A/N: Hello There! so this is just an idea in my head that I had to get out on 'paper' so to speak. Read, review, or not, completely up to you guys! I'll be writing and posting a new chapter as per each episode and whilst a LOT of it will be cannon, there will be also be some very significant bits that's won't.

There's an OC in this fanfic - Violet Riley and ofc she will be paired with Jake. That's not to say Katie won't still be an important part of the Fanfic. I've also tried to develop the plot more by giving my character a fully backstory that will be revealed as the episodes/chapters go on.

I hope you enjoy the first installment!

Chapter 1

But ever since I left my father
It's much harder to know
How to live my own life here
When all I need is home

Mother and Father - Broods

Atlanta's sweltering heat was a pleasant surprise for the woman sitting in her alarm red Mini Convertible, lamenting her state of affairs. She had just spent the past 20 minutes listening to all the messages in her voicemail, pausing and repeating one message in particular several times. It caused a burning in her eyes and a lump to form in her throat.

"Letta I don't know what's wrong but being real bitchy to me is not the answer! Have I done something? It can't possibly be that bad – did I forget about-"

She knew what was coming next. She had it memorised. Her lips mouthed along to the message before she abruptly hit the end call button. Today wasn't the day she was up for listening to him. Him, or anyone for that matter. She had simply wanted to drown in numb silence as she drove through Atlanta but her car had chosen that very moment to breakdown, effectively ruining her plans for the day. Sighing, realising there was no other alternative, Violet reluctantly stepped out of her car. Locking the doors, she made her way to the nearest garage, barely noticing the rising tension on the street of Mid town Atlanta.

Frowning, she looked from Google Maps on her phone to the very much closed Car Repairs shop in front of her.

"Hey..Hey Sir" she ran to whom she hoped was the owner of the garage as he paced the premises.

"When does the store open? My car broke down a few blocks from here and-"

"You best find some place safe" he interrupted her gruffly, "Som'ing big's goin down ere"

He scurried away before Violet could so much as question his odd ramblings.

Groaning, she typed away furiously into her phone, trying to find the next closest garage.

Walking blindly down the streets, gaze fixated on her phone, she nearly toppled over as a burly man ran past her, his shoulder thudding against her painfully.

"Hey Asshole" she yelled, "Watch it!"

He barely turned around to look at her, his arms waving frantically as he ran off.

Face fixated with a frown, Violet finally observed her surroundings and she decided the Garage owner had indeed been right. Something was going down. People were running around scared. Her eyes widened as she watched a man with a knife come out of a convenience store. He was waving his weapon threateningly at an older man, probably the store owner, Violet concluded. Creeping up behind him, she pulled out her gun and aimed at him.

"Police" she shouted, loud and clear, "Put your weapon down, now"

The store owner was in tears, wailing loudly, scared out of his mind. The thug seemed panicked. Dropping his knife, he let go of the store owner who ran back inside.

"Turn around slowly and put your hands behind your back" Violet maintained her aim on the criminal. Her face dropped when she realised he was merely a kid – 15 at best.

Her eyes furrowed as they focused on the growing blood stain on his shoulder.

"You're hurt" she approached him slowly, "And you're underage. I'm gonna have to take you in" her voice was firm yet gentle. She could see how scared the kid was and it didn't just reflect in his pleas to her.

"I'm so sorry, I'm sorry! I just need medicine – my mamma's not well and she needs pills but she won't leave the house and I don't know how to help her! Please you gotta help me"

He was crying now and Violet's hands wavered hesitation. Her eyes fell to the knife he had dropped on the pavement and she groaned under her breath when she noticed it was a blunt kitchen knife at best. His story added up then.

"You need to get to the hospital now. How did you even get hurt there?" She pointed at his shoulder and the boy shook his head.

"My Mom…she…she threw a knife at me."

Violet's eyes widened in shock

"No no she's good, she's not..she's just ill! She gets like this sometimes but she's never violent at me. But she was this time cos she don't have her meds – I just need some. Now."

Making an executive decision, Violet cursed under her breath as she told the kid she'd take him to the hospital. She disregarded protocol. She was supposed to take him to the closest police station but she knew he needed to be in the hospital. She was going to get so much shit for this, she could already tell.

Luckily the Midtown Hospital was just a few blocks away so they reached fairly quickly. All the while, Violet kept a watchful eye on the kid but he seemed genuine enough for her not to worry. Once inside the hospital, she took him to the emergency ward.

Taking one look at the boy, the nurse at reception handed Violet a bunch of forms.

"No I'm a cop" she pushed the forms away, "I found the boy…on the street. Wounded. Don't know how he got it, he won't speak"

She could see relief flood the kid's face due to her lie.

"Ok we'll get you looked at right away" the nurse faced him with a wide smile, "What's your name?"

Violet gulped, feeling annoyed at herself for not asking the kid what his name was.

"Joe Wasim"

The nurse took him away, motioning to Violet to wait at the desk.

On her return, she told Violet a doctor was taking care of Joe but that Violet had to wait as she was the one that brought him in.

"Listen, I'm not an Atlanta Cop – this isn't my jurisdiction. I could get into trouble for bringing a minor to a hospital before I took him to the precinct. Let me just go to the nearest police station and bring one of the officers back ok?"

"Mam" the nurse seemed pained, "You can't leave."

"No I'm leaving for good, I'll come back, I just need to follow procedure-"

"Mam." The nurse was firm now, her tone grinding, "The hospital's been shut down for a few hours. No one came leave and no one can come in"

"What?" Violet scoffed, "I came in ten minutes ago – how can the hospital just be shut down?"

"I can't say much – I don't even know for sure but there's another Officer in here that you could talk to."

"Where?" Violet was eager to meet this Officer. She needed to sort this whole situation out and get out. She was supposed to leave Georgia today and this hiccup in her plans simply didn't work for her.

Heading to the 3rd floor of the hospital, Violet stumbled across a commotion in one of the hallways.

"You need to let me through! I'm looking for my son" the woman appeared distressed.

"I can't it's a private ward mam!" The janitor refused to move from the doors.

Striding forwards, Violet pulled out her badge and called out, "Police"

"Sir I need to go in there and I'll take this woman in with me"

"No one's allowed entry" he frowned, staring suspiciously at her badge.

"Well I am" Violet squared her shoulders as she approached him with a stiff, aggressive form.

Gulping, the man stepped aside and let Violet and the woman pass through.

"Thank you- thanks so much" The woman was profusely shaking her head.

"I'm Violet…and you?"

"Oh, I'm Katie…I'm…looking for Quintin, my son and his friend Thomas"

Rounding the corner, the two of them walked in on a seemingly tense atmosphere between a Doctor and a Cop.

Sighing with relief, Violet stepped up as she flashed her badge.

"Officer Violet Reid, NYPD" she stated with a quick nod, "Can I talk to you for a few moments Officer?"

Just then a thudding sound against a glass window distracted Violet and brought her attention to the man inside the sterile room. He looked terrible. Katie let out a soft gasp at the sight but before she could speak, Violet forged on. She didn't want to get involved and asking about the man behind the glass was very much getting involved.

"Officer" she stared at him imploringly.

With furrowed brows and a tense stance, the Officer spoke, "Officer Jake Riley" and followed Violet to the side where she proceeded to explain to him in whispers as to how she ended up here.

"I know I didn't follow protocol but the kid was badly injured and I figured I'd just get him settled here first before I came by the precinct."

"Procedure is the least of our worries now" Jake Riley scoffed. Reaching the peak of her limited patience, Violet snapped, "What is going on? Why is the hospital on lockdown? Why can't I leave?"

He simply blinked, "Haven't you seen the news?"

"I've been on the road all day" she shook her head, pulling out her phone to go on the internet.

"There's been a viral outbreak and Dr. Cannerts is trying to contain it within the hospital." Jake gave her the run down. "It spreads through fluids so anyone in contact with an infected person has to stay here."

"Ok but I didn't have any contact with an infected person"

"The kid you brought in…you said he was bleeding"

"Yeah, from a knife wound! Not the damn virus"

Their voices were raised enough for Dr. Cannerts to hear so he intervened.

"Look, it's just a precaution – the lockdown is only for a few hours and then you'll all be able to go. We already have Patient 0 and the rest of his family so the virus should be contained. It's just a precaution" he repeated but just as Violet was about to argue back, Katie interrupted, "I need to find my son! Please. Doctor Cannerts, the kids said Quintin and Thomas went looking for the rate, could you take me to him?"

He shifted on his feet, "I need to stay here" and then stared at Jake and Violet.

Groaning under her breath, she knew she had to offer, it's what a good cop would do.

"I'll come with you." Violet spoke clearly as she shot Jake a look, almost demanding him to join her in the search for Quintin. Subtly rolling his eyes he spoke, "I'll help too"

"Officers" Dr. Cannerts spoke with caution, "You need to keep 4 to 6 feet of distance between you – all of you…and wear gloves and masks." He gave Violet an uneasy once over to which she raised her hands, "I'm not in uniform, I get it, I won't get too close to anyone"

Then she grumbled under her breath, "I don't have a death wish", as she followed Officer Riley.

He seemed to be just as grumpy as her as he smacked the gloves dispenser whilst walking past it. Collecting a pair of gloves and a mask from the dispenser, Violet even zipped up her leather jacket, just to be on the safe side.

"Not a great time to be losing your kids" Jake snarked at Katie and Violet had to purse her lips to stop an abrupt laugh from escaping. The look of disbelief on Katie's face was priceless but thankfully she kept quiet…about that topic anyway. Violet rolled her eyes as Katie continued asking questions.

Where the hell are we?

What's going on?

That guy back there – he looked really ill – is it really bad?

"I've got 14 kids here, I feel like I should know what's going on!"

"Hey hey-" Jake reminded her as she strayed closer to him midst frustrated rant

"4 to 6 feet Miss"

"And my Kid, Quintin, I didn't lose him-", Katie explained how she had been busy taking calls from Parents when her son and his friend just snuck out to see the rats.

"We'll find them" Violet reassured her as best she could, in that moment. She could see Katie was stressed.

The doors to their left opened as a male nurse walked out.

"Excuse me, we need to get in there" Katie launched in.

"it's restricted" the man blinked, unmoving.

"Have you seen a couple kids in there?" Jake asked with a surly face

"Please, we just need to take a quick look" Katie's eyes were wide as she tried persuading him but the guy simply wouldn't budge. "I can't let you in there"

Then Katie snapped. Her tone turned aggressive as her words turned threatening. Violet almost gawked in surprise – who knew Katie had it in her to be mildly manipulative and even aggressive? She all but threatened the guy to possibly infect him if he didn't let her through. Jake and Violet played along for the most part, even when the nurse asked them, as officers to 'do something'.

"What do you want me to do? Shoot her?" Jake asked sarcastically and Violet shrugged, "Sorry man, best if you just let her through"

"I ain't dying over this job, screw this" the man flung his badge at Katie and scurried away.

Scanning said badge against the door sensors, with a triumphant grin on her face, Katie passed through.

"You're a piece of work" Jake scoffed to which Katie mocked back, "4 to 6 feet please"

Violet let out a proper laugh at that causing Jake to shoot her a mild glare before a hint of a smile formed over his lips.

The three of them continued their search for the kids till they came across a room with bodies lying on beds. Katie jerked back in shock, bumping into Jake. He managed to steady them both but his focus, like Violet's, was on the state of the victims. There was no doubt those deaths were caused by the Virus. Blood seeped out of every crevice of the face – eyes, ears, nose, even the mouth. Their faces were pail and sweaty too, Violet noted as she counted a few more symptoms.

"Joe…the kid I brought in" she flashed a look at Jake, "He didn't have any of these symptoms"

Jake shrugged, "We had to be safe. You're here now – there's no leaving."

Gritting her teeth, Violet stormed ahead with Jake and Katie following after her. As Violet rounded another corner, she heard laughter and stopped by the doors to her right. Peering in, she sighed when she saw two kids and an old man surrounding a glass case of rats.

"They're here" she called out to Katie but didn't go into the room. Walking a few feet till the end of the corridor, she paused and leant against the wall as she tried to calm her racing mind.

She could feel her heart racing and her breathing coming out in spurts so she closed her eyes tightly and muttered under her breath, 'Elmfield, Duncan St, Bowery, Maiden Ln, Agustine Rd. Elmfield-" She repeated again till her breathing returned to normal and she could feel warmth flood back into her chest. She vaguely heard Jake and Katie having some kind of heart to heart but she chose to ignore it in favour of focusing on herself.

"It's fine. You're fine" She whispered to herself before she straightened up and cleared her throat.

"What are you all doing here?!"

Violet's attention snapped to a Doctor rushing towards Jake and Katie. Moving closer to them, Violet remained silent as she let Katie explain why they were all here. The Doctor didn't let her explain much past 'My son..', as he blurted, "They're officially putting the hospital on lockdown"

Violet scoffed, "I thought we were already on lockdown"

"Well they don't want anyone leave for 48 hours"

Anger broke loose in her head when she heard the Doctor's response. Jake felt somewhat put off too as he made his annoyance apparent, "You've gotta be kidding me"

"I can't stay here for 48 hours" Violet barked, "I'm not even from here. I wasn't even supposed to drive through Atlanta. I've had no contact with-"

"Look I'm not gonna lie to you. We're in a unique situation but we're in good hands!" The doctor tried his best to appear reassuring but Violet doubted he even believed his own speech.

"We just have to trust the system. Follow the rules and everything will be f-" he didn't get to finish as he sneezed voraciously.

Gasping, Violet jerked back as did Jake and Katie. Violet shoved her mask back over her mouth and nose as Jake moved in front of both her and Katie, taking on a protective stance.

"Back up back up" he had his arms out, creating a barrier between her and the Doctor.

"Katie go get the other Doctor – Cannerts."

Katie cautiously walked past the Doctor whilst Jake shouted, "Step aside!"

Once she had left, Jake turned to face Violet, letting out his frustration in another angry shout 'damn it'

He was on his phone now, having a semi meltdown, yelling about it being a goddamn Zombie Apocalypse in here. He had his friend to blame for being stuck here but who did Violet have to blame? Herself. She was the reason she always got into shit situations. It was always her fault. Jake stared at her with watery eyes as he tried to contain his anger. It was only then she realised she had sunk to the floor, with her knees pulled up to her chest.

They shared a long look before Jake's eyes flickered to the entrance where Dr. Cannerts and Katie stood. Unable to contain it any longer, Jake snapped and punched a glove dispenser off the wall as he stormed out. Violet barely flinched. She felt the same – they just had different ways of expressing it.

Closing her eyes, she let her head tip back to the wall. A grimace formed across her lips as she found the humorous side of her situation. She ran from home, ran all the way from New York, for a fortnight, just to escape death and now she was in the centre of it. Maybe karma was real afterall.

"Violet, we need to clear the area. Come with me" Katie spoke in soft tones.

"Yeah" Violet whispered as she got up and followed Katie blindly. Her thoughts were taking her to deep, dark places she hadn't wanted to venture into this soon after his death but the situation she was currently in – all this chaos and death – it was forcing her to recall that awful night four months ago and it was forcing her to feel emotions she had buried deep within her.

She didn't know how much time had passed as she sat in a room full of children, laughing and completely oblivious to the danger they were all in. She scrolled through the news on her phone, rolling her eyes at all the political bullshit she was reading.

'Trust in the system and it'll all be over before its even started'

Right. She was sure Dr. Lommers' would have a change of attitude had she was with them inside the cordon.

She heard his footsteps and felt his presence before she saw him. He felt like a dark cloud looming over her equally black one. He wasn't in his jacket anymore, neither was he wearing his visor. Sitting next to her, he grimaced awkwardly at herself and Katie. Violet attempted to smile back but she felt it looked more like a grimace. Katie was much better at cheering people up than she was. Violet was simply glad neither of them had spoken to her yet. She didn't think she'd find it the lest bit helpful. Strangely enough though, she found that his brooding presence beside her was actually somewhat comforting.

An hour might have passed by, possibly even longer, before he broke his silence.

"Sorry I kinda lost it back there"

She wondered if he would have said that had she not been a cop. She understood. Cops were meant to remain calm – they were supposed to be the figures of authority that saw people through the hard times – but here he was, having a meltdown over a 48 hour Cordon.

"We all have different ways of coping" she replied softly as she carried on staring ahead.

"Your way of coping is by remaining calm?" He was teasing but she could hear his bitter undertones.

Smiling contemptuously, she revealed, "I have a good poker face"

Sighing deeply, his form slumped as he rubbed his tired face.

Eyes flickering to her side, she allowed herself a few moments to simply observe him. The second his vivid blue eyes met her duller, mud coloured eyes, she spoke, "You taking the bench or the floor?"

It took a moment for him to understand. Smirking weakly, he asked, "It wouldn't be very gentlemanly of me to let a lady sleep on the floor"

She snorted at that, "Who says I'm a lady?"

Dropping to the floor, she took off her jacket and folded it to form a pillow under her head.

"We can swap tomorrow" she mumbled as her body curled mid yawn. Eyes fluttering shut, she smiled when she heard his short chuckle.

"You're the real piece of work"

Violet snickered, "4 to 6 feet, Officer Jake Riley"