They had broken a window to gain access to the locked vehicle — nothing of immediate interest was left inside the van, save for spent rifle cartridges. When Lilburn contacted Albany, they had no further information, other than to confirm they lost visual contact once the Ford went under cover. He asked to talk to Dr. Crawston. “Matt, are you all right? I heard your helicopter crashed?” “Not so much crashed, just an unforeseen landing. Unfortunately we’ve lost sight of the cell at a racetrack, they’ve taken off on foot. Look, there are horses all around the place, is there any chance they would release the virus here?” “Horses aren’t affected by foot-and-mouth disease; they only have a single hoof on each foot. The virus affects cloven-hoofed animals — those with split hooves — two on each foot.” “OK. Do you think the terrorists know that or could they be trying to infect the horses?”
