Shelter In Place: Last Coors Banquet Series Part 2

Shelter in Place Chapter 9 / 14

Well, this chapter is probably one of the most harrowing things I've ever written... . People who have read Last Coors Banquet probably know what's about to happen ;-)

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"Here," Johnny said, as he put a bottle of antibiotics on the table in front of Kreese. "We haven't tried these ones yet, so get them taken."

"Where did you find them?" Kreese asked.

"They were in the medicine cabinet," Johnny said. "I figured Shannon probably had the clap and didn't finish the course."

"I'm assuming there's more in your medicine cabinet," Kreese said with a grin.

"Ha ha, very funny," Johnny replied.

"They won't work," Kreese said, tapping the half empty bottle on the table.

"Why?"

"Because the infection is probably a virus. Antibiotics won't work against that."

"So what about that shit you get for Flu? Would that work?"

"That shit for Flu is for Flu. It wouldn't work on this."

"Yeah, but you don't know for certain that it's a virus, so take the pills," Johnny said, as he filled a glass with water and placed it on the table.

"If I take any more I'll start to rattle," Kreese said, as he twisted the childproof cap off. "Did you find anything in his room?"

"No," Johnny said, as he slumped at the kitchen table. He picked up the can of fruit he'd brought over and twisted it in his hands. "I thought there'd be something, you know. A letter or a note. Something with an address on it so we could figure out where he was."

"Youngsters these days keep everything on their phones," Kreese said, then he popped one of the antibiotics in his mouth and swallowed it down with a gulp of water.

Johnny watched as Kreese lowered the glass with his injured hand. There was a small grey stain on the bandage. It had only put on fresh an hour ago and the infection was seeping through it already. Johnny knew that underneath, the black spiderweb was growing, spreading up the skin towards the wrist, turning the flesh a sickly grey colour.

Johnny tore his eyes away from the bandage and placed the can back on the table. He quietly said, "We should go home. It's getting late."

"Maybe not much got in," Johnny said, washing the wound for the third time that day. "People who get big bites get a bigger dose, so they die fast, but this is just a tiny cut."

"And it'll still kill me, it'll just take longer," Kreese said.

"We need to hit a pharmacy," Johnny said, as he looked at the black lines that were spreading up towards the wrist. "I bet they have some other drugs we could try."

"No, it's too dangerous," Kreese said. "Those places would have been cleared out on day one by junkies. It's not worth it."

"We have to try something," Johnny said, as he started wrapping the bandage round.

"There's one thing that might work," Kreese said quietly.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?" Johnny asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You need to cut my hand off," Kreese said.

"What?" Johnny asked, almost laughing. He couldn't be serious. There was no way he was really suggesting that. He let out a chuckle. "Come on, what's the real plan?"