“Just hang on a minute,” Donovan urged. “There might be other options.”
“Like what?” Michael replied.
“Michael,” Donovan’s voice intruded. “Are you still linked up with DIA headquarters on the satellite phone?”
“No. We lost them as we descended. There’s too much storm interference.”
“Okay. Ours isn’t working either. I want you to stay put for now. I need to talk to some people. All I want is for you to stay right here. Promise me you won’t try to fly out of the storm by yourself.”
“I’ll wait for a little while,” Michael replied. “What are you going to do?”
“One of several things. I don’t have time to explain it all right now. We need to get back on top and make some calls. But for now I need you hang in there, buddy.”
“We will.”
“And Lauren…” Donovan’s voice broke as he spoke.
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry about this morning. I was wrong. Perhaps I’ve been wrong about a great many things. When we get home, I’d like it if we could sit down and talk. There are things to be said. Would that be all right with you?”
“I’d like that.” A tear rolled down her cheek.
“It’s a date then. We’re out of here.” Donovan paused. “And Michael…if it comes to your trying to fly your way out of the hurricane, you won’t have to do it alone. I’ll come back and lead the way.”
Lauren looked out the side window, and for the first time saw the other Gulfstream. It was a beautiful sight. The sleek jet was picking up speed as it passed them only fifty feet away. In the pilot’s seat, she could just make out the silhouette of Donovan as he waved. She waved back and wondered if he could see her. She and Michael sat silently and watched as Donovan quickly climbed away from them. Lauren thought of Abigail. She knew in her heart that before it was too late, she’d have to tell Donovan about his daughter. He could very well end up being her only living parent.
“Dr. McKenna. Did you see the other plane?” Brent shouted from the passageway behind her. “Are they here to help us?”
“Do they know?” Michael asked at the sound of Brent’s voice.
“No, not yet.” Lauren shook her head. “I guess it’s time, though.”
Michael nodded, “I’ll wait up here for you.”
“They’re leaving!” Brent stuck his head into the cockpit. “What’s going on?”
“I’m coming back there.” Lauren looked up into his young face as she slid out of the seat. “There are some things you need to know.”
Donovan gripped the controls of the Gulfstream as they spiraled up through the eye of the hurricane. The cockpit had been deathly silent since Lauren’s emotional disclosure. Donovan’s body felt leaden and his limbs seemed unattached to his body. Inside, he was reeling between anger and terror. He’d heard of plans back in the 60s to try to dissipate a hurricane with an atomic bomb, but the idea had been shelved. What did Lauren mean it was her idea? How could this be happening? He set his jaw and kept the airplane climbing toward the circle of blue sky above them.
“If you come back and help them fly out of the hurricane,” Nicolas looked at Donovan, “Count me in.”
“I appreciate that.” Donovan saw the determination on his copilot’s face. “I’m hoping it won’t come to that, but if it does, we’ll go together.”
“What’s our next plan of attack?” Frank asked.
“Get them to delay or cancel the bomb drop,” Donovan said, matter of factly. “We can’t let them do it…It’s crazy, as well as irresponsible. Hurricanes are a part of nature. They’re meant to exist.”
“I’m with you, skipper,” Frank agreed. “I wonder what would happen if we leaked this to the press. What would the public outcry be?”
“I’m loving this!” Nicolas said, enthusiastically. “We’ve even got a reporter in the back.”
“We can’t,” Donovan countered. “It goes against Eco-Watch’s confidentiality policy. I won’t go there…yet.”
The upper reaches of Helena were just above them. The cockpit began to grow lighter as they thundered higher into the morning sky. Donovan put the Gulfstream into a sharp turn to the west. They just cleared the edge of the clouds as they soared clear of the hurricane.
“Nicolas. You have the plane. Get us a clearance to orbit here for now. I’m going to the back. Frank. Get on the phone to everyone you know at the Gulfstream factory. Brainstorm with their engineers, dissect every possible scenario—I don’t care how far-fetched it might be.”
Donovan pulled himself out of the seat. Nicolas was instantly on the radio to New York Center, Frank was furiously dialing the phone. Confident that his crew would accomplish what he wanted, Donovan hurried to the cabin.
“Why are we leaving? What’s going on?” Erin began the second Donovan was within earshot.
“Just sit there and listen. You’ll hear everything you need to know.” Donovan sat in the seat and began to dial. It felt like an eternity as the signal went through.
“Peggy. It’s Donovan. Is William there yet?”
“Yes. Stand by. He’s going to your office. Are Michael and Randy okay?”
“Randy’s hurt, but Michael’s fine.” Donovan debated about whether or not to have Peggy call their wives. It would be easy for Eco-Watch to send a car to bring them to the facility. He thought of the sealed file that contained all the procedures in case of an accident. It covered the spectrum, from dealing with the press, to having clergy and support counselors standing by for the families. The thought made Donovan shudder. It was still too early to press that button.
“Mr. VanGelder is ready now,” Peggy said. “Let me know if I can do anything at all.”
“Thanks, Peggy. I will.” Donovan waited as the call was transferred. If William had gone to his office then there must be new developments at his end.
William picked up the phone. “Donovan, I’ve hit a dead end with both the Navy and the Coast Guard. All I’m getting is the run around. It’s the damnedest thing.”
“I know why.” Donovan eyed Erin, who was hanging on to his every word. “I just found out from Lauren. Their plan is to detonate a nuclear weapon in Helena’s eye.”
“They’re going to do what?”
“You heard me.”
Erin’s hand shot to her mouth, her eyes filling with dismay.
“In less than four hours a B-1 bomber is going to drop the thing to try to dissipate the hurricane. It’s why you’re not finding any rescue ships. Everything is probably being ordered to stay in port.”
“Those sons of bitches!” William said, angrily. “I can’t believe the President didn’t tell me anything about this.”
“We need them either to delay, or to cancel this thing. Michael’s airplane is damaged. I don’t think he’ll survive if we try to fly him through the hurricane. Can you talk to the President again? See what our options are?”
“You’re damn right I will!” William thundered. “I’ll call you back as soon as I can.”
“Let me call you,” Donovan explained. “I’m in the back of the plane with Erin. I don’t want Nicolas or Frank to hear our conversation. If we have to…I’m willing to try to buy our way out of this one.”
“What are you getting at?”
Donovan’s eyes met Erin’s. “In a few days, the world is going to know I’m Robert Huntington. The game’s up. If I have to spend my money openly to save these people, then so be it. Get the President to postpone the bomb. We can buy a ship and hire a crew to go save them. Whatever it takes…I don’t care at this point.”
“Let me talk to the White House. Call me back in ten minutes.”
“Will do.” Donovan ended the call. He was still staring at Erin. “You getting all this—for your exclusive?”
Erin sat motionless.
Donovan swiveled in his seat and pulled a piece of paper from one of his zippered pockets. It was the sheet Steven had given him. He found the phone link for DIA operations
and pounded out the numbers.
“This is Donovan Nash. I want to talk with Reynolds!” Donovan rubbed his eyes, thinking as he waited.
“Reynolds here.”
“I want you to listen carefully.” Donovan spoke in a hushed voice, but it was filled with anger. “I know about the bomb. If you drop that thing you’ll kill five people—Dr. McKenna included.”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Nash. You’re barking up the wrong tree. I’ve already tried to stop it. The answer is no. When the eye reaches the 250 mile point…they’re going to detonate it.”
Donovan’s insides twisted at Reynolds’ words. “Is that all you have to say for yourself?”
“If I could stop it, I would.” Reynolds shifted his tack. “There’s something else I need to tell you.”
“What NOW?” Donovan raised his voice out of frustration.
“We know now that Carl Simmons is dirty. He’s the man we’ve been trying to find. The fact that he was caught trying to reprogram Jonah is proof of his guilt. But we need to know more.”
“After all the time you spent chasing after me?”
“Mr. Nash. I’m not through explaining this to you. The more information we could get from him before…well before they—”
“You know what?” Donovan interrupted, trying to keep his temper in check. “I’m through listening to you. My focus is on saving lives, not on interrogating your spy. If this is so urgent, use it to call off the bomb.”
“I can’t reiterate how important his information might be to the safety—”
Donovan pressed the button to disconnect the call. He’d heard enough from Reynolds. In one swift motion he dialed the direct line to his office. With any luck, William had already spoken to the President.
“Yes?” William answered on the first ring.
“What have you got?” Donovan tried to stay hopeful as he waited for the reply.
“Write down this number,” William said quickly. “It’s the direct line to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He’s in the war room at the White House waiting for your call. It’s the best the President could do. You’ll have the full cooperation of the entire military to find a solution. But the bomb is going to be dropped on schedule. Nothing will change that.”
Donovan slumped as the words soaked in. “We’re heading back to Dulles. If we can’t figure out an alternative, I’m going to drop Erin and Frank off. Then Nicolas and I will fly back out and try to lead Michael through the storm. It’s our last resort. Tell Peggy to have everyone ready for a quick turn.”
“I’ll tell them.”
“See you in less than an hour.” Donovan disconnected the call and turned to Erin. “Go up front and tell Nicolas to get us to Dulles as fast as he can.”
Erin jumped up from her seat and ran forward. Donovan knew he could have used the intercom, but he needed a few moments alone to collect himself. He was running out of time and ideas. Lauren, Michael, and the others were poised to pay the ultimate price for his inability to find a solution. He tried to get a grip on his emotions and steel himself for the next call. He gathered all of his inner strength to fight off the images of his parents and Meredith—people in his life he hadn’t been able to save. He felt the Gulfstream make a hard turn and the whine of the accelerating engines filled his ears. It was Nicolas heading them home. Donovan dialed the number William had given him.
“Colonel Adams,” came the reply as the phone was picked up.
“This is Donovan Nash.”
“One moment, sir.”
“Captain Nash. This is General Edward Porter. We’ve been briefed. This is a secure line so we can speak freely.”
“Thank you, General.” Donovan noticed that he was being addressed by his civilian rank as an aircraft commander.
“Now. What can we do for you?” Porter said sternly.
“How far from the blast does my airplane need to be to survive the explosion?”
“Hard to say, Captain. We’ve never detonated a device of this size. But to be on the safe side, I’d recommend at least seventy-five miles. I understand the aircraft has damage to the flight controls. Do you think they can make it out of the eye in their present condition?”
“I don’t know. But without any other options, it’s our only chance.”
“I’m looking at a report we received from NOAA. Yesterday, one of their P-3s suffered structural damage in the hurricane.”
“I already know about that,” Donovan replied. “What if you dispatched one of your jets…a fighter. They’re stressed for that kind of punishment. Could we use one or two F-15’s to try to find a soft spot in the storm? At least big enough for them to escape the blast area?”
“That’s a thought, Captain. General Erickson of the Air Force is with me. He just dialed Andrews Air Force base. We’ll have an answer momentarily.”
Donovan was buoyed by the exchange. It was a long shot, but that’s all they seemed to have left. “General, fuel on the Gulfstream might be an issue here. If we get them away from the blast area, they might still have to ditch. How close are your ships?”
“That’s a problem, I’m afraid. All of our submerged and surface assets have been ordered away from the area. Our best bet would be to launch a helicopter to attempt a rescue. That is, of course, if we could get them a survivable distance from the blast.”
Donovan’s body jerked as if he’d been shocked. In an instant he began to formulate the first fragments of a plan.
“General! Did you say submerged assets…as in submarine?” He tried to grasp each piece of the puzzle and place it in the proper sequence. His adrenaline began to pump furiously as each essential element fell into place.
“Yes. But the nearest one is hundreds of miles away.”
“Listen carefully, General.” Donovan saw Erin emerge from the cockpit. He covered the phone with his hand. “Erin! Change of plans. Have Nicolas head us toward Norfolk, Virginia! And tell Michael to stay put!”
“Captain?” General Porter queried.
“Sorry about that, General.” Donovan collected his thoughts, trying to get everything in order. “Okay, First. Forget about the F-15s. Here’s what I want. And, needless to say—I’m going to need all of this in a hurry.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
I can’t believe they’d even consider such a thing!” Brent jumped to his feet. “I know, I had the same reaction when Calvin first told me.” Lauren wished he would calm down. “Brent. It’s not over yet. They’re working on a way to get us to safety.”
Carl shook his head in disbelief. “In case you haven’t noticed, this airplane is full of holes. If we could fly out of here, why haven’t we? We’re trapped! All of us are going to be killed like so many expendable lab rats!”
“That’s enough!” Lauren shouted, her own panic beginning to rise. She was thankful that Brent had used more than one tie wrap to secure Carl to the console. “The best people in the world are working on our problem.”
“How much time do we have?” Brent asked calmly.
Lauren looked at her watch. “Three hours and forty minutes or so. Depends on Helena. The minimum distance they’ll let her get from land is 250 miles.”
“Oh Christ!” Carl shook his head as he looked vacantly up at the ceiling. “The hurricane was speeding up last time we looked. And everything back here is dead! We won’t even know it’s time until we’re vaporized!”
“That’s not true,” Lauren countered.
“Carl, why don’t you shut up,” Brent warned.
Carl sat motionless, his chest heaving. His eyes darted around the cabin, then he leveled a murderous gaze at Brent. “You don’t get it, do you? Everyone’s going to die!”
“But we’re not dead yet,” Lauren said. “Now please calm down.”
“I don’t mean just us,” Carl’s voice dropped noticeably. “I mean everyone…my entire family. They’re going to kill my wife and children like they killed Kenneth.”
“What?” Lauren spun and faced Carl.<
br />
“It’s why I shut down Jonah. I had to conserve all the power so it would stay aloft until it was over land. They want the hardware.”
“Who are they?” Brent asked.
“I don’t know. It was Kenneth who was first contacted. According to him, it was a simple case of corporate espionage. He said an aerospace company wanted to get a jump on their competitors. They were willing to pay handsomely for certain information. No one was suppose to die. I swear I’m not a traitor.”
“What about Donovan Nash. How is he involved?” Brent urged Carl to keep talking.
“He’s not. We were going to let him be the focus of any internal investigation. He was already a suspect so it worked perfectly. Besides, Kenneth hated him for what he did to Lauren.”
“What!” Lauren was stung by his words.
“Kenneth leaked some documents to a reporter to try to get back at Nash for everything he’d done to you.”
“What did Kenneth think Donovan had done?” Lauren asked.
“He said he thought Donovan was Abigail’s father. That he’d left you to fend for yourself. Kenneth was furious and wanted to get back at him.”
On impulse, Lauren leaned in and whispered. “I hope you realize what you’ve done. You’ve killed three people already, and who knows how many more people are going to suffer.”
Carl turned away and lowered his chin to his chest. “Please protect my family.” Tears rolled from his red eyes.
“That might be problematic,” Brent replied. “But the only way we’d even try would be in return for your complete cooperation—if we survive.”
Carl nodded, weakly.
Brent turned to Lauren. “Is there any way we can talk with DIA headquarters?
Lauren looked around them. “With all of the damage to the airplane, I’m not sure it would be wise to power up any of the systems.”
Brent lowered his head and exhaled in agreement. “I just thought we could pull some data from the computers, maybe even re-task Jonah. The least we could do is let Reynolds know about the threat to Carl’s family. It might help us catch the people we’re looking for.”
“As far as I’m concerned, Carl isn’t very far up my list of priorities,” Lauren was furious. “He’s responsible for nearly killing me in Bermuda! For that matter, he may well kill us all.”
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