The Infected (Book 6): Last Shot (4 page)

Chapter Eight

Closing my room door, I walked over and flopped onto my bed and closed my eyes. I was trying hard to sever ties with these people. I really did have the feeling that whoever helped to take down the oil rig wouldn’t be returning. A gentle knock on the door roused me and I walked to the door. Opening the door I saw Jennie standing in the hallway, her eyes were ringed with red and I knew she had been crying.

“Hey, Jennie!”

“Hi, Marc any chance I can have a word?”

“Of course, come on in,” I said standing to the side and letting her in. I closed the door and turned to see her lowering herself into one of the chairs. I walked over and sat in the other chair and waited for her to speak.

“Look I know it is important to take care of Benton’s, but I really don’t want David going with you.” She said barely stopping herself from crying.

I leaned forward and placed a hand on hers and said “Look, Jennie, I wanted to do this on my own the last time and they came after me. All I can do is tell him to stay behind. If he takes it on board, then it is up to him.”

“I don’t want to lose him and it would devastate the kids if he went and didn’t come back.”

“I agree. I also think that he would be better off here to help run things.”

“Can you talk to him?” She asked with a look of pleading in her eyes.

I nodded.

Jennie leaned forward and kissed my hand before standing. I stood as well and she came forward to give me a large hug. I walked her to the door and saw her out.

“I’ll try and have a word with him sometime today,” I said.

She nodded and headed off up the hallway toward the lifts. I closed the door and settled into one of the chairs and pinched the bridge of my nose. Grabbing the empty glass that was on the coffee table, I went to the cabinets in the small kitchenette and pulled the small bottle of whisky from one of the cupboards. Pouring a good measure, I downed it in one swallow and held onto the bench as it burned my throat. I poured another and went back to the chair and sat down to think and I slowly sipped at the glass of whiskey.

This was going to be a pain in the arse considering that at least two of our group who would insist they had to come, but the shitty thing was that their loved ones didn’t want them to go. I finished drinking and decided that I may as well get this over and done with. Placing the glass on the coffee table I stood up and went looking for David. To be honest, I thought that he would be the easier out of him and Chris to persuade. Closing the door, I headed to the first floor and the office that Mike and David had taken over to do planning for the Bunker. I knocked on the office door and waited.

“Come in!” A muffled voice shouted.

Pushing the door open I saw David sat at the desk with a large sheet of paper spread on the top. Good, he was by himself this might make things a little easier.

He looked up “Hey Marc, come on in.”

I walked in and sat down in the chair facing the desk.

“You are looking busy mate!”

David rubbed a hand through his hair “Yeah well we are trying to figure out how to provide power to the new buildings. Without draining any of the power from the Bunker.”

I looked at the sheet on the desktop and shook my head it looked like some kind of ancient writing to me.

“Sorry mate I can’t help you with that,” I said smiling slightly.

“It’s ok.” He said sitting back in his chair looking defeated.

“I’m sure you’ll get something sorted out.”

“We will. So what can I do you for?”

I thought I might as well just hit it head on “Jennie came to see me.”

“Don’t tell me she asked you to come and talk me out of helping you take down Benton’s oil rig. Right?”

“In a nutshell.”

“It’s been on my mind since that creepy message from Dr Jackson. To be honest mate I don’t want to go but there is no way in hell that I am letting you down by not going.” He said leaning forward.

“Hey I would love for you to come with me but they need you more here than if you came with me.”

“But…”

I held my hand up “Look you’re one of my best friends, but it would kill me if you died out there and I made it back to tell Jennie and the kids their dad died. The Bunker needs good leadership and your one of the only two people that I feel will be able to handle it.”

“But Marc you’re going to need all the help you can get.”

“Don’t worry I’m not going by myself, but sorry mate you’re not coming with me.”

He looked shocked when I said that and, to be honest, my heart felt a little lighter for saying it.

“I have to go and convince someone else that they aren’t coming,” I said standing up.

“Who?” David asked in a small voice.

“Chris,” I answered standing at the doorway.

“Oh fuck!”

“Yeah, that’s exactly how I feel.” I walked out of the office letting the door close and headed for the lifts. Chris had been teaching on the indoor range this morning, so I figured that would be the best place to start. The level two hallway was quiet as I headed down to the range. As I passed the Communications Room Jake stuck his head out the door.

“Oi, Marc!”

I turned around and saw the old man stood at the open door.

“What’s up Jake?”

He nodded his head toward the open door “I think there is something you need to hear.”

I followed him inside and was hit with a horrible odour. “What the fuck smells in here?”

“Sorry, I’ve been sleeping in here the last few days.” He answered pointing to a sleeping bag under one of the long tables.

“Mate you need to wash something then!” I said holding the bridge of my nose.

“I would say fuck you, but I think this is a little more important.” He sat in his usual chair and flicked a switch.

A static hiss came from the speakers in the room “…..so it is with a heavy heart that we the New Nation put a bounty on the leaders of the Bunker. We have sent envoys only to have them killed and sent back minus body parts. Their leaders have rebuked all of our attempts to create a vaccine. Our leader Dr Jackson and his team have battled hard with these rebels to create a New Nation.”

Jake flicked the switch again and the room plunged into silence.

“The rest of the message is mostly the same shite,” Jake said lifting his feet up onto the desk.

“How did you find the message?” I asked feeling like I had been punched in the gut.

He shook his head “I didn’t have to find it. It’s being broadcast on nearly all the civilian channels.”

“Shit. You told any of the others about this yet?”

Shaking his head “Nope just started hearing this last night. What the fuck are we going to do?”

I stood there trying to figure out what we could do. “Do we still have the ability to transmit?”

“Yeah, but it won’t do any good if they are constantly transmitting their message.”

I walked to the door “Look, Jake, don’t tell anyone else about this till I have a chance to speak with them about it.”

“Ok,” He said slipping his headphones on.

Chapter Nine

I closed the door and leaned against it and let loose a deep sigh. We really did need to take care of that fucking oil rig and soon. I walked down the hallway to the range and looked inside. All that was inside was the heavy smell of cordite. I headed back to the armoury and knocked on the door. I heard the lock turn and Tom poked his head round the opening.

His face turned red “Erm…hey Marc!”

“Hi, Tom is Chris in there with you?”

He looked at the floor “Sorry no he…erm…he dropped off the rifles and magazines then said something about finding Tessa.”

“You ok mate?” I asked feeling a little puzzled.

“Yeah…yeah sure!”

“Alright, if you see him can you tell him that I’m looking for him?”

“Sure.”

I heard a quiet woman’s giggle come from the other side of the door.

“Hi, Rosa!” I called out.

“Hi, Marc!” She shouted through the small opening.

Tom started to panic and I had to laugh as I walked away. The door nearly slammed it was closed that quickly. Laughing all the way to the lifts I took the first one to the entrance. I must have looked like a fool to the couple who rode up with me. Outside was grey and overcast as I stepped out into the fresh air. It felt like the sky was just waiting for the right moment to rain. I headed to the first guard post and asked where Tessa was today. The guard pointed up the slope toward the next guard post. Walking up the slope I felt the first splatters of rain hit my head and neck. I sped up and was soon standing at the bottom of the ladder and the rain had started to fall.

“Hey, Tessa is Chris up there?” I called out trying not to lift my face to the rain.

Tessa’s head appeared over the side “Yeah come on up.”

Climbing the slippery ladder, I stood up in the small shelter. Chris was watching the tree line with a pair of binoculars.

Without turning, he said, “No fucking way!”

I tried to lean around him to see what he was talking about. Tessa giggled from behind me.

“What?”

“There is no fucking way that I’m staying here whilst you go take on Benton’s,” His rumbling voice said as he turned to face me.

“What the fuck?” I asked.

He pointed to the radio which was fastened to the rail of the guard post. That fucker David had given Chris a heads up.

“Funny because I’m not giving you a fucking choice.”

“Like fuck you are. The last time you headed out you didn’t even know where you were going.”

“Well, its different this time isn’t it?”

His face was starting to get red and he took two steps closer. “Marc there is no way on earth that I am letting you go by yourself. Even if that means I have to lock you up or break something.”

“Okay, King fucking dick what do you mean by that?” I asked stepping up so I was about an inch from his chest.

“I mean I’d break one of your fucking legs to keep you here. Then lock you in your fucking room.” His eyes glaring at me.

Tessa coughed “Erm…boys, I think you should calm down.”

Looking over my shoulder I said, “Tessa sorry to say this but mind your own fucking business.”

That’s when I felt the blow like a hammer to my chest. Stumbling backwards I fell out of the guard post. Hitting the dirt, all the air whooshed out of my chest. I then saw Chris’ large frame jump out of the guard post. I quickly rolled to the side and he landed roughly where my chest would have been if I hadn’t moved. The fucker would have killed me. I clambered to my feet and launched myself at his back and hammered a punch to his kidney. His back arched up and I swung another punch to his kidney when he rolled forward and my punch sailed through the empty air.

Next thing I saw was his boot flying toward my chest. This time I rolled, but I still felt the air move. The mud was sticking to my clothes and the rain was dripping into my eyes. Chris circled off to my right so I headed to the left.

“You fucker!” I called out.

He growled “You never talk to her like that!”

He dove for me and I just managed to move to the side and as he went past I kicked out. I felt my foot connect with his stomach and he grunted before slamming into the floor.

“Stop it!” Tessa said as she climbed down from the guard post.

Chris just ignored her and threw a punch which caught me in the shoulder and spun me around till I fell down on the ground. He jumped on my chest and before I had a chance to move and launched a quick punch to my face. I have to say this about Chris when he hits you; you know that you’ve been hit. I had to admit with the cold rain hitting me in the face I didn’t black out. Chris aimed another punch at my face and I managed to block it with the point of my elbow. He cried out as his fist collided with the bone. My arm went numb all the way to the fingers and I was sure that I heard bones snap. Now if they were mine or his I couldn’t tell.

I rolled to the right and managed to toss him off my chest. He hit the ground and rolled, before jumping to his feet. I lashed out with my leg and swept his feet out from under him. As he fell he reached out. His hand hit the ground and there was a crack like a gunshot and his face went pale. He fell over onto his side and rocked from side to side whilst holding his arm. I was huffing in the air as quickly as my lungs could. Tessa ran over to where Chris was holding his arm.

“You’ve broken his arm!” She shouted.

My arm was still feeling numb and I thought he’s fucking broken mine as well. I struggled to get up off the ground with one arm and hobbled over to where he was lay. One of my eyes was starting to close and that side of my face hurt every time I moved my jaw.

“I think he fell onto the arm that just finished healing.”

“Well, that really does stop him from going now. Doesn’t it?” Tessa said looking at me with malice.

I was shocked “What the fuck woman? I thought you would have been happy for him not to go?”

Out the corner of my eye, I saw some of the guards running our way. I held my arm across my chest the numbness still hadn’t faded and I was sure Chris had managed to break it. As the guards came to a stop a few feet away. I told them that it was a disagreement and things had been settled, but I would be happy if they could help Tessa and I get Chris inside so the Doc could have a look at both of us.

As I walked into the conference room turned triage I couldn’t see out of the eye that had been closing. Chris’ face was still pale and I could see the sweat streaming from his forehead. I was pretty sure I looked worse, but I didn’t say anything. Doc came in and saw Chris first as I sat on the other bed behind a screen.

I heard the door “Where the fuck is that idiot?” I heard Amy’s voice. I knew that she wasn’t on about Chris so I just sat quietly hoping that she would leave. My hopes were dashed as the screen was pulled back and I saw the look of anger on her face.

“What’s up Amy?” I asked.

Her hands actually shook as she said “What the fuck do you mean by that? All I heard was that you and Chris went at each other.”

“Just a misunderstanding.”

“Like shit it was. You told him that you didn’t want him to go along on your suicide mission. Didn’t you?”

“He sort of already knew.”

She looked puzzled “Then how the fuck did you to start fighting?”

I looked at the floor and I actually felt like a dick. “I sort of told Tessa to shut up and not interfere.”

Now she just looked plain shocked.

“He got a couple of lucky shots in,” I said trying to grin through the pain in my face.

“That’s not fucking funny Marc. Chris has become very protective of Tessa since she became pregnant.”

Now I started to get a little pissed off “If he is that protective then why the fuck was he arguing about coming to the oil rig?”

Amy sighed and walked closer “He’s been feeling torn between his duty to Tessa and their baby, and his duty to you and the Bunker. Tessa said earlier on that she wouldn’t stand in his way if he wanted to come with you. She knows that you and Chris have been through a lot and that you’re like brothers.”

Sitting on the bed I saw more movement behind Amy and saw David appear behind her. The fucker was actually smiling when he saw my face.

“I see you’ve spoken with Chris then?”

I nodded which caused me to grimace.

“Good thing cause that the exact thing I wanted to do to you when you came to speak with me earlier. Good thing I am such a civilized person.”

“What he came to you as well?” Amy asked spinning around.

David nodded “Don’t be so hard on him Amy. When he came to me, Jennie had been to see him first and strong-armed him into coming to see me.” The smile on his face didn’t even waver as he said that.

She looked over her shoulder at me “You deserve everything that you got.” And headed for the door.

“What no get better kisses?” I shouted.

She turned to look at me with murder in her eyes. Taking two steps forward, she stopped and shook her head before turning to the door and leaving.

“You know there are times,” David said shaking his head slowly.

“What do you mean times?”

“Times when you deserve to have your arse kicked.”

Doc came in and his face said that he wasn’t pleased either. Now I was frightened because I knew if there was anyone who could inflict pain without injury he would be the one.

“Well, you probably know that Chris’ arm is broken. He also has three broken fingers. He’s not very happy with you at the moment Marc.” Doc said snapping on some rubber gloves.

“I didn’t want the fight Doc.”

“I’m sure you didn’t,” David said from behind the Doc.

“Piss off David!” I replied.

His reply was a low laugh. The Doc put some pressure on my elbow and I nearly blacked out. He made a clicking noise in his mouth and then started softly pressing on my face. When he pressed on the cheekbone under the closed eye I threw up on his shirt. He just grimaced and David burst out laughing and had to leave the room otherwise he would have ended up on the floor.

“Well, there isn’t anything broken. You’re going to have some lovely bruising and the eye is going to stay swollen for the next few days. You seem to have trapped a nerve in your elbow. That is going to take a couple of weeks to heal fully, but you should start to get gradual movement back over the next few days as well. All in all Marc you got off pretty well considering what Chris has been saying.” Doc said walking over to a paper towel dispenser and pulling out handfuls.

“I suppose I asked for it Doc,” I said trying to sit up straighter.

The Doc opened a drawer and pulled out a bandage and put my arm in a sling. “I know that you feel you need to deal with this Benton lot, but Marc that doesn’t mean that you have to burn your bridges here.”

I winced a few times as he lifted my arm “Doc I was not trying to burn bridges. I was actually trying to keep the people I love safe. Chris has Tessa and the baby and if I dragged him off on some suicide mission and something happened to him and I survived. Well, let’s just say I would rather eat a bullet.”

Doc stood back and looked at me. “Marc you have to remember that it was you that brought most of these people together and Chris was one of the first. He feels that he has to repay that debt.”

Shaking my head I asked “Doc any chance of some pain killers?”

I think he knew that I was trying to get rid of him because he just nodded and headed for the door. I leaned back and closed my eyes, no sooner had I done that than he was back with a small cup of water and four tablets. I swallowed them with the water, gave him my thanks and headed for the door. As I passed the screen I risked a quick glance at where Chris was. He was laid out on the bed with Tessa sitting beside him holding his uninjured hand. She shot me a look of pure hatred. Chris had his broken arm and fist plastered up and he still looked pale.