Phoenix

by Alex Lukeman

  Corrigan looked at his Chief of Staff. "Is this true, Ellen?"

  "No, sir, it's not. This is some sort of vindictive attack."

  "You deny there is any truth to these accusations?"

  "Absolutely, Mister President."

  Cartwright looked at Elizabeth with hatred.

  Good thing she's not a fire breathing dragon, Elizabeth thought. I'd be a pile of smoking cinders if she were.

  "Mister President, the transcript of her transmissions will be in the communication room."

  Elizabeth mentally crossed her fingers, hoping Stephanie had sent the transcript by now.

  "I'd like to see that transcript," Hood said.

  Adamski nodded his head. "So would I."

  "Sir, I would like to see it also," Hopkins said.

  "This is a trick," Cartwright said. "This woman hates me. She's trying to ruin my career."

  Corrigan pushed a button. A door opened and an aide entered the room.

  "Sir?"

  "Go to the communication room and see if they've received something from Director Harker's unit. If there's something there, bring it to me. Be quick."

  "Yes, Mister President."

  The aide closed the door behind him.

  "Director Harker, you are in serious trouble if your proof is not conclusive."

  "I am not concerned about that, Mister President. The proof is undeniable. Her treachery explains why she has consistently blamed the Chinese for the events of the last weeks. She has done her best to point the finger away from the Federation."

  "I've noticed the same thing," Hood said. "I thought it was odd when she accused the Chinese of trying to frame the Russians for Palo Verde."

  The door opened and the aide came in. He seemed out of breath. He gave the transcript to the president.

  "Is there anything else, sir?"

  "No, thank you."

  Corrigan began reading. He turned a page and looked up at Cartwright.

  "Why, Ellen? Why would you betray me like this?" He tapped the papers with his finger. "You told the Russians everything that was going on in this office."

  "That transcript is a fraud."

  Corrigan shook his head. "No, I don't think it is. Some of this material was private to the two of us. I trusted you. You stabbed me and the country in the back."

  Cartwright sprang to her feet.

  "You bitch," she shouted.

  She ran toward Elizabeth, her face twisted with rage.

  Hood tripped her. Cartwright went down hard on her face, right in the middle of the Great Seal on the rug.

  "Restrain her," Corrigan said.

  Adamski was already up and pinning her hands behind her back. The Secret Service agent took Adamski's place, holding Cartwright down on the carpet. She kicked and screamed profanities. The agent spoke into his microphone and two more agents rushed into the room. They cuffed Cartwright and pulled her to her feet, still yelling and kicking. One of the agents grabbed her feet and pulled them up into the air. They carried her out of the office.

  The door closed behind them.

  "Well, if that don't beat all," Hood said.

  CHAPTER 63

  Nick, Selena and Lamont pulled up under the portico of Nicklaus' mansion. Black smoke stained the gray stone surrounding the entry. The doors stood open. The study where Nick had first seen Nicklaus was intact. The entrance to the elevator under the stairs was scorched and burned. It looked like the elevator shaft had acted like a chimney for the fire. Puddles of water and foam lay over the marble floor. The only signs of the battle in the hall were bloodstains on the stairs.

  "Where do you want to start?" Selena asked.

  Nick looked around. "They didn't find Nicklaus in the elevator. That means he made it up here. The question is where did he go after that?"

  "He thought he'd triggered the war," Selena said. "He knew there wasn't much time to get to safety. Unless he was suicidal, he must've gone to ground. Probably somewhere here on this property."

  "Gone to ground," Nick said. "Like he did when he was behind that desk and disappeared."

  "His whole plan was to survive," Lamont said. "It's pretty hard to run things if you're dead."

  "When Nicklaus dropped out of sight, he had to go somewhere," Nick said. "We only saw part of what's down there. There has to be more. I can't see him bunking down with the guards."

  They went into the study. There was smoke damage on the walls and books. The desk still sat at the far end of the room by the window. The drapes on the window had been pulled open. Bright sunshine streamed into the room.

  "Lot nicer with the sun coming in," Lamont said.

  They went over and stood next to the desk.

  "There has to be some kind of triggering mechanism," Nick said. "He was sitting in this chair."

  Nick sat down in the chair. The desk appeared to be an ordinary wooden desk, if you could call a piece of furniture ordinary that was old and valuable. Intricate carvings of oak leaves and acorns ran around the top of the desk and down the legs to balled feet with claws carved into them. Drawers lined each side of the knee hole. The mechanism had to be somewhere easily accessible.

  The top of the desk was polished walnut. An antique pen and ink set and a large green writing pad with leather corners were the only objects on the desk. Nick took out the pen and examined it. It was made of gold, heavy, with an old-fashioned sharp point. He set it back in its holder.

  "There could be something in the carving," Selena said. "A hidden button, or something to push or pull."

  Lamont stood next to Nick and the chair. Selena sat on one corner of the desk. Nick ran his finger along the carved edge under the desktop, over the leaves and acorns, feeling for anything out of the ordinary.

  "It all feels the same. There's nothing obvious."

  Lamont watched him. He pointed.

  "That acorn there looks different."

  "Which one?"

  "That one." He pointed. "See how it's a little darker than the others?"

  Nick looked where Lamont was pointing.

  "You're right." Nick pressed it.

  Nothing happened.

  "Good guess, but it has to be something else."

  He swiveled in the chair and his knee bumped against the side of the desk. The floor, the desk, and the three of them dropped down into darkness.

  "Whoa," Lamont shouted.

  Nick felt as though his stomach had jumped up to his teeth. He hung on to the desk until the platform suddenly slowed to a gentle stop.

  "Damn, that was some ride," Lamont said. "Reminds me of a roller coaster I rode when I was a kid. It was called the Thunderbolt. Scared the heck out of me."

  They'd ended up in a room. A row of lights marched down a hall leading away.

  "My guess is we're back to level 20," Nick said.

  "I don't see any sign of the fire," Lamont said. "I'll bet Nicklaus is here somewhere."

  They hadn't brought the MP7s but they had their pistols.

  "Lock and load. Safeties off."

  CHAPTER 64

  They started down the hall. There were dark spots on the floor.

  Lamont bent down. "It's a blood trail. You hit him, Nick."

  "Not hard enough."

  They followed the trail and passed a storage room filled with barrels of water and enough food supplies to last for years.

  "What's that electrical smell?" Selena asked.

  Lamont pulled open a door. "It's coming from here."

  An elaborate electrical panel with meters and labeled switches took up much of one wall. The rest of the space was taken up by stacked rows of heavy-duty batteries wired together.

  "It's a solar set up," Nick said. "Looks like he's got enough juice to power almost anything. It figures. He'd need something to replace the loss of the grid."

  "Nice set up," Lamont said. "Must've cost a few bucks."

  "Let's keep moving."

  Out in the hall, they kept following the trail of blood drops. They reac
hed a T junction. A bloody handprint on the wall showed where Nicklaus had paused to steady himself. The blood trail led to the right. They followed it through a fully equipped kitchen and into an underground living room.

  Nicklaus was sprawled on a white leather couch. Bloody smears stained the white surface. His white shirt had turned red. His breathing was harsh and shallow. He opened his eyes as they came into the room.

  "Carter." He coughed. "You're supposed to be dead."

  "As you can see, I'm not. Your plan didn't work out. There hasn't been a war, in spite of everything you did."

  "It doesn't matter now, does it?"

  He coughed again. A trickle of blood ran down his chin.

  "You think you've won, don't you?" He said.

  "Looks that way. You're dying, Nicklaus. Anything you want to say before they welcome you to hell?"

  Nicklaus smiled. "I'll only be going home. Others will carry on the work."

  "What others?"

  "I'll show you. I'm sure they'd enjoy meeting you."

  Nicklaus fumbled for a remote lying next to him on the couch. Lamont grabbed it before he could pick it up.

  "Not this time," Nick said.

  Nicklaus coughed. More blood trickled from his lips. He lifted his hand and pointed at a monitor on the far wall, then dropped back, exhausted. His voice was weak.

  "Press the button labeled 'connect.' Go on, what have you got to lose? You need to introduce yourself. I want you to know who'll be coming for you. For you and your lovely wife and children."

  He started to laugh, a cackling, bubbling sound. Suddenly he stopped. His eyes opened wide. He lifted his hand.

  "Master," he said.

  His hand fell back to his side. He let out a long, gargling breath and died.

  Nick said, "Lamont, give me the remote."

  "You're going to press that button, aren't you?" Selena said.

  "I have to. You heard what he said."

  "You sure, Nick?" Lamont said. "What if it's a trick?"

  "I don't press it, we'll never know."

  He pressed the button. The monitor lit. It showed a room with a large, leather chair. There was no way to tell where the room was located. The chair was vaguely European looking, expensive. A vivid painting of the phoenix rising out of flame hung on the wall behind the chair.

  A man came into the room, wearing a dark red hooded robe. He sat down and looked into the camera. A Guy Fawkes mask concealed his features.

  "You are Carter," he said. His voice was disguised electronically. "Since you are contacting me from the mansion, I assume Nicklaus is dead."

  "That's right," Nick said. "Who are you?"

  The man ignored the question. "You have interfered with our plan. There are consequences. You will regret your actions, I assure you."

  "When I find out who you are you'll be the one expressing regret."

  The Guy Fawkes figure laughed, the sound eerie through the electronic distortion.

  "Brave words, Carter. You aren't going to find out who I am. People like me are out of your league. You have no idea what you've done."

  "I think I have a pretty good idea. I've stopped you and your buddy Nicklaus from turning the world into a fireball."

  "You have merely caused a delay. We will still have our war. We are Phoenix, Carter. We are the rulers of the world. We have always been the rulers and we always will be. Insects like you cannot be expected to understand why it is necessary for the cleansing to take place."

  "What is it with you assholes?" Lamont said. "You think you can decide to have a war because it's what you want?"

  "That is exactly what we think. We made a mistake in not wiping out your kind a long time ago. It won't be that way the next time around."

  "My kind? Fuck you," Lamont said.

  "It's hard to take you seriously if you're afraid to show your face," Selena said.

  "Ah, the redoubtable professor Connor," the man said. "I don't think you would like to see what's under this mask."

  "Why don't you try me?"

  "I don't want to frighten your dear little children in the womb. One never knows how they might turn out. For that matter, one never knows if they will turn out. It's a dangerous world, Doctor Connor."

  "You son of a bitch," Nick said.

  "Now, Carter, sticks and stones and all that. This has been a very interesting conversation but it's time for me to go now. I would like to leave you with a bit of advice."

  "I'll bet you would."

  "Make sure you learn to look over your shoulder. From now on, you will never be alone."

  The screen went dark.

  "Jesus," Lamont said.

  CHAPTER 65

  Two weeks later, everyone gathered again in the loft. Ronnie was out of the hospital. He sat next to Burps on the couch. He scratched the big cat's belly and was rewarded with a rumbling purr.

  Elizabeth cleared her throat.

  "I have some bad news. There's no way to soften it, Corrigan has canceled our funding. We're shut down, effective immediately."

  "That ungrateful bastard," Nick said. "Why?"

  "The official line is that it's too much money to rebuild headquarters and replace the computers and equipment destroyed in the raid. He said we've entered an age of transparency and units like ours are no longer acceptable to Congress and the public."

  "That's bullshit," Ronnie said.

  "Yes, it is. The real reason is he's embarrassed by what we found out about Cartwright. We made him look bad. His Chief of Staff was a Russian spy. It doesn't get much more humiliating than that. It leaked and the papers are having a field day. He's getting even."

  "Nice to know we're being rewarded by a grateful nation," Ronnie said.

  "You wanted gratitude, you never should've joined the Marine Corps," Lamont said.

  "I don't see the SEALS getting a lot of strokes, either."

  Selena interrupted. "I think we should talk about how we go on from here."

  Nick said, "Without government support, we're done."

  "Not necessarily."

  "What are you getting at?" Stephanie asked.

  "You forget that I could fund the unit. That is, if we want to continue."

  "It wouldn't be the same," Elizabeth said. "We wouldn't have official standing or presidential protection if something went wrong. Everything we do would be illegal. Besides, I'm tired. We've done enough. It's time to let someone else take on the crazies out there."

  "There it is," Ronnie said.

  "Then we're done? Really done?" Selena said.

  They sat there for a moment, taking it in.

  "I got an idea," Lamont said. "Why don't we think about it later? I say we celebrate. I've got a friend with a great nightclub. Let's rent the joint, invite our friends, and have a party."

  "Good idea, bro," Ronnie said. "I might even have a drink with you."

  "Make the call, Lamont," Nick said.

  Later, when everyone had left, Nick and Selena were sitting together on the couch. Nick took her hand.

  "At least I don't have to worry anymore about you putting yourself in harm's way. There was always going to be something."

  "I know," Selena said. "I couldn't believe how hard it was to try and stay out of things. All that time when I kept thinking I wanted to quit, then when I had the chance I couldn't do it."

  "The twins will be safe now."

  "But what about this Phoenix group? I keep thinking about what that man said, about you always having to look over your shoulder."

  "I've been looking over my shoulder ever since I can remember. Nothing much changes. He was trying to mess with our heads."

  "I hope you're right."

  "With the Project shut down, I don't know what I'm going to do with myself."

  "We'll figure something out."

  "We always do," Nick said.

  Author's Notes

  I like to base my stories on realities that exist in the outer world. One day I was looking at a picture of the T
hree Gorges Dam in China and wondering what would happen if it collapsed. It's a truly impressive structure, an amazing piece of technology. As told in the book, the reservoir behind the dam is the largest in the world. It holds an unbelievable amount of water.

  The dam has known flaws. The weak point is found in the spillway tunnels under the dam. The design of the spillways and their location makes them susceptible to possible severe cavitation during an emergency release. All the critical functions of the dam are controlled by computers. All computers are vulnerable to being hacked, even those with the most sophisticated security. If this towering wall of concrete and steel were to fail, the results would likely be even worse than what I described in the book.

  The new J-20 Chinese jet fighter is being built in a factory outside the city of Yichan, downriver from the dam. It would be destroyed in a collapse, along with all the rest of the new and critical infrastructure that the Chinese have placed there. Loss of life would be in the hundreds of thousands or more.

  General Alexei Vysotsky's Directorate X is real and is in charge of technical/scientific intelligence and cyber security. To the best of my knowledge Section 5 does not exist, but something like it has to.

  At the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 I was still in the Marine Corps. I vividly remember a briefing where a map of Cuba was up on the wall. We were told to get ready for deployment. I remember thinking at the time that if war started there wouldn't be any Cuba left to deploy to. I still think that.

  Submarine B-59 was real, and so was the Russian captain's decision to launch nuclear tipped torpedoes at U.S. Navy vessels. At that time in the Soviet Navy the decision to launch nuclear weapons required agreement of the three most senior officers on board. The torpedoes never left the tubes because the second-in-command, an officer named Vasili Arkhipov, refused to authorize the attack. If those torpedoes had been fired, the U.S. would have retaliated and nuclear war would have begun. The result would have been massive mutual annihilation. Arkhipov's refusal to go along with his captain literally saved the world from destruction.

  Nuclear tipped Iskander M missiles are currently deployed in the southeast quadrant of the Russian Federation as a deterrent to potential Chinese aggression. The Chinese have countered by moving Dongfen-14 ICBMs into the area. This is one of those potential nuclear flashpoints no one ever talks about. The Russians and the Chinese are not friends.