| Chapter 9
The robot opened the door again.
"My auditory sensors are ready for your explanation," Stan said.
"She jumped it and then let us in."
"I see. You're playing games. Goodbye."
Ernie grabbed the door.
"The kid's telling the truth robocop. Long story short, the technology your dear Dr. Harmon helped invent has been altered and it is inside of this poor young lady here. You want the truth? She did jump over the gate, easily. In one quick leap, just like that. Bam. Like friggin' Superman."
"So they have continued programing the nanos to enhance the body despite Dr. Harmon's warnings."
"Yes that's right."
The robot looked at Valerie.
"Show me."
"I don't need to show you anything."
"Do you want to see Dr. Harmon or not?" Stan asked.
Valerie looked over at Ron.
"It's okay. I think we should try and find out whatever we can from this scientist guy. Maybe he can help."
"Fine. You want to see Mr. Robot man? I'll show you, but pay attention because I'm pretty fast."
"My name is Stan and I'm watching."
Valerie sighed, shrugged her shoulders, and then ran back toward the gate. Her feet were moving so fast that they were a blur like a cartoon. She jumped and sailed over the gate with ease, landed, and kept running without missing a step. She stopped, turned back and ran for it again. Her movements looked unreal, like something in a movie with a massive special effects budget. One second her feet were on the ground, the next they were twenty feet in the air sailing over an iron gate with sharp gothic spikes at the top pointing towards the heavens. She kept running until she came to the house and stopped right in front of Stan.
"Let me scan you, are you some type of machine?"
"Scan away," Valerie said sweeping her arms down towards her feet.
Stan did. His head and eyes moving with mechanical precision from the top of her head down to her toes and back up again.
"I see you are not lying. Flesh and blood. Working organs, and lots of evidence of body enhancing nanotechnology. Dr. Harmon will want to see this for himself."
"Great, so let us in," Ernie said.
"I'm afraid the doctor is not here right now."
"Well where is he? Do you think he can help Valerie?" Ron asked.
"I will contact him and find out if he wishes to let you know his location. If he does I will be back with the address. Please wait here."
He closed the door all the way this time. Valerie turned around and sat on the porch steps stooping her head down.
"Hey are you alright?" Ron asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. This is just all so crazy, and I don't know what's going to happen to me. If they catch me again they'll make sure I don't escape again."
"I'm not going to let that happen," said Ron.
Valerie turned around and looked up at him, tucking her bangs behind her ear.
"Thank you. You do make me feel better. I saw you handle them back there, but Ron they're going to keep sending those robots and eventually you're going to run out of bullets."
Ron shook his pockets so she could hear the ammo inside clinking against itself.
"I'm not going to run out anytime soon. Besides we're not going to go anywhere near that facility again, right Ernie?"
"You won't catch me going back there."
The door opened. Valerie got on her feet and stood next to Ron, her shoulder gently resting against his.
"It appears you are in luck. Dr. Harmon would like to see you. He apologizes that he can not come to you, but he is very busy with his research. Here is the address."
Stan handed a small piece of paper to Ernie.
"Before you go, it looks like you require medical attention," Stan said scanning Ernie.
"Nah I'll be fine."
Valerie leaned toward Ernie and grabbed him.
"Ouch!"
"Sorry. I was just going to say please let him patch you up. For me? It will make me feel better."
"Fine."
"Come inside. You two can wait in the entryway."
They walked inside. Their eyes catching all the awesome details in the room. The walls stretched up thirty feet with decorative crown moldings the height of Ron's abdomen looking down on them like a king upon a beggar. Thick tapestries hung from the walls. Every few feet sat another side table with what looked like all sorts of relics. Some of them were even inside protective glass.
"Please do not touch anything, and don't even think of stealing something. An alarm will sound if one item is moved. Dr. Harmon is very fond of his artifacts and collectables.”
“We won’t touch anything,” Ron said.
“Good. And as for you, please come this way. The medical supplies are in a room down this hall."
"As long as they don't have nanotech in them."
"You'll have to go to Dr. Harmon's lab for that. He could cut your healing time down to less than a minute, but no I have none of that here. Also that knowledge is not public yet. Unlike Dr. Mansfield, Dr. Harmon uses extreme caution developing and testing his technology. We will be right back."
Ernie hesitated, looked around the room, then at his companions, and followed Stan down the hall. As soon as they were out of site Valerie fell into Ron burying her head in his chest. He could tell she was crying, her head gently rocking. He reached his arms around her.
"Hey, hey. Please don't cry. It's going to be okay. I promise we'll figure this out."
She sniffed, wiped a few tears away with her sleeve and looked up at him.
"I'm glad you're here Ron. Thank you."
She hugged him tighter and leaned into him. Her lips inches from his.
"Alright you two. Let's hit the road."
She pulled away, sliding her arms down off of him, but letting her left hand fall into his. Ron realized he was holding his breath and let it out. Valerie could hear the disappointment in his exhale. She smiled. Ernie stopped and looked back at them.
"Come on guys, let's go. We need to go through the city to get to Dr. Harmon's facility. I'm sure that's where they're looking for us like I said at our homes and probably your schools, so the sooner we get through there the better. Maybe this doctor will let us hide out at his place for a while till we can figure this all out."
They made it to the door, turned to thank Stan, and headed back for the truck. No one was talking. There were birds chirping in the tall trees around them, the branches swaying from the wind creating a continuous whisper. The loud buzz that sounded when Ernie pressed the gate button made Valerie jump. She looked over at him.
"You're looking better."
"Yeah. Thanks. He mostly just gave me some painkillers. It's starting to help. I'll be alright. In fact this time I'm driving. The kid over there isn't starting my baby up again."
"What? I've never driven a car where you had to 'give it gas' to get it started. I thought you wanted me to somehow put gas into your old beater."
Ron gave Ernie a smile.
"Listen. Thanks man, for all this. For helping us out."
"Hey I would still be locked up if it weren't for you two."
They got in the truck. Ernie started it up on the first try while pulling his seat belt on, put it in reverse, and turned the truck around. They drove away, watching the mansion in the mirrors shrink into the trees. Halfway into town we ran out of gas.
* * *
"What the heck Ernie?"
The truck suddenly died and Ernie steered it off the road as it rolled to a stop.
"We've been driving a lot today and this thing doesn't get the best gas mileage. We ran out."
"What?" Ron screamed.
"We passes that dumpy little station near the diner, but I guess we were running from that crazy biker dude. Dang it man! What are we going to do now?"
"I'll just run down the road and get some," Valerie said.
"No way. I'm not letting you go off alone again," Ron said.
"Then what would you suggest? Remember I can run like crazy fast? I'll be fine."
"Unless one of those robots finds you."
"I took care of that other one just fine."
"I'm not leaving your side Valerie."
"What if she just pushes the truck," Ernie said.
He looked over at Valerie.
"Your super strong right? If I put it in neutral you should be able to get us coasting pretty good and then just hop in the back until we slow again."
"I guess that could work."
"I could help you push," said Ron.
"No offense, but you just wouldn't be able to keep up."
"Right."
Valerie looked at Ron who was staring at the dusty dashboard.
"Okay so you need to move so I can get out and push."
Ron hopped out, watched Valerie drop down and walk to the tailgate, then he jumped back in. He drooped his head, staring at the dashboard again.
"Look I know you want to be the hero for her and all kid, but these are crazy circumstances. It is what it is. She is easily stronger than the two of us put together. Get over it. You did good back there with those robots. Maybe when this is all over you can give me some pointers in shooting."
"Ready?" Valerie shouted.
Ernie turned around and opened the little rear window.
"Let's see what you've got sweetheart. On second thought, don't push too hard. This old girl starts to shake a bit if you get her up past sixty."
He smiled. She smiled back, then started to push.
"Here goes."
The truck lurched forward with a sudden jerk. Ron looked back and saw Valerie jogging to catch up to it.
"Oops! Sorry. I thought it would be heavier."
Ernie laughed and slapped Ron on the back.
"See this will work."
He turned back to Valerie smiling at her through the little window.
"No problem. Just ease into it, then hop in the back."
She nodded and placed her hands back on the tailgate.
"Actually wait!" Ernie said.
"Push on the bumper. I'm afraid you'll break my tailgate."
"Oh yeah, good idea," Valerie said.
She pushed again, this time starting slow then gradually speeding up. Ron looked over at the neon orange mph needle and saw it passing 50 mph. His eyes grew wide.
He looked back at Valerie. She was looking down at her feet while pushing away. Then she moved her hands to the tailgate and hopped up into the truck bed with ease.
"Dang man! She's like, amazing!"
"Yes she is," Ernie said.
He turned around giving Valarie a big thumbs up. She crawled forward and crouched, folding her arms across the window.
"Wow fifty miles an hour? Not bad!"
"You're not kidding. Hey and there's a sign for a gas station coming up in a few miles. I bet we can cruise most of the way there if the road continues this downhill grade. Good thing this old beast doesn't use power steering."
Valerie had to hop back out and push a few more times but before long they were rolling into a gas station. There was one large semi truck parked on the side of the store but no other cars.
"Looks like we're the only ones here," Ernie said.
"How are we going to pay for gas? You don't have a tab here too do you?" Ron said.
"No, I've never been here before. Look in the glove box. I might have an old checkbook in there."
"I'll go inside and see if they'll take a check," Valerie said.
Ron looked through the glove box.
"Any luck?" Ernie said.
"Nope."
"Well I wonder if we go inside and..."
"Go inside and what?" Ron asked.
Ernie didn't reply. Ron looked over at him. Ernie was white as a ghost. He was looking at something behind Ron.
"What's wrong man?"
Ron pulled the pistols from his pocket and turned.
"Oh no."
A zombie was two feet away. Ron let out a raging scream, pulled out both pistols, swung open the door, and stepped out unloaded both magazines straight into the zombie's chest from inches away. He was sick of these things. He knew it was a person and so he didn't want to kill it, but the holes would heal. For now the zombie twisted and jerked around on the ground.
"Are you losin' it on me boy?" Ernie said.
Ron smiled. He looked over at Ernie. Then something beyond Ernie caught his eye and his smile went away. Ron looked down at his guns.
"The gunfire must have attracted them," Ron said. He gave the guns a quick flick down as he thumbed the release and the empty magazines fell to the ground. Ron reloaded his pistols. Ernie grabbed the shotgun then got out of the truck and walked over to Ron's side. He scanned the gas station. There were no zombies in there but he didn't see Valerie either.
"Come on girl! We're going to need some help out here!"
He raised the shotgun to his shoulder and waited for the zombies to get closer.