Merman - Romance

Chapter 42

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Chapter 42

“What?”  Jessell asked jumping from the top of the fence to the ground.

“Kent looks….strange,” Ridec muttered.

Jessell strolled over to Kent’s still curled body to investigate.

“Why isn’t he getting the orange lines like the others, why is his hand turning black?”  Jessell asked and Ridec shrugged.

“I’ve not seen anything like that before,” Ridec admitted.

“Come on we have to get him up and take him over the other fence,” Jessell said slipping her slender body beneath Kent’s and hauling him into the air.

“Are you crazy?”  Ridec asked.  “Look at him, I don’t even know what he is.”

“He didn’t know what I was either but he chose to stand by me and fight,” Jessell pointed out and Ridec blushed.

“Some of the zombies are starting to come to the fence,” Pete pointed out.  “Oh my gosh, is that Linda?” He yelled suddenly.

Ridec turned around and then groaned inwardly.  It was Linda and she had her face, at least what was left of it, pressed against the chain link fence in an effort to get in.

“Will you be able to save her too?”  Pete asked.

Ridec didn’t answer, he could only imagine the torture poor Linda must have gone through.  Her bottom lip had been completely ripped off, parts of her cheek was missing and from the distance he could see several contusions on her head.  Even if she was cured there was no way she would survive with damage like that to her head.

“Right now we just have to focus on getting into the main headquarters,” Ridec said instead.

“Maybe you can use the stream again,” Pete suggested.

“Don’t want to risk anyone on the inside seeing us, we’re too close now.”

Pete nodded his understanding.

The four hobbled forward closer to the inner gate until the sound of a bullet rang out.

“Don’t come any closer,” a man yelled at them.

“Where is he?”  Pete wanted to know.

“You have one minute to get out of our safe zone or the next bullet goes straight through the pretty boy,” The man shouted.

“We have a friend of yours with us,” Jessell yelled.

“We don’t have any friends that can’t walk in here on their own or speak for themselves,” the man responded.

“His name is Kent,” Jessell persisted.  She was playing a long shot but something about Kent suggested that he was high ranking in the headquarters, she hoped her gut feeling was right.

“Kent?”  The man seemed hesitant.  “Hold up his face.”

Jessell hesitated only momentarily and then lifted Kent’s face towards the inner fence.

“Is he one of those things?”  The man wanted to know.

“I don’t think so,” Ridec said.

“I have to get clearance from higher up,” the man said.

“They won’t let us in with Kent looking like that,” Pete muttered.  “Look at his teeth Ridec.”

“We don’t know what they will do,” Ridec responded.

“What if they send us away?”  Pete’s eyes widened as he spoke.  He stared around him at the outer fence where more and more zombies were starting to gather.

“They won’t send us way, Kent said this was a haven for cleans,” Ridec reminded him.

“But I’m not a clean.”

“If you can’t stay then we won’t stay,” Ridec assured him.  “Just don’t tell them anything about the fish thing.”

“I think I hear a vehicle,” Jessell muttered starting to walk in the direction of the noise.

“Just stay right where you are, we’re sending a vehicle to collect Kent,” the man shouted to them.

“We’re cleans,” Ridec yelled.

There was silence for almost a minute.

“Kent said we would be safe here,” Ridec continued.

“Of course, of course you will be.”  There was silence for a few minutes and then out of nowhere someone was sliding over the fence from a rope.

“I’m Ryan, just leave Kent there and the vehicle will pick him up.  You three will be taken over the fence to safety using the rope.”

“You just want us to leave Kent here?”  Ridec muttered.

“You’re cleans, you’re our top priority, that’s what Kent would have wanted too,” Ryan said dragging Kent out of Jessell’s arms and laying him on the ground. “The Council here have been able to do some pretty good work combating this zombie thing, they’ll take Kent directly to their quarters and work on him.  In the meantime we need to get you away from any potential danger.”

“The Council has a cure for the illness?” Ridec asked gripping Pete’s hand and pulling him along with them as they approached the rope.

“It’s all too high for my mind,” Ryan admitted.  “All I know is that when Kent gets like this they fix him up and he’s better.”

“Are you a clean?”  Jessell asked.

Ryan shook his head sadly.

“They would never put a clean to guard these fences, too dangerous.”

“I need a lab as soon as possible,” Ridec said.

“A lab?”  Ryan asked signaling to a few men who had gathered on the other side of the fence and tossing over additional ropes.

“I think I might be able to cure this thing,” Ridec explained.

“Just grab onto the rope, the men will all you guys over in a second,” Ryan responded.

“I can make it over on my own,” Jessell said.

“You don’t have anything to prove to us lady, from now on you’re going to be treated like a queen,” Ryan insisted going over to Jessell and tying the rope around her waist.  “Take her up boys and get some guys out her to clear the outer gate from zombies.”

“What about Rea?”  Pete asked.

Ridec sighed glancing around at the quickly growing number of zombies.  He was finding it hard to pick out Rea in the group.

“I don’t know,” Ridec said sadly.  “But hopefully we’ll see her again once we find the cure.”

“You think so?”  Pete asked but Ridec just shrugged his shoulders.  He was actually growing weary of making promises he didn’t seem to be able to keep.

“Where are you taking Jessell!”  Ridec screamed as the men on the other side of the fence started to hustle Jessell away.

“Nowhere,” Jessell said slamming her elbow against one of the men’s noses.  “You take me nowhere without those two.”

The man groaned loudly.

“Get these two over the fence and take them to the council, we don’t have any time to waste,” Ryan instructed.

“Something tells me they’re a lot more interested in Jessell than they are in us,” Ridec whispered to Pete as they hauled the two of them over the fence.

“I’m not worried,” Pete said.  “Jessell would never let them take her anywhere without you and you would never let them take you anywhere without me.”

The boy sounded so confident that Ridec chuckled inspite of the uncomfortable knot in his stomach that seemed to be warning him that something wasn’t right.