The Death Trilogy (Book 1): The Death: Quarantine (7 page)

“Just do it.”

“But—”

As she pushed the baker’s rack away, she grunted. Frustrated by Devin’s lack of help, she stopped and snapped, “I want these guys to come inside. When we shoot them, the gunshots will be muffled.”

“Shoot them?” Devin asked, alarmed.

“I don’t have time to explain, but they’re marauders, plain and simple.”

“How do you know?”

“Because the first guy I saw was the guy who shot me!”

This response prompted Devin to act quickly. He finished clearing the baker’s rack while she undid the baling wire. Once she was finished with that, she tossed the dishes in the sink and ordered, “Upstairs, now! Brando, come!”

The ever-obedient dog, he stopped pacing and followed them upstairs.

The upstairs hallway went straight from the top of the stairs and ended in the master bedroom at the very end.

When Devin saw her heading for it, he spoke up, “You’re going in there?”

“Yes, you can get a clear shot from there. I’ll lure them in; they won’t have anywhere to go.”

“I really don’t want to go in there,” Devin lamented.

“What is wrong with you?”

The clanging of cans hit their ears, signaling the men were at the porch.

“We don’t have time to debate this. Lay the pillows here and sit behind them there. You have a clear shot,” Tess said as she piled up the pillows. “I’ll draw them both upstairs by letting them know I’m here.”

“Are you sure this is a smart idea?”

“Do you have a better one?”

Devin just looked at her. He didn’t have a better plan or any plan, for that matter.

The sound of the back door opening now greeted them, followed by unintelligible conversation.

Tess looked down on the driveway and road from the upstairs window just to confirm these men were by themselves. From her previous run-in with them, she knew these two were scouts; that meant the main group wasn’t far behind.

The garbled voice from the radio struck fear in Tess as it echoed up the stairs, “Marlin, you there?”

“Yeah.”

“Where are you?”

“About a half mile up Kraft Road, we just stopped—”

“Help me!” Tess called out.

The man holding the radio stopped talking and looked at his partner. A devilish grin stretched across his face.

The other man briskly walked to the bottom of the stairs and called out, “Someone need help up there?”

“Yes, I’m by myself. Please help me,” Tess called out, then looked at Devin, who was perched behind his pillows.

“I think I’m getting laid today,” Marlin said, his evil grin exposing his deeply stained teeth. His greasy shoulder-length brown hair was pulled back and tucked behind his ears.

“Marlin, you broke up,” the radio crackled.

Ignoring the radio call, Marlin proceeded to the base of the stairs and said, “I’m getting my dick wet. Get out of the way, Frank.”

“How do you know she’s by herself?” Frank questioned.

“Hey, darling, you come here,” Marlin hollered out.

“I can’t. Some man came yesterday and tied me up. Please help me.”

Marlin’s smile expanded as he had visions of what he was going to do to the unknown woman. He raced up the stairs and stopped.

Frank walked up the stairs slowly, skeptical of what they’d find.

Marlin looked down the hall and saw Tess’s legs and then a pile of pillows on the bloodstained mattress.

“I’m coming, sweetheart,” Marlin said as he headed towards her.

Frank stopped a few steps shy of the top but enough to look down the hallway; he had a good view underneath the bed. His eyes widened when he saw Devin’s knees and feet.

“Marlin, stop. It’s an ambush!” Frank screamed.

“Shoot ’em,” Tess cried out.

Devin pulled the trigger, and like the day before, it didn’t move. He hadn’t thought about asking Tess how the shotgun worked, and this neglect now risked everything.

Seeing Devin struggle, Tess sprang from the bed and into the open doorway. There in front of her was the same man who had shot her two days before.

“Hi, Marlin, remember me?” she asked as she raised her pistol, a Glock 17, and squeezed off a round.

Marlin didn’t have time to respond, and the grin he had been wearing was wiped away by the 9mm bullet as it ripped through his face and exited the back of his head. His head snapped back as he fell straight to the floor.

Frank looked right at Tess, but instead of engaging her, he ducked down on the stairs, his heart racing. He didn’t know how many people were upstairs, and the best plan, he thought, was to make a run for it.

Devin was in shock at what he saw; he had never seen someone act so deliberately and harshly like Tess had.

Not wasting a moment, Tess raced towards the stairs with the pistol out in front of her.

Frank knew he had to run, and run he did. He jumped and hit the bottom of the stairs with a loud thump. The force of his impact forced him into the wall, but he regained his footing and bolted for the door.

Tess was in hot pursuit with Brando right behind her.

Frank ran through the back door and jumped over the railing of the porch, headed back towards the road.

Tess was trying to keep up, but Frank was running too fast for her. She saw he now had a radio in his hand. She knew what that meant; soon more marauders would be upon them. With that knowledge and her inability to stop Frank, she went back inside.

Brando broke from her and began to pursue.

“Brando, no, heel.”

Obeying her command, he stopped, his hair raised, but his pursuit at an end.

“Come, boy, we have to leave!” she called out to Brando.

Back inside the house she found Devin at the bottom of the stairs, shotgun still in his hand.

“You really need to learn how to use that thing,” she snapped at him as she picked up her pack and put it on.

“You’re leaving?”

“You will too, if you’re smart. They’ll be coming back, and it won’t be just two guys but a small army.”

Devin was in a panic as he didn’t know what to do. He was sure she was right, but he wasn’t mentally prepared to flee. “Can I come with you?”

“Sure, but grab some stuff and quick!”

Devin remembered there was a pack in the barn and went for it. He returned in a couple minutes and began to stuff it with food and a few bottles of water.

“We gotta go now!” she screamed, looking at her watch.

Just then the rumble of vehicles could be heard on the road just down from the driveway entrance.

She yelled, “Now, come on!” With her pack on, rifle at the ready, she kicked the screen door open. Brando ran out first, and she followed.

Devin hadn’t fully put on the pack, but it didn’t stop him. With it slung over one arm and the shotgun in his other hand, he darted out behind her.

Tess maneuvered through the baling wire on the back steps and ran towards the cornfields behind the barn.

Devin heard the voices of men screaming and throttled motorcycles and trucks now at the front of the house. He knew they were close and what would happen if they were caught. With his heart racing, he sprinted for the cornfield. He looked up and saw Tess disappear into the thick dead stalks. He made a mental note not to lose track of her.

Just as he hit the field’s edge, he heard the sound of breaking glass and then a small explosion coming from the house. He never stopped to look back at the house and barn that had provided him shelter for those long six months. Now he was running for his life from an enemy who, as of twenty minutes ago, he never knew existed.

Denver International Airport

Lori only knew it was morning from the clock on her nightstand and the watch on her wrist; otherwise there was no sign of what time of day it was. Her quarters and the drafting room she’d toured the night before were two levels below ground.

Living close to Denver meant she had been through Denver International Airport countless times, but the airport she saw last night didn’t resemble the one she had known before. The first word that came to mind last night upon seeing it was ‘fortress’. The airport’s perimeter looked more like a prison, with several rows of twenty-foot chain-link fence and manned towers every few hundred feet. The entrance was fortified and manned heavily. Tanks and other armored vehicles sat positioned, their guns facing out, ready to stop anybody not cleared.

Seeing this shocked her at first, but after reflection it made sense to protect what vital interests the government had here.

Inside, the runways were now occupied with countless military aircraft and support equipment. People were buzzing around in a flurry of activity, loading and unloading, refueling, and maintaining aircraft. From the looks of it, the airport was now a major hub in the reconstruction and recovery efforts.

Once inside, she was escorted through the main terminal, which was familiar minus the frenzy of civilian travelers and the smell of Cinnabon. Then she came to the elevator that took her two levels down to what was now her temporary home and workplace.

She hadn’t had a chance to meet her new colleagues, but she was ready and anxious to start. Lori did a final check in the mirror, grabbed her handbag, and exited her quarters. As she walked the wide concrete passageways, she felt empty-handed. If this was an appointment with a new client, she would have come equipped with her briefcase, iPad and leather-bound legal notepad. All of her business accessories were left behind after she and her family abandoned their house for Camp 13.

In no time she reached the double steel doors that would be her new place of work.

“Here it is, room C-23,” she said to herself as she reached for the door handle.

The door suddenly opened, startling her.

“Oh, hi, you must be Lori Roberts?” the man standing in front of her said, holding out his hand.

Lori looked at him, then his outstretched hand; it had become second nature not to shake hands, much less make contact with people, since The Death.

The man noticed her hesitance and laughed. “I can assure you. I’m not contagious, and we all know you’re immune.”

“Of course.” Lori chuckled nervously as she took his hand and shook it. “Hi, Lori Roberts, and you’re?”

“I’m Chance Montgomery, the project leader and your supervisor,” he answered. Chance was in his early forties, lean and average height. His dark brown hair had a dusting of gray throughout.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Come on in. Find a place to put your stuff, and I’ll meet you in the conference room. There are two others in there. I’ll be right back.”

Lori walked in and went directly into the conference room. There she found two people, a young man and an older woman.

“Hi, I’m Lori Roberts,” she said, giving a little wave.

“Hi, Lori, I’m Maggie,” the woman responded. She was in her early fifties, with perfect skin and blonde hair cut short.

“Lori, I’m Brad,” the man said, standing and offering his hand. He was in his thirties, short and chubby.

After exchanging greetings, Lori took a seat.

“So, this is all very interesting,” Brad said.

“Yes, it is,” Lori answered.

“I’m from California; what about you?” Maggie said.

“California, wow, all the way for this?” Lori asked, surprised.

“They brought me in from Texas,” Brad offered.

“I guess I had it easy, I’m from here,” Lori mentioned.

“Denver?” Maggie asked.

“Just outside of it, a small town—”

The door to the conference room opened up, and in walked Chance. “Okay, people, sounds like you got an opportunity to meet. How about we plan a city!”

Decatur, Illinois

Devin didn’t know how long he ran; the fields seemed endless or time slowed down, either way he ran and ran. The only thing that stopped him was seeing the open expanse in front of him. Standing on the edge of the massive field, he looked at the empty highway. Looking both ways, he saw nothing. Months before this was a busy interstate highway; now it was a lonely road. The cracks in the pavement were showing the lack of use as tiny blades of grass grew in between them. It didn’t take long for Mother Nature to reclaim what was hers.

Hiding a few feet from the edge of the dead cornfield, he plotted his next step. He had lost contact with Tess and Brando right from the start. He thought, should he wait or keep going, and if he kept going, where would he go? Decisions, he hated having to make them. He wanted desperately to find Tess; she was capable and smart, or at least that was his impression. Being alone now without a place to lay his head stressed him and created uncertainty; he hated uncertainty.

He looked at his watch, and then muttered, “Wait thirty minutes, then make for the other side and keep going.”

His doubts took over as he asked himself,
Keep going where?

“Tess, where are you?” he asked under his breath.

As the minutes ticked down closer to his self-imposed deadline, he readied himself to make a run for it across the highway and into another huge dead cornfield.

He stood, looked for a clear and easy path towards his goal, and positioned himself right on the edge.

“Psst! Hey, get back!” Tess whispered loudly from behind him.

He spun around but didn’t see her.

“Back away from the edge and get down, now!” she demanded.

He did as she said and just in time; not twenty seconds later a small convoy of trucks and cars came down the road. He carefully watched them go by and saw a familiar face: the man who had gotten away. Seeing this man made his stomach turn. Once again Tess had saved him.

When the convoy passed and was out of sight, Tess crawled out of her hiding place and came up to him. “You seriously didn’t hear them?”

“No, I didn’t, I swear.”

“I heard the loud exhaust on their trucks a mile back,” Tess said.

“I guess I have to thank you again for saving my life.”

“You owe me again, it looks like. By the way, I do keep tabs,” she joked.

“Where’s Brando?” Devin asked.

Tess whistled twice.

Brando burst out of the corn next to him and ran up to Tess’s side.

“Was he just sitting back there?”