I hope you enjoy the chapter.

* * * *

A City Under Siege

Chapter Sixteen

Mira's eyes slowly grew more used to the dark and she preceded cautiously, Hunter at her back. "Do you feel anything?" she hissed.

"He's gone this way, Mira." Hunter closed his eyes, counting on his super sensitive senses to tell him that Braxton had gone this way, only a few moments before. "I can smell him."

Mirage nodded and then kept up her suspiciously cautious trip down the tunnel. Everything was becoming clearer and she could see the tiny dot of light that showed the end of the tunnel and the beginning of another set of tracks that fed into Braxton's hideout. So when an arm reached out, grabbing her around the neck, a surprised squeak left her lips.

Leather gloved hands pulled her back against a hard body and a gun was pressed to her skull. "Drop your weapon and then tell lover boy to drop his," Taylor Braxton growled ominously.

"Now why the hell would I do something that stupid," Mira growled. "Tell you what, you drop your gun, give yourself up and give us the antidote for the orange drug you've devised and Hunter might let you live to spend the rest of your hopefully long, long life in the tombs at ASP headquarters."

"Mira, now's not the time to be baiting the psycho killer," Hunter said softly, his eyes going from the shadowed look on Braxton's face to the gun he had pressing against Mira's head.

"Your boyfriend over there has the right idea, Mirage. Drop the fucking gun or I'll blow your fucking head off."

"Okay, now let's see, you blow my head off, you've lost your leverage and Hunter takes you in, if he doesn't get mad enough to kill you himself. I don't think you'll do it, Braxton. You're a coward at heart. You can't fight an opponent face to face; you have to wait until their back is turned. That means your life is more important to you then killing me."

Braxton ignored her, tugging her even closer to him. "Drop it, Hunter or your little toy here is going to be a stain on the wall of my tunnel."

Hunter met Mira's eyes, seeing her thoughts in that glance. He nodded almost imperceptively and started to lower his blaster. "I can't let him kill you, Mira."

Taylor relaxed his grip just the tiniest of bits when he saw Hunter lowering his weapon and that's when Mirage struck. Her elbow went back and into his ribs followed by a solid backward punch into the groin. He bent, releasing his hold on her completely and she took a step forward, grabbing his head and pushing it hard into the knee she brought up as she turned back to face him.

Braxton hit the ground hard, the gun skittering out of his now relaxed grip. Mira sat on his back, grabbing his arms and cuffing them tightly and then searching him for other weapons. She pulled an arsenal from his body, even checking his boots and finding the toes outfitted with sterling silver tips that shot out and became knives.

Tugging them off, she threw them a few feet away where the rest of his arsenal lay. "Damn," Hunter breathed. "Sure you got it all?"

Mira nodded. "Unless he's got a bazooka in his pants." Taylor moaned as he began coming around. With a grin, she grabbed his arm, yanking him up. "Ready for a vacation, Taylor?"

"Huh?" he asked dazedly. "What vacation?"

"The one you're about to get at ASP head quarters." She let Hunter take Braxton and bent to pick up his arsenal, dropping it all into his boots to cart back to ASP. "Damn, Taylor, get some odor eaters for these things."

"He won't need odor eaters where he'd going. See, Taylor, ASP isn't really recognized by too many other law enforcement communities and since we police our own, we even house those that need to be kept from the public. You'll be going into a five by eight foot cell with no windows, no rights, and no considerations. You don't have the right to an attorney or even a phone call. The justice given by ASP authorities is absolute; there are no reprieves or chances. What you've done is enough cause for you to be put away forever."

Taylor growled but kept quiet otherwise, moving docilely at Hunter's side. He didn't have much choice, considering the grip Hunter had on him and the fact that Mirage walked just a few feet behind him. They made their way back down the tracks, showing up just as Dianna and Beast were freeing the last of the "Zombie girls", as they'd been dubbed.

"You got him!" Dianna said, hurrying to pull Taylor onto the platform as Beast gave Hunter and then Mira a hand up. "Is he talking?"

"Well, beside a 'huh' we haven't heard a peep out of him but that could be due to the whooping that Mira gave him," Hunter said, gazing proudly at her.

"Yeah, well it pisses me off to have knives held to my throat." Mira returned Dianna's hug. "Now, about that time off..."

Dianna rolled her eyes. "Mouthy to the end."

* * * *

Taylor Braxton made nary a peep during the long trip back to ASP headquarters. He was walked through processing and put into an interrogation room, seated and cuffed to a long table where the chairs and table were bolted to the floor.

He barely glanced up as Shadow opened the door, a thick file in his hands. He took the chair across from Braxton, an expectant look in his eyes. "You've caused us a bit of trouble," he said, glancing down at the paper on top of the file. "Anything you want to say before we get started?"

Taylor rattled the cuffs that held his hands to the table. "You're going to have to kill me," he said softly.

"Killing you is not an option, Mr. Braxton. See, despite my own beliefs, our founders feel that punishment for crimes committed will be decided upon by your peers. Since I can think of no one more justified to decide upon the punishment of your crime than those you hurt by it, well, we have to wait until they are capable of doing it." Shadow pulled some pictures out of the file, the first one being of Mistress Melody. It showed every bite mark, every injury that had been inflicted upon her body. The last being one of one of the girl's in the coffins Hunter and Mira had rescued.

"These women caused you no harm, they did nothing to you to warrant this treatment," he slammed his hand on the table. "You defiled them, drug them, put them in coffins to sell them to the highest bidder. I'm here, not to discuss your crimes or the terms of your punishment but to find out what exactly was the drug that you gave them."

"Go to hell," Taylor growled, slamming his hands on the table.

"Have you ever seen the tomb here?" Shadow asked, holding on to his temper with a fine thread. "It's worse then hell. You've seen your last bit of sunlight, Braxton. If you cooperate, we might be able to work up a bit of sympathy."

Taylor glanced over at Shadow, his mouth moving but no sound coming out. Sitting forward, he watched as Shadow sat forward as well, then he sprayed the man with a mouth full of spittle.

Shadow sat back, wiping his face on his sleeve. "I'll take this as a refusal to cooperate," Shadow said slowly.

"Go fuck your cooperation, and while you're at it, you might want to kiss this city good-bye. Taylor lifted his hand, pushing down one sleeve of the orange jumpsuit they'd put him in. Without a single sign of pain, he dug his fingers into his forearm, ripping his skin open. Blood dripped onto the table but Taylor ignored it, reaching into his skin. He pushed at something buried there and then his eyes met Shadow's and he began to laugh.

A strange buzzing noise sounded but it wasn't from inside of ASP and Shadow jumped up from the table, reaching out and grabbing Braxton's arm. He reached into the same ragged tear, finding the button that Taylor had pushed and ripping it from his arm. "What the fuck is this?"

"Your demise," Taylor said then laughed even more as the buzzing became louder and then pulsated. "How many of them are here? How many of them did you bring back here to try to help? You do-gooders will never learn."

"Are you talking about those girls you kidnapped?"

Before Braxton could answer, Shadow's cell phone began to ring and he stared down at it, his eyes on the small window. "Yeah Dianna."

He listened intently and then hooked the cell phone back into his belt, staring at the man across from him. "Turn it off," he growled. "Turn if off now!"

"Why the hell would I do that? By the time they are done, there won't be anyone around that will go up against me. You'll all be dead and I shall run my own little harem of women. I'll live like a king."

Shadow grabbed Taylor's head. He shoved his blaster into Braxton's gut. "Turn it off or there isn't going to be enough left of you to sit on a fucking throne! Turn it off! There are innocent people dying out there, you stupid son of a bitch."

"Innocent people," Braxton laughed. "Hah! Threaten what you will. I'm the only one who knows how to control them."

Shadow growled then pushed Braxton back in his chair, heading out of the interrogation room. He hit the call button for the elevator and then headed up the stairs. He could hear the pulsing even louder and he kept his blaster pulled, ready for whatever he would see when he got to the upper levels of ASP.

Hitting the door running, he stared at what was left of one agent. His body had been ripped in half and his lower half was missing, his upper half had chunks taken out of it, as if they'd been eating him. Despite thinking he was ready for anything, he knew it was going to be worse than his most awful nightmare and he began wishing he were at home with his wife. "Callie," he groaned. He could only hope that she'd found somewhere safe for her and their babies until he could get there.

A body was slammed again the door he was passing and he stared at the trail of orange that showed in the glass of the door. He glanced inside through the orange and saw Marcus, his wings spread, reaching for the next zombie girl who snapped her teeth at him, while Angel kept trying to pick them off with her blaster. There had to be twenty girls trying to get in through the other door, their hands reaching and grasping through the hole they had made. Shadow picked up his foot, knowing the door in front of him would be locked and he kicked it open.

He blasted one girl who'd gotten past Angel and was about to attack Marcus from behind. "Where is everyone?" he shouted as Marcus pulled his zombie's head off and let her body fall.

"We're spread thin. No one was ready for this," Angel shouted back. "I think a bunch of them are trapped in the gym. What about that way?"

"It's clear! Go on!" He gave Angel a push toward the door he'd busted down, watching as she skipped backwards picking off another two of the zombies before she reached it. "Marcus, go on!"

"Not without you, boss! Remember, I can't die!"

Shadow growled his ire and then disappeared into the floor as two girls tried to grab him. They stood, staring where he'd been, neither of them seeing as he reappeared behind them, blasting them from behind. "I'm right behind you. Get your wife out, Marcus. We have to figure out what all this is about."

"Come on, Wings," Angel called harshly, her voice trembling just a bit. It wasn't just the girls' that were acting different, she'd had to take out one of her friends, a vampire who'd somehow been infected with the orange drug. She'd been forced to behead him and the experience was haunting her. She aimed carefully, taking out two more of the girls before they could get through the hole that was quickly filling with bodies. "Let's go, both of you!"

"Go!" Shadow shouted at Marcus.

"I'm not facing Callie if something happens to you, Brian! Let's go!" Marcus grabbed Shadow's arm and yanked him out of the room, using the strength of the warriors he'd been bred from to keep him moving. They ran from the room, taking the stairwell up to the next floor. When they opened it, the sounds of screams filled the air around them and they could see a group of the zombies pressing in against a doorway as something inside was desperately trying to keep them out.

Marcus lifted his hand and spoke two words. His sword materialized in his palm and he stepped forward, slicing and dicing the zombies from behind. One jumped on his back and he spun, reaching between his wings to try and pull the girl forward. Angel blasted her and she dropped off, her head gone.

"Thanks babe," Marcus called, winking at her.

"Hey, no one's allowed to bite my husband but me," she growled. She rushed forward, grabbing another girl and twisting off her head before the rest turned back, seeing the three agents out in the open and not behind locked doors. A massive growl seemed to form collectively in them and they moved almost in unison toward the three.

Shadow and Angel worked at blasting as many as they could, giving Marcus room to work his magic with his sword. By the time the last zombie on the floor had gone down, they were a bloody mess. Angel had been bitten once. Marcus reached down, grabbing a cotton shirt off of one of the zombies, wrapping strips of it around the bite to stop the bleeding. He could see Angel was tiring and knew she needed blood. Before he could ask, she shook her head, reading the thought in his eyes.

"Later, Wings, after we get rid of these damn zombies." She turned; shooting one of the girls who'd managed to survive her wound the first time and was crawling toward them, her eyes bulging.

"What the fuck started this?" Marcus asked, helping Shadow push aside the bodies to reach the door.

"Taylor Braxton and his damn drug."

"God," Angel hissed. "We brought almost a hundred of them into ASP. Not including the vampires that have been infected." She glanced at the slew of bodies. "There's what...about forty on the two floors that we killed?"

"That's not counting the ones that he's sold or hidden at other warehouses."

"He's gone Dawn of the Dead on us," Angel gasped. "We've got to get out there. People aren't going to be prepared to handle this mess." She leaned against the wall, her blaster still in her hands. "What the fuck are we going to do?"

"Babe, I think it's more like Resident Evil then Dawn of the Dead," Marcus said, laughing as she gave him a withering look.

"Whatever Butterfly," she sighed. "We still have to figure out what to do."

"The only thing we can do," Shadow said. "We're going to start with ASP, clear every floor. Then we'll get in touch with police liaisons and start working with them. But for now, we've got agents to save. And we need to get down to the armory. Every agent, every secretary, supply clerk, hell even the medical staff need to be armed."

"What about Callie, Brian? Have you been able to reach her?"

Shadow flinched and unhooked his phone. "I haven't tried yet. I'm almost afraid to but something inside tells me she's fine and I've just got to hang on to that." He tossed the phone to Angel and then reached for the door, feeling it locked. He pounded on it, calling loudly for whoever was inside to let him in. The door opened slowly and he stared down at the small redhead who opened it. "Everyone all right?"

She nodded, then glanced behind her. "We've got one girl who was mauled pretty badly; she doesn't look too good right now."

Shadow pushed the door the rest of the way opened and Marcus walked in, pulling the girl up and into his arms. There were ten people in that room, all of them staring up at Shadow expectantly. "You need to follow us. If we run into anymore of the zombie's stay back and make sure you've got our back." He glanced at two of the people in the room, both of them close to the door. "We're headed to the armory. We'll get you two armed and then you can go with us."

Tambor Wynter and Rylan Castle, the two newest members of the ASP team, glanced at each other and then fell in behind Marcus. Tambor called out to Shadow. "Director, if you'll give me a minute, I can map out the building and let you know where the problem spots are."

"You can do that?" Shadow asked, amazed. She nodded and he watched as she pulled a map out of the pouch that was at her waist. Opening it, she held it at about waist level. Then she spoke in a sing-song voice and small red spots appeared on the map, followed by black dots. She held the map out to Shadow. "The red dots are where are people are, the black spots are the zombies, Director."

He took the map, feeling Angel come up and lean over his shoulder. "Damn," she said. "This one's better then a Tom Tom."

"Cute, babe," Marcus drawled. "Kay boss, where are we headed?"

"North stairwell, Conference room eight is clear and no zombies are near it. We can get these people armed and then leave them there. Both doors lock and if the zombies attack one way, they can get out the other." He pointed out the room and then headed back the way they'd come. Down two floors and they pushed through the stairwell door, hurrying into the armory.

Tambor and Rylan hurried to the back, followed by the other seven. Rylan handed out weapons, giving everyone a hurried tutorial and showing them how to put on and take off the safety. "Don't point it unless you plan on using it," he warned.

Shadow was studying the map that Tambor had given him. He looked up when they came back to his side. "Remind me when this is done to get you your certifications"

They plotted their route toward Conference room eight and picked up five more people from another zombie surrounded class room. Rylan and Tambor managed well, picking off their fair share of zombies and Tambor proved her worth as a black witch, freezing the zombies to keep them from attacking. When they reached the conference room, she wove a spell of protection before they left the others in the room.

"Where are Hunter and Mirage?" Shadow asked Tambor, handing her the map. "They have the most experience with these things."

Tambor concentrated on the map, searching every red dot for the Beta team. One spot seemed to stand out from the others and she pointed it out to Shadow. "Director, they're here, on the first level."

"Then that is where we need to go."

* * * *

Mirage twisted, grabbing the head of the girl closest to her. "Dammit, how many of them are there?"

Hunter finished off the one that had attacked him, going to her side. "I don't know," he growled. "Just don't let them bite you."

Beast yowled, his big hairy hands grabbing another of the girls and breaking her back on his knee. He raised her above his head, throwing her in the pile of dead bodies around them. They'd been caught in the open, between the front desk and the offices and had no place to go when the girls began their advance. They seemed to be never ending, one following the other even as the four of them worked to kill them off.

It had been shocking, when the girls first attacked, the growling had been animalistic and unreal. There jaws had snapped, their teeth clenching as they tried to bite. After the first few seconds though, the team had known they were in trouble. Dianna had tried to find help on her communicator but there had been no answer from any of the teams, or from Shadow. They were alone.