Get Into James Shorts - 33. #726 Deliver Us From Evil

#726

I awoke in the dark to a commotion. I wasn't sure what it was, but it was loud and getting louder.

It wasn't the usual groaning and shrieking of the infected. For the first time in days it was the sound of civilization. It was the sound of a helicopter and the rattle of diesel engines.

There was a loud ripping, farting noise- Brrrruuuuump. Was that automatic gunfire?

I sat up and said, "Wake up Kevin, something is happening."

I could see Kevin rise on an elbow, "Oh great. Making all that noise, they'll get the infected really stirred up."

He struck a match and lit the lantern to illuminate our hiding spot in the cluster of offices above the warehouse. Dad had put us in the secure storage room with a heavy steel door with supplies: stacks or water bottles and cartons of MREs. That was when he started getting sick. Of course after several weeks, the camp toilet needs a lot of work.

Gunfire intensified. Single shots and short bursts of automatic fire. There was a sound like someone had thrown a handful of rocks against the sheet metal skin of the building.

Kevin said, "Oh crap that's really close."

Suddenly, the building shook. The boys looked at each other wide-eyed. Someone was entering the building.

They both quickly dressed in jeans, shirts and their boots. Someone with a lot of firepower had just entered the building.

They could hear people downstairs. There were a few shots and someone yelled, "Clear!". They could hear heavy footfalls coming up the stairs to the offices. Doors were kicked, and every time someone would yell clear.

There was a heavy knock on the door of their improvised safe room and a muffled voice yelled, "Karl, Kevin, are you alive in there!?"

I walked to the door and yelled, "Who is it?"

"US Army. We're here for some equipment and to collect survivors. Open up kids. We need to get the goods and dash."

I walked to the door, pulled the heavy steel bar back and opened it.

Just outside the door were two soldiers in some kind of protective gear. Kevin came up carefully and got behind me. The soldiers had their guns out.

"Are you sick? Have you been bitten?"

I answered, "We both got sick, but we got better. We've been stuck in here for weeks. We aren't bitten."

The soldier said, "We have to be careful. We have a protocol that we follow when we bring people in. It's a little scary, but you'll be safe. If you two will follow us, we'll get you out of here."

We grabbed our backpacks and followed the soldier down the stairs to the warehouse. Kevin was trembling. I noticed that one soldier led us and the other was behind. On the way out, I noticed that Dad had left a note on the door with our names on it. Smart man my Dad. He knew the infected can't read.

The soldier in front yelled, "We've got survivors- two kids."

Another soldier said, "Outstanding Skinner. You know the drill. Get them both to the recovery hummer on the double."

As we followed the soldiers, we could see them loading up trucks from the stuff in the warehouse. It was all in large green boxes labeled US Army so, I guess it was a late delivery.

We stepped out into an overcast morning and numerous trucks and soldiers were arrayed in what I would later learn was a perimeter around the warehouse. Dozens of the infected were down hard and the few that shambled out of nearby buildings were shot as soon as they were spotted.

When we got to a big truck with a red cross on the side we were hustled in, backpacks taken and were shoved into two cages.

The other soldiers left, and a medic came in and sat in a chair outside the cages.

I asked, "What's going on?"

The medic said, "Hi boys, I'm Corporal Rand. I'm a medic. We have to be careful who we let into our base. If one infected gets in, we could lose many people. I was told that you were holed up in a room for a few weeks?"

"Yeah. When the sickness started, me and my brother Kevin both got sick. We figured it was just the flu. It sucked for a few days, but we got over it. That's when people started dying and some of them... became those things."

Corporal Rand said, "I've got good news for you. Once you've had it, you're immune. You kids have pretty much hit the lottery. We have to follow protocol but, you're both going to be just fine."

Kevin asked, "What's going to happen to us now?"

Rand said, "We're going back to our base where you'll be quarantined for forty-eight hours. Then you'll join the rest of the civilians we've rescued. You'll like it. There are many kids your age there. It seems that young people resisted the virus better than most adults."

Kevin nodded stoically. I was proud of the little guy. We both had plenty of reasons to freak out, but he was holding together just fine.

Rand handed us some bottled water and asked us both a number of questions-names, date of birth, social security numbers, address and a lot of health related questions. After about 15 minutes, the word came that the trucks were loaded, and it was time to roll out.

I sat back in the chair in my cell. It was comfortable. I noticed that between my cage and Kevin's, there was a clear plastic barrier.

I asked, "Corporal Rand, what has been happening while we were stuck in our hide out."

Rand sighed and said, "I won't lie to you. It's bad. We've lost the big cities. The President and the cabinet are running things out of Cheyenne Mountain and most of the house and senate are at Raven Rock. The good news is that after we figured out that this was a biological attack, the military got its act together. We had a lot of learning to do in a short time. There's a vaccine for the virus but getting it out is a serious... problem. It was an engineered version of the flu. We've got protocols in place now to keep new infections down."

Kevin asked, "Are we at war?"

Rand laughed bitterly. "We don't know who did it but, it's worldwide. Whoever did it is just as screwed as everybody else."

We rode in silence for a few hours and reached their base. Their protocol was exactly as advertised. We were taken from the cages and were told to strip. We were both inspected for bite marks. They asked me about the scar on my knee I got when my old bike slid out from under me in a rainstorm.

After the physical inspection, they put us into a shower. At first, it was some sort of disinfectant that smelled like chemical waste. Then it turned into warm water which felt absolutely glorious after going without for three weeks.

They fed us very well and put us into adjoining rooms. By the time it was all done, I was dead tired. I suspect that they had given us something to make us sleepy, but that was just fine. I finally had a real bed to sleep in, and it was glorious.

When I woke up the next morning, Rand brought me a tray of breakfast and my backpack. All my clothes had been washed. The only thing missing was the Ruger 9 mm pistol my Dad had given me. Rand said not to worry. I'd get it back.

Quarantine must be French for boring. I spent the day watching DVDs. It wasn't really so bad. I was clean, comfortable and had real food. Things were looking up. I got to see Kevin a few times during the day.

The soldiers were cool. They talked to us and made us both feel welcome. Some were really nice, and I figured out why: many of them had kids out there somewhere and didn't know if they were alive or dead.

Two days doesn't sound like a long time unless you are waiting in a small room watching old movies and waiting to get out. We were finally given a clean bill of health.

Rand took us to the civilian quarters where we were met by a pair of older teenagers who welcomed us and introduced us to the group. I was shocked to see that there were hundreds of them from little kids up to young adults in their twenties.

Before Rand left, I asked him, "Corporal, I'm 16. I might be a little young to join up, but I'm willing."

He put his arm around my shoulder in a half hug and said, "Before this is over, we're all going to have to do our part."