The Strain Read online

  The Strain

  Dominion of Ash: Origins

  Frost Kay

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  About the Author

  Book Loot

  Mixologists and Pirates

  The Strain

  Copyright © 2018 Renegade Publishing

  First Edition

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

  * * *

  Edits by Oceans Edits

  Proofread by Holmes Edits

  Cover by Christian

  Created with Vellum

  One

  Janice sat staring vacantly at the TV; it had gone eerily blank moments ago. She listened to the sounds of chaos – screaming, looting – erupting just outside her home, her heart pounding in her chest. She didn’t need to look out her window to know that everyone was running like hell, refusing to accept the inevitable. They were all going to die; there was nowhere to hide. Missiles and biological weapons were inescapable. Even if they were fortunate enough to find a safe haven from the firestorms, they would die a horrid death by the superviruses running rampant.

  She absently picked at the lint on her shirt. Would her little town die by fire, or disease like her daughter-in-law? Her throat tightened. It was her fault. She had known it was coming. Had spent years of her life trying to rally people, putting pressure on the government to stop taking Earth’s resources for granted. But everyone thought she was overreacting; some even called her delusional. All they cared about was living life to the fullest. But soon enough, year by year, supplies dwindled to the point that there was no middle class. There was the wealthy and there was the starving. By the time the government did anything about it, it was far too late.

  If only they would’ve changed their ways instead of being greedy and treating each other with hate … maybe if they’d focused more on growing food instead of creating more weapons, things would be different … but instead the world exploded in a flurry of bioweapons. No one wanted to ruin the precious resources that were left. Bombs were all but forgotten.

  Until today.

  Her stomach cramped. There wasn’t any satisfaction in finally being right. How she wished she was wrong.

  “Mom!”

  Janice jerked and glanced at her son as he barreled up the stairs, his tiny daughter in his arms. She jumped to her feet, a sense of urgency finally breaking the numbness that had settled over her. “We have to go.”

  James jerked his head up and down, his deep brown eyes wild. “Where? What do we do?”

  Janice took one look at her little granddaughter snuggled in her son’s trembling arms, knowing she would do whatever it took to keep her safe. The hum of helicopters flying overhead ratcheted up her nerves. Were they being attacked? She ran to the sliding glass door and watched as six helicopters flew toward the mountain. Where were they going? Then it dawned on her—there was a military base in the mountains. How had she forgotten that? There’d been military convoys traveling through the area recently. Could there be a safe haven she’d not thought of?

  She spun on her heel and snatched her keys and mask off the kitchen counter. “James, grab as much of Bella’s formula and diapers as you can. I’ll grab her sling and diaper bag from the car. We’re going to the base just up the mountain. Put your mask on, and Bella’s, too.”

  “What about the Bresh community? Graham would take us in.”

  Pain laced through her heart as she shook her head. “They’ve been in lockdown for months, and we’ve been exposed to the virus. We can’t endanger the Bresh family like that. Even if they weren’t, there’s no guarantee we’d make it. It’s only a matter of time before our area is targeted with a firestorm. We need to find shelter now.”

  He nodded and rushed down the hallway.

  Janice yanked the mask over her head and secured it before pulling open her front door and walking out. Nothing could have prepared her for the chaos. Even though she knew her town was gripped in panic, the mass hysteria that slapped her in the face was almost more than she could bear. She blew out a breath and ran to the car. Her fingers trembled as she unlocked the door and snatched the baby’s sling and diaper bag from the back seat.

  Her breath whooshed out when shouts that bombs had been dropped over the United Kingdom reached her ears. How long until they retaliated? She slammed the car door and scanned the road. It seemed like everyone else had the same idea to leave. The street was a tangled mess of too many vehicles crammed into too small of a space. Her stomach rolled at the litter of bodies strewn everywhere—even more victims of the virus than there were yesterday. Families were abandoning their cars, crying and cursing.

  Hell. It was going to be dangerous moving through the mob. At least there weren’t any monsters … yet. The hair on her arms rose, but she ignored it as she strode through the door, slammed it closed, and moved into the kitchen. James swung around the corner and dumped Bella’s supplies into her diaper bag.

  “I can’t believe this is happening,” he murmured, his voice garbled through the mask. He bounced his small dark-haired daughter in his arms. “You always said—”

  “I know,” Janice murmured, strapping on the sling. She held her arms out for her grandbaby. “I’ll take her. You can take the heavier bag. We need to move quickly. It’s a nightmare out there.”

  He hesitated for a moment, then dropped a kiss on the baby’s head and handed her over to Janice. She smiled as Bella cooed at her.

  “We’ll be okay, baby girl.” Quickly, she maneuvered Bella into the polka-dot sling and popped a binky in her mouth.

  “Do you have everything we need?” she asked James, flicking a glance in his direction.

  He nodded and clipped their go bag across his chest. “Yes.” He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Janice and his daughter. “I love you guys.”

  Tears burned at the back of her eyes. “Love you too, but we’re not saying goodbye.” She’d keep them alive and together if it was the last thing she did. Her granddaughter didn’t deserve to grow up without her family.

  He pulled back and marched for the door. “I’ll lead. It’s pretty brutal out there. Just keep moving, Mom, and I’ll protect you and Bella.” He slipped a pistol into his thigh holster.

  Janice eyed it and then met her son’s eyes. “What do you plan on doing with that?”

  His dark eyes hardened. “Whatever’s necessary.”

  Tension thickened between them. “You know that’s not why we have guns.”

  He swallowed and stared at the floor. “I know, Mom, but I’ve read reports of monsters.”

  Fear chilled her. The virus was mutating humans into something other. Something unnatural. Dangerous.

  James pushed his shoulders back and sucked in a deep breath. “And there’s been reports of mutated animals attacking humans.”

  She gasped. “When did you hear about this?” She hadn’t heard anything about this yet.

  “Earlier today. The most
recent virus has been contracted by animals. I read that it’s not airborne like the others. This one is passed through bodily fluids.”

  “Blood, semen, and saliva,” she whispered in horror.

  “Yeah, so don’t get near any pets on our way.”

  She glanced at the window, remembering people fleeing with their pets. Did they have any idea that they were carrying the virus with them? Janice shook her head and readjusted the little mask on her granddaughter. “We need to avoid crowds as much as possible.”

  “That will be difficult until we get out of town. Keep close, Mom.” He slid the door open and cautiously moved out of their yard.

  “Oh, God,” she whispered as they entered the fray. It was madness, sheer bloody madness. The stench of decaying flesh and fire filtered through her mask, causing her eyes to tear up. It had been bad inside her home, but it was so much worse out here. She avoided staring at the bodies for too long. In a small town, it was likely she knew them.

  Her arms curled around the baby as they jogged through yards, across streets, to avoid as much mayhem as possible. James hopped over a wooden fence, and helped her to straddle it when she froze, gazing at the beast lurking in a shadow near the home. Ice filled her veins as it bared its teeth and laid its pointy ears back.

  “Your gun,” she whispered.

  Janice clamped her thighs around the fence and held perfectly still as James reached for the weapon at his waist. It was that little movement that set the beast off. It lunged forward and loped for her son. She screamed as it sprang forward. James spun and pulled the trigger three times. Her ears rang and her arms trembled in the quiet afterwards. Her son’s chest rose with huge breaths, the beast dead at his feet. Sound started to filter in along with the cries of her granddaughter.

  “Shhhh … baby girl. I’ve got you.” She glanced at her son, who squatted near the creature. “James?” she called softly. “I need your help.”

  He backed away from the beast and helped her down.

  Janice bounced on her toes, trying to calm the baby while staring at the animal. “What was it?”

  “A dog?”

  Her brows furrowed. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it was a coyote.”

  “It’s way bigger than a coyote.”

  She shook her head and backed away. “Regardless, it’s infected.”

  Her son nodded and reloaded the clip. “We need to hurry. If that animal was this far gone already, who knows what we’ll come across.” He slid the clip back into place and cocked the gun, moving south.

  “The base is west,” she pointed out.

  “Do you remember when I used to sneak out?”

  Janice glanced at her son askance. Boy, did she ever.

  He gave her a weak smile. “We would sneak onto the base. There are some old trees that have weakened part of the fence. We can get in there.”

  “I never thought I’d be thankful for you disobeying me,” she huffed. Her feet slowed as they converged with another group of people frantically fleeing the madness. Her heart squeezed as she noticed all the children in the crowd. “James,” she called, her arms curling around Bella.

  He glanced at her. “What?”

  “We can’t leave them.”

  “We have to. Bella is our priority.”

  True, the practical part of her said, but the mother in her wouldn’t allow her to leave them. “But look at all the kids,” she whispered.

  He frowned and scanned the area. “That could be us.”

  She nodded, staring at the parents struggling with their little ones.

  James blew out a breath. “I’ll let them know where we’re going. They can follow if they want, but that’s all I’m willing to do. We can’t waste any more time.” James hopped onto the abandoned Jeep to her right and cupped his hands around his mouth. “Go to the old base!”

  The people stared at him like they couldn’t comprehend his words.

  He waved his arms and screamed louder. “Go to the old base! Pass the word on.” James jumped from the car and urged her forward. “We’ve done what we can. It’ll be up to them to follow.”

  “Thank you.”

  James gave her a half-hearted smile. “You raised me to have a soft heart, Mom. It was bothering me before you said anything.” His gaze flickered to the fussing Bella in her arms. “Plus, things change when you become a parent.”

  Spoken like a true father.

  They jogged harder, yelling their message as they went. Many started following them. There was no safer place than a protected military base, and once the idea had been planted into people’s minds, it travelled quickly through word of mouth, cell phones, and social media.

  It wasn’t an easy trek up the steep, winding road. Janice’s thighs burned as they powered up the road as fast as they could, weaving around abandoned vehicles. Her breath sawed in and out the longer they hiked, but the threat of death was enough to keep her moving. Janice glanced behind her, her heart swelling with what she saw. Parents were sharing the load of carrying babies; older children helped smaller kids. Some were even helping elderly people along. Maybe humanity wasn’t as far gone as she thought.

  They were at the front of the group when they crested the winding road, the base finally appearing on the horizon. James shouted and waved a greeting to the soldiers currently moving the helicopters into a large cavern in the side of the mountain. Three masked soldiers broke away from the group and walked out to meet them, and then stopped, casting glances between each other.

  “Stop right there!” one called.

  James held his hands up and took a step forward. “We seek shelter.”

  Immediately, the soldiers tensed and whispered amongst themselves.

  Her son stepped to the side, his broad back blocking her view. “Something’s not right,” he mumbled.

  “That’s for sure.” Violence teemed in the air around them.

  Janice glanced behind at the large swarm of people following them. None of the people looked threatening, just desperate. She turned back just in time to catch one soldier back up a few steps and turn, shouting for a commanding officer. Dread soured her stomach as masked men emerged from the opening in the mountain with guns. She jerked back, curling around Bella when two warning shots were fired and orders were shouted for everyone to turn back.

  Go back? “Where do you expect us to go?” she blurted. “It’s not safe for anyone in town! Will you really turn away women and children?”

  A huge commander stormed through the line of soldiers, his face hidden by the mask he wore, authority clinging to him like a cloak. “Leave now, or we will shoot.”

  Two

  The soldiers said nothing, and neither did the people. They just stood there, staring at each other. No one in their right mind thought their own forces would shoot them.

  “Last chance.”

  Unease stirred in Janice’s gut. They wouldn’t really shoot at their own people…

  She was wrong.

  When the order to fire was given, everything inside her stilled. The soldiers hesitated and lifted their guns. But then, the earth heaved beneath their feet. She stumbled, clutching a crying Bella in her arms. What in the dickens was that? She pushed her graying blond hair from her shoulder and looked around. The breath in her lungs froze. In the distance, a billowing mushroom cloud was rising starkly against the blue sky.

  “No…” she whispered. Not a biological weapon, a firestorm.

  Ringing filled her ears, and then all hell broke loose.

  The crowd surged forward, and the soldiers fired.

  Janice hunched over Bella and ran for cover. James ran beside them and scooped up an abandoned sobbing toddler.

  Gunshots and screams filled the air as they ducked behind a car. James yelled for the people to go back, to find cover, but they kept coming. Wave after wave of people.

  Suddenly the soldiers stopped firing, and Janice realized she was sobbing. She hadn’t even realized she was. She blinked repeatedly
and breathed shallowly to help the fog dissipate from the inside of her mask. James peeked out from beside the car, and then back to her.

  “They’re taking people in, Mom. We have to go.”

  Janice forced her shaky legs to hold her weight and stood. Her son plucked the hysterical little boy from the ground and took off. Bodies littered the tarmac. She swallowed hard to keep from throwing up. She cajoled as many children as she could to follow them. The crowd seemed like a current pulling them into the dark cavern.

  She flinched when a burly soldier shouted into a walkie-talkie: “One more minute and those doors are shut. I don’t care what the president says.”

  Her eyes rounded, recognizing the name on the man’s uniform: General Evan Bane. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States military forces.

  Janice glanced over her shoulder at the hundreds of people still swarming up the mountain. They weren’t going to make it. She choked back a cry when a minute later the thick steel doors shut, crushing anyone still trying to come through. She stared at the gleaming steel door, fighting not to puke. They’d sentenced all those people out there to death.

  A trapped feeling bubbled inside her. “Did we make the right choice?” she whispered, jiggling Bella. The baby’s precious face was mottled red underneath the mask from all the screaming she’d done.

  James jostled the little boy he’d scooped up and smoothed a hand down his brown locks. “We did our best. We made it.”

  “It’s not over yet.” She darted a glance at the general. “He’s a dangerous man.”

  James eyed the general. “Then we play it safe.”

  The townspeople—refugees, the soldiers called them—were left in that stupid hanger for three days. They received all the necessities, and formed group spaces between military equipment and vehicles. Anxiety ate away at the adults, but the kids played liked they’d found a new fort.