The Tide: Deadrise (8 page)

Then another noise caught Meredith’s ears. It was the thump of chopper blades. She spotted several helicopters zooming above the river and circling near the shore. Their side doors lay open, and door gunners sprayed gunfire into the flanks of the Skull horde. They turned their attention on the new airborne combatants. Some scaled the trees and leapt into the air, their claws flailing desperately as they tried to reach the helicopters. It would have been almost funny if Meredith didn’t know how deadly the creatures were.

“Ignore the choppers,” Dom said. “These are the same people who fired on the boat. Get the hell back here!”

Meredith’s entire body felt like it was on fire. She couldn’t tell if she was overheating in her combat gear or burning up with adrenaline. Either way, she used the excess energy to power through the streets with the others. The sawblade-like churn of machine-gun fire sent rounds spraying into the Skulls. Blood spilled. Bullet holes pocked abandoned vehicles and the sides of buildings.

A spray of gunfire arced overhead, and Meredith ducked. It was far too close for comfort. The individuals in those choppers weren’t too careful about their aim. It made Meredith wonder if these people were actually military or if they were some rogue faction of survivors desperate to secure a place for themselves by quelling any threat, Skull or human, in their territory.

All she knew was that she didn’t want to stick around to find out.

“Watch out!” Andris cried.

Meredith had just enough time to dive and roll. She felt the sting on her elbows as her fatigues tore. But it was a small price to pay for avoiding the chunk of concrete that flew overhead. As she watched the trajectory of the projectile, she realized it hadn’t been intended for her anyway. She heard the victorious roar of a Goliath when the concrete and rebar missile crashed into one of the helicopters. Metal screeched. The bird listed and shook. It continued to tilt and then fell into a slow descent. The chopper slammed sideways into a nearby parking lot, and the spinning blades were shorn off, sending fragments of metal flying. A piece of blade severed the head of one Skull, and a long shard embedded itself in another beast’s chest. A final blast of fire bloomed from the chopper and tossed dozens of Skulls backwards.

But instead of dissuading the Skulls, the monsters surged to the downed chopper. Several broke into the burning cockpit. Meredith felt a fierce urge to help the two people she watched torn from their seats. She knew it was already too late as the Skulls ripped into the flesh of the pilots. There would be nothing for her to save even if she could reach the helicopter.

Three more choppers still hovered nearby, raining down vengeance for their lost squadron members. Flames licked into the sky. Skulls, silhouetted by the conflagration, rent the air with demonic howls. Human screams answered from the downed chopper as ravenous monsters dug through the burning wreckage.

It was, Meredith decided, hell on earth.

***

D
om wasn’t certain why the choppers had flown from the Joint Force Base. He could understand their aggression toward a boat that might be carrying people infected by the Oni Agent toward their base. But taking an unnecessary risk by coming to this side of the Potomac seemed, well, unnecessary. In his paranoia, he wondered if the military units there had somehow identified his little ragtag band as the Hunters that Kinsey had been looking for. He sure as hell hoped not. Maybe there was some other, more prudent reason for their actions, but Dom didn’t bother trying to figure it out. He knew his team might have one shot to escape, and they could no longer delay. He’d seen what was headed in their direction, and he didn’t like it.

“Spencer, you ready to move?” Dom said, gathering up as many of their supplies as possible. He placed a few planned C4 charges around the damaged columns of the building and pocketed the detonator.

Spencer nodded. His jaw was still clenched, and the bandages covering his face had bled through again. Despite this, the man looked stolid as ever. He grabbed the rest of the packs and grunted, “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

Dom and Spencer dashed down the rubble-strewn stairs. The bursts of gunshots, the crackle of a raging fire, and the roars of the Skulls grew louder as they descended. The hellish soundtrack provided more than enough encouragement for him to get down and get the Hunters moving. He rushed around a landing, shoving a burned-out desk from his path. He heard stumbling footsteps behind him and turned to see Spencer falling forward. Dom dropped his packs and caught the man before he hit the ground.

“Sorry, Captain. The meds—”

“No time. Let’s go!” Dom said.

They made it to the west entrance of the building. Dom didn’t bother opening the large doors to the outside. The glass had already been blown away by whatever bombing had caused the craters and wreckage in the streets. He saw shapes moving at the end of the block.
The Hunters
.

“Hurry!” Dom called.

They charged, leaping over slabs of broken concrete and the twisted wreckage of vehicles. When the group at last moved into position around the entrance, Dom signaled for them to hunker down. A couple of lone Skulls gave chase, but Dom dispatched them with a few quick shots. Most of the beasts were still focused on the choppers.

“More Skulls headed in from the north,” Dom said. “Packs coming in from the west, too.” He watched one of the helicopters veer away from the other two. “And I bet those birds are looking for us.”

Miguel raised a soot-covered eyebrow. “Why the hell—”

“Doesn’t matter why right now. We need to move, and, unfortunately, the best way to move is south.”

Jenna’s eyes went wide. “You’ve got to be kidding me. That’s where we just came from.”

“Trust me on this. South might look bad, but what’s headed from the other directions is worse.” He pulled up a map on his smartwatch. The others huddled together to see the tiny screen. “We need to go straight through the city. It’s our best chance to stay hidden from Skulls and those guys in the air. Stick to the shadows and alleys if possible. If it gets too hot, we go up, understood? Find an apartment building, something, and lose these bastards before trying to move out.”

Glenn shook his head. “This sounds like a half-baked plan, Captain.”

“Didn’t have time for a full-baked one, so unless you’ve got a better idea, we move.”

The Hunters looked at each other. Dom privately wished someone
did
have a better plan and looked at Meredith hopefully. She gave him a noncommittal shrug. The gunfire echoing around the streets, the chopper blades thumping the air, and the Skulls’ relentless screaming didn’t provide an atmosphere conducive to careful deliberation and thinking.

Dom stood, slapped his rifle, and said, “Move out!”

Rather than have another Hunter do it, he took point. He ran, ducking behind a burned-out ambulance, and then jumped into the storefront of what used to be a boutique pet store. There was no time to take things slowly and carefully. When Skulls appeared in front of him, he steamrolled them with rifle fire before they could so much as turn in his direction.

His pack slapped against his back. Pain stitched his side from the intense running and the injuries he’d sustained over the course of their battles with the Oni Agent. He could hear the other Hunters gasping for air. He knew each of the Hunters bore their own burdens, emotional and physical. But even Spencer ran on.

They wound their way through the bombed-out city until they neared the south edge of Alexandria. They found themselves looking over a six-lane highway that led to the other side of Cameron Run, a tributary into the Potomac River. That highway would take them over a bridge and into the next town over. Several Skulls lingered among the abandoned vehicles, but the monsters would pose little threat.

But Dom paused at the end of the bridge and indicated for the group to take cover in the ditch beside the road. The Skulls weren’t the reason he’d stopped. Two helicopters were hovering nearby. They’d joined in the fight against the Skulls with the other birds already in the air. These ones shone spotlights across the city blocks as if they were looking for something.

“Are they after us?” Renee asked.

“Maybe,” Dom said.

“How the hell do we cross now?” Meredith asked as a spotlight flooded the bridge with intense light.

A grin spread across Spencer’s ruined, bandaged face. “We planned for something like this.”

––––––––

D
om took the detonator from his pocket. As Spencer had said, they’d come up with a contingency plan. But there was no telling if it would actually work. He depressed the small button. One second later, a rumbling blast exploded from the building where they’d been sheltering. Plumes of dust and debris filled the air. Skull cries and the bellows of a few Goliaths joined the cacophony.

One of the choppers took off toward the explosion. But one kept its spotlight gleaming over the bridge.
Come on, come on
, Dom thought.
Go check out the pretty explosion.

The second chopper raced to the crumbling building.

“Now!” Dom sprinted to the bridge. A Skull snarled at him. He bashed its face in with a well-timed strike from his rifle’s stock. He kicked another out of his way and shot it point-blank. Behind them, the thump of chopper blades was growing louder again. One helicopter was already returning to its position on the south side of the city. “Damn it! Move!”

The Hunters were halfway across the bridge. The wandering Skulls provided brief, surmountable roadblocks. More difficult was the maze of charred vehicles. Heavy footsteps echoed behind him as the Hunters navigated the wrecked cars. If the choppers caught them now, there was little chance all of them could avoid its probing spotlight.

Another Skull lunged. Dom elbowed it hard in the chest, sending it reeling. The beast shot back to its feet. Its jaws snapped, and it moved in for the attack. He started to bring his rifle up but realized gunfire now would certainly draw the chopper’s attention. The bird would be on him like a Skull on helpless prey. Instead, he dropped his gun, letting the strap catch on his shoulder. He whipped his knife from his thigh sheath.

Miguel stopped as if to help him.

“Go,” Dom said. “Get the others and go!”

He could handle this lone Skull. He’d dealt with worse, after all. Miguel seemed uncertain, but he followed his captain’s orders. Dom lashed out with the blade, catching the Skull under its chin. It swatted him away and then launched an unrelenting attack. Dom dodged blow after blow. His heart pounded in rhythm with the thumping chopper blades drawing ever nearer, reminding him time was short.

He jumped to the side as the Skull dove headlong and crashed into the side of a pickup. With a powerful kick, he slammed the creature’s head into the truck. Bone crunched against metal. The Skull turned, dazed but still snarling. With another slice, Dom connected with the creature’s neck, and blood poured out. The creature took a step forward and then staggered. It reached with one outstretched claw, still desperate to bring down its prey despite certain death.

Dom ignored it and sprinted to catch up with the others. One chopper had already returned to the end of the bridge where they’d come from, its searchlight already swinging toward the Hunters. The others had almost reached the other side. Meredith and Renee were first, followed by Glenn and Miguel. Jenna and Andris jumped into the ditch beside the highway.

Spencer was only a few yards behind them. Dom watched him try to leap over a fallen motorcycle. The injured Hunter’s boot snagged, and he went down hard. His head slammed against the pavement with a sickening thud. His helmet, which had been left loose because of the bandages, bounced off.

“Spencer!” Dom yelled. He picked up his pace, huffing and straining. The chopper’s spotlight drew ever closer, glinting off the vehicles behind him. He reached the motorcycle where Spencer had fallen. “Spencer! Get up!”

But the man didn’t respond. The spotlight beam was almost on them. There was no way Dom could lug the heavy man to where the others were. They were completely out in the open, and the beam was illuminating the cars just feet away from them. With no other options, Dom grabbed Spencer’s body in a bear hug and rolled them under a nearby SUV. Dom held his breath as the light swept over them. He prayed the lookout in the chopper hadn’t seen his desperate move.

Soon the intense light passed.

“Clear?” Dom asked over the comm link.

“Chopper looks like it’s going to make another sweep,” Meredith called back. “You got maybe ten, twenty seconds.”

Dom shoved Spencer’s unconscious body out from under the SUV. Normally he’d be more careful with the injured man, but they had to get away from the Skulls and the prowling military. He heaved Spencer into a fireman’s carry. As Meredith had promised, the chopper started its second sweep. Even more birds seemed to be in the air now, swarming the city. The occasional spurt of gunfire rained down into the decimated city blocks. Whatever the chopper crews were searching for, they weren’t holding back. Dom did not want to be caught in the crossfire. He used up his energy reserves to beat the spotlight to the end of the bridge and practically tumbled into the ditch with the rest of the Hunters.

He let Spencer fall to the ground next to Meredith and Andris. The duo checked the Hunter’s vitals while Dom caught his breath.

“He’s breathing,” Meredith said.

“Heartbeat’s normal,” Andris reported.

“Keep an eye on him,” Dom said. He peeked above the ditch. “How’s everyone on ammo?”

Glenn forced a low, sardonic laugh. “I think I used damn near every bullet we scrounged up at the airport.”

“Me, too,” Renee said.

“Understood,” Dom said. “Look, we aren’t going to make it far tonight. Not with those birds overhead, Skulls everywhere, and an injured Hunter.” He gestured to an apartment building with busted windows and missing a roof. “Let’s hole up there. I haven’t seen any ground forces. And after that Goliath took down one chopper, I doubt they’re keen on combing through the wreckage by foot. We might be safe if we stay undercover for a while.”