You and Me against the World: The Creepers Saga Book 1 (26 page)

“Perhaps. I still have much to do, but Brother Bartholomew is so impatient.”

“Impatient for what?” Devin asked.

“Information on the breeding,” the doctor said and smiled.

“Breeding?” Devin and Thorn asked at the same time.

“Yes, there are two very exciting facts about these new humans. The first is that based on their metabolic rates, their lifespan will be approximately twice that of the average human. And the second is they are fully capable of reproduction.”

Thorn felt sick. He had never considered that possibility. He was making assumptions based on the belief that the infected were “sick” and that they would in time die.

“Would you like to see what I have learned about temperature conditions?” the doctor asked.

“Yes.”

“Come this way,” he directed them toward the second door. “I hope you don’t mind the cold. It’s a bit nippy in the stage chambers.”

The door led to another hallway. Along one side, there were a series of doors with small windows in each.

“Each room”—Dr. Scott spoke as they walked—“is on a separate cooling system that allows me to change the temperature specific to each. The rooms are heavily insulated, so the temperature of one doesn’t affect the other.”

They walked to the first window. Above it was a small box with a red, LED temperature reading.

“The first room is kept at eighty degrees, and you can see our guest is very active and agitated.”

Thorn and Devin looked through the window and then fell back as the Creeper charged the door. It pounded at the door and screamed at them. Before they stepped away, it sprayed the window with its black bile.

“Sorry, he’s very hungry,” Dr. Scott said.

“There is something different about his jaw,” Thorn noted.

“Yes,” the doctor confirmed. “It’s a part of their miraculous transformation. Like a snake, the jaw disengages to allow for a
greater
bite ratio. Come, look at this other. You will see that their fingers have also elongated and have become more clawlike.”

“Are you saying,” Thorn asked, “that there is a continuous physical evolution?”

“Exactly,” the doctor said and smiled.

The gauge over the second window read sixty-five degrees.

“At this temperature, the patient is less agitated and only becomes active in the presence of food.”

Thorn and Devin both saw the elongated fingers on the Creeper. The Creeper sensed them and turned, but it didn’t charge the door. It approached slowly, with its left leg dragging behind.

“Now follow me. This is where it gets very interesting.”

He led them to another window where the LED read thirty degrees. Inside, the Creeper lay in a fetal position. Connected to its arm was an IV, and fluid dripped from a bottle suspended above it.

“The magic number,” Dr. Scott said and rubbed his hands together.

“Will it die?” Devin asked.

“No, and that’s what is so amazing. If allowed, it would hibernate, perhaps permanently or until the temperature rose above freezing. I feed it with intravenous so I can continue to study it, but it may not be necessary. I kept him at thirty degrees without nutrition for a month and brought him back. I can tell you, however, that at temperatures below zero, they only last a week. Still longer than we’d survive, though.”

“So they don’t like the cold,” Thorn said absently.

“Not a bit. I have tested a range of temperatures and found that they slow down a lot below forty-five or so.”

“How do you know they reproduce?” Thorn asked.

“Come, come, I will show you.”

The doctor walked down the hall to a final door, swung it open, and stepped through. Devin and Thorn followed him inside.

“This,” the doctor said, “is Sally. She is my greatest achievement.”

Tied to a table was an infected female. It was hard to determine the age, but Thorn estimated twenty-something. She was pregnant. She growled and spewed at them.

“Let me answer your two questions before you ask, Dr. Thorn. First, yes, the baby inside her is alive and growing. And although she looks almost seven months pregnant, I can tell you conclusively that when she arrived here two months ago, she was not. It happened in one of the holding pens where she was housed with others. I estimate that the gestation period for them is around three months.”

“Good lord,” Devin said. “Kill that fuckin’ thing.”

“Nonsense, young man. This is the future—we must embrace it.”

Thorn realized the doctor was not only excited but also very much insane.

“Imagine,” he continued, “what happens when we combine normal humans with the infected humans?”

“What?” Thorn was shocked.

“Yes, think about it. These creatures are very efficient, strong, and have twice the life span of humans. What they lack is the higher mind function. If, however, we were to impregnate a normal human female with infected sperm, we could create a hybrid that had the best of both. We, of course, would also want to do the same in reverse.”

The doctor smiled his insane smile.

“Are you volunteering, Doctor?” Devin asked as his fists clenched.

“No, no, no. I would, of course, but the process needs to be pure. It would require a cleaner vessel, such as a young female just entering puberty. During the first pregnancy, the human female is less likely to produce the dangerous antibodies that could terminate the rapid growth.”

“You’re out of your fucking mind.” Devin stepped toward the doctor but Thorn grabbed his arm.

“Where will you find such willing participants?” Thorn asked.

The doctor looked at him and tilted his head.

“Find? Why, we have already found them. That’s why it was such a sign from the Lord when you all arrived with the children. Brother Bartholomew is very excited. He says we can now begin the creation of a new race, a better one, and we owe so much to you for being the Lord’s messenger.”

Devin punched Dr. Scott in the face. Blood sprayed from the man’s nose, and he collapsed. Devin picked up a scalpel and approached the restrained infected. She hissed and struggled at her bonds.

“Devin,” Thorn yelled, “forget it. We have to get everyone out of here. Let’s go!”

Devin hesitated for a moment and then dropped the scalpel. Thorn was already running back to the access tunnel. Devin followed in a sprint.

Chapter 15

Village of My Sweet Insanity

A
Little Kira for Dani

“No offense, but exactly why should we believe a word of this?” Austin asked.

“Don’t. It doesn’t matter much to me, but you heard what your friend said. The guns are gone, so what do you think happens next?” Kira said and fixed him with her impish grin.

“She’s right about that part,” Nick said. “Something is wrong here.”

Brandon stood against the wall and considered the situation. Nick’s garage revelation was bad, but when Adam showed up with Dani, or Kira, or whatever her name was, things went from the pot right into the fire. He hoped Devin and Thorn would return soon. A decision needed to be made, and it needed to be made quickly. He didn’t want the job, and neither did anyone else in the room.

“Look, I don’t know what the deal is.” Adam gave a glance in Dani/Kira’s direction and then continued, “What I do know is that if Kira is right, then we need to get the hell out of here.”

“I don’t disagree,” Austin said and picked up his baseball bat. “No doubt this shit is breaking bad. I just want to be certain that we aren’t walking into a trap.”

He looked at Kira. She stared back at him and smiled.

“Darlin’, I kind of like you, so I’ll be straight. Bart has no plans to let those children leave. Whether you all leave or not makes no difference to him. He’d just as soon kill you all, but to do that, he needs the right circumstances.”

“Why?” Brandon asked.

“His little group of followers, that’s why. Not all of them are loons. Some actually believe that this is a spiritual community.” She laughed. “If Bart just shot you all dead, he’d lose half his faithful followers.”

“Okay, well, let me be straight with you,” Austin said and then coughed. It looked painful. “I sort of figured you for Bart’s bitch.”

“No,” Annie said as she strapped the twin machetes harness on her back. “If anything, that Bart creep is a rapist.”

She looked at Kira apologetically.

Kira smiled at her.

“Very true. Love the setup,” Kira said and pointed at the harness.

“I know, right?” Annie said and smiled. “It’s Coach.”

“No kidding, I didn’t think they made shit like that.”

“Oh, they don’t. I made it myself, but the material is all Coach.”

“For fuck’s sake,” Austin yelled, “are we really gonna spend the afternoon discussing accessories?”

He coughed again and grimaced.

Annie and Kira shrugged, and then they both giggled.

Brad rushed inside, his forehead wrinkled with concern.

“We got visitors on the way,” he said.

Golden, who had sat silent in the corner, stood and aimed her .38 at the door.

“Don’t shoot until we know there’s trouble,” Brandon said. He was grateful that she nodded a bit.

Austin stepped next to the door and waited with his bat raised over his shoulder. Everyone else spread out around the room. It was another video game strategy. Never position the group so that a single grenade could take out the entire team.

The door opened, and Bob and Pam walked inside. They didn’t look like the same couple. Pam’s long hair was held back with a pair of designer sunglasses. She wore black stretch jeans and black knee-high leather boots. A white blouse was tucked in the jeans and covered with a short leather jacket. The hilt of an eight-inch blade stuck out from the top of one boot. Bob wore jeans, a tight black T-shirt, and his own leather jacket. They looked all business, and their business appeared to be ass kicking. Bob saw Golden and raised both his hands.

“Don’t shoot, little lady. We’re here to help.”

Pam scanned the room and saw Kira. She measured the girl for a moment and then said, “Hi, Kira. I assume that is you.”

Kira flashed Pam her sarcastic grin. “It’s me, all right.”

“You knew?” Adam asked Pam.

“That Dani has multiple personalities? Yes, I knew. And Annie, I’m really sorry about slapping you, but I’m assuming by now you all realize that this place is dangerous.”

“We’re starting to catch on,” Brandon said. “Kira filled us in that Bart wants to keep the children, and apparently, your husband has taken our weapons.”

“I had no choice. If you let us come in, we’ll explain,” Bob said.

“Brad, was there anyone else with them?” Brandon asked.

“Not that I saw.”

“Okay, go back out and keep a watch. Bob, Pam, come on in, and tell us what you can.”

“Is she gonna keep that gun aimed at me the entire time?” Bob asked and pointed to Goldie.

Brandon shrugged. “For a while I think she will.”

“Where are the others?” Bob asked.

“You have an awful lot of questions for a guy who’s supposed to be giving answers,” Austin said as he stepped from behind the door.

“Sorry,” Bob said, “I was a cop. It just comes with the territory.”

Kira laughed and everyone turned to look at her.

“Not exactly true, though, is it, Bob? The cop part, I mean. Why don’t you tell everyone what you and Pam really did before the end.”

“How do you know?” Pam asked.

“Like you, Pam, I’m a good observer,” Kira said. “If you’re in retail, then I’m the Queen of fucking England.”

Annie pulled out both her knives and stared at Pam.

“Pam and I are, or rather were, federal agents. We were with the Justice Department. Before the end, we were investigating Bartholomew for a whole bunch of nasty things.”

“Sex trafficking, no doubt,” Kira said.

“Child pornography, trafficking, murder, drugs—hell, you name it and that guy was a suspect. When the world went to shit, we were already in town running surveillance. We played survivors and hooked up with him.”

“Seems like the investigation would have been over,” Nick said.

Bob nodded.

“Officially, the world was over, so yeah, but this scumbag has done some really bad things. Pam and I wanted to make sure the new world didn’t give him a new platform.”

“If any of this is true, then why did you take our weapons?” Nick asked.

“Bart’s idea. He wanted us to take the weapons and secure them in the depot. I had to go along to buy some time. He plans to let you take one of your vehicles and some supplies and leave.” Bob looked around. “Without the children, of course,” he added.

“So even though you knew we’d be defenseless, you went along with his little plan,” Brandon said.

Bob smiled.

“Well, not exactly,” he said. “Your van is a little ways from here, all safe and sound. There are a few weapons in it, but not much, I’m afraid.”

“And the Escalade?”

“Down the access road a bit. I had to leave it. I couldn’t drive two vehicles, and well, Brother Paul was in no shape to drive.”

“We’re supposed to believe you’re trying to help us?” Austin asked.

“Yes,” Pam said. “Look, I know you’re suspicious, but we’re telling you the truth. Bart is insane and dangerous. You have very little time to get those children out of here.”

“He’s going through all this, just to molest a few children?” Adam asked skeptically.

“Honestly, we don’t know what the plans are for the children,” Bob answered. “That part he has played pretty close to the chest. I figured Kira might know.”

Kira shook her head.

“Nope, not a clue,” she said. “I only know that he has no problem killing everyone in this room. And I’m pretty sure he suspects you two aren’t what you claim.”

The door swung open, and Devin and Thorn came inside with Brad.

“We’ve got to leave,” Devin said. He was out of breath.

“So we heard,” Brandon replied.

Devin and Thorn looked at Bob and Pam, then at the gun Golden aimed at them, and then at Austin, who stood a few feet away with his baseball bat cocked and ready to strike.

“It’s a long story,” Brandon said. “I’ll give you the
Reader’s Digest
version. Bart is crazy—well, no news there. Our weapons are in the depot. The van is allegedly in the woods, courtesy of these two, who by the way, are federal agents. Dani,” he pointed to her, “is apparently multiple personalities and this is Kira, and the village crazies want the children for some unknown reason.” He finished with a tired smile.

“They want to breed them with the Creepers,” Thorn said.

“Holy shit! That is insane,” Nick said.

“Yeah, no kidding,” Devin agreed. “Dr. Lunatic showed us his entire setup.”

Bob shook his head. “Wow, I never would have guessed.”

“Okay,” Devin continued. “Where the hell are the guns and the van?”

“The guns are in the weapons depot by the front entrance,” Bob answered. “The van is a quarter mile from here. We just need to go out the back gate and follow the access road.”

“Where’s Susan?” Thorn asked as he looked around the room.

“Oh shit,” Annie gasped. “She’s with Caroline. They’re over at the school unit with the children.”

Thorn turned and grabbed the door handle.

“Don’t!” Pam yelled.

Thorn looked over his shoulder, but his hand remained on the doorknob.

“Listen, we have one chance to do this right or we’re never getting out of here,” she said.

“Do you have a plan?” Devin asked.

“Yes,” Pam answered. “Annie and I go over and get the girls and the children. We meet you all at the back gate, and then we get the hell out of here.”

Devin shook his head.

“Won’t work.”

“Why?” Bob asked.

“How long have you two been here?” Devin asked.

They shrugged.

“A while, I guess, almost from the beginning,” Bob answered.

“Well, I can promise you that with one van, no supplies, and a couple of guns, we’re dead before tomorrow. The world is infested with Creepers. Even if we could survive without weapons, with just one vehicle, we’re on foot and we’re dead.”

“Let’s go get our shit,” Austin said and smiled.

“Yeah, but we need a plan,” Devin said. “Goldie, you can put that gun down. If Bob and Pam are lying, I’ll let you kill them later.”

Golden let the gun drop to her side, but her cold blue eyes remained fixed on the couple.

Devin crouched on the wood floor.

“I need a marker or a pen or something,” he said.

Annie found a Sharpie in a desk drawer. She handed it to him.

He drew a quick sketch of the compound on the wood floor.

“Okay, where are the SUVs?” he asked.

“The Tahoe is here”—Nick pointed—“in the garage.”

“And the Escalade?” Devin looked at Bob.

“It’s here.” Bob pointed to an area behind the garage. “It’s outside the fort on an access road that leads back to the front gate. There’s one thing you should be aware of, though.”

“What’s that?” Devin asked.

“Brother Paul is in the cargo area. He’s dead.”

Thorn watched Devin evaluate the man’s behavior. He was looking for any sign of deception. Thorn wondered what would happen if Devin believed Bob was lying. Would he just let shark eyes kill the couple? A few weeks ago, Thorn would have guessed not, but the mounting suspicion Devin had shown from their first day at the fort and the rage Thorn saw in the lab had changed all that. Thorn believed that Devin might just give such an order. The young, happy-go-lucky guy who had rescued them back in Fort Myers had disappeared. This was someone far more cynical and far more dangerous in a way that Bart underestimated.

Thorn looked around the room at his group of young benefactors. Their faces were colder too; the Creepers had robbed them of their innocence. They loved one another, but that love was now something fierce and sharp, and they would defend it with vengeance. Thorn believed if Brother Bart could see, really see, these expressions, he would step aside and let them be on their way. Bart believed he dealt with sheep, but Thorn’s friends were not shy animals. They were wolves, nature’s ferocious and cunning pack. Wolves were social predators, and they protected the pack. The bond of the pack was unbreakable. All the pack blood ran together so that an attack on one was an attack on all. Bart wanted to steal the pack’s pups. He thought he could just saunter into the den and grab them all up. Well, good luck with that, Brother Bart.