Cellar Sheep

Chapter 10

I had many questions but so did the others and they beat me to it.

"A kid? That's your plan?" Thomas asked in disbelief.

"We nearly died and you want to bet our life on some kid?!" Another yelled. Wanda calmed them down.

"Karma is the only survivor to come down since your team left. She came from floor seven all the way down here. She knows what lies above."

"Great." One threw up his hands. "Let's all let the kid tell us stories of what to be aware of while we risk our lives again for their useless ass. Wonderful."

I crossed my arms as the voice told me some very descriptive things to do to him that I knew was very, very bad.

But I guess Wanda was also getting tired of this as well.

"She will be joining the team who carries out the mission to floor ten." She said, shutting them up. My jaw dropped.

"What?" All four people and I asked, not sure if we'd heard that right.

"The kid?" Thomas asked. "She'll be killed."

"Well, that "kid" is no child, Thomas." Wanda stood up and slowly paced to me. I tried to take a step out of the doorframe but was stopped by the military. "She's infected."

Everyone went quiet as the word "infected" rang through their minds. But I guess I had them fooled because none of them seemed to believe it.

"Wanda, infectee's look like monsters and that there is a kid." The broken arm guy said. "And if she was, she would've attacked us by now. No infectee would sit still if there were humans in its sight."

I really wasn't sitting still. I was actually very fidgety right now, twisting the ring and rocking on my feet. Anything to keep the itching and voice at bay.

"I get it. She fooled us for six days, passing as human." Wanda snatched one of my hands. I didn't have time to pull away or reject as she sliced a knife over my palm. The four started to object as I yelped in pain but their objections faded just as quickly as the slice did. Only a single drop of my blood hit the floor, a gun trained on my head stopping me from attacking her. She gave me a sly grin that made my blood boil and it was all I could do not to listen to the voice. "She retains all qualities of an infected person, symptoms and all, yet hasn't fully turned... yet."

All their eyes were trained on me as I took my hand back for myself, flexing my fingers and glaring at her.

"She can't be trusted but she gives us too great of an advantage. The floors are said to be littered with infectee and she's our only chance at making it up there safely." She walked away and back to the chair she sat at, tapping her fingers on the arm. "She'll be our greatest distraction and weapon against them."

Thomas was the first to object to this idea after a long pause. I couldn't tell if I should be thankful for him or worried that he would vote to kill me instead.

"She may be infected but your idea is inhumane." He said. "Those monsters... nobody should be forced to face them."

"It's for the survival of everyone here."

"There are still so many things that could go wrong. We have too—"

"Infectee don't attack other infectees." She countered. "If we play our cards right, this mission could go smoothly."

"That's wrong," I said suddenly, stopping their arguing. "I'm not immune to their attacks just because I'm infected." She straightened in her seat.

"You just said earlier—"

"I know what I said and what I said was the truth," I said. "But if you get in their way, or aggravate them, they'll try and kill you too." I took a deep breath. "It wasn't a smooth trip down from my floor. If I couldn't heal as I do now I would've died multiple times because of them. Because I tried to stop them."

"Stop them from what?" I shut my mouth, knowing I said too much. But Wanda pushed past this. "And that's why you'll be our decoy."

"You don't get it," I said lowly. "I can't stop those things. Not with humans around."

"We could send her up on her own." Someone suggested, but the idea was quickly shut down as I wasn't trustworthy enough and it might not be possible.

"What if I say no?" I put out there to Wanda. There were too many things that could go wrong and I didn't want to live with any more blood on my hands. "What if I don't want to do it?"

"You will say yes." She said, so sure of herself. "Because you either help us or we exile you." All I could do was stare at her, that sly smile spreading on her face as she knew that I needed to be here. For Yale, for the sheep that I've grown to care about. "And if you go against anything we say or turn, we'll kill you."

In the end, it was settled.

Once the four were in good enough condition to travel we would make our way up to the tenth floor along with two other military people. Hunter was out of the question since they didn't know if he'd even make it through the night.

I wasn't told every detail purposely and only told what was needed.

Basically, all I got was that I was their suicide decoy if needed.

But the mission was simple: Get to the roof and break into whatever room on the tenth floor from the outside through the window. Those on the roof would set up an S.O.S. sign while those in the room did what was needed. Then come back down, simple. 

Except, every one of us knew it wasn't going to be that simple.