A/N: I'm issuing a *warning* for this chapter as it contains several intense scenes that are the reason for the M rating. But don't despair. It won't stay that way for long.

Thanks to ladygris for the Beta.

Namaste,

~Sandy

28 Weeks Later

One More Chance

Chapter 10

Pip shoved her hands into her pockets to keep them from shaking. "Kira and Doyle?"

Max and Sunny rushed out of the building in time to hear Billy answer Pip's question. "They're infected."

"What?!" The single word exploded out of the medical team now standing next to Ruby holding a fussy Gracie. Waverly and Clover stood on the other side, their eyes wide with shock.

His eyes hooded, Danny came forward, a hand on Billy's shoulder and speaking quietly. "Go help Jamie."

Nodding, the young man did as he was asked. When he was out of earshot, Danny shrugged sheepishly. "Don't mind the boy. He was forced to shoot Murphy after he turned and he's still feeling it."

Tearing her gaze from Billy's retreating back, Pip remarked sadly, "Probably will for a long time." She took a deep cleansing breath. "What's the word?"

"The word is Doyle's fine. He's just being cautious."

Pip noted that Danny had dropped the pretense of being a Scouser. One night, Pip and he had been on patrol together where she remarked that he looked familiar. After a little prodding, he told the truth. His real name was Sir Cornelius Daniel Lytton III, hailed as one of Britain's richest and most eligible bachelors just weeks prior to the first outbreak. Afterward, they talked about where they were when everything started the first go round. Reluctantly, he'd confessed to being a guest at Elton John's birthday party when the news came on BBC. "And Kira?"

"It's the damnedest thing. She started to turn then it just…stopped. Seems she's taking something that's keeping it in check for now. How long that continues, only Max and Sunny can say."

"Thanks." With a nod, Pip ordered four of the men to follow her as she fell into step behind Max and Sunny already in the hazmat suits, stopping far enough away to be relatively safe yet close enough to hear. When they neared the Hummer parked in front of a second-hand furniture store, Doyle climbed from behind the wheel and stood waiting. Kira stayed in the Hummer until Max waved her out. Tentatively, the dark-haired woman who was just a few years older than Pip joined Doyle. The two medical professionals dropped their hoods into place and came to stop just a few feet away, speaking in low tones. Doyle and Kira got back into the Hummer and waited.

~~O~~

The faceplate of the hood distorted everything Max saw. The suit itself restricted movement so that every gesture, whether walking or performing delicate surgery, had to be deliberate. He sent his newest patients back to their vehicle then returned to Pip, lifting the hood enough to speak. "There's a small clinic a few miles into town. We'll rig up an iso unit as best we can and start testing. See if we can scrounge a couple generators from somewhere to power the equipment we need. I'll make a list, and take Oscar. If you can't find what I need, he can MacGyver something."

"Right. Archie, take Ellis and drag Oscar away from his pet project. Let everyone know what's what then see to Max's list."

"On it, miss."

Sunny pushed the hood off her head letting hang down in back. "I'll go along and start getting everything set up once the generators are online."

Forcing herself not to roll her eyes at how strange Archer's deep voice sounded when he called her "miss", Pip simply nodded then turned to Max. "Well?"

"Won't know much until I've given them both a thorough examination. Doyle seems fine. No more or less cranky than before. As for Kira, we'll know more when we see the results of her blood tests." They all turned at the sound of an engine coming close. "Want me to tell Doyle about what we found?"

"Yes. Oscar should have it working soon."

Pip's eyes searched the area for nothing in particular and that meant there was a subject she wanted to raise but didn't know how. She'd bring it up when it suited her to and not before. No need in rushing. Together they headed back toward the base. "Archer, Ellis and their cronies can do all the heaving lifting. They're not well-educated, but they take orders well."

"Thanks. Sunny and I'll sleep at the clinic. And don't worry. We'll figure this out."

"I know."

Flashing their interim leader a comforting smile, Max broke into a jog. As he turned a corner, he looked back to see Pip watching the Hummer where Doyle and Kira still sat. The engine started, Doyle backed up and pulled out into the street, taking a side road to the clinic. When they were gone, Pip's voice rang out.

"Alright you lot, let's get back home. Ruby and Lukas will have lunch ready soon. After, we'll have another meetin' to work out a new schedule of chores now that we're split up again."

This time there was no chorus of "yes, miss" as they dispersed.

~~O~~

With Doyle out of action for God knew how long, keeping their moral up was Pip's job. When the guys were done setting up the generators, Pip would have Oscar hook a DVD player up to the telly and show a few movies or some such to help take their minds off the letdown they'd all been served. Maybe it was time to have another party. They could celebrate Doyle's return to active duty, as he put it. That alone deserved at least a song from Lucy and Jasper.

Flo was on guard at the front door when Pip arrived, the older woman slapping a hand to her forehead in an exaggerated salute. "Welcome back, Miss Phoebe, ma'am. How's Sarge?"

"Didn't get to talk to him direct. Chompin' at the bit that he'd gotta be confined, I'm sure."

Flo pursed her lips, a glint of mischievousness in her eyes. "Yeah. That's it."

"Excuse me?"

"I mean it's probably Gracie he's wantin' t' see."

Pip's cheeks burned with embarrassment. If Flo knew how she felt about Doyle, then everyone had to know, yet no one had seen fit to comment on it or the fact that she was the 2IC, chosen over the men with military training. Not honoring Flo's remark with a comment, Pip went in search of Lucy, changing directions when Gracie began to cry. She followed the sound to Doyle's room to find Ruby walking the floor and rubbing the baby's back soothingly. "What's wrong with her?"

"She misses D-o-y-l-e."

"Why're you spellin'? She's a baby."

Shifting Gracie around to the other shoulder, Ruby kept walking and Pip kept pace with her, the two women staying in step. "'Cause every time she hears his name, she gets excited thinking he's come home, and when he don't, she's disappointed. And a disappointed Gracie can cry loud enough t' be heard in Edinburgh."

"Got ya. I'll just go hunt up our resident party girl. It's time we had another bash."

Out in the hall, Pip shook her head. As she neared the large waiting room they used as a common area, she heard the unmistakable sounds of kissing, tracking it to a supply closet at the end of the far end of the hall. Not even thinking what she might see, she yanked open the door to find Lucy and Jasper snogging like there was no tomorrow. So involved were they that neither of them noticed her intrusion. Backing up, she closed the door again and walked away.

That evening after dinner, Pip went to her thinking place, better known as the third floor landing. Sitting with her back against the wall, she just let random thoughts pass in and out of her consciousness. Then the squeak of trainers on the steps startled her from a light doze. Billy, divested of his rifle and dressed for bed, stood a few steps down, obviously waiting to be noticed. Scooting upright and pushing her hair back, she invited him to join her. He sat down with his back against the wall opposite her, one leg up, his arm resting on his knee.

"Sarge and Kira. It's my fault."

Whatever she thought he was going to say, that wasn't it. "It's only your fault if you created the rage virus. But that's not what you mean." Taking a few moments to organize her thoughts, Pip stretched her short legs out in front of her crossed at the ankles. "My family was spared in the first go round, and we counted ourselves blessed by God's own hand.

"After spendin' six months in a German refugee came, we'd only been in our new house on the Isle of Dogs for three weeks when the unthinkable happened again." Pip had his full attention now. "I'm the youngest of four. The oldest, David, was the first to be infected. He'd already gone after my sister, Dania and our other brother, Pauly, when he came for me. I ran to my parent's room for the shotgun, killed him, Dania, Pauly and our parents. So I know what it's like to have to do what you did. The important thing to remember is you did it to protect others. Murphy wouldn't hold you responsible for your actions, and neither will anyone else."

She waited a few heartbeats to let him absorb her words. Without speaking, he got to his feet, adjusted the handgun shoved into the holster covered by his shirt and slowly descended the stairs.

One Week Later

Standing in front of the clinic, Doyle breathed deeply of the first real fresh air he'd tasted in more than seven days. It had been at his insistence that Max do each test several times to be absolutely certain there was no chance that he would unknowingly infect another, especially Gracie. He'd never seen the virus take over a baby and didn't want to. Seeing it happen to children-puppies in his personal sniper lingo-was bad enough. If it were to happen to a baby, well, he didn't want to think about it or he'd go crazy for real.

The clinic was two and a half klicks from base. He thought about jogging back, but Ruby was supposed to be on her way with Gracie. He'd been able to see his daughter through the window and each time she cried making him feel like a heel. But it was better for them both to be unhappy than dead.

His arms crossed, Doyle paced until the sound of a Hummer came toward him. Danny got out and opened the back door for Ruby carrying a wiggling bundle of baby in a pink dress, matching headband and socks. Her hair had lightened from its original brown and was now closer to his sandy color. The eyes that looked at him with such complete trust and affection had changed as well. They were closer to sky blue now. But what she looked like didn't matter. Just that he could see and touch her again.

Gracie swiveled her head around probably remembering that this was the place where she'd seen him before. He called out to her, "Gracie."

Her eyes found him and she smiled, her legs kicking and arms waving in excitement. Taking her from Ruby, he held her up in the air and smiled back. "There's my girl. Did you miss Daddy?"

"'Course she did. Cried every night you weren't there, Sarge," Ruby told him. When Danny walked away to give them privacy, Ruby followed and Doyle was alone with his daughter.

Keeping his voice low, he said, "I missed you too, sweetheart. What's that bow in your hair? Are you a girly-girl? You can be my wing-girl when I go to pick up chicks in the park." His hands under her arms, Doyle lifted Gracie high in the air making her giggle and kick. She was having so much fun he turned her on her stomach to fly her around in circles making airplane sounds. "It's Super-Gracie!"

Not wanting her to upchuck, he cuddled her close and she reached out to grab his nose. "Got some mad hand-eye coordination skills goin' on there, sweetheart. You are a genius."

He heard Ruby coming, but ignored her while he and Gracie played. "Takes after her daddy. It's about time for her feedin' and you'll be wantin' t' do that yourself bein' as its time for her to start on cereal."

"Oh, yeah." His smile faded as he and Ruby walked toward the Hummer. "You know, until this little girl, I didn't know what I was missing. Lived the solitary life of a soldier, trained as a sniper. Then she came along and…"

"You're not alone anymore."

Looking down into Gracie's face as she once again chewed on her fingers, Doyle knew how lucky he was. How lucky they both were. If he hadn't been with the group, they wouldn't have had a reason to stop at Lu's house and Gracie would be dead too. Or someone else would be raising her, and he wouldn't have been there for the milestones a baby goes through, all her firsts. And he wouldn't have missed that for anything. He smiled at his daughter and she smiled back. "No. I'm not."

~~O~~

In the isolation room, Kira relaxed with a book. It wasn't that well written or interesting, but it was something to do. Oscar offered to set up a TV and DVD player, but she turned it down. The electrical engineer did hook a CD player to a car battery and someone was always around to change the music or turn it off if it got on her nerves. Lucy had played a few tunes for her. In fact, all her friends had been around at least once. A group had come in one evening after an especially bad day and played games with her. She sunk all of Doyle's battleships to her delight and his consternation.

Going to the cooler, she took out a bottle of Barr Cola. It wasn't as cold as she liked it, but she didn't complain. The drink hit her stomach and she immediately became queasy. Recapping the bottle, she bent over to replace it in the cooler, nearly pitching head first onto the floor, catching herself by grabbing the counter. Her left eye began to throb in time with her heartbeat which had picked up speed as a fierce anger built inside her brain. Beating the door with both fists, she called out, "Max! Sunny!"

Kira's gut clenched, pain shooting through her entire body, anger and fear warring inside her brain. Going to the bathroom, she reached the toilet just in time to vomit a very large amount of blood. Her ears and head pounded as she screamed in a mixture of pain and fury. Enough of her reasoning mind functioned so that she didn't immediately attack when strong hands forced her to the floor. Thrashing round and growling, she barely felt the prick of a needle in her upper arm and moments later, surrendered to the sweet oblivion of sleep.

~~O~~

Standing over the now quiescent Kira, Max directed Alfie and Patrick to place her on the bed. He was afraid of this. As part of the research team trying to find a cure for the rage virus, it had been theorized that meds used to suppress or deadened certain parts of the brain might work as a temporary fix. The meds would be used to suppress the anger allowing an infected person to remain coherent enough to assist with describing the symptoms and how each different med affected the way they felt, physically and emotionally until the right combination or a cure was found.

Max and Sunny did the best they could with what they had, but it wasn't enough. It was never going to be enough. They needed more. More equipment, a more secure isolation, more meds to test, more subjects, more time. Just…more.

But they weren't going to get it. Not today, tomorrow, next week or even next month. The odds were against them though Max believed in miracles or Kira would be dead now. Shot by one of her own as a mercy.

Max joined the men out in the hall. For security, Max and Sunny never came into Kira's room at the same time just in case she injured one of them despite their precautions. Pulling off his hazmat hood, he make an attempt to spin this incident in a positive light, but they'd all seen too much of the virus' casualties to be fooled.

Gordon pointed out, "It's only been six hours since her last dose."

"So give her another," Alfie suggested.

Shaking his head, Max explained, "She's already getting twice the normal dose of both meds. The problem we had when we tried for a cure before was that eventually, the patient builds up a tolerance to the drugs until taking them becomes just a waste of time and effort."

Patrick, a former amateur bodybuilder, uttered one word and it summed up how Max felt at this moment. "Crap."

It was all crap. Everything they were trying to do for Kira and for the world. Eventually, they would end up having to either kill her or let her starve to death after the virus could no longer be managed. He was a doctor, sworn to first, do no harm. What he had to figure out was of the choices to be had, which would do the least amount of harm. The answers wouldn't be found standing around feeling sorry for themselves, Max decided. "Keep an eye on her. When she wakes, come and get me or Sunny."

The hood bounced hitting him repeatedly on the upper back as he walked quickly down the hall to the lab. Stripping out of the suit, he asked Sunny, "Where were we?"

Turning from watching the centrifuge spin, Sunny had one hand on her hip and the other holding a clipboard. "Did you tell her?"

"What? That we may have a cure, that the 'cure' may be worse than the disease and even if it did work, we can't replicate it? No, I didn't."

"She deserves to know the truth. They all do, Pricey." She tacked the silly nickname on the end deliberately.

His half-grin turned up one side of his mouth before he could stop it and he shook a finger at her. "I do not feel like laughing."

A loud clap of thunder came on top of a bright flash of lightning that made Sunny jump. Rain came pouring down on the roof making it sound like they were inside a tin can. "Oh s***!"

"The natives are restless tonight. It's really coming down out there. Guess we'll have to cancel our dinner reservations at Chez Whateverthehellitis."

"And I was so looking forward to the lobster mac and cheese served with a nice bottle of Pinot Grigio. Hey, where're you going?"

Max pointed to his bags in the corner where he slept, poked around in the larger one coming up with a dusty bottle of wine he'd liberated from the mansion. "It's not white, but it'll go great with MREs."

Taking two clean beakers from the shelf, Sunny held them out while Max poured the dark red liquid. "Cheers."

Sunny took a tentative sip, making a face at the taste. "That's not cheeky. It's downright rude!" She drank down every last drop, wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and held the beaker out. "Hit me again."

~~O~~

After Gracie went to sleep, Doyle left the door open so he could hear if she cried then went down the hall to watch the movie Oscar set up for the night's entertainment. Not one of his favorites, he quickly lost interest. He wasn't the only one to go by Billy's expression. The young man abruptly left the room. Doyle was tempted to follow, but he didn't. Billy had to work through what had happened, and when he was ready to talk about it, Doyle would be ready listen.

Going to the kitchen, he poured a glass of lukewarm tea and drank it down.

~~O~~

When Kira awoke from her sedative induced nap, she felt better and worse at the same time. She no longer felt like vomiting, but she also didn't feel like eating though water sounded good and would help her dry mouth and throat.

Her throat soothed, she sat at the table, drawing the stack of stationery and a pen to her. Lucy brought it to her days before and it had sat unused on the table ever since.

Today had been the worst since she became infected. The thing she hated most was not being able to interact directly with people. It was wearing on her and the others. They all tried to maintain cheerful and positive outlooks, but she could see in their eyes that it was hopeless. She'd been spared a quick death from a bullet to the brain only to die a slow death from the virus. Anyone infected knew they only had seconds before they turned, but she had more than a week to contemplate her eventual death and was ready for it to be over. But first, there was something she had to do.

At the top of the first cream colored embossed page, Kira wrote the date and sorting out her thoughts. Then she began to write…

Dear Ruby,

I'll be gone soon and don't want to leave without saying a few things.

Thank you so much for being more than a friend at a time when I needed it most. My mum and dad have been gone for a while now, and I miss them every day. But having you about, was like having my mum with me again. Someone to tell my troubles to and share in my victories. Not that there were that many good days since, well, you know. I'm just glad you were there…

Kira kept writing until she'd filled several pages with her surprisingly neat handwriting, signing the bottom with, Yours, Kira. Folding the pages in half, she carefully inserted them into a matching envelope, pressed the self-sticking closure to seal it and writing Ruby's name on the front.

She kept at it all that day, stopped for the night when Alfie brought dinner then picked up again the next morning.

~~O~~

After breaking up a third fight between Billy and another member of the group, Doyle finally took matters into his own hands, tired of waiting for the boy to work it through.

It was midafternoon, cloudy and threatening to rain…again. Doyle had Billy by the shoulder of his shirt, dragging him out the front door and around the side of the building because he refused to pick up his feet. A small patio formed an oasis amid the turmoil of their situation, but Doyle barely noticed. He shoved Billy onto the bench and stood over him with his arms crossed. "What the hell's goin' on?"

The young man kept his eyes on the ground while he picked at a hangnail and shrugged.

"I can't help you if you won't talk to me."

Billy got to his feet, turned his back and shoved both hands deep into his pockets, his shoulders stiff. "I weren't here for the first go of the virus. Ain't never killed no one b'fore. 'N Murph was a vicar."

Doyle understood the feeling. He'd gone through the same mental gymnastics the first time he took someone out through the scope of his rifle. Still did in some ways. Yet he did what he had to do in order to keep those under his protection safe. "Us or them" was his mantra, his motto. Even when he'd taken out members of his own squad, people he knew and trusted. He told himself he was doing them a favor. Once their minds were gone, they weren't, in the strictest sense of the word, human any longer. And telling Billy that wouldn't make him any friends because the boy had to see it for himself. To come to terms with his actions and take responsibility for them without letting it become an all-encompassing cloud over his head.

Keeping his distance Doyle softened his tone, "I know it's hard, Billy. No one knows more than I do that taking a life isn't easy, even if taking that life saves others. A soldier is the guy who makes it possible for the rest of the civilized world to hate war. Murphy was a man of God, but he was also a soldier. We all are. He wouldn't have wanted to endanger the lives of others because of sentiment. That doesn't mean you shouldn't feel bad about it. Just know that there was nothing you could've done to prevent it."

There was the slightest tempering of Billy's attitude, his shoulders coming down from where they'd bunched up around his ears telling Doyle that he was listening. Really listening. Not only to what was said, but what wasn't said as well. Doyle turned Billy to face him with a hand on his shoulder, relieved when he didn't fight it. "What's important now is that you not bury that anger and resentment inside you. Let it out. Even if it's in one blinding flash, then move on. That's how you handle this like a man."

Billy considered Doyle's words and seemed to find an ace that he could keep.

"The next time you feel like knockin' someone on their ass, come to me." Doyle dropped into a boxer's stance, punching the air. "We'll go a few rounds. Okay?"

Billy gave up a weak smile and a short nod. "Yeah. Thanks, Sarge."

Slapping him on the back, Doyle grinned. "Now get back to work. Ruby and Lukas need help so you're on KP."

~~O~~

With just two more letters to write, Kira only vaguely resented Sunny's intrusion into her personal space. When the blood had been drawn, capped and notated, Kira smiled, but with an attitude of gallows humor.

"Sorry we have to keep doing this, Kira," Sunny said apologetically, her voice echoing inside the hood. Just inside the door stood Patrick and Ellis also in hazmat suits, there to protect Sunny.

"Lucky the virus makes all that extra blood or I'd be drained dry by now. On the bright side, I'm safe from vampires."

Sunny gave her a blank stare, though her eyes betrayed her amusement. "Ah, yes. Humor. I've heard of it. Tried it once, but it left a bad taste."

Without meaning to, Kira chuckled. "Oh, you're good. Just the right amount of bile and hilarity."

Glancing over her shoulder, Sunny gave Kira's hand a comforting squeeze made impersonal by the glove. "We're close, Kira. I can feel it. It'll all be over soon."

"God, I hope you're right." Still holding the lab tech's hand, she gazed up at her with pleading eyes, trying to make her see that they were prolonging the inevitable and begging to end it.

Not responding to Kira's silent entreaties, Sunny simply said, "I'll be back soon with your meds."

Alone again, Kira wanted to crawl into bed and cry herself to sleep, but the blinds had been taken down and everyone would see. The bathroom was out too because if she stayed in there too long, someone always came in to check on her. Sitting down at the desk, she wrote a letter to Max and Sunny and put it in the envelope. There was one more to go and it was the hardest.

She should resent the fact that Doyle was immune, but it wasn't fair to either of them to be bitter about something the man had no control over. And if things had gone just a little differently, he wouldn't have been in England for Sunny to discover his immunity. He should also know what having him as their leader meant to them, to her. How he'd rallied them together when it seemed as if all hope had been lost for a second time. How seeing him go from the solitary soldier to father had made her feel happiness for the first time in months. Picking up the pen, she started writing…

My Dearest Nigel,

So much needs to be said that I'm not sure where to start, so let's go with this: You really should've killed me. I've just been running in place this last week. Not even that. I'm losing ground and picking up speed, like a snowball rolling downhill. It's not your fault, and if Max and Sunny learn anything from this then I'm glad to have helped in some way.

Now, about Gracie.

That little girl has given you a new purpose in life aside from fighting and killing. Now don't try to explain your way out of it. I may not be as educated as Pricey, Sunny and Danny, but that don't mean cobwebs have been growing inside my brain.

And speaking of brains, use yours along with your eyes to see there's someone-won't say who-that cares about you more than she thinks she should. You feel the same so no use denying it or you'll lose her to another what don't deserve her. I'm not just blowing smoke out my arse and you know it…

TBC