V Plague (Book 17): Abaddon

by Patton, Dirk

  For a moment you could have heard a pin drop inside the truck. I’m sure I was blushing as I tried to come up with an answer that didn’t explain what I’d really meant. Then Rachel snorted as she tried to suppress a laugh that eventually came out as a loud guffaw.

  “What?” Mavis asked, looking between us then up at Lucas.

  “He’s talking about a mythical beast, honey,” Rachel sputtered in laughter. “Something that doesn’t exist.”

  I stared at Rachel with my mouth hanging open. On the one hand, I was glad to see her laughing. On the other, I was thinking about strapping her ass to the hood and letting her ride the rest of the way in the rain.

  “Figured that was the truth,” Lucas said around a derisive laugh.

  “Okay, chuckles,” I said to him, ignoring the puzzled expression on Mavis’s face. “If I head out into the desert, does this wash shallow out and spread so we can cross it?”

  “Don’t know, but probably,” he said, still chuckling. “Follow it downstream for a bit. That whole area turns into one massive floodplain when this happens. Well, not sure this has ever happened, but you get my meaning.”

  “How deep does it get?” I asked, cranking the wheel to follow the torrent of water.

  “Not sure,” he said as we began bouncing across the desert. “But flying over you can see huge flocks of water birds and they’re just standin’ in it, waiting for something to come along. Can’t be that deep.”

  I nodded in agreement, driving slow and keeping an eye on the wash we were now paralleling.

  “You’re talking about peckers!” Mavis suddenly cried with the enthusiasm only a child who’s cracked the code of an adult conversation can muster.

  “No, we weren’t,” I said quickly, but poorly suppressed laughs from Rachel and Lucas gave me away.

  “Jeez,” she said. “It’s not like I don’t know what one is. I’ve seen plenty.”

  That silenced everyone instantly and Mavis looked around like she’d said something wrong. Shoving Dog onto the floor, Rachel gathered her in and held her close, speaking in soft mumbles.

  I didn’t want to know. Between her time in an orphanage and then living on the streets of Sydney, there were very likely things that Mavis had endured that no child should ever have to even be aware of. The thought of someone having harmed her made me clench my jaw so hard the muscles ached.

  After several minutes of conversation, Mavis gave Rachel a hug before tugging on Dog until his front legs were in her lap. Rachel caught my eye and shook her head. I frowned and shrugged, not sure if that was good news or bad. She rolled her eyes, then surreptitiously gave me a thumbs up where Mavis couldn’t see it. The relief I felt was palpable.

  By this time, we’d traveled a few miles and the wash was spreading out. But this had created a whole new problem now that the water was flowing across flat ground rather than raging in a channel. Infected.

  They hadn’t been able to overcome the force of the flood, but they’d survived. No longer caught in a current, they were climbing to their feet, already searching for prey. And in the clattering, pink behemoth of a truck, there was no way they could miss us.

  “Better find something to hold on to,” I said, angling us toward the south and steering directly for a rapidly forming group of females.

  59

  The storm didn’t subside as we continued to push our way south, nor did it slack off for even a moment. The rain was relentless as was the onslaught of lightning. Wind forced water in around every seam and crack in the tarps I’d stretched over the truck, keeping everyone soaked.

  Not surprisingly, there was a leak directly over the back of my neck. A near steady stream dripped onto me, running into my shirt, following my spine down to soak my pants and pool in the crack of my ass. I tried shifting to either side, but the fucking thing always managed to find me.

  Dog had finally had enough of the incessant thunder and wormed his way behind Rachel’s legs with his eyes hidden behind Mavis’s. Guess he figured if he couldn’t see anything, then whatever was making the horrible sounds that assaulted his ears couldn’t find him. Didn’t blame him. Between the weather, sitting in a pool of cold water and the infected, I would have been happy to crawl into a safe, warm place too.

  We were driving across what Lucas had told me was the Nullarbor Plain. That info didn’t do me a damn bit of good as it could have been named the Purple Unicorn Popcorn Forest for all I cared. But, he had been right about the runoff spreading out in a thin layer over the terrain. For two hours we’d been driving in hub deep flood water, which wasn’t improving my mood.

  The thing about moving across an area that’s flooded is you can only see the surface of the water. Until you roll into a hole or bounce over a rock, you don’t know it’s even there. Everything up top seems so smooth, then the wheel is ripped out of your hands by an unseen obstacle.

  This had happened several times, pissing me off and scaring the hell out of all my passengers. A couple of times I’d had to reverse out of an area where the water suddenly deepened to the height of the tires. These were what would seem to be innocuous shallow depression when it was dry, but the storm had turned them into small lakes and with no idea how deep they really were, I wasn’t going to risk the truck.

  So, we might have been in motion for two hours, but I didn’t think we’d managed to cover more than thirty kilometers. Everyone was miserable, little John was wailing at the top of his lungs, and frankly I wasn’t sure which way was which. Pulling to a stop, I twisted around in the seat to talk to Lucas.

  The movement squished water out of the seat of my pants and sent it running down my legs to pool inside my boots. I took a deep breath through gritted teeth to keep from letting lose with a string of invective. Mavis knew enough colorful language already, and soon there would be a new little addition and I didn’t really want my child’s first word to be motherfucker.

  “What’s up?” Lucas asked.

  “Hate to admit it, but I’m lost.”

  I spoke in a low voice intended to keep our conversation private. There was no point in worrying everyone. At least not yet.

  Lucas’s eyes opened slightly in surprise, then he slowly looked around. In every direction there was nothing to see other than the water. Either it covered the ground, or it was falling from the sky. There were no terrain features, such as hills or mountains visible through the storm. Overhead was a solid layer of steel gray clouds. It was impossible to even guess where the sun was.

  “Bloody hell,” he muttered.

  “Yeah, no shit. Ideas?”

  “Got a compass?”

  “If I had a compass, you really think I’d be talking to your soggy ass?”

  “Well... fuck me,” he breathed.

  “Not my type, sweetie,” I said. “Got any helpful suggestions?”

  “You’re in a foul fucking mood,” he said, meeting my eyes with a hard stare.

  After a few moments I looked away and shook my head. He’d communicated everything that needed to be said with only that look.

  “Sorry,” I mumbled. “But seriously, I’m not sure which way to go. Even the water doesn’t know which way is which.”

  When we’d left the Stuart, everything had been flowing to the west, flooding the plain we were sitting on. But as we moved farther out into the flatlands, it was no longer being pushed in one direction. The storm’s winds were swirling and one moment the surface was moving to the left, then the right, then a new gust would come along and push it directly at us.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Rachel had squirmed around and leaned over Mavis.

  “They’re lost,” Mavis said.

  We all looked down at her as she tilted her head back.

  “We’re not lost,” I said defensively. “We’re just not sure the best route to take.”

  “You’re lost,” she said with certainty.

  “Okay, maybe,” I said.

  I turned back to look at Lucas, hoping he’d had a b
right idea while Mavis was distracting me.

  “We need to go south. Right?” she asked.

  I started to shush her so the grownups could talk, then thought different. She deserved better than that.

  “Yeah,” I said.

  “That way.”

  Mavis pointed to the left. I looked at her with a frown, then checked the direction she was indicating. It looked exactly the same as any other. Rain and floodwaters.

  “How do you know?” Rachel asked before I could.

  “Dunno,” Mavis said with a shrug. “I just do.”

  I stared at her a long moment before sharing a look with Rachel and Lucas.

  “She might be right,” Lucas said.

  I struggled for something to say that wouldn’t offend Mavis. He saw my problem.

  “Look,” he said. “She’s an aboriginal. I’m telling you, mate, they know things we don’t.”

  “You don’t have to convince me of that,” I said, remembering the whole seeing my soul thing that had completely creeped me out. “Okay, Mavis. You’re our compass.”

  Truth be told, I was having a really hard time accepting that Mavis just knew which direction was south. But if I were to dismiss her and do things my way, all I’d be doing was making a guess. A guess that only had a twenty-five percent chance of being right. Or seventy-five of being wrong.

  Mentally shrugging, I cranked the wheel to the left and started us moving in what I hoped was the right direction. Within a quarter of a mile I had to stop and reverse when we drove into another depression where the water was deeper.

  “Should we try the highway again?” Rachel asked, shouting to be heard over the roar of the engine and rain pounding on the tarp above our heads. “We aren’t making any progress, and if we’re still out here when it gets dark it’s going to be ten times worse.”

  I glanced at her, nodding. She’d voiced what I had been thinking.

  “Lucas? Think the highway is going to be passable?”

  “Your guess is as good as mine,” he called back. “All depends on how heavy the rain to the northeast is. But Rachel’s right, mate. This is for shit.”

  Nodding to myself, I redirected us to the west.

  60

  It took most of an hour to find the highway. Several detours around deeper water, then avoiding a couple of locations where channels with swiftly running water were being carved into the desert floor. Bouncing onto pavement, I breathed a sigh of relief as I was able to push our speed high enough to actually begin making progress.

  “So how did you know which way was south? Really?” I asked Mavis.

  She shrugged her small shoulders.

  “I really don’t know how. I just knew. Can’t explain it.”

  I didn’t ask her anything further. There was no point. Besides, I needed to be focused on my driving. There were frequent dips in the road where water was running and with the horrible visibility due to the rag wrapped windshield wipers, they had a way of suddenly appearing dead ahead. Fortunately, none of them were as bad as the impassible wash we’d encountered that had sent us wandering around off road.

  While there wasn’t a risk of being washed away by the water running in them, it could have been bad to hit one at speed. The truck wasn’t exactly the most stable of vehicles to begin with, tending to drift all over the place at any speed above thirty. I didn’t want to add suddenly driving into a foot of running water to the mix. That’s a great way to lose control of a top-heavy vehicle. But overall, we made steady progress.

  Six hours later, I leaned forward to peer through the rain at a small cluster of what had once been civilization. We were a few miles north of the Stuart on a small road that Lucas had pointed out.

  “Keep going,” he said. “I’m guessing they’re planning on landing at the main test facility.”

  “The what?” I asked, surprised.

  “Lots of aerospace testing here,” he said. “Defense stuff, too.”

  “But there’s more than one airfield?”

  “Gotta start somewhere,” he said, shrugging.

  Just fucking great. Drive this far through the storm and we weren’t even sure which airfield we were supposed to go to.

  “How many other fields?”

  “Not really sure,” Lucas said. “At least a couple. Fuckin’ place is huge. Something like a hundred and twenty square K.”

  “Seriously?” I asked in surprise. “That’s like fifty thousand square miles! They could be waiting anywhere!”

  Lucas didn’t have an answer to that and there was no point in continuing to bitch and worry. They’d either be there, or they wouldn’t. The problem was going to be if they weren’t. Would that mean they were at one of the other fields or that they weren’t coming at all? Fuck.

  A few miles later I slowed to a stop when we reached a squat shack guarding the entrance to a sprawling airfield. Retractable arms controlled access in and out of the facility, but there was no guard and no power to operate them. As we sat there idling, a brilliant flash of lightning struck a water tower painted in a red and white checkerboard.

  It exploded from the incalculable power of the electricity and I was momentarily deafened by the blast of thunder that rattled the truck’s windshield. When I could hear again, little John and another of Lucas’s kids were crying in fright. He and Ziggy were trying to comfort them, but like the rest of us they were at their wit’s end.

  Hoping we were a less likely target for a bolt of lightning if we were moving, I let the clutch out and crashed the gate. The heavy bumper smashed it aside as if it were made of paper.

  Soon I was driving parallel to what appeared to be a very wide and long runway. Passing a series of hangars, I jammed on the brakes and cut the wheel when I saw an open door. Rolling inside, the sudden absence of the rain drumming on the tarp over my head was a physical relief after all the hours I’d been driving.

  Pulling to a stop, I left the engine idling, called for everyone to stay put and hopped down with my rifle up and ready. The hangar was large, built to accommodate several small aircraft or one extremely big one. It took me a few minutes to check all the corners and dark areas, clear the attached office spaces and machine shop and even a couple of restrooms.

  Returning to the truck, I reached in and shut the engine off. The roar of the rain on the high metal roof was so intense the volume of noise didn’t drop off. Slowly, everyone began to climb down, gratefully stretching backs and legs. All of us were soaked to the skin. Those with hair had a steady drip going onto their faces and looked even more miserable than I felt.

  “What now?” Rachel asked, tagging along as I walked to the open door.

  We stood there for a minute, staring out at the rain. I scanned up and down the runway but didn’t see anything. No aircraft and thankfully, no infected.

  “Guess we wait,” I said.

  “How long? I heard your conversation with Lucas. How long do we wait before going to check another field?”

  “Don’t know,” I said. “I’m debating calling Jessica’s CO again to see if I can find out anything. But I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

  “What if they’re already here, just sheltering from the storm?”

  I looked where Rachel was pointing. Another hangar, about four hundred yards away. Someone had just emerged from a man-door set into the giant rolling doors and was swiftly walking in our direction. Raising my rifle, I peered through the driving rain at a slight figure wearing a poncho with the hood up.

  “Get everyone back into the truck,” I said without taking my eyes off the approaching stranger. “And tell Lucas.”

  Rachel hesitated a beat, then did as I asked. A few seconds later, Lucas appeared at my side, rifle in hand.

  “How fit are you?” I asked, still focused on the approaching figure.

  “If we have to fight, I’m good,” he said.

  “There’s a door in back. I secured it when I was clearing the place. Go check our six.”

  Lucas disappe
ared without a word. That’s the joy of working with someone who knows what they’re doing. You don’t have to explain things in detail.

  The figure was striding fast, finally coming inside a hundred yards. I raised the rifle again but between the rain, cloudy weather and shadow from the hood, I couldn’t see his face.

  Taking a few steps back, I left about twenty yards open between me and the threshold. The truck was ten yards behind me. Rachel and Dog moved to my side. He was alert, though I didn’t think there was any way he could smell the stranger in the driving rain. Rachel brought her weapon up and we waited.

  The figure paused at the opening, staying in the rain just outside. He was peering in, but we were in shadow and invisible to him. After a few moments, he came forward into the hangar.

  “Hello?”

  A woman’s voice. Not what I’d expected.

  “Best stay where you are and keep your hands visible,” I called, rifle steady on her head.

  Her hands came up slowly to the hood, pushing it back. It took a second to register, then another for me to understand why I was looking at Martinez’ face in my scope. Letting the rifle drop on its sling, I took one slow step before rushing forward.

  Wrapping her in my arms, I lifted Martinez off the floor and held her as if she were a child. She had a tight hold on my neck and for an instant I swear I heard a sob.

  Finally setting her down, I moved her to arm’s length for an examination without releasing my hold. She smiled at me and I could see the moisture in her eyes.

  “Hi, sir.”

  Fast footsteps came from behind and Rachel shoved between us, nearly strangling Martinez in a hug. Dog was right behind her, shoving his head against Martinez as he danced around the two women. They held each other tightly and I could hear Rachel crying.

  “Okay,” I finally said, stepping in and gently prying them apart.

  Rachel stepped back, wiping away tears as Martinez sank to a knee and ruffled Dog’s ears.

  “Who’s she?”

  I looked down, not realizing Mavis was standing next to me.