The Zone: A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller (Infection Chronicles Book 1) (6 page)

If Ferris had prepped a bunker, supplies, and munitions for several months, then he probably had gas masks. Steele didn’t want to kill Ferris. But if he kept spewing bullets, he’d have no choice.

The air was thick with gas. It was pouring out from the cutaway in the door. Evan’s eyes were watering and he was gasping for air. Steele took a deep breath, pulled off his respirator, and gave it to Evan. 

Even without inhaling, Steele’s nostrils were on fire. Evan’s eyes were soon burning red, running rivers of tears. He had to retreat back up the stairs. But as he did, he was caught in a flurry of bullets. Blood splattered, and Evan crashed to the steps.

Steele couldn’t help but feel responsible. He may have been a hard ass, but everyone under his command was like one of his kids. And he would have taken a bullet for any of them.

Steele wasn’t going to be able to hold his breath much longer, and the CS gas was pouring out now. He dashed through the flurry of bullets and ripped the bio-mask from Evan’s face. He hugged the opposite wall and secured the mask, taking a deep breath. 

Evan’s body was still twitching.

THE AIR WAS thick with haze. The flurry of gunfire subsided for a moment.

“Ferris, we’re your ticket out of here,” Steele said. You’ve already killed your assistant. You kill us, you’re never getting out of this quarantine zone.”

There was a long pause.

“Why don’t you come out and we can discuss this?” Steele said. “Don’t make me toss a thermal grenade in there.”

Another long pause. Then, a muffled voice replied, “I’ve got grenades too. And an RPG.”

“Like I said, Ferris… you want to get out of here, we are the only way.”

“You expect me to trust you?” Ferris yelled.

“You’ve got no choice,” Steele said. “Just set your weapon down, come out with your hands up. You have my word, we’ll escort you safely out of the containment zone.”

“What’s your angle? What do you want?”

“I’m a reasonable guy,” Steele said. “We’ll take half of your titrillium. It’s a modest fee.”

There was a long moment of silence, broken by the clinking sound of a thermal grenade clamoring across the floor. The metal cartridge bounced and tumbled through the cutaway in the door. It landed at Delroy’s feet. 

Time distorted. It all seemed to happen in slow motion. Steele could see the lot number imprinted on the M79 thermal fragmentation grenade—266739.  

They were all going to be dead if someone didn’t do something quick. The M79’s have a 4 to 5 second delay on detonation. 3 seconds had already evaporated. Steele’s instinct was to jump on the grenade, shielding his troops from the blast.

But before he could leap on top of the explosive, Delroy snatched it up and flung it back into the bunker. 

KABOOM!

The concussive force knocked everyone off their feet. A rush of debris blasted through the cutaway in the door. They could hear Ferris screaming in agony as the S9 gel seared through his skin.

Steele ducked through the cutaway, slicing through the haze until he found Ferris. His screams had turned to gurgles as his lungs filled with fluid. He was convulsing on the floor. Steele pulled a med-kit from his pack and tried to administer first aid. Ferris was ripped to shreds. Trying to stop the bleeding with a couple of gauze pads was futile. It took a few agonizing minutes for Ferris to bleed out. He choked out his last breath and his body went limp.

Steele’s eyes were sullen. He felt terrible. This was not the way he wanted things to go. He had that sickly feeling in his stomach, like they had done something terribly wrong. It twisted in knots. Killing an enemy that deserved it was one thing, but Ferris was just defending his property. 

Parker and Delroy huddled around the body. “I didn’t have a choice.” His voice was slow and solemn.

“You did what you had to do,” Steele said. “We’d all be dead if you hadn’t.”

“You gave him an option. He chose not to take it,” said Delroy, trying to justify the situation. 

The haze was beginning to clear when Steele heard a sound that made his stomach sink even further. 

“Todd? Todd?” a little girl’s muffled voice called out. Steele craned his neck to see an adorable eight year old girl standing in the hallway. She was wearing a gas mask and had been hiding in the next room of the bunker.

Oh shit, Steele thought. He really fucked up this time.
 

The girl had a 9mm in her hand. She swung the firearm up from her hip and aimed it right at Steele.
 

Delroy and Parker gripped their weapons.

“Easy now,” Steele said. His voice was smooth and calm. He was talking to everyone in the room. He gestured for Parker and Delroy to keep their weapons down. “We’re not going to hurt you.”

“You killed Todd,” she cried. Her hand was trembling as she held the 9mm out.
 

“That was not our intention. We didn’t want to hurt anyone.”

“Bullshit.”

Delroy almost laughed. He wasn’t expecting that from her. She definitely was a little sassy.

“I’m Major Steele. I’m with the Army.”

“So.”

“We can help you.”

“Like you helped Todd?”

Steele sighed. “What’s your name?”

She said nothing.
 

“Is there anyone else in the bunker with you?”

She didn’t respond.

“Where’s your mommy?” Steele asked.

“She’s dead,” the girl said, dryly. “She got bitten.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re not.”

“You know, I used to have a daughter your age. In fact, you look a lot like her.”

The girl really did look just like Steele’s daughter. Crystal blue eyes and blond hair. The resemblance was uncanny. It hit Steele right in the gut.
 

“I know what it’s like to lose someone you love.”

“What happened to her? Did you kill her too.”

The girl’s jab hit hard. It took Steele back five years to that awful tragedy. He still blamed himself for his daughter’s death. 

“I loved my daughter very much,” Steele said. His face was sullen. There was no mistaking his genuine grief.
 

“What was her name?” the girl asked.

“Madison.”

“That’s a pretty name.”

“She was very pretty. Just like you.”

The girl gave him a sassy look.
 

“That pistol has got to be getting heavy about now.”

The girl shook her head, but she was starting to struggle with the weight.
 

“Okay. That’s fine, just keep it aimed at me.” Steele kept his tone calm and soothing. “I take full responsibility for what happened here. If you want to shoot me, go ahead.” Steele held his arms out, and puffed up his chest.

The girl squinted down the barrel, lining Steele up in her sights. Her finger gripped the trigger.
 

Maybe calling her bluff wasn’t such a good idea, Steele thought. She looked like she was about to fire.

After a moment, the girl lowered her firearm.

Steele exhaled. “We can take you out of the quarantine zone. Would you like that?”

Both Delroy and Parker gave him a glance. They looked a little stunned. This was a side of Steele they had never seen before.
 

The girl said nothing.

“Or, you can stay here if you like. Totally up to you.”

She stared at him a long moment, sizing the offer up. “I don’t want to stay here.”

“Good,” Steele said. “Why don’t you give me the gun.”

She shook her head.
 

“Okay. Are you going to tell me your name?”

“Maybe.”

“
Maybe?
That’s a pretty name.”

“My name’s not
maybe
, stupid. It’s Chloe.”

“That’s an even prettier name. It’s nice to meet you, Chloe. And my name is Steele, not
stupid
.”

“Major Stupid,” Chloe said, tilting her head and lifting an eyebrow. This little girl was saucy.
 

Delroy couldn’t hold back a chuckle.
 

Steele silenced him with a glance. “Chloe, I’m going to take you upstairs. Then we’re going to go to the extraction point and catch a ride out of the zone.”

Chloe just stared at him.
 

“You can keep that gun pointed at me if it makes you feel better. Come on.” Steele gestured for her to follow him.
 
He mumbled to Delroy and Parker, “Cover the body. Find the titrillium.”
 

Steele headed into the hallway and up the stairs to the first floor. Chloe followed behind him, averting her eyes from Todd’s carcass as she passed.
 

In the living room, there were wisps of smoke wafting up from the bunker. Traces of the CS gas.

Steele led Chloe through the room and set her on the couch. Tears trickled down her cheeks inside the gas mask, but she remained surprisingly calm. “Everybody dies here.”

“We’re not going to die. I promise.” Steele knelt down beside her. “I’m going to get you out of here. I promise.”

“Swear to God.”

“I swear to God.”

“Pinky swear?”

“Pinky swear.” Steele reached out his hand and the two
 
clasped pinkies. “I’m never going to let anything bad happen to you.”

Chloe’s sad blue eyes gazed into his. 

“I’m sorry about Todd. Was he your daddy?”

Chloe shook her head.

“Your mom’s boyfriend?”

She shook her head again. “After mom got bit, she got real sick. Then she tried to kill me, so I ran away. Then I found Todd. He took care of me. Well, I took care of him.”

Steele smiled at her. “How long were you on your own for?”

“I don’t know. Maybe a month.”

“A month? That’s a long time for a little girl like you to be on her own. You must be tough?”

“Tougher than you.”

“I don’t know about that,” Steele said, playfully.
 

Chloe arched an eyebrow at him.
 

“You don’t think I’m tough?”

Chloe shook her head. “Not as tough as me.”

Steele frowned. “Okay. You win. You’re tougher.”

“What happened to your face?” Chloe reached her hand out, touching his titanium composite cheek.

“I got blown up.”

“And you didn’t die?”

“Like I said, I’m tough.”

“Pfft, whatever.”

Steele chuckled. “Okay, stay here. I’ll be right back.”

She nodded. 

Steele plunged down the steps and dashed into the bunker. The haze from the CS gas had mostly cleared.
 
Todd’s body was covered by a sheet. Parker and Delroy had lined up six duffel bags in the center of the room.

“What are we going to do with the girl?” Delroy asked.

“We’re taking her with us.”

“How are you going to explain that to command?” asked Delroy.

“I don’t know. But we’re not leaving her.”

“Sir, she’s going to slow us down. Not to mention the increased scrutiny that’s going to result from bringing her back.”

“We’re not leaving her. That’s the end of this discussion.”

“Yes, sir,” Delroy said, reluctantly.

Steele eyed the duffel bags. “Did you find it?”

“Take a look at this, sir,” Delroy said. He grinned from ear to ear. He zipped open one of the bags and spread it wide. Dozens of brilliant bars of titrillium bullion.  

Steele knelt down and picked up one of the bars. All 25 pounds of it. They were stamped and numbered with a hallmark from a reputable Swiss refinery—Metalux SA. The bars were a guaranteed 400 ounces and contained a minimum of 99.5% pure titrillium. Easily traded on one of the international precious metals exchanges. With a current price of $100,000 per ounce, a single bar had a value of $40 million. 

“We’ve got a problem. There’s too much to carry,” Delroy said.

“I can think of worse problems.” Steele checked his watch. “We’ve got an hour and a half to get back to the extraction point. Check the garage. See if he’s got an SUV or something.”

“Todd has a range rover,” Chloe said.

“I thought I told you to stay upstairs.”

“I’m a rule breaker,” Chloe said, shrugging her shoulders.

“See if you can find the keys,” Steele said to Delroy.

“Keys? Who needs keys? Did you forget who you’re talking to?” Delroy smirked and trotted off to find the garage. It was his affinity for cars that got him into the military in the first place. He got popped as a juvenile on a grand theft auto charge. He was given the option of jail time, or four years of service in the military. Complete his service honorably, and his record would be expunged. It wasn’t much of a choice for Delroy.