A whimper that I couldn't stop rose to my throat as I was forcibly thrust in front of a doctor in full PPE. The soldier left without another word and pulled the privacy screen shut.
"Shirt and pants off, please," the doctor said, looking at me expectantly.
Understandably, I hesitated. "Why?"
"I have to check you for bites."
It made sense but I was wary of undressing in front of this strange man, doctor or no. My normal physician was another girl like me and she still left the room if I needed to undress.
His patience seemed to be on thin ice, though. "I'm barely going to touch you, just a visual exam. If you refuse, you can't get through this checkpoint."
Sighing, I took my winter coat off and draped it over the back of the chair nearby. My shirt and jeans went over it, too, until I was only in my bra and panties, shivering and red-faced.
True to his word, he didn't lay hands on me much, just made me turn around and twist my various limbs so he could see them from all angles. When his hands-off exam was finished, he instructed me to dress but leave my coat off and have a seat.
Once I had compiled and was sitting at his table with him, he had one last request. "Let me have your arm, please."
I swallowed the saliva pooling in my mouth and gave him access to my bare arm. While he wiped the crook of my elbow with an alcohol swab, I tried not to sit there and whine the whole time.
"Please be still," the doctor huffed. I stopped trying to find my family and sat straight. Not that I could see much around the privacy screen, anyway.
It was somewhat quiet in these test rooms, though I wasn't sure why. There were no doors—they were more like the runs you see in horse races—but the tent overhead and curtains dividing exam areas was enough to shut out some of the noise from outside; the yelling was still there in the background.
I looked up at the blaring light beaming down, squinting and trying to focus on something other than the needle he was preparing to stick in my arm.
"The results won't take long and I won't need much blood. You'll feel a little pinch. Just sit tight and this'll all be over soon," he told me, his raspy voice contesting with the man on the megaphone.
"I have epilepsy. That won't, uh, compromise the test will it?" I brought his attention to my medical necklace.
He glanced at it briefly. "No. You should be fine. Any other questions?"
I had a feeling he was trying to keep me occupied and I was glad for it. "What is this test for? I passed the bite test, didn't I?"
The doctor deflated somewhat when he answered. "We have reason to suspect that there might be other ways to pass the virus on. We're not fully sure yet, though, so we're being safe."
All I could manage was a tiny little nod of my head: he stuck the needle in at that moment.
"What about those people in the quarantine zone out there?" I asked through clenched teeth, squirming as he drew blood into the syringe. The sight of it made me queasy and I looked away.
"I'm afraid I'm not allowed to discuss patient information."
"Oh, uh, I meant what's going to happen to them?"
For a brief lapse of time, he said nothing and busied himself with placing a plain bandage on the draw sight. I was just about to give up and ask something else when he finally said, "I'm not sure. I think they'll go to a secure facility for treatment."
He was busy placing the vial of my blood in the machine so he wasn't looking at me, but I still had the distinct feeling I was being lied to.
There was no known treatment yet.
While we waited for my fate to be revealed, I put my coat back on and hugged myself. I was still cold from when I'd been half-naked.
A huge commotion broke out that involved a lot of screaming. I startled out of my chair and backed away from the curtain, breathing heavily. The doctor stood and navigated around the table to peer outside. I shuffled up behind him and did the same.
We caught the tail-end of two soldiers hauling an angry and belligerent teen.
I realized just as he disappeared outside the tent that it was Eli Vanderpeach from my gym class. I was so busy gaping in disbelief that I didn't realize the doctor was returning and he nearly tripped over me.
"Sorry," I squeaked, scurrying back to my seat. The machine was beeping.
The doctor shot me a disgruntled look and tended to the machine. My leg was bouncing with all kinds of nervous energy and I thought of my family, wondering what was happening to them.
No one in my family had been bitten, I was sure of it, but what if it was true that the virus could be contracted through other means? If the infected were being carted off somewhere else, there was still a real possibility that we could be separated.
"Alright, looks good. Go collect your things."
Startled, I stared at the doctor with growing disbelief. He ignored me and slipped a blue hospital band around my wrist, probably too let the soldiers know I was clean.
"Really?"
"Yes. You tested negative for NLV. Now, please, we have to keep the line moving."
Relief flooded through me and I couldn't leave my examination room fast enough—I barely remembered to thank him right before I stepped out.
The soldier waiting checked my wrist band and led me to the table to our belongings. Dad's stuff was still there but the rest of my family's weren't. I thought about waiting for him right there, but the soldier demanded I grab my bag and head to the back, so I had no choice but to comply.
Mom and Maddie were waiting just outside the tent and I ran to them, clinging to my mom. Maddie was now standing on her own, her bag slung over Mom's shoulder.
"I'm so glad you made it. Did you see your father?" Mom asked.
I shook my head. "No. I was going to wait for him at the table with our stuff but the soldiers wouldn't let me."
"That's alright I'm sure he'll be out soon."
Mom was already carrying her backpack which likely was much heavier than mine or Maddie's, so I tried to convince Maddie to take it back. I leaned down to her height and smiled. She shyly smiled back.
"Mads, why don't you hold your own bag for Mommy?" My head was canted and I was trying to be nice. "We all need to help out right now."
She shook her head and hid her face in Mom's side.
"It's fine, Taryn."
Ignoring my mom, I said, "Why not? Mommy has to worry about things. You can carry your bag right? Where's your present?"
"Taryn . . . don't start a fight."
Maddie pouted and crossed her arms. "Don't wanna."
"C'mon, you gotta help out. Look, I'm carrying my bag." I showed it to her.
"Don't wanna!"
Mom rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Taryn!"
My temper piqued. "You can't be such a big baby, Maddie! Mom, make her carry her own bag so you don't have so much to worry about! You can't let her be such a selfish little brat."
Tears welled in Maddie's eyes and her face turned red. I didn't waver in my resolve, though, even as Mom started to lecture me.
"Taryn! Apologize to your sister this instant. Do you really think starting a fight is helping me out in any way? She's six! The best I can hope for is if she stays quiet and if carrying her bag does that, then that's what I'll do," she hissed, leaning in close so she didn't cause any more of a scene than had already been caused.
I muttered something vaguely resembling an apology. Before Mom could tan my hide, Dad emerged from the tent with his pair of bags and Mom sighed in relief.
"Daddy!" Maddie wailed, making a grabby hand at him but making no effort to abandon Mom. He took her hand when he was close enough and she let out a whiny hiccup; "Taryn was being mean!"
He gave me an exasperated look but said nothing to me, only turned back to Maddie and said, "This is a very stressful time for everyone. We should not be fighting with each other. Let's just go to the buses, okay?"
Maddie sniffed and nodded.
"Good, let's go."
"Wait," I groaned, stopping them long enough to grab Maddie's bag from Mom's shoulder, "I'll carry this stupid thing."
"No!" Maddie shrieked.
"Oh my God, what?"
"I want Mommy to carry it!"
"What does it even matter? I'm trying to help!"
"Taryn just let me—"
"No! I can carry it just as good as Mom."
"No!" Maddie wailed, bouncing up and down and bawling. "No! No! No! No!"
"Girls, so help me if you don't both just shut—"
An awful sound filtered over our familial bickering and silenced the entire area. Everything seemed to come to a complete stop as all eyes turned to the quarantine fence. The entire horde of locked up, potentially infected people were clamoring at the chain link. What had been intelligent--if nasty--words aimed at the soldiers had turned into incoherent snarling and bellowing.
I clutched Dad's hand and Maddie stopped crying about the fact that I had her bag and Mom didn't. Now she had something else entirely to cry about.
Dad scooped my little sister up into his arms and started at a brisk pace toward the buses. "Let's hurry up and board."
There was no more arguing from any of us. I shouldered Maddie's bag and did my best to ignore the awkward way it bumped against my own.
Behind us, the hastily-constructed barrier shook and rattled. Everyone around has started making a break for the busses, too, and the soldiers desperately tried to control the infected.
It was hard not to look over my shoulder when I heard the fence rattle and crash.
It was hard listening to the soldiers opening fire upon the screeching infected and the screams that kicked up behind us.
It was hard to keep my footing as the crowd grew denser, everyone attempting to pile into the school buses at the same time. They were shoving and trampling each other.
It was hard to keep from crying as the infected charged past the military's firepower and came bearing down upon us.
Someone yanked me by my arm away from the bus my family was headed for. I was ready to fight a bitch, but it was my mom leading me off to wherever my father was headed, still carrying Maddie. He had shed the duffle bag encumbering him.
I was going to protest this executive decision to flee the evacuation point, but several others were doing the same. With Mom guiding me along, I was free to chance a glance toward the line of buses and I choked back a whimper.
The infected had just reached the buses. They were tearing through the groups of people unable to board in time and others yet were shoving at the buses—
They managed to topple one before I tore my gaze away, misty-eyed and terrified. Now what were we going to do?