Linda Andrews - Extinction Level Event

God, please, let going up be easier than coming down . Easing the cabinet open, she reached inside. Her fingers brushed cool plastic before they closed around a curved handle. Thank God Aunt Mavis hadn’t moved the electric kettle.

Sunnie glanced up. Dang. She hadn’t realized her aunt had extra high counters. Stiff joints throbbed as Sunnie raised her hands. The kettle slid across the laminate. One thing down. Now she just needed to get to her feet.

Yeah, easier said than done.

Biting the blanket to keep it in place, she gripped the bull-nose edge. On the count of three. One. She tucked her legs under her body. Two. Sinew stretched along her calves as she balanced on the balls of her feet. Her legs shook. Three. Grunting and grinding her teeth against the yarn, she pulled and pushed. Please. Please. Please.

Inch by inch, she rose higher. Her lungs sawed for air. Her chin cleared the countertop. No stopping. Must keep going. Sweat greased her fingers and she felt her grip slip.

“No,” she growled between her clenched teeth. I will make it. I will .

Finally, she stood upright. Her belly bumped the counter then stuck. With her arms as strong as al dente pasta, she leaned against the cabinetry. God, she was beyond tired. Beyond exhausted. And she still had to make it back to her room.

Best get started if she expected to reach her bed before noon. Freeing the blanket from between her teeth, she tied it sarong-like around her body. Two steps brought her to the peppermint tea and plastic bear half-full of honey. At least, her legs hadn’t collapsed. Cradling them in her arm, she trudged to the sink and shoved open the tap.

Her right knee buckled as she set the open kettle under the running water. Maybe she’d spoken too soon. She locked her legs and threw a yawn into her shoulder. If her throat didn’t hurt so much, she’d skip the tea and just go for the aspirin.

Sunnie bowed her head. Aspirin. She’d almost forgotten the aspirin. While the water continued to fill the pot, she trudged to the corner cabinet and opened it. At last, she found a benefit to her aunt’s weird habit of keeping medicine in the kitchen. When Sunnie pulled out the bottle, moonlight bathed the yellow and brown label. She shook the container and listened to the rattle of the tablets.

Nearly full.

Tugging her mask down, she aligned the arrows on the child-proof cap and worked it off with her teeth. Turning off the water, she left the kettle in the sink while dumping a dose into her hand. The red-coated pills sparkled like rubies in the light shining through the window over the sink. Her thumb held her medicine, while she poured the extras back into the bottle. Capping it, she popped the pills into her mouth then filled her Maxine mug.

Sunnie gulped half the water then tossed her head back. For a moment, the pills stuck in her throat. She gulped the rest and a rivulet escaped through the corners of her mouth to plop on her pajama top. She swallowed and swallowed until, finally, the pills made their way to her stomach.

“Gah.” Shuddering, she ran her tongue against her teeth to scrap off the bitterness, dropped the aspirin bottle into her empty mug and gathered up the kettle. The plug knocked against the cabinet when she lifted it out of the sink.

Sunnie froze. Her eyes strained in the darkness. Had Aunt Mavis heard that? No one called her name. No light turned on. Safe. She was safe. Watching the swinging plug, she schlepped down the hallway.

By the time she reached her room, her heart hammered inside her chest and her lungs heaved for oxygen but a giggle bubbled against her lips. If she didn’t feel like crap, sneaking about would be kind of fun. It had certainly done wonders for her exhaustion. She cracked another yawn. Kind of. Kicking the door shut, she opened her laptop. The screen blinked to life, complete with the dancing skeletons of the Redaction in Action website.

After dumping her booty onto the desk, she plugged in the kettle. Water gurgled and the heating element ticked. Pinching the aspirin bottle out of her mug, she tossed it by her pillow. She popped open the box of tea bags and inhaled the rich scent of peppermint. Yum. Flipping open the top of the honey bear, she glanced down at her desk. Dang. She’d forgotten a spoon.

“Oh, well.” Inverting the bottle, she squeezed until the amber liquid oozed across the bottom of her mug. Just about enough. She swirled the string of honey until the bear was upright then searched her can of pencils until she found one without an eraser to use as a stir stick. Closing her eyes, she kicked off her slippers and collapsed onto her desk chair. Metal creaked as the seat back adjusted to her weight.

Tired. So tired. Lethargy infused her limbs. She could almost feel them melt into the plastic armrests. Questions exploded like fireworks in her mind. What had China said about their continuing Redaction cases? Had anyone made the connection between the Ash Pneumonia and the influenza? Was anyone else sick?

Had anyone died?

The kettle whistled. Her eyes flew open and her heart raced. Scared by a kettle—real mature. Laughing under her breath, she curled her bare toes around the cord and pulled. The plug thudded onto her area rug as the whistling died. Removing the lid, she tossed in two tea bags to steep. Peppermint-scented steam wafted above the kettle before she closed the lid.

Yawning, she stared at the computer screen. Skeletons waved to fleshed-out relatives. What was she going to do? Her mind blanked as more dead left the houses to join their relatives outside. Redaction. China. She caught the thought and nailed it down. Should she see if she could find a clip of the announcement on Youtube?

Nah. That was too much work. Surely, someone here had mentioned it. Sunnie scrolled through the lists of topics before her finger froze.

Catsin99: Redaction back, or has it ever left?

Her heart stumbled over a beat. Aunt Mavis’s plan had worked! That reporter Catherine Sinclair had made the connection. Sunnie scanned the responses. Seventy thousand and climbing. Good Lord, could that many people be sick already? She opened the topic.

chesshire8: I think UR panicking for no reason.

“That’s because you’re a government douche bag sent to keep the truth from the people.” Sunnie snorted and poured tea into her mug.

nymetsfan1K: BTW China denied any continuing illness.

“Another mouthpiece from the government peanut gallery.” She hissed through her teeth. Her hand hovered over the mouse. Her stepdad used to say things like that. She never did learn exactly what a peanut gallery was. And now it was too late.

She shook her head. As for China denying everything… Had she really expected any government to do the right thing?

MLKWIT: I dont believe anything our govt says, why would I believe the Chinese

catsin99: exactly. no1 is on their streets

nymetsfan1K: have u seen the pollution. Id demand a mask or oxygen tank. China needs Al Gore

“Great, obscure the issue by introducing politics.” Actually, now that she’d thought about it, they’d done that a lot. Sunnie blew the steam off her mug before taking a sip of the cooler top layer. Doofus! Setting the cup down, she stirred the honey into the tea with the pencil.

MLKWIT: They can have him!!!!!

chesshire8: B serious. Has any1 U no become sick?”

catsin99: Outside of GIs?”

Sunnie leaned forward. White tipped her knuckles.

nymetsfan1K: yes

catsin99: no.

Damn. Sunnie licked the tea off the tip of her pencil before dropping it onto her desk. She couldn’t be the first. She just couldn’t. Ignoring the other messages, she scrolled through the responses. Ha! Someone has a sore throat and the douche bags tell him he’s overreacting. Figures.