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| Carrier Syndrome | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| By Richard LeBlanc | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Part Seven: abduction | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Although the encounter with the Angels ended rather calmly - Julie and the others were still a little tense. It was as though something was still amiss. Like everything was going too smoothly in spite of the sickness that was slowly and steadily worsening in her. Just by a casual glance she could tell that Mark and Greg were feeling it too although they weren't letting it show. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "You going to be okay?" the kid asked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "No kid - I am fucking dying - thanks for asking," she muttered. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "I'm sorry," he muttered. She glanced over at him and shook her head. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Don't sweat it. I'm as much to blame as you are in this. I wanted to piss off Lora - didn't care how. Hopefully - once we - if we can get cured - we can get on with our lives and put this unpleasantness behind us," she commented. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "How maternal of you. Are we any closer to that refinery yet?" One of the rats impatiently asked. She groaned and glared at them through her mirror. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Go fuck yourself. You think I'm taking the scenic route?" she retorted as they rounded a corner. "Shit!" she exclaimed as she jerked the wheel and came screeching to a halt before a toppled light post. She looked out the window and saw how close she came to crashing. Mark and Greg hopped out and examined the fallen pole. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "That wasn't here two days ago," she pointed out. Mark walked over to the base of the pole and put his hand by the clearly torched metal. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "It's still warm. This job was recent," Mark stated. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Everyone out of the car," Julie muttered as she slid out through the window. "You hear what I hear?" she asked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Bikes," Greg remarked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Thought they were being a little too trusting," she muttered. She looked over at the kid and smirked. "I have a plan for dealing with them - but it will be risky," she began. She leaned over and began to whisper her plan to her friends. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "What is this plan?" one of the rats demanded. She looked over and smirked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Need to know basis - and you don't need to know. Can you make it happen Mark?" she asked. He sighed and thought about it for a moment. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Depends on if they have more boys than I have bullets," he pointed out. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "They know how many people we have - you think he's going to commit everyone?" she rebutted. He slung his rifle over his shoulder. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "For all our sakes - I hope not," he replied as he walked away. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Where is he going?" a rat demanded. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Need to know. Right now we have Angels coming in. They want the boy alive so they are going to try to distract us - or lure us away from him. See to it that doesn't happen," she stated as she walked over to where the rats were. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Have guns ready girls - we have to shoot down some Angels," she remarked. Just then - at the far end of the street - about two dozen motor bikes rolled out. She smiled as she armed her rifle and hopped the toppled pole. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Give us the boy bitch - we won't ask twice," one of the distant Angels shouted. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "You want him - you'll have to take him from us. And I assure you - we won't make that easy," she shouted back. The sound of dozens of engines revving echoed. She and the others watched as the gang began to charge. She her friend, the rats and the kid took cover behind the toppled pole. "Wait for them to get closer," she instructed. Just then - about half of the bikes veered off to the left and right. "Shit! They're going to try to surround us!" she cursed as she stood up and began shooting. The others followed suit. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Many shots missed - some hit the bikes causing little to no damage. A few shots hit the riders - but the surly bikers continued forward. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "They're still coming," Greg pointed out. He fired four shots - all hit the riders - but no damage seemed to be done. "They got body armor on - head shot's only," he pointed out. Julie groaned and sprayed a volley of bullets at head level. Five bikers were thrown from their vehicles. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| It was then that the bikes that had broken away from the pack - spun out from behind their line and began to charge their rear. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "They are behind us!" a rat pointed out - shooting at the bikers that were charging closer. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The line got compromised. Bikers leaped from their bikes the entrenched fighters - turning the gunfight into a brawl. Two bikers twitched and fell as though knocked aside. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Protect the kid!" Julie shouted out. She kicked a biker between the legs and almost knocked his head off with the butt of her rifle. A biker grabbed the kid and tried to run - but Julie shot him through the back of his head. A biker jumped her from behind and began savagely punching her. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Three more bikers fell. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The rats triple teamed any biker that got close to them - but the superior numbers of the bikers made the tactic almost useless. But none the less they managed to take down another five bikers before they got jumped. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Two more bikers twitched and fell. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "I got the brat! Let's book!" an Angel shouted. Julie tried to get up - but jolts of pain from the beating she got kept her down. Greg watched as the remaining six bikers hopped onto their bikes and began to ride away. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "You stupid bitch! You let them do this!" a rat hissed. Just then they watched as a bike exploded - throwing its rider high up - and over. Mark stepped out from an alley and took aim again. He fired. The shot went through the neck of one biker and into the head of another - taking two down. The biker with the kid looked back and saw him taking aim again. Another shot fired another angel fell. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "A fucking sharp shooter?? You must joking!" the Angel hissed in disbelief. Another shot zinged by - the second last Angel fell. Instantly he stopped the bike and raised his hands. "Don't shoot - I give up!" he shouted. The kid got off the bike and hurried back to where the others were. Greg helped Julie up. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Get back here Angel - don't make me ask you twice," she strained. The Angel got off his bike and slowly walked back - not taking his eyes off the man with the sniper rifle aimed at him. "Your boss believed the bitch over me? That's cool. Tell him - it was all bullshit - and that if he sends any more assholes like you after me - they won't come back. Mark here was a top shot in the army - as well as a top-notch mechanic," she began. The Angel looked over at Mark. He raised his rifle and waved. "Not many people know that though - they take him for just another grease monkey. Just like you idiots did. Tell that to your boss personally. And tell him - we will meet again - I owe him one," she said with a sadistic grin. "Well? Go - shoo," she ordered. The Angel quickly hurried away. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mark with his rifle on his shoulder walked over to where Julie was. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "You look like shit boss," he remarked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "I feel worse," she muttered coughing up some blood. "Any damage to the car?" she asked. Greg looked over and saw that with the exception of where a rogue bike crashed into it - the car was in perfect working order. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Crashes might have knocked a few bolts loose," Greg began as he looked under the car. "Not seeing any leaks. I think she is good for go," he pointed out. "Is the same true for you?" he asked seriously. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Biker punks roughed me up a bit - nothing more - oh and there is that matter of that disease that is killing me," she sarcastically remarked. Greg smirked and patted her on the cheek. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "At least it isn't keeping your sunny disposition down," he mocked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Don't make me hurt you," she muttered. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Was there a point to all this?" a battered rat demanded. Julie groaned as she looked over at the seriously pissed off rats. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Just so you know - I don't have to tell you bitches a god damn thing - but - for some reason - I will enlighten you anyway. Those punks doublecrossed me. I wanted to teach them a lesson. So I had Mark find a nice perch that overlooked the area and had him ping off an Angel or three at his leisure," she began. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "They almost got - the - boy? You wanted them to get him? that makes no sense?" a rat pointed out. Julie smiled and shrugged her shoulders. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Made perfect sense to me. How many more bullets you have hero?" she asked. Mark checked his gun. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "One. I got lucky and took out two with one shot," he replied. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Why did you want them to get the boy?" another rat asked. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Because tussling with us might have gotten them infected - but taking the boy first hand - I knew that would get the job done. That Angel will bring his message right to his boss and whoever is with him - infecting every last one of them. They want to think I'm fucking lying - when they start keeling over. He'll think twice about double crossing me - oops - no he won't - he'll be dead," she remarked looking over at the rats. "Hey - there's a moral to this story - something to think about huh?" she stated crossly. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "We should be on our way. This gun fight might have attracted unwanted attention," Greg suggested. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Good idea. Get in the car girls - the refinery isn't far from here," she instructed. She gritted her teeth as a sharp pang of pain jolted at her from her chest. She closed her eyes and forced the pain away. "I will not go out like this - not like this," she muttered as they all got back in the car and detoured around the pole and continued onward to the refinery. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| To be continued... | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||