Chapter 07: Unappreciative House Guests
Pulling up in front of the house, Alice ran out before David could even get out of the vehicle. It had turned overcast, and looked like it was about to pour. David climbed out of his SUV and waved Monique’s car up so Debbie could make it into the house without having to limp too far. Monique took in the Humvee and the military tanker parked a ways off, making her own assumptions about what David was trying to do here, though she didn’t bother to voice them out loud.
“Uh, Dad, I’ve got some bad news for you,” Alice said, ignoring the new people, new vehicles and new animals.
Those few words struck a sense of dread in David’s heart. As concerned as he was for these new people, they were still strangers who didn’t rely on him, and would likely take off as soon as they got the medication they came for. Mattie, though, was not only important to him, but he felt personally responsible for her being ill.
“Mattie?” he asked, turning to gage Alice’s reaction. She simply nodded, a lump forming in her throat as she dreaded having to explain the details to her father, who she knew wouldn’t appreciate what she had to tell him.
“Is she…?” he asked, unable to ask the question he was dreading. His biggest fear, after watching so many people die, was that he wouldn’t be there for the people who needed him. He knew death was inevitable, especially in this new world they found themselves in, but that someone could die painfully while he was out cavorting struck him deeply. He hadn’t been there for Erica due to similar circumstances, and that memory haunted him, and flavored how he’d responded to everyone since.
“No, she’s still alive, but she’s very sick. But there’s more.” Alice took another breath, preparing what she was going to say as Monique was helping Debbie from her car. Debbie’s leg was inflamed and red, and she needed the medication as soon as they could get it.
“She’s got each of the plagues we suffered from, and it’s not the four that you keep telling everyone about. There’s at least five. If you’ll remember, we were exposed to some that had no visible symptoms.”
“You mean she got them from me? From the plasma?” David asked, making the obvious connection. Alice merely nodded her head unhappily, looking like she was ready to cry.
“Wait a minute,” Monique said, interrupting them as she helped Debbie head towards the house a safe distance from them. “Do you mean to tell me that you’re still contagious?”
Knowing it was time to face the unfortunate confrontation he knew he couldn’t avoid, David turned to face their newest guests.
“It looks like it. I hadn’t mentioned it before because we weren’t sure, but I think I infected someone recently. That’s borne out by what’s happened since. We tried to treat her with my plasma, but we ended up making it worse, giving her even more infections, so our attempt to help her has only made her worse,” he admitted, even though he didn’t know the specifics himself.
“And you expect us to walk into an active plague house with several people who could expose us?” Monique asked, backing away even more.
“That’s why I suggested you keep your distance when we first met,” David argued.
“We kept our distance because we knew better than to trust what someone told us, something you’ve just proven. If Debbie didn’t need this treatment we’d be so out of here, but I can’t take the chance. Could you bring the medicine out here and I’ll treat her so we can be on our way? We’ll get by without your assistance. We don’t have much gas left, but getting a few more miles away won’t help if we’re infected.”
“Nonsense, we’ve maintained a very careful regime of safeguards,” David protested. “Mattie only got infected because I let my guard down and gave her a very human hug when she needed one. I’d thought I was safe, but I know better now. Tom, inside, is also at risk but he’s fine. It’s going to pour in a minute, and you can’t apply the medication as well as he can. We’ll all keep our distance, but there’s no sense taking off immediately.”
“Yeah, you’re going to tell me that you maintain a sterile environment in that little wooden shack?” Monique asked, indicating the entrance to his house, which was hardly an imposing exterior. “How about we stay out here, or maybe use the trailer?”
“I think you’ll be surprised once you see it,” David offered.
“It’s really much nicer than it looks like from the outside,” Alice suggested.
“Besides, the trailer is the last place you want to be. Both it and the outbuilding over here were used as isolation wards. A lot of people have died here, and while we’ve scrubbed it down, I wouldn’t recommend using them.”
Monique looked at them doubtfully, and then turned to consider Debbie.
“Could I please lie down?” Debbie asked. “My leg is killing me. I don’t think I could stand getting back in the car again.”
That made up Monique’s mind. “I just want everyone to keep their distances. I don’t know why you people would want to purposefully infect people, but I’m not afraid to defend ourselves.”
As if to provide her with additional safeguards, David pulled his pistol from his waistband, wiped it down with an antiseptic wipe and placed it on the ground between them before stepping back. The meaning was clear; he was offering them the means to keep them at bay if they attempted anything. Monique grunted, not trusting a simple hand wipe to protect against possible infection. Refusing to pick it up, they made their way towards the house anyway. David and Alice fell in behind them after he picked his pistol back up, still maintaining their distance. Tom opened the door for them as they approached.
“I’ve got the medicine ready inside,” he said. Monique again simply grunted, still not sure she trusted these people.
“So just how sick is Mattie and why didn’t you tell me this sooner, when I could have done something?” David asked his daughter. Instead of sounding angry, apparently the discussion with Monique had tempered his own reactions and now he simply sounded resigned. Something that made Alice feel even worse, since she knew he’d eventually internalize it anyway. She felt it would be better for him to vent for a while before that occurred.
“There wasn’t anything you could do, and the fact that you arrived with two people needing help proves you needed to be there. Being here wouldn’t have helped anyone,” Alice answered, speaking with a conviction she didn’t exactly feel at the moment.
“Mattie’s very sick, but so far she’s holding on. She’s drifting in and out of consciousness, so we don’t know how long she’ll last, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed.”
“OK, we’ll talk about keeping secrets from me later; right now I need to see Mattie. If reaching out to me is what did her in, then I at least want to be there to help console her in her last remaining moments,” David said as they entered the house, closing the door just as the skies opened up.
“Shit! How the hell do you hide this from the outside?” Monique asked as they both gaped at what they saw laid out before them.
“Look, they have lights, music, all the modern conveniences we thought were gone,” Debbie marveled.
“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Tom told them. “Step into my parlor, said…,” Tom wisely shut up before finishing the badly fitting analogy he’d been about to make.
Leading them into the living room, they saw all the electronics, the huge ceiling and the tremendous view of the storm blowing outside. They also saw all the medical and testing devices that Tom had working there, as well as observing Mattie, laid out on a temporary bed on the other side of the room from them.
“Just bring the equipment, I know enough to apply it,” Monique told him. “Better yet, just point out where it is and I’ll get it myself.”
Alice leaned over, whispering to her dad. “She’s really cute. I can see why you brought her home.”
David cast a warning glance at her in response, but chose not to say anything they might overhear. He didn’t think it was an appropriate thing to say, especially now that it looked certain they’d leave as quickly as they could, ending not only Alice’s hopes of a romantic liaison, but also a further link to other survivors.
As Tom showed her where he had the medicine, David quickly introduced everyone.
“Can we get you anything?” Alice asked, playing the gracious host, even if it wasn’t appreciated. “We’ve got several things to drink, anything from hot chocolate on a cold night to a shot of bourbon.”
“We could use some surgical masks more than anything else, but I wouldn’t trust them to be unused. Honestly, if you’re still contagious, I’d rather avoid anything,” Monique replied, though it was obvious that Debbie was disappointed. She’d positively lit up at the offer of hot chocolate.
“We’re got paper cups if that’s any better,” Alice offered.
“Just leave it on the counter,” Monique interjected, speaking for Debbie as she prepared the two syringes. “I’ll pour it myself.”
“You know, I think you’re underestimating just how safe David keeps this place,” Tom told them.
“Well apparently it wasn’t safe enough to prevent this poor girl from becoming deathly ill. Thanks, but we’d rather remain alive rather than bowing to social conventions just to be polite,” Monique responded sharply. Unseen by her, David waved Tom off, letting him know to give them their space. Meanwhile, Monique gave Debbie her antibiotics injection.
Walking up to Mattie, David took her hand in his and looked her over. He’d already put on gloves, even though he technically didn’t need them, but he hoped she could tell he was there. The gloves were actually more for Monique and Debbie’s benefit more than they were for Mattie, since David was already thinking it was too late to do much for her. After all, he couldn’t infect her any worse than she already was, and he knew just how deadly even a single strain of the Great Death was.
“There’s not much you can do,” Tom told him. “She lost consciousness a long time ago.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” David snapped in response. “We’ve been where she is now, and her consciousness comes and goes, so she’s aware not only of the pain, but also of how alone she is. I promised I’d be here for her, and here is where I’m going to remain.”
However, when he noticed Monique and Debbie looking at him, he reconsidered his stance.
“Are you still doing the plasma treatments?” he asked Tom.
“We have been, but I’m not sure they’re doing any good at this point.”
“OK, in deference to everyone else, I’ll take her out to the trailer. Alice, could you bring us some food and water, and the other stuff we used to keep outside for this. I’m going to remain by her side though this, however long it takes.” His stance was strengthened when he felt Mattie weakly squeezing his hand, showing she was somewhat conscious, and was at least aware that he was present, though he had no idea if she understood anything they’d been discussing. When Alice nodded, David picked the slight girl up and carried her out, with Alice hurrying ahead to open the door for them.
“Were they close?” Debbie asked after they both disappeared, her concern for the girl she didn’t know written across her face.
“Not until she finally opened up to him the night before she came down with the virus. She’d been infected and survived another strain before, as well as having watched her entire family die before her eyes. She was forced to abandon her home in order to protect herself, thus she was a little gun shy. But I think the way David responded to her made a big difference to her. At least for a short term,” he sighed.
“And you’re still OK?” Monique asked guardedly. “You’ve never been sick yet?”
“Oh, no, I got sick too, before I met them, but I recovered. But just like with David and Alice, my dog John-John was there for me, and having someone there when you’re that close to death really means the world to you. However, I haven’t caught the other contagions since I’ve been here, so we’re doing something right.”
“Then how did this Maggie get sick?” Monique pressed, still feeling they were trying to pull the wool over her eyes.
“The name is Mattie,” Tom pointed out, just as strongly. He was already building an intense dislike for this aggressive shrew, but he tempered his reaction, knowing how vital it would be to have someone knowledgeable about medicine available to them, even if she didn’t live there. “She’d been watching how close David and Alice were, and how that closeness allowed them to recover and heal emotionally. She decided she wanted some of that, so she cuddled up with David the other night. When she woke up the next morning, she was already showing the signs of infection.”
“And how long ago was that?”
“Not quite two days,” Tom admitted, relaxing his more aggressive stance. “About a day and a half.”
“That fits the scenario I’ve observed. She probably doesn’t have much longer.”
“Have you seen much of this yourself?” Tom asked.
“Yeah, I worked at the hospital. There we didn’t manage to keep everything quite as clean, but we also didn’t interact with the victims quite as personally.”
“Both David and Alice believe in this very strongly. Not only have they both been through it themselves, experiencing agony you can only dream of, but they also nursed a lot of friends and family through it as well. It’s very personal for them. They aren’t just warehousing them as the hospitals were doing,” Tom responded. Monique looked down at that rebuke, but then looked at Debbie again.
“How you doing, honey?”
“Honestly, I could use something to drink. Otherwise my leg still aches.”
“Yeah, I just gave you the antibiotic, so it’s going to be a while before it feels any better,” Monique told her as she got up and headed into the kitchen. “So has anyone else died since they’ve ‘recovered’?” Monique asked from the other room as she turned on the faucet with her elbow.
“Mattie and I were the first human survivors David and Alice found, though they’ve been rescuing a bunch of animals. So far, none of them have gotten any worse, although a few were sick when they found them.”
“They didn’t touch them, did they?” Monique asked in alarm as she reappeared carrying a small paper cup with water.
“They did, but they know the risks. They’ve been broadcasting to others the best approach to dealing with the situation. They always wear gloves and face masks when dealing with others, as well as using disposable clothing, though they’ve been running low of those now.
“Frankly, they’ve had enough experience to know what works and what doesn’t. They’ve been helping people for some time, and not just by sticking them somewhere and waiting for them to die, but actually taking care of them, talking to them, and constantly monitoring them.”
“Well, I’ll admit, this place looks immaculate,” Monique conceded, “and the medical supplies are certainly clean. They don’t appear to be cross contaminating anything.”
“But the animals are doing better?” Debbie asked, taking a sip of the water, but not appreciating it as much as she would have the hot chocolate.
“Let me see; they picked up a very sick wild duck, which is still weak but doing better, a rooster who was near death but is almost ready to join the several hens we have, and a horse named Aristotle that was already recovering when they found him. They’re all doing quite well.”
“Ooh, a horse. I love horses,” Debbie exclaimed. “I’d love to see one again.”
“You can forget that, missy. I want you to live through this experience. I’m not about to let you compromise your health just because you see something cute. And that goes for Mr. David too,” she whispered off-handedly to herself.
Alice reentered the house again and addressed them.
“Dad plans on staying with Mattie for as long as she needs. I’ve wiped down everything we’ve touched, like door handles. He also wanted me to tell you that I can take you to get your gas tank refilled, or if it’s more convenient, you can simply siphon enough from the other vehicles, just as long as you don’t drain any of them completely.”
“Tell him that’s very kind of him. I think we’ll do the latter. I’m still anxious to get out of here,” Monique confessed, still sounding uneasy.
“Are you sure?” Debbie asked. “This can’t be any riskier than that stupid tent we were living in; the scent of all those dead bodies wafting over us all night long. That couldn’t have been any better for us.”
“There’s a difference between unavoidable dead bodies a safe distance away and living sources of contagion in the same house,” Monique warned her.
“I don’t know if it’ll make a difference,” Alice suggested, “but we cleaned out the houses nearest us at the end of our driveway. They should be safe. We removed the dead bodies, sterilized everything and got rid of the infected mattresses. We could also supply you with some food if you needed it while staying there.”
“That’s very kind, but if you cleaned it, you may not have cleaned what you yourselves contaminated,” Monique informed her. “I still think it’s best if we keep our distance. As it is, I’m only waiting until Debbie is strong enough to walk again.”
“If you want, there’s a spare bed upstairs,” Alice offered, still hoping to make a good impression for her father’s benefit, hoping there was a chance for Monique and her father to somehow hit it off, though that was looking ever more unlikely. “It’s clean, it’s got a plastic cover on it we’ve cleaned repeatedly with a bleach wipe, and only Mattie’s used it recently before she got infected,” Alice offered.
Monique looked at Debbie, trying to gauge its relative safety versus their ability to safely leave the premises.
“Please?” Debbie asked pleadingly. “I really need to rest, and having a bed of my own to do it in would be tremendous.”
“Oh, yeah, Dad also mentioned he’s got some spare smartphones we can let you have. It’ll take some time for me to load them with stuff, but it’s probably the last source of new music you’re likely to encounter.”
“We have CDs in my car,” Monique responded.
“Yeah, with Luther Vandros and rap and rock songs from the 80s and 90s,” Debbie complained.
“OK, but don’t get adventurous,” Monique cautioned her, finally relenting. “Keep your curiosity in check and don’t touch anything. I’ll wipe down the handset and the earphones before we use them.”
“Oh thanks,” Debbie gushed, almost giving Monique a hug before catching herself, the age old human habit being very hard to break.
“Can I at least talk to Alice?” Debbie asked, pushing the issue. “It’s been ages since I’ve talked to anyone my age, and it would mean a lot to spend some time tal—”
“That’s not a good idea,” Monique insisted. “It doesn’t pay getting to know people if we’re going to be leaving soon.” It sounded to Alice like she was speaking from experience, and she figured she’d spent some time not getting to know people.
Debbie, though, looked upset; despite the good news she could stay and appreciate the nice clean comfortable house with all the modern conveniences. Alice felt for her, knowing what it was like not having anyone her age to talk to.
“I’ll show you where it’s at,” Alice offered, as Monique helped Debbie stand. Tom offered to carry her, even though she was already moving better than she had when she arrived, but Monique told him no, saying she needed to exercise the leg now. With that they hobbled up the stairs.
“I don’t think we’re going to convince them,” Alice commented when she came back downstairs without them.
“No, everyone has to make their own choices. If she worked at the hospital, she’s certainly seen a lot of people die. You can’t ask her to make the same choices you did. Yours were flavored with some degree of success. I don’t think hers have been. Apparently she only met Debbie the other day, and neither one has gotten sick yet.”
“No, you’re wrong about that,” Alice informed him. “It’s subtle, but when someone recovers from one of the plagues, they still bear the symptoms of it on their skin. It’s not as pronounced, but they never quite go away. In fact, I could even tell you what they had.”
“That may be, but it doesn’t change their circumstances. She’s more leery than we are and she has good reason to be. You’ve got to let her make her own decision.”
Alice was about to respond when Monique reappeared, descending the stairs. “If you still have that bourbon, I might just risk it.” She looked like she wasn’t weathering this much better than the others.
“Hello?” Monique called, knocking on the door of the trailer as the afternoon rain beat down, reinforcing the depressing scene occurring within.
David was anything but happy to be disturbed. He’d been sitting with Mattie for some time, and while she appeared unresponsive to the casual observer, she repeatedly grasped his hand, squeezing it weakly before loosening it again as she was wracked with pain, only to fall unconscious several minutes later. David could tell from her gasping breath she was in a great deal of pain, but knew she appeared to be in an uneasy sleep. Yet he was also conscious of just how much she was aware of what was happening to her and that someone was here for her. He really didn’t want to take any time from her during her time of need.
“Yeah?” he called back, figuring he’d better hear her out.
“We’re going to be taking off. We thank you for everything you’ve done, and while we appreciate your hospitality… screw it. Enough with the pleasantries, while you’ve got a nice set up here, I’m terrified of dying in a ‘nice’ environment when we’re fine on our own. I wish you the best of luck, but if I were you, I’d avoid everyone else while you’re still contagious. Otherwise, their deaths will be on you,” she responded with more than a little anger, as if she blamed him personally for exposing her to something that might kill them at any moment.
“Glad I could be of assistance,” David responded sarcastically. He thought about it a moment and just had to check. “Did you get anything to travel on?”
“Oh yeah, that’s what’s taken so long. I let Debbie rest while I suctioned gas from your vehicles. Not knowing which you’d use, I tried to take an equal amount from all of them, so I don’t think you’ll be terribly impacted. But Debbie had a nice chance to recover, so we’re ready to travel again. Your daughter pointed us to some food, so I fixed some sandwiches for our return trip. We should be fine from here.”
“Well, that makes me feel a little better at least,” he responded. “Where are you going from here? Back to where you were?”
“Frankly, I don’t know yet. I’ve got to ask Debbie if she left anything behind. If not we may strike out on our own. The region around here is a little dead, a little too ‘country’ for my tastes, but where we were had too many infected people still lurking about, or at least it did before the big die off, so I’m not sure which avenue we’ll take.”
“Well good luck whichever choice you make,” David replied, glad to finally be done with her. While he didn’t object to helping them out, he didn’t appreciate them interrupting his personal time with Mattie, time he knew was very likely her last. He simply didn’t feel comfortable filling it with idle chit chat with someone he’d never see again. She wandered off without any additional comment.
He heard them drive off, never hearing from Debbie, who’d he’d originally thought was the perfect age for Alice. He couldn’t blame them for their decision, but he certainly didn’t mourn their leaving. He continued nursing Mattie, trying to force her to drink something until he was disturbed again. Only this time he didn’t object so much. It was Alice, informing him he needed to come in and eat, as it wouldn’t help anyone if he let himself get sick due to his not taking care for himself.
“I can’t very well leave her alone,” he protested. “After all, this might be her final moments.”
“Fine,” Alice said, climbing into the trailer, “I’ll sit with her while you go eat. I figured you’d do this, so I already ate before coming out. It’s easier if we relieve each other. We can’t very well spend all our available time ignoring everything else.”
“Have you taken care of the animals?” David asked as he relinquished control of Mattie to his daughter.
“Yep, they’re all taken care of. Anything I should be aware of?”
“Yeah, I’ve been talking to her, and she seems to respond to it. I think it gives her something to focus on whenever she comes around. I’ve been trying to encourage her to continue, telling her how I expect her to help us with our work.”
At that Alice just glared at him, but he just shrugged. “Hey, there’s no harm being optimistic. If it helps her rally, then it’s worth it.”
“OK, there’s been some other news that you should be aware of,” Alice said, accepting his comment. “Tobias called back. He’s reached Nassau, located on the most populated island in the Bahamas with some 200,000 inhabitants, probably a bit less since it’s the summer season right now. He stopped at the…, let me see if I’ve got this right…, the “Palm City Marina”, which is on the south side of the island. Most of the inhabitants and the bigger port are on the north side, but that was farther away.
“He said that the place looked deserted with heavy damage, especially to the boating areas and docks, with most of the boats sunk. However, as he tried exploring the houses accessible by boat he was shot at three separate times, so he figured that there were survivors, but that it wasn’t worth risking trying to communicate with them, so he’s taken off for Florida. Since he’s not familiar with celestial navigation, he’s simply heading northwest using dead reckoning, a compass and his nautical maps, so he doesn’t know exactly where he’s likely to end up. He’ll contact us as soon as he lands.”
“OK, that’s pretty useful. It means that people have survived, but that they’re either concerned with looting or afraid of exposure. That helps, but right now I’m too tired to deal with it, I’ll concentrate on it later.”
With that, he retreated to the house and ate with Tom, who really didn’t have much to say other than asking about his patient. Finishing dinner, David stopped for a quick shot of whiskey, observing they didn’t have much left, realizing there wouldn’t be any way of replenishing it once it was gone, but figuring he needed something to help him make it through the night. He put on some soothing music before he left, leaving Tom playing with his microscope, searching for some elusive clue they’d previously missed, but David realized that Mattie was beyond any miracle discoveries. The rest of humanity probably was as well, he resigned himself.
When he relieved Alice she gave him a quick kiss before she headed inside, telling him she’d relieve him so he could get some rest later, and then headed inside.
David was so focused on Mattie and how she was responding, talking or singing to her like he’d done with Ellen and Alice so long ago, that he was shocked when Alice called to him again. He literally had no idea how long it had been since she’d left, but it had seemed only a few moments ago.
“Dad, you should know that someone is coming up the driveway. I could see them approaching from inside the house. I can only imagine its Monique. Maybe she decided the weather is too bad to head out tonight, but she’ll probably want to speak to you.”
“Damn, when is that idiot woman going to leave us alone? We’re not threatening her as much as she’s putting herself at risk continually asking us for help,” he complained as Alice moved in to take over his watch. He stood up, disinfecting his hands, though he knew it wouldn’t make any difference. He still couldn’t shake anyone’s hand.
Stepping outside he checked his sidearm, which he’d kept on him out of force of habit. It wasn’t an old habit, but he’d ingrained it pretty quickly once things started heading south, and now he was never far from it. Although it was still wet outside and the sky was heavily overcast, the rain had let up for a little while, so he could at least wait a little while without getting drenched. Seeing headlights approaching he waited until the car appeared, then noted that it was in fact Monique’s car, even though he couldn’t see anything else because of the bright headlights. His mind danced with imagined retorts, but he knew he’d never stoop to that level. If she needed something, he’d give it since that’s what was needed. Life was hard enough now, and people were more worried about surviving than they were with social decorum. Hopefully she wouldn’t need anything that would take too long.
Parking a short distance away, safe enough not to expose one another, she turned her headlights off, relying on David’s flashlight and the setting sun to provide the light they needed. He observed both front doors opening, which was strange since he figured Debbie should still be resting her leg. But he was further confused when he heard the other doors open as well.
Curious, David flicked the flashlight up, exposing several individuals accompanying Monique. Surprisingly he counted five people, including Monique and Debbie. The new additions included an older man, kind of rugged looking with gray hair, and two women. David had no clue where Monique might have found so many friends so close at hand, unless they’d been waiting nearby somehow.
“Hey, David,” Monique called out. “We were all set to leave, but drove by the town square to see if there was some place we could crash for the night when we noticed some people sitting around the police station. While cautious, and not really wanting to get involved, I left Debbie and asked them what they wanted.
“It seems they’ve been looking for you,” she explained. “They walked here from God knows where, and knowing they didn’t have transportation, I couldn’t very well leave them alone. They all claim to be free of disease, so if I inadvertently infected them, or them me, then you’re to blame for all of us, but I thought you’d want to at least talk to them.”
David took the chance of stepping forward, nervous about frightening them, so he could see them better, once again flashing his light across their faces. There was a heavy set woman, whose bright smile in the dark night seemed odd considering she couldn’t know whether she’d be welcomed or what fate would await meeting contagious people would be. The other woman was younger, looking to be about Flora’s age, probably still attending college before the meteor shower put an end to that. While older than Alice, she was just about as flat chested as she was, with long blonde hair that could definitely use a comb. They looked exhausted, like they’d been hiking for several days straight.
“Are you Mr. Scott from the radio?” the older man in the worn Levis jacket asked.
“I am,” David responded.
“Prove it,” the man demanded.
“I’ve got a Driver’s License, if that will help. But all that means is that I potentially stumbled over his body.”
“What about your animals? What do you have and where did you find them?” the man asked. David risked another quick check with the flashlight, even though he knew it was annoying.
“Let’s see, if you’ve been listening to us, I’ve got a sick rooster and a duck, actually a coot. I have a recovered horse named Aristotle, and—”
“Yeah, yeah, so you’re listening as much as we have. What was the name of your ex-wife?”
That struck David as odd. That wasn’t something they would have gotten from the broadcasts, as they were careful not to reveal private details. Still, he figured these people deserved honest answers.
“Her name was Linda. Unfortunately she was killed by some survivalists we encountered attacking a nearby armory.”
“It really is you,” the man announced, barreling past the others and rapidly approached David, causing him to back up almost as rapidly. Seeing the man holding his arms out to wrap him in a big bear hug he knew he had to warn him off.
“HEY! No touching until I know everyone is immune. We’ve had some problems with subsequent infections and I don’t want anyone else’s death on my hands,” David insisted.
That brought the man up short.
“Sorry, man, I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m Greg Adams, these others are Melissa Eisenmann and just plain Betty. Seems Betty’s given up on the whole concept of last names.”
The trio looked like they’d seen some difficult times, but were used to hard work. They looked lean and rugged. Greg was older, dressed in a jean jacket with short graying hair combed to the side and a steely stare. Melissa and Betty were about as unmatched a pair as you could find, with Melissa being hefty and curvy, while Betty looked like the proverbial stick.
“Yeah, there seems to be a lot of that going around,” David responded. “Look, I’m currently looking after someone who’s sick—”
“I’ve got Mattie covered,” Alice yelled out the window of the trailer. “You take care of business.” David wasn’t sure he appreciated his daughter’s help right then, as he really wanted to get back to Mattie, but he knew he had to deal with these new people.
“Well, as my daughter said, I guess I’ve got a few spare minutes. I’m not sure how comfortable any of you are with others at the—”
“Are you kidding me? You’re The David Scott. The only one who’s beaten this damn plague, this ‘Great Death’ of yours. If you’re not safe, then no one is,” Greg responded, once again looking like he wanted to hug David.
“It may not be as simple as that,” David struggled to explain. “Since then we’ve had one of us fall victim to another variation of the plague, and I may have been responsible for infecting her.”
That brought the others up short, but then Greg smiled again. “Hell, I’m sure if anyone knows how to minimize risks, it’s you. If she got infected, I’m sure it couldn’t have been avoided. We trust you. You’re the only thing that’s been keeping us going these last couple of weeks. We were worried to death when you went off the air but—”
“Wait, this is all a bit much to take in all at once, and we’re all getting drenched standing out here in this drizzle. Come inside, stay as far away from me as you want, and let’s hash out what you’re here for.”
David was a bit stunned when the three newcomers broke into a big cheer and happily marched past him. After they’d moved past, Monique approached, helping Debbie, smiling at David sheepishly, but saying nothing to account for her change in behavior.
Tom, having watched the whole proceedings, opened the door for them and ushered them into the house. They were, of course, astounded by the interior of David’s house, and at everything he had up and running. Tom introduced himself, explaining where everything was and what he was currently working on. On learning of the working bathrooms, the women quickly headed for them.
“Hold on, let me get you some fresh towels. I don’t want you getting exposed to our germs,” David called out.
“Don’t worry, we planned ahead and brought our own,” Melissa responded with a pleasant smile. It was only then that David realized they each had a heavily loaded backpack complete with a bedroll attached. He watched the girls ascending the stairs, and then called up after them.
“There a master bathroom in my bedroom to the left, and one smaller one connected to Alice’s bedroom on the right. The master shower is big enough for anyone adventurous enough to try it.”
“Damn, hot water and everything,” Greg exclaimed.
“Tell me again how you managed to get here?” David asked.
“Oh, I came up from D.C.,” Greg explained. “I left with some others when the military started striking out, and we just kept going. One of the guys had family near here, and after we visited the hospital to find out what was happening, they told us about you. They said that one of the nurses knew you personally, and that you were well equipped to survive whatever came. It seemed she’d already died, but the other nurses knew what town you were from, at least.
“But we no longer had a car,” he continued, “or at least, we no longer had gas for it. It seemed there were several people that took to siphoning all the gas out of the standing cars, stockpiling it as well as hoarding all the available gas cans. They were charging a fortune to anyone who could pay for it. I met Betty who lived nearby, who knew one of the guys selling the bootleg gas. Of my other friends, who’d come with me from DC, one got sick and another didn’t stick around, so when Melissa asked if she could tag along we welcomed her. We walked to this guy’s house to buy some gas. However, once we got there the house was quiet. We knocked and then entered, only to find his two roommates shot dead and the guy gone. Apparently he killed his roommates when he discovered they’d gotten sick, and taken off somewhere, likely dying before he could do anything with it. So now it looks like all the available gasoline in that region is hidden somewhere no one can find it.”
“That’s free enterprise run amuck for you,” Melissa replied from the top of the stairs. “Man, you won’t believe how wonderful hot water is. I figured I’d give you each a shot at it before we start fighting over who gets the first shower.”
“Come on down, we’re telling David our story,” Greg told her, so she happily ran down. “Actually, running water is amazing enough. Hot water is just more than we could imagine after all this time,” he admitted to David while waiting for her to join them.
“Anyway, since the guy’s house was on the outskirts of town, we decided to just hoof it from there,” Greg continued. “We raided a few stores and rifled through a couple of abandoned houses, collecting camping gear and enough food to get by, we also grabbed a couple of radios and enough batteries to last us.”
“We already knew who you were from your broadcasts, and you seemed to be the only one making plans for the future, or who even knew what to expect, so we figured you’d know what we should do,” Melissa said. She was plump, but not obese by any stretch of the imagination. David wondered what she’d looked like before they started their long hike, as she must have lost a lot of weight along the way.
“It was a long haul, but we walked the whole distance from the hospital to here, stopping each night and having to duck the occasional wild assed wackos. Just before the final die off, people were getting really crazy, but you’d already warned us about it, so we knew to hide whenever anyone came along,” Greg continued. “We continued checking various houses, picking up what we could but avoiding any dead bodies along the way. You told us what we needed to know to keep from becoming infected. We even talked a local hardware superstore out of some masks they’d hidden away, so we were covered.”
“That takes us up to the present,” Monique added from behind David, causing him to spin, seeing her standing beside Debbie, who was sitting on the counter. “When we left here, we found them by the police station. Apparently when they came to town they didn’t know where to go from there, but headed there based on the stories you told about the police here being so in control of things.”
“Only there wasn’t anyone there,” Melissa said. “But we found that note between you and Tom, where you said you’d stop by occasionally to try to catch him. We figured the area was so clean that you must have spent a fair amount of time there recently.”
“They were crouched by the front door, trying to keep dry while keeping a watch for you,” Monique explained. “When they saw my car they ran out into the rain until I fired a shot over their heads, asking who the hell they were.”
“She came closer to talk, and we explained our history,” Greg said. “She gave us her sandwichs and told us she knew where you lived, but explained about the trouble you were having. When we asked if she could give us a ride she seemed conflicted, but she gave in when she saw how desperate we were.”
“They made a really sad group,” Monique replied. “A bunch of wet, tired white people unused to living on the land, I wasn’t sure how to carry them without risking exposure if they were lying, but hopefully everyone is as healthy as they claim to be.”
“Man, you won’t believe his shower,” Betty shouted from the top of the stairs. “It’s big enough for all of us, and it’s got a bunch of nozzles that all work.”
“So you’re all uninfected, never having gotten sick before?” David asked cautiously.
“Yep. We followed your advice and escaped getting exposed,” Greg explained. “There was another one of us, another guy, but he got ill and we were afraid to stay with him. We were hoping we could go back for him, but well, it’s been quite a while since then, and I’m sure he didn’t make it.”
“Wait, the problem is that while Alice and I have been exposed to each of the viruses, none of you have,” David tried to explain the danger he was exposing them to. “So while we’re immune, we’re likely carriers, which means you’re exposing yourselves by staying here.”
That news got their attention, but didn’t seem to dissuade them for long.
“That’s OK, man, you taught us how to deal with people who are infected. We’re sorry we couldn’t dispose of the bodies like you asked, but we didn’t have access to the equipment necessary to bury everyone,” Greg explained, looking troubled by just how much death they’d been exposed to, but then his face lit up again when he continued. “We know you’re more careful than anyone else, so we trust you to do the right thing.”
“While I appreciate the trust you have for me, I’m still reeling from having infected someone close to me, who even now is agonizing outside,” David told them. “While it’s true the exposure was stupid, and knowledgeable, I’m still uncomfortable risking exposing the rest of you.”
“You could always let them use the other houses you said you cleaned up,” Monique offered.
“Yeah, if you knew someplace that was safe to stay, we’d be fine. As long as we’re nearby, can turn to you for help, and can assist you in any way we can, we’ll be fine,” Greg asserted.
“I’ll have to consider this, but in the meantime, can I get you anything? We’re running low on things like milk and orange juice, but we have plenty of fresh water, hot tea, coffee and a bunch of soda we stocked up on as soon as we realized we were in trouble.
They immediately started ordering drinks, which Tom hurried to organize. David told them to make themselves comfortable but to watch what they touched, telling them he needed to check on someone while he thought about how best to handle them. With that he headed outside to the trailer again.
“So how is everyone?” Alice asked when her father entered.
“It’s a mad house. I’ve never seen a bunch of happier people. They drove from DC, and then walked all the way from the hospital to here.”
“Really, I wonder why we never saw them?”
“Apparently I put the fear of God and man into them with our broadcasts, so they avoided anyone along the way.”
“Man, it’s crazy; we probably passed them several times and never even knew it.”
“Yeah, it’s crazy all right. Now I’ve got to decide on the safest approach; keep them here where we may expose them, or send them packing after they’ve come all this way?”
“Well you certainly can’t send them away,” Alice insisted. “They’ve come here because of you. They understand the risks and they trust us to manage those risks. They’ll understand if someone gets sick, but they stand a better chance with us then they do on their own.”
“You may be right, but I’ve got to think this through,” David responded. “How’s Mattie holding up?”
“Surprisingly, she seems to be doing pretty well. She’s obviously in a lot of pain, but she seems to be stable at the moment.”
“Yeah, but remember, most of the deaths we experienced happened overnight, after everyone had gone to bed,” David cautioned her.
“Yeah, but you can’t stay up all night babysitting her. Let me go in and introduce myself, then I’ll come out and relieve you for five or six hours, then you can spell me for a while. Whatever happens, one of us will be here for her,” she assured him.
“You know, I have no idea how I’d ever have survived without you. Now I’ve just got to decide what to do with everyone, including Monique and Debbie. They didn’t look like they’re planning on heading out yet.”
“Well, if anyone can figure it out, it’s you. Let me go say hello, assign everyone quarters, get them fed and cleaned, take a short nap and then I’ll be out to relieve you again. By then everyone should be asleep so you won’t be disturbed. And Dad?” she asked just before she reached the door.
“Yeah?”
“I knew Monique would be back. While she can protest all she wants, I know there’s something between the two of you.”
“You keep hoping, but I’m telling you, I’m done with romance. I can’t go through another death. I allowed myself to love not just one person but four, and each one died on me. That’s enough heartache to teach me never to do that again,” he yelled after her as she scampered towards the house, but he didn’t know if she was listening to his protests or not. Just as well, he figured. She’d learn in time.
To Be Continued
“Grappling with Survival” is now available for purchase
(for those who can't wait for it to finish).
Check out smashwords.com for eBooks.
or createspace.com for paperbacks.
Both “Love and Family” and “Grappling with Survival” are available.
Don't forget, if you buy and read the book, write a quick review as that helps promote the book!
Join Crumbly Writer’s Discussion Group to ask questions, make suggestions or offer critiques.