The Darkest Days (Death & Decay Book 0.5) Read Online Free PDF Page A

dirt sings something horrible.”
    This time Wyatt frowned. “Stephen! Stephen get
in here!” Stephen had been the primary caretaker for the injured
for the last few hours. Prior to the academy, a decade ago, he had
been an EMT. Unfortunately for him, this left him the most
qualified to care for the sick.
    Heavy footsteps echoed through the short
hallway. “What?” In the few hours since Wyatt had last seen him,
Stephen looked to have aged a decade. Dark circles encompassed his
eyes. His strawberry-blond hair stuck out from his head in small,
oddly angled spikes. The stubble across his chin made him look
exhausted.
    “Trevor’s not making any sense.”
    Stephen knelt down next to Trevor. “How are you
feeling, Trevor?”
    “Bumblebees have carved a hole in my heart and
the leaves can’t fix it.”
    Stephen nodded as if this made perfect sense.
“Alright, buddy, just take it easy and try to get some rest.”
    With that, he rose and took Wyatt’s elbow.
“Don’t say anything. Just come with me,” Stephen hissed as he
steered them hurriedly through the building. Eventually, they found
themselves in a small office not far from the holding cells.
    “Go!” He motioned for Wyatt to enter as he
yanked open the door. The instant the door was closed, Stephen
began to nervously pull at his hair, creating more of the odd
spikes.
    “What is happening?” It made Wyatt nervous that
Stephen was unwilling to speak openly.
    “Things aren’t good.” The words fell out of his
mouth like a dam that had suddenly burst. “Those people, the people
who were bitten, are getting worse by the minute, and I can’t do
anything to help them. We don’t have anything we need to help them,
and this is way above my pay grade. Those who are the worst off,
like Trevor, are starting to show signs of sever aphasia.”
    “Aphasia?” Wyatt interrupted.
    “Uh, speech problems. It’s linked to a specific
part of the brain.” Stephen waved the question aside. “Whatever is
happening is following a very specific pattern. First the wound
necrotizes, then fatigue, followed by fever, memory loss, and
aphasia. Every time.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “Aphasia is usually caused by some kind of
compromise in the brain, like a stroke.” Stephen rubbed his face
exasperatedly. “But a fever always means a virus. A virus could
cause swelling in the brain that could cause the aphasia, but I
don’t know.” Stephen began to ramble. “I don’t know what type of
virus does all this. I don’t know.” Stephen turned to look squarely
at Wyatt. “We need to get them help and we need to get it
fast.”
    “How? There is a horde of people outside that
will kill us the second we step out the door.” Wyatt fiddled with
the collar of his shirt.
    “Well, we’ve got to do something. If we don’t…”
Stephen paused as he looked back in the direction of the holding
cells. “If we don’t get them help soon they are going to die.”
    “We could—” A scream further down the hallway
cut off the thought. With lightning speed, Stephen grabbed for the
doorknob and threw it open. Together, they shoved their way through
the people in the hall as they moved towards the commotion.
    “Go close the holding-cell doors,” Wyatt shouted
to Stephen over the cacophony. “Make sure Trevor and the others are
safe.” After a pause, Stephen turned to head in the opposite
direction.
    As he neared the center of the chaos, Wyatt had
to push past people running from the commotion. Wyatt’s heart raced
as he approached the end of the corridor. He drew his weapon as he
rounded the bend in the hall. It ended abruptly in a barricaded
door, but the bend created a small alcove that provided a small
measure of privacy in the cramped hall.
    The small section of hallway had descended into
pandemonium. The panicked bodies obscured his view, making it
difficult to pinpoint the actual cause of the uproar. As more
people quickly fled, he finally saw a scuffle taking place in