Point Of Transmission: A Post-Apocalyptic Epidemic Survival (The Morgan Strain Series Book 1)

by Max Lockwood

  Elaina stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face the girl. She pursed her lips, thinking of something inspiring to say to boost her morale. But nothing came to mind.

  In fact, that thought had been swirling around her consciousness ever since it escaped. If the spawn of her creation was ultimately the end of her, then it would somehow be just. Plus, if any virus were to take her out, she only wanted it to be one of her own design.

  On the other hand, she still felt partially responsible for what had happened. Besides, if she weren’t around to find a cure, then the virus would ultimately wipe out all of human civilization. Of course, if everyone were dead, it wouldn’t really matter, but the thought of causing the human race to go extinct was too much for her conscience.

  “You can’t think that way,” Elaina replied plainly.

  “Why not?”

  Natalia had a good point. It would probably be much easier to accept fate than to deal with the struggle that would most likely not lead to a positive outcome. More than likely, at least one of them would succumb to the virus within months. Regular viruses were bad enough—there were so many humans on earth that it was hard to teach everyone that normal human contact, the very actions that made people human, would spread disease. Shaking hands, cuddling, even making love could all conceivably spread communicable diseases from one person to another.

  With the Morgan Strain, the infected spread disease intentionally. They bruised and battered healthy individuals until the breaks in their skin absorbed the virus. This disease wasn’t spread by engaging in normal social situations. An unexplainable hatred of others spread it.

  “We can’t let it win,” Elaina said softly.

  “What do you mean?”

  “The virus wasn’t supposed to be a bad thing. In fact, it was meant to be harmless to healthy people and extremely beneficial to sick people with no other chances.”

  “But it’s not, don’t you see? What difference does it make whether it was intentional or not? We’re still running from maniacs who want to kill us.”

  “I can stop it. And if I can stop it, then I’ll keep you safe. You’ll be first in line for the vaccine once it’s ready.”

  “Really?” Natalia asked, her eyes wide and shiny. “You’re not just saying that so I won’t leave you, right?”

  Elaina shook her head. “I mean it.”

  “Do you really think you can stop this?”

  Elaina raised her chin, standing tall. It was a trick her mother taught her for shaking off the nerves when public speaking. Manufactured confidence was nearly as good as the real thing.

  “Yes,” she replied with full confidence. “I really think I can.”

  “Then I want to help,” Natalia answered. “I just want this to be over so I can go back home.”

  “Me too.”

  “I’m starving,” Natalia whined after walking through an abandoned downtown of suburbia. “Can we stop in this convenience store and grab something to eat? We’re going to need food eventually.”

  Elaina nodded. She was right. The reserves she purchased at the grocery store were still in her car. Her stomach grumbled furiously when she thought about the sugary snacks she’d left behind.

  “Fine, but let’s make it quick. If it hasn’t been fully raided, then it probably will be soon. We’ll grab a few small things that we can carry with us, and then we have to get out of here.”

  Natalia beamed. “I’ve always wanted to take whatever I wanted from a store like this,” she said, eyeing the gas station. “Somehow, it’s not nearly as exciting as I imagined, you know, running from the infected.”

  Elaina cracked a small smile. She wanted to seem like an adult, but she secretly held the same desire. As it turned out, there were still small joys that even the downfall of humanity could not take away.

  Cautiously, the pair entered the store through a broken glass door, ready to stuff their pockets with all of the saturated fats and sugar they could carry. Natalia made a beeline to the chocolate bars while Elaina mused over the different flavors of chips. They each made a few selections when they heard the sound of a door slamming shut.

  They jumped up and turned toward each other, hoping that it was in their imagination. By the other’s reaction, they knew it was not. Someone was in the store with them.

  Elaina felt a wave of panic wash over her. Whoever was in the back room of the store was coming nearer.

  They had two options—run or hide.

  If they ran, the person in the back would give chase, and they would have to run down the commercial area looking for shelter. Businesses with goods worth stealing were already occupied, and those that held no interest to the average infected or criminal were locked. There were no great places to hide once pursued.

  If they hid, the person in the store could potentially attack them if they were found. But if they weren’t found, then they’d have a little time to make a calculated getaway. They’d be able to find a lab instead of being chased into a grocery store.

  “Hide,” Elaina whispered, pushing Natalia toward a storage cupboard under the coffee machine. The girl folded her legs like a contortionist and squeezed into the small space.

  When Elaina could ensure that her travelling companion was well hidden, she tucked herself behind a display of postcards and magazines. In natural daylight, she would likely be seen, but in the dark store, she was camouflaged. If they could just stay silent long enough for the looter to get what they wanted and leave, then they would be free to go.

  With a loud blast, the back door burst open, revealing a beast of a man. His wide shoulders gave way to hulking arms. Elaina estimated that he was about six feet, five inches and weighed around three hundred pounds.

  He stomped around the store, grabbing whatever was in reach—cigarettes, emergency flares, and rope. He moved as if he had no clear aim, but the items he grabbed told a story. He wasn’t in the store hunting for snack cakes like Elaina and Natalia were.

  Elaina clamped a hand over her mouth, knowing that one little whimper could send the man into a violent frenzy. She saw the oozing gash on his face. If he hadn’t felt any symptoms yet, he soon would.

  She was glad that she’d ordered Natalia to hide in the cupboard. If the girl saw who they were up against, she would have screamed. No, it was better for her to imagine that the danger was smaller.

  The man, pleased with his selection, walked back toward the heavy back door. Elaina closed her eyes, feeling relief wash over her. She listened as his footsteps fell fainter and fainter.

  When she was almost certain that they were safe, Elaina heard a tiny sneeze from the storage cupboard. Before she could even move, the man came barreling back into the store, massive arms ready to strike.

  Elaina covered her mouth again, stifling a scream in the back of her throat. He wildly looked around, searching for the source of the noise.

  “I heard you,” he growled. “I know you people are trying to kill me, but I’m not going to let that happen. I didn’t ask to get sick. If everyone would just leave me alone, then we wouldn’t have any problems. But no,” he shouted, kicking over shelves, “I’m not just going to roll over and die. I’m going to get my revenge first.”

  He leaned down and wrenched the cupboard door right off its hinges, exposing Natalia’s hiding spot. She let out a shrill scream and pulled her former captor’s gun from under her sweatshirt, firing a bullet.

  It went wide, nearly hitting Elaina. The man grabbed Natalia by the wrist and pulled her out into the open.

  “I’m not going to let some stupid girl kill me,” the man roared, pushing her against the wall.

  Elaina abandoned her hiding place by pushing the wire magazine racks over onto the man. He was big enough that the racks left little damage, but they startled him enough for him to relinquish his grip on Natalia.

  “Run,” Elaina shouted, climbing out of the hole in the front door. She quickly looked back to see Natalia sprinting after her. Following her was the man, quic
k for his size.

  Elaina led the way down the street, looking for somewhere, anywhere to go. The man chasing them was gaining speed and practically frothing at the mouth. Natalia was panting and starting to slow down. Elaina worried that she wouldn’t be able to keep up for much longer, so she led the chase into an abandoned carwash.

  Weaving through the different stalls, Elaina stopped to grab Natalia and pull her to the side. Then, she took the girl by the hand to hide between two gigantic mechanical scrubbing arms.

  Natalia was shaking like a leaf, so Elaina pulled her close to her body to calm her down. A protective instinct kicked in, and she squeezed Natalia tighter while silently promising to keep her safe. She was sisterless herself, but as she embraced the girl, she felt a kinship toward her that she wished she could have experienced in normal circumstances.

  After what seemed like an hour, Elaina released Natalia.

  “I think the coast is clear,” she whispered, slowly walking out of the dark tunnel. “Where the hell did you get that gun to shoot at him?”

  “I grabbed it after the guy who kidnapped me dropped it. There was only one bullet left though. I’d never actually shot a gun before.”

  A cool morning breeze blew past Elaina, sending a chill down her spine. Usually, the silence was a good sign, a sign that they weren’t in danger. But at this moment, the quiet was eerie. The soft hairs on her forearms stood up.

  “Something’s not right,” she whispered.

  “What?” Natalia asked.

  Just then, the man who Elaina was sure had moved on jumped out in front of them.

  “Did you think you could run away from me?” he snarled. “You stupid bitches are going to die now.”

  The girls screamed and bolted toward the other side of the tunnel. Elaina felt a large hand brush the back of her neck, then she heard a gunshot.

  She toppled to the ground, stunned. She lay there, feeling nothing, then feeling faint. Strong hands rolled her onto her back, and when she opened her eyes, she was staring at a gun.

  “Are you infected?” a voice barked at her.

  “What?” she moaned.

  “Are you infected?”

  He remembered that moment when he thought his life was going to end. That moment after hearing the gunshot, looking down to see where he was hit. He realized he wasn’t. He remembered how he turned around and saw his partner had shot himself to save him, knowing he was infected.

  She slowly sat up. The man on the other side of the gun was wearing a police uniform. The man who had been chasing them lay dead on the street, a bleeding hole between the eyes.

  “No, I’m not infected,” she protested. “Can you get that gun out of my face, please?” she asked.

  The police officer didn’t move. “What are your names? What are you doing here?”

  “I’m Natalia Vincent,” Natalia said quickly, her hands still shaking. “And this is—”

  “Lainey,” Elaina interjected quickly. Natalia gave her a quizzical look, and Elaina returned it with a flat stare. The last thing she needed was to be picked up by police for the crimes she never committed.

  “What are you girls doing out here?” he asked again.

  “Trying to find food,” Elaina answered quickly. She flashed Natalia a warning look. She didn’t need to give him any more information than absolutely necessary.

  “Come with me,” he said, gesturing to his cop car. “You can’t stay here. It’s not safe.”

  Elaina rolled her eyes. It was very clear to her that they weren’t safe in their current location. She wondered if the cop was so dense to think that she’d willingly placed herself in the middle of a deserted town.

  “You never told me your name,” she fired back.

  “My name is Officer Alec Lawrence. You can just call me Alec.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Stop,” Alec said suddenly, drawing his gun again. Elaina turned to look behind her, wondering what hidden danger he saw that she didn’t.

  “Don’t move,” he barked.

  “What?” she asked.

  “Your arm,” he said flatly.

  “My what?” she started. “Oh, it’s a long story.”

  “I bet it is,” he grumbled. “How did you get it?”

  “There were these two hillbilly assholes who tried to attack us,” she explained. “The gun went off and it nicked my arm. It bled a lot and it hurts, but it’s no big deal. Natalia wrapped it up pretty well.”

  Natalia smiled but Alec did not.

  “Was the man infected?”

  “No—well, I don’t think so,” she answered. “I think he was just trying to capitalize on the epidemic.”

  “You realize that you could be infected,” Alec said sternly, still pointing his gun. “The man I just shot was definitely infected.”

  “Sure,” she replied, “but he didn’t touch me. I assure you, I cleaned and wrapped this wound immediately after I got shot. It’s not infected. I’m not infected. Natalia’s not infected. Trust me.”

  Natalia looked confused. “Why are you pointing a gun at her? I though you were here to help us.”

  “I’m here to protect healthy citizens from the infected ones. If there’s a threat to healthy citizens, I need to know about it.”

  “I promise you, I’m healthy,” Elaina said.

  “Of all people, she should know,” Natalia added before realizing what she’d said.

  “What do you mean?” he questioned.

  “Nothing,” Elaina tried to cover up. “I’m just a Biology major at the University of Washington. We study viruses sometimes.”

  “I don’t care if you’re a Nobel Prize-winning scientist,” he retorted. “Let me see your arm.”

  Exasperated, Elaina unwrapped her bandage and exposed her wounded arm. The abrasion was clean and had nearly stopped bleeding.

  Alec held her cold arm in his warm hands and closely examined the wound, checking for any sign of infection. When he couldn’t find any, he gently released her arm.

  “Happy?” Elaina asked.

  “Well, Lainey, it doesn’t appear that the wound has been infected, but you need to make sure it stays under wraps and away from others, do you understand?”

  “Yes,” she said, giving him a sarcastic smile.

  “Good. Get in the car, and we’ll find a place for the two of you to go.”

  Natalia hopped in the back seat and Elaina slid in next to her on the opposite side. Elaina wished she’d had just a little more time alone with Natalia to explain what needed to happen, or more importantly, what couldn’t happen here.

  Alec slammed the door behind him. “You know, you’re not under arrest. You can sit in the front seat if you want.”

  “No, thanks,” Elaina said coldly. “This is fine back here.”

  “Do you need anything?” he asked, scratching his head. His inexperience shone through his tough exterior in these moments. He was clearly out of his element, both in dealing with disasters and dealing with women. “I think we’ve got a first aid kit and some emergency blankets in here.”

  “What about food?” Natalia asked, squeezing her empty stomach.

  “Oh, right,” he said, reaching into the glove compartment. “I’ve only got a few protein bars and a bottle of water. Will that do for now?”

  The girls greedily split up the rations, hardly stopping their chewing to breathe. Alec awkwardly watched them, not knowing what to say.

  “Where are you girls from?” he asked, turning on the car to warm the shivering girls up.

  “Seattle,” Natalia replied with her mouth full. “I was kidnapped from my dad’s car. The guys who took me were real creeps. If you come across two guys in a bunker, you should probably arrest them for kidnapping. Actually, they’ve probably found a new wife already. Maybe you should look into that.”

  “Okay,” Alec said, writing something in a notepad. “Can you tell me everything you know about them?”

  “The only thing I know is that they’re disgus
ting,” she replied. The young one is tall and skinny and the older one is fat and has terrible body odor. If you’ve got any dogs on the case, I bet you’d find them in a heartbeat.”

  Elaina stifled a giggle. Having a talkative person with her would be helpful in distracting the police from her business. All she had to do was keep Natalia talking about the right things to keep the heat off her.

  “Are you two sisters or something?” Alec asked, wagging a finger between the two.

  “No,” Elaina answered. “I was trying to hide from the infected people chasing me when I heard her screaming. I ran inside the school and we fought her kidnappers off together. Ever since then, we’ve run into a lot of people. For the most part, they just chased us away from their territory.”

  “Are you positive they were infected?” Alec asked grimly. “How many people would you estimate?”

  “Maybe fourteen, fifteen?” Elaina guessed. “And they were definitely infected.”

  Alec groaned and rubbed the side of his face. He hadn’t shaved in a few days, and dark stubble was forming across the lower half of his face. It suited him, though. The bloodshot eyes from lack of sleep and poor nutrition didn’t as much.

  “What’s wrong?” Natalia asked. “Have you seen a lot of infected people too?”

  Alec nodded. “I’m afraid so. I was hoping I’d be able to go home now, but at this rate, I’m not sure if I’ll ever get to end this shift.”

  Elaina felt a little bad for Alec. As much as she disliked the police and everyone on a witch hunt for her, seeing him be just as eager to go home as she was returned a little humanity to him. He was caught up in a bad situation with limited options. She could relate to that.

  “Oh,” Natalia said sympathetically. “I bet you want to get back to your family too.”

  “I live alone,” he said. “I’d just like to get back home and go to sleep.”

  Natalia nodded. “Have any of your friends gotten the virus? A girlfriend, perhaps?” she pried.

  “Natalia,” Elaina scolded.

  “It’s okay, Lainey,” he answered. “Just a coworker, so far. But even then, it’s hard to know if they’ve been infected and it’s still dormant in their body.”