Chapter 68

December Twenty-fifth 7:00 p.m.

Larry brought the car to a stop in front of Pittsburgh's City-County Building and gestured for his passengers to exit. The moment they did, he drove away without a single backward glance. Unlike the rest of the city they had passed through, which was lit only by the feeble glow of failing emergency lights, the government building practically blazed with light. The reason was obvious as several big diesel generators chugged noisily near the side street entrance.

The trio stood uncertainly on the sidewalk, watching the swarms of uniformed police officers who scurried in and out of the building. Many were covered in soot, and nearly every face was twisted with a curious mix of jubilation and sorrow. Several recognized Tom and jostled their neighbors with an elbow while pointing him out. The looks directed at him were anything but friendly.

Mia and Dana each took one of his hands. Taking comfort from their touch, he straightened his shoulders and, with them at his sides, strode forward to look for the chief.

The chief found them first. "Tom!" Chief Jacobs yelled as he emerged from a large group of other policemen. Like so many of the others, his face was covered with black streaks and his eyes were haunted. When he reached them, he heartily shook hands and clasped shoulders as he made his greetings, showing none of the fear and disdain that had marked their time with Larry.

"Thanks, all of you, for accepting my invitation," he said as he released Tom's hand from a grip that would have hurt a year before.

Tom decided not to take issue with the fact that the invitation had seemed more like an order. "No problem, Denny." He made a gesture that encompassed the masses of policemen. "It looks like you've all been busy."

Denny's smile vanished. "We, along with a number of local National Guard units, State Police and civilian volunteers, cleared Harrisburg today. It was ... bad. Really bad. Worse than any war zone footage I've ever seen shown on CNN." He looked close to tears, something Tom wouldn't have believed possible. "So many of the vamps we found were kids. Just little fucking kids. What kind of sick bastard..." He broke off with a slow shake of his head, reaching up to wipe the side of his hand across his eyes.

"I'm really sorry, Denny," Tom offered sympathetically.

"Well, it's over, and the good news is that our beloved state capital and the towns around it can sleep easy tonight. Or at least easier. I envy them. I know I'm not going to risk the nightmares I would have after what I saw. Especially because we're going to do it all over again tomorrow with Cleveland." His voice dropped to a mutter, "I can't believe I'm going to risk my life for a bunch of filthy Brown's fans." He looked around and noticed that they were attracting a lot of attention. Sweeping a hand in the direction of the door, he asked, "How about we go inside where we can talk a little more comfortably?"

Supporting Mia between them, Dana and Tom followed Denny into the building. Tom and Mia wilted under the palpable weight of the hostile stares being directed toward them by most of those present, even from men and women that Tom had known for years. Larry's attitude apparently hadn't been an anomaly.

After seating the three in a conference room, Denny fetched two cups of coffee and handed one to Dana.

As soon as he sat down, Mia said, "We haven't gotten much news, and Larry wasn't very forthcoming. What exactly is going on?"

With a sigh, Denny began to recount what he knew about the events of the prior night. As his tale went on and they learned the true scope of the catastrophe, their mouths fell open in dismay and they exchanged horrified glances. Denny concluded with, "I have no idea how many people died last night. No one does. But it was a lot. With the mess made of the power grid, natural gas pipelines, and food services industry, a lot more will probably die from hypothermia and starvation even if all the vampires vanished this very instant. Western Pennsylvania might make it through okay as local damage was light enough that electricity should be restored within a few days. Most other places aren't so lucky. It's going to get mighty cold when they run out of things to burn.

"There's only one piece of good news, and it's far from certain. I talked to some Admiral on the radio just a little while ago. He sent a SEAL team into D.C. this morning, and they heard unconfirmed rumors that the President was alive and being held captive in the National Archives. Unfortunately, he lost contact with them right after nightfall. Their last report was that they had reached the building and were facing organized and stiff resistance."

He looked over each of the trio solemnly. "When I sent Larry to get you, I was only thinking that you would be a good source of information and that it would be prudent to have you close by. During my conversation with the Admiral, I mentioned that I had a few friendly vampires available and suggested that we send you to D.C. to try to recover the President. After a bit of discussion, he agreed. The theory is that a covert operation might succeed where brute force failed. I don't think I have to tell you how important this is. In most states, the highest government officials still among the living are a few County Commissioners or the equivalent. We need a leader, or we're going to fall apart."

Taking their acceptance for granted, Denny stood and turned toward the door. "Although long stretches of highway between here and D.C. have been cleared, there are still sections that are impassible by car. Can either of you handle a motorcycle?"

"I can," Dana said wistfully, "but I'm not going, am I?"

"I'm sorry, Dana," Denny replied. "Even if you weren't with child, I'd have to say no. I talked to Mark's wife, Jenny, and she's more than happy to take you in for the duration. You'd be doing her a favor, too. She's practically beside herself with worry and could use the company."

"What happened to Mark? We just talked to him last night..." Tom asked frantically.

Denny raised a placating hand. "He went to Tulsa, Oklahoma yesterday to investigate what looked to be - and apparently was - a lot of vampire victims." He held two fingers a fraction of an inch apart. "We were this close to figuring this all out before it happened, but obviously we were a little too late. Direct communication with him isn't possible at the moment, but I'm pretty sure he's okay. There was a broadcast on AM radio late this afternoon. It had been recorded and rebroadcast too many times for the voice to be easily recognizable, but it originated in Tulsa and gave instructions on how to find and kill vampires while they were still sleeping. I can't think of anyone other than Mark in the area who would know that."