Acidalia XII
By Amanda D.

KLTR News 2:10pm PDT:

“We interrupt your regularly scheduled program for this KLTR special report. Here now is Kate Harlow.”

“Good afternoon San Francisco. In what is being described as a daring mid-afternoon raid, Dr. Carla Ryson has escaped federal custody.

According to the United States Marshals office at approximately 3:50pm Eastern Time the police van carrying Dr. Ryson and its convoy of support vehicles came under attack from a small group of terrorists armed with armor piercing rounds and hand held artillery of some kind on a tree covered road just outside Quantico, Virginia .

According to reports, the group, consisting of between 10 and 15 individuals blocked the heavily wooded road with a pair of stolen orange Quantico DPW dump trucks. The convoy of 5 police vehicles was en route to the Quantico Marine base to deliver Dr. Ryson back to her holding cell after today’s court session was called off due to a bomb scare.”

“I’ve just received word from my producer that we are going to take you live to a press conference at the FBI offices in Quantico Virginia.”

The picture on the screen switched from the reporter in the studio to a room filled with cameras. At the front of the room was a stage with a four foot tall microphone engulfed wooden podium standing in the center of it. Behind the podium was a light blue wall with the insignia of the FBI emblazoned in the center of it.

After a moment the stage began to fill with men and women. Each took a place to the left and right of the podium. The last person to arrive was a tall dark skinned woman with glasses and very long curly hair. She stepped up the bank of microphones and cleared her throat.

“Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. My name is Marcie Sheppard. I’m with the Federal Marshals office and I’ll be acting as press liaison during this investigation. Before I take any questions I’d like to give you what we know so far.

“As you know, late this afternoon a group of terrorists attacked the team of FBI agents and Federal Marshals charged with guarding DR. Carla Ryson during her transportation to and from the Marine base in Quantico Virginia.

“From what we’ve been able to reconstruct from eyewitness reports and on board cameras in the vehicles, the terrorists began the attack by first blocking off a narrow section of Clayton Rd with a pair of very large DPW dump trucks that were reported stolen this morning from the Quantico municipal garage.

“Because of the obstruction, the transport column was forced to stop and came under heavy fire from a small group who were stationed behind and underneath the trucks. The drivers attempted to evade the fire by backing up but found the rear blocked as well by two more construction vehicles.

“They then came under fire from the rear as well.

“As the agents were attempting to defend themselves and Dr. Ryson, a third group appeared out of the woods on the right side of the road, and using explosives, blew the rear doors off the truck containing the doctor.

“They then made off with her back into the woods.

“We’ve found heavy four wheel drive type vehicle tracks in the mud off to that side of the road and assume they were made by whatever they used to get away from the scene of the attack.

“As we speak, U.S Marshal’s Service agents, in cooperation with the FBI, State and Local Police are on the scene, as well as setting up check points on all roads, major and secondary in the area. Helicopters have been called in to search the area from the air but the heavy tree cover has limited their usefulness.

“That’s all the information I have available for you right now. Are there any questions?”

A thousand hands rose at once and voices from the audience filled the air.

Marcie took a deep breath then picked one of the multitude of hands, and pointed, “Yes, you.”

“Is your office treating this as an escape or a kidnapping at this time?”

“At this time there is no evidence that we are aware of that points to any conclusion other than Dr. Ryson was a willing participant in today’s events. So in light of that we are treating this as nothing other than a well planned escape by her and her accomplices.”

More hands went up as soon as she finished speaking. Looking out at the gathering, Marcie picked another random hand.

“Ms. Sheppard, a two part question. First what is the condition of the officers who were injured during the assault, and secondly, why was there no air support for them?”

“The two officers who survived the attack with only minor injuries were taken to and treated at the Quantico Marine base. Three others were airlifted to Carter Memorial Hospital in Landover Maryland and are in surgery right now. That’s all anyone really knows right now. As soon as we receive word on the officer’s conditions post surgery, we will pass that information on to you.

“As far as air support goes, we did have the convoy under aerial surveillance but the assault took place in an area that was virtually impossible to see from the air because of the dense tree cover. Whoever planned the attack knew the best place for it to occur.”

“Do you have any suspects yet?” a tall male reporter hollered out before Marcie could continue.

“We will be interviewing several individuals of interest over the next few hours. I would like to remind you that our investigation has only just begun. I firmly believe we will have a much better idea where we want to focus our efforts by this time tomorrow. I would also like to say that in addition to the road way check points, the Washington D.C. police and the Virginia State police are checking all passengers on both private and commercial flights at all airports and have increased their presence at all bus and railway stations.”

“How long will those measures be in place?”

Marcie shot the reporter a disbelieving stare. “Ladies and gentlemen let me make this clear to you. It is our goal and mission to capture Dr. Ryson and her accomplices. We will maintain our increased vigilance in the immediate area until we have her.

**************

Somewhere in Virginia 6:40pm EDT:

Carla Ryson lay on the cold ribbed metal floor of what she could only assume was the back of either a van or a box truck. She could sense the trucks motion through the small bumps and jiggles the rippled up through the tires and into the frame.

Where she was, and where she was going, was as much of a mystery to her as the identity of her kidnappers. However part of her was glad she didn’t know their faces or names. It gave her a slight bit of hope that she might get out of this alive, since she wouldn’t be able to identify any of them.

There was no real logic behind the belief, since they could just as easily kill her without removing their hoods. It might even prove to be easier for them to do it that way but something told her they wouldn’t. They would want her to see their faces, to know who it was that was doing this to her. She was sure of it. Then again, perhaps she had just seen too many television shows.

If she hadn’t been so terrified, she might have found a certain amount of amusement in her own foolish assumptions. Carla had lived her entire life trying to base all her decisions on hard evidence and cold logic. Not the most adventurous way to live to be sure, but it had always worked for her.

Now, those criteria told her that she was in very deep shit, and the chances of her surviving were exceedingly slim. People just don’t go to the extreme of killing federal officers just to turn around and ransom you back to the authorities for a few bucks. These people had another agenda. One that wasn’t going to end well for her, of that she was certain.

Carla found herself not liking the logical conclusion very much and tried her best to focus on the aforementioned hope.

A hard leftish lurch coupled with the gradual feeling of reducing speed told her that they were making a corner. The road they were now on must not have been in very good condition. She could feel each and every hard bump the as the vehicle went over them. Once or twice she was even tossed up into the air only to thump down hard onto the floor a moment later.

Something about having left the relatively smooth pavement for this much rougher road sent a chill running up her spine. She couldn’t shake the feeling that the journey to wherever they were taking her would soon be coming to its end.

What would happen when they finally stopped moving remained a mystery, but Carla was in no hurry to find out. They could drive forever as far as she was concerned.

Another couple of lurching turns and the vehicle ground its way to a halt.

Carla rolled onto her back, giving her aching side a rest. She had originally been on her back but all the bumps had proven too painful to stay that way.

Outside she could hear the muffled sounds of car doors closing and the vaguest hint of voices. The van shook slightly as the driver hopped out. Someone hit the outside wall of the vehicle. The sound boomed though the cargo area like an exploding bomb.

The large ball of icy fear that had been building in her stomach suddenly grew to the size of a mountain. At the same time, her bladder suddenly felt heavy and full to the point of bursting. The captive doctor strained with all her might to control her bodily functions. The last thing in the world she wanted was for them to know how scared she was by viewing a huge wet stain across her crotch.

Time ticked by very slowly as she waited under the blackness of the hood for the door to open and someone to come for her.

A constant tide of fear and panic washed over her as her mind played out scenario after horrible scenario of what lay in store for her next. Carla’s vivid imagination had always been a source of pride to her, in the way it had always helped her think her way around problems. Now, however, she cursed it.

Though she tried her best to hold it back, a quick squeak of fear escaped her lips as the sound of someone rattling the door at her feet caught her ear. She hoped her captors had somehow missed it behind the other noises from outside. Though there was no logic behind it, Carla’s pride didn’t want them to know how scared she truly was.

The sound of a door opening up was quickly followed by a male voice saying, “That’s her?”

“Yep. The one, the only, Dr. Carla Ryson, fresh from federal custody to our doorstep,” A second male voice answered.

“I can’t believe you guys actually pulled it off. Carlyle is going to be ecstatic when he hears.”

“It’s been all over the news all afternoon, so I’m sure he knows by now,” A woman’s voice chimed in.

“Probably right. Well let’s get her out of there and into the house before anyone sees us,” The second voice told the others.

“Not much chance of that, but come on, Philip, give me a hand,” The first voice said.

The truck shook slightly as the two of them climbed inside. Carla felt two pairs of hands grab her roughly and pull her to a standing position.

“OK, doctor, this is how it’s going to go here,” the voice that belonged to the one they had called Philip said. “I’m going to untie your feet so you can walk. You’re going to stand there like a good girl and let me do it. If I see either of your feet move any way other than what I tell you, my friend behind you is going to shoot you.”

Carla felt the cold metal gun barrel touch her just above the top of her neck. Her captor pushed it up into the soft part of the back of her head. The feeling sent a bolt of terror rushing through the doctor causing her lose control of her overloaded bladder.

“Oh gross!” Philip exclaimed as the dark stain spread across her crotch just inches from his face. “That’s just plain ol everyday nasty! Well at least we know she gets the message.”

Carla could hear the other man laugh in response. “Yeah, she does. Make sure you wash your hair real good when you shower later.”

Philip chuckled. “Nasty! Now Doctor, you just stand there and cooperate with me. Do as we tell you, and this will go a whole lot easier for everyone.” Philip began to untie her feet.

‘Go easier?’ Carla thought to herself. ‘Easier? For who? You?’

She felt the ropes fall way from her sore ankles. With her legs free, Carla kicked with all she had. A brief feeling of satisfaction came with the sound of the one called Philip crying out in pain and surprise. The satisfaction was quickly replaced however with a sharp pain in the back of her head that drove the doctor to her knees.

“You fuckin cunt!” Philip screamed as she felt a boot hit her square in the stomach, doubling her over and causing her to tumble over onto the floor. “What the fuck did I tell you? Do you want to die doctor? Is that it? Pull another bullshit stunt like that again, and you will. Believe me there’s nothing that would make us happier than seeing your brains splattered all over the floor!”

As he raged, Carla gasped for breath. The pain wasn’t fun, but it showed that his threats, at least for the moment, were nothing more than words. She had no doubt now that they intended to kill her, but for whatever reason, they weren’t ready to do it just yet.

It was obvious now that they wanted something from her first. What that something was, she didn’t know. But the knowledge that they weren’t going to do her in right then and there gave her the will to resist.

“Piece of shit!” she gasped. “So much for killing me if I resist. I bet you don’t have the balls!”

A small wave of laughter rippled through the other man and the woman, giving Carla another small feeling of satisfaction.

A moment later more pain, as an unseen hand grabbed a large handful of her long raven black hair under her hood and pulled her unceremoniously to her feet again. Carla barely had time to register that she was upright when another hand gave the middle of her back a hard shove.

Blinded by the shroud, and still a bit dizzy from the first blow to the back of her head, she stumbled forward, hoping foolishly that someone would grab her before she reached the edge, but no one did. With her hands still bound, there was no way to break the short fall.

Philip cackled with delight as she did a nose dive and crashed face first into the hard ground.

“Jesus Christ Philip, what the fuck did you do that for?” the female voice asked with an edge of anger in it. “She could have broken her damn neck, for cryin’ out loud. Where would we be if that happened?”

“Fuck you, bitch! Get the fuck off my ass! She’s fine … Well, sorta fine anyway. Besides, she deserved it after kicking me in the side of the head like that,” Philip shouted back. “Maybe next time she’ll think twice before she tries to resist.”

“You’re such an asshole!” The girl’s voice told him.

Her head still ringing from the harsh landing, Carla felt a smaller set of hands touch her back and gently roll her over.

“Are you okay, Dr. Ryson? Does anything feel like it’s broken?” the mystery girl asked.

Carla gave no reply. She couldn’t. Her head was spinning way too much for her to be able to form any kind of sensible response.

“Fuck Philip, I think she’s really hurt!”

“So what? It’s not like we need her around long term or anything. Jimmy, give her a hand. Let’s get her up and inside.” After a moment’s pause he continued, “I’ll have Randy take a look at her one we get her to the room. OK, Jen?”
Jen rolled her eyes. “You know Phillip; you’re such a fucken retard sometimes. Why don’t you just give her a fucken attendance sheet with everyone’s name and social security number on it too? So that if the cops happen to show up, she can tell them exactly who we all are and where they can find us.”

“Hey, Jimmy’s the one that started with calling everyone by name!” he exclaimed defensively.

“Alright, children” Jimmy jumped in. “that’s enough arguing in front of the prisoner for one day, don’t ya think? Philip, get down here and help me carry our guest inside. Jen, go find Randy. Tell him to meet us in the basement.”

The two men bent down, lifted Carla’s limp body and carried her into the old Victorian house.

***************

Redlands, California Monday August 14 2:30pm PDT: Access road to the San Bernardino County Quarantine Facility:

The tall wrought iron gates to the quarantine were impossible to see through the sea of protesters that stood blocking the access road. The area surrounding the facility was supposed to be secured, with access limited to only military vehicles and transport vehicles, like this one, that were used to transport newly interned virus victims to their new home.

The bus, for lack of a better word to describe it, was outfitted with everything you could need to safely transport infectees. It was about forty feet long, with twin rows of padded wooden benches stretching from stem to stern. Each row was broken up every four feet by solid looking black metal barriers with small “windows” near the top, separating each seat into its own little compartment. If she stretched her bonds to their limit, she could just about see out of it.

Each compartment was equipped with a set of leather clad padded wrist and ankle restraints that were used on some of the infectees but not all, its own air supply, and a small round window on the outer wall.

The two sides of the bus were separated by transparent, (Lexan?) She wasn’t sure exactly what they were), walls and an access aisle that ran down the center. She assumed this was so the guards that seemed to ceaselessly traipse up and down the narrow hall in-between the barriers could easily see what was going in inside each compartment. What the “windows” at the top of the barriers were for, was anyone’s guess.

The driver’s compartment was again separated from the rear by a thick round airlock door. The driver had his own separate air supply and environmental controls.

The windshield and small side windows were composed of the same mysterious transparent material that lined the front of the passenger rows. A layer of three inch thick armor encased the entire outer body of the transport.

Even with all that separating her from those on the outside, in addition to the never ending rumble of the vehicle’s exhaust and the constant hiss of the air circulation system, the crowd outside was so large and loud she could easily hear what they were yelling.

“SET THEM FREE!! SET THEM FREE!! SET THEM FREE!!” was being chanted by the huge mob, over and over again.

The sound of the chant chilled her to the bone. It reminded her of the stories she had heard about how the Rhode Island Riot had gotten its start a few months back.

Again she tugged and pulled on the cuffs until she was able to get a view of what was happening through the front side window, which faced the windshield. The angle was bad and the window far away, thus making it difficult to see much of anything. What she could make out chilled her even more than the chant.

From what she could see, it looked as if every inch of ground between here and the dark gray colored stone walls on either side of the outer gate she could just make out in the distance, was occupied by a person. She had felt the bus try to inch its way forward a couple times after the initial stop, not understanding why the driver wasn’t simply pushing his way through the throng. Now, however, the reason for the lack of progress was obvious.

At the very top of the window and even further in the distance than the walls, sat a slate gray angled roof. ‘That must be it,’ she thought silently. ‘Even more depressing looking than I thought it would be.’

That suited her just fine.

Yvonne honestly hoped it was as bad in there as the rumors made it sound. She wanted to be punished. She wanted to die, and here was just as good a place as any. Her husband had died in a place like this one, as far as she knew, and she found it fitting that she die in one too. Her one hope was that she would be reunited with Thomas in heaven. If she made it in that is, not a foregone conclusion any more.

Once she had been a faithful churchgoer. Her faith had been strong back then. So strong and committed to the Lord and his work that it was a truly rare occasion when she missed a Sunday morning service. Now she couldn’t even remember the last time she had prayed for anything.

In a way, she looked forward to living here, where rumors would have you believe they did nothing but abuse and torture the inmates at every opportunity. She just hoped it would all be over quickly.

Not the punishment. That she wanted … no, that was the wrong word … she needed to last, at least for a good while. She felt there was too much she owed, too much to pay for, to be allowed to go quickly.

What she hoped for, was when she had served her time they would put her out of her misery with as little fuss as possible.

It was a bit strange, these oppressive feelings of guilt. The feeling ran so deep and constant, they were nothing like she had ever experienced before.

As recently as four weeks ago she had felt nothing but hope and love, but that was in the days before she had infected both of her parents. Before her mother had died, looking like something out of Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein. Before her father had been changed into someone who could have passed as her younger sister and then been shipped off to a place just like this one, though which one exactly she didn’t know. Before she had taken the kids and fled to southern California in a vain attempt to run away from everything that she had done to her family.

It was before she had stupidly admitted to the hospital nurse that she was infected, and as a result, was forced to watch as her children were taken away.

Poor Melanie had become sick three days ago, very sick, with a fever that had reached just over a hundred and two degrees. After what she had just gone through with her parents, Yvonne panicked. To her mind, there was no way that the girl hadn’t become infected.

In a frantic state bordering on panic, she had rushed her daughter to the hospital. As the girl was being examined, Yvonne spilled the beans about her infection. She hadn’t meant to tell her, but the nurse kept asking her why she was so sure Melanie had Acidalia. Finally, Yvonne blurted it out just to shut the woman up, and make her stop bothering her with insipid questions.

Unfortunately, that was all the staff needed to hear. They immediately shut down the entire emergency room, evacuated everyone that hadn’t come in direct contact with Yvonne, and called in the Marines.

At first she hadn’t paid any mind to all the sudden activity in the halls outside Melanie’s room. She was much too busy concentrating on her sick daughter and nursing the beginnings of her ever present guilt.

At some point in time, she wasn’t sure exactly when. Because the entire afternoon was something of a blur, one of the doctors had asked her to step into a private room for a short discussion on what could be done about the girls’ condition. Yvonne didn’t want to leave her daughter, but with assurances from another nurse that the girl would be looked after in her absence, she went.

They say one mistake is all it takes, and most often, it’s a dumb one. This one was a doozy. Not that she’d had any clue what was laying in wait in that office but she should have expected something. However, she was too distraught over Melanie, and didn’t. Waiting for her in the little room were three containment suited soldiers.

At first she didn’t understand why they would be there. She barely recalled talking with the nurse, never mind what she had told her about being infected. Her confusion was short lived.

The three men grabbed her, and before she knew what was going on, they were dragging her out a side entrance in restraints.

She screamed. She fought as best as she could, but they were three and she was only one and they were too overpowering. The three stuffed her into a waiting transport vehicle that would take her to a temporary holding cell beneath the San Bernardino medical center.

As they dragged her towards the transport, she had fought with everything she had even as she begged them to tell her were her children were. They had refused to even respond to her pleas.

Just as they were getting her inside she reached out and managed to grab a hand full of one of the suits. She pulled with all her might, tearing it open. The guard wearing it had shrieked like a little girl, bringing a short moment of satisfaction. She had a vague memory of something shiny swinging towards her face, and then nothing but blackness until she woke up in a cell.

With Melanie and Michele gone, all her hope for the future died. It had been replaced by the ever present and overwhelming guilt and hopelessness that was now her constant companion. For her, there was nothing else. No hope, no love, no peace.

She made a promise to her children, a promise to never leave them again, no matter what. She had sworn on her very soul, in front of God that they would always be together. It took less than five weeks for fate to make a liar out of her.

Even though it wasn’t like she had been given much of a choice in the matter, she still hated herself for what she had done.

At the holding facility she had become so despondent and desperate to get away she started a fight in the holding cell they had placed everyone in while they were all processed. One of the staff must have noticed that Yvonne, once she got things rolling, never raised even a finger in her own defense. She took a horrendous beating as a result, and wound up in the infirmary for the night. After that the staff had placed her on a twenty four hour suicide watch. Heaven forbid she kill herself before they could imprison her for the rest of her life. That just wouldn’t do!

So instead they locked her in a separate room, wrapped so tightly in a blanket she couldn’t even move enough to scratch her nose and tied to an upright back board. There she stayed until they came and stuffed her into her seat on this bus. At least someone had though to stick her with a catheter or there would have been a real mess.

A loud thump made the bus rock violently on its shocks and springs drawing her attention back to the present.

All along the far side the small security force were looking out the tiny windows and yelling back and forth. The over lapping voices, combined with the ventilation system and the noise from the mob outside made it all but impossible to follow what the security team members were saying to each other but the look on their faces reaffirmed what everyone already knew, the situation outside was getting worse.

A second thump, this time more to the rear, shook the vehicle more violently than the first. Yvonne didn’t know what the crowd was doing to the bus or what was causing the thumps but whatever it was it made the driver hit the gas, hard. She was pitched back as far towards the rear as her restraints would allow.

The tactic must have been flawed because before she knew it she was pitched forward as the transport screeched to a halt.

As soon as it was completely stopped the bus began to rock violently from side to side. Yvonne ducked her head and gazed out the small side window.

Her entire field of view was filled with nothing but people. They were all along the side of the vehicle, stretching back as far as she could see. They were all pushing and pulling on it as if they were trying to tip it over.

Though there was little chance of that actually happening since the vehicle stood wide and squat to the ground. Plus it had to weigh in excess of 30,000 lbs with all the equipment that was on it.

Still, the thought of it going over was akin to a dunk into a pool of ice cold water. Visions of hanging from her restraints floated continuously through her head despite her best efforts to push them away.

Yvonne returned her gaze to the center aisle and called out for the guards to release her.

Her lone voice quickly turned into a panicked chorus as most of the other prisoners joined in.

There was no way the guards could have not heard their cries. However, not a single one acknowledged the cries of their charges. They simply continued to stare out the windows at the front and rear and talked into their two way radios as the violence of the rocking continued to increase.

A third, even louder thud, this time from the front, sent the guards diving down the narrow walkway that separated the benches. She saw the driver bounce off the airlock door, which now sat slightly ajar on its frame.

Smoke began to leak through the damaged portal and soon thereafter began to fill the narrow aisle way, causing the guards to choke and gag. For the first time since she had been strapped onto her seat, Yvonne was glad to be locked into a separate environment with its own air supply. Then she noticed the incessant hiss of air through the vent at the top of her compartment was missing.

The sudden possibility of suffocating while strapped to the bench was too horrible for her to contemplate. Franticly, she redoubled her efforts to get the guards attention. She and the others yelled and screamed themselves horse. The ones who weren’t strapped down pounded on the transparent barriers. Others like Yvonne, whose hands were bound, did what they could to kick the see through wall.

Their only response came from the lead guard, a tall woman with a face so pock marked it looked like five miles of bad road, who hollered, “All of you shut the fuck up!” back at them.

Her command fell on deaf ears. The prisoners were having none of that. They yelled, begged, screamed, cried and stained against their restraints trying to find away to break free.

Through the smoke a small spark off the aisle floor caught Yvonne’s eye. It happens so fast that at first she wasn’t sure that she had really seen it. Then a second one flashed a bit up the aisle, followed by a faint popping sound that she almost missed behind all of the noise inside the bus.

She stopped and cocked her head to the side. She watched the guards closely as she tried to put the two sparks and the pops together in her mind. Something told her they were related, but she just couldn’t put her finger on what the cause was.

Then a third spark glinted and the two guards outside her compartment dove for the floor. They pulled their side arms out and pointed them at the driver’s compartment. A moment passed then lot more sparks flashed off the transparent barriers in rapid succession, seemingly coming from every imaginable angle all at once.

Two more guards joined the first on the floor in front of Yvonne. They too pulled out their pistols and the four of them opened fire.

All Yvonne wanted to do now was free herself and let these fools have their little shootout in peace, but the straps that held her wrists were far too strong for her to break.

As she struggled, the last two members of the security force joined their comrades. Yvonne heard one of them yell to the others “What the hell are you doing?”

Over the roar of automatic gunfire one of the others replied from her position on the floor “What the hell does it look like we’re doing? We’re defending the prisoners!”

“You’re gonna get shot over a bunch of infectees? Are you fucken nuts? I’m getting the hell outta here.”

“What about them?” another asked, pointing towards the prisoners.

“Fuck ‘em. What are you savin them from? Those people out there ain’t gonna do anything that the doc’s wouldn’t do! By leavin them, you’re probably doin’ them a favor!”

That said, the guard turned and ran to the back of the besieged transport. Without so much as glance backwards she hit the switch that opened the rear airlock, hopped out and after firing a short burst from her gun, dove head long into the crowd. The rest of the guards looked at one another for a moment in indecision. A silent agreement passed between them, and in unison they turned and followed the first one out the back. More gun fire could be heard over the din as they hit the ground running and quickly disappeared from sight.

Yvonne watched in horror as the only form of protection she and the other had from the mob outside fled, leaving all of them behind. They were helpless, strapped to their seats by the unbreakable chains and trapped behind even more solid walls. No way to escape.

The open back of the bus drew even more of the thick black smoke towards the rear, making it all but impossible to see across the aisle. The smoke induced gloom drained what little hope there was for rescue as it cut each prisoner off visually from the others, making it seem as if each was all alone now.

Yvonne coughed. She looked down and saw to ever increasing horror that the smoke was filtering in from the aisle. She knew that shouldn’t be possible. Each compartment was supposed to be air tight. One of the explosions must have damaged the structure of the bus, causing the compartment doors to sit slightly above the floors now.

Yvonne continued to cough as she fought mightily with her bonds, trying even more desperately to free herself before she succumbed to the smoke.

Her eyes watered incessantly now, making it even harder to concentrate on what she was doing. She was beginning to feel light headed from a lack of oxygen. She looked up at the ceiling and cursed God.

The small room was spinning now, and she fought to stay sitting up. All her oxygen starved brain wanted was to sleep, to let death take her finally. It would be so easy to just give up and slide into oblivion, but she found that she couldn’t let herself go.

Suddenly, living through this ordeal seemed like the most important thing in the world. She wanted nothing more than to survive and find the girls again, perhaps even free Thomas, who she was suddenly sure was alive out there somewhere.

But the smoke was too thick, and there was little in the way of oxygen left in her compartment. Just as she felt consciousness start to leave her, a faint voice cried out “Hey! Over here! I found another one, and she doesn’t look to good!”

Yvonne had no idea who was yelling, and after another moment it didn’t matter, since she passed out.

A short time later her eyes fluttered open. At first Yvonne couldn’t remember where she was. Then a loud boom brought it all back. She bolted up into a sitting position and the world spun like a top for a moment, almost making her flop back over.

“Whoa there, be careful you don’t fall back and split you head open,” a man’s voice from behind her said.

“Wha? What’s going on here? Who are you people?” Yvonne asked after the world stopped spinning.

“We’re here to set you free. As soon as you’re ready, you can get out of here. Most of the others you were with already have.”

“Free?” Yvonne said to herself as she looked over to her right and saw smoke billowing from in front of the outer wall off in the distance. “Why would you do that? Why would you go risking you’re life for people like me?”

“Because it’s the right thing to do. No one’s gonna be imprisoned in there anymore if we can help it.”

“Why would you want to get them out of there? Why are you near me? Don’t you understand the danger you’re in? I’m infected! You could catch it.”

“Doesn’t matter, hun. If I get it then I get it. The government is wrong to take people and stick them in a place like that or that house of horrors up north, Reynolds. I know there’s a risk to everyone else but imprisoning innocent people isn’t the answer.”

Before she could respond, a loud burst of heavy gunfire sounded from off to her left. She and the mystery man turned in the direction of the sound and saw a gigantic tank moving towards their position firing its antipersonnel gun as it made its way through the mob.

“Looks like the Marine’s have landed,” the man said with resignation in his voice. “You better run or grab a gun, cause they’re shooting at anything that moves” he advised as he got to his feet and disappeared into the now retreating mob.

Yvonne sat where she was and watched him leave. She wanted no part of this fight. She knew she needed to get out of there if she was going to ever find the girls, but surviving this was by no means a sure thing. Even if she wasn’t armed, someone might still shoot her just because she was there.

Getting back to her feet, she looked around and spotted an abandoned military style rifle after just a few moments search. Bending over, she picked it up, took a deep breath and turned back to the advancing tank.

She was thankful for her time with Gail and the others, and the training she’d received in their company. While things hadn’t gone the way any of them had planned at the beginning, at least she had experience with handling weapons now. Yvonne expertly released the ammunition clip from the bottom of the gun. She could tell just by the weight of it that it was still nearly full. She quickly reinserted it and pulled the bolt back, sending one of the bullets into the chamber, making the weapon ready to fire.

Her attention turned back to the closest tank, it was only about twenty yards from her now and closing quickly. To her amazement, she saw that there were still people attacking the mechanical monstrosity with small arms. The tanks gunner was picking them off at will. It was a horrible sight to behold, but you had to admire their guts.

Yvonne started walking toward the tank, pushing her way through the retreating mob. Within a minute, she was standing directly in front of the huge mechanical beast. She could clearly see the soldier manning the 50claibur machine gun mounted on the right side towards the rear of the vehicle.

With a quick whispered prayer for her children’s safety and her immortal soul, Yvonne lifted the gun and aimed it directly at the soldier manning machine gun. With no hesitation the man swung the gun in her direction.

Her automatic rifle roared to life sending a deadly barrage of high speed lead at the soldier. The gunner danced in place for a moment, then slumped over and fell from his perch. Yvonne smiled, closed her eyes, lifted her head to the sky and spread her arms in a moment of thanks to God.

A second later she heard a loud crack followed quickly by an even louder explosion. She was hurtled several feet though the air and landed hard on the dirt at the side of the road, scratched and scraped but still very much alive.

Confused she opened her eyes to see the huge tank was on fire. Before she could even begin to form a question in her mind as to what had happened, she heard another snap and saw a trail of smoke heading for the tank from the rear right. Another explosion quickly followed. This one wasn’t quite as loud as the first, but then again she wasn’t right on top of the tank anymore either.

‘RPGs?? They brought RPGs??(rocket powered grenades) Who the hell’s supplying these people?’ she thought silently as she struggled to get to her feet.

A pair of hands grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and yanked her to her feet. A short Italian looking fellow grabbed her by the hand and pulled her along with him into the mob.

“Are you alright?” he asked as they ran. “You were pretty damn close to that first shot there. By the way, great job on the gunner. You saved us a ton of casualties. Now we just gotta get rid of the other two and we’ll really be in business. By the way I’m Bob, Bob LaMonica …”

“Yvonne Logan” she replied automatically as she hurried along behind him.

“Logan? Thought you looked familiar.” he said as they ducked behind an overturned SUV.

“We’ve met?”

“Not officially but you’ve done work with Hillary Marko’s crew right?”

“Ummm.” she replied not really knowing what to say.

“Smart. Don’t say anything til you know who you’re talking to. Anyhow we kinda passed by each other a couple months or so ago at Phil Bastion’s place up in Frisco.”

“You work for Philip?”Yvonne asked suddenly very alarmed.

Bob chuckled briefly. “No. I don’t work FOR Phil, but we do report to the same people. Some of my people have done work with his and vice versa. We’ve used his place to lay low in from time to time.”

“So why are you here then? I can’t believe you care about setting a bunch of infectees free.”

“No?” he laughed again. “I couldn’t give a shit about a single one of them to tell the truth. We just saw the news reports about the protests and the pictures of the huge crowd here and were told to head down here and see if we can stir things up a bit. Looks like it worked too.”

Yvonne just stared at him incredulously for a moment. ‘Why would he put all these people in danger for something he didn’t even believe in?’ Thinking she must have misunderstood him she asked “You started all of this?”

“You know it, beautiful” he replied proudly.

A series of explosions went off somewhere off their left. Both of them turned just in time t see part of the outer wall come down.

“Hey, hey looks like we’re in.” Several tank shells roared by over head. Pointing to her rifle, Bob asked “You got a full clip in that thing?”

“No. I’m all out.”

“Here,” he said handing her a pair of ammunition clips. “Come on let’s see if we can get in there and raise us some hell. Maybe we can bag us a few government employees before we beat feet outta here.”

LaMonica poked his head up to see what the best route to the wall would be. As he looked the scene over Yvonne loaded her rifle.

“Looks like if we circle around to the west we should stay out of the tank’s line of fire for the most part,” he reported just as the ammo clip clicked home.

“Come on let’s … Hey what are you doing? Point that thing somewhere else, will ya. Stop fuckin around we got a job to do here.” Bob said to the sight of Yvonne pointing the gun at him.

“A job to do? You call all this a job? You sick fuck! Let me show you what really needs to be done around here!” Yvonne replied with a cold, hard look in her eyes as she pulled the trigger.

LaMonica’s death dance lasted just a few moments as bullets rained into him. In less than 10 seconds he was lying on the ground moments from death.

Yvonne watched as the light faded from his eyes and spat on the now lifeless body. For half a second, the guilt returned and she considered turning the gun on herself but decided against it. For better or for worse, she was free again and her children were out there somewhere, and she needed to find them if she could. Thomas was going to need her too, if he was still alive. That was something she needed to find out for sure, and that meant going back to San Francisco.

Once her personal business was taken care of it was going to be time to pull the rug out from under Philip and the rest of these assholes. She wasn’t sure exactly how she was going to do that, but there was plenty of time to plan it all out while she looked for the kids.

Yvonne ducked around the back side of the SUV. The tanks were still there, firing shell after shell at the mob near the broken wall. Off to her left the ever advancing line of troops looked to have a few small gaps in it. If she was careful and took her time, she might just be able to slip through one of them undetected.

Gathering her gun and the rest of the ammo from LaMonica’s body, she headed off.

****************

San Francisco Warehouse district Wednesday August16, 4:32am PDT:

Roberta Goings rolled over and looked longingly at the first man she had ever shared a bed with. She blushed as she silently wondered if it was too soon to wake him up for another round. She touched his shoulder and gave it a gentle shake.

Warren Quinlan grumbled something incoherent in return, rolled over and resumed softly snoring.

‘Typical guy’ Berta thought giggling quietly at the irony.

She lay back down and snuggled up to him, taking in his scent and reliving the last night’s events. It wasn’t anything either of them had planned, though the attraction between them was undeniable, it had just happened. And it had been like nothing the new woman had ever experienced. A warm dampness began to spread through her nether regions and Roberta tried to change her line of thinking in response, but it was to no avail.

Giving in to her body’s needs, she reached over and nudged Warren again. He grumbled some more and continued his snoring. Frustrated, and determined to get what she wanted, Berta reached around and began to gently massage him. She could feel his body respond to the rubbing and she began to heat up even more. God, how she wanted to feel him inside of her again.

“Time to wake up, sweetie,” she whispered seductively in his ear.

Warren turned his head and cracked his eyes open. “Huh? W … What time is it?”

“Early. The sun isn’t even up yet,” she replied massaging him more earnestly.

“Mmmm, that feels good. Let me guess what you want.” Roberta blushed but continued on with her attempt to arouse him. “I think I’ve created a monster,” Warren said with an impish grin as he pulled the covers over them.

********

Sometime later they lay cuddling each other, enjoying the afterglow. Thin shafts of light could be seen slipping through the sides of the shade covering the lone window. She leaned over and kissed him deeply. “I’m hungry. Would you like some breakfast?”

Warren gazed up at her, drinking her beauty in. “Mmm, yeah. That sounds like a good idea.”

“What would you like?”

“I dunno.”

“I don’t know how to make that. You’re going to have to come up with something else,” she told him jokingly.

“I’ll tell you what, smart ass, let me hit the head and I’ll meet you in the kitchen and I’ll make you a breakfast so good you’ll never want anyone else to cook for you again.”

“Ooh, I like that idea better. You better stop being so nice to me you know. I just might get used to it. Then you’ll be stuck with me.”

“I think I could handle that. Now come on, let me up. I need to pee, real bad.”

“And he’s a classy one too,” Berta said sarcastically as she stood up and stretched.

“Only the best for you,” he replied, kissing her cheek on his way out of the room.

Roberta walked up the back stairway that went from the loading docks to the huge rear loft that served as the dining room and kitchen of the immense warehouse. The two flight climb was just what she needed right now. Every part of her body felt charged with enough electricity to run all the lights in the city for at least a month, if not more.

The loft was cavernous, almost a full third of the size of the first floor. The main dining area had four rows of long cafeteria style long tables, with rounded plastic seats built into them. At the front was a monstrous row of serving and warming tables that someone had confiscated from an abandoned elderly housing facility in the city. Rumor had it that the place had been closed when the entire population had become infected.

Behind the serving tables was a row of electric stoves with shiny metal prep trays next to each. They had been appropriated at the same time as the serving tables.

As she reached the top of the stairs Berta spotted Ellie and Nicole sitting in the back corner. The two women were talking quietly and sipping coffee. She waved at them and continued walking towards the row of refrigerators to the left of the stoves.

With visions of omelets swimming through her mind, Dr. Goings pulled out a carton of eggs, a loaf of bread and began digging for cheese and some veggies. Once all the necessary ingredients were in hand, she carefully carried them over to closest stove. The eggs landed gently enough, but the rest of her supplies tumbled onto the table loudly.

Roberta cringed at all the noise she was making. It was still very early and she wasn’t looking to wake the whole place up just yet. From the back she heard Nicole and Ellie snickering. Looking up at them she stuck her tongue out then bent over to clean up her mess.

Finished, Roberta called over to El and Nikki “Warren’s on his way up to make me some breakfast. Do either of you want an omelet?”

“Warren’s making you breakfast? Aren’t you the lucky one,” Nicole teased.

Roberta felt her cheeks go beet red.

“Nicole, stop teasing her.” Ellie chastised. “If what I heard coming from her room is any indication, she got a lot more than just a promise of breakfast from Mr. Quinlan.”

Ellie’s kind smile told Roberta that she was only having a little bit of fun with her but she still wanted to crawl under the nearest table and die of embarrassment. Her only saving grace was that they were alone in the dining hall.

Nicole raised an eyebrow. “Really? Now isn’t that interesting.” Turning back to Berta she called out “Well what are you waiting for? Get your butt over here. I want details, damn it!”

Roberta rolled her eyes and shuffled over to where they were sitting. Reluctantly she plunked herself down on one of the plastic stools, ready to take the rest of the kind hearted ribbing she knew was coming.

“So?” Nicole urged.

“So, what?” Roberta replied coyly.

Nicole shot her a feigned frown. “Well how was it? Come now girl, don’t start holding out on us now!”

Ellie and Roberta giggled. The doctor was trying to take it all in stride but it wasn’t easy. “Well Nicole, I’ve always been told that a lady doesn’t kiss and tell,” she joked “but it was wonderful! He was so …”

“Good morning Warren” Ellie called out interrupting her.

Roberta looked up and flushed so deeply she was almost purple, sending Ellie and Nicole into titters of laughter.

Quinlan looked over at them suspiciously, “What are you three up to?”

“No … nothing. I was just asking Ellie and Nikki if they want to have breakfast with us.” The doctor blurted out, sounding incredibly guilty.

“Uh huh,” he replied dubiously.

Ellie looked around the dining area. Confirming they were alone she said “Actually, Warren, since it’s just the four of us there is something I need to discuss with you.”

Quinlan took a seat. “What’s on your mind El?”

“I know this is bad timing but I have something I need you to do for us, if you’re up for it.”

“Sure … anything you need. You know that.”

“It’s dangerous. Extremely dangerous, actually.”

“You know, you’d make a really horrible sales woman with that kind of opening pitch.”

“Funny guy,” she said with a wan smile. “Nicole and I’ve been discussing how best to go about tracking down Reverend Manning and his little group of murders. We’ve come to the conclusion that sending one person to infiltrate their ranks would be far more effective than a full scale search.”

“Okay. I can see where that would be easier or at least less risky. So what’s that got to do with me?” he asked, already understanding her reason for bringing it up but still wanting to hear her say it.

“We thought you would be the perfect candidate for this particular mission.”

Roberta looked horrified. “Ellie you can’t be serious!”

“I’m afraid I am, hun. I’m sorry to put this on you, Warren. You too, Robi. Especially now, in light of what’s gone on with the two of you. If there was any other way, you kn …”

“Sorry? You’re sorry? Fuck you, and you’re sorry bullshit!” Roberta blurted out angrily.

Berta looked at Warren, who seemed to be silently weighing his options. It was plain to see he was worried about how his decision would affect everyone involved. Putting her hands up and gently turning his face to hers, she pleaded “Please Warren, tell her no. Tell her you can’t. Not right now, anyhow.”

“Robi,” he whispered “I can’t tell her that. She saved me, gave me the first home I’ve had since the outbreak began. I need to repay that somehow. This is the perfect way.”

Not happy with his answer, Roberta tried a new tactic. Turing back to Ellie and Nicole she asked “Ellie please don’t ask him to do this. There has to be someone else that can do this. S … someone better suited …”

“If I thought there was, I wouldn’t be asking him, Berta. Anyone else that might be qualified would most likely come under instant suspicion because they’re female. What would happen if they were tested? What do you think would happen to anyone they found that was infected? Warren is the only one of us that could pass a blood test if he had too, and you know it. He’s the only one that can pull this off with any kind of reasonable chance of making it back here.”

“What about Mia? Can’t you send her instead?” Roberta pleaded with tears freely flowing down her cheeks.

“Mia? No. Never mind the fact that she tests positive, which Warren still doesn’t for some amazing reason. The simple fact of the matter is, that I don’t trust her, and I need someone that I trust for this mission.”

“I’ll do it.” Warren said plainly, hoping to put an end to the discussion.

“No! You can’t!” Robi cried. “I just found you, God damn it! I can’t lose you already!”

Warren pulled her in close and hugged her tightly. “You’re not going to lose me. Everything will be just fine. I’m just going to find them, and once I’m in I’ll call Ellie as soon as I know where they plan to hit next and I’ll be back lickety split. You won’t even have time to miss me.”

“Please don’t do this.” Roberta whimpered.

“Could you two excuse us for a minute?” Quinlan asked Ellie and Nicole.

“Of course,” Nicole replied, getting up. Ellie followed her to the far side of the room so that the new lovers could have their privacy.

Once they were out of earshot Warren gripped Roberta by the shoulders and held her away from him so that he could see her face. “Robi, I need you stop. Ellie has done so much for all of us … for me especially. I need to do this. ”

“I know, I know, you told me that already. But you could get killed …”

“We’ll all be killed if we stay here and wait for him to find us. And you know he’s looking everywhere, trying to track down us, and anyone else that’s infected. I’ve seen what he does when he finds people like you, and I can’t let that happen. If I can find them first, then we have a chance to stop him before anyone else gets hurt. Now please, stop crying. I need you to be behind me on this. I need to know you’re here safe and waiting for me when I get back.”

Roberta looked at him through tear streaked eyes. She had never believed that she could have a man before she met him, never mind love one. She wasn’t even sure it was really love she felt, but she desperately wanted the chance to find out.

“You be damn careful! If you get killed I’ll never talk to you again for the rest of your life! You understand me mister?” she said sternly, poking him with her finger as she spoke.

He smiled at her small attempt at humor. “That’s my girl. Thank you. Now what did you want for breakfast?”

“I’m not all that hungry anymore.”

“Roberta Goings” he said in a perturbed tone with his arms crossed, “you know as well as anyone that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and after sex breakfast is the best kind of all.” He winked at her. “So knock it off and let me cook for you.”

“Fine” she said trying to sound as upbeat as she could muster. “I’ll have a couple eggs, some toast and some orange juice.”

“Coming right up ma’am. Just let me see what Ellie and Nicole want and I’m off to the kitchen.”

Dr. Goings grabbed him by the shirt sleeve and growled “I don‘t want them around me right now!”

Warren shook his head understandingly. “No problem at all, babe. I’m sure they’ll understand. Let me just go tell them everything’s all set and I’ll be back in a jiff with your eggs ok?”

Roberta nodded miserably and watched him walk off. Try as she might, she couldn’t shake the feeling that this would be her the last day with him.

*********
A short time later back downstairs in Ellie’s quarters:

As soon as they were alone, Ellie turned to Nicole and asked “Am I doing the right thing?”

“What do you mean?”

“Sending Warren into the proverbial lion’s den. Splitting him and Robi up almost as soon as they’ve found the tiniest bit of happiness. I feel like such an asshole right now, Nikki. I can’t even tell you.”

Nicole put her arm around Ellie and gave her a small squeeze. “El, you’re our leader. You can’t let yourself get caught up in whether your decision is the best on for Berta and Warren. You have too many people depending on you for that kind of consideration. You need to do what’s best for everyone, and having Warren go is the best chance we have of finding Manning without losing our spy. You said it yourself; he’s the only one that can pull this off. So stop beating yourself up over it.”

“I know. But knowing that doesn’t make me feel any better about asking him to go.”

“That’s good. It should bother you. It shows that you’re really looking out for everyone’s best interests. The day asking someone to do something like this doesn’t bother you, is the day you need to question your motivation for asking.”

**************

Virginia Thursday August 17 10:05am EDT:

Gail could hear them shouting at each other. She could hear them scurrying back and forth out in the hallway and on the floor above. But the thick wooden door and ceiling tiles prevented her from understanding what they were fighting about. Not that it mattered much. She was stuck here in the murky darkness, forced to wait until they decided it was time to come and get her.

The light in the hall flicked on, making the edges of the door glow softly. Footsteps heading in the direction of her room quickly followed.

The imprisoned woman got into a crouching position and waited to pounce on whoever opened it. She hoped to maybe kill, or at least injure one of them before anyone else could pull her off. The chances weren’t great, but what did she have to lose? They were, after all, planning on killing her once they were done with her.

The sound of the key sliding into the lock seemed as loud as a teenager’s car stereo. She tensed, telling herself to be patient and wait for the perfect moment to strike. The door creaked slightly on its worn hinges and began to move inward ever so slowly.

The room began to fill with bright light. She squinted, trying to shield her eyes from it.

A woman’s head popped out around the side of the door. Gail lunged. A startled expression sprung up on the face as an evil grin spread across hers. She was finally going to get one of them. After all this time she was finally going to wi …

Something sharp stung her side. It was followed and instant later by a searing pain the flooded her entire body, robbing her of her senses before she reached the door. She slammed into the floor like a puppet with her strings cut and lay there in a crumpled heap, consciousness fleeing her like a rat on a sinking ship.

Carlos Emmons smiled as he watched Gail’s body crash into the floor.

“Take that, you bitch!” he yelled with glee as he hit the trigger of his Tazer a second time.

He smiled as Gail’s body jumped off the floor again from the charge. Turning to his compatriot, Justine Davis who had just seen her life passing before her eyes, he said “Fucking cunt pulled that same shit on me the other day. Look what she did.” He pulled his shirt up and showed her a large gash going down the left side of his rib cage that was just beginning to heal. “I been waiting for the chance to pay her ass back.”

Justine realized she was still holding her breath, and let it out loudly. “Thanks Carlos. I thought I was dead there for a sec.”

“Ya don’t worry bout it babe. I got ya back.” he told her as he checked out her ass. “And a fine back it is.”

She spun on her heels and shoved him as hard as she could, hardly moving even an inch. “Asshole!”

“Hey, hey babe, no need for violence.”

Justine shot him an angry look. “Just shut up and help me get her upstairs, will you. Philip’s waiting for us.”

Carlos gently pushed her aside, lifted Gail’s unconscious body, effortlessly off the floor and headed back down the hall towards the stairs.

Gail woke up to the stench ammonia filling her nose and the feel of ropes tied tightly on her wrists and ankles. Her head pounded and her body felt sore. Gail’s eyes rolled and then focused on the face of Philip Bastion.

“Welcome back to the land of the living. I hear you gave poor Justine quite a start. Good thing Carlos was there, well maybe not so good for you, but it was good for her.” he told her with wide condescending grin on his face.

Gail glared at him. “What do you want now? Decided that running your mouth at me when I’m tied up down stairs isn’t fun anymore, so you brought me up here to show off in front of your friends?”

“Ahh Gail, Gail, Gail. Always trying to play the tough one. It’s a shame you never learned to play nicey nice with us. Would have saved everyone a lot of hassle, you know.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Is there a reason you dragged me up here? I mean, other than to make yourself look like an even bigger ass than usual?”

Hushed snickering could be heard from the handful of people standing behind him. Philip’s face turned beet red with a potentially lethal combination of anger and embarrassment. He looked back at their audience and screamed, “What the fuck are you all laughing at!”

The laughing tapered off into a series of impish grins and rolling eyes. It was clear her sarcasm and his overreaction to it had cost him some standing I n the eyes of his underlings. The satisfied smile on Philip’s face made it clear that he had completely misread the meaning of their silence.

Turning back to Gail he said “I’ve got good news for you. Your time with us is almost up.”

“What the hell are you talking about? Jesus Phil, do you always have to drag everything out like this? God you’re so fuckin dramatic! Just say what you have to say for Christ sake!” Gail lived to rile him. It was really the only pleasure she was still allowed.

Philip’s anger boiled over and he hauled back and slapped her as hard as he could right across the face. “Fuckin bitch! Ya know I try to be nice to you. I try to treat you decently as I can under the circumstances and still you never show me any fucken respect. Maybe that’ll teach you! Show you who you’re dealing with!”

Gail’s head was rocked from the force of the blow. Her ears rang so loudly that she could barely make out what Philip was shouting. Despite the pain she still remained unsowed by him.

“Feel better now Phil?” she spat. “Hitting defenseless women make you feel like a real man does it? Make you feel like a tough guy? You’re so Goddamn pathetic. You and your cronies over there. Just fucken pathetic. I can’t believe someone as smart as Hillary Marko was actually hooked up with a bunch of morons like you.”

“Whatever. If we’re so pathetic, why is she dead while we’re still here? Why are you the one tied to the chair? Pathetic? Us? No dear, you and your crew of losers, you’re the pathetic ones.”

“Phil, this isn’t getting us anywhere.” Randy said interrupting the exchange.

Philip glared at his group’s doctor but knew he was right.

“Fine! Look bitch, we have your prize, but she’s a little fucked up right now. She … umm … had a lil accident getting off the truck this morning.” Philip guffawed as if he had told the world’s funniest joke. None of the others joined in.

“Anyway,” he continued after getting control of himself “we’re gonna give her a couple days to heal up a bit. Wouldn’t want anyone to think we weren’t treating her well. Plus, there’s a VIP on the way that we’re waiting on. Once he gets here, it’s gonna be show time for you and her.”

Gail had believed that there was nothing he could ever say that would surprise her, but this unexpected news caught her completely off guard. She was completely flabbergasted. She knew they were planning on kidnapping the doctor, but she never believed they could actually pull it off.

After she picked her jaw up off the floor she asked dubiously “You have Dr. Ryson? You really pulled it off?”

“Yup. Got her in one of the other rooms downstairs. You two are almost neighbors.”

“She’s here? In this house?”

“That’s what I just said didn’t I?”

“Fuck you! I don’t believe you. If she’s really here, take me to her. I want to see her for myself.”

“Yeah, right. Like we can trust you to be behave if we untie you.”

“Leave my hands tied then. Come on, Phil what ya afraid of?”

“Afraid? I’m not afraid of anything.”

“Then take me down there and let me see her.”

“Don’t worry, honey bunch. You’ll be seeing her soon enough,” Phil said smugly. “And when the time comes … you better not fuck it up, cause this will be your one chance to get her before we kill you. If you play games, we’ll just kill you first, and your only chance at revenge will be out the window. Comprende, senorita?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Bla, bla, bla. I got it. Whatever.”

Philip lost his temper again and slapped her across the mouth, screaming, “Cunt! God I can’t wait to get rid of you!” To Carlos he said, “Untie her. Take her back to her room! If she gives you any shit … just fucken shoot her. I’ve fucken had it with her and her bullshit.”

“Ha, ha. You got it boss.” Carlos walked over and began to untie Gail’s feet. “You hear that, blondie? You give me any shit, an I get to kill you myself. How you like that?”

“Dunno. How’s your side feeling, by the way?” Gail asked sarcastically.

Carlos glared as he yanked her up by the hair. It hurt like hell, but Gail refused to give him the satisfaction of hearing her cry out.

Carlos didn’t like the way she was trying to tough things out. He wanted to break her spirit. More angry than he had been in a long time, he pushed her down the hallway. Once they were out of earshot from the rest he told her “You know bitch, when you done doin your thing with the doctor lady, I’m gonna ask Phil if I can do you. An when he tell me yes, I gonna do you real sloooow. Gonna make you beg for me to finish you.”

“Carlos, you couldn’t make a dog beg,” she told the tall well muscled Brazilian, mockingly.

They had arrived at the door to her room, and Carlos grabbed the back of her head, smashing her face into the thick wood frame. Gail’s legs instantly went wobbly from the force of the blow.
Carlos laughed. “Fucken douche bag! Just you wait. Gonna make it hurt so bad!” he threatened as he pulled the door open and pushed her through it. Gail, because her hands were still tied, crashed headlong into the bed. She bounced off of it, and unable to break her fall, landed hard on the floor.

She lay there for several minutes trying to clear the cobwebs and ignore the trickle of blood running down the front of her head.

Dr. Ryson was here. She could hardly believe it. This was the chance she had been waiting for. Now that the time had come, she suddenly wasn’t so sure the killing her was what she wanted anymore. Ryson deserved to die for all the pain she had caused. Gail still held her responsible for Hillary’s death, but refusing to do the deed would piss Philip off something fierce.

Gail liked the sound of that.

She wanted him dead. Now the question was, whether killing Dr. Ryson would be the means to that end.

***********

San Francisco Saturday August 19th 10:45pm PDT:

Mia Blue looked over her shoulder at the nearly abandoned street for what seemed like the hundredth time. There wasn’t much she was sure of anymore, but she knew for certain there was no way she was cut out for all this spy business. All this sneaking around was taking a serious toll on her nerves.

It had taken her almost a week to get word to Tyler about Warren Quinlan taking up residence at the warehouse, and the possibility of him being immune to the virus.

Using a PDA (personal data assistant) Tyler had issued her before she went undercover, Mia had emailed the information to the address they had given her for such purposes. It had taken her a long time to find a connection that was stable long enough to get the entire message out. It appeared that the more the virus spread, the less dependable the phone and cable TV systems were becoming.

Mia had been under the assumption that once the message was sent her part was done. However much to her surprise, Tyler had mailed her back and demanded a face to face meeting.

Mia was pissed off at his insistence on the meeting. Not to mention, scared to death that someone would find out. She kept thinking there was no better way for her to get caught than this.

It wasn’t Ellie that worried her, though despite their differences, Mia had come to truly respect the short new woman. What scared her was the thought of being found out by Nicole.

Though the tall redhead had never so much as said an unkind word to her, Mia knew she was unconditionally loyal to Ellie. The thought of what she would be capable of doing to someone if she was enraged was enough to concern any reasonable person. Even though Ellie would never condone it, Mia could envision Nicole making an example out of her if her ruse was discovered. With Nicole’s strength and agility, there would be very little she would be able to do to defending herself.

So with all that in mind, Dr. Blue had been extremely circumspect in choosing a time for her escape. She was reasonably confident that no one was aware that she was gone. However, despite all the careful planning, Mia was still worried that someone had seen her leave and was following her, even now. No matter how many times she checked, the feeling just wouldn’t go away.

Checking over her shoulder yet again, Mia slipped around the corner and spied her destination half way down the block. Giuseppe’s Restaurant had been one of the finest eateries in the city before the owner had succumbed to “complications resulting from Acidalia infection”, as the papers had put it. Now it was just another in a long and growing list of abandoned properties in the city.

Why Tyler had chosen this place to meet she didn’t know, but with a final glance back she slipped in the unlocked front door.

The place was dark and deserted. The small curtains that lined the windows next to each of the establishment’s booths were drawn, along with the ones that covered the large twin windows that overlooked the street in the front.

The little bit of light that slipped around the edges of the curtains wasn’t enough to be of any real use. Until her eyes began to adjust to the darkness, Mia might as well have been at the bottom of a deep cave.

“Hello?” she called into the darkness. Her voice echoed back off the walls of the empty restaurant sending a small shiver up her spine. Once it faded the place settled back into tomb-like silence.

The lack of reply caused her even more concern. Had she somehow gotten the meeting place wrong? Was there more than one Giuseppe’s?

“Tyler? Hello? Is there anyone here?” she called out a bit more loudly than she had intended. Her hand instinctively shot up to cover her mouth. After a second, she quietly laughed at her reaction. Why should she worry about being too loud in a deserted place? Who was going to hear her if no one was there?

A hand touched the back of her shoulder nearly sending her thought the ceiling.

A familiar voice said, “Dr. Blue?”

Mia put a hand over her heart trying to slow it down a bit as she turned to see the form of LT. Colonel Tyler standing behind her. She couldn’t see his face, but she got the distinct feeling he was smiling. With her free hand, Dr. Blue slapped the front of his chest so hard her hand stung from the impact.

“Jesus Christ! You scared the shit out of me! What’s the big idea, sneaking up behind me like that? Are you trying to kill me off or something?”

“Sorry I startled you doctor, but the night vision wasn’t working and I had to be sure you were you before I revealed myself.”

“Who the hell else would I be? Did you invite someone else, or do you just not trust me to keep the secret of why I’m really there?”

“Just can’t be too careful.” Tyler replied and then let out a series of harsh dry sounding coughs.

“Are you alright? You don’t sound too good.”

“I’ll be fine. Just a little touch of a cold, or allergies, or something like that. No need to be concerned.”

Mia strained to see his face in the pitch blackness but was unable. “So what did you want me here for? I assume it wasn’t just to have me stand here in the dark and scare the shit out of me.”

“No doctor, I didn’t ask you to meet me here just to have you stand in the dark. I asked you to come here so you’d be safely out of the warehouse when we went in.”

“Went in? What do you mean went in? Went in where? What the hell are you talking about?” she asked, trying to make sense of what he was telling her. Deep inside she knew what he meant but her conscious mind refused to see the truth.

“Colonel Jordon ordered a raid on the warehouses your new friends have been living in. He told me to get you out of there so that you wouldn’t be at risk of getting hurt.”

“Raided? Why in hell would you do that?”

“To apprehend Quinlan, and take down a dangerous terrorist organization. Why else?”

This was bad. The worst possible outcome. She knew they had intended to take The Sisters down at some point, but that had always been somewhere in the future. Now that it was happening, she was overwhelmed with feelings of guilt.

“You idiot! He’s not there anymore!” she yelled.

“What? What do you mean he’s not there?”

“I mean, he left three days ago.”

“Left? Where did he go?”

“How the hell would I know? One day he was there flirting with Roberta Goings and the next he was nowhere to be found. I asked around but no one seemed to know where he had gone. Either that, or no one wanted to tell me.”

“And you chose not to share that info with us for what reason?” Tyler asked angrily.

“I didn’t choose anything. I was trying to find out where he was before I got ahold of you. Christ, if you had told me what was up before this, I would have let you know about him being missing! I wouldn’t have held out on something like that. God knows, you’ve got me slung over a barrel with my ass hanging in the wind!”

“Christ” Tyler muttered “what a colossal fuck up this is. The Colonel is going to be pissed when he hears!”

“Just as long as he doesn’t take it out on Sam and Sara.”

Tyler coughed again. Mia lifted her hand up to his forehead.

“You’re burning up. Are you sure it’s just a cold?”

Tyler swatted her hand away. “Yes I’m positive! It’s just a cold!”

“You better hope it is or you might find yourself regretting putting the Sisters out of business more than you are now.”

Tyler shot her a glare that he knew she couldn’t see, but it made him feel better none the less.

“So now what do we do? Are we going back to Grayson now?” Mia asked, not sure what answer she wanted to hear.

“I have to talk to the Colonel. Keep your phone on and I’ll be in touch.”

“You’ll be in touch? YOU’LL be in TOUCH! What the fuck is that supposed to mean? What the hell am I supposed to do while I’m waiting for you to get in touch?” she screamed, poking Tyler in the chest as she did.

“You’re a smart woman, Doctor, I’m sure you’ll figure something out,” he replied dismissively as he turned and walked towards the back of the eatery.

Mia felt around and picked up what felt like a salt shaker off a nearby table and flung it in the direction of Tyler’s receding footsteps. She cursed as she heard it bounce off one of the walls. A moment later the rear door slammed shut and Mia let out a scream of rage and frustration.

When it was done, she felt only marginally better.

The former CDC scientist paced back and forth, bumping into a table or two and shoving them angrily out of the way, trying to think of what to do next. There was nowhere for her to go if the Sisters really were done. Desperate, she flipped open her cell phone, but couldn’t think of anyone to call.

Suddenly Mia was seized by a serious case of the creeps, resulting from being left alone in this dark place. She couldn’t shake the feeling someone was standing just out of reach, watching her. The doctor tried to tell herself she was imagining things but the feeling persisted none the less. A sharp ping, perhaps real perhaps imagined, from somewhere off to her left was all it took to send her scurrying out of the pitch blackness into the safety of the lights of the city outside.

Back inside the restaurant a small light from a cell phone came on. “She’s gone. Unit 2 you’re up. Don’t let her out of your sight, let’s see where she goes.”

*********

Mia walked the streets for hours, regretting what she had done, and trying to figure out what her next move should be. She was very close to being overwhelmed by guilt over having betrayed Ellie, no matter what their differences. Wondering what had become of her patient made it even worse. She didn’t have a choice with Jordon holding Sam and Sara, or so she kept telling herself, but she still felt like a piece of shit.

The situation was made worse, since now it looked like they weren’t going to let her come back to Grayson. Mia feared she was never going to see her “daughter and granddaughter” again. It was a constant battle to focus on the problem. All she really wanted to do was to curl up into a ball somewhere and cry.
Her cell phone rang, making her yelp in surprise. Mia fumbled it open and saw a familiar, but impossible number displayed on the ID screen.

“Hello?” she answered cautiously.

“Mia? Are you ok? Where are you? Everyone’s been looking for you for hours?”

“Ellie?” she asked staring at the phone in disbelief.

“Of course it’s Ellie. We have a problem here. We just got a large number of new arrivals and Berta needs your help with the sick ones.”

“Ellie? Oh thank god. They ... they told me that they had …”

“Had? Had what? Who told you? Mia what are you talking about?”

“The military, Ellie! They’re coming for you. They want Warren!”

“Warren? But he’s not here anymore. Mia what are you talking about? How would the military know him?”

“Ellie, I need you to trust me just this once. Get out of there! Take as many as you can with you! Meet me where we first met as soon as you can get there. Go! Now! Before it’s too …” the line suddenly went dead. Mia helplessly screamed, “Ellie!” into the dead phone.

********

Every window in the warehouse was suddenly ablaze with blinding light. The noise of men shouting into bullhorns and helicopters flying overhead was everywhere in an instant.

Ellie Wolf slammed the phone closed and cursed as she heard a loud bang on the front doors of the warehouse. A second one was quickly followed by cracking sound of the old rusted locks giving way. An instant later the doors burst open and blindingly bright light flooded the entire entranceway.

The entire warehouse was suddenly in a wild frenzy. Everyone was screaming and running in all directions as the place began to fill with bio-suited soldiers. All Ellie could do was stand and watch from the wall opposite the entrance to the sick ward in horror.

She didn’t watch for long though, as she was suddenly seized from behind by Nicole. The tall redhead was accompanied by a small handful of others. They all had looks of grim confusion and righteous anger etched in their faces.

Ellie thought they had come to her for answers, and for the first time in a very long time, she found she had none. Jill Stevens had been badgering her for a month to get a plan together for a contingency like this one, but other things had seemed more important and she hadn’t given it much thought. Now all was going to be lost because of her.

A hand touched her shoulder bring her out of her daze. “Come on hun, we need to get you outta here,” the tall read head told her with an unbelievable air of calm.

“But …”

“No buts, hun. We’ve got big troubles and you need to be kept safe! Now let’s go! No arguments!”

“I can’t leave all of them …”

“We can’t survive without you.” Nicole responded, picking Ellie up and throwing her over her shoulder.

“Nicole! Put me down!” Ellie protested.

Nicole ignored her friend’s protests. “Wendy you and Jill go first. Make sure the way is clear. Vera, I need you to help Robi with the sick ones. Andra you…”

“No way! I’m not leaving Ellie!” Vera protested.

“Fine! Whatever! Andra you go help Berta. Jill, you and Wendy scout ahead make sure the way is clear. The rest of you get as many people out of here as you can. Tell them to get to the house in the city.” Nicole looked them all in the eyes. “Good luck, and Gods speed.”

Nicole pulled on Vera’s arm. “Let’s get her out of here!”

“I can walk!” Ellie yelled as the Nicole, with Vera lagging behind ran down the back wall of the warehouse heading for the loading dock doors. “Nicole, wait for Vera. She can’t keep up with you.”

“Sorry El, you’re the priority here, not Vera.”

“Someone needs to find Carol.”

“I’m sure the squirt will be safe. She’s a crafty kid.”

“She has Warren’s box. We’re going to need it.”

“Shit!” Nicole spat. Skidding to a halt, she spotted Jill. “JILL!!” she screamed getting the blonde’s attention despite all the noise and confusion. “We need to find Carol! Make sure she brings the box!”

“I’ll find her!” Jill yelled back and took off running.

The sound of panic and automatic gunfire was all around them. The air was heavy with the eyes stinging stench of tear gas. Nicole could hear the screams of her friends as the soldiers continued their invasion, but was helpless to do anything for them until Ellie was safe.

The hundred or so feet they needed to cross to make it to the loading dock seemed like it was miles away. The three new women took it slow and carefully, doing what they could to avoid the soldiers. Not an easy task, but ultimately successful.

Up ahead was the last corner before they would enter what had been the warehouse’s receiving area. Nicole was relieved to see Carol and Jill were there waiting for them, along side of the mountainous Wendy. Carol was clutching the metal box like her life depended on its survival.

The small girl spied them. “Come on! Hurry! The coast is clear!” she urged.

Nicole gripped Ellie and Vera’s hands in each of hers and lunged for the door, nearly pulling their arms out of the sockets in the process. Ellie grabbed Carol’s arm as the passed her.

“Owww!” Carol yelled.

“Sorry, hun,” was all she could say.

The six new women reached the rollup doors. Nicole let Ellie go and took in deep breaths, coughing as she exhaled.

“Are you alright, Nikki?” Ellie asked .

“I’ll be fine. Come on let’s get those doors open.” she said. Nicole and Wendy grabbed the rusted chains that controlled the old rollup doors and tugged on them mightily. The roll ups screeched in protest, but moved inexorably upward, unable to resist the will of the two enhanced new women.

The sounds of the struggle were closer now as the door finally rose high enough for them to fit under.

Nicole jumped down to the ground, followed quickly by Vera and Jill. The redhead raised her arms to help Ellie, but the small blonde insisted Carol go first.

“Ellie, we need to get you out of here!” Carol protested.

“I’m coming as soon as you’re safe,” Ellie assured her.

“Come child! Stop arguing and jump!” Vera commanded.

Carol shot her a dirty look. She hated Vera and her condescending attitude, but this wasn’t the time. She hugged the metal box tightly and jumped into Nicole’s waiting arms. Ellie followed a second later. Wendy brought up the rear.

The six new women turned towards the opening at the end of the building. The loading dock was a sixty foot wide U shaped area, with the warehouse walls running thirty feet along each side. The darkened driveway was deserted, and that made Nicole suspicious.

Behind them she could hear more residents approaching the loading dock, most likely with soldiers hot on their heels. To Wendy she said “What do you think? A trap?”

The giant woman shrugged and motioned to the end of the drive way.

“Yeah, I know we don’t have a choice. You want the left or the right?”

Wendy pointed to the right.

“You got it, hun.” To the rest Nicole said, “Stay behind us. The Army’s got to be waiting for us out there.”

The two enhanced women split up and began to work their way up the walls. Ellie and the others followed behind them at a safe distance.

Just as Wendy and Nicole were reaching the corners, the cargo bay was suddenly filled with panicked, screaming new women. Dazzlingly bright lights blinked on in response.

Over an unseen loudspeaker, a man’s voice commanded “All of you stop! Get down on the ground now, or we will open fire on you!”

Nicole spun with inhuman quickness, shoving Carol and Ellie around the corner, screaming, “Run!” as she did.

No sooner had the last letter escaped her mouth than she turned again into the light and charged at the unknown amount of soldiers that awaited her behind it. Jill and Wendy followed. Vera turned and ran after Carol and Ellie.

Nicole made it about twenty feet before she felt the first sting of a rubber bullet hitting her in the arm. The pain was sharp, but it only served to enrage her. She increased her speed in response. Wendy matched her stride for stride.

Jill was quickly left eating their dust, buffeted by the hail of high velocity rubber the soldiers were shooting at them.

Nicole crashed into the frontline, sending a handful of the shooters sprawling.

Wendy followed right behind her, knocking them over like bowling pins. She jumped to her feet, determined to press the advantage. She grabbed the closest upright body, prepared to send the soldier flying. Before she could lift him, eight more of his mates jumped on her, billy clubs and gun butts in hand, and began to pummel her. In seconds, she was an unconscious bloody mess.

Nicole spun around just in time to see Jill go down from the bullets.

‘All up to me now.’ she thought, grimly turning back to face her adversaries.

Faster than any of them were prepared for, the redhead dove on top of the closest shooter, ripping at his bio-suit as she took him to the ground. Her victim squealed for help as he struggled to fight her off. His efforts were in vain; she was far too strong for him to handle alone. His suit began to rip as she pulled at the seam. A small hiss of escaping air brought a smile to her face.

“Welcome to my world,” she told him, then blew into the hole. The man inside turned pale and began fumbling for the zipper.

“Collin’s, don’t!” another soldier called out.

Nicole looked over her shoulder just in time to see another bio-suit flying at her. She tried to move, but wasn’t fast enough. The soldier crashed into her, knocking her away the ripped suit.

Nicole managed to twist just enough to land on top of her attacker. She pulled back her fist, prepared to punch the plastic face plate.

WHAM! Something clobbered her from behind, stunning the new woman. She fell forward, too stunned to break her fall and landed flat on her face. Seeing the opening, the rest of the platoon surrounded her and began to hit her with anything they could get their hands on.

Less than thirty seconds after the lights at the end of the driveway went on, Nicole fell.

********

Vera caught up to the Ellie and Carol about a hundred yards behind the warehouse. The two of them were huddled down behind a pair of 55 gallon drums, hiding as best as they could manage, as helicopters swept bright search lights over the area from high above.

A large circle of pale white passed less than ten feet from their position and moved on back towards the warehouse. Ellie waited a couple of breaths then grabbed Carol by the back of her shirt and pulled her along as the three of them ran across the cracked concrete. They desperately searched for somewhere to rest and hide, but there was nothing to be found.

Another light circle appeared out of nowhere directly in their path, and began to move right towards them. Ellie looked left and right. There was nowhere to hide.

As the light closed in on them, she dove for the ground, pulling Carol and Vera with her. The three new women lay there, their hands covering the backs of their heads as it swept over them and moved off to the west again.

After a moment passed, as the light continued to move off, Ellie looked up and whispered “Thank you Lord.”

“We need to find somewhere to hole up for a while,” Vera shouted over the sound of the receding blades as they climbed to their feet.

“Where are Nicole and the others?” Ellie asked, fearing what she knew was the answer.

“They stayed behind to buy time for us to escape!” Vera replied, finding herself suddenly unable to look Ellie in the eye.

Ellie shook her head in momentary denial. Nicole couldn’t be gone. The Sisters couldn’t be in shambles with most of them either dead or captured. This wasn’t the way God wanted thing to be! They were supposed to be going after Reverend Manning, not running for their lives from the Army.

Again she looked to the sky for answers but found none. She wanted to cry. She wanted to run back and free her friends and followers. But she couldn’t. They had risked everything to get her out of there safely, and she couldn’t allow their sacrifices to be in vain by doing something stupid and getting caught.

Carol looked down her body and over her heels she caught a glimpse of shadowy figures moving towards them. Behind the shadows was a second line of indistinguishable shapes from which slivers of light shot out every few seconds.

The closest group was undoubtedly her fellow escapee’s. The line further back behind them could only be the Army. She didn’t want to know what was making the flickers, but unfortunately she had a pretty good idea.

“Come on” she urged, pulling on Ellie and Vera’s shirts. “They’re coming this way!”

The three of them hopped back up and took off running towards the lights of the city that lay far in the distance.

“Where are we going?” Vera asked after they had gone about a mile.

“To find Mia. I was on the phone with her right before all hell broke loose. Somehow she knew the army was coming. I want to know how she came by the information, and more importantly, why she didn’t warn us sooner.”

Vera felt a ball of icy fear build in her stomach. The last thing she needed now was Ellie talking to Mia. “Ellie, isn’t obvious?” she asked. “She must have been working with them the whole time!”

“It certainly looks that way, doesn’t it? But I still want to hear it from her mouth,” Ellie replied angrily. “I want to hear her admit it to me, face to face. If she helped them do this, then she has much to answer for.”

“How are we going to find her? She must be off hiding somewhere by now. She’s probably back with her Army buddies, toasting their success.” Carol added bitterly.

“Before we were cut off she told me to meet her where we first met. That’s where we’re going.”

“But what if she’s setting you up for a trap? I think we should just get out of the city and lay low for a bit until things cool off,” Vera urged.

“Vera, we can’t just run. Not when so many of our people need us. That wouldn’t be right, and it’s not part of God’s plan for us. Besides, Carol’s little box has exactly what we need to get our people set free, we only need to find the right person to present it to. If Dr. Blue was working with them, then she’ll know who that person is and how to get to them. Now come on, we have a long walk ahead of us.”

The three of them trudged off towards the city, all the while trying to ignore the sounds of helicopters and gunfire behind them.

*************

Sunday August 25 Grayson labs 3:22pm PDT:

“Colonel?” the intercom called out “Lt. Colonel Tyler is on the line as you requested, sir.”

Jordon looked up from the computer screen he had been reading. He looked over and replied. “Thank you, Gloria. Please put him through.”

Jordon hit the power button on the screen and turned his high backed leather chair back towards his desk just as the phone began to ring. Picking it up, he said, “Jordon speaking! Tyler?”

“Yes sir, Colonel.” The voice on the other side of the line said just as it burst into a fit of dry coughs.

Jordon pulled the phone away from his ear until the coughing subsided. When he couldn’t hear it anymore he said “Tyler you sound like shit! What’s wrong with you?”

“I’m sorry sir. I’ve got a bit of a cold and it’s been a busy couple of days, so I haven’t had much rack time, sir.”

A dubious look flashed across Jordon’s face. “I want you to get down to the infirmary as soon as you get back here. Make sure they test you for every possible cause. Understood?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good. Now what’s the situation over there?”

“Everything is secure sir. We managed to round up 234 of the residents. On top of that ,we discovered another 100 plus virus victims that were in the midst of their transformations in one of the back rooms, and another 150 in an adjoining building.”

“Almost five hundred of them? My God! If I had known there were that many I would have sent us in sooner,” Jordon said more to himself than to Tyler. “Have they all been transferred to secure facilities?”

“It’s been something of a juggling act sir. We had no idea there were this many, but we’ve managed to find spots for all. There’s a handful that are still on premises, but they’ll be coming back to Grayson with us once we’re ready. Most of the rest have been placed at either Reynolds, Dillon, or one of the other area quarantine centers. Unfortunately ,some of the sick had to be euthanized at the scene for fear of contagion and a lack of medical staff. They had a doctor here looking after them, but someone fucked up sir, and sent her off to Reynolds with the first group we sent there.”

“Understandable.”

“Yes sir, and unfortunate.”

“What the story with our main targets? Were you successful in recovering any of them?”

“We got four of them, with only Ellie Wolf and Quinlan have escaped. Dr. Blue had informed me two hours before we went in, as I reported to you earlier sir, that Quinlan wasn’t presently on site, and our failure to apprehend him leads me to believe she was telling the truth.”

“Unless he escaped with Wolf.”

“Yes sir, he may have been able to avoid us but the handful of residents we interviewed before sending them to quarantine supported the doctors statement that he had been missing for a few days now.

As far as the former Mr. Wolf situation goes, it appears that they made getting her to safety their top priority. Three of them attacked a platoon we had stationed outside the loading dock area and did quite a bit of damage before they were subdued.”

“Enhanced?”

“We believe that two of them are sir. They’re the ones that will be returning to Grayson with us for testing and transport to Rawlings upon confirmation.”

“Excellent work, Tyler. Keep me informed on that front,” Jordon said. After a momentary pause he continued “I want the buildings destroyed once we’re clear.”

“Destroyed sir?”

“Do you have a problem with that Tyler?”

“No sir. I was just looking for a clarification on how you wanted it taken care of sir.”

“Burn it, blow it up, do whatever needs to be done. Just make sure that all possible contaminants are eliminated.”

“Yes sir. I’ll have the SFFD alerted before we begin,” Tyler replied.

“Very good, Tyler. Your team did an excellent job. I’ll be putting in commendations for the team leaders, and I suggest you have them do the same for their men.”

“Yes sir, I’ll pass on the word.”

“Anything else to report?”

“Not at the moment sir.”

“Don’t forget, as soon as you return you are to report to the med lab immediately.”

“Yes sir.” Tyler replied wearily as he hung up the field phone. He let out a long series of wracking coughs that made him double over from the force of them. “Just a cold,” he told himself.

********

Grayson’s quarantine lab three hours later:

Nicole couldn’t figure out the purpose of this place. To be honest, she didn’t even know where this place was, though she was reasonably sure it wasn’t Reynolds. She had watched helplessly, as the soldiers loaded five transports headed for that hellhole several hours before they brought her and Wendy to this place.

With what she had seen of the building from the outside as they were taking her out of the back of the transport, there were no bars on any of the windows. Inside, the only bio suits she had seen were worn by their guards. That, coupled with the lack of round airlock type doors led her to believe they hadn’t been taken to any of the area quarantines. This place was something different. The way it was set up gave off the feeling that it was a college campus or something along those lines, anything but a prison.

“Stop! Wait here!” her bio-suited armed escort commanded in a metallic sounding voice. They were standing outside a black painted door that had ‘Containment Lab’ written on it in big white letters .

Nicole looked questioningly over to her right at Wendy, and shrugged. Wendy lifted her eyebrows and shrugged back.

The door in front of them slid upwards into the top of the frame with a hiss. Their confusion was only amplified when they got a look at the room inside.

The place had high white colored acoustic paneled walls. The far wall was more like a gigantic window into another room that looked to be set up like some kind of laboratory. Set in the center of the window, on both sides of the glass, was what looked like a control center.

It was about six feet long with a flat desk portion that held microphones and assorted papers on it, joined at ninety degrees to a bank of blinking lights and television monitors that sat up against the thick glass. The scene was made all the more strange by the sight of a medium sized woman, with long brown hair, wearing a lab coat and holding a crying baby behind the transparent wall.

The guard gave her a small push in the back and she stepped into the outer control room. One of their escorts stepped over to the desk and pushed a button on it. Inside the woman holding the baby looked up.

“Dr. Grayson” the guard said into the microphone “these are the infectees the Colonel wanted you to look over.”

The woman stepped closer to the glass and Nicole saw that despite her tired look and the bags under her eyes, she was a true beauty.

Over the cries of the baby, she heard, Dr. Grayson reply, “Now isn’t the best time, as you can probably see. Can you bring them back later?”

“Sorry, Doc. Colonel wants them tested right away. They’re possible Rawlings candidates. Top priority.”

A loud disembodied sigh echoed through the control room. “Fine! Send them in. I’ll look them over as soon as I get Sara settled.”

The guard clicked off the intercom and turned back to Nicole and Wendy. “That’s the Doc in there, and as you can see she has her hands full. I would be on my best behavior in there if I were you. If anything were to happen to her or the kid, it will be very bad for the responsible party. Understand me?”

The pair of new women were too bewildered to argue. They simply nodded and allowed themselves to be led to the airlock door. The door slid open and they stepped inside of it. A second later it closed, and the interior door opened.

Sam looked at her new visitors. She was taken aback by the size of both of them. The redhead was taller than the brunette, and far prettier, but the other woman was just a mountain of muscle. Sam said a silent prayer that they weren’t hostile.

Clearing her throat she said to them “Hello. I’m Dr. Sam Grayson, and this is Sara. As you can see she’s a bit cranky today. Just take a seat anywhere you like, but please don’t touch anything. I’ll be with you soon, OK?”

Wendy stood where she, was waiting to see what Nicole did. The redhead motioned to the stools that stood behind one of the work tables. The two of them stepped over and took a seat.

Nicole was flabbergasted. She wasn’t sure what her expectations had been when they were loaded onto the transport, but this wasn’t it.

“Sam?” Nicole asked after taking the lab in for a minute.

“Yes … umm”

“Oh, I’m sorry my name is Nicole, and this silent mountain is Wendy. She doesn’t speak; her vocal cords were damaged during her transformation.”

“Damaged? I’ve never heard of that happening before. Usually the bug heals anything that ailed you.” Sam unconsciously ran a hand across her lower back.

“First time for everything, I guess. What is this place? I mean it’s obviously not a quarantine center, at least it doesn’t look like what I imagined one would look like.”

Sam grinned. “How would you know what the inside of a quarantine looked like? Did you escape from one?”

“No. I’ve never had the pleasure of being inside, but I did see the video they put on TV about Reynolds.”

“Horrible place! They should be shut down. Those poor women, first they were stuck with that animal Brady, and that Dr. Stanley should be brought up on charges.”

“I don’t know who they are.”

“Believe me, you’re lucky you don’t. Besides, you two will never see the inside of that place if your tests come out like the Colonel thinks they will.”

“And how is that?”

“The two of you posses enhanced physical abilities. We’ve discovered the genetic marker for those enhancements. Everyone we’ve tested has the same glitch, no matter what their abilities. So we’ve developed a simple blood test that tells us whether you have it or not.”

“What happens if we do?”

“They have some kind of military training program for those like you. Some place called Rawlings, but I don’t know where it is.”

“Military training? What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. I’m not really kept in the loop down here. They tell me what they want to tell me when they feel like it, and what I’ve told you is all I really know.”

Nicole didn’t like the sound of military training one bit.

Sara had finally quieted down enough for Sam to put her in the crib for a bit. With that done, she walked over and sat down next to her guests. “So anyway, back to your original question. This place used to be a genetic research facility, but now it’s my prison, and the military’s base of operations. I used to own this place before it was turned into the government’s primary Acidalia research facility on the west coast.”

“So you people are what … trying to find a cure or something?”

“That’s what we started out as anyhow. Though I can’t really say for sure that’s still the goal anymore,” Sam replied glumly.

Nicole looked around the lab again. “So you’re … a researcher that caught it or something? Is that why you’re in here?”

“Something like that. Little Sara and myself are the only permanently quarantined residents here as far as I know. Like I said, they don’t really let me out of here much.”

“So you’re a prisoner here then?”

The soldiers outside jumped to attention as Colonel Jordon steeped in. The monitor was still on, so everything being said inside the quarantine lab could be heard in the control room.

“Situation report!” he demanded as the squad leader saluted him.

“Dr. Grayson was having issues with the baby, so she hasn’t started the tests yet, sir. Though we may have a situation as far as security goes. She’s been very liberal with our secrets sir.”

“She has, has she?” Jordon frowned and listened more closely to the conversation coming over the speakers.

“I’m more like an insurance policy. Sara and I are being held to make sure Mia, one doctor that was doing research here, does what they want her too. They have her off spying on some group they consider a threat, but I don’t know where. Meanwhile, they have me checking over the other’s research and testing infectees. Jordon has a real hard on for those of us with enhanced physical abilities.”

“Doctor Grayson, that’s enough!” a disembodied voice demanded.

The three new women turned around and saw an older dark skinned man standing at the control room desk. His uniform and rank insignia marked him as a Colonel, Nicole noted.

“We do have security procedures that need to be followed by everyone here, Doctor, no matter what our personal feelings about what goes on here. You’d do well to remember that. How would you like it if I were to inform your new friends there about your involvement in creating the bug? I bet they’d love to hear that story!”

“What’s he talking about, Sam?”

“Go ahead, Doctor. You’ve certainly been free enough with throwing the Army under the bus, so go ahead and tell them everything,” Jordon suggested smugly.

Sam stared at the floor miserably.

“What’s this? Nothing to say now Dr. Grayson?” Jordon taunted.

“Sam, who is this guy?” Nicole asked.

“My name is Jordon. I’m the commanding officer around here, and what Dr. Grayson is so reluctant to tell you is that she, or should I say he, is directly responsible for creating the Acidalia virus. She’s the one to blame for what’s happened to you and everyone else that’s become infected. All because she was unhappy with the hand fate dealt her. Because of her selfishness and irresponsibility, your life has been irrevocably changed and the survival of our species has been put into doubt.”

Wendy’s face turned red with what Sam thought was fury. Nicole gave a disgusted look. “Is that true? Are you responsible for all this?”

Sam continued to stare at the floor.

Nicole grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted her off the floor. “Say something, damn you!” she shouted.

“Y … yes it’s true.” Sam admitted with tears starting to form in her eyes. “It’s all my fault.”

Nicole put her down, pulled her into her bosom, hugged her tightly, and whispered “Thank you.”

Sam looked up at the redhead, stunned. “D … did you just thank me?”

Nicole was now crying too, but unlike Sam, her tears were ones of joy, not fear and guilt. “Yes, thank you.”

Jordon stared at the scene inside the quarantine lab in unbelieving fury. She was thanking Grayson? How could that be? She should be looking to kill her. “Shit!” he whispered under his breath realizing he had overplayed his hand and it had just blown up in his face.

“Get them out of there!” he commanded the guards who were standing at the back of the control room.

Inside, Sam stood there looking as confused as Jordon felt. Wendy came over and joined in the group hug.

Nicole saw the soldiers heading for the outer air lock and quickly explained, “Because of you, I’m still alive. You and your wonderful discovery saved my life. I’m finally the person I always wanted to be, but never could. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.”

The airlock hissed open and a platoon of guards stormed into the lab.

The first one through the door shouted, “Stand back Doctor! You two over there face the wall, and let me have your hands. Come on now, move! I’m not the patient kind of guy, so don’t fuck with me.”

Wendy glanced at Nicole who was already walking quietly over to the wall he had indicated. The hulk of a woman followed and they both stuck their hands out behind them. A pair of guards stepped over and locked handcuffs onto them.

Once they were secured the guards led them to the airlock.

“Don’t worry, Sam. I won’t forget you. Somehow I’ll find a way to get you out of here.” Nicole promised as she walked by the doctor.

Jordon glared at Sam, cutting off any reply she might have had been about to make.

As they waited in the changing room for the second airlock to cycle, Nicole looked down at her escort and told him, “Tell your boss that when the time comes, I going to bring this place down around his ears if he doesn’t set her free.”

The guard rolled his eyes. “Considering where you’re going, I highly doubt that you’ll ever get the chance to make good on that threat.”

“Just make sure he knows!”

Confirmed cases: 8,765,497
Actual cases: 19,078,508
End part XII