Once Bitten, Twice Dead - By Bianca D'Arc Page 0,116

his body went into another round of convulsions, these much worse than the first. Judging by the way Sam had gotten better with each episode, Sellars’s body was definitely rejecting the serum.

“More?” Xavier pushed him. They had one chance to get information out of Sellars. If he was going to talk, it had to be now.

“More of us,” he eeked out, panting when he finally stopped seizing. “More working on this than you realize. They may have killed me but others will fill the void. Not as well, of course, but they’ll try. And they’ll succeed. And then you’ll all die.”

“That’s crazy talk, pal.” Xavier’s tone was designed to annoy Sellars into saying more. He was clearly unstable and babbling, but they were learning a lot here. None of it was good, but they needed to know whatever Sellars would give up before he died. “I bet Zhao sent the zombie to get rid of you because you’re nuts.”

“Bin Zhao didn’t send it. He doesn’t have that kind of access. He’s strictly the money man. I think it was Rodriguez. He’s always been jealous of my genius.” Sellars was frothing at the mouth now, his body twitching uncontrollably as he entered another round of seizures. He likely wouldn’t survive this time.

“Names,” Xavier demanded. “Give me names and I’ll make sure you get your revenge from beyond the grave. I’ll kill them all for you.”

“Jenn…ings. Bal…es…tar…do. Sug…den…Ger…ar…” He trailed off before he could finish the last name, but it was enough. Xavier recognized some of the names from the list of doctors who had been on the original team. Gerardi was one of them. Some of the others were new names. Damn! He needed more information.

But it was already too late.

“I think he’d dead.” Sarah’s voice came to him from a few feet away.

Xavier sighed heavily and checked the body. “Yeah. He is.”

“Why would the zombie attack him? I thought Sellars had these things under his control.”

“It’s not one of his.”

“How do you know?”

“I got a look at him,” Xavier sighed heavily, remembering the creature he’d had to end. “Did you notice the uniform? He was a soldier. My former commanding officer, Major Patrick Lafferty. He went missing after the last wave of attacks on base before Commander Sykes arrived and took over.”

“How in the world did he get from North Carolina to New York in that state?”

“I have no idea. Could be that he was captured and brought here, then turned later. Or maybe he was infected at Fort Bragg and transported here by whoever sent him after Sellars. Either way, the implications aren’t good.” Xavier realized that the presence of the army major here raised even more questions.

“At least now you know what happened to him,” Sarah offered quietly.

“He was a good man. A good soldier. And a good friend.”

Sarah put a hand on his arm and he looked up to meet her sympathetic gaze. “He killed Sellars. In the end, no matter how it came about, he served his country and saved lives.”

“You know, you’re right.” Xavier felt his spirits lift, though the sensation was bittersweet.

“He died a hero.”

They called in the cavalry and watched over Sellars’s body until help arrived. Sarah dashed into her house to throw on some clothes while Xavier waited, guarding the scene.

Upon reflection, Xavier realized they weren’t sure what would happen to Sellars now that McCormick’s serum had been administered and rejected. They needed to know if he’d rise like the others and turn into a zombie.

For that reason, he held off darting Sellars and turned his body over to the science team. They were equipped to destroy him should the worst happen. If he rose to terrorize anyone within biting distance, they’d take care of him. To avoid the possibility of his infecting anyone else, Xavier supervised while the science guys locked Sellars’s remains in the rear of one of their reinforced vans. Xavier saw there was a wire mesh cage separating the front seating compartment from the rear, like in cop cars. If Sellars rose from the dead, they could dart him through the grate before he could hurt anyone.

“It’s over.” Commander Sykes had come out personally to see the scene of Sellars’s demise.

“For now,” Xavier agreed cautiously. “Sellars named names before he died. There are more people involved than we’d assumed.”

Sykes’s expression darkened. “We need to debrief. Can we use your house, Sarah?”

“No problem.” She led the way around to the front of the house to avoid the crime scene