Viral Evolution (Book 1): Retrovirus

by Winters, Leigh

  The second infected continues to follow the direction of Johns car as it heads toward the main gate with a security officer coming out to meet them on their approach while watching the car park becoming overrun with panicked people and infected persons.

  John lets his window down to tell the gate security as the officers attention becomes more drawn to the infected person with others close behind swiftly heading their way toward the main gate.

  The security officer decides to draw his handgun as John pulls up alongside him.

  "What’s going on up there?"

  John looks out the rear view mirror then back to the gate security guard.

  "A breach, just aim for the head!"

  Mike leans out toward the other gate security guard who is looking out from the booth doorway toward the car park, although appears to be on the phone already.

  "Call it in and let us out!"

  The officer looks back into the booth, releases the gate as he continues to speak to the local emergency dispatch while the other looks back from John's words.

  With the gate not even fully open, John drives out up toward two more security officers and among the protesters who also intermittently begin to flee for the oncoming approach realizing of the situation ahead.

  Mike soon makes eye contact for a moment with an attractive female holding a microphone in her hand as she then looks toward him wondering what is going on up ahead as they move forward in the vehicle.

  Mike shouts through the shattered passenger window out to her as they pass by.

  "You have to leave!"

  The attractive reporter Lizzie, in her late twenties of light brown skin with dark silky brown hair showing nice curves and a radiant glow about her looks to him on his words.

  She then looks ahead, and back to her cameraman who is busy recording then moves her attention toward their van.

  Vehicles soon begin to head their way with terrified drivers, some carrying passengers, knocking down both infected and non-infected as they drive recklessly through the car park toward the gate.

  John notices this through his rear view mirror as he drives on past the gate and pulls his car to the left as he exits in time preventing the coming vehicle from connecting at the rear of his own.

  With the gate now closing back in behind them both, the oncoming cars soon head toward with the first to arrive crashing through the main gate driving down a few protesters on foot in the process as they flee the compound.

  The news camera crew recording all events now with an on the spot account, although soon enough Lizzie quickly decides to get in the back of the van with the technician due to the oncoming infected and calls out for her cameraman to do the same.

  John slowly drives his vehicle down the side of the road a little while looking in his rear view mirror on the horrors him and Mike are now witnessing directly outside the entrance of the building beyond as he parks up with the vehicle still running.

  John takes his phone from the center console and hands it to Mike.

  "Go to my contacts and ring Jim!"

  Mike looks back at John who is looking back toward the main entrance with figures pouring out of the building trying to make out who’s who leaving Mike a little confused thinking he should ring for emergency services instead.

  "Um, you don’t want emergency services?!"

  John mentions to Mike while looking out the rear window.

  "We need the next level, Jim will help us and he’ll need ours."

  Mike dials the contact passing the phone to John who puts it on speaker while looking up toward the main building with Jim answering moments later and also sounding somewhat surprised.

  "Hey John, so you got my message, how is everything?"

  "Jim, not good. We’ve got a major problem, there’s been a breach from our lab and they’re heading out of the building!"

  "Oh John, is it the strain?"

  "Yes, but it’s stronger!"

  "How much time do we have from infection?"

  "Less than half a minute till it takes hold.."

  "Half a minute?!" as Jim cuts in on John.

  "It modified within the host."

  A moment of silence comes briefly between the two before John goes on to say.

  "Gate security have been in touch with local enforcement, but I’m afraid for their safety and all persons left on site."

  Jim on the other end of the phone, appears to be in motion and walking through a doorway.

  "Okay, we’ll do our best to get there as quick as we can."

  "I know, but the compound, it’s overrun and there was nothing we could do to stop it?!"

  John pauses for a moment as it briefly turns silent.

  "I’m heading to the family, and I’ll ring you when I have them."

  "Be safe John, appreciate the call and we need you on this."

  John looks briefly at Mike, then taking note of the deep scratch marks down the side of his face on the later.

  "You know I did Jim, I had to call, and be careful with this one."

  John turns back looking out the back window and continues on.

  "I have the files on drive in my possession."

  "Alright, I’ll talk to you soon."

  Upon this, John looks down to hang up the phone.

  Meanwhile the cameraman still recording with their driver in the drivers seat turning the ignition to begin a three point turn to exit the scene.

  Upon his three point turn to drive out and away an infected reaches the van crashing into the drivers door, shattering the window and after a struggle eventually drags the driver out.

  The technician lays down in fear joining the cameraman and Lizzie the reporter on the floor in the back while all appear to consider their options.

  However they remain quiet while hearing the protesters screams along with others as shots are heard being fired by the gate security.

  Vehicles race by knocking down infected past the van which is now partially blocking the roadway by the failed three point turn.

  More infected move out toward the main entrance as a vehicle housing a bitten worker being overcome by the strain now steamrolls nearer to the van.

  The person twitching in the drivers seat with foot mostly pressed to the floor and gaining in speed heads straight for toward it.

  Hurtling forward the vehicle smashes into the front side of the van, pushing, uplifting and tipping the van sending it sliding on it’s side across the road with the three unbuckled occupants in the back.

  The van comes to a sudden halt with the back door flinging open from the impact, which now faces John and Mike who are watching from within the car.

  Mike notices the cameraman moving, struggling to free himself and his camera although appears to be

  checking on the reporter as well.

  "The reporter and, they’re in the van!"

  John with Mike both turn looking to each other, Mike looks back at the van as John then throws the gear into reverse as Mike looks further back up at the oncoming infected before they reach the back of the van now laying on it’s side.

  John takes his handgun, leaves the car running and proceeds to open his door with gun in hand heading to the van as gate security continue to fire the last of their ammunition.

  "We’ve got to get them!"

  "That we do!"

  Mike takes a short breath before exiting.

  "Okay, let's do this!"

  Mike flings his door open and races straight after John who goes in the van for the cameraman, while Mike begins to pick up the reporter who is closer toward the door appearing very groggy as she wobbles when he asks her.

  "Can you get to your feet?"

  John upon seeing the cameraman is okay, tells him "Go get in the car!" before looking to the Technician.

  The cameraman in fright struggles with his camera, although takes Johns words seriously before grabbing at a tape and moves out toward the back se
at of the car as John checks the technicians pulse to find he is dead.

  John then helps Mike to begin carrying the dazed reporter toward the passenger side of the back seat and on the way asks her "Can you tell me your name?!"

  "Friends call me Lizzie."

  "Hi Lizzie, I’m John and this here is Mike."

  Lizzie looks up slightly toward the car on approach.

  "Thank you both."

  "Not a problem at all!"

  Lizzie looks toward them both briefly as they carry her weight toward the back of the vehicle.

  The gate security guard also enters the back seat onto the drivers side with the cameraman shuffling into the center.

  John with Mike manage to get Lizzie in the back seat quick, Mike closes the door and moves into the front passenger seat then closes his.

  John somewhat heads over the bonnet toward the drivers side as an infected comes racing toward him.

  With the infected only meters away at full pace charging toward John, as he comes over off the bonnet.

  John’s natural instinct with the help of previous training, pulling his gun up at the same time and firing a shot which hits the chest sending the infected down sideways toward the ground with John also dodging it’s fall toward him.

  John turns at it, firing another shot in the head of the infected just as it appears to regain itself and looking to lunge up toward him.

  John then seeing another on approach quickly gets in the drivers seat and placing his foot to the floor as the infected soon grabs the door jam of the car with the door still open as it tries to pull at John while they begin to speed away with the cameraman capturing it all on film.

  Mike quickly grabs the steering wheel from Johns hand, who is busy fending off the attacker while trying to steer the vehicle enabling John to turn firing two shots, one in the neck and in the head with the second causing it to lose grip.

  This second shot with the bullet hitting the inside pillar, sending blood and brain tissue throughout the back side of the car deflecting off the window toward the gate security guard with the infected sprawling over the roadside behind.

  John regains his composure slightly while grabbing at the steering wheel, slamming the door shut as they speed off with the infected taking over the main gate entrance behind them, devouring or infecting further of those who remain.

  Mike looks at John with a deep breath.

  "You had me worried there boss!"

  "Heck, they’re quick!"

  The mid thirty year old male cameraman Ray, with dark longish hair who appears slightly overweight and older for his age while appearing in need of a good fitness regime turns his attention toward John.

  "What was that, it’s not human whatever it is?!"

  With his camera still focused out the back window as the gate security guard coughs out a bit of brain tissue from the back of his throat onto the back of the driver's seat.

  Mike turns back toward the security guard with Ray doing the same after hearing the cough up, who then looks at the tissue splattered on the seat.

  "Aw that’s disgusting!"

  Mike leans around looking at the coughed up tissue, then to the security guard who is beginning to change while shouting to John.

  "John stop the car, he’s infected!"

  John quickly looks in the rear view noticing the flinching of the eyes, as he then slams on the breaks with everyone in the vehicle being pushed forward.

  Ray brings his camera down positioned between him and the gate security guard while getting panicked by being caught in the middle of the back seat with a barely conscious Lizzie on his opposite side.

  John quickly gets out of the car, opening the passenger door as the gate security turns appearing to motion toward Ray.

  John quickly whacks the infected guard on the back of the head with the stub of his gun which causes it to move it’s attention toward John who is now quickly pacing backwards away from the vehicle.

  The infected guard storms out of the seat away from the vehicle with John clearly in it’s sights.

  John moments later fires one round into the head of the guard sending him crashing to the road, then waits for any movement before returning to the vehicle.

  After a brief moment as he holds the gun out aimed toward the guard, he looks back to the gate noticing infected coming their way and moves to quickly get back into the car.

  John turns to Mike asking him to phone Sue, with Mike responding by looking up the number as Ray looks through toward the two.

  "What were you guys doing in that building?"

  John appears to ignore Ray, who soon turns his attention to Lizzie who begins to find herself.

  "You okay Lizzie?"

  As she holds her head, squinting her eyes, appears may shed a tear from the recent events with her asking.

  "What was that?

  It pulled Bruce out, and where’s Techie?"

  Ray looks at Lizzie shaking his head with sadness in his eyes, as Lizzie who’s clearly upset begins to sob a little from now knowing of Techie her technicians fate and witnessing their driver being pulled from the vehicle only minutes earlier.

  Mike upon finding Sues number then begins the call.

  "Tell her we had a breach, to get the kids packed together with the kit and to wait for us. She’ll know what I mean."

  Sue appears to have answered the phone as Mike begins to say as John had said, then later holding up the phone toward him.

  "Sue wants to talk to you."

  Mike holds the phone up with John asking while he continues to drive.

  "Cool, put her on speaker."

  Mike does so then looks back over his shoulder to Lizzie, looking over her face and neck with attraction while also wondering if she was holding up okay as John begins talking to Sue.

  "Love, we’re doing okay, but there was a problem."

  As John says this, Ray although listening soon notices Mike’s attraction toward Lizzie giving him an odd look with Mike noticing before turning away somewhat embarrassed which Lizzie sees upon the slight blushing on the side of his cheek making eye contact before he turns away.

  "Glad to hear your voice John, what happened?"

  "The project, Sam got bitten."

  Sue in the supermarket, holds her hand up to her mouth on the fate of Sam. "Oh no, Sam."

  "I’m sorry. It’s made it’s way out and there was nothing I could do to stop it."

  John holds strong, but burning inside with emotion as he grips slightly on the steering wheel while a helicopter flies over heading toward the compound with John looking slightly up toward it as he moves on to say.

  "I’ve rung Jim. I’ll have to help him."

  A slight pause comes between the two upon the realization of what may lay ahead for John.

  "I know."

  "Are you at home?"

  "I’m in the supermarket, I’ll have the children within twenty minutes."

  "We’ll take the wagon, please fill it up as soon as you can."

  "Of course, I’ll do it at the local after getting the kids and I’ll get the containers."

  "I think they were empty?! We might need it and we’ll head out to your Dads up state for the time being."

  "Okay I’ll give him a call. Please take care and get home soon!"

  "You too!"

  Sue hangs up the phone with John then placing his in the console as Ray leans across toward the front.

  "Can one of you guys tell us what the bloody hell is going on here?!"

  John looks in the rearview mirror hesitant to tell Ray and Lizzie as she moves on appearing to voice to both.

  "The whole world will no soon enough anyway?!"

  Mike looks at John, with his attention turning to Lizzie through the rear view mirror.

  "Yeah I guess they will."

  Mike while in thought and looking to John asks.

  "So, Jim?"

  "Jim is my old boss
. He’s the man you get in touch with when the shit hits the fan."

  Ray appearing to get somewhat impatient voices through to the two.

  "Something just hit our van, now what was it?"

  Lizzie looks to Ray upon his tone toward Jim and Mike before turning back to ask.

  "What is it you use to do?"

  "I was contracting, we’d go in and clean up the mess. ’Heaven's Scent’, they called us."

  Ray listening in the back says to himself, although quite loud.

  "Heaven's Scent?!"

  Mike ignores Ray while moving on to ask John. "What kind of mess?"

  John appears to somewhat look toward Ray through the rearview mirror.

  "The scent of heaven, but most times the smell was far from heavenly. Biological mishaps or anything which needed our expertise, but we’d be the first ones in to clear the area. The last assignment, was too much, but it’s followed me and has always been here."

  "So my colleagues would be alive if you’d stayed?!"

  "Ray!"

  Lizzie voices from his side with a stern look toward him, as John sighs with Mike who cuts in before looking back over to Ray.

  "If it wasn’t John, it would of been someone else doing the work and you’d be dead too if we hadn’t gone back for you."

  Lizzie looks toward Ray with a look, while Mike turns with his posture back to the front as Lizzie asks.

  "Why did you leave, what was it?"

  "The original strain, we came across it in a small village a few years ago, and there were some children in the school who had also become one of them."

  "So it’s been developed since?"

  John looks to acknowledge Ray through the rearview mirror by slightly nodding his head as Mike moves on to ask.

  "Is that why you wake from nightmares?"

  "Um. Yeah, who told you that?"

  "Charlotte mentioned it on Christmas, she sometimes hears you wake shouting, kids no"

  John sighs and looks toward Mike momentarily as he goes on to say.

  "She’s a bright kid, and said she wanted you to finish your job because it gives you nightmares."