“He’s looking for villages, small villages, right?” asked River.Leo nodded.
“We went to th-three here,” he gasped.He was dehydrating, his organs beginning complete shutdown and failure.“I couldn’t stop him.I tried.This was his response.”
“So much for brotherly love,” said Pax.
“We can’t all have families like yours,” said Leo.“I didn’t ask for mine.”
“You helped him kill your siblings and parents,” said Logan.“That’s not exactly screaming innocence.You knew what you were doing, General.”
“I did.I believed in him for a wh-while,” he winced.The doctor was kneeling beside him attempting to help when he shrugged him off.“It won’t help me.Get to him.You can stop him.”
“India is a big place, Leo.Where will we find him?” asked Logan.
“Follow the train line.He plans to stop across the border in Dhordo.It’s a common place for the familial marriages to occur.”
“Who are the countries interested in what he has?” asked Fitch.“Who are they and who have you made contact with?”
“My p-pocket.There’s a list in my b-back pocket,” he winced.Using surgical gloves, they gently rolled him to his side, the smell of his own waste making them all nearly gag.They found the list, wrapped in a small plastic bag, encased in a grocery list.
“Smart,” said Logan.
“I didn’t want him to f-find it.”Logan nodded at the man.“I didn’t want to kill you or those kids.He didn’t want the w-world to kn-know…”
His voice trailed off as he doubled in pain, screaming in agony with what was left of his vocal chords.Those around the platform just stared at the man, then back at the men attempting to help.With one more gasp of air, Leo Fitzwilliam was dead.
“We have to get to India and stop him,” said Logan.
“What about him?” asked Moose.
“We’ve got help on the way.American’s from the base in Islamabad.They’ll escort the body home.The good news is that they don’t believe anything is airborne or passed through bodily fluids.It simply attacks his body through the proteins as Blythe suspected.”
The sound of AJ’s voice was calming and unnerving at the same time.Sometimes they forgot that he was always listening, always watching.It should have brought them comfort, and for the most part, it did.
“Sirs, we must keep our schedule,” said the train master.“There is nothing we can do for this man.”
They advised the local train station manager of what to expect and that no one was to touch the body.When he insisted that it be moved to a vacant room and washed down for hygiene reasons, they had to concede.This wasn’t their country and they were not supposed to be here.
By the time the American team would arrive, General Leo Fitzwilliam would be washed, his clothing burned, and a plain sheet would cover his naked body.
As their own train began moving, the men washed and changed their clothing, returning to their seats in the private car.
“Are you gentlemen hungry?” asked their caretaker.
“I don’t think we can eat right now,” frowned Moose.“And believe me, I rarely say such ridiculous statements.”
“It’s understandable.It was horrible what happened to that man.It must be a virus.The others were saying several villages suffered the same fate.They chased away a man posing to be a doctor.”
He turned, leaving them to their quiet.Logan stared out the window hoping that the drones would tell them exactly where Isaac Wadston got off the train ahead of them.
“He seemed remorseful at the end, Logan,” said Saint.He nodded at his friend.
“Yeah.He did.But it was all too late.I get that their parents created this problem by marrying but killing off your siblings just because they looked different?That seems pretty fucking cold.”
“If what he said is true, Issac is a master manipulator and Leo didn’t want to be exposed to the military,” said Sor.
“Why?” asked River.“I’ve never heard of a man or woman being rejected because of their family relations being too closely connected.”
“That’s true but we may never know what else Isaac knows about Leo.Maybe there’s more to this whole story,” said Logan.“Or maybe I’m just hoping for more.”
