by Russ Watts
The walls stopped shaking, but Suzy’s hands did not. She had no weapon anymore, no gun, no knife, nothing. The Deathless were still below them, waiting for the floor to give way completely, and offer them up fresh meat. Suzy carefully stood. “We need to get out of here.”
Kelly barged into the door at the end of the corridor feeling sick and it blew wide open. She rushed out onto the rooftop and was dazzled by the sunlight. The oppressive heat struck her and she tried to take everything in. The sight that confronted her threatened to overwhelm her senses and she found herself holding her breath as her mind reeled. It was like doomsday and at first, she missed sight of the soldiers and helicopter.
A plume of smoke was billowing out as the tall block of flats opposite crumbled. Each floor collapsed onto the one beneath as if it was made of cards. Glass fanned out in all directions and a tumultuous fire raged on the ground. Further afield, she could see other skyscrapers in the city doing the same, falling like a stack of dominos. Massive clouds of black smoke were drifting up into the sky and it felt like the world was imploding.
She saw two soldiers sitting in the cockpit of the helicopter and the blades were speeding up. They were clearly getting ready to take off. Three bodies lay in the middle of the roof. Their bodies were riddled with bullets and bright red blood lay pooling around them. There was one soldier looking over the side of the building, down into the yard, shaking his head. Another man wearing an orange jumpsuit was on his knees sobbing. A soldier was standing behind him, holding a gun to the back of his head. The soldier looked up in surprise as Kelly burst through the door.
“Who are…”
The soldier failed to finish his sentence as Kelly fired her last bullet into the soldier’s head. She raced past the prisoner and reached the other soldier who turned just in time to find himself staring down the barrel of Kelly’s raised gun.
“What the fuck are you?” asked the soldier as he tried to raise his rifle.
Kelly smashed her gun onto the bridge of the soldier’s nose and he crumpled to his knees, blood pouring between his fingers.
“Shut the fuck up,” shouted Kelly. She grabbed the soldier’s collar and pointed her empty gun at the back of his head. The soldier began whining and pleading for mercy, but Kelly ignored him. “You in the helicopter - put your hands up, now!” she shouted.
Mark had witnessed what Kelly had done and he was impressed. She had taken charge of the situation quickly. There had been no hesitation and she hadn’t waited to see how things developed. She was a natural leader and Mark felt his confidence growing. He ran over to the prisoner and prised the gun from the dead soldier’s hand who was lying on the rooftop. The prisoner looked up at Mark.
“Thank you, thank you. They just shot them all. Oh, sweet Lord, thank you.”
Mark smiled casually at the man and then walked over to the helicopter, holding the rifle out in front of him and training it on the pilot. He could see the shock on the soldier’s faces. Finally, they had the upper hand. Mark watched as Suzy walked over to the man in the jumpsuit and helped him to his feet. It was his lucky day.
Responding to Kelly’s demands and seeing their colleague held at gunpoint, the two soldiers raised their hands. Mark went over to them and pulled open the cockpit door.
“Afternoon, gents. Fancy taking us for a spin?” Mark said, pointing the rifle at the pilot’s face.
“Who are you? What the hell do you think you’re doing?” asked the pilot. “You just shot Sergeant Brooks. We’re U.S. soldiers, you can’t do this.”
“It’s done. Just hand over your weapons and do it slowly. I would hate to have to fill you full of lead.”
Mark waited as the two men slowly unholstered their weapons and threw them out onto the roof. Mark picked up the magnum the co-pilot had discarded and swapped it for his rifle. It was much easier to hold and was more practical. Even though the soldiers were unarmed now, he didn’t trust them not to try something. Satisfied they were of little threat now they had no guns, Mark called Kelly and Suzy over. Kelly came dragging the bleeding Sergeant Brooks with her, whilst Suzy brought the chained prisoner. Mark hopped into the back of the helicopter, keeping the gun trained on the co-pilot at all times.
“Right, here’s what’s going to happen,” said Kelly talking to the pilot. She stood outside the chopper, her gun still pointed at the Sergeant. She asked Suzy to pick up the soldier’s discarded guns up whilst she spoke. “You’re going to take us out of here, back to your base. All of us. No questions, no radio contact with anyone, just fly. Got that?”
“Don’t do it,” said Brooks, “Remember what Warwick told us? Nothing ever gets off this island. They’re infected. They’re...”
Kelly smashed the butt of the gun down on his already broken nose and he screamed out in pain as more blood spurted from his face. “You fucking bitch,” yelled Brooks.
“Okay, okay,” said the pilot. “Just get in and...”
A deep rumble interrupted him and then the violent shaking started again as a huge aftershock tore through the city, threatening to bring down any buildings that were still standing. As Kelly struggled to remain standing, Brooks seized his chance and pushed her over. He grabbed a rifle from the floor and pointed it at Kelly.
Brooks leered at her from the shaking roof. “There’s no way I’m letting you off this island. We’ve never returned to base with anyone and I’m not starting now. You’re dead, you hear me, dead.”
A single shot rang out and Kelly stumbled backwards. She looked down at her chest, looking for the blood. She hadn’t felt any pain, but knew he couldn’t have missed from that range. She frowned as she patted herself down, unable to find any blood or wound.
Brooks’ body keeled over, dead, and behind him stood Suzy. She lowered the gun she had picked up and calmly walked over to Kelly. “You wanted this?”
Suzy walked back to the surprised prisoner and hustled him into the back of the chopper, before settling inside herself.
Kelly raised the gun at the pilot “Any questions?”
“No. I’ll take us up now.” The pilot was pale and wanted off the roof as badly as anyone. The helicopter was trembling as the roof shook.
Kelly clambered in behind the pilots and sat down next to Mark. Her stomach lurched as the roof started to give way and the embassy succumbed to the immense aftershock. A corner of the roof gave way, bricks and masonry shattering in the yard below. A deep crack ran across the whole of the roof.
Kelly watched as a segment of the embassy disappeared into the ground, swallowed up by flames that danced in the sunlight.
“Get us up now!”
As the roof collapsed, the helicopter glided up into the air, rising faster than the billowing smoke chasing it. The pilot took them up swiftly, away from the destroyed city and the Deathless. Away from The Grave.
* * *
When they were safely out above the ocean, well away from the island, Kelly reached over and gave Mark a hug. “Thank you,” she whispered in his ear. He had saved her from Roach. She was surprised at herself. She had thought little of Mark at the beginning of the expedition, but he had come through for her when it had mattered. He was only a year or two younger than she was and she found herself looking up at him as he looked at the cockpit. His short blond hair made him appear younger than he really was. He hadn’t pushed her away so she stayed there, nestled in the curve of his neck and shoulder.
Mark let Kelly rest on his shoulder and said nothing. He knew what they had all gone through in escaping The Grave. They had all played their part. It was a relief to be able to sit down and not have to look over your shoulder. They stayed that way for a couple of hours, not talking, not even noticing the time, but just letting the pilot take them back to civilisation. Mark turned to check on Suzy in the back a couple of times, but she was fine. Quiet, but fine.
Mark knew that now they were clear of the island, they had one more mission. They had to make sure someone knew where they were. If they got pulled i
n by the military, they would disappear just as Roach had. He kept his gun trained on the co-pilot and made sure nobody tried to signal or radio base.
“Hey, does one of you have a mobile?” Mark prodded the co-pilot with his gun and heard a grunting as the man bent down. A moment later and a mobile appeared. Mark took it and handed his gun to Kelly. “Keep an eye on them for me?”
As Kelly reluctantly pulled herself away from Mark and took the gun, he pulled the memory card from his pocket and examined the mobile. “Perfect,” he muttered.
Kelly watched as he ejected the phone’s memory card and slid in his own. He turned the phone on and quickly found the images file. Kelly saw a smile spread across his face and she saw brief images flash up on the mobile’s screen: the mob at Judgeford, a smiling Will holding the Weta, Roach on the road into the city and more. She watched as he began typing in an email address to send them.
“What are you doing?” asked the pilot. “You can’t communicate with anyone without official permission. You’re got a lot of questions to answer. Let us get you back to base and...”
Kelly pressed the muzzle of the gun into the back of his neck. “Stop talking, fly-boy. We’re not the ones who have to answer to what’s happening. You’re finished and you know it.”
“Shit,” said the pilot to his co-pilot. “Commander Warwick is not going to like this.”
Kelly chuckled, not caring about Sergeants, Commanders, or anything these men had to say. She saw Mark holding the phone aloft and the screen flashed up a message:
EMAILS SENT SUCCESSFULLY
“My boss has everything now. I copied in my flatmate and some buddies too, so we’re covered. I sent a few words about what had happened. You want to call anyone?” Mark held the phone out to her.
Kelly looked at it. She couldn’t think of anyone she wanted to call right now and shook her head. “I don’t really feel like talking to anyone at the moment. Can you just text Freddie Taylor? I’ll give you the number. He’s the Director at the museum back in New York. Just let him know that I’m alive. Just tell him I’ll update him when we land.” She prodded the pilot again. “Where are we heading?”
“USS Enterprise, South Pacific. We’ll be there in approximately thirty minutes now.”
Kelly gave Mark the number and waited for him to send the text.
“You know, I’m just going to call and make sure he spreads the word. I don’t want to go missing again.” Mark called his boss back in New York and spent a few minutes explaining where they were, what had happened, and where they were heading. He made sure to ask him to contact Freddie Taylor at the Museum of Natural History too.
“Our story is going to be all over the front page tomorrow,” said Mark as he tucked the phone away in his pocket. “Apparently, we were missing, presumed dead. Our plane came down somewhere over the ocean. My boss was about to run an obituary for me. Can you believe that?”
Kelly was pensive and wanted to relax, but she still couldn’t find it in her to relax just yet. “You think Suzy’s all right back there? She’s been awfully quiet. I should go check on her.”
Mark pulled back the khaki curtain separating the fore of the helicopter from the rear. The prisoner was curled up on the floor, hands still bound. Suzy was sitting, looking out of the window with the gun cradled in her lap. Her look was distant, as if she was thinking about something else and not seated in reality.
Mark looked at the gun in Kelly’s hand. It was trembling. He decided it might be best if he went to Suzy. “I’ll go.” He went back and crouched down beside Suzy, resting a hand on her arm.
Suzy looked at him, withdrawing it quickly. “What?” she said coldly.
“I just wanted to make sure you’re okay? We both did. Kelly’s worried about you. We’ll be at the base soon and there’s going to be a million questions to answer. I’ve sent some emails and texts though, so we’ll be fine. They know we’re coming home now. Did you want to call anyone?”
“We’ll be fine?” Suzy snorted. “It’s a bit late for fine, Mark. No, I don’t need to call anyone. I’ll deal with it when we’re back in New York. I heard you talking up there. Look at us. We’re covered in blood. We’ve hardly eaten for three days. People are dead. Our friends are dead. No offence, it’s not you I‘m angry with. I want to make damn sure the world knows what’s going on. After all that’s happened...I have no idea if anyone even knows about us or if it’s been covered up like everything else. We were left to die, Mark. Just left...three days ago we were headed on a scientific journey and now only three of us are still alive. Only three of us are going home. I am so not fine.”
Mark was taken aback. He had half-expected Suzy to cry or to clam up, but not this. “Well look, we’re in this together now. Kelly is...”
“Kelly can go fuck herself,” said Suzy. “She left him behind. Will, Claire, Rasmus...all of them. Will was...oh what does it matter now? Once this nightmare is over, I’m done. I quit. I don’t want anything to do with her again.” She stared out of the window as Mark got up.
Mark waited silently, but Suzy said nothing more. “Whatever happens, Suzy, if you need anything, you can count on me.”
Unable to say anything else, Mark returned to his seat. As he sat down beside Kelly, he saw her wipe a tear away. “Kelly, I...”
Kelly waved Mark away, embarrassed. “Don’t, Mark, just don’t. I heard. Just don’t.”
Mark took her hand and held it tightly. He brushed her dark brown hair behind her ear and wiped away another tear rolling down her cheek. They looked at each other, their eyes saying everything.
They all sat silently for the rest of the journey, waiting for the ship to appear. Twenty minutes later, the helicopter began its descent to the USS Enterprise. At first, it was just a dark speck in the ocean until it revealed itself as a colossal ship, its deck full of sailors and fighter jets. The pilots finally radioed ahead that they were landing and had unexpected guests. The days ahead were going to be revealing for everyone.
EPILOGUE
“Look, I think I’ve said all I can say on the matter. With the Senate hearing soon, it would be wrong of me to say more at this stage. The pictures you’ve seen printed in the papers over the last twenty-four hours are amazing, disturbing and undoubtedly warrant further investigation. You know as much as I do about Franklin Roach. However, they are not evidence of some cover up. I mean, come on, guys. This isn’t Roswell.”
The reporters chuckled nervously in the White House media room as Agnew attempted to wrap things up. None of them believed a word he said, but they all knew better than to question him. The seasoned reporters, both sitting and standing in the crowded room, knew you would only get honest information from sources. They were preparing President Agnew’s obituary before he’d finished his speech.
“I think we should finish up now, sir,” said Verity Dawson, leaning over and whispering into Agnew’s ear.
Agnew stood tall over the podium and looked out over the microphones and cameras. “Gentlemen, I know we’ve had some banter and we joke about things, but the truth is that people have lost their lives. All this conspiracy talk is insulting to the families and the memories of those who unfortunately died in that plane crash. I am going to do all I can to support the museum in its hour of need, as I’m sure we all will. My wife and I have invited the Associate director, Kelly Munroe, and Suzy Collins up to the White House for dinner tonight, so that we can personally assure them of our support.
“Now before I go, don’t forget the memorial in San Francisco Bay on Sunday. See you all there.”
Verity took the stage and President Agnew exited swiftly before any more questions were fired at him. He knew he had handled it well, but questions were starting to be asked from the Senate. It was easy to deflect the reporters away, but he was coming under intense pressure in Washington. Commander Warwick should have taken care of it as soon as he knew those people on The Grave had survived. This was not how it was supposed to have gone down. Warwick had let t
hose damn photos of Roach out and now they were splashed across every broadsheet in the country. Agnew was not impressed at being left to clear up the whole sorry mess. As he walked back to the Oval Office, flanked by his security, he squeezed the bridge of his nose. With the ridiculous service for the Golden Gate bombings coming up, he was already under enough pressure.
“Migraine, sir?” Mr White strolled alongside Agnew, always at his side, always looking out for him, and impeccably dressed of course.
“Almost,” said Agnew sighing. “Those goddamn fuckers, who do they think they are? My goddamn wife has invited them over for dinner tonight too. The journalist Mark something-or-other, the one responsible for those photographs? He’s too busy apparently. Too busy to meet the President? He’s too busy being an asshole. The other two, well I’d just as soon bury them as share dinner with them. They are going be a major problem, White, a major problem.”
White opened the Oval office door as Agnew stormed through. The other security guards took up their usual positions outside.
“What do you want to do about them?” asked White. He took a seat on a decorative armchair beside Agnew’s desk. “The photos are damaging enough, but if they testify, it’s going to be hard to sweep that under the rug. We could take care of them. I could take good care of them. You know next year is a re-election year. The opposition will pounce on any weaknesses.”
Agnew swivelled his plush, black leather chair around to face White. He rubbed his eyes, looking pale and tired. He knew it, but there was so much to be done. “Not this time, White. They’re too high profile and it would look a little too convenient. Rubbing them out would only make things look more suspicious. I’m heading over to meet them now. I think a little sweetness might be in order. The museum has been crying out for funding for years now. Sophie attended their last fundraiser a few weeks back and they need another five million this year alone. I think if Dr Munroe were to find her fundraising days over, she might be more receptive to forgetting about The Grave, don’t you?”