Текст книги "Noah's Ark: Contagion"

Автор книги: Harry Dayle

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Ten

HAVING LEFT JANICE to prepare her first post-mortem, Jake took the stairs up to deck six to find Silvia, the hotel manager. Her job had been to manage all non-sailing staff on the ship. It was a role that had become hugely more important, and she was now coordinating all the teams established by the committee, as well as overseeing the employment of everyone on board. It was going to take weeks, probably even months to allocate jobs and reallocate cabins to everyone, but Silvia had a reputation for ruthless efficiency, and although softly spoken and gentle, she had a knack for getting the best from people.

Her office door was open when Jake arrived. He peered through and saw Silvia sitting at her desk, working through a pile of documents. He recognised them at once as census forms.

She looked up and spotted him standing in the doorway.

“Hi, Jake, how’s Kiera?”

“She’s okay, I think. I haven’t seen her. Grau’s looking after her.”

“Is it the same as…” Silvia looked over to Erica, who was lying on her tummy on the floor, still drawing away.

“He thinks so. But it’s probably too early to tell. Listen, Grau thinks it’s best if Erica comes down to medical.” Jake leant over the desk so he could speak quietly. “Kiera and Barry both handled her dad and now they’ve got the same thing. She might be at risk too.”

Silvia gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. “Oh no, poor girl! And Barry too? That’s awful!”

Jake walked over to Erica and knelt beside her. He could feel the mask and gloves in his pocket, but couldn’t bring himself to put them on. He could only imagine they would frighten the life out of her.

“Hi Erica, I’m Captain Noah. How are you? What are you drawing?”

“I’m drawing our house. And some trees. Are you a real captain, like in the films?”

“Yes, I’m a real captain.”

“Cool! Can I see where you steer the ship from?”

“I’m sure that can be arranged. But first we need to go down to see Doctor Lister. Is that alright? Will you come with me?”

“Yay! That’s where Daddy is. Are we going to see Daddy?”

“I think your daddy is sleeping at the moment, but you’ll be nearby for when he wakes up. Come on.”

Erica jumped to her feet and skipped to the door. “Thank you for looking after me!” she said politely to Silvia.

“That’s alright my love, it’s been my pleasure. You come back and see me any time okay?”

“Okay! Come on Captain, let’s see Daddy!”

Jake set off with Erica hanging onto his hand. It wasn’t a long walk from Silvia’s office on deck six to the medical suite on the deck below, but it was more than enough time for him to feel the weight of responsibility pressing down on his young shoulders. The little girl, skipping along beside him, oblivious to the gravity of their situation, represented the future of mankind. In the few minutes he spent escorting her, he became more acutely aware than ever that his job was to ensure that Erica, and the other young people on board the Spirit of Arcadia, would survive long enough to build a new community, a real community. She was the future of the world. His actions, and those of the committee, had to be decided on what was best for her, not for them.

He studied her closely as they walked. She looked perfectly healthy to him. Grau had explained the symptoms her father was suffering from, but this girl exhibited none of them. If Kiera had been struck down with the illness only twenty-four hours after attending to Scott, then surely Erica would show signs by now if she was infected, he thought.

They approached the medical suite, and his mind was racing. Was sending her into a room with three infected patients the best thing for her? For their future? With horror, it occurred to Jake that to do so could be akin to signing her death warrant.

“Tell you what,” he said, taking a sharp left and heading for a set of lifts, “your daddy is sleeping and Doctor Lister is very busy. Probably best we don’t disturb him. How would you like to come and visit the bridge instead, see where we drive the ship from?”

“Can’t we wake Daddy up?”

“He really needs his rest. It’s the best way for him to get better. I’ll ask Doctor Lister to give us a call as soon as he wakes up, how does that sound?”

Erica considered this, her head tilted to the side, a finger held to her lips. “Okay, I suppose that would be alright.”

Jake grinned. “Come on,” he said, “I’ll race you to the lift!”

• • •

“Jake! Where’ve you been? Oh!” Lucya exclaimed. “What a gorgeous girl. Hello, what’s your name?”

“Erica. You talk funny!”

“That’s because Lucya is from a long way away,” Jake explained, smiling.

“What, like, another planet?”

“Nearly. I’m from a place called Russia.”

Erica didn’t look impressed. Instead she ran to the front window. With her hands above her head, she pressed her face to the glass, taking in the immense view.

“Jake, where’ve you been? All hell has been breaking loose,” Lucya said in a low voice, keeping an eye on Erica.

“Tell me about it. We’ve lost the fish catch, and there’s been a fire in the kitchens.”

“Yes, and now lunch service is being delayed because of it. People have been calling up for the last half hour wanting to know what’s going on. Ella and Amanda are on their way up here now for an emergency committee meeting. And what’s this about a mystery virus sweeping the ship?”

“‘Sweeping’? That’s a bit of an exaggeration. Three people have gone down with something nasty. Well, maybe four. Grau’s working on it. I’m sure it will be fine. Her dad is one of those affected.” Jake pointed at Erica, who was sliding sideways along the windows, still awestruck by the view. “That’s why she’s up here. I’m looking after her for a while.”

“You? What do you know about children?”

“Nothing. That’s why you’re going to help me.”

Before she could protest, the door opened and Ella and Amanda walked in.

“Hello, ladies,” Jake said amicably.

“Captain,” Amanda replied coldly. “We called Doctor Lister to join us, but he informs me that he has placed himself under quarantine.”

“That’s correct. Take a seat, I think I need to fill you in on a rather messy morning.”

• • •

The emergency meeting took about twenty minutes. Silvia was excused; she was too busy to attend. Max also didn’t show up as his new security team were making their presence felt in the restaurants. Despite having somehow managed to get rationed meals out three times a day every day without fail, one late service was enough for people to start kicking up a fuss. Max’s men and women provided a powerful reminder that public order was still to be respected. He had drawn staff exclusively from ex-military sailors from the former crew, and law enforcement professionals from the passenger list.

While they were still discussing the impending food crisis, the phone rang. Dave, who was maintaining the lookout, answered.

“Jake? Doctor Lister. He says it’s urgent.”

Jake took the phone. He was ready to defend his decision to not bring Erica to medical, but Grau had other things to worry about. At the doctors request, he put the call through the speaker system so that the other committee members could hear.

“We have had four more cases of paralysed feet and legs since you left here, Captain. We have no space left. Scott, Barry, and Kiera are all laid out. With Mandy and myself there is simply no more room.”

“What do you think about relocating to the gymnasium again? Like we did after the asteroid?” Jake asked.

“No, that is not where I’m going with this. These people that have been taken ill, they all came from the same place. They all came from deck eight. That is the same deck Scott was from, and Maryse Wernström. Whatever this thing is, it looks like it may have started there. I think we need to close the deck, quarantine it, effective immediately.”

“Doctor Lister, are you sure about this?” Amanda asked. “Closing an entire deck is likely to cause panic. And what about the people stuck in there? How do we provide care? Meals? What about families split across decks?”

“I understand your concerns, but these are things we can worry about later. We have to close that deck, right now.”

“Grau, people will be in the restaurants at this time of day. Even if there’s no food being served they’ll still be there trying to get fed. This will just be a case of shutting the door after the horse has bolted.” Jake was rubbing his forehead.

“So we do it silently, we do not announce it. Send Max and a team to man the stairs. Prevent the lifts from stopping on that deck. Anyone coming back is allowed in, nobody is allowed out. They will need masks, the security guards.”

“No, I’m sorry,” Emma interjected. “You can’t just stop people leaving the deck and not tell them why. And besides, if they are in danger of getting ill, they have a right to know. We have a duty to tell them! And, Doctor Lister, if you’re stuck down there in medical, who is going to help these people on eight?”

“She’s right, Grau,” Jake sighed. “We have to tell people. But we have to be discrete. We put out a call telling all deck eight residents to return to their cabins as a matter of urgency. Max stops anyone leaving. When we’ve got them all back, or as many as we can, we announce the quarantine. And we play it down, insist it’s just precautionary.”

“People will still panic,” Lucya said. “I would if it was me.”

“It’s a risk we have to take,” Emma said. The others nodded solemnly.

“Our new nurse, Mandy, and I will bring the existing patients up to deck eight. We will use Mrs Wernström’s suite; it is big, and empty. We will move the patients now, using the crew lift by medical. If anyone else gets sick, send them to deck eight, suite 845.”

“And if anyone gets sick with anything other than this mystery thing?” Amanda asked. “If we send them to you, we’re possibly condemning them to something worse.”

“That’s just something we’ll have to deal with on a case-by-case basis,” Jake said. “In another twelve hours or so we’ll be entering the Scottish lochs and the Ambush will surface. Surgeon Lieutenant Vardy will be accessible again, so we won’t be entirely without medical support.”

It looked like everyone was in agreement on what had to be done. Jake thanked Grau and hung up the phone. So far the doctor seemed to have forgotten about Erica, and he was keen for it to stay that way. He had no desire to explain himself in front of the rest of the committee.

• • •

Martine Jacobs and her two children, Oliver and Chloe, set off towards the lift.

“When are we going to eat, Mum? I’m starving!” Oliver dragged his heels along the carpet. His sister grumbled in agreement.

“You’re not starving. How many times have I told you? You eat three meals a day, you can’t be starving just because one is late. Try not eating for a week, then you’ll know what starving really means.”

“A week? Is it true then Mummy?” Chloe looked shocked. “Was the fire true? How will we live with no food for a week?”

“No, no, that’s not what I meant. I meant…oh, never mind. Of course it’s not true. There wasn’t any fire, that’s just a silly rumour.”

“What’s a rumour?”

“It’s when lots of people start believing something that isn’t true.”

“You mean like when everyone started saying those things about you and Uncle Barry?”

Martine turned a shade of scarlet. “Yes, that sort of thing. Right, who’s going to press the button for the lift?”

“Me, me!”

The children pushed and shoved each other, running the last few metres. Oliver won, knocking his smaller sister out of the way at the last second. She folded her arms and began to sulk.

The three of them waited in silence, looking up at the digital display above the brushed-steel sliding doors. It counted upwards: 5…6…7…9.

“It forgot to stop!” Oliver protested. He pushed the call button repeatedly. “Stupid lift! Come back here.” The number refused to change. Oliver rubbed his stomach. “It’s doing it on purpose, it knows how hungry I am!”

“You’re silly, lifts don’t know anything!” Chloe giggled, her momentary tantrum forgotten.

“Come on you two, we’re not waiting around all day for a broken lift, we’ll take the stairs.”

Martine led the way.

“Aw, I hate the stairs!”

“Me too!”

The trio made the short trip to the centre of the ship, the nearest staircase that would take them down to their allocated restaurant.

“Who’s that man, Mummy?” Chloe asked.

“I don’t know. Walk behind me, darling, you too, Oliver.”

“Why?”

“Just do as you’re told!”

The burly man wasn’t the only thing blocking their route. The stairways formed an intersection between the parallel corridors that ran the length of deck eight. This intersection had been sealed off with plastic sheeting.

The man turned to face Martine. “Sorry, madam, stairs are currently out of bounds.”

“What do you mean out of bounds? And why are you wearing that ridiculous mask? It’s very hard to understand you.”

“Can’t say any more right now, madam, but the stairs are no-go. Please return to your cabin with your children and await further instructions.”

Martine felt her cheeks flush red. Oliver’s head poked out from behind her. He saw the white mask and gasped. She pushed him back. “What’s going on? Why aren’t the lifts working? Why are you shutting us in?”

“Madam, please. For your own safety, return to your cabin. The lifts have been temporarily disabled. The captain will issue instructions once everyone is back on deck.”

“What? What does that mean, back on deck? Just this deck, or all decks? Is it just us? I need to go and see my friend, on deck two. He’s very important, he works here. And my children need to eat!”

“Madam, I shan’t tell you again, please return to your cabin or I will have to have you taken there by force.”

“Mummy, I’m scared!” Chloe whimpered.

Martine stared at the man. He stared back, his hand on a radio at his belt. It was clear she wasn’t going to get anywhere with him. “Come on kids, let’s get back. The restaurant is still closed.”

“But Mum! I’m starving!”

“Come on, last one back has to clean the bathroom!”

The challenge worked, and the children charged off at top speed, bumping each other into walls along the way. Martine turned back to the guard. “You can’t imprison us here like this. I’m calling the captain, and the committee. What’s your name? I’m reporting you!”

“My name is Rob Dobson, security officer. The committee sent me here, they closed the deck, madam.”

“Well you haven’t heard the last of me, Mr Dobson.” She turned and stormed off, unsure who she was most annoyed with, the guard for his attitude, or the committee for taking such strange actions. She made it almost all the way back to her cabin before losing her balance and toppling over.

“Mummy? Mummy! Are you alright? Get up Mummy! What’s wrong?”

“It’s fine darling, it’s fine. It’s just…my feet. Mummy’s got a little problem with her feet.”

Eleven

“CAPTAIN NOAH, I think you need to see this.” Dave turned from his lookout position, handing his binoculars to Jake. “On the horizon, twenty degrees to port.”

Jake adjusted the heavy field glasses, bringing the image into sharp focus. They had been sailing past the Outer Hebrides for hours, the low-lying land covered in the now familiar grey ash. Now mainland Scotland was coming into view in the distance. But that wasn’t what Dave had been interested in. “Is that…it looks like…alright, what do you think it is?”

“If I had to guess, I’d say it was a life raft.”

Lucya looked up. “Like the one we found yesterday? Are you sure?”

“It does look like it could be a raft,” Jake agreed. “Difficult to tell from here.”

Lucya put on a pair of headphones and started working her communications console, twisting dials and punching numbers into a computer terminal. Deep in concentration, her face turned to a frown. “I’m not picking up any distress signals, nothing at all.”

“Could we have a problem with the radio?” Jake asked.

“No. I mean, I’m seeing the Ambush’s transponder, and our own, but there’s nothing more than that. No raft. But you’re right, the radar is seeing something tiny ahead. Hang on, talking of the Ambush, they’re calling now.”

“Put them through the speaker.”

 There was a crackle and a hiss, then Captain Coote’s voice boomed loud, filling the bridge.

“Good afternoon, Arcadia, Coote here! Listen, we’re seeing what looks like another raft on the port side.”

“We see it too, Captain, although this one doesn’t seem to be broadcasting a distress signal.”

“Indeed not. However, it is not much of a detour. I believe we should investigate.”

“Agreed. If there’s anyone in there, they need our help.”

“We will surface the Ambush. As we’re approaching the lochs, it’s not going to make much difference to our sailing time. Perhaps you would be good enough to have your men re-establish the connecting walkway? Mine will be standing by to assist.”

“Of course, Captain.”

• • •

Jake left Erica in the capable and delighted hands of Lucya. The Ambush was on the surface once more, and the engineers were in the final stages of hooking up the gangway. By the time he got to the deck two exit, the raft was almost upon them. The two vessels had once again slowed to a crawl as they negotiated their passage carefully, scooping up the raft exactly as before.

“Hi, Jake,” a voice called from the conning tower.

“Eric, good to see you. How has life been underwater?”

“Oh you know, same old same old. Coote’s on his way up. We’re the welcoming party again.”

Jake made his way to the middle of the ramp, watching the sea pass beneath his feet. He could see Atlantic salmon darting about just beneath the surface, and felt immediately hungry. He hoped that the lace makers and crocheters who were repairing the fishing net weren’t caught up in the deck eight quarantine. There were some nice cabins up there, and many of those who had been assigned to work teams had been reallocated rooms on that deck.

“Afternoon, old boy! And a lovely afternoon for it too. I must say, all this popping up above the surface is giving me the appetite for the life of a surface skimmer. One forgets one’s love of the ocean when one is stuck beneath it for weeks on end!”

“No offence, Captain Coote, but I don’t think I’ll be swapping places with you any time soon. But if you decide a change of career is in order, I’m sure we could find you all sorts of interesting options on board the Arcadia,” Jake said, grinning.

“Well yes, maybe one day, when I retire. Gosh, that makes me sound old. I don’t suppose any of us will retire now, will we? All pulling our weight. Eric, ready with the boat hook?”

Eric nodded; he was deep in concentration. Another submariner that Jake didn’t recognise was on duty too, and between them they skilfully hooked the orange canopy of the raft just before it slipped beneath the makeshift walkway.

“Oh, bravo!” Coote gave a little clap. “Very well done. Bring her over to the side, same drill as before.”

“No armed welcoming committee this time?” Jake asked, happily noting the lack of guns.

“Well let’s be honest, after last time, I don’t hold out much hope of finding anyone inside. It doesn’t look like there’s any sign of life in there, does it?”

The submariners manoeuvred the raft into position, making it easily accessible from the hull of the Ambush.

“Hello? Anyone in there? I’m Captain Coote, of HMS Ambush. Terrible name. Ambush, not Coote, I mean. Well, I suppose Coote as well, but anyway, I digress! If you’re in there, do come out and say hello!”

The greeting was met with silence. Coote signalled to Eric, who used his boat hook to pry open the canopy. “Sir, there’s nothing inside!” He looked puzzled.

“You mean nobody inside.”

“No sir, there’s nothing inside, look!”

Eric pulled the open side of the raft around to face the two captains. They both scanned the interior. Not only was there no sign of life, the very bottom of the raft itself had gone.

“It looks like someone just cut it out,” Jake said. “I mean, they didn’t do a great job, look, there are some rough cuts near that side.”

“Who would launch a life raft and then cut out the middle? And did they erect the canopy before or after they cut out the floor? It’s a mystery, that’s for sure!” Coote hooted. “Well, I guess we tie her up with the other one, Eric, if you would be so kind. We seem to be assembling quite the collection!”

“That’s no bad thing,” Jake said. “With no life boats, it’s reassuring to have some other means of escape should anything happen to the ship.”

“Yes, but escape to where exactly?” Coote asked, raising his eyebrows.

“I’ll ask Martin’s team if they can salvage something from it, or even better, if they can repair it,” Jake said, ignoring the question. “Coote, there are a few matters I think I need to bring you up to speed on. In private?”

“Of course, of course. Well there was some coffee brewing when I left, it should be ready by now. Let’s go and partake of a cup and we can have a bit of a chin wag.”

• • •

Mandy Chalmers had had better first days at work. For one thing, she’d been dropped into her new position in the ship’s medical team without so much as an introductory chat, much less any kind of formal interview. She had been waiting for it, of course. Ever since the committee had announced that everyone was expected to work or contribute to the community in one way or another, she knew that her experience as a nurse would be called upon. She hadn’t imagined it would happen quite so suddenly though.

Then there had been the fact her first patient was another nurse. Kiera was probably a very nice person, under normal circumstances, she thought. But trying to help a sick nurse was like trying to tell a chef how to cook his own dinner. Kiera criticised everything Mandy did. The bandages for the sores that were appearing on her legs weren’t the right kind. Then they were too small. Then they weren’t applied correctly. And so it went, on and on. When Doctor Lister found her muttering to herself while writing up notes, he assured her that it was just cultural differences, and that they would all get along just fine in time.

Kiera was just the tip of the iceberg. Once she’d got her sorted out and sedated, there had been an influx of other patients all suffering the same bizarre symptoms: paralysis starting in the feet and working its way up the legs. Sores appearing, usually accompanied by a lot of pain. They had filled the little treatment room in an hour, and had been obliged to move up to a passenger suite on deck eight. The room smelt distinctly of death, but Mandy was a professional and she didn’t complain. She hardly had time to; there were more patients arriving every hour. They had commandeered the suite next door as an overflow, such was the number of people arriving.

Her colleagues, David and Grau, were too busy to offer much help or guidance. She wasn’t sure there was much they could have said anyway; the doctor seemed to be as baffled by the mystery illness now sweeping through deck eight as anyone else.

Now Mandy was attending to the very unpleasant task of changing the dressings on Scott, the patient in the most advanced stage of the disease. He had been unconscious since her arrival, and that showed no sign of changing.

She pulled back the sheet that covered his body. The huge red sores that she’d seen breaking out on others, had covered him entirely. There was no longer any clear skin; the sores had joined together.

Mandy began to remove the old dressings. They were soaked with fluid, and as they came away they pulled putrid flesh with them. The stench was overpowering, causing her instinctively to retch and pull back, covering her face with her gloved hands. For a moment she remained there, motionless, unable to approach Scott because of the noxious odour of his decaying body, but unable to just walk away. While she tried to find the courage to move, Scott stirred.

At first he just emitted a low moaning sound. But it quickly grew in intensity, becoming a groan, and ultimately a howl. His eyes opened, clear blue discs against a red and blotchy face. He looked right at Mandy, and she understood at once: he knew the end was near. As intense pain gripped him, Scott gave one last scream. His back arched off the bed, every muscle going into spasm. What remained of the surrounding tissue couldn’t cope with the stress, and with a sound like old bed sheets being ripped, his chest tore open. The bones in his legs snapped like twigs. They were the only thing holding him in the arched position, and as they cracked and split, the little flesh that covered them sagged and fell away. Blood flooded into his mouth and throat, the scream became a gurgle, and then there was silence. A heap of twisted blood, fetid organs, and flesh covered the bed.

Mandy threw up what little food she had eaten that day, and passed out.

• • •

“Here, drink this, it will make you feel a lot better.”

“Thanks, Doctor Lister. I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me. I’ve never fainted before. The sight of blood never normally worries me.”

“It was more than just blood, Mandy. Nobody should have to see something like that. And please, call me Grau.”

“If the other patients go the same way, we’re all going to see a lot more of exactly that.”

Lister nodded gravely. He knew she was right.

“I have called Janice. We need to get Scott—what is left of him—down to her quickly so she can perform the post-mortem. I will take him myself. There is a goods lift that very few people use. It is a risk, but one I feel we have to take.”

“Has she said if the post-mortem on the first body has given her anything to go on?”

“A little, but a second body will provide confirmation of some of her theories. It is a sad truth that more bodies improve our chances of beating this, as they will provide more data. We have struck gold with Mrs Hanson; it appears that she had some training in infectious diseases before turning to forensic pathology. She downplays her experience, but she is much better equipped than I to solve the mystery of this unusual illness.”

“What do we do about space? We’ve almost run out again, even with the other cabin.”

“I am rather hoping the captain will put out a message soon, informing everyone aboard of why deck eight has been quarantined. Then we will be able to freely treat people in their rooms. Speaking of the captain, he was supposed to bring our patient’s daughter to us. In the chaos it slipped my mind. If the girl is not here, then…oh my, I have to find her, now!”

Grau ambled to the telephone where he dialled the number for the bridge. “Lucya? Grau. Captain Noah was supposed to bring a girl to us, do you know where she is? It is most important…What? She is with you? On the bridge?” Grau sat down slowly, his hand on his forehead. “Lucya, this is very important. Nobody is to enter or leave the bridge, do you understand me? Nobody, under any circumstances, until I give the all clear. The girl’s father has just passed away. The disease is spreading fast, and she is most likely infected. I am sorry, Lucya, but Jake’s actions have endangered you and anyone else who is up there. As much as I respect him for what he has achieved, his actions here have been most foolish. If you start to suffer any symptoms, please contact us immediately…Yes, the girl’s father, he is dead. Perhaps it is best left to the captain to explain that to her, as he thought she was better off with you than with us. I am sorry, Lucya, I have to go.” He replaced the receiver, his face a mixture of anger and disappointment.