She patted down her pockets before pulling out a bundle in a thick napkin. “This should tide you over until we can get back to HQ.”
Lister rolled his eyes. “The soldier is more than capable of hunting down his own rations.”
Jealous? Smiling, David peeled away the paper and bit into his dinner. The salt from the ham made his mouth water. “Thanks, Mavis.”
He deliberately used her given name.
A vein ticked at Lister’s temple.
“What have you two discussed?” She reached into her pocket. After sifting through a handful of wrappers, she pulled a throat lozenge from the bunch and popped it into her mouth.
“Just the revised evac routes.”
David swallowed his bite of ham sandwich. “And that you planned to tell everyone about the germ attack.”
She crumpled the empty papers in her fist. “So many people want to stay here and rebuild, it seems the best way to get them to leave. Besides, most of them will cooperate if they think we’re being up front with them.”
“Lots of folks are angry.” Lister clenched his fists. “I won’t have them taking that anger out on my men, especially when there’s so many sick.”
“We can keep the wolves at bay, at least for now.” Mavis chucked her wad of papers into an overflowing bin. “I’ll tell them about the fallout once we get to Colorado.”
David’s crushed can joined the wrapper on the ground. Guess littering wasn’t a big issue at the moment. “Not many will want to live in the mine shaft without a good reason.”
“Let’s head back to my house to check the forecast and the maps. Beside, I’ve got soup.”
That and two more sandwiches might make a dent in his appetite. “I’ve gotta meet Wheelchair Henry first.”
He jerked his head down the road, away from her house.
“Who?”
“The Sergeant Major found a few vets on his way over here.” Lister shook his head. “And they’re healthy.”
“You lead a charmed life, David.” Shivering, Mavis pulled another sandwich from her jacket pocket before tucking her arm through his. Her fever flared along his side.
Her plan to burn the disease illness out of her body didn’t seem to be working. Still, she didn’t seem sicker.
“Yeah, he’s a really lucky charm,” Lister growled.
David grinned. He certainly was and he planned to keep it that way. “You doing okay?”
“As well as can be expected.” She coughed before shaking her head. “I’ve had all my shots, remember?”
He wasn’t bound to forget. After patting her hot hand, he freed his new sandwich and took a bite. Peanut butter and jelly. His favorite. “And you’re taking your meds, right?”
“Yes, doctor.”
Lister snorted. “If you two are finished playing footsie over there, we have things to discuss.”
Mavis crunched the cough drop. “The fire has made it impossible for us to activate all the valley’s points in the emergency alert system. But we think there might be enough public address capabilities in fire stations and churches that we can reach almost everyone.”
“My men will be finished stripping batteries out of abandoned cars to power them in a few hours.” Lister nodded. “Your recording is good to go. I’d activate it now, but with the electricity out, folks are bound to get hurt if they try to leave in the dark.”
“I agree.”
The crowd thinned as they reached the end of the street. David eyed the driver pulling his empty wagon in front of a house at the end. Two men in full biohazard gear stood in the entryway. He stuffed the last two bites of sandwich in his mouth and returned his face mask to its intended position.
“My main concern is the delay caused by using the roads.” Mavis’s last word dissolved in a coughing fit.
He caught the concern in Lister’s eye. Yeah, they couldn’t afford to lose her. “Maybe you should go inside. This ash can’t be good for your lungs.”
She pounded on her chest as she stopped coughing. “We both know that isn’t my problem. We need to find a way to delay the meltdown.”
Wheelchair Henry rolled into the cone of light cast by the portable lights. “Did someone say meltdown?”
Three men flanked him. From their loose yet ready stance, David knew them to be former soldiers. Probably not out of the service long.
Mavis clamped her jaw shut.
Lister thrust his hand forward. “General Lister, USMC. You must be Henry Dobbins.”
Wheelchair Henry held out his hand. “Honor to meet you, Sir. These are Falcon, Brianiac and Papa Rose.”
David nodded to the men. Definitely not out long if they still answered to their military handles.
“Nice to see you’re healthy.”
“Heard that’s a rarity.” Henry offered his hand to David. “Now what’s this about a meltdown? That the reason why we’re leaving the city?”
David clasped the calloused hand but didn’t answer the question. Lister stared at Mavis.
Her gaze shifted from the general to him. He nodded once. “Partly. We were attacked by Anthrax. The region won’t be habitable for years, hundreds of years.”
Henry folded his hands on his lap. “So it’s not the Redaction, huh? But what’s the problem with the power plant going kabluey, if we’re not going to be here?”
Mavis blinked. “Radiation isn’t going to stay in one location, Mr. Dobbins. And Palo Verde isn’t the only one going. It’s every operating reactor in the United States. That’s over one hundred and four. Add in the rest of the world’s reactors plus all the lovely spent fuel rods that have been piled up over the years, most of the Earth’s surface is going to be sterilized.”
Henry held up his hand before scraping it down his face. “Guess that’s why you’re the woman in charge.”
“Yeah, guess so.” Clearing her throat, Mavis jerked another cough drop out of her pocket. “Do you or any of the vets with you know anything about nuclear reactors?”
The man on the right stepped forward. Small and wiry, he shivered inside his Navy peacoat. “I served about aboard the USS Alaska, Ma’am. She’s nuclear powered.”
Mavis bit her bottom lip.
Lister rocked back on his heels. “How different is a power plant than a sub?”
“I don’t know.”
The African American man on Wheelchair Henry’s other side stepped up. “Brainiac is super-smart, Ma’am. He’ll know what to do or he can figure it out.”
Brainiac nodded.
Henry swiped at the ash on his cheeks. “How much time does he have to buy?”
Time ticked off in heartbeats. David clenched in his fists. This was her first real test at command. Was she willing to send men she’d looked in the face to their deaths? Or was she best in theories and on paper? He felt tension roll off Lister, no doubt the man was deciding her fitness. If she couldn’t make the hard decisions…
Raising her chin, she inhaled a shaky breath and stared directly at Brainiac. “As much as he can.”
David’s stomach threatened to return his sandwiches. She’d done it. God help them, she’d done it.
The third man stepped forward and set his hand on Brainiac’s shoulder. Light shone on his bald head and highlighted the roses tattooed on his forearm. “Roger that, Ma’am. We just need a way in.”
Lister offered his side arm and a handful of clips. “This should get you passed the front gate.” The African American man took them and began inspecting the gun. “Follow me and I get you some plastique keys.”
Chapter Fifty-One
Day Seven
“We’re ready to go, Big D.” Private Robertson leapt down from the back of the supply truck. Smoke drifted into the cul-de-sac and ash stirred in small cyclones. The incoming storm had brought the wind, shifting the direction of the fire. Rats streamed into the neighborhood and stopped to inspect the debris piles. It wasn’t the frenzy like when he and his men had found the civilians, but their furry arrival portended the sweeping conflagration heading their way.