The Last Outbreak- The Complete Box Set

by Jeff Olah

  The woman next to April was unfamiliar. She was a beautiful redhead with a hint of tomboy and the build of an athlete. Her head on a swivel, she was searching for something or someone in particular, and as Randy limped out from behind Building Six, her eyes widened and she sprinted away from April.

  They came together, although as the silhouetted man from the front gate ran up on the group, Mason pulled Dalton up by the collar and shoved him toward April and the unfamiliar redhead.

  April turned away and instead moved to the man who’d run out of the shadows. She threw her arms around him and kissed the side of his face. “William … how’d you … how did you get here? Where did you come from?”

  Mason kept one eye on Dalton as he nodded to the man his wife had in her arms. “Glad to see you brother. Now please tell me that rifle has some life left in it?”

  The group moved quickly to the rear wall as Mason forced Dalton ahead. “William, no time to explain, but that chopper needs to be destroyed.”

  In his head, Dalton was smiling.

  Mason turned to his wife. “April, take Savannah and get inside. Make sure this guy doesn’t even look at you cross-eyed. If he does, just kill him.”

  “Give me a gun,” April shouted back.

  Reaching into his belt, Randy handed April his pistol as he winced through the pain and fought to remain upright. He looked back at Dalton one last time and then turned to Mason. “Why are we keeping him alive?”

  “He’s got information we may need.”

  As April and the woman he now knew as Savannah pushed him back toward the building, Dalton spotted the tablet that had been dropped amongst the dead. He scampered out ahead and amid their shouts, grabbed it from the blood-soaked grass, wiped it on his coat, and shoved it into his pocket.

  April came up from behind and shoved him forward yet again. “What are you doing, what is that?”

  Dalton lowered his head, continued to walk forward, and spoke quietly. “Something you’ll need.”

  Savannah came from the opposite side, pushing Dalton in the back. “Speak up.”

  Dalton didn’t respond.

  Over his right shoulder, the three men moved from the cover of the wall and into the open. Mason was the first to the center of the courtyard, followed closely by the man from the front gate, and then in his best limp-run, Randy came in beside them and dropped to one knee.

  Continuing to move back in the direction of Building One, the sound of the chopper lifting away from the rear courtyard caused Dalton to pause. He looked back at the woman and motioned toward the front gates as they also stopped and turned.

  “GET INSIDE!”

  His shouts were lost to the thumping of the blades and the sheer intensity of the moment. Dalton attempted to reach for April, although as he did, she spun around, moved in close, and pressed the nine millimeter up against his swollen eye. “Back up against the wall and do not move. I will kill you.”

  Dalton quickly backed away and sat facing the women. As he stared off into the sky, the chopper banked left and started toward the men at the center of the rear courtyard.

  What was Nicholas doing? Had Goodwin decided to risk everything just to prove a point, or had his ego once again clouded his grossly irrational mind?

  He needed to get them inside, all of them. There wasn’t enough fuel for Goodwin to make a second pass, so this was it. Sliding away from the wall and sitting forward, Dalton held out his hand, waving the women over.

  “You have to go, this isn’t—”

  Neither of the women looked away. April simply held out the pistol and shook her head. “No.”

  The massive blacked-out helicopter lifted into the darkened sky above Blackmore, dipped its nose and raced toward the grouping of six buildings. Dalton continued to try to convince the women that running was the only wise choice. And with his left eye nearly closed, the awful realization of what was happening caused him to shake.

  Marcus Goodwin wasn’t directing the chopper toward the three men at the center of the yard, he was coming after the women.

  He again shouted. “YOU HAVE TO GO RIGHT NOW!”

  April continued to ignore him, and now seeing the chopper directly above her husband and the other two men, she turned to Savannah and asked her to stay behind. “Don’t let him move.” Savannah quickly nodded as April rushed back toward the men, her weapon drawn and raised toward the sky.

  Out above the center of the courtyard, the door on the left side of the chopper was open. Goodwin stood shouldering an AR-15, his eyes locked on the three men backlit by the crescent shaped moon. He opened fire even before the chopper leveled off, plastering the grounds with baseball sized divots.

  Through the hailstorm of projectiles, Mason reacted first. He shouted, “GET BACK BEHIND THE WALL!”

  The trio turned and started back toward Building Six as they were chased by the rapid gunfire falling from the sky. William reached the wall first, followed closely by Mason as he helped Randy cover the short distance on wobbly legs.

  Dalton could only watch as all three men opened up on the looming chopper. Mason was flat on his stomach, Randy leaned into the wall, and William did his best to make sure that each and every round was sent with a purpose. Metal projectiles peppered the airborne vessel, momentarily forcing Goodwin away from the door.

  Within fifty feet of her husband, April stopped running. She saw what Dalton and the others had seen. Marcus Goodwin was back to the door, weapon shouldered and motioning for Nicholas to sweep the chopper back toward the courtyard.

  Mason was the first to notice the change in trajectory and started in the same direction, closely followed by William, and finally Randy, who was struggling just to find his footing. Overhead, the chopper dropped out of the sky as Goodwin sent a barrage of fire toward the west side of Building Six.

  Time slowed to a crawl as Dalton watched the trail of gunfire heading away from the chopper door. Shredded blades of grass blasted skyward as each round dove deep into the earth. And twenty feet from April, the electrical panel from Building Two exploded from its hinges with a shot specifically intended for her. She immediately froze in place, again raised the nine millimeter, and answered with three quick shots of her own.

  Now hovering over his lone target, Goodwin fired another dozen rounds, striking April at least three times. Reactively dropping the weapon, her body twisted violently to the right and then backward onto the paved walkway. Pushed back into the wall only yards away, Dalton covered his eyes as she took her final breath.

  Mason slipped in beside his wife and dropped to his knees. He leaned into her and spoke quietly into her ear. He was pleading for her to fight, although he could sense that she was already gone.

  Quickly turning from his wife and standing, Mason leveled his weapon at the hovering chopper and emptied the magazine as he screamed skyward. William and Randy came rushing in and also attempted to blow the fabricated metal bird out of the sky. Round after round, the vicious reverberation of metal on metal echoed across the grounds of Blackmore.

  Banking right, the chopper lifted above the trees and away from Building Six. As it limped toward the backside of the mountain, Dalton could see that the massive bird had caught fire. It bled smoke as it disappeared behind the towering stand of spruce that stood guard over the rear wall of the Blackmore Research Facility.

  As the wounded chopper moved out of sight, Dalton hung his head and waited for the inevitable. Massaging the left side of his face, he and the other three men watched the night sky as the intermittent sounds of the engine coughing and spitting ended only moments later in an abrupt explosion.

  The man who ended the world was now gone. It hadn’t completely happened the way Dalton had planned; however, without intervention, there wouldn’t have been even a single soul left alive. Marcus Goodwin came to Blackmore intending to kill Richard Daniels, every member of his family, and anyone else who hadn’t been aboard that chopper.

  Dalton wasn’t able to save everyone, and it w
as much less than he hoped, but it was more than if he had done nothing. It was now time for him to leave. He was ready.

  “Everyone inside.” Mason glared at the other men through glassy eyes, motioning toward Dalton. “Take him as well.”

  Randy was the first to move off. He quickly found the pretty redhead lying in the fetal position less than thirty yards away. William followed close behind, clutching tightly to Dalton’s right arm. They made their way into Building One and joined what was left of their group.

  Dalton took a seat on the floor next to a commuter terminal and avoided eye contact with the four individuals looking down on him. He slowly unzipped his coat, pulled out the hand-held device that he used to gain access to the facility, and laid it in his lap.

  No one spoke. They only watched the door and waited.

  It must have been an hour. Dalton felt as though he was already slipping from consciousness as the door that led to Blackmore’s exterior courtyard shot open. Mason was back, and although he’d just lost his wife and his father-in-law, he appeared somewhat composed. His forehead and cheeks were a light shade of pink and the dirt on his face had been washed away in places, although his eyes held something other than anger.

  Entering the room, Mason moved toward Dalton, but didn’t initially speak. He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as he appeared to be collecting his thoughts.

  Dalton wanted to speak before it was too late. There were a few things these people needed to hear. He knew they would never understand what he’d attempted to do for them, but he needed to try. “I know you are—”

  “No, not another word,” Mason said. And turning to William, he motioned down toward Dalton. “What is this thing he has?”

  “It appears to be a device that can remotely operate this facility.”

  “Can you figure out how to use it?”

  “Sure but—”

  Mason snatched it from Dalton’s hands and held it out for William. “Get familiar with it.”

  Without another word, Mason turned from the others, picked up the remaining nine millimeter left in the room, and pushed Dalton through the door and then into the rear courtyard. Mason forced him to a spot twenty feet beyond the rear wall and pushed him backward into a mound of lifeless Feeders. “You helped to kill my wife, my son, and my father-in-law. For that you will never be forgiven, not by me, not by anyone.”

  Dalton looked up at the man who was about to take his life. He was no longer scared; he was ready. Living in this new world wasn’t something he was built for, or even something he wanted. He had been a part of this mess since long before Project Ares was even an idea and had made many mistakes along the way, but with Marcus Goodwin now dead, his work was finally complete.

  “I’m sorry—”

  Mason didn’t allow him to finish. He fired one round into Dalton’s forehead, killing him instantly.

  178

  There was a hand on his shoulder. There was also a voice. It was quiet, but Ethan refused to open his eyes. He rolled onto his left side, pulled the blanket up over his face, and grunted. It was the best sleep he’d had in as long as he could remember, and that included before the whole world went to hell.

  The tile beneath him was cold and the makeshift pillow he’d fashioned from his jacket was considerably inefficient, but it didn’t matter; he was content in his current position. In fact, Ethan imagined he could have stayed on the floor near the pink flamingos all day. However, the little boy kneeling alongside him had other ideas.

  “Mr. Ethan.” Zach was attempting to whisper, but the excitement in his voice powered through.

  Ethan was smiling under the blanket, but felt the need to have a bit of fun with the young boy. “Go away, I’m still asleep.”

  Zach began to laugh, but then furrowed his brow and paused. Again he whispered; this time he leaned in and put his face to the blanket. “Mr. Ethan, they’re waiting for you.”

  He still wasn’t completely in this world. Ethan’s mind hadn’t fully accepted that it was a new day and what that meant. He vaguely remembered the trip to the deserted outlet mall and the brief conversation he’d had with Jonah the night before, although the rest was still a blur.

  Pulling the blanket from his head, Ethan rolled onto his back and looked up at Zach. “Who’s waiting for me?”

  “Everyone. They’re over there eating and told me to come get you. Mr. Griffin said you snore too loud. He said you need your own room.”

  Ethan pushed up into a sitting position and through squinted eyes, looked back toward the food court. Carly, Ben, and Helen sat with Shannon at one table, while Griffin, Frank, Boone and Mayor Gil emptied their trays into a brightly colored trashcan twenty feet away. None of the men spoke to one another, and as they finished, Griffin stayed with Boone.

  Back to Zach, Ethan grinned. “You already eat?”

  “Only a few bites. Ms. Shannon said I could wait for you.”

  “Well then, we better get to it.”

  Zach stepped back and sat on the edge of the fountain while Ethan folded his blanket and slipped on his jacket. They walked together to the food court, only stopping for a moment to allow Ethan to offer morning pleasantries to his friends.

  Filing in behind the last of Jonah’s people, Ethan helped Zach with his tray. The pair then sat together while Ethan asked Zach about baseball and girls—anything to keep the boy’s mind off of what he’d been through and what was still to come.

  It took only fifteen minutes for Zach to grow bored of answering questions. He twisted his nose up and placed his spoon next to what was left of his oatmeal. “Mr. Ethan?”

  “Yes?”

  “Do you like Ms. Shannon?”

  He couldn’t tell if his face was as red on the outside as it felt on the inside. He instantly felt warm and shifted in his seat as Zach began to giggle. Narrowing his eyes, Ethan slowly leaned in and looked from side to side. “Well, what do you think, do you think I like her?”

  Zach nodded as he looked back toward the table where Shannon sat talking with the others. “Yeah.”

  “And, did you already ask her the same question?”

  “Yeah.”

  Ethan peered past Zach and also looked toward the other table. “What did she tell you?”

  “She told me to ask you first.”

  “Well,” Ethan said, “you can tell her that I do like her and that now she has to answer your question.”

  Zach stared up at Ethan. “Right now?”

  “Yep, right now.”

  Zach pushed away from the table like it was on fire. He looked back at his tray and then at Ethan. “Um …”

  “Go,” Ethan said, “I’ll take care of it.”

  Zach hurried away, moving quickly through the maze of tables before coming up behind Shannon and turning and giving Ethan a thumbs up.

  Ethan returned the gesture and then standing to clear the table, noticed Jonah walking in his direction. “Good morning.”

  Jonah moved around the table and offered Ethan a quick handshake. “Good morning Ethan.” The older man hesitated. “I hate to break up the party, but we’d better get moving. My people have things to do and seeing how the weather is cooperating, we need to do this now.”

  “Do what?”

  “We need to get you and your people up to speed. That Interstate is a bit tricky once you get outside of town.”

  Ethan dumped the waste from the two trays and wiped his mouth. “We’re headed west. So far, we really haven’t run into anything to worry about.”

  Jonah paused and appeared to be searching for the right words. Finally, he placed his hand on Ethan’s shoulder and motioned out toward the south entrance. “Get your friends together and let’s meet in say … twenty minutes?”

  Ethan offered a curious grin and turning to look back at his friends said, “I can’t tell you how much your hospitality has helped. They’ve been through hell and finding a friendly face out here has done more for them than I can tell you.”

  �
�I appreciate it, and you know that you and your friends are welcome to stay. You and I would have to talk through a few things, make a few adjustments, but I believe we may be able to work something out.”

  Why had Jonah changed his mind? Less than twenty-four hours earlier, he had indicated that they were only welcome for the night. Maybe he could see who they really were or maybe some of his people, those a bit more rational, had gotten to him. Either way, the gesture was not lost on Ethan.

  “You know where I’m going,” Ethan said. “And you know why.”

  “Yeah, I get it.”

  “But hey, maybe we’ll come back, you know, if the offer still stands.”

  Jonah slowly nodded. “We could use more good people like you and your friends. What we’re doing, what we’re building out here, it’s gonna require us to grow.”

  “Thank you, Jonah.” And before Ethan began to walk away, he turned toward the others, those who were here before he and his friends arrived, the people who now called this place home. “So, what happened?”

  Jonah followed his eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “The change, what happened between last night and this morning?”

  “I’ll be honest, I’m still having a hard time reconciling it with myself and my people, but it was your friend, Mayor Gil. He asked that I reconsider my original thoughts, told me all about what you and your friends did back in Green Valley, and said I should just outright ask you to stay.”

  “But,” Ethan said, “you already knew my answer to that.”

  “Yes, so did the Mayor. And knowing what you’d say, he asked for another favor, said you’d understand.”

  “He wants to stay?”

  “He does.”

  “You and your people okay with that?”

  “We are.” Jonah peered over Ethan’s shoulder, watching his people filter out into the area near the rear entrance. “In fact, I think he may be of some help to our little community here, show us how to get things set up the right way.”