El Paso Under Attack - 01 (39 page)

With my friends still screaming in my ear, I charged him like a runaway freight train. His knife pierced my side, I lost my own blade as we fell to the ground…but I once again had my hands on him.

I worked on his still broken arm. It was his weak point. He screamed out loud as I taught him how to suffer. I twisted his injured arm into new and exciting positions as he screamed and screamed. I almost looked like he was about to give up, but he suddenly remembered his bowie knife still sticking in my side. He gave it a twist and this time I threw him into the wall as a result.

It wasn’t a great move on my part. I just gave the bastard some distance. It was what he wanted. It was what he needed to win the fight, but fortunately I had a pretty good idea what he was going to do before he resumed his attack.

I can’t tell you how happy I was to be right.

“
He went for the water again didn’t he?
”

He sure did and I rushed forward to meet him.

We collided like rams underneath the pouring water. He still had his knife and once again tried to drive it into my side. I blocked the swing and drove my fist into his armpit. He screamed and then he laughed. The water was healing him too fast to inflict any major damage without a weapon. I also believe that he healed faster than me, so add that up to another reason for why this was so freaking difficult.

I grabbed his head with both of my hands and brought it down to meet my knee. I nailed him like this about twice when I discovered that not only had his broken arm healed, he also managed to switch hands on his knife.

It caught me by surprise. I was still worrying about the other hand. He buried the blade into my ribcage. I dropped to my knees in shock. He took a small moment to gloat and slowly raised his bowie knife with both hands above his head for the death blow.

As soon as he began the motion of bringing the knife down, I went for my new pocket knife. As I pulled it from my pocket, the blade engaged. I stood up inside the arc of his swing where it was safe and stabbed him in the throat.

He made a choking sound and staggered backwards. I pulled him to me again and slide the blade back and forth across the soft skin of his throat. His eyes went wide in shock and fear. His body went rigid as I quickly ducked low and severed both of his femoral arteries before piercing his navel and dragging the blade up to his sternum.

For one second, we eyed each other and before the rushing water could heal the vast amounts of damage I had just inflicted, I kicked him away.

I watched him flounder around for just a moment as I stood under the rushing water and let the last of my injuries mend together. He didn’t struggle very long. The damage was too severe. The blood was literally pouring out of his body.

He tried to rise, fell back down, tried to rise once more, fell back down and just as quick as that, it was over. Max was dead.

I rushed towards Skie and cut the ropes holding her to the chair. She grabbed a hold of me instantly and began smothering me with kisses.

“I thought he was gonna win,” she gasped. “When he stabbed you that last time…I thought he was gonna win.”

“Well next time leave the thinking to me,” I answered with a laugh.

“Jerk, how about I kick your ass?” she squealed.

“Later, right now I wanna get the hell out of here.”

I took her hand and made my way towards my fallen tomahawk and knife. After picking those up, I gave my earpiece a tap.

“Mr. Hardin,” I said. “How about sending a chopper to come pick us all up, I’m in the mood for a cheeseburger.”

“I’m already in route Jaxon,” he answered. “I should be there in about five minutes. Light a flare on roof for the pilot please.”

Just then, the doors burst open and Dudley charged in spraying bullets everywhere. I shoved Skie to the floor and hopped on top of her just in case any strays found their way towards us.

“Stop shooting Tex,” I shouted.

Fortunately for us, Dudley did as I asked.

“Did I get him?” said Dudley.

“Sure,” I answered. “Good thing you came when you did. I don’t know what we would have done without your well aimed and excellent shooting.”

“Oh, I get it,” responded Dudley in a temper tantrum. “I fight my way all the way over here, just to help you out and you wanna be a smart ass about it. How about you bite me, how about that?”

“I’ll settle for getting out of here,” I answered. “Have you guys found Kingsley yet?”

“Sure did, he was hiding in a broom closet. It took him a while to figure out how to use his shotgun.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah, he couldn’t figure it out. So after his pistol ran out of bullets and he went for the shotgun…well, let’s just say that the zombies were so close, he had to hide in a broom closet till we came to get him.”

“Tell me it wasn’t the safety button,” I demanded.

“I’m not saying anything,” answered Dudley with a laugh and a nod.

Both of us drew and aimed our weapons as Javie and Kingsley burst through the same door Dudley had just come from.

“We gotta go,” said Kingsley in a breathless voice. Damn that boy needs to quit smoking. “They’re coming up right behind us.”

Without another word, we ran to the stage and through the doors in the back. Kingsley was in the rear and just as he was about to enter the door, the zombies began to flood into the theater. There were hundreds of them, all screaming for our flesh.

Skie began to panic. I felt her tense up next to me as she heard their howls of rage and smelled their decaying skin.

“Don’t worry,” I shouted. “We’ve been through this more than a few times. Just don’t freeze up.”

I didn’t hand her a gun. I didn’t want her shooting any of us. Instead, I kept her right next to me and hauled ass through the maze of corridors until we could back track our way to the roof.

The zombies were right behind us the entire way. I certainly didn’t like the situation, there was no room to maneuver and I definitely didn’t want to let Skie out of my sight. So, we shot over our shoulders and kept on moving forward.

It took much longer than it should have, but in our defense, we weren’t exactly familiar with the building…anyway, we finally made it back to the control room with all the computers and the dead body of Max’s thug.

Skie screamed when she saw him.

“Forget about him,” I shouted while I closed the door behind us. “Get up in that air duct and start moving.”

“
Is that the same air duct you used earlier to gain access?
”

Yeah, but getting out of there wasn’t going to be that easy. Javie and Kingsley barely fit through the opening. I actually had to pound and bend the metal with my fists to make it wider for them. Kingsley was barely through when the door bust open and the room was filled with zombies.

Fortunately, they couldn’t reach the air duct or they would have been crawling after us. However, when we finally got to the roof…either Dudley, Javie or Kingsley had forgotten to close the access door behind them and we had company waiting for us.

“
Oh no, it never seems to stop.
”

When it rains it pours. I pulled Skie out of the way of the nearest zombie and shot it in the head. Javie popped off a flare. Fortunately, the chopper was already in the area circling.

We fired and fired the few rounds we had left as it landed far away from the zombies. With Skie at our backs, we pulled our blades and fended them off as we backed up towards the chopper.

Their screams brought reinforcements and in a few moments the roof was covered with screaming zombies. I can’t tell you what a relief it was when the gigantic machine guns of the helicopter started mowing them all down. The roar of the spinning barrels was deafening, but damn, it was just about the nicest sound I’d heard in a good long while.

I was the last in the chopper and more than a little shocked to see Clara the gypsy girl sitting shotgun with a smile on her face, but I figured I’d hear about that later. I had a more important question at the moment.

“What took you so long to start shooting?” I asked Mr. Hardin.

“Had to figure out how to work the damn thing,” he answered.

Everyone started laughing. Well, everyone except for Kingsley, but he managed to crack a smile when we had to turn around and go back for Georgie after we were about halfway to the base and remembered that we had left him behind.

Georgie wasn’t happy to be forgotten. I however, thought it was hilarious. Especially after he told me that he had lost his earpiece over the side of the roof while he was peering down at all the zombies gathering on the street around the building we had left him on. Poor Georgie was waving his arms like a madman trying to get our attention as we flew off into the bright blue sky and a land without the rampaging dead.

Epilogue

Skie

For all practical purposes, the story has ended. Of course, Jaxon has found his way into the news many times thereafter. Someday soon I would like to tell those tales, but this was his first taste of the blood and violence that would become his life. This is the complete story of what exactly happened when El Paso was under attack. This is the origin of the General.

I’m now taking a rather unique opportunity and jumping forward about ten days after Skie was rescued. There’s something that I found…interesting. It would be easy enough to ask Jaxon, or one of the boys to narrate this tale, but for some reason I wanted to hear it from someone outside the group. I chose Skie. I wasn’t disappointed.

I’m back inside the house in which she and Jaxon are staying. Skie is still laughing about the reason I came to see her.

I can’t believe you want to hear about the first time Jaxon spoke to the world. What a day. I can’t believe that he did what he did.

“
To be honest, I don’t think anybody can believe what he did.
”

True enough. Well, for days we argued. Like I said before, I didn’t want my husband playing hero anymore. Obviously, I eventually relented. I don’t really think I had much of a choice. It wasn’t something Jaxon wanted to do; it was something he had to do. Denying him this would be denying a fundamental need.

“
Still, it couldn’t have been easy.
”

It certainly wasn’t, but I got over it. They needed a name. It was Mr. Hardin’s idea. He figured that since they were already in the media, they should have a name for the team. That way Kingsley, Dudley, Georgie and Javie would have the same kind of respect that Jaxon had when they were on missions. Also, it would be a team that was officially sanctioned by the government with many, many privileges.

“
Is this when Jaxon received his badge?
”

Yeah, they all have one. It lets them override all the red tape and the idiots who enjoy getting in their way. We’ve spoken about it before, it lets him take control over any police force or military body etc. etc. etc. when a threat to the public is possibly underway. It also prevents him from being detained or arrested at any time. There was a lot of debate about that in the news.

“
Tell me the name they chose?
”

They called themselves the Regulators. It’s off of a group in the late eighteen hundreds who fought during the Lincoln County war. Billy the kid was a member.

“
What happened next?
”

Mr. Hardin scheduled a press conference in New Mexico. They chose the college in Las Cruces for the event. Jaxon wasn’t happy about it, he hates public speaking and no amount of bribery on anyone’s part was able to convince him to wear a suit for the event. That really drove me insane…I wanted my husband to look nice for his first public speech.

“
What did he wear?
”

Jeans and a t-shirt…oh, and his black boots and after he dressed that way, all the Regulators followed suit. I wasn’t happy. Everyone else was, but not me.

We were all driven to the press conference in one of those large Hummers. The boys passed the time by picking on the driver. Jaxon kept telling him how Jeeps were better for off-roading than a Hummer could ever hope to be. The driver wasn’t happy and kept arguing back. It was actually a fun time. Nothing serious, everything light hearted. In fact, when we got out of the Hummer, the driver even asked for Jaxons autograph.

“
Why were you driven to the press conference in a Hummer?
”

Protection, all of Las Cruces was packed with people trying to get a look at Jaxon. There were literally thousands upon thousands of people screaming out for us the minute we entered the campus so we were also provided with a police escort. It was like we were rock stars or something. They even had the National Guard present for crowd control.

The walk to the building was more than a little wild as well. They had cordoned the sidewalk off, so we could walk to the building without being molested, but each side of the sidewalk was lined with people reaching out for Jaxon. Everyone wanted to touch him, to take a picture with him, to shake his hand, to tell him that he saved a friend or relative. It was surreal. Jaxon and the rest of the Regulators were having a blast signing autographs and letting young girls kiss them on their cheeks.

Ivana, Lucy and I were hanging back from them and just laughing at how popular they were. Some girls were even throwing their bras at them. It was a crazy time. It was fun. We even got to sign some autographs as well…I loved it. I loved that people were being so nice. I loved that people appreciated what everyone had gone through. I loved that they were getting the rewards of hero’s. They deserved it. They earned it.

That’s when Jaxon got the news.

“
And what news was that?
”

Calvin, who had been up and down the country since the moment he was released from the decontamination unit, telling anyone that would listen what an animal my husband was and how he was responsible for the loss of more lives than he could ever hope to save, was also going to be there and he was speaking after Jaxon.

“
Why exactly was that?
”

I never asked. Obviously, whoever planned the press conference didn’t know my husband. Mr. Hardin was also furious, but he was reluctant to do anything about it since the press had already been informed that Calvin was going to speak.

“
Should I ask about how furious Jaxon was?
”

Very, he was thinking that Calvin was going to try and turn things into a debate. Calvin was an experienced public speaker. Jaxon was not.

Jaxon was fuming as we went inside one of the bigger buildings. We had our own waiting room. He got even angrier, when we passed Calvin’s name on a door at the end of the hallway, the jerk had his own room as well.

“What the hell did he do to deserve that?” asked Dudley. “Aside from crying like a baby and abandoning his friends to the zombies, he should be arrested and these assholes gave him his own room.”

Mr. Hardin dropped us off at the waiting room and went to see what could be done about preventing Calvin from speaking. That was a good thing, what wasn’t a good thing was the fact that Jaxon and Dudley never made it into the waiting room. I thought they were right behind me, but to my surprise, they were nowhere to be found.

“
Did the rest of the Regulators know where he was?
”

Probably, but they weren’t talking.

When Mr. Hardin came back to the waiting room, he also had no idea where Jaxon and Dudley had gone off to. We began to wonder if the two of them had just up and left the press conference.

“
But they hadn’t left, had they?
”

Unfortunately they had not left. They returned to the waiting room about ten minutes after Mr. Hardin. Both of them were disheveled and grinning like Cheshire cats.

Mr. Hardin had exercised some muscle and had two choices for Jaxon. Either Calvin would be prevented from speaking, or the Regulators could abandon the press conference all together. I really began to worry when I heard Jaxons answer.

“I think every man deserves to be seen and heard,” said Jaxon. “So don’t do anything.”

With that, we were lead to the conference room on the fifth floor. It was a huge auditorium with large windows running the length of the wall opposite the podium…at the moment; automatic shades had been lowered along all those windows, blocking what would probably have been an excellent view of the campus.

After a brief introduction, Jaxon found himself at the podium in front of everyone. I’ll never forget that moment. He became the General. The laughter and whatever mischievous schemes he came up with on a regular basis had all disappeared. He was a leader of men now and every one of the thousands of reporters who had gathered in the auditorium was ready to listen.

“I’m not much for public speaking,” said Jaxon. “But, I wanted to inform everyone of our decision.”

Jaxon paused before continuing to speak. Flashes of light bounced around him as photographers snapped his picture.

“In ten days time,” continued Jaxon. “I’m declaring war on the undead of El Paso. Tell your friends, tell your family members to hold out for ten more days. Help is coming. I have the manpower. I have the weapons. I’m coming for all of them. I plan to eradicate the threat of zombies from my city and the assault will commence in ten days.”

After that, he answered questions for about a half an hour. He did really well. He wasn’t entirely comfortable, but he got through it easily enough…and then, things became…entertaining.

“
That’s one way of putting things.
”

Right…anyway, right before he left the podium, Jaxon took the opportunity to introduce the next speaker.

“The man speaking after me has become quite popular as of late. As far as I know, he has become my biggest detractor. I’m not especially fond of him. In fact, he reminds me of something I’d scrape off the sole of my boot. I found him to be the worst kind of coward and I hold him personally responsible for a number of needless deaths. Regardless of that, I believe that everyone deserves their fifteen minutes of fame. Ladies and Gentleman, I give you the biggest douche bag I’ve ever had the misfortune to meet.

With that, the shades were drawn on the opposite wall. What I thought would have been an excellent view of the campus was marred by a completely naked and hogtied Calvin. He was hanging upside down outside the window, suspended by a single rope and dangling out over five stories of empty air. His feet and his mouth had been gagged by what I believe were his own socks.

There were gasps of horror, followed by the flashes of hundreds of cameras. The noise in the room became deafening as the reporters started shouting out questions to Jaxon. Yet, he was already surrounded by the rest of the Regulators and every single one of them was too busy laughing to answer anything.

I chanced a look at Mr. Hardin who was standing there in shock. Our eye’s met and he gave me a look that spoke volumes. He was worried that this was the typical behavior he should be expecting from my husband and his friends. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that it was.

“
It was pretty bad public opinion wise that they did that to Calvin wasn’t it?
”

Not as bad as when the laxatives kicked in.