Revenant's Kiss (Chronicles of the Afterlife) (30 page)

Jennifer turned in time to see the thing wobble to it’s feet, and it was no mystery why the kid had
seen it and freaked out. It had bloodied teeth sunken into a tiny body in it’s hands, the infant forms
center was hollowed out, arms and legs dangling brokenly around the hands that carelessly held it, it’s
head hung away so she couldn’t see the tiny face, a fact she was grateful for. The female revenant took
a step forward toward her, slow and wobbly like it’s footing wasn’t sure and Jennifer raised the Beretta.
It was halfway around the medical bed when she pulled the trigger, the gun clicked empty, she’d
forgotten. Like this action had triggered some kind of reserve in the corpse making it’s way around the
table it dropped the tiny body in it’s hands to the floor, it hit the linoleum with a wet splat. Jennifer’s
eyes followed it to the floor, and it was then she noticed that when the revenant took another step
forward the tiny mangled body trailed after in a bloody smear. Mother and new born infant were still
attached by the umbilical cord and every step forward the mother took dragged the tiny broken remains
of it’s child behind it. She reached to reload but the thing managed speed enough to charge forward
faster then she could slip the clip out. In a stupid moment of panic Jennifer stumbled back into a rolling
tray, knocking it over and losing her footing. She landed on her ass, the Beretta flying out of her hands,
she watched for a frozen moment as the clang of metal hitting the floor echoed behind her and she
watched her weapon slide away across the floor. She regained her equilibrium enough that when the
revenant was close enough she kicked it hard in the knee, she heard the crack of breaking bones and the
thing stumbled back but didn’t go down.

Trying not to panic further as the thing and it’s trailing infant made to fall on her again, she
grabbed for the metal instruments that had spilled onto the floor when she’d fallen over but they were
too far. She was forced to stop and try to kick the thing back again but this time it fell to the floor and
made to bite her legs, she kicked it in it’s mangled face. It bought her enough time to grab for the next
nearest thing, without thinking she grabbed the tipped over object and rammed it into the revenant’s
chest when it made to crawl up her body again. She had a second’s reprieve where the pole held it
back and she vaguely noted she’d grabbed an IV pole, that the hook that was made to hold the bag had
torn through dead flesh and that was all that was holding it back. She made to grab for what she could
see now were surgical tools again but while it scrabbled to move forward the revenant must have kicked
what was left of the baby and the tiny corpse had slid around and was resting next to Jennifer’s elbow.
It’s toothless mouth chomped when she tried to move, and Jennifer couldn’t help it, she panicked and
slammed her elbow into it and sent it sliding away all the while it’s attached mother renewed it’s effort
and started forcing itself forward.

Jennifer was used to dealing with monsters, used to them killing in ways that would turn most
peoples stomachs, she was not used to them eviscerating themselves just to get a nibble. She watched
it, while grabbing blindly for another weapon, as it forced it’s body forward, pushing the hook down
deeper, shredding skin from where she’d stabbed it in the chest down to it’s naval. It’s insides came
pouring out into her lap, and she tried to force panic back as it was close enough to snap it’s teeth at her
face. She grabbed it’s throat with one hand, it’s struggles to reach her, and gut itself had pushed them
both back across the floor. Jennifer was just beginning to wonder if she and Triple-F were going to end
up dead here after all when her fingers connected with one of the surgical tools. She didn’t waste time
looking to see what she was holding, simply held the revenant’s face still and stabbed the tool with as
much force as she could into it’s eye, when it didn’t immediately go down she flattened her palm and
jammed her hand upward forcing the handle in to the hilt. After a pause the body fell still, she heaved
the dead corpse to the side and got shakily and blood drenched to her feet. Time seemed to stand still
just so she could watch the revenant mother’s organs slop back to the floor. Suddenly the sound of
Triple-F shouting at her and the little kids screaming came back into focus, she made her way to the
Beretta that had fallen out of her grip when she’d been knocked over and picked it up, ejected the
empty clip, and slapped in a new one. This was nearly her last, there was one more clip after this and
she would be out of bullets. She started back to the door to help Triple-F try to close it but paused
when the remains of the baby mewled hungrily at her feet. It was probably a waste of a bullet but she
quickly shot it in the head, then joined Triple-F at the door, slamming her shoulder into it without any
affect.

"Just go," he gritted out next to her, "I’ll hold the door until you’re out the next." He indicated
the door across the room that she’d failed to notice. She’d been to busy to notice at all that this room
seemed to be directly attached to the nursery.

"I’m not leaving you," Jennifer gritted back, "can you hold it a little longer," she asked. After a
frustrating minute he nodded and Jennifer pushed away from the door and made her way to a bloodied
hospital bed, probably the very one the zombie mother had given birth on. She quickly put a bullet in a
body she hadn’t known was there on the floor, it didn’t move but she was taking no chances, before
pushing the medical bed across the floor and up against the door. It wouldn’t get the door closed but
she could hold it closed with this and hopefully give them enough time to all get out the second door.
"Come on!" she put all her weight behind keeping the bed jammed against the door but the floor was
slick with blood and the corpses trying to push their way in were relentless. "Grab the kid!" she shouted
waiting only long enough for him to do just that before letting go of the bed. Triple-F and the kid made it
through the door in front of her and she practically closed the door on herself in her haste to close the
second exit behind herself. Within seconds she could hear the revenants slamming their bodies into the
door she’d just closed. "That’s not going to hold long," but at least they knew where the exit was.
Regardless Jennifer made her way over to one the cradles, ignoring the fleshy chunks that had become
crusted to a little blue blanket with blood, and jammed it against the door. It would probably only buy
them a minute, but that was better then nothing, when she turned into the room to grab another craddle
she found herself at the business end of Triple-F’s rifle.

Chapter 20

"Were you bitten," Triple-F asked emphasizing his question by pushing his rifle closer in her
face. Jennifer glanced from him and then down at herself she was covered in blood and chunks, she
couldn’t blame him for asking, or thinking it was a possibility. She would blame him if he shot her when
she’d managed to fight that thing off and come away unscathed.

"No," Jennifer shook her head and went back to shoving any bit of furniture in her path against
the door. "Were you," she asked over her shoulder, she waited for him to try to shoot her or answer the
question, after a pause he shook his head. "Dandy," Jennifer breathed, "we should go." He nodded and
Jennifer made her way to the nursery door trying to ignore the screaming kid as she passed, that was
going to complicate things. " Are you any good with kids," she’d never spent any time with them, her
job was all consuming and her family was dead, all but one.

"What," Triple-F looked at her like she’d grown a second head.

"I’m not asking you to marry me so I can bare your children, we need the kid to shut up." She
did not want to be forced to run down these halls with a screaming beacon. Admittedly the exit they
wanted wasn’t far, but they couldn’t guess which direction outside of the door they’d just entered
through those things might come at them. She actually took the time to glance at the kid, it was
splattered with blood like she was and it’s clothing was a gender neutral color, even it’s hair was cut in a
unisex way, she was so unused to children she couldn’t tell what sex it was. "Well are you," she asked
again when she noticed that Triple-F was now just staring at the kid like it had grown a second head. It
looked like it was going to be left to her, which was probably a guaranteed disaster.

Jennifer rushed over to the kid and got down on her knee beside it, "um," she had no clue where
to start, was lousy at comforting adults, granted children were a completely different breed of human,
that didn’t mean she knew where to start.

‘You can start with it’s name, it’s usually a good ice breaker for both children and adults.’

There was no time to ask Rou, her head invader to buzz off, especially not if he was being
helpful, "hey," Jennifer took hold of the child’s hand, "it’s okay, it’s going to be okay, I need you to stay
quiet okay?" She waited to see if the screaming would stop, if it didn’t she was going to resort to
clocking the kid in the head and carrying it out or stuffing something in it’s mouth, luckily after a beat the
scream died down to a whimper. "That’s good," she said in her best soothing voice, " my names
Jennifer, can you tell me your name?"

"Sam," it whimpered, "Samantha," it filled in and Jennifer wasn’t surprised because maybe she
didn’t know kids but it could have gone either way.

Jennifer patted her hand, "okay Sam, we’re almost home, almost safe but we have to go back
out into that hall." She indicated the nursery door behind them, the little girl shook her head, "yes we
have to so we can get you safe, but I need you to be really quiet okay?"

"But they’re out there," she whimpered back.

"They’re about to be in here," Triple-F reminded.

"It’s going to be okay Sam, me and......" Jennifer looked over at Triple-F and realized she’d
forgotten his real name, no time for it now. "We are going to get you out of here, you only have to be
quiet, I need you to promise me that you will." After a pause, and a forceful slam on the other side of
the door where the revenants were trying to enter the little girl finally nodded. "Good, take my hand and
don’t let go," Jennifer laced her fingers tight through the girls and dragged her behind to meet Triple-F at
the door. She made sure she kept her voice down low so only Triple-F could hear her. "We might not
make it," he nodded, "I forgot your name, sorry."

"Harrison, Elton Harrison," after that he simply looked back to the door.

"Jennifer Ryan, it was nice to meet you Harrison, in case we die," or one of them died and they
ate each other, or any other scenario that might arise.

"We leaving," he looked back at the door that was caving in, jammed up cradles all that stood in
the revenants path to them.

"Absolutely," Jennifer nodded, tightened her hold on the kid.

"After you," Harrison grabbed the handle and pulled the door out of their path. Jennifer shot out
the opening, taking little time to make sure it was clear, the nursery windows pretty much showed the
entire hall, all but the floor so she made sure to look down quickly. She’d nearly had her ankles bitten
once and she hadn’t forgotten it. As soon as it proved clear she took off down the hall, felt Harrison
behind her. But she heard the revenants behind them too, they made unnatural noises in their frenzy to
keep up and considering how dead they were they did a disturbingly good job keeping pace.

They must have gotten closer then she’d thought because after a minute Harrison was clearly
forced to shoot. Jennifer glanced back, they were close and she prayed they’d have the time to get out
the door. "We’re not gonna make it," Harrison shouted behind her.

Jennifer knew he was slowing down to shoot, "Harrison just run," she saw the door in reach, it
was revenant free which was lucky but she didn’t see any way with the number that was behind them
that they could make it out the door and still manage to close it behind them. She would not bring this
down on Alpha or Whiskey if they weren’t expecting it and she had no way to warn them. Maybe they
could run around the hall again but she liked that idea even less then trying to get out the door. She had
no idea if all of those things were behind them, for all she knew there were some down the hall in front of
them. There were no good options not really, at least involving more of Tom’s people gave them a
chance.

Again as if thinking about him conjured him out of thin air, the door opened before they reached
it and Tom and the small team that he’d taken to the tenth floor came through with rifles raised. To her
horror they didn’t hesitate to fire, Jennifer barely managed to duck down when they did because she
spun around to grab hold of Harrison. They landed on the floor in a heap, but the gunfire that could
have struck them took out the revenants that would otherwise have been on them with teeth chomping.
Jennifer had managed not to land on the kid but she was screaming again, Jennifer forced herself to
ignore her, instead she focused on putting a bullet in anything that landed on the floor but hadn’t taken a
bullet to the head.