Sara aimed at her next target and was about to pull the trigger when the zombie and several around it erupted in a bloody spray as the Blackhawk glided overhead. Jameson was deadly with the heavy machine gun, cutting a wide path through the dead with each pass.
"They are breaking through the fence out back," Munroe yelled firing at the zombies as they entered the compound. "… going to need some help back here!"
Turning her attention away from the helicopter assault Sara moved back to help Munroe, and what she saw sent chills down her spine. The dead had managed to open up a large hole in the fence and were spilling through the void at an alarming rate. "Shit, they are inside the fence and heading this way," she yelled.
Jameson looked up from the field of torn up bodies below and back at the house gasping when he saw the breach in the fence, realizing that he had forgotten to charge the perimeter fence after he let Carla inside. "Major, the house… The dead have gotten through the back fence."
Spinning the Blackhawk around she changed course for the rear of the house hoping to get there before the zombies made it inside. Jameson had already begun firing at the dead trying to plug the hole with bodies before turning his attention to the dead in the courtyard.
"They are going after the breach. Concentrate your fire on the ones inside," Sara yelled out as she took aim on the closest of the slow moving creatures. She brought the crosshairs of the scope onto the nearest zombie and took in a deep breath. The walker was a female and could not be more than twelve years old from the look of it. Blood slowly oozed from a gaping wound on the right side of her torso, dropping to the ground, leaving a trail as she lumbered toward the back of the house.
"Are you planning on shooting it?" Carla asked staring at Sara.
"So young," she whispered back. "Why did they have to attack her?"
Carla raised her rifle and pulled the trigger taking off the entire upper portion of the young girl's head. "That was the only thing we could do for her. Now she has hopefully gone to a better place."
Closing her eyes Sara tried to get the image of the girl out of her head. "You are right; it had to be done." A look of determination spread across her face as she targeted the next in line and fired, continuing non-stop until she ran out of ammunition.
"Good shooting," Carla said handing her a box of ammo. "Now let's get rid of the rest of the damn things."
The trio continued their assault from the observation deck while the Blackhawk hovered overhead. The battle lasted for an hour as they burned through the majority of the ammunition they had in the storage locker. Slamming another magazine into her rifle Sara looked around the fence line ready to take on more of the dead but breathed a sigh of relief seeing only a few slow moving walkers remaining.
The Blackhawk slowly descended to the ground, landing softly on its previous spot. Jameson hopped out and sprinted toward the rear fence wanting to examine the breach and see if it was possible to repair. Once the chopper powered down, Laura grabbed her weapon and quickly joined him.
"Keep watch. I am heading out back to see what the damage is," Sara announced as she quickly made her way down from the third floor observation deck.
CHAPTER 23 – BREACH
Running up to Jameson Sara stopped next to him. They both stared in awe at the massive pile of rotting bodies filling the hole in the fence. "Wow," was all she could say when she saw the heavy steel posts of the fence bent over, failing under the weight of the throng of dead that had descended upon the compound.
"Yeah, wow is right. I have no idea how we are going to fix that," Jameson said to her. "I don't even know if the sheriff has the materials here to repair a hole that big."
Laura noticed motion come from the pile. One of the creatures was still moving, struggling to pull free and attack the trio. "Keep your eyes open. There may be more than this one still moving," she told the others as she pulled her sidearm from its holster and fired a round into the head of the zombie. Walking around the pile she discovered a few more still moving and quickly dispatched them in the same manner as the first. Looking over at the others, "There may be more underneath, but the ones on top are all completely dead, finally."
Scanning the pile of bodies Jameson wondered what they were going to do with them. They needed to remove the pile before they could repair the fence, but first they needed to gather the supplies to fix it, and the bodies were currently plugging the hole. He looked to the major, "How is the fuel situation in the Blackhawk?"
"It isn't good. We only have about fifteen minutes of flight time remaining, so fuel for it needs to be a top priority before we run into another swarm of those things."
He nodded to her knowing that she was right, but the problem was where to find the fuel they so desperately need. The airport they were at earlier was full of dead, so flying back in there would be dangerous at best, and he was unaware of another one anywhere close. "Alright, let's split up. Sara, you and Carla go search for anything that will help us fix the fence while we go and see if there is another airport in the area."
"What about Munroe?" Sara asked.
Looking up at the observation deck he saw the doctor staring back down at them. "Give him the watch, for now."
"You sure you want to trust him with a weapon up there?"
"We really don't have much of a choice. Besides, he doesn't want to be grabbed by one of those things any more than we do, so he shouldn't be a problem."
The others reluctantly agreed with Jameson and quickly went about their tasks. He and Laura headed back into the main house and began searching for any maps of the area that Hobart had gathered. "He was thorough with his preparations, so he must have one somewhere around here," he told her as the pair started rummaging through cabinets.
***
Munroe sat on the edge of the wall gazing out at the open field. Every time he saw one of the group walk out into the open he would raise his rifle and line them up for a shot but never pulled the trigger. He did not like these people, especially Jameson, and he wanted nothing more than to get away from them, but for now they were the only thing standing between him and the millions of dead roaming around the country. He watched as Laura and Jameson emerged from the house. "I'm going to keep her around, along with Sara, but the others… They all need to go," he mumbled as he brought the crosshairs of the scope up to the back of Jameson's head.
A smile crossed his face as he started to put pressure on the trigger of the high-powered rifle until he felt the cold steel of the gun press up against the side of his head.
"I would suggest you lower the rifle before I scatter your brains all over this roof," Sara whispered to him. She had seen him line them up a few times from below and worried that he was up to no good.
"Hey, missy, you can relax. I'm just killing time," he told her keeping the rifle up and on target.
"Last warning, asshole, I will shoot you if you don't lower the weapon!"
Slowly he dropped the rifle, smiling at how close he had come to shooting the young man. He used one hand to pass the weapon to Sara as he slowly turned toward her.
"Good boy, Doc, I would hate having to explain to the military why I had to shoot you," she told him as a devious grin spread across her face. "They may think they need you to find a cure for this, but I would bet that there are others that can do just as good as you, so don't screw with me. Got it?" Stepping back she waved for him to climb to his feet. "Let's head down stairs. I think your turn at the watch is over with."
The pair descended the staircase stopping at the bottom. Sara, still holding her gun, aimed at the back of Munroe. "Take a seat, Doctor," motioning toward a heavy wood chair at the far end of the room.
"Was he up to no good?" Carla asked as she walked up to Sara.
"You can say that. Could you find something we can use to secure him? I think he has lost my trust in him."
"Sure will," Carla replied. Running over to the dining room table she grabbed a role of heavy-duty tape, "Will this do?"
&n
bsp; Sara let out a small chuckle when she saw the roll of gray tape in her hand. "That should do nicely." The pair quickly secured Munroe to the chair, making sure there was no way of him getting free, just as Jameson and Laura walked back into the house.
"Well, what do we have here?" Jameson asked when he saw the doctor.
Walking over to him Sara informed him of what she had seen and how close he had come to shooting him. "I thought it prudent to make sure he was unable to cause any more problems," she explained chuckling through the entire statement.
Jameson smiled as he listened to her, but the anger inside was building. This man who they had saved from thousands of dead, who Connor had sacrificed his life for, had tried to kill him, and now he wanted to make him pay. Walking over to the Munroe he sat down in front of him and stared directly into his eyes. "So you want me dead?"
Fear surged through Munroe when he saw the intense look on the young man's face. He had no idea what to say to Jameson knowing that whatever came out of his mouth was going to anger him further, so he sat quietly choosing not to say a word.
Reaching down to his holster Jameson drew his .45 flipping the safety off as he raised it toward the doctor. "Listen, genius, we have enough problems without having to worry about you taking a shot at one of us. So let me ask you a question, and I would suggest you answer. Why should I not put a bullet in your head or feed you to those things outside the gate?"
Munroe's eyes went wide when he heard the question. What had he done? His mind raced as he tried to come up with an answer to his question. "I…I may be able to end this, s…s…so keeping me alive may be in your best interest," he mumbled. Staring into the eyes of the young man across from him he regretted his actions from earlier. Relaxing a bit he gathered himself for one final plea hoping to save his own skin. "Listen, kid, I'm sorry for what I did. The pressure is getting to all of us, and I guess it got the better of me. I assure you it won't happen again."
Jameson stared at the doctor listening to every word out of his mouth, believing little of it. "The only reason I am not going to shoot you is the outside chance that your knowledge of this outbreak can save our asses." Pausing for a moment he lowered his weapon, "I would suggest you get to work on a cure, and stay out of my way. Got it?"
"Alright, kid, I will do what I can, but I am going to need supplies and samples from some of those things."
Pointing back in the direction of the pile of dead, "There are your samples. As for supplies… Write up a list of what you need, and we will do our best to find it." Turning to Laura, "I found a small airport on the map that did not appear to be far from here. It is close to a small town, so maybe we can find whatever Munroe needs there after we fuel up."
She quickly agreed and started for the Blackhawk. Stopping she looked back at the group, "Let's get moving people; we are burning daylight, and I sure as hell don't want to be in a town at dark."
"Sara, I need you and Carla to stay here with Munroe and keep an eye on him," saying it loud enough for the doctor to hear. Grabbing a pad off the table he turned back to the doctor, "What do you need to do your work?" He wrote down everything that the man asked for knowing damn well that a small town out this far would have very little of what he wanted. "Alright, Doc, I am going to keep you like this until we return. I'd rather not have you roaming around without me here."
"Are you sure you want to go alone? It might be better if we all go. There is strength in numbers, you know," Sara said.
Smiling at Sara he gave her a gentle hug before planting a passionate kiss on her lips. "It's safer here for you and the others. Besides, I won't take any unneeded risks," he said with a chuckle. He knew the entire trip was a risk but one he needed to take if they were going to survive.
Hugging him tightly she whispered, "Stay safe…please; I can't bear to lose you." She released him and stepped back turning toward Munroe, "I will make sure our friend here stays out of trouble."
Looking up at Jameson, "The top five items are must haves; the rest are things that would help speed things along but are most likely going to be hard to find," he told the young man.
"I will do my best to get what you need. Listen, Doc, I trust that you will behave while I am gone. This is your last chance with us. Another slip up and I am going to feed you to those things." He stared intently at Munroe wanting the man to get the clear message that he was not joking.
"You are looking at a changed man here. I am planning to do what I can to help you from now on." He meant what he said to Jameson but could still clearly see the distrust in his expression.
Reaching out he grasped Sara's hand and started for the helicopter. "What is your take on him?" he asked her as soon as they were out of earshot.
"He seemed like he was telling you the truth, but I am still going to watch him closely."
"Good because I don't want anything to happen to any of you, so please be careful." Leaning in he gave her a kiss on the lips and then whispered in her ear, "I love you." Not waiting for a reply he turned and climbed onto the helicopter, taking a seat and buckling in, as the rotors increased speed and the Blackhawk took to the air.
Stepping back Sara watched as the helicopter gained altitude, smiling up at the young man that she had fallen so hard for, praying that he came back to her safely.
CHAPTER 24 – THE NIGHTMARE GROWS
"There it is," he told Laura pointing down at the small airport. The fuel truck was clearly visible from the air, so he quickly scanned the area around it searching for walkers before she landed. "It looks clear from here. Try and get as close as you can to the truck. I don't want to spend any more time on the ground than we have to."
Reducing the power Laura guided the military helicopter down toward the ground, aiming for a spot no more than fifty yards from the fuel truck. As they gently set down, she looked over at Jameson, "This is as close as I can get due to those power lines, so we are going to have to go get the truck."
Checking over his weapons and satisfied that they were fully loaded he hopped out the door and sprinted for the fuel truck. Crossing the distance in no time he slowed as he approached it worried that there may be a zombie inside the cab. Cautiously he walked up to the driver side and noticed a small trickle of blood coming from the bottom of the door. Taking a deep breath he reached up and quickly pulled the door open. Hopping back as the headless body toppled out of the driver seat of the truck he gasped when it hit his legs sending him falling to the ground.
Laura walked up to him, "Everything alright?" she sarcastically asked reaching down to help move the lifeless body from his legs.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied as he pulled his legs free. "Without the head, I didn't see him sitting in there."
Kneeling down next to the body Laura looked closely at the decapitated male wondering to herself what could have done this to him. The wounds on what remained of the neck made it look like something big bit the head cleanly off. "I don't like the look of this."
"What's wrong?"
"These look like teeth marks, which we know isn't really unusual at this time, but these seem to be made all at once. Look and see. The marks go evenly all the way around the neck."
Jameson leaned in to take a closer look, and what he saw sent a chill down his spine. "What could have done this to him?"
"I'm not sure, but whatever it was, it's big."
Climbing to his feet Jameson looked around the small airport searching for the source of the large bite. His breathing began to increase, along with his heart rate, as he thought about what kind of creature could do this, and he really did not want to run into it. "Come on; let's get the truck over to the chopper. I want to get moving as soon as possible," he told her climbing up into the driver seat of the fuel truck.
The pair quickly brought the truck to the helicopter and filled the tank with all they could while keeping a vigilant watch for the new creature. Once they had as much fuel as they could fit inside, Laura hopped into the pilot seat and fired up the engine while
Jameson moved the truck out of the way of the rotor blade.
Hopping down out of the truck he took one last look around as he walked back to the Blackhawk. A few yards away from the chopper he stopped when a loud roar cut through the noise from the engine stopping him in his tracks. Looking at Laura he could see that she too heard the noise and was already searching the horizon looking for the source.
A cold chill raced down her spine when she heard the noise, and her eyes darted from spot to spot as she searched for the unknown creature. The hair on her neck began to stand on end while she searched, and she did not like the feeling. Looking out at Jameson she called out to him to get inside wanting to get airborne as soon as possible. As he took his seat next to her, Laura throttled up the engine and the Blackhawk slowly took to the air.
"Did you hear that?" Jameson asked her while he continued to search the area around the airport. "Whatever it was sounded a lot different than what we have been running into."
"Oh, I heard it, which is why we got the hell out of there as fast as we did," she replied as she turned toward the small town in the distance. "It won't take us long to get to the town, so keep a close watch for whatever that was."
He did not reply to her, just kept his eyes focused on the ground below as it drifted by. The creature that made that sound, and bit the head off that man, was something that neither he nor Laura wanted to tangle with.
"See anything?" Laura asked as another cold chill shot through her.
"No, nothing so far but I'm beginning to have a bad feeling about this."
"Yeah… same here… Maybe we should rethink this supply run."
He agreed with her. This whole thing seemed wrong to him, but the need for the supplies outweighed the danger – at least to him it did. "I wish we could. We need to get what Munroe needs, so he can get started on finding a cure for this, and the sooner he does, the better."
Dead Strain Page 16
