Chapter three:
After hearing that, Jill and Alice stepped outside for a smoke. Jill glanced over at Alice. "You're sure?"
"It makes sense. Umbrella hasn't come for us yet because they were trying to contain the virus. That's where those helicopters and planes were heading, back east towards Raccoon City. But they know now they've failed. They're not going to keep fighting back. They're going underground. It's only a matter of time before the virus spreads to the entire country, and then to the world. I saw it in my dream."
"But it was a dream. Do your dreams always come true?"
Alice thought of the bodies and pushed the images away. "I don't know, but I know I'm connected to Umbrella. I can feel things, and I feel what I saw is right."
"Whatever you saw, it shook the whole room," Jill commented.
"I don't know why I can do that. They gave me…powers…or something. Whenever I have nightmares, things move. Like the pictures falling off the walls the other night. I don't mean to do it. I don't know how I do it or what I'm capable of. What if I'm dangerous to be around?"
"If the world is ending, we're going to need you with us more than ever," Jill said. She saw the way Alice glanced at her and quickly glanced away. Alice was thinking again of their bodies in her dream, and Jill could tell she was disturbed. "Was there something else in your dream? Something you want to tell me about?"
Alice shook her head. "No."
"You can push away the others all you want, but I won't let you push me away. Tell me what you saw."
Unshed tears burned in Alice's eyes. While she could put on a fake smile for Carlos and Angie, it wasn't that easy with Jill. Jill tore down her walls in ways no one else could. "I saw death. A sea of corpses. Carlos and L.J. were…and so was Angie. But you died in front of me. You told me I'd lose everyone."
"Alice…" Jill stepped forward and put her hand on Alice's chest. "Honey, it was a dream. That's all."
"What if it wasn't just a dream? What if it was premonition of the future?"
"Nothing is set in stone. I say we keep going as we are. When we get to the facility, we can check things out. See if what you saw about the T-virus is true. If it is, we'll come up with a plan to survive the apocalypse—together. All of us."
Alice put her hand over Jill's. "I want you to be right."
"I'm right."
Jill moved closer and brought Alice into her arms. Alice held onto Jill's shoulders, taking in the scent of her as she tried to find some semblance of balance. Jill could feel the tension in Alice's body. She wanted to pull back, to kiss away all her fears, but the sound of the motel door opening interrupted them. Carlos had stepped out for a smoke as well.
"I thought I heard voices," Carlos commented. "Jill, you got a light?"
Jill hid her annoyance at being interrupted well. She handed him her lighter. As he lit up, Alice gestured towards the room. "I think I'll go back to bed."
"Is everything all right?" Carlos asked.
"Yeah," Alice lied again. The last thing she wanted was to panic everyone in the group. It was bad enough she'd bothered Jill, she felt. "Just a restless night."
As Alice went back inside, Jill lit another cigarette. Carlos sighed. "Alice is worrying me. Is she really okay? I feel like she lets you in more than she does me."
"She's having nightmares. That's all," Jill said, deciding to honor Alice's choice to keep things as quiet as possible.
"Nightmares? Probably about whatever they did to her in that place. I wish she'd talk about it. Let us help her somehow. I'm quite fond of her," Carlos admitted.
Jill felt a pang of jealousy. "We all are. I should get back to bed too. We have a long drive ahead."
When Jill went back into the motel room, she saw Alice had already gotten in bed and seemed to be asleep. She got into bed beside her, though she couldn't go back to sleep herself. She was too busy staring at Alice's beautiful face, thinking of an impending Armageddon, and scowling at the interest Carlos had shown in Alice. As much as she liked Carlos, she hated the idea of seeing him with Alice. She didn't want to see anybody with Alice, anybody other than her.
Alice didn't want to go back to sleep herself. She couldn't take another nightmare. She felt Jill get into bed and felt very much like reaching out for her. Yet, she was hesitant to make a move. This was hardly the time to jump into anything, though she had wanted to be near Jill since Raccoon City. Every time they touched, it made her feel like she was human again. She wondered if Jill felt the same, and she wondered what on earth they'd do about it.
XxXxX
The following day, they made the rest of the drive to Albuquerque. They discussed going straight to the safe house, but Alice didn't want to wait. She wanted to see if her dream was accurate, so she insisted they break into the Umbrella facility that evening. L.J. and Angie would wait in the car down the street as their getaway vehicle. Alice, Jill, and Carlos intended on slipping in through the back door by posing as Umbrella soldiers bringing in a prisoner. They still had the outfits they'd used to pose as Umbrella employees before, so Jill and Carlos planned to be the ones bringing the prisoner—Alice—in for processing.
They chose to hide Alice's face by putting a coat over her head. If anyone asked, they were trying to conceal their location from the prisoner. It wasn't the best plan they had ever thought up, but if it got them through the door that was all they cared about. They didn't doubt they could handle the security once they were inside. It was just about getting someone to open that exterior door.
"Ready?" Carlos asked.
Alice and Jill nodded. Jill draped the jacket over Alice's head, allowing still for a small sliver Alice could see through. Alice put her hands behind her back. Jill and Carlos each took one of her elbows, and they marched up to the back entrance. Once they were there, Carlos hit the button to be buzzed inside. They were on the cameras, yet Carlos and Jill were not important enough to cause the facial recognition to trip.
The security guard's voice came through an external speaker. "Who is it?"
"We are transporting this prisoner to be processed in the facility. Level six clearance, top secret," Carlos answered. He still had his fake badge and quickly flashed it in front of the camera.
The security guard paused. "We weren't informed that any prisoners would be processed tonight."
"As I said, it's top secret," Carlos repeated. He put on his firmest tone. "Are you going to let us in, or am I going to have to call your supervisor?"
It worked. They were granted access to the building. Once they were in the lobby, Jill and Carlos quickly took down the security guards. Alice pulled the jacket from her head and jogged to the computer at the security desk. It didn't have access to the complete mainframe, so they'd need to find a different computer to hack. Alice pulled up a schematic of the building and located an office that was sure to have the machine they needed.
"Fifth floor. Northwest corner," Alice announced.
They left the lobby and didn't bother waiting on an elevator. They made quick work of the stairs and burst onto the fifth floor. There were scattered security personnel, but they easily eliminated them. They found the office and Alice sat at the computer. She first accessed the satellites and downloaded copies of their trajectories. Then, she looked for anything regarding the T-virus. As soon as she accessed the files, she tripped a security system. An alarm sounded.
"What the hell is that?" Carlos asked.
"I'm looking at files on the T-virus. They must have been protected by a security protocol," Alice answered.
Carlos gave her a confused glance. "Why are you looking at the T-virus? We're here about the satellites."
"Already downloaded. This is about something else. I didn't want to say anything until I could be certain," Alice explained. As she read the orders for the Umbrella Corporation to begin its descent below the surface, she knew she was right. "And I am now. They couldn't contain the virus. It spread from Raccoon City, and there's nothing more they can do. It'll keep spreading until it takes over the world."
Jill swallowed at that. "Where has it spread so far? Is that in there?"
"We have company," Carlos interrupted. Umbrella soldiers were coming from other parts of the building in force, and they had opened fire. Carlos and Jill returned fire while Alice stuck with the computer.
"It's already taken Pennsylvania and three bordering states. They've been leaning on the news to suppress the outbreak, but I doubt they'll remain quiet much longer. It's moving west. Projections say it'll have consumed the entire continental US within three months," Alice said, unfazed by the bullets.
As the soldiers continued firing, Carlos had heard enough. "Let's get the satellite trajectories and get out of here."
"Not yet. I need five minutes," Alice answered.
"I don't know if we have five minutes," Jill said.
Just as Alice was about to access her own file, a bullet shot straight through the computer screen and grazed Alice's shoulder. Their time was up. Alice pulled a gun and joined Jill and Carlos in the fight. With her help, they were able to defeat the first wave of forces. The second wave was on its way.
"Let's get out of here," Carlos declared.
They ran to the nearby stairwell and to the ground floor. The second group of forces was waiting for them. Carlos was the first to exit the stairwell and was promptly shot in the leg. Alice and Jill helped him up and pulled him to the safety of the security desk. The entire room became a shooting gallery, and they were running low on ammunition.
"We need an exit strategy," Jill said. "I'm down to my last mag."
"I'm out," Carlos said.
Alice fired her last few bullets and realized they were pinned down. She looked at the tall glass windows that surrounded them on all sides, and somehow she knew what to do. Her eyes flickered as she broke the windows with her mind, and she caused the glass shards to whip around the room like bullets. In moments, the soldiers were taken down.
The act caused Alice to feel faint. She fell against Jill, who steadied her in her arms. "Alice?"
"I'm fine," Alice assured her. "Get Carlos up."
Jill helped Carlos to his feet. Alice sluggishly stood and followed them through the broken windows. They hobbled down the street to their getaway vehicle, knowing Umbrella forces wouldn't be far behind. Jill helped Carlos into the back while Alice climbed in the front.
"Step on it," Alice told L.J.
L.J. pulled away from that city block, looking back at Carlos. "Aw hell! You good, man?"
"I'm all right. It went clean through," Carlos answered. "L.J. take us to the address I gave you last night. We can lay low there for a few days while we figure out what to do about the end of the world."
"You don't have to tell me," L.J. answered. He flicked on the radio. "Listen to this shit."
The car fell silent as the emergency broadcast system played a message. "Stay in your homes. All citizens must stay in your homes. The President will be addressing you tonight regarding this State of Emergency…"
"It's the T-virus, isn't it?" Angie asked.
"Yes," Alice confirmed. "If it hasn't reached us already, it will soon."