Soldiers of Fame and Fortune Full Series Omnibus: Nobody’s Fool, Nobody Lives Forever, Nobody Drinks That Much, Nobody Remembers But Us, Ghost Walking, 12 Book series...

by Michael Todd

  Holly shuffled forward and stared at the demon head that lay with its eyes open and staring off into the distance. She stood there for several moments, lost in her own exhaustion and pain. Misha’s voice rang out and dragged her from her trance. “They’re leaving.”

  She drew a ragged breath and turned slowly. Dead Zoo creatures lay everywhere, their bodies mangled and mutilated from the battle. She forced herself to take a step and swayed as she watched several of the animals race quickly into the woods.

  It took concentration to swallow and look at Adisa. “Did we…”

  He groaned and rolled his injured shoulder. “Win? I guess that depends on what you would consider a success.”

  Holly’s chest burned as the memory of Trigger being dragged off played over and over in her mind. She scanned the area and saw Aki, still lying inert in a pile of dirt to the side. In that moment, the adrenaline bounced back, and she ran with a slight limp toward him. She dropped to her knees and traced her fingertips over the multitude of bleeding wounds all over his body. He was slashed from chest to foot, his injuries far more serious than the scratches she had sustained.

  He groaned and blinked several times, his eyelids heavy. Holly grabbed his hand. “Don’t worry, Aki. We will get you out of here. We’ll get you help, okay? But stay with us. It’s not too far to the hospital. We can get you out of here.”

  Aki squeezed Holly’s hand and shook his head. “This will be an honorable death. I have fought the beasts and we have won. I did it with my friends—my family—at my side. I will forever be a warrior and now a hero in death. There is nothing more I could have hoped for in this life.”

  He coughed and grimaced at the pain that Holly could only imagine had enveloped him at that moment. As much as she wanted to scream at him and tell him no, she knew it was true. His wounds were too serious, too deep for him to survive. The rest of the team gathered around and knelt beside him. Adisa looked at his friend’s face, and Holly could tell he choked the tears back.

  Aki reached up with his other hand and took Adisa’s. “You know how important my traditions are. Please don’t leave me here. I need you to take my body back to the hospital. In the pocket of my bag, there are instructions on where to send it and how to prepare it for travel. I will not rest until I am buried properly by my family in my homeland.”

  His friend nodded and gripped his hand tightly. “You can count on me.”

  Holly held her tears back, knowing there would be a time to weep. He breathed in one last deep breath and stretched his chest upward before he exhaled and let go. Everyone bowed their head but only for a moment, knowing they were still not safe there.

  Adisa stood, leaned down, and lifted Aki’s body—which looked so small and frail next to him—into his arms. Even with his own injuries, he pressed forward. “Let’s get out of here.”

  The team agreed, retrieved Aki’s swords, and headed for the Staging Area as quickly as they possibly could. Holly held Trigger’s sword firmly in her right hand as she ran. She took position at the back and watched as the jungle gave way to the desert.

  Chapter Ten

  Adisa climbed into the back of the Jeep and gathered Aki’s body close to him. Alvin helped Misha into the vehicle, took her hand, and groaned as he fell onto the seat beside her. Holly scowled at her bleeding shoulder and the gash across her thigh. Her cheek stung and the warm blood dried quickly in the creases in her neck.

  She stared at the Zoo from the safety of the sand and narrowed her eyes at the way it swayed and seemed to pulse with life. It had been a reckoning day for them, and the jungle knew exactly how to push them to their limits. She no longer took the peaceful breezes inside for granted. They were merely the breath of this living, breathing monster that sprawled insolently in the desert.

  Misha touched her shoulder. “Hey. Are you ready? We need to get back to the hospital.”

  “Yes. Sorry.” She swallowed hard and nodded before she turned and limped toward the driver’s seat, holding the side of the vehicle for support.

  Even with all her wounds, she was still the least injured of them all. Alvin definitely had broken ribs, and from the way he wheezed, possibly a punctured lung—not to mention the array of cuts and scrapes he’d also sustained. Blood still trickled from Misha’s numerous open lacerations and in places, her flesh showed through her suit. The blood already puddled beneath their feet.

  Holly shoved the keys in the ignition and started the Jeep and the rumble of the engine filled the defeated silence. Adisa stared at the jungle and his legs dangled over the back of the vehicle as he clung to Aki’s body. Misha leaned against one side and Alvin slumped against the other, his hands still clamped to his stomach and chest. The solemn silence they shared echoed louder than anything else through Holly’s entire being. They had lost two teammates—two family members. Two heroes.

  The pain she felt, though, was not sadness or loss. It had moved beyond mourning or distress into nothing but pure and solid anger. The pent rage boiled in her blood and seemed to steam from her shoulders, and it shook the very core of her being more powerfully than anything else she had ever experienced. Everything that had happened that day—every drop of blood spilled, both human and alien—was for the man. It was to feed the greed of a company that wanted useless plants for a reason they continued to lie through their teeth about.

  She gripped the steering wheel tightly as they sped toward the town. Guilt mixed with and swirled through her anger. She could see the pain on her team’s faces as she drove and recalled the terror in Trigger’s eyes. The moment when the life left Aki’s face was imprinted in her memory. And it was all for her—for a cause so useless it might as well have been non-existent.

  Holly didn’t slow down as she reached the entrance to the town. She raced through the dusty streets and directly to the front of the hospital. She applied the brakes as several nurses already made their way out of the doors. Focused, now, on helping the others, she heaved herself out of the Jeep and around to Alvin’s side. Misha helped him sit up, and Holly braced his arm with hers. His pain somehow knifed through her as well as he stepped out onto the sidewalk and screamed in agony.

  The nurses rushed to him and maneuvered him onto a stretcher. Without even a glance at the others, they barreled him through the doors and into the hospital. Misha gasped a strangled cry before her legs gave way and she collapsed into Holly’s arms. She held the Russian woman tightly as the medical team rushed out once more. They took control and eased the wounded woman carefully onto a gurney.

  As they too disappeared, Holly followed Adisa into the hospital where he laid Aki’s body gently on a bed the nurses brought out. He handed them the paper and began to explain exactly what needed to be done to return his body to his family. The staff took notes and Holly put her hand on Adisa’s shoulder. “You need to be seen to.”

  He clutched his side as the pain pushed through his effort to remain stoic. A doctor hurried close with a wheelchair and caught him as his legs folded beneath him. Adisa grabbed her hand and pulled her toward him. “You are a good leader and you’d better be seen to as well. We will need you in the coming days.”

  Holly stared after him as they rolled him away through the doors and into the back. She rubbed her face and glanced at the waiting room. JB stood there and waited patiently, a sad look on his face. She held the top of her thigh in an effort to ease the pain as she hobbled over to him, drawn by his caring smile.

  She shook her head, confused. “How did you know I would be here?”

  JB shrugged and his gaze traveled quickly over her. “A merc ran into the bar and said they caught the battle on their comms, but it was too far away. They heard your voice, though. I figured you would end up here since they said there were dozens of animals in your vicinity.”

  Holly exhaled and shuddered. He touched her arm gently. “Are you okay? You look banged up and those cuts are very deep.”

  She looked at the blood on her. Some was hers, some belonged to the
beasts, and some had come from her teammates. “Physically? I’ll be fine once I have a few stitches in me. I’ll have a badass scar on my face too.”

  JB nodded but waited for her to speak again. When she didn’t, he shook his head and fixed her with a probing look. “And mentally? I only saw four of your five teammates come in, and Aki was dead.”

  It took her last reserves of strength to hold back the emotions. “Trigger fought like a madman. He killed a crazy venom-spitting beast with his short sword. But in the end, it got him and dragged him off into the Zoo. We didn’t have the time to look for him. The goddamn bitches were everywhere. I don’t know what happened, but we were obviously in a place they didn’t want us to be in. I don’t know. It all happened so fast.”

  He could tell that she struggled to hold back her emotions because she felt it was her responsibility to do so. Her exhaustion evident, he led her to a set of empty chairs and helped her to sit. “I know this won’t mean a lot right now, but I have to tell you that none of this is your fault. I know you will want to argue with me. I know this mission was for the company, but it still isn’t your fault that anyone died. It is the Zoo, and that is the way of it all.”

  Holly shook her head. “Trigger and Aki were there to help me. To be my protection.”

  JB nodded, his gaze fixed somewhere off in the distance. “And they achieved that goal, didn’t they? Trigger was a warrior with a personality. He was a special kind of crazy and laughed his way through innumerable massacres. Actually, he laughed his way through everything. He lived for the Zoo and it beat him as hard as he beat it. For him, this life was for the long haul. He gave up a life on the other side to work here.”

  She sighed. “I know, he told me the other night. He said he never regretted it, though, because he had a good life. That his team was his family.”

  “That’s right. And the Zoo was his home. He loved being in the thick of it and loved everything about it. And I tell you right now, if he had to die, he would do it in an intense battle, fighting side by side with his team—with his family. The last thing he would see was the faces of the five of you. And that is exactly what happened. He died exactly how he wanted to.”

  Holly leaned back. “It’s crazy how everything moves so fast in there. One moment, we were collecting samples and the next, we were surrounded like we yanked out an entire Pita patch.”

  “Yeah, the Zoo can give it to you right up the ass sometimes.” JB chuckled. “But we all know that. This will be hard for you. It’s your first loss in the Zoo. But I want you to know that you are far from being alone. All of us have felt what you feel, and we are here for you.”

  She smiled slightly and patted his leg. “I’m glad I kept you alive.”

  He laughed. “Thanks. I’m glad too.”

  “Where is your cane?” Holly looked at his leg and then around them. “You didn’t limp when you walked me here to the chair. Or maybe you did, and it was simply in time with me.”

  JB smirked. “No. There is no limp and I don’t feel the need for a cane at all. Actually, my balance seems to be almost completely better, and that wasn’t an issue from the poison. That was an issue with me being an old one-legged sea captain.”

  Holly giggled. “I should have been a wizard. Apparently, I have a talent for potion making.”

  “True. And right now, I think you could use some yourself—although I would hate to see your ego inflate any more than it already has. You save a life and then poof, suddenly, you think you’re the queen.”

  She wiggled her nose and raised her chin in mock haughtiness. “I am the queen. Besides, what would you have done if I hadn’t shown up at your bar that day?”

  JB exhaled a deep breath and grinned. “Be less stressed, save some money in liquor, tell my stories to deaf ears. You know, the usual.”

  Holly narrowed her eyes. “You will regret that.”

  He shrugged. “Nah, I’ll probably forget all about it when I get old and senile.”

  She laughed and studied the man’s face and the lines that used to be deeply etched around his mouth and eyes. “It’s strange, actually. And this isn’t simply a compliment. You look younger—quite a bit younger, actually. But I guess it could be the fact that you are feeling better.”

  JB sighed. “Yeah, it’s probably only that. Reverse-aging would require more than a little serum for this guy. I’ve been through the wringer more than once. But now that you have cured me, helped Billie escape her situation, and finally took that contract you originally came here for, what’s next?”

  Holly furrowed her brow in thought. “I know what is definitely not next. Fuck the company. I am done with that, one hundred percent. I won’t be their dog and won’t do their bidding any longer. If they want to send someone in to get their shit, they will have to find someone else. I won’t have another repeat of this whole fucking thing. Almost dying to find your cure—I can live with that. Dying to find a plant people can drink? Fuck that.”

  He nodded. “I think that’s definitely a wise choice. Besides, I don’t think you’ll need it anyway. You have your work with Billie, and you always have the bar. You are welcome to sling drinks with me anytime you want to.”

  “That sounds better and better.” Holly grinned. “My distaste for the man is ever growing, and I don’t think I could go back to society and live the way I did before.”

  JB leaned his head back and laughed. “That is essentially the motto of the mercs. Screw the man, unless he hands you a really big check…no, still screw him.”

  She allowed herself a real smile for the first time since the battle had begun. There would be many moments when she wouldn’t smile, especially over the next couple of weeks, but in that moment, it felt good. JB was family to her too, and he had shown his loyalty to her before she even recognized it. It was something she would never fully understand, but she had no desire to question it.

  A nurse walked up to her and smiled. “I think it’s time you came back and had those nasty wounds taken care of. Your team sent me out to fetch you. They said you might be too preoccupied with everyone else to worry about your own treatment.”

  JB smirked. “It looks like they have your number already. Go back there and have yourself taken care of. We can come up with some badass story about how you got the facial scar.”

  Holly raised her eyebrows. “For the first time in my life, I have to admit, the actual way it happened might actually be as badass as you can possibly get. Usually, it’s my clumsiness that causes injuries.”

  The nurse giggled. “I’m sure we can accommodate your scar. We have really good hands back here.”

  She shrugged. “If not, it’s okay. It’s almost a badge of honor at this point. A little parting gift from the Zoo so that every time I look in the mirror, I think about it. But instead of fear, that damn place better watch out because revenge and anger are what it will get.”

  JB stood and helped her to her feet. “Look who’s helping who now.”

  “Hey, I won’t turn it down at this point. I feel like my whole body was dragged under a bus for about a hundred miles and finally dropped in a pile of glass.”

  He grimaced. “That doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun. Tell you what. When you are all done here—patched up, pinned up, sewn up, whatever—come over to FUBAR. Your teammates will probably be in here at least a couple of days so don’t go home and sit around by yourself. I have a whole lot of drinks to serve you to make up for you saving my life.”

  Holly patted him on the shoulder and smiled. “Gotcha. I’ll do my best—if I don’t pass out asleep first. They better have some good drugs waiting for me back there.”

  She walked to the doors with the nurse, stopped, and asked the woman to wait one second. Her gaze settled on JB and she took a couple of steps toward him and exhaled slowly. “As far as the drinks, you have time on that. I’m not going anywhere. Hopefully, a whole lot of time.”

  As JB watched her walk into the back, the smile on his face faded. “We all
say that, Holly. But every day could be your last.”

  Author Notes - Michael (Todd) Anderle

  February 4, 2019

  THANK YOU for not only reading this story but these Author Notes as well.

  (I think I’ve been good with always opening with “thank you.” If not, I need to edit the other Author Notes!)

  RANDOM (sometimes) THOUGHTS?

  I like strong women, obviously, because I married one. The object of my desire comes with teeth, so I don’t suggest it for every person unless you know what you are in for.

  (That was a free warning. Don’t say I didn’t warn you, and you don’t have to mention this comment to my wife. She isn’t here right now, and it really isn’t necessary…

  Just saying.)

  When I created The Ghost of the ZOO character in SOFF, it became apparent that SHE was taking over my thoughts on where to go next.

  Because of this, we have additional art available (wallpaper and image for phone are on Facebook - The KurtherianGambit Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/AgeofExpansion/ (Yes, we should have changed the URL - but, with so many books things have been dropping between the holes, sorry!)

  The reason for the new art is that GHOST takes us all the way to SOFF 12 in the series, and I think you will enjoy the ending.

  It is VERY Ghost-like.

  AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS

  One of the interesting (at least to me) aspects of my life is the ability to work from anywhere and at any time. In the future, I hope to re-read my own Author Notes and remember my life as a diary entry.

  Condo Office, Las Vegas, NV

  Tomorrow we fly to Colorado Springs for the Superstars Writing Conference set up by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta.

  I was blessed to meet Kevin and Rebeca at the 20Booksto50k Bali convention and heard about his conference from the man himself.