"Lyin' bitch!" Gray smacks me the other way, and I fall. Julie screams, beating on the closet door. Multiple kicks to the ribs send pain shooting through me. Trying to get up, I open my eyes in time to see a fist punch me in my left eye, and I fall back onto the concrete. Static ensues behind my eyelid, and a throb immediately starts in my skull. I lie there, saving my strength. My ribs might be broken, and pierce my lungs. Taking a deep breath, air goes in smoothly, so I know I'm not internally injured, yet. My only comfort the booms have stopped, and rapid gunfire seems close. They got in. I smile, even as I breathe heavily.

A vehicle door opens.

"What's going on?" Julie cries, banging on the door. "Let me out!"

Gray ignores her as he jerks me up and throws me into the back seat. A rip shocks me, and I look down, feeling open air. My shirt is gone, and his large hands grope me. I scream my rage and kick. Gray releases my breast, and smacks me harder. Feeling like I might lose consciousness any minute, blood and bile flood my mouth. No longer able to breathe through my nose, fluid drips out. It's bleeding.

He socks my gut for good measure, and I wheeze. My insides shift, spreading agony. It comes out through my throat in a groan. Grabbing a fist full of my hair, he jerks my head up and backhands me, efficiently splitting my lip. Warm blood spurts out. Gray lets go of me, his attention on something else.

Looking up at him, he struggles with Mr. One-eyed Willy. "Bastard!" I spit blood in his face, my voice hoarse and unrecognizable. Grabbing me by my throat, he cuts off my air supply. I struggle against his hands as my shorts are jerked away. My nails dig into his skin and scratch down his hands. How I wish I could pull a Mike Tyson and bite his ear off.

My legs fly into the air as he grabs them with his free hand. He prods me, unsuccessfully. My lungs command air, scream for air. He's going to rape me and kill me at the same time. I can't take this, can't let him rape me. I'll make him kill me first. Rage surges through me, giving me a huge dose of adrenaline. I use all my strength and buckle my body just at the moment he thrusts into me, bone dry. A deep pain adds to the misery of my abused body. Grunting as he falters, he pulls out to get a better grip, but I get a leg free. Wasting no time, I kick him in the face with my boot.

He releases my throat. Air burns as I suck it in, but I keep momentum, and punch him in the temple.

Taking a split second to recover, he prepares to hit me again when I kick him in his Adam's apple. He gargles as he goes backward. Stumbling out of the car, I grab the bat from the floor. His manhood is no longer happy, hanging limp, out of his pants. Relief engulfs me that it's tiny, with no blood on it. I weakly swing the bat to hit him. He catches it, jerking it out of my hands, and tosses it away.

Shooting commences the hallway. Gray glances toward the hall with panic in his eyes. I go for the bat, but Gray stops me, pushing me backward.

Air rushes from my lungs as my head bounces on the floor. Spots sparkle in my vision. Pain splices through my head. Blinking away the lingering spots, my adrenaline returns when Rudy grabs Gray by the throat, swinging his arm hard, punching him in the face.

I struggle to the bat, barely able to stand. My whole body shakes from shame and embarrassment. Rudy ruthlessly beats Gray in the face with continuous wet thuds, making it look like hamburger. I swing the bat, hitting Gray in the back. Rudy drops him as I continue beating him with the bat. Finally, Gray stops moving. Arms come around me, and Rudy firmly takes the bat out of my hands, dropping it with a metal clang. I slump into his body, shaking, not looking at him. Reece stands in the doorway, shooting into the hall. Pipe bombs wrap around his beer belly, like a suicide bomber. Kale stands beside Reece, staring at me in horror.

Reece finally stops and looks to me. "Sweet little lady! What the fuck happened to you?" He rushes toward me.

I tremble, sitting down to cover myself up. Rudy follows, squatting in front of me maybe to help me cover up. My face blazes at the knowledge of them seeing me this way. I probably have the shame beaten all over my body, clearly visible.

"Kan... Are you all right?" Rudy tilts my face by the chin. I don't look him in the eye, but I can feel his barely controlled fury as he takes in my face. My eye must be swollen shut, it feels puffy, hard to blink.

"Do I fucking look all right?" My throat burns from talking. Rudy audibly swallows. Reece whistles, bringing my attention to him as he checks out Gray.

"Where is everyone?" I ask them, before Reece can comment on Gray.

Reece gestures with his hands, "Scoring the grounds. Bunch of famished running around though. We gotta be careful." He jerks his head in Kale's direction, making his beads clack together. "He helped us figure out where you were." I nod, looking to Kale with gratitude in my eyes. I can't muster a smile right now.

"Reece, may I have a weapon? Please?" He nods, but Rudy hands me a pistol and an extra clip. It's way too small for his hands, but he probably has it as a backup. He slips his hoodie off, and gives it to me. I put it on without looking at my beaten body. Rudy breathes hard and I can feel him staring down at me.

Bangs sound from within closet. "Um, Julie is in the closet," I inform them.

Rudy jumps up from his squat, "What?" Alarmed and worried, he goes to push the locker over. Julie comes tumbling out. Rudy's eyes widened at the sight of her belly.

"You're crazy," she screams at me. Her face is beet red, and she looks to Rudy. She almost stumbles over herself to hug him. In a daze, he looks at me, possibly wondering what could have made me put her in the closet. I can't be sure, though.

"Jules," he says quietly, wrapping his arms around her. "What happened to you?"

A pang at his endearment stabs me, but I ignore it. By his tone, he thinks she's unwillingly pregnant. She ignores him, and keeps glaring hatred at me from over his arm, looking tiny compared to him.

I hold out my hands in peace. "Julie, please help Rudy find Dalton. Reece, I need your help. Kale, go with them." I feel better already just bossing people around, helping me feel in control.

Rudy's instantly alert. "I'll help you."

I shake my head. "Please, find Dalton, and you need to get Julie out of here. We'll meet you later." I don't want to look at him right now, not knowing how to act, having a strong reaction at seeing him with Julie. Disgrace and mortification burns through me like a raw wound. I focus on the gunfire outside.

"I know where he is," Julie says, as she takes his hand and leads him away. Kale follows, looking back at me. I wave him on.

After giving Reece the rundown of the vaccine and Mago, I tell him my plans. He just nods before going behind a jeep. My pajama shorts on the ground are useless and ripped. I consider grabbing Gray's pants, but I don't want anything to do with them I'd rather go as I am. Rudy's hoodie goes to mid-thigh, covering enough, but I want clothes. Pronto. After washing my face with cold water in a deep sink covered in grease funk, my nose has stopped bleeding, and I can sniff through one nostril.

When I turn around, Reece hands me a pair of boxers. I smile, realizing they have biker Santa's all over them. "Going commando?" I ask, slipping them on. They're too big, but anything helps. I'd rather wear Reece's dirty underwear, than Gray's pants.

He smiles, relieved I'm making a joke. "Nothing I haven't done before."

I'm grateful. "Thanks." I say genuinely, hoping he knows I mean for more than him lending me his boxers. He nods, and looks to Gray's form on the floor.

Reece dumps cold water on Gray. He sputters and coughs.

I bend down, knees closed. My body hates me right now, but I need it for a few more hours. "Where's Dr. Finnegan?"

He glares, "Fuck you!" His voice cracks, hoarse. Reece looks more than happy to give his face a stomp, then the tips of his fingers. Gray grunts out profanities, looking up at him.

"Tell her, or I'll start shooting them off."

Gray shakes his head and scowls. "He left after he talked to you. He goes around. He's getting ready to go overseas soon." He grins a bloody, horrific smile. "You're not even asking the right questions." His smile doesn't last long before he sputters some more blood onto the concrete.

I gesture to Reece and he says to Gray, "You're lucky I don't kill you." He stomps his head to the floor with his motorcycle boot. We grimace at the cracking sound. "Shit."

"Yeah, ditto." I say, feeling for a pulse, which was nonexistent. "He's dead." I shake my head at Reece, but he doesn't look put out.

"He deserved it. Think of who else he's raped." I flinch. He sees it and his face softens. "Sorry," he says with some strain in his voice. I shake my head, knowing he has a point.

"Looks like our only lead is Mago, and Julie said he goes to New Orleans a lot." I say, weighing our options.

"Yeah, let's go get that vaccine," he pauses, and I know I won't like what he'll say next. "Or I can tell you where we set up camp, I'll get the vaccine." He switches tactics. "Glinda's there. She's been worried about you."

The thought of seeing Glinda makes my heart soar, but I'll see her soon anyway. "No."

"Do whatever you need to do," he sighs as he hands me my machete. It gleams with extra sharpness. He smiles and shrugs, "I borrowed it."

I smirk as best as my swollen face will let me. "Uh-huh." Right.

My body wants to collapse as we head outside, going on nothing more than sheer will. It's dark except for the occasional explosion lighting up the sky. The stark white of the medical building rises in the distance. Shouts and screams interrupt the night as smells of gun powder and decay float through the air, thick and strong. Famished run around, and a snarling group spots us. My left hand grips the machete, the pistol in my right.

The sky lights up with another explosion, vibrating beneath my feet, more explosions burst and flash illuminating a zombie right in front of me. I jump back, startled at its sudden appearance as it groans. Gore spurts as I slash my machete. Squeezing the trigger, I put a bullet in its head. Gunfire rings in my ears. I haven't taken down famished in what seems like a lifetime, but it's just like riding a bike.

A guard comes out of nowhere. I assume he's unarmed for lack of shooting. I shoot him in the leg. I don't want to kill him, just get him out of the way.

Reece battles his own small group with one coming up from behind. I swing the machete around to slow the two about to attack me, and shoot the famished that grabs Reece by the shoulders. Immediately, I turn to shoot the two in front of me as one grabs my arm. The sounds coming from them make the hair on my arms stand. Teeth snap at me as I shoot one, and a sprinkle of famished blood rains down. Wiping my face with Rudy's hoodie sleeve, it occurs to me they're trying to eat us, not subdue us. I don't really expect anything else, but once you see zombies touch the living without biting, well, it sticks with you.

One rushes out of the darkness, smacking into Reece. They go tumbling as Reece holds it by the neck, and by luck the sawed off shotgun flies from them. I smile to myself, pick it up, and cock it. Reece kicks the famished off him, and before he grabs a backup, I fire the shotgun.

After a hard blow to my lower shoulder and in my armpit, I fly backwards, barely feeling it. Maybe from shock? The headless famished goes down instantly. Well, half a head. I know why Reece wanted to wait before I shot his precious. I'm on my butt, blinking at Reece. He shakes his head, grinning at me. More snarls erupt, and we quickly go back into action, though, I'm slower than I was a few minutes before.

Famished come from all directions.

"Just get to the building!" he shouts. We shoot the closest ones and make a mad dash to the white building, barely visible in the distance. Reece turns to half run backwards. "Heads up!" he shouts, as he slings a lit bomb toward the famished. He grabs me, throwing me to the ground for cover. An explosion sounds in my ears and they pop. Heat radiates over my body in a massive wave. The air sharpens with the stench of a crematory. When the air cools, we stand and run.

I don't see anyone but mad famished and the few guards they attack. We told the team weeks ago to stick to the shadows and stay low.

The white building is exactly where Julie said it would be. Shooting the door open, we make our way inside. Darkness surrounds us, and I don't want to turn on a light and draw attention, either. Reece clicks on a small flashlight, careful to keep it away from windows.

We search for what seems like hours, breaking in every door before finally finding a room with heavy security. The door's solid steel, and needs a key card to open.

"I don't want to shoot at it. There could be oxygen tanks nearby," I say. We avoided any shooting, except the main door, until now. Looking at the key card box, I have no idea what to do with it.

"Maybe we can get a guard with a keycard?" Reece suggests, but our luck changes as the box beeps, the little light turning green.

The world seems at a standstill as the door opens and someone with a biohazard mask stands there. My eyes automatically zero in on the smart pad in his hand. A smile rises to my face. Until now, the base did a good job of keeping me away from any kind of computer technology. The man looks at both of us. "What the " He's cut off by an arrow piercing his head, slumping to the ground as the smart pad slides from his grip.

Peeking behind me, Rudy's form is a silhouette in the dark. Reece chuckles, "Good timing."

I swallow. "No shit." I bend and pick up the smart pad to look at it. Reece illuminates it with the flashlight. The smart pad's one you would see at a doctor's office in the old life. Slowly, doctors were turning to this technology instead of handwriting in medical charts. My doctor once wrote a prescription on one, sending it straight to my pharmacy. I don't recognize the brand, but I can figure it out. Reece and Rudy eye me curiously. Another explosion sounds outside.

"Hurry," Rudy says, "I have your backs." He throws some empty canvas bags to us.

I don't really know what's in the room, but if the guy had on a mask, it can't be safe. We enter a sterilization room with a biohazard closet full of suits where one should change before going into the next room.

"That can't be good." Reece says.

"The guy was in a hurry. He only had on a mask. I'm sure we can go in without the regular precautions." Reece looks doubtful. I glance around, noticing all the medicine cabinets. They're glass and completely stocked. "I'll take one for the team. You get those." I say, pointing to the cabinets. Going into the closet and shutting the door, I know I can't really do this without a suit, and putting on one now seems strange. There's a certain way one should be put on, but I don't know the routine. Putting one on as best I can, I go to open the door to the next room but realize it's all for nothing. The door sits ajar.

I kick my frustration at it, slamming it open. The room seems like a lab with steel tables, microscopes, and glass refrigerators. Heading straight for the fridge, I find it's cold, but warming up quickly. Shit.

"Reece!" I pull off the mask, for all the good it's doing me. Bursting in with no hesitation and no suit, he looks into the fridge full of unmarked vials.

Reece glances at me. "What did you expect? Did you want them to label it 'zombie vaccine'?"

"Something similar to VX12-antidote might have been helpful." I smirk, "I know what that man was doing. He cut power, and grabbed the only thing useful, the smart pad. It will have something on it. I'm just guessing here, but I think the vaccine won't work if it's not cold."

He grunts, "It's not like we're going to shoot ourselves up with it."

"True. We'll take what we can get." I say, grabbing the canvas bag, shoving in vials. I stop when it's full. I don't want to mix the vaccine with useful medicine. Opening Reece's bag feels like a kid coming across a wrecked ice cream truck. Yes! Yes, yes, yes. Pain pills. Swallowing one without water, it makes its way down my throat.

"We've been in here a while. It's quiet." Reece informs as we walk out to meet Rudy.

I discard the rest of the suit. "Where do we meet everyone?"

Rudy lowers his bow, glancing at me through the darkness. "We have a spot a few towns over. Everyone's supposed to leave when either their cars are full, or they need a quick getaway. There's tons of famished out there, Kan." Yeah, I've seen it myself. He's talking about on the outside. Without the bombs, they wouldn't have gotten in.

"Did you bring your hog?" I ask Reece.

"No, it's a town over. I just drove an old car," he answers.

I look to Rudy, and he answers before I question, "The vehicle I had Jules, Dalton, and Kale drove away following Bunyan."

I nod, having a quick plan. "All right. If we can get back to the garage, there is a light that drives away the famished. UV, Julie said. She was trying to get me to leave until we heard bombs. Then I shoved her into the closet." I look away from Rudy's silhouette. "We should be able to get away easily."

"I only have two pipesters left. Better use them wisely," Reece thinks out loud. We make it back to the door. Fires blaze with forms running around in the light and shadows.

"Reece you go first. Have them ready. Kan?"

"Yes?"

He steps up, looking down at me, strapping his bow to his back. "I'm right behind you." I have both canvas bags on my shoulders as Reece makes a run for it, tossing a bomb toward a group of famished, mainly for a distraction.

The famished aren't as bad this time, most seem to be feeding. Reece's distraction works for a few minutes, but we're still pursued. Rudy's gun shots echo through my head. My body screams for me to stop, but I keep running. Holding on to the bags for dear life and praying none of the vials bust.

Luckily, I'm able to keep steady and Rudy doesn't have to pick me up this time. He does push me through the door as we make it back to the guard's dormitory. I catch my balance, and turn to scowl at him before seeing the door slam. Famished fingers catch, but Rudy pulls hard, jamming the door with them. Bones shatter and blood spills in the cracks. Seeing it, I'm relieved we made it. Another close call no wonder he pushed me through the door.

Rudy turns to see me watching. "Come on. Not much further, then you can sleep." I take account of myself. Breathing heavy, sweating, and hardly able to use my legs, I think the pill kicks in because my pain's not as prominent.

No sound in the building, all the guards are either busy, or being eaten. With the light still on in the garage, Reece immediately goes to the Ducati. I roll my eyes at his smile, tossing him the keys that made it to the floor during my...scuffle.

Rudy takes in Gray's dead body. His head's flattened to match the floor, lying in a pool of his own blood. Rudy looks at Reece. Refraining from sighing, I look away, but not before the exchange of Rudy silently thanking Reece. Taking another pain pill, I swallow with water from the greasy sink this time, drinking until I can't drink anymore.

Rudy heads to the driver's side of the vehicle that I can now see is a Range Rover.

"No." I say, "Not that one." Rudy looks at me, then, Reece does too. They simultaneously notice the open back door. Going to the next vehicle, a Jeep Wrangler with a vinyl top, I can't stand their silent assessments. The passenger seat feels comfortable as I lay the vials at my feet.

"UV switch is right there," I show Reece, pointing next to the closed garage door. He flips it, and opens the garage door in one go. As the door opens a bright light spills in, but we hardly have to worry about famished. The ones near, scatter away from it, but most zombies are probably busy running around the base.

Rudy puts his bow in the back, and I watch as he uses his new skills to start the Jeep. He even has electrical tape. He smiles at me when it starts, dimples and all. I can't help smiling back.

Chapter 32.

The ride is hazy as the drug works through my system, I keep going in and out. Rudy finally speaks up. "Dalton said "

"Don't." My voice sounds far away. I want to sleep and not think. "I don't want to talk about that. Ever. The past two weeks never happened." The jeep slows to a stop.

I peek over at him, the tendons of his knuckles stand out from squeezing the wheel. He's not looking at me as he tries to suppress his emotions. I recognize this because I'm doing the same. The drug makes it easier for me, however.