Alicia approached Dominic before leaving and asked, "Do you really not want to come with us?"
"We won't be able to escape, but talking to your mother and stepfather right now is a lost cause," said Dominic, knowing full well that the army had cordoned off the entire area.
His calculating gaze was analyzing the possibilities of taking over this place as soon as the army left. If everything was protected, it would be the perfect location to start implementing measures, but the most complicated part would be maintaining it.
"Yeah, right now, with things as they are, I'd prefer to stay home. If it's dangerous here, I can't imagine how things are in other places; everyone must be escaping right now," Alicia said, glancing at her mother and gesturing for her to come.
Dominic looked at Madison and muttered, "The military should be deploying right now; they'll try to take control with active martial law and harsh reprisals against the infected. But let's be honest, cities are lost, and they only concentrate on places like these."
"I have to go; thank you for everything." Alicia didn't want to make a scene since she couldn't force Dominic to accompany them.
Dominic's eyes reassured Alicia that everything was fine. There was no reason to feel sentimental; they weren't friends, and what had happened before was insignificant.
"Take care, Dominic; don't do anything foolish." Madison had to say goodbye, knowing her reactions didn't make sense, so in the end, she chose not to be too bold.
Dominic understood Madison's thoughts; this was the problem with the strong-willed people he knew precisely before they evolved in this apocalyptic world.
"That's why I shouldn't focus on them for now, but I wonder what will happen if I get them to join my survival group," thought Dominic as he opened and closed the pendant in his hands.
To have a clear idea of his ambitions, that would be to take control not only of the soldiers who would come but also of many areas where resources were abundant.
The soldiers right now were worried about their families, unsure if they were alive, and things would get more complicated when they didn't even have a chance to see them.
That's why Dominic could send a special team to take that family and evacuate them to a safe place. Of course, drones would be used first to see if they were still alive and to optimize the trip; this would be done in supply-taking operations.
Dominic would gradually climb into the minds of all those soldiers until he could take command. They would all be killed later; there was no chance of survival for most bases in this area, so if he had the opportunity to have one or more squads of soldiers, this was his chance.
He had to set aside his feelings; it wasn't time to get sad because if he didn't take advantage of these initial moments, things would become very complicated to do in the future.
Knowing what needed to be done, Dominic took a radio that was one of the most powerful and walked to the second floor of Madison's house when they had left.
"What are you doing?" Daniel was curious about what Dominic planned to do.
If anyone had courage among all these people, it was Daniel, so Dominic stopped and said, "Can I trust you?"
"Of course, what's going on?"
"Your wife will need a doctor; the military is on the way, so you'll have to hand her over for treatment. Trust me, nothing strange will happen, but if she continues with her foot as it is, she'll lose it, and there are no medicines that can save her." Dominic had a plan, and now it was in motion.
Daniel knew what would happen to the sick people, so he said, "That won't happen."
"I have privileged information about how people get infected; it's only through blood in contact with our blood. She won't be sick next to others, believe me. Once the military arrives, I'll infiltrate their ranks."
Daniel closed his eyes as if to process the nonsense he had just heard and asked, "How exactly are you going to do that?"
"My father was in the military; I have military training, so as long as they realize my capabilities, they should recruit me." Dominic certainly knew this was nonsense, but it was the initial plan he wanted to use.
"I won't send my wife to a medical camp where she might get infected," Daniel refused, knowing all the bad things that could happen.
Dominic, on the other hand, pointed out, "The faster they treat her, the less afraid the military will be. If days keep passing, those soldiers will become more and more fearful of the country's critical condition."
"They'll kill people." Daniel understood how the military handled situations in crisis.
"If you trust me, I can take charge. If things go wrong, I'll take responsibility for the consequences." Dominic took a deep breath and looked Daniel in the eyes.
"How? If you tell me how you'll do it, then maybe I'll believe you a bit."
"Take this USB drive; look at its contents on the computer in that room, and when you know more about the virus, you'll understand how people get infected." Dominic placed the USB drive in Daniel's hands, who remained silent.
"Dad, what's going on?"
"I need you to help him check something on the USB drive."
...
When Dominic was about to contact his group, several trucks were heard from outside, and he knew perfectly well that the military had arrived.
"Everyone do what the military is telling you; don't make any moves that might make them think otherwise."
Dominic hid his radio in a place no one would search; he knew they would now take a perimeter and do routine observation to clear the area.
"Everything is clear; the infected have been killed."
"Who did it?"
"They all have a shot in the head, sir; whoever did it must be incredibly accurate."