Quaranteam - Team Tim Ch. 07

"This should be our room for monitoring everyone," commented Siobhan. "The rooms on either side can be used for observations. If we can move some of the furniture from other rooms to here, we can get them set up quickly. The analytical equipment in the basement needs to be brought up here to enable us to study various things such as the level of antibodies in a person's blood. We'll also need a few desks and chairs as well." Tim could see that Siobhan was in full analytical-mode, already laying out the rooms in her mind.

The remainder of the bedrooms on the west side of the large central staircase were also mostly empty, but many of those on the east side and in the east wing had been occupied before the family left. Rana and Jenny had been sharing Rana's room and bed since they arrived. The large corner bedroom between the centre building and the east wing had been her father and step-mother's room and contained a bed larger than any Tim and Siobhan had ever seen before. "The bed is something else that the original owner left behind," explained Rana. "It was assembled in the room and would have needed to be completely dismantled to be removed. There are actually two king-size mattresses zipped into a special cover on the bed frame, I saw it once when my father had the mattresses replaced. There are many sets of expensive Egyptian cotton sheets for the bed, plus extra-large duvets and covers." Tim and Siobhan could see that three duvets were spread across the bed, along with a multitude of pillows.

Off the bedroom was an enormous ensuite bathroom with a large whirlpool bath, a walk-in shower big enough for half a football team and everything else you would expect including his'n'hers basins. There was also a large cabinet containing a plentiful supply of fresh towels and wash cloths. Another doorway off the bedroom led to a walk-in closet with many racks, rails and drawers to store clothes and shoes.

"Tim, you and Siobhan will be using this room. Once Jenny and I have been vaccinated, we'll be joining you. I want to be pregnant quickly, and hopefully I'll have a son. As soon as I have a son, any other claim on any part of my father's estate will be nullified. I'm not on any birth control and will leave it in the hands of Allah," Rana stated. Tim could hear an urgency in her voice and knew that children would feature large in his near future.

"You need to get me pregnant quickly too, then," interjected Siobhan, turning to Tim, giving him a hug and laying her head against his chest. "As your First, I should be the first to be pregnant. As you already know, I'm also not on any birth control either."

"It sounds like I'm going to be a father pretty soon at this rate. I wonder how many of the other women will want to become pregnant."

Having completed the tour of the first floor, Rana led them up the staircase at the far end of the west wing which led up to the second and top floor. On this floor were the bedrooms that had originally been for the staff, with only the three nearest the staircase now being occupied by Maria, Tammy and Ashley respectively. Further along, they also saw the bedroom that had been used by the young maid who was now in Puerto Real as Rana and Jenny had decided not to clear her things out. With the exception of the room that Maria occupied which had its own ensuite bathroom, the other bedrooms shared a bathroom, with connecting doors off each bedroom. There was furniture in most of the bedrooms in the east wing, but some of the rooms towards the middle of the house near the central staircase and the freight lift were being used for storage. Here, they found a number of desks and office chairs being stored, along with filing cabinets, cupboards and other items of office furniture.

"I seem to remember that these were also left behind by the previous owner," offered Rana. "He ran his affairs from this house when he was here in the UK. I believe that he had a number of office workers as part of his household staff and they used some of the rooms on the ground floor as offices."

"If we can get some of the desks and chairs down to what was the Nanny's room on the first floor, we should be in business," commented Siobhan, looking around the at the different items and mentally selecting those she was immediately interested in. Tim, though, took his time to look out of the windows of the different rooms they visited, trying to get an appreciation of the estate surrounding the house.

"It's getting close to lunch time," Rana stated, after looking at her phone. "We need to go downstairs and get ourselves ready. Lunch will be in the breakfast room, as there are so few of us here. We haven't used the large dining room at all since Jenny and I came down from London. In fact, before the three staff arrived, Jenny and I would just eat in a corner of the kitchen after heating something in the microwave."

The three of them made their way down to the ground floor and navigated through to the breakfast room. Two of the tables had been laid, the one closest to the kitchen doorway and one further away. Jenny was already sitting at the table furthest from the kitchen door, and this was the table to which Rana led Tim and Siobhan.

----oOo----

Lunch was a simple affair. Tammy had produced a range of toasted sandwiches with various fillings and there were fruit juices, tea and coffee to drink. After lunch, they talked over their drinks while Tammy and Ashley cleared up and went to tidy everything away in the kitchen. Siobhan asked everyone to meet in the Reading Room, which was the room with leather chairs and sofas that Tim thought of as the 'Gentlemen's Club' room, so that they could discuss what was to happen in greater detail.

Rana, Jenny, Maria, Siobhan and Tim made their way through to that room and were joined a short while later by Tammy and Ashley. Eventually everyone was settled, which took a while as Tammy and Ashley had brought hot drinks and a selection of small cakes.

Leaning forward and looking around at everyone there, Siobhan asked "How much have you all been told about the vaccine?"

"I was told that it would require me to have sex with a man and that I would essentially be bonded to him. Also, that I would have to share him with other women to keep him safe," replied Rana. There were nods from Maria, Tammy and Ashley. Jenny then added, "Only what Rana has told me. When the government people came here to see Rana, I kept out of the way."

Tammy spoke up. "I was sent an email after I'd completed the questionnaire accepting me as staff for a Team. There was an attachment which mentioned the vaccine and this was the first time I heard anything about it. It mentioned various things, like there would be one man in the Team and that if I accepted the position, then I'd be vaccinated and have to have sex. It also said if I didn't accept, then I would need to keep the vaccine a secret. Given the death rates quoted, I decided to accept the offer. Rana was able to tell me a little more when I arrived, but not much."

"Likewise," added Ashley, looking down and fiddling with the sleeves of her black jumper.

"I initially said no," offered Maria. "Then I was contacted by this Squadron Leader Fortescue. He said that they really wanted me for my experience. He mentioned that as I'm post-menopausal, I can decide whether to have the vaccine or not. So, I accepted on the basis that I won't have to have the vaccine and sex. There was not that much information about the vaccine in the document they sent me, though." Maria sat back, arms crossed, the issue settled in her mind.

There were nods from Ashley and Tammy.

Siobhan was still leaning forward, her head slowly turning to catch everyone's eye as she spoke, all except Ashley's as she was looking down at her hands. "OK. Then I'll give you the potted overview as we currently know it. Women can have the vaccine and it provides a high level of protection. You can still catch the DuoHalo virus, but it is unlikely to be worse than the common cold and the antibodies that your body produces will likely see it off pretty quickly. The vaccine, though, will kill a man. A perverse property of the vaccine is that a woman must bond with a man, i.e. have sex with him including the sharing of fluids so without a condom, within a few hours of being vaccinated. This produces a chemical bond between the man and the woman such that it is dangerous and most likely fatal, for her to have any form of sexual activity with another man."

Siobhan continued to look around, making eye contact with all of the women to make sure her message had got through. All, that is, with the exception of Ashley, who continued to look down at her hands. "Is that clear Ashley?"

Ashley looked up. "Yes M'm."

Siobhan continued. "When a man has sex with a vaccinated woman, he gains a level of protection but this is only around 30% with one woman, so he isn't well protected, and this protection dwindles over time. A man has to have sex regularly with a number of vaccinated women in order to acquire and maintain a good level of protection and the current advice is that this should be at least seven women, which is one more than we have here now, so we'll probably be getting more women arriving soon."

Maria coughed. "As I mentioned earlier, I was told that as I've gone through the menopause, I don't need the vaccine."

"Being post-menopausal appears to provide better protection against the virus, as long as you're not on HRT," Siobhan continued, "but it isn't as high as you'd get from the vaccine. I'll confirm with others what the current guidance is, but we'll leave the final decision to you. We won't make you have the vaccine against your will."

"Thank you," Maria answered, nodding and smiling back at Siobhan.

"From what we currently understand, it's probable that the recommended number of women to be paired with each man will rise in the future, not specifically to increase the protection provided to the men although this will be an outcome, but rather to enable more women to be vaccinated and therefore protected."

"Now, I'm going to get into some detail about the process. As Tim and I are here to study the vaccine, I will take a number of blood samples for analysis during the vaccination and over the subsequent days and weeks. I'll take a blood sample before administering the vaccine by injection. Once you've received the vaccine, you're essentially locked in. I'll take another after about an hour to make sure that there's a strong antibody response. After a while, you'll start to feel a strong urge to have sex, which will only increase. From three hours after vaccination, you will be able to have sex with Tim. This can be oral, vaginal or anal, although Tim has shown no interest in anal sex and, quite frankly, I don't blame him." Tim pulled a face at this, communicating his own thoughts on the matter to everyone. "One thing I'm interested in looking at, though, is the level of protection afforded to Tim by the different forms of sex, so some anal may be sought with at least one partner for comparison purposes, although only if both parties are willing."

"Well, I'm definitely not willing," interjected Tim.

"Are you totally sure, Tim," quipped Tammy, giving Tim a coy look and wriggling in her chair at the thought of Tim plundering her back door. "I'm game if you'll consider it. Some of my most memorable sex has been round the back."

Tim just sat there, staring at Tammy, his mouth hanging open.

Ashley put up her hand, holding the cuff of her black turtle neck jumper. "I would as well, if it would 'elp, like." The look on her face told a different story, though.

"If necessary, we may be able to get samples collected and analysed from a different team to make an assessment. Anyway, the first time Tim's secretions touch you, you'll have an orgasm larger than any you've ever experienced before, although the orgasm when Tim finally ejaculates inside you will be even larger. After that, you'll pass out for around 16 to 18 hours. When you wake up, you're likely to be very hungry so I'd suggest that you have a good meal before having sex with Tim. Also, we'll arrange for a meal to be available soon after you come around. I had a full English breakfast and I definitely needed it."

"And two hours later, she was tucking into a Sunday roast," added Tim with a laugh.

Siobhan gave Tim a look. "Anyway, I'm sure that Tammy can cater for any of you who have specific requirements, I'm assuming that bacon and pork sausages won't be acceptable for you, Rana."

"I'll make sure Rana gets an appropriate and nourishing meal," offered Tammy.

"Because of the length of time you'll be passed out for, it can be a bit like jet lag. Your body may take a couple of days to get back to its normal rhythm, although timing of the vaccination can minimise this, which is what we intend to do. Also, you'll probably need to have sex with Tim again the same day as you wake up. Well, at least I did," Siobhan added in a quieter voice. "Therefore, I propose that wherever else you normally sleep, you'll spend the night after you wake up with Tim in the master bedroom.

"After you have had sex with Tim, you'll be chemically bonded to him and will need to have sex with him regularly, at least every seven to ten days, with full sharing of fluids. Therefore, condoms can't be used, all sex needs to be unprotected in that way. It's also been suggested that you may undergo some physical changes, but all of the reports have been from America so far, and the details provided to us have been rather sketchy. Therefore, if you notice anything, however small, then please let me or Tim know. From what little we were told, though, these haven't been adverse changes but rather improvements, so please don't worry.

"At some point, it's also likely that the government will encourage every woman to have children to start restoring the population and to make up for all the deaths. I'll be collecting some information from each of you to help those who want to get pregnant and, conversely, those that don't."

"As I told you earlier, the sooner the better for me," offered Rana.

Jenny looked at her friend. "If it happens, then it happens. I'm not on any birth control and won't try either way."

Tammy was shaking her head. "Not yet. Maybe some time, but I'm here to cook not get pregnant. I'm not on birth control, though. I did try the pill, but didn't get on with it. It's always been condoms for me."

Ashley continued to look at her hands. "Not sure, not thought 'bout it. I had an implant put in. My dad di'n't want me gettin' knocked up." There were a few glances towards Ashley following her response, but she kept her eyes firmly looking down.

"One more thing," added Siobhan. "This vaccine trial is currently not for public knowledge. You should therefore not mention it when talking to anyone via FaceTime or similar, or on social media. Also, you shouldn't mention where you're currently sheltering but you can tell people that you're part of a Team and also that this is part of a government initiative for better mental wellbeing during the pandemic, but just don't mention the vaccine. Is that clear?"

Siobhan received nods of acceptance from all the other women in the room.

"Anyway, that's it from us for now. Has anyone got any questions?" Siobhan asked, looking around the room.

"How do you two feel about all this?" asked Maria.

"OK, that's an interesting question," replied Siobhan. "When they told me that I could have the vaccine and protect Tim by having sex with him, I was extremely happy. I've known Tim for quite a while and feel that we have grown much closer recently. Hell, I'd have loved to have been having sex with Tim before all this. But then they told me that I would have to share him with at least another six women! At first, I was upset by this, but then I thought about it a bit more. I'm Tim's First, his prime partner.

"With only one partner, Tim would have as little chance of surviving being infected with the DuoHalo virus as an unvaccinated woman. To gain as much protection as a vaccinated woman, Tim needs to have around seven partners. I want Tim to be protected, and therefore I must accept that he will have other women bonded to him. Also, this helps protect those women as they will then be vaccinated.

"With the high male death toll, it won't be possible for every woman to be vaccinated and to bond with a man unless we share. The higher the male death toll, the more women may have to join our Team or family. As long as the Oracle questionnaire is completed candidly, the system will endeavour to make sure that new additions shouldn't upset the balance and there is some evidence that the vaccine may, in fact, make the partners more compatible. Also, we may be able to block some new members or even request individuals to join us in the future. As already mentioned, our role, that is Tim's and mine, is to study the way the vaccine works and note any unusual occurrences. Therefore, you'll all be my test subjects as well as Team partners."

Detecting that Siobhan had finished, Tim gave his own response. "Only a few days ago, I was living on my own in a small flat in Cambridge, going to work alone in my car and working in my hermetic pod. Siobhan was in an adjacent pod. We could see each other but not touch. We talked via an intercom between our pods during the day and by telephone at night. I was only going out for exercise and to purchase groceries and other essentials and had not physically touched another person for months. I too would have loved to have been physically intimate with Siobhan before all this. When we arrived at the air force base where we learned about the vaccine and where Siobhan was vaccinated, there was nothing between us and we automatically held hands. To have that physical contact after months without was really special. Now I get to live in this beautiful house with all of you and we will all be able to interact with each other without barriers. I feel that it is a privilege to be here with you all and to be able to mutually protect each other from this devastating virus."

There was a pregnant pause after Tim finished talking. Then Siobhan spoke up. "Well, now you're all up to speed, as such, we need to get things started. Do you think it would be possible to get some of the chairs and tables from the top floor into what you referred to as the 'Nanny's Room' and the equipment from the storage room downstairs to start setting up?"

----oOo----

With everyone's help, desks and chairs were brought down from the top floor and set up in the room that would become their working area and known as 'the lab', together with a couple of tambour cupboards that had also been stored away. The containers with the analytical and other equipment were brought up from the storage room in the basement and the analytical equipment was unpacked and set up on one of the desks. Two desktop computers were also set up on separate desks for Tim and Siobhan to work at whilst a fourth desk was left empty. They also placed a desk and a chair in each of the two attached bedrooms. Although the analytical equipment and desktop computers were set up and connected to the house network and WiFi, the remainder of the equipment was temporarily left in the storage containers to be unpacked later. Separately, Tim and Siobhan's possessions were put into the walk-in dressing room off the master bedroom.

After everything else was sorted, Tim retrieved his guitars plus associated gear from his car and asked Rana where he could keep them. She led him through the large function room to a door he'd not been through before and into what was clearly a music room, complete with a baby grand piano.

Going over to the piano, Rana sat and started playing a piece of classical music from memory. "It's a while since I've been in here. I used to have to practice a lot before I went to university, my father thinking it a useful skill to help him find me a good husband. I had grade 9 piano before I was 16, although of course most of my lessons were while I was at Cheltenham Ladies' College."