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Thirty-three more souls joined us that day, bringing our total to sixty-one. Their story was no different than ours. They barely made it out of the city, and had joined the long lines of traffic heading to the mountains.
Latisha said that they had taken our road in the hope of finding a way over the mountain. When I told her that the road ended at the other cabin, she started laughing.
“Praise God that he led us here, then,” she said. “I believe He brought us here for a reason.”
They had spent the night inside a concrete block garage in Pine Valley, and it was only luck that had spared that town from the invasion.
“But, when we left, we could hear the buzzing of some of the flying things over on the east side of town. We vamoosed just as fast as that bus would go,” said Latisha.
The doctor was indeed a “for-real” doctor. His name was Jeremiah Case, and he had traveled in the ambulance with two paramedics. Dr. Case had worked as an ER doctor in Pine Valley. The paramedics were from the city. The passengers ran the gamut of people of all ages. The guns had been picked up at a sporting goods store in Pine Valley, and some of the passengers knew how to use them. One of those, Roger Tippet, was an ex-Marine that had seen action in Iraq.
As we were all getting acquainted, Lee Adams called to me.
“Paul! You might want to come see this on TV!” he yelled.
I waved to him, and invited anyone else that wanted to come and watch to feel free to come in.
As some of us got to the front door, Lee said, “The newsman said that bugs were trying to get into their studio. They’re underground, but they don’t think they can hold out. He said the bugs had come in through the ventilation shafts.”
“Oh, crap,” I said.
Almost everyone was inside, watching the nervous, sweating news anchor.
“...and the situation is grim, folks. We hope we’ve given you enough information to survive, but, as we can see, that may not be enough. The creatures are tenacious, strong, and hungry. We can hear them in the shafts, and they’re nibbling at the bunker doors. I don’t think we have much time. It’s been a pleasure reporting the news to you, and I thank you for your viewership. We’re going to turn the camera upward, so that you won’t have to watch us die. Goodbye, and good luck.”
With those words, the camera panned up to the bunker ceiling, and all that was left was sound. We could hear lots of shouting, tearing metal, pounding, and then, finally, screams. I turned the television off.
“That’s enough of that,” I said. “Bless them, and I hope the end came quickly for them.”
Latisha had bowed her head, and was saying a quiet prayer for the people in the newsroom. When her prayer was through, we all said, “Amen.”
###
DR. CASE ASKED IF HE could set up a small examination room in one of the rooms upstairs. I said that he could use the study, and that we’d move everything out, if he needed us to. He did, with the exception of the desk and chair.
The good doctor said that he and the paramedics would be on hand for anything that required medical attention. I told him that I hoped no one would need his services.
“I already have someone that needs my services,” said Dr. Case.
“Oh, really? What’s the problem?” I asked.
“It’s one of the passengers that came from the city with Latisha. I’ve never seen anything like it,” he finished.
I leaned against the desk. “Doc, I have to be honest with you. I’m afraid of a bug infection here. We’ve been lucky.” I explained to him about our encounter with Cheryl, and what happened with Ralph.
“That’s interesting. Have you ever seen the full incubation period for an infection? Do you know what the beginning looks like? Or how long it takes from infection to this ‘empty eyes’ condition you described?”
I shook my head. “No, Doc, I can’t say that I have. For all I know, all of us could be infected, and we’d never know it, until we all threw up blood and squirmers.”
“That’s information that I don’t have. Can you describe what you’re talking about? In detail? It may help me help others.”
So I did. The empty, milky eyes. The ability to stay mobile, even thought their minds and body were being devoured on the inside. The final attempt to speak, then bending at the waist and throwing up their life blood, mixed in with fast-growing squirmers.
“Come to think of it, Doc, I don’t even know what kind of bugs the squirmers grow into, except by inference. That came from the bug that came through the sewer lines at my home.”
“I would imagine that the reproduction is much the same, no matter what kind of bug happens to form.” Dr. Case ran his hands through his hair. “How could someone be so short-sighted? How could someone genetically create like this without any thought as to the outcome, or the ramifications?”
“Some people just hate the U. S. that badly, I guess. They probably thought they were some kind of martyrs or heroes or something.” I paused a moment. “So, tell me about your patient.”
Dr. Case looked at me. “I’m not sure that I can, with doctor-patient privacy.”
“I think that’s over with, Doc,” I said. “I have to know what kind of threat this person is to all of us.”
“Why? So you can torch him?” he said sharply. Immediately, he said, “I’m sorry. I understand how hard that was for you, and I understand why you had to do it.”
I chose not to get angry. But, I reserved the right. “Point taken, Doc. And, make no mistake about it – I will do it again, if I have to. I have to keep the group safe, and that’s all there is to it.”
Dr. Case looked at the floor, studying the problem. “Okay. You’re right, of course.” He took a deep breath. “The patient was penetrated by a ‘squirmer’, as you call them.”
I felt my eyes widening. “Doc, that’s very bad!”
“Maybe not, Paul,” he replied. “I was there when it happened, and I took several precautions. I caught the thing with tiny forceps, and I believe I pulled most of it out of my patient, but I couldn’t be sure. Then, I doused the area with both alcohol and peroxide, and gave the man an injection of antibiotics, anti-viral, and...well...praziquantel.”
“What is praziquantel?”
Dr. Case lightly smiled. “Worm medicine.”
“Worm medicine?” I asked incredulously.
“It’s used primarily for treatment of tapeworms. It seems to have worked so far. He was infected two days ago, about the time your neighbor was throwing up on your lawn mower.”
I couldn’t get over it. Worm medicine. But, then again, I could see why. And if it worked, so much the better.
I thought of something. “But, we don’t know the incubation period, do we?”
Dr. Case shook his head. “No.”
“So he could still be infected?”
“Yes.”
“Then we really should quarantine him...at least for another week.”
“Sure,” said Case. “Where do you want to put him? Your room? My room? The bus, where many people sleep? Or we could put him in the outbuilding with the freezer.”
I held my hand up. “I get your point, Doc.” I thought for a minute. “Okay, as long as he has someone with him at all times.”
“That’s right along my line of thinking.”
And that was that. At least for the possibly infected patient.
###
LATE THAT AFTERNOON, I was checking the batteries inside the outbuilding. Our output was holding up well, and it looked as if we had enough solar power and wind to keep them fully charged. I was checking a few line connections, when Bobby stepped into the building.
“Paul, can you step outside here just for a minute?” he asked.
“Sure.” I picked up my shotgun, which was always with me now, and stepped outside. “What is it?”
“Listen,” said Bobby.
I listened. I heard the wind and nothing else...at first. Slowly, I began to pick up light sounds, sort of like the far-off buzz of a chainsaw.
“Is that a chainsaw that I’m hearing?” I asked.
“I’m not sure,” said Bobby. “I listened to it for a few minutes before I came to get you, but I couldn’t decide what it was. I thought that two sets of ears were better than one.”
I listened for a bit more, but the sound had drifted away, and was gone.
The sun was almost down, so I shrugged and said, “I guess whoever it was gave up for the day.”
Bobby had a concerned look on his face. “Maybe. Yeah, maybe you’re right.”
Honestly, I forgot about it. We were so busy that night arranging the watch with the extra people, and scheduling people to go to Susan’s cabin the next morning to build a trench, that I didn’t give the chainsaws another thought.
But I thought of it the next day. I thought of it big time.
###
BOBBY AND BILLY HAD taken over the construction of the trench at Susan’s. The two brothers took their work crews along the road that curved and meandered along the side of the mountain up to Susan’s cabin. Past Susan’s cabin, the road became a dirt track, used mostly by hunters and four-wheeler enthusiasts.
I stayed behind at the cabin, mostly checking the emergency generators, organizing and storing the supplies, and making sure our supply of weapons were clean, oiled, and functioning. I set up shop in the front yard, with Phyllis and Latisha giving me a hand with the job.
It was a warm day for late September. The temperatures were in the mid-70s, and the sun was shining brightly.
Soon, Phyllis left to go inside. She, along with Susan, would be putting together something for lunch. Michael, who had also stayed behind that day, sat down and took Phyl’s place.
The three of us were enjoying the day, and were getting to know each other.
“Paul, what happened to you in the city?” asked Latisha.
“We barely made it out of our house,” I replied. I told her and Michael all about that morning, and how we barely made it out of the driveway. “If the sun hadn’t been shining, that thing hiding under the lawn mower would have gotten at least one of us.”
Tyrese, one of the passengers on Latisha’s bus, came into the front yard with Richie during my story, and sat down to listen.
“What about you, Michael?” asked Latisha.
Michael told them about not knowing anything about the bugs until I came into the store, and what had happened with the lone customer in front, and the flying things inside McKelvie’s.
“Man. McKelvie’s,” marveled Latisha. She looked at Richie, then pointed at him in recognition. “Yeah, I remember you! You always so nice to ever’body! And there was a nice little girl that ran the register, too, when I went in...a thin little blonde girl...”
“That must have been Teresa,” said Richie. “Mr. Stiles got her out, too. She’s her, and so is Millie.”
“Millie? That rascal! How come I ain’t seen her yet?”
“I don’t know, ma’am,” said Richie.
“I think it was because you got here so late yesterday evening,” I said. “By the time we got everyone fed, and found a place to sleep, it was time to go to sleep.”
Latisha laughed hard at that. “You right, honey! I jus’ barely remember you and them two Barnes boys!”
“How about you, Latisha?” asked Michael. “How did you get out of the city?”
The smile came off of her face as if a switch had been thrown. “I ain’t told it all, so ya’ll gonna have to bear with me. I’m liable to cry while I’m tellin’ it, so ya’ll don’t laugh, you hear?”
I reached over and squeezed her shoulder. “Not a chance, Latisha. We’ve all seen things that we’d rather have forgotten.”
Latisha looked at the ground and said, “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” She lifted her head and stared at the horizon. “I just wonder, though.”
“Wonder what?” asked Michael.
“I just wonder if this is God’s Judgment Day.”
Of course, none of us had an answer for that.
Latisha took a deep breath. “Okay, you asked for it. Here’s the story of one bus driver.”
