Before The Cure (Book 1): Before The Cure

by Gould, Deirdre

  Shay snorted a soft laugh. “Well, that’s pretty much out the window then. Can’t imagine how this gets much more stressful.”

  “No, you’re right. But we can at least not make it any worse. We may have to make some sort of— decision about him soon.”

  “Not yet,” said Shay.

  “Not yet. But if we want them to help us or figure out some other way to get out of here on our own, we have to get him to shut off the phone. So— I’m going to lie. I need you to back me up. We’re going to convince him this was Debbie’s idea. That to get us out, we have to follow this guy’s instructions. I don’t know what they’re going to make us do next. Maybe they’ll just have us go back to the cafe. Maybe they’ll make us— make a decision about Cody. I don’t know how far I’m willing to go. I don’t know how we make sure they are who they say. Making this up as I go along until I figure it out. All I know for sure is that shutting off that video feed is at least as beneficial to us as it is to anyone out there at this point. If we don’t want people listening in and watching our every move, we don’t have a choice. So that’s what we’re going to do. After that, we’ll talk about it. Maybe you answer the phone next, I don’t care. But when we’re out of this, if it matters, you tell Cody this was all me. You put the whole thing on me.”

  “Okay. I mean— not about the blaming you part, but about the plan. Okay about the plan. For now.”

  “Yeah, just for this. Then we figure the next part out.”

  Neil headed back to the counter, Shay trailing behind him. Cody was no longer scrubbing the counter, instead staring at a display rack of aluminum walking canes.

  “Cody?” said Neil softly. Cody didn’t move. Neil tried calling his name again. Nothing. Neil came around the edge of the counter and slowly waved a hand over the space in front of Cody. Cody blinked, turned his head to focus on Neil.

  “Shorry,” he slurred. “Million miles ‘way.”

  “We just need some sleep, man. All of us. Just need some sleep.”

  “Sure. Should sstay here. Maybe. You think?”

  Neil didn’t think sleeping anywhere near Cody was a good idea. Or anywhere in the hospital either. But he needed Cody to stay calm. And they were all exhausted. They weren’t going to get much farther without rest regardless of how Neil felt. So he said, “Yeah, yeah, I think that’s a good idea. There are those nice soft chairs over there. Crash for a while until the government people call back.”

  “Gov’ment people?”

  “That’s who was calling. They’re going to help us.”

  Cody nodded, but Neil could see he didn’t really understand. “Listen,” said Neil, pointing to the phone dangling from Cody’s hand. “They think it’d be better if we shut that off.”

  Cody frowned down at it, confused.

  “They know what’s going on in here now, Debbie’s been filling them in. And they say it’s just confusing and scaring people. Making them show up— show up outside. They want to help us, but if they come in, they could get hurt or sick. So maybe— maybe we shut it off for now. Get some sleep, give everyone a chance to calm down and figure this out, hmm?”

  “They got Debbie? She ok?”

  Neil fought the urge to glance at Shay, to make sure she was playing along. “Yeah, they got her. Treating her right now. She’s going to be ok. That’s— that’s how they knew to call, right?”

  “They gonna call our kidsh?” Cody listed slightly to the right and Shay caught him before he could tip too far.

  “Think so,” she said, “but they want us to shut off the feed first. We’re so popular, we’re jamming up the servers. If we shut it off, they can reach our families faster. They’ll call back when we do.”

  He frowned down at the phone, obviously doubtful but no longer alert enough to really articulate why. Neil fervently hoped he was right about them all just needing sleep. Cody jabbed at the phone with a finger, missed, tried again. “’Kay. ‘Soff. Now what?”

  Shay walked over to the door and jiggled the handle to make sure it was locked. “Now we hunker down for a few hours and hopefully they call back. If not, we make a new plan when we get up.”

  Cody gave a half nod and shambled over to the small waiting area.

  “Maybe— maybe one of us should watch,” said Neil. “In case.”

  He watched Shay focus on Cody for a moment. “I think we’re okay,” she said.

  “Should be sure. What if— someone tries to come in? I don’t want to be asleep if we find ourselves— with a problem in here. Or if the government people call back. What if they want us to move?”

  Shay rubbed her forehead. “Yeah, okay.”

  “I’ll do it,” mumbled Cody. He’d pushed two of the padded chairs together, end to end to make a pathetic sort of shelf that he’d never fit on.

  “No, I will,” said Neil. “You’ve both had less sleep than me. I’ll wake one of you up when I can’t keep my eyes open anymore and we can switch.”

  He caught Shay’s attention and she shrugged and then nodded. “Okay. Guess it doesn’t much matter. Can’t really go anywhere until we figure out which exits they’re watching anyway.” She watched Cody drape himself awkwardly between the two chairs and opted for the thinly carpeted ground instead. “Think there’s a cooler in the corner. Used to come down here for those energy drinks when I needed to work a double,” she yawned. “But if you doze off, you’re not gonna hear any complaints from me.”

  “Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m worried about. I don’t want to wake up dead,” Neil muttered, clicking off the pharmacy lights. The cooler was a silvery glow of light behind several aisles and he picked his way quietly toward it.

  23

  Neil wasn’t certain when he’d finally slipped into a doze. He could remember watching the figure in the corridor slowly pace for a long time. It eventually receded out of the line of sight of the pharmacy window and he’d sat down, his back against the door. He told himself it was just in case, though whatever could make it through the locked door wasn’t going to find much of a challenge in fighting Neil. Shay snored lightly and Cody thrashed every once in a while, thumping against the hard arms of the chair. He’d twist and then lie still again. The only other sound was the low whoosh of the heated air pushing through the overhead vents and the tick of the clock above the counter. Neil could hear the occasional ding of the automated hospital announcements in the hallway, but it was muffled and distant. He’d thought the floor was too uncomfortable to really be at risk of falling asleep, but the jarring ring of the phone brought him abruptly back to consciousness. He forgot where he was for a moment and stayed paralyzed in confusion as Shay sat up and whispered for him to get the phone. The ringing continued and something thumped against the door behind him. The vibration on his back shook him free and he got up. He stumbled and caught himself on a display rack.

  “Oh God,” said Shay as she twisted to look at Cody. Neil saw blood, but before he could move, the door banged again. “Get the phone! I’ll help him.”

  Neil nodded and dashed for the phone.

  “Sorry to wake you son,” the voice was saying as he brought it to his ear.

  “Told you not to call me that. Who are you again?” He tried to rub the blear from his eyes.

  “Harlain Thomas, remember? About the quarantine.”

  “Right. Did what you asked. Phone’s not broadcasting anymore. You should stop calling here. There are sick people outside. Sound seems to draw them.”

  “We know. We’ll lure them away in a few minutes. I needed to wake you. Your friend’s condition is reaching a critical phase. Can’t have you sleeping around him.”

  “Friend? Cody? How do you know? He’s been stumbling and slurring since I met him. For all I know, that’s how—”

  “He’s progressed to onychophagia overnight.”

  “Onych— what?”

  “He’s biting his fingernails. To the point that he’s drawing blood. It’s a compulsion this illness seems to cause. After that, it�
��s a rapid slide. He’ll continue to bite his fingers until they are protected from his teeth or he finds someone else to bite. Opinions are varied as to whether they feel pain at this point or not.”

  “Opinions are varied? What on Earth are you people doing out there? And how the fuck do you know he’s biting his fingers?”

  “We have access to the hospital’s security cameras. You didn’t expect us to leave you unmonitored, did you?”

  “You— how long have you been watching us? The hospital?”

  “Since the quarantine was established of course. Protocol.”

  Neil’s stomach felt very heavy, as if he were plunging from a great height. “You knew. All this time, you knew what was happening in here.”

  “That’s not entirely true. The cameras don’t cover the entire hospital. We didn’t know about the soldier snapping until Dr. Barnes informed us. The conference rooms are unmonitored but we expected to have eyes on the ground in—”

  “But you knew about the rest. About the people wandering the halls. About your guys getting overrun in the courtyard. Up in the patient rooms, or at least in the hallways up there.”

  “Yes, we knew. We were relyin—” Neil slammed the phone down before the woman could finish. It rang again almost immediately and he ignored it, returning to Shay and Cody.

  “Stop,” Shay told Cody, who had one hand in his mouth, the other caught between Shay’s. She’d made almost a mitten of bright gauze around it. His wrist was coated with dried blood. “Stop him,” she told Neil.

  Neil grabbed Cody’s other hand and tried to gently pull it from his mouth, but Cody resisted. The phone was a shrill, constant scream behind them. “Stop, man, you’re hurting yourself.”

  It seemed to take Cody a great effort to open his jaw. His eyes streamed.

  “Doesn’t that hurt?” asked Neil, reaching for another package of gauze.

  “Yes.” It was a low groan. “Can’t help it. Something’sh wrong. Really wrong.”

  The thumper was back at the door. The dull thuds were erratic, no real rhythm to them. Something about the syncopation behind the regular wails of the phone deeply disturbed Neil. He couldn’t have said why. “Can’t help it? What do you mean? Maybe sit on your hands?”

  Cody shook his head. Shay finished his first hand and held onto it. “Like an itch that jus’ gets worsh. Have to— have to—” he wrenched his hand free of Shay and sobbed even as his teeth closed around the puff of gauze.

  “Okay, okay, you can’t stop,” said Shay. She was sweaty and her breath was rapid. Because she’s been trying to hold him back? Or because she’s terrified? Neil wondered. He tried to wrap Cody’s other hand quickly. Shay stood up. “Going to find you some gloves then. You bite into the gloves if you need to, it’ll stop you from hurting your hands. Got to stop that phone, too. Or the ones outside’ll break down the door.”

  “They’re just going to keep calling back. They want something. Don’t know what. Don’t want to know what. You don’t either.” Neil scrabbled for the gauze tape. Shay stopped for a second.

  “What happened?”

  “Tell you when I can think again.”

  A few seconds later the ringing stopped, leaving just the thuds against the door. Neil sighed with relief. Shay returned with a box of rubber gloves.

  “I was hoping for something thicker, but— we’ll use the whole box if we have to. It’ll keep the cuts from getting infected.”

  “Shorry. Shorry,” muttered Cody as they managed to get his hands into the gloves.

  “It’s okay, it’s the disease or whatever. Not yo—” Neil cut off with a hiss as Cody’s teeth sank into his arm. “Jesus!” he shrieked, shoving against Cody’s forehead to pry him off.

  “I’m shorry,” cried Cody, releasing him, “I need— I need—” he lunged for Shay and she stumbled backward. Neil yanked on the chair Cody was rising from, toppling him.

  “What do we do?” cried Shay, pulling him back away from Cody. But Cody just sat on the floor, chewing at the rubber gloves and sobbing that he was sorry.

  Neil shook his head. “Debbie said stress seems to trigger the snap. If we all just calm down—” the thumping abruptly stopped and a growl seeped through the door. He glanced over at it. He could see the shadow of a figure through the window, swaying unevenly. Then a shriek from farther away. Rapid footsteps and the shadow slammed into the door with a roar. “Shit, it got somebody.” He ran for the door, but Shay got there first, pushing him away from the handle.

  “Wait!” she shouted. Grunts and snarls echoed in the hallway behind the door. “We don’t know if they’re both sick. Could be risking us for nothing.”

  “For nothing? They’ll kill each other.”

  “Or they’ll kill us. Just think, Neil. What are you going to do when you open up the door? You ready to kill one of em? Or both? You weren’t a few hours ago.”

  “Well, I’m not ready to do nothing and listen to them slaughter each other.”

  “We’ve got our own problems in here.” Shay waved at Cody who was still on the floor, rocking back and forth. One of the gloves was shredded and Neil could see the gauze underneath turning a soft pink. “You said we need to keep him calm. This— whatever is going on out there, it’s not going to help anyone. We aren’t going to be able to save anyone. Maybe not even us. We need to stay put. We need whoever this person on the phone is to give us some direction—”

  “They aren’t on our side!” cried Neil, flinching as the door shuddered where something slammed into it. “They’ve been watching us the whole time. Before Cody started broadcasting. They saw you being attacked in the gift shop. They saw the courtyard fight. They saw what happened to their own people. And they knew, they knew Debbie was coming out and why. They still killed her. They aren’t trying to save us, they—”

  “They’re calling for something. They want something. Well, so do we. So we stop trusting that they’re going to save us and we start trading. Okay?”

  “No,” snapped Neil. “No, it’s not okay. We’re never getting out of here Shay. And I don’t want to die a murderer.” He reached around her for the doorknob. She grabbed his arm.

  “Wait. Maybe you’re right. Maybe this is it for us. Cody or the people out there or the next squad of police they send in, I don’t know. But I don’t think for a second that they contained this. Do you?”

  “I don’t see what that has to do—”

  “There’s no way that guard should have snapped so fast in the conference room. He’d only been there a few hours. Look at Cody. He’s been like this for at least two days now. Longer, I’d imagine, from what Debbie told us about the emergency room. And the parade— you think they grabbed everyone who came in contact over there? Because I don’t believe that for a second. Our kids are out there. This woman, this Harlain, she’s in charge of something. Somewhere safe. She’s not going to let us out of here, Debbie proved that. But if we play our cards right, maybe we can get her to take our families where she is. We do what she wants, she keeps our kids away from all this. You open that door and get us killed, we’ll never have the chance. How badly do you want to protect your daughter, Neil?” She said it quickly, all in a rush and her hand clutched tight around his wrist to stop him. He pulled his arm back but didn’t reach for the knob again.

  “What is it you want to do?” he shouted between the bangs on the door.

  “We go back there, hang up the phone, wait for them to call. Then we make a deal.”

  “What if— what if they want us to kill someone?”

  “You need to decide how much you want to save Randi. And you need to decide before that phone rings again.”

  “That’s not really a choice,” he said.

  “Good. So let’s go hang up the phone. And get Cody off the floor at least.” She waited for him to back away and kneel beside Cody before she moved from the door frame.

  “You’re okay, Cody. You’re okay, man. I’m going to get you some stuff to calm you down, ok? Maybe i
t’ll stop the— the itchiness for a little bit, let you rest. Will you take something?”

  Cody didn’t speak, just nodded, his hand still in his mouth. The gauze was soaked with blood and saliva, the rubber glove reduced to curled shreds at his wrist. Neil glanced at the large locked cabinets behind the pharmacy counter. Even if I can figure out how to get into them, I wouldn’t know what the hell I was looking for. Best stick with the normal stuff. Might not help as much but it’s better than killing him with the wrong sleeping pill. He wished Debbie was with them to help and felt an immediate surge of guilt for only missing her expertise. You didn’t know her, he reminded himself, sorting through the sleep aids and analgesics in a nearby aisle. It’s sad for her family. Sad that she’s gone, and you can appreciate what she did for you, but you didn’t know her. Some part of him realized it was shock and he was just rationalizing. It was a distant thing, something for later. If there was a later. Something for a therapist to mull over for a while. Not for here, not when everything was still falling apart.

  The phone started ringing again while Neil fumbled with the stubborn blister pack. Shay was somewhere back there, cutting off the shrill tone during its second repetition. “Pack says two,” he told Cody. “Think you might need more, but I don’t want to give you too much. Not without telling you. How— how many do you want?”

  Cody considered a minute. Neil could see his jaw grinding. He held up the gauze encased hand that wasn’t in his mouth, pulled his thumb in after a second.

  “Four? You sure? That’s a double dose.”

  After a long struggle, Cody pulled the hand from his mouth. “Four. Or all. Maybe all, man. Maybe all.”

  “No,” said Neil, pulling the pills from their plastic nest. “Not all. We’re going to find something to treat this. A couple of days. Then it’ll all be back to normal. This is just so you don’t hurt yourself more.”