The Becoming (29 page)

“Thanks,” Remy said as Brandt set her on her feet.

“You okay to stand?” Brandt asked.

“I think so. Just take care of Theo. I’ll be fine.”

Cade frowned as she studied the other woman’s face. Despite Remy’s assurances, she looked awful. She wobbled where she stood, and her hand darted out to grasp the edge of the driver’s seat as the RV lurched sickeningly. The sound of metal squealing against stone reached Cade’s ears, and when the first of the infected showed up in view of the windshield before them, Cade grabbed Remy by the upper arm and hauled the other woman back away from the window.

“Brandt! Brandt, get back,” Cade urged. She dragged Theo backwards with her and nearly tripped over the obstacles that the overturned RV had created. Brandt lunged forward to join her and Remy and the unconscious Theo in the back of the RV. He took the man’s weight off Cade’s shoulders, much to her relief, and settled him awkwardly on the couch, slapping at his cheeks. “They’re going to get through that windshield pretty quick,” Cade warned Brandt.

“What do you suggest we do?” Remy asked. Theo groaned as she spoke, and they all looked down at him. His head lolled to the side as he neared consciousness.

“We might have to shoot our way out of here,” Cade said. She squinted at the front window with a frown, but Brandt spoke up.

“No we won’t. I have a plan,” he announced.

Cade rolled her eyes and sighed. “It’s about damned time.”

Brandt chose to ignore Cade’s comment. Instead, he looked at the unbroken window above them. “You think I can fit through that?”

“Maybe?” Cade hazarded with a frown. “I can’t say for sure. It’s sort of small, and you’re not exactly a little guy.”

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that,” Brandt said. The beginnings of a grin spread across his face. Cade wondered if the adrenaline was starting to get to Brandt. Maybe he actually
liked
being stuck in impossible situations. The thought was unsettling enough to make Cade shudder.

“Remy, do you think you can run?” Brandt asked the young woman.

“I think I might have to,” Remy said. “Why? What’s your idea?”

“Cade and I are going to create a diversion,” he explained. Cade made a face, wrinkling her nose as her frown deepened.

“Way to volunteer me,” Cade muttered loudly enough for Brandt to hear. Brandt shot her a stern look but continued regardless.

“You and Theo are going to run for the Jeep,” Brandt told Remy. “Theo knows where it’s at. You’re going to have to help each other. Go between the cars, and make sure you always keep something between you and the infected. If you do that, you’ll be fine.”

A thud sounded against the windshield. Cade’s heart leapt into her throat. Several of the infected had discovered the windshield. Once they figured out it was breakable, Cade knew that it would only be a matter of time before they managed to damage it and get inside. And then it would be dinner time. There was no way she could fight properly in such cramped quarters.

“What about us?” Cade asked nervously. She squeezed her rifle again, drawing strength from the cold weapon. The pain from the cut in her palm shot through her hand and up her arm again. Cade knew she couldn’t just shoot through the windshield at the infected, no matter what her brain screamed at her to do; doing so would only weaken the glass and make it easier for the infected to get inside. And then where would the four of them be?

“After Remy and Theo get a block away, we’ll make a run for it,” Brandt said. “We’re probably going to have to shoot our way out, like you said, though,” he warned Cade.

“Great,” Cade said, without any of the enthusiasm the word implied. If anything, she was downright nauseated.

“So when are we moving?” Remy asked. She helped Theo sit up while she kept a hand braced against the edge of the couch for balance.

“As soon as possible,” Brandt said. He looked at the window above him again. After a moment’s contemplation, he reached up and unfastened the latch. “I have something to do first,” he added as he slid the window open. “We’re going to have to be ready to move fast once I get back in, okay?” Brandt climbed onto the edge of the bench seat and grasped the window frame.

“And
where
exactly are you going?” Cade demanded. She almost crossed her arms over her chest, but stopped herself—just barely—when she realized how much she sounded like her mother. “You’re not actually going to go out there, are you?”

“I’ve got to. It’s part of the plan,” Brandt said. The last word was strained as he hauled himself up by the edge of the frame, the muscles in his biceps and forearms bulging. Brandt managed to fit through the small window without too much trouble.

After Brandt’s battered black combat boots disappeared through the RV’s window, though, a nervous stirring settled deep in Cade’s stomach. She squeezed her fist closed, using the pain from the cut in her palm to ground her and keep her calm. She felt much less confident now that Brandt was out of sight, and she wasn’t sure why. She shook her head and turned to look at Theo. The man had sat up on the couch, and his head was in his hand as he probed gently at his scalp. “You okay?” Cade asked. She glanced toward the windshield. It held, for the moment, but she didn’t want to take chances by lingering longer than necessary.

“Yeah, just whacked my head,” Theo said. He pulled his fingers from his blond hair and checked them for traces of blood. “I think I hit it on the steering wheel when the RV turned over. I’ll be fine.” He shifted his eyes from his fingers to scrutinize Cade’s face. “So what’s the plan?”

“You and Remy are going to make a run for it,” Cade explained. She cut her eyes toward the windshield again. “Brandt and I are going to hold them off before we break for the Jeep after you.” The sound of thudding footsteps along the RV above them met Cade’s ears. She looked up and frowned. “I have no idea what else he has planned, though,” Cade admitted. “The man thinks and acts so fast that he doesn’t seem willing to stop and fill me in.”

Theo nodded and grabbed the edge of the couch. With Cade and Remy’s assistance, he managed to get to his feet. He then propped himself against the edge of the bench and started to paw through his canvas bag. He took out two Advil and swallowed them dry before he nodded toward Cade’s hand. “You’re hurt,” he observed.

Cade looked down at her hand. The wound bled more profusely than she had realized; the red fluid had begun to ooze from between her fingers and drip onto the broken glass beneath her boots. “I cut it when the RV turned over,” she said, shrugging. “It’s not a big deal.”

“How about you let me be the judge of that?” Theo suggested. He grabbed Cade’s wrist and gave it a gentle squeeze. Cade relaxed her fingers and let him examine the wound. She winced as he prodded it gently, feeling at the skin around it. “It’s a smooth cut, not a tear, which is good,” Theo said. “You’re going to need stitches, though. I can sew you up, but it’s going to have to wait until we get out of here.” He plunged his hand back into his bag. He pulled out a roll of gauze, eyed it to guesstimate the length, and then wrapped it expertly around her hand, looping it across her palm and making a couple of passes around the base of her thumb to secure it.

“Thanks,” Cade said. She flexed her hand, checking to see how secure the bandage was. Thankfully, Theo hadn’t wrapped the gauze too tight, so she was still able to bend her fingers enough to move them easily. Easily enough to squeeze the trigger on her rifle, at least, which was enough for her satisfaction.

Brandt reappeared in the window above them. He dropped down into the RV with his gun already drawn, the remains of the window beneath him cracking with the impact of his boots. “Ready to rock?” Brandt asked Cade almost enthusiastically. He flipped the safety off on his pistol and held it aloft. Cade was, amusingly, reminded suddenly of a man attempting to be a badass action star. She struggled to not laugh at the thought.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” Cade finally answered. She mirrored his actions, ejecting the magazine from her rifle to double check the amount of ammunition in it before she replaced it and grasped the rifle with both hands. “What do you need me to do?”

“Shoot the windshield out, and do it fast,” Brandt ordered. “Use as few shots as possible. Theo, Remy, be ready to run.” He glanced to the younger man and woman. “Theo, when you go, cut right. Unless it’s closed since I got off the top of this thing, there’s a decent-sized gap that way that you two could make it through.”

“Thanks, man,” Theo said. He gave Brandt and Cade each a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. “Best of luck to you two.”

“And to you,” Cade replied. She gave Theo a short nod before she lifted her rifle and took aim.

“Whenever you’re ready, Cade,” Brandt said.

Cade cleared her throat and rolled her head from side to side, trying to loosen the tense muscles in her neck and shoulders. “Cover your ears,” she warned the others before she squeezed the trigger.

The rifle leaped to life in her hands. Bullet holes appeared in the glass before her, but Cade felt reassured by Brandt’s presence as he stood beside her, his hands clamped over his ears. The bullets tore through the glass and struck several of the infected clustered on the other side. Three of them fell to the ground and went still.

Cade ceased fire once she believed the glass was weakened enough. She lifted her rifle to point the barrel at the ceiling, and Brandt darted forward to the windshield. He kicked the glass hard with the heel of his boot. It cracked and gave way before it collapsed in several large pieces onto the pavement beyond. Brandt lifted his gun without hesitation and put bullets in the heads of two of the infected that lingered right against the group’s exit.

“Theo, go!” Brandt shouted with a stiff wave of his arm.

Theo didn’t have to be told twice. He grabbed Remy by her forearm and pulled at her. The injured young woman stumbled forward, but she managed to keep her feet. She clung to Theo as she ran, limping painfully alongside the paramedic. Cade moved up behind them to support their break for freedom. As the two young adults veered to the right per Brandt’s suggestion, Cade fired at the infected closest to her companions’ retreating forms. To her left, Brandt did the same. Once Theo and Remy had disappeared into the darkness, Cade looked to Brandt, a worried expression marring her face.

“What’s the plan, Brandt?” Cade asked. She forced herself not to back away from the broken window and the infected that moved in on their position. She was stronger than that, and she was determined to show that strength.

“We’re going to blow this fucker,” Brandt said. Cade caught a glimpse of mischievousness in his dark eyes. Concern and even a tiny inkling of almost-fear welled up in her gut. She swallowed hard.

“Blow it?” Cade repeated. She paused long enough to shoot into a small knot of infected before she continued. “You mean blow it
up?
”

“What else would I mean?” Brandt asked.

Cade’s stomach clenched. Yeah, she definitely thought she was about to puke. “And
how
exactly would you propose we blow up an RV?” she asked. She dreaded the answer more than she dreaded any answer she’d ever waited for in her life.

Brandt dug into his bag with his left hand and aimed his gun with his right. He squeezed the trigger two times. Cade didn’t bother to see which of the infected he shot; instead, she watched as he pulled another Molotov cocktail from his shoulder bag. “Last one,” he informed her.

“That is so
not
going to blow up an entire RV,” Cade protested. “I don’t know what you have in mind, but if you’re trying to use a Molotov to do it, it’s not going to work.”

“Just trust me; it will work,” Brandt said confidently. He took his silver lighter out of his bag and stuck it between his teeth for easy access, and then he gave Cade a nod. “Ready to run?” he asked, his voice muffled by the metal lighter.

“Do I fucking have a choice?” Cade bit out. She quickly checked to make sure she had all of her belongings and flexed her injured hand again, trying to loosen the gauze just enough to grant her that smidge of extra movement she was concerned she’d need. She let out a steadying breath and shuddered. “You’re leading the way, Evans.”

“Of course,” Brandt acknowledged.

“And if I get killed, I’m
so
haunting the hell out of you.”

“Fair enough.” Brandt hefted the glass bottle in his hand, as if testing its weight. Then he darted out of the RV and sprinted across the pavement. He wove between cars in the direction in which Theo and Remy had disappeared. Cade swore under her breath at the lack of warning Brandt had given her and took off after him. Her legs pumped, and her feet struck the pavement heavily as she dashed to catch up.

“Brandt! I’m going to kick your ass!” Cade yelled once she was within shouting distance. As he approached the halfway point down the block, Brandt slowed down. He pulled the lighter from between his teeth as Cade caught up with him.

“Ready?” Brandt asked. The mischievous glint was in his eyes again, and he was barely out of breath, which annoyed Cade to no end.

“For what?” Cade panted.

“When I say go, I want you to shoot, okay?”

Cade aimed her rifle back the way they’d come. “What am I aiming at?” she asked, gritting her teeth in frustration.

“When you see it, you’ll know,” Brandt assured her. He lit the black rag that hung out of the mouth of the bottle. Before Cade could reply—or object—to his vague orders, Brandt pulled back his arm and threw the bottle. The flaming projectile arced through the air and crashed to the pavement below the back end of the RV. The bottle shattered, and fire spread rapidly across the pavement. The flames were brighter and larger than they should have been from a mere bottle of liquor. Before Cade could question it, Brandt shouted, “Shoot! Now!”