“Yeah, their own fucking people!” Shaw got fired up whenever he talked about what they saw over there.
Priest continued, “Why should this be any different? Just a bunch of fucking assholes taking advantage of a seriously bad situation.” They all shook their heads. They had all seen the injustice and the corruption of people selling out their own.
The killings were brutal, and it didn’t matter if you were a man, woman or child. They all were killed, tortured and or raped. It was amazing that soldiers or warlords were there for ethnic cleansing, but would still rape people they were there to kill because they hated them. The Team finished up preparations and went in the facility for chow and a little rest. They had cameras set up at the bottom of the access road that would give them an early warning.
Inside the facility was basically the same layout as the other one, and they were probably all cookie cutter construction. However, the team was in full battle rattle up in Dearborn and didn’t have time to take a breath and enjoy the scenery.
The facility had a lunchroom, workout room, dorms, shower facilities, storage and a massive laboratory with all the latest technology. This facility was much better outfitted than the Dearborn one. Dr. Caulfield was extremely excited to get to work since he had gotten a few hours’ rest.
The Team took one of the storage rooms as their tactical load out and armory. It was the room right next to the Command Center (CC) of the facility. The CC had all the camera feeds inside and outside that monitored all lab environments and had access controls for the facility. It also had controls for the massive generators housed in the underground facility. Along with generators, there were underground fuel and water tanks making the facility self-sufficient.
There was an infirmary, which Doc and Izzy checked out together. It was nicely outfitted and could handle just about any emergency except for major surgery. If worse came to worse, it even might give it a go. There was enough emergency food to sustain 45 people for 6 months.
Webb had called an all-hands meeting in the large conference room. This was to meet everyone, establish rules and procedures and to update everyone on what was going on. “Hello everyone, I am Captain Marcus Webb of the U.S. Army. I would like to go around the room and have everyone introduce themselves. Please state your name, what you do, and any special traits or abilities. I want to take an inventory of all capabilities at our disposal.”
“Master Sargent Alex Priest, second in command.”
The rest of them went after Priest. “Dr. Isabelle Costa, microbiologist… I was also a medical doctor and was trained in minor surgery.”
“Allison Reeves, news reporter. I can navigate and monitor flight controls, but never got enough flight time to fly a chopper. Don’t think t
hat will benefit us much.”
“You have no idea,” Webb smiled.
“Chief Sargent Lia Dahan with IDF, now a Light Reaper.” That got some “damn rights” and a couple claps. “I have training in light weapons, sniper operations, hand to hand combat and I was a communications officer, so I am trained in various radios, computers, GPS, sat phones, etc.”.
“I am Dr. Caulfield, virologist with research in Hematology. I can make wine and beer.” A few faces lit up in the room.
“I am Dr. Diane Santiago, Pathologist dealing with body tissue and disease. I have a green thumb and can grow things in dirt and using hydroponics.”
“I am Dr. Bethany Rand, Immunologist. I also sew as a hobby. Dresses outfits, couch covers, etc.”
“I am Dr. Arnold Holtz (the scientist with the crazy red hair), Biotechnologist, disease and medicine research. I am involved in husbandry to some extent.”
“Ok, we are not here to take over or to bully you guys around. We are here, at least for the foreseeable future, to provide security and to keep all of you safe. Now, to do that efficiently and properly, there will need to be some procedures to abide by. First, let me tell you what you are dealing with.” Webb continues to explain the state of the world as he knows it. He explains what they have encountered and fought through. He talked about the reactions and mannerisms of the infected and the way they have been evolving.
When Webb finished, a general silence evaded the room along with shock, tears, and obvious disbelief. The scientists sat there for a few minutes, saying nothing.
Priest broke the silence. “We have some samples of the original virus strain to test with. Dr. Costa resealed the containers, but they dragged this virus through all those airports that spread this shit like wildfire. Hopefully with these samples, you may find a cure or antidote. I sure as hell hope so, at least!” As Priest finished, their faces lit up.
“Untainted sample,” Dr. Santiago said. “Yes, Ma’am.” Priest slapped Doc on the shoulder because he had been staring at her since he laid eyes on her. “You’re staring. You look like a mental patient.”
“Sorry, I can’t help it.” Dr. Diane Santiago was something to look at. A Hispanic woman who has black hair, big brown eyes, and she carried a few extra pounds, but they were all the right places. She was attractive and had a full figure, and it mesmerized Doc.
Dr. Santiago noticed him looking a couple times, but never really said anything to him. Dr. Bethany Rand was slightly older and closer to Priest’s age, but didn’t show it. She wasn’t a “hot” woman but was the pretty girl next door type. Being shy, she didn’t look at people much and seemed to have a low self-esteem, but was a damn talented scientist.
CHAPTER 34
Webb created a schedule of watch personnel, which included everyone since it didn’t take military training to monitor the cameras for issues. The plan was that if someone saw something suspicious or an obvious threat, they would wake up the Sargent at arms for that night, which floated back and forth between Webb and Priest.
There was an alert sound and intercom in each of the rooms. Instead of going for her own room, Lia stayed with Priest with no protest. Izzy followed suite with Webb, but Allison was still a little nervous about it. Shaw told her not to worry about it and it was ok. Everyone else was in their rooms.
Neville started off as the first watch when everyone went to bed. Priest showered and was in bed when Lia came out of the bathroom naked.
Priest was a little wide-eyed at first, then composed himself. He could see various scars on Lia, one on her stomach, on her thigh and across her collarbone. She saw him looking and self-consciousness spread across her face.
She turned to get a robe, “No, no. It’s okay, come here,” Priest whispered. She walked over to him and sat on the bed. He softly and slowly ran his hand across her scars. He looked up at her, “Combat?” She teetered her head back and forth, “Kind of…. abusive husband.”