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Kate bounced a fussy Megan up against her shoulder to get her to calm down. She grew angrier instead and belted out an even louder cry.

“I know baby. I know you’re probably very uncomfortable right now. Daddy is going to take very good care of you.”

Jack ran a hand over Megan’s full head of dark hair to try and calm her, then rubbed her foot with his thumb.

“I gave her some saline to wash her system out. I took a blood sample from her to see if this ‘vaccine’ is doing anything harmful to her body. Since Ben only gave me a partial list of the elements used in making the ‘vaccine’ I’m going to have a hard time figuring out what it does exactly. She should be getting sleepy right about now. I gave her something so she can relax.”

Closing his mouth and freezing in the spot he was standing in, his eyes roamed over towards the screens that hid Juliet from plain sight. He heard a loud thud and something like glass breaking and a very guilty looking Ben stepped out from behind one of the screens. Two of his fingers were covered in blood. This time Jack couldn’t keep his temper in check. He rushed to Juliet who was crumpled in a heap on the floor.

“What the hell did you just do to her Ben? She’s having a seizure. You gave her the ‘vaccine’ didn’t you? That’s what’s all over the floor isn’t it?”

Jack stared hard at Ben who looked genuinely frightened. He was painted into an invisible corner in which at the moment he couldn’t get out of.

“That… That wasn’t supposed to happen! I swear!”

Getting to his feet momentarily, Jack threw a left hook at Ben and he fell to the ground hard. As he was about to give another one to Ben Kate yelled, getting his attention.

“Jack stop! Help Juliet.”

Jaw-set in a hard grim line Jack nodded and went over to the nearest sink to wash his hands. Drying his hands and wincing as he pulled on a pair of gloves, he dug through a couple of drawers until he found what he was looking for. Swallowing, he rushed back to Juliet and carefully gave her the much needed medication. Getting down on his knees he turned her onto her side and pulled her head into his lap and tried to keep her calm, but it was more for himself. Only because he knew she couldn’t hear him.

“Shh Juliet. You’re going to be fine. Just give the Phenobarbital a few minutes.”

He felt like he was holding his breath for what seemed like forever. When her body stopped seizing, he relaxed. Sighing he began to hear both Cara and Andrew start to cry. Both
he and Kate would have to give them some supplemental formula until Juliet woke. Pulling the pillow from the bed, Jack placed it under Juliet’s head. He didn’t want to move her to the bed until he was sure she wasn’t going to have another seizure. Reaching into the first basinet he took Andrew and cradled him in his right arm. Not jostling him, he reached for his sister and balanced her in the crook of his left arm. Emerging from behind the screen he motioned for Kate to take Cara.

“Here, take Cara. We’re doing Juliet a little favor while she’s resting. She’s not going to be able to feed them right now. She just had a seizure. She’ll be sleeping for a while. I should put her on a monitor and get her some oxygen.”

Kate gingerly took Cara in her arms and rocked her a bit. Her eyes widened and looked to Ben whose fingers were still trailing blood onto the floor below him.

“Jack tie Ben up. If you don’t he’ll give the ‘vaccine’ to Cara and Andrew too. You’ve already seen what it’s done to Megan. Juliet had a bad reaction to it. Who knows what will happen to these two if they are given it. We can’t let him get away with hurting anymore innocent lives.”

Jack gave Andrew to Kate and found a pair of handcuffs in one of the drawers. Placing one cuff around a chair bolted to the floor, he then proceeded to put the other on his left wrist. Ben’s blue eyes pierced Jack’s hazel one’s as he stared, contemplating his situation.

“I’d really not like to bleed to death Jack. Could you fix my fingers please?”

Sighing Jack rummaged around in one of the drawers to find all the supplies he would need to fix Ben’s fingers.

“Did you get this from the glass?”

Ben didn’t shake his head no he only stared ahead blankly and blinked.

“No. Juliet bit me.”

Jack put the puzzle pieces together. Was Ben really that stupid?

“You were trying to help her? You know when you keep someone’s airway open during a seizure, never, ever stick your fingers in their mouth. They can’t control any of their body functions.”

He knew it was pointless to talk to Ben. He only sat on the floor stony-faced as Jack cleaned his wounds. Seeing him wince slightly as he applied the antiseptic, Jack said nothing apology-wise. Ben didn’t deserve an apology as far as he was concerned.

“Good to know Jack. Can you fix my fingers or not?”

Nodding silently Jack took a needle and thread and pulled it through the eye of needle.

“This is going to hurt a little.”

Looking away, Ben distracted himself with staring at a lone medical text sitting on a table nearly 60 feet away from him. Jack stole a glance at Kate who was trying to calm the two howling children tucked away in each arm. But she knew better. When a newborn was hungry, they would keep crying until they were fed.

“Shh. I know the two of you are hungry. I’ll have something for you to eat in just a minute.”

Quickly finishing patching Ben up, Jack placed some gauze and tape over his fingers.

“Keep those covered and dry. I’ll remove the sutures in three weeks.”

Ben stayed quiet and watched as Jack got to his feet. Making his way over to Kate, he scooped Andrew up into his arms and rocked him.

“Let’s get you some food buddy. When you have a full tummy you’ll sleep better.”

Having fixed each of Juliet and Sawyer’s children a bottle of formula Jack and Kate went about feeding them. Kate smiled down at Cara as she continued her meal from the bottle.

“There we go. The food’s not going anywhere sweetie. Take your time.”

Cara cooed and tried to grab at the bottle. Kate finished her thought as she looked over at Jack who sat on a stool.

“Sawyer is going to have his hands full with these two.”

Jack chuckled and adjusted the bottle so that Andrew could get more of the formula.

“Wait until Juliet has him change a diaper.”

Kate stifled a laugh and saw that Cara was suckling on the bottle less and her eyes were getting heavy.

“I see someone’s getting sleepy.”

Taking the bottle away Kate set Cara up to her shoulder and patted her back until she heard a burp escape her tiny mouth. Securing the blanket around Cara, Kate took her back over to the plastic basinet next to the bed Juliet was lying in and set her inside. She froze when Cara let out a whine. When she settled Kate let out a silent breath she’d been holding. Jack flashed her a smile when he placed Andrew in the opposite basinet on the left side of the bed. Kate left Jack alone so that he could examine Juliet. He stared at the monitors tracking her vitals and watched her breathing.

“I won’t let Ben hurt you anymore Juliet. He’s done enough damage.”

Jack was going to figure out what was in the vaccine and why Juliet and Megan had a reaction to it.

“You know Jack, I didn’t expect Juliet to have the reaction she did. That vaccine was supposed to help her. It was my mistake.”

Ben yanked on the chair leg the handcuffs were attached to. He did it even though he knew the chair was bolted to the floor.

“You honestly think Ben that I believe anything you say? That you didn’t mean to hurt Juliet with that ‘vaccine’? For all I know you could’ve caused her to go into a coma.”

Jack could see Ben was trying not to flinch.

“It was supposed to protect them. Her, Megan, Cara and Andrew. Kate doesn’t need it. She has a natural immunity to the virus somehow. Juliet on the other hand, she doesn’t without that vaccine she would be worse off than the rest of them. Like I said, it supposed to protect them. The bottom line is this: Kate has a natural immunity. Juliet doesn’t.”

Staring at Ben in deep thought Jack knew he had to get that ‘vaccine’ out of Juliet and test it. Ben was the first one he was coming after if he lost his family to this ‘vaccine.’

To Be Continued…