Eph said, “Are you really going with the ‘gas leak’ gambit, Everett? How long do you think that’s going to hold in this day and age?”

Barnes recognized Eph’s voice. “Ephraim, where are you?”

“Have you been to Bronxville? Have you seen it now?”

“I have been there…we don’t know what we have quite yet…”

“Don’t know! Give me a break, Everett.”

“They found the police station empty this morning. The entire town appears to have been abandoned.”

“Not abandoned. They’re all still there, just hiding. Come sundown, in Westchester County it’s going to be like Transylvania. What you need are strike teams, Everett. Soldiers. Going house to house through that town, as if it’s Baghdad. It’s the only way.”

“What we don’t want is to create a panic—”

“The panic is already starting. Panic is an appropriate response to this thing, more so than denial.”

“The New York DOH Syndromic Surveillance Systems show no indication of any emerging outbreak.”

“They monitor disease patterns by tracking ER visits, ambulance runs, and pharmacy sales. None of which figures into this scenario. This whole city is going to go the way of Bronxville if you don’t get going on it.”

Director Barnes said, “I want to know what you have done with Jim Kent.”

“I went to go see him and he was already gone.”

“I’m told you had something to do with his disappearance.”

“What am I, Everett—the Shadow? I’m everywhere at once. I’m an evil genius. Yes I am.”

“Ephraim, listen—”

“You listen to me. I am a doctor—a doctor you hired to do a job. To identify and contain emerging diseases in the United States. I am calling to tell you that it’s still not too late. This is the fourth day since the arrival of the plane and the start of the spread—but there is still a chance, Everett. We can hold them here in New York City. Listen—vampires can’t cross bodies of moving water. So we quarantine the island, seal off every bridge—”

“I don’t have that kind of control here—you know that.”

A train announcement broadcast from overhead speakers. “I’m in Penn Station, by the way, Everett. Send the FBI if you like. I’ll be gone well before they arrive.”

“Ephraim…come back in. I promise you a fair shot at convincing me, at convincing everyone. Let’s work on this together.”

“No,” said Eph. “You just said you don’t have that kind of control. These vampires—and that’s what they are, Everett—they are viruses incarnate, and they are going to burn through this city until there are none of us left. Quarantine is the one and only answer. If I see news that you’re moving in that direction, then maybe I’ll consider coming back in to help. Until then, Everett—”