37 Locking Subangdaku

\"Time of death - 12: 43 PM,\" the doctor said and the body of the woman was immediately taken away.

The people in the center was taken aback by what they saw. Fear and worry instantly took over their hearts upon realizing that the outbreak had finally claimed a life. Despite being a rural community, Subangdaku was efficient in delivering all sorts of news and rumors; hence, the incident did not take a long time before being known to everyone. In fact, it even reached the office of the mayor who straight away acted on the matter. He then called for a quick emergency meeting with his councilors that afternoon.

Meanwhile, Sonny and Estella were doing a round of interviews in a private hospital when they heard about the old woman's death. Immediately, they wrapped up their interview and went to the health center. As expected, the center was full to the brim. Countless people had already gathered in the main door. Other mediamen had also arrived earlier than them.

\"We have to get inside,\" Estella said between her teeth.

\"I know another way,\" Sonny answered.

He led her to the back of the center where the fire exit door was located. He turned the knob. It was open! They smiled to each other and went inside.

The hallway was dark and musty, typical of community health centers. They ran through the corridors and finally reached the clinic area. Despite the death of the woman earlier, there were still plenty of people. Estella's heart ached for them, knowing that the free service of the center was their only choice because of poverty. For the poor, health insurance was not really a top priority.

\"Tighten your mask,\" Sonny whispered. \"We don't want to be infected as well.\"

They adjusted their masks, and after inhaling and exhaling loudly, they braved the crowd of the disease. The two nurses they met the other day were still in the area, still giving strict orders and reprimanding the stubborn.

\"Oh no!\" Tara exclaimed, \"Keep a good distance, old man. You should not be able to reach the persons in your front and back once you stretch your hands.\"

\"And only one company per person,\" Cecilia barked. \"If you brought your entire family, they can wait outside the center. There are plenty of sheds outside.\"

Again, Estella was not impressed by the way they treated the people. She disliked and mistrusted the two. Despite her feelings towards them, she went up to them, determined to find out about the outbreak's first death.

\"Good afternoon, ladies!\" Estella greeted them with a fake smile.

\"Back again?\" Cecilia did not bother greeting her back; instead, she gave Estella an eyeful.

\"I bet it's about the old woman's death,\" Tara butted in while raising her left eyebrow.

\"Well, you ladies are absolutely not wrong,\" Estella answered with a smile, ignoring the humiliation she felt. \"We just wanted a few more details about the incident.\"

Cecilia: \"Woman. Age is 69, almost 70, birthday is next month.\"

Tara: \"No husband or children. So lonely to die alone.\"

Estella: \"Can we see the doctor? I need the details coming straight from him.\"

The two stared at her long and hard, shocked at how smoothly she insulted them.

\"The doctor's busy with important things,\" Cecilia answered coldly.

\"Well, you can go to the conference hall,\" Tara added. \"There are also other reporters there.\"

Cecilia: \"You can find a copy of the complete transcript of the woman's death there.\"

Tara: \"We also have staff inside the room to entertain your questions.\"

Cecilia: \"Assuming she knows the answers.\"

Tara laughed aggressively.

\"Well, thank you,\" Estella said with a smile, still trying to hide her irritation. \"You have been both of utmost help.\"

Hurriedly, Estella and Sonny went to the conference room. It was excruciating for Estella to be dealing with the two nurses. Several people were already inside the room when they entered. Most faces were familiar to them as they were also the same people they worked with in the news industry.

\"Hey, I beat you with this one!\" a friend said to Estella, a big smile spanned her lips. She was Chloe, a writer from a local newspaper who was Estella's schoolmate back in college.

\"Just this one!\" Estella answered back and winked.

\"Your exclusive last night was really good. That brought us all here.\"

\"It was both a hunch and coincidence.\"

\"That's what I admire about you. You know by instinct where the real news is.\"

\"And what's happening right now could be worse than what we can imagine.\"

\"If you are right, then the district is in big trouble.\"

Sonny handed Estella a copy of the transcript. It was just few pages and nothing beyond what they knew was described in it. After going through the report, they discussed it with their fellow reporters in the room. Nobody knew yet what could have really caused the flu-like outbreak in Subangdaku. They could only offer wise guesses to their fellow reporters.

Estella found a table in a corner and sat down. She took out her notebook and began taking down notes, including what her fellow reporters thought.

\"Where should be find our next lead?\" Sonny asked while approaching her.

\"I don't know right now,\" she replied. \"But our local officials need to act fast.\"

\"Yes, I agree a hundred percent. Now that somebody has died, precautionary measures must be done sooner than later.\"

\"We can't wait for another death.\"

\"Guys, heads up!\" a reporter shouted out loud at the congregation. \"The mayor's delivering another speech.\"

\"Let's switch on the TV,\" another said while pointing at the bulky CRT television set hanging at the wall.

In response, the assigned staff in the room flicked the power button and Estella'a network instantly flashed. Estella smiled to herself, she could not be prouder. Sonny nudged at her elbow, feeling the same delight.

\"We have a winner!\" Estella's friend teased that made everyone laughed.

The press conference was yet to begin. The mayor was still seated at his office, seemingly looking at something. He was alone on screen and his neat desk was impressive. Official logos were displayed at his background, pinned on a navy wall. The country's flag was hanging by his side while a glass cabinet filled with plaques and books took his other side. On cue, the mayor looked at the screen and began his speech.

\"Good after everyone, especially to the people of Subangdaku....\"

Like his previous speech, he took a sweet time giving preliminaries. He gave a quick recollection of the events that besieged the district, clearly implying all these led to the present predicament.

\"One tragedy over another,\" the mayor was saying. \"And now, while the district is still in the verge of recovering, an epidemic of uncertain origin or name has infected many of our people, causing them unusual fever, colds, cough, and flu. While our team of scientists are still on the process of finding out specifications about this disease, I want everyone to be safe.... \"

He looked at the camera long and hard, as if talking to real people.

\"I want everyone to have peace of mine. I want everyone to live unburdened. We can only achieve this if the disease will not spread and infect the healthy onces. It is with a heavy heart that I must say this - Subangdaku will be locked down.\"