The Gristle & Bone Series (Book 1): The Flayed & The Dying

by Roach, Aaron

  “But that’s not important right now. Right now, what’s important is stopping the rest of the pathogen from being released. Remember, the stoneman pathogen was designed to be mixed, pressurized, and released through those vats all together. The fact that not all three were released suggests that something interrupted that process and that there is more of the compound, just sitting in that lab, primed and ready to go. Anything could set them off.”

  “Like a bomb dropped from the sky,” Sharpe said, grimacing as he began to understand.

  Francesca nodded.

  “Boss, I think it’s happening.” Maldonado called from across the room. “Hyres…he’s changing.”

  -76-

  Gabe and the others watched the death of Ibex-Face at the hands of the elk-horned newcomer with a mixture of awe and fear. When the beast pulled the corpse of Ibex-Face through its antlers, rendering the skeletal in two, Gabe ordered his men to cease firing. Their bullets were doing little to no damage to the creature, and there was no point in wasting limited ammunition.

  Now that the battle was over, Gabe realized he and his men were exposed high in the trees in enemy territory. Elk-Horns had won and had turned his eyeless gaze up at Gabe and his small party hiding among the leaves. Behind Elk-Horns, hundreds of skeletals and thousands of groaners were emerging from the trees to stand behind their master. They too became still and turned their skulls up towards them.

  “We have to go, Gabe,” Bishop whispered from the branch next to him.

  But Gabe knew it was a lost cause. Even if they did manage to make it down from the trees before the creatures charged, there was no way they could elude them through the forest without being run down.

  “Better we stay up here and fight, boys,” said Gabe with a sigh. “At least up here we have the high ground.”

  “But the bastards can climb,” said one of the others.

  Gabe shrugged. “Don’t let them.”

  From the clearing, Elk-Horns roared across the distance. Gabe, without any other options, roared back.

  Elk-Horns snorted dismissively and turned its back to them, walking through the dead crowd which parted to let it pass. It disappeared into the trees bordering the clearing, heading north in the opposite direction. A moment later, it was followed by its army of skeletals and groaners, who faded into the brush without looking back.

  “Did…did you scare it off?” asked Bishop into the quiet, his expression one of relief and confusion.

  Gabe didn’t answer. He stared at the forest where the dead had disappeared, expecting a trick. But nothing came save the whisper of the wind that rustled the leaves around them.

  “Let’s go,” said Gabe after several minutes. “I think it safe.”

  Gabe and the men were glad to be heading home. They trekked through the woods, pushing through cobwebs and past branches, chatting excitedly about what they had seen and happy for having come out of it alive. Then they heard it - a crackling roar overhead. They jerked their rifles to the sky, expecting to see Elk-Horns dropping through the branches to ambush them. What they saw instead was a canopy of leaves and an overcast sky beyond.

  Then a flash of lightning.

  Gabe didn’t waste any time. “Run!” he shouted.

  The men sprinted, jumping over logs and tripping over fallen branches hidden in the dead foliage. At one point their path took them past a startled wild pig, which bolted into the dense underbrush. Bishop stopped to take a shot at the animal, but Gabe yanked him by the shoulder, “No time!” he shouted, and so they continued running.

  They urged themselves to move faster than they thought their legs could carry them and their lungs felt like fire despite the air growing colder as the pressure dropped. Around them, they heard light tapping as the surrounding foliage was struck with the first falling drops. They pushed forward, faster – they were almost there.

  They burst through the trees and emerged on the western slope of the mountain, near the spot where Ibex-Face had killed Andy. “Don’t stop!” Gabe shouted over his shoulder. The men ran like skeletals, almost on all fours, to counter the incline of the mountain. The rain was starting to fall heavier, and they ripped their shirts off to hold over their heads as makeshift umbrellas.

  And then they made it. They sprinted over the edge of the slope and onto flatter ground. Without slowing, they ran around to the mountain’s southern face where the cave’s entrance was located, zigzagging through the concrete barriers they’d set up and throwing themselves through the open steel door into the rocky shelter of their cavernous home. The men immediately began stripping their wet clothes from their bodies, laughing joyously as they realized their flesh underneath was mostly dry.

  But Gabe hadn’t joined in with their laughter. Where are Molly and Riley? Next to him, Huck’s words were coming in over the thundering beat of his heart.

  “…outside. I saw Riley down the hill, I don’t know why she was down there, but Molly went after her,” Huck was saying, but Gabe missed the rest. He was already running back out into the nightmare rain.

  Outside, Gabe saw Molly and Riley halfway up the southern slope. They were struggling, with his wife dragging their daughter by the hand, who was having trouble keeping up with her pace. Little Brother was a few yards ahead of them, limping with its splint and barking playfully, unaware of the danger his people were in. Gabe charged down the hill, almost keeping pace with the falling rain.

  When he reached his wife and daughter, he scooped Riley onto his shoulder, freeing Molly to move at her own speed. Little Brother continued to run ahead, past Jacob’s grave and disappearing over the crest. The rain was starting to fall heavier now, but Gabe hoped they would be dry underneath their clothes, like the others had been. They followed Little Brother over the lip and Gabe tried not to think of the water starting to run down Riley’s face from her wet hair. He glanced over his shoulder to check that Molly was still there and was happy to see her keeping up with him.

  “We’re going to make it!” he shouted over his shoulder.

  They followed Little Brother through the zigzagging barricades, only to come to a halting stop in front of Lou, standing just inside the cave’s entrance with a rifle in his hands. He had a smile on his face as he shook his head, denying them. He kicked at Little Brother as the dog tried to run past his feet.

  “You’re wet, Gabe! You’re infected! We can’t risk letting you inside!” Lou shouted over the rumbling thunder overhead. Bishop, Huck, Lucy, and the rest of their community were also there, gathered behind Lou and watching.

  “Lou,” Bishop said softly from behind Lou’s shoulder. “Maybe they’re fine. Give them a chance.”

  “No!” shouted Lou, without taking his eyes off the Sullivans. “You know what they’ll turn into.” Though only a few feet away, he raised the rifle and lined up his sight at Gabe. The father turned protectively to shield Riley who was still slung over his shoulder. “I should do them now and put them out of their misery. Then we won’t have to deal with them later, when they’re changed.”

  Huck opened his mouth to add to the argument further, but then closed it, giving Gabe a guilty, apologetic look instead. Gabe watched helplessly as one by one their community of cave dwellers, shamefaced, turned their backs on them to return to the fire inside. They left his family’s fate in the hands of Lou.

  “Make me pull this trigger, Gabe,” Lou muttered angrily. “Give me a reason to.”

  Gabe still had the rifle he’d brought on the mission to kill Ibex-Face, but it was slung uselessly over his other shoulder. In order to use it, he’d have to drop Riley and somehow bring it up to fire without getting himself or his family killed in the process.

  It would be impossible.

  Gabe held up a calming hand, “Okay, Lou, we’re leaving.” He bent down slowly to pick up Little Brother with his free hand. “We’re leaving,” he repeated, backing away.

  Lou smiled. “Good luck out there, Gabe,” he said, pulling the heavy steel door closed and shutti
ng them out in the rain.

  -77-

  “I can smell you,” Hyres groaned softly as his friends approached. His eyes shot open and stared through them, “We can see you! We know you! Killers! Killers!”

  Upstairs the door rattled against its frame.

  Francesca crouched in front of the dying operator. “Hyres, can you hear me?”

  Hyres’s gaze was beginning to glaze grey, but it focused on her. “I got you, Doc,” he said, his lips quivering.

  “Tell us what you see. What they are feeling.”

  His eyes rolled backwards as he spoke, “There’s a tunnel back here,” he whispered. “It’s like fighting a whirlpool, pulling me down into a dark abyss. Anger. Oh God, we are so angry.” His lips turned into a snarl and when his eyes opened again, they locked onto Sharpe. He thrashed and strained against the chains to get to the man. “You are the alpha, you will die next. You will die next and we will take your Others. We are coming. We are coming!”

  Francesca slapped Hyres hard across the face and the eyes unglazed for a moment, darting between her and Sharpe, scared. “Focus, Hyres,” Francesca said firmly. “Where are they? How many are left?”

  Hyres drooled on himself. “Our alpha is in a room full of metal. Large containers, large vats. We are high. We are waiting, we are waiting.” He turned to stare at Sharpe and Maldonado and his expression softened again. “There aren’t many of the bastards left, boys. Two dozen maybe, and half that in groaners. We sure did a number on them, huh, fellas? Hoo boy and the alpha is pissed.” He looked down at his legs which had begun to spasm, then back up at Sharpe. “It’s happening, sir. It’s time.”

  Sharpe nodded sadly and put his hand on his friend’s shoulder, “Go well, chief. Thank you for everything.” With his other hand, he reached down and unholstered his pistol. As Hyres closed his eyes and stilled into death, Sharpe brought the weapon up underneath the man’s chin and pulled the trigger.

  In the echo of silence that followed, only the thumping and howling at the door upstairs could be heard.

  Eventually Sharpe spoke, turning to Francesca. “That room he spoke of… the one full of metal and large vats. Does that sound like the lab where the pathogen is contained?”

  Francesca nodded.

  Sharpe grunted and walked back towards the desk where he began rummaging through the drawers. He pulled out a pen and paper. “Draw me a map of the facility. I need to know where that lab is and where Neyra’s office is in relation to here.”

  Francesca took the pen from his hand and sketched out a rough aerial outline of the facility. Sharpe took the paper from her and studied it for a moment before handing it off to Thaniel and Maldonado. “Commit it to memory,” he ordered, “in case you and Doc Holloway get separated.”

  “Excuse me?” asked Thaniel.

  “The band is breaking up, Briends. You and I go no further together. Instead, you all are going to Neyra’s office. Find what you can, anything that has the bastard’s name on it, every piece of paper, every folder, every goddamn paperclip the bastard may have touched goes with you. Here,” he removed his backpack and handed it over, “so you can carry everything.”

  Sharpe turned to face his last remaining teammate. Maldonado had a knowing look on his face, and he opened his mouth to argue. Sharpe spoke before his friend could, “Get your shit, you’re going with them.”

  “Negative, boss, I’m not letting you go alone.”

  Sharpe pulled Maldonado into a hug then held him at arm’s length. “You’ve seen how well Briends manages with the rifle,” he said chuckling, “they’re going to need all the help they can get. Like I said, find Neyra’s office, take everything, return to the Shiloh, and get back south. Anything you might find, any documents, evidence, get it to the Rangers.”

  “The Rangers? What? Why?”

  “The enemy of my enemy is my friend,”

  “Yeah, except when the enemy is also my enemy,” Maldonado retorted.

  “Semantics.” Sharpe shrugged before raising a pointed finger towards Thaniel, “Make sure you get this guy to them too. Command will be watching the media outlets closely. The Rangers will have ways to make sure what he has to write gets out to the public.”

  Maldonado looked ready to argue, but he didn’t. Orders were orders.

  Sharpe walked to the corner where Hyres’s gear had been piled. He picked up his dead comrade’s backpack and weapons. The knife and handgun he took for himself, before returning to the group and handing the man’s rifle and pack over to Francesca.

  “It was nice meeting you, Doc,” he said as she took the weapon. “The safety’s off and she’s loaded and ready to go. I sure hope you’re a better shot than Mr. Briends over here.”

  “Come on, man,” Thaniel muttered.

  Sharpe laughed then addressed the group. “Doc’s map shows you guys can get to Neyra’s office through there,” he said, pointing at the barricaded door. “Stealth is the key. If those fuckers all share a single mind, then if one of them sees you, all of them see you. Check your corners, move from cover to cover, and try not to expose yourselves to the open where you can be seen. If you must engage the enemy, try and come up from behind the bastards.” He nodded at the knife sheathed at Maldonado’s ankle. “And be quiet about it.”

  “Where will you go?” Thaniel asked.

  “Me? I’m going out the front door,” he answered.

  Upstairs, the door continued to rattle and thump.

  -78-

  “Come on, baby” Gabe said to Riley, trying to keep his voice light and reassuring. “We’re alright, it’s just rain. It’s just a little rain.”

  The banished family turned their backs on the steel door and weaved through the concrete barriers, Gabe still holding his daughter and Molly following close behind. They began climbing higher up the mountain, towards the watchtowers that had been built a short way up past the cave’s mouth. They didn’t run this time. They were too exhausted, and the rain was already falling heavily. Whatever infection the water carried would already be in their systems.

  It was too late.

  None of the watchtowers had been built with roofs, so when they stopped at the nearest one, they were forced to take shelter on the sodden ground beneath the raised platform. Gabe put his daughter down and dropped into a sitting position, resting his back against one of the tower’s support beams. Molly sat next to him, resting her head against his shoulder.

  “It’s okay, hon,” she said, grabbing his hand. She choked back the grief rising in her throat. “You did your best. Hey, look at me,” she said, as he turned to wipe the welling tears from his eyes. “We’re together, that’s all that matters. We’re going to see Jacob soon.”

  Gabe dipped his head and let out a sob. “Look at me,” Molly repeated, lifting his face into her hands and kissing him. “It’s okay.”

  Gabe kissed her back, pulling his wife tight into an embrace against his chest. They held each other like that for several moments as the rain fell around them. Every now and then, Molly would pull away to kiss the tears from his eyes. “It’s okay baby. It’s not your fault,” she would murmur as he choked back sobs.

  “Is it going to hurt, Dad?” asked Riley as Little Brother squirmed in her lap. “Will it hurt when we change?”

  “No, sweetheart,” lied Gabe, reaching his free arm out to pull his daughter into the embrace. He had hoped she wouldn’t comprehend what was going on, but she was a smart kid and had matured much in their stay on the mountain. He should have expected she would understand. “It’s not going to hurt. And we’ll be with Jacob soon.”

  “Little Brother too?” she asked.

  “Sure, baby. Little Brother too.”

  “Gabe,” said Molly next to him. He looked over to see his wife’s hand had begun to twitch. She tried to close it into a fist, but the shaking only turned more violent, moving up her arm and down her legs.

  “It’s okay, hon,” she said through gritted teeth when she saw the dismay on his face. “
Kiss me. One more time.”

  Gabe leaned in and kissed his wife fiercely before she was racked with full-body spasms.

  Molly began to scream.

  Gabe stood up, bringing his hands up to pull at his wet hair, unsure of what to do. He looked over at Riley, whose eyes had closed. She began to scream too.

  Little Brother whimpered and pawed at her face.

  Gabe didn’t think, he only reacted. He unslung the rifle from his shoulder, stood over his girls, and pulled the trigger.

  Once.

  Twice.

  Gabe dropped to his knees and wept, cursing the falling sky and God beyond. He tore at his hair and his face and sobbed angrily into the earth. He crawled to the bodies of his wife and daughter and pulled them into his arms, determined to be holding them when he shot himself. He reached behind Molly’s body and grabbed the rifle where he had dropped it, bringing the end of the barrel into his mouth. He closed his eyes and moved to pull the trigger, but Little Brother was there, yanking at his sleeve. He swatted the pup away.

  “You’ll be fine by yourself, Little Brother. You’ll find a new family,” Gabe mumbled through tears, but the dog growled and yanked at his sleeve again.

  Gabe sobbed. “What do you want from me!” he shouted, but Little Brother only yipped and continued pulling at his sleeve. He swatted the dog away, harder this time, and immediately regretted it. Little Brother went tumbling, the splint on his leg coming undone. Gabe spat the rifle barrel from his mouth and crawled over to the dog, apologizing. He pulled the limping pup into his arms and saw the adhesive from the duct-taped cast had become wet and useless in the rain. While Little Brother whimpered in his hands, Gabe removed his shirt and ripped off a long length of fabric. He picked up the two sticks that had been freed from the unraveled splint and braced them against the pup’s injured leg. He wound the fabric around the leg tightly then tied it off.

  “There,” he said through tears. “Good as new.”