Frank Schatzing - The Swarm

He took slow, deliberate paces round the room. 'I can wait, you know. The question is, can you? I doubt it.' He shrugged. 'Of course, we could always keep the whole thing quiet. Maybe your intentions are honourable and that's why you've got Rubin working in a ghost lab. I'd love to know that it's all in the interests of international security. But I don't take too kindly to being knocked out. You understand that, don't you, Jude?'

What if Li couldn't care less? She might not even be listening.

Oh, she was listening to him, all right. He knew she was.

Jude, you treated Mick to his very own deep-sea simulation chamber. I know it's smaller than the main one, but I can't help wondering what he's doing with it that he couldn't do with ours. I hope you haven't joined forces with the yrr behind our backs. I'm sorry, but you're going to have to help me make sense of this, because to tell you the truth I-'

'Dr Johanson.'

He spun around. Peak's tall frame filled the open door.

'Well, what a surprise,' Johanson said softly. 'Good old Sal. Can I offer you a cup of tea?'

'Jude wants to speak to you.'

'Oh, really?' The corners of Johanson's mouth twitched. 'I wonder what she wants.'

WEAVER

Oliviera was leaving the containment facility with a metal carry-case in her hand when Weaver walked in. 'Have you seen Mick?'

'Nope, just pheromones.' Oliviera lifted the case for her to see. It was an open-sided wire cage with racks for samples. Row upon row of glass tubes containing a colourless fluid were lined up inside. 'He called here earlier, though, and threatened to come down. I should think he'll be here any moment.'

'Yrr-scent?' asked Weaver, indicating the test-tubes.

'Yes – we'll be sprinkling a few drops of it into the tank this afternoon. Who knows? Maybe we'll persuade those cells to aggregate. If so, our theory will be gospel, so to speak.' Oliviera glanced around the lab. 'You haven't seen Sigur, have you?'

'I was just chatting to him on the flight deck. He's had some interesting ideas about the next message. It should make life easier for Sam. Anyway, I'll come back later.'

'No problem.'

Weaver considered. She could take a look round the hangar deck, but if Johanson's suspicions were right, she would only draw attention to herself. Besides, the forbidden door was scarcely going to open while she was snooping around outside.

She continued down the tunnel to the well deck.

The basin was almost full, the remaining technicians from Roscovitz's team supervising the process. She spotted Greywolf and Anawak in the water.

'Have you let the dolphins out?' she called.

Anawak hauled himself out. 'Yes.' He walked over to her. 'What've you been up to?'

'Not much. I think we're all trying to gather our thoughts.'

'We could do that together, if you like,' he said softly.

She met his gaze and realised just how much she wanted to throw her arms round him. To forget the whole awful business and do what should have been done a long time ago.

But none of them could escape the situation. And there was Greywolf, who'd lost Licia…

She gave a fleeting smile.

03 LEVEL

Peak and Johanson made their way up through the vessel, cut across part of the hospital and went down a passageway. They turned off to the side, and came to a door.

'What do you call this place, anyway?' asked Johanson, as Peak's fingers darted over the keypad. It made an electronic beeping noise, then the door swung open. The passageway continued on the other side.

'That's the CIC overhead,' said Peak.

Johanson tried to get his bearings. It was difficult to picture the layout of the vessel. If the CIC was above them, the secret lab was probably underneath.

They stopped in front of a second door. This time Peak had to scan his retina before they were allowed in. Johanson stepped into a room almost identical to the CIC, even down to its electronic hum. There was a low murmur of voices. At least a dozen people were at work. Monitors lined the walls, showing satellite images and footage from cameras – sections of the vehicle ramp, Buchanan and Anderson in the bridge, the flight and hangar decks. Johanson also spotted Crowe and Shankar in the CIC, Weaver talking to Anawak and Greywolf in the well deck, and Oliviera working in the lab. Additional monitors showed the insides of all the cabins, including his, the camera mounted above the door. He must have given them some great footage, delivering his monologue from the centre of the room.

Li and Vanderbilt were sitting at a large table lit from below. The commander-in-chief stood up.

'Hello, Jude,' Johanson said cheerily. 'Nice place you've got here.'

'Sigur.' She smiled back. 'We owe you an apology.'

'Oh, don't mention it.' Johanson marvelled at his surroundings. 'I must say, I'm impressed. I guess all good things come in twos.'

'I can show you the schematics if you like.'

'I'd settle for an explanation.'

'And you shall have one.' Li did her best to look sheepish. 'But, first, let me assure you of how deeply sorry I am about the incident that led you here. Rubin should never have hit you.'

'I'm not interested in what he did. What's he doing now ? What's he up to in that lab?'

'He's looking for a toxin,' said Vanderbilt.

'For a…'Johanson swallowed. 'A toxin?'

'Come on, Sigur.' Li wrung her hands. 'We couldn't rely on resolving this peacefully. I know how terrible this must sound – as if we've been operating behind your back and abusing your trust, but… well, we didn't want to push you in the wrong direction. To learn more about the yrr, it was imperative to get you working on a peaceful solution. And you've all done well. But you'd never have made such headway if we'd told you we were developing a weapon.'

'What weapon?'

'War and peace are two different ballgames. If you're working towards peace, it doesn't do to be thinking of war. Mick's exploring the alternative to peace – with the help of your research, of course.'

'He's developing a toxin to kill them?'

'Would you rather we'd commissioned you to do it?' said Vanderbilt.

'Now, look here,' said Johanson, 'our brief was to make contact . To persuade them to halt the attack. Not to destroy them.'

'You're a dreamer,' Vanderbilt said contemptuously.

'But we can do it, Jack. For God's sake, we can…'Johanson was dismayed.

'You can, can you? How?'

'We've learned so much in so little time. There's bound to be a way.'

'And if there isn't?'

'We could have discussed it together. I thought we were a team.'

'Sigur.' Li looked serious. 'There's no clear provision for what we're doing in the UN resolution. I'm well aware that we're supposed to be making contact – and that's what we're trying to do. On the other hand, I don't think we'd cause anyone much heartache if we wiped out the enemy. Don't you think it's an option we need to consider?'

Johanson stared at her. 'Well, yes – but why the charade?'

'Because high command doesn't trust you,' said Li. 'You might make a fuss. People get their ideas about scientists from the movies. They think scientists are intent on protecting and studying other life-forms, even if they turn out to be evil and dangerous…'

'The movies? The kind where the army blows up everything in sight?'

'That proves our point,' said Vanderbilt. He ran his hand over his belly.

'Please be reasonable, Sigur…'

'You're telling me that you went to all this trouble just because you thought we'd react like characters in a film?'

'No,' said Li, firmly. 'Of course not. It was a question of focusing your attention on finding out about the yrr and making contact.'

Johanson's hand swept round the room, taking in the banks of monitors.