Zombie Flight

Zombie Flight - chapter 7 - I spy

"Four." I lied, looking Susie square in the eye. "I'll start. The guy to my right, now your turn."

Her face shone yellow and blue in the glow of an episode of Spongebob Squarepants, with an expression that read more amused than impressed. I wasn't used to that. This whole infection thing was surreal.

"You want to know how many I spotted, Richie?" She giggled nervously. "Six, and the one over there is nervous, not a Mustang."

Six! This little shrimp who can barely talk found six, when I, ex Psy Ops, can't spot one! Picking out infected had to be easier than identifying insurgents in a war zone, or honest politicians on the Hill.

I needed to learn from my pint-sized expert and build a profile for the infected. No, not infected. Susie called them Mustangs.

She started with the woman in the row ahead of us. "See, she's fidgety."

Next were two men in business suits four seats back in the middle row. They were obvious now that she'd pointed them out. Either they had Mustang, or they were practicing Masonic handshakes.

The fourth was a silver-haired old lady doing a crossword. I raised my eyebrows, but Susie nodded her head up and down confidently. "Her eyes—they're too white, too clear."

Next she pointed her head toward a teenage gamer wearing a baseball cap who sat by the window on the other side of the plane in our row. I shook my head. I didn't buy it. The other people, sure, but he had no tells.

This cracked Susie up. "He's been playing that computer game for at least two hours, and he hasn't blinked. Mustangs are too good at everything. Plus, he's got clean skin, no pimples—not like a normal teenager. Roger always said it's the biggest giveaway." Then her smile dropped. "When you came back bleeding, they all went for their drugs. They smell it. You must be the only one who doesn't know!"

There was something not right about Susie taking all this in stride. It was like she'd switched off her emotions. I drew a six in the air with my finger and raised my eyebrows.

Susie leaned in and whispered, "Nola's number six. You can tell by her belly. She's been a Mustang for a long time."

"What's happening with her belly, Susie?"

The smile left her face for the first time since we started talking. She didn't even look me in the eye as she said it. "The worm gets bigger inside them if they don't take the drugs, and they change."

"Change? Change how?" I asked, but she didn't want to talk, and I could see she'd gone pale. I tried another tack. "Hey, aren't you worried about Nola coming near you?"

She hesitated before whispering, "She looks like my mom."

"What is your mom like?"

Susie started to tear up. "She gets angry sometimes, and happy other times. It's the moon."

"What about the moon?" I asked, but it was no good. Susie sank back into her chair and put her face mask and headphones on. She was blocking me out, holding her chest and neck as if a vampire was on the loose, staring intently at the screen. A new episode of Spongebob Squarepants had just started.

"Okay, Susie, you go back to Spongebob," I whispered as I pulled out the tablet computer the embassy had given me. I turned it on and started flicking through menus. Apparently my staff back in the States—the ones who I thought I'd let go—had filed all but the urgent emails. It was somewhat of an understatement—only three emails in an account that normally held thousands, and all sent in the twelve-hour window before we took off from Narita.

The first email was from Gene Heusen, the party whip. Short and sweet—and full of threats about what would happen if I didn't toe the line and vote for the Anthelmintic bill. I had to go to the dictionary app to even work out what Anthelmintic meant.

Anthelmintic (chiefly of medicines): used to destroy parasitic worms.

Subtlety wasn't Heusen's strong point. Apparently over-the-counter worming treatments could kill anyone infected with Mustang, and like it or not, he expected me to vote to make them illegal. I didn't expect much more from the man, a textbook bully. I'd never known him to take an ethical stance on anything.

It was a miracle any legislation that impacted the big Pharma companies' bottom line ever made it to the House. Their campaign donations to both the Republican and Democratic parties were the size of a small country's GDP. Something bigger was at play.

The next email took me by surprise: a personal note from the president. Sue Brenner had shown zero interest in my career up till now.

From: POTUS - Office of the President of the United States - Sue Brenner

To: Senator Richard L. Steele

Subject: Welcome Back

Richie,

Understandably you have been somewhat out of the loop, but your country needs you. Mustang infection is now the number-one treatable non-life-threatening condition in the United States. With appropriate medication, such as OxyContin or Benzodiazepine, infected citizens have proven to be some our most productive members of society.

Formerly harmless, but now deadly, anthelmintic medications are still on the market. Unless we restrict the production of these drugs, and their availability, we risk our citizens' life and liberty. In your absence, radical elements have risen to prominence, preaching fear and hate against citizens living with Mustang. These radicals have shown a recklessness and willingness to use anthelmintics that could endanger the lives of ordinary people, like your sister and her family.

The party is standing strong with our Mustang brothers and sisters against the scourge of prejudice that is threatening our citizens and this legislation. The Anthelmintic bill can unite the country and protect its people. I look forward to working with you to make a difference.

Your friend,

Sue Brenner, Commander in Chief

P.S. Hoping to see you in Los Angeles upon your return.

What the . . . ? "Your friend, Sue"! Not in this lifetime, and what the hell was she getting at with the crack about my family?

I couldn't open the last email from my sister Jan quick enough.

From: JanSteeleLivingstone@gmail.com

To: Senator Richard L. Steele

Subject: Where are you?

Richie,

Are you okay?

We all loved Heather so much. I wish you'd come and stayed with us instead of running away to Japan, but I understand you needed to be alone.

You've probably heard all about Mustang. Don't believe the hype. It's not some terrible thing—just something you learn to live with, like diabetes. Anyway, the whole family has it, which is a blessing in some ways. If you stay on the medication, everything is better than fine.

Judy has her first boyfriend, and Brian is going through a phase. It's been hardest on the kids at school. Kids can be cruel—name-calling and such. I know things have been hard on you, but your family needs you too. We miss you. The whole country needs you.

Jan xx

P.S. You are coming over for some raw steaks as soon as you get home. No excuses.

There was too much I didn't understand in that letter. What had been hard on the kids? Their crazy uncle in the news or this Mustang thing? And raw steak? Jan had been a vegan since she was sixteen! I could feel my heart starting to pump harder. Something was very wrong.

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