The Neuropathology Of Zombies (24 page)

I pulled the knapsack from my shoulders and dumped the sample containers on the ground. Three of the soldiers came closer to see what all the excitement was about. I knelt again and scooped the bugs into the specimen cups using the unscrewed lids. I held one up for everyone to see.

“What is it, doc?” murmured one of the soldiers.
“Bed bugs,” I whispered calmly, “Bed bugs.”
I held the plastic jar out for everyone to see. The bed bugs were

fully engorged, their oblong bellies swollen, distended with human blood. They jerked around in the container, climbing over one another, trying to escape. Their tiny triangular heads darted in all directions, searching for an exit. They squirmed wildly through the confines of the container, their almond brown shells blurred together.

I walked over to the stain I had noticed earlier on the corner mattress and knelt down in front of it. What I thought was a dried pool of vomit was actually dried insect feces; the white balls clinging to the mattress were their eggs. The population was growing in the comfortable environment of the hotel bed.

“I don’t think its mosquitos,” I said breathed softly. “It has to be these guys. We have to get back, quick. I think they’re on the ship now, too.” I whispered as loudly as I could. I threw the containers into the knapsack and secured it to my back. Adrenal coursed through my veins and my body shook.

Before we could move towards the window, the door exploded and the room filled with wild carcasses, screeching and howling. Automatic gun fire filled the room and we retreated to the window, the four soldiers forming a wall around me. One Marine stopped shooting long enough to hook a rope to my harness, he pointed at the window.

The fetid bodies streamed through the door like a river, flooding the room. The gunfire did little to slow them. They were able to reach the soldier at the head of our group and he disappeared into the swarm. I jumped up on the windowsill. The gunfire was accompanied by screams, the pack had overtaken us, the last three soldiers were gone. I jumped out of the hole in the window and hoped for the best.

My stomach tingled as I tumbled weightlessly through the sky. I had only fallen a few stories before the safety latch clicked and I abruptly came to a halt. My body slammed against the building, I heard the glass shatter as I impacted the window; I rebounded, swinging wildly away from the hotel. After several more collisions with the edifice, I slowed to a gentle sway, being propelled only by the wind. I looked up, I had seven floors to scale. I started to climb.

I stopped just under the window of room 1215. I could hear the satisfied moans of the feeding mass as their mouths hungrily smacked away on the fresh bodies. I took a deep breath and pushed off the building with my feet. I pulled frantically on the rope and I swung away from the structure, I drew my legs up and I landed on the window of the room above 1215, my feet dangling just below the upper part of 1215’s sill. I scurried up the rope as quickly as I could.

As I rose, I felt the rope begin to oscillate violently and I nearly slid back down. I looked down and saw Driftwood bursting from the hole in the window. They were pulling on the rope, trying to shake me free. I continued to climb, my hands stinging with rope burn.

I was close to the top when I saw a hand reach down to me. I grabbed it, allowing myself to be pulled onto the roof.
I fell over the ledge and onto the cement surface of the roof. I looked up and saw the man in the black suit, along with two other soldiers in black fatigues, standing over me.
I groaned, my body throbbing in pain, “Holy shit, where were you fifteen minutes ago!” I coughed.
“What happened, Doctor,” he asked, his level of calmness unaffected.
“They busted down the door, there were too many of them, they overwhelmed us, we were just on our way out,” I stood as I spoke. “But, I’ve got the answer.” I ripped open the backpack, pulling out one of the specimen containers. “Bed bugs!” I shouted.
“What?” asked the man in black.
“Bed bugs, the place is overrun with them, and I think they’re on the ship now, too.”
“What are you saying doctor?”
“That the arbovirus is not being spread by mosquitos, it’s being transmitted by bed bugs. That’s why none of us have it, and why none of the naval personnel have it. The rashes on the infected people, they’re bed bug bites. This hotel is infested by these parasites, and now they’ve infested the ship, we’ve got to call the general!”
The words had barely left my mouth when the emergency exit door behind us flew open, and dozens of zombies fell out onto the roof. They lumbered towards us, arms extended, jaws snapping.
“We’d better get back to the barracks,” the man in the black suit said as he turned towards the helicopter. The two soldiers in black fatigues followed us, firing into the pack of rapidly advancing corpses.
The engine of the helicopter was humming and I leapt inside, crushing the man in black against the door on the opposite side. The two soldiers stood on the landing skids, still shooting at the fiends as we lifted off the ground.
I leaned back against the seat and exhaled deeply. “I’ve had too many close calls, this is getting old.”
“I would think with your love of gore, that you would find this exhilarating, Doctor.”
“Not so much! How do you stay so cool?”
“You think it’s my first time doing this?”
“You’ve had other zombie outbreaks?” I sat up and turned towards him.
“I’ve been intrigued by you for quite some time, Dr. Hawk. I’ve been waiting for someone like you for many years. Who do you think it was that suggested we obtain your services?” he answered.

CHAPTER 35

We landed on the roof of the police station before I could ask the man any more questions. I was confused, what had I gotten myself into?
“Come on, let’s find the General!” he said, jumping out of the door.
We rushed down the stairs and into the parking lot. I scoured the make shift base for the communications tent. I spotted the radio operator and ran at him; his face filled with fear as I approached.
“You need to get me a line to the General; he’s on the aircraft carrier. Hurry, it’s vital I speak with him, NOW!” I yelled.
“Yes, sir,” he replied nervously.
I paced around excitedly, the seconds feeling like hours. The man in the black suit walked towards me, smiling and waving at me, trying to show me an object in his hand. It was a cell phone.
“General Fitch,” he said as he approached.
“I thought we were jamming all the signals?”
“We are,” he shrugged. “This one is a little different. Now, General Fitch?” He placed the phone in my hand.
“General?” I asked.
“Yeah, Doc, what’s happening?” he replied.
“I know what’s going on, the virus is being passed by bed bugs. The hotel is infested with them. I think the little buggars are on the ship now, too. They had to have come over with the survivors. It explains why the first people to get sick were from the Marina Star Hotel. The bed bugs must have spread through each of their encampments on the ship allowing the virus to infect the others in their groups.” I waited for Fitch to respond. He said nothing. “General, the ship is infested! You have to destroy all the clothing and personal belongings before it spreads to any further!” I yelled, trying to fill the void.
“I think it’s already too late, I don’t know how much further it could spread,” he replied.
“What do you mean?” I shouted.
“It’s everywhere, Doc. Some of the sailors have it now, too.”
I didn’t know what to say. I stood motionless. My arm drifted away from my face, lowering the phone, the man in the black suit grabbed it from me and spoke into the receiver.
“General, the situation has become hot, I repeat, the situation has become hot. I will speak with you soon.” He pushed the ‘end call’ button on the phone and walked back towards the building.
I was alone, and unsure about what to do next. So I sat, and let the last rays of the setting sun warm my skin. Maybe this meant I would be going home soon. I rested my head on the back of the chair and stared up at the sky, obsessing about the virus and its effect on the brain. The thoughts turned over and over inside my head until the evening became night. I disappeared inside my head, the world became silent.
Suddenly, the noise level around me increased, and became urgent. I stood up and surveyed the parking lot. Everyone was packing up their equipment. I walked towards the group.
“What’s going on?” I shouted to a passing Marine.
“We’re leaving, got orders to bug out!” he yelled.
I went inside the building and opened the door to the conference room. The man in the black suit, two military officers and the Governor were staring at a map of the Island. They turned to look at me.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“We’re leaving the Island,” the man in the black suit said.
“Leaving the Island? We can’t leave the Island, we have to stop this,” I pleaded, looking at the Governor.
The man in the black suit spoke slowly, “Doctor, there is nothing more we can do. We can’t stop this, you know that. Everyone is infected, there is no way to help them.”
I looked at the Governor again, she nodded. I knew they were right, but I couldn’t imagine just abandoning these people. How could she?
“What if there are survivors?” I asked.
“You mean the cartel that has started a war with us? They’re all that’s left, and they don’t want our help,” he replied. “They’re on their own.”
The door opened behind me, I turned as the General walked in. He looked exhausted and distraught.
“General! What’s happening?” I asked.
“The situation is hot, it’s over, time to cut and run. We can’t help these people anymore, all we can do is contain the virus and make sure it never leaves this island,” he replied.
“What about the people on the ship?”
“What can we do? You know what’s about to happen to them, they’re all infected. It’s inevitable, we can’t stop it now.”
The faces of the father and son from the ship flashed in my mind. I held my head in my hands, “God, if I’d just seen it a little earlier, I could have stopped it from getting on the ship.”
“Doctor, without you that ship would be steaming towards home full of zombies and carrying a virus that would do God knows what once it hit the mainland. You did an amazing job, I’m not sure if anyone else could have put this all together. You have to look at the big picture here, you may have just saved the planet.” he explained. “We just saved the entire human race. Sometimes, that comes with sacrifice.”
The man in the black suit exhaled before speaking, “We have to wait for another ship to arrive, so we’re not leaving until tomorrow morning, Doctor. Why don’t you get some rest? You’ve done more than enough. There are cots in some of the offices. Get some sleep. And not to worry, the samples from the hospital are being packed up as we speak.”
I nodded my head and walked out the door hoping to find a place to sleep. I felt defeated. I looked to my right, towards the row of offices converted into sleeping quarters, but turned left, walking in the direction of the jail cells.

CHAPTER 36

Dr. Allen and the medic were packing boxes.
“Moving?” I joked.
“Finally! I’ve been telling him for years, it’s too hot here for my

tastes,” answered the medic, nodding at Allen.

I watched for a minute before interrupting again, “What’s going to become of Igor?”
They both stopped. “I’m not sure,” Allen answered. “No one said anything about it. I doubt he’s coming back with us, you know customs.”
I pointed to a leather pouch attached to the medic’s utility belt, “Can I borrow that?”
“Sure, all yours,” he said.
I walked into the cell block and approached Igor’s cage. He jerked, suddenly coming back to life. I knelt down, just behind the bars. He slinked towards me, a low raspy sound coming from his opened mouth. He pressed his decaying face into the steel poles that separated us.
“Easy, old boy, easy,” I said, trying to remain calm.
He quickly snapped at me, his head striking the metal rods.
“I said easy!”
I looked into his eyes, and remnant of the lieutenant was long gone, replaced by this infected mass of rotten flesh. Still, I felt a deep sympathy for him as he lay there, tied up and hungry for my brain. He was older, probably had a wife and some kids. I wondered whether or not they made it to the ship, not being sure which fate was worse for them.
He calmed as I stared at him, his head resting against the bars. His green skin was peeling and the disintegrating layers hung off his face like a bad Halloween mask. He grunted, but it sounded more like a sigh.
I slid back, resting myself against the jail cell across from Igor’s; his eyes widened and focused on me as I moved. I took a deep breath and extended my arm.
My voice quivered, “Thank you, Lieutenant. You’ve been a great help. I’m sorry this happened to you. And,” I paused, “I’m just sorry.”
Almost as if he had understood my words, he lowered his head to the floor and let out a soft, high pitched whine.
I pulled the trigger of the medic’s pistol, the gun blast echoed through the room. The lieutenant’s head blew apart, brain matter covered the floor and part of the wall behind him. His body shook for a second and fell limp.
I sat for another moment taking in the scene. I’d never killed a fly, and now I had killed two men. I was nauseous and my skin felt filthy. I stood up and walked out of the cell block.
The internist and medic were silently packing boxes; they didn’t say a word as I stepped through the door. I was sure they heard the shot. I handed the gun back to the medic.
“Thanks,” I said.
The medic nodded as he took the weapon from me and said nothing. I walked past them wondering what they must think of me, a murderer. But we couldn’t just leave the Lieutenant like that, it wasn’t right.
Allen called out as I moved down the hallway towards the offices, “Thank you, Dr. Hawk.”

CHAPTER 37

Something woke me. I jumped up from the cot and listened. There was silence. Then, gunfire. A lot of gun fire. Constant gunfire.
I ran out into the hall. Marines darted in every direction, their faces filled with fear. “What’s going on?” I yelled.
No one answered, the soldiers just rushed passed me, without saying a word. I sprinted to the conference room. The man in the black suit stepped through the door as I approached.
I charged up to him, “What’s happening?”
He gave me his usual know-it-all grin and said, “They’ve broken through the gate. To be honest, I’m surprise that hunk of junk lasted this long. I think we’d best be going.”
“
Doesthismanhave apulse?Howdidhe manage tostayso goddamncalm?
” I wondered.