by Bobby Akart
The building was named after former Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn. A Texan, Rayburn was the longest running Speaker of the House in American History, perhaps due to his preferring to work quietly in the background as opposed to seeking the public spotlight. There could be lessons to be learned from Speaker Rayburn’s approach.
Mac had already garnered a significant amount of attention on this day. She wore her service dress whites, as was customary in the summer, and with her height and beauty, she caught the eye of virtually everyone entering Rayburn that day.
After she cleared security, Mac made her final decision. She’d wrestled with donning the remainder of her attire. Should I drive the point home or toe the line? Go big, or go home, she decided.
Just before they entered room 2123, Mac and her attorney were approached by an intern for Ranking Member Jean Haskell, a member of the President’s party. The young woman introduced herself and spoke mainly to Mac’s attorney. A brief statement had been drafted for her to read at the onset of her testimony. A statement carefully prepared by Haskell’s office and Mac’s superiors at the CDC.
Mac read it and handed it back to the attorney, shaking her head in disgust. The statement they drafted sealed the deal. She reached into her briefcase and donned white gloves, an N95 particulate mask, and protective eyewear. Without saying another word, she held her head high and marched into the den of vipers.
The committee was minutes away from convening, but the pool photographers were already in place. As Mac entered the room, the photogs jumped from their kneeling position and crowded the rail that separated their nest from the table where Mac’s place card awaited her—LCDR Mackenzie Hagan, MD.
Except for the nonstop clicking of cameras, the room became quiet as Mac made her way to her seat. She sat down and looked directly into the C-SPAN camera that was a permanent fixture in the room.
Chairman Masterson appeared through a rear door with his staff in tow and immediately stared at Mac for a few seconds before a sly grin crossed his face. He was an astute politician.
The rest of the committee members filed in and took their seats. All eyes were on Mac. Although she didn’t pay attention to politics, Mac’s instincts told her which members of the committee belonged to the President’s party and which belonged to Chairman Masterson’s party. There was no doubt which sets of eyes were shooting darts and which ones offered encouragement. Mac’s decision to wear the mask and protective eyewear helped her identify the enemy.
Chairman Masterson made a brief statement in which he commented on the growing threat the nation faced from the spread of infectious diseases. “Our government has been slack in preparing for the next big pandemic or biological terrorism attack. By our failure to act, not only are we endangering our citizens, but also the economic stability of our nation.”
Masterson, a retired physician, had always been a proponent of the CDC, but he found himself on opposite ends of the political spectrum from the President on immigration matters. He continued with his opening statement.
“Protecting the United States from the next pandemic or killer flu, or from a bioterror attack, is something that Republicans and Democrats can easily agree on. This is a topic that should bring us all together. Yet the money hasn’t been there for research and investigation for agencies like the Centers for Disease Control. Even in the face of threats emerging in Central America, we cannot manage to approve the necessary appropriations to allow talented individuals like our witness to do her job.”
Masterson finished his opening remarks and then yielded the floor to the highest-ranking member of the minority party in Congress, Congresswoman Jean Haskell from Georgia. Mac could feel the anger directed at her from Congresswoman Haskell.
“Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I agree that we need some issues around here to work on together. There are plenty of subjects to fight about, and frankly, I came into today’s hearing excited about the prospect of this Congress getting back into the habit of doing the right thing.”
Congresswoman Haskell removed her glasses and stared at the desk in front of her for a few seconds before clasping her hands. “I most, however, strenuously object to this display of attire donned by the witness. This is the type of grandstanding and excess that violates the decorum this committee has insisted upon for years. Mr. Chairman, I ask that the witness be instructed to, um, to remove that garb so that we can properly conduct the business of this committee.”
The packed gallery began to mumble to their seated companions and several stretched to see Mac and how she was dressed. With Mac’s back to the gallery, most were probably unaware that she was wearing protective gloves, goggles, and a mask.
The chairman smacked his gavel against a sound block, demanding the room come to order. “Thank you, Ranking Member Haskell. Perhaps we should allow our witness to make her opening statement.”
Mac stood and was sworn in. She sat down and her attorney slid the proposed opening remarks in front of her. After she stated her name, position with the CDC, and a brief résumé, she said the words that had been formulated in her mind for days.
Chapter 79
Day Twenty-Eight
House Committee on Energy and Commerce
Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC
THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP.
Mac’s heartbeat was steady and her demeanor remarkably calm as she read the prepared statement by Congresswoman Haskell’s office. Twice during the brief introduction, she glanced in the congresswoman’s direction, who appeared to soften her hostility as she followed along on her own copy of Mac’s statement.
The prepared remarks hit all of the high points impressed upon her by Baggett and those enunciated on the campaign trail by the President. She stated our planet was at risk to a global pandemic due to the fact that humanity had pushed the biosphere to its limits, climate change had taken an irreversible toll, our cities were overcrowded, and we should be humane to those who desire to seek a better life in our country.
These were all political talking points. Of course, the final paragraph berated Congress for cutting the CDC’s budget and insisted that, with more funding, all would be right with the world.
Mac considered the entire dissertation. She wanted to talk about the outbreak in Guatemala, the growing number of cases in Europe, the terrorist connection, and the infected dead bodies in New Mexico, on U.S. soil!
“The chair recognizes the gentlemen from Arizona,” said Chairman Masterson.
“Thank you, Mr. Chairman,” said Congressman Ron Epperson, a congressman from Tucson. “Dr. Hagan, the CDC has been investigating an outbreak in Guatemala for weeks. Why has the American public not been notified of this?”
Mac leaned into the microphone. “Sir, until recently, the Guatemalan outbreak was isolated to the jungles of the northwestern part of the country at the Mexican border. The disease has spread now throughout Guatemala City and other populated areas.”
“Isn’t it a matter of time before we have cases on U.S. soil? Shouldn’t the CDC be warning the American people of the danger?”
He knows about the New Mexico cases under investigation. There haven’t been any official autopsy findings disseminated that I know of.
Mac was walking a fine line between telling the truth and pissing off Baggett, possibly Dr. Spielman, a scowling Congresswoman Haskell, and most certainly POTUS. “Sir, I have conducted an investigation recently in New Mexico. I viewed a number of dead bodies in the desert. There has not been a confirmed death from the same infectious disease that has stricken Guatemalans, as of yet.”
“You’re mincing words, Dr. Hagan. Do you or do you not hypothesize that the deceased victims in New Mexico are infected with the pneumonic plague bacterium.”
“Sir, that may be my hypothesis, but until the autopsies are performed and the specimens studied, it will be—”
“Isn’t it also true that several of the bodies are unidentified male Muslims and, therefore
, their bodies cannot be autopsied under their Islamic religious beliefs?”
Was Dr. Okoli talking to the congressman’s staff or the media?
Mac didn’t respond to the congressman’s questioning and remained calm. The attorney leaned over to whisper to her, but she couldn’t hear him.
THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP.
Congressman Epperson continued. “I believe that this matter is being covered up and the American People have a right to know what’s at stake here. We have a porous southern border that leaks like a sieve. People are infected with this deadly disease in our backyard, and let me say it aloud for everyone to hear. The plague! We’re talking about the plague here. Not some namby-pamby flu bug. This is a killer. It’s killed before and now it’s killing again. And this administration refuses to take action to protect our citizens from a disease that has killed for centuries from invading U.S. soil.”
“That’s absolutely not true,” interrupted Congresswoman Haskell. “This President has a great love for this country and all of its citizens. One thing for certain, President Garcia is not a fearmonger.”
Here we go, thought Mac.
Chairman Masterson slammed down the gavel several times. “The gentlelady is out of order!”
“Yes, she is,” shouted Congressman Epperson. “She and her party are only interested in maintaining calm during the final few months of the election cycle while our country faces an apocalyptic pandemic that could wipe us off the face of the planet.”
“That’s freakin’ outrageous!” shouted back the gentlelady from Georgia. “You are engaging in hyperbole and rhetoric that is harmful to this nation for political gain. You know full well that your statements could rattle financial markets and, I might add, have a profound negative impact on attendance at the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in my home state.”
“Oh yes,” shouted back Congressman Epperson, leaning forward to face Congresswoman Haskell. “Let’s not hinder the President’s favorite accomplishment—stealing the Olympics from South Korea. How many millions of people are going to carry the plague into Atlanta next month, hmm?”
“Enough!” shouted Chairman Masterson, repeatedly slamming the gavel until there was complete silence in the chamber. “I want to hear from Dr. Hagan on this.”
Chapter 80
Day Twenty-Eight
House Committee on Energy and Commerce
Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC
“Dr. Hagan, as a former physician, I am familiar with the plague, but tell us what you know about this particular strain and its impact on the human body,” instructed Chairman Masterson.
“Thank you, Mr. Chairman,” started Mac. “Just like a spy entering enemy territory, the first thing that the plague does is go under cover. The bacterium contains an outer membrane that is made up of endotoxins like LPS, which elicit a strong immune response in all animals.
“LPS is a dead giveaway to your immune system, which would ordinarily fight the bacteria. However, the bacterium cleverly disguises itself by modifying the structure of this molecule so it no longer alerts the immune system. Incredibly, the plague can detect the temperature outside its membrane. When the temperature is near the temperature of animals, 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, it recognizes that it’s inside a warm-blooded mammal.
“Then the bacterium races for your lymph nodes, that part of our immune system that is constantly searching for microbial intruders. During this journey, the bacterium encounters immune cells and jams what looks like a hypodermic needle into the cells, infecting them with several toxins. This damages the cells and prevents them from protecting the body.
“Over the next eight days after becoming infected, your body is constantly under attack from the bacterium. Your immune system picks up on the fact that something is terribly wrong. The lymph nodes may swell, as in the case of bubonic plague, the famed Black Death. But overall, your body kills itself.
“The presence of so many bacteria in the bloodstream causes your immune system to freak out, triggering a condition called septic shock. Your body’s blood vessels begin leaking, decreasing blood volume. This leads to abnormal clotting and multiple organ failure.
“But if that doesn’t kill you, the bacteria then migrates through the blood to your lungs, at which point you contract pneumonia. Game over.”
The room was silent except for a few members of the gallery clearing their throats and an occasional cough.
“How long does the process take from point of infection until death?” asked Chairman Masterson.
“Fourteen days on average. The patient is symptomatic at day eight, but potentially contagious by day four without showing symptoms.”
Someone in the gallery feigned a cough, drawing a laugh from his girlfriend seated next to him. Chairman Masterson shot the young man a disapproving look.
“What about treatment?”
Mac hesitated as the coughing continued, this time deeper in the throat, as if it contained fluids. She became distracted at the sound.
THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP.
“At this time, we’ve tried the normal antibiotic protocols on patients, but—”
A man coughed violently in the gallery.
“Hey, watch it!” shouted a woman.
The coughing continued, causing the woman to shriek.
“That’s blood. He’s coughing up blood!”
A stampede ensued. People began to scream and search for the exit from Rayburn 2123. The photographers stood and began snapping pictures of the mayhem. Chairman Masterson pounded the gavel and shouted instructions to the sergeant at arms to open the doors.
The coughing man attempted to reach the exit but was pushed down to the marble floor. He promptly vomited bloody sputum into the path of the visitors seeking the exit. Several slipped and fell, rolling through the discharge before regaining their balance with the assistance of others.
The panic was not limited to the gallery. All of the congressional members and their staffs hastily exited the chamber. The photographers climbed over the rows of desks and found their way to the rear exits as well.
Throughout it all, Mac sat silently, alone, her attorney having abandoned her at the table. The only sound she heard was the steady hum of the air handlers—blowing and circulating the air throughout the Rayburn Building. Yet she remained calm.
THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP, THUMP-THUMP.
It took ninety seconds for the entire room to be emptied, except for the impassible Mac, who continuously stared into the C-SPAN camera, with its blinking red light and telescoping lens looking back. The entire scene would be replayed on YouTube over a billion times, displacing Gangham Style as the most watched video in history.
Mac’s mind raced, visualizations of signs racing through her mind.
Welcome to Tokyo, population thirty-eight million.
Welcome to Mexico City, population twenty-one million.
Welcome to New York, population nineteen million.
Welcome to the Las Vegas Strip, forty million annual visitors.
Welcome to Disney World, eighteen million annual visitors.
Welcome to the Summer Olympics, ten million visitors.
Welcome to Small Town, U.S.A.
This moment marked the beginnings of the next global war.
Chapter 81
Day Twenty-Eight
Interstate 10 Westbound
Los Angeles, California
The rental car sped past the sign that read Welcome to Los Angeles, population 3,957,875.
“We are here, Hassan.”
Hassan nodded. “We are everywhere, my brothers.”
Thanks for reading!
The saga continues in…
THE INNOCENTS
Book two of the four-book Pandemic Series.
You can preorder the remainder of the series by visiting Amazon.com
Learn more about The Pandemic Series on www.BobbyAkart.com
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And before you go…
THANK YOU FOR READING PANDEMIC: BEGINNINGS!
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READ ON FOR A BONUS EXCERPT from Bobby Akart’s #1 bestseller, 36 Hours, Book one in The Blackout Series. With over a thousand four and five star reviews, each of the six books in The Blackout Series achieved #1 best seller rankings in their respective genres, launching Bobby Akart to a #5 ranking on Amazon’s Science Fiction Author’s list.
Bonus excerpt from 36 Hours, The Blackout Series
WHAT WOULD YOU DO
if a voice was screaming in your head – GET READY . . .
for a catastrophic event of epic proportions . . .
with no idea where to start . . .
or how, or when?
This is a true story, it just hasn't happened yet.
Chapter 1
