Robin Cook - Vector

“I tested the anthrax,” Yuri said eagerly. He moved forward in his chair. “It’s as potent as I expected.”

“Who did you test it on?” Curt asked. In light of current events involving Connie, security was Curt’s first concern.

Yuri described how he’d picked Jason Papparis, a rug merchant, who was at risk for contracting anthrax from the merchandise he imported. Yuri explained that by doing so he’d certainly avoided any possible suspicions by the authorities for what they were planning.

“Very clever,” Curt said. “On behalf of the People’s Aryan Army, I commend your shrewdness.”

Yuri allowed himself a self-satisfied smile.

“We’ve got some news for you as well,” Curt said. He went on to describe the visit he and Steve had made to the Jacob Javits Federal Building that morning. He told Yuri that it was set up perfectly to put the bioweapon in the HVAC induction duct.

“Will you need an aerosolizer?” Yuri asked.

“No, not if the weapon comes in a fine powder,” Curt said. “We’ll use timed detonators to burst the packaging. The circulating fans will do the rest.”

“That means you’ll have to use the anthrax,” Yuri said.

“That’s all right by us,” Curt said. “Is that a problem? You told us both agents would be equally potent.”

“No, it’s not a problem,” Yuri said. “It’s just that I’m having trouble getting the bacteria that makes the botulinum toxin to grow fast enough. I’m less than a week away from having plenty of anthrax, but more than three weeks away from having enough botulinum toxin.”

“I don’t think we want to wait three weeks,” Curt said. “Not with the security problems we’ve been having.”

“Why not just go with the anthrax for both targets?” Steve said. “Forget the toxin if the bacteria aren’t cooperating.”

“Because with the amount of anthrax we’ll only have enough for one laydown, not two,” Yuri said.

“Maybe Providence is telling us we should only hit the federal building,” Curt said. “How about forgetting Central Park?”

“No!” Yuri said with emphasis. “I want to do the park.”

“But why?” Curt asked. “The federal building is going to make a much bigger statement against the government, and it’s going to get at least six or seven thousand people.”

“But it’s only government people,” Yuri said. “I want to strike just as much against the fake American culture, particularly all those Jewish businessmen and bankers who’ve caused all the economic turmoil in Russia today.”

Curt and Steve exchanged a disgruntled glance.

“This is a rootless culture,” Yuri continued. “People are supposed to be free, but they’re not. They’re all scrambling for status and identity. We Slavs may have had some trouble down through history but at least we know who we are.”

“I don’t believe I’m hearing this,” Curt said. “Why haven’t you voiced this before?”

“You never asked me,” Yuri said.

“America has some problems,” Curt agreed. “But it’s because of ZOG supporting gun control, miscegenation, nigger drug dealers, welfare cheats, and queers, all of who are eroding our original roots. That’s what we’re fighting against. We know we’ll have some civilian casualties in the struggle. It’s to be expected. But it’s the government we’re targeting.”

“There are no civilians in my war,” Yuri said. “That’s why I want the laydown in Central Park. With a proper wind vector it will take out a large swath of the city. I’m talking about hundreds of thousands of casualties or even millions, not thousands. That’s what a weapon of mass destruction is supposed to do. Hell, for your narrow objective you could use a regular old bomb.”

“We wouldn’t be able to get a bomb big enough into the building,” Curt said. “That’s the whole point. We’ll have no trouble with four or five pounds of flour-like powder. I mean, that’s how you described the weaponized anthrax.”

“That’s right,” Yuri said. “A very, very fine flour that’s so light it stays suspended.”

For a few moments the three men stared at each other. All were aware of the tension.

“All right,” Curt said, waving his hands in the air. “We’re back to square one. We’ll do both laydowns. The problem boils down to getting enough stuff.”

“Where’s my pest control truck you guys promised?” Yuri asked.

“The troops have located one,” Curt said. “Don’t worry.”

“Where is it?”

“It’s parked behind a pest control company out on Long Island,” Curt said. “It’s used for the potato crop in-season. There’s no security. It’s there for the taking.”

“I want it in my garage,” Yuri said.

“What’s this new belligerency?” Curt questioned. “With the surprises you’ve had for us tonight, we are the ones who should be mad.”

“I just want the truck in the garage,” Yuri demanded. “That was the deal. It was supposed to be there already.”

“I think you’d better watch your tone,” Steve said. “Otherwise we’ll be sending the shock troops to pay you a visit.”

“Don’t threaten me,” Yuri said. “Otherwise you won’t get anything. I’ll sabotage the whole program.”

“Hey, hold up, you guys,” Curt said. “This is getting out of hand. Let’s not argue among ourselves. There’s no problem here. We’ll see that the truck is procured, brought into town, and put into your garage. Will that make you happy?”

“That was our agreement,” Yuri said.

“Consider it done,” Curt said. “Meanwhile on your end you’ve got to take care of Connie. Fair enough?”

“It will be done tonight,” Yuri said. He visibly relaxed and polished off the last of his drink.

“Good,” Curt said. He rubbed his hands in a show of eagerness. “Then let’s talk about scheduling. What if you gave up on the toxin and converted the second fermenter to anthrax? Wouldn’t that mean we’d have enough product sooner?”

“Probably,” Yuri said.

“What’s the time frame realistically?” Curt asked.

“By the end of the week or the beginning of the next if all goes well,” Yuri said.

“That’s music to my ears,” Curt said, forcing himself to smile. He stood up. Steve followed suit.

“I have a question,” Yuri said. “What’s a medical examiner?”

“It’s a guy that looks at dead people and figures out why they died,” Steve said.

“I thought so,” Yuri said. He got to his feet.

“That’s a curious question,” Curt remarked. “Why do you ask?”

“When I went back to the rug dealer’s today to find out if he’d died, there was a man there taking cultures who said he was investigating the case.”

“Wait a sec,” Curt commented. “I thought you said that your ruse of infecting a rug dealer would preclude any investigation by the authorities.”

“I didn’t say that,” Yuri responded. “I said that the authorities wouldn’t suspect the release of a bioweapon.”

“But the authorities know anthrax is used as a weapon,” Curt said. “What will keep them from getting suspicious?”

“Because they’ll have a logical explanation for the episode,” Yuri said. “They’ll be congratulating themselves for figuring it out. That’s the way those people think.”

“What if they don’t find any source?” Curt asked. “Or did you leave something for them to find on one of the rugs?”

“No, I didn’t do that,” Yuri admitted.

“Could that be a problem?” Curt asked.

“Possibly,” Yuri said. “But I doubt it.”

“But you can’t be a hundred percent certain,” Curt said.

“Not a hundred percent but very close to it.”