A sudden burst of speed—ordinary people never see it coming; it's nothing like the zombie lore everyone knows.
Jessica stepped forward and slapped it. The zombie's neck snapped mid-air; it couldn't even survive a woman's slap and dropped dead.
Chapter 622: Zoe the Third Wheel
Jessica's ferocity made Zoe raise an eyebrow. Moments ago Zoe had wondered why they were escorted by three female bodyguards who looked anything but impressive—now she'd been proven wrong.
The three women could wipe out zombies in seconds; they'd simply kept it hidden. Maybe they were deliberately masking their strength.
It was all to let Eddie show off. One ultrasonic signal from him and they would obey without question.
Mia's eyes flickered. Inside Glory Pharmaceutical she often overheard people talking about Eddie.
He was a man wrapped in mystery—sometimes so low-key he seemed invisible, sometimes wildly flamboyant.
None of that mattered as much as the fact that he was handsome, wealthy, and making waves in medical research.
Idle office gossip had sparked her curiosity, along with rumors that he'd used a virus to enhance himself—one of the rare few who could wield it without turning.
Even knowing he could handle the virus changed nothing. With wealth and influence like his, no one dared pressure him. Threats? That's kid stuff; pros just take what they want.
"Eddie, you're incredible," Mia suddenly complimented.
Eddie smiled. "You'll find out exactly how incredible. Let's hit the beach sometime—I want to see you in a bikini."
"Sure. Ask me and I'll go." Mia didn't refuse; few women would turn down a man like him.
Zoe's expression turned odd. Did these two forget she was here? Flaunting their affection in public was just indecent.
"A-hem. Eddie, did you radio for the Helicopter?" Zoe cut in; she had no wish to be a third wheel.
"Pretty much. If anything happens the military will send a rescue team and missile barrage—though they'd probably blow themselves up first." Eddie had no intention of calling for help; he could get out on his own—better to rely on yourself.
"Without a Helicopter, how do we leave—sprout wings?" Zoe asked, puzzled.
"Maybe we really will fly out. It's not impossible," Mia said with a sweet smile, clearly confident in Eddie.
"I'll get you all out. Relax—we're going to live," Eddie declared.
Around the corner the stairway ahead had been snapped as if some savage monster had broken it in two. Scraps of flesh and bone littered the area; something horrific had happened here.
"What went on here? This looks like human remains." Zoe fought back nausea; she still couldn't accept that the campus had become hell.
"No time to explain—we're leaving." Eddie glanced back; the zombies were already climbing the stairs behind them.
He slipped an arm around Zoe, vaulted with a single leap, and cleared the three-metre gap to the landing above.
The zombies below howled and tried to jump, but the slanted staircase only sent them tumbling back down to clamber up again.
"Are we safe for now?" Zoe asked, still shaken. For a moment she'd thought she would die—then opened her eyes to find herself safe on the other side.
"Not yet. There'll be more zombies on this floor; we need to reach the roof." Eddie shook his head. News had come that the city was in chaos; after spreading the virus some of the Demon Corpses had simply set themselves on fire.
No powerful bio-weapons roamed here—only hordes of shambling zombies filling the streets.
Simmons watched the scene on his monitor. The entire city had turned. Exploiting a gap in the Federation's defenses he'd contaminated the grain supply; Rockhaven City was his test site.
It was the hometown of property tycoon Zhirodo—the first man ever to betray Simmons.
In retaliation Simmons condemned Zhirodo's entire family to walk as zombies, damned even in death.
A burst of static crackled from the radio as Daniel's face appeared—so much like the old drug lord Javier. "Simmons, you really don't do things by halves. At the Fablon Farm outside Apple City, Arias is right there—and so is your old buddy. Contact them and launch the strike together."
"Apple City is a vital hub of the Western Federation; if anything happens there, the whole Federation will reel. While they're focused on Apple City, I'll personally lead a raid on The Pentagon and turn it into hell on earth!" Daniel added, eyes wild.
His own father had been dragged off for experiments, a pawn in someone else's immortality game. He hated everyone and everything connected to the project.
"Hmph—before that, I'll deal with that animal Eddie!" Simmons snorted; he already knew Ada was alive.
Back then, thinking Ada dead, he'd taken virus-reshaped Carla for the real Ada and worshipped her as a goddess—then personally sent the "goddess" away.
During that whole time he hadn't even touched her finger; Carla's fake alpha-female aura had cowed him into the ultimate simp, sniffing the high heels she'd worn.
Looking back, Simmons realized he'd been a complete idiot, played for a fool again and again.
In every direct clash, Eddie had come out on top, pocketing the spoils.
Bit by bit he'd thrown away every advantage—money, power, women—until nothing was left.
Simmons' hatred for Eddie wasn't some petty grudge; it was a burning rage, a blood feud deeper than killing a father.
Hold on—Eddie never killed Simmons' old man, didn't even flirt with his mother; saying that's just slander!
As for stealing his wife… that's a bit of a stretch.
Ada was only Simmons' partner; falling for Eddie was only human—at worst they were rivals in love.
And Carla—she's still helping Eddie look after the kids. She's always adored him; she never had anything to do with Simmons.
It was all Simmons' own fantasy—a pathetic simp who licked to the very end and wound up with nothing.
Chapter: The Virus
Eddie didn't yet know Simmons was gunning for him—even if he did, he wouldn't care; the next target on Eddie's own list was Simmons. Time to settle old scores.
Previously Simmons had been the Federation's security adviser—hard to touch. Any direct move had to weigh his status; a dead top-tier official would rock the Western Federation, and the family retaliation would be fierce.
Upper-crust clans care about face; at that level money is plenty, face is everything. Only the rich worry about face—poor people don't bother.
A special field generated by devices cloaks the sea around Goddess Island; no scan can find it, no instrument see it, not even eyes can spot it.
Completely transparent—who could imagine an island hiding inside a patch of air?
That let Eddie rest easy about his daughters' safety; no place on earth was more secure than that island.
If Simmons wanted revenge, he could only target Eddie—exactly what Eddie wanted. No need to hunt; let the man walk in and be cut down with a single strike.
Right now Eddie, Mia on his back, was leading Zoe onto a high rooftop.
Looking down, the campus below was layered with wandering zombies, endless and aimless.
"They've all turned into C-Virus ghouls, with a few mutants among them," Eddie said, lighting a cigarette while his eyes swept the area, studying something.
"Who did this? Eddie, can you make a vaccine? You're so brilliant—you can do it, right?" When Zoie mentioned a vaccine her eyes shone with worship; even the silhouette of him smoking looked impossibly cool.
"A vaccine?" Mia added. "As far as I know, vaccines only work beforehand, for prevention. If someone's already mutated, a vaccine would just kill the host—it's not a cure." Daylight spilled over her, making fair-skinned Mia look dreamlike.
Eddie nodded, giving Mia an appreciative glance. "Exactly. Right now there's no real cure. Turning human→zombie→human again—setting cost aside, people lose body parts during conversion, and the materials needed to replace them are nearly impossible to find."