SECOND WAVE The second incident started on a screen, not in a freezer. Agent Erin Sato watched it unfold in a clipped video that looked like a thousand other clips. A shaky camera. A breathless voice. A man in a hoodie walking fast through a parking garage, carrying a hard-sided cooler with a biohazard sticker that filled the frame. The caption did the work the video didn’t.

The first alert came in as a nuisance. A single red square on a dashboard nobody checked after midnight. At 02:13, the sensor in Corridor C of the Huxley Biomedical Annex flagged a pressure drift. Not a full failure. Not a screaming alarm. Just a quiet deviation from baseline that lasted thirty seconds and corrected itself. Thirty seconds was enough.

A creature finding peace within itself to live a better non-destructive life leading to worse terrors for a group that finds its dwelling.

The first packet left the building dressed as a safety report. It rode an encrypted tunnel that had existed for years, approved by lawyers, blessed by auditors, and ignored by everyone who trusted paperwork more than physics. At 02:21, the Huxley Biomedical Annex sent a file to a “secure partner repository.” It looked like a routine compliance upload. It even carried the right keywords. Incident. Containment. Exposure. The words that made people flinch.

Laurel, getting distracted by what he had said about the owners, wondering who plays the piano, She grabs her bill fold out of her folio and opens the booklet to the bill. Bill reading zero dollars at the end and a “Thank you” written in pen across the bottom. Jerry smiling cleaning a glass while he is walking by. Jerry: have a good day, Laurel” As he taps on the bar and walks away to the kitchen. After her lunch time, she heads back to the office and greets Mrs. Jane in the parking lot. “Hello, Mrs. Jane” Mrs. Jane: Hello dear” Walking over to the mailbox. Mrs Jane pulling out a big wad of mail from the mail box, still having the cast on her leg.

The first alarm sounded like a mistake. It came through as a soft chime on the night shift consoles, then a flashing yellow box that no one trusted at 02:17. The lab ran alarms all the time. Doors. Freezers. Humidity. Pressure. A sealed building was a living thing. It complained when the wind shifted. But this one wasn’t wind. Mara Vance stared at the screen until her eyes focused. She wore a gray lab coat over a hoodie, hair pinned back, face washed pale by fluorescent light. She worked in the containment wing because she didn’t like surprises. Containment reduced chaos to numbers. Pressure. Flow. Temperature. Time.

Mrs Vandel: “seems like a bore if you ask me” Laurel: uh pardon me but my husband is none of your concern. You know nothing about him” Mrs. Vandel: “just a wild guess” Laurel showing Mrs. Vandel the garage, she was not pleased with the house, Unfortunately with the placement of the hot water heater being in the garage and wanted to leave. I left the House on James Island feeling thought pondered and hungry. Needing lunch I drove to town and stopped at the fleets. What she said to me had made me thought driven and I sat with my lunch time sweet tea and salmon salad and wanted to order a drink over the thought, but I knew I had to go back to the office today so I didn't order a drink. Talking to Jerry at the bar most of the time.

She had a question about the garage area and wanted to go and view the garage. Mrs. Vandel: “uh Laurel, the pool has leaves in it” do you know someone we can call to clean the pool, also the drive ways is to small, and where is your husband” Mr. Vandel Not paying much mind, cleaning his readers. She seemed a bit drunk from lunch. Maybe she was having a bad day, but she did insult me. I proceeded to have the conversation as normal as I did want to try and sell The house. Changing the subject and moving away from Mrs. Vandel making my way towards the garage. Laurel: “My husband is in the military, Mrs Vandel, he often works when I work."

I met the couple outside in the driveway. Wealthy couple Short haired blonde and middle aged husband a dark haired Italian fellow makes his money in stock. “The couple was looking for a second home to buy for vacation, traveling from Miami To stay the weekend and enjoy the weather, Mr. And Mrs. Vandel greeted her. Mr. Vandel Greeting and shaking her hand warmly. They make their way through the front entrance into the house and enter the kitchen. Beige laminate countertops with an island, dark blue cabinets, kitchen opening into the living room and dining room. The house had a Carolina room leading out to the pool. We made our way around the area moving through the Carolina room to the pool. Mrs. Vandel stands with me outside as we are viewing the pool and taking in the sun.

I met the couple outside in the driveway. Wealthy couple Short haired blonde and middle aged husband a dark haired Italian fellow makes his money in stock. “The couple was looking for a second home to buy for vacation, traveling from Miami To stay the weekend and enjoy the weather, Mr. And Mrs. Vandel greeted her. Mr. Vandel Greeting and shaking her hand warmly. They make their way through the front entrance into the house and enter the kitchen. Beige laminate countertops with an island, dark blue cabinets, kitchen opening into the living room and dining room. The house had a Carolina room leading out to the pool. We made our way around the area moving through the Carolina room to the pool. Mrs. Vandel stands with me outside as we are viewing the pool and taking in the sun.

I stir my coffee with the Wooden stick used for stirring I retrieved from the plastic bin beside the coffee maker. Stirring my coffee some more. Then Head to the attendant's desk to pay. There was an older man working the desk but they weren't busy so I paid and left straight away. Pulling out on To the narrow street leading down the row of houses. I pass the 2 houses before the house that I am showing and pull into the driveway of the Beautiful Blue and white beach home. The House itself composed of 4 Bedrooms, a 2 and a half bath and a pool, a steal. The house was older refurbished but everyone loves a pool.

Laurel looks straight thinking about the advertisement grabbing her steering wheel. She keeps the radio dial in place, waiting for the next song to plays. And just as she starts to enter the island the song Summertime by Ella Fitzgerald starts to play through the radio. She drives down the street passing some beach houses and a small island grocery store with a small sign reading “coffee” across It in red letters. I walk in through the single metal Glass door and proceed to the small coffee counter. I'm early, 10 minutes and the house is a few houses down. One coffee pot with a Honduran brew and some milk In a plastic sealed decanter with some sugar.

I start to move towards the door and forgot to turn the kitchen light off, moving back to the kitchen and then falling over the recliner I spill my coffee on the carpet. I try to clean it up with a dish towel and dish soap but the stain was still there. I proceed to the door not wanting to be late. James island about 20 minutes from her cute little home off the outskirts, she forgets her folio on the recliner so she has to run back inside to grab it. Backing out of the driveway she sees the children again playing on bikes.

Her grandfather living in the room next door, signaling his voice with all his lung strength to muster up the words, of her name “Ruby” “Ruby” he exclaimed, “dinner” he repeated in Italian, “cena”. Okay, “I'm coming” she said in a light voice alongside the door. Pressing my legs against her body and then releasing her straddled bent knees so that she could stand fixing her dark blue dress back over her legs. Robert sitting at the rectangular bare wood kitchen table, looking at her grandfather in the wooden chair across from him. I'm a vegetarian, thinking to myself looking down at the plate. Cabbage Rolls. Baked Cabbage with ground beef and rice, wrapped into balls. Ruby smiled at the head of the table looking both directions at Robert and her grandfather. The smell was phenomenal, hot tomato juice and baked worcestershire. I started to gag as I swallowed the first bite of cabbage and meat filling and then I looked at Ruby revealing her dimples to the table underneath

We spent weeks in the subway clasping hands in the form of a magic 8 configuration, as she sat among my lap in her black omniheat wind breaker, moving her lips to mine, so many times that I can't remember what we were talking about. Getting off of the subway and making our way to her apartment. Closing the door to her room with a slam and then pushing her up against the dresser, revealing her black tights and dark blue dress, I removed her boots and then as we started to kiss again we heard a light 2 notch knock against the door.

"Cup of Mold" Terracotta-with a blue flower on the front and a mermaid shaped body, "you've always been such a hottie" he says, and you hold steam and lots of cream, hold the sugar, please, we have plenty. On the inside you are rotting. Those flower pots really need potting. A roach comes from your mouth, I try and save you, I take you into the house, but none can do, even the water and soap won't cleanse you, for you are beautiful on the outside, decaying on the inside. I hold your mouth open wide and try to resuscitate you, but none can do, I left you on the porch, you might need a blow touch soon. I can wash a thousand dishes but I can't cleanse you. You are way too beautiful to pursue. And If I had one cup for every cup of Mold, I would hold you and make sure we grow old together.

"The Hole" There was my wife. She took her own life. She was Seventeen. She fell into the depths of a Witch. Never being able to crawl from that hole. As a young woman for many years being pushed back into the hole. At the top of the hole. There was a shining ball. They called it the "Sun". She, Strived for the sphere, finally grasping and taking hold. Full rotation in front of the sun, making a shadow, in the hole. The witch standing up. Kicking her in the chest, with her low wedge. She falls, into the

"Black Suburban, Close to home" The suburban area on the outskirts of town. Rows of perfectly shined, plastered white houses. A trail leading through the small wood, and between two neighbors. Passing the lake over the fence by the side of the pool and under the large power line, running through the wood. Past the clearing was another section of wood, revealing a beautiful parting of trees, with a train track. The train track being intercepted by diamond dust, large and heavy steel beams repeating into the distance. Almost relieving pain. Following the train tracks, walking over a small bridge with a pond. The crickets and frogs sleep with the long silence. Passing the pond. Coming to an opening lit by the end of day horizon. Sunburst and yellow. The old train sitting close by derailed and resting, dark orange. I picked some leaves, Red and Orange. Bright wildflowers , Orange, thousanding out like a dahlia. A small storage house abandoned with a door open and dark. Jordan

I have a showing tomorrow, the couple wants a house on James Island. A million for the house. Laurel looks through the listings she has written down and has found 2 on James Island to show the couple, that would be around their price range. She takes a sip of her coffee and moves to the living room, to turn off the TV and the coffee pot. Eane sound asleep on the recliner. She makes her way back to the bedroom, taking one last sip of her coffee and then shutting off the bedroom light to fall asleep. The moon is showing through the bedroom window and the night sky is a dark blue and I wonder what he is doing, and I lay in the dark with my eyes open trying to fall asleep, then I shut my eyes and see the blue piano in my brain.

He greets her goodbye in front of the double wooden doors of the restaurant. She walks to her car and sees the sign reading Laurel again. Laurel making her way to the buick outside the restaurant, she sits in her driver's side and starts her car, the convertible red buick giving her peace as she drives away through the light breeze making her way down Laurel street seeing the sun go down behind her. When she arrives home she sees her husband sitting in the living room recliner with the lights off, the television lit with a boxing match and her husband asleep.