DEAD: Blood & Betrayal: Book 11 of the DEAD Series (12 page)

“That’s the million dollar question, ain’t it?” Daryl laughed. “We had a rough experience with that sort of thing back in the early days. Thing is, we learned how to deal with it. Even have a simple blood test that tells if you will show immunity.”

Chad’s expression must have changed drastically because the man held up his hands. His smile was still there, and it looked genuine all the way to his eyes. Still, Chad could not help it.

“No, we don’t shoot people up with tainted blood or anything like that. We are lucky to have honest to goodness doctors here. They worked like crazy for the first few years. We lost some folks bringing in things that they would require to run tests. Even had a bit of a rift over what was more of a priority, the solar grid or the little devices that the doctors needed. Came to blows at a few of the council meetings.”

“Wait.” Chad held up his hands to stop the man. “Solar grid? I didn’t see any solar grid.”

“We keep it on the far side of the community. Way back in the day, we rationalized that we would probably get more people coming north from California than we would coming south from Oregon and Washington. We figured that would be the first place that bad guys would want to hit.”

“Wow, you guys thought of everything.”

“Trust me, this is the result of years of trial and error…mostly error.” Again Daryl let loose with a good-natured laugh. “Anyways, we have a blood test that is part of your “welcome to Green Springs” package.”

“I guess I will go get the ladies,” Chad finally said after another long look around.

“We can send an escort if you like,” Daryl offered.

“No thanks,” Chad replied with a shake of his head.

He was escorted to what was apparently only one of six entry gates to the community. He shook hands with Daryl as well as the guards who all seemed more than happy to allow him inside when he first arrived. That had actually been his first question. Daryl had pointed to a dozen men and women up on the catwalks that ran the entire length of the walls that kept this place safe. Each of them held a crossbow cradled in their arms.

“We have different protocols based on the number of refugees that show up at our gate. Plus, it is quite likely that you passed at least a dozen of our perimeter sentries. If even one of them had considered you a threat, they would have signaled back to the gates and a welcoming party would have been here instead of just me. Hell, if you would have been a woman, then Sheila or Annette would have been the person to greet you. We even have a few of the younger folks trained in the off chance that a kid arrives at our gates.”

As Chad walked back to Caroline and Ronni, he could not help but be impressed. Every step saw his nervous excitement grow. By the time he reached the highway and could see the area where the ladies were supposed to be camped, he was a bundle of nerves.

It was all too simple. Too convenient. How was it that they had gone this long and found nothing even remotely resembling Green Springs? As he crossed the highway, a new feeling replaced his excitement.

Fear.

Surely Caroline and Ronni would have seen him cross the interstate. Yet, he was almost all the way up the hill and not only did he not see any sign of them, but Caroline would have made her presence known and come to greet him and ask what he’d found.

Suddenly, the feeling that he should have never left them behind hit him with the force of a fist to the gut. How could he have been so careless?

***

“What!” Jody actually staggered backwards a step. He was not sure if he was relieved, or even more suspicious.

“I overheard a couple of them talking about it last night in the tavern. Didn’t recognize either of them. I guess I thought that it was just a lot of big talk from a couple of guys who had too much to drink.” Jody’s expression had obviously changed to reflect his thoughts. Danny threw up his hands. “I swear, pal, I never once gave it a moment of credence.”

“So why the sudden change?” Jody spat, his distrust showing clearly as he took a step back, his hand absently drifting over one of his belt knives. “Seems awful strange that you are here all suited up out of the blue if you didn’t take these bastards seriously.”

“Because I told him to meet me here,” a voice called from behind.

Jody spun in a flash of movement that had his knife drawn and in hand before he completed the hundred and eighty degree spin. His hand shot out quick and he had this newest arrival by the throat. With one swift sweep of his foot, he knocked the new arrival’s legs out from under him and was straddling the man’s chest before the person could do anything to defend himself.

“Jody, no!” Danny barked.

“Stay the fuck back!” Jody growled. The he turned his attention back to the man on the ground with a razor sharp blade to the throat, just a hint of blood already trickling from where the skin had been nicked. “As for you…”

“Jody, I am here to help,” Tracy Sasser said in a hoarse whisper. His eyes were wide with fear and a single bead of sweat was already beginning to trickle down the man’s temple.

“Is that right?” Jody said, his lips curling up in an ugly snarl. He allowed just a slight hint of an increase in pressure as his hand flexed on the grip of the bone handled hunting knife.

“Yes,” Tracy managed, although it was a strangled sound as his ability to swallow was now becoming more uncomfortable with each passing second.

“He was working in the bar last night,” Danny called. “He heard everything after I left. He came to my house this morning and told me that those guys had not been kidding. He said they snatched little Alana from the back yard this morning.”

“And just how would you know that?” Jody pressed just a bit harder. It was now a simple matter of sliding his hand to the right and the man’s throat would be slashed, his jugular sending a geyser of blood across the sidewalk.

“Because I live behind you and over to the left one house,” Tracy squeaked. “I heard Selina’s cry.”

Jody stared into the man’s eyes once more. He saw fear, uncertainty…and honesty? If the eyes were supposedly the window to the soul, these were wide open.

“Why didn’t you come to me sooner?” Jody eased the blade away revealing a long thin line of blood that was seeping from the three or four inch cut.

“Because I am afraid this is bigger than anything I can handle. And I needed somebody who could convince you that I wasn’t part of the plan. You don’t know me from Adam. Danny has been staying across the street from me since his rehab. I knew you guys were buddies once.” Tracy climbed slowly to his feet, brushing himself off as he did.

Jody gave the man a once over and realized that he was obviously not a soldier. And if he was, then he was a supply type and not a front line sort. Nobody ever looked more out of place with his weapons than Tracy Sasser.

That made Jody recall how they met. The two of them had helped lower Danny when he’d been in that cage after the women had hobbled him. Tracy had gotten sick at the sight of Danny’s injuries. He had demonstrated obvious distaste for what George and Margarita had inflicted upon Jan Sieber, the woman they were supposedly going to question about the tower deaths.

“I’m coming as well.”

Speaking of Jan
, Jody thought as he looked to see the woman come up from behind Danny. He was only a little concerned that she had her own crossbow loaded and pointed in his general direction.

“Okay…and how did
you
know?” Jody sighed, sliding his knife into its place on his belt.

“Tracy and I have been roomies for a while,” Jan said with a shrug.

“Now let’s get rolling,” Danny spoke, clapping his hands together once for emphasis.

“Yeah…” Jody let that word drag out a bit. His eyes drifted down to Danny’s feet and then snapped back up as soon as he realized what he was doing.

“Oh no you don’t, Rafe,” Danny protested, turning and starting up the road. His limp would have been comical any other time but this.

“Sorry, Danny,” Jody apologized as he trotted to get ahead of his friend. “I would love to have you at my side for this, but you know as well as I do that you are a liability.”

“Kiss my ass.”

“He’s right,” Tracy added. Jan nodded her agreement as she patted the man on the shoulder and walked past him. Jody quickly realized that they obviously knew exactly where they were headed.

“You could do me a solid and go sit with Selina. Partially so she has somebody to talk to, partially because I need somebody to watch her and the baby. I could not think of anybody better.” Jody squeezed his friend’s arm and then jogged after Tracy and Jan.

“As I understand it, you know where they took my girl?” Jody asked as soon as he caught up.

“Yep,” Jan answered. “They took her to Pitts’ place.”

***

Entry Nineteen—

It has rained for three days straight. I am wet and cold and miserable. If I feel like this, then either that woman has already killed the child, she is long gone, or I simply went the wrong direction when I tossed my coin.

I admit, it is not the most scientific method to use on a search for a missing person, but I am not nearly skilled enough to sniff a footprint or see a crease on a leaf. Finding a person who does not want to be found is damn near impossible these days. This is a big chunk of land, and you can be a hundred yards from another person and not have even the slightest clue.

As I sit under this rocky overhang where about forty percent of my body can stay out of the soaking downpour, I realized that I am probably not as smart as I like to believe. Take the guy who recognized me back at the settlement. I figured it might be because I am a pretty big dude. Not for a moment did it cross my mind that the huge tomahawk I wear on my hip might actually give me away.

While handheld weapons are simply a part of everybody’s outfit these days, not many people sport a yard long ‘hawk with an ornately hand carved handle. That is probably the sort of thing that stands out in a person’s mind.

I think I will double back in the morning. There is a trade route not far. I might be able to hear something from a passing merchant or settler.

Entry Twenty—

I was just waking up from almost no sleep, when I heard the sound of a baby cry. The thing is, back in the early days, that sound probably got a lot of people killed. I think we have all heard that noise at least once and been scared into a brown streak when we happened upon the undead source.

The thing is, all these years later, you can actually tell the difference without hardly even trying. This was an actual baby crying. I had no doubt.

I didn’t even finish putting my gear into my pack. I just yanked my tomahawk free and took off. I would not say that I am much of a runner. I am like a bear crashing through the woods, only, not quite as graceful.

I was damn near killed when I reached an embankment. The ground was soaked and I made the rookie nature boy mistake of grabbing a small sapling to hold my weight as I started down. The sapling came out by the roots—something that might have just as easily happened if the ground hadn’t been saturated considering it was so small and I am so…not.

I ended up falling head over heels down the embankment and ended up in a trench about twenty feet long and a few inches deep that was full of muddy water. Of course, when I stood up, it was damn near empty. I had become the human version of SpongeBob Dirtypants. What my clothing did not soak up, I must have swallowed or snorted up my nose.

By the time I quit hacking and throwing up mud, the only sound I heard was that of my own labored breathing. I was now cold, completely soaked…and pissed. I try my best never to let my emotions get the best of me when I am out on these runs. The woman better pray that I don’t find her in the next day or two.

Of course I can’t even say for certain that it was her and the missing child. In my mind, I am at least eighty percent sure; but that does not cut it. Nor does it make me any warmer or drier.

Entry twenty-one—

I spent most of today walking in a growing circle outwards from where I found the camp this morning. I will give the woman credit, she knows what she is doing out here. She had a nice Dakota hole dug which is why I never saw a fire.

The only mistake, if it truly was one, was that she did not make any effort to hide the fact that a camp had been here. Sure, there is a chance that the place was not even her old camp, but I go off my gut. My gut says it was her.

Besides, there are not a lot of women just roaming the countryside with babies these days. Zombies aside, the wilderness is thick with outlaws and bad guys. Of course I am being general, but that is a simple fact.

No, not every single person out in the world is an evil bastard waiting to victimize others, but those numbers are much higher now percentage-wise than they were back before zombies wiped out the infrastructure. It is a fact.

And for those who might say that perhaps I am just jaded considering the types of filth that I deal with on a regular basis, I would like to point out that we as a species have always had that disposition. And when allowed to run free and unchecked by any sort of law or authority, we are downright evil. The old history books are full of horrors that are hard to imagine.