Free EnEmE: Fall Of Man by R.G. Beckwith Page B

who saved him in a manly one armed hug, pulling him into view.
     
    I stared at his tanned skin, his dirty baby blue suit jacket and his frosted tips for what felt like a full minute before I could speak.
     
    “Max?” I managed.

Chapter 12 – Host Lacy AKA Kexa-183
     
    I looked up into the dark angry eyes and thought I might wet myself.
     
    There, staring at me in a matching pink workout suit was undoubtedly Lacy, my psychiatrist’s receptionist, but with large, pupil-less black eyes, lids pulled tightly glaring at me. She was obviously an occupied host.
     
    “Ha...wha…?” I stammered.
     
    “Shuttup!” she hissed at me, in nearly a whisper.
     
    She ducked past the edge of the window, hiding from the host soldier that peered into the window. From my vantage point I could see him, but he couldn’t see me. He looked around inquisitively, as if the sound of our interaction might have caught his attention.
     
    After he passed, Lacy peered out the window, looking around with her eyes following the host soldier as he rounded the corner of the house.
     
    “Shit!” she grumbled under her breath.
     
    She then quickly strode across the dining room, through the kitchen and toward the stairs to the basement.
     
    I looked around, startled that no one else seemed to think it was strange that an infected host was in their midst. Alvarez looked just as confused as I was, but the others looked away awkwardly. I scrambled up and followed Lacy downstairs.
     
    In the darkened basement she crept along, toward the basement stairwell where Alvarez and I entered. I sneaked up behind her, gripping my rifle, preparing to fire at the first sign of hostility. As I crouched behind the ping-pong table I decided to confront her.
     
    I said, “Hey, just what the hell…”
     
    “SHUT UP!” She snarled back, interrupting my question.
     
    Okay, I’d waste her at the NEXT sign of hostility.
     
    As she moved towards the doors, I heard footsteps. It was apparent that our sounds had caught the attention of the host scout, whose armored legs I could see coming down the stairs through the window. I began to worry.
     
    As he approached the door, Lacy stepped in front of the window, standing upright and rigid, like a soldier at attention. She held the gaze of the surprised soldier for a few moments before reaching out and opening the door to let him in.
     
    The armored host soldier walked in while Lacy held the door. He began to say something to her, but I couldn’t make out the language.
     
    Now I was very uneasy and was about to shout out in protest, raising my gun with the intent to take out the soldier and the apparently traitorous Lacy-host. Before I could, Lacy reached out, gripping the soldier’s helmet and snapping his neck in mid-sentence.
     
    I was amazed into stupefaction. Could the last thirty minutes of my life have been any more surprising?
     
    The woman I knew as Lacy looked around, peeking outside to make sure there were no witnesses before slowly and quietly closing the door. She then turned, grabbed the dead soldier’s arms, and dragged his body to the nearest corner of the room. She left the corpse resting next to a pile of tarps and I wondered how many other dead soldiers were under there.
     
    Lacy looked out the window again to make sure that the coast was clear and when she turned I stepped out from my spot, weapon drawn, to confront her about just what the hell had happened.
     
    “Just what is the hell was that all about?” I asked.
     
    “Be quiet and follow me upstairs,” she said. “It’s time we explained this to everyone.”
     
    She confidently marched up the stairs without a second thought. I followed hesitantly behind her, gun drawn, reminding myself not to look at the shapely ass in front of me. it felt wrong. . . that was an alien ass now.
     
    We joined Alvarez and the rest of the human refugees in the pantry. Lacy looked at me solemnly.
     
    Alvarez quickly made our introductions with