Chapter 4

Truth or Dare

Patiently waiting for an answer, Alice tucked her hands into her jacket pockets.

"I dunno." Rubbing her neck and looking away, Anise hedged. "Luck of the draw?"

Alice definitely looked like she wanted a better explanation. Damn security operatives and their gut instincts.

Sounds of a struggle caught Anise's attention. It was a great excuse to avoid answering the question. "You hear that?"

"What?" Worry returned to Alice's pretty green eyes. The chief's inferior senses hadn't detected the faint noise. Another perk from Afterthought, Anise mused, unbelievably awesome hearing.

"It sounds like a fight. Let's check it out." Alice's face, as she looked up at the taller Anise, said she was not about to drop the matter. Anise pouted. "I broke in to that creepy room to get drunk. It was a dare. When I woke up, I couldn't get out." She hoped it was enough truth to get the chief off her back.

"That was your computer that got fried?"

"Yep."

While Alice slowly considered, she never broke eye contact with the sweating woman. "Anise, right?"

Anise nodded.

"Alright. After you," Alice gestured for her new ally to take the lead.

Relieved that she didn't have to answer more uncomfortable questions, Anise smiled weakly. They proceeded down the hall and into the normally immaculate clerical offices. Papers and manila folders were scattered everywhere, desks and chairs were overturned, and office supplies were strewn across the floor. Anise felt a few pens under her feet snap. The people trapped in the offices must have struggled. No blood in sight though, so it must have happened before the infection. Death by halon gas. Wouldn't have been pleasant. Anise shivered. The two drew closer to the sounds of struggle, and Alice visibly stiffened when her less sensitive hearing picked them out. She cast a questioning glance at Anise, who half-grinned in response. Politely, she refrained from saying "I told you so" out loud.

Since Anise had the only weapon, she took point, quickly, cautiously stalking toward the noises. She turned a corner and stalled at the sight of Matt struggling with an infected woman. He was pinned to the floor, desperately shoving the snapping jaw away from him, looking absolutely petrified. Even though he should have easily been able to break away from the thin woman attacking him, his struggles were weak and barely effective. Anise recognized the blonde woman in a nice skirt suit. Lisa. Another close friend. The ax shivered in her hands as she shook and looked away from the sight of shy, quiet Lisa trying to rip chunks out of Matt.

CRUNCH.

Anise's eyes flew open at the sound. Standing over the pair on the floor, Alice was holding a heavy duty paperweight smeared with dark blood. The glass cube tumbled from her hands when Matt looked up in surprise. The infected woman, whose desk that Anise used to unceremoniously plop her ass down on and noisily eat snacks at until Lisa eventually demanded she share, would not be moving again. Anise bit her cheek against tears as Matt anxiously pushed her aside to stand up. He gave Anise a cursory once over before returning his gaze to Alice.

The chief winced under his stare and pulled her hands close to her body. Matt did not speak as his emotions played across his face. His brilliant blue eyes flicked to the dead woman's face before they would return to Alice's, and Anise watched with renewed interest. He looked like he couldn't decide if he wanted to thank or punch Alice. It was just how she felt about Rain killing Terri. She blinked. He blamed Alice for the woman's death even though she just saved his life?

"You're her brother," blurted out. The evident surprise on Matt's features confirmed it. Lisa had made that same weird open-mouthed, squinty-eyed expression when Anise boasted about her latest pranks. "She talked about you sometimes. Her over-protective older brother that she couldn't wait to go visit next month."

"You knew Lisa?" He choked out.

"I taught her how to avoid pissing off maintenance. That crew will do nasty things to your workplace to get back at you." Anise smiled in memory of a prank Juan had pulled on her once, the bastard. His jokes and easy humor had helped keep her sane when Project Afterthought's expectations became overwhelming. They had pulled some awesome stunts together. The clown's enthusiasm for April Fool's Day was unmatched, and one such act of foolery had actually been on Lisa, who had never quite forgiven Anise for turning her corn silk blonde hair blue for a week. "We were good friends."

"You're the Anise?" He actually smiled back, temporarily forgetting Alice. "Lisa told me stories about your pranks. I almost peed myself hearing about the poor raccoon you painted with the Umbrella logo and set loose in the shopping mall. How did you not get fired?"

Anise grinned cheekily. Her dimples showed as she pointed a thumb at the woman next to her, "She never caught me."

Surprising them both, Alice laughed heartily, a sweet, warming sound. "I remember that day. It was a PR hell, everyone knew it was a Hive worker, but that was it. Spence was insanely mad that he couldn't find proof on who did it." She paused, looking thoughtful, "Thanks. I needed a good memory instead of the confusing, frightening ones. This place is terrifying enough by itself." Her eyes flicked over to the dead woman and back to Matt.

Sobered, their smiles faded, although Anise felt a new sense of of camaraderie with the two she had fought zombies with. Matt ran a hand through his hair before he spoke. "Thanks, Alice. I couldn't have," he gestured at his dead sister without actually looking. "You know."

Relieved at his forgiveness, Alice's body visibly relaxed. She nodded and replied softly. "Yea. I do. You're welcome."

Anise frowned at the ax in her hands, then at the bloody glass on the floor. She was going to get someone killed if she couldn't bring herself to ax her good, but dead, friends. "I won't hesitate again." She said it aloud. Spoken, it had more power. She shivered.

Matt looked at her with understanding. Alice put a cool hand on her arm, her voice low, sincere, "I know you won't, Anise." Damn. The woman knew how to instill confidence. It was no wonder everyone in the Hive spoke about the woman with respect. Anise immediately stood a little taller at the belief in Alice's eyes.

Shuffling and moaning drifted on the recycled air. Anise twitched in the direction it came from. She gripped the ax's fiberglass handle tighter. "Shit." She'd be tested soon enough. "They are getting close."

"I don't hear anything." Lisa's brother looked dubious.

"Trust her, Matt." Alice said.

Anise started at those words from the chief. She supposed facing the walking dead made super-hearing less unbelievable. Alice's lips drifted up in a small smile that Anise returned with a nod of appreciation.

Matt considered the words for a moment, glancing down at his dead sister, before nodding affirmatively. "Lisa did." Their eyes met. "She always said there was more to you than stupid jokes."

"Thanks. I think."

He knelt, gently touched Lisa's shoulder, and his lips moved silently. He rose, sighed, and started to the office exit, the women close behind. Not more than a few minutes later, they encountered an overwhelming amount of infected, and Anise was true to her promise. Her ax cut down swaths of people she once knew. But even with her burning determination not to let her new friends or herself die, the undead were winning. Matt was doing his best to avoid getting in the way as the two women battled. Unable to keep the undead at bay, let alone push them back, the trio was pinned in a corridor. Almost. Luckily, they had Alice. Memories or not, the woman was talented at snapping necks and breaking skulls. It was even more impressive that she was unarmed.

Alice had cleared a path behind them. "Run!"

Together, they pelted back through the corridors they had already traversed. They didn't think about where they were going as long as it wasn't into the waiting arms of the hungry dead. The infected Hive workers were slow and stupid, yet definitely had the advantage in numbers and unending stamina. Every intersection was almost a disaster for the tiring group.

An infected Doberman pounced from a side corridor, taking Anise to the ground, and stealing her breath, sending her ax skittering down the hallway. The creature's fileted flesh, vicious teeth, and dead eyes had Anise wetting her white lab pants as she fought to keep her throat from being ripped out. Sharp teeth tore into her right hand, and she screamed bloody murder, tears and pain making it hard to see. She was saved when it suddenly went flying off her courtesy of Matt's foot slamming into its ribs.

The second time the creature leaped, Anise was in a crouch waiting for it. She grabbed its jaw and head, twisting as she quickly straightened her legs. The horror movie mutt crashed into the wall behind her with a satisfying crunch and did not rise again. Frozen and shaking, she stood staring at it until Matt grabbed her by the arm, yelling in her face to pull herself together. Blood spattering across the wall caught her eye, and Alice shouted to get going as she swung Anise's ax, catching a moaning jaw with the blade, separating it from the face. The creature stumbled forward, uncaring that its jaw was no longer attached. Gross.

Numb, Anise allowed Matt to drag her down the corridor again. After sending another body part flying, Alice quickly followed in the rear. Their mad dash led them to a closed door that Anise recognized. They were back at the Red Queen's core.

"It's locked," Matt panted, panic written across his features.

"Shit," spat from Anise. Why the hell did the Red Queen have to fry her tablet with its super useful hacking programs?

Together, Alice and Matt were pounding on the door, their desperate terror creating a mad counterpoint to their shrill screams. "Let us in!"

A dozen paces from being dinner, they tumbled into the suddenly open doorway. They were greeted by guns in their faces that Alice ignored, turning to shut the door before it was too late.