Seven Point Eight The First Chronicle - By Marie A. Harbon Page 0,63
be seen. Actually, he’s dead. What the fuck happened?”
“He injected me with Ebola,” she explained, almost matter of fact.
Tom’s jaw dropped.
“And you’re still here?”
“Well, yes,” she said, unable to understand the reason.
“Jesus,” he muttered, “what have they said to you?”
“Well, nothing, but they haven’t told me I’m going to die.”
Tom looked at her with incredulity.
“You’re a bloody walking miracle.”
“What do you mean? I’m lucky, but I’m not a miracle.”
“Well, your specialist, DaSilva, told the lab you were fortunate because the contents of the syringe weren’t live.”
“I guess I am lucky then,” she said, grateful, but a little angry she hadn’t been told.
“Ava,” he said, “I’ve worked in that lab five years and I’ve never come across a duff batch in all my time there. Plus, when he gave us the news, I tested the other samples, they’re all live.”
“What are you trying to tell me?”
“I’m trying to tell you you’re a fucking miracle. By now, you should be seriously ill, bleeding out of every orifice in your body, dead even. You know that disease has a high fatality rate.”
“Well, my flesh isn’t liquefying so the sample must have been spoiled for some reason.”
“Look, I eavesdropped the nurses who performed the blood tests. The test results did show evidence of infection. An enzyme conversion reaction took place, indicating the infection got into your bloodstream. The tests they did yesterday show specific antibodies in your bloodstream, proving your body responded to the infection. It wasn’t duff, your body fought off the disease.”
Ava tried to digest what he was saying.
“You mean, I have a natural immunity to…?”
Tom looked at her, realising the significance.
“They found antibodies for Ebola, the Zaire Strain. It should have killed you inside of a week. Do you know what this means?”
Ava found it hard to accept the truth.
Tom continued, “Your blood contains the secret to fighting one of the deadliest diseases in the world today. We’ve got to research it, find out why…confirm your immunity.”
Could it really be true? And was it no accident that she’d come to work at a biological research lab?
“Please, don’t say anything to the others, not even my uncle.”
Tom protested, “This is of major fucking importance.”
“I know. We’re not even sure yet, Ebola doesn’t kill everybody. We can’t jump to conclusions. Our secret?”
He nodded reluctantly.
“Okay, our secret. We’ll work on it together in our own time. You’ll not regret this.”
She hoped he promised the truth, because if there was something special about her blood, her whole life would be turned upside down.
11
Pandora’s Box
Max and I landed in New York on the 28th of April 1963. During the long and monotonous flight, I found Max to be a quiet travelling companion, and he often stared out of the window. Sometimes we exchanged apprehensive glances, and I guess this sudden alteration of plans did have a key impact on The Institute and my university course, which had been deferred for a year. I didn’t tell my father about this trip to the States though, as I wanted to go and didn’t want him to spoil it.
After a smooth landing, we emerged into a busy airport. I found myself surrounded by a sea of American accents, although Max steered me through it all, being an old hand at this. A woman with auburn hair and huge eyelashes, who wore a smart tweed trouser suit, seemed to know him and greeted him with a hug and a kiss. She gave me the same greeting.
“You must be Tahra,” she said, in a throaty American drawl, “I’ve heard so much about you.”
I looked over at Max, who gave nothing away, and the three of us hailed a yellow taxi cab to transport us to the place where we were going to stay. Through the window of the cab, I got a glimpse of the skyscrapers of New York, although none of the major landmarks like the Statue of Liberty or the EmpireStateBuilding. Max seemed nonchalant, he’d probably seen it all before but I found it fascinating.
Marianne had helped us locate an excellent apartment with a fantastic view over the city. The huge lounge provided access to this panorama, and I immediately walked over to the window, spotting the EmpireStateBuilding instantly. Despite being a manmade panorama, it still had beauty.
The apartment had two large bedrooms and a luxurious bathroom. Boy, I was going to love living here. Marianne left us and said she’d see us in a few days at a place called The Observatory. It sounded like a planetarium.