For the next several days we met with either Steinberg alone or together with Ellis over dinner. More often with Ellis by himself since Steinberg was preoccupied more than usual. The surface was hit by a powerful thunderstorm with high winds including a possible tornado. As deep underground as we were, we didn't realize any of it happened, until reports came down via Steinberg. Either way the hangers which housed the multimillion dollar helicopters were destroyed and all 3 of the helicopters were damaged sufficiently enough to ground them for several weeks. Ground patrols and maintenance crews were also kept busy repairing major gaps torn in the fences around the perimeter from fallen trees.
We continued to learn more about the base and during our “meetings” disguised as dinners, we all presented and approved several ideas as well as rejecting twice as many. Thanks to Steinberg however we were able to go outside into the quarry tunnel and rummage through our trucks under the guise of finding personal items. Maggie was able to smuggle quantities of compound explosives in her clothing and, thanks again to Steinberg's help, by pass the decontamination and proceed directly to our quarters, where she stashed the illicit material in various but easily accessible areas in both apartments. We were slowly building up a decent weapons cache. Yet somehow I felt that we would still be leaving it all behind. The weapons that we did manage to smuggle inside were mostly small arms. Steinberg has managed to slip a couple of riot guns, along with ammunition during his visits. Fortunately, Frank, Maggie and James were well versed in weapons assembly as Steinberg and Ellis brought them in a few pieces at a time under their clothing. I was learning how to by the hour. Ellis started wearing long shifts of linen that was belted around the middle by a braided cord of coordinating color, of course he only wore this after hours. Nobody thought it was odd. And why not? Though they tried to hide it their preference for each other wasn't a secret, just not as open as the two would like.
Places like this one were one of the last hold-outs on being against the “don't ask-don't tell”. Frank was still old school enough to make a comment everytime the two left after dinner. Maggie and I ignored it since we knew there were more pressing things to be concerned about.
One evening after the dinner, Maggie excused herself and went to bed early. James stayed up late playing video games on the television in Frank's apartment. Steinberg was nice enough to allow Maggie to go to Frank's truck and retrieve James' pack which held the console and various cartridges of games, not to mention stuffing the pack with as much explosives as she could put in there without making it too obvious. James complained that the controllers made his hands smell like plastique, then went back into that focused gaming zone that 12 going on 13 year old boys tend to go to.
Frank came back in from one of his visits with Bob. The look on his face said that it wasn't good news. He came in and went to the kitchen and pulled open a drawer and to my surprise pulled out a bottle of whiskey, found a glass in one of the overhead cabinets and promptly poured himself a drink then knocked it back, then poured another. He stood there, his face a difficult mask of anger, pain, confusion, regret, fear and even bemusement which became evident when a small grin turned up the corners of his mouth. He looked at me watching him. The grin became larger and he stepped over to the counter/bar and set the bottle down in front of me. “John, have a drink with me. You're going to need it.”
I reached out for the bottle and grabbed the neck. It was good ole' black Jack number 7 and honestly it was meant to be sipped not gulped the way Frank was imbibing in it. Whatever it was that was going to prompt me to start drinking heavily, obviously wasn't going to be good. It took Frank a second to see that I was without a glass and he spun on his heel and grabbed one out of the still opened cabinet. Quietly he turned back and set the glass on the counter in front of me. The look in his eyes was now one of just sadness.
I still said nothing. Hardening my heart in an effort to steel myself for whatever Frank had to tell me. I got the glass and poured myself a respectable knock. I held on to the bottle for a moment longer when Frank finished his second glass. By my estimates he'd already had six ounces of whiskey in him. I had no idea of the effects of alcohol on the man. I've seen some steady, stalwart men go totally out of their minds once they got past that second drink. I shouldn't have underestimated this man in front of me. He reached out and gently tugged at the bottle in my hand until I relented. Pouring himself a smaller amount this time he set the bottle down and found a stool to sit across from me. Instead of drinking he simply stared at the amber liquid in the glass. “Bob is dead” he said quietly.
I stared at him, my thoughts racing. How? What? Frank looked back at me and saw the interplay of confusion on my face. “You remember that Kubrick movie with Peter Sellers and the war room and all that?” I nodded that I did. He chuckled to himself “Remember that nutso General that started the whole mess?” I nodded again and came to a slow realization. Frank grinned when he saw that I caught on. “How life seems to imitate art” he said, and took a sip this time from his glass.
“Bob...” I left it hanging.
He nodded affirmatively then shook his head. Was that a yes and a no? I wasn't sure, but I went and took a sip from my own glass. The liquid burned my throat wonderfully. I took a second to pat myself on the back for not even wincing as Frank watched me.
“Bob died of a simple heart attack.” he began, “brought on by years of smoking, stress, heart disease and just plain being worn out too soon.” He took another small sip. “But, like that aforementioned General in the aforementioned movie, he was off the deep end.” He sighed and finished off his drink, then poured another, even smaller amount. “Long story short, this base is designed to protect the outside world from whatever contagion there may be that's being studied. It's also designed to protect members of government from whatever problems there are.” He pointed a finger at me, “And it's also designed to be one of the last ditch defenses against any outside aggression.
“Basically we have control of a certain number of nuclear missiles located not too far from here.” I gaped at him, “You mean he initiated a launch? Against whom? How long?” Frank held up his hand to stop my questions. “He didn't but the computer will.
“Essentially, the fail-safe is on a 12 hour clock. Every twelve hours a code has to be entered into the computer to restart the fail-safe countdown clock, the destruction of this base. Bob, unfortunately died before he could punch in the code. As far as the missiles, well Bob told me, before he had his heart attack by the way, that he had set up the computer to launch his battery of missiles on some of the larger cities in our sector. This would include Chicago, Dallas, Houston, St. Louis, Louisville, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, places like that. This was so to prevent these cities from falling into enemy hands.” He giggled a little, “a little late I think but that's besides the point.”
I watched the man, trying to gauge him as best as I knew him in the short time we've been together. No, he wasn't going off the deep end either but he didn't look like he was resigning to whatever fate his friend Bob had determined for us all. “There's nothing we can do about the base clock. It's set and in about ten minutes hell is about to open it's gates here at Wildfire.”
He polished off his drink and set the glass down and pushed it away from him. Without taking his eyes off of me he reached into a drawer set in the counter-bar and for a second I expected a gun, but it was a small spiral note-pad and pen. “Our time table is about to start.” he said and opened up the pad to where he had copious notes written out.
Frank and I sat at the kitchen counter/bar and chatted about our plan. It had already been laid out and everything sewed as neatly as we could see. It was more of something to occupy our conversation. I had mentioned something about one of the security gates that we would have to go through, knowing that we'd already gone over it. Frank didn't reply and was watching James. On the counter he was idly doodling in the note pad, until he started writing. I leaned forward to try and make out what he was writing. Though it may have been rude, the intensity that he was putting pen to paper, begged my attention. It looked like a series of numbers written out between short sentences.
“Uh, Frank?” I waited and he paused then continued writing. “Frank?” more insistent. “Sorry to interrupt your train of thought, but something tells me I might not like what you're writing down there.”
Frank paused, holding the pen above the paper for a long moment, then scribbled something else down before putting the pen on the counter, and closed the cover of the notebook. He picked up the sheet and stared at it, then placed it back on the counter with the numbers facing me. He slid it over to me. I didn't take it right away. Without waiting he reached into the pocket of his shirt and pulled out what I saw was to be a USB flash-drive. He placed it on the cover of the notebook.
“What is that?” caution in my voice.
Frank looked up at me, his eyes a little moist. He gestured with the notebook once more without speaking. I still refused to take it and stared back at him. “What is it Frank?” I was gentle as I could be. This was troubling him something fierce, and it just now was coming up to the surface.
“If you love Maggie and if you love James, you'll take this. It's my final gift, to all of you.” Again, he slid the pad towards me. “Please, take this, it's a place, far west from here. It's a place of...” He was cut off by a low klaxon warning buzzer. We stared at each other for a moment, like deer in the headlights. It had begun. I started to get up when Frank grabbed my arm and put my hand on the paper he was trying to give me. “Take it and read it later, but don't lose it. The flash-drive is for if you get your hands on a working lap-top, it has more details.” There was such an insistence in his voice that I couldn't refuse. I merely glanced at the writing and then grabbed the USB drive and notebook and shoved both into my pants pocket. This time we both launched ourselves out of our chairs.
By the time we reached James, Maggie had appeared in the adjoining door, fully dressed and buckling an ammo belt around her waist, while awkwardly holding another ammo belt and holster with a side-arm in one hand. On her shoulders was a large pack that had me wondering just where she got it from. James caught sight of her movements and took one look. The console flew out of his hands, clattering on the coffee table, and he jumped up from his seat and headed towards his mother who signed quickly to him. He moved swiftly around her without a word, and into the apartment we shared. Maggie stepped up to us.
“I guess plan A isn't going to get a chance to see if it'd work.” she breathed. Her eyes bright, looking around the room, before settling on me.
Frank gestured to me, “Better get your things, I think we're on our way out of here, whether we're ready for it or not.” I nodded and headed straight to the door way to our quarters, nearly running into James who was also armed and shouldering a small pack. He ignored me and went straight to his mother, that hungry look for violence was back in his eyes again.
I entered the apartment and headed to the bedroom where my own pack and weapons sat in a corner of the room patiently waiting. On the bed was a small pile of clothes. I went to them and saw that they were my old clothes from before we entered this place. Maggie must've grabbed them from the closet and tossed them on the bed while she was getting dressed. Damn, that woman was quick.
I could barely remember shucking off the garments the facility had provided and pulling my old clothes on. My heart was racing but I fought to calm it down as I laced up my boots. By the time I cinched the knot on the boots, I was in that zone. I swallowed hard and looked around the room that we called home for the past few weeks. “Right, no place is safe.” I muttered and got off the bed and grabbed my pack, shouldering it in one move as I walked to the doorway. I reached over my shoulder and felt for the handle of my sword, tucked in it's spot on my pack. I paused, not quite sure why, then remembered. I went back over to the bed and picked up the pants and got the notebook and the flash-drive. Awkwardly I managed to reach around and open a zipper on my pack and shoved the two items into the side pocket and zip it back up.
Maggie met me at the door, “Got everything?” I looked past her and saw Frank who approached the two of us, buttoning his fatigues as he walked. Our eyes met and I answered Maggie. “Yeah, ok, now what?”
Frank gestured and lead us both to the computer that was set up in his room. He stood at the desk and bent over, quickly typed something on the keyboard. The base emblem appeared on the screen for a couple of seconds before switching to a red background with the words “Security Authorization Code Accepted” in large yellow letters flashed repeatedly, and within moments the screen went dark before two lines divided the screen into four windows. Steinberg's video feed appeared in one and Ellis' in another, the other two remained dark. I felt something nudge my elbow and saw that Maggie was looking at the screen but handing me the additional gun belt. I grabbed it and started buckling it on, working it under my pack.
On the screen, Steinberg's mouth was moving, but no sound was coming out. Frank looked at the screen puzzled for a moment. Maggie reached across her father's hands over the keyboard and turned a switch on a small set of speakers on either side of the monitor.
“...eech, we're going to have to go to the alternate plan. Ellis and I will be there as soon as we can!” Steinberg's voice was a measured calm, but his eyes showed something different. “What is it, what happened?” Frank yelled at the screen.
“The dead on the surface have somehow made their way past the outer defenses and have entered the base, there's hundreds of them. They've already overwhelmed the security forces and are making their way down inside. We're going to have to evac before they find their way down to this level, but that's not all. Ellis?” We could see him flicking his eyes to a separate monitor as he addressed his lover.
“Somehow the dead in the lab have gotten free.” his voice was panicky but he still managed to hold him self together enough to explain the situation. “The lab has already been over-run, I'm in the outer security office. The doors won't hold them for too long, all the airlocks have been compromised. I don't know how but they won't lock.” He paused for a moment, looking over his shoulder. Though his face nearly filled the screen we could make out a soldier carrying an automatic rifle rush past him. A moment later the speakers were blaring out the sounds of gun-fire. Ellis looked behind him and turned quickly back to the screen. “I'll meet you at the elevators on level 7!” and then he was gone.
Steinberg held his ground. “Alright, plan B is in effect. Meet Ellis at the elevator and then head for the central shaft.” He was about to leave, when Frank stopped him.
“Major! How long do we have?”
Steinberg grinned back. “If everything is as I put it, we'll have about 30 minutes to get to the surface. Get moving! Meet Ellis, make sure he gets out” his face softened, “... please.” Then his screen went black. Outside under the noise of the klaxon buzzing we could hear panicked voices of the other residents on our level. People were already starting to evac. It was going to get messy real quick.
Frank stood up straight and his posture was that of him in his command mode. “Alright, we need to stay together as a group. No firing of our weapons until those things are on our level. We'll meet Ellis and then head for the central core shaft. Maggie signed three words that I learned, “With us, stay!” to James, who nodded. She reached out and grabbed her son by one shoulder, and signed again. “No shoot living.” He nodded grimly once again and she pulled him in and gave him a quick hug. He returned it but had that look of “Aww mom!” on his face. I had to grin.
Frank moved to the door and unholstered his sidearm. He waited til we were gathered together. Maggie had her pistol in her hands holding it with the barrel pointed at the ceiling. I popped the safety strap but didn't pull my weapon. I noted James didn't either, in his hands he held one of the riot guns. The slide ratcheted loudly as he chambered a round and held the barrel away from us.
Frank pressed the lock on the door and it slid open to pandemonium, people were running about in panic in both directions of the hallway. We all stepped out and had to be careful not to be buffeted about by bodies passing us. We headed towards the elevator.
The main lobby was a wreck already, chairs and tables knocked over as people crowded in front of both sets of elevator doors. Some were yelling and pushing. We moved over to one side nearest the front desk. The Sargent on duty, behind the counter, was on the phone yelling into it, something about needing more security and at the same time trying to calm the growing panic at the elevators. I envied James for his deafness at that moment, the volume in the place was insane. Finally a lieutenant that I didn't recognize managed to get the growing crowd at the elevator quiet enough to hear him.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, please. You all know that we can't get everyone into these elevators at once. I want order and I want it right now.” He drew a sidearm and held it up for all to see. “I will shoot anyone who tries to board an elevator without permission.” I saw Frank scowl at that, apparently threatening the people the lieutenant was charged with wasn't in the rule book. He began pushing his way through the crowd, apparently planning to give the lieutenant a piece of his mind.
But before he was half way through the crowd, both doors opened simultaneously to a horror from beyond hell. The elevators were full of walkers. Instantly the lieutenant was grabbed from behind and pulled into the elevator. He screamed as a walker bit into his neck from behind and his hand holding the pistol dropped before it went off, blowing a hole into a woman standing in front of him. Blood squirted spraying the back wall of the elevator car with bright red. From the other elevator, walkers swarmed out and started attacking screaming people. The ones in the back of the crowd did an about face and scattered in the opposite direction.
Frank backpedaled but dodged people running past him. From the second elevator I could see over the mess of walkers dining on people as they lay screaming on the floor and in the confines of the elevator car I could make out two bodies. One of them was Ellis. His blood and other body parts were all over the floor and walls of the car. I took a quick guess that bunch of walkers had dog piled in the elevator as Ellis and the other unlucky individual tried to get in. Ellis must have pressed the level button before he was overwhelmed or the other guy brought the walkers in with him. Both were torn apart as the elevator made its way down to us.
More than a dozen people were lying dead on the lobby floor as the elevator walkers either dined on them or were distracted enough to get up and chase after another live person. Those dozen dead would eventually get up themselves and add to the carnage. It was time to leave. “Frank!!” I screamed, “Ellis is gone! Lets go!” Frank stared at the horror before him before shaking his head and turning on his heel.
Maggie screamed “Dad!!” and raised her pistol and fired. Behind Frank a walker's head exploded and it went down. Frank didn't hesitate and ran towards us. When he caught up we all turned and ran back down the hallway we just came from. James was taking up the rear, going backwards the whole way, his riot gun barking now and again. I turned in time to see him pointing his shotgun at a walker that charged at him. Before he could shoot a woman stepped out of one of the doors in the hall and was caught by the walker. She screamed as it bit into her shoulder, taking her down. James tried to find a shot to hit the walker and fired anyway killing them both. He turned around and saw me. The look on his face was one of regret. I waved at him to come on, but changed the wave to point behind him. He turned and ratcheted the gun but it was empty. I managed to pull my own sidearm out and fired. The walker that was behind James went down hard, but I might've been too late as it was reaching out for the boy and he yelled as the walker was hit by my bullet. He ran up to us holding his arm, blood leeching out between his fingers. He'd been scratched. Maggie turned around and saw her son clutching his bleeding arm. “James! Oh my god!” She went to him and tried to look at his arm. But the walkers were coming, there was no time. I hustled them both down the hall.
There, by our apartments Frank stood in the open doorway. “In here!” he shouted, gesturing wildly into the open doorway. When we reached him, I shook my head, “ we need to get to the central core.” He shook his own head and jerked a thumb over his shoulder behind him. “The hatchway is too crowded, there's no way to get through, we'll take the service passages.” We stepped inside and the door slid shut just in time as a group of walkers reached it. We could hear them pounding on the door. Frank pressed a few more buttons and nodded. “There, it's locked, but it won't hold them for long.” He gestured to me. “Make sure my entrance is locked up as well then lock up the adjacent door. We'll handle James.”
I headed to the adjacent doorway and stopped when I heard James yell out, “Oww, shit mom!” I turned and saw Maggie had him on the chair at the computer and was kneeling down attending to his arm. From where I stood it didn't look bad but it was inflicted by a walker and that was bad enough. I continued into our apartment and headed for the entry way door. As I reached it, it slid open on it's own, I froze in place as a walker appeared. It glanced around the room, until it spied me. It tried to growl but most of it's throat was gone, the mouth had no lips and it's yellow and blood stained teeth parted as it tried to make noise. This was a fresh one, as the bloody, light blue jumpsuit of a base maintenance worker could attest. Without thinking, I reached up behind me and my fingers closed on the handle of my sword. The blade sang as it left the scabbard and the edge cut deeply into the skull. The walker jerked once and collapsed, taking the blade of my sword down with it as I held on. I had to twist and jerk hard to remove the edge from the bone. I jabbed the door button with my finger but it refused to close. Of course the walker's feet were still out in the hall. I dropped the sword on the floor and moved to where I could drag the body inside far enough so the door's sensors would allow it to close. As I did so another walker appeared in the door frame.
Before I could draw my weapon, a gun fired and the back of the walker's head spouted a fountain of blood, skull and brain matter out behind it. It folded at the knees and fell backwards out into the hall. I turned and saw Frank standing in the adjacent door way, the barrel of his .45 still smoking. “Well, shut the door will ya? We got a draft!” He then turned and disappeared into the other apartment. I got up off my knees and hit the button again. This time the door slid closed and I pressed the locking button. I grabbed my sword off the floor and hustled to the adjacent apartment, closing and locking that door as well. I looked around the room. Maggie was finishing putting a field dressing on James arm, tears coursing down her cheeks and muttering under her breath. James sat quietly saying nothing. On the far wall I could see Frank checking for hidden latches which would gain us entry to the service passages.
He found one and worked to get it open. I went over to Maggie and James. She was staring up at her son, holding his hands. James was stroking her hair and trying to speak, “I'm ok mum, ok, I got scratch that all, I'm ok.” Maggie nodded and stood, pulling her son up with her, then wrapping her arms around him holding him tightly to her. Their embrace was awkward thanks to the packs they wore. I placed my hand on Maggie's shoulder gently and pulled at her. “C'mon we gotta go, Frank found the service access.” She looked at me with red-rimmed eyes and then let go of James and wiped her face fiercely, angrily as if ashamed for being seen crying. She took a breath and nodded. “Alright, lets get out of here.” James grinned. “That's my mom” he said aloud with pride in his voice. Maggie laughed a little and turned to her father.
Frank stood at the open panel watching us. “If you all are ready, we've only got about 24 minutes left to get to the surface. So if you don't mind?” He gestured to the darkness beyond. As we approached the entry way door gave a loud bang and a voice called out pleading which turned into a long scream. “Please, open up, pleeeeaaaahhhhhhh god!!”
Again I envied James for his deafness and pushed him and Maggie towards the opening where Frank was waiting. “John, you take up the rear” Frank went inside first followed by James then Maggie. As I stepped inside I turned and heard someone or thing banging at our door again. I grabbed the edges of the panel best as I could and closed it behind me. If we were lucky we wouldn't be followed.
The passage narrowed quickly but was dimly lit by low wattage bulbs along the way. I could already see that Maggie had taken off her pack, but James being smaller was able to keep his on. I had to stop to remove mine and then drag it behind me, trying my best not to get it to snag on anything. The passage ended at the top of a T-junction and Frank turned right without hesitation. This passageway was a little wider but still required Maggie and I to drag our packs behind us. They were getting heavy. At another junction Frank stopped to allow us to catch our breath. I couldn't help it.
“Hey Maggie, you didn't booby-trap the room did you?” I teased.
She turned to look at me surprised and then grinned. “No, should I have?”
Frank scowled, “Cut the chatter, we're running out of time.”
Maggie reached out and touched her father's arm, “Dad, do you think that Steinberg will be there?” Frank shook his head, “I don't know honey, but I'm not going to waste time to find out. We head up to the surface. We don't want to be down here when that reactor blows.”
He moved on and we followed. After a confusing series of lefts and rights, we saw that Frank had gotten us to a maintenance hatch. He holstered his weapon and grabbed the wheel which would unlock the door. Maggie stepped forward, putting James behind her, “Dad, wait a second.” She moved to the edge of the door where it would open in to us and held her weapon with both hands aiming it at the door. “Ok, go.”
Frank pulled at the door which opened easily enough. Maggie tensed and cocked her weapon. When Frank had the door opened wide enough Maggie stepped out and did a quick check along both ways of the catwalk. “Ok, clear” and she moved out of the way. Just in time too as there was a muffled bang and a bullet ricocheted loudly off the door and inside the passageway just barely missing Frank.
We heard Maggie yelling, “Hold your fire! Hold your fire! We're alive!”
I moved forward quickly with my gun in my hand, having drawn it after the bullet whined. Frank called out frightened, “Maggie? Maggie are you alright?”
Her voice came back, sounding more angry than scared. “I'm ok, come on out.” I stepped hesitantly out and moved to her side as soon as my feet touched the catwalk. James was next and moved over to his mother, covering one side of the catwalk with his riot gun.
I was about to turn and tell Frank to come on out, when I saw a shadow move behind him. “FRANK!!” There was a low growl and a startled yell from Frank as the walker fell upon him from behind. Both collapsed by the door, unfortunately Frank caught the side of his head on the frame, stunning him. The walker attacked, clawing at him. As I raised my weapon to shoot it, I could see more behind him. I tucked my gun into my waist band of my pants and reached in and grabbed at Frank.
He began screaming and I could see that the walker that knocked him down was already starting to bite into him. A second one reached him and went for his legs, and a third, tripping over the one at his legs fell on top and was already clawing at Frank's stomach, I could hear the cloth of his fatigues ripping and Frank screamed again as the walker's fingers dug into his stomach. I grabbed my gun and started firing, hitting the walker that originally knocked him down and then the one at his stomach. I couldn't get a clear shot at the one gnawing on his legs and I could see that there were more walkers coming down the passageway.
“Daaaaadddy!!” Maggie screamed behind me as she tried to push me out of the way to get to him. I had to fight to keep her from reaching in. Frank's hand reached out and grabbed my wrist. We both froze as he pulled him self up, and at the same time kicking at the one by his legs. This time I had a clear shot but didn't take it because the other walkers in the tight corridor were already reaching him.
“Go, dammit, just go, now.”
“Nooooo!” Maggie screamed and clawed at me to get at her father. “Forget it he's gone! We gotta, dammit Maggie we gotta go NOW!” James had reached us and the horror was on his face as he saw his beloved grandfather being eaten alive. He pulled at his mother calling at her, trying to get her attention. Maggie let go of me and fell back against the guard railing of the catwalk, sobbing. “S-sh-shoot him! Dammit, shoot him! Damn you!” and she fell back against James sobbing as she lurched against the railing away from the door.
Frank was tough and was still awake but unable to speak, his mouth full of blood. He nodded at me and motioned at the door. I pulled the gun out of my waistband and pointed the barrel at him, and fired. His grip on my wrist relaxed immediately and fell back into the corridor. I dropped my gun to the catwalk and reached to grab the door and shut it. A hand fell on my wrist again, it's fingernails digging at my long sleeve shirt pushing the fabric into my skin, I cried out more out of surprise than pain and reflexively pulled back, unintentionally pulling the walker that grabbed me out.
A gun went off next to my ear, making it ring loudly, as the side of the walker's head exploded outwards, it's grip relaxed on me where I could pull free. Without even considering it I reached for the door and pulled it shut with a loud bang. A hand fell on my shoulder and I turned ready to fight and saw that it was Steinberg standing behind me. “C'mon we gotta lock this thing up and get out of here!” he yelled. I looked down for my gun and saw it lying there. Besides the weapon were a pair of fingers. The coloration of the skin said they belonged to a walker from behind the door.
Steinberg spun the hatch lock and yelled at the door in a incoherent shout of rage. He reached down and grabbed me by my collar and yanked me up. “C'mon dammit there's 17 minutes left! The reactor's countdown will start in 15 minutes.”
I was feeling numb, the horror of it, and my heart ached for Maggie and James. Steinberg wasn't having any of it, he gave me a shove that got me moving. We caught up with the two, grieving together, huddled in a embrace on their knees, arms wrapped tightly around each other. Steinberg approached them. “Get up! We need to get moving, the reactor is go....” he stopped in mid sentence as Maggie lifted her pistol up and pointed it unerringly at his crotch. I pushed him aside and knelt down to them. “Maggie.” she didn't respond. “Maggie!” I shouted and she lifted her head up at me finally, and stared at me with a pain in her eyes that made my heart break. “We need to go, now. C'mon get up.” Without waiting I pulled at James and her both, lifting them up. They stood and stared at me. One after another they nodded at me. Maggie checked her loads and then gave James a gentle rub on his cheek with her hand. Wordlessly she mouthed “C'mon baby, time to go” ... James stared at her then nodded.
Steinberg pushed past all of us. “Alright, follow me” he ordered. We did. I couldn't help but look upwards at the long climb we had to make. Hopefully we'll get out as quickly as possible. How little did I know.
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