A Glimpse Of Decay (Book 1): Red Storm) (7 page)

Sensing that he had made Irene feel uncomfortable, he sat back in his seat and tugged at his military blouse.  “I know it sounds crazy…all of this,” he said, “but it’s all we have to work with for right now.”

“Uh, go back to the whole cannibalism part,” Michael said.  “What’s that all about?’

“Without getting into too much classified military intelligence, that’s what really makes us believe that it’s a weapon that somehow got loose,” Roberts said.  “Normal rabies doesn’t generally cause its host to turn into a cannibal, but an enhanced version…well, maybe so?”

“Okay, so if there is a media blackout going on over there, then how do you know so much about this?” Michael asked in an annoyed tone.

“Right after we received the first report of a possible accident, we dispatched a team to Kazakhstan and they infiltrated their way north past the border and into Russia.  They were able to observe a few things and get off a couple of reports, but we stopped hearing from them two days ago.”

“Uh, this team…was it a civilian team, or some military, special forces, C.I.A. type shit?” Michael asked.

“What difference does it make?” Roberts replied in an agitated voice.  He was losing his patience with Michael…again.  “What matters is that we’ve lost our real-time intelligence, so now we have to get over there and figure out what the hell is going on.”  

Irene, who had remained silent for most of the exchange between Michael and Roberts, blurted out, “You mean to tell me that there are chemical weapons out there that can turn people into cannibals?”

Roberts leaned back in his chair and sighed.  “Not specifically into cannibals, but into raging, uncontrollable lunatics.  Back during the Cold War, both the Soviets and NATO had weapons that were designed to cause this kind of havoc amongst civilian populations.”

“That’s madness, pure madness,” Michael said.  “That’s typical military-industrial complex thinking, the same type of thinking that preached we could actually win a nuclear war.”

“No, not madness, Doctor Robinson.  It’s tactical.  What better way to weaken your enemy?  You hit his populace with an agent that causes total anarchy, and the only way the country can regain control of its own streets is to pull forces from the front line and send them home.  A weaponized version of rabies could cause all that chaos and disorder if it was deployed against an enemy.”

“And you think that’s what’s going on right now?” asked Irene.

“Yes, I think so.”  Roberts leaned forward, almost as if he were going to tell them something in secret.  “We stopped working on that stuff when the Berlin Wall fell.  The Russians, on the other hand, kept their research going.  There are many in the intelligence community who believe that they were on the verge of developing a perfect weapon—a weapon that would change the face of warfare as we know it.  Supposedly, one of its main developers tried to destroy the program when he saw the potential danger it could pose to the world.  Unfortunately for him, he was executed shortly after that.”

“God, this is just way beyond belief.”  Irene rubbed her forehead with her palm, somehow hoping to relieve the tension that was building up in her head.  “Do you really expect us to believe all of this?  That sounds like some cover-up story, like the stories of mutilated cattle and bright lights in the desert sky.”

Roberts drew back and in an offended tone said, “Lady, I really don’t give a shit what you want or don’t want to believe.”  The major was through with trying to be diplomatic on the issue.  His voice was now raised.  “I’m not here to tell you fairy tales.  Christ, I’ve already told you more than I should have.  If indeed it is a weapon, we need to get as much information about it as we can…so we can start to develop a defense against it.”

“A defense against it?” Michael asked.

“Yes, a defense.  In case a foe of the United States has already procured it.”

“Jesus, you don’t even care about what’s happening to the people over there, do you?” Michael asked incredulously.  “You could care less about how many people are dying over there or what’s happening to that country.”

“This is an issue of national security.  I could care less about Kazakhstan or any other fucking
Stan
!  We’re not going there for them, we’re going there for us.”

“That is so wrong!” Irene moaned.  “Those people think we’re going there to help them.  They put their trust in us because we are the most powerful country in the world with the best science and technology.  They think that we can really help them.”

“I really don’t care what they think.  I just know what needs to be done.  Let’s not lose ourselves in needless debate over what’s right and what’s wrong because the only important thing is making sure that we get the job done.  Anyway, the people we are going to meet in Kazakhstan have the same suspicions that we have.  They don’t want to make a bunch of noise either about the incident in Russia, but they do think that it does have something to do with all of the shit they are starting to see.”

“You’re just a bureaucratic robot,” Michael said chuckling.  “You’re not what my country is about.” 

“Just make sure you have your shit together when we hit the ground and do what you’re told,” Roberts replied in a dry, flat tone.

“Hold on there,” Michael said in objection, “you might be in the military, but we’re not.  We’re not a couple of privates you can just boss around.”

“Look, I don’t know why my superiors decided to go with the two of you, but they did.  I guess you must be hot shit in your field, but now you’re both acting on behalf of the United States and you fall under military jurisdiction.  That means the two of you do what you’re told to do…no questions asked.”

Irene quickly realized why Roberts was with them.  He was there to be their handler, to oversee and direct them, with a firm hand if necessary.  She was now really beginning to feel very frightened.

“Instead of getting all worked up over this, you might as well just sit back and enjoy the ride.  Hell, you guys should think of yourselves as two of the luckiest people around right now.  You’re living out the American dream.”

“Excuse me?” Michael asked in an astonished tone.

“You know, the American success story that everyone strives to live out.”

“I don’t see it that way,” Michael said.  “I don’t think either one of us sees this as any sort of success story.”

“And just how can you see this as a success story?” Irene questioned.

Roberts adjusted his seat back and smugly replied, “Well, just over a week ago the two of you were out in the Arizona desert digging through coyote shit, and now you guys are racing across the world in an effort to save Mankind, gaining fame, fortune and notoriety when it’s all over and done with.  It will make for a hell of a book, that’s for sure, and I’m sure when all of this is over with, you guys can have your choice of running whatever big school biology department you want.”

“Jeez, you really don’t know either of us, do you?” Irene said in disgust.  She looked down at her brown hiking boots and smiled.  “I feel sorry for your wife and your family for having you as their patriarch, I really do.”

Offended, Roberts barked, “You don’t know a damned thing about me or my family!  Now why don’t the two of you get some sleep?  You’re gonna need it.”  Calming down, he stood up and glared at Irene.  “You got spunk, and I like that.  You’re gonna need that for where we’re going.”  He glanced over at Michael, but still speaking to Irene, he said, “Maybe before we land, your partner can miraculously grow a set of balls as big as yours.”  With a smirk and a dismissive chuckle, he worked his way back to the aisle.  As he walked towards the stairway that would take him down into the cargo hold, he began to whistle a song to himself.

“I can’t tell you how much he gives me the creeps,” Irene said, contempt in her voice.

“Tell me about it,” Michael agreed.  “He’s a fanatic.  He would have been a great S.S. trooper, that’s for sure.”

Irene raised her pinky finger to her mouth and nervously began to nibble at her nail.  “I know there’s more to this than they’re telling us.”

“Yeah, I just hope they’re not dropping us into some sort of meat grinder.  I really don’t trust that guy.  To be honest with you, I think he has the potential to hurt us if we don’t do as he says.”

“You really think so?” Irene asked.

“I know so.  He’s hooked up with the N.S.A.  He’s gotta be.  They have the power to do anything they want in the name of national security.  They could kill us with the snap of a finger.”

“No wonder the directors at the C.D.C. sugar coated this whole expedition.”  Irene turned her head slightly and spat out a bit of nail.  “It’s the only way they could have sold it to us.

“Well, we just need to keep our eyes open when we get on the ground.  I just have this bad feeling that there is something else going on here, something else besides the whole ‘chemical accident’ story.”

“Believe me, I feel the same way,” Irene agreed.  “I think things must be real bad if they have a guy like that calling the shots.”  She thumbed in the direction that Roberts had walked away.

Michael sighed out loud.  “I knew things were gonna be real bad when they took away our cell phones and searched us back at the Air Force base.  I guess now we know why we can’t even get on the internet.”

***

As Roberts made his way down the stairs and into the cargo hold of the behemoth aircraft, he reached into his cargo pocket and retrieved a rather large looking cell phone.  He pressed a button on the phone and placed it to his ear.  After three rings, a groggy voice answered.

“Admiral Jenkinson,” Roberts said nervously.  He could tell that he had just awoken the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“Go ahead, Conrad.”

“Sir, we’ve been informed that the Kazakhs have at least six infected subjects at a hospital in Kostanay.  We’ll try to find out as much as we can when we get there, but I would recommend that we have a contingency plan in place to secure several of these infected subjects, especially if the situation deteriorates over there, even if that means flying a mission into Kazakhstan to secure these subjects—by force if necessary.”

“You do know the seriousness of implementing such a contingency plan should the need arise?” Jenkinson asked.

“Yes sir, I do.  But, if we do have to go that route, hopefully we can avoid the ‘force’ part of it by simply advising them that we’re better suited and equipped for evaluating, studying and treating this incident.  I’m sure they would be willing to accept any help that we offer.”

“Okay, I’ll have a transport on station out of Georgia,” Jenkinson said through a yawn.  “I don’t think the Russians plan on invading it again anytime soon.  If we do have to resort to a contingency plan, it’s imperative that you let us know with enough time when and where you want the transport to land in order to secure the subjects.  Also, we’ll have to arrange fighter escort for you once you depart Kazakhstan.  I’m sure the Russians won’t be too thrilled knowing that we have potential evidence showing that they’re still fucking around with bio weapons.  I wouldn’t put it past them to actually try to intercept anything leaving that area.” 

“I’m sure they would blow us out of the sky if they knew what we were up to.”

“Just make sure we have no other options left before we put that contingency plan into play.  You’ll be the one making the call on that.  Oh, one more thing.”  Jenkinson paused for a moment and cleared his throat.  “Our civilian doctors…are they onboard with the operation right now?”

“Well, they’re idealists, that’s for sure.  I’ve filled them in with as much as I could without compromising the security of the mission, but it may have been a bit too much for them to rationalize.”

“I’m sorry that you had to take them along, but the State Department insisted that two civilians accompanied you over there.  Just be clear on this…there’s no way that the State Department can ever find out the true nature of this mission.  No one, and I do mean no one, knows about why you’re really going over there.  Those civilians have no understanding of what is or isn’t important in regards to the safety of our country.  We have to play out the whole ‘we’re here to help you’ story until we can get a better idea of what is going on over there.  If they become a liability, we may have to ‘lose’ them over there.  Son, do I make myself clear?”

Roberts smiled.  “Crystal clear, sir.”

Day 11

Cartersville, Georgia

Jerry Welchel sat in his office as he added up the day’s earnings.  It had been three years since he and his wife had finally been able to realize
his
dream of owning their own business; an outdoor and sporting goods store.  It was already almost 10:30 p.m. and he knew that Michelle would be worrying about him.  Recently, they had been fighting over just about everything and he found himself wanting to stay away from home as much as he could.  He knew that it was bad for him to feel that way, but it was becoming a too frequent desire.  After checking his figures for a third time, he deposited the money into a concealed safe and then made a walk-through of the store.  As he punched in the security code on the control panel of his alarm, he sighed out loud and shook his head in frustration.

As he drove through the quiet streets of Cartersville, he tuned into one of the Atlanta late night radio talk shows.  He caught the tail end of the world news update.  A correspondent over in Russia had been giving a statement about some sort of crisis in the southern part of the country.

It was a muggy night and the condensation on his windshield gave the street lights an amber glow.  He was glad that he had taken down the top of his jeep because he could enjoy the warm night air.  He drove through the town square and had to wait at the rail road crossing as a slow moving train cut through the sleepy town.  He decided to call Michelle on his cell phone to let her know he was delayed by a train.  When she answered he could hear
The Discovery Channel
in the background.  Her favorite channel.  Knowing from her tone that she was worried, he could tell that she was concerned about him being out so late.  He decided to keep the conversation short so as to avoid any possible argument.  He was sure there would be one waiting for him anyway when he arrived home.  As the last car of the train passed, he rumbled over the tracks and picked up a little speed. 

He headed west out of town and then took a darkened two lane road north towards a large power station.  The night air was alive with the sound of summer insects, but as he neared the power plant, the loud hum of the generator turbines drowned out the sounds of the night.  As he cruised by the station, he saw a sleepy guard sitting just inside of the window of a small building at the main gate.  The plant was lit up like a Christmas tree with its blinking lights, and its four towering smoke stacks rose up into the darkness; the warning lights flashing to ward off any low flying aircraft. 

As he made his way into the muggy night, a wave of uncertainty and sadness came over him.  He knew that he really cared for Michelle, and at times, he could say that he truly loved her, but he knew that his feelings had been changing for almost a year now. And worst of all he didn’t know why.  After more driving in the dark, he drove over a bridge that crossed a river and he turned into a new housing division.  There were a few lights throughout the neighborhood, just enough to hint that there were people living in the area, but it was obvious that they were out in the country and not in the city.

“How’d it go tonight?” Michelle asked Jerry as he walked in.  She was curled up on the couch with a blanket over her, TV control in her hand.

“Ah, we did ok, nothing too spectacular.”  Jerry hung the keys on a nail head that was sticking out of the wall next to the door.  “Hey hun, we got anything to eat?  I didn’t get to take no lunch break because Lane had to go home early.”

“You should have called me and told me something.  I would have took ya something.”

“I know, but I didn’t wanna have you drive all the way into town,” Jerry said as he walked into the kitchen. 

“I got some roast with ‘taters and carrots there in the micro for you.  Is everything okay with Lane?”

“Yummy, roast!”  Jerry rushed over to the microwave and popped open the door.  “How long do ya think I need to reheat it?”

“Give it ‘bout two minutes or so.  Babe, did ya hear me ask about Lane?”

Jerry shut the door and punched in the time on the micro.  “Oh, I’m sorry.  Lane said his little boy had a baseball game or something like that and his ex-wife wasn’t gonna be able to take him to it.”

“Uh, wasn’t Benjie working tonight?”

“Yea, he was there too, but I didn’t wanna leave him there by himself.”

Michelle flipped the blanket off of her and walked into the kitchen.  She reached into the cabinet over the sink, getting a glass for Jerry.  He looked over at her as she was reaching for the glass.  He admired how she had always been able to keep her toned figure, especially when so many other girls had already started to gain weight and let their shapes go.  He then looked down at his own gut and sighed in disgust.  When she turned to him with glass in hand, she saw that he was admiring her and he smiled at her.

“What do you want to drink?”

“Uh, just sum water.”  The microwave began to beep and Jerry pulled out the plate of food.  Michelle filled the glass with water from the tap and handed it to him, along with a fork and knife.  She pulled out a chair from the table and sat down as Jerry tore into the food.

“Gosh hun, I hate to see you so hungry like this.  Next time call me, pleeeeze?”

“I know, but it’s your day off and I didn’t wanna have you be doing things like that.”

“Like that?”  Michelle reached over and touched Jerry on his forearm.  “Uh, remember, I am your wife.  Wives are ‘posed to do things like that.  You make it sound like it’s such a task.”

Jerry stopped eating and put down his fork.  “Look Michelle, I don’t wanna fight right now.  Come on, babe.  I had a long day and I’d like to be able to come home without having to deal with any of this.  I’m tired.”

“To deal with what?”  Michelle slid back in her chair and folded her arms across her chest.  “Jesus Jerry, I’m just offering to help ya out.  But no, you think I’m out just trying to pick a fight with you.  Maybe if you would start spending a ‘lil more time at home instead of at the shop, you wouldn’t be so damned tired all the time.”

“Here we go again!” Jerry yelled as he slapped his palm down onto the table.  His sudden outburst caught Michelle by surprise.  “Why do you always have to go there?  Tell me, why?  Why are you always so threatened by the business?”

“Oh Jerry, give me a break.  Tell me, why couldn’t you let Benjie handle it tonight?”

“Michelle, I don’t know how many times I gotta tell ya, I always want there to be at least two people at the shop…at least two.”

“Please.” Michelle sighed.  She ran her hand across her forehead and over the top of her blonde hair.  “After that thing with Alyssa, and after I forgave you for it, ya told me that you’d try to work on things spend more time at home, but it seems like you’re away even more now.”

“Damn it Michelle, you always gotta shovel that load in my face!  When are you going to stop with that?”  Jerry could feel the anger building up inside and he was trying to watch what he said.  He didn’t want to blurt out anything that he couldn’t take back.

Michelle’s eyes began to well up and she tried to choke back the tears.  “You know it’s always going to be there, Jerry!”  Now the tears were running freely.  “And you don’t have any right to get angry with me when I bring it up!  You caused it, not me!”  Michelle stood up and walked towards the bedroom as she sobbed out loud.

Jerry looked down at his plate and he began to drum his fingers on the table.  He pushed the plate aside and thought about following after her, but then decided against it.  She’d get over it.  She always did.  He looked over at the couch and knew that he was going to have to spend another night on the uncomfortable piece of furniture.  At least she had left the blanket behind.  He heard the bedroom door slam shut and he stood up and took the plate over to the trash can at the end of the counter.  He picked at one last piece of meat before he forked off the rest of the food into the receptacle.

He fumed and brooded as he sat on the couch and flipped through the television channels.  He knew that he should have been in the room with Michelle, trying to make things better, but he was too hard headed when it came to giving apologies.  He was thirty-two years old and he felt that she should have been more appreciative towards him for the things he had accomplished at his relatively young age.

  He was twenty-two when he had married his then nineteen year old bride, and although many had written them off as just another young couple following the same old small town routine, he was determined to break the mold and do something with himself.  After getting an associates in business at the community college, he threw himself into setting up his own business, and he worked very hard at it.  As far as he was concerned, he had come a long way from those early days, especially for having to start from nothing.  Hell, this was Cartersville.  When you graduated from high school, you got married and went to work at one of the mills around town and that was it.  It was rare for someone to do anything different, and he was sure that Michelle didn’t know too many other guys his age who owned their own successful business.

Jerry looked around at their modestly furnished home.  He worked hard to give them the life they had.  He knew that she worked too, but it was he who was the real bread winner.  Why couldn’t she see that instead of always accusing him of giving too much of himself to the business?  If it wasn’t for the store, they’d be living in some little apartment back in Cartersville.  Oh well, she would either get over it or not.  It was as simple as that.

Jerry sat back on the couch and he starting watching
MSNBC
as he tried to forget about his blow-up with Michelle.  He liked to watch the news channels because he felt that by doing so, it made him more of an “informed” type of person.  He had tuned into the middle of one of the programs that documented how sex predators were being arrested for trying to solicit minors over the internet.  He giggled to himself and ridiculed the guys who were getting caught by the police. 
Dirty bastards.  They all deserve to be shot.

During a commercial break, Jerry went to the refrigerator and came back with a can of beer.  He popped open the top and sat down in the middle of a commercial.  When the program resumed, he started reading news ticker that was scrolling across the bottom of the screen.  Within a few seconds of reading the first words, Jerry’s attention was completely focused on the streaming information:

World Health Organization receiving reports of possible outbreak of new strain of rabies near Russian/Kazakhstan border…Russian military reportedly moving into affected areas to set up quarantine zones…Journalists being detained and expelled from “hot zones”…Civil unrest reported in the Russian region of Chelyabinsk…Russian President Anton Moroshkin refusing to comment on situation…Director of CDC “Very Concerned” over situation and intentional blackout of information from affected region…Kazakhstan military forces placed on alert in preparation of possible mass exodus from Russia…European markets reacting negatively to Russian crisis…

“Wow, sounds like some serious shit over there,” Jerry mumbled to himself.  He stretched back on the couch and looked up at the ceiling. 
Just so long as it stays over there,
he thought. 
Lord knows I don’t need nothin else messing up my life right now.
  He flipped through the channels again and finally found something worth watching.  After fighting his sleep for several minutes, he eventually drifted off while watching a show that taught its viewers how to survive in the wilderness under extreme conditions.