Bill was already walking away and broke into a jog when the sound of gunfire increased.
Samantha glanced his way, a questioning look on her face.
“Let them handle it,” he told her. “We’ve been through enough. If they need us, they’ll holler.”
Sean started laughing, “guess they found my surprise gift after all. Thank the girl there for opening the back door to greet our guest.”
“What the hell is he talking about?” Sabrina blurted out. She looked ready to kick the answers out of the monster at their feet and he didn’t know if he would stop her if she did. It wasn’t all that bad of an idea.
“I’m guessing the people the kids saw moving through the trees were undead. His crew looked smart enough to avoid being caught on camera. Lured them here, didn’t you?” he asked the cackling fiend.
Sean glared up at him defiantly, “of course I did. You know me—.”
“Backup plans. Yeah, I got it. Tell me, what’s your backup plan for a bullet to a head? You got a clone out there somewhere that will suddenly come to life and replace you? Because I’ve got to tell you, that’s all that awaits you in the future. Sure, you’re alive, but when Todd finds out what has happened here, I’m going to let nature take its course,” he grinned back.
“Shouldn’t we get on the phone to Mark? I mean, his wife just died,” Sabrina probed, her eyes drifting over their fallen comrades, sorrow slowly replacing the anger that had been sweeping her along since the whole thing began.
He thought about it for a moment, then shook his head. “They’ve got their hands full. I’ll let him know when they’re safe and on their way back. No point in distracting him until then.”
“If it was you, you’d want to know,” she shot back.
He sighed. Mark would just have to forgive him for waiting, there was just no way he could make that call right now.
“Joseph?” a voice spoke in his ear.
He clicked his com, “yeah? Go ahead.”
Matt’s voice drifted over the earbud and he couldn’t help but smile at the man’s words. “Todd and Ros are here. Just let them in through the passage on the back wall. We’re inbound to your location.”
“Uh, negative on that. Let them know we have incoming from the air and that he needs to be there to greet them. Under no circumstances do you let him come over here. We do not need the shit-storm that it will bring. There’s time for that later,” he answered back, clicking his mic off. No way could they afford to let Todd anywhere near this place right now. If he saw the dead bodies of his family members and a hog-tied Sean, it was game over.
Maybe he should just end it right now. Raise his weapon, pull the trigger, and end the miserable wretch’s life. He had thought of it constantly since gaining his feet. The only thing that stayed his hand was the possibility that there was a cure out there somewhere and this asshole might actually know where to find it. Until they knew for sure—his gun was staying holstered.
Todd, however, wouldn’t hesitate. Not after everything that happened and was still happening. No, it was best he was kept away from here as long as possible.
“Hey Nick, Michelle, why don’t you go say hi to your Dad. I’m sure he’ll want to see you,” he offered and the two teenagers looked at him as if he was speaking another language. The firefight was still going on, there was work still to do, and neither wanted to just abandon the others, especially since only seven of them had survived the battle. “Go, he’s going to need you right now and I need you to keep him from coming over here. So suck up those tears, force a smile, and go greet your Dad.”
“Yes Sir,” Nick finally nodded, grabbing Michelle by the elbow and forcing her to move forward. “Let’s go Sis.” Michelle looked like she was going to argue for a second, but finally gave in. She was emotionally exhausted and you could tell the shock was still settling in.
“Hey, Michelle, before you go. What made you think to bring that rocket launcher?” he asked, thinking it odd that she had gone back for medical supplies and had come back wielding that thing instead.
“I was told I would need it,” she returned, pausing briefly.
His brow furrowed. “By who?”
“Doesn’t matter, they’re gone now,” she replied, then turned and began walking away. “Oh, and Casey says to get up there and get that bong. It’s one of the good ones and you might need it before the day is out.”
“Say what?” he blurted, startled by her remark, but she was already gone and out of sight. She had to be messing with him, right?
Chapter 15
Clear
Monica
Icecrown
Being that they were freshly turned, the creatures they were facing not only were more active but were also harder to kill. As she shot a teenage girl in the head, her heart ached at the sight, her mind instantly bringing images of her daughter to mind. She had to grit her teeth and move past it as she dealt with yet another walker running her way.
They were at the edge of the neighborhoods; identical two-story houses built across fifty acres in a very defined and OCDish kind of manner. There was a baseball and football field to her right. They were one of Sean’s later additions to the compounds, as he felt it was necessary to carry on America’s favorite past-times even after an apocalypse. It had felt silly to her, putting in a backstop and maintaining the grass, but he had paid for it. Now, it felt like blood money, and it made her feel dirty to even think about it. The rage that those feelings built up carried her through her attacks, keeping her on point and deadly accurate with her shots. Each of the undead were not only on Sean because of the virus, but also because of the people he had personally killed and left here to attack anyone that happened upon them. It made her feel like Ripley killing monsters created from colonists, and it was only through that detached perspective that she could carry on without the guilt overriding her senses.
Mark had finally foregone his axe, as it became apparent that silence was going to be impossible. Battle noises carried despite your best efforts, and could very rarely be nullified. They weren’t Seals, they didn’t have silencers and advanced combat training, and even just a grunt could alert the closest of creatures to their presence.
John’s shotgun went off and a head blew apart, the remaining body flying backwards into three of its comrades, nearly knocking them over.
A hand gripped her arm. In a panic, she jerked away, but it was holding firm, pulling her closer. Then blood and bone were surging forth and the fingers loosened, the body falling to the ground at her feet. She glanced towards the tower to her rear and saw Vitarius taking another shot, killing another that was about to come at John’s flank. She was suddenly glad that they had brought the kid along, despite his being a royal pain in the ass; especially Casey’s.
“You know, just because they’re attacking the houses doesn’t mean there’s actually anyone inside,” Mark told her between heaving gasps of breath. “We could be doing this for nothing.”
“It’s not for nothing. These people are dead because of Sean. In a way, we are partly responsible for this, and I clean up my messes,” she snarked, shooting three teenagers that had come streaming her way. One just got clipped in the shoulder and she didn’t have time to get another shot off before he was on her. Using the butt of her assault rifle, she slammed it into the young boy’s head, knocking him aside, then used her leg to kick him in the shin, forcing him to the ground. Shouldering her rifle once more, she put a bullet through the straining head and continued on.
John was reloading his weapon and Mark had begun using his axe again. She didn’t know how he stood on ammo, but he should have had plenty still to pull from. She wasn’t sure what to expect when they came up here, but had felt that they had planned well enough not to run out so quickly. But then, there was an ammo cache not too far away, they could retreat there if they absolutely had to.
The sound of whipping wind came to her attention as she dispatched another creature and her head turned in
stantly to find out what it was. Two helicopters had appeared on the horizon and seemed to be veering in the direction the first compound probably was. Maybe they were planning on systematically checking each, making sure to thoroughly investigate and flush out Sean, because there was no other reason she could come up with on why they’d head in that direction.
“Looks like we—,” John began, but was cut off by an abrupt scream.
Jack had turned to see what was going on and had his eyes riveted on the approaching helos; he hadn’t noticed an older woman coming around the corner of the house until her teeth had sunk into his right arm, flesh tearing away with a ferocious jerk of her head.
“Isabel?” the older man asked in shock, the pain only dimmed by the sorrow upon the man’s face. “Oh my God, no!”
“Jack! You need to kill her! That’s no longer your wife!” John roared, bringing his shotgun around. He had the shot, but resisted, fearing that the older man would be taken out as well.
That brief hesitation was all it took for the older woman to lunge forward and rip into the man’s face. Gargled screams rose out of the dying man and she felt her stomach lurch. Even with all that she’d seen, it was still hard to watch someone die like that.
John’s weapon came up and discharged, tearing into the couple’s writhing heads and thrusting them against the garage door of the house Jack had been standing in front of. Then the former sheriff stepped forward and drew his sidearm, placing two shots into each head before turning to check for further threats.
There didn’t appear to be any.
They had moved methodically forward, each checking the sides of a house as they fought, making sure that nothing flanked them once they passed by. There was a path of bodies stretching a hundred yards to the rear and even Vitarius’s shots had ceased.
Her phone buzzed and she hit the talk button.
“Looks clear. Third house down on the right is where their attention seemed to be held,” Jenn told her calmly.
Then she heard Naima in the background, “tell her that one of those helicopters just dropped off a squad of soldiers at the smaller place, the one with the hangars.”
“You don’t have to repeat it, I heard,” she relayed, eyes moving west in the direction the choppers had gone. “They have any—.”
The ground shook as an explosion echoed across the forest and a large cloud of smoke burst into the sky.
Well—fuck.
Chapter 16
Search and Seizure
Todd
Compound 2
They had parked the Humvee at the end of the maintenance road and walked the rest of the way to the part of the wall with the hidden entrance. It had only been a day since last they were there, but it felt like a life time. So much had happened between then and now. People had been living who were now dead and part of him wondered if maybe they had taken a different path, those deaths wouldn’t have been necessary.
It was fruitless to think on such things, there was nothing he could do to change it, and all it did was get him tied up in the “what ifs?”.
They had heard the explosion and seen the smoke in the distance minutes before getting to the wall, and had covered the last bit at a sprint. Matt had been alerted to meet them there, quickly ushered them inside, and went about resealing the exit behind them.
“What the hell is going on?” he gasped, his chest heaving. It had been days since he’d gotten a decent night’s sleep and it was wearing on him.
Matt was in the middle of embracing Rosilynn, Mykala busy staring at the world around her, head continually swinging in the direction of the smoke on the horizon.
“That’s your daughter’s handiwork. Blew up one of the tankers during the attack on Compound 1. Don’t worry, she’s safe, all your kids are safe. Joseph’s got it handled,” Matt told him, letting go of Ros and extending his hand. “I’m glad you two made it home and you couldn’t have picked a better time. Two helicopters have been spotted headed our way, looks military.”
He looked at Ros, “you want to be the one to handle this? You called it in.”
Matt gave him a harsh glance but bit off a retort.
Rosilynn looked to her husband, then spared a glance at the smoke in the distance. “Yeah, you want to go check on your children, I’ll handle this.”
“Actually,” Matt began, laying a hand on his shoulder, “you can both go meet them. I’ll come along as well.”
His friend’s color was coming back, he didn’t seem to be as stiff, and only had a slight limp as he moved around. He was apparently on the mend and getting some of his strength back. “Okay, I just don’t see why the two of you can’t handle it on your own. You’re ex-military, surely you speak their language enough to make things go easier.”
“Todd, I want you to come with us, okay?” Matt reaffirmed, his fingers tightening on his shoulder pads.
He shrugged out of the man’s grip, eyes widening a bit. “Are you sure my kids are okay? Is it Sam? What the hell has crawled up your ass all of a sudden?”
Matt put a finger to his ear and looked west. “Yeah, I know, but what do you want me to do? Physically restrain him? I’m trying, but—okay. Right. Todd, Joseph has requested that you stay over here, says that Bill and his people are dealing with a walker threat. He’s sending the kids back through the tunnels with Sam and you’d only run into them coming out of the tunnel if you headed that way. He’s more worried about what’s flying this way and thinks you’re best served dealing with that. Says he’s got it.”
He wasn’t stupid and Matt knew it. They had known each other for a long time and the facial expression on the man’s face told him that there was more to it than that. “You’re not going to tell me what’s going on, are you?”
Matt shook his head, “nothing special. Just a couple of attack helicopters hell-bent on invading our lives. Another day at the office.”
“Bullshit.” He rolled his eyes and tried not to get pissed. It had already been a long day and the news of a firefight, explosions, and the possibility that his kids had been injured within it had him on edge. He needed to calm down, and meeting a squad of soldiers wasn’t the best way to do that. “Fine. Do we know where they’re going? They could be heading over to the other compounds,” he asked, noticing that the skies were still empty of any sign of their incoming guests.
“No, but I’m guessing they’ll be coming our way. Probably best just to head back to the bunker, that’s where they’ll want to go anyhow,” Matt observed, motioning to the four horses tethered nearby. “Ever ridden a horse?” he asked Mykala, who emphatically shook her head. “Okay, well, there’s a first time for everything. Let’s get you up on your saddle.”
Mykala glanced his way, “we should let my mother know we made it. We haven’t checked in with her since we left.”
“Okay, go ahead. Matt and I have some things to get caught up on while we ride,” he returned, heading towards his horse. “Whether you want to or not, you’re going to have to tell me what’s going on. You have to know that.”
“I do,” Matt replied, giving him a wary glance. “Let’s just get back first, okay?”
He sighed, nodded, then mounted his horse. Secured in his saddle, he looked to make sure the others were ready before nudging his horse forward. He wasn’t sure what was going to happen when the military got here, but that didn’t matter as much as the well-being of his children. He needed to know that they were okay and it took every fiber of his being not to kick his horse into a sprint and make a break for the tunnels.
Something was off—and he was going to find out what the hell it was or there would be hell to pay.
Chapter 17
Sabotage
Monica
Compound 1, WA
In order to get over to Compound 1, they had to backtrack over the wall and weave their way through the forest between. Her arms were sore, mind restless, and she couldn’t keep from looking at the billowing smoke rising over the canopy in the distance.
They had tried to check the houses first, but they appeared empty. Or the inhabitants were burrowing in and refused to come back out. Either way, they didn’t have time to find out. Not with that explosion and possible military casualties as a result.
She had to know what was going on and pushed for them to get moving as quickly as they were able. Jenn had told her the cameras were down in that section, so they were walking into the unknown. As they crossed onto the main road heading in, she raised her weapon and prepared for what came next.
“Looks like the wall has caught fire,” John remarked as they drew closer, the heat starting to raise the temperature of the world around them.
Her body started to feel uncomfortable in the suit she wore, but there was not a chance in hell she was going to take it off. “I’ve got a feeling that Sean’s responsible for this.”
“If he is, the military is going to be out for blood,” Mark said softly. “You sure you want to just walk right into that? I don’t want to be killed for something that son of a bitch did. There’s enough of that going around already.”
“What choice do we have?” she returned. “You pick up anything on the cameras yet?” She looked to Jenn, who had her laptop open while she walked, her finger moving the mouse faster than her eyes could track.
Jenn’s eyes met hers, then moved away. That was all the answer she needed.
“I’ve got a bad feeling—,” Vitarius began, but Naima cut him off with a slug in the shoulder. “Hey! What the hell?”
“Anyone who knows anything knows—there is just some things you just don’t say,” Naima snarked, raising her fist as if to strike him again.
His eyes narrowed and his gun shifted. “I don’t much like getting hit.”
“Then knock the Han Solo crap off and focus on staying alive,” she snapped, then had to turn quickly, stumbling to a halt. A large part of the wall was indeed on fire and the inferno roaring from the other side told her that at least one of the fuel tankers had gone up. If it was the jet fuel, then it could be worse than being stuck in an oven.
The Rotting Souls Series (Book 4): Charon's Coffers Page 10
