by Schafer, Jon
"I saw this morning that Los Angeles and San Francisco have been abandoned," Jonny G chimed in.
Steve nodded gravely. "In every city where the HWNW virus has broken out, and that's damn near all of them, the police and the National Guard are overwhelmed in just days. That's why I've created this fall back plan for us to use when things get too bad. We secure the building and hole up here until the Government steps in to straighten this shit out. We'll have power, food, water and weapons. We can –.”
"Whoa, Whoa, Whoa," Meat spoke up. "I'm a pacifist, baby. No guns."
"Have you seen what these things do to people?" Steve asked.
"They're sick, man –.” Meat faltered in what he was going to say and then seemed to latch on to an idea. "It's like in AA, man. They're not bad people trying to get good. They're sick people trying to get well."
"Bullshit." Steve said sharply. "They're dead people trying to eat, and I'm not going to be the main course. I'm not asking anyone to go Rambo but I'm not allowing anyone in who won't help protect the group."
This statement was met with silence until Slackin' Sammy spoke up, "Yo, Steve my man, I appreciate the invite but I was gonna stop by today anyways and let you know I'm hitting the road tonight. I got a buddy who has an airplane and we're flying to Canada."
"Then good luck to you," Steve said sincerely. "When this gets straightened out your job will be here waiting for you."
Standing, Sammy replied, "Between you and me, I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon but you gotta try and stay positive."
After shaking hands and saying his goodbyes, Sammy left.
"Anyone else?" Steve asked. "If you’ve got somewhere to go that you think is better than this, I won't stand in your way. But if you throw in with me then you follow my orders."
Taking their silence as acquiescence, he asked if anyone had any questions. After a moment, Jonny G raised his hand and tentatively asked, "Is it OK if I bring a date?"
Steve couldn't help but smile. "You can each bring one person. If they have weapons and ammunition, food, sleeping bags, they need to bring that along too."
Realizing his answer sounded inane, like they were planning a sleepover or a trip to the zoo, Steve decided to refocus the group.
"Once we lock down no one else gets in," he added sternly.
Mary and Ginny started to protest so Steve said sharply, "No one gets in. We can't risk someone bringing the infection in with them and we don't have supplies to sustain a whole gang of people. I estimate it'll be weeks before things get straightened out. I'm sure that when the Army starts to try and take control that Clearwater isn't going to be high on the list of cities to retake. You've all seen how bad it is on TV and I think it's a lot worse than what they're saying."
"So when do we do this?" Meat asked.
''Tomorrow morning," Steve said bluntly. "I've already contacted the sales people and the other jocks and told them to stay home and look after their families. I doubt anyone is going to be doing their normal routine anyway. Once martial law is declared, the Guard will only want essential personnel out and about, so make sure you all have your station ID cards with you to prove you work here."
Brain entered the room and said, "Switching over to EBS in five minutes, Steve. The Governor'll make his announcement and then we're back on." He smiled briefly to those at the table and said, "Good to see you all here, I'm sure we'll get along famously until this thing is over. Stay safe until tomorrow."
Brain ducked back out, leaving those in the room looking after him in astonishment.
Mary spoke first, "What the hell came over that pompous ass? Did he actually wish us well?"
"I had a little chat with him," Steve explained. "I didn't expect it to work that well though."
"Sometimes, difficult times bring out the best in us rather than the worst," Meat commented.
"Regardless." Steve said. "Tomorrow morning we start locking down. Everyone needs to be here at five. If the situation seems to be getting better we might postpone, but I don't think it'll get better, just worse."
"Five AM?" Ginny asked in astonishment. "Can't we make it later?"
Steve bit back an acid comment and took a breath before answering, "At five we'll look at what's going on and decide what to do but we all need to be here no later than six. That means everybody."
Ginny gave him a dirty look that turned into a pout. Steve ignored her and said, "I know you all have questions and I'm not sure I have the answers to them. Some of this I've planned, for but the rest we'll have to play by ear. It's not like this is a problem anyone's ever dealt with before."
"Improvise, adapt and overcome." Tick-Tock said. He seemed unusually alert now, sitting on the edge of his seat and leaning forward. "I'm in," he added. “Might even be fun, don't ya think?"
Not sure if he wanted to know what Tick-Tock's idea of fun was, Steve said, "So that's it. You all know what to do. I'll see you here in the morning."
The group filed out of the room. Tick-tock went to the studio, as he would be on the air after the Governor's announcement, while Meat, Mary and Jonny G headed for the door while holding an animated conversation about what they needed to bring with them.
With a feeling of dread, Steve watched Ginny head straight to his office and disappear inside.
She had been mostly silent through the meeting and he had seen her anger flash as he insisted that everyone show up at five.
Steve dreaded having to deal with her. She was ignoring the problem as if it would go away. The worse things got, the more she seemed to deny its existence. Just that morning, when she came into work, Steve had brought up the topic and Ginny had given a dismissing wave of her hand while saying, "It'll all work out."
She was sitting stiffly on the couch when he entered, so he sat next to her and waited for her to speak.
"If you think your silly rules apply to me then you're wrong," she said sharply.
"They apply to everyone. Including me," Steve replied while trying to keep the anger from his voice.
"But I have more than one friend I want to bring. Besides, what difference does it make if I show up at five AM or ten AM?"
"You can only bring one person with you and you need to be no later than six." Steve said flatly.
Ginny sat fuming silently as he thought, what doesn't she get about this? What part of the dead are coming back to life and eating the living doesn't she understand?
"What if I decide not to show up on time, are you going to lock me out?" She challenged.
"C'mon Ginny," Steve said while avoiding the question, "Don't get pissed off. I'm trying to keep us all safe and alive here. This thing's getting worse so I'm doing the best I can."
"Well, I've got two people I want to bring, Tami and Patti. If I say one's with me then you can say the other’s with you," Ginny bargained.
Hesitantly, Steve replied, “I’m already bringing someone.”
"Who?” Ginny demanded.
Oh shit, Steve thought. This is not the time or place for the subject of Heather to be brought up. Thinking quickly, he answered, “A cop, a Sheriff’s Deputy." He had almost said she's a Sheriff’s Deputy but caught himself in time. That little tidbit of information could wait to be shared.
Ginny stood up abruptly saying, ''Fine then. You’ll force me to choose which one of my friends to save and which to leave to who knows what fate. I hope you're fucking happy.”
Nothing like using a little guilt to get your way, Steve thought. But it won't work. At least she's talking about which friend to save. Maybe she might be starting to understand how serious this is.
“If I had my way Gin, I’d let you bring everyone, but I can't do that." Trying to ease the situation, he added, ''Why don't you stay over at my place tonight and we'll come in together?”
Ginny snorted in displeasure ''I’ll be here tomorrow at six, but you're sleeping alone tonight, buddy." Turning on her heel, she stormed from the office. Steve could hear the outer door slam shut as
she went out of the suite.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Elvis has left the building," he said sarcastically to the empty room. Taking his seat behind the desk, he switched on the speaker that was tuned to KLAM so he could catch at least part of the Governor’s speech.
“– and I just want to say to each and every one, God bless you and keep you safe,” the Governor intoned. The beeping alert for the EBS came on, followed by an announcement to stay tuned to this station for further developments.
“Shit,” Steve said out loud. “Now I missed it.''
Picking up his phone, he hit the extension for the control room. Brain answered on the first ring. "This is Randy, may I help you?”
Taken back by the pleasant, prompt greeting, it took Steve a second to gather himself before saying, "Tell the aliens who kidnapped Brain and replaced him with Miss Manners that we want him back."
"Just holding up my end," Brain replied cheerfully.
"Don't go overboard," Steve warned. "Did you record the Governor's speech?"
"Of course. The great man left out, ‘A day that will live in infamy’ and ‘four score and seven years ago’ but he hit every other cliché in the book. ‘We are on the cusp’ and ‘We stand together or fall together’ played prominent roles.
"Never mind that," Steve said. "Burn me a copy on a CD, and bring it to my office.”
“My feet are like wings. I'm here to do your bidding. If–."
Steve hung up, cutting him off. He wondered if he liked the old Brain better, but before he could decide his cell phone rang.
Seeing it was Heather, he answered, "Every time I see an accident I look to see if I can spot you there. Is that a twisted way of saying, thinking of you?"
Heather laughed and replied, "I wonder if Hallmark makes a card for that?" Before he could think of a comeback she asked, "Did you hear the Governor's speech?"
"No, I got my tech burning me a CD. I was indisposed at the time," he replied, not wanting to have to explain about Ginny.
"Well, I'll fill you in on the high points. Dusk till dawn curfew for all non-essential personnel, people are urged to stay in their homes as much as possible, the Guard will be doing door-todoor searches, looters will be dealt with using lethal force, report any suspicious behavior, quarantine zones and evacuation centers are going to be set up at all area high schools, anyone caught-."
Steve cut her off, "Back up one, what was that?"
“About the schools? Didn't make sense to me either. Why cluster a bunch of people looking for somewhere safe with those who could already be infected. I think it’s because right now the Guard is spread a little thin, but who knows."
"So what else did he say?" Steve asked.
All commercial and private flights have been canceled throughout the state to try and halt the spread of the disease and that the Constitution and due process have been suspended until further notice.”
“Bad news about the flights," Steve said. "One of my guys is trying to get out tonight on a private plane.”
“He might make it. If you're filing a flight plan taking you out of the state, they're letting you go. It just depends if the state you're heading to will let you in.”
"They're going to Canada," Steve said.
"Border’s closed," Heather informed him. ''But I don't think there's any people left to enforce it. If he can find places to refuel, your guy might make it."
Sammy was one of his people so Steve felt a responsibility to him. He jotted a note to call the man when he finished talking to Heather and let him know that if he got stuck, he could come to the station.
“So how are you doing?” he asked.
"Tired,” Heather replied and then continued in a quiet voice, "We lost two people last night and the team that went into the sewers was still overdue when I came off shift."
“Not good. Do they know what happened?”
“No idea. If they were lost down there then they'd use one of the shafts and just head to the surface, pop up through a manhole or something. The National Guard is sending troops down later this morning to look for them.”
Hearing a loud knock at the door to the suite, Steve stood to go out front and answer it. On the weekend they didn't have a receptionist, so whoever was closest did the honors. He told Heather to wait and was about to unlock the door when he stopped. Going back to his office, he dug the Glock from his pack, sticking its barrel down in back of his waistband and covering its butt with the tail of his shirt.
He didn't think it was a zombie come to call, he didn't think they’d knock, but with everything going to hell it could be any number of people. Radio station groupies, looters, and the curious came to mind. Checking the peephole, he saw it was none of the above.
Holding the cell back up to talk to Heather, he said, "I'm going to have to chat with you later. It seems that on the way to the sewers, the National Guard decided to stop by and say Hi."
"What are they doing there?" she asked.
"I was actually expecting them," he said. Then explained with a distasteful tone, "Once martial law is declared, the powers that be secure the radio and television stations. They're worried we'll incite the masses to revolt."
Heather laughed, "Are you?"
"Am I what? Scared shitless? Hell yes."
"Nooo, going to plant seditious thoughts and incite the masses to revolt?" Heather asked with a laugh.
"Maybe, if I get the chance, I'll preach to them about the dangers of marijuana use," Steve said slyly.
"Just say no," Heather spouted the anti-drug slogan.
"I do say no to drugs all the time," Steve retorted. "They don't listen."
The polite firm knock from earlier now turned into an insistent hammering, prompting Steve to say, "Call me later and take care of yourself. If things go to shit, get your ass in here."
Pressing end on the phone without waiting for a reply, Steve turned the lock and opened the door. In the hall stood three men in full battledress, the one in front he recognized as a Captain by the insignia on his collar. This man carried a holstered pistol on his web belt and the two soldiers on either side of him carried M4 automatic rifles at port arms.
The officer said, "My name is Captain Sobloski and I’m here on orders from the Governor to secure this radio station. I’m looking for Tom Oliver.”
"He's not here, but I’m the station manager, Steve Wendell. Tom left me in charge. Why don't you come in?" Steve said casually. He noted that Sobloski looked surprised at the suggestion, as if he might have expected armed resistance. Turning to the men behind him, the officer said, ''Stay here and secure the door."
Steve led him to his office, waving toward the chairs in front of his desk for the Captain to sit in and then offered him coffee.
"Ah, no thank you Mister Wendell. I just stopped by to let you know that your station is now under State authority," Sobloski told him firmly.
"Great, glad to hear it," Steve replied amicably. "What do you need from me?"
''Your cooperation,'' the Captain said in a commanding tone.
"Anything I can do to help," Steve lied. He didn't mind that the National Guard was in the area, but he didn't want them inside the station. He needed to figure out if their presence would interfere with his plan and decided this would be a good time to go fishing for information.
"I’ll be posting a sentry outside your door and we have an armored vehicle downstairs," Sobloski said. "And even though the bank is under Federal authority, we'll be securing that too"
"What kind of armored car?” Steve asked. He really wasn't curious but he wanted to act interested so as to befriend the Captain. Everyone liked to talk about their work - or bitch about it - to a sympathetic ear.
Smiling, Sobloski stood and said, “You can probably see it from here. It’s one of the MRAPs they brought back from Iraq."
Going to the window, Steve pressed his forehead against the tinted glass and looked down. Parked in the turning lane in the center of the street was exactly what the Capt
ain said, an MRAP armored vehicle. He had only seen them on TV and was impressed at how imposing it was in real life. He noted six armed soldiers standing around it while one manned the .50 caliber machine gun in the top turret.
"It’s a beauty, Captain," Steve commented approvingly.
Sobloski beamed. "The MRAP is positioned here until the crisis is over. We'll patrol this area on foot and keep it secure from looters and Z’s. I’ve got a whole platoon at my disposal, but I’m rotating them here one squad at a time from the high school.”
Steve looked confused and asked, ''Squad? Platoon? What’s a Z?" Even though he knew what these things were, he wanted the captain to get the impression he was just a harmless civilian in need of protection and explain it to him. Sobloski did just that, telling Steve more in ten minutes of casual conversation than a team of skilled interrogators could have gotten out of the officer in five days. By the time Sobloski was done answering his questions, they were on a first name basis.
When he was finished Steve said, "I feel safer already."
They talked for a few minutes more about living in Clearwater before the captain said he had to go check his other positions. Steve saw him to the door where Sobloski collected one of the men posted there and left.
Steve offered the remaining sentry coffee but was politely declined. Give him time, he said to himself. He remembered his own four years in the army and knew soon enough that the guard would relax. Going back to his office, he reviewed what the Captain had told him and was relieved that it wouldn't interfere with his plan. To his recollection, martial law had never been declared on this scale in the history of the United States, so he didn’t think anyone was really sure what his authority was. He was confident the Captain would see that when Steve locked down the building, it was only to protect himself and the station.
In fact, since they were on such friendly terms now, the Captain would probably be glad to help.