Screeching from above echoed around the sides of dam. The monsters howled, eager for their prey. The leader stared down at them, his huge muscles rippling under his bark-like skin. Severed heads on spikes, jiggled as he pointed at Jack and George, and howled.
Monsters ran down the dam from all sides, racing towards Jack and George. A dark avalanche of unstoppable sharp-toothed suckers and claws that made Jack’s blood run cold.
Glancing quickly to his left, Jack grabbed George in a bear hug. “Take a deep breath buddy.”
Filling his lungs, he leapt off the ledge and into the roaring water of the spillway.
Sorry kid. Better to drown than be torn apart.
I’m sorry, so sorry I’ve failed another George…
— 24 —
Dee couldn’t believe how refreshed the shower made her feel. To wash all the stench, grime and dirt away after so many days. It was heavenly. She stood under the glorious hot water, for a time forgetting the repugnant Variants outside, the horrors of the last few days. Forgetting the sight of Faye being torn apart, of Rachel disappearing under a mass of Variants, her hand outstretched, her gasping, pleading for Dee to save her. She even forgot about Missing Teeth and his attempt to rape her.
The water washed away her fear and relaxed her tired mind.
Reluctantly she reached up, turned off the water and stepped out. Drying herself, she paused. Looking into the small mirror, she gazed at her gaunt reflection. Dee let out a bark of laughter at the sight of her collar bone poking out and she traced the curvature of her neck with her hand, surprised. She was happy to lose some extra pounds, but shocked at how quickly it had happened. With one last look at her lack of curves, she turned away from the mirror.
Dee pulled on her borrowed clothes, grateful to have something clean against her skin. She headed back into the main section and checked on Boss. The swelling on his head seemed to be going down but the bruise was darkening. His breathing was shallow but steady.
Hearing Ben talking in the war room, Dee walked over.
“Yeah, that’s correct, Falcon 1. I picked up two today. Over.”
Hissing and static carried over the airwaves through the speakers. “Anything happening on the Variant front? Over.”
“Heard some on my travels and the usual sniffing around my place. I had to take out two of them collaborators though. Over.”
“All right, Dusty Hollow. Report in tomorrow. Over.”
“SNAFU, Falcon 1. Wilco, Out.”
Ben reached up. Switching off the radio, he turned to Dee. “Hey, howa you feeling?”
“Great. Thanks so much. You don’t know how much I’ve been wanting a shower.”
Dee was staring at the monitors and the camera feeds they showed. She could see several Variants moving across the feeds.
“You’re not worried?” Dee said, pointing to the screens.
“Not really. I’m more worried about the ones I can’t see. These ones are just looking for a way in, probing, looking for a weak spot. I don’t get much sleep, though.”
Dee could see from the bags under his eyes that Ben was telling the truth. Hell, no one got much sleep these days. Last night in the boat was the best sleep she’d had since all this began.
“Well, since I’m here, how about I watch for a few hours?”
“Yeah, maybe. We’ll see how we go.”
Dee looked back to the monitors and could now see at least twenty of the Variants roaming around, sniffing at everything. Searching.
“You’re seriously not worried?”
Ben shook his head. “SNAFU.”
“SNAFU? I heard you say that.”
“It’s military jargon. It means Situation Normal All Fucked Up. We use it sarcastically, meaning it’s chaos, but that’s normal.”
“Oh right, so you were in the army?”
Ben nodded. “Yes, I served in the New Zealand Army, then the NZSAS, two tours of Vietnam, followed by some other stuff. Retired from the NZSAS when I was 45, then trained soldiers until I retired five years ago.”
Dee looked into Ben’s eyes. She could see pain buried deep. Those eyes had seen things no one should see. Not wanting to press him any further, Dee changed the subject. “Do you mind if I ask who you were talking too?”
“No, not at all. I was talking to the army… or what’s left of it.”
Ben pulled out a map of New Zealand. “We have pockets here in Wellington, holed up in the bunker under Government House. There’s a small group in Auckland, under the museum. A few are scattered around the South Island, in the mountains. Most evacuated out to the islands with the navy. Here on the Chathams, Stewart Island, Great Barrier and Mayor Island.”
“What about other survivors, like Boss and I?” Dee asked, hopeful of news of Jack.
“A few, yes, when we can find them. We’ve been flying them out to Mayor Island.”
“So why are you here?”
Ben rolled his shoulders, stretched out a kink and sighed. “Well, since I have this little bunker, I was recalled to active duty and ordered to stay behind, hunt for survivors.”
Dee allowed hope to float back into her mind. Perhaps Jack was still alive. Maybe he had been airlifted to safety.
“Can we radio Mayor Island and ask about my husband, Jack?”
“It’s pretty chaotic over there, but sure, let’s go for it.”
He turned back to the bank of radios and turned one on. He turned the detent dial until he had the right frequency, then pushed down the talk button on the microphone.
“Falcon 7, Falcon 7, this is Dusty Hollow, over.”
A voice immediately answered, making Dee’s heart leap with excitement.
“Falcon 7 receiving. Over.”
“Falcon 7, looking for civvie, maybe brought a few days back. Over.”
“Name, Dusty Hollow? Over.”
Ben looked at Dee. “Jack, Jack Gee. G-E-E.”
“Falcon 7, civvie’s name is Jack Gee, that’s Golf-Echo-Echo. Over.”
“Received. We’ll get back to you. Out.”
Dee paced around the room, grinning from ear to ear. She had hidden in that damp, stinky basement for thirteen days, and in the house for two. Fear of getting torn apart and eaten had frayed her nerves. But she had survived. Boss had provided humour. Her hope of seeing Jack had never diminished but now it flared up anew, thanks to Ben. He looked like a gentle giant, but Dee had seen the ruthless former SAS soldier in action.
Ben looked at Dee, a twinkle in his brown eyes. “Wait a minute. Is your married name ‘Gee’?”
Dee laughed. “Yes, I know. Dee Gee.”
“Really?” Ben smirked. He leant back and chortled.
“Yeah.” Dee giggled. It felt good to share a laugh with Ben.
The radio crackled to life. Dee’s heart hammered in her chest. “Dusty Hollow, Dusty Hollow, this is Falcon 7, Over.”
“Receiving Falcon 7. Over.”
“Nobody of that name on the civilian manifests, Dusty Hollow. Out.”
She was devastated. She had allowed herself to hope. Hope Jack had made it to Mayor Island. She sat down in a chair, deflated. The roaring in her ears drowned out the rest of the radio conversation.
Ben put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry Dee, I really am. I’ll get you and Boss to the next airlift.”
Dee nodded numbly, eyes downcast. “I should have gone to him. He was in the bush. But I made him come to me.”
“Dee, where was he?”
“Up in the Kaimai Mountains. Near Sentinel Rock.”
Ben got up and started pacing around the small room. “So he would’ve come across the country towards the city, right?”
Dee could feel a spark of excitement. “Yeah. He loves those back country roads.”
Ben fumbled through his pile of maps. Finding the one of the surrounding area, he excitedly pointed down. “Look. All the roads got choked up quickly, so maybe he had to skirt this area, forcing him wide to try to come into the city from the south?”