CHAPTER 2
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Atlanta, Georgia
Dr. Paul Brenner rubbed his eyelids as he sat down at his computer. He hadn’t slept in twenty hours. His brain was fried, and it was affecting his work. Intellectually, he knew he needed rest, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop. The computer screen flashed to life, and he decided he would check his messages, then allow himself a one-hour nap—tops.
1 NEW MESSAGE
He grabbed his mouse and clicked it, feeling a new surge of energy…
FROM: Marbella (OD-108)
SUBJECT: Alpha-493 Results (Subject MB-2918)
The message contained no text, only a video that instantly began playing. Dr. Kate Warner filled his screen, and Paul fidgeted in his chair. She was gorgeous. For some reason, just seeing her made him nervous.
Atlantis Plague, Trial Alpha-493… result negative.
When the video ended, Paul picked up the phone. “Set up a conference—All of them—Yes, now.”
Fifteen minutes later he sat at the end of a conference table, staring at the twelve screens in front of him, each filled with the face of a different researcher at a different site around the world.
Paul stood. “I just received the results of Trial Alpha-493. Negative. I—”
The scientists erupted with questions and incriminations. Eleven weeks ago, in the wake of the outbreak, this group had been clinical, civil… focused.
Now the prevailing feeling was fear. And it was warranted.