Chapter 3: THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH

Then the four men in dark suits came forward, their shiny shoes clinking against the damp pavement. They came like the predators, calm, confident and with no fear.

One of them said, “Mr. Vance,” his voice was cold and flat. “You have made a big mistake.”

The man who was hurt by the bull next to me laughed bitterly. It was "the mistake to come here, not the mistake to leave.

I didn't get a chance to ask questions. I didn't have time to think. In my past life I had been killed by hesitation. This time I went on my instincts.

Then I took the taser out of my bag and pressed the button.

The two prongs hit the closest man square in the chest. He was convulsing with his eyes rolling back and fell down like a brick wall. The other three froze for a second, a second too long because I managed to seize hold of the man who'd been wounded and pull him to his feet.

"Can you run?" I hissed.

I'll have to try," he grunted.

I took the alley as we bolted and pounded my heart in my ears. The other men called after us and started running after us. I heard a gunshot and a bullet bounced off the brick wall close to my head.

I didn't look back. I just ran.

We came out of the alley and into the bustling street. Cars honked. Pedestrians screamed. I pulled the man into my Jeep and slammed him into the passenger seat and got in behind the wheel.

The engine started up. I hit a foot on the gas and weaved in and out of traffic, almost hitting a taxi. I saw them in the rear view mirror with their faces twisted with fury, the three of them coming out of the alley. One of them picked up a radio and put it to his mouth.

They were calling for backup.

I kept driving until the lights of the city behind us, the road became dark and winding mountain passes.

The man next to me had lots of blood pouring out of him. His face was as white as a sheet of paper and his breathing was shallow. I stopped at a rest stop and retrieved my first aid kit, and began my duties.

This will hurt, I told myself and pressed a bandage against the wound on his arm.

He flinched, but didn't shout out loud. "I've had worse."

"Who are you?" I demanded. “But why did those men want to kill you?”

He stared at me for a long moment, his blue eyes blank, My name is Adrian Vance. Three weeks ago, my team was stationed in a secret research lab in the northern part of the country to test a new virus that had the potential to kill 90 percent of the human population.

My blood ran cold. "The apocalypse."

He nodded grimly. “It's not natural, it's engineered, and it will be released in just twenty-eight days.”

Twenty-eight days. Thirty days before the end I was reborn. This meant that I had already given up two days.

How would you get this information? I asked.

He said, "I helped to construct the facility, and I feel a sense of guilt. “When I gave my bosses a heads-up, they figured they couldn't handle having me around, so they've been trying to find me ever since.”

I sat back and my mind was working overtime. This changed everything. The apocalypse wasn't just an accidental calamity, it was an intentional attack. Someone wanted the world to come to an end. Someone was intent on determining who were the survivors.

And I had just become an easy target.

Why did you come to my aid? Adrian asked, breaking the silence.

I took a look at him, I really took a look at him. He was a danger, a haunted man, and he was definitely hiding something. He had his knowledge, however. Anything that might help me out.

I just said, "I'm going to live,"” I said simply. "And I can't do that by myself.

He had a slight smile playing on his face. Are you not one of the ordinary folks,

I stood up and extended my hand, "No," I said. "I'm not."

We drove up the remainder of the distance to the cabin in quiet. As we went to our place, the sun was already rising over the mountains, and the sky was tinged with gold and crimson.

Adrian was hobbling into the house and fell on the old sofa. I had the door shut and examined the windows and I lit a fire in the stone fireplace.

We must arm ourselves," he said in a weak but firm voice. “Plus ammunition, if my old employers find us, we will have no chance.”

I opened my hand to show that I already had a stockpile, I said. In my hand appeared a box of instant noodles.

Adrian's eyes went wide. What in the fuck is this?

I tossed him the noodles and said, "A gift. The reason for my survival is this."

He looked at me for some time, and then he gave a low whistle. “It's a very surprising person.”

You do not have any idea," I said.

However, before I could finish my sentence, my iPhone rang. I quickly looked at the screen.

It is a text from Jason.

I know what you did, emptying our account was a mistake, I'm coming for what's mine and I'm bringing friends.

Attached to the message was a photo. It was my cabin. It must have been no more than an hour ago when someone took it from the treeline.

My heart stopped.

They had found me.

And they were already here.