Sacrifices

Chapter 22: This Collision

Screaming…

It was the first thing that reached Leon's ears as the gunshots echoes began to fade. He could tell it was more than one voice, and both were female. One sounded foreign, almost like a wailing moan. But, the other was frighteningly familiar.

Claire.

He tore his gaze from the dead body lying at his feet. Alexia was already running toward him, her arms outstretched, a look of abject terror on her face. She didn't even seem to notice Leon as she dropped to her knees, hands hovering over her lover's bullet-riddled form.

The blonde's mouth hung open, disbelieving eyes wide with shock. "Albert," she moaned softly. "Oh, Albert…"

Leon stepped around the woman and hurried into the room, immediately spotting Claire, who was strapped to a chair, thrashing about, hysterically. He was so elated at seeing her alive that it took him a moment to even notice what was upsetting her so much.

What he saw through the glass stopped him in his tracks. His blue eyes widened in shock.

"Claire?"

Claire spun her head around at the sound of his voice. "Leon!" she shouted at him. "Get me out! Get me out! Please… oh my God, he's dying! Please!"

Her frantic cries managed to break his paralysis and he ran to her, his hands already working at the straps holding down her arms as he barraged her with questions. "Are you alright? What happened? Who is that?"

As soon as her right arm was free, she began working at her left. "My legs!" she screamed. "Get my legs!"

She was kicking so hard Leon had to forcefully hold her down in order to create enough slack to undo the restraints. As he freed one leg, she suddenly pushed him away and got up, practically dragging the chair with her as she fought to release the binding on her other leg. When it finally gave, she ran from the room, not even sparing a glance at Alexia, who still remained slumped over Wesker's body.

"Claire! Wait!" Leon scrambled to his feet and rushed after her.

Jill pressed her back to the wall, signaling to Barry with a motion of her hand. He came around the corner, weapon aimed at a point just beyond where his teammate stood, his other hand clamped firmly around the wrist of Dr. Lessing.

They heard gunfire only seconds ago and were now rapidly advancing toward the end of the corridor. It was difficult to tell exactly where the shots came from, but they were definitely close.

Barry positioned himself just behind Jill on the opposite wall and pushed down on the doctor's shoulder in a silent command for the man to crouch down to the floor. Robert complied without a word.

'Stay down' Barry mouthed to him. The doctor nodded in understanding.

According to Lessing, there were six rooms between their current location and his lab, which was beyond the double doors at the end of the hall. Jill made another gesture to Barry and he moved ahead, taking the right side, while she stayed to the left.

Less than thirty feet away, a figure suddenly emerged from one of the rooms, throwing the door open and running in the opposite direction.

Jill recognized the person instantly. "Claire!"

The young woman immediately stopped and turned around, a gun clutched, tightly, in her hand. Without a second thought, Jill started down the hall toward her, not even realizing that the brunette was raising her arm to take aim.

"Gun!"

Barry's voice boomed in the confined space and Jill reacted, instinctively, dodging toward the wall as a bullet grazed her upper arm. Two other shots missed their mark by inches before the figure turned and disappeared through the large steel doors.

Jill slumped against the wall, her left hand clamped against her right arm, eyes shut, tightly, against the pain as Barry and Robert appeared at her side.

"What the fuck?" Barry exclaimed. "What the hell is she doing shooting at us?"

The doctor pulled Jill's hand away, his practiced, experienced fingers already probing through the bloody tear in her sleeve before she had a chance to object. She started to squirm when he made contact with the wound.

"Hold still," he admonished.

"She must not have realized it was us," Jill answered in a strained voice.

"How bad is it?" Barry directed his question to Lessing.

"Just a flesh wound," the man replied as he quickly ripped the fabric of her shirt to expose the injury.

Jill looked at Barry. "I'm fine. Go after her."

His expression was grim as he pulled a Colt Python from inside his vest and stuck it in her left hand. "You won't need as much accuracy with this. Just point it and shoot at whatever stupid motherfucker gets in your way."

She offered him a weak smile. "Watch yourself."

"Ditto." He gave her a quick wink and turned to Robert. "Leave her and I'll kill you. Got it?"

"Yes," he replied, nervously. "Yes, of course." Without another word, the burly man turned away from them and ran down the hallway, quickly disappearing through the double doors in pursuit.

Robert worked, adeptly, using the ripped material in his hands and fashioning a makeshift dressing to try and stop the bleeding. When he pulled the pieces taut he could feel Jill's body tense up, and immediately offered her a look of apology.

"This will help until I can bandage it properly."

She barely waited for him to finish before she straightened up, wincing as she tried to tighten her grip on the Beretta still clutched in her right hand.

"Thanks, Doctor."

A woman's agonized cry suddenly cut through the silence. The sound came from just ahead of them, most likely the room from where Claire had emerged only a moment ago.

Jill made the decision in the blink of an eye.

"Here," she said, sticking her gun in Robert's hand. "You might need this."

"What?" He looked down the hall as Jill lifted Barry's parting gift to her and cocked it with her thumb, chambering a round.

"If you see fit to run there's little I can do to stop you," Jill stated matter-of-factly, her dark, brown eyes catching his panic-stricken blue ones. "But, right now, someone else might need you. So, are you going to run, or are you going to help?"

The young doctor stared at the foreign object in his hand. He had never fired a gun in his life. "I…I don't know how to-"

Jill calmly moved the barrel aside with the tip of her finger. "Like the man said, just point and shoot. Only not at me, alright?" With that, she started moving down the corridor again, her weapon poised in readiness, hoping that Robert Lessing was every bit as frightened as he seemed to be.

Otherwise, she'd just handed him the perfect opportunity to take her out.

"Are you sure this is it?"

Carlos glanced over his shoulder at Rebecca, whose face was grim and tense. He hadn't known her for very long, but he was certain that the look of determination in her eyes was completely genuine.

"It looks like it," he replied. "When Leon packed up our supplies there was enough C4 in here to choke a herd of elephants."

"This is crazy," Dick muttered from his position at the back of the group as they entered a darkened storage area, now one floor up from the lab where Rebecca made her gruesome discovery. "How are we supposed to get everyone out and blow this place up at the same time?"

"I don't know," the young medic answered honestly. "But, we have to destroy those abominations."

Dick shot her a skeptical look. "I still find it a little hard to believe that those… things are actually alive. I mean, come on-"

Rebecca spun around, suddenly, the shake in her voice betraying her anger and desperation. "You haven't seen what I've seen, Dick! And you don't know the horrific things Umbrella is capable of!"

"This is not Umbrella," he stated calmly.

She dropped her gaze for a moment, feeling the sting of tears in her eyes. Dick meant well, but he couldn't possibly comprehend the magnitude of what they were up against. Sadly, she didn't know if anyone ever could. "If Albert Wesker and Alexia Ashford are behind all of this, it may as well be."

"This is insane," Dick sighed. "How can stuff like this be happening right under everyone's noses?"

Rebecca's expression was unreadable as she lifted her head to look at him. "Because, no one wants to believe it," she said softly.

Carlos put a hand on her shoulder. "Look, I already told you, I can take care of this. The two of you need to get the girls out of here."

"We can't leave without Claire," Sherry interjected.

"Or Jill," Dick added.

"Or my Mommy!"

At the sound of Christina's plea, Carlos realized he still hadn't had a chance to tell his companions about her mother. Unfortunately, now was neither the time nor the place. "Don't worry. I'll make sure we have time to get everyone out. But, we can't help anyone else until the kids are out of here."

Sherry folded her arms across her chest and stared at the floor, looking utterly miserable. "I'm not the one that needs to be rescued."

"I agree," Carlos said with a slight grin. "In fact, you were doing just fine when I caught up with you. But, a lot of bad things are gonna start happening, and I want you both as far from here as possible when it does, comprende?"

"Carlos is right," Rebecca interjected. "We need to get you two out. Now." She glanced back at the elevator and released a weary sigh. "Christina, is this the only way to get back up to the ground level?"

"For grown-ups."

The medic gave her a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

The little girl pointed up at the ceiling. "There's lots of tunnels everywhere, but they're small… like, only kids could fit in them."

"Tunnels?" Dick pondered as he glanced up. "Do you mean air ducts?"

The little girl shrugged. "I guess so."

"Makes sense," Carlos commented. "With all this underground space, they have to get air down here."

Rebecca's eyes began searching, frantically, scanning the walls and ceiling for an opening. She caught a glimpse of something high up on the far wall, disturbing the smooth, concrete surface. "Maybe up there."

Dick and Carlos followed her outstretched arm. The small group walked over to the other side of the room, where both men began moving a few items against the wall, forming a makeshift ladder. Since Rebecca was the lightest, and likely the most nimble, she scaled the table and boxes with ease.

"Jackpot," she called down as her fingers slid along the edge of a small metal grate embedded in the concrete. She removed a knife from her hip and jimmied the frame away from the wall. There were no screws holding it in, and with a generous amount of force, the dull, steel grille popped out, just missing the top of Dick's head as it fell to the floor with a loud clang.

"Good thing I have Jill's good luck charm on me," the older man commented.

"Sorry," Rebecca replied, looking down at him with a sheepish grin. She stuck her head in the small space. It was definitely a tight squeeze. She put an arm in and leaned forward, trying to judge the size of the interior. It seemed a bit wider on the inside, and with a grunt of effort, she found herself able to get her upper body in up to her waist.

"Well?"

The brunette's muffled voice wafted down to Carlos as he watched her, intently. "I think I could get through with the girls…" She suddenly reemerged, her upper body covered with dust and dirt. "But, without a roadmap who knows how long it could take?"

"Well, you're only looking to go up." The mercenary offered her a hand to help her down. "And right now this seems like the only way to avoid another hail of gunfire."

Rebecca dropped lightly down to the floor and nodded. "Unfortunately, I have to agree with you."

"I don't want to leave," Sherry pleaded. "Not without Claire."

"Sherry, honey, I know how you feel, but we can't-"

"No, you don't!" The young girl turned her face away, afraid to show the tears that were threatening to fall. She didn't want to cry in front of them. It made her feel like a child. She felt a gentle hand on her shoulder and she pulled away, refusing to be mollified.

"I promise you, Sherry, Carlos won't do anything until we're sure she's safe," Rebecca stated, her voice soft, yet firm. "But, we have to go."

Carlos felt a slight tug on his vest. He looked down to see Christina's vivid, green eyes fixed on him.

"Don't forget about my Mommy."

The young man's mouth suddenly went dry, and he just stood there for a moment, gazing down at the little girl. He didn't want to be the one to tell her she was now an orphan. It was so terribly unfair… and it was also hitting just a little too close to home.

"I won't," he finally said.

"Promise?"

Lifting his right index finger, he made an 'X' motion over his heart. Christina practically beamed at him.

"Come on," Dick prompted. "Let's get a move on. They'll probably show up here any minute."

Reluctantly, Sherry allowed Rebecca to lead her over to Carlos, who began to help her climb up to the airshaft. She quickly disappeared from view, only to reappear a few seconds later, reaching an arm down to pull Christina up.

Finally, Rebecca navigated her way up, pausing to look back down at the two men. "As soon as we get out, I'll call for reinforcements."

Dick eyed her, dubiously. "You really think the LAPD is gonna buy the whole "zombie madness" story?"

The brunette shrugged. "I'll just call in a bomb threat." With that, she disappeared into the shaft opening, her muffled voice echoing slightly as she called back to them, "Don't forget to cover our tracks."

"You got it," Carlos replied, then immediately climbed up and replaced the metal grate. He pressed it, firmly, back into place and whispered softly, "Hasta luego."

Dick and Carlos worked quickly to remove all signs of the girls' covert exit, and then returned to searching the room for the equipment Carlos would need in order to set the explosive charges in the lab below them.

After several minutes of tense silence, the young mercenary spoke up. "Okay, I'm ready to go." He took two small bags he'd found on a shelf and placed the necessary tools and equipment inside, then zipped it up. The other bag was already filled to capacity with enough soft-molded C4 to destroy the lab, the room they presently occupied, and probably all of the floors above them, as well.

"Isn't that a little much?" Dick remarked, looking at the other man's burden.

"Rebecca wants to be sure," Carlos explained, his face tight with tension. "And so do I."

"Right. Well, I'll leave you to it. I need to go find my kid." Dick headed for a nearby door, stopping to glance over his shoulder as Carlos walked back to the elevator. "Hey."

The young mercenary stopped and looked back at him. "Yeah?"

"Watch your step."

"Besa mi culo."

Dick grinned. "No big. I was in prison, remember?" He winked at Carlos and disappeared through the door.

Carlos sighed, wearily, and adjusted the bags in his hand. He couldn't believe he was doing this shit again.

Another lab full of monsters…

Another ticking clock…

Another day in the life of Carlos Oliveira.

Yes, it's a real, honest to goodness update. I had good reason for dropping off the face of the earth, but I won't bore you with the details. Suffice it to say, I'm back to working on the story and have every intention of finishing it. And to all of the people that were nice enough to review it way back when, I'm sorry for leaving you hanging all this time, and I sincerely hope to make it worth the wait.