100-Days-in-Deadland(102)

I sat down on the leather seat and sighed. Every muscle in my body was exhausted. After two long breaths with my eyes closed, I grabbed bottles of water and protein bars off the floor and tossed them to the guys. Between bites, I sifted through the glove box, finding a box of condoms, a flashlight, and a six-shooter. I grabbed everything.

I checked out the handheld radio on the seat. “I wonder when these guys were supposed to check in.”

“Fingers crossed, they just did,” Clutch said. “We could use extra time to put some distance between their last location and us.”

If Clutch had said anything else, I missed it. I fell asleep somewhere between ten and twenty seconds into the drive.

I awoke with Clutch nudging me, and I grumbled. “Lemme sleep.”

“We’re at Camp Fox.”

I may have snarled at him, but I opened the door, climbed out, and grunted at my quickly stiffening muscles. I wasn’t going to be able to move tomorrow.

“Damn, you’re a sight for sore eyes,” Tyler said walking toward us with a wide smile.

Jase ran out from behind his captain and pulled me into a hug. Mutt hopped around us. Jase stepped back and wrinkled his nose. “Jesus. You guys need showers.”

“Happy to see you, too,” I mumbled, and I really was. Seeing the kid alive and well made me feel like everything we’d gone through had been worth it.

“How many were lost?” Clutch asked.

“Three brave souls,” Tyler replied. “But we gained fuel trucks and cut into Doyle’s numbers.” Then his jaw tightened. “How’d Southpaw bite it?”

“It was the darndest thing,” Tack said. “He was shot. Then he turned.”

Tyler frowned. “Same thing happened to two of Alpha team. The only thing we can figure out is that the Dogs dipped their ammo in zed blood.”

I raised my brows. “Wow, that’s low.”

“But smart,” Clutch said. “They don’t have to be accurate, only good enough to nick one of us with a shot, and we’re no longer an issue.” Then he frowned. “I’d think the guns would jam from sticky bullets.”

Tyler grimaced. “It’s messed up, true enough. Let’s head to my office and debrief.”

“Later,” Clutch said. “Bravo team needs rest first.”

Tyler moved his gaze slowly over the three of us before nodding. “Understood. But we need to debrief as soon as you’re up. We have extra racks in the troops’ barracks if you want to stay. Tack can show you around.”

Clutch looked to me, and I shrugged. “Okay, for now at least.”

Tyler smiled. “You’ll find Camp Fox is more secure than ever. You’re safe here.”

“You haven’t seen our camp yet,” Clutch replied.

“No, I haven’t,” Tyler said. “Where are you at now?”

Clutch paused before speaking. “We’re at Fox Park. Cash and I thought it could be made into a solid fallback location for the Camp. It needs a lot of work, but we should always prepare for the worst.”

“Agreed. I’ll mention the park to Colonel Lendt. A fallback location doesn’t sound like a bad idea, though I doubt we’ll need it. We’ve got Doyle on the run and the zeds will be gone come winter.”

“What makes you so sure the zeds will die out when winter comes?” I asked.

“Their bodies are decaying, and they are running off the most basic of instincts,” he replied. “They’ll die from exposure because they’re not smart enough to seek shelter. That is, if their bodies don’t rot away by then.”

After watching a zed continue to function completely under water for days, I had my doubts. “And if they don’t die off or rot away?”

Tyler shrugged. “Then we keep killing them.”





Chapter XXVI


Ten days later



“One vehicle coming in at our two o’clock,” Jase said while he adjusted his night-vision binoculars. “I can’t make out how many are inside yet, but Mutt doesn’t like this situation.”

I threw a quick glance at the fidgeting coyote at Jase’s ankles before returning focus to my rifle’s scope. “Does she like any situation?”

“Sure,” he replied. “Dinnertime, bedtime, walks, any time there’s a chance to steal someone’s food.”