“Just a few guards, huh?” Mason said.
Daniel smirked. “I only see two.”
“You failed to mention the weapons.”
Daniel shrugged. “Stop focusing on the negative, Tourist Boy. It’ll just give you wrinkles. What are those anyway? It’s too damn dark out here. Are those machine guns?”
Mason peered into the darkness where, a hundred feet away, a Bagger crossed the street, turned, and started walking back toward the plaza. Held firmly in his arms was a long dark shadow that did look like an automatic weapon.
“Where the hell did they find that?” Mason whispered. Up until now, the Baggers they’d attacked seemed limited in the brains and sanity department. The ones from two nights ago probably couldn’t have held a cucumber properly, let alone a gun. Things were definitely changing with the Baggers these days. They were getting much more organized.
This was going to be a bit of a challenge.
“Probably raided the police stations,” Daniel said. “Would make sense. I’m sure there are a few rabid Bagger cops out there. That would explain why we haven’t been able to find anything. They beat us to the punch. You want to back off?” Daniel went on, but Mason could tell he didn’t mean it. No, Daniel wanted the chase as much as he did.
“We should get a little closer,” Mason said. “I doubt we can take anyone out tonight. But maybe we can get a better idea of what’s going on. Would be good to see inside that complex. I’d like to know how many people they’re holding hostage.”
“Little recon,” Daniel said. “I’m game.”
They jumped up from behind the car and scuttled forward in the dark. Sticking to the shadows wasn’t that difficult. They stayed far enough behind the patrolling Baggers so that any noise they made wouldn’t be heard. When the giant spotlight swung in their direction, they took cover behind abandoned cars or oversized bushes. It was slow moving; after about an hour they’d traveled only two blocks. But they were that much closer.
The area was brighter now. The glow from the plaza was seeping out onto the streets. The security was still slim, but there was always the possibility that Baggers were on guard in the buildings above. Mason spent so much time looking into the shadows of the condo windows that he didn’t notice the danger right in front of him. Luckily Daniel was paying attention. He grabbed Mason and yanked him sideways and behind an abandoned vehicle before Mason’s brain even registered the threat.
Daniel opened the door to the SUV as quietly as possible. “Get in,” he whispered.
They crawled into the cab while one of the Baggers backtracked toward them. Whoever owned the SUV had obviously never cleaned it. There were dozens of empty water and Gatorade bottles, crumpled bags of rancid-smelling takeout, and a lot of construction equipment. The interior smelled of old socks and sour food. Mason wrinkled his nose in disgust.
They crawled into the back, where a pile of dirty clothes was draped over some tools and empty bottles of engine oil.
“This is cozy,” Daniel said.
“Shhhhh.”
Mason elbowed Daniel in the side as the Bagger passed them just a few feet away. He was relieved to hear Daniel suck in his breath and hold it instead of continuing to blab. He tapped his fingers absently on his jeans but didn’t say a word. They waited several minutes until they were positive the monster had passed them completely and headed off into the night.
Mason shook his head. “You really are crazy.”
Daniel sat up and opened the side door. “Crazy is good. Makes me feel alive. But don’t worry, I’m not dumb. Let’s not take chances. I don’t fancy being caught and dragged into whatever hell they have set up there either.”
They climbed out of the vehicle. Mason was careful and closed the door as quietly as possible before they moved on.
The perimeter of the Plaza of Nations was cut off by a thick chain-link fence and barbed wire. Just like a prison, there were spotlights and posts set up where Baggers stood guard with more automatic weapons. Beyond the fencing, Mason could see the courtyard, where they’d pitched tents. There were no people walking around on the ground but he could see shadows behind the canvas.
“We need to get a better look,” Daniel said.
Mason nodded, but it was obvious that they weren’t going to get any closer without being discovered. The grounds were brighter than a sunny day. They’d have to find another way if they were going to get a better look inside the compound.
“We should go up,” Daniel said, and he pointed to the closest building. Beside them stood the remains of a silent skyscraper—the once beautiful beachfront property now nothing but piles of rebar and broken glass. But Daniel was right. If they could find a way up to the tenth floor or so, they’d have a perfect view.
“Think we can get inside?”
Daniel grinned. “I can always find a way.”
Mason wasn’t surprised in the slightest to hear that. Of course he’d figured out from the very start that Daniel was shady. It didn’t faze him at all that Daniel knew how to break into buildings. A guy like him probably had a record sheet a mile long.
But they didn’t have to break into anything. The front doors were completely shattered. All they had to do was walk right through and make sure they didn’t cut themselves on the jagged glass. A small child could have done it. The foyer was dark and empty. A single suitcase stood in the middle of the floor by the elevators. The baggage lay tipped over on its side. Dried blood was spread across the floor beside it. Someone with very large boots had left several footprints on the marble. A once sticky handprint was on the wall by the middle elevator. Someone had tried pressing the button, but obviously their luck ran out shortly after.
“I hate taking the stairs,” Daniel said.
“Cheer up,” Mason said, giving him a slap on the back. “It’ll do you good to put some color in those pasty cheeks of yours.”
“I can kick your ass anytime, Dowell.”
“If you still feel that way when we get to the top, I’m game.”
“Throw in a round of chess, too,” Daniel said. “We all know I’m smarter, might as well prove it.”
They walked past the elevators and into the back, where they found the stairwell. The door was closed but a set of keys was stuck in the lock. Mason reached out and twisted the key. It worked. Automatically they both reached into their pockets and pulled out flashlights. Mason’s was small and metal and it always felt cold in his hands, even after he’d been holding it for a long time. It had become one of the most important things to carry these days, especially at night. That and the Swiss Army knife he kept in the back pocket of his jeans.
Instant security.
They didn’t talk. They just climbed. When they got to the sixth floor, they decided to stop and look around.
The hallway was long and empty. All the doors to the condos were open. They approached the closest one. They could see the cracks in the wood where someone had forced it open.
“They must have come in here and broken down each one,” Daniel said. He ran his fingers along the splintered wood. “Looks like they used a crowbar or something. I wonder if it’s like this on every floor.”
“Possible,” Mason said. “They’ve been cleaning out the houses. I took Aries to her parents’ house today. Someone had been there and removed the bodies.” He paused and glanced at Daniel. “What’s the matter? Didn’t she tell you she was with me?”
Daniel looked over at him a bit too quickly. “She told me.”
Mason grinned.
They moved farther into the darkened condo. The air was musty. The leather couch was arranged perfectly in front of a worthless fifty-inch flat screen. A moldy plate of noodles and half a cup of spoiled wine rested on the expensive coffee table.
“A few months ago I would have killed for a TV like that,” Daniel said.
“Me too.”
They moved past the undisturbed furniture and made their way over toward the windows. Below them was a perfect view of t
he compound. The place was as motionless as it had been when they were on the ground. But the view was a little better. Problem was, there was nothing to see.
Daniel pressed his face against the window’s clear surface, breathing heavily enough to fog the glass.
“I should have brought Michael’s binoculars,” Mason said. “Next time give me a heads-up and—”
They both heard the noise.
A soft resonance as feet stepped through the doorway behind them.
Daniel turned his face, still pressed against the window, his eyes staring straight at Mason. “Oh, that can’t be good. Tell me it’s not bad.”
Mason glanced over at the entrance. There were only two of them and the shadows crowding the door were a lot shorter than he would have expected. He raised an eyebrow and bit down on his tongue to keep from laughing.
“It’s different,” he said.
Daniel slowly turned around and faced their new audience. The two shadows stepped farther into the room, raising their arms so Mason and Daniel could see the kitchen knives in their hands.
They all stood their ground and stared one another down.
Daniel was the first to speak.
“Those are kids.”
“Pint-sized kids,” Mason agreed.
The smallest one opened his mouth and bared his teeth. The bigger one growled and moved inward until he was about ten feet away. Up close, Mason could get a better look at his face. The kid couldn’t have been older than eight or ten. Out of habit, Mason held up the flashlight and directed the beam right into the child’s eyes. Sure enough, from across the room, Mason could see the black veins.
Daniel burst into laughter. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Mason grinned. Even with their weapons it was hard to see either of them as a threat. The small one couldn’t have weighed more than seventy pounds. He waved the knife around in front of him, but it was obvious the kid didn’t know a single thing about using the weapon.
“You want the one on the left or the one on the right?”
Mason opened his mouth to say “piece of cake” but he never got the chance. The bigger kid screamed and suddenly flung himself forward, crossing the remaining distance at a remarkable speed. He crashed straight into Mason’s stomach, knocking him backward and against the window. Mason heard a cracking noise as his head bounced off the glass. He fell to his knees and the kid immediately jumped on top of him, bringing the knife slashing down. Mason brought his arm up just in time to dodge the blow.
The kid grunted hard and squirmed enough to get free and bring the weapon down again. Mason couldn’t understand how something that tiny could be so fast. And heavy! The kid felt like a tank. It took him seconds to press Mason down by his shoulders, using his scrawny kid knees, until Mason’s back was on the floor. Keeping his arms up, Mason had to use all his strength to try and block the blows.
From the corner of his eye, Mason saw Daniel jump over the couch and crash against the dining room table. The smaller kid was right behind Daniel, his own weapon raised above his head as he screamed and hooted. Daniel barely managed to grab a chair and use it to bat the child away. The kid smashed against the wall but was racing back at Daniel the second his feet touched the floor.
Mason finally brought up his legs and bucked the small, grunting child off him. The kid flew straight into the bedroom door frame. Mason seized his chance while the boy was on the ground to reach out and grab the kid’s wrist, using all his strength to slam the kid’s hand against the floor. Grinding the delicate bones, he finally forced the child to drop the knife. He kicked it and the weapon disappeared under the couch.
“Gotcha, you little brat,” he said through gritted teeth.
The kid threw his hands at Mason’s face and started scratching his skin.
He shoved the kid away from him a second time. Pulling himself to his feet, he swung hard, knocking the kid off balance and straight into the leather couch. When the kid tried to get up, he threw him back down again.
“Stay down,” he said. But he might as well have been talking to an untrained puppy.
Daniel tossed his kid against the kitchen table and the pint-sized monster slid across the soft wood and crashed into the counter.
“It’s like fighting rabid runts,” Daniel said as he came over to join Mason.
They stood together as the children both climbed back to their feet.
Mason realized that if this continued, the odds were very good that Daniel and he were going to kill them.
It was one thing to kill Baggers. But child Baggers? Could he really do it? Were they really that different from the full-grown ones?
The bigger kid growled again and crouched low to the ground. Mason prepared himself for the launch.
“No.”
The voice was loud and came from the front entrance. All four of them turned their heads at once. Several Baggers crowded into the room, two of whom held automatic weapons in their hands. They stepped to the side and let another one move forward. He was wearing a business suit and a pair of sunglasses. He walked over to the children and shook a finger at them.
“You will not harm them,” the Bagger said. He was wearing a dirty Santa Claus hat on top of his greasy head.
The child grunted twice. The smartly dressed Bagger beckoned and two of his partners grabbed the children by the shoulders and pulled them away, dragging them back by their clothing and out into the hall.
The Bagger in the suit smiled and adjusted his tie.
“Sorry for the inconvenience,” he said. “Now, if you don’t mind, you’re coming with us.”
There was no room for negotiation.
“Shit,” Daniel said.
CLEMENTINE
They weren’t going to get out of the Museum of Anthropology alive.
Hiding behind some ancient musical instruments, Clementine, Michael, and Raj tried to assess the situation. Everything was in chaos. So many people were screaming, it was hard to tell where one voice ended and another began.
It was impossible to tell who were Baggers and who were normal.
The building was surrounded. They discovered that quickly enough. After the initial attack, Clementine and Michael followed Raj toward the front entrance. They’d turned the corner in time to see a group of Baggers literally tearing apart a few victims with their bare hands. Clementine recognized one of the girls as the one who had cried and thrown herself at Ryder’s feet. Now she was on the floor, her brain being beaten to a pulp by a female Bagger with long purple dreadlocks. Without thinking, Clementine stepped forward to try and do something, anything, to get that poor woman to stop screaming, but Michael, still holding her hand, yanked her backward and toward him.
“They’ll kill you, too,” he said.
Fortunately the screams cut off abruptly at that moment, replaced by a steady gurgle.
“This way,” Raj said. “We’ll go around the back.” He turned and disappeared down the hall and they had no choice but to follow. But even after they fled, she could still hear the sound of baseball bat hitting brain. That noise would never leave her memory.
The problem was that now everyone was trying to make a break for the back exit. There were too many people crowding the hallway toward the emergency doors.
Even worse, when Raj squeezed his way through the manic crowd to get a better look, he returned a few minutes later, blood trickling down his face from where someone had elbowed him, saying, “Door’s blocked. We can’t get out that way.” He started shouting at the others beside him, trying to make them understand that their stampede wasn’t going to lead anywhere. But there was too much panic in the air. No one was listening.
“We have to keep moving,” Michael said. “Are there any other exits?”
“Yeah, but my guess is they’re blocked too,” Raj said. “They’re forcing us toward the front.”
Just like cows toward the slaughter. Clementine’s class once took a tour of a slaughterhouse. When the cows got into line
for the kill floor, they would howl and scream because they could sense what was coming next. She’d had nightmares for months.
“Come on,” Raj said. “I’ve got an idea.”
They set off again. Michael was still holding her hand, Clementine realized, and it was hard not to think about how warm and strong his skin felt. Comforting.
Dear Heath, if it hadn’t been for the Baggers, I’d never have met Michael. Isn’t that one of those weird acts of fate that rock the entire universe? I used to believe that if people were soul mates, nothing in the world could keep them apart. That if they were meant to meet and fall in love, they’d find each other no matter what. But that seems trivial now. I can’t believe I was ever that stupid. I think you’d like Michael. I know you didn’t care much for Craig Strathmore. You always told me I could do better. Considering he tried to kill me, I guess you were right.
They moved through display rooms, only stopping occasionally to listen for where the screams were coming from. Twice they stopped to check on fallen bodies. Both times the person was dead. Once they had to turn around and race back toward the First Nations canoe display because their path became blocked by fighting. It was confusing and Clementine had trouble figuring out where they were. All the rooms looked alike as they passed through them at full speed. Even Raj seemed to get confused a few times. Twice they had to turn around when faced with a dead end. Finally Raj led them into a room and sighed in relief. There were several exits here, one of which led out to the bigger rooms in the front, where Clementine could see the darkness of night seeping in through the windows.
“We have two choices, mate,” Raj finally said. The room was full of woven blankets. According to the display signs, the creators had been dead for hundreds of years.
“Yeah,” Michael said. “Head for the front or hide. Both choices equally bad.”