Watching the End of the World – 18
It was a news broadcast, but in a foreign language. The newscaster was a middle-aged man. He was speaking rapidly and was obviously very upset. Words in a foreign language scrolled across the bottom of the screen. One by one the contestants quit what they were doing and walked over to stare at the TV.
The picture changed, showing what appeared to be a room in a hospital. The room was packed with people. Some were lying motionless on the floor. The camera zoomed in on a woman slumped on a bench. She was coughing and there was blood at the corners of her mouth. Much of her exposed skin was an angry red and she seemed to have blisters. The newscaster was speaking in hushed tones now. While they watched, Santiago came into the room.
���Is that the virus?��� Nate asked.
���It couldn���t have spread that fast,��� Santiago said dismissively. ���Nothing spreads that fast.���
���I wish I could tell what he���s saying,��� Jordynn said.
���He���s saying, ���If only they hadn���t eaten that dead rat they found, they wouldn���t be feeling sick,������ Caleb said.
Jordynn turned a horrified look on him. ���What kind of racist shit is that?���
���Easy, lass. I���m just trying to lighten the mood. It���s Africa, right? Doesn���t this kind of stuff happen all the time here?���
Jordynn muttered something under her breath.
Caleb looked around, saw others looking at him shaking their heads and held up his hands. ���Okay. Sorry.�� No harm.���
���Try to use your brain next time you open your mouth,��� Jenna said. She walked over and sat on the couch. ���Try another channel. Maybe we���ll find one in English.���
There were three other channels. Two of them were news channels. One of those showed a line of police with batons and helmets, facing off against an angry crowd. The other one was carrying what appeared to be an interview with some government official. The last channel was HBO, but the movie was dubbed into a foreign language. Jordynn turned the TV off and they all sat there in stunned silence, each trying to grapple with what they���d just seen. Tony was the first to speak.
���No fucking way,��� he burst out. ���You gotta be kidding me. Could this day suck any more? Seriously, is this the worst fucking day in the history of the world? We almost die in a plane crash. Assholes show up and shoot at us. And now this. What���s next? Locusts?���
���Take it easy,��� Maha said.
���You take it easy,��� Tony said. ���For me, I���m planning on panicking and maybe later just giving the hell up.���
���I still say it���s nothing,��� Santiago declared. ���Just people overreacting.���
���Then you���re a dickhead,��� Tony told him. He got up and stomped out of the room, going back into the warehouse.
Excerpt from��Watching the End of the World
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