by Jack Walker
Simon was absolutely dumb founded; shocked senseless by the revelations that they had been listening to for the last while. He had been so sure that he had been leading the group safely; but now looking back on their experiences he could see the subtle influences that Dawson had made. He shook his head in wonder at the two of them; standing there enjoying their moment. Looking at the two of them he could not decide which of the two he wanted to congratulate or which to absolutely hate. He could still not believe how he had been used. Simon asked how he had gotten so involved in this; to which Judith had also piped up. She was also eager to know. Dawson had replied that his shop had been the only one that they had seen that had actually had somebody in at that time of the morning. Simon again just laughed and said if it had not been down to the tax man; he would not have been in that early, but it had been fortunate that he had. His utter amazement that first time at seeing the group; was pure coincidence. Judith; standing next to Simon had suddenly realised that Dawson had been there right by her side almost immediately after the attack on them had happened. It had never really crossed her mind how Dawson had apparently rescued her so quickly. Now it made a strange kind of sense, and everything had finally fallen into place after all the revelations. Judith was also shaking her head at the revelations; laughing now at the utter absurdity of it all. It had been pure coincidence that Simon had been the one that she had been driven to. Her life had totally changed from the initial attack to one where she now had a significant other in her life.
The prisoner had been listening to this the whole time; and was absolutely horrified that their organisation had been so infiltrated by these western cowards. How could it have slipped past their group leaders; that they had had a spy amongst their ranks; had listened and passed on all their information to the decadent western oppressors. He was numb; realising that their plan had had no real chance of succeeding at all. The whole mission had been a failure form the start; apart from the people that had been infected by the virus they had unleashed upon those innocent civilians in New York. He openly started to cry, causing everybody to look down at him. He openly wept for his fellow terrorists that had died because of a stupid plan that they had tried to make succeed by attacking the heart of The United States. His tears also hid the deception he had been playing the whole time. He had not been idle while the story had unfolded. His hands behind his back had actually been busy trying to undo the knots that had been used to tie him up. His wriggling had actually gotten some of the rope loose; loose enough that he had actually then managed to scrape it along a sharp surface; causing the rope to fray. He had used his time carefully; managing to get nearly all the way through the rope before he started to cry. That was going to be his masterstroke to escape. He wanted to use the distraction to escape over the side of the boat. He knew that was going to be a suicide mission; but he had no more intention of living. The plan had failed; America would rebuild, and they would be so much more vigilant than before.
The group was now excitedly talking amongst themselves and did not notice him so much now. Finally the ropes parted; and he sat there, trying to find the correct time to spring up and jump overboard. He could at least attempt an escape, if nothing else he would die a free man and a martyr. The group was hugging each other and congratulating themselves; when he jumped up and quickly hauled himself over the railing into the deep blue sea. Hitting the water with an intense splash, he relished the short moment of freedom; expecting a bullet in his back at any time. The cold water hit his body again for the second time that day; and he wildly started swimming off toward the distant shore.
Ella was the one that noticed the man had disappeared overboard and was now striking out toward the shore far, far away. She called over to Jones, who looked down at where the prisoner had been a few moments ago, then laughed out loud. Turning back to the group and pointing out to Ella that they had never really been alone the whole time had her and the rest of the group confused. They all looked at him in utter confusion again. He laughed at their expressions as they stood staring at him utterly mystified. He laughed again at their faces then stopped laughing mid chuckle. He spoke to them and told them that they were indeed not alone at all; that there was a Kilo class nuclear submarine sitting just below the surface that would pick up the terrorist as soon as he radioed them and advised that the prisoner had escaped. Dumbstruck Judith looked at her uncle, she could not believe that he had just told them that there was a nuclear submarine just below them; and had been watching them a lot of the time? He had nodded and then said that he wanted to see the terrorists face when the submarine surfaced and snatched him off the surface of the water. He laughed again and told them there was absolutely nothing to worry about at all. They just stared at him again; not believing their ears; a submarine, just below the surface? How had they not seen anything at all? Jones told them that he had been enough of a distraction; and that he had been keeping this even from Dawson. She also gasped at this revelation and smiled; knowing that her husband had indeed been more than a mere sergeant in the army. In all truth he had not told her that he was actually a Major General; he had been in control of most of the plan from the get go anyway. Now he divulged the full extent of his rank; explaining that he had indeed been a major part of the counter intelligence information gathering, that had eventually infiltrated the group. He had not told anybody of his true rank; just in case they had actually demand he do something major and not allow them to continue with his carefully laid out plan. Inwardly he smiled as he looked again at the group gathered. Shaking their heads some were absolutely flabbergasted they had been so thoroughly hoodwinked. This quiet, unassuming man had infiltrated himself into their survival; had then helped them by guidance in the right direction. He was indeed someone they now held in very high regard. He had just managed to save their lives from a horrific experience that no person should ever have to go through. He had however been a solid rock that had helped them through various trials and tribulations to get them this far. Looking at the sky, they realised that the day had almost gone now; it was nearing sunset.
Chapter Thirty Six
Reaching for his earpiece; he finally radioed the Submarine. Advising them that there was a terrorist in the water and he was trying to swim toward the shore; and the radio crackled in his ear, signalling the submarine was finally going to surface. He pointed out to where the submarine should be, and they silently watched as the huge fin of the conning tower of the massive submarine broke through the surface of the water; just one hundred meters off their port side. They watched in utter shock as the fin rose, up and up; towering over the now very small looking swimmer that had realised that there would be no escape for him from this invading beast. Water sluiced off the back of the submarine as it breached; water cascading down the sides and falling back into the water. The dark wet gleaming surface revealed a United States Navy flag painted on the side of the massive fin. The terrorist stopped swimming; in utter amazement he had seen this behemoth rise up and tower over him. Watching the deck of the now breached submarine; the group was fascinated to see the efficient navy crew climb out of a hatch on the back deck. It opened up and disgorged navy personnel out into the fresh air; each of them holding an assault rifle, all aimed at the terrorist. Slowly he swam over to the side of the submarine and climbed the rope ladder up the side of the wet, glistening hull. He was quickly grabbed by the crew and held steadfastly in their arms. One of the sailors then reached behind his back and brought out a pair of plastic cuffs; which they used to secure his hands behind his back. The group watched this all unfold in a matter of minutes; amazed at the efficiency of the crew of the submarine.
Jones walked over to the side of the boat, reached up to his ear then spoke softly into it, “Sub team; report please, any difficulties you anticipate?” he said, “We watched the whole time and your team handled it with the usual expertise and efficiency. A job well done.”
“Thank you sir; we are honoured to have served with you. Your team
you have now is good and with professional training they could be superb.” The radio operator said in Jones’ ear. “We have the terrorist in custody and he will give us information we can use to close this case.”
Simon came over to Jones; who held up one finger, signifying he needed a minute. Simon waited patiently until Jones looked at him and smiled.
“I am still amazed that you and Dawson kept this so well hidden from us; you both did an excellent job,” Said Simon, in an awed voice. “Something tells me that this could possibly be the start of something new for you two. It could be something you two are really good at.”
He reached out his hand for Jones’ and he shook it heartily as their hands clasped. Jones smiled at Simon and spoke to him then, “Simon, I wasn’t you to be a part of my team. I am thinking your quick thinking and initiative could be very useful. I know you are not military trained, but you have a lot of potential.” Jones said in a soothing voice. “I think we need to discuss this over a decent bottle of single malt. Besides I have to welcome you to the family officially, I can see you and Judith are going to be very happy together. She will make you a very happy man.”
They stood like that as they watched the submarine sailed on the surface parallel to them, and watched as the sun began to dip below the horizon. The clouds started to streak with pinks and purples; creating a stunning vista that signalled the end of an amazing adventure for the crew.
Epilogue
Jones surveyed the Submarine as it slowly cruised along; the lights were on and it lit up the night ahead of it. They had also sent over a pilot for the boat that could keep station with the submarine as it cruised along toward the Island that was to become their temporary home. He watched as the crew on the submarine stood guard; they were relaxed but watchful. They all carried automatic weapons as they stood watch.
The captain of the submarine had finally come over on an inflatable. He had needed to speak to Jones first; then he would join the crew on the boat for a light meal. His chef on-board the submarine had also come across with some provisions; which he was going to use to create the meal for the boat and the group that now inhabited it. The captain and Jones had gone down below decks to discuss the events that had occurred; and it was also a debriefing session. Finally, they finished up; and came back on deck to an amazing array of dishes the chef had prepared. The chef motioned for everyone to grab some food and the group had quickly gotten a plateful of food; they had quickly formed into small groups that sat together wherever they could. Animated discussion was heard from all of the little groups as they hungrily wolfed down the delicious smelling food that had been so deftly prepared. Jones and the captain were the last to grab some food, and they finally reached the chef. Together they stood talking a moment more, and then Jones looked about him and smiled. Their group had come through this little disaster safely, and he could now breathe a sigh of relief. Looking around he spotted Dawson and headed over to sit next to his wife; who had joined Simon, Judith, George and Ella. They all greeted him warmly and Dawson placed a hand lovingly on her husband’s knee. She felt nothing but pride for their little band of intrepid adventurers. They had shown how through ingenuity, inventiveness and common sense; they had managed to survive something that could have potentially caused major chaos throughout the world. Nobody would have been spared if the infection had gotten out of control beyond New York. Jones smiled at the group, and then wanted to propose a toast. He did not have anything that he could use, so he put his plate down, and held up his hand; asking them to wait a minute. He went back downstairs; went to the little cabin that he had been using as his own, and hauled out the bottle of Single malt he had found stashed there by the previous owner. He climbed back upstairs toward the group, spread out as they were he climbed back onto the deck, saluted them all and started pouring small measures of the single malt into plastic tumblers he had also found. Everyone was delighted to have a drink in their hands at last; then Jones raised his glass and toasted to everybody that come through the ordeal. He went over to join his wife, sat down and poured them all another measure of whisky. They all smiled in appreciation of the McClellan 12 year old whisky; then toasted again. Jones wanted to propose a toast to Judith and Simon, which he did, and wished them a long, happy life together. They sat next to each other and grinned like teenagers in love. Their hands were firmly grasped together, and Jones could see they were already a firm item. He nodded towards Simon, and raised his glass. Simon nodded back; raised his glass then bent over to kiss Judith full on the lips. She just laughed when he finally ended the kiss and looked at her Uncle with a stern expression. The group burst out laughing and clapped each other’s backs.
Jones sipped his drink; then ate slowly as their group talked amongst themselves. They were all relishing the cool night air, the stars were shining down on them from above and they saw quite a few shooting stars. Finally people eventually drifted off to bed, and Jones and Dawson sat alone on the deck.
“Mrs Jones; I think you have some work to do, I believe you may have a wedding to prepare for.” He said contentedly, “There are two people that are very much in love, and they are going to need help with getting their wedding organised.”
“Me? What about you, you old scoundrel; After all she is your Niece and we will need to get things sorted out. You still have a lot of explaining to do to those two poor souls. I think they have forgiven us for our little deception. Indeed we have to hope that they have.” Dawson stated accusingly, “After all it was your idea that I follow Judith; keep an eye on her and make sure she was safe,” she paused, “Simon was just what she needed. He was in the right place at the right time of the morning. That Judith was just in the right place when we were attacked was quite a coincidence.”
“Agreed, but the thing is that he proved himself very capable and reliable young man. I was pretty impressed when I first met him on-board the boat. He came across as someone that could very easily become a very powerful person if he had the right backers. I wonder if he has ever thought of running for Office.” Jones quipped softly; looking at Dawson.
“Are you implying what I think you are implying Major General? Am I to believe that you are very nearly trying to propose Simon run for President?” She looked intently at her husband with a tone of incredulity in her voice. “How much influence do you actually have? Are you that well connected that your proposals could very well bear serious consideration by the higher ups? Well I never.” she shook her head as she smiled up at her husband, who looked down at her and smiled. Then he placed his arm around her shoulders and hugged her tighter into him. Finally he bent and kissed her head, holding her tight and keeping her warm and safe.
Epilogue
Now that it was fully dark, the movement from the abandoned house that faced west was full of shadow. The night was cool and not chilly at all, however the one being that was not affected by the temperature; was just stirring. Its body had been badly damaged by the infection; and he had needed to allow himself time to heal. Leaving the city had been arduous; and he had been nearly killed quite a few times. However, the fact that he had managed to leave the city before the main horde had been created, had worked in his favour. The authorities had been concentrating on the horde; allowing the one lone drunken looking man to escape. If they had bothered to stop him and check; they would have seen that he was one of the infected. He had safely traversed the exit to the countryside; and had managed to secure a place where it could rest up. This infected was not fully infected, but did still have some cognitive function. That cognitive function had allowed it to escape the city; allowed it to create a safe distance from the bombs and destruction that had killed the other infected. It had not needed to feed yet; it had forced its infected body to shut down for a time, to allow itself to heal slightly. This infected was strange in that it had the ability to heal. It did not want to be discovered easily; so it had to make itself look and behave like a normal human being. It would have to lie low for a while, and then it could
attempt to assimilate itself into society. There would be a time when the infected one would go back to the city; then it would feed again. Thinking of the city brought back memories of people that were practically invisible to society; tramps and vagrants. It could disguise itself as one of those; then it could become virtually invisible. That would allow it to then slowly feed; and begin the infection again. This time it would have to be more selective; not just biting anybody, it would need to be careful. It would have to choose those that had superior intellect; allowing their higher brain functions to remain and they would be able to join his army. The dry raspy laugh that echoed through the house was not evil; but the hint of malice was there. He knew that rest was needed, but now he needed to feed. He had to try and find some food for sustenance. There was nothing really out here, but he had spied a few mobile homes a bit further down the road. Going back inside; he grabbed the half empty bottle he had spied earlier; and slowly bent over to pick it up. Looking at the bottle he could see it was an amber liquid, but could not identify exactly what it was. Slowly he started towards the mobile homes. His tottering steps did indeed make him look like a drunken man in need of another drink. Weaving and wobbling; this way it took him almost an hour to make his slow, meandering way down towards his next meal.