Love Bug (20 page)

-47-

Captain Ortiz wished that his Em-Pak would stop beeping. The other ERC soldiers in his truck
glanced around trying to determine whose Em-Pak was responsible for all the noise. The truth was that they were all guilty. All of the men could see what lay before them and if they had any sense and no Em-Pak, would have been terrified. Sadly, the ERC soldiers, Ortiz included, had neither of these luxuries and blindly followed Assemblyman Eldritch’s orders to track the signal to its source.

A wa
ve of Reds, at least twenty across and four deep raced towards Ortiz and his men. They had at first appeared confused, maybe even a little scared, but now they just looked angry. Weapons, crude but vicious, were raised high overhead. The helicopters strafed the lines of Reds with machine gun fire, but for every one Red that fell, two appeared to take its place.

Ortiz, even with his modified Em-Pak, could do the simple math of the battle. More bodies than bullets would always win. If there were enough
Reds, they would eventually overrun Ortiz and his men.

“Mr. Eldritch, sir?” Ortiz called into his radio. “We have a situation here
, sir.”

“I can see that
, Captain,” Eldritch growled, “but what I don’t see is you dealing with it. Are you calling to resign your position? Because if you’re not, then may I strongly suggest that you start doing your damn job and track down the source of that signal!”

“Understood, sir,” Ortiz answered and clicked off his radio. “Lock and load men. We’re going to engage the enemy.”

“Sir! Yes sir!” the ERC soldiers answered in unison. Once Ortiz and his men were out of their vehicles, the helicopters would have to stop firing and provide intel. Ortiz couldn’t risk losing any men to friendly fire. He was going to need every single soldier if they were going to survive this and complete the mission.

The helicopters pulled back, splitting off from one a
nother and circling the clearing.

“Go now
, Captain!” one of the helicopter pilots called through the radio. “There’s a break in the enemy lines!”

“You heard them!” Ortiz shouted and leap
t from the driver’s seat. He checked the magazine on his machine gun, flicked the safety and prepared to face countless Reds.

The helicopter pilot had been correct, there was a break in the Reds’ li
nes, but only a brief one that quickly closed around Ortiz and his men. Shots went wild as the Reds surged forward, dragging soldiers to the ground, tearing into them with weapons and teeth alike.

“Stay focused on the mission!” Ortiz shouted. “Clear a path! We need to find the source of that signal!” The ERC soldiers silently nodded their agreement and focused their firing on a single column of Reds. Bodies crumpled under the hail of bullets, opening a space for Ortiz and his men.

“We’ve got space, Captain!” a soldier yelled. He turned to face Ortiz and left himself blind to the Red that leapt from behind him, dragging him to the ground and savagely tearing into his throat with row upon row of pointed teeth.

Ortiz paused to shoot the Red in the face before leading the charge through the opening his troops had made. Reds came from all sides, surging like
storm waves battering the helpless edges of the shoreline, but each surge of Reds were pushed back by round after round of machine gun fire. Ortiz could see that each attack cost him at least one soldier, if not more. He would need to move and keep moving. The math was rapidly getting worse and Ortiz could sense the odds drastically tipping away from his favor.

“Report
, Captain!” Eldritch’s voice barked through the radio in Ortiz’s helmet.

“Tracking…damn it!” Ortiz cried as a Red clamped down on his arm. He pulled his
pistol from its leg holster and shot the Red in the temple. It fell to the ground, but not before leaving a bloody ring of holes gaping on Ortiz’s arm. “Sorry, sir,” Ortiz continued. “We’re tracking the signal now.” Ortiz paused to fire a few rounds. “We’re close. Within fifty feet of the source, Mr. Eldritch, sir. Still no sign of your family members, sir.” A few more rounds chewed into the side of another Red who wildly swung a gnarled club.

“Carry on
, Captain,” Eldritch’s voice commanded, “find that source!”

“Understood, sir,” Ortiz
gasped as he flexed his injured arm to bring up his machine gun. Blood streaked down Ortiz’s arm, soaking into his uniform and sticking the material to his side.

The Reds finally began to fall back
, their attacks becoming intermittent. Ortiz was thankful for the break, but something about the Reds’ behavior worried him. They were acting as if they had a plan, some idea as to what they were doing. Ortiz, like all citizens, had been taught by the ERC that the Reds were mindless animals, capable of little more than violence and the basest instincts. The Reds pulled back, regrouping near the smoldering remains of a circle of vehicles.

“Signal
, Lieutenant?” Ortiz grunted as he picked off a few of the retreating Reds.

“It’s coming from somewhere near
that building, Captain,” the soldier responded, “or at least what’s left of it.”

Ortiz nodded and began moving towards the remains of what looked like it had once been a shed of some sort.
A boy ran from the ruins with a girl close behind. No, not just any girl, it was Cora Eldritch and a ghost followed close behind. Another boy hesitated near the wreckage, as if unsure of what to do. He eventually turned and followed behind the others. It was Xander Eldritch.

“Mr. Eldritch,” Ortiz panted as he chased after Cora. “We’ve located the source of the signal. I’ve got eyes on your children
, and well, I’m not sure how to say this, but what appears to be your father as well, sir. There’s also an unidentified boy, sir.”

“My father,” Eldritch responded, his words more of a statement than a question. “Follow your orders
, Captain. Collect my family members, alive. Everyone else is expendable.”

“Understood, sir,” Ortiz snapped and then turned to his soldiers. “You know the orders. Collect the members of the Eldritch family. Anyone
else is expendable.” As Ortiz finished his words, a soldier cried out in pain.

The Em-Pak could prevent or erase numerous feelings, but pain was not one of them.
The soldier bore a ragged wound on his right side. He desperately tried to stuff his spilled innards back into the gaping hole, but to no avail.

“Captain?” the soldier asked before his eyes rolled back and he tumbled to the ground with a sickeningly wet slap.

A small Red, no more than ten or so, crouched behind the now dead soldier. The Red chewed slowly, her pointed teeth jutting out at odd angles from her mouth. Ortiz momentarily thought that at one point this girl probably would have been a prime candidate for braces and then shook the idea from his head. He fired.

More Reds were approaching. A young girl, or at least what had once been a young girl, appeared to be giving orders. The Reds split into two groups, the larger of the two closing in on Ortiz and his men. The smaller group of Reds, including their
apparent leader, broke off and trailed after the Eldritch family.

“Engage the Reds!” Ortiz ordered. “Keep our exit clear! I’m going after the Eldritch family.”

“Alone, Captain?” one of the ERC soldiers asked, not out of concern, rather just as a point of clarification.

“We need a clear exit. That means
every able gun is pointed at the Reds,” Ortiz barked. “I’ll get the targets and then we’re gone.”

Ortiz turned and sprinted after his targets. His lungs burned from the heavy clouds of cordite that hung in the air. The smell coated Ortiz’s mouth, drying the inside and filling it with a taste similar to blood. Ortiz’s Em-Pak chirped loudly, but the sound was lost beneath
that of countless machine gun rounds and the screams of ERC soldiers.

-48-

Remmy’s ears still rang, but the red spots no longer
swam through his vision. Cora pulled him from the floor and yanked him out of the shed seconds before it disappeared in a hail of bullets and splinters. The scene that awaited Remmy felt surreal, almost impossible. Countless Reds attacked ERC soldiers while three black helicopters darted back and forth like angry wasps.

“
Remmy, we need to go!” Cora shouted as she shook his shoulder. She grabbed his wrist and pulled. Remmy, his head clearing, suddenly seemed to comprehend Cora’s words and began running. Her hand began to slip from Remmy’s wrist, but he twisted his hand and grabbed Cora’s, their fingers intertwined.

“I’m not losing you twice,” Remmy g
rinned, his words sounded rough, his throat choked with dust, but the look on his face spoke of nothing but love.

Samuel and Xander were outside, both looking like they had passed through Hell to get here. Only Xander appeared unfazed by the killing and chaos. Remmy chalked it up to the influence of the boy’s Em-Pak, though he couldn’t truly be sure.

“This way!” Samuel pointed to a narrow path that disappeared into the woods. Remmy and Cora ran to keep up, but Xander hesitated near the ruins of the shed.

“Xander!” Samuel cried. “Xander, we must leave now! Please, come with us!”

Xander remained still. A massive pack of Reds streamed towards the ERC soldiers he stared at. Xander appeared to be weighing his options. With no apparent way to reach the ERC soldiers, Xander turned and ran towards the woods.

“How did you find me?” Remmy panted as he willed his legs to move faster.
His fingers remained locked with Cora’s.

“Samuel,” Cora gasped. “He found you, but can’t we discuss this later?”

“Good idea,” Remmy agreed.

“Cora!” Xander screeched, his voice
momentarily panicked and laced with pain.

Remmy, Samuel and Cora skidded a few steps before turning to see Xander pinned to the ground by a young Red. The girl’s face was badly burned on
one side, her white teeth appearing to glow against the blackened skin.

“Leaving so soon?” Jessica grinned as she loomed over Xander.

“Jessica stop! Please!” Remmy shouted. He turned to run back, but Cora’s grip on his hand remained steadfast, her fingers strong and unyielding as steel bars.

“Jessica?” Cora asked. “Remmy? What is going on?”

“I knew her,” Remmy answered. “I know her.” Cora’s grip weakened ever so slightly. “I’ll be okay, Cora, I promise. You need to let me help Xander.”

“You know her?” Cora asked, feeling jealousy for the first time. “How could you know her?”

“Cora, please,” Remmy pulled away. “Later, right?”

Cora hesitated. She wanted Remmy back, needed him back. Xander was her brother and Cora didn’t want anything to happen to him, but Xander refused to change. Would Cora really risk having Remmy back for Xander? Remmy brought joy and love into Cora’s life. He made her feel complete. Xander was the antithesis of all of these feelings
, but he was still her brother.

“Jessica, let him go,” Remmy demanded. Cora let go of his hand, a decision that felt harder than any she had ever made before. Remmy turned
, locking his eyes with Cora’s, and smiled. It was a small smile, little more than a curl of the corner of Remmy’s lips, but it made Cora’s heart tighten and flutter.

“Be careful,” Cora whispered as she watched Remmy slowly approach the snarling Red named Jessica.

“You could have had it all, Remmy!” Jessica cried. “You could have been a king! My king! Look at what I did for you! I killed Hatch to keep you safe and you try to run away? What kind of thanks is that for all that I have done? For keeping you safe for so long?”

“Jessica,” Remmy said softly, “I’m not like you. I’m not a Red. I don’t want this. I don’t want to be a king.”

“What!” Jessica shouted. Xander squirmed beneath her. Jessica opened her jaws revealing rows of wicked teeth. She dragged a few dagger-like points across Xander’s cheek, carving ruby red lines into the soft flesh. “Be still food,” Jessica threatened. “Keep fighting and I might just get hungry.” She licked Xander’s blood from her teeth. A predatory smile, like a cat toying with a bird, stretched across Jessica’s face as she returned her gaze to Remmy. Xander stopped moving, his eyes fixed on the Red’s teeth.

“I appreciate what you did for me
, Jessica,” Remmy began. He slowly moved towards her and Xander. “I really do, but you can’t force that life on me.”

“How do you
force
freedom on someone, Remmy?” Jessica sneered. “That’s just stupid. I offered you the freedom to live without fear. But you’d rather scamper off with
her
? And what, Remmy? What will your life be like? I’ll tell you what! You’ll live every day in fear of infection, fear of the Reds and fear of the ERC! How is that living?”

“I don’t know
, Jessica,” Remmy answered, “but that’s my life. It was yours too. Remember the camp? Remember my parents? Remember your parents, Jessica?”

A look of true sadness crept into Jessica’s eyes. The insanity seemed to waver
like the dying flame of a candle. She looked as if she were trying to force back her emotions and bury the memories. Jessica snapped her teeth one more time, but all threat was gone. She stood, looming over Xander, her teeth bared.

“Get
up, food,” Jessica growled. “You’re lucky Remmy was here. Lucky that I still have some memory of who I was. Lucky that I’m not hungry.” Jessica paused and turned her gaze to Remmy. She appeared sad. “I do remember, Remmy. That’s why I was trying to keep you here. I remember everyone, especially you. I miss them all the time. I’m lonely all the time, Remmy. It’s awful. I just wanted some of those feelings to go away, even just a little bit.”

“Jessica,” Remmy began. He had no idea what he was going to say. Could he really tell her to come with them? What was he expecting?

“Leave, Remmy,” Jessica snarled, a claw-like finger pointing towards the woods. “Leave now before I change my mind.”

“Thank you,” Remmy nodded.
Jessica’s shoulders trembled slightly. Remmy couldn’t tell if it was from rage or tears. Maybe it was both.

A shadow mo
ved behind Jessica and Xander, something large and menacing. Thoughts of Tam flooded Remmy’s mind, but Tam was dead.

“
JESSICA!”
Remmy screamed as the soldier leveled his gun with the back of her head. Remmy dove forward, not knowing what he planned to do, but determined to save someone who had once been a friend, no matter what she had become.