Machines of the Dead

Chapter 15

Zaun was fast asleep when Jack went to check on his friend. Using pen and paper, he left a note on the desk, telling his sword-wielding buddy to come to his room when he woke up.

By ten p.m. Zaun still hadn’t shown, and Jack decided not to wait up for him. The two would catch up tomorrow. The man apparently needed his shut-eye.

Jack decided to hit the hay himself when a knock came at his door. Dressed in sweatpants and a t-shirt, he went over to the door and opened it, surprised to see Kevin Myers standing there.

“What’s up, Kevin? Everything all right?”

The guy looked visibly shaken. “Can I come in?”

Jack was tired-his bed calling him-but the kid looked like he really needed someone to talk to. Figuring he would put the guy’s mind at ease after a few minutes, he told him to come in.

He shut the door behind Kevin, then sat on his bed. The kid remained standing. “Have a seat,” he said, motioning to the chair in front of the desk.

Kevin began pacing back and forth, obviously upset about something.

“Talk to me,” Jack said.

“I found something out.” The kid continued pacing. “Some really bad stuff.”

“Okay,” Jack said, thinking the poor kid had heard awful news about a family member or something to that effect. Then it hit him: “Are they going to nuke the city?”

“No. God no. Nothing like that.”

Jack let out a breath, feeling his body relax.

“Kevin,” he said, “ why don’t you sit down and talk to me. Tell me what’s bothering you.”

The kid shook his head and continued to pace, rubbing the back of his neck as he did so. He finally stopped, and faced Jack. “They were testing the bots on people, Jack. On fucking people. Homeless people. Taking them off the streets, promising them money and a quick stay in the lab. But it was all a lie.”

When Jack was initially told about the bot program, it hadn’t occurred to him who or what the test subjects were. He had assumed lab animals, rats and whatnot. But people? He supposed after the bots were tested on animals, the results being positive, that people, volunteers, would be next to be tested on. It made sense, and was after all what the pharmaceutical companies did.

“You’re saying they’re using people against their will?”

“Yes. Torturing and killing them in the process. Now, with the city the way it is, their supply is low. Maybe even gone for all I know.”

“There are people here, besides the employees? Civilians?”

“You remember that locked door we talked about earlier, the one by Reynolds’ office?”

“C-wing. Yeah.”

“That’s where the people were kept and experimented on. C-wing is filled with labs and rooms; rooms where they keep the subjects locked up. There were over thirty homeless people in there at one point. But now…” T he kid shook his head. “Now they might all be dead.”

“And you’re sure about this?”

“Of course I’m sure. Doc Reynolds has been torturing them. Infecting them, seeing how long they last, pumping them full of fluids, nutrients, then shocking them to kill the things before starting all over. But most of them die after a few times, too weakened to continue, their bodies giving out.”

“Who told you this?”

“One of the guards. A guy named Devon. After a night of cards and heavy drinking, we went back to his room. We talked about our families. He kept drinking. I asked him about that locked door, where it went. He laughed, then told me everything. How Dr. Reynolds was taking homeless people and locking them up, experimenting on them, like something out of a horror movie. He said he had no idea if there were any left alive, and the only reason he sent you out was in the hope you’d bring back more people. People for him to experiment on.

“The next day, I thought I’d be called into Reynolds’ office for a chat, as I’m not supposed to know about what’s really going on, but never was. Devon said nothing to me about it again. I think he was so drunk he must have blacked out. Doesn’t remember telling me about it. He was so hung-over the next day he could barely stand without wanting to puke.”

Jack couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Dr. Reynolds was a monster. A modern Frankenstein. No wonder the man had been acting strange earlier.

Kevin was pacing again, like a Bengal tiger at the zoo.

“All right,” Jack said. “Calm down. Take a seat and we’ll figure this out.”

The kid stopped, looked Jack in the eyes. He laughed coldly, then said, “You don’t get it. He’s run out of people, and hasn’t gotten the bots to work properly yet.”

“So?”

“So he needs subjects. You and your friend are next.”

Jack felt as if he had been slapped. A lump formed in his throat that he tried unsuccessfully to swallow.

“You shouldn’t have come back, Jack. You should’ve stayed up there, tried to leave the city.”

Jack shook his head. There was no way anyone was leaving the city without using the escape tunnel or a helicopter. He was nothing but a trapped lab rat now. But thanks to the kid, he was aware, and could do something about it.

“Why did you tell me this?”

“I… I don’t know.” Kevin shook his head quickly, then ran a hand over his scalp. “You’re my friend, Jack, and this has been eating away at me for days. I can’t sleep or eat. After fighting overseas, returning home and getting this assignment, I figured this would be a great place to be. A safe working environment. I feel like I’ve been tricked-sent to work for the Devil.”

“There’s no way the military would sanction this, right?” Jack asked.

“No way. Not from what I know. This is some secret, underground shit. Some rogue branch I’m guessing. I’m sure in his official reports it’ll show that he used rats or monkeys.”

“Do all the guards know about this?”

“I’m not sure. Only the ones with access to C-wing I would guess, the high-ranking guards. Lopez and I don’t have access to that area. Being in such a small place, confined, I’m surprised we weren’t all brought in and told about it. There were others like us, but they aren’t here anymore.”

Jack did think it was strange. Why would Reynolds bring in people he couldn’t trust? “Was there a high turnover here, soldiers coming and going?”

Kevin nodded. “I’m newer than most. Maria Lopez, a friend and one of the guards here, lower-level like myself, did warn me not to get too comfortable with my current assignment, as a lot of soldiers were swapped out. Said only a few stayed on permanently. I wasn’t sure what to think of it, so I made sure I did everything I was told and did it well.”

“He was probably planning on swapping you and your friend out of here, only taking on people he could use, pay off, and trust to keep what went on in his lab a secret.”

“That makes sense. The only guards that never left were the ones that had access to C-wing.”

“Have you told any of the others like yourself about this?”

Kevin shook his head. “For all I know they’d report me. Try to get in good with the doc. Who would want to leave this cushy assignment? The only person I felt comfortable talking to about this was you. If you didn’t make it back, I’d have no choice but to talk to someone else. Luckily, for me, you did come back. It’s just not lucky for you that you did.”

“Can you trust any of them? I mean do you know any of them? Served with any of them before?”

“Yeah. Lopez. We served in Iraq together. She’s a good person. She’d never go along with what’s going on here.”

“And the others?”

Kevin shook his head. “I’ve no idea about them.”

Jack had thought he’d been subjected to the most awful part of this whole situation and that the worst was behind him, but as usual it was the human condition that proved to be the most terrible thing on the planet.

“And where do you fall into all of this? What do you propose we do about it?”

“I don’t know. I don’t have any fucking idea. We need to get the hell out of here. And fast. I want nothing to do with this. If I get out I’ll blow the whistle on Reynolds.”

Jack heard what he wanted to hear. If he and Zaun got to the outside, tried exposing Reynolds, most likely no one, especially the military, would believe them. However, having a soldier tell the tale was a different story. A more believable story. One that would call for an investigation at least. And if none of that worked, there was always the media, which meant they’d need proof.

“Okay,” Jack said. “How long do we have before he comes for me and Zaun?”

“Hell, I’ve got no idea, but I can’t imagine it will be long. Like I said, if he hasn’t run out of subjects yet, he soon will. For all I know, I’m as expendable as you. Shit, he might be planning on using all the low-ranking guards to experiment on. I mean, what choice does he have?” He paused, then added, “And Jack, I’m not leaving without checking C-wing for survivors.”

“Agreed,” he said, glad to hear that Kevin felt the way he did. It seemed as if the only thing the kid was sure about, because other than that, Kevin was looking to Jack to be the leader. Looking to him for answers. He wasn’t the soldier, but he was the elder, and he guessed that made him more experienced in the kid’s eyes.

“How difficult is it going to be to get all this accomplished and leave undetected?” Jack asked.

“Impossible. We’ll have to use force. Extreme force. Most likely fight our way out of here. Even kill. We should take out Chambers and use Reynolds as a hostage. With Chambers out of the picture, the others will be a little less organized and unsure, for a little while at least. They’re soldiers and will fall back to their training, becoming a cohesive unit. That’s why taking Reynolds hostage is a must. If we have him, his files… we should be all right. Both he and Chambers, from what I was told, are the only ones with access to the escape tunnel.”

“Do you have access to the weapons store?”

“No. I’ve only got my sidearm on me at all times.” Kevin patted the gun strapped to his hip. “That’s it. Only when I’m on active guard duty do I get an M4, and I don’t go back on until the morning.”

“The higher-ranking guards, do they always carry machine guns? Or do they return them to the arsenal?”

“All weapons, excluding knives and sidearms, are returned to the weapons store after a shift. Reynolds orders.”

“Okay,” Jack said, getting up off the bed. “So after we have Reynolds, we’ll need to head to the arsenal. Get some guns, then get the people out of C-wing. After that, we go to the escape tunnel and get the hell out of here.”

“Let’s just hope it goes that smoothly.”

“Wait here,” Jack told him. “I’m going to get Zaun. Don’t go anywhere or talk to anyone.”

Jack left the room and went down the hall to Zaun’s door. Like before, it was unlocked. He went in and saw that Zaun was still asleep. Going over to him, Jack started saying his name and shaking him.

“Jack?” Zaun croaked. “What’s going on? What time is it?”

“Get up and get dressed, take your jacket with you, but don’t wear it. Roll i t up and keep it tucked under your arm.”

“What’s going on, man?”

“Trust me,” Jack insisted, his hand on the doorknob. “Just do what I said. Meet me in my place as soon as you’re dressed.” He opened the door and headed back to his room.

A few minutes later, Zaun entered Jack’s room, and was quickly brought up to speed.

“Man,” Zaun said, “from one screwed up situation to another. This Reynolds guy sounds like a real scumbag.”

To Kevin, Jack asked, “Are you sure you can do this? I mean kill your fellow-”

“They’re not fellow anything, Jack,” the kid said, cutting Jack off. “They’re as guilty and as evil as Doc Reynolds. Orders are orders, but they all know what he’s doing would never be sanctioned. He’s got to be paying them off.”

“But still,” Jack continued, “these are fellow soldiers, human beings.”

“Killing isn’t new to me. It was just always the real enemy, so to speak, that was in my sights.” Kevin put his head down, seeming to be thinking something. Jack looked to Zaun, then back at Kevin. Talk was cheap, and Jack knew when the shit hit the fan, if it did, Kevin might have to kill fellow Americans, soldiers.

Kevin looked up, caught Jack’s stare. “As far as I’m concerned, the men working here are the real enemy. And I’m pretty sure after you guys, I’d be next on their list of test-subjects.”

Jack saw the look in his eyes, and knew the kid was for real.

“Okay,” Zaun said. “We’re ready to roll.”

“I want to bring Lopez in on this,” Kevin said.

“No way,” Zaun said, shaking his head. “Just us. Keep it simple.”

“She’s a friend; a good person, and doesn’t deserve to get stuck down here.”

“I don’t know, Kevin,” Jack said.

“I’ve served with her. She’s a stand up gal. Never got involved with anything shady. She’s got a daughter. Let me ask her. Tell her what’s going on.”

“No,” Zaun insisted. “We can’t take that chance.”

“I won’t do this without her. If she shows any sign that she’s going to tell Chambers, Doc or the others, I’ll tie her up. But she’s going to be on our side and we could use all the hands we can get. I won’t leave her here to be tortured and experimented on.”

“Splitting up now is not a good idea,” Zaun said.

“The two of you can take care of Reynolds. You get him, and Chambers will fall in line. No need even to go after him. I’d give you my sidearm, but I’ll need it in case Lopez doesn’t want to go along.”

“I have this,” Jack said, going over to his bed, lifting the mattress, and producing a small steak knife.

“Better than nothing and more than enough to take Reynolds with,” Kevin said. “I better get going. Lopez and I will meet you two at the weapons store. If you get there and I’m not present, then grab a few extra goodies and head to C-wing. I’ll meet you there.”

Jack didn’t like this at all. With the three of them going about business together, they had a better chance, but the kid wouldn’t budge. Once they had Reynolds, Jack would feel better. T he bottom line was: if Kevin didn’t make it, it was the kid’s own fault, though he couldn’t condemn the guy for having a heart.

“Good luck,” Jack told him. Kevin nodded to both men, then left.

“Ready to do this?” Zaun asked.

“Yeah,” Jack said. He handed Zaun the knife. “You take this; you’ll make better use of it.”

Zaun smiled. “That I will.”

Before leaving the room, Jack asked for a minute. He didn’t want to think or hesitate when it came time to do what he had to do. Just act. Or react. He would have time to think later, to deal with his emotions. He was about to embark on a journey that could be filled with bloodshed and pain. Could he prepare himself, having never been through such a thing? He had never served in the military. He didn’t grow up in a bad neighborhood where people died on a weekly basis. Jack had been in a few scuffles during his life, a few fistfights, but that was it. Was he really cut out to be a killer? No, he wasn’t, because he wasn’t a killer. He was a survivor, and someone who would defend himself. The people in the bunker meant him and his friends harm. They wouldn’t hesitate to kill him, torture him, so he couldn’t hesitate either. He needed to be strong, use a controlled viciousness if there was such a thing, because remaining levelheaded during combat was important. Important during any great undertaking. He needed to make it out alive and intact, for all of their sakes, including his sister’s.

He would see her again.

Zaun put his jacket on, and placed the knife inside it.

“These men are well-trained,” Jack warned his friend, looking him in the eye. “Professional soldiers, ready to kill.”

“Jack, after what I’ve been through, how far we’ve made it, I’m not about to pussy out. I’m no lab rat or human pin-cushion. It’s us against them.”

The look in Zaun’s eyes was one of fierceness. If Jack didn’t know any better, he’d swear the man had killed before, and maybe he had. The guy had been in that building for a while with all sorts of crazy shit going on. It wasn’t out of the question that his friend had to defend himself. Maybe Zaun looked at the undead as people, and as far as the man was concerned, he had killed already. It was a good mindset to have. Jack felt a little better at seeing how serious his normally non-serious friend was. There was no doubt in Jack’s mind that the guy was ready to do whatever needed to be done.

He only hoped he could do the same.