The Death Trilogy (Book 1): The Death: Quarantine (21 page)

He stood and looked into her eyes. “These are beautiful, almost as beautiful as the woman who drew them.”

Lori blushed and stepped back from him.

He took her hand and said, “Lori, please don’t pull away when I give you a compliment. I’m not normally attracted to women like I am to you. The first time I saw you I was…well, I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

“Chancellor, I think this is not the place to be making comments like this. This is my residence and I—”

He squeezed her hand tighter and drew her closer. “Lori, I see it in your eyes too. I can give you everything you want.”

“Everything except keeping my husband here.”

“I can keep your baby from dying; that I guarantee.”

“Please leave.”

He pulled her even closer and went to kiss her.

The door clicked, opened quickly, and there was David and Eric.

She pulled away from Horton but not soon enough.

David saw what he feared he’d see again, Lori kissing another man. “I thought so,” he said and stormed out.

Eric was old enough to know his parents’ history, and his comment struck her the hardest. “You’re a whore.”

“Eric, David, no, it’s not what you think,” she pleaded as she pushed Horton away and chased after them.

Outside of Reed, Illinois

Devin, Tess and Brianna all carefully scouted the property where Daryl was last seen by using the cover of trees and corn. After an hour had gone by, they decided that the property seemed vacant. One clue for Devin was that no vehicles were parked there, including Daryl’s.

“Tess, cover me, and don’t come in till I give the okay,” Devin ordered.

Making plans and giving orders was normally Tess’s responsibility, but Devin’s shift had given him more than confidence to act, it had given him purpose to help those in need.

She looked at him and answered, “We’ll have your back, be safe.”

Devin stood and made for the shed where they had found Deborah and the other woman. The door was open, which was another sign that no one was there utilizing the property. Reaching it, he stuck his head in quickly and looked, seeing nothing. About twenty-five feet away was another small outbuilding. Ensuring he was clear, he ran over to it. The small metal building had no windows and one door. Looking, he saw it wasn’t locked. He figured no one was in there, but he didn’t want to take a chance. He opened the door, and an immense smell washed over him. He quickly closed it and closed his eyes. A strong sensation to vomit hit him, but he fought it. He had a good idea what the building had been used for and didn’t need to see more.

The last place to go was the main house, the double-wide trailer just fifty feet away. With no time better than now, he took off in a sprint for the back door but tripped over something large in the tall grass that was the overgrown backyard. His face and chest hit the ground hard, causing him to drop his rifle. Unhurt from the fall, he scrambled for his rifle and grabbed it. He sat up to see what he’d tripped over and saw the other woman’s body. A quick assessment of her wounds told him she had been shot; he then remembered the gunshots he had heard yesterday. He pivoted back and cleared the remaining twenty feet to the back door steps. Up the stairs, he went to the door and saw that it was cracked open. He looked in the direction of Tess and Brianna and nodded; then he opened it slightly to peek inside. The smell from inside the dimly lit trailer hit him, but this smell wasn’t as intense.

“On the count of three, Dev, one, two, three,” he whispered to himself, then opened the door and went in, rifle at his shoulder. He scanned the kitchen and living room, but saw no one. He quickly cleared the rest but didn’t find a soul.

With the property cleared, he began to look for any clues as to where Daryl might be, but came up empty-handed. Thinking it was unnecessary for Tess and Brianna to see this house of horrors, he completed his search and went back.

“You didn’t wave us in?” Tess asked as soon as he walked back.

“No need for you to see that.”

“We could have helped,” she countered.

“There’s nothing there. Let’s go,” he answered and began walking back to the Humvee.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, but I have an idea of someone who might help answer some questions.”

“Who would that be?” she asked as she followed just behind him.

“The mayor.”

Denver International Airport

The winds gusted across the tarmac, tussling Lori’s hair and clothes. The cloudy day added to her somber mood and the scene which was playing out between her, David and Eric in full public view.

“Please believe me,” Lori begged.

“That’s it, Lori, the last straw. We’ve tried to work things out from the last time, but you have a thing for men in power,” he said, referencing her last affair with a city councilman from Denver.

“David, I apologized for that. How many times are you going to remind me that I screwed up?”

He looked at her harshly and answered, “This will be the last time.”

“Don’t do this. My family means so much to me.”

“I supported you coming here, like I’ve supported all of your career moves, but this time it truly was about helping your family. I put aside any prideful feelings and told myself that your focus would be solely taking care of us, but I was wrong. You came here and couldn’t…you couldn’t control your appetite. God, Lori, you weren’t gone a week and you already have interests outside of our marriage. And now you’re pregnant. How do I know the baby is mine?”

“How dare you say that. Of course this baby is yours.”

“How do I know that? You came here to give us a chance, and you just couldn’t resist the trappings of a man who has power and influence.”

“I didn’t do anything. What you saw was him, not me.”

“Men just don’t come on that strongly unless they feel there’s an opportunity. I noticed something the day we arrived; you know what that was?”

Lori didn’t and just stood there, taking one accusation and verbal attack after another in the hopes he was just venting.

“No guesses? Well, you didn’t have your wedding ring on, how convenient.”

“No, it’s not like that. I took it off because it had gotten tight. I’m retaining water and—”

“Blah, blah, blah, enough bullshit! You want this life, you want your men of power and influence along with your recognition of being such a shit-hot architect, well, you can have it, but you can’t have all of it. I won’t let you win, not this time,” he bellowed, the emotional strain now showing on his face. Tears began to well up in his eyes as he knew what his leaving meant. He was committed to ending it now, and it hurt him deeply.

Seeing this, she reached out to touch his face.

He batted her hand away and snapped, “Don’t touch me. You’ve hurt me deeply for the last time.”

Now the realities of what was happening hit her, and an emotional avalanche began in her. “Please don’t leave me. I need you, the baby needs you.”

“I’ll check on you now and then, but just know it’s only because of the baby. Once it’s born, I want a paternity test. If the child is mine, I’ll do what’s right, but you and I are done.”

Her body began to tremble, and she reached for him again.

He stepped back and looked over his shoulder at Eric, who was ignoring what was happening while sitting on his luggage with his headset on.

“Goodbye, Lori, enjoy the life you always wanted,” David said and turned away from her. He walked up to Eric and touched his shoulder.

Eric looked up, nodded, then looked at Lori. He snarled at her and walked away with David towards a CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopter.

Lori watched, tears now flowing heavily down her face as what was left of her family left her. She didn’t know what to do. Thoughts of running up and begging came to mind, but she knew David well enough that when he got this angry there was no convincing him. She would have to allow time to go by and hopefully heal the wounds she had created years ago.

The helicopter’s rotors began to wind up as the rear ramp rose.

How could she do her job and raise a child by herself, how? She had to find a way to make this right, she thought. Then she began to wonder if she really did invite trouble into her life. Of course, she did years ago with the councilman, but with Horton she thought she’d kept her distance, but maybe somewhere she gave him an opening. She would have to reevaluate her actions and change them, especially if she were to ever get her family back.

Reed, Illinois

When Devin made the last turn left and saw the courthouse, it dawned on him that going into town with the Humvee might not have been a good idea. The few people he did see were giving long curious stares at the military vehicle.

“Tell me again why seeing this mayor will help?” Tess asked.

“Any other suggestions?” Devin asked back.

“It kind of makes sense, you know, seeing the person in charge to see if he can help,” Brianna said, offering her opinion. She didn’t speak much, but when she did, her wisdom was beyond her years.

“I just don’t see what he’ll be able to help with or if he’ll want to. After what you told me about Daryl’s run-in with the mayor and surviving townspeople, I just don’t think he’ll give a damn.”

“Maybe so, but if you have a better idea, I’d like to hear it.”

Tess just looked at Devin; he was on fire with his pithy responses. He was a man on a mission and had clarity. She was becoming impressed with him in short order.

He pulled into the same parking space as he and Daryl had days ago, and turned off the engine.

“I want you two to stay here. Keep an eye out,” he ordered and jumped out.

“I think we should come,” Tess challenged.

“No, stay put, keep an eye out for Daryl, his truck and this one too. I noticed a few people giving us hard stares coming into town.”

“Fine.”

Brianna got out and stretched. She looked around the empty streets and took in the few sights that were Reed, Illinois. She’d been through there before, but for someone who lived relatively close, she hadn’t been there that much.

Tess followed suit, exited, and also took a long stretch. When Devin disappeared into the courthouse, she felt more alone. Having him become more responsible gave her a lot of relief because before she’d felt like he was nothing more than a dead weight.

The rumble of several trucks bounced off the brick buildings.

She turned around to find the source of the sound when several large pickup trucks made the last turn and pulled up near her in front of the courthouse.

The rumbling engines instantly reminded her of the group who had attacked her, then showed up at Devin’s cousin’s house.

The trucks engines stopped, and men poured out of the large crew-cab trucks. From inside and out of the bed they came, almost a dozen per truck. Many looked her way and began to talk and point her way.

She lowered the ball cap to help hide her identity, but there wasn’t anything they could do about the Humvee. She imagined that it was the topic of discussion.

Several of the men went inside, leaving the bulk of them to loiter and stare at Tess and Brianna.

Feeling their eyes ripping away at their clothes, Tess got back in the Humvee. She looked at Brianna, who was just daydreaming, and said, “Why don’t you get back in. Those guys over there give me the creeps.”

“Okay,” Brianna responded and got back in too.

Both talked about Daryl, Hudson and the battle a couple days ago, Brianna’s life before, going to North Carolina, and even got around to Tess’s wedding plans that she’d made before The Death. Just as she was describing the dress she had picked out, Tess saw Devin coming back, but now he was walking with several other men. To her surprise, she recognized one of the men. Panic shot up her spine, and she began to freak out.

The group of four men, including Devin, was heading in their direction.

Tess knew without a doubt that the man she was familiar with would know her too.

How could someone forget the face of a person who tried to kill you, and that was exactly what Tess had tried to do back in Devin’s cousin’s house in Decatur. The man she knew was the one who had gotten away.

“Shit, shit, shit!” Tess exclaimed as they drew closer.

“What’s wrong?” Brianna asked, concerned.

“Something bad is coming our way,” she answered as she looked around in a desperate attempt to find somewhere to hide.

“I don’t understand.”

“One of the men coming with Devin is…well, let’s just say he tried to hurt us, and I kinda killed his friend and tried to kill him.”

“What?”

“I need to hide. He’ll know me, I know it.”

As she sat there still looking around, Devin and the men walked up to the Humvee.

“Where did you say you got this?” Mayor Rivers asked, admiring the Humvee. “You even have a machine gun, impressive.”

Devin looked at the mounted.50 caliber but didn’t have any idea how to use the weapon. Having it made him feel a bit more secure but only as a deterrent for now.

“Yeah, we were lucky, found it abandoned along the road.”

“You say you came from where originally?” Rivers asked.

The men had all stopped just outside the Humvee.

Inside, Tess had lowered herself and turned away from them.

“We came here from Lovington.”

“No, before that, you have an accent. You’re not a native of these parts, that’s for sure.”

“I’m originally from New York, ended up…” Devin paused and thought about what he was doing. Before he was someone who loved to talk and share, but for some reason he felt an urge to be deceptive. “…in Indianapolis.”

“Indy?”

“Yep.”

“Hmm. Anyways, sorry we couldn’t help you with Daryl. That guy is kind of a lone wolf; who knows where he is. I always thought he was loose cannon. After he dismissed us here in town, we thought it best to just leave him be.”

Overhearing the conversation, Tess could tell instantly that Devin hadn’t been forthright with information, and that made her happy.

“So who’s traveling with you?” Rivers asked, stepping up to the open driver’s window and peeking in.