Seeing the surprised expressions of the people around him, Sam felt that many here needed to be informed of what was happening, so he said, "Could someone be so kind as to tell me why all of you are here?"
Everyone looked at Captain Sam Valdez with confusion; no one understood exactly what was happening, but what they were sure of was that they were being blamed for something.
"Sir, all of us have followed the rules and our work is in order. Could you tell me what the problem is so we know what's going on?"
A middle-aged investigator stepped forward; he was one of the captains of the research groups and stepped up to learn about the situation.
Sam thought for a moment and then said slowly, "The commander sent a rather interesting message: apparently someone leaked the vaccine that we specifically manufactured here and over which you have control."
"Since you joined, you should know everything about the virus and that not just anyone should have jurisdiction to handle and investigate it lately. Everyone knows because in New York a vaccine was manufactured that altered the Wildfire virus variant—am I wrong?"
There were many whispers among the crowd of investigators; everyone was bewildered by the news they had received and they all looked around searching for the person responsible for such an embarrassing situation.
"Even if the vaccine was leaked somehow—which I find unlikely—you can't produce the same result we did."
Saying this, the chief investigator's expression went a bit heavy and he said, "We've worked day and night to find a cure for this catastrophe. I think that even if we did leak it, it should be verified. Where is the commander?"
"It seems you are not understanding... Some of you—if not all—have violated our trust! Many of you don't know this, but there are organizations much larger or similar to ours that eliminate, that kill entire communities of survivors."
"They kill people?"
Coin opened her eyes wide, feeling very surprised when she heard this. They should know that even in the Atlanta area, the number of people does not exceed thirty thousand, so to think that there are other similar organizations is incredible.
But then she realized something was wrong. You should know that every survivor in this place has the vaccine and it was planned to expand the vaccine to every corner of the planet to try to reduce the possibility of internal infections many times over.
However, she knew that the senior leaders of the S.C.T. organization did not care that the vaccine was leaked; what mattered was that there had been some kind of betrayal within their ranks. Therefore, right now everyone was trying to find the culprit and discover why they did it.
If somehow her brother were alive and was discovered by the commander's people, they should know that she was the one who leaked the vaccine so her younger brother would be saved from dying infected. But apparently the people here had no idea who the culprit was, so the chances that her brother was alive were very slim.
Realizing this, Coin asked, "When did you realize that the vaccine came from this place? Is there some kind of immune carrier or was the vaccine exposed directly?"
"It happened just a few minutes ago. The commander is very angry about the damned complications that can arise if that vaccine falls into enemy hands. Don't you understand? If someone else is immune to the virus and, therefore, their huge bases stop producing walkers when they die, many things can go badly."
Sam rubbed his forehead tiredly; obviously, what had happened in recent days had really made him feel exhausted, and he hadn't had a restful sleep in several days.
Just this morning, when he thought that the operation to take Birmingham shouldn't have problems, it turns out that somehow—though he didn't know how—the vaccine was leaked to unknowns.
The problem was clear: it wasn't the vaccine itself, the real problem is that there is a traitor at the base who should be killed once the whole backstory is known.
Now all the biggest news they had discovered would be open to the public; everyone would know the story and understand what they had been working for. Some—or most—of the survivors of their organization would have died if it weren't for Jason's intervention, so everyone, including him, was grateful.
Unlike many, he knew about the CRM and why they now needed to take as much territory as possible. As long as they weren't discovered, they would take the necessary power before the final battle began without major problems.
"So, now I want to know who leaked the vaccine so we can proceed with questioning. You need to know that most likely nobody will look, but that will be considered once I remain kind and the person turns themselves in."
When Sam's words ended, the soldiers behind him raised their weapons toward the investigators and he said again, "I want you to know that you are not indispensable; any of you can be replaced if you do not meet the requirements we've asked of you."
"No, please! Consider thinking of a more accurate solution; you cannot kill us all since most of us are innocent. I don't think this is that complicated—there should be a simple explanation for something so irrational."
"Huh?"
Sam raised his eyebrows, looked at the chief investigator confused, and said, "What did you just say? Believe me, I want to save you all and resolve these problems as soon as possible, but if my commander comes to Atlanta and this isn't as simple as it seems, none of you will be spared punishment."
"Gentlemen! What is your duty?"
Sam's loud, thundering voice frightened all the investigators, but at that moment the soldiers behind him lowered their weapons and everyone said at the same time, "Kill our enemies, protect our people, and kill the traitors even if they are our fathers!"
Sam then took out a radio and said, "Zz... report on the operation in Birmingham—how much longer?"
"Zz... Sir, the planes have been put in motion and an army of 1,800 men has been sent; 300 are construction personnel and the rest are reserve soldiers along with the experienced ones."
"Zz... I want constant communication about the course of the operation. I don't want surprises, and you must do a clean and quick job before nightfall."
"Zz... I will keep you informed, Captain!"
"Are you going to take Birmingham?" This time, before everyone could speak, Sam interrupted them: "Things have complicated, and the vaccine that we are sure comes from this place is the main problem."
"If none of you are willing to turn yourselves in, you will all be imprisoned and your punishment will be much harsher than now. Our people will obey a community that possesses that vaccine; we will extract the information at all costs."
After taking a paper, Sam opened it to look, but he couldn't help bursting into laughter and then realized that laughing didn't seem appropriate, so he quickly fell silent.
Because the paper contained information about the last survivors who caused trouble and were eliminated, and unexpectedly, upon confirming the names of all the investigators they found a match.
There was a very problematic boy who had gotten out of many troubles, and the only way he had avoided many punishments was because of his sister. But this last offense was very large, so he was sentenced to death.
In some way, it's likely that investigator Coin gave her brother some doses of the vaccine before releasing him as an infected person.
Sam remembered how they had tried to save Lori from becoming a walker, but it was impossible, and now somehow the vaccines were found in Birmingham.
"It seems we have found the leak, Miss Coin. Please come with me for interrogation. The others will return to work and will be under strict supervision."
"Coin?"
"Was it you?"
"I remember your brother was sentenced to death for his repeated offenses."
"I can't believe it."