“It’s critical that no one gets out,” the DOP said.
“Yes, sir. Of course.”
“Please continue.”
“Yes, sir. There was the matter of the reporter’s brother.”
“Yes. Gavin Costello. A mistake to pick him up in the first place.”
Shell looked uncomfortable. “Yes, sir. Things were a little fluid at that point, and there was no telling what he might dig up for his sister.”
“Mr. Shell, I’m not fond of glossing over mistakes. There was nothing for him to dig up that would have harmed us. It was a mistake from the beginning.”
“Yes, sir.”
Dr. Karp kept his expression neutral, but inside he was laughing as Shell squirmed.
“Continue your report.”
“Concerning Gavin Costello. Unfortunately, we couldn’t just let him go, especially given his sister’s high- profile job. Elimination was the only answer. We started spreading a rumor among people who were stranded in the Bakersfield area that the roadblock east of Tehachapi was going to be opened. When they arrived and found that it was still closed and would remain so, with the prodding of some of my men scattered within the group, they rioted. As soon as the military opened fire, one of my men eliminated Mr. Costello. When he is finally identified, his presence can easily be explained as concern for his sister.”
“And Ash?” the DOP asked.
“As you know we traced the original car to a parking garage at a casino in Nevada. I then gave a team instructions to trace the paths of every car that left that garage in the following four hours.”
Shell’s face was replaced by a thermal satellite image. Along the left side was a busy freeway running basically from bottom to top. It was covered with dozens of bright, warm blobs indicating vehicles.
“Please notice the spot near the midpoint of the picture. This is the most likely candidate.”
The spot in question was down an empty road that led off from the freeway. It was faint, but definitely warmer than the surrounding area.
“We were able to trace this car from the casino to this point. The heat signature you are looking at was generated by a person sitting inside a car. When it arrived here, there were two people, one up front, and one lying in the back. The driver got out, walked to the road, and was picked up three minutes later.” He then explained how the person in back got out, and eventually took a seat up front. He showed another picture. In this one, a larger vehicle was parked next to the smaller one. “The man transferred to the new vehicle and they left.”
“Were you able to follow it, too?” the DOP asked.
Shell hesitated. “We were able to follow them south for about twenty minutes. But we experienced a transmission problem that took us off line for an hour. In that gap, we lost them.”
“So you’re no closer to finding him now than you were earlier.”
“We are very hopeful that Dr. Karp’s suggestion of exposing Ash through the media will work,” Shell said, surprising Karp with his implied praise. “At the very least, it will be a long time before he can ever show his face again. Which means he’ll be unable to cause us any problems.”
“We don’t want that to be a reason for you to stop looking, though,” the DOP said.
“Of course not. It’s a top priority.”
“Have we figured out yet who was behind his escape?”
“By the level of organization involved, I think we’re dealing with the same people who aided Lauren Scott last year.”
“Thank you, Mr. Shell. You and Major Ross are excused.”
“Yes, sir,” Major Ross said.
“Thank you, sir,” Mr. Shell replied.
A moment later,
“Dr. Karp,” the DOP said.
The doctor straightened in his chair. “Yes, sir?”
“First, progress on the vaccine?”
“As I’ve stated before, these things take time, but we feel like we’re getting very close now.”
“And the problem with the different reactions between the sexes?”
“We’re confident that we’ll have that solved shortly.”
“Good. See that it is,” the DOP said. “Now, about the virus. I do not want Mr. Shell privy to any of the… safeguards. Is that understood?”
“Yes, sir,” the doctor said, a bit unsure. “May I ask why, sir?”
There was no response for a moment, then, “Let’s just say that your virus is not the only thing that’s being tested.”
Before Dr. Karp could say anything else, the black screen that represented the Director of Preparation was suddenly replaced by the words
25
The orderly was glad that they’d finally decided to room his two patients together. It had decidedly improved both their spirits, and made keeping an eye on them easier for him.
He watched them in the monitor, talking to each other.
The boy was sitting on his sister’s bed. He usually did that. The girl, while markedly improved, was still taking her time fully recovering. She tired easily, and still wasn’t eating enough to remove the IV from her arm.
The orderly turned up the volume so he could hear.
“…mise?” the boy asked.
“Of course.”
“Then I promise, too.”
She held out her arms and he fell into them, letting her hug him tight.
A few tears rolled down the boy’s face, but the orderly could see that he was attempting to be strong, attempting to be an adult years before he should even think about it.
“If they try,” the boy said, “I won’t let them.”
“I won’t let them, either,” his sister told him. “We only have each other now, so we have to stick together.”
The boy nodded. Several moments passed, then he said, “Do you really think there’s a heaven?”
She stroked his head. “Yes, of course.”
“So Mom and Dad are there? Thinking about us?”
“I think they’re thinking about us as much as we’re thinking about them.”
“I’m thinking about them all the time.”
“Exact-”
The orderly turned the sound down, wishing he had done so sooner.
Paul Unger and Nick Regan were half-brothers and best friends. Paul was a year older than Nick, and though he had an on-again, off-again relationship with his birth father, he really considered Nick’s dad his, too.
While they lived in Randsburg, California, Paul and Nick attended high school twenty-five miles away in Ridgecrest. That meant they had to get up earlier every morning than most people in town so they could catch the bus.
The morning of the quarantine, their mom, as she always did, flipped on the TV to catch the news while they ate breakfast. Even at that early hour, the quarantine had already been enlarged.
