Without stopping, Five jogged through Abel directly toward the comms tower. If anyone needed to see this case now, it was Dr. Myers. Breathing heavily, Five took the stairs two at a time and burst into the comms room, startling Sam so much he fell out of his chair.

"Five!" he gasped, scrambling back up. "You're back! I didn't even see you come in through the gate!"

"I think only Runner Eighteen did, actually," Five shrugged, grabbing a grubby towel from the comms desk and wiping down the collected case. "He raised the gates while you two were talking." She paused, slightly amused as her breathing returned to normal. "So much for paying attention to the runners…"

"Oh, shove off," Sam chuckled.

Dr. Myers stared at the case Five clutched, utterly ignoring their frivolous banter. "May I—may I see that?"

It was still covered in dried blood and bits of zombie, but Five handed it over immediately. Sam and the runner both stared as Dr. Myers opened the case carefully, her face expressionless. Five saw what was inside—piles of paper, what looked like glass vials with organic material and liquid, and a blank CD.

"F—Five," Dr. Myers said, staring at the contents of the box. "Could you give me a moment with Sam?"

The communications operator shrugged at Five, who confusedly left the room and stood outside in the hall. When the door opened a few moments later, Sam ushered her back in and shut the door behind her.

"All right, Five," Sam said briskly, rubbing his hands together. "For all practical purposes, you're going back out on your run, all right?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well… you and Dr. Myers are going to stay in here a while, but it would raise some suspicion as to why a runner and the doctor would be in the comms room, of all places. So… I've already told Runner Eighteen to keep quiet about this and pretend to let you out again, all right?"

Five had no idea what exactly was happening, so she just nodded and sat down at one of the comms desk rolling chairs.

Dr. Myers finally looked up. "So can we, uh…"

"Oh—yeah, yep, that's fine," Sam said, his voice lower and much more serious than usual. "I'll tell them… well. How long do you think you'll need?"

"Just a normal run should be fine," she replied stonily.

"I'll tell them it's a meds run. I know you guys are okay for supplies for the moment, but I'll say you're running low on um... Cotton balls? Pencils?" He stopped, reddening somewhat. "…Condoms?"

"Tell them we're running low on penicillin alternates," Dr. Myers said without reaction, though Five's face turned a shade pinker than normal as well. "It's true anyway."

"Okay," he replied uneasily. "So… then… my corrugated iron tower is yours for as long as it takes. And uh… call if you need me."

"I'll be fine."

"If I could find a way to let you use the equipment completely alone—" Sam began wistfully.

"I know," the doctor cut him off, finally facing Five. "But it's okay. Runner Five could have died retrieving that box. If anyone deserves to know what's in it, you do, Runner Five. In among some research notes and samples, Paula left me an audio recording. I'm gonna play it now. For both of us. So. Runner Five, ready?" Five nodded, and Maxine turned to the radios to send out the faux signal to Runner Eighteen. "Raise the gates. Covering fire. And… run."

She sighed as Sam left the room quietly, watching to make sure no Abel citizens thought anything was amiss. The exit courtyard was empty, and no one seemed to notice that Five hadn't actually left the township. It was just another meds run. Sam would tell them, and no one would think anything of Five's absence.

When Five and the doctor had determined that the coast was clear, Dr. Myers sat back and held up a CD catching prisms of color in the light.

"She made a CD," she began almost incredulously, holding it delicately in her hand. "A CD. Like it was 1998. I guess she thought I'd be more likely to find something to play it on. Or that rain wouldn't damage it like if she'd left me an iPod? Maybe she wanted her iPod. Anyway, only one place to play a CD in this township, and that's right here." She took a deep breath. "Okay. I can do—I can do this. Here we go."

An anxious line creasing her brow, Dr. Myers slid the CD in the proper player and turned it on. A low, female voice sounded through the room, and the doctor emitted a small gasp.

"Hello, sweetheart," Paula began. "If you are my sweetheart, that is. I suppose anyone could be listening to this. But I'm choosing to put that thought out of my mind. This is for my Maxine. Because the phones have stopped working. And I need to believe you're still alive, and that you'll hear this… one day." As Paula spoke, Five stared determinedly at a button on the comms desk, not daring to look over at Dr. Myers.

"I love you," Paula continued. "And I had to tell you, darling, best one. I want to imagine that I'm telling you what I saw. Because when I imagine I'm talking to you… I can feel your arms around my shoulders and that makes it easier. I know you wouldn't judge me or panic. And you've… always been able to calm me down when I felt afraid. I'm… so… afraid, Maxi. Just so scared. I think—oh Maxi, I think I know who Patient 0 was."