Mass Extinction Event: The Complete Fourth Series (Days 54 to 61) by Amy Cross Page A

work, but someone has to do it.”
    As he helps me out of the helicopter, I see that a woman is standing nearby with a wheelchair, which I guess is for me.
    “I can walk,” I tell her. “It's fine.”
    “Nonsense,” Charles continues, grabbing the wheelchair and bringing it closer before taking me by the waist and lowering me onto the seat. “Alison and I spent quite a while banging this thing back into shape, so you might as well use it, at least until Doctor Sukan has seen you.”
    “Listen to the man,” my father says as he climbs out of the helicopter. “Lizzie, I have to go and run through a debrief with some of my colleagues. The incident at Mitchfield needs to be investigated, and we have to put measures in place to ensure that it can't ever happen again. You'll be okay with Charles and Alison, though. They're our official welcoming party for any new arrivals in the city.” He leans down and kisses the top of my head. “Welcome home, honey. I can't tell you how glad I am to have you back. There was a moment when I thought...”
    He pauses, before taking a step back.
    “I'll see you in a few hours,” he adds, “when the sun's up. You're going to be amazed, Lizzie, we've made so much progress. For now, just try not to strain yourself.”
    “You must be so glad to be back among other people,” Chris says, wheeling me over to a door as my father goes in the other direction. “I heard you were out in the forest for a while by yourself. That must have been terrifying.”
    “I wasn't by myself,” I reply, bristling at the idea that people are already trying to get me to forget about Toad. “I had help.”
    “Still, it's safer here. We have a really tight security system in place.”
    “You're the first new arrival for over a week,” Alison says, hurrying past and holding the door open so that Charles can wheel me into the building. “With the quarantine procedures we've set up, we were starting to think we wouldn't see any fresh faces for a long time. No-one gets in without permission.”
    “This is going to be bumpy,” Chris continues, turning me around in the dark space beyond the door. “Sorry, but there's no other way. We can't risk running elevators with the power being so intermittent.”
    “What are -” I start to ask, before suddenly I feel myself being bumped backwards down a set of stairs with enough force to rattle my teeth. I want to get out and walk, but he's going fast and I figure I'd just hurt myself if I tried to get up, so I hold onto the sides as I'm maneuvered down one set of stairs, then around a corner and down another set, and so on several times over until finally we reach a corridor with dim lights on the walls.
    “It's not luxurious,” Charles explains, turning me around again and wheeling me along the corridor, “but it's a home, of sorts.”
    “You're lucky,” Alison continues, keeping pace with us. “Most people have to live on the lower floors, and that's where there are more rats. Up here, the living conditions are a little better, but it's reserved for the top officials and their families.”
    “Human civilization is barely still going,” Charles adds, “and already we've got a class system back in place. Isn't life wonderful?”
    “I don't need special treatment,” I reply. “Just put me -”
    “Orders from the top,” Charles continues. “Don't worry about it, Lizzie. “It's all cool.”
    “This is your room,” Alison says, stopping and opening a door. “I know it doesn't seem like much, but honestly, it's the best we can manage at the moment. We have more rooms than people, but filling them with useful things is a little more difficult.”
    “I really don't want to be treated differently,” I tell them as I'm wheeled inside. The room is small but clean, and when I see the double-bed by the far wall I realize that I might actually get a decent night's sleep.
    “You're the daughter of one of the council members,” Charles says, parking me by