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“That’s it!” Dr. Bauer cried, as if she couldn’t believe the tactic had worked. “Get the restraints off and put him in the recovery position.”
The cacophony of the other patients died back to earlier levels, with the occasional braaaaains or hunnnnngry, as if in sync with Armell’s state.
Breathing hard, I sat back while four workers disentangled Armell from the wrecked cot and rolled him to his left side. “How long is it safe for him to seize like this?”
Dr. Bauer knelt beside him, checking pulse points. “We’ll get him back on the monitor in a sec. For now he’s breathing. All we need is enough time to set up his restraints again.”
Within a few minutes the assistants had a new cot set up and restraints in place. They rolled Armell onto a blanket, then heaved him up onto the cot.
Dr. Bauer, armed with her Kevlar sleeves, cautiously removed the face shield while the assistants worked swiftly to tighten restraints. Armell sucked in a snotty breath and let it out in a low moan. No thrashing. No biting.
I rested my hand on his shoulder. “There you go, sweetie. It’s going to be all right.” But what the hell? My intuition told me it was no coincidence he turned into a zombie berserker not long after eating pure brains. Which meant my hopes that brains could be a shambler stabilizer were now dust.
On the other row, a patient abruptly let out an eerie, piercing whistle-cry that didn’t sound like it could come from a human throat. Number nine—the one who reminded me of Dr. Leblanc. His back arched and his head thrashed as if he’d been doused in burning oil. He screamed then. Loud. Guttural. Horrific.
A second later he collapsed to the cot and didn’t move again. His heart monitor went from normal looking blips to a wavy line, like a series of steep hills and valleys close together.
Dr. Bauer raced to his side. “Code on nine! Sustained V-tach. Move it, people, move it!”
I stayed beside Armell, hand still on his shoulder, staring in shock as the medical team scrambled in organized chaos. Too much like Connor. Sharp orders flowed together in my ears, but the team reacted and acted smoothly with chest compressions and ventilation and medications.
Only a few minutes ago, I’d given that man Kristi’s dirty-sock-smelling cure trial. I glanced over and saw that she hadn’t moved from her spot. She watched the team work on patient nine, forehead puckered and mouth tight as she slowly pulled on gloves. Definitely didn’t look happy.
I dragged my attention back to the frenzy of activity around cot nine.
Charging to one-twenty joules. Clear. Shock. More chest compressions. Epi.
I couldn’t see exactly what was happening, but judging by the serious focus of the team, it wasn’t good. I remained beside Armell, talking to him, soothing. There was nothing I could do for patient nine except hope for a miracle. But deep down, I knew he was gone.
I didn’t even know his name.
V-fib. Compressions. Shock at two hundred. Cursing. Asystole.
More compressions. Epi.
Nothing.
Dr. Bauer stepped back, wiped her forehead with a sleeve. “Shit . . . shit. I’m calling it. Time of death 18:22.”
Kristi started toward Dr. Bauer. I followed, stomach churning after witnessing the man’s death.
Dr. Bauer’s eyes were haggard over her mask. “The others we lost. No screaming. Nothing like this.”
“I’m so very sorry to be brusque in this difficult moment,” Kristi said, “but I need to take postmortem tissue and blood samples from the deceased immediately, along with random samples from some of the others.”
Dr. Bauer waved a weary hand. “Take whatever you need if it will help put an end to this nightmare.”
Kristi murmured a quiet thanks then gestured for me to follow her. At the end of the row she spoke through clenched teeth. “I need my damn briefcase.”
“If it contains sampling equipment, sure.”
/> Kyle glided over as if on cue, briefcase over his shoulder. To my chagrin, he passed the briefcase to Fritz then held his phone out for me. “Angel, there’s a call for you. I’ll help Dr. Charish collect the samples.”
I took the phone with a nod of thanks. Kyle would not only collect samples, but also keep an eagle eye on what she was doing.
While the two of them got to work, I speed-walked to a far corner beside the bleachers, out of earshot of anyone except maybe Kyle.
“Hello?”
