Outbreak (Book 2): The Mutation by Scott Shoyer Read Free Book Online

dining area of the rehab center and marveled at how this small group of junkies and drunks, himself included, had managed to hold it together for the last two years.
    Will to Heal had been a new approach to treating addiction, and many of the experts in the field had laughed at what he tried to accomplish. Results, though, were the only things Walt cared about, and he’d seen the same result time and again as each of his patients got and stayed clean.
    From his own experiences, he knew how hard it was to remain sober. While in various rehab facilities there were no temptations, and everywhere you went you had nothing but support. You had trained counselors ready to talk with and support you twenty-four hours a day, and you also had the combined strength of others who were also trying to clean up their lives. But once you left the facility and returned to reality, it was tough.
    Really tough.
    Old friends would look you up to go party with them; places wouldn’t hire you because of your criminal record; family disowned you because you lied to them one time too many. All you had out in the real world were meetings. No matter if they were Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous, they all spouted the same thing:
    Rely in your Higher Power, said the voice of hundreds of counselors and people in recovery.
    This is the ‘cure’ ? Walt had thought. In a world full of technology and scientific breakthroughs, a ‘Higher Power ’ was all that was offered to addicts?
    That wasn’t good enough for him, and he knew that addicts deserved better.
    Walt could remember plenty of times when he thought of a ‘Higher Power ’ as he’d stumbled in his recovery. As far as he was concerned, his ‘Higher Power ’ had helped guide the needle back into his arm.
    “Hey Walt, ” Cheryl said cheerily as he walked by her in the dining room. “How’s that new window treating you?”
    “If you’re asking me if it’s holding up, then it is great, ” Walt responded. “I don’t think the Hulk himself could bust those boards down.”
    “But, ” Cheryl said.
    “But I feel like a caged animal in there without my window, ” Walt said, trying to smile.
    “I’ve got news for ya, chief, ” Dennis said as he walked up to Walt. “We are caged animals. We’re in the cages now, and those things out there run the world.”
    “Damn, Dennis, ” Walt said with a smile on his face. “You make it sound like we’re in a zoo, and we’re the ones in the cages.”
    “Do I? ” Dennis asked. “Makes sense, doesn’t it? We’re no longer at the top of the food chain, are we? We’re all just walking hot meals to those fuckers out there. ” Walt could hear Dennis ’ voice take on a dark tone.
    Everyone in the dining room stopped talking and eating as they listened to Dennis and Walt. Walt knew he had to lighten up the mood.
    “Well, then, ” Walt continued, “I guess we better make ourselves as unappetizing as possible.”
    Walt smiled, and Dennis took a deep breath and smiled back.
    “I’m sorry, Walt, ” Dennis said. Then, to the rest of the people in the dining room, added: “I’m sorry, everyone. Some days it gets to me more than others.”
    The people around Dennis patted him on the back and reassured him.
    “No need to apologize, Dennis, ” Walt said. “We all know exactly how you feel.”
    The Will to Heal center was down to just twelve people—four staff members and eight residents still receiving in-patient treatment. At capacity, the center held fifty patients and had a staff of around forty, twenty of which would’ve been on duty at any given time. The shit hit the fan during the weekend when there was only a skeleton crew working. Back then, the Center had experienced a turnover where thirty-two residents completed the program and went back to the real world.
    Walt often wondered about those who’d re-entered the real world to find it all going to shit. Had they remained sober and stayed alive, or had they decided