Anyhow, Mary was the kindergarten teacher in Damon and Jonah wants to start school again. Back to the one room schoolhouse days until he gets more teachers. There are too many kids for them to go every day. Doc volunteered to teach science one day a week, that’s what Jonah said. I like Doc. He’s funny and doesn’t look like a Doc.
As odd as it sounds, I like the idea of school starting again. I hope Lodi does that. But there aren’t that many kids left. Not that there are all that many in Damon, but there’s at least a hundred and that is way more than Lodi.
Every afternoon is movie day at the theater for kids only. That’s when I realized there were a hundred, cause I counted the kids in the seats. It was an old cowboy movie but it was fun. Me, Tigger and Jake got our popcorn cup and were told to bring it each day. Man, it wasn’t a lot of popcorn, but it was sure good. I ate one piece at a time really slow so it would last.
Me, Tig and Jake are at the library now waiting on Jonah. Him and that other guy had to speak to Doc about something. The library is cool.
Tig is having fun. Even though it’s not too bad here, I can’t wait to go home.
13. Dark Turn
Las Vegas, NV
“Anything?” Bill asked as he walked into the new lab, which was the laundry room at the hotel at one time.
Lexi bit her bottom lip. “I think I failed in the picture.”
“Let me see. I was an award winning photographer you know.” He held out his hand for her phone.
“I don’t think anyone takes good phone pictures.” She gave him the phone.
“You’ve got a good phone, you should…” Bill paused. “Scratch that. This is the worst picture I have ever seen. Do you need glasses?”
Lexi playfully slapped Bill on the arm.
“They aren’t gonna be able to figure this out,” he said.
“See I think they will,” she said. “You’re under the misconception that they’ll look at the microbe and know what it is instantaneously.”
“Won’t they?”
“No, it’s not that easy.”
“However, picture taking with an expensive phone is,” Bill said sarcastically. “And you failed that. Get it up on the screen again please.”
With a few clicks, Lexi pulled up the images. Using the phone, Bill snapped a few pictures. He reviewed them.
“There. They’re good.” He handed back the phone.
“Thank you.”
He took in the screen shot of the microbe and remarked how it reminded him of an alien. “Do you have any clue what this is?”
“It looks familiar,” Lexi said. “Like I should know it. And when and if they figure it out, I’ll probably get mad for not knowing it.”
“I have no idea what it is,” Bill said. “In case you were asking me.”
Lexi laughed, and her smile dropped when Matt walked in the room. “Hey, you look upset. I was just with your mom. She’s doing well.”
Matt shook his head. “Not her. Are our other people okay?”
Lexi nodded. “Stable. Why?”
“Can you guys come with me? We found some sick people. And you were right, they didn’t come here because they had no clue we had a doctor.”
“You didn’t bring them in?” Lexi asked.
“No, and I don’t think I should.” Matt gave a wave of his hand. “Come with me.”
Lexi walked across the room for her bag. She added a few things back into it, zipped it and asked Bill, “I wonder what’s up?”
“Would you think I was overreacting to say I just got a twitch of fear about this?”
“Not at all.” Lexi tossed her bag over her shoulder and left with Bill.
She had no idea what they were going to see, but like Bill, she was fearful.
Damon, NY
Doc held out his hand to halt Briggs from opening the door. He had led the commander to the top floor of the hospital and to the far back set of rooms, stopping at the glass wall. “I can’t let you go in there.”
“Why not? You said it was about the patient that came in from out west.”
“Yes.”
“That’s her, right?” Briggs pointed to the window and the lone occupant of the room, a woman in a hospital bed.
“It is and that’s why I can’t let you in there. The flu pretty much wiped out all the quarantine stuff and bio hazard suits. What we have left is minimal and we need it for our workers until you can find us more.”
Brigs gave an inquisitive look. “What’s going on?”
“I asked her when she left the west. She said eight days ago, give or take a day. She said they stopped twice overnight, once in Vegas, the next day in Indiana, and that’s where our guys got her. So it’s falling in the incubation period. The child and another woman with her are showing symptoms. I need those men who brought them in. I need them here and away from everyone for two weeks.”
Briggs closed his eyes with a tense expression.
“They went back out?” Doc asked.
Briggs nodded. “Not for a run though, to head home. They’re taking the long route because of that insurgent blockade. Hopefully, they won’t run into them and get captured.”
“No, actually, if they’ve got this, hopefully they will get captured by this problem camp.”
Briggs seemed offended. “That’s heartless for our men.”
“Well, if this band of merry mercenaries clocked Erie and burned a town, who knows what else they can do? It would be an easy elimination of them.”
“What the hell does this woman have?” Briggs asked.
“I can’t confirm, I can only guess. I don’t have the means to really test.”
“The guess?” Briggs folded his arms.
Doc exhaled. “I saw it when I was a kid. Not here in America, and that’s why it doesn’t make sense. It has to be something else, because I can’t figure out how she got it.”
Briggs huffed in frustration. “What? Tell me what to prepare for.”
Doc nodded as an indication to the woman. “Look at her face. Her eyes, her ears, her nose. Look closely.”
Briggs did and he whispered, “Are they… bleeding?”
“They are, and she’s been vomiting blood as well,” Doc said. “She’s dying, Jonah. From something that doesn’t happen here in America. I think — no I’m almost positive — ” Doc faced Briggs, “that she has Ebola.”
Las Vegas, NV
Vegas wasn’t an easy place to get around. The only thing in its favor, post-flu world, was that it was flat, easy on gas.
Walking was out of the question; they had to drive. The heat was unbearable, the wind was fierce, like a high heat blow dryer basting wave after wave of dirt and sand, and starving birds grew bold and brave, swooping down occasionally at the solo walkers.
Matt managed to put up tents that stretched across some of the property for those who ventured outside, but it was best to stay indoors. He even told Bill to move the car to an indoor garage, which Bill did. Even though it was under the awning of the casino drop off, it was getting buried in sand.
They took Matt’s car. Four blocks down was the Stay Rite Motel. Nothing fancy, basic, cheap accommodations for the thrifty Vegas tourist who wanted to stay on The Strip.
Admittedly, Matt didn’t have a full grasp on how many people lived in his new stopping post town. There could have been some that passed trough. A few still lived in houses on the outskirts, but most of them made their way inward. While his men kept track of those they saw stroll into to town and where they settled, it was hard to do an accurate count when they didn’t enter into barter or need anything.