Chapter 9 #4
Inside was more of the same—inviting and tidy, the room illuminated by battery-operated nightlights.
A beautifully weathered bookshelf had been turned into a storage unit stuffed with woven baskets.
Trunks at the foot of each bunk held what I assumed to be clothing.
A small desk beneath the windows separated the two bunks.
And there, on the bottom left, was my girl.
I kneeled next to the bed and pressed my hand to her forehead.
Still warm.
“Her throat looked raw earlier,” I said.
“You saw her earlier?” Ana asked. “Are you here to take her?”
“Two soldiers were out today. Whatever she has, it might be spreading. She needs to be treated, or we run the risk of it spreading through the camp.”
“Assuming she’s the originator.”
“Regardless, she needs to be treated.” I stroked her brow. “Tapley? Hey, Tapley? Can you hear me?”
Her eyelids didn’t flutter.
I pulled out my flashlight and shined it on a slightly exposed section of her chest. “What’s this? Looks like a rash.”
Ana came closer. “If that was there before, I didn’t notice it. Maybe she kept it covered.”
I handed Ana the flashlight, stood, and wrapped the covers around Larke. Then, covers and all, I scooped her up into my arms.
“Cover her head for me, and use the flashlight to check if any part of her is visible.”
Ana walked around us, shining and inspecting and tucking. “No, no parts.”
“Do you have any masks here?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Grab me one and another set of covers.”
She disappeared and returned with a mask and a flat sheet that she added to the bundle in my arms. Afterward, she turned off the flashlight and returned it to my pocket before escorting me out.
“You’re the security guy, aren’t you?” she asked.
I nodded. “Yes. Name’s Dez.”
“And I’m right?”
“I won’t say anything until I’ve told her everything.”
Ana smoothed the sheets and kissed in the area of the top of Larke’s head. “I understand. But please, if you can, don’t let them send her back here, Dez.”
They wouldn’t have to send her. Knowing Larke, she would try to come back on her own. There was no way she would be okay with living a privileged life in Woodhaven while the people in Sanitation suffered. There was also little chance that when I asked her to marry me, she would say yes.
Ana slipped the mask over my face.
Then, I left through the front door.
When I reached the guards, they eyed the bundle in my arms, and I silently dared them to question me about it.
“I’m removing you from your posts,” I announced.
“Go straight to the infirmary for quarantine. I’ll also be taking these sheets for testing.
A couple of my guys fell ill today, and we can’t afford to lose any more. ”
One of them went pale.
“Go now,” I reiterated.
They hurried off.
I retraced my steps through the complex until I arrived at Woodhaven, took the freight elevator up to my floor, walked Larke into my unit, and placed her on the bed in my bedroom.
“Babe, I’ll be right back, okay?” I said.
Still, she didn’t stir.
I sprinted down to the attached Woodhaven healthcare facility and approached the reception desk. Before I could make a request, a man with a balding head wearing a white coat stepped into the reception area, reading something on a clipboard.
“Dr. Lin,” I called.
“Hmm?” He looked up. “Oh, hello, Dez. Good to see you. Is everything all right?”
I didn’t respond.
He searched my face. “Let me get my things.”
Bag in tow, he followed me to my unit. I walked him to the bedroom, and when he spotted Larke, frail and motionless, in the middle of the large bed, he set down his things and took a seat on the mattress.
“When I came to you earlier, you said you would help her,” I said. “That it didn’t matter who she was.”
I’d had only ten minutes between duties to make the request. It took less than one for him to accept. All I’d had to do was tell him that there was someone in need of medical attention.
“I took an oath, Dez,” he reminded me.
“She’s from Sanitation.”
I waited for a reaction.
“What are her symptoms, and how long has she been sick?”
“Fever and sore throat for a few days,” I explained.
“The puffiness around her eyes and the swollen hands? Those are new. I saw her earlier, and she didn’t have either.
Then, the doctor in Sanitation said she has a slower than normal heartbeat.
And she’s got this weird rash on her neck and chest. Let me show you. ”
I moved Larke’s shirt aside.
Months ago, it probably would have fit perfectly.
“See what I mean?”
“Dez, I’m glad you brought her when you did,” he said.
“This is scarlet fever. Early on, it’s highly treatable with antibiotics, but at this stage, it’s trickier.
Plus, her body’s not in any condition to fight off a cold, never mind an advanced strep infection.
The puffiness and swelling? That could mean kidney involvement.
The slow heart rate? Could be stress on the heart. ”
“I can’t take her downstairs.”
He stood. “I’m not asking you to. I have people on staff I trust. We’ll set up here in this room.
The more I talk to people, the more I realize I’m not surrounded by monsters.
Everyone’s simply afraid that if they try to do the right thing, no one will back them up.
That their efforts will be in vain. But, I promise you, we will help this woman. ”
I nearly fell to my knees. “Thank you. And if anybody gives you a hard time or tries to question you, let me know. I’ll deal with them.”
They would provide me with an outlet for my rage.
“Oh, I hope they do.” A spark lit in his dark eyes. “Now, first things first, we have to break this fever and get her hydrated. I’ll need you to make ice packs. We’ll also rub her down with alcohol. What’s her name?”
“Larke.”
He glanced at me. “That’s the name you asked me about at your physical when you first got here. You mean to tell me that not only did you find her, but like this?”
“Yes.”
The word almost didn’t make it out of my mouth. I was holding on as best as I could, but I had nowhere to direct my fear, anger, or raw hatred for all those complicit in Fort Totten’s institutional sadism.
Dr. Lin gently tapped the back of Larke’s hand. “Start the ice packs. Fill reusable bags for now, and we’ll freeze some with salt and alcohol later. I’ll start the IV and get some ibuprofen and an antibiotic into her bloodstream. Do you know if she has any allergies?”
I knew everything about her.
It was once part of my job.
“Not to any medication, no,” I said.
“Okay. Good. Let’s get going.”
I went to the kitchen and filled as many resealable bags as possible, trying not to think about how she probably couldn’t even access sandwich bags and ice in Sanitation.
It wasn’t the right time for me to lose control.
Larke needed me to focus, to provide care for her until I dropped from exhaustion.
So, I pushed my emotions aside, allowing them to simmer and stew.
Once she was better, I would let them explode.
I returned to the bedroom.
We wrapped the bags in socks and placed them against her neck and underarms. While we worked, two additional members of Dr. Lin’s staff joined us, and he didn’t have to swear them to secrecy. They simply jumped into action, inadvertently forcing me into a corner, out of the way.
Not once did Larke wake up.
“Dr. Lin—”
“She’s alive,” he quickly reassured me. “Just very sick. Her body needs the rest so badly that she can’t override it by waking up right now, but she’s alive. Because of the swelling, we’re going to insert a Foley.”
“A catheter?”
“Yes. We have to measure her urine output. We need to keep an eye on that kidney function. But you may have to change the bag—”
“That’s not a problem.”
I remained out of the way until they were done.
Dr. Lin removed his gloves and stepped back, looking Larke over as if she were a nine-year-old. “There are better ways to do this, you know?” he said. “Why is the solution always tyranny?”
I stared at her until I was satisfied she was breathing.
“I can’t check on her every two to four hours as I normally would, so I’ll need your help,” he went on.
“I’m going to leave you with a thermometer.
If her fever spikes, you do not hesitate.
Bring her to me. If she sounds like she’s having trouble breathing, bring her to me.
I don’t care who sees. Just because members of this community have abandoned empathy, it doesn’t mean I will, nor will I abandon my oath.
I’d also like for you to monitor her heart rate. I can show you h—”
“I know how,” I said.
“Good. Stay here with her. In this room. This is the most critical window. She needs watching.”
“Wasn’t planning on leaving.”
“I wish I could stay.”
“I’ll take good care of her,” I promised.
After one more round of checks, the trio headed to the front door, Dr. Lin solemnly shaking his head and sighing.
On his way out, he let me know that he would disseminate an advisory about a bug going around, which would give my walking through the building with a mountain of sheets additional credibility.
Once Larke and I were alone, I cleaned up in record time to avoid leaving her unattended for too long. I then tossed on a ribbed tank and shorts and climbed into the large bed. I waited, hoping she opened her eyes, though I knew it was better that she slept.
“Tapley, I’m sorry,” I choked out. “I can’t help but feel like I failed you.
I know you’d tell me it’s not my fault, but you wouldn’t be in this situation if I was doing my job.
And you’re a strong woman. I know that. But why do you have to keep proving it?
At some point, it’s not a test of strength. It’s just fucking cruel.”
I lightly stroked one of her fingers, needing to touch her.
“This could have been a good community, you know? A decent community for people trying to find a semblance of a normal life as the world turns to shit. This could have been the place where we got a chance. Yet, people will always continue to disappoint, won’t they?
I don’t understand…why is decency so fucking hard?
When I was on the streets, they blamed money.
That, if it weren’t for money, kids like me wouldn’t have had to spend a considerable portion of their day avoiding people trying to buy and sell them.
Now, society’s fallen, and people are still the same evil fuckers that they’ve always been. ”
In my mind, I heard her voice:
“That’s because there are a bunch of ‘have-nots’ in this world that have no idea how truly far away they are, and will ever be, from the ‘haves.’ They were taught that oppression is a type of privilege, so when they can’t afford food or somewhere to live or their medications, they blame everyone but the people who are actually responsible for their circumstances. ”
Her breathing stuttered.
I shot straight up in the bed.
Immediately, it returned to normal, so I lay back down a half-inch closer.
“So, would you say I’m selfish, then?” I asked.
“In what way?”
“Because I was upset before, yes, but for doing what they did to you, they’re going to feel my wrath.”
“You’re okay with us going out into a world that’s fundamentally changed? Aren’t you concerned about me needing you the way I do?”
“Tapley, my confidence took a hit when I lost somebody I cared about, but I’ll take care of you.
And we’ll find something else, somewhere else where no one has to endure these fucked up levels of depravity.
I will do whatever the fuck I have to do to make this world feel safe for you again, even as it’s burning. ”
“What about the people at Fort Totten? Not everyone can make it on their own.”
“A safe haven is supposed to be for everyone. If, when the wool is pulled from their eyes, they’re fine with what’s happening to others, then they deserve the hell I’ll be bringing.”
“You’ll take care of me?”
“You know I will. I always will.”
“Nah. We’ll take care of each other.”
I smiled, vision blurry. “I love you, Larke. I’ve loved you for a while now. A hardened man, a hardened heart does not always make.”
“Why’d you pretend that you didn’t? Why’d you keep pushing me away?”
“Because I’ve never been in this position before. I’ve been afraid of losing people, but I’ve never felt like I would unravel if I did. If I’m being honest, I don’t think I’ll try to keep going if I lose you. I mean, what’s the point?”
“Your brothers.”
“They’ll be fine without me. I won’t be fine without you.”
“Okay, Dez. So, what’s your game plan?”
“Right now, we’ll give you time to get better. Then, together, we’re going to topple an empire. For what they’ve done to you? Fort Totten’s downfall will come at the hands of my retribution.”
“Our retribution, Dez. You and me, we’re in this together.”
I slid her fingers between mine. “Always, Tapley. Always.”