“I had a double. Standard running prep,” Ella replied.
“Ella, you need your wits,” James said.
“And that is exactly why I drink. I do not want to face those things without my liquid courage. Never have. Never will.”
“Ya think maybe you have a problem?” James asked jokingly.
“Nah, I don’t think I do.” Ella smiled. “I know I do. And I … am off.” She reached for the fire escape rung. “I’ll try to grab a radio at the hospital. Not sure if it will work. Once I get the vehicle, I’ll be back and will pull straight up to the back entrance. It should block any Codies so you can get out.” She stepped onto the ledge, pivoted her body, looked down then stepped backwards on the fire escape ladder.”
Both James and Tom stood right by the ladder and watched as she descended the it.
There were maybe eight of them at the bottom when she began, but within seconds, more gathered.
As soon as Ella was two thirds of the way down, she stopped. There wasn’t any space to jump when she reached the end.
Tom whistled a short whistle. “Stop,” he told her. “Come back up.”
“I can try to jump,” she said.
“What, are you nuts?” James asked. “It’s not worth it. Come up we’ll figure out another way.”
“Fine.” Elle reached back up for the wrung. She lifted her leg to climb and when she did, the fire escape ladder let loose and slid all the way down.
Not only did the ladder bring her close to the Codies, but the unexpected and abrupt stop of the ladder jolted her from it. She flew off and after she hit into a few Codies with her back, she slammed hard to the ground.
“Ella!” James called out.
She quickly was submerged within the hoard.
Tom pulled out his revolver and aimed.
“Wait. Stop. What if you hit her?” James asked.
“You’re right.” Tom harnessed his weapon. “I’m going down.”
Ella knew the second the fire escape dropped she was done for. She tried to hold on, but the force of the jolt sent her flying to the ground and into the pack of Codies.
It felt as if it happened in slow motion. She didn’t know whether it didn’t hurt when she hit the ground or if she was just so consumed with where she landed.
She felt no pain.
Ella had good reflexes and was fast, but not fast enough to get up on her feet and free from the hoard.
They were all around her. Rotting flesh and a sour pungent odor consumed every quick breath she tried to take. They were there, delaying their attack, staring down at her.
This was not the way she was going to go out.
She only had a second, a single second and they would be on her, tearing her apart. She was held down by the weight of their feet and presence.
They’d tear her apart, a death she didn’t want to feel, and for sure she didn’t want to come back.
The revolver was in the waist of her pants, she reached for it.
Her heart pounded out of control. She wasn’t afraid to die, she was afraid of how bad it was going to hurt.
“God forgive me,” she said putting the gun under her chin.
Just before she pulled the trigger, she stopped.
Why hadn’t they attacked her?
They meandered above her and around her, even looking at her, but not a single one of them grabbed for her.
She withdrew the gun away from her chin, extended it as best as she could and fired.
The round hit a Codie in the gut and he went down, not a kill shot, but he was down and that gave her more room. She could move her legs and bent them up, firing again.
Another one went down and Ella scurried to her feet.
She was ready and expecting it, the attack at any moment, but it didn’t happen.
In fact, the moment she stood ready to fire and fight her way free, the large group shifted and moved away just enough for her to pull back and away.
Their attention was elsewhere.
Once off the sidewalk and in the street, she turned to see what drew them from her.
Tom was on the fire escape.
“Hey!” she shouted to him. “Go back up! I’m good.”
Tom looked as if he saw a ghost. He stared at her with a shocked expression.
“Not a bite or scratch,” Ella hollered. “I’ll be back.” She spun around again and finally felt the effects of the fall to her back. ‘Uh, yeah,” she said softly to herself as she picked up her pace. “That’s gonna hurt tomorrow.”
James nearly toppled over the roof when he saw Ella not only break free from the group of Codies but do so unscathed and still with an arrogant attitude.
As he clutched his chest, he could feel his own heart beating against his sternum. ‘My God,’ he thought. ‘A rising dead apocalypse and I’m having a coronary.”
He focused watching Ella move down the street.
Just as he calmed down, Tom popped up from the fire escape, startling him again.
“Shit.” James jumped back. “Oh my God.’
“Did you see that?” Tom asked with excitement. “Did you see?”
“Yeah, of course I did.”
“Doc, seriously, how?”
“Has to be the fact that she was infected and cured. That’s the only thing I can think of.”
“This is beautiful,” Tom said. “This means she’s a weapon against them. Unless, you know, you think maybe it was a fluke.”
“No, they would have gotten her.” James exhaled through his slightly parted lips.
“You okay?” Tom gave a swat to James’ back.
“Yeah.” He nodded. “No. I … don’t know. That was scary. I thought she was a goner.”
“I did, too.”
James stepped back to the edge of the roof and looked out. He no longer saw Ella. She was long gone and on her way to the field hospital.
As long as everything went as planned, it wouldn’t be long before they were all safely out of that apartment building.
SEVEN – ROSE COLORED GLASSES
Suddenly, everything was changed. Even if Ella never acknowledged her fear, it was there. Always.
Her train of thought was continuously, ‘get there, get what I need, get back.’
She’d stay focused on staying alive and being fast. She took in her surroundings, but only to assess them for danger.
Now that the veil of fear was lifted, she was seeing things in a different light.
The world seemed scary, not from a dangerous threat but from emptiness and change.
Ella was always running, and now she slowed down. There was no need to run. The Codies didn’t notice her, they walked right by her, even bumped into her and didn’t do a thing.
She had a chance to really look around.
Perhaps things were different because she was in the inner city.
The streets were littered with paper and other trash, windows broken, and long standing brick buildings burned out.
Blood stained the streets, the sidewalks, doorways and stairs. Body parts were rotting on the ground, some torn from bodies, some eaten until very little was left.
As if the Codies said, ‘okay, I had enough,’ and dropped the remains of humans wherever they felt like it.
Ella knew from just being around and talking to Rhonda that some of the Codies had a spark of who they were. Some, like Rhonda were well aware. But it seemed to Ella the longer they were Codies, the more they lost the human side of themselves until they became murderous creatures with no regard for life.
Blinded by rage they attacked … like her husband.
Even the rage-filled Codies wanted nothing to do with Ella.
She didn’t need to be a scientist or doctor to know why.
Ella had been bit, infected then cured.
Whatever infected her was still there, somewhere.
That scared Ella.
Was she in fact a Codie? A functional Codie.
She had no idea what would become of her, so she decided
to live for the moment. However, looking around at the world, a bit of her wondered what there was to live for.
Desolation, death, destruction.
The triple threat.
She arrived at the field hospital that had been erected on the streets by the main hospital. Any time she had been there to steal medication, she went to the tents. As if the main hospital was off limits.
Other than it being the first time she was truly seeing things, it was the first time Ella felt sick to her stomach.
The field hospital stunk of rotting flesh. It saddened and sickened her because anyone remaining, anyone alive, was a mere meal for the Codies.
Those who went into post immunization limbo didn’t stand a chance.
The Codies were so consumed with … consuming, Ella had to wonder if they would even notice her at all. Even if she hadn’t been ‘invisible’ to them.
There were numerous trucks and vehicles parked and abandoned near the entrance. Immediately she found a truck with the keys in it. The ignition was in the off position and the tank three quarters full. It would start, she hoped, and she would take it. First, she had to get supplies.
She knew right where to go for those.
Ella had snuck into that supply tent many times. She doubted that any Codies would be in there.
James needed saline intravenous bags and other items for Bradly. Plus, he asked her to pick up other things.
Just as she neared the tent, she stopped, when she heard voices.
“Yeah, I heard that, too,” the smooth male voice said. “Sure, would be a sight to see, now wouldn’t it.”
“Yep,” another man said, his voice was raspy. “I thought of going there. Out of curiosity.”
“That’s dumb.”
“I know. So, I’m playing it safe. I should be there by morning. No traffic anywhere.”
“Would think so,” Smooth Man said. “Don’t think the infected can drive.”
“Now that would be a sight.”
Ella didn’t want to go in there. In fact, she backed up. Two men, in the supply tent, she was a woman, alone. It could be trouble. Then again, they could help her.
She needed those supplies.
After hanging back a few minutes, listening to the banter about where raspy voice would stop on his journeys and what he would get, Ella took it as a sign to go into that tent, when smooth man said. “I could use a drink.”
Ella had that handled.
Maybe she could hand them a peace offering, if needed.
But first, she drew upon her best Netflix cops’ drama knowledge.
Not wanting to take a chance though, Ella pulled out the revolver, made sure it was ready and with a pivot, swiftly entered the tent, gun extended. “Hold it right there,” she said, fully expecting to take them by surprise.
It Ella that was taken by surprise.
There was no one in the tent.
The voices came from an unmanned radio.
She had no idea, because she hadn’t heard static or the obligatory, ‘over and outs’ she knew to be radio protocol.
Protocol be damned, there were other people out there, and they had to be close, too.
After securing her weapon, she hurried to the table and lifted the microphone.
EIGHT – BUILDING
“Hey, Steve,” Clay said over the radio. “I thought you were traveling alone.”
“I am,” replied Steve.
“Well your girl was just on the radio.”
“I don’t have a girl.”
“I’m not his girl,” Ella said. “I’m not with Steve.”
“Who is this?” Clay asked.
“Ella.”
“Who’s Ella,” asked Steve.
“Isn’t she your girl?” Clay asked.
“No,” Ella said. “Why would you say that?”
“Because you said, ‘I’m here, too.’”
“I’m here, too, as in I am here in this world alive,” Ella said. “Can you guys please use over and out, so I know when someone is done speaking … over.”
“Didn’t seem important,” Clay said. “When I was only talking to Steve … over.”
“Now me,” another voice entered the radio waves. “Over.”
“Who is this?” Clay asked. “Over.”
“Grant,” he replied. “I know Ella. Over.”
“Grant!” Ella squealed. “Oh my God, how are you?”
Silence.
“You have to say over,” Clay told her. “Or else we won’t know you’re done. Your rules.”
The radio conversation became confusing and even slightly comical. He knew Steve, didn’t know the Grant fellow or even Ella, so instead of using all the overs and outs, Clay simply asked them to speak one at a time and he was able to learn a little about them.
They weren’t far from him. Maybe an hour away.
Ella was part of Grant’s camp when she got separated from them. Now she was trying to figure a way to get Grant and his people out of their camp.
A camp that was surrounded by tens of thousands of Codies.
That whole story sent warning bells off to Clay.
He found it hard to believe there were that many Codies in one area. Yes, it was the city, but the soldiers and armed civilians never let it get that out of control.
Because Clay didn’t know them enough to trust them yet, he didn’t give any information about his whereabouts. He had a good thing, and though he wanted to find people to build his community, he had to be careful.
Clay ended the radio transmission asking them to keep him posted about the rescue operation, and since Ella and Grant were able to communicate through the radio, Clay would listen in to gauge their legitimacy.
If indeed there was a rescue attempt, there would be talk between them.
Clay would hear and then he’d make the decision to invite them or not to what Clay believed was truly nothing less than a sanctuary.
NINE – LIFT OFF
“She’s dead,” James said, looking out the window.
“She’s not dead,” Tom argued.
“I’m telling you, she’s dead. She’s taking way too long. Too long. I think she got cocky about the Codies not touching her and they ate her.”
Tom laughed. “Stop.”
“She shouldn’t have gone by herself,” Rhonda said. “I mean, that was wrong of us to send her by herself. I should have gone. If she is immune to them, so am I.”
“Okay,” James held up his hand. “You could be invisible or immune to them, as well, but you are in no shape to go. You just had a baby, plus, you know, some of your body is not in good shape. You’re necrotic in several areas.”
“Then what about you?” she asked James. “You’re in good shape. Or Major Tom. Isn’t he the expert? All I’m saying is, we let her go out there. If anything happened to her, it’s on us.”
Just then, there was a knock at the door, James rushed over. He looked through the peep hole and exhaled loudly in relief before opening the door quickly.
“Thank God,” he said, pulling Ella inside. “Where have you been? You’ve been gone hours.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” Ella replied. “I went to the field hospital, got the truck and I got supplies. I made a few supply stops.”
“We could have made them once you got back,” James nearly scolded.
“You’re right. I just thought with the baby we should keep the stops to a minimum. I got walkie talkies,” she said. “So, we won’t have this problem again.”
“We’re glad you’re alright,” Rhonda said. “We were just worried.”
Ella looked at Tom. “You’re not saying anything?”
With a tightly closed mouth, Tom shook his head. “I knew you were fine. Didn’t know what the hell was taking so long, but I knew you were good.”
“Thank you for that,” Ella said. “So …” she clapped her hands together once. “I have the truck pulled right ass end to the door. I’ll go out there and open it up, you guys climb
right in. Who’s ready?”
James hid the fact that he was catching his breath, slowing his heart and allowing is head to spin less. He went from a frenzy of worry to being relieved, now he was about to leave the safety of the apartment to venture out into the Codie filled streets. Ella didn’t seem that concerned, that helped James. Even though Ella had that invisibility to her, she seemed unfazed by anything out there. It told James, how bad could it be?
◆◆◆
When Rhonda blurted out, “Oh, can I try?” James couldn’t help but wonder what was wrong with the mentality of the people he was with?
Like it was a video game, Rhonda wanted to walk among the Codies to see if she, too, could do so like Ella.
They had pulled to the temporary base and to the barracks style house where Tom had lived. There were at least two dozen Codies swarming around the house. Most were soldiers, some with blood stained clothing, some looked as if they hadn’t been injured.
Ella came up with the idea that she would go out, take down a few Codies to make a path for Tom so he could go in and get what he needed.
“I thought you didn’t like killing them,” James said to Ella. “I thought you believed a part of them was still in there.”
“I do, for some,” Ella replied. “After a while they aren’t who they used to be. I don’t like or want to kill them. I don’t. I just tell myself that I wouldn’t want to be like them, that I would want someone to help me. To put me out of my misery.”
“Why are you giving her a mother’s guilt trip?” Tom asked James. “Do you think we shouldn’t kill any of them?”
“Not now that we know they can be reversed. How do we know some scientist out there isn’t working right now on an aerosol version?”
Tom laughed, then held up his hand. “Sorry. Not to make fun. But … no … they’re not. If we don’t cull their numbers, there will be no turning back and there’ll be to many of them for us to defend against.”
“We just need a place to run and hide for a month,” James said. “Scientifically speaking, eventually they will all die out and drop.”
“They haven’t yet,” Tom said. “Despite what science dictates the human body will do.”
The Rectify Series (Book 3): Rectify 3 Page 3
