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Henderson could finish his statement, Jennifer stepped on Amanda’s foot . Right on her little toe . Amanda couldn’t suppress a yelp.
    The director’s sharp eyes turned to her . “Dr . …? ”
    “ Rolph . Amanda,” she quickly added , as if being personable would stop a scolding.
    “You wanted to add something?”
    Amanda didn’t want to say another word — ever — in this blasted room, but Jennifer’s foot hovered over her own, just waiting to stomp down if she shirked.
    Clearing her throat , Amanda plunged in. “Sir, I think we are just experiencing a lull in the spread.”
    “A ‘lull?’ ”
    The sarcastic texture of his question was not lost on Amanda , but the die was cast . She couldn’t back down without possibly needing a cast for her foot after Jennifer was done with it . “I believe these documented cases are just the warning shot over the bow.”
    “That’s ridiculous,” Devlin spat . “Terrorists go for the big bang . They wouldn’t test - drive a bioweapon.”
    That was just what she needed . Arrogant dismissal . If there was one thing that could get her over her pathological shyness, it was being dissed.
    Her tone sharp ened . “Nevertheless, this dip in cases is just a delay from the incubation period.”
    Henderson cut in before Devlin could restate his disbelief . “I’m assuming you have some scientific proof to back up your claim?”
    She might have temporarily had the courage to go toe to toe with an arrogant, uninformed, and nonmedical CIA liaison, but Amanda wasn’t sure she had the nerve to face off against the whole room , let alone the director . B ut again , Jennifer was not allowing her to back down . Her assistant brought up a map of Europe on the cramped room’s sole plasma screen . Each documented case of the plague was highlighted in red.
    “We are aware of the zero patient, Dr. Rolph ,” Henderson stated, sounding more annoyed than curious.
    And Devlin wasn’t far behind . “Again, there are no Middle Eastern, Sub-Asian continental groups that have — ”
    She should keep Devlin around . H e bugged her enough to prod her out of her self-imposed introversion . Glaring, Amanda challenged the liaison . “Doesn’t this pattern feel vaguely familiar to anyone?”
    “The Asian epicenter is not uncommon , with diseases such as influenza and — ”  MacVetti was on a roll , but Amanda cut him off .
    “I mean, regarding the plague in particular.”
    The audience again formed a bee hive mind -set, and their mumbling turned to do wnright scoffing . But Jennifer came to the rescue again . Her assistant brought up ano ther map next to the current outbreak . They were nearly identical.
    “What’s this?” Henderson asked.
    “The plague,” Amanda answered plainly.
    Before anyone could show their disgust, the second map sprang new cases, rapidly spreading across the whole of Italy.
    “I…I don’t understand,” the director stated.
    “This map is of the first plague . The Black Death.”
    Luckily , Devlin was the first to find his voice . “You aren’t implying…”
    Amanda shook her head . “I’m not implying anything . I’m saying that someone is re - creating the original b ubonic p lague . Down to the epicenter . The spread over the Black Sea . The lag in cases.”
    Everyone watched thousands upon thousands of red dots spread over the map.
    “Everything,” Amanda said just before the room erupted into argument.
    Neighbor argued with neighbor . Some shouted at Amanda, others just spouted off to no one in particular . This was why she didn’t want to say anything — but exactly the reason she had to.
    The only one not engaged in various states of disbelief and denial was Dr. Henderson . He was on his feet, but calm, studying both maps . The director turned back to Amanda . “Why couldn’t this just be a natural resurgence of the disease?”
    Luckily , she had prepared for this question . Amanda had raised it herself several times during her research