Mirrored Man: The Rob Tyler Chronicles Book 1

by GJ Fortier

  “Agents Hughes and Warren, Professor Yeoum, Doctor Tiong, and seven airmen, not to mention the two who were running the store. For pity's sake, even the chimps are gone.” Saying the words out loud was more than the special agent could take. Without warning, he lost control of is tightly guarded emotions and slammed his fists on the desk, raking them across the top. Keyboards, papers, and everything else that happened to be there flew against the wall.

  Talbot wasn’t prepared for the sudden outburst, and instinctively reached for his sidearm, which wasn't there, as he backed away from the distraught man.

  Eddie continued his tirade by kicking a chair over and then he finished by angrily slamming his fists on the desk several more times as he growled, nearly toppling the rack of monitors.

  Keeping his eyes tightly closed, he gritted his teeth. Eddie fought to think his way through his rage, and the pain that he was feeling over the loss of his team.

  Talbot remained silent for several minutes before he asked, “Any ideas?”

  When Eddie turned around, Talbot saw that the bandage on his forehead was soaked with blood. “You're bleeding again. Maybe we should get you to the hospital.”

  Eddie shot him a tense look. “I have an idea.”

  “What's that?”

  Eddie remembered that there was another computer in the complex where the security system’s imagery might still be stored, and it was inside one of the rooms that the perpetrators hadn’t gotten to. “Get Jimmy Bennett down here.”

  They learned that Jimmy was still at the hospital and wouldn’t be released until later in the afternoon at the earliest, so they joined the other investigators gathering evidence inside the complex. They confirmed that the parlor was the center of whatever activity had gone on in the place the night before. There was evidence of a struggle, and some kind of chemical residue coated nearly everything within. More of the residue was found inside the chimp paddocks.

  “What do you make of it?” Eddie asked.

  Talbot frowned as he scrutinized the plastic baggie containing a leaf collected from inside the habitat. “No idea, but it won’t take long to find out.” He handed the bag to one of his men. “Get this to the CDC and ask them to expedite an analysis.”

  “Yes, sir,” the airman replied as he spun in his heel and trotted out of the room.

  Several hours later, the same airman caught up with them as they were comparing notes with the other investigators. “Colonel, the sheriff’s deputies have reported some things that happened last night that are just too coincidental.”

  “Report.”

  “About a mile and a half west of the accident site, they found the body of a local. The family lives in one of the houses nearby. By all accounts he’d been working a late shift on base last night. His vehicle is no where to be found.”

  Eddie gave Talbot a knowing look. “Do they have a BOLO out on it?”

  “Yes, sir. Shouldn’t be too hard to spot. It’s a bright yellow Hummer.”

  “You said things.” Talbot prodded. “What else?”

  “A few miles further, there was another accident. An SUV flipped and landed in some poor guy’s front yard. The homeowner said that her husband went out to see if he could help and got himself shot for his trouble.”

  “Shot? Who shot him?”

  “We don’t know yet. He was transported to Macon, and is in surgery as we speak. The wife was calling for help when she heard the shot. When she got outside all she saw were tail lights disappearing up the road.”

  “The tail lights of a yellow Hummer, I’d wager,” Eddie said grimly.

  “Did they find anything in the truck?” Talbot asked.

  “There was a body inside. White male, thirties, black hair, but no ID. No paperwork in the truck either. Even the VIN numbers were missing. Oh, and no weapon. The locals have a deputy there. When the homeowner wakes up—”

  “We can’t let the local LEOs get too deep into this,” Eddie said.

  “I’ll get a handle on it,” Talbot assured him. “Anything else, Airman?”

  “Yes, sir. Mr. Bennett is on his way.”

  “Finally!” Eddie said. “Maybe we can get some answers.”

  “Well sir, Mr. Bennett was rather adamant that he'd be of no use here.”

  If Eddie's expression could have hardened more, it would have. “Really.”

  “Yes, sir.” The airman shuffled his feet under the special agent's stare. “He was quite adamant, sir.”

  When Jimmy arrived in the generator room, even the colonel couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. His left arm was encased inside a pale blue cast, his thumb and fingers exposed. His right arm was in a sling with a sprained wrist. His eyes were black and blue, and his nose was broken, forcing him to breath through his mouth. He was covered with bruises and minor lacerations. Apparently, he had taken the brunt of the abuse when the truck jack-knifed. But the person escorting him was someone Eddie was actually happy to see.

  “It's good to see you M,” Eddie managed a weak smile.

  “Wish I could say the same, boss.” He was dressed in his trademark black suit, white shirt and black tie, accentuated by his dark brown eyes, black closely cropped hair and olive skin. “Any word?”

  “Not yet.” Eddie studied the young man’s dour expression. “Colonel Jim Talbot, meet Malik Ghazini, my forensic scientist.”

  Talbot nodded.

  “We just call him M,” Eddie explained, “because he dresses like one of the Men in Black characters.” He turned his attention to the Canadian. “You look like crap, Bennett.”

  “You should see the other guy," Jimmy replied stoically. "Don's injuries weren't as bad as they thought. They were able to perform laparoscopic surgery to fix his spleen. He should be up and about in a day or two. What about our other patient?” Jimmy asked, glancing at Talbot.

  Eddie shrugged. “He’s still unconscious at the local hospital. Mathers is keeping an eye on him. What's this I hear about you not wanting to help us out?”

  Jimmy gestured toward Ghazini with his shoulder and immediately regretted it as a short series of sharp pains assaulted him. He grunted, and then spoke. “I tried to tell yer man here that I can't do anything from here—”

  “We'll see.” Eddie cut him off, turning back to Ghazini. “What did you find out, M?”

  “Doctor Gentry completed the autopsies on Jo, Airman Jabrani, and Captain Walsh,” he said matter-of-factly.

  “And?”

  “You were right. He's almost certain that Walsh was killed with Jo's gun. We'll be sure when ballistics come back.”

  Eddie found no satisfaction in the confirmation. “What about Jo?”

  “She died instantly in the crash,” Ghazini answered succinctly, unwilling to dwell on the subject. “The airman was double-tapped in the heart and shot once in the head with a nine millimeter.”

  Eddie took some solace in the fact that Jo hadn't been murdered and, more importantly, that she hadn't suffered. Still, he felt responsible. “What about the lab?”

  “There isn't much. From what I was told, whoever they were, they were professionals. There isn't a single hard drive left. No prints other than those of the personnel, and they policed their brass. Whoever they are, they're professionals. But there are two doors that we haven't been able to open.”

  “Those would be the ones to the cloning chamber and my office,” Jimmy offered. “I wrote my own security program. They were immediately sealed for forty-eight hours when the power was disconnected. The storm troopers didn’t know about it,” he added, looking at Talbot.

  Ghazini gave Jimmy a strange look. “Cloning chamber?”

  “I'll explain later,” Eddie assured him. “Why forty-eight hours, Jimmy?”

  Jimmy smiled slyly. “In case things weren’t going in a direction that I wanted.”

  Twenty minutes later they all stood in the complex's security office. “There's nothing here,” Jimmy complained.

  “Like I said,” Ghazini said unsympatheti
cally.

  “Well, can't you hot wire something together? You are the computer whiz,” Eddie said impatiently.

  “No, you don't understand. There's nothing here for me to hot wire. All of the hard drives are gone. I tried to tell you guys that I could do more from the outside. But no, you were in such a big hurry to get me back down here.”

  “Jimmy,” Eddie started.

  Talbot was shaking his head as his cell phone began to ring. He stepped into the hallway to answer it.

  Eddie, thankful for the distraction, closed the door.

  “So, what's this about a cloning chamber?” Ghazini asked.

  “It's a long story, but that's what was happening down here.”

  “Cloning?” Ghazini asked incredulously.

  Jimmy piped up. “Oh, it's not diabolical or anything. Don't get your panties in a bunch.”

  Ghazini gave the Canadian a doubtful look. “Obviously there was a concerted effort for full disclosure here.” He turned back to Eddie. “Humans?”

  Eddie shook his head. “Human. Singular.”

  Ghazini nodded. “Even one would still be against the law.”

  “Yeah, but we have bigger fish to fry. So I need all of your head in this, okay?”

  “You got it, boss.”

  Eddie turned back to Jimmy. “How's our boy?”

  Jimmy used a foot to pick up an overturned chair and plopped into it wincing as he did. “Greg says he's positive the real Commander Tyler is in the hospital. He even showed me where he stitched up a cut that Rob got a few days ago before we scanned him. That's the good news.”

  Eddie looked skeptical. “I'm not sure I'd call that good news. If we have the real Tyler, then that means Doctor Phillips is out there somewhere running around with the clone, assuming she's still alive.” He was giving June the benefit of the doubt. He didn’t want to believe that she was involved in Benny’s death.

  Jimmy continued. “The bad news is that he's still in a coma and they haven't been able to figure out why. He didn't have any bumps on the head or anything else. Nothing to explain the coma.” Jimmy knew there might be another reason why the commander hadn't awakened, but decided to keep it to himself.

  The door opened and Talbot stepped back in. “We found your missing agents.”

  Eddie's eyes went wide, “Where are they?”

  “Are they alright?” Ghazini asked.

  “They're fine. A little hungry, dehydrated, and eaten up by mosquitoes. But fine. They were tied up in the woods about two hundred yards behind the store next to a dirt road, along with the rest of the missing personnel.”

  Eddie started for the door but Talbot held up a hand to stop him. “They're being transported to the hospital. They're gonna need lots of Benadryl and a day or two of rest.”

  Ghazini sighed and cracked a rare smile as he slapped Eddie on the back. “Cal, maybe. But not Geri. They probably had to tie her to a gurney to get her into the ambulance.”

  Eddie felt some sense of relief at the news, but was still concerned. “What about Yeoum and Tiong?”

  “They're all that we found.”

  Eddie nodded.

  “We also got the chemical analysis back from the CDC,” Talbot continued.

  “And?”

  “Ever heard of something called Kolokol-one?”

  “Nope,” Eddie shook his head.

  “I have,” Ghazini said. “It’s a synthetic opioid used as an aerosol incapacitating agent. And it's Russian.”

  Eddie gave Talbot a doubtful look. “The Russians?”

  “During the Cold War,” the colonel confirmed.

  “What's an opioid?” Jimmy asked.

  Ghazini ignored him, but still answered the question. “Enough of it will knock you out anywhere from two to six hours.”

  “That explains how they got them out of here without much trouble,” Eddie said. “What on God’s green earth is going on here?”

  Just for a moment there was silence before Ghazini spoke again. “Where do we go from here?”

  “Jimmy's lab,” Eddie replied, as the colonel's phone chirped and he stepped out again.

  “I'm telling you, without a computer I can't do a thing down here for another”—Jimmy checked his watch—“eighteen hours or so.” He looked at Eddie. “Even I can’t override my security program. That was the whole point.”

  Eddie glared at the Canadian.

  “All I need is a computer with Internet access. And somebody to actually listen to the words that are comin' out of my mouth.”

  From outside they could hear Talbot's raised voice. “Say again. You're breaking up.”

  Eddie watched the colonel close the door. “Well, Jimmy, I want you to try anyway.”

  “Try what? I’m telling you I can’t get into my office. Which one of those words do you not understand, Agent Perez?”

  “Maybe we should just get him a laptop, boss.” Ghazini suggested. “Mine’s in the truck.”

  Eddie’s controlled persona was beginning to show some signs of desperation. He was convinced that Jimmy was hiding something, and he wanted to know what it was. “No. It’ll take us an hour to get back outside. We’re here now.”

  Talbot opened the door again. “That's it for now, folks. We've been ordered out of the complex.”

  “Ordered out?” Eddie asked. “By who?”

  “General Stillman.”

  “Wait just a minute. This is an active crime scene. My active crime scene,” Eddie protested.

  Talbot looked genuinely empathetic. “The order came down from the Secretary of the Air Force. My hands are tied. We have to go, now.”

  “Well did they even offer an explanation?” Eddie demanded.

  “I know it’s friggin' irregular, but I have no choice. I received a direct order.”

  “We have to try to get to Jimmy's computer,” Eddie pleaded.

  Talbot’s patience was running out. “Look, Perez, I already ordered my people out.”

  “I can get in from the outside in no time,” Jimmy reiterated, knowing that no one was listening to him.

  “We can start fresh in a few hours as soon as we find out what this snafu is all about,” Talbot assured Eddie.

  “Ten minutes. That's all I want. Just give me ten minutes.”

  “What do you think you’re gonna accomplish in ten minutes?”

  “Give me ten minutes, and I'll show ya.”

  Talbot shook his head. “Why am I doin’ this? Okay ten minutes. Not one nanosecond more.”

  * * * * *

  COVINGTON AND RIGBY spent a day resting and tending to each other’s wounds, the most serious of which was Covington’s shoulder. He had been correct that the bullet had passed through the meat without striking bone, tendon, or ligaments.

  The following day, Toni arranged a vehicle and new credentials for them to use in the next phase of the disastrous operation that was becoming more and more improvisational. The two would pose as Homeland Security health services inspectors in order to gain entry onto Robins Air Force Base. Dressed in business suits, they passed with ease through the gates, obtaining a map and directions to the base's water treatment facility from one of the guards.

  When they walked through the door of the main building, they found a man dressed in the blue jumpsuit of a civilian employee napping at one of the desks. The drone of machinery had masked their entrance, but the two weren't trying to be stealthy.

  Rigby cleared his voice loudly and the man woke with a start.

  “Good morning,” Covington said cheerfully. Reaching into his jacket pocket, he produced a wallet containing his identification and some papers.

  They could see the name Bill embroidered on the man’s jumpsuit when he leapt to his feet and faced the two suspiciously. “Who're you guys?”

  Covington smiled and held up the open wallet. “I'm Inspector Bentley and this is Inspector Harvey,” he said as he motioned to his partner. “We're with Homeland Security. We’re here to inspect one of y
our buildings.”

  Bill snatched the ID from him and eyed it like a liquor storeowner who had just gotten his license back after losing it for selling to minors. He looked the men up and down, and wrinkled the brow of his balding head in annoyance. “What's this all about?”

  “We need to have a look inside”—Covington checked the papers—“building two nineteen.”

  “Two nineteen? The only thing in two nineteen is an old pump control board. They ain't used fer nothin'. We prime 'em once a month, but that's it. There ain't nothin' in two nineteen.”

  Covington looked at his paperwork again. “Are you sure? Because it says right here that we need to inspect building two nineteen.”

  Bill's expression showed that he wasn't happy. “Look fellas, my supervisor ain't here so y'all are gonna hafta come back later.”

  Rigby spoke up. “Just take us to two nineteen. We won't be five minutes.”

  “C'mon man, do us a favor. We have six more inspections to do today,” Covington added.

  Bill eyed the two for several seconds and then snorted as he picked up a ring of keys from his desk. “Don't think my union rep ain't gonna hear about this.” He turned and stomped toward the door. “Union rules say y'all can't do no inspection without a member of management here.”

  The three men exited the large building as Bill continued to grumble. They walked about one hundred fifty yards to a small ten-by-ten brick building, really more of a shed, near the perimeter fence at the extreme eastern end of the base.

  Bill turned to face them. “I been workin' here for twenty-two years and I don't think these pumps have ever been used. We use the building mainly for storage.” When he turned back to open the door, he didn’t notice Rigby reaching into his jacket. The door opened with a creak. Inside was an assortment of gardening equipment on one side and bags of fertilizer, pine bark chips, and mulch piled on the other. A metal rake fell over and hit the concrete floor noisily.

  Bill sighed. “Let me get some of this—”

  The sentence went unfinished as Rigby leveled his pistol at the back of the unsuspecting man’s head and squeezed off a round. The attached silencer muffled the weapon’s report. Before Bill’s body could fall, Covington shoved it inside as they entered. Rigby put two more rounds into Bill's heart and closed the door behind him as Covington stepped over to the control panel on the back wall of the enclosure.