“Val!” I said, “c’mon! Do we have to get up at the butt crack of dawn all the time?”
“It’s ten a.m., Dean. Get up.”
I swallowed hard, not believing how long I’d slept.
Val handed me two granola bars, a can of diet Crush, a washcloth, a towel, and a large bowl of cold water. “Up and at ‘em,” she said. “Eat these, get cleaned up and dressed, and let’s go.”
Suddenly, a rank odor assaulted my nostrils, and I instinctively took a whiff under my armpits to make sure it wasn’t me. “What is that?” I asked her, wrinkling up my nose.
“The dead raccoon is stinking to high heaven.”
“Huh? You brought that thing in the apartment to spend the night with us?”
“No way! Didn’t you ever read Pet Sematary? I wouldn’t be able to sleep thinking that raccoon might reanimate and come back to life. But I did bring it up here this morning.”
“Why?”
“Because some teenagers were getting ready to cremate it right before my very eyes with some kerosene and a lighter. Luckily, I stopped them just in time.”
“Good. Because the lab needs a specimen. I’ll be out in a minute.”
“Just hurry, sleepyhead,” she said, then turned to leave.
I cleaned up and got dressed, then ate my breakfast, although the nasty stench of the rotting animal made everything taste horrible. But Sparkles was more than willing to eat the rest of my granola bar which told me that she must be starving. I searched the cabinets and found a small can of Vienna sausages that I fed her. I made sure my gun was fully loaded, and slung my rifle strap over my shoulder.
When I finally made it out to the Land Rover, a team of four guys introduced themselves, all of them dressed in dark clothing and black boots, like a troupe of cat burglars.
Val and I jumped in the back, and off we went to go find Jonathon.
Along the way, Val chatted with the women.
One complained about her current hardships, as if life was peachy for everyone but her.
Another advised, “When life gives you lemons, you gotta make lemonade.”
“That’s a little cliché, don’t you think?” Val chimed in. “I think I need something stronger…like a margarita.”
The women laughed, and I chuckled along with them.
We finally pulled into the driveway, and a group of people immediately aimed their weapons at us. I couldn’t blame them, considering they didn’t know us, and we were living in a day and age when trust was a rare commodity. I wished we’d brought Steven and Rachel along, but Max had assigned them to another mission.
“We come in peace,” Val shouted. “We’re looking for Charlie.”
“He’ll vouch for us,” I said, then breathed a sigh of relief when they lowered their weapons.
One of the armed female guards ran inside, and we hoped she was going to get the scientist for us. Meanwhile, the other three armed guards said they’d cover our backs and act as lookouts while we talked to Charlie.
I glanced at Val. “I hope he talks to us this time.”
Val smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll disarm him with my feminine charm.”
“Wow. We’re in real trouble then,” I joked.
“Hey!”
“We shoulda told Claire we were coming here,” I said.
“She was still sleeping when we left. She needs her rest and a little alone time.”
“I know, but she wanted to talk to Charlie herself. She’s gonna be furious—almost as furious as I was when you two took off without me.”
“Listen, I’ll deal with it,” Val said. “It’s just not good for her to be out here right now. Heck, I’m not even convinced you oughtta be.”
“I’m fine,” I said, stepping out of the vehicle.
“No you’re not. You’re just…tough and stubborn. You’ve got a little too much of your brother and me in you. Inside, I know your heart is aching.”
“No offense, Dr. Phil, but I don’t see a couch anywhere, and this isn’t the time to talk about our feelings. It isn’t exactly a Hallmark occasion, ya know?”
She playfully slugged me. “C’mon, you little punk. Let’s go,” she said, walking up the sidewalk. “Just know that if you need someone to talk to, I’m here.”
“Thanks,” I said. “But I’m not really into talking about feelings.”
“You’re so much like your brother,” she said.
Charlie opened the door and hugged me right away. “Dean! The hero who saved my life! It’s so good to see you.” He looked around. “Hey, where’s my other hero?”
“She overslept and I didn’t want to wake her up,” I said. “And it wasn’t just us that helped get you out of that house. It was an entire team of brave and dedicated people all working together.”
“For the most part,” Val muttered, referring to the incident where they didn’t work so well together when they left Claire and I behind.
“Of course it was a team effort. And I thank each and every one of you. Tell Claire I said hello and that I’d love to see her.”
“We will,” Val said.
I peered at Charlie. “You look…a lot better.”
“Yeah, I was pretty shaken up before, but I’m better now.” He hugged Val. “It’s good to see you. How are Nick and Lucas?”
“They’re great,” she said. “I guess we kinda lost track of each other when that gang, Larry, and Sam attacked.”
“Yeah, that was quite the epic battle, huh?” Charlie said. “We killed all the zombies and fixed most of the damage.”
“I saw the repairs when I stopped by the lab before, but no one would answer the door,” I said.
“That’s because they’ve all moved out. Since the city seems safer now, they’re living in houses there. Can’t say I blame them. A boarded-up lab isn’t exactly home sweet home for anybody. The second we figured out that large sections of Fairport are immune from zombies, we were just ecstatic and took full advantage. I even ventured outside the safe zones to go tell my friends and family, but with my bad luck, of course I got trapped by that herd. It’s only because of you and Claire that I made it out alive, Dean. I can never thank you enough.”
“I didn’t want anything to happen to you, Charlie. You were so nice to Claire and Val when they were in jail.”
Charlie smiled. “Well, they were in the slammer, but it wasn’t like they were really convicted criminals or anything. I figured we may as well make ‘em as comfortable as possible.”
“Don’t be so humble,” Val said. “You went out of your way and risked a lot for us, and I owe you a great deal of gratitude. So…do you live here now?”
“No. I’m just staying for a few days to help my friends get settled, and then I’ll head back to my house. But enough about me. What did you need to talk to me about?”
“We need to know what really happened to Jackie,” I stated flatly, wincing a bit from the painful memory.
He pondered for a moment before answering, “Dean, she was calling every zombie around. We had to save our lab and our people. That had to come first. As you well know, it’s all about survival out here.”
“You could’ve given us the opportunity to take her and leave,” I said.
He looked away. “It was just so hectic, so crazy. We had to put her down to stop the madness. It was the only way.”
“Who did it? Who put her down?” I demanded. When he didn’t answer, I angrily shoved him, nearly knocking him off his feet.
“Dean!” Val said, grabbing my arm.
I jerked my arm out of her grip and shot the scientist a hard look. “Who, Charlie!? Tell me who killed her!”
He shrugged uncomfortably.
“Charlie,” I said, “spit it out. Don’t make me make you talk, because I will!” I threatened, even though I didn’t really know what the threat meant myself.
Val pulled me back. “Please excuse Dean,” she said. “Our family has an issue with anger management. We all have fiery tempers and sharp tongu
es.”
“It was…Jonathon,” Charlie said.
My jaw dropped open, almost to my knees. “What? But that’s not possible.”
“He was Jackie’s friend,” Val said, wide-eyed and as shocked as I was.
The betrayal stung, and I was instantly terrified of telling Claire. We trusted Jonathon, and he was Steven’s father. I sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly as I gathered my thoughts.
“I assure you she didn’t suffer, and we buried her right away in the local cemetery nearby,” Charlie added. “The women insisted on a funeral, out of respect, so we held one.”
I just stared at him, dumbfounded. I couldn’t move, breathe, or speak, and my legs began to feel like they were made of spaghetti. Val hugged me as I fought to keep it together.
“We had no other choice, Dean,” Charlie reiterated. “I’m sorry. If there had been any other way—”
“There’s always another way,” I choked out.
“They were gonna put her down anyway. They’d taken a vote the night before and decided she was too dangerous to keep around. Some even wanted to dissect her to see how the virus was moving through her body.”
I lunged at Charlie, wanting to rip his heart out, but Val held me back.
“Attacking him isn’t gonna change anything,” she said.
“Why did you bury her then? If they wanted to cut her open like some kind of lab rat, why is she six feet under!?”
“The women begged the other scientists to skip the autopsy, and they laid her to rest.”
“And how do we know some lunatic Dr. Frankenstein isn’t out there digging her up, trying to do an experiment?” I asked.
“They won’t. They promised Jonathon. They saw how hard it was on him when he had to shoot Jackie.”
“Your story doesn’t make sense,” Val said. “There’s no way scientists would waste an opportunity like that. Respect or not, they’d already voted on the autopsy. They’d dig her up in heartbeat in the name of science, in the name of trying to save the human race.”
Charlie shook his head. “Nope. The women put up too much of a fight. She was shot, and they buried her out of respect for Jackie and the women’s wishes.”
“Fine. Prove it then. I want her exhumed,” I said.
Charlie shot me a look, as if I was the most morbid person he’d ever met. “What? Why?”
“For one thing, it’s the only way I’m gonna believe she’s still buried. For another, I want to put her to rest where they’ll never find her,” I answered.
“Okay. She’s at Pleasantville Cemetery, south of Vine Street. Trouble is, it’s outside the confines of our safety zones.”
“Of course,” I said, realizing that nothing was ever going to be simple or easy again.
Val cleared her throat and nodded toward the stinking sack next to her feet. “I’m afraid we have bad news,” she said, lifting up the bag. “In this sack is a dead raccoon. We believe it is…infected. If your scientists are so dead set on an autopsy, it’s all yours.”
“Oh. I wondered what that smell was,” Charlie said, “but it’s not possible. Animals are immune.”
“This one wasn’t,” Val said.
“There’s no way it could—”
I met his gaze and cut him off. “It had white eyes, staggered when it walked, and tried to take a bite out of Val’s leg.”
A serious look came over his face. “If the virus has mutated again and can infect animals, we’re all in big trouble.”
“Is there anything we can do?” Val asked.
“Let’s head to the lab and get some tests underway.”
I nodded.
He continued, “I’ll meet you guys over there.”
“Do you want the sack,” I asked, “or do you want us to take it over?”
“I’d like to take a quick look, if you don’t mind.”
“It’s all yours,” Val said, squeezing her nose shut with her fingers. “You might wanna keep it on the down-low, though, so the others don’t think you brought home road-kill for supper.”
He laughed. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
“We’ll head over,” I said.
“I’ll be right behind you.”
“Ready?” my driver asked as he walked over to me.
I heaved a sigh. “As ready as I’m gonna get, but how about a pit-stop first?”
The man looked at me. “I heard some of what you guys said, and the answer is no. I’ve got a Land Rover, not a hearse. I’m not about to take you out to the danger zone to dig up your dead girlfriend.”
Anger consumed me, and I threw a punch, but he blocked it and shoved me backward.
He shot Val a look. “You better control your little brother, lady. He’s losing it, big time. If you can’t keep a handle on him, I will!”
Val’s eyebrows flew up in response to the threat, and in one quick move, she threw a sucker-punch that sent the guy hurtling to the ground.
His buddies found it very amusing and laughed their butts off, and someone felt the urge to shout, “Wuss!” along with a few other choice names.
The man gasped for air, then looked up at Val. “What was that for?” he asked in a raspy whisper.
“My brother lost someone dear to him. Try to be a little more sensitive, you Neanderthal! Dean just wants to give her a final resting place where she won’t be dug up by some mad scientist. How would you feel if your mother, your sister, or your wife was going to be dissected and autopsied? How would you feel if they cut into their bodies and removed their organs to study them? Do you wanna see them floating around in jars of formaldehyde? No! Now, flap your sarcastic lips again and see what happens,” she dared, glancing harshly at him and his buddies. “Give us a minute, would ya?”
Wanting none of the wrath they’d just seen Val unleash on their pal, they nodded and dispersed.
Val pulled me aside. “Calm down. He’s just an idiot.”
“I just…I owe it to Jackie to make sure no one is going to mess with her, even now.”
“I know, Dean, but now really isn’t the time. We need to really prepare for something like that, and it would be best to wait till the herd passes, okay?”
I nodded. “You’re right. I guess it can wait a few days.”
“And don’t even think of trying to sneak out there with your little partner-in-crime,” she warned.
I arched a brow.
“You know I’m talking about Claire.”
Without making any promises, I hopped back into the Land Rover.
The guy Val had nailed and humiliated actually apologized to us, which was pretty shocking, considering the size of his ego; I was actually surprised he hadn’t just taken off without us. Then again, Max was the man-in-charge, and he’d given specific orders that we were to be accompanied and kept safe. The men were loyal to Max, and he would not have been pleased if they’d failed to return with us.
I began to wonder what the others really thought about us. First, Claire had kneed a poor guy in the groin and left him and his buddy, and now, Val had sucker-punched someone else. The word of our violent tendencies would surely spread like wildfire, and everyone would know that our hotheaded girls were a force to be reckoned with. Truth be told, I couldn’t have been prouder. I was just glad they were on my side.
Chapter 15
We parked on the street in front of the lab. The goons who were accompanying us checked the area out first. Much to my surprise and everyone’s relief, Val didn’t fight them and insist on going with them like she always did. She hated being underestimated, but after that sucker-punch she’d landed on the driver, she’d proven she could hold her own; thus, she had no problem obeying when they asked us to stay in the truck, and there was no use rocking the boat any farther.
Once they deemed it safe for us to come out, we walked to the front door and pounded, just in case somebody was inside.
“It’s me, Dean!” I yelled.
There was no answer.
> I didn’t like being there. It brought back all those horrible memories of the experiments poor Jackie and Val were subjected to. I was eager to get in, get it over with, and get out.
Finally, Charlie stepped up and used his key to open the door.
There was one other scientist in the facility, but other than him, the place was deserted. Most of the lab workers had gone to safe houses, and I was happy they’d been given that opportunity, because the lab was really an eerie place, not homey at all.
We headed upstairs to the lab, and Charlie asked us dozens of questions and wrote everything down. He collected fur, tissue, and blood samples from the smelly animal corpse. After pulling on gloves that went up to his elbows, he used a syringe to pull some yellowish fluid from the animal’s spine and dropped a sample on a slide. He squinted as he examined it under his microscope.
“Well?” Val asked impatiently. Clearly, she wanted out of there as badly as I did.
“Hmm. Well, it’s definitely a strain of the virus.”
“I knew it!” I said.
“But it doesn’t make sense. How did this animal contract the virus?” he asked, as if we were going to be able to answer him. “We’ll have to run more tests. It’ll take me about a week, but I’ll also get a second and third opinion on everything I find.”
As my sister and the scientist discussed all sorts of theories and hypotheses and medical mysteries, speaking in jargon I couldn’t possibly interpret, I excused myself from the overwhelming conversation and stench and walked out to the lobby to wait. A few minutes later, I heard a ball bouncing and looked up. “Hey, little guy!” I said to Ben.
“Hi, Dean.”
“Did you come to work with your daddy today?”
“Yep. He’s upstairs. He must be pretty busy, ‘cause when I knocked on the door earlier, nobody answered.”
“Well, I’m glad I got to see you again,” I said. “I’ve missed you, kiddo.”
He hugged me. “Me too. We moved.”
“I heard. Do you like your new house?”
“I love it! I can even play outside without the slimy monsters eating me!”
“That’s…wonderful,” I said sadly, angry that children were having to grow up in such a world.
“Do you still live here?” little Ben asked.
The Zombie Chronicles - Book 6 - Revelation (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) Page 9
