“Sorry General, I was making sure the stairwells were secure,” the lieutenant explained.
“Where’s Youngblood?”
“He went down to the first floor to make sure the entrances are secured and sealed.”
“Okay, I want you to gather up the research staff and get them ready to evacuate…if things get beyond our control. Novak has his helicopter just outside of the northern entrance. Go ahead and get the group headed in that direction.”
Hartman’s words sent a wave of terror through Riggins’s body. If the general was actually considering the possibility of having to send the researchers away, Riggins knew that things were really going bad.
“Yes sir, I’ll see to it,” Riggins said. He turned and ran back down the hall, disappearing around a corner.
Hartman stepped back into the command room and slowly made his way over to the window that overlooked the gate and its breached walls.
“General?” Collier called to him. She was on the verge of tears and she was standing up.
“Yes, my dear,” he said as he looked down at the spreading wave of undead.
“What are we going to do?” She had placed her headset on the table and she was walking towards him.
Turning away from the window, he looked into her eyes. He could see the fear—the tears welling up—and he knew that she was at her breaking point. “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine.” He walked up to her and took ahold of her trembling hands. “As long as we keep them from getting up here, we can hold out until we get some relief.”
“Relief from who?” she asked as she began to cry. “There’s no one else out there.”
“Of course someone else is out there,” he countered. “Dyess sent us that bomber, so that shows that someone else is still operating. Believe me, we’re not alone. We can’t be.”
“Just one lonely plane!” she wailed as she pulled her hands away from him. She stepped back and said, “They didn’t even have any supplies to send us. No food, no water…and no ammunition. There’s no one else out there. We can’t even reach Fort Hood anymore. We’re all alone!”
“Stop talking like that!” Hartman barked. With a crazed look in his face he said, “You sound like we’ve been beaten. We haven’t lost…not by a long shot. We’ve had a minor setback, but we haven’t been beaten. Now get ahold of yourself, Private!”
“Are you crazy?” Collier screamed. “Can’t you see? It’s all over for us here. Those things have broken through the wall and it will only be a matter of time before they get up here. We need to get out of here…right now!” The woman was sobbing hysterically and she had lost the last of her composure.
“Get back to your station! Get back on that radio or I’ll have you taken into custody for deserting your post!’
“You’re going to be the death of us all!” she screamed back. “I’m not going to stay here and let you get me killed!” She turned to make her way towards the door.
Hartman reached down to his side and pulled the pistol he had been wearing in his tactical holster. He pointed it at her and said, “You’re not going to desert your post…not under my command.” His hand trembled as he pointed the gun at her back. His sanity also trembled as he contemplated the fate of the compound.
Collier turned to look at the general. Tears were streaming from her eyes and mucus was running from her nostrils. “Are you going to shoot me?”
“If I have to I will. Now, get back to your station!”
Realizing that if she stayed in the office she was going to die one way or another, she turned and began to walk towards the door. Her vision was blurred by her tears, but she could make out the door knob. As she reached for it, a single shot rang out. At first she didn’t know what had happened and she thought that someone had punched her on her back. She stumbled forward and fell up against the door. Reaching back towards the site of the now burning pain in her back, she felt warm fluid on her hand as her blood began to flow from the bullet wound. Her chest tightened as her lungs began to fill with blood.
Standing there with the gun still pointing at Collier—a waft of white smoke dissipating from the barrel—Hartman watched as the private began to sluggishly slide down the door to the floor. She drew up into a fetal position and rolled over to her side. Blood began to pool up around her as it soaked into the dingy brown carpet.
As Riggins was opening the door to the lounge where Irene and Jim and the others were waiting, the sound of a single gunshot filled the room. Startled, Riggins turned in the direction of the report.
“What the fuck was that!” Jim exclaimed. He looked over at Irene and she looked back at him—her face was gripped with fear. They both stood up and began to walk towards the door. “That came from up here.”
“Are those things already here?” Farris asked in terror.
“No, they can’t be. All the stairwells are secured and the elevators are locked.”
“Well, someone up here is shooting,” Jim said.
Wanting to investigate the gunfire, but knowing that he needed to focus on the task at hand, Riggins stepped into the lounge and shut the door behind him. From the look on his face, everyone in the room could tell that things were not going good.
“What’s going on down there?” Farris asked.
The wall has been penetrated…down by the main gate. We’re doing our best to contain it, but in case we can’t, we need to get you guys moving to the chopper. It’s just outside of the northern entrance.”
“Shit, why didn’t you tell us this earlier?” Farris asked. Irene could hear the man’s voice cracking.
“Let’s just deal with what’s going on right now,” Riggins said as he attempted to avoid a long drawn out conversation with the doctor. “Just gather your things and let’s start heading down to the helicopter. Okay?”
***
Hartman—his senses still reeling from what he had just done—was now standing at the window, gazing blankly at the scene below. He knew that all was lost and he knew that he was to blame for it. His chance to save the world had been squandered.
With his troops in full retreat, the only organized resistance was from the Bradleys. They were still actively trying to repel the horde as they drove in circles, crushing and mashing any unlucky reanimated and infected who weren’t quick enough to get out of the way of the tracks. One of the Bradleys was adorned with several fast movers as they clambered up onto the deck of the vehicle.
After several minutes of looking mindlessly at the demise of his troopers, he snapped to and realized that if any of them had been trying to communicate with him, they wouldn’t have received any response because Collier was no longer at the console. He turned to make his way to the radio and was surprised when he saw the freckled private standing there. Her eyes were glazed over with a white film and a rasping noise was coming from her throat. To his horror, he realized that she had reanimated.
He quickly drew his pistol and began to fire it before he could bring her into his sights. The first bullet struck the floor next to her boot. The second bullet tore into her thigh and the third bullet smashed into her abdomen. He didn’t get a chance to get off a fourth bullet.
Collier grabbed onto the collar of the general and with incredible strength, she pulled his neck towards her gaping mouth. He dropped his gun as he tried to push away from her, but he couldn’t break her grip. She bit down onto the left side of his face, cutting through flesh and muscle. Her teeth gnashed on his facial bones and he screamed out in pain. With one vicious twist of her head, she pulled off a chunk of his face and began to chew on it.
The terrified general fell back onto the floor and clutched at his gaping wound. He kicked and flailed as he tried to get away from Collier. Shoving himself across the floor, he got to his feet and looked for a way to escape from the command center. In the corner of the room was a small utility closet. He broke out into a full run and yanked open the door. He shut himself inside the closet and he curled up in the far corner.
***
“Man, what the fuck is going on over there!” Jim said as more gunfire echoed down the hallway.
“Look, you guys stay here,” Riggins said. “I’m going to see what’s going on. That fire is coming from the command center. Something must be happening in there.”
“You want us just to stay in here?” Irene asked. “What if those things are up here?”
“Just lock yourselves in here,” Riggins said—or more like ordered. He ran out of the room and back in the direction of the command center.
“Jim, I don’t want to stay here,” Irene pleaded. “Let’s go before something bad happens.”
Jim looked over at Farris and Wang and the other doctors and researchers. They were all huddled on several couches, shuddering in terror. He then looked back at Irene and wrestled with the idea of going or staying. “Okay, let’s get out of here. I’m sure we can find our way down to the helicopter.” He walked over to the couch that he and Irene had been sitting on and he picked up their bags.
“I don’t think we should go,” Farris argued. “I think we should wait on Riggins to come back for us.”
“I agree with Doctor Farris,” Wang said in agreement with his trembling colleague. “It’s not safe to go down there on our own.”
“Well, I don’t think it’s safe to stay up here any longer,” Jim countered. “Come on, Irene, let’s go.” Turning back to Farris he said, “You can stay here Major, but we’re leaving.”
“But you can’t leave just like that,” Farris pleaded. Jim could see the fear in the man’s eyes.
“We’re not staying,” Jim stated. “I’m not forcing any of you to come with me, so please don’t try to force me to stay.” He then walked over and took Irene by the hand. “Come on, honey, let’s go.”
“I’m with you,” she said.
Without looking back, Jim opened the door and the two of them stepped out into the hall. He drew his pistol and they started jogging down the corridor towards a stairwell. He opened the heavy door and looked down the darkened stairs. He realized that the fifth floor was the only floor that was powered. The rest of the building had been blacked out. The roar of gunfire from down below echoed off of the concrete walls. Looking over at Irene, he smiled nervously and asked, “You ready?”
***
Karnes and the two other soldiers grabbed at the doors of the Humvee as Carrie slammed on the brakes, bringing the vehicle to a stop just outside of the south entrance of the hospital. The four quickly piled out of the vehicle and began to run towards the barricaded vestibule.
“Open the fucking doors!” Karnes screamed. “Let us in!” Just inside of the vestibule, the glass walls were lined with desks, filing cabinets, tables, and soda and snack machines—basically anything that could be used to reinforce the entrance points to the hospital. The same was done for all the other entrances, and the electric sliding doors to the emergency room had been blocked off by an ambulance parked across the entrance.
“Hold on,” called a voice from inside. “The power to the doors has been cut, so we have to open them by hand.”
“Well hurry up!” Carrie screamed. “We don’t have long out here!”
Two frightened looking soldiers climbed up onto the stacked items that formed the barricade and they began to tug on the doors. Just then, a fast mover came into sight and made a dash for the exposed troopers. He was quickly riddled by rifle fire from Karnes. The infected man spun and twirled as the bullets tore through his body. As he crashed down onto the pavement, Carrie ran out to him and shot him in the head.
“Watch out!” Karnes yelled as he aimed at a lumbering zombie. It had popped out from around the corner of the building and was heading towards Carrie. He placed the red chevron of his sights on the head of the mangled, grotesque looking woman and he squeezed off a round. The bullet struck low and to the right, taking off a large portion of her cheek.
“Fuck!” Karnes cursed aloud. It was hard to shoot at the head of a moving target, especially when the adrenaline was pumping and the mind was stressed. As he readjusted his sight, a bullet from one of the other soldiers scattered the zombie’s brains into oblivion.
“Get your ass back here!” Karnes yelled to Carrie. Realizing just how exposed she was, she ran back towards the awning of the entrance.
After struggling with the doors for what seemed an eternity, the soldiers inside were finally able to get them pried open enough to allow Karnes and the others just enough room to squeeze between them. “You first!” he yelled to Carrie. “Come on.”
He knelt down and cupped his hands together. He was going to have to hoist her up so she could squeeze through the opening and climb over the barricade inside of the doors. As she planted her boot down onto his hands, she looked at him and said, “Don’t take too long to get in here,”
“I won’t,” he grunted as he lifted her up.
With her rifle slung over her back, she reached through the opening and grabbed onto the legs of a desk that was stacked on top of two snack machines that were lying on top of each other. She pulled herself up onto the desk and dropped down into the vestibule.
“Alright, you two are next,” Karnes told the other two soldiers. Both of them were nervously scanning the area just outside of the entrance and they looked at each other in confusion—wondering who was going to go first.
“You go first, Washburn,” said one soldier to the other. With that, Washburn ran over to Karnes and was lifted up and through the doors. He quickly shimmied over the desk and jumped down into the vestibule.
“Okay, you’re it,” Karnes said to the last soldier. The frightened red-head ran and was hoisted up by Karnes. Once the trooper was on top of the desk, he turned and reached for Karnes. As the sergeant was being pulled up and through the doors, a large number of reanimated made their way into the entrance and began to slap on the glass barriers. Several of them reached in through the two open doors and began to grab and shove at the snack machines and other barricade items. One pair of shriveled hands actually grabbed onto Karnes’ dangling legs and began to pull him back out through the doors.
“Shit, one of them has my legs!” Karnes screamed down to Carrie. “Hurry, pull me in!” The soldiers manning the entrance, along with Carrie, Washburn and his partner, all grabbed at Karnes and pulled him in the rest of the way. He tumbled down the stacked barricade and fell onto his back, knocking the wind from him.
“Hurry, shut the doors!” Carrie screamed as she stepped over Karnes. “They’re trying to push in the barricade!”
Two soldiers climbed up on top of the clutter and began to try to pull the doors shut. Karnes gathered his wind and his senses and got back to his feet. He could see between the desks and chairs and he was horrified to see that the entranceway was clogged with undead and infected. Just then, the glass of the left door shattered under the weight of all of the attackers and the barricade began to shift. Karnes grabbed Carrie by her sleeve and pulled her back from the unstable stack of furniture and snack machines.
“Shit, it’s giving way!” Karnes yelled. “Get off of there!” he yelled up to the two soldiers who were still trying to force the doors shut. “They’ve already broken the glass, get down off of there!” It was too late. The rest of the left door gave way and the barricade came crashing down. The two soldiers who were on top of the pile were now on the bottom—smashed under the heavy desk and chairs. Before he could react, one of the troopers was being drug out of the hospital by a hungry mob of undead.
“Go!” Karnes screamed as he turned to run. He looked back at Carrie and made sure that she was doing the same thing. In a futile attempt to stop the attack, she lowered her rifle to her hip, emptying a full magazine into the swarming corpses. Although a few were brought down, the others simply stepped over them and clambered their way through the debris of the fallen barricade.
***
Riggins opened the door to the command center and cautiously stepped in. He immediately saw the pool of blood on the ground—he
couldn’t miss it because he had stepped into it—and he called out for Hartman and Collier. He then saw Collier standing at the window with her back to him. He took a step towards her and called her name again. She turned towards him—slowly and awkwardly—and she swayed. He could see streaks of blood running from the corners of her mouth—and he saw her milk white eyes.
“Holy shit!” Riggins screamed aloud. He immediately realized that somehow Collier had turned into a reanimated. He drew his pistol and was about to fire at her when someone came bursting from out of the utility closet. It was Hartman. In a violent crash, Hartman had knocked the surprised captain off of his feet. The two men tumbled to the ground and Riggins’s pistol skidded across the carpet.
Clawing madly at his victim’s face, Hartman screamed and shrieked. His nails dug deep into Riggins’s skin, and the captain cursed and yelled as he fought to shove his attacker off of him. Riggins could taste his own blood—his left eye already swelling shut from having Hartman’s finger shoved into it—and tasting his own blood sent a wave of terror and shock through him. With strength built from fear, he threw wild, uncontrolled punches at the general. He rolled over onto his back, drawing his knees up into his chest. With whatever strength he had left in him, he delivered a solid kick with his boots to the infected Hartman’s torso.
“Get the fuck off of me!” Riggins screamed as he hammered his boot heels into the general’s chest. Hartman was sent flying back and the bloodied lieutenant jumped to his feet. He turned to make his way to the door and ran right into Collier. With his adrenaline rushing through his body, he was able to push the dead private aside, but as he tried to fling her clutching hands away from him, she latched onto his right arm and pulled it to her mouth. In one quick and fluid motion, she bit down onto his knuckles and drew back with shredded flesh hanging from her teeth.
A Glimpse of Decay (Book 3): Lost in Twilight Page 17
