by Scott Cramer
She brought the M-16 level with her hip and squeezed the trigger. Bullets ripped through the door in a circular pattern. Perkins, formulating how he would explain this event to his colleagues, was glad the alarm had muted the gunfire. Keeping the barrel aimed at the door, Mathews gave it one more heel thrust and then rammed it with her shoulder. She charged through the narrow opening. Perkins, expecting more gunfire, took another step back and covered his ears.
Mathews poked her head out. “All clear.”
Ensign Parker lay crumpled on the floor, dead. Mathews was freeing Ensign Ryan, who sat in a chair with duct tape covering his mouth, his ankles and wrists secured with more tape.
Mathews’s radio crackled to life. “Captain, come in.”
“It’s Ensign Beecham,” she told Perkins and brought the radio to her lips. “Go ahead.”
“A vehicle just left the facility,” Beecham said. “Doctor Hedrick was driving. There were others in the vehicle, but I couldn’t identify them.”
Perkins massaged his temples. Hedrick and Dawson had obviously communicated with each other prior to this to coordinate the breakout. He couldn’t speculate who else was with her, other than Dawson and the Leigh child.
Mathews barked commands to Ensign Beecham. “Get assault rifles. Ryan and I will meet you in the garage.”
Perkins raised an index finger.
“Beecham, hold on,” Mathews said.
“We know they’re going to Alpharetta,” Perkins said. “First, let’s mop up this mess and patch the door.”
As Mathews conveyed new orders to Beecham, Perkins sat before the communications room computer and typed in a command that ended the alarm and flashing red lights. He turned on the video camera and looked into it. Behind him, he could see blood splatters on the wall, so he shifted his position until the background was clean.
“Everyone quiet,” he said and tapped a command that put him on every monitor throughout the bunker.
“Thank you for participating in the drill.” He smiled and paused, allowing his confidence to shine through the screens. “Everyone performed admirably, including our young actress from Unit 4T. If ID 121 were not such a genius in mathematics, I might suggest she pursue a stage career. Please write up summaries of the drill and send me your reports.”
He ended by saying, “The future is bright,” and switched the video feed to the Generation M living quarters.
By the time his colleagues realized it was not a drill and there was no ID 121, the crisis at large would be over. Dawson and the Leigh girl would be dead, and the renegades who’d left the bunker would be back in the fold.
5.03
CDC BUNKER – ALPHARETTA
“Ensign Parker will be okay. I know it,” Murphy said from the passenger seat of the Humvee that rumbled toward the pill plant. “I’ve only known him a few days, but I can tell you he is one tough S.O.B. He can handle Mathews.”
Sandy drove and Abby sat in the backseat, wedged between Doctor Levine and Doctor Droznin. Ensign Royce rode in the cargo section.
“Petty Officer Murphy, do you know my sister, Lisette?” Abby asked.
“Call me Murph. Yeah, I know Lisette. Great kid.”
“Lisette’s fine,” Sandy said.
Something struck the front windshield and everyone jumped. Kids were throwing rocks. More rocks pelted the side of the vehicle.
“Can you blame them?” Levine asked.
The rock throwers, along with the fights, the corpses, and the desperate survivors they’d all seen since exiting the bunker, were normal sights to Abby.
“What is wrong with Toucan?” Abby asked. “Please, will someone tell me?”
“She’s in excellent health,” Sandy said, making eye contact with her in the mirror.
A chill rippled down Abby’s spine at Sandy’s troubled expression.
“There it is.” Doctor Levine pointed to a water tower rising above the charred buildings about a quarter mile away.
Abby did her best to put Touk out of her mind. Knowing they were close to the plant, she wondered if Mark and Toby had ever made it there, having seen first-hand how kids reacted to an adult. She reminded herself that Toby was one of the most resourceful boys she knew. Toby would have made sure that Mark reached the plant safely.
Due to cars and trees in the road, it took them an hour to reach the front gate of the plant. The gate was closed, secured with a heavy chain and padlock. Sandy stepped on the gas pedal and rammed the gate, bursting through it as if it were tissue paper. She stopped the vehicle near the building and blasted the horn.
The door opened a crack, and Mark stuck his head out. The release of tension did wonders for Abby’s weak legs, and she jumped out of the Humvee and rushed over to him. “Where’s Toby?”
Mark’s brow crinkled. “Looking for you.”
5.04
CDC BUNKER
Doctor Perkins wished the commando team would hurry, because it was crucial to tamp down the mutiny in a timely manner.
With blood throbbing in his temples, he climbed into the front seat of the Humvee that would take them to the Alpharetta facility, and turned on the radio. To his shock, the voice of a child came over the CDC channel.
“This is a message for Pale Rider and the Grits. The adults know how to cure the Pig, but they want everyone outside the colonies to die. The Lemon Gang is ready to fight them. Jordan, Spike, and Jonzy are on their way to Atlanta. They’re taking Route 85, and while they are small in number, they’ll fight anyone who stands in their way ….”
Perkins angrily clicked off the radio. How many more tricks did Dawson have up his sleeve? And how could Ryan have missed another party broadcasting over the CDC channel?
A moment later, Captain Mathews, Ensign Beecham, and Ensign Ryan entered the bunker’s garage, all carrying weapons and wearing helmets and bulletproof vests.
Perkins climbed out and stood beside the vehicle, eager to hear Mathews’s report.
“Sir, we’ve taken an inventory of personnel. Doctor Droznin, Doctor Levine, Petty Officer Murphy, Ensign Royce, and 1002 went with Doctor Hedrick.”
He rocked back on his heels, caught off-guard by the news that Droznin and Levine had joined the renegades. Why couldn’t they see that the colonies offered the only path to a bright future?
More unsettling, those two possessed enough knowledge to train a pack of monkeys to make antibiotic pills.
“What about Dawson?” Perkins asked.
Mathews shook her head. “He never breached the bunker. Ensign Beecham reviewed the video logs.”
“So how did 1002 get inside?”
Mathews narrowed her eyes. “We have a theory. You remember that Doctor Hedrick and her team collected corpses? We believe they placed the Leigh girl inside a body bag. Immediately after Hedrick’s team returned inside, the clinic’s camera went dark for five minutes.”
Perkins nodded. “For that level of coordination, Dawson must have communicated with Doctor Hedrick. It appears he’s outsmarting all of us.”
Mathews’s neck muscles tensed like steel bands. “We’ll have the situation under control soon.”
“Will you?”
“Dawson is mine.”
“And what if your plan fails?” Perkins asked.
Mathews unclipped the remote detonator from her belt. “We decommission the plant.”
“Twelve charges?”
“Thirteen, sir. I added one more for good luck.”
She held out the detonator for him to take, but he waved her off. They piled into the Humvee, and Mathews, behind the wheel, raised the steel reinforced doors using a remote. They drove outside the facility where a sickening odor came through the vents, and Perkins punched the button to recycle the air inside the vehicle.
The mob of unruly children from earlier had vanished, and Mathews drove in a straight line across the plaza. The Humvee leaned left, then right, back and forth again and again as the tires rolled over objects in their path.
Ahead of t
hem was a group of survivors who stood in the middle of the intersection, and Perkins cringed when it appeared that Mathews was about to drive right through the crowd.
“Stop,” he cried, squinting out the side window. A face caught his attention, a boy with a shaved head and earrings. He looked familiar.
The revelation stole Doctor Perkins’s breath. Months ago, the boy had entered Colony East with Abigail Leigh. Perkins would bet he had come to Atlanta with the Leigh girl and Dawson. “That boy in the green shirt,” he said, pointing him out. “Get him.”
5.05
ALPHARETTA
The presence of Doctor Droznin troubled Dawson. He hadn’t liked or trusted the Russian scientist at Colony East, and he worried about the tricks she might try to play now that she was inside the plant.
Sandy must have seen the look in his eyes, because she whispered, “Give Doctor Droznin a chance.”
He gathered everyone together and briefed them on the explosives and the likelihood that Perkins would mount an assault.
Dawson described the white, waxy look and feel of C4 and said, “I found twelve charges inside the plant. Perkins wanted to take this plant offline for a long time. The explosives are outside now, a safe distance away. I combed the plant twice, and I believe I found everything. If you find something that resembles C4, get me right away. It’s safe to handle as long as the fuse remains imbedded.”
Then he raised his security concerns. “Perkins will send a team after us. You can bet Lieutenant Mathews will lead it.”
“Captain Mathews,” Murphy corrected bitterly.
A sour pit formed in Dawson’s stomach. “We have no weapons, unless you count fire extinguishers. All we can do is barricade ourselves and wait for the cavalry to arrive.”
“Who’s the cavalry?” Murphy asked.
“I thought you might know,” Dawson said grimly. “If it looks like we can’t hold the plant, I’ll show you a way out through an outfall pipe. It leads to a storm drain near the perimeter.”
Sandy shook her head in determination. “I’m ready to do whatever it takes to give the kids outside the colonies a chance. No matter what happens, I’m staying.”
“Count me in,” Ensign Royce said.
Doctor Levine raised a finger. “Make pills or bust.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Murphy said.
“We’re wasting time,” Droznin said. “Let’s get started.”
Abby, hanging her head, looked dejected. Dawson understood that Toby’s absence and Maggie’s disappearance was on her mind. If a silver lining existed, it was that Abby looked a hundred times better than the last time he had seen her. The pills were finally working.
He put his hand on Abby’s shoulder and jostled her. “Hey, Toby’s a survivor, and Maggie’s the bravest pilot ever.”
Abby stared through him, saying nothing.
“Abigail, I need you to help me,” Droznin said.
The huddle of scientists had broken, and Sandy, Doctor Levine, and Ensign Royce started to assess the equipment near the end of the plant.
Abby and Droznin, the most unlikely of pairs, headed toward the opposite end of the plant.
That left Dawson alone with Petty Officer Murphy.
“Looks like we’re the defense team,” he said. “How well do you know Mathews?”
Murphy shook her head. “Hardly at all. When we moved to the bunker, she confiscated our weapons.”
“Does she have anyone on her side?” Dawson asked.
“Maybe Ensign Beecham and Ensign Ryan. I’ve seen them eating together and speaking in low voices.”
“What can you tell me about the ensigns? They might be the weak links.”
“I served with Ryan on the Alabama. He’s a communications specialist. Beecham handles security and video surveillance at Atlanta Colony.”
Dawson pointed out their arsenal. “A fire extinguisher isn’t much of a weapon against assault rifles, but it’s all we have.”
“What about the Humvee?” Murphy asked. “We can pack it with all the C4 you found. If Mathews shows up, I can drive at her. If she detonates the C4, maybe I’ll be lucky enough to be close to her. Otherwise, I’ll run them all down.”
What the Petty Office described was a suicide mission, one that had a very small chance of success.
“I’ll be the driver,” he said.
“It was my idea, Lieutenant.”
“Give me the key. That’s an order.”
“Mark,” Sandy called. She waved frantically and pointed to her two-way radio.
He rushed to her side.
“Doctor Hedrick.” Perkins’s voice crackled over the radio. “Doctor Hedrick.”
“Ignore him,” Dawson said.
“We know you are inside,” Perkins said. “Let’s talk. We’ve all been under a great deal of stress. It’s time to return to the bunker and focus on Generation M to end this foolishness. Is Lieutenant Dawson with you? How about the Leigh girl? I will personally guarantee the safety of every scientist and medical officer. Doctor Hedrick, I’m a patient man. You know that. Do you remember Toby Jones from Colony East? He entered the colony under false pretenses. We have him.”
Dawson’s blood turned cold.
“You’re probably thinking this is a ruse,” Doctor Perkins said. “Young man, say something.”
They heard Toby cursing.
Dawson grabbed the radio. “Perkins, this is Dawson.”
“Welcome to Atlanta, Lieutenant. I’ll turn things over to your fellow officer, Captain Mathews.”
“Dawson, I want you outside. Alone. Thirty seconds, or the boy is dead.”
5.06
ALPHARETTA
Abby noticed a commotion at the other end of the plant. Mark and Murph were taking apart the barricade by the door. Then Mark stepped outside, and Murph closed the door behind him and began reconstructing the barricade.
Sandy, Doctor Levine, and Ensign Royce continued to work on the plant’s equipment as Doctor Droznin had told them to do. Seeing the adults so focused on their tasks eased Abby’s fears for Mark. If there were trouble outside, they would be acting differently.
Abby craned her neck, looking all around. Studying the building and equipment helped take her mind off Toby. The plant, a place where purple beer had been brewed in honor of the approaching comet, was as big as a football stadium.
“Abigail, press the green button,” Doctor Droznin said. The scientist stood nearby at a console with hundreds of buttons and knobs.
Abby stepped up to the large robotic arm twice her height and pressed the green button at its base.
“Back up,” the scientist told her.
Abby moved out of harm’s way as the robotic arm straightened, bent, swiveled, and twisted, as if doing warm-up exercises.
Doctor Droznin tested the equipment, making sure that everything worked.
Abby’s mind wandered to Toby and feelings of fear and helplessness twisted her stomach into knots. She could only think about him.
“What does that big arm do?” she asked.
The scientist kept her eyes on the console. “Mixes live bacteria with an emulsifier powder.”
“That thing is a giant mixer?”
Doctor Droznin, annoyed by the interruption, looked up. “I need to concentrate.”
One of her crutches, leaning against the console, fell to the floor, and Abby jumped to pick it up.
When she bent down, something caught her eye. About thirty meters away, resting on top of a pipe along the wall, was a small, round, white object. Abby set the crutch next to its mate and moved to the robotic arm for a closer look. She got on her hands and knees and placed her cheek inches from the floor. Between her and the object was a rat maze of pipes and wires, but through a sliver of open space, she saw that the object resembled Mark’s description of the explosive, C4. “Doctor Droznin, come here.”
“Press the green button again,” Droznin said in an agitated tone.
“You have to see this,” A
bby cried.
Droznin’s brow crinkled. “Is it important?”
“Hurry, please.”
When the scientist was beside her, Abby pointed. “That white thing against the wall, what is it?”
Doctor Droznin took off her glasses and squinted. “I don’t see anything.”
Abby kept pointing, but Doctor Droznin’s eyesight was poor. “It sort of looks like C4,” Abby said.
Droznin shook her head. “Way back there? Impossible. How would Mathews have put it there?”
Abby shrugged. It was a good question. It was unlikely Mathews had lowered herself from the ceiling, and it would have been impossible for her to crawl beneath the equipment; she was too big. The space between the floor and the equipment measured less than two feet. Even if Mathews had tried to worm through on her stomach, a forest of vertical steel posts, all part of the equipment, would have blocked her. The robotic arm was about ten feet tall, and the rest of the equipment was that height or higher, making it very unlikely that she had climbed over the equipment.
Abby’s blood turned cold. “What if she threw it, like a ball?”
Droznin nodded slowly. “Dawson should check it out.”
“He left the building,” Abby said.
The scientist frowned. “When?”
“A few minutes ago.”
“All right. Get Petty Officer Murphy.”
Abby dropped to her stomach and started worming her way beneath the equipment. None of the adults could make it all the way to the far wall, so Abby would retrieve the object for them.
“What are you doing?” Doctor Droznin asked.
Abby kept going. “Murph can’t squeeze through here.”
The scientist awkwardly lowered herself to the floor, laid on her side, and tried to grab Abby’s foot. Abby wiggled beyond her reach just in time. Doctor Droznin spoke in Russian, in a tone that led Abby to believe she was extremely upset.
Abby used her elbows to inch her way forward. “Whatever it is, we need to get it. I’m the smallest one.”
“Doctor Hedrick and Doctor Levine might have a better idea. Abigail, come back,” Doctor Droznin snapped.
