The Jeep stalled before it moved away from the curb. For a moment, it seemed as if time slowed. The black shadows around them froze in place and just stared at them.

"Claire, Claire," Oliver hissed and shook her shoulder. "We need to get out of here."

She took a deep breath and threw him a quick glance. Her face was white, her eyes wide. "Ok, ok, ok." Her fingers reached for the keys and cranked the engine while Cooper rolled down the window and aimed the shotgun at the closest shadow.

As soon as the engine roared to life, the shadows went from standstill to running, as if someone had flipped a switch.

"Go, go, go," Copper yelled as he fired at the nearest figure, now only yards away.

The tires squealed as the Jeep jumped from the curb and rushed forward, its engine roaring like an angry beast, hitting several of the approaching neighbors. One rolled up across the hood and caved in Cooper's side of the windshield. Cooper sent the struggling limbs flying off to the side with a well-placed kick.

Several of the shadows fell in front of the Jeep as the vehicle hit them and rolled over them. Cooper fired his shotgun once more at an approaching figure, sending blood splattering across the remnants of the windshield. Oliver bent over and retched on the floor behind Claire's seat.

As they reached empty pavement, they picked up speed and left the house behind. Oliver held on as Claire jerked the wheel left and right to get around the remaining threats. When they passed the last one, he exhaled and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

"What was that?" Cooper shouted over the roar of the engine as they left the neighborhood behind. Oliver looked back out the rear window of the Jeep. Everyone had turned and were now running after the speeding Jeep.

"Zombies. I have no doubt about it," Oliver shouted back.

After another mile, Claire pulled over on the side of the road. She ran her fingers through her hair while her eyes kept going to the rear-view mirror. Her hands were shaking as she reached for her shotgun and double-checked that it was loaded.

"Oliver, what is happening?" she said and caught his eyes in the rearview mirror as she squeezed the wheel so hard her knuckles turned white.

"You mean, besides the obvious? I don't know. Something's different—"

"Different how?"

"Years ago, at the height of the outbreak, there was a frenzy, an unpredictability to their movements. These, I don't know, they moved deliberate. I've never seen a zombie stop like they did when the engine died."

"They were getting close, man," Cooper said as he reloaded his shotgun. "Too close."

"When we arrived, we saw no-one, right? Why not?" Oliver said and looked over his shoulder again. The street behind them remained clear.

"Who cares? What difference does that make?" Claire said, irritation growing in her voice. "Is this a new outbreak or not, or it is something else?"

Oliver nodded. "Yes, it's likely. That's why it's important to keep going to Armstrong's apartment. He's involved in this somehow. The sooner we can figure it out, the sooner we know how to handle this situation."

"You talk like they're still people," Cooper said with a frown.

"They may still be."

Claire put the Jeep in gear, and they continued towards Armstrong's house. Consulting the driver's license they recovered from the body, they found the address on one of the beach front boulevards, tucked away behind a high fence and a locked gate. Claire parked in front of the gate and killed the engine.

"Now what?" Oliver said as he hunched over and looked out the front window at the gate. It was solid metal. "That seems a bit overkill for a vacation resort, doesn't it?" he said and nodded towards the gate.

"Celebrities often want to keep curious tourists out," Cooper said and shrugged.

"Armstrong wasn't a celebrity as far as I know, just a scientist."

"Doesn't matter," Claire said as her fingers drummed on the steering wheel, then pointed at the keypad on a pole. "We'll have to find another way in. We're not getting through the gate without a passcode. Follow me." She jumped out of the Jeep and collected her shotgun. Oliver followed with Cooper behind him.

They followed the fence down the side of the property and found access door to the yard propped open.

"The door is open?" Oliver said, a frown on his face.

Claire raised a finger to her lips. "It's likely someone got here before we did," she whispered. "Stay alert and stay behind me."

Oliver nodded. Claire pushed the door open further with her foot and led the way, her shotgun raised. They entered the yard next to a garden shed, hidden from the front of the house by a tall hedge. An enormous patio lit by a single light lay straight ahead while a large lawn stretched out beyond the cone of the light towards the ocean and the inevitable private beach.

Claire pointed towards a back door and signaled for Cooper to move while she covered the lawn. He checked the door, turned and nodded, then opened it. They all grimaced as the door made a high-pitched sound as it swung open.

They froze and listened for what seemed like an eternity. When there was no sign of movement from inside the house or from the yard, they proceeded through the door into a large riving room area. The table was surrounded by couches on three sides. A large TV was mounted on the wall to their left while a dining area and kitchen opened up to the right. A lamp on a table next to the couch was lit, as was under-cabinet lighting in the kitchen.

Claire moved towards the kitchen while Cooper disappeared down a hallway on the left. They cleared all the rooms on the ground floor and found no-one.

"There's a stairwell leading down to some sort of basement," Cooper whispered as they regrouped by the stairs that led to the second floor.

"Let's check the second floor first," Claire said and nodded towards the stairs. "Take it slow, watch your backs."

They ascended the stairs, one step at a time, shotguns ready. The second floor landing was a large shared space. Another couch and a pair of chairs around a table in front of a fireplace. A large TV hung on the wall above the fireplace while a pool table occupied most of the remaining space.

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"Someone's been here," Oliver whispered and pointed towards the table and two wine glasses and a bottle of wine.

"Split up," Claire said to Cooper and pointed towards a hallway next to the stairs. "Oliver, come with me."

Claire and Oliver found the master suite and an adjacent bedroom empty. Both bedrooms were clean and the beds were made.

"Found his office," Cooper said as he rejoined them in the shared room. "It's a mess. I'll check out the basement."

Oliver ran past Cooper and paused in the doorway. Furniture were knocked over, books and papers covered the floor. Even the paintings on the wall hung were crooked.

"What happened?" Claire asked as she caught up with Oliver.

"It looks just like his work office. Someone's been here, they've turned the place upside down."

"Like they were looking for something."

"Exactly. But what?"

Oliver went straight to the desk and shuffled the papers on the desk around. Most of them were scientific. Each letter had been printed on company letter head.

"Claire, what do you know EffX Chemicals?"

"EffX? It's one of the few industries on the island. Why?"

"Could be Armstrong one of their employees?"

"Perhaps. His office didn't show that he was, but that means nothing. Plenty of people on the island have two jobs."

"He'd need it to afford this place," Oliver said and pulled open the desk drawers. "Would you look at this," he said and pulled out an EffX company ID badge with Armstrong's name and photo on it.

"Looks he was a fan of yours," Claire said and held up a book she found on the floor. "Nature Of The Beast? Is this about zombies?" she said with raised eyebrows.

"It's a scientific take on the last outbreak," Oliver said with a shrug. "So what?"

"I didn't know you wrote a book."

"We can only learn from the past by documenting it and studying it."

"I'm surprised you didn't write one about our relationship," Claire said and returned the book to the shelf. Oliver looked up but ignored the comment. Claire picked up a book from the floor. "Looks like he was studying more than that. There are books about mind control, drugs."

"Interesting." Oliver walked over to Claire and picked up a few of the books on the floor. "There must be a connection."

"Guys, check this out." Cooper stood in the doorway into the office, panting from running up the stairs. "Your friend has a lab in the basement."

"A lab?" Oliver frowned. "What kind of lab?"

"How should I know? A lab is a lab to me."

They followed Cooper to the basement. It was clear to Oliver that Armstrong's lab was more than just a hobby project. The test tubes, microscopes and refrigerated cabinets full of various samples told him as much. The neat stacks of paper and the working computer told him that the intruder had spared the lab the chaos they saw upstairs.

"What were you doing down here, Dr. Armstrong," Oliver said to no-one in particular.

"Looks like they didn't find the lab," Claire said, stating the obvious.

"Maybe they weren't looking for it?" Cooper said and stepped over towards the computer and tapped the keyboard. A password box appeared.

"Any ideas on passwords?"

"Look under the keyboard," Oliver said as he shifted through a pile of papers. Shipping manifests, purchase orders, correspondence with other scientists. Nothing of value.

"Well, what do we have here?"

Oliver looked up to find Cooper dangling another ID badge between his fingers.

"Where did you find that?"

"Right here in this drawer. There's a bunch of other stuff in here too—"

"Mind if I take a look?" Oliver left his pile of papers and joined Cooper by the computer and open desk drawer. He took the badge and frowned.

"Do you recognize this person, Cooper?" Oliver said and held up the badge.

"No. It's not Armstrong."

"Right."

"It's an employee at the water treatment plant," Claire said over Oliver's shoulder. "See there at the top of the badge? H20 Solutions."

Oliver looked up at Claire, his eyebrows raised.

"Is there a water treatment plant around here?" he said and turned to Claire.

"Of course. Every area of the island has one. It's tied to the water supply. It's how they add the chlorine and whatever else they do before they supply it to the town. Why?"

"There's a letter of intent between Armstrong and the water company in the pile I was looking through."

Claire picked up the pile of papers Oliver had been looking through and paused when she found the letter.

"Yeah, that's the same one." Claire looked closer at the paper. "Wait, it says here that Armstrong—"

"He's their supplier."

"Supplier of what?"

"It's a chemical compound of some sort. It must have been what he was working on here."

"I don't understand," Claire said with a sigh. "Why would he be supplying any sort of chemicals for the plant? I know they get deliveries from the outside every so often. Chlorine, like I said. I am usually involved in transport security when they arrive."

"So you know where the plant is then?"

Claire nodded. "Yeah, it's just on the outskirts of town."

"Armstrong supplies some other chemical to them then. Why? And who's this guy?" Oliver waves the ID badge. "Why does Armstrong have this man's badge in his secret lab?"

"That's a good question. Let me make a call to the head of security at the lab and see if I can find out," Claire offered.

Oliver nodded, and Claire picked up a phone in a corner of the room.

"What do you think this is?" Cooper said and held up a thick leader-bound journal. The cover was worn, the faint initials of PA just visible on the front. Various single sheets of paper were sticking out between the pages.

"Let's find out." Oliver unclasped the journal and opened it with care so that the single sheets wouldn't fall out.

He recognized the handwriting. It was just like the handwriting in the letter he had received from Armstrong. The journal confirmed that the letter had been written by Armstrong.

Oliver flipped through the pages at random. He felt a chill run down his spine as he paused at a page with the title Observations from The Nature Of The Beast. He scanned through the page and recognized the conclusions from his own book, written by the hands of another. At the end of the journal entry, Armstrong had written several questions. Can they be controlled? Are they always blood thirsty? Do they have intelligence?

Oliver felt his heart rate quicken as he continued to turn the pages. The topics they had observed in the books in his office were fleshed out further. Armstrong's thoughts on mind controlled filled the pages and notes about chemical compounds that may reduce the aggressive nature of an individual. Mind control. Test results on individuals. He gasped and put the journal down on the counter.

"I think we have a big problem," Olive said.

"More than one," Claire said as she sat down on another chair next to Oliver. "The man on the ID badge, he hasn't been at work for a week. He's disappeared."

Oliver frowned. "They didn't report it to the police? To you?"

Claire shook her head. "The head of security hung up when I asked him why. Said he had to go."

"I think Armstrong is involved with the zombies we saw earlier."

"Why would he be?"

"I can't say for sure, but his journal is full of notes on the topic, including test results on people."

"How is that tied to the water treatment plan?" Cooper said.

"The water treatment plan is used to treat the water for the town. What if Armstrong went beyond just testing on individuals to testing on an entire town?"

All color drained from Claire's face. "You mean, Armstrong supplied tainted chemicals to the treatment plan. They treated the water supply with his chemicals, infecting—"

"Everyone in town," Oliver said with a sigh.

"There's more," Cooper said. "There are other letters here, in this binder. To the other treatment facilities on the island."

Oliver grabbed the folder from Cooper's hands and flipped through the letters inside. Cooper was right. Inside were a handful of similar letters between Armstrong and other local water authorities on the island.

"Claire," he said with a quivering voice, "This is a huge problem. He's not experimenting on the people here in town—"

"I get it," Claire said with a nod. "He's targeting the whole island. He's turning the whole island into—"

"Into what?" Cooper said, eyebrows raised. "Zombies?"

Oliver looked at Cooper and nodded. "Exactly. He's using the water supply to infect everyone. Or, at least, he was trying to before they killed him."

"We need to get in touch with all the other plants immediately," Claire said and stood up. "We must prevent them from using his chemicals."

"It could be too late already," Oliver said with a sigh. "There's no telling when he shipped to the others."

"There's always a chance he didn't."

"You're right. We need to get in touch with the other plants right away."

"What about us?" Cooper said.

Oliver looked at Cooper, then Claire. "What about you?"

"We live in this town too. We've drunk the water," Claire said with a nod, concern evident in her eyes.

Cooper shook his head. "I always drink bottled water."

They were interrupted by the sound of breaking glass.

Cooper picked up his shotgun from the counter and stood up.

"Looks like we have visitors."

" [https://img.wattpad.com/1e4f2d62eacbe1a2a6ffa939ea9c036a5cd5601a/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f33734b655f6978333631567975673d3d2d3837383633313435392e313630626261383161356535303232303233383538343538373433382e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]