"It's no trouble to listen," she assures him. And she's not about to get into a contest over who is suffering more. She genuinely wants to help. "I'm a microbiologist. I study infectious diseases for a living."

Which it sounds like this illness is. The mode of transmission reminds her of rabies, but no rabid animal ever comes back from the dead. "No one's examined the blood of an infected person for antibodies?" She asks, curiosity bringing a bit of color back to her face. "What are the symptoms before the person passes away?"

The symptoms after death are a little disturbing. Not just the physical degradation, but the fact that most victims end up like classic movie zombies. "If it is caused by a virus, there'd be the possibility of creating a vaccine... cures are harder, though. That might be why you're running into so much trouble."