Pandemic: The Beginning (Pandemic Book One)

by Christine Kersey

  “You can’t take all of those,” a woman shouted as she ran up to him.

  He glanced at the pricing label above the shelf, then turned to the woman. “Doesn’t say there’s a purchase limit.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Don’t you think someone else might want some?”

  Matt stared at the woman, then decided it wasn’t worth it to make a scene. He took one of the boxes off of his cart and handed it to her.

  She snatched it from his hand. “I need one more.”

  Laughing at the nerve of the woman, Matt shook his head and walked away.

  “Hey,” she yelled.

  Several people looked in their direction, but Matt ignored them and went to another aisle where he tucked the two boxes of face masks underneath other items on his cart so that they were no longer visible. Then he headed to the longer-than-ever lines at the register.

  He made it to his truck without further incident, loading all of the items from this trip into the bed of his truck. Glad he had a cover over the bed of his truck to hide his purchases from prying eyes, he climbed behind the wheel. Hoping he hadn’t forgotten anything, he left the parking lot and pointed his truck toward home. On the way, he passed a sporting goods store and decided to stock up on ammo for his .45 caliber pistol. While at the gun counter, he saw a 9mm that he thought was pretty sweet. Normally he wouldn’t spend that kind of money without talking to Jessica, but he decided to buy it along with a rifle. He could always return them if Jessica objected. Since he had his Concealed Carry Permit, a background check wasn’t necessary and he was able to walk out of the store with his newly purchased weapons.

  On the drive home, Matt pictured the look on Jessica’s face when he showed her all he’d bought. Was she going to laugh at him, think he was crazy, or be grateful?

  Trying not to worry about that—most of what he’d bought they would eventually use anyway—he continued on his way.

  Chapter 3

  Jessica

  What was taking Matt so long? It had been hours since he’d left his office. He should have already gotten home. Even with stopping at Costco.

  Jessica tried not to worry, but her active imagination had Matt in a life-threatening car accident or some other awful situation.

  “Mom,” Dylan said, “I’m hungry.”

  Trying to push down her worries, Jessica told Dylan he could have an apple. Moments later she heard the deadbolt unlocking on the front door. Exhaling in relief, she hurried to greet Matt, sliding her arms around his waist.

  “How’d it go?” she asked as she pulled away.

  With a wry look, he tilted his head. “It was crazy there.”

  “Really? Crazier than normal?”

  “I’ve never seen it this bad. Not even right before Christmas.”

  That concerned Jessica, because if that many people were as worried about this flu as she was, it had to be serious. “Were you able to get what you wanted?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Good.” They walked toward the kitchen. “By the way, make sure to wash your hands thoroughly.”

  Matt grimaced. “Good reminder. I think some of the people there were sick.”

  Startled, Jessica didn’t say anything. No reason to get worked up over things they had no control over.

  “Hey, Dad,” Dylan said around a bite of apple.

  “Hey, sport.”

  Matt turned on the water, then glanced at Jessica. “Can you move your car out of the garage? I want to back my truck in for us to unload.”

  Jessica’s eyebrows tugged together. Matt never put his truck in the garage. Mostly because it was too long. “You won’t fit.”

  He scrubbed his hands with soap. “I’ll back in as far as I can. I, uh, I don’t necessarily want the neighbors to see all of the stuff I bought.”

  “What’d you buy?” Dylan asked, his eyes wide.

  Matt finished washing, then dried his hands on a towel. “Nothing exciting. Just lots of food. And I’ll need your help to bring it in.”

  Dylan nodded. “Okay.”

  Jessica parked her car at the curb in front of the house and watched as Matt backed his truck into the garage. Canned goods were stacked in the cab of the truck, and when he opened the gate on the back to reveal the rest of his purchases, she turned to him in shock. “How much did you spend?”

  He looked a little sheepish. “I’m not sure you want to know. But I mostly bought stuff we’d use anyway.” He grinned. “Now we won’t have to go to the store for a while.”

  Jessica shook her head. “Yeah. Like, three or four years.”

  Dylan lifted a case of canned chili from the truck. “Where do you want me to put it?”

  Matt turned to him with a smile. “Let’s put everything in the basement storage room. And get your sister to help.”

  That brought a grin to Dylan’s face. “Okay.”

  “Ask nicely,” Jessica called after him. Then she faced Matt. “Do you really think you needed to buy so much?”

  Matt lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “Who knows? But when I saw the purchasing frenzy and the shelves emptying out, I kind of panicked.”

  “Emptying out?” The shelves at Costco were never empty. Except for that one Christmas when a particular toy had been all the rage. But never food items.

  “Yeah. A lady even yelled at me for taking the last boxes of face masks.”

  Jessica had trouble picturing a random stranger behaving that way. The people in their community were generally friendly. Especially when they were face to face with someone.

  “Whoa,” Kayla said with a smirk as she stepped into the garage and looked at the contents of the truck. “That’s a lot of stuff, Dad.” Face sobering, she looked at Matt. “Do you really think the flu is that serious?”

  Jessica smiled. “I think your Dad went a little overboard.”

  Kayla’s face smoothed out. “Yeah. And now we have to carry it all down to the basement.”

  “Yes, you do,” Matt said. “So get busy.”

  Kayla rolled her eyes before hefting a case of canned green beans into her arms and heading into the house.

  “I’m sorry,” Matt said. “I didn’t mean to go so crazy at the store.” He chuckled. “You should know better than to send me alone.”

  Touching his arm, Jessica smiled. “No. I think what you bought is fine. I just…I said that to Kayla because I don’t want her or Dylan to worry. This flu scare will probably pass like previous flu scares and we’ll all be just fine.”

  “I hope so.”

  With that, they helped the kids carry the food down to the basement, although Jessica noticed Matt carrying several boxes of ammo into their bedroom. Curious what that was all about, she followed him.

  “I didn’t know they sold ammo at Costco,” she said with a smirk.

  He smiled as he put the boxes on a high shelf in their closet. “I stopped at a sporting goods store afterwards and decided to stock up.”

  She shook her head. “Are you done with your shopping spree now?”

  He laughed. “Yeah. I think we’re good.” His eyebrows rose. “Unless you want to risk going out?”

  “No. That’s what online shopping is for.”

  His face got serious. “That’s actually not a bad idea.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “We ought to see if there’s anything else we should have on hand. You know, in case of an emergency.”

  Jessica agreed, and once the truck had been completely unloaded and moved back into the driveway, she and Matt sat in front of the computer and pulled up Amazon. They ordered a number of items to add to their emergency stores, including a solar hand crank radio/flashlight, four portable water purifier straws, and four bug-out bags, each one providing seventy-two hours of supplies.

  “In two days we’ll be ready for the end of the world,” Matt said with a grin.

  Jessica forced a smile, hoping that in two days they would be laughing at themselves.

  Chapter 4

&nbs
p; Jessica

  “Mom!” Kayla said the next afternoon as she raced into the living room, her tone nearing hysteria.

  Jessica set down the book she’d been reading and leapt to her feet. “What’s wrong?”

  “Brooke’s mom,” Kayla said as tears filled her eyes.

  Jessica pictured Kayla’s best friend Brooke. Tall and slender with long auburn hair, she was a fixture around their house. Jessica didn’t know Brooke’s mom well, but she’d always been friendly. “What happened?”

  “She died.” Kayla’s face crumpled as tears streamed down her face. “Brooke’s mom died.”

  Jessica drew Kayla into her arms as shockwaves cascaded over her. “What?” She slowly pulled away from Kayla, her mind racing. “When? How?”

  “Today.”

  “Oh my goodness! What happened?”

  “She was fine last night, but she woke up feeling sick.” Kayla’s voice shook as she spoke. “Brooke’s dad took her mom to the hospital, but she died, Mom. She’s dead.” Tears rolled down Kayla’s cheeks.

  Astonished, and rather alarmed, Jessica needed to know more. “What did she have? Do they know?”

  Kayla stared at Jessica as stark panic washed over her face. “The flu. It was the flu.”

  Jessica’s mouth fell open. It was shocking that someone could be fine one day and dead the next. From a virus.

  “Mom. What if Brooke gets the flu? I mean, she was exposed to it, right?” Fresh tears filled Kayla’s eyes. “What if Brooke dies too?”

  Jessica didn’t want to point out that any of them could catch the deadly flu. And she had no words of reassurance to give Kayla.

  “What’s going on?” Matt asked as he came into the room. He’d risen early and had worked from his home office all day.

  After hearing about Brooke’s mother, Jessica was doubly glad Matt had agreed to work from home.

  “Brooke’s mom passed away.” Jessica’s voice was surprisingly calm. “From the flu.”

  Matt’s eyebrows shot up, then he went to Kayla and wrapped her in a hug. She lay her head against his shoulder and sobbed. As he comforted her, his gaze met Jessica’s. Jessica read the worry in his eyes as clearly as if he’d said the words out loud.

  “I feel like I should do something,” Kayla said as she stepped away from Matt, her face streaked with tears.

  “What would you like to do?” Jessica asked.

  “I don’t know. Bring her and her dad something to eat?”

  Jessica’s gaze slid to Matt, who subtly shook his head, then Jessica looked at Kayla. “That’s very sweet of you, but under the circumstances I don’t think it would be a good idea to go over there.”

  Deep creases formed on Kayla’s forehead. “Right. Of course.”

  Relieved that Kayla understood, Jessica gave her another hug and murmured, “I love you, sweetheart.”

  “I love you too,” Kayla whispered, then she turned and headed toward her room.

  Later that evening, the four of them gathered in the family room to watch the local news. Jessica sat on the couch beside Matt, and Dylan sprawled on the floor. Kayla, however, sat on the edge of the recliner, her back ramrod straight as the four of them waited for the broadcast to begin. Moments later it did. The first announcement was that the schools in multiple school districts in the state, including theirs, would be closed until further notice. It had been decided that since so many kids were sick, it would be best to keep everyone home.

  “No school?” Dylan said, his eyebrows rising as he looked at Jessica and Matt. “Whoa.”

  “Guess you guys won’t be missing anything by being home,” Matt said with a sardonic grin.

  “This is crazy,” Kayla said, her gaze glued to the TV.

  “Crazy awesome,” Dylan said with an ear to ear smile.

  “I know it seems great,” Jessica said, “but remember what’s behind it. People are getting sick.” She glanced at Kayla. “Sick enough to die.”

  Dylan’s smile vanished. “Yeah. I know.”

  During the broadcast, Jessica kept thinking about Rochelle. After they’d spoken the day before, had she decided to stay home today?

  When the news was over, Jessica went into her bedroom and called her.

  “Hello?” a gravelly voice said.

  Had Jessica gotten the wrong number? The voice that answered sounded much deeper than Rochelle’s. Maybe it was her husband? “Is Rochelle there?”

  “It’s me, Jess.”

  Unease rattled through her. “Are you sick?”

  “I should have listened to you yesterday. I should have gone home. I feel like death warmed over.”

  Oh no. “Have you been to the doctor?”

  “I have an appointment in the morning.”

  That was something, at least. “I’m so sorry you’re sick.”

  “You and me both.”

  They didn’t talk long, and after they hung up, Jessica called her mom.

  “Hi, sweetie,” her mom said, her voice cheerful. “How are you?”

  Half expecting to learn that her mom had caught the flu—after all, with the cancer treatment, her immune system had been weakened—when her mom sounded like her normal happy self, Jessica quietly exhaled in relief. “I’m good. I wanted to see how you’re doing.”

  “Same old, same old. I spent most of the day working on my new quilt. It’s coming along beautifully, Jessica. I can hardly wait to show it to you when you’re here next week.”

  Thrilled her mom was doing as well as possible, Jessica sat back and enjoyed their chat, still hopeful that she would be able to make the trip.

  That night after Jessica and Matt got in bed, they turned on the news. As expected, the main topic of discussion was the flu that was sweeping the country and even the world. They listened in quiet horror as the anchor calmly announced that the fatality rate was climbing and that it was becoming common to catch the flu and die in a single day.

  “That’s what happened to Brooke’s mom,” Jessica said barely above a whisper, as if saying it any louder would bring the same fate to their house. Could the same thing happen to Rochelle? Appalled by the thought, she decided she would call her first thing in the morning to check on her.

  Matt leaned over and kissed her on the lips. “I’m glad you convinced me to work from home.”

  Pushing aside her worries, she put her arms around him and lay her head on his chest as a feeling of safety washed over her. “I’m glad you agreed.”

  They listened as the news anchor talked to a representative from the CDC.

  “Turn that up,” Jessica said as she straightened. Matt complied, and Jessica breathed a sigh of relief when the woman from the CDC said that it appeared that the incubation period from being exposed to the virus to when symptoms appeared was twenty-four hours.

  “It’s been longer than that since any of us have been around other people,” Jessica said. She turned to look at Matt. “Does that mean we’re safe?”

  He grimaced. “I hope so.”

  Chapter 5

  Matt

  “Rochelle’s not answering her phone,” Jessica said to Matt the next morning.

  Working in his office, he turned to her with confusion. “Who?”

  “Rochelle? From work?”

  He still didn’t know what she was talking about. “Okay.”

  She dragged her hands through her hair. “When I called her last night she was sick. She was going to the doctor this morning, but she’s not answering her phone.”

  Knowing Brooke’s mother had died from the flu, Matt understood why Jessica was worried. Still, he didn’t want her to jump to conclusions. “Maybe she was in with the doctor when you called.”

  Jessica’s face relaxed a little. “Maybe.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I’ll text her and ask her to call me.” She gave him a quick kiss. “Sorry to bother you.”

  He smiled. “You never bother me.”

  She returned his smile. “I’ll let you get back to work.”

>   Later that morning the doorbell rang. Ready for a break, Matt got to the door in time to see the UPS driver walking away from the packages he’d left on the porch. Watching the man through sidelights beside the front door, when the driver lifted his hand to his mouth and had a coughing fit, Matt recoiled. He couldn’t bring the packages inside. The virus could be all over them.

  “Are those our packages from Amazon?” Jessica asked.

  The kids were right behind her.

  “Who was that?” Dylan asked.

  Frowning, Matt turned to them. “Yes, it’s our packages. But I think the delivery guy was sick. He was coughing up a lung.”

  “You can’t bring them in,” Kayla said, her eyebrows bunched. “I mean, what if the delivery guy has the virus? Could we get it?” Concern filled her eyes. “I don’t want to get sick.”

  Matt stepped away from the still-closed front door and went to Kayla before pulling her into a hug. He knew she was thinking of Brooke and her family. Besides, he agreed. “We’ll do everything we can to stay healthy.” He stepped back. “Any ideas?” He glanced at Dylan to include him in the question.

  Dylan, who usually made fun of his sister at every opportunity, was uncharacteristically helpful. “What if we leave them on the porch for a few hours? Won’t the virus die?”

  Kayla didn’t look convinced, but Matt smiled. “That’s actually a good idea, Dylan.”

  Dylan grinned under the compliment.

  “How long does it take for the virus to die?” Kayla asked, her eyes tight with worry.

  “I’m not sure,” Matt said. “Let me look it up.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and Googled the question. Moments later he frowned as he looked at Kayla. “This virus can live on hard surfaces for up to twenty-four hours.”