i rescue you from certain death and instead of gratitude, you mock me. his two wolfhounds, olser and harvey, grovel on the floor contritely, each with a worn shoe in his mouth. behind them we see the rest of gillespie's living. dining room. his townhouse is spartan; it needs a woman's touch. un- packed boxes stand in the corner beside a treadmill.
that can't go unpunished. no letterman for three nights. the dogs wag the running shoes. cut to:
okay! okay! without breaking stride, he throws what look like sticks high into the air. the dogs jump and catch the objects in their mouths and race back to gillipsie. we see they're old stethoscopes with thick rubber tubing. gillespie lets them fly again. he laughs at their eager- ness and keeps running, sprinting now, trying to prove to himself that he's still young. suddenly -- a phone rings. without breaking stride, he pulls a cellular phone from his pocket:
dr. gillespie.  how many dead?.
is is lassa fever? ebola? what?
yes, sir. gillespie hangs up, out of breath.  excited. cut to:
mike. roberta "robby" keough, an attractive, intelligent woman in her mid 30's, opens the door a few inches, until the latch lock chain snaps tight. the dogs try to push inside.
robby, i know i'm the last guy you'd do a favor for, but i've got no one else to ask.
then just listen. i gotta go to zaire. robby shakes her head, "no, no way."
so they can die of some weird disease like stripes did? she mouths the word "no."
-- look, robby, if i had any other choice, i wouldn't be here.
i won't be gone long.
i'll be back before that.
it wasn't all my fault, robby.
okay.
got a place yet?
the first thing you'll do is spend the whole night unpacking.  you'll stay up 'til dawn but you'll get everything in its place.
nothin' in my life has been organized since you left, robby. beat. she's surprised at his admission. and un- comfortable. so's he. he continues searching through the box and pulls out.  a photo taken during their honeymoon cruise: they're both smiling radiantly as they hold between them a trophy of a dancing couple.
y'know, this is the only evidence on earth that i was ever graceful. he checks her reaction. there is a hint of a smile.
nah, people might see it.  get the wrong impression. he drops the photo back in the box and moves toward the door.
or less. as we hear the front door open and shut, hold on robby: a hint of regret. cut to:
where the hell's yaffe?
we need him now! who's going to read the electron micrographs?
you can't even read a playboy pinup.
we can't wait. a jeep drives across the tarmac, toward them and comes to a park a short distance away. the driver scurries out to open the passenger door to let -- general ford get out.
sir, we're going into very dangerous territory.
beggin' your pardon, general, i don't think you are. you've had only the most cursory training on how to avoid contamination. concerns for your safety would distract us.
sir, i'm not comfortable --
no, sir.
bullshit.
rafferty, rock and roll with this bird.
-- strap in. the huge jet engines come to life. gillespie, berman, and salt strap themselves into the row of jump seats along the fuselage. issy is filled with the excitement of a young kid who can't believe his luck:
i want to know just one thing. can you read electron micrographs as well as you can run?
have you ever seen filovirus infection in a human being?
it's about as pretty as goin' naked up the middle against the dallas cowboys.
i hope so, because if you can't, you'll make a mistake. you'll be holding a needle and it'll slip. or your glove will have a crack in it and you won't notice. you work with filoviruses, it's like working with plutonium. a single drop of blood can hold six billion.  that's more filoviruses than there are people in the world. you get a single one of those inside you, you're infected. say you're lucky and it's one of the few filoviruses we have antiserum for. then we can treat you and you'll probably live. but say you're unlucky. and you get one of those filoviruses we don't have an antiserum for, which is most of them. there's no medicine, no cure, nothing we can do to help you. your body gets so hot, your liver, your kidney, all your vital organs melt, and your skin turns into tapioca pudding. stunned silence.
we got a lot of equipment. you're gonna have to get us in close.
then don't kiss me, sergeant. cut to:
captain salt, if you fail to observe strict decontamination protocol, three things can happen. first, you can be court-martialed. second, you can die from this horrible disease. third, and worst of all, you can incur my displeasure. you got it?
if one of us gets sick, we all get sick. and i didn't come here to die.
doctor iwabi? i brought blood, plasma --
i came as soon as i could.
who was the index case?
keep you helmet on, goddamit!
put him in quarantine. now!
why?
how do you know?
could any infected person have gotten out of this village and spread it?
finding the host is the only way to control the spread. our only hope is that this is like most viruses and that it has to live in a host, an animal, to which it's adapted over thousands of years. and that animal host has developed antibodies to protect itself against the virus. if we can identify that animal host, and harvest its antibodies, we can use them to fight the disease in humans.
what's he saying?
a safeguard, sir.
-- and if iwabi's wrong? american doctors should be warned so cases can be quarantined. sir, this one is different --
we should do nothing?
yes, sir. smash cut to:
it was a bad virus.  cut me some slack.
stop joking. where are they?
you did not. on her face: a triumphant smile.
i'm coming to atlanta.  i'm takin' 'em back.
piss ass good. and you?
that really cheers me up.
i think cause we're friends you might show some tact.
hey, she's available.
you're just what she's looking for. mr. stability. three wives in five years.
what?
i thought you were doing your thesis at walter reede.
so you were hoping to change subjects and get your name on my research papers?
motaba.  after the valley where we found it.
should we let this guy horn in on our new virus, owi? owi hesitates.
well, that's that. salt nervously eyes izzy: "is this a joke?"
get me a blood test for the motaba virus.
a hundred and twenty will be plenty.
the rebels hit iwabi's camp.
he's all right, thank god. he was in kinshasha at his clinic but his entire field staff was killed. his whole lab destroyed.
i want to continue working on motaba, sir.
-- it scares the shit out of me, sir.
sir, if this virus came to america --
those were the only samples in the world of motaba, iwabi lost all his in the fire. there's got to be a way to get that access code from ford's computer.
i love it when you make mistakes, owi.
ugly bastard, isn't he?
if you're red, you're dead. is that what you're telling me?
how long to fix it?
how long?
bullshit.
-- yeah, i followed your orders instead of my gut. he grabs the phone and punches in a long distance number.
i should've blasted our african findings across every newspaper in the country. robby.
you need my help, robby. robby, flustered, doesn't answer.
i know this virus, you don't. i've worked this virus, you haven't. how many people are infected?
how many?
how could that many people get infected so fast?
robby, don't get anywhere near this thing. robby doesn't answer.
you've been in an office for years. you've forgotten what these things are like.
that's level two, nothing! this is level four. stay the fuck away, robby.
please, robby. stay away.
why has it always been so hard for you to admit that you need anything from me?
robby!
request permission to bring my team to bonneville, oregon, sir.
-- a presidential order can override --
the goddamn fuse is lit! what're you gonna do? wait for the bomb to go off?
yeah? today, maybe they've got a handful.  by tomorrow they could have a hundred, and the day after that, a thousand. when the president and congress ask why you didn't bring in one group, the only group in the entire world with experience in fighting this disease, what're you gonna say?
i'm sending a letter to the surgeon general right now. i'm going to create a paper trail. you will fry. gillespie storms out. ford remains unruffled.
sergeant, this is colonel gillespie at fort detrick. we're on code red status for bonneville, oregon. time of departure 01:00.
is that mucia with a 'c' or an 's'?
get it done, sergeant. that's a direct oroder from general ford.
they're going to have to show the president they did everything possible. there's a nervousness in izzy's face, something we've seen before.
get a bunch of paper pushers scared enough, they'll do anything. cut to:
tell him it is colonel mike gillespie, commander of the u.s. army motaba virus task force. intercut with:
we've got to quarantine the entire town of bonneville and do it quick. morning will be too late -- people will panic and try to leave. if even one infected person gets out, the entire effort could be for nothing.
they can shut down the major roads, but we need a much larger force to encircle the town.
fort lewis, washington, or ford ord, california. closer is better. sir, this is a doomsday disease.
as deadly as a.i.d.s., but it kills within days. it could spread over the entire country. goodell's wide awake now.
yes, sir, of course. he asked me to call you.
then get it, sir. right away, please. they break radio contact. salt looks at gillespie with awe.
i'll take full responsibility for whatever happens.
don't worry, the c.d.c. -- and the president -- will invite us to bonneville. they'll invite mary and jesus too. cut back to:
i've got people inside. they can do what needs to be done. set up your command post outside the town, where you'll be safe. she tries to go around him. he grabs her arm.
want me to leave? she doesn't answer. we hear only the rush of air in their suits, drowning out the horror we see as they pass room after room of motaba patients, screaming and moaning in pain. they pass.  izzy in a room with henry, the lab tech. lips blue, gasping for every breath, he fights against the vent- ilator. streaks of blood line the wall. in the next bed is his girl friend, corinne, comatose and near death.
i tried to warn you. but nothing he could have said could have prepared her for this. she moves on into.
bonneville patient zero. he never regained consciousness so we don't know how he got infected. suddenly tracy starts convulsing.
this isn't the same virus --
-- to an airborne form --
they may not all be infected.
you're wrong. fade up the roar of choppers. an overwhelming dim. dr. macselli moves to the window, pulls back the shades. can't believe his eyes. in the distance, against the dawn half-light.  the sky is filled with sikorsky blackhawk helicopters from the u.s. rapid deployment force.
 don't ask. cut to:
-- the virus is airborne.
since it left africa, it mutated.
go to the hospital and see for yourself. leave your face bare. ford starts away from gillespie.
major berman and captain salt were following my orders -- i am the only one at fault.
monkeys get quiet when they get hungry.
what for?
this disease looks like a regular flu in its early stages, but if you have flu symptoms, don't panic.  it's probably just a normal virus and not motaba.
but the way to protect your family is to detect it early, before you spread it.
no.  but she sees he's not sure.
no. unless jimbo scott had close contact with the host and that animal is somehow traceable. there's got to be something at bio-test.
could jimbo scott have deleated all traces of an animal stored at your facility?
mr. felder, don't take this personally, but either you're a horrible judge of character or the world's in deep shit. could jimbo scott have erased all records on an animal stored at your facility? yes or no? felder hesitates. suddenly gillespie's walkie-talkie beeps:
he was infected with the first strain, before it mutated.
maybe it's not korean filo4.
let's go. now! with extraordinary effort, he heaves izzy over his back.
ice, fluids, blood, oxygen.  let's go! gillespie puts a probe in berman's mouth, shudders when he sees the reading.
a hundred and eight. ice.  i want ice.  i mean now!
open your eyes. open your fuckin' eyes, izzy. nobody's lettin' you off so easy. pressure?
you were a hundred and eight. not too long.  but long enough.  you musta lost a billion brain cells.
we need a line. robby flips gillespie a catheter set. he looks for a vein. robby and wally try to keep izzy flat while gillespie works, but.
lemme see it.
you took the hit for me.  why? tears fill her eyes. her mouth opens. she can't talk. only a low moan of terror. gillespie cradles her head against his. cut to:
get the hell out of my way. i'm going to see the general.
that's a load of crap. get him on the line, soldier. now!
you had the antiserum to the original african strain, you could've made it available right away. the virus would've never had a chance to mutate. you could have stopped this whole epidemic before it got started. why? ford says nothing. he stares at the wreckage as if some- how he could find an answer there he himself believes.
why?
you ordered the attack on iwabi's people in africa? silence. ford neither confirms nor denies the accusation. then with sadness and remorse, ford tells the truth:
biowarfare research is illegal. we signed a treaty.
-- one mad man --
so you're going to wipe out this entire town -- kill everyone in it?
take the people who are well and get them out!
your only hope is to look for the host.
let me.
i know i'm not.
izzy is sick, robby infected. beat.
wipe out the town, wipe out motaba. and you're still the only one in the world who's got the virus. no matter what, your program's secure.
bullshit! cut to:
sergeant, general ford has ordered us to decon all aircraft before takeoff.
vector transmission is increasing and airborne contamination must be minimized. pretty soon, sergeant, even that suit won't protect you.
i'll get him out. cut to:
nice and easy now. the black hawk cruises over the camp, blending right in with half-a-dozen other choppers going in all directions. cut to:
there's food and water for two days. they'll find you by then. gillespie slips on deterich's uniform, salt pulls on gillespie's.
you never expected to make colonel this fast, did you, salt? cut to:
not bad for somebody who hasn't flown in six years.
cut inland at klamath river and keep this mountain ridge between us and oregon.
no. ford will anticipate that.
no, not all.  just the ones biotest had.
excuse me.
i am warrant officer deterich of the united states army -- the next person in line reacts:
i just came from the site of the virus epidemic in oregon and you will help me now! armistead's supervisor, mrs. panamides, comes out of her office as the other persons waiting in line, fearful of the dreaded motaba virus, edge away from gillespie rapidly.
bills of lading for all ships which arrived from africa during the last six months.
an animal.
i don't know. cut to:
that's it. the apeldoorn, a dutch freighter. one monkey. but what kind of monkey?
climbing into the black hawk. the rain is much heavier now. cut to:
i tried to radio. all static. 'cause of the storm.
yes.
the storm won't break 'til tomorrow. salt is torn.
if you want, i could try to hover and drop you on board.
speak for yourself. on the deck of the apeldoorn: four crewmen hold tight onto their lifelines and wait for -- gillespie, who emerges from the belly of the chopper. he hangs tight onto the winch, which strains in the wind, thrusting gillespie over the waves. one breaks on top of him.
how long has it been since the monkey was on the ship? one of the seamen translates gillespie's question to the captain in dutch. the captain answers in halting english:
when did seaman jans first get sick?
captain, your ship will have to be quarantined at sea. no one is to go near this freezer. do you understand? the captain nods, overwhelmed by sudden fear.
someone else must have seen the monkey -- the first mate steps forward. as he begins to jabber in dutch.
the monkey was small, black and white.  computer keys pound: kinshasa national hospital, zaire. intercut with:
find as many as you can. smash cut to:
-- but you have to help me --
if they implement the containment plan -- reynolds is angry, flustered -- terrified his worst nightmare has come a reality.
if we can find the host, we can obtain an effective antibody against the virus, and reproduce it. we can present them with a credible alternative.  reynolds squeezes his tennis ball.
drew, robby's infected. reynolds squeezes his tennis ball tighter. computer keys pound: molalla, oregon - 14:45
i am not infected. one of the two cameramen backs away from his camera and bolts toward the door. salt points the gun at him, but doesn't pull the trigger. more and more people stampede out.
we need help to find the animal carrying the motaba virus. it is a small black and white monkey and it was brought to northern california or oregon within the last two weeks. if you have any information about this monkey, please call this number at the c.d.c. in atlanta.
many people are going to die. this is their only chance. please.  help us.  gillespie bolts up. he and salt run out of the newsroom. fade up police sirens and -- cut to:
if you have any information about this monkey, please call.  hold on mrs. jeffries' face. smash cut to:
we know that jimbo scott took an animal up to bonneville to sell. this place, molalla, would be right on the way to the airport. gillespie studies the map.
to get back up there we're gonna haveta fly through everything the air force has got. are you feelin' lucky, captain?
no, it's moving too fast.
picks up another swirl of red on the infra-red sensing device. he points to it.
circle in.
stares at the monitor. a faint red band appears in the corner of the screen, then disappears.
starboard! the chopper veers to the right and the red band glows brighter and brighter.
lock! the chopper hovers, then starts to descend straight down. gillespie looks through binoculars at:
fires again.
up! fast! salt yanks the wheel back. the black hawk starts climbing. the apaches quickly surround it. intercut:
if the antibodies work, we'd have a way to stop the epidemic by medical means --
-- dr. iwabi --
you do. because if you fail to contain the virus, you're going to be racing to synthesize an antiserum. how long did it take you to do the last one? a year? two years? five? ford's torn.
if the monkey's antibody is effective, you could use it as a template. maybe you could save europe. ford hesitates. mcclintock sir, let me -- the black hawk blasts through the cloud cover and emerges:
fire away! nothing's going to survive the crash.
what?
i like it all right.
i like it.
tell me.
i can't. izzy's dead. tears stream down gillespie's cheeks. cut to:
you can't give up.
he's gonna be okay. you're both going to be okay.
stay with me! fight! she half opens her eyes, her voice a murmur.
salt, where the hell are you? salt, answer me!
remember the first time we made love? in france. behind the haystack. and we were so worried that the little boy on the bicycle might see us. she smiles, remembering.
i never felt anything except with you, robby. i was so stupid to let it slip away. she closes her eyes. a cry of anguish:
salt! beat. then salt appears in the doorway holding a large plastic bag of betsy's antiserum. gillespie connects it to robby's iv and the brown fluid flows into robby. gillespie sits down beside her. a long beat. then he does: something crazy. he removes the glove from his biosafety suit so that his own bare hand can touch robby's skin. he touches her face gently. hold on gillespie, sitting beside his wife's bed, holding her hand.
i was wrong. the antiserum doesn't work.
take this. a signed declaration by me that at all times you were following my orders -- now get out of here.
you'll be the only person left alive who knows the truth --
-- you will leave! you will not disobey an order.
stop! but nobody's listening. he runs down the hall screaming. cut to:
stop! the antiserum works. mcclintock turn it off! the radioman hesitates.
this is colonel gillespie. and i'm ordering you.  begging you.  to stop. we can save these people. mcclintock punches off the radio.
pushing robby on her gurney into an army truck. he seals the back tight with tape. then climbs inside:
	110: