The Virus by Lee, Damien (summer books txt) 📕

A loud bang caused the pair to step back.

“See, now look what you did!”

Before long, the large doors swung open.

“Frankie!” Gus stepped towards them with open arms.

“How you doing, Gus?”

“Not as good as you,” he replied, eyeing the woman beside Frank. “You didn’t wait long, did you?”

“Fuck you,” Lisa said.

“Oh, got a mouth on her as well. You’ve got yourself a right little treasure there, Frankie, m’boy.”

“Looks like I’m not the only one making new friends,” Frank retorted, nodding towards the two men behind Gus.

“Well, you already know our little Polish friend.” He gestured towards the man to his left.

“What happened to you?” Frank frowned, eyeing Zielinski’s distorted nose.

“Pissed off an army cadet,” Gus replied. “Now this evil-looking bastard is Lurch.”

He pointed towards the large man on his right. Frank eyed the giant with wonder. Eyeliner and black lipstick adorned his face whilst countless piercings shimmered in the sunlight. His long, black hair fell loosely over his leather jacket. A chain hung from his jeans, which also sported a sheathed combat knife. He eyed them with a menacing stare, which only softened when he spotted the teenager behind them.

“Fuck me, Frankie. You didn’t tell me you brought Morticia to this little gathering. What is this, Addams Family Reunion?”

They turned as Tina approached.

“This is Tina,” Frank said. “Tina, this is Gus, Zielinski, and Lurch”

“Hi.” Her eyes locked with Razor’s large, gothic henchman.

“Hi,” the man smiled.

“Okay that’s enough from you, Tainted Love,” Gus snapped, rapping the man on the shoulder. “Go and see if our army cadet is still yapping.”

“He’s fine.”

Gus turned to face him. “Then go keep a lookout.”

Lurch’s menacing glare returned as he slunk back into the building.

“Where the hell do you find these guys?” Frank asked. “He’s almost as big as Tony.”

“We found Lurch doing some Kung Fu on a pensioner.”

“You sure know how to pick them.”

“So do you.” Gus gasped as Simon and Elaine appeared. “What the fuck are you doing? Smuggling immigrants?”

Frank turned as the pair approached.

“What the hell are we doing here?” Simon asked, looking between Gus and Frank.

“We’re here to put your piloting skills to the test.” Frank turned back to Gus. “Please tell me you’ve got planes in there.”

“The best fighter jets money can buy. The only problem is we can’t fly them.”

“This guy can.”

“What?” Gus and Simon snapped in unison.

“I can’t fly a fighter jet!” the chubby man added.

“Why not?”

“I’ve never even been in one.”

“It can’t be that much different. Keep your finger off the missile button and you’ll be fine.”

Before they could speak further, a series of thunderous gunshots sounded overhead. Frank looked up and saw Razor’s henchman firing from a top window. He was aiming at the destroyed barrier where countless zombies sprinted towards them.

“I think we better take this reunion inside,” Gus offered. His gaze was fixed on the small crowd storming the base.

The group ran indoors, congregating in the hall. Gus and Zielinski blocked the entrance with large metal drums. Frank produced his handgun as the gunfire continued overhead.

“Where the hell did you get a shooter?” Gus demanded as he produced his own gun. Not waiting for a response, he turned to his companion. “Zielinski, guard this door with your life. If you let those fuckers in, I’ll chop your knackers off!”

With that, he jogged away with Frank close behind. He followed Gus up a flight of stairs as he rushed into a nearby room.

“I’m sure I don’t need to remind you to shoot them in the head.”

They crouched beside a window. The glass was already shattered, with wooden boards hammered over the frame. Gus removed a loose board and aimed through the gap. Frank followed his example and pointed his handgun at the crowd. The pair fired in succession. The zombies were quick, but the bullets proved to be quicker. Before they had wasted half of their rounds, bodies littered the grass.

“So where did you get the gun?” Gus repeated as his pistol clicked empty. He retrieved a second magazine, reloaded the weapon and took aim once more.

“We raided a gun shop.”

Frank followed the progress of a young female as she sprinted towards the building. As soon as the sights were level with her head, he pulled the trigger. He lowered the gun, watching as the machine gun crippled the remaining zombies.

“Did you get much?” Gus asked.

Frank snarled as a bullet from the machine gun clipped the top of his lorry. “We won’t have anything if boy-wonder hits that trailer again!”

Gus looked at the vehicle, his eyes widening. “That’s full of guns?”

“And ammo.”

“Fuck me,” Gus groaned. He staggered to his feet, yelling at the floor above. “Watch out for the lorry, you dickhead!”

The machine gun continued to rattle.

Frank jumped to his feet as a second bullet ricocheted dangerously close to the fuel tank.

“Oy!” Gus shouted.

He raised the handgun aloft and fired two rounds into the ceiling. The gunfire ceased as a cloud of plaster rained down on the pair. Frank leapt back as the fragments crashed around them.

“Oh, fucking hell,” Razor spluttered, brushing the white dust out of his hair.

“Great job, Gus.”

“He stopped didn’t he?”

“Of course he did, you probably shot him!”

Razor’s face dropped. “Lurch?”

A tense moment of silence passed before a voice answered.

“What?”

Gus breathed a sigh of relief. “Get your arse down here.”

He strode out of the room, reloading his handgun with a new magazine as he went. Frank followed as they retraced their steps back down to the waiting group. His eyes roamed over the addition to their party.

“What the fuck is he doing here?” Gus demanded as he set eyes on the soldier.

“I untied him,” Lisa replied.

“Why?”