“We do that. We have adequate personnel, security cameras, first aid stations, audible alarms, clearly marked exits.”
“There’s plenty more we can do and should do.”
“Doing it your way would make this place look like a prison. Metal detectors, barbed wire on the fences, motion sensors. I’m surprised you didn’t ask for guard towers with machine guns.”
“That, actually, would be going overboard,” said Rastun. “Those other recommendations are practical for a place like this.”
“Uh-huh.” Dad leaned forward. “What about your recommendation for armed guards?”
“Not with pistols. I’m talking about less lethals like tasers and pepper spray.”
“Do you have any idea how much our liability insurance will go up if we give those things to our guards? All it takes is one person to complain about excessive force and we’re looking at a multi-million dollar lawsuit.”
“What if something major goes down here? I don’t mean a fire or an escaped animal. I’m talking worst-case scenario.”
“I assume you mean a terrorist attack.”
“They do prefer soft targets, and this place is as soft as the cotton candy at our food court.”
Dad’s shoulders sagged. “Jack, I can only imagine what kind of hell you went through over in Iraq and Afghanistan. But this is a zoo, not Baghdad.”
“That doesn’t make us immune to something like a lone nut with a gun.”
“We have procedures in place in the event that happens.”
Rastun scoffed. “Yeah, I got drilled on those procedures. If we can’t get our guests out of the zoo, we hole up somewhere and wait for the cops. What if a hostile ambushes people we’re trying to evacuate? What if he breaks into a supposedly secure area? We need the guards to carry something more than just keys to give them a fighting chance. A guard without a weapon isn’t a guard. He’s a victim waiting to happen.”
“Jack, I know what you went through when you were in the Army probably colored your view of the world.”
“Oh for God’s sake.”
“Jack, please. I’m just trying to tell you that you’re not in a war zone any more. Sending guards who aren’t trained to deal with those kinds of situations will likely result in more people getting hurt or killed.”
“Or wind up saving more lives. You don’t stop a threat by sitting around waiting for help. You stop it with direct action.”
“That may be what you did in the Army, but what works best in the Army isn’t necessarily what works best at a zoo.”
Dad let out a heavy sigh. “Look, I gave you this job so you could do something productive while you figure out what you want to do with your life. Well, you’ve been out of the Army for a year. I doubt you want to be a zoo security guard for the rest of your life.”
You got that right. Rastun almost said it out loud, but figured it would not be a wise thing to say during an evaluation, especially with his father the one doing the evaluating.
“It’s time to consider going back to college. You qualify for the GI Bill. You can get a degree in business or zoology or biology. You already know more about animals and zoo operations than a lot of the staff here. With your Army experience, you’d be perfect as a zoo administrator.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“You say that every time I bring this up. I think the time’s come to do it instead of thinking about it.”
“I said I’d think about it. Is that all?”
Dad leaned back in his chair, his disappointment clear. “Yes. You passed your evaluation. You can expect a raise in your next paycheck.”
“Thank you.” Rastun stood and headed for the door.
“Jack. One more thing before you go.”
He stopped with his hand inches from the doorknob. “Yes?”
“Smile more when you’re out there. We’re trying to maintain a welcoming atmosphere for our guests.”
“It’s kind of hard to take a security guard serious when he’s grinning like an idiot.”
He left the office before Robert Rastun, Director of the Philadelphia Zoo, had a chance to respond.
The rest of the afternoon passed uneventfully, save for helping an elderly woman who had become dehydrated. That happened at least a couple of times a week during the summer. It baffled him how some people could forget to do something as simple as keep a bottle of water handy. In Iraq, he and his fellow Rangers drank constantly.
Once his shift ended, Rastun headed to the parking lot and got in his car. He flowed along with the rush hour traffic down City Avenue and onto the West Chester Pike before entering the suburbs of Havertown. He pulled up to the curb in front of a two-story white house with a blue roof and trim. His parents’ home.
Twenty-nine years old, a former Army Ranger, a combat veteran, and he was living with his parents.
How pathetic am I?
Rastun didn’t see his parents’ cars. They’d probably be home in a few minutes. He went inside and headed into his bedroom to strip off his security guard uniform in favor of shorts and a t-shirt for Marshall University, his alma mater. He then rattled off 100 push-ups. More than a few friends let themselves go once they left the Army. Rastun was determined not to let that happen.
When he finished, he sprang to his feet and checked himself in the mirror attached to the door. A slight smile formed on his round, youthful face. His five-ten, 170-pound frame was still as lean and firm as it had been during his Ranger days. He kept his brown hair cut very short, per Army regs.
Rastun looked every bit the soldier, even if he no longer was one.
He went downstairs and paused by a nest table with a cluster of framed photos. His eyes immediately fell on a black and white picture of a man in Army fatigues clutching a Thompson submachine gun. Roger Rastun, his uncle. His inspiration for joining the Rangers.
Memories flooded back to him. Uncle Roger telling him stories of climbing the cliffs at Point Du Hoc during D-Day and charging up Hill 400 in Bergstein. Taking him to the local VFW to meet other veterans.
Crying when Mom told him Uncle Roger had died.
Rastun looked at other photos of himself. One showed the day he received his black belt in Tae Kwon Do. Another was of him in the red and gold uniform of his high school cross country team. His gaze finally settled on the image of him receiving his Ranger tab upon graduation from Ranger School. Two months of running, combat drills, survival courses and hiking through swamps and mountains. The sadistic bastards who ran the school pushed him beyond the point of exhaustion. Still, he overcame it and became a member of one of the world’s elite fighting forces.
And therein lay the problem.
Rastun had run cross country to increase his stamina. He visited Uncle Roger’s friends at the VFW to find out what military life was really like. He took Tae Kwon Do to learn self-defense and discipline. Everything he had done since the age of 15 had been geared toward helping him become a Ranger. He hadn’t thought of a fallback plan in case he didn’t make it. That hadn’t been an option.
Now he had to think about it.
The trouble was, he couldn’t find a single job anywhere near as challenging as being a Ranger. After six months of no prospects, he decided to take Dad up on his offer to be a zoo security guard just to give him something to do.
Dad had been right about one thing. He didn’t plan on being a zoo security guard forever. But what else was there? He’d mulled over Dad’s suggestion about going back to college. However, the thought of working behind a desk didn’t appeal to him.
Being in the Rangers appealed to him, but one moment of anger fucked that up.
The front door opened. He turned to find Mom coming in.
“Hi, Jack.”
“Mom.”
She gave him a quick peck on the cheek. “So, how did your evaluation go?”
“I still have a job, so I guess it went well.”
Mom frowned, probably wishing for a more enthusiastic response.
&nbs
p; Probably wishing he’d figure out what to do with his life.
“Good.” She forced a smile. “I’m going to go change and get dinner started.”
Rastun just nodded as Mom walked past him and went upstairs. A minute later he went up too, returning to his bedroom. He opened the closet where he kept his DVD holders. Maybe what he needed was a good movie to forget about his problems, at least for a couple of hours.
The Devil’s Brigade. Back to Bataan. Tears of the Sun. Patton. Band of Brothers. He passed on all of them. Right now all they’d do is remind him of everything he’d lost. He’d be better off with a sports movie, or a comedy, or both.
Rastun searched for his copy of Slapshot when his cell phone rang. He checked the screen.
S. LIPELI.
His eyes widened in surprise as he answered it. “Colonel?”
“Captain Rastun,” replied Lt. Colonel Salvatore Lipeli, his former commanding officer with the 1st Ranger Battalion. “It’s been a while. How are you?”
“Fine, sir. And you?”
“Doing well. Actually, I’m heading into Philadelphia as we speak.”
“You’re in Philly? What for?”
“To see you, of course.”
“That’s a hell of a long trip just to come up and say, ‘Hi.’” Lipeli had stuck around Savannah, Georgia, where 1st Battalion was based, after retiring from the Army last year.
“I’m not just coming here for a reunion. I’ve got something I want to talk to you about. Something you might be interested in.”
“What is it?”
Lipeli paused. “I’d rather talk to you about it in person. Trust me, this’ll be worth your while. Is there anywhere near your place where we can meet?”
“Loaded Bases. It’s a sports bar and grill about three miles from my house.”
A few seconds of silence passed. “Okay. I programmed the name into the GPS. I should be there in about a half-hour.”
After Rastun said good-bye, he stared at the cell phone, his curiosity piqued. “Something worth his while.” Did Colonel Lipeli mean a job? Something to give him a new sense of purpose?
You can but hope.
He changed into slacks and a casual polo shirt before heading downstairs. He apologized to Mom and Dad, who’d gotten home a few minutes ago, for missing dinner. Neither seemed to mind when he told them about the phone call from Colonel Lipeli. In fact, both looked very happy and wished him luck.
When Rastun got to Loaded Bases, he waited near the front doors for Colonel Lipeli. At one point, two women around his age walked toward the entrance. He held the door open for them.
“Thank you,” they both said, the redhead smiling much wider at him than her dark-haired friend.
Rastun smiled back, admiring the woman’s slender figure and pretty face. She wore her hair straight and shoulder-length.
Just like his ex-fiancée Marie had.
He felt a sting in his chest as he let the door close. Marie. Being forced to leave the Rangers had been bad enough, but for her to do what she did to him . . .
Rastun grunted and shook his head. He hadn’t been with another woman since Marie.
Twenty minutes later, a burly, tan-skinned man with dark hair strode up to him, carrying a mini laptop.
“Captain.” Colonel Lipeli stuck out his free hand. “Good to see you again.”
Rastun resisted the urge to salute. “The Lip” was now just like him. A civilian.
“Likewise, sir.” He shook Lipeli’s hand. “It’s been a while.”
“That it has.”
The pair went inside, where a hostess in shorts, sneakers and a white and red baseball jersey led them to a booth. Most of the tables were filled, with dozens of different conversations going on. Everywhere he turned he saw TVs tuned to one baseball game or another.
After giving their orders to the waitress, Lipeli looked across the table at Rastun. “So, how’s life at the zoo?”
“I’d say it’s okay, but then you’d know I was lying.”
Lipeli nodded. “I can’t imagine being a rent-a-cop suits someone like you.”
“No it does not.” Rastun turned away for a second, letting out a slow breath. “Making the transition to civilian life hasn’t been easy. I’ve been out a year and I still don’t know what to do. I can’t see myself wearing a suit and tie, sitting at a desk and doing the same thing day after day.”
“A lot of ex-military go into law enforcement. Did you ever think about that?”
“I have. But remember how we used to complain about how the panty wastes in Washington kept handcuffing us in Iraq and Afghanistan? It’s probably a hundred times worse if you’re a cop.”
The waitress returned with their drinks, a Diet Coke for Lipeli and water for Rastun. When she left, he continued. “To be honest, sir, after all the stuff we did, I can’t find anything in the civilian world that’s as remotely challenging as being a Ranger.” He emitted a sardonic laugh. “Maybe I should have given more thought to life after the Army. Here’s to hindsight.”
Lipeli said nothing, just gave him a hard stare.
Rastun leaned back in his seat. “I guess this is where you tell me to quit feeling sorry for myself, get my head out of my ass and get on with my life.”
“Quit feeling sorry for yourself and get your head out of your ass.”
“Noted.”
“Good.” Lipeli opened the mini laptop and tapped a few keys. “Now, as for the getting on with your life part, I can help with that.”
He turned the laptop toward Rastun. The screen showed a logo featuring the silhouettes of an ape-like creature and a large serpent.
“The Foundation for Undocumented Biological Investigation? You work for them?”
“Started two weeks ago. I would have let everyone know, but I’ve been busy as hell moving from Georgia to Virginia and getting settled in.”
Rastun stared at his former CO, impressed. The FUBI had been formed less than a year ago, following the discovery of a living Sasquatch in California’s Klamath National Forest. “So what do you do for them?”
“I’m Director of Field Security Operations.”
“What, you keep the field researchers from getting eaten by Bigfoot and the Lake Champlain Monster?”
Lipeli grinned. “No. For the most part the cryptids haven’t been a problem. Hell, the Sasquatch are actually pretty shy. Our researchers usually can’t get more than thirty feet from them before they turn tail. Our main problem is poachers.”
Rastun felt anger lines form on his face. For someone who’d been around rare animals all his life, poachers ranked very high on his scum list.
“Ever since that hunter stumbled on that injured Sasquatch,” Lipeli said, “our field expeditions have found five Sasquatch colonies in California and Oregon. We also have leads on other colonies in Missouri, Ohio and Florida. Now that we know more about their habitat and behavior, it’s easier to find them. Because of that, poachers have shadowed some of our teams. A few have been threatened at gunpoint. We also had one woman raped and another researcher shot, not fatally, thank God. But these expeditions are unarmed and in a lot of cases, the nearest cop is fifty to a hundred miles away. I need someone to safeguard them, someone who’s experienced operating in all kinds of terrain and environments. Someone who can keep their head when everything goes to hell. Someone who can neutralize a threat when it pops up.”
“Someone like me.”
Lipeli nodded. “Captain, you were one of the best Rangers I had in my battalion. That, and your knowledge of animals, makes you perfect for this job.”
“I take it I’ll have something better to protect people than a set of keys and a whistle.”
“Standard issue for field security specialists are a Glock pistol and a Steyr AUG rifle.”
The choice for rifle surprised Rastun. The Austrian-made Steyr AUG was well over 30 years old. Still it was compact, lightweight and accurate. An all-around good rifle, despite its age.
“They ser
iously only gave you keys and a whistle at the zoo?” asked Lipeli.
Rastun snorted in disgust. “Yeah, we were really well-equipped if any serious shit ever went down. But I made up for it.”
“How?”
“You know that Black Ops tactical knife I had. The one my former platoon sergeant in the Eighty-Second gave me before I went to Ranger School?”
“Yeah.”
“I kept it hidden in an ankle holder. I wanted to have something I could use if anything serious ever happened.”
Lipeli smiled wide. “You always were prepared for anything. That’s why you’ll make a perfect field security specialist. So, are you interested?”
“What about Western Sahara? Is that going to cause any problems?”
“As far as anyone is concerned, you were honorably discharged from the Army. I don’t think we need to bring up some of the unpleasant details surrounding it.”
Rastun mulled it over. He had a chance to work far beyond the four walls of an office, to help with the discovery of creatures previously thought to be myths and to protect people. It may not be the Rangers, but it was probably the closest he’d ever get to it.
“Count me in, Colonel.”
“Terrific.” The two shook hands. “So when can you get started?”
“Yesterday.”
“I thought you’d say that.”
Their food arrived, a chicken teriyaki sandwich for Rastun and a cheeseburger for Lipeli.
“So,” Rastun picked up his sandwich. “Where do I need to be to crack some poacher skulls?”
“Actually, this time it’s the cryptid giving us problems, not the poachers, and you won’t have far to travel.”
Lipeli leaned forward. “Better stock up on sunscreen, Captain. You’re going to the Jersey Shore.”
Sea Raptor is available from Amazon here.
Table of Contents
Book 1: The ER
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
The Black: Outbreak Page 33
