Isolation (Book 1): Shut In Read online

  Time to resign himself to living in third world conditions for the foreseeable future.

  ◆◆◆

  Ellie never thought she'd regret working so hard to keep the pounds off.

  Her friends had all expressed their admiration for how quickly she'd lost the baby weight after Tallie, and kept it off as she reached the downhill stretch of her late 20s and felt her once bulletproof metabolism begin to slow.

  Nick had certainly been appreciative of her efforts.

  But now, limping along at what could only generously be called a walk, stomach a hollow void and mind either a vague blank or consumed by agonizing thoughts of her favorite foods, well . . .

  She deeply regretted every mile ran, yoga session sweated through, and slice of cheesecake or freshly baked chocolate chip cookie or salted chocolate caramel she'd waved off.

  Would she have more energy if her body had some extra pounds to burn? Would she be able to focus on moving forward in a straight line, rather than discovering she'd randomly veered off on the downhill slope of the hill beside the Interstate as she daydreamed about fried chicken sandwiches, and steak and mashed potatoes, and caesar salads, and-

  Gah! Thinking of food again. It was almost impossible not to, even though she knew it just made her situation more miserable.

  Hal put a supportive hand under her arm and gently led her back to a straight line. “Just a few more miles,” he said, voice hoarse.

  As luck would have it, while the mile markers counting down to their destination were correct, his prediction wasn't: a minute later they laboriously hobbled to the top of a low rise that gave them a view of the road ahead, to be treated to the sight of hundreds of tents and temporary structures enclosed in a high chain-link fence, sprouting up from a field stretching along their side of I-25.

  A quarantine camp, built well outside the city limits of Colorado Springs.

  For a moment Ellie just stood frozen, staring at the carefully laid out rows of widely spaced, small tents, and the mass of humanity on display among them. She'd never expected to be happy to see a quarantine camp, let alone eager to approach one, and ruefully thought back to the extreme lengths she'd gone to in LA to avoid going anywhere near that one.

  Amazing what a week of hardship could do to a person's perspective. Then again, even if she had still felt that way about this camp, it wasn't as if they had much choice under the circumstances.

  The moment of stunned silence was broken when Hal whooped, with surprising energy considering their hunger, thirst, and exhaustion, and whirled to pull her into a crushing hug. “This is it! We can finally get help!”

  Ellie hugged him back, staring at the camp over his shoulder. Just that suddenly, all the walls of determination she'd built to keep herself moving through this ordeal collapsed, as if the sight of help only a few hundred yards away had given her permission to let herself have a moment of weakness.

  She found herself shuddering with sobs as her pent up emotions flooded out, finding desperate strength of her own through her exhaustion to clutch back at him. She wasn't sure how long they stood holding each other, exulting in their ordeal finally being over, feeling some of their burden of despair lift at the sight of civilization.

  It was a good moment. Incongruously, one of the best in her life in spite of the surrounding circumstances.

  Ellie finally lifted her head from his shoulder, laughing a bit self-consciously as she wiped at her eyes. “Thanks,” she said. “And sorry for just falling to pieces like that.”

  Hal laughed too, light green eyes warm. “If you hadn't, I would've. Being there to pat you on the back helped me keep it together myself.” They both laughed again, easing the awkwardness of the moment, and she shifted to pull away from him.

  Then he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.

  For a moment she was too shocked to respond. She should've seen that this could be where the moment they'd just shared was headed, but she honestly hadn't. To her even greater surprise, she found herself slipping back into his arms and returning the kiss with unexpected fierceness. He was a good man, and he'd been by her side steadfastly through one of the worst times of her life. And it went without saying he was good looking.

  And she'd been so lonely, had missed this feeling for so long.

  Then sanity reasserted itself and Ellie pulled away sharply with a gasp, taking a step back. Hal was the better part of a decade younger than her. He was barely out of his teens, for crying out loud! Or, well, four years out.

  Still, it was ludicrous to think they'd have any hope of something serious, and in the middle of trying to survive humanity's potential extinction was a terrible time for a casual fling. Besides, all her focus needed to be on getting back to her kids. Nothing else mattered right now.

  Hal was looking at her with a sinking expression, as if he could read her thoughts in whatever it was he saw on her face. He stepped back too, shaking his head. “Misread the moment, sorry.”

  Ellie looked away, heart still pounding from their kiss. “Not the moment, maybe, but everything else,” she said gently. “This can't happen, Hal. You know that.”

  The young man shrugged, trying for casual but looking more like despondent. “Maybe not. I just think you're incredible, El. Brave, and determined. Beautiful. I want . . . I just think you're amazing, that's all.”

  The flush in her cheeks deepened at the deep sincerity in his words, but she shook her head firmly. “You're a good man, Hal. You're pretty amazing yourself. But this still can't happen.”

  “If that's what you really want,” he whispered. His cheeks had reddened, too, and he quickly turned away towards the camp, clearing his throat and forcing briskness into his tone. “I guess we should, um, go get that help we desperately need?”

  Ellie nodded and fell into step beside him, an awkward silence hanging heavy as they limped down the rise towards the camp.

  There was a roadblock on the southbound side of the Interstate, a few patrol cars and a bunch of sturdy barricades. The lanes behind the roadblock for a hundred yards had become an impromptu parking lot, with hundreds of vehicles carefully parked in the two outer lanes with the center lane open, so any of them could leave at any time if needed.

  That was an encouraging sight, she hoped.

  A car full of people passed them as they approached, pulling to a stop at the roadblock and waiting patiently. A few seconds later a policeman in a full hazmat suit emerged from one of the patrol cars to go and talk to the driver, adjusting the strap of some heavy military style rifle slung over one shoulder as he walked.

  “Well, this should give us some idea of whether or not we should start running,” Hal said out of the corner of his mouth as they continued forward more cautiously. His tone was strained, obviously still smarting from her rejection.

  Ellie snorted. “You think the cop guarding a government quarantine camp is going to just up and start shooting at an innocent family?”

  “Probably not.” He shrugged. “Still, crazy as things have gotten it doesn't hurt to be cautious.”

  True. She'd never expected to be kidnapped and groped by a gang of robbers in some sleepy little town in the United States of America, so it was obvious the world she knew was dying as fast as the people who lived there.

  The policeman didn't suddenly go nuts on the family in the car, of course. After a few minutes, when Ellie and Hal were almost within earshot of whatever conversation he was having with the driver, he abruptly stepped back and waved the car forward.

  Another officer in a hazmat suit emerged from a patrol car to guide the new arrivals to a parking space. Then, while keeping a cautious distance, he watched as the family gathered their things before guiding them on towards a pavilion near the camp's entrance, where a few people in the bright yellow hazmat suits of relief workers waited.

  The policeman at the roadblock had shot Ellie and Hal a few glances as they approached, and now instead of heading back to his car he waved at them to keep coming, thankfu
lly leaving his big rifle slung over his shoulder where it was.

  Although he called out long before they got anywhere near him, tone friendly but firm. “Welcome to the Colorado Springs Quarantine Camp! We have a specific protocol for new arrivals, so I'm going to need to ask you to stop at that distance while I ask you a few questions.”

  They obligingly stopped, although Hal raised his voice with some urgency. “Before we get started, Officer, we need to report that we were attacked and kidnapped by a gang of robbers two days ago. We barely managed to escape.”

  The officer straightened, expression darkening inside the slightly cloudy faceplate of his hazmat suit and tone becoming sharp. “Was this somewhere east of Denver?”

  Her friend nodded. “In Watkins.”

  The other man cursed and shook his head grimly. “We're aware of this group. They've been operating in Denver for years, and used the chaos as an opportunity to step up their activities. We're dealing with it.”

  “Dealing with it?” Ellie burst out. “There's over thirty men out there attacking small towns, raping women and taking them as sex slaves! They put their hands all over me, and would've done worse if we hadn't escaped! Even in a disaster like this, how is that not top priority in the United States of America?”

  The policeman grit his teeth in clear frustration. “It is, ma'am, I assure you. Law enforcement is stretched to the limit dealing with relief efforts, and the detachment of Armed Forces assigned to Colorado to assist us was struck by a Zolos outbreak. Half are sick or in quarantine, and the other half are barely enough to handle the big cities. But we're moving against this group soon, and we're going to help all the people they've taken, you have my word.”

  Hal nodded at that, apparently satisfied. “That's a relief to hear, um . . .”

  “Officer Merrill,” the man growled.

  Ellie decided to take a cue from her friend and stop trying to rile the man whose help they desperately needed. “It is good to hear,” she said. “I'm Ellie, this is Hal.”

  Merrill nodded, somewhere between polite and curt. Or maybe that was just the baggy hood of his suit making the movement seem exaggerated. “Where you folks from?”

  “Kansas City,” Hal replied. “We were driving there from LA, trying to get home to our families. If we can get some help here, maybe a chance to contact them to let them know we're okay, we'll be out of your hair as quickly as possible.”

  The officer hesitated, expression becoming weary. Like he was expecting more outbursts from them. He also absently reached up to grip the strap of his rifle. “I'm sorry, sir, ma'am. As a matter of public safety, we need to hold you in quarantine until we're certain you're not carrying the Zolos virus.”

  Ellie felt her heart sink; had they avoided the quarantine camp in LA just to end up in this one? Even if it was a step up from starving and dying of thirst out in the middle of nowhere, that didn't mean she wanted to be stuck here when her children needed her.

  “How long will that take?” Hal demanded.

  Merrill looked away. “Twenty-one days.”

  “Three weeks?” Ellie demanded, so shocked she didn't care if the question came out as more of a screech. “Why? You'll know whether or not we have the virus after just a few days, when we should be showing symptoms.”

  The policeman shook his head. “I'm afraid it's not that simple. You could be among the rare few who were exposed but don't get sick from it, or only suffered mild symptoms before recovering. You'd still be contagious, though, and we have to make absolutely sure you're safe before we can allow you to continue on.”

  She shook her own head adamantly. “I can't wait three weeks! My ex-husband might be infected with Zolos, and he's the only one who can care for my kids. Right now I've got an eight-year-old caring for a five-year-old all on his own. I need to get to them.”

  Hal put a sympathetic hand on her arm. Or maybe a cautionary one; Merrill's eyes had hardened in firm resignation, and he was fiddling with the strap of that big scary rifle of his. “That's not an option, I'm afraid. We have a mandate to detain all travelers to prevent the further possible spread of Zolos.”

  “But we haven't been in physical contact with anyone else since this all began,” Ellie said in a voice of quiet desperation. “It's just been us two for over a week.”

  The officer gave her a funny look and glanced at Hal, and she felt her face flushing when she realized the conclusion about their relationship he must be reaching from that. But at the moment she had far bigger concerns than whether some policeman in Colorado thought she was a cougar.

  In any case Merrill just shook his head, finally looking deeply apologetic. “I'm sorry, ma'am, but we just can't take that chance. You'll have to go in the camp.”

  She eyed the nearest thing to hide behind, wondering if she could make it there before the man shot her. Wondering if she was really willing to go that far, disobey the proper authorities and risk hers and Hal's lives.

  After all, Nick had things in hand. And how likely was it that some random thug who'd been breaking into the homes of people in self-imposed quarantine was actually carrying the virus? A day or two more and her ex-husband could be confident he hadn't exhibited any symptoms of the disease. He'd be able to risk going back out around Tallie and Ricky, if he really needed to.

  Only . . . back when he'd offered to bring the kids and come pick her up in Utah, Ellie had adamantly insisted he not take any chances where they were concerned. Was she ready to go back on that now?

  Merrill saw her eyeing a nearby bush and reluctantly unslung his rifle, although he kept it pointed at the ground. “Ma'am, please don't force me to do something I'll have to live with. I will follow orders, for the safety of the people of Colorado.”

  Hal patted her arm soothingly and leaned towards her, lowering his voice to an urgent whisper. “We're dying of hunger and thirst, El. I know this has to be tearing you apart, but what options do we really have? Wait three weeks and hope for the best, or get shot on some road two states away from home while resisting arrest by a lawful authority?”

  Ellie thought a bit bitterly that he'd thought it was sexy when she'd jumped the median to avoid that roadblock in LA, which was pretty much the same thing. But she couldn't deny he had a point. She stared beyond the policeman at the rows of widely spaced tents, feeling a surge of numb despair.

  Three weeks. Her children could be gone by then. Her mom could be gone. Not to mention Hal's mom and siblings and other loved ones he was trying so hard to get home to.

  There was a more selfish consideration, though. “What if someone else in there is carrying Zolos?” she asked. “You want us to expose ourselves “for the safety of the people of Colorado?”

  Merrill ignored her sarcastic tone. “Well like you told your boyfriend, you'll be kept separate for five days to ensure you don't show symptoms. From that point you can join the general population, and mingle with the others or keep to yourselves to your heart's content.”

  Hal flushed. “We're not together,” he protested sheepishly. Although his tone suggested it wasn't his preferred arrangement.

  “I really don't care, sir.” Merrill used his rifle to wave them away from the Interstate, towards the front of the camp where the aid workers were processing the new arrivals from the car. “Please come with me. Out in front, if you would.”

  Hal gently urged Ellie in that direction, and with her shoulders slumping in defeat she went. She felt like she was failing her children with every step, though.

  The policeman who'd been escorting the family had already gone back to the cars, but Merrill stayed hovering warily nearby while they waited for the other new arrivals to be processed. She and Hal stayed far from the couple and their three kids, waiting as the relief workers talked to them for a few minutes.

  Ellie had been able to slightly forget her agony of bodily discomforts with the excitement of reaching the camp and talking to Merrill, then the unpleasant confrontation with him. But in spite of her frantic worry fo
r Tallie and Ricky, during a wait that seemed to last forever those discomforts all came rushing back, so insistent she slumped to the ground in misery.

  It took everything she had not to curl up in a ball and whimper; there was probably food a stone's throw from here, and water too. Having to suffer when relief was so near, after going without for so long, was pure torment. Especially when she felt like a traitor to her family for doing so.

  Finally the relief workers finished with the family and one led them into the camp, past two wary looking guards in hazmat suits with batons, pepper spray, and stun guns on their belts. The remaining worker called them over, having them stop the same distance of twenty feet that she'd kept the family to.

  “Boy, you two look like you've had a real time of it,” she said, giving them a sympathetic smile through the clear plastic faceplate on her suit's hood. She reached under the table and pulled out two water bottles, fresh out of a cooler and beaded with water droplets. “Here, they're safe,” she assured them as she tossed the bottles underhand one after the other.

  Ellie was pretty sure she'd found her new best friend as she desperately wrenched off the cap and chugged the entire bottle in one breathless rush.

  The relief worker neatly laid two clipboards out in front of her, then began working through a long list of questions for them. It was nothing particularly daunting, somewhere between filling out paperwork for a visit to the doctor's office and going through customs while traveling outside the country. Hal also seemed to have no problem working through the bureaucratic tangle, probably used to it from traveling to visit his dad.

  While Ellie was fine answering every question posed to her, she also had some of her own. “Are you going to be able to feed this many people for three weeks?” she asked, looking through the fence at all the people among the sprawling tents. She really didn't like the idea of being trapped in some quarantine camp when it ran out of food.