My name is Bonnie Mary Freeman. I am a survivor of a pandemic called the bloodhound disease. During this time, I was only thirteen years old, in the 50s. Now, we have a cure for the bloodhound disease, but we didn’t back in the day. Back in the day, we had no cure. We only had hope. Hoping that we could overcome the disease. I was living with my ma and pa with my little brothers, Jekyll and Henry, and my baby sister, Molly. We lived in a tiny house with tiny rooms. Tiny windows, a tiny bathtub, a tiny space—tiny everything. I have already started my women's cycle, so it was very hard to have my personal space. It was a pain living with two brothers, but now that I think about it, being with them right now is all I ever wanted.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDnMToPLUK5
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEPicXap9Wr
The bloodhound disease is a deadly disease that takes over your mind in a matter of days. It will turn you into a bloodthirsty “hound”, as people call it. The disease never came from an animal or hound at all, actually. It came from a red flower. People still sell these flowers in the market now that we have the vaccines, the cures, and the medicine, which I find very240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡegvbryQMuF
offencive. People died because of this flower, making them murder their families and eating them like a fresh piece of meat from the nearest butcher! And they are selling the cause of the whole pandemic at the local supermarket? We are in the COVID pandemic now, and a lot of people have died, and I’m sure the people who died belonged to families. What if they sold free COVID "Sprites," drinks, merchandise, or the source of the COVID illness? That is what it feels like to me.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvvEklxzVKe
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3z7PwoSO2v
Ahem, now on with the story of “Hell" as I call it. It all started when we were watching television—me and my two brothers, Jekyll and Henry. Ma was cooking dinner while she watched baby Molly, and Pa was reading the newspaper, grumbling. Pa used to grumble a lot when he was reading the newspapers.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ51IyvYCcIT
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUFtwBU08IM
He would make this sound if he found something to his liking: "Mm! grumble grumble.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0rmWNZTZc2
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK1ksw2GLCz
And he would make this sound if he was mad about something in the newspapers: "grumble, grumble.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqjRMHHk2s6
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBBHMIDSoI
Every time he grumbles about something bad, I can’t help but be nosey.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡolAw8L5Ifr
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3fQFzvBMKB
“What is it, Pa?” I say.
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG7EkolgaCw
“Ah..” He coughs. "The newspaper says people are getting sick.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlePuARNefN
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡePqo8knJQ2
“But everyone gets sick." I say this while still looking at the television.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWFOXbzK0xq
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrpoKZEoGT6
“Yeah, I know, darling. But people are getting sick.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡArygKyOZC6
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJM84nq23HW
“With what? A fever?”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfrAXRi4qGu
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvr38KyKZYZ
“Most likely.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgt5sIZ2AvQ
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXDbr7eb2FO
Pa coughs again and goes back to reading his newspaper. Me and my family never really thought about the fevers that were spreading across the world. Until hell broke loose. There were news reports days later. Explaining that people who were sick at home had murdered their families. Of course I knew this information, but not from the adults. The adults thought it was best for us kids to not know about this bad information. But they gave me my own radio to listen to the news. The news explained that people ate their families. Cannibalism! Can you believe it? These people are committing cannibalism! Why? I questioned everything the news told me. I was afraid. But I blamed the people who ate their families. I thought it was some kind of cult, eating people and sacrificing for Satan. But no, I was wrong. These people never meant to hurt their families. But, of course, we didn’t know that until later.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOLa04a2Rwm
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQNIksLT3Yj
More and more people kept getting sick. People were getting red spots on their eyeballs. This was not a fever; doctors said that this was a disease. They don’t know what to call it, but the world was dealing with a deadly disease. More and more people died from this disease. The news said that scientists brought sick people into their experiment lab to test the disease to know if we have a cure and the stages of this sickness.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSLPrIbQ3mM
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwhf4Iki2zi
People swarmed the supermarkets as soon as they opened up. Cleaning supplies were out of stock, and food shelves were empty. Luckily, we have a friend who works at the local market. He got us what we needed, and then we went home. When we got home, Ma was crying.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5PmuVMQ7jM
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6aNtu6XUSg
“Ma! What is wrong?" I say, grabbing Molly from her.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnfGMGJiN4Q
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuBZBqnUDEK
“Oh Bonnie! Your grandmother has died because of this awful disease! Your grandfather,” Ma cries harder, choking on her tears. “He ate her, and it left this awful mess! I had to run out before he could capture me! He grabbed me by the wrist and bit me!”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpWwB1QX2Py
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFP6KID4tZ
Pa’s face was pale after hearing Ma’s story. Pa was fixing up Ma’s injured arm while I took care of Molly. Jekyll and Henry were worried about Ma while at the same time asking for details about what happened. Molly was confused. Well, of course she’s confused; she's a baby. She only turned one year old a month ago.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlKBG0V7QX6
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaV9yJXmGBr
We got an update weeks later after scientists tested the sick people who had the disease. The scientist said that all the people who had the disease act like they are not humans anymore. They act like hounds who want meat. Blood. Flesh. Human Flesh. They called the disease, The bloodhound disease. The bloodhound disease will grow in your body until it has control over your brain. It will only take 4-6 days for it to reach your brain. If it reaches your brain, you turn into a monster. A bloodhound. You get red eyes, vomiting blood, rotting skin, and growing, nasty, sharp teeth. Symptoms Before the virus takes full control of your body, you will have these gross red spots in your eyes, and you will vomit blood.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EsbVMChAY
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpFTWOJGzzZ
I and my family were terrified. The disease became so bad, you could see bloodhounds in the streets. Many people died and became infected. We had no choice but to hide in our home, hoping to God that none of us were sick.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx89mdCarJT
Mom prayed every second of the day, Dad took care of the boys, and I had to watch over Molly. Molly’s cries pierced my ears, and I covered them. When Molly cried, it made me and the boys want to cry, so we all cried.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPcSfFGOany
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡErIBG0QiFK
“I WANNA GO TO THE PARK!" Jekyll cried out.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ95iPewY7mi
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjMTco0m2cM
We were all cramped in this tiny house, afraid.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZ4hdyH3uf
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMrj0o3ba3
We figured out that mom was infected, and we locked her in the room. Dad cried while dragging her into the room. He touched Ma, and now he’s infected, which means they are most likely to die. I knew this, and it made me cry in my room for hours. My parents were going to turn into bloodhounds, and there was no cure for stopping it. I had to take care of my siblings. Clean the dishes, dress up Molly and the boys, cook, and clean the house. Whatever a mother would do!240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG5Eqe8YuLk
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5SsGrFamZ
Molly would cry and cry because her mother was nowhere to be seen. But I knew where she was. In her room, locked up with Pa. The suspense was killing me. I knew that my parents would turn into bloodhounds, break down the door, and eat us all. Ma and Pa were so sick, they couldn’t talk anymore. It has been four days.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3vaXLsRrh
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGfRtwd8LXM
I hear growling from behind the door. Molly cries, alerting my parents, and breaks down the door! I ran, grabbing the boys and running towards the front door. My parents were on all fours, their mouths dripping with blood from eating each other. Their flesh was rotten and bitten off by each other. It was a scary sight. Seeing your own parents become these horrid monsters. Molly cries, and I shut the door in time before they can get out. I felt relieved that we all got out of the house in time. But a loud bang hit against the door,denting it. I knew the door wouldn’t hold them, so I put Molly in my overalls, grabbed both my brothers hands, and ran. We didn’t know where to run, but we just ran. Molly wasn’t crying anymore; she was just confused about why we were running. A bloodhound bit Henry’s leg and made Henry fall. I stopped to save him, but it was too late, and we had to keep running. Tears fell from my eyes, and I grabbed Jekyll’s hand and began running again.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSsmtpk9zJe
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEG3qD7pMjl
Moments later, we were safe. Me and Jekyll were crying because our brother had died. Both our parents have died. And most likely, we will all die. We were just kids! I didn’t think that we could survive. We didn’t have food or water, so the next day I left Molly with Jekyll to go back into the house quietly and get our food supplies. I left our house with a large machete I found in someone's garage and hoped not to get in the way of a bloodhound. I finally made it to our house and heard nothing. I went into the house, and I saw my parents sleeping on the floor, snoring and drooling. I sweated and wanted to cry. I didn't want my parents to be like this. They didn’t deserve it. So I got my machete and stabbed my mother in the chest, feeling a rush of adrenaline through my body. The bloodhound cried out and alerted my dad, so I slashed his face, hoping it would stop him. I stabbed my mom a few times, ending the bloodhound's life. My dad was growling at me and slowly backing me up into a corner. I gripped my machete, afraid. It wasn’t easy stabbing my own mother, and I didn’t want to stab my father either. Luckily, I didn’t need to stab him dead because a bullet shot him down through the window. I was shocked. An old man climbed through the window. He looked at me and said,240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdt0sIT1Q1r
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTujlQWs7xG
“Hey little girl, Are you okay?"240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8RblrN325
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9PgWRVEoc
I nodded and said, "Are they dead?”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzHUqmwjQx5
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4U6YdIa2Nm
“Yes ma’am. These sons of bitches don’t stand a chance with my shotgun here.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhRJ8HCM8nh
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcqEdO6ppPP
I stood still for a few seconds and started crying my eyes out. The old man rubbed my back and comforted me. I got the food and supplies we needed to survive and told the old man that the bloodhounds were my parents. He helped me bury them in the backyard and put flowers on their graves. Then we walked back to where my brother and sister were. The old man had a dog; it looked old with droopy ears and wrinkles on its face.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMMbg7W01G
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZYLbSBVspW
“This is Charlie, my dog; he’s a bloodhound. A bloodhound is a type of dog."240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsBNKBw3WsW
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8IXmZWC1k3
“Oh, that’s unfortunate for Charlie to be a bloodhound.”240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ30AHWOO8sD
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHBLYvUpB0R
We saw Molly and Jekyll together, hiding in an empty building. We eat, get dressed in new clothes, and sit down on the floor.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUgunIRhs9N
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtwWdWI8upx
“What now?” I ask the old man.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMM1gDZge9A
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVomg7pl4Yd
Molly was playing with the dog, poking his nose and biting his ears. The dog didn’t mind it, though.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLDnPWS6L52
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgT7Ns5wOYD
“We survive.” The old man says240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4pXnnkDoV3
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCxhSdRGmEe
Jekyll was asleep already, and Molly was asleep by the dog. I looked at Molly, Jekyll, and then my hands. And I remembered what I was thinking at that moment: If another one of us is going to die, I have already lost my parents and Henry. I don’t need to lose Molly or Jekyll.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTHz9TpjA01
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTzFtMTn93x
We went on for a few years, surviving. One,two,three,four, five, and six years, trying not to die. The old man was raising us and teaching us how to defend each other and how to shoot a gun. I was nineteen, while Jekyll was twelve, and Molly was seven. We learned how to stay on high alert for bloodhounds and to kill people who have the sickness but haven’t turned into bloodhounds yet.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbwURFaJHsr
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyYAFy25w2v
One day, the old man told me that the government had found a cure to the bloodhound disease and that we needed to evacuate as quickly as possible because they were going to nuke the world. When I heard this information, I was confused. Nuke!? The world?! We’ll all die! We all ran out of town, which took several days! Until the day the bomb hits the world. Molly stared at the sky and pointed at a big bomb falling from the sky.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3a6UpEoNbX
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKjahOBJ98g
“RUN!!” Jekyll said hopping on Charlie’s back and making Charlie run. I picked up Molly and ran. But the old man couldn’t run fast enough! I put Molly on the ground.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgfv5uEHx9f
“RUN MOLLY! RUN!” I screamed.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyiXchfefMv
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmFbWeX13m
Molly ran away while I helped the old man. “Come on! let’s go! We don't have much time!” I said while tears fell.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAc4PKeH9cM
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEnUOiH5qTN
“Bonnie! Bonnie, it’s okay. Leave me here. Go live your life; take Charlie with you!” The old man said this, pushing me away and coughing up blood.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyMhJB2IIBo
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ63jwvyhmsm
“Your..infected..you touched me!” I said, crying more.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpekzfEngmk
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHJKAqiRHH
A big bang erupted. It felt like everything was in slow motion. And then there was black.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡedkihz0eqr
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡITd1NKKgeW
We didn’t die. But we heard later on that the government didn’t bomb an explosion. They bombed the cure all over the world. We all survived.240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1G9TEWKzT8
240Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkMbPWfdwBu
Now we're all old. And I’m here telling you this story about how I survived. My time here on earth is nearly done. So I want the reader to remember one thing: Don’t smell red flowers.
