Tainted Reality (The Rememdium Series Book 2) (7 page)

Turner looked over at his father, who stood rock still, his face beaming with what Turner knew was pride.

“Those of you drivin’ your own vehicles, wait until we’re loaded up and follow us. Deputies Bailey and Allsop will escort you out front, in case we have unwanted company hidin’ in the parkin’ lot. Let’s roll, people. Time’s a wastin’,” Walt said. “We’ve got to get situated and secure before night falls.”

Pastor Trent added, “Amen, son. Amen. Darkness has stepped into the light of day, and its ugliness will only get worse when the sun disappears.”

In minutes, the Humvees were packed with people and the caravan rolled out to the front. Turner went first, stopping to let Bailey and Allsop climb inside. Glancing in the rear view mirror, Turner gave the engine some gas and turned onto the road in front of the school.

A stream of vehicles, just like in a funeral procession, followed behind as they made their way through the streets toward their destination. Turner forced his hands to remain steady while driving past mangled corpses.

Wally World, here we come. Please, Lord, let Jesse and Chief Parker be ready.

And safe.

HARSH REALITY - Saturday - December 20
^th
– 10:46 a.m.

Ignoring the pain thrumming from the wound on her head, Regina raced through the aisles. Toys, dog food, body lotion and cosmetics whizzed by in a blur of colors and smells. In silence, she cursed her stupidity for leaving Susie with someone she hadn’t fully checked out.

If that girl dies because of my oversight…

The tread on Regina’s boots kept her from sliding as she rounded a corner leading to the sporting goods section. She heard Jesse and Kyle not far behind. Several middle-aisle displays blocked her view of automotive.

The visual impediments didn’t matter. Susie’s shrill scream pierced the quiet store. “Oh, my God! Nooooo!”

A dull
thump
followed the sickening, mewling sound Regina had come to despise.

Regina cleared the last visual obstacle and ground to a halt inches from the metal bars. Behind them stood Susie, a bloody tire iron clamped in her shaking hands. The terrified girl didn’t seem to be aware of Regina’s presence. Her laser-beam focus was on what once had been Mrs. Singleton.

The old woman’s blue smock was drenched in red. A large gash from the top of her head to the edge of her chin visible. The impact from the tire iron created a vicious wound, yet hadn’t stopped the old woman. She staggered back from the hit then closed the gap between the two with a weird, halting gait.

“Get away from me! Jesus, somebody please help me!” Susie screamed while taking a swipe with the metal rod.

“Kyle! Shoot her in—” Regina yelled.

Before she could finish her sentence, Kyle burst past her and stopped inches from the gate.

“Get down!”

The sound of Kyle’s deep, booming voice spurred Susie to act. She spun around and dropped to the floor at the same time. The tire iron still firmly clasped in her hands, Susie screamed, “Stop her! Please!”

Kyle raised his arms and fired two, well-placed rounds. Both entered the old woman’s forehead directly between her eyes. The velocity knocked her backward, blood and brain matter coating the highly-polished floor and counter.

Regina ran to the door leading to the stairs.

“Mom, don’t!” Jesse yelled.

Ignoring her daughter, fueled by fear and guilt, Regina kept going. By the time she burst through the door into the gated automotive area, she was out of breath. Susie was still crouched on the floor, arms over her head, sobbing uncontrollably. Jesse and Kyle had knelt down next to her on the other side of the gate. Bile rose in Regina’s throat when she looked at the destroyed mess formerly known as Mrs. Singleton.

Her body had landed on its side, giving Regina a clear view of the woman’s lower leg. The tan khaki pants rose up enough she could see the imprint of scratch marks on Mrs. Singleton’s ankle.

Roger, I’m so sorry. Please forgive me for letting her turn into such a thing.

“Susie, are you hurt? Did she bite or scratch you?” Regina asked.

Susie jumped as Regina’s hand touched her back. “I…I…don’t know.”

“Here, let’s take a look, okay? Breathe, honey. Just breathe,” Regina urged. “Talk to me. What happened?”

Susie sniffled and leaned back against the metal gate. The poor girl was shaking so hard her teeth chattered. Regina set her backpack to the side while studying every inch of Susie’s body for signs of contamination.

Through her tears, Susie said, “I woke up and my jaw hurt. She was sitting there staring at me and didn’t say a word when I tried talking to her. You know, to ask her what was going on, where I was, and where you were? I thought she was just a scared, old woman and too frightened to respond. I was thirsty and noticed the water fountain and went to get a drink. When I turned back around, she was on the floor, shaking. I…I…saw that cop and my aunt do the same thing so I knew what was coming next. I looked around for a weapon and found the tire changer thingy.”

“Looks like you got a good lick on her,” Kyle said. He set his gun down next to him, reaching inside to offer a comforting hand to Susie.

Regina grimaced at Kyle, thinking his remark was the wrong thing to say. “Did she touch you at all?”

Susie’s eyes clouded over with fear. Red-rimmed from crying, they were almost swollen shut. “No, but some of her blood got on me when I hit her. See?” Susie pointed to droplets on her shirt. “Oh, God! Does this mean I’ll get sick and turn…into…one…of…them?”

Regina looked up at Jesse as Susie dropped her head down and wept. Jesse returned the gaze, her own eyes welling up with tears. Regina didn’t want to risk Susie flipping out further so she answered, “No, honey, I don’t think so. From what I’ve seen, you have to sustain a bite or scratch. You’re clear, so come on, let’s get out of here.”

“I want my mom,” Susie whimpered. “And I want to go home. Away from all this mess!”

“I know, sweetie. I know. Here, let me put this away and we’ll get you outta here.”

After lifting the tire iron from the girl’s grip, Regina stood and set it on the counter. Jesse and Kyle continued to murmur words of encouragement to the distraught girl. Knowing they needed to hurry and get to the back of the store before the others arrived, Regina decided to open the gate rather than take the stairs. Just as she reached the button behind the counter, Regina heard Kyle scream, “Susie, don’t!”

Spinning around, Regina let out a gasp. Susie had moved away from the gate, out of reach of Jesse and Kyle. Regina’s mind spun with a million thoughts as Susie put the barrel of Kyle’s service weapon against her temple. Their gazes locked. Regina saw the look of resignation in Susie’s eyes.

“I want my momma!”

Regina lunged, legs pumping at full speed. Kyle and Jesse tried to reach through the slats to stop Susie, but she was too far away. The sound of the gunshot paled in comparison to the internal heartbreak inside Regina’s mind.

Unable to control herself or stop her trajectory, Regina cried out, “Oh, my God! No!”

Regina’s body collided with Susie’s and they slammed into the floor. She heard the clank of Kyle’s gun as it flew from the dead girl’s hands. Hot, sticky gore from Susie’s head sprayed across Regina’s face and chest. Regina’s head smashed into the slick concrete on the same side as the gash. The impact made the bright interior of the store dim, coinciding with loud buzzing inside Regina’s head.

Susie’s torso twitched once as blood pooled around her head from the gaping hole where the bullet exited. Regina welcomed the moment of blurriness, for she couldn’t stand the full clarity version of the limp body of Susie from Texas.

I promised to protect her. She trusted me and I let her down.

Overwhelmed by the image of the sweet, terrified girl blowing her head off, Regina couldn’t move. In the distance, she heard Jesse yell from her right and the crackle of automatic gunfire from her left.

“That’s gotta be Turner and Uncle Reed!” Jesse said.

Regina felt a warm hand touch her shoulder. She didn’t even flinch when she realized Kyle was right by her side. “Come on, Chief. We’ve got to let them in. Sounds like the things out back noticed them. We’ll deal with this mess later.”

On autopilot, Regina scooted across the floor and retrieved Kyle’s gun. She handed it to him without saying a word or looking at the bloody mess from the two women. Kyle put an arm around her shoulder, grabbed the pack, and led them out of automotive. They took the stairs two-at-a-time, eager to leave the carnage behind them.

Mind still numbed by the events, Regina forced herself to concentrate all her thoughts on helping the others as the trio made their way to the back of the store.

Because if she dwelt too much on Mrs. Singleton, Susie, and the others she’d killed, Regina would lose her fucking mind.

TIME TO RESEARCH - Saturday - December 20
^th
– 11:46 a.m.

“Doc? You finished with your hissy fit?”

Everett refused to look up. Shame from his earlier outburst kept his gaze locked on the gray wall behind him. Plus, he knew his eyes were swollen and red from crying. He felt like the world’s biggest wuss.

“Sorry about that. The first signs of dementia are sudden outbursts of anger.”

Dirk stepped inside the small room and leaned against the edge of Everett’s cot. “Yes, I’m well aware. However, given our current situation, I’d say your response was quite normal. Don’t try to weasel your way out of solving this mess by claiming you’ve lost your marbles. I won’t buy into it.”

“I’m not trying to convince you,” Everett muttered.

“Good, because it would be a waste of your energy. So, the guys are cleaning up the lab. Shouldn’t take them too long since they’ve got nothing else to occupy their time. No phones, the radio is silent, and they can’t amuse themselves by playing games on the Internet. I’d say in about two hours, they’ll be ready to go above and get you a specimen.”

Everett looked up and snorted. “A specimen? You mean a former human who’s turned into a…thing? You’re serious, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am. If you recall, I’m not exactly a jokester, Dr. Berning. Too many years in the military ground away most of my humor bone.”

“Pft! Waste of time and way too dangerous. I wouldn’t even know where to start. Besides, I don’t have the proper equipment here or the expertise to perform a pseudo-autopsy. I’m a scientist, not a doctor. I deal with microorganisms and chemical formulas. Med school was eons ago, and I only experienced cutting up a corpse once. Gross Anatomy was the only class I made a C in because I sucked at it. I’d just end up butchering the specimen like I did in school. Well, after I throw up first, which I did back then, too. My lab partner and instructor hated me the entire semester. They even nicknamed me Emesis Everett.”

“Emesis?”

Everett smiled. “Clinical term for throwing your guts up.”

“Ah. Okay, well considering they’re dead, I don’t think they’ll care how skillful your hands are,” Dirk responded.

“True, I certainly won’t have to worry about family members complaining about shoddy work. Again, it won’t matter. I don’t have a clue where to start, nor do I have the proper tools to dissect a body. You need certain things to crack through bone.”

Dirk sat on the cot and leaned forward, his face inches from Everett’s. “Look, I know you’re scared. We all are. I am not an expert in anything medical, but I know some things. The first one is, I believe, you can get a good handle on what’s going on by testing a blood sample. Getting one won’t require you to stick a blade through a torso or skull.”

Despite the dire situation and subject matter, Everett chuckled. “You’re right on that point. However, it would require me to get close enough to extract rancid blood. Newsflash: I’m squeamish. My aversion to blood, and all the gooey shit inside the human body, were major sources of disappointment to my family. They all expected me to be a—oh, how did my father put it—ah yes, a
legitimate
doctor. However, suffering from emesis and syncope barred me from pursuing a career as a physician, much to the dismay of my parents.”