The Zombie Chronicles - Book 6 - Revelation (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) (13 page)

“
Let’s go back inside,” Val said.

As we turned to walk back into the apartment, the nearby metal trashcan toppled over. Instinctively, I pulled out my gun and aimed. Val flashed a light, and beady white eyes glowed. The ring-tailed rodent simply hissed and inching its jaws like it had rabies. It was moving far more sluggishly and slowly than any raccoon I’d ever seen before.

“
What’s wrong with it?” Val asked, staring at it.

Nick inched closer. “It’s acting like a zombie.”

It lurched toward Val’s boot, and she fired twice. With one more
hiss
, it slumped over. She kicked at the animal, but it didn’t even twitch.

“
Oh no. You think animals are now vulnerable to the virus?” I asked, fearing the answer.

Nick examined the carcass slowly, then met my gaze. “Looks like it. It has those cursed white eyes, and it obviously wanted to make a meal outta Val’s foot. Raccoons don’t usually act like that.”

Val let out a long breath.

I swallowed hard. “So the virus has…mutated?” I asked.

“
Who knows for sure? I’m not a scientist, and I don’t know what to make of it,” Nick answered.

“
Do you think Max knows about this?” Val asked.

“
We oughtta let him know, just in case,” Nick said. “Besides, Dean already ticked him off today, and I’m not ready to get an eviction notice. We shouldn’t keep secrets from him.”

Val nodded. “You’re right. I’ll go get him.”

Chapter 13

We met in the conference room with Max and a group of his most trusted minions. Well-placed lanterns provided plenty of light.

Nick set a sack on the table, and everyone stared curiously as he rolled the dead creature onto a blanket.

“
What is it?” a man asked.

“
A raccoon. It tried to take off Val’s leg, so she had to shoot it.”

“
It was snapping its jaws, drooling, and had the same white eyes as the zombies,” Val added.

“
Rabies?” one of the men said.

“
No. We think it was…infected,” I chimed in.

“
By the zombie virus?” one of the men retorted. “Are you tellin’ us animals are now susceptible?”

“
That’s what we’re thinking,” Val said. “The raccoon definitely had a craving for human flesh.”

Max pondered before blurting out, “This is the last thing we need. That virus spreads like wildfire and is aggressive and possibly contagious. We have to contain it before it spreads to the entire animal population. Has anyone else seen incidents like this?”

“
No,” a woman said.

“
When we stayed at the lab a while back, I had lots of talks with the scientists. They said the virus can’t infect animals. They were sure of it.”

“
Then how is it happening?” another woman asked.

A man sighed. “We already have to watch for zombies. Now we’re gonna have to watch for zombified animals too? What the heck is going on?”

Like everyone else in the room, I was beginning to wonder if our world would ever be safe. “If animals can be contaminated, that means every dog, cat, and household pet could become a dangerous predator.”

“
It could be a fluke,” a man said.

“
No,” another chimed in. “Those zombies are like cockroaches, and I’m sure the animals are no different. If we saw one, there’s more lurking around.”

“
I’m gonna take this specimen to the lab and see if the scientists can figure anything out,” Nick said.

“
Nick, I need you here,” Max said.

“
I’ll go,” Val offered. “Dean will go with me.”

Nick nodded in agreement; it was, after all, a safer way for me to get my adventure fix. The part of the city where we were going wasn’t highly populated with zombies, and Val would be accompanying me. I didn’t need his blessing, and he couldn’t tell me no all the time, but I felt better knowing he was okay with it. Still, there was one foreseeable problem. “When Claire and I went to the lab this morning,” I said, “they wouldn’t open the door.” I didn’t fill Max in on the fact that they probably hated us for all the damage Sam and Larry had brought on.

“
Maybe they were out,” Max said. “Try again. I’ll send a team with you. We’ve got no idea if there are zombies still in the lab.” He then shifted in his seat and looked around at everyone. “Nobody leaves tonight, not until first light.”

“
There are no zombies there,” I said. “When I went there the other day, I saw that the lab’s been repaired. The doors are fixed, so I’m sure they dealt with the zombie threat.”

“
Take my team anyway,” Max insisted.

I nodded. “Sure thing.”

“
Charlie was rescued from that house. Since he’s one of the scientists, we can start there and see what info he can give us.”

“
Fine. Talk to Charlie first, and then go see the other scientists,” Max said. “Like you, I want answers. Tell the geek squad I expect a complete workup on the specimen. I know it might take a few days, but I want their best theories on what they think might be happening. You can give me a full report on your findings tomorrow night.”

Val nodded.

Max jotted down some notes. “If we truly have zombie animals running around, we could have an epidemic on our hands.”

“
There has to be another explanation,” a woman said, shaking her head. “Our kids have lost so much. Now they’ll lose their pets too.”

Max turned to face her. “I pray to God they won’t, Judy.”

We spent a few more hours discussing everything, from the zombie virus to those dreaded animals. None of us had answers; all anyone could offer were opinions and fears.

* * *

We arrived back at the apartment around midnight. I glanced out my bedroom window and stared at the moon. Thoughts of Jackie drifted through my mind. I watched the patrol march back and forth outside, and that made me feel a little safer. We were on the fourth floor, in a city with a low zombie count, and there were no stairs for any of the undead to climb to get to us. For once, I would finally get some sleep that wouldn’t be disturbed by worrisome nightmares—or at least I hoped so. I was emotionally exhausted and physically drained, and since Nick was already snoring, I climbed to the top bunk and threw the Spider-Man blanket over top of me.

Chapter 14

Morning came fast, and Val’s voice served as my alarm clock; unfortunately, I couldn’t exactly smack my hand against her to activate the snooze button, because she would have smacked me back. She pulled up the shades, and bright sunshine flooded in.

“
Val!” I said, “c’mon! Do we have to get up at the butt crack of dawn all the time?”

“
It’s ten a.m., Dean. Get up.”

I swallowed hard, not believing how long I’d slept.

Val handed me two granola bars, a can of diet Crush, a washcloth, a towel, and a large bowl of cold water. “Up and at ‘em,” she said. “Eat these, get cleaned up and dressed, and let’s go.”

Suddenly, a rank odor assaulted my nostrils, and I instinctively took a whiff under my armpits to make sure it wasn’t me. “What is that?” I asked her, wrinkling up my nose.

“
The dead raccoon is stinking to high heaven.”

“
Huh? You brought that thing in the apartment to spend the night with us?”

“
No way! Didn’t you ever read
Pet Sematary
? I wouldn’t be able to sleep thinking that raccoon might reanimate and come back to life. But I did bring it up here this morning.”

“
Why?”

“
Because some teenagers were getting ready to cremate it right before my very eyes with some kerosene and a lighter. Luckily, I stopped them just in time.”

“
Good. Because the lab needs a specimen. I’ll be out in a minute.”

“
Just hurry, sleepyhead,” she said, then turned to leave.

I cleaned up and got dressed, then ate my breakfast, although the nasty stench of the rotting animal made everything taste horrible. But Sparkles was more than willing to eat the rest of my granola bar which told me that she must be starving. I searched the cabinets and found a small can of Vienna sausages that I fed her. I made sure my gun was fully loaded, and slung my rifle strap over my shoulder.

When I finally made it out to the Land Rover, a team of four guys introduced themselves, all of them dressed in dark clothing and black boots, like a troupe of cat burglars.

Val and I jumped in the back, and off we went to go find Jonathon.

Along the way, Val chatted with the women.

One complained about her current hardships, as if life was peachy for everyone but her.

Another advised, “When life gives you lemons, you gotta make lemonade.”

“
That’s a little cliché, don’t you think?” Val chimed in. “I think I need something stronger…like a margarita.”

The women laughed, and I chuckled along with them.

We finally pulled into the driveway, and a group of people immediately aimed their weapons at us. I couldn’t blame them, considering they didn’t know us, and we were living in a day and age when trust was a rare commodity. I wished we’d brought Steven and Rachel along, but Max had assigned them to another mission.

“
We come in peace,” Val shouted. “We’re looking for Charlie.”

“
He’ll vouch for us,” I said, then breathed a sigh of relief when they lowered their weapons.

One of the armed female guards ran inside, and we hoped she was going to get the scientist for us. Meanwhile, the other three armed guards said they’d cover our backs and act as lookouts while we talked to Charlie.

I glanced at Val. “I hope he talks to us this time.”

Val smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll disarm him with my feminine charm.”

“
Wow. We’re in real trouble then,” I joked.

“
Hey!”

“
We shoulda told Claire we were coming here,” I said.

“
She was still sleeping when we left. She needs her rest and a little alone time.”

“
I know, but she wanted to talk to Charlie herself. She’s gonna be furious—almost as furious as I was when you two took off without me.”

“
Listen, I’ll deal with it,” Val said. “It’s just not good for her to be out here right now. Heck, I’m not even convinced you oughtta be.”

“
I’m fine,” I said, stepping out of the vehicle.

“
No you’re not. You’re just…tough and stubborn. You’ve got a little too much of your brother and me in you. Inside, I know your heart is aching.”

“
No offense, Dr. Phil, but I don’t see a couch anywhere, and this isn’t the time to talk about our feelings. It isn’t exactly a Hallmark occasion, ya know?”

She playfully slugged me. “C’mon, you little punk. Let’s go,” she said, walking up the sidewalk. “Just know that if you need someone to talk to, I’m here.”

“
Thanks,” I said. “But I’m not really into talking about feelings.”

“
You’re so much like your brother,” she said.

Charlie opened the door and hugged me right away. “Dean! The hero who saved my life! It’s so good to see you.” He looked around. “Hey, where’s my other hero?”

“
She overslept and I didn’t want to wake her up,” I said. “And it wasn’t just us that helped get you out of that house. It was an entire team of brave and dedicated people all working together.”