The parking lot at the doctor’s office was empty as Malik sat in his car, constantly checking the rearview mirror. The sun had set, and Malik could only make out the shadows of people walking on the sidewalk past the office. Finally, his car’s interior was illuminated. He looked in the rearview mirror and saw headlights approaching. The car pulled up next to the driver’s side, and the window rolled down.
“What’s up, Malik?” Ronnie said.
“What’s going on, Ronnie?” Malik said as he got out of his car and walked to his back seat. He grabbed his black backpack and threw several handfuls of atomizers in there. He tossed the bag under the driver’s side seat, pulled the cooler out, and placed it in the backseat of Ronnie’s car.
“How many do you have today?”
“A little over one hundred,” Malik said. He held up the box his mom gave him. “Check this out.”
“Dope,” Ronnie said. “They’ll be happy tonight.”
Malik got into the car and pulled out five atomizers. “Here, before I forget.”
“What are these for?” Ronnie asked.
“Give these to your gramps,” Malik said.
Ronnie took one atomizer. “Ah bro, I appreciate it, but five is too many. One’s enough for now.”
Malik put two atomizers in the glove box of the car. “Just in case he runs low.” Malik put on his seat belt. “Where are we heading tonight?”
“I figured we'd start in the Old Fourth Ward and head toward downtown, then work our way back here. Let’s see where people are.”
Ronnie put his car in reverse but then stopped. He put the gear shift back into the park position. “Found our first customer.”
Malik watched as Ronnie snatched an atomizer from his hand, a mask out of the box, and jumped out of the driver’s seat. Malik turned around to see Ronnie jog and hand the items to a person pushing a cart.
Ronnie ran back to the car. “One down. Let’s see who else we can find.” He put the car into reverse, and they were off.
A while later in their drive, Malik glanced at the clock in the car. “It’s seven-thirty, and we haven’t seen anyone out since that lady in the parking lot.”
“Do you think it’s too cold tonight?” Ronnie asked.
“It’s sixty degrees.” Malik pointed to the thermostat on the dashboard.
“This is a trip,” Ronnie said. “My gramps was telling me that a lot of people have been turning up missing.”
“My mom was telling me something about that too.” Malik stared out of the window as they rode around in silence. Malik didn’t want to think about what could be happening to those people, so he changed the subject. “I got a date.”
“Wait,” Ronnie gaped at him, “the nurse?”
“Yessir,” Malik said.
“What!” Ronnie gave Malik’s shoulder a nudge. “Check you out! What are you going to do?”
“I found this spot on the BeltLine. It has a heated patio and rooftop views.”
“Nice,” Ronnie said. “After that, you should bring her by the club. I’ll be there with some friends. We’ll make sure that you look cool.”
“Shut up, fool,” Malik said, but he really would appreciate any help he could get. He sat back imagining how great of a night it would be when a thought popped into his head for tonight’s route. “Let’s go to the library.”
“You think people will still be there?” Ronnie asked.
“I can’t imagine where else they’d be. I mean, no one is on the streets, and we’ve checked the soup kitchens, the shelters. The library closes at eight. That’s the only place left that they’d be.”
Ronnie drove them to the Toco Hill Library.
Malik got out of the car. “Where are you going?” Ronnie asked.
“George may be in there,” Malik said.
“Crazy George Washington?” Ronnie asked.
“I told you not to call him that,” Malik said.
“My bad. Do you want me to come in with you?”
“No, I’ll be fast.”
Ronnie held out an atomizer and a mask. “Just in case he’s in there.”
Malik reached for them but hesitated. He pulled his hand back. “I’ll come back if I need them.”
Malik saw several people sitting inside the library, with everything they own in a dirty, tattered bag next to them. Malik walked around the library, searching for George, but he didn’t find him. He and Callie would spend hours in this library when they were growing up. This is where they met George Washington, who bears no resemblance to the first President of the United States. Their George Washington was tall, dark, and had a lot of wrinkles. They have gray hair in common. Malik laughed at the thought as he walked to George’s corner.
George always sat in the corner by the windows that overlooked the second parking lot and the forest. Malik and Callie used to joke about that corner, but every time Malik would walk over there, he’d peek out to see if something was interesting to see. There never was. Not until tonight. Tonight, the dull concrete gray of the parking lot was replaced by metallic black, and a lot of it. Malik didn’t realize what it was, but he knew it was bad news. He backed away from the window, unsure if he was being watched, then turned and quickly walked out. As soon as he was outside, he heard someone scream out what he had feared.
“Contact tracers!” someone yelled, just as the front parking lot was swarmed with black SUVs. Malik walked toward Ronnie. He and Ronnie locked eyes from a distance. Ronnie shook his head at Malik as Biotech tracers walked toward Ronnie’s driver's-side window. Malik turned away to escape the parking lot, walking casually as to not attract any attention.
Malik made his way down the dark road until he heard, “Hey you, stop.”
Malik didn’t turn back. He just reacted, sprinting down the hill toward the DeKalb Tennis Center. He knew that he could lose anyone in those woods at night if he made it to the Mason Mill path. He heard the contact tracer chasing him while also trying to radio for backup.
Malik saw two people walking ahead of him, one with a cart, the other with just a backpack. George! Malik saw the two bodies vanish as they turned the corner. Malik followed George down the boardwalk path.
He startled George as he ran up behind him. “Malik, what are you doing?” George asked.
“Contact tracers are coming. You and your friend need to hide.” Malik looked around and didn’t see the other person with the cart.
“I’m not worried about any contact tracer,” George said, but they both got quiet when they heard the static from a handheld radio.
“Still no sign of the individual on foot. Looking for one male, on foot, likely homeless,” the contact tracer said.
“You’ve got to go,” Malik whispered. “I’ll lead them away.”
“Don’t be foolish, young man. If you’ve got a reason to run, then you better get out of here. I’ll play ignorant. Now go.” George grabbed his chest and panted. He sat on the bench as Malik walked down the path out of sight.
Malik heard George say, “Whew, all right, all right, all right. You got me. I’m too old to run. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“Why’d you run?” the contact tracer demanded.
Malik watched from a distance as the contact tracer held up the portable test machine. He put the cotton swab in George’s nose, collected a swab, then placed it in the small box.
“What’s it say?” George asked. “I bet it says negative.”
The contact tracer checked the result. “Negative.”
“What’d I tell you? I’m virus-free, baby,” George said, and he got up to walk away.
“Wait,” the contact tracer said. He held up what looked like a smartphone. “Place your finger here.”
George placed his finger on the phone’s screen. “What is this? A second opinion or something?”
“It says negative as well,” the Confidence Biotech tracer said as a couple of others approached. “This also says that you haven’t tested positive in the past three years.”
“Whew, it must be a miracle or something,” George said. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll be on my way.” He reached for his bag, but one man grabbed it.
“You’re not going anywhere. We need to bring you in for a test.”
The men grabbed George, and Malik ran in his direction. George discreetly motioned him away. Malik hid as they carried George away.