Deadlocked 5 (27 page)

"We got bit," I said and looked at the wound on Celeste's shoulder.

"Yeah, and you fucking lied to me too," said Hero. "You said you got bit before you took off in the car to be a diversion."

"I wasn't lying. I did get bit." I rubbed my thigh where the old bite was still aching.

"Sure, but you forgot to mention that you were immune.
Harry told Kim that you were immune. Is that true?"

I shrugged and asked, "Maybe, I didn't know he was running around telling everyone that. Where is the old guy? I'll let him know I'm not dead."

Hero's demeanor darkened. "Everyone's down at the lowest level, but I didn't see Harry come through. I don't think he made it out."

"You're talking about Harrison? The old man with the dog?" asked Celeste. Hero and I nodded and looked at the lithe girl as she pointed back towards Vineyard. "I saw him up on the roof, near the bridge to the bank. He had the dog with him and a backpack that had a rope on it."

I excitedly turned to her. "Was he alive?"

She nodded and my heart raced until she added, "But I think he was shot. I'm not sure, but his head was bleeding. I think he might've been shot in the head."

"But he was alive when you last saw him?"

"Yes."

I looked at Hero and he started to shake his head. "Don't be nuts, man. I liked the old fucker all right, but going back out there is suicide."

"I already tried to kill myself once. Turns out I'm not that good at it."

"You dumb mother fucker," said Hero. "Fine then, I'll go with you."

"Me too," said Celeste. "I wouldn't mind killing a few more."

"No. You two stay here. She's been bit," I pointed at Celeste's wound. "You need to get her someplace safe and get her patched up."

"So you can go play hero by yourself? That's my job, man. How else do you think I got my name?"

"Well then be a hero and help protect the people here. There's still a horde of zombies out there looking for us along with some asshole in a helicopter. The people you've got down here need your help more than me."

Hero's nostrils flared in frustration as he glowered at me, but he knew I was right. Heading out into the city to find Harrison was a foolish quest, and we didn't need to risk any more lives than necessary. "Fine. But if you're going to go, take this. It's the last one I've got." He handed me one of the flash bang grenades that he'd found in the back of the car. "If the zombies come at you, just throw this and close your eyes. It'll stun them for a bit and give you a chance to run. The blast will still fuck with your eyes a little even if they're closed, so try and cover them with your arm when the blast goes off."

"Okay, thanks." I took the grenade and put it in my pocket before heading back to the entrance.

Hero helped me open the gate again and I slipped through. He stopped me before I could leave and said, "Good luck, you fucking idiot."

I saluted him and headed off.

BEN WATANABE

The streets were empty, but I knew the zombies would be coming back soon.

"Come on out, little piggies." The helicopter was nearby and the zombies were attracted to it. I could hear their feet slapping on the street as they chased the spotlight.

The entrance to Vineyard seemed miles away, but I'd already made it a third of the way before the helicopter swung its light down my street. Instead of diving into a hiding spot, I laid down of the ground to feign death as the spotlight roamed. It shined on top of me as the pilot called out a taunt, "Here little piggy."

The light moved past me and I glanced up to watch him fly away. There were two of them in there. A soldier was perched on the side with a rifle aimed down at the street as the pilot guided the helicopter at a perilously low altitude.

Then the light swung back toward me. I set my head back down and continued to pretend to be dead, but something had tipped them off. They put the light on me and left it there.

"Look at this little piggy. I don't remember seeing one of our guns on anyone down there before. Stop pretending to be dead, piggy. I see you."

I cursed as I realized how they found me. The F2000 was strapped to my back, and the distinctive style of the gun was something they would've remembered seeing on one of their previous rounds. I was certain the sniper was lining up his aim and knew that I only had seconds to move.

I rolled to the side and raised my Glock. The spotlight blinded me as I stared into it, but its position helped me determine where the sniper was sitting. I fired the remainder of the bullets in the gun and heard a single sniper shot crack through the air. Pavement exploded beside me and I rolled to the left again as the helicopter turned to keep me in the sniper's line of fire. I knew the chance of one of my bullets hitting the sniper was slim, but I needed to buy myself time to escape. I pulled another magazine from my pocket and jammed it into the gun to fire off another series of shots.

The light wavered and I was afforded a momentary view of the sniper peering down at me. I felt the wind caused by the chopper blades pushing violently at me as I rolled to a crouched position. I should've run and tried to avoid the sniper's shot as I ducked into a building, but I didn't. For no reason other than ignorant bravado, I was certain I could make the shot.

I aimed to the side, aware of the effect the chopper's torrent would have on the bullet's trajectory, and trusted my aim. I could see the lens of his scope pointed at me and I stared directly into it. One of us was about to die, and he wasn't compensating for the wind.

Our shots fired at the same instant and I felt his bullet slice through the air beside my face. The power of his rifle had all but negated the wind's pull, but the effect was just enough to make him miss. My aim, however, was perfect.

The sniper fell from the helicopter, but his waist was tied to a support line and his body dangled as his rifle hit the ground. I couldn't help but cheer and then flip off the pilot. "Fuck you, mother fucker!"

The helicopter adjusted its position and I knew I was in trouble. The pilot aimed his
chain gun down at me and I had only seconds to get out of his sight.

"I'm going to kill you, you piece of dog shit!" The pilot screamed into the loudspeaker, causing his voice to distort into a demonic howl. He fired, but I was already safely inside one of the buildings. Unfortunately, the commotion he caused was attracting the attention of every zombie in the area, and he knew it.

He pumped the gun, firing off a short series of bursts every few seconds. "Come on over this way, zombies. There's a nice meal in there for you. Go get some piggy for dinner."

I heard them breaking through the windows and doors nearby, but the only light I had was from the spotlight outside. I flipped the switch on my rifle and it revealed a horrific sight. There were too many zombies to count bearing down on me from the other side of the gutted building.

I cursed in shock and then started shooting the ones that were within ten feet. I didn't want to waste too many bullets, and I knew that every shot only served to attract more of them. My only chance would be to run through the crumbling buildings to reach the entrance to Vineyard. I would have to cross two more streets and several alleys, all of which would leave me vulnerable to the helicopter above, but there wasn't any other option.

"There he goes!" The pilot spotted me the first time I ran across a street, but he wasn't in position to shoot and could only follow along. "Where do you think you're going, little piggy?" He sounded as if we were playing a game together as he chased me.

He fired a few rounds to keep the zombies on my heels, but he didn't have to worry, those fuckers were right behind me. My body ached, and my legs were beginning to lose their strength as I stumbled over the debris that littered the ground. I was running out of breath, and my lungs burned as I was forced to breathe in the dust that the helicopter's whirling blades kicked up. My eyes stung, and blood was still gushing from the wound on my shoulder. In my pain and desperation, it never occurred to me to question why I was doing this.

My friend needed me.

I let go of the rifle and let it bounce at my side as I tried to pull the flash grenade out of my pocket. I planned on dropping it when I reached the ladder to Vineyard. I got to the entrance, but the building was almost unidentifiable from what it had looked like before. The helicopters' assault left it in shambles and large chunks of the ceiling had collapsed. I found the stairs that led up to the floor where the rope ladder was hanging and started climbing without looking back.

I knew the zombies were close, but it wouldn't help to look back and try to see them. Instead, I charged ahead with the grenade in hand, ready to throw it behind me if needed. I made it to the ladder and whirled around with my finger on the pin, prepared to stuff the grenade into a zombie's mouth if I had to. However, when I turned, there was nothing behind me.

"Where are you, you pieces of shit?" I knew that as soon as I started climbing, the zombies would come up from the floor below and pull me down. I thought about pulling the pin and throwing the grenade down the stairs as a precautionary measure, but I didn't want to waste it if I didn't have to.

I could hear the pilot taunting me from outside, and he continued to fire short bursts at the lower floor. "The big bad wolf is here, little piggy. Come on out or I'll blow your house down." He fired an extended burst of gunfire and I felt the entire structure shift. He laughed and I knew he was trying to bring the building down on top of me, but he assumed I was on the ground floor. The zombies were probably attracted to his gunfire, and my escape up the stairs must've gone unnoticed.

I shoved the grenade back into my pocket and climbed the rope ladder as the building groaned beneath me. The pilot lined up another shot and started to blast a second support beam. The structure shifted again and I heard the sound of splintering wood from below before a portion of the façade crumbled down.

The roof was leaning, and the bridge that connected it to the second building had become detached. I climbed out of the hatch and crawled on my stomach towards the wobbling bridge. The helicopter was just behind me, but the pilot had dared to bring the chopper low enough that the short wall at the edge of the roof hid me from his view.

I climbed onto the bridge and ran across as the building behind me continued to crumble. Dust billowed up as portions of the structure collapsed and I heard the pilot cheering while it fell.

I stayed low, but moved as fast as I could across the rooftops. The assault on Vineyard had left it in shambles. The gardens had been destroyed and I could hear liquid falling down to the ground below from the irrigation system they'd devised. The liquor storage had also been destroyed, which was why the streets below were flooded with wine. I continued across as the pilot taunted me from behind.

"You still in there, little piggy?" He fired off another burst of shots and laughed. "No, you're probably bacon by now."

I heard Stubs bark as I got closer to the bank. I glanced around and dared to turn on the flashlight on my rifle for a second. Ahead, near the final bridge that led to the bank, was Harrison. Stubs was at his side and he tried to crawl towards me. It looked like his back had been crushed and he whimpered as he tried to move, his back legs dragging behind him as he went.

"I got you, boy." I picked Stubs up and kissed his head as he licked my chin. "I got you."

Harrison coughed and sputtered as he tried to talk. "I knew you'd come back." He smiled at me, but his face was covered in blood. "You always did love that fucking dog."

I laughed and moved to sit beside him. I put my arm around his shoulder and pressed my forehead against his. "You dumb old bastard. Look what you got yourself into."

"Yeah," He laughed and then shrugged. "I feel like shit."

"Where are you hit?"

He grimaced as he tried to move. "The better question is where am I not hit?"

I moved my hand delicately across the side of his head and found the gash that was causing him to bleed. It was minor, and I assumed that he'd been grazed, but even small head wounds had a habit of bleeding profusely. Then I saw another wound on his shoulder, one on his side, and at least one more on his hip.

"The bastards really wanted me dead," said Harrison.

"Yeah, well, they're not going to get their wish. You're going to be fine."

"Did the others make it to safety?"

I nodded and said, "More or less. Some folks didn't make it, but a bunch of them got into an underground garage where it's safe."

"Not for long," said Harrison. "Not if they keep bringing those helicopters back."

"Any more piggies that need to get killed?" The pilot continued to taunt us.

"I really hate that fucking guy," said Harrison.

I stared across Vineyard at the helicopter. It had stopped circling the building that had collapsed and was searching down the street that led to the bank. It was headed towards us.

"I'll go kill him for you."

Harrison grabbed my wrist. "What? Don't be a fucking idiot. He's in a helicopter, with a machine gun on it. Even you're not bad ass enough to take him on."