Waking the Zed - By ML Katz Page 0,31

she really had no choice but to board the helicopter. Paul should not have walked off like that, and he certainly should have dropped the weapon when the officer commanded it. She could understand his reluctance to stalk off without a weapon. But this is the army. These guys have plenty of guns. She still clung to the silly bent umbrella though the military men did not seem to regard it a threat. Except for herding her around, they mostly seem to ignore Pam all together.

Though plagued with the uneasy sense of being treated more like livestock than a credible witness, Pam believed she might be helpful. She might even need help later. Pam placidly followed Captain Crawford.

By the time she followed the soldiers on board, Dr. Klein was slumped in a seat. She had been strapped in, but appeared unconscious. The soldiers dumped Paul into the seat next to Dr. Klein’s and strapped him down, leaving him cuffed. He was conscious, but his head sagged and he groaned. Pam felt bad for him but had no idea how she could help.

A soldier directed Pamela into a seat behind them. She was relieved that she did not have to sit right by Dr. Klein but she would have rather been placed near Paul. The uniformed soldier watched her carefully as she figured out how to belt herself securely into the seat. From the growls behind her, she guessed that the infected man had been secured in some sort of storage area. The wounded driver was laid out prone in the aisle. After all of the passengers had been secured in one way or another, two more soldiers piled in.

“They are making progress securing the building, Sir,” a soldier told Captain Crawford. “There have been a few minor injuries, and they will need more medical transport right away. But the situation seems under control.”

“Radio for that second transport,” Captain Crawford said briskly. Then he signaled for the pilot to take off. Pam thought he should have given more instructions to secure any wounded. She considered trying to speak to him now, but figured she had done her best. Besides, now that the immediate emergency had passed, her adrenaline seemed to have bottomed out. She felt tired, shaky, and unable to confront the officer and his cadre of armed soldiers. As soon as I get out of this machine, I’ll talk to somebody. Dr. Klein could become totally incoherent at any time, and I’ve no idea if any senior Future Faith scientists are even alive.

She looked down at her hands and almost smiled as she remembered that she still clung to the heavy umbrella. Captain Crawford must have figured it was just a personal item without realizing she had been using it as a weapon. She imagined him shouting, “Drop that umbrella!” She pictured herself turning into Mary Poppins and leaping from the machine, using the umbrella as a magical parachute.

She thought about discarding the worn, floppy, and practically useless thing on the floor, but her white knuckled fingers would not release their grip. Faced with this alien threat, something primal seemed to take over her limbs no matter how hard her conscious mind fought for control. She sympathized with Paul though she certainly wished he had controlled himself better back on the ground. Captain Crawford may have disregarded the big wrench then, and she wished she had it instead of the bent umbrella.

Right now, even the illusion of security and control seemed better than nothing at all.

The Hospital of the Damned

The flight took less than twenty minutes, including the rapid take-off and landing. To Pam it seemed almost as if the machine had bounced up and bounced down again. After they landed, passengers that could walk were herded out of the helicopter and into a large green transport truck. This included Paul who still had his hands fastened with plastic cuffs.

He had calmed down and just looked pale and listless. His eyes flitted over to Pam’s face, but she just shook her head and frowned. She wanted to tell him to stay cool, but her advice had been useless a half hour before, and she doubted he would listen to her now. If he was going to cooperate it would have to be his own decision.

Dr. Klein had to be carried between two of the burly soldiers. She appeared unconscious, but still murmured some vague phrases, like somebody talking in her sleep.

The truck lurched, jarring the occupants who were mostly uncomfortably