When the door had crashed open, Castle had instinctively put out an arm and pushed Beckett behind him. He wasn't sure now why he had done it; Kate was braver, stronger and more capable than he was, but that didn't stop him feeling incredibly protective of his partner.
"Castle," she said, shooting him a slightly irritated look. Castle glanced round and realised that she was now stuck between the desk and his extended arm. "I don't think the nice men from the Department of Health are going to hurt me."
"Oh, right, sorry," he said, lowering his arm.
"I don't need you to protect me, Castle," she whispered snappily in to his ear before pushing past him and surveying the scene that was unfolding before her.
The room was in uproar. Ten men began covering the floor, the walls, even the ceiling with plastic while yelling instructions to each other. Every one of the new arrivals was covered from head to toe in their white plastic suits with thick PVC visors and big black gloves so that nothing, not even air could get to them.
As he watched, Castle saw medical equipment, beds and tables get wheeled in from the stairwell. A transparent makeshift wall had been erected in less than a minute, cutting the big room in half; turning the far end of the room in to what looked like a low-budget hospital ward.
"Aw jeez," Ryan said, looking like he could hardly believe his eyes, but when Castle caught his eye he saw a glint of excitement in the detective's light blue gaze. Castle raised his eyebrows, shooting him a quick, excited smile. At least Castle knew he wasn't the only one who found this whole situation strangely exhilarating.
Esposito was standing with his mouth slightly agape and Beckett looked a little uneasy. The only person who seemed completely calm was the Captain.
"Ladies and gentlemen," one of the men shouted over the commotion, "Please be aware that no one may enter or leave the building. This area is now going to be used to hold those who are infected. Everyone here will be required to give a blood sample."
The man's voice was muffled and slightly distorted. Castle realised that his voice was coming from a small speaker attached to the outside of his suit.
This would make such a cool story, he thought, studying the man's hazmat suit carefully.
The captain strode right up to the man who had just spoken.
"Captain Gates," she said, curtly.
"Ethan Ware," he said, extending his hand. The PVC visor was slightly distorting his features, but Castle could see that Ware was olive-skinned with short, dark hair and a strong jaw.
The Captain did not accept his handshake. "Would you be so kind as to tell us exactly what the situation is?" she asked acidly. She looked furious at the intrusion in to her department.
"I'm not really at liberty to – "
"Tell me what the situation is," she said, her voice now dangerously calm.
He cleared his throat, suddenly looking uncomfortable. Not so authoritative now, Castle thought to himself and felt an unexpected flash of respect for the Captain.
"I can confirm that there is a device hidden in the basement of the precinct, similar to those found in the Fire Department, City Hall and the court. It was on a timer, but we didn't make it in time to contain the infection before it was released in to the air."
"So this entire building is infected?"
"Anywhere that is supplied by your ventilation system, yes," Ware said, a slight nod visible through his thick suit.
"And what about the virus?"
"It's a very aggressive, mutated form of the flu. It affects everyone at different rates, but if left untreated, it can be fatal." Ware said.
"Woah," Castle whispered. "That's grim."
"Shh," Beckett scolded him, listening intently to the Captain's conversation.
"So what now?" the Captain continued.
"We'll see if we can set up a safe area and everyone will be given a blood test. Anyone who tests positive for the virus will be put in quarantine," Ware said, gesturing to the now separate section of the room. "Anyone who tests negative will be put in the safe-zone where they should be out of harm's way."
"Can I interject?" Castle said. The Captain shot him an irritated look.
"The ventilation system in the morgue is out of commission. That should be a safe area, right?"
Ware turned to look at him. "You must be Richard Castle," he said, with a hint of excitement.
"That's me," he said, shaking Ware's outstretched hand.
"Which makes you Detective Beckett," he said, nodding to Kate. "I'm a big fan of the books, but we'll have time to talk once this virus has been dealt with. Now, you said the morgue?"
"Yeah," Castle said, "there's no ventilation in there at the moment."
"At least we know Lanie's okay," Beckett muttered.
Ware considered Castle for a minute before finally saying,
"We are going to set up the safe-zone in the morgue, quick as you can." Ware hadn't even raised his voice, let alone turned to look at his colleagues but five or six of them somehow managed to hear him and hurried from the room towards the morgue. Castle realised with great joy that all the hazmat suits must be fitted with a walkie-talkie system.
This is just too cool, he thought.
As some of the men left the room, a determined look crossed Ware's face.
"I want you to know that I am going to do everything in my power to get everyone out of here safe and healthy."
"Thank you," the Captain said, curtly, but Castle had to stop himself giving a little snort of laughter. Ware suddenly sounded like a character in a movie, giving the citizens of a terrorized town his solemn word that he would keep them safe with his amazing superpowers. But despite his lame action-movie line, Castle was still a little in awe of him.
Castle scooted over to Ware. "What kind of suit is that?" he asked curiously.
Ware studied him with a slightly perplexed look before answering. "It's a level A Hazmat suit."
"Do you all have walkie-talkies inside?"
"Everyone has a two-way radio, yeah."
"Cool! Now, how exactly do you breathe?"
"It's got a self-contained breathing unit in it...at the back" Ware said, now looking at him like he was a little simple.
"Ah, that will explain why you all look like you have hunchbacks."
"Castle!" Beckett hissed giving him a half exasperated, half incredulous look. "Get over here."
He did as he was told, walking over to Beckett's side, giving her a mischievous smile which she grudgingly returned. She seemed to have got over her irritation at Castle for trying to protect her a few minutes ago.
"Hey, what are the symptoms of the infection?" Esposito asked suddenly from behind them.
"Sweating, dizziness, aching muscles, nausea and after a while, haemoptysis – that is, coughing up blood," Ware rhymed off.
"Uh, guys..." Esposito said.
When they turned to look at him they saw Ryan had blanched. His face was shining with sweat and even as they watched, his trembling knees gave way beneath him. Esposito managed to catch him just before he hit the floor.
"Jeez, Ryan!" Beckett gasped.
Esposito looked like he was in shock. He was sitting on the floor, holding Ryan's head in his lap. He glanced around the room with panic in his eyes. He looked to Beckett first, who was now standing staring at Ryan, looking equally scared. He then looked to Ware, silently pleading, asking him to do something to help his best friend.
Somehow, the whole situation had lost its exhilarating charm.
"I need the quarantine zone ready NOW!" Ware yelled.
A/N Thank you for reading, I have the next few chapters written already, so expect them soon! Please take a second to review if you have the time. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. C x