Before she entered, she reported at an administrative desk. The pleasant receptionist checked her credentials, confirmed whom she was there to visit, and then issued a visitor’s badge, which she attached to the lapel of her blazer. Harper had dressed up for the occasion. She still wore her usual Levi jeans and white Nike sneakers, but over her white, French-cuffed shirt, she’d put on a black blazer.
She tugged at it. Like life, she didn’t want her clothes to feel constraining. Also, she wanted to make a lasting impression on her husband, whom she may not see again for a while. She concentrated to stifle the words if ever as she cleared security.
Once she passed the scrutiny of the DARPA security team, she rushed to greet Joe. All of the negative thoughts and emotions associated with her mother were immediately washed away. Her face broke out in a smile, and tears rolled down her cheeks.
She ran into his arms and they held one another without speaking. It was a reunion that seemed different than others. It was more emotional. But then, because it was their nature, it turned playful.
“Oh, Rhett,” she cooed, channeling Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind. “Please, kiss me proper.”
Joe laughed and then his face turned serious. He became Captain Rhett Butler. “No, I don’t think I will kiss you, although you need kissing badly.”
“But, Rhett …” Harper’s version of Scarlett begged.
“You should be kissed, and often, and by someone who knows how.”
“Please, Rhett, do kiss me!” she demanded in a Southern drawl that would make Margaret Mitchell proud.
So he did. The two’s public display of affection was not frowned upon by passersby, but admired. They were truly in love with one another and it showed.
Joe pulled away and looked into Harper’s eyes. “Better?”
“More better.” She smiled and then planted a gentle peck on his cheek. “God, I’ve missed you.”
“More than ever, it seems. Are you all right?”
Harper wiped away the tears and smiled. “Yeah. I just had a moment thinking about Mom.”
“Did something happen?” asked Joe.
“Oh, no. You know how my brain works. I noticed this building was located on Randolph Street. I went down the rabbit hole to the family history from the old Randolphs to the new. The stroll down memory lane ended with my last visit with her.”
Joe gently wiped the last remnants of her tears from her cheeks and hugged her. They embraced for half a minute until she regained her composure. She pulled back and then noticed his visitor’s badge.
“Hey, why is yours a different color than mine?”
“It allows me to do things you can’t.”
“Like kiss me in the lobby?”
Joe laughed. “Yeah. That and going through doors to check out all the neat shit.”
“I wanna see!” Harper jokingly demanded.
Joe grabbed her by the hand. “Welcome to the Department of Mad Scientists.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Darpa
Arlington, Virginia
Joe checked his watch. They had ten minutes before they were to meet with the man with whom he would entrust the safety of his wife. He walked Harper through the hallways and shared some of DARPA’s long list of technological accomplishments.
“Berger has undoubtedly told you about his role working with infectious diseases in the Biological Technologies Office,” he began. “Since his departure for the CDC, I was able to fund a new program for DARPA.”
“PREEMPT,” interjected Harper.
“Preventing Emerging Pathogenic Threats,” added Joe. “While you’re hunting viruses, these guys are modeling viral evolutions in animal populations. They focus on quantifying the probability of human pathogen emergence and pursuing interventions to prevent viral spread to humans.”
“They place a huge emphasis on zoonotics,” said Harper. “Very smart considering most viruses start in animal reservoirs and are later passed on to humans through a variety of vectors, including insects or intermediate reservoirs—small mammals, poultry, and swine.”
“Or biological weapons,” said Joe solemnly. “As you know, the Department of Defense works around what’s known as the threat timeline. At the DTRA, the guys at Fort Belvoir refer to it as right of boom—a phrase that referred to the timeline of a disaster, in particular the aftermath. In a world at war with terrorists, governments had concentrated their efforts on what happens after a catastrophic event, hence the phrase right of boom. The DTRA, like DARPA, has evolved now to address the events left of boom.”
“Prevention.”
“Yes,” said Joe. He paused for a moment before continuing. In his position as chairman of the House Oversight Committee, he held a security clearance equal to that of the Speaker of the House. He always had to be cognizant of the potentially classified information he provided Harper. His concern was not that she would intentionally use or disseminate the information for any purpose. Sometimes, those who don’t work in a world of secrecy could accidentally slip up.
“Most of what I’m about to tell you is available through FOIA requests. It’s public knowledge and anyone could make a request to see it. However, it’s safe to say very few people know to ask for it.” FOIA was an acronym for the Freedom of Information Act, which allowed private citizens to seek full or partial disclosure of previously unreleased documents and information from the government.
“Sounds mysterious,” said Harper.
“It is, but essential to our national security.” Joe checked his watch again and pointed toward the elevator. “With PREEMPT, DARPA has followed a model initiated at Fort Belvoir known as Project Artemis.”
“She was the Greek goddess of the hunt,” said Harper.
Joe wrapped an arm around his wife and gave her a squeeze. “Not unlike yourself, darling.”
“Wow, you’re certainly buttering me up for something.”
“Maybe,” he said as the elevator doors opened. The cab was empty, so Joe continued. “Anyway, Project Artemis was designed to liaise with the CIA and the NSA to stop the use of biological weapons by terrorists—before boom. Whether it was the use of anthrax by domestic terrorists within the United States or weaponized smallpox throughout Europe, the team at Project Artemis works around the clock to prevent bioterror events from happening.”
Harper was somewhat familiar with the secretive project. The Project Artemis team was known for its outside-the-box thinking and employment of covert operatives. They were adept at analyzing data and intelligence and piecing threads of evidence together that might seem far-fetched to some. Sometimes their working theories didn’t pan out. When they did, and a bioterror attack was thwarted, it was a rewarding feeling for those who worked tirelessly for the country he loved.
Joe continued. “PREEMPT was created to focus on the zoonotic side. They looked farther left of the timeline, before the bioweapon was created, and began to identify opportunities to contain viruses before they endangered humans.”
Harper was about to add a comment when the elevator door opened. A long, sterile corridor appeared before them. A receptionist sat behind a half-wall enclosure. She looked up and immediately recognized Joe.