They all seemed very interested.
“Zoya, get some painkiller. Francis needs it right now. Go.”
She nodded and headed for the storage room.
“I have had enough of this place and this virus. This guy came here in some sort of vehicle that travelled fast enough so that the trip was relatively short. It also has the capacity to carry five people, according to what he said earlier. I say we take the Cat, follow the GPS back to where these monsters first appeared, find their vehicle and head for McMurdo. Based on what this prick has said, the management of the station has no idea what he is really doing here. We can get medical attention there. And we can get out of this God-forsaken place sooner. I, for one, have no desire to be here for another two months. What do you say?”
There was quick, unanimous agreement. Except, of course, for Hamlin who had his head down on the table.
“Francis, are you up to answering me?”
“Yeah.” It was all he could muster.
“Fuck! Shit! Damn, that hurts. Hey, you need me. You need to take me with you. You’ll never make it without me.”
“We’ll never make it with you. You’ll turn into a drooling, flesh eating monster long before we arrive.”
“No. No. You said forty-eight hours. We’ll be there before then. They can help me.”
“Sorry. As I said before, there’s no cure. You’re going to stay here, by yourself, and enjoy the transformation. It’s exactly what you deserve. The real fun is in knowing what’s coming.”
Zoya came back with a bottle and a syringe.
“Good. Give him the shot now.”
She walked over to Hamlin and put her hand on his shoulder gently.
“No, wait! What is wrong with you? This is still all fixable. Look, I’m sorry about the flamethrower thing. Maybe I was a little out of line with that idea. I get a little high strung when things are unfolding. Ouch! Shit! This can all be overcome. So there’s what…six of us left? Split one hundred million and guess what…we are still rich beyond our wildest dreams. I can still make it happen. And this knee, it’s just minor surgery to fix if someone knows what they’re doing. Come on!”
Lena walked toward him, gun in her hand.
“You are not listening. No matter what we agree to, you’re dead now. You have been infected. There is no cure. You will be like the walking dead within two to three days. It’s over for you. And from us, you will get no sympathy. The world will be a better place without you.”
“Oh, sweetheart, come on. That just can’t be. Let’s talk. I’m open to negotiation.”
“Unfortunately, mother nature is not. We’re leaving. I’ll put your pistol on the back table. If you want to crawl over to it, you can do whatever you think is right. Either way, we won’t be here, and you will never leave this place alive.”
“No.” Of all things, he started crying. “No. I have plans. This isn’t possible. You’re lying. I have to leave. People are expecting me. Important people.”
“And I truly hope they end up in the same place as you. And soon.”
She turned and walked away. “Everybody, get dressed. Grab some water and basic food. Zoya, how are you doing?”
“I gave him a shot. He’ll start feeling better soon. But then he’ll probably fall asleep. We need to get moving.”
“Okay. He may need help getting dressed. You and I can do it. The rest of you, get ready. We’re leaving this place.”
“Shit! Dammit all! Give me my gun! Let me kill myself now. It’s mine…give it to me.”
“Sorry,” Lena said. “You’ll have to crawl over to get it. And don’t go too fast. If it looks like you’re going to reach it before we leave, I might have to break something else.”
“No! No, no, no! Fuck! Shit! Why didn’t I meet you sooner? Come on! We’d make an awesome team.”
“No,” she said simply. “We would not. Come on everybody, let’s get out of here.”
They started filing for the door, Hamlin leaning on the shoulder of one Zhabin for stability.
“Oh no! No! NO!”
The screaming continued until they had all walked out and Lena shut the door behind them.
“Good riddance. And God rest those we left behind. With one exception.”
The GPS took them back to the exact spot where the two men had ambushed Hamlin. With light winds and no drifting snow to impede visibility, they found the other vehicle easily. It was an enormous hovercraft, sleek and modern. It sat with engines idling, just waiting for someone to return and commandeer her. There was ample room for everyone. Hamlin found a bunk and almost immediately passed out in it.
There were supplies of all sorts—food, water, medical equipment, and pharmaceuticals—but no weapons. Lena supposed that these men would have raised flags if they had left McMurdo armed to the teeth. Perhaps that was the reason for the cache in the outer building.
It was comfortable and powerful. And it had the return course already plotted into its navigational system. Lena had to struggle with the controls momentarily, but they were soon scooting along at a fairly high rate of speed. As they were floating over the minor imperfections on the surface of the ground, the ride was extremely smooth and comfortable.
They were all so relieved to be away from Vostok. Although uncertain of exactly what kind of reception to expect at McMurdo when they arrived with their wild story of espionage and carnage, they all figured it had to be better than what they were leaving behind. And nobody felt guilty about who they left behind.
McMurdo was vastly different from Vostok. With a winter population of over two hundred people—a number that swelled to over one thousand in the summer—it was more of a town than a station. They received immediate and excellent medical care, especially Hamlin, when they arrived. The base commander and his staff had many questions to ask of them. The story they told was wild and unlikely, but each version recanted by each person was consistent in the end on all the major points. The ultimate response to what had happened at Vostok was never discussed or revealed in front of the survivors. Lena suspected that the Americans would pay a return trip just to see for themselves. She had insisted that Moscow be notified about what had happened and the Americans had agreed easily enough. Some details would be changed or left out, no doubt. The Russians really had no way to get there for some time, so opportunities to investigate would still exist.
Hamlin was in a hospital bed for a week, and had a minor surgical procedure done to ensure that the fractured facial bone he had suffered would heal properly. After seven days, with some carefully administered pain medication, he was determined to be able to leave and be on his own. The Russians were treated well, but had some minor restrictions imposed on their movement around McMurdo. Nobody complained.
Because of their location on the coast and the size and condition of the runway that serviced the base, a flight was thought to be possible within two weeks to return the Russians home. The next flight to the USA would happen the following week and Hamlin would be on it. He couldn’t wait. He had easily had enough of Antarctica for one lifetime.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The soft knock on his door was just what he wanted to hear. He had no qualms about leaving it unlocked here at the station.
“Come in!”
Lena entered, made eye contact, and smiled. “There you are. You look so much better than the last time I saw you.”
“Well, thank you—I think. That could be paraphrased to say something like, wow you sure looked like crap before.”
She closed the door gently. “You did look like crap before.”
He chuckled. An outright laugh might just jiggle his still sensitive face a little too much.