“There are no civilians in my war,” Yuri said. “That’s why I want the laydown in Central Park. With a proper wind vector it will take out a large swath of the city. I’m talking about hundreds of thousands of casualties or even millions, not thousands. That’s what a weapon of mass destruction is supposed to do. Hell, for your narrow objective you could use a regular old bomb.”

“We wouldn’t be able to get a bomb big enough into the building,” Curt said. “That’s the whole point. We’ll have no trouble with four or five pounds of flour-like powder. I mean, that’s how you described the weaponized anthrax.”

“That’s right,” Yuri said. “A very, very fine flour that’s so light it stays suspended.”

For a few moments the three men stared at each other. All were aware of the tension.

“All right,” Curt said, waving his hands in the air. “We’re back to square one. We’ll do both laydowns. The problem boils down to getting enough stuff.”

“Where’s my pest control truck you guys promised?” Yuri asked.

“The troops have located one,” Curt said. “Don’t worry.”

“Where is it?”

“It’s parked behind a pest control company out on Long Island,” Curt said. “It’s used for the potato crop in season. There’s no security. It’s there for the taking.”

“I want it in my garage,” Yuri said.

“What’s this new belligerency?” Curt questioned. “With the surprises you’ve had for us tonight, we are the ones who should be mad.”

“I just want the truck in the garage,” Yuri demanded. “That was the deal. It was supposed to be there already.”

“I think you’d better watch your tone,” Steve said. “Otherwise we’ll be sending the shock troops to pay you a visit.”

“Don’t threaten me,” Yuri said. “Otherwise you won’t get anything. I’ll sabotage the whole program.”

“Hey, hold up, you guys,” Curt said. “This is getting out of hand. Let’s not argue among ourselves. There’s no problem here. We’ll see that the truck is procured, brought into town, and put into your garage. Will that make you happy?”

“That was our agreement,” Yuri said.

“Consider it done,” Curt said. “Meanwhile on your end you’ve got to take care of Connie. Fair enough?”

“It will be done tonight,” Yuri said. He visibly relaxed and polished off the last of his drink.

“Good,” Curt said. He rubbed his hands in a show of eagerness. “Then let’s talk about scheduling. What if you gave up on the toxin and converted the second fermenter to anthrax? Wouldn’t that mean we’d have enough product sooner?”

“Probably,” Yuri said.

“What’s the time frame realistically?” Curt asked.

“By the end of the week or the beginning of the next if all goes well,” Yuri said.