by David Archer
Noah cocked his head to one side. “If we're going to run simulations, I gather we're going to be using paintballs?” Allison smiled, and he went on. “Then, what about opposition? Do we have people playing the parts?”
“We do, yes. A fair number of our people here do just that, play the parts of the bad guys in simulation scenarios. And I should warn you, some of them are wicked with those paintball guns. Those things may break on impact, but they can still sting, trust me.”
“I've run a paintball course, I know. When can we start practicing?”
“Tomorrow morning. You'll meet your referee at the Alley Town restaurant, and he'll take you out to show you this setup. He'll also supply you with your weapons and equipment, including vehicles and electronics. With the exception of the weapons, everything he'll give you will be just like what you would use out in the field, including computers, phones, all of it. Anything you ask for to use in the mission, he will give you. Those are his standing orders, and he knows it.”
“And just who is this referee? Is it someone we've met already?”
Allison smiled, and Noah waited. “You met him your first day,” she said. “His name is Jefferson.”
She went over the mission with them several times, and finally dismissed them just before lunchtime. She had told them that they could have the rest of the day off, so they all headed out to the farm. Neil was all moved into the trailer by then, so for him, it was going home, just as it was for Noah. Sarah and Moose followed along in their own cars.
It was moving into autumn, but the weather was still decent. Noah thought it was time to fire up the grill, again—he hadn't used it since the night he and Moose had settled their differences—so he went to his refrigerator and got out a package of steaks he had planned on using that weekend. If they were to begin simulations the following day, he wasn't sure the weekend was going to be free. The steaks were thawed, so he set them to marinate while he got the grill started and warming up.
“What can I do to help?” Sarah asked, and Noah looked up at her.
“I was just going to go for steak and salad. There's a bag of salad mix ready to go in the refrigerator, if you want to just rip it open and dump it in a bowl. I got several types of salad dressing, you might get those out, too. Just set it on the table in the dining room; we'll eat inside tonight.”
She gave him a bright smile, and went to get the salad ready. He had the grill ready to sear the steaks quickly, and since all of them preferred their steaks rare, it wasn't going to take them long to cook.
Neil appeared beside him, and handed him a bottle of beer. “I think you'd better enjoy this tonight,” he said. “I'm not sure you want to be drinking during our simulations.”
Noah thanked him, then shrugged. “From what I see so far, at least part of this mission is going to involve hanging out in a bar. If that's where I've got to meet the target, I'll have to spend some time there, let myself become a familiar face. We may get to hang out in the land of tequila for a while, and I'm gonna probably be drinking a lot while I'm there.” He looked up at Neil, and winked. “Good thing I can handle my liquor, isn't it?”
Neil rolled his eyes. “Why is it that almost everything you say puts me in mind of somebody's famous last words? You know, I signed up for this because I wanted to avoid prison time. That doesn't mean I wanted to avoid it badly enough to die. Please, please don't get me killed.”
“What are you worried about?” Moose asked, coming up behind them. “You get to sit back out of sight, playing games on the computer. Noah's the one who's gonna be out there taking the risks, and if he has to have a backup, that'll be on me. Even Sarah won't be in the line of fire, unless it's during a really frantic getaway.”
“I don't want any of you in the line of fire,” Noah said, “not if there's any way to avoid it. That includes you, Moose. I've proven to be pretty good, over the years, at taking care of myself, so hopefully you won't have to cover my back too often.” He looked at the big man and smiled. “That doesn't mean I'm not glad you're available if needed, though.”
Moose smiled back, then suddenly scowled. “Didn't we tell ya you don't have to fake the smiles with us?”
The smile vanished from Noah's face instantly. “Sorry, dude, it's just old habit. I've been pretending to be human so long that I can't remember to let it go.”
“I think it's cute,” Sarah said, returning from inside. “Let him smile if he wants to.”
“And this from the girl who, just a week ago, couldn't stand the thought of being close to a man without emotions,” Neil said. He eyeballed Noah and tried to look innocent. “Oh, I wonder, do you think that has anything to do with the fact that she's playing ‘ride the cowboy’ in your bedroom most nights lately?”
Noah turned and looked into Neil's eyes. “Neil, that was uncalled for,” he said, but Sarah interrupted him.
“Oh, forget it, Noah,” she said. “I sleep with you because it's fun exercise, and it's not like I have to worry about my reputation. Let the kid make his wisecracks, he's just jealous.”
Neil's eyes went wide, as Noah shrugged his shoulders and turned back to the grill. “Jealous? Me? I'm not jealous,” Neil said. He stood there for a moment, and then leered at Sarah. “Well, not all that jealous. As I recall, you made it clear I didn't have a shot with you back when we first met.”
She nodded at him with a grin. “Yep, I did, and this is why. I like you, Neil, but you're still too immature and childish for me. Sorry.”
Neil opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He tried it once more, got the same result, then turned and went back into the house.
A cell phone rang, and Noah glanced over his shoulder to see Moose answering. From the smile that lit up his face, it was easy to tell that it was a call from Elaine. It seemed their date had gone quite well, and she and Moose had become something of an item. Moose walked a short distance away to stand under a tree where he could talk privately. It didn't help a lot, because Noah and Sarah could still hear him calling Elaine his ‘little love muffin.’
“Can I tell you something, and not make you mad?” Sarah asked Noah.
“Pretty sure you can, since I can't get mad. What would it be?”
“Sometimes, I wish you were more like Moose. He gets so excited whenever she calls, or whenever he's going to go see her. I wish I could make you get excited like that.” She looked around at him. “Don't get the wrong idea, I'm not falling in love or anything. It'd just be nice to have somebody get excited about me.”
Noah looked at her for a moment. “I get excited about you,” he said. “Whenever you call and say you're coming over, I start to think about what I can do to make you enjoy yourself, while you're here. You know I get excited when you come into my bedroom—that's kind of impossible to miss. I don't have many friends, but the few guys I know here, Marco and Roger, and Charlie the bartender, I told all of them about you. I even showed them a picture of you on my phone.”
Sarah looked into his eyes, and smiled softly. “But do you do that because it's what guys who have girlfriends do? Or just because you want to?”
He looked back into her eyes for a moment, with his head cocked slightly to one side. “I do it because I want to. To be honest, I haven't thought about you as my girlfriend, I just enjoy your company and I felt like bragging about the beautiful girl I'm hanging out with. That's not emotional, that's just probably ego.”
Sarah's smile got a little bigger, and she leaned close and kissed him gently on the lips. “Then I really, really like your ego,” she said. “Later I'll show you just how much I like your ego.”
The steaks were done shortly, and Noah stacked them on a tray and carried them inside. The guys were inside waiting, and they sat down at the table and dug in.
NINETEEN
Sarah rode in with Noah the next morning, while Neil followed. Noah had been surprised at Neil's car when he had first seen it, because most young guys didn't go for big cars, but Neil was driving a Hummer. Noah had t
hought they would die off quickly, when gas prices got high enough to actually put the Hummer company out of business, but there were still an amazing number of them on the road. Neil's was fire engine red, and Noah was pretty sure it was the only red one he'd ever seen.
They parked at the restaurant, and had just gotten inside when Moose pulled in. Allison hadn't given them a specific time to be there, so they had agreed to meet early for breakfast. The hostess showed them all to a table, and a waitress arrived a moment later to start pouring coffee.
Neil slumped in his chair. “Why is it,” he asked, “that people in our line of work don't get to sleep in like normal human beings?”
“Because we're not normal human beings,” Moose said. “If we were, we wouldn't be in our line of work, now would we?”
Neil opened one eye and focused it on Moose's face. “You have a disgustingly valid point, and I now officially hate your guts.”
“Oh, good, does that mean I can kick your ass, now?” Moose looked at Noah. “He hates me, that means I can kick his ass, right?”
Noah shook his head. “Not until after we're done with him, and that might be a while.”
Neil stuck his tongue out at Moose, and Sarah suddenly burst out laughing. “Oh, my God, will you please grow up?”
Neil turned his eyes to her. “And just where exactly would be the fun in that?” He sat up again and reached for his coffee, added several packets of sugar and creamer, then stirred it up and took a sip. “I think they have the best coffee on the compound right here,” he said. “Remind me to find out what brand they use.”
“I already asked,” Noah said, “it's called Falco, and you have to buy it a hundred cases at a time. I thought about it, but even I don't drink enough coffee to justify that. I'd still be drinking it twenty years from now, and I'm not even sure I'll be alive that long.”
Sarah shrugged. “Too bad, it's really good. Maybe we should all go in together and buy a case, split it between the four of us. With that make it a better deal?”
They debated the merits of making such a large purchase, but never came to a conclusion. The waitress took their orders, and the food was back surprisingly quickly. They dug in and ate, and were just sitting there, having another cup of the wonderful coffee, when Mr. Jefferson walked in and took a chair at their table.
“Hello, Noah,” he said. “It seems that all those good reports I've been getting must be true. We'll be getting you ready for your first mission, now, and I must say I'm looking forward to watching you work.” He turned his eyes toward Moose, who suddenly looked like he wanted to be somewhere else. “And you would be Moose Conway, am I right? My daughter has told me a lot about you, and I want to tell you how much I appreciate the fact that she says you've been a perfect gentleman.”
Moose looked confused for a split second, and then his face cleared and he smiled. “No problem, Sir,” he said. “She's a wonderful girl.”
Jefferson smiled back. “Yes, she is, and I'm glad you see it that way.” He turned back to Noah. “So, it looks like you've already finished your breakfast?”
“Yes, Sir,” Noah said. “We're ready whenever you are.”
“Good, good,” Jefferson said. “Let me grab a cup of coffee to go, and we can get started.”
Jefferson went to the hostess station to order his coffee, while Noah and the others went to pay their tabs at the register. They all met outside a few minutes later.
“I'm in the Chrysler,” Jefferson said, pointing at a new sedan. “Just follow me, and have your ID ready when we get to the checkpoint.” He walked over and got into the car, while the others got into their own. A moment later, they were in a convoy following Jefferson.
The trip to the area known as Hollywood took almost half an hour, weaving through back roads and passing through several different gates. Each of them looked like it had seen better days, but when Jefferson's car approached them, they opened as if by magic. The last one, however, had a guard shack and two armed guards in what appeared to be black uniforms. Jefferson stopped, and Noah could see him showing ID to the guard.
The guard waved Jefferson through, and Noah pulled up to where he stood. He showed his own ID, while Sarah passed hers across, and the guard inspected both of them carefully, then looked closely at their faces. After a moment, he handed them back and told them to go on through, but cautioned them to stay close to Mr. Jefferson.
Neil and Moose made it through the gate a moment later, and caught up to Noah. Jefferson had pulled over and waited for them, so when he saw all of their vehicles make it through the gate, he honked his horn once and proceeded forward. Noah, Neil and Moose all fell back in behind him.
Another ten minutes brought them into what looked like a small town, but a close look at the buildings showed that most of them were simply hollow shells. There were streets laid out, but they were graveled rather than paved, and sidewalks were indicated by wooden pallets laid end to end. It was obvious that this location was used for mockups of different places around the world, and Noah was surprised to see street signs and even working stoplights.
“Somebody puts a lot of work into setting these up,” he said. “I mean, it's a great idea, because it gives you a sense of your battlefield even before you get to it.”
“Yeah, but from my point of view,” Sarah said, “it means I'm going to be practicing my routes on gravel, but the city streets will be asphalt. That could throw me off a bit, if we have to do any precision driving.”
“If that becomes necessary, I'll make sure we get a few extra days in Mexico so that you can get the feel of the streets.” He looked over at her. “I have confidence in you, so have it in yourself.”
Sarah grinned at him. “I haven't had any problem with self-confidence since I was a teenager,” she said. “Trust me, I can handle whatever road I have to drive.”
Jefferson pulled over, and Noah parked behind him. They were just in front of the mockup of the bar, and when everyone had parked, they gathered in front of the building.
“Okay, boys and girls,” Jefferson said. “We're going to go inside and just get the lay of the place. There are a few people already here, including the bartender and a few of his hookers and some customers. You can interact with anyone you want to, but remember that they're all going to stay in character. Today, and today only, you can ask them point-blank questions about the character they are playing. Each of them has studied up on their character, although some of them are playing composites, because customers come and go, and so do hookers. The bartender has studied Eduardo Hernandez to the point that he can tell you almost anything about the man, and later, you'll see people playing Henrique Valdes and Pablo Ortiz in here, as well. Those two know their characters inside out.”
He led them inside, and they went to a table toward the back of the room. Noah looked around, and realized that great effort had gone into making the interior look genuine. There was chipped plaster on the walls and ceiling, along with signs in Spanish all over the place, and the shelves and coolers had been stocked the way they would be in the real tavern.
A number of people were inside, and Noah heard the word “gringo” a couple of times. The actors were all speaking in Spanish, and seemed to be laughing at the obvious Americans. That would be in character, of course, since tourists didn't frequent Eduardo's Tavern. Just the fact that Americans had walked in would be a strong indication that they were either interested in doing some sort of business that wasn't legal, or else they were very, very stupid.
Noah had taken Spanish in high school and could speak it fluently, but it struck him that he might want to keep that fact a secret, at least for the moment. He kept his eyes moving, watching everyone, and a moment later, the bartender came toward the table.
“Señores,” he said. “Oh, and forgive me, señorita, how can I help you?” The man's accent was perfect, and he appeared to be genuinely of Latino origin.
Jefferson glanced around the table. “I know it's a little early, but beers all
around?” Everyone nodded, so he ordered five bottles of beer. The bartender grinned and nodded, then hurried away and returned a moment later with five very small bottles of Modelo beer.
“Do we really have to drink these?” Neil asked. “I don't think my stomach can take it, this early in the day.”
Jefferson shrugged. “All we’re doing is staying in character,” he said. “It's doubtful that Camelot will have you actually present in the bar during the real mission, but just in case something happened and you needed to be familiar with it, we brought you along. You don't have to drink the beer, but just let it sit on the table in front of you.”
“Or pass it to me,” Moose said. “Sometimes, I have beer for breakfast.” He tipped up his own bottle and guzzled it, then switched it for Neil's. Neil gave him a halfhearted grin and rolled his eyes.
Jefferson looked at Noah. “The whole idea here is to let you become as familiar with the most likely scenario as you can be. Ortiz is a very difficult man to get close to, and about the only time he's ever in any position that might be considered vulnerable is when he decides to go to his nephew's bar to drink and party. From what we know of him, he seems to think it's the safest place he can go, and if you study the urban layout, you'll see that the place is incredibly defensible. The back door opens onto an alley that is gated on both ends, and the door itself is made of steel, almost three-quarters of an inch thick. The only windows in the place are on the front of the building, as you can see, and the way the room is laid out, there are several tables that are completely out of any line of sight—or line of fire—from anywhere outside the building. That means that any attack on him would have to come through the front door, or crash through the big window, and Ortiz generally has enough goons and firepower with him to handle anything up to a small platoon.”
