"She's asleep..." Vincent whispers to a curious Eris, who re-entered the room with a tray of food.
“Great", Eris sighs, "An hour in the kitchen and two flights of stairs..."
"Guess there'll be leftovers". Vincent whispers as he tucks in the patient. Carefully gathering her long hair with his hands, before slipping on a hair tie. This allowed him more access to her neck as he wipes away the perspiration on her pale skin with a clean towel. "She's got a temperature of 110." He tells Eris, wiping away the sweat from her face as well.
"Infection?" Eris wonders.
"It's too early to tell. For now, let's let her sleep." Vincent decides.
The pair exit the bedroom, turning off lights as they went, and washing up in an adjacent room. A single bedroom made into two… Modified to fit the living requirements of a fragile patient and prevent the risks of a domestic outbreak. Time passes as the pair vigorously clean and prep for the next day.
Only when they part from the purgative room and enter the hall, do they finally remove their masks. Allowing the devices to dangle by the straps as they inhale the air. "The house smells like burnt flowers." Eris observes. "I wonder where that smell keeps coming from…"
"It's probably just expired detergent or something…" Vincent says, sniffing his own shirt. "I have no idea what they use on the linens, but it's really gross."
Eris smelled his own shirt, nodding in agreement. "Let's h-hurry up and finish."
"Right", Vincent breathes out.
Together, Eris and Vincent begin sealing off access to the neighboring rooms and several windows within the stretch of hallway.
The noises of drilling and shuffling drew Tuck upstairs. A lantern in his grip as he navigated the dark parts of the house. Until he finds both doctors in the middle of their work.
"What the heck are you guys doing that for?" Tuck whispers, gesturing with his hand to the bars on the windows.
"You remember what the infected patients were like..." Eris reminds Tuck with a cautious look.
"Umm... yeah I don't think that girl can make it 5 feet from her bed, Eris." Tuck says in a tired voice. "It's in the middle of the night."
"Tell me the symptoms." Eris suddenly quizzes the young boy while putting up another guard.
"Uh..." Tuck rubs his tired eyes as he tries to think about it. "Fever... fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea, and chills?"
"And in the long term?" Eris presses him further.
Tuck bit his lip in hesitation, admitting after a short sigh: "Mutation, loss of speech, delirium, manic episodes, loss of motor function and ... death."
"Cole just got here though..." Tuck continues. "She's thin as a needle and is definitely not a threat."
"No..." Vincent agrees, positioning a ladder to reach a vent in the ceiling. Where he plants a small device inside it. "This is just a precaution. The last thing we need is a delirious patient running around the house... The locks aren't very thick, and if they fail, there's motion sensors installed."
"Locking up your patients?" Is all Tuck decides to hear. "Man... I never want you guys to be my doctors."
"The feeling's mutual. If you so much as sneeze, I'm not wasting medicine, I'm kicking you out." Eris retorts.
"Oh..." Tuck turns to the side, holding his hand his front of his mouth. "Oh doc, I t-think I... I think I'm gonna..."
Eris lifts his head, immediately he starts cussing in his native tongue and chases Tuck away with a drill in his hand.
Tuck dashes off, hearing the whirring sound of the drill and Eris's colorful cuss words. Returning to his bedroom on the first floor. "Ele é tão irritante." Eris mumbles, pulling a smile from Vincent as he climbs down the ladder.
Eris turns back to his work, but he freezes in place. Staring straight ahead while Vincent stares back. His smile fades as he recognized the look on his colleague's face. Vincent followed his gaze, turning his head to look at the hallway behind him. When a strong arm hooked around his waist.
"Knife!" Eris pulled him fast, just as a blade whipped through the air and punctured the wall. Barely missing Vincent's head as Eris yanks him out of the way.
Vincent looks at the knife in the wall, then at the person who threw it. A few meters away stood a male figure with a backpack strapped to his back.
Eris wasted no time and recognized a thief when he saw one. He pulls out his loaded revolver, and the thief dashes down a separate hall as two shots ring out. Followed by shouts in a language he did not understand.
"Security breach, second floor, West corridor." Vincent alerts the rest of the house, bringing his radio to his mouth, before slipping it back onto his belt.
"Mask", Eris pulls up his own while reminding Vincent of his, a faint blue LED blinks on when it seals securely onto his face.
With fury in his eyes, Vincent snatches the blade from the wall and pulls up his mask. Dashing ahead in pursuit of the thief who threw it at him. While Eris follows close.
The thief runs as fast as he can and scrambles to find his escape. Until Vincent expertly tossed the blade and hit the back of his thigh. A loud cry rang out and the thief tumbled to the floor. While Eris kept his weapon aimed at the thief's head.
"How many more of you are in the house?" Eris questions as the thief drags himself across the hall floor. Trying in vain to reach an open window. Where the cool outdoor air spills into the house.
When the thief didn't answer, Vincent watched as Eris pulled the trigger. The loud crack of the gunfire echoed. A brief time later, Tuck appeared from around the corner of the corridor. Freezing when Eris aimed his way.
"D-Don't shoot." Went Tuck, lifting his palms in the air.
"Tuck, don't just run out of the dark like that." Eris lowers his weapon and sighs in frustration. He slips his weapon back into his holster. After, Eris lifts his radio to his mouth and tells the others of their location. Less than a minute later, soldiers were everywhere, and the entire house was on lockdown. The thief's pockets were picked clean, and his pack removed before his body was wrapped. As an extra precaution, some begin to seal off the hall where he was executed.
"How'd he get ahold of these?" Vincent wonders while pulling out the contents of the thief's backpack. "Ibuprofen, penicillin, hydro, oxy, isopropyl alcohol, bandages, and a… bottle of whiskey?"
"He must've broken into the storage… and the kitchen." Eris observes, brushing his disheveled hair back with his hands. "Wherever he came from, I'm sure we'll find out. In the meantime, I'm going to make some changes downstairs… and…" Eris glances in the opposite direction of the hall, which was now illuminated by the lighting and filled with a group of armed soldiers. All occupied in their own conversation.
"You should check on Cole…" Eris suggests with a concerned look in his round eyes. "The gunfire… probably scared her."
Cole sat up in bed, her pulse beating wildly as her gray eyes look around the pitch-black room. Sweat leaking down her forehead. Travelling down the curve of her neck and soaking into the collar of her gown. She lifts her right arm, trying to locate the bedside lamp when the noise comes again.Bang!She jolts in her spot, and immediately recognizes the noise as a gunshot. This time there was no mistaking it.Dread poured over her body, flooding down to the tips of her fingers and toes. She trembled uncontrollably, her gray eyes watering as she could not think of what to do.Cole stayed put for the duration of the silence that followed. Until a multitude of footfalls echo past her bedroom. She finally slipped from bed. Sliding off the side of the mattress and onto the cool tiled floor. Cole shifted her gaze toward the bedroom window. Observing the ray of pale moonlight that filled a spot on the floor. Then to the right of it. She could faintly see the pile of luggage in the corner of t
Eris's voice comes from Vincent's radio as he says something in his native language. Cole listened curiously as Vincent responded, chatting back and forth until Eris finished. Saying: "Entendi, obrigado." "You're so quiet…" Vincent observes, while he carefully wraps her shoulder with new bandages. "Are you in any pain?" He wondered. A look of concern surfacing in his green eyes again. Cole secretly thought his round eyes resembled a timid stray pup. How can a grown man look so… adorable? She stares senselessly into the pair of eyes, admiring the lush green of them. "Cole?" Vincent blinks nervously as he stops what he's doing to look at his patient. "I want to know what's going on", he whispers, "but… it's kinda hard when you don't talk." Cole shifted her gaze at last. Pretending to find the bathroom floor interesting, before she comes up with an answer. "I… It's just… you're so different from Isla… More…" Cole struggles when the heat rises to her cheeks. "More… what?" Vincent's
"I- I am wearing gl-gloves." Cole barely manages to get out. Rambling: "It's only cards. Tuck assured me they were sterile. He even brought me this bed-tray, so nothing touched the sheets…" Vincent looks at his patient in silence. Shifting his gaze to the cards, which were set on a firm bed table, and Cole was indeed wearing latex gloves too… With a deep breath, Vincent set the food aside. "Alright…" He speaks softly, the crease between his brows slowly disappears as he neared. "Let me take that so you can have your meal." Cole glanced one last time before setting the cards down. The doctor seemed calm… at least that's how he appeared now. "Leave the gloves too." Vincent points with his eyes, to which Cole understood and discarded them. She watched as Doctor Lance took the table and set it with the other items. Then he brought her the food, carefully putting it on the bed where she could reach. "It’s not a five-star meal so… if you don't like it, don't eat it." He says, turning to
Before the sun rose on the horizon, Eris was up. He sat in his office chair, eyes glued to the current document he was reading. With his free hand he took notes on a pad. Listing all of Cole's past symptoms and the recurrences of them. After, Eris researched the incident reports written by Rue. He listed those by date and a brief description of the incident. Next, Eris began sifting through the patient's lab results. And finally, he reviewed Cole's cognitive tests. Which were performed daily as Cole never seemed to suffer the more severe symptoms. "She's strong, she wants to live." Doctor Isla says on a recorded log. Which Eris played out of curiosity. The conference video showed Doctor Isla in plain clothes. She was sitting in her own living room, while talking to an interviewer. Other unnamed individuals were a part of the virtual conference, but only their names appeared below. "What was going through your head when you took her in as a child?" An interviewer asks. "She needs m
Vincent slipped outside. The morning breeze cooled his skin as he finally placed the dog bowl. Sitting on the porch while Audi gobbled his food. Vincent let his gaze drift over the many vehicles parked on the lawn. Some of them were in poor shape. Though, it’s still a better option than walking. Beyond the collection of vehicles, a long dirt driveway curves into the distance. Surrounded by trees, and poorly maintained grass. "Oh my god.” Vincent lifted his head as voices echoed, followed by the sound of laughter. "Again?" "Hahaha, Tuck you're so bad at this game". A small smile stretched on Vincent's lips when he realized they were up. Not only that but playing their card games. "Come on. Rematch." Cole spoke. "But this time, if I win, you have to get me some of Doctor Blonde's secret stash." What? Vincent could hardly believe his ears. "Deal." Tuck quickly agrees. This time Vincent stood up. Stepping off of the porch, he looked up at the open bedroom window. Placing one hand
"Who told you my middle name?" Vincent questions, his right eyebrow twitching as a dark cloud forms over the green in his eyes. "It was on your -ahem". Tuck pulled out a familiar leather wallet. "State of Connecticut Driver's License.” "Tuck". Vincent warns as he starts opening the wallet. "Let's see. Date of birth -fuck- 2029?? You're like… OLD!". Cole stirred awake as Vincent set down the tray of food nearby and reached for his wallet. "Give me that back you little turd and go find Snow White and the other six dwarves.” “Ha, I think I hear Barbie calling you back to the Dream house.” Tuck smirks, jumping out of his spot when Vincent got close. Causing Cole to fall on the floor with a loud thump. "OWw". Went Cole, lifting her head up after hitting the coffee table. "What's going on?" She croaks out, her gray eyes still hazy with sleep. "Hey, Cola". Tuck smiles mischievously, holding the wallet out. "Guess what? Barbie’s boyfriend was born in-" "Enough". Vincent moved swiftly t
Cole finished her food and licked her fingers. Gulping the last of the orange juice before setting down the glass. Vincent stood in front of her, looking at the tray. "What's wrong?" Cole wondered. Vincent took the tray and answered. "You shouldn't eat so fast… Might get an upset stomach. Then I'll have to give you a shot". "A shot?" Confusion glistened in Cole's gray eyes. Her clear dislike of needles surfaces. "I'd have to get a shot?" "Yes". Vincent sighs, as if the weight of the world were on his shoulders and she just added more. Cole glances down at her lap, then slowly holds her right arm toward him. A nervous habit familiar to Vincent. He gently lifted her chin with his finger, coaxing her gray eyes to reconnect with his green ones. A grin formed on his lips as he spoke. "Kidding". Vincent's green eyes sparkle in the light. Cole blinked, confusion fading as she lowered her arm. Vincent gave her chin a light touch and then retreated with the tray. Cole chewed her lip in
Eris closed the video and began scrolling through others. Most were dated for the first month. He glimpsed the other vids, finding the patients’ unusual symptoms. "Look". Vincent interrupted to pass Eris a written log from March 2062. "Is there a video for this? Cole was given anesthetics. The paper has too much water damage. I want to know why she was given this when her regular treatment doesn't require it". Eris quickly pulled up the video files for the month. The first video was grainy, and the audio was unclear. After waiting a bit, a fifteen-year-old Cole could be seen removing her bed sheets. The video timestamp showed it was 2:21 am, and the hall outside of her unit was dark. Meaning the staff was gone. From Cole's room, there was not only a view of the hall, but of neighboring rooms as well. With patients similar in age and circumstances. "Are you really going to go through with that, Cole?" A boy not much younger stood close to the window. His room is mostly dark, apart