One Week at Wolf Lake NEW 5/31 (Growth, sex, other tags inside)

[qzar9999]

No giantess action in this one, but it is pretty important to the plot. The growth will be back with a vengeance next week, though, when we revisit a previous victim of the water... XD

For now, enjoy, and as always, thanks for being fans.

* * * * *

Parking out front, she checked her phone. While it still had no signal, it was picking up the WiFi from Lobo's, although as usual it was secured. "Perfect," she said aloud. Stepping out of the car, she walked briskly through the front doors and up to the counter.

"Can I help you?" asked a bored-looking young man behind the counter.

"I need today's WiFi password," she replied. "My phone doesn't have a signal and I really need to check something."

"Sorry, ma'am, the password is for customers only."

A flash of annoyance crossed her face. "What? You guys always give me the password when I come in here."

"Well, do you always buy something when you come here?" he answered flatly.

Sighing, she realized she could probably use a cup of coffee. After ordering a cappucino, the clerk gave her today's password ("0pens3same," proving that some people would always be tacky) and she connected to their network. After a few frustrating minutes, she returned to the counter.

"What gives? It says I'm connected to your network, but I can't get on the internet."

"Oh, right." The clerk's bored expression didn't change. "Our internet is down. Has been since we opened up this morning. Phones are out too."

"You could've mentioned that before I ordered," she muttered, glaring at him.

"You didn't ask. Sorry."

Thinking very dark thoughts about the cashier, Carla snatched the cup containing the rest of her coffee and left the shop in a huff. After her ire passed, she realized that the internet and phones being down at the cafe added to her worries. She spent the next little while driving around aimlessly downtown, watching her phone for a signal or any WiFi, but the result was always the same--she had no bars anywhere she went, and the few open networks she encountered wouldn't connect to the internet. On a whim, she rode by her office, thinking she might try it there, but she found a note taped to the door that informed her and any patients that Dr. Matthews had an emergency come up and wouldn't be in today. She felt a brief flash of annoyance that he hadn't called her, but immediately realized that he couldn't have. On her drive, she did spot a few of the National Guard trucks here and there, along with a vehicle that looked like an APC bearing the Talbot-Lucian logo, and the cold dread building in the pit of her stomach intensified.

Ultimately deciding her search was fruitless, she drove back to her house, fear gnawing at her. She entered to find Will in the kitchen, a pot of coffee brewing on the counter and bacon sizzling in a skillet. He turned to face her, a puzzled look on his face.

"Didn't expect you to be back so soon," he said. His features quickly shifted into a concerned frown. "Are you okay, hon? You look upset."

While he cooked breakfast, she gave him a brief rundown of the morning's events, including spotting the Talbot-Lucian man directing the soldiers and her growing suspicion about the phone and internet outage. When she was finished, he frowned skeptically at her.

“So let me get this straight. You think that the chemical company is deliberately putting the whole town under some kind of quarantine without telling anyone, and they've engineered some kind of—what, a communications blackout?--to keep anyone here from telling the rest of the world what's happening. Do you know how tinfoil-hat crazy this sounds?”

“Well how do YOU explain it?” she snarled.

“Well, if we are under quarantine, I'm sure it's because they know more about the chemical that went into the lake than you do,” he replied. “They might not be giving people all the information because they don't want to cause a panic.”

“And the complete and total outage of phone and internet service all across town?”

“Look, you know as well as I do that LoopCom provides pretty much all of that stuff. If they're having some kind of computer problem or something, it could kill the entire network. I know, I know,” he said, holding up his hands defensively, “it may not be the most likely thing ever, but don't you think it's more plausible than Talbot-Lucian going all Big Brother on an entire town?”

Carla's resolve wavered. Maybe he's right. Maybe I'm being paranoid. A moment later, inspiration struck. “I know! I'll go over to LoopCom's main office! I can see what the problem is. And maybe they'll have some kind of backup system I can use to contact my chemist friend!”

Will stared at her, his expression unreadable. “You're really determined to get to the bottom of this, aren't you?”

“It's important. I have a right to know what's really going on here, and so does everyone else.” She whirled around and walked toward the front door. “Love you,” she called over her shoulder. As she neared the exit, she heard a strange sound from behind her, a sort of soft pop, and felt a sharp sting in the back of her neck. Gingerly, she reached her hand back and felt a small, sharp, hard object embedded in her skin. She pulled, and it came free; she brought her hand back around and stared at a small dart, its tip stained red, as her vision began to waver. Confused, she turned around sluggishly, feeling a wave of dizziness passing over her. Will stood in the kitchen doorway, pointing something that looked like a gun at her. His eyes were watery and sadness was etched into his features.

“I'm so sorry,” he said, lowering the weapon and stepping toward her. “I didn't want to do that, but you just wouldn't leave it alone.”

“Will...what th' fuck....?” she groaned, feeling her legs weakening. Blackness was beginning to creep in at the edges of her vision. She turned away from him, trying to leave, but her steps were stumbling and confused, her consciousness rapidly leaving her. She felt a familiar pair of arms catch her and ease her down as she slumped bonelessly; she would have hit the floor, but he supported her and carried her for a few seconds, then laid her down on something soft.

She heard him say “I really am sorry, honey. I didn't want it to come to this.” He walked a few steps away from her, his form becoming an indistinct silhouette in the growing darkness. He began speaking as if he were on a cellphone. “It's me. I'm going to have to bring her in.” A pause. “No, I don't need a containment unit. She's not...” Whatever else he said faded as she passed out.

[make_her_grow]

Heh nice addition. It's ok, I hope the growth in my story can help fill the void until yours returns.

the plot def thickens though. Carla may just have to force herself to drink up after all.

[Mr Wayne]

Originally Posted by make_her_grow

Heh nice addition. It's ok, I hope the growth in my story can help fill the void until yours returns.

the plot def thickens though. Carla may just have to force herself to drink up after all.

Make_Her_Grow,

Wouldn't that be a sight for sore eyes and mind. ^_^

I'm both curious to see how this Will-Carla angle plays out as well as to what extent Qzar9999 begins to weave in details about the obvious city limits quarantine into the mayhem still to... burst forth..

[make_her_grow]

No update this week?

[Mr Wayne]

Originally Posted by make_her_grow

No update this week?

Make_Her_Grow,

When he's on a roll posting story segments, Qzar9999 is almost always one time per week. He may just post on a different day from time to time. Have no fear, I have confidence another roof busting post will be near. B-)

[qzar9999]

There will be an update.

Oh yes. There will be an update.

I'm currently at work, so I can't actually post it. But rest assured, sometime within the next few hours, we'll be revisiting a previous victim of the water. ^_^

[qzar9999]

It's still Thursday on the West Coast. :P

Sorry for the delay, gang, had to work late. Hope you enjoy! Let's look and see how one of the previously-affected denizens of Wolf Lake is doing...

* * * * *

“Ugh. I can't believe I'm still hungry,” moaned Kim staring despondently at her empty plate. “I never used to eat like this. I'd get fat.”

“Well, it's only natural you'd have more of an appetite now,” her father Paul said automatically from behind his paper. “After all, you're a...um...” he trailed off, as if unsure how to finish the sentence.

“A growing girl?” her brother Jason said snarkily. His grin vanished as his sister stared daggers at him, her unusually large fist clenching on the table. He swallowed nervously and turned his attention back to his pancakes. That was one thing she'd noticed since her bizarre growth spurt—while she'd been able to keep her smart-mouthed younger brother in check before, it was almost effortless now that she stood 6'9”.

Of course, at this size, almost everyone is intimidated by me, she thought. It had its benefits, of course, but one of the drawbacks was that, so far, most guys didn't seem to like the new her. She had realized to her dismay that though her figure had gotten more impressive—she now sported noticeably larger breasts and a curvy but firm ass—it did her no good if she was significantly taller than the average male. Not for the first time, she found herself wishing she could've gotten just the curves and stayed her old height. That would have been an occasion she would have enjoyed buying new clothes for, since none of her old ones fit anymore.

She had taken herself to the doctor following her unexpected change, and he'd told her that it was likely just what it appeared to be—a late growth spurt, albeit an unusually large one. Still, on the off chance that it was something more serious, he had advised her to take a few days off of classes and get some bed rest while they waited on blood work to be returned. She had gone shopping on Tuesday, then spent most of Wednesday at home watching Netflix and talking to her two similarly-afflicted friends. She found it almost impossibly unlikely that all three of them had experienced the same post-puberty massive growth spurt at the same time, but they had no better explanation, so they mostly talked about nothing, the better to take their minds off of the fearful possibility that it was something dangerous.

This morning saw her sitting down to breakfast with her family in one of her new outfits: a pale blue button-up shirt over a tank top (as she had had a lot of trouble getting anything with sleeves to fit her) and a pair of men's jeans. She hated that, and the men's sneakers she was wearing, but she was going to have to go to a larger shopping center to find a place that carried clothing for unusually tall women. She considered herself fortunate that she'd even been able to find a couple of bras and panties that fit her.

“...for you, Kim?”

She shook her head, startled, and realized her mother had been talking to her. “Sorry, mom, lost in thought. What was that?”

Liz Gaines smiled at her daughter. “It's okay, dear. I'm sure you have a lot on your mind. I was asking if you wanted more pancakes and another glass of milk.”

Kim started to refuse, but her stomach grumbled warningly. She just wasn't used to how much more she needed to eat at this size. “I'll have a few more pancakes, thanks. But no milk. I think I'll have water instead.” So saying, she started to get up. Her longer legs and bigger hips thumped around under the table, and she apologized to her father after she kicked him.

“Kim, honey, why don't you just sit there. I'll get it for you,” her mother said with a worried look.

Sighing resignedly, Kim slumped in her chair. It creaked slightly in protest as her weight shifted on it, another reminder of how big she'd gotten.

Liz scooped up a short stack of pancakes and set them down on Kim's plate, grabbing the syrup from in front of Jason and moving it next to her daughter. She picked up the empty glass and went into the kitchen to rinse it out, then turned to the fridge. She ran the icemaker, then switched it to water. She noticed the 'filter status' light was red, and she reminded herself to buy a replacement that evening after work. Figuring it probably wouldn't hurt anything, she pressed the button and watched a stream of water fill the glass, then returned to the table and placed it next to Kim's plate.

“Thanks, mom,” her daughter said, scooping up a bite of pancake.

“Sure thing, sweetie. Any plans for today?” Liz asked.

Kim frowned. “Well, unless the blood work is done, I'm still not going back to school.” She took a big gulp from her glass before continuing. “Likewise, there's no point in me going for a follow-up doctor visit unless it's done. I still need more clothes that fit the new me...” She gestured down at herself, scowling, “...and I already know the shops around here are a waste of time. I don't know, I might drive over to Waynesboro and see if I can find some stuff there.”

“That's not a bad idea, Kim,” her father said. “I'll give you my credit card for the day. Just don't go crazy with it.”

“Hey, if you're passing around your credit card, can I go buy a new video game?” Jason said with a grin.

“Very funny,” Paul replied. “Now is not a good time to be making jokes. Your sister is...ah, having some difficulties right now, and we need to be supportive and sympathetic.”

“Aw, just because she turned into a super-sized freak...”

Kim's closed fist impacted the table with a loud thud. “You little shithead! I'll break you in half!”

“Enough!” their mother snapped, drawing their attention. “Jason. You will not talk about your sister that way. Kim. You will not threaten your brother like that, and I'll thank you to watch your language. If you two can't stop antagonizing each other, why don't you just sit there quietly and finish your breakfast?”

“Fine,” Kim muttered. “Sorry, mom.” She took another big gulp of water and returned her attention to her pancakes.

“Yeah, sorry, mom,” Jason echoed, picking at his plate.

Several moments of silence passed, the clink of silverware, the occasional tap on the screen of Liz's tablet, and Paul's newspaper pages turning the only sounds in the room. Soon, though, Jason became aware of another noise: a faint creaking sound, like straining wood. It was so quiet that he wasn't sure he'd heard it at all, but seconds later it happened again, slightly louder. Jason glanced around and saw Kim frowning down at the chair beneath her. He guessed that it had been the source of the noise, although their mother and father didn't seem to have caught it.

Kim shifted slightly in the chair, eliciting a few more complaints from the wood. She settled back down and returned to her rapidly disappearing pancakes. Shrugging, Jason fixed his eyes on his own plate as well...but moments later, yet another strange sound intruded. It was a soft, sibilant noise, like the rustle of fabric sliding over something. It was followed by a peculiar one that he couldn't really identify--it was a kind of stretching sound, like you might get if something flexible was pulled really tight.

Perplexed, he again looked around the room. He saw Kim had put down her fork and was patting herself up and down, a puzzled look on her face. The stretching sound continued for a moment, then suddenly there was a faint pop and it stopped. Kim's expression changed from confusion to anxiety as the chair creaked again. Jason got the sense that something looked different about her, but he couldn't pin down exactly what. Curious, he watched her fidgeting, trying to figure out what the difference was.

Noticing his scrutiny, she surreptitiously flipped him off. As she did, he saw the long sleeve of the pale blue shirt was snug against her skin and higher up her forearm than it was earlier. He heard that stretching sound again and was startled to see the cuff slide up her arm and clench tighter.

Thinking he must be seeing things, Jason looked up at his sister's face. The look she wore now was one of full-blown panic. More tellingly, against the background of the picture window behind her, her head was higher than it had been minutes ago. Another soft pop, and then a tapping sound on the table drew his attention. A button rested on the surface, a couple of broken pale blue threads clinging to it. Glancing back up, he could see that Kim's new shirt was missing a button near the top, and diamond-shaped gaps were showing between the other closures. More stretching and rustling reached his ears. There was no denying it--his sister was having another growth spurt right before his eyes!

Now that he knew, it was obvious. Her clothing was tight in several places and looked a size too small. The table was lower against her body than it had been. Her boobs looked bigger, though he really tried hard not to look at them for long. Her green eyes were wide, her large hands gripping the edge of the table. If he watched closely, he could actually see her head creeping upwards. The fabric sounds continued, growing gradually louder as her body put more and more strain on them.

Suddenly, a different noise was added to the symphony of destruction her clothes were playing—a quick, muffled snap. Another one happened seconds later, and then another. He saw Kim lean back (making the chair groan again) and peer under the table; following her lead, he did so as well. Looking at her feet, he saw a few of the laces on her new shoes were broken, and as he watched, a couple more on either shoe snapped, the sound repeating. A tearing noise, like canvas ripping, made him look slightly above the shoes; the cuffs of her jeans had risen up her shins, and the denim was pulling apart at the bottom of the seam.

Jason gulped nervously and sat up once more. Another tapping noise came from the floor, and he saw that her shirt was now missing another button. Kim's face was a mask of apprehension; evidently she shared his anxiety about this renewed growth spurt.

“Uh...Mom? I think--” He froze when he saw the look his sister was giving him, equal parts angry glare and silent plea. The message was clear: don't say anything.

“Yes, Jason?” Liz said, glancing at him.

“Um...I, uh...I think the pancakes are really good today. Thanks,” he finished lamely.

“Oh. Well thank you, honey. I'm glad you like them,” she replied with a smile, returning to the screen of her tablet.

He turned back to Kim, raising an eyebrow at her as if to say, Now what? He could see that her outfit was having even more trouble keeping her contained—the diamond-shaped gaps between her buttons had spread wider, and the stretching sound was now accompanied by a ripping noise every few seconds. Her breasts were so big now that he couldn't avoid looking no matter how he tried, and the openings in her blue shirt revealed that the tank top was losing the battle to cover her torso.

Kim seemed to realize that she couldn't hide it from her parents for long. She suddenly spoke up, her unsteady voice betraying her nervousness. “Guys, I don't feel so good. I think I'm gonna run to my room and--”

She never finished her sentence. As she was speaking, she pushed the chair back from the table, and the motion, coupled with her ever-increasing weight, proved to be too much for it. Its back legs cracked loudly and it fell to the floor, unceremoniously dropping the enlarging Kim ass-first onto the tile. Jason's jaw dropped as he saw just how big she had really gotten—even sitting on the floor, her shoulders were above the tabletop.

Her startled parents immediately turned to look at her and saw what Jason had been seeing for the past few minutes.

“Oh my god, Kim! It's happening again!” Liz cried. As if to punctuate her statement, two more buttons shot off of Kim's shirt and the garment spread wide open, revealing an extremely stretched tank top with two massive globes spilling out of the top of it.

[Mr Wayne]

Originally Posted by qzar9999

It's still Thursday on the West Coast. :P

.................................................. ............ .........BuLL RoaR!
^_*


Qzar9999,

That aside, I don't think I have any further doubt that you can amp up the suspense and energy level after the way you meticulously built up the start of Kim's expansive growth. Playing on the subtleties, sounds, shared expressions from one sibling to the other, you gave each creak and pop a world of it's own. When you go to the next tantalizing detail, the suspense builds up with each sentence. We know what'll happen next; keep up this style and I'll need dental surgery to fix my crooked jaw.

^_^

[make_her_grow]

Nice! Kim's growth sounds like it's just getting started....

[make_her_grow]

Here's hoping for more growth today.

[qzar9999]

Breakfast at Kim's will conclude tonight. :-)

I was gonna post it this afternoon but I ran outta time...

[qzar9999]

Sorry for the delay, folks. Busy evening.

* * * * *

“I know, mom! Why is this happening to me?” the giant girl wailed.

“I wish I knew, sweetie,” Liz replied, powerless to do anything but stand there and watch Kim get bigger and bigger. Her head had risen high enough that it now occupied the same space it had when she was sitting in the chair. Extremely loud ripping sounds were coming from beneath the table and from the sleeves of her shirt as they split up her arms. Jason felt something bump his feet under the table and glanced down to see his sister's growing foot, still surrounded by the torn remnants of her shoe, pushing against him. He was shocked to see her foot was bigger than both of his put together.

“Liz, Jason, I think we should get up from the table now,” Paul said, doing an impressive job of sounding calm as he scooted his chair back and stood, slowly backing toward the far wall of the dining room.

Jason unthinkingly obeyed, pushing his seat back and rising, then retreating from his growing sister to stand with his father at the wall. His mother joined them a moment later. He couldn't help but notice that they were near an open doorway that led out of the room. He had the brief thought that that would be useful to help keep them from getting trapped, then shook his head. That was ridiculous—Kim couldn't possibly get big enough to trap them in the room. That was impossible.

Or maybe not. “Oh, god, it isn't stopping!” Kim exclaimed. Her head was rising inexorably toward the ceiling, her feet and legs stretching longer and longer beneath the table. The sleeves of her blue shirt had torn all the way up her arms and the remaining buttons had failed; a film of thinning blue fabric was wrapped tightly around her shoulders, and her white tank top wasn't picking up the slack very well. Its bottom had climbed her trunk, revealing more and more of her flat belly, while its neckline had slipped steadily down her swelling bust, giving the impression that it was retracting to a point somewhere near the bottom of her ribcage. Incredibly huge breasts threatened to overwhelm the top of it at any second.

Despite knowing that they belonged to his sister, Jason couldn't keep his eyes entirely off of the ballooning boobs that were overflowing her shirt. As if to tempt him further, the straps of her top failed, shredding with two loud rips and revealing her stressed white bra, its lacy cups nowhere near big enough to contain tits as big as watermelons. A loud pop followed by a vaguely metallic ping came from under the table. Jason automatically peered beneath it...and quickly jerked back up to a standing position, his face turning red. The waist of her jeans had failed, the button shooting off and the zipper separating, so his curious glance had shown him a pair of lacy white panties, pulled so tight that they left nothing to the imagination.

“How is this even possible?” Liz said incredulously.

“I don't know! This is insane!” Paul said in reply.

“How big do you think she's going to get?” Jason asked worriedly.

The three of them turned simultaneously at Kim's sudden cry of pain. Though she was still seated on the floor, her head had bumped the ceiling. “Fuck, when is this going to end?” she screamed, causing her family to cover their ears at the sheer volume of her voice. She shifted position on the floor, leaning over to lower her head and putting her legs together under the table. Her jeans, already so taut that they looked like a sausage skin, burst apart from the movement of her swelling thighs. Scraps of denim fell off her huge legs as they slid across the floor, and her panties were stretched so far out that they were probably about to fail as well. Jason definitely wasn't interested in seeing that happen...even if her forward-leaning posture now caused her pendulous boobs to hang down in front of her, putting a huge valley of cleavage right at eye level. He mentally slapped himself, keeping the reminder that Kim was his sister firmly at the front of his mind.

Kim had to be over twelve feet tall, and was still growing. Her thighs were rapidly filling up the space under the table even as her chest took up the area above it; her massive boobs were pressing down on the table, her bra straps having failed and the cups on their last legs. The wood of the table groaned in protest at the steadily increasing weight of her hooters, which were slowly advancing across the tabletop toward her family as her growth continued. Finally, with an incredibly loud sound, the damaged bra snapped apart, sending a shudder through her tits and causing the table to creak again. Another loud snap followed a few seconds later; Jason assumed that was her panties. The surreality of the situation of being in the same room as a giant, voluptuous naked woman washed over his mind, followed by another reminder that she was his sister. His wires were starting to get crossed, and he tried to look away, but everywhere he looked, the room was filling up with Kim.

“Oh god! I don't know how big I'm gonna get! You guys have to get out of here!” she exclaimed as her head bumped against the ceiling again. She tried to bend down further, but only succeeded in crushing the table between her massive mammaries above and her thickening thighs below. It broke in half across the middle, splinters and shards of wood flying through the room.

“She's right! We have to go, now!” Paul shouted, tugging at Liz and Jason as he backed through the doorway.

“We can't just leave her!” Liz snapped, pulling away from him.

“She'll be better off than we are if the room collapses!” he replied.

Sure enough, Kim's giant head and back were pressing against the ceiling, cracks running across the plaster as she tried to expand into space that just wasn't there. Ominous noises were coming from the ceiling, and the tinkle of shattering glass could be heard from somewhere behind her, presumably where her butt was pressing against the picture window. Paul and Jason backed several steps into the next room, with Liz reluctantly following after them.

“That should be far enough, right? I mean it's not like she's going to just keep growing...” Jason said. His parents both turned to look at him uncertainly, then simultaneously turned back to the sight of their daughter growing to fill the entire dining room. The ceiling was crumbling as her back pressed up into the attic, and her head was near the doorway they had retreated through.

“Aaah! So cramped in here!” Kim bellowed, as the walls and ceiling of the room began to squeeze against her on all sides.

“I'm...not so sure about that, son. Maybe we should get out of the house,” Paul replied after a moment.

The three of them exited through the kitchen and turned a corner, heading for their front door. More structural failings could be heard from the direction of the dining room, and as they exited the house, they all looked sideways at the picture window that showed the interior of their dining room. Through the complex web of cracks, they could see that beyond the window was a wall of flesh—Kim's enormous ass literally blocked the entire opening. As her family stared in shock, the window frame gave under the tremendous pressure, and her curvy rear smashed outward through the hole, bits of broken glass and splintered wood raining onto the front lawn as her butt swept everything before it like an advancing wave. The frame began to break apart as her body got wider within the opening.

“Oh my god! Make it stop!” she screamed, her voice loud enough to be heard clearly even through the walls of the house.

Seconds later, a series of extremely loud cracks resounded from the roof, and a gigantic blonde head burst through the top of the house. The walls on either side of the picture window were bulging and making foreboding noises; Paul backed further away from the house, pulling Jason and Liz with him. In a few more moments, the dining room walls lost their battle to stay up as well, and Kim's shoulders and arms tore through in a rain of debris. Her growth finally slowed and stopped shortly thereafter, leaving a humongous Kim panting and panicked in the wreckage while her relatives looked on from the lawn. Several neighbors had come out of their houses, drawn by the cacophony, and they were staring in amazement at the spectacle.

“I think...I think it's over,” she said, her head whipping back and forth as she looked around. “Where are you guys?”

“Over here, Kim!” Liz called. “Behind you!”

“Hang on, let me--” She apparently tried to shift positions, judging from a few new crumbling sounds the house made, but she was unsuccessful. “Oh god, I'm stuck!”

Jason let out an involuntary snort of laughter. He quickly bit down on it when his parents gave him murderous looks.

“Are you sure you're completely stuck?” Liz asked. “You can't move at all?”

“Let me think. Yeah, I'm stuck,” she snapped sarcastically.

Her mother started to reply, but caught herself. “I'm going to let that tone slide, young lady, because this is a stressful situation.” Jason had to suppress another laugh at that—because what was his mom going to do about it? Kim could probably handle her like a Barbie doll. There was no way to be sure, but comparing her to the wrecked house, he estimated she had to be over thirty feet tall, possibly close to forty. She could only be “grounded” in an airplane hangar.

“Can you at least try to move?” Liz continued. “I'm sure that has to be uncomfortable, and we can't get you any help if we can't get you out of the house.”

“Alright, I'll try,” the colossal coed replied. She began shifting around—Jason had to look away again when he caught himself watching her ass wriggling—and more sounds of the house being demolished drifted across the yard. Finally, with a grunt of effort, Kim sat up, tearing off the section of roof between her head and the picture window. As she rose to a sitting position, the chunk of roof fell off her back, plummeting to the ground with a crash.

“Oh god, you guys, I'm so sorry about this,” Kim said despairingly, twisting around so she could see her family. Seen in profile, it was obvious her breasts had grown much bigger proportionately, which Jason immediately slapped himself for noticing.

“It's okay, honey. We have insurance,” Paul replied. “It's more important that we get you some help. I'm going to call the doctor, and we'll get you looked at asap, okay?”

“Okay, dad. Thanks,” she said, trying to look hopeful.

Paul pulled his smartphone out and began tapping in the phone number, but before he could dial, he heard rumbling engines advancing loudly up the street. The Gaines family watched with curiosity as a black pickup truck with the Talbot-Lucian logo stopped in front of their house, followed closely by a large green military truck. Two men in black suits exited the pickup, while several soldiers climbed out of the larger vehicle. The suits approached Paul. They both sported black sunglasses and stern expressions.

“Good morning, Mister Gaines,” the taller one said. “I'm Mr. Kilborn, and this is my partner, Mr. Stewart. We're here to assist you with this situation.”

“Assist? Situation? You guys really have a way with words, don't you?” Paul replied with a frown.

“We believe we know what's happened to your daughter, and we'll need to quarantine her,” Kilborn continued, as if Paul hadn't said a word. “Understand that we are authorized to take any steps necessary to contain this incident. Your cooperation will make things much easier for all concerned, but we can proceed without it.”

Paul eyed the armed military men standing by the truck. “Well. You certainly know how to negotiate.”