The Alpha Plague 3 (13 page)

Chapter Nineteen

You only miss a windscreen when you don’t have one. Hunched in the front passenger seat Rhys squinted into the strong wind as he tried to see ahead. The air had cooled to the point where it now burned into his skin. A fly or some other bug tinged against his face every few seconds.

The cold gusts forced Rhys to hold his entire upper body locked tight. He looked across at Larissa who seemed to struggle with the gales as much as he did. He had to shout to be heard over the noise. “Are you okay?”

She looked across, a frown fixed on her face.

Every time Rhys breathed, air rushed into his mouth. “Why don’t you slow down a little?”

As if the words gave her the permission she’d sought, Larissa eased off the gas.

Rhys circled his shoulders and rolled his jaw to try and release some of his tension. He then sat up straighter in his seat so he could get a clear look at the front of the car. Only one headlight worked and the bonnet had been dented in several places.
 

“It’s buckled pretty badly, you know.”

After Larissa had straightened her back to take a look, she accelerated again and a shudder ran through the car.
 

Rhys’ heart twisted as he watched her pat the steering wheel and say, “Come on, girl, you can keep moving. I trust in you.”

The one headlight seemed ineffective against the wall of darkness in front of them. Night closed in from every side as if it would consume the pathetic beam. The wind, although considerably reduced from where Larissa had slowed down, still burned Rhys’ eyes as he looked into their inky surroundings. “The fuckers could be anywhere.”

“At least we’re in a car,” Larissa said. “We can outrun them in this if we need to. As long as the roads aren’t blocked we can drive all the way to Biggin Hill Airport.”

She’d failed to hide the uncertainty in her words, but neither of them mentioned it. What was the point? If the car broke down they’d just have to deal with it. A look behind and Rhys saw more darkness. “So they’ve dropped the virus into London, but where else do you think they’ve hit?”

Larissa continued to scowl out of the window and Rhys saw her flinch occasionally. The bugs evidently peppered her face like they did his. “How the fuck would
I
know?” she said.

“Hopefully it’s much clearer south. I think the worst is behind us.”

Even in the face of the wind’s onslaught Larissa dropped her scowl to raise an eyebrow at Rhys.

Okay, so he had no idea how clear the south would be. Another look behind and, other than a faint red glow from their own car’s taillights, he saw nothing. “Vicky
will
make it through you know.”

Larissa didn’t reply. Instead, she wrung the wheel and stared straight ahead. Even now, after Rhys had spoken to Vicky, the mention of the woman obviously got under Larissa’s skin. After a deep breath she finally said, “I
hope
she does.” Her voice cracked. “I don’t want to live in a world that doesn’t have Flynn in it.”

“Hey,” Rhys said as he reached across and stroked her back, “don’t say that.”

“But it could happen.”

“We can only deal with what we know, and we know Flynn’s still alive. Vicky’s canny; she’ll find a way through. I
know
she’ll protect him.”
 

“But you don’t even know her, Rhys.”

“I know her well enough. You learn a lot about someone when you have to fight for your life next to them.”

Another shudder snapped through the car and the vehicle bucked forward.
 

Rhys looked down at Larissa’s feet. “Was that you?”

The car lurched again.
 

Rhys watched Larissa pump the accelerator, but the car’s speed didn’t change. A continuous tone then whined from the dashboard and a series of amber, red, and blue lights lit up along it.

Another lurch coughed through the vehicle.

Then the car slowed down.
 

Unable to penetrate the darkness as he stared into it Rhys looked for the silhouettes of the diseased none the less.
 

The car continued to lose speed.
 

“Turn the lights off,” Rhys said.
 

“What?”

“Turn the lights off. If you do that we’ll be able to see our surroundings better. This car hasn’t got much left. We need to be ready to get out and we don’t want to be attracting attention to ourselves.”

Just before Larissa flicked the lights off Rhys reached into the back seat and retrieved the stool legs. The metal poles, cold to touch, chinked against one another as he pulled them into the front.
 

The car continued to slow down and more lights popped up on the dash.
 

After one final lurch the engine cut out with a
clunk
. The tone that came from the car’s dashboard ceased, but the vehicle continued to roll down the road. Rhys listened to the hum of the tyres against the asphalt. The pitch deepened as the car slowed down.

About fifty metres farther along and they’d slowed to a crawl. Rhys sighed. “Just stop the car. We need to get out and walk. At least outside we’ll have the room to fight the fuckers.”
 

A gentle squeeze of the brake and Larissa brought the car to a halt. She then popped her seatbelt free.

The lit up dashboard gave a red highlight to her worry lines. The glow would call to the diseased like proverbial moths to a flame. Rhys handed her two of the stool legs. “Come on, we haven’t got far to go.”

Larissa opened the door and the car’s interior light dazzled Rhys. It took him three swipes before he’d managed to flick it off. When they both got out into the quiet night he whispered to Larissa, “Leave the doors open. The less sound we make the better.”

Once out of the car Rhys paused for a moment to let his heart rate settle. When he’d calmed down a little he listened to the lapping water next to them and the sound of crickets. Summit City still burned on their right and the smell of molten plastic hung heavy in the air. “I think we’re ahead of them,” Rhys said.

“You said that last time.”

He looked to his left at the dark woodland area. A thick wall of black stared back. “I know, but Vicky said the disease got spread by the helicopters. Why would they have gone to Biggin Hill when they had somewhere like London to infect?”

Larissa snorted a laugh. “Biggin Hill’s already full of the undead anyway.”

Despite the severity of their situation Rhys couldn’t help but smile. In the few seconds they’d been out of the car his eyes had already adjusted to the darkness. The moon, although not full, provided enough light for them to see.
 
If a diseased appeared nearby at least they’d see its silhouette. Better than not being able to see it at all. With Larissa still close to him he watched her chew her bottom lip as she looked around. “We’ve come this far,” he said
.
“We’ll get all the way.”

Larissa didn’t look convinced. She then gasped and froze still. “Hear that?”

“What?”

She didn’t reply and Rhys strained his ears. Although far away he caught the briefest sound as it rode on the wind. He heard the cries of the diseased. With a quickened pulse and shallow breaths he said, “It must be the mob that’s chased us from London. Better behind than in front of us I suppose.”
 

“It’s a small fucking consolation, Rhys. Did you
see
how many there were?” Larissa walked away.
 

A shudder snapped through Rhys as the image of the shambling horde that raced down the hill came back to him. He heard another call from the diseased and the toxic smell of Summit City took on the slightest vinegar reek of rot. For a moment he froze and watched the darkness before he spun on his heel and ran after his ex-wife.

Chapter Twenty

About ten hours ago

As Vicky stood in the control booth sweat coated her entire body. It set her skin alight with itchiness, but she remained still, shocked as she watched Rhys walk back across the drawbridge into the city. When presented with a chance to run for freedom he’d decided to head back into insanity to rescue a woman he hated. Maybe if she had a child she’d understand. By the end of the day she may have a child; someone would have to look after Flynn if Rhys didn’t come back. She could still call after him and refuse to take care of the boy. Sure, he’d hate her, but it would keep him and his son together.

But she didn’t move. Instead, she stood there and did fuck all to stop him from throwing his life away.

***

Vicky sank into the seat in the warm car. After the long day the heat soaked into her sore muscles and her body turned limp. Her eyelids grew heavy and each blink lasted longer than the previous one. With a deep sting in her tired eyes she looked at the control booth and the surrounding area. No diseased. Another long blink and her eyelids stuck together for a second before she pulled them wide again. She looked up the road that led to Flynn’s primary school. It seemed clear.
 

The diseased on the other side of the river groaned and roared. The background noise of fury had been so consistent that Vicky had almost stopped hearing it. A huge river and raised drawbridge kept them at bay. If the diseased were to come from anywhere it would be from Flynn’s school. But with the heavily populated South London so close, why would they head back toward Summit City?

Vicky straightened her back and rubbed her face. The warm air seemed to stick to her and no matter what she did she couldn’t shake the lethargy it brought with it. When she looked into the back of the car she saw Flynn curled up and asleep in the foetal position. Were it not for him she would have been on her way to The Highlands by now. She should have learned from Brendan that she needed to look after herself and not let anyone take advantage of her. Yet here she was again, a sitting duck while some man went off and became a hero. Or, more likely, got himself killed.

The walkie-talkie hissed on the seat next to Vicky and her pulse surged as she looked down at it. She straightened in her seat as Rhys’ voice blared out of the small speaker. Clumsy with tiredness she fumbled for the handset. She finally grabbed it and pressed the talk button down.
 

“Hi.”

“How’s my boy doing?”
 

Flynn opened his eyes on the back seat and Vicky kept her voice low. She turned the volume of the walkie-talkie down by a few notches as she checked her surroundings again. Just because she couldn’t see them, that didn’t mean they wouldn’t hear her. “He’s good. We’re both good. It’s all quiet here. Well, I say quiet but the diseased are still waiting on the other side of the bridge thinking they can get across. Stupid fuckers. Hopefully they’ll be gone when you come back. How are things with you?”

When no reply came back Vicky drew a breath to speak again, but Rhys cut her off.

“I’m doing fine. I’m making good progress. Anyway, I don’t want to run the battery down. I just needed to check everything’s all right. I’ll contact you again soon, okay?”

“Okay,” Vicky said.
 

“I love you, Flynn.”

The groggy boy on the back seat stretched, sat up, and spoke into the walkie-talkie. “Love you too, Daddy.”

The line went dead.

***

Vicky had returned to the control booth to look across the river into the city. As she stood in the smell of stale sweat and flatulence she watched the large collection of diseased that still remained on the other side. Their numbers had diminished a little. Some of the stupid fuckers seemed to have finally worked out how to identify a lost cause, not many of them, but some.

After she’d glanced around again Vicky looked at the car. Flynn remained in the back as he had done since they’d been there. The only time he’d gotten out was when he needed to take a leak. They may need to mobilise in an instant so he needed to remain inside the vehicle to avoid any delay.

When the walkie-talkie came to life in her hands Vicky snapped it up. She spoke into it as she continued to look across the river. “Hello?”

“Hi, how are things?”

Vicky stepped out of the hot booth and hid behind the raised drawbridge. They couldn’t cross the river, but best not provoke them anyway. She kept her voice low. “We’re all good. You?”

“I’m hanging on. I’ve met a person who also wants to rescue somebody, so we’ve teamed up. We’re keeping each other alive, although there’s something I
don’t
trust about him.”

“Oh?”

“He knew your name.”

Vicky frowned. “
My
name?”

“Yeah. I’m sure I didn’t tell it to him, but he knew it all the same.”

The thought of Brendan sent a shot of adrenaline through Vicky. “Wh- what’s his name?”

“Oscar.”

Some of the tension left her body.

“At least that’s what he told me it is. The fella’s handy in a fight though. He’s saved my arse on more than one occasion already. I’d be dead by now if it wasn’t for him.”

It may not have been Brendan, but he must be connected to him in some way. How else would he know Vicky’s name?

“Vicky?”

A shake of her head and she snapped out of her daze. “Yeah, sorry. I’m
worried
about you, Rhys.”
 

“Don’t be, I’m fine. Can I talk to Flynn?”

Vicky crossed the space between her and the car and handed Flynn the walkie-talkie.
 

The boy pressed the button on the side in. “Hi, Dad.”

“Are you okay, mate?”

After he’d nodded several times Flynn clutched the walkie-talkie with both hands and said, “I’m fine. When are you coming back? Have you found Mummy?”

“I won’t be long now. I’ve spoken to Mummy and she’s going to be coming out of the city with me. Just hang on there, yeah?”

“Okay.”

“I love you, mate.”

“I love you too, Dad.”

Vicky took the walkie-talkie back. Oscar had to have something to do with Brendan. “Just be careful, yeah?” she said. If she had said more it would have looked like she had something to hide. “I’ll see you before nine.”