The two of us worked in silence, watching our beloved leader as he waged a silent war inside his body. His chest rose and fell with every wet, wheezing breath, muscles twitching as if trapped in a bad dream. This was a nightmare for all of us, one we wouldn’t be waking from anytime soon. Cipher whimpered, then growled, guttural and low.
Neither of us needed to say it. Even in slumber, he sounded like a Rabid.
I hadCipher’s map of Greenville along with the recruitment flyer Crenshaw had given me. That, in addition to my memory of how we got there, would be enough to find the United Forces’ base again, despite it being the middle of the night. Macon drove the Humvee down the darkened, abandoned roads while I navigated. We’d laid a bedroll in the back and placed Cipher on top of it, using Jeremiah’s rigging to strap him down. Overkill, maybe, but we weren’t taking any chances. When the road became too hard to pass, we took the Humvee off-road, mowing down whatever shrubbery and small trees stood in our path. We saw packs of Rabids hunting in the nighttime, their opaque eyesreflecting the headlights of our vehicle, but the sounds of the engine must have made them wary because they didn’t come any closer.
It was hard to imagine Cipher becoming one of them. If I saw him in the woods or found him gnashing his teeth outside our gates, would I kill him? I’d killed other Rabids without any concern for who loved them, who missed them, who desperately wanted them back.
Stay positive, Kitten. You’ve got this.
It was still dark when we arrived at the base, and it wasn’t immediately clear where the entrance was, so I directed Macon to a fenced gate and shot a flare into the sky. The flare lit up like a firework, leaving a huge plume of red smoke in its wake. I remembered watching the fireworks show from our backyard when I was little. Every summer on the Fourth of July there was a neighborhood barbeque. Hot dogs and hamburgers and ice cream pops that dripped down your fingers and left your hands sticky for hours, running around in the endless twilight with my brother and Lucas and whatever other kids were around. All of it topped off with a brilliant display of fireworks that lit up the sky.
Would Cipher make it to the Fourth of July?
Soon enough we heard a siren wailing, likely alerting the base to our presence, and four military Jeeps appeared out of nowhere boxing us in on all sides.
“Drop your weapons and step out of the vehicle,” one of the soldiers barked at us via megaphone while aiming his rifle in our direction. I dropped the flare gun in the seat of the Humvee and slowly exited the passenger side with my hands raised to show them I was unarmed. On the driver’s side, Macon did the same. They herded us together, four rifles pointed in our direction. I was sweating and nervous, but my need to save Cipher canceled out all other fears.
“I’m Joshua Perrin-Rogers, a civilian, and I’m here to see Captain Crenshaw,” I told them without being prompted. Their floodlights were aimed in our direction, which made it hard for me to see their faces.
“How do you know the Captain?” the soldier asked.
I slowly reached into my pocket and pulled out the recruitment flyer she’d given me. The soldier gave it a once-over and said, “Crenshaw’s in the field.”
“Can you radio her to come back to base? It’s an emergency.”
“What’s the emergency?”
Could I trust them with this information? Would they consider Cipher turning Rabid a true emergency? What if they decided to kill him on sight? I had to take the risk. “Our friend got bit by a Rabid. He’s in the back of the Humvee, sedated and restrained. We came here to see about treatment.”
The soldiers exchanged a look, hard to know if they believed us or not, but honestly, why would we lie? The same one from before said, “Take five steps toward us, away from the vehicle. Slowly.”
We both did as instructed while another soldier slipped in behind us. Three more trained their rifles on the cab door of the Humvee.
“Please don’t hurt him,” I said.
A soldier threw open the door to reveal Cipher, now conscious, his opaque eyes squinting as he shrank from the floodlight, still whimpering with hunger. He was strapped down and lying on his side just as we’d left him, mouth covered with the mask. He looked sick and so helpless but beautiful still.God, please save him.
“Can you help him?” I asked the soldiers. “Please?”
“We have a protocol for anyone entering the base,” the soldier said. “We need you to strip down so we can look you over for any signs of the disease.”
Macon and I complied, discarding all of our clothing, even our underwear. One of the soldiers angled the floodlight on us while the others inspected us from head to foot, making us turn around and bend over. I didn’t care enough to be embarrassed. I’d do whatever it took to get Cipher some help.
Finally satisfied, they told us to get dressed while they huddled together in a tight group and discussed it. I tried to guess what the soldiers were saying from their body language alone, but the light in my eyes was still blinding me.
“It’s going to be okay. We’re going to get you some help,” I said to Cipher. His head turned sharply toward me and maybe I was only imagining it, but he glared at me as if I’d betrayed him.
“How’d your friend get infected?” the same soldier from before asked me.
“He and my brother were out picking strawberries in a field. Rabids attacked them in the daytime. They ran away but Cipher fell behind, and one bit him on the neck.”
I should have gone with him. I shouldn’t have trusted Santiago to protect Cipher. When had he ever saved anyone but himself?
“We’re going to take the two of you inside. Lieutenants Reed and Sonders here will drive the Humvee and transport your friend to a secure location within our lab.”
“Can I go with him?” I asked.
“No, it’s not safe. The two of you will stay in the barracks until we’ve had time to discuss this matter.”
