I jerked my head to the right before moving, staying on this side of the string. Behind me, Beth was silent as she followed.
I didn’t stop until I reached a section of bushes that were thinner. They were still big enough to give us cover, but through the branches I was able to get a glimpse of Andrew’s camp. The fire was in the center, low enough that it wouldn’t draw a lot of attention but large enough to allow them to boil water or cook food. Andrew was there, pouring the water they’d just retrieved from the stream into a pot. Damn. I was kind of hoping he didn’t have enough sense to boil it before he drank it.
Behind him sat the same truck he’d had before, the one Kellan had traveled in when we were first captured, and the two men with him were just securing the back. The constant thumps coming from inside told me there was more than one zombie in there. How they had managed to get the new one in without letting the others out was a mystery, but somehow, they had.
Beth grabbed my arm and pulled me closer until her lips were less than an inch from my ear. “What do you want to do now?”
Kill Andrew, I thought, but I wasn’t quite sure how to achieve that.
I shook my head and pointed to the clearing, mouthing, “Watch.”
Beth sighed, letting me know she was more than ready to head back now that we knew where their camp was. Maybe that would have been the best approach, going back for help. It looked like Andrew and the other two men were alone, and if we went for backup, we’d outnumber them. Logan would be on board with coming back. They’d been chasing this group for a while now, and Kellan couldn’t say no. Not after everything that had happened. Still, the idea of walking away hurt.
But they weren’t going anywhere. That much was obvious. Andrew was sitting beside the fire waiting for the water to boil. Karl had already removed his weapons—which were sitting beside him on the ground—and was now leaning against a tree trunk with his eyes shut like he was ready for bed. Bulldog was digging through the cab of the truck, but he didn’t seem like he was getting ready to head out either. Plus, Andrew had mentioned he wanted to get to Oklahoma tomorrow, making it seem like they weren’t going to move on until the next day.
I stayed in that position for another few minutes, thinking it through, while beside me Beth shifted uncomfortably. I could tell she was anxious to go, and while it hurt to turn away from Andrew, I finally decided she was right. Heading back was the smart thing to do.
“Okay,” I whispered when I finally tore my gaze from Andrew. “Let’s go.”
Beth’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, but she nodded.
My stomach was in more knots as we hurried away from Andrew’s camp than it had been on the way there. It felt wrong to leave him behind even if I knew it was the right thing to do. Kellan was no doubt already furious with me, and I couldn’t imagine how much angrier he’d be if I stayed and tried to take care of the situation on my own. After everything that had happened, I owed it to him to head back.
It seemed to take less time to reach the stream than it had to get to Andrew’s camp, but once it came into view, we slowed to catch our breath. The forest was totally quiet, telling me no one was behind us, and both Beth and I were panting.
“What are you planning now?” she said, speaking for the first time.
“Get back to our camp and let Kellan and Logan know we found Andrew, then take him out.”
“How?” Beth asked.
We crossed the stream, and once we were safely on the other side, I shook my head. “I don’t know. We’ll figure something out. We can’t let him get away again.”
“I agree,” she said, “but I also know Logan is going to be hesitant to do anything when we have so few people.”
“We have as many people as you had when you saved Kellan and me,” I pointed out.
“Yes, but we had a group of immune people, and we used the zombies to our advantage. He won’t do that this time. Not when you two are the only ones who can survive a zombie bite.”
“There are only three of them,” I argued, “and they have no idea we’re here. We have the advantage.”
“I’m only telling you what Logan will say.” Beth gave me an apologetic smile. “He’s…predictable when it comes to this kind of stuff. He doesn’t want to take risks, not when it could mean someone dies.”
“Life is a risk,” I muttered.
“I’m not saying I agree,” she replied, “I’m just saying that Logan will—”
We broke through a clump of foliage, and I slammed into something firm and warm, something living. Hands went to my arms, and I pushed back instinctively, reaching for my knife a second later.
Before I could get hold of it, Kellan said, “Regan! Where the hell have you been?”
He had his arms around me so fast I didn’t have time to respond, and the way he held me against him told me how worried he’d been. There was a slight tremor in his arms, too, and it made me regret running off without him. But only a little. The rest of me was glad I’d followed Andrew, because now we knew where he was.
“I found him,” I said, twisting so I could free myself from Kellan’s iron grip. “Andrew. He isn’t far, and there are only three of them. We can take him. We can end this.”
When Kellan didn’t respond, I looked up into his eyes. They shimmered in the moonlight, with concern and pain—probably from the memories of everything that asshole had done to us—but still he said nothing.
“Kellan?”
He swallowed. “Yeah. Okay.” His head bobbed either in a nod or so he could shake himself out of whatever stupor he’d been in. “We finish this. Now.”
“Whoa,” Logan said. “You can’t be serious? It’s dark, and there are only four of us. Even if we went back and got the others, which I doubt would help much, we don’t have the numbers to take on this guy. He’s highly organized and lethal. You both know that.”
“I also know,” I said, “that if he’s headed to Oklahoma, more people will die. Possibly even people we love.”
Kellan’s hand tightened on my arm. “I won’t let him get away again.”
Logan exhaled, looking from us to Beth. She’d been right about his hesitation, but the expression on her face said she was on our side.
“He’s done too much, Logan. We can’t let him come after us.”
He looked up, blowing out another long breath. “Yeah,” he said, his eyes still on the sky. “I know. I know.”
“Can you find his camp again?” Kellan asked me.
“No problem,” I said, and Beth added, “It’s a straight shot.”
“If we’re doing this,” Logan dragged his gaze from the sky, “we’re not going in without planning ahead. I want you to tell us everything you saw there, everything they said or did. Don’t leave a single thing out.”
“They’re collecting zombies again,” I started, giving him the most important information first.
Logan blinked, and the confident man who’d saved us only a few days ago returned. “Are they, now?”
“You have an idea?” Kellan asked.
“Maybe,” he said. “First, let me know what else you saw.”
Logan and I crouched side by side, hidden behind a bush only fifteen feet from where Andrew was sprawled out. The fire had dwindled to little more than embers, but no one was awake to do anything about it. After over an hour of waiting, Karl, the idiot Andrew had tasked with keeping watch, had finally dozed off. It was the moment we’d been waiting for.
“How long do you want to wait?” I whispered to Logan.
His eyes were focused on the clearing, moving over the three sleeping men and the fire, then studying the truck. The occasional thud came from inside, but it didn’t seem to bother Andrew and his men.
When he didn’t answer, I said, “Logan.”
His gaze darted to me. “We need to do this now. Before someone wakes up.”
My heart leapt in anticipation, but I still found myself swallowing down a lump at his words. This was it. This was the end fo
r Andrew. There was no way he’d escape this time. Not with the plan Logan had come up with.
I glanced to my right, over to where Kellan sat, hunched and taking cover behind some other brush. There was less than ten feet of space between us, but at the moment he seemed far away. His eyes met mine, and I could tell he felt the same. His face was tense with worry, his expression serious and determined, but there was a begging in his gaze, too. Him begging me to be careful, begging God to keep me safe.
For a moment, we just looked at each other. Then he nodded, letting me know he was ready and okay, and I returned the gesture.
I looked the other way then, past Logan to where Beth sat. Like Kellan, she was concealed and ready, and she and Logan seemed to be communicating silently as they stared at each other exactly the way we had. Doing this had to be doubly difficult for Logan, because he wasn’t just risking her. He was risking his unborn child as well.
When he finally turned to face the camp again, it was only to take one quick breath before saying, “Let’s go.”
He stood, keeping low, and pushed through the trees, stepping over the string of cans so no one would know we were coming. I was one step behind, moving into the clearing only seconds after him. Stepping out of the trees made me feel utterly exposed, made my heart beat faster and my pulse quicken, but I didn’t hesitate. I stayed a step behind Logan the whole time, my eyes and ears open, moving between the sleeping men and the truck. It was our goal, and it wasn’t too far. The trick would be getting it open without rousing the men.
As we drew closer, the slight scent of decay filled my nostrils. Like usual, it had me on alert even though I knew it was coming from the truck, and I scanned the surrounding forest to make sure no zombies were around. It was as dark and still as it had been before.
We reached the truck and moved around to the other side, ducking out of sight so we could catch our breath. Logan was in front of me and able to look around to where the men were. The truck had blocked not only my view, but also every bit of light the fire was giving off, and in my current position I felt both cut off and engulfed by the darkness of the forest.
My body itched to move, to get this done and get back to the safety of the trees where I could watch Andrew die, but I forced myself to stay still and wait for a signal from Logan. It seemed to take forever, but finally he nodded and stood.
I followed him around so we were at the back of the truck, one of us on each side. We were in the open now, exposed, but I knew Kellan and Beth were watching and waiting, ready to cover us in case anyone woke.
The back of the truck was latched at the bottom on each side, and I got busy undoing the one in front of me while Logan worked on the other. The latch stuck at first, but when I pulled harder, it came free with a click that made my heart jump to my throat. I glanced toward the sleeping men and let out a sigh of relief when I saw they were still out. Then I looked at Logan. He was ready. The second our eyes met, he nodded.
At his signal, I pulled on the handle, straining against the heavy metal door until it began to slide up. The sound of the door lifting was deafening in the otherwise silent forest. It rose, moving in what felt like slow motion, and a gust of warm, rotten air swept out, followed by moans. It was only halfway up when someone behind us shouted, but it was too late for them. There was no stopping the door now since it was designed to roll up the rest of the way on its own, and the dead were already on the move.
“Go!” Logan shouted.
I did as I was told, darting around the side of the truck and dashing for the cover of trees. Being on the other side, he ran in the opposite direction, meaning I couldn’t see if he made it to safety, but I knew he would most likely be okay. The men—awake now, by the sound of it—would be focused on the dead, and the zombies would follow the noise. With the way they were yelling, there was no way the dead would pay attention to Logan or me.
Once I was in the forest, I moved, heading back to where I knew Kellan was crouched. It was dark, and finding my way without getting mangled and scratched by branches wasn’t easy. They bit at my face and bare arms, poked my legs and tried to trip me up at every turn, but they didn’t stop me.
Before long, Kellan came into view. He was crouched exactly where he’d been before, his gun up and ready and his focus on the clearing. I collapsed beside him, and he looked away long enough to check me over, then his attention returned to the men. I was panting and sweating, my heart thudding harder than a drum, but nothing could have stopped me from watching what was happening in the clearing.
There had been more zombies in the truck than I’d thought—at least a dozen—and they were all out now. A few were down, taken out before I’d made it to Kellan, but the rest had converged on the three men. They were doing their best to fight the dead off, but they were outnumbered and had been caught off guard. It wasn’t long before the first one was bitten. The scream Karl let out when a zombie’s teeth sank into his arm sent a shiver through me, but I couldn’t feel bad. Not when I knew everything he’d taken part in.
Bulldog was fighting off two of the dead not too far from Karl. He’d been smart enough to leave his leather on, giving him more protection, but his face and neck were uncovered, and I knew it wouldn’t be long.
Andrew hadn’t been so careful. He’d removed his leather jacket and now wore nothing from the waist up but a short sleeve black shirt. Even before the zombie he was struggling with got hold of his arm, I knew he was a goner. When the creature managed to get the man’s finger in his mouth, he screamed, and a sickening feeling of satisfaction shot through me.
Somehow, Andrew managed to kill the zombie, stabbing him in the eye with his free hand. His other hand, however, came away from the altercation with one less finger. Not that it mattered. Less than a second after the zombie hit the ground, another one grabbed him from behind. When he sank his teeth into Andrew’s neck, I let out a breath.
Kellan took my hand, pulling my attention from the scene in front of me. He jerked his head away from the camp, and I noticed Logan and Beth had retreated. I looked back toward Andrew, who was fighting with the dead even though he had to know he was a goner. I wanted to stay. Wanted to watch him take his last breath. Wanted to witness his pain.
“Regan,” Kellan said, drawing my attention back to him, “let’s get out of here before the zombies find us.”
He was right. I knew it, but it still took every ounce of strength in me to force my legs to move so I could stand.
I took one last look toward Andrew, memorizing the way the bite on his neck looked, taking in his bloody body, and turned away, allowing Kellan to pull me into the forest.
25
Logan drove through the darkness with Beth at his side. In the second row, Brady sat between Ava and Gideon once again, while Kellan and I curled up in the back. I was lying against him, my head on his chest and his arms around me. My tears had long ago dried out, but the emotions swirling through me hadn’t eased. It was a mixture of relief at Andrew’s death and grief over what we’d lost, and the combination felt more violent than the tornado that had ripped through the farmhouse.
Andrew was dead. I hadn’t gotten to witness his last breath, but I’d seen the fatal bite. It hadn’t been on the arm or hand or leg, which meant there was no coming back from it. He couldn’t cut off a limb to stop the spread of the virus. No, he would be dead soon if he wasn’t already. I had serious doubts he’d been able to fight the remaining zombies off long enough to get away.
“Do you feel safer?” Kellan whispered.
“Yes, but I’ll feel even better once we’re home.”
He tightened his hold on me. “Soon.”
We were going to Altus first, both because we were low on fuel and would need more to make it to the shelter, and also because we thought we might be able to get some information about Bill if we went there. A little over a week had passed since Andrew dragged us away, but it wouldn’t be long before we knew what had happened to our friends. It couldn’t come soo
n enough.
Once the emotional storm raging through me eased, I began to drift off. The relief made me feel lighter, and combined with the rocking of the car and the feel of Kellan’s warm body under me, was as soothing as a lullaby.
The next thing I knew, I was waking to him gently shaking me, his voice soft when he said, “We’re here, Regan.”
Shifting, I sat up, blinking in the early morning light, and caught sight of the gate as Logan slowed to a stop outside it. We sat in silence, waiting for it to open as he beat out an impatient tune on the steering wheel while everyone but Kellan and I craned their necks to get a look at the settlement.
Like always, long dead bodies lined the sidewalks, taken out by the guards and stacked three high, while flies buzzed around them. It was a security measure that seemed to work, but still disgusting, and the expressions on the others’ faces said they weren’t any less repulsed by the sight than I was.
In front of us, the person in the watchtower waved, signaling to the people on the ground to open the gate, and once they had, Logan drove through.
“There,” Kellan said from beside me. “Park over there.”
The other man obeyed, pulling to a stop beside a couple other cars, and I had the door shoved open before he’d even put it in park. A couple men who’d been passing stopped to stare, their eyes on Kellan as he climbed out behind me, and the shock on their faces told that not only did they know who he was, but they’d heard what happened. Which meant we’d been right. Blake had come here after Bill was shot.
“Kellan,” a woman I recognized from other visits called, jogging over.
Chelsea was the same woman who’d flirted with him in the past, but the sight of her didn’t fill me with annoyance or jealousy the way it had the last time I was here. Now, all I could think about was Bill.
“Chelsea,” Kellan said when he spotted her. “Tell me Blake’s been here.”
The Oklahoma Wastelands Series Box Set | Books 1-3 Page 81
