Read Online Land of the Dead (Book 1): Infected by Cian Campbell - Free Book Online

Talbot had moved up to his right side and had just fired at several infected who were nearby enough to be attracted to the noise of the gunfire.
    Talbot was moving his lips. Dillon took a few seconds to realize he was shouting.
    “Dillon, get up. Get up, damn it!”
    “I’m up. Shit. I’m up.”
    “Someone get into that car and pull the driver out! Back it up and get it inside. We can’t have it blocking the entrance. Dillon found his MP-5 laying on the ground nearby. He holstered his USP before picking it up and checking its condition. Captain Talbot was doing whatever needed to be done behind Dillon, so he concentrated on keeping this area secure. Occasionally, he braved a quick glance to the rear for situational awareness. One of the cars had come to rest against the compound wall. Talbot was opening the driver’s side door. Apparently, the driver was dead and Talbot unceremoniously dumped him in the dirt before hopping in the car and backing it up. After that, the rest of the convoy began to enter the compound. Dillon saw shadows moving in, but wasn’t yet sure if it was his vision blurring or one – or more – infected moving in for the kill.
    Dillon fired at a threat as it ran out of the dark, a mere twenty feet from him. “That answers my question, doesn’t it.”
    Talbot moved up to his right side again, reaching down with his left hand to pull Dillon to a standing position. “Can you walk, Sergeant?”
    “I’m not a fucking Sergeant, Captain, and I can walk just fine.” Dillon said as his knee buckled a bit, causing him to stagger.
    “Well, I’m going to help you anyways. Let’s get you inside so the Doc can check you out.”
    “That sounds good. Do you think I can get some ice cream?” was the last thing that Dillon said before he passed out.
    Luckily for Dillon, he regained consciousness as he clattered to the ground.
    “Doc! Over here.”
    “Fuck. I’m up. I’m up.” Dillon said in protest. He found that he could only sit up.
    “Dillon’s been shot, Doc. I think he took one in the side or back.”
    Doc began to assess Dillon immediately. After about a minute of checking him over, Doc looked at Talbot. “His vest stopped the round, but there’s some blunt force trauma and one hell of a bruise. Let’s get him up and help him inside. I’ll have Hannah monitor him throughout the night, just in case there’s internal bleeding.”
    “Shit. Hannah’s going to kill me.” Dillon said.
    “I’m sure she will be happy you were wearing your vest. Come on, let’s get you inside.”
     
     
    Dillon felt stupid. Years in the field had taught him not to turn his back on a possible threat, and he had failed. Maybe he had just been too tired to maintain HIS concentration. How arrogant was he that he had worried so much about Talbot unraveling and not looked at his own mental condition.
    Hannah was pissed. Well, pissed and crying and glad that he was alive. Mikey looked a bit shattered. Apparently, he had built his father up as someone who was unstoppable. It took ten minutes of light conversation to convince everyone that he was okay. He clinched it by standing up at the end and going to get a glass of water. It hurt to do so, but it made everyone feel better.
    “Even superheroes wear armor, Mikey.”
    Dillon allowed himself another 30 minutes rest, during which time he grabbed a sandwich, another glass of water, and a cocktail of over-the-counter pain meds to take the edge off. He was going to have one hell of a bruise. It would be ugly, multi-colored, and lightly shaded directly over the impact point. As a joke, he used to call bruises like this “The Eye of Sauron.” Today he only had one. Once, in Afghanistan, he had ended up with two on his chest and a cracked rib.
    Afterward, Dillon thought about sleeping, but he knew that he couldn’t sleep until the compound was secured. Dillon did what he could to repair the silencers on the two MP-5s, only to find Mikey making one from scratch. The