Free Plague Town by Dana Fredsti Page A

were taken in each case. For instance, Pompeii and its sister town of Herculaneum were so heavily infected that we believe Vesuvius was deliberately caused to erupt.”
    I stared at her.
    “You have got to be kidding. I mean, what? A bulimic volcano? Did someone stick a finger down its throat?”
    Simone laughed abruptly, as if the sound was startled out of her.
    “You have a unique way of viewing things, Ashley.”
    “But what really happened?”
    “Well, we know it was the plan, but as to whether or not they succeeded, or the eruption was just a lucky coincidence, that information was lost. Regardless, the plague was wiped out.”
    “Seriously?”
    Simone nodded.
    “You see, there have been small groups over the centuries that have been aware of the existence of the zombie virus. Over the centuries these various splinter groups have joined together, and they’ve taken whatever steps were necessary to insure that the disease didn’t run out of control. You’ve heard of Atlantis, yes?”
    I assumed it was a rhetorical question, but nodded anyway.
    “There’s a reason it’s under twenty leagues of saltwater.”
    “No way.”
    “Oh, yes.” Simone didn’t look or sound as if she was joking. “Those who fought to keep the zombie plague contained took measures to... er... pull the plug when the infection’s spread couldn’t be stopped. They did so at the cost of their own lives.”
    Okay, this was just too much.
    “No way,” I repeated.
    “They opened a series of flood ports in ever increasing circles until the water flowed in, which further unbalanced several unstable fault lines.”
    “What I don’t get,” I said, still struggling to wrap my brain around everything she’d told me so far, “is how historical events that big have been covered up. I mean, it’s not like they had the CIA back in those days.”
    Simone looked at me with an expression that seemed like pity.
    “There have been cover-ups as long as there have been governments, organizations, and politicians, Ashley, ever since the first Cro-Magnon figured out that he could smooth-talk his neighbor out of a hunk of mammoth meat instead of beating it out of him.
    “Although, there will always be those who prefer the beating to the talking.”
    “But why cover it up?” I asked. “Why not just tell people what’s going on, so they could deal with it if it happened again?”
    “I suppose it’s because some things are too horrific for the average person to cope with without losing his or her sanity. The concept of the living dead would crack the walls of reality for many people.”
    “Or maybe it’s because there’s always some arrogant asshat who wants to decide what people do and don’t need to know,” I snapped.
    “You’re absolutely right,” Simone said. “But some things will never change. Like the infantilizing of the masses by those in power.”
    “Whatever you call it, it sucks,” I muttered.
    “It does indeed,” Simone agreed. “But on the other hand, imagine the uncontrollable panic that would erupt if it became known that the dead walked. Especially amongst extremely superstitious societies. A great many people would die needlessly.
    “No,” she said, shaking her head, “better to get the situation under control as quickly and quietly as possible, spin a plausible story for the survivors, and avoid the chaos of mass hysteria.”
    “So what’s the cover story for this outbreak?”
    “Er... the virulent outbreak of a new Ebola strain.” She actually looked embarrassed as she continued. “Caused by an infected laboratory monkey on campus.” I stared at her, and she added, “It wasn’t my idea.”
    I finished my soup, thinking about what she’d said. She stayed silent, and I spoke up again.
    “But what if there’s an outbreak that gets out of hand?” I asked. “What if there are no volcanoes or whatever they did to sink Atlantis?”
    Simone’s gaze darted to the side for just an instant before she