Point Of Profusion: A Post-Apocalyptic Epidemic Survival (The Morgan Strain Series Book 5)

by Max Lockwood

  Alec swallowed hard. He was finally getting the closure he had been looking for with Thomas’s case. Thomas must have been infected with something before the breakout, perhaps a different strain that his body didn’t handle well.

  “He was really nasty. I knew that being in the camp was extremely detrimental to my survival, but I seemed to be the only one who realized it. I tried to escape, but Will stopped me. He nearly got me killed.”

  Melissa smirked. She still didn’t like Bethany for her involvement with Will, but it gave her a little consolation to hear that he’d tried to kill her, too.

  “To make a long story short, Will was the soldier who brought me in for my mandatory appointment with Dr. Vincent. I think he was going to start testing his work on women and was looking for ideal candidates. But he said something about Natalia that made Will snap out of his trance. He started acting exactly how you would expect an Infected to behave. Then, as if nothing had happened, he was a completely different person. He still wasn’t the upbeat, positive kid you described, but he wasn’t brainwashed anymore. It was like his mind had fought off the virus.”

  Elaina frowned. “I don’t understand how someone can be infected one minute and not the next,” she said. “Especially with the Vincent Strain.”

  Bethany shrugged. “It happened to my brother, too. He was brainwashed into joining the ranks but never once acted sick or violent like that. Of course, he was killed in the end because of his infection.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Alec said.

  Bethany didn’t respond to his sympathy. If he knew the details of the deaths that occurred, he might not be so sympathetic. She knew she was leaving some information out, but it didn’t seem safe to implicate herself in multiple murders yet.

  “Anyway, we got out of the camp and that’s the important part. We traveled together for a very short time before agreeing that we have no business sticking together. I had the strong will to run as far away from the militia as possible, and I think Will was going to hang around until he got caught again.”

  “Why would he allow himself to get caught again?” Elaina asked. “That’s twice he’s been captured by Bretton’s militia.”

  “I don’t know. He’s tired and scared. Let’s face it—no one knows the long-term effects for whatever experiment he was pumped full of. I’m willing to bet that there are at least five different virus prototypes out there. He’s effectively created a new form of super-soldier, but I don’t know what use it is if humanity is about to collapse.”

  “We’re working on it,” Elaina said so quietly, no one else was able to hear her.

  “After that, I was on my own,” Bethany continued. “Of course, it didn’t take long to run into more Infected when I was wandering through the forest. There were a few times that I’d even stumble upon other healthy people getting attacked. I couldn’t do anything to help without risking my own life. Plus, I didn’t know if they were deserving of my help.”

  Alec gave her a strange look.

  “I have a lot of trust issues with healthy people,” she clarified. “I’m not against helping others. It’s just that half the time, I stick my neck out to help and the person doesn’t take my advice.”

  “And the other half?” Melissa asked.

  “They turn around and capture me,” Bethany said with a wry smile. “Most of the time, it’s far worse than being chased by an Infected. The Infected don’t take things personally. They kill because it’s what their messed-up brains tell them to do. At least they make it quick most of the time. I’m more afraid of being held against my will and experimented on.”

  “This is bad,” Elaina said. “That’s just that many more viruses that will require separate cures,” she breathed.

  “Cure?” Bethany scoffed. “If it were possible, there would be one by now. No offense,” she added.

  Elaina bit her lip. She feared the very same thing.

  “For some reason, it seems like the crazy people tend to stay healthy. I wonder what that says about us,” Bobby Dean said.

  Melissa rolled her eyes. “I know what that says about you, but we’ve known this for a long time.”

  Bethany cleared her throat, uncomfortable with the tension in the room. “Not everyone is crazy. I met a lovely mother and son about a month ago. They thought they would wait it out at home in Wyoming but got scared and tried to leave once they heard there was a quarantine going up.”

  “What happened to them?” Elaina asked.

  Bethany quickly shook her head. “They didn’t have what it takes to outrun the Infected. Her head . . .” She trailed off. “No, those details aren’t necessary. But because I was up in a tree, avoiding that ambush, I managed to see some soldiers walking through the woods. One of them dropped his radio as they were setting up camp. When night fell, I shimmied down the tree and took it. I heard them talking about a girl named Samantha.”

  “And you think these might be the same soldiers?” Elaina asked.

  “Did they seem a little unprofessional to you?”

  “I’d say so,” Melissa interjected, her hand subconsciously rising to her chest.

  “Then I wouldn’t be surprised at all, especially if you think they were looking for another girl. I don’t know why they want her, but apparently, she’s a handful.”

  “Did you hear anything else?” Alec asked.

  “No. In fact, I tried to get more information, but I got reckless. They caught me and stuffed me into their truck. They told me that they were going to take me somewhere and use me as a test subject. I figured I would go back to Bretton Vincent’s camp, but I never got to find out.”

  The others sat on the edges of their seats, except for Melissa, who had her arms folded across her chest, looking cross. Bethany took a long sip from her cup of tea. She felt like she had already said too much. She much preferred listening to speaking.

  “They said I was young and healthy. I guess that’s the demographic they’re looking for,” she said flatly. “Luckily, there were other maniacs out there who ambushed the truck and blew the tires out. Once we hit the telephone pole and wrecked the vehicle, I didn’t stick around to see who it was. It seems like there’s a bunch of different military operations around now. From there, I ran and didn’t look back. I crossed the border and kept heading east until I got here. I’m glad I did too—I don’t know if I would have survived on my own for much longer.”

  Alec looked around the room. Melissa was slowly shaking her head, almost indistinguishable if Alec hadn’t been specifically looking for these kinds of cues. That reaction didn’t surprise him, though. Melissa would still dislike the girl, even if she saved a litter of puppies from a burning building.

  Bobby Dean was sitting forward in his chair, his mouth agape. For someone who barely sat up from his reclined position when he was asked to help around the house, he was fully engaged in Bethany’s story. He listened intently the whole time, nodding his head as she spoke or punctuating her sentences with gasps and affirmative mumbling.

  Alec was having a hard time figuring out what Elaina’s take on the whole Bethany situation was. She was an engaged listener, asking questions whenever possible. As Alec looked at her, it appeared that she was still trying to digest the story and make sense of the information. He wanted to be alone with her so he could pick her brain. She always seemed to interpret things in her own unique way.

  As for Alec, he was not sure what to think. On the one hand, Bethany gave them a lot of information that Elaina and Melissa could corroborate. Plus, if Will thought she was decent enough to give life-saving advice to, then maybe she wasn’t half-bad. On the other hand, Alec had no idea what kind of mental state Will was in when he told her she would be welcome in Oklahoma. He didn’t want to feed into Melissa’s panic, but if Will were feeling particularly malicious, it would be all too easy to send a troublemaker to the farm to stir the pot. Then, there was the fact that she was so hostile to his questioning to begin with.

  “Why did y
ou even come here?” Melissa asked. “I get that you were tired and hungry and all that, but you said yourself that you don’t trust anyone and prefer to be alone. I don’t mean to be rude,” she said in a tone that suggested otherwise, “but why are you even here?”

  Bethany looked at the others. “I guess when it came down to it, I just didn’t want to be alone anymore.”

  “You don’t have to be,” Bobby Dean said softly, looking Bethany right in the eyes. “You’re safe now.”

  Melissa’s mouth turned into a scowl. She got up so abruptly that Bethany jumped slightly.

  “Where are you going?” Alec asked quickly, getting to his feet.

  “Calm down,” she said, heading toward the stairs. “I’m just going to bed. I’m tired. I was chased and assaulted and forced to sit here and listen to this nonsense. I’d like to call it a day.”

  “Why are you going upstairs?” Bobby Dean asked. “We sleep down here.”

  She let out a dry laugh. “No, I’m not going to share a room with you. I’ll sleep in the sewing room from now on.”

  Bobby Dean sat back down and let out a deep sigh. Melissa stomped up the stairs and slammed the door behind her.

  “She didn’t seem tired,” Bethany said quietly.

  “Well, I’m tired—tired of her drama,” Bobby Dean said.

  “No, I think she hates me,” Bethany said. “It’s not the first time, believe me.”

  “Oh, come on,” Bobby Dean said. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You came here, not knowing what you were getting yourself into. You told us a lot of stuff that I’m sure will be helpful. Don’t beat yourself up over her bad attitude.”

  Bobby Dean got up from his recliner and moved over to Bethany’s couch. He rested his hand on her shoulder. She didn’t warm to his touch, but she didn’t shy away either.

  “I’m kind of tired, too,” Bethany said after a few seconds. “Is there another spare room I can rest in for a little bit? Today has taken a lot out of me.”

  “Take our room—my room,” Bobby Dean said. “I’ll just chill out here.”

  “Oh, no, you really don’t have to do that,” Bethany said. “I’ll sleep anywhere.”

  “No, I insist.”

  Bethany looked toward Alec and Elaina for instruction.

  “Yeah, go ahead and get some sleep,” Alec said, waving toward the bedroom that Bobby Dean and Melissa had once shared.

  “Okay,” she said, cautiously getting up from the couch. Bobby Dean also got up and awkwardly stood beside her as she walked to the bedroom.

  “This is a mess,” Alec said under his breath. Elaina reached over and gave his hand a small reassuring squeeze. At least she could count on him to be reasonable.

  Chapter Ten

  Bobby Dean flipped through the pages of an old gardening magazine as he sprawled out on the couch. Things were quiet since Melissa and Bethany had gone to their rooms. The sun was an ominous shade of red as it made its journey to the horizon. Alec and Elaina stared at each other in silence—a departure from the average evening where the group talked or played card games. It was going to be a long night.

  Alec wasn’t in the mood to talk to Bobby Dean. He was hard to reason with as it was, so trying to get him to think rationally when it involved Bethany would be a fruitless task. He was also annoyed at Bobby Dean’s lack of help regarding Melissa. No, it would be best to keep a little space between the two of them until Alec calmed down.

  “We never made dinner,” Alec said. “Lainey, do you want to help me make something to eat?”

  “I don’t know.” She shrugged. “The girls have already gone to bed. I don’t know if I’m even that hungry now. Maybe we should just eat the individually packaged stuff instead of making a full meal.”

  “I could eat,” Bobby Dean chimed in from the couch.

  Alec gave him a stern look, but he didn’t see it behind the pages of the magazine. “We’ll make something light,” Alec implored. “The girls might wake up and want something to eat.”

  “Okay,” Elaina replied, following Alec into the kitchen. As she removed a pot from the shelf to fill with water, Alec stopped her.

  “I don’t really care about food. I just wanted a good excuse to talk to you without other people thinking we’re being secretive. There’s enough division in the group as it is.”

  “Oh,” she whispered, missing yet another social cue. “Yeah, that’s a good idea. We’ll make some noise with pots and pans and they’ll just think we’re making supper.”

  Alec laughed. For a genius, Elaina could be surprisingly lacking in the common sense department. It was a quirk he had grown to love. “I’ll help you with the fire,” he said, grabbing a book of matches.

  They went outside and boiled several pots of water while warming their hands near the flames. Alec periodically looked back to the house, just to make sure no one was approaching them.

  “I’m trying to keep an open mind,” Alec said as he stoked the fire, “but something still seems fishy to me. Please tell me I’m not the only one who feels that way.”

  Elaina shook her head. “No, I understand where you’re coming from. Her story gave me more questions than it did answers. How did she manage to be captured and escape from so many militias? Plus, she makes it sound like they were different organizations. The logistics of the whole thing are insane. Think about it—there are at least three different militarized organizations in this country who are testing virus-related materials on human test subjects.”

  “Four, if you count Callum,” Alec added. “Are you saying that it doesn’t seem possible for there to be more of these organizations?”

  “I don’t know what is possible anymore,” she replied. “I understand that people want to find a cure for the virus on their own terms, but I doubt that anyone has even close to the amount of expertise required to come up with anything practical. I don’t want to sound too full of myself, but if I can’t do it, then I don’t know if anyone else can. Besides, every time someone attempts to create a cure, they only end up spreading the virus even more. So, if what Bethany says is true, then healthy people don’t stand a chance. Either the Infected will get us, or the militias will.”

  Alec was too deep in his thoughts to realize that the water had been boiling for a while. He pulled the pot off their makeshift stove and carefully brought it inside.

  Perhaps the reason he had a hard time believing Bethany was because he was struggling to come to terms with the gravity of the situation. It seemed as though the Infected would naturally die off after a while. But with so many groups experimenting on healthy people who were successful in avoiding the virus, not even the fit could survive. More than one group was actively using the deadly virus for their own gain. It was perhaps the most horrifying part of the epidemic.

  “Let’s say her story is true,” Alec said tentatively. “Who do these soldiers belong to—the ones who caught you two in the woods?”

  Elaina poured the boiling water into a teapot, then added the rest to a pan of instant noodles.

  “I’d say Bretton Vincent is a front-runner. He seems to have an army that rivals the government’s. We already know that he wanted to test on young, healthy women,” Elaina said.

  “What about Callum?” Alec suggested. “He’s highly unstable. I saw some Infected in what was basically a pasture full of people. I wouldn’t be surprised if he wanted to do more experimentation. He seemed to think of himself as a god—much like Bretton does.”

  “And what about the possibility of another group?” Elaina asked, absentmindedly stirring the noodles. “Bethany seemed to think that the people we ran into were similar to the ones who caught her after she split from Will.”

  “Bretton again?”

  She shook her head. “Bretton’s an egomaniac. If she escaped from him after she’d already caused him problems, then there’s no way soldiers would capture her and not immediately show their wrath. She would have known if they were with Bretton. I think this points to a separ
ate group—one that we haven’t encountered.”

  Alec rubbed his temples. “Just when I was starting to feel safe again . . .” He trailed off. “Do you think we’re in any immediate danger? For all we know, the goons who attacked you could be calling in reinforcements.”

  Elaina grimaced. “I don’t know about that. I have good reason to believe that they never made it out of the forest. In fact, it sounded like they didn’t even have time to call for help.”

  “That bad?”

  She nodded. The sounds of bones snapping were something that would never leave her memory. “But there could always be more out there. Eventually, they might find us.”

  “That’s what I was afraid of. Well, what do we do now? I don’t know if it’s safe to stay here for much longer. I would suggest that we all move on together, but tensions are running high. The last time there was fighting among us, Melissa got shot and Derek was killed. As much as I hate to say it, we put our lives in danger if we can’t work cohesively.”

  Elaina hated the thought of splitting up, but Alec was right. Bobby Dean was unpredictable and Melissa was furious at him. Plus, if Bethany came along with them, then they would have to worry about an unknown person joining their ranks.

  “Should we discuss it over dinner?” Elaina asked, putting the food on the table.

  “Only if everyone is present,” Alec said. “We can’t make a decision without the whole group. Otherwise, maybe it’s best to just sleep on it and give everyone a chance to calm down and come back to their senses. We can make our final decision to leave or stay tomorrow and act on it.”

  “I think that’s a good plan. Want to call Bobby Dean in here for supper?”

  The three sat around the table and ate the instant noodles in silence. Bobby Dean loudly slurped his soup while the other two stared straight down into their bowls, lost in their own thoughts and concerns.

  “Is something up?” Bobby Dean asked. “You two are awfully quiet.”

  “Nothing,” Elaina squeaked. “It’s just been a long day, you know.”