“You had a second part to your question, Mr. Snipes. What was it?”
“Who is the Teacher? What made him the leader of the Reborn?”
“He is a man who learned how to work the systems of this world. He made billions of dollars, but it was all a facade. He wanted to know how it worked so he could destroy it from within.”
“And the zombie virus? How did he develop that?”
“You’re asking more questions, Mr. Snipes, but I will answer this one and then we have something else to discuss. The zombie virus, as you call it, is the product of decades of research. The Teacher has the most brilliant mind, something you’ll learn when you meet him.”
“So he’s a pharmaceutical guy? Some kind of medical researcher?” Roy probed, thinking that if he could get some clues perhaps, just perhaps, he might be able to pass them along to the authorities after he was reunited with his wife, and then they could take him down.
“That’s enough for now, Mr. Snipes. Instead, I’ve a task for you. I doubt you’ll let me have a pen and paper, so why don’t you go and find a phone, a cellular one would be best, and I’ll give you a number to call.”
“And why would I want to do that?” Roy wanted to know.
“Because it’ll be worth your while.” The Ancillary responded simply.
The Ancillary leaned back against the wall and fell silent, smiling patiently at Roy. He grunted and turned to leave. He hadn’t seen a cell phone in any of the desks he’d moved, but he hadn’t searched all the drawers or the desks he’d left in place. Roy found one after five minutes of searching, tucked away in a lieutenant’s desk drawer that was currently serving as a firing line barricade in the main corridor. It seemed to be a burn phone, and while Roy wondered what purpose it had served, he knew it would suffice. He returned to the Ancillary, showed her the phone and she recited a phone number for him to tap in, and then he hit call at her insistence. It rang for a few moments, and then it was picked up. Roy recognized the voice on the other end immediately.
“Roy? Are you there?” Tamara, Roy’s wife, questioned. Her voice was strained and fearful.
“Tamara? Where are you, baby? I’ll come get you!” Roy demanded.
“Roy, you’ve got to listen to me, okay?” She asked, sounding afraid.
“I’m listening, Tammy, I’m listening.” Roy assured her.
“You can’t do what they want you to do, okay? They’re going to ask you to help them and I don’t want you to, not for me, not for anyone. Promise me.” She told him.
“I can’t—”
“You can, Roy, you can. You have to! You can’t give these people anything they want.”
“Tammy, I... ” Roy started again.
“No! No!” Tamara started to shout, followed by the sounds of struggling.
“Tamara!” Roy roared.
“Don’t help them! I love you, Roy, I love you!” She proclaimed, her voice becoming more distant, and then the line went dead.
“Tamara! Tamara!” Roy repeated, raising his voice, desperate to hear her again, to know what had happened to her, but there was no answer.
“Mr. Snipes.” The Ancillary stated.
Roy focused on her, his brow furrowed and his eyes filled with rage.
“What have your people done to her? Where is she?” Roy demanded, slamming his fist against the Ancillary’s cell; it made a loud reverberating sound and hurt like hell, but he wasn’t concerned about the damage at that moment.
“Calm down, Mr. Snipes, calm down. I promise you she is safe. As I told you earlier, you bought her a place in the new world - a safe place. You will be reunited with her sooner rather than later if you choose to help us to secure the Witness. You’ve had your proof that she’s alive - a gesture of our goodwill. Now, how about we discuss what we require you to do?”
Roy glared at her, and after several long, tortured moments, he began to nod slowly.
Melissa and Rochelle had been moving through the warehouse for a while but they hadn’t found an exit. There were infected lurking in the darkness and Melissa had done her best to kill them quietly, bashing them down with the butt of the rifle before finishing them with a quick stab from the knife. Melissa wondered if, in the dark labyrinthine area of the warehouse, there were Reborn already in position to ambush them at the exit... and almost laughed. The joke would be on them, as she was half convinced she and Rochelle would be trapped in the dark forever. Then, in the gloom, they found a wall. They’d initially tried following the walls around, secure in the knowledge that eventually they would lead to the exit, but their passage had been cut off by tumbled boxes and fallen shelves. It had been frustrating, as she had known that as soon as they moved away from the walls it would be easy to get lost in the dark - having to turn this way then that - now, with a wall in sight, she felt they might be able to get back on track.
“Come on.” Melissa whispered to Rochelle.
Melissa put her hand on the wall, partly to steady herself after the exhausting movements to reach this point, and partly for reassurance in the darkness, then they started moving along it. The sounds of the infected began to echo through the expansive chamber even louder, and Melissa knew it meant the horde was either entering or close to entering the warehouse. If that was true, she felt it was safe to assume the Reborn couldn’t be pursuing them too, otherwise they’d be suppressed by their collars. This meant they were either ahead of them at the exit of the warehouse or were lying in wait ready to ambush them somewhere beyond the store. They had to keep moving, that much was clear, but Melissa wasn’t sure how to proceed should they manage to escape. Communicating with Roy seemed a good idea, but he was guarding the Ancillary and it would probably give away his position to the Reborn if he decided to come to help them. She wondered if Kevin could, but then again, if Angelo was telling the truth and he was under fire from snipers he had his own set of troubles to deal with before driving the bus back to the police station. The more Melissa pondered, the more she became certain she was on her own; then she heard a sound from the frightened woman behind her and was reminded that she wasn’t on her own. Melissa came to a stop, turned, took the rifle from Rochelle’s hands, and then surveyed the area with the torch before passing the weapon back.
“We’re in the clear for a minute. Let’s find something to tie around that leg.” Melissa declared; having spotted a plastic covered rack with some kind of clothing on it. She headed towards it, let her own weapon hang on the sling, which freed her hands to grab her knife and cut through the plastic. Inside were long sleeved dresses in various colors and sizes, so Melissa cut several strips from a white one and then returned to Rochelle, sheathing the knife and kneeling down to examine her wound. It was barely more than a deep cut; the musculature was undamaged, and whatever had caused it had done no more than skim passed her leg and slice it; whether it was a bullet or some kind of debris was unknown; either way, Rochelle had been lucky. Melissa tied a strip around her leg tightly, and then tied a second over it. As she did, she looked back the way they had come and saw that there was only a slight blood trail; she was sure, however, it was enough to be tracked by the infected. Melissa didn’t know how far the infected would track them before becoming distracted by something else, but she didn’t want to give them any assistance if she could help it. Rochelle’s wound tended to, Melissa stood up and leaned against the wall. It was dangerous to stop but she wanted - needed - to catch her breath.
“What are we going to do?” Rochelle asked, fear still lacing her voice.
“Get out of here, find our way to the police station where my friend is, and hopefully catch a bus out of here.”
“A bus?” Rochelle asked skeptically.
“Yeah, the FBI agent the Reborn mentioned is securing it. Hopefully, anyway.”
“You say hopefully a lot.”
“These days, hopefully is as good as it gets.”
Melissa decided that maybe now was the time to check in with Roy and Kevin after all, figuring that w
aiting to contact them when they were already on their way back might be a recipe for failure. If something had happened at the police station that meant it was no longer the safe haven she believed it to be, she needed to know before they started travelling towards it. She grabbed the radio and turned up the volume a little.
“Roy, Kevin, are you there?” Melissa asked. There was no answer, so after several worrying seconds, she tried again. After a little while, Roy’s responded.
“I’m here, Melissa. What’s going on?”
“I’ve found the survivor; it’s a woman named Rochelle. We’ve got some trouble with the Reborn and the infected, but I’m hoping we’ll be on our way back to you soon. How are things at your end?”
Roy was silent for a few seconds.
“It’s... er... it’s fine here, Melissa. Just be careful, okay? Watch your back and don’t let the Reborn get to you, okay?”
Melissa found his warning, and in particular his initial hesitancy a little strange. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she considered his words... Why the Reborn in particular, why not a general warning to be careful like the one he’d issued earlier? Perhaps he was simply exhausted... but no, her intuition was telling her something was troubling him.
“What’s wrong, Roy?” She asked him bluntly.
“Nothing’s wrong, Melissa. Just be careful, that’s all I’m saying.”
“I will.” Melissa assured him, still not liking the slight tension... no, the awkwardness she could feel between them. He’d tried to hide something from her in the Seraph, but they’d trusted each other then. Was that trust still intact? Was his concern for his missing wife causing a rift between them that she hadn’t been aware of until now? But surely, her insistence that they head for Las Vegas should have strengthened his faith in her? Unfortunately, Melissa had no time to analyze and draw conclusions, so these questions were irrelevant at that moment. Besides, there was probably an innocent explanation... maybe his leg was troubling him and he didn’t want her to worry. All she could do was set aside her doubts until they were face to face. The infected and the Reborn were her most pressing concerns, so she turned her thoughts to the other member of their party.
“Kevin, can you hear us?” She questioned, and when there was no answer, she addressed Roy again.
“Have you heard from him, Roy?”
“Not since he said he was taking fire from a sniper. I told him to get in touch if he needed help.”
“How long ago was that?”
“I don’t know. Not very long, but long enough for it to be a concern, I guess.”
“Do you know where he went?” Melissa wanted to know.
“He wanted to know if he should just come straight back here. I told him not to in case they followed him so he drove off somewhere, but I’ve not heard from him since.”
Melissa closed her eyes and wiped the back her other hand along her forehead, swiping away the sweat that had formed there. She reopened them and found herself looking at Rochelle, who was staring intently at her.
“Okay, Roy, you stay where you are. We’ll try to connect with Kevin and then get back to you. I’m going to turn the radio off again.”
“I’ll keep trying to get in touch with Kevin. Be care... ”
“Yeah, Roy, I’ll be careful.” Melissa snapped, cutting him off. She was still uncomfortable with his concern about her well being. Unwilled, it gave birth to a deeper feeling of mistrust. There was nothing she could point to and say this or that promoted it, but something in his tone and the way he spoke didn’t sit right with her. And after all they had been through together she couldn’t help but feel guilty for her lack of faith in him. She turned the radio off and clipped it back onto her vest.
“How are we going to find the bus and this Kevin guy?” Rochelle questioned.
“Considering how everything’s turning out, with great difficulty I’d imagine.” Melissa responded despondently. “Let’s keep moving.”
Melissa took the lead again and Rochelle followed along behind. The illumination from the flashlight was trembling, far more unsteady than it had been up until now. Melissa kept moving forward, but turned her head and peered at Rochelle over her shoulder.
“You have to keep it together, Rochelle.” Melissa insisted.
“I... I can’t do this. I can’t! I’m so afraid. M-Maybe when we get outside I can just keep the gun and you can go and find your friends and I’ll go my own way.”
Melissa stopped and spun on her heel, causing Rochelle to bump into her.
“That’s really not a good idea.” Melissa told her gently, bringing her hand to the other woman’s shoulder.
“I just don’t want to die. I can’t do this... I can’t do what you’re doing.” Rochelle whimpered.
Melissa could hear the sounds of the infected growing closer; she scanned around but saw there were none nearby.
“Listen, I was like you once: a normal, happy young woman who liked a drink and partying and having friends. I was even going to get married. But then I was forced to make a choice: live or die. I had to fight to protect myself and the people I cared about and even then, most of them died too. But I survived. The world is crazy right now, and I can’t honestly tell you how things will turn out. Maybe we’ll stop the Reborn and the infected and we can rebuild, or maybe they’re going to win and those bastards will get the new world they’re after. Right now though, for you and me, none of that matters. We’re here, surrounded by the undead and being pursued by psychopaths with heavy weapons. Whether we live or die, that’s in our control. So stick with me, Rochelle. Look deep inside yourself and you’ll find a core of strength to hold on to, just like I did. We’re going to get out of here, we’re going to find that bus, and then we’re going to get the hell out of town.”
Rochelle stared at her blankly for a few seconds, and then blinked a couple of times, as though she was pushing back tears. A moment later, though she still looked a little shaky, she began to nod in agreement.
“I... I’ll try. I’ll try.” Rochelle told Melissa, who eyed her for a few seconds and then smiled encouragingly.
“You’ll get through this, Rochelle. You’ve made it this far, so there’s nothing stopping you from going all the way.”
With Rochelle’s nerves steadied, Melissa turned and continued forging a path in the gloom. After several, long minutes, a turn off opened up on the left with what would have been an open, clear area on the right - were it not for an assortment of toppled boxes, pallets and racks of clothes. Melissa gestured to the left and Rochelle shone the light, revealing their potential salvation. A delivery area with a large, metal shutter door which was presently closed, but if luck was uncharacteristically with them, it would give access to the outside. There was a panel to the left with large buttons - presumably to open or close the door - and a chain hanging off to the right. Melissa hurried to the panel and pushed the green button... nothing happened. She hammered it a few times, but stubbornly, the door refused to open. The sounds of the infected at their rear continued to grow in intensity, which made it difficult to determine if there were any waiting on the other side of the door - a thought she hadn’t even considered before trying to open it. Regardless of what lay beyond it however, they couldn’t go back. Melissa hurried to the chain and gave it a tentative pull. The door lifted a fraction before clunking heavily back down when she released it.
“Rochelle, come here.” Melissa instructed, relieving her of the rifle. She checked how much ammunition remained in the clip, and finding it half empty, reloaded to a fresh one just in case, though she pushed the one with diminished ammunition into a different pocket.
“What are we doing?”
“You’re going to heave on the chain and hoist the door open, and I’m going to kill anything on the other side. Once the door’s raised, we’ll pass through and put some distance between us and this store.”
“And then?” Rochelle wanted to know.
“Focus on one step at a time, Rochelle. Firs
t we get away from here, and then we figure out what to do next.”
Melissa took on a battle stance. Bracing the stock of the rifle against her shoulder she knelt down and took aim at the door.
“Open it.” Melissa ordered. After a few moments the door began to rise. Rochelle was heaving as hard as she could, but either she wasn’t as strong as Melissa thought or her nerves were holding her back because the door was rising slowly... too slowly if there were any Reborn out there. As soon as the gap was wide enough Melissa shone the light into the night-shrouded loading bay outside. She was searching for signs of approaching infected or an indication that there were indeed Reborn waiting for them to make an appearance. She saw neither, and felt a feeling of relief creep over her, and a faint hope that their escape would be clean. The door rose higher and higher, and when it was high enough for someone to pass under, Melissa darted forward and crawled through. She placed the weapon in her hands on the floor before turning and taking hold of the bottom of door to keep it in place for Rochelle to slip through.
“Let that chain go gently so I can see if I can hold this up.” Melissa instructed. Rochelle did, and although the door was very heavy, Melissa figured she’d be able to manage for the few seconds it would take for Rochelle to escape.
“Go!” Melissa barked, and Rochelle scurried under the door. The heavy metal forced Melissa down a little, but once the other woman was on the other side, she released her grip and backed away, dropping to her knees with her arms burning from the exertion. The chained rattled as the door swiftly descended, to make a resounding clump as it fell back in place. The cooler, evening air wafted over Melissa’s overheated body and helped to soothe her, but there wasn’t time to linger, especially as the door had just announced their presence. Melissa snatched up the dropped rifle as she got to her feet and passed it to Rochelle.
A World Reborn (Book 2): Global Outbreak Page 12
