Blood Apocalypse - 04 (32 page)

He stuck his head in the window, “Where’s Maria?” he asked. He looked from operator to operator but nobody seemed to be paying him any attention. “Hey! Where’s Maria?!” he yelled.

Jack jumped up and went to the window. “Apollo, brother, you don’t want to be coming in here right now.”

Apollo stepped back and shook his head. “No, man. Don’t you be telling me that, Jack.”

Jack leaned out the window. “Apollo, they’re doing everything they can, but you need to give them room.”

“MARIA!” Apollo yelled as he grabbed Jack by his tactical vest and pulled him out of the window, sending him flying. Apollo dove through the window and rolled to his feet. “Where is she?” he bellowed, tears forming in his eyes. He scanned the darkened room and saw two groups of people checking out bo
dies. He saw the smaller set of tactical boots and slid in next to her.

As soon as he saw her face, he knew she was gone. He’d seen too many dead bodies in his life to deny it. Her eyes were still open and the large puddle of blood to her side indicated she had already bled out long before. “No, baby, no…” he cried, “don’t leave me.” He lifted her head and rocked back and forth, stroking her hair.

The others, who had been trying to do CPR, even though they knew it was a failed effort, gave up and stepped back to allow the large man to grieve.

The other team working on Hank also stepped back. “His heart was cleaved in half,” Jacobs said. “We couldn’t do an
ything.”

Tufo stepped up to the others. “Let Apollo have some time here. But I need a sitrep. We have the head of the snake. I need to know the condition of the rest of the body.”

Horith and Kalen leaned in the open window. “They’re all taken care of,” Horith said loud enough to be heard. “We
others
trapped them for you.”

“The sun will take care of them for you soon enough,” Kalen stated. “But if you don’t turn off your artificial sun, it may do it as well.”

Tufo nodded. “Thank you, gentlemen. Spalding, escort these gentlemen and give their compatriots a heartfelt congratulations and a thank you from us. We have…” he paused and looked to the ground where their dead lay and to where the Sicarii still struggled with his chains, “loose ends to tie up.”

“Yes, sir, Major.”

“I’ll go with him,” Jack said. “I need to take care of a few things myself.” He glanced to the Sicarii and then turned to Max, “I’d like to be there when you lock this bastard up.”

“As you wish, Son,” Max said with a smile. Viktor shot him a look and Max simply smiled bigger.

*****

Laura followed the sound of the scream down the hallway, her flashlight lighting the way in front of her. She couldn’t ima
gine what could be making the god awful grunting noise, but she knew whatever it was had to be found.

She saw a reflection of a light and saw Barbara appear at the end of the hall. “I can’t find it,” she said softly.

“Whatever it is, it’s down here,” Laura said. “Where did the security guys go?”

“The next floor down. I don’t have a keycard for that level.” She shrugged. Laura approached her and the two women consi
dered their next move.

“Okay, we know this floor is cleared, but whatever it was, it sounded close. So if it’s not here, maybe it’s…” her words were cut short as a man screamed in the darkness, the blood curdling yell of one being ripped to shreds. Laura instinctively reached out and pulled Barbara behind her. She pulled her sidearm and held it in front of her. “That isn’t good,” she whispered. She heard Barbara rack the slide on her pistol and turned to see the small woman holding it in a double handed grip, her face stern.

“Nothing gets to, my son,” she said through clenched teeth.

“Agreed.” Laura turned the flashlight back down the hall and just caught a glimpse of something large and hairy as it shot across the end of the hall. “Oh, shit…”

“What the fuck was that?” Barbara whispered.

“We have a wolf in here,” Laura whispered as she began backing slowly the way she had come, taking Barbara with her.

“How the hell did that thing get in here?”

“I don’t know, but we need to keep it contained down here.” She replied. “Is Bobby still topside with Miller?”

“He better be or I’ll tan his little hide.” Barbara’s eyes were wide and searching for any movement.

“Good,” Laura said. “We’ll work our way back to the stai
rwell. You stand guard while I lock down the elevators, then we’ll use the stairs to go topside. We’ll bar the door from the inside and then lock the topside door.”

“Great. Lock the damned thing down here with all our stuff.” She muttered.

“Better than locking it up there with
us
,” Laura quipped.

“Good point.” Barbara shot back.

The two women eased back around the corner, nervously checking every nook and cranny for an eight foot tall werewolf. When they reached the elevators, Laura locked the car down while Barbara stood guard at the open stairwell. She kept checking the hallway, then the stairwell, just to make sure the wolf hadn’t slipped into the stairs when they weren’t looking.

Once inside, Laura slid the large steel bar down over the i
nside of the door and sighed. She turned to Barbara, “Time to do our cardio.” And pointed up. The two double timed it up the stairs and burst through the doors topside. “Miller!” Laura yelled.

“Yes, ma’am?” Miller responded, Bobby still at his side.

“How many guards down below?” She wasn’t really sure she wanted to know.

“Four, ma’am. Willis, Davis, Jeffries and Walker.”

She shook her head. “At least two of them are gone. See if you can raise any of them through their headset.”

“Gone?” Miller asked as he was about to key his radio. “How?”

Laura turned and her face was as pale as a Native American could be. “There’s a wolf down there, Sergeant. I don’t know how, but we both saw it.”

Miller’s jaw dropped. “Sweet Jesus,” he whispered. “Je
ffries. Walker. Come in,” he barked into the radio. He paused and stared at Laura. “Willis?” Static came back to him and he adjusted the gain on his handheld unit. “Davis, come in. This is topside.” After a brief moment he turned to Laura and Barbara and shook his head.

“I think it’s safe to assume they’re either gone or maybe some of them are hiding and can’t key their mic,” Laura said.

“We can hope.” Miller marched toward the stairwell door.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“To destroy that thing.” His jaw was set and the determination in his eyes indicated he wouldn’t take no for an answer.

“Negative,” Laura ordered. “For now, it’s contained. Once the mission in Nevada is complete, we’ll notify the squads and let them handle this.”

Miller shook with rage, but lowered his weapon. He turned to her and simply nodded. “This isn’t right, ma’am. That damned thing shouldn’t be down there.” He tossed his weapon on the table.

25

“Do you have to leave so soon?” Jack asked. “We were so busy getting ready for this battle that I never really got the chance to get to know you guys.”

Horith and Kalen looked at each other and shrugged. “We know you, Chief Jack. You are a warrior and a friend,” Horith said.

Jack snorted a laugh. “But we never got to hang out. You know, play cards, get drunk, chase wom…er…well, play video games.” He smiled.

The twins looked at each other and shook their heads. Kalen offered his hand to him. “Perhaps the next time the world needs to be saved we can do these things.”

Jack sighed. “Yeah, yeah. I bet you say that every time you pull somebody’s fat from the fire, don’t you?”

The twins smiled and shook their heads. “You say the strangest things, Chief Jack.”

“I’ve been told that,” he laughed. “Thanks again, guys. If you’re ever in town, look me up.” He shrugged. “Oh, and don’t forget to take the trolls with you!”

“They have already been taken back,” Horith said. “Although one of the gnomes said that you owe him some grog. Do you know what he means?”

Jack struck a blank look and shook his head. “Naw, man. No idea.”

“Gnomes can be very convincing liars,” Horith added. “Very well. Until next time, Chief Jack!” He stepped toward the large boulder behind the building where Jack had arrived through. Jack found it somewhat odd that the ‘anywhere’ they were going to…it appeared midday already. He glanced at his watch and then shrugged. He remembered, time had no meaning there. He gave a final wave and watched as the large rock shut and the light was gone.

He sighed as he walked back toward the Command Center. Pablo Monteiro approached him and tapped his shoulder. “Jack, we still have the problem with Major Sheridan.”

Jack turned and shrugged. “What problem?”

“Did Apollo not tell you?” He seemed truly puzzled.

“He’s uh…preoccupied right now.”

“What could be more important?” Pablo asked.

Jack looked away and cleared his throat. “His girlfriend was killed in battle, Pablo.”

“Oh, no…” He paused and crossed himself, muttering a pray.

“What about Sherry?”

Pablo took a deep breath and then filled Jack in while they walked back to the Headquarters Building. Jack’s anger grew with every word and with each step. By the time he got to the top floor where Sheridan was still cuffed to a pillar, Jack was beyond pissed, he was livid.

“Well hello, Jack-o,” Sheridan said through his bloody nose. “How’s about you let me loose so we can get all of this straightened out, eh?”

“How’s about you tell me the truth for once, Sherry?” Jack shot back.

“Truth? About what?” Sheridan tried his best to smile through busted lips and bloody teeth.

“I’m not playing, Sherry. I’ve lost enough people to last me four lifetimes. If I have to, I’ll start shooting you at the kneecaps and work my way up until I hit a spot that’s just tender enough for you to tell me the fucking truth for a change.”

“I have no clue what you’re talking about,” he said. “Your man attacked me on the rooftop and beat me senseless. I’ll be lucky if I don’t have a bloody concussion.”

“Fine. We can play it your way.” Jack pulled his FiveseveN and racked the slide.

“Oh come on now, mate. Who do you think you’re kidding?” Sheridan asked.

Jack smirked at him. “You know the really funny part about all of this, Sherry? You don’t know the whole fucking story.”

“Oh really? Well why don’t you clue me in, mate?”

Jack pulled over a chair and turned it backward. He sat down and stared Sheridan in the face. “Fine. I will.” He rubbed the pistol along Sheridan’s face. “You want to know the truth? Here’s the truth. You’re a werewolf.”

“Oh, fuck off, yank. You’ve been drinking again, haven’t ya?”

“Nope. It’s the truth. The whole augmentation program? It’s a lie, Sherry. They pump you full of werewolf genes, make you take these bitter black pills that’s really wolf’s bane and that keeps your ugly ass from shifting. Then you get all the strength, but you don’t end up chasing cars or humping the CO’s leg when he brings his wife to work. Meanwhile, every full moon, you get all antsy and itchy and you just want to climb the fuc
king walls. Sound familiar?” Jack asked.

Sheridan knew he was telling the truth, but he refused to b
elieve it. “You’re full o’ crap, mate. They’d tell us if they did that.”

“Right. You
trust
your government?” he asked. “That’s a rhetorical question by the way.” Jack leaned back and held the gun right in front of Sheridan’s face. “This? It’s loaded with silver bullets. Guess what ALL werewolves are severely allergic to? Oh, wait…you already know, don’tcha, smart guy?”

Sheridan’s eyes got really wide as he studied Jack’s face. “You wouldn’t shoot me even if it wasn’t true.”

Jack pointed the gun at his foot and squeezed the trigger, sending a round through the bony part of the foot. Sheridan screamed and held his foot off the floor.

“Oh, damn. I bet that burns like a bitch, don’t it?” Jack said. “Tell me the fucking truth, you limey bastard, or I’ll put one in your knee cap and see if maybe a scrap of silver can get in your bloodstream.”

“Toss off, you fucking bastard! I wouldn’t tell you a goddam thing!” Sheridan screamed.

“Fine. I don’t mind taking you out in tiny pieces,” Jack said. “You put my people at risk. You put my wife at risk. You put my in-laws at risk. Hell, you put ME at risk. You put my unborn child at risk. You’re a piece of shit as far as I’m concerned. I might as well put a bullet in your head and call you a casualty of war. Oops…friendly fire casualty. Damn the bad luck.” He waved the pistol so that Sheridan could see it. Jack stood and pushed the chair away. “Last chance, fucker.” He pressed the barrel of the gun to Sheridan’s temple. “Any last words? Want to mutter a prayer and hope that somewhere there’s a minor god that might hear it and take pity on your rotten soul?”

Sheridan was shaking now, his body quivering. “Alright!” he screamed. “Alright! I’m already dead anyway,” he croaked. “But you have to understand, I didn’t have any choice in the matter. They said they’d kill my family.”

“Monster hunters don’t have families, Sherry.”

“My parents are still alive, Jack,” he sobbed. “At least, they were. If I don’t complete this mission, they won’t be.”

“Fine. Tell me everything and we’ll see about getting them someplace safe.”

*****

Damien waited in the darkest shadows of the adjoining room until they carried out the bodies of the dead and the hun
ters had scattered. There was only a small handful of humans left in the command center and Rachel prodded at his mind, “Wait a moment, they are too close. Wait…
now
!”

He darted into the room, scooped up the arm of the Sicarii and shot out the open window as fast as he could move, ripping the cloth from the severed limb and devouring the flesh as quic
kly as he could. His fangs descended and ripped large chunks of the sweet meat from the bone and he chewed just enough to choke down the flesh as his legs carried him into the dark desert night as quickly as he could pump them.

As the flesh hit his stomach, the energy and power that once was the Sicarii struck him like an anvil strikes steel and knocked him to the ground. He rolled from his momentum, but he never lost his grip on the Sicarii’s limb.

He lay dazed and confused on the desert floor as the most sickening feeling he ever felt rolled over him and a sudden surge of power struck him at his core. As the sick feeling subsided he could hear Rachel whispering in his ear. “Finish your meal, lover. You need your strength.”

Damien’s lip quivered as he lay on the desert floor, staring up at the night sky and the sinking full moon. “I can’t, my love.”

“Mmm? Why not, lover? Are you full from all the others you munched on earlier?” she giggled.

“No.”

“Then what’s wrong, lover? Finish up so we can fulfill your destiny.”

“Oh, trust me. That mouthful was more than enough.”

“Okay then. Let’s get going. Let’s fulfill your destiny.”

“I can’t, my darling.” Tears formed in his eyes.

“Damien? What is wrong?” she asked, suddenly worried.

“I cannot move.”

*****

“What about the vamps that ran off into the desert?” Jacobs asked.

Mitchell considered them a moment and then shook his head. “According to the elves, there weren’t many. No sense in wasting resources and risking any more lives going after them,” he said. He looked at his watch. “The sun will be up shortly anyway. Let the desert have them.”

“Sounds good to me, sir.” Ing turned the diesel pump back on and sprayed a fine mist over the hole in the ground.

“Is that really necessary?” Lamb asked

“Colonel doesn’t’ want anything left. Not even the clothes,” Jacobs replied. “The sun won’t toast everything.

“Ah.” Lamb looked at his watch. “How much longer until the clean-up crews arrive?”

“Probably by morning. I think they started at the far end. They’ll be working all through the night,” Ing replied. “Poor bastards.”

*****

As they strapped the Sicarii to the cart and prepared to wheel him to his new tomb, he made eye contact with Rufus. He tried in vain to
will
him to his aid. He strained his mind, trying to force his way into Rufus’ head, drill into his psyche, to force his body to react to his desires. “You WILL obey me,” he whispered through clenched teeth.

Rufus simply stared at the shell of a vampire and shook his head. “
Non
. I will not,” he replied. “I never would have obeyed you, for I am
un chef de
…” he sighed and restated in English, “I am a
leader
. I do not follow.”

“Then you have betrayed your own kind, and for what?
Humans
?” he growled. “They will hunt you down and kill you the first time you step out of line.”

“
Non
. Again you are wrong.” Rufus sighed and averted his eyes. “For I will not step out of line.” He moved closer and stared into the Sicarii’s eyes. “You still do not understand, do you,
mon ami
? You do not remember what it was like to BE human. To feel. To love. To cherish all things that He created.”

“Bah! You’re an abomination!” he cried. “You don’t even know you’re place! We should be ruling them!”

“
Non
, I know my place. It is here, in the darkness. Until I am called into the light.”

The Sicarii tilted his head back and laughed, a deep, dark hearty laugh until tears formed in his eyes. “You poor, pitiful, little vampire. You still have hope that you may have a soul, don’t you?” he whispered. “You don’t. You lost it the moment you died, and it is roasting this very moment in the deepest, darkest pits of Hell.”

Rufus merely nodded. “Perhaps,” he stated, still staring at the vampire. “Perhaps not. I do not know. Only He knows.” He pointed up. “One day, I will find out.”

“Ask yourself this, little vampire,” the Sicarii whispered. “Has he ever answered your prayers? Has he ever so much as acknowledged your pitiful existence? Hmm, has he?”

Rufus looked around him at the death and destruction. He saw people being carried away on stretchers, others being tended to still in the field, buildings burning in the night, smoke rising up to the heavens, yet amidst it all, the ones he loved and cherished the most still lived. Mankind still existed and was not enslaved to this mad monster. The grand majority of the populace still had no idea that monsters existed anywhere outside of the cinema. The few who did mostly kept it to themselves or worked with this group of hunters. The Sicarii himself stood here chained in this eternal trap, encased in silver, trapped by the very coin that he used to betray the Son of God and was about to be entombed in the belly of Creation, sealed in steel reinforced concrete until the end of time. He took it all in and sighed with relief. Turning back to the Sicarii, he nodded.

“Yes. He has. And He has answered my prayers with the greatest of blessings. My cup runneth over like never before.” His lips trembling and his eyes began misting. He spread his arms to indicate everything going on about him and tilted his head back and cried to the heavens, “Thank you!”

The Sicarii stared at the little vampire as though he had lost his ever-loving mind before the men in black uniforms carried him away to his eternal sleep.

*****

Nadia ran to Jack and embraced him. Her tears flowed freely and she cried. Her joy and relief that the horrible visions that came to her during the battle were either of others that she had come to know recently or that she had been seeing through the eyes of other wolves, but it wasn’t her Jack.

She trembled as he held her and barely heard his words of comfort. “It’s okay, baby. I’m here now. It’s all over.”