His mouth drew down in something between a wince and a scowl before he said, ?Our last call from Andres came while I was on my way to get you. He was backed against a wall with half a dozen of the aides. I don?t think we?ll be seeing him again. Carlos and Heidi are at the motor pool; that zone?s relatively clear. Mike? I haven?t heard from Mike. Not Susan or Paolo, either. Everyone else is either on the way to meet with us or holding fast in a safe zone.?
?Andres?crap, man, I?m sorry.?
Steve shook his head. ?I never was very good at partners.? He turned and fired into the shadows at the side of a portable office. Something gurgled and fell. I gave him a sidelong look, and he actually smiled. ?You thought we wore these sunglasses for our health??
?I have got to get a pair of those.?
We kept walking. What started as a pleasant, well-configured camp for visiting politicians had become a killing ground, full of cul-de-sacs and blind alleys that could hold almost anything. Complacency had long since destroyed the functionality of the layout. I couldn?t blame them?there hadn?t been an outbreak in Sacramento in years?but I didn?t appreciate it, either. Luck was on our side: With the senator and most of his senior staff off the grounds for the keynote speech, we had fewer bodies to deal with than we might have otherwise. Our chances of survival had gotten better with every person who left the compound. ?Just wish we hadn?t come back,? I muttered.
?What?s that?? asked Steve.
I started to answer but was cut off as something hit me from behind, the momentum forcing me to the ground as hands clawed at my shoulders. Steve shouted. I was too occupied with trying to shake the zombie off to understand what he was saying. It was tearing at my back, trying to bite through the Kevlar. It would move up before too much longer, and my scalp was unprotected. The idea of having my brain literally eaten was really failing to appeal.
?Shaun!?
?Busy now!? I rolled to the left, ignoring the growls behind me as I struggled to get the Taser out of my belt. ?Can you shoot it??
?It?s too close!?
?So get it off me before it figures out where to bite!? The Taser came free, almost falling into my hand. I twisted my arm as far behind me as I could, praying the thing wouldn?t catch the unprotected flesh of my lower arm before the electricity could do its job. ?Dammit, Steve, grab the fucking thing!?
Electricity spat and arced as the Taser made contact with the zombie?s side. Luckily for me, it had been an intern, not a security guard; it wasn?t wearing protective clothing. The thing screamed, sounding almost human as the viral bodies powering its actions became disoriented in the face of an electric current greater than their own. I hit it again, and Steve finally moved, grabbing the zombie and yanking it off. I rolled onto my back, reaching for Georgia?s .40, and starting to fire almost as soon as I had it drawn. My first shot hit the zombie high in the shoulder, rocking it back. The second hit it in the forehead, and it went down.
My heart was pounding hard enough to echo in my ears, but my legs were steady as I scrambled back to my feet. Steve looked a lot more shaken. Sweat stood out on his forehead, and his complexion was several shades paler than it had been before I fell. I glanced around. Seeing that nothing else was about to rush me, I bent, picked up the Taser, and replaced both it and the gun in my belt. ?You okay over there, Steve-o??
?Did you get bit?? he demanded.
There was a predictable response. ?Nope,? I said, raising my hands to show the unbroken skin. ?You can test me again when we hit the motor pool, okay? Right now, I think we should stop being out here, like, as soon as possible. That wasn?t my favorite thing ever.? I paused, and added, almost guiltily, ?Besides, I didn?t have a camera running.? George would?ve kicked my ass for that, after she finished kicking my ass for getting that close to a live infection.
?You don?t need the ratings,? said Steve, and grabbed my arm, hauling me after him as he resumed moving, double-speed, toward the motor pool.
Maybe it was because Carlos and Heidi had access to an entire ammo shed, and maybe it was because the motor pool wasn?t a popular hangout for the living, but the infected tapered off as we moved toward it, and we crossed the last ten feet to the fence without incident. Good thing; I was almost out of bullets, and I didn?t feel like trusting myself to the Taser. The gate in the fence was closed, the electric locks engaged. Steve released my arm, reaching for the keypad, and a shot rang out over our heads, clearly aimed to warn, not wound. Small favors.