The Leaves in Winter (7 page)

“What about the
Third World
?”

“It’s never mentioned, as if it doesn’t exist.”

“It won’t exist once the developing world raises everyone’s standard of living.”

“Sure thing – like the Earth has the resources to do
that
.”

“Think about it. With life extension in play, what makes more sense – a slower or quicker turnover of the second class? A quicker turnover – of course. You don’t want those under you with the same length of experience and longevity as you. That would make them dangerous; they’d start to think they were equals.”

Faye’s phone vibrated in her pocket. It was a welcome diversion from the debate. The text message was from her boss at
Fort
Detrick
. With a glance, she knew it was cryptic and ominous.

C-Value Imperative / NBACC

The message was easy to decipher. NBACC was the National Biodefense Analysis and
Countermeasures
Center
.
C-Value Imperative
was a code Faye had learned but never had seen used before. It directed Faye to call in immediately on a secure line. It signaled something had happened and everything around it was locked down. She was to act natural and tell no one.

Faye excused herself and hurried down the hall to her home office. She shut the door behind her and raced to open a safe built into the wall. Reaching in, she found the secure phone, the one she never had to use before.

She pressed “1” for speed dial and connected to voiceprint identification. She spoke clearly, saying her name, employee number, and repeating the text message. Not only the content but the order in which she spoke mattered. She waited for authorization, then relay to the appropriate extension.

The other end of the line picked up. Once a connection was made, an automated female voice gave notice. This conversation was being recorded.

“Dr. Gardner?” The unknown voice was heavy with the gravitas of rank and the urgency of its mission.

“Yes?”

“Sorry to disturb you. It was necessary. Where are you?”

“In my home office.”

“Are you alone? Can you be overheard?”

Faye glanced back at her closed office door. On the other side, muted holiday music mixed with muffled conversation from the living room. “I’m alone.”

“You’ve been specially requested for reassignment. Your expertise is vitally needed in a Project currently underway.”

“What project?”

“I’m not at liberty to discuss it. A TS-4 clearance has been granted for you.”

“TS-4?” Faye knew Level 3 was Top Secret. She had never heard of Level 4.

“Special circumstances. I cannot say much more, other than the Project is currently working to avert a major crisis. If you accept reassignment, you’ll travel tomorrow morning to a new work location. It’s unknown when you’ll be able to return.”

“What do I tell relatives and friends?”

“As little as possible. Simply tell them you have a temporary assignment elsewhere. Beyond that, you’re still waiting to be briefed.”

“Will I be able to contact anyone from the Project site?”

“There’s a short list of allowed contacts. Immediate family members. Email and phone calls are allowed but no snail mail, no packages. All communications are screened and subject to redaction or additional restriction on a case-by-case basis.”

“What about my current work in Building 1425?”

“A liaison will be assigned as go-between to help with transition. Direct communication between you and your old worksite ends with this call.”

Faye fell silent despite a flood of questions. It was no use asking them now. An answer was expected, regardless.

“Will you accept reassignment?” The voice assumed her sense of duty and purpose was intact.

“Yes.” Faye heard the answer from a place outside herself. A part of her wanted to go. But that was the part that never needed answers to the hard questions.

Faye expected the conversation to abruptly end with travel instructions for next morning. Instead, the voice stumbled over its first awkward pause.

“There’s one other matter…I was to cover it only if you said yes.”

“I’m listening.”

“Your new station chief – will be Colin Insworth. Do you have a problem with that?”

Air caught in Faye’s throat. She cleared it with, “Why should I?”

“Normally, people with histories together wouldn’t be assigned to this Project, at least not in the same core compartment.”

“What history are you referring to…” Faye felt exposed. She had no idea such personal information was tracked. Fifteen years after the fact, why would such a thing matter anyway?

“We needn’t go into it. Just be aware, an exception has been made only because your skills are unique.”

Faye fought off a flush of defensiveness. Any hint in her voice would only validate their suspicions. “So what are you asking?”

“All we need to know is whether or not this will be a problem.”

“No problem for me.” Immediately, she regretted the emphasis on
me
.

“Fine. Give your name to the guard at the main gate of Joint Base Andrews Naval Air Facility tomorrow at 0900. You’ll be directed from there.”

“How should I pack?”

“Bring as much or little as you like. Be assured, whatever you need will be provided. If you want, don’t pack at all. Any other questions?”

“No.”

“Then welcome to The Project, Dr. Gardner. Thank you for your service.”

The line went dead. For a few seconds, Faye could only stand and listen to the silence. A core of isolation like no other enveloped her.

She had been a part of secret projects before but this was different. Way different. Neither anthrax nor Ebola, nothing had ever required the invocation of
C-Value Imperative
. It was somebody’s way of prepping her for what would come. They needn’t say more to stress the seriousness of the matter. Fragments of the voice replayed in her head – “
avert a major crisis…an exception made…special circumstances
.”

It told her nothing. She knew better than to read too much into the obvious.

She locked the phone away in the safe and started back to her dinner party. At the closed office door, thoughts of Jacob made her waver. He expected to spend the night with her. Should she still let him?

Tomorrow was Saturday. On other weekends when he stayed over, they often slept in the next morning. It was one way they managed to stretch intimate time together. But that wouldn’t be possible now – or would it? How long would it take to get to Andrews? When should she tell him she had to go?

Worse yet, what would she say?

Questions came faster than answers.

The voice on the phone had made everything sound so matter-of-fact. It was nothing of the sort. It was complicated and difficult. The need for secrecy made everything so damned uncomfortable. She felt her life slipping out of her control.

It was the nature of a crisis; little respect was shown for human lives.

Thoughts of separation, of stress and the potential horrors to come swept through her. Her expertise was vitally needed. But that expertise played out behind the maximum confinement of a BSL-4 lab. Bio-Safety Level 4 was required in only the most dangerous of situations. Her imagination ran riot. Whatever could have happened? A possible pandemic? A looming biological terror attack?

If it was going to take work in a BSL-4 lab to avert the crisis – that only proved to her how extraordinary the danger truly was.

She took a deep breath but teared up anyway. There was no way of knowing when – or if she’d ever be back. Anything was possible but in her line of work, that wasn’t good. Her mind was made up. If nothing else, the sweep of events wouldn’t rob her of one last night of normalcy. Jacob would stay the night.

But more than that – she’d make sure they made love all night long.

Chapter 5

0918 Hours

Joint Base Andrews Naval Air Facility

An icy wind drove diagonal sheets of rain into sleet gathering on the windows. Clutching Gore-Tex over a pantsuit, Faye exited the black SUV and sprinted for the jet’s fold-down steps. Holding the brim of his cap in place, her escort, an Air Force Colonel, followed behind with one black suitcase in hand.

Scurrying up the steps, Faye could see the jet’s blue and white fuselage had only two markings. One stretched above six oval windows and boldly announced –
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
. The second was the distinctive US Air Force insignia, a white star and red-and-white stripes against a blue field. The insignia emblazoned the rear-mounted engine.

An open door and uniformed flight attendant waited at the top step. Faye hurried inside to find a fleeting sense of relief. The Colonel handed her suitcase to the attendant then shook her hand in parting. To her left, the cockpit door was open. Two pilots, a flight engineer, and a communications systems operator prepared for takeoff. At her service, the male flight attendant was pleasant but all business.

“Will you be needing anything out of your bag during the flight?”

Faye hadn’t even considered it. “Ah…no.”

“Very well. I’ll stow it away. May I take your coat?”

With a quick unzip, she handed it over.

His hand directed her onward. “Mr. Insworth is expecting you in the second section, just beyond the first partition. The door panel slides to your right. If you need any help with it, let me know.”

“Thank you.”

Faye stepped farther back into the jet. The interior was functional but plush. It was designed for business but no comfort was neglected. She hadn’t expected to be on a commercial flight but this went beyond anything anticipated.

Entering the second section, a familiar voice directed her. “Close it behind you. We want our conversation private.”

The moment she dreaded had arrived. To suppress any show of emotion, she concentrated on a clinical inspection. She turned from the closed section panel and assessed the man walking up the aisle towards her.

She had hoped he’d be completely different; if possible, unrecognizable. As it was, he was older but so was she. Except for graying sideburns and a few more pounds around the middle, he was the same man she remembered. If anything, she sensed layers of experience had added a maturity once lacking.

The reality of working together again, possibly traveling alone, all of it pressed a nerve that forced quicker breaths. Before her was the man she had loved so many years before, loved with an innocence a woman could only offer once. And yet standing there, she was acutely aware of being sore from a long night of lovemaking with Jacob. The awkward juxtaposition rose to a blush, even as she reminded herself – it was resentment, not love that she harbored for Colin Insworth now.

“Thank you for coming, Faye.”

She nodded and waited to hear more.

“I know this is awkward – for both of us. More so for you since it came out of the blue. I’ve known for a couple of weeks it might come to this.”

Faye realized she was going to have to say something sooner or later. She decided to divert her discomfort onto something else besides the two of them.

“Are we the only passengers?”

Colin nodded.

“So why the fancy ride?”

“This particular C-37A is usually reserved for DHS or DoD officials. I told my boss you’re a priority. When I explained why – he sent this.”

Colin led back to a seating area. He sat in a swivel rocker on one side of a table littered with paperwork and motioned Faye into a matching seat on the other side. As soon as she settled in, Colin dropped into a much more serious tone of voice.

“As a matter of fact, going someplace is only half of the reason for us to be sitting here. Call it what you will – this compartment functions as a shielded enclosure, a TEMPEST/EMSEC chamber. The chance of eavesdropping on us, electronically or otherwise, is virtually impossible. I needed a place to get you up to speed on what we’re facing. We have to be absolutely sure what we say can’t be overheard. Of course there are other places we could go to do the same thing but this does double duty – it also flies. By the time we get to the project site, in a few hours, you’ll be fully briefed and ready to go. There’s a lot to cover.”

Faye glanced out the window and noticed the engines hadn’t been started.

“Do we have to wait for the weather to improve?”

“No. We’re waiting for a decision from you.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You’ve had since last night to think about this. Not a lot of time but I don’t want to obligate you based on one phone call. Some secrets, once they’re known, become too important to risk. It may sound melodramatic but sometimes it’s true – lethal force has been authorized. Once you hear certain things, there’s no going back. If for any reason you have second thoughts, I want to be sure you have one last chance to change your mind.”

Faye noticed that the black SUV remained parked next to the jet.

Colin watched her search the rain.

“If you’re in, there’s no getting out. You can retire, you may quit, but once part of The Project, you’ll always be part of The Project. A TS-4 security oath is a lifetime commitment regardless what you decide to do. It’s strictly enforced. TS-4 is a special classification of SCI-Access – Sensitive Compartmented Information. Its primary purpose is to restrict subjects and programs not publicly acknowledged.”

Faye looked Colin in the eye. “You said retirement is possible – even quitting?”

“Sure, but certain things are binding forever.”

“Such as…”

“You can never acknowledge the existence of The Project or its work or your participation – even if parts of it should become public knowledge. No matter what you know, those outside The Project should never suspect from your actions that any crisis exists.”

“What about family and friends.”

“What about them?”

“Is a normal life ever possible?”

Colin waited before answering. Faye surmised no answer to such a question came easily. “In time, sure. First things first.” He leaned closer across the table. “I can’t emphasize this enough – your background uniquely qualifies you to help us. We’re at a critical point. I hope you decide to stay but I understand if you don’t. I’m sorry I can’t tell you more to help you decide.”

Faye had already made up her mind the night before. Rehashing the risks now served no purpose. Everything Colin said was to be expected. It was simply the disclaimer on the back of the adventure package ticket.

“I’m in. Let’s get on with it.”

Colin settled back and pressed a button on the intercom panel. Moments later, the jet’s door closed and the engines started. The escort SUV made a U-turn and sped away across the tarmac. Clearance from the tower was immediate. Taxi and takeoff were executed as one smooth motion.

Faye turned her gaze to watch
Washington
D.C.
disappear in the distance. Up through rainclouds soared the Gulfstream V. It wasn’t until they reached cruising altitude in clear skies that Colin was comfortable enough to share secrets.

He poured coffee for the two of them. “Would you like breakfast or anything before we get started?”

“What do
you
think?” Her bristling answer startled even Faye. Was she really that annoyed at Colin? One wouldn’t expect a fifteen-year-old grudge to be so close to the surface. Maybe it was his insistence on being so cordial that made her snap. In her experience, such things were out of character for him.

Luckily, Colin had taken her answer a whole different way.

“I think you’d rather find out what this is all about.” He turned away to fetch something from a metal suitcase. He sat back down holding a small device in front of him. It looked like a cell phone.

“Taking my picture?” asked Faye.

“Looks like it, doesn’t it.”

After thumb-punching a few buttons, he reached across the table and set the device in front of her. Her gaze dropped to the small screen. On it was a database readout detailing Dr. Faye Gardner including photo, current address, government work status, and biographical background.

“What is this? My personnel file?”

“No.” Colin pointed to the device. “Pick it up. Point it at me the same way then push the button on the side.”

Faye complied. Within seconds, a database readout on Colin Insworth appeared on the screen. Faye considered the possibilities. Her mind raced.

“So what is it? Facial recognition?”

“No.” Colin grabbed the device. He punched more buttons and handed it back.

Colin’s name remained at the top of the screen but below it now was a graph. Faye recognized the graphing technique but couldn’t imagine how it related. Peaks along twin horizontal measures were labeled with numbers and an X and Y.

“STR Analysis…”

Colin sat back down. “Yes. Short Tandem Repeat. Those are the thirteen core STR loci that make up my genetic profile.”

“You accessed the FBI’s CODIS database?”

“No. We generated our genetic fingerprints using this device.”

“That’s impossible…” It came out, even as Faye saw the facts were otherwise.

“Scan any skin surface and the generated record is submitted to The Project database. If the record exists, a hit is returned to the screen. If it doesn’t exist, the record is added and populated with photos and data as they come available.”

Faye felt compelled to entertain her disbelief. “To do such a thing, nuclear DNA has to be extracted…precise polymorphic regions have to be amplified…and that only happens with two kinds of electrophoresis.”

“Gel or capillary. Sure. Outside of The Project, I’d say you’re correct.” Colin held up the device. “This is the first thing you must know about.”

Faye was in awe. “But it never touched us. It did it so fast…”

“This is RIDIS –
Remote Infrared DNA Identification Scanner
. It comes in many sizes, configurations, and capabilities. This is the most compact one so far.”

“Infrared…”

“Far infrared and terahertz radiation is used. Among other things.”

“Anybody can be ID’d just by pointing this at them?”

“That’s the idea. The range is getting better all the time. Using a new type of laser, they scan from aircraft. Soon, they plan on doing this from orbit.”

“Incredible.”

“About twenty years ago, DARPA went looking for a way to improve on the CODIS database. Grants were awarded for proof of concept and various subsystems. Several grants went to universities. One was awarded to GeLixCo, the biotech company. It took a couple of years, but eventually GeLixCo had some success. That’s when I was recruited as a liaison between them and The Project.”

A flash of recognition filled Faye’s face. She stiffened.

“That’s when you left…USAMRIID.” Faye avoided the obvious reference to Janis. Her pause before saying USAMRIID had said enough.

Colin noticed her reaction and took it as a sign. The past was a large part of what they were going to have to work with. He’d have to deal with it sooner or later. His mood shifted. Pensive and somber, he summed up his confession.

“The past is what it is. In the last two weeks I’ve had to push a lot of that aside. That doesn’t mean I’m free of it either. I’m the first one to second-guess the choices I’ve made. It doesn’t get easier, looking back, wondering how it might have been. I did what I did. I was a different person then. I see that now. I was more full of myself – and less complete. I’m sorry for what that meant for those around me. I don’t know what else to say about that.”

Faye fought back tears. “Some people would say you have a lot of nerve.”

“You’re right; some would.” Colin repressed the urge to say more. “Others would realize there must be a serious crisis to force me to do this at all. You don’t know the half of it.”

Colin’s frankness took Faye by surprise. She said nothing; she couldn’t.