Humming softly to myself, I finish cleaning the last of the empty rooms. Moonstar Lodge felt like a ghost town - the halls nearly empty despite the powdery snow hill and more snow on the way. A sign of the times, I suppose, everyone is too scared to travel in case this thing going on spreads more. The Lodge would be closed down in two days, ending the season early, leaving a long road trip back to living with my parents again - my own damn fault.
I pass by the lobby, where Misty talks on the phone in her office. The blinds are pulled open to catch the last rays of light for the day and a single candle illuminates the paperwork on her desk. She paces back and forth, paying me no mind. I hear snippets of her side of the conversation.
“Mr. Lancaster, I understand- No, I didn’t say that. Mr. La-” She pinches the bridge of her nose in contained exasperation, but her expression lightens as she spots me in the doorway. Misty holds up a finger. One moment. “I feel the same, Bill, but there are barely any guests staying here and the ones that are are in danger of catching whatever’s going around ... .oh? Mhmm. Mhmm..” Her eyebrows lift in surprise. “A bite?”
She shakes her head, taking the phone away from her ear. “Sorry, sweetheart. Thanks for coming in, take a seat.”
I nod, sitting down in the chair across from her desk.
“Mr. Lancaster, I’m very sorry to hear that, but we have a situation up here. People are in danger, I can’t keep the staff here any longer.” She pauses, something Bill Lancaster says making her expression shift from exasperation to disgust. “No, Bill, I am not going to keep the Lodge open during a national state of emergency. Fire me if you’d like.” Misty hangs up the phone with a heavy sigh.
“Are you…okay, Misty?”
She smiles softly, kindly, sitting at the edge of her desk. “Yeah, Bunty, don’t worry about me. You know how it is with Mr. Lancaster. I’m sorry I didn’t send you and Acker home sooner.” Something like regret passes over her face.
I shake my head. “I don’t mind, I need the hours.” The season ending early meant going home with only half of the cash I needed. Finding another job would be tricky in the current state of things, but at least I wouldn’t need to face that reality until the end of the week.
Misty gives me a sympathetic look. “I know. You’ve been a huge help, sweetie.” She rises from the edge of the desk, going to her computer, tapping her chin with a pen thoughtfully. She looks indecisive, eyes flicking between me and the screen.
I’ve seen that look before. “What is it?” I can’t help smiling softly. “I’m still on the clock for another two days.”
“I won’t take that long to ask,” Misty quips, turning the computer monitor around to face me. “I found the reason why the generator has gone out. One of the…quarantined quests must’ve…um, gotten stuck.”
“Holy…” I lean forward, squinting at the security footage. Someone, one of the sick, presses against the generator. They’re still moving, hands grasping and clawing to get out, mouth hanging open as they look absently around. I jump to my feet, heart thumping. “We gotta get them out of there.”
Misty relaxes, almost relieved. “Yes.” She points sternly. “Don’t try to handle it by yourself. Take Acker with you.” She turns the monitor back around, shaking her head. “I…don’t know how anyone could go through that and still be moving.” Her voice is quiet, almost just to herself, an expression of grisly awe.
“Might be in shock,” I say, taking supplies from Misty’s cabinet, swinging a bolt cutter over my shoulder. At least the money I’d sunk into EMT training was becoming somewhat useful. This sickness wasn’t like anything I’d learned about - something new entirely - and there seemed to be no coming out of it, no breaking the feverish daze people fell into. I take the thick biker gloves out of my back pocket, slipping them on. Just in case someone decides to get bitey.
“Be careful.” Misty reaches into a drawer, pulling out a walkie and handing it to me. “Use this if you need more help. And get back before dark, even if the generator isn’t on. I don’t want you two getting caught out in the storm.”
I find Acker in the hallway, chatting with a couple guests. He has a big, easy grin on his face that somehow grows wider as he sees me. “Buntcake!”
“Don’t call me that,” I toss him the walkie, which he manages to catch, his smile never slipping. “Misty needs us to check on the generator.” I decide not to reveal the entire situation in front of the quests, but I recognize them - a regular and his newest boyfriend for the season - and give them a curt nod. Acker has always been better with the guests than me. “Good afternoon, Mr. Vanden. Mr. Wylie-Herman.” Their names weren’t hard to remember - they were the last two unsick guests in the Lodge, after all.
“Please, dear, call us Walt and Matty.” Walt puts an arm around Matty, pulling him close affectionately. “I don’t think anyone will mind,” he gestures to the empty halls, his voice echoing for added effect. His smile has the secure, self-assured confidence of a home owner.
“What’s wrong with the generator?” Matty asks. His voice is soft, curious. He’s probably the most thoughtful of Mr. Valden’s companions I’d met, so I try to be as honest as I can.
“The mechanism is, um, jammed up. We should be able to just clear it and get it turned back on.”
Acker gives me a look, rubbing a hand over the five o’clock shadow on his face. “We should probably swing by the quarantine zone on the way. The power might be down there, too.”
I hadn’t even thought of that. I nod. “Yeah, just..”
“Yeah, I know.” He pats his jacket pocket with a wry grin, like all he’s packing is a box of cigarettes and heart of gold. I roll my eyes.
“You two need some company?” Matty pipes up, surprising both of us. He smiles softly, explaining. “I’m a contractor. If there’s anything wrong with your generator, more than a jam, I might be able to fix it.” He shrugs, eyes bright.
I hesitate. “..Thanks, Matty, but no, it’s o-”
“Why not?” Acker’s eyes sparkle. “We could use the help.”
“Acker.” I cross my arms, looking over at him. “He’s a guest. He’ll be safer here.”
“Come on, Bunty. They’ll be freezing their asses off with the rest of us - guest or not - unless we get that thing turned on before the storm hits.” Acker slings an arm across my shoulders, heavy, and gives me a shake.
Walt nods. “Let us come with you, give you two a hand.” He smiles warmly, the lines around his eyes crinkling. “Might as well make ourselves useful while we’re here.”
“I don’t know..” I had my reservations, weighing the odds of them getting hurt or sick.
“Well, technically, we can’t stop them.” Acker smiles crookedly, letting me go as he claps his hands together.
I could, probably, make a pretty convincing speech to keep them from coming with us, but a glance outside tells me I don’t have time. “We’re losing light.” I meet Matty’s gaze evenly, pulling the handkerchief tied around my neck up over my nose as a makeshift mask. “If you’re coming with, you’ll need a mask and gloves.”