World War Z_ An Oral History of the Zombie War ( PDFDrive )

victim of a political witch hunt when you could escape to the private sector: a fatter paycheck,
decent hours, and maybe, just maybe, a little respect and appreciation by the people you work for.
We lost a lot of good men and women, a lot of experience, initiative, and priceless analytical
reasoning. All we were left with were the dregs, a bunch of brownnosing, myopic eunuchs.
But that couldn’t have been everyone.
No, of course not. There were some of us who stayed because we actually believed in what we
were doing. We weren’t in this for money or working conditions, or even the occasional pat on the
back. We were in this because we wanted to serve our country. We wanted to keep our people safe.
But even with ideals like that there comes a point when you have to realize that the sum of all your
blood, sweat, and tears will ultimately amount to zero.
So you knew what was really happening.
No…no…I couldn’t. There was no way to confirm…
But you had suspicions.
I had…doubts.
Could you be more specific?
No, I’m sorry. But I can say that I broached the subject a number of times to my coworkers.
What happened?
The answer was always the same, “Your funeral.”
And was it?
[Nods.] I spoke to…someone in a position of authority…just a five-minute meeting, expressing
some concerns. He thanked me for coming in and told me he’d look into it right away. The next day
I received transfer orders: Buenos Aires, effective immediately.
Did you ever hear of the Warmbrunn-Knight report?
Sure now, but back then…the copy that was originally hand delivered by Paul Knight himself, the
one marked “Eyes Only” for the director…it was found at the bottom of the desk of a clerk in the
San Antonio field office of the FBI, three years after the Great Panic. It turned out to be academic
because right after I was transferred, Israel went public with its statement of “Voluntary
Quarantine.” Suddenly the time for advanced warning was over. The facts were out; it was now a
question of who would believe them.