Rod took off his helmet.
Tori gasped.
It was Rod. His dark face smoky and veiny. Eyes sunken in.
“Is it bad?” he said. “Am I dead?”
“I-I don’t know, Big Guy, but you’re talking. That’s living, I’d say.”
A zombie stumbled down the hallway.
Num. Num.
Rod picked the zombie up with one arm and slammed it on its head.
“I can’t be that, Henry.”
Henry could have sworn Rod’s eyes watered.
“I can’t be that.”
***
Nate sat in wild eyed disbelief. Henry was fine. The cavalry was coming. He lived. As he sat in his chair, Walker debriefed him.
“We’ve got insiders. It only takes one to get the message out. Soon as we got captured, Plan 2 went into action.” He puffed on his cigarette. “Plan 1 was to get in here and do it on our own. Plan 2, call in reinforcements if captured. Even if we wound up dead, at least the WHS’s cage would’ve been rattled. Another Outbreak might’ve been stopped. I think we’ve done it by getting Ravenloft. Just have to make sure the world knows what they were up to.”
He pointed to Charles.
“That man there, well, it’d probably been better if Ash hadn’t killed him, but hopefully his secrets will die with him. We’re already pouring over his notes. We’ll try and bury the evil within.”
“So,” Nate said, “who’s in charge now?”
“Well, with the Magnificent Twelve whittled down, and Ravenloft dead, I’d say no one is in charge until after the investigation. I just hope they’ll take my word over one of these knuckleheaded drones. That’ll give us plenty of time to figure out everything they were up to. You on board?”
“What? Me?” Nate said, pointing to himself.
“No, the Other Man Who Saved the World in the room,” Walker said.
“I didn’t save it today.” He frowned.
“You stuck your neck out, Nate. Pile drove that sack of meat over there.” Walker nodded. “Not many men have the guts to finish on their feet. Most in your situation would’ve lain down and died.” Walker couched. “I thank you for it, but you aren’t getting any medals.
“No, I got more than my share the last time.” Nate toyed with the crucifix of Christ on his neck. Looked around. Shrugged. “I don’t think I have anywhere else to go.” He looked at the LCD screens. WHS soldiers were hard at work herding the zombies. Shooting others. He didn’t see Henry. “Where’d Henry go?”
***
Henry tried not to shout when the medic pulled the bullet out. It felt like his entire shoulder was being ripped from his body.
“Henry,” Tori said, “bite on this, Baby.” She shoved a wooden shower curtain holder in his face. It still had an expensive-looking shower curtain on it.
“No,” he said. “I can take it.”
“Okay.” Tori wiped his head with a damp washcloth that matched the shower curtain. “You’re a brave man, you know.”
“You’re a brave woman. Ow!” he winced. “Numb it, will you!”
“Sorry,” the medic said.
Henry wasn’t certain what was going on, but someone had saved the day. Minutes after he and Rod had spoken, the cavalry had come. They’d shot the turned zombies but left the others alone. He wished they’d shot them all. Evil things. Now, he was under the bright lights in the vendeteria where they’d been hours ago, trying to sort it out.
“Look,” Tori said, pointing.
Dana the Bird Lady walked by with her hands cuffed behind her back. She sneered at them. There were over a dozen being walked out. Others were stuffed in body bags. Henry remembered hearing another gunfight going on. His mind was at work. This Facility was a place of amazing breakthroughs. He could feel it. But they were doing it for all the wrong reasons.
“Henry, do you think we’re ever going to get out?” Tori whispered, rubbing his leg.
“I’m not going to even think about it,” he said, looking around. “Say, where’s Rod?”
“Quarantined,” a guard said.
“I need to see him,” Henry demanded.
“Got to get clearance.”
Two men and a woman entered the room.
“Attention.”
The guards saluted.
“At ease,” the small one with mirrored glasses said.
“Henry!” the big guy with the beard said. “Henry, thank God you survived!”
Henry looked at Tori. She shrugged. Turned back to the man.
“Do I know you?”
The man extended his hands. Looked into his eyes with a smile.
“Come on, Henry. It’s me.”
Henry lurched up in his seat.
“Ow!”
“Easy, Son,” the medic said.
Henry leaned forward.
“Nate?”
“The one and only.”
“I, I thought you were dead. I thought you killed that … woman.”
“No,” Nate said, shaking his head. “Hard to tell the lie from the truth these days, but I’ll be glad to tell you.”
“I’m looking forward to it already.”
***
Rod sat in a cell, unmoving. He’d been shot a dozen times. It didn’t hurt. He didn’t feel tired, but alert and strong. He thirsted. For what, he did not know. He could wait in the meantime. Forever and a day. When he got out, he smiled, he’d do whatever he wanted.
***
Ashley made her way over to a handful of people sitting along the wall.
“You guys alright? You need anything?”
Jo Ann shook her head. Karen was trembling.
Paul was wiping off zombie makeup. He asked, “Have you found my brother Craig yet?”
“Uh,” Ashley said, stalling. She felt bad for the young man. All of them. Sheltered people. “They’re still looking.”
“I’m sure he’s okay,” Jo Ann said, rubbing his shoulder. “He’s a slippery one.”
“Yeah,” Karen said, nodding.
“They just went in there and started wasting the zombies. I didn’t even get to see. Mom and Dad are gonna kill me.”
***
High Street. Morgantown. A minivan pulled into the parking lot of the KA Manor.
Craig hopped out and slid the side door open. He grabbed a squirming black sack and hoisted it over his shoulder. He smiled as he looked up the stairs. “It’s going to be the best Reco night ever!”
Epilogue
-Arizona-
Location Unknown
Chad pushed his face out of the sand. Faced the moonlight.
“Ah,” he said. “I live.” He smacked his lips. Surveyed his surroundings. Everything seemed black and white. In the distance, a pack of coyotes howled. He could see them. Clearly. Not covered by the night.
That’s strange.
He retraced his steps to where the zombies he’d killed lay dead. Hmmm. He felt fine and wrong at the same time. His limbs felt chill. An urge to kill consumed him. Images of those mercenaries formed in his mind, the Aussie and the putz. His throat growled. He had an idea.
He tugged the zombie suit off one corpse and put it on. He placed the Skull Face helmet on his head. He needed a car. He knew where to get one. He followed the car tracks in the dirt, mile after mile, into the morning. He wandered into camp. A man was seated in a folding chair with three others, all eating breakfast.
The pudgy one saw him first. Jerked and fell backward over his chair.
“Whoa!” the Aussie said. “What have we here? It followed us all the way back here? Amazing.”
“That-That-That’s not p-possible,” the pudgy one said. “It’s cursed.”
“Aw, shaddup. It’s probably hungry. Get it some Dew. And get on the horn. They’re gonna want to hear about this.”
A merc tossed the Aussie a bottle. He waggled it in front of Chad’s face.
“Here, Boy. Drinky drink.”
“No thanks,” Chad
said.
The Aussie’s eyes exploded open.
“Wha—“
Chad snatched the man’s wrist. Grabbed his neck. Crushed the man’s throat.
Blam! Blam Blam!
Bullets tore into him. The Zombie Suit held. Lead zinged off his helmet. He wanted to laugh. Instead, he killed. He busted two men’s skulls together. Pounced on the pudgy one’s back. Stuffed his face in the dirt until he kicked no more. He looked up at the sun beating down on him. I’m not even hot or tired. He eyed his gray-skinned hands. Am I still a man? Or am I a zombie?
From the Author
First off, thanks for reading. In all truth, I didn’t have any intention of doing a 3rd book, but enough people contacted me saying they wanted to read more. I wanted to try my best to make them happy. Now, I’ve left things open for a possible 4th book. That will all depend on how this 3rd book does. I write fantasy, and those books do much better, but I do enjoy having fun toying with all the possibilities with zombies. I hope you like some of the ideas I came up with. And maybe I’ll expand upon them later.
As for where this book ends, just assume for now that Nate and Henry are teaming up with Walker to unravel all the things the WHS had planned for the zombies. They started putting Dr. Charles Whitmore’s notes together. They pay a visit to Charlie’s lab and meet Steve. Play cards. Watch Baby Einstein and have a few beers with him. Who knows? Maybe I’ll write about Chad adapting to his new zombie-type life. Rod too. Maybe a breakout in Morgantown is unloosed. Honestly, I don’t know what makes for a good zombie book. I just try not to do what I’ve seen in movies and TV. But as of February 2014 I’m giving this series a rest. I’m always glad to hear your thoughts on this topic.
Don’t Stop,
Craig Halloran
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Craig Halloran is a veteran, husband and father. He enjoys sports (mostly football), working out, fishing, writing, watching TV and entertaining mankind. His books are filled with endless action, exciting characters and compelling stories. He resides with his family outside of his hometown of Charleston, West Virginia. When he isn’t writing stories he is seeking adventure, working out, or watching sports. To learn more about him go to: www.thedarkslayer.com
Other works by Craig Halloran
The Darkslayer: Wrath of the Royals (Book 1)
The Darkslayer: Blades in the Night (Book 2)
The Darkslayer: Underling Revenge (Book 3)
The Darkslayer: Danger and the Druid (Book 4)
The Darkslayer: Outrage in the Outlands (Book 5)
The Darkslayer: Chaos at the Castle (Book 6)
The Chronicles of Dragon: The Sword, The Hero and the Dragons (Book 1)
The Chronicles of Dragon: Dragon Bones and Tombstones (Book 2)
The Chronicles of Dragon: Terror at the Temple (Book 3)
The Chronicles of Dragon: Clutch of the Cleric (Book 4)
The Chronicles of Dragon: Hunt for the Hero (Book 5)
Zombie Day Care: Impact Series: Book 1
Zombie Rehab: Impact Series: Book 2
Zombie Warfare: Impact Series: Book 3
It's Not Him; It's them
Connect with him at:
Facebook: The Darkslayer Report by Craig
Twitter: Craig Halloran
Zombie Warfare: Impact Series - Book 3 Page 15
