"It has to do with certain antigens. If they are present, the serum seems to work. If not, it has no effect. I haven't nailed down all the factors yet, but I believe the serum will work if the right combination of antigens is present in the person already."

Reno thought out loud. "Tricky. There's no real way to know if the person you want to treat has the right antigens before you administer the serum. Not in an emergency situation." He knew more about science and medicine than the rest of them combined.

"And it doesn't work to create a cocktail of antigens and administer them first," McCormick said. "The substances have to be an integral part of the patient's body before administering the serum, and there wouldn't be enough time for the antigen cocktail to get around enough in someone's system for the serum to work. In fact, the results might be disastrous: a half-turned creature capable of thought and still very, very deadly." She shuddered.

"Could that be part of what Sellars has been doing?" Xavier asked quickly. "His new strain of zombies are capable of some limited speech and following his directions."

McCormick paled. "I don't know what line of research he's been following, but that sounds very bad, Captain. One of the reasons I don't like him is that he once talked about making an army of the creatures, back when we first discovered what had happened to the cadavers they'd decided to use for testing."

"The ones that got up and walked out of the lab in the middle of the night?" Reno asked with a hint of dark humor. "We heard about that. When the trouble started up on our base, the navy guys filled us in."

"It's happening elsewhere?" Dread filled her expression.

"Back at our base," Xavier confirmed. "And here on Long Island. They sent us up to take care of this problem while others are dealing with the one back home."

"That is truly awful." She looked thoughtful and very concerned. "Some of our team struck me as unethical. I was going to request a transfer right before that final, terrible experiment. Then all hell broke loose and we were sequestered for weeks on end. Eventually we were cut loose from our military contracts with all kinds of dire warnings. I suspected a few of my colleagues wouldn't go quietly. I'm sad to say I'm not surprised that Dr. Sellars did this. The man is a snake. I hope you catch him before he kills anyone else and I'll help in any way I can."

"You've already helped a great deal, Doctor. The best thing you can do to help us right now is to remain with the police while we go get Sarah." Xavier was focused on his mission. He was already formulating plans in his mind. They'd take the chopper to the house and he'd rappel in from above.

"Once we've nipped this in the bud, I'm pretty sure our superiors will want to talk to you about that serum you're developing," Sam put in. "We've already had two flare-ups and I think they're afraid there will be more before all is said and done. You and your serum could come in mighty useful."

"I'll be glad to help," she assured them all.

Kauffman pulled into the police station lot, having broken every speed limit along the way.

Impatience was riding Xavier. He wanted to be off. "Sam, settle things with the locals. I'm going to gear up at the chopper. Have the team meet me there ASAP."

"Yes, sir." Sam escorted the scientist toward the police station.

The SWAT vehicle was parked, ready and waiting, right next to them. No doubt the officers from that emergency services division were also ready and waiting, but Xavier wouldn't be using their expertise today if he could help it.

Xavier jogged the short distance to the helipad. It was behind the station, in a clearing. The chopper was equipped with special biometric locks, so nobody could get in it without one of the team members present. Xavier opened it up and went straight for the weapons cache. Loading his gear with the toxic darts he'd need against the zombies, he tried to calm himself. He needed to get into a bright head space to accomplish his mission and save Sarah. Going in half-cocked would be the worst mistake of his life. He counted on his training to kick him in the right direction as he deliberately slowed his breathing and focused on the task at hand.

Sam, Reno and Kauffman were back just as he began to get impatient. He was ready. His mind was set on the mission like an Olympic athlete focused on his few seconds of glory. Nothing would stop him now. It was free Sarah or die trying.

Sarah woke by slow degrees. She was in the dark, in a damp place, probably a basement, and she was strapped down to a hard surface. Probably a gurney or operating table, knowing who had her.

Those last frightening moments came back to her. She'd been struggling with three zombies. Two had her legs and one had her torso in a bear hug from behind. She couldn't move. The bastard who'd grabbed her from behind effectively pinned her arms, and the other two made sure she couldn't kick her way out of their grasp.

Xavier had plugged the creatures full of toxin in a display of incredible marksmanship, but they'd taken so long to dissolve. The moment the two at her feet turned to mush, she felt a needle pierce her throat. She'd been injected in the jugular, and none too gently. Whatever they'd hit her with acted fast. She remembered being lifted by human arms as the zombie behind her disintegrated and dropped on the cold metal floor of the waiting van. Bumpy motion as they drove fast out of the grassy field, and then...nothing.

Nothing until a few minutes ago when she woke up here. Wherever here here was. was.

She found she could make out faint outlines of things if she used her peripheral vision. There was a line of light around the seam of a door, and she could see a tray at eye level to her right. Yeah, she was in trouble all right. Those were medical instruments on that tray.

All sorts of scary ideas entered her head. Would Sellars dissect her while she was still alive? Would he torture her? Or did he have something else in mind?

Her blouse had been unbuttoned, and she could feel the coldness of gel, plastic and metal. Some kind of sensors had been attached to her skin. Probably a heart monitor and some others. She could feel them on her legs, too. Her shoes and socks had been removed, and it felt like her uniform pants had been either cut or ripped up the sides to give them access for their sensors. She'd been hooked up to all kinds of machines and she hadn't even known it.

The door opened and an overhead light switched on. Brightness flooded the room, assaulting her eyes. She shut them quickly, trying not to scrunch them up against the sudden glare. If she could play possum for a bit, maybe they'd talk amongst themselves and she could learn something about where she was being held.

"Come now, Sarah." A tsking tsking sound reached her ears. "I know full well you're awake. I saw it on the monitors." sound reached her ears. "I know full well you're awake. I saw it on the monitors."

"The light hurts my eyes," she groused. No way was she going to be a good little prisoner for this son of a bitch.

"Ah, yes. I suppose that would be true. No matter."

She felt him fussing at her side, and she was almost afraid to open her eyes and see what he was up to. A moment later, she felt him swab her inner elbow with something cold. Her eyes popped open.

Sure enough, he had a needle in his hand. It was Sellars, but not. He'd changed his appearance from the last time she'd seen him, as he'd said on his video. His hair had been cut short and dyed an unlikely shade of auburn. He had colored contacts that turned his dark brown eyes to hazel, and it looked like he'd had a spray tan treatment or two. The changes weren't anything earth shattering, but taken all together, he certainly didn't look like the man in his personnel photo.

"I see you've decided to take an interest in your own welfare. How nice."

The sadistic bastard smiled at her.

"I'm just hooking you up so I can tap your veins at will. I can foresee I'll need a number of blood samples from you as my testing proceeds."

"Testing?"

"Of course. Why else do you think I'd go through the trouble of capturing you? I need to know what makes you immune, Sarah. With that final piece of the puzzle, I can finally sell this technology and retire a rich man. Filthy rich, in fact."

He grinned like a fool, making her stomach turn. Sellars was clearly a greedy bastard. He stuck an IV in her arm with no regard to delicacy. She tried not to flinch at the pain.

"You'd let someone unleash that horror on an unsuspecting world?" He met her gaze and she saw no remorse, no conscience there. "And here I thought the zombies were the monsters."

"Touche, Sarah. I'm wounded by your wit." His insulting tone told her he was anything but. "Personally, I don't care what the highest bidder does with my work as long as I'm immune and rich. They could kill off the whole damn species as far as I'm concerned. In fact, that might be for the best. Cleanse the planet and start over with just a few immune souls as seed stock. The more I think of it, the more I like that idea."

"You're nuts."

"Compliments, my dear. You'll turn my head."

He shot her a sly smile that turned her stomach. Nothing seemed to bother this guy. He really was one for the record books. Sarah had never encountered such a strange but strong personality before. She'd have to work to find his Achilles' heel. If he had one. Of course, it looked like she'd have nothing but time to work on her little project.

She knew Xavier and his guys would move heaven and earth trying to find her, but she also knew it would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. While they searched for her she had to do what she could to both stay alive and try to escape.

Chapter Twelve

"What's the plan, Captain?" Sam asked as they took to the air, Reno behind the controls of the big military helicopter.

Bred for speed and stealth, this chopper was a little quieter than its civilian counterparts and more maneuverable. Nothing could cancel the noise of the engines and blades entirely, of course.

"I'm going to rappel down and find Sarah. I want you three to be ready to evac us and provide air support if needed."

Sam tried to offer assistance. "I'm more than willing to go in with you, Xav, to better your odds."

But Xavier wouldn't send his best friend into this kind of danger. "And worsen yours, my friend. Thanks, but the answer is still no. Even with the serum McCormick thinks might might work on work on some some people." He emphasized the shakiness of the argument he knew would be coming. "Go dark," he ordered Reno. people." He emphasized the shakiness of the argument he knew would be coming. "Go dark," he ordered Reno.

The chopper was black, and full night had fallen. Without lights they wouldn't be seen, and there was enough ambient light in the area that they could easily see features of the land. Luckily, there was no fog on this part of the coastline.

They were on the famed North Shore of Long Island, where million-dollar mansions on the beach abounded. This particular neighborhood was one of the more expensive, boasting multimillion dollar houses on acres of land.

The address they sought was a beachfront property. To get to the beach from the house far above, it looked like one would have to use a set of wooden stairs that led from a small cove upward toward a wooded area. From above, they could see a large villa hidden among the trees. It was a perfect spot for zombies. A lot of cover and a lot of land. The nearest neighboring house was quite some distance away. Far enough away that Xavier didn't worry about the neighbors getting involved.

"Hover by the edge of the cove. I'll work my way up from the beach. Then I want you to go high and watch from above. Use the infrared to follow my progress and let me know over the com if there are any hot targets coming my way." Xavier inserted a small tactical radio into his ear, adjusting the small mic that lay along his cheek. He'd have two-way communication with his team. The infrared would pick up live bodies, but it wouldn't register the zombies well. The longer they were outside, the more their bodies acclimated to the temperature. They would be hard to distinguish from the trees and growth everywhere on the property. Still, it was something. Sellars might have some living accomplices with him.

Sam asked the question Xavier dreaded. "What if she's not there?"

"She has to be." All of Xavier's instincts told him this was the place.

They'd gotten lucky with McCormick. She could have just as easily turned out to be playing for the wrong team. Xavier had looked into her eyes and his gut told him she was genuine. Her information was good, but would Sellars have taken Sarah to this location? He just didn't know.

He prayed as he had never prayed before. Sarah had to be here. It was as simple as that. He didn't have any other leads and he couldn't stand the idea of her staying under Sellars's control for one second longer than necessary.

"Son of a bitch," Reno swore. "Captain, do you see what I see?"

Everyone looked out of the chopper at the beach far below. Xavier could make out the figures walking with oddly staggered steps through the one open area at the rear of the villa.

Zombies.

They looked like they were running patrols. The damn things must be capable of following someone's directions to organize something like that. These had to be the new-and-improved versions.

"Sellars is here. His trained pets are running security," Sam said, summing up the situation.

"Edge of the cove, now, Reno!" Xavier ordered. He grabbed his gear and checked the lines as he prepared to leave the comparative safety of the helicopter's interior. "Hold it steady. I'll signal when I'm on the ground. Stay sharp." Xavier backed out of the chopper, only a thin rope between him and the ground far below.

It wasn't the longest descent he'd ever made, but it was close. He signaled his team through his headset the moment his feet touched the hard-packed beach. The strip of sand wasn't wide, and there was a residue of seaweed and the occasional jellyfish gleaming in the dim light of the moon as he made his way toward the wooden stairs.

Weapon at the ready, he mounted the winding staircase as quickly as possible. The higher ground that the house was built on wasn't too far above. Forty steps and he was ducking into the cover of the trees and bushes that lined the path leading to the house.

Sellars had taken a few vials of blood, then left. He'd turned off the light again, so Sarah was in the dark. It took a while for her eyes to adjust, but her body was busy working on a way out of the straps holding her down.

The table had been designed for a larger person, which worked to her favor. There was a bit of slack in the strap that covered her waist and forearms. There was another strap around her shoulders and one on her forehead, plus a few that laddered down her legs, holding her in place. All the straps went around her from one edge of the table to the other and disappeared beneath the hard surface of the table. No doubt they were secured somewhere below the platform she was lying on.

There was enough play in the forearms' strap that maybe if she twisted a little, she could work her hands free one at a time. It would hurt like hell and probably strain most of the muscles in her arms and middle, but she didn't see any other way. She set to work, grinding her teeth to keep from moaning at the pain she inflicted on herself.

She tried wiggling out the arm that didn't have the IV stuck in it. It hurt like a bitch, but by the time her eyes were used to the dark again, she had worked her hand free of that middle strap. She used that hand to help her get the one with the IV out of the binding next. It was looser now, so it was a little easier. She was tempted to yank the IV out of her arm but didn't want to do it in the dark, in case she started bleeding too much.

With her hands relatively free, she concentrated on her next step. Her shoulders and upper arms were still pinned, but she could move from her elbows and wiggle a bit. It would have to be enough.

She looked around and saw the instrument tray. If she could just...reach...

The back of her right hand made contact with something metallic. Twisting her wrist at an unnatural angle, she tried to pick up one of the instruments she could feel under her hand. She was careful, in case she came in contact with the business end of a scalpel or something.

In fact, that's just what happened. She sucked in a breath as something sliced the side of her finger. It was a shallow cut, like a paper cut. It hurt and it told her what to concentrate on. She wanted that blade.

She ended up slicing up her fingers some more after a few more tries. But finally, she worked the damn thing around to where she could grasp it awkwardly between her third and fourth fingers. Bending her elbow like a crane, she brought the instrument to her waist and dropped it on her abdomen. Repositioning her fingers, she picked it up in a much firmer grip. At last.

Sarah immediately went to work on the strap holding her hips in place. The sharp blade sawed through the thick strap a little at a time. It took some doing, but she finally was able to move her hips. Next came the strap at her knees, which she could just reach. Once that was gone, she bent her knees and forced her ankles out from under the straps at the lower end of the table.

Free from the waist down, she was able to scoot downward on the table and wiggle out from under the upper straps. A few minutes later, she was free.

She didn't dare flip the lights on in case anybody was monitoring the room. She did pull the IV from her arm now that she could stand. There were packets of sterile gauze on the tray, which she made use of after yanking the sinister tube from her arm. She waited to disengage the heart and pulse-point monitors in case the readings were available somewhere else besides the machines that recorded her vitals inside the room. She'd take them off at the last possible moment. No doubt they were already registering her elevated heart rate and pulse, but she hoped if anyone was reading the stats, they'd assume she was panicking about being tied up and helpless.

Sarah was anything but helpless and she was about to prove it. She buttoned her shirt and looked around for her shoes. They'd been thrown in one corner along with her socks. She slipped them on quickly, knowing it would be easier to escape if she was properly outfitted. She'd been lucky so far. Her utility belt and weapons were nowhere to be found, however She couldn't be that that lucky. lucky.

So she armed herself as best she could from the instrument tray. It wasn't much. A few blades and a couple other pointy things. It would have to do. She also pulled the wire leads off her body, leaving only the suction cups they'd been connected to.

Sarah headed for the door, watching the gap at the bottom for a few moments to see if there were any changes in the light patterns. That might give her some indication about whether people were moving about on the other side, but she couldn't tell anything. There wasn't enough light, for one thing, and for another, anyone moving would have to be right near the door for her to see their motion this way.

"Screw it," she said under her breath as she reached for the knob on the door. It wasn't locked. Sellars had been too confident, assuming she couldn't get free.

She opened the door and found herself in a cluttered lab area. It was dimly lit and empty of people, like it was shut down for the night. Stalking silently forward, she finally plucked the suction cups off her skin. If someone was watching the monitors, they'd know she was up and around. But it couldn't be helped.

There were no windows anywhere, which led her to believe she was probably underground. She moved as quietly as she could. Hanging out with Xavier the past few days and watching the way he moved so stealthily had apparently rubbed off. She didn't make much sound as she went through the empty lab toward the brighter light she saw near a door at one end. She was going under the hope that where there was light, there might be a way out.

Sarah was at the door when she heard a voice drifting down the corridor. It was a one-sided conversation, as if the man was on the telephone. She recognized the voice. It was Sellars. She peeked around the edge of the door to find a corridor. There were a few doors along the hall. One was open with light spilling out, and at the end of the hall there was a staircase leading upward.

Listening carefully for a moment, she realized the volume of the conversation remained constant. Sellars was stationary. Probably inside that well-lit room, which was most likely his office. She had to get past him to get to the stairway.

She weighed her options. He might leave for the floor above if she waited until his call was over. Or he might decide to check in on her again in the room she'd just left. It was late at night. Chances were he'd go to bed soon...unless he was on the same schedule as his creations were. Damn. That was a very real possibility she had to consider.

Looking around the lab area, she picked up a few more objects she could use as weapons but nothing really good. Nothing that would work against the zombies. Of course, right now, Sellars was the real danger.

"...should be fine for now. I've got twenty of them on the grounds right now. Well, at least until they start chewing on the neighbors."

Sellars laughed. Actually laughed. It made Sarah sick to her stomach that he talked so casually about the flesh-eating zombies he had created.

But this was good intel. She'd have to run the gauntlet of creatures if and when she got out of this building. Without the special toxic ammunition or even a decent weapon.

"No way, Jennings." Sellars sounded miffed for some reason. "I've got it under control. I've got her blood and access to more anytime I want it. I'll crack the puzzle and we'll have something to sell Zhao inside of a few days. See if you can get in touch with Rodriguez. I'm still working on McCormick. She cancelled on me for lunch. If she doesn't come around soon, I may snatch her and force her to work with us."

The bastard. Talking about kidnapping another woman like it was no big deal. The more she heard him talk, the more she hated this guy.