Chapter Twenty

Partition

Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta

One year ago

The CDC had grown quieter over the past few months, even more so than anyone could have imagined. The number of people within the establishment had dwindled down to just a handful, and many of Anna's colleagues had decided to travel back home and see out the outbreak with their families. No one knew how long the outbreak would last, whether it be an overnight affair or a monthly event, and those who knew the ins and outs of the whole thing believed that it would be best if they left to see their family and ensure that their family was safe and well. It had been several months since the outbreak had been broadcast all over the United States, and what was believed to have been a small outbreak that was only supposed to last the best part of two weeks had snowballed into something indescribable, and into something that no one, not even Anna, had expected.

Anna had been sceptical regarding the outbreak before it had been put into stone, believing that it was the wrong thing to do and should never have happened. The cure for the common cold had been difficult to comprehend, and the initial cause for the outbreak was a simple injection of artificial Influenza in a willing participant. The experiments conducted would allow the CDC to gain information regarding the signs and symptoms of the common cold, and get an insight of what actually happens to the human body. The participant experienced the normal symptoms of flu and after two weeks, they became better and was allowed home. But something had gone wrong. A few days later, the CDC were contacted by the local police force claiming a woman who had been reported to have bitten a neighbour and had been thought to have rabies. It was only when the woman was detained and brought to the CDC that it was realised that the woman had been the participant.

Sarah Williams was twenty-three, was married and had been healthy her entire life. It was a shock to all scientists involved when they realised that something had gone wrong with the testing. The infection had escalated into something that no one could have prepared for, and before they knew it, the world had become almost a shadow of its former self. The infection had spread like wildfire, all due to an undisclosed victim who had been infected by Sarah. Three months later, Sarah remained in quarantine, in the hope that the CDC were able to understand why she had become the way she was, and understand a way in which they could reverse the effects before the entire population was wiped out.

But months down the line, the CDC was no closer to finding answers.

Anna yawned as she walked into the medical room. It was another morning where the CDC was quiet, and only a few employees remained but they all made the most of it. The night had been a restless one for Anna, as she woke a number of times sweating despite being in air conditioned room. Her body felt heavy and sluggish but she had just put it down as being tired and stressed about the whole situation. A familiar red head caught her eye and she smiled.

"Hello Abraham!" Anna said to the man who was seated on the bench.

"Anna," Abraham replied with a nod of the head.

"So, I've been given instructions to do a blood test on you," Anna responded, looking at his file. "Unfortunately it's mandatory."

"That's a shame."

"But it will be over before you know it," Anna reassured him. "I promise."

"How's patient X?" Abraham inquired, taking his mind off the blood test.

Anna looked up at him from the file and she shrugged. "Not good. She's not responsive. Every time we try and speak with her, she tries to bite us."

"Any news about the outside world?"

Anna again shrugged. "Still looking worse than ever. But that makes your blood test even more important. The sooner we find some sort of cure, everything will be okay. Hopefully."

"Do you really think so?" Abraham asked, seeing the doubt in Anna's eyes.

"I hope so," Anna replied. "I really do."

Anna walked over towards the metal tray and pulled it over towards Abraham. She saw him pale as his eyes clapped on the needles.

"This will only take a few seconds," Anna said, as she began to prepare the needle and vial for the blood. "Abraham… don't tell me you're scared of a little needle."

Abraham ran a hand through his red hair and rolled his eyes. "Of course not. A little thing like that? Nope."

A look of panic flashed across Abraham's face as Anna applied the gloves. She picked up the tourniquet and moved towards him.

"It's just a tiny pinch," Anna said, wrapping the tourniquet around his arm and tightening it. She tapped the skin to allow the vein to rise. "My mom would tell me a story to make me less nervous about having blood taken. I would always be so petrified, but it always worked."

"Oh yeah?" Abraham said, his voice hoarse.

"Yeah," Anna said, taking a seat in front of Abraham. "She told me of a girl who was fearless. She lived in the woods amongst the animals. They welcomed her like she was their own. They respected her, knowing that when the time came for it, she would show them that she was capable of protecting, not only herself, but also them. She allowed them to make a choice as to whether they would stand with her and protect the woods from intruders, or fight against her…" there was a pause. "And there we go!"

Abraham glanced down at his arm and then at the vial of blood in Anna's hand. His eyes widened in shock.

"You…" he began to say but he was speechless.

"All you needed was your mind to be taken off the needle, and once I had your full attention," Anna said. "It was quite easy. Just keep this pressed down on your arm for a moment."

Anna moved towards the fridge and placed the blood into a wooden block. She turned around and stared at Abraham. "We'll have your test results soon," she continued.

"And what happened to the girl?" Abraham asked.

Anna smirked. "You'll have to have another blood test to find out."

Dizziness overwhelmed her at that moment, and she found that she had to hold onto the desk to keep herself standing. Abraham had closed the gap between them and was holding her up with his strength. He searched her eyes worriedly, and saw that she had paled and beads of sweat had appeared on her face.

"I'm fine," Anna whispered, her mouth dry. "I'm fine."

"You're not," Abraham responded. "I'll call the doctor."

"Abraham, I'm fine, honestly." Anna said shortly. "I just need to sit do-"

Abraham caught Anna in his arms as she fell unconscious. Her eyes shut and her mouth was parted slightly. Fear rattled in his chest and he laid her down on the cool floor before raising the alarm.

Prison, Georgia

Present Day

"Do you really think she's telling the truth?" Lori asked, her hand caressing her ever-growing bump. Rick, along with Daryl and Maggie had made the short journey towards the cell block and had gathered the group together to discuss the revelation they had just discovered. The news had come as a shock to them all, but as some were intrigued, some had reservations. It was only natural for them, with everything they had gone through the past few weeks, with the deaths of their friends, it was easier to question everything than to make the mistake of believing everything that was said without seeing some proof.

"She's from the US Army," Rick replied. "She wouldn't lie to us."

Rick acknowledged the scoff coming from the hunter next to him and chose to ignore it for the moment. He took a moment to glance at the faces of the people who had become like a family to him in such a short amount of time.

"I believe her," Maggie said. "It's the only chance we've got."

"It isn't," Lori replied. "Glenn's strong. He'll pull through this."

"He's weak, Lori," Maggie said tearfully. "His body is weak. He's malnourished and dehydrated… we all are. His body is unable to continue fighting and it's really only a matter of time."

The sudden realisation came to a shock to them all and they took a moment to think about Glenn, their failing friend. Death was a constant thing that no one was able to escape no matter how hard they tried to fight it off. It was scary to think that they stared death in the face each day, and yet it was still the thing they were petrified of and had nightmares about.

Carol hugged Sophia closer to her body, and her eyes fell on Daryl. He was staring at the ground. "Daryl… what do you think?"

"Think it's a load of horse shit," Daryl responded, his eyes never leaving the floor.

T-Dog chuckled. "Don't hold back, Daryl."

"Is there any proof that it will work?" Lori asked, turning to Rick. "I mean, it's such a big risk."

Rick stared at her and nodded. A collection of gasps filled the quiet room.

"There's proof?" Carol asked.

"A cure?" Axel interjected.

"Looks like it," Rick began. "Anna… she was incredibly poorly. Her health was failing and death was an hour… a day… a week away. Her colleagues took the chance… and I guess, the rest is history. We found her in the woods with Sophia and Carl. She was on her way to Washington."

"Washington?" T-Dog asked.

"It's where her facility is," Maggie responded. "Where salvation is, hopefully."

"I believe her," Carl interjected, causing everyone to look at him in shock.

"You do?" Rick furrowed his brow at his son. Carl nodded.

"She could've killed Sophia and me. But she didn't," Carl explained. "She protected us."

"So… what will it be?" Rick asked. "Do we take the chance? He's not going to make it if we don't try."

"Chances like this… don't come around that often," Maggie said. "And even less in the world we live in now. Glenn has a lifeline all thanks to Anna. We have to take the chance, if we don't, we're going to lose him. And I love him too much to not do anything. So please… please, just trust her."

Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta

One year ago

Anna's world had become dark, where the occasional light were strobes that would appear every now and then like the light of a lighthouse trying to pierce through the fog at night. There were times where she would be aware that people were close, but their voices sounded like an old mix tape that kept falling silent and she would only be able to hear certain words. Her body was heavy, and her brain struggled to push her through the thick darkness. Her memory was weak, and for the life of her, she couldn't remember anything.

Her state of consciousness was failing her, and she knew it. There were three levels of consciousness that she was aware of. The first was where she was able to remember little details. Abraham… blood… worrying eyes… then darkness. The second was where she struggled to remember anything; who she was… where she was… why the world was dark… the strobes of light. The third was where she struggled to even become conscious, it was like being locked in a box and being forgotten. No matter how hard she tried to fight, it became harder and harder as she became much weaker.

Where was she? How had she come to be here? Was she dead? Is this what death was like?

She wasn't sure, confusion began to set in.

Then she saw him. The man who beat her down to build himself up. The man who would speak with his fists. The man who blamed her for the death of her mother. The man who beat her to within an inch of her life. She could only remember anger radiating from him.

He was right in front of her bearing a look of admiration and love, and one that she didn't recognise.

Her father.

The Infirmary

Present Day

"How long will it take for him… to wake up?" Hershel inquired. "If it's successful?"

"It could vary. It's difficult to really distinguish a time frame. It took me a few weeks before I was okay enough to sit up, walk, etc. Glenn may be different, he could wake up straight away or it could take a few days to maybe a few weeks or months," Anna replied.

Hershel nodded thoughtfully. "You became ill, is that right?"

"I did," Anna said. "They believed it to be normal influenza, but it wasn't. We were unable to test for it properly, so we don't know why I became ill in the first place."

"We?"

"Jenner and myself. We spent two weeks after my recovery trying to figure out why it happened but we never found the answer. It was at that point where I had to leave the CDC in order to find a colleague of mine. He had left to retrieve some medical supplies for me."

"And did you find him?" Hershel inquired. He watched Anna for a moment, taking in the sadness in her eyes. She shook her head sadly.

"There was no sign of him," Anna replied quietly.

The door to the infirmary opened at that moment, and people that Anna had never seen before appeared in the doorway. Daryl, Rick and Maggie came forward, with the latter moving towards Glenn automatically. Anna's eyes fell on the leader of the group who was glancing at his son stood next to him. His eyes moved to her and his eyes searched hers.

"We've all spoken and debated about it," he began. "And we've decided that we have no other choice but to try it. It worked for you, and we know that it may not work for Glenn but it's the only chance we have."

Anna glanced at the man stood next to Rick who had kept his eyes on the ground, his head shaking almost in disbelief. She nodded.

"I can't promise anything," Anna began. "I wish I could. I wish I could promise you that he will wake up, that he will even survive the night, but I can't. It might work, it might not, and if it does, then he's a very lucky man."

"There ain't no such thing as luck in this world, lady," the hunter retorted.

"But we can still try and believe in it, can't we?" Anna asked.

"No point. If there was luck in this world, the man upstairs would've answered our prayers and changed the world back to how it was," he replied shortly. "But he ain't there."

"Guys, please," Rick interjected. "This isn't the time nor the place."

Daryl scoffed. Anna nodded and moved towards the table where the vials of blood were sat upon.

"Is there anything we can do?" Maggie asked, her hand in Glenn's.

Anna shook her head sadly, "All we can do is wait."