The Bunker Project Ch. 02

The following is a work of fiction. All characters participating in sexual activities are over 18. Any resemblance to real life persons is merely coincidental.

This story is part of a series and it is advised to read the story from the beginning as each chapter continues directly from the last.

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The Bunker Project

By: VanillaUnicorn

Chapter 2: A New Day

Second Week of March 2024

It was a restless night of sleep for Paul as the previous day's activities weren't quite sitting right with him. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy the little romp with Ashlei, no it was more the opposite. He seemed to be enjoying himself entirely too much and that was completely out of character for him. It was like years of sexual frustrations took hold of his body and made him do things he wouldn't normally do.

His mind was racing with guilty feelings stemming from losing control of himself and the fact he was abusing his position of authority in the bunker by taking advantage of the incoming residents. It wasn't like the board could kick him out since they still relied on his money to stuff their pockets and it would take a military force to physically remove him. The most they could do was cut off supply shipments and if lucky force a rebellion from within after the food stores and supplied dried up.

It was one thing to have messed around with Sarah or her sister who had practically blackmailed him into it and he could just call it an anomaly but after it happening again with Ashlei, it was becoming a pattern. It seemed there was something more under the surface that had remained hidden through the years of self-imposed celibacy that was finally making its way out of him and he wasn't so sure he liked where it was going or who he was becoming.

Slightly worn out from the action the previous day and grossly lost in thought about what he had gotten himself into, Paul continues to set the Bunker up for more arrivals due the following day. One thing he picked up from that first group of people was how unprepared some of the quarantine rooms had been and he wanted to make sure that never happened again.

Remembering how he had forgotten to get the White's blood samples was also something he needed to make sure never happened again as well. Grabbing a small Post-it note from the drawer of his desk, he scribbled a small note on it as a reminder and stuck it on the edge of the computer monitor. He almost jumped out of his seat when a loud knock came upon the door to his office, whoever it was had caught him lost in thought and the loud knock abruptly startled him.

The door slowly crept open and the smiling face of Erica looked in. She was dressed more casual than she usually did but that wasn't really that hard to do since she had taken to a strict formal dress code for herself when she was up in the offices. She seemed to be in an extra spirited mood at the time and her smile was infectious. Nothing had been said after she had come into the room and an awkward silence seemed to linger as they both waited on the other to break the silence. Eventually it was Erica who did the honors after taking a seat in the chair opposite where he sat at the desk.

"So we didn't really go over very much about how the last group went and I was thinking now would be a good time to before the next group came in. You know so we can correct any mistakes or bad patterns that we did last time." She explains.

"I did have something occur to me this morning though. It's not really related to the induction process though. Are we safe after interacting with all these new people that are coming in? I mean wouldn't they get us sick or give us the potential to get the others here sick?" She asked him calmly.

That was a question that Paul had figured would come up during the first day all the new people had got there. Perhaps Erica had a flaw after all. She must not have been paying attention when the doctors were doing her own medical check-up. During that time they explained how she was receiving immunizations for every disease that had been known at that point and was also told that she would be receiving follow up shots every few months just like the other residents.

"We are perfectly safe. Well unless someone comes in with a bomb or a physical weapon. Security would have swept everyone for anything like that though. If anyone did show signs of some unknown medical bug then we have protocols to take care of it." Paul calmly explains.

"The real reason we have the quarantine rooms here isn't necessarily for medical purposes. Well technically that is what they were built for but the real purpose is to gauge the temperament of the people in a controlled environment. For the most part the majority of the people coming here have already been tested for everything and cleared or they would never have been sent to each island. That is partially why the bug island exists. It is the buffer between us and the outside world." Paul fully explains.

"So I guess I understand what you are saying but why wasn't I told about any of those aspects when they hired me?" Erica asked.

"Honestly I don't know. I was kept out of that part of the planning by the rest of the board. I may have dreamt up most of this but I couldn't be everywhere at the same time so I relied on the board to cover the rest. Unfortunately because of that I gave up control of certain things I would have preferred not to. I will say that I think they did the right thing by bringing you aboard though. It's one of the few things they got right." He tells her.

With her question being adequately answered, Paul goes over his thoughts on how the previous induction group went for him being sure to bring up his error with the blood work. She made sure to tease him again about making such an egregious error right out of the gate but he took her playful ribbing in stride.

Erica seemed to have some issues of her own, none as bad as he had done but as she put it they were valuable learning mistakes and they were to be expected. One of the biggest issues she brought up that she had experienced was how things had gone with the small children belonging to the families she checked in. Having the small children running around in the interview room while she tried to talk to the parents was frustrating.

While there was no immediate or short term answer on how to deal with that when it came up again, it would be something they would need to find a solution for it some time down the road. Paul relayed what he had learned about the unkempt state of the quarantine rooms and while he talked about it Erica seemed to have a mischievous smile on her face for some reason.

It seemed a bit odd to him that she would react it that manner but he was still getting to know her better and figured maybe it was just her normal reaction to something like that. They were each happy picking up pointers from each other on what went good and what went bad. They decided things went smoothly for the most part and to only change a few things that had been brought up already until they have a better idea about how it would all go with more groups.

The day seems to fly by and before he knows it everyone is calling it a night which left him alone with his own thoughts in his office again. The silence of the administrative floor doesn't seem to help much either. With his work finally finished up, he calls it a day himself.

After exiting the elevator to the ground floor it is still a marvel to look out to the vast construction that surrounded him. To keep everyone on a more normal time cycle, the artificial lights and display screens mounted in the ceiling had been built to simulate a day/night cycle. Given that it was currently supposed to be night time, the displays were filled with a computer generated night sky complete with its own A.I. generated constellations.

Thankfully somehow he was able to get his mind to empty enough that he could fall asleep. With the new day breaking, he went about his new daily routine and then got prepared for work. He hadn't seen Erica in the elevator this time since she had already beat him up to the offices. When he walked past her office he saw her going over some last minute things. He got to his office just in time to hear the walky chime out that the next group was passing through the doors of the airplane and on their way to enter the bunker. Waiting in his office, he's nervous again thinking about the types of people who could be joining his community.

Catching him in a daze thinking about all the possibilities and the events of the previous week, a knock brings him back to reality. Erica had agreed to take on the larger group this time, meaning he would only have to deal with just twenty two interviews this time like she had to the last time. What happened with Sarah, Melisa and Ashlei had crowded his mind all the previous day.

He swore he would behave himself this time. As a precaution though, he had grabbed some condoms from the medical center just in case he lost control of himself again. It would be bad all around if something happened again and he got one of the entrants pregnant assuming he hadn't already done just that.

There were enough that were pre-screened in this group that it wouldn't cause any issues with Tiffany and Ashlei occupying two of the quarantine rooms. Father Gabriel and Javier were both still recovering in the medical facility so they wouldn't be an issue either.

His groups this time around mostly consisted of families with older couples and their older children. A couple of which were the first of the investors that had forced their way in to the bunker program. He knew he would have to grit his teeth when he dealt with them, he was still unhappy they had weaseled their ways in to what was meant to be for the benefit of humanity.

The first three families he breezed through. None caused any issues or seemed troublesome. Next up Paul had three couples come through. A thirty something pair of doctors as the first couple and some just out of college scientists made up the next couple. The third couple consisted of a Chef and her husband a mechanical engineer.

On paper Paul didn't think they would be an issue but the moment the five foot five inch blonde and her nearly six foot tall balding husband walked into the room that changed. "Jesus Christ! Can't you even pretend not to have been creeping on that girl? She barely looked legal, she could have been our own child's age if you would've made one and you couldn't stop staring at her chest while we sat there!" The blonde woman blurted out.

"Maybe if I had a wife who knew how to take care of her man, I wouldn't need to look elsewhere!" He snapped back.

"Typical. As always it's always my fault. I should've listened to my mother and married that golfer instead." She quipped back.

Clearing his throat, Paul got the attention of the bickering pair who realized they had taken the fighting too far in such a public setting. The blonde woman's face reddening out of embarrassment. "Did you both get that out of your system? If this is going to be a recurring issue then I can assure you that the plane hasn't left yet and you will both be on it." Paul snapped at the pair.

They both replied together, "No it won't happen again." Looking through the paperwork Paul saw that the blonde Cathy had grown up in the same general area he had, if they had been a few years closer in age they might have crossed paths at some point. The pair seemed to grow nervous as Paul silently looked over both their files.

"So Catherine is it or would you prefer Cathy?" Paul asks.

"Cathy is fine. It's usually what everyone calls me. Well my husband here calls me Cat but whatever you would prefer is fine?" She replies with a meek smile. The husband had a scowl on his face as his wife answered.

Turning his attention to the balding man Paul asks, "And for you Mr. Schroder, do you prefer Gregory or just Greg?"

"I go by Greg only my parents and the government call me Gregory and you definitely aren't either of those." He barks back. Paul says nothing back, just stares at the man with intensity.

When Paul stands with a look that says he has clearly had enough of this douchebag, Cathy pleads with him, "Please sit. I'm sorry about my husband. We really don't want to miss this opportunity. I promise you there won't be any more problems."

Paul's intensity hadn't gone unnoticed by Greg either. They may be have been around the same height but it was clear that if a fight were to break out between them that Paul had the advantage and that scared Greg. Cathy's words seemed to have calmed the situation because Paul sat back down and started typing some things into the computer.

Looking away from the computer monitor, Paul finally says, "So Cathy this says you were an executive chef prior to this, is something similar what you would like to do here?"

There is an awkward silence for a minute before Cathy replies, "Yes. I love cooking. It's been what i've wanted for more than half my life."

Scanning through the options on the computer screen Paul says, "Okay i'm going to give you the choice between two things then. You can choose to work in the primary kitchen of the bunker. It won't be a hugely glamorous role but one that would be important here as it will provide the majority of the meals for the residents. You also will be part of a larger team so the work load won't be that bad. The other option is that you head one of the smaller restaurants that specialize in specific cuisine. As a restaurant lead, you will be expected to oversee all operations of the restaurant and fill in where needed to keep everything running smoothly. That includes if any other workers become unable to make it to their shift, you will have to do their work"

Cathy sat and thought about the options for a minute. Her dream had always been to own and run her own restaurant but what he described wasn't something she was ready for. Timidly she asks, "If I don't choose the restaurant option now, would it be possible in the future?"

"It's possible yes. There are no guarantees that it would happen. But who knows what the future holds." Paul answers.

Cathy looks at him and then to her husband before turning back to Paul, "I'll take the kitchen option then." After a few clicks on the computer, Paul writes a note in the file to consider the second option if available in the future.

Greg then asks, "What about me? What are my options?" Not even looking at the man, Paul continues to write in the files before closing Cathy's folder and adding it to the stack.

Finally looking at the man with a blank look in his eyes, "You will be assigned as a Janitor/Sanitation worker."

Greg scoffs at what was said before yelling, "Look guy I have a degree in mechanical engineering. Why don't you put me as head of some engineering area or something? You know a nice cushy one."

Paul continued to look at Greg with a blank look in his eye and that made his discontent with the man even more clearly evident. Paul's lack of response causes him to ball up his fists as he continues to gets angrier and angrier. Cathy steps in and places her hands over his fists that are starting to go white from clenching so hard. "He'll take the job. I'm sure once he proves how valuable he is then you could move him into a more distinguished position."

Paul has had enough of this and closes the files grabbing the blood kit from the desk top. Standing up he motions to the door, "If you will both follow me. I will show you both to the quarantine rooms that will be your accommodations for the next week."

Making their way to the elevator, nothing else was said. The elevator ride was short since the quarantine floor was directly below the main administrative floor they were just on. It was decided early in the construction and designing phase that it would make the most sense to keep that portion close to the surface as a way to separate from where people would eventually live. Stepping out of the elevator, Paul noticed Erica had been in the process of checking in some of her residents as well.

Leaving Greg in the hallway, Paul walked Cathy into her room and explained where everything was. Opening up the case, he took the small blood sample and placed it back in her folder. "I'm sorry about my husband. He's not really that bad once you get to know him. Thank you for letting us stay." Cathy says while trying to move forward to hug him.

Paul steps back when she approaches though, not in the mood for the drama they already started or something that a hug might bring if he allowed her to do so. He asks her, "Do you have any questions?"

She shakes her head before saying, "No questions. Just thank you again."

Stepping back out into the hallway it seems Greg didn't listen when told to stay put. Instead he had moved down the hall where he was trying to talk to a young woman. It must have been the same as the young woman who had caused the uproar when they first entered his office.

Just as it seemed like Greg was about to reach up and touch the young girl, Erica called for the girl to come down the hall to her and enter a room. Looking like he just got caught doing something wrong, Greg started to look around when he spotted Paul standing there. It took everything in Paul to not drop everything in his hands and go pummel the guy. "This is your room." Paul said pointing to the room he had just opened.

Greg had a shit eating grin on his face when he walked into the room. No sooner had the door been shut that Paul had the man by the neck smashing him into the wall squeezing his throat. The veins on Paul's neck bulged as he closed his grip on the man's neck. "If you so much as look at that young woman or any like her ever again, your wife will become a widow." Paul roared at him.

Greg tried to get some words out but Paul just squeezed harder. Greg's face was starting to lose color now. "Do you understand what i'm saying?" Paul asked. The strangled man could only nod his head to reply.

Removing his grip, Greg fell to the floor gasping for air. He didn't have time to recover long before Paul jabbed him hard in the arm to draw the blood sample. With the vial stowed away in the folder, Greg sat on the floor still shocked about what just happened. With Greg still in a sitting position Paul took the opportunity to drive home the point by giving him a swift hard kick to the nuts.

Back in his office Paul's anger didn't go down much while he waited for the next family to come in. It didn't dawn on him that he had too many folders still sitting on his desk. He had already processed eighteen new residents in and eight more folders sat on the stack of his desk which was four more than he was supposed to have. He was only supposed to have twenty two this time. Had Erica messed up somehow he thought.

He said hell with it we will sort it out later. Walking to the door he called on the names of the next family that was to be checked in. To his surprise only a sole person started walking towards him that was a petite brown haired young woman who was around five and a half feet tall. She had an anxious look on her face.

Welcoming the young woman in, Paul motioned for her to take a seat. "What is your name ma'am?" Paul asks.

She seems a bit shocked to be called ma'am but answers, "Umm it's Jade. Umm Jade Cook."

Looking at the files she was the wife of one of the engineers that was supposed to live in the Bunker. Paul seems confused. Jade noticed and asked, "Is something wrong?"

Paul didn't say anything when she asked instead continued to read through the files. Paul apologized and told her, "No just something got screwed up here. Seems we are missing some people. Where is your husband and i'd assume his relatives?"