by RJ Crayton
“Dr. Rhodes,” she said to his mother. “Jacob.”
“Natalie,” he said. “Why don’t you join us?”
She shook her head. “Can’t,” she said. “I’ve got to be on duty in a few. I hope you’re getting settled in alright.”
He nodded. “Yep. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.”
She laughed and said, “Haven’t heard that in a long time.”
“Well, very few things have been that in a long time.”
Natalie nodded and walked away. Shonda eyed him curiously and then leaned in. “Were you flirting with her?”
His mouth popped open just a little bit, but then he closed it. The frustration he’d felt in recent years with her obtuseness on this issue was bubbling up. “You know I wasn’t,” he said. “I don’t even know why you say stuff like that.”
She straightened up, bringing a hand to her chin. “I wasn’t trying to upset you,” she said. “It’s just, I think she may like you.”
He turned to look in the direction Natalie had walked away. But she must have gone already. “I don’t think so.”
“I do,” she said, a little more adamantly this time. “You may not see it, but I think she’s into you.”
He thought about it a moment. Shrugged. Maybe. “Well, that’s not going to happen.”
His mother shrugged. Then she stood and lifted the tray with her empty bowl. “Let’s get to work.”
Chapter 19 - Elaan
The journey to Virginia had been long. They’d driven. In a black unmarked van that didn’t have the best shocks for a long-distance journey. Despite the bumpiness, at least she hadn’t felt alone during the ride. She, Josh, and Amadu rode in the back seat unrestrained, though the doors didn’t open from inside. Two soldiers sat up front, and they had prohibited chatter in the backseat.
Elaan had spent much of the trip cuddled next to Josh and wondering what came next. The windows were a very dark tint and she suspected no one could see in if they looked. They’d started the journey at night, so she hadn’t seen any out there who might want to peek in. She’d managed to sleep through much of the overnight drive.
When they finally arrived at their final destination, a soldier got out and opened the door for them. The sun was a bit of a shock to the eyes after sitting in the shaded vehicle. But it was pretty here. Cool, but the leaves were turning. Beautiful shades of red, yellow, and orange. Lots of trees and paths. It was pretty. Almost like a campus. She wasn’t sure where they were, exactly. She knew there was a university here and wondered briefly if there was an SPU nearby, much as there had been one near the University of Illinois.
A soldier spoke, his weapon pointed at them. “This is an open facility, and everyone who comes here has been vetted to indicate they are disease free,” he said, his voice laced with a soft drawl. Perhaps he was a native Virginian. “We’d prefer not to alarm the people who live here, and ask that you follow directions and don’t try to flee. We’re perfectly able to subdue you if you do, however. And if you try anything funny, we will put you in cuffs and ankle restraints. Understand?”
The three of them nodded.
The soldier smiled, and two more soldiers joined them. One stood in the front, a second motioning them to follow along single file. The remaining two soldiers followed behind them. A cool breeze came along and Elaan shivered. They walked for almost ten minutes, past buildings, winding paths, grassy areas. And the soldier had been right. They saw a fair number of people. Most of them young; teenagers or early twenties. Some were sitting out on blankets in the grass, chatting. Others were more active, involved in a game of Frisbee or perhaps ultimate Frisbee, based on their maneuvers. It seemed very much like a college campus and normal life, pre-virus life. It was a bit disorienting to watch. So very different from what things had been like for her before.
No one here looked scared or hungry or worried. It seemed to be a happy place. Disney World happy without the rides and princesses. They finally arrived at what looked like an old fashioned mansion — a brick building with columns in the front. Once ushered inside, they were in a large rotunda with a sweeping staircase that went up to a top floor. You couldn’t see much beyond that upper landing, as hallways disappeared toward the back of the building.
The lead soldier paused for a moment then turned to Amadu. “You’ll need to come with me,” the soldier said. Then he looked at Josh and Elaan. “The two of you need to go into that room.” He inclined his head to a door to the right.
“Why can’t we all go together?” Elaan asked.
The soldier scowled. “Because those aren’t the orders.”
One of the soldiers from behind them stepped forward and motioned for them to go into the room. Amadu had already started to follow the other soldier away. Elaan wasn’t happy with this. While she was glad she wasn’t being separated from Josh, she didn’t like the idea of Amadu being taken off by himself. He’d come to live with her mother to help her survive. And for all his trouble — teaching her about plants, fishing, helping her survive, keeping her company — he’d been abducted twice and was now being taken who knew where.
She swallowed, feeling a sadness bubble up at the turn the situation was taking. Josh had stepped forward and was walking toward the door. She felt a hand on her back urge her forward and turned to see the soldier. Alright, already. It couldn’t be that bad, whatever it was. Could it?
Josh had reached the door, opened it. She walked at a slow pace and followed him in. Her mouth dropped when she saw who was there. Sitting on an old fashioned, decorative sofa, the kind you’d see in Civil War films, were her father and Kingston Wells.
Chapter 20 - Elaan
Her father rushed to her and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her tight. “You have no idea how glad I am to see you,” he whispered in her ear before releasing her. She took a step back and looked at him. He looked, somehow, better than he had when she last saw him.
Like he’d been sleeping well, eating well, exercising, all that. He didn’t look like someone who was in peril, or had been recently. She glanced around the room, decorated in old-style opulence. There were fancy sconces on the wall for lights. The room was painted a regal red, had hardwood floors, and was strewn with antique-looking furniture. There were plenty of windows that let in lots of light.
“I don’t understand,” she finally said. “What is this place? What happened after we left?”
He smiled at her, his green eyes gleaming now, and pulled her over to the fancy sofa. They sat. She noticed Josh was standing in the corner talking to Kingston in a low voice. She wanted him to join them. She didn’t trust Kingston, though she did trust Josh. She supposed he’d tell her what his father said, if they could manage to find time alone again.
Her father breathed out in relief. “I’ve been so worried.”
“What happened after we left?” she asked again.
“Greg returned two days later with the proper orders. We said you’d left but we didn’t know how. Of course, he didn’t believe us. He stayed behind at the SPU, and there was some horrible outbreak…” Her father’s voice broke.
“So that’s true,” she said, thinking of the story she’d read in The Slam Report. “What happened?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know. The people here haven’t been that helpful with the details. All I know is what I was told: that the SPU lost most of the people there. We have no firsthand knowledge of what happened. By the time that had happened, Kingston and I, along with our data files, had already been sent here.”
“Here is Charlottesville?”
He nodded. “It’s a lovely, open area. They’ve set up a perimeter, and only the uninfected can get in. Many of the scientists from the unit were moved here, but some weren’t. I’m not sure what happened to them.”
His voice trailed off, as if he wanted to say more but was choosing not to. She stared at him. “But why didn’t they do anything to you? I thought they wanted us.”
Her father shrugged. “They did, but they got
our lab data. That was the next best thing. And frankly, given their idea to start fresh, to start with immunes, getting Lijah seemed to be low on the priority list. Though you, you they wanted. Live, fresh immunes, especially ones like you with immunity to both strains, are really important.”
He sucked in a breath, forced a smile. “Now that you’re here, they’ll want to integrate you into the facility. They’ll do some testing, DNA sampling as well. I’ll try to limit their prodding of you, but I don’t have as much clout as Kingston.”
She turned back to look at Kingston, who stood in shadow in the corner speaking to Josh. “Why not?”
“Because he helped them do more interpreting of the work. He helped fix the vaccine that was turning people into carriers.”
“It’s fixed?”
“Possibly,” her father said. “I think I like other suggestions for a fix, but Kingston’s is pretty decent. Regardless, Kingston has made an ally of President Thoreaux. More so than I have. But I have been helpful in his efforts, and I think he appreciates that. He’s simply trying to make a home here for people who will be the future of our nation. Those who can combat this awful virus.”
He sounded like a propaganda machine. She supposed this room was bugged or watched. Living in a place where the people in charge watched everything had to be awful. “Where are they taking Amadu?”
Her father shook his head. “I’m not sure. But I’ll find out.”
That wasn’t particularly helpful, but it was the best he could do. All Amadu had done was help her mother, so she didn’t want anything bad to happen to him. Or Josh, either. Josh was in a much worse position, as he was wanted at Facility One. But clearly his father had been able to get him brought here. That had to be a good sign. “What are they going to do with Josh?”
“Well, nothing,” her father said. Her eyes appraised him, searching for more. “Now that Kingston has proved that Josh actually is an immune and the evidence indicating he’d been given the vaccine was wrong, he’ll be living in the immune compound, just like you.”
Her father’s eyes were unyielding and clear in what they were saying. Go along. Don’t act shocked. Agree with it. But her mind still reeled. Josh wasn’t immune. No mistake had been made.
“But when we left,” she said, measuring each word, “you were so concerned they wouldn’t believe the truth, and they would simply take him to Facility One without verification. What happened? Why did they decide to believe Kingston?”
“They didn’t entirely, but lab techs at Region 8 were able to confirm it. They used a tech who had nothing to do with Kingston or even Dr. Caldwell. A Dr. Rhodes, I believe, verified his immunity test.”
Jenny Rhodes. Of course. Lies again. Though, this time she couldn’t rail against lying. She didn’t want Josh sent anywhere. If they were going to be stuck in this compound, then she wanted them to be stuck together.
She folded her arms across her chest and leaned back on the sofa. This was all too much. “So, what happens to the immunes here? You said the president wants us to have a home. I thought there were rumors of experiments.”
Her father looked severe, as if she’d struck at the truth, but he said, “Of course not. Those are just rumors started to discredit Thoreaux. It’s really very nice here.” He looked across the room at Josh and Kingston. “We were told to take a few minutes to reunite with you. But we need to get you down to intake.”
“Intake?”
He looked down at the ground. “Yes, they’ll assign you a dorm and implant a tracker.”
Chapter 21 - Lijah
He didn’t like Alex. The man was a control freak. It had only been a couple days since Elaan, Josh, and Amadu had been sent away, but Alex had already taken over his mother’s life.
Sure, they were in hiding, and under his auspices, but he did everything he could to isolate her. Her projects tended to be solo, and if she found herself seeming to connect with someone else as she offered up advice or just tried to chat, he’d walk by and tell them to get back to work. To the casual observer, it could seem like him simply being the boss. No boss likes people goofing off. But Lijah had spent two days working in the lab. Not right alongside her but in the same room, and there was no way Alex was just happening upon her. He was watching and making sure she didn’t get out of line.
And tonight, Alex had invited him to dinner, in their suite. This SPU seemed more lax about communal dining. Alex didn’t mind having his meals in his suite. But, once it had arrived, he’d been dismissive of her. Lijah had asked about her day, and Alex had cut her off to tell more about his day and his headaches. It was as if he believed them completely dependent on his goodwill, and therefore he would treat Shonda and Lijah as he wished.
Well, to hell with that. He needed to figure out a way to test the vaccine fix, and presuming it worked — perhaps even if it didn’t — get out of this facility.
* * *
He was on his way back to his apartment after dinner with his mother and Alex and was considering how he could reach Natalie. He needed her help if he was going to get out of here.
By sheer luck, as he rounded the corner, he bumped right into her. “Sorry,” he said, pulling away. “I was lost in thought. I didn’t see you.”
She nodded. “Same here.”
He smiled and said, “Hey, I don’t know my way around here very well. I was hoping maybe you could give me a tour sometime.”
She nodded, glanced at her watch. “It’s only eight thirty,” she said. “Nothing’s restricted yet. Why don’t I take you now?”
This was better than he could have hoped for. He’d been shown his work areas, the cafeteria, and his apartment. Ostensibly, there shouldn’t be too much more to the SPU. Only, he knew there was. They clearly had a quarantine cell, the one he, Josh, and Amadu had stayed in. Maybe there were other labs. He doubted she’d show him all the secrets during their little tour. He hoped, however, that he’d spot doors she didn’t identify or tried to gloss over. Places he could try to check out later. He wished Josh was here. He said he’d seen the layout for this SPU. With his photographic memory, he could probably sketch the entire thing. Give Lijah an idea of where the exits were.
No such luck. Instead, he’d have to rely on his own wits and deductive reasoning. Natalie walked at a decent clip and was fairly descriptive, mentioning that this SPU was designed for two hundred and fifty, and currently housed two hundred and forty. It had started at maximum capacity, and they’d had a couple of deaths through nonvirus reasons. A heart attack by a researcher, a stroke by a military person. One epileptic seizure and a couple of transfers.
“Where do people transfer to?” Lijah asked. “I mean, it’s pretty nice here. I can’t imagine wanting to leave.”
They came to the end of the corridor and went down a stairwell. “Most people don’t want to leave,” she said. “But, a couple of the immunes we had here got sent to Virginia. And one or two people simply wanted to leave. To go back up, return to whatever was left of their families.”
That struck Lijah as odd. You’d have no idea what you were getting uptop. Your entire family could be dead. Why would you leave the protection of this place unless you had to? “Alex was alright with that?”
She nodded and stopped at the landing. “It wasn’t ideal, but in the end, he figured it was for the best. And we’re able to get a new person if they’ve been vetted. Your bloodwork was good, and the immunes you were with, well, they had to go to Virginia.”
She opened the stairwell door, and they popped out on what seemed like a maintenance level. He could hear the whir of large machines. Perhaps helping to keep the place properly ventilated. “What is this place?”
“Central,” she said, simply. “It’s where all the important stuff is.” They walked down the corridor and passed a couple of room doors. One said “Servers,” another said “A/C and Heat,” while yet another said “Maintenance.” There wasn’t much to see, and he wasn’t sure exactly why she brought him.
; “So, what do you think?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Good. I didn’t even know they had these places.”
“Most people don’t. Too concerned about eating and getting to their job or doing exercise. Not worried about what keeps the place running. But me, I always like to know where the heart of a facility is. I like to know what’s keeping me going.”
He nodded. It was good advice. He eyed the speckled tile floor and the gray walls. As drab as it looked, this was the heart of the facility.
“And it’s private,” she said. “A good place to think.” She quirked her lips up into a smile. “Or do other things.”
Shit. His mother had been right about Natalie. She was definitely flirting with him. He took a step back. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings, nor did he want to lead her on. “We should go back upstairs,” he said.
She watched him for a second, evaluating him, then her smile faded, leaving only a serious line in its place. A crease marred her brow. She nodded, shrugged. “Alright.”
She led him back to his place, and he told her goodnight, offering only a half smile. He didn’t want to hug her, as he’d considered doing earlier. And he didn’t want to shake hands, as that was weird and formal. A simple half smile goodbye would do. Natalie seemed to know things around here. He needed her, but she wanted something more than he could give. He’d have to figure out what to do.
Chapter 22 - Lijah
His mother hadn’t come to work in the morning. He’d taken a break around ten to go check on her. Alex answered the door and said she wasn’t feeling well, and that he should come visit after work.
Lijah was pissed. On his way to lunch, he ran into Natalie in the hallway. “Can we talk?” he said, then whispered, “Someplace private.”
She looked into his eyes, an understanding there, and nodded. “We can go to my place,” she said.