The Horse Soldier: Beginnings Series Book 10 (67 page)

Robbie and Hal heard
Cole’s loud scream followed by a crash from his office. Both brothers pulled out their weapons and bolted in. It looked like a fountain of blood shooting up from the floor. A muffled snarling filled the room and Hal and Robbie raced to behind the desk.

“Oh shit.” Robbie aimed
, watching the Marcus ignore him and Hal as he devoured Cole. Ripped flesh flew about like snowflakes.

“Shoot it
,” Hal said as he aimed.

“You shoot it. I can’t,.” Robbie shook his head.

“Neither can I. It’s a baby. You shoot it.”

“You.”

“No you,” Hal insisted.

A single close range shot rang out, blasting the Marcus and sending its body flying across the room and smacking into the wall.

Frank shook his head and put his revolver away. “Neville points.” He looked over his stunned brother’s shoulder to a dead Cole. “Aw, man. I just started to like him.”

Robbie had a smart comment to make, but he saved it when he saw the broken floor boards. “Look.” He pointed

“Fuck.” Frank squatted down to the floor. “They dug their way in.” He stood up. “Robbie, get a team. We’re gonna start a quiet search of this community. Hal, cover this hole.” Without saying anymore to them, Frank left the field office, barking orders into his headset as he did.

^^^^

Jenny was saddened as she stood
by John’s bedside. Ellen was checking the intravenous. “Will he ever wake up?”

“Hopefully
,” Ellen told her. “We’re keeping him sedated until his body strengthens.” Ellen started to leave the room.

“Thank you for taking care of him.”

“He saved my husband’s life, Jenny. Not that I forgive him, but I owe him.”

“I understand. That’s why I helped Joe all this time
by following him. I feel as if I owe this community.”

“You don’t
,” Ellen told her. “What he did is not your fault. O.K.” Ellen looked at her watch. “I’d better get going. I want to help Dean out by doing Cole’s autopsy.”

“I can’t believe those things are running around Beginnings.”

“Well Frank just radioed and said it looked good. Dean thinks he has a way to kill them. That’s where he is at now.”

“Good luck.”

Ellen smiled as she left the room. “Thanks. You too.”

^^^^

The tunnels were still damp from the previous nights rainfall
and Joe and Danny’s footstep tromped through the tunnels.

“Joe, I’ve seen this before
,” Danny said as he shined his flashlight. “In a movie called ‘It’s Alive’.”

Joe chuckled. “Hey, I saw that too.”

“Why are we still looking. Frank gave the all clear.”

“Because my son has a million things on his mind and I just want to double check. Bare with me
, Danny, and look down here with me.”

“O.K.” Danny shrugged. “But if we find one
, you shoot it.”

^^^^

From a hospital bed, a pale and coughing George took the phone that Steward handed him. He fumbled to hold it to his ear. His left hand was distorted and shriveled in toward the wrist. “Go on
,” George spoke weakly into the phone. “Before we speak. Give it.”

“I
hereby claim I do this against my will,” Rev. Bob stated. “I hope whatever Frank hit you with works.”

George coughed. “You’re lucky I am obligated to family. All I ask of you is to run my meetings. I’ll take care of you if anything happens. Now . . .” George coughed again, his voice was raspy. “Did you find it.”

“Not yet. The case is being checked as we speak.” Rev. Bob looked up as he sat behind his office desk when his door opened. Bev walked in.

So sad Bev looked.. “Is that him?”

Rev Bob nodded. “Hold on, George, Someone needs to speak to you.” He handed the phone to Bev.

Bev sniffled. “Hello
, Daddy. How are feeling?”

^^^^

The black gloved hands held a screwdriver in the dark secret lab room. Near the lock of the freezer case, the hands worked at breaking the lock. Finally with a scratch of metal
, the lock loosened. The hands lifted the case. A loud audible siren went off. The lid closed and the screwdriver dropped.

Joe quickly looked at Danny. “The freezer alarm”

They both took off running.

^^^^

Those very important notes
regarding Marcus that Dean failed to label had to be in his private office at home. He had looked everywhere else. It was his last place to look. Walking into the house, he could hear music playing. “Josh, it’s just me!” Dean called out. “What is he doing home? Josh?” Dean walked toward the music, delaying his trip to his office. “Josh, you’re supposed to be at work. Josh.” Dean stood before the teenager’s bedroom door. “Josh.” He knocked and the music stopped. He turned the knob on the door and opened it. “Oh wow.” Dean grinned as he looked into the extremely neat and almost sparkling clean room. “Josh. Good job.”

From behind the open door, Frank
poked his head. “Thanks, Dean.”

“Frank. What are you doing here?”

“Cleaning my room.”

“What?”

“Yeah. Hey, I can’t live in a pig sty. Man, how did you let Josh get away with the mess?”

“Frank
,” Dean huffed. “You aren’t . . . you aren’t living here.”

“Dean, I lost my house. You took my family. Guess what
, Dean . . .” Frank grinned. “I’m home.” He nodded his head. “And I really like it here too.”

“Oh my God.” Dean closed his eyes.

“Yep Dean.” Frank swatted Dean’s arm as he walked out of Josh’s room and passed him. “One big happy family.”

Joe and Danny held high hopes of catching whoever it was, but they knew they were too far away to catch up to the running footsteps that had faded down the tunnels. They hurried to the open back lab.

“Damn it.” Joe picked up the broken lock.

“They almost got in there
,” Danny said. “Good alarm system.”

“Yeah
, it worked.” Joe shook his head.

“Hey Joe
,” Danny spoke sneakily.

“Yeah
, Danny.”

“The uh case is unlocked.”

“Yeah so.”

“We should peek.”

“No, we shouldn’t.”

Danny leaned into Joe. “You really should take a look in this case. Aren’t you curious
? Huh? I mean, you are leader again, right?”

Joe shifted his eyes to the case. “I really should know what so important that someone is breaking in there.”

“Yeah, you should. Go on, Joe, look. Go on.” Danny edged on.

Joe reached for the lid. “Danny
, did you see what was in here when you installed the alarm? Is that why you’re being like this?”

“Who me? No. Look
, Joe. Go on.”

“This is wrong.” Joe gripped the lid. “But what the hell.” He lifted it up and a hiss of cold white steam emerged. After it had cleared, another case
was exposed in the freezer. Lights blinked on the bottom of the metal lined structure.

“Hmm.” Danny held his finger to his lips. “What is that
?”

“It’s an animal cryogenic case.”

“It’s frosted over.”

“Yeah it is.”

“You should clear away that frost, Joe.”

“What do you know?” Joe asked.

Danny shrugged. “Nothing.”

“You know something.” Joe pointed, then hesitantly brought his hand to the frost. “And I’m gonna find out.” His hand moved to the glass of the cryogenic case.. The body heat from the palm of his hand melted away the frost in his swipe. “Dear God.” Joe gasped and stepped back. “It’s Brian.”

^^^^

“It doesn’t look good. I didn’t get it,” Rev. Bob told George on the phone as he looked up to his open office door. “Here.” Rev. Bob extended the phone to the hand that still wore the black gloves.

George coughed again
. His left hand pained him from clinging to the phone, but he needed to talk to his closest Beginnings contact. “No luck?” George closed his eyes. “No . . . .no. Don’t worry about. Don’t take another chance. Please. My doctors are working on this. Yes . . .” George closed his eyes. “Lay back for awhile. I mean it. They’re gonna be heating up the search for you. This disease is nothing. If they get you, they’ll kill you on the spot. So stay low. Because as always, your life means more to me than mine . . . Johnny.”

^^^^

NEXT
. . .
IN RETROSPECT

**