Project Terminal: Devil's Virus
Page 6
“So how will this help?”
“It’s a little complicated, but the novice version is I’ll single out her unique antibodies and reproduce them. Hopefully, it’ll help people recently infected to fight the virus, it’ll give their white blood cells a starting point.” She squeezed some fresh blood drops on new slides and pushed her glasses up her nose. She looked at him again, a smile on her lips that sent a warm shiver over his skin. “I’m sorry about picking a fight earlier. I’m tired and irritable.”
“Never apologize for expressing an opinion, Max. It’s your right.”
Her smile remained, a temptation he nearly fell to, before she turned her back on him.
Chapter 10
She had it! Max stared at the results, feeling nearly delirious. The virus hadn’t taken hold of the new blood sample—the antibodies had won the fight. Her hands shook and she wrung them together, trying to calm down. Of course she had to test the cure, and had only one way of doing it. She took her glasses off and set them on the counter, her heart pounding in her chest. Only one available test subject and she’d have to use what was available—herself. She picked up the last of the undead blood and filled a syringe with a small amount. Kept cold, it was still potent and deadly. She held it up to the light, her hand trembling.
“Here goes nothing.” She injected herself then set the needle aside. If the antidote worked, she would only suffer symptoms a little worse than the flu. If it didn’t… She shuddered at the thought.
Now came the hardest part. She walked into the living room where Reed sat scanning passages in the Bible he always had with him. He looked up and met her gaze. His brow furrowed. “What’s wrong? You’re white as a ghost.”
“I got it, the cure,” she said.
A broad smile flashed across his face. “That’s wonderful.”
“Just one last thing I had to do.”
“What’s that?”
She took a deep breath. “I needed to inject myself with the virus to make sure the antidote works.”
The Bible clattered to the floor and he was on her, grasping her upper arms. “You what!”
“It’s necessary to make sure the serum works.” She tried to pull free but he held her tight.
“Using yourself as a lab rat?”
“I have to know it works before widespread distribution.”
His nostrils flared and he bared his teeth, backing off. “Why you?”
Max took another longer breath, he looked ready to kill. “Who else?”
He shoved his fingers through his hair. “Me, I could’ve done it.”
“No, you couldn’t, not with your advantages. You’d be the most dangerous of any of the undead.”
His eyes shone in the lowered lighting. “I can’t believe you’d do this.” He turned from her, sounding disgusted. “Is this some lame attempt at suicide because you blame yourself for what happened?”
She flinched beneath his words. “It’s the least I could do, and it’s not suicide.” She forced her voice down an octave. “I really do believe it’ll work.”
“Then give yourself the cure now.” He paced the room, his long strides carrying him back and forth.
“I have to wait until symptoms appear.”
“This is insanity. How could you do this?” He rubbed his hands over his face.
“In case it doesn’t work…” She licked her lips. “If it doesn’t work, you know what you have to do, Reed.”
He turned on her. “I can’t kill you.” He stomped away from her.
“You’ll do what you have to do.” She caught up to him and placed her hand on his forearm. “You have so much faith, so please have some in me.”
He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, a shock that sent a sizzle to her toes. “I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t.” Her heart fluttered as the warmth of his gaze burrowed into her soul.
“You can’t be sure.” He took a deep breath. “I don’t know what I’d do if you…” He released her and turned his back. “I won’t put you down like a dog.”
She hugged her arms close. “You won’t have to, Adam. If I didn’t feel confident I wouldn’t have injected myself.”
Reed spun on his heel and was on her, pulling her close, wrapping his protective arms around her. He hugged her tight. “I can’t lose you,” he repeated, his voice hoarse.
When she looked up into his eyes, they shone bright. He blinked and closed them, but she’d already seen the tears. She reached up and cupped his cheeks, the pale stubble of beard growth coarse beneath her palms. “We’ll be okay, I promise.”
His lips were on her, and she met the kiss in desperation. Of course she couldn’t be one hundred percent sure if the cure would work, but the risk was worth it. She couldn’t give out mass doses if it failed, it’d be pointless. And if it did fail… She turned her attention from the notion. It would work, it simply had to. She couldn’t believe anything else, not at this point.
They clung together, and the tight control she’d had on her feelings unraveled. Her heart swelled with the influx, until she wanted to burst. She loved him, no doubt about it. Max was still in love with Reed, when it was too late for such feelings. He would’ve gotten over her a long time ago.
He pulled away. “We need to get out of here. I have a feeling your sister will be back.”
“I think you’re right.” She stepped back, forcing strength into her weak knees. His kiss had knocked her for a loop. “And I’ll need a new place to reproduce the cure. A safe place.”
A wave of dizziness swamped her and her knees buckled. Reed grabbed her before she hit the floor. “Are you okay?”
Fever, hallucinations, confusion, seizures, she ticked off the virus’s symptoms in her mind, then the human parts of my brain die and I’ll be one of the undead.
“Give yourself the cure, Max.” His voice came out strained. “Please, tell me where it is.”
“I’ll wait until the fever sets in.”
“Lord, save this woman from herself,” he muttered against her hair.
He guided her to the sofa, and she sat down. The room spun and she broke out in a cold sweat. She wanted to give it an hour…in an hour it would’ve multiplied and spread through her system.
“I know where we can go,” Reed said. “A place I paid cash for, a small cabin in the mountains of Colorado.”
He’d lost the color in his face, and she gave him a brave smile. “Sounds cozy.”
“It’s not much, definitely nothing like this home.”
She took his hand and pulled him down next to her. “If you’re there I would call it perfect.”
He put his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled into his side, waiting for her hour to be up. The sweat dried on her skin, and she felt cold despite the stale muggy air in the home. She shivered, and her teeth chattered—signs of the fever. When her hour ended, she felt like hell.
“It’s now or never.” She rose from the sofa, and Reed had to help her to the kitchen. She injected herself with the premade serum. Now all they could do was wait to see if it worked.
Max was scared.
* * * *
Adam was terrified. Max’s sallow complexion and blue tinged lips made her look like she was on death’s door. He laid her on the couch and covered her with the sleeping bag, placing a kiss on her forehead. When she drifted off to sleep, he dropped to his knees by her side. He clasped his hands and peered toward the ceiling. “Please, Lord, spare her life. She’s a good person and is trying to do right. I swear if you do, I’ll make an honest woman of her. Max is all I have, and I love her. I want to spend my life with her.”
“You love me?” Max’s soft whisper drew his attention down. Her tired eyes watched curiously.
Reed reached out and stroked her hair. “Yes, I do, Max.”
Her lips curved upward. “I…” She licked her lips. “I’m thirsty. The virus is making me thirsty.”
He jumped to his feet and went to retrieve a bottle
of water. He helped her sit upright and she sipped the liquid. She fell back to sleep and he paced the house. He’d take her to Colorado; the cabin would be off Doc’s radar. He’d purchased it under an alias. Though he hated to admit to it, they needed backup. Max would require as much security as possible while producing more of the cure. Being a super soldier left him secluded from the world, though he did know others who’d be willing to see Project Terminal fall. He dug his cellphone out and placed a couple of calls.
Chapter 11
Max awoke, her head pounding with the worst hangover ever. She blinked against light. Too much light.
“Oh, baby, you’re okay.”
She looked toward the male voice, confused. “What?”
“Your fever broke, you made it through. The cure works.”
Adam. His broad smile greeted her.
The virus, the cure… “Oh, thank God,” she muttered. She tried to sit up, but the room spun.
“Take it easy, you’ve been out for thirteen hours.” Reed pressed a bottle of water to her lips. She drank deeply, feeling as if every cell had shriveled up. He pulled it away before she’d finished. “You’ll get sick.” And just as the words left his lips, her stomach convulsed. Reed shoved a trash can near her and she retched inside it. “I figured this might happen.”
Finally she fell back onto the couch, weak, but alive. He dabbed a damp cloth over her lips. She took it from him, embarrassed she’d become an invalid. “Thank you.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve seen far worse. And you’re still prettier than a corpse.”
His teasing tone made her laugh, but the sound came out as a cough.
His eyes widened. “You sure you’re okay now?”
She nodded. “It’ll take me a bit to get my bearings, but I’ll be okay. When are we leaving for Colorado?”
“As soon as you’re able. I’ve called in two others, we’ll need the extra hands in the next few weeks.”
She frowned. “Who?”
“You know them, they came into Project Terminal around the same time I did. Amelia St. James and Gabe Morris.” Amelia had been an Air Force recruit and Gabe from Special Ops.
“Are you expecting trouble?”
“After the other day, I want to be prepared for anything. You’re the most important woman in the world right now, Max.” He grasped her hand and brought it to his lips. “To me, at least.”
Max’s heart fluttered. “You said you loved me still. Is that true?”
He looked away. “I never stopped. How could I? You’re incredible, and much too good for a war-torn soldier.”
“No, Adam, don’t say that.” She clutched his fingers tight. “I…I love you too.”
His gaze swung back to hers and his pale eyebrows drew together. He took on the look of a frightened teenager. “Do you mean that?”
“Of course I do.”
He leaned in to kiss her, but she covered her mouth. “Vomit breath.”
He chuckled and placed his lips to her forehead.
Two hours later she’d made it to her feet, gotten some food down, and brushed her teeth. Reed had immediately taken advantage of her minty fresh breath and kissed her until she almost swooned. He did most of the work under her direction, and they climbed into the Jeep.
“We’ll meet St. James and Morris at the cabin,” Reed said, starting the vehicle.
Max took one last look at the huge home, with all its mathematical angles, a little sad to leave it behind. She clutched the chilled canister holding the thing she’d risked her life for. “Okay. Adam, say it one more time.”
He gave her a look that warmed her to her toes. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
About Olivia Starke
Olivia Starke calls the Ozarks home. One of the most beautiful areas in the country, she loves hiking trails with her dogs, kayaking on the numerous waterways, and enjoying southern Missouri’s fresh air and sunshine.
She’s also ‘Mom’ to four dogs, a growing number of kitties that show up at her door, and four VERY spoiled horses that do little to earn their keep. Not that she’d ever hold that against them.
She’s a HUGE fangirl of Doctor Who and to a lesser extent Supernatural, and has a pretty interesting love triangle (or square?) going on in her head between the Doctor and the Winchesters.
Olivia’s Website:
www.authoroliviastarke.com
Reader eMail:
oliviastarke@ymail.com
About the Project Terminal Series
Book 1: Project Terminal: Legacy
Now Available
Book 2: Project Terminal: Devil’s Virus
Now Available
Book 3: Project Terminal: End Game
Coming Soon
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11