Bill, Kyle, and Quinn were still sleeping as I walked to the kitchen. I tiptoed past the living room and tried to be as quiet as possible while grabbing the coffee and filter. I was in there for two minutes before I turned to see Quinn standing behind me. He smiled and said good morning, and it took every ounce of self-control to keep from kissing him.
“Why are you up so early?” He yawned.
“I couldn’t sleep.” I scooped some coffee into the filter. “You?”
“I always get up this early. Work on the ranch starts as soon as you can see.”
I clicked on the coffee pot, and it hissed to life. “We might have a problem,” I whispered.
“What kind of problem?”
“I’ll tell you about it later.”
Kyle and Bill stirred, and I went to grab some eggs out of the fridge.
After we finished, we headed downstairs to climb into the trucks. As usual, Liet waited for us, but this time he had two soldiers with him. He smiled as we approached.
“I was thinking,” he said, “that you could take Wilks and Anderson with you. Show them the ropes.”
I pursed my lips. “Where are they going to sit?”
“I figured one of them can ride with you, and the other one can ride with Bill.”
“What are Quinn and Kyle going to do?”
“They can take Quinn’s Jeep.”
“It seems a little silly to be taking so many vehicles,” I pointed out.
“Not really. One of the trucks you’re filling with supplies will be going to Florida, so when it’s full, Wilks can take it straight down there. Since Quinn will have his Jeep, he can take Bill and Kyle home. Then you’ll come here.” He folded his arms across his chest, daring us to question his authority.
I shrugged. “Whatever.”
There was no sense arguing. I had to get out of town, and being cooperative was the easiest way to ensure that. I walked to the truck. Maybe I wouldn’t come back. Maybe I’d get into Quinn’s Jeep. Liet wouldn’t know where to find me. I just had to worry about those soldiers.
Anderson climbed in next to me while Wilks and Bill climbed into the other truck and Quinn and Kyle got into the Jeep. We pulled out of North Platte and down the road. Once we were a few miles outside town, I pulled over onto the side of the road. Quinn pulled up next to me.
“Where are we going?” I called over the roar of the semi’s engine.
“Follow me.”
I nodded, and we headed to Cheyenne. We parked in front of the hospital, and Kyle and Quinn climbed into the cab of the semi.
“This has got to be the most dangerous mission yet.”
Anderson stared at Quinn. “Why?”
“Think about it. When people first started getting sick, where do you think they went?” He waited for an answer that never came. “To hospitals. Once they turned into zombies, they were trapped inside and had a free lunch. This place is going to be infested.”
I looked over my shoulder. “How do you want to do this?”
“Carefully. What exactly do we need?”
“A little bit of everything.”
“Perfect.”
Quinn removed his wrist brace and then took his Kahr TP45 out of its holster to check the magazine. He grabbed some extras out of my bag, tucking them into his belt. He sheathed the katana that was under the driver’s seat in the truck. Kyle grabbed a shotgun and a fireman’s ax, then nodded at Quinn, who looked at me. I opened my door and pulled out my gun.
Anderson stumbled out of her door, weapon drawn, and waited for instructions. The four of us slowly walked toward the building. We stopped outside the glass doors and pressed ourselves against the wall.
“What about those two?” Anderson whispered as she pointed at Bill and Wilks.
“They stay outside. Keep the trucks clear,” I whispered back, then placed my finger on my lips.
I peered around the corner into the foyer, didn’t notice any undead, so Kyle and I pushed open the doors. Darkness enveloped us as we stepped farther into the building, and the smell of alcohol, bleach, and rotting flesh permeated the area. Anderson gagged. I clicked on my flashlight and shone the beam around the room. Gurneys and chairs lined the walls, along with blood, body parts, and half-consumed corpses. I side-stepped methodically down the hall, checking every corner, underneath every gurney, and in each room.
We were about to turn the corner to head down the hall to the supply room when a shuffling sound stopped us. I signaled for everyone to press against the wall, and I peeked around the corner. An undead patient, whose hospital gown had come undone and was wrapped around his ankle, ambled down the hall. I couldn’t see any other creatures, so I assumed it was alone. Although, it only took one moan to send the others flocking. I flipped out my arm sword and waited. Sweat beaded on my forehead and some ran down my back. It took the creature forever to make it to the end of the hall. Once he finally reached my position, I swung my arm. He didn’t even know what hit him, and his head fell to the floor with a sickening crunch. We continued to the supply room.
We opened the door and were confronted with five undead. The creatures didn’t notice us, and we would have been fine and could’ve taken out the threat, but Anderson let out a small squeak of horror. They turned and let out a long moan. Quinn, Kyle, and I cursed under our breaths before opening fire.
We backed away from the supply room to the front door. Anderson led the way, running. We turned into the main hall only to find it infested with undead. We were trapped. Anderson fired wildly into the crowd. I glanced around, trying to find somewhere to go. All the rooms around us were closed, and I heard the creatures banging to get out. I fired a few shots. We probably could’ve taken out most of them, but the quarters were too tight, and Anderson kept moving into the line of fire. She shot wildly into the crowd, missing targets and wasting ammo. Quinn jumped onto a gurney and worked on removing a ceiling tile.
“Krista, c’mon.”
He grabbed my hand and pulled me up next to him. I grabbed the ceiling and hoisted myself up. Once I was secure, I reached down to help Kyle. Quinn called for Anderson, but her ammo was gone and she panicked. She ran blindly toward the nearest room. I pulled Quinn into the ceiling, watching as Anderson opened the door, only to be swarmed by more zombies. I didn’t have to keep looking to know what happened next. The three of us crawled to the front of the building and kicked out a tile over the front door. We jumped into the sun and then sprinted to our vehicles. The front door caught on a rock, and zombies streamed out of the hospital. I floored it, and we drove to safety.
When the truck stopped, Wilks flew out of his cab and jerked open my door. “Where’s Anderson?”
I shook my head. “She didn’t make it.”
“What do you mean she didn’t make it? Did you leave her there to die?”
“No.” I kept my anger in check. How could he even imagine that?
Wilks turned around and pulled on his hair with both hands, muttering, “No, no, no.”
It was odd, but everyone reacts differently. I set a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry. There wasn’t anything we could do.”
He collapsed onto the ground and cried. I turned to the other guys. They shrugged.
“I say we give it an hour, then head back to the hospital.” Quinn put his wrist brace back on. A look of pain pinched his face, but he tried to cover it up.
Wilks jumped up from the ground. “Go back? Are you insane? We’ll be eaten alive!”
Bill shook his head. “Now, Wilks, everything will be fine.”
“How is it going to be fine? Did you see how many zombies were in that place?”
Bill nodded. “I did, but think about it. Most of them came streaming out of the hospital. In an hour, they’ll have wandered to other parts of the city. The hospital will be mostly clear.”
Wilks pointed at him. “You don’t know that. How could you know that?”
“We’ve been doing this for a while,” Kyle chimed in.
&
nbsp; Wilks shook his head and pounded his fists on the side of his skull. “I don’t care. I’m not going back. You can’t make me!”
Bill placed his hands in his pockets and spit on the ground. “You’re going back, but you can wait in the truck.”
Wilks paced in a circle as he muttered incoherently.
I rolled my eyes and approached Quinn. I jerked my head to the right. “You got a minute?”
“Always.”
We went to the other side of the truck so the others couldn’t hear.
“As I’m sure you’ve deduced, Liet is trying to phase you and your people out.”
He placed his hands on his hips, a look of concern crossed his face. “Do you think he knows about us?”
“I doubt it. Besides, he was suspicious before anything happened. He just needed an excuse. I think my running away may have pushed him over the edge.”
“What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know. I’d like to attack now. We have enough guns to equip the majority of the workers in town.”
Quinn shook his head. “It won’t work. Like I told you before, even if we get rid of Liet, Florida will send someone to replace him. We have to attack simultaneously.”
I sighed. “Maybe things will change when we take Wilks back. I mean, how many soldiers do you think are going to volunteer when they find out Anderson was killed on her first time out and Wilks has turned into a raving lunatic?”
He scoffed. “I doubt they volunteered.”
“Either way, this still might work in our favor. Liet has a finite pool of humans to send out. Someone has to stay behind and watch the workers.”
“Let’s see how it works out.” He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Perhaps after we fill these trucks, you and I can spend some quality time on the ranch.”
I smiled and placed my arms around his neck. “I would enjoy that.”
He leaned forward and kissed me.
We walked back to join the others. Wilks sat on the step to the cab, rocking back and forth and staring into space. Quinn looked at Bill.
“Don’t you have a sedative you can give him?”
“I sure do.” He grabbed the first-aid kit out of the truck and handed a pill to Wilks, who took it without question.
After an hour passed, we jumped into the trucks and headed to the hospital. The sedative took effect, and Wilks lay in the sleeper cabin, watching his hands. Quinn, Kyle, and I went into the hospital. Most of the zombies had cleared out, and it didn’t take us long to fill half the truck with supplies. The few zombies that still milled around were easily taken care of. I thought about looking for Anderson’s body, thinking maybe that would help Wilks, but then I thought better of it. Wilks was already dangerously close to the edge. I didn’t need to push him over.
CHAPTER 21
We filled the truck with supplies from local pharmacies and the other truck with food without incident. After we finished, we headed toward Quinn’s ranch. There was some concern Wilks would remember the way, so Bill gave him a sleeping pill so we wouldn’t have to worry. As we pulled into the canyon, a sense of peace washed over me. I loved not having to worry about anything. Quinn and I headed into the house while the others stowed guns on the truck. I sat at the table and composed the instructions for Tanya while Quinn made us some coffee.
“How long do you think it will be before we’re ready to attack?”
He sipped his drink. “I don’t know. A couple months, at least. I want to make sure everyone is properly armed.”
I scribbled the notes on the paper. “I hope it’s sooner rather than later. I don’t know how much longer we’re going to be able to keep Liet in the dark.”
Quinn pulled a chair up next to me and sat. He leaned forward and placed his hands on my knee. “Then stay with me now. The more times you go back, the more chances he has of keeping you there.”
I placed my hands over his. “I’d love to stay here with you, but I still have a lot of work to do. Who’s going to pass out the guns? I have to go back to make sure they’re in the right hands.”
“What about Pam? She seems trustworthy.”
“I don’t know about that. I think that if it came down to it, she’d do anything to save her own butt.”
He touched my cheek. “I hate to see you have to go through all that crap with Liet.”
“It won’t be for much longer, I promise. Like you said, it should only take a few more months before we’re ready to attack. After that, I’ll follow you to the ends of the earth.” I kissed him on the tip of the nose, then finished my letter to Tanya.
As early evening fell over the ranch, Quinn and I took the horses for a ride. We came back in with the cowboys and the herd of cattle. After a light dinner, we cuddled in front of the fire. When it was time for bed, Quinn let me have his room, and he settled onto the couch. It didn’t take long for me to fall asleep. It’d been a long day.
***
A sliver of light pierced through the curtains and hit me right in the face. I slowly opened my eyes and smiled as I took in the surroundings of Quinn’s room. I extended my arms over my head and arched my back in a long stretch. When I finished, I looked at a picture of him kneeling next to a calf and smiled, then got dressed. I headed downstairs to see him in the kitchen, cooking breakfast. I walked up to him and stood next to him, my butt resting on the counter. He leaned over and gave me a quick kiss.
“How’d you sleep?”
“Great. I haven’t slept that well in months.”
“It’s the country air. It’ll do that to you.” He winked.
I wrapped my arms around his waist. “I love the fresh country air.” I kissed his chin.
The back door opened and then closed with a bang, and I quickly released Quinn. I glanced up. It was Kyle, and he smiled at us knowingly. He continued through to the living room.
“Hey, what happened to Wilks?”
Quinn nodded toward the couch. “He woke up about midnight, freaking out because he didn’t know where he was and screaming about zombies. I’m surprised you didn’t hear him. Bill gave him another sedative and sleeping pill. He’s awake now, but he’s not all there.”
I walked to the couch. Wilks stared at the ceiling and mumbled about zombies under his breath. I took a seat in the chair across from him. I’d been around a lot of people, and everyone reacted to the undead differently, but I’d never seen anyone freak out as badly as Wilks. Fear was a powerful emotion, and it had the power to drive someone insane, but it usually took more than one incident.
Maybe there was something there before. Maybe that was why Liet chose him for this particular mission. Whatever the case was, he wasn’t going to be able to take the truck to Florida. He was useless, and Liet hated that more than anything in the world.
“What do you want to do with him?”
“I don’t know. If we leave him here, we risk the possibility that Liet will accuse us of killing them both and sentence us to death. If we take him back, we run the risk of Liet killing him for not carrying out his orders. He won’t be good to anyone, no matter where we take him.”
Quinn folded his arms across his chest. “He might snap out of it eventually.” He stared at him for a minute. “Why don’t we take him back, and if Liet threatens to reprimand him, I’ll intervene and bring him back here. Either way, he’ll be out of Liet’s hair.”
“You can try. I can’t guarantee it’ll work for you.”
“Let’s worry about that later. C’mon, let’s eat.”
After breakfast, we got into the trucks and headed to North Platte. When we were a few miles from the gate, I had a revelation. I turned to Quinn.
“I think I have an idea of how we can save Wilks and make it so I’ll be able to continue going with you.”
The right side of his mouth pulled into a smile. “Yeah? What is it?”
“You’ll see. I want you to wait at the truck. If things work the way I’m hoping they will, we’ll be going back
out soon.”
“I hope so.”
***
I stormed into Liet’s office and threw the doors open with force. A woman sat on his lap, and he pushed her to the side as I entered the room.
“What were you thinking?” I yelled. I didn’t wait for an answer. “Do you think it’s some kind of joke to send me out with rookies?”
He pushed his eyebrows together. “What are you talking about?”
“Anderson and Wilks.”
“Oh, yeah. What happened to them?”
“What happened to them? You want to know what happened to them?” I placed my left hand on my hip and pointed at him. “Let me tell you what happened. The first sign of zombies, they flipped out. Anderson got killed, and Wilks is a raving lunatic. If you want me to be safe out there, you have to give me people who know what they’re doing. Are you trying to get me killed?”
Liet stood and held his hands out to his sides in defense. “Of course not. I just thought—”
“What? That you were being helpful? It’s a good thing Quinn and Kyle were close or we’d have been in a lot of trouble.”
“Look, I’m sorry. I just wanted—”
“Sorry isn’t going to bring Anderson back. How do you expect them to get supplies if they can’t even stay alive?”
“I expect them to do the same thing you do.” His tone changed from apologetic to harsh. It caught me slightly off guard, but I couldn’t lose my edge.
“Well, it obviously didn’t work.”
Liet placed his hands on his hips. “And why is that? Why is it you’re the only one who seems to have the skills to survive in the West?”
I hesitated. Why did I survive? I wasn’t any more skilled than the two soldiers who’d gone out. We all trained the same. I wasn’t as afraid as the other two. That was obvious, although I was when I first went out. It was luck. That was the only thing that could explain it, but I couldn’t tell that to Liet.
“Because I have something to come back to.” It was the first thing that popped out of my mouth.
Life After The Undead Omnibus [Books 1-2] Page 20