by Dave Nesbit
“Of course not.” I said.
“Yeah, we're totally all about being serious as hell with our training boss.” Ramon said with the sort of grin that made me think of a cat with canary feathers in its mouth.
“They’re lying; we loved it.” Rachel continued.
“Her honesty is kind of refreshing and terrifying all at once.” Mr. Thomas said with a shake of his head.
“You get used to it.” Ramon said as we followed him outside. Where a Humvee was waiting for us. After we got in we took the ride back quietly. We'd been doing three such exercises a week, working on combined tactics and procedures for handling situations. After being dumped at the deep end during the storm they had gone to great lengths to make sure that we wouldn't be unprepared for our next real life encounter.
The central briefing room at the school was alive with video monitors. Playing and replaying elements of the exercise as General Watson and Mr. Hamilton looked them over. We grabbed coffee, tea and soda as each of us saw fit, and took our seats around the long oval table. Not wanting to disturb them as they watched, we remained quiet and took a few moments to relax. Even Mr. Thomas took the chance to chill a moment and respond to a text on his phone.
Finally, Watson turned around and looked us all over. “Congratulations, that was nearly flawless, it was sudden, effective and limited the possibility of injury to civilians.” He paused and looked at me. “Although you might want to keep in mind that as an agency we will be responsible for collateral damage.”
I ran my hand through my hair nervously. “I promise to try to keep it under twenty grand a mission.”
“We'll work on that.” Hamilton said hurriedly as he gave me a look that made me decide not to say anything else. “Now then, the good news is you're one of three houses approved to go operational.” He said taking a seat to the right of the General.
“The way you say that implies there’s bad news as well.” Lynn said.
“We have intelligence that two ‘Touched’ are planning a bank job soon.” Watson said. “Check your tablets.”
As he said that we all got a beeping sound from our tablets signaling we had incoming messages. “I take it that means soon is measured in days?” I said.
“Maybe even hours.” Hamilton said. “You might remember one of the people involved.” I opened the dossier section of the file we'd been sent and grinned. “You're fucking kidding me.”
The picture was of our dear friend Jimmy Blake. Former housemate and all around asshole.
“Isn’t it amazing how two bad people can find each other. Jimmy has apparently taken to being a smash and grab artist since he left our company.” Watson said. “Mr. Blake has made a habit of hitting jewelry stores in and around the Chicago/Milwaukee area. Then he linked up with this gentleman.”
The big monitor in the room lit up, the image on it was slightly blurry, the picture showed a guy in his late twenties or thirties with brown hair and sharp handsome slavic features.
“Meet Vasily Ishaneko. Former Russian national, now a naturalized American citizen. He came here to go to school and never left. Along the way picked up degrees in electrical and mechanical engineering.” Hamilton said. “When the comet graced us with its presence he apparently gained an ability to control electricity. Since then he's gone from causing ATMs to vomit money to trashing bank security systems, there are rumors he's also been taking work as a hitman.”
“I take it there's a good chance it's a lethal force situation.” Ramon said. We had been briefed on what that might mean for us, but I had been hoping we might avoid being in one for a little longer.
“Afraid so.” Hamilton said. “The good news is the murders he may have had a hand in were done at a distance. The people at the FBI's behavioral analysis unit have considered the idea that he likes to play chess master and arrange for things to happen but will likely want to avoid a major confrontation.”
“And if they're wrong?” Rachel asked.
“You are authorized to do whatever you feel is essential to protect yourself and others.” Watson said calmly lacing his fingers together and sitting back. Rachel smiled reminding me of a cat who had found a mouse hole to stake out.
“Maybe you shouldn't have said that with Rachel here.” Shawn said rolling his eyes.
“Asshole.” Rachel said and tossed a rolled up napkin at him. Shawn jokingly stuck his tongue out in return.
“Now then, go home get rested up, and review your notes. We have an action plan ready, review it and see what changes you think might need to be made.” Watson said then stood up to leave. He didn't say “dismissed” but he might as well have.
We walked back to the house quietly; all of us lost in our thoughts. It was one thing to handle saving a ship in a storm. A storm has no desire to harm you. It just exists and you fight against it. Now we would be facing two members of “The Touched”. We knew their abilities; one concretely, the other abstractly. In this case though, the people we would be up against had a plan and likely would adjust and account for being confronted.
After slipping out of my action suit and making sure I had a clean one on standby. I slipped into sweats and a t-shirt looking over the briefing report we had been given. My “leadership courses” had taught me to not dismiss any details in these things. Any tendency could be a weakness to exploit or a strength to avoid.
Rachel sat across from me, reading from her tablet as well. “I bet you're looking forward to seeing Jimmy again.”
“If by see you mean pound him like a tent stake; well sure, you’re right.” I answered as I looked through the information on display and tried to make sense of the map around the building.
“We're gonna have to be careful.” She said. “I wanna make sure we get him and his buddy. If we get all pissed off beforehand we're likely gonna miss a chance to bring them both in.”
“Wait a second, did you just counsel caution and restraint? Who are you and what did you do to Rachel?” I inquired in a mock accusatory tone. Rachel laughed at me from the couch.
“Seriously, part of me just wants to nail him because of what he did. Then there's the part of me that wants to kick his ass because every time he knocks a place over he makes the rest of us look bad.” Rachel said and went back to studying.
“I'm with you.” All of us were tired of seeing the latest news of some “Touched” taking advantage of their abilities at another’s expense. I’m sure Human’s for Humanity would have existed without that, people rarely need an excuse to think ill of a stranger, but I doubt their numbers would have been as big without them being given examples of us at our worst.
Now we just needed a good plan to reel both of them in.
Chapter 34
I think I can be forgiven for missing people's hidden depths. It's a pretty common thing for us all really. When you're used to seeing someone's day to day behavior it becomes the norm and a bar is set for their actions in your mind.
Lynn was the classic example of this. I keep pointing out how scared she could be at things I consider routine. She was getting better, perhaps because she was finally in the company of people who encouraged her to find her strength. Still though, it was a surprise when she did show it off.
We were making yet another escape out of the school. It was pre-Christmas shopping time and we were splitting duty with another house to watch the bank. While one team watched the other got to relax. As a reward we got turned loose just after regular classes on a Friday.
I called Cathy but my luck was crap, she was doing something with her folks that day. I got into the car with Rachel and Lynn. Settling into the backseat and smiling as state troopers pulled up behind us to block out the media chase cars. Thankfully those had thinned out a bit. I think the smaller news networks were getting tired of the repair bills and insurance deductibles for cars that followed “The Touched” around.
Funny how weird things happen to the obnoxious around us. It was almost like there were unseen forces manipulating events in ou
r favor. That was our story and we were sticking to it if anyone asked.
The drive was relatively mellow till we got to Lakeshore Drive. I was taking in the sight of the whitecaps on the lake as Rachel and Lynn talked about where they were planning on shopping. Because we were now an operational team our weekly allotment had gone up considerably, and they had plans on a mad clothes buying spree. I, on the other hand, had my eyes on stereo gear. If I didn't have the money for it now, I likely would when Dad sealed the deal with Adidas. As it was, I could use my skills as a veteran window shopper to price out the system I wanted.
With thoughts of McIntosh gear in my head I could be forgiven for missing what happened next.
All I knew was, I was suddenly pitched forward into the seat belt as the driver slammed on his brakes. From ahead of us, I heard squealing tires and a crash of metal on metal. Looking up through the windshield, I could see that a giant SUV and a smaller Toyota hatchback had a massive collision about 20 feet ahead of us.
The driver was trying to figure out what to do when I saw Lynn open the door and sprint out of the car toward the wreck. Rachel hauled herself out of her seat, a half step behind her.
“Fuck.” I said under my breath and opened my own door to follow. Lynn was trying to force a door open and I could see her eyes turning into the black pools they became when her power kicked in.
As I closed in, I could see fluids leaking from back end of the SUV. “Of course.” I thought as I smelled gas leaking from the back. “Nothing like volatile fluids falling onto a hot engine.”
Just as I had that cheery thought flames came from the front end of the Toyota. Now let's be clear, cars don't often catch fire in crashes. In fact, it's quite rare, but when the gas tank of one vehicle is compromised the end result can be really messy.
Rachel was using her ability to open a space in the car so Lynn could get closer. I could see a lady inside who seemed barely conscious. In the back there was a baby seat, with a small child in it. Thankfully our luck was holding. The kid was crying up a storm but seemed okay.
As the flames climbed up through the engine compartment and more gas spilled out, I took a moment to focus. The driver of the SUV was climbing out looking stunned, then he saw the fire and backed up.
‘Fuck it.’ I thought. Then reached out and felt the vehicle with my mind’s eye. Heat caused a minor distortion of the magnetic field but it was no feat to find the gas tank then grab it with my power and yank it loose.
It took the barest hint of energy for me to pitch it into the lake. Then I felt the fuel line leading from the car and pinched it shut with a thought.
Rachel was opening the car further with her ability so she could get to the kid in the back. Lynn was totally lost in her own world as she laid hands on the woman in the front seat. Which would have been fine, but the fire in the engine compartment had a life of its own now.
Thankfully the guy in the SUV and our car's driver had the same idea at the same time. Both had found fire extinguishers in their cars and came up and blasted the front of the Toyota with them. The flames died away quickly.
As they did, Lynn opened her eyes and they slowly came back to normal. The lady in the car shook herself in a daze and stepped out of the car. Lynn moved back as Rachel grabbed the baby from the back and held onto it while the lady tried to make sense of what just happened.
From behind us I could hear emergency vehicles. This was all going to be sorted out quickly.
I walked over to Lynn. “Are you okay?”
She nodded reflexively. “I'm good.” She said with a smile.
“Hey; next time you want to jump in to save the day could you maybe wait for me to put the fire out first?” I responded with a grin. I was somewhere between relieved and pissed over all this, but I was settling on relieved. No one was dead and this was now more of an issue for insurance companies than ER docs and the coroner.
“I knew you and Rachel had me covered, and her pain was...” She stopped her sentence as she seemed to remember it.
“Look just do me a favor and never do that as a solo act.” I said with a smile. “Ya done good.” I added with a grin. The cops were pulling up now and I could see a fire engine coming up behind them.
Rachel handed the baby to its mother. “Think this is gonna ruin our shopping?”
“Not if we can get the cops to take our statement before Hamilton finds out.” Lynn said.
With no preamble Rachel walked over and grabbed a cop from one of the cars and promptly began giving her statement. There was no way to hide my smile.
Is it possible for doing the impossible to become routine? I wasn't sure, but when the impossible saved lives it made me feel like maybe we were helping to make the world a little bit better a piece at a time.
One of the other police officers came toward us. Before he got too close, Lynn moved next to me. “I really did good?” She asked.
“Do you even have to ask?” I responded. “You're amazing, don't let anyone tell ya different.”
Chapter 35
The great thing about a Chicago winter is that it gives you an excuse to wear a mask. Currently I was wearing a wool balaclava style mask. The one that only has an eye slit. Over it I had my school issue glasses as I hung out outside of a coffee shop across the street from the Chicago branch of the Federal Reserve.
The building itself was downtown on Lasalle street. Its huge Roman columns and granite facade spoke of an age when buildings were made to make a statement; not just exist as a kind of utilitarian construct to transact business. It had the rock hard feel of a cathedral mixed with a kind of drab determinism that spoke of its nature as a center of commerce. Just looking at it made you feel the building had a deep reserve of power all its own. Sitting there for decades, like it was storing potential energy for an unknown moment.
Looking over I saw Rachel, she was wearing a red ski jacket with a blue hoodie underneath it and was keeping her head down. “What if they choose another way in?” I heard her ask over the throat mic she was wearing.
“I got the employee entrance covered.” Ramon said. “No trace.”
“Sure 15 degrees out. And here we are waiting for our friends to show.” I said.
“Could you guys maybe keep the channel clear?” Hamilton said curtly over the radio.
“Rachel started it.” I said. Doing my best to egg her on. What can I say? I was bored.
“Did not.” She said back.
“Did too.”
“Seriously, clear the channel.” Shawn said cutting in. “I've got an anomaly.”
“What kind?” Hamilton barked over the radio. You could hear both the tension and the excitement in his voice. For him, having us actually take down a “Touched” bad guy would be a huge coup.
“Big electrical spike on the north end of the building.” Shawn paused. “Looks like it's from...”
Suddenly I could hear alarms from inside the building. “Guys he's on the roof.” Shawn said.
“Ryan get up top, Rachel and Ramon head inside and check for intruders.” Hamilton said.
I didn't see the look on the guy-next-to-me’s face when I took off and headed to the roof, but I'm sure it must have been funny as hell. At that moment though, I was a bit too focused on who I might find up on top of the building itself. Stretching my senses out, I felt for any kind of energetic resonance but all I felt was a rapidly dampening field from the top of the building.
Getting up there, I saw the issue. Someone had attached a car battery and then put a circuit on a timer leading into an electrical board at the top of the building. “No joy up here...” I said.
The alarms were still going and I could hear confusion over the radio. Turning hard I flew back down and waited, stretching my senses, when I felt a familiar sensation. Something metallic moving at a high rate of speed.
‘Hi Jimmy.’ I thought.
“We've got incoming.” I said. “High speed coming down Lasalle.”
“Gotcha. Tracking.” Shawn
said. He had a couple of drones up in the air. They could read normal vision or infrared and could keep up with high speeds.
“Let him pass.” Hamilton said. “Let's see if we can get them both. Now then, Ryan get inside and assist.”
From over the ear phones I wore I could hear shouting going on as I literally flew into the building. I probably missed Jimmy by about two seconds as he entered. Which is when I decided to help myself to a little payback. He paused as he came in to orient himself.
Which is when I flew over him, grabbed the back of his shirt and pitched him into a wall. Not quite as hard as I could, but damn close. He flew past a man wearing a red jump suit and hit the wall upside down. Then slid down slowly. Not moving.
Every now and then you get just a second to savor a moment of triumph. I'd been wanting to paste Jimmy since he had pounded my kidneys in. That second passed rapidly as the guy in the red jumpsuit looked me over and sparks flew from his hands making a Tesla arc.
Rachel looked at me, then down at the floor. Now at least part of the plan came clear. When the circuit lit up the board it had triggered the fire alarm and water sprinkler system. Everyone here with a few exceptions was standing in ankle deep water and our friend Vasily was making a very clear threat. While, at the same time, several masked men were ransacking the vault. I had a feeling if we tried to interrupt them Vasily would use his power on the water, frying all the bystanders.
From the corner of my eye I could see Ramon coming in through the back office doors then moving people out that way quietly. In my ear I heard Rachel ask. “You got any bright ideas?”
“How are you with wood?” I whispered very quietly into my mic.
“Huh?” She asked, then she got it.
Two desks suddenly shot forward and put themselves between the man in the red jump suit and his hands. He tried to focus his power through them, but the wood, which was particle board and very dry, didn't conduct the current. Although it did start a nice fire. As she did that Ramon came forward and punched him right behind the bottom of the ear, and he went down in a lump.
