“Here’s one for Wolf,” said Sara, handing a fourth langoš wrapped in paper to Harper.
“Thanks. Can we go sit in the sun for a moment? I can’t shake this cold feeling.” The others agreed, and they crossed the road to sit on a park bench in the sun. It was warm once they were out of the shade of the buildings that lined the other side of the street.
A couple of Romani men were sitting on the next bench. They spoke in low voices and were smoking cigarettes, the acrid aroma wafting to where Harper and the others sat. Harper’s attention turned to the men, and as she watched, a young girl dressed in a fuchsia dress ran up to them.
There was a café about one-hundred feet further down the street, bustling with lunchtime diners. The diners outside sat close together, knees and elbows practically touching, squeezed around small tables on the sidewalk. The chatter and clinking plates provided pleasant background noise as the three friends discussed the morning’s hike and Wolf’s mysterious illness.
Harper ate the last bite of her langoš and crumpled the paper in a ball, putting it under her leg so it didn’t blow away. “Thanks Sara, that was delicious. This really is such an idyllic part of the world.” She rested Wolf’s food on the bench next to her and was overcome with a sudden sadness for what they were about to lose. “I’m going to miss you guys like crazy.”
“I’ll miss you, too,” replied Sara. “But you’ll come and visit us in Manhattan. It’s not the end.”
“It feels like it,” replied Harper glumly. She stole a glance at Joe. He was staring straight ahead, but she was sure he saw her out of the corner of his eye. When she turned back to Sara, she realized Sara had been watching them. Sara raised one perfectly shaped eyebrow, her lips pursed. Harper got the message loud and clear: Sara had long thought she and Joe belonged together. Harper turned and stared at the café. Don’t forget about Wolf.
When Harper turned her attention back to her friends, Sara had pulled her backpack onto her lap. She reached inside and pulled out the smooth object they found in the cave. The three of them stared at it. It shone brightly, picking up the colors of the surrounding streetscape. Harper could see a tiny pink spot bobbing up and down as the little girl hopped from foot to foot. The top half of the sphere reflected the brilliant blue of the sky. And directly in front of her, she could see a small, distorted reflection of her face.
“I want to look closer,” she said, taking the object from Sara and holding it a few inches from her face. “What do you suppose it—?”
A sharp scream interrupted her, freezing the blood in her veins. As she stood to see what was happening, the langoš meant for Wolf fell to the ground, the fried yeast bread tumbling out of the paper bag, spilling cheese and white garlic sauce across the pavement. One of the Romani men looked at her with distaste, kicking the fallen food away from his foot.
“The scream came from the café,” said Harper. Dread stabbed her insides. “It looks like someone is in trouble.”
Joe and Sara stood beside her. “What the hell?” asked Joe, staring at the diners sitting outside. A man was standing in the middle of the small space, his table upended and the contents of his lunch strewn over the ground. He held a large, white linen tablecloth in his hands and was pressing it against his nose. As they watched, he grabbed his head like he was in terrible pain and began to groan.
People around him were scrambling to help, calling out in Slovak to one another. “This looks bad,” said Harper, the sharp feeling of dread spreading through her body. She dropped the object from the cave back inside her bag and zipped it quickly before standing on the bench to get a better look.
As she watched, a round woman in a floral dress began to bleed from her nose. Confused, the woman touched her face, raised her fingers—now stained a bright crimson red—and let out a terrified scream.
The café descended into panic. People were no longer trying to help; They were trying to get away. Trying to avoid… whatever it was.
“Let’s get out of here!” yelled Joe, grabbing Sara and Harper by the hand and pulling them back across the street. They reached the other side and stood for a moment by the old woman selling langoš. The woman spoke to them in rapid tones, pointing at the café.
The unfamiliar words were indecipherable and Joe shrugged in an exaggerated manner. “We don’t know what’s happening,” he said, both palms raised. She shook her head and turned back to the chaos erupting across the street.
“Guys, look at the men by the bench,” said Harper, an edge of hysteria in her voice. The men, who moments earlier had been sitting next to them, were now clutching their heads and yelling in pain. Blood dripped from their noses on to the pavement over the food Harper has spilled.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here,” whispered Sara, her face draining of color. They turned and ran, quickly covering the distance to the Polo. Once inside, Harper pulled the keys from her pocket and jammed them in the ignition. She reversed fast and sped through the small village toward the highway.
“Watch out!” yelled Sara, as a woman darted across the road. Harper hit the horn and slammed on the breaks. They skidded to a stop, and the woman continued running without looking back. Harper wiped her brow with the back of her forearm. With a trembling hand, she started the car again, and they reached the edge of the village. She indicated and turned the car onto the highway.
They sat in stunned silence, watching the velvet green landscape flash by as they drove away.
“What happened back there?” asked Sara after a few moments. “Were those people sick? Are we going to catch it?”
Harper shrugged and tightened her grip on the steering wheel, her eyes flitting between Wolf’s reflection and the road.
“Wolf!” said Harper loudly. “Wolf, are you okay?” She stared at him in the rearview mirror. He still had his eyes closed and had barely flinched when they got in the car. Joe leaned over and shook Wolf gently. Wolf finally opened one eye. “I’m here,” he said, his voice hoarse.
They could hear sirens. A few moments later, three ambulances, their lights flashing, sped past them in the other direction. “You won’t believe what just happened, man,” said Joe, turning around to look out the back window, his eyes following the wailing vans toward the town. But Wolf didn’t reply. He was already back asleep.
Chapter Four
They were about an hour away from Bratislava when Harper slowed the car and pulled over.
“What are you doing?” asked Joe. “I thought we agreed to drive straight to Bratislava and get on our train.” They were parked next to a grassy field and cars continued to barrel past them on the other side.
Harper looked over her shoulder at Joe. “I want to sit with Wolf. I’ve been watching him and he seems paler. Do you mind switching with me?”
“Sure,” replied Joe, opening his door. He stood by the side of the Polo and stretched his arms above his head. Harper opened her door carefully, feeling the fast rush of a car speeding past. She slid out and edged along the car, rounding the back and coming face-to-face with Joe on the other side. For a moment it was just the two of them and—as it always was when they found themselves alone together—Harper felt tongue-tied.
In a rare show of affection, Joe reached out and took her hand. “It’s okay now,” he said. “We’ll be out of here soon, I’m sure it was nothing. Just a bug going around.” He smiled at her thinly and took the car keys from her hand.
Harper opened the back door and climbed in next to Wolf. “Hey, babe,” she whispered. She slid close to him and put her hand on his forehead. His skin felt cold and clammy and he didn’t look at her. “Wolf!” She tapped his face gently with her fingertips. He finally opened his eyes and looked disorientated. “We’re almost back to Bratislava. How are you feeling now?”
He looked at her, his blue eyes rimmed in red. “I feel strange, actually. I think I’m coming down with something.” His voice was thick and his words slurred.
“Here, have some more water.” She pulled the wa
ter bottle from her bag and passed it to him. He drank thirstily and then leaned forward, doubling over. He gripped the back of his head and let out a low moan. Harper rubbed his back. “It’s okay. We’ll be there soon.”
She turned to Sara and Joe in the front seat. They both looked back at her. Sara arched one eyebrow, an unspoken question on her face. They’d already discussed taking Wolf to see a doctor. Harper nodded to her. “I think we’ll need to take him to someone if he doesn’t perk up in the next hour.”
“We might miss our train,” said Joe. He scratched his chin, leaving the skin red underneath his scraggly stubble.
“Let’s just drive for now,” said Harper. “We can figure it out when we get to the train station. It might be a migraine, or…” Her words trailed off. All she could picture were the people in Rožňava, their faces bleeding before they collapsed to the ground.
Harper slid back to her seat and buckled up her seatbelt. Wolf was sitting up again, his eyes closed. She took her phone from her pocket and stared at it as Joe started the engine. She began to type quickly, not looking up as Joe eased the Polo back onto the highway.
First, out of an unshakable sense of obligation, she sent a message to her mother in Australia: Something weird happened in Rožňava. Found something cool in a cave. I’ll email you later. We are all OK. Almost to Bratislava and then train to Berlin.
Then she reached into her backpack and pulled out the object they found underground at the National Park. She turned it over slowly in her hands, marveling at the way the light seemed to bounce off the reflective surface. She put it carefully in her lap and picked up her phone again.
Harper hesitated. She wanted him to know about what they found in the cave. She always sought his approval, despite everything. As she thought about what to say to her dad, she picked up the object once more and brought it close to her face.
Suddenly her phone beeped with a new message. It was from her mother. At the sight of her mother’s name, Harper grimaced. She read the message quickly: Harper! Were you in Rožňava? Are you sure you’re OK? It’s after midnight here. Do you need me to call?
“Hey, guys. I just got a message from my mum. She seemed to know something about Rožňava. Sara, you didn’t see anything on the news, right?”
Sara twisted around and stared at Harper, frowning. The tension in the small space seemed to ratchet up a notch.
“I’ve looked a few times. Let me look again. Joe, pass me your phone? I don’t have any data left.” Joe glanced at her and turned back to the road. He slid his phone from his pocket and handed it to his sister.
“The traffic seems to be getting heavier. We’re almost at Bratislava. I just saw the sign for the turnoff. I’m heading straight to the hire car place unless anyone has any objections?”
“No, go there first. We’ll see how Wolf is feeling and decide what to do.” Harper sighed and reached for Wolf’s hand, taking it in hers.
Outside, the sun was setting. The light was golden and streamed across the countryside, lighting up the surrounding fields dotted with fat cows and picturesque farmhouses. Sara’s sudden, sharp intake of breath pulled Harper’s attention back to the car. “What is it?” Harper craned over the front passenger seat. Sara was holding her phone on her lap, her hands trembling.
“It’s just hit the BBC website. They’ve put Rožňava and the surrounding villages in quarantine. The article says that there’s a medical emergency there but that officials have not released any more information. It says that anyone who has been in the area who is suffering signs of sickness should seek urgent medical attention.”
They all looked at Wolf. He was so still, so pale, with red rimming his eyes.
“Wolf doesn’t have what those people have,” said Harper insistently. “Does he look like he’s bleeding? He wasn’t even with us on the street when it happened. If anyone is at risk, it’s us.”
They fell silent as the car reached the outskirts of Bratislava. Communist-era housing estates stood in neat lines either side of the road. They drove onto the bridge across the Danube and the pretty, low-rise Old Town, overlooked by Bratislava Castle. In the distance were green rolling hills.
Joe maneuvered through the narrow streets filled with bustling cafes and pubs until they reached the train station. “The car hire company said to park here and drop off the keys before we get on the train,” said Joe, parking the car neatly between two white lines.
Harper got out first and looked around. The station cast a long shadow under the sun’s last rays. The car park was bustling with activity. People dragged heavy bags to and from the station, and backpackers—their massive rucksacks towering over their heads—hurried in small groups.
Harper dropped the object from the cave into her backpack and hoisted it over one shoulder, before walking around the Polo and opening Wolf’s door. She crouched down and put her hand on his leg. “Wake up Wolf. It’s time for us to return the hire car and get on the train.” His eyelids fluttered but did not open. His arms hung limp on either side of his body. Harper’s heart lurched. She shook his leg harder this time. “Come on, Wolf. Let’s get up.”
Joe swung the driver’s door shut, the noise loud, and stood behind Harper. “Can he get up?”
Harper shook her head.
Sara’s door slammed and Harper heard her walk around the car before she felt a hand on her shoulder. “How’s he looking?” asked Sara.
“He doesn’t look good,” Harper replied grimly.
“I’ll return the key. I’ll meet you back here and we’ll go straight to the doctor,” said Joe. Harper heard his clipped footfall as he jogged away from them.
“Wolf, let me help you up,” said Harper. She leaned across and unbuckled his seatbelt. She slid an arm around him and his eyes flicked open.
“Hey babe,” he said, giving her a lopsided grin. “Have I ever told you how much I love you?”
It was those words that filled Harper with dread, the weight of it threatening to pull her down to the very center of the earth. She knew instantly that something was wrong. Wolf had been one of the most emotionally unavailable men she’d ever dated after a long line of the same.
She watched as he grabbed his head again and a fine stream of blood tinged mucus dripped from his nose.
“Holy crap. Sara, we need to get him out of here and to a doctor.”
Fighting her own anxious demons, Harper used all her strength to pull Wolf out of his seat. Sara caught his other arm around her shoulder. Wolf grimaced and his head lolled heavily. The two young women looked around for Joe, frantic.
“There he is,” shouted Sara, pointing with one hand at her brother jogging back across the busy car park.
“Joe!” yelled Harper. “Hurry up! We need to get Wolf to a doctor right away. Can you tell the hire car people we’ll get our stuff out of the car soon...” Her voice trailed off as Joe reached them.
“Shit. He looks terrible.” Joe wiped his lips anxiously. “What do we do? Where is the doctor from here?”
“I checked and there’s a medical center around the corner,” said Sara, wiping her eyes with the back of her sleeve. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
Joe nodded somberly, and they began to move as a group out of the car park. They had only taken a few steps when Joe froze. He started to step backwards, his eyes locked on a woman about fifty feet away.
Harper followed his gaze and saw the woman covering her face in surprise. Bright red blood was dripping from her nose. She swayed as though she were dizzy and grabbed hold of the bonnet of the car. The man next to her was searching his bag for something for her to use for her nose. He passed her a white towel and—seeing her close to collapse—called for help.
Joe pushed Sara out of the way and took Wolf’s weight over one arm, his features twisted in horror. “We’ve got to get out of here.”
“Where?” asked Sara, her voice shaking and breath ragged.
“The doctor,” Harper said, tightening her grip around Wolf
. His body felt slack and hot, but his eyes were now wide-open, staring at the bleeding woman.
In a macabre reenactment of the coffee shop in Rožňava earlier, the man next to the woman also began to bleed from his nose. He put his hand to his face and Harper could see the shock, and then the terror that dawned in his expression. He grabbed his head and groaned in pain as the woman next to him collapsed to the ground.
“Get in the car,” Harper said urgently. “Get in the car! We need to get out of here! The sickness is here.”
“I don’t have the keys,” said Joe, turning his head quickly between his friends and the chaos unfolding around them. People were running to the couple, calling for help. Then there was another groan, another bleeding face, another collapse.
Then, there was another.
Then, another.
“Let’s go to the train station.” suggested Sara. “We’ve got to get away from them.”
They turned and ran toward the two story glass-walled station, dragging Wolf between them. Wolf tried to take a few steps but stumbled and almost brought Harper down with him. Sara grabbed Harper’s arm at the last moment to catch her, and they ran on.
Harper could hear her heart beating in her ears and beyond that, the foreign but unmistakably desperate cries for help. From behind them came terrifying noises. People screaming in panic, car tires screeching and horns blaring, the crunch of metal on metal as vehicles collided with one another.
They got to the train station where a large crowd was gathering to stare at the scene unfolding in the car park. People were yelling loudly to one another, jostling each other to see what was going on. Joe maneuvered ahead of the others and pushed a pathway through the onlookers. “Let us through!” he yelled. “Let us through.”
They reached the inside of the station, the towering glass roof above them letting in the last of the light from the setting sun. Fluorescent lights cast a harsh yellow halo over the rows of small, brightly colored kiosks and the nervous faces behind the stalls.
Death City: A Post-Apocalyptic Adventure (Dark Resistance Book 1) Page 3