by Alex Siegel
Sheryl realized this confrontation could get ugly. The officer was openly armed with a pistol. The jail guards carried nightsticks and mace. The Spears also had weapons hidden under their clothes.
Abruptly, Mazza stepped aside. "You can go. I didn't come here to get into a fight." There was no obvious reason for his sudden change of attitude.
Sheryl found his behavior suspicious. He was almost acting guilty. She didn't complain though.
Smythe and his female teammates quickly left the cell. Guards escorted them to the snow-covered sidewalk outside the jail.
As soon as they could talk freely, Sheryl said, "That was intense."
"I wasn't worried," Smythe said. "I have the ultimate ace in the hole when dealing with Army idiots." He zipped up his coat.
They were standing in the snow, but in their rush to get out, they hadn't finished putting on their winter gear. Sheryl pulled on her gloves and wrapped her scarf around her neck.
"Oh?" Odelia said.
She had a white parka and a pink ski hat. They matched her hair and face.
"I know the girlfriend of the Commander in Chief." Smythe winked.
She furrowed her brow. "What are you talking about?"
"The legate."
She shook her head. "I still don't get it."
"You didn't hear? Ethel and Roy Haley are an item."
"The President?" Her eyes widened.
"He's a member of the Society now, her very special assistant. They're hopelessly in love."
She grinned wide enough to have dimples. "That's so precious! I remember she gave us that long speech during the convention about the dangers of love. God has a wicked sense of humor sometimes."
"Indeed. I'd better call Aaron." Smythe took out his phone, pressed the speaker button, and dialed a number.
"Hello?" Aaron said.
Smythe described the events inside the jail.
"Good job," Aaron said. "I want you to come back to headquarters and start analyzing that sample while it's fresh."
"What about Odelia, sir?" Smythe said.
"She and the rest of my legionnaires will go into the homes of infected people and look for clues."
Smythe frowned. "But the team already went into two homes yesterday: the apartment of the first cannibal and the other guy last night."
"Odelia is a real scientist with the right kind of experience," Aaron said. "She'll know what to look for. With her in charge, I'm sure the investigation will be much more productive."
"I could really use her help in the lab, sir."
"You'll get it later. Stop whining about being separated from your girlfriend. You'll be together for a whole week, if not longer."
"Yes, sir," Smythe said.
"I'll text the addresses to Odelia. Bye."
Smythe closed his phone. "You heard the boss. I have to go home, and you two ladies get to spend the afternoon breaking into the houses of possible cannibals."
"Great," Sheryl said bitterly.
* * *
Norbert lifted the barbell off his chest. His muscles strained against the great weight. He was probably lifting too much, and without a spotter, there was real danger of getting hurt. He was too angry to care. He felt utterly betrayed by the twins.
At the meeting, they had simply announced they would be leaving the universe in a week. They hadn't even mentioned that fact to him beforehand. Apparently, he wasn't worth the bother.
Norbert's relationship with the twins had been the singular focus of his life for a year and a half. He had been their caretaker, lover, father-figure, and best friend. Today, they had acted as if he were just a servant.
He lowered and lifted the barbell another time. It really was too much weight. His muscles were shaking with the effort. He reached into the deep, dark place inside where the Lord's anger resided and drew strength. The shaking stopped.
Norbert was lying on a bench in the workout room which had originally been the living room. Too much exercise equipment crowded the small space. Minimal ventilation kept the odor of sweat trapped for hours. No other room was available though. Thanks to the twins and their stupid project, he thought. Nobody else's needs matter to them.
Tawni entered the room wearing her formal, gray robes. The folds of plush fabric went down to her calves. The clothing was dignified, but an evil smile on her face ruined the effect. Suddenly worried, Norbert put the barbell on the rack.
She walked over, straddled his body with her legs, and sat on his pelvis. "Hi."
He looked up at her beautiful, black face. "Hi. Please, get off me."
"That was interesting news about the twins." She didn't budge.
"Yes. Rather upsetting, actually. Can we have this conversation without you sitting on my groin?"
"I like it when you get all sweaty." She massaged his pectorals.
"That's nice. Get off."
"By the way, I'm not wearing anything under these robes."
He stared at her. "This is extremely inappropriate."
"It's just two grown-ups having fun. No harm in that." She continued to rub his chest, and she was very good at it.
"I love Bethany and Leanna."
"Your loyalty and devotion is very erotic. In case you didn't hear, they're leaving you. They're leaving everybody. Goodbye!" She waved goodbye.
Norbert pushed Tawni off awkwardly and sat up. The physical contact had aroused him a little, and he was trying to keep his thoughts pure so his condition wouldn't get worse.
"I did hear," he said. "Isn't this a little ghoulish even for you? A decent woman would wait until the competition had left the building before stealing their man."
"I've been called many things: strong, brave, smart, sexy, dangerous, fearless, bitchy, and evil. Nobody has ever called me decent."
"And you're proud of this?"
Tawni stroked his sweaty chest. "Have you ever fucked an indecent woman?"
Norbert mentally reviewed his sexual history. He had grown up in a strictly Catholic family where even holding hands with a girl was forbidden until the age of eighteen. Life had been a little more interesting in college, but he had always picked out girls with a similar background. During those four years, he had had sex exactly once, and both parties had cried afterwards. After college, he had joined a monastery.
"No," Norbert said. "I can't say I have."
Tawni's hand drifted down towards his groin. He grabbed her wrist tightly before she went too far.
"You're hurting me," she whispered. "I like that."
He pushed her away and stood up.
A man cleared his throat. Norbert looked over and saw Aaron standing by the door.
"Sir!" Norbert said in surprise.
"I need both of you to get dressed right away," Aaron said. "You're meeting Sheryl and Odelia out in the field. You'll be searching houses for clues."
"But we did that yesterday, sir," Tawni said.
"And you did a bad job. You found nothing. With Odelia in charge, I have confidence you'll be more successful. Follow her orders, and she wants you to bring a laptop computer."
She lowered her eyes. "Yes, sir."
* * *
Sheryl was sitting in a car with Odelia. It was parked on the street in front of a small, brown house with vinyl siding. A thick blanket of snow was piled on the roof, and more was falling. Sheryl idly wondered how much snow the roof could support before it collapsed. Cheap blinds were pulled down behind the dirty windows of the house.
Sheryl turned to Odelia and admired her perfect, pink skin. It didn't have the slightest blemish, and she wasn't wearing makeup. Sheryl would've killed to have skin like that. Odelia's straight, white hair was just as perfect, but it looked artificial even though it was real. The red-brown color in her eyes wasn't as attractive.
"Smythe mentioned you're a lesbian," Odelia said.
"I didn't mean to stare." Sheryl turned away.
"Don't worry about it. How did the legate and the President meet? I assume it had something to do
with the bombing of the Democratic National Convention."
"Wesley told us the President was in danger and needed to be protected. Wesley also ordered the legate to come to Chicago and help. The legate and Aaron met with the President in his hotel room. I wish I could've been there. I heard it was an interesting conversation."
Odelia smiled. "I bet."
"The legate decided to stay with the President," Sheryl said. "She was his personal bodyguard for a while, and they fell in love."
"You guys in Chicago have all the fun."
"You don't have missions in Los Angeles?"
"We have plenty of missions," Odelia said, "including some nasty ones. One was happening when I left. But ours aren't as glamorous as yours. Presidents, prophets, and portals to God aren't involved."
Another car parked behind them. Sheryl looked back and saw Tawni and Norbert in the front seats. Sheryl began bundling up in preparation for braving the cold weather.
Odelia pulled a full face mask over her head, leaving only her eyes exposed. It was made of black fleece.
"That makes you look like a bank robber," Sheryl said.
"This cold is killing me," Odelia said. "Los Angeles is sixty degrees and sunny right now."
Everybody got out and met on the sidewalk in front of the house. Tawni was carrying a laptop computer. Sheryl shuffled her feet on the icy pavement to keep herself warm.
"I have Smythe's knockout pills," Odelia said. "Our first task is going inside and putting everybody to sleep. Try not to hurt them. They're innocent victims."
She walked up to the front door and knocked. The rest of the team stood behind her.
After a moment, a man opened the door. Odelia charged into him and knocked him down. Norbert grabbed the man's head and forced his mouth open. Odelia quickly dropped a pill inside.
Tawni tugged on Sheryl's hand and said, "Don't just stand there like a fool! Search the rest of the house."
The team swept through the house and found a woman and a teenage girl. These people were put to sleep just as efficiently. Norbert placed all three unconscious bodies on a bed. It appeared both parents were suffering from the disease. Sheryl felt very sorry for the daughter.
Odelia gathered the team in the front room. "Next step. Who is the best typist here?"
The group exchanged looks.
Eventually, Sheryl said, "Probably me."
"Then take the laptop," Odelia said. "The rest of us are going to search this house and describe what we find. You'll make an inventory on the computer so we don't forget."
"What are we looking for?" Norbert said.
"We don't know, which is why we're going to inventory everything. I want a note on every single item in this house, no matter how long it takes. Go through the garbage, too."
"Sounds boring," Tawni said.
"Yes, and this won't be the only house. We'll go down the list of addresses Aaron sent me. We won't quit until we're absolutely certain there is nothing to find. That's how science is done." Odelia looked at her three teammates. "Understand?"
They nodded.
Odelia pulled a short stack of latex gloves out of her pocket and handed them out. "Let's begin."
Chapter Ten
Sheryl rubbed her eyes.
"Three hot dogs, made by American Beef," Tawni called out.
Sheryl typed the words on her laptop.
"Fourteen forks, eight spoons, nine butter knives," Odelia said.
Sheryl typed.
"One red coffee mug with the words 'I hate Mondays' printed on it," Norbert said.
Sheryl typed.
They were on their third house, and her inventory document had grown to forty pages. People kept an astonishing amount of crap in their houses, even poor people. The team had found whole rooms full of stuff that Sheryl would've tossed into the nearest dumpster.
"One gift basket, empty," Tawni said. "Labeled 'Loving Sun Chocolate and Nuts.'"
Sheryl started to type, but then she stopped. "What was that?" She looked up.
Tawni held up a gift basket made of yellow straw. She had pulled it out of the garbage.
"I saw one just like that last night," Sheryl said.
Suddenly, all eyes were focused on the gift basket.
Odelia came over and took the basket with her hands covered in latex gloves. "Gift baskets are a good way to spread a disease. They can be mailed to victims in sealed containers. Moist, buttery confections are perfect for transporting bacteria."
She grabbed her phone and made a call. "Perry," she said, "we need phone numbers of people who are clearly affected by the disease. We have to ask them a question. Send ten numbers to each of us. Thanks." She hung up.
Sheryl checked her phone. After about thirty seconds, she received a text message from Perry containing ten numbers.
"Make your calls," Odelia ordered. "Ask the people whether they received Loving Sun gift baskets. Go."
Sheryl went to the living room so she could have some quiet. A brown leather couch was cracked, revealing the cheap, foam stuffing inside. The flat-screen television also had a crack in the glass. A solid coating of black soot covered the interior of the tiny fireplace. The green rug was worn through in spots.
She dialed the first number on the list.
After several rings, a woman answered, "Hello?"
"Hi!" Sheryl said in a cheerful tone. "I'm Donna from the Loving Sun Chocolate and Nuts Company. According to my information, you received one of our fine gift baskets recently. I'm calling to advise you that a product recall is in effect. Did you in fact receive a gift basket?"
"Chocolate and Nuts? Yes, I think so."
"Can you describe the basket, please?"
"Uh," the woman said, "it was made of straw. The bonbons were great. I ate them all. What do you mean by a recall?"
"When was this?"
"About two weeks ago. Should I be worried?"
"No," Sheryl said in a soothing tone. "We were concerned about spoilage, but if the product tasted fine and you're not sick, I'm sure there's no problem."
"I feel great. I've been working out like crazy. Can you send me more chocolate? I'm hungry."
"Sorry, no. Did the basket have a note?"
"Yeah," the woman said. "It was a thank you gift from my credit card company. I use my credit card a lot. The basket was a little early for Christmas though."
"That's all I need. Thank you for your time." Sheryl ended the call.
She went through the rest of the numbers. Four more people confirmed they had unexpectedly received the same kind of gift basket. There was no possibility of a coincidence. She was thrilled that they had finally found a lead in this awful case.
She went back to the kitchen. As the team gathered, they reported similar findings.
Odelia was smiling. "This is why science works," she said. "When you pay attention to the details, you get the truth. We need to find the note that came with this basket."
The team tore into the garbage and spread it out across the floor. Norbert found the prize: a yellow square made of paper with "Loving Sun" printed on one side and handwriting on the other.
He read aloud, "From your good friends at Windy City Bank."
* * *
"Calm down, mayor," Aaron said into his phone. "Panic won't do anybody any good."
"Why shouldn't I panic?" Mayor Kevin Daley replied. "My phone is ringing off the hook. I have governors and congressmen calling me. A two-star Army general was just in my office. He wants to lock down an area stretching from Lake Forest to Orland Park! Ten million people under armed guard!"
Aaron sighed and looked up at the pebbled tiles on the ceiling of his office. The iridescent metal gleamed in all the colors of the rainbow.
"I get it. The situation is bad."
"I lost count of the victims. I don't want to hear about it anymore."
"Two hundred," Aaron said, "more or less."
"Damn. You're always a good man in a tight spot. Can you do anything?"
&
nbsp; "A plague of cannibals is a bit out of my league. I'm not one of those action heroes who save the world all the time. I fix little problems for friends like you."
"I'm desperate," Daley said.
"I don't know what to tell you. I wish I could help."
"I'm just looking for a suggestion."
"Keep calm," Aaron said. "I'm sure a lot of very important people are already working on this problem. You're not alone."
"OK." There was a long pause. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. Hopefully, I'll see you on the golf course in a month."
Aaron's phone beeped. Somebody was trying to get through. He checked the caller ID and saw it was Odelia.
"I have another call. Be brave." Aaron switched over to Odelia. "Yes?"
"Good news, sir," she said. "We have a solid lead. Many of the victims received a gift basket containing chocolate and nuts. I believe this is how the disease is being spread."
He raised his eyebrows. "Gift baskets?"
"The right mix of fat and sugar can keep bacteria alive for weeks. You could inject it into a bonbon or a candy bar. The victim wouldn't even taste the contamination. We found one of the gift baskets. I'll send you some pictures with my phone."
"That is good news, and we certainly needed it."
"What are your orders?" Odelia said.
"Keep searching homes for now. I'll pursue this lead from my end."
"Yes, sir."
"Excellent work," Aaron said. "Smythe was right to bring you in."
"Thank you, sir."
He ended the call. A minute later, he received several pictures on his phone. They showed a gift basket made of yellow straw. Some bits of colored cellophane were still attached, but the food was gone. There was a close-up of a note.
Aaron turned to the computer on his desk and performed an internet search. Windy City Bank was a medium-sized bank which had branches throughout northern Illinois. After some digging, he found a phone number for the VP of marketing. It seemed like a good place to start.
Aaron made the call.
A woman answered the phone, "This is Ms. Tryan. How may I help you?"
"I'm calling to complain about your damn gift baskets," he said.
"We're a bank, sir. We don't sell gift baskets. I think you have the wrong number."