Five minutes after they’d boarded Marine One, Kellar and Brickell were airborne. They sat across from each other in wide leather chairs. They barely had time to review the events of the meeting when the helicopter settled on the south lawn of the White House. With the sound of its engine fading into the evening sky, they walked across the lawn.
“How fast do you think we’ll see the death rate escalate?” he asked her.
“It’s impossible to say, but in the continued absence of any real progress, I would expect it will be pretty rapid.”
“My understanding is there haven’t been any infant deaths as yet.”
“That’s correct, sir. All of the women we’ve lost underwent urgent C-sections and the babies were saved. They’re obviously all very ill, but it’s impossible to tell whether they have GNS or just severe prematurity.”
The president shook his head slowly as he looked overhead at a full moon that had just emerged from behind a stack of clouds. For the first time since she’d met him, his face was painted with anguish.
“Have you been watching much TV of late?” he asked.
“Excuse me, sir?”
“It may not be what most people imagine their president does in his limited leisure time, but I enjoy watching a little TV at night. I especially like it this time of year because of all the holiday specials.” Renatta smiled, wondering where one of the brightest and most insightful men she’d ever met was going with this. “Since the GNS outbreak, there hasn’t been too much else on except the coverage. Most of it is understandably depressing. The tearful interviews with grieving friends and family members betray the terrified mood of the country. Millions of Americans, whether they have a loved one with GNS or not, are in mourning.” Kellar’s face went slack, and after a weighty sigh, he said, “Good night. Let’s talk in the morning.”
She watched as the slump-shouldered chief executive made his way across the lawn and past the Rose Garden. She suspected there were things Kellar had left unsaid because that was his style when facing difficult problems. But she knew the events of the meeting at the War College weighed heavily upon him. She was also sure they shared the same dreaded fear: If GNS was an act of biological terror, it could easily become the greatest medical catastrophe in modern history.