Authors: Linda Wells
Max said, “Yes, I know.” He looked deeply in her eyes, got into his Mercedes, and backed down the driveway.
Suzy stood in the driveway and watched his car slowly pulling away. She waved to him, as she always did when he left. This time she wondered when she would see him again. She went into the house with tears streaming down her face. They would not stop. She went upstairs, fell across her bed, and cried until she fell asleep.
The ringing phone on the night table woke her. She looked at caller ID, knew it was Max, and said a breathless, “Hey.”
Max said, “Will you marry me, Suzy?”
“Yes,” she answered, with no hesitation. She could feel her heart beating.
“That’s all I need to know.”
.
S
uzy had not answered her phone or e-mails all day, missing several calls from Max. She had not had time to call him back. The trip to her mother’s had taken longer than expected, plus the drive back had seemed to take forever. Then, after sending the e-mail from Eric’s laptop, the fucking FBI showed up. She shouldn’t have been surprised, but she had not wanted to deal with them. Damn! How did they get to Edgewood so fast? She hoped she had handled the questioning without raising suspicions. She felt unnerved by the morning’s events. Her thoughts were spinning, but she had to maintain her composure, somehow.
She needed to talk with Dr. Adams as soon as possible. She checked with Beth regarding his whereabouts. She hoped he had returned by now.
Beth said, “Yes, he is in his office.”
“Thanks,” she said, and walked down the hall, knocked on his door, and entered without waiting for an answer.
He looked up as she walked in. “Dr. Adams, I hope things went well with your son,” she said sarcastically.
“You bitch,” he thought.
“Yes, things went perfectly. Catch me up on what has been going on around here,” he asked.
“I’ve been trying to reach you. You obviously turned off your cell phone. Didn’t Beth give you my message?” she asked, very pissed off.
“Yes, but I have been busy,” he answered, indifferently. “What is of such critical importance that you interrupt me while I was taking care of family business?”
Suzy noticed his rumpled hair and somewhat dazed look. She hoped he had enjoyed his little tryst with his slut of the day, while she was here doing his job of dealing with the FBI. What a prick.
Dr. Adams could see the look of disdain in Suzy’s eyes. He should never have gotten involved with her, but damn, she was a great lay, and so gorgeous. Too bad she thought he was serious. He gave her the assistant director’s position—what more could she want? Isn’t that why she screwed him in the first place? She was smart and good at her work. Too good. But better get back to the business at hand.
“Again, what has been going on? Any results on the lab samples or anything from Quantico on the canister?” he asked.
“First of all, two agents from the FBI were here, looking for you and asking me all kinds of questions. I referred them back to you,” she stated. “They are checking out any possible leads on the materials found in the New York City subway this morning.”
He asked, “The FBI visit sounds like SOP. Do we have results back?”
“Yes, it’s H5N1, and according to the lab at Quantico, the canister, so far, can’t be traced, but Homeland Security has been notified,” she stated.
“Damn, just damn.” Then he asked, “How is the subway maintenance guy they brought down from New York? Did he test positive for the H5N1?” The daze was gone now. He buzzed Beth. “Bring me some coffee. Now!”
Suzy continued, “The worker, Mr. Caruso, has tested positive. He is very sick but stable for the moment. He had direct contact with the canister, first exposure. The virus has also spread to others, including those exposed while in the subway and others with whom they had contact. The CDC chemists and our lab staff worked together and came up with the identification fairly quickly.”
Dr. Adams said, “We have samples of H5N1 in storage, as I recall. Have we started working on those yet?” He obviously had not ordered any work to be done.
She answered curtly, “No, but we should begin developing a vaccine, ASAP, agreed? Let’s stress that this will be a joint effort of our people and those from the CDC. This particular virus spreads rapidly, and the faster we begin developing the vaccine, the better.”
“Yes, of course. That was my next concern.” He nodded agreement. Adams said, “Arrange an immediate staff meeting. I’ll prepare the agenda. Let me know when everyone is ready.”
“Fine,” answered Suzy. Beth came in with the coffee as Suzy was leaving his office.
Suzy went directly to the lab and called the staff into the large meeting room, adjacent to the laboratory. About twenty were present. She said Dr. Adams had some announcements and would be in shortly. She stepped into the hallway and called him on the intercom, saying that they were waiting.
Adams breezed in, his I-Pad in hand. He stood at the front of the room, cleared his throat, and began by congratulating them on defining the variant H5N1influenza virus and then instructed them to begin working on a vaccine. This would take a great deal of time and effort but that was to be their priority. Developing a vaccine was critical. They were to work jointly with the CDC and the FBI, and he stressed full cooperation to facilitate a quick result.
Many had questions, which Adams couldn’t answer. All had seen the news reports of the outbreak and that it was possibly a terrorist event. Whoever did this was likely a scientist, or scientists, probably working for a faction, possibly homegrown, perhaps a rogue. Maybe even someone they knew. Most were silent, just listening, stunned at events that had taken place. They worried about their families, and what all this meant, long term.
He listened to them and agreed that it was a tragic attack, with New York City targeted again. The impact of the attack was beyond comprehension. None could forget 9/11, and now this? One of the questions from the group was if any group or terrorist cell had taken responsibility. Dr. Adams advised them that he had no knowledge of that, but the FBI as well as other agencies were working to find whoever was responsible, and hopefully the perpetrator or perpetrators would be found quickly. He asked them to cooperate fully with the FBI.
Dr. Chen was listening from the back of the room. It took great effort for her to maintain her professional demeanor during this discussion, but she did.
Adams concluded the meeting, saying they would be asked to work overtime. They were to conduct themselves as normally as possible. All work done at the lab was considered classified, and they all had signed confidentiality agreements. Their work was not to be discussed outside of the premises. He would be making further announcements as information became available. After thanking them again, Dr. Adams concluded the meeting.
Suzy walked back to her office. She went in and closed the door, and tears started flowing. She put her head down on the desk, her beautiful hair falling around her shoulders, her sobs uncontrollable. How could I have done this? She knew why. She thought of the “Organization” and became frightened. Their threats to kill her sister were real and terrified her. Could she trust such a sinister group? Her parents would be boarding the flight momentarily to Hong Kong, where they were to pick up Lee. She would have to focus on them and nothing else, except Max. Suzy needed to call him. He must be concerned, hearing the news of the terrorist attack, and she needed to know what was going on with him. Did he suspect? How much did he know? She grabbed her phone to call him. He must be frantic, and Suzy needed to hear his voice.
He answered on the first ring.
“Max, I am sorry I haven’t called. It has been so busy here. You have heard, of course.”
“Yes, we are on alert, baby. How are you doing?” He had to be careful about his words.
“I’m scared, worried, and you know probably all that we know.”
“Yes, we know what the so called ‘weapon’ is. It is having the desired effect. Disrupt and possibly kill.
“Yes,” she whispered. “It can do that.”
“I want to see you tonight. Is that possible?” he asked her.
“I don’t know yet. Hold on, Max.”
Stacy buzzed her. “Dr. Chen, you better come out. The FBI is here again. They are in Dr. Adams’s office now. He wants you to report to him immediately.”
Suzy got back on with Max. “I must go. The FBI is here. Guess they have to check everything out. This is horrible, isn’t it?” she said.
“Yes. Call me when you can, and I will meet you at your place, okay?” he asked.
“Call before you leave. I don’t know how long I will be here. Have to go, Max. I love you,” hearing his “Love you, baby” as she hung up.
She knew he was concerned, but she couldn’t be near him now. Too risky, and he would be questioning her. Not now.
.
G
eorgiana and Mark sat in front of Dr. Adams’s desk. Lieutenant Randall, their escort, was waiting in the hallway outside Adams’s office. George explained to Adams that they needed to do a thorough search, looking at computers, all records, and they wanted a complete inventory of the specimens stored at the Edgewood Labs, and most importantly, who had access to the stock.
Eric was waiting for Suzy to join them. “Where’s the bitch?” he thought. She had talked to these two earlier, and he wanted her involved as much as possible. She could be the liaison with these clowns. They were wasting his time. He was confident that lab security had not been breached.
Georgiana said to Dr. Adams, “Our forensics investigative team is waiting outside. We must start right away.” Then added, “We will do our best to make this quick and not interfere in the operations of this facility.”
George could tell there was an undercurrent, maybe guilt or just Dr. Adams’s egotistical disdain for authority. She didn’t want to discuss their suspicions regarding Dr. Chen.
“Thank you, Agent Reed. Dr. Chen will be here momentarily. She will be more than happy to assist you,” Eric responded, showing signs of impatience.
George could see this guy was used to getting what he wanted. What a pompous, self-centered A-hole. She gave Mark a look, and he responded with a quick eyebrow raise.
“Let me see if I can find her. Please excuse me.” He walked out, heading toward Suzy’s office.
George said to Mark, sick of waiting, “Screw him. Let’s bring in the team.”
George called Wally and asked if he and his group could please come into the building. Wally and his team had been in a white FBI van, in the parking lot, waiting for the “go” signal. The technical guys had the equipment needed to access information from the computer system and look at all video recordings. Wally would supervise the team and assist in the investigation.
Eric was still looking for Suzy. She wasn’t in her office, so he went to Beth’s office and barked, “Where the hell is Chen? Find her and tell her to show the FBI around the lab. It shouldn’t take very long, and I am extremely busy.” He wasn’t going to deal with their crap.
“She went to the lab, Dr. Adams. She said she wanted to know the current status so she could direct the investigation properly,” she said, without looking up.
Eric was sick of Beth and her attitude. He had taken her out for drinks a few times and she took it seriously. Now she acted like the hurt party. She seemed to enjoy the sex as much as he had. What the fuck. He would have to stop dating these office bitches. Adams stalked into his office, slamming the door. He had a headache and wasn’t in the mood to deal with any of this shit.
Beth reached Dr. Chen and said that Dr. Adams wanted her to assist the FBI team in whatever way she could. The eight armed agents, including Wally, entered the reception area. Lt. Randall knew how to stay out of the way, but not miss anything. George, Mark, and Wally were discussing the strategy for the investigation when Chen joined them, surprised to see the large group waiting for her.
George spoke firmly, “We need to begin. Let’s discuss what we need, and you can direct our team, all right?”
“Of course,” she replied. “Where do you want to start?”
“The computer forensic science agents can do their thing, and other team members will need to examine the H5N1 inventory to see if it has been tampered with in any way. Perhaps you can give us some details and help show them around the storage facilities. Also, any updates on your latest findings would be most helpful.”
“Certainly, by computers, do you mean our individual computers?” Suzy questioned.
“Yes,” said George, “we need to check out all computers, lab stations, personal devices, smart phones, the whole deal. Let’s start with Dr. Adams’s computer, your assistant’s, and yours also, Dr. Chen. Later, we will look at other staff computers.”
“Follow me, please,” responded Suzy without emotion.
.
S
uzy had left George in her office with the tech guy as they began searching through computer data. They knew how to find legal forensic evidence in computers and digital storage media. Mark and Wally had stayed with the rest of the team, waiting for Dr. Chen to escort them to the lab. It wasn’t a long wait. Dr. Adams had thrown a fit as another computer expert started on his laptop. “Tough shit,” thought Chen as she joined Mark and the other team members in the reception area.
She led them down a long corridor through double doors, which could only be opened by a coded keypad. Two armed military guards stood on either side of the doors, and they acknowledged Dr. Chen as she passed through the entrance.
She explained to the group, as they were walking through the large laboratory, that the CDC was working in unison with the ERDC, looking at the recent findings confirming the diagnosis of the H5N1 virus on the recent admissions of not only the maintenance worker but others in various medical centers in New York City, Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, and a growing number of others. The CDC was tracking the pandemic, using recently developed software that gives a snapshot, state by state, of all reported cases.
“Our containment lab is in a separate part of this wing. I will take you there and show you our H5N1 samples, all intact. We have Level A airline protective suits for your safety. I have asked one of our lab technicians to print an inventory showing every ‘bug’ or toxin sample in storage.”