Stepping into the shattered office suite, Chu Feng and Alice found Matt Addison pinned against a mahogany desk, desperately holding back a female zombie whose jaws snapped inches from his throat.
Chu Feng instinctively reached for his magnetic focus—a quick flick of metal would instantly net him another 10 system points.
But as his eyes fell on the woman’s torn lab coat and name badge, he checked himself.
Her name was Lisa Addison.
She was Matt’s sister, an Umbrella whistleblower who had sacrificed everything to expose the company’s illegal bioweapons program.
Chu Feng wasn’t above farming points off the dead, but shattering a grief-stricken brother’s sister right in front of him crossed a line.
Before the zombie could bite down, Alice lunged forward, swinging a heavy crystal paperweight into the side of the creature’s head.
CRACK!
The female zombie collapsed limply onto the carpet.
Matt dropped to his knees, pulling his sister’s lifeless body into his arms as heavy sobs wracked his chest.
Alice stood frozen, holding the bloody paperweight with a look of utter confusion.
“What…
why was she attacking him?
Why is he crying over a host?” Chu Feng stepped up beside her, placing a quiet hand on her shoulder.
“That’s Lisa.
His sister.” Alice’s eyes widened.
She lowered the paperweight, her voice softening.
“I’m…
I’m so sorry, Matt.
I didn’t know.” Matt wiped his face, shaking his head bitterly.
“It’s not your fault.
She was already gone…
I just couldn’t save her.” Alice frowned, looking between Matt and the bodies scattered across the office floor.
“What were you two doing down here in the first place?” “Umbrella thinks they’re invincible,” Matt muttered, his voice cold with hatred.
“There’s an underground network of us across the globe.
Some gather intel, some provide funding, some pull triggers.
We were trying to expose them.” “Like you?” Alice pressed.
“I’m not even a real officer,” Matt admitted with a self-deprecating laugh.
“My record is dirty everywhere.
I couldn’t get clearance into the Hive, so…
Lisa took the risk for me.” He squeezed his eyes shut.
“We needed concrete physical evidence.
The actual pathogen.” “The T-Virus,” Chu Feng added quietly.
Matt snapped his head toward Chu Feng, his eyes sharp with sudden alarm.
“How do you know about that?
Are you part of the contact network?” Chu Feng shrugged, leaning casually against a filing cabinet.
“I respect what you guys tried to do, but no.
And for what it’s worth, Matt, your contact played you.
The person who agreed to steal the sample didn’t plan on giving it to the press.
They kept it for the black market and smashed a vial on the floor to cover their tracks, intending to kill everyone inside.” “You mean…
the person who leaked the virus is still in the Hive?” Matt’s voice trembled with rage.
“He is,” Chu Feng said.
“Who is it?!” Matt demanded, his knuckles white.
Beside him, Alice leaned in, listening intently.
“Think about it,” Chu Feng said calmly.
“Who else woke up in this facility with complete neurotoxin-induced amnesia?” Matt and Alice locked eyes, the realization striking them simultaneously.
“Spence,” they whispered in unison.
“Bingo,” Chu Feng nodded.
“He took the virus and the antiviral, triggered the lockdown, and got caught in the Red Queen’s defense gas before he could escape to the train.” Matt clenched his fists so hard his nails bit into his palms.
“That bastard…
he was right next to us the whole time.” Alice, however, slowly turned her gaze back to Chu Feng.
Her eyes narrowed with intense scrutiny.
“Hold on.
Chu Feng…
how do you know all of this?” The room fell quiet.
“In the dining hall, you knew about the Red Queen’s seal before anyone else,” Alice said, her agent instincts taking over as she cataloged every anomaly.
“You knew headshots were the only way to kill these things.
You knew Lisa was Matt’s sister before he even spoke.
And now you know details about Spence that even the infiltration network didn’t have.” She took a deliberate step toward him, her stance tense.
“Who are you really working for?” Matt, picking up on her suspicion, backed away slightly, keeping his guard up against Chu Feng.
Chu Feng looked at the two of them—one a memory-wiped elite agent, the other a vengeful activist—both staring at him like he was an undercover operative for a shadow syndicate.
He let out a tired sigh and rubbed the back of his neck.
“If I tell you I’m just an ordinary college student who accidentally took a wrong turn into the Hive…
would either of you actually believe me?”