“We could only find two,” Amanda said. “My mom’s bike has a flat tire.”
Cassie knew Stephenson wasn’t a fan of bikes. He wasn’t a big fan of anything that required him to use his muscles.
“Amanda and I can take the bikes,” she offered.
Leo frowned and shook his head. “Cassie, you need to ride with me. Your sister will kill me if I bring you back with a scratch on you.”
“Too late.” Cassie could hardly believe she was arguing; the safest place to be was most definitely on a horse with Leo.
Even so, she held out her arm to display a long gash on her forearm. She had no idea where it had come from. Somewhere between opening the back door to let zombies inside and dropping down off the porch downspout, she’d cut herself on something.
“That didn’t happen on my watch,” Leo said. “Make sure you tell Jennifer that. Come on, you’re riding with me.”
Before she could say anything else, he grabbed her around the waist and boosted her onto the back of his horse. As he mounted the horse in front of her, she tried not to notice how solid and muscular he was. Or the fact that even the back of his head was gorgeous. How was that even possible?
The fact that she was eye level with the back of his head brought two things to mind:
a) It was a dismal reminder of the fact that she was freakishly tall. Her mom always claimed it was the reason she’d never had a boyfriend. No one wanted a girlfriend he had to look up at. Not that Leo had to look up at her.
b) If Jennifer was riding behind Leo, her cheek would nestle perfectly in the curve between his shoulder blades.
She’d hate her sister if she didn’t love her so much.
“Hold onto me,” Leo said.
Cassie only hesitated a second before wrapping her arms around his waist. It seemed inappropriate to be wedged up against his back, but she sure as hell didn’t want to fall.
Leo led the way down the hard-packed dirt road that sloped away from the Nielson house. It was pitted and worn with water channels and erosion.
Stephenson and Amanda pedaled behind them, swerving to avoid the worst of the pot holes. Dal brought up the rear.
Cassie glanced back a few times to check on Amanda, wondering how she was holding up with all that had just happened. It wasn’t every day you lost both parents. Her friend was bent over the handle bars of the bike, mouth set in a determined line as she pedaled.
“What are we going to do if we run into any infected?” Cassie asked, looking around nervously at all the trees. She was convinced there were more of them out there.
“Just hang onto me,” Leo replied. “If we see any nezhit, I’ll shoot them.”
It was the best plan Cassie had heard all day.
Chapter 7
Mutant
LEO WAS DISTRACTED. He kept trying to reconcile the young woman riding behind him with the scruffy kid he remembered. He almost didn’t recognize Cassie at first. She’d been a skinny little rug rat with frizzy hair back when he’d been with Jennifer.
It had been over two-and-a-half years since he’d last seen Cassie. It was like she’d stepped into Superman’s phone booth. Except she hadn’t turned into a brawny hero with a cape. She’d turned into a tall, curvy young woman. It was impossible not to notice how pretty she was.
He felt like an idiot for having ever ever called her Squirt. He tried very hard not to pay attention to the feel of her breasts against his back. She was Jennifer’s little sister, for crying out loud. His ex-girlfriend’s little sister. Whom he had come here to rescue. He shouldn’t be paying attention to anything beyond keeping her alive.
“White pawn to g3,” Cassie whispered. “Black pawn to e6. White knight to c3. Black bishop to c5.”
“What are you doing?” Leo asked.
“Playing chess.”
He was confused. “What do you mean, playing chess? Like, in your head?”
“Yeah. White knight to f3. Black pawn to d6.”
“You’re playing chess in your head? Right now?”
“Yes. Believe me when I say it’s better than the alternative. White pawn to d4. Black bishop to b6.”
Leo could only assume she meant she was scared. He could understand that. Playing chess must calm her down.
But how did she do it in her head? He used to plan football plays, but always with a pencil and paper. Otherwise, it was too much to track.
He’d forgotten she’d been on the chess team. She must be pretty damn good if she could play a game against herself in her head. Pretty damn smart, too.
They reached the edge of the Nielson property. After that, the road flattened into graded gravel that snaked through the tree. It was perhaps another mile before they’d reach open road. Leo was ready to be out of these big trees, especially with evening coming on.
Behind him, he felt Cassie constantly swiveling her head as she scanned their surroundings. All the while, she kept up the whispering dialogue of the chess game.
“White bishop to to g5. Checkmate. Damn.”
“Who won?” Leo asked.
“White. But it should have been black. White led with some classic bad moves. I’m just too scared to play a decent game right now.”
Hearing her admit her fear made his insides clench. “I promised Jennifer that I’d get you home safely,” he said, hoping to comfort her. “I plan to do that. We—”
A long, low growl cut him off. He went on alert, cursing himself for getting distracted with Cassie. He couldn’t keep her safe if he allowed himself to get distracted.
Get your head in the game, asshole, he told himself.
Leo gripped the horse with his legs and raised his rifle. Dal pulled up beside him, rifle calmly raised to his shoulder. Stephenson and Amanda rolled to a stop behind them, whispering to one another in frantic fear.
“Quiet,” Leo hissed to them.
The growl sounded again. Leo zeroed in on the direction. It was coming from a small cottage off to their right, a green house with a red roof tucked back in the trees. It would have looked downright adorable if not for the three bodies facedown in the dirt.
Crouched over the three bodies was a zombie. Oddly, he was alone, not in a pack. His eyes were all red, even the irises.
Leo had never seen one with all-red irises before. And that wasn’t the only thing different. This nezhit was deformed. His left deltoid muscle was swollen and bulging, causing it to walk at an odd angle. His shirt had torn, revealing infected black veins beneath the skin.
No, that wasn’t entirely accurate. The zombie wasn’t walking at an odd angle. It was running—straight for them. An inhuman howl broke from his throat as he charged down the hard-packed dirt driveway.
Rifles cracked as Leo and Dal simultaneously fired. They both aimed for the head. After their mission to Rossi, they’d learned the fastest way to drop infected was with head shots. Regular shots would do it, too; it just took a lot more bullets that way.
Two bullets hit the head of the infected at the same time. The monster swayed on his feet, appearing stunned. Leo held his breath. Red eyes blinked at them. Leo kept his rifle rock-steady, ready to fire again.
The nezhit swayed, then dropped. Its hand twitched once before going still.
Cassie’s grip around him was so tight it was hard to breathe. She was muttering softly to herself, her warm breath against the back of his neck. Her words pricked his attention.
“What did you say?” he asked.
“Sorry,” she replied, falling silent. “Just talking to myself.”
“No, what did you say?” She hadn’t been playing a chess game.
“Red irises,” Cassie said. “Muscle deformation. My theory is that he’s a different type of zombie. This may or may not be a new problem.”
“Damn.” Dal’s mouth compressed into a tight line. “We really don’t need another problem.”
Leo, too, felt the truth in Cassie’s observation. It made him itch to get back to Pole Mountain.
“Um, Leo?�
�� Cassie said.
“Yeah?”
“Those bodies in front of the house ... are those also zombies?”
Sick dread yanked at him. Leo heeled the horse. The animal plodded up the driveway.
Leo couldn’t take his eyes off the mutated zombie. The black veins spidering across his face were a complex web. His body had only partially mutated, like he’d been on the way to turning into a zombified Incredible Hulk. There was something really, really wrong with him.
The horse passed the deformed zombie and came to stop in front of the other three bodies. They were indeed zombies. The black veins on their arms, necks, and faces made them unmistakeable.
“I never thought I’d be relieved to see regular zombies,” Cassie said. “I mean, less than thirty minutes ago, a regular zombie was the worst thing I’d ever seen.”
Leo slid off the horse and booted the bodies to make sure they were really dead.
They were. None of them so much as twitched or growled when he kicked them.
The others drew up beside them. “What killed them?” Amanda asked. “I don’t see any wounds.”
“Neither do I.” Leo’s face was tense when he looked up. “They look like they just ... died.”
“Poison?” Stephenson suggested. “Maybe someone left out a bowl of raw meat laced with poison.”
“Lena said the infected were supposed to start dying off in seven to ten days,” Dal said. “Maybe that’s what happened here. Maybe these three and the deformed one were a pack before the first three died.”
“But it’s only been three-and-a-half days since the invasion,” Cassie said. “The math isn’t right. And it doesn’t explain that one.” She jerked a thumb at the mutant zombie.
“Isolated anomaly?” Stephenson’s voice was squeaky. “It happens. Like albinos. Did you know one percent of the population are carriers for albino gene?”
No one dignified this with a response.
“There are no answers here,” Leo said. “We need to go. It’s getting late.”
He returned to the horse and heeled the animal down the driveway. The stocky mare hadn’t even reached the road before he felt Cassie’s whispers against the back of his neck. Her voice was inaudible, but he guessed she was moving chess pieces around in her head again. It made him all the more anxious to get her back to the safety of the cabin, where she would feel safe.
Chapter 8
Resistance
CASSIE HEARD HER SISTER before she saw her.
“Cassie!” Jennifer’s shout cut through the darkness of the Cecchino property. “Cassie!” She burst through the undergrowth in a shower of leaves. Even in the dark, her head of curly hair and petite figure were unmistakeable.
“Jen!” Cassie dropped awkwardly from the horse. She tripped on a root before breaking into a run.
Cassie’s cheeks were wet with tears by the time she reached her big sister. She grabbed Jennifer in a tight hug. Jennifer returned the embrace, crying into Cassie’s shoulder. Cassie stood a full head taller than her.
Even in the middle of the full-scale Russian invasion with zombies, Jennifer managed to look amazing. Her hair was perfect. Her clothes showed off her flawless figure.
Cassie heard their mother’s voice playing in her head. Boys aren’t into the tomboy look, Cassie. You really should try to fix your hair, sweetie. Grow it out a little more. Maybe wear a little makeup.
She blocked out her mother’s voice. Now wasn’t the time to worry about how she looked.
“I’m so sorry,” Jennifer said through her tears. “I’m so sorry I didn’t make it to Amanda’s house to pick you up. I tried, I swear I tried, but there were Russians everywhere.”
“That’s okay. You sent your knight in shining armor to get me.” During the ride back to the Cecchino cabin, Cassie had come to the conclusion that Leo and Jennifer would be back together soon. It only made sense. Leo and Jennifer had always made sense.
Jennifer shook her head and cast a brief scowl in Leo’s direction. “I wanted to be the one to rescue you.”
Leo rolled his eyes as he dismounted his horse. “Are you really going to pick a fight over this? She’s here, isn’t she?”
Jennifer huffed and returned Leo’s eye roll. “Yes.”
“Yes you’re going to pick a fight with me, or yes you’re grateful I got Cassie for you?”
“Both.”
Leo barked a laugh. He looked genuinely amused.
Jennifer flashed a grin at him. “Thanks, Leo.”
“You’re welcome.”
Cassie’s eyes flicked back and forth. This exchange between them was different from anything she’d ever seen. It was ... friendly. That was the only word she could come up with.
Jennifer held Cassie at arm’s length, looking at her from head to toe. “Well, you’re covered in blood and dirty as hell, but you’re in one piece. What happened to your arm?”
“She had that before we got there,” Leo said.
Cassie rubbed at the long cut on her forearm. “I don’t know where I got this. We had to escape through the attic of Amanda’s house.”
Dal rode out of the trees. Behind them, pushing their bikes and looking miserable, were Amanda and Stephenson.
The other residents of the Cecchino cabin boiled outside. Cassie saw Lena and Anton, Leo’s younger twin siblings. Lena ran straight into Dal’s arms, kissing him like she hadn’t seen him in ten years. Now that was a surprise. Cassie hadn’t known they were together.
Also among the cabin residents were a few guys she recognized. The brothers form the Craig cattle farm, whom she knew only by sight. There was Bruce, another varsity football jock like Anton, and a tiny old woman. Cassie deduced this was Nonna Cecchino.
There was a hardness to the group. It was the same thing she’d noticed in Leo. She saw it most in Anton and Bruce. A few days ago, those two guys had been the epitome of cocky football jocks. Now they gazed out at the world with set jaws and hard eyes. It looked like they’d been to hell and had lived to tell the tale.
“There’s something we need to discuss.” Leo’s voice cut across the clearing. “We saw something on the way back from the Nielsons’.”
It was impossible to miss his immediate effect. Everyone straightened expectantly, their eyes on Leo. If Cassie had any question as to who was in charge, it had just been answered. Leo was the king of this chessboard.
“We can talk inside,” Nonna said. “I made minestrone for dinner. It’s still warm.”
Jennifer linked her arm through Cassie’s and led her up the stairs to the Cecchino cabin.
“Do you know anything about Mom and Dad?” Cassie asked.
Jennifer shook her head. “I don’t know, Cas. I’m sorry. I got cut off from Bastopol in the initial invasion. Bruce, too. The town was overrun. Neither of us knows if our parents are okay.”
It was the same for Stephenson. He’d spent over two hours trying to call his parents at the start of the invasion. All he’d gotten was a busy signal.
Cassie swallowed and nodded. What else had she expected? They were in the middle of a war, after all.
They reached the top of the stairs. Cassie had heard of the Cecchino cabin, but this was the first time she’d seen it. The inside was cozy with over-sized leather sofas and knotty-pine walls. To one side was a wood-burning stove. On the opposite side was a narrow kitchen with windows looking out over the trees.
Jennifer led Cassie over to the wood-burning stove, which was currently dormant. They sat together on the hearth while everyone else grabbed various seats. Only Leo remained standing, pacing while he addressed them.
“There are two new developments,” he said. “First of all, there may be a new strain of zombie out there.” Leo described the zombie they’d encountered.
“A mutant zombie?” Anton scowled. “This is just what we need. Are you sure?”
“Can’t say for sure,” Leo replied. “But he was different from every other zombie we’ve seen.”
“They aren
’t supposed to start dying off for another few days,” Lena said. “I heard the Russians say seven to ten days.”
“You can’t assume the nezhit virus will effect everyone in the same way,” Stephenson said, speaking up for the first time. “There are always outliers.”
Amanda squirmed beside him and raised her hand.
“Go ahead,” Leo said to her.
“What if there’s a secondary mutation taking place in some of our people?”
“Secondary mutation?” Leo nodded thoughtfully at her. “Break that down for us.”
“You guys said the nezhit virus eventually kills its victims. I think that’s what happened to the dead pack we saw with the mutant. But the mutant zombie ... what if, instead of killing him, the nezhit virus mutated and created the mutant we saw?”
“Maybe it didn’t mutate,” Stephenson said. “Maybe there was something different about the mutant before he was infected. Maybe there was something in his DNA structure that reacted differently to the virus.”
“You see that with everyday diseases,” Amanda agreed. “Just take cancer. It doesn’t behave the same way in everybody. It attacks different organs. Sometimes it can be treated, sometimes it can’t.”
The room went uncomfortably quiet. Cassie couldn’t help but look at Leo and his siblings. They’d lost their mother to cancer.
“It’s a good theory,” Leo said. “Maybe what we saw was an anomaly, maybe not.”
“What’s the second development?” Nonna asked.
“The Russians are rounding up people and taking them to central locations to be infected.”
Cassie, startled, looked to Jennifer for confirmation.
“It’s why I couldn’t come and get you,” Jennifer said. “We attacked a group we stumbled across on our way to the Nielsons’. Anton and I stayed behind to round up weapons and get them back to the cabin.”
“You attacked Russians?” Cassie was certain there was something wrong with her ears.
“There’s a lot more,” Jennifer replied. “I’ll fill you in later.”
Cassie reasoned they must be running low on the zombie virus. Otherwise, they would just arm every soldier and send them out to terrorize and infect people. They wouldn’t bother rounding up people and bringing them to a central location.
Zommunist Invasion | Book 2 | Snipers Page 5
