“I'll do that Sarge. Be careful. Call me and I'll have her ready to go in a flash.”
We started up the road. I didn't like the idea of sending Lily in on her own. But I also didn't want her going up to that front gate. I don't think the Sergeant did either. That's why he suggested she go in through the fence. We were all pretty certain the doctor was running the show now. There was no telling what awaited us once we got inside. Besides, she was combat trained and I'd seen she could handle herself if need be. Still, as we came to a place in the road where we could see the fence, I had a feeling of dread and feared the worst.
“This is where we split up. Lily, you'll have to go through the woods and find the back of the building. When you get there, call on the radio and let us know you're in position. That's when we'll make our way up. Stay in the tree line until we approach the fence. We'll signal you when we get their attention. That's when you cut through and make your way to our entry point. I want you behind them when we go in. You have anything to add Captain?”
“If for some reason we're wrong and they still have Dr. Parks detained, I'll radio and let you know. I don't think that's going to happen. Just be careful.”
“Don't worry about that. I'll be fine. See you inside.”
“Lily, one last thing. If you have to shoot him, try not to kill him outright. I really would like to talk to him. If you have to kill him, don't hesitate. He deserves it. Oh yeah, almost forgot, the extra radio will be hanging in this tree.”
I hung the extra radio in the tree right by the road and she turned and made her way into the woods. I didn't feel right about letting her go.
“It's the only way Captain.” It was if he'd read my mind. “She'll be okay. Front or back; same risk.” I think he was trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince me.
“Maybe we should all just go back to the chopper and fly out of here. They got any bombs on that thing?”
“You know they don't. Besides I think that's an old missile silo. No telling how far underground he is.”
We made our way to the front gate. The overcast skies opened up and the nearly full moon shone through. Now we were able to see but at the same time I worried that Lily would be exposed at the back of the fence. I could see the security camera mounted at the entry to the facility. There was a call box mounted by the gate.
“You ready Sergeant?”
“Let's do it.”
I pushed the button and waited for a reply. Nothing happened so I pushed the button again and spoke into intercom. “This is Captain Tim Downs. I am here on the orders of General Simmons United States Army. Here to take charge of Dr. Jeffery P arks.”
Still nothing. I reached for the call box again. “This is Captain Tim Downs. If we don't receive a response in the next sixty seconds we'll be forced to cut through the fence to obtain entry.”
“Someone is on their way. Do not cut the fencing. It will take a few minutes for a guard to get there. This is an under ground facility.”
“We'll be waiting.” I released the button and turned to the Sergeant. “Tell Lily it's time.”
“Flowers, they're sending someone. Time to go. Over.”
“Copy. There's a camera back here. Over.”
“Tell her not to worry about it. If Parks has gained control then he's alone.”
“Go ahead with entry. Over.”
“Copy that. Over.”
“Lieutenant Price you reading all this? Over.”
“Copy. Heard every word. Good luck. Over.”
“From here on, maintain radio silence. Over.”
I heard a loud click from the fence and the gate began to open. I looked back at Sergeant Adams and he nodded to me. We un-slung our rifles and moved into the compound. The clouds covered the moon again, darkness prevailed.
“I don't know about you but I don't like this.”
“No sir. Somethings not right. They should have sent someone to the gate.”
“Let's go to the door. See if it's open.”
We walked the short distance to the front of the building. I tried the door. It was locked. “What now?”
“I guess we wait. I think we should back away from the door though. I don't want to get shot through the door.”
We started to move back when I heard the click from the lock on the door. I could tell from the sound the lock was released remotely. Whoever was inviting us in was not on the other side of the door. I stepped up and reached for the handle.
“Just a minute Captain. When you open the door, stand to the side. Give me a clear line of fire.”
I pulled the door open. The tension was unbearable. Nothing happened. I started in. Sergeant Adams reached out and took my arm. I looked back and he held up one finger. I waited while he searched for something to prop the door open. He went back to the fence and picked a tree branch up from the ground. He looked around and came back to the door.
“Find a light switch.”
I turned on the light. We were in a large room. There was a desk and a few chairs in the center of the room. Against the wall was a set of elevator doors.
“I guess we're going down.”
Adams leaned forward and whispered, “Lily's in.” He went to the elevator. “We're not going anywhere on those. Unless you have a key.”
I joined him at the doors. He was right. We would need a key to operate the elevator. “Try the desk.”
Sergeant Adams went through the drawers of the desk. He held up his clenched fist, opened it, and shook the keys. “I think we're in.”
I waited at the doors while Sergeant Adams tried the keys. First try, the key fit. He turned the key and the doors slid opened. I scrambled back as the elevator full of the undead emptied out before me. I opened fire into the group. I fired from their front as Sergeant Adams fired from the side. The gunfire from Adams drew some of their attention away from me and the group split. As we both backed up firing into the zombies I heard a crash from behind me. All I could assume was that it was Lily coming to our aid. I heard gunfire behind me and when I didn't feel bullets ripping into me I knew it was her. The onslaught ended and the sound of gunfire stopped. I felt a hand on my shoulder.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah I'm fine.”
“I'm okay too.” Sergeant Adams said.
The doors to the elevator began to close. One of the dead zombies blocked the door from closing. In front of me I counted twenty three dead bodies littering the floor. The smell of cordite hung in the air. Mixed with the smell coming from the zombies, the stench was over powering. Still, it wasn't as bad as the smell coming from the zombies at Fort A.P. Hill. The zombies lying dead before me hadn't been turned that long ago. Most of the dead were dressed in military clothing, a few wore lab coats. Dr. Parks was definitely in charge of the facility.
Next to the locking mechanism that controlled the elevator was a speaker. I went to it and pressed the call button. “Are you coming up Dr. Parks or are we coming down?”
“I'm kind of busy. Why don't you come down?”
Chapter 16
We made good time after leaving Rich and had no trouble getting back to the highway. The horde we'd encountered the day before had moved on. The road was clear until we got within a mile or two of Columbia. Since the highway was jammed going both ways, we back tracked to the last exit we had passed and got off onto the surface roads. Al and I talked about it and decided to stay away from the main roads and take side streets the rest of the way. Boonville was on the north side of Highway 70 and we would need to cross the Missouri River before getting there. That left only one option so the choice of our route was made for us. We'd have to work our way through rural Missouri until we came to Business Route 40 which would take us across the river and into Boonville.
We passed lots of farm houses and went through several small towns on the way. After all the problems of the past few days it was eerie. There were no cars on the road, no people anywhere, and strangest of all, no zombies. When I
remarked on how quiet this part of our journey was, Gina told me to wait. Something would happen soon. Sadly, she couldn't have been more right.
As we neared the Missouri River, a haze covered the sky. It was obvious there were fires burning nearby. As we approached the bridge crossing the river, the smell of burning flesh assaulted our senses. We had passed many fires on our journey but this was different. Thousands of bodies, piled on each side of the road, smoldered as we passed. The fires that had been consuming the dead had died out and needed fuel to reignite.
“Jesus Christ that's awful.” It was Al on the radio.
“Looks like we might finally find some signs of life.” Gina countered.
“Somebody had to pile all these bodies here. Maybe they're all dead. Probably killed by the smell. I wouldn't have left it like this. Until they get this all burned up, it's going to get worse.”
“Just keep going. We're almost to the bridge. Once we cross, dad's motel is right on the other side of the city.”
“I wasn't planning on stopping. I want to get away from here as fast as possible.”
Gina put the radio back on the dash and we kept going. We got past the piles of bodies and I could see the bridge just ahead. There was a tractor trailer blocking the road leading across. Al stopped and I pulled up behind him. Two pick-up trucks sat in the road just in front of us. As far as I could see there was no one in the trucks and I couldn't see any one in the area. I started to get out of the Hummer when Al came on the radio.
“Hold it Steve. You see anybody?”
“No, looks deserted.”
“Don't count on it. There are no dead bodies anywhere. No zombies, no nothin'. I get the feeling somebodies watching us. Most likely through a scope.”
“So, what do we do? Just sit here?”
“Not sure, Gina. Why don't you go up there and have a look around?”
That got her. “Give me the radio.”
They were at it again.
“I think you should go up there. Take your rifle with you and while your at it take a few shots at those trucks. See what happens.”
“That would probably bring them out. Have you got a white shirt handy?”
“Yeah there's a t-shirt in my bag.”
“Hold it out the window and wave it around. I'll do the same.”
Gina got in her bag and got the shirt out. She held it out the window waving it around. Al waved a shirt out his window and we sat waiting to see what happened. They kept it up for a couple minutes until they both got tired of it.
“That did a lot of good. Any other ideas?”
“Look to your left. They're coming out of the woods.”
I motioned for Gina to give me the radio and pointed to our right. They were on that side of us too. “Look in the mirror baby. They're behind us.”
“Al,” I said into the radio. “The trucks were a diversion. There's five to the right and I've got two coming up behind me.”
“Stay put buddy. Let them come to us.”
A dozen armed men stood beside our vehicles. They were dispersed evenly between us, three outside each of the doors. I could see Al talking to the three next to him on the passenger side of the truck. He got out of the truck and started to make his way back to Gina and I. The three armed men followed behind him. At least their guns were pointed at the ground.
“Why don't you come on out of there mister. Tell the lady to stay put. Just have her shut the engine off.”
“I hear you just fine.”
Gina shut the engine off. “Be careful.”
I got out and started walking towards Al. “Did they tell you what they want?”
“No, I told them we needed to cross the bridge and they told me we had to wait for Mike to get here.”
“And who would Mike be?”
“He's in charge here.” One of the men standing behind me said. “He's the Chief of Police here in Boonville. That's what they told me anyway.”
I turned to look at the man talking. He was in his forties the best I could tell. He was dressed in clean clothes and from the looks of him, hadn't missed many meals; before or after the apocalypse.
“I guess you're not from around here.”
“No, me and my wife and kids are from Iowa. We were headed south trying to out run the zeds when we came across these good people here. They have the town secured. Most of it anyway. Decided this was as good a place as any. So we stayed. If Mike says you folks can stay you might want to consider it.”
“We just need to get across the bridge and cross through town.” I pointed back to the Hummer. “Her dad owns a motel out by the highway. We've been trying to get there for days now.”
“Things are pretty bad over on that side of town. There's a blockade about halfway through. A ways off from that, the radios play. Keeps the zeds out of town.”
“Radios?”
“Yeah Mike and his deputies put radios just outside of town. I've never seen it. But they say it works pretty good. The noise draws them away from here. They tell me they had the same set up over here. That's where all the bodies came from.”
Al was smiling. “That's a hell of an idea. Draw 'em in and slaughter them when you get ready.”
“I heard it works pretty good”
“What about the rest of you guys? Any of you from around here?”
“I am. Name's Luke. I've lived in Boonville my whole life. The rest of these guys are new in town.”
Luke looked to be well past seventy years old. Little too old to be out on guard duty in my opinion. Maybe they had him out here because things were so quiet on this side of town.
“Can the rest of our people get out of the trucks?”
“Yeah, I think it would be alright.” Luke said. “Tell the others they can come on down.” He shouted.
Gina, Cindy, and Rick joined us and we all went over to the tractor trailer that was blocking the access to the road crossing the bridge. We spent the next few minutes discussing how things had been out on the road. We compared war stories while waiting for the Chief to get there to give us the okay to cross through town. I was starting to get impatient. To be so close to our destination, waiting on the man who would tell us it was alright to finish. A woman came around the cab of the truck.
“He's on his way.” she said. “Mike wants you to have a look in the back of the U-Haul.”
One of the men started over to the truck. Al followed him.
“Hey friend, what do you think you're doin'?”
“I'm gonna look in the back of your truck.”
“Let me open it for you.”
He turned back to Al and raised his rifle. “I don't need your help, friend.”
I held my hand up to the girls and Rick telling them to stay where they were. Then started toward Al and the man that was now holding Al at gunpoint.
“You need to hold it right there mister. Take your hand off the pistol.”
I didn't even realize that I had my hand on the gun. But I did. I took my hand off the pistol and looked back at the others. Rick and the girls were now being held at gunpoint. Behind me I heard Al say something to the man pointing the gun at him but couldn't make out what was being said. Whatever it was must have pissed the guy off because he moved towards Al and lifted the rifle and came down with the barrel to try and hit Al in the head. That was a huge mistake and I could see it from where I stood. As the barrel came down, Al blocked it from striking him, letting it slide down his arm, grabbed the rifle with the same hand, and struck the man with the palm of his other hand in the chest. The man now lay sprawled on the ground with Al standing over him holding the rifle.
“Let me help you up friend.” Al said to the man.
“I don't need your help.”
“Al, look at the girls.” I said.
Rick, Gina, and Cindy were standing against the trailer. The remaining eleven guards had them lined up with their guns pointed at them.
“There's no need for that. Don't point those guns at them. You c
an look in the truck.” He said.
“You're damn right we can look in the back of that truck. Jeb, get up off the ground.”
“I guess you're the Chief.” I said to the man coming from behind the truck. The Chief was a large man. He had to have been at least six feet six inches tall. If I had to guess, I would have said he weighed at least two hundred and sixty pounds. I'm six two and weigh around two hundred pounds. I felt small in comparison.
“You have me at a disadvantage. Your name is?”
“My name is Steve. My friend over there is Al, and the three your men are holding at gunpoint are Gina, Rick, and Cindy.
“Why don't we start out with you giving Jeb back his rifle. I heard things were under control here. Somebody tell me what happened. Boys, lower the rifles.”
“Your boy Jeb decided he was going to be the tough guy and tried to hit me with his rifle. Didn't go like you planned. Did it Jeb?” Al emptied the Winchester 30.30. and handed it back to Jeb.
Jeb grabbed the rifle from Al. His face was beet red. A combination of anger and embarrassment I assumed. “He tried to stop me from looking in the truck Chief. I was just...”
The Chief cut Jeb off mid-sentence. “That's enough Jeb. I know what you were trying to do. Sorry folks. We don't normally do things like that. These men aren't fully trained. They know better than to treat good folks like that. I'm sure Jeb wants to apologize. Don't you Jeb?”
“Sorry mister.”
From the look on Jeb's face I could tell his apology wasn't exactly from the heart. Hopefully this would be the end of it, but I got the feeling Al's troubles with Jeb were far from over. Chief Mike went with Al and me to the back of the U-Haul and we raised the gate for him.
“You folks are well supplied. Where did you get all this?”
“Some of it came from the store I worked at before everything went to shit. The rest Al and I had already.”
“You two a couple of survivalists?”
“You could say I'm a true believer in the Boy Scout motto 'be prepared.' I had a fall out shelter at home. It was well stocked. Steve has a son in the Army. He works with the NSA. Through him, Steve was able to get wind of what was coming and he got himself ready. We decided to pool our resources. When the shit hit the fan, we got the hell out of town. Right now we're looking for a safe place to stay.”
Dead Life (Book 3) Page 13
