Page 87 of Viral Justice

Jessup was off the roof and watching the main entrance in Bull’s place.

He nodded at her, but didn’t otherwise move.

Hunt and Tom were back in the room Ferhat had taken over. He and his kids were sleeping soundly, but the room also housed all the others she’d either delivered or sent for blood donation. Even Bull, whose turn it was to sleep, was in here, laying so he faced one wall. Hunt and Tom had two people lying down with blood slowly flowing into donation bags from tubing attached to a needle in their arms. Hunt was inserting a needle into a third person’s arm.

Ali turned to the woman. “These men are going to take some blood from you. There is a doctor with me who is going to use your blood to hopefully create a medicine.”

The woman looked at the two soldiers dubiously, but before she could speak, Max walked into the room.

His gaze found Ali’s first, and though he wore his medical mask openly, she had no trouble seeing the relief in his eyes. He approached her, stopping a socially acceptable three feet away. “Are you all right?” There was nothing socially acceptable about how intense his stare was. It was as if he touched her with his gaze and she found herself growing hot and damp in uncomfortable places.

“Yes. I had a bit of trouble with a group of thugs who thought they were going to carry my friend and me off, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle.” Ali nodded at the woman and continued in Arabic, “She has come to donate her blood.”

“To make a medicine,” the woman said firmly.

Max looked at the woman. “Thank you. Your generosity will save lives.” He included Ali in his glance. “I must get back to the lab. Please excuse me.” He left as precipitously as he’d arrived.

“Your husband is a learned man,” the woman said to Ali.

Ali managed to contain her start of surprise, but Hunt and Tom didn’t bother camouflaging their barks of laughter. So much for pretending to be a young man.

No point in pretending she was something she wasn’t. The female part, not thewife. “When it comes to caring for others, he is, indeed, intelligent and thoughtful. His own care...” She shook her head. “I must constantly remind him to look after himself too.”

The woman nodded sharply. “That is always the way between husbands and wives. My name is Fatima.”

Wait, she and Max actedmarried?

“I am Ali, but please call me Ali.”

Fatima was looking at the teen and his little sister. “I know Ferhat, but where aretheirparents?”

“Dead of the illness.”

For a moment Fatima’s face reflected intense grief, then she smoothed it over. “May I care for them?”

“I think,” Ali said slowly, “that would be good.”

“Is there food?”

“Yes, here.” Ali showed her a collection of Meals Ready to Eat, as well as bottles of water. Ali demonstrated how to use the heat packs on the MREs and Fatima seemed impressed.

She went to the children and asked if they’d had anything to eat.

Hunt continued monitoring the blood donations and when she caught his eye, he shooed her away.

She walked the short distance toward the lab and found Max writing in his journal. He didn’t look happy.

“Got any answers?” she asked quietly.

“Yes, unfortunately.” He sighed. “None of them good.” He looked at her and his laugh held a razor-sharp tone of irony. She was surprised it hadn’t cut anything off her.

“Tell me, Max.”

He blew out a breath. “This H5N1 flu is different from the one we’ve seen so much of in the past few years. This one has a preference for human lung tissue, not avian, or we’d be seeing dead chickens everywhere and we’re not.”

“That sounds deadly.”

“Lethal. On a large scale.”

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