Mutant zombies can kill Russians.
Leo regained his senses. “Jennifer, horses! Now!”
In true Jennifer form, she completely ignored him.
She leaped off the roof on the far side and climbed into the motor home.
God damn her. What the hell was she thinking? Leo was torn between going after her and getting the horses.
He decided to trust Jennifer and whatever she had planned. He was halfway to the horses when the Airstream hummed to life. A second later, Jennifer floored it. The motor home crashed right through the door. Wood and splinters flew everywhere.
Leo reached the horses. Spill and Chaz were already mounted, waiting for him. Leo leaped on top of Stealth.
The horses needed no urging. They whinnied and bolted toward the opening Jennifer made for them. Just before the horses burst free of the garage, Leo caught a glimpse of three dead Russians. The mutant zombies held chunks of brain matter in their hands, devouring it like starved animals.
“Get down!” Spill bellowed, right before he opened fire on the Russian keeping watch by the car. Just as he did, the American prisoner jammed his bound feet through the side. He delivered a brutal kick to the back of the Russian’s head, throwing him off-balance.
Spill’s first bullet took the Russian through he chest. The second shot went through his forehead.
Jennifer tore down the driveway in the Airstream. She pulled to a stop in front of the jeep and jumped out.
Just as she did, red bloomed on the front of Chaz’s uniform. For a few seconds, he swayed atop Thunder. Then he toppled sideways to the ground.
Leo looked back and saw the KGB agent. He’d been hit by the Airstream and was a bloody mess, but the bastard was still alive.
Leo jerked his horse around and started firing, gunning down the KGB agent. The bastard died in a pool of his own blood.
“Chaz!” Jennifer grabbed the front of the uniform and shook him. Spill jumped off Stealth and joined her.
Leo stayed on his horse. One look told him Chaz was gone. “We have to go, guys,” he said. “There could be more Soviets on the way.”
Spill swore, then hustled over to the jeep. He cut his friend free. “Guys,” he said, “this is Griggs. Griggs, these are members of the Snipers.”
“Get on.” Leo held out a hand to Griggs. “We’re getting the hell out of here.” He pulled the other man onto Stealth. Spill climbed on behind Jennifer.
Leo led them away from the slaughter at a gallop. He looked back only once. He saw the mutants still crouched over the bodies of the dead Russians, feasting.
The sight should have comforted him. Or at the very least, brought a sense of twisted satisfaction.
Instead, it made his blood run cold.
28
News
They were a mile from the Cecchino farm when Leo slowed the horses to a walk. He wanted to scout the area near his home to make sure there were no Soviets lurking nearby.
“What—what were those things that killed the Russians?” Griggs asked. “They were like zombies, but different.” The soldier they’d rescued from the Soviet jeep had close cropped brown hair and a large nose. He’d taken a brutal beating from the Russians. His face was swollen and bloody. His nose might be broken.
“Those were mutant zombies,” Jennifer said. “They’re stronger than regular zombies. Smarter. And … they eat brains.”
“Russian brains.” Leo said. This was a game changer. They’d have to keep this info close to the vest in case they could use it to their advantage down the road.
“They eat regular brains, too,” Jennifer said softly. Leo didn’t respond.
“We’ll keep you safe,” Griggs said to Jennifer.
She snorted and rolled her eyes at him. “Last I checked, I was the one keeping you safe.”
The soldier looked abashed by this.
“She’s fiercely independent,” Leo said. “If you want to get on her good side, leave her to fend for herself.”
“You’re not being fair,” Jennifer said. “I just want to be treated equally, not like a porcelain doll. I have a lot to contribute to this war.”
Leo didn’t have the energy to debate the topic with her.
“Tell me,” Griggs said. “Why are nice kids like you going around rescuing dirty thugs like us from Soviets?”
Nice kids? That rankled, but Leo did his best to ignore it. It wasn’t Spill’s fault if he’d assumed the Snipers were a bunch of adults.
Jennifer wasn’t about to let the comment slide. “Nice kids? Is that all you have to say about the people who rescued your asses from zombies, mutants, and Russians?”
Leo cut in before she could get into an argument with their new allies. He wanted to fight with these guys, not against them.
“We’ve made it our mission to protect our West County from the Russians,” Leo said. “We fight when we can. We broadcast important information when we can.” He paused before plunging ahead to ask his own question. “What else can you tell us about what’s going on? We haven’t had any communications from the outside world since the day of the invasion.”
“It’s not good,” Griggs said. “Those communist bastards got us good. They seized both coastlines of the country. They sent soldiers in on Greyhound busses from Mexico and Canada. They took our communication stations. It was a large-scale, well-coordinated attack.”
“We told you about the charter planes,” Spill said. “The nezhit infection has spread everywhere. There are a few safe zones out there, some are held by civilian forces, others by law enforcement. A few military bases have dug in and are making a stand against the infection. The majority of our forces are fighting the infected. We’ve seen some of them start to die off, but for every one that dies it seems like two more replace them. In the meantime, the Soviet bastards are getting cozy in our country.”
“Where are you guys from?” Jennifer asked.
“Nellis Air Force base in Nevada,” Griggs replied. “Our people are fighting a huge wave of infected that spread out from Vegas.”
“How many of you are there?” Leo asked.
Neither Spill nor Griggs responded. Unease prickled the base of Leo’s spine. He turned around on Thunder to look at both men.
“How many?” he repeated.
“A few thousand. We were over ten thousand with retirees before the infection.” Spill’s face was tight.
Leo felt like he’d been punched in the face. Jennifer—brave, fearless Jennifer—actually paled at this statement.
“Our commanding officer heard your broadcasts,” Spill continued. “You’re one of the few civilian guerrilla teams we know of. You happen to be in a strategic position. We were sent to enlist your help in stopping the Second Offensive.”
This was the second time Spill said the government needed their help. Hearing it again was unsettling. All the time they’d been waging their guerrilla war, they thought they just had to hold out against the Soviets until the big guns arrived.
Apparently, the big guns were the two men riding horseback with them.
This just might be the worst news of Leo’s entire life, which was saying something.
“We’ll explain all the details when we get back to your base of operation,” Griggs said. “We’ll want to lay out the full details of the plan with whoever is in charge of your group.”
It was a measure of the situation that Jennifer made no comment to this. Leo didn’t bother correcting Griggs; his mind was too busy working overtime to reassemble a new world view. He’d never dreamed things were so bad.
“When we first heard Deejay Sniper broadcast, it was a huge morale boost,” Spill said. “Knowing there were civilians out there fighting the good fight—Jennifer, stop.” He drew his handgun, aiming at a cluster of trees a few hundred yards up the road.
Leo and the others were instantly alert. He raised his rifle, studying the road ahead of them. There was a tight cluster of eucalyptus trees growing beside the road.
�
�What is it?” Leo asked.
“I saw a guy,” Spill replied. “He’s armed.”
“Soviet?” Leo said.
“Not sure. He didn’t have a uniform, but he had a machine gun.”
“Just a single guy?” Jennifer asked.
“Yeah. One guy.”
Leo decided to take a chance, even though it would tip their hand if he was wrong. “Tate,” he called. “Tate, is that you?”
A second later, an answer came. “It’s me, Leo. You guys okay? Who are those guys with you?”
Leo’s shoulders slumped with relief. “We found the paratroopers, Tate. They’re with us. It’s safe to come out.” He lowered his weapon.
Tate popped out of the trees. Griggs and Spill remained wary. They lowered their weapons, but didn’t put them away.
Leo watched Spill and Griggs size up Tate. He could understand their wariness.
In less than twenty-four hours, Tate had permanently changed. Losing Jim had transformed him. His eyes were hard and flat. He stalked down the road like a predator, holding his machine gun like he was ready to deliver major damage.
Tate stopped when he was ten feet away, sizing up Spill and Griggs much the way they were sizing him up.
“You guys the soldiers who jumped out of the plane?”
“Yeah.” Spill holstered his weapon, apparently deciding Tate wasn’t a threat. “I’m Lieutenant Spillane. This is Lieutenant Griggs.”
Tate grunted. “You guys here to bring reinforcements?”
“They’re here for our help,” Jennifer said.
Tate grunted again. “Figures.”
“Where are your parents?” Leo asked. “Did you get them up to the cabin?”
Tate’s lips compressed into a thin line. “Dad won’t leave the farm.”
“What?” The KGB had paid them a visit, for crying out loud. Leo couldn’t think of a better motivation to get the hell out of Dodge. It had been dumb luck the plane had arrived before things went sideways on the Craig farm.
“Dad won’t leave the farm,” Tate ground out. “And Mom won’t leave Dad. Dad says the farm is his home and he won’t leave it.”
“We have to convince them,” Jennifer said. “It’s not safe. What if more KGB agents come back to interrogate them?”
Tate’s eyes hardened. “You ever try to convince a third generation Irishman to do something he doesn’t want to do?” It was clear from the look on his face that he’d done everything he could to convince his parents to leave. “He thinks he and mom have enough plausible deniability to satisfy any other KGB agents who come their way.”
Leo didn’t know what to say. He knew for certain he wouldn’t want his family members on the Craig farm.
“We could … force them,” he offered. He didn’t like the idea, but he’d do it for his friend.
Tate shook his head. “Dad made his decision. Come on, let’s get back to the cabin.” He retrieved the stocky mare from the eucalyptus trees.
“You sure?” Leo had a sick vision of himself and Tate forcing the Craigs to leave their farm at gunpoint.
“I’m sure.” Tate rode away.
Jennifer and Leo exchanged a long look. He saw his worry etched in her expression.
“It’s not safe for them,” she said. “They must know that.”
Leo sighed and shook his head. “It’s not our decision. Come on, let’s get home.”
He forced the Craigs from his mind, but sick dread for their safety lodged in his gut.
29
Soldiers
Tensions were high at the cabin. Leo, Tate, and Jennifer had been gone for hours. Much longer than necessary to deliver news of a deceased loved one.
And then there had been that plane, the one shot down from the sky. To Cassie, it looked like the missile had come from somewhere near the Craig farm.
Everyone was dealing with the stress differently.
Anton and Bruce, who had returned from their supply run, sat on the porch cleaning every weapon they could get their hands on. Nonna and Amanda were busy inside making more bombs. Dal and Lena had joined Cassie and Stephenson. The four of them were busy organizing the supplies Anton and Bruce had brought back. Even though the two guys had been forced to travel by bike, they’d brought back an impressive amount of supplies.
They’d filled several large duffel bags with food, which they hung on either side of the bikes like saddlebags. They filled backpacks and hung them from the front handle bars. Another backpack went on each of their backs.
They’d even managed to catch three chickens. The birds had been tied around the ankles and lashed atop the duffel bags. They now pecked and scratched around the yard. Nonna worried they’d attract coyotes and mountain lions, but even she couldn’t argue against fresh eggs. They would just have to lock them up at night and hope for the best.
As Cassie sorted through a large pile of bagged rice, she kept thinking about Leo and Jennifer. She tried to be positive, but doubt and fear crept in. The idea that something may have happened to one or both of them had her close to tears several times. If Stephenson hadn’t insisted on alphabetizing all the supplies, she’d probably be losing her mind right now.
She listed out all the reasons why Jennifer would make it back alive.
a) She was smart.
b) She was athletic.
c) She didn’t like it when anyone told her no. In fact, if she heard the word no, she went to great lengths to disprove the word.
Cassie wracked her brain for more reasons. There had to be more. Luck didn’t count. How about beauty? Did that count as a skill? Cassie decided to go with it.
d) Jennifer was beautiful. Things happened for her purely because she was beautiful. Just because looks hadn’t saved anyone from zombies didn’t mean it wouldn’t save Jennifer. Right?
And how about Leo? There was a long list of reason why he would be okay.
a) He was good in a crisis.
b) He was strong, smart, and decisive.
c) He was practically invincible.
d) He was Leo Cecchino, for crying out loud.
She was desperate for them to be okay. They had to be okay.
Cassie had just added the rice count to the inventory sheet when a shout went up from outside.
“They’re back!” Anton cried. “Guys, they’re back!” His footsteps thumped on the stairs overhead.
Cassie dropped everything and rushed outside. She emerged into the sunlight just as Leo, Jennifer, and Tate rode onto Pole Mountain. All three of them were dirty, bruised, and bloody. What the hell had happened?
As she ran to the horses, she didn’t know who to hug first: Leo or Jennifer.
Leo made the decision for her. He jumped off Stealth and swept her up, lifting her feet a few inches off the ground as he squeezed her in a hug.
“It’s so good to see you,” he murmured, planting a kiss just below her earlobe.
“What took you guys so long?” she asked.
Before he could answer, Jennifer marched up to them. “I said you could date her, Leo, not hog her.”
Cassie grabbed her sister in a hug and asked her the same question. “What took you guys so long?”
That’s when she noticed the newcomers. Soldiers. American soldiers, from the looks of their uniforms.
There was a dark-skinned Filipino man whose name patch read Spillane. The other man had dark hair and a very large nose. His patch read Griggs.
The clearing went quiet as everyone gaped at the soldiers. Cassie’s face broke into a grin. This is what they’d been waiting for since the start of the invasion: help. Help had finally come. With any luck, this war would be over soon.
The man with the big nose ruined the moment. “Jesus Christ, you’re all a bunch of kids. Who’s in charge around here?”
That earned him a ferocious whack on the back of his head from Nonna. “You will not take the Lord’s name in vain around here,” she said severely.
“Jesus, lady, I—”
Nonna
whacked him a second time, this time harder.
Leo rested a hand on Griggs’s shoulder. “I’d listen to her, man. She’s not being metaphorical.”
The two soldiers stared at them, realization finally dawning in their eyes.
Cassie could understand their shock. Hell, they were a bunch of kids. Although Cassie was technically old enough to vote, she was still a senior in high school.
She wondered what was more shocking. The fact that they were all really young, or the fact that they were young and looked like battle-hardened soldiers.
Anton and Bruce both held machine guns, looking ready to charge into battle at a moment’s notice. Dal and Lena, who both had rifles, could clearly hold their own. Even Nonna had a rifle in her hands. Hell, even Amanda had come out of the cabin with a .22. Tate looked downright scary. Losing his older brother had changed him. Of everyone here, only Cassie and Stephenson were unarmed.
“Who’s in charge around here?” Griggs demanded at last.
Everyone turned to Leo.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Spill asked.
Leo shrugged. “Sorry, Spill. I wasn’t sure you’d believe me until you saw for yourself.”
“These are the Snipers?” Griggs said. “A bunch of kids and an old lady?”
“We disrupted a major military operation in Hillsberg yesterday,” Anton said coldly. “Before that, we launched an offensive in Bastopol that took out troops and allowed us to send out a broadcast.”
“Fuck me. We are so fucked. We came all this way for nothing.” Spill looked like he needed to sit down. Or maybe pour himself a stiff drink.
All he got was a whack in the back of the head from Nonna.
“We do not tolerate that sort of language on Cecchino land,” she told him flatly.
“Nonna, is there any food?” Leo asked. “These guys have come a long way for our help. Then they were shot out of the sky by Russians. They’ve had a long day.”
Nonna’s lips compressed. “There’s food inside for anyone who has manners.” Her gaze was severe as she sized up the two soldiers.
Zommunist Invasion Box Set | Books 1-3 Page 40
