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  They’d followed Wade around that morning but hadn’t had the opportunity to make the pass. Dan would try at lunch. If they didn’t make the pass before the end of the day, they failed.

  “Thom, you okay?” Dan asked as they sat in the car, waiting for Wade to emerge.

  Thom was pale and sweating despite the car idling so they’d have air-conditioning. There was no way they could sit in the car without it.

  “My fucking stomach is killing me, and I was up all night with the shits.” He smiled weakly. “Normally, I feel better after that, but it’s gotten worse. The worst part is, I had to break a date with Airman Zimtowski, dammit. She finally agreed to go out with me, and she promised me something special involving peanut butter, a rubber chicken, and a lawn gnome.”

  Dan chuckled. “She’s the one you’ve been after for a couple of weeks, right?”

  “Yeah. Just my luck when I finally win her over with my charms, my stomach gets fucked up again.”

  “When this is over, you’re going to the infirmary. Enough of this bullshit.”

  “Yeah. Something isn’t right.” He grinned crookedly at Dan, obviously trying to play the tough Army Ranger. “Who knows, maybe I can talk Zimtowski into giving me a blowjob to make me feel better.”

  Dan chuckled again. “Good luck with that.”

  “Hey, a guy can hope, can’t he? Have you seen the tits on her?”

  “How could you miss them?”

  “What I wouldn’t give to wrap those melons around my…” His voice trailed off as he grimaced. “Fuck me running,” he hissed as he pulled his arm tight against his side and doubled over a bit. After a moment he relaxed slightly. “Fuck, that hurts.”

  Dan put the car in gear. Fuck the exercise. “We need to get you to the doctor.”

  “No. I’ll go, but make the pass first. Another hour or so won’t make any difference.”

  Dan drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. “Okay, but the minute I make the pass, we’re getting you to the infirmary.”

  “No arguments from me.”

  Forty minutes later, Wade emerged from the office where he worked and walked to the parking lot.

  “This would be a lot easier if he would walk somewhere,” Dan muttered as he pulled out behind Wade’s Subaru.

  “Nobody walks around here. Too damned hot.”

  They followed Wade to the Burger King. “Are you shitting me?” Thom snarled.

  “We’ll have to tag team him. Can you make it?”

  “Yeah.” He took a deep breath and smiled. “I’m not eating anything.”

  “Probably a good idea.”

  Dan parked the car and they followed Wade inside. The place was busy, so that would help them. They timed their entrance so they stepped in directly behind Tucker. As the line shuffled forward, Dan palmed the card.

  “Hey, buddy,” Thom said. He was still pale and sweating slightly, but his voice sounded perfectly normal. “Is your name Tucker? Tucker Wade?”

  “Yeah. Do I know you?”

  “No, but I think you know a friend of mine. Britney Fug. She told me about you.”

  “Britney? How do you know her?”

  “She helped me out. I’m in town for a class, and she helps get me where I’m supposed to be.”

  Dan tapped Wade. “Excuse me. The line’s moving.”

  Wade and Gregg shuffled forward, Thom still chatting him up. He glanced at Dan, and Dan gave him an almost imperceptible nod.

  “Hey, it’s been good talking to you,” Thom said when Wade’s turn came to step to the register.

  “You too. I don’t think I caught your name.”

  “Thomas.”

  “Okay. Good talking to you, Thomas.”

  When the next register opened, Thom shuffled forward, placed his order, then stepped aside. Dan placed his order, then sat at a table away from Wade. Thom stepped outside with his drink so it would appear they weren’t together.

  Dan pulled his cell and called Tasha.

  “It’s done. Left side coat pocket.”

  “Did he notice?” Tasha asked.

  “Doesn’t suspect a thing.”

  Tasha twittered out a laugh. “Okay. Excellent. Let me make a phone call.”

  A moment later a cell rang, and as Dan watched, Wade pulled out his phone. He couldn’t hear what he was saying, but a surprised look came over his face. He reached into his pocket and retrieved the card. He was obviously reading the number off the card, then hung up as he looked around, probably looking for Thom.

  Dan didn’t want to break cover by leaving his food, so he wolfed down his Whopper and fries, then hurried out. He wanted to get Thom to the doctor. As he approached the car, Thom was leaning against it, one hand holding him up and the other wrapped around his midsection as he vomited.

  “Fuck,” Thom said wiping his mouth. “Note to self, no Cokes when your stomach is upset.”

  “Come on. Let’s get you some help,” Dan said, steering Thom into the car.

  He didn’t notice the cup sitting on the hood until he sat down in the car, but he didn’t care as he backed away. It would wash off.

  He raced across base, driving quickly but not dangerously fast. He parked the car in a space as close to the emergency entrance as he could find. Thom was moving on his own, but he was obviously in a lot of pain as he walked stooped over with his arm clasped tightly to his side.

  “We need some help here!” Dan called as Thom staggered into the emergency room.

  “What happened?” a nurse asked as she hurried toward them.

  “Not sure. He’s been complaining of stomach pain off and on for a few weeks, along with diarrhea. Today he’s complaining the pain is much worse, and he just vomited.”

  “Where are you hurting, baby?” the nurse asked.

  “Along here,” Thom said, drawing his hand across the right side of his stomach.

  The nurse pressed softly where he indicated. “Does this hurt?”

  Thom hissed. “Fuck. Yes, goddammit.”

  She took his temperature quickly. “Find out who’s available,” she ordered one of the other nurses. “We may have an acute appendicitis. We need to get this man to x-ray. Get someone ready in surgery.” She took Thom and steered him to a gurney. “We’ve got him,” she said as she looked at Dan. “Give us a few minutes then someone will let you know what’s going on.”

  Dan nodded. As Thom was wheeled away, he pulled at his cell again. “Tasha, Dan. I’m at the hospital with Thom.”

  “What happened?”

  “He may have a burst appendix. They’re checking him out now.”

  “Shit. Okay, I’ll let Derrick and Rich know, then I’ll be right over.”

  -oOo-

  “How’re you doing, Army?” Derrick asked as he and Rich strode into the room where Thom was resting.

  “Better,” he said, his voice slow and thick. “They have some kick-ass drugs in this place.”

  Derrick looked at Dan. “Is it his appendix?”

  “Yeah. Ruptured. The stupid shit has been trying to tough it out. They’ve got a tube in him to drain off the infection, and they are feeding him some kind of antibiotic cocktail to knock the infection down. He’s going to be out of it for a couple of weeks.”

  “How’s he doing?” Tasha asked as she entered the room.

  “Ruptured appendix. He’s got a massive infection. I was just telling Derrick they’ve put a tube into him to drain off the…whatever, and have him on some really strong antibiotics. He’s going to be okay, but he’ll be laid up for a couple of weeks.”

  “Have they taken out his appendix?” she asked.

  “Not yet. They have to get the infection under control first.”

  “Did this just happen?”

  “No. Remember, he’s been complaining off and on about stomach problems for a while. The nurse said the appendix probably got worse over time and then ruptured shortly after being brought in.”

  “Goddammit. Why didn’t he say something before?�
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  “Don’t know,” Dan replied, his voice soft.

  “Shit.”

  “Yeah. I tried to get him to the doctor a few weeks ago, but he said it was nothing. It’s my fault. I should have made him get it checked out. The nurse said if they’d gotten to it before it ruptured, he’d have been back on his feet in a couple of days.”

  “But now we’re down for two weeks?” Dan nodded. Tasha nodded curtly then turned to Thom. “How are you doing?”

  “Okay. Sorry, boss.”

  “Next time, tell someone you’re hurting, you stupid shit.”

  Thom laughed softly. “Yeah. I learned my lesson. How’d we do?”

  Tasha smiled and patted him gently on the arm. “Fine. Don’t sweat it. You did your job, and I’ll talk to Fug later to see if she spotted Derrick or Rich.”

  Thom smiled. “I’m kind of looking forward to the sponge baths. I hope the nurse is pretty.”

  Tasha grinned. “I need to talk to the guys, but I’ll check in before I leave.” She jerked her head at the door. They stepped into the hall. “This kind of fucks stuff up,” she said softly.

  “It’s not like he had a choice, you know,” Dan said.

  “Not about getting sick, but he had a choice in what to do about it. Two days is a hell of a lot better than two weeks.”

  Dan’s jaws clenched. He took Tasha by the arm and pulled her away from Derrick and Rich. “He didn’t know,” he growled. “He didn’t want to let the team down, so he tried to tough it out. You need to cut him a little slack.”

  “This will put us behind schedule.”

  “Fuck your schedule. Is there some princess somewhere who has been kidnapped that we’re supposed to rescue in the next two weeks?”

  “No, but—”

  “He could have died from this, so excuse me if I don’t worry too much about your arbitrary fucking schedule.” He glared at her, then softened. “The rest of us will carry on with our training, just like normal. When Thom is back on his feet, we’ll catch him up. He’s a good man. He won’t hold up your precious schedule.”

  She blinked at him, clearly surprised by his tone. “You’re right. I’m sorry. But you’ve accomplished so much more than I thought possible. I’ve been pushing you to see what you can actually do.” She smiled. “Maybe I’ve been pushing too hard and that’s why Thom didn’t think he could spare the time to get looked at.”

  He softened even more now that Tasha had backed off a little. “We’ll do whatever it takes to make this work. We’re going to succeed or fail as a team. You keep right on pushing, and when Thom is back on his feet, we’ll make sure he’s brought up to speed.”

  She nodded. “Fair enough.”

  She started to turn away but he took her by the arm and turned her back to face him. “Hey. Sorry for getting in your face.”

  She smiled. “I’m a big girl. I can take it. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in the job I forget what’s important.”

  The four walked back into Thom’s room, but he was sleeping. “Dan suggested we continue the training on schedule, and you’ll fill Thom in when he rejoins the team. Anyone have a problem with that?” Rich and Derrick looked at each other but said nothing. “Okay. Report to our building at oh-nine-hundred in the morning. I’ll check in with Fug when I leave here, and I’ll let you know if you got spotted. Tomorrow we’ll start working on spotting a tail.”

  Dan watched as the other two members of the team nodded in understanding. Thom going on the disabled list for a couple of weeks wouldn’t slow them down that much. They could cover for him until he caught up with his training. He would see to it.

  Natasha

  “Sampson,” Tasha muttered, rubbing at her eyes as she sat up in bed.

  “Hold for Director Whittlefield,” the woman’s voice said.

  Tasha waited, wondering why Whittlefield was calling her so damned early in the morning. Didn’t he remember Davis-Monthan was two hours behind Fort Meade?

  “Sampson, this is Whittlefield. I need a report on Alpha Team.”

  “Still ahead of schedule,” she said, wondering why he’d called her three days early and hadn’t waited for her regular weekly status report.

  “Are they ready to deploy?”

  “No, sir. Sergeant Gregg is still recovering from appendicitis.”

  “It’s been almost two weeks. You said that was all the downtime he required.”

  “Yes, sir. Almost two weeks. The doctors want to make sure the infection is completely gone, then they will schedule the surgery. They think that will happen early next week. He will need a couple of days to recover from the procedure, then he will be ready to resume light duty.”

  “There’s a problem with that.”

  “What?”

  “The FBI is still running down leads, but we’ve got a serious situation developing.”

  “What?”

  “Doctors Edward and Kelli Griffin have been kidnapped and all their research stolen. It appears they may have been taken to Orkut.”

  “Should I know these doctors?” she asked, spinning around and putting her feet on the floor, trying to clear the sleep-induced fog from her mind.

  “No. They’ve been working on groundbreaking research to genetically modify a virus to deliver a payload of DNA.”

  She paused as she tried to absorb what Director Whittlefield was telling her. “I’m not sure I follow, sir.”

  “Do you know how a virus works?”

  “I know they make you sick and antibiotics don’t work on them. Other than that, not much.”

  “A virus works by invading a cell and replacing the cell’s DNA with its own. That’s how it replicates.”

  “Okay, with you so far.”

  “The doctors have developed a way to engineer a virus to attack certain cells. They invade the cell and replace the DNA of the cell with constructed DNA strands contained in the virus. But these are special viruses, developed in the lab. The DNA they carry isn’t only to replicate, but it also replaces damaged DNA in the host cell. In simple terms, this virus can potentially cure any genetic disease, from cancer to Parkinson’s to Down’s Syndrome.”

  “That’s great,” she said, still confused, “but what does that have to do with my team?”

  “If the virus can deliver a cure, then it can also be used to deliver a disease. If that happens, once a person is infected, it will replicate in the host until the host is dead. It can also potentially spread from person to person.”

  “Oh,” Tasha breathed, finally understanding what Whittlefield was driving at.

  “Right now, the virus is designed to be very delicate and won’t spread through contact. It requires a direct injection into the host, and it can survive less than a day outside the laboratory or a host. The virus also has to be engineered for each disease being targeted, the DNA payload constructed, and then the virus has to be grown until there is sufficient quantity of it to do the work. It’s a laborious and time-consuming process, not yet ready for prime time. According to the information I have, the virus can only target certain cells, and once there are no more of the targeted cells available, it dies off because it can’t reproduce. But imagine what would happen if the good doctors modified the virus so it’s not so delicate, not so selective, and its payload is much deadlier.”

  “If that got loose…”

  “Right.”

  “And you think the doctors are in Orkut?”

  “A plane left Los Angeles with a charter for Orkut the night the doctors disappeared, and they were caught on security footage at the airport where the plane took off. Since Minbitu was ousted, we know General Kangka has been jockeying to retake power, and something like this is right up his alley.”

  “Wasn’t Kangka the one selling arms and offering a safe haven to terrorists under Minbitu?”

  “He’s the one.”

  “Shit.”

  “We have no assets on the ground in Orkut, and with the tense political situation there, we’re not likely to hav
e any for some time. That’s where your team comes in.”

  “We’re not ready, sir! We’re down a man, and their training isn’t complete.”

  “I know this is a difficult spot, but your team was created for this type of assignment. They are likely our only chance to get the doctors back…or kill them.”

  “Kill them? I understand the reasoning, but the men think they’re a rescue team. They are a rescue team.”

  “That will be their objective, but if the Griffins can’t be extracted, they have to be killed. In any case, all their research must be destroyed. We can’t allow Kangka to possess their research.”

  “I understand,” she said slowly.

  “I’m sending you the mission brief now.”

  “But this team was designed as a four-man team. We’re down a man.”

  “Then you’ll have to take Gregg’s place.”

  “Sir! I’m no longer a field agent.”

  “You are now. You know what these men are capable of. You’ve trained with them. You can take Gregg’s place on the team.”

  “Sir!”

  “Agent Sampson. This isn’t a request. I know this isn’t an ideal situation and I’m aware of your past, but you’ll have to make this work. We will put whatever assets you need at your disposal, but you and your team are our best bet for keeping the genie in the bottle. If the virus gets out, it could be the end of the world as we know it.”

  “Yes, sir,” she said softly.

  “A C-17 will land at Davis-Monthan in six hours loaded with humanitarian supplies for transport to Orkut. On that plane will be your identities. The plane will refuel and fly directly to Orkut. Your team will be on that plane. I’m sorry, Sampson, but we have no other options.”

  “And if we find out the Griffins aren’t in Orkut?”

  “Then you’ll go where they are, if required. Hopefully, they will be located somewhere a little friendlier to the U.S. and we can ask for cooperation from local government. But for now, all the clues point to Orkut, and we can’t wait for verification.”