Plague: Death was only the beginning! (11 page)

“Why, oh why, do children have to die?!”

-Thoughts from the Author (On the attack on a school in Pakistan killing 132 children)

Chapter 31

Worldwide Deaths: 0.9 Billion est.

Sharon smiled as she brushed the hair from Simon’s eyes as he slept. The propane heat gave the house a warm and welcoming environment as darkness covered the outside in black. Walking back downstairs, she sat on the couch in front of a warm fire and sipped a coffee latte. Who would have thought it was even possible after all she had seen over the last few weeks? Marsha just sat and watched as Sharon sheepishly looked about. She had seen the news on TV and had read the papers before they stopped coming. The Internet lasted a few days more, but they too stopped updating the posted stories. No one left to write the updates, no one left to talk in front of the camera, and no one left to read or watch even when they did.

“How did you survive for so long by yourself? I’m sorry, but I have to ask.” Marsha blushed. “The news was filled with everyone falling in the streets. And the newscaster fell dead right on the screen on Channel 5!”

“Well, it was pretty bad. My family was gone, the neighbors too.” She sort of laughed as she waved her cut arm in the air. “I thought I was the last one until Simon found me. He’s the one who stopped the bleeding. What a kid! I bet his parents were very proud of him.”

“Yes, Simon. We’ll have to find him some clean clothes. I put his dirty ones in the wash, and they are drying right now. But, I don’t have much that will fit him here. We’ll have to make a trip into town to find something tomorrow or the day after.”

I can do that; it’s only a short walk,” Sharon replied. “We should wait before you go outside as you may not be immune like Simon and I seem to be.”

“Yes, that is the other thing. I shouldn’t have let you in like I did. Do you think I’ll get sick too? I’m no spring chicken, but I’m in no hurry to die either!” Marsha’s face paled as the thoughts of her action rang home the dangers of this new modern plague world.

Sharon smiled at her and waved down her fears. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about. The plague can only live outside the body for a few hours. And Simon and I don’t even have a runny nose. The last person I saw alive with the plague was more than a week ago. And we saw no one coming here. I think you’ll be fine. But, I am sorry. I really didn’t think anyone would be home when I knocked. Just didn’t seem right to just walk in.”

“That’s okay. Truth be told, I saw you both walking down the street, and I was too afraid to invite you in. If you hadn’t knocked, I might never have opened the door,” she replied. “But, now I’m so glad I did!”

“So are we, so are we!”

The next morning the three of them got into Marsha’s Ford Expedition, and they drove into town. Each of them had a cloth covering their nose that was covered in Vicks. They wore rubber glove, except for Simon, to cut down any stray bugs that might be around. Rather than go near the local Wal-Mart Superstore, they headed to the Goodwill store to shop for clothes for Simon. Why look for trouble if they didn’t need to. Parking in front, Sharon looked through the dirty window before taking a tire iron and breaking the glass door. Using the edge to clear out the pieces, she pulled out a flashlight and turned it on before going inside.

The shelves were covered with dust, but Marsha and Sharon were still able to find items that were still somewhat new and clean. They also found some toys and books they thought Simon might like. After looking around, they headed back outside to inspect their wares.  After a thought, Marsha went back inside and found two coats for both Sharon and the boy. The weather was getting much colder, and snow could come without warning at any time. Now that the weather channel was gone, she really had no idea what they could expect. Maybe they should do a little more shopping while they were out and about. Her generator was good, but she could use some more gasoline for the backup one. The big one ran on propane, and they had just gotten topped off for the season. Yes, a little more shopping sounded good, and the sun was bright and shining. If only it smelled better! God, that was foul!

“What airs that man doth give him, vanity all!”

-Thoughts from the Author

Chapter 32

Worldwide Deaths: 1.191 Billion est.

Burnout

Burnout is reached when the lack of new victims causes the disease or event to die out. This lack was reached early in the new year as the world populations started to come out of isolation confinement. While the total population was still several billion, the former most populous countries were now hollow shells. China, India, Africa, North and South America, and Europe had lost so many of its valuable workers and scientists that restarting society would be impossible for years to come. The water treatment plants, electrical power stations, and transport industries were empty and void of life. This single point stopped the world from getting back on its feet.

Tom and Sally had been listening to the few ham radio stations that had so far gotten back on the air. They were shocked to hear the total number of deaths that the plague had caused. Over 1.2 billion people had dropped dead in the streets of every city and town on the planet. The scale was hard for Tom to get his head around, and he wondered what would happen next.

For the compound, nothing would change any time soon. The few items of livestock still needed to be fed, the crops checked, and fish harvested from the fishponds and aquaponics tanks. Tony and his crowd were demanding that better living conditions could be found. No surprise there. Tom told the complainers to walk if things were that bad. Good luck with that, by the way. They only shouted louder, and Tony wanted them gone as well, so he finally relented and gave them the keys to his plane. While he knew that life would be far rougher on the outside, he had had enough and felt that he had done his duty in saving their lives. Tom was tasked with dumping them and their baggage by the now dirty plane and took off again. If they came back, too bad! They were no longer his problem either.

Two hours later, they heard the plane turn overhead and head west. If they didn’t push it, they should reach San Francisco with plenty of fuel to make a safe landing. Tony sat in his living room and put his feet up on the coffee table. He was beat! Being chief cook and bottle washer to a handful of prima donnas was not what he had signed on for. He was very glad to have his place back. His food stocks had taken a serious hit as the boarders had eaten pretty much everything they could get their hands on. He had finally had to put a lock on the storeroom doors to keep them out. That really set them off. They were famous people! They were used to being given anything and everything they wanted, now! Tony only laughed and told them that they needed followers to be famous and they didn’t have any. They were all dead! Trust me, that didn’t help at all.

Even the vegan had been driven to eat whatever was put in front of her as the available fresh fruit and vegetables were depleted. And by the time she left, she had gained twenty pounds and was no longer the tongue-wagging blonde of the silver screen.

Afterward, Tony had taken a bottle of his best and walked it over to Tom’s compound as a peace offering. They settled in for some serious drinking for the first time in months.

“Tom, you were a saint during this whole event. And I cannot say how grateful I am for everything you do and put up with. I was a fool. A complete and greedy fool who wanted to make a few bucks by taking them in while the world burned around us. Now, money is nothing but paper and only useful for wiping your ass,” Tony stated after he sipped his first drink. “And I don’t care if it did cost me my plane; it was well worth the cost to get rid of them.”

“Do you really think they will be all right in San Fran? Sally asked. “There is no power or support staff there. They could starve.”

“I loaded them down with ten cases of MREs and water to get them started. And I included a can opener too!” He winked. ”That should last them awhile. They wanted to go, and damned if I was going to stop them!”

“I have to agree with Tony; they were bitching about something every damn day. That is why I refused to let you go over there. They would have taken you for the maid or some dumb thing like that!” Tom stated as he downed he drink. “I say good riddance!”

By the time they finished the bottle, the smoke from the crashed plane had burned itself out. And they never knew that the plane’s jet engines had taken a bird strike not long after they had taken off. Even while the aircraft burned, the land about it remained silent. There were no screaming fire engines rushing to the site. And no one searched for survivors amongst the bodies in the wreckage. Only a distant story of the last airplane would appear years later. Only to be answered with what is an airplane?

“We stand here in salute to the dead. May they rest in peace.”

-Thoughts from the Author

Chapter 33

Simon, Sharon, and Marsha sat around the kitchen table and shared a hot cup of cocoa. The winds outside were blowing so hard that none of them could sleep. Marsha had run outside just long enough to turn the wind generator off and locked it from turning as the high winds could actually damage the structure if they exceeded the design limits. They couldn’t afford to lose it now. It was irreplaceable under the current levels of existence, and it needed to be protected as best they could. Marsha returned just as a gust of wind blowing leaves and debris preceded her through the back door. Sharon had to rush to assist her to get the door closed and locked.

“Wow, that wind is something! I ain’t never seen it blow that hard!” Marsha said as she took off her hat, coat, and gloves and hung them up beside the door. “But, I was able to get the wind generator pointed away from the wind and locked down. It’s that big red handle if you ever need to do it. Just pull down hard and walk the motor around until it is crossways to the wind.”

“Got it. Do you think the house will be okay? I’d hate to lose the roof now that we have found such a beautiful home,” Sharon said.

“The shingles are made of concrete and weigh a ton. So we should be fine there. But, I do worry about some of the trees coming down. That would be very bad.”

Simon’s eyes got big on hearing this, and Sharon had to distract him by pouring some more hot chocolate into his mug. He smiled and dumped another large load of marshmallows into it. They were hard, and they really needed to be soaked before you could eat them—perfect for a young kid!

Sharon and Marsha nodded in agreement that they would have to be careful if they went outside again during the storm. Being killed by a tree limb after surviving the plague would be a silly way to die.

“I wish we could find some more clothes for Simon; he is already outgrowing the ones we got at the Goodwill store,” Sharon stated. “Could you drive me to Wal-Mart tomorrow? Most of the smell should be gone by now, and we can find some good bargains there now too.”

“Sure, so long the winds don’t blow us off the road! I might be able to find some fabric to make some new blankets too. This cold is really getting to my old bones,” Marsha replied. “There should be some food stocks in the back if we are careful. Because I know the shelves themselves were empty the last time I was there. I did find some fresh batteries and some nice head lamps in George’s stuff that we can use to free up our hands.”

“Cool, that will be great. But, I think Simon will have to stay in the car. We have no idea what we might find in there. And we should see about finding some more gas for your car. I noticed it was getting down there. I heard that if you can find a gas pump in the auto parts store, you can put some plastic tubing on one and pump out the fuel. Sure beats the old way,” Sharon stated as she sipped her drink, still waiting for it to cool.

“That’s not a bad idea. I know a parts store we can get into and it is nearby. Worth a look, that is for sure. They also sell car batteries there too. Something we should get to increase our battery bank. Just wish I had more solar panels. George always said we should. But, we can’t help that now,” Marsha replied before washing out her mug in the sink. “Simon, finish up as we are all going back to bed.” He only smiled with a big marshmallow crème mustache plastered across his face.

Sharon finished off her own mug and swiped the marshmallow from Simon’s face. How could she have never had children of her own? Simon was a joy and a beautiful child, and she loved him deeply with her whole being. Sometimes God gives you what you need without you even asking for it.

By the time they reached his room, he had fallen asleep in her arms. She tucked him into his bed and closed the door partway in case he awoke again. She would hear his cry and respond just like his own mother used to do.

“Beginnings start by taking that critical first step. Just watch out for potholes!

-Thoughts from the Author

Chapter 34

The spread of the plague had also created other secondary issues. The unburied bodies in their millions created a sweltering environment that allowed typhoid, typhus, cholera, and diphtheria to return in isolated locations where people still struggled to survive. Polluted water ran off into local lakes and rivers, which aided in the spread of disease through the people’s lack of ability to boil the water before drinking it. This same issue quickly became apparent to others as they realized the danger and moved to better campsites and water sources.

Chevy Sands reached that point weeks ago; everywhere he turned, the smell and vision of bloated bodies caused him nightmares. The use of air fresheners and Fabreeze did little to aid his sense of smell. He had finally made his way across the George Washington Bridge and free of Manhattan. But he also faced the problem of where to eat and where to live. Everywhere he searched, he found the same smell and decay that drove him onward into the darkness. After several unhappy days of walking, and not knowing how to drive a car, he found a bicycle that fit him, and he started to pedal his way west.

His first time of finding other survivors was not the happy reunion he had thought it would be. Upon seeing a small group huddled around a fire, he approached only to be warned off by gunshots in front of him. He quickly moved away and cursed everyone and everything for his bad luck on finding his first humans. He had found a few cats and dogs around the isolated and scattered homes and villages he had passed over the last few days. They too were afraid of his approach and ran off if he came too close. He thought no one could blame them after all the death and destruction they had seen over the last few months. After much searching, he found an empty house that was free of bodies. He started a fire in the wood burning fireplace and began to warm up for the first time in days. Searching through the drawers and cabinets in the kitchen, he found a few cans of soup that he could heat up for a meal or two. Better than nothing by this point.

Later as he sat on the floor and soaked up the heat, and as his tired bones seemed to melt, he plotted out a route that should take him to an area that would be more isolated from the sites of the former big cities. He may have been the King of New York, but they could keep it! There was no way he would go back there!

Drinking the last of his bottled water, he added “water” to his list of supplies that he needed to get tomorrow. Hopefully he could find a cart or something to put things in too. He could only carry a few things before his back and arms refused to move another inch. Maybe a motorcycle or scooter would do as well. Didn’t the heroes in
The Stand
use them? Yeah, that was a good idea. He remembered seeing a phone book in one of the drawers. Determined to find something better to ride, he got up and leafed through the book before he found several Motorcycle shops within a few miles of his location. He marked each location on his map from the Casey’s store that he had found in a car days before. While he had never ridden a motorcycle, he thought he might be able to ride a small one. They were so similar to bicycles!

He was proud to say scooters worked too, as he rode down the main street of the small town that currently stretched before him. While he didn’t find the color he wanted, the bright yellow one started right up on the first try. He was also able to find a full gas can in the back of the shop so that he could fill up the tank. At the garden store next door, he had found a garden trailer that he was able to duct tape to the rear seat and fender. So now, he had wheels and a way to carry supplies, limited they might be. By the end of that first real day, he had made over twenty miles. Damn, this was so much better!