H7N9 Penitence

by Mark Campbell

  Teddy closed the tent’s flap and stepped back inside. He nodded and let out an exhausted sigh as he sat down next to her.

  “Big Al turned off the generators for the night I guess,” Teddy said. “There are still a few people outside but it looks like most of them are calling it a night.”

  Off in the distance, the guitar music stopped and stillness spread throughout the entire camp.

  Jane and Teddy sat side-by-side and stared up at the ceiling while Danny lay on the floor.

  Minutes passed in silence.

  Danny started snoring gently in his sleep with his tiny mouth hung open.

  Teddy looked down at Danny and grinned.

  “The kid’s really out cold,” Teddy said quietly.

  Jane smiled and ran a hand across Danny’s back, nodding.

  “Yeah, he’ll sleep through anything especially after taking some allergy medicine,” she replied with amusement. “Back during the riots, I got all of maybe two hours of sleep at night while he was able to get a full eight.”

  “I envy him,” Teddy said as he looked back up at the ceiling.

  “Whys that?”

  “I haven’t been able to get a good night’s sleep for a very long time,” he admitted.

  “Same,” Jane said with a little sigh. “Since neither of us appear to be sleeping any time soon, want to play truth or lie some more?”

  “Whose turn is it?”

  “Mine,” Jane answered. She thought a moment and then looked over at him. “Since this all started, I’ve always been afraid to go to sleep. I fear that I might wake up and find him dead like all of the others.” She paused. “Truth or lie?”

  Teddy frowned and didn’t even answer; he knew it was the truth. He didn’t know what to tell her because he felt that telling her it would all be okay was a lie that she would see through in an instant.

  Instead of platitudes, he reached over and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, holding her.

  Jane tensed at first, but gradually relaxed. She leaned over and rested her head against his shoulder, closing her eyes.

  Teddy leaned back and just held her. As he sat in the darkness with his arm around her, for a very brief moment he felt like things might just turn out to be alright.

  He knew it was a lie, but it felt good to believe it, even if just for an instant.

  Teddy closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

  CHAPTER 25

  NOVEMBER 18th

  Teddy was jolted awake by the sound of gunfire.

  His heart thumped wildly as his bloodshot eyes scanned the inside of the tent.

  Jane raised her head off of his shoulder and rubber her eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked as she struggled to wake up.

  Teddy stood up and stumbled over the blankets towards the tent’s flap. He pulled it open and peered outside.

  “I heard shots,” Teddy explained with his head still sticking outside.

  He narrowed his eyes and saw people scrambling in the shadows as they ducked inside tents and took cover.

  “Are you sure?” she asked as she became a little bit more alert.

  “Yeah,” Teddy answered. “Looks like something is going on, but I can’t tell what. We should–”

  Suddenly, the outside of the tent was hit with blinding white light as spotlights swept across the building from the street. The soothing darkness melted away as light poured in through the mesh netting that surrounded the encampment.

  “Holy shit,” Teddy gasped as he stepped back inside of the tent and closed the flap. “We need to go and we need to go now!”

  Jane got up and scooped Danny in her arms.

  Danny protested weakly and yawned.

  “Mama, I’m still sleepy,” he said as he turned and buried his head against her chest, closing his eyes.

  “We have to go,” Jane urged as she held him close. “Just close your eyes and I’ll let you go back to sleep real soon, I promise.”

  People inside the campsite started shouting as alarm bells sounded in the background.

  “It’s a raid!” a man yelled hysterically as he ran through the crowd. “Everyone! It’s a raid!”

  There were more gunshots from the deck down below.

  The generators roared back to life and all of the overhead lights turned on.

  “Come on,” Teddy said as he held open the flap for them.

  Jane hurried outside still holding Danny.

  Teddy followed behind her.

  People hid behind flimsy plywood barricades and shopping carts full of their personal possessions while others panicked and ducked into the nearest tent.

  “Attention, squatters,” a voice boomed over a speaker from the street. “You are in violation of a mandatory evacuation order and have illegally occupied this building! Place your weapons on the ground, get on your knees, and surrender with your hands above your head!”

  Jane and Teddy stood back – uncertain, as many of the members of the camp rushed to get downstairs.

  Soldiers wearing bulky riot gear, ballistic helmets, and gasmasks ran up the ramp and broke up the crowd. The soldiers were dressed in urban combat camouflage and carried riot batons with two electric prongs on the tip.

  Teddy and Jane stopped in their tracks.

  Soldiers grabbed people at random and slammed them down to the ground, regardless of age, and cuffed their hands with plastic zip-ties.

  The few that tried to run, fell to the ground convulsing, as the baton’s prongs sent jolts through their body.

  “Squatters, comply and we will not use deadly force. We are here to help you,” the voice over the speaker assured from the street.

  Screams echoed from throughout the deck and the stench of gunpowder hung in the air.

  “Get down on the ground!” one of the masked soldiers ordered as he tasered a middle-aged man in the back.

  The man’s face contorted and he cried out in pain as he fell to the ground, incapacitated.

  The soldier hunched down, cuffed the man’s hands together, and looked up towards Teddy and Jane.

  They both stared at him, frozen, unsure where to go or what to do.

  “Hey! Jane! Teddy!” Big Al shouted from the side. His nose was bloodied and his forehead had a deep gash across it. He was taking frantic breaths as he looked around with a wild look in his eyes. He motioned for them to follow him. “This way! Hurry!”

  Big Al turned and ran off into the shadows.

  Jane clutched Danny close to her chest and took off after him.

  “Jane! Wait!” Teddy insisted to no avail. He followed her as more soldiers funneled up the ramp onto the deck.

  Big Al led them through a small labyrinth of haphazardly string tents and stacked supply crates.

  They followed him as the lighting became dim and the screaming turned faint and haunting.

  At the end they arrived at a concrete wall with a narrow red door. The door had the number two stenciled on it in big yellow paint.

  “What’s this?” Teddy asked.

  “The stairs,” Big Al said as he wiped the sweat off his brow. “It’s the only other way off this level. It’s dark as hell in there so stay close.”

  The door swung open as Big Al approached it and a soldier emerged out of the stairwell holding a baton.

  The soldier looked surprised and stepped back..

  “Down on the ground!” the soldier barked as he raised his baton over his head.

  Big Al ducked down and charged towards the soldier with his shoulder.

  The solider struck him across the back with the baton–

  Big Al howled out in pain but kept charging forward. He shoved his shoulder into the man’s chest and slammed him against the wall, pinning him there.

  The soldier’s helmet flung off his head his face turned red as he struggled to breathe. He dropped the baton and attempted to shove Big Al off of him.

  Big Al stepped back, drew back a fist, and punched the soldier square in the throat.


  The soldier wheezed and the veins on his face stood out. He reached up and clawed at his closed throat. His knees gave way and he slowly started to sink down against the wall.

  Big Al bent over, grabbed the baton, and swung it against the soldier’s head.

  The soldier collapsed down onto his side and lay motionless.

  Big Al’s chest rose and fell rapidly as he gripped the baton and took and step back, hands shaking.

  A second soldier emerged out of the stairwell with a baton in his hand–

  Big Al quickly lunged forward and pressed the two prongs of his baton against the soldier’s chest.

  The soldier convulsed and was flung back into the stairwell.

  Big Al turned towards Jane and Teddy with wide-eyes.

  “Hurry before more show up!” he said. “We–”

  A deafening burst of automatic gunfire cut Big Al’s words short.

  Big Al looked down at his bullet-riddled chest as crimson blossoms formed through his shirt. His face went pale as his legs gave way. He gave an apologetic look towards Teddy and Jane and opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out, only blood. He dropped the baton, collapsed to his knees, and fell face down on the ground.

  Teddy did not get a chance to say anything - his ears rang from the sound of the gunfire.

  Danny turned his head to look and started crying out in horror as soon as he saw the bloody puddle forming around Big Al’s corpse.

  “Don’t look,” Jane said as she tried to bury his head back into her chest. Tears formed in her eyes.

  Danny didn’t stop crying.

  Two soldiers emerged out of the stairwell with their batons ready.

  Teddy quickly stepped in front of Jane and Danny and spread out his arms to shield them.

  Another soldier stepped out from the stairwell holding an assault rifle with a smoking barrel. He pointed his weapon at Teddy.

  “Don’t be stupid,” the soldier with the gun warned. “It’s over. Get down on your knees, lace your fingers, and put your hands on your head!”

  Teddy heard additional soldiers approach from behind, but he didn’t turn to look at them.

  He didn’t have a choice.

  He knew that he was surrounded.

  If he did the wrong thing, Danny and Jane would die.

  Teddy glared at the soldier with the gun and went down on his knees. He slowly put his hands in the air and placed them on his head.

  “We’re Americans and you’re slaughtering us like fucking pigs,” Teddy told the man coldly. “If there’s a God, you’re sure as hell going to have to answer for what you’ve done.”

  It didn’t seem to strike a nerve with the armed soldier.

  “We’re here to help, you fucking idiots,” the armed soldier said. “You’re all just too damn stupid to realize it.” He pointed his rifle at Jane. “You too, lady! Put the kid down and get on your knees!”

  Jane went to her knees.

  “Sweetheart, just listen to the man, okay?” Jane whispered to Danny as she slowly started to lower him to the ground. “It’s going to be–”

  Danny bolted out of her arms and ran towards the soldier, crying, and furiously swinging his fists up at him.

  “Stop, Danny!” Jane cried out - tears running down her cheeks. “Don’t!”

  Danny ignored her and kept running towards the soldiers.

  “Leave my mama alone, you bad man!” Danny shouted as he ran. “Don’t hurt my mama!”

  One of the soldiers stepped forward, snatched Danny up, and slung him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

  Danny screamed in protest as he kicked at the man wildly.

  The soldier held Danny’s legs together and kept him on his shoulder despite vigorous protests from the child.

  “Put him down, you asshole!” Jane yelled. She stood back up and started to run towards the man.

  A soldier came up behind Jane and struck the back of her knees with his baton.

  Jane cried out in pain and fell to her hands and knees.

  The soldier brought out a black sack and pulled it over her head while two other soldiers helped restrain her hands with plastic zip-ties.

  “Jane!” Teddy exclaimed as he made a sudden move towards her.

  Someone’s boot struck Teddy in the middle of his shoulder blades and pushed him down onto his stomach.

  The person kept their foot on him and held him down while someone forced zip restraints on his wrists.

  In an instant, a black sack was pulled down over Teddy’s head and his world went dark.

  In that very instant, Teddy felt the crushing blow of defeat.

  This is it, he thought. I’m going to die.

  CHAPTER 26

  Teddy sat sandwiched between two other passengers on the cold metal bench of the bus. About an hour had passed since he had last seen Jane and Danny.

  He wasn’t sure where they were; he had been separated from them when the soldiers led everyone to the street, and onto the buses.

  Teddy was never a religious man, but as he sat on that bus headed towards the unknown, he prayed to whatever god would give an old convict’s request any consideration.

  Dear God, he kept repeating in his head, please let them be safe. Let me see them again.

  He knew his request was probably falling on deaf ears, but what other choice did he have? The plastic zip-tie cuffs around his wrists was cutting off circulation – numbing his fingers. He felt light-headed and ill with worry: the sensory deprivation from the sack over his head just made matters worse.

  The diesel engine of the vehicle rumbled in the background, interspersed with sounds of muffled sobs.

  A stench of exhaust hung in the hot air, mixed with the pungent odor of sweat.

  Once in a while, he heard footsteps and gear rattling, as a soldier walked in front of him, patrolling back and forth.

  Teddy considered lunging at the man but decided against it once he heard radio chatter coming from another man, most probably stationed at the front end of the bus.

  He knew he’d be shot dead.

  Nobody asked any questions.

  Nobody raised a voice in protest.

  All he heard a few people do was cry.

  In all honesty, a part of this surprised Teddy.

  He remembered how back at prison, during some of the big fights, he had witnessed a single convict stand in defiance against the guards no matter how many there were or how much riot gear they had on.

  Maybe it was because prison, even in its chaos, was predictable.

  Teddy was never the heroic type.

  Let the storm pass, was his motto.

  However, it felt like the hell he was trapped in, would never pass like it did back in prison.

  He felt like a coward.

  Teddy lowered his head and kept repeating his prayer in his head like a defeatist’s mantra.

  “Listen up!” a gruff voice barked from the front of the vehicle.

  People stopped sobbing and an uncomfortable stillness settled in.

  Teddy raised his chin and blindly turned his head towards the direction of the voice.

  “You’ve been escorted out of the contamination zone and brought into a military quarantine zone where you’ll be medically screened and processed. When you’re instructed, disembark in a calm and orderly fashion!”

  The vehicle’s brakes squealed and Teddy felt the bus roll to a stop.

  Teddy heard dogs barking outside, people shouting, and the whirring of helicopter blades.

  “Everyone! On your feet!” the voice ordered.

  Teddy and the other passengers stood in the tight space. He felt the person next to him tremble.

  There was a hydraulic hiss as the bus doors opened and the dog’s barking became almost deafening.

  “Get off the bus!” the voice ordered. “Follow my voice! Towards the front! Move!”

  Teddy shuffled blindly with the crowd as they bumped into each other and stepped on each other’s feet.

&nbs
p; “I said move!” the voice shouted. “Double time! Move! Come on! Hurry up!”

  Someone stumbled into Teddy’s back and pushed him against the person walking in front of him.

  Teddy managed to keep his footing, but the person in front fell down to the ground.

  Unable to see though the sack over his head, Teddy stopped walking and the traffic in the aisle came to a halt.

  “Keep moving!” the voice insisted.

  “Someone is on the ground!” Teddy shouted back. “I can’t see! I’ll step on them!”

  “Then step over them!” the voice shot back. “Move or I’ll drop you! Move!”

  Other passengers shoved Teddy in the back and pushed him forward.

  Teddy stumbled ahead and stepped on soft flesh.

  The person under Teddy’s boot screamed out in pain.

  Teddy tried to stop, but the crowd kept pushing him ahead.

  Below his feet he felt something snap and give as he trudged over the person’s lumpy, squishy body.

  “Move!” the voice ordered.

  The person cried out again and started flailing, unable to get back up.

  “I’m sorry,” Teddy said, voice drowned out by the person’s cries for help.

  “Move!” the voice in front persisted.

  As Teddy kept moving, he heard the person’s agonizing cries fall silent as the rest of the crowd trampled the life out of them.

  Teddy kept shamefully shuffling forward as the rest of the crowd jostled him in the back.

  At the front of the bus, Teddy bumped into someone clad in bulky body armor.

  Teddy startled and stepped back.

  “Move!” the man shouted in Teddy’s face.

  The armored man grabbed Teddy by his shoulders and flung him out of the bus.

  Teddy landed hard on the asphalt and curled over onto his side in pain. His shoulder ached and his knee felt swollen.

  He heard someone else get tossed out next to him.

  Teddy rolled out of the way as small pebbles and bits of glass cut his arms and scraped his knuckles.

  People were pushed and flung off of the bus one after the other.

  Teddy tried to scoot aside as the crowd grew larger around him.

  As he tried to move, he heard a dog’s bark grow louder and louder. He felt it approach him, the barks turning to low growls and snarls.