The wall gaped open with zombies clawing their way inside, stemmed only by the pitiful few who fought to keep them back. With a hoarse cry, he threw himself into their midst, adding his gun to theirs.
He spotted Joseph and grabbed him. “We need to stop up the gap. Get the excavator!”
Joseph nodded. “Hold them until I get back.”
“We’ll hold,” Martin cried, echoed by those around them.
As Joseph raced away, Peter and Thembiso delivered their message. Every available fighter streamed toward the breach in their defenses. Ke Tau had kept his best for last, and now they were in for the fight of their lives.
Chapter 21 - Michael
Michael was still fighting off to the far side when the call went up. Assisted by Mpho, Lisa, and Elise, he’d focused on picking off the undead that sought to encircle the encampment while keeping a lookout for Ke Tau and his men. He was joined halfway through by Abe, kicked out of the tower when Kirstin took his place.
Engrossed in killing the corpses beneath his feet, he was thrown off balance by a tremendous crash. A tremor ran through the wall followed by frantic cries loud enough to rise above all the other noise.
Seconds later, Peter and Thembiso came flying toward him, shouting, “Breach!”
Michael grabbed Peter by the arm. “Where?”
“Next to the gates. Max is calling everyone. The zombies are getting in.” The boy’s voice shook as he spoke.
Michael let go of him. “Warn the infirmary. The woman and children too. Now.”
Peter and Thembiso obeyed. They jumped off the wall and disappeared into the camp, their feet flying over the packed earth.
“Mpho, Lisa, Abe, Elise, follow me,” Michael cried, turning away.
“No, wait,” Mpho cried, halting his rush. “What about Ke Tau?”
He frowned. “What about him?”
“This is exactly what he does. He creates a diversion, and then…”
“While everyone’s occupied, he sneaks through the back door,” Michael finished, his eyes narrowing.
“Exactly,” she replied.
For a few seconds, Michael thought it over. It made sense, but if she were wrong, a lot of people would die if the breach was overrun. He made a quick decision and prayed he wouldn’t regret it later. “Come with me.”
His feet carried him toward the back of the encampment and away from the fight. The further away he ran, the quieter it grew until it felt like a world removed. The shouting, explosions, and gunfire grew distant. The walls were deserted; everyone had rushed to the front.
The single exceptions were Ben and Sean still stationed at the secondary gate. They, alone, remained to guard this vulnerable spot, but their attention was fixed toward the front. Even the zombies had yet to arrive, granting Ke Tau the perfect opportunity.
Michael hoped he was on time, but even as he ran, a dark head appeared above the wall by Ben’s feet. “Ben, watch out!”
Michael waved his arms as Ben stared at him with a perplexed frown. The head and torso of a man emerged behind him and rose to its feet. White teeth set in coppery skin grinned at Michael over Ben’s shoulder. Carlito.
“Behind you, Ben!” Michael screamed at the top of his lungs.
Comprehension dawned on Ben’s face, and he began to turn. Carlito slid his foot long blade through Ben’s ribs with one swift motion. It went in as smoothly as a hot knife through butter, and the point pierced the older man’s heart. Instant death followed as the organ ceased to beat, and warm blood spilled from his lips.
Carlito flung Ben aside like a piece of trash and backhanded the stuttering Sean with such force that the boy flew off the wall. He landed with a hollow thud inside the compound where he lay unmoving.
Rage bubbled up inside Michael, and he threw himself at Carlito. “Today is the day you die!”
“We shall see who dies, traitor.”
Michael thrust his spear at Carlito’s abdomen, but the man stepped aside with effortless grace. He evaded two more stabs with equal ease before swiping sideways with his weapon. The point raked across Michael’s stomach and drew blood. A backhanded thrust cut across his bicep and another blow nearly impaled him through the neck.
Hurt and bleeding, Michael lashed out with his foot and caught Carlito a glancing blow on the knee. The man was as swift as a snake, though, and stabbed downward into Michael’s leg. The blade left a deep cut along the inner thigh, and more blood spattered on the ground.
Michael staggered back, and the two paused to consider each other. Behind Michael, Mpho stumbled to a halt and gasped. Carlito laughed when he recognized her. “There you are, my sweet little dove. Come to greet me, have you?”
“Drop dead, Carlito,” she said.
“Not today, my love. Tonight, you’ll warm my bed again, and I shall have my fill of you. Tomorrow, I’ll feed you to the zombies.”
Carlito’s words cut through the rage clouding Michael’s mind. The man was quick and strong. Clever too. He was a tough opponent to beat, but not impossible. He backed up a step to gain room to maneuver.
He threw a swift jab at Carlito’s head. The man ducked and responded with a cut to his face, missing by a mere hair’s breadth. Michael swept his spear across the gap between them and opened a slit on his opponent’s forearm.
Carlito’s face flushed with angry blood, and he bellowed. He stepped forward and thrust at Michael’s head with his knife. It was an ambitious move, one which left his torso exposed for a split second.
It was enough for Michael, who pushed the point of his spear into the man’s chest, angled upward. The long weapon sank to the hilt, and crimson blood spurted from the wound.
Carlito’s eyes bulged. Fixed in place, a thin stream of spit drooled from his lips. A long exhale was followed by silence as he slackened into death. With a flip of his hand, Michael tossed the corpse over the side.
Further along the wall, more of Ke Tau’s men were climbing over. A few were already inside the grounds. Abe wrestled with one, another lay dying, while Lisa streaked across the clearing after a third.
Elise fired a shot at the nearest climber, and he fell with a wordless cry. Michael and Mpho added their guns to the fray, and for the next few seconds, they were engaged in a fierce firefight.
When his gun emptied, he gutted one with his spear. The point went into the man’s open mouth and down his gullet. He dropped with a garbled scream, taking the spear with him.
At last, the intruders abandoned their quest as infected streamed in, drawn by the sounds of the struggle. Their window of opportunity had closed, and the remainder fled, running back the way they came with several of the undead in their wake.
A few had made it inside, however, and they ran toward the buildings while he cursed at their backs. He prepared to go after them and turned to Mpho. “Go to Max. Warn him there are enemies within the walls.”
She hesitated. “Don’t die on me, okay?”
“I won’t, I promise.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” she replied.
Michael watched her go with relief before turning back. His gaze swept from Abe to Elise. Abe had his attacker down on the ground, leaning with all his weight on a knife aimed at the man’s throat. As he watched, Abe pushed down with a grunt of effort. The blade sank into his victim’s flesh with agonizing slowness, and crimson blood welled up in a fountain.
Michael looked away from the gory sight and hurried toward Elise. She’d holstered her gun and now huddled over Ben’s lifeless body. “Oh, Ben. Not you too. You can’t be dead. You can’t be.”
Michael pried her away from the body and turned her to face him. “Elise, listen to me. Ben is gone. I know he was your friend, but he’s dead.”
“I know,” she sobbed, her eyes red and watery.
“But Sean isn’t dead, and he needs your help. Got it?”
Her brow furrowed. “Sean?”
“Yes, Sean. Erica’s husband. Henriette’s father. He’s lying over there, and he’s hurt
. He needs your help.”
Her face cleared, and she straightened her shoulders. “Of course. I’ll do my best.”
He grunted with satisfaction. “Good. Can I leave you here with him? Will you be okay?”
“Yes, yes,” she replied with quick decisiveness. “I’ll be fine. Abe can help me carry him to the infirmary. Now go.”
Satisfied, Michael turned inward toward the camp. Several of Ke Tau’s men had made it inside and now posed a threat to everyone there. Warm blood trickled from his various wounds, but the worst was the cut in his thigh. He tore a strip of cloth from his shirt and tied it around with quick jerks to form a bandage. Next, he gripped his gun with his right and his knife with his left. Time to go hunting.
Chapter 22 - Lisa
When Michael decided not to heed Max’s call and run toward the back instead, Lisa followed without question, trusting his judgment. Stuck behind him and Mpho, she watched in horror as a stranger crawled onto the wall and killed Ben. Ben, who’d always been kind and fair to her, Ben, who’d treated her as an equal and not a glass doll about to shatter. I’m sorry, Ben.
She watched as Sean was flung aside and when Michael challenged the man he called Carlito. That clicked a few things into place for her. Carlito was one of the men who’d tortured Lonny and tried to rape Ruby. Wherever Carlito was, Ke Tau was sure to be nearby. Hiran too.
Three men had made it over the wall while Carlito and Michael fought, and she went after them. The weeks of hard work and training now paid off as her body turned into a killing machine.
Dropping to the inner grounds, she stormed the nearest and stabbed him in the stomach with her spear. The cold breeze swirled around her face and lifted tendrils of red hair off her shoulders to blow around like strands of blood. It matched the crimson spatters that covered her skin.
Abe had followed her and was wrestling with a second, while the third crouched on the ground where he’d dropped. She caught a brief glimpse of his scarred face and blind eye. Ke Tau.
He flashed her an awful grin before sprinting toward the buildings. She shucked her gun and ran after him. Fleeting glimpses of his dark hair and slender form teased her as they weaved through the buildings. He was fast, and she struggled to keep up with him. The next moment, he vanished.
Lisa stumbled to a halt, and her chest heaved for oxygen. Her breathing sounded loud in the still air, and the light was rapidly fading as the sun set on the horizon.
She turned in a slow circle, her ears pricked for the slightest noise. A whisper of sound caused her to whirl, but she saw nothing. Suddenly, an arm closed around her throat, and a knife’s cold edge pricked her tender skin. “Are you looking for me?”
Lisa gasped, and icy terror flooded her veins. Her muscles froze in place as the blade pressed deeper into her neck, cutting the soft flesh with its razor sharpness. A lean body as hard as iron pressed against hers, and a musty scent washed over her nostrils. The stink of sweat, tobacco, and old blood.
“Who…who are you?” she managed to ask.
A low chuckle was followed by a sharp pain as he flicked the knife against her earlobe. “I think you know.”
“I don’t know you.”
Another low laugh was followed by a second cut to her cheek, this one much deeper. “Don’t lie to me. I hate liars. Tell me who I am.”
“Ke Tau,” she answered with a wince of pain.
“That’s better. What’s your name?”
“Lisa.”
“Now Lisa, we’re going to play a game. If you go along with it, I’ll spare your life. I might even let you keep your pretty face.”
Lisa swallowed at the menace in his voice and cast around for help. There was none to be had, no one to save her. They were all busy defending the walls. She was on her own. “Go on.”
“If you don’t do as I say, I’ll take you apart like a rag doll at the seams. First your fingers, then your toes…do you get where I’m going with this?”
Lisa squeezed her eyes shut and sucked in a breath. The sun winked in a final flash of brilliant light before vanishing altogether. Now the darkness held sway. This can’t be happening. No, no, no.
“Your eyes will go last, but only so you can watch every single thing I do to you. Understand?”
She shuddered and nodded.
He chuckled at her reaction. “Good. Now show me where your women and children are hiding.”
“What? No!”
He sighed. “You disappoint me, Lisa. Trust me when I say you don’t want to disappoint me.”
She remained silent.
“Show me,” he said with a growl as he cut into her face.
“I won’t show you, no matter what you do to me,” she replied, steeling herself against the pain he’d cause at her refusal.
“Why not?” he asked. “I won’t hurt them, I swear. I just want some leverage.”
“Leverage?”
“Don’t you understand, you stupid woman? Your people have won. I’ve lost. Even my own people deserted me. If I want to get out of here, I’ll need something to bargain with.”
“Hostages.”
“Precisely.” He pressed the knife against her neck, right where the artery throbbed in time to the beat of her heart. “So tell me where the women and children are before I cut your pretty throat wide open and let you bleed out like a pig.”
Lisa imagined him getting his hands on little Meghan and Anne. Mark and Jenny. The babies. Never.
Not even if it meant her death. She looked up at the stars, a thick carpet of silver lights that twinkled in the cobalt heavens. Death wouldn’t be so bad. By rights, I should have died a long time ago.
“Tell me,” he repeated.
“No.”
“What?”
“I said no.”
“You’re willing to die for them?”
“I am.”
He made a disgusted noise in the back of his throat. “Fine. I’ve wasted enough time on you already.”
His arms tightened as he prepared to drag the blade across her throat, and Lisa closed her eyes. This is it.
Suddenly, Ke Tau stiffened. A garbled cry escaped his lips, and he leaned on her with all his weight as his knees buckled. Acting on instinct, Lisa folded her legs while simultaneously shoving his arms up. She slipped out of his hold and staggered away before turning to watch him.
Ke Tau stared at her while his mouth worked soundlessly. He dropped his knife to the ground and reached up as if to swat a fly on his back. After a second, he collapsed face first into the dust.
Behind him stood a figure, short and slender, with wide eyes and ghostly white skin. Lisa blinked and wondered for a moment if she was facing a ghost. Am I dead? Did Ke Tau kill me?
The figure stepped forward, and a glimmer of moonlight fell across her face. It was a familiar face, one now wide-eyed with shock and horror.
“Ruby?” Lisa said. “Is that you?”
The figure nodded.
Lisa looked from Ke Tau’s body to the girl and noticed the hatchet buried in his back. The handle stuck up into the air with the head lodged between his shoulder blades. “You killed him.”
“I did it for Lonny,” Ruby said, her voice shaking.
“It’s okay.” Lisa opened her arms as Ruby began to cry.
The girl pressed her face to Lisa’s shoulder. “He was going to kill you.”
“Yes, he was.”
“He was a horrible man.”
“An evil man,” Lisa agreed, though her heart ached for Ruby. It was not easy to kill another human being, no matter how cruel or brutal he was.
She ushered Ruby back to the schoolroom, her eyes casting about for danger the entire way. She wasn’t sure what was happening. Whether more of Ke Tau’s men were roaming the grounds or whether the undead had gotten in through the breach. She found Michelle, Tumi, and Erica pacing up and down, and they pounced on her with worried cries.
“What’s going on out there?” Erica asked, a hint of panic in her voice. �
�Is it true? Are the dead inside?”
“Thembiso and Peter told us about the breach before they left to warn the infirmary,” Michelle added.
“I don’t know. I’ll go find out,” Lisa said. “In the meantime, lock the door and stay on your guard.”
“We will,” Erica said, her face frightened, but Lisa noticed the determined way she held her gun.
“You too Ruby. Don’t run away again.”
“Okay,” Ruby replied in a small voice.
“She insisted on leaving,” Michelle said. “She wanted to go to the infirmary to be with Lonny.”
“We refused to let her go, but when Peter and Thembiso arrived, she slipped outside before we could stop her,” Erica added.
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing she did,” Lisa replied. Or I’d be dead right now. “I’ll be back soon. Be careful.”
Lisa left the warmth of the schoolroom and stepped outside only to bump into a hulking shape. She gasped and lifted her gun to shoot, but a familiar voice caused her to pause.
“Relax, it’s only me.”
“Michael?”
“Yeah.”
“Where did you come from?”
“I’ve been searching the grounds, flushing out rats.”
“Rats?”
His teeth gleamed in the moonlight. “Ke Tau’s men, the ones who got in.”
“Did you get them all?” she asked as he directed her toward the main gate.
“I think so, but a final sweep would be best.”
“What about the breach?”
“Max and the others managed to keep out the undead until Joseph shored up the gap with the excavator.
Lisa sagged with relief. “Thank, God.”
“You can say that again.”
“Carlito?”
“He’s dead.”
“What about Hiran?”
“I haven’t seen hide nor hair of the jackal.” Michael walked for a few steps in silence. “Ke Tau. Was that you?”
“No, not me.” She shook her head in amazement. “Ruby did it.”
“Ruby?” He stopped in shocked surprise before he burst out laughing. “Now isn’t that what you’d call poetic justice?”
Children of the Apocalypse: Mega Boxed Set Page 70
