A World Reborn: The First Outbreak Read online

  A World Reborn:

  The First Outbreak

  By Chris Thompson

  Text Copyright © 2016 Chris Thompson

  The cover picture is a public domain image downloaded and made available by https://pixabay.com/ under a Creative Commons license of CC0, allowing free modification and usage for commercial purposes of any and all images. No endorsement, however, is given by the original photographer for this derivative, nor the website itself.

  The following is a work of fiction; no likenesses to persons, living or dead, or events is intended or inferred. The subject matter is suitable for mature audiences, and features scenes of violence, adult language and horror. If you do not enjoy such content, or find it offensive, then do not read any further. Reader discretion is advised.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHATPER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Chapter One

  Melissa turned over on the recliner she was occupying. She’d been out toasting under the sun for about an hour and was almost ready to get up and leave, but not for a few more minutes. She grabbed the ponytail she had put her blonde hair in, flipped it so it wasn’t on her back and carried on tanning. It felt nice to be able to relax, she thought, especially after the last couple of weeks... well, the last few months really.

  “Can I help you with anything, ma’am?” A male voice inquired. Melissa turned and peered up at him, lifting up her sunglasses to see him better; the sunlight hit her blue eyes and made her wince, but she was able to see him more clearly after a moment.

  “No, thank you.” She replied politely. The man was an employee, wearing the white shirt and khaki pants that seemed to be the uniform for those who worked around the pool. He was handsome, tall, dark featured and definitely Latino, and he smiled at her when she spoke.

  “Ah, you are English. It is a pleasure to meet you.” He told her. She smiled back at him and nodded.

  “You too.” Melissa answered civilly, dropping her sunglasses back down over her eyes. She wasn’t in the mood for socialising and while she didn’t want to be rude, she hoped he would just continue about his duties. Unfortunately, he didn’t.

  “Since I started working here,” he said, “I’ve met a great many people of different nationalities. I’d say that’s the best part of the job: meeting different types of people.” He continued. His English was heavily accented, but he had little difficulty making himself understood.

  “I imagine it would be.” Melissa responded courteously.

  “Are you vacationing alone, if you don’t mind my asking?”

  The question stung Melissa, and she decided, as he was clearly interested in a little conversation, she would change the topic.

  “What’s your name?” Melissa asked him, rising up on to her forearms.

  “Roberto Nunes, ma’am.”

  “Well, Roberto, I’m Melissa. Melissa Jones.” She informed him, extending her hand. He shook it and sat on the edge of the recliner beside her. As most of the other guests had started to leave to get ready for dinner, it wasn’t too busy and it seemed Roberto had decided to pass the time in a more social way.

  “How long have you been working here, Roberto?”

  “I work here for a few months now. My uncle, he’s the manager of the pool staff and he helped me to get the job.”

  “How nice.”

  “Yes, it is. I get to work with my sister and my uncle here at the hotel, which makes it more fun, you know?”

  “Your sister works here with you?” Melissa asked.

  “In a way; Maria, my sister, she works in housekeeping. Despite us being in different parts of the hotel, our paths cross during the day, and we meet up for lunch.”

  “Fair enough.” Melissa commented. “Well, Roberto, I’m going to go inside and get ready to go out for dinner.” She concluded as she turned over and started to get out of the lounger, slipping her feet into her sandals.

  “Have a pleasant evening, ma’am, and if you need anything when you’re at the pool, please ask.” He told her, smiling warmly. Melissa nodded, rose to her feet and waved before turning to walk away. She crossed around the perimeter of the nearby swimming pool, weaving between occupied loungers and couples dipping their toes in the water, making her way across the sand coloured stone tiles until she reached the archway that led to the path back to the hotel. She continued on, following the signs indicating the way back from the pool complex or as the management had called it, ‘The Outdoor Relaxation and Swimming Centre’. It was large, with four pools, some hot tubs, a bar and a cafe. Usually it was bustling with a throng of people; due to the lateness of the day, however, it had died down somewhat.

  A few minutes later, Melissa was on the hotel path; an avenue of palm trees and knee high hedges. A couple of cut away paths led to the grassy areas contained within, which were surrounded by fences on the outer perimeter to prevent non guests from using the facilities. As she passed by she saw some people were using the grassy spaces for picnics, families mostly. Thinking about families made Melissa’s heart sting, but she pushed the thought away. She wasn’t going to think about her cheating, almost husband. She’d come here to get away from him and his secretary, amongst other things, and wasn’t about to allow him to invade her thoughts and spoil her vacation in Las Vegas; which should have been their honeymoon, she thought bitterly, unable to prevent that thought from getting through.

  Melissa followed the stone path, looking up at the towering hotel in front of her; fifty-two floors of five star service, at least, according to the brochure. Melissa didn’t have a great deal of experience with hotels, but so far, the food was great, the pool was nice and the staff had been pleasant enough. The room she was staying in was luxurious and gave a wonderful view of the Las Vegas Strip and the other casino hotels in the area. She’d never been to Las Vegas before, but she had come to realize it was beautiful in its own way, a very artificial and constructed way granted, but at this point in her life, Melissa needed some beauty in whatever form it came. Things had been dark for her after she discovered her fiancé had betrayed her trust, but in truth, things had already been dark for Melissa. Sometimes she wondered if her attitude problems hadn’t caused him to betray her. A part of her realized she had probably driven him away. She had been damaged by her time in Africa, and although she could understand his duplicity, well, almost, she couldn’t forgive him. Nonetheless, she recognised that the cold, harsher exterior she had shown to the world since her return was a drastic change from the light-hearted person she had been when she went there on assignment, when they had parted with the promise of marriage when she returned.

  For the first couple of months back in England, she’d turned to drink. Not to an excessive level, but more than she had in the past; what was once a drink before bed to help her sleep turned into two, then three. She had managed to keep herself from becoming dependent on drink, but when her fiancé told her of his betrayal and she subsequently kicked him out of her apartment, she’d started to fall into the bottle. Her work had begun to suffer and that became a problem for her editor. Melissa worked as a journalist for an online only news service, and although she was allowed to work from home these days, she was required to meet him at least once a week in person. She’d turned up one day nursing a hangover, and so he’d given her a choice: take a vacation and clear her head, or find a new job. It sounded harsh, but Melissa knew he cared a lot. She took a hard look at the road s
he was going down and decided to turn her life around, to prevent her descent into alcoholism and to try to get back on track. Therefore, the solution was somewhat simple: she had the plane tickets and hotel reservation she’d planned to use for their honeymoon, a surprise that she’d not had the opportunity to spring, and decided to make that her vacation. She’d been staying at The Seraph Hotel and Casino for about a week, and although she still felt pain from her recent break-up, alongside the darkness that haunted her from that harrowing period in Africa, it was starting to affect her a little less. She certainly drank less, at the very least.

  Melissa entered the final stretch of the long avenue that connected the pool complex to the hotel. It was wide, and a bit livelier than the places she’d passed so far, with a half dozen restaurants, cafes and bars spread roughly evenly along the path. There were also stores, spas and places that Melissa wasn’t entirely sure what they were. She padded along the polished stone floor, reaching the series of big, double glass doors which separated the hotel proper from the avenue she’d just traversed from the exterior of the hotel complex. A greeter who worked for the hotel opened the door and smiled at Melissa as she entered the hotel; Melissa thanked him politely and half-smiled in return. Her skin felt warm and radiant after coming in from toasting in the sun, and the ground floor of the hotel - the casino and entertainment part really - felt cool by comparison. She crossed over the plush, rich brown ‘Welcome’ mat, also emblazed with the hotel name, and onto the polished, tan stone floor which was essentially the main path around the ground floor. She looked over her surroundings, double-checking her bearings before making a move. Essentially, most places on the ground floor could be reached by following the long, curved passage from the exit to the outdoor area, where Melissa currently was, to where it terminated at the entrance lobby for the hotel and casino. Melissa began to follow the passageway, idly noting the theatre on her right, which was promoting some kind of magic show for that evening, while on her left was a huge sports bar, which seemed packed at that moment. No doubt the patrons within were taking full advantage of the advertised twenty five big screen televisions to watch and gamble on the sport of their choice. As she turned to follow the leftward curve of the passageway she observed a large planter, containing a fake plant of some sort, as there was no daylight for real ones, and a door just beyond the theatre marked ‘Staff Only’ which, apparently, could only be opened with a key card. A moment later her footsteps faltered and, as had happened previously on her way in from the pool complex, she came to a halt to stare in awe at the huge scale of the casino. She had been a guest for several days now but had yet to grow so accustomed to it she could pass without stopping to take in the extraordinary sight. The many arched entrances on her right - that reached up to the second floor - stretched for some considerable distance, beyond the Grand Staircases, one on either side, before the arches swept right and continued on along a wide, side passage. A spacious, brightly lit, square hallway followed which housed the banks of elevators for the north side of the hotel tower, three on each side, with a door opposite the entrance which had a sign indicating ‘Stairs’. Across from this was an identical hallway, where the elevators to the south side of the hotel tower were located, at the far end of which was a second door giving access to stairs. The west elevators and stairs went roughly up the middle of the hotel tower, to allow easier access to the more central rooms in the wide hotel tower block. At the furthermost end on the casino side were a scattering of cafes, bars and stores; the foremost offering a variety of menus from Chinese to Mexican which attracted not only the hotel guests, but tourists from other hotels.

  Although the flashing lights of the slot machines with their distinctive lively tunes sometimes appealed to her, Melissa hadn’t actually been inside the casino. She saw literally thousands of people milling around, either inside, going in or coming out; more than a few of the latter looking unhappy. Looking around, she found it incredible that so many people were contained in what could almost be considered a separate building, as it extended out all around the massive hotel tower. There was even a second floor, which housed even more restaurants, bars and stores; the latter selling everything from clothing, to sportswear to gifts and toys exclusive to the hotel, with smaller gambling venues slotted here and there. It was like a city within the city of Las Vegas. The only downside, Melissa supposed, was that if you were on the third floor, where the guest rooms began, your view was somewhat lacking as you could see the jutting out rooftop of the casino building, but those from about the eighth floor up obviously had a better view.

  Other than that, there were the Grand Staircases, which were both stately and opulent and owned a pair of intricately designed, gold handrails that swept up each side of the sets of stairs. They each led to the upper floor of the casino building, curving out then sweeping round as they rose, one to the north side and one to the south. They were linked on the second floor by a wide walkway, a ‘bridge’ some people called it, which allowed guests a view of the ground floor from behind twin gold railings, and also made it possible to traverse from the north side to the south side and vice versa. In addition to the Grand Staircases were a number of emergency stairways, discreetly located behind doors, though all were clearly indicated. Near to where she had stopped to gaze at the casino, was the acrylic glass walled, gold edged enclosure of ‘The Money Pit’, which made Melissa wrinkle her nose in distaste. It was a not very unique game show that ran every few hours or so. A bunch of people bought a raffle ticket and the ones who won were invited inside. Once in, huge fans started spinning beneath the metallic grilled floor, which caused prize coupons to flutter all around them. Participants had sixty seconds to collect as many as they could, mostly cheap prize tickets for the gift shop, but also coupons for meals at restaurants and, much less commonly, small amounts of money. It was reminiscent of a television show Melissa remembered from her youth; a little harmless fun, for those interested in that kind of thing, but Melissa found it a little degrading. People watched and laughed, some even applauded, as the ‘lucky’ participants scurried around, jostling each other in a good-natured way to try to secure more prizes. After a contemptuous look in its direction, followed by an ‘each to their own’ shrug, Melissa continued on, passing a short row of planters containing more fake plants, until she reached the hallway for access to the south side of the hotel tower; beyond which was the widening passageway leading to the magnificently appointed lobby, with its long, mahogany reception desk, which had gold lettering proclaiming the name of the hotel along its front, and a whole host of carefully arranged, dark leather seating, some of which circled around the impressive floor to ceiling pillars. There were also a few heavy wooden tables covered in magazines and newspapers of the day. Above the passageway, behind a railing and imitating its curve, one could look up through the gap to the second floor, to those stores surrounding the wide walkway or, from the second floor, peer down at those traversing the path to the lobby. Melissa didn’t continue towards the lobby, and instead turned into the hallway, approached an elevator and pressed the call button. After waiting patiently, she was rewarded by its arrival. She stepped aside to let out a family with a stroller and an older couple, and then she entered.

  Her room was on the thirty-second floor, so she pressed the relevant button on the gold coloured metal plate. Gold was the general theme of the elevator; with a gold banister to hold onto, gold coloured, metallic walls that created a soft, out of focus reflection of the elevators occupants, and a kind of tan, fake marble, tiled floor. In actual fact, Melissa mused, gold was used pretty extensively throughout the hotel, rather like a trademark. The journey upwards was slow and Melissa stood in silence the whole time. Once the doors opened, she exited and navigated the white walled, brown-carpeted corridor of doors until she came to her own, where she used the key card she was carrying in her small purse to gain entry. Melissa shut the door behind her and sighed deeply. She crossed to the mini fridge and opened it, considered taking
out a small bottle of whiskey, but resisted the urge and instead grabbed a bottle of water. After sipping it, she put it down on the nearby coffee table. One of the four walls of the room was a full window, showcasing the vista the hotel offered. The television sat slightly out of place on a stand in the corner of the room, where the window connected to the wall, with a white faux leather sofa aligned with it. The bedroom and en suite bathroom was off to the left, with a small dining area to the right. Melissa couldn’t help but think how much nicer this hotel room was, and larger, than her apartment in London, and for the price she’d paid she was more than a little pleased. There were economy rooms that ran centrally up each floor, which were referred to as interior rooms that had no window or external view. The discount was significant, and the website advertised them as perfect for people who wanted to spend their time exploring everything the Seraph and Las Vegas had to offer. Melissa had to admit, the promotion of those rooms was well done, and considering how many people were happy to take them, they were a popular option.

  The air conditioning made the room pleasantly cool too, and as the sun threatened to fall below the horizon, inking the sky with reds and oranges, Melissa picked up her water and went and stood as close to the window as she could possibly get. She looked down at the city. The lights, the glamour and glitz on display made a feeling of melancholy pass over her. She couldn’t help but think about the things that had brought her here; her broken engagement was one of them, but her thoughts were also inexorably drawn to the dark time, when she’d been forced to defend herself in that little, African mining village.

  Melissa took another drink. She continued to watch and drink, wishing she’d grabbed the alcohol while she had the chance, until the bottle was empty. She then decided not to go out that night. She couldn’t bear the thought of having to fake politeness and niceness when her heart lay broken. She was angry, she was sad, and she didn’t want to have to care about hurting someone’s feelings. Melissa tossed the bottle into the trash bin, and went into the bedroom. She grabbed one of her sleeping pills from her travel bag, swallowed it dry and then lay down on the double bed on top of the Egyptian cotton sheets, her skin revelling in the luxurious feeling, and closed her eyes. She wanted to sleep for a while in the hope she would feel more at peace with herself when she woke up; that when her eyes flickered and opened again, this time the anger burning her soul would be gone.