Cursed Days

by J. M. LeDuc

  Alana stared at Brent. His words, although benign, made her realize how much she loved him.

  Holding the glow stick above his head, they began to look around the ceiling of the room. Moving slowly about the room, they surveyed the upper part of the walls and the ceiling. It didn’t take long for them to find what appeared to be a large gopher hole. One large enough for a man to lay in. “We have found Mecca,” Brent said. “Now we just have to figure out a way to get up there. These walls are pretty high.”

  Alana slid her hand over the wall. “These walls are pretty rough. I shouldn’t have any trouble finding finger and toe holds. I can free climb and anchor in as I go.”

  Brent didn’t question her resolve, he just nodded his agreement and gave her an affirmative glance. “While you anchor in the rope, it will give the Bishop enough time to finish copying the etchings. Just make sure he has already gone over that part of the wall, before you start your climb.”

  Bishop Jessup looked at where they were standing and gave his okay. “I’ve already been over that part of the room. It’s clean.”

  “Then go to it,” Brent.

  While the rest of the team continued to work, Brent took the extra time to read and re-read Joan’s correspondence. As he did, something kept taking his attention away from his work. Something in Joan’s text just doesn’t seem right, he thought. Brent reread what Joan had told him about Father Reilly’s visit.

  Father Reilly couldn’t have been more standoffish to all of us if he tried, Brent thought. Why would he want to visit and take the girls out to lunch? He lowered himself into a squat position and put himself into a meditative state. He tried to recall as much of the team’s trip to the Vatican as he possibly could. The more he scrolled through his memories, the more he realized that Father Reilly was always present whenever he was in discussion with Cardinal Bullini. He was even present when the Pope told Brent of the importance of this mission.

  Brent’s heart beat quickened and his pulse began to race as he quickly came out of the trance. With an anxiety ridden, tortured voice he said, “How much more do you have, Bishop?”

  “Just another half of this wall and I’ll be finished.”

  “And you, Alana, how much longer before you stabilize the rope?”

  “I’ve got another anchor or two. It shouldn’t take me longer than thirty minutes.”

  “Make it fifteen. That goes for you too, Bishop. We need to move out.”

  “Why the sudden urgency, Colonel?” Seven asked.

  “It’s just something that Joan mentioned in her text. Something just isn’t ringing true. I just feel the need to get back to Palm Cove as soon as possible, that’s all.”

  Seven knew that there was more to it than that, but he also knew Brent would disclose his motives when the time was right.

  Twenty minutes later, the rope was anchored all the way to the opening in the ceiling, and Bishop Jessup had finished copying the ancient Hebrew writing from the walls of the sanctuary.

  “How does it look up there, Alana?” Brent asked.

  “The tunnel seems to stay pretty narrow, but we should all be able to squeeze through—without backpacks on.”

  Brent looked around the room. “We won’t desecrate the Holy of Holies anymore than we already have. Everything we have brought in goes with us. We’ll tie our packs to our ankles and drag them out with us,” he said. “Seven, the Bishop will finish packing up. I want you to help me fill in as much of the tunnel under the wall as possible. This place should be left as pristine as we found it.”

  An hour later, the team seemed to have hit an impasse. “The tunnel just ends,” Alana said. “What do we do now?”

  “Everyone, maintain your position,” Brent called up. “Let me check something.” Taking out his phone, he saw that he had an immediate signal. “You’re very close to the top of the tunnel. Can you dig through the soil?”

  Using her gloved hands, she was able to easily break up the earth’s crust. “I can, but cover your eyes because whatever I dislodge is coming down toward you.”

  “Just do what you have to do, we’ll cover our eyes,” Brent said. “Just before you break through to the surface, I want you to stop. Somehow, Seven is going to have to wedge himself up next to you before you break through. We don’t know where this tunnel is going to deposit us.”

  “Yes, sir,” Alana called down.

  For the next few minutes it was a constant deluge of rock and dirt raining down upon the heads of the rest of the team. Just when they were about to ask her to take a break to let the dust settle, Alana called out that she could feel the outside air with her finger tips.

  CHAPTER 45

  “Alright, Sev, I need you to change positions with Alana. Change the clip in your gun before you do. Nothing but darts.”

  “I’m a step ahead of you, Colonel,” Seven called down. “Cover your eyes; it’s going to get messy while I dig new foot holds as I climb up.”

  A few minutes later, he had successfully exchanged positions with Alana and started to dig out the last layer of dirt and rock.

  “On your go, Colonel, I’m ready to bust this joint,” Seven said.

  “Don’t get all southern ghetto on me, just watch yourself and go,” Brent said.

  As soon as Seven broke through the top layer of earth and looked out, Brent could hear him swear and start shooting. “They’re everywhere, Colonel. I have no time to reload, pass up your weapons.”

  Seven calmly reached down with his free hand and took Alana’s gun from her. He kept shooting and dropping soldiers like flies as they tried to close in on him. As he emptied the magazine from her pistol, she had reloaded his and passed it back to him.

  A few shots later, he stopped and yelled down, “That takes care of the first wave, but they sounded the alarm. We don’t have much time to get the hell out of here. Move, move, move,” he said.

  The four of them climbed out of the tunnel as quickly as possible to find themselves inside the security fence surrounding the Dome of the Rock.

  “Now what?” yelled the Bishop.

  “Seven, take out the tower. The two of you, put your backpacks on and follow me,” Brent said.

  Seven hit the ground and rolled to his right, trying to escape an onslaught of bullets being rained down upon him from the tower. Brent quickly counter fired, drawing the attention away from Seven. Seconds later, the lone sentry fell to his death.

  Looking through his night vision goggles, Brent could see another line of soldiers coming their way. “There is no way we can hold them all off. Take cover behind the tower. Let’s hope Q received my emergency message.”

  “I’m not taking that chance, sir. I’m climbing up to see if I can use their own sentry weapon against them,” Seven said. As he jumped to his feet to begin his climb, he crumbled back down to the ground. “Damn,” he yelled. “I’ve been hit.” He reached down and felt the warmth of fresh blood on his pants. Seven pushed a little deeper and grimaced. He felt an entrance and exit wound on opposite sides of his lower leg. Damn, that hurts, he thought. He took a deep breath to help clear the pain and said, “I took a clean shot right through my calf. It missed the bone, but can’t put much weight on it.”

  “Alana, use your belt and tourniquet the wound,” Brent said as he lunged for the ladder and began to make the climb up the tower.

  With his leg bandaged, he addressed Alana. “We don’t have much ammo left. Wait until they are close enough not to miss. No wild shooting.”

  She nodded and rolled to her left, thereby covering both the left and right flanks as best as possible. As soon as the Muslim guard cleared the mist, she and Seven started to methodically pick off the soldiers who were the closest to them.

  “We could use your help, padre,” Seven said as he threw him his spare weapon.

  “But this is loaded with real bullets,” he called ou
t.

  “Aim low, we just need to slow them down, Brent is almost in the cat bird seat.”

  As their ammo and luck were running out, they suddenly heard the sound of the automatic machine gun coming from the top of the turret. Brent was spraying bullets about five feet in front of the quickly moving guard. As the battle continued, Brent could hear the advancing helicopter, but couldn’t see anything in the sky. It was still dark enough that Q was able to approach low and mostly out of sight. As he came into view, a surface-to-air missile was fired up at him. With deft flying skills, he made a sudden movement to his left and pulled back on the stick causing the copter to seemingly drift back and shoot straight up into the air. The missile just missed and shot below Q’s craft.

  Q flipped a switch and blinded the troops with a bright light. Lowering the craft as close to the guard tower as possible, he continued to spray bullets all around the soldiers. This caused them to hit the ground to take cover. In Arabic, Q spoke to them through a built in microphone. “We wish you no harm. Stay where you are and you won’t get hurt.”

  Before the copter could even make a complete landing, Alana and the Bishop were helping Seven into it. With the three of them inside, Q slowly began to rise up so the open door was even with the top of the guard tower. “You’re going to have to jump,” he yelled out to Brent. “I can’t chance getting any closer without clipping the rotors.” As he was moving in closer, one of the guards suddenly stood up and took a shot at the copter, catching Q in the left shoulder.

  “Son of a . . .”

  Before he could even get the rest of the words out of his mouth, Seven leaned out the open door, firing his weapon and dropped the combatant. Handing his gun to Alana, he then grabbed the controls out of Q’s hands. “I got her, Q. We’re stable. Alana, keep an eye on those idiots while I collect the Colonel.” Looking out the side door, he yelled, “It’s a go, buddy; jump!”

  Brent leapt from the gun turret and missed the door, but was able to grab hold of the landing gear. Wrapping his arms around the legs of the helicopter, he yelled up, “Go, go, go!”

  Seven made a sharp left turn and quickly took flight out of the compound.

  “Keep her under the five hundred foot ceiling or we’ll be picked up on radar,” Q yelled as Alana was triaging his shoulder.

  The Bishop tried to pull the Colonel up into the ship.

  “You have to reach up with one hand, Brent so I can pull you up.”

  “Can’t do, I only have one good one. If I let go with that one, I won’t be able to hold on. If I give you the bad one, I can’t grip you.”

  “Just give me that bad one, I won’t let you fall.”

  “Didn’t you just hear what. . . ”

  “Trust, Colonel; now give me your damn arm.”

  “Do it, Colonel, we have another surface to air heading our way,” Seven yelled.

  Hearing those words caused what seemed like a cluster of movement inside the cabin of the airship. Q instinctively jumped in the co-pilots seat and took over the control of the copter, while at the same time Brent lifted his bad arm off the leg of the copter so Bishop Jessup could grab it. As soon as he had a grip, the Bishop pulled with all his strength and yanked Brent inside the helicopter. Later, they would say they didn’t know what was louder; the sound of the missile just whizzing by their left side or the ‘pop’ of the dislocation of Brent’s shoulder.

  Flying away from the Dome and out to sea, everyone began to calm down. That’s when they noticed that Brent had passed out.

  “Damn shoulder, I tried to warn the fool, but he wouldn’t listen,” Seven said as he grabbed Brent and popped the shoulder back into place. “Help me tape it to his body before we wake him up. I don’t want to hear him order me not to.”

  Fifteen minutes later, the copter had rendezvoused with a naval vessel and was going to settle down on the deck of the aircraft carrier. Seven had administered smelling salts to Brent, who wasn’t a bit pleased with his arm being taped so securely to his side.

  Alana looked longingly into Brent’s eyes. “I know this is not a good time to say so, but I must get back to my village.”

  “Nonsense,” Brent said. “There is nothing back there for you anymore. We have outed your husband as part of the Brotherhood of Gaza and it would be very dangerous for you back there. You will come back to the States with us.”

  Her anger burst forth as she swung an open hand at Brent’s face, slapping him hard across his cheek. “Who the hell do you think you are ordering me around? I am not your wife or one of your soldiers. That village is my home.” Tears ran down her cheeks. “If and when I choose to leave, it will be on my terms not yours or anybody else’s. Is that understood, Colonel Venturi?”

  “I just thought. . . ”

  “Well, you thought wrong,” Alana said, “now please take me home.”

  “Q, turn this baby around, we have a package to deliver.”

  Alana lowered her head and softly said, “Thank you.”

  “I’m sorry,” Brent said, wiping her hair from her face. “I just want you to be happy, that’s all.”

  “I know, me too.” Alana took Brent’s hand in hers and gently kissed his palm.

  Then, just as he thought she was going to hug him, she turned and threw herself into the Bishop’s arms and cried like a baby.

  Silence engulfed the helicopter the rest of the way back to the village.

  Landing just outside the marketplace, Alana thanked Q for his help and then hugged Seven and Bishop Jessup, telling them that she would never forget them, that she loved them and that she would continue to pray for their safety and happiness. She then turned to Brent and cupped his face in her hands.

  “You have changed my life, Ambassador.” Tears again began to flow, but this time they came from both her and Brent. “I will never forget you, never.”

  “You can still change your mind and come back with us,” Brent whispered.

  “I know, but this is my home and these are my people. It is where I belong.”

  Brent pulled a card out of his back pocket and handed it to her. “My home and cell numbers are on here. I you ever need anything, please call.”

  “What I need, you cannot give me,” she said. Alana kissed him hard on the lips and quickly pushed herself away from him, jumped off the copter and ran toward her home.

  CHAPTER 46

  “Maddie, can you hear me?” Chloe asked. “Please Lord, let her hear me. Maddie, wake up, sweetie.”

  There was no answer from Maddie and Chloe’s emotions started to get the best of her. She started to sniffle and soon her sniffles became a full blown cry. Trying to pray and cry at the same time, her prayers just sounded like babble.

  “You’re giving me a headache with that dribble. Can you please let an electrocution victim get some rest,” Maddie slurred.

  Chloe’s sniffles soon turned to nervous laughter when she heard Maddie’s sarcastic humor. “Thank God, you’re okay.”

  “If you call the hangover from hell, okay, then, yeah, I’m good.” Maddie squinted. Her eyes circled the room, trying to focus. “Where are the priest and his altar boys?”

  “They left right after Red shot you for a second time. I haven’t heard or seen anyone since,” Chloe said.

  “And, exactly how long ago would that be?”

  “I think about a half an hour ago.”

  “Have you, um, have you been able to, ah. . . ” Maddie gently shook her head from side to side. “I’m having a hard time putting a clear thought together. My head is full of cob-webs.” Taking a deep breath, Maddie once again tried to speak. “Were you able to spot any audio or camera equipment in the room while the lights were on?”

  Chloe looked at Maddie and then at the upper right hand corner of the room. “I tried to get a look, but I didn’t see anything,” she answered. “Maddie, if I had any idea where t
he Arks were, I’d have told that freak. I never would have let him use that tazer on you.”

  “I know,” Maddie said. “Do you think Brent left any clues back at headquarters? In his office maybe?”

  “With him anything is possible. If he left a clue to their whereabouts, I would think they would be encrypted on his laptop,” Chloe said.

  “Now that wasn’t so hard, was it girls,” Red said as he stormed through the door. “I feel like taking a little trip back to good ole headquarters, how about the two of you?”

  Pulling a SIG 226 9mm semi-automatic from its holster, he said, “This is how we’re going to play it, ladies. You two,” he said waving the pistol back and forth, “will be yourselves and I’ll once again play the doting Catholic priest, Father Reilly.

  “My companions will be holding court outside along the perimeter checking to make sure there aren’t any late coming, uninvited guests. Once they have the perimeter locked down, they will join us in the command center.” Red looked intently at the girls for any reaction to his plan. “Now, you may have underestimated my intel, and if so, you would be wrong. I know that they will breach the security system if they try to enter after the designated time of its arming, so you, Madame Director will disengage the system when we get back to headquarters. How do you like my plan so far?” Red sneered.

  Weak and still fighting head-pounding pain, Maddie said, “It’s not bad, a bit pedestrian, but not bad until you got to the disarming of the security system.”

  Red grabbed her by the back of her hair and pulled back. His words spit from his mouth with anger and disgust. “And, why is that, Madame Director?”

  “It can’t be disarmed; it’s always on alert. That’s the beauty of the system.”

  Sliding his knife out of his belt, Red pretended to cut back and forth along Chloe’s wrist. “If you can’t get my men inside, I can always use a hand,” he said.

  Both girls stared wide eyed at their adversary. Red just laughed as he dropped Chloe’s hand and said, “I just love a good play on words, don’t you?”