Particle Z (Book 1) (13 page)
Mike was horrified at the way Haya had met his end, but a part of him was basking in the glory of his sacrifice. As he looked at his companions, tears were streaming from each set of eyes that met his own, and to the man not a one cared in the least. Only a true warrior would ever experience a glorious death such as had just been witnessed.
That immensely sad yet proud moment was cut short by the guttural growls and moaning of the Changed as they poured into the room only to find their pray had escaped. Some stared balefully up at them while others moved about, raking their arms toward the gaping hole in the ceiling. The sound was the worst; Mike didn’t understand how a human throat could make sounds like that. It was chilling to listen to so he turned away and surveyed the stateroom they now found themselves in. It appeared to be a carbon copy of the one below minus the enraged Zs … at least for the moment.
“Thanks for the lift, Eric,” Mike said smiling at his most trusted friend.
“Anytime. It looked like room service wasn’t the right call this time and I didn’t think you wanted to stick around to discuss the finer point of customer service.” Mike knew Eric was trying to alleviate some of the tension in the room and appreciated him even more now for it.
Davis was making sure the door to the new room was locked before they moved the dresser in front of it. It felt like déjà vu. Everyone else was checking weapons and reloading. The mood was somber after witnessing Haya’s gruesome death, but they were all professionals and life marched on. They would pay their respects and mourn later.
Mike glared over at Julian. “We’ve lost two now. How can we make it to the bunker with so many Changed roaming the halls? It feels like we just whacked a beehive and it’s going to be hard to avoid getting stung now.”
Julian was staring down at the same map he’d been using earlier, and after a few minutes looked up at everyone. All eyes were glued to him as they waited patiently for whatever plan he was hatching next.
“I need two men to check the status of this floor; we can’t afford to get trapped like that again. Haya gave his life for ours, but if we keep it up there will be no one left when we get to the bunker.”
Eric raised his hand and said, “I’ll go; had a lot practice clearing homes in Fallujah during my Army days.”
Davis also raised his hand. “I’ll go with him.”
“Let me show you where we need to get to,” Julian said, gesturing the two men over.
While Julian was poring over the hotel map with Eric and Davis, Mike walked over to the nightstand and picked up the TV remote. Turning towards the TV mounted to the opposite wall, he pressed the power button then immediately muted the volume.
Nothing but snow greeted him as the screen came to life. Mike pressed the menu button, changed the setting from cable to air, and waited while the TV searched for any channel in range. Nothing. Mike turned the TV back off and placed the remote where he’d found it. They were deep in the hills of West Virginia so maybe it was the location and not a sign of anything more ominous. He pulled his cell phone out and checked it. The battery was dead and he doubted anyone had a working phone on them after the last couple days’ excitement.
Julian had finished up with Eric and Davis and had watched Mike fumble around for any kind of news. He then leaned in and said, “There is communication gear in the bunker; we will get an accurate picture of how bad it’s gotten soon enough.”
“We have to get there first, Julian.”
“True enough, Mike, and we will.”
Eric and Davis quietly slipped from the room while Mike and Julian were talking. Mike turned his attention to the queen-sized bed and its super-plush mattress.
Don’t mind if I do
, he thought to himself and walked over to check it out.
“Go ahead,” Julian called over. “Might as well get all the rest you can.”
“Think I will, unless someone else wants first dibs?” Mike asked, glancing around the room.
No one protested so Mike climbed in and quickly nodded off. It was even more comfortable than he had imagined; hotel beds were always the best. If it were not for the angry grunting of the Changed below, Mike would have labeled it heaven.
He awoke seemingly as soon as he had closed his eyes when a quick rap on the door shattered his rest. Aggeles jumped up, went over to the door, and said something to whomever was on the other side. He must have received a satisfactory response because he quickly opened the door, letting Eric and Davis back in.
“Status?” Julian asked before the men could even find a place to sit.
“The floor is clear. I’m sure most of the guests were either out enjoying their vacation or tried to get to their cars when the shit hit the fan. I checked the stairs and looked for access points; we have the floor to ourselves, gentlemen,” Davis said, delivering the first bit of good news since this mission had kicked off.
“What’s the plan, Julian?” Eric asked.
“We’ll run a reverse,” he said with a smirk on his face. “We blew our way up so now we will blow our way back down.”
“What about the noise?” Eric asked, not looking convinced.
“We locate an entry point then blow another hole back down to the first floor. Once that is secure, we double-time it back here and create a diversion with live bait. After we get them moving back in this direction, we’ll have a small window of opportunity to clear any stragglers and get into the bunker. We can’t blow the floor next to the bunker because of its concrete outer shell, so we’ll drop in from a little further out.”
Eric, still skeptical, asked, “What if you can’t get the bunker door opened before they return?”
“Then we go out as strong and proud as Vogel and Haya did, gentlemen.”
Mike said with a deadpan face, “Just make sure you get the door open. I have someone important counting on me out there.”
“I’ll see what I can do, Mike. I want in as badly as you and I have more than just one person counting on me.”
Mike wasn’t sure if he was talking about them or some broader mission he hadn’t felt like sharing yet. He didn’t really care as long as they got Marlee and his friends to safety.
“Power on,” Mike said as they all cautiously filed out into the hallway.
Mike closed the door behind him, thankful to put some distance between them and the sound of the Changed’s agitated hunger calling from below. Julian’s plan seemed plausible, and he hoped they would be inside the bunker sooner than later so he could reunite with Marlee, Reid, and Ashley. Mike knew the longer they stayed in one place the likelihood of seeing his friends again diminished.
Marlee watched as Mike and the others disappeared into the brush. She tried not to show it, but she was scared to death this would be the last time she saw Mike alive and doubted whether or not she would survive in this dangerous new world without him.
Turning away as Mike’s form faded from sight, she smirked when she noticed Ashley already had one of the young Terra Corp men wrapped around her finger. Ash had always been good at turning men into goo when she wanted to. Her blonde hair and curves, combined with a tight white tee accenting an endowment most women would kill for went a long way toward flipping the idiot switch inside any dude’s brain. Not that it was a long journey for most of them. It looked like Ash had convinced him to move the MRAP up slightly so they could gain access to the second-story roof and bedroom windows.
“Come on, Marlee,” Ashley called. “Why sweat in that bucket of bolts when we have a perfectly good bedroom just waiting for us.”
“Because for starters, that bucket of bolts can keep those things out and it has a huge gun attached to it.”
“Come on, Marlee, we can get back inside the MRAP in no time at all, and Floyd here said he will watch over us.”
Marlee rolled her eyes. If Floyd’s idea of “watching over us” meant keeping his eyes locked on Ashley’s bouncing assets as she jumped from the MRAP to the roof was any indication of his sentry skills, they were in trouble. She was tired of being cooped up in the MRAP, so it didn’t take much to prod her into checking out the luxury home’s creature comforts. Her mind made up, she jumped from the MRAP to the roof and followed Ashley into the house.
Once inside, Marlee’s eyes lit up and her shoulders relaxed ever so slightly at the sight of a huge oversized bed and a real bathroom with a mirror. She knew she must be a wreck to look at and was excited about the idea of fixing herself up a bit before seeing Mike again. The contrast between the room she found herself in now and the MRAP was stark, and she wanted to enjoy it as long as possible. Ashley was already heading toward the bedroom door when her new boy toy Floyd followed them through the window.
“Hold on, ma’am,” Floyd said, his eyes widening as he realized she was headed further into the house.
Looks like our brave little friend isn’t so brave after all
, Marlee thought to herself, smiling inwardly at his obvious desire to impress Ashley now dampened with real fear.
“What’s wrong Floyd? You afraid some little old Z’s gonna eat ya?” Ashley chided him, laughing at her own joke as she swung the door open and stepped into the hallway.
“Is she always like this?” Floyd asked Marlee with a trace of exacerbation.
“Actually, no, she’s usually reserved and cautious, but I think things have gotten to her. Better go keep an eye on her, and I mean all of her.”
His face turned a deep crimson red as he made a hasty retreat in the direction Ashley had disappeared, now realizing his earlier admiration of Ashley hadn’t gone unnoticed.
Alone at last, Marlee walked into one of the nicest bathrooms she had ever seen and looked into the mirror. Seeing her eyes as they appeared now almost made her cry. How could Mike look at her and see the same woman he fell in love with?
She looked like one of those things now.
Shuddering with revulsion, Marlee wondered how long it would be before she started to crave human flesh, or worse. How long would the others trust her, or how long would she trust herself for that matter. For a minute, she contemplated sneaking off and leaving the group so no harm would come to her friends if she turned. Sliding down to the floor, Marlee started to cry uncontrollably.
“Ma’am, ma’am, are you okay?” Marlee heard as she drifted back to the present and looked up to see Shrader standing over her with a concerned look on his face. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes, I’m sorry. It all just got to me. Please give me a couple of minutes.”
“I’ll go check on the others,” he said, then quietly left her alone.
She was grateful for the privacy and simply wanted to pull herself together without an audience. Getting back to her feet, she turned on the water, grateful when it actually worked, then proceeded to wash up as best she could considering the circumstances.
When she was done, she walked toward the door to see what Ashley had gotten herself into. A sudden chill ran up her spine – a premonition so strong it slammed into her like a bolt of lightning. The feeling was so intense that she knew something was wrong. Marlee ran over to the window and looked down at the MRAP. Nothing seemed out of place, but she knew something was wrong or perhaps she was finally starting to go crazy or worse.
Heavy footsteps were pounding toward the bedroom, and seconds later Shrader burst through the door as if he had seen the devil itself. He screamed, “Get back in the MRAP NOW!”
“Where are Ash and Floyd?” she asked, dread cracking her voice.
Shrader didn’t stop as he passed Marlee, simply grabbing her by the waist and carrying her to the window. Marlee’s question was answered when Ashley stepped through the doorway. Parts of Floyd’s shredded face were hanging from her bloody mouth. She was nude from the waist up, and blood was running down her breasts and stomach, slowly pooling at her feet. In an abstract way, Marlee regretted that such expensive carpet was now ruined. Then she snapped back into the moment.
Ashley’s face was contorted into a mask of pure hatred. Her eyes now lit with the familiar red tint were glaring at Marlee with an intensity that went far beyond what she had seen from the Changed so far. She opened her mouth and emitted a bone-chilling cry, her gaze never leaving Marlee.
“STOP,” Marlee commanded Shrader.
“What? Are you crazy? That bitch will tear us to pieces!”
“She was my friend, I’ll handle her.”
Shrader let go of Marlee and jumped through the bedroom window, quickly turning back around and training his rifle on Ashley. He was ready to defend Marlee if or when she lost control of the situation, something he was sure would happen shortly.
Marlee felt something come alive inside her as she looked at Ashley. She felt more in control of her body, thoughts, and emotions than she had ever felt before. Something had changed inside of her, of that she was now certain. She looked at Ashley with sadness and knew what she had to do.
Closing her eyes, she calmed herself. She could sense every fiber inside her body, now feeling as if she could reach beyond her own physical encapsulation. Marlee could sense Ashley standing inside the doorway entrance and she could sense the cool calm that was Shrader behind her. Reaching out with tiny parts of herself, she entered Ashley’s mind, a mind consumed with rage, hate, and an overriding need to kill those standing before her. Rational thought was gone now, and the Ashley she had known and loved was gone forever. The violence inside Ashley’s mind almost shocked her back into her physical state, but she stood firm.
There was nothing she could do for Ashley now except show her friend mercy. Deep inside Ashley’s remaining consciousness, Marlee located a pulsing core from where all the malice and hunger seemed to flow. Marlee wasn’t sure how she did it, but she extinguished that part of Ashley’s mind and her friend dropped to the floor like a rag doll, never to rise again.
Exhausted and not sure what had just happened, Marlee started to lose consciousness and fell backwards into darkness. She didn’t feel Shrader gently catch her and carry her back to the safety of the MRAP.
Shrader wasn’t sure what he had just witnessed, but he planned on keeping a close eye on the woman in his arms until someone could figure it out.