Lost Angel

by Kyle West

  Raine left feeling disappointed. “Tell me if anything changes.”

  He went about his day, letting the kids sleep. They’d performed well, and he was relieved for them to be home. He had also misjudged the eastern groups terribly. Both Makara and Samuel could have gotten in big trouble if the Reapers had gotten a sight of them.

  He needed to see Dan. Raine saw the reason why the assault from the north had stopped.

  Carin Black meant to seize control of the east, first.

  ONCE RAINE HAD FINISHED explaining what the kids had told him, the general thought it over for a moment.

  “The strategy I’ve laid out becomes almost pointless if you’re right,” Dan finally said. “I need to talk to this Olson guy myself.”

  “Well, he may not last the night if what Darlene says is any indication.”

  “Let’s hope he does,” Dan said. “I hate to admit it, but this is where Ohlan would have come in handy. If he were here, we’d have half of our forces on the eastern front right now.”

  “The kids said the main attack would come inside two weeks,” Raine said. “If he doesn’t get better by then, then we need to go ahead and shift some of our men over there.”

  “We’re holding in the north,” Dan said. “Just holding. Right now, the strategy is just to take good, clean fights and drop back when things get too dicey. We still have plenty of space to retreat into, and I’ve rigged some booby traps at important crossroads.”

  “What are the total casualties so far?”

  “Maybe a hundred on both sides, more theirs than ours,” Dan said. “They can afford the losses, though.”

  “That they can.” Raine let out a sigh. “We have to work with what we have.”

  “If we pull men from the north, then we’ll be forced to retreat at least half the distance to the mall,” Dan said. “That means giving up a few outposts.”

  “Outposts make little difference,” Raine said. “We just have to make it hurt. Any word on the Krakens?”

  Dan’s mouth twisted distastefully. “They say they’re mobilizing, but they have yet to send a single one of their bikes up this way. They’re already overdue.”

  “What about our main strike force?” Raine said. “Are they ready to go?”

  “They were. Until I heard about the east side attack that might be coming. Carin Black hasn’t shown himself yet. If we can get a clean shot at him . . .”

  Raine shook his head. “I don’t think that’s coming. He’ll show himself when victory’s assured.”

  There was a knock at the door. When Dan opened it, Darlene stepped in. “Sorry to interrupt. Olson’s awake, and seems to be lucid.”

  Raine stood immediately. “All right. Let’s go.”

  RAINE AND DAN WALKED together to the clinic, where they found Olson sitting up in his bed with a spaced-out look. When the Reaper’s eyes went to Raine, Raine wondered if he even knew he was there.

  “Was he like this before?” Raine asked Darlene.

  “No, he was talking and everything,” she said. “I’m sorry, I guess maybe . . .”

  “I’m here,” the man said, speaking as if he had phlegm in his throat. He didn’t bother to clear it, making his voice gravelly. “What do you want to know?”

  Raine looked at Dan sideways, who seemed tense. Raine focused his attention back on the Olson.

  “Why are you helping us?”

  “They cast me out,” the man said. He started coughing, and Darlene brought a bed pan over. The man hacked into it while Raine turned his face away. Once Olson had some water, he cleared his throat.

  “They kicked you out for being sick?” Raine asked.

  The man nodded. “That’s right.”

  “They must be low on medicine,” Dan said. “We shouldn’t be in here with him. He’s probably contagious.”

  The man shook his head. “Just a bad fever. Nothing serious.”

  Dan shook his head. “Boss. We should be wearing masks at least.”

  “I’ll get some right now,” Darlene said. She seemed a little sulky, as if disappointed she hadn’t thought of it first.

  It was only when Darlene returned with the masks that Raine began his questioning again.

  “What kind of sickness do you have?”

  “Beats me,” the man said. “I feel hot. And cold. Nauseous. Dizziness.”

  “Sounds like a nasty case of the flu,” Dan said.

  “That’s my thought, too,” Darlene said, watching from the doorway.

  “It’ll pass,” Olson said. “Lots of Reapers are sick. That’s why . . . advance has slowed. But the war is still on.”

  “Might be the time to strike,” Raine said.

  “Or sit back,” Dan said. “Let sickness fight for us. If a lot of them are getting sick, we’re risking ourselves just by being here. How many people have exposed themselves to this guy?”

  Raine frowned. “You and me. Sam and Mak. Darlene, some of the guys in the garage who helped move him here.”

  “I feel fine,” Darlene said. “For what it’s worth.”

  “All right, then,” Raine said, turning his attention back to Olson. “So, there’s sickness in the Reapers’ camp.”

  “That’s right,” Olson said. “Hard to say how many. Any of the sick are rounded up in camps in the mountains.”

  “Are they killed?” Dan asked.

  Olson shrugged. “Some say that.” A small smile tugged at his lips, but his pale pallor made it look corpse-like. “Guess I got of lucky. They just told me to scram.”

  “What else can you tell me?” Raine asked. “The kids mentioned that the Reaps plan to surround us on all sides.”

  “They do,” Olson said. “That plan is on hold though. For now.”

  That wasn’t what he’d told the kids. In truth, this sickness worried him almost as much. There was no one here showing symptoms, as far as Raine knew, but that could change quickly. All he could hope for was that the outbreak of war had completely stopped people from traveling between Reaper and Angel territory.

  “What else?” Raine asked.

  “I want . . . guarantees.”

  “We’re healing you up, ain’t that good enough for you?” Darlene asked.

  “I need safety,” he said. “I’ll renounce the Reapers. They cast me out, anyway.”

  “Don’t worry, you’re safe here,” Raine said. “Whatever you tell us will be used to protect you.”

  “Tired,” he said. “Told you most of what I know.”

  “We need numbers,” Dan said. “Troop positions.”

  “Our orders were to build an outpost on the highway outside Corona,” he said. Olson seemed to be struggling to speak, his voice raspy. “We were a forward base, meant to keep watch . . . to keep the Angels . . .”

  Olson settled back against the pillow propping him to the wall, his muscles slackening while his eyes went up into his head.

  Darlene stepped forward. “He’s fading.”

  “Fading?” Dan asked. “What’s that mean?”

  “Going catatonic again,” Darlene said. She put a stethoscope on Olson’s bare chest. She frowned.

  “Lot of fluid. It’s like the flu and pneumonia are having a battle in there.”

  Olson suddenly convulsed and gave a great hack, spraying Darlene with copious amounts of dark, dripping fluid. It stank like rotting meat.

  “You rat bastard,” Darlene said, after she’d recovered.

  “Wash up, Darlene,” Raine said. He noticed a fleck of the horrible stuff had gotten on his finger. Dan checked himself and seemed to be clean. Raine wiped the finger on a clean part of the bedsheet.

  Darlene left, cursing, while Dan pulled Raine out of the room.

  “I’m no doctor,” Dan said, “but I know that isn’t the flu.”

  Chapter 39

  MAKARA AND SAMUEL WOKE up sometime the next morning, and both were surprised to see Raine sitting at their kitchen table. His large frame looked almost comical at the tiny table and small chair. Some
fruits and bowls of oatmeal were laid out.

  “Picked this up from the market,” he said. “We have stuff to talk about.”

  The siblings sat, the table crowded with the three of them.

  “What happened with Olson?” Samuel asked, broaching the subject, even though Raine was the one who wanted to talk.

  “He told us some interesting stuff,” he said. “Worrying stuff.” Raine looked up at the both. “Either of you feeling under the weather?”

  Both shook their heads.

  “Is he worse?” Makara asked.

  Raine nodded. “Yeah. Real bad. Darlene thought he had the flu, or maybe pneumonia, but then he hacked up all this . . . stuff . . . on her. Now this morning she’s feeling sick. Got me worried, is all.”

  “He’s been around her more than us by now,” Samuel said. “You said he coughed on her?”

  Raine nodded. “That’s right.”

  “Was she showing symptoms before that?”

  “No,” Raine said.

  “May be communicable through the discharge,” Samuel said. “Both should be separated while it works through them.”

  “Darlene runs the entire infirmary,” Raine said. “If we have wounded soldiers, then we’ll have to take care of them without her leadership.”

  “That’ll be tough,” Makara said.

  “Did he say anything important?” Samuel asked.

  Raine nodded. “That’s what I was trying to get to. Apparently, a lot of these Reaps are having the same sickness. They’ve been rounded up in camps in the mountains.”

  Samuel’s eyes widened at that. “We should have never brought him back.”

  “Well, might be too late for that,” Raine said. “Him and Darlene are being confined.”

  “Poor Darlene,” Makara said. “How is she?”

  “Just came back from there,” Raine said. “Seems in good spirits and is determined to get better. She more than anyone understands the need for stopping whatever this is in its tracks.”

  “Still . . .” Makara said.

  The three of them for silent for a time, finishing their food. When Raine was done with his, he continued.

  “Olson said the Reaper advance will slow down because of the disease.”

  “Sounds serious, then,” Samuel said. “Black wouldn’t stop for just anything.”

  “Assuming this guy is reliable,” Makara said.

  “I think he is,” Raine said. “That’s a consideration, though.”

  There was a sudden knock at the door, which opened before Raine could even stand to answer it. Dan Green stood at the door, his stern features on high alert.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Reaps,” he said. “They’re pouring in from the north and east.”

  Raine nodded darkly. “Bad information, then.”

  “False information,” Dan said. “I’ve ordered everyone to fall back here.”

  All Raine could feel was numb. Was this how it was going to end?

  Just when the news couldn’t get any worse, Dan laid another bomb on them. “Their numbers are too great to be just Reaps. Seems the eastern gangs are helping, too. By the time they push back the barricades, the mall will be under assault.”

  Raine stood and looked down at Samuel and Makara. Makara thought he looked sad.

  “We’ve been setting up the defense here ever since we arrived,” he said. “Now’s the time to see what it’s worth.” He turned back to Dan. “I’ll be out there in a minute, Dan. I have some things to tell these two.”

  Dan nodded respectfully and withdrew, closing the door behind him.

  Raine turned to face them both. “Things are going to get very serious, very soon. Both of you will have to fight. If I give the order, though, I want both of you to get out of here.”

  “No,” Makara said, immediately. “I could never do that.”

  “It’s an order,” Raine said. “I hope I never have to give it.”

  Samuel stood to face him. “Raine . . .”

  Raine cut him off. “No excuses, Samuel. I give the word, you get her out. Find Ohlan out east. He’s my brother and he’ll protect you both.”

  “No,” Makara said. “We’ll fight with everyone else.”

  “We will,” Raine agreed. “We’ll fight together. I hope the alternative doesn’t become necessary.”

  “What do we do in the meantime, Raine?”

  “Report to your battle stations,” he said. “I have things to take care of.”

  Without another word, Raine left them behind while Makara shouted his name.

  RAINE HATED TO LEAVE her behind like that, but he had to command. The first order of business was following Dan to the infirmary to enact his retribution on Olson. It was obvious now that the Reapers had wanted Olson here, to infect the base before Olson himself could die.

  He had already infected Darlene, and perhaps others, too.

  Raine and Dan raced across the concourse, a controlled chaos of people gathering their weapons and heading to their preassigned positions. Raine opened the infirmary door to find a scene of madness.

  Darlene sat slumped in a corner, completely still, her neck and clothing completely soaked with blood. Her green eyes stared lifelessly ahead.

  “Darlene!” Raine said.

  Raine’s attention was drawn to the door to Olson’s room, which was open. Within, there was no sign of the man himself.

  “He’ll die for this,” Dan said.

  They left the infirmary, running in the direction of screams. They saw Olson’s back facing toward him and shambling forward, as if Darlene had injured him in the fight. He lunged toward a group of women, biting one of them on the arm while the others pushed him away.

  Dan ran ahead, raising his gun all the while.

  “Move!” he called out. “Move away, now!”

  The women scattered, leaving Olson standing alone. His face was pale, while a mixture of blood and purple fluid dribbling from his gray lips. The man looked all but dead as he shuffled toward Dan and Raine, arms extended.

  Dan unloaded the entire clip of his handgun into the man, pelting him in the chest and legs. Despite stumbling, Olson continued. Was he wearing body armor under those clothes? Raine didn’t see how it was possible, but it was the only thing that made sense.

  “Raine!” Dan called. “I need backup here!”

  Raine walked forward calmly, pulling out his own handgun. At Raine’s approach, Olson stumbled forward more quickly, barely remaining upright.

  By Raine’s reckoning, the man had lost all right to life. Darlene was dead and he had hurt one of the women standing to the side, who was now nursing her arm. Had the sickness driven him mad, or had this all been a part of the Reapers’ plan?

  Raine would never know that answer. Just a few feet away from him, he raised his handgun and aimed directly at Olson’s forehead.

  One shot, ringing out loud and echoing throughout the concourse, and it was over.

  Olson tumbled forward stiffly, landing flat on his face. A mixture of blood and purple fluid oozed from his mouth, pooling on the floor beneath.

  Raine went over to the woman who was holding her arm. He almost told her to go to infirmary, before remembering what had happened to Darlene.

  “Go get the cleaned up,” he said. “The rest of you head to your assigned posts.”

  The women scurried away, a couple of them crying. Dan caught up to Raine. “First casualties already, and they haven’t even opened fire on us yet.”

  “This needs to be contained before it gets out of hand,” Raine said. He shook his head. “This body needs to be burned.”

  “I’ll find some men and see to it.”

  Dan was already raising the radio to his mouth and calling for backup.

  Raine just couldn’t stop himself from looking down at Olson. How had they been so easily fooled? Why would Olson have risked himself coming here if he knew he was going to die, anyway? He must have been Carin Black’s man through and through to be
willing to die to get at Raine and the Angels.

  This type of fighting was dirty, even by Black’s standards. Raine supposed that this time, the lord of the Reapers was leaving nothing to chance.

  When backup arrived, Raine helped load Olson onto the stretcher. They headed off with Dan to oversee them and Raine following behind.

  When they reached the infirmary, Raine called a halt and took a couple of the guys to help get Darlene loaded onto a stretcher as well, covering her with a bedsheet. Normally, they’d preserve the body long enough to give it a proper funeral, but with the coming invasion and the risk of contagion, there was nothing else to be done. It felt disrespectful to Darlene in the utmost. But Raine couldn’t call off the defense, even for a few minutes.

  The Reapers were pushing south, and there was no time for anything. He wouldn’t even have time to watch her pass out of this world and into the next.

  “We have to make sure she’s burned, too,” Raine said. “I hate to do it like this, Dan, but I see no other way.”

  He nodded. “I understand, boss. I’ll inform everyone on what’s happened after the fact. We need to let people know they’re safe from him, now.”

  Raine nodded. “I agree. We’ll just say Olson was a plant and that he took Darlene down with him, which is true, and that he was stopped. We’ll say nothing about his sickness. Don’t want to cause a panic.”

  Raine watched sadly as Darlene was wheeled away. Darlene, who had overseen little Makara, made her feel at home in a strange new place. Darlene, whose wisdom had helped the council many break deadlock countless times. Darlene, who had healed countless sick and injured people, doing as well as a doctor or even better, despite her lack of pedigree.

  She would be sorely missed, not only by him, but by the rest of the Angels. But she would only be missed if they survived the coming storm.

  Raine headed down to the first level. It was time for his part in leading the defense.