Red Hammer: Voodoo Plague Book 4 (12 page)

Scott set the pace, and while he may not have looked like
someone who could cover a lot of ground quickly, I was surprised when we’d been
walking for half an hour and I looked at my GPS to find we’d covered two
miles.  Good pace for having maintained stealth in rugged terrain.  We had
encountered the occasional male, stumbling about in the dark.  They were almost
comical, unable to see as they navigated, continually tripping over rocks and
scrub brush.  We usually heard them falling before we were able to see them.  I
was keeping half an eye on Martinez, glad to see she seemed none the worse for
wear as she easily picked off the ones in her area of responsibility.

We climbed a small hill, Scott holding up a fist to tell us
to stop when he was able to see over the crest.  We froze in place, listening
and watching his hand as well as continually scanning our individual zones.  A
moment later he snapped his hand fully open, extending all five fingers before
making a patting motion towards the dirt.  We dropped to the ground and spread
out silently.  Scott had also dropped with just enough of his head above the
top of the slope for him to see whatever the danger was.  He watched for a
moment before turning and signing me forward.  I belly crawled up the slope to
lay next to him, slowly raising my head to see over a small rock.

Thirty yards away a wide strip of blacktop cut through the
high desert terrain.  Three Humvees and two MRAPs sat in the dark, apparently
abandoned.  MRAPs are Mine Resistant Ambush Protected trucks that look like a
Hummer and a civilian armored car had a long night of drinking and sex, giving
birth to a cross between the two.  They might be ugly, but they were tougher
than up-armored Hummers and could take a lot of punishment.  But the vehicles
weren’t why Scott had called a halt.  It was the large group of infected that
milled around amongst them.

I did a quick head count.  Seven males and five females. 
Carefully I raised my rifle, using the night vision to check each vehicle for
occupants.  Finding none, I redid my count, coming up with the same numbers,
then scanned the surrounding area.  Four more males were struggling through the
desert 100 yards to my front, attracted to the sounds the group below was
making, but other than that I didn’t see anything. 

I wanted one of those MRAPs.  We would be secure from the
infected and there was plenty of room to carry the SADMs we were here to
retrieve.  But how closely were the Russians watching the area?  Had they
already checked and found it overrun with infected?  If so, were they doing
routine flyovers that would spot a moving vehicle?  I had no way of knowing,
and no way of finding out without taking a chance.  Making a decision, I waved
Yee and Martinez up to the top of the slope with us, outlining my plan when
they arrived.  With nods all around that everyone understood, we started
spreading out.

When they were in position I gave the execute order over the
radio.  Four rifles fired nearly simultaneously and four of the five females
dropped dead to the road.  Shifting aim to the fifth I cursed as all I saw was
her hair billow behind her as she threw herself behind the protection of a
Hummer.  Los Alamos had been the victim of the secondary outbreak caused by the
virus, and that meant the females here were the smart ones.  The males weren’t
any smarter regardless of primary or secondary outbreak, so we started dropping
them as they stood there looking around like drunks at closing time on a
Saturday night.

Letting myself think this was going to go off smoothly,
other than the one female, I spun when I heard a rock tumbling down the slope
behind me.  A pack of females was running up the slope, the one in the lead no
more than five yards away.  She saw me turn and screamed.  Bringing my rifle
around I knew I wasn’t going to get a shot off in time to stop her, but someone
was looking out for me.  The female slipped on some lose rocks, going to a knee
and giving me time to get my rifle up and shoot her through the head. 

I didn’t need to warn the others, the screams of the lead
female having done that quite effectively.  More females were charging in, some
of them screaming as they raced towards us through the night.  I shot two more
before they were too close and I had to drop the rifle and draw my Kukri to
defend myself. 

A female leapt, arms extended with hands held like talons to
tear into my throat.  I was just able to get the Kukri up between us and she
impaled herself on the blade.  If I was a rookie I would have expected that to
stop her, but I knew by now that while she would eventually die from the wound,
she certainly wasn’t out of the fight yet.  Jamming my forearm under her chin
to fend off her snapping teeth, I pulled the Kukri out of her body and stabbed
again from the side, up through her rib cage, severing her heart. 

Shoving the body off of me I flinched to the side as another
charged in, slashing open her throat and severing her windpipe.  Letting the
momentum of the swing continue I rolled and came to my feet just as another
female arrived.  This one came to a stop five feet in front of me and stood
there staring at me.  What the fuck? 

I was panting from the exertion and adrenalin in my system,
surprised into immobility by this totally unexpected behavior.  We just stood
there, staring at each other for a few long heartbeats.  Her red eyes flicked
between my face and the large blade in my hand.  She was filthy, covered in
dirt and blood, some of it fresh and some dried onto her skin and clothing.  Neither
young nor old, I guessed she was around 40, and still wore what had once been a
white lab coat.  Time stretched out as neither of us made a move.  I could hear
my teammates fighting on either side of me, both suppressed rifle and pistol
fire, but I was rooted in place by the odd behavior of this female.  Unnerved
might be a better way of saying it.

“Can you understand me?”  I spoke in a low, even voice.  The
female’s eyes widened slightly when I spoke, but she stayed in place.  I didn’t
know what to do.  Was she trying to communicate?  Was that even possible any
longer?  Max had said that the females that were infected by the virus retained
their higher brain functions.  Did that mean they might still be able to
speak?  This all went through my mind in a fraction of a second, realization
dawning on me when I heard a sound to my rear and the females eyes flicked up
to look over my shoulder. 

“Clever girl.”  I said.

I charged her, Kukri at chest level, ready to tear into her
throat.  Being upslope, I had the added benefit of gravity, and as fast as the
females are, she wasn’t fast enough.  Covering the five feet in less than the
blink of an eye I rammed the blade home before she could do more than open her
mouth to scream.  I kept my legs churning and shoved her body aside, running to
the bottom of the slope before suddenly changing direction to my right.  The
female that had been sneaking up behind me had followed me down the slope,
finally screaming when I juked away from her attack.  She tried to slow and
change direction to follow me, but there was a lot of loose rock at the bottom
of the slope.  Her feet went out from under her and I fell on top, stabbing
into the back of her head with the Kukri.

Back on my feet I looked up the slope to check on the rest
of my team.  Martinez finished off a female with a dagger thrust into the eye
that was one of the fastest moves with a blade I had ever seen.  The infected
dropped at her feet and the battle was over.  Scott and Yee had both killed the
last females attacking them, each with four bodies on the ground surrounding them. 
Yee held his left arm and Scott moved to him to check the injury as I climbed
back up the slope.

“Nothing serious.”  Scott reported after checking Yee. “One
of them tried to bite a chunk out of his arm but couldn't get through his
clothing. A little damage to his forearm but he's combat ready.” 

Nodding acknowledgement I turned to check on Martinez. I was
surprised to find seven dead females on the ground where she had been
fighting.  She met my eyes and for the first time gave me a real smile. 

“Damn, Captain.  Try to leave some for the rest of us next
time.”  I said and smiled back.

Rachel and Dog stood on the tarmac at the West Memphis
airport, staring west as the sun sank towards the horizon.  There was maybe two
hours of daylight left.  Lindsey and Madison were inside the control tower,
sleeping wrapped around each other on Colonel Crawford’s bunk.  They were
exhausted, having fallen asleep on the short helicopter ride to the airport
after Jackson had rescued them.  By the time Rachel had arrived on a different
Black Hawk, Mrs. Maybach had carried the girls inside, commandeering the
Colonel’s temporary quarters. 

Crawford and Jackson had left a couple of hours ago with a
large contingent of Rangers.  Rachel had wanted to accompany them, not one to
be content with being left behind, but the Colonel had told her in no uncertain
terms that she was not welcome on a military operation.  He had softened it a
bit by reminding her that if he took her along and something happened to her,
there would be one very upset Major to deal with.  Rachel had laughed,
understanding the man’s position, but still not liking it.

And where was John?  What was he doing?  All they would tell
her was that he was on a mission, something to do with the Russians.  She was
still in a state of disbelief over that bit of news.  Dog whined and Rachel
followed his gaze to see Max propelling himself in his wheelchair across the
tarmac towards where she stood.  A moment later he rolled up and scratched Dog
between the ears.

“Good to see you back with us.”  He said, pulling out a
cigarette and lighting it.  Rachel thought about asking for one, but she didn’t
really like the damn things. 

“It’s good to be back.”  She answered with a smile.

“Any word on Roach?”  He asked.  Rachel just shook her
head.  She hoped the son of a bitch had drowned in the river.  Better yet, she
hoped he’d washed up on the eastern shore and been ripped to shreds by the
infected.  She tried to think of how John would say it, but could only come up
with hoping Roach was nothing more than infected poop by now.  She couldn’t
help but smile at the thought.

“Why won’t they tell me where John is?”  She asked, hoping
Max could help her understand the military’s stubborn love of secrets.

“There’s no guarantee the Russians won’t swoop down on us in
superior numbers at any moment.”  He exhaled a plume of smoke that hung in the
still evening air.  “And if that happens, the less people that know anything
about his mission, the better.  Actually, you and I shouldn’t even know he’s on
a mission.  The Master Sergeant broke protocol just telling you that much.”

Rachel understood, but that didn’t mean she had to like it
or agree with it.  Was this how military spouses felt?  Not that she was
anything to John other than a friend, despite what she felt for him, but this
still sucked.  How did the wives do it?  Their husbands gone who knows where
for who knows how long, and no one will tell you anything.  Rachel felt a wave
of empathy for John’s wife, Katie, followed by guilt over her profession of
love to him.  She couldn’t help how she felt, couldn’t stop the feelings she
had for him, but she finally realized the impossible position she’d put him
in.  Even if he did love her too, how could…

Muted screams from the control tower to her rear reached her
ears.  Fear for the girls churned in her gut as she turned and ran for the
door, Dog racing ahead of her.  By the time she reached the building she had
her rifle up and slowed only enough to yank the door open before charging in. 
Dog beat her up the stairs and before she reached the top the screaming had
changed to a whimpering cry.  Pounding up the last steps, Rachel stepped into
the glassed in room with the rifle at her shoulder, seeking the danger.  She
lowered the rifle when she saw Madison curled into Lindsey’s lap, sobbing, one
arm wrapped around Dog’s furry neck. 

“She had a nightmare.”  Lindsey said, looking up at Rachel.

Starting to step forward to comfort Madison, Rachel glanced out
the window, seeing several Black Hawks approaching over the flooded rice
paddies.  Deciding a distraction was exactly what the frightened girl needed,
Rachel slung her rifle and scooped up the child in her arms.  By the time they
reached the tarmac, the first helicopter was landing, not far from where Max
sat in his wheelchair.  Walking up to stand next to him with Madison on her
hip, Rachel made sure Lindsey was close, glad to see Dog staying right next to
the young girl.

Jackson was the first out of the helicopter, jumping to the
tarmac the moment the wheels touched.  He waved at Rachel and turned back into
the open side door to help a woman climb down.  The first two women off the
aircraft were barely even women, looking more like teenagers.  Both were white
and even at a distance Rachel recognized the haunted look on their faces, their
initial flinch when Jackson reached out to help them down.  The next woman off
was a black woman, medium height with a regal bearing.  She took Jackson’s hand
as she stepped down, eyes immediately locking onto Rachel’s small party.

Lindsey squealed with delight and broke into a run directly
at the woman.  A second later Madison squirmed free of Rachel’s arms, sprinting
after her big sister.  The face of the woman broke into a huge smile and she
raced forward to meet her daughters.  The two girls threw themselves at her,
nearly knocking her down, then the three of them wound up on their knees,
hugging each other and crying.  Tears were running down Rachel’s cheeks, and
when she turned her head to wipe them away she noticed Max was crying too.

“What?  I’m not supposed to be touched by one of the first
good things I’ve seen happen in a long time?”  He asked when he noticed her
looking at him.  Rachel smiled as she leaned down to hug him, then she and Dog
walked over to the small family reunion.  Lindsey saw her approaching and
excitedly started pointing and talking to her mother.  By the time Rachel
reached them, the woman was on her feet and walked up to Rachel and wrapped her
up in a tight embrace.

“Thank you!  Thank you for saving my babies!”  The woman’s
voice broke with emotion as she spoke, still clinging tightly to Rachel.

“You’re welcome.”  Rachel answered, unable to stop smiling
ear to ear.  The woman finally released her, grasped each of her shoulders and
held Rachel at arm’s length to look her in the eye.

“I’m Mary Alice.  I don’t know how I can ever repay you for
what you’ve done.”

“I… you don’t need to repay me.  I just did what any decent
person would have done.”  Rachel smiled, uncomfortable with Mary Alice’s
gratitude. 

Understanding her discomfort, Mary Alice pulled her into
another hug, then released her and turned to her girls.  Rachel bent to hug
each of them, surprised at the sense of loss she was already feeling.  Good
byes said, their mother gathered them up and followed the other women who were
being escorted by a Ranger to the evacuee camp next to the train.  Rachel
watched them walk away, happy for them and trying not to start crying when a
large man that had just jumped out of a different helicopter ran up and scooped
all of them into his arms.

By now the last Black Hawk had unloaded and the flight
lifted off to go pick up the Army personnel that had stayed behind to make room
for the rescued captives.  Jackson wasn’t making this trip and walked up to
Rachel, rubbing Dog’s ears and looking her in the eye.

“You OK?”

“I’m good.”  Rachel answered, turning her attention away
from the happy family.  “Now, you’re going to tell me exactly where John is,
what he’s doing and if I’m ever going to see him again.”  Rachel circled her
arm through Jackson’s and started leading him towards the makeshift mess tent
that had been set up.