The only response was a hail of bullets. She got her arms up over her head just in time to keep it from being perforated by machine gun fire. Her pilot wasn’t so fortunate. He was just removing his armored cowl as the gunfire started, and his head was quickly obliterated. Esme got her cowl up as his useless body fell to the ground, and rushed the person holding the gun. She moved faster than the young woman could aim, and in the blink of an eye Esme was on her, lifting her off the ground.
“I have orders to bring everyone back alive,” she said. “That’s the only thing keeping me from snapping your neck.”
“Leave her alone!”
Esme followed the sound of insubordination to a plump, silver-haired woman, but it wasn’t the woman or her impertinence that drew her attention—it was the infant in her arms. Only then did she realize that neither Alek nor his pretty pet were present inside the fort. Had the girl actually left her precious brat brother unprotected? Esme found herself smiling. “Open the gate,” she commanded, still holding the woman in the air, “or I’ll break something non-lethal instead.”
In the corner of her vision, she saw someone else raise a gun. The woman in her hands screamed as Esme flung her at the offender. She collided with him and they both went down in a heap. “I was told not to kill anyone,” she announced. “But I’m not technically in violation of that order if you shoot one of your own who has graciously volunteered to shield me.” She grabbed another hostage and held them close enough that none of these plebes would dare risk firing at her. “Now I won’t tell you again. Open the fucking gate.”
Her command became needless as her troops smashed through the wooden gate. It might have been useful for keeping out the brainless dead, but her people had a battering ram and the strength of a dozen vampires behind it. To her satisfaction, these people knew when they were beat. They laid down their weapons and backed away from the vampires.
Esme released her hostage and scanned the crowd for the silver-haired woman. She spotted her moving toward the back, trying to keep the baby hidden from view. Esme shoved her way through the crowd toward the woman. “Give me the infant,” she demanded.
“What? No! You leave him alone!” She tried fruitlessly to turn away and shield the baby.
Esme was tired of being defied by these people. It was time to set an example. She grabbed the woman by her hair and yanked her back around. “This is the last time any of you creatures will say no to me. Now give me the child.”
“Please,” the woman cried. “What do you want with him?”
“That’s none of your concern.” She released the woman and took the baby from her arms. Immediately the foul thing started to squirm and scream. “The sister is with Doctor Konstantin, no doubt. Where are they?”
“I don’t know.”
Esme wrapped a hand around the baby’s neck. She didn’t squeeze, but the gesture was enough to alarm the woman.
“Please!” she cried.
“I only want to deliver the sweet baby to his sister,” she lied. “I can deliver him alive or dead. It’s up to you.”
“The old jail house!” she cried. “They went to the old jail house, in the lab downstairs. But I don’t even know if they made it. We don’t even know if they’re still alive!”
That filled Esme with an uncomfortable mix of dread and satisfaction. How sweet would it be if Alek and his pet had already met their demise? Not nearly as sweet as it would be if they were to meet it at her hands, she decided. She hoped she would find them alive.
She hoped she would find Alek alive, at least.
“Round them up!” she ordered her troops. “We only have a short time before sunup to get them back to the prison. Celine. Edmund. Richard. Come with me.”
FORTY-EIGHT
“I think this is it.” Alek held up the vial of bright green liquid, seeming to admire the way it glowed in the light of the Bunsen burner.
“How sure are you?” asked Hannah.
“Well, we need to test it to be positive, but I went over and over Zach’s calculations and only found one minor error. Otherwise, his formula seemed flawless. Everything I know about chemistry and biology says that this should work.”
Hannah rummaged through Zach’s supplies until she found a sterile syringe. She tore open the plastic it was wrapped in and handed it to Alek. “Here. Load it up.”
He took the syringe from her and filled it with the substance. When he was finished, Hannah took it from him and started undoing her pants.
“What are you doing?”
“I think the hip is probably the best injection site, don’t you?”
He grabbed back the syringe. “I thought you were going to give it to one of the rats. You’re not injecting yourself with this.”
“Alek,” she reached over and grabbed his wrist before he could go waste the vaccine on a rat, “we don’t have time to test it. If you’re that sure it works, then just give it to me.”
“I can’t be that sure until it’s tested. And I’ll be damned if I test it on you.”
“I don’t think it really makes a difference at this point. It’s not like I’m planning to go out there and get bit. But I have to get back to Noah, and this place is crawling with shamblers. If that vaccine will increase my chances of getting back to him alive—”
“You will get back to him. I’ll make sure of that. Shooting yourself up with an untested drug isn’t the way. Okay?” He held out the syringe, but he didn’t let her take it until she agreed. “Now, please administer that to one of the rats and place it in isolation while I obtain a sample from Bob. Okay?”
“Okay,” she said, irritably. They were wasting time with this, and Alek knew it. She understood his caution, but caution took time and that was something they didn’t have. Reluctantly, she approached the rat cage, but stopped when she heard steps pounding down the stairs.
“Hannah!” someone called from the corridor. “Doc!”
“Chris?” Hannah called back. “We’re in here!”
He appeared in the cell’s open doorway, panting and doubled over, clearly out of breath. “You… you’re okay,” he said. “We… we heard the explosion…”
“Explosion?” Alek looked at her. “What explosion?”
“Long story,” she said. “Chris, what are you doing here? I thought you were still in the storm shelter.”
He shook his head. “We got everyone moved to the old fort. Shamblers are everywhere.”
“We know. You didn’t have to risk your neck to come and tell us.”
“That’s not what I came to warn you about,” he said, his breath coming back to him. He stood up straight and looked at Alek. “They’re here.”
“What?” Alek took a step toward him. “You’re sure?”
“Some of us snuck out of the fort to get the weapons from the auditorium. We were in there when they arrived. There were probably half a dozen helicopters, and soldiers in black rappelling to the ground. They’re probably already at the fort by now.”
Shocked, Hannah looked from Chris to Alek. “You said they wouldn’t come till tomorrow.”
Alek shook his head. “That’s what they said, but clearly, I was a fool to believe them. But I thought there was no way they could mobilize this quickly. They must have already been planning this.” He let out a derisive bark of laughter. “Damn Esme. They probably would have gotten here even sooner if not for the storm.”
“Where’s Noah?” Hannah asked Chris.
“He’s still with my mom. She’s had him all night.”
She looked at Alek, not even trying to disguise the fear she felt. “I have to get to him. Esme… the way she looked at me back at the prison… if she gets him she’ll use him against me.”
“And she’ll use you both as leverage against me.” He came over and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll get you back to him.” He retrieved Zach’s pistol and handed it to Hannah. “Keep this,” he said, then turned to Chris. “Do you have a weapon?”
<
br /> Chris patted the semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder. “I’m good.”
Alek nodded. “Let’s go. Both of you, stay behind me. Chris—”
“I’ll watch her back,” he said, following Alek out of the lab. Hannah paused before following, and looked down at the syringe in her hand. “Nothing to lose,” she muttered, before jabbing the needle through her jeans and into her thigh.
FORTY-NINE
Alek led them up the stairs and out of the old jail. They stuck to the shadows, avoiding the tell-tale sounds of moaning and trying to stay out of sight of the helicopters. He would have preferred that Hannah and Chris both stay in the lab, where he knew they’d be hidden and safe. But he also knew there was no way Hannah would have agreed to stay behind when Noah was in danger; and if Hannah wouldn’t stay, neither would Chris.
Besides, Esme would be gunning for them both, and it would only be a matter of time before she coerced someone into revealing their location—if she hadn’t already done so. He only hoped that she hadn’t harmed anyone to get the info. If she had, that would just be one more reason to kill her.
The old corral was on the other side of the historical section of the base, about a quarter-mile or so from their current location. The buildings there were fewer and farther between, with a lot more open ground between them. Esme’s forces had probably taken care of any shamblers that posed an immediate threat to the corral’s inhabitants, but there were still plenty of others milling about between the old guard house and the corral. And there were the helicopters.
“We have to move fast,” he told his companions. “Try to leave any shamblers we encounter to me. Use the butts of your rifles like clubs if you need to defend yourselves. Don’t shoot unless you absolutely have to.” He looked at Hannah and Chris in turn. “Stay close.”
They both nodded. Alek edged out from the shadow of the guard house. Immediately, he was met by a lone shambler. He grabbed its head and twisted it off before it even had the chance to make a sound.
They made good ground, crossing the yard in silence, weaving and dodging their way around random shamblers and managing not to draw attention. They made it several yards before he heard Chris cry out behind him. Alek turned to see a shambler’s hand grasping the tail of Chris’s shirt. He and Hannah were double-teaming it, beating it down with their guns. That drew the attention of two more that were nearby, but Alek made quick work of them both. “Are you two okay?”
Hannah nodded. “Let’s keep moving.”
They were halfway to the corral, in the middle of open ground, when they heard the sound of a helicopter engine powering up. A moment later, a large black chopper rose from the center of the corral. “Get down!” Alek said, dropping to the ground and pulling the others down with him. As they flattened out on the ground, he hoped that the pre-dawn darkness would be enough to hide them. The helicopter passed over them without seeming to notice. When he looked back up toward the corral, he saw black-clad vampire soldiers leading a line of people out through the gate.
“They’re rounding everybody up,” said Alek. “We need a better plan than this.”
“We have a plan?” asked Hannah.
“My point exactly.”
“Guys,” said Chris, “They’ve got my mom.” He started to get up.
“Wait!” Hannah said, pulling him back down. “We can’t help them by rushing in there.” She looked back up at the line. “Alek, Noah’s not with her.”
“It’s all right,” he said, hoping it was the truth. “Don’t panic. That won’t help anybody.”
They were starting to draw attention. Not from the vampires, but from the shamblers. Alek could sense them closing in. “We need to get out of here,” he said, getting to his feet. He helped Hannah up. Chris was already on his feet, pointing.
“Look!”
Some of the shamblers had taken note of the line of humans being herded toward the choppers, and their moaning was drawing others. They were starting to group up. “They’re going for my mom!” As he shouted, he broke into a run. This time neither Alek nor Hannah were quick enough to stop him.
“Chris!” Hannah shouted as loud as she dared. “Get back here!” She started to run after him, but Alek held her back.
“Let him go. If we get caught we won’t be able to help anybody.” As he pulled Hannah along with him to hide behind a nearby tree, Chris opened fire on the shamblers.
“Get away from them!” he shouted as he fired. “Here! Come this way!”
“What is he doing?” asked Hannah.
“Getting himself killed.” He growled with frustration. “Wait here.” He started to go after the boy, but it was too late. The guards had already taken note of him, and so had Paula. She shouted and pointed at him as some of the guards rushed to put down the shamblers and retrieve Chris. “It’s okay,” said Alek. “The vamps will capture him, but they won’t kill him.”
But the sound of gunfire drew more of the creatures—more than the vampires could handle. The stupid, brave boy saw them closing in, and kept shouting and waving to draw their attention away from the crowd. “What’s he doing?” asked Hannah.
“Being a hero. Damn it.”
“We have to help him.”
Alek nodded, but cursed under his breath. “We’ll go around the back of the buildings and try to intercept. Maybe I can hold them off while the two of you—”
He was cut off by a distant scream, and a gasp from Hannah. Chris had been gaining ground, staying ahead of the shambler horde. But the noise had drawn another mob, and they closed in on him from the opposite direction. He was surrounded, and there was nothing anybody could do.
Alek didn’t know whose screams were louder, Chris’s or Paula’s. Hannah’s might have drowned them both out if Alek didn’t have a hand clamped firmly over her mouth. “Shh,” he told her as she struggled against him. “Shh, Hannah. We can’t help him. I’m sorry, baby, I’m so sorry.” She kept fighting him. “It’s too late for him,” Alek whispered in her ear. “We have to think about Noah.”
That took the fight out of her. As she went limp in his arms, he removed his hand from her mouth. “Oh, God,” she whimpered, collapsing against him. “Chris.”
“I’m so sorry,” he said as she turned around in his arms and buried her face against his chest. “It’s up to us, now,” he told her. “We just have to stay hidden, and stay alive. Then we can come up with a plan. It’s not over as long as we’re alive, and free.”
“No,” she said. “No, we can’t let them take Noah. Alek, we have to find him.”
“We will.” He pulled her down to a crouch behind the tree. “Esme probably has him, but she won’t hurt him. She’ll use him to bait us. He’ll be okay.”
She nodded, and her face crumpled with grief as she slumped back against the tree. Alek sat down and pulled her into his lap, and held her as they waited for the coast to be clear. He didn’t speak as she shuddered against him with silent sobs. They needed to be as quiet as possible, and besides, there was nothing he could say to make this better.
She was all cried out by the time the helicopters lifted off. He knew Esme too well to believe she was on one of them. She was still here, somewhere, hunting them. “There’s a chance she’s still at the corral,” he whispered to Hannah. “If not, she’ll probably look there for us eventually.” He looked up at the sky. It was beginning to lighten, turning from black to the deep purple that signaled pre-dawn. “We don’t have a lot of time, and neither does she.”
“Then let’s go,” she said, her voice dull and raw. He helped her to her feet, and hand in hand, they started across the open yard toward the corral. Without any shadows to hide them, they were easily visible to the remaining shamblers, who were turning to follow them.
“Alek,” said Hannah.
“I know. Just keep moving.” He broke into a run, albeit a slow one so that she could keep up with him. They reached the outside of the corral when she staggered and fell. “Hannah, get up.”
/> “Look out!” she pointed behind him, and he turned just as a shambler reached him. He dispatched it quickly, and when he turned back around, Hannah had her weapon up, firing at more of them. But her arm seemed to grow heavy, and her aim was off. “It’s not working,” she said. “Damn it!”
There was no time to ask what she was talking about as Alek stood between her and the shamblers, taking them out one at a time. As they started to gang up, he went into overdrive, letting his vampire reflexes take over as he destroyed one after another, working his way out from Hannah, until not one of them would be getting up again.
He didn’t give himself time to reign in his vampiric side before rushing back to where she had fallen to her knees. “Hannah? What is it? What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry, Alek. It didn’t work.” With visible effort, she raised her arm to show him a fresh bite mark. “The vaccine’s no good.”
He stared at the bite. “What? No.” He looked at her. “When?”
“When that one grabbed Chris. It got its teeth in me while we were fighting it off. Alek, I took the vaccine before I left the lab. I thought it was working. I thought I’d be okay.” She closed her eyes, fresh tears falling from them. “I’m so sorry.”
“No.” He grabbed her face in both hands. “No! Hannah, you don’t do this. You stay with me.”
“I’m sorry,” she said again. “I’m so sorry.” She slumped forward, and he caught her in his arms. “Please take care of Noah,” she said. “Tell him I’m sorry.”
“No.” Alek held her and rocked her. This couldn’t be happening. It just couldn’t. He had to be able to save her. It hadn’t worked with Zach, but he had to try. He couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t try. “Hannah, I’m sorry. I know I promised… but I can’t lose you now. Not like this. I can’t just let you die.”
Dominion of the Damned Page 27
