Contain by Saul Tanpepper Page B

get out of there.
Now!”
    Several people quietly exclaim their
dismay at this.
    “ What do you
mean?”
    “ It's not safe.”
    “ It's not safe out
there.”
    The stranger considers this a moment
and nods. “Yes, but at least out here—”
    “ What do you mean you don't
know if there are any infected?” Jack asks.
    “ I haven't seen
any.”
    “ He's obviously terrified,”
Susan Miller interjects. “Look at how jumpy he is. Let him in
before he draws them here!”
    “ There aren't any Wraiths!”
Jonah yells.
    My father turns to us. Before anyone
else can say anything, he raises his hands for silence. “It's too
risky,” he declares, shaking his head. “We don't know who he is, or
what he might be carrying. We don't know what he wants or why he
thinks we're the ones in danger.”
    “ Just let him in, Abraham!”
Danny Delacruz shouts. “He's obviously not infected. You can tell
by the eyes. Let him in!”
    “ My son's right,” Jack
says. “The Wraiths are all dead. We have nothing to fear from
him.”
    “ Then why is he acting like
he's afraid of something out there?”
    “ He's afraid of everything!
Anyone'd be jumpy. But he hasn't seen any, said so himself. Why
would he lie?”
    “ Why would he tell
us we're the ones
in danger?” Dad presses.
    “ Listen,” the stranger
says. “ I have vital information! Please, you need to hear me out,
before it's too late.”
    “ Just open the door, Abe.
Get him in here so we can question him properly.” Jack turns to us.
“Are we going to stand for this, people? Are we going to let one
man keep us from learning the truth?”
    “ I'm not doing—” Dad
protests.
    “ You have!”
    “ No,” I say, startling
myself. I hadn't planned to speak. It just popped out. “That's not
what he's doing.”
    “ Then perhaps you'd like to
explain why he won't open the doors? This man is clearly a
survivor. He's been out there on his own for who knows how long.
He'll have information we desperately need.”
    “ It's not safe!”
    Everyone turns to me, some in
puzzlement, some shaking their heads in derision. I can see them
already dismissing me. It's not that I'm only eighteen or the son
of the man they seem to be losing faith in. It's because they all
know my feelings about the outside.
    Jack Resnick nods contemptuously, as
if his suspicions have been confirmed.
    But I press on. “He's a stranger. I
don't trust him, and neither should any of you.”
    “ Like father, like son,”
Jonah says, pushing off the wall and stepping over to me. He jabs a
finger at my chest. “We all know about your phobia. You'd rather
spend the rest of your life inside this place than go out there in
the big wide world.”
    “ My agoraphobia has nothing
to do with letting him in.”
    “ Not talking about that.
I'm talking about your xeno phobia— fear of the
unknown.”
    I can feel my face burning. His use of
the word is intentional, meant to impress the others. I have to
wonder where he picked it up, but when I see the approving look on
his father's face, I think I know.
    “ A fear of the unknown can
be a healthy thing,” I growl. “It’s what keeps us
alive.”
    Jonah smirks.
    “ Answer this then,” I say,
challenging the group. “How did he manage to find us? How did he
know we were even here? Why do you think he's so eager to get us
out?”
    Several people shift
uncomfortably.
    “ Let him in,” Jonah says,
“and I'm sure we'll find out.”
    “ Boys! Enough.” My father
turns to the intercom and presses the button. “Mister Williams,
we've got a few questions. First, how did you know we were
here?”
    “ I have a map,” the
stranger replies, “a rather crude one, drawn from memory. It's not
very detailed, but enough so that I could find this place. Several
of the bunkers are indicated.”
    There's a collective gasp, and people
start pressing forward. Nobody was ever told where any of the
bunkers were, so we're all curious about them, as well as news
about whether there