Desolate The Complete Trilogy

22



Dr. Wilson squirted a healthy amount of gel on the ultrasound wand and spread it around on Howard’s abdomen. He groaned when the wand made contact and Wilson eased up on the pressure a little.

Dave, Minnie, Emily, and Ann stood on the other side of the bed, watching the fuzzy image on the screen. Wilson was secretly relieved he figured out how to get the machine going. Once the screen came to life, he was starting to feel more confident. He doubted he’d find anything significant, but at least the group would know he tried his best.

Wilson slowly dragged the transducer across the skin, looking for anything out of the ordinary.

“That army guy outside was asking what we were planning on doing,” Ann said quietly to Dave.

“What do you mean? Planning on what?”

“I don’t know. Like, if we’re going to stay here with everybody else or what?”

“Oh,” Dave muttered. “Where else are we gonna go? Besides, it all depends on what happens with Howard.”

“Whoa!” Wilson shouted. The wand slipped out of his hand and hit the floor. He looked at the group with wide eyes. “Did you guys see that?”

“See what?” Minnie asked.

Wilson bent over and picked up the wand. “I dunno. Just…hold on a sec.”

He put a little more gel on the end of the wand and placed it back at the same spot.

“It was right…right around…here.” The image came into view and Wilson pulled the wand away. “Holy shit,” he whispered.

“What in the hell was that?” Ann asked.

“Put it back,” Dave said.

Everybody leaned forward, getting as close to the small monochrome display as possible. Wilson once again pressed the transducer against Howard’s skin. He moaned in pain. The image came into focus. Emily screamed. Minnie put her hand to her mouth and took a step back. Wilson simply shook his head, unable to comprehend what it was he was looking at.

“Are those?” Dave asked. “Are those what I think they are?”

“Yeah, it…” Wilson said. “They look to me like…”

He moved the wand around, bringing into focus each individual orb among the dozens on the screen. In each perfectly round sack, a tiny creature, not unlike a tadpole, wiggled around and danced in its tiny womb.

He cleared his throat. “They look to me like eggs.”