What Remains: Quarantine, page 2
“Straight down to business then. Do you know why I brought you here to me directly?”
She found herself on the spot, “I can't say I do.”
“I brought you here to give you a direct interview. An exclusive interview.”
“An interview...exclusive. Why choose me? I'm sure you had plenty of offers before I arrived,” she said completely shocked.
The Major General chuckled, “I had three within the first hour of my deployment here. But, why I am choosing you is simple, once I learned your station was sending a reporter to work with an affiliate station, I knew I had an opportunity. I pulled your file before you had even taken off from Tokyo. You are a youngblood reporter, eager, willing. All the other reporters that showed up were veterans, set in their ways. With you, I have hopes of us working together...with certain terms of course.”
“What kind of terms?” she asked with an eyebrow raised.
He spoke with contempt, “Our agreement would be beneficial to us both, you get your big story, and I get a message to the nation. I want to give you a live interview with myself. However, you will only be allowed to ask questions I give you, and if you play any footage, it has to be run by me personally beforehand.”
She sat back pondering his deal for a moment, “If I agree now, can you give me special permission to shoot on base or follow your soldiers on a routine patrol? Maybe give me some information on the civilians rioting? Something to lead with.”
The Major General smiled a very creepy grin; his mouth was ear to ear. She could tell he was holding something back from her. He put his feet on top of the table between them.
“I can't let you get close to the soldiers while they do their jobs, it might hinder them. As well I can't guarantee your safety. Matter of fact as of tonight the town is undergoing Martial Law, a nighttime curfew will be enacted. That's all the information I can share with you at this current time,” he took a deep breath and let out a sigh, “Look I'm giving you a hell of a deal here if you don't want it, don't take it. But this will be my only offer.”
She knew that she had better take the offer, since he was offering her exclusive rights to an interview, “I accept.”
The Major General's attitude changed quickly, “Good. I'm glad to see you come to your senses!”
Minori smiled hoping to get him to warm up to her, “Now that we are working together, is there any information that you can share with me to help me make this interview a good one?”
He stopped smiling, “I can only give you a little information. Do not approach anyone who is acting erratically. So far, we have not pinpointed who is leading the riots, as well all their attacks have been random, so keep on the lookout. It’s best you stay away from anything that looks like the military is involved. We wouldn’t want any of my soldiers thinking you are part of the dissenters, now do we?
She was confused, “Dissenters? I have the proper papers and badges to identify ourselves to your soldiers. You still don’t have any information about why these people are upset or attacking other people?”
“I can't give any more details. Just know that the people we are dealing with are very dangerous and won't stop unless they hurt someone.”
“You mean like that man who was attacked at the park? Is it true that you quarantined the park and took everyone present to the hospital?”
He smiled his creepy smile again, “I can't confirm or deny any of that information. And I think that's where we should end this conversation. Come back the day of the interview, so we can go over any footage you bring and approved questions. Until then find a hotel room and enjoy the time off,” he stood up and showed her to the entrance.
Holding the tent flap open for her, he said with that same disturbing smile, “Don’t worry the Prime Minister will make a statement tonight that there is nothing to worry about. This whole thing will blow over in a few days.”
She left and quickly walked to the van. She was eager to work with the Major General since he was a reliable source for her interview. Something was not right about the whole situation, though. He seemed to dodge her important questions and provide answers that did not come close to relating to the townspeople rioting story they had been given. Without a word, she climbed into the van, and they quickly left.
Chapter 6
They didn't speak until the hospital was long gone from their rearview mirror.
Nobou broke the silence, “What did the Major General have to say?”
Minori was silent for a few moments before she answered, her brain zoning out to the world around her, “He offered me an exclusive interview.”
Hisashi smiled, “That's good, very good. You can find out what is happening here, then interview with him.”
“He wants everything we air on his terms...all footage, questions, everything.”
Nobou asked sourly, “And what did you say?”
“I agreed, but I don't know what else to say. The General wouldn't give me any information about what's going on. He seemed adamant that only I was going to do his interview. He already turned down three other reporters.”
Nobou looked worried, “I don't trust him, something seemed wrong about the whole situation. Why does he only want you?”
“He thinks because I'm eager for my first big news story I will allow him to extort me into reporting what he wants me to.”
“So, are we listening to him, or are we still going to find out what is going on?” Asked Nobou.
She turned and looked him in the eyes, “What makes you think I'm not going to try my hardest to find out what is going on here?”
Nobou laughed, “See! This is why I love working with this woman,” he said to Hisashi.
Hisashi turned towards the highway again, “Let's get you guys to the hotel and we can set up there and learn our next move.”
She nodded, “Yeah, and we need some food I haven't eaten since yesterday.”
✽ ✽ ✽
An hour later they had unloaded all their gear into the hotel room, eaten the food they had ordered, and found a map of the city and began plotting out known cases of where the military had either set up or took it upon themselves to quarantine an area. They placed several notes on the map with minute details; they had the hospital circled, with a summary of army command. Two smaller circles had been placed around the park and where the man attacked his family. Hisashi had called his office to see if there were any more suspicious reports involving military interjection.
He walked back over to the map that lay over the small table in the room, “It looks like there was another case, the military raided the house of someone who supposedly was at the park trying to rally people, before the other man bit someone. The military won't let anyone within a block radius, and someone called and said they saw hazmat suits being given out to soldiers. Two bodies were removed from the house, but the military still hasn't left.”
“Well that doesn't sound good...” she said circling the address, he had just handed her.
They looked at the map, the evidence in front of them. The four major circles, three 'riots' and the hospital. The three circles were highlighted in the same area, the northeast part of the town. The areas were spread out from the original call about the man attacking his family.
“It looks like the incidents are isolated to this area, and they seem to be spreading from the first call. Now it brings into question why those soldiers were at the most recent one wearing hazmat suits,” she stated, “The General was talking about not letting a rioter near you because if you did, you ran the possibility of being mistaken for one of the rioters.”
Hisashi spoke, “This doesn't seem like riots at all. There is no organization to it, as well if it is a riot why aren't people talking to each other about getting it organized. It sounds like the General wasn't talking about rioters at all.”
Nobou, “It sounds like something more serious. Is there any chemical plants or factories near that area, Hisashi?”
“There is a factory just on the outskirts of the town, but they make metal products nothing chemical that I know of.”
“Hmm, well if it’s not chemical what is causing people to act this way?” She asked, “I think it's time to figure out what is going on.”
“Where do you want to start?” Asked Hisashi.
She grabbed her coat, “Let's start with that factory to be safe, then work our way back. The General did say the curfew would start tonight, so as long as we make it back in time, we should be fine.”
Nobou grabbed the case holding his camera and followed her. They were all happy to start the hunt for the truth.
Chapter 7
They arrived at the factory quickly and started canvassing the area before getting out of the van. It was a large factory, with many workers bustling around. It had a chain link fence around the building, and the only way in was a small guard house, with a barrier in front. After they saw all they could see from the van, they all climbed out together and approached the guard house.
A man stood inside, he looked up from a set of small security tv's, “Can I help you?”
She spoke sweetly, “We are with the local news channel, and we were wondering if we could talk to you, and maybe a few of the workers. Ask a few questions about the strange things going on around the town.”
He squinted his eyes, looking them all up and down, making sure none of them could be considered a threat. “You can ask me a few questions, but I will have to get you permission to talk to the workers.”
“Sure thing,” she said, “How about we start with you? Do you know about the recent events in town?”
“I've heard about the man attacking his family and the man in the park,” the guard said, thinking hard.
“And what do you know about those incidents? Know anyone who witnessed either event?”
He shook his head, “No. I live on the other side of town. Both of those incidents are very strange, the worst that has happened in town was a bad accident on the highway.”
It was clear that this man knew nothing, and ultimately would be no help, “Can you let me use your restroom quickly, before I leave?”
He stared at her for a few moments, “I guess that will be fine, but make it quick. You aren't supposed to be back here.”
He directed her to the offices in the factory, the guard following her towards the restroom. She waited a few minutes before the guard decided to stroll down the hall to get a drink from a nearby water fountain. She quickly slipped away and casually walked around. She had used this technique multiple times before, feigning a need to use the bathroom, and instead, looking around for anything out of place. So far, she had only succeeded in finding lots of cubicles filled with people working on stacks of paperwork or talking on the phone. Two people were standing next to a water cooler, taking a minute to chat.
She moved closer pretending to search her purse for something.
“Did you hear about all those crazy things going on in town?” One man asked the other.
“Yes, they aren't too far from here. It's a scary thought.”
The first man nodded, “What's disturbing me is all those homeless people I keep seeing around this area, hobbling around.”
“You know yesterday when I was leaving; a homeless man was pulling on the fence I think he was trying to break in to steal stuff. I got in my car and told the guard as I was leaving the parking lot. It freaked me out,” said the second man.
“It’s a good thing that the military started patrolling the area, with all the rioters and such going on, maybe it will keep the homeless from trying to steal.” said the first man, as he left to go back to work.
The guard came around the corner, spotting her, and jogged over, “Ma’am you need to follow me, this area is restricted to non-employees.”
“Sorry, I didn’t see you when I left the restroom and got lost trying to find my way out!” She said with a fake laugh.
She immediately stopped pretending to search for something and briskly walked out of the office, following the guard. Not only was the military worried about drunken protesters, now they were worried about the homeless as well. Everything she was finding out still wasn't adding up. She only had two days to figure it out, and she was determined.
✽ ✽ ✽
Back at the guardhouse, she grabbed Nobou and Hisashi, and they all walked back to the van.
She told them what she had heard the office employees talking about.
Hisashi spoke, “That doesn't surprise me, and there is a pretty well-known homeless camp just north of the factory in a wooded area. So, the worker's concern isn't a big deal, the military patrolling the area is, however.”
“That's what I thought too. Maybe we should wait for one of these patrols and follow their route,” Minori said excitedly; she loved the feeling of hunting down clues.
Nobou produced a small bag, “Good thing I raided the store down the street before we left,” he showed them a small amount of food and drinks.
✽ ✽ ✽
An hour later they saw a military vehicle driving towards them. It was traveling quickly; then it slowed down suddenly as it got near the factory. Hisashi started the van, waiting for them to pass before following them. The soldiers inside paid them no attention as they drove past; they seemed more concerned with the area surrounding the factory.
They quickly slipped on the road behind the military truck. It sped up as it got further away from the factory. Hisashi made sure to stay several car lengths behind the truck, so it didn't bring any suspicion. They were following the truck back into the town; on the right side of the road was a field that had been partially harvested. On their left was a wooded area. They all wondered where the military was heading to and why they were at such speeds. They were already over the speed limit, but they didn't dare lose the military truck.
After a few minutes of following the truck at high speeds, it seemed like the soldiers were taking an odd route to get back into town. She was about to say stop following them when the truck ahead of them attempted to swerve to avoid something that had appeared in the road. They heard a loud thud and saw what the truck had hit; it was a man. The man flew several feet back from the truck landing against some trees.
The military truck slammed on its breaks and pulled off to the side of the road. Four soldiers left the truck, one staying on the road to try to avert traffic. The other three soldiers sprinted over to the man, but stopped just short, raising their weapons. Hisashi stopped behind the military truck, hoping to see what was going on.
The soldier who was directing traffic ran over to the news van, “You can't stop here!”
Hisashi tried to prolong them from moving on, “We just stopped to make sure that person is alright. Do you need any help?”
“No. Now move along,” replied the soldier sternly.
Hisashi continued, “Well he seemed to be hurt pretty bad, maybe we should get out and help him-”
“SIR. If you don't move this vehicle right now I will be forced to arrest you and everyone inside,” the soldier said ever so slightly raising his rifle.
Hisashi started the van back up, “Ok, Ok. Fine, we will leave.”
He made sure to slowly back up and then slowly ease back onto the road. The soldier walked after them to watch where they went. Hisashi thought better than to try to go back for another look.
“Well, that was weird. Those soldiers didn't want anyone near that man, or to see him,” she said.
Nobou shook his head, “I'm willing to bet that was one of the 'rioters' we keep hearing about.”
“Did either of you get a good look at the man?” She asked, hoping.
“Couldn't see anything, sorry,” said Nobou.
“I did. The man looked very weird, his skin was ashen, and he had black marks all over his right arm, like a tattoo or something,” stated Hasashi.
“I think it might be a good idea to head back to the hotel and lie low for a while,” she said.
They both agreed, and Hisashi took them back to their hotel. They updated their map to show the new occurrence. Hisashi left after a while to go back to his office to check in. Nobou stayed and together they worked on finding out what was going on in the town.
Chapter 8
Hisashi had come back quickly, bolting in through the door and promptly locked it behind him.
“What is wrong?!” Minori asked surprised.
Breathing heavily, he answered, “The military came by just before I got there. Said there was a news van at the scene of an incident, and they needed to speak to them.”
“Do you think they know we saw the man?” Nobou asked worriedly.
“I'm sure of it. No one else at that station had sent anyone near where we were. There was only one other crew out; they went to report on another riot.”
She looked Hasashi in the eye, “But how do you know they were looking for us? They could have meant the other crew at the 'riot,' there could have been an incident there, we don't know.”
“No. The military was asking about us! They said that the van was on the highway near the factory,” he said with a fearful face.
“That can't be. Why would the military come looking for us? We didn't do anything wrong, that military truck ran down that man,” Minori said irritably.
“Not to add to the paranoia, but maybe they think we saw something we weren't supposed to see,” Nobou said with panic in his voice.
“We did, we saw them run a man over, and they didn't get him help. They might also know that we are looking into the raids,” said Hisashi with worry.
“Guys calm down. We can stay here for the night, go out tomorrow afternoon and hit the road again. Until then we can try to piece together what all of this means,” she said pointing down at the map and notes.
Hisashi seemed to calm down at those words, but quickly looked through the peephole in the door to see if anyone had followed him. No one had because he moved away from the door calmly. He sat down taking a few deep breaths. He grabbed the remote for the TV and turned in on, and then found the channel for the news station. The news was running reports of civil unrest in the area; a small banner ran underneath the news anchor, a simple statement to report anyone with intent to cause disorder to the authorities.
