The Brother's Creed_Book 3_Wolf Pack

by Joshua C. Chadd

  “We should stick to this side of the ridge and then loop around to the outbuildings instead of cutting it too close to the main ones,” Connor said.

  “What’re we doing still sittin’ here?” Tank asked. “Let’s get the move on!”

  “We thought you might want a break,” James said.

  “Oh, screw off,” Tank said. “I’m doing a damn good job keepin’ up.”

  “Actually, you are,” Connor said, “and you have the twenty-pound gun!”

  James chuckled. “I know you are, bro, but I had to get you back for all the ‘Jamesy Boy’ comments.”

  “Well, I hope you feel good about yourself for makin’ fun of the fat kid,” Tank said.

  “You keep up the way you’ve been doing and you won’t be able to say that for much longer,” James said.

  “True,” Tank said. “I better find some pizza and a couple donuts tonight and fix that.”

  Laughing, Connor took the lead, with James following and Tank bringing up their six.

  “So, Allen,” James said, “are you always goin’ by Tank now? Even when it’s just us?”

  “Yeah,” Tank said. “I had a moment that first day of the apocalypse when I decided it would be a new start. I am Tank now.”

  “Fair enough,” James said. “Wanted to ask when Chloe wasn’t around.”

  “Yeah,” Tank said. “Don’t tell her.”

  “I may…”

  “Shut up and keep walkin’,” Tank said.

  James laughed and continued to follow Connor. Staying on the back side of the ridge, they followed it south of the hideout. The hill sloped off and they descended into the bottom of a small cut. Following the cut led them right into the hideout from the southeast. They could see the group of three outbuildings with the pole barn, where the hostages hopefully were.

  A shot sounded in the night, followed by two more. They stopped in their tracks, looking west where the main part of the hideout was. A few seconds later the gunfire picked up again and soon became a full-blown war zone. They could hear vehicles revving up. Tank looked at Connor, who was looking back at him and James.

  “Check the pole barn,” James said. “Then go investigate that. They may be fighting off another group.”

  Connor moved off, jogging toward the pole barn.

  Tank and James followed. When they arrived at the barn, they noticed two dead guards lying outside. Connor stacked up at the side of the door as James and Tank joined him. Connor nodded and the brothers rushed into the building. Tank looked around one last time, then joined them inside, SAW shouldered and ready to kill.

  The barn was empty.

  14

  Rescue

  Post-outbreak day eight, early morning

  Ana stood next to her door with the metal fork from dinner gripped in her hand while her mind worked through the possibilities of the plan once again. Everything hinged on this first part—getting out of the room. She just hoped it was the drunkard from before who’d be responding. She glanced at the handgun sitting on the table without a magazine in it. It would be useless now.

  “Excuse me,” Ana said, speaking towards the door. “I really need some water.”

  She waited, hoping it would be enough to draw the guard. A few minutes passed and she didn’t hear anything from outside.

  “Excuse me,” Ana said a little louder this time.

  This time she heard footsteps coming down the hall to her room.

  “What ish it?” a male voice asked, slurring his words. It was the drunk. Perfect.

  “Could I bother you for some water?” Ana asked.

  “Why not use the sink in there?” the voice asked, speaking slowly.

  “It’s broken. Nothing comes out.”

  “Not again. Okay, let me get some.”

  Footsteps retreated from her door and she could hear him shuffling around in the living room. As he started to come back, she took a deep breath and the realization hit her with full force. This was it—her one chance to get out of here before morning. If she’d miscalculated or there was more than one guard, she would be dead.

  “Get away from the door,” the voice said.

  “I am,” she said softly with her head turned toward the inside of the room.

  She heard the lock disengage and readied herself, raising the fork. The door opened and the man took one step into the room, water bottle in one hand, handgun in the other. Ana grabbed his closest arm, the one with the handgun, and slammed the fork into the man’s throat with all her strength. The tines tore through the soft skin and entered his carotid artery. The man dropped the water bottle and raised his hand to his gushing throat while trying to bring his gun to bear on her. She locked her elbow and held his gun arm down while quickly jerking out the fork, accompanied by a spray of blood. She stabbed it in again, and the man choked and released the gun. Grabbing at her hand, he tried to remove the fork, but as his hand started to clamp down around her wrist, she brought her knee to his groin. Legs buckling, he fell to the floor, releasing her hand. Jerking the fork out again, she quickly stabbed it hard into his eye. Due to the loss of blood and disoriented from the pain, the man raised little defense as the fork popped his eye and entered his brain.

  As the man fell to the ground, his blood quickly pooling on the carpet and a fork sticking out of his eye, Ana stood there, breathing heavily. Her face, chest, and right arm were covered in blood. A small part of her gazed at the crimson liquid pooling on the floor and smiled, but she quickly shoved that elation down, adopting a cold, emotionless state. Stooping, she picked up his handgun, a Glock 17 like the one sitting on the table in her room. She then searched his body, coming up with a holster for the Glock, a hunting knife, and two magazines. Going to the table, she loaded one of the magazines into her gun and stuck the man’s gun into the holster, which she then strung on her belt. She tucked her own Glock into her pants at her back and the extra magazine in her back left pocket.

  Grabbing the body of the man, she pulled him into the room and shut the door behind her, then moved through the hall with the large hunting knife held ready. In the living room, a man was asleep on the couch, AK-47 resting on the floor next to him. Stalking over, she stood above him, watching the rise and fall of his chest. This was the deciding moment. Did she kill everyone she could, or get out with as little killing as possible? She didn’t care about the loss of life. These people were evil and deserved death. But the more she killed, the more she lost herself.

  The choice was made for her as the man rolled over, stretching. She didn’t wait to see if he was awake or just moving in his sleep. The knife drew a crimson line across his throat and his eyes popped open. He gasped for breath but couldn’t catch one with a severed windpipe. In a matter of seconds, he was dead. She picked up the AK-47 and the two extra magazines from the coffee table. Slinging the rifle over her back, she shoved the two magazines into her pockets.

  The outside door opened and a woman began to walk into the room. Ana moved with the speed and grace of a predator. The woman had barely cleared the door when Ana was on her, slashing the knife across her throat. The woman’s eyes bulged and she dropped the shotgun she was holding. Ana stood as the woman collapsed to her knees.

  Yes, that’s right where you belong—at my feet, said a voice in her head.

  Ana was shocked motionless. She hadn’t heard that voice in years. It was both her and not her, a part she kept hidden. Closing down her mind, she moved all her thoughts into their boxes.

  Ana hauled the body of the woman inside the house and then went outside, shutting the door behind her. The cool night air felt good as she breathed it in. She moved quickly, leaving the glow of the porch light and entering the shadows to the side of the building. It was around three in the morning and everyone but the guards should be sleeping. But now that there were three bodies, this would have to be quick.

  Moving around the buildings, she stayed out of the light and headed toward the
pole barn on the hill. Alexis would be sleeping in there. Ana’s earlier anger at her had abated when she’d realized she was really angry with herself. How could she blame Alexis for judging her? For all Alexis knew, she’d done this just to save herself. That had been a part of it, but not the main part. Right?

  She ascended the hill. There would be two guards posted by the pole barn and another walking between the house north of the barn and the road that led down to the rest of the compound. Approaching the barn from the back, she stayed away from the building, hidden in the brush. She moved to get a look at the two guards posted out front. They looked fully alert. She’d been hoping they’d be drowsy, having to stay up all night, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Now she had a choice to make. The rotating guard wasn’t here, so she must be up at the house, but she would be back in a few minutes.

  She could take them both out with the AK-47 quite easily, but that’d be too loud. Trying to get in close and take them down with the knife would work if there was only one. But with two of them, she didn’t think she could take down the one and then get to the other before she was shot. The next option would be to pretend that Jezz had sent her and demand to see the prisoners. But that wouldn’t work either, unless they were idiots. Max would’ve prepared those two guards. If she waited for one to nod off or take a leak, she could attack then. However, the whole night could pass with neither moving and then she’d have missed her chance. She may have to try something even riskier.

  Cursing silently, she watched as the rotating guard walked down the road toward the barn. The female guard nodded to the guards as she passed, heading for the main compound, and Ana knew she’d be back around in a few minutes.

  A noise behind her made her turn, dropping the knife and drawing her Glock. A lone figure crouched a few feet away with NVGs on its head and a combat rifle pointed directly at her. She didn’t lower the Glock. Whoever this was knew what they were doing to get this close to her.

  “Ana?” the masculine voice whispered. He raised the NVG goggles, showing her a face she thought she’d never see again.

  “Emmett?” she asked, holstering her Glock. “I thought they’d killed you!”

  He came over and gave her a hug. The gesture surprised her. He hadn’t exactly been the affectionate type during their short acquaintance.

  “I didn’t know if I’d lost you or not,” he said, “Is Alexis…”

  “She’s alive,” Ana said, stuffing down the warm feeling rising within her.

  Emmett let out a deep breath. “I’d hoped. Why were you walking around freely today?”

  “You didn’t see?” she asked.

  “See what?”

  “This morning.” She didn’t want to tell him. Having Alexis judge her was bad enough.

  “No, it took me all night and early morning to find this place. I wasn’t up on the ridge watching until noon.”

  “I…” she began, searching for the right way to put it, “killed Mila to survive in order to rescue your daughter and the others.”

  The last part hadn’t been the whole truth, but it sounded better than her real motives. Emmett seemed to take a second to process it, then looked her dead in the eyes. It was hard to tell in the darkness, but she didn’t think she could see any of the judgment she’d seen in Alexis.

  “That must have been a hard choice,” he said, “but you made the right call. I would’ve done the same to save my daughter.”

  She was surprised. Didn’t killing Mila make her a monster? Or was Emmett just a monster, too? He was a lot of things but she didn’t think he was that. He loved his daughter and would sacrifice anything to save her. Ana felt a little jealous of Alexis in that moment as she wondered what it would be like to have a father like him. Her father hadn’t been bad, but he hadn’t been like Emmett, either.

  “All the adults are inside,” Ana said.

  “And the children are up in the garage next to the house,” Emmett said. “What’s your plan?”

  “Wait for the sentry to pass, take down the two guards, move inside, and set them free.” Then she added as an afterthought. “Then go get the kids.”

  “Good plan. I’ll help you take down the guards, and then I’ll go get the kids. I’ll meet you back here.”

  “Alright.”

  “I’ll go around and take the one on the left. You get the right.”

  Ana nodded and he flipped down his NVG optics, moving off into the night. Within five steps, she’d lost sight of him.

  He’s good, she thought as she picked up her knife, holstering her Glock.

  Moving up to the building, she hung back in the shadows, waiting for the sentry to pass. After another minute, the sentry walked by, nodding to the guards. When she disappeared around the side of the house, Ana moved to the pole barn. She poked her head around and saw a fist showing a thumbs-up on the ground by the other wall. Moving as quickly as she could and staying low, she burst around the side of the building. The guard on the right began to turn to her when his partner grunted and went down with Emmett’s knife in the base of his skull. The guard facing Ana started to turn for the closer threat, but it was a mistake. Ana lunged at him as he raised his rifle and plunged her knife into his neck. He twitched and then began to collapse. Emmett caught him, slitting the man’s throat on his way to the ground.

  “Meet you back here,” Emmett said as he took off across the road toward the house, disappearing on the other side.

  Ana took a deep breath and opened the door to the barn.

  15

  Escape

  Post-outbreak day eight, early morning

  Alexis rested her head against the wooden post. Sleep was evading her. She couldn’t get the image of Evan out of her mind—his head bursting and all the contents spraying into the air. She opened her eyes, feeling sick to her stomach, and couldn’t decide if the nausea was due to the image or because she hadn’t eaten in over twenty-four hours.

  How could Ana betray them like this and then act like nothing was wrong? Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Alexis had seen some amount of regret in Ana’s eyes, but it hadn’t been enough to stop her from killing a second time. Once again, Alexis wondered if Ana really had a choice in the matter or if she was just a pawn to Jezz. There was little doubt that maniacal woman was pure evil.

  How could Ana do this to me? Alexis asked herself, a tear slipping down her cheek.

  She’d only known Ana for a week, but they’d connected. It was like she’d had a sibling again—someone to share the good times with and to help her get through the tough times. Just like when Mason had still been around. A quiet sob escaped her. Mason was dead. Her mother was dead. Ana had betrayed her. James was probably dead. And her dad? She hoped beyond hope that he was still alive. He was the last person she would have left in this world.

  Why? she asked God. Why does this have to happen to good people? How could you let this happen? Where were you when my brother died?

  That last question had haunted her all of her life. The fact that she hadn’t been able to do anything as blood filled her brother’s lungs as he died still ate at her and had pushed her to pursue a career as a paramedic.

  She felt bad for wondering where God had been during her brother’s accident. God had been there with her, and she distinctly remembered the feeling of peace on those nights when all else seemed lost. Whenever he was home on leave, her dad would come into her room, thinking she was asleep. He’d lie on the floor next to her bed and cry, never knowing she was awake most nights. Even back then she’d known her dad just needed somewhere to let it all out. In the mornings, he was always gone before she awoke and she’d never told him the truth. Those first few months after her brother’s death were the only times she could remember seeing her dad cry.

  Although it hadn’t felt possible at the time, they’d both survived that. It had felt like the world was ending then, but now it truly was. If she could survive that loss, she could survive this. Taki
ng a deep breath, she said a quick prayer and laid her head back again, but she doubted she’d be able to fall asleep. Every time she closed her eyes she either saw Jezz standing over her with that smile on her face or the side of Evan’s head exploding.

  A noise outside drew her gaze to the door. Shadows were moving under it, cast by the light outside. The door opened and Jezz was standing there, coming back to murder them all. It was like the image in her mind when she closed her eyes, but this was far too real. Fear clenched her throat and she gasped. Jezz rushed into the room, heading straight for her.

  Wait—Jezz didn’t have bright auburn hair. As Ana crouched down next to her, Alexis breathed easier. It’d just been her frayed mind playing tricks on her.

  “Look,” Ana said, a pair of keys in her blood covered hand, “I know you don’t like me right now. But let’s get out of here, and then—”

  “Are you crazy?” Alexis said. “I’m not going anywhere with you! This is just a setup—”

  “Shut up,” Ana growled, shocking her with the ferocity in her voice. “Your dad is here with me. We don’t have time for this.”

  Her dad—alive? Ana moved in to unchain her but Alexis turned, blocking her from getting to the shackles.

  “You’re lying,” Alexis said.

  Ana roughly grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her so she could get at the shackles. Alexis wanted to head-butt her but decided against it. Even if this was all a ruse, she could still use this chance to get away. The key clicked in the lock and the shackles fell off her wrists. She tried to bring her arms in front of her, but her muscles ached in protest. Rubbing her wrists, she looked up at Ana, anger burning in her eyes.

  “If you’re lying to me…” Alexis said.

  “Get over yourself,” Ana said. “I’m here to rescue you.”

  Alexis stood up shakily, leaning on the wooden post behind her. She pointed at Ana, who was about to move away.