The China Pandemic

by A. R. Shaw

  “I know, that’s the problem,” Dalton said and found his chair.

  “Just hear me out,” Rick said.

  Dalton wanted to tell him, we can’t get involved again, but he knew the man wouldn’t stop until he had his say. Rick turned in his swivel chair and lifted his hands. He was a ‘hand-talker’ and Graham often wondered if they were to literally tie his hands behind his back, would he be able to say a word?

  Rick began by saying, “Let’s say, these are really, really bad guys. We don’t have audio, but we know they were spying on the girls. It’s highly possible that they’re up to something and plotting a dastardly deed as we speak. The boys and the old man are not enough to help Graham protect that camp.

  “These bad guys want something and they’re going to take it if there are no obvious consequences. If they come in and kidnap Tala, or one of the kids, Graham will go after them and probably get himself killed in the process. Then what?

  “The kids are left with an old man, who probably won’t make it through the winter and then we,”—he pointed around—“will have to intervene anyway. Those kids won’t make it on their own. We all know that,” he added, spreading his hands wide.

  “Let’s just say, we give them a few supplies or better yet… we set the cameras up for them covertly and leave them a note.”

  Dalton shook his head and said, “Too risky. They’re expecting the bad guys to invade and we walk in? They’d probably shoot and expose one of us. You have to remember that in their minds, we’re the bad guys too. They don’t know we’re watching them or looking out for their best interest. They just know that we dropped off a boy, tied up and suffering from starvation, dehydration and hypothermia, and they had to nurse him back to health. Not only that, but we threatened to exterminate them if they didn’t stay to their own areas.”

  “I’m pretty sure Graham would do anything he could, to protect those kids and the others and if he perceived us as a threat, he’d shoot. They’re armed. Don’t forget that. You’re getting too wrapped up to see the real risk here,” Dalton went on, then fell into thoughtful silence, frowning.

  And, because this had been Rick’s plan all along, he waited with bated breath for Dalton to speak again. “But, you know, if we were to go in, two men, use the mist gas. Knock them all out and then put up the cameras with audio. Take them a few gifts so that they’re not too pissed off when they wake up...”

  Rick nodded, hiding his triumphant smile. He knew from experience, the lure had worked again.

  “What do they need and what can we spare?” Dalton asked.

  Rick grinned, but not for long, because he knew better. Dalton recognized he’d been played, but it was a game of theirs initiated many times in the past. Rick called it the Make it Dalton’s Idea Game and said it worked on his wife too, but she was harder to deceive than Dalton, if you could call it a deception.

  Rick pulled a pre-made list out of his pocket and began to read,

  “A generator, motion detector lights, shots for Fido, tetanus, and flu shots for the rest and a pneumonia for the old man, water pump, a can of garden seeds, multi-vitamins and a radio unit with our call sign in case he needs our help.”

  “You think you’re pretty swift, don’t you?” Dalton asked rhetorically, then rose from his chair, put on his hat and said as he left the tent, “Get it ready.”

  Rick did a silent little happy dance in his chair and started making the arrangements. Secretly, most of it was already figured out. Since the Sterns family, unfortunately, hadn’t made it through quarantine, several immunizations were going to go to waste anyway. Why not use them on the carriers?

  Later that evening, Dalton addressed the council which really consisted of one member of each family. In most cases, that was the husband but in a few, it was a wife. After Dalton had stated the affairs of Graham’s camp everyone agreed the best course of action would be to intervene now, knowing what the consequences would be if something were to happen to Graham. No one wanted to see the children suffer more, even if they were carriers.

  It was decided that Rick and Steven would go since Rick was the tech specialist and Steven the paramedic and could perform the immunizations on the sleeping carriers.

  “It should take them no more than ten minutes to pull this off,” Dalton said.

  “As long as there is no risk of exposure to us,” Steven said.

  “There’s always a risk of exposure and that’s why they will both go directly into quarantine again on their way back. We can’t take any chances. That’s our protocol anyway. Questions?” Dalton asked.

  Nancy raised her hand. “If Rick’s in quarantine, who’s going to monitor Graham’s Camp?” she asked.

  A few snickers came from the group. Dalton rolled his eyes and said, smiling, “I will, in rotation as usual. Look folks, I know they’re our only form of entertainment these days but let’s keep in mind one encounter with them in person could kill us all. It’s that dangerous. We’ve gotten this far together. Let’s be smart about this. Rick’s right about intervening at this point, but we can’t keep doing it.” He hadn’t forgotten, though, he’d been the one to insist on bringing in his young cousin, then finding a home for him, so in a way, he was the one who’d started breaking the rules. Shoving that thought aside, he added, “Those people have to take care of themselves, as we do.”

  He always hated being the voice of reason, but he could see that if they kept down this road they might become too lax in their vigilance against the virus and none of them could afford that.

  37 Trick or Treat

  In the dim evening light, Graham, Ennis and the boys went down through the snow to the lake with the younger ones making use of their tactical maneuvers. Ennis walked with cautious steps. He wasn’t complaining, but Graham knew he was in pain and noticed a difference. As he watched the boys, armed with their bows, acting more serious, Graham looked at them and still only saw boys in pretend mode.

  “For the end of the world it sure is getting crowded around here,” Ennis said and Graham had to chuckle at the old man because he was right, cranky, but right.

  For some damn reason those that were left all headed for the woods. Graham wondered if there was something to human nature that embedded a survival instinct to do that just. Like the monarch butterfly, flying from Canada to Mexico every third year of its life. Perhaps humans have a natural instinct that says, when the world goes to hell, head for the trees.

  Ennis had scrubbed the rusty bear traps and Mark helped test them to be sure they worked properly. They found a few obvious places a man would have to step in trying to come up to camp. They embedded the traps in likely places, covering them lightly with shoreline debris to disguise them. This only worked if the intruder stepped in exactly the right spot and of course, there was no reliable way to make that happen.

  “More than likely we’ll see a deer running like hell, with one of these caught on its hoof,” Ennis said.

  “Uh, I don’t want that to happen,” Bang said, because he was partial to the animals.

  Ennis shook his head. “It can’t be helped.”

  Graham found a black permanent marker in the glove box of Tala’s car, took a piece of scrap plywood, and wrote; Trespassers Will Be Shot. He nailed it on a tree so it couldn’t be missed on approach to their lake entry. It wasn’t lost on him the irony that Campos had also posted such signs. It disturbed him, but he didn’t know what else to do.

  Though it wasn’t a perfect plan, he lacked supplies and better ideas. The men began to pull back strategic tree limbs that would flip loose at the slightest jolt and startle a person sneaking in at night up the trail. They also camouflaged boards with upturned nails in them along the meandering path.

  After they were done, Mark said as the four of them gazed down at their handiwork, “Too bad they’re not lasers.”

  The two older men chuckled at that. “Yeah. If they were, they’d have a hell of a time getting through in one piece,” Ennis said.

&nbs
p; “Well, I think that’s good for now. I’ll stay up tonight. Ennis, you can take over around three,” Graham said.

  Graham held the door open for the others to enter, and then whistled for Sheriff to come in. Soon the dog appeared at the edge of the forest and trotted in for the night. Graham took one last look at the bright moonlit clearing, and then closed the cabin door to the outside dangers for the night. He smelled the wonderful barley and cougar stew Tala had created, along with the pine wood scent in the crisp air from the woodstove. On any other night, these normal things were welcome, but tonight they made him edgy.

  After Tala’s wonderful dinner, Graham took his post as the rest wandered off to bed. Unlike the world of the past, there was seldom idle time. You woke with the light of dawn, and then crashed at night as soon as permitted, only to do it all over again the next day. Actually, he thought it was good for the kids. They all seemed to be doing well, considering what they’d been through and for Graham at least, that said something.

  As for the adults, well, he missed his family and work. Tala had pretty much replaced one family for another in terms of caring for them. Sure, she missed her family terribly but you wouldn’t know it, watching as she cared for this bunch. Old Ennis had been written off by relatives who felt he wasn’t worth anything any longer. Boy, if they could see him now! Graham wasn’t sure what he’d do without the old guy’s advice and company even as cranky as he was.

  Graham kept watch with Sheriff by his side. This dog was more like another family member to him really. He’d saved his ass once and warned them of danger countless times before. In Graham’s past, he often said he preferred cats to dogs. A ridiculous notion that seemed to him now, because in this world, a dog like Sheriff was essential and now he understood the old novels like Old Yeller, more than he ever did before.

  Graham sat in the quiet room draped in darkness, listening to the soft snores from the bunkroom. He wondered about Tala and knew something had begun to grow between them, but he wasn’t ready to give it a name just yet. Something still held him back, even though he could smell her across the room at night. Their eyes often locked randomly during odd moments during the day and that night when he’d held her close in the forest, as the invaders came in, his instinctive protectiveness had surprised him with its intensity.

  After that, he’d noticed she did little things for him too. Even though she didn’t drink coffee, she made the brew and presented it to him every morning just the way he liked it. Nelly had done that too. Though he appreciated Tala’s effort, it was a painful reminder of the past, as if his gratitude toward Tala was somehow dishonoring Nelly. This had the effect of making him feel a bit jaded about the feelings he knew were developing. He thought it might be mutual, but he wasn’t certain if she just enjoyed playing house or if she really sensed the same thing.

  Graham looked out the window and up towards the bright moon. You could always tell when things were going to get chilly the next day. When the moon was especially clear on a winter night, it was going to be extra frosty the next day. He got up and added another log to the fire, disturbing Sheriff in the process. The dog jerked and settled down again after watching to see what Graham was doing. Then his ears went on radar patrol again. It was funny to watch the dog do that. His eyes would slowly close and then his ears would continue to pivot like some sort of radar detection device put on autopilot when the dog slept. Graham ran a hand down his furry back. “Dude, you smell like bad Cheetos,” he whispered.

  Graham once again scanned the perimeter and noticed a doe walk into the crystalized covered clearing, followed by two smaller ones munching on the dry, telescoping grass near the tree line. They knew he watched them but seemed not to care enough to leave. Graham liked to watch them, especially during the silence of the night. He wanted to go wake Bang up to show him what they looked like in the early morning blueness, but he resisted the temptation.

  Of all the kids, Bang seemed to be closest to him. Perhaps because he was the first immune Graham had encountered or maybe it was because the boy was completely dependent on him and entrusted to him by his brave mother. Whatever the reason, he could say with full honesty that he loved Bang as his own now. He knew if something were to happen to him, he’d grieve as if he were his own flesh and blood and maybe that was Hyun-Ok’s intention all along. He was honored now that she’d chosen him for the boy.

  Graham could hear footsteps shuffling his way. The old man couldn’t sleep past three in the morning anyway so that seemed a good time to change the watchman. “Hey, Ennis, sleep well?” Graham asked.

  “As well as an old man can after the apocalypse,” Ennis said, then asked, “anything happen?”

  “Only intruders are those deer,” he said and motioned to the window.

  “It’s too light with a bright moon for some fool to come to try something stupid,” Ennis said.

  “Sure is, but I’m off to sleep right now, Mr. Ennis,” Graham said and as he got up, Sheriff followed him into the bunkroom, climbing on Macy’s bed as usual. It seemed to Graham that, even though Sheriff was a family dog, he was ultimately locked to Macy. If it came down to it, he’d abandon them all for her alone. He didn’t blame the dog because she was a good girl.

  Graham fell fast asleep thinking of this new family unit and the events that led them together, meeting here in his grandfather’s cabin after the end of most of humanity. His next conscious memory that night sounded very far away like a glass breaking and then a bark out of Sheriff, warning him. Sudden dread raced through him, but he could do nothing about it.

  38 The Debriefing

  They worked without even hand signals. Though the light outside was bright for the dead of night, they were able to put up all the exterior cameras without a hitch. Many of them were disguised as natural evergreen items you’d find in any garden variety forest so their detection was unlikely. With that done, they headed for the main event. It was a little risky, mostly because of the dog.

  They had to plan it right. There was no better detector than a family police dog, so charming Sheriff was essential. Since that was impossible, the next best thing was to put the dog under as quickly as possible.

  The windowpane came out fairly quietly but the second one shattered in with the cold temperatures. It couldn’t be helped and with the noise, there was no turning back now.

  Rick already had the canister ready and simply pulled the fuse. Instead of tossing it in willy-nilly, he sprayed the stream directly at the dog first which put him out fast, then tossed it in willy-nilly. At least they wouldn’t have any accidents now and with that relief, they were able to pull the old window open without incident. They’d already loosened one pane close to the old man by the front door, sending him to sleep right away.

  Rick was a little concerned for the small boy. The amount of gas that he would inhale could result in a respiratory issue for him. But, as luck would have it, he slept in the farthest bunk and received less of the gas. Once they were in, Rick blew a sigh of relief when he realized Graham had his hand around the trigger of his shotgun and one foot off the bed. He wasn’t sure if the man actually slept that way or if he’d had a chance to react. In any event, Rick quickly pulled out the prefilled needles for the man and popped the common flu shot into his right shoulder. The next, larger one, he slid under his right arm’s back fat. That one was special and they all got it. He and Steven kept it a secret and when Dalton found out, he hoped he wouldn’t be too angry. Then Rick pushed the man onto his side to get to Graham’s right butt cheek. He quickly inserted the tetanus shot.

  Each man, contained in his hazmat gear, carefully and quickly went from person to person. Rick then wandered into the living area to get the old man by the door. He had four shots coming. “Poor sucker,” Rick whispered, “got to get you through the winter, Pops.” After he finished administering the shots, he put up the tiny hidden cameras in several spots throughout the cabin living space, and on his way back to the bunkroom, he continued to plant a few mor
e, adjusting their view as he went.

  By the time Rick finished, Steven completed the dog’s inoculations too. Then Steven reached through the open window and pulled in the gifts, handing the contents to Rick one by one. Rick put them ceremoniously in the middle of the floor, so the residents of Graham’s Camp would know it was intentional, like Christmas morning. He laid a note from Dalton on the very top.

  Having completed their tasks without incident, the two men exited the window once more and replaced the glass panes with ones they’d brought along for the occasion, quickly piping the sealant into place. They knew the mystery of how they entered the cabin would be revealed in time, but in their thinking, they were keeping the heat in on this family that they had come to care for as their evening entertainment.

  With moonlight guiding their way back, they needed no artificial lighting. It seemed like the old days to them and somehow they felt gleeful to be back in action again. When would they have the chance to do something like this again? Unfortunately, they now had to go into quarantine on their arrival back at their own camp but the mission had gone off without a hitch and they felt good about it.

  Joking while they ran through the night, Rick said, “I can’t wait to see Graham’s face in the morning,” like a parent would say in anticipation of Christmas morning.

  Steven looked at his comrade through his suit’s clear safety casing and laughed aloud, but both became solemn when they heard Dalton’s voice in their ears saying, “Cut the crap and get back to camp.” Rick had a strong suspicion Dalton was smiling, too, as he stood watching them through his screen, though he didn’t let it come through his voice.

  As the men got closer, they scared a few unsuspecting deer away and in turn, they scared them back when several they hadn’t detected behind them, rushed past them.

  Knowing the procedure, they entered the wash chamber camouflaged outside the security area of the Preppers’ campgrounds in the forest. As they stood in their suits, chemicals sprayed them as they turned around. They did the hokey pokey dance for the cameras with singing and all. Both men were feeling a little goofy because it was time, after all the seriousness they had been through.