Life After The Undead (Book 2): Death to the Undead (37 page)

“I
don’t
like this.”
Tanya’s
voice
quaked.

I
nodded. I
didn’t
like
it
either.

“I
don’t
think
anyone
is
comfortable.”
Quinn
tried
to
keep
the
irritation
out of
his
voice,
but a little
crept
through. “But
we
have
to
find out
what
we’re
dealing
with
here.”
He
pointed
to
the door
at
the
end
of
the
hall.
“Looks
like
our only
option.”

He
stepped
forward
and
grabbed
the handle.
Pam
stood next to
him,
while
Tanya
and
I
had
his back.
Please
don’t let
anything
pop out of
that
door.
Please
.

Quinn made
a
silent
count with his
head,
bobbing
it
three
times
before
pulling
open the
door. Pam
went low,
pointing
her
gun
through
the
opening.
The
door
opened
onto a
larger
room
adorned
with computer
stations. The
lights
were
already
on, leading
me to believe
the switch
controlled
both rooms. They
stepped
through
the
door,
scanning
the
room.
Tanya
and
I
waited
at
the
door, ready
to fire
should
anything
pop out of a
hiding
place. Three
computer
stations
lined the
right
and
left
sides
in front of
smaller
rooms
with windows. I
swallowed
thickly.
They
were
observation
centers. But
what
were
they
observing?

I
could
only
imagine.
Pam and
Quinn
finished
their
sweep
and
holstered
their
weapons. Tanya
and
I
did the
same
before
stepping
into the
room.
My
thoughts
drifted
to
what
they
did in that room. I
remembered
the
conversation
I
had so long
ago
with the
soldier
on
the
back
of the
transport truck. He
told me the
civilians
at the
military
base thought
the
government
created
the
zombies. Could
it
be
true?
Did they
use these
rooms in
their
experiments?
Did
they
put unsuspecting
victims into
the
chambers,
then turn them into
zombies?
Jotting
down
notes on their
computers?
It
made
sense
to
me.
And it
made
my
stomach
churn.

Quinn
stopped
at
the
computer
nearest
the
door
and
switched
it on. The
fan
hummed to
life,
the
screen
blinked
blue.
He placed
his hands on
either
side
of
the
keyboard,
waiting.
We
crowded
around
him.
After
a
few
minutes, the
dialogue
box
asking
for username
and
password
popped
onto the
screen.
Quinn
sighed.

“Well,
that’s
not
going
to do us much
good.
There’s
no
way
we’re
getting
into this
information.”

I
scanned
the
room.
There
had
to be more.
Files,
papers,
something.
They
couldn’t
trust
technology
to
keep
their
information
safe.

“Was
there
another room? Or
is this
it?”

“I
didn’t see
another
door,”
Pam
answered.

Tanya
circled
the
room,
glancing
through
the
windows, a
look of
distaste
and
confusion
on her
face. “What
do
you
think
they
kept
in there?”

“I
can
only
imagine,”
I
murmured.

“Let’s
turn
all
of these
on.”
Quinn
gestured
at
the
computers.
“Maybe
we’ll
get
lucky
and
one
will
be
logged
on.”

I
cocked
my
head to the
right
and
pursed
my
lips.
It
was
a long
shot.
Most
computers
reset
themselves
after
a
long
time, but
what
did
we
have
to lose? I
crossed the
room
and
pushed
the buttons to the
three
computers.
The
hum of the
fans
grew
louder,
though
not
overbearing.

Tanya
finished
her
gawking
and
pulled
out
a
chair,
plopping
down in
front
of a
computer.
I
sighed
and
folded
my
hands across
my
chest. I
eyed
her for
a
moment
before
stepping
up to a window
and
glancing
into
the
nearest
room.

White
tiles
lined
the
walls
and
floor.
A
metal
drain
sat
in the middle
of the
floor. Barren. Boring.
Sterile. I
walked
to the
other
side
of
the
room,
the
far
wall
opposite
the door
we
came through. I
leaned
against
the
tiles.

“You’re
wasting
your
time,” I
told him.
“We
won’t
be
able
to
access
the
computers.”

A
faint
scraping,
like
gravel
on
gravel,
sounded
behind
me,
and
I
swear
I
felt
the
surface
move.
With
eyebrows
pushed together,
I
straightened
up
and
stared
at
the
wall.
In
the
grout,
there
was a
small
crack.
I
squinted.
It
was too
straight
to be
an
accident.
I
stepped
closer
to the
wall.

“Krista?”
Quinn’s
voice sounded
behind
me.
“What
are
you
doing?”

I
placed
my
hand
on the
tile
and
followed
the
line.
Just as I
suspected, it
was
the outline
of a
door.
I
looked
at
the
others,
pointing.

“There’s
a
door
here.”

“A
door?”
Pam
stepped
forward.

“Is
it a
secret
door?”
Tanya
wondered.

I
pursed
my
lips
and
stared
at
her.
A number
of
remarks
ran
through
my
head,
but
I
decided to keep
my
mouth shut.

“Okay.”
Quinn stood next to
me.
“So
how do
we
open
it?”

“I
don’t
know.
But
I
swear
I
felt the
wall
move when
I
leaned
against
it.”