{"id":284,"date":"2013-07-22T04:02:52","date_gmt":"2013-07-22T04:02:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/?page_id=284"},"modified":"2025-05-08T22:14:30","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T22:14:30","slug":"chapter-69","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/story\/chapter-69\/","title":{"rendered":"Chapter 69"},"content":{"rendered":"

Chapter 69<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

<\/i>I know we\u2019ve all asked why.\u00a0 Why did this happen?\u00a0 Why did we survive?\u00a0 Why the ten of us?\u00a0 Why are we here?<\/i><\/p>\n

It\u2019s been hard to accept that we may never know the answers.\u00a0 Not in this lifetime, at least.<\/i><\/p>\n

But one thing became clear tonight:\u00a0 We are all here for a reason.<\/i><\/p>\n

I know the others have questioned their faith, but more than ever, I believe someone \u2013 Someone \u2013 brought us together.\u00a0 Someone made us resilient against the plague that destroyed so many.\u00a0 Someone led us to this base, which has become our fortress.\u00a0 Someone gave us Kevin, our protector.\u00a0 Someone provided the supplies I\u2019d need to put my skills to use in a crisis.<\/i><\/p>\n

Someone is watching over us.<\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Friday, August 3, 2012<\/b><\/b>
\nWeek Fifteen<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cHowie\u2019s hurt.\u00a0 We need you, Jo.\u00a0 It\u2019s\u2026 it\u2019s bad.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

From the moment she\u2019d heard the words pass through AJ\u2019s lips, Jo had been in trauma nurse mode.\u00a0 She\u2019d run faster than she\u2019d known her body to move, driven on autopilot to the medical center, and now stood before a man on a gurney who desperately needed her help.\u00a0 She was in her element.<\/p>\n

But as she came closer and saw the extent of the wounds on Howie\u2019s exposed back, deep gashes the men had tried in vain to stop up with gauze, she suddenly froze.\u00a0 There was a reason hospitals had a policy against letting medical staff work on family members; it was simply too difficult, too stressful, to think clearly when you were trying to save the life of someone you loved.\u00a0 Though not a blood relative, Howie was as good as her younger brother, in the new family they\u2019d formed on the base.\u00a0 For a moment, she was paralyzed with panic \u2013 panic at the realization that she was expected to save him, panic at the knowledge that she might not be able to.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan you do something?\u201d Kevin asked in a low voice.\u00a0 \u201cHe\u2019s bleeding out.\u201d<\/p>\n

He was right.\u00a0 Jo could see the blood seeping through the soaked gauze pads, spilling down Howie\u2019s sides, and spattering wetly to the floor, where there was already a significant puddle.\u00a0 She estimated at least two liters, which was almost half his body\u2019s blood volume.\u00a0 As the gravity of the situation hit her, she covered her mouth with her hand and shook her head in disbelief.\u00a0 Ever since she\u2019d found out about Howie\u2019s condition, she had known this could happen, but things had been going so well, and Howie had always been so cautious, it still came as a shock.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease,\u201d Kayleigh begged, sounding near tears.\u00a0 \u201cDo something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jo wasn\u2019t sure how much she\u2019d be able to do.\u00a0 Howie was very still, already unconscious from the blood loss.\u00a0 One arm hung limply off the side of the gurney.\u00a0 Afraid of what she\u2019d find, Jo nonetheless rushed forward and picked it up.\u00a0 The limb was dead weight in her hands, as she held it up and pressed two fingers to the radial artery in his wrist to feel for a pulse.\u00a0 It was very weak, but after a few seconds, she felt it, the faint fluttering beneath her fingertips that signaled life.\u00a0 His heart was still beating, barely, but if he kept on losing blood, eventually, the heart would have nothing left to pump.<\/p>\n

The key was blood.\u00a0 If she could just get more blood into him, feed his heart enough to keep it beating, then she could work on trying to stop the bleeding.\u00a0 \u201cHe needs blood,\u201d she said abruptly.\u00a0 \u201cDoes anyone know his blood type?\u201d<\/p>\n

She looked around at the others.\u00a0 They all exchanged uncertain looks.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan\u2019t you just give him Type O?\u201d asked Gretchen.\u00a0 \u201cThe universal donor?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jo answered the question with one of her own.\u00a0 \u201cAre any of you O negative?\u201d<\/p>\n

Regretfully, they shook their heads.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure there\u2019s a blood bank here,\u201d Kevin spoke up confidently, but Jo shook her head.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe needs whole blood.\u00a0 Whole blood expires after thirty-five days.\u00a0 Any stored here will be useless now.\u201d\u00a0 She sighed; if only someone had thought to ask Howie before he\u2019d blacked out.\u00a0 As a hemophiliac, of course he would know his own blood type.\u00a0 It struck her as odd that, despite his condition, he didn\u2019t wear a medical ID bracelet.\u00a0 Then she caught sight of the watch on his other wrist and wondered if it might serve the same purpose.\u00a0 \u201cTake off his watch,\u201d she ordered Brian, who was standing on that side of the gurney.<\/p>\n

Brian unclasped the watch and handed it to Jo, who turned it over.\u00a0 Sure enough, the back was engraved.<\/p>\n

Howard Dorough<\/i>
\nHemophilia<\/i>
\nBlood type B+<\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cB positive\u2026\u201d she murmured.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t a common blood type, but in a stroke of luck, she was B positive herself.\u00a0 So was Gabby, as a matter of fact.\u00a0 At the very least, they could both donate blood.<\/p>\n

She was just wondering how she was going to start an IV on herself when Brian said, \u201cI\u2019m B positive, too.\u00a0 Can you give him some of my blood?\u201d<\/p>\n

Before she could answer, Kevin added, \u201cI\u2019m also B positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHey, so am I!\u201d\u00a0 In shock, Jo looked over at Riley, who looked equally astonished.\u00a0 But it didn\u2019t stop there.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe too,\u201d said Gretchen, her eyes widening.<\/p>\n

\u201cMe three,\u201d added Kayleigh, sounding equally shocked.<\/p>\n

AJ snickered.\u00a0 \u201cWell, what are the odds?\u00a0 So am I.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stunned, they all looked around for the only person who had not spoken.\u00a0 Nick\u2019s face turned red, and he stammered, \u201cI, uh\u2026 I don\u2019t know what type I am.\u00a0 Sorry\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

Jo stared through him, trying to think back to when she\u2019d treated him in the emergency room, the day before Infernal Friday.\u00a0 He had received a transfusion to make up for the blood he\u2019d lost from his head wound, and she knew he\u2019d been typed for that.\u00a0 She wished she could remember what she\u2019d written on his chart.\u00a0 She was willing to bet he, too, was B positive.\u00a0 How could he not be?\u00a0 It was too much of a coincidence, and yet suddenly, it was starting to make sense.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all the same blood type,\u201d breathed Kayleigh.\u00a0 \u201cCould that be why\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n

But there was no time to debate it now.\u00a0 Howie was still hemorrhaging, dying before their eyes.\u00a0 If they were to save him, they had to act quickly.<\/p>\n

In a frenzy, Jo started tearing apart the room, searching for the equipment she\u2019d need to set up a blood transfusion.\u00a0 \u201cApply pressure to his back,\u201d she ordered Kevin, tossing him more of the large-size gauze pads.\u00a0 While he leaned over Howie, pressing the dressings to his back to soak up the blood, Jo found an IV starter kit and ripped the package open, spreading its contents across a stainless steel tray.<\/p>\n

She picked up Howie\u2019s arm again and turned it over.\u00a0 His normally olive skin was gray and bloodless, clammy and cool to the touch.\u00a0 She tied a tourniquet around his upper arm, then swiped the crook of his elbow with an alcohol pad to disinfect it.\u00a0 From the selection of catheter sizes in the kit, she selected the largest, the fourteen-gauge, which would allow the most blood to be transfused in the shortest amount of time.\u00a0 She plunged the needle into the vein and watched for a blood flash.\u00a0 Then she advanced the catheter, pulled out the needle, took off the tourniquet, and hooked up the IV tubing.\u00a0 She started a bag of saline, figuring the least she could do was increase his fluid volume while she obtained the blood.<\/p>\n

\u201cFind another gurney,\u201d she said to no one in particular, as she got out another IV kit and started setting it up.<\/p>\n

AJ left and came back, rolling a second gurney up alongside Howie\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho\u2019s first?\u201d Jo asked, patting the gurney.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will,\u201d AJ volunteered at once, hopping up and offering her his arm.\u00a0 It was so heavily tattooed, Jo couldn\u2019t imagine he had an aversion to needles, but still, he looked away when she inserted the needle.<\/p>\n

\u201cSqueeze this every few seconds,\u201d she said, handing him an enema bulb.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019ll increase the blood flow.\u201d<\/p>\n

AJ squeezed, and she watched the dark, red blood flow through the tubing that ran from his arm to a collection container.\u00a0 While the container filled with blood, she found a suture kit and set it up to start closing Howie\u2019s wounds.<\/p>\n

\u201cJo, this is soaked through,\u201d Kevin spoke up, pulling up the fresh gauze she had given him, now sopping wet with Howie\u2019s blood.<\/p>\n

She got him another one.\u00a0 \u201cKeep applying pressure, as much as you can.\u00a0 If you get tired, have someone else take over.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m okay,\u201d Kevin said determinedly, covering Howie\u2019s wounds with the new dressing.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened to him, anyway?\u201d Riley asked.\u00a0 \u201cAre those\u2026 bites?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCuts,\u201d answered Brian.\u00a0 \u201cHe fell onto a glass counter.\u00a0 We got to him before he could get bit, though.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s lucky,\u201d said Kayleigh, without thinking.\u00a0 Everyone just stared at her.\u00a0 \u201cEr\u2026 maybe not so much,\u201d she whispered, looking away.<\/p>\n

Jo alternated between suturing and checking on AJ.\u00a0 When he\u2019d given a pint of blood, she set it up to transfuse into Howie\u2019s IV line, then started the next donation.\u00a0 Brian offered to go next, and once she\u2019d set him up, Jo returned to Howie.\u00a0 His vitals worried her; his heart rate too high, his blood pressure dangerously low.\u00a0 His heart was racing to circulate the little blood that was left throughout his body.\u00a0 His breathing was rapid and shallow, his body\u2019s last-ditch effort to get enough oxygen to its cells and tissues.\u00a0 He was still losing blood as fast as she could give it to him.<\/p>\n

As she hung Brian\u2019s blood on the IV stand and hooked up Riley\u2019s IV, Jo wondered if it was all in vain.\u00a0 But as long as Howie\u2019s heart was beating, she had to keep going, too.\u00a0 She had to keep trying.\u00a0 She\u2019d never forgive herself if she gave up on him too soon.\u00a0 So she took her place beside the gurney once more and continued her work, using tweezers to dig fragments of blood-stained glass out of Howie\u2019s back, then stitching the deep gashes shut.\u00a0 Through her head ran a nursery rhyme she used to recite to Gabby:\u00a0 Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.\u00a0 Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.\u00a0 All the king\u2019s horses and all the king\u2019s men couldn\u2019t put Humpty together again.<\/i><\/p>\n

What if I can\u2019t do it?<\/i> she wondered again.\u00a0 What if I can\u2019t put him together again?<\/i><\/p>\n

When Brian\u2019s blood finished running in, she swapped it for Riley\u2019s and got Kevin ready to donate, while Nick volunteered to put pressure on the remaining open wounds.\u00a0 One by one, they all gave blood, even Gabby, who was too young and too light by Red Cross standards, and Kayleigh, who was terrified of needles, but consented to help Howie.\u00a0 Of them, only Jo did not donate because of the logistics of setting up her own IV while tending to Howie, and Nick, because there was no way to confirm his blood type.\u00a0 Still, eight units were donated, and eight units were transfused.\u00a0 By the time Kayleigh\u2019s blood was running through Howie\u2019s IV, Jo had finished suturing the last of his cuts.\u00a0 She had done all she could.\u00a0 It was a waiting game at that point.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis vitals are improving,\u201d she told the others.\u00a0 His respiratory and heart rate were down, his blood pressure higher than before.\u00a0 Both good signs.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs he going to make it?\u201d Kevin wanted to know, voicing the question everyone was wondering, yet no one else seemed willing to ask.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope so,\u201d said Jo.\u00a0 \u201cThe fact that he\u2019s still alive is encouraging.\u201d\u00a0 But there were still so many things that could go wrong.\u00a0 A transfusion reaction\u2026 infection\u2026 internal hemorrhage\u2026\u00a0 She had only treated the external injuries, the ones she could see.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t have the skills to operate, should he have internal bleeding, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs there anything else we can do?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jo\u2019s answer to that was simple.\u00a0 \u201cPray.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

They sat with their chairs in a circle, around the perimeter of the darkened hospital room.\u00a0 In the center lay Howie, still unconscious.\u00a0 They\u2019d moved him to a bed, hoping he\u2019d be able to rest comfortably until his body recovered from the massive blood loss.<\/p>\n

While he slept, they had formed a prayer circle around him, praying for his survival.\u00a0 Jo knew not everyone in their group believed in God, but AJ and even Brian, after his tirade, had joined hands with them and bowed their heads.\u00a0 Perhaps they didn\u2019t believe in the power of prayer, as she did, but the gesture showed their love for their friend.\u00a0 Howie hadn\u2019t always been the easiest person to get along with on the base, but he was one of them now.\u00a0 He was family.\u00a0 And none of them could bear the thought of losing him.\u00a0 They had lost too many friends, too many family members, already.<\/p>\n

Night was falling now, but none of them wanted to leave Howie alone.\u00a0 To conserve electricity, they\u2019d left the lights off; the room was lit only by the monitor Jo had hooked Howie up to, which ran off the medical center\u2019s emergency generator.\u00a0 It kept track of his vital signs, freeing her from the task of checking them every fifteen minutes.\u00a0 His heart rate was back to normal now, his blood pressure still low.\u00a0 All in all, he seemed stable.\u00a0 Without the donated blood, though, he surely would have bled to death.<\/p>\n

She looked around the circle at the others, all of them with the same blood type.\u00a0 What were the odds?\u00a0 It couldn\u2019t have been a coincidence.\u00a0 Not even God or fate would have brought ten people, all with B positive blood, together as the sole survivors of the zombie apocalypse.\u00a0 There had to be something more to it than that.\u00a0 Something scientific.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs that it, then?\u201d she wondered aloud.\u00a0 \u201cIs that all there is to it?\u00a0 Our blood type made us immune to the virus?\u201d<\/p>\n

It seemed too simple, but what other explanation was there?<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe\u2026\u201d said Gretchen uncertainly.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019d be a damn freaky coincidence otherwise,\u201d added AJ.<\/p>\n

It was Brian who said, \u201cIt can\u2019t be that.\u201d\u00a0 They all looked at him.\u00a0 \u201cIt can\u2019t be that, for the same reason our immunity wasn\u2019t somehow inherited, either.\u00a0 Blood type is genetic, too.\u00a0 My twin girls had the same type as me.\u00a0 B positive.\u00a0 If that\u2019s all that gave us immunity, they wouldn\u2019t have caught the virus.\u201d<\/p>\n

He spoke in the same deadened tone he always used on the rare occasions he brought up his family, and despite their earlier differences, Jo\u2019s heart went out to him.\u00a0 She knew what it was like to lose a spouse, but she could not imagine losing her child, too.\u00a0 Why had Gabby survived the pandemic, when his daughters had not?<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe it\u2019s a rare antibody in our blood,\u201d Jo suggested.\u00a0 She knew that, even within the same blood type, there were differences caused by antibodies.\u00a0 It was the reason matching organs for transplantation was such a complicated process.\u00a0 Two people of the same blood type might not be a good match, and even a good match required powerful immunosuppressant drugs to keep the immune system from attacking the donor organ.\u00a0 Yet antibodies also defended the body against truly harmful antigens, including viruses.\u00a0 Could it be that they were the lucky few with an antibody that protected them from the Osiris Virus?<\/p>\n

They discussed the possibility for awhile, but of course, they could reach no definitive conclusions.\u00a0 They might never know the key to their survival, at least not in their time on this earth.\u00a0 Jo hoped the answers lay beyond, that when she went home to Heaven, she would know everything.\u00a0 But until then, they could only wonder.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen do you think he\u2019ll wake up?\u201d asked Nick, after they\u2019d gotten quiet again, leaning forward to look at Howie.<\/p>\n

Jo shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cHard to say.\u00a0 He was in hypovolemic shock from the blood loss.\u00a0 His body just needs time to recover.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nick nodded.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t look satisfied, but he accepted the answer and sat back in his seat.\u00a0 As he leaned against the back of his chair, Jo saw him wince, a flicker of pain shooting across his face.<\/p>\n

\u201cNick?\u00a0 Are you alright?\u201d she asked in concern.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah?\u201d\u00a0 Nick looked surprised.\u00a0 \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou looked like you were in pain there for a moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh\u2026\u201d\u00a0 He glanced away.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s nothin\u2019.\u00a0 I just got mistaken for a bowling pin back at the alley.\u201d\u00a0 He tried to grin, but it came off looking more like a grimace.<\/p>\n

\u201cStand up,\u201d ordered Jo, getting up herself.\u00a0 She flipped on a light on her way over to Nick.\u00a0 \u201cTurn around.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nick obeyed, childlike in his overgrown body, still programmed to listen to a motherly voice.\u00a0 With gentle hands, Jo lifted the back of his t-shirt.\u00a0 In the sudden, bright light, the pattern of bruises across his back stood out:\u00a0 a horizontal contusion, where he\u2019d been banged against the edge of something hard, and a series of vaguely circular bruises that dotted his shoulders and neck.\u00a0 Fingerprints<\/i>, she realized, disturbed by the familiar formation of bruises.\u00a0 It was the kind of pattern she saw on victims of abuse and strangulation, people who had been grabbed and choked by a pair of human hands.\u00a0 Zombie hands, in this case.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou weren\u2019t bitten, were you?\u201d she asked quietly, as she inspected his skin for tears and teeth marks.\u00a0 But there were none, only bruises.<\/p>\n

Nick shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t fit so well through that hole where the pins go.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s your big ol\u2019 head,\u201d joked Brian, grinning.\u00a0 \u201cLike trying to fit a square peg through a round hole\u2026 or vice versa, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n

The others chuckled, and Jo let Nick sit back down, satisfied that he\u2019d live.\u00a0 Their attention returned to Howie.<\/p>\n

Their vigil at his bedside lasted into the night, and just when Jo was about to suggest that Kevin take Gabby home, their patience was rewarded, when Howie\u2019s eyes fluttered open at last.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened?\u201d he croaked.<\/p>\n

\u201cGet him a glass of water, someone,\u201d Jo said, as she hurried to his side.\u00a0 \u201cWelcome back to us, Howard.\u201d\u00a0 She smiled down at him.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re going to be okay,\u201d she assured him, softly stroking his arm.\u00a0 \u201cYou lost a lot of blood, and I took enough glass out of your back to make a mosaic, but you\u2019re on the mend now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gretchen brought a glass of water, and she helped him lift his head enough to take a few sips.\u00a0 His eyelids drooped, and she knew he was still weak.\u00a0 He would need time and rest to recover.\u00a0 Eventually, he would want to know how they\u2019d managed to control his bleeding, and she would have quite the story to tell.\u00a0 But for now, she told him only, \u201cLie back and relax.\u00a0 You\u2019re safe here.\u201d<\/p>\n

She spoke the words convincingly, but she knew, as Howie knew, that they weren\u2019t an absolute truth.\u00a0 In the undead world, safety was relative.\u00a0 They may have been immune to the virus that had turned their friends and neighbors to zombies, but they were still under constant threat.\u00a0 They would never, ever be truly safe.\u00a0 Not there.\u00a0 Not anywhere.<\/p>\n

Still, as Howie settled back against his pillows and drifted off to sleep once more, Jo\u2019s gaze shifted from him to Nick, and she offered up a silent prayer of thanks.<\/p>\n

Thank you, Lord, my rock and my shield.\u00a0 Thank You for Your protection.<\/i><\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

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Chapter 69 I know we\u2019ve all asked why.\u00a0 Why did this happen?\u00a0 Why did we survive?\u00a0 Why the ten of us?\u00a0 Why are we here? It\u2019s been hard to accept that we may never know the answers.\u00a0 Not in this … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":8,"menu_order":69,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"onecolumn-page.php","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/284"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=284"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":594,"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/284\/revisions\/594"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamers-sanctuary.com\/undead\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}