"I always assumed you'd develop a vaccine." Goldwaith's voice cracked. "You're supposed to be the best of the best."
"I am, but if you'll go back and read every email I sent you, you'll find I warned you more than once." Reginald pinched the bridge of his Roman nose between his thumb and forefinger and sighed. "I told you there was a slim possibility of success."
"You're one of those pessimistic types. Since rabies has a vaccine, I assumed it wouldn't take long to change it to work on the weaponized version. The president will have my job over this."
"Your job is the least of your worries." Reginald hit his forehead with the palm of his hand. "Listen to me. You will not survive if you contract this disease. Of course, before you die, you'll bite, scratch, and eat your way through your family. Then they'll develop it and perpetuate the cycle. When you released ZR-76, you set an apocalypse in motion."
"We need to put a stop to it. Now. You and your team'll work around the clock until you fix this. Get busy."
"Keep on dreaming, Gollum." Reginald smiled. He'd wanted to call his boss by his pet name for years.
"What does that mean?"
"Ever see Lord of the Rings?"
"No."
"Watch it before you die from your precious virus." Reginald disconnected and called his wife.
"We need to leave. Pack the essentials and be ready to go within the hour."
"Why? I have a PTA meeting this afternoon. Can't it wait?"
Reginald closed his eyes. "Mary Anne, trust me. If we don't go now, we may never get to leave. Pick Belle up from school, and call David to come home. Now. We're going to Texas."
"Honey, I've seen the news." Mary Anne cleared her throat. "We know this disease is bad. There's even been a couple of cases at our miniscule hospital, but the CDC says not to worry. Are they mistaken?"
"Webber's an idiot. He has no clue what he's dealing with." Icy tendrils gripped Reginald's throat making it impossible to speak for several seconds. "Baby, please trust me. I'm trying to keep our family alive."
"Reg, you're scaring me."
"I'm sorry, but you need to be terrified. I'll head home as soon as possible. Call Josh and have him and Mark meet us. I'll text you the directions to send to him." He'd keep his brother's kids safe from this plague if at all possible.
Reginald disconnected and took a small pry-bar from his desk drawer. He found the brick he'd loosened a few days earlier and pulled it out of the wall where he’d hidden copies of his notes and a vial of ZR-76 inside. To redeem himself, he had to find a way to save humanity from this curse. Even if it took years. He stuffed them into the false bottom of his satchel in case Goldwaith had him searched as he left the building.
He closed his eyes, sucked in a ragged breath, and avoided looking toward the lab. He should warn the other scientists of what Goldwaith had done, but at this point, he'd put his family first.
Once he had everything packed, he unlocked his top drawer, pulled out his SIG .380 and eased open the lab door. He smiled, thankful they'd never installed metal detectors and scanners at the doors. If they had, he never would've slipped the weapon into the lab. He’d bought the pistol when he suspected Goldwaith had ulterior motives with the virus.
No one in sight. Maybe he could leave without killing anyone. He crept down the hallway and encountered a guard near the door. The man drooled, hung his head, and ran toward Reginald. He grabbed the pistol from his pocket, retracted the slide, aimed, and fired. His flesh crawled and itched as the guard dropped to the floor. The metallic odor of blood mingled with gunpowder hung in the air. What had he done? Saliva pooled in his mouth, and he fought the urge to spit. How many more people would he kill to keep his family from becoming rabid?
Reginald left his top-secret lab located in the mountains a few miles from Silver Penny, Colorado. He took the twists and turns down the mountain as fast as he dared. A light dusting of snow fell as he drove home. They had to leave before the weather made the mountainous roads impassable. Becoming stranded here wasn't an option.
Knowing Goldwaith, he might've released the virus in their hometown, but how did he infect so many people at once? The threat assessment put prisons and schools at the highest risk. Still, how could he have reached around the world? A shudder raced up Reginald's spine. Why hadn't President Davis called him to verify the information from his boss? She'd called him several times during the development of the virus.
Although, if she had, her plausible deniability would’ve disappeared. Her unchecked ambition would cost her, her life this time. The government might protect her for a while, but this disease would reach her. It would reach everyone sooner or later.
He pulled in front of the house and raced inside where Mary Anne waited with their children. "Dad, why are we leaving now?" Belle whined. His precious blond princess with her cute little upturned nose. She would turn eleven soon. If he could keep them alive until her New Year's Eve birthday. "Ginger's mom said if it snows enough, we can go tobogganing. What's in Texas, anyways?"
"Uncle Zed left land to us, and I had a retreat built there. We need to get away for a while."
"Great. Just great." She sighed and flopped onto the sofa. "You're ruining my life, you know."
"Stop being a brat." David, Reginald's nineteen-year-old, glared at his sister. "Dad's trying to sugar coat things, but haven't you seen the news? He wants to go to Texas where he can keep us safe and out of the reach of the zombies, so shut it, grab your bag, and get your behind in the van."
Belle stared at her big brother for a few seconds before picking up her bag and heading for the garage door.
"Let's go." Reginald ushered the rest of the family toward the car. "Time to leave."
He wound through town toward Highway 17 to Alamosa. They passed a group of infecteds holding a man against the pavement. "Belle, don't look honey. Read a book or something." Reginald glanced at her in the rearview mirror. His daughter stared at the sight of people biting and scratching other people and tears cascaded down her cheeks.
"Toughen up. This is life now, kiddo." David touched her arm. "It freaks the crap out of me too, but we have to accept this as normal, now."
Belle screwed her face up into a snarl. "I don't have to accept this. It's not normal and never will be. You didn't even realize it was this bad. Now you want to tell me to accept it. Are you insane? People are eating other people. What kind of lunatic does that?"
"Lunatics infected with this weird rabies virus." Mary Anne crossed her arms over her chest. "Honey, I know you didn't want to hear what David had to say, but something very bad has happened in our world, and we must learn to survive." She touched her husband's shoulder. "I had no idea things had devolved into this. How did it spread so quickly?"
Reginald stopped at a red light and something slammed into the rear door. Belle screamed, and David yelled, "Go, Dad! Go!" One of the rabids grabbed the handle of the rear door and held on as the car accelerated and dragged him through the streets. The man's grip didn't loosen even when Reginald increased speed.
He floored the gas pedal, and the man's body bounced off the rear quarter panel. The second human he'd killed today. He swallowed several times and fought to keep his mind focused on driving.
"You couldn't have done anything differently," David said. "He was dead. His body just didn't know it yet."
Reginald tried to ignore the raging headache threatening to overwhelm him. "It spreads with saliva in an open wound. Incubation period varies from an hour or so to a few days depending on the viral load the person gets. A bite, a scratch or wound that gets contaminated with saliva or blood of the infected, and the person has the disease. Goldwaith probably dumped it a few days ago. We'll see more cases by the hour."
He wanted to run away. Anywhere the living dead hadn't invaded. Both men he'd killed were already gone. David was right. There was no hope. He'd spared them from infecting even more people by hastening their physical demise. A death he'd engineered. He hadn't killed two people today.
Instead, he'd killed countless humans with his modified rabies. He should've known this would happen.
"Reg, are you okay?" Mary Anne crossed her arms, again. "I'll drive if you want."
"No." He eased up on the gas. He couldn't change the course of the disease by killing his family. "Sorry. Everything has me upset. I'll be more careful."
"So, this is what you were working on, isn't it?"
His heart hit the ground. He couldn't lie to her but didn't want her to know he'd been the lead scientist on the team that engineered the virus modifications. "Yes. I didn't release it though."
Mary Anne rubbed the back of her neck. "Something's been bothering you for months. When you called today, I put it together." She sat quietly for a while. "I never dreamed anyone would release any of the viruses you've worked on."
"Me either, but I modified it, so I'm responsible."
"Only for doing everything in your power to put an end to this." She stared out the window. "Did you bring your notes?"
"I had them build a small lab in the basement. If there's any way to stop this—"
"If not, then you'll have to learn to live with it."
They passed more rabids shuffling along the side of the highway. "I can never make it right." He pointed to the group of dying people. "How do I make it up to them? Their families? I've turned them into mindless flesh-eaters."
"Did you know this would happen?" David asked.
"No. I thought the DOD would store it along with the other bio-weapons, but Goldwaith and the president released it. She thought it would help her reelection campaign when we developed a vaccine, but there's not enough time."
"Dad, you can't turn back time. We can only go forward." David, his pragmatic child. Reg smiled. If he could find a way to reverse the virus, a cure, then maybe there was hope for mankind. And maybe hope for his absolution. Who was he kidding? To develop the virus had taken a team of scientists ten years. He was one man with a life expectancy that had dropped through the floor.
As they neared Alamosa, cars blocked the highway. Reginald slowed to a crawl and cut in and out of abandoned autos. He stopped and jammed the gearshift into park. "I've got to push that car out of the way." He pointed to a Tahoe blocking their path. "Lock the doors, and if anything happens, turn around. Find an alternate route to Uncle Zed's land. Gate codes and a drawbridge remote are in the glove box. Don't stop until you get there."
"So many." Mary Anne covered her mouth with her hand and turned away.
"I'll help." David reached for his door handle.
"No." Reginald pinned David with a stare. "You're responsible for your mother and sister. If something happens to both of us, who'll get them to safety?"
David nodded.
He touched the weapon in his pocket as he climbed out.
Chapter Two
Joshua Barker left Austin, drove as fast as possible on Highway 71 toward I-10, and prayed it hadn't backed up yet. He had to reach his kid brother Mark and head for shelter. Responsibility for his brother had never been a burden. Tiring at times but not a burden. Mark worked as an intern at the Space Center in Houston, and Josh hadn't been able to reach him.
An invisible hand clutched his heart with an icy grip each time Mark's cell phone went to voice mail. Why hadn’t he high tailed it to Houston when he'd encountered the first infected person? Aunt Mary Anne had left a message about a secure place in the Hill Country. He tried to call her back, but those calls also went unanswered.
Not being able to reach his aunt or his brother threatened to bring on despair. Silence filled the car and weighed down on his spirit. He took a breath as he recalled his mom's favorite scripture. "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" Maybe from Jeremiah? He couldn't remember where it was in the Bible.
Hope for a future. He needed to hold onto that. If he lost his tenuous hold on his faith, he might lose his will to fight. His hand slid to his service weapon on his hip, but he jerked it back to the wheel. He refused to let thoughts of ending it pull him into an unrecoverable depression. Instead, he tapped the phone icon on his steering wheel and called Mark's cell number again.
Mark answered on the fourth ring flooding Josh with relief. "Josh?"
"I've been trying to reach you for hours. I'm heading your way."
"No. Don't come. It's not safe," he whispered.
"What do you mean?"
"They're everywhere."
"Unh uh. I'm coming. We're in this together. Where are you?"
"The Space Center. When I saw how bad it was outside, I stayed here. So far, I'm okay."
"Is your car still in the shop?"
"Yes. I've been relying on public transportation, but I can't now. Not the way Houston is." Mark went silent for a few seconds. "Everyone left when this started. Well, everyone except the infected. Now, they roam the halls. The outer doors must still be open."
"I'm driving as fast as I can and will be with you as soon as possible."
"Stay safe. Don't wreck. They can smell blood."
Josh refused to ask how his brother knew the infected smelled blood. He couldn't dwell on the dangers Mark faced without panicking and putting them both at risk. "I won't. Stay locked in the office and don't leave." Josh sucked in a breath. "Do you understand?"
"Yes. When you get here, park as close to the building as you can. Call me, and I'll meet you outside."
"The phone might not work."
"I'll check out the windows once in a while."
"Do you have a weapon?"
"Not with me. Government facility, remember."
Josh muttered. "Stupid sitting-duck laws." His arm muscles stiffened. "Stay inside. I'll come get you." He disconnected and increased the speed on his city-issued Dodge Charger. The trip should take a little over three hours with light traffic, but no telling how long it would take since this madness erupted. He prayed Mark would remain safe.
Josh managed to keep his speed steady along I-10. Quite the change from normal. The highway often resembled a parking lot before the apocalypse. Why no cars, now? He made record time to Highway 71, but almost thirty miles outside of Bastrop, he encountered a logjam of cars and had to slow to a crawl.
The jam gave way to a blockade. A semi sat crossways blocking the highway. Josh scoured the landscape looking for a trap. He rubbed his neck and took a deep breath. A small opening appeared in front of the truck. Josh wove around it and found a sedan blocking his progress. No way was he getting out of his car. He couldn't shake the feeling someone had set the maze up as a trap.
He inched the Charger forward until the bumper thudded against the abandoned Impala. Metal on metal screeched as he pressed the gas pedal a bit and pushed the car to the side. He jammed his foot on the gas pedal and shot forward as a projectile shattered his rear window.
Josh checked his rearview mirror every few seconds. No one followed him, so he relaxed a little. The miles clicked by. Wind whistled through the shattered window, and a chill permeated the cruiser. He hit the heater button and turned it on high as goosebumps popped out on his arms.
Did the virus mutate or was something more nefarious at work here? One day the world was normal, and the next insane. He clicked on the satellite radio and flipped channels until he came to a news station. Brent Cummings, the newscaster, was interviewing Dr. Allan Webber with the CDC.
"Dr. Webber, you've repeatedly said this is a limited outbreak, but we continue to see more and more cases. Can you explain this? If it's 'limited', why does it keep spreading?" Cummings asked.
"Well, Brent, the CDC and WHO have been studying this virus since we identified the first case, and we stand by our earlier assessment. By limited, we mean by quarantining the sick, we will eliminate the disease. The rabies will not continue to spread."
"You've got to be kidding. Have you left your little bubble for even a second?" Cummings scoffed. "Thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands are contracting th
is horrendous disease on a daily basis, and you've got the nerve to tell us it won't continue to spread?"
Cummings introduced Ray Ferdinand, Speaker of the House, and Linda Slobeck, Senate Majority Leader.
"Brent, I have a reliable source who says this virus is a bio-weapon designed by our own State Department. Against UN treaties signed by President Davis," Ferdinand said. "This is unacceptable, but as usual, this administration will not take responsibility for anything."
"Who is your so-called source?" Slobeck asked. "Where's the proof this is a weapon, and if it is, how do we know Madam President was involved or even knew about it?"
They devolved into yelling and screaming.
Josh shook his head. A rabies virus turning people into zombies daily, and the politicians held to the party line. The Republicans blamed the Democrats, and the Democrats blamed the Republicans. The American people suffered because nothing got done in the midst of their finger-pointing and name-calling.
He clicked the scan button and landed on a Christian music station. Better than listening to the lies of the uninformed. The road became congested again as he neared the Sealy exit. He made a quick right to take 36 to Rosenberg, and then he would reevaluate his path.
At Rosenberg, a man flagged him down. Josh's heart jumped into his throat, but he couldn't leave a lone person out on the road defenseless against the infected. He slowed to a stop, clicked his doors locked, and lowered his window enough to talk to the man. His hand rested on his service weapon.
"Don't go into Sugar Land. It's scary," the man yelled.
"Really?"
He ran to Josh. "I just escaped from there. No idea where you're headed, but avoid it. These...whatever they are, have taken over the town. It's insane, man. I'm headed out of Texas as fast as I can."
"Are you walking?"
"Nope. Stopped to use the restroom." He pointed to a truck. "That's my ride, but I saw you, and didn't want you to get caught in the nightmare. I barely escaped with my life."
"Thanks for the update. I'll take a different path."
Dark Days (Book 1): Contagion Page 2
