Thirty minutes later the three of them were walking along the road to the lodge. They carried their guns and a first aid kit.
The weather had turned slightly for the worst. It was starting to rain and the wind had picked up. Oncoming clouds were blocking the sun, so the temperature had dropped a few degrees.
"Ugh, good old Alaskan weather. You gotta love it," Brad remarked looking up to the sky.
"I do," replied Jess with a smile. "After all I've lived in it most my life!"
"I don't mind it most of the time either," said Sarah.
"You guys are strange," Brad laughed, as the rain got heavier.
They continued up the road another ten minutes and finally the lodge came into view. It loomed over the hillside with eerie presence. Its old logs made it look as if it were going to collapse at any minute. There were clear markings of charred wood along one side of the lodge. The dead, colorless trees on the property looked just as old and eerie as the lodge. It looked like the scene to a really cheep horror film.
They jogged up to the fence and looked around. There was no one to be seen. They each took out their handguns and slowly walked up to the front door. They tried it and finding it unlocked, opened it. They waited a moment, and then slowly moved in.
The room was large and dusty. All the lights were off making it a little hard to see. The most noticeable thing about the lodge was how quiet it was. The three of them had learned not to trust any place that was this quiet. Not under the circumstances.
Sarah walked over to one of the windows and opened the curtains. Immediately the whole room was engulfed in the summer light. It revealed a log cabin room with dark green carpeting and lots of old dusty wood furniture. The walls were decorated with the skins, antlers and heads of many different animals. There were two doors, both on the left side and a grand staircase in the middle of the room.
"Should we split up?" Brad asked.
"No way, we're in a new place, it'd be best to stay together," Jess answered.
"And besides, this isn't going to take long, it wouldn't make sense to split up," said Sarah.
The three of them walked across the room and silently decided to go upstairs. The hallway that the stairs ended in looked much the same as the main hall had, dark, dusty and quiet.
They walked along the hallway passing three wood doors, and then entered a small room at the end of the hall. It was a living room with two couches, two chairs, many bookcases and more dust. There was another hall leading out of the small room to the left but they decided against exploring it.
Brad touched one of the bookcases and left a streak of dustless wood. "Housecleaning anyone?" he asked laughing quietly.
They walked around in the lodge for about ten more minutes before anyone said anything else. Then, as they were headed for the stairs, they heard a loud bump down in the main hall. It sounded like someone had just run into a table.
"What was that?" Sarah whispered.
"I don't know. Keep moving and stay low," answered Jess.
They came to the top of the staircase and looked down at the room before them. Nothing. Jess noticed that a chair had indeed been moved several inches from its original spot. One of the corners of the area rug the chair sat on was lifted up and pulled away from the floor to reveal a dustless spot of carpet.
"I don't see anything but there is something down there; look at that chair over there. It was moved," Jess whispered turning back to her team.
"Yes I see it, but what did it?" answered Sarah.
"Hey guys, look out!" Brad shouted as began shooting behind them.
Jess turned around to see a dead-looking man coming towards them in a business suite all covered in blood and rotting flesh. His skin (what was left of it) was a pale bluish white, his teeth and nails long and sharp, his eyes lifeless, a zombie.
Jess brought her gun up and at the same time Sarah landed a bullet right between the zombies' eyes, killing it.
"Wow. That brings up the adrenaline level every time," said Brad after a few seconds.
"Sure does. That means that the virus did get out, alright, let's get out of here but be on alert, we still don't know what's downstairs," Jess said turning back to the staircase.
They walked down the stairs then cautiously moved towards the door. They didn't see anything and made it out safely.
"What time is it now?" asked Jess.
"Um, almost 4:30, it looks like we won't be there to welcome our new member," answered Brad.
"Oh well, I'm pretty sure he knows to stay at the station until we get there so lets head over there next," Jess replied.
7
Bus number 67 pulled up to the Norrel bus station. Its only passenger stepped off and looked around. Tim Packard walked toward the man he had been talking to not long before. A small crowd of people got onto the bus and sat down.
"We need to make this quick, your friends will be arriving anytime now. By the way, what did you do to their HQ?"
"Destroyed it. It's underground in the middle of nowhere so it isn't like anyone would have noticed," said Packard. "What is it that you want me to do?"
"Once they get into the lab, destroy them how ever you want. I don't care. Just make sure that none of them get out alive," came the reply. If you fail to do that, you'd better make sure that they don't make it out of the city, got it?"
"Yes sir. Is that it?"
"Yes, now go and stand by the station before the others get here. Let me know when you've completed your mission."
"Yes sir," Packard said turning and walking back.
Less than five minutes later, the other three came walking up.
"Are you Packard?" asked Jess.
"Yes."
"Okay then let's go, the room isn't far from here. Did Boss fill you in on the mission?" Jess continued.
"Yes," Packard said picking up his bag. "Let's go."