"...Marburg virus can survive for four to five days on contaminated objects, can survive for several weeks in blood specimens at room temperature and in corpses... The Angola-strain, discovered in 2005, is the most virulent strain of Marburg virus, so far."
Natigilan si Nova nang mabasang siyam sa sampung nagkakaroon ng Angola-strain noon ay namamatay. Alam ni Nova na nagkakaroon ng instances kung saan nagbabago ang genetic material ng isang virus.
In a simple sense, kung ang mga tao ay may DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), ang mga virus naman ay may RNA (ribonucleic acid). Nagsisilbing "blueprint" ang mga ito sa mga tao, at sa mga virus. Minsan, tuwing nire-replicate ng virus ang kanyang sarili, nagkakaroon ng error sa pag-copy ng RNA. As a result, a "mutation" occurs and the resulting (new) virus is a bit different from the parent one.
Ito ang dahilan kung bakit nagkakaroon ng tinatawag nating "variants" sa mga virus. For example, we have the UK variant, Brazilian variant, and South African variant---some of the most common SARS-CoV-2 variants.
But even after pouring all her energy in reading articles on the internet, pakiramdam ni Nova ay malayo pa rin siya sa pagdiskubre sa katotohanan. Posibleng infected African green monkeys o Rousette bats ang source ng Marburg virus, but who on earth would import such animals in Eastwood?
"Nata-transfer ang virus through direct contact," Nova muttered to herself. Pero maraming paraan si UD para gawain ito. "He might be someone close to these families..."
Someone close enough to expose them to it.
Napahilot sa kanyang sentido ang dalaga. Hatinggabi na pero wala pa rin siyang balak sukuan ang kasong ito.
'If only Nico were here...'
Nova shook her head.
She needs to focus.
Pero paano naman niya gagawin 'yon kung higit kalahating araw nang nawawala ang isang 'yon? 'Gosh! It's hard enough not to worry about him.' Pero wala naman siyang pwedeng hingan ng tulong para...
Nova's eyes unconsciously drifted to her phone.
"Sometimes we need to take risks, Ms. Carlos. That's the only option that'll help us move forward."
Mr. Y's words resonated inside her head and she hated how logical it sounded. Makalipas ang ilang sandali, napagdesisyunan na niyang hingan ng tulong ang isang partikular na tao.
As expected, he picked up only after a couple of rings.
["Brian? Gabi na, ah... What can I do for you?"]
Sumandal sa upuan si Nova at wala sa sariling nag-scroll sa kanyang laptop habang kausap ang abogado.
"N-Nico's missing and..."
["Si Yukishito? Teka, kailan pa?"]
Sumeryoso na rin ang tono nito.
Sa kabila ng hesitasyon ni Nova na idamay pa siya rito, she knew that asking his help will, at least, give her some peace of mind. Matapos niyang ikwento kay Lelouch ang mga detalye, namayani ang sandaling katahimikan sa kabilang linya. Maya-maya pa, she heard him take in a deep breath before finally speaking.
["I'll see what I can do. For now, focus on the case. I'll contact you as soon as there are any updates."]
"Salamat, Lelouch."
["Don't mention it. I know you've already got a lot on your plate... Nasa opisina ka pa?"]
"No! O-Of course, not."
Lelouch chuckled.
["You're a bad liar. Do me a favor and please get some rest, okay?"]
Tumango si Nova kahit pa hindi niya ito nakikita. Nang magpaalam na ito sa kanya, para bang doon lang naramdaman ni Nova ang lahat ng pagod noong araw na 'yon. Who would've thought that they've only been on the case for a couple of days?
Detective Briannova Carlos rubbed her eyes, struggling to stay awake.
'Sana bumalik na sa normal ang lahat.'
---
YOU ARE READING
✔ 03 | Point Of Exposure
Mystery / Thriller"Kailangan natin siyang pigilan bago pa ubusin ng virus ang populasyon ng Eastwood!" This time around, Detective Nico Yukishito and Detective Briannova Carlos are forced to face two enemies... One unseen. One vengeful. Both deadly. What happens when...
