The Variables (5 page)

“Dad,” she said. Huck turned to the wall, away from her. “Is this necessary?” she asked him, but he continued to ignore her. She straightened her back and brushed a piece of hair out of her face and followed Claude to the hallway. When the door clicked shut behind them, Huck turned back to Scott and waited.

Scott’s heart pounded as he pulled the vials from his pocket and silently popped the plastic lids off into his hand. He held the needles away from his skin. He turned like he was following in Claude’s footsteps, and then paused, as if he were changing his mind, and walked to Eugene.
 

The man stood again and he put his hands out in front of him. “Stop,” he commanded. “Stay where you are.”

Standing tall, Eugene towered over Scott. Everything about him loomed large, and Scott began to assess if this was possible, if he could be quick enough, confident enough, to pull off Huck’s request. His mind worked overtime as he watched Eugene’s eyes hone in on him like a caged animal plotting his escape. He had to know his time was over. He could smell it in the air.

“I agree with you...the Elektos Board should be an elected body,” Scott said and he took a small step forward. He lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “It makes sense.” He stopped in front of Mrs. Brikham and closed his eyes for just a half-second. “And I’m sorry. There is no other way.” With a quick motion, he plunged the needle into her neck, pushed the poison into her jugular, and left the syringe dangling from her flesh.
 

Mrs. Birkham yipped and cussed, and grasped at the foreign object. She fell forward to the table, white foam forming at the edges of her mouth. In the moment it took for Eugene and Charles to realize what had happened and rush forward to her aid, Scott had brandished the virus filled needles in both hands and jabbed the men simultaneously: one into Eugene’s hand, the other into his son’s stomach.

By the time they realized they, too, had been attacked, the vicious concentration of heart-stopping pathogens had already started working, decelerating their systems, blurring their vision, and slowing their breathing. Within fifteen seconds, they were dead. Their eyes rolled upward, their bodies only heaps on the ground. Scott stepped to the wall and took a deep breath. It was done. It was over.

“Are they contagious?” Gordy asked, covering his mouth and nose with his jacket. The Elektos Board began to yell into their microphones, their voices merely tinny screeches from afar. Huck leaned down and pushed the mute button. The room went strangely quiet.

Scott shook his head. “Of course not. It’s not the same as before. Just stay away from the bodies as a precaution, of course. And I do want them brought to my lab for further testing.” He hated that it made him sound callous and detached, because it could not be further from the truth. He wanted to examine them closely because he had yet to test this batch on humans, and his mind was racing with the hope that he had improved upon his original design. He would take great care of their bodies, as specimens, as contributors to science.

“But we can release this one in the air, too?” Huck asked, stepping closer to Eugene’s body, tiptoeing. Scott nodded.

They took stock of the room—the screens around them moving with talking heads, pointing fingers. Huck reached and pushed the volume button again and the room once again erupted with noise.
 

“We demand to know what just happened!” Roman yelled.

“This is outrageous,” Victor said.

Huck sat back down at his seat and straightened his camera. He looked directly into the screen. “Settle down, settle down,” he said. And when the Elektos Board failed to listen to him, his face turned red, a vein throbbed in the middle of his forehead, and he yelled wildly. “You will listen to me! I command your attention.”

The Board stopped talking. They looked at their screens and waited; Huck was illuminated by the glow of their screens.
 

Claude reentered the room, followed by six guards in full protective gear. Blair slipped back in behind them and when she saw the bodies, she brought her hand up over her mouth, and pushed herself into the corner of the room, holding her bag up against her chest like a shield. The men worked efficiently to clear the Brikham’s bodies out of the boardroom. They disposed of the needles in a metal case, and hauled the family out like ragdolls. Then they cleaned the area with disinfectant wipes: the chairs, the table, and the ground beneath them. The whole spectacle took less than a minute. Scott couldn’t help but notice that the teenaged boy’s features had softened in death, and he looked so young and baby-faced. Without his scowl and his offensive demeanor, he was just a kid.
 

He looked away as the young man’s body disappeared out into the hallway.

Shay tapped his microphone and drew everybody’s attention to his screen. “What happened, Huck? We are hopeful your answer is reasonable. Our people will demand it.”

“You are in charge of what your people know about, Shay,” Huck said, annoyed. “Are you implying I should find someone with more discretion for your post?”

“We shouldn’t discuss this remotely. I petition for an in-person Board meeting,” Morowa demanded.

Huck sighed. “This is the way it has to be. We will no longer humor the entitlement. The Brikham family is one of many who felt that their money bought them the right to make requests and the right to break the rules. They thought they were better, and for no reason. And, as you know, we are not in the position to change course. Our Islands are perfect. They will be run with precision under my direct leadership. Had I anticipated their poor behavior, I would have rid our Systems of them before now. But we were busy implementing Release Day...getting people to our bunkers was enough of a hassle. Then we were supposed to add a second operation? No. It made sense to wait.”

“These are the variables you wished to discuss with us?” Roman asked, his mouth open. “Huck—” he could not find the words to continue.

“They are scum.” Huck spat the word with venomous power. “Scum. Fit only to be used for a time...but not qualified to benefit from our labor.”

“You want to murder men, women, and children...who have already earned their safety?” Mueez continued. “And you wish to make that decision without consulting your Board?”

Gordy leaned close to the camera. “Mueez and Shay. Are you saying you wish to continue to the Islands and live among men like Mr. Brikham?”

“You know that from the start we have been on board with your ideals,” Shay answered. “When you first approached us, we understood immediately the beauty of a world depopulated and then filled with peace. You promised us peace. Calmness. Love. You said we would end war and live among each other in harmony. We were drawn to that message because we have lived through war.” Shay’s voice rose and trembled.

Huck opened his mouth to reply, but the Israeli man continued.

“We share a story. We have lost our daughters—”

“Don’t,” Huck interrupted, his words stern. “Don’t.”

Shay put up a hand in apology.

Mueez took over. “Our System cannot partake in more slaughter. We will work together with those in our System who are unsavory, entitled, and unruly, and we will educate them.”

Gordy looked to the ceiling and rubbed his chin with his hand. “Gentlemen, you are lacking self-awareness right now, and it would be humorous if it weren’t so dangerous.”

He paused and waited. Each Elektos member waited. Their faces were a mixture of concern, fear, curiosity, and complacency. Yuri from Russia even appeared to nod off, his head bobbing up and down, his eyes fluttering. His Elektos partner from Japan, Kazuma, nudged him awake.

“Go on,” Mueez said and he crossed his arms, waiting.

“You cannot pick when you think murder is okay and when you don’t. You already agreed to the demise of nearly 7 billion people. And now...
now
...you raise your voice against people who truly don’t deserve to live.”

No one said anything.

“Great,” Gordy said. “We’re understood.”

“No,” Mueez pushed. “It’s different. And we refuse to accept that this is the only way.”

“Victor is unusually quiet,” Huck said. “What does Victor think?”

Victor leaned forward. “How many people fit the profile?”

“Roughly one hundred people from every System.”

“Six hundred people total?” Victor clarified. “And what is their sin? Disagreeing with you?”

Huck smiled, and tilted his head, every bit the picture of patronization. “Hardly. This is about the greater good.”
 

Victor shrugged. “If the list is supplied with intelligence on their crimes...if we feel these people are a threat to the Islands...”

“You can’t be serious,” Shay snapped.

“...we would support Huck’s decision,” Victor finished. “As a voice of my people, I would have to agree...there are people here, in the EUS One, who are problematic to our way of life. Variables, or whatever you would like to call them.”

“Shall we vote?” Huck asked.

“This is a sham,” Mueez shouted at his screen. “We will not take the lives of the people we have offered sanctuary. We won’t. Every life here has value, more value than before.”

“You will follow my lead,” Huck said with deliberate calm.

“We oppose this new direction. Our disagreement is final.” Mueez lifted his chin in defiance.

Huck knocked on the boardroom table. “Claude?” Claude looked up and raised his eyebrows. “Make the call to our central command on the Islands, please.”

“You sure, sir? You don’t want to give them another chance to change their minds?”

“Make the call,” Huck repeated.

Claude stood up and left the room again, the door shutting behind him.

“If you do not abide by the rules, then you do not get to benefit from our protection,” Huck said to the men. “I’m sorry, dear friends. But you leave me with no other choice than to show you what your world would look like without my backing.”

Before the men could reply, their screens went dark.

Kazuma nudged Yuri again. Roman sighed. Morowa looked down, pained, but silent.

“You cut them off,” Victor stated and shook his head. “For how long?”

“Claude can remotely turn back on their solar power in a few days...when the oxygen depletes enough to make them feel like they are near death.” Someone muttered, and Huck’s eyes flashed. “You are guests in my houses,” he seethed between clenched teeth. “These buildings do not belong to you. Whether your hands toiled to make them or your money went to build them...you are in
my
home. And only through the grace of me will you continue onward to reside in my
mansions
.”

No one dared to comment.

Huck rose. “Meeting adjourned.” And Gordy swiftly ended the video conference; each screen fading away, leaving only the blank, glassy monitor in front of him, reflecting Scott’s tired, sallow cheeks.

“Father,” Gordy said as they moved past the side of the table. “Be careful...these men are your alliances in Systems out of reach. They could defect before we would have a chance to respond...if you want to keep the men in line, make them
comfortable
, not fearful.”

“Don’t be stupid, Gordy,” Huck replied.

Claude reentered the room and he paused when he saw the chat had been discontinued. “How long do you want me to keep them in the dark?” he asked Huck. “I have good men there and I’d prefer not to push it.”

“You will turn back on their power when I say for you to turn back on their power. And we will keep them in the dark as long as it takes,” was Huck’s reply. He started to shuffle out the door, his son on his heels. Blair grimaced and marched out after her dad, calling after him. Huck paused and looked at her with twitchy eyes and an annoyed expression. “Be quick, Blair.”

“You promised you’d discuss what we talked about,” Blair said, tapping her high-heeled foot for emphasis. “Today, Dad. You promised. Talk to him about the boy. Please?” She shot a brazen look to Scott and lifted her chin, and then when her father didn’t reply, she looked to him, eyes flashing, begging.

Huck ran his fingers over his head and mumbled under his breath. “Not right this second, Blair. Don’t you have any sense of what just happened in here? Why don’t you show some goddamn self-awareness?” Then he pushed the boardroom doors open and left everyone standing there, glancing at each other in awkward silence.
 

Scott’s hands were still shaking and he balled them into fists to steady them. Claude put a comforting hand on his back.
 

“This will all be over soon, friend,” Claude whispered.
 

Blair turned and looked at Scott. She cleared her throat and tightened her grip on her bag, sliding it up higher on her shoulder.

“Fine,” Blair said to no one in particular, her lips pursed. “I’ll just tell you myself. My father and I have been discussing the future for the child—”

Without waiting for her to finish, Claude opened the boardroom door wide and held a hand outstretched for Scott to exit first.

“Excuse us,” Claude said to her. “We’re quite busy, Ms. Truman. Perhaps you could take this up with Mr. King at another time. Make an appointment.” Scott hesitated, looking between the hallway and Blair. She had gone rigid, and she bit the inside of her right cheek. Her nostrils flared.
 

“Of course,” she managed to say before Claude and Scott left her standing alone in the boardroom with only the empty monitors and the lemon smell of cleaning wipes to keep her company.
 

CHAPTER TWO

Lucy had never had a boyfriend before the end of the world.

She had kissed people, sure, various boys here and there, and in the sixth grade she had held hands with an eighth grade boy every day during lunch; he was a cross-country runner with big ears and the beginnings of a mustache, and he always smelled like garlic. Then they ran out of small talk and went their separate ways. When they finally stopped standing in the cafeteria breezeway, clasping their sweaty palms together, discussing teachers and movies and gossiping about classmates, it was a relief: no more forced conversations. No more banal text messages. No more embarrassing questions at dinner.