Ebola K: A Terrorism Thriller by Bobby Adair Read Free Book Online

say that ?”
    “I hope you get better. When you’re sick,
you’re kind of a bitch.” Austin smiled behind his mask.
    Margaux smiled back. “I know. I’m sorry.”
    Austin noticed reddish splotches on her face
and arms.
    “Is Benoit awake?” Margaux asked.
    “He was up earlier.”
    “Out of bed?”
    Austin pointed at the door in the back of the
ward. “I helped him to the outhouse.”
    “Good. I’m glad he was up.”
    “Yeah.” In truth, Benoit had barely made it.
Austin had half carried him on the way back, but didn’t recall
seeing a rash on Benoit’s skin at the time. Looking down at Benoit
from his position on Margaux’s cot, Austin saw it now.
    He’d seen those same splotches on the skin of
others in the ward—others who were much worse off the Benoit or
Margaux. They’d regurgitate and soil themselves and lie in their
excretions. Half delirious, too fatigued, or in too much pain to do
anything about it or even ask for help.
    Once Nurse Mary-Margaret had put him to work,
he started by helping to change the bed sheets under a young woman,
one of the first to arrive, down at the end of the ward. She seemed
to have lost all control of her bodily functions. Her temperature
had set her blotched skin afire. Her blood-filled eyes rolled
around, unable to focus on anything. Her vomitus was bloody and
black. Her gums and nose wouldn’t stop bleeding. She moaned
whenever touched.
    Austin didn’t know much about death, but he
was sure that girl was dying.
    Heavy slow breathing from Margaux told Austin
that she had fallen asleep.
    “Hey.” It was Rashid.
    Austin looked down at Rashid and grinned
behind his mask. “I thought you were dead.”
    “Is—is this the hospital?”
    “Yeah.” Rashid drew in a long, painful
sounding breath. “I feel terrible.”
    “Yeah. You look like shit, too.”
    “I’m thirsty.”
    Austin stood up a little too fast and felt
light-headed. It was time for more aspirin. “I’ll get you some
water.”
    A couple of large white plastic barrels were
on tables against one wall. They’d been brought in a few hours
earlier along with a case of disposable cups. The disposable cups
were a good thought, but unless there were lots more somewhere
close by, they’d run out before the end of the day.
    Austin filled a cup and brought it to Rashid,
who drank slowly at first and then gulped.
    “Thank you,” said Rashid.
    “I’ll get you some more in a minute.”
    “How did I get here?” Rashid asked.
    “I carried you,” answered Austin. “You
wouldn’t wake up this morning.”
    “So it was this morning. I was almost worried
that I’d been out for a week or something.”
    Benoit squirmed, but didn’t wake up.
    Austin said, “No. Just today.”
    Rashid reached down and felt his pocket.
    Austin said, “I took your phone and called
your brother, Najid. At least I think it was him. How many brothers
do you have?”
    “Just Najid.”
    “Okay,” said Austin. “He’ll be here in a
while.”
    “He shouldn’t come.”
    “I know.” Austin shrugged. “Tell him that.”
    “I will. Where is my phone?”
    Austin leaned over Rashid and fetched the
phone. It was lying on the floor above Rashid’s head.
    Rashid didn’t raise his hand to take the
phone from Austin, but instead stared up at Austin for a few long
moments. “Is it Ebola?”
    “They’re not sure. Nurse Mary-Margaret said
it might be typhoid.”
    “That’s great.”
    Austin chuckled. “Yeah, that’s what I
thought. I’ll bet you never thought you’d be happy to have
typhoid.”
    “So they’re sure, then?”
    Austin shook his head. “They don’t know yet.
They think because so many people got sick so fast, it can’t be
Ebola.”
    “Why don’t they test?”
    “I don’t know. Maybe they did but the results
aren’t back yet.”

Chapter 14
    Paul Cooper wasn’t the worrying type, not
even close to it. Neither did he wear rose-colored glasses. He saw
himself as a pragmatist. But one worry that did lurk