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It was as if the world opened up and swallowed her whole, as if she was spinning around and there was no way to stop. “What does that mean?” Although she had a pretty good idea of what it meant, she needed to hear them say it. She needed to know for sure.
“It means he’s carrying the virus. It means although he’s not sick, he can give it to other people.” The two men looked to each other before glancing back at her. “It means he can’t be with the population.”
“You’re just going to toss him out?” Sasha felt her anger and panic rise. She was shaking her head. “He’s been with us the whole time. Looked after us. You can’t do that.”
One of the man held up his hand and shook his head. “Calm down. No one is kicking anyone out. We need him, need to run tests. We just want to try and see about making some kind of vaccine. We’ve been unsuccessful thus far, despite the immunities we’ve found. But we’re hoping his blood, that maybe he’s patient zero, and the fact that he carries it but isn’t sick, can be the key for us and stopping this.”
Patient Zero?
Although a slight relief filled Sasha, she was still confused. “What does that mean for the rest of us? Are we at risk for being carriers?” Trevor was shaking his head before she finished.
“No, that’s not how it works. You’re either a carrier or you’re not. Just like you’re either immune or you’re not.”
“Does this mean we can’t stay here?” That panic started to rise again and she looked over at Lucy. This place would be perfect for her. “If it means we have to go, I’ll gladly leave as long as my sister can say.” Lucy immediately started protesting and ran up to her, gripping her arm.
“I’m not staying if you’re not.”
Trevor held up his hand again. “Calm down. No one is going anywhere. You guys are welcome here. You’re clean, not carriers or infected, and we’re more than happy to welcome you into our community.”
“What About Tree Man? You’re just gonna poke and prod him? You’re going to keep him prisoner?” Lucy sounded frantic.
“He’s not a prisoner. In fact, he’s willing to help us, wants to.”
Sasha held on to Lucy, hearing the fear in her little sister’s voice, feeling it resonate through her body as she became tense.
“You can see him, but he’s got to be isolated. We can’t have you risking the other people. It’s just safer this way.”
Sasha understood, although that didn’t mean she liked it. The men talked for long moments, and then they stood.
“You guys are not prisoners here. You’re welcome to stay as long as you want, make this your home. All we ask is that you contribute, be respectful, and follow the rules in place to keep everyone safe.”
Sasha looked over at Malachi and reached out to take his hand in hers, giving it a squeeze. This could be their home. No more running, no more worrying about the what-ifs.
“Let me show you where you guys can stay. We have a vacant house where you can all be together. Because the last thing I want to do is split you up again.”
And just like that, she felt that worry fade.
She still wanted to talk to Tree Man, make sure he was okay, but right now, given the information she had, she hoped that this was a place they could call home.
Chapter Fifty-Three
Is it really this easy?
The house, the haven, it was like another world. No, not another world, like the old world. The house was small. It had three bedrooms, a small living room, a kitchen, and dining room. It wasn’t anything fancy if the world hadn’t been fallen, but the truth was right now this was a mansion, a luxury they hadn’t had in seemingly forever.
There were communal gardens on the other side of the community, and even a playground for the kids.
Malachi looked out the window and could see them all, playing and laughing. A little boy kicked a small ball around. There was a group of girls playing with some dolls as well.
“It seems all so.… normal,” he said.
“It’s how we hoped it would be. We have no wish to create chaos and fear. We’re wanting the old ways. Families, friends, neighbors, a community. We have a library. When we have to go beyond the walls, a small group of people go hunting for us. They bring back food, books, furniture, tools, anything they can find. We’ve got small vegetable farmers and they provide rations, as well as whatever we scavenge. No one can have more than the others. It’s all equal,” Trevor said. “And when someone breaks the rules they spend the night in the box.”
“The box?”
“Yeah. It’s a cell. But we haven’t had to go that route for some time. People follow the rules here.”
