Tainted Future (The Rememdium Series Book 3) (20 page)

The hissing, grunting noises erupted from the cab of the truck and one of the SUVs. Cooper stopped and planted his feet, ready for them to attack. Seconds ticked by, and though their racket increased in volume, they remained inside the vehicles.

They’re either restrained by their seatbelts, so mangled from the accident their legs don’t work, or they haven’t figured out how to open doors. Okay, steady. Mason’s gotta be close.

Rounding the back end of the truck, Cooper saw him. Mason was on the ground next to the gas tank, the gun about three feet away from his outstretched hand.

Fighting the urge to call out his name, Cooper ran to the other side of Mason, praying he wasn’t about to see the boy as a zombie. A sigh of relief escaped—no blood; no visible wounds; no bluish lines on Mason’s face.

Crouching down, Cooper covered Mason’s mouth with his hand and whispered, “Mason? Mason? It’s Cooper. Can you hear me?”

Mason’s eyes fluttered open. The stench of fear rolled off him in waves. Nodding once, Cooper said, “We ain’t alone, so don’t yell. You hurt?”

Mason shook his head, so Cooper removed his hand. “Can you walk?”

“Yeah.”

“Then move your ass. We gotta get. Now.”

Gravel crunched from behind them. Cooper spun around, ready to shoot, until he realized it was Teresa. She bent down and picked up the gun. “Did you get some gas?”

“Yeah. Was filling the third one when—”

“Ain’t no time for that now! Move!” Cooper grumbled.

Mason scrambled to his feet, and the three of them moved away from the wreck. The creatures inside the vehicles pounded on the windows, but not with much strength. Cooper figured their broken bodies weren’t cooperating.

“Get the gas. Now!” Teresa yelled.

“Oh, shit, wait!” Cooper screamed, grabbing Mason by the collar. Together, they turned and fled in the opposite direction.

“Five seconds. Four,” Teresa said, taking a few steps back with each word. “Three; two; one!”

Teresa fired, hitting the gas-soaked ground. The explosion knocked them all down. The heat was intense as plumes of fire and smoke shot tens of feet into the air. The eerie sounds of the grumbling dead, ceased.

“Holy shit!” Mason muttered.

Ears still ringing from the blast, Cooper stood and brushed the dirt and debris off his pants. He saw Teresa get back up and walk toward them. His nerves went into overdrive. Yanking Mason up, he moved in front of him. “Don’t move.”

“What? Why?”

“Because she’s dangerous. She almost got you killed. Twice in one fuckin’ day!”

“Twice? What do you mean?”

“Don’t lie for her, son. She sent you out here!”

Mason tugged on his sleeve, so Cooper turned around.  Mason whispered, “It was my idea, I swear. I, uh, wanted to impress her. You know, show her I wasn’t a weak nerd?”

Cooper wasn’t sure if he should laugh, or slap the kid across the head to knock some sense back into his brain. “I forgot what it’s like to be seventeen. No rational thoughts at all. Everythin’ is controlled by the dick. You’re damn lucky you’ve still got one, boy. Damn lucky. Wouldn’t recommend you pointin’ it in her direction, though. Don’t you remember what she did to the last man we saw her with? Trust me, she’s not the kind of woman you want to impress.”

“They were hurting her. She did what she had to do to survive. I’m not like them. She’ll see,” Mason answered. “Besides, it’s not like there’s a lot of women to pick from anymore. I’d like to experience sex before I croak.”

Cooper let out a huff of air as Teresa walked up.

“We should get those two containers and leave. If others are close by, they’ll be drawn to the noise.”

“Shoulda thought about that before you blew them to kingdom come,” Cooper said.

Ignoring the comment, Teresa looked at Mason. “Why weren’t you moving? You don’t look injured.”

Mason’s cheeks flushed bright red. “I, uh, well, guess my first attempt at siphoning gas wasn’t such a success. I got the first two filled and had a bit of trouble with the third.”

“You didn’t know they were inside, did you?” Cooper asked. Mason shook his head. “On the third attempt, you heard them, probably right around the time you were suckin’ out gas. Right?”

“Yeah. Started choking, then I guess I hyperventilated and fainted. So much for being a hero, huh?”

“We’ve got two more cans of gas, so yeah, you’re a hero,” Teresa replied.

Mason’s smile was so big, Cooper feared his face would snap. “Let’s go get your hard-earned treasures and head back. We’ve still got a lot of miles to cover.”

They walked away from the burning vehicles, back toward the SUV. Mason stopped and retrieved the gas cans, the stupid grin still on his face. Cooper wouldn’t say anything else at the moment, but the second Teresa was out of earshot, he’d have a long talk with the boy. Set him straight on the kind of woman Teresa was, and to stay sharp around her before she sunk her teeth into him.

Literally.

About ten minutes into their hike back to the vehicle, Cooper asked, “Mason? What did you use to siphon gas with?”

“The emergency kit had an air compressor. I cut the hose off.”

Cooper couldn’t help but smile at the kid’s resourcefulness. “Geek Squad, that was smart thinkin’, but did it ever occur to you we might need the air compressor later? We’ve only got one spare tire. What if we blow one, replace it, then start losin’ air from another?”

“I, well, guess I figured gas was the priority. Can’t blow a tire if we aren’t moving.”

Tamping down his frustration, Cooper said, “From here on out, we work as a group. No goin’ off playin’ hero unless we all agree and go. Got it?”

“Sure thing, Chief!” Mason answered.

The sound of pride in the kid’s voice made Cooper shake his head. Yes, he definitely needed to have a talk with Mason.

Soon.

“Teresa said we aren’t far from the Arkansas border. With three tanks of gas, we should be good, right?” Mason asked.

“Maybe. Depends on what kind of trouble we run into. This area ain’t heavily populated, but the rest of our drive will be.”

“Don’t worry, Chief. We’ll make it. We’ve come this far, and I’ll be honest, I didn’t think we’d make it out of Colorado. I was wrong, so that mean there’s hope. We’ll make it to your kids. No doubts.”

The mention of his children sent waves of anger through Cooper’s chest. The frustration he’d held inside, burst out. “We won’t if either of you keep makin’ stupid, spur-of-the-moment decisions! I’m tired, hungry, and pissed off. I don’t need to be sidetracked with worryin’ about savin’ your asses! Yeah, we’ve been lucky so far, but luck always runs out. Always. From now on, we don’t push it any longer. Think before actin’, not the other way around. If you don’t, we’ll all end up like those burnt corpses back there. Got it?”

Mason nodded, looking at the ground rather than Cooper’s face. No one said another word the rest of the fifteen minutes they walked.

Once back at the SUV, Cooper unlocked the doors. Mason filled the gas tank then climbed inside, his pride wounded and face flushed. Cooper reached under the driver’s seat and handed the kid a bottle of water.

“Drink, but not too fast. Keep your eyes out for any signs of trouble. Both of you.”

Two heads bobbed in agreement, so Cooper eased out onto the road and headed east, thankful to be alive, and closer to home.

I’m coming, kids. I’m coming, if these two don’t screw up again.

TIME TO FLY AWAY - Thursday, December 25
^th
– 1:15 p.m. – Central Standard Time

“Anyone realize what today is?”

“Yeah, Christmas. Ho-fucking-ho. No presents this year, other than the biggest lump of coal ever. Feels just like it did when I was a kid. Santa couldn’t get to our house back then, either, just like he didn’t get through all this rock. Instead of Jolly Ol’ Saint Nick, Krampus appeared. But you know what, Doc? We’re safe here. If magical elves can’t penetrate these walls, nothing can,” Kevin responded.

“We aren’t safe here, Kevin. Not for much longer,” Everett added.

“Jesus, Kevin. When did you become such a whiner?” Clive interjected. “I sure am sick of hearing you piss and moan.”

“Picked it up from your mom, asshole. Right after I—”

Kevin and Clive were at each other’s throats before Everett had time to blink, or Kevin finished his sentence. Dirk and Denaryl jumped from their spots and pulled them apart. Everett watched from his perch at the end of the table, a heavy knot in his stomach.

“Now it’s just like Christmas at my house, too. Every year, there was always at least one fight,” Dirk said after yanking Clive off Kevin. “The only difference is it’s not me and my brother going at each other. I’ll repeat what my father used to say: next one out of line gets a boot in their ass. I’m not even kidding. We don’t have the luxury of acting like hormonal twelve-year-olds.”

“Sorry, guess that wasn’t the appropriate time to bring up the subject of Christmas,” Everett offered. “It’s just, well, I was tired of rehashing the same topic and listening to all of you argue. Believe me, gentlemen, Christmas is my least favorite time of the year. The last thirteen sucked, and this one tops them all.”

“Actually, it’s rather appropriate today is Christmas. A time for new beginnings, right Doc?”

Everett gave Dirk a weary smile. “Something like that, though I’ve been waiting for a ray of hope for a long time. No beams of happiness are around.”

“Enough theatrics, all of you! What I want to know, Doc, is are you sure this is a real threat?” Denaryl asked.

“Wow, he speaks! You haven’t said ten words since we’ve been here, Dee. Now you decide to join a conversation?”

“Warton, I’ve kept quiet because no one could get a word in around you. Your mouth’s always busy flapping enough for all of us. Stop spouting your bullshit and interrupting questions asked to another! Doc?”

Everett sighed. He looked up into the warm, chocolate brown eyes of Denaryl Rice. He’d always liked the kid because he sensed another damaged soul behind the wide eyes. “I’m ninety-nine percent positive.”

“Only ninety-nine percent? Maybe we should go check out the facility, you know, just to be sure? There could still be workers there,” Clive offered.

“So, you’re volunteering to go check it out, Winters? Hope so, because there’s no way I’m going. Too risky. That one percent window don’t mean shit,” Drake said.

“Nothing in this world is one-hundred percent, except dying. Now, even that’s changed, because people are coming back. Arkansas Nuclear One is just a ticking time bomb. I’d bet my life on it, no hesitation. Depending upon certain factors, it could be days, or weeks, before meltdown.”

“Not years? You sure?” Dirk asked.

Everett nodded.

“Then we don’t risk a mission there. Period,” Dirk said with finality.

“You’re going to trust the man who started all this?” Kevin muttered. “Are we really going to put our lives in this old fool’s hands? What if he’s wrong?”

Denaryl pulled his gaze from Everett’s face, diverting his attention to Kevin. “We all know you disagree with the decision to leave. Not all of us feel the same way. So, here’s my vote, if it even matters. We go. I don’t care where, just get the fuck outta here before this shit happens. At least with this catastrophe, we’ve got some warning. A slow death from radiation exposure does not interest me at all.”

“Oh, but you’re willing to risk a quick death after getting torn apart by rotten corpses?” Clive asked.

“If it means I won’t be trapped underground and slowly rotting away while poison courses through my veins, yes. A few days of healthy freedom with a quick ending certainly sounds better than what awaits us here.”

“What about Dr. Berning’s research? Where in the world would we go that’s safe and has a lab?” Drake Denton asked.

“Dr. Berning, would you like to answer Drake’s question?”

Everett rose from the chair, wishing Dirk hadn’t asked him to expound. He didn’t want to dump yet another pile of awful news on the already strung-out men, though he knew there wasn’t a choice.

“Go ahead, Doc. Kevin won’t interrupt, right, Kevin?” Dirk asked.

Kevin’s answer was a grunt as he slumped into a chair.

“At the present, our biggest threat is the radiation. If we remain here and I continue working on a cure, I’ll need more specimens. As such, some of you would have the task of acquiring them, which not only poses danger from the dead, but exposure to radiation. Nuclear reactors require power to run the cooling pumps. If they no longer function, meltdown occurs. It can’t be detected by human senses, and we don’t have any equipment on site to alert us when it’s in the air. We wouldn’t know, until it’s too late, that we’ve been exposed.”

“What about the bio suits? Can’t we use them?” Clive asked.

“They would protect from some radioactive contamination, yes. However, we only have four left. There’s no way to decontaminate them, or even know, if you’ve been exposed or not. It’s too risky to stay here. We’re downwind and right at one-hundred miles away. In other words, sitting ducks. When we run out of supplies, everything around us topside will be contaminated.”