Foamers (21 page)

Out of the blur of white, Alpha slammed into Sarge, discharging the gun as Kade
dropped face-first into the snow. Alpha reared as he straddled Sarge on the ground,
revealing a busted lip and a bullet wound to his upper shoulder. Swinging back and
forth like a pendulum, Alpha flogged Sarge with his massive fists.

Kade wriggled through the snow until he got to his knees and popped to his feet.
He watched Alpha pummel Sarge and debated running to meet his friends. Alpha beat
his fists into Sarge, and although he was inflicting pain, he hadn’t figured out
how to get around the armor. This was no longer his fight, Kade thought, and backed
away.

Sarge struggled to lift his pistol against Alpha. The threat to Alpha triggered something
in Kade. Logically he knew he should leave his two enemies to kill each other, but
Alpha didn’t feel like his adversary. Alpha had attacked Kade before, but Kade was
in Alpha’s territory. The monster might be the death of him, but Alpha deserved better
than being shot by Sarge.

Kade joined the fight and pinned on Sarge’s wrist with his foot. He felt entirely
uneasy being so close to the foamer, but he would accept the temporary treaty. Sarge’s
fingers broke under Kade’s grinding heel. Kade kicked the gun away. Alpha pounded
on Sarge with powerful blasts from his gigantic hands.

“Kade,” Sarge pleaded. “Anything you want. Just kill it.”

Kade’s odds of survival were low after Alpha finished with Sarge. The deal was tempting
but the last time he let Sarge leave he came back for war, a mistake he wouldn’t
repeat. He did considered leaving the two of them in the hopes that Alpha would
kill Sarge. However, Kade considered Sarge to be the greater monster and would take
his chances with Alpha.

Kade planted his left foot solidly on the ground and pivoted at the hip, swinging
his right foot toward Sarge’s head. The knob of Kade’s heel slammed into the joint
where Sarge’s jaw met his ear. The collision lifted Sarge’s ballistic mask clear
of his face. Alpha immediately sunk his teeth into Sarge’s exposed neck and tore
the vein open.

Other foamers appeared through the whiteout. Alpha stopped pummeling Sarge’s lifeless
corpse as Beta and Pepper moved in beside him. Pepper rubbed her body against Alpha’s
side, like a cat looking for a scratch, while Beta never took his eyes off Kade.

Kade stepped back, wondering whether he should run or hold still. So far, he had
come to notice that the foamers would fight when they outnumbered their enemies,
but run when they were outnumbered. Not only was Kade outnumbered, but his hands
were also bound.

Alpha reared and pounded his chest, letting out the loudest roar Kade had ever heard
from a human body. Every muscle in the foamer flexed and stretched as he displayed
his dominance. Alpha rushed at him with a roar, and Kade fought to remain still.
The beast stood upright and stared into Kade’s gray eyes. Alpha held the stare without
blinking. The monster was so close; Kade could smell the blood on his breath. Cocking
his head to the side, Alpha looked him up and down, then lowered himself back to
all fours and sauntered away. Kade couldn’t be sure, but he thought what he saw in
Alpha was confusion. Back in the group, Beta snapped his teeth as foam bubbled down
his blood-soaked chin.

Alpha rocked back and his fist flew toward his chest, smashing against his pectoral
muscle with a hollow thud before he showed his back to Kade and stomped off, like
everything was normal. Pepper followed after Alpha, but Beta waited behind.

Though this foamer was smaller, Kade had no desire to fight him. He was having trouble
standing up; the burning pain flowed through his body with each beat of his heart.
Beta snapped once more at him before following Alpha into the whiteout. Kade felt
like the luckiest person alive and vowed to repay his debt to Alpha.

The foamers’ haunches faded into the snow as Kade stood alone, trying to put together
what had happened. The monster had saved and then spared him; that much he knew for
sure. The monster that had once kicked his ass, and in the Old World had been an
MMA fighter whom he had watched fight, had come to his rescue and then allowed him
to live. Each time they had faced foamers in the past, they always stood and fought
when they had the numerical advantage. Today, as Kade had stood before three of them,
bleeding from countless wounds, they did not attack.

They must have more rational thought than he had given them credit for, but Kade
couldn’t begin to guess what damage the vaccine had done to their brains. They obviously
couldn’t speak, but they might think. The way the female approached Alpha seemed
like affection. The bottom line was, they needed to study the foamers, and he had
been wrong in his immediate assumption that they were monsters. The real monster
was lying dead on the ground.

Kade took one last look at Sarge. His body appeared to be resting, and he could pass
for sleeping if half his throat wasn’t spread across the ground. Kade whispered a
silent thank you to the dead man for helping him find his way in the Primal Age.
Focusing through his light headed state, Kade made his way to the rendezvous.

“Kade!” John hollered from the Humvee when he appeared like a bloody ghost through
the snow. Counting the people in the Humvee, Kade couldn’t have been happier to see
all his friends alive.

“Why’s the kid driving?” Kade asked as he waddled toward the Humvee with his hands
still bound behind his back.

“I was told to drive, so I drove. I’m a natural,” John replied as he smirked at
Kade, who winked back.

“The wink is mine. I’ll let it slide this time cause you look half-dead, but don’t
do it again,” X said, as Kade stepped onto the Humvee’s running board.

“More like three-quarters,” Tiny said.

John’s hand struck like a snake and latched onto Kade’s shirt before he slammed the
accelerator and the Humvee lurched forward. Kade’s body swung like a rag doll as
their Humvee barely missed being slammed by the one Victoria drove. John spun the
wheel, chasing Victoria.

“John, stop,” Kade said.

He eased the Humvee to a stop. “Let them go?”

“Let her go,” Kade replied. Victoria may have left them, but she was still one of
his cohort. If she hadn’t asked for him to be tortured, he wouldn’t be alive. She
had saved his life, so he would spare hers.

“They shot Argos. We need to get him to the dorm,” Tiny said. “And you.”

___________

The cohort licked its wounds after the fight with the Tribe. Victoria was probably
on
her way back to the Tribe. Kade hoped their victory would allow them some time before
their next encounter.

Outside of Lambian, X and Mick gathered the weapons and armor from the fallen Tribesmen.
When Mick went to bring in the man he had handcuffed, he found the foamers had killed
him. On the roof, Grace and John stood guard over the snow-covered landscape. In
the med bay, Tiny fought to save Argos. Fenris sat whimpering beside them. In the
next room, Kade lay recuperating on a bed.

He had stripped to his boxers and been hooked to an IV drip, which had come from
the hospital run. Ashton stood above him with a bucket and sponge, cleaning off his
dried blood. The sponge on his body felt good, but the cold water made him miss heat.
Ashton’s gentle touch, though, felt good enough for him not to complain.

The sponge passed along his jawline and down his neck to his pectoral muscle, each
new inch traveled revealing his skin under the red crust. Ashton’s hand shook as
she made the next pass to peel away more of the dried blood.

“Please stop almost dying,” she said as she fought the shakes.

Kade placed his hand on top of hers, stopping the sponge. “Better to be almost dead
than completely dead.”

She wiped her forearm across her eyes and looked away. He patted her hand.

“Sorry, sorry, that wasn’t a good time for a joke. I’m still breathing. I plan to
for a long time.” He opened his eyes and smiled at Ashton. “Mom and Dad would be
really proud of you.”

A small laugh escaped her as she looked at the ceiling to stifle her tears before
she looked back at him. “And what about you? You’ve gone from designated screw-up
to saving your friends, leading them to safety, and outsmarting a military tactician.”

Kade was still astounded that his plan had worked, step by step, even more perfect
than he had imagined. Each of his tactical moves had landed in proper succession
and at the right time. The only thing that didn’t go as he foresaw was the intervention
of Alpha. He hadn’t told anyone else about that yet, because he wasn’t quite sure
what to make of the foamer saving his life.

Even with the military momentarily dispatched, their plate was still full. Argos
needed to be mended, and they still had to find out if X was going to turn. There
were defenses to prepare and a future to plan. As time passed, they would need more
food than what they might find within the college dorms. The bottom line was, they
would have a lot of work to do every day, from now until the day they died. Kade
thought that was amazing. Each day, his own survival would depend upon him. He was
somebody now. Somebody Primed.

“I’m proud of you, big brother,” Ashton added.

The room vibrated as what sounded like a tornado carried through the building. Before
either could question what it was, John’s voice broke in over the walkie. “
Military
chopper!
” The drone grew louder.

Kade expected at some point the Tribe would retaliate, but he didn’t think they would
be so fast. They weren’t ready for this.

X spoke through the walkie. “
It’s landing in the quad. We’ll go get eyes on it
.”

* * *

X and Mick backed against one of the buildings surrounding the quad as they peered
at the helicopter that had just touched down. A tall woman with golden-brown skin
climbed out, wearing digital desert camo and looking like a tiger in an aquarium.

X tucked the stock of the rifle into his shoulder as Mick drew his pistol. Then the
next person exited the chopper.

“Kade?” Mick asked, astounded.

“It’s Damian,” X corrected.

The pilot’s door opened and Jem jumped out. Jem was there. In Houghton. With a helicopter.
X thought luck may be in their favor after all.

Mick smiled like a kid who had just gotten his braces off. “Let’s bring them in.”

* * *

“We’ve done all we can,” Tiny said. “He’s comfortable.”

Argos’s fur was soaked in blood as he lay on the bed, his chest slowly rising and
falling. Tiny had done the best she could, but when she realized there was nothing
more she could do, she gave him a shot of morphine. This would allow him to slowly
fade into death without feeling pain.

Jem had one hand on the side of the bed for support, and he stroked Argos’s fur with
the other. He never made a sound as tears ran from his ice-blue eyes. His fingers
scratched behind the dog’s ear.

Kade’s voice carried in from the hallway. “Damian, great to see you. We’ll talk in
a moment. Tiny, back off. My friend’s dog is dying; I’m going to be with him.”

He burst into the room, carrying his own IV bag.

He lightly tapped Jem’s shoulder, but avoided his line of sight. Fenris lay by the
bed with her muzzle buried in her paws. For Jem, losing Argos would be as crushing
as most parents would feel when losing a child. He had trusted Kade to take care
of the dog for him, and Kade had caused Argos to get shot. He was prepared to bear
any blame or anger that came his way.

Argos lifted his head and stared with glassy eyes, first at Jem, then at Kade. He
laid his head down and his eyes fluttered shut. His chest rose one last time before
settling for good. Surprised by his own reaction, Kade wiped tears from the corners
of his eyes. Jem threw his arms around Kade, who patted his back with one hand, while
keeping his IV bag elevated with the other.

“I found your brother,” Jem said.

“I found out why the alien robots still fight,” Kade replied.

Jem patted his back and pulled away. He stood at attention and saluted Kade. “I
knew you would, sir. What are my orders?”

“First order, don’t call me sir. Second suggestion, get some rest. We have a lot
of work to do tomorrow.”

“Good to see you, Chief.”

Kade turned away and walked out of the room. They hadn’t spoken about Argos, and
they never would. That was their way.

As Kade moved into the corridor, he found his brother, as well as a tall woman with
bronze skin exchanging awkward pleasantries with the little sister Damian hardly
recognized. Even with the same blood in their veins, they were virtual strangers.
A look of relief overtook Ashton when she saw Kade.

“I’ll leave you two to swap notes,” Ashton said, pushing past Kade.

Damian looked more like Kade now than ever before. He was scruffy and unshaven, which
was total blasphemy for Damian. In their teens, Kade grew his scruff as soon as he
could, and from then on, they had an unspoken agreement to always stick to their
opposite roles. They didn’t shake hands or hug; they just looked at each other.

“Kade, this is Number Five. Test subject success,” Damian said.

“Number Five?” Kade asked.

She smiled at him. “Apparently, I’m the key to your brother’s debacle.”

“Who’d have thought I’d turn out to be the bigger screw-up?” Damian said in a tone
reserved for funerals.

“We’re all in it together now,” Kade replied. “How’d you find Jem?”

“Number Five and I were trying to get to Houghton before winter arrived. We were
captured by survivors just south of DC. Jem saved me, and we made a plan to fly here,”
Damian replied. Kade could tell by the weight of his words that there was much more
to his travels than that, but there would be plenty of time to learn the details—right
now, what meant most was that they were reunited.

“What about the rest of those survivors?” Kade asked.

“They were planning to execute me, so we didn’t think asking permission to leave
was wise.”

“Glad you guys were thinking straight.”

Damian stared at his feet and then back at Kade.

“I know it couldn’t be easy, what you went through,” Damian said. “Thanks for listening
to my letter.”

“If you hadn’t sent it, we’d all be dead. We can stand here all day and toss the
ball back and forth, but there are more important things to do. Do you know if your
little pets are contagious?”

“Who’s bitten?” Damian replied.

“X.”

“I won’t know until I look at some samples, but I think the chances of contagion
are slim.”

“I’ll rest better when I know for sure.”

Damian gave him a nod and a pat on the shoulder. “I’ll leave her to you.”

As his brother walked past, Kade wondered about this mystery woman standing before
him. She was as tall as he was, like some sort of Amazon. Her posture was strong,
solid, erect; not the form of a soldier, but of confidence in one’s self. On top
of all that, she was Damian’s chance to cure the foamers.

“What would you have of me?” she asked.

“Head to the roof. I’m sure Grace or John wouldn’t mind some relief. They can fill
you in on rooms and such,” Kade replied and pointed toward the stairwell.

“Nice to meet you,” Number Five said as her stem-like legs carried her toward the
end of the hall.

The number of orders Kade had issued recently had him finally feeling ready to lead
the cohort that had trusted him from the beginning. They were his and he was theirs.
Allowing himself a moment of pride, he went to stick his hands in his pockets, only
to discover he was still half-covered in blood, holding an IV bag, and wearing only
his boxers.

A door to his right opened and Tiny stood, leaning against the frame. She had her
arms crossed as her foot anxiously tapped the ground. Her milky skin shone against
her black tank top as her eyes met his.

“What will it take for you to stay in bed? Tiny asked.

Kade smiled at her; not his usual half smile, but a full grin. He knew exactly what
he wanted.

“You.”

He stepped into her, wrapped his free hand around her back and under her shirt, where
he could feel her warm skin against his hand. Practically pulling her off her feet,
he yanked her body against his and kissed her deeply. Her hands ran around his neck
and she twisted her fingers into his hair.

She pulled away, but left her forehead against his as she smiled that smile he loved
so much.

“That would have been far sexier if you weren’t holding an IV bag.”

“Shut up.”

“Make me,” she replied, her smile turning to a wicked grin.

So he did.

* * *

John and Grace sat beside one another on the roof. He wanted to say something to
her about how much older he felt now than he did a day ago, but it didn’t seem like
a thing someone who felt older would say. He wanted to tell her how beautiful he
found her, but was afraid she wouldn’t believe him. He wanted to kiss her, but figured
she would shut him down again. So he chose silence.

The sky had faded to black, peppered with stars like an exotic spice on the surface
of the world. With the amount of change the world had been through, for John, it
was reassuring to see the stars were still in their same places.

He wondered if his parents would be proud of him, this man he was becoming. In all
his life, he never dreamed he could be someone like this. An astronaut, a doctor,
even a lawyer had crossed his mind at times, but a survivor wasn’t something he had
ever thought about. Thinking of his parents pierced his heart. The cohort had been
firing at such a high speed that he hadn’t been given the chance to think.

“What’s wrong?” Grace asked, making John aware that his face must have revealed too
much emotion.

“Just thinking about the Old World,” John replied.

“Try not to. Your life is happening now, and you wouldn’t want to miss a moment by
looking back.”

She was right. His life was happening right now. All he could affect was what was
to come. He wanted to kiss her. He needed to kiss her. He was going to kiss her.
He leaned in, just as the door opened, and the woman who had arrived with Kade’s
brother emerged, ruining his moment.

“Grace and John?” she asked.

“And you are?” Grace replied.

“Everyone’s been calling me Number Five. Kade sent me,” she said.

Grace placed her hands down on the wall and pushed herself onto her feet. “So long
as you’re here, I can go finish the fireplace. John can fill you in on how things
work.”

“At least with you here, I’m no longer the Stray,” John said, trying to mask the
bitterness he felt at his lost opportunity.

* * *

Mick opened the door to one of the dorm rooms with Jem behind him. The room, like
all the others, had been stripped to just the beds and furniture.

“Beds. Go to sleep. I’m going back to bed,” Mick said, stifling a yawn.

“Nothing for me to do?” Jem replied.

“There will be plenty. You just flew in; get some rest.”

“How have things been for you guys so far?”

Mick looked from Jem to his own feet. There was no simple way to explain everything
that had happened since they had left home. So many things had happened. So many
things that he didn’t want to remember. So many things he had to remember. When he’d
buried Lucas, he created a regret he would never be able to escape.

“We lost a lot. I lost Lucas and never told him …” Mick stopped and composed
himself. “We’ve survived.”

A look of confusion passed over Jem, then he flashed a smile at his old friend. “Get
some rest. It sounds like you’re going through a lot.”

* * *

Damian wandered the corridors of Lambian Hall. It had taken him a minuscule amount
of time to analyze the blood and saliva samples from the creatures. He arrived at
a door marked with a duct tape “X,” and knocked.

X opened, wearing only a pair of pajama bottoms and his cowboy hat.

“Good news, it’s not contagious,” Damian said.

“Thanks,” X replied as a smile slipped across his face; then he tipped his hat.

He turned to go back into the room, but Damian placed a hand on the door. “Is Victoria
here?”