“Your job will be what we give you in here. Examine the samples, document, and record what you find in the charts and on your tablets. Sample documentation will be your main role in here,” responds Dr. Yen.
Dr. Yen goes over to the refrigerator and pulls out a tray of samples. “You should start with these for today,” says Dr. Yen.
“There are only ten samples there,” says Kristina.
“Don’t overdo it today. It’s your first day,” replies Dr. Yen.
“Any questions?” asks Dr. Yen to Kyle and Kristina.
A phone inside the lab rings and Dr. Yen walks over to the lab and answers the phone.
He puts the phone on speaker and the female person on the phone asks, “How you doing Kyle and Kristina?”
“Good, just about to get started here,” answers Kristina.
“I’m sorry I had to leave before, but duty calls. I’ll be by later to check on you two,” replies the woman over the speaker phone.
“Okay, but who are you?” asks Kyle.
The woman laughs and she answers, “It’s me Commander Pine, but please call me Marissa.”
Kristina looks at Kyle.
“Thank you for giving us this job and the house,” says Kristina.
“Glad to help, I’m just glad that you two were able to make it here,” replies Commander Pine over the phone.
“Take care, I’ll see you later,” says Commander Pine over the phone.
“Please pick up the phone Dr. Yen,” says Commander Pine over the phone and then Dr. Yen takes the lab phone off speaker and talks with Commander Pine.
Kyle watches Dr. Yen talk with Commander Pine over the lab phone and Kyle notices that Dr. Yen looks concerned and Dr. Yen hangs up the lab phone.
“I’ll be back later, please be careful with those samples,” says Dr. Yen to Kyle and Kristina and then Dr. Yen exits the lab.
Kristina looks at Kyle and asks, “You take five and I’ll take five?”
“Sounds good Sweets, but don’t turn this into a competition. We don’t even know what we are looking at,” answers Kyle.
Kristina opens up a chart and finds it to be brand new. “Nothing is in here, the chart has no recordings in it,” says Kristina.
“Guess we are the first ones here,” says Kyle and then Kyle grabs a test tube and starts to get to work in the lab.
Kyle looks at the sample through his microscope and he notices that it’s blood cells and that it looks like normal human blood.
“What’s your sample?” asks Kyle to Kristina as she looks at a sample on her microscope.
“It’s human blood. What about you?” answers Kristina.
Kyle looks at what’s marked on the test tubes and it looks like it says HB on all the test tubes and each of the test tubes are marked with a different number after the letters HB.
“Anything unusual about your sample?” asks Kyle to Kristina as he writes in his chart.
“I guess I had HB one through five and you had HB six through ten,” says Kyle.
“Yeah, I think so,” replies Kristina.
Kyle wonders what else is in the refrigerator and he finds more samples in test tubes that say HB and different numbers but also other test tubes that have the letters PB, CB, and AB on the side of the test tubes.
Kristina opens the freezer, and she finds a lone set of two samples in test tubes that are marked with the letters HBV-1 and HBV-2.
“Come check this out,” says Kristina to Kyle.
Kyle comes over to Kristina and he sees the two test tubes in the freezer.
Kristina is about to grab the test tubes out of the freezer and someone behind Kyle and Kristina that is near the door of the small lab says, “I wouldn’t do that.”
Kristina and Kyle turn around and they see their former coworker of CBD standing there in scrubs, gloves, and a face shield.
“You have to let it thaw first. It’s hard to see anything under the microscope if the sample is still frozen,” says Alex as he steps over to Kyle and Kristina.
Kristina closes the freezer and Kyle looks at Alex.
“What do they have you working on in here?” asks Alex to Kyle.
“Just some blood samples so far,” answers Kyle.
Alex looks around the lab and he looks at the samples in the test tubes that are on the black countertop.
“What are you working on?” asks Kyle to Alex.
“We aren’t supposed to talk about it,” answers Alex.
Kyle finds it weird how Alex is talking and acting.
“Did you end up getting housing?” asks Alex to Kyle and Kristina.
“Yeah, we moved in this morning,” answers Kristina.
"What number do you live in?” asks Kyle to Alex.
“We are in house 819,” answers Alex.
Suddenly the door to the small lab opens and Ovi enters the lab and says, “Alex come quick, your sample had a reaction.”
“Can we see?” asks Kristina.
Ovi is about to answer Kristina, and Alex shouts, “No!”
Kyle and Kristina are taken back by Alex shouting and Alex says in a calmer voice, “No, it’s not safe for you in our lab. We have been trained with the safety measures and equipment.”
Kyle and Kristina look at Alex and then Ovi.
“Maybe next time,” says Alex and then Alex leaves the lab with Ovi and goes back into the lab he was working in.
Kristina looks at Kyle and Kyle says, “Something is up with Alex.”
“He was always a high-strung easily irritated guy, but I agree something is definitely off with him,” replies Kristina.
CHAPTER 3
DAY 35
“I’m thinking about going to check on Kiran and Evelyn today,” says Kyle to Kristina as Kyle is in his master bathroom that is connected to their master bedroom.
“You should, have you had any contact with him since we came here?” asks Kristina.
“No, his phone isn’t working and I’m not sure he has internet like we do,” answers Kyle.
“Well limited internet, they have so many sites blocked,” replies Kristina.
Kyle walks into his master bedroom.
“But you should check on him. We finished all those samples in the lab yesterday,” replies Kristina to Kyle.
“Did you notice that those test tubes marked HBV-1 and HBV-2 vanished from the freezer?” asks Kyle to Kristina as he sits next to Kristina in bed.
“Did you get a chance to examine them?” asks Kristina.
“No, did you?” asks Kyle.
“No I didn’t… I wonder what happened to them. All we have examined is normal healthy blood from humans, pigs, horses, and cows so far,” answers Kristina.
“You think Stan will come with me?” asks Kyle to Kristina.
“You don’t want me to come with you?” asks Kristina to Kyle.
“I think you should stay here with Kaden and try to do something fun with him. We haven’t done anything fun since we got here,” answers Kyle.
“Well, fun shouldn’t be a priority right now,” replies Kristina.
“I thought so too at first, but then I started thinking, what if we died today? The last moments of our life were running from zombies, eating crappy food, and working in some small lab,” responds Kyle.
Kristina smiles and says, “You’re right. We gotta live for today and enjoy the time we have left on this planet.”
“I’m gonna go see if Stan will come with me,” says Kyle and then Kyle kisses Kristina on the lips and he exits his bedroom.
Kyle walks down the upstairs hallway and he hears someone making noise downstairs in the kitchen.
Kyle walks down the stairs and makes his way into the kitchen.
“Morning,” says Stan to Kyle as Kyle walks into the kitchen.
“Morning, did I wake you?” asks Stan.
“No, I was up,” answers Kyle.
“You want some coffee?” asks Stan to Kyle.
“No thanks,” answers Kyle.
&n
bsp; Stan, who is standing next to a coffee maker in the kitchen, turns on the coffee maker and asks, “How about Kristina?”
“Yeah, maybe, but I was wondering if you wanted to come with me to check on my brother and his wife today?” asks Kyle to Stan.
“When are you leaving?” asks Stan.
“Whenever you are ready,” answers Kyle.
“What about Ashlyn and Kaden?” asks Stan.
Kyle answers Stan, “Kristina would stay with them here on base.”
Stan nods his head and says, “Yeah, I’ll go with ya. I’m not sure why your brother didn’t come here though.”
“He doesn’t trust the government and military,” replies Kyle.
“To some degree, I don’t either,” says Stan.
Kyle watches Stan pour some water into the coffee maker.
Stan says, “I’ll be ready in about an hour, but I’ll go with ya.”
“Thanks Stan, I’ll be ready to go in an hour then,” replies Kyle.
“Tell Kristina I made her a cup of coffee,” replies Stan to Kyle.
“I’ll go tell her now,” responds Kyle and then Kyle exits the kitchen and goes back upstairs.
Kyle hears some noise in Kaden’s bedroom, and he knocks on Kaden’s closed bedroom door.
KNOCK! KNOCK!
“Come in,” says Kaden.
Kyle opens Kaden’s closed bedroom door and Kyle sees Kaden on the hardwood floor doing sit-ups.
Kyle is relieved to see Kaden working out as he didn’t know what to make of the heavy breathing sounds and loud noises that he heard coming from inside Kaden’s room.
Kaden stands up and shows Kyle his tablet.
Kyle looks at Kaden’s tablet and he sees the article Kaden has been reading.
“Where did you get this?” asks Kyle to Kaden.
“Online, several people sent it to me,” answers Kaden.
“Have you heard from Liam, Dillon, or Michelle?” asks Kyle to Kaden.
“Not since we left Uncle Kiran’s,” answers Kaden.
Kyle reads a paragraph of the article on Kaden’s tablet and Kyle asks Kaden, “What do you make of this article?”
“No, the question is what do you make of it? I think it’s legit and makes you wonder about how all this zombie stuff first started,” answers Kaden.
“I’ll have to read more of it, but just be careful what you read and see online. There is a lot of conspiracy theory bullshit online,” says Kyle.
Kristina walks into Kaden’s room and asks Kyle, “Is he going with you?”
“Yeah, and he said he’s making you a cup of coffee,” answers Kyle.
“Where are you going?” asks Kaden to Kyle.
“Stan and I are going to check on Kiran and Evelyn,” answers Kyle.
“Can I come with you?” asks Kaden.
“No, it’s dangerous out there,” answers Kyle.
“Yeah, that’s why it would be good to have another set of eyes with you,” replies Kaden.
“You and your mom, and Ashlyn are going to do something fun on base,” says Kyle.
Kaden does not reply as he looks at Kristina.
“Any ideas about what we can do around here K?” asks Kristina to Kaden.
“Well this sucks, I’m going to be trapped on this boring ass base,” says Kaden.
Kyle looks at Kristina for her to step in with Kaden.
“Let’s see if we can go to the shooting range here today,” says Kristina.
Kaden glances at Kristina, but he doesn’t say anything.
“That sounds like a good idea, it can only help you to work on your shooting,” says Kyle.
“Yeah, it might come in handy,” replies Kaden.
“I want you to read that article though,” says Kaden to Kyle.
Kyle looks at Kaden’s tablet and he sees a part of the article and he reads, “By day thirty five, the population of the planet should be less than one percent and the survivors should be outnumbered by the dead two million to one.”
“Send it to my email and I’ll check it out,” says Kyle to Kaden.
Kyle and Kristina exit from Kaden’s room and they go back into their bedroom. Kyle starts to get ready and Kyle puts on a thin gray jacket.
“Why do you think we are only examining blood in our lab?” asks Kristina to Kyle as Kyle puts on a pair of black boots.
“I’m not sure, but I want to talk with Sheila when I get back. I feel like they gave us basic samples to record, like interns,” answers Kyle as he ties his boots.
“If I see her on base, I’ll see what she says,” replies Kristina.
“Just be careful, I still don’t know about this place. It almost seems too good to be true,” responds Kyle and then Kyle kisses Kristina on the lips.
Kyle and Stan get into Stan’s car and Stan starts up his car and asks Kyle, “You remember how to get to your brother’s house?”
“Yeah, I just hope the streets are clear for us, I feel like we are at a disadvantage not having our guns,” answers Kyle as Stan drives away from their house.
“I’ve seen several military trucks coming back to base with something moving in the back of their trucks,” says Stan as he stops at the exit of Fort Derrick.
“Roll down your window,” says the armed guard at the heavily secured exit of Fort Derrick to Stan.
Stan rolls down his window and the armed guard asks, “Where are you two headed?”
“To see a family member that lives off base,” answers Kyle from the passenger seat of Stan’s car.
The armed guard sees that Stan and Kyle both have orange badges around their necks, and he replies, “Make sure you keep those orange badges on you at all times. If you are stopped by our patrols, they’ll know you are from here.”
“Will do, thank you,” replies Stan.
The armed guard signals another armed guard inside the booth to open the thick concrete exit door and the exit door slowly opens.
Stan exits the base and Kyle says, “Just take this straight until we come to a light.”
Stan turns left at a working traffic light and Stan says, “It’s almost like nothing happened around here.”
Just as Stan finishes his statement, Kyle sees a group of four zombies slowly walking towards the street ahead of Stan’s car.
Stan avoids the four zombies and Kyle jokes, “Guess not.”
As Stan continues to drive to Kiran’s house, Kyle and Stan see that there has been some fighting, gunfire, bloodshed, and destruction to vehicles, buildings, streets, and homes outside of Fort Derrick and around parts of Maryland.
A large transport truck and two other military vehicles pass Stan’s car as Stan is driving down a street.
“Turn right up ahead and then we should be coming up on Kiran’s neighborhood,” says Kyle.
Stan makes a right hand turn, and the street becomes more of a residential area. The homes that Kyle and Stan are seeing look to be in pretty good shape, but there are signs of looting, violence, and previous fires around several homes.
“Right here,” says Kyle to Stan.
Stan stops his car and asks, “Should I park in the driveway?”
“Yeah,” answers Kyle and Stan pulls into Kiran’s empty driveway.
Stan puts his car in park and turns off his car. Kyle and Stan each look around Kiran’s house and they find it in good shape with the garage door and front door shut.
Kyle exits from Stan’s car and he carefully looks around Kiran’s front lawn.
Kyle sees a trip wire attached to a stake that is in the ground and Kyle says to Stan, “Careful where you step, Kiran set up some booby traps in his front lawn.”
Stan looks around as he walks towards Kiran’s front door and Kyle says, “There is a trip wire right here.”
Kyle steps over the trip wire, Stan follows behind Kyle, and Kyle and Stan make it to Kiran’s front door.
KNOCK! KNOCK!
Kyle knocks on Kiran’s front door, but no one answers.
“You home K
eer?” shouts Kyle.
“Maybe they aren’t home,” says Stan.
Kyle knocks again on Kiran’s front door.
KNOCK! KNOCK!
A front window on the second floor of Kiran’s house opens and someone inside Kiran’s house shouts, “Why are you banging on my front door?”
Kyle looks up at the open window, sees Kiran looking at him and Stan, and answers, “Just open the damn door.”
Kiran moves away from the window and shouts, “Open the front door Eve!”
Stan and Kyle look around and they hear someone unlocking and unlatching several locks inside Kiran’s house.
Kiran’s front door opens, and Evelyn is standing by the front door as Stan and Kyle enter Kiran’s house.
Evelyn closes the front door, and she secures and locks the front door.
“Quite the number of locks you have on the front door,” says Kyle to Evelyn.
“We had to beef up the security measures around here after the houses were attacked in the neighborhood,” says Kiran as he walks down the steps to Kyle and Stan.
“Everything okay now?” asks Stan to Kiran as Kiran walks over to Kyle.
“Yeah, now. It’s been pretty quiet around here for a couple days now, but there was a group of dead ones and another group robbing and setting fires to a couple homes down the street from us,” answers Kyle.
“How you holding up Eve?” asks Kyle to Evelyn.
“I’m doing okay, but we are running low on food,” answers Evelyn.
“You guys want something to drink?” asks Kiran to Stan and Kyle.
“No, I’m good, we just came by to check on you,” answers Kyle.
Stan says no thank you to the water and Kiran says,
“We are doing fine here.”
“Why don’t you come to the base with us?” asks Kyle to Kiran.
Evelyn looks at Kiran for the answer, but Kiran hesitates to answer Kyle.
“It’s safe and secure and they have food and water for everyone there,” says Kyle.
Kiran sees that Kyle and Stan don’t have their guns on them and Kiran asks, “What happened to your guns? They take them from you?”
Evelyn asks Kyle, “Where are you living now?”
“We have a house on base, we could easily have you two stay with us,” answers Kyle.
In 100 Days | Book 2 Page 3