The Zombie Chronicles - Book 6 - Revelation (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) (26 page)

“
That’s horrible,” Claire said. “Do you think there’s foul play involved?”

“
I have no idea. I’ve tried to get information myself, but they won’t talk. My informants tell me the gang leader, a guy who just goes by Z, is away on personal business, but he’s expecting friends, Marla Cinders and John Tagem, an engaged couple. None of the other gang members have ever met them because they are traveling from Michigan to be with him.”

“
So…what’s your point?” Claire asked. “What do these two supposed lovebirds have to do with anything?”

“
I need you to go in undercover, as them.”

My jaw dropped. “What?”

“
I need you to pose as the Michigan couple and infiltrate the gang. Z’s supposed to be gone for at least two days. If you leave now, there will be plenty of time for you to get in, get some info on Frank, and get out before he gets back.”

“
So you’re sending us in as spies?” I asked.

He nodded. “Find out what happened to my nephew, Frank Petera. It’d also help if you can dig up anything on what they’re up to. Since most of the city has been declared a safe zone, there’s been talk that they wanna take over the city and throw the remaining survivors out. If that’s true, we’ll have a war on our hands.”

“
Don’t we have enough on our plate with weird, infected animals and zombies?” Claire asked. “Who has time for this little covert operation to find your runaway nephew?”

“
None of us have time to do everything,” he answered, “but this isn’t just about Frank. We have to defend our turf. This is a safe haven, and I won’t give it up to a bunch of thugs.”

“
Nick won’t like this one bit,” I said, “and he certainly won’t want me dragging Claire into all of this.”

“
Worse,” she said, “you’ll have to pose as my fiancé.”

I shook my head. “Right. That’ll never fly with Nick.”

“
Look,” Max said, “I need you because the gang already knows all my men and women. As far as I know, they’ve never seen you. I can’t very well send you in there with your sister, because you have to seem like a couple in love.”

“
Why me and not Nick?”

“
Nick is too old for the part. The real guy’s only seventeen. Claire looks young enough to pass for it. You two are the perfect ones to pull it off.”

“
When do we leave?” Claire asked.

He stood and handed her a backpack. “Right now…and I’ll deal with Nick.”

“
He’s not going to want me to go,” I said again.

“
Pssh. And when has that ever stopped you?” Max said. “This isn’t a dangerous zombie mission. You’re just acting and getting some info, then coming right back.”

“
Sounds easy enough. As long as they don’t find out we’re imposters,” Claire said.

“
Do they live inside the safe zone?” I asked.

“
They recently moved in. They used to live outside the city, and they’ve been quite successful living out there in the red zone. However, when the herd moved in, so did they. They’re living in an abandoned warehouse inside the safe zone, inside
my
city. If they’re willing to live in peace, I’ve got no problem with them staying, but if they’re planning some kind of mutiny, all bets are off.”

“
So our mission is to find out their agenda and get news on your nephew, right?”

“
Yes…and the clock is ticking. We’ve gotta get you in and out of there before Z comes back from his trip,” Max said.

“
What happens if the real couple turns up?” I asked.

“
No worries. My teams will cut ‘em off and take them to a safe location until you’re free and clear. When we get word of your safety, then we’ll release them.”

“
Wait…you plan to kidnap them?” Claire asked.

Max crossed his arms. “Think of it as delaying them. I give you my word that they won’t be harmed.” Max handed a backpack to me. “Remember, the people you are supposed to be have been on a long, zombie-infested journey. You gotta pretend your feet hurt and that you’re hungry, thirsty, and dead tired. Think you can pull it off?”

“
Acting like we’ve been dealing with a zombie apocalypse? Uh…yeah. I’m pretty sure we’ve got a handle on that,” I said.

He shook my hand. “You’re one of us now…and I won’t forget this.”

“
What are you gonna tell Nick?” I asked.

“
I’ll tell him I sent you on a harmless mission inside the city, to take food to people in need, and that you might be gone overnight.”

“
Val’s not gonna be easily swayed,” I said, “and neither is Lucas.”

“
Don’t worry,” Max said. “I’ve got it covered.” He handed me a list of information. “Here’s the intel we’ve gathered so far. Memorize it, then dispose of it.”

I nodded.

Chapter 26

Claire and I walked the lonely streets of the city.

She glanced down at the paper that contained all the information Max and the others knew about the couple we were supposed to imitate. “Z’s real name is Edward Jackson, but they call him Eddy. He grew up in Detroit, and I’m his best friend’s sister. You’re just tagging along because you’re my fiancé.”

“
That’s good. That means they’ll know nothing about me.”

“
Yeah, especially since we’ve only been dating three months.”

“
But we’re engaged already? Talk about a whirlwind romance.”

“
Yeah, well, apparently, I’m a little…fast.”

“
Hmm. They could have at least given you a role that would have been a challenge,” I joked.

“
Very funny. But you’ve made a valid point. Nick and I did move very fast. I can’t explain it. We had this crazy chemistry and we just couldn’t help but move a million miles an hour.”

“
Sometimes that’s just the way love works.”

“
It totally caught me off guard.” She glanced down at the paper. “Okay, I memorized everything.”

“
Sure?”

“
Yep. Let’s burn it.” She pulled out the lighter Max had given her and lit the corner of the paper. After it burned down to a smoldering pile of ashes, she then stomped on it.

“
Let’s go, John,” she said, getting into character.

“
Okay, Marla,” I said. “It feels weird calling you that.”

“
Well, we can’t slip up and use our real names,” Claire said.

“
I feel like a spy on some secret James Bond mission.”

“
When this world gets back on its feet, they oughtta make a sequel for a post-apocalyptic 007.”

As we continued to walk down the street, I thought I smelled smoke wafting through the breeze.

Claire pointed. “There they are.”

A little ways off, a group of people were surrounding a ten-foot hole in the lawn, a makeshift hog roast.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a man threw me up against wall. “We don’t like trespassers much ‘round here!” he said. “You wanna be zombie bait, kid?” Without letting me answer, he frisked me and took all my weapons. Claire flailed in his tight grasp as he disarmed her too. “What are you doing on our turf?” he gruffly demanded.

“
If you don’t answer me, I’m gonna kill your pretty little girlfriend,” another man threatened.

“
We’re here to see Eddy,” Claire said.

The man loosened his grip on her. “Z?”

“
Yes, Z. Now go get him. If I tell him how you greeted me, you might be the zombie bait, pal,” she snapped.

The man swallowed hard, then slowly stepped back. “What’s your name?”

“
I’m Marla Cinders, and this is my fiancé, John Tagem,” she lied without even wincing.

“
Oh! Well, you’re a couple days early, so I didn’t—”

“
Whatever,” she said, cutting him off. “We took a shortcut that paid off, and we’ve been through hell and back to get here. We barely got past the zombie herd outside the city.”

“
Yeah, well, how’d you manage that?” the guy asked, sounding suspicious.

Claire sighed. “Johnny,” she said to me, “do you mind filling this guy in? I’m tired, and I’m losing my patience.”

“
We found a boom box with a CD player,” I said. “We positioned it strategically, and it was enough of a distraction to create an opening for us to sneak through.”

“
Bobby, my brother, told us this city is some kinda safe haven,” Claire said, “so we got here as fast as we could. I gotta say, I’m not much liking the welcome wagon.”

The man caught Claire off guard when he pulled her into an unexpected hug. “Marla,” he said, “I’m a friend of Eddy’s, of Z’s. I’m sorry. It’s just that—”

“
No, I understand,” Claire said. “One can never be too careful these days.”

The man then held his hand out to me. “My apologies, buddy. We didn’t know who you were.”

“
Just get Eddy,” Claire said. “I wanna talk to him right now.”

“
He’s not here,” the man said, “but I’m Collin.”

“
Whose wise idea was the barbecue?” Claire asked. “There are all kinds of infected animals running around on these streets.”

“
Yeah, we’ve seen them,” I said. “There was this crazy raccoon with white eyes.”

“
Yeah,” Collin said. “We can’t explain that one for the life of us, but we’ve shot and killed most of the vermin.”

“
How can you be sure?” Claire asked.

“
We can’t be sure of anything anymore, but for now, everything is under control. We’ve killed lots of critters, and we haven’t seen any in a few days. In the meantime, we can’t just live like prisoners. Besides, if any decide to show up for the party, we’ve got plenty of guns and ammo.”

“
Aren’t you worried about the virus spreading to all the animals?” I inquired.

“
Well, yeah, but there’s nothin’ we can do to stop it, right? Whatever happens happens,
que será
,
será
and all that. I guess it’s just…fate,” Collin said nonchalantly, as if he had finally accepted the end of the world and come to terms with it. It was a common attitude, considering that people had to roll with the punches somewhat in an effort to survive, but it was still sad nonetheless. “Come on inside, and I’ll introduce you to everyone. Friends of Z’s are friends of ours, so make yourselves at home.”

The warehouse had been fashioned into a bunker, of sorts. About fifty beds lined the left side, and on the right side was a lounge area, with couches and chairs.

I opted to sit on a leather couch, end everyone came over and introduced themselves. Unlike the gangs I’d always seen in movies and read about in books, they weren’t thugs at all. In fact, they were rather friendly, just more people trying to live another day, trying to survive in a decrepit, desolated world.

An old woman led us outside to the lake. “You’ll need to bathe before joining us for dinner,” she said, then handed us some soap, shampoo, washcloths, and towels.

Claire glanced up at the machinegun-wielding men guarding the perimeter, then glanced back at me. “C’mon, Johnny,” she coaxed, stifling a laugh. “Get your clothes off. It’s not like I haven’t seen you before.”

I laughed a bit sheepishly, then stripped off my shirt and slipped out of my pants, making a valiant effort to keep my eyes off of my supposed fiancée who was, in reality, my possible future sister-in-law.

“
Get those skanky underwear off too!” she demanded.