Free Last Man Standing (Book 2): Cordyceps by Keith Taylor Page A

Warren adjusts the dial, searching back and forth in the dim light glowing from his lamp until he finally regains the signal.
     
    "—see them from the window of our technician's booth. We have her out there right now checking out street level, but I can't actually get visual confirmation myself without leaving the studio. Kathy? Kathy, are you still with us, hon?"
     
    Quick, shallow breathing emits from the speakers before the DJ returns. He speaks with the same clipped, affected radio newscaster voice everyone seems to use, but it does little to hide his panic. It takes me a few seconds to realize it's Barry Brooks - the Big Double Bee - a nationwide drive time DJ I've listened to for years. It seems strange to hear him talk about something serious, since his usual fare tends to lean towards wacky politics and celebrity gossip.
     
    "OK, I don't seem to have Kathy right now, but I can only assume she's still in the building. I'll get an update for you just as soon as she returns to her booth but for now, to recap for listeners just tuning in, all I can say is that something troubling appears to be going on in the streets below our studio up on the twelfth floor of the LeVeque Tower on Broad Street. We... ah, we don't want to alarm listeners unduly so I really don't want to speculate on what exactly is the cause of the unrest, but I can tell you that there have been ongoing protests concerning the influx of refugees into the state in recent weeks that have threatened to spill over into violence. Obviously I don't want to make light of this... ah, or in any way diminish or dismiss the complaints of the protesters, but I'm sure all our listeners are with me in hoping that the unrest on the streets below is a simple protest and not... ah, OK, we have a caller on the line. I don't have Kathy to route the calls but I'm gonna try to put it on air. Caller, can you hear me?"
     
    The voice comes through muffled and muddy, but audible. "Yeah I can hear you, Barry. Am I on?" It's a woman. She sounds terrified.
     
    "You're coming through loud and clear, caller. Now, can you tell us where you are? Is anything going on in your location?"
     
    "Barry, yeah, I'm just across the river from you in Franklinton about six blocks from the science museum. I'm real scared, Barry. I don't know what to do."
     
    Barry lowers his voice to a comforting tone. "You're perfectly safe, caller, we're all right here with you. Now why don't you tell me your name, and try to tell me a little about what's happening on your side of the river?"
     
    She sniffs. "It's Pam," she says, tears in her voice. "I was just, umm, I was about to get ready for bed about a half hour ago but then I heard a loud noise outside, like an engine or something, you know? So I went outside to try to figure out what was making all that racket and I saw a plane fly overhead. Real low, you know, like too low? It was headed over in your direction, and for a minute I just thought, oh my gosh , it's gonna hit one of the buildings, but it just went between them and then headed back out of town. But when it passed over the river I saw that it was... I don't know, venting something? There was something white coming out the back of the plane and drifting towards the ground, and just a few minutes later I started to hear screams out in the street. I was about to go look when I switched on the radio and heard you talking about some trouble."
     
    Barry's voice is full of concern now. "Pam, are you somewhere safe? Don't go out to the street, Pam. Right now we just don't know what's happening, but I don't want you risking your safety out there. Are you safe, Pam?"
     
    "Yeah, I'm in the upstairs bathroom right now, Barry, but I have to go fetch my daughter from her room. I'm gonna try to take a quick look out the window while I'm— oh honey, thank God. Come on inside, honey. Come on, it's safe in here. My gosh, you're burning up!"
     
    "Pam, what's going on there? Talk to me, Pam."
     
    A few