He glanced down at his arm before continuing. “Some of the workers had been given the vaccine and were immune, though Clarence didn’t know this. Most were not. I think about them often, and I feel like a coward for leaving, but I knew that the majority of them had probably been infected by that time. When I looked back, I saw that Gayne had opened the doors. Some of those leaving the building were running, and I would guess they were all infected. He would not have let them out otherwise . . .”
He dropped his face down into his hands for a moment then looked up again.
“I called the local police and explained as much as I could. I told them they needed to find everybody who worked at the lab. They said they’d look into it, but I don’t think they believed me. They wanted me to come in, but I wasn’t about to do that. I had to run, and I just hoped that they would handle the problem. I didn’t know what else to do.”
He looked away for a moment before returning his eyes to the camera.
“George, I’m so sorry that I created this thing. I’m also sorry because I’ve done something unethical to our patients, though I feel it was justified.”
Dan stood and walked outside while the others continued to watch the video.
On the TV, Petrov continued. “I gave the vaccine to our patients in that last clinical trial we did together in Mexico,” he said, the words coming out in a rush. “I injected all of them.”
The doctor quickly went on to explain. “Before you jump to conclusions, I know that most of our patients in the trial have died, but the vaccine is not what killed them, as I’m sure you must realize. I tested the vaccine several times on volunteers and workers in the lab, though I was careful not to let anybody else know what I was doing. There were no side effects, but they were all immune. It worked perfectly. I also injected it into . . .”
Miranda strained to make out the next sentence, but she couldn’t.
Petrov had dropped his head and was rolling up one of his sleeves as he spoke. The words came out garbled.
“I couldn’t understand that part,” Miranda said.
“He said he injected the vaccine into his own body as well. There was more, but we couldn’t make it out, either,” George said. “There was something about me forgiving him, and the rest was impossible to understand.”
Petrov held an arm up to the camera. There was the distinct mark of a human bite on it.
“As you can see, I’m immune,” Petrov continued. “Maybe the test subjects will even die off before spreading the disease to others, and nothing will ever come of it. If that happens, I hope to find you and retrieve this DVD. I hope to stay alive long enough to be reunited with my family, but this group has eyes everywhere.”
He glanced at the door, looking startled. Finally, he turned back to the camera again.
“This is how I live now,” he said, motioning toward the door. “I know they are searching for me, and I jump every time someone walks by my room. I know it isn’t safe to stay in one place for long, and I will be moving on as soon as I send this to you. I guess I will not see you again, but I hope that you are still alive, and I pray that you can help to end this terrible thing if it spreads. I must go now. Goodbye, my friend.”
The picture disappeared, and Miranda clicked a couple of buttons on the remote before leaning back on the sofa, eyes distant.
“You’re an oncologist, right? How does that tie in with creating a parasite?”
“It doesn’t,” he said. “Igor, Dr. Petrov, is brilliant. He knows a little bit about everything and a lot about a few things, but his real expertise is microbiology. The cancer study was mine, but I involved him because he can sometimes see things that others can’t. He’s a problem solver.”
“And that’s why they chose him?” Miranda asked.
“That’s my guess,” Rayburn said.
Miranda glanced outside. She could see Dan walking around the pool.
“Dan has a hard time watching the video,” Rayburn explained. “His daughter was part of the clinical trial, and she was probably injected with the vaccine.”
“Oh, wow. No wonder he’s upset,” she said, shaking her head. After a moment, she got up to pull the thumb drive out.
~*~
Lansing, Michigan
Lindsey got to her feet quickly, moving out of reach of the crawler. Her right ankle hurt, but it held her weight, so she continued to make her way down the street. She scanned the area around her each time the moon emerged from the clouds and finally noticed an older apartment building up ahead of her. It had an exterior fire escape that went all the way to the roof. Unlike many of the buildings she’d seen, it didn’t have counterbalanced stairs, which would drop to the ground when a person put weight on them. Instead, there was a metal ladder that pulled down from the lowest level of the fire escape. It didn’t extend all the way to the ground, but she thought she might be able to reach it if she could find something tall enough to stand on.
A quick search netted her an old metal trash can that stood behind the building. She could see at least one human shape in the street nearby, so her task would require complete silence. Easing her way over to the metal can, she lifted it carefully and carried it to the fire escape. As she flipped it over, she almost dropped it, but she was able to get a grip on it before it touched the pavement. Still, the metal handles clanked against the side of the can, and she heard a loud moan in reply. Holding her breath, she waited. After a few minutes passed, Lindsey carefully set the can in place. Climbing onto it without making any noise was going to be difficult. She needed a step.
After spending another ten minutes searching, Lindsey found a wooden flower box below a window of a nearby house. Upending it, she dumped out the contents then hurried back to the fire escape as quickly as she dared. About halfway there, she heard the tell-tale sound of a shoe scraping the pavement. Squinting into the dark, she saw a figure lurching toward her, dragging one foot. Having spent almost twenty minutes getting everything into place, she had no intention of starting over somewhere else. She quickly made her way over to the trash can and set the flower box beside it as the corpse drew closer.
The can felt unsteady when Lindsey lifted her foot onto it, but she knew she couldn’t spare the time to brace it better. The dead man was maybe six feet away at the most. She stepped up, but the can was wobbling beneath her, and it started to fall over. Having no other choice, she reached up to grab the lowest rung of the ladder with both hands. The trash can hit the pavement with a sound that could probably be heard for blocks. Ignoring the pain in her arms, she struggled to reach the second rung. She felt fingers brush against her left ankle, and she quickly pulled her legs up. Within a few more minutes, she finally managed to make it up to the platform. A number of loud moans told her that a crowd of the dead was moving her way, and she hurried up to the next level, no longer concerned with being silent. The dead couldn’t reach her now.
As Lindsey passed each of the six floors, she checked the doors, relieved to find each one closed. She had no intention of going into the darkened building at night, and she wanted to be certain that nothing would be coming out of it. When she got to the top of the stairs, she checked the entire roof, stepping carefully since she was not able to see the edges well in the dark. Once she was certain that she was alone, she found a sheltered spot next to an air conditioning unit and curled up in her borrowed jacket. She closed her eyes, hoping she’d be able to sleep.
~*~
Whispering Springs, Nevada
Hixson walked back in, closing the door behind him.
“Are you ready to talk?” he asked.
“Yes, and I’m sorry for not trusting you. Will you both forgive me?”
“Of course,” Dan said. “I don’t blame you at all.”
“I would have been just as worried,” Rayburn said.
Sitting on the sofa again, Miranda listened as the two men took turns telling her parts of the story from the beginning. When they were done, she took a few moments to digest
it before speaking.
“I saw some footage of these walled cities on the news, but they never said who had built them. There were towers on the walls, with armed guards.”
“They’re all over the world,” Dan said. “This group, the Vigilarre, has managed to gain control of just about every powerful person that could be of use to them.”
“But how?” she asked. “How could so many people just roll over and submit?”
“Most people will do almost anything to ensure the safety of their own families,” Dan said. “I overheard Madec say that everybody had their price. It looks like the Vigilarre did well at finding each person’s price. They targeted top government officials, military officers, and other people in power. By the time the rest of us started questioning what was going on, it was too late.”
“But you left,” she said, looking at Dan. “You didn’t follow their orders.”
“I don’t have a family for them to use against me,” Dan said. “And I didn’t want to be part of their community. A lot of other soldiers feel the same way. We swore an oath, but it wasn’t to the Vigilarre. I think that once the smoke clears, you’ll see the men and women of our armed services ready to fight to take our country back from this group.”
“I think you’re right,” Rayburn said. “A lot of them left the Yucca compound while I was there. They’d had enough.”
“Will it make a difference if these compounds don’t have military backing?”
“I don’t know,” Dan said. “For every soldier who walks away, there will probably be a civilian willing to step in and take his or her place. They won’t be as skilled, but I’m sure they’ll get some training.”
“Is it true that you’re immune, George?” Miranda asked.
“Not unless Igor gave the vaccine to me in my sleep or something,” George said.
“I’ve seen you sleep,” Dan said, his face serious. “It’s a real possibility.”
Hixson turned to face Miranda. “As long as we’re in your house, you’ll be in danger, Miranda. We’ve got to leave.”
“If anybody comes to the house, we can show them the DVD,” she suggested. “They’ll have to believe you.”
“I’m not sure I want to stake any of our lives on that,” Dan said. “Maybe you could drop off a copy where they’ll see it once we’re gone.”
“I could do that,” she said, looking away with a sigh. “I know you’re right, but I just don’t want you to go. I’m being selfish, but I’ve become very attached to both of you over the last few days.”
“I don’t want to leave you here, either, Miranda,” Dan said. “I had really hoped we could escort you to Oregon once you were ready to go.”
“Why can’t we?” George asked. “She could go with us, and we could drop her off in Oregon.”
“She doesn’t want to leave her husband, George. You know that,” Dan said. Reluctantly, he added, “She also wouldn’t be safe with us.”
They both looked at Dan, who explained, “We’ll be on everybody’s most-wanted list.”
“Where will you go?” Miranda finally asked.
“I don’t know. Someplace far from here where we can hide out for a while,” Dan said.
“How are we going to get anywhere without being seen?” George asked. “They’ll be watching for us everywhere. Are you sure we can’t just hide out here until they forget about us?”
“They’re not going to forget about us if they think you’re immune. I think that the search will grow bigger around here. We need to leave tonight before they start looking for the truck in the morning.”
“We could hide in the attic or something.”
“You know better than that,” Dan said. “You know if they can narrow the search down to this city, they’ll find us. It’s just a matter of time. One of the neighbors may see us if they haven’t already. We have no way of knowing how many other people might be holed up in their homes.”
“I’m starting to think they’re all gone,” Miranda told him. “I haven’t seen so much as the flutter of a curtain from any of the houses around here lately, except for the two families that we saw drive away.”
Twice they’d heard a vehicle and had gone to the window to watch as neighbors had left. One had been an SUV with luggage on top, the other a truck pulling a loaded trailer.
“The guy at the auto shop saw me,” Dan said. “I have no doubt that he could identify me.”
“I forgot about that,” Miranda said, looking concerned. “And he knows me. He’d have my address in his files.”
“Then we definitely have to go,” George said. He added reluctantly to Dan, “I guess you’re probably right about it being dangerous for Miranda, too.”
“If that was the only issue, I wouldn’t let that stop me,” she said.
“Then maybe you should at least think about going,” George said.
She didn’t answer right away, but eventually she shook her head. “What if he comes home and I’m gone? I just can’t do it.”
“I think we should go tonight, after dark,” Dan said. “With the thunderstorm going on, we may be able to slip out unnoticed on the power line road.”
“What about George’s knee?” Miranda asked.
“I can walk on it,” George said.
“Are you sure?” Miranda asked, surprised.
“I think it wasn’t quite as bad as George led us to believe,” Hixson said.
Miranda looked at George, not understanding.
“I wanted to stay longer, so Dan could spend more time training you,” George admitted. “I was worried about leaving you here if you couldn’t defend yourself.”
“That was very sweet of you,” she said, giving him a smile.
“Let’s plan on leaving around ten, George,” Dan said. “Hopefully, by the time they start their search, we’ll be long gone.”
~*~
Lansing Compound
The group followed Lee, who slammed into the door on the way out. Rubbing his head, he walked down his driveway to the street and staggered toward Henry’s house while the others followed, keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings. The gunfire in the distance had not abated, letting Snake know that the dead were being persistent.
When they approached the gate, Lee stopped.
“Please don’t tell me we have to climb over this,” Snake sighed.
Reynolds pulled his wallet from his back pocket and fished through it until he found a card. He waved it in front of a scanner, and the gate started to move.
“Perks of being a pilot,” Lee said with a drunken slur. He looked around. “Usually there’s someone manning the gate. Wonder where he is?”
“Doesn’t matter,” Keith said, urging him on. “We don’t want to talk to him anyway.”
When they reached the front door, Lee seemed surprised to find it open. They stepped inside and looked around.
“Must have left in a hurry,” Reynolds said, entering the foyer. He led them down the hallway, warily eying the staircase as he approached it. Grasping the railing, he pulled himself up the steps, wobbling a bit at the halfway point before regaining his balance. When he reached the top, he stumbled down another hall until he came to a closed door. As he twisted the knob, he was again surprised that it was unlocked.
Snake was glad to see Doune unharmed, standing at the window. The doctor turned when he heard the door open.
Well, Doc,” Snake said with a grin, “I bet you’re happy to see us, for once. We’re here to take you home.”
“I don’t think so,” Doune said, expressionless.
Loto emerged from the shadows with an Uzi trained on Snake and his men, who quickly dropped their weapons.
Lee’s face fell as he mumbled, “Oh, shit.”
~*^*~
~63~
Lansing Compound
“Unfortunately, I seriously doubt that any of us are going home,” Doune said.
“I was kind of hoping I’d never see you again,” Lee said to Loto with an air of
resignation.
“Oh, I’m quite resilient,” Loto replied, “considering the dead fall a lot easier than an offensive line.”
“Wolverines,” Snake said, snapping his fingers. “I knew I recognized you! You were a hell of a linebacker.”
“And people said my skills would never be useful in the real world,” Loto said, almost managing a smile.
“So, you were once human,” Lee said, steadying himself against a wall. “With Henry dead, there’s no reason to hurt these guys. It’s me you have the beef with.”
Loto stared at Lee for a second then at the others.
“Henry was an asshole, bro,” he said, lowering his weapon. When he put down the rifle, he also seemed to drop the uptight manner in which he’d carried himself while in Henry’s employ. “You did what the rest of us didn’t have the balls to do.”
Doune had remained expressionless as he followed the conversation. “I assume you’re not going to kill anybody?” he said to Loto.
“No.
“Does that disappoint you?” Snake asked.
“Of course not,” Doune said, “you serve a valuable purpose at the hospital.”
“We weren’t sure you’d want to come back,” Keith said to Doune.
“I prefer not being told how to do my research,” Doune said. “And while I know you may all find this hard to believe, I am deeply disturbed by most everything that is happening in this compound.”
“That does surprise me, Doc,” Snake said. “I thought you’d fit right in.”
“What about Lindsey?” Doune asked, walking with the others toward the door. “She’s being kept here, too.”
Dead, But Not For Long (Book 2): Pestilence and Promise Page 54