A Heartbeat Away - Michael Palmer [109]
“For now, nothing,” Townsend said. “But Mr. Vice President, you are second in line to ascend to the presidency, and Madam Speaker, you are third. I felt it was my obligation to inform you both of the situation, as you, Henry, may be called upon to take the presidential oath of office.”
Tilden grimaced in an honest display of remorse. Ellis did the same, but her apparent dismay was anything but honest.
“Let’s pray it doesn’t come to that,” Tilden said.
“I suggest that we meet at least every two hours on the hour so that we’re all on the same page,” Townsend said. “If the situation with the president worsens between checkpoints, I shall simply summon you both back to the rostrum and we will decide a course of action from there. Agreed?”
“Agreed,” both said.
The meeting adjourned, and Ellis set off to locate Gladstone. Her mind was on the biocontainment suit she saw hanging by the Senate Chamber door. She regretted now not putting it on, as she had subjected herself to a high concentration of infected air. Hopefully, she would not manifest signs of infection until she had shepherded the Genesis bill through Congress. The video on her BlackBerry of Group C, and the guarantee from Genesis of a treatment, should be enough to drive the legislation home in no time.
Before she could locate Gladstone, she felt a vibration against her ribs. The Genesis messaging device, secured there with masking tape, was buzzing for her attention. Ellis made a hasty change of direction and returned to the ladies’ room, where she felt it safest to read and respond. The message from Genesis was simple and to the point.
They wrote: What is the status of the legislation?
Ellis typed back: Getting closer. Allaire is showing symptoms of infection. Has exhibited rage behavior that is worrisome to his personal physician.
Genesis: This is the time to strike. Get that bill passed.
Ellis: Tilden is still a veto threat.
Genesis: That is your concern, not ours. If you want the antiviral treatment, then you will need to find a way to pass the bill into law.
Ellis stared at the messaging device. She knew what “find a way” really meant. She was third in line for the presidency, soon to be second. More than just her ambitions were at stake now. She had put her life in danger simply by setting foot inside the Senate Chamber. Now, she needed the treatment. Of course, there was a way.
Consider it done, Ellis wrote.
CHAPTER 50
DAY 6
11:30 A.M. (CST)
Sergeant Stafford equipped Griff and Forbush with down parkas for the short walk to the bungalow where Rappaport was waiting. For Griff, it felt splendid to breathe fresh air again. One of the greatest pleasures of going down was a deep appreciation for the little things after coming back up.
The sun was a pale disc in a placid sky. It would be nearly set by the time he escaped from Kalvesta on his way to the Certain Path Mission in Wichita. Wind from the south whipped across the flat, frozen landscape and sent Griff’s hands scrambling for the lining of his jacket pockets. His footsteps crunched on rime as he and Forbush trudged past the same model VH-60N Whitehawk helicopter that lifted him out of the Florence prison yard just a few days ago.
“Isn’t that the president’s helicopter?” Forbush asked.
“No, it’s just the same model,” Griff said, his voice etched with worry. “But if we don’t figure out an antiviral treatment, it could be the new Marine One for President Rappaport.”
They entered the topside bungalow that functioned as the facility’s conference room. The sharp wind whipped the hinged door closed behind them. A portable kerosene heater in the corner of the room sputtered and gurgled while keeping the rectangular space at a serviceable sixty-five degrees. Griff left his parka on, hoping that the Secretary of Homeland Security would get the hint that there was work to be done below ground.
Four people—three men and a woman—sat waiting at a long foldout table in the center of the room. Griff figured the two men and a woman standing nearby were Rappaport’s assigned Secret Service