Project Terminus by Nathan Combs Read Free Book Online Page B

while we break the news?”
    Randal thought for a few seconds. “This is critical, Dad. Let’s leave the OP unmanned for an hour.”
    Wade knew the residents of Fort Terminus were not only intelligent, they were resourceful and realistic as well. He also knew they were tough as nails and wouldn’t panic, so he pulled no punches as he shared the information about the plague decimating the population of the world around them. Moving quickly towards the solution he hoped would reassure them, he wrapped up by saying, “The bottom line is we’ll survive this, but in order to do so, there are strict—and I do mean strict —protocols that have to be followed. Randal is going to brief you on them. Randal, your show.”
    Randal looked at the frightened faces staring back at him. “Everyone here is religious in one way or another, and I know you’re wondering why God allowed something like this to happen. The answer is, I don’t know. None of us do. But I believe that God does help those who help themselves, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.
    “This is a very serious threat, and I don’t intend to sugarcoat how dangerous it could turn out to be. Unfortunately, we don’t have the luxury of having the CDC around to find a cure. That’s reality. But if we follow my set of guidelines we can and will survive this. We have advantages most of the world doesn’t have. We’re isolated. Although we don’t know for certain, it’s unlikely this virus can remain alive outside of a host, in the open air, for more than a couple of minutes. And because civilization has been put on hold, the transmission rate will be limited to increasingly smaller groups. As long as we don’t come into contact with someone who’s infected, there’s an excellent chance we’ll never have to deal with it. We have basic biological containment suits, P100 respirators, and we’ll set up a decontamination station. We also have two level-two biological suits. We don’t need to walk around in suits guys, so relax. But you all need to know how to put on the basic suit and tape each other up. Maggie and Becky will show you how to do that.
    “The most important thing we can do to protect ourselves from this virus is to never come into contact with it. That means no one gets within a thousand yards of Fort Terminus. So far, no one has discovered us, and with luck they never will. But I don’t believe in luck, so we’re going to increase patrols, and if we are discovered, anyone who makes an effort to get to us will be shot and killed, and the bodies burned. No questions asked. We cannot, and will not, take a chance. I know that sounds harsh, but it’s the reality of the world we now live in. And I intend to see that we all live in it for a long time.”
    When the meeting was over, Maggie and Becky showed everyone how to use the basic suit and the respirators; and how to tape the seams on the hoods, gloves, and booties.
    Afterward, the men went to the mess tent to go over the patrol procedures.
    Randal said, “All right, guys, listen up. We’re going to concentrate the patrols to the south of us, which is the most likely direction people would be coming from. We’ll patrol during daylight hours only with a two-mile radius from the forward observation post. The OP will remain manned round the clock. This is going to put a strain on us, but there’s no choice. Shawn, you have first watch at the OP. Bill, you’re first up on patrol.”
    The meeting ended with Wade saying, “Randal’s plan is the best we’re going to be able to do. If we don’t come into contact with this bug, we shouldn’t have to worry about it. We’re taking the precaution of sending out patrols, because we have to, but I don’t think we have to worry about anyone finding us in the near future. My guess is that this bug is going to kill survivors en masse. They’ll know it’s a disease, but they won’t know what it is. And it’s unlikely they’ll know anything