We have a car, Lizzy said.
Not anymore, the man said. Our people are taking it from your cottage as we speak.
Why? Mark asked.
Its not safe to use the same car.
Wheres our new ride then?
You are sitting in it, the man said and opened his door.
Wait, Lizzy said. Are you leaving? Whats your name?
Youre to follow the instructions, the man said and left the car.
They watched him walking fast across the gas station and getting in a black pick-up truck parked on the other side which took off the second the man was in.
That was some spy work right there, Lizzy smiled.
Mark looked inside the envelope.
Well, its all in there: the money, the passports, and the key.
Where are the instructions?
Mark took out a white sheet of paper and looked at it. I guess this is it.
***
When they drove back to the cottage in their new car, their old car was gone. They entered the cottage and found a new laptop on the kitchen table and a brand-new iPhone with a charger.
It says here that we need to turn on the computer. There will be a link to a Zoom meeting on the desktop, Mark was reading from the piece of paper.
Alright, Lizzy said, opening the device. We couldve done it on the phone though.
The computer screen lit up and they saw an empty desktop with only one folder named The Link.
Thats foolproof29, Lizzy said with a smile.
She clicked on the folder and saw the link. She called it up on the screen. The software began to upload the Zoom meeting. The host had already started the meeting, but both his or her camera and microphone were deactivated.
Mark and Lizzy were looking at the screen, waiting for something to happen.
Are we supposed to do it now? Lizzy asked, frowning.
Mark looked in the sheet again. It just says open your computer and use the link.
Hello, she said to the screen. Anyone there?
The hosts window showed that the image had started to upload. Someone was joining the meeting. Finally, they saw a pixelated image of an old Black woman in a room with white empty walls. She was saying something, but there was no sound. Mark pointed to the screen, to microphone symbol that was crossed by a red line.
Your microphone is off, Lizzy said to the lady.
The woman jerked30 and looked at her screen.
Oh, my goodness, they heard her cheery voice. Is it working now? Can you hear me?
Yes, we can, Lizzy said.
Good, Im still getting used to these bells and whistles31, the lady said smiling. What happened to the good old face-to-face, right?
Mark and Lizzy both nodded, agreeing.
Anyway, Lizzy and Mark how are you kids doing?
Lizzy and Mark looked at each other. Were fine, Lizzy said.
Oh, good, the lady said. My name is Yana and I have a lot to tell you today. So, get comfortable.
***
Next day, Lizzy woke up early in the morning and was surprised that she actually slept for a few hours. She felt reinvigorated32, but there was a feeling that she had forgotten something important. She looked at Mark who was sleeping peacefully at her side and got up.
She decided to do some yoga, something that she had not done since the day her life dramatically changed a couple of months ago. It seemed that the body remembered all the asanas to relax the brain and the muscles. She was doing the exercises in her underwear and felt the sunbeams on her skin. It was amazing. After a quick shower, she was sitting in the kitchen with a cup of coffee reading what Yana had sent after the meeting.
It was a file with the names of people that were connected to Dolion and who were supposed to be actively involved in virus distribution. According to Yana, they had the original variant of the virus. Dolion called it Potestas Dei (Power of God). It was very surprising to learn about that because Lizzy and Mark were under the impression that they had destroyed the virus.
It takes many variants to get the one you really want, Yana told them during the meeting. Dolion had the final one and you destroyed it. There are still some people who can create a more powerful version and that is why we need to eliminate any trace of it.
Lizzy looked at the geography of the locations of the Dolions gang that is what she named it. No wonder they needed passports. It looked like they would have to do a bit of travelling.
They have a few centers where they develop their new variants. Fortunately, we infiltrated33 our people in all of them. Still, it will not be easy to do what we want, despite Yanas cheerful demeanor34, it was obvious what she was talking about took a lot of doing.
Lizzy checked the places they needed to go first. Those were two domestic destinations and did not even require travelling by plane.
We are working on the way to use the uniqueness of your blood in, say, a less dramatic way. So, we will be meeting at some point soon to do some tests.
Obviously35, the news about how Lizzy got rid of Dolion, and his virus spread to this world as well.
Lizzy went over the highlights36 of the meeting in her head one more time: the gang was around the world, she will go through some tests, and they will travel. So far, things did not sound complicated. The thought was both comforting and disturbing. Todays list of things was also straightforward37: they would go to the specified address, change cars and someone would drive them to a research facility the Committee had. They would take some of her blood and would do a few tests.
Her life changed so much over the fleeting period of time. Those changes were making her a new person. She was not sure whether she liked that person, but she had to embrace38 the metamorphosis39 to survive. She felt a pang of nostalgia for the life she had, and a tear spilled down her cheek.
Should I make us some breakfast? she heard Marks voice.
She wiped the tear, turned to Mark, and smiled. Good morning, sleepyhead.
When she said that- just for a split of a second she saw a man, standing behind Mark. It was the man from her dreams. She suddenly remembered that she had seen him again last night in her dream. She shut her eyes and opened them again. The man was gone.
Are you ok? Mark said.
Yeah, just a Im hungry. Lets eat already!
They started to make breakfast together and the image of the man started to slowly fade from her memory. She could still remember what he was wearing though a black kimono.
Chapter 2
Super Lizzy
The place they arrived with their new driver, Tom a young man who picked them up not too far away from the cottage looked like a regular bakery. There were some patrons40 inside, enjoying freshly baked pastries and hot beverages. Lizzy tried to remember what day it was and why there were so many people out of office so shamelessly41 enjoying this nice weather and this cozy place. She could not. It did not really matter, but it smelled amazing. Any day you are alive is a good day, she thought.
They entered the place and approached the counter. Tom ordered three espressos to go, without asking Lizzy and Mark whether they wanted anything. Then he showed them to the table in the corner, next to a female customer who was reading a book. They sat down and waited for the order without exchanging as much as a few phrases. Tom was taciturn42 all the way to the bakery and did not seem like he was going to turn into a chatterbox43 any time soon. So, Lizzy and Mark were just sitting and waiting for whatever was going to happen.
Tom, the barista announced from behind the counter. Your orders ready.
Tom stood up, took the order, and proceeded to the exit, without returning to the table and taking the coffee with him. Lizzy and Mark watched him with surprise. When they were about to stand up and follow him, a lady who was sitting at the table next to them turned and smiled.