by Maxey, Phil
The younger man shook his head. “Not really big on guns…”
Landon sighed and handed it to him anyway. “Just keep the barrel facing away from yourself or us and you should be good. It’s only got four bullets left so make them count.”
They nodded to each other and Landon kept on going. He was sure he didn’t imagine it. Maybe it was the owners, scared that strangers were going to take whatever they had and were keeping hidden. The idea that there were any humans still left had become, unfortunately, strange. And he hated that. But hope got you killed or worse.
Still, if someone had survived, he needed to introduce himself. Real live, non-homicidal people were in short supply.
He walked across damp grass then frozen puddles, the ice breaking on impact and…
Donnie bounded on ahead.
“Hey, wait! Wait!” said Landon, scanning the darkness then running to keep up. A small spark of light appeared again within the mobile home, somewhere towards the back then just as quickly extinguished. Donnie was jumping up against the side door, scratching at the metal surface.
Landon looked across the twenty or so feet of silver home. “Is there anyone—”
The door sprang open, making him crouch, ready for something to lunge at him.
“Mr. Keller?” said a young voice.
“Agatha?” Two other small heads appeared beside her, all three now lit by a light. She ran down the steps almost falling over Donnie and threw her arms around Landon, making him wince, but his shock eclipsed the pain. He hadn’t even had a chance to think about the loss of life of those that died on the highway, such was his own state of mind about his family. But as she hugged him, also followed by the other two children doing the same, tears ran down his cheek.
“They left us!” said Agatha between sobs.
Landon pulled away slightly. “Who left you?”
“The old man!” said Toby.
“And the other two,” said Helen.
“Clint, Jay and Tracey were here?” All three nodded as footsteps came from behind. Landon briefly turned around to confirm it was Brad.
“They didn’t want us to go with them,” said Agatha. “But we followed them anyway.”
“It was very dark,” said Helen.
“They found a car—”
“A car?”
“Yes, and they wouldn’t take us. Said we should stay in this place and they would come back.”
Landon’s felt weak. “It’s gone…”
“What’s gone?” said Agatha.
He sighed. “What I needed to find.”
“You mean the vaccine? The old man, had it?”
“Yup…”
She looked down. “I’m sorry I broke the bottle…”
“It’s not your fault. None of this is your fault…”
“But maybe you can catch up with them, if you have a car?” said Toby, who was being looked at by Brad, making sure none of the kids were injured beyond the scratches and grime covering their faces.
“I don’t think there are any other vehicles here,” said Landon.
“Yes, there is,” said Agatha. “There’s a pickup around the back of the house over there. They didn’t see it, they were in too much of a hurry to leave.”
Landon looked back to the office. “Maybe there are—” The jangle made him stop and look at Brad who was holding up a set of keys with a smile.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
10:07 p.m. Biochron headquarters.
The darkness of the space around Jess was pervasive, her eyes just about managing to make out the details of doors and walls around her. As she inched forward, letting her gun lead the way and using her other hand to feel for any obstructions, the glass bottles she salvaged jostled in a bag she had found, over her shoulder. Not long ago she was stood at a door, the stairwell to the surface not far ahead, Arlene’s still warm body behind her. But instead of leaving, she decided to take the other exit from the room, the one Rackham had used.
Somewhere in this underground complex amongst the monsters were the immunes. Those that Biochron had taken, and who had ultimately been their downfall. If Rackham, chief scientist at the company was right, then they were still here. And she wasn’t leaving until she found them, even if they weren’t as immune as they thought…
A slither of light heralded a door somewhere in front of her and she walked forward quickly, pushing it open. She almost leaped for joy on seeing the mundane looking desk, filing cabinet and computer screen, which was tilted backwards, its glass partially cracked but from the glow, still functioning. She walked inside, closing the door and quickly moved the mouse over the desk. The screen sprang to life, displaying a message for her to use her ID card for access. She pulled the silver card out and moved it over the black box to the right of the keyboard and the screen promptly changed, showing multiple digital pages, one of which was a profile of the soldier she took the ID from. She avoided looking at the man’s details, that he had two children and was only a year into the job and clicked on the page the man’s security details allowed her to view. A two-dimensional view of the floor she was on slid onto the display. ‘Administration - floor 6’ was at the top. She quickly clicked through each of the other links at the left side, each one letting her see the other rooms, floors and ultimately what she was looking for.
“Gotcha… Gregg…”
Her screen was full of live feeds of those she had seen on the wagons and some she had not. Old and young, sat, stood and walked around their cells. Despite her relief on seeing them, a part of her was disappointed. But it would have been too easy for her family to be there as well.
I know you’re alive, Landon… I know it…. And you’ll find Sam and—
A clang came from outside, making her spin around, raising her gun. The barrel wavered as she waited… trying to hear beyond the sound of her own breathing to whatever may be on the other side of the door, but there was no repeat. She let out a breath and looked back to the screen. Luckily those held captive were all on the same floor, which from the chart appeared to be two above her, and one below where she started out. She made a mental note of the route to the closest stairwell and walked slowly back to the door, listening, then on not hearing anything pulled it open.
A wall of black so dark, it appeared as if the world had been sucked into it was in front of her.
Move to the end, turn left… walk another ten or so feet, turn right and the—
There was another clang, this time louder.
The urge to retreat back into the small office was almost too much for her to resist, but she walked forward anyway, allowing herself to be swallowed by the void. As she listened for the slightest of sounds, she tried to keep track of the direction she hoped she was moving in.
Ten feet… more… further…
She bumped up against a wall then walked forward again, letting her hand feel the smooth surface until it couldn’t, then turned left and walked forward again.
Keep walking Jess, I got this… There’s nothing—
A stench wafted across her, like a physical blanket falling upon her face and without much control she ran forward, clipping a corner of a wall, where she frantically turned right. A line of light indicated the bottom of a door. Stairwell? She didn’t care and ran towards it crashing into the door, foolishly expecting it to open, but of course it stayed firmly shut.
“Shit.”
She pulled the card from her pocket and swiped it through the air, not knowing where the card reading device was.
The door remained closed.
“Where… where are…” The smell was so strong she felt as if she was swimming in sewage. She furiously swiped and felt the frame, desperate for her fingers to locate the box. “Where…”
There was a click and the door sprung open. She bashed up against it, pushing it all the way then used her back to close it.
She let out a breath and looked at the—
Something slammed into the door behind, rattling its h
inges and making her jump away and quickly ascend the steps, not looking back.
Floor five…
She ran around the landing, not looking at the other door and kept going up, arriving at…
Floor six…
The entrance to this floor had a small window. That was good. She walked forward slowly, doing her best to control her breathing and peered into the darkness on the other side. At first there was nothing, then like seeing exotic animals in the oily depths of the oceans, hideous faces and shapes came and went, receding back into the gloom with a hint of their true form. She had only had a glimpse of what was between her and the immunes, but it was enough to terrify her.
Should have known! Should have… he told me!
The immunes were like a flame that the creatures were drawn too. And if she swiped the card across the entry box, the door would spring open and hell would pour out.
In the cool air of the confined space, within the bland walls, a numbness started to creep across her mind. An acceptance that those in the cells were doomed. Their fate sealed. It would take an army to—
A door opened and closed far below, accompanied with the clatter of gunfire and anxious voices. Boots slapped the stairs. People were coming up.
She ran forward, looking down as best she could, catching an arm or a shoulder as those below rushed towards her. She looked up.
I can run. Leave. Get out of this—
“Who the fuck are you?” said a dark-haired man in uniform the same as the one she took the card from. He was standing on the next landing down, and had his gun aimed squarely at her head. Another soldier, a woman appeared and then a man. Middle-aged. One that triggered a memory of someone different but the same. She looked at the ascending steps.
“Nah, uh, lady,” said the male soldier. “How about you answer my question?”
The older man nudged past him. “Scott, this is Mrs. Keller. Try not to kill her. She’s very valuable.” The soldier frowned, lowering his weapon.
“Who are you?” said Jess, fighting the urge to raise her own weapon.
“Lucas Winters, son to—”
“You’re Alfred’s son?”
“Yup. Not that he ever thought of me as that.” He looked back at the soldiers, then to the door. “Check the route is clear.”
They quickly moved up the steps.
“I wouldn’t open that if I were you…”
Scott looked at Jess.
She nodded towards the small window. “Take a look.”
He did. A few seconds passed then his expression changed.
“Yup.”
The muscular soldier rubbed his chin. “That’s a problem.”
“Why?”
Lucas answered. “Because that’s the only way out of this hole.”
She scrunched her face. “We just need to go up. There’s a—”
Lucas leaned back against the handrail. “Been there, done that. Those things are everywhere. This route takes us up into the garage. This was our last hope…”
The woman let out a breath, taking her helmet off and leaned back against the wall.
“He always talked highly of you,” said Lucas.
“Uh?”
“My father. Said Biochron would not be the company it was today without you. He said you were special.”
The other soldier joined the first also taking his helmet off, sitting on the nearby steps.
“How did you end up in control?” said Jess. “Where is—”
“Daddy? Oh he died of a heart attack a few days ago once he learned what Rackham had done.”
Jess’s anger was returning, a seething ocean of hate which she was doing everything she could to control.
“Rackham? What’s your role in all of this?” The words came out between gritted teeth and he answered before she had a chance to add more.
“My role?” He briefly looked down. “The plan was simple. He had been sitting on what you had discovered for a few years. He knew its potential, but—”
She grabbed him by the neck, lifting him off of his feet and slammed him into the wall before the soldiers reacted. She knew she only had seconds before they would probably put a bullet in her and she didn’t care. She wanted answers. “You and Rackham destroyed everything! Millions are dead! What did you do?” Her anger stopped her tears.
“Hey… I… saved… your… life!”
“Uh?” She let him drop back to the floor where he bent over, trying to get air back into his lungs and rubbed his throat.
“I was the one who opened your cell! Thought I’d give you a fighting chance of getting out of here!”
The stocky female soldier, her blond hair just visible beneath her helmet, aimed her gun at Jess. “What you want me to do? Sir,” said the woman.
He waved his hand at her, then stood upright, trying to swallow. “Save your bullets for other things.” He took a breath. “What happened with the virus wasn’t intended, I was trying to help people!”
“What?” Jess said incredulously.
“Your… invention, discovery, patent, whatever you call it. If used correctly had the potential to end all illness! We could take useful genes from any creature we wanted. Combine them. Cells… that would repair themselves! No more disease, no more… aging! Could have made Biochron the richest corporation on earth!”
She shook her head in disbelief. “This was all about money? The virus changes organic life… Turns it into—”
He shook his head. “It was Rackham. He changed the formula… or something. I don’t know about that geek shit. I don’t know what he did. He’s crazy, believes in all this occult stuff.” He looked directly at his accuser. “But I didn’t know any of that! The probe was just a cover for us to test it out. It was just meant to be in one place. Denver. People would wake up the next morning, none the wiser… until their illnesses started to mysteriously be cured…” He sighed a sigh which seemed genuine to Jess, but her hate persisted. “But somehow, whatever the new version of the virus was, he released it across the country.”
Jess’s hand tensed on the butt of the gun.
“Uh uh, don’t even think about it,” said Scott, his gun as well as the woman’s aimed at Jess.
She turned to them. “This man is partly responsible for killing most of the people in this country and probably further! Why are you still protecting him!”
“Because that’s my job.”
Jess looked at the woman, who seemed less sure, but still held her gun on her. Jess turned away in frustration. “Agh!”
Lucas swallowed, still rubbing his neck. “You think I wanted to commit genocide? I… I thought I was doing the right thing! I thought my father was being shortsighted by not using your research…”
Silence returned to the stairwell.
Jess let out a breath. “Amos knew…”
“Yeah. He wasn’t exactly onboard with the plan.”
“Did he know what Rackham was going to do?”
“I don’t think so. He just knew parts of what was meant to happen. But… he wanted to protect you.”
“He killed him…”
Lucas looked confused. “What?”
“Rackham killed Amos, at Amos’s home. I was there just a few days ago. Went to get more vaccine. Rackham and Biochron’s—” she glanced at the two soldiers. “— people where there as well.”
“You can trust these two,” said Lucas. “They’re with me.”
“Rackham’s still alive…”
The three others looked at each other.
“Still alive?” said Scott.
“You sure?” said Lucas.
“Me and a girl I was with. We ran into him on one of the lower levels, in a lab. He killed her. Would have done the same to me, but I had this.” She held up the gun. She looked back at the former CEO. “I was with others, hundreds of miles from here. We were attacked—”
Lucas nodded. “Yeah. Rackham wanted to bring the immunes and you back here. Said he could clear up the mess he create
d, if he had more data.”
“And you believed that? Even after you knew what he did?” Jess noted the expressions on the two soldiers’ faces.
“I didn’t know until today… he said it was a mistake… a miss-calculation, which caused a variant of the original virus to be used.” Lucas stood closer to Jess. “You got to believe me!”
She looked away.
“What was I meant to do! He’s the guy with the brains. If anyone could fix everything it would be him! I had no—”
There was a thud on the other side of the door. The three with guns raised them towards it as a groan came from the other side.
“We can’t stay here,” said Scott.
Lucas walked to the door and looked through the window, then pulled back. “This is the way we’re going.”
“Are you crazy?” said Scott. “You see what’s in there, right?”
The older man turned to Jess. “If you want to see your husband again. You’re going to have to get us through what’s on the other side of that door.”
She looked at him with bemusement. “What makes you think I’ll be able to get through that room?”
“Rackham did tests. Your genetic code was altered because you took the vaccine too late. But, you got it in you just in time, so you didn’t go full mutant. In fact, he said you’re something of a scientific miracle. At least that’s what he called you. He seemed obsessed with you or something…”
Jess walked to the door and looked again into the mouth of hell. Faint groans and screeches came from beyond. “I’m stronger than I was… but not strong enough to deal with those things.”
“It’s not about how strong you are…”
She turned around. “What?”
“He said the things might think you’re one of their own. Not human…”
Her anger was returning. She never asked for any of this. Never asked to become… She looked away. “I’m not one of those things.”
“No, obviously.” said Scott. “But if those things think you are. Then…”
“If I do this. If I get you through that room, then you help me get the other people out. And I want transport back east.”
“If you want to try and keep them alive that’s on you,” said Lucas. “But the transport thing, sure.”
