The Eliminators | Volume 3

by Druga, Jacqueline

  “I can drive through the fence.”

  “Don’t drive through the fence and wreck my EPEV,” Yates told him calmly. “Get it and …” a hard click of his finger and Yates raised his eyes to the exterior camera angles.

  The explosive landed at the section of the fence next to Barry and the others. It exploded and flew back, clearing an opening.

  The EPEV came to a grinding halt and Yates shifted his views to another monitor. “We have about two dozen moving quickly,” he spoke fast. “They don’t look like wheelchairs and walkers.”

  “Lock on to them,” Rigs stated, “Rach and I will go out. Get those fast ones first.”

  “You got it. I need five seconds.” Yates moved quickly.

  Barry wasn’t wrong. He knew by the sound they made outside the dining room doors, he knew by the height of the reaching arms, they weren’t just the residents.

  His fears were confirmed when he saw them at the window trying to get out.

  Lance was front and center.

  When the window broke, the fast ones, the ones that weren’t residents climbed out first. Even Lance, hoisted himself up and rolled out the windowpane to the grass.

  Barry didn’t have time to watch what was going on. He heard the explosion, and Sandy calling out, “Move the residents.”

  But Barry focused on the onslaught of dead. They were in that fresh and running stage. Not new enough to move slow and not decomposed enough to slow back down.

  He lifted his pistol and fired. He hit one, then a tall, lanky zed wearing scrubs ran his way.

  He charged toward Barry, totally focused on him, as if he had been targeting Barry all along.

  Barry depressed the trigger … nothing.

  Lifting his crutch, trying to balance, Barry swung out, hitting him with the rubber end, pushing him back, but the scrubs undead kept coming.

  Back against the fence, Barry knew he couldn’t run to catch the others.

  He was cornered, but kept the undead at crutch length, giving it all he had until a bullet seared into the undead from the side, blasting out blood from the other side of his head.

  It dropped to the ground.

  Rigs spun to Barry. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Barry nodded. “Thank you.” He saw Rachel running into the yard, sword in one hand, her honing rod in the other.

  Rigs lifted his radio. “Yates, where are our shots?”

  “Locked on all but two,” Yates replied.

  “Fire.” Rigs instructed.

  A shifting sound carried out, followed by a series of pops and high pitch whistles. And just like Yates had said, all but two went down fast, dropping in their tracks.

  Barry was trying to take it all in. It was happening so fast. His heart raced and he was so grateful for his team.

  Rigs spun and fired at one of the remaining zeds and raised his weapon for the other.

  “I got it,” Rachel called out, then drew the zeds attention away from the others and ran behind him.

  “Watch the one on the ground by him!” Rigs yelled.

  Rachel nodded, but Rigs knew she didn’t hear him.

  She raced back to the zed, doing her typical baseball slide behind him, landing awfully close to the one that was crawling. So much so, Rigs saw the look of surprise on her face. He wanted to yell out, ‘I told you’, but he didn’t.

  After a beat, she jumped up, swiped the back of his legs with the sword, then with a quick in she retracted, she put it down with her honing rod.

  “Good job!” Rigs yelled.

  Rachel walked backward a few steps looking down to the crawling undead. “This one isn’t even old.”

  “That!” Barry hollered. “Is my …” He winced when Rachel quickly speared her gladius into Lance’s head, then pulled it out. “Friend.” Barry cleared his throat and dropped his voice. “I wanted to put him down.”

  “She’s picking up habits from Yates,” Rigs said, the quickly turned his head to the high pitched, almost delightful squeal.

  “My hero!” the woman yelled.

  “That’s Gretchen,” Barry said as she ran over. “She’s … different.”

  Before Rigs could even respond or register what Barry said, Gretchen had bodily pummeled Rigs, throwing her arms around his neck. She held on tight, leg lifted to his waist while she delivered fast kiss after kiss to his face.

  Yates paused as he walked by. “Man, Rigs, you’re just on everything.”

  Rachel shook her head. “Old habits die hard.”

  “My hero. My hero. You’re so brave. And hot. Anyone ever tell you, you’re hot,” Gretchen told him. “So hot. So brave.”

  “Yeah, thank you … um …” He reached for her arms, trying to pull them off him and looked at Barry, mouthing the words, “Help.”

  Yates made his way across the yard, laughing at Rigs trapped in the embrace of his admirer. He looked at the carnage. Most caused by the automatic tracking and shoot system of the EPEV. He was glad to use it, had it not been for his vehicle, Barry and the others wouldn’t have made it. It was close.

  Rachel stood near the busted windows of the building looking in. He walked over to her.

  “Hey,” Yates said, as he approached.

  “Hey. There’s still a bunch here.” She nodded her head.

  Inside there were residents from the Assisted living, all of which had turned. The wheels chairs barely moving and the ones in the walkers, moving almost humorously slow.

  “Boy, Kasper nailed that one,” Yates said. “It was a good comment.”

  “It was. I look at them, I don’t know if I can put them down.”

  “Rach, they need to be put down,” Yates said.

  “They aren’t a threat. Maybe they can do that ‘peace’ thing to them. I don’t think I can do it.”

  Yates laughed. “Seriously.”

  “Like you can?”

  Without hesitation, he lifted the pistol and fired into the man with a walker.

  “Oh, that’s cold,” Rachel said.

  “They aren’t people.”

  “We don’t know that. Look at Kasper.”

  “True.”

  “You’re so fast with that,” Rachel said.

  “One day you’ll appreciate it.”

  She mumbled, “More than you know.”

  “What?”

  She shook her head.

  “Good job today.”

  “You, too. Mistakes were made,” Rachel said softly.

  “What? What mistakes?” He looked at her and noticed she had this far off glance. “Rach? Are you okay?”

  “I think I am. Just had to reconcile it.”

  “What are you talking about?” Yates asked.

  Rachel took a deep shivering breath and face him. “When I went after that last one. I wasn’t paying attention. Too cocky. There was one on the ground. Who knows? I’m not sure it’s that bad of a thing.”

  “Rach?”

  She lifted her hand, right by the thumb it bled and clearly the deep mark was seen. “I was bit.”

  <><><><>

  It was arguably the most emotional sounding Rigs had been in the entire time they had been Eliminators. Everything showed in the way he said that single word. Voice deep and vibrating, hand swinging out then pointing as he blasted. “No!”

  “Rigs,” Rachel pleaded.

  “No, Rach, no!” Rigs spun. “Sandy! Sandy get the kit. Hold on, stay put don’t move!” he ordered her, then stormed to the EPEV. He returned a minute later. “Sandy!”

  “Rigs,” Rachel tried to reason with him. “Please calm down.”

  “Are you serious? No.” Rigs shouted.

  She then spun to Yates. “Why would you say something?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?” Yates replied. “Something needs to be done.”

  “Yes, it does. Rigs knows what I want to do. Why do you think he’s acting like a madman?”

  “He’s acting like someone that cares,” Yates said, raising an eyebrow.

  �
�Rachel,” Barry moved to her. “Listen to me honey, I know what you’re thinking. Please.”

  Rachel shook her head.

  “Rach,” Rigs stormed to her. “I am begging you. Begging you, please let Sandy give you the antiviral and…”

  “No, Rigs. I’m done. This is a gift. It really is,” Rachel said calmly.

  “What about Kasper?” Rigs asked. “You want to do this without him around?”

  “Yeah, I do. I don’t want him to see. Or him to talk me out of it.”

  “That’s not fair! I want him to do that,” Rigs argued. “I need Kasper to talk to you.”

  “Rigs, I’m done. I miss my family. I miss them so much. When I was bit … the first thing that went through my mind was I am finally going to see them. I’m gonna see my babies.”

  “Rachel, I get it. But no one is just gonna put you down like a dog,” Rigs said. “I won’t. I will not.”

  “I won’t ask you.” Rachel turned and stepped to Yates. “I need you to do it.”

  “What? No.” Yates backed up. “No.”

  “Yates, please. Please. One shot,” Rachel pleaded. “I am asking you because you are the only one that will and can do this.”

  “Rachel, I can’t,” Yates said.

  “Yes you can. You know you can. You shoot without thought and I need you to do the same for me. Please …” Rachel extended her arms and dropped to her knees. “I miss my family. I miss my children. I’ve done everything I could to live on.” A tear streamed down her cheek. “I’m done. I want to be with them. With everything I am, I beg you, Yates, please, please send me home with my family.”

  Yates tried to control his emotions. His jaw clenched and the muscles flexed in and out.

  “Please,” Rachel whimpered.

  Yates raised his pistol.

  Pop.

  Rachel dropped to the ground.

  EIGHTEEN – VOLUME FINALE

  April 27 – Day 373

  Center City, WV

  Kasper wasn’t in the best of moods and the last place he wanted to be was in a meeting with Liz and Dr. Levine. He had been Levine’s test monkey for days, stuck in a lab, when he needed to be elsewhere.

  There weren’t many people Kasper didn’t like in his lifetime and Stephanie Levine made that short list.

  “Wonderful,” Liz said. “We’re in the middle of clean up, but I am sure we can get you the assistance you need along with transportation.”

  “Thank you,” Stephanie said. “I would love Mr. Bicks to be there.”

  Liz peered up to Barry. “Would you?”

  “It depends. I’m still healing from this leg and it depends what my team is doing.”

  “I thought we were doing boats,” Kasper said. “Isn’t that what you said yesterday when you stopped by and saw me at the lab.”

  “That’s one of the things,” Liz said. “Distributing the cure on the boats.”

  “Eliminating,” Kasper said.

  “Listen how well he’s speaking.” Stephanie indicated to Kasper. “Two days ago, he wasn’t. Thank goodness all of Dr. Stevens notes are there.”

  “And you can use them. Now, how do you see this cure going?”

  “I see it not only as a cure, but as a vaccine as well. It won’t take long to mass produce.”

  “Can you …” Kasper pointed to the door. “Excuse me.” He didn’t want her permission, he just walked out.

  In the reception area, he paced back and forth, each step he took fueled a fire in his belly. He spun around when the door opened and Barry walked out.

  “Okay,” Barry said, “What’s going on with you? I know everything with Rachel has you down, but this is not you.”

  “She …” Kasper pointed to the door and whispered. “Is a liar.”

  “Who? Liz?”

  “No, Dr. Levine. She’s lying Barry. Lying. This whole cure thing is a ruse. There is no cure. No vaccine. Nothing. Dude, we don’t even know if she’s a real doctor.”

  “Where is this coming from?” Barry asked. “Why do you think this?”

  “Because I know. I … on the way here, I accidentally grabbed her case and opened it. It was empty. No vials, nothing that looked scientific, just a few scraps of paper.”

  “I see why you’re upset.”

  “And I am done. I’m going in there to tell Liz everything.”

  “No, Kasper,” Barry stopped him. “You aren’t.”

  “What?”

  “I know how you feel. I know you’re mad. But you don’t know if that empty case means she doesn’t have anything. How do you know those scraps of paper weren’t notes? How do you know she didn’t have the cure hidden elsewhere. You don’t.”

  “It’s not gonna hurt to say something.”

  “Yeah, it will,” Barry said. “You say something and squash all hope. Right now, we all need some hope.”

  “But is that right?”

  Barry shook his head. “I don’t know. I just …” he stopped talking when General Morrows stepped into the reception area.

  “Is the president in her office?” Morrows asked.

  Barry nodded. “She is.”

  “Good. And …” he lifted a laptop. “You two may want to see this.”

  He immediately went into the office without knocking. Barry and Kasper followed.

  <><><><>

  Yates sat, elbows to his knees, head lowered as his hands were folded close to his face. He couldn’t stop getting that moment out of his mind,

  . “I miss my family. I miss my children. I’ve done everything I could to live on.” Rachel cried. “I’m done. I want to be with them. With everything I am, I beg you, Yates, please, please send me home with my family.”

  Barry told him it was the first time he really saw Rachel cry. She never broke down. But there as she begged Yates to deliver one bullet to take her life, she sobbed.

  He raised his gun, but that was all he could do,

  Yates heard the ‘pop’, saw Rachel fall to the ground and when she did, exposed Rigs holding the tranquilizer gun.

  “You dick,” Rachel spoke groggily.

  Yates lifted his head. Rachel lay in the hospital bed, the back of it elevated, her arm bandaged.

  “You’re awake,” Yates said.

  “I asked you to shoot me.”

  “I know.”

  “You didn’t.”

  “I know.” Yates stood up and walked to the bed. “Rachel, listen, for the last few days I have been thinking. I really have. I have been working on the plans for the coolest prosthetic ever. You can even tell me what you want me to do. I mean, it’s just the hand, but we can do so much.”

  “Why didn’t you do it?”

  “Rachel …”

  “Yates, you never hesitate. Ever. But you did. You hesitated.”

  “I know.”

  “Why?” Rachel asked.

  “Because you’re my friend. I don’t have nor did I ever have a friend. You’re my one and only friend.” Yates walked to the bed. “I couldn’t do it.”

  “So even if Rigs didn’t knock me out, you wouldn’t?” Rachel asked.

  “How do you know …” Yates spun when the door opened.

  Rigs walked in. He paused in his stride, then continued. “You’re awake.”

  “And pissed,” Yates said.

  “Too bad.” Rigs walked to the bed. “Third test today, Rach. You are one hundred percent virus free. We got it in time.”

  “You had no right, Rigs to make that decision for me,” Rachel said. “You took that choice away.”

  Rigs shrugged. “Get over it. You have some work to do, yeah, but it’s your left hand. You can do it. Yates is working on …”

  “Don’t!” Rachel screamed. “Don’t dismiss what I’m saying. Don’t … Don’t dismiss that I wanted to die. I wanted to finish this and you decided what I wanted, didn’t matter.”

  “You weren’t thinking clearly,” Rigs said.

  “I was thinking very clearly and I had said it from day one. If
I got bit, put me down,” Rachel said.

  “I know.”

  “But you made a choice not to. You knocked me out and cut off my hand and now I’m alive instead of dead.”

  “Yep.”

  “It was my choice!” Rachel shouted. “Do you know how unfair that was?”

  After a brief pause, Rigs lost it. His face turned red and he swung out a point. “Fair? Fair? You wanna talk fair? What’s not fair is you just wanted to go. Leave. Bye. Without regards to us. All of us. Well, sorry Rach, you lost that right the moment you made us all love you. We love you. I … love you. I lost everyone I loved once and I won’t do it again. I wasn’t losing you. Sorry, I just wasn’t, so be mad. Doesn’t matter.”

  “It does matter?” Rachel asked.

  “Knock, knock,” called Sandy pleasantly and she popped her head in the room.

  “Why …” Yates said. “Do people say ‘knock, knock’? It doesn’t make sense.”

  Sandy tossed out a wave of her hand to Yates. “Glad you’re awake. Just wanted to pop in. I’m delivering a baby today. Isn’t that great?”

  “It is,” Rachel replied. “Good luck.”

  “Everything okay here, though?” Sandy asked.

  “Yeah, just pissed at Rigs.”

  “I don’t blame you. I’ll be back later. Get some rest.” Sandy walked back out.

  Rigs looked at Rachel. “Pissed at me?”

  “You know that.”

  “Not him?” Rigs pointed to Yates.

  “He explained himself.”

  “But I did? Nothing I said made a difference?” Rigs asked passionately. “What the fuck, Rach?”

  “Jeremiah, language,” Barry said softy as he entered the room.

  Rigs tossed out his hands. “I give up.”

  Kasper walked in after him. “Hey, Rach.”

  “Hey, Kasper.”

  Barry handed her a cup. “I brought you a Starbucks. Figured you could use a few sips to get your wits.”

  “Thank you. I am so glad Starbucks reopened.” Rachel sipped. “This is good. I wish I had this when I woke up and saw them.”

  “Did you lay into them?” Kasper asked.