Mass Extinction Event (Book 8): Days 109 to 116

by Cross, Amy

  “Thomas!”

  Turning, I see that Toad has finally arrived. He's still wearing his uniform, and he still has a gun slung over his shoulder as he comes over to join us.

  “I wasn't sure you'd come,” I tell him.

  “I almost didn't,” he replies, glancing around. “I shouldn't be here. I have a one hour break before I'm due back at the station for another shift. Only people with proper clearance are supposed to enter this place, Thomas. Is there somewhere else we can go? I can't risk being spotted.”

  “Sure,” I reply. “I just need to talk to a friend. She went upstairs, she'll be down with her stuff soon.”

  “I'll wait outside,” he says, still looking around as if he's worried that at any moment he'll be seen and questioned about being here. “Don't take too long. Like I told you, I don't have much time.”

  “Sarah Carter was arrested,” I reply. “Her -”

  “Quiet!” he hisses. “Don't say that name too much, or we might end up sharing a cell with her. I don't know exactly what she's done, but I've heard a few rumors. Nothing that I'm going to talk about here, but meet me outside and I'll let you know what I can. And then you need to decide what you're going to do with yourself, because you're sticking out like a sore thumb, Thomas. Sooner or later people are going to wonder why you haven't been put into a uniform and given a job.”

  He turns and hurries out.

  “Your friend seems nervous,” Ringcroft notes. “Then again, who isn't at the moment?”

  Hearing footsteps on the escalator, I turn just in time to see Elizabeth coming down to rejoin us. She has a small bag in one hand, and it's clear that she's in no mood to enter into a debate.

  “You don't even know where you're going,” I point out. “Or how to get there.”

  “I'll figure that out on the road,” she replies. “I don't trust Bloom or anyone else here. I'll just drive and figure something out.”

  “Drive what?”

  “We arrived in a truck,” she points out. “I'll find some way to get it started.”

  “And then you'll just drive out of here?” I ask. “Is that your plan? There are checkpoints!”

  “I'll go around them.”

  “You'll get yourself killed.”

  “Why would anyone care what I do?” she asks. “We don't know for certain that the checkpoints don't let people pass. I'll explain where I'm going and why, and they'll probably just wave me through.”

  “With a valuable vehicle?” I point out, hurrying after her as she heads toward the door. “With gas? With supplies? With -”

  “I have to find my father!” she snaps, turning to me. “Can't you understand that? Now I know that he's alive, I have to find him! He probably thinks I'm dead, so I have to get to him while I still have a chance. I'm sorry I won't be able to help you find your sister, but that's just how things are.” She pauses, before stepping closer and putting a hand on the side of my arm. “Thank you for everything, Thomas,” she adds, “but I guess this is goodbye. You'll be okay, I know you will. Just don't get yourself killed for that Carter woman, okay?”

  She hesitates, before leaning closer and kissing me on the cheek, then taking a step back.

  “Sorry,” she adds, “I don't know why I did that. I guess...”

  Her voice trails off. She pauses again, as if she's about to say something, and then she turns and hurries out through the main door.

  “That's a girl on a mission,” Ringcroft suggests.

  “Sure,” I reply, “but it's a suicide mission. I have to stop her.”

  I start hurrying after Elizabeth.

  “Thomas!”

  Startled, I turn and see that Toad has come back to one of the side doors, and now he's gesturing for me to join him.

  “I don't have long!” he hisses. “Thomas, I don't think you realize how serious this situation is! You're messed up in something dangerous and you have to be careful. I'm risking my life just by being here!”

  I open my mouth to tell him that I'll be with him in just a moment, but then I realize that maybe I need to just let Elizabeth go. She seems almost unhinged, maybe even delusional, and I don't see how I can persuade her to stick around. And I certainly can't go with her, because it's not as if she's even going to get far anyway. I feel bad, but I think maybe it's really time to let her do her thing.

  “Thomas!”

  “I'm coming,” I tell Toad, as I turn and hurry over to him. “Sorry, I just had to say goodbye to someone.”

  “Carter was right about one thing,” he replies, leading me out of the building and along an alley that runs toward the street. “Something's going on at that train station. I haven't figured it all out yet, but Bloom and the others are completely focused on getting that train back into an operational state. They're planning to take it somewhere.”

  “Where?” I ask.

  “If I knew that, I'd have a much better idea of what this is all about. The only thing I can really tell you is that they don't want too many people knowing about it. If I didn't know better, I'd think that they're planning to abandon Boston, but that doesn't make sense. Why launch such a massive attack to gain the city, only to leave it behind a few days later?”

  “Maybe there was something here that they needed,” I suggest. “I never really understood what was going on, not properly. I always felt that people were making excuses for their actions, rather than explaining them.”

  We reach the corner.

  “The other thing I noticed,” I add, “is that -”

  Suddenly I slam straight into Elizabeth as she hurries this way, and we collide with such force that we both lose our footing and fall to the ground.

  Gasping, I land hard on my left side, and I mutter a few curse words as I start to sit up.

  “Can you at least watch where you're going?” I ask her, reaching down to give her a hand as she grabs her bag. “How do you think you're going to survive out there if you can't even make it along the street? At this rate you're going to end up in another ditch, and this time I won't be there to pull you out!”

  “I don't need your help!” she snaps, before glancing past me. “And I don't need -”

  Suddenly she freezes, and I see an expression of pure shock on her face.

  I wait a moment, and then I turn to see that Toad has almost the exact same expression.

  “Elizabeth?” he gasps.

  “Toad?” she says over my shoulder.

  Before I can ask what's happening, Toad pushes past me, and I turn to see them embrace.

  “Okay,” I say cautiously, still not quite understanding what's going on here. “So... Do you guys know each other?”

  Day 111

  Elizabeth

  “But you're sure she's okay?” Toad asks as we sit in a darkened room high up in the building, with only the light of a candle between us. “Your father wouldn't lie to you, would he?”

  “I'm going to find Rachel and see for myself,” I tell him. “I'm sure she's fine. I got a little paranoid back there and...”

  For a moment, I consider telling him exactly what happened when I was last with Rachel. I was alone, listening to creaking sounds, and I began to think that she was walking. That was impossible, of course, but at the time I worried that she'd become infected. Then soldiers burst into the place, and then next thing I remember is waking up in a dark room at the military base.

  “She's going to be fine,” I say finally. “I can feel it.”

  Can I, though? There's a faint trace of doubt in my chest.

  “I thought you were lost forever,” he says after a moment. “I still can't quite believe that after a couple of months I've suddenly stumbled into you like this. I always thought you were alive, I knew you'd keep going somehow, but I thought the chances of finding you were tiny.” He stares at me. “I didn't think I'd be that lucky.”

  I can't help smiling.

  “So you're a soldier now,” I say, and now he smiles too. “That's quite a chance. When I first met you, yo
u were more of the rugged individualist. I never would have had you down as a guy who'd put on a uniform.”

  “This isn't my regular look,” he replies. “I got caught up in all of this, and somehow fighting turned out to be my only way to stay alive. I'm going to go home eventually, though. I want to go back to my farm and get on with surviving. If the worst of the outbreak's truly over, I can just go on with my life and let the world carry on without me.”

  “Do you really think you'd be happy, living all alone like that?” I ask.

  “Who said I have to be alone?” he replies.

  I wait, but he's staring at me again.

  “But I guess that's something for the future,” he continues. “I figure it'll be another month or two before I'm able to get away from here. Still, that gives me time to make some plans, and to think about how I'm going to make the farm work. I just hope it hasn't been taken over by anyone. If some asshole's squatting on my property, I swear I'll chase the bastard away with a pitchfork.”

  I can't help laughing at the image.

  “I've missed you,” he adds.

  “I've missed you too,” I tell him, and then for a moment we sit in awkward silence. I'm not quite sure what I'm expecting to happen, but being back together with Toad just feels so right. Then again, I know I shouldn't get carried away. “But first I have to find my father,” I continue. “You wouldn't believe me if I told you all the things that have happened since last time I saw you, but my father's out there somewhere and I need to get to him. I don't know if you can understand that, but -”

  “I understand it,” he replies. “If there's anything I can do to help, you only have to ask.”

  “Have you heard anything about where he might be?”

  He shakes his head.

  “Can you ask around?” I continue.

  “I'll see what I can do,” he replies, “but information's pretty difficult to come by.”

  “I went to that square and saw the dead bodies,” I tell him. “At first, I was worried that he might be one of them, but he's not. It was still so horrible to see them, though. I recognized a couple of them. There was no -”

  “I think getting out of Boston would be really good idea,” he says suddenly, interrupting me. “Things aren't going well here, Elizabeth, and sooner or later people are going to realize that. At first I thought we were going to save the city, I thought we came here to establish something good. Now I'm starting to see that Boston itself doesn't matter. Nobody's going to put things back to how they used to be.”

  “We heard a message,” I reply. “The phones rang and -”

  “The same thing happened here,” he says, “and it caused some concern. I don't know why, but people like Charles Bloom seemed really agitated immediately after the messages started. They ordered all phones to be disconnected. Obviously I'm not given much information, but I overheard Bloom and some others at the station, they were talking about this Project Atherius thing and it all seemed to be getting pretty urgent. There's something out there, Elizabeth. Bloom and his buddies want to get to this place as fast as they can, and they're not planning on taking too many people with them.”

  “They're going to abandon the city?”

  “They're planning to take a small group of soldiers,” he explains. “I found out yesterday that I'm going to be one of them. I guess I've shown them that they can trust me.”

  “But they haven't told you where you'll be going?”

  “Only that we'll be leaving within the next few days. I was going to go, but not now. Now I'm going to find a way for us to get out of here and go find your father.”

  “I can get us a truck,” I tell him.

  “And how would you make it past the checkpoints?”

  “I figured I'd find a way.”

  “You'd need to bribe them, or they'd open fire on you.” He pauses. “Maybe I can arrange something, but it'll take time. When the locals realize that Bloom and the others are making a break for it, they're going to go crazy. We need to be out of here before that happens.”

  “Are you sure you want to come with me?” I ask.

  “There's nowhere else I'd rather be,” he replies. “I mean, let's face it, you could probably use some help while you're running around out there.”

  “I managed okay so far,” I remind him.

  “You're missing a foot.”

  “I lost that while I was with you.”

  “Fair point.”

  “I didn't lose any other limbs since,” I add. I almost tell him about the whole 'being a zombie for a while' thing, but at the last moment I decide to hold back. “But it would have been better with you around,” I tell him. “There were some moments when it was all a little close for comfort. Some time I'll tell you about it in detail.”

  I pause for a moment.

  “Do you believe in premonitions?” I ask suddenly, surprising myself a little.

  “Premonitions?”

  “I know this is going to sound crazy,” I continue, “but yesterday there was this moment when I suddenly imagined I was in... I don't know, exactly, but it seemed like some kind of hospital room. I was stuck on a table with lots of wires going into me, and I was in pain. It only lasted for a few seconds, but I swear it felt so real. And now I'm starting to wonder whether somehow something like that might be going to happen to me. That isn't possible, though, is it?”

  “It sounds unlikely,” he suggests. “You're probably just stressed. Believe me, there have been times when I've felt like I'm losing my mind.”

  “I guess,” I reply, before turning and looking out the window. It's well past midnight, and the city is mostly dark. “It felt so real, but that doesn't mean anything. I'm sure it wasn't some weird hint of the future.”

  “We'll hit the ground running as soon as the sun comes up,” he replies. “I'm not going to waste this second chance, Elizabeth. We're going to find your father, and then – if you want – you can come back to the farm with me.”

  “I'd like that,” I tell him, turning to him with a smile. “We'll find Rachel too. And then maybe we can start to have normal lives again.”

  Thomas

  “Your friend is being held in a makeshift prison about ten blocks from here,” Caitlin says in hushed tones as we stand at the rear of the building, with the first rays of morning sun starting to spread along the street. “I couldn't find out why, but she seems to have been treated as a high priority. Someone really didn't want her running around the streets.”

  “What about Patterson?” I ask.

  “There's still no news, but people are gossiping. Some are even saying that he died, but I don't think that's true. He seems to have been hurt, though.”

  “He has to be behind this,” I tell her. “Patterson tried to kill Carter, it's a miracle either of them are still alive. I know Carter's done some pretty shady things in the past, but for a while she and Patterson seemed to be on the same side. If he's turned against her now, it's because she's no longer useful to him. I don't think he's got any intention of letting her leave that prison.”

  “He can't just have her killed,” she replies. “We follow the law here.”

  “Is that what happened with those people who were shot and hung from street-lamps?” I ask. “I heard about all of that.”

  “There was an unfortunate incident with a mob.”

  “That's not how the story was told to me.”

  She glances both ways, clearly worried that we'll be overheard, and then she takes a step back as she turns to me.

  “I'm sorry to tell you this, Thomas,” she says, “but I think you have to forget about Carter. She's a bad person, and you don't want to be associated with her. You should report to one of the command posts and see where they want you to work. If you don't, you'll end up being arrested and deployed to wherever they need people. There are some pretty foul jobs around. If you volunteer, you might be able to pick and choose.”

  “Why are you helping me?” I ask.

  She
pauses, and I can tell that she's troubled by something.

  “Let's just say that you remind me of someone,” she says finally, with tears in her eyes. “But if you tell anyone what I told you, I'll deny everything. I'm not willing to risk my life for this. Now go, before I'm seen talking to you.”

  ***

  The building where Doctor Carter is being held, a former store not too far from the station, doesn't look like much from the outside. It's certainly not my idea of a prison. After watching for a while, however, I realize that there seem to be two soldiers permanently stationed in or near the door at all times. And although it's tempting to simply walk over and ask if I can speak to Carter, I figure that that might be a very bad way to draw attention to myself.

  Finally, with no better ideas, I decide to scurry along one of the side streets and try to get a better idea of the building's layout.

  As I walk, I hear occasional shouts in the distance. The streets of Boston are mostly deserted, but that doesn't mean there aren't noises from time to time. It's quite common to hear screams, and it's even more common to hear these occasional howls, like people in the distance are yelling their frustration. At first I thought I was hearing people getting killed, but now I think the sounds are cries of anger and pain, as if the collapse of the city is driving lots of folk out of their minds. Still, they seem to be far enough away, at least for now. I guess the cordons are holding, protecting us from the wilder, more chaotic parts of Boston.

  Reaching the end of the street, I quickly spot the rear of the building. So far, there are no more soldiers, and I'm surprised to see that a set of double doors has been left wide open. I glance around, just to make sure that I'm alone, and then I hurry over to the doors and slip through into the building.

  There are no lights, of course, so I have to carefully feel my way along a darkened corridor. The place is completely silent, although I stop suddenly when I see a window at the front. I've already made it through to the store's main area, and when I look around the next corner I see the two soldiers guarding the main door. They're not even speaking to one another, but they seem completely focused on the door and the area at the front of the building, so I turn and make my way deeper into the building, struggling along dark corridors but not really having any idea which way I'm supposed to go next.