by Howard, Bob
“All I can think of is to walk outside and pop a flare, but what about the infection? Don’t you think it will be like everywhere else? Someone in a group that size has to be hiding a bite.”
He looked like he was going to say something, but then he changed his mind and said something else.
“I could spend all day trying to argue that she’s different, but I have nothing to base my beliefs on except the control she seems to command.”
Kathy gave him a half smile and said, “I think you’re trying to tell me not to lose faith, Chief. If we stop believing there are good people out there who are also realistic, then we’re no different from the others who wouldn’t let us in. Remember the Naval Weapons Station? They wouldn’t let us land because they thought we would be bringing in the infection. I guess this would be a leap of faith, Chief.”
He returned her smile then motioned for Hampton and Colleen to join them.
“We’re going to turn the shelter over to them if we can find a way to communicate with the leader without getting shot. Any ideas?”
Hampton said, “I think that PA system I found may have speakers on the surface.”
“You mean the one you used earlier? You think it broadcasts to the surface? No wonder those things are so worked up,” said the Chief.
The Chief walked over to the microphone and started to press the talk key, but something crossed his mind at the last second, and he looked at Kathy.
“You’re up,” he said.
He turned the microphone in her direction. Kathy didn’t need to ask why. Whoever this lady was, she had already seen her share of groups led by men who had used the infection outbreak as a means to gain power. She might be more receptive to a female voice.
Kathy paused long enough to grin at the Chief and said, “Women rule.”
The Chief rolled his eyes enough to hurt, but he couldn’t say he didn’t expect it.
Kathy keyed the microphone and said, “Welcome to Ambassadors Island. Will you honor a flag of truce?”
“That’s kind of old fashioned, isn’t it?” asked Colleen.
“Yes,” said Kathy, “but some of the old rules apply now. Honoring a truce dates back centuries, and this infection has turned back the pages on the calendar. Most of the surviving world is probably using the barter system while the rest of it is functioning like those jackasses who were in charge of the island until we got here.”
On the monitor the uncertainty was obvious. Everyone on the firing line had dropped to the ground. The tall woman had taken cover behind an abandoned car. It was easy to see that she was coordinating with people throughout the ranks, and they were trying to determine where the voice had come from. No one knew.
Rather than giving them too much to think about, Kathy simply repeated her first broadcast. She waited a moment and then added they could signal the affirmative by the leader raising her right fist in the air.
There were some exchanges between several of the people who may have been officers, and one of the men raised his right fist in the air.
Kathy keyed the microphone and asked, “Will you indicate that you will honor a flag of truce by having the tall woman with the silver hair raise her right fist in the air?”
Instead of raising her fist, the woman stood up straight and walked out from behind her cover. It didn’t take a rocket scientist for her to understand that someone who had them at a visible disadvantage was also asking them not to shoot. They couldn’t even see them, so they certainly couldn’t shoot them. They may or may not have the capability to wipe them out from a place of hiding, but she didn’t want to find out.
Kathy immediately keyed the microphone and said, “Please indicate that you will honor a truce. Time is short, and we need to talk.”
The tall woman looked a bit disturbed by being vulnerable, but the Chief covered the microphone and told Kathy she was doing a good job.
“The lady is an experienced diplomat. She’s not giving in or even conceding. She’s establishing an equality between us. If she was dealing with those cretins who were here on the island when we got here, she would have to appear strong. Since she doesn’t know we’re the good guys, she has to make us work for the truce.”
“Chief, would you believe they teach street cops the same thing? It’s called a control situation,” said Kathy.
Colleen added, “They teach the same thing to school teachers and parents about dealing with five-year-olds. It’s all about testing limits and equal giving and taking.”
None of them knew much about Colleen, even Hampton, but the observation won her a measure of respect. The biggest reason the Mud Island group had survived from the start was likely to be luck, but sometimes luck was a byproduct of intelligence.
When they looked back at the monitor, they saw that the woman had raised her right hand in a fist.
Kathy said, “You have infected coming your way. After you clear them, please approach the brick wall on the right side down by the water. You may bring an armed escort, but I assure you weapons will not be necessary.”
They saw the woman look toward the infected dead that continued to crowd through the open gates, and then she glanced toward the brick wall. She gave the signal to fire again, and her firing line did its job. She walked back and spoke with a man who seemed to be acknowledging her orders and then selected two other men to come with her. The Chief pointed out that the three empty positions on the firing line were filled by three women as soon as the men left.
“Equality in the ranks,” said the Chief. “My guess would be she has a military background.”
The camera view showed the trio approaching the edge of the road where it dropped down to the hidden entrance to the shelter. Kathy had to hurry if she wanted to open the door without keeping them waiting for too long.
The Chief said, “Remember, Kathy. It’s a leap of faith. They could take it from us after we let them in, but I don’t think that’s what’s happening here.”
“Me either, Chief.”
Kathy hurried away toward the stairs up to the surface. Keeping them waiting was a good idea to some extent, but too long might make them nervous. The Chief was right that they could take the shelter once they were inside, but it seemed that they would willingly accept it as a gift. They were too disciplined to see it as a trick.
The tall woman and her escort dropped over the edge toward the water and waited. They kept their weapons aimed back toward the entrance to Ambassadors Island just in case any infected appeared at the top of the steep gravel bank.
When the brick wall in front of them began to move, and there was the sound of brick rubbing against brick, they forgot about the road above them and aimed their rifles at the dark gap that had opened. None of them expected the pretty blond who stuck her head out into the light.
“Step inside, and I’ll close the door behind you. As a sign of good faith, you may keep your weapons. Please don’t make me regret it.”
Iris Mason didn’t believe there was much left in the world that would surprise her. Only a few nights before she had a discussion with some of her officers along those same lines. She told them when they lost the capacity to be surprised, that was when they were likely to lose their lives to the unexpected. She was glad to learn she could still be surprised, and she saw by the looks on the faces of her security detail that she was not alone in her feelings.
When they stepped into the darkness she saw the door was much more than brick. It was as thick as a bank vault, and would have been impenetrable if they had tried to break in. There wasn’t much light at first, but as her eyes adjusted, she saw the landing was just the beginning.
“What is this place?” she asked.
“You’ll have plenty of explanations in the next few minutes. More than you’ll believe.”
No matter how many times Kathy got to see the look on someone else’s face when they saw the inside of a shelter, it was still a treat. As the lights were brought back up to normal level by the Chief down belo
w, Kathy saw the looks on their faces.
After Kathy had gone to the door, the Chief had darkened the interior of the shelter as much as possible. It was a better idea not to have backlighting behind Kathy that would make her an easy target.
When the lights were back to normal, the tall woman reached out with both hands and put them on the rifles held by her security detail. She gently pressed downward to get them to lower their weapons. She saw that Kathy was unarmed and waiting for her to make the next move, so she did.
She didn’t speak even though she hadn’t gotten an answer to her first question, but she stepped past Kathy and walked calmly to the railing. She saw three more people approaching the stairs below. The man in the lead looked familiar. He was wearing blue coveralls, but in her mind she saw him wearing a white uniform. By the time he reached the top of the stairs, she knew why he looked so familiar.
“Chief Joshua Barnes, I presume,” she said.
Even though she was as tall as the Chief, her wiry frame made her appear smaller.
He did his best to not show surprise because he didn’t recognize her. He didn’t want to embarrass her by saying so.
“Yes, Ma’am,” he said as he held out his hand offering to shake hers.
“Iris Mason, Chief. Don’t worry, we don’t know each other. I just recognize you. I was Chief of Security on the sister ship of the Atlantic Spirit.”
Kathy let out a sigh of relief.
“This is going to be a whole lot easier than I thought it would be if you two are already acquainted. We’re short on time, and we need to get down to the explanations, but first we’re going to give you a quick tour. You might find some of it more believable if you see it with your own eyes.”
Kathy said, “I’m Kathy McGinley of the Charleston Police Department.”
They shook hands, and Iris introduced her security detail. There was an awkward moment when she started to introduce Hampton and Colleen, but it broke the remaining tension for everyone.
“For some reason,” she said, “I know his last name and her first name.”
“Hi, I’m Chris Hampton, and this is Colleen O’Connor.”
Hampton stepped forward and shook their hands and then made room for Colleen to do the same.
“Iris, Colleen and I just saw this place for the first time just a short while ago. Apparently the Chief and Kathy are used to this stuff. I know how this must all look to you, but if you’ve ever trusted anyone in your life, believe me when I say they weren’t more trustworthy than these people are.”
“I think we’re well on our way to trust, Chris, but I sure would like to know what’s going on.”
“I have an idea,” said Kathy. “Since we’re short on time, and since your people outside are still in danger, maybe we should start by getting them all inside. How many are there?”
Iris looked like she had a moment when she was considering whether or not to give too much information, but she snapped out of it.
“What was I thinking?” she said. “You said we should start bringing everyone inside, and I almost lied to you about our numbers. You really are offering to make everyone safer.”
“More than that,” said Kathy.
“There are about eighty adults and about thirty children,” said Iris.
Kathy, the Chief, Hampton, and Colleen all reacted the same way when they heard there were that many children. They hadn’t seen many in the months since the infection began, and most of the ones they had seen were lost to a bite from someone they knew.
Kathy asked Hampton to go back to the monitors and let her know if the outside cameras showed it was all clear outside the hidden door. He ran down the stairs and jogged to the communications room and then came over the PA system.
“All clear.”
“Let’s get moving,” said Kathy. “Chief, if you and Colleen can lead the way, we can start by having everyone go to the first big dining room. It should be more than big enough. Then we can talk with Iris about how they’ve controlled bite victims.”
The Chief was a bit amused because this was the way he saw Kathy take charge on his cruise ship. He had been the senior enlisted person on board when Kathy was asked to take over security, and he never once resented being ordered to defer to her. It was good to see her in action again.
Kathy opened the outer door again, and led Iris back outside. Her two men immediately scrambled up the steep bank to cover her, and they had to open fire as soon as they reached the top. The infected had started to increase their numbers on the road again, so Iris shouted an order for her firing line to resume shooting and to advance at the same time. She gave an order to one of them. He nodded in understanding and ran toward the people watching from the firing line.
Iris had some really good people with her, and Kathy recognized training when she saw it. Some of the men and women must have been police officers and military. They came forward along the side of the road that was in a straight line to the door, setting up a protective wall for the children and the adults who were watching them. Kathy was fascinated by their efficiency and the way they focused their fire to direct the infected to move toward the firing line.
On a signal Kathy didn’t see, the children began running behind the protective wall in her direction. She was surprised by the size of the lump in her own throat. As they reached her and ran inside the shelter, she felt like she had to touch each of them to be sure they were real.
The children were followed by women, a few older people, and some younger adults. Then the firing line and the protective wall of shooters collapsed around toward the entrance to the shelter. They fired their rifles and handguns with efficiency until the last of them backed into the shelter entrance, and Kathy pulled the door shut.
The Chief was busy escorting people to the stairs and carrying children down on his shoulders. They were laughing as they clung to his neck, but otherwise there were only whispers and confused murmuring. Everyone was acting as if they had walked into a library or a church, and they weren’t supposed to talk out loud.
“They’ve had months to get used to the idea that talking in an unknown environment will get you killed,” said Iris. “Once they realize what’s happened, they’ll be loud enough.”
“I’ll tell you the truth,” said Kathy. “We haven’t even finished making a really thorough search of this shelter ourselves, and we found three infected in a lower level. We don’t know how they got in, but it was probably back when all this began. We can brief you while your men are helping get the search done.”
“I heard what you said about controlling bite victims. Is that why you had everyone go to one large room?”
“Like it or not,” Kathy began, “undisclosed bites will be the undoing of any group that doesn’t make checking for bites a routine.”
“I agree, and we have a system that keeps parents from hiding that their kids were bitten and from husbands and wife doing the same for each other.”
“Good,” said Kathy. “Let’s get that started. While the others are working on clearing up that messy problem, the Chief and I can fill you in on the rest.”
They all went to the dining room together. The room went silent when they walked in. There was a measure of respect for their leader, but the silence was just as driven by the need for an explanation.
Kathy stepped forward first and introduced herself.
“You’re in an underground shelter that cannot be penetrated from the outside. The infected cannot get in. Living people cannot get in. There are large amounts of supplies in the shelter, but we haven’t done an inventory yet, so we don’t know if they will need to be rationed or if there are already enough for you to live on.”
A man spoke up from one of the tables.
“We can always go out for more supplies. We’ve done pretty well for ourselves.”
Other voices started to chime in, but Iris held up her hand to silence them.
“I want everyone to remember we are guests here. Our hosts didn�
�t have to open their doors to us. There must have been a good reason for them to do that, so let’s hear them out.”
Kathy gave it a moment to sink in, then she continued.
“The first thing I was going to say was that you are completely safe here. There is nothing that can harm you. We will also take a look at the power supply to this island to see if it’s permanent. We only need to be sure that you can be self-sustaining here, and we should know that fairly quickly.”
Kathy had been trained as a police officer how to speak to people as an authority figure without being threatening. Of course it didn’t hurt to have the Chief standing next to her.
“This is Chief Barnes. Besides being an all around good guy, he’s a former Navy SEAL and national hero. He’s going to work with your leaders to explain very quickly how the shelter works and anything important they need to know. He will need to meet with at least ten people including Ms. Mason, but before they go, we need to follow your process, whatever it is, for identifying any possible bites you may have gotten on your journey to this island.”
There were murmurings again from around the room, and Kathy waited for it to settle down again, but before she could resume speaking, a woman stood up at a table off to her left. She was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, and she had a holster around her waist. When she pulled the gun from her holster, Kathy felt like they had made a serious mistake.
The Chief had been leaning against a wall behind Kathy, and he immediately stood up straight. Hampton and Colleen were off to one side, but both knew it would be too late to defend themselves.
A man at another table near the center of the room calmly walked over to the woman who had stood up, and she handed her gun to him. Before he could walk away, everyone at the table reached out with their weapons, and he collected them. The tables were large enough to seat eight people, and some of them had children on their laps.
As the man walked back to his table, the children and adults who had surrendered their weapons removed the tablecloth and carried it to the corner of the room where the bar ran along one wall. They hung the tablecloth from the glass racks above the bar to create a modest amount of privacy, and then they stepped away to one side.
