The Grim (Ravens #3)

iii. epidemic

 President Emilia Grey of the High Midwestern Fortress arrived at the hospital in the mid-afternoon. She was dressed in a black pantsuit over a white blouse, a pair of narrow heels adding an extra four inches to her height. Her dark hair was pulled back in tight chignon, and a light contour defining her cheekbones even more than they naturally were, her lips so dark they were close to burgundy. The President was young, which often left her labelled as immature or unfit for her profession, but one glance at the woman was enough to dissuade any speculation. In the graceful way she walked she exerted an air of sophistication, or serenity. The leader her people needed.

"President Grey," said the secretary at the front desk. "Doctor Warren is in her office."

"Thank you, Mr. Gonzalez," she said, reciting off of the metal name tag on the table. With her two bodyguards following behind, Ms. Grey walked swiftly down the hallway, her heels clicking behind her as she went.

Doctor Maya Warren hardly looked up when her old friend entered the room. Her hair was secured in a high bun, a style she only ever wore when she was too busy to have washed it the previous night. Her icy blue eyes were tired, and President Grey couldn't help but notice the blemishes that dotted her usually clear skin. As a woman who took great pride in her outer appearance, something sinister was obviously bothering the doctor.

"Maya," said the other woman, her voice eerily cold as always. It was not until she spoke that her friend was distracted from her work. In the earliest days of the Fortress, the two had been neighbors. Although six years apart in age, they had quickly developed a close bond. Emilia was not yet president, of course, and Maya had not yet risen in the medical ranks, but other ambitious, proactive young women were few and far between. There were perhaps five girls on their street with whom they'd bonded, five ladies who dreamed high, even in the post-plague world.

"Thank you so much for coming," said Maya, moving some of her books aside. When she looked up, Emilia was surprised to see her in an ill-fitting, wrinkled top. It was so unlike her, so, so unusual. "Have you heard about the sickness going around?"

"Vaguely," said the president, "I was hoping you could tell me more."

"In the past two weeks we've had four people fall ill," the doctor sighed, "So far no treatments have worked. We've been able to slow the disease down, stop it from getting worse, but the patients have not improved in the slightest. I've been talking to scientists, hoping they might have a better sense of what we're dealing with, what we can do to save them, but we have nothing."

"It's not just us though, right?" Emilia asked. "The other cities in the Union have reported similar symptoms. Have they also had such poor luck?"

"As far as I can tell, yes," said Maya. "I've been communicating with almost all the other cities. Everyone is working together, trying to find some sort of cure. Even the Chicago Barricade is involved. It's everyone, everyone but Monarchia."

"You should have told me you were working with Chicago," the president muttered, "You know they resent us for having allied with Detroit last summer. We're already dealing with this epidemic, the last thing we need is a threat from Chicago."

"Chicago and Detroit have called a truce. This sickness is everyone's greatest enemy now. If we can't find a cure, or at least prevent it from spreading, everything will fall apart. I don't know what to do anymore."

"You said Monarchia is the only city uninvolved?"

"The only Eastern or Midwestern one, at least," Maya said, "The cities further west have so far been unaffected, but they've all expressed support. Monarchia has just been silent."

"Of course," Emilia grumbled, "That goddamn king doesn't give a shit about the rest of the Union."

"The other cities want us to press. We're the closest to them, everyone else seems to think they're hiding something. If they were sick too, they'd have turned to us by now."

"Or Summers is just too proud to admit he needs help."

"That's what I proposed," said Maya, "They're too close to us. If we've gotten sick, then so did they."

"We could reach out to the girl, Sebastian's friend," suggested Emilia. "She would know if her city was falling ill."

"Adam says they never write anymore," sighed the doctor, "Mai and Sebastian, that is. And Summers would never let a letter from the Fortress' government pass into her hands. No, that would only put her in danger. We can't do that to another kid."

"I understand," said the president. "Is there anything I can do to help? Anyone I should contact?"

"I've been contacting everyone. This is serious, Millie. People might die."

"I know," sighed her friend, closing her eyes softly and placing her stable hand on the doctor's tense shoulders. "We'll figure something out, and if we must push into Monarchia, we'll do it. Alright?"

"Thank you," said Maya softly, and they met in a comforting hug. "I need to get back to work, I have a conference call with doctors in Chicago, Detroit, and the Great Lake Base in ten minutes."

"Chicago and Detroit working together," Emilia laughed, "That's something I never thought I'd hear."

"What a crazy world we live in."

With that, President Grey and her two bodyguards left the well-lit office and back into the busy, public world of her High Midwestern Fortress. Outside, people hustled around the cemented sidewalks, carrying dark briefcases and backpacks as they hurried to return to work from their lunch breaks. At times she would be stopped along the street, as skeptical people asked her for her plans for new economic policies, or what she would do about the potholes from the winter, or if she planned on ever bringing in more children from the wild. She would shake their hands politely, and assure everyone she was "working on it", no matter what "it" was. In truth, she was working on everything, although she could not guarantee whether every pressing matter had priority on her list.

Standing in front of her own office building, the heavily secured one that housed the workplace for almost all members of the Fortress' government, she let out a tired sigh. Oh, how Maya was right. What a crazy world they lived in.