Killing The Dead (Book 17): Siege Read online

  “This is why you want a boat?”

  “Yes. But they will be heavily armed and able to fire upon us as we approach.”

  I widened my smile as her eyebrows drew down, her eyes filling with anger.

  “This is not our fight. We have brought you here and found you a boat. Give us the location of the base.”

  “No.”

  A slow hiss escaped her and Gregg’s hand moved, drawing the knife from the sheath on his belt. I shook my head, not looking his way, but warning him none the less.

  “You,” I said. “You can join us on the boat. Your… people, can swim across to it. The cold won’t bother them, I’m sure.”

  “And do what? They can not climb the sheer sides.”

  “It’s at anchor,” I said, smile widening. “Which means an anchor chain. Your people aren’t affected by the cold and don’t get tired.”

  She didn’t immediately reply and I was pretty sure that I had her almost ready to agree. She just needed a little extra push.

  “The people on the boat are from the bunker.”

  Briony didn’t respond though her nostrils flared and her jaw worked. I knew that I had her and she was going to do as I wanted. Which would work incredibly well for me.

  “What will stop us from killing you now and then making them ours? They will take us to their home gladly when they have felt the joining.”

  There was a renewed tension from my friends at that and I continued to smile, as I tossed small shards of wood into the fire. It had been a risk to tell her that but one that I suspected would be worth it.

  She was too smart to react without thinking. No, she would need to consider it from all angles before she acted and in doing so, she would realise that I wouldn’t give her such an easy excuse to kill me.

  “Why?” she demanded, voice rising enough that my minions looked over and noticed her for the first time.

  They rose to their feet and I waved them back. Too many of them hesitated before doing as I wanted and I glared at them until they did.

  “What happens if you bite a zombie?” I asked, turning back to Briony.

  “They will die, eventually.”

  “But they don’t turn, do they?”

  “No.” Her lips twisted at that admission. “They do not.”

  “Each of the people from the bunker has a small black disc attached to their chest. Right above their heart.” I picked up another piece of wood and tossed it into the fire, watching it burn. “If they die, it releases a parasite directly into their heart. In moments, they begin to change and then resurrect.”

  I smiled at her.

  “If one of them died from your bite, turning into one of your kind, what do you think would happen?”

  She looked thoughtful at that and I could see that I had made my point. In truth, I had no idea what would happen. One parasite strain might cancel out another, or hers would be destroyed by the purer strain.

  Perhaps, and I thought that would be the most likely reason she wouldn’t risk it. Perhaps the creature that resurrected would be as strong or stronger as she was and not under her control.

  Like all the other weak creatures of the world, her own need for self-preservation won out and she began to nod, slowly.

  “We shall travel on your boat. Our children will provide the distraction.”

  Ah.

  I realised then, that she understood exactly what I was doing. An interesting mind trapped in a rotting cage. She knew most, if not all, of her group, would be killed to buy me the time to get aboard with my own people.

  She no doubt also knew that it would put her at risk, a single Infected amongst all of my warriors. She knew and she agreed anyway because she wanted something that was worth the risk. Her chance at the Genpact labs.

  An interesting mind indeed. It would be almost a shame when I killed her.

  Chapter 23

  Flames engulfed the car ahead of us, with thick black small filling the air, obscuring the falling snow. A CDF soldier screamed as a bullet hit her high in the chest and she fell to the snow as the rest of her squad scrambled for safety.

  I crouched behind the wheel of the truck that had been transporting me, sidearm in one hand as I wiped the blood from my face with the other. A shard of something from the explosion had ripped right through the side of the truck, cutting my cheek.

  “Where’s he shooting from?” someone demanded loudly.

  “North, he’s firing from the n-“

  Another body hit the floor and I risked a look. Several of the CDF were lying in the snow, their bodies engulfed in flames and at least two had been shot. The attacker purposefully avoiding hitting their heads.

  Which meant that at any moment we would be faced with zombies attacking us as well as the damned mercenary.

  There was nothing around us. No houses full of people who could potentially offer help. There were the docks several hundred meters to the east and a large supermarket with open carpark to our south.

  To the north was a hill with plenty of trees and bushes to provide a screen and to the west, the open road out of town.

  “Stay down!” a sergeant screamed.

  Most of the CDF soldiers had their poignards which were useless against an active shooter. The sergeant and I had sidearms.

  There were still cars in the supermarket carpark, covered in snow and long since abandoned, but they could provide something to hide behind at least. The problem was, to get to them we would have to push through several feet of snow.

  That would slow us down and make us easy targets for the mercenary. I tried to do a quick headcount and gave up. The only people I could really see were the four acolyte bodyguards who had been in the truck with me and the sergeant, crouched behind the rear car.

  He rose up and fired several times into the trees. The mercenary didn’t immediately respond, taking his time to aim properly. A professional.

  The next time the sergeant rose up above the side of the car, a bullet took him high in the cheek. He screamed and dropped to the snow, dropping his weapon and putting his hands up to press against the wound.

  “Any ideas?” I asked and received only blank looks.

  My head banged back against the side of the truck as I considered my options. I’d fucked up and I knew it. After the government meeting, I had decided to head out to the medical centre to question the prisoner once more.

  Apparently, I had been mistaken in my belief that two squads of CDF soldiers and my four bodyguards would be enough to keep me safe. It was a mistake that had cost the lives of several soldiers.

  “It is one man, in the trees,” one of the acolytes said. “If two of us run for the treeline, he will only be able to shoot one of us before the other is in amongst the trees.”

  “Any ideas that don’t require a sacrifice?” I muttered as I looked around at them. “Wonderful.”

  They didn’t wait for me to decide and instead, two of them stood up and set off running, one of whom was the acolyte that had proposed the plan.

  “Stop you, idiots!” I called out but was far too late.

  Both of them seemed to glide across the snow as they made for the trees. Then a shot rang out and the one furthest to my right fell with a cry, hand pressed against his hip. Another crack filled the air and the snow behind the other acolyte erupted in a small explosion of snow, then she was in beneath the trees.

  I risked a glance around the side of the truck but could see little other than snow-covered trees and bushes. Whoever the mercenary was, he was good at his job.

  A cry sounded from somewhere in the trees and a gun fired. I took the chance and burst out from behind the truck, running full speed for the trees. The snow dragged at my feet and my heart pounded in my chest as I expected a bullet at any moment.

  Then I was inside the tree line, stopping and pressing my back against the trunk of a tall oak as I sucked in deep breaths of frigid air. The other two acolytes joined me, ducking behind trees of their own and peering out cautio
usly up the hill.

  More soldiers would be on the way, I was sure of that. I’d heard the sergeant shouting into his radio, that put the mercenary on a clock. I didn’t want to wait him out though, I wanted to stop him.

  I stuck my head out for just a moment before jerking it back. Everywhere was covered in a thick coating of white snow, with more falling every minute. Wet, black branches stuck up out of it, perfect traps for me to catch my feet on as I scurried from tree to tree.

  There was no sign of the mercenary. I swallowed back my fear and leapt out, ducking down and running for the next tree, feet churning up the snow in my wake.

  No shot came. An acolyte did the same and then the second. I had a rough idea where the shots had come from, up and to the left of my position. I tightened my grip on my gun and looked over at the acolytes.

  “All at the same time,” I whispered, hoping they’d heard me, then I moved again.

  A shot fired as I reached the next tree and I sucked in a deep gulp of air as I waited for the pain to hit. When it didn’t, I opened my eyes to see one of the acolytes was down. The final one looked my way and nodded their head slowly.

  We moved again and another shot rang out, this time missing the both of us. I raised my sidearm, squeezing the trigger as I aimed at where I had just seen the flash of a muzzle when he fired. There was a grunt and the rustle of branches as he changed location.

  I didn’t wait, rushing out, weapon raised before me as I ran straight up to where I had seen the flash, boots slipping on the snow. I crashed through the bushes and swore.

  “Blood, My Lady,” the acolyte said as he joined me.

  I looked to where he pointed and grunted. I’d winged the mercenary at least, though I could hope I’d done more than that. There was more spatter further along the trail and I nodded towards it. No further words were needed as we both set off in pursuit.

  There was a flash of white up ahead, out of place against the ice-covered rocks. It disappeared behind a tree and I ducked to the side just as the barrel of a rifle came into view.

  Bark exploded from the side of the tree that I had ducked behind and I thrust my arm out, firing blindly towards the mercenaries position. I didn’t expect to hit him but to keep his head down as the acolyte ran on.

  I ducked around the other side of the tree and ran at the mercenary from the opposite side as the Acolyte. A gun fired and the acolyte went down. I pushed through the thick bushes, snow flying into the air and fired wildly at the shape before me.

  Blood sprayed over me and I stood, stock still, surprised, as I stared at the woman in shock. Her lips twisted into a smile, breath misting before her as she tried to speak. I hesitated, gun half raised as I considered shooting her again, and then she dropped the rifle she had used to kill so many of my people.

  “Y-y-you. W-w-in.” she managed as she clawed at a pocket of her fatigues.

  Her fingers found the way inside and she pulled her hand out with a small black device, much like a key-fob for a car. I didn’t know what it would do but I guessed it wouldn’t be good, so kicked out at her hand.

  Too late, though, as her finger pressed down on the button. Her eyes rolled back and a last gasp escaped her as she hit the ground hard, body shaking. Realisation came to me and I raised my gun and fired, the bullet entering her skull.

  She stopped moving and I breathed a sigh of relief. It was over. Aside from all of those that she had killed, of course. Someone would need to stop them from reanimating and I guessed that would be me.

  I pulled free my knife and went to check on the closest acolyte. He was dead, a bullet having hit his throat. I slammed my blade into his skull and moved on. There were many more to kill.

  One of the acolytes was still alive and I pulled a bandage from a pocket of my coat and quickly did the best I could to stop the bleeding. Slipping one arm beneath her waist, I hauled her to her feet and, slowly, we made our way down the hill.

  Several of the bodies had begun to rise by the time we reached the road and I slipped my knife into its sheath and pulled free my sidearm. Taking careful aim, I finished them off from a distance, moving slowly and making sure I took my time.

  When they were all done, I let the acolyte slump down beside the truck as I went in search of the radio. It was lying in the snow beside the body of the sergeant and I reached for it, pressing the button on the side as it burst to life.

  “-Down, Jamie’s down. Goddamit, someone shoot that fucking thing!”

  I stared at the radio in surprise.

  “Anyone see it? Bastards moving fast.”

  “What the fuck is that thing?”

  “I see it, someone get-“

  The last voice cut off with a scream of pain and my head jerked towards the south-west where the medical centre was.

  There was the faint sound of gunfire and I let out a groan. The prisoner was there. A prisoner with a black disc attached to his chest. The same type of disc that Ryan had activated remotely in the bunker.

  My mind flashed back to the button the mercenary had pressed just before I’d killed her and I began to swear. One final little petty act of defiance, activating the prisoner’s disc and turning him into a zombie.

  I was still cursing her when the first of the trucks loaded with CDF soldiers rolled up.

  Chapter 24

  The boat was more of a tug than anything else. It was barely large enough for all of my minions to crowd on deck, especially since they seemed to feel the need to keep a wide berth around Briony.

  On her command, her people had set off swimming as we boarded the boat. I checked my weapons and counted the seconds until the engine started and we set off.

  It was a less than pleasant journey, the boat bobbing up and down in the waves and visibility low due to the damned snowstorm. Added to that was the expectation that at any moment we would be fired upon, leaving a feeling of tension that I could have reached out and cut.

  The plan was a simple one. Get aboard, kill everyone and then destroy the ship as we escaped. Sometime before then, I would kill, Briony. I watched her from the corner of my eye and smiled as I pictured my blade ending her life.

  I had a restless energy as the adrenaline rushed through my body. I wanted oh so very badly to kill someone. More than that though, I wanted it to be challenging. I wanted to feel as though I were in danger of dying.

  There was a growing need for me to lay waste to everyone around me and sit on a throne, above a mountain of bones and know that I had finally sated that desperate need for murder that I carried within me.

  To finally feel something close to being at peace.

  It wouldn’t happen. I was as addicted to murder as that first junkie I had killed was addicted to heroin. I had chosen to kill him because he was a junkie and of little worth to society.

  The irony of that didn’t escape me.

  An enormous shape loomed out of the gloom, the falling snow dancing on the winds as they brushed around the tankers hull. Distant shouts could be heard and the staccato burst of gunfire. I grinned, knowing that the fight was underway.

  Our little boat bumped against the hull and rocked back, sending many of the minions stumbling. One grabbed a rope we had prepared earlier and as our pilot kept the boat as steady as she could, he loosened several feet of rope and began to spin it before throwing it up and over the railing that ran around the deck of the tanker.

  The improvised grapple, made of iron hooks, latched in place and with a tug, the minion gestured that it was secure. A second was thrown as the first was tied to the railing of our little boat. Another minion, this one a whip-thin youth, grasped the rope in both hands and began to climb.

  Another rope trailed behind him, that one connected to a rope ladder that we had liberated from another boat in the dockyard. When he reached the top, he hauled the ladder up the rest of the way and secured it. Then my minions began to climb.

  A particularly violent wave hit the boat, sending it crashing against the hull of the larger s
hip. The minion holding onto the snow-slickened ladder lost his grip and fell. He landed with a splash between the two hulls and disappeared beneath the water.

  “Keep climbing,” I ordered.

  Some of the minions turned to look my way but they understood the rules as well as any. If someone died, we didn’t waste our time but continued on. And you could be sure that anyone who fell into that freezing water would not last long, especially if he tried to swim up between the two hulls.

  “After you,” I said to Briony when it was our turn.

  She hissed quietly but reached for the rungs of the ladder. She scurried up far faster than any person had a right to and it showed just once more, how different she was. I followed after her, a little slower, taking care not to end up like the hapless minion that had fallen.

  I grasped the railing to pull myself up and felt overlong fingers circle my wrist. My head shot up, glaring at the grinning face of the Infected.

  “Let us help you,” she whispered as she pulled me with a surprising amount of strength, up and over the railing.

  My glare faded as she released my wrist and I rubbed at it absently as I watched her. A smart mind indeed. She had just given me a reminder of how strong she was and I was sure it was done on purpose. A warning that she would be no easy kill should I betray her.

  The gunfire had died down and I gestured for my minions to go on ahead. They raced off, soon becoming dark splotches in the snow storm. I followed a little slower, my need to kill tempered by my desire to not stray too far from Briony.

  “That’s a fucking Sea King,” Isaac said as we approached the helicopter. “Those bloody things can hold twenty passengers.”

  “We’ll have more than a few enemies here then,” I agreed and then stopped and turned to him. “Do you know how to fly it?”

  “I’m no pilot but I know the basics.”

  “See if you can get it ready then,” I said with a smile as a new plan began to take shape. “Gregg can stay with you.”

  “What! Why mate?”

  “Because we might need to leave in a hurry,” I said with a shrug and a sideways flick of my eye towards Briony. “And it beats swimming home.”