Omega Pathogen: Mayhem by J.G. Hicks Jr

she walks out of the room leaving him with his thoughts . Jim retrieves a bottle of water and takes a few gulps and returns to patrolling the second floor of the home, carefully peeking out each window he comes to. His turn on watch is uneventful. He quietly wakes Chris for his turn. Chris rubs his eyes and picks up the AR-15 that had been lying by him as he slept.
    Chris and then Jeremy’s turns on watch go by without issue. Dawn arrives, and they go through their new normal routine and settle in for breakfast and coffee. Jim tells Chris and Jeremy to take a nap for a couple hours so they’re more rested, then they’ll go over their tactics and a few more before they make the trip outside.
    While the boys are resting, Jim and Arzu go over plans for getting to the MRAP parked in their driveway. The day is clear, so they know they’ll need to wait for the sun to reach its highest, but more importantly, its brightest point.
    They still have fireworks left, so the best plan is to do what worked before. The issue is getting everyone into the MRAP. Everyone needs to go this time because one person can’t expect to both secure and scavenge a building properly. They also can’t leave too few behind; it’s not guaranteed they can defend the home with only one or two adults.
    They’ll figure out if they can get back in later. Jim and Arzu decide to get the extension ladder from the attic, in case they need it in the event the garage door opener motor is dead and the front has too many infected around to risk opening it manually.
    The ladder can be placed out Berk’s window and butted against the high and wide lip of the turret on top of the MRAP. Arzu cuts a king-size bed sheet in two, and fashions each of them so that they can be used like papooses for Berk and Kayra if needed. Jim and Arzu, with the help of Berk and Kayra, get supplies moved into Berk’s room in preparation to be sent down to the armored vehicle, when and if the time allows.
    Jim and Arzu are lowering the ladder down from the attic when Chris and Jeremy begin to stir and then argue about who will use the bathroom first. “Guys, one of you go downstairs and use the bathroom down there, for God’s sake. Just put the obstacles back on the stairs when you come back up,” Jim says, with some irritation in his voice.
    Everyone spends the next couple of hours getting ready after Jim and Arzu brief them on what they’ve planned. No issues with the plan jump out at anyone, so they decide to go with it. Reminded by Jim that nothing usually goes according to plan, they need to be prepared to adjust as needed.
    Chris does his thing with the fireworks like before, placing them in an old jar, with plenty of holes in the lid to allow air to enter. Finally, a little past one o’clock in the afternoon, they’re as ready as they can be. Chris climbs up into the attic again and gives the inner-tube slingshot a once-over to make sure it’s ready.
    Chris gives a call on the radio, letting his dad know he’s ready for the word to light the pyrotechnics and let them fly. Jeremy stands ready downstairs, at the door to the garage, ready to hit the opener when given the word.
    Arzu has the second of the two radios in hand, ready to relay conversations and reports from Jim in Berk’s room upstairs to Jeremy below. Jim has the screen out of the window frame; the ladder lies on the floor beside him as he looks out through a small part in the blinds.
     
    Chapter 14
    Siberia, USSR 1974
     
       Vladimir exits the prisoner holding area with the rest of the guards, and the thick, heavy door is closed and locked. Carefully, the guards remove their protective gear, dispose of it in the correct bins, and wash their hands.
    They gather together to have a smoke and talk about the crazy things that the prisoners have become. Vladimir snuffs out his cigarette after only smoking half, excuses himself, and goes to the guard quarters. He feels the onset of a headache he’ll take a pain