Carrion (The Bren Watts Diaries #1)

Chapter 51

"But there won't be a cure for a long time. Once we do, there will be millions of infected around your little hill. You'd be dead."

"And my mom can get better! You owe me!"

"I don't owe you shit."

My blood was curdling, and I wanted to drag him by the ear. I tried to breathe in through my nostrils, letting myself calm down because a brawl in the dark with vectors nearby was a stupid idea. Still, I was tempted with his plan, and he already volunteered to lead the vectors away. I didn't need to do it myself. No harm, no foul.

"Fine. If that's really what you want to do, you can have the Jeep. I'll take the BMW back to campus. But I would like it if you help us get into Albany."

"No. Sorry. I already abandoned my friends one time. They won't let me do it again."

Coward, I wanted to say, but I held my tongue. There was nothing to convince him of the matter, and I realized he was dead-set on pushing with his plan. When it came to family, all bets were off.

I handed him the Jeep's keys. "Good luck," I said.

Armas let out a small smile. "Thanks. You, too. I'm sure you'll be fine without my help."

I sighed. "I could really use another marksman. You might even be able to trick the soldiers into letting us pass through the city if we get into trouble."

"There are going to be checkpoints."

I groaned. "Yeah. That's what I was afraid of."

Someone laughed, but it didn't come from Armas or my lips; we froze.

We were in the middle of Soldier Field, surrounded by darkness. There was no moon and barely any stars, so the visibility was poor. I used my night vision optics again. It could only cover one eye, so I had to close my left eye to look through the port. Darkness switched to a haze of green, reaching out to at least a hundred meters, flat surface abound, but I did not see anyone standing in the field with us. I turned to look at Armas, and he surmised the same.

We put our weapons at the ready.

Another laugh, coming from our right. We turned there, but all we saw was space and darkness beyond. I was sure it didn't come from a living human. It sounded like a maniacal laugh, guttural below the throat as if it was a hacking dog who had fur inside its lungs. Maybe it was a vector, a new sound I had never heard before, sneaking around and trying to stay away from our line of sight. I shivered when I realized a vector child might be among us.

The laugh came again, but it wasn't alone; heard at least three of them, maybe more, scurrying around us.

I pushed my feet into a jog, abandoning our stealth. Tables had turned, and whoever these people laughing were, they now had the advantage of surprise. I didn't want to get caught in the open, wanting to have a wall behind my back.

I looked through my optics again, and something dashed past in front of me, thirty feet ahead.

I stopped. It was a four-legged creature. I definitely saw four legs, and they were not human. Glowing eyes greeted my vision for a second, like those of a cat. It might be a dog with a spotted fur, but I had never heard a dog laugh before.

"Armas, keep an eye out. It's not them. It's an animal—"

Something slammed on my back, and I went down onto the ground. Teeth clamped around my right arm and dropped my rifle as I wrestled out of the creature's grip.

All over me was the smell of a wet dog, a huff, and a grunt, laughing as it dragged me across the field. It sounded exciting, celebrating the catch of its meal, and I felt its eyes were glued to me.