Once Bitten, Twice Dead - By Bianca D'Arc Page 0,94

late. It saw her. She jumped back as its fist crashed through the window, its clawed hands reaching for her.

Xavier started shooting the moment he saw the first zombie in the woods. He had no idea how many of them were on this property, but one thing he did know—there wouldn’t be any when he was through. He systematically plugged four shots into each target before moving on to the next, counting as he went.

He’d taken care of four zombies by the time he reached the small clearing that surrounded the house. They hadn’t started to disintegrate yet, but the first would go any time now. Xavier did his best to ignore the four who followed him from the woods while he plowed his way through the clearing, shooting four darts into each of two patrolling creatures. Six down, who knew how many more to go.

“Alpha One. Two more targets coming around the north side of the house,” Reno reported from his vantage point in the sky far above. “We’ve also got two heat signatures. One in the house and one heading down to the beach.”

“How’d that one get past me?” Xavier wanted to know.

He lined up his shots and fired at the two zombies as they rounded the north corner of the house. As he finished darting the second of the pair, the first of the previous batch began to implode. Behind him, he heard the hideous moaning come to an abrupt halt, time and time again as the creatures dissolved.

“Must’ve been a tunnel from the house,” Reno told him. “The heat signature popped up on the infrared near the top of the stairs to the beach. Before that, we saw it in the house for a quick second before it disappeared. I figure it went belowground or into a shielded area.”

“Son of a bitch. But there’s another one still in the house?”

“Yeah, and it’s on the move. Movements are erratic. It appeared in the same spot as the first one, about one minute after. Now it’s moving around the rooms inside the house.”

“Current position?”

“Northeast face, three windows down. It’s in that room right now.”

Xavier was already on the move. Of the eight zombies he’d shot, six had dissolved. The other two were in his way, and he detoured in a sprint, passing wide around them. These creatures moved a little faster than the previous versions he’d dealt with, but most of them were still hampered by uneven gaits. They couldn’t run like Xavier could.

They tried to grab him as he passed, but he was too quick. He counted down to the third window on that side of the house and saw another of the creatures doing his best to break down the window and force his way inside. Xavier took aim and fired on the run.

That made nine. How many of them were there?

Entering through the window wasn’t an option until the tenacious number nine disintegrated, so Xavier kept running until he found a sliding glass door several yards away. Using his rifle butt to smash the glass, he jumped inside a moment later, ready for action.

“Xavier?”

He heard Sarah’s voice calling his name. Relief washed through him like a fresh spring rain. Thank heaven he’d found her.

“Where are you, Sarah?”

“Kitchen,” came the terse reply. “I could use some help and a weapon. There are three of them in here and one trying to get in the window. I’m cornered.” Her voice rose as she talked fast, panic entering her tone.

He stalked through the house. The kitchen was right next door. He stormed the room, firing as soon as he had a clear shot. Sarah was standing on the center island in the big gourmet kitchen, flinging pots off the overhead pot rack at the creatures who blocked three sides of the rectangular table.

It was a good position for someone who was otherwise unarmed. The heavy pots and pans kept the creatures at bay somewhat, and the width of the table kept her out of their reach as long as they remained on the floor and she on the island.

“Don’t move your legs,” Xavier ordered. He sent four darts into each zombie with deliberate thoroughness. The creatures didn’t seem to notice. They kept trying to get to Sarah, and she kept them at bay with broad swings of a long-handled frying pan.

“Can I move now?” She spared a moment to look at him, and the zombie on the right took the opportunity to swipe at her legs. The claws