Exit 9 pe-2

by Brett Battles

  “How ya doin’, Brandon? Great to see you.”

  Josie was next.

  “My God, girl. Your dad’s going to have to lock you up soon to keep the boys away,” Pax said as he gave her a hug.

  She scoffed and shook her head, but her dad, who was following right behind her, knew she loved every word of it.

  Pax held his hand out to Ash. “Good to see you, Captain.”

  “You, too.”

  Ash had tried for a while to get Pax out of the habit of calling him Captain, but it had been less than successful. Now Ash barely noticed.

  Once Tom and Pat secured the luggage to the station wagon’s roof rack, all six of them jammed inside.

  As they rode to the Lodge, Ash asked, “How long do you think we’re going to be here?”

  Pax shook his head. “Oh, I don’t know. That would be-”

  “-a Matt question?” Ash finished for him. It was one of Pax’s stock answers.

  “If you knew that, why did you ask me?”

  Ash shrugged. “I’m hoping one of these days you’ll actually tell me something.”

  The older man looked over, his brow furrowed, and they both chuckled.

  After a few seconds of quiet, Ash said, “Seriously, the kids have school, you know? I don’t want them missing too much.”

  “Don’t worry. Rachel’s lined up someone who will make sure they don’t fall behind.”

  “That doesn’t sound like you’re planning on this being a short stay.”

  “Didn’t say that. A little help never hurts, no matter how much time’s involved.”

  Pax was a master at playing the runaround game when he wanted to, so Ash decided it was best to wait until he saw Matt.

  “I thought there’d be more snow,” Brandon said.

  Ash glanced outside. Here and there were patches of the dirty white stuff, but most of the ground was bare.

  “It’s a little late this year,” Pax told him. “But don’t worry, we’re supposed to get some in the next day or two.”

  Brandon leaned forward. “Really? If we’re still here, can we have a snowball fight?”

  Pax scrunched up his face. “This time of year, snow’s usually not wet enough to make a snowball.”

  “What do you mean, wet enough? It’s frozen water.”

  “You’ll see.”

  Soon the main part of the Ranch came into view. Closest and just to the left was the dormitory. It was two stories tall, with stone surrounding the bottom and pine above that. When Ash had stayed there the first time he was brought to the Ranch, he’d felt like he was the only one in the whole building. This time he could see half a dozen people outside near the main door, and more through windows of some of the rooms.

  Beyond was the Lodge. It made the dorm look like an outhouse-five stories aboveground, and four below that Ash knew of. With a bit of snow still clinging to the shaded spots in the valleys of the massive roof, the Lodge looked even more like it should be sitting at the base of a ski run instead of here in the middle of…

  Well, Ash still didn’t know where the ranch actually was. Colorado or Wyoming was his best guess. The nearby mountains in the west looked very much like the Rockies, but every time he’d flown in or out of the Ranch, the automatic shades had been closed on the jet’s windows during most of the flight.

  As they pulled up to the Lodge, Rachel and the chef, Bobbie, came out to greet them.

  “Look at you kids,” Rachel said. “It’s only been a few months and you’re both at least an inch taller.”

  “You think so?” Brandon asked, hopeful.

  “I’m sure of it.” Rachel gave him a hug, then held her arms open for Josie, who, after a moment’s hesitation, allowed Matt’s sister to wrap her arms around her. “And how are you doing, Josie?”

  “I’m fine.” The response was automatic.

  Rachel put a hand on each of the kids’ shoulders. “Why don’t you two go with Bobbie? She’ll get some dinner for you.”

  “Pizza?” Brandon asked.

  “If you want,” Bobbie said.

  Josie glanced warily at her father. “What about Dad?”

  “We’re going to go have a little talk, and he can join you later,” Rachel told her. “Josie, if you want, you can go check out the library after you finish eating. We’ve got some new books I think you’ll like.”

  Ash could tell his daughter saw through Rachel’s attempt to distract her. Josie was smart, something Ash knew she must have inherited from her mother, because he’d never been that smart at her age. She had also grown up so much since that night at Barker Flats when their lives had changed that there were times when she was more adult than teenager. It killed Ash whenever he saw that. He wanted her to be a kid as long as she could and enjoy growing up, but in the back of his mind he knew that possibility had died with her mother, with Ellen.

  For a moment, he was sure Josie would call Rachel out on the ploy, but she nodded and said, “Okay.”

  The whole group entered the Lodge, and Bobbie headed to the kitchen with the kids.

  Once they were gone, Rachel said, “We’re down in the Bunker.”

  The room across the hall from the communications center was set up with several rows of folding chairs all facing a large flat-screen TV hanging on the wall at one end. Standing just to the side of the monitor beside a small desk were Matt, Billy, and Michael Humphrey. Billy was the Ranch’s doctor and all-around medical expert. Michael’s duties were a little harder for Ash to pin down, as he seemed to be involved in several things. There was no one else present.

  “Great,” Matt said, as Ash and the others entered. He walked over and shook Ash’s hand. “Glad you’re here.”

  Ash exchanged quick greetings with Michael and Billy, then looked around at the thirty or so empty chairs in the room. “Is it just us, or are others coming?”

  “This meeting’s just us.” Matt gestured at the front row. “Please, everyone, have a seat.”

  Matt remained standing while the others filled the chairs in the front row.

  As soon as they were settled, he said, “Ash, everyone else here already knows this. I can tell you with certainty the day we’ve all been fearing will happen sometime in the next three weeks unless it can somehow be stopped.”

  The words weren’t a surprise, given what Browne had said about the depots. The time frame was, though. Ash looked at Matt, hoping it was some kind of joke, but there was no humor in the man’s eyes. Three weeks? Even after what Ash had seen, what he’d been through with his children, and living through the outbreak that killed his wife, he never really thought it would get to this, or even could get to this.

  “How do you know that?” he asked.

  “Did Tom tell you about the depots?”

  Ash nodded.

  “Without exception, at every depot we’re aware of, our people have witnessed the arrival of truckload after truckload of supplies. This began about three months ago, and finished at all the locations three and a half weeks ago. It would be foolish not to think the same has happened at their other warehouses.”

  “That still doesn’t mean they’re going to do something in three weeks.”

  “That’s true,” Matt said. “But I’m not finished. Over the past four months, most of our people who were able to infiltrate the Project have been rooted out and killed. Prior to this, we had already learned that while the leadership of Project Eden doesn’t share many details with its members, activity levels had been increasing, including the distribution of new instructions to various groups within the Project. We also know that in August, Project members were given an inoculation that they were told would ensure their being around to help restart humanity. Though we were unable to obtain a sample, we know it must have been a vaccine for KV-27a, something they undoubtedly developed from what they’d learned about the immunity you and your children have.”

  An image flashed through Ash’s mind-his kids strapped to hospital beds with needles in their arms, surround
ed by monitors and members of Project Eden. It was all his imagination, of course. He hadn’t been there to see what was done to his children. He’d only arrived at the end, just before the late Dr. Karp was going to eliminate them.

  “Undoubtedly, it is similar to the vaccine we were able to come up with and have been trying to spread. The problem is, our production capabilities are horribly inadequate, even for the population of a medium-sized city. When we’re talking the world…” He shook his head.

  Ash was aware of the vaccine they’d been making based on a sample of his own blood. In fact, once he’d been reunited with his kids and found out about the resistance’s plan to develop it, he had offered more blood. What he hadn’t known was that Matt was trying to get the result of that out as far and wide as possible. No matter how small a dent that might make, at least it was good news.

  Matt pointed a remote control at the screen and clicked on a video file. For a moment the screen went black, then an image appeared that was all gray and white whipping around rapidly until it settled into what appeared to be a room shot from a high angle.

  “Because of the low light, he had to use night vision. What you’re looking at is a factory floor.”

  Ash could make that out now. The space was large, but unlike an assembly plant or machine shop, it appeared more like what he’d imagine a brewery would look. He could see at least a dozen large, covered tanks running down the center of the room, and there may have been more in the distance, out of range of the camera. Odder still were the people moving around the tanks. He was sure brewers didn’t wear biohazard suits when making a batch of ale.

  “What are they doing?” Ash asked.

  “Exactly what you think. This is one of who-knows-how-many mass production sites for KV-27a.”

  “Do you know where it is?”

  Matt shook his head. “No location was included.”

  “Have you tried to get in touch with your agent? We need to find this place.”

  Matt paused a moment. “Though the footage had been uploaded for over three weeks, it wasn’t discovered until eight days ago. He obviously had to upload it in a hurry and had mistakenly put it in a folder that doesn’t normally get checked.”

  “But you’re trying to get to him now, aren’t you?”

  “A week before we even knew about the file, his body was found washed up on a beach near Veracruz, Mexico.”

  Ash closed his eyes, shocked by the man’s death and frustrated by the lost opportunity.

  “There’s more,” Matt said.

  Ash reopened his eyes and focused on the screen.

  The new shot was of a loading area where large drums that must have held at least fifty gallons each were being moved into shipping containers. If Matt was right, each must have been filled with the virus.

  Matt stopped on an image of a loading dock where sealed shipping containers were being lowered onto big-rig trucks. He let it play for half a minute before turning it off.

  “So we don’t even know where they went from there?” Ash asked.

  “Does it matter?” Billy said. “Out into the world. The only reason we know none of it has been released yet is because there have been no reports of outbreaks.”

  Ash thought about it for a moment, his face becoming more confused. “None of this explains where the three-week window comes in.”

  “You’re right,” Matt said. “It doesn’t, but this does.”

  He pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Ash. On it was a series of letters coupled together. Lower on the paper was what he guessed was the decoded version:

  It’s a go. Sometime in the next seven weeks. Project Eden calls it Implementation Day.

  Best location BB n of sixty-six. Sci fac.

  “That was sent four weeks ago by the only person we have left on the inside.”

  “Implementation Day?”

  “That’s what they’re calling it.”

  “How confident are you that this time frame is right?”

  “Our man’s instructions were simple. The one and only time he was to contact us was if Project Eden moved into the active phase. Our confidence is one hundred percent.”

  Ash stared at the message for a second, then looked at the others. “We have to let someone know. It’s the only way to stop it.”

  “And who would that be?” Billy asked, as if the question was the stupidest thing he’d ever heard.

  “The government. The military. The media. There’s got to be someone who’d do something.”

  Matt stepped in before Billy could respond. “You’re probably right. There are good people in important positions who would try to step in and stop it. But they’d never get far. Your own experience should be proof of that. All the governments and military and media who could do anything are riddled with Project members in high positions who would do anything to protect the plan. The moment anyone tries to move against the Project, they’ll be discredited or even killed.” He paused. “I’m not just saying this because we think that’s what will happen. We know it will because we have tried. Many times. And each time we did, people died and nothing changed. We’ve even cut together news reports ourselves and uploaded them to the Internet, but they get pulled down almost quicker than we can put them up.”

  Pax turned to Ash. “We’re on our own. Just like we’ve always been.”

  “The last part of the message is perhaps the most valuable,” Matt said. “It gives us a ray of hope.”

  Ash glanced at the paper again, and reread the last line. When he looked up, Matt touched the remote, and a map of the Arctic Circle appeared on the monitor.

  “BB refers to Bluebird,” Matt explained. “That’s the name Project Eden uses for its main headquarters. N of sixty-six?” He touched a dotted line on the map. “North of the Arctic Circle, where there are dozens of science facilities-sci fac. Right after we received the message, we sent out several teams to the Arctic in search of the Project’s headquarters.”

  The Arctic. It made a certain crazy sense to Ash. The isolation would provide not only a formidable natural defense against any rogue virus, but against man himself. And with technology these days, they could still maintain contact with their people throughout the world even in such harsh terrain.

  “Did you find it?” he asked.

  Rachel leaned forward. “We might have. One of our teams has gone missing. We sent another team to check on it. They found wreckage and a signal beacon, but no bodies.”

  “So it was an accident.”

  She shook her head. “The searchers believe that the debris was staged so we would think it was an accident. Looking back, there were also some irregularities in the last several contacts from the missing team. On the surface they could easily be explained away, but given what the searchers found, I think the real answer is something else.” She shot a look at Matt. “I think those transmissions were faked by the Project. I think our team was discovered at an earlier stop.”

  “When they found Bluebird.”

  She hesitated, then nodded.

  “Where?”

  She stood up and walked over to the map. “We’ve narrowed it down to what we believe are the two best possibilities.” She touched the screen. “Here on Ellef Ringnes Island, and here, on Yanok Island. After Ellef Ringnes, the inconsistencies become clearer.” She looked back at Ash. “Bluebird is where the orders to start will come from.” She drew a circle with her finger that included both islands. “Somewhere in here is where it will all begin.”

  Matt nodded, his eyes also on Ash. “And that’s what we want to talk to you about.”

  Ash had guessed as much.

  “Let’s be honest,” Matt said. “At this point, our time is better spent using our resources to try and mitigate the damage. Stop the outbreak where we can, minimize the effects where we can’t, and get out as much of our version of the vaccine as possible. The only actual way to stop their Implementation Day from even happening is to cut off the head, but that doesn’t s
eem very doable given the location and time of year. Rachel, though, has successfully convinced us we need to at least give it a try. Logistically, it would make no sense to send a large detachment. First off, we need the manpower here, doing what they can to keep people alive. But, perhaps more importantly, the larger the team, the likelier its discovery before it even arrives.”

  “How many people were on your missing scout team?”

  Rachel took a breath. “Two.”

  “Two,” Ash said, looking between her and her brother. “So unless you’re sending someone up there solo, there’s a good chance any-sized team is going to be discovered.”

  “You’re right. But there’s no way I would send anyone up there alone.”

  Ash was quiet for a moment. “You want me on the team.”

  “We want you to lead the team,” Matt said.

  “Lead the team?”

  “I’m sure if you think about it, you’ll realize you’re the best for the job,” Matt said as if reading Ash’s mind. “You have the training and experience. You’ve gone up against these people before in tight situations. If you say no, we’ll understand, but, Ash…” He paused. “It would be a hell of a lot better if you said yes.”

  A thousand thoughts crowded Ash’s mind, each vying for his attention. Foremost amongst them were his kids. How could he leave them?

  Then again, given what he’d be trying to stop and keep them from experiencing, how could he stay?

  “When?” he asked, his voice a whisper.

  But before Matt or Rachel could answer, the door slammed open, and Jordan, one of Matt’s top assistants, rushed in.

  “The Bluff,” he said. “We’ve lost contact!”

  10

  They rushed into the communications room, cramming around a computer station manned by a woman named Sarah.

  “I’ve been trying to raise the Bluff, but I’m not getting anything at all,” she said. “There’s no connection. It’s as if they turned everything off at their end.”

  “Try again,” Michael said, his tone desperate. He had left his wife Janice at the Bluff before flying out to the meeting. She was supposed to have come with him, but an illness had kept her at home.