Zombies on the Rock (Book 2): The Viking Trail Page 30

  Eric watched as Kyle’s dead feet slipped on a piece of his own brain and plummeted the body uncontrollably into the snowy lawn. The rumble of motorcycles roared in the background, and Kyle's brother was driving an old chopper. Dana emptied a magazine without hitting a single target and was now fumbling trying to reload the weapon.

  The bikers closed the gap and the shotgun blasts sprayed dirt and snow up into Eric's face. Eric used his training to remain calm and took precise aim, pulling the trigger calmly. The bullet found its way into the chest of one of the burly men, and his leather cut quickly smeared with blood. The man dropped his shotgun and fell viciously into the snow, clutching at his chest. Another man tried to reload his weapon and Eric deftly placed two shots into his chest in the left and right lungs. The other two assailants turned back and started to run towards the bikes to join Tucker.

  Eric started to take off after them, but Dana grabbed his wrist before he could get far. He started to tug his arm free when he looked back. Dana had her hand over her stomach where blood was seeping through her fingers.

  "Eric." Dana's voice trembled with fear.

  Eric looked over his shoulder at the bikers as they rode past the gates of the Pelley Compound. Turning back to his wife, he picked her up and rushed toward the cabin, her body going limp as he raced over the icy lawn. Once inside the cabin, he placed her on the couch and used his coat to apply pressure to the wound. "Hold this." He placed her hands over the wound and looked around the empty cabin. He saw the stairs that led down to the bar. "I'll be right back, okay?"

  Dana struggled to stay conscious, barely able to keep pressure on the wound. Eric rushed downstairs to the bar and started to look for anything he could use. There was a first aid kit behind the bar with some dressings in it and one large bandage. He grabbed a bottle of whisky from the glass shelf and raced back upstairs.

  Dana's body was limp on the couch -- her hand had fallen off the jacket and hung off to the side, her hand resting on the floor. Eric knelt besides her and tore her shirt open, exposing the messy wound. A pellet from a shotgun shell had ruptured her stomach just below the ribcage. Eric knew he would have to get it out before he could patch her up. Eric poured the whisky over his hands to disinfect them and splashed some over the wound too. Dana jolted to life as Eric dug his finger into the wound to look for the pellet, screaming in agony as he searched inside her stomach.

  "Honey, I need to get that bullet out of there. You need to stay still." Holding her down with one hand was proving rather difficult as she cringed in anguish. His finger found the pellet and luckily it wasn't too deep.

  "Drink this." Eric handed Dana the whisky bottle and she chugged it back greedily. Eric reached for the pellet and pulled it out of the wound. Dana screamed bloody murder before passing out cold.

  He packed the wound with gauze, placed the bandage over the blood soaked fabric and picked up the whisky bottle. Eric finished off the amble liquid left inside and sat next to Dana, hoping she would wake up soon.

  The mercenaries pulled Jason to his knees and one man pushed his rifle into his mouth. Nick had tried to help Jason, but the butt end of a rifle had put a stop to that outburst quickly. Nick was still in a heap, trying to catch his breath.

  David knew he didn't want to end Jason's life here -- he wanted to do it slowly. He had big plans for Jason, but he wanted to have some fun now. "Mr. Cook, we meet again. Looks like your friend won't be able to save you this time." David waved his hands around, motioning towards the soldiers.

  Jason tried to say something, but he wasn't able to get the words out, the large metal muzzle muffling his words.

  "I'm sorry, what was that?" David put his hand on the shoulder of the mercenary and ushered him to take the barrel out of Jason's mouth.

  "I said: fuck you." Jason was fuming, his eyes full of hatred.

  David paced back and forth, shaking his head. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Mr. Cook, but we do seem to have a little issue here." David laughed.

  "You're a sick freak," Jason said with disgust. Nick had made his way to his knees, but was still doubled over, trying to catch his breath. "You and me right now. Let’s finish this. No one else needs to get hurt."

  David knew what Jason was trying to do, but it wasn't going to work. He had a plan, and he was going to follow through. "Jason my boy, I have big plans for you. Now we’re in a hurry, so we need to get going." David motioned towards the two soldiers holding Jason. "Get him in the back of the Jeep.”

  Jason tried to fight the two men, but they dragged him across the snow-covered road and slammed him hard into the door of the Jeep. David was waiting by the door. "Sorry about that, let me get that for you." David opened the door and made another gesture towards the mercenaries. "I'm sorry about this, old friend." The two men held Jason's hand in the doorframe and David slammed the door shut.

  "AAHHHHRGGG!" Jason moaned in torment. He could feel the bones in his hands shatter. "Fuck you," he gasped.

  "Turn him around, he's going to need to see this." The two men turned Jason around and kicked him down to the ground. One of the men knelt on his back and yanked his head up. "Jason, it's almost a shame that you didn't manage to kill one of my comrades here, then your buddy here would have a ride to the base, but there's just no room for him." David put Nick in a chokehold and brought him closer to Jason. David stared into Jason's eyes so he could watch his reaction; he wanted to see his soul suffer.

  "You don't have to do this!" Jason screamed.

  "If you close your eyes, if you look away, I'll make you kill your wife. You better watch this and realize I'm in control here."

  David put his hand over Nick’s throat and started to apply pressure with his fingers. Blood began to ooze out between his fingers, the nails disappearing in the flesh of Nick’s neck. Nick tried to scream out, but only a gurgled wail escaped. David felt his fingers touch his thumb behind Nick's windpipe and he tightened his gripe. With one forceful motion, David yanked Nick's windpipe out and his blood sprayed over Jason.

  David never once looked down at his victim, he kept his eyes glued on Jason. Jason's eyes were a volcano of rage and sheer madness. David wanted to see sadness or at least defeat. Instead Jason looked like a raving lunatic, ready to unleash his wrath.

  "Throw him in the car."

  One of the mercenaries threw a black hood over Jason's head and crammed him into the back seat, slamming the door shut. "I'll break him yet." David walked towards his vehicle, anxious to get inside the underground base. He was ready to continue to make Mr. Cook suffer until his final breath.

  EPILOGUE

  Warrant Smith stood in the middle of the highway. All of their vehicles and equipment had been seized and they had had their weapons stripped from them. He had to come up with a plan fast; they needed to reach Argentia and the rest of the Battalion. With the extra men and the inside information from their experience with the bikers, they would be able to wipe out the gang easily.

  "Listen up, men." The warrant was surrounded by his troops, each soldier eager for revenge. "The orders are simple. Reach Argentia and inform whoever is left from the Battalion what’s going on here. We must protect the innocents that are trapped in this city. We stop at nothing until we reach Argentia. We don't go looking for stray soldiers; we keep pushing forward. That's an order."

  A thunderous roar of agreement rose up from the crowd. Smith looked around for Private Byrnes; he had special orders for him. He needed to get Tina out of that mess. He had made a promise to her and he wasn't going to leave her behind.

  "Private Byrnes!" the warrant called out, his voice booming over the rest of his troops.

  The young private pushed his way through the crowd. "Sir." The wind blew his blond hair around. A proud look on the young soldier’s face reminded the Warrant of himself when he was younger. The young private had that spark that you look for in a soldier. Aggressive, brave, and obedient: they were rare traits to find in the same person, and each one was important for any good so
ldier.

  "Come with me." The warrant motioned for Private Byrnes to join him away from the crowd. When they were away from everyone else and no one could hear them, the warrant began to issue his secret orders: "You need to infiltrate Grand Falls, find Tina, and extract her."

  "I'm not coming with you?" The young man seemed disappointed.

  The warrant looked Private Byrnes dead in the eyes. "You are."

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  Reptilia is the terrifying novella that tells the story of what happens when creatures – not unlike zombies themselves – infect a small military town and the havoc that ensues. Written by Bestselling Occult author Matthew LeDrew

  Bio: Paul Carberry

  Paul Carberry currently is enrolled in the Reserves with the Canadian Armed Forces. He has always enjoyed the whole horror genre and has always had a special interest in zombies. He is currently living in his hometown of Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador, with his wife, Leah, and daughter, Dana.

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