Zombies on the Rock (Book 2): The Viking Trail Page 29

  Snow pelted the windshield, making it hard to see down the highway. Nick found an old tape in the glove box and popped it into the cassette deck in the dashboard. Old seventies rock bands Jason didn't recognize belted out of the speakers as they drove down the Trans Canada Highway. Jason could see the lights shining against the gated fence to the old ranger station just ahead; they had arrived just before sunset. The sky was bright orange underneath the white clouds, the golden hue of the sun barely able to penetrate the blustery snow. The wiper blades skidded across the windshield as slush and ice had built up underneath the blades; it left large streaks across the driver’s side window.

  "We made it, man." Nick slapped the dashboard in triumph.

  Jason pulled the old truck onto the shoulder of the road. "If it keeps snowing like this, we might have to shovel our way out of here in the morning." Jason pushed his door open and jumped outside, the cold wind smacking him in the face like a stiff slap.

  The passenger’s door creaked open as Nick jumped down into the snowy grass, and his footsteps broke through the crisp, icy crust. "So, how do we get inside the fence?" Nick strained his neck up at the fence.

  "Haven't you ever jumped a fence?" Jason lodged his foot in a gap in the chain-link fence and started to pull himself up.

  "Not since I was ten." Nick groaned before joining Jason in the climb.

  The wind whipped snow in Jason's eyes, making the climb even harder. The cold metal seemed to cut into his hands and he struggled to keep his footing -- his boots were too big for the tiny openings. Jason wished more snow had accumulated on the other side so he could jump down, but yellow blades of grass poked through the crust of the freshly fallen snow. The climb down was much easier though. Nick was having a harder time reaching the top of the fence and Jason enjoyed watching his friend struggle with the task.

  "You want me to check on you in the morning?" Jason taunted.

  Nick finally reached the top. "Fuck off." Nick nearly fell down from the top, but managed to catch the bar before plummeting down to the ground.

  Jason laughed at the inept athletic ability of his old friend, but went over to offer him help to get down. Nick let himself fall down towards the ground, knocking Jason backwards onto his butt. "Thanks, buddy." Jason couldn't stop laughing even though his backside throbbed with pain.

  Nick made his way to his feet first and helped Jason get to his. "Come on, we should get inside before we freeze to death out here."

  They made their way towards the building where a faint yellow glowed flickered inside. "Someone's inside." Jason stopped dead in his tracks.

  "Who do you think it is?" Nick stood between Jason and the door.

  "Ethan was out this way when the outbreak started." Jason ran up to the door and burst inside expecting to see his old partner in the station, but was startled when he entered the building.

  A man wearing a white dress shirt sat back on at a computer desk, typing frantically away at the keyboard. He looked over his shoulder at the commotion, a surprised look on his face. "Hello there, you must have heard the radio broadcast?"

  "That's you?" Nick said uneasily. "This is the place?”

  "I just work for Pharmakon and this is an outpost. So you're willing to work for us or do you have passes?" The man stood up, and Jason realized he was nearly seven feet tall. His grey hair was short and spiked up in the front. Under his glasses a pair of welcoming blue eyes studied the strangers standing in front of him.

  Jason took out the two passes and waved them in front of his chest.

  "Very good, sir, there’s a convoy on the way right now. You're just it time, should be here any minute actually." His voice was deep but soft. He turned back to his computer desk and moved the mouse around until an image popped up on the screen.

  Jason could see the gate and his truck on the screen; it must have been the security camera. Two black Jeeps crept into a view before a soldier exited the passenger’s door of one and opened the gate. He held the gate open, waving the two vehicles through. Jason could hear the crunching snow outside as the vehicles rolled up just outside.

  The man pulled on a black jacket and pulled his hood up. Fur lined the hood and cast a shadow over his face. "I'll let them know you'll be joining them." He walked past Jason and Nick and opened the door; a cold gust of wind blew the papers on his desk onto the floor.

  "Seems like things are working in our favour for once." Nick patted Jason on the shoulder as he walked past him and headed outside.

  Jason took a look around his old ranger station. He wondered how long Pharmakon had been working out of this building; had they always planned to use this building or did they take it over and kill Ethan? There were no signs that Ethan or any wildlife worker had ever been here. The furniture was brand new. Two leather couches and a La-Z Boy recliner rested in front of the fireplace while a large round coffee table sat in the middle. The wood fireplace had been replaced with a propane version, and the old wooden counter top had been switched out for marble.

  Doors opened and closed outside, footsteps crunched in the snow, and faint voices could be heard. Jason turned and walked outside, anxious to get aboard one of those Jeeps and hitch a free ride to the Pharmakon base.

  Soldiers in black camouflage carried sleek black M-16 rifles; they all wore black berets, but each man wore a different hat badge representing the various branches of the army they used to serve before becoming mercenaries. They all formed a circle around one man -- he wasn't very tall, but his frame was much larger than any of the soldiers even with their bulletproof vests on. Nick was standing next to the intimidating man, and Jason made his way towards them. The soldiers parted enough to allow Jason to approach his friend. Jason's heart leapt into his throat when he saw the man Nick was standing next to.

  "Mr. Cook, how nice of you to join us." David Steele looked happy to see Jason. "Secure that man." David pointed at Jason and every soldier raised their weapon at Jason.

  The clank of metal rang through the air as the soldiers cocked their weapons, moving in unison towards Jason. Without a word, two man lowered their rifles and threw Jason to the ground. Before Jason knew what was happening, they fastened his hands behind his back.

  "Eric, slow down!" Dana yelled out, struggling to keep up with him.

  Eric stood at the open gate to the Pelley Compound and waited for Dana to catch up. He had told her to wait outside for him -- it was one thing to kill the dead, but it was an entirely different thing to kill the living. Eric didn't want her to have to live with that burden.

  "You're not going in there alone," Dana insisted. "You're not leaving me out here."

  Eric couldn't think of an argument he could make that would stop her from following him. "Alright. But keep your head down, and follow my lead." Eric checked the chamber of his revolver again, making sure it was fully loaded. "Here, give it to me." Eric held out his hand. Dana reached into her back pocket and took out the Glock Eric had given her at the cabin. He popped out the clip and made sure it was full, before slamming it back into the gun. "The safety is off."

  Eric handed the gun back to Dana. She could feel her heart rate rising. Dana had no idea what to expect inside those walls, but Eric assured her that it would be nothing but danger. They crept inside the compound, and Eric immediately headed towards a large cabin. The glow of a fire dully illuminated the snowy yard outside the large glass window. Laugher and loud music could be heard booming from within, but Eric couldn't see anyone inside.

  "Hold up." Eric held his hand up, motioning for Dana to stop.

  "What's wrong?" Dana's heart froze still.

  Eric pointed to an open window underneath the patio at the side of the building where a haze of smoke and light billowed out. "They must be downstairs."

  "So what do we do?" Dana started to feel the pressure tightening in on her chest, crushing her lungs, making it harder to breath.

  "We have to see if my parents are in there first. We can't go in guns blazing." Eric looked around
at the other buildings.

  "What is it?" None of the other buildings had any lights on, and Dana wondered what Eric was thinking about.

  "We can't risk being seen. If I can't see anything through that window, we should hide out in one of those unoccupied cabins. Wait until we can figure out what’s happening." Eric got down on his belly and started to crawl towards the window, making sure to keep his head down. The accumulation of snow made the grass sleek and wet. The dampness soon soaked through Eric's clothes and he could feel the frigid cold water against his skin. Looking back at Dana, he made sure she stayed back.

  The air was thick with cigar smoke, and the musty smell was accompanied by the stench of alcohol. Eric made it close enough to the window to see inside the room. Six men were sitting on bar stools back on to Eric -- four of the men wore leather cuts and two of them wore jean jacket underneath their leather vests. They were all cheering and clinking their glasses together.

  Eric saw Tucker behind the marble counter top, pouring the amber liquid into shot glasses on the counter. Eric could picture Tucker’s mug shot on the most wanted list, right next to his brother’s. He had a giant cigar and a smile on his face, and his grey hair seemed to sparkle in the light. Glass mirrors and liquor bottles lined the wall behind him. The men all grabbed a shot, and toasted the plaque on the wall.

  Eric nearly threw up at the vile sight hanging from the bar. Frank's head had been mounted to the wall on an old wooden plaque, his milky eyes darting between each of the men below. His jaws snapped wildly, spittle and froth spewing from his mouth, while the men below taunted the hungry abomination. They raised their shot glasses to the ghastly creature and downed their drinks, slamming their glasses down on the bar and pounding their fists against the bar while Tucker poured more beer into a jug.

  Eric rolled out of view of the window and quietly inched back to Dana.

  "Are they down there?" Dana asked concerned; the look on Eric's face frightened her.

  "Didn't see them, let’s get inside that building over there." Eric got to his feet and started to make his way across the field.

  A door opened up behind them and a voice Eric recognized called out to them. "I'm flattered, Officer Jones, you're still obsessed with me even after all that’s happened. Makes me proud that I've been doing such a wonderful job," Kyle Pelley taunted. They had crossed path on a weekly basis, but Eric had never been able to make an arrest stick. The Pelleys’ lawyer had always managed to find a loophole or bribe the judge.

  "Dana, you need to get out of here," Eric urged.

  Dana was frightened but wouldn't budge. "I'm not leaving you." Dana tried to hold Eric's hand, but he was too focused on Kyle Pelley. "Either we stand here and fight or we leave together."

  "Officer Jones, don't be so rude!" Kyle called out. He wasn't trying to talk to Eric, he was alerting the others. Soon four men emerged from the log cabin and joined Kyle. Eric noticed the motorcycles of the Highway Hangmen parked in the driveway. There wasn't any chance for them to outrun them.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE:

  UNCERTAINTY

  Hank could see the men and their horses heading down the Viking Trail towards him. He was surprised so many had made it out of Lanx Aux Meadows alive. Sasha held on to him tight, her face nuzzled into his back, protecting herself from the strong winds and snow.

  Hank pulled the reins and stopped the horse. He scanned the crowd looking for Jarvik. It took a while to spot him, but he eventually saw him at the back of the pack. Hank started to make his way towards his friend. Each warrior that he passed looked defeated and wore a look of shame on their face. Their bodies were slumped over their horses and several of the men were wounded.

  "Jarvik, what are we going to do?" Hank was shocked by the look on Jarvik’s face when he looked up form the saddle. Blood stained his beard and furs while rage burned in his eyes.

  "We regroup and ambush them at the gates." Hatred spewed from Jarvik’s mouth, his voice altered by the horrific events that had taken place. His eyes were incensed and fixed on some point in the distance.

  Tina's throat ached, her stomach was sore, and her lungs burned. A bright white light shone into her eyes from above, and the walls around her were made from dark mahogany wood. Her wrists were tied to the arms of a chair, and the rough fibres of the rope dug into her skin. She looked around, but she was alone in the tiny room. Grey carpet lined the floor and the door had a tiny window in it but she could only see the bright light reflected in it. Tina tried to kick her legs but quickly realized they had been chained to the floor. It only took another moment to realize she was in a holding cell, most likely at the courthouse. This was probably where prisoners would wait until they entered the courtroom.

  The door creaked open and a man wearing a grey suit with a pink shirt and matching bowtie appeared in the entryway. "Miss Caines? I'll be representing you, but it doesn't look very promising for you." His voice was rigid and void of care. He wouldn't look her in the eyes, keeping his gaze towards the floor shielding his face from her view.

  "Representing me?" Tina didn't think she was going to have a fair trial and didn't want to waste time with this nonsense. "When is my trail?"

  The man was already halfway out the door again before he spoke. "We don't know how long until the trail. If Ted lives, then he has the right to face you." He closed the door before Tina could say another word.

  Ted wasn't dead? How could this be? She had put at least five rounds in his guts; she had felt his warm blood spill all over her hands. She looked down at her hands and saw the red stains still covering her skin and sleeves of her shirt. They didn't even bother to clean her up – they probably didn't want to wash away any of the evidence. Settling with just her thought to keep her company, Tina awaited her terrible fate.

  The ambulance rocked back, and Kim passed back and forth muttering to herself. Calvin sat up in the stretcher and tried to shake the cobwebs from his mind. The drugs he had been taking for the pain had made him groggy and disoriented.

  "Jack, what’s going on?" It had been hours since Calvin took his last pill and now the pain was becoming unbearable. The muscles in his back tightened and throbbed, sending spikes or pain running down his leg.

  Jack leaned in to whisper in Calvin's ear. "We've been taken hostage by these lunatics." Jack glanced towards Kim nervously, making sure they weren't being heard. "If we don't do what they say, they are gonna kill us." Calvin felt his blood pressure rise. He wasn't just going to lay back and accept this.

  "Is he dead or something?" Kim grabbed Stella by the chin and pointed to Craig.

  Stella cried out from her grip before answering, "No, he's just hurt." She tried to turn away from Kim as blood trickled down her chin from Kim's nails where they dug into her skin.

  Kim pushed Stella's head back and kicked Craig in the guts. His body twitched from the impact, but remained unconscious. "Ben, help me put this useless sack of shit on the stretcher." Kim shot Calvin a nasty look. "Unless you want to join him, I suggest you get up."

  "Join him?" Calvin was puzzled.

  Ben emerged from the passenger’s seat wearing an old green t-shirt and black jeans. Lumbering into the back of the ambulance, an axe dangling from his hip, Ben looked menacing. His wavy brown hair was combed to the right side of his face, and his dark brown eyes were bloodshot with dark bags underneath. Ben scooped Craig up and dumped him on top of Calvin before he could get out of the stretcher. The weight was too much for Calvin to bear and he sunk back down into the mattress. A loud roar and strong winds made Calvin's heart race as Ben opened the rear ambulance door. Calvin strained his neck up to watch as Kim started to push the stretcher towards the open door. "I'm going to kill you," Calvin snarled as Kim pushed the stretcher out of the ambulance.

  The stretcher landed upright and made an abrupt turn towards the side of the road as one of the wheels broke. The world spun around Calvin violently. The dark sky quickly changed into a blur of trees and snow as the stretcher crashed on the
side of the road and sent Calvin and Craig thrashing around like rag dolls.

  Calvin was battered and bruised, his knee throbbed, and a trickle of blood ran down his forehead from a gash on top of his head. Calvin looked over and expected to see Craig in a mangled mess, but miraculously he was already on his feet.

  "Calvin, are you okay?" It was the first time Calvin had heard Craig's voice. Craig applied pressure to the gaping wound underneath Calvin's hair. "Let's get back to Howley and try and find Jason.” Craig managed to haul Calvin to his feet, straining to get the much larger man to his feet.

  "I'm going to kill those motherfuckers." Calvin was determined to follow through; nothing was going to stop him. The freezing temperatures and blowing wind picked up as if to challenge his words, his knee was already beginning to swell up and he knew it would be difficult to walk. Calvin had no idea how far Howley was but in spite of it all, he was determined to make back.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR:

  CRUEL DEATH

  Eric didn't wait for the bikers to join Kyle; he reacted swiftly to try and gain the advantage. Before Kyle had a chance to get a grip on his gun, Eric was already moving. In the brief moment before Eric drew his weapon, he could see the flicker in Kyle's eye, -- time seemed to stand still between the two men. The bikers froze in place as Eric raised the gun and fired off his first shot. Eric watched the flicker in Kyle's eyes die out like a candle being doused. The life had left his body before the echo dissipated.

  Gunfire erupted inside the Pelley Compound all around Eric, but he was fixated on that single shot. Kyle stumbled backwards lifelessly: the bullet had ripped through the flesh just below his right eye. The exit wound ruptured the back of his skull, and particles of bone and brain slid out of the violent gash. The bikers had opened fire from behind him; muzzles sparked to life in bright explosions from their shotguns. The pellets spread out in wide angles from their shotguns, ineffective at this range. Dana had dropped to one knee and let loose an uncontrolled barrage of return fire. The large glass window of the cabin shattered from one of Dana's errant shots and splinters of wood detonated behind them.