“Come in, Freedom II. Come in,” Toni repeated over the open frequency.
“Give it up,” Nathanial suggested. “They got what they wanted: a definitive fix on our exact position. They’re done talking now.”
Toni’s shoulders sagged with defeat. Her fears were confirmed, and in that moment she knew she was the one who had called this new terror upon them. She turned to look for Jeremy, but he was already gone from the control room.
It was one of the joggers rather than one of the vehicles who stumbled onto the most outlaying mine. The explosion and the rain of pulpy, charred flesh brought the convoy to a halt. People began to pour out of the vehicles and leave them behind.
Troy swore under his breath. Whoever was leading the mob knew what they were doing. The working trucks were too valuable to lose, and by approaching the base on foot it would cut down the damage the mines could inflict on the transports.
The .30-.06 propped against Troy’s shoulder had a pretty good range. He sighted one of the joggers as the moving mass of attackers began to pick up the pace. Troy put a round through his target’s throat just as the mob reached the main section of the minefield. Explosion after explosion tossed dirt and body parts into the air, but the people just kept coming, without even pausing to tend to their wounded.
In the bushes, Wade took a deep breath and made his peace with God. The fastest of the joggers had already reached the fence. He saw one of them toss something at the barbed wire, and then his world went white.
Troy watched in horror as his friend was blown apart, along with a large section of the fence. The attackers flowed through like ants. He fired off a last shot with the rifle, then tossed the weapon aside and tried to scurry down from the garage roof.
Geoff remained hidden the whole time. He waited in the bushes as the attackers ran past on both sides. They moved like men but they weren’t really human anymore. Their battle cries were the snarls of maddened dogs, and their skin was tinted yellow with sickness. He caught a glimpse of one’s eyes. There were no whites left, just a sickening bloodshot mass.
Geoff switched his AK-47 to full auto and stood up, spraying the backs of the fifteen or so that had made it by him. They crumpled like weeds before a scythe.
A rifle cracked and a bullet ripped through the back of Geoff’s shoulder. He whirled around and charged at the mob head-on, his rifle blazing and spitting empty shell casings. He made it a few steps before his bullet-ridden corpse toppled to the ground, rolling from its momentum.
Troy, down from the roof, saw the base’s opening—Jeremy was trying to come out. Troy shoved him back down. “Lock it!” he yelled.
“But Geoff…”
“He’s dead. Wade too.” Troy climbed down and pushed Jeremy aside. He typed in the code, and something thumped hard against the hatch. A gun chattered and bullets pinged off the metal.
Both Jeremy and Troy ducked instinctively. “Shit!” Troy grabbed Jeremy and tugged him deeper into the base. “If they’ve got the gear with them to cut through between the outer seal and the inner lock… we’ve got an hour, maybe two, tops.”
“How many are up there?” Jeremy asked. The look on Troy’s face told him all he needed to know.
Deep in the bowels of Def Con, Ian threw down the book he was reading and screamed. Spit flew from his mouth as his head shook uncontrollably. He leapt up from his chair and ran at the armory door, but his shoe snagged a nearly invisible tripwire he’d set in place the day before; the armory’s lights turned red as its huge door slammed shut in front of him. Ian pounded his fists against it until the bones of his hands were shattered, and then he started to use his head.
Troy and Jeremy burst into the control room, nearly scaring Toni to death. “What the hell?” Nathanial bellowed.
“They’re cutting through the outer seal,” Jeremy said, panting for breath. “The others are dead.”
“Nat, are any of the exterior cameras still working?” Troy asked as he closed on the engineer.
“A few… not the one in the shed.”
“Bring ‘em online. I have a bad feeling our friends up there aren’t just going to be sitting on their asses in the time it takes them to cut their way in here.”
“Okay, I’ve got two cameras reporting operational. Both of them are a good bit away from the gates though.”
“Put the closest onscreen.”
The huge wall display flashed to life, showing a small group of attackers, who appeared to be reloading their weapons. In the background, other attackers stood watching something beyond the camera’s field of vision.
“Can you pan around and see what those others are so interested in?” Troy asked.
“I can try.” Nathanial worked at his keyboard, and the image flickered and bounced as the camera slowly turned. Three of the attackers stood outside the fence amidst a pack of infected. The creatures cowered around them like pets.
“I don’t believe it,” Troy said, rubbing his forehead. “Damn, those fuckers are smart.”
Nathanial furrowed his brow. “Huh? I don’t get it.”
“They’re rounding up the infected in the woods. When they cut through the seal, they’re not just going to rush in here. There’s no sense in
“Aren’t they all infected?” Toni asked.
Nathanial answered before Troy had a chance to. “Yes, but they’re not the same. These new ones aren’t at all like the ones we’ve had to deal with in the past. They’re much more advanced, like they’re evolving back into something much closer to what we are, just not as nice. And certainly not above using their lesser brethren as weapons or cannon fodder, or whatever you want to call it.”
“Somebody should get Ian. We’re going to need all the help we can get,” Sheena suggested.
“No,” Jeremy replied, “Ian’s fine where he’s at.”
“We should at least warn him,” Toni added.
“Ian’s fine.” Jeremy moved to take hold of Toni. “Trust me, he’s where he wants to be.”
“Jeremy.” Troy motioned him over to a table in the control room. Troy ripped a map off the wall and spread it across the tabletop. “You don’t have to die here. None of us do. There’s a back way out.”
“That’s impossible!” Sheena snapped. “If there was another entrance I would know about it.”
Troy ignored her and pointed to a spot on the map. “There’s a tunnel inside the ventilation system here. Wade found it a few days ago. It’s sealed up with an iron grate, but I think you can get through it. It opens into the back of the garage.”
“The garage? Those things are all over the place up there,” Nathanial pointed out.
“They’re spread out pretty good though, and most of them will probably follow the normal infected in here once they get through the inner door. If you wait until they get into the base, by the time you get up there you’ll at least have a chance.”
“What’s with all the
“Jeremy, someone has to stay here to slow them down and make them work for every inch of the base they take. That’s me. I’m the only real soldier left.”
“Troy—” Jeremy started, but Nathanial interrupted him.
“I’m staying too. So is Sheena. I’m not running, Jeremy, and Sheena can’t. She’d just slow you down and get you killed.”
Sheena nodded. “You and Toni go on,” she ordered. “Make sure you take the time to gather up the things you’ll need if you get past those things.”
“No!” Toni cried, squatting beside Sheena’s chair to embrace her.
Sheena didn’t return the hug. “Go on. You’ve only got one chance at this and time’s running out.”
