“I don’t want to hear about anything like this again,” Yara said. Since the conversation seemed as though it were coming to a close, Kate crept back through the lobby and left.
On the walk back to the barracks, Kate battled with her inward self. Norman’s reputation here was souring. Kate could wait it out, let his mistakes catch fire, and watch him burn. In the meantime, she could tell Nick everything to ensure her protection.
If she knew Nick as well as she thought, he would not sit idly by and wait for Norman to be the catalyst of his own destruction. The knowledge of his misdeeds against Kate would drive Nick to immediate action. While Kate was eternally grateful for Nick, she knew that she needed to handle this on her own.
A twinge of pain shot up through her pelvis and into her stomach, causing her to pause just outside of the barracks. Kate’s hands shot to the area, and she took several deep breaths, hoping it would subside. The pain relented enough for her to carry on.
She entered the bedroom, making a mental note not to touch her stomach or give any sign that she was in pain, and foundNick lying in bed. His eyes were heavy, as though he were just about to drift off before being interrupted by her entrance.
“Hey,” Nick said with a grin, his voice sleepy.
“Hey,” Kate replied. She kicked off her shoes, picked out a set of clothes to sleep in, and changed in the bathroom. When she returned to the bedroom, Nick was fast asleep on his back with his hands behind his head. Kate slid under the covers and wrapped an arm around his middle, burying her face into his chest. Without opening his eyes, Nick kissed her forehead and went back to sleep.
Thoughts of Norman squeezed her brain until her head throbbed. She focused on the heartbeat thrumming beneath her head. The steady tempo, Nick’s body channeling his lifeforce through him lulled Kate into a state of weariness until her eyes closed, and she fell away into a veiled dream.
Until the gunshots punctured their slumber.
Nick bolted upward, scrambling across Kate until his feet hit the floor. He threw his rifle around his neck and pulled his boots on.
“Nick, what are you doing?” Kate sat up, frightened.
When Nick turned to look at her, his expression was tense. He was awake, though it was as if he were in a daze—his eyes glazed over and hollow. When Kate pulled the covers back and moved to follow him, he put out a hand to block her.
“You need to stay here,” Nick ordered, then disappeared down the hall.
As he jogged through the barracks, his boots hit the floor in a thunderous cacophony. The gunfire continued as Nick burst through to the outside and ran toward the sound.
Residents of Fort Vanguard were either observing from a safe distance or making their way to the chaos. Nick approached a wall at the back to find Marines standing on top and shooting down into the area on the other side. A ladder had been proppedagainst the concrete wall, and Nick wasted no time climbing the rungs and positioning himself beside the shooters.
The rapid succession of 5.56mm rounds exploded in Nick’s ears as he raised his rifle and aimed. The creatures were rushing the gates with unnatural speed, their howling laughter climbing in volume as they closed in. The guards’ rounds pelted the Infected in an uncoordinated frenzy. Some of the shooters were firing into the same monster, filling it with unnecessary bullet holes. Others were missing their targets entirely.
“Hey!” Nick stood and addressed the guards on the wall. A few of them looked to be seasoned military. Many were civilians, their hands trembling and eyes wide with panic. “Pick a lane and fire only into that lane. Steady your shots. Aim. Breathe. Exhale. Shoot. Don’t jerk the trigger. Squeeze it gently.”
The weapons began firing again, and while some of the shots remained sporadic, the amount of wasteful attempts lessened. A rhythmic chorus of gunfire ensued as the shooters contained their targeting to specific areas, using less ammo to drop more Infected.
Marcus climbed the ladder, set an ammo can amid the marksmen, and settled in beside Nick. He assessed the horde scrambling for the walls and watched the system play out.
“Hey, nice job taking charge,” Marcus said. His tone was genuine, though Nick wondered if he meant his words or if he felt supplanted by Nick’s calling the shots. Nick nodded and continued taking out the creatures.
The flood lights strapped to poles along the walls revealed an open area of crimson grass barely visible beneath the bullet-ravaged bodies. One of the guards swept casings into an empty ammo can while the rest paused in anticipation of more Infected. The land surrounding the base returned to its usual state of abnormal silence.
Two Marines remained on watch atop the walls while the rest climbed down, anxious to return to their beds. Though Nick’s mind was foggy with exhaustion, the circumstance of a horde nagged at him. To his knowledge, there had not been any loud sounds to draw them in. What if they had been lured there on purpose? Phoenix, living on the outskirts of the base, came to mind. He had a difficult time believing the boy, barely a man, could execute such a thing.
Nick pushed the thought to the back of his mind. He did not have enough information to think it was something Phoenix would want to achieve, yet he did not trust him enough to dismiss the notion entirely.
When Nick slunk back into the room, Kate was sitting cross-legged on the bed. Her eyes searched him over for injuries and an explanation as to what happened.
“A horde outside the walls,” Nick said before she could ask. When he crawled into the bed, Kate wrapped her arms around him and kissed the side of his face. Nick smiled and held her, shoveling all the dark inquiries from his expression and burying them inside himself.
Nick was tired. Tired of questioning. Tired of doubting. Rather than allow his mind to sift through dire situations, Nick squeezed his eyes shut, demanding his brain to let tomorrow’s problems dwell in tomorrow. Today’s complications had been enough.
Chapter 14
Misty rain fell as Nick and Kate walked down the street from the military base. Phoenix had been holed up in an abandoned building nearby, keeping tabs on the operation from the outside. The drizzle chilled their skin, an unpleasant reminder that autumn was fading, and the relentless winter temperatures loomed ahead.
“Hey, guys!” Phoenix’s face lit up upon seeing the pair. Nick shook his hand, imagining how lonely it must have been in a town where the residents were rotting away.
“Hi, Phoenix.” Kate gave him a quick hug and examined him as though the evidence of hardship would be clinging to his clothes.
