CHAPTER 21 – Where Everyone Learns about Valkyrie

Kara's gaze skipped back and forth between Tom and Rachel. For months the crew of the Nathan James had speculated about what Doctor Rachel Scott had done to so infuriate Commander Thomas Chandler the morning that she came to vaccinate them against the Red Flu – something that none of the crew (setting aside the senior officers, who weren't talking) had never seen before. The most popular theory was that Doctor Scott had made a pass at the Captain and had been rebuffed, which Kara had always thought was a load of bull. Rachel was far too honorable to have done something of that nature and even if Rachel had confessed to having feelings for the Captain, Kara could not see Tom reacting angrily. In Kara's opinion, Tom would have tried to let the woman down gently, in the hopes of keeping a civil relationship for work purposes, and it would have been Rachel, if anyone, who left the room angry. But Kara's view had been in the minority and the scuttlebutt had reached a fevered pitch in the weeks following Darien Chandler's funeral, with everyone wondering whether Doctor Scott would appear in Norfolk to try to comfort the grieving widower. When she didn't, and there was no indication that the two of them were even in contact, the gossip had slowly died out. But that didn't mean that people stopped wondering and, for the first time in twenty-two hours, Kara found herself interested in something besides J.P.

Twenty-two hours.

It was hard to believe that less than a day ago she and Danny were happily house hunting. Actually, claiming they were happily house hunting was a stretch, Kara admitted wryly, as she had been pretty darn miserable between her aching back and swollen ankles. And the smell of cats, oh lord she would never forget that smell! But happily or not, neither Danny nor Kara had any idea how the day would end when they set out to find a home, naively assuming that they had weeks, rather than hours, left before their son's arrival.

J.P. had been born almost eighteen hours ago, and Kara had held him only twice; once in the operating room before he was whisked away by the doctors, and again this morning in the NICU. It had been a jarring adjustment to go from carrying him twenty-four, seven and feeling him moving constantly to an empty stomach and no infant to hold. She had startled awake that morning panicked to realize that nobody was kicking her bladder, only to collapse in exhaustion as she remembered everything that had happened, wanting nothing more than to see her son.

Waiting to go to the NICU had been excruciating – but the floor nurse refused to allow Kara to get out of bed until the doctor cleared her, and even then she was required to use a wheelchair anytime she left her hospital room. As they finally approached the NICU, Kara had felt Danny's rising tension. She suspected that he was worried about how she would react to seeing their little boy surrounded by medical equipment tracking his oxygen and breathing, tubes running through his nose and taped to his cheek. And the sight had been petrifying, as it reminded her of how fragile their little boy was. But as soon as J.P. was placed in her arms, Kara forgot all about the tubes and the beeping and the equipment, her attention focused only on her little boy.

She had been able to stroke his soft fine hair, dark like hers, and count his tiny fingers. She had noticed that his second toe was longer than his first, like his daddy's toes, and he had her chin. When she stroked her finger down his cheek he had turned towards her, brilliant blue eyes gazing in her direction as she murmured nonsense words. He had even managed to try nursing, and although the effort had exhausted him, the hovering nurse had assured Kara that the mere attempt was a positive sign. And when it was Danny's turn, Kara had been able to see the adoration that lit up her husband's face as he cradled the tiny infant, her heart melting when he pressed a tiny kiss to J.P.'s forehead.

Leaving the NICU, Kara knew how very lucky they were. J.P. might be small and require oxygen, but the conversation was about when he would be able to go home, rather than if. Unlike Danny, Kara had enough medical training to understand the importance of the subtle difference. She knew – intellectually – that J.P. was at no real risk of dying and would be home before she could blink her eyes. Emotionally, however, it was not as easy to banish the what-ifs, the fear that she might never hold her little boy again, and she had been thankful for the stream of company to distract her. In fact, Kara had been feeling almost normal again after showering (finally!) and visiting with Sarah, who had arrived with chocolate and promises that Alisha would call the second that she was able.

And then Debbie had arrived.

Debbie had never handled pressure well, usually falling apart at the first sign of a problem, and Kara had known that her mother would react poorly to the news that J.P. was struggling. Unfortunately, Debbie's reaction had been even worse than Kara had expected, and she had burst into hysterical sobs the minute that Danny mentioned the NICU and had not stopped crying until Berchem and Smith – of all people – had offered to take her shopping for preemie clothing and diapers. The only positive from the visit was that Debbie had arrived sober, keeping the promise she had made to Kara not to drink around her grandson. Kara held out little hope that the change would be permanent, but knowing that Debbie was trying made her overreaction easier to ignore.

"Nothing has been officially released yet," Tom protested, drawing Kara's attention back to the on-going drama between he and Rachel. The Captain was frowning at Rachel, who merely arched an eyebrow at him.

"You haven't been watching the news," Rachel replied with a shrug. "The story broke an hour ago."

"What story?" Danny asked, sounding as confused, and as curious, as Kara.

"Have either of you heard of Valkyrie?" Rachel asked. Receiving no response, she continued. "Almost a year ago an unidentified party calling himself or herself Valkyrie – we assume it is a woman given the handle – established a network dedicated to information about the Red Flu. The network currently has more than six million followers." Kara wasn't aware that the Red Flu even existed a year ago, having only heard about it upon their return from the Arctic when EMCON was lifted. Still, it was hardly surprising that someone had dedicated a network to the virus, given the amount of attention that the Ebola outbreaks had received only a few years ago. "Valkyrie has a bit of a conspiracy bent, but the information on the network has, for the most part, been accurate."

"Around six months ago, the Valkyrie network began disclosing classified information about the military's response to the virus," Tom spoke up, taking over the conversation. "Nothing too important, information about troop vaccination and the humanitarian mission to the Sudan, but it suggested that the Pentagon had a leak in the ranks. An investigation failed to determine who was leaking the information but, unfortunately, it did tip Valkyrie off to the fact that she was being watched. Ten days ago, she released a message giving the Pentagon one week to disclose all information – classified or otherwise – about the Red Flu. If the Pentagon failed to do so, Valkyrie said she would do it herself."

"The day after the deadline passed, Valkyrie posted a memorandum that claims to be from President Geller, outlining a plan by the United States Navy and the CDC to weaponize the virus in violation of the Biological Weapons Convention. Yesterday, Valkyrie released a list of the people that she believes are involved in the conspiracy, including myself, Quincy Tophet, Dennis Milowsky, and Captain Chandler," Rachel continued.

"Am I on it?" Danny asked, anticipating Rachel's next comment.

"You both are, actually," Tom said somberly. "Along with every other member of the Nathan James's crew. The names, ranks, and service records of everyone who went to the Arctic have now been released."

Kara reached out to clasp Danny's hands tightly, feeling sick. Much of Danny's work was classified and, while she obviously didn't know details, allowing that information to fall into the wrong hands could put him – could put their family – into danger. "All of our service records?"

"Danny's cover for his more sensitive missions appears to have held," Tom replied, his eyes locked on Danny, who squeezed Kara's hand in what she assumed was meant to be a comforting manner. Somehow, though, nothing felt very comforting right now. As if having a newborn in the NICU was not enough, they were also being accused of participating in a conspiracy to develop a biological weapon when, in fact, Danny had been one of the reasons that Rachel was able to develop a cure. "Valkyrie seems to have released the personal information of the crew simply as a means of gaining public attention for her real contention – which is that the real purpose of Project Bluenose, the code name for our mission, was to spread the virus."

Danny sat down gently on the edge of Kara's bed, sliding his arm around her shoulders as they tried to take in everything that Tom and Rachel were telling them. Two people, who they had trusted, who they had believed in and had followed, had kept so much from them. Finally Danny spoke. "Valkyrie appears focused on our mission to the Arctic. Why were we really there? I assume it was not to test the new guidance system."

"No, we weren't there to test a new guidance system," Tom replied, and there was a tinge of anger in his voice. "The system had already been thoroughly tested and there was no need for us to test it again, or to be at EMCON when we did so. The missile tests were merely an excuse for our presence in the Arctic. We were at EMCON to make sure that Doctor Scott's presence on the ship, and her search for the primordial strain, remained a secret."

Kara gaped at Tom. The United States government had installed millions of dollars of computer equipment and sent a destroyer to the Arctic for six months on a false mission in order to cover up research into a vaccine? No wonder Valkyrie thought that there was a conspiracy! "It was all a cover? But why?"

"The government felt that revealing the nature of my research would lead to panic similar to what happened last year during the Ebola outbreaks. It was therefore determined that nobody would be informed of the true nature of the mission unless Quincy and I succeeded. The President also made the decision, over my protest, I might add, to keep all of you, including Captain Chandler, in the dark," Rachel finished.

"You needed the primordial strain to develop the vaccine," Danny observed rather neutrally.

"Yes."

"Were you working on the vaccine in the Arctic?"

Kara gasped as she realized the implications. Strains of the Red Flu – the deadliest virus known to man – had been on the ship with them. One slip, one goof, one mistake and they all would have been dead.

"Yes, she was," Tom snapped. No wonder Tom had been furious when he learned the truth!

"I had orders directly from the President," Rachel responded, her voice almost pleading. "Finding the primordial was critical to the development of a vaccine, to saving lives, I couldn't take the chance of telling your what I was doing."

"We understand orders," Kara replied softly. "We follow them every day."

"Why are you telling us this now, then?" Danny asked suddenly. "If this involves the White House, pretty sure this is way above either of our clearance."

"Unfortunately it appears that Valkyrie's plan is working," Tom said with a long sigh. "The mainstream news has begun running the story. And any minute the two of you are going to start getting calls from reporters demanding to know what your role was in the cover-up."