Protocol One

by Jacqueline Druga

  “The weather would be warmer there. Peter told me that.”

  “It was planned for a long time, Anna. So it was laid out.” Gil told me. “They moved us right after I talked to you last. They took the phone, like I said, and I was worried that you weren’t making it. You know with the van and all. And I’m sitting there you know, and I’m thinking. What am I doing? The world is getting smacked upside the head with a giant rock, things will never be the same and I am gonna be sitting with the first branch of the Government while you and Jackson were here. Did I want to be part of the rebuilding process and chance never seeing you again? Or did I just want to go with what I had already built, and be with you guys?”

  “So you came here. But what took so long?”

  “Okay, first …” Gil held up his hand. “I was in a holding center. I had my bag ready. We were in Phoenix. The news hadn’t broken yet. They had taken us to the airport and I bailed. I didn’t have my cell phone and since you change your cell number more than a drug dealer…” He paused and smiled. “I didn’t know which one to call, so I called the house. When there was no answer, I called the police and they sent a car over. An hour later, I had reserved a car in Charlotte, because that was the first flight east I could get. I thought I had it timed. Then the news broke mid flight and a lot of flights were grounded. Mine included.”

  “Where did you end up?”

  “Atlanta. Now, try being in Atlanta in the middle of that crisis. At that point it didn’t matter who I was. Getting eight hundred miles north might as well have been ten thousand without transportation.”

  “What did you do?” I asked.

  I made a sign and kept hitching rides. But then, you know, roadblocks, curfews, I was counting the hours to impact and only made it to West Virginia.”

  “I know that feeling.”

  “Yeah, the best laid plans of mice and men, huh?”

  “Where were you when it hit?”

  “Luckily, I caught a ride with a fellow named George who was trying to get to New York. We had made it deep to a good spot when the car died. We were about twenty miles from Greenbrier Mountain resort.”

  “Oh, Gil, that was smart thinking.” I said. “Really.”

  “Yeah, by the time we made it. The fire bombs were sailing from the sky. Trees were going up left and right. It got hot and George suffered some really bad burns. But we made it. They let us in and we waited out the heat there. Once the heat starting cooling and the fires dying, we knew we had a couple days and that was it. It got too dark.”

  “You left the safety of Greenbrier?”

  “Yes, but that didn’t last too long. I have been fortunate. People rise to the occasion. A family in West Virginia took us in under the condition that we helped chop as much wood as humanly possible up until the cold came. Chopping wood in the dark is not easy, but we did it. That was where I was up until a few days ago.”

  “What happened to George?”

  Gil lowered his head. “He died. He caught pneumonia, we figured from all the smoke and his burns got infected. We tried to help him. Hell, Anna, the father of that family had it together. Plus he had worked for a processed food company and was well stocked. He let me borrow his old pickup and that got me right outside of Pittsburgh. I walked the last twenty or so miles. Took two days.”

  I laid my hand over his, sipped my beverage then stood up. “This place, Gil. I don’t know what the other places are like, but this one is a life saver. The work you did, I can’t thank you enough. The little special touches. The pictures. Everything. You had it planned, like you always did.”

  “Except to lose my son.”

  Instinctively my head dropped.

  “We’ll get through this Anna.”

  “I know.”

  “And to pass the time, there are a bunch of Easter eggs planted here. By that, I don’t mean real eggs.”

  I took a moment and after composing myself again, I looked at Gil. “You deserve to be there. This is your place. It works well. We’re really clicking here and rolling. We are getting things ready for the long term.”

  “I see that.” Gil stood. “I just …” he chuckled. “I’m trying to figure out how all these people ended up here. Not that there are a ton, but more than I thought there would be. And none of them look any the worse for wear, so that tells me they’ve been here since the onset.”

  “Well, you know me.”

  “Never can say no?” Gil asked.

  “Yep. Some had a person they couldn’t leave behind. And well, it was a good thing we had this many people. When it got hot and the fire fell from the sky, people came here. I let them in. Against what a lot of the others wanted, I let them in.”

  Gil stepped to me. “You make it sound like it backfired on you.”

  “It did. And again, against what I was told, I trusted these people and they turned on us. We fought them.”

  “They’re gone right?”

  “Oh, they’re gone alright. One adult remains. The kids, we didn’t send them out. We wanted to send the woman out, but I made the decision to let her stay until the weather warmed up.”

  Gil folded his arms and nodded, impressed. “So you’re leading this place.”

  “Kind of like a group effort that doesn’t always go well.”

  “That’s because a clear cut leader and decision maker must emerge. If not, there will always be arguments and chaos. You stepped forward.”

  “Not my cup of tea though.”

  “I know. You always were a ‘let things take care of themselves’ person.” He reached out and pulled me into him, embracing me tightly and I felt snug within his hold. “I’m positive though, you are doing a great job.”

  “We lost one of our security guys, though. Brutally.”

  Gil stepped back. “At least you thought to name a few people security.”

  “No, no.” I waved out my hand. “They were one of the guys that were on duty when we arrived.”

  “Tom? I saw Tom …”

  “No, Abe. One of the guys you had here.”

  “Anna … the only person I knew that was going to be here was Tom. Until that decision was made for him to get here before you, you were to be the first to arrive.”

  “That was the plan?”

  “Yes.”

  “But Tony said …”

  “Ah,” Gil interrupted. “What did Tony say?”

  “They were part of the plan. The team.”

  “Now I am getting concerned.”

  I gave a quirky and nervous smile. “Why?”

  “Because the team was you, Jackson and four others. You brought the others along, I get that. But you keep mentioning this Tony.”

  “You say 'Tony' like you don’t know him. Tony Garrison of GSS.”

  “I know Tony Garrison of GSS.”

  “Well, that’s who I’m talking about.”

  “The one that helped carry me in?” Gil asked.

  “Yes.”

  “That wasn’t Tony Garrison. I know Tony Garrison.”

  “Well, you only met him once so maybe you’re wrong. It was six years ago.”

  Gil laughed. “I met Tony more than once. And even if I hadn’t, I would know for sure that guy wasn’t Tony. Because that guy that helped carry me in, is not a sixty year old black man. The Tony Garrison I know … is.”

  43 - In search of

  To say Gil’s words took me by surprise was an understatement. All expression had dropped from my face and my mind swam in a world of confusion.

  What was going on?

  Everything I knew up to that point was suddenly tossed out the window with the arrival of Gil. I needed to handle it, to find out what was going on, so I told Gil that I would be back. He offered to come along with me but I declined his offer. It was something I had to do on my own and he respected that. He gave his word he wouldn’t say anything until I had the chance to talk to Tony or whatever his name was.

  Luckily, Duke came in with more clothes and he sat with Gi
l.

  Last I had seen Tony he was in the office going through Gil’s bag. Having always been a trusting person, I was thrown for a loop and placed in a state that I rarely experienced. My mind spun and I double and triple thought everything.

  Starting with Tony staying clear once Gil made it inside.

  Did he know Gil would expose him? He offered to go with me to tell Gil about Jackson. But was that an offer he knew I would refuse?

  What about him going through Gil’s things? It didn’t completely make sense before, but as I made my way to his office, it bothered me. Even more so when I arrived at the office and not only was Tony gone, but Gil’s bag was gone as well.

  Panic hit me and I believed for a second that Tony, knowing he was busted in some sort of lie, took off. Hurriedly, I went into the Switch Room.

  “Hey, Tom. Did Tony leave?”

  “Leave?” He asked.

  “Yeah, the bunker.”

  Tom laughed. “And go where? Plus, he left his kid if he did.” He pointed to a monitor that showed Nelly with Joie.

  I exhaled in relief.

  “That was a really odd question, Anna.” Tom said.

  “Tom, GSS hired you, right?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Had you met Tony before we got here?”

  “Oh, sure, a couple of times. It was here. It was a good couple months before the comet that I saw him last.”

  “And you have always known him as Tony Garrison from the GSS?”

  Tom’s face turned white and he turned his chair, lost his smile, and faced the switchboard.

  “Tom?”

  “Anna…” He lifted his hands, not looking at me. “I really need to keep watching outside, especially since Peter is on his break.”

  “Did you ever see Tony Garrison, the head of GSS?”

  “Yes.”

  “Does he look like him?”

  No answer.

  “Tom?”

  After a heavy sigh, Tom turned around. “No.”

  “The Tony Garrison you know is …. I don’t know, black?”

  Tom lowered his head.

  “Why didn’t you say anything?”

  Tom lifted his hands in defeat. “Honestly, at that point, was it really important, Anna? With all that was going on, was it really important?”

  “Yeah, Tom, it kind of was.”

  “Why? The world as we knew it was gone. In an instant. I knew him from being here at the bunker during construction. He obviously was in on it somehow, so why did it matter?” He turned away from me. “You want answers.” He pointed to monitor three. “He’s up in the kitchen.”

  “Thank you.” Turning to leave, Peter walked in.

  “Hey, Anna, how’s the reunion going with the ex?”

  “Good. Peter did you ….”

  “Don’t.” Tom stopped me. “Don’t ask him. Go to the source.”

  “I will.” I replied humbled and walked out.

  As I left, Peter called out. “Ask me what?”

  I kept walking. The kitchen wasn’t far, and it didn’t afford me enough time to think of what I wanted to say or my approach.

  Tom was hostile and defensive. Why? Of course, he was also here with Abe and Ben when we arrived. Both of them weren’t part of Gil’s plan either. In my mind at that moment, Tom was probably just as much a part of everything that was happening as Tony was.

  On the short journey to the kitchen, I thought of things Tony said.

  ‘I only met him once and that was six years ago,” he said of Gil.

  ‘Don’t post that picture of me on line … I go by a different name on there,’ he told Jackson.

  ‘You didn’t tell me you had a daughter.’

  ‘You didn’t ask.’

  When I found out about Joie, it dawned on me there was a lot I didn’t know about Tony. That was the truth.

  I wasn’t mad, in fact I didn’t know how to feel.

  Something was ‘not right’ whether it was a negative thing or something minuscule, a piece of the puzzle was missing.

  All I knew was that there had to be an explanation. Tony was a good man, with a good heart. As I arrived at the kitchen, I heard Tom’s words in my head.

  ‘With all that was going on, was it really important’

  Was it really important?

  I suppose the answer to that question would come after hearing what Tony had to say.

  Tony was in the kitchen and I stepped inside.

  44 – Incognito

  Tony had a small bag set on the prep counter and around it, a few items. He was opening a cupboard when I walked in.

  “Hey, sweetie.” He walked to me, kissed me on the cheek. “How are things with Gil?”

  “Interesting.”

  “Interesting, huh? Does that mean, uh, you’re here to tell me sorry I’m out and Gil’s in, no pun intended to any sexual reference that could be.” He smiled.

  “Tony, no I …” Pausing, I watched what he was doing. “Are you leaving?”

  “No.” He laughed. “Where would I go?”

  “You’re packing that.”

  “Oh, no. Check this out, Peter said the temperature may creep above zero tomorrow, if it hits five or ten, Ben and I were thinking of going out and seeing what’s down in Elwood. OR what’s left.”

  “I would love to see that.”

  Tony shrugged. “Maybe you can wait until it gets a bit warmer. Then without a doubt. I’ll take you out there.”

  “Are you bringing back survivors?”

  Tony just stared at me.

  “Of course, not how silly to ask.”

  “So what brings you up here? I thought you’d be hanging out with Gil.”

  “I was. Is that why we haven’t seen you? Because I’m hanging out with him?”

  Almost snorting a laugh, Tony shook his head. “Um, no, it would just feel weird. Knowing how the guy feels about you. The guy builds you the ultimate survival haven and the treks through the wasteland for you. I think that speaks volumes.”

  I watched Tony, as he shuffled through items he was going to take, almost as if he was giving survivors the stuff we didn’t want.

  “So …” I said upbeat. “I heard something interesting.”

  “What’s that?” Tony turned to the cupboard again.

  “I heard that Tony Garrison is actually a sixty year old black man.”

  Tony paused, just for a second, then continued what he was doing.

  “Tony?”

  “You heard Tony Garrison, head of GSS was a sixty year old black man.”

  “That’s what I heard.”

  “From Gil?”

  “Yes.”

  “You weren’t kidding when you said you heard something interesting.”

  “Seriously? That’s your reaction?”

  Tony slammed a box of food down when he faced me. “What do you want me so say, Anna?”

  “The truth.”

  “Do you think I lied to you?” Tony asked, nearly barking.

  “Gil said he met you.”

  “He did.”

  “He said more than once.”

  “No,” Tony folded his arms and swayed his head. “He met me one time. I doubt he’d remember. I was the limo driver who brought that Tony Garrison he met to the first meeting. That is the man he met several times and that is the man he described to you. I am Tony Garrison. I own GSS. And the thing I told you that I rarely tell anyone unless I trust them is I never let anyone see me as the face of the company.”

  “But Gil knows you hide behind a face.”

  “Yep. He knows. He also believes he met with the real Tony. I never let that happen.”

  “How do I know you’re being honest now?”

  Nearly growling, Tony threw up his hands. “I knew it. I knew the second he came in here that this was going to happen. I knew you’d question me. So …. I went to my room and to my things.” He reached down, unsnapping the side pocket of his pants and started slapping items on the counter. “
My driver’s license, and in case you think that’s fake, here’s my military ID, my daughter’s newborn hospital bracelet, my son’s … dog tags. Look at that them.” His finger pointed to each item. “Garrison. Garrison. Garrison. I never lied to you Anna. Ever. I have been more honest with you than with anyone in my life.” He grabbed the items and put them in his pocket. “If I am guilty of anything, it’s not being one hundred percent honest about the finality of the plan. And trust me, I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want it getting back to Gil. And I didn’t …” He took a second, caught his breath, and then ran his fingers though this hair as he calmed down. “I didn’t want to ruin this illusion of grandeur you had for Gil.”

  “What are you talking about? Gil is a great guy.”

  Tony snapped his fingers several times. “There, that’s it. Gil’s a great guy. You proclaim it. He’s not a bad guy, Anna, but he is not that man you put on a pedestal.”

  “He did all this for me, Tony.”

  “Yes, he did. I just tweaked the plans to make it better for you. Safer for you.”

  “What was the plan?”

  “Are you asking me because you want to know or because you are still interrogating me?”

  My mouth dropped open. “I was far from interrogating you.”

  “All right.” Tony pulled up two stools, one for me and one for him. He placed his hands on mine as we talked. “Six years ago, I get a call from Senator Jenner asking to meet with me. Now I know he used GSS for an op that went well, the intel was spot on, and we never let the information leak. He didn’t say why, but because he was a senator, I didn’t trust it. He said secrecy was imperative.”

  “If it was so secretive, why did you send the face of GSS?”

  “He can be trusted. He looks the part, and I knew him my entire life. I remember sitting in the limo. My face op, Gavin is his name, told him the glass was sound proofed, which is was. He tested it. But of course, it was me, so I had the limo bugged. At first I thought he was there to cheat on his wife.”

  That made me laugh. “Why would you say that?”

  “We had been in full operation for three years at that point. We set up secure communications and built homes for some pretty big wigs to keep their mistresses. He brought that up. Then he stated simply that he had the money and he wanted to build three state of the art doomsday bunkers without it being traced back to him. It was a bigger scale, a much bigger scale. I’m cocky. I was positive I could do it and it was a challenge. Plus, if I didn’t take on the job, I would be in the dark on the doomsday thing. Nothing about it was being transmitted electronically or over the phone. I set up a secure means of communication between him and I. It was hacker proof, because I had the best hacker.”