Solutions: A Man's Dilemma by James Gerard (no david read aloud TXT) 📕

Outside, he asked one of the guards what the building’s purpose was but in effect received the same answer as the doctor.

It did not make sense to him that if they were sore afraid of the virus coming to life in the self-contained building, why would they have allowed him to come in especially when his duty had taken him to once plague ridden regions.  Not once did any of his superiors order him to report for a medical examination.  Something just did not sit right within the logic of the survival plan.

Stephen contacted the U.S. National Crisis Center and asked to talk with anyone other than his immediate supervisor Robert, an old friend of his.  He wanted to find out exactly why Carolyn had never reached Los Angeles and why had her daughter, who was listed in the city, had never been there.  But the operator claimed that the director in charge of seeing to the execution of the survival plan was too busy to speak at the moment.

Stephen once again checked the databases where he had retrieved the information but discovered they had been altered; the lie erased.  Now, for Stephen, the transparency of the plan started to take on the appearance of deceit.

He knew those above him, after the initial chaos, after the plan was thrown together as rapidly as it could, examined and rewrote all details in a succinct and precise manner.  The altered information spoke of a cover up, a lie transformed into truth.

 The phone rattled Stephen from deep sleep.  He knew the call had to originate from the virus center since the phone only permitted official calls.  The phone continued to ring but he was in no mood to answer.  The questions concerning Carolyn still weighed heavily on his mind.  His hope was not to suspect foul play, but investigative instincts told him that what was going on had the rancid odor of deceit.

“Yeah.”

He bowed his head in frustration as the voice on the other end added frustration to his already tired thoughts.  A few “yeas” here and there was all he could bring himself to say in response to the interrogation from the other end of the line.

“Eight o’clock.  I’ll be there.”

He took a few moments to gather his thoughts as the fatigue weighed heavily upon him.  The call was from his old friend and colleague Robert.   He had been assigned as regional superintendant of Southern California, and henceforth, became his superior.  All his assignments had come from him, and even the two day excursion to Los Angeles had been ultimately approved by him. But Stephen knew, not by the seriousness of the tone or the lack of a greeting or any other nicety enjoyed among friends, but rather by his friend being in an awkward position.

Stephen’s investigative skills told him immediately that the call of concern probably did not have to do with the rerouting of those he had, but the seriousness lay in the trip to Los Angeles which no doubt was reported as a fact finding mission by those he encountered.  He knew he screwed up.  Instead of curbing his emotions to put forth the cold and calculating strategies that emerged, his decision had been totally controlled by emotions.

For the first time in his professional life he found himself in panic mode.  What to tell him? he pondered.  What would he buy?  But it would not be so easy to overcome the instincts of his old friend and colleague: For he had been just as versed in the act of cunning to sniff out the weaknesses of anything predators offered as alibis and excuses.  It had to be original but with a twist.  It had to contain just the right amount of truth between the words and within the words themselves.  He had to be under control, to turn things around and put his friend in a defensive position to ascertain the truth of the matter.

Parked on a deserted street just miles away from the activity of the condominiums and hid in the darkness of the night, he fought the urge to flee.  But he would not flee.  He moaned and then cursed the plague on the world in the safe confines of the car. 

Stephen quickly began a self-diagnosis of his psyche as he had performed many a time before confronting the men and women that he viewed as Godless souls.  He went through the mental checklist of who he was and where he was and why he was there and what for.  One by one he silenced the voices screaming at him, trying to convince him he was the one in error, that he was the one performing evil.  Over and over the doubts that suggested it was just him, he was tired, he was strained and he was not thinking right were put down in a logical and detached way as he visualized the hideous object of confrontation and saw it as the evil one; this time, however, the evil may have consumed a friend.

No matter the mental and emotional torment beginning to creep upon the scene within the confines of his mind, he still could not dismiss the possibility that his friend was involved in the events.  Too many things were not adding up.  Too many things were suspicious, puzzling, had the smell and look and feel of hidden agendas and crafty objectives.

Stephen promptly arrived at the U.S. National Crisis Center’s headquarters.  He had only been at the physical site once during the orientation detailing his working objective.  At that time his friend and former colleague was also called to duty in the same manner.  Robert, however, was promoted to regional supervisor soon after for the purpose of dealing with the men sent to carry out the specifics of the goal.  In effect, the promotion landed his friend a position by which he was more in touch with those above him than below.

Passing on by security, he made the way to the one elevator reserved specifically for the privileged few of the center.  On the way up he went over the plan to fool Robert before the confrontation.

“It’s been awhile since we’ve actually seen each other’s face,” said Stephen.  “You look a little stressed.”

“Saving humanity will do that to you.  You are looking pretty good though.”

“I just have to deal with one assignment at a time.  But you, you’ve got the tough job.”

Stephen watched Robert’s every movement.  From the polite little smile he showed, the walk back to his desk, each little mannerism as he seated himself, even the sound of his breathing.  Stephen began the evaluation of his friend.  From what he observed, all indications hinted at a discussion of grave concern.

“I told you about the reports I am hearing about you,” stated Robert.  “You want to explain yourself?”

Stephen smiled.  “Just exercising my power to do things a little different than planned, that’s all.”

“Different?”

“You were there Robert.  Back then they gave us that power to use at our discretion.”

“Sure.  But what worries me Stephen is your visit here to Los Angeles.  You stated you wanted a little time to relax and I had no problem with that.  You also wanted a little time to stake out a spot for yourself when all this is done and finished, but the report says you used your power not only to find out who was presently assigned to the condominium, but actually went up to one of the rooms to interrogate one of the assignees.  Explain that.”

“For god’s sake Robert, I just wanted a little assurance that I haven’t lost my sense of compassion.  So what if I wanted to reunite some family members.  How in the world could that upset the survival plan?”

Robert sighed, rubbed his eyes.  “I can understand your position, but you repeated it.”

“They’re saved aren’t they?   I convinced them to move didn’t I?  They’re out of danger from the virus.  Come on, what does it matter?”

“It matters.  Look, they’ve left the decision up to me over this matter.  I can remove you altogether from duty or show some compassion.  So, I am asking you, will you just knock off your own little salvation plan?”

Stephen bowed his head realizing that his friend may have been too deep in the call of duty to respond with any sort of empathy for anyone individual survivor.  He figured Robert’s removal from the frontline of the battle against the plague had hardened his heart to the point he could no longer remember just how gut wrenching it was to inform the innocent that their lives were to be disrupted for the greater good.

“Can I tell you something personal?” asked Stephen.

“I’m not….”

“Please.  I know you are only doing your job, but you’ve been out there.  You know what it’s like.  Will you at least hear me out?”

Robert leaned back in the chair, cradled the back of his head with his hands and nodded the go ahead.

“Remember when we were recruited by the FBI out of the force and how they told us if we really wanted to make a difference in the world to come help seek out and destroy those that have such wicked thoughts that they cannot see outside of their own minds?”

“Sure.”

“It was satisfying wasn’t it?  I mean these oh so clever men and women who truly believed that their own craftiness, their cleverness, their superior intelligence could hide them against such idiots as ourselves.  That they were so good at thinking out all possibilities on how they could be caught and thought they could cover all those possibilities didn’t they?   They actually convinced themselves they could overcome capture by carefully planning out every detail of the crime.  Remember that?

“I know that this might sound stupid Robert but I feel doing what I do, that I’ve switched roles and now I am the predator manipulating my prey to get them to do something they simply don’t want to do. I use my cleverness to outsmart them because I am just that good.  I’ve incorporated all my experience and all of my training to tell people that it’s okay and that everything is going to be just fine.  I tell them not to worry.  I tell them we are only doing this for your own good.  We care about you.  We have love for you.  And who knows, one day soon all the doctors and all the scientists will figure this all out and the virus will be destroyed.  You’ve been there Robert.  Haven’t you said those same words?”

“Are you….”

“We’ve discussed our Lord many a times haven’t we?  We talked about what good we were doing in defeating evil.  How with our Lord these sick, perverted killers would be revealed and the evil would be thrown right back at them.  We judged them because we felt they were to be judged, but not just by God, but by us as well didn’t we?  We were the righteous ones weren’t we?  We twisted about the Word of