“I suppose,” Jack said. “But leave your keys in the car. It might have to be moved if they go ahead and erect the autopsy tents.”
“Has there already been a flood of cases?” Vinnie asked. “I’ll be there in twenty minutes, tops. There’s zero traffic.”
“There’s been no cases as far as I know,” Jack said. “I’m sure this whole thing is a huge mistake. There might be a subway pandemic in thenear future, but there certainly isn’t one right now to justify what’s happening. My question to you is whether you think your charge, Carlos, could have been the source for theDaily Newsarticle.”
“I hadn’t thought about it,” Vinnie said. “But yeah, he could have sold it. I certainly wouldn’t put it past him. The guy is a dick, like I said.”
“Did you see or talk to him after he walked out of the autopsy?”
“I didn’t. Nor did I expect to. Nor do I think he is going to show up today.”
“Okay,” Jack said. “I’ll see you soon.”
Jack had the hunch that heads were going to roll because of the seriousness of the situation. He also had the nagging worry that some might think he was the source of the misinformation, as wound up as he’d been about the two subway deaths. With that thought in mind, it might be important to pin down the true source.
After uncrumpling the paper, Jack went back and read theDaily Newsarticle more carefully, in case there might have been subtle hints or suggestions of who the source was. But there weren’t. What he realized with a more careful reading was how clever the article was in terms of scaring the bejesus out of the reader. It actually accurately described the clinical course of the two subway deaths and the autopsy findings. The article went on to say that the OCME had been contacted to confirm the details. Jack wondered who the reporter had spoken with, as it certainly wasn’t him. He shuddered. Inwardly, he knew there was going to be hell to pay for this debacle.
31
THURSDAY, 6:23 A.M.
With some trepidation, Jack entered the front office area. None of the secretaries had come in yet, and he wondered if they were going to have trouble running the reporter gauntlet. As he passed their desks he felt a little like he had in years past when he’d been summoned to Bingham’s office, knowing full well he was going to be tongue-lashed for his out-of-office shenanigans. The difference was that back then he’d been guilty. This time he was innocent, so he didn’t feel quite so vulnerable. Even more reassuring was that Laurie was now the chief. And in contrast to Bingham, he thought he could count on her recognizing his more positive personality attributes, even though at the moment he was hard put to think of any.
Laurie was sitting behind her desk. Dr. Paul Plodget, the deputy chief, was sitting directly across from her, taking advantage of the fact that Bingham’s desk was a partner’s desk. Both were on separate phones and both were mostly agreeing with whomever they were conversing. On the desk was a copy of the disturbingDaily News. Also in front of Laurie was a copy of the bulky OCME Pandemic Influenza Surge Plan and a notepad filled with her scribbling.
Jack walked over to the couch and sat down. It wasn’t long before both Laurie and Paul were off their respective phones. They looked across the room at Jack. Both looked shell-shocked and not happy.
“What a mess,” Laurie said. She shook her head. “This is a freaking disaster. The city has practically shut down. I can’t believe it.”
“I heard the subways and buses aren’t running,” Jack said.
“That’s only half of it,” Laurie said. “Just as I feared, it’s been like dominoes, with one knocking over the next. Schools are closed. Most businesses are closed. All gatherings are canceled, including movies, plays, and concerts. Everybody who can is trying to get out of the city. All incoming flights are being diverted. It’s craziness.”
“Does anyone know how this disaster came to pass?” Jack asked. He knew Laurie’s fear that something like this would happen, with all the preparedness efforts creating what she called a “wound-up spring.” But how could a piece of yellow journalism have such an effect, especially in an era familiar with supposedly “fake news”?
“It was definitely this article,” Laurie said, slapping the copy of theDaily News.
“I can understand that on a theoretical level,” Jack said. “But it still challenges believability that a single tabloid article unleashed this kind of reaction.”
“The proof is in the pudding,” Laurie said. “What Paul and I already learned was that the scheduled supervisor for the NYC Emergency Management Watch Command in charge of the city’s Emergency Operations Center had called in sick. In his stead was an underling who got ahold of theDaily Newsearly this morning or had been informed of it, and he made one call here to the OCME to confirm there had been subway deaths as described. We still haven’t found out whom he talked with, but it was enough for him to throw the switch. Here in NYC it was to HAN, or the Health Alert Network, but once that happened, the alert arborized to unleash the whole kit and caboodle of the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and Response Plan.”
“That’s absurd,” Jack said.
“Maybe so,” Laurie agreed. “But it’s what we have to deal with.”
“Does NYC Emergency Management know that it is a false alarm?” Jack asked.
“They do now,” Laurie said. “Paul and I made sure of it. So does the Department of Health. We talked with both commissioners at length, and we are all on the same page.”
“So is the problem essentially over?” Jack asked, suddenly feeling a bit of encouragement.
“We wish it were that easy,” Laurie said. “It’s going to have to run itself out. Even FEMA was notified. The Department of Health Incident Command System took over mobilizing all the agencies under its jurisdiction, including both the NYPD and the NYFD, as well as all sixty-seven acute-care hospitals. Each one of those organizations are involved in their preplanned organizational strategies and have yet to be notified it’s a false alarm. Also, now that the subway system was shut down, it will take days to reactivate. The bus system is a little easier in that regard, but even that will take more than twenty-four hours before it is up and running. It’s all so much more complicated than one would imagine.”
“No one even considered the possibility of a false alarm to prepare for it,” Paul said. “Everyone is learning on the job.”
“Which brings me to a question I have to ask you,” Laurie said. “Did you have any contact at all with either theDaily Newsor the reporter who wrote this story?”
“I’m shocked you’re even asking,” Jack said, immediately taking offense.
