“There are environmental factors to consider,” Margaret said. “Mitchell’s video indicates that the infected are dying, but we don’t know that he’s responsible for that. The sickness could be caused by something in that building’s water supply, or in the air. If we bring Mitchell out only to discover that he’s not the vector, we’ll have wasted time and risked lives for nothing.”
The three men in the tiny room looked at one another. Klimas didn’t seem surprised; he was ready to back almost anything she asked for. Clarence, however, wasn’t buying it.
“We can’t risk you,” he said. “We’ll keep you in constant visual communication. The SEALs get Mitchell, they get samples from the dead bodies in the video, from the water and air, whatever else you want. Then they get the hell out.”
She slapped the table. “Don’t be stupid, Clarence. There’s no guarantee Mitchell will be there. If he’s not, we’re left with those bodies. If the cause of death is something other than the hydra strain, tissue samples collected by untrained soldiers might not show us what did the damage. We need to examine the bodies where they died.”
Clarence shook his head. He looked like he was losing control. “There’s no way I’m letting a pregnant woman go on this mission.”
Klimas and Tim stared at her. Their expressions changed instantly — with one word, she was suddenly fragile, a thing to be protected. Her strategy to hook Clarence had backfired.
She couldn’t let him win.
“My body,” she said quietly. “My choice.”
Clarence crossed his arms. “Our child.”
Margaret gathered herself, tried to remember what her weak, altruistic former self might have said. She concentrated hard, held her eyes open until they started to sting… she forced out a single tear.
“Wake up, my love. This isn’t some men’s rights debate. If this mission doesn’t give us a weapon, we’ll all be dead long before I could give birth. Don’t you get it? This is the end of the world.”
Klimas nodded. “She’s right. This is for all the marbles. We need her expertise. If she wants in, she’s in. Margo, how much time would you need on-site?”
Good question. If they found Mitchell, she needed enough time to kill him while not drawing attention to herself or exposing herself to his disease. She also needed enough time to kill Tim and not get caught doing it. She was willing to sacrifice herself to murder the president, but not to take out Tim Feely.
“At least overnight,” she said. “Once we locate Mitchell, we test what we can while he’s still in the same environment. We have to be sure.”
Klimas’s jaw muscles twitched. “Then we’re no longer looking at a grab-and-go. We have to change the entire operation.”
She nodded solemnly. “Then change it, Paulius. Whatever it takes.”
Clarence stood. His body vibrated with anger.
“Klimas, are you kidding me? You think you’ll last overnight in that place? As far as we know there’s a hundred thousand Converted in the downtown area alone!”
Three quick knocks at the door, then it opened. The little SEAL with the horrible mustache peeked in.
“Commander, we’re approaching the disembarkation point.”
“Understood,” Klimas said. He faced Clarence. “My decision is made. Margaret is coming.”
Clarence slowly sat back down. He had lost and now had to contemplate his wife — whom he had abandoned — and his nonexistent unborn child going into hostile territory where the hostiles in question ate people. Margaret hoped he felt as miserable as he looked.
Klimas turned back to the screen. “The SEALs will still secure a landing area, as planned. The Ranger company will come in next. Once the LZ is secure, a Seahawk will bring in Doctor Montoya, Agent Otto and Doctor Feely.”
Tim waved his hands. “Whoa, tough guy. Margaret wants in, that’s fine, but I’m out. You get me? O-u-t, out!”
Feely was the final piece of the puzzle. Margaret had to get him to come along. What would push his buttons?
“Don’t be a coward, Feely,” she said. “I need you with me.”
Tim shook his head, hard. “Fuck that. I’ve done my part!”
Margaret leaned across the table and slapped Tim’s left cheek as hard as she could. The sharp crack sound filled the mission module. Tim stared, mouth open, eyes wide.
“You’ve done your part? The world is crumbling around us. We have one last opportunity to kill this thing.”
He stood, hand still on his cheek. “I get paid to work in a lab. I don’t get paid to ride a helicopter into the goddamn apocalypse. I’ve been shot at, almost drowned, and the last ship I was on got blown up by a missile. I’m not keen to add cannibalism to the list of threats on my résumé, understand?”
He turned toward the door.
Margaret was trying to think of another angle when Klimas gently put his hand on Tim’s chest, stopping the smaller man from leaving.
“Hold on, Doctor Feelygood,” Klimas said. “I know you’re scared. So am I.”
Tim huffed. “Ha. In this category, it’s a safe bet that mine is bigger than yours.”
Klimas smiled. “You’ve got me there. The SEALS get paid to do things like this, but we don’t get paid to fail. If your presence increases our chances of succeeding, that’s more important than your fear. That’s more important than you. Everyone dreams of being a hero, Tim — this is your shot.”
Tim shook his head. “I don’t want to be a hero. I want to live. Margaret had it right — I’m a coward. It’s what I’ve always been and what I’ll always be.”
“I’ll get you out,” Klimas said. “You have my word that I’ll get you out safe. I know how much you respect Margaret. She wouldn’t put you in danger on a whim.”
Tim’s resolve seemed to waver. He glanced at her.
Margaret looked down, did her best to appear contrite. “Sorry I slapped you,” she said. His ego, the same ego that made him demand the yeast be named after him… that was his hot-button, she had to play to that.
“Tim, we’ve become a great team,” she said. “If I had all the options in the world, I’d still pick you, but I don’t have any other options. I can’t do this without you.”
Tim chewed at his lower lip, forgiveness already visible in his eyes. She almost had him.
He turned back to Klimas. “You gave your word. Does that mean the same thing it does when guys in war movies say it?”
“It means far more,” Klimas said. “If anything comes near you, I’ll kill it. I’m taking you in, I’m bringing you out.”
Tim stared at him for a few more seconds, then looked down. “Shit,” he said. “Okay, I’ll go.”
Margaret smiled.
In just a few hours, she could remove Cooper Mitchell, Tim Feely, then slip away to join her kind.
“Two more things,” she said. “First, we still don’t know the full impact of a hydra infection. Cooper Mitchell has them, but as far as we know they’ll eventually kill him. Therefore, no one approaches Mitchell — and I mean no one — unless they are wearing full biological protection.”
Going in was risky to start with. If she couldn’t find a way to murder Tim and Clarence, she didn’t want them coming back infected with a vector that could kill her.