Yes, he told himself as he hurried back down the corridor toward his suite; for time was of the essence now. This once I'll do what I ought, not what my Master tells me.
"Michael?"
Lever turned, looking to the doorway, where his private secretary stood.
"Yes, Dan?"
"We've got in a preliminary report on that mystery disease. Seems it's a variant of a psychotropic drug known as Golden Dreams. Something our old friend Lehmann thought up years back. It's hard to say exactly where the thing's coming from, but records show that the last known supplies of the stuff were stored down in the old GenSyn facility in Milan. Golden Dreams was an inject-yourself drug, but this appears to be a pneumonic form of it. The gestation period is less than forty-eight hours. We don't yet know how deadly it is. All of its victims thus far have been old people or children."
"Apart from the maid."
"Maid?" Johnson took a step toward him. "What maid?"
"In the San Chang. It seems Security were called about an incident and then, when they got there, were sent away without an explanation. I've had my sources do a little digging. Rumour is they found a body in one of the ornamental pools, her chest eaten away by this thing."
"Shit!"
"Yeah," Lever laughed, but it was with little humour. "Deep shit."
"So what do we do?"
Lever sat back. "We close all our factories. Warn our staff. And we get some of our so-called experts to get working on an antidote straight away. Can we get samples of this stuff?"
Johnson nodded. "There've been over four hundred new cases in the past hour. It shouldn't be difficult to persuade a couple of them to receive treatment. At our expense, of course."
Lever smiled. "Good. Then get to it. Oh, and Dan, make sure we've got enough supplies in. I'm going to seal the compound until things are over."
"Seal the compound? Isn't that a bit drastic?"
"You tell me. This thing is virulent, right?"
"You bet."
"Then I'm going to seal us off. Until things blow over. You're welcome to stay."
Johnson hesitated, then shook his head. "If you don't mind, Michael, I'll get on home . . ." He smiled. "Once I've set things in motion, that is."
"Okay." Lever grinned, then got up and went across, embracing his old friend and helper. "And take care, Dan. I'll be needing you once this is over."
Johnson smiled and hugged him back. "I shall, Michael."
When Johnson had gone, Michael sat there, swivelling back and forth in his chair, staring blankly into the air. He was still sitting there when Emily came in.
"What's all this about sealing the compound?"
Michael looked up at her. "It's just a precaution, thaf s all."
"And what if I want out?"
"You can't. Not while that thing's raging out there."
"Raging?"
In answer he showed her the latest figures on the screen. "Over a thousand reported cases now, and more by the minute. Mostly in the south, right now, but there are one or two isolated cases in the north, too."
She stared at the screen, taking it all in.
"Your boys would die if you went out there. Not all of them, perhaps, but some of them. You want that?" Emily looked at him then slowly shook her head. "Then trust me, Em. For the sake of the boys, trust me."
Karr sat back and roared with laughter, then clapped his hands as Mileja bowed, her imitation of her father finished.
"And you say he knows?" Karr said, looking to where Jelka sat, sandwiched between Hannah and Marie on the big sofa, a broad grin on her face.
"Oh, Kim loves it!" she said. "If we ever have a gathering, he insists she does it!"
Mileja stood there, beaming, her dark, curly hair framing her rosy-cheeked face. "I can do Mama, too," she said, a subtle change of her stance making her resemble her mother strikingly, even though she looked nothing like the Marshal's daughter.
"Not now, young Madam," Jelka said, wagging a finger at her. "Now we must get ready. Master Heng will be waiting for us." She looked to Karr again. "Gregor, if I might..."
The urgent knocking at the door startled them all. Hannah, whose rooms these were, stood quickly and went across, standing at the door a moment exchanging words with the stooped and aged servant before coming back, her face clouded.
"Forgive me, everyone, but something's happening in the city."
She went over to the big screen in the corner and reached up, switching it on. At once it was filled with images of weeping people, of hospital wards and worried faces. The voice of the . .commentator was calm, yet there was a distinctly ominous tone to his words.
" . . .with more than a thousand new victims being reported every hour. In a statement from his palace in Bremen, Chancellor Heng has asked the populace to remain calm, but as a precautionary measure he has ordered the immediate closure of all schools, clubs, restaurants and public markets and has asked citizens to stay in their homes. Emergency food deliveries will be organised and people are asked to report any further outbreaks of the illness to their local Yamen."
Both Karr and Jelka were standing now, staring at the screen, but Marie just sat, frowning deeply and staring at her hands.
"What is it?" Karr asked, as the commentator's voice fell silent momentarily.
"It looks like some kind of plague," Jelka said quietly, pointing to the marks on one of the bodies on the screen. "Though the gods alone know what kind of bug does that." "It looks like it's glowing," Hannah said. Then, "Do you mind if I run it back a little?"
"No," Karr said quietly, answering for them all, his eyes wide as he stared at the awful images on the screen.
Hannah reached up, touching the control pad, freezing and then backtracking the images until she came to the one that had caught her attention. It was a close-up of an old man's chest and thorax. They had been partially eaten away, the flesh melted as though a flame had been put to plastic. But where the tissue was damaged it didn't bleed but seemed to glow with a faint golden light.
"DeVore?" Karr asked.
Hannah frowned. "Who knows?" But somehow she didn't think so. This wasn't his style. This was too haphazard. This had the look of an accident.
Jelka, who had turned and was looking out the window, now called across to her.
"Hannah? There are fires out there. In the distance. Great plumes of smoke. Is that normal?"
Hannah went across, then opened the french windows and stepped out onto the balcony. The others joined her there.
"They're burning the city again," she said quietly.
"Or corpses," Marie said, speaking for the first time.
There came the distant noise of shouts, screams, and then the distinct rattle of semi-automatic fire.
"Oh gods!" Marie said, holding Mileja to her tightly. "Oh gods, not again!"
Karr was staring at Jelka. "You must go," he said.
"Go?"
"You must leave here now. Get off-planet."
But Jelka shook her head. "I can't. Not until I've said goodbye."
Karr frowned. "Then say goodbye. But do it now, then get out. I'll come with you, if you want."
Jelka hesitated, then nodded. "Okay." She turned, looking to Hannah, then gestured to Mileja to come. "We'll be as quick as we can. Meanwhile, take care."
Marie looked at her, her smile tinged with concern. "Just hurry back, neh?"
"Yes," Hannah said, stepping across and hugging Jelka. "And take no silly risks, eh, Jelka Ward? Mankind has need of you."
Nan Fa-hsien, Master of the Inner Chambers, and son of Nan Ho, once Chancellor to the great T'ang, Li Yuan, straightened up, staring at himself in the mirror, making sure he was correctly dressed, then, satisfied, turned to look at the three waiting guards.
"Well?" he asked. "You have your orders. What are you waiting for?"