Книга: Nobody Lives Forever



Nobody Lives Forever

NOBODY LIVES FOREVER

SOLDIERS OF FAME AND FORTUNE BOOK ONE

T

C H A P T E R O N E

he sun had only just peeked over the horizon, and it was

already hot. Holly stood on her balcony cradling a cup of coffee

in both hands. Coffee was her savior. Until she had her first cup, it

was best not to talk to, touch, or even attempt to joke with her. In

fact, she had been so worried they wouldn’t have coffee this close to

the Zoo that she had smuggled in four pounds of her favorite brand.

Luckily, the French side agreed that coffee was life and her little

hotel served it in the lobby every morning.

The sun was rising over the buildings and for a moment Holly

imagined she was back in time, living in a frontier town before the

Old West had been settled. She could almost see herself in a floorsweeping

dress, struggling to breathe in a corset like a proper lady.

This illusion was shattered when a squad of NTVs and NLTVs roared

down the road, blowing sand and dust into the air. Every vehicle had

been juiced up and mutated to give it a post-apocalyptic feel. Armorplating,

gun turrets, and jagged spikes had been attached wherever

they could find the space for them.

Most of the drivers wore leather goggles to keep the sand from

their eyes. Their clothes were torn and tattered, and their bodies

were beaten by the hot Sahara sun. The men’s faces were covered

in dirt, the skin around their eyes two shades lighter due to their

goggles. Some had beards, but most had the heavy five o’clock

shadow that came from not being able to shave for days on end.

They looked tough, and most lived up to their appearance. From

what Holly had heard, the Zoo was no place for the weak of heart or

mind. Then again, a lot of the men and women Holly had met

wouldn’t exactly pass a psych evaluation with flying colors, either.

She yawned and stretched, still holding her coffee in one hand.

She hadn’t slept well. Specters of the stories JB had told her had

visited her in the night. His descriptions had been so vivid that the

Zoo had invaded her dreams. She woke once with a start, sure she

could feel the breath of a malformed man-eating jaguar on her neck.

Her mind wandered to the Zoo. She couldn’t imagine what it

would be like to sleep in a tent there or close her eyes in a place that

dangerous. What was it about the goop that made corporations pay

so highly? They offered enough to convince men to risk their lives for

the stuff, and when those men died, the corporations convinced the

next wave of fools to do the same damn thing.

Mortality—it was one of those things you couldn’t outrun. The

human cell was flawed, programmed to die, to break down and

break away. Holly knew the human race would continue on its

present course forever, the wealthy paying the able to get them what

they wanted. It would probably be that way until there wasn’t a speck

of land left outside of the Zoo.

She shook those thoughts from her head and sat down in a

partially-rusted metal chair on the balcony. It squeaked as she

settled her weight on it. That made her wonder who had relaxed on

the balcony before her. Were they alive? Did they go into the Zoo?

She took another sip of coffee. Her phone buzzed on the short end

table. She willed the thing to stop, but it buzzed again and Rod’s

business profile picture flashed on the screen.

“Isn’t it, like, two in the morning in New York?” Holly asked.

Rod chuckled. “It is. Very good. And it’s about eight where you

are, right? I’m surprised you aren’t out scouring the town trying to

find answers.”

“I’m researching a job, not trying to find out who killed Ms.

Crumbles in the kitchen with a wrench.”

Rod yawned in her ear. “Yeah, I suppose eight in the morning is a

bit early for the bar.”

Holly scoffed. “Around here, I wouldn’t be surprised if the people

from last night were still there, fighting a hangover the old-fashioned

way—by staying drunk. I’ll get there, but I have a bit of work to do

before I start drinking. I have to admit, I am getting some pretty

incredible information from this one place in town. The bartender or

owner or whatever he is, he’s…well, different.”

“Uh oh, did you go all the way out to the desert to find yourself a

new man?”

Holly rolled her eyes. “Please, you think because I’m a woman

that’s what’s on my mind? No. He tells stories about the Zoo. They

are real and raw. You can see it in his eyes—he has seen some shit.

I only wish everyone were as honest and open about their

experiences as he is.”

“Well, the longer you stay out there, the antsier they get back

here. It would be nice if you eventually came back to New York. Or

you could take the job and get it over with. Either way.”

Holly sipped her coffee and leaned back. “I’ll come back when I’m

good and ready. If they give the contract away? Oh, well. It’s not like

I’m dying to go in there. If I do, I might die.”

Rod scoffed. “Like they would take the contract away from the

Queen of the Jungle.”

“Is that what they’re calling me?”

“No, that’s what I’m calling you. I’m sitting here in my nice office

imagining you in a Jungle Jane outfit.”

“That’s gross. Don’t even start with the Tarzan. You are not my

Tarzan.”

She could hear the smile in Rod’s voice. “One day, Holly. One

day I’m going to wear you down, and we will be the next power

couple of New York.”

Holly faked a gagging noise. “Please, I just got this coffee. Don’t

make me puke it up.”

They both laughed, then Holly took a deep breath and looked at

her watch. “Well, it’s been a pleasure, but I have work to do. You

need to go to bed before you get yourself in trouble.”

“Who? Me? Trouble? Never. I am home, anyway. Tired of the

same old scene out here. Go. Do your work. You’re pretty much the

only one that does.”

Holly looked at her fingernails. “I know. Tell Elaina I said hi. I

know she’s there with you.”

Rod was silent for a moment, then Elaina’s voice echoed in the

background. “Love you, Holly Poo. Stay away from the man-eating

plants!”

Holly smirked. “Mmhmm. Good night, you two.”

She turned off her phone and sat back in her chair. She sipped

her coffee and sighed. “All right, all right. Guess it’s time I got

moving.”

She drained her coffee and stood, tossing the paper cup in the

trash as she walked inside. She pulled a pantsuit from her closet but

narrowed her eyes. She was not looking forward to wearing a jacket

all day. Her eyes dropped to a green tank top and a pair of tight

cargo pants she had brought for lazy days in the hotel room. She

tossed the suit back into the closet.

She held the tank top up. No need for formality, she supposed.

She didn’t think a tailored jacket would make anyone want to talk to

her any more or less.

Holly got dressed, then pulled her hair back in a ponytail and

stepped into her combat boots. She figured that maybe looking more

like everyone else might help people open up to her. She wasn’t in

New York anymore, and business suits didn’t impress anyone in the

Zoo town. Instead, it made them stick out like a sore thumb. Some

people even shied away. They knew she was an outsider.

When she finished her morning routine, she meandered over to

her laptop. She wasn’t worried about connecting to the internet. She

didn’t want to get distracted by emails and social media. The

company had her cell phone, and they would call if it were urgent.

She cracked her knuckles and laid her fingers on the keys for a

moment. It was part of her ritual. She was going to record notes, but

she felt it was more like taking dictation. The stories were right there

at the front of her mind. She just had to listen to them. She would

record the words, but understanding the meaning—the true meaning

—of the stories would take longer. She didn’t have the imagination to

fully grasp the Zoo and its inhabitants, not yet. The flora and fauna

were almost riddles, surreal things that her brain fought to convince

her were pure fabrication. She knew that wasn’t true. She had

looked through the public database. The Zoo made the fantastic

ordinary.

Holly shook her head and began to type.

JB was tall and had a stern look about him, but he was not

imposing. His hair was peppered with strands of bone-white. His

eyes were clear but held a wealth of secrets I could only imagine.

The first story was about a woman. This woman was not like others

in town. She had guts. She had balls bigger than the men she

worked alongside.

Holly closed her eyes, remembering where JB had started the

story. Her eidetic memory let the story flow like a tidal wave, and her

mind raced to catch the details. She knew she would remember the

stories for the rest of her life since that was how eidetic memories

worked. Still, she needed to wrestle them onto the page. She wanted

a smooth account of the strange happenings in the Zoo. Holly

thought that maybe this need was a byproduct of her memory—she

had the gift, but lived in fear of somehow losing it. If she recorded

everything, she would always have a narrative. What she would do

with those stories, she didn’t know. She had collected tales from all

over the world, unwritten histories that were closer to legends.

Rod wanted her to create a book, but she wasn’t sure the stories

were for everyone. They had been given to her, tiny gifts from

strangers over the years. They had each served a specific purpose

when she’d first heard them. Besides, she never thought of herself

as an author. Was she smart? Yes. A traveler? Yes. An adventurer,

of course. But definitely not an author.

Holly moved through the stories, getting it all down. When she

was done, she saved it and smiled to herself. She didn’t know why,

but she felt like those stories were very important to her and her

future in the Zoo. She closed her laptop and looked at the time,

surprised to find it was already noon. She had been engrossed, and

the time had flown by.

Walking to the balcony door, she looked out. The town was now

bustling with people. She could see the front doors of FUBAR, which

already had people coming in and out. Holly shrugged and grabbed

her lightweight jacket, slinging it over her arm. “Guess noon isn’t too

early for a drink and a story. I’ve been at bars at ten in the morning

during college.”

Holly laughed at herself as she slid her cash into her back pocket

and picked up her notebook and pen. She had no one to answer to

except herself, and that was exactly how she liked it. That was why

she was still a freelancer, and why she was taking her time deciding

whether to take the drink company’s contract. She had accepted

contracts from them for years, going all over the world looking for the

perfect ingredients, but this was different. This was the Zoo.

She made her way down to the lobby and smiled at the guy

behind the desk. She eyed the coffee for a moment but held back

since she was heading to the bar. No use taking coffee when she

had a custom-made drink waiting on her. Out onto the dusty street

she walked, looking at all of the people perusing the quaint stores

and heading out for an assignment. Holly still couldn’t imagine

herself out there with them, putting on a HUD and blowing through

the jungle.

As she walked down the block toward FUBAR, she heard a tap

on the glass of the shop next to her. She looked over, squinting

against the reflection of the sun. Standing inside waving was Dan

Carruthers from FUBAR the day before. Holly smiled and walked

over, pulling the door open. The smell of sweet tobacco and cigar

smoke hit her, and she felt like she was back in New York. Swanky

bars usually had a cigar room in the back, but no matter how much

they tried, they couldn’t keep that smell back there.

Dan put his hand on his hip, looking clean-shaven and put

together. “You’re still here. Nice.”

Holly looked at the shelves and shelves of humidors of cigars all

around her. “And you are buying a cigar. I didn’t take you for a cigar

smoker.”

Dan shrugged. “Gotta do something to pass the time out here.”

Holly ran her fingers across the fronts of the boxes. “Personally,

my favorite is the Archetype Axis Mundi Toro, but the Tatuaje

Cabinet Noellas are good too. Depends on your palate.”

Dan stopped and blinked at Holly for a moment. “You smoke

cigars?”

Holly pulled one out and ran it under her nose. “From time to time

I do. I told you, I’m a woman pushing up in a man’s world. I gotta

seem relatable to these people. Besides, there is actually something

to a cigar and glass of brandy on a late Saturday night in the City.”

Dan smiled. “I was right. I totally pegged you as a city girl. I have

to be honest—around here anyone who doesn’t look like a

roughneck seems sophisticated. But there was something about you,

I just knew.”

Holly laughed. “Yeah, everyone always says that. Although in my

adult years I probably spent more time in remote locations than in

the city.”

Dan decided to try one of the Mundi Toros, and Holly picked one

up as well. They paid for their cigars and walked out to the street.

Dan put his arm out. “After you. I’m assuming we are rolling back to

FUBAR for some more stories?”

Holly nodded. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. JB’s got me

hooked now.”

T

C H A P T E R T W O

he smell of stale beer and sweat hit Holly in the face as they

walked into the dimly-lit building. She had quickly realized there

weren’t any windows in the bar, at least none that weren’t covered by

heavy wooden shutters. Even during the day, it looked like night

time. It was like a casino; you could get lost for days in there and

have no idea what time it was. Guess that was a good tactic for

business, plus it gave people a place to get away from the hot desert

sun.

As they entered the bar area, Holly spied JB at the end talking to

a few of the guys. He looked up and smiled, waving at Holly and

Dan. Holly put her hand up and stood there for a moment before

closing her fingers and looking at the stool Dan had pulled out for

her.

She nodded and took a seat. “Thank you.”

Dan sat on the stool next to her and set his cigar on the bar. “Not

a problem. It’s nice to have a bit of normal company around here

every once in a while. I was hoping you would be here today. Just so

happened I found you before you even came in.”

Holly smirked and turned toward Dan, noting his handsome traits.

“So, what is your story, Dan? You don’t look wild and wooly like the

rest of these guys, but at the same time, you look like you fit in here

really well. What do you do in the town? Go into the Zoo?”

Dan smacked his lips. “Well, I used to be a mercenary. I went into

the Zoo about ten times. I made my money, but I got injured in the

process. I’m okay now, but I don’t move quite as fast as I used to.

Between that and age, I decided that the Zoo had had its time with

me and I would move forward.”

Holly nodded. “So, what do you do now?”

Dan pulled out a business card and handed it to her. “I have a

support business rebuilding and renting armor and weapons for the

mercs not supplied in town. At first, it was only me working on my

own, but after a couple of years I really started to build up a clientele,

and my selection was really good. Everything I keep in stock is used,

but I can order brand new equipment if someone wants something.”

Holly was surprised. “And you do this on your own?”

Dan snorted. “No, not anymore. I hired about four guys who can’t

go into the Zoo anymore due to injury or choice. They are my

salespeople, and I have three hire-outs who will go in and retrieve

gear if the renter doesn’t make it out alive. I’m a salesman. That is

what I do.”

Holly looked around the busy bar. “Well, you do know that you

are in a bar, not a sales office, right?”

Dan laughed. “I do know that, and although this time it’s out of

choice, being here brings in more business than any card. I meet all

kinds. This is usually one of the first places people come when they

get here. Some simply need a drink. Others are a bit overwhelmed

by the realness of it all. Not sure what people expect when they

come here, but it seems to shock almost all of them.”

Holly tilted her head right and left. “I can understand that a bit. I

guess people imagine a more smoothly-run place. Over here, as

opposed to the American side, it’s pretty much free rein.”

Dan pulled out his wallet and motioned to one of the waitresses,

Paula. “It is free rein, and that’s why I like it over here. You still can’t

go around murdering people, but if I want to smoke a cigar in the bar,

I can. If I want a bottle of whiskey for the road, I can have one. It’s

cool in that regard, absolutely.”

Paula walked around the corner with a sly smile on her face.

Holly estimated she was somewhere in her forties, mid to late. She

had dirty-blonde hair pulled back in a purple scrunchy, and her

bangs were curled nineties style. She was fit, with a trim waist and

curvy hips. Her clothes were tight and her top was unbuttoned four

buttons, allowing her cleavage, tightly bundled in her black bra, to sit

firmly in place. She had a black apron around her waist and black

capri pants with black tennis shoes, the orthopedic kind. Her makeup

was subtle, not so much where she would look like she was melting

by the end of a hot day.

“Hold your dick, Bruno, I’m with another customer here,” she

yelled over her shoulder as she walked toward Holly and Dan.

Paula’s voice was firm and raspy, and Holly could tell she was not

the kind of woman who took shit from the men there. Cleavage

notwithstanding, she was not there for the compliments and feel-ups

Holly assumed some of the lonely mercs attempted with too many

beers in their systems. She reminded Holly of the vast number of

lifetime waitresses in diners in New York City. Tired of the shit, but

not tired of the money. With a lack of extracurricular activities outside

of the Zoo, Holly imagined Paula made a pretty penny working for

the bar. All the guys’ money went straight to liquor and whatever tips

she scared out of them at the end of the night.

Paula handed Dan a Shiner Bock in a bottle. “I figured it would be

a beer afternoon. You aren’t usually in here this early.”

Dan took the beer and handed her a five. “Yeah, well, JB’s been

telling his stories, and I never miss that opportunity if I can help it.”

Holly tried to keep her focus on the conversation, but Paula’s

massive heaving breasts were kind of distracting. She cleared her

throat and opened her jacket. “When near the Zoo…”

Paula smirked, noticing Holly looking at her chest. “Or guys.”

Holly reddened and waved her hand at Paula. “Sorry. Not

judging, I swear. I’ve been surrounded by dirty men for a couple of

weeks so your…uh…yeah…it sticks out.”

Paula shrugged. “Wouldn’t matter if you were judging,

sweetheart. Nothing is going to happen in here, and JB tosses those

out who don’t understand that. That is, if the other guys don’t get to

them first. They are pretty protective. We’ve sort of become a family

unit out here.”

Holly shook her head. “Oh, I’m sure. You would have to.”

Paula held the tray at her side, tapping it against her leg.

“Besides, it’s damned hot at times, and frankly, I don’t care if the

guys look. I cover up when I leave since I’m not looking for trouble,

but in here when the place is crowded and the heat is awful, I need

to cool down. This helps for sure.”

Dan lifted his beer. “And she has an amazing memory when it

comes to orders. Don’t think I’ve ordered more than twice the entire

time I’ve been coming in here.”

Paula patted him on the shoulder. “How could I forget a fellow

Texan’s order? And to top it off, you stayed true to Texas. We

purposely bring in Shiner Bock for this guy. Sure, he could import it

for himself and it would come out cheaper—”

Dan took a sip. “But then I wouldn’t have the comfort of yours or

JB’s company. It’s worth the extra couple of bucks a beer.”

A guy behind Paula yelled her name. She rolled her eyes and

tilted her head. “Pete, I done took your order. I am pretty sure you

won’t die without me filling you up right this second. Get off my

balls.”

Pete laughed and put down his glass. “You got it, Paula. I don’t

want to be on your balls. Those suckers are fucking huge.”

Paula nodded. “Damn straight, and don’t you fucking forget it.”

She shook her head and sighed, looking back at Dan and Holly.

“Anyway, as I was saying, Dan is a regular but not one we have to

worry about. I think the only time I’ve seen you drunk was when you

had that retirement-from-the-Zoo party here. By the end of it you

were slurring and stumbling, talking about beating down the locusts.”

Dan cleared his throat, glancing nervously at Holly. “Yeah, that

was definitely an interesting night for me. I had that absinthe JB

brought in for a short while.”

Paula sighed. “Yeah, that shit got taken off the menu real fast.

There were fights at least three times a night and vomit more times

than I can count. Wasn’t worth the hell we were going through to

keep it on the shelf.”

Dan chuckled. “I definitely did my share of vomiting that night. I

think I’ve had a hangover ever since.”

Paula smiled. “More like withdrawal from going into the Zoo. So

many guys retire, and they just feel like something is missing. I

swear that place takes something from you when you go in it. It’s

something only it can fix.”

Dan shook his head. “That’s just superstition. The guys miss the

adrenaline, the glory, and the fight. That’s what’s missing. A place

can’t just snatch your soul.”

Paula shrugged. “It’s done a lot of things we didn’t think it could

do. This is no different.”

Before Dan could say anything else, Paula turned to Holly. “I’m

sorry, Wide Eyes, what can I get you to drink?”

Holly paused and looked to her right as JB walked toward them.

You could hear the click, click, click as he approached. “I got her

drink, Paula. Don’t need to worry about it.”

A look of recognition came over Paula’s face. “Ah, you guessed

her drink, didn’t you?”

JB nodded. “Of course I did. You know them’s the rules. Just so

happens she liked what I picked out for her.”

Paula laughed. “You remember when you tried to guess mine? I

was blown away by the fact that you got it on point like you did.”

JB smirked. “I do remember that. You called me a wild

sonofabitch.”

“That’s right. You were all pissed I only wanted one and were

about to yell at me when you realized I was applying for a job.”

JB wiped his hands on the towel. “Yup. I hired you on the spot. I

liked your gusto and complete lack of caring about what anyone else

thought about you. I knew you would be perfect for the position. I

needed someone who could take care of themselves.”

“You got me. I don’t take shit from no one, although I try to be

hospitable, and people apparently like being harassed, demeaned,

and abused by me.”

Dan chuckled. “You sound like a madam in a dominatrix situation.

I’m surprised you haven’t brought whips in.”

JB pursed his lips. “Oh, she has. I just confiscated them before

she could do too much bodily harm to anyone. They are actually

hanging on the wall in the office in the back like two crossed

swords.”

Paula groaned, hearing the guys behind them getting rowdier. “I

guess I should give you this list of drinks I need before the townsfolk

start an uproar. I swear, I can’t get a second to myself these days.

Someone is constantly calling my name.”

JB raised an eyebrow. “Welcome to work?”

Paula sneered at JB. “I know it’s work, but it’s still a giant pain in

my ass. You know I am up for it most days. I got my witty

comebacks, my sarcasm on level ten, and my wits about me. Today,

for some reason I just want to be curled up in a house with a

fireplace, knowing it’s twenty degrees outside and snow is falling.”

JB started to make the drinks slowly. “You always get this way

around November. You start remembering holidays. You didn’t even

grow up with snow. I think you’ve turned old movies into your past

life.”

Paula popped a cherry in her mouth. “Hey, I can be anyone I

damn well please. If I want to be a Hallmark made-for-television

Christmas movie, I’ll fucking hang the mistletoe, baby.”

JB squeezed a lime into the shaker. “You are past the age of

holiday movies. You could be a supporting character. You know,

watch the magic from the outside.”

Paula tapped her fingers on the bar. “That right there is the story

of my life. Always the secondary character. Ugh.”

JB smiled, handing over one of the five drinks. “At least you are a

character. My story seems to be over, yet I’m still standing here as

the credits roll.”

Holly noticed Paula’s face twitch, but she quickly straightened it

out. “That’s okay, they all have extra scenes for those patient enough

to get through the credits.”

Dan took a sip of his beer. “I always fast-forward. I have no

patience these days.”

Holly shrugged. “I like the whole thing from beginning to end.

Sometimes the credits tell a lot more about the story.”

JB looked up and smiled at Holly. “That’s right. I got lots of

interesting shit left.”

Holly giggled and winked at JB, who winked back. He put the rest

of the drinks on the bar for Paula, who set down her tray and began

to place them carefully on it. She garnished each one fancily even

though she knew ninety percent of the fruit would end up on the floor

when the roughnecks snarled and threw it off.

JB put a straw in one of the beers. “For Henry, right?”

Paula rolled her eyes. “Yeah, the only motherfucker brave

enough to drink a beer through a straw in this bar.”

Dan chuckled. “Have you seen the size of him? He could do a

ballet move through the bar wearing a tutu and no one would say a

goddamned word. The man could break your skull in the palms of his

hands.”

Holly looked at the giant sitting at a table with a straw sticking out

of his beer. He had scars all down his arms, and a patch over one

eye. His body was like two of JB, and JB was not a small man by

any means. She understood very quickly why no one fucked with

him. Well, except for Paula and her balls of steel.

H

C H A P T E R T H R E E

olly laughed at Paula as she turned and looked at the guys

threatening to start a riot. “You know I’ll get out the stick and

come after you fools.”

The guys all laughed. “We are looking forward to it.”

Paula smiled and looked back at JB, who was rubbing his

forehead. Immediately she reached out and touched his arm. “You

okay?”

JB cleared his throat and nodded. “Oh, yeah. Just tired, that’s

all.”

Holly could see a look of caring on Paula’s face. A familiar caring,

like she had known him all her life. She stepped closer to him. “Did

you take it today?”

JB nodded. “Like clockwork.”

Paula pursed her lips. “If you need me to take over or something,

we can call in Lindsey. She’s off, but always up to make some cash.”

JB shook his head. “No, no. Don’t be ridiculous. Things are just

the same as they were before. Don’t worry about me.”

Holly looked down, not wanting to pry into their conversation. She

didn’t know what was going on, but whatever it was, it wasn’t any of

her business. Paula glanced down the bar at the others, who weren’t

paying any attention to them. She leaned in close and whispered

something in his ear. Holly couldn’t hear what it was, but it was

obvious she wasn’t supposed to. After a couple of minutes of them

whispering, Paula grabbed the tray and headed out into the sea of

people waiting for drinks. Holly could hear her yelling at them from

the bar.

“Use that hand you got waving to try and find your dick, Steve. I’ll

be there before you locate it,” she yelled.

Holly covered her mouth as she laughed, unsure if she was

supposed to be seen responding. She turned and watched as Paula

made her way through, putting glasses down on the tables. A

woman on the other side of the room called her name, a look of

exasperation on her face. Paula glanced over and nodded. “Oh, for

fuck’s sake, Allison, quit yelling for me. Take your well-used dildo

and shove it in your mouth, I’ll get there by the time the batteries run

out.”

One of the other guys stood up and clapped his hands. “Then

you probably only got like twenty seconds or so, with how much that

thing is used.”

Allison rolled her eyes. “Not my fault a piece of rubber does it

better than your shrimp dick.”

The whole bar broke into laughter, and the guy gave Allison the

finger. Allison winked at him and licked her lips, then settled back

down to wait for Paula. Paula was taking orders and giggling,

obviously enjoying the banter. Holly appreciated it. For once she

wasn’t the bossiest or the baddest bitch in the bunch. All the women

had a hard outer layer, and had developed their own combat

techniques for being around these men all of the time.

The clinking coming from JB brought Holly’s attention back to the

bar, and he said, “She sure gives them hell.”

Holly snickered. “Yeah, she does. I think she likes it.”

JB watched Paula joking around. “She sure as fuck does. She

wouldn’t have a good day if she wasn’t abusing the clientele. At first,

I was worried about it scaring people off, but it kind of became a

staple of the place. People come to be abused by our waitress from

hell. They tip bigger, buy more, and come back more often. I just let

it happen. Hell, who am I to deny these assholes their well-deserved

tongue-lashings?”

Holly watched the amusement flash across JB’s tired face. Once

she really took a look at him, she could see he wasn’t quite as bright

as the day before. “Does it ever get out of hand?”

JB shrugged. “It has on occasion, but usually she is able to deal



with it before I have to intervene. I think maybe five or six times I

have had to walk over and take care of it in the years and years this

place has been open.”

Holly nodded, pulling up her wallet. “At least she isn’t afraid.”

JB looked at Holly. “You will find insomnia, sickness, broken

bones, and lacerations in this town, but you very rarely find fear, at

least not the kind of fear that is worn on your face. Fear will get you

killed in and out of the Zoo. It’s a weakness to these men, and they

can smell it just as well as the Zoo can.”

Holly smiled. “Noted. Keep my fear at bay. I have to admit,

though, so far I am fearless.”

JB chuckled, wiping down the bar with a rag. “You look like you

got some sleep last night. And I see you decided not to continue with

the businesswoman attire. Probably for the best.”

Holly glanced at her clothes. “Yeah, I noticed people didn’t really

have a positive attitude toward the business thing. I figured it would

probably be better to just come out in plain clothes. That, and it’s a

hell of a lot more comfortable when you aren’t sweating from places

you didn’t even think you could sweat from.”

JB smirked. “Yeah, and just wait. If you go into that Zoo, you will

experience humidity unlike anything before. You sweat even when

you are dehydrated. You come out ten pounds lighter every time.”

Holly lifted her eyebrows. “Sounds like a hell of a weight-loss

plan.”

Dan sneered. “Especially when you don’t come back at all.”

Holly winced, not wanting to think about the deaths. “The hotel is

great. It’s much nicer than the other side. Way less military-like.”

JB poured another drink and slid it down the bar to a guy at the

end. “Yeah, that place isn’t too bad, assuming you are talking about

the place across the street. Definitely the nicest you are going to find

out here. Some businessman in Dubai thought about building luxury

hotels out here, but by the time he got the land secured, the Zoo ate

it. They put the rest of the deal on hold.”

Holly didn’t understand the purpose. “Why? So tourists could

come gawk at the Zoo? Before you know it, you will have tourist

treks through the place.”

JB shook his head. “Nah, the government and the UN put their

foot down on that one. That is against the law.”

Holly gawked. “Someone already tried it?”

One of the guys down the bar laughed. “Oh, yeah. Several

companies came up with a rail system that they could use to take

people on tours of the place. The richies wanted to come through

and check it out while eating caviar and sipping champagne. It would

have cost millions, but the UN said hell, no. They were not putting

lives in danger so some people could brag about going in and seeing

the man-eating plants.”

JB snorted. “If they came back out at all. It’s like that Jurassic

Park movie. They don’t know what they are messing with, and out of

nowhere, you would find mercs being hired to go retrieve some idiot

tourist who wandered out into the Zoo. None of us want to risk our

lives to save some moron. We’ll save our own people, but if you

purposely break the rules to get a good selfie, the man-eating plants

can have you.”

Holly snickered. “I think that’s fair. What do you think, Dan?”

Dan took a sip of his beer. “I say, fuck em’. Though knowing me, I

would volunteer and end up out there broken, trying to find those

idiots. My only thing is, some of the old timers go out there and

barely last. I think one of those idiots would snag their Gucci heel

and fall right into the mouth of a jaguar with antlers. I really don’t

think they have the survival skills to make it. In my opinion, it might

be a waste of time.”

Another guy sitting next to Dan spoke up. “Personally, I would

take it as a sacrifice to the Zoo gods and hope they go easy on the

rest of us for a while for providing a decadent snack for them to chew

on every couple of weeks. You know, appease the Zoo so it’ll send

fewer deadly things to attack us?”

JB and Dan laughed. “That actually isn’t too bad of an idea. We

dress up in native gear and go out chanting and toss some

unsuspecting fat guy out into the jungle to be sacrificed.”

Holly lifted an eyebrow. “That sounds terrible. But I could see

where it might work. I’m in.”

JB chuckled. “I figured that might be right up your alley.”

Holly shrugged. “I figure if I don’t volunteer, I might be the next

sacrifice. Gotta be one up on you guys.”

Dan patted her on the shoulder. “Smart thinking. Very smart

thinking.”

A guy walked up next to Holly and took a seat, nodding at JB.

“Hey, what’s up? I just got in town, and I was told this was the place

to come.”

JB eyed the guy for a moment. “You look roughed up, not new.”

The guy chuckled, running a hand through his cropped hair.

“Yeah, was in the military on the American side for ten years, got out,

and came over here to try to join up with a merc team so I can make

a little non-military money, if you know what I mean.”

JB nodded in understanding. “Okay, I gotcha. So not necessarily

a newbie, but new to the French side. I can dig it.”

The guy put his hand out. “I’m Charlie.”

JB shook his hand. “I’m JB, this lovely lady next to you is Holly,

and next to her is Dan. The rest I’m sure you’ll get to know on your

own.”

Charlie nodded and smiled at the two, his posture perfect and his

body cut. “Nice to meet you guys. Everyone seems a bit friendlier

over here than on the other side.”

Everyone chuckled, and Holly winked at him. “You must have hit

the jackpot today, then.”

JB chuckled. “Girl has been on this side two days and already

knows how it works.”

Charlie looked at Holly. “Only two days? You a Marine?”

Holly shook her head. “Nah. I am private sector.”

He nodded and looked back at JB. “Well, you mind if I get a

drink?”

JB clapped his hands together. “Mind? Hell, no. Actually, I

encourage it. But we have a rule here…”

Dan snickered. “And here comes the magic.”

JB narrowed his eyes at Dan. “Ignore my friend. He is a cynical

sonofabitch. Anyway, I get to guess your first drink.”

Charlie looked at Holly and back at JB. “Okay, let’s do this.

Whatcha got?”

JB stood there for quite a while with his hand to his chin. Finally,

he pulled down a rocks glass, filled it with ice, and set it on the bar.

“First a little whiskey—Jack, of course.”

Charlie nodded. “Of course.”

JB pulled down another couple of bottles and mixed a concoction

that Holly could only figure out by the strong cherry and mango smell

coming from it. He topped it off with Sprite and slid it toward Charlie.

Charlie eyed the drink for a moment and picked it up, bringing it to

his lips. Everyone stared silently, waiting for his reaction. As the

liquid surged through his lips and over his tongue, his eyes went

wide and he nodded. “That’s fucking amazing.”

JB picked up the ten from the bar and put it in the register. “You

are welcome.”

Holly looked at Dan and leaned toward him, talking loud enough

for JB to hear her. “I think he just drugs us all and we are really

sipping horse piss and pineapple juice. It just tastes good because

we are off our gourds.”

JB faked a laugh. “Be careful. I haven’t made your drink yet.”

Holly realized he was right. “Oh, hell, you’re right. Would you

mind mixing me up a little something?”

JB smiled. “No problem. You want it like yesterday, or you want

me to try some Skyy?”

Holly shook her head. “Just like yesterday. Oh, and JB?”

JB looked over his shoulder at her as she slid a twenty across the

bar. “How about another story, too?”

Dan tapped his hands on the bar and leaned over, grabbing an

ashtray. “Hot dog. I second that. We need some action-packed

adventure in here today.”

Charlie looked at the other two. “What stories?”

Dan shook his thumb at JB as the bar owner made Holly’s drink.

“This guy knows pretty much everything that has happened out here

since day one. Holly here figured out the key to getting him to tell a

story.”

Charlie looked at the money. “A ten-dollar tip?”

JB looked at Charlie. “And a pretty smile like this beautiful girl

has. Sorry, wouldn’t work for you, so you better ride her coattails

while you have the chance.”

Holly shrugged. “Hey, whatever it takes. Well, not really, but the

twenty I can handle.”

JB finished shaking her drink and poured it into her glass. He

topped it off with a cherry and a straw and wiped off his hands. Holly

could see he was thinking about his next move, trying to decide what

he wanted to start out with. “Let’s see. Another story. What do I want

to work on this time? I could do Angel, but there’s so much backstory

we’ll be here all year.” He thumbed his chin and looked at Holly for a

moment.

She leaned her cheek on her hand and watched as his eyes

moved from picture to picture above the bar. Suddenly they stopped,

and a smirk went over his lips. “I think I got it. You guys are full of

bullshit and sarcasm today, and there is a story that will go right

along with your shitty-ass attitude.”

Holly stuck out her lip. “I’m not shitty. I’m funny.”

Dan clinked his glass with hers. “I agree.”

JB snorted. “Okay, you are funny, too. So was this guy. He was

rough to the core, and you could tell it just by taking one look at him.

He never wore a shirt with sleeves, and he let his scars shine as

some sort of badge of honor. He was ruthless and cared for himself

and a few, very few around him. That only lasted as long as he could

use them for his own good. This guy wasn’t loved by a single soul in

the town, at least not while he was alive. His name was Jumping

Jack Flash.”

Paula groaned. “A galactic-sized European piece of trash who

backed up his bullshit with snakelike reflexes.”

JB laughed. “Yep, and although he was a bit pudgy, no one could

beat him in the forty-yard dash. Jack wasn’t named after the song,

but the fact that he was skittish. He had a thing for money, wine, and

women, not necessarily in that order. He could be an asshole out in

the Zoo but a damned gentleman when he wanted to.”

Paula stopped and shook her finger. “Gentleman, my ass. Jack

was the one who damn near talked me out of my panties when I was

working one night. He felt he was going to die the next time he

walked into the Zoo and wanted something from the prettiest woman

he knew. Then he offered me a thousand dollars for them. Hell, I

figured they were a twenty-dollar pair that was six months old, so

why the fuck not? Pfft. Then I realized he wasn’t good for the

payment when he asked if he could pay twelve and owe me when he

got back.”

Holly snickered. “Tricky guy.”

Paula shook her head. “Ass was what he really was. I told him he

couldn’t set up a payment plan if he wasn’t planning on coming

back.”

JB pointed to a hand that was up in the restaurant. Paula turned

and flicked them off. “Sit on your thumb and wiggle. I’ll be there

eventually.”

JB shook his head and continued, “It’s only because Jack fell off

his stool dead-ass drunk that he didn’t get those panties. He could

sweet-talk the gold chains off a rapper. But in the Zoo? Jack could

be an ass. If you were on his team, it was teamwork, but if you met

him out there and were hurt—shit, that man wouldn’t lift a damn

finger. Most people are decent, but not Jack. The only time I thought

he had humanity was because an American from Heavy Metal was

having an issue and asked him to help. He tried to ignore her, but

she out-shouted him. I think he carried a torch for her ever since.

There was one time he heard she was in trouble at another bar? He

tore out of here so fast I thought I’d have to fix my doors. As time

passed, Jack’s light began to flicker, and the spark was rarely on

display.”

J

C H A P T E R F O U R

ack put his gun on the bar and pulled himself up on the stool,

knocking the sand off his boots. He sniffed hard and cleared

his throat, wiping his face on the back of his dirty arm. His hair

was wild and light brown, but his beard grew in almost black. He

shaved it every few days and walked around with a permanent five

o’clock shadow. His eyes glistened light blue, and the scars that ran

down his arms and chin stayed white compared to the grime and

sunburn on the rest of his skin.

The bartender came up to him drying a glass, the people in the

bar staring silently at the back of his head. “What can I get you,

Flash?”

Jack looked slightly to the side, and the people turned, starting up

conversations. “I’ll have a straight-up tequila, not chilled, no lime.”

The bartender winced. “Is it one of those days? We just finished

rebuilding the back bar after your last tequila day.”

Jack stared at him for a moment, the corner of his mouth

twitching. “Promise I’ll switch after a couple of these.”

The bartender sighed and set down the polished glass. He took

the Patron off the middle shelf and poured him more than a shot,

since Flash got special treatment in that bar. He spent more money

on him and his team in there than anyone else in the whole town.

Sure, he also started fights almost every time, but it all equaled out

for the owner. The bartender, on the other hand, wasn’t really looking

forward to it.

Jack nodded and threw down a hundred. “Just let me know when

you need more.”

The bartender took the bill and put it to the side, starting Jack a

tab. “You got it. Any of the boys coming in to join you today?”

Jack shrugged. “Maybe. Don’t really care either way. Just having

a down day before we head back in tomorrow.”

The bartender looked at him surprised. “Going in as a team? I

thought you usually headed things off in there.”

Jack grumbled. “Doing it backward tomorrow. Going out as a

team, and I’ll probably break off at the end by myself. I don’t know.

We’ll see what the Zoo has to offer me and how much shit it plans on

giving me.”

The bartender nodded and glanced at the other side of the bar,

where another guy was waiting quietly for a drink. He wasn’t about to

interrupt Jack; he didn’t want a fight. Jack looked at him and nodded

to the bartender, who took his leave to help the other guy. Jack didn’t

care that people feared him. It wasn’t a badge of honor; he just

fucking hated people. The only reason he had developed a threeman

team was that the company he took gigs from demanded it so

he could pick more Pita. He had grown to give a half a shit about

them, so he dealt with having to talk to people.

As if they knew he was thinking about them, Rage and Emmett

kicked open the front door, their hands in the air. Rage whistled

loudly, and Emmett spit chew behind him on the doorstep. “Woowee,

look at this fucked-up place. Wild and wooly, like always.”

Rage nodded toward Jack, who kept his stare on the tequila. “Uh

oh, look what we got. Old fearless Jumpin’ Jack Flash got him some

tequila, boy.”

Emmett chuckled and took a seat next to him. “You looking for a

fight today, boss man?”

Jack slowly looked at him, a smirk moving over his lips. “Only if

some poor sonofabitch comes knocking for one.”

Rage laughed loudly, turning and looking at the guys at the tables

in the bar. “What do you say, boys? Anyone looking to do a little

fighting with my man here?”

The bartender sighed and reached around the bar, grabbing his

bat and propping it up, prepared to beat back the drunks when all

hell broke loose. Jack snickered. “Now, now Rage. I done promised

the bartender to be good today. I’m only having two or three

tequilas.”

Emmett turned and thumbed through an invisible Rolodex. “Let’s

see, two or three. That puts you right about in the chill-out zone.

Well, that isn’t any fucking fun.”

Jack threw back his tequila. “I said tequila. I didn’t say I would

stop drinking altogether.”

Rage plopped down on the stool next to Emmett. Jack lifted his

glass and the bartender grabbed the Patron, filling the shot glass.

“How about you boys? You want your usual?”

Rage tapped his hands on the bar. “That works for me. Two pints

of your lager.”

Emmett nodded astutely to Rage. “I like that. Good way to take

control there, friend.”

Jack took a deep breath and turned toward them. “You boys

ready for tomorrow?”

Rage cleared his throat, calming down. “All our shit is packed up

and we are ready to go, boss. We haven’t been out with you from the

start in ages.”

Jack grumbled. “Yeah, well, I don’t have a choice. It’s in the

contract. But I will be going my own way when you pansies are back

out safely.”

Emmett raised his glass, spilling some of his beer. “It wouldn’t be

right if you didn’t. You are always solo during some part of the trip.

My question is, if something eats ya, how will we know?”

Jack slammed back his second tequila. “I don’t come back.

That’s how you know, you idiots. I say three days, then call me done

for and move on.”

Rage shook his head. “Ain’t never gonna happen. You are more

protective of your skin than most look out for their money. You’ll kill a

motherfucker before you get stuck in there, boy.”

The doors opened again and four older mercs walked in, looking

around the bar. Rage looked at them, squinting at the light, his lip

curled to reveal his blackened teeth. The head of the group leaned

over to the bouncer and whispered. He looked up as the bouncer

answered, his eyes falling on Jack, Rage, and Emmett in the corner

of the bar.

Rage turned back and took a sip of his beer, glancing up as the

bartender refilled Jack’s shot glass. “Looks like Ragwood and his

boys are looking for you. Did we march on their shit last time? I can’t

remember.”

Jack didn’t say a word; he kept his eyes glued to the tequila.

Ragwood came up with his handlebar mustache and Old West-style

holster around his hips. He cleared his throat and nodded at Rage.

“We came to speak with Jack.”

Rage stood up and crossed his arms, looking tiny compared to

the other men. “And what’s your business with the Flash?”

Ragwood scrunched his nose. “None of your business. It’s an

emergency.”

Jack let out a sigh and nudged Rage, who sat back down and

faced his beer. Slowly Jack spun his stool around and looked at

Ragwood with a straight face. “What’s so important you got to

interrupt my drinking? You know I’m going out tomorrow.”

Ragwood looked at the tequila and swallowed hard, trying not to

show his nerves. “We got a man missing in the Zoo. We went out

this morning, and before we were even two clicks in we were beat up

pretty bad by the locusts. Apparently, some idiot had pulled a whole

plant just a mile or two away from us. Anyway, we all scattered, and

if I know this fella right, he is still alive. Probably injured, hiding out,

waiting for some help. We are putting a search team together. We

would really appreciate it if you came along. You are the best tracker

in the whole goddamned town.”

Jack took in a deep breath and moved his neck right and left. “He

got his armor and weapons?”

Ragwood nodded. “As far as we know, he went chasing down

one of them jaguars and had full gear on. He also had two automatic

weapons. He’s one of the long-timers. Been out in the Zoo about

twelve times so far in his career as a merc. He ain’t never get lost

and not been able to find his way out in about an hour, but this time

he hasn’t shown up. We know it’s an inconvenience, so I’m willing to

pay a few grand for you to help us.”

Rage snickered, and Jack elbowed him. “A few grand to help find

him?”

Ragwood stood up straighter. “That’s right.”

Jack turned back around and took a sip of his tequila, not paying

the guys any more attention. Ragwood looked at the guys and

cleared his throat. “Look, Jack, we’ve known each other a long time.

I know you aren’t one to help others out but I could really use your

services. We didn’t even have a chance to do the hauls, so I don’t

have a ton I can pay you, and the company said it’s not their

problem. Our guy has been in and out of the Zoo for so many years,

you could at least respect that. A lifer for the cause, man.”

Jack cleared his throat and let out a deep breath. “All right. I’ll do

it for a hundred grand.”

Ragwood groaned. “You know I ain’t got that kind of money. Can’t

I owe you a favor? You know I am always good for my word. There

ain’t no trackers out here we can trust like we could trust you to find

our man, and every second I stand here begging you is one less

second he could be breathing.”

Jack shook his head. “Then I suggest you get on out of here and

head out into the Zoo. It’s gonna be night soon, and if your man is

injured, you know he’ll be locust chow in the dark.”

Ragwood gritted his teeth. “So it’s a no?”

Jack cleared his throat again, glaring at him. “Seems that way.”

Ragwood shook his head and whispered under his breath as he

turned. “Sonofabitch no-good asshole. Don’t care about nothing but

his own dick.”

Rage and Emmett both looked at Jack and shut their mouths.

Jack calmly downed the rest of his tequila. He pushed the shot glass

across the bar and rolled his shoulders. The bartender slowly backed

away and the other guys at the bar froze, knowing what was about to

go down. Jack rose from his chair and squared up on the floor.

“Ragwood.”

Ragwood stopped and put his hand on the butt of his gun as he

slowly turned. His cheek twitched, and he chewed on the end of a

toothpick as he looked back at Jack. Slowly Jack walked toward him,

his combat boots clomping on the floor. He stopped a foot away from

Ragwood and narrowed his eyes. “What did you just say?”

Ragwood cleared his throat. “I think it’s very clear what I said. We

got a man missing, and you only care about yourself. This battle for

fortune has gone to your head; you aren’t the man that you used to

be.”

Jack breathed through his nose. “Everybody changes.”

Ragwood shook his head. “When Melanie died, you…”

Jack put his finger in Ragwood’s face. “Don’t you ever say her

name, you understand me? She is too good for her name to come

from your filthy lips.”

Ragwood sighed. “All right, Jack. We get it. You do no good for

others. Excuse me while I go save a life—something you obviously

don’t know nothing about.”

Rage and Emmett’s eyes went wide and Jack slowly smiled,

looking up from the floor. Before Ragwood could react, Jack slugged

him right in the face. He teetered to the side, knocking into one of the

tables. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and dove for

Jack, no longer fearing him. The bartender grabbed his bat and took

his position guarding the liquor, the job the owner had given him

when a fight broke out.

Immediately Rage and Emmett downed their beers and laughed

loudly as they charged Ragwood’s men. Rage put his head down

and plowed into one guy, pushing him back into the wall. He

slammed his boot down on the guy’s foot and punched him hard in

the stomach. Emmett laughed as he grabbed the other guy by the

collar and began smashed his fist into his cheek.

Jack and Ragwood had tumbled to the ground and were rolling

around trading blows. The guys in the bar stood up and cheered.

“BAR FIGHT!”

The onslaught of men charged, throwing punches for no reason

and just going to town. It had gone from a peaceful Wednesday

afternoon to an all-out battle. All the bartender could do was sigh.

JB was laughing to himself, shaking his head. “That Jack sure as hell

knew how to fight, and he liked it too. He used to say, in a pent-up

situation like that men needed to fight. They needed to get all that

emotion out.”

Holly rolled her eyes. “Men and fighting. It’s so fucking stupid. I

guess it’s the testosterone. I need a good night and several bottles of

wine, and I’m good for at least a month. You boys need to knock

some teeth out and do damage to your surroundings.”

Dan shook his head. “I bet if we released you in a fight, you

would change your tune about it. I can see you jumping tables and

beating the hell out of people. Decades of repressed emotion built up

in that sweet face. I know better. You’re a ticking time bomb.”

Holly shrugged. “Doubt it, but who knows? Maybe I’ll pick a fight

tonight.”

JB groaned. “Please don’t. I don’t have the energy to deal with it.”

Holly laughed and took a sip of her drink, this one better than the

ones before. “So, wait, he said something about a girl named

Melanie. Who was that?”

JB smirked. “You don’t miss anything, do you? I’ll get to that

eventually. Everybody has a story. Not too many people are born

and just turn into someone like Jack. He was never the kindest

person anyone had seen before. He didn’t go by gut instinct, he went

by greed. The only people he considered looking out for were Rage

and Emmett. Even then, he went by his own rules.”

J

C H A P T E R F I V E

ack got down on one knee and pointed his shotgun toward the

sky. Emmett and Rage knelt next to him looking through their

HUDS. Emmett shivered. “I can hear the buzz. Those fuckers

are close. What the fuck is wrong with them?”

Jack kept his cool. “Guess the sacrifice of that asshole wasn’t

enough to satisfy them.”

Rage gritted his teeth. “I’m ready. Come on, fuckers, let’s go.

Don’t hide out.”

Jack tilted his gun a bit higher and waited until finally the first of

the giant locusts broke through the canopy of the trees. He didn’t

hesitate, pulling the trigger and blasting the head right off of it. He

pulled the bolt back, ejecting the empty shell. Rage went to the right

and Emmett to the left. Jack duck-walked forward, pulling the trigger

again as another one swooped through. There were two, the first

being blown away and the other diving with his sharp mandibles

slicing.

Jack dropped the shotgun and rolled across the ground, pulling

out his handgun. The locust swooped right over him. Jack pulled his

gun up and fired, exploding its head. Turning quickly, he shot three

more times as the canopy filled with them. Two more locusts hit the

ground, twitching slightly.

“Oh, hell no, you motherfuckers,” Emmett yelled as he pulled his

machete from his back.

He chopped the bug’s head right off. A glop of emerald blood

splattered across his helmet. He wiped it away with his sleeve and

jabbed his machete outward, sticking it in the chest of an oncoming

bug. He let go and backed up as the beast sliced at him. Pulling his

sidearm out, he shot it between the eyes three times, and it fell to the

ground, motionless. He walked over, put his boot on its carapace,

and pulled the machete out.

Bending down, he wiped away the blood and jumped back up to

fight further. Rage laughed maniacally on the other side of the

clearing as he climbed halfway up a tree and blasted both his pistols

at the same time. He screamed in exhilaration, loving the fights

inside of the Zoo. “Fuckin’ fly, you shitstorms, fly!”

Jack chuckled at Rage as he blasted into the swarm, but it looked

like the rest were taking cover. He lowered his gun back to his side

and put up his hand. “Okay, boys, let’s keep moving. Looks like

these fuckers have had their fill of what we can dish out.”

Rage moped and jumped down from the tree, sliding his guns

back into their holsters. “I was just getting started.”

Emmett walked over, wiping the blood off his machete. “It’s okay,

buddy. If this is any sign, there will be plenty of fighting to come.”

Jack grunted. “Let’s go another few miles and make camp. I am

personally done with fighting for the day.”

He started walking, leaving Emmett and Rage staring at each

other in confusion. Emmett put the machete in its sheath on his

back, and the two followed him. “What the fuck is up with him?”

Rage shrugged. “Everybody wakes up on the wrong side of the

bed some days. Guess this is not a glittery rainbow kind of day for

him.”

Jack cleared his throat. “You know I can hear you two morons.

This is an open channel. Now keep up. I don’t want to have to stop

and save your asses.”

Emmett shrugged and hurried ahead, knowing he had the duty of

cutting down the brush as they went. Rage pulled his gun around,

scanning the area as he took up the rear. Jack reloaded his handgun

as he walked, grumbling to himself. About an hour later, Rage

sighed. “Hey, boss, you think we could eat something?”

Jack didn’t look back at him. “We eat when camp is set up. I am

not risking my ass so you can have a granola bar.”

Rage slumped and grumped along, his stomach rumbling. Ahead

of them, Emmett swung his machete, cutting through the thickgrowing

vines along the way. After each new batch he sliced through

he paused, making sure nothing was going to come down and

snatch him. He had the scar on the side of his head to show he

wasn’t going to make that mistake ever again. It had taken Rage and

Jack both to pull him out of the bastard plant’s teeth and about fifty

stitches to keep his head intact.

Emmett clicked on his com. “Hey, Rage, fuckface. Can you keep

your eyes open here? I am tired of picking up your security slack.”

Rage turned, walking backward. “Oh, sure. I’ll watch for plants

and just let the jaguars sneak the fuck up behind us. I’ll point your

ass out so it can eat you first.”

Emmett growled. “You are a waste of space.”

Jack stopped. “Shut your fucking holes, or I’ll shoot you both and

leave you here so I can finish the job. Rage, do your job. Emmett,

look out for your own ass. And if either of you opens your fucking

hole one more time to ask about food, I just might snap his neck with

my own fucking hands.”

Both guys shut their mouths quickly, not knowing if he would

actually do it. He had their backs most days, but there was

something going on with him today that they couldn’t pinpoint. At the



same time, neither of them was the brightest crayon in the box.

Noticing things were kind of lost on them unless it was pointed

directly at them. In this instance it was, but they were still clueless.

A couple of hours later when the sun was starting to move out of

view, Jack stopped to make camp. “I’ll handle the perimeter stakes.

Rage, you do the lights, and Emmett, you keep watch. We’ll put up

our own tents tonight. Only then are we sitting down to eat. I want

the perimeter safe.”

Rage stood tall and gave a lopsided salute. “You got it, boss.”

Emmett nodded. “Ten-four.”

Emmett took out his gun and put away his machete, turning the

heat sensors on in his HUD. He scanned the area, using the new

program they had just installed. The companies had finally found a

way to search out the jaguars that could evade heat signatures.

Emmett didn’t know how it worked, but he knew orange and red

were bad, the rest was fine. He kept his eyes on the surroundings,

making sure nothing came close to them.

Rage went around placing the lights as usual, one out for every

three inward. They weren’t trying to completely spotlight themselves,

but Jack hated not being able to see out of the perimeter. Jack took

the motion sensors and placed them around each tent and out

around the perimeter, knowing they would help if something was

creeping in from the ground. He couldn’t even keep track of how

many times they picked up sneaky vines trying to slither their way

into the campground, so he wasn’t fucking around.

When they were about done, the buzzing began again, echoing

through the earpieces of their suits. All three guys ran into the center

of the lights. Jack grabbed the remote from Rage and hit the switch,

turning the lights off and leaving them standing in the dark. All three

switched on their heat sensors and slowly looked at the sky. Above

them was a spread of red, the locusts not yet sensing their presence.

Emmett shifted slightly. “What are they doing?”

Jack carefully pulled out his gun. “They are looking for us, I would

presume, and I am not about to wait until they’ve found us. Rage, go

to the right and do your monkey shit. Emmett, take the left. I’m going

to let them know we are not fucking around. They had enough of a

smell of our bodies. They need to go the fuck home.”

The guys moved swiftly, using their stealth skills to scamper off to

their locations. Jack stood in the center, his head up and his guns in

his hands. The aiming feature in his HUD only worked half the time,

so Jack never connected it. He got tired of misfiring and drawing the

entire group of animals down on his head.

He glanced around, seeing the guys’ signatures. “Are you

ready?”

“Fuck, yes,” Emmett snarled.

“Got a hold, so let’s fuck them up,” Rage replied.

Jack pointed his gun back up, but the red in the sensors had

begun to fade. The buzzing sound was slowing down and drifting

into the distance. Apparently, they weren’t too engaged in finding the

guys and were separating before the fight even began. “Hold back.

They’re leaving.”

Rage shinnied back down the tree and came to a stop next to

Jack. “Well, fuck.”

Emmett shrugged. ‘That’s okay with me. I didn’t feel like finding a

new campsite.”

Jack looked at the two of them. “Put up your tents in the dark, but

keep your eyes peeled. We’ll turn the lights back on when we’ve

given them a chance to get out of the way.”

The guys walked off, Jack picking up his sack and heading to the

middle site. He always slept in the middle if he slept out there at all.

He had gotten pretty good at getting through several days with only a

few hours of napping along the way. The Zoo was a dangerous

place, and just like everywhere else in his life, he kept one eye on

his surroundings at all time.

Jack set up his tent and rolled out his sleeping bag inside. He

could hear the guys talking, waiting for Jack to be ready. He clicked

the lights and sat down inside, opening his sack. “You guys can eat

without me. I’m gonna go ahead and lay down. When you are ready

for bed, Rage, you got the first watch.”

“You got it,” Rage replied.

Jack took off his helmet, severing the communication and tossing

it on the ground. He pushed through his pack, finding a bag of jerky

and some trail mix. He opened his canteen and sat there crosslegged,

eating his food. His mind began to wander to the night

before; to Ragwood and his big mouth. He was going to have one

less thing to say now that he was missing a tooth.

Jack shook his head and unzipped a hidden compartment in his

bag, then pulled out a folded picture and looked at it. The redheaded

girl in the picture was young, only about seventeen or so, but tough

as nails. It was Melanie, his daughter. She had wanted to go out in

the field to earn money to go to college, and Jack hadn’t stopped

her. He always tried to be with her on trips, but the one he hadn’t

been able to make had been the last one Melanie ever went out on.

She got separated from her group, and they left without her. Jack

had spent days combing the Zoo, finally finding a piece of her pack,

blood, and that picture right outside a large man-eating plant.

It was one of the last times that Jack would speak more than a

few words to the people around him. The guys helping him track her

had stood by and watched as Jack slashed the plant to pieces,

hoping to find her inside. She was gone, though; there wasn’t even a

shred of clothing left. That was what had triggered him the night

before, and it would continue triggering him for the rest of his life. He

felt responsible for her death, for making her believe she had to live

up to some standard he only held for himself.

Alone was the best he could do; that way he didn’t put anyone’s

life in danger. To the rest of the world, he was a callous and coldhearted

bastard. Jack didn’t care that people thought that. In fact, it

was probably safer that it was the first thing to come to their mind

when they thought of Jumping Jack Flash. It was a stupid nickname

given to him his first time in the field when he leapt on the backs of

two locusts and saved another guy’s life. He wasn’t that man

anymore, but he couldn’t shake the nickname.

Jack laid back on his sleeping bag and put his arms behind his

head, closing his eyes. There wasn’t anything that he wanted more

than a few hours of sleep. Something, anything, to get his mind off

the past.

When the sun came up the next morning, Jack was surprised to find

the guys hadn’t woken him up for his watch. He stumbled out of the

tent and put his helmet on, prepared to find the guys dead or gone,

but sitting there with a stack of lighting sticks and perimeter monitors,

Rage and Emmett looked at him.

Rage waved. “Morning, boss. We let you sleep since you never

do.”

Jack grunted, stomping back to his site and beginning to take

down his tent. “Stupid. You could have been fucking killed, and now I

have to travel with two tired assholes. Great.”

Emmett smirked and shook his head at Rage. “We’re okay, boss.

Let’s just get the Pitas and get the fuck out of here.”

Jack shoved the stakes in his bag. “I’ll be going off without you

afterward. You two morons think you’ll be able to get back on your

own without getting killed?”

Rage scoffed. “Duh. I’ll machete whatever motherfucker even

gets near me.”

Jack rolled his eyes. “Good, then let’s gear up and move out. The

Pita patch is only two miles from here. It’s the same one we hit two

years ago, so it should be a solid lead now that the flowers have

reformed and expanded. I’ll send my petals back for Emmett to split

between us.”

The guys hurried through cleaning up the campsite and started

deeper into the Zoo. Jack took the back this time, not wanting to

have to talk to anyone. He just wanted to be on his own for a bit;

collect more goop and come back when he was ready. The Zoo was

starting to be too much for him, and he couldn’t help but wonder if

maybe it was time to disappear back to the real world and hide out in

the house he had bought five years before. No one knew about it,

and he liked it that way. He just wanted to be alone.

M

C H A P T E R S I X

adigan Kennedy was stoked about her new suit. The last one

had been good, but the stench of that guy’s dead body still

lingered, even after wearing it for multiple trips into the Zoo. She

fiddled with the display as she walked behind Salinger. The three

people behind her were all new to Heavy Metal and going out for

their first trip with the team. They always took the newbies out,

although none of them were technically new to the Zoo.

Salinger swiped his machete through the growing vines and

stopped. “You got the coordinates for the Pitas up yet? I feel like I’m

wandering aimlessly, waiting for you.”

Madigan chuckled. “Calm down there, buddy. They are up…now.”

Salinger let out a sigh of relief. “Good, we are going in the right

direction.”

Madigan shrugged, sending the map to the rest of the team.

“Hey, even if we aren’t, we’re providing a valuable service to the

newbs.”

Salinger snorted. “I still can’t believe we have surpassed seventyfive

percent of the teams out here. Heavy Metal exploded.”

Madigan smiled. “You’d think by now you’d be used to wandering

around blindly. Nothing about this business should surprise you.”

Salinger stepped into the clearing and clicked on the new

headgear, looking for any signatures around them. “Yeah, but I had

no idea what I was doing when I started this thing with you.”

Madigan wrinkled her nose. “That would have been good

information for me from the start.”

Salinger chuckled. “But then you would have said no and I…

Hold on, we’ve got heat.”

Immediately Madigan clicked to the open com. “Look alive, boys,

we’ve got something. What are you seeing, Salinger?”

She watched as he took another step forward and paused.

Suddenly he dropped his machete and raised his gun, immediately

pulling the trigger. “The jags. We got the jags!”

The whole team spread out, ready for a fight. The beasts crept to

the edge of the clearing and let out a low chorus of growls.

Immediately they started to attack, jumping from every direction.

Madigan pulled out her M16 and blasted an oncoming jag, taking it

to the ground. She put a bullet in its head for good measure, then

something slammed into her. She went down hard, rolling as she fell

to find a jag crawling up her. His rows of teeth were dripping with

saliva, and his antlers came to sharp points.

Madigan pulled her legs up and grabbed a knife from her side.

She jabbed the knife into the beast’s throat and cut through as much

as she could, then put her feet on its chest and pushed hard,

launching it into the air. Without a pause, she jumped to her feet and

grabbed her gun, blasting it until its body went limp.

Across from her, Salinger faced his own barrage of jags swiping

at him from the edge of the clearing. He shot into the edges, hearing

the whimpering as two of them retreated. Another wasn’t as scared

and leapt over a fallen tree, heading right for him. He jumped back,

and its outstretched claw barely grazed his armor. He reached to his

side and pulled out a grenade, yanking the pin. Holding the lever

down, he waited for the beast to roar.

When it opened its jaws, he tossed the grenade down its throat

and dove out of the way. The grenade blew, throwing bits and pieces

of the animal all over the place. The third on the team, Trey, lifted his

eyebrows. “Well, that one’s not regenerating.”

As he spoke, a vine grabbed his ankles and pulled him off his

feet. He hit the ground hard and began to slide across the leaves

toward a fat yellow plant with circular rows of teeth and venom

dripping to the ground. He pulled out his knife and cut the vine

holding him, then scooted back on the leaves, pulling the dead vine

off him. The plant hissed and spat as he raised his handguns and

pointed them at it. Swallowing hard, he pulled the triggers, blowing

the petals off.

Ivory, his teammate and girlfriend, ran up and looked at the plant,

tilting her head to the side. “You might want to aim for the fucking

teeth.”

She sighed and shot the plant, blowing the entire blossom off the

thick stem. It hit the ground, let out a shrill screech, and withered

where it lay. She reached down and helped Trey to his feet. He

brushed off his armor and looked at Ivory. “Thanks.”

Ivory smiled. “You’ll pay me back, I’m sure.”

Suddenly his gun came next to her helmet, and he blasted an

oncoming jag right between the eyes. Ivory slowly turned and looked

at the beast as it dropped just a couple of feet from her. “Okay, I

retract what I said. You will pay me back instantly.”

Thomas, the final team member, huffed and puffed as he

reloaded. “Hey, can you guys love on each other later? There are a

shit-ton of fucking alien animals rushing us right now.”

As he said that, Ivory and Trey watched a glob of shit fly down

from the trees and splash on Thomas’s helmet. He slowly looked up

and narrowed his eyes. “Fucking monkeys. Those little

motherfuckers. One day I am going to pay them back.”

Trey laughed. “That’s like the third time you’ve been hit by shit,

bro.”

Thomas growled, “Watch your back!”

Trey turned to see another jag leaping toward them. Ivory put her

hand on his chest and pushed him hard. She flipped backward and

pulled out her guns, blasting at the beast. Before it could even hit the

ground, a new line of jags approached the perimeter of the clearing.

All five of the team backed into the center, pointing their weapons

outward.

Madigan took a deep breath and reloaded. “All right, team, round

two. The only good thing about this is I’ve never seen a round three.”

Thomas moaned. “That means nothing in this hell hole. There

could be fifty-two rounds.”

Madigan slapped the new magazine into her gun. “Better not be.

We don’t have enough ammo for that.”

The jags began to run toward them, coming from all directions.

They shot as fast as they could, but the things just kept coming.

Madigan kicked one hard in the chest and sent it to the ground, then

put a bullet in the top of its head. As she did that she turned to her

right, her gun clicking empty as some sort of animal she had never

seen charged. It looked like a miniature rhino, but it had four eyes

and scales down its back. Its tail was long like a dragon’s, with

spikes that looked like a mohawk.

She began to back up when shots rang out, hitting the animal

and taking it down. Madigan reloaded and looked up, unsure where

that shot had come from. Her entire team was behind her, and this

shot had come from in front of her. Without the time to stop and

really look into it, she turned and fired into the group of jags to her

left. They were hissing and roaring, swiping their claws but not

pouncing anymore.

The team got into a line, Trey glancing at the scaled rhino. “What

the fuck is that?”

Salinger walked forward with his gun pointed toward the jags.

“Don’t know. We’ll check it out when it’s clear. Looks like they are

starting to retreat. We need to push them into a run. Everyone, on

the count of three, start firing. One…two…three.”

The five team members sent a hail of bullets toward the jags,

blowing right through the group. One or two dropped and the others

took off into the Zoo, trying to get away from the rain of death coming

their way. The last of them paused on the edge of the clearing, and

Salinger stopped shooting. The rest followed suit, and they stood

there staring at the beast. It hissed and sniffed the air before turning

and galloping after the others.

Ivory put her gun in the holster. “That looked like the king. Did

you see the moss growing on those enormous antlers and the way

the others listened to it? It’s like they’ve developed a hierarchy inside

their groups.”

Salinger let out a deep breath. “That happens in wildlife. Look at

lions. One rules them all.”

He walked to the scaled rhino, flipping through the list of animals

in his HUD. There didn’t seem to be anything matching its

description, so he started snapping pictures to send back to the

government. He would get paid for them, but more important, the

rest of the mercs would know something like that was out there.

Madigan stepped forward. “So? Is it new?”

Salinger nodded as he took a sample with a swab and put it in his

bag. “I don’t know about new to the Zoo, but new to humans, yes.”

Madigan shook her head. “But who killed it?”

Trey stepped up. “I was wondering that too. I had three beasts

stalking me and two went down, but everyone else was facing the

other direction.”

Ivory nodded. “Me too. Same thing.”

Thomas walked to the edge of the clearing and picked up a

morphed monkey by the tail, its head blown off. “Someone took

down this little sonofabitch as well.”

They all looked at each other, stunned. Ivory turned on her widearea

com. “This is HM Team One, is anyone out there?”

No one answered. She looked at Madigan and shook her head.

Madigan knelt next to the rhino and looked at the entry wound. “This

is a shotgun blast. None of us brought a shotgun.”

Thomas tossed the monkey into the jungle. “That looked like one

too, although I can’t really tell too well with it missing its entire head.”

Madigan was perplexed. She straddled the beast, then flipped

through her HUD and found the tracking device, pointing it at the

hole in the beast’s head. It was made to track people, but she

wanted to know where the shots had come from. She turned and

looked at the path leading backward from where they had come.

Salinger put his hand on her shoulder. “Maybe we should let it

be.”

Madigan shook her head. “No way. They could be dead or hurt,

and they saved our asses out here. I just want to know who they

were.”

She held her gun at the ready and began carefully walking the

path indicated on her HUD. She pushed through the low branches

and stepped over a log, stopping and tilting her head to the side. “I

got someone, but it looks like they are gone.”

She walked carefully toward the body and opened her com. “I’m

Madigan Kennedy, Heavy Metal. Are you alive?”

No reply. She bent over the body and looked at the deep

lacerations on his chest. He had to have bled out almost instantly.

Her eyes scanned to his hands, and she pulled on a piece of paper

he was clutching. It was a picture of him and a young red-haired girl

smiling in the town. The girl looked familiar, but she couldn’t place

her. She saw so many faces every day that they got lost in her

memory. She set the picture back in his hands undogged the latch of

his HUD.

Slowly she pulled the helmet off and unclipped the memory card

from inside, then flipped open the outer slot on her helmet and

pushed it in. The information from the guy’s HUD flashed up on her

screen and her eyes went wide. “I’ll be damned. It’s Jumping Jack

Flash.”

Salinger walked up behind her. “No way. He didn’t give a fuck

about anyone else.”

Madigan flipped to the video archive. “Well, let’s see what he saw

before he died. That will tell us the truth.”

She started the video and rewound about fifteen minutes. She

watched through Jack’s eyes as he walked along alone, scanning

the horizon. The sound of the jags in the distance caused him to

stop, then he crept forward. She saw her team and her crouching

and readying themselves for the fight. Jack turned and began

walking the other way, but paused and pulled the picture of the girl

from his pocket. “Goddamn motherfuckers,” he muttered. “Fine.

Fine.”

He put the picture back, then turned back and paused at the

edge of the clearing, watching the fight. He shot several of the jags,

then the rhino before turning quickly to find more jags creeping up

behind him. He shot the first beast as it sliced across his chest.

Below him, a plant wrapped its vines around his legs and pulled him

off his feet. As he slid, he raised his gun and screamed at the plant,

“Take this bullet up your ass, you green piece of shit. Try to eat my

woman, will you? I got to ask her out, but that’s just details.”

Salinger chuckled, elbowing her. “Ohhhh, love saved you.”

Madigan watched as the plant began wrapping him tightly against

the tree, its vines creeping into his wounds. “Love didn’t save him,

though.”

Jack’s camera looked at the vines as they turned black around

him. “Oh, you think you’re gonna to sneak up on me, you creepy

fucking bastard? Yeah, I got the pain for what’s about to ail ya right

here.”

Jack’s camera turned, and she saw the giant plant looming to the

side. Madigan watched as he pulled his gun up, shooting the plant

over and over until it withered. The vines slowly fell off of him, and he

looked at the blood pouring from his chest. Reaching into his pocket,

he pulled out the picture and ran his finger over it.

Madigan took a deep breath as he groaned. “Looks like I’m

coming to join you in hell, Melanie. Hope you saved me a fucking

seat.”

With that, his monitors beeped and his heart stopped. The

footage now just focused on the picture clutched in his hand.

T

C H A P T E R S E V E N

he entirety of the bar around JB was silent, and Holly’s mouth

was hanging open. “So, he saved Madigan and her team?

Because he liked her?”

JB smiled. “I would say it was two-fold—both because he liked

her, and because he hadn’t been able to save his daughter. Madigan

got his info and kept the video safe. She saw the personal messages

in it and knew he would have been pissed if people knew his heart

was more than a black abyss. In the end, she released the footage

to his team.”

Dan shook his head. “It took his whole life and death to realize

that Jack, as much of a dick as he was to the others, sacrificed

himself for Madigan Kennedy. You know, I’m glad they released the

footage. I’m glad people didn’t rejoice in his death. He was a legend

in his own right. I guess it is nice to know that even men like that can

have something good left inside after a tragedy.”

JB chuckled. “I suppose. Either way, to this day, you can find a

plaque in the Heavy Metal Hallway of Heroes with his face and

details on it. Madigan Kennedy wasn’t going to let him go down

without telling everyone that at least one group thought of him as a

hero. With them being the biggest group here, people stopped

talking shit about the Flash and even started referring to him as a

legend.”

Holly shook her head. “That’s nuts. I bet he was pissed as fuck in

heaven or hell or wherever he went when he saw that.”

JB laughed. “Then this is even worse.”

Holly furrowed her brow. “What?”

JB nodded at the photograph on the wall above them. It was Jack

Flash all right, leaning against a tree with a beautiful red-haired girl

smiling beside him. “That is the picture Madigan used. We had a

different one up there about a year after he got killed, but she

thought that one was much better. She wanted people to remember

who he really was. Frankly, I wouldn’t believe he had it in him to be a

decent human being if I hadn’t seen the video of what happened. I

heard the rumors, and even the team said he darted off from them

without a word kind of strangely.”

Holly was surprised. “Did he know Madigan was in danger?”

JB shrugged. “That’s what his guys thought. They were only a

half a mile from the Heavy Metal team, and Flash had a habit of

listening in on open channels. They think he heard her in trouble and

ran for her. From the video, it looks like he was just out there on his

own. No one knows what drew him to that specific place. I don’t think

we will ever know.”

Dan shivered. “That’s fucking creepy if you ask me.”

Holly jabbed Dan. “We didn’t ask you. And I think those kinds of

things are exactly what makes these stories so real. No one is as

cold-hearted as they seem. I learned that early in life from my father.

He was pretty cold to everyone. When he died though, he reminded

me that he loved me, and he always looked out for me. It took me a

while, but I realized that was true. Sometimes we are blinded by

anger or hate and don’t see the good.”

Dan unwrapped his cigar. “Well, I think this is as good a time as

any to have our cigars.”

Holly smiled. “I think you’re right.”

She reached into her bag and pulled two out, handing one to JB.

“You didn’t think I would forget you, did you?”

JB held the cigar to his nose and breathed deeply. Holly smiled

and narrowed her eyes when he quickly slipped it in his pocket as

Paula walked up to the bar. “Oh boy, breaking out the cigars.”

Holly smirked. “Yeah, we had to get them when we saw them

earlier.”

Paula looked at JB sternly. “You know you can’t. He said so.”

JB sighed and nodded. “Not even on my mind, Mom.”

Paula lowered her eyelids and pursed her lips. “Somebody’s

gotta keep you going. I need this job, and frankly, I don’t feel like

hanging another picture on that fucking wall.”

Holly looked at Paula, surprised. “You don’t like the wall?”

She shrugged, putting the drinks on her tray. “It just seems so

morbid to me. You don’t go on the wall until you retire or die. Only

five or six people have ever successfully retired, and none of them

made the wall. So, you can imagine, it’s a bit morbid every time I put

one up there. I get paying homage to them. I do, I get it. Just, when I

walk in the back and see one sitting there waiting, it gives me the

fucking creeps. That’s when I start to get superstitious.”

JB waved his hands. “Oh, get out of here. This is like the Hall of

Fame. You try to get in before you’re dead, but you know one day

people will have to stare at your ugly mug while they get wasted.”

Paula narrowed her eyes. “Well, I don’t want to stare at your ugly

mug unless it’s in the flesh, so remember what I said.”

Holly and Dan tried to ignore the conversation since it was

making JB uncomfortable. Dan clipped Holly’s cigar and handed it

back to her. She chewed on the end of it for a moment. Suddenly a

flame flared in front of her, and she looked at JB holding a match to

the end of her cigar. She puffed on it several times before getting a

full light, then leaned back and blew the smoke into the air.

Dan did the same and glanced at JB. He shrugged. “I’ll enjoy

mine when I’m home alone tonight. Then I won’t have nagging in my

ear.”

Holly smiled and changed the subject, knowing JB was

desperately looking for a reason to. “So I thought, or so I heard on

the American side, that Madigan and Salinger were a thing.”

JB leaned against the cabinets. “Well, I don’t really follow the

romantic lives of people out here. I know, shocking. But from what

I’ve been told, they are business partners who have a romantic

relationship. You remember the rule I told you about yesterday?”

Holly nodded. “Don’t go out with someone you are in love with.”

JB pointed at her. “Precisely. I can’t tell you they don’t love each

other, but Madigan is a smart woman. She knows that rule. She

watched Gabrielle go down over and over because of her broken

heart. She was in town when Gabrielle died. She knew she died

protecting the man she loved. I don’t think she would sacrifice

anything for the lifestyle she has created for herself.”

Holly shrugged. “I don’t know about that. Even the toughest of

women find it hard to hide love from themselves. I know this since I

tried in the past. But you are right about one thing: it rarely works

out. One or both people usually get hurt. I’ve come to think that love

was made for those who have nine-to-five jobs and comfortable little

lifestyles.”

Dan picked up his drink and clinked it with Holly’s. “I agree. Love

is messy enough when life is simple. Throw in a man-eating alien

jungle, and you are looking at some serious fucking problems.”

Holly laughed. “I know, right? Instead of arguing over the chores,

you’re fighting about who let the fucking scaled rhino into the

backyard. How he managed to get goop down your best suit.”

Dan chuckled. “I don’t even know how it would be managed. I

would never be able to let her go out on her own. Then you fall into

the love rule. Boom, you have one dead person and a widow.”

Holly shook her head, puffing her cigar. “Not to mention having a

family. What, are you going to go out in the field with belly armor?

Hold on, jag, I gotta pump.”

Dan wrinkled his nose. “Nope, that would be a parenting fail for

sure. I don’t think they have anyone out here suitable to be a

babysitter, nor do I think anyone would want the job.”

JB chuckled. “Remember it’s not just a husband or wife. Jack lost

his daughter to all of it. I remember Melanie. She was a good kid.

Tough as nails, and she was insatiably curious. You can’t be like that

when you go to the Zoo, not when you don’t have people out there to

protect you.”

Holly shook her head. “I just can’t believe he went down

protecting someone else.”

JB nodded. “I know, but I saw the video. Madison Kennedy sent

me a copy of it. I was in shock and awe. Watched the thing at least a

dozen times.”

Holly tapped her fingers on her leg and bit the inside of her

cheek. She had come there for information, so there was no way she

could leave without asking for the tape. At the same time, she wasn’t

sure he would hand something over like that to someone he had

known for two days. Fuck it. Do or die at this point.

She smiled at JB and put her cigar down. “Hey there, is there any

way you would send me that video? I would love to see inside the

Zoo. See this legend in action, and get a better idea what is in there.”

JB raised an eyebrow and leaned forward. “Are you press?”

Holly started. “No, not at all.”

JB narrowed his eyes. “Are you going to do anything with the

video besides watch it? I think it would be damaging to the research

if the general public watched something like that. It would start all

kinds of political problems. Animal rights, human rights, dangers.

People would panic because of the Zoo, more than they already do.”

Holly shook her head frantically. “No, of course, I wouldn’t do

that. I know what is at stake here. The truth is, a company is offering

me a contract to go into the Zoo with a team to find the perfect

ingredient for their new cocktail and line of liquor. They want it to be

from the Zoo, and they want me to record everything I see.”

JB stood up. “Like video it? It’s illegal.”

Holly shook her head. “No. I have an eidetic memory, so they

want me to write down the details for them and possibly bring back

something I think might work. I know how dangerous this gig is and I

feel like they aren’t being honest with me, so until I know the details

and the dangers of the Zoo, I am not even considering signing the

contract. I came out here on my own dime to hear the stories, meet

the people, and understand a little bit better what I would be getting

myself into.”

JB nodded. “Well, video or not, you will never know the whole

truth about the Zoo until you experience it, but I understand why you

would want the information. I wouldn’t suggest anyone go in there

without trying to fully prepare themselves for what they may

encounter.”

Holly wrinkled her nose. “So you’ll send it to me?”

JB thought about it for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah, I guess I

will. What’s the worst that happens? You start a global panic and put

everyone at risk?”

Holly shook her head and crossed her finger over her heart.

“Won’t happen. Promise.”

JB put up one finger. “Hold on and let me get my tablet. I’ll get

your information and send it to you.”

Holly clapped her hands. “This is fantastic!”

JB looked at the bouncer and pointed behind the bar. The big

man lumbered over and stood with his arms crossed heavily across

his chest. Holly smiled at him, but he didn’t return it. Dan leaned over

and whispered, “No use in trying to win him over. He is hard as steel

when it comes to this place. He used to be a big-time merc, but he

got injured. One of his legs is fake and he couldn’t handle the Zoo

anymore, so JB brought him in here to do security. He is a badass,

and personally, I think he would be fine in the Zoo.”

Holly shrugged. “Probably better off here. The Zoo doesn’t really

sound like the kind of place you want to be. Hopefully, he made

some money while he was in.”

Dan chuckled. “Yeah, he did, and from what I hear, he is a guru

when it comes to finances. Apparently, he is only working here

because he promised he would look after JB.”

Holly was impressed. “Wow, brains and brawn. Nice. But who did

he promise to look after JB?”

Dan shrugged. “Who knows? This whole place is riddled with

secrets.”

Holly raised her eyebrows as JB clinked from the back carrying

his iPad. “I’m starting to see that. But who isn’t?”

Dan frowned. “I’m not. What you see is pretty much what you get.

I’m an open book.”

Holly raised an eyebrow at him. “Right.”

Dan tilted his head. “Okay, I’m a slightly marked-up open book.”

JB walked up and they dropped the conversation. “Okay, Miss

Holly. What is your email address? And you should give me your

number, just in case it won’t send and I have to send it to your

phone.”

Holly thought that was strange, but she had no problem giving

him the information. “I’ll give you a private email so no one else can

access it. It’s Hollyhasa…actually, you know what? Hand it over and

I’ll type it in.”

JB looked at her funny and handed over the iPad.

“Thanks. I made this email when I was like sixteen. It’s a bit

embarrassing.”

She typed in the email and phone number and handed him back

the tablet. JB narrowed his eyes and looked at it for a moment

before laughing. The email line said, [email protected].

“I can see why.”

Holly rolled her eyes. “I was rebelling. Sue me.”

JB smirked as he sent the email to her, knowing full well that it

would work. “Okay, sent.”

Before putting away the tablet, he saved the information under

the tab Important. Holly didn’t know he did it, nor did she know there

was a secret he was holding onto.

H

C H A P T E R E I G H T

olly lifted her arms over her head and stretched. Then she took

the last sip of her drink, making a slurping sound with her

straw. JB looked over from where he was pouring drinks and

chuckled. “Do you need a refill, mademoiselle?”

Holly lifted up her glass and stuck out her lip. “Yes, please. It was

really good. Almost better than yesterday’s.”

JB took her glass and rinsed it out. “I put a splash of Sprite in this

one for a bit more sweetness. I can make you another drink, but I

think that the bar is getting way too busy for me to be able to tell

another story. I might piss off Paula if she catches me sitting back

here rambling while she’s sweating to death taking care of the rowdy

crowd.”

Both Dan and Holly groaned, and Holly shrugged. “That’s okay.

It’s early. I’ll have another drink, and maybe when I’m done things

will calm down. If not, I will just be a regular patron for the day.”

JB smiled. “That would be awesome. I’ll get this right up.”

Holly took another puff of her cigar and blew it toward the

overhang above her, trying not to send it into the guys’ faces. She

leaned her head back, watching the people coming through the

doors. Instead of just the regulars on their days off, she was seeing

an array of people. There were military, businessmen and women

obviously there from corporations, and most fascinating, some who

were obviously just coming back from the Zoo.

You could spot those people in a heartbeat. Their heads were

sweaty, they were covered in dirt and dust, and they looked

absolutely exhausted. Dan followed her gaze. “Oh yeah, that’s one

of the Heavy Metal groups. They just rolled back in from the Zoo.”

Holly nodded. “What about the couple who came in after them,

who look like mercs but freshly showered?”

Dan squinted his eyes. “Oh, those are the team leads. They

probably went back to the rooms and got cleaned up while the rest of

them were getting food somewhere. There are a ton of places to eat

out here if you know what you’re looking for. It’s not like back home

where there are advertising firms and everything. Out here

shopkeepers sell whatever they can, and food is almost always

included.”

Holly wrinkled her nose. “Really?”

Dan smiled. “Absolutely. Like the cigar place we were in. If you

go through to the back, they sell hoagies and bratwurst. Pretty good,

too. I’ve had them a few times.”

Holly narrowed her eyes. “What about cheeseburgers?”

Dan nodded. “The general store sells American food like burgers,

fries, pizza, and all that. The burgers come and go because

importing the beef is pretty expensive out here in the middle of the

desert.”

Holly scoffed. “They should put a McDonalds out here. They

would make bank.”

Charlie turned toward them. “I’ve been saying that for years on

the American side. Those motherfuckers would kill for a Big Mac.”

Dan shook his head. “Then you would slow down inside the Zoo.

I think in the long run it would do more harm than good. Someone

has a heart attack in the middle of the jungle?”

Holly reached over and handed Dan a menu. “Because this stuff

is so much better.”

Charlie peeked over the top. “I’m starving.”

Another guy looked around Charlie. “I am, too. What they got?”

Charlie pointed at the blond guy beside him. “Oh, sorry. This is

Ivan. I met him in the van on the way over.”

Ivan put his hand out. “Nice to meet you. I’ve been on

government teams on the American side for ten years. I decided to

branch out and check things out over here. I met Charlie, and we

came to the bar.”

Holly shook his hand. “Nice to meet you. I’m Holly, and this is

Dan. Dan’s been here forever, and I’ve been here two days.”

Ivan tilted his head. “This side, or altogether?”

Holly shrugged. “I spent a couple of weeks in rooms on the

American side and came here to get a better picture of what the

place is like. I’m thinking of taking a contract to go into the Zoo.”

Ivan shook his head. “But you are so petite and beautiful!”

Holly raised an eyebrow and watched as a hand came around

him and yanked him back into his seat. A pretty blond girl wearing

similar clothes to Holly’s but two sizes smaller looked at her. “Size

does not decide whether someone can survive in the Zoo. I’m pretty

sure I am capable of proving that theory wrong. Didn’t I save your

ass about a hundred times?”

Ivan rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes.”

The girl smiled and stuck her hand across. “My name is Sarah.”

Holly smiled at her, hearing a French accent. “I’m Holly.”

Sarah waved her hands at the guys. “Don’t listen to them; they

don’t know what they are saying. I worked for the French

government for ten years, but half of it I spent with these morons on

the American side. Of course, not Charlie. I just met Charlie on the

van. We are thinking of doing a team together. They need me.”

Charlie laughed. “Ivan doesn’t want to admit it, but I have no

problem doing so. We do need her. She’s pretty much a winner.”

Ivan looked at the group. “Hey, why don’t we get a table and

order some food? We can free up the bar for JB.”

Holly looked at Dan, who nodded, and she smiled. “Yeah, for

sure. You guys go ahead. I’m going to put my cigar out.”

Holly blunted out her cigar and looked at JB. “Would you mind

putting this back there while I eat?”

JB took the ashtray. “Making friends already. You are being

sucked in.”

Holly rolled her eyes. “I am not. It’s all for research.”

JB smirked. “Mmhmm. I’ll send Paula over to get your orders.”

Holly curtsied and walked to the table, sitting down next to Sarah.

She smiled and handed Holly a menu. It felt good to have at least

one other woman there who seemed to be pretty normal, considering

what she did for a living. Holly looked the menu over, realizing

quickly she was not going to be eating healthy that day. She missed

her New York lifestyle a little bit, but she was too caught up in what

was going on around her to even think of going back just for a salad.

Paula stood at table smacking her gum. “All right, I don’t got all

day. What are we having? And if any of you ask me for a salad, I will

kick my tennis shoe up your ass and make you clean it the fuck off.”

Holly looked quickly back at the menu. When it was her turn, she

shrugged. “I’ll have the nachos. Why not?”

Paula smiled. “Good girl. Put some meat on them bones. What

about you, blondie?”

Sarah pointed at the menu. “I’ll have the cheeseburger and

cheese fries, ranch, and I’ll also take a side of fried pickles. I’ll

probably end up getting dessert, too.”

Paula lifted an eyebrow. “You eat like a horse and look like a

mouse. Everyone already hates you, baby.”

Sarah giggled as Paula took the menus and walked away. She

turned to Holly and crossed her legs. “It’s nice to talk to a girl other

than Ivan every now and then.”

Holly smiled and glanced at Ivan, who was giving Sarah the

middle finger as he talked to the guys. “So, I assume from the accent

you are from France?”

Sarah nodded. “Mmhmm, born and raised. But I’ve spent fifteen

years traveling around the world, then here on the American base. I

am a large-animal veterinarian, or at least I used to be.”

Holly smiled. “Ohhhh, so is that how you got involved in all of

this?”

Sarah took a sip of her drink. “Yep. Sure was. I was in London in

my apartment when the government showed up and gave me ten

minutes to pack my bags and get on a plane. When I got to the

American side, I was so out of it I just signed their paperwork and

went to my little room in the barracks for some sleep. Turns out this

happened to a lot of people.”

Holly’s eyes went wide. “How long did they train you before you

were taken into the Zoo?”

Sarah started to laugh. “Train me? Uh, maybe five minutes before

I walked in. Seriously, the next day I was meeting them at the front of

the apartment and heading to the Staging Area of the Zoo. I didn’t

even know what I was supposed to be doing until I got out there.”

Holly’s mouth fell open. “Wow. What was your first time out there

like?”

Sarah shook her head. “It was terrifying and exhilarating all at the

same time.”

“Come on, Vet, here is your suit and your HUD,” Brian, the team lead

said, shoving the outfit into Sarah’s arms.

After being in a daze for hours, she grabbed him by the wrist.

“Wait! Hold on one goddamned minute! They flew me in here and

never told me what the fuck I’m doing here. I don’t even know why

I’m going into the Zoo.”

Brian blinked at her for a moment. “They did it again. I swear,

these American government fucktards can’t tell their asshole from a

snow cone. Okay. You are a wildlife vet. The government is sending

us in to protect you while you do research on the wild animals out

here. You are to take pictures with your HUD and take specimens

with the shit in the pack they sent over and bring it back. You will be

paid for what you find plus your normal salary…which I’m assuming

you know nothing about.”

Sarah shook her head. “I don’t even know what a HUD is.”

Brian rubbed his face. “I’ll explain on the way. While we are in

there, we are to find Pita plants and bring back the petals. One rule:

whatever you do, do not pull a plant from the ground. You will

basically paint a target on our backs and send the whole of the Zoo

racing down on us. You got that?”

Sarah nodded wildly, not really sure if she did. “How do I put this

on?”

Brian blinked and looked at Ivan. “Ivan, get over here and help

the vet. She hasn’t been briefed until now and has no idea how to

suit up.”

Ivan raised his eyebrows. “Got it.”

Sarah started to figure it out, pulling on her suit and letting Ivan

adjust the armor. She grumbled, reaching the pissed-off part of the

day, “This is such bullshit. I am going to have someone’s nuts on a

fucking platter.”

Ivan looked at her with raised eyebrows. “I am assuming America

is not your country?”

Sarah groaned. “No, it is not. I am French, dammit, yet here I am

with no choice in the matter.”

Ivan strapped her armor on and pushed her HUD down on her

head, latching it. “Welcome to our world. Try not to die in here. Your

HUD should start displaying in a second, then you can just say what

you want to do, and it should work. For example, ‘take picture.’ The

camera will come up, and you just say, ‘snap.’ All the instructions are

in there. Try to go through it as we march. Stay in the middle of the

pack and don’t touch shit. Things can be misleading in here.”

Sarah swallowed hard and hurried after him. “Got it. Thanks.”

Following the guys into the Zoo was like a dream to her. She had

been in jungles several times, but this was unlike anything she had

ever seen. She wasn’t a biologist by any means, but she couldn’t

remember ever seeing plants that colorful in her life. It looked like

something made up for a movie, not real life. But there she was, in

wonder and awe…and absolutely fucking terrified.

There was a buzz in her ear, then Brian’s voice came through.

“This is a private channel. I wanted to tell you your assignment is

important. We have been instructed to attempt to tranquilize one of

these animals, which I think is a terrible idea. If we are unable to do

that, we will bring it back dead for study. During this process, you

need to stay out of the way and close to one of us for protection. Our

job is to bring you back in one piece. Got it?”

Sarah nodded. “Got it.”

They continued through the jungle, with Sarah in the middle of

the team. She looked around at the strange and wondrous plants

that seemed to move on their own. There was even a tall, thin

flowering plant that she could swear was watching her walk. She

wasn’t sure if it was real or her overactive imagination, but she

quickly remembered what Ivan had said about not touching anything.

If she was right, she was walking into hell, a place that she had

never thought could exist. There were alien creatures lurking around

every corner—and she was their afternoon snack.

Sarah paused as Paula showed up and put down the food. Holly was

staring at Sarah in awe. “So, did you have to fight any creatures on

your first day?”

Sarah shook her head, shoving a fry into her mouth. “Actually, no.

Ivan said it was one of the easiest first days anyone could have.”

Ivan chuckled. “Yeah, but she made up for it on the second day.”

Sarah sighed. “That’s for damn sure. I went from first time in the

Zoo to first time almost getting murdered by alien creatures the next

day. All I could do was hope that was my one time and I got it out of

my system. Of course, that was naïve of me, considering the entire

thing wants you dead as soon as you walk in.”

Holly furrowed her brow. “The whole thing? Are you saying the

Zoo thinks? Is that even possible?”

Sarah took a deep breath. “If you had asked me that my first day,

I would have told you that you were nuts. Ask me now? Well, there is

something about that place that connects every entity in it. They

don’t want us there. We are an infection, and on that second day, the

Zoo tried to wipe me out.”

S

C H A P T E R N I N E

arah woke the next morning in her tent with her sleeping bag

tangled around her. There was a bracelet on her wrist, and it

was vibrating. She looked at it, narrowing her eyes and reading the

message that ran across it.

Message waiting.

She glanced at her HUD and pulled it on. On the screen was a

message from Brian. “Wakey, wakey, newbie. We got kitties to catch

today. Get dressed and pack up your tent. We will have breakfast

ready in fifteen, then we head out. Hope you like oatmeal.”

Sarah wasn’t sure she would be able to get food down, much

less act like everything was okay. She pulled the HUD off and began

putting her things back in her bag. Once that was done, she pulled

on her suit and fixed her armor, being a quick study. Stepping out of

the tent, she was caught off-guard once again by the absolutely

amazing colors all around her. She tilted her head back and looked

at the canopy, finding birds with abnormal beaks soaring across the

sky.

“Hey,” Ivan said, startling her. “Those are nicknamed ‘Dido

Falcons.’ I guess the guy who found them was named Dido. They

have the wings and claws of a falcon and the beak of a black parrot.

They can crush your skull in one snap, but don’t worry, they usually

only eat grub and plants.”

Sarah’s mouth opened, but he was off before she could say

anything. Brian walked up and took a deep breath. “You about ready

for all of this? We are heading deeper into the Zoo. We will be

looking for specimens as well as Pitas. If you see anything, tell us

right away. If there is a carnivorous plant sample you want, let us

know, and we will stop for as long as possible.”

Sarah pulled her brow together. “Did you just say carnivorous

plant? Like a Venus Fly Trap?”

Brian chuckled. “No, more like, ‘Feed me, Seymour!’”

Sarah sighed. “Okay, I’ll look it up in my helmet as we walk.”

Brian slapped her on the back. “That is probably a really excellent

idea. You don’t want to accidentally back into one of those. They eat

people.”

Sarah put her pack on. “Right.”

Brian handed her a cup of oatmeal, and she glanced at it. “I’m not

hungry.”

Brian shook his head. “You need to eat anyway. There have been

times where I had to run non-stop for hours. You need all the

strength you can get in here. That is protein-based oatmeal. Might

not be the best-tasting thing ever, but it will keep you going through

the thick of it.”

Sarah nodded and took off her helmet, squatting and checking all

around her before eating the oatmeal. It was thicker than normal and

had a chalky aftertaste, but it wasn’t the worst thing she had ever

eaten. When she was done, she cleaned out the cup and hung it

from her bag, then lined up with the team. They moved out without

much discussion, and she focused on the index of creatures in her

HUD. She learned as much as she could, reading up on each one as

she walked through the jungle, keeping her mind off the fact that she

was in those creatures’ stomping grounds.

Looking back, Sarah knew she should have been paying more

attention than she was, but she was entranced by the stored pictures

and genetic information on some of the animals in the Zoo. They

were unlike anything she had ever seen. Suddenly a hand fell on her

shoulder and yanked her back.

Brian pulled her down on one knee. “There is a jag up ahead. We

are going to try to tranq it, or at least kill it to bring back. It’s one of

the few species known to not regenerate.”

Sarah frowned. “Regenerate?”

Brian smirked. “Yeah, these babies can’t come back to life like so

many of the others can. You kill a locust, and it will just heal and

become a zombie locust. Of course, it doesn’t eat brains, but it looks

rough.”

Sarah shook her head. “Right. I’ll stay here and keep an eye out.”

Brian patted her shoulder. “Good choice.”

The rest of the team slowly moved forward, closing in on the jag.

Sarah pulled the beast, J-5269, up in her helmet and read about it.

“Jaguar-esque animal with a rack of sharpened antlers and at least

three rows of teeth. Demonstrates higher intelligence and group

mentality.”

Sarah sighed. These scientists were looking at this all wrong.

These animals were not from Earth. They were alien. There were

animals morphing out there from nowhere near the Sahara. The

alien goop was letting loose beasts that were meant to look familiar

to calm the humans a bit, but they weren’t in any way a species from

this planet.

The low roaring pulled Sarah’s attention back up to the group as

they lined up in front of the beast. Sarah shook away the picture in

her HUD to find one right there, alive and real. Her eyes went wide

as she watched it protecting its ground. One of the guys on the team

stepped forward and shot a dart, striking it in the neck. The jag

stopped, pawing at the dart and knocking it out. Where the dart had

gone in, the sedative came out of its body and ran down its fur.

Sarah couldn’t believe her eyes; the beast was able to defend itself

against the drug.

Almost immediately, the guys raised their guns. The jag started to

pounce and Sarah grabbed her chest plate, watching in horror as

they all fired on it. The cat stumbled back and fell to the ground,

taking its last breath. Sarah shook her head, feeling for the animal.

She pulled her foot to take a step, but it was caught on something.

Slowly she looked down, feeling something wrapping tighter around

her ankle. She froze, watching a vine squeeze her leg.

She opened a channel. “Uh, guys?”

Brian lowered his gun and looked back as the vine pulled hard,

swiping her off her feet. She flipped onto her back and rose off the

ground. Dangling in the air, she looked at the guys in panic. “A little

help, please!”

Brian put out his hands and began to step toward her slowly.

“Don’t panic. Try not to struggle.”

The plant gripped her tighter, and she began to turn slowly.

“That’s easier said than done.”

Sarah tried to hang there not moving, but as she turned in a

circle, she saw it. At first, she thought she was imagining it, but

quickly she realized she wasn’t. There was a gorgeous lavender

plant behind her, its petals unfurled and rows of teeth in the center.

“Holy fucking hell.”

Her hands smoothed up her suit, landing on her utility knife. She

looked at Ivan, who had gotten down on one knee and was holding

his sniper rifle up. He had one eye closed and was aiming at the

vine. After a few moments, he looked at Brian and shook his head.

Brian sighed and turned back to Sarah. “We can’t take a shot

without possibly dropping you into the plant. You need to use your

strength to climb up, cut the vine, and swing back toward us. When

you do, let go. We will catch you.”

Sarah groaned. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

She was half-panicked and half-disbelieving. She shut her eyes

for a moment, and when she opened them, she was over the plant.

She grabbed her knife and growled as she used her stomach

muscles to lift herself up. She grabbed the vine and began to saw as

fast as she could, feeling herself being lowered. The smell of the

plant was almost enchanting; she assumed it was used to lure its

prey. With a snap, the vine broke, and Sarah held on to the hanging

part with one hand. Her legs swung down, but she pulled her knees

up, only just grazing the sharp and jagged teeth below. She twisted

her body to the right and pushed off from the closest tree, swinging

wide. Instead of letting go, she swung back, her knife gripped tightly

in her hand. As the vine shot her around, she let go, soaring straight

for the plant. She swiped her arm wide and cut the plant at its base,

knocking the bud to the ground and rolling through the leaves.

Her body slammed into a tree and she groaned, feeling a rib

snap. She grabbed her side and took a shallow breath. Ivan ran over

and looked at her. “Holy hell, what the fuck was that? That was like

some Tarzan and Jane kind of shit mixed with motherfucking

Rambo.”

Sarah laid her head down on the ground. “Can we go home

now?”

Before she knew it, she had passed out.

Holly shoved a nacho in her mouth and chewed wildly. “Are you

fucking kidding me? You took down the plant? Did it suck to get out

of the jungle with broken ribs?”

Ivan chuckled. “It sucked for the rest of us. We didn’t bring any

pain meds in, so every time she woke, she ended up passing out

again ten minutes later from the pain.”

Sarah shrugged. “It was actually four broken ribs, a bruised

spine, and a sprained knee. The tree took me down.”

Holly shook her head. “What about the jag?”

Sarah’s eyes lit up. “They brought it back with them, and I

actually got to study it. Turns out there were human characteristics to

the animal, but it was definitely eighty percent alien. Even the DNA

strands were twisted in a different way. It was insane. There were

things in its body I had never seen before. After that, I was hooked. It

wasn’t until I got tired of giving reports on how to kill the animals that

I finally decided to leave, and now I’m a merc.”

Holly was in disbelief. “That’s nuts, but awesome at the same

time.”

Sarah smiled. “Yeah. I mean, I really do love what we do. The

adrenaline, the action…the payday. But there are times that I miss

the norms.”

Holly furrowed her brow. “The norms? What do you mean by ‘the

norms?’”

Sarah waved her beer bottle in a circle, looking around the room.

“You know, the rest of the world. The people going to normal jobs

every day. The holiday parties. The barbecues. The terrible

weddings. Being single, and that being your biggest problem.

Finding a good place where you can afford rent. The things that keep

normal people up at night. The normal shit we take for granted

almost every day until you no longer have to worry about it anymore.

I mean, fuck, what I wouldn’t give to have to shovel fucking snow so I

can walk down and get my mail!”

Ivan grabbed a fry from her plate. “You wouldn’t give this up for

that.”

Sarah pointed at Ivan, sliding the plate to him. “You’re right. I

wouldn’t give it all up, but that doesn’t mean I don’t miss being part

of the rest of the world.”

Holly shook her head, dipping a chip in the cheap nacho cheese.

“So you aren’t part of the world?”

Dan chuckled and leaned back, sipping his beer. “None of us are.

You stay here too long, and the Zoo will suck you the fuck in. Either

the feeling of being alive, the feeling you are missing out—”

Sarah cut in, “Or the feeling the rest of the world are all living a

boring life while you are here learning what being human is all about.

Trust me, you never think about your humanity until you are facing

something whose only similarity is fear. Even then, you question

whether they really feel like you do.”

Dan snickered. “Yeah, kind of like religion.”

Sarah gritted her teeth. “Not this conversation again. This is not

like religion. Religion is bigger than all of this.”

Dan leaned forward, dumbfounded. “How can you believe in a

higher power when it drops shit like this on us? Either God is perfect,

or he made mistakes; he can’t be both. And if he made a mistake

with the man-eating jaguar-deer thing, he is not actually a god. I

don’t get it.”

Sarah put her hands up in the air. “Of course you don’t get it. You

see things in black and white.”

Dan shook his head. “No, I see them for what they are, not some

fairytale that I want them to be.”

Sarah shrugged and looked at Dan. “I guess you’re right. Either

you get religion or you leave the church.”

Dan looked at Holly. “And by that, we mean by plane or by crate.

No expensive coffins out here.”

Holly looked sadly at Sarah. “So you’ve seen a lot of people go

out that way?”

Sarah pushed at her meal. “That’s the way most of us leave. Or

you are here temporarily. The vibe of the Zoo will push you out. Most

can’t handle the stress of being part of the system.”

Holly tilted her head to the side. “The system?”

Dan took a long drink from his beer, his mood darkening a bit.

“Yeah, everyone changes here. Don’t matter what you do, anyone

can die at any moment—including me, and I don’t travel into the Zoo

anymore. At least, not right now I don’t. That’s the thing, I never

know from one day to the next what will come up.”

Sarah looked at Dan, and Holly noticed that understanding

passed between them. “You don’t go to the Zoo right now. That’s

what’s important.”

Dan lifted his beer to her. “Social norms aren’t…normal. You

come here to get rich or die trying. That right there changes people.

The soft are hardened or are dinner for the creatures in the Zoo.

Usually, this occurs by walking in there and dying really fast. The

Zoo has its own delivery service. You can tell who is not meant for

the deep green of the leaves and the monsters that live inside.

People run hard and run fast to get the fuck out. Some of them make

it, and some don’t. Most don’t.”

Sarah took a deep breath and faked a smile. “Not everyone dies,

though. Most who leave after a time here end up still affiliated with

the Zoo. It’s like when people are in the military twenty years…it’s all

they know. You can’t unlearn out there with the norms what you

know is real here. It’s impossible. You can’t wake up normal after

living on the knife’s edge. There is too much freedom out there.

Living wild and being structured at the same time is what keeps us

alive.”

“And,” Dan shrugged, “for those who need it to feel alive every

day, they realize nobody lives forever.”

Dan’s eyes floated upward, lost in thoughts and visions that no

one else could see. “Too many of us are biding our time until we

have to go in again ourselves. The temptation is always there.”

He looked at Holly and paused for a moment before finishing,

“Even for me.”

Sarah reached across the table with her beer and clinked it

against Dan’s, exchanging something between the two of them that

Holly couldn’t understand. She realized then that she could meet all

the people she wanted, and even get close to them. In the end, she

would never be one of them—not unless she went into the Zoo

herself, something she had serious reservations about. The draw

wasn’t there for her, but then again, she had never even been close

to the place except for driving past it.

Sarah and Dan pulled their beers away and looked at the others,

singing in harmony, “Nobody Lives Forever.”

H

C H A P T E R T E N

olly sat there watching everyone dig silently back into their

food. They were all content with what had just happened, but

Holly hadn’t been part of it. She took a deep breath and wiped her

mouth. “It has truly been awesome getting to know you guys. I think

I’ve had enough tales of torture for the day, though. I’ll try to come

here tomorrow for more stories from JB. If you aren’t out at the Zoo,

swing by and I’ll buy you all your first round.”

Sarah smiled and leaned forward, pulling Holly into a surprise

hug. “If you don’t have to do it, then keep your norms. It’s times like

these I feel I might have made a decision I can never backtrack on.”

Holly pulled back and looked Sarah in the eyes, deciding a nod

was probably the best answer to what she was saying. She didn’t

know what else to do. She had no words of wisdom or anything that

would be of help to the other woman.

She turned and fist-bumped Dan, nodding toward the bar. “Don’t

forget your cigar is up there. I’ll be here tomorrow if you’re

interested.”

Dan nodded and sipped his beer. “It’s been fun so far, Miss Holly.

Stay safe tonight, and don’t go wandering around.”

Holly smirked, nodding at the others as she stood up and pushed

in her chair. She pulled a hundred from her wallet and walked to

Paula. “Will this cover the food for the table?”

Paula laughed. “Girl, that would cover the food for the whole bar.

It was crappy nachos and frozen burgers.”

Holly smiled. “Good. Keep the change.”

Paula looked at her for a second, then shoved the hundred

between her cleavage. “I ain’t going to argue with the pretty girl from

the city.”

Holly watched as Paula walked toward the crowd, shouting at the

guys, “Yeah, yeah, keep your tiny peckers in your pants. I got shit to

handle around here. I don’t have time for your bull. David, what did I

say about calling out my name?”

The guy snickered. “You were going to show me what it felt like to

sit and spin on a chair.”

Paula looked at Holly and winked before turning back to the

group. Holly laughed and made her way back to her seat at the bar.

JB was down the counter from her talking to a couple of guys. “Yeah,

I heard he never came back. It’s a damn shame. Heavy Metal rarely

loses guys, and he was a good one for sure.”

The others agreed with him, nodding. JB looked at Holly and

excused himself. He meandered over to her, handing over the

ashtray with her cigar. “You have a good time listening to the new

generation of stories?”

Holly nodded. “Even more so, I felt bad for them. They seem

almost lost when they aren’t in the Zoo.”

JB picked up her cigar and handed it over, pulling out a book of

matches. “Yeah, that is something that really affects us, but we go

on, and we get through it. That is what we are made to do.”

Holly put the cigar between her lips and leaned forward, puffing

as he held the match in front of it. She watched him as he closed his

eyes and took in the sweet smell of the cigar. She could tell he really

enjoyed it, but for some reason, she knew he would never smoke the

one he had. There was something almost sad about what was

happening there at the bar, and although Holly was getting the

information she’d come to get, she needed to get out of there for a

bit.

She had been all over the world and met all kinds of people, but

these people drew her in. In a way they were right; they weren’t

normal anymore. The Zoo had changed them, morphed them like the

animals that crept in the shadows deep inside. Holly wondered

whether it would look human or like the jag they had brought back for

study in the lab if you pulled their DNA. The difference was they

were human, and they were part of everything at that point.

Holly pulled a twenty-dollar bill from her wallet and put it down on

the bar, looking at JB and smiling. “I don’t have time for another story

today. I think I got my fill from everyone. Maybe another drink with a

story…say, tomorrow midafternoon?”

JB eyed the twenty and looked at Holly. “You paying ahead again,

or is this one for the road?”

Holly laughed and shook her head. “I definitely don’t need one for

the road. Besides, I bought some wine last night on my way back,

and I might get comfy in my room and break open a bottle. That’s for

tomorrow if you’ll take an advance. I’ve got a hell of a memory, and

your stories are very real. I can’t get this information out of a book

about the Zoo. If nothing else, I want to hear your stories, so they

never die.”

JB stared at her for a moment. “I suppose you’re right. Either we

will stop the spread of the Zoo, or it will take over the entire planet.

Either way, one day all this will end and either become memories

from the past or our regular lives.”

Holly looked around. “In a way, it’s an evolution of man in the

same way it is for this alien goop that is morphing and changing

everything it touches.”

JB nodded. “I suppose you’re right. But yes, I will take your

twenty bucks. You are renting the stool, and the first drink will be

free. You don’t show up, I’ll keep the fee.”

Holly nodded with a laugh. “Pretty damned mercenary for a bar

owner.”

JB leaned forward and whispered, “You have no idea, young lady.

You find mercenaries in the strangest of places. Gotta keep a tight

ship around here, or all these wackos will try to take over.”

A couple of guys who had walked up next to them put up their

hands playfully. “Hey, what wackos? We are sane as hell.”

JB rolled his eyes. “Yeah, if I compare you to a mental patient.

Even then, I’m not sure either of you would pass that. Miss Holly

here might be the only one.”

Holly snickered and took a deep breath, shoving her cash in her

back pocket. “You gentleman keep JB company. I am going to go

relax.”

The guys nodded and waved at her as she turned to leave. She

smiled at JB, who let one side of his lips curl up. Holly put her hand

on the door. “See you guys around here for the next story!”

JB chuckled and placed the twenty-dollar bill in a special box. As

he opened it, pictures and mementos were visible in the bottom. He

closed the lid and latched it, looking around at the bar. One of the

guys lifted his empty glass. “How about another over here, JB?”

JB nodded and grabbed the glass, going to the wall of liquor. He

pulled down the different ingredients and made the guy’s drink.

When he was done, he turned to the guys who had come in and put

his hands on the bar. “Jack, you old bastard! Haven’t seen you in

here in ages. What do you want that has Vermouth in it?”

Jack groaned and threw his head back. “You still got a hard-on

for making me try that wine shit, don’t you? You are a persistent

sonofabitch, JB.”

JB looked at the front door and smiled. “Always, Jack. I always

get what I want.”

When the door to the bar shut behind her, the sounds and smells

went with it. Holly took a step forward and looked back at the FUBAR

sign hanging lopsided over the door. She thought about JB and the

day she’d had, then smiled slightly and shook her head. Taking a

deep breath, she dropped her cigar on the ground and stomped it

out before heading back to the hotel.

In the lobby were several guys checking in, fresh from the planes

and vans. Holly stopped at the coffee maker and poured herself a

cup. Behind her, she heard two young ex-military talking to each

other. One of the guys told the other, “This shit is better than our last

barracks, at least.”

The other guy scoffed. “Yeah, except we have to pay for it until

either we leave or the fucking thick swallows us whole.”

The first guy sounded slightly worried. “You think we will make it

out of here alive?”

Holly turned around.

His buddy glanced at Holly and put his arm around the guy.

“Yeah, sure. You got this, buddy. You are hard as steel.”

Holly watched them walk away and headed up the stairs to her

room. Once inside, she put down her coffee and untied her boots,

letting the sand filter off onto the tiled area of the floor. She picked up

her coffee and walked to the window, looking at a fresh group of

mercenaries making their way through the streets. She thought

about Jack Flash, and what the others had said about the Zoo

changing people. Holly couldn’t help but wonder who of the fresh

crop of guys and gals would harden, who would get out, and who

would be swallowed whole by the Zoo. It was almost too morbid for

her to think about.

She sipped her coffee for another minute, starting at the sound of

her phone beeping. She opened the text messages from Rod and

laughed. There was a picture of him and Elaine at her favorite sushi

restaurant downtown. They were rubbing it in her face that they were

dressed to the nines and eating expensive cuisine while she was out

there flapping around in the dusty breeze, but this time it didn’t faze

her. She was learning about something she never thought she would

have in her life. It was an experience she wouldn’t regret even if she

didn’t choose to become one of them.

Holly shut her phone and walked to the desk, opening her laptop.

Suddenly she realized that she should have a video waiting in her

email. More excited than she should be about a video of someone’s

death, she quickly logged in. There it was, just as JB promised—the

video of Jumping Jack Flash. She grabbed her earbuds and plugged

them into the side before pressing Play.

In that little room in the middle of the desert, her eyes widened as

the crazy, wild end of the story of Jumping Jack Flash came to life.

A U T H O R N O T E S - M I C H A E L ( T O D D ) A N D E R L E

D E C E M B E R 1 8 , 2 0 1 8

THANK YOU for not only reading this story but these Author Notes

as well.

(I think I’ve been good with always opening with “thank you.” If

not, I need to edit the other Author Notes!)

RANDOM (sometimes) THOUGHTS?

Explosions…

On Covers.

I just looked at the fourth Kurtherian Endgame book cover from

artist Andrew Dobell (actually, twenty-fifth in the series, but the series

was broken up) and I’m loving the Bethany Anne amalgamation of a

suit of armor (rendered in Daz3D) and the model (Helen Diaz—she’s

awesome.) At the bottom of the cover are flames and explosions

behind her.

Now, I asked for explosions, so that isn’t strange. However, I

started wondering if I should ask for more explosions, or fewer

explosions.

Maybe just take the one main explosion and narrow it down?

Damn, who knew explosions were such a problem?

Then, I begin wondering as I talk to you about this if explosions

are like putting a sexy person on the cover?

At least for Space Opera.

If that is true (explosions are sexy), then our last cover for

“Through the Fire and Flame” was the sexiest Space Opera cover

ever (it wasn’t—I can think of another by Heinlein that was much

better—but it had no explosions.)

The last cover was nothing but one big explosion with Bethany

Anne walking through it in her armor.

So, explosions on covers. Sexy or not? Tell me in the reviews or

over on Facebook.

HOW TO MARKET FOR BOOKS YOU LOVE

We are able to support our efforts with you reading our books,

and we appreciate you doing this!

If you enjoyed this or ANY book by any author, especially Indiepublished,

we always appreciate if you make the time to review a

book, since it lets other readers who might be on the fence to take a

chance on it as well.

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS

One of the interesting (at least to me) aspects of my life is my

ability to work from anywhere and at any time. In the future, I hope to

re-read my own Author Notes and remember my life as a diary entry.

Dec 18,

So, I’m back in the Trophy Club Country Club restaurant using

their internet for work. We are selling our Texas house (I hope so,

anyway. I’d like it to go to another family that could use it, preferably

at a large enough sales price to cover all the loans against it.)

(Editor’s Note: What are the lawn gnomes going to do? They will be

bored without you tossing snippets to them!)

Our house has no cable internet. I’ve used up TWO phones’

worth of tethered Internet, and the super-special puck for Internet

around the world has damn near dial-up speed.

I feel like it’s 1993 again.

So, I’m up here, hanging out with a LOT of guys sitting at tables

with friends or at the bar who have been golfing for the last four

hours. One guy is working on his laptop, and I hear a mom and

(maybe two?) young girls at the table on the other side of the seats

that block my eyesight.

OH! I also see an older couple (gray-haired) a few tables away

from me.

It’s a happening place, I assure you.

I think of myself as a younger person, but I have a lot of gray

sliding in between all of my brown hairs (as if the enemy were

infiltrating the castle walls and the defenders don’t know it.)

Further, I take naps in the afternoon now.

Future Mike, when you read this particular note, you might want

to remember to NOT go down the “I’m young” and then talk about

how you look or nap. It will depress you.

I’m young on the inside. I still make shit up for a living, enjoy

laughing, and haven’t told anyone to get off my lawn (that I can

remember.)

Once I sell this house (which has a lawn), I won’t have to worry in

Las Vegas. Because It’s a condo.

I have no lawn.

FAN PRICING

If you would like to find out what LMBPN is doing and the books

we will be publishing, just sign up at http://lmbpn.com/email/. When

you sign up, we notify you of books coming out for the week, any

new posts of interest in the books and pop culture arena, and the fan

pricing on Saturday.

Ad Aeternitatem,

Michael Anderle


на главную | моя полка | | Nobody Lives Forever |     цвет текста   цвет фона   размер шрифта   сохранить книгу

Текст книги загружен, загружаются изображения



Оцените эту книгу