Live Free or Die Complete Series Boxed Set: Age Of Madness - A Kurtherian Gambit Series by Hayley Lawson (pdf e book reader .TXT) 📗

He shook his head, “I don’t know if I can do this. I’m not one of those vegetarians who pretends to not eat meat, and when no one is around, they sneak a chicken drumstick or a steak. Meat nauseates me, and the smell of blood is twisting my stomach. I really think I’m going to be sick.”

Ryder laid a gentle hand on the vampire’s shoulder. “Massimo, I need your help. Just think of it as one of your new cocktails.” Ryder placed the glass on the table by his chair. “I’ll leave you to decide. Good night, Massimo, and thank you again. For everything.” Ryder left Massimo on the porch to make his decision.

Chapter Seven

Afana showered until the water ran clear instead of red. Then he’d changed, and now he was ready. He’d thought about his plan of attack, which wasn’t usual for him. Normally, he would attack first and think later. Actually, that wasn’t true. He wouldn’t think later, either. He was more of a “live in the moment” person, and the present moment was a very tense one. He could feel that he needed some blood since he wasn’t at full strength, but he wasn’t going to drink from just anyone for a quick fix.

Afana was ready to bring his bunker back to order. He planned to get Terrier out of Level Six and make him into a memorable example to show others who were thinking about being traitors what awaited them. This time he was going to make sure that the infected didn’t get too close to him, and make sure he killed them. He wasn’t going to let any of those jerks bite him while his back was turned.

Afana walked into the lab and spoke to Advisor Robert. “Any updates on the test results?”

“None of the other Advisors’ bloodwork has shown signs of infection yet, which is good news. However, I need more time before you feed on them just to be sure.”

“And my blood?” he demanded. Advisor Robert cringed a little, and Afana knew that it wasn’t a good sign. “Tell me,” he ordered through gritted teeth.

Advisor Robert spoke quickly. “Your blood has shown signs that you can be infected by the disease. With a large amount of the infected blood, you will become infected also.” Advisor Robert backed away from Afana slightly.

Afana wasn’t a person who could control his temper. He was fighting his every instinct simply because he needed to keep Advisor Robert alive long enough to create a cure. “Keep running tests and see if there are any changes. Is there a cure?” Afana asked.

This time Advisor Roberts didn’t pause, since he knew how much that annoyed Afana. “I will continue to run the tests. We aren’t anywhere close to a cure. It will take time.” Advisor Robert admitted, hoping that Afana, as a scientist himself, would understand that cures could happen in a few days or years, and sometimes never.

Afana sighed. “We need to work on containing the infected and getting the cameras back up.”

Advisor Robert was glad of the opportunity to redirect Afana’s thoughts. He gave him an update on the bunker. “The generals are on Level Five doing a sweep. There were a lot of them killed in the last big fight. Once their sweep is completed, we’ll move them up onto Level Four.”

Only Levels Four and Five, Afana thought with relief. “Have there been any breakouts on Levels Three and Two?” he asked. That was where the generals and the advisors lived, and they didn’t only house men. The families of the generals and advisors also lived there. Afana had done that so he could keep an eye on them, and let them build relationships he could use against them at any point. Their bonds with their loved ones were their weakness.

Advisor Robert shook his head. “None yet.”

“Interesting. Why not on those levels yet?” Afana questioned, then he thought about Level Six. He hadn’t seen any evidence of a breakout down there, either. “Could those who have not been outside have less of a chance of catching the disease? Is it airborne?”

“But the advisors on Level One had the disease, Afana, and those men have never been outside. It is random. It has to be.”

Afana thought about the two most important pieces of information Robert had given him. If he got bitten, he could be infected, and they didn’t have a cure. Afana’s bunker was a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment. He didn’t like that idea. He needed to stop the outbreak before it got any worse.

Mama Lou walked over to General Murray, Peter, and Terrier, who stood next to one of the private doors. She looked around and noticed that Advisor George was missing, then looked at the exit. It was still closed, so that was a good sign.

“Where’s Advisor George?” Mama Lou asked.

General Murray gestured at the locked door.

“Why is he in there?” Mama Lou questioned.

“Because he’s infected,” Murray told her.

Mama Lou looked at the men in horror. “Why is he still alive?”

“He’s not actually succumbed yet. His mind started to go, and he knew that he was going to turn soon,” General Murray informed Mama Lou.

Mama Lou smiled sadly. “So the rat was smart, after all?”

Murray nodded. “Appears that way. But not at the end. He couldn’t remember how we get out of the bunker. I tried everything, but he just couldn’t remember. It was like it had been erased from his memory.”

“There has to be a way to get it out of him.” Mama Lou moved toward the door and put her hand on the pole that was wedged under the handle to stop George from getting out. Peter placed his hand on top of Mama Lou’s to stop her.

“It’s not safe for you in there,” Peter told her gently.

Mama Lou knew he was right. If Advisor George wasn’t infected, Mama Lou could have snapped him like a twig. But he was,