Ballistic: Icarus Series, Book Two Page 6

  “So it is vascular then,” Eli said flatly. He took his glasses off and wiped them clean with the edge of his dingy T-shirt. “I had suspected as much, but there was no way to test my theory without a living specimen.”

  “Until now,” I laughed bitterly. “So this is the part where you dissect me like a frog in freshman biology class, right?”

  “Liv,” Jake scolded. “Eli is a scientist, not a butcher. He just wants to know what he’s dealing with, so he can come up with an effective solution.”

  “He’s right,” Eli said. “The more I know, the better equipped I’ll be to tackle the problem. We’ve seen what your blood can do, Liv. That boy is alive because of your blood. There is something special about it—about you. If you could just tell me—.”

  “What do you want me to say, huh?” I shot to my feet, and my heart started beating wildly in my ears. “That I am a damn freak? Fine, I am a freak. Are you happy?”

  My lack of volume control combined with my rapid movement had begun to draw a crowd. Riley and Falisha were already headed toward us. Even Christa, who had been glued to Ty’s side since his eyes opened, watched with curiosity, craning her neck to see what was going on across the lobby. As much as I wished I could control the volcano in my chest, it seemed determined to erupt.

  “Nobody thinks you are a freak, Liv,” Jake countered, his brow knit with worry. “We will figure this out, okay? There’s nothing to worry about.”

  “Nothing to worry about?” I threw my hands in the air. “You’re kidding, right? Some weird alien virus is growing inside my brain. It’s stirring crap up in there, and I am supposed to, what…just take it in the stride? I don’t want to be able to see in the dark. I don’t want to be drawn to other freaks with the same disease, and I sure as hell don’t want them to be drawn to me. To all of you. This thing inside of me isn’t a gift. It’s a goddamn curse. The only solution is for me to disappear.”

  “You can’t,” Riley said. “Liv, we need you.”

  “If it hadn’t been for you, we would all have died days ago,” Jake said stepping toward me. “You saved our lives. You saved Ty’s life. You are not—”

  “No, Jake,” I said taking a step back. “Don’t, okay? I know you all think that I’m special; that I am some sort of hero or something, but you couldn’t be more wrong. I’m not part of the solution. I’m the problem.”

  “You are being ridiculous, Sarge,” Falisha scowled at me.

  “I’m not, though, that’s just it!” I shrieked at them. “Think about it. How many times have you guys almost died because of me? I almost got us all blown to bits at the hospital, there is a rogue group of soldiers after us, and I damn near got Ty killed. Don’t even get me started on being a damn leech magnet.”

  “You didn’t ask to get infected, or to be an Alpha, Liv,” Jake said. “This isn’t something you did. It’s something that happened to you. None of it is your fault.”

  “It doesn’t matter, Jake,” I raged. “That will not be a consolation when another one of us ends up dead.”

  “Another one?” Jake shook his head in confusion.

  “Ty is going to be fine,” Eli said, gesturing across the lobby.

  “Liv?” Riley narrowed her eyes at me. “What do you mean, another one?”

  “Ugh! Just forget it,” I said. I spun on my heel, desperate to escape my friends, but ran head-on into Zander’s chest.

  Chapter 5

  Invasion

  I had no idea how much of that little tirade Zander had witnessed, but I didn’t get a chance to ask. The moment my body came into contact with his, he flew through the air is if blasted by a cannon. When his feet landed, he lowered himself into a defensive crouch and backed away from me.

  “Zan?” I cautiously stepped toward him. His pupils were so large that the copper in his eyes was gone. His expression was completely vacant. “Zander, what happened? Are you okay?”

  “His eyes,” Jake whispered.

  “Shut up, Jake,” I hissed as I inched closer to Zander. "Zander, talk to me. What is happening?”

  “Be careful,” Falisha said, raising the sawed-off shotgun to her shoulder. “He doesn’t look right.”

  Bella was at my side in the span of a breath, her hackles raised as she lowered herself into a predatory crouch. She was growling, but she seemed to be looking past Zander, rather than at him. Whatever had set Zander off was obviously affecting Bella, as well. A low growl rumbled in his chest. He backed away from me like a cornered animal.

  “It’s okay, Ry,” I said. “He won’t hurt me.”

  “Liv, you are his alpha,” Jake said. “Now would be a good time to act like it.”

  “Zander,” I said firmly. “Talk to me.”

  “Go,” Zander said as he dug frantically at his neck. “Not…safe.”

  “What’s not safe?” I asked stepping even closer to him. My skin began to tingle.

  A dull thud echoed across the lobby. Zander stiffened and rose back up, his head jerking toward the sound. He twitched and shifted toward it, the growl growing louder in his chest.

  “Not safe!” Zander bellowed, then spun away from me and took off across toward the source of the banging.

  “Zan!” I reached out for him, but he was already gone.

  I tore after him with Jake and the others close behind. We followed him as he wound his way through the randomly placed displays that littered the museum’s main lobby. When he had traversed the midway, Zander shoved aside a massive wooden sleigh as if it were little more than kindling and sent it careening into a nearby claw machine. He rounded the corner then disappeared behind a barn board wall. I leaned into my step and ran even harder. The increase stretched the distance between me, and the rest of the group in a matter of seconds.

  “Zander, what the hell are you doing?” I yelled after him.

  “They are here,” Zander growled from the end of a long corridor. “Have to…stop them.”

  There was a bright light streaming through the glass at the end of the hall. My eyes rebelled against its harshness. Zander was but a silhouette against it and though I could not make out the features on his face, his voice painted a clear picture of just how much pain he was in. His breath was fast and shallow, and his shoulders shook with anxious energy that had my chest aching.

  “Who?” I said as I finally reached him. “Who’s here, Zan?”

  “Not who,” Zander growled his palms flat against the glass emergency door. “What!”

  “What the hell is going on,” Jake gasped from behind me as he and the others finally caught up to us.

  “Everyone, stay back,” I said turning to face them. To my surprise, Ty was among those staring back at me. He nodded and stepped in front of the rest of them.

  “Hold up, y’all,” Ty said his arms outstretched to form a barrier.

  “Close,” Zander hissed, his entire body shaking violently as he leaned against the door.

  I looked past him, through the glass door. My eyes watered uncontrollably against the shock of the bright sun, and I struggled to make out much detail. There appeared to be a concrete stairwell that I presumed took you to ground level somewhere in the back lot. I ground at my eyes, desperate for the burning to cease.

  “Zander, I don’t see—,”

  “Don’t see. Listen,” he said as I stepped closer to the door.

  I placed my palms against the glass, closed my eyes against the fire beyond, and focused on the sounds around me. Zander was panting at my side, his body twitching erratically as he leaned into the door. A rapid and steady fap, fap, fap echoed in my ears, but I was almost sure it was his heartbeat I heard rather than my own. The floor squeaked quietly as the rest of the group shuffled nervously behind us.

  Focus, Liv.

  The wind was blowing fiercely above us creating a faint whistle as it slid through the hollow metal railing at the top of the tunnel. In the distance, a fire was crackling as it devoured its first meal of the day. Beneath it all, there was something e
lse.

  “What’s going on?”

  “What is it?”

  Whispers echoed softly against the walls at my back, but I tuned them out and focused my attention beyond the glass. Dust and debris scraped lightly across the ground as the breeze surged above us. Then, something strange invaded my senses— a rhythmic sort of ticking; like hundreds of tiny clocks, their second-hands just a hair off from the others. My chest burned as the ticking grew closer.

  Then came the scratching. It was faint at first. The sound was barely distinguishable against the backdrop of the incessant clicks. Before too long, it was all I could hear. I struggled to discern the direction from which it was coming. It was impossible. It was as though it were coming from inside my own head. Something slammed against the glass, and I felt the impact against my forehead. My eyes shot open finally cleared of the haze that had temporarily blinded me.

  “Jesus,” I gasped as it flung itself against the thin pane that separated us.

  “Holy crap!” Falisha shouted. “What the hell is that thing?”

  Beady black eyes stared up at me from just beyond the glass. I had never seen anything like this creature in my life. It had four legs and a long tail and was about the size of a rat, but that is where the similarities ended. The animal’s skin was the color of spent charcoal, but at the same time translucent. I could easily make out the individual bones in its ribcage and spine, the edges of which had formed external black spikes on its back. The thing flung itself against the glass again, gnashing its tiny teeth. It clawed furiously at the door with razor-sharp talons that left visible scratches in the glass.

  “Oh, God. It’s trying to get in,” Riley screeched. “Do something!”

  “Block the door,” Zander said through gritted teeth, his red eyes wide and alert.

  I shifted to the side, and the animal followed the movement, bounding in the same direction, its tiny finger-like paws scraping along the pane as it moved. With its arms outstretched, I noticed there was a thin web of tissue that stretched from the elbow of its front legs to its flank. It reminded me of the webbing on a bat’s wings, though from what I had noticed, the animal had yet to fly. Its teeth clacked together feverishly as if its jaw operated on a different frequency than the rest of its body. A viscous fluid dripped from the animal’s mouth. Again, it lunged at me. The thing’s face banged against the glass.

  “Gah!” I yelled, falling back onto my rear.

  The creature clawed at the glass scraping a thin trench into it with each pass. I had no doubt it would eventually slice clean through. It lunged again but was struck in mid-air as another, and another joined in the hunt. Within seconds, the external stairwell was full of the things. They fought and writhed over the top of each other, desperate to get beyond the glass.

  “Get back!” Zander lunged in front of me.

  The stairwell erupted as the creatures that filled it began tittering furiously. Their teeth gnashed at the door frothing their venom until it had clouded the glass. The sound of millions of tiny claws filled the room.

  “We need to block this door,” Jake yelled.

  Zander stayed sentinel, growling and hissing as the creatures dug furiously to reach us. Some of them had begun working at the stucco on the outside of the building. Judging by the condition of the exterior, and the fervor with which the beasts worked, it would only be a matter of time before they succeeded in penetrating it.

  “Jake, help me,” Ty groaned.

  He swept his hands across the top of a large metal table sending the boxes that rested there clattering to the floor. He and Jake pulled it away from the wall and dragged it over to the door. Once there, they up-ended it and leaned it against the glass door. It shut out the sight of the hideous creatures but did nothing to silence their attack. The second they lost sight of their prey, the scraping and clicking increased as they redoubled their efforts to get inside.

  “Stack whatever you can find against this door,” I shouted.

  Zander held the door in place, and the rest of us rushed around, dragging crates and boxes over, and piling them precariously against the metal table. Once the door was held in place, Zander finally stepped back and turned to face me. His eyes were tight with worry. A small ring flashed around his pupils, but his eyes were still dark as night at the center.

  “You…okay?” He struggled to speak as he worked to catch his breath. “Not hurt?”

  “No, I’m fine,” I said placing a hand on his shoulder. This time, he resisted the urge to pull away. “What was that?”

  “I don’t know,” Zander said shrugging apologetically as he raked his hair back.

  “Guys, we need to get out of here,” Jake said cutting him short. He ran toward us dragging Christa by her arm. “I don’t know how long that barricade is going to last, but I would rather not stick around and find out.”

  Chapter 6

  The First Wave

  “Where…are we…supposed to go?” Riley asked, wiping at the sweat that dripped into her eyes. She put her hands on her knees and dropped her chin as she struggled to catch her breath.

  “We can’t leave,” Jake said. “Those things are…everywhere.”

  “Well, we can’t stay here,” Christa shrieked and ripped her arm from his grasp. “They are going to get through any minute.”

  “What the hell do you suggest then, Christa?” Jake threw his hands in the air.

  “Easy, now,” Ty said attempting to step between them. “I think maybe we all need to just simmer down a bit.”

  “And I’m pretty sure no one asked you what you thought,” Jake said, shooting Ty a look. “I don’t need your help dealing with my brat of a sister. I’ve been doing that a heck of a lot longer than you have.”

  “Don’t you dare talk to him like that,” Christa shouted toeing up into Jake’s face.

  “Shut up,” I yelled silencing all of them. “Let me think.”

  Tim was screaming into the tape that covered his mouth. His chest lunged as he wrenched at his restraints. His head swung violently from side to side and bashed against the back of the chair. His movement was so frantic he had actually managed to scoot the heavy throne a few inches across the floor.

  “Falisha,” Zander nodded in Tim’s direction. She made her way over raising the shotgun as she went.

  “What the hell were those things?” Falisha’s eyes were wide with fear.

  “They looked almost like rats,” Riley said, “but I have never seen rats behave like that.”

  “Those ain’t no rats,” Ty said rubbing at the back of his neck. “They were…different.”

  “Private Nicholas,” I said, clawing my hair back as realization struck. “I’m such an idiot. I should have seen this coming. The pods…the damn things must have hatched!”

  “That is the final presentation? Perfect.” Eli kicked a nearby planter, and it toppled over.

  Tim spat and sputtered, scraping his face against his shoulder, desperate to remove the duct tape gag we had placed there. The look on his face had gone from contemptuous to terrified as he continued to struggle against the restraints. Tears ran unchecked down his face and his eyes locked with mine. I shook my head as I walked over to him, and tore the tape free in one yank.

  “You stupid bit—,” he screamed, but Falisha silenced him with a quick tap on the shoulder with the barrel of the gun.

  “Uh-uh,” Falisha grunted.

  “I’m sorry. Please,” he ground out. “Please, you need to let me go.”

  “What we need is a place to hide,” I said.

  We had wandered through here hours ago, but I didn’t recall seeing any place safer than where we were at that moment. It was too hot to go above ground, and most of the exhibits down here in the basement were housed in rooms with pass-throughs or glass barricades; neither of which would do much to protect us against those things. Whatever they were.

  “We have to go, Liv,” Zander said.

  “What about him?” Falisha nodded at the man strapped
to the chair.

  “What about him?” Jake shrieked. “We don’t owe that son of a bitch anything.”

  “But…but…I—I can help!” Tim begged, his eyes searching the group for a sympathetic face. “Let me go and I will help you.”

  “Don’t listen to him, Liv,” Jake said. “He’s crazy.”

  “Help us, how?” I stepped forward.

  “Liv,” Jake reached for me. Zander caught his hand and shook his head.

  “You don’t help people.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “You left all those people to die. You shot my friend. You are a selfish, unstable, vile little man, and I don’t trust you.”

  “I know where you can hide!” He screamed at me. “There’s a safe place. Let me go and I…I’ll tell you where it is. I swear, please.”

  “How do I know you’re telling the truth?” I asked him.

  “You don’t,” the man said. “But you are out of options, right?”

  “Tell me,” I said. “Tell me first, and I will let you go.”

  “You’re lying,” Tim sobbed, and he began struggling against his ties once again. “You are going to leave me here.”

  “I won’t,” I said. “I wouldn’t.”

  “Promise me,” he said his eyes boring into mine. Tears dripped from the end of his nose. “Promise me you will set me free, and I will tell you.”

  “We are running out of time.” Zander’s jaw clenched. His eyes flashed, and he rubbed anxiously at his chest. “We need to move, Liv.”

  “Promise me!” Tim shouted.

  “I promise,” I said putting my hands on the arms of the chair, so my face was less than an inch from his. “Now, tell me.”

  “Liv!” Zander’s fists clenched, and he jerked his head to the side, his darkened eyes narrowed with the strain.

  “There’s a safe,” Tim said in a rush. “A vault, actually.”