“Morning,” Carl said, entering the kitchen. Sergio followed behind him, too occupied by a yawn to greet him.
“Want something to eat?” Matthew asked, holding up the container of oats.
“Yeah, go on.” He grinned. He pulled up a stool and sat down while Matthew let the breakfast cook on the stove.
“Did you sleep well?” Sergio asked.
“Actually, I did,” Matthew said. “Maybe it was the wine.”
“Same,” Sergio said. “I had a really good night. I didn’t think it was possible to feel this good.”
“Don’t you know how to make espresso?” Carl asked Sergio, trying to change the subject.
“Yeah, why?”
“Three coffees?” Carl asked. “You can put a sprinkle of creamer in mine.”
“Got it,” Sergio said cheerfully, striding off to make the drinks.
Carl plunked his elbows down on the workbench, nearly causing a dirty bowl to tip over.
“Didn’t sleep well?” Matthew asked.
“No, I did,” he said reluctantly. “I just wish Sergio wasn’t so happy. I mean, I want my best friend to be happy, but I just know what he meant by that. I was afraid he was going to start spilling details I didn’t need to hear.”
Matthew cringed in sympathy. “Glad I don’t have to worry about that. Why don’t you just tell him that it freaks you out?”
Carl sighed. “He’s had a rough go at it in the past few years. The love of his life was killed right in front of him and I thought he wasn’t going to make it. I mean, we were on leave and the only thing he wanted to do was go back to work. How many people do you know that don’t want to be out on leave?”
“Yeah, that sounds serious.”
“So, now that he’s finally happy, I can’t mess that up. Plus, Pip’s happy too, and when Pip is happy, she’s less destructive.”
Sergio returned with three mugs balanced on top of a platter. “Espresso like I like my women—hot and smooth. Enjoy.”
Matthew couldn’t help but laugh at this. The timing was just too perfect. He turned his laugh into a cough and ladled the oatmeal out into three bowls.
The three ate in silence, each absorbed in their own thoughts. Matthew quickly finished eating and rinsed the dishes out with just a small stream of water. He wasn’t sure how long their supply would last now that they had the means to use the indoor plumbing. For their sake, he hoped that it would rain all week. It was too soon to have to go in search of drinking water to use for washing up.
“I was thinking about going to see the lab,” Sergio said as he finished up his breakfast. “I’m not going to be able to help in any way, but I want to see what all of that stuff that we nearly died for does.”
“Me too,” Carl added. “Do you think they can actually come up with a cure for this virus?”
Matthew shrugged. “I don’t know, but I don’t think they would have had us do all of that work if there wasn’t something they could learn from it. Let’s see how they’re doing.”
Sergio made a few more cups of coffee without commentary, then the three soldiers made their way to the third-floor suite where the women had set up their laboratory. When they got there, they found Genevieve and Ellie buzzing around. Lucas sat on a couch with a notebook in his hand, taking down notes as Genevieve spoke to him.
If her leg was paining her, Matthew couldn’t tell. She continued to walk with a crutch but had a smile on her face as she hopped from table to table, placing their equipment in the exact spot they needed it.
The hotel room was hardly recognizable by the time they had set up shop. The bed was propped up against the wall and all the chairs and sofas had been pushed to the outer edges of the room. Several tables and desks were pushed together to create a long lab bench. These were also elevated to standing height by stacking books underneath the legs of the tables. Microscopes sat in one part of the lab, while beakers, graduated cylinders, and test tubes were neatly arranged in order from largest to smallest.
“Did we get everything you needed?” Carl asked.
“For the most part, yes,” Ellie said. “What we don’t have, we can make due without for the time being. You three have really helped us a lot. This is awesome.”
Matthew smiled. He hadn’t seen either of the women so happy in the time that he had known them. Even Genevieve had a light in her eyes that Lucas couldn’t bring out.
“We made you guys some coffee,” Sergio said helpfully, holding out the platter. The research team rushed forward to grab their drinks, fueling their excitement even further.
“So, what exactly is it that you’re doing with all of this stuff?” Carl asked.
“That’s a question that we’re constantly modifying,” Ellie said. “In fact, Matthew said something last night that reminded me of a flaw in our theory. Originally, we planned on collecting samples from the zombies we killed. Obviously, this is much easier than taking samples from living zombies. But I believe that since dead zombies do not pass the virus like living ones, our samples wouldn’t give us an accurate look at what we’re really dealing with. We’ll still look at tissue samples from the dead, but we cannot come to a conclusion on that alone.”
“Have you looked at anything yet?” Sergio asked, eyeing the microscope.
“We sure have.” She smiled, gesturing him over to look. “As you can see, this is a blood sample we picked up when we were cleaning this place. In this sample, you can see little spidery-looking creatures scattered around. They’re not moving because they’re dead, but that’s the virus that’s terrorizing our country.”
“I’m not exactly sure what I’m looking at,” Sergio said, backing away. “Anyone else want to look?”
Matthew approached the microscope and pressed his eye to the eyepiece. “I’m seeing a bunch of black lines,” he said. “Is that what we’re looking at?”
“Back up a little,” she said. “You’re probably just seeing your own eyelashes.
Matthew adjusted until the blood sample came into view. He could see red splotches and what he thought might be the virus, but he wasn’t sure.”
“Yeah, it’s easier to see when it’s moving,” Ellie said, looking into the microscope again. “But it’s all there. In theory, if one can figure out how the virus works, one might be able to figure out a cure.”
“That’s good news,” Carl said. “Let us know if you need anything else. We can try to get more lab stuff—maybe even a live sample.”
“Thanks,” Ellie said. “You guys have been a big help.”
Genevieve sat down at a desk and started pouring things into test tubes while talking to Lucas. He scribbled notes in his book and occasionally relayed things to Ellie in English. The soldiers sat back and watched the process of discovering a cure, hoping that they would be there when the big moment happened.
“What’s that?” Sergio asked as Genevieve handed Ellie a test tube with a few drops of red liquid at the bottom.
“It’s my blood,” she said. “We need a control for our experiments.” She placed a little drop on the slide and popped it under the microscope. “Cool,” she said. “Looks like I’m clean.”
She scribbled something in a notebook, then labeled the slide and placed it in a box.
Then, Genevieve handed her another test tube and Ellie repeated the process. Matthew was already getting bored, but when he looked at his other options, he figured that it was probably best to stay where he was. Otherwise, he’d probably have to deal with people he was not particularly in the mood to talk to. At least it was quiet in the lab, and the conversation topics were strictly set on the virus.
“This is a sample of my blood, mixed with a little bit of the dead zombie tissue,” Ellie explained as she made the new slide. “If our hypothesis is correct, this will do absolutely nothing. Viruses are weird things. They can be so hard to kill, but other times, they’re worthless if the host isn’t alive and kicking.”
“And?” Sergio asked.
“Nothing
,” she said. “Not yet, anyway. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. A lot of vaccines are made out of dead virus. I’m not sure if this one is of any use to us, but we’ll continue trials. When you get a flu vaccine, the body learns how to defend itself against a similar intruder. So, if you can create something like the virus that won’t cause sickness, you can teach the immune system how to fight back. It’s pretty cool stuff.”
“Cool,” Carl said weakly. It all seemed very important, but no one had the same enthusiasm that the scientists had.
They watched in silence as Ellie picked up a slide from the box and stuck it back under the microscope. She stared at it, scribbling notes down on her paper as she looked. After a while, she sat up and stared at the wall, looking concerned.
“What were you looking at?” Matthew asked.
“My blood,” she said. “I’m just trying to think.”
“Isn’t control normal?” Genevieve asked.
Ellie clenched her jaw. “I’m not sure.”
Matthew frowned. “What do you mean?”
Ellie let out a long, shuddering sigh. She looked up at Matthew with mournful eyes.
“Jeez, Ellie, what is it?” Sergio asked.
“There’s something I didn’t tell you about my work,” she said, blinking back tears. “You know that I work for the government and my specialty is in biological weapons and defense, right? Our department not only creates potential weapons that can be used in extreme circumstances, but the vaccines and antidotes for these things. Many don’t even see the light of day because there’s just no need for it. To use one of those weapons means that there is no better option, you understand?”
“Do you think that the government made this virus?” Carl asked, looking horrible. “Mayor Schilling made it seem so, but I don’t think she was giving us the whole story.”
“I don’t know if she knew the whole story,” Matthew corrected. “She only cared about keeping her people alive. If she’s one of the chosen people, I don’t think it really mattered who was in charge.”
“No, this was made by someone in the government,” Ellie said. “That’s for sure.”
“How do you know?” Lucas asked, pausing his translations out of his own curiosity.
Ellie stood up for a second, then sat back down. “Before the outbreak occurred, I was working on a top-secret project. When I work on these things, I’m usually given a concept and try to create a product that matches a description. No one tells me what it’s for. In fact, I like it that way. I’m able to do my job, knowing that I’m able to protect our country, but I don’t want to know how others are hurt.”
Matthew nodded. He understood that sentiment as a former soldier.
“So, I was given the task to work on a weapon that could spread like wildfire amongst a close group of people. It was meant to be hard to stop. I was told that another team would create a vaccine to inoculate those who would be handling it.”
“Why would they need something like that?” Lucas asked. “Seems risky. Isn’t there Anthrax for that kind of thing?”
“Sure, but people now have a pretty good idea of how to protect themselves if they’ve been exposed. If I had to guess at the time what it was being used for, I assumed it was a dangerous, tight-knit community that needed to go down—like a terrorist organization. They would remain somewhat segregated from the civilian population but spend a lot of time in close contact. A virus that killed and couldn’t be treated would take care of that problem. So, we created something that was highly contagious and caused tissue death, along with damage to the brain. It fit the bill perfectly.”
“This would make you the perfect person to work on fixing this thing,” Lucas said optimistically. “If anyone knows how to fix deadly disease, it would be you. Plus, Genevieve has had a bunch of research published about how to stop the spread of disease. I don’t really understand it that well, but if I can figure out how to translate it into something we can understand, we can start making steps toward keeping people healthy. If you can create a vaccine, then we’d be in great shape.”
“I don’t think I understand,” Genevieve said.
“I’ll translate it in a second,” Lucas said. “But I really think you can do this.”
“I don’t know if I can,” Ellie said nervously. “This is really complicated stuff, even for me.”
“But how do you know until you try?” Lucas asked, trying to encourage her.
Ellie balled her hands up into fists. “I know that this particular virus is difficult to develop a vaccine for because I’m the government scientist who created it.”
27
The room fell silent, save for the faint buzzing of the light on the microscopes. Even Genevieve, who had only managed to comprehend about half of what was being said sensed the gravity of the situation. She ran over and whispered something in Lucas’ ear, then waited for his response. It took him a few moments to find the right words, but it was evident when his point landed. Genevieve dropped her head to her chest and let out a soft sigh.
Matthew repeated her words in his head, trying to find meaning in it. All along, he didn’t know who to blame for Rebecca’s death and the subsequent beginning of the end of the world. First, he blamed himself for not protecting her as he had vowed to do on their wedding day. Then, he blamed God for allowing such a cruel fate for his family and countless other innocent lives. He nearly threw himself off a skyscraper because of his deep grief.
Then, when he met Mayor Schilling, he had a representation of his misery. While she didn’t mastermind the plan, she allowed it to happen and welcomed its effects. That was good enough for Matthew. He could channel his rage into people so far removed for normal life, so out of touch from reality. He knew who the enemy was, so when the time came, he could seek justice.
Now, there was someone standing in front of him who had a more direct effect on the horror that filled his days. Ellie had crafted the very disease that could kill the entire world. But she was a friend—could he be mad at her? After all, she was kind-hearted and they had been though so much together. She saved his life once, and he returned the favor.
But as he sat on the edge of the makeshift laboratory, he felt the blood boil in his veins. It felt like a weight was pressing up against his chest, making it hard to get a good inhale. His hands trembled uncontrollably at the thought of Ellie being a part of the conspiracy to cleanse the country of undesirables.
To make matters worse, he didn’t look like a villain. She was older, a little dumpy, and sweet. Though everyone knew she was a skilled scientist, she never acted superior to any of the younger survivors. She treated Matthew like a son or a nephew, constantly doting on him. She didn’t fit the part of the evil mastermind, scheming with the government to create a weapon of mass destruction.
Yet, she admitted it. She was responsible for so many deaths. Matthew just couldn’t wrap his mind around it, so he let his instinct go into action.
Bolting up from his chair, Matthew lunged at the lab table and picked up a beaker. He hurled it against the wall with all of his strength, shattering it into hundreds of tiny pieces.
“Hey!” Lucas shouted, standing up and holding his arms out in front of Genevieve.
“How could you!” he shrieked. “How could you do this?”
Sergio and Carl sprung to his sides, but instead of fighting along with him, they each grabbed one of his arms, pulling him back toward the seat. He squirmed against them, but the pair of them were far too strong to let Matthew get away. After a brief struggle, they managed to shove Matthew back into his chair, holding his arms by his sides.
“You gotta calm down, man,” Sergio hissed in his ear. “This is messed up, but we need to talk about it.”
“I don’t want to talk,” Matthew roared. “I want my wife back. I want to go back home and live my life. I don’t want to do this anymore.”
Matthew felt hands press against his right forearm. “Breathe,” Carl said. “If you can’t calm down, I’
m going to have to get Jennifer and she’ll pump you full of drugs that will get you to settle down. We don’t want to do that, but we also don’t need any violence. Okay?”
Matthew forced air into his lungs. It felt cold and sharp, but he held his breath and counted to ten like he had been taught in stress-management exercises.
“I’m calm,” he growled, trying to jerk his arms away.
“I’m going to need more evidence than that,” Sergio said calmly.
Matthew took two more deep breaths and closed his eyes for a few convincing seconds. “I’m okay,” he said, forcing his voice to sound calm. “Please, let me go so I can understand this correctly.
Carl and Sergio looked at each other, not sure if they were being manipulated or not. Eventually, the slowly released his arms and reluctantly made their way back to their seats on either side of Matthew.
Ellie was cowering in her chair, crying. Normally, Matthew couldn’t stand when people cried in front of him, but he had no problem with this. He wanted her to feel just a smidgen of what he felt when Rebecca was killed by an infected zombie. It was a small step toward justice.
“Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?” Matthew asked, so low that Ellie could hardly hear him.
“I was scared,” she whimpered. “I knew it was a dangerous thing to admit, but even worse after I knew how you were personally victimized by it. I wanted to be able to tell you what I knew about the virus, but if I shared too much, I thought you would put the pieces together.”
“I trusted you,” Matthew growled.
“I know, I know,” she squeaked. “I’ve felt so guilty about keeping this from you. I’m just so fond of all of you and I didn’t want you to hate me for what I’ve done. I wanted to stay with you all because you’re kind people. If the wrong people knew about this, they would kill me. I’m not convinced you’re not going to kill me now, though.”
“No one’s going to kill you,” Sergio said exasperatedly. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m pretty sure you’re on everyone’s shit list at the moment, but we don’t kill people unless they try to kill us.”
Last Man Standing (Book 2): Zombie Annihilation Page 21
