Turners | Book 2 | 90 Degrees

by Thomas, Ellis

  The blood tests have revealed that while her body is slowly decaying, the antidote is fighting to keep the cells alive. The result is that while Henny has not fully turned, she is feeling all the sensation of the process.

  She is basically in a limbo state. Thankfully, her mind is still good so the doctors are able to determine what is helping her.”

  When Dale paused, a surge of questions filled the room like a tidal wave but he ignored them and, pounding the gavel for order and quiet, he continued on.

  “I know this is a lot to digest but I need to go over one more thing.

  For the safety of everyone, we will be immediately instituting certain safety measures.

  All those exposed to the antidote must wear a lapel pin, which we will provide, to designate they were inoculated. This is for your protection. If you are compromised and are not wearing the pin, CDC protocol is to terminate anyone showing the signs of infection because of the 100% mortality rate.”

  This brought a loud outburst from the crowd.

  “Although,” Dale continued in a loud voice. “Henny has shown signs of the disease she has not acquired the desire for flesh the way non-inoculated victims have. Because of this, the inoculated will not be a threat to those around them. But we must be able to immediately determine this.”

  As hands went up, Dale answered as many as he could but the bottom line was that no one was safe who had absorbed the antidote. Anyone outside that day would end up just like Henny if they were compromised. If they left Walters they would be shot if they showed symptoms. At least in Walters they would have some measure of safety because the townspeople knew they would not harm anyone.

  He was exhausted by the time the meeting was over and he knew the nightmare was only beginning.

  14 Victims

  Linda and Brent Denny had been present and were deeply troubled as they went home. While they had received the antidote, they had made the decision to keep their four children away from it. Now that their worst fears were confirmed, they were glad that none of their children would ever be put through the torture that Henny was going through.

  But, with that fear laid to rest, another took its place. What if someone thought one of their children were infected and shot them before making sure? While the youngest children would always be with one of them, their teenagers could not be protected the same way.

  “I’ve been thinking Brent” ventured Linda. “We can get the pins because everyone saw us out there in the crowd. Since no one asked where the kids were, if they ask now we can just say they were out playing.”

  Brent thought about it for a moment, and then said, “The problem with that babe, is they could turn on a bystander and pass on the infection.”

  “We can intervene. At least they won’t be shot on sight and we can make sure they really have been infected before something drastic happens.”

  Brent felt the need to give his children a fighting chance as much as his wife did and so gave in to her plan.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  One week later the bright orange buttons made by one of the residents arrived at the mayor’s office.

  “Suri” he said when his wife picked up the phone. “They’re here.”

  “Should I come by to get ours?” she asked.

  “No” Leo replied. “We need to follow protocol like everyone else. They’re being handed out this evening.”

  “Leo, Henny has not improved. She’s in constant pain when she’s not sedated and Charles can’t do anything. I wonder if being shot wouldn’t have been a better choice. At least it would have been over with. Not only is she really suffering but the decay that is happening in her is beginning to really stink. I don’t think I could bear that. She said she had asked Charles to end her life but he just can’t do it. He still thinks some kind of cure will be created.”

  “Lives are precious Suri, even in Henny’s state.” Suri knew he was right and had she been in Charles shoes, she was pretty sure she would respond the same way. Hope is such a strong human compulsion.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  At 7:00 sharp that evening, in the school gym, the Mayor’s assistants were ready to start passing out the pins.

  “Before we begin,” Leo started. “I just want to remind you that only those who’ve been inoculated should have these.” He looked at the crowd trying to remember who he had seen that day. It had been almost two months now and only a few were coming to mind. ‘Oh well,’ he thought, ‘it will have to be the honor system.’

  The crowd moved smoothly through the process. At one point Brent Denny thought he noticed a raised eyebrow when he asked for six pins but knew it was just his conscience when he was handed all the pins without question. He was haunted by a nagging uneasiness about what they were doing. It was not only deceitful but he hoped with all of his heart that their plan would not backfire some way.

  15 Pain Relief

  Dr. Wiggins was at his wife’s bedside whenever he wasn’t taking care of patients. He would get dinner at his favorite café, go home to shower and change, then, back to the hospital. Dr. Tsosie was in constant communication with CDC headquarters, sending regular blood samples and monitoring Henny. The two doctors stood vigil over Henny, only leaving her to take care of personal needs or research an issue.

  One evening they were having dinner together while going over Henny’s condition and the latest reports out of the CDC.

  “I think I might have a solution” Kirsten began.

  Dr. Wiggins immediately focused his attention.

  “We keep analyzing and sending blood samples because the virus is carried through the blood stream. What if we changed the blood?” she suggested.

  “I had thought about that but it would take continuous transfusing to keep the virus at bay. No hospital keeps that much blood in reserve.” Dr. Wiggins had mulled that situation over and over again in his own mind. “Also, the new blood will flow through infected tissue and wind up being contaminated again.”

  “But what if we did a complete transfusion and continued with a pint every day?” continued Kirsten.

  “It would have to have a positive effect and possibly dilute the AT48 after a time and help heal the infected tissue!”

  Dr. Wiggins knitted his brows in concentration. “You might have something there. It’s certainly worth a try. I’ll check Memorial’s supply when I get back and let you know what the inventory is.”

  16 Deception’s Tragedy

  Linda smiled as her family sat around the table finishing up their dinner. How glad she was to be safe in Walters while it seemed the world was succumbing to Turners.

  “What?’ she asked, being pulled out of her reverie by her youngest daughter, Tisha, who was nine.

  “Can I spend the night at Cily’s house? Her mommy said I could” which in her mind made it a shoo-in.

  Linda’s heart skipped a beat and her first reaction was to say ‘no’. But how long could she keep her children secluded? They were part of this town and if they were to grow up strong, they had to grow up with people.

  “Mommy?” Tisha queried. “Is it ok?”

  The Willing family had moved to Walters over a year ago and all of the interactions Linda had had with Claire Willing had been positive.

  Brent looked at Linda, giving her a consensual nod. It was now Linda’s decision.

  Deciding she needed to loosen her grip just a bit, she told Tisha to wait while she made a call to Cily’s mother.

  “Hi Claire, this is Linda Denny. Tisha just told me that you and Cily had invited her to spend the night.”

  “Yes. I told Cily this morning that it would be fun. Kevin is in Phoenix for a couple of days, so I thought it would be a good night for the girls.”

  “I know Tisha would love it. We’re just finishing dinner so I’ll be over as soon as we clean up.”

  “Great Linda. I’ll let Cily know.”

  When Claire hung up she turned to Cily and said, “Well it looks like there’s going to be a sleep over ton
ight!”

  “Yea!” shouted Cily as she jumped up and down.

  “What do you say to us all going to Jay’s Market to load up on snacks for tonight? Can’t have you going hungry, can we?” Claire had to laugh at her daughter’s excitement. It was almost enough to make Claire forget about the terrible ache in her back.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Walking through the emptying food isles at Jay’s, Claire allowed Cily to pick out four things she wanted for her sleepover and passing through the liquor isle on the way to the checkout, she spontaneously picked up a bottle of rum. A little bit might work magic on her back, she thought.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Linda arrived with Tisha a few minutes after Claire got back.

  Greeting each other, they exchanged small talk when the girls ran off to Cily’s room at the back of the house. Finally, concerned about leaving her other children alone, Linda said her goodbyes and left.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  The night had been fun filled as Cily, her two younger sisters and Tisha did their nails and watched a favorite movie.

  When they all had finally been tucked in bed, Claire went into the kitchen and poured a generous glass of the rum. Just as she had anticipated, her back muscles relaxed and having not slept well the previous night, she went into a deep sleep as soon as she lay down on her bed.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Too excited to even think about sleeping, the girls lay awake talking.

  “Wait till you see my new bike” Cily told Tisha. Cily’s dad had picked it up a few months earlier on one of his trips into Phoenix and hid it until her birthday.

  “Can I see it now?” asked Tisha eagerly.

  Cily didn’t think her mother would let them because it was dark outside but she wanted so badly to show off her new bike.

  After a little more cajoling from Tisha, Cily made up her mind to quietly go out back without asking for permission. In a low voice, she told Tisha, “Ok but we have to be quiet so my mom won’t hear us.”

  So, putting their shoes on they snuck out of the house and went to the garage where the shiny new bike awaited them. Opening up the side garage door slowly so as not to make any sounds, Cily turned on the light and shining in the corner, was the pale pink, girls bicycle.

  Tisha went over to it and hopped on.

  “Can I ride it?” she asked in a pleading voice.

  “It’s dark outside” protested Cily who was feeling uneasy about being out without her mother’s permission.

  But Tisha wasn’t going to give in easily. “The moon is bright so we can see well enough” she coaxed.

  Cily was so proud of her bike and wanted Tisha to know the thrill of being on the seat with the wind on her face. She wasn’t hard to persuade.

  “Ok, but just a short ride” she cautioned. “We have to get back into the house.”

  Tisha quietly guided the bike out through the garage door and along the tall hedge separating the homes, heading toward the street.

  At the sidewalk, she prepared to mount the bike, only instead of feeling the wind on her face, she was jerked to the ground and a searing pain shot through her arm. Struggling to comprehend what was happening, she saw Cily jerk away from something and scream. Wanting to run to her friend and safety, Tisha gathered all of her strength, struggling to tear herself away from her attacker.

  Feeling the grip on her arm loosen, she ran after Cily, crying for her to wait.

  By the time they had woke Claire, Tisha was overwhelmed by a desire to bite into the flesh that was reaching out to her.

  Horror stricken, Claire screamed as Tish’s teeth penetrated her skin. Claire yelled out to Cily to run as she tried to free herself from Tisha. When she managed to detach herself, Claire ran into the kitchen to phone for help.

  Searching for anything that had flesh, Tisha found the two sleeping sisters. With a burning sensation that she inherently knew could only be quenched by blood and flesh, she made her way to the two small girls who were oblivious to what had just entered their room.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Dale woke to a call from Claire’s neighbor who had heard the screams in the still night. He was already in his squad car by the time a second call came from Claire.

  17 The Experiment

  Pulling in front of the house, Dale made an abrupt stop and jumped out of his car. Carson pulled in right behind him and ran to his side.

  Together they went through the front door and to the back of the house where they heard crying.

  Dale saw Claire first, bent over her young daughters.

  “Call for an ambulance Carson.”

  He then saw Tisha underneath a chest of drawers, pinned. Her shoulder was ripped to the bone but she was struggling hard to get free. The sounds she made, her behavior and her terrible wound left no doubt in Dale’s mind that she was infected. But he had seen her with a lapel pin so was she to be hospitalized or terminated? Since she was secure for the moment and couldn’t reach anyone, he turned his attention to Claire and her daughters.

  He walked over to Claire who was bent over her two little girls, huddled on the bed.

  “Claire” Dale said quietly. “Claire, let me have a look at you.”

  They all looked up at him with no hint of malice on any of their faces.

  With tears in her eyes, Claire simply said, “Please, help us”. Dale could only pray that the ambulance would arrive quickly.

  Then Claire said, “Why did Tisha do this? She had a pin on! I thought the cure kept this from happening. I would never have let them out of my sight if I had known.” She was not only racked with pain but regret also.

  He didn’t know what to do except grab clothing to wrap the wounds and try to halt the bleeding.

  After what seemed like hours had passed, Carson said the words that Dale wanted to hear, “Dale, the ambulance is here.”

  Right behind Carson, the paramedics entered the room and started working on Claire and her daughters.

  Dale filled them in.

  “Claire and her daughters were inoculated and I thought Tisha was also but it’s apparent she wasn’t. Take care of these three and Carson and I will attend to Tisha.”

  As the paramedics deftly worked on them, Claire kept pleading with them to help her daughters who had several bite marks on their arms.

  The last thing they did was give a sedative to Claire, then to the young girls.

  “Hang in there ma’am. We’re going to take good care of you.”

  All of a sudden with fear in her eyes, Claire blurted out “Where’s Cily?”

  Dale and Carson looked at each other.

  “Cily?” Carson asked. “When did you see her last?”

  “I put them all to bed and went to sleep…” the sedative was beginning to work its magic.

  “Carson, call Dr. Tsosie to get here now and then see if you can locate Cily. We can’t leave Tisha by herself and I’m not sure what to do with her.”

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Dale met Dr. Tsosie at the door of the Willing home and filled her in on what had happened.

  They made their way to the bedroom which was now cleared of everyone except for Tisha, who was still pinned down. Kirsten went over to the girl.

  Looking at Tisha, she said to Dale, “She hasn’t been inoculated. Her symptoms and behavior are classic Turners.” Then looking at Dale with such sad eyes, she continued. “There is no hope for her. You must put her out of her misery. I’ll get to the hospital to see if I can help the others and Dr. Wiggins.”

  Dale looked up at the ceiling not wanting to do what he knew he must.

  When Kirsten had driven off, he pulled his gun out and put the thing Tisha had so quickly become, out of its torture and left.

  He found Carson entering the living room.

  “I couldn’t find Cily, Dale.”

  “Ok Carson. Lock up this place until we can get back here. I’m going to look for Cily. Call the posse members and organize a sweep of the town. Something started this and we need
to find it.”

  18 Cily

  Dale walked into the darkness not quite sure where to begin without knowing Cily’s condition or her habits.

  He decided to start close to the house and work out from there. Checking one side of the house, he had started to walk to the other side when he noticed the bike at the end of the hedge lying on the sidewalk.

  In the light of the full moon, he could see streaks around the handle bars. Touching one with his finger, he brought it to his nostrils. Definitely blood. Then the scenario of the attack took shape in his mind.

  Looking at the opposite side of the hedge and seeing nothing, he began slowly walking up the side that faced the Willing house.

  As he approached the back of the house, he heard gentle sobbing coming from the shed in the back yard.

  Cautiously making his way towards the sound, he gently called out, “Cily, are you there?” The sobbing got a little louder and he opened the door. He knew on instinct that there was an electrical switch next to him and he flipped it on.

  His heart wanted to break at what he saw.

  Huddled in a corner was little Cily with her arm badly wounded. Terror was in her eyes.

  “Cily” he said quietly. “The bad thing is gone. I’m going to take care of you.”

  Recognition filled Cily’s eyes as she focused on the sheriff. She struggled to get out of the corner she was in and reached for him with her good arm as he stretched his out to get her.

  Dale very gently collected the little girl in his arms and soothed her as best he could. “It’s going to be all right” he said as he carried her out of the shed. He knew from watching Henny that she would not attack him. He also was aware of the tremendous pain she had to be in between the infection and the mutilated arm.

  The ambulance had already left, so Dale tucked Cily in the squad car and sped to the hospital.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~