The plans were on brown paper, like a paper grocery bag, but much thicker. Professor Mend said, “I make my own paper. It’s the best there is.” He took the Sporbit plans and laid them out in the sphere.
Then they heard a crash. It sounded like glass breaking.
Brittany ran out to discover that Chris had broken the jar with the black plague in it. The gas in the jar was dissipating throughout the lab, and black spots crawled away in all different directions. Jon grabbed a jar on the counter and started picking up the spots. One had already attached itself to Chris’s arm. Chad put the lid to the broken glass jar over a few of them, but a lot remained on the loose. Chris tried to peel the black shape off his arm, but it seemed to have arms and hung on tight.
Brittany picked Chad up. When he squirmed to get out of her arms, she said, “I don’t want you getting sick.” Brittany felt sorry enough that Chris would have to experience all the symptoms of the bubonic plague. Chad got free of Brittany and went to help Jon pick up the black spots.
Chad had fun picking up the spots. When he saw Brittany’s anxious look, he said, “I won’t get sick.”
After a few hours, they thought they had gotten all of the black spots, but they were not one hundred percent sure. Professor Mend did not know what became of the gas, but he needed to start work on the Sporbit should the Bundlebobs become ill. He had a vaccine, but he did not know if it would work once the black spots appeared.
Now Chris really wished he had gotten the shot. “Is it too late, Professor, for the antidote to work?”
“I don’t know, Chris. We can try it.”
Chris rolled up his sleeve, saying, “Use the clean arm, not the one with the black spot on it.”
The professor said, “Not in the arm—drop your pants.”
“This just keeps getting better and better.” Chris thought the medication looked like some type of red gas, and it burned as it went in. He yelped. “Hey, I think there’s a barb on that needle! Are you sure it’s not defective? Do you know what you are doing?”
Professor Mend said, “I hope the rest of the patients aren’t as vocal.”
Chad went over to the backpack and tried to get something out of it. Brittany came over to help him. He tried to pick up one of the large glass jars with the drool from the giant Bundlebob.
Brittany said, “I don’t know if this stuff will work, but it healed my hand earlier today.”
Jon said, “What is it? It looks like some kind of thick water.”
“It’s drool from the giant Bundlebob.”
Chris, already starting to run a fever, felt sick to his stomach. Obviously the shot that the professor had given him had not worked, or he just had not gotten it soon enough. Brittany quickly poured some of the drool over the black spot on Chris’s arm, then got a glass and filled it to the top with the gel.
She told Chris, “Drink this. I’m hoping it will kill the illness that is inside you.”
Chris looked at the glass full of drool. “I can’t drink that. I’m going to get sick just thinking about it.”
Jon spoke up. “Chris, you have two choices. One, you drink that on your own, or, two, I will pour it down your throat.”
Chris knew his older brother was not kidding. He held his nose and drank the liquid in three swallows. He made a face as if he were going to get sick, but then he was fine.
Jon thought Chris had a lot of guts. He did not know if he could drink the drool, even if he had an older brother threatening him.
After a few minutes, nothing had changed. Brittany tried not to show her disappointment. They all were trying to think of other treatments, when suddenly the black spot on Chris’s arm started moving.
It twisted and turned; it tried to hold tighter and stay on Chris, but it seemed too weak. The spot finally fell to the floor, curled up, and did not move again. Jon quickly brought the jar, picked up the spot, and dropped it in with the rest.
Impressed by the gel that Brittany had collected, the professor wondered if all the Bundlebob saliva was a healing drug. Maybe only the giant Bundlebobs, or perhaps just this one giant who drooled, made healing saliva. This giant was not very popular. Maybe this would be his one redeeming quality.
Professor Mend sent Jon, Brittany, and Chris—who felt a lot better—to go get samples from the Bundlebobs. The three of them came back to the lab with eighty-eight samples of saliva. While Professor Mend tested theses samples on the remaining black spots, Chris worked on inventing a way for the transporters to carry the sleds.
Chris wanted to invent a simple device so the giant Bundlebobs would not lose their hair when their cargo was pulled from their backs. Chris worked on some sketches while Jon studied the Sporbit plans, and Brittany put the Sporbit motor back together with the help of her older brother.
Brittany sighed heavily. “I wish Trisha was here. I don’t even know how we could reach her.”
Before she could say another word, Thomas popped up out of the blue.
She picked him up. “Tom, how did you get here?”
“Never mind that, Brit. I can help you. I can locate Trisha and help bring her to you.”
Chris felt a little jealous. “Why are you so nice to Brittany? I was your owner, and I had to pay you off with muffins to go get Brittany.”
“When I lived in a cage at your house, you only fed me rat food.”
“I gave you treats, too.”
Tommy shook his head. “Yes, but they were rat treats. You see, Chris, every time Brittany walked by my cage, she gave me a piece of whatever she was eating—a piece of apple, a carrot, some cake, even a bite of her sandwich. She never once walked by without giving me something. Even when she wasn’t eating anything for herself, she would always remember me. Rats have existed off of human garbage for years, and the store-bought food was dry and bland. I liked what Brittany gave me.”
Chris said, “Well, if I had known that, I could have saved myself a lot of money. I think I could be a pretty good Dumpster diver and find you special treats.”
Thomas said, “That is no longer your concern. Now, where were we?”
As Thomas conversed with Brittany, the one and only black spot they had not found came creeping out of its hiding place. The black spot saw a chance to survive. It climbed up Thomas’s tail, knowing that, although a rat would not make a good host for the black spot, a human would. Due to the thick fur, the black spot would hide out and wait. Surely this would lead to an acceptable victim. The black spot inched its way up Thomas’s tail and buried itself in his black fur. A person would have to look very close to see the black spot, since it blended in so well. Rats were great hosts for fleas, but not for the black spots themselves.
Thomas scratched his backside. “Chris, can you see if I have a flea or something on me? I’m really itchy.”
Chris came over to look, and the black spot shrank as much as it could.
“Nope, don’t see anything. Maybe you should take a bath every now and then.”
Everyone in Chris’s family knew he could not find anything, even if it was right in front of him. He could be looking right at his lacrosse uniform, and, at the same time, yelling for his mom to help him find it.
The black spot was going to get away with hitchhiking on Thomas to find its next victim.
CHAPTER 33
Thomas was now in the process of informing Brittany and Chris that he could find Trisha. Brittany wanted to make sure Trisha was all right and had not married Godfrey. Trisha was only fourteen years old. That was illegal in today’s world, but she didn’t know the legal age for marriage several hundred years ago in England. Besides, she knew her sister Trisha would expect a lengthy engagement, no less than three to four years.
Trisha walked slowly over to Bailey. She was deep in thought, and she was trying to think of a way to free herself and the other girls from Godfrey’s spell. The dance was a total disaster, but at least Advarika had gotten some food for the girls. Trisha rubbed her arm and neck where the Neanderthal
woman had dragged her down the stairs. She was sore, but she wanted to change Bailey’s dressing on her hand. As Trisha unwrapped the cloth and started taking the maggots out of the burned skin, the wound emitted a colorless gas. It had a pungent odor to it.
Bailey yelled at Trisha, but she was out. Trisha knew nothing of what was happening to her.
Great-Grandmother said, “Alastair, this is best. I believe Trisha was getting overwhelmed. She was trying to take on too much responsibility. This will give her the much-needed rest.”
Alastair stretched. “You do what you think is best. I’ve still got my eyes on the other three. Besides, she can always return once her mind has cleared and she has time to rest.”
Great-Grandmother said, “I almost hate to ask, but how is Chris doing?”
“Actually, I think he is improving. Don’t go thinking he’s changed completely, but I do feel he has made some progress. Just keep a close eye on Trisha. When she’s ready, you can send her back. Just use your best judgment. I trust you.”
Great-Grandmother did not know if she trusted her own judgment. How could Alastair trust her? She tapped her finger on her lips. “I don’t think I’m as sharp as I used to be.”
“Nonsense! It was you who wanted the children here. Everything is fine. You’ll know when to send Trisha back.”
Trisha could not open her eyes. Her head felt like a bowling ball, and she could not turn her head or raise her arms. The blackness in her head engulfed her mind, but she did feel a presence beside her. As she slowly came to, she realized that Advarika sat on the pillow next to her, running his fingers through her hair and talking to someone.
Advarika pulled his hand away from Trisha and yelled, “Don’t come one step closer! I have been trained well in the art of self-defense. I even took a couple of courses in karate.” He made a few moves, slicing the air with his hands.
Trisha struggled to get one eye open. She looked down at the bottom of her bed, where she saw Tommy, her brother’s old pet. Tommy still had his crumpled right ear and the white spot on his nose. Otherwise he was all black. He sat at the bottom of the bed, yawning in response to Advarika’s threats. It took Trisha several more minutes to feel better, but the heaviness was lifting. Trisha did not know exactly where she was, but it seemed like some type of hospital. She looked around.
The black spot seized its chance to move in on its victim. It inched off of Thomas’s tail, worked its way along the bedcovers, then attached itself to Trisha’s calf. Trisha had no idea that the black spot was now using her for nourishment.
When a large man walked into her room, Thomas skittered away and hid under the bed. The man greeted Trisha with, “You are not very big, but we need all the help we can get.”
Trisha whispered, “Help with what?”
The man replied, “You must be hallucinating, but you’re not dead yet, and you have two arms and legs. Gather your thoughts, pretty lady, and come help drag the dead bodies out. There is plenty of work to do.”
When the man left the room, Trisha slowly sat up. The room spun; she grabbed Advarika to stabilize herself. Trisha slowly made it to the door and looked out.
The smell was terrible, like vinegar and death. The hospital was filthy, and it had to be at least ninety degrees. Even the walls had a caked-on film of some kind. There was very little light coming in from the old windows, so everything was very dark. She could hear moaning, and crying out. At first she thought this was some type of asylum for the crazy, but when she saw several dead bodies sprawled out along the hallway, she knew this was worse than where she had come from.
The big man dragged a body past her. It had a sheet over it, so she could not tell if it was a man or a woman. Advarika held on to Trisha’s right hand as she supported herself on the dirty wall with her other hand. She heard the big man coming back, so she went into the nearest room. There, on the bed, lay a woman. She was not moving, but she did not look dead. Trisha noticed a large cross on a chain around her neck. Trisha picked it up and turned it over. It read: Abigail, we love you, Mom and Dad.
Trisha watched a tear roll down from the outer corner of Abigail’s eye. Trisha wiped the tear away. She had no idea that Abigail was fighting an internal battle against the virus raging through her body.
The large man came up behind Trisha silently. “That one dead?”
Trisha jumped, startled by his presence, as well as the question.
“No! She is not dead.”
The man said, “I’ve seen a lot of dead bodies, and she looks dead to me. This plague is taking its toll on this town—on all of England.”
He took a few steps toward Abigail, and Trisha yelled, “No! She’s not dead! She’s still warm.”
Trisha did not know how long this woman had left to live, but she was not dead yet. Trisha had thought that no place could possibly be worse than at Godfrey’s house, but this was much worse. She could plan an attack against a human, but a virus was a different matter. You could not even see it coming. How could you defend yourself?
Trisha sat on the bed next to Abigail, picked up her hand, and wondered if Abigail’s parents knew where she was. She rubbed her throbbing head, then reached down and scratched her calf.
As she did, Thomas saw the black spot. There was no denying that Trisha now had the bubonic plague.
Thomas said, “Trisha, you don’t look well. Come lie down.”
She replied in a very faint voice, “I don’t have time to rest, but I’m so tired—maybe just a nap.”
Thomas pulled Advarika aside. “You need to watch over Trisha and Abigail. Make sure that man doesn’t think they are dead. If you have to use your martial arts, do so.” The rat did not know if Advarika really could defend himself or the girls, but he had no choice.
Thomas went on. “Trisha is very sick. I need to go find her sister Brittany or someone who can help. I don’t know how we ended up here. I must have miscalculated when I tried to bring Trisha to the rest of her siblings.”
Thomas looked at Advarika. “Perhaps I misjudged the weight that would be traveling. You see, my rat friend said he put enough pungent gas into Bailey’s wound to have Trisha travel safely to Professor Mend’s lab, but I see there was no weight calculated for Trisha’s traveling companion. I won’t be placing the blame on you, Advarika. Just guard these two with your life.”
The rat hopped off the bed, completely unaware that he had carried the dreaded disease to Trisha. Advarika sat vigilantly at the bottom of Trisha’s bed. Naturally nocturnal, he could see in the dark. He would keep watch.
CHAPTER 34
Thomas had messed up big this time. He had transported Trisha to the old, diseased hospital in London with the bubonic plague outbreak.
As Jon helped Brittany put the Sporbit motor back together, Chris tinkered with a large clip to attach to the giant Bundlebobs’ backs to carry the sleds. Chris loved dissecting things and putting them back together. Sometimes his mother got mad at him because he would take something like the radio or his father’s razor apart and then not be able to put them back together.
This time, Chris had cut two large pieces of metal and was in the process of making a spring to put between the metal sheets. He could use Professor Mend’s soldering gun to attach both pieces of metal to the spring. He had just gotten the coil the way he wanted it, and he walked across the room to get the metal pieces. When he walked back, Bihydrant was stuck in the coil, calling out for help. Chris ran to Bihydrant and, with the help of Quill, pulled him out of the coil. The Bundlebob rubbed his ears. When they pulled the metal over his head, it had crushed them.
Chris chastised Bihydrant. “Not everything is a game.”
Suddenly he remembered how many times his mother had said that to him. He shook off the distraction and focused on what he was doing. He had quickly made two large clips connected by a heavy rope. The Cliphopper was not fancy, but he thought it would work.
They went out to find the giant Bundlebob who had volunteered to try out the C
liphopper. As the transporter turned around, Chris saw the bald spots all over his back. It was hard to find a patch of green fur that had not been pulled off his back by a double knot.
The first sled they clipped on fell to the ground, but, with a small adjustment to the coil, it worked great. The Cliphopper stayed in place on the giant’s back, and the clip at the other end of the rope held the sled. It was a crude invention, but it served its purpose. Hopefully the Bundlebob’s green fur would grow back with time.
Chris said, “Tompack, you and your three helpers can easily make these Cliphoppers. You will become the first entrepreneur.”
Tompack said, “What’s an entrepreneur?”
Chris said, “Never mind. I have another invention I need to concentrate on.”
Bihydrant said, “What is it?”
“Some type of freezer for the deadly viruses. I’m going to ask the professor to help me.”
All day, he had been thinking about a better way to store the virus that the Sporbit extracted. He knew that, buried underground, the virus would still be alive. A container could easily be broken or opened. Freezing could be a safer method of storage.
As Chris was planning the freezer out in his head, Thomas came running in, out of breath. “Where’s Brittany?”
Chris pointed to the Sporbit. “What’s up, Thomas? Did you find Trisha?”
Thomas ignored Chris and ran over to Brittany. “Brittany, you need to go back to the hospital,” he panted.
Brittany said, “I would give anything for all of us to be back in Granmama’s home.”
Thomas had caught his breath. “No, not that hospital—the one where the black plague is running rampant.”
“Why would I ever go back there? It’s a horrible place. Death and dying all around, and if you don’t have the disease, you’ll soon catch it. Abigail is probably dead already.”