Rise & Walk (Book 2): Pathogen (26 page)

Forty

Tony was a just a little bit pleased with the way the Bronco handled on the dirt path behind the high school’s baseball field.  He had discovered the sweet-spot where he had just enough speed to minimize the bumps while still affording him enough control over the vehicle.  It had been another hellish day, but Tony found himself in a numb sort of enjoyment of the ride.  What he wasn’t enjoying was the child’s crying from the back seat.  Nikki spoke loudly over the child’s cries.

“My Dad said they’ll have two ladders at the back fence.  We have to climb over quick.”

“Okay when we get there, Denise goes first, then the lady with the kid.  Up the ladder and hand the kid to Denise when you’re on top.  Then you Nikki.” 

“Oh my God!” Denise shouted looking back at a small group of creatures stumbling around the corner fence.  “That’s Mr. McGill. He lives upstairs from me.”  The last part of her sentence turned into a sad blubber.  Tony saw two figures inside perimeter carrying long ladders, running towards the fence about twenty yards ahead.

“We’ll be okay, they won’t get near us.  Just concentrate on moving carefully.” Nikki said. 

Tony brought the Bronco to a stop just as a long ladder gently lowered on the outside of the fence.  He opened the driver’s side door and moved the seat to allow Denise and the still unnamed nurse to get out.  She handed him the baby almost causing Tony to take a step back rather then accept the child.  He awkwardly took hold of the child under its arms and held it far from his body.  Seeing the small mob of dead in the distance spurred him to move faster.  He handed the child to Denise and she let the other woman climb over first.  Tony then held the ladder for Denise as she ascended the ladder to hand off the child.   A small grey-haired man on the other side of the fence looked anxiously at Tony.

Nikki exited her door and brought her twenty-two to her shoulder.  The dead were approaching but still far away.  She let the rifle down and locked her door.  When she moved around the front of the Bronco, the grey-haired man saw her.

“Nicole? What are you wearing?” He said.

“Papa!” she said and looked at her make-shift protective gear; Boots, elbow pads, gloves and guns.  “It’s for protection.”

“Get over this fence now!” he urged climbing the ladder on his side almost to the top.  She scurried to the ladder and handed Tony her twenty-two until she was over the fence.  Her father hugged her hard, rustling her protective gear.

As Andy lumbered over the fence, Tony spoke.

“How much time I got?” he asked as he began to remove sleeping bags stuffed with looted merchandise from the sporting goods store.  He swung one heavy bag up and over the ten foot fence. 

“Uh, I don’t know.” Andy said.  Nikki pulled away from her father for a moment as Tony removed another bag.

“A minute maybe.” Nikki said offering her estimation.  Tony tossed another bag into the air; it swung wildly but landed on the other side.  Nikki raised her rifle and took aim causing her father to gasp.

“Nicole, put that gun down!”

Tony locked his door and almost closed it when he stopped and grimaced.

“The baby food!” he said and returned to the cab.  Nikki counted at least seven creatures, not thirty feet away.  She couldn’t shoot them all if she tried. Or could she?  A better idea sprang on her.  She started running towards the rotting group to the horror of her father.

“Hey, over here!” She hollered as she met the mass with only the cyclone fence between them.  They turned and pushed themselves into the steel mesh; fingers reaching through the wires towards her.  Tony, now at the top of the ladder, handed the baby formula to Andy.  He then switched sides and pulled the exposed ladder up and back over to the safety of the perimeter.

Nikki’s father ran to her position.  He grabbed her with both arms and began to pull her across the field away from the fence.  She struggled while being pulled backwards before planting her feet firmly, arresting her motion.

“Nicole! Don’t ever do anything like that again.”  He stammered through gritted teeth.

“Its okay Papa, I know what I’m doing.” She said as she squirmed free.  She stood facing him, just barely two inches shorter than him in her hiking boots.  They were frozen for a moment until she reached out to him.  Her father embraced her again and wiped at his eyes from over her shoulder where she couldn’t see. 

*****

Alexandra walked towards the guest house with Lewis at her side.  She was still processing what she had witnessed and was more then a little disturbed by her employer’s recovery.  Walking the driveway she heard a banging from the house.

“Ma’am?” the Medic said.

She turned her head upwards in time to see Veronica Emmons approach the balcony of the upstairs office. 

“Look out!  The old lady’s down there.  She’s infected.” Veronica shouted.  Just then a shape poked out from the porch and shambled down the steps.  Alexandra was filled with horror at the sight of the corpse; green smears under its nose and mouth.  The medic stepped forward and drew an automatic pistol.  The ghoul reached out as the Medic’s pistol blasted two rapid shots.  The old woman’s body fell on the cement; thick fluid seeped from the ragged opening in the back of its head.

Alexandra saw the man deftly holster his pistol and was suddenly very glad that medics carried guns.  Several footsteps approached her from behind.  The soldiers fanned out with their weapons at the ready, covering the area like the points on a compass.  Alexandra turned to see Richardson and Denkinger.

Veronica’s voice called out that she was unarmed.  She walked slowly down the steps with her hands up and ignored the men.  Instead she stood above the fallen body of the old woman.  She lowered her hands, obviously unable to keep them up and started to cry.  She turned away and sat on the steps to the porch; all the while staring at the body.  Richardson and Alexandra approached.  Denkinger followed, raising an arm and making a circular motion to his men to begin a search.  The Medic remained.

“What happened to this lady?” Richardson demanded.

“She passed away.  Her heart gave out.” Veronica spoke with a quiet, almost detached voice. “Then after two hours… She got back up.”  Richardson turned to Denkinger.

“Prepare two graves.” He said.  Then turned back to Veronica, “I’m sorry she didn’t make it.”  He said and then turned coldly to leave.

Veronica sprung up.  Denkinger snapped his weapon towards her with a metallic sound.

“You don’t understand” she said.  “She wasn’t infected but she came back anyway.”

Richardson turned and looked at the body.  Alexandra wondered if it could be true.

“Certainly she was, perhaps you just didn’t notice.”  Richardson dismissed.

“Your medic; he examined her.” Veronica said pointing to the man.  He looked at the corpse and nodded.

“It’s true sir.  The patient had no fever.” He said.  “Which would be inconsistent with the briefing we received this morning.”

“You have to call someone; the government, they’ll know what this means.” Veronica pleaded.

“What does it mean?” Richardson asked.  Veronica deflated and sat back down on the steps exhausted.

“It means that whatever is causing the infection; this pathogen; has gone airborne.”  Veronica said.  “We could be breathing it in now.”  She shook her head with a defeated smile and looked at Richardson.  He backed up two steps and then turned to Alexandra.

“Make the call.”  He said and tried to conceal his hasty departure.  Alexandra nodded and reached for her phone.

*****

Tony had tried for the better part of an hour to raise Mason on the radio.  From the roof of the gym, he scanned the roadway for any vehicles and saw nothing.  With such a long period of radio silence Tony was now considering going back out into the town to search for his friends.  He checked the radio and called out again, alternating between both channels and then waiting a minute for a reply.

“If you copy this transmission and cannot send, honk your horn once.”  He sent out on channel one and then listened carefully.  The sun was falling and the town was quiet save for the rustling of dead bodies and their flesh-longing moans outside the fence.  No car horn was heard and the radio was quiet.  He sighed angrily and looked out towards the rear of the high school.  Three dead figures tugged at the cyclone fence near the Bronco; the others had moved off in another direction.  He would have to take care of those three fast and get in the Bronco without alerting Nikki to what he was doing.  There was no way he was going to risk her following him now.  She was down in the cafeteria having a tearful reunion with her parents.  Tony didn’t want to put in any more danger.  If she knew he was going back out, she just might try to come along.

“Blackjack, do you copy?” he tried on channel two, wondering how he would get back into the school if he left.  The radio squawked with an incoming transmission.

“Hello.”  The voice was female but unfamiliar to him.

“Who’s this?” He asked.

“He said I shouldn’t say anything specific but that you could call me Frenchie” Said the voice with a hint of frustration. “Which I think is a bullshit handle.”

Tony laughed; it was the pink-haired girl from the bowling alley.

“But Frenchie was the coolest of the Pink Ladies.”

“No she wasn’t.  Sandy was.” She sounded upset.

“Sandy wasn’t a pink lady.  She just hung out with them.” He countered.

“Oh.”  She said almost upset but defeated. “Well, anyways.  He said to call you.”

“Who is He?” Tony said enjoying the ruse.  He wished Nikki was here to watch him make up fake code on the fly.

“He said to call him Blackjack.”

“Why doesn’t he call me himself?” Tony asked.

“He left.  He dropped off…” She hesitated for a moment, “he dropped off Black-Bill, then asked me for some cleaning supplies and took back off.  He seems kinda mad.”

Great, Jack’s pissed.  What else is new?
He thought.

“Wait, where’s…” Tony couldn’t think of a codename for Veronica. “Is that all who’s there?”

“Hold on, I wrote it down.  Blackjack said that they were too late and that they couldn’t secure the objective.” She said.

“Shit!” Tony spat.  Jack was playing it close to the vest on the radio.  Veronica was still at the estate and Jack was worried that the bad guys were listening.  Nikki appeared at the top of the ladder and smiled.  She joined Tony and her smile quickly turned to an expression of concern.

“Where’d he go and what do you mean cleaning supplies?”

“Don’t know.  He took some towels and floor cleaner.” She said.  Tony scanned his inner list of bomb-making and other mischievous recipes.  If the floor cleaner he found was flammable and he tore the towels into rags, he could be making Molotov Cocktails. 
But floor cleaner isn’t usually flammable
.

“What’s going on?” Nikki asked.

“The chopper came back before they could get Veronica.” Tony said shaking his head.

Nikki looked towards the hills.

“Oh shit.” Nikki said.

“Blackjack said you should ditch your ride and get another.” Jinxy said.

Tony bit his lip and looked at Nikki.  Not even the makeshift gear that she was wearing nor the tiredness under her eyes could detract from her beauty.  She gave him a questioning look.  Tony couldn’t risk putting her in harms way again.  She reacted to his expression almost knowing what he was thinking.

“I’m going with you.” She said with a stern nod.  He shook his head.

“You can’t.  We just got you here.”  He tried to think of an angle; a way to work the words so that she might listen.  “We can’t do that to your parents; it’s not fair.”

She turned away.  Tony engaged the radio again.

“Anything else?” Tony said.

“Keep your radio on,” she said, “That’s all.”

“Thanks Frenchy, I appreciate it.” He said, “We’ll talk to ya later.”

Tony moved close to Nikki.  Her arms were crossed and she was breathing long deep breaths.

“I’m sorry Sweetie.” He said and immediately worried that he should have held back on the ‘Sweetie.’  She turned with an angry, almost brat-like frown on her face.  She eased up.

“It’s not fair.” She said, “You’re protecting me again.”

“Yes I am.” He put an arm around her.  “We lost two great guys from our team today, and the nice lady, and now Veronica’s in trouble.  Damn straight, I want you safe.”

Her expression turned to compassion for his loss then she leaned into his chest.  Tony took a deep breath.

“I just couldn’t handle anything happening to you.” He said in a quiet voice.

She put her arms up and around Tony and hugged him tightly.

The more Tony thought about it the more it hurt.  The guys, the sweet old lady who made them breakfast, they were dead now.  Mason was pissed at him and off on his own. He felt his breathing quicken.  He felt as if he were about to cry but wanted desperately to hide that from Nikki.