"Ooh, and are you picking up Danny tonight?"
John stops with a smile and responds.
"You knew?!"
Sue gives John a kiss with a smile which he returns before motioning backward toward the door saying to them all before blowing kiss.
"See you all tonight, it’s my turn to beat the peak traffic so expect me home a little earlier."
Sue and Charlotte both return with one which John appears to catch as they then watch him turn out to leave the house.
Sean goes back into the lounge room, as Sue watches Charlotte who goes over and sits down up against the window to watch her father reverse out of the drive and wave goodbye.
John responds from in the car briefly with the vehicle in motion, before turning out and then tooting as he drives off up the street.
CHAPTER 8
The Compound
John drives his car up toward the main gates with what appears to be a television news crew along with protesters outside and partially blocking his way who chant.
"Say no to G.M.O, don’t you mess with nature yo! Say no to G.M.O don’t you mess with nature yo!"
The protesters begin moving up to his window with the security soon moving in to hold them back so he can get through to swipe his key card.
Reading some of the homemade banners as the car crawls up toward the gate with a few taking his eye displayed outside on both sides of the car.
’Say no to G.M.O’ ’Leave Nature Alone’ with one standing out considerably more than the rest, ’Romans 1:22 - Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools’.
John looks to swipe his card with the gate opening, he then drives in around past the main doors toward his car park while security tend to the protesters who appear wanting to go into the compound also.
John walks from his car across the car park into the building toward the lift, noticing no one at reception and pushing the down button looking back through to the canteen with all seeming a little quieter than usual.
The lift soon opens with John moving in to push the button G3 for the underground level.
John steps into the elevator which soon gets to his floor with the door opening.
John moves out and heads down the corridor to his lab glancing at another lab window as he walks by.
Holding on to his swipe card moves toward swiping for access before he enters his office, looks up to the glass for the main lab before placing his keys on the desk.
Upon this then taking the manila folder from off his desk and moving toward before swiping his access card to enter the lab.
Mike soon comes through from beyond after appearing to hear John's arrival and seeing him looking into the manila folder on approach.
"Morning boss!"
John looks up to Mike and continues on approaching.
"Morning, how did it go last night?"
"Not to bad, kept myself busy. Interesting night though to say the least, C.J was up late and come to think of it I don’t even think there was any sleeping going on?!"
"Really, that might not be a good thing?!"
John pauses for a moment before asking.
"Is William here?"
John places the folder down on the bench, then moves to look over the checks from the night as Mike goes on to reply.
"Yep, Sam and Kev too!"
"Good!"
"They’re just collecting samples from the rodents."
"I’m interested to see the results from C.J."
"She’s very quiet John. I’ve been thinking about it. What are your thoughts on our latest strain?"
"It’s not just the strain I’ve been thinking about. Why?"
"Gives me a shiver and that C.J a good appetite. The dish is empty and was gobbled up in a flash."
John looks up at Mike in somewhat disbelief.
"Yeah, what time did you feed her?"
"Fed them all around 8pm."
John thinks on it momentarily.
"Okay, we’ll take a look at C.J before Alex comes down."
"He called earlier."
"Already?!"
"Yeah, he said for you to ring him as soon as you get in!"
"What’s the hurry?"
John stands at the table next to Mike, who is in preparation for taking a blood sample from C.J. John begins to glance over the main file and current charts as Mike begins to express his opinion.
"I was talking to William before and I feel the same way."
"Hm, what and end it?"
Mike stands there slightly shrugging a shoulder while nodding his head a little as John appears to interrupt on the later as he looks to Mike.
"I know they’re going to ask either way, but CJ she.."
"Wow, has she got to you too?!"
Mike stands there with an uncomfortable feeling, as he thinks deep in thought pondering over C.J being introduced to the strain while shaking and shrugging his shoulder a little blowing out air as he breathes out sighing.
John interjects Mike’s motion and thought.
"We’ll do what we have to before they get here!"
"William and Sam, they’re about to take blood from her."
"Okay, have a look and I’ll go delay Alex."
Mike goes back out to see William with Sam and Kev as John heads through to his office to make the call to Alex the CEO which again rings with no answer.
He motions to ring Cynthia the personal assistant which also rings with no answer.
"What do I have to do to get a hold of you?!"
Upon this John decides to take it upon himself to go to Alex’s office seeing as he cannot get in touch with him via the phone.
He gets up almost in a huff, leaving through his office door out into the corridor toward and then into the first available opening elevator which soon closes after he enters.
Moments later however, Alex with two board members, some corporate sponsors accompanied with two uniformed officers who soon motion out of the 2nd elevator opening on John’s floor.
They then move down the corridor passing Johns office toward the main lab entrance.
Alex swipes his card with all entering as Alex motions to move in toward the animals to see the progress being made as no one is about in the main lab.
Alex, an assertive well dressed man of average build in his mid forties enjoying the corporate lifestyle voices to the group.
"We’ll go through, they must be working with the subjects."
A male corporate sponsor, well tailored of average build in his early fifties responds.
"Good to see we’re getting our monies worth."
A few of the party somewhat agree as they all move toward the animals in the adjoining room with Alex looking to them briefly while moving.
"Only the best will do around here!"
The visitors continue on through acknowledging while passing Kev, who comes through from beyond on hearing the access, as the group continue to move through.
They move on up to the room opening then meeting Mike and William on arrival as Sam who is sliding out C.J ready to strap her to the table looks up.
A naturally attractive woman in her own right, Sam moving toward her late twenties of slightly curvy figure with auburn colored hair who wears little makeup and appears not to be too bothered on her appearance during working hours briefly looks over CJ for her appearance.
Although the group of visitors have startled the three on their entrance as Alex voices then asks with the three looking to him.
"Don’t mind us! John must be in his office is he?"
Mike quickly answers Alex assertively.
"Yes Sir he was!"
Alex acknowledges Mike’s quick and respectful response.
"Okay, I’ll go through and see him then."
Before exiting, Alex directs his attention to the visitors, then back toward Mike, Sam and William as he voices before moving out to go find John.
"I
will leave you all in their capable hands."
The three still startled by the intrusion of the visitors acknowledge Alex’s momentary departure with him then moving away from the group as Sam and William appear reluctant to move forward with the test.
Moments later however, they continue to move forward with the procedure.
Mike moves in closer toward the bench for the slightly cramping space caused by the visitors as William with Sam prepare to take the sample.
Both looking, then turning to each other on the skin coloration and overall condition of C.J who does not look well to them at all.
A late twenty year old male Kev, of slim to average build with brown shortish hair and somewhat softly spoken who is now working at his station sees Alex coming back into the main lab.
Alex soon stops at Mikes station from noticing the classified file with notes John was reading earlier.
Kev shakes his head a little before continuing his work, as Alex starts flicking through the file and then noticing the open video footage from the rodents on the monitor for the PC in front of him. Alex looks into the video file and proceeds to replay the footage displayed on the monitor.
While viewing he sees 10 rodents in perspex confines, with who appears to be William and Mike releasing an infected rodent into the scene.
With the uninfected 10, the infected rodent pounces on the others nearest as they all begin running around or jumping up the walls for an escape.
One by one within less than half a minute nine rodents are infected with the remaining uninfected runt of the 10 cowering in the corner as the others all turn.
The introduced rodent almost appears to stand up on it’s back legs, staring at the last remaining uninfected rodent with the others now infected soon moving to it’s side.
Moments later, the infected rodents together, devour the remaining rodent until there is only skeleton and head left with Alex moving back from the monitor slightly upon witnessing.
Alex upon seeing this is in somewhat a form of sickening shock as he watches the remaining pieces of footage.
Seeing the predatory instinct he had just witnessed by the infected rodents, he glances to the side down toward the notes then back out toward the direction of the visitors and back again to the monitor before pressing play once more.
Meanwhile John who is now on the top floor, moves up toward the location of Alex’s office, and seeing the personal assistant Cynthia absent from her desk moves ahead then begins knocking on Alex’s office door waiting for a response. John knocks again, then calls through. "Alex it’s John, are you in?"
Cynthia an attractive early thirty year old business women, who wears glasses in the office and dressing well with a smile comes back in from behind John with him turning toward her on arrival.
"Hi John! Did you not see Alex?"
Cynthia moves further through toward him with what appears to be a handful of paperwork.
"What do mean, is he on his way?"
"Yeah, they all went down about ten minutes ago."
"I’ve been trying to get in touch with him since yesterday."
"He’s had a lot on this week, it’s been hectic and to tell you the truth he’s been a little more stressed over the visit."
John with raised eyebrows responds then mentions before motioning out. "Tell me about it! I’ll head back down."
John moves out turning to make his way back toward the lift as Cynthia wishes him well. "Good luck!"
John turns back acknowledging Cynthia while motioning forward. "Thanks."
Cynthia smiles at John who returns with his attention forward as she begins to go through the paperwork in hand at her desk.
John gets to the lift pushing the down button, waits then sighs when he looks up noticing how long he may have to wait voicing to himself then closing his eyes briefly.
"Come on! He should have waited for my call."
John begins thinking, deep in thought upon opening his eyes while in thought of Alex's failure to wait for his phone call.
CHAPTER 9
Infection
With Alex still reading over the file in the lab learning more about the latest strain and voicing out loud one of John's notes to himself.
"The DNA appears different, and a request will be filed for steps to be taken." Alex upon reading this looks up toward John's office saying to himself.
"What steps are these John?"
He looks down again to continue reading.
Meanwhile in the adjoining room, William begins to draw blood into the syringe from C.J who is strapped in on the table and laid out flat on her back.
C.J’s body hair appears to be falling out onto the floor and this part of the transition going unnoticed while also still appearing heavily sedated.
Sam positioned up near the chest of C.J looks toward William and Mike, then over to the onlookers who appear uncomfortable by the appearance of the monkey which has changed overnight.
A mid forty year old women, the corporate sponsor appearing to show gray and beginning to somewhat show her age looks over the monkey.
"What an ugly monkey."
One of the board members, in his late forties of average build with graying dark brown average length hair who wears his suit well hears her before turning back toward William and asks.
"How long before you’ll have the results in from this trial?"
With the attention turning toward the question from the board member, who himself is looking toward William as do the others with the flinching from C.J going unnoticed.
William responds to the board member while looking at the others in the process.
"Within ten minutes or so."
The board member acknowledges William, as Sam starts to unstrap C.J ready to move her back into the cage as William moves over to place the sample on the bench near the visitors who stand back a little giving him some room.
With everyone’s attention directed toward William with the blood sample in hand, as they then begin to move off to test the contents. Sam begins unstrapping the final strap from C.J’s chest releasing it a little.
In that moment, C.J forces herself forward biting Sam on the side of the hand near her pinkie, during her reaction and attempts toward blocking C.J. Sam in the process quickly pulls the strap back down tight with her other hand onto C.J who’s wildly awake and trying to wriggle free.
Everyone in the vicinity turns back as Sue lets out a painful yelp from the bite while she tries to pull down tighter and holding off C.J who continues to fight Sam for freedom.
Mike quickly moves over to hold C.J down while trying to strap her back in also.
Sam while holding the strap down with one hand, shakes her other profusely from the pain of the bite, with an overly aggressive monkey right up at her and trying to break free by any means possible.
Sam looks on to her hand which is starting to turn in color, with blood oozing around the distinct bite marks as her hand begins to change color around the wound moving up toward her wrist.
Mike while struggling to hold C.J down looks to Sam.
"Tell me he didn’t bite you!"
Mike moments later shouts to William upon looking into her eyes knowing instantly she had been bitten.
"William! Your trial, the antidote, we have to try it!"
With Mike holding down C.J while trying to strap her back in, Sam begins to flex her hand forming a fist and stretching it out again while looking at the coloration change around the bite and now moving up through her wrist to forearm as she soon loosens her grip on the strap.
"I feel it."
Mike looks up to Sam upon hearing this as she motions with her hand.
William with blood sample still in hand places it on the bench with a few board members close behind watching on.
The board member moves over to help Mike with C.J in strapping her back down with William frantically trying to get the trial.
Kev enters
in from the lab and looks on toward Sam seeing the change in her arm soon appearing in her eyes as he stands there feeling somewhat helpless.
"No. Sam."
Sam upon hearing Kev makes eye contact with him and softly voices. "I love you."
Sam begins to twitch with her arm now changing to a darker complexion within the veins.
The blood coming from within the bite begins to darken as the mutated strain coming from C.J begins to take hold of Sam.
Kev arrives at Sam as Alex reappears through from the lab as an officer stands close by, with Alex then voicing toward them upon seeing the events unfold before him.
"What the hell is going on?!"
William holds up and draws his trial antidote through a needle and syringe while shouting to the visitors in the room.
"Everyone get out!"
Upon William shouting, C.J kicks her legs up catching Mike in the process, scratching across his face with her foot which forces Mike to let go from the pain while also sending him backwards.
As Mike steps backward, he knocks William up against the bench with the needle and syringe falling out of hand sending it crashing to the floor.
"Damn it!"
The Board Member continues to keep C.J strapped in while William regains his footing after looking at the broken needle and syringe on the floor momentarily before heading back for another.
In a further state of panic with Mike briefly holding while moving his hand down his face from being clawed by C.J’s foot, as Alex looks over at Sam who’s demeanor starts to change as she begins to contort and flinch with the strain pumping through her system. Alex turns to the officer with the order.
"Take them both out!"
Kev turns to Alex and the officer. "No!"
Viral Evolution (Book 1): Retrovirus Page 5
