Chapter 4
ELIZABETH
F ocus . Elizabeth told herself as she tried to process the samples they’d pulled from the campsite.
Her mind kept drifting back to Ava, though.
She should have known that Ava would take offense to her when she suggested that she could have gone anywhere else.
She reminded herself, again, that not everyone grew up like her.
Not everyone’s self worth was tied to their accomplishments, and even if they were, Ava had more than enough to show for it.
The close nature and community of this place were almost foreign to Elizabeth.
The women in power structure even more so.
Even h er past relationships were closer to professional acquaintances than actual romantic interests.
She simply did not have time for the drama and recklessness that would come with intimacy, the vulnerability.
Elizabeth shook her head and focused again on the samples underneath the microscope. So far they had not found anything that would indicate how this virus would have gotten into their system, but they had barely processed anything so far, there was still hours worth of research to go.
A machine behind her made a pinging sound and Elizabeth watched the lab technician go and pull the results from the machine. It was Ava’s bloodwork. She turned to the tech and lifted her eyebrows as they read over the results.
“She’s clear, she’s negative for everything,” the tech said, Elizabeth thought her name was Lindsey, and the relief in her voice was palpable.
“That’s good to hear,” Elizabeth said. She took the slide she was working on and filed it away.
Nothing helpful there. She left the rest of the samples to the techs in the lab.
Doctor Mars had called all hands on deck, so there were s everal technicians working through the samples.
She informed them that she was going to check on Ava and to page her as soon as they found anything at all.
They each gave quick nods, though none of them looked up at her.
She headed for the elevator and pushed the button for the second floor.
Anticipation flooded through her. She wasn’t sure how Ava would feel about her checking in; she had done a pretty good job of putting her foot in her mouth earlier.
The worst part about it was that she really didn’t mean to offend.
If it had been anyone else, she may have felt differently, but she truly wanted to know what made Ava tick.
The orderlies were taking down the quarantine signage from Ava’s room as Elizabeth approached.
A doctor she hadn’t been introduced to yet was in the process of stitching up Ava’s leg and ignoring all her questions about the patients.
She smirked slightly at Ava’s annoyance, but the doctor took it all in professional stride.
“How are you feeling?” Elizabeth said as she softly knocked on the open door.
“I would feel much better if I knew what was go ing on out there,” Ava grumbled and Elizabeth stifled a chuckle.
“It’s much the same,” she answered for the doctor. The doctor looked up at Elizabeth from behind her mask with an expression of gratitude. “The patients are holding on, and we haven’t found anything from the samples, yet.”
“Even that would have been nice to know,” Ava snapped at the doctor. “Doctor Bond wouldn’t answer anything.”
Doctor Bond shrugged as she finished the stitches. “I’m going to assume that I don’t need to tell you how to care for this?” she asked, lifting her eyebrows.
Ava gritted her teeth at the doctor and Elizabeth had to hold her breath to keep from laughing.
“I thought so,” Doctor Bond said and gathered her things. She left the room and Ava glared at Elizabeth.
“How are you, really?” Elizabeth asked, trying to avoid Ava’s heated gaze.
Ava took a deep breath and blew it out. Elizabeth could see her working to compose herself. “I’m fine,” she said finally, her tone cool. “I’m assuming since you’re in here w ithout a mask that my bloodwork is clear.”
“Yes, for now, but we should keep checking, and maybe start you on a prophylactic antiviral,” Elizabeth said and stepped closer to the bed.
She took Ava’s leg in her hand and examined the stitches.
Her fingers lingered on her calf, and she felt a warm sensation flow through her.
She wet her lips and looked back up at Ava, her dark eyes felt like they were boring a hole into her.
“Ava, I…” she trailed off. She wanted to apologize, to explain why she had said what she did, but she didn’t know how to put it into words.
“It’s fine,” Ava said quickly, though her tone suggested that it very much was not.
“No, it isn’t,” Elizabeth countered, but she kept her hand resting gently on Ava’s leg.
“I never meant to insinuate that I thought less of you, and I can understand why you would feel that way, but I just struggle to understand the power of the community here. That’s my problem to deal with, of course, but I’m genuinely curious about you and I want to know more about you, about who you are. ”
“I-I don’t know how to respond to that,” Ava said, her voice tight. “I would probably be better equipped to handle this conversation if I was… well… dressed.”
Elizabeth felt the blood rush to her cheeks as she took in Ava’s hospital gown.
She gave Ava’s leg a light squeeze, though Ava probably couldn’t feel it due to the local anesthetic that she had been given by Dr. Bond.
Elizabeth pressed her lips together to keep from smiling and said, “Of course.” She stepped back and went to the door. “I’ll see you upstairs.”
“I will be there in a little while, I want to check in on the patients.”
Elizabeth nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her.
She headed back to the elevator, her mind spinning.
She had no idea if what she had just said to Ava would make her feel better or uncomfortable around her.
She hoped for the former, but she was worried.
She had never felt this way before, which made her pause in thought.
She had always been collected, confident, in all of her interactions.
She had never been bothered before by how someone responded to her.
That had never been something she viewed as an issue for her.
If someone didn’t care for what she had to say, then that was their own issue and not her concern.
She wondered why it was different with Ava.
She returned to the lab and started sorting through the samples.
She needed to focus on the task at hand, but it was tedious to say the least. As she sifted through sample after sample, she found her mind wandering back to Ava again and again.
She knew Ava had family here, her parents were professionals, though not in the same sense as Elizabeth’s.
She took a moment to consider her own upbringing.
She hadn’t spoken to her parents in close to six months.
Not for any reason, actually it was quite the opposite, she hadn’t had a reason to contact them in that long, they weren’t the type of family to call each other just to catch up.
She would likely talk to them once this was all over, but even that would depend on the outcome.
Both her parents had doctorates, both had attended prestigious universities, both had made significant contributions in their respective fields.
That was the expectation that she had been given pretty much from birth.
The only things that mattered were the contri butions that were made.
She never faulted her parents for this, they gave her the drive and determination to become the best possible doctor, and her work had saved thousands, if not millions, of lives and she was only halfway through.
She couldn’t help but wonder how it would have been if she had been brought up differently, though.
She had been given the best of everything—the best nannies, the best schools, the best opportunities—but looking back there were few opportunities for connection with her own parents.
She remembered feeling envious of some of her schoolmates when they would talk about vacations or other bonding time with their own families, and Elizabeth had never experienced that.
Until now, she hadn’t missed it, at least not that she had realized.
Her family had traveled often, but never for leisure. It was always for work, for research, and now she noticed that she had developed the same pattern. Yes, her job was demanding, but would it really hurt to take some time for herself?
FOCUS . Elizabeth chastised herself again.
She pulled out the next sample and starte d sifting through it, finding what to test and what to place on a slide for observation.
This was getting nowhere fast, nothing that they were looking at showed any signs of the virus, and with the way it was spreading and moving, the original three would have had to had pretty targeted exposure.
The antivirals seemed to be slowing it, but not enough to account for the quick onset of symptoms of the first three as compared to the relatively slow onset for the others.
It was persistent though, whatever the carrier was, the virus would remain viable for a while.
Elizabeth glanced up as Ava walked through the door. Her breath caught at the woman. Her tall slender frame walked with such grace and poise, her flawless skin seemed to glow, despite the tight expression of concern worn on her face.
“What is it?” Elizabeth asked, lifting her brows.
Ava pulled on a mask and some gloves before walking further into the lab. “It’s Sandra, she’s fighting for her life, but if we can’t figure out how to treat this thing. I don’t think she will last much longer.”
Elizabeth pressed her lips together and nodded . “How well do you know Sandra? About her class?”