Invasion

"Is this where you think we stand now?" Cassy asked.

Pitt reached up and grasped one of Cassy's hands and gave it a squeeze. "Afraid so," he said. "If the data I got from the TV is reasonable or even if it is low, the projections suggest that sixty-eight percent of the world's population is now infected."

Jonathan tapped Nancy on the back. "Sorry to bother you, Mom," he said. "Here's the latest off the Web."

"Anything from the group up in Winnipeg about the protein amino-acid sequence?" Sheila asked.

"Yeah," Jonathan said. He shuffled the pages and pulled out the one from Winnipeg. He handed it to Sheila who stopped what she was doing to read it.

"I've also connected with a new group in Trondhiem, Norway," Jonathan said. "They're working in a hidden lab beneath the gym in the local university."

"Did you send them our original data?" Nancy asked.

"Yup," Jonathan said. "Just like with the others."

"Hey, they've made some progress," Sheila said. "We now have the entire amino acid sequence of the protein. That means we can start making our own."

"Here's what the Norway people sent," Jonathan said. He started to hand the sheet to Nancy, but Sheila reached over and took it instead. She read it rapidly, then crumpled it. "We've already determined all that," she said. "What a waste of time."

"They've been working in total isolation," Cassy said in their defense, having heard Sheila's remark.

"Anything from the group in France?" Pitt asked.

"A lot," Jonathan said. He separated the French pages from the rest and handed them to Pitt. "Seems that the infestation is still progressing slower there than anyplace else."

"Must be the red wine," Sheila said with a laugh.

"That might be an important point," Nancy said. "If it continues and is not just a random blip on the bell curve and if we can figure out why, it might be useful."

"Here's the bad news," Jonathan said, holding up a sheet of paper. ''People with diabetes, hemophilia, cancer, you name it, are dying in record numbers all over the world."

"It's as if the virus is consciously cleaning the gene pool," Sheila said.

Jesse carried the pot of chili to the table and told Pitt to move the PC. As he waited to put the food down he asked Jonathan how many research centers he was in touch with around the world the previous day.

"A hundred and six," Jonathan said.

"And how many today?" Jesse asked.

"Ninety-three," Jonathan said.

"Wow!" Jesse said, putting down the chili. He headed back to the kitchen for dishes and flatware. "That's rapid attrition."

"Well, three of them might still have been okay," Jonathan said. "But they were asking too many questions about who we are and where we are so I cut them off."

"As the saying goes, 'Better to be safe than sorry,' " Pitt said.

"It's still rapid attrition," Jesse said.

"What about the man calling himself Dr. M?" Sheila asked. "Anything from him?"

"A bunch of stuff," Jonathan said.

"Who's Dr. M?" Jesse asked.

"He was the first to respond to our letter on the Internet," Cassy explained. "He responded in the first hour. We think he is in Arizona, but we have no idea where."

"He's given us a lot of important data," Nancy said.

"Enough so he's made me a tad suspicious," Pitt said.

"Come on, everyone," Jesse said. "This chili is going to get cold."

"I'm suspicious of everyone," Sheila said. She walked over to the table and took her usual seat at the end. "But if someone is coming up with useful info, I'll take it."

"As long as contacting him doesn't jeopardize our location," Pitt said.

"Obviously that's a given," Sheila said condescendingly. She took the pages from Dr. M that Jonathan held out for her. Holding them in front of herself, she started reading while shoveling chili into her mouth with her free hand. She acted like a high-school student cramming for exams.

Everyone else sat down at the table in a more civilized manner and spread napkins on their laps.

"Jesse, you've outdone yourself," Cassy said after her first mouthful.

"Compliments are freely accepted," Jesse said.

They ate for a few minutes in silence until Nancy cleared her throat. "I hate to bring this up," she said. "But we're running out of basic lab supplies. We aren't going to be able to continue working much longer unless we make another run into the city. I know it is dangerous, but I'm afraid we have little choice."

"No problem," Jesse said. "Just make out a list. I'll manage it somehow. It's important that you and Sheila keep working. Besides, we need more food."

"I'll go too," Cassy said.

"Not without me you won't," Pitt said.

"And me too," Jonathan said.

"You are staying here," Nancy said to Jonathan.

"Come on, Mom!" Jonathan said. "I can't be coddled. I'm as much a part of this as anybody else."

"If you are going, I'm going too," Nancy said. "Besides, either I or Sheila should go. We're the only ones who know what we need."

"Oh my God!" Sheila said suddenly.

"What's the matter?" Cassy demanded.