When they took her from the hospital, they never said where they were going. Four soldiers simply appeared in full hazmat gear, pointing assault rifles at her. She could still see the red laser dots when she shut her eyes. She’d known they would come and had forced Olga to leave before they arrived.

“Someone needs to stay to treat these people,” she’d said when Olga objected.

The soldiers brought her to the roof, where the Mil Mi-24 waited, engines running.

It flew out over the city so low Sofia felt like she could reach out and touch the tops of the trees. In the frozen forest, they sparkled in the moonlight like glass ornaments.

From the chopper, she was brought through the frigid cold into an aircraft hangar. It was as cold inside as outside and she wasn’t dressed for it. She was still in her medical scrubs. If they’d believed the outbreak was contagious, they never would have transported her like that.

The hangar was lit by powerful overhead lights and she could see that it was in the process of becoming a staging area for whatever was going on in Yekaterinburg. Soldiers and federal officers of the MVD police ran about, assembling equipment and weapons for airlift into the city.

In the midst of the chaos, standing serenely as if immune to it all, was an elegant woman with dark hair, a knee-length coat, and a silk scarf. Sofia recognized Tatyana instantly.

Tatyana strode toward her and said, “Doctor Ivanovna, thank you for coming.”

“I had no choice,” Sofia said. “I was brought at gunpoint.”

Sofia nodded and Tatyana led her to the back of the hangar. They passed crates of military equipment and climbed a metal staircase that led to an office overlooking the hangar floor. Tatyana held the door and Sofia hurried inside. She was relieved to see an electric heater in the office and went straight to it.

“I’ll get them to bring you something warmer to wear,” Tatyana said.

Sofia warmed her hands by the heater as Tatyana made a call on her cell. “I’m with the doctor,” she said. “She needs warm clothing.”

“Thank you,” Sofia said when she hung up.

“I’m sorry you were brought by force,” Tatyana said. “The military gets skittish in these situations.”

“As they should,” Sofia said.

Tatyana nodded.

The two stood and looked at each other a few seconds, sizing each other up.

It was Sofia who spoke first. “What did you do with the virus?” she said.

Tatyana’s expression changed to one of alarm. “Don’t talk about that here,” she hissed. “They could be listening.”

“I need to know.”

“They’ll kill us both.”

“I have to know what you did with it,” Sofia said, holding her ground.

Tatyana went to the door and made sure no one was standing outside. “I got it out of the country,” she said.

“To the Americans?”