Influenza: Viral Virulence

by Ohliger, Steven

  They hadn’t seen any sign of Krank or his army pursuing them since running into Mash, and Michael began to hope they had finally lost them. Besides, Krank couldn’t be that crazy to follow them across three states and know at what exact point Michael had left the freeway.

  “Want to stop here for the night?” Michael asked Lorie.

  Lorie’s eyes looked heavy as she peered out at the sleepy little town. “Sure,” she said. “Maybe we can find a decent place to sleep. Sorry, Michael, but sleeping in the truck isn’t too comfortable.”

  “Or safe,” Michael added. Staying inside a solid house and sleeping on a real bed would be a nice luxury.

  Michael glanced down at his gauges. “It looks like we need to fill up soon.”

  “We can stop right here,” Lorie said. “There are plenty of cars around, and it doesn’t seem like this place has seen any living people for quite some time.”

  Michael found a parking place between two cars and pulled in. Lorie and Sandy got out, and Sandy went over to the grass by the sidewalk. While he was siphoning gas from the other cars, he noticed he had parked right in front of a general store. He pointed it out to Lorie. “Want to do some clothes shopping?”

  Placing the gas cans in the truck bed and the siphon hose in his toolbox, Michael followed Lorie inside the store. Before going in, they had both made sure that the street outside was clear and they had their guns with them. Michael took a cart and sorted through all the men’s clothes. As it became increasingly dark in the depths of the store, he had to revert to using his flashlight to pick out the right sizes. Not caring about color or style, Michael finished before Lorie got started. He took his clothes outside and packed them in the truck. Then, he waited, watching the street for any activity. He and Sandy walked up and down, looking at the various shops.

  Michael noticed that the building next door was a jewelry store. Unlike the general store, the jewelry store was chained and bolted shut. Michael retrieved the bolt cutters he had used to free his truck from Gary’s garage. He walked up to the jewelry-store door, snipped the padlock, and pulled back the steel gate.

  “What are you doing?” Lorie asked inquisitively from behind. Apparently, she had finished quicker than Michael had imagined.

  “Just looking,” Michael replied innocently as he broke the glass and ducked through the door. He turned and beckoned for Lorie and Sandy to follow him.

  Inside, the musty odor settled heavily in the air. A thick layer of dust covered the tops of the showroom glass cabinets. Michael watched Lorie visibly relax as she walked slowly along the glass cabinets and marveled at the contents. In the fading light, the last rays of sun were streaming through the store’s front windows and bouncing off of the gold, diamonds, and other precious stones.

  “Oh, look at these!” Lorie marveled at one particular case.

  Michael walked around to the other side of the counter, which was where the employees usually stood selling the merchandise. Lorie was peering through the glass at the diamond rings. They ranged from tiny diamonds to larger ones. Michael reached down and opened the door to the cabinet.

  “Which one?” he asked, moving his hand teasingly over the diamonds.

  “You know we shouldn’t be doing this,” she said. He could tell by her tone that she was enjoying the temptation.

  “I think we deserve a little break after all we’ve been through,” Michael said. “So, which one?”

  She guided him to pick out an oval diamond set in a gold band.

  “Are you sure?” Michael asked. “There are some larger diamonds over there.” he pointed to the right of the display case.

  She shook her head and then took the ring from his outstretched hand. As he moved to where she was standing on the front side of the counter, she continued to hold the ring in the palm of her hand. The dwindling light made the diamond sparkle.

  Michael watched as her face seemed to light up from within. Her smile could bring the sun out in the middle of a rainstorm. And like the sun, her hair reflected light along its long, wavy strands. To him, she looked like a beautiful, radiant flower in full bloom. Strong yet delicate, she was his perfect match. Her hazel eyes were twinkling as she looked down at the ring in her hand.

  “Can I see that?” Michael asked, holding out his hand.

  Broken out of her reverie, she reluctantly handed it over to him. She looked a little disappointed to give it up.

  On pure impulse, Michael dropped to one knee. Holding the ring out in his hand, he looked up at her. “Lorie,” he asked, “will you marry me?”

  “Are you joking?” Lorie asked in disbelief.

  “I’m dead serious,” Michael replied. “I want to be with you forever. I don’t want to go one more step without having you in my life. I want to protect you and nurture you. I want to be the one man in your life that you can totally depend on. I want to be your all, because you are everything to me. Besides, we have no idea what tomorrow will bring.”

  Laughing and crying at the same time, Lorie nodded vigorously. Standing up, Michael placed the ring on her finger.

  Sandy barked joyfully and started running in circles around them while wagging her tail.

  With tears still streaming down her face, Lorie kissed him like he had never been kissed before. He held her close as he kissed her back, not wanting to ever let her go.

  “Now, you’re not just saying yes because I’m almost the last guy on Earth, are you?” he asked as her lips parted from his.

  “Of course,” she said, laughing.

  After leaving the shop, they drove a short distance out of town, where they found a large plantation house set back from the road. Michael hid the truck behind the house, and after checking inside for any occupants, living or dead, he motioned for Lorie to join him. The house had been vacant for many weeks, and they stayed that night in the relative luxury of the master bedroom. Despite her protests, Michael insisted that Lorie sleep in the oversized bed while he selected a spot on the floor just inside the doorway. He didn’t want any unwanted surprises in the middle of the night.

  The next morning, Lorie surprised him by asking if they could go back into town.

  “Why?” he asked. “Do you want to exchange the ring? You do know that the store has a no return policy.”

  “No, silly,” she said, embracing him and planting another kiss on his lips. “I just realized that if we’re going to be married, then we need to find you a matching ring. I can’t let all the remaining women think that you’re still available.”

  “What remaining women?” he asked, smiling.

  Chapter 36

  They packed the truck and headed back toward town. As they neared the main street, Michael’s mood turned unexpectedly downward. He quickly brought the truck to a stop. Krank’s gang had arrived in town. Their cars were parked haphazardly on the street, and they were in the process of looting the stores. Whooping and hollering, some were showing jewelry to the others. The rest were smashing doors and windows of stores, hauling merchandise out.

  Krank was nowhere to be seen. Michael assumed he was inside one of the stores until a large hand reached inside the truck and grabbed him by the neck. He was effortlessly dragged out through the driver’s side window and thrown down hard against the pavement. His body landed on top of a discarded lead pipe.

  “I’m going to reach down your throat and tear your insides out while your girlfriend watches,” Krank growled down at Michael. “Then I’m going to eat your heart and liver while you choke on your own blood. Finally, I’m going to break your pretty little blonde in half.”

  Confidently, Krank stepped over Michael’s body, opened the truck door, and reached in for Lorie. They wrestled briefly with the SCAR until Krank tore it out of her hands and tossed the gun nonchalantly into the backseat. He then dragged her out of the truck. Michael tried to get up, but Krank kicked him hard in the ribs. It was enough to knock all the wind out of his lungs. Gasping for breath on the pavement, Michael watched as Lorie jumped on
Krank’s back and hit him on the head with her fists. “Why can’t you just leave us alone?” she screamed.

  Krank reached back with his right arm and pulled her off like a pesky flea. He wrapped his massive hand around her neck and started to squeeze. Lorie gasped for air and frantically tried to claw at his face with her fingers. Her face was starting to turn red as she struggled. Krank grinned wolfishly at Lorie. His putrid breath assaulted her nostrils. She tried to scream for Michael, but nothing would come out as Krank continued to squeeze her neck with sickening glee. Her skin color was now changing from red to pale, and she could barely fight.

  An evil grin spread across Krank’s face as he reached up with his free hand and tore the top of her blouse off. Drawing near to her with his looming, brown teeth, he reached up and grabbed her bra…

  A lead pipe crashed into the back of Krank’s head. Momentarily stunned, Krank relaxed his grip on Lorie’s neck, but he still held on to her with his inhuman strength. From behind, Michael again swung the bar as hard as he could and hit Krank. This time, Krank’s eyes rolled up into his head. He dropped Lorie and fell to his hands and knees. Michael kicked Krank as hard as he could, toppling him to the ground.

  Now, the gang members were dropping their precious merchandise and running toward them. Shouting at Lorie, they both turned and started to run for the truck. Michael suddenly fell forward as Krank caught hold of his ankle. He hit the pavement hard, and a red-hot pain shot up his leg as his ankle was twisted in an unnatural way. Looking back at Krank, Michael cried out in surprise and agony. His outburst made Krank smile like a predator that had trapped its prey. Turning his head to find Lorie, Michael saw that she had climbed into the truck and was frantically trying to get her SCAR out of the backseat.

  “Lorie!” he called desperately.

  She looked at him. Terror was written all over her face.

  “Turn the truck around!” he yelled to her. He pointed in the direction of the approaching gang members. They were running out of time. His desire to finish Krank off was outweighed by the threat posed by Krank’s lunatic followers. Even if Lorie got her gun out, there was no way she could take on Krank’s entire gang all by herself. They had to get out of there. Quickly!

  Krank tried to pull Michael toward him. He was going to break every bone in his body. Krank could hear his loyal followers getting closer by the second.

  Michael had to break free and get away…now! Desperately, he kicked out with his good foot and connected with Krank’s ugly, scarred face. He kicked again and again. Finally, Krank let go of his leg.

  Michael scrambled to his feet and tried to ignore the throbbing pain in his ankle.

  In the meantime, Lorie had pulled the truck around, and Michael limped over, barely able to put any weight on his injured ankle. She reached over and threw open the passenger’s door. Michael crawled inside. Pushing the gas pedal to the floor, she got the truck out of there and sped down the road.

  Krank rolled over to a sitting position and then stood up. He screamed as Lorie and Michael drove off. His gang had just reached him, and he turned around to face them. In his fury, Krank punched the closest follower and broke his nose. He fell to the ground unconscious.

  “Go after them!” he hollered at the rest. Looking at the body of their friend, they obediently and without hesitation took off for their vehicles. Pulling himself together, Krank headed back to his own Humvee. He pulled out and started to chase Michael and Lorie. He wasn’t going to let them get away this time.

  The town was in a small valley in between two minor mountains. Unseen by anybody, a small, bearded figure in overalls, hidden in the brush of the mountain, watched the activity in the town through binoculars as the vehicles sped away. After the final car left, he quickly got on a hand held radio and started talking to someone.

  Lorie was reaching speeds of over one hundred miles per hour as she raced down the two-lane country road. Michael turned around in his seat, wincing as his ankle responded in protest, and then peered out through the back window. Way off in the distance, like little dots, he could see Krank and his fanatical followers in their cars. Lorie slowed down as they approached a curve in the road. Going around the curve, they briefly lost sight of their pursuers.

  “How are we going to lose them?” Lorie asked anxiously.

  “I don’t know,” Michael said. “We have to get away from them. Just keep going. We’ll figure something out. We’ve come too far to give up now.”

  “You drive,” she said.

  “I can’t,” he said. “Krank screwed up my ankle. I can’t do the pedals. Besides, you’re doing just fine. Keep going as fast as you can. We have a full gas tank. Maybe we can outlast them long enough for them to run out of gas. The Humvee will surely run out of gas before we do.” Michael was trying to boost Lorie’s morale. Inwardly, he didn’t know how they would possibly escape this situation.

  Lorie continued to drive as fast as she dared for the next fifteen minutes on the increasingly narrow, curvy road. They started noticing more and more foliage on either side of the road. The trees were getting denser. Soon, they passed a sign that announced they were entering the national forest. Lorie kept one eye on the road and one eye on the rearview mirror. Michael checked his SCAR magazine to make sure it was full.

  Sandy yipped an alarm from the backseat, and Michael twisted his body around to look. Krank’s Humvee and two other cars were starting to close in on them. They were closer than Michael had ever imagined they would be. How did they gain on us so quickly? Michael thought. It’s like they had nitrous injected into their engines…

  “Michael…” Lorie started.

  “Yes, I see them. Just keep going,” Michael said. He loaded a round into the chamber of the SCAR.

  Chapter 37

  Krank’s Humvee, the jeep, and two other cars were steadily gaining on them. Lorie continued driving the truck as fast as the road conditions would allow. As bullets started flying past them, Michael made Sandy get down on the floorboard in the backseat to protect her from harm. Lorie was trying to scrunch down behind the steering wheel.

  Michael looked through his side mirror as Krank’s Humvee closed in from behind. As he watched, he saw Krank motion to the vehicle on his right. The Humvee suddenly started to fall behind. The jeep with the fifty-caliber mounted on top took the place of the Humvee. Michael was well aware that only a few hits from that gun would cripple the truck. Then, they’d be sitting ducks. Even worse, if one of those bullets found flesh, there was no doubt it would be a lethal shot.

  Rolling down his window, Michael leaned out of the truck with his SCAR. His ankle was still screaming in pain as he pushed himself farther out of the window. Fighting the wind that tore at his clothes and at the gun, Michael aimed at the jeep driver’s windshield. He couldn’t see the driver of the jeep because of the sun’s reflection off the glass, but he could definitely see the thug behind the mounted gun aiming for the truck.

  Michael squeezed off three rounds in rapid succession. Then, he shot three more. He hit nothing with the first rounds, but the front windshield of the jeep shattered with his second volley. Before the glass windshield completely disintegrated, Michael fired off three more rounds.

  The jeep veered sharply to the right. Sliding across the green embankment, it wrapped itself around a large, immovable tree with a loud sound of crashing and twisting metal. Michael watched as the body of the gunner sailed through the air and disappeared into the brush.

  Yet another car replaced the jeep’s position and started to gain on the truck. The new car’s passenger hung out the window and started firing at Michael with an AK-47.

  With bullets flying wildly around him, Michael returned fire at the largest target he could aim for, the front grill of the car. After a few rounds, Michael must have hit something, because smoke started to billow out from underneath the hood. The car dropped back.

  Michael turned his attention to the remaining vehicles, one of which was Krank’s Humvee. Krank was
staring directly at him with such malevolent hatred that Michael thought Krank would explode. Their eyes met for one brief second, and Michael shuddered. This Krank was an incarnation of the devil. Michael swiveled the SCAR and aimed at the Humvee.

  Anticipating Michael’s move, Krank drove the Humvee over to the left side of the road and started gaining on the truck from Lorie’s side.

  Unable to get a clear shot around his truck’s own cab, Michael sat back down in his seat and then crawled over Sandy into the backseat. His ankle screamed once again in protest. Ignoring the pain and replacing his gun’s magazine with a full one, Michael glanced out the back window. Krank’s Humvee was getting closer. Michael slid open the little window in the back and rested his elbows on the top of the backseat as he tried to steady his aim at Krank.

  Before Michael could squeeze off a shot, Krank pulled the Humvee drastically to the right side of the road and fired off multiple rounds from his driver’s side window. Michael heard the bullets pinging off of the back end of his truck. Yet another car was pulling up alongside Krank’s Humvee and firing at Michael. Are they ever going to give up? Michael wondered.

  Again Michael tried to aim at Krank. He desperately tried to center the crosshairs on Krank’s head.

  Krank’s gun muzzle lit up as he fired another stream of rounds. The truck’s windshield on Michael’s left suddenly shattered. In the next instant, Michael felt a searing pain in his right shoulder, and he was flung backward. Lorie screamed.

  As Michael was still trying to figure out what had just happened, Krank managed to shoot out the truck’s back right tire. Lying on his back in the backseat, Michael found himself staring up at the roof. He could hear the flap, flap, flap of the ruined truck tire. Lorie was fighting the wheel to keep the truck from careening off the road. They were starting to rapidly lose speed.

  Michael looked down and saw two red spots on his right shoulder where blood was spreading outward. Starting to feel dizzy, he heard Lorie scream for him from the front seat. Almost as if in a dream, he looked over and saw Sandy’s frightened face staring back at him from the floor. She was panting heavily, and she whined questioningly at him.