The only quiet place Paul could find to think for a minute was a corner of the conference room with a large window that looked out over Minneapolis. He practiced deep breathing and let his eyes float up into the air. Thunderclouds trundled in from the west.
He’d been trained with both the Rangers and the FBI to remain calm in a crisis. He had to force his anger at Joan Cortez out of his mind until later. Paul thought of the humiliating raid on Ammar’s house. This time, he must get it right—not only for the sake of his career, but for the sake of thousands or millions of people.
Paul saw the reflection of Dr. Sarnahan in the window. Paul turned around. Several computer monitors had been set up by the techs. The conference room had been transformed into a command center for now. More coffee had appeared on a small table along the wall.
Conway had ordered everyone out except the crisis team, which included Paul. Conway lit up a cigarette in spite of the pained look on Sarnahan’s face. Conway drew in deeply, exhaled, and asked the doctor, “Where do we start?”
Joan Cortez, followed by two other men, filed into the room and stood by the door.
“I said to clear the room,” Conway barked.
“No.” Joan looked directly at him. “What if the perp is bringing in more terrorists across the border or they try to escape the same way? This is our jurisdiction, too. We’re staying.”
Conway frowned and turned back to Dr. Sarnahan.
“We’ve already got the team from Atlanta coming. But we also need a containment strategy for local law enforcement.”
“I want you to notify the Minnesota Department of Public Health,” Conway ordered Valentini.
“No,” Sarnahan shouted. “This is much too sensitive to share with them right now. It’s classified intelligence. Think about it—what if this is a nationwide plot? We don’t know the parameters of the problem yet. When I said ‘containment strategy,’ I meant not only the virus, but information, also. We don’t want intelligence leaks to start a panic.”
“Oh, yeah.” Conway drew from his cigarette again.
Dr. Kumar hurried into the room. “The team from the Center for Disease Control has landed at the military base by the airport. They’ve got three epidemic intelligence officers with them, nurses, doses of vaccine, and other personnel.” He scratched his side.
Valentini asked, “We still don’t know the delivery site?”
“Undoubtedly, it’s the mosque in Burnsville,” Paul said. He told them about his investigation of Ammar and Abraham. “He screwed up, and we can take advantage of that.”
“How big should we draw the circle around the quarantine site?”
Paul said, “We’re going to need local law enforcement at the site.”
“But don’t tell them all the details,” Sarnahan cautioned.
Conway told Valentini to make contact with the chief of police for Burnsville. “Give him the address.”
“What should I tell him?”
Sarnahan said, “They are to maintain order and make sure no one leaves the area of the mosque. Paul, you need to get out there immediately to meet the CDC team with Dr. Kumar. Post police at all points where people may enter or leave the quarantine zone. When the CDC team arrives, they’ll set up a mobile medical center to assess the problem and administer vaccinations to those people inside the containment zone as soon as they think it’s necessary. Hopefully, the team won’t miss anyone.”
“Should we cut off the entire suburb?” Conway said.
“It may be necessary, but we won’t know until the CDC team is on site to assess the extent of the release.”
“I’ve got to notify the governor. Anyone else?” Conway said.
Sarnahan sighed. “We have to face the possibility this is a nationwide release. Contact Homeland Security, the Defense Department, and the President.”
“How do I protect my people?” Conway asked.
“The priority for the CDC team is law enforcement and health workers. Next are the closest hospitals and emergency room personnel. We must maintain the viability of the medical personnel. If they’re overwhelmed, we lose the war.”
Paul said, “What about the kids at the mosque?”
“The team will vaccinate everyone who’s infected and isolate them at the closest hospital.”
People in the room attacked their cell phones and made the necessary calls.
Conway walked over to Paul. “You were at the mosque. Do you know when the meeting with the kids is supposed to happen?”
“Sometime tonight. Wait a minute—the services at the mosque began already, at noon. The meeting could be any time after.”
“Like right now.” Conway crossed his beefy arms over his chest. “Take the assault team with you to grab Ammar.”
“I’m moving.”
They ran for the elevator and descended to the basement. Paul raced to his house and took only enough time to grab the big Glock 21. He twisted into his shoulder holster and settled the gun under his arm. He picked up his Kevlar vest, just in case, and raced up the stairs. In his car, he always carried a Browning 12-gauge shotgun. He lurched out of the drive and glanced at his watch. Paul calculated it was about thirty minutes to the mosque. He called Dr. Kumar, urging him to move fast. Paul noticed a text from Zehra. He didn’t have time to open it now.
“The team is on their way and will set up quickly. I’ll help you work with them,” Kumar said.
“When we get there, will they start the vaccinations immediately?”
“No. Because the doses are limited, they’ll insist on an accurate assessment first. Depending on what they discover, we’ll react.”
“Our assault team will clear the area first and arrest the suspect, Ammar. The CDC should stay back for their safety. Then they can start the vaccinations.”
“In this situation, they have command and will work as they determine is best.”
“How long does this assessment take? Don’t they know the virus could be spreading fast?”
“Of course. First they’ll have to take samples from patients they suspect are infected. Then they must fly the samples by military jet to Atlanta for thorough analysis in their maximum containment lab.”