[discontinued because my partner has bailed]

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

Fox

A heavy rain began to fall, softening the mud around Fox's feet so that it moulded perfectly to the tread of his boots as he trekked up the garden footpath. His eyes watched the surrounding area intently, but his main focus lay in the distance. Down the hill to his right, and past the dirt-track which was supposedly their drive-way sat the village of Esterwater - a small hamlet which was spread out across the subtle rise and fall of the countryside. The village was framed perfectly in a dull orange glow as lightbulbs flickered into life and the skies clouded over, leaving little in the way of natural light. Leaves were pulled from the trees that lined the road and garden and were caught in the frenzied wind, twisting and turning before falling at Fox's feet, getting stuck against his clothing and the shopping bags he carried. He knew a gale was moving in, but that was not the cause of his concern.

The drone of a distant siren loomed in the distance, and although Fox couldn't locate its source, he was aware of the faint red and blue glow that tainted the otherwise uneventful scene of Esterwater. However, instead of lingering he nudged open the gate to the front garden and continued up the path; which he was thankful had been paved closer to the house. After crossing the small front garden he climbed a short flight of stone steps, pushed open another gate - which he closed behind him - and made his way hastily under the narrow porch above the front door. For a moment he regarded Esterwater once more, scrutinising the landscape in a final attempt to glean a shred of information. He narrowed his eyes and briefly caught the yellow and green of an ambulance, shortly followed by two police cars as they came into view along the country road leading into the village. Nothing out of the ordinary, he supposed, breaking his gaze.

"Baby, I'm home." He called, opening the front door and sliding off his boots by the shoe rack. There was no response, but he assumed Li had heard him. A quick glance at his watch - digital, to make it easier for him - told Fox that it was nearing eight o'clock. The Summer evenings meant that it was yet to get dark, but despite this the clouds gave the appearance of an early dusk.

"Something strange is going on in the village," Fox shouted, moving into the kitchen and unpacking his shopping onto the dining table. He continued to call to Li as he did so. "I saw... err, what's her name, y'know... Sophie and her husband packing up a car as I went into the shop. They looked like they were in a rush. Didn't get a chance to talk to them." He took out a loaf of fresh bread, unsheathed a serrated knife from the knife stand, and began to cut it into thick slices as he elaborated. "... And you better enjoy this sandwich because this was the last they had in the shop. The shelves were bare and-" He paused, quickly taking a mouthful of packaged ham. "-there were police cars as well, somethings up."

Without paying much attention to what he was doing, Fox slathered the bread in butter, his eyes fixated on the kitchen window which overlooked their garden and Esterwater. There was nothing new to see. He finished the sandwich he was making for Li, placing ham and cheese on a slice of bread and then topping it with another slice before moving through the entrance hall and into the living room on the opposite side of the house. He placed both his plate and Li's on the coffee table before lowering himself gradually onto the sofa, his back protesting as he did so; a searing pain originating from the bottom of his spine and spreading to his shoulder blades.

Fox reached for the TV remote and turned it on, bathing the otherwise unlit room in a subdued light as re-runs played on the screen. He paid them little attention, instead flicking through channels - hoping to find something of interest - when he found himself on the eight o'clock news. He often watched the news to stay up to date with the war effort, but rarely for anything else. This time he found himself hesitating before changing channels as a short clip of a hospital swamped by ambulances played out. The banner at the bottom of the screen read: Hospitals facing overwhelming number of patients within the last twenty-four hours, though Fox could hardly understand the words, and when the clip came to an end a young woman began to report on the various numbers of patients arriving at hospitals across the country. 'Until the cause of the rise in hospital admissions has been identified, the public are advised to keep contact with others to a minimum,' she began after reading a list of statistics. 'It is also advised that relocation be avoided until the World Health Organisation can contain the cause. We are assured that the outbreak poses no major threat to public health.'

"Jesus..." Fox muttered, lowering the volume on the TV. "Li, come down here. Tell me what you make of this."

.

As Li hurried outside, Fox remained watching the television, turning the sound up so that he could hear every word that was being spoken. More clips of various hospitals across the country were played across the screen, some taken by news helicopters and other by camera phones. The quality on one video was so low that an image could hardly be made out. Fox edged forward, piecing together the pixelated image, and gathered that it was the scene of the reception area inside a hospital. Distorted voices could be heard, calling out for help or shouting obscenities - the overall impression Fox received was of chaos.

'The situation in major cities appears to be escalating by the minute," the young news anchor continued. 'We've receiving reports of extreme violence, and an unconfirmed death during a stampede to be treated in a London hospital. Authorities urge the public to remain calm, and reiterate that further pressure of the health care system is only leading to delays and disruption. In a statement released minutes ago, a head doctor at The Royal London Hospital told us that the outbreak can be contained, but only with complete cooperation from the public. If instances such as that which occurred at King's College Hospital continue, the NHS may collapse under such an increased demand.'

More images played across the screen, and minutes later Li returned. Her voice was distant at first. Fox believed he heard something about Richard being hospitalised, but it was only once she moved her face close to his and kissed him softly on the lips that he was brought back into the room. He looked her in the eyes, taking in every inch of her delicate face; pale skin, rich brown eyes and perfectly formed lips which seemed to invite him in for more. "We don't need to leave town," He said in a gentle voice, almost a whisper. "Not yet, at least." Momentarily forgetting the world surrounding him Fox leaned in, holding Li's face between his hands and kissing her briefly, relishing the heat of her lips against his own. Then he withdrew, moving away from her face and instead nuzzling into her neck, whispering sweet nothings as he did so. "We'll stay here tonight..." He said, hardly able to control his yearning for Li - for more, but he composed himself in an instant. In one fluid motion he kissed Li on the forehead and lifted her into his arms as he stood up, then placed her carefully back on the sofa.

"We should visit your father tomorrow," Fox said, moving briskly towards their landline. He picked it up and dialled a number that was deeply ingrained in his memory, held the phone to his ear, and waited while it dialled. While he waited he briefly regarded Li. "Honey, could you go and pack up some clothes for the both of us. Try and make it light. We won't be gone long, but I think a trip abroad would do us both good while we wait for the situation to blow over." He went to say more, but the dialling tone was quickly cut off as the recipient of his call picked up. "Hey, mum... Yeah I'm fine... She's great too... Yes, yes, but look, where are you at the moment?.. That's good, stay there for a while. I'll explain another time... No, everything's fine, we're both fine... We'll talk soon, tell dad I said hello... Alright, you too, bye."

Without leaving a moment to think, Fox put down the phone and moved swiftly into the kitchen, the only hindrance to his otherwise precise movements being a slight limp. Once in the kitchen he span the wheel on the side of a small table-top radio, wound the dial onto the correct frequency, and listened for a moment to make sure he was indeed listening to the news. He felt himself quickly falling into old habits, working like a calculating machine at the prospect of some kind of threat. While others panicked and made rash decisions, Fox was planning a course of action. In his mind he had a list that he intended to stick to; packing bags, getting a good night's sleep, checking on Li's father in the morning to satisfy himself and Li that he was safe, driving to the airport, taking a brief trip abroad and waiting until the country had recovered.

From the kitchen Fox retrieved a handful of snack items such as chocolate bars and crisps, orderly laying them on the kitchen table. He made sure he had enough to last them through the inevitable delays he was sure they would face on the way to, and while at the airport, and then filled two bottles of water to the brim before screwing on the caps. Bundling the items under his arms, he made his way up the stairs, turning into the master bedroom where he lay the food and drink on the bedding. Li was already there, readying their clothes.

"Sorry for being so blunt. You know how I am." He said, approaching her side and sliding his arms around her waist. "I want to make sure we're on a plane as soon as possible tomorrow. I'm worried they'll shut down the borders if this 'outbreak' gets too out of hand."

.

"My mother’s fine," Fox said, followed by a faint smile and the shake of a head. "She’s in the Caribbean with my father, hasn't got a clue what's going on. She'll be fine. I told her to stay there for a while - I don't think she had any plans on coming back to the UK so soon anyway."

Li moved past him, taking photos and small token presents he had bought her in previous years. He saw her smile as she put them away in her purse, wanted to look at them for himself, but was aware it wasn't the right time. Instead he allowed her to move hastily out of the room with a bag on each arm.

"I'll be downstairs in a minute. Lock up the car when you're done!" He called after her. Then he retreated back into the bedroom, lowering himself onto the soft linen and taking in the sweet aroma of freshly washed sheets. Downstairs the rattle of car keys could be heard as they were unhooked, then the front door opening and closing. For whatever reason it felt unusually lonely, despite Li being only a few meters outside the house. It reminded Fox of his first night in hospital after the IED exploded underneath his vehicle. The confusion he experienced as he woke up aboard a private military plane headed straight for the UK; his back numb and his mind foggy. Abigale - the only other survivor - had been on the same flight. They had both burst out crying when they saw one another. Abigale was missing both legs, he was experiencing complete paralysis on his right half from his torso downwards. They were both in a state - an understatement, of course. But the two had talked, joked, even laughed on the flight home, and for a while Fox didn't feel quite so hopeless.

That had all changed when he arrived overnight in London. In the confusion there hadn't been a message sent to Li, and so he was forced to endure a night of agony alone. The next months were gruelling. They were lonely. Li couldn't be in the hospital at all times. Even when she had to leave the room for just a moment it felt as if a void had opened up inside of him. A shiver ran down his spine just thinking of those days.

Pulling out his phone, Fox scrolled though his contacts before clicking on one and sending a message:


He clicked send and stood from the bed, reaching the landing just as Li asked whether there was anything else that needed to be put in the boot. "That's all, I think. We won't be gone for long." He replied. He saw her move into the living room and was about to come down when he remembered his gun. He walked back into the bedroom, opened the top draw of his bedside table and inspected the Sig Sauer, alternating the gun between both hands after inspecting the chamber. A box of ammunition sat in the draw too which had been buried underneath papers and photographs. It wasn't at all legal to own the firearm, but for the first night in hospital he had no other choice but to remain in his combat gear - of which the back had been cut open so that his back could be accessed - because it was deemed too unsafe for him to remove the clothing. The gun for whatever reason remained in its holster, and although his gear was quickly removed the following day, Fox had already hidden it beside the bed during the night. He decided to leave it in the draw as they would be staying the night and made his way downstairs.

The first thing he heard was Li speaking frantically on the phone. She was speaking to her father. Fox ran into the room and found Li standing in shock with the landline loosely in her hand. He grabbed it and put it to his ear but heard nothing on the other end. Throwing the phone to the side he clasped Li's face gently in his hands and looked her in the eye.

"Li? Baby! What's wrong? Was that your father? Is he alright?"