heavy body suddenly went limp, sagging bonelessly to the floor.
Chris! Rebecca rushed into the room, and stopped cold, staring at the monstrous reptile.
Woah!
His boot found one of the wooden supports and with a tremendous shove, Chris managed to wiggle out from beneath the thick body. Rebecca reached down to help him up, her eyes wide with awe.
They stared down at the wound that had killed the Creature the black, liquid hole where its right eye had been, obliterated by a nine-millimeter slug.
Are you okay? She asked softly.
Chris nodded; a few bruised ribs maybe, but so what? He'd literally been inches from certain death, and all because he'd stopped to…
He held up the copper crest, having to pry his clenched fingers from around the thick metal. He'd held onto it throughout the attack without even realizing it and looking at it now, he had a gut feeling that it was important somehow… … maybe because you were almost snake-food for picking it up?
Rebecca took it from him, tracing a finger over the engraved moon.
You find anything? he asked.
Rebecca shook her head. Table, couple of shelves… what's this for, anyway?
Chris shrugged, looking back down at the bloody hole where the snake's shining eye had been. He shuddered involuntarily, thinking of what would have happened if he'd missed that final shot.
Maybe we'll figure it out somewhere along the way, he said quietly. Come on, let's get out of here.
Rebecca handed the crest back to him and together they hurried out of the cold attic. As he closed the door behind them, Chris realized suddenly that although he'd never cared before, he now absolutely hated snakes.
Barry walked heavily up the stairs in the main hall, the knot of dread in the pit of his stomach tightening with each step. He'd been through every room he could open in the east wing and had come up emptyhanded.
The same horrible images played through his mind over and over as he trudged up the steps. Kathy and Moira and Poly Anne, terrified and suffering at the hands of strangers in their own home. Kathy knew the combination to the gun safe in the basement, but the chances of her making it down the stairs before someone could get in…
Barry reached the first landing and took a deep, shaky breath. Kathy wouldn't even think to run for the weapons if she heard someone breaking through one of the windows or doors. Her first priority would be to get to the girls, to make sure they were okay.
If I don't turn up those crests soon, nothing will be okay.
He hadn't seen a phone or radio anywhere in the house. If Wesker couldn't get to that laboratory, how would he be able to contact the people at White Umbrella and call off the killers?
Barry reached the door on the upper landing that led into the west wing. His only hope was that either Jill or Wesker had managed to find the three missing pieces. He didn't know where Wesker was (although he had no doubts that the rat-bastard would turn up soon enough), but Jill would probably still be searching upstairs. They could split up the rooms she hadn't checked and at least rule out the least likely areas. If they couldn't uncover any more of the crests, he'd have to go back through the east wing and start ripping apart furniture.
He opened the door that led into the red hallway, lost in thought and very nearly ran into Chris Redfield and Rebecca Chambers as they stepped out of the doorway on his right.
Chris's face lit up with a broad, beaming grin.
Barry!
The younger man stepped forward and embraced him roughly, then backed up, still grinning. Jesus, it's good to see you! I was starting to think that me and Rebecca were the last ones alive. Where are Jill and Wesker?
Barry pasted a smile on as he fumbled for an acceptable answer, feeling almost sick with guilt.
Lying to Jill hadn't been easy, but he'd known Chris for years…
– Kathy and the girls, deadJill and I came after you, but all the doors in that hall were locked and when we got back to the lobby, the captain was gone. Since then, we've been looking for you two and trying to find a way out.
Barry smiled more naturally. It's good to see you, too. Both of you.
At least that much is true.
So Wesker just disappeared? Chris asked.
Barry nodded, uncomfortable. Yeah. And we found Ken. One of those ghouls got to him.
Chris sighed. I saw. Forest and Richard are dead, too.
Barry felt a wave of sadness and swallowed thickly, suddenly hating Wesker even more. The people Wesker worked for had done this and now they wanted to cover it all up, avoiding responsibility for their actions.
And like it or not, I'm going to help them do it.
Barry took a deep breath and fixed an image of his wife and daughters in his mind's eye. Jill found a back door, and we think it could be a way out – except its got this trick lock, like a puzzle, and we have to get all the pieces together to open it. There are these four metal crests, made out of copper. Jill got one already, and we think the rest are hidden throughout the mansion…
He trailed off at Chris's sudden grin as Chris reached into his vest. Something like this?
Barry stared at the crest that Chris had produced, feeling his heart speed up. Yeah, that's one of them!
Where'd you find it?
Rebecca spoke up, smiling shyly. He had to fight a big snake for it – a really big snake. I think it may have been affected by the accident, though a crossgenus virus… those are pretty rare.
Barry reached for the crest as casually as he could manage, frowning. Accident?
Chris nodded. We found some information that suggests there's some kind of secret research facility here on the estate and that something they were working on got loose. A virus.
One that can apparently infect mammals and reptiles, Rebecca added. Not just different species, different families.
It's certainly infected mine, Barry thought bleakly.
He let his frown deepen, feigning thoughtfulness as he struggled to come up with an excuse to get away.
The captain wouldn't approach him unless he was alone, and he was desperate to get the copper piece into place, to prove that he was still on board, cooperating and that he'd convinced the rest of the team to help him look. He could feel the seconds ticking away, the metal growing warm beneath his sweating fingers.
We need to get the feds in on this, he said finally, a full investigation, military support, quarantine of the area.
Chris and Rebecca were both nodding, and again Barry felt nearly overwhelmed by guilt. God, if only they weren't so trusting.
But to do that, we have to find all of these crests.
Jill might've turned up another one by now, maybe both of them… … I can only pray…
Do you know where she is? Chris asked.
Barry nodded, thinking fast. I'm pretty sure, but this place is kind of a maze… why don't you wait in the main hall while I go get her? That way we can organize our search, do a more thorough job.
He smiled, hoping it looked more convincing than it felt. Though if we don't turn up soon, keep looking for more of those pieces. The back door is at the end of the west wing corridors, first floor.
Chris just stared at him for a moment, and Barry could see the questions forming in his bright gaze, questions that Barry wouldn't be able to answer: Why split up at all? What about finding the missing captain? How could he be certain that the back door was an escape?
Please, please just do as I say.
Okay, Chris said reluctantly. We'll wait, but if she's not where you think she is, come back and get us. We stand a better chance of making it through this place if we stick together.
Barry nodded, and before Chris could say anything more, he turned and jogged away down the dim hall.
He'd seen the hesitation in Chris's eyes, heard the uncertainty in his voice and with his final words, Barry had felt himself wanting desperately to warn his friend of Wesker's betrayal. Leaving was the only way to keep himself from saying something he might regret, something that might get his family killed.
As soon as he heard the door back to the balcony close, he picked up speed, taking the corners at a full run. There was a dead zombie near the door that led to the stairs, and Barry leaped over it, the stench falling away as he ducked through the connecting passage. He took the back stairs three at a time as his conscience yammered
