The Slaughter - A Post Apocalyptic Thriller (ROT SERIES Book 6)

by Damon Hunter

  “Vance is going to be okay,” she said as she read the text.

  “Awesome,” Bo told her. “About last night…”

  “Don’t apologize. You didn’t do anything I didn’t want to do too. I’m just glad to see you’re still alive. Every guy I have found myself liking over the last year has died. One of them I had to kill myself.”

  “I know that feeling.”

  “I think every one of us who survived does. Otherwise we wouldn’t have made it.”

  “So, we made it because we are the kind of people who can kill the ones we love?”

  “Pretty much.”

  Bo wanted to argue, but it seemed she had a point.

  “When they let us out, what are you doing to do?” he asked.

  “I’ll decide when I get out of here.”

  “Really? No thought at all?”

  “I probably will dye my hair or something so I don’t get recognized as Annie Annihilation, but other than that I don’t want to think about getting out of here until it actually happens.”

  “Worried it won’t?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Me too. I guess I’m the same way. That and I don’t know where to go.”

  Ana crawled back into bed. “All the more reason to make today the best day we can.”

  Chapter 10

  Mess Hall - TMRT Checkpoint - Phoenix, Arizona

  Torrance decided the first move after listening to the meeting between Thompson and Riley would be to approach Barrington. While his boss liked to use his status as a General Doctor to have his meals delivered to his private quarters, Barrington, despite having the rank of General Doctor as well, ate his meals in the mess hall. The man was prompt as well, sitting down to eat the same combination of eggs and potatoes every morning at 6:30.

  This was convenient, because while Thompson liked Torrance by his side much of the day, he didn’t need him while he had his morning meal around the same time. Torrance could visit Barrington without having to explain to his boss what he was doing.

  Barrington rarely had anyone sit with him. His rank kept the grunts away. The stench of failure, connected with his inability to evacuate Oceanside and stop the rot from getting all the way to Mexico, had the officers looking for other places to sit as well. Torrance was glad to see the pattern had not changed this morning.

  Torrance liked to keep his breakfast simple, a piece of fruit and a juice which he would take to go. Today he took his two item breakfast and sat across from Barrington.

  “What do you want, Torrance?” Barrington said between bites of scrambled eggs.

  “I could be just stopping by to say hello.”

  “No, you couldn’t. It’s not in your nature.”

  “You’re right. I’m going to tell you two things. Don’t bother with follow up questions, there won’t be answers.”

  “Does it occur to you I don’t care what you have to say?”

  “No, because I’m sure you do.”

  “I’m not interested in saving my career. I failed, and if that means I’m done in the TMRT, then I’m done. As much as I don’t care about my own career, I care even less about Thompson’s. Whatever you are planning to save his status after the southeastern checkpoint fell, leave me out of it.”

  “No problem. Are you ready for the two things? I’m only saying them once.”

  Barrington put his fork down and folded his arms before saying, “Say what you came to say.”

  “Keep eating, you look like I’m going to tell you something important.”

  “Aren’t you?”

  “Yes, but it would be better if everyone else didn’t know it.”

  Barrington picked up his fork and said, “Fine, I’m hungry anyway.”

  “First thing: if you want your friends from the wrong side of the QZ to stay alive, do everything in your power to keep General Doctor Thompson from debriefing Major Vance and the others from his group. Second thing: Do everything in your power to get them to disappear as soon as they’re out of here.”

  “Disappear?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “I said no follow up questions.”

  “I’m going to need more.”

  “You aren’t going to get it,” Torrance said as he stood and left Barrington alone with his breakfast and his thoughts.

  Torrance wasn’t sure he had done any good by visiting Barrington, but it was the most he was going to do to keep the others alive. It was up to Barrington now. He wished he could tell him more, but he feared any move Barrington made would just end up with Agent Riley putting not just Barrington, but Torrance on the list of those that needed to be ‘dealt with.’

  He wanted to warn Talbot as well, but that would be trickier. Agent Riley made it clear the lab was under surveillance. Talbot had hardly left the lab and while he did go to the mess hall at times, there was no pattern to his visits. Unlike with Barrington, Torrance couldn’t make sure he happened to be there when Talbot showed up.

  Chapter 11

  Infirmary - TMRT Checkpoint - Phoenix, Arizona

  Barrington decided the best person to decipher the cryptic information Torrance had given him was Vance. The soldier was on heavy antibiotics after surgeons had to remove part of his leg where infection had set in. Vance may have been immune to the rot, but he was still susceptible to gangrene and other nasty infections.

  He was awake and alert by the time Barrington made it in to see him. The surgery unit of the TMRT Checkpoint did not have private rooms, but right now Vance was the only patient in recovery. Barrington, as a high ranking General Doctor, could tell the people working recovery to leave them alone and they would have to listen.

  “You’re my first visitor who isn’t going to check my vital signs,” Vance said as Barrington approached.

  “Don’t be too sure. I wasn’t always a bureaucrat. I did plenty of time in the field.”

  “What if I asked you nicely? I’m sick of being poked and prodded.”

  “No problem. I’m surprised Katelin isn’t here.”

  “They offered to bring her. I guess she stayed until they kicked her out, but she was asleep and frankly, she needs some rest.”

  “Just as well, I’d rather keep this conversation between us. I had a strange visit from a man named Torrance.”

  “Thompson’s flunky?”

  “I’m sure he would prefer the term ‘assistant,’ but yes. Among the many strange things about the conversation was Thompson was not there.”

  “Is that unusual?”

  “They’re never apart. Until this morning, I figured they showered together.”

  “What did he say?”

  “He was worried about you, not about your recent surgeries as much as the near future here at the checkpoint. He was vague, but he seemed to think you were in some danger. He did not say exactly what kind, or give a reason why. I don’t think it takes a genius to deduct this has to do with something that happened in the QZ.”

  “Plenty happened in the QZ.”

  “Yes. My first instinct would be a desire to keep what happened between you and Talbot under wraps, but I get the feeling this is something different.”

  Vance stayed quiet.

  “Is this a yes, something happened silence? Or a no, nothing happened silence?”

  “You don’t know?”

  “No.”

  “You mentioned a rumor that I may have helped a foreign agent.”

  “I assumed it wasn’t true. You don’t seem the type.”

  “I’m not. Let’s just say if I helped a foreign agent, it was to foil a plot to start a nuclear exchange between China and the United States.”

  “That sounds like something I heard on that idiotic Cam Carson show.”

  “In this case, he was right.”

  “Does this mean satanic martians killed Kennedy, too?”

  “No. It does mean Thompson was probably one of the men behind it, if his assistant is warning us.”

  “What hap
pened to the foreign agent?”

  “Like a lot of people, he didn’t make it.”

  “What about the other survivors? Do they know about this?”

  “Would it matter to Thompson?”

  “No.”

  “If it matters to you, Ana was there. Katelin and Bo knew what we were going to do.”

  Barrington looked at Vance’s leg. “I know what your doctors would say, but when do you think you can move?”

  “If I could move yesterday with it torn to shit, I can move today with it sewn up.”

  “Don’t, not yet anyway, but be ready. I’m going to talk to the others and see if I can figure a way out of here. Torrance suggested not talking to Thompson. I would gather this means they want to wait to have him pump you for any useful information before they kill you.”

  “No problem, I didn’t want to talk to him before anyways.”

  Chapter 12

  Katelin’s Quarters - TMRT Checkpoint - Phoenix, Arizona

  Katelin woke up to the sound of a dog barking. She put a hand to her thigh, expecting to feel one of the four guns she had strapped to her legs over the last couple of days. It was odd to feel nothing but the loose fabric of the TMRT fatigues on her leg. The firearms had been a constant companion. She felt rather naked without them. She looked for the pair of seemingly authentic katanas she had found in Corrigan’s bunker, but they had taken them from her as well.

  The dog kept barking, bringing back bad memories. Even more than that, she wished she had her guns, she wished the people she saw in her mind could be on this side of the checkpoint walls. Especially her mom, who had come so close to making it to safety.

  Hearing the dog, and knowing what it might be bringing, she didn’t think she had time to feel sorry for herself. She may have been unarmed, but there were plenty of trained men and women around who weren’t. If she couldn’t take care of the threat herself, she needed to find someone who could.

  She found the door locked and saw there was not even a keyhole on this side. She banged on it a couple times and yelled, “Hey, let me out,” and did not get a response.

  She was starting to get angry at being made a prisoner when she noticed an intercom next to the door. She pressed the talk button and said, “Hey, is anybody there?”

  “Yes, ma’am. How can I help you?” a voice said through the tiny speaker.

  “Why am I locked in here?”

  “The doors lock automatically.”

  “I want out.”

  “All you have to do is ask,” the voice said and Katelin heard the bolt slide inside the door. After the door was unlocked, the voice asked, “Anything else?”

  “You need to check on the dog I heard.”

  “I can’t leave my post, but I will contact someone.”

  “They can be infected.”

  “I’ve heard. It was part of our mandatory morning briefing.”

  Katelin decided she would rather talk to someone she could look in the eye instead of just a voice on a speaker. She took advantage of the unlocked door and left her room. She found herself in a long hallway. The TMRT soldier named Curtis was leaning against the wall across from her room.

  “You hear the dog too?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “You look like you just got up, did the barking wake you?”

  “Yeah. Shouldn’t we be telling someone?”

  “No need, I already checked it out. Honestly, after yesterday I don’t think I can hear a dog bark again without freaking the fuck out. In this case, it is just a dog. He is on this side of wall and has been his whole life.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah, we can’t leave this wing without permission but if we walk to the end of the hall, there’s a window and we can see the half the checkpoint area from up here.”

  “Up here?”

  “We’re on the second floor. This containment building is the only one in this place with a second story.”

  “I was so tired and out of it last night I didn’t even notice.”

  “I get that. Do you want to go look?”

  “I’ll take your word for it.”

  “My quarters are just down the hall. You want to hang out? I got a buddy to bring a PlayStation. We could play some games.”

  “No, thanks,” Katelin said, thinking that with the way the doors automatically locked and it took the intercom to get out, she would be trapped in the room with him. She had missed it before with everything else going on, but she was starting to pick up on the creepy vibe Curtis was putting out. She could see why Bo was so hostile to him yesterday.

  “You sure?” he asked, giving her a big smile.

  “Yeah, I want to check on my dad.”

  “Sure, let me know how he’s doing. Your old man is something of a legend around here.”

  Katelin reached for her door and saw Curtis had moved closer. She wondered if he was going to follow her into the room and if he was if she could do anything to stop him. He was bigger than her and a trained soldier. If it came to a physical struggle, she didn’t figure she had a chance.

  “It’s good to see you up and around, Miss Vance,” a voice said from the end of the hall.

  They both turned to see General Doctor Barrington strolling toward them.

  “I was just going to see how my dad was doing.”

  “I can tell you he is doing fine. In fact, I was just coming to see if you were awake and wanted to see him.”

  “I am and I do.”

  “Then follow me.”

  “I don’t suppose I could tag along,” Curtis asked. “I’d love to meet the great Major Eric Vance.”

  Katelin was thankful when Barrington said, “Sorry, but no. You are still restricted to the segregated area.”

  Curtis nodded at Barrington and said to Katelin, “I’ll talk to you when you get back, Killer Kate.”

  “Show the young lady some respect, soldier,” Barrington told him. “She is either ma’am or, if you must, Miss Vance.”

  “Sorry, sir. I’ll talk to you later, Miss Vance.”

  Instead of answerin,g Katelin followed the General Doctor down the hallway.

  “Do you like him?” Barrington asked as they reached the end of the hall.

  “No, not even a little bit.”

  “Good. That, in my opinion, is sound judgment. The TMRT used to be an elite unit, but with the rot spreading so fast and the mortality rate being so high, we’ve had difficulty getting high quality recruits. Standards have dropped.”

  “I noticed.”

  Barrington pressed a button on the intercom and said, “I’m coming out with Miss Vance.”

  “Yes, sir,” a voice said and the bolt in the door slid to the open position.

  Before they stepped through, Barrington said into the intercom, “Can you have the other two civilian survivors escorted to the infirmary as well? Major Vance wanted to see them.”

  “Doesn’t that violate protocol, sir? I know exceptions were made because she is family, but the others are supposed to stay segregated until the seventy-two hours are up.”

  “I know the protocol. I also am not asking you to do this. I’m telling you.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  They went through the open door and headed to the elevator. As they got on, Katelin asked, “Do you think it’s possible I could get my gear back?”

  “Gear?”

  “My guns and swords.”

  Barrington pushed the only button there was and said, “I doubt it.”

  “Even the swords? Just for my peace of mind.”

  “You don’t feel safe?”

  “Between Curtis across the hall and the rot just on the other side of the wall? Hell no,” she told him as the short elevator ride ended.

  “I’ll see what I can do.”

  They made the rest of the walk in silence as they wound their way through the hastily put up temporary building to the infirmary. They were just about to enter the wing with the infirmary when they heard an exp
losion in the distance.

  “Drone strike,” Barrington told her. “They are patrolling the perimeter.”

  “Yeah, I’ve heard it before. Pretty much the same up close. Just louder.”

  Barrington nodded as he used a code to open the door and let them enter the medical wing. The surgery recovery room was only a short walk away.

  “Go see your father,” Barrington told her as they reached the entrance to the recovery room. “I need to do a few things, but I will be back. Can you please stay here until I return? If someone tries to tell you to leave, be insistent. Tell them I told you to stay.”

  “Even if it’s a surgeon or something?”

  “Yes,” Barrington said as he turned and started walking briskly away from the infirmary.

  Katelin had just started to open the door when Dr. Talbot came into the hallway.

  “How many patients are in there right now?” he asked her.

  “I don’t know. Last I was here, it was just my dad.”

  “So no recent bites or anything rot related?”

  “Not that I know of. Why?”

  “I suppose given our history, I can tell you. I think I may have something. Maybe the cure we discussed last night. I was hoping for someone to test it on.”

  “I have somebody.”

  “You do?”

  “She’s not far. We could be there in two hours.”

  “Where?”

  “Quartzsite.”

  “What’s in Quartzsite?”

  “My mother.”

  “You’re still thinking about that? I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  “I think it is. Besides, the way I see it, you owe me. You owe her.”

  “Even if they would let me, I can’t guarantee it will work. It could kill her.”

  “How is being dead that much worse? Figure out a way. When you do, come see me. I’ll be in here visiting my dad, you know, the guy you tried to kill who still saved your ass. The one who put his life on the line so you could get your research.”

  Talbot thought about it a second and said, “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try to figure a way. I suppose your mom is as good as anyone.”

  Chapter 13