To Abide with Strays

➥ 24 ⦙ DEAD(-ly) CONTRACT

The Opel is silent, which is rare to this group but their minds weren't so serene as the outside. They arrived at the GARC at 08:50 AM.

Everyone rushed here and there, finding their department pals to gushing over about Late Commander.

All cadets assembled at the conference hall. Several depts' heads and Chiefs filled the first rows. Dimitriy visited them due to the project but no one thought Commander will die.

"This fatal news brings agony to my heart. Only Radomir, The Commander can complete this project, without him, I feel like my right hand is broken. But we've to complete the project in the given time. Govt is nagging us for the results." Everyone nods their heads on the stage except Tengiz.

"So, I hereby announce that Deputy Chief. Gabriadze, as the team leader of this project."

Even Zech is unsure of this situation, he had witnessed several decisions that were taken before, but not like this. There is another highest chief officer in the rank before Gabi, but he is the project head now.

Eldar is the highest chief. But he didn't want to make any disputes now. Tengiz is watching Eldar, he saw back too. But both decided to remain silent.

The meeting was over in twenty minutes, All the officials went to the funeral. The main crew left for Batumi Site.

All members signed the contracts and received Govt. orders to enter into that hole, which contain their respective names.

"Eyy! Zech! Why everything is in Georgian?" "I don't know anything," Zech answered randomly. Esfir asked Nadya for an explanation.

They screened the site's edited clips.
Esfir knew they are hiding the crucial information. But she can't call them out, 'cause she eavesdropped-Rules
broken.

Nadya went to her frequent place to feed a stray pug, she even named it Cameron.

"Camy.. where are you?" she whistled.

"Camy .. Cam..." She did stop, Three feet apart, her Camy, a female pug lying with froth around its mouth. "What might happen?" She contacted the Vet. Doc she used to visit with Bum.

The Vet. Doc sent her assistant to take the pug to her clinic. Nadya wished to go with her Camy.

"What happened, Nadya?" Esfir came to call her, as the officials asked everyone to gather near the site for some procedures. The secondary crew arrived at the Site with Dimitriy.

"Esha, My Camy...dead.", Nadya started weeping inclined on Esfir's shoulder.

"How?" "I don't know but it has a death rattle." "Uhh?" Esfir couldn't understand.

"Purge fluid, it will come after they die." "Ahh! That one. I guess it'll come after death when the corpse is decaying for long." What.

Nadya doesn't know the cause. "What's the cause?" Esfir neither. "How do we know? Come Dimitriy came!"
Nadya and Esfir went inside. They were on the other side of the site, it took ten minutes for reaching the marked site.

"Esha! Where? you both gone." Zech enquired, in the result of the agitation.

"I went to call Devus," Zech told her to keep quiet after knowing the reason. 'These two'

The analysis of gas came with hazardous information. "Hydrogen disulfide has the highest ratio in the emitted gas." Mr. Gabi is reading the file in shuttered voice. "Why he's shuttering?" Alyona found it hilarious.

"That can cause headache, confusion, psychosis...heavier the exposure, heavier the possible death rates."

Members look alike dead, even before exposure to the gas itself. Summing up the misery, he added, "It's not only the poisonous gas inside."

"Why are you sending us, even after this information, Ser" Garry stood up and questioned Dimitriy. Eldar and Gabi signaled him to sit down. "We need answers." Andrei joined his brother. Tengiz smirked at his boys. "Feeling proud, I guess," Marina explained to the girls, who gawked at Tengiz.

"Ohh! At least they have the guts to stand up." Esfir hissed at Zech, who clutched her hands, so she won't get up. Esfir doesn't want to try and get up in this situation. "Shut up. They'll take care."

"Who will take care?" Nadya yelled back at him. It earned the response from Dimitriy, "It's a common compound, we used to get in mines. We'll eradicate them, so you could enter madam...Dr. Alexeyeva, Are you clear now?" Dimitriy chose to answer the less troublesome question.

"That's why I told you so, they're young minds, and need guidance." Tengiz denoting him looked calmer than at their last meeting. "We're capable, Ser. We are scared of those hidden obstacles in our journey," Zech stood up. He thought, Tengiz always put his team down in many projects they had done together before. Zech continued, "Actually this common question about gases is initiated by your department cadets only."

First time Eldar looks proud of his team. "My cadet is saying the correct point. They even don't know the common stuff?" Tengiz ignored Eldar. But his stern gaze is now on the Agapov duo. They both gulped at his stare.

"A common thing or it's not. I hope the team leader of the project, Ms. Esfir Volkova would have known better, don't you?" Dimitriy is now scanning Esfir. Esfir's instincts say, 'He's bad but crooked.' She chose to be silent. He didn't stop, "That's why you were ardent to get up, a few minutes ago?" Dimitriy leaned forward, on the table, while asking it.

Zech turned to her with an I-told-you-so look and folded his arms.

Esfir stood to accept her mistakes, "Sir. I was wrong too, I too think like Garry at the moment." "We can think anything at the moment of heat, but the control of decisions should be within you, not in left or right-external forces." It triggered Zech, 'Am your target now?'

Esfir nodded in response and intended to sit but, "Wait. Ms. Volkova. You used to be worked in the biodomes of Arizona. Isn't it?" "Yes, Sir." "Then you might have heard about GARC's helping nature towards Arizona too?" she nodded with respect. "Keep that in mind while you're working here. We're sending six people under you."

Sounds like a threat? Esfir went blank, but couldn't stop thinking his last words.