RICK GRIMES || "Courageous"

Chapter 7: The Government Lies

18 hours before the outbreak:

Atlanta's Hospital, 11:00 p.m.

The hospital where Isabelle was working for as a full-time nurse began to quickly crumble and lose control as the news updated the citizens about the future measures the Government—supported by the CDC— were taking.

There were patients protesting alongside family members and co-workers. Both policeman and military were trying to organize the citizens inside the hospital as chaos surrounded them all.

They weren't using lethal force yet against them, but they warned them they would if they didn't follow the instructions.

Sadly, all the doctors and nurses that were working on the past shift were forced by the authorities to stay and treat all the recently injured patients that would come through the emergency room.

It was a disaster hence most of the medical equipment, beds, treatments, and medics had decreased in these moments. This was because they had more patients than doctors, no beds, and no equipment themselves.

Waves of injured civilians just kept coming to the hospital as Isabelle tried her best alongside Sarah to treat them properly. They didn't understand fully what was happening, but Isabelle could tell the Government was hiding something else or they wouldn't be so cautious. She just had a gut feeling that whatever was going on was bigger than whatever the news said.

And, to add more weight to the situation, the hospital's electrical reserve was beginning to lose strength and function. There were a lot of patients dependable of oxygen monitors, breathers, and other non-expendable medical equipment.

"We strongly advice you all to prepare for the loss of electrical power and water in around 12 hours approximately. All daily activities are immediately cancelled. Tomorrow Friday there will be no work, college, or school. We advise families to stay put. The workers that usually work in emergency positions will have to stay put and not return back to their homes until the emergency is over." Isabelle heard in one of the TV's near here as she rushed to the stretchers place on the hospital's hallways were laid countless patients that needed the urgent care them. She was carrying with her multiple bags of serum to inject it on multiple patients.

"Isabelle, I need more epinephrine and serum! I'm out of everything!" Sarah—her friend— yelled as she held a hysterical female patient —that had her stomach bleeding— down.

"They are on the otherroom! Hold on! I need to get some sedatives too!" Isabelle barely replied asshe wiped the extreme drops of sweat from her forehead against her forearm andwalked quickly towards the other patients she was treating; Sarah was in theopposite side and direction of her. The ventilation of the building began to malfunction half an hour ago, that's why Isabelle and the others nurses and doctors are all sweaty and drained.

Isabelle's main focus—however— was mostly over her mind, where she was thinking of her children back at home as she continued treating the recently hurt patients that kept coming through the emergency room.

Patients screaming, crying out, sick, hurt and scared flooded the entire hospital. There wasn't enough room for more people anywhere. Isabelle, however, kept trying her best.

"Hold on. Stay steady..." she thought as she inserted the serum to another female patient laying on another stretcher; the patient yelped at her touch yet closed her eyes, as if she was asleep.

As Isabelle revised her heartbeats and pupils to make sure she was stable, she could hear her loud thoughts tormenting her.

"The workers that usually work in emergency positions will have to stay put and not return back to their homes until the emergency is over." That last sentence ringed over her head again and again; she was anxious and worried for her children.