Genetic Drift (4 page)

DAY 17

THE MCCLUSKEY HOME

EAST OF CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA

As the postal worker approached the residence, an old wooden sign with the name “Dr. Feldman Q. McCluskey III” hung next to the doorbell.  The postal worker pressed her finger to the doorbell and she could hear the sound “awoogah” fill the silence of the house.  Footsteps soon followed, becoming louder as a person came and opened the door. 

Mac McCluskey was a tall, heavy man.  With his white beard and spectacles, he looked like Santa Claus.  He was a physician, a world-renowned pathologist.  He worked closely with the CDC in strategies and overcoming blood borne diseases.  Mac loved the fame and his ego grew as his fame grew.  Soon, he found himself catering to anyone who would praise him publicly.  That was his life ten years ago.

He loved the attention, until his pride took him away from home instead of meeting his wife and son at the airport.  A dark stormy night, in combination with a rented car, is what caused the accident that killed his wife and son.  He mourned their death and his guilt gave him humility.  He vowed to never allow his pride to stop him from doing right to others.  Alyssa and Joel would have wanted it that way.  And he promised them as he watched them lowered into their grave, that he would never let them down again.

“Oh, a delivery,” his eyes beamed at the package, “I don’t get too many things nowadays.” 

“Yes Doctor,” she said as she glanced at the wooden sign, “all I need is a signature.”  The postal worker presented her electronic pad and stylus to Mac. 

“Have you been following that spacecraft on the news?  It has been in orbit for two weeks now and it hasn’t sent anyone down to the planet or anything.  Isn’t it weird to have traveled through space and not say ‘Hi’ after a stop?” she asked. Mac handed the pad back to her and took the package from her outstretched arms.

The postal worker grabbed the pad and looked at the Doctor’s signature. 

“Yes I have, it’s not like there is anything else on the news,” Mac said as he backed into his house.  Mac became focused on the package and shut out the world.

“I think-,” she said as the door gently closed.  She watched as the door hit the jamb. 
Click
, the conversation was over.

“Have a nice day,” she said as she frowned and then spoke under her breath, “I guess.”  The postal worker tucked her pad under her arm and turned around.  She gave the mailbox a little kick before she got into her truck and drove off to deliver her next package.

Mac grabbed his letter opener off of his desk and went to sit in his chair.  It was occupied by his cat, Fluffbutt, who had claimed it as its throne.  Fluffbutt let out a grunt as he shooed the feline to reclaim his seat.  He sat down and looked at the envelope. “From the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services,” he said to Fluffbutt, “I wonder what Claudia wants now.”  He sat back in his chair.  He thought to himself that he had not been a practicing physician for about ten years now.  He took his letter opener and revealed a letter:

To: Dr. Feldman Q. McCluskey III

From: Secretary of Health and Human Services

Subject: The Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, by decree of the President of the United States of America, asks for your assistance in response to Executive Order 2519, Alien Contact Contingency.

My dearest friend and colleague, Mac, you are one of the greatest physicians that I have ever known.  And even though we have not maintained contact over the past years, memory of you and your abilities shall be forever imprinted in my mind. 

In order to protect the well-being of the citizens of the United States of America and the world, it is necessary to plan for any encounters with our new visitors from outer space, whether it be peaceful or in the worst case, hostile.

You are asked to provide local medical assistance and work jointly with Alan Pritchard (who has accepted the designation as the Local Defense Commander by the Office of the Secretary of Defense).  In case of emergency, you are designated as the Charlottesville Chief Medic and representative of this office.  You are needed to provide your expertise in health and welfare to those under your care, whether it be disease, impairment, or approaching death. 

This order will not commence execution until declared by the President.

Mac, I am asking you this personally as I know that there is no one that compares to your genius.  Your country needs you.  We all need you.

No matter what happens, you will have my continued faith and friendship.

My Deepest Respects,

Hon. Secretary Claudia Alton

“Wow, I wasn’t expecting that,” Mac told Fluffbutt as she lay on the floor licking her paw.  He looked in the envelope and found another piece of paper, titled,
“Executive Order 2519.” 
Mac read the order and understood what the government was planning in case it failed.  He thought about how to approach this letter for a second.  In that second, he knew that he wouldn’t go back to his prideful ways.  He wouldn’t wear it as a badge like he would have ten years ago.  He didn’t have to weigh the glory of being the Doctor of all Doctors in Charlottesville.  It was his chance to ensure that a new generation, maybe a generation that wouldn’t be as advantaged as he was, would be able to overcome obstacles set in its path.  Yes, he humbly thought, it was a way to help people, to help make better doctors. 

He got out of his chair and stood up tall.  Should anything arise that needed him, he would be willing to help without question.  Fluffbutt jumped back onto its throne.  Mac smiled as he put down the letter.  He turned on the news and the continued coverage of the alien spacecraft blanketed every channel. “I hope that nothing happens.  If I have to do this, then the world is going to be in a bad place,” Mac said.  He walked to the kitchen and picked up his phone.  “Time to call Alan,” he said, “Local Militia 348.”

DAY 276 MORNING

HAPPY PAWS MEDICAL CLINIC

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA

“Do you know where you are?”

“Do you know what’s happened?”

“Do you know where you’ve been?”

“What’s your name?”  

Barron peppered the woman with a barrage of questions, carefully avoiding calling her Tulip.

“Madison, Maddie, my name is Maddie,” she said.  “I remember going skiing during winter break with my friends.  We went out to Summerwhite.  There was Catelyn, and there was Damien, and… Bryce,” Maddie said, and jumped from the bed.  Tape ripped from her skin as she landed and the painful realization set in, “and I was with Bryce up in the mountains.”  

The heart monitor had flat-lined.  She noticed an IV port and pulled it out as well.  Blood flowed from her skin.  Barron grabbed gauze and held it on her arm.  She took her arm from Barron and snatched the gauze out of his hand.

She looked around the dimly lit room.  The lightbulb was about to die.  Her eyes scanned any object she could identify in the masses of gray and black.   There were tall cabinets and short ones, two trash cans, a chair, and surgery tools on a metal rolling table on the far side of the room.  Her eyes swelled at the tools of death.  Maddie jumped back against the wall, her hands planted as she readied herself for her next escape attempt.  The gauze fell like a heavy feather to the floor.

“Where am I?  Are you harvesting body parts here?” she screamed.  Her foot planted and her body tensed for the sprint.  

“Do you really think you would be awake if we needed your kidneys?” Mac asked, and draped a cover over the table.  Barron stood in front of the door.  There was no escape for Maddie.  She resigned herself to leaning against the wall. 

“You need to sit down,” Mac said as he urged Maddie to calm down.  

“Why?” Maddie asked, as she stood with her gown flapping on the sides of her body.  Her hands were still planted on the wall.  Barron had become abnormally silent during the conversation.  The light from the hall shone above his shoulder.  He stared at her figure through the thin fabric of the gown.  He didn’t see her as a sickly patient anymore.  She saw his stare and dropped her hands and looked down.

“I feel disgusting, I want to clean up,” Maddie said.  She saw black filth in the crevasses of her fingers and hands.  “Where’s the washroom?” she asked.  

“Through there and the second door on the left, but—” Mac said, as he pointed outside of the room.  Maddie started for the door before he could get out the rest of his sentence, “you should know that you probably look different,” Mac said as if she was still there.

Barron had already started bustling before Mac could tell him to clean up the monitoring equipment lying on the bed.  With a serving heart, Barron was the best assistant Mac ever had the pleasure of working with.  Mac thought it was because he had a fresh outlook to being in medicine and cared more about the people around him.  Barron never thought about what was best for himself.  

“Take a look at this,” Barron said, as he held up the IV that had been in Maddie’s arm.  Something had chewed away at the needle.  It appeared that something acidic had dissolved the needle along the length.  It looked like a long crescent moon shape burrowed down the side.  

“Bag it,” Mac directed Barron.

As soon as Mac finished telling Barron to preserve the needle, an angry yell was heard down the hall.

“What the HELL!” Maddie yelled.

Mac and Barron ran through the door to the washroom.  Barron opened the door to see Maddie with a towel wrapped around her head and her body dripping wet from the shower.  Her hands clutched the lip of the sink.  She was staring at herself in the mirror, angling her face to view her red eye.

“What did you asses do to me?” she demanded.

“You’ve only been here for two days and you’re exactly the same as when you got here!” Barron raised his voice.  He hadn’t done that to her and he was upset with the implication.

Mac put his hand on Barron’s shoulder, “Maddie, I don’t know how long you’ve been out but we haven’t had snow for six months.  We need to figure out what happened from when you went skiing until now.”  

“Fine, leave me alone and let me get dressed.  I’ll be out in a few minutes,” she stood staring down into the sink and shook her head.  Barron grabbed some clothes off of the linen shelf.  He handed her a pair of gray sweatpants with a rip in each of the knees and an XXL shirt with ‘Loser’ written on the front.  She looked down at the tattered clothing.

“Thanks,” she said, and she pushed Barron out the doorway and slammed the door.  Mac and Barron just stood there until they heard the lock click.  Barron went back to clean up the monitoring equipment in the room.  Mac went back to his office and started writing notes on a sheet of paper.  He had to make sure he had her reaction documented. 

DAY 34

SUMMERWHITE SKI RESORT

NELLYSFORD, VIRGINIA

She looked up, without regard to what was coming down.  Such are the actions of someone naïve to worldly matters.  Sheltered for all of her life from the vagrants and villains of this world, Maddie was no better than a toddler wondering what a red element on a stove feels like.

A thousand microscopic ice pellets spread a freezing pain across her forehead.  The thought of frowning crossed her mind, but it was a fleeting thought as her eyes met Bryce.  Finally, after the stories of love and happiness she heard from her friends, that she read in books, love had stumbled on her in the form of Bryce.  She threw him a smile. It wasn’t hard, she loved him.  With her skis strapped on her feet, she hopped as she turned to her love.

“Bryce, when are you going to come over here and teach me how to ski?” 

Even though she had been skiing since she was three years old, she wanted Bryce to feel like her one and only.  Her first semester of college was finally over.  Winter break had arrived, the time to relax.  She decided not to celebrate the holiday with her parents and sister as she had done for the past 18 years.  The past four months of freedom overshadowed any desire to reconnect with home.  Her parents were very strict, overbearing.  No dating, no late nights.  It was school, study, sleep, in that order.  The only break she had from the routine was gymnastics and skiing.  When she had graduated high school, Maddie did not waste a moment and entered University to escape her parents.

Bryce was the same age as Maddie.  They were freshmen and classmates, and he sat next to her in English.  Professor Snyder didn’t pay any attention to his students.  But Bryce, he paid attention to Maddie and she loved it.  They started dating when he wrote her a text, after taking her phone.  “Wanna go out tonight?” he asked. 

“If you give that back to me,” she said as she grabbed at her phone.

He turned the face of the phone and showed her the text “Yes,” and said, “That’s what you were supposed to say.”  After that day, they dated and decided to take the same classes in the Spring.

Bryce came from behind Maddie and grabbed her hips.  He stood four inches over Maddie, who was tall herself at 5’ 10”.  He placed his chin on her shoulder and went to kiss her.  She closed her eyes to return the kiss.  Then her feet slipped from under her and she fell to the ground.  Bryce stood uphill laughing at her.  She scrambled to get to her feet but her skis got crossed and she tripped, falling face down into the snow.  She felt the pulling of her coat and was lifted to her feet as Bryce laughed.  She was turned around, “You—” before she could say another word Bryce kissed her.  Maddie felt warm from head to toe.  She smiled. It was the best day of her life.

Maddie stared into Bryce’s eyes.  In her mind, he was the epitome of perfection.  He was handsome and tall and smart and had a great smile.  As they held each other close, Catelyn and Damien approached, “You two need to get a room,” Catelyn hollered.  “Damien and I are hungry.  We’ve been out here all day.  Do you think you guys can take a time out to grab something to eat?” Catelyn asked, wrapping her arms into Damien’s. 

“That sounds like a plan, my stomach is eating through to my—” Bryce bellowed.

“We get the point Bryce,” Maddie stopped him before he could finish.  They packed up their gear and headed toward the resort restaurant.

They approached the Irish restaurant and there was a sign that said “Closed.”  It was odd since the place was supposed to be open until 11PM and it wasn’t even five o’clock.  Bryce peered through the window and didn’t see anyone.  Catelyn knocked on the door and there wasn’t a stir. 

“Maybe we can sneak in there and grab something to eat,” Damien said to the group. 

Maddie came back, “No, I don’t think we should.  They’ll kick us out of the resort.  Anyways, we have food back at the cabin.”

“Don’t you mean
Our Chalet
,” Catelyn said using her exaggerated French accent, and smiled.  The group walked back to their chalet.  Bryce and Maddie clung to one another while Catelyn and Damien were throwing snowballs at each other.  Damien threw one snowball that hit Catelyn in the face. 

“Okay, I had enough,” Catelyn told Damien.  Damien gave his hand to Catelyn and helped her up.  As she stood, Catelyn shoved a handful of snow down Damien’s shirt.  She snorted as Damien’s reaction to the snow was priceless.  It was a ten-minute walk to the cabin and they walked inside just as the last glimmer of dusk faded away.  

The smell of sizzling bacon filled the room as Bryce took a bite of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  Maddie thought about this trip and how she never wanted it to end.  The usual vacation with her family consisted of meals and alone time.  Often, her father would be working on projects and too busy to interact with the rest of the family.  Her mother would always be doing chores around the house.  Her sister would always be texting with her friends.  That’s why she loved being around Bryce.  She was always the focus of his attention and she loved being a priority, except when he was eating.  Catelyn turned on the TV and there was nothing but static.  Every cable channel contained static. 

“Guys, the cable’s out,” she looked at her phone, “the internet is out too. And there’s no reception here.” 

Damien smiled at her, “I guess we’re in for old-fashioned games and fun.” 

Maddie danced as she reached into her bag, “I brought a word-tile game!”

Bryce looked at her and spoke as peanut butter stuck to the roof of his mouth, “We all know about losing word games to you Maddie,” he finished swallowing, “I still don’t think hyperadrenocorticism, or whatever you played, is a word.” 

The four went on playing games, telling jokes, and laughing, completely numb to the world.

“Wow, it’s 2AM.  I’m exhausted,” Bryce let out a big yawn. 

Catelyn, Damien, and Maddie reciprocated the yawn.  Catelyn smiled, “I guess that means we’re not serial killers, good night.”

Maddie went into her room and plunked down on her bed.  The best day of her life had come to a close and she instantaneously fell asleep.  Her dream of Bryce and their kiss came to an abrupt halt as a blue-hued hand yanked her out of bed.  Her head flew through the air with the rest of her body.  She felt the force of her flight and she couldn’t free herself from the pull.  As her body moved through the air, she saw it, she tried to avoid it, but her face crashed into the bedpost.  Her right eye was speared by an ornate fleur-de-lis sticking out of the side.  Her arms fell down as her body went limp.  Blood oozed from her eye socket and she was dragged from the room.

“What the hell was that?” Damien jumped out of bed upon hearing the commotion outside of his room.  He grabbed his ski pole and jumped through his door in the en-garde position he had learned from fencing.  It took only a moment for him to analyze the situation.  The ski pole started to drift downward as he looked in disbelief. 

In front of him was a huge monstrosity, a Troll, standing almost seven feet tall.  Its entire skin was colored blue, as blue as cobalt, and it had a huge round pitted nose and pointed ears that drooped down to its neck.  Its long blue fingers were dragging Maddie, and there was another one, dragging Bryce as he tried to kick it. 

Catelyn came out of her room and screamed in terror.  That was enough to get the Troll’s attention.  It turned its head and its dark, cold eyes stared into Catelyn’s scream.  It raised its hand and the core started to glow on its orbitizer.  A buzz filled the room and the blue ball struck Catelyn.  Her screams were instantly muted by the blast.  Damien watched Catelyn as her face disappeared into nothing.  Blood started to flow from where her neck used to be.  As Catelyn’s body fell, Damien turned to the Troll. 

He lunged toward the blue being, ski pole in hand.  A second buzz filled the room and Damien fell to the ground.  The second Troll, holding Bryce, made a fist and hit Bryce so hard that he stopped fighting.  He was out cold.  Disregarding the two bodies on the floor, the Troll walked over the corpses as if they weren’t there.  It silently followed the other Troll dragging Maddie out of the cottage.