Gradually, the memories dissolved back into some inaccessible part of its mind. It fought for them. It closed its eyes and tried to remember the little boy and the woman. But they were gone. And all that remained was the objective, piercing its consciousness like a thorn.
It knew then that it couldn’t change the past or what it had become. All it could do was complete the mission. Or perhaps the small things would finally succeed in killing it. A part of it, the part that remembered, hoped for death and a release to the pain that had become its life.
28.
Knight scanned the streets surrounding the parking structure. The beast couldn’t be far behind. He had returned with the battery a few moments ago, and Donahue had quickly set to work in preparing the bomb. He just hoped that they would be able to draw in the creature and contain it long enough to detonate the warhead.
He reached for the radio, clicked on the receiver and said, “Ling?”
A frightened voice replied in a flurry of words. “We’re here. Can we leave now? Are you coming to get us?”
“We’re almost ready, Ling. We’ve got a plan to kill the monster. Just stay where you. This nightmare is about over.”
“Okay, Knight. Please hurry.”
“I’m on it, kid. See you soon.”
The children were understandably frightened, but they had also showed a great deal of strength and fortitude from the first moment that he met them. He felt a strange sense of pride even though he could take no responsibility for instilling such strength in them. He suspected this might be what it felt like to be a parent. He had never wanted kids; they weren’t compatible with his lifestyle. But for perhaps the first real time in his life, he wondered if he was missing out on something by not settling down and having children of his own.
“Knight, come over here,” Donahue said at his back. He gave the perimeter one last check and then joined the SAS officer next to the downed Osprey.
“I got the hot dogs and marshmallows all set. You ready to light the fire?” Knight said.
Donahue nodded. “Aye, we’re ready to deep fry that big iguana, but we’ve got two problems. One, I have no bloody clue of how we’re going to keep big ugly in range of the bomb long enough. It needs to be contained right here at ground zero. We can’t take a chance of the blast wave blowing it clear and having it regenerate on us.”
Knight thought for a moment and then said, “Leave that to me. I’ll keep him pinned here. What’s problem number two?”
Donahue smiled, but it wasn’t an expression born of joy or humor. It was the type of smile that a person would display at a funeral to the grieving widow. “The detonation mechanism is trashed, but I was able to hot-wire the warhead to be detonated manually. Somebody’ll have to stay behind and trigger it.”
Knight stiffened and looked deep into Donahue’s eyes. “No, there’s got to be another way. Too many have died already. Either we’re all going home or none of us are. We could—”
Donahue held up a hand to stop him and then opened his flak jacket. A jagged wound carved through his abdomen. Blood soaked his clothes and the interior of the jacket. It looked as if a black substance had mixed with the blood. “I caught a stray round in the side. Went right in under my body armor. I’m not gonna make it, Knight. This bloody thing killed my men, and I’m going to take it down. When I see my boys in the next world, I want to tell them that I showed that thing that you don’t screw with the SAS.”
Knight smiled and gave Donahue a slow and solemn salute.
A roar sounded in the distance. The beast was coming.
“You better get going, Knight. You just pin that thing down, and I’ll blow it all to hell.”
29.
As they ran toward the distant skyscraper, Knight heard gunfire and clanging noises coming from the top of the parking structure. Corporal Jenkins turned back and said, “He’s in trouble. We’ve got to go back and help him.”
Beck grabbed the remaining SAS officer by the arm before he could return to Donahue. “He’s fine. He’s just trying to draw in the creature. And if we’re not ready when it finds him, then he’s going to die for nothing. You want that?”
The corporal stared back at the building without a word. Knight could sympathize with the man. He had no idea how he would react if it were King up there preparing to take his final breaths. “Come on, Corporal. Let’s make him proud.”
Jenkins stood there a moment longer and then turned back to the skyscraper. He took off in a sprint with Knight and Beck on his heels.
As they ran, Beck said, “Are you sure that building is out of the blast radius?”
“Not really, but I hope so.”
“That’s great. Your confidence makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.”
“I tell you what,” Knight said, “let’s make a little wager.”
“I can tell that I’m going to regret asking, but what do you have in mind?”
“Nothing too complicated. If I get you out of this mess alive, then you go wreck diving with me. And you wear a bikini while we do it.”
She gave him a strange look and raised both eyebrows.