun went down. They had candles but used them sparingly.
“What is nine times eight Mommy? I always forget that one,” asked Danielle.
“72,” she answered. “Tomorrow I’ll quiz you on your tables. You’ll have them memorized by Monday for your test.”
They had all returned from the dining hall about an hour ago. Lucy went into her and Stephen’s room to make a few entries in her diary. It helped her cope with the craziness that was now their lives. Maybe someday when this was just a bad dream, she could look back on her notes and help put in perspective this period in her life.
Stephen and Nick headed to the backyard to deal with the logs dumped there by the Army Corps of Engineers. They had been given the task of chopping the trees into usable logs for the fireplaces the corps were hastily creating in all the housing complexes. Fall was just around the corner and then winter. It was likely going to be the only thing keeping them warm in a few months. Colorado winters were not to be taken lightly.
Shortly after, Jason ran outside to help the boys. They let him pile the split logs and tie them up into bundles. The bundles would eventually be distributed to every residence on the base. Stephen had become quite adept at wielding the ax he procured from the Ace Hardware store outside Washington D.C. He constantly challenged Nick to keep up with him, but Nick was usually lagging far behind.
The back door sprang open and Jason came running into the house, followed by Nick and Stephen. The door slammed shut as Jason took off toward the bathroom to wash up before his mom had to tell him to; and also, to beat Stephen and Nick. It was a little game he played.
“I think we could have gotten one more log done,” Stephen said to Nick.
“Easy there Paul Bunyan,” Nick responded. “It’s still only August, we got plenty of time.” He looked in Kim’s direction. “It is still August, right Kim?”
“I believe it is,” Kim answered without looking up from her daughter’s homework.
“Does that make you a big blue ox then?” Stephen asked with a smirk.
Nick gave his friend a shove as he went past him heading to the den where he kept his stuff. He came out a minute later with a clean shirt and a pair of shorts just as Jason was emerging from the bathroom. Nick entered right behind him and shut the door.
Resigned to being the last one to wash up, he headed to the closet where he stored his ax. Kim didn’t want it laying around with the kids running about and Lucy didn’t want it in the bedroom. Too many bad memories associated with that tool. So, he kept it on the top shelf of the hall closet. Easy to retrieve if needed, but out of everyone’s way.
“I’m going to our room Mom, okay?” Jason said.
“Fine honey, we’ll be there soon.”
Nick reappeared as Stephen plopped down on the couch. It had been a long, hot, rather eventful day. Starting with the work on the fence line and then the unusual case of the old man and his daughter, the dedication ceremony, and finally the log splitting. He was going to sleep like a rock tonight. If he could muster the strength to wash up and get to bed.
Sitting on the couch made him think of its usual inhabitant around this time every night.
“Anyone seen Chester?” he asked the group.
“No,” answered Danielle.
“Not since yesterday,” added Kim.
Stephen sat, a worried look began to creep across his face. He missed him this morning. Chester must have left very early. The thing with him was, although you never knew exactly what he was going to do because he did as he pleased, he was always home on time.
Nick wandered over to the couch and could read the thoughts of his good friend.
“Dude, the last person in this entire place you should worry about is that guy. He knows how to take care of himself better than all of us put together. He’ll be back soon,” Nick said.
Stephen knew Nick was right. He was just tired. Probably a little spooked after the run-in with the infected on the ridge today. Sometimes in here, you can briefly forget about the plague raging outside its walls. Today was another stark reminder that all in not well.
“You’re right,” he said as he found the energy to lift himself off the couch and slowly make his way to the bathroom.
Malcolm Sharp was preparing to spend his first night ever behind bars. He had, until this point, led a life free of legal entanglements. It wasn’t even a law he had broken that led to his incarceration. He simply had the misfortune of being bitten by one of the infected.
He fluffed his pillow and smoothed out the sheets on his cot. He was tired. It had been a long climb up that uneven hill attempting to avoid the infected. He had no way of knowing if a second bite might do him in but he wasn’t about to let his daughter become a statistic.
The door at the end of the hallway opened, Malcolm could hear it but couldn’t see who it was. He was very pleased to see Katie come into view.
“How you holdin’ up Dad?” she asked.
“I’m fine, just tired,” he answered. “Are you staying here or are they puttin’ you up at the Ritz-Carlton?”
“They have a sofa in a small office, I’ll sleep there,” she said with a forced smile. “There’s an officer on duty around the clock, so I’ll be fine.”
Malcom nodded and finally got up to meet his daughter at the iron bars. He was moving very slowly and had been for some time now, even before being bitten. He finally arrived at the bars and grabbed ahold of his daughter’s hands.
“You try and get some sleep,” he said. “Don’t worry about me none.”
“I do worry. Ever since you got that call from Dr. Carey.”
“Yea, I wonder what ole Doc wanted, never got a chance to see him.”
“I wish you had, I think it has something to do with you bein’ tired all the time.”
“Speaking of that, I think I’ll lie down,” he said as he patted her hand and headed back to the cot.
“I’ll see you in the morning Dad, I love you,” she said.
“You too.”
Katie Sharp backed slowly away from the cell and turned toward the door being held open by one of the military police officers. Malcolm eased himself onto the cot. He kicked off his shoes. They had given him a new shirt, replacing the bloody one he arrived in. It didn’t matter what he was wearing anyway, he would be fast asleep soon.
“I wonder what Doc Carey wanted to see me about …” he thought as he drifted off to sleep.
Captain Darnell Ellis sat in the driver’s seat of a cargo truck wondering who the hell he pissed off enough to deserve this assignment. He made a mental note not to do whatever it was again.
His current responsibility was commander of a six-team group officially known as the “Infected Retrieval and Disposal Unit”, commonly known throughout the base as the “Zombie Sweepers”. He was parked near gate four with two of his team members; Private Anson Willis and Corporal Takishiro “Tak” Sakata. He usually split the group into two three-person teams. Starting at gate one the first team moved clockwise around the base, the other counter-clockwise. They would meet somewhere around gate twelve. He felt it was a more efficient way to clean up the mess left behind by the sentries.
Typically, one person stayed with the vehicle while the other two opened the gate and removed the carcasses festering just outside the base. Today he was with the “B” team because their usual driver, Staff Sergeant Rachel McCrimmons, twisted her ankle yesterday and was a no go for today. He rotated which team he accompanied on these trips, it was a good way to keep an eye on them. Unless, like today, there was a need.
Private Willis and Corporal Sakata approached the gate carefully. They were a little bit behind schedule, the deuce and a half was not ready when they went to pick it up. They had to scramble for gas. Therefore, it was already early evening and much darker than usual. Their captain had told them to hurry it up so they could finish before nightfall.
Willis pulled a set of keys from his pocket and unlocked the gate. Moving through, they easily spotted the infected reported by the sentries earlier in the day. There were four of them scattered over a small area. The nearest of the four was slumped over a large boulder, its back toward them, arms spread out as if hugging the rock.
Private Willis moved in closer as Corporeal Sakata drew his sidearm and scanned the area for any potential trouble. Sakata nodded, indicating the coast was clear. Willis bent down and grabbed the well-dressed male infected by his shoes and started to pull him down off the rock. He stopped as there was a glint coming off the man’s right wrist that nearly blinded him. The setting sun was at the perfect angle.
He moved to see what caused the glare and noticed a beautiful Rolex watch adorning the man’s right wrist. Private Willis Grabbed the infected’s wrist and raised it up a few inches to get a better look.
“Hey Tak, look at this beauty,” he said turning around to face Sakata.
“Stop screwin’ around Will, captain says …” Corporal Sakata cut his response short as he saw the infected’s head move toward the private.
Willis felt the bite just above his right wrist before he turned back around and saw the blood gushing from his arm.
“What the fuck!” he screamed, intense pain shooting up his arm.
Sakata raised his weapon as he took a step forward to get a cleaner shot. His left boot skidded on a patch of dry dirt as the infected’s legs whipped around attempting to get on top of Private Willis. Sakata had his right leg taken out from under him as he began to fall. Using his right arm to break his fall, the weapon discharged and blew a hole through Willis’ left shoulder.
The infected had now moved on top of Private Willis and was gnawing on his neck. Willis went limp as he reached for his sidearm, trying to ignore the blood oozing from his wound. Sakata rolled over onto his back realizing that he had dropped his weapon after it discharged, he searched for his gun but his vision was blurred by the pain shooting through his right arm. It felt like it might be broken. In a moment of clarity, he realized that he needed to get to his feet before the infected moved toward him. He stole a glance in Private Wills’ direction. It was over for him.
Using his good arm, Sakata pushed himself up and was able to get to his knees. He was dizzy and slightly disoriented. Looking down on the ground he spotted his weapon and reached for it. As his hand grabbed the butt of the gun, a pair of soiled Bruno Mali dress shoes stepped on the barrel. Sakata looked up into the lifeless eyes of the infected. Sakata pulled his hand away as quickly as he could and scrambled to stand up.
The full weight of the undead crashed into him just as he got to his feet, and a few seconds later he found himself back on the ground. He struggled to push it off of him with his good arm but the infected was determined. The right arm was useless. Sakata tried using his legs to roll himself over on top of the zombie but was unable to gain traction. The stink of the infected was palpable as it leaned in and sank its teeth into Sakata’s neck. It only took a few seconds before Corporal Sakata’s body quivered a couple of times before going still.
Captain Ellis’s ears stopped ringing after only a couple of minutes. The feedback that squawked through his walkie was deafening. He was obtaining a status update from the “A” team when a piercing squeal blared through the speakers causing him to nearly drop his walkie. Unfortunately for him, it coincided with the untimely discharge from Corporal Sakata’s weapon.
He was now wondering what the hell was taking them so long to grab the bodies. His log listed only four infected reported at this gate. They were never going to finish on time at this rate. He put his clipboard down and pulled on the door handle. Jumping out of the cab, he immediately sensed something was wrong.
His men were nowhere in sight. He reached down and unsnapped his holster, removing his sidearm.
“Tak! Will!” he yelled. No answer.
As he moved alongside the truck he looked out toward the gate. It was wide open and there appeared to be bodies still lying on the ground. Exactly how many he couldn’t tell. He moved toward the gate, away from the truck.
After a few steps, he stopped. His nerves were now on high alert. He couldn’t be seeing what he was seeing. Tak and Will lying on the ground, gaping wounds covering their lifeless bodies. If he hadn’t been mesmerized by the horrific scene in front of him, he might have sensed the infected emerging from behind the truck. Unfortunately, he didn’t become aware of its presence until he felt teeth ripping the flesh of his neck.
Chapter 11
The Great Escape
Dr. Sanderson was wearing a grey t-shirt and light blue sweatpants. He appeared to be in good health and unharmed, except for a small bandage on his right forearm. He placed the fire extinguisher down on the ground and moved the metal surgical tray so it no longer separated him from, what he presumed to be, his rescuers.
“It’s good to see you, John,” he said. “Actually, it’s good to see anyone other
than that maniac Worthington.”
“I brought help,” Bannon answered back motioning toward the Major.
Dr. Sanderson extended his right arm and offered it to the Major. He took it.
“A pleasure to see you again Major,” he said.
“You as well, Doctor. I don’t mean to be rude but we must get moving, I don’t know when Worthington will be back. Have you any idea, Doctor?”
“Me? I’ve been locked down here for weeks, I think. Food and water a couple times a day, Dr. Ehrlich will stop by from time to time to check on me, that’s it. I don’t have any idea what’s going on outside these four walls,” Dr. Sanderson answered.
Major Bradley noticed the bandage and his right arm.
“You’re arm?”
The Doctor looked down at his appendage as if it had been recently attached.
“A long story, which I will gladly fill you in later. Right now, I need to grab a few things so we can get the hell out of here.”
“I’m hoping that includes a cure for this infection, Doctor,” said Major Bradley more as a statement than a question. He was glad to have located Dr. Sanderson and remove him from the clutches of Benton Worthington III, but anything short of a cure wouldn’t placate Colonel Jepson.
“We need to get to the lab,” was all the Doctor said.
They all turned around and headed back to the hallway. Private Stevens was still standing guard.
“All clear Major,” he said.
Dr. Sanderson turned left and took a few long strides stopping in front of the lab door.
“It’s open,” said Bannon.
Dr. Sanderson opened the door and nearly ran to the far corner of the room, bent down and opened a small cabinet door. He reached deep into the cabinet and extracted a bag, about the size of a typical plastic shopping bag. He closed the door and stood back up. He headed back to the door, moving past the Major and Bannon who never left the doorway.
The Zombie Principle II Page 7