‘Is there some bloke’s clothes here that I could borrow?’ he asked. ‘As much as I don’t want to dress up as your father, I reckon mine could walk off on their own they stink so bad.’
‘There no chance of you getting back in my bed dressed as my dad, I’d vomit all over you,’ Georgie laughed. ‘Not that it’s any better, but I’ll see if my brother’s left anything you could use in his cupboard.’
She returned with some jeans, t-shirts and jackets. ‘Try these, something should probably fit.’ Mark gratefully pulled on a pair of jeans, happily free balling for the moment. The shirts were a little big, but an old-school biker style leather jacket made up for it. Georgie had also grabbed a few items for Penny, taking a guess at her size.
They each grabbed a crate of the food Georgie had packed earlier on the way through the kitchen. Georgie did a last check around the house, switching off lights and heating, then locked the door behind herself, sad to be leaving again. Within five minutes, they were on their way back to Harry’s farm.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Harry pulled into the driveway of the last house on their list. While Mark and Georgie had taken a trip to her parents’ place for supplies, he and Penny had begun to make contact with the remaining neighbours in the surrounding few kilometres of land. Progress had been relatively quick initially, with most of the houses empty on arrival. On Penny’s insistence, the group had agreed to offer sanctuary to any people nearby in the advent of a swarm moving through their area. The police officer in her still felt an innate need to fulfil a role in community protection, and Harry had been easily swayed. Mark had taken longer to come to the party. He had concerns regarding inviting an unknown variable into a situation that would prove taxing and dangerous enough on its own, however, he had eventually been convinced that added hands to fight would outweigh anything else in the circumstance of an all-out attack by the Infected, as long as any person bitten by a Carrier was refused entrance.
A front curtain twitched as they climbed out of the Pathfinder. Someone was home at the very least. The house was a brick veneer with a black-tiled roof. A large Cyprus pine reared up into the sky to the left of the building, dominating the scene as its canopy spread to a width almost as great as the house itself. They walked up a set of wooden steps to the front door. Penny took the lead in her police uniform, or what was left of it that could be laundered and mended. She raised her fist and rapped on the door sharply three times. Within moments, the door opened a crack, held in place by a short security chain. The face of a man in his early forties peered through the gap at his visitors.
‘What do you want?’ Although the man was trying to sound rough, his nervousness was evident as his voice cracked at the sentence’s end.
‘We’re neighbours, living in the rental behind the machinery yard. I’m a new doctor at the Emergency Department,’ Harry said.
‘My name’s Penny, I’m a police officer from Sydney, now living with him,’ she said, indicating her companion, ‘and two others. We thought it would be good to touch base with those around us to see if we could possibly help each other. Could we come inside?’
The door shut for a minute. A muffled discussion could be heard through the closed entrance, then the tinkling noise of the security chain being removed. The door swung wide and the man ushered the two of them quickly inside before locking up once more.
‘There was none of those dead bastards out there with you?’ he asked, while looking out from the edge of the curtain once more.
‘No, just us. Two properties to the north is a different matter. That family’s infected, although luckily they somehow locked themselves inside, so they shouldn’t be any danger to you,’ Harry said.
The man spun back around, looking at his wife whose face had gone deathly pale.
‘Dammit. That’s the Coleman’s. We talked to Danny, the father of that family not two days ago. He was heading into Milton to try and scavenge from the supermarket or other abandoned houses if need be. I told him he was stupid, that it was too risky. And I was right, wasn’t I?’ he said turning back to his wife, a strange look of triumph on his face. ‘And then the idiot goes and infects his whole family. I always told you he was a fucking douche bag, Jan.’
‘Maybe if you hadn’t refused to join him, they’d all still be alive,’ said the wife, a look of contempt on her face. ‘He offered to find food for all of us, and you couldn’t even face helping him. Now the whole family’s dead. You’re the idiot in this story, Rodger.’
‘Fuck you, Jan. You’re more worried about your bloody boyfriend down the road than me! How about “thank god you didn’t go, you were right, it was too dangerous, Rodger.” Maybe you’d be happier without me, eh? Well I’m still here and I’m not fucking going anywhere,’ he said, moving towards his wife with fist clenched.
Harry and Penny caught each other’s eye as unbidden spectators to the dangerously escalating argument. A small girl, no older than nine years of age, timidly peeked out from behind her mother’s waist, wide eyed at her parent’s fight. Harry coughed into his hand, drawing attention back to them in an attempt to stall the fight. Both husband and wife stopped and visibly collected themselves. The wife forced a weak smile.
‘Sorry about that, it’s just that the Colemans are… were, close friends. Things seem to be only getting worse as time goes on.’
She paused, rubbing the palms of her hands down the sides of her t-shirt to straighten the fabric, or more likely dry sweating palms. Her husband, Roger, had slumped into an armchair looking despondently into nothing. ‘Would you both like a cup of tea?’ Jan asked, trying to project an aura of normality over the stilted meeting.
‘Thanks, but no,’ answered Penny. ‘We’ve only stopped by briefly to offer assistance to you if things become unsafe here.’ She nudged Harry to get him to carry forward the conversation.
‘We’ve managed to create a fortified position that should be able to repel any attack by large numbers of the Infected,’ Harry said.
‘Yeah, we saw,’ replied Rodger sullenly. ‘All that use of heavy machinery drew Carriers out of the woodwork. We had more than usual walk through our property heading your way, kept us locked inside for days.’
‘Sorry about that,’ answered Harry, somewhat annoyed. He was starting to regret seeking out this particular couple. ‘But it was necessary to create a wall. And now we’re offering you the chance to benefit from that work.’
Jan moved forward a little, her eyes widening a little in hope. ‘Can our family move in behind the walls with you?’ she asked hopefully.
‘Unfortunately, we haven’t got room to permanently take in a whole family. With regard to danger from the infection at present, I don’t think it’s necessary for you all to live there yet. However, if you see a large group of the Infected coming down the highway or through your property – make your way to us. We’ll let you through the gates. The offers conditional though.’ He paused, looking at Rodger to try and assess how much of a liability he would be. He had no time for insecure bastards that preyed on their own family. ‘If you come in, we expect your help in defending the walls. Also, if you’ve been bitten, you won’t be given access.’
‘That sounds fair, I guess,’ answered Jan.
Harry made ready to leave, ‘Thanks for offering the cup of tea earlier, but we better head off.’ Harry started for the door, then stopped and turned back. ‘One last thing; the Emergency Department’s closed, but I’ve taken a limited stock of equipment to our farm. If you have any trauma or illness that isn’t of the walking dead variety, come to me as well and I’ll do what I can.’ The last sentence he said directly to Jan, holding her gaze. ‘If you start to feel unsafe, bring yourself and the girl to our place.’
‘Ah, I’m not quite sure what you mean by that, but thanks,’ answered Jan hesitantly. Harry turned back to the doorway and headed for his car. Penny followed, allowing Jan to walk her to the door. Rodger stayed behind in the living room, pointedly ignoring her as
he continued to sulk after the altercation with his wife and then Harry. Penny took Jan gently by the elbow, getting her to step outside, with her for a minute, closing the door gently behind.
‘Is everything ok between the two of you?’ Penny asked quietly. ‘I’ve assisted in quite a few domestic violence cases as a police officer, and although I know these times would stress the strongest of relationships – something didn’t quite seem right before. Are you and your daughter safe?’
Jan froze for a moment, glancing back over her shoulder to the living room as if searching for her husband’s proximity to their conversation, ‘He’s all talk, mostly. Don’t worry.’
‘Well if that changes, come and see me,’ said Penny, giving her hand a brief squeeze to reassure her. ‘There’s two more women at our house, and the men are solid characters that I’ll vouch for. Your girl shouldn’t have to see her mum be intimidated like that earlier scene.’
‘I have to go,’ said Jan, withdrawing her hand from Penny’s grasp. She disappeared back through the entrance, shutting the door firmly behind. As Penny turned to walk back to the car, she felt eyes boring into her. Looking up, she saw Rodger glaring at her through a gap in the curtain. They had well and truly outstayed their welcome. Penny only hoped she hadn’t made it even worse for the woman and child in the short term.
As the passenger door clicked shut, Harry slowly drove down the driveway, not waiting for Penny to fasten her seat belt. ‘That guy was a real knob. I kind of hope that family doesn’t have their own gun – they’d probably be safer without one.’
Penny nodded her agreement as she looked over her shoulder at the receding property.
Harry and Penny had been home for at least half an hour by the time Mark and Georgie drove up the long driveway. Penny jumped down from the veranda and unlocked the container door, allowing the Subaru through. Mark parked the car next to the house for ease of unloading, cut the engine and jumped out.
‘We come bearing gifts!’ said Mark with a fake British accent and theatrical flourish.
‘I hope they’re of the high calibre kind,’ answered Harry dryly. Someone was clearly in a better mood than when they’d left.
‘What I’ve got is better than rifles, although there are a few of those as well. We’ve got a whole side of lamb, butchered with precision.’
Harry was suddenly serious, ‘Don’t bullshit me, Mark. Have you really got some?’
‘Take a look for yourself, mate,’ answered Mark with a smile as he hoisted the esky up to the verandah decking. Harry opened the lid and let out a sigh of contentment. ‘We might have to wait until tomorrow for a joint to thaw, but lunch is going to be awesome.’ Harry picked up the esky and disappeared indoors, carting it to the kitchen and freezer. He returned moments later to help unpack the station wagon.
Georgie was at the back of the car, lifting out some of the smaller camping items to carry to the shed. Mark rested a hand unconsciously in a caress on her hip as she leant into the back, and Harry noted she returned the gesture at different points through the unpacking. The ice that had been in the air between the two had clearly melted.
Steph had come to help move some of the gear inside the house. After both Mark and Georgie walked off to the shed, Harry casually made comment to his cousin.
‘I think you may have missed the boat on that one.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Just that our estranged lovers seem to have made up again. You were a bit sweet on him, weren’t you?’
‘You’re a doctor, not a bleedin’ matchmaker. Stick to what you know, you twat,’ she said, laughing off his comment. Harry let it drop.
The group congregated in the kitchen once the car had been unloaded. A lamb shoulder sat in the sink to defrost overnight, the rest having been loaded by Penny into the freezer. Georgie had brought back the dozen beers she’d found at her parents, and passed one into each person’s eager hand. In unwitting tribute to decades’ worth of Victoria Bitter adverts, everyone silently enjoyed their first sip, savouring the flavour.
‘Did you guys come across any Carriers when you were out?’ asked Harry.
‘Only one,’ said Georgie. ‘It was crossing the paddocks at my parents’ place. We saw it attack one of the sheep, so looks like we might not be the only species on the menu.’
‘Did you see what happened to the animal later? Did it catch the infection as well?’ asked Steph.
‘No, we went inside to keep out of sight. I didn’t even really think of that as a possibility to tell the truth. It’s bad enough having mobs of undead humans, I could do without animals turning on us as well,’ said Georgie, looking disturbed at the thought.
‘We didn’t see any on the road, but one of the local farms has a house filled with Carriers. Their neighbours think the father returned home after being attacked, then slaughtered his own family once he died and reanimated,’ said Harry. ‘It’s made me think – what are we going to do, if one of us is bitten?’
The group remained silent, nobody wanting to state the obvious. The only cure so far was a bullet to the brain.
Mark eventually spoke up. ‘If I’m bitten, the last thing I want is to be responsible for the death of my friends. If I’m capable, I’ll shoot myself. However, if not, I’d request that someone put a bullet in my brain.’ Nobody answered him, each looking away. ‘Think of it as euthanasia,’ he suggested.
‘I closed up the Emergency Department because the state was asking me to do the same thing. I’m not going to kill you, Mark. It’s still early days; what if we find out that some people have a natural immunity, or that the wound wasn’t severe enough to transfer the infection? I don’t want your blood on my hands or in my nightmares, mate,’ said Harry.
‘If we leave it until the person’s converted, it’ll place the rest of the group in danger,’ Mark said.
‘Then confine them until we know for sure. We could use one of the containers, set up a bed and restraint point, then lock the person inside. If they become a Carrier, then we finish it humanely and with respect. Clean shot to the head and burial,’ suggested Penny, gaining agreement by all present to the idea.
‘What were you saying about wound severity and infection transfer, Harry?’ asked Steph.
‘I’ve just been tossing around some ideas in my head these last few days. One of the reports on TV stated the test subjects observed had experienced slower conversion if the bite wound was minor and not involving major vessels. When an artery or vein is pierced, the virus reaches the brain within minutes. If it hasn’t damaged these larger vessels, the virus has to travel via the lymphatics system and nerves which is a slower route. My first patient with the disease had a bite like that on her forearm, and she made it all the way from Cairns to Sydney before dying. I can’t help but wonder if amputation of the affected limb has been trialled to stop the infection reaching the brain,’ theorised Harry.
‘Just make sure I’m unconscious before you go sawing off my arm, ok?’ joked Mark. ‘But seriously, do think that would work?’
‘Probably not. If the bite was bad, I reckon it would be a waste of time. Here’s hoping we don’t have to find out, eh?’ said Harry, wincing at the thought of removing a limb outside an operating theatre.
Chapter Thirty-four
Mark sat bolt upright in bed, his heart thudding in the pitch black of his bedroom. His sentry duty had finished an hour prior, when Penny had arrived for her four-hour shift through the small hours of the morning. He’d passed out within moments of hitting the pillow to a dreamless sleep. There it was again – a hammering on metal, coming from outside one of the shipping containers. Mark swung his legs out of bed, groped for his jacket and boots that he pulled on in a hurry.
He wasn’t the only one awoken by the noise. The other bedroom doors were opening, with house members emerging in various stages of undress and exhaustion. Mark took a few quick steps to the front door, grabbed his sword and scabbard off the weapons rack before joining Penny on the veranda
h.
She was standing alert, rifle in hand. She looked back over her shoulder at Mark.
‘What bloody took you so long? Someone’s at the front gate. Here, take this,’ she said, passing him the rifle and a torch. ‘Can you get up top of the wall, take a look and find out what’s happening. I’ll be at the gate ready to let them in if all’s ok.’
Mark nodded his agreement. After buckling his scabbard around his waist, he vaulted to the ground off the verandah and ran for the ladder up the side of the container. Taking two rungs at a time, he reached the top within seconds.
He now heard voices, urgently whispering back and forth, and the sound of a girl whimpering in pain. He crawled forward, keeping a low profile to prevent his body making a silhouette against the sky. Mark popped his head over the edge to find a twin-cab Triton ute parked at the gate. In the half-light cast by a crescent moon, he made out a teenage boy leaning over a girl in the ute’s tray. A man and woman were standing at the shipping container gate. Mark turned on the torch, shining the beam into the faces of the man and woman below.
‘Have any of you been bitten?’ he asked.
The man answered in a hushed voice, ‘No, I’ve got a girl with a gunshot wound to her leg. She needs help by the doctor here. Can we bring her inside?’
Mark hurried to the other side of the container, looking down at Penny.
‘Open the gate Pen. Some kid’s been hurt. I’ll get Harry if you let them in.’
As Penny opened the gate, Mark slid down the ladder and jogged back to the house.
‘Harry!’ he yelled into the house. The doctor appeared within moments at the front door. ‘We need your help, mate. A kid’s been shot. Where do you want her?’ he asked. Mark’s face was tense, his breathing tight.
Harry took a deep breath. ‘Is she infected?’
Mark shook his head, ‘They denied a bite. I think it was an accident, but haven’t got any details.’
Plague War: Outbreak Page 20
