Friends
By Thomas Mc


Chapter 11 : Infection

When Jacob came over to awaken Michael for his turn on watch he found him already awake. Madison was having a restless night and her restlessness had awakened Michael twice already. She would occasionally thrash around without ever waking up. Michael spent most of his watch, watching over Madison. Her restlessness was unusual and it worried him.

By the time Michael's watch was over Madison appeared to have finally quieted down. After waking Devin, Michael climbed into his bag and scooted up against Madison. He brushed her hair back from her eyes with his hand and said a quiet good night to her sleeping face before settling in. Soon he was fast asleep.

Devin had observed this with some amusement. He had been aware of the growing attachment between Madison and his brother. He liked Madison and thought those two fit well together. He sometimes wondered if they were going to end up like his parents. He knew that both sets of parents had been cautiously watching the developing relationship.

Devin then glanced over at Desmond and Sharon. He didn't quite know why, but he was positive that those two were destined for each other. He could almost feel it like a gossamer thread that joined them together.

With a quiet sigh he wondered if he would ever be as lucky as his two younger siblings seemed to have been.

~ x x x x x ~

(Day 12)

Michael woke up feeling almost overwhelmed by a feeling of lethargy and a conviction that something was very wrong. He rolled over to find Madison curled up in a ball and shivering. He reached out to touch her face. She was burning up. He shook her. She didn't respond. He shook her a bit more strongly. "Madison." Still no response. "Madison!" Now he was really worried and looked over where his parents were bedded down.

Jacob was sitting up, roused by his son's rising emotions. Devin had stood up and was coming towards Michael.

"Dad, there's something wrong with Madison." Michael called out. "She's burning up and I can't wake her."

Jacob rose quickly to his feet. "Devin, wake up the rest." Jacob ordered as he rushed over to Michael and Madison. He took one quick look at Madison's face then pressed his hand against her forehead. Next he rushed over to the boats while Devin tried to wake up the others. Jacob returned with one of the first aid kits. A quick check showed that her temperature was hovering at 104.5 degrees. "We have to get this fever down immediately." Jacob picked Madison up and carried her over to the waters edge. Michael followed right behind him, worry radiating off him like heat from a campfire. Jacob set Madison down in about three inches of water. She barely reacted to the coolness of the water. "We have to cool her down, get her temperature under a hundred, if possible." Jacob remarked as he gently washed her arms and legs.

"Dad, something's wrong with everyone." Devin called out. The rest of the party was stirring from their sleeping bags, but they were all moving slowly and Devin could clearly feel the lethargy that was affecting each of them.

All three leonine males were immediately aware of that feeling of lethargy coming from all of the others. It didn't take very long for them to realize that except for Jacob and his sons, they were all running low grade fevers. Madison however was much worse than the rest. Tonya also noticed that there was some inflammation around the injuries they had all received from the crabs. Tonya checked Madison over and found that two of the bites on her chest showed signs of massive infection.

Tonya opened the first aid chest and pulled out a one-shot emergency injectable antibiotic and used it on her daughter, then she did her best to drain and clean the badly infected wounds. While Tonya was treating Madison, Linda checked out everyone else then suggested that they should head for home as quickly as they could get the boats loaded.

Jacob placed Madison in the boat then he and his sons quickly scooped up their equipment and dumped it into the boats. Meanwhile Tonya and Linda used up most of the antibiotic cream from both first aid kits treating everyone's bites. After that, they all dragged themselves to the water, where the boats were waiting, and plopped down into them. Jacob told his sons to get into the second boat while he got into the first boat and checked Terry's mapper. Jacob then turned his boat to the required heading and started out, his sons following behind.

Tonya, Terry and Madison were in the boat with Devin and Michael. The rest were in the boat with Jacob.

Jacob took up the oars and applied them with vigor in order to increase his speed and his sons followed suit in the other boat. Jacob knew that there were a few emergency supplies and a spare first aid kit that they had left behind at their starting point. Almost two hours later they pulled the boats up onto the beach where they had started a week and a half ago.

The first thing they did once they had landed was to check Madison's condition. Her fever was down to 102 and she was conscious but very groggy and disoriented.

A check of the others showed that they were all still running about a temperature of around a hundred degrees

"We're still five days from home and there is no way we can make that trip in our present condition." Linda announced.

Jacob turned to his eldest son and handed him a small vile containing a sample that Tonya had taken from Madison's infected wounds. "Devin, go to the home tunnels. If you pace yourself, you should be able to make it in under a day and a half. Tell them what happened and give this to Rosa. She will know what to do." As Devin ran up into the tunnel Jacob turned to Michael. "Help me get the camp setup. We have to get everyone bedded down so they can rest."

Thirty minutes later they had a camp setup and everyone tucked away in their sleeping bags.

Michael was hovering over Madison. Jacob could feel his son's anxiety and sympathized with him. Madison was still running a high fever, though the antibiotics seem to have helped some. At least she seemed to be barely aware of her surroundings. The rest of the party quickly drifted off to sleep.

Jacob was holding Linda and they were talking quietly about the trip and their current problem.

"It never occurred to me that we could run into anything like this." Linda commented. "It must have been some type of bacteria that lives on the claws of those crabs." She shook her head. "But why is Madison so much worse off than the rest of us?"

Jacob shook his head. "I don't know. The only thing I can think of, that was different, is that she fell into the water during the crab attack." He shrugged. "Maybe that had something to do with it.

She sighed. "I'm just glad that you and the boys were not affected."

Jacob glanced over at Michael, worry still radiating strongly from him, as he was holding Madison and talking quietly to her. "I wouldn't say we are totally unaffected."

Linda glanced over at Michael and Madison. "What are we going to do about those two?" She shook her head. "They're so young to be so wrapped up in each other."

Jacob chuckled. "By the time we were that age, it was already a forgone conclusion. We were both way too young for such a relationship and we turned out just fine." He kissed her cheek. "Their relationship hasn't progressed near as far as ours had at that age. We've still got time, and we've raised a crop of good kids."

"You're right but I'm a mother, I'm supposed to worry about things like that." She nudged him in the ribs. "You're his father; you're probably rooting for him." She looked over at the other two kids. "What about Sharon and Desmond?"

Jacob smiled. "Those two remind me even more of us than Michael and Madison. Those two are the ones that I think we will have to keep our eyes on. The attachment between them is just as strong as Michael and Madison, and they're over a year younger." He shook his head. "If anyone's going to jump the gun, it will be those two."

"At least Terry and Tonya seem to be handling it OK." Linda remarked. I was talking to Tonya a couple of days ago and she was aware of the developing relationships."

"Terry and I were discussing it three or four days ago. He said that he was unsure about it at first but he has become quite fond of both Michael and Sharon so he is not opposed to it, though he too thinks they may be a bit young."

Linda looked over at Terry and Tonya pressed as close together as two people could be while in separate sleeping bags. "I must confess, I like their family a lot and I wouldn't mind having them become part of our family." She paused a half second then brought her hand to her mouth, her eyes wide. "Did I really just say that?"

Jacob chuckled. "Now who's jumping the gun?"

She shook her head. "It must be the fever."

~ x x x x x ~

(Day 13)

By the next morning everyone was feeling pretty much the same. Though everyone was dragging, with the exception of Madison who was still mostly out of it, they were all relatively functional.

Around mid-day Michael got very worried when Madison's temperature spiked again and she slipped back into simi-consciousness. Linda used the emergency injectable antibiotic from the other first aid kit on her friend's daughter. Then she and Tonya drained as much of the infection as they could from the two badly infected wounds on Madison's chest. After that was accomplished, Tonya treated all of her wounds with the last of the topical antibiotic cream.

After they had done all they could for Madison, they broke out the spare first aid kit from the reserve stash that had been left behind and treated everyone else's injuries. By the time that was done, Jacob had prepared lunch for them.

A few hours after lunch Madison again began to rouse from her fever induced stupor. This time she seemed a bit more alert. Michael's relief was obvious. Throughout the rest of the day, Michael refused to go very far from Madison's side and was very conscientious about watching over her, making sure she was well cared for.

For the rest of the party, the situation remained unchanged. They all felt like they were coming down with a low grade flu.

Desmond and Sharon appeared to rally halfway through the day and were soon playing at the water's edge. By evening however Desmond had lost ground and was feeling wrung out like the rest. Sharon seemed to be completely cured; however she remained with Desmond and seemed determined to take care of him.

During dinner Jacob informed the rest of the party that Devin was on his way back and though still worried he was also feeling hopeful.

A couple of hours later Jacob was sitting with his back against the cavern's rock wall, Linda dozing fitfully while firmly embraced in his arms. He glanced around at the rest of the party. Eight feet away Tonya was sound asleep, Terry practically molded up against her back. Over by the boats, Desmond was sound asleep and Sharon was sitting up next to him stroking is hair as she was watching over him. Over by the camping heater, Michael was sitting up with his back resting against a pile of camping and climbing gear. Madison was lying beside him with her head pillowed on his lap and they were quietly talking.

Jacob chuckled at the picture.

Terry, who had not been able to fall asleep, looked up at Jacob. "What is it that amuses you?"

"I was just noticing the way this party has become paired off." Jacob responded. "Linda and I were talking about that last night.

Terry rose up on one elbow and looked around, taking in the same scene Jacob had been observing. He shook his head. "So young." He voiced quietly then looked back at Jacob. "I'd already noticed the way they had begun pairing up months ago. Tonya told me that it had been happening longer than that. But it seems to have intensified significantly during this trip." He shook his head. "They're all so terribly young to be so much involved. It worries me just a bit." He looked back at Jacob, his eyes reflecting his sincerity. "But I will tell you, I have no problems at all with who they have chosen to become so interested in." He looked down at his wife's sleeping form. "I know Tonya feels the same way about it as I do. We both feel very close to your family . . . and I will admit that the concept of our families becoming joined through our kids has occurred to us. But I didn't expect it to start happening this soon." After a moment, he looked back up at Jacob. "Whew! That is not the kinda thing I normally talk to others about." He shook his head ruefully and Jacob could feel a bit of embarrassment coming from him. "Must be the fever talking. I think I'd better go to sleep before I start talking like an emotional girl." He lay back down and shifted in close against Tonya.

Jacob merely smiled as he continued to watch over both families. He continued contemplating what Terry had said. It was interesting how both sets of parents had been thinking along the same lines where their children were concerned.

~ x x x x x ~

(Day 14)

Another morning and for the most part things remained unchanged. Sharon was apparently fully cured. Madison's fever however had risen a bit, though the two infected injuries were looking much better.

Because of the resurging fever, Tonya decided to use the last emergency antibiotic injection on her. By the time breakfast was ready, an hour later, Madison was already showing improvement. By lunch time she seemed to be completely recovered.

Right about the time they were finishing their lunch, Devin returned , heavily winded but relieved to find everyone still OK. He was carrying a light backpack which he immediately whipped off and opened.

Inside were some packages of pills and about twenty of the same emergency injectable antibiotics that they had been giving Madison. After taking time to regain his breath, Devin told them what Rosa's daughter, Teresa, had told him.

"Teresa said that what you got was a bacteria infection from those crab bites. She said that it is a modified strain and our immune systems are having trouble adapting to it. Those that are sick should take three of these injections, one injection every twelve hours. She also said that you should all be feeling fine by the time you should take the third one but take it anyway to prevent relapse."

After a few seconds he continued. "The pills are potassium and vitamins. Teresa said to take two of each with every meal. A work party is on its way to help carry everything back. They should be here in four days. She also said that we are to stay put and concentrate on recovering our health 'til the work party gets here."

Jacob passed out the pills to everyone while Tonya gave the first injection to Terry, Desmond, Linda and herself since they were the only ones that still felt ill.

Jacob and his sons spent the evening breaking down and packing away the two boats. Madison tidied and packed away the climbing equipment. Linda, Tonya, Terry and Desmond stretched out and spent the afternoon sleeping. Sharon spent most of the afternoon watching over Desmond as he slept.

Jacob also made a quick assessment of their supplies. All of the food that had been in one of the boats had been ruined by the crabs. They still had enough food for the next four days, by dipping into the emergency reserve that they had left stored on the beach, but that would not leave them enough food for the five day trip back to the main tunnels. Their medical supplies were nearly depleted. Despite spending nearly twice as long on the boats as they had estimated, there was still enough fuel left to keep both the camp heaters going for the next four days. Over all they were in fairly good shape. Terry's insistence that they bring three times as much in supplies as they had expected to need had paid off big time.

Continued in Part 12


'Beauty and the Beast' and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.