by Gary Hickman
Priest was exhausted, in pain and couldn’t hold himself up. He heard more voices outside the door, so he crawled over to Brody’s lifeless body and took his pistol. He used the wall to prop himself against and stood up with great difficulty. He stumbled to the door and cracked it, looking out into the hallway. His sight wasn’t the best, but his ears were as sharp as ever. Minus the slight ringing from the earlier grenade blast. He could hear footsteps coming toward him from down the hallway. Three men ran by the door. Priest leaned against the doorjamb with his should and unloaded on each of them. All three dropped to floor, dead. Immediately, Priest heard footsteps echoing from the opposite end of the hallway, coming toward him.
As the footsteps came closer, Priest threw open the door and stumbled out as fast as he could, holding the pistol up as high as his broken body would allow him. A large figure raised its rifle, but then stopped. Priest and Shaw were facing each other standing within 20 feet. Priest recognized him instantly, but it took Shaw a couple of seconds for things to register.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” Shaw thundered. Priest, recognizing his friend, had all the strength rush out of him and his legs gave way. He dropped to his knees, and the pistol fell out of his hand and clattered against the wall. Shaw ran over and caught Priest before his face bounced off the floor.
Webb appeared behind Shaw. “Oh my God,” is all he could say.
Shaw was in tears, “Mother fuckers, what did they do to you?” Shaw was holding Priest up looking at him.
Priest raised his head and spoke in a raspy voice, just barely above a whisper, “H-H-Hey, big man. It’s-It’s that really you?” Priest had tears in his eyes, which were basically shut now from the swelling.
“Yeah, it’s me, Alec. I’m here, man, I’m here. Shaw was holding Priest’s broken body.
Shaw heard Priest whisper something else, “I-I almost g-g-gave up back there. C-C-Couldn’t t-take anymore.”
Shaw hugged Priest and was sobbing now. “Don’t worry, brother, we are going to take care of you. We got you, we got you. These fuckers are gonna pay…. as God is my witness, they are gonna fucking pay!”
Priest weakly tapped Shaw on his shoulder and lifted his head higher with great effort and croaked out, “T- T- That you Cap?”
“Yeah, it’s me, Alec.”
“G-good to see you too, Mar… Marcusss,” Priest passed out and went limp.
Webb was trying to stem the flow of tears as well. “Love you too, brother. We’re getting you out of here, right fucking now!” Webb hit the radio, “We found Priest and we are exfiling out the rear. Give me a sitrep.”
“The rest of the locals in the facility are dead. I can’t be sure, but I think a few escaped out the side window. We were engaged already, but Neville could take one out. We were going around there to confirm. We’ll meet you at the Jeep,” Doc responded.
“Copy that.” Webb nodded at Shaw, who was carrying Priest. They just arrived at the Jeep when Neville and Doc came around the corner. Shaw was putting Priest in the passenger seat.
“Jesus, Mother Mary and Joseph,” Doc said as he made the sign of the cross.
Priest moaned something inaudible.
Webb motioned to them to get in. “We’re going, Alec. Just hold on.”
Shaw drove like a madman, getting the team back to the facility. Shaw and Webb along with Doc rushed Priest to the infirmary and left Neville to get the gear and clean up all the blood.
They burst into the infirmary, which startled Lia, who was resting her leg a couple of beds away. They rushed in and laid Priest down on one bed.
Lia looked at them in horror, “That can’t be!” She trailed off. Webb looked back at her and nodded his head. She let out a cry and was struggling to get out of bed. Izzy came rushing in from another door.
“Lia, be still and rest that leg.”
Lia was yelling, “Get me over there. Get me to Alec!” Izzy looked over and saw a bloody mess.
“Oh dear God,” she gasped. “What did they do to him?” She was still staring when Lia’s yelling snapped her out of her shock.
“Get me over there, damnit!” Izzy grabbed a wheelchair and lifted one of the leg braces. She helped Lia in and wheeled her over.
Lia grabbed Priest’s bloody hand, “Alec, it’s Lia and I’m right here, I’m right here, baby.” She was in tears, but was trying not to lose it. That isn’t what Alec needed right now.
Izzy wedged herself in, and she and Doc worked on him. She told Webb and Shaw to leave because they were getting in the way. She knew better than to tell Lia to move.
Shaw and Webb moved out into the hallway. Shaw was still in tears and was looking up at the ceiling with his hands folded on the back of his head. He was taking deep breaths. Webb was bent over at the waist with his hands on his knees. They heard footsteps running toward them and looked up to see Allison running toward them.
She ran to Shaw and was about to hug him, but stopped. She looked at him up and down with shock on her face. Shaw cocked his head and looked at her strangely, then realized why she stopped. He looked down, and he was covered in blood.
He looked at Allison with tears streaming down his face, “It’s Alec’s,” was all he said. Allison put her hand to her mouth. She rushed in and hugged him, anyway. Shaw paused for a second and then hugged her back.
Izzy came out. “It’s going to be awhile. You guys should go clean up. You’re not going back in there with all the germs and dirt, anyway. Go, go. We will take care of him and we will let you know how he is doing.” The three paused for a couple of seconds and then left to go to their dorm rooms.
CHAPTER 44
Shaw stripped off his clothes and sat back on the bed in his underwear. He felt a wave of emotion sweep over him. Thinking back to Yemen and when they pulled Priest out of that terrorist compound. He wasn’t in as awful shape as he was now. Priest had sacrificed himself back then. He always took the hit for his men, but this shit needed to stop. He shook his head, got up and went to the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror. He thought to himself, this is all he had left. This was his family, and he was going to hold on to it no matter what.
Once Priest was better, if he gets better. He raged and smashed his fist against the wall. He WILL get better and we’re going to cut this shit out right now. He walked over and started the shower. He adjusted as hot as he could stand it, stripped off his underwear and got in.
The scalding water felt like magic running over his body. He was a machine, but machines break down once in a while. His sore muscles needed this. As he let the water flow over his back, he heard a noise. The steam from hot water covered the glass and he couldn’t see out. He thought he saw the outline of a figure, so he opened the shower door. Allison was standing there, still wearing the bloody clothes, tears streaming down her face. He looked at her, but said nothing. He reached out his hand to her, which she grabbed with both of hers and gave it a squeeze. She let go of it and then undressed. Shaw watched her, but his expression was one of understanding but also of need. She finished removing her clothes and joined him in the shower. The steam surrounded them as they embraced.
Webb had gotten out of the shower when Izzy walked in. She looked disheveled and completely exhausted. She looked up at him and tears started flowing when she saw him. He went to hug her, knowing what she had just seen. She held on to him tightly and he could feel her body shake as she sobbed.
“I have seen nothing like that before. I can’t imagine how much pain he must have been in.” Webb said nothing, but just held her until she stopped crying. She pulled back from him and wiped her eyes.
“Marcus, it was horrible. Once we got him cleaned up and saw the extent of damage,” she shook her head, “it
was like nothing I have ever seen. The amount of damage Alec took was astonishing. We also took x-rays and looked at his bone structure too.” She shook her head again. “I can’t even fathom the amount of pain he was in. I know I keep repeating that, but my God.”
Webb looked at her, “Do I really want to know?”
“Probably not, but I’ll tell you.”
“Yeah, I need to know.”
“Okay, he was severely dehydrated and had multiple deep lacerations all over his body. It took 128 staples, 38 stitches, and three tubes of surgical glue to close. He has a concussion, along with a fractured skull and a broken left orbital bone. Luckily, he didn’t lose an eye with the damage and swelling involved. Most of his ribs were broken, he had a punctured left lung, lacerated spleen, bruised kidneys, and fractured left collar bone. His knee joints were swollen and bruised like someone was stomping on them.” Izzy stopped and shivered like a frigid breeze just blew across her. Webb just stood there in silence. He knew she was severely affected, and that it was hard seeing someone you cared about in that state.
Webb’s face had a wave of concern flow across it, “We need to quit taking risks like that. We are all we have left. This is our family and we need to protect what we have.” She looked and him with what seemed like relief in her face. Izzy got up and kissed him and went to take a shower.
She stopped and turned around, “We put him in a medically induced coma while he heals. He is not in pain right now. That’s all we can do for him. The rest is up to Alec.”
Webb nodded and put on his clothes. He was making his way toward the infirmary and almost ran into Shaw coming around the corner.
“Whoa, sorry, Captain.”
“No problem, Shaw. Heading to the infirmary?”
“Yeah, I need to see him.”
“Me too.”
They both walked together in silence and entered the infirmary. Priest was lying in bed with multiple wires and tubes. A ventilator machine pumped to help keep his lung inflated. Tons of tubes and wires, monitoring this, measuring that. Lia was there next to his bed, sitting in her wheelchair. She had Priest’s hand clasped between both of hers.
Both Shaw and Webb walked over and kissed her on the top of her head. They glanced up to look at Priest, and he was completely unrecognizable. With all the swelling and bruising, it was tough to make out who it was.
Lia spoke up, “They hurt him, hurt him bad. Fucking human beings…..not even those infected psychos out there, but fucking human beings.” She had tears in her eyes, but there was rage shining in them as well. Lia looked up at Shaw, “They all need to die! Every fucking one of them!”
Shaw just nodded his head with his jaw clinched and this seemed to be all the answer Lia needed. She rotated her head back to look at Priest.
Webb didn’t protest either. The rules had changed, and this was a new reality. The law of reason and negotiation were out the window. They were following their own rules now. Like everyone had been saying, including him. This group, this unit, this family were all that mattered now. Anyone trying to break this family apart or trying to destroy it will pay the price. This was something Webb swore to.
He reached down and put a hand on Lia’s shoulder, “Do you need a break? I can watch over him.” She shook her head no, and he left it at that. Just then the door opened and Doc, along with Neville, walked in. They had cleaned up and came to check on Priest. They all hugged each other.
Shaw looked at Doc with big, wet eyes, “Thanks for patching him up, Doc.”
He smiled, “I did what I could, but I am afraid most of the credit should go to Izzy. Some of this stuff was beyond my expertise. Izzy is a little more advanced than she lets on.”
Shaw took a deep breath, “How long, Doc?”
“Well, he stays in the coma for another three days, then he will be left to wake on his own. He will be the gauge to measure progress based on his pain and what he can tolerate. He will have to work out and do physical therapy, but if I was to take a guess, I would say at least three months. That also was based on his work out level, so he can’t overdo it either.”
“Don’t worry. We will put Lia on his ass and she will straighten him up,” Neville replied.
After some time to joke and talk with each other, the team went to their load out room. They all assembled and looked at each other solemnly.
Webb addressed them, “Great job getting Priest out of there. What we need to discuss is where do we go from here? I want to hear about where your heads are.” He turned to the Big Man, “Shaw.”
Shaw thought for a second, “I want these fuckers dead. I don’t know how many got away, but I want these fuckers dead!” He took a breath, “I know we have no idea where they are but I can’t get past it. As far as us here, this is my family and I will protect what we have here with my life.”
Webb nodded, “Doc?”
“Cap, I have seen nothing like the shape I just saw Priest in. I’m with Shaw, based on that. We need to hunt these scumbags down and eliminate them. I also feel the same way about us. This is our brotherhood and all that matters right now.”
“Ok, Doc. What about you, Neville?”
“Seeing Sarge like that has started a rage in me I have never felt before. I want these sum bitches dead. As far as all those here, Bethany and I are getting along great and I want to protect that.” Webb nodded again.
“What about you, Cap? Where are you at?” Shaw asked.
Webb looked around the room at his team, “I’m not going to lie. Izzy and I have a good thing going, and I don’t want to jeopardize that. I will protect that and everyone here with everything in me. I’m also with you guys in hunting these pieces of shit down. What we need to consider is whether we have a larger obligation to reconnect with the rest of the world. If there is a world left, that is. Do we have a more important obligation to find out if any more of these CDC facilities are functional? Are there any remnants of government left? Are there any remaining military bases still operating? That is something we need to take into consideration.” The room fell silent as they pondered Webb’s words.
Neville spoke up, “I think we eventually need to investigate the possibility of other entities existing in the country. I think we need to get our house in order and take care of our backyard, as my momma used to say.”
Webb took a deep breath, “Okay, so it looks like we are all in agreement. This is my proposal; 1I) We fortify this facility with more deterrent measures. Maybe get some cameras strategically installed. Give us some eyes around the town and on the highway entrances into the town. We could use the cable tv grid to transport the signal over long distances. We’ll just have to remove the additional splitters so no one can just turn on their TV and see the camera feeds. 2) We need to conduct surveillance a couple times a week during the day to make sure we don’t get surprised by any infected. We will also run a few night recons to see if we can locate those fucks who jacked up Priest. 3) Once Priest recovers and is back in commission, we will see about mapping out locations to evaluate viable locations of survivors. This will also include locating facilities for gear, food, medicine, etc. 4) We will build or expand our ability to communicate. See if we can connect with others at great distances. Oh, one other thing we need to address. I don’t know how long the electrical grid is going to stay up. I know we have the solar farm and generators. We need to do some calculations on power consumption versus power generated.”
“Wow, that was a mouthful,” Doc joked.
CHAPTER 45
Priest was in an induced coma for a few more days, before Izzy removed the medication from his IV. Lia asked her when he would wake up, but Izzy said it was unpredictable.
“It could be hours. It could be da
ys.” She patted Lia on the shoulder and started to leave the room.
Izzy turned back and looked at Lia, “We need to get you up on those crutches and work that leg. You could really use a break right now. Come on and we’ll get some coffee. Get you started on those crutches.”
Lia nodded and looked down at Priest. The swelling in his face had gone down, and she could see that his eyes were closed. It had been days since she could actually see he had eyes. The swelling had been so bad, she knew it would have been extremely uncomfortable if he was awake. She had been talking to him for the past couple of days, hoping he could hear her. She would talk some, read to him and had the guys come in to have conversations around him.
She sighed and grabbed the crutches off of the wall. She followed Izzy out the door.
Sometime later, Lia came back into Priest’s room. It had felt good to move around some after sitting by his bedside for so long. Hobbling over to the side of his bed, she turned to set the crutches back against the wall.
“Damn, your ass looks good even on crutches,” Priest croaked out in a dry, raspy whisper. She snapped her head around to look at Priest. His eyes were open, and he had a slight smile on his face.
“Alec! You’re awake, you’re awake!” She spun around and grabbed him in a hug.
“Ow,” he said.
“Oh, shit, sorry. Sorry.” Her eyes welled up with tears. “It’s so good to hear your voice.”
“Waking up and seeing your face was what I hoped for,” he breathed.
She stood over him and put her hands on the sides of his face, “We thought we were going to lose you. I love you, Alec Priest. I sat here thinking about how I don’t know if I could go on without you.”
“You won’t have to. They could take the grizzly down, but they couldn’t take him out.” She kissed him on his forehead. “For the record, I love you too, Lia.”