People recoiled as I passed them, eyes going wide and suppressed fear surging to the front of their expressions. I paused, looking down at myself. Mud, powder burns, visible weapons?everything but blood. Somehow, I?d managed to avoid getting George?s blood on me. That was a good thing, since she?d died infected and her blood would have made me a traveling hot zone, but still, it was almost a pity. At least then she would have seen the story find an ending.
?Shaun??
Senator Ryman sounded astonished. I turned toward his voice and found him half standing. Emily was beside him, eyes wide, hands clapped over her mouth. Tate was on his other side. Unlike the Rymans, the governor looked anything but relieved to see me. I could read the hatred in his eyes.
?Senator Ryman,? I said, and finished my turn, walking to the table that looked like it held all the survivors of the Ryman campaign. Less than a dozen of us had been at this stupid speech; less than a dozen, from a caravan that had swelled to include more than sixty people. What kind of survival rate were we looking at? Fifty percent? Less? Almost certainly less. That?s the nature of an outbreak, to kill what it doesn?t conquer. ?Mrs. Ryman.? I smiled narrowly, the sort of expression that?s always been more Georgia?s purview than my own. ?Governor.?
?Oh, God, Shaun.? Emily Ryman stood so fast she sent her chair toppling over as she threw her arms around me. ?We heard the news. I?m so sorry.?
?I shot her,? I said conversationally, looking over Emily?s shoulder to Senator Ryman and Governor Tate. ?Pulled the trigger after she started to amplify. She was lucid until then. You can increase the duration of postinfection lucidity with sedatives and white blood cell boosters, and first-aid classes teach you to do that in the field. So you can get any messages they may have for their family or other loved ones.?
?Shaun?? Emily pulled away, looking uncertain. She glanced over her shoulder at Governor Tate before looking back to me. ?What?s going on here??
?How did you get out of the quarantine zone?? asked Tate. His voice was flat, verging on emotionless. He knew the score. He?d known it since I walked through the door. The bastard.
?A little luck, a little skill, a little applied journalism.? Emily Ryman let me go entirely, taking a step backward, toward her husband. I kept my eyes on Tate. ?Turns out most of the security staff liked my sister more than they ever liked you. Probably because George tried to help them, instead of using them to further her political ambitions. Once they knew what happened, they were happy to help.?
?Shaun, what are you talking about??
The confusion in Senator Ryman?s voice was enough to distract me from Tate. I turned to blink at the man responsible for us being here in the first place, asking, ?Haven?t you seen Georgia?s last report??
?No, son, I haven?t.? His expression was drawn tight with concern. ?Things have been a bit hectic. I haven?t had a site feed since the outbreak bell rang.?
?Then how did you??
?The CDC puts out a statement, that tends to go around in a hurry.? Senator Ryman closed his eyes, looking pained. ?She was so damn young.?
?Georgia was assassinated, Senator. Plastic dart full of live-state Kellis-Amberlee, shot straight into her arm. She never had a prayer. All because we figured out what was really going on.? I swung my attention back to Tate and asked, more quietly, ?Why Eakly, Governor? Why the ranch? And why, you fucker, why Buffy? I can actually understand trying to kill me and my sister, after everything else, but why??
?Dave?? said Senator Ryman.
?This country needed someone to take real action for a change. Someone who was willing to do what needed to be done. Not just another politician preaching changes and keeping up the status quo.? Tate met my eyes without flinching, looking almost calm. ?We took some good steps toward God and safety after the Rising, but they?ve slowed in recent years. People are afraid to do the right thing. That?s the key. Real fear?s what motivates them to get past the fears that aren?t important enough to matter. They needed to be reminded. They needed to remember what America stands for.?
?Not sure I?d call terrorist use of Kellis-Amberlee a ?reminder.? Personally, I?d call it, y?know. Terrorism. Maybe a crime against humanity. Possibly both. I guess that?s for the courts to decide.? I drew Georgia?s .40, and aimed it at Tate. The crowd went still, honed political instincts reacting to what had to look like an assassination attempt in the making. ?Secure-channel voice activation, Shaun Phillip Mason, ABF-17894, password ?crikey.? Mahir, you there??
My ear cuff beeped once. ?Here, Shaun,? said Mahir?s voice, distorted by the encryption algorithms protecting the transmission. Secure channels are only good once, but, oh, how good they are. ?What?s the situation??