The Zombie Chronicles - Book 5 - Undead Nightmare (Apocalypse Infection Unleashed Series) (18 page)

“No,” he said. “It’s best to isolate the danger first, and then we’ll help your friend. We’ve got to mind our priorities,” he said.

I played by his rules, and we decided that Kate and Asia would stay at the truck and keep an eye on Lucas while we got Jackie situated inside. It was a bit of a relief to know our lookouts had guns to defend themselves and the unconscious Lucas.

“Follow me, folks.” Jonathon led us up the street, toward a brick building that looked like a courthouse.

“Where are we going?” I asked. “The lab is across the street.”

“If you want our help, you’re gonna have to let us lock Jackie up in one of the holding cells,” Jonathon said.

“Like a common criminal? No way!” I said. “There has to be another way.”

“We have no choice,” Nick told me. “We can’t take the chance that she’ll hurt someone.”

I nodded because I knew there was no use arguing, but I still hated the idea.

“We need to secure the place first,” Val said.

Jonathon pulled out a set of keys. “Already done.” He opened the door, and we followed him into the courthouse. He held a huge flashlight and led us down a few corridors. He finally stopped and opened a door on his left. “Okay, we’re here.” Inside the room, he walked to the desk and turned on a battery-operated lantern.

The room held five empty jail cells. Each six-by-eight cell was modern looking, with brick walls painted in a pale yellow. I had expected to see bunk beds like the ones in prison movies, but instead, there was a single bed anchored to the wall and floor, along with a steel commode. A small, glass cube window allowed a tiny bit of natural light to flow in, and it was some concession to know that Jackie wouldn’t be trapped in complete darkness.

He opened up a cell, and Nick placed Jackie inside, lying her softly on the cot. “Don’t worry. We’re gonna get you some help,” he whispered in her ear.

“Something’s really…something is wrong with me,” Jackie said.

“Help is coming, babe,” I said. “I promise that we’re gonna fix this.”

“Chloroform,” she begged. “I need to…just knock me out, Dean. Please. Before I…”

“Can we get our hands on some chloroform?” I asked.

“Definitely,” Jonathon said. “I think it’d be best to place all of your infected in isolation too. We have no idea if Claire, Val, or Asia will turn. We’ve got elderly people, women, and children inside, and we have to take every precaution to protect them.”

“Asia’s still at the U-Haul,” Nick said. “She was just bitten recently, and I’m not sure she’ll agree to being locked up.”

Jonathon gripped the keys tightly in his hands. “You’ll have to talk to her.” He then turned to Val. “Do you consent?”

“If it’s what you think is best, I’ll do it,” she said bravely. “The last thing I need on my conscience is tearing up an old lady or an innocent child. Besides, I need answers. If this is what it takes, so be it.”

Claire didn’t share the same opinion. “No way,” she said. “Nobody is gonna throw me in jail when I haven’t done anything wrong. We’ll just go to another lab, Jonathon,” she threatened.

Val turned to look at her. “Don’t you get it? No matter where we go, they’ll lock us up. Any of us could change any minute. We’re a risk, a danger to human life, and no matter where we go, they’ll confine us. How can you blame them for that?”

“Fine. Then I guess I’ll just stay on the run,” she threatened.

“You might think you’re being brave, Claire, standing your ground or proving a point,” Jonathon said, “but what you’re really doing if you aren’t willing to let us help you in the safest possible way is giving up. That’s the easiest thing to do in the world.”

Val shook her head and said vehemently, “Listen, Claire, you can run a million miles from here, but it won’t change a thing. You might be free, but for what? To turn into one of those things and kill humans for the rest of your existence? What kind of life would that be? At least here, we have a fighting chance—a well-equipped lab and knowledgeable people who will do everything they can to cure us, to save us.”

“Do you really think they can help us?”

“Hope is all we’ve got left,” Val said. “We lose that, and we’ve lost everything.”

A tear ran down Claire’s face as she pondered Val’s words.

“They might be able to keep us from changing, Claire,” Val said. “I can’t speak for you, but I’m willing to take my chances here. Darting off into the wilderness isn’t gonna help me one tiny bit.”

“I hear what you’re saying,” Claire said calmly, “but I disagree with you. I am not a danger to anyone, and there’s no way I’m gonna let anyone lock me up like an animal. I’m sure Asia won’t give her consent either.”

I was pretty sure Claire was right about that, because I couldn’t imagine Asia ever letting anyone throw her in a holding cell.

Jonathon pushed his glasses up on his nose. “I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do, young lady. You’re not my prisoner. However, you do things my way, or you can leave. This is a safety precaution, and you must cooperate for all of us or get out of town.”

“If it’s my choice to go, I’m going,” Claire said with a huff. “I’ve come all this way, gone through so much to get to this stupid lab, and no one told me I’d be locked up in a dungeon when I got here. You’ve got no right to keep me and my cousin—”

Jonathon interrupted, “Because she is your cousin, we need you in order to help her. Your genetic makeup will have some similarities. It’s your choice, Claire, but if you go, I’m afraid you’ll need to take her with you. Without you, we won’t be able to help Jackie either.”

Nick wrapped his arms around Claire. “C’mon, Claire. Let’s play by their rules. The least we can do is let them run some tests, right? That way, we’ll know where we stand, because we’re all in limbo right now. There’s still a chance you might change, and—”

“It won’t happen,” Claire said, crossing her arms.

“I hope not,” Jonathon said, “and once that’s officially established, we’ll let you go.”

She gazed at Val, her eyes wide. “Are you sure about this? You’re really willing to let them lock you up?”

“Don’t you want answers?” Val asked. “I wanna know if I’m going to turn or if there’s an antidote they can give me before it happens. I’m only agreeing to this to save my life and to keep myself from killing others.”

Nick kissed Claire on the lips. “You won’t be alone here. I’ll be here the whole time. You can count on that.”

“You have to do this, Claire…for Jackie and for yourself,” Val begged.

Claire wiped another tear from her face. “I-I know,” she said with a sniffle.

“You’ve become quite the fighter, Claire,” Val said. “Remember what you’ve been fighting for. Choose hope, Claire.”

Claire glanced away and thought about it, then stared back at Jonathon. “Fine. I just hope you can find a cure so we won’t change. Besides, I’ll do anything to help my cousin.”

Jonathon walked to the corner of the room and grabbed some comforters, sheets, and a pillow. “I want to see nothing more than to clear you and let you out, but we have to run tests first. Until then, the least I can do is try to make you comfortable.”

She reached for bed linens. “Thanks, Doc.”

He met her gaze. “Claire, Val, I hate to see you jailed like this, but we have to consider everyone’s safety.”

“I understand,” Val said.

Nick walked in and hugged Claire, then placed a long kiss on her lips.

I couldn’t believe he was so fickle. Less than an hour earlier, he’d been in the back of the U-Haul suggesting that we leave Claire behind for our good and her own, but now he was making out with her. Not once had I swayed in my decision to save Jackie. I would never desert her, not ever. Jackie had told me back in the nursing home that she didn’t want to live as a hybrid, and she asked me to promise that I’d shoot her if she ever turned. As much as I wanted to comply with her wishes, I never could have killed her. I’d already made that promise to my sister, but luckily for us all, the serum had helped Val before we had to end her life.

“What if zombies break in here and I’m stuck in this cell?” Claire said.

“This place is as secure as it can get. You’re completely safe from zombie attacks,” Nick said, giving her one final kiss.

Val rolled her eyes. “Haven’t you learned anything, Nick? Nobody is ever completely safe.”

“They’d never be able to break through the bars,” Nick retorted.

Jonathon handed her a blanket, pillow, and some sheets, and Val walked in so he could lock the steel door behind her. He walked back to the shelves and picked up boxes, then handed one to each of the girls. “This will make your time served a bit easier, I hope,” he said.

“Care packages? Hmm. I feel like this isn’t the first time you’ve done this,” Val said.

He cleared his throat. “We’ve had some, uh…trouble this past year,” he said.

“How did you end up in Kingsville?” she asked.

“I was there to visit my brother, but I couldn’t find him when I got there. I think we all know what happened to him.”

I gripped Claire’s hands through the bars. “You’re tougher than any of us thought, Claire, and I just know you’ll get through this. Just know that Nick, Kate, Lucas, and I are here for you, just a little ways away.”

“Thanks, Dean.”

I walked over to Val and gave her hand a squeeze. As a police officer, she had put criminals away, but now she was on the other side of the bars. “Temporary custody,” I said with a smile.

She smiled back at me. “Heh. I’ll be fine. If drunks can do it, so can I.”

“We’ll get you out of here as soon as we can,” I said.

She smiled. “If I didn’t believe that, I wouldn’t have let him lock me up.”

I walked over to Jackie’s cell while Nick said his goodbyes to Val. Jackie hadn’t moved since Nick had put her down on the bed. “I’m gonna do everything I can to save your life. Hang in there, honey.”

There was no response.

“Jackie?”

Nick slapped my back. “Let’s go, buddy. We have to go get the chloroform and get Lucas out of the truck.”

Jonathon glanced at Nick. “I’m afraid no one on my team is going to be willing to go in there and sedate her. She’s just too dangerous,” he said.

“Don’t worry,” Nick said. “I’ll take care of it.”

Jonathon’s gaze narrowed. “Are you sure you can handle that?”

“You wouldn’t be asking me that if you knew what we’ve been through. This is nothing.”

This time, I actually believed Nick’s cocky statement. I’d been through hell with him, and I couldn’t even imagine what Lucas and he had been through before I’d found them.

Jonathon opened the door. “I’m blown away by your support and commitment to Jackie. Most would have killed her or ditched her along the way.”

“I’d do anything for her,” I said. “Leaving her was never an option.”

“Are you ready?” Jonathon asked me.

“Yeah.” I glanced over my shoulder and shot Claire and Val a nod.

Claire blew me a kiss, and Val saluted.

Jonathon led us down the corridors and back outside to the truck.

Hesitantly, I knocked on the window, and Asia opened the door. I was terrified to break the news to her, knowing it wasn’t going to go over well at all.

“Where’re Val and Claire?” she asked.

I explained the entire story while Nick waited outside by the door and Jonathon got the chloroform.

Asia reacted just the way I’d expected and exploded in a fit of rage, loud enough to attract a zombie in a ripped-up, dirty business suit. It lumbered out of the vegetation and released a long, hungry moan, but she quickly grabbed a tire iron. “This thing works great when you don’t wanna alert zombies with gunfire.” She charged at the zombie and kicked out its knees, then slammed the tire iron into its skull. It fell backward onto the hard concrete street.

“Nice job,” Kate said.

Asia slung a black bag over her shoulder and reached for her rifle. “As you can see, I’m more than capable of surviving out here. Nobody’s throwing me in lockup.”

“If you turn, there’ll be no one to help you,” I said. “At least here, you might have a chance.” I gripped her hands. “I know we’ve had our disagreements, Asia, but please stay.”

“I just…can’t.”

“Just let them run a few tests so we can see what’s going on,” I begged.

“A few tests will turn into a whole lot of tests. Once I’m behind those bars, I might never get out, and I’m nobody’s lab rat.”

“I wouldn’t let that happen.”

“They aren’t going to find any answers, Dean,” Asia said. “Val and Claire are fools if they think there’s some miracle cure for them. We’re all going to change eventually, and nobody can stop it or reverse it for good.”

“I don’t believe that,” I said. “I can’t give up that easily.”

Tears welled up in her eyes. “I’d rather live my last days on my own terms than behind bars, being poked and prodded by scientists. None of us know when our time is going to be up, and I wanna enjoy the ride. When it’s my time to go, it’ll be my time to go, and I’d rather die watching a sunset than staring at a prison wall.” She inhaled deeply, then let it out slowly. “I’m not afraid to die, Dean.”