Zombie Fever 1: Origins
Page 6
Tomas leaned against the corridor wall to steady himself.
I’m a millionaire.
His legs were weak and he had trouble staying on his feet. But after the initial shock over the seven digit settlement began to subside, it dawned on him that since he arrived in San Diego, he was being manipulated. If it wasn’t by his father who knew about his employers evil deeds and his secrets, then Supervisor Bertrand and a ‘settlement check’ that was nothing more than a thinly disguised pay-off - and now Dr. Greer, who claimed she loved his father but was leaving his fate entirely in Tomas’ hands.
No. Tomas wasn’t going to let Dr. Greer off that easy. She is trying to railroad me into doing her dirty work. His father was alive and he had to do something about it. But if I were to even consider helping Andy, I’m going to do it my way.
He carefully folded the check and put it in the back of his wallet then turned and banged on the door, “Dr. Greer! Open the door! I’m not leaving until you speak to me! Dr. Greer!”
The door opened, but she’d kept the security chain latched and he could see she was pointing the gun, now equipped with a silencer, at his abdomen. She whispered into the hallway, “Stop attracting unwanted attention or I’ll shoot!” When he calmed she said in a frosty tone, “You need to start acting like a man. There is a much bigger world outside that comatose stupor you put yourself in with those pills you take. Oh, yes, your dad knew about the pills and I can see their effects in your slightly unfocused eyes right now. Even during this critical time, you’re high. Now, if I open this door and let you back in, will you act civilly?”
For a few fleeting seconds, Tomas had felt as if he was finally in control of his life when he’d looked at that check. But after Dr. Greer’s scolding, he felt more like a child than someone in control of his destiny. That kind of tongue lashing wasn’t something he was accustomed to as his mother tended to avoid delving into that more difficult side of parenting, instead preferring to withdraw until the need for such discipline passed.
Dr. Greer opened the door and stood back, the gun still pointed at his abdomen in case she’d misread his intentions.
“Ma’am, I agree that something needs to be done about Andy, but I just can’t go in and kill him.” Tomas had a keen mind and he was already formulating an alternate plan, “I’m going to help Andy, but I need four or five days to put everything together. If my plan is to succeed, I’m going to need your help throughout the entire ordeal.”
She started to shake her head.
Tomas held up his hand to keep her quiet and continued, “You can still leave the country tonight. I’m not saying I need you here ‘physically’.” He pulled the two grand out of his pocket she’d given him, “Wait here for me for a couple of hours. This should be enough to pick up a couple of those new com-links just released on the market. We’ll be able to stay in contact and you can get out of here. You’re going to have to provide some logistical information about your company’s compound. Otherwise, I don’t think my plan will work.”
“What’s your plan, Tomas?”
“I’m going to break Andy out of there, that’s what I’m going to do. I won’t ‘put him down,’ but the least I can do is get him to a safe location where we can work on a cure. My father is a good man. I don’t think he’d be opposed to using him to study the disease he’s infected with if it means helping the innocent. If you’re serious about stopping Vitura, having a live specimen will only bolster your knowledge and experience with IHS, wouldn’t you say?”
Dr. Greer seemed more receptive now that she realized that Tomas was planning to help Andy and looking at the whole picture. He’s right, it would certainly be useful if she could get hold of live virus. She set the gun down and said, “The consumer tech you’re talking about is child’s play compared to the equipment our R&D division has been working on. I can do you one better. Let me make a phone call. Andy and I aren’t the only disgruntled Vitura employees.”
She went to the hotel phone, attached a device to the receiver, mumbled instructions to an unseen party and turned back to Tomas. “Do you favor your left or right ear?”