As the two of them left the break room a woman wearing blue scrubs ran into the corridor screaming, blood oozed from a large crescent shaped mark on her neck. Pressing her hand to her neck, she continued to run, barely managing to stay upright, tripping over her own two feet. She stopped when she got to them, she was a young woman in her early 30s, named Annamarie, she had worked at the hospital for as long as Juliette could remember. "Juliette," she grabbed onto the front of her scrubs, "We have to get out of here," she paused, wheezing a little, blood pooling in her mouth.
"Calm down Anna, tell me what's happening? How are you hurt?" Juliette used a calming voice, a sense of complete and utter control in the manner in which she spoke, a calmness only present in those who have worked in high stress fields such as the medical field for years. Looking searchingly in the other woman's eyes and grabbing her clean hand she began stroking it comfortingly.
"I... I went to get one of the patients from the waiting room and.. and they all began attacking each other and... and biting each other... and I ran. When I opened the ER doors to get inside they chased me, some of them got in and they began to bite the staff." A glazed look went over the woman's eyes for a second as she recalled the scene. "They began to eat them. One of them... it" she put her second hand up to get neck as if realizing for the first time what had happened, "bit me." Tears weld up in her dark eyes and began running down her cheek. Unexpectedly she pushed past the pair bursting out crying and running down the hall. Neither moved or said a word once she had gone, they just looked at each other in surprise. Daniel pushed his hand through his hair lost in thought, a quizzical look passed over his features, his stomach knotting. Worry worked its way through his body in waves of uncertainty, his heart rate picking up, even though outwardly he appeared the picture of confidence. Going to school to become a doctor taught you how to appear confident even when doubt rushed through your mind.
"Should we," Juliette sounded hoarse and paused clearing her throat, regaining her calm controlled voice "Should we go into the ER, or should we call the cops?"
"She appeared attacked, that was definitely a bite mark, let's call the cops, just to be safe," Daniel pulled his phone from his back pocket and dialed 911, already working out what he would say. The phone rang twice than went to a busy line, no one picking up. Frustrated, believing it to be the fault of his phone Daniel hung up and dialed once more, but again, busy. "The line is busy, I think my phone is broken."
"Let me grab mine," Juliette opened the break room door.
An older woman wearing identical scrubs to the last and big glasses rounded the same corner Annamarie had, her white hair swayed behind her shoulder as she puffed towards them, limping. Seeing the pair she screamed. "Run, run get out of here. Daniel! Juliette! If you get bit you become one of them." she sobbed. "If you get bit you become one of them," behind her the nurse from the night before who had been bitten by the young woman chased. Blood poured from her mouth, her eyes looked crazed. She slipped a bit as she ran around the corner, slamming into the wall. Blood soaked the front of her scrubs; where she ran red footprints and blood dripped on the floor behind her. A young male patient in a hospital gown blood staining the front of it, slammed into the bloody nurse slipping on the red liquid, they both fell in a heap on the ground. Even on their stomachs they crawled forward, one hand outstretched as they hurriedly got to their feet.
Shocked Juliette barely registered Daniel shoving her into the break room, before pulling Donna in behind him and shutting the door. Even though the door was coded he took a chair and shoved it under it for extra measures. Donna put her hands on her knees trying in vain to catch her breath. Bang, Bang the two bodies hit the door, and the female voice let out a roar, bang, bang, they attempted to break in, slamming again against it. The door hardly even shivered with their efforts, although you could hear them hard at work. Juliette grabbed for her dying phone, the screen was black and despite her efforts, it wouldn't turn on. The windows in the break room, like on most parts of a hospital, were shatter proof and did not open, so with the only way out blocked there was no way to get out. "Give me your phone!" Juliette stuck her hand out towards the wide eyed Daniel and he fumbled for it dropping it and catching it as he did. "I already tried 911," he said starting the obvious to Juliette and she shook her head.
"I know but last I checked you didn't call Ronnie, he can do something, I know it," she dialed the number and called. No one answered, she called again, and a third time with the same results, Ronnie had Daniel's number what was wrong with him. Frustrated she sent him a text over Daniel's phone.
Hey it's Juliette, I am with Daniel and a nurse trapped in the breakroom at work. Some psychos are outside attacking everybody. Tried calling 911, line busy. Send help.
After the message sent Juliette sat hard on a chair shaking. Having nothing better to do Daniel began to pace the small space back and forth past Donna who sat crying hysterically in the corner. A scream came from the other side of the door and the banging that felt to have lasted hours and yet may not have been more than 30 minutes stopped. "I want to see if they left," Daniel whispered and Juliette looked at him unsure.
"Maybe we should wait for Ronnie?" Juliette suggested. The lights flickered above their heads, once, than twice, before shutting off, a second letter the backup generator came on and a small emergency light by the door turned on.
Daniel ignored her and moved the furniture from in front of the door. Taking a few deep breaths preparing he laid his hand on the door closing his eyes. Putting his second hand ontop of the first he began to crack the door open slowly, trying seriously not to make a sound. A single white light next to the exit sign flickered in the corner trying to illuminate the whole of the hallway. A metallic tinge stung his nose as he scanned the whole hallway, nothing moved, the only shape remaining was a corpse near the exit, a pool of blood surrounding the body, the light flickered above the corpse, which Daniel tried not to focus on on, the woman wore a hospital gown, had been a patient, it was his job to care for his patient and yet he had stayed safe on the other side of the door as she screamed for help. The woman's pale arm was outstretched towards him. Slowly he closed the door and Juliette looked expectantly at him.
"So, is it safe?" Juliette whispered lowly as if speaking any louder might draw attention to them
"Yes there isn't a single living thing in that hallway," Daniel said slowly in response. "We should go, we may not get an opportunity like this again, and the cops aren't responding, so my only guess is we aren't the only ones."
Juliette nodded but Donna didn't respond, she stayed in her tight ball no longer crying. "I think you may be right, this might be our best opportunity. But where would we go? I don't think the streets can be safe either, remember that homeless man, I saw him down there Danielle, didn't you?"
"Uhh yeah, I don't have a car nearby. I took the train from Jersey. So I don't know what to say."
"Well where are we going to go? What are we going to do? What's our plan when we get out?" Juliette searched Daniel's face as if she could will an answer from it.
"Let's just come up with a plan, I guess," Daniel shrugged and she nodded looking a bit sulky.