“Hey,” Hatcher called, pulling the man back inside. “If you need food or…anything, just let us know. I’m sure we have plenty of leftovers in the cafeteria.”
Trevor nodded again. “Thank you. We just ate, but I’ll keep it in mind for next time.”
Hatcher gave him a subtle nod then watched as the man slipped back out of the door. He turned slightly in the recliner and peered at the monitors. He watched as Trevor walked back out into the courtyard then through the gate. A few moments later he reappeared with Patricia in tow.
The child definitely looked like one of the many Zulus Hatcher had seen. Her head was nearly devoid of hair and those large dark eyes on the black and white monitor really stood out. He watched as she came through the gates and Trevor led her to the center of the courtyard.
He looked on as the man picked up a ball and tossed it to her. The lightweight ball bounced off of her chest and across the ground. Hatcher shook his head as Trevor picked it up again and placed it into her hands. He tried to get her to bounce it back, but the child simply stared at him.
Hatcher almost felt sorry for the guy. Was he trying to tame a wild beast? Was he trying to teach something that didn’t have the mental capacity to learn? He could only guess as the man continued to try to capture her interest with the different toys left scattered about the courtyard.
He watched as Patricia stepped away from him. Hatcher tried to lean forward and see what had caught her focus and smiled to himself when she bent and picked up a rag doll. She held it up and stared at it for a moment as Trevor approached, curious at what she had found.
Hatcher found himself tearing up as the girl pulled the doll into an embrace and he watched as Trevor bent low, speaking to her. He watched as her father reached out for the doll and Patricia took a step back as if to keep him from it.
Trevor said something to her. Patricia held the doll out with both hands. She wrenched the doll’s head from its body and dropped both pieces to the ground without taking her eyes from the man. Trevor suddenly stiffened then took her by the hand and rushed her through the gate and back to their RV.
Hatcher groaned as he tried to lean forward, unsure that he’d really seen what he had just witnessed. He stared at the monitor; just as he had thought, the rag doll was in pieces, lying on the ground. He sat back with a sigh and shook his head.
“Maybe we need to rethink their being here.”
Carol stiffened as she stared at the gel. “Okay. Well, at least we know.”
Broussard nodded knowingly. “We should be cautious. More so than we had been.”
She gave him a shrug. “It’s already out there. In the world. I’m sure we’ll all eventually be exposed whether we continue with the applications or not.”
Broussard nodded. “Perhaps. But while we are here, on the ship…we must remain vigilant.”
Carol blew her breath out slowly and turned to him. “What about McAlester? Are you ‘vigilant’ when he’s around.”
“Doubly so,” Broussard admitted. “He didn’t particularly care for us before he was…infected.”
Carol sighed and hung her head. “I suppose it’s karma biting me in the ass.” She looked up and shrugged. “Either our science is valid or it’s not.”
“I pray that it is.”
“As do I.” She sat down heavily. “Especially now.”
Broussard stood and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “We should not dwell on the past. What’s done is done.” He turned toward the lab. “We still have work to do.”
Carol stood and nodded. “I suppose now that we know, I can do away with the gloves and mask when we’re transferring the solution to their tanks.” She gave him a lopsided smile. “That’s a positive.”
Broussard shook his head. “Until we have positive field results, we should continue all safety protocols.” He hooked his chin toward the door. “For the others, if nothing else.”
She gave him a confused look. “But if I’ve already been exposed…”
“Does not mean that anyone should treat the solution carelessly.”
She nodded, not sure that she agreed with him. “Very well. We continue the protocols.” She stood and walked to the door just as the yeoman stepped inside.
“We have a green light on your sonic…thing. Skipper says that he’s alerting a team to get your device into the field for testing. If it works and it really attracts the Zeds, then he’s authorizing the field personnel to gather up the supplies to create as many as we can.”
“That’s great news!” Carol turned to Broussard and watched the man slowly nod. “What’s wrong?”
“It is simply…if the devices are not at the proper frequency, then they may not operate as he hoped. I would hate to have your captain pull the plug on a potentially positive action simply because we failed to account for variation in the frequency.”
Carol turned and raised a brow at the yeoman. “Any chance the captain could be made aware of the issue?”
The yeoman shrugged. “You can talk to him about it when he comes down here. He wants to personally inspect the devices before they’re employed in the field.”
Carol nodded. “That’s the best we can hope for.” She turned to storage locker and pulled out the sealed signal generator. “Let’s make sure this thing is charged and working before he gets here.”
Simon tested the door on the minivan and cursed when he found no keys. “Tell me that somebody abandoned a damned car and left the keys in it. Somewhere there has to be a decent car.”
He paused and stared at the eastern horizon. The palest glow of the rising sun shot waves of relief through him. “Come on you big yellow bastard. Get your
