“Where?” Zander growled.
“It’s behind the tapestry in the Renaissance Room.” Tim jerked his head toward the table that had fallen on us earlier. It rested against a large wooden door painted to look like a drawbridge. “Gabe and I found it before you showed up. We stashed our supplies in there.”
A loud crash echoed through the foyer as the stack of crates we had braced the door with crashed to the floor. The clacking of the creatures’ teeth and the scraping of their claws as they scrambled against the vinyl tiles reverberated around us like a laser in a mirror hall. The demons rounded the corner and spilled out into the vestibule. They rushed at us in a black wave of talons and teeth. The leader of the pack leaped through the air toward us, its vestiges of loose skin allowing it to glide as it honed in on its target. Jake.
Ty snatched the creature in mid-air stopping it short of its intended prey, then slammed it onto the floor, and crushed it under his boot. Jake’s eyes were wide, and his jaw dropped as he stared down at the thing that had nearly attacked him.
“I don’t think so,” Ty growled down at it, the thing’s bones crunching under his weight. “Ugly little sss-critter.”
No sooner had he fended the first of the beasts off that another leaped towards us, and another. Jake swung his backpack in the air and managed to bat away one that had its sights set on Ty. The second he turned his back, one of them latched on to his pant leg and started tearing through the fabric with its claws.
“Get it off,” Jake shouted shaking his leg furiously.
“Hold still, Jake!” Ty grabbed a nearby waste bin, dumped its contents onto the floor, and slammed it down on top of the creature, trapping it beneath. “This ain’t gonna hold for long. There’s a bunch more comin’ y’all. We have to bail!”
One of the rat-like monsters had Riley backed against the wall a few feet away. Falisha rushed at it and booted the thing like a football, sending it soaring across the lobby. It spread its front legs at just the right moment, and its wing-like skin flaps allowed it to glide in a wide arc right back toward us. Its teeth clicked and gnashed as it set its sights on them once again.
I reached down, slid Tim’s shoe from his foot and launched it in the air before I even realized what I was doing. The size twelve flew across the room pin-wheeling end over end before colliding with the animal just inches from Falisha’s face. It, and the shoe, slammed into the wall with enough force that both went crashing to the floor equally inanimate.
“Holy hell,” she shouted turning to me. “Thanks, Sarge.”
“Go!” I hissed.
She grabbed Riley’s hand and tugged her toward the door to the Renaissance Room. I turned back to Tim, desperately tearing at his restraints. The knots Jake had tied were apparently done quite skillfully. I was struggling to loosen them.
One of the creatures slid across the slick vinyl tile and slammed into my boot. Its razor-sharp teeth ground together as it attempted to sink into the thick leather. I kicked at it absently until it released my foot, then set back to work on the cables that held Tim’s right hand. Bella grabbed the black monster by the head and shook it about until it stopped moving. Zander crushed another beneath his boot.
“Hurry,” Tim shouted. “They’re coming! Please, you promised—.”
“We need to go, Liv,” Zander shouted. He stepped between me, and the surging hoard of sharp teeth and slashing claws that rushed in our direction.
“Please, don’t leave me here,” Tim cried frantically. “I don’t want to die. Gabe…Gabe help me!”
“Come on,” I screamed at the cables, willing them to unbind. “Zander, please help me.”
“Damn it,” Zander shouted.
His armored hand swung through the air just inches from my face, smashing one of the angry little demons in mid-air as it leaped toward me. He was already tugging on the chords around Tim’s other wrist before the vile creature even hit the ground. In no time, he managed to loosen the knots enough for Tim to yank his hand free.
The rest of his limbs were still securely bound to the heavy wooden throne. With only one hand to defend himself, Tim was unable to fend off the attack.
“Ugh, get it off me!” He screamed as one of the creatures sunk its teeth into the side of his leg. “Gabe, where are you?”
I grabbed the monster by the haunches, ripped it free of Tim’s leg, and threw it as hard as I could across the foyer. It didn’t go willingly or without a trophy for its efforts, though. It gnashed and gnawed on the chunk of flesh in its jaws as it sailed through the air. Its small body slammed into the claw machine leaving a trail of blood and black viscous to the floor. It chewed that hunk of flesh until its body went limp.
The bastards were everywhere, closing in on us from all sides. Tim was howling in pain. Blood poured from the gouge on his leg. Two more of the loathsome beasts were already feasting on the wound.
I kicked and swung at them in a frenzy, determined to exonerate the prisoner we had unknowingly sentenced to death. There were too many of them. For every one I exterminated, ten more took its place. Their teeth and claws were everywhere, biting and tearing indiscriminately.
“We have to go,” Zander grabbed my hand and pulled. “Now, Liv!”
“Let go of me,” I resisted lunging toward the chair. “I promised him.”
“There’s no time,” Zander growled dragging me along.
“Gabe!” Tim howled.
His screams echoed through the room as the writhing, black wave completely engulfed his body.
Chapter 7
Safe
“Hold the door,” Zander shouted as he pulled me into the Renaissance Room.
Ty threw himself at the door. Jake and Falisha rushed to help, pressing themselves in at his side. Their combined weight was barely enough to hold back the throng of creatures that were rushing at it. Thousands of teeth and claws scraped and scratched against the wood like tiny saw blades, hell-bent on felling a tree. The frenzied clamor was still not enough to drown out Tim’s agonized screams beyond the door.
“Over here,” Riley shouted. “Help me pull it down, Liv.”
She hung onto the side of a giant tapestry that was mounted to the wall on the opposite side of the room. Despite the chaos around me, I was temporarily awestruck by its elaborate design. At the center of the blood red background sat a pit of flames. Skulls floated on amber waves. The perimeter of the hell-pit was formed by a great black viper, eating its own tail. My body numbed as I stared at it, my eyes tracing the endless struggle entrenched in the weaving before me.
“Olivia!” Riley shouted snapping me out of my trance. “Get over here and help me.”
“Right, sorry,” I shook my head and latched on to the opposite side of the enormous wall hanging.
“Pull,” Zander grunted as he grabbed onto the bottom and yanked with all his might.
A massive wooden pole bracketed the top of the piece with rope threaded through it. The cording was anchored by a giant bolt near the ceiling that had been sunk into the concrete wall. The three of us tugged at it as hard as we could, but it refused to come loose. At one point, our feet left the floor, but even our combined body weight and Zander’s strength was not enough to free it from the brackets.
“Oh, for Christ’s sake,” Eli threw his pack over his shoulder, slid the knife from Zander’s hip, and lashed out with the blade in hand. “This is hardly the time for preserving the arts.”
Zander stepped away, and Eli shoved past him lancing through the middle of the tapestry with Zander’s knife. He sliced it clean down the center sending Riley and I swinging to either side where we collided with the wall.
“Jesus, Eli,” I groaned releasing my grip on the fabric and falling to the floor.
Eli was on a mission it seemed, and reacting to my verbal berating was not a part of it. His gaze was fierce and his concentration complete. Once he had pierced the twined jute backing of the wall hanging he set to work destroying what was left of it. He slashed and hacked
at the tapestry until it was little more than shreds of blood-colored fabric piled at his feet.
“Tada!” He bowed dramatically his glasses sliding down his sweat soaked face. He gestured toward the vault door as he kicked the remnants to the side. “Now, could we please?”
The vault door was not nearly as big as I had imagined, but it was plenty big enough for us to squeeze through. On the center of the door, in raised lettering, were the words Chicago Safe & Lock Co. The entire panel had been painted a flat black, several times judging by the marbled texture, but the coating did little to disguise the rust that had settled within the cogs of the locking mechanism. Zander cranked it as best he could, but the wheel refused to budge.
“Damn it. It’s locked,” he said, kicking at the door. The impact of his boot set the metal door ringing within its frame.
“It can’t be,” Jake said rushing forward.
Ty and Falisha faltered a bit under the extra strain of his absence against the door. They managed to hold back the onslaught and Jake lunged for the vault’s locking mechanism. He tugged and pulled on the spinner but his efforts were wasted, and nowhere near what Zander was capable of. After a few seconds of fitted rage, he pressed his forehead against the metal and flattened his palms on either side.
“This can’t be happening,” his voice caught in his throat.
“Pushing isn’t always the answer,” I whispered, rubbing my sore shoulder.
Jake grabbed onto the wheel housing and pulled. The hinges groaned and squeaked. Jake clenched his jaw and pulled harder, grunting against the weight of the massive gate. The sound of metal grinding against metal had my ears ringing, but the door budged a fraction of an inch from the frame. Zander grabbed on and tugged alongside him and a few seconds later the empty vault gaped back at us.
“You actually got it,” Christa shouted, shock evident on her face.
“Everybody inside!” Zander shouted as he scooped his pack up off the floor and took Ty’s place holding the door. “Grab your sister and go.”
Jake gave Ty a look then scooped Christa up under his arm and dragged her across the room. The two of them dove through the opening of the vault and Falisha followed close after clicking her light on as she went.
“Come on,” she said, poking her head back out. “Get your butts in here!”
“Ummm, Liv?” Riley backed away her arms tightening around her chest.
“We have to, Ry,” I said. “I’m sorry.”
I grabbed Riley by her arm and shoved her through the opening. Eli climbed in after her; his precious pack clutched in his hands as he stumbled off into the darkness beyond.
“Go, Ty,” Zander said bracing his full weight against the door. “I got this.”
“You’re sure?” Ty groaned, still leaning against it. “I don’t want to leave—.”
“Go!” Zander yelled. Ty flinched but nodded grimly and sprinted to the vault door, crouching low to fit through the small opening. “Go, Liv.”
“Zander, no,” I shook my head. The door was surging at his back as he struggled to hold it shut.
“I’m right behind you,” he growled. “I swear. Now, go!”
“Damn it.” I reluctantly stepped into the vault. Once inside, I poked my head back through the door and screamed out at him. “Come on, Zander!”
“On the count of three,” Zander hissed still struggling to keep the monsters at bay behind the heavy wooden door. “One…two….ahhh!”
He lunged forward, darting straight for me as the door finally collapsed to the ground behind him. A tidal wave of the hideous monsters rushed into the room behind him, and I slid aside just as he dove through the opening. It took both of us to close the vault door. We managed to crush a couple of the things in it when we did. The second the door slammed shut I let out the breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding and sank to the floor as a collection of light beams shot our direction.
“Zander, your arm!” Falisha shouted pointing to the tiny creature that dangled from his blackened wrist.
“Jesus,” Zander said attempting to shake the thing free.
Its teeth held firm, sunken deep into the charred flesh of Zander’s forearm. Its body flailed about as it scratched and clawed at the muddled skin. Everyone backed away as he wrestled to pull the thing free but it clearly did not intend to let go. Frustrated, Zander slammed his fist against the wall crushing the creature against the thick metal walls of the vault’s interior.
It fell to the ground with a sickening thud. The creature’s legs twitched, and its teeth clacked together. The thing kept biting at nothing and thrashing its skeletal head about as it struggled to right itself. Eventually, its broken body finally gave out, and it went completely still, its beady black eyes staring blankly up at us.
* * *
“You okay, Ry?” I asked.
“Not really,” she said clutching her knees close to her chest. “But it’s not like I have a choice, right?”
After the incident in the stairwell the night that Icarus hit I knew exactly how Riley felt about small spaces. There was panic in her eyes as she rocked in the corner of the vault. Her opinion had not changed much on the subject since then. I felt horrible, but there was little I could do to make this better for her.
“I’m so sorry,” I said crouching in front of her as she swayed gently in place. “I wish there was another way.”
“I’ll be fine, Liv,” she said patting my hand without looking up. “As much as I hate every freaking minute of this, I’d still rather be in here than out there with those…things.”
“I’ll be right back, Ry.” I rose to my feet and nudged Falisha. “Stay with her?”
She nodded and sat down next to Riley. I spun on my heel and made my way over to the alien autopsy happening on the opposite side of the vault. I spanned the distance in three strides. The vault was approximately the same size as the bathroom had been at the high school (and smelled just as lovely). Ty and Christa were hovering over Eli and Jake, who were hunched over the creatures limp body.
“Well?” I asked, adding my light to the collection of beams. “What’s the diagnosis doc?”
“This thing is incredible,” Jake said looking up at me.
“Yeah, incredibly nasty,” Christa scowled. “What the heck is it anyway?”
“The GRS virus appears to have completely altered the creature’s DNA,” Eli mused. He poked the thing with his penlight. “To be quite honest with you, I am not even sure exactly what this little guy used to be. A bird, perhaps, or maybe a small rodent of some sort?”
“Whatever it is, it’s super gross,” Christa chimed in.
“Indeed,” Eli smirked as he picked the animal up in his gloved hand. “These claws here are sharp enough to slice through glass. They are at least as hard as carbide, maybe even diamond. I can only imagine the amount of pressure, let alone the carbon influx it would have required just to create that one small adaptation. This thing is truly remarkable in its evolution.”
“The scritter,” Christa said.
“I’m sorry, the what?” Eli said confused.
“It’s called a scritter,” she said firmly. “That’s what Ty called it. I think it’s pretty perfect.”
“Yeah, about that.” Ty rubbed nervously at the back of his neck, his face heating. “See, I wasn’t tryin’ to…that is, I meant to say scary critter, but my words got all jumbled up on accounta’ that thing scarin’ the holy bejeezus outta me.”
“Scritter, huh?” Eli smiled, and Jake snorted and bit his bottom lip.
“Scritter,” Christa said nodding resolutely.
“Well, there you go,” Jake laughed.
“Scritter it is,” Falisha said, patting Ty on the back.
“Aww, hell,” Ty laughed shaking his head. “It’s a wonder I have any teeth left with how often I’m puttin’ my foot in my mouth.”
“Better your mouth than his,” Eli said prying the creature’s jaws open with Falisha’s steak knife. “You see this littl
e node here behind the front teeth? That is a venom gland. It’s probably some sort of neurotoxin if I had to guess.”
“That sounds bad,” Ty said.
“It is,” Jake said. “A neurotoxin attacks the central nervous system. Depending on how powerful the stuff is, it can cause anaphylaxis, intoxication, dementia, paralysis, and even death.”
“Dang,” Ty said crouching down to get a closer look. “Is there some kind of medicine for that?”
“You mean anti-venom?” Jake asked.
“Exactly,” Ty nodded. “We never went anywhere on my daddy’s ranch without our bite kit. Last year, at the Fourth of July hog roast, my little sister Sadie got bit by a baby copperhead. Wasn’t but a minute later and her leg was swelled up like a stuck pig. My daddy had to jab this needle in her leg to stop the poison from spreadin’. I swear on a stack it took her the whole dang summer before that leg looked right again.”
“Unfortunately, there is no way to know for sure what kind of toxin we are dealing with, so I couldn’t even venture a guess as to what anti-toxin would combat it if someone were to get bitten,” Eli said laying the creature back on the floor. “Anyone got a rubber band?”
“Will this work?” Christa held out one of the brightly colored hair ties she wore on her wrist. “I don’t like the yellow one, anyway.”
“Good enough,” Eli shrugged as he wound the elastic around the creature’s mouth. “Better safe than sorry.”
“If that thing used to be a bird, or whatever, then what are those,” I asked shining the beam of my flashlight on the creature’s skull. There were deep slits that started by the animal’s jaw and stopped at the base of its neck.
“Curious.” Eli leaned in closer and focused his penlight on the scritter’s neck. He wedged the end of his tweezers into the slit and pried it apart. He tilted his head to get a better angle. He sat back up his brows furrowed and shook his head in confusion.
“What is it,” Jake asked.
“I wonder.” Eli trailed off and placed the penlight back between his teeth.
Ballistic: Icarus Series, Book Two Page 7
