Free Apocalypse Z by G. E. Swanson Page A

whispered to Dedee, “I don’t see anyone. Let’s go.”
    Quietly, they crept down the empty hallway until they came up to another that crossed it. Standing with their backs to the wall, they listened for footsteps. When they were satisfied they were alone, he peeked around the corner. Mark thought for a minute, then asked Dedee, “Was it right here, then left at the next? Or left here and right at the next?”
    Dedee shrugged and shook her head. Mark waved for her to follow him as he turned right. The hallway was long and they followed it to the end where it ran into another. From there, they turned left. They followed that one and just before the end, they came upon the set of double doors they were looking for. After Mark peeked in, both of them went into the room and started looking around. Dedee found the switch and turned on the lights.
    They went over and started looking through the metal cylinders. Mark looked at his hand trying to match what Sheryl had written on it and the markings on them. He stopped and put his hand on Dedee’s shoulder. “Shhhhh.”
    She asked, “What’s wrong?”
    “I think I heard something.”
    Standing perfectly still, they listened. They heard footsteps outside in the hallway and they were drawing closer. They ducked down behind a gurney close to the doors and listened. The footsteps stopped and the door opened, then the person stepped inside. A woman’s voice asked, “Who’s in here?” When they didn’t respond, the woman said, “If you don’t tell me who you are, I’m going to call security.”
    Mark pushed the gurney to the side and quickly came up behind the woman before she could react. He covered her mouth and pulled her into him as she let out a muffled shriek.
    He calmly whispered in her ear. “We’re not here to hurt you. If you understand me, nod your head” And she did. “If you cooperate, you won’t get hurt. Do you understand?” She nodded. “If I move my hand, do you promise not to scream?” She nodded her head again. “Now when I move my hand, if you scream or make any noise, I will hurt you in a most unpleasant way. Do you understand?” And she nodded.
    Slowly, he moved his hand and stepped back. Trembling, she turned and looked at him, her voice cracked as she whispered, “Please don’t hurt me. I’ll do anything you want as long as you don’t hurt me.”
    “I want you to show us where this is at.” He held out his hand and she looked at the writing.
    Surprised, she asked, “That’s it? That’s all you want?” Then she looked toward Dedee, and Dedee nodded.
    Mark nodded and said, “That’s all we want.”
    She took them through another set of doors, showed them where it was, and set it up for them. Then she said, “An eight second exposure would put someone out for a couple of hours.”
    “Alright, now I need you to get on the gurney and lay down.”
    She began to tremble as she complied. “But you promised, if I cooperated, you wouldn’t hurt me.”
    Mark put a mask over her face. “We’re not going to hurt you. You’re going to take a little nap, and when you wake up, we’ll be gone. Now breathe deep.”
    ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
    Jeff and Jet waited by the corner with their backs against the wall. Jet reached down and pulled his hand up. She looked at his watch, then put it back down. A few minutes later, they heard footsteps from around the corner. They waited until they were almost on top of them and Jet shot around the corner. She looked at the guard and smiled as she walked by.
    He turned. “Can I help you with something? You’re not allowed in this area?”
    She said, “I’m just looking for a bathroom.” She saw Jeff sneak around the corner and she turned to walk away.
    The guard reached out, grabbed her by the hair, and jerked her back. Jet let out a little cry and tried to take a step back as she reached for the guard’s hand. Jeff reached up, grabbed a handful of the guard’s hair, and jerked his head back. He brought his