The Last Blade Of Grass (9 page)

I am sending this letter to the non-classified accounts at the CDC due to my inability to contact Washington and Homeland Security through my secure-line. I fear that all major branches of government may be in the same state of infection that my base is, and need to get this information out in the hopes that someone may be able to stop this infection from spreading. The following letter I received from my colleague, General Taggart. Something must have changed with this drug to be causing the violence we are experiencing.”

“General Francis,

In response to your query regarding the safety and efficacy of the Zeus drug.

Due to the deteriorating condition of law and order within the Continental United States and abroad, nationwide martial law has been planned for and it is expected that the President will give the declaration for enacting it next week. The continuing societal unrest is expected to be compounded on Wednesday when the World Bank is set to announce an end to the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. This will cause massive inflation and dollar devaluation to our already crumbling economy.

The troops under your command will be required to ensure the safety of the citizenry, as well as the prevention of violence, and property destruction. As such, you and all of your troops are ordered to take inoculations of the Zeus drug. This injection has been shown to minimize blood loss, reduce fear and anxiety, and remove pain detection. The combination of which will ensure a minimal amount of casualties with our soldiers in violent interactions with a rioting populace.

This drug has been tested safely on the Tiger Squadron of German soldiers working in Moldova for the last six months. There is a side effect of a high fever which takes place on the sixth hour after inoculation and lasts one to five hours after initial administration. As such, only one third of all troops are to be inoculated at any given time, to ensure all soldiers are not inoperative due to the fever at the same time. The time frame for the drug’s effectiveness is two to three weeks, depending on the individual. All troops will be re-inoculated with the drug at such time as it becomes ineffective and as long as the order for martial law due to societal unrest is necessary.

I appreciate your concern for the welfare of your men, and I have the same concern for mine. This is why I have written more than the required “follow your orders or be relieved” reply. I have observed the Zeus drug being administered to the German soldiers and have had it administered to myself while in Moldova with the Tiger Battalion. I can personally certify its effectiveness. I will also mention that the reduction in fatalities to your troops resulting from armed conflict will help to prevent your troops from building grudges and animosity against the populace they must keep under control. Anything we can do to reduce casualties in the expected upheaval must be done.

Inoculations are expected to begin with the arrival of Zeus on Monday. In coordination with the military the CDC will be distributing inoculations nationwide to select first responders in high value areas.

Sincerely,

General Arthur C. Taggart”

*

“Well that couldn’t have painted a bleaker picture,” Simone says. “Do you think this letter’s the real thing?”

“It’s being scrubbed from the internet, and no one in the regular news is talking about it, so it must be the real thing,” I reply. “It makes sense in a way to explain how this thing could spread across the country so fast. Nothing else fits why the military bases were all having riots. I mean, things are bad everywhere, but for all the bases to be having riots at the same time would have required massive coordination if it was to fight for benefits. The NSA is keeping tabs on everyone, but they are especially watching everyone in the military, so there is no way these attacks could have been some coordinated event.

“In any case, this letter doesn’t change our immediate situation, other than to let us know this is probably the worst case scenario. If major branches of the government all received this drug and it is set to be given to first responders nationwide, then it could spread quickly even in areas without large military bases. Hannah, could you please print out several copies of that letter, actually print about thirty of them? I don’t trust that it will stay available online.”

We all just stand in an uncomfortable silence, staring at the computer, before Katherine and Billy say quick goodbyes and leave.

“Simone, I think you should get the kids and whatever they put together in their bags, and head up to the ranch now. I’m going to gather everything that’s left in the house and have it set for when the truck gets here. Also, call your family. I’ll be doing the same.”

“So you did manage to get a truck?” Simone asks.

I nod.

“Good.”

“Right, I guess I haven’t filled you in on what’s been happening. I did call Samantha right after you and told her to get Conner and head up to the ranch. I have to call them back and find out if there actually is a truck on its way, but I’m sure there will be. I want you and the kids out of here, because I don’t know when things are going to start getting really bad, and not just because of people going crazy trying to hoard stuff at the last minute. When people with this disease actually start showing up in the area I don’t want any of us to be around, but especially not you and the kids.”

“Let’s hope none of the hospitals or police in this area were among the
select first responders
chosen to receive that Zeus drug,” Simone says nervously and walks away to get the kids ready.

I pick up the phone and dial Samantha again.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Samantha. It’s Eddie again. Did Conner make it home yet?”

“No, not yet. He was going to let the truckers and workers know what was going on before he came back. I did tell him about getting you a truck, but don’t know if he has anyone for you yet. Why don’t I give you his cell number?”

“That would be great, Samantha. I also have a bit more information for you and him about what’s going on. Apparently, there is some drug they are giving to the soldiers that is spreading the plague. Some drug called Zeus.”

“What? Did you say Zeus? How do you know?” Samantha yells into the phone.

“Yes, a drug called Zeus. Hannah found a letter online that was being erased from all the sites it got posted to. Have you heard of it?”

“Emily…my daughter Emily in Portland. Oh my God. Eddie, can you send me that letter? Please send me that letter,” she says frantically.

“Yes, yes. I’ll e-mail it right now.” I sit at the computer and e-mail the letter to her. “I’m sending it now, Samantha. What does this have to do with your daughter?”

“I just spoke with her, trying to get her to come home. She’s getting her Masters in Biology, and her group is hosting a German scientist that developed the Zeus drug! I have to go, Eddie. I have to get this letter to Samantha. Maybe that will get her to come home.” And she hangs up the phone in a panic.

I start looking up the number to Conner’s trucking company when Simone calls out that a semi-truck is pulling up to the store. I guess it’s time to start loading things up.

*

A few hours later I arrive at the ranch riding shotgun, literally, in a truck that was sent by Conner. The driver is named Donald, and his son, Joshua, came along to help with the loading and unloading. I wave to Simone and Arthur as we drive by and head past the main house and bunkhouse, to a storage building behind a barn. After we get the pallets quickly unloaded, we all discuss our next move.

“I’ve told Donald and Joshua what I know about this thing so far. They have helped us out and have some hunting skills with firearms, so I have offered them a chance to stay with us. Donald here,” I say pointing to him, “already contacted his wife on the CB, and she is getting their stuff ready to be picked up. His son, Joshua, has been trying to get his girlfriend on the phone, but it seems the cell lines are already overwhelmed. So that’s two reasons to head back out there, and I have to pick up Matt Soderberg’s supplies at his house. He is heading to Idaho to his wife’s parents farm, where she and their kids are visiting. He told me we can use what we need and store the rest. Anyway, I know he is set up pretty good, and if he isn’t able to make it back, any extra supplies we have on hand will let us help extra people.”

“How much stuff do you think it is?” Donald asks

“I would think a third as much as we took out of my store, maybe more. Matt was a med tech too, so I know he stocked up on a lot of medical supplies as well.”

“Another thing I want to get is fencing supplies. I’d like to run by the hardware store and buy whatever they have in fence posts and chain-link. We’re going to have to set up some type of fenced in perimeter to slow these infected people down if they wander out this way. In that storage building I have rolls and rolls of surplus razor wire that I got cheap from one of my suppliers, but I never got around to buying any fencing material. That’s what I need. Let’s hear what you guys need or if you have any ideas.”

Joshua speaks up first. “I just need to get my girlfriend, like I said before. Well, she’s my ex-girlfriend now, but I still love her. Anyway, I’d like her to be here with me.”

“Like I told you in the truck, I need to get Karen and Katy, my wife and daughter,” Donald says. “My folks don’t live in this state and hers aren’t alive anymore, so we won’t need to bring anyone else.”

“How about you, Arthur? You got any ideas or anything you specifically need?”

“Well, I think Donald should get back to his wife on the CB and tell her to head here now. You three can get the stuff from his place without her being at risk by packing their belongings. Joshua should go into the house and try his girlfriend on the landline. Maybe he’ll have better luck with that.”

Donald and Joshua both offer their thanks and head off in opposite directions.

“I’ll show Joshua where the phone is in the house,” Simone says as she walks off after him.

“I also think it may be better to leave this Matt person’s supplies where they are. It wouldn’t be bad to have another supply cache somewhere,” Arthur offers.

“I agree, but his place is right downtown, and it’s a nice house. There’s a good chance that it could get hit with early looting because of where it's at, and scavengers would definitely try the place later on to find supplies if there are enough people left to do that. If it was off on a farm somewhere that fewer people could find, I’d agree, but he has too much quality stuff to let it just sit there. Besides, I already told him I’d get it in case he is able to make it back here with his family.

“One thing I would like you to do, could you take a bunch of cash from the safe and go to the hardware store in Rogue River right now to buy the fencing material?”

“I don’t think I’ll need to,” he says and follows with a curious smile. “I never told you this before, but my brother Randy is the owner of that hardware store, and the construction supply store next to it. We don’t always get along too well and haven’t spoken for a few years. A year after I retired from the service, my Ginny died, and I took to drinking. I turned foul on the whole world without something worthwhile to do, and my behavior caused a serious falling out between him and me.”

“I didn’t stop the heavy drinking until about a month after I started living here on the ranch. Randy hasn’t seen me since I got cleaned up. I’ve been too embarrassed about the things I’ve said and done to apologize. I think with this situation, if I can make amends with him, we could have whatever we want. It just might add more to the number of people we get here on the ranch.”

“Arthur, you get whatever family you have on this ranch regardless of what they bring with them, okay? You’ve done right by me these last two years, and your family is mine now as well. You might also want to stop by the café and see what Eleanor is doing. I know you don’t stop there every day for coffee or to admire their fine china. The end of the world might as well be the start of a new one for all of us.”

“I appreciate the offer to bring my family in, but I know we can’t really bring them in.”

“What do you mean, Arthur? I’m serious, get your family here…unless you think they are troublemakers or something.”

“No, I mean all of the discussions you’ve had with me about the ranch and supplies not being limitless.”

“Right, I think this situation is a bit different than what I was planning for. A fast moving pandemic should leave a lot of supplies scattered around as opposed to an EMP or financial collapse. What we’re going to need are bodies. Guard duty, scavenging, and eventually farming.

“We will need to limit who we let stay on the ranch at some point, but right now, we should take in any trustworthy people we can find until we know exactly how this thing plays out. Thank you for double checking with me, Arthur. I know I laid down certain rules for the ranch and haven’t been here often to see things carried out. You’ll find out now that we are here every day, that I am much more flexible than I made myself out to be while I was away.”

“So the rules for the ranch are changing?”

“You’ll be helping us figure them out, Arthur. I trust your judgment and how you ran the place these last couple of years. You also know a lot of the people from this area, so I’ll need your input into who can and can’t be trusted, those types of things.”

“I like that,” Arthur says as he nods. “I’ll head out now.”