The Gemini Virus by Mara Wil

Author:Mara, Wil [Mara, Wil]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Tom Doherty Associates
Published: 2012-10-02T04:00:00+00:00

TEN

DAY 13

Sheila Abbott appeared on Meet the Press, at the request of President Obama, to update the public. The president chose her over Secretary Sibelius so Americans would know they were getting the information directly from the CDC rather than feel it might be somehow filtered or otherwise interpreted through the Department of Health and Human Services. Obama also wanted to make sure the public focused on the medical points of the crisis rather than any potential geopolitical aspects. Neither he nor the State Department were anywhere near ready to address the country on that front.

Host David Gregory was thoroughly professional in manner, but his line of inquiry was brutally direct. Abbott, looking haggard even in a new Donna Karan, coughed out the most up-to-date statistics she had at her disposal—4,211 deaths, and more than 7,800 further cases of exposure and infection. She admitted that neither the CDC nor the WHO was any closer to combating the virus than it had been at the beginning. It was now in seventeen states, and she fully expected it to reach more. When Gregory asked if the government suspected a terrorist connection, particularly in light of the capture of Abdulaziz Masood, Abbott said she was not aware of any such discussions. When Gregory asked if she was lying, the skin under her pearls quickly reddened. No, she said firmly, she was not.

In spite of her indignation, the American public was not ready to accept the notion that there was no element of foreign subterfuge involved. Word leaked out about Masood’s possible ties to the Iranian government, and protesters held demonstrations around the country insisting that Obama launch a retaliatory attack. The president’s most fervent and steadfast opponents had a field day reminding people that he had touted the election of Iranian reformist president Maziar Baraheri as a “turning point in the history of Iran, and thus a turning point in the history of Iranian–American relations.” Obama’s misplaced faith in Baraheri, they cawed, had now paid out its first ugly dividend. It should be a lesson to all those who, in the future, might entertain the foolish delusion of trying to make friends with leaders in the Middle East.

The Dow shed more than 15 percent of its total volume as business slowed in every sector. Restaurants, bars, malls, hotels, and supermarkets were empty or altogether shuttered in some areas. Phone and email usage skyrocketed as most people remained indoors, and Internet usage reached historic highs so the public could stay informed. The CDC posted a central page that quickly caused their server to crash due to unexpected volume. Domestic suppliers of surgical masks and rubber gloves were so overwhelmed by the sudden demand that they had to begin importing from overseas manufacturers. There were three separate arrests of relatively low-ranked hospital employees stealing boxes of one or the other and selling them on eBay. In a medical supply store, two young mothers got into a fistfight over the last carton of cotton masks and

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