“Great,” she replied sarcastically, “anything else?”
“Hmm, let's see. That reporter Ricky and the others haven't tried to sneak out yet, so that's good.”
“Good is a relative term. Have you been able to reach Camp?”
“I was up on the roof earlier, but no dice. We are out of range, but we knew we probably would be even with these military handhelds.”
Matty knocked on the office door, announcing his presence.
“Hey, guys, morning, Diane. When you hit that couch, you were out like a light…”
“Tell me about it. When this is all over, I am going to sleep for an entire day. Until then, I need to get back down to the lab and start testing.”
Diane made a move to leave, but Alex and Matty blocked her.
“Actually,” Alex began to say, “that's what Matty and I were talking about while you were sleeping.”
Diane raised an eyebrow, unsure of what he meant.
“Ya. How exactly were you thinking about testing it?”
Diane rubbed the crusted sleep from her eyes.
“Well, Trinity is completely different from any virus and only seems to infect humans, so we can't exactly test the vaccine on animals. So, I am going to start with a few blood panels. Ideally, I would like to test someone who has come into recent contact with the disease, but it's going to come down to human trials.”
They suspected this and immediately protested.
“And who is your Guinea pig going to be?”
“If you say yourself, so help me…”
“Of course it's me!” she exclaimed, getting on the offensive. “I'm not going to let anyone else die or worse, because of my theories! This is my work! My trials!”
“But what if this doesn't work?”
“You are probably the only person still alive who is capable of finding a cure!”
Diane let out a sigh of irritation.
“So what do you suggest? Draw straws? I doubt anyone here is going to jump at the opportunity to kill themselves. So what then? Force someone to take it? I'm not some damn Nazi doctor. I'm not going to experiment on an innocent person.”
Before she could continue, Alex dropped a bomb.
“I’ll do it. Test me.”
A brief moment of awestruck silence blanketed the room.
Matty was speechless. After all he and Alex discussed, never once had Alex conveyed this potentially suicidal notion. His eyes shifted to Diane, and he waited for her response.
“What is with you these days?” Diane exclaimed, truly baffled. She started pacing around the room, and then said, “Collin and I have been talking, and it's like you have a death wish!”
Alex attempted to object, but Diane continued.
“It's no secret! I mean seriously, come on, what the hell is going on with you, Alex? Every chance you get to kill one ofthem, you do it without hesitation and rather recklessly I might add. Yesterday, you charged full steam into a group of infected! Now, you want me to test this vaccine on you? This isn’t like other vaccines, Alex. I didn’t use some dead or weakened strain of the virus that your body can fight off. Trinity has far surpassed that type of treatment. What I created is something completely different, unpredictable and entirely theoretical. It is designed to search out and destroy the virus, and could end up doing the opposite and destroying your immune system. And you're telling me that youwant to be shot full of something that can potentially kill you?”
Alex's facial expression remained cold, unflinching.
“I have my reasons.”
“You have your reasons? Really? Look, Collin told me about your cousin. He told me that after Billy died…”
“Don't you say another word about him,” Alex interrupted, his words cold as ice. By all outward appearances, Alex looked composed, but inside, his blood was boiling. “You don't know me and you sure as hell don't know anything about Bill.”
Diane paused and shook her head.
“I'm sorry, I won't do it. I told Collin I would look out for you, not hand you a potential death sentence…”
“Look out for me,” Alex repeated, oddly amused by the statement. He sighed and tilted his head down, finally revealing some element of emotion. When he looked up, he inhaled and exhaled in a meditative fashion.
“Look. I know Collin and Steve think I've changed, they think Bill's death has...I don't know, damaged me or something. And who knows, maybe it has. But I swear this isn't about me. This is about finding a cure so this fucking virus doesn't hurt anyone anymore. I'm a big boy. I know the risks. I can make my own decisions...”
Diane tried to say something but Alex held up a hand.
“...Please, just let me finish, okay? Like Matty said, you are probably the only person still living who can make this cure, so there's no way we are going to let you test it on yourself. Which leaves those here to volunteer themselves, and I am offering to be one. I am willing to do my part to win this war. If it means my life, so be it.”
Diane stared long and hard at Alex. Every bone in her body told her not to allow it; told her to find an alternative, but there was none.
“Fine, get Freiderik. Let's get started.”
0403 hours
Inside the lab on BSL-3, Diane sat hunched over a dozen glass test tubes. She meticulously sampled each one and tested their individual reactions. Satisfied, she turned around and gave a thumbs up.
On the other side of the glass window, Freiderik and Laura acknowledged the signal.
Dr. Bauer turned to relay the message, “Alex, Diane is,” but before he could finish the sentence, he began coughing violently.
“Freiderik! Are you okay?” Laura asked concerned. She hurried over to a nearby desk and grabbed a bottle of water.
The German doctor turned and continued coughing, but he held up a hand indicating that he would be alright. Before Laura could see, he wiped a bloodied palm on his pant leg.
“Yes, my dear,” he started to say, but took a second to clear his throat. He grabbed the bottle from her and assuredly said, “I am fine. Don't worry about me.”
As Freiderik drank, Laura noticed that his skin was pale and prominent red veins had overtaken the whites of his sclera. Using the back of her hand, she felt his forehead.
“Are you sure? Freiderik, you are burning up. I think you have a fever.”
Freiderik's voice was as hoarse as a chain smoker's.
“I will be fine. I just haven't slept,” he replied, brushing her hair. “I promise I will be okay. Give me a moment, I will be right back.” As Freiderik walked away, another spell of coughing overtook him.
During all the commotion, Alex remained on his knees in a meditative state. His eyes were closed, his breathing calm and controlled. His lips subtly moved, as though mumbling a prayer. Then, he arose, inhaled slow, exhaled slower and finally opened his eyes.
“Diane is finishing up, Alex,” Laura said, although her attention remained focused on Dr. Bauer.
“It's a weird feeling,” Alex said, sounding philosophical.
“What is?”
Then Laura gasped when Dr. Bauer coughed so badly he dropped to a knee. She moved in his direction, but Freiderik waved her off.
“Being in control of your own death. Your decision, your terms, ya know? No God playing with your life or fates getting ready to cut your string...it’s kind of liberating.”
Laura wasn't sure how to respond. She didn't really know much about Alex; where he came from or what kind of person he was. All she knew was that he almost killed her mentor, and for that reason, she didn't like him. But seeing Alex now changed that perspective. She saw him in simpler terms. Saint wasn't the right word, martyr either. Brave. That was it. Allowing Diane to test a potentially deadly vaccine on him was dumb, but courageous. She and the others didn't possess that level of courage, and for that, she thanked him.
“Thanks, Alex.”
Alex released a chuckle. “Thanks? For what?”
“For what you are doi
ng. It is a pretty selfless thing.”
“Wow and here I was thinking you hated me.”
“Oh, I still do,” she replied, facetiously. She walked over and extended a hand. “But I respect you for what you are about to do. So, thank you.”
Alex looked at her hand then her eyes. Since the very beginning, they had a sour taste for one another. Now, with him walking on death's tightrope, things changed. Funny how the prospect of death does that to people. He grasped her hand and shook.
“You're welcome.”
“Am I interrupting?” Diane asked, walking over. In her hands, she carried a metal tray containing a half-dozen vials, a pair of syringes, alcohol wipes and bandages.
Alex and Laura released their grips and stepped back from each other.
“No.”
“Not at all.”
“Laura, is Dr. Bauer alright?” Diane asked, noticing the doctor struggling down the hallway.
“He said he was fine.”
“Well then, we can stand here and procrastinate or get this show on the road,” Alex said, wasting no time.
Diane stared at Alex. It looked as though she was about to sob, reach over and give him a consoling hug, but she didn't. She clenched her jaw and said, “Alright, here's how this is going to work. I'm going to inject you, then need you to stay quarantined in one of the other labs. The injection you are about to receive could be too much for your body and compromise your immune system, or maybe do nothing at all. This is the first step. I need to confirm if I’m on the right path or not. Whatever the case, we should probably find out in no more than twelve hours. Later today, I'll test your blood and see how this trial and your system reacted to one another. If at all.”
“Sounds peachy,” Alex joked. “Where we doing this? You need me to lay down on a toy fire truck or something?”
Diane laughed. “Why, do you have one?”
Alex appreciated the humor.
“It doesn't matter. Where ever you want.”
Alex rolled up his sleeve.
“I guess here is as good a place as any.”
Diane found a suitable vein on the inside of Alex's forearm, near the crease of his elbow. She swabbed the area with an alcohol patch.
“Good looking out, Doc, at least I won't die of an infection. Ba-dap-pshh,” Alex said, pantomiming the drum line to a bad joke. “Get it? The sterilizing? How I could get an infection from a dirty injection site and notthe infection itself…”
“Yes, Alex,” Diane said, unwrapping one of the syringes. “We get it.”
Laura just stared at Alex, truly baffled by his attitude. “Are you ever serious?”
“Not really.”
Diane stuck the needle into one of the vials and drew less than fifteen cc's of the clear, experimental vaccine.
“Ready?”
“Whoa, that's it?” Alex said, referencing the small amount.
Diane held the needle up. “What were you expecting?”
“I don't know, something more than that,” he answered, extending his arm for Diane. “I guess it's now or never, right?”
Both Laura and Diane stared at Alex. They did their best to muster hopeful smiles. Then, out of nowhere, Diane hugged Alex. She whispered in his ear, “Collin and Steve would be so proud of you. I know I am. You are the bravest person I have ever known.”
“Thanks for that, really,” Alex replied softly, and then he pulled back. “But come on, it's not like I'm dead yet. Can't get rid of me that easily, Doc.”
The moment caused Diane to tear up.
“Always with the jokes, such an ass,” she said, wiping her face with the back of her hand.
Again, Alex held out his arm, and this time Diane found the vein and pierced the needle through his skin. She looked at him with the most sincere set of eyes. “Thanks for doing this.”
But before she injected the liquid, Alex yelled, “Wait!”
Diane flinched, nearly breaking the needle off. “Damnit, Alex! What?”
“Let me do it. That way if things go south, it's not like you killed me, ya know?”
Diane nodded and transferred the syringe to Alex's other hand.
“Just give me a second,” he said, taking a few steps away in the direction of the elevator. He looked back at Diane, and behind her, Laura stood, hand covering her mouth. Alex smiled and nodded, and then turned back and faced the elevator.
“How's this for irony,” Alex whispered to himself. “I might die and here I am in front of an elevator that is going to take me up to some pearly gates or down to...ya, let's stick with happy thoughts, Alex.”
He closed his eyes and raised his chin. In his mind, he pictured happier times, memories spent hanging out with Billy, boxing and training at his gym. Even some of the dangerous adventures he had with Collin, Billy, Mike and Steve after the outbreak. The laughs, the tears, the highs and lows, heartbreaks and close calls. A thousand memories ran through his mind.
He inhaled deep and slowly exhaled. His hand teased the end of the plunger.
Just as Alex was ready to dance with the devil, he heard an ear-piercing scream. Before he had a chance to turn around, it was like a wrecking-ball came crashing into him. He managed to twist his body enough so that his back took the force of the impact.
Then came the crushing weight of three bodies. Diane laid on top of Alex, behind her Laura and on top of the dog pile, eyes dark and lifeless, Dr. Freiderik Bauer.
“What the fu…” Alex gasped, out of breath from the impact.
Adrenaline kicked in and Alex used his jiujitsu skills to free himself. He rolled out of the pile, and looked back. On her chest, Diane was pinned to the ground, above her, Laura screamed in pain as Dr. Bauer clamped his jaws onto her shoulder. Without hesitation, Alex came up behind Freiderik, and grabbed a handful of his shirt. He pulled with all his might and threw the doctor back ten feet.
Freiderik jumped to his feet, howled, and then charged Alex.
At the last second, Alex sidestepped out of the Doctor's path, drew his machete and sliced the ligaments behind the man’s knees. Freiderik came crashing down face first onto the plastic tiling; his front two teeth broke off and flew from his mouth. Before Freiderik was able to get up, Alex delivered a deadly blow to the back of his head, splitting the doctor’s skull like a coconut.
“Freiderik, no!” Laura screamed. She rushed over to her elderly, dead mentor and knelt down next to his body.
“Laura! You're bit!”
The shorthaired research assistant did not seem to care, or at the very least, hear Diane.
“Alex, give me your syringe!” Diane ordered.
Alex looked to his arm and realized that the fall had broken the syringe. Only the needle remained in his arm. “It-it broke off.”
Diane ran over to her tray. As quickly as she could, she filled up another syringe with a second dose of the experimental vaccine. She hustled back to Laura and without asking, injected the substance into her neck. The poor woman didn't even so much as flinch.
Diane released an exhausted sigh and settled back up against the wall. In front of her, Laura mourned over Freiderik's body, weeping hysterically.
Alex slowly walked over and collapsed next to Diane.
“What the hell was that about?”
“He must have gotten bit when we were attacked in the elevator,” Alex answered.
“Well, at least you don't have to worry about being my test subject. Laura has that honor now.”
“I wouldn't be so sure about that,” Alex said, opening up his hand to reveal the rest of the syringe. The plunger was completely depressed and the tube empty. “When you guys ran into me, I think I accidentally injected myself.”
Diane looked horrified. “Oh no, Alex.”
Chapter 7
150 Miles east of Providence State Beach
November 27, 2009
0456 hours
Carlos Rodriguez sat behind the steering wheel of the prison bus. Since radios stations were no longer broadca
sting, he quietly hummed a Latin pop song to himself.
Just beyond the chain link partition, Tyler sat, face buried in a map of the continental United States. Jimmy relied on Tyler to use the training and skills that he received in the Army to make the best decisions.
“I'm thinking we should head south for winter. What do you think, jefe?”
When Jimmy didn't answer, Tyler moved the map to see his leader, but immediately regretted doing so.
“Ah come on, can't you guys do that in the back?”
Jimmy heard the questions but ignored them. He sat completely relaxed on the bench across from Tyler. His head was tilted back and eyes stared in ecstasy at the metal roof. Moments later, he released a large sigh, followed by three full body spasms. “That's what I'm talking about. Some quality road head.”
Estrella Lopez lifted her head from Jimmy's lap. She wiped the corners of her mouth, and then went in for a kiss, but Jimmy slapped her away.
“What the fuck you thinking, woman? Like I'm gonna kiss you after that?”
Estrella hissed, but she liked it rough. She squeezed past her boyfriend, making sure Jimmy caught a good glimpse of her cleavage.
“Then I gotta get cleaned up.”
Jimmy didn't miss the ample scenery. He even gave Estrella a slap on the butt and watched her as she strutted to the back.
“Ahem.”
Tyler cleared his throat in an attempt to get Jimmy's attention. But Jimmy's eyes stayed glued to his girlfriend's half-naked body as she changed in the back. Still, Tyler continued.
“Like I was saying, we should head south for winter, back down to Mexico. Maybe try to hook up with the cartels?”
Surprisingly, Jimmy was paying attention.
“If that is what you think is best. You know I trust you, Ty.” Jimmy finally looked over at him and continued, “You're like a brother to me.”
“You too, hermano. I just think it's our best shot.”
“When you figure it out, just tell that fat fuck Carlos where to go.”
Carlos heard the insult and respectfully replied, “Hey boss, you know I’m trying to lose weight.”
The Longest Road (Book 2): The Change Page 22