PODs (28 page)

“One resident for quarantine.”

The nurse looked at the soldier who had spoken, and then at me. “It took four of them to bring you in? What’s your name?” the nurse asked me. She wore green scrubs, thick latex gloves, and a facemask.

“Evangelina Evans.”

“She was found fraternizing with a member in the infected zone.”

“‘Fraternizing’?” The nurse laughed. “You guys really like to toss your military jargon around. Tell me what happened, Evangelina.”

“Call me Eva, please. One of my friends lives in the infected zone. I met him tonight and we talked through the fence. But he isn’t infected,” I said in a rush, “he’s a POD survivor, not a topside. He lived in the same sub-POD I did. That’s how we know each other.”

“Okay, guys, I got her from here. Come on, Eva. Let’s get you washed up for quarantine.”

“But—”

“I know, sweetie. He was a POD survivor. I hear ya. But I have rules to follow. Anyone in contact with an infected zone resident has to do their stint in quarantine. Sorry.”

The nurse led me down a series of hallways. The walls were dirty white and the air smelled of disinfectant. We came to an opening and I saw two shower stalls set up in the middle of the small area. It was nothing more than a fork in the road map of hallways. The opening had three hallways shooting off it, with no privacy.

“Go behind the curtain and strip. Throw your clothes into the bin, tie the bag, and set it in front of the screen. When you’re done, step into stall one.”

I did as she asked. Peeling my clothes off, I shivered in the cold hallway. I stuffed them into the thick biohazard garbage bag and tied it off as tightly as I could. Stepping into the shower stall, I heard her call to me.

“Brace yourself, Eva. This is gonna sting.”

“I know. I remember from quarantine.” I squeezed my eyes closed and waited. She was right; it did sting and it was freezing cold. I shivered uncontrollably from the cold air and the colder water.

Green foam fell from the top of the stall, covering me. It smelled of alcohol, and the blast from the water hose moved the foam around until I was covered with it. It burned my skin while the water pricked it like tiny needles.

When the torture finally ended, the nurse opened the back of the stall and pointed to a towel. I dried off before dressing in white pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. Using a ring of keys attached to her belt, she unlocked a door and waited for me to walk through before closing and locking it behind me.

Her voice came through an intercom panel. “Follow the hall and ring the buzzer next to the door. They’re waiting for you.”

I walked down the long white hallway, ringing the buzzer when I reached the end. The door opened and two male nurses wearing facemasks and gloves guided me to my observation room. They didn’t speak. One held the door open for me. I walked through, and the door was shut with a loud click. The bolt screeched when it was pushed into place.

The observation room was a mirror image of the one I’d stayed in before entering the PODs. I sat on the bed, pulling the blanket over me. I was still shaking from the cold shower. I don’t remember falling asleep. When I woke, I saw George’s face through the glass.

“What the hell were you thinking, Eva? I told you two not to get caught.”

“Someone turned us in.”

“Who?”

“I’m not sure,” I said, “but I think it was Nona. How long will I be in here?”

“Probably a month,” George answered.

“A month? But I thought quarantine was a sham?”

“So did I, but I’ve learned a few things. The government isn’t being completely honest with the survivors—what’s new, right? The topside survivors aren’t all virus-free. Some carry a mutated form of the virus. You aren’t here to make sure you’re virus-free. You’re here to see if they can harvest some of the mutated virus from you.”

“I don’t understand,” I said slowly.

“You’re a human guinea pig, Eva. They’re hoping you were exposed to the mutated strain so they can study it and, God willing, find a cure.”

“That’s a good thing, right?”

George didn’t answer me. He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“I have to go. I’ll try to visit tomorrow.”

I
spent six weeks locked in a glass-lined medical prison. The nurses took blood every day through a box in the wall, just like the first time I was in quarantine. The doctors were the only people who entered the room. Dressed in protective clothing that made them look like space aliens, they poked and prodded me. They never told me what they were looking for. In fact, they rarely spoke to me at all. George was right. I was a human guinea pig.

George visited when he was working at the clinic. We talked through an intercom in the thick glass surrounding the stark white room I was locked in. I asked George about David every time I saw him, but he didn’t know…or he didn’t want to tell me. Worrying about David was the worst part.

Nona tried to visit once, but I refused to see her. She had one of the nurses carry in a note, which she passed along with one of my meals.

… did it to protect you. I was worried for your safety…

I crumpled it and threw it on the floor.

She didn’t visit again. I was surprised they had let her in to begin with. It seemed Nona had extra privileges in the compound, which explained how she knew so much about everyone. George’s friend in security confirmed Nona actually worked for them. Undercover security personnel throughout the compound spied on residents and reported any suspicious behavior. Nona’s job at the school was a sham. Her real job was as a snitch.

Like in quarantine before I entered the PODs, there were books inside the room to keep me occupied. Every once in a while, the nurses would send a new book through the chute with my dinner. I read all the books there—twice. No television, no music, and no book I hadn’t already read. Quarantine was hell.

“Today’s the day.” The nurse looked younger than me and I wondered what kind of medical training she’d actually had.

“What day?” I asked, afraid I was going to endure another painful test.

“You’ve been given the all-clear. You’re outta here.”

“When?”

“Now. You don’t want to stay longer, do you?”

“Ah, no. But thanks for asking.”

The nurse pulled out a ring of keys and inserted one into the thick metal door. The lock clicked open and the door squeaked loudly when the nurse pulled it aside.

I hurried out of the room before they changed their minds and decided I needed to stay another six weeks.

“Where are my clothes?” I asked the girl.

“They were burned. You can wear home what you have on. Transportation will give you a ride so you don’t have to walk home in pajamas.”

“My other belongings?” I was afraid I already knew the answer to my question.

“Burned.”

I didn’t really care about my clothes, or anything else I had, for that matter. The only items I was interested in were David’s photo and drawings. They must’ve been burned like the rest of my things.

“Go straight down this hall and out the door. Transportation is waiting to take you home. Take care, Eva.”

“Thanks,” I murmured.

“These are your new papers.” An MP handed me an envelope as I walked out the door.

I didn’t look at the papers. I just clutched the envelope and climbed into the car. I wanted to go home, take a long, hot shower, and get out of the ridiculous white pajamas.

I sat with my head resting on the back of the seat, my eyes closed. I didn’t open them until I felt the car turn into my drive.

“Here you are,” the driver said.

“This isn’t my house. I think you have the wrong address. I live at 12 Maple Brook Lane.”

“No, this is the address the MP gave me. Check your papers and make sure.”

I pulled out the paperwork and scanned the documents. “183 Oakwood Drive.”

“That’s where we are. Do you have your keys?”

I dumped a set of keys out of the envelope. They clinked when they landed in my open palm. “Yes.”

“Well, then you’re right as rain.”

“Thank you.” I slowly got out of the car, standing in the driveway as I watched him drive away.

The house was light-brown with burgundy shutters. I missed my cheery yellow house. I fit the key in the lock and it turned. I don’t know if I was relieved or disappointed that the key opened the door. I wanted to go home—to my other home.

I walked slowly inside. Something was wrong. My things weren’t there. The drawing David had made wasn’t hanging on the wall. The scrapbook I’d made of all the drawings he’d given me wasn’t on the coffee table.

I ran down the hall to the master bedroom. The photo of him and his sisters wasn’t on the bedside table. In fact, nothing of mine was in the house. There were no clothes, no food, nothing.

I made a quick call to transportation and had them drive me to and from the compound store, where I got some clothes and enough food to get me through the week. Once home, I showered and changed into jeans and a sweater. I pulled on my sneakers and ran out the door. Maple Brook Lane was two streets over from Oakwood. I’d put the key to the back door under the mat. I planned to go in, get my photo of David and his drawings and take them to the new house. I didn’t particularly care which house I lived in, but I wanted my things.

I stared at the house. A bubble of plastic covered it, rippling in the breeze. A yellow notice was posted, warning residents that the house was contaminated.

“Everything you touched has to be decontaminated, including your things.”

“Stay away from me, Nona.”

“Eva, I know you don’t think I—”

I didn’t turn around. “What I think is, I trusted you. I counted you as a friend and you betrayed me. What I think is, I’m glad I was moved from this street. Now I don’t have to see my betrayer every day.”

She sighed. “I don’t blame you for being mad. Look, I got these out of your house before I called security. I knew you wouldn’t be able to come back, and I wanted to make sure you got these. I thought maybe they’d be a peace offering.”

I turned, and she held out David’s photo and the scrapbook. I took them and hugged them to my chest.

“Thank you, Nona. I appreciate the gesture, but it doesn’t change anything. Stay away from me.”

I walked back to my new house. I wasn’t watching where I was going. I was staring at David’s smiling face in the photo he gave me. My heart hurt with the longing to see him again.

A person knocked into me, making me stumble backward. His hand reached out to steady me.

“People are watching, Eva. Keep walking. It’s too dangerous to meet, but he’s still here.”

Seth walked by me and disappeared around the corner.

David. David is still here
.

It’d been three weeks since the day I was released from quarantine, the day when I’d seen Seth. I was back to work. And things were back to normal, except I kept waiting to hear from Seth or George about meeting with David.

It was finally George’s first day back to school after clinic duty.

“When?”

“I don’t know,” he answered.

“Why? It’s been nine weeks. They’ve forgotten about us by now. Besides, we can find a new meeting place.”

“Too dangerous. He’s still here, Eva. When things cool off, you’ll get to see him.”

I pushed my lunch tray away with a frustrated sigh. “How do you know?”

“I see him at the front gate every day.”

“The front gate,” I said quietly, a plan brewing in my mind, one I was sure I’d regret later. But at that moment all I could think of was being with David again, and this time there’d be no steel fence separating us.