by David Capps
“Do you know exactly how they are producing the solar storms?” Jake asked.
“All I know is it is being done from the space station in orbit around the sun,” the Professor replied.
“Can you tell us the name of anyone you know who is in the Phoenix Organization?” Jake asked.
“Everyone I ever knew or worked for in the Organization is already dead,” the Professor replied.
“Thank you, Professor,” General Davies said. He turned to face Jake. “We have one more stop to make today, so if you will follow me?”
On the way down in the elevator Jake asked, “What about Senator Thornton? We need to take him into custody.”
General Davies smiled. “He’s not going anywhere. We have people making sure he’ll be there. I assume you would like to do the honors?”
“I’m so looking forward to slapping the cuffs on him,” Jake replied.
“That’s what I thought,” General Davies replied. “You need to fully understand the situation before you question him.”
* * *
The car traffic from the morning had dramatically subsided. Once people realized that the stores were empty, and because there was no electricity, they couldn’t pump any gasoline, they went home to wait it out.
The limo drove for two hours west into the mountains of Virginia. They passed through a heavily armed military gate and soon dipped into a long tunnel penetrating deep into the solid rock. When they stopped, General Davies led them to an elevator and down twelve floors to a command center.
The room was filled with the latest screens and displays, manned by people in Army and Air Force uniforms.
“Colonel, will you bring up an image of the satellite?” General Davies asked.
“Main screen,” the Colonel replied. “The satellite has been under construction for the last decade. It was constructed in folded up pieces transported by their space vehicles to the satellite in orbit, and unfolded in space. It reached completion six months ago.” The view was on an oblique angle, but it was clear the satellite was circular in nature and extremely large.
“How big is that?” Jake asked.
“Top to bottom?” the Colonel asked. “Approximately 110 miles. Area wise, it’s 9,500 square miles, a little bigger than the State of New Jersey.”
“How could they support something that big? I mean, it’s got to weigh tons,” Jake asked.
“It’s in orbit. Near zero gravity. Orbital period is seventeen days.”
“Of course it is. How does it work?”
The Colonel used a laser pointer and circled a small dot to the right of the satellite. “This is the Pulse Generator. An electromagnetic pulse is projected toward the Reflector satellite, which is a type of parabolic antenna. The pulse is then directed and focused on the surface of the sun where it creates a flare and a subsequent CME.”
“What about yesterday’s solar storm?” Jake asked.
“That was created by something we haven’t seen before. Approximately eighteen hours before the solar storm hit us, this happened.”
The screen showed a bright flash of white light that spread out, dissipated and gradually disappeared. To the right, a massive flare erupted on the surface of the sun, pulling a huge section of the corona with it. The CME had begun.
“What the hell was that?” Jake asked.
“We believe it was a nuclear detonation.”
“What size?”
“Yield?” the Colonel asked. “We are estimating 1,000 tons of TNT equivalent.”
“Oh, God,” Jake said. “The missing nuclear artillery shell.”
“The W79?” Stafford asked.
“Did it damage the satellite reflector?” Jake asked.
“No. For this type of antenna, there are two focal points. The primary focal point is the source of the EMP, the secondary point is on the surface of the sun. The distance from the primary focal point to the antenna is approximately 200 miles—too far away to sustain any damage. Here on the ground or in the air, the primary effect of a nuclear detonation is the fireball, the heat and the shockwave. In outer space there is no air, so the primary effect is an electromagnetic pulse.”
“Which was focused on the surface of the sun,” Jake said.
“Producing a Carrington level event and the damage we experienced yesterday.”
“So how did they get the W79 from here to the satellite?” Stafford asked.
Jake closed his eyes and frowned. “The Phoenix Organization has its own fleet of flying saucers They flew it out there.” Jake turned back to the Colonel. “What would happen if a 1.2 megaton thermonuclear warhead were used as the EMP source?”
“Theoretically? You’d be looking at 1200 times the size of the CME. If that hit us, you’re looking at an Extinction Level Event. Only people deep underground would survive.”
Jake thought for a moment. “Can’t we just send a nuclear missile out there and blow it up?”
“We tried that. Several times. With the level of our technology, it takes three months to get a warhead to where the reflector satellite is. They simply fly out to the warhead and hit it with some kind of energy-based weapon and destroy it. We never even get close.”
“So you’re thinking the B83 is on its way to the same satellite?” Stafford asked.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Jake asked in reply.
“And there’s no way for us to get to it in time,” Honi said. “Even if we somehow were able to get a nuclear missile through, it would take three months to get there. We have only two weeks. It can’t be done.”
“Maybe, maybe not,” Jake replied. “Two general scenarios—one, the bomb is set with an internal timer and will detonate whether the world surrenders to them or not, so the whole world domination thing is a ruse. Or two—the deadline to surrender is real and someone has to send the detonation signal. If that’s the case, we stop the signal, we stop the Event.”
“But that still leaves the bomb and the reflector satellite in place,” Honi said. “That means that every seventeen days they have another window to send that detonation signal. We would never be safe.”
“So a more permanent solution is needed,” Jake replied.
“Ultimately, yes,” General Davies added. “We have known this group existed for at least ten years, but we have been unable to find out who the members are. Because of you and your team, we now know some of the people we depended on to investigate the group were in the Phoenix Organization themselves. You uncovered three major players in just the last week. That’s why I recommended you to the President. Now that the four of you understand the situation and what’s at stake, it’s time to go get Senator Thornton.”
CHAPTER 15
General Davies dropped Jake and Honi off at the entrance to the FBI building at Pennsylvania and 9th in D.C.
“You’re going to need a regular bureau car to transport Senator Thornton,” General Davies said. “Major Stafford and Agent Bartholomew will meet you in front of the Capitol building.”
Ten minutes later, Jake and Honi arrived at the main entrance to the Capitol building. Stafford and Ken were standing there with four other men in suits.
“These are four of the soldiers from the President’s Unit,” Stafford explained. “They will handle any problems that arise.”
The team of eight climbed the stairs and went through security. Each member of the team was armed and showed IDs to the capitol security officers. Jake glanced at their IDs. They didn’t look like soldiers; they looked like Homeland Security, just as their IDs said. One of them carried a dark satchel with what looked like a briefcase inside it.
“Those IDs real?” Jake asked one of them quietly.
“Why?” he replied. “Don’t they look real?” He flashed a big smile at Jake.
Jake chuckled. “Looked real to me.”
They entered Senator Thornton’s office on the second floor. Thornton’s secretary and Chief of Staff moved to block access to the Senator’s office. Jake held out his ID.
“How many years do you want to spend in prison?” Jake asked.
The two hesitated and then stepped aside. Jake, Honi, Stafford and Ken entered the inner office with three of the soldiers close behind, including the one with the satchel.
“What the hell are you doing in my office?” Senator Thornton demanded. “Get out!”
Jake showed him his ID pack.
“You want to talk to me, you go through my attorney. Now get out!”
“You’re coming with us,” Jake said firmly. The three soldiers moved in back of the Senator.
“The hell I am,” Thornton replied. “I know you don’t have a warrant, so get out of here before I call security!”
“I don’t need a warrant,” Jake stated.
“Says who?” Thornton replied defiantly.
Jake held the Executive Order up for him to read. Senator Thornton breathed out heavily.
“That son of a bitch.”
Jake took the Senator’s left hand and slapped the cuff on. “Turn around.”
The Senator turned. Jake took the other hand and secured it in the cuffs behind Thornton’s back. The group of eight led him out of the Capitol, while other members of congress and their staffs looked on in stunned silence.
“Where are we going to take him?” Honi asked. “Someone is going to try to get him out, just like they did with General Teague.”
The soldier who had talked with Jake earlier said, “No worries. We have a place.” They put Thornton in the back of Jake’s bureau car with Honi sitting beside him. The soldier held his hand out, “I’ll drive, if you don’t mind, sir.”
“You have a name?” Jake asked.
“Dave Smith,” the soldier replied. “Agent Bartholomew can ride with my brother, Ron Smith, and Major Stafford will go with my other brother, George Smith, in the third car.”
“And the fourth guy?” Jake asked.
“Hank,” Dave replied.
“Hank Smith?”
“Of course,” Dave answered.
Jake looked at the other soldiers. “Not much of a family resemblance.”
“It happens,” Dave replied.
The three-car procession took off southwest and drove about a mile before each car turned in a different direction. The car Jake and Honi were in pulled into a three-story parking structure and up the ramp to the second level. Jake saw five identical cars with dark tinted windows parked in a row, all with identical license plates. Everybody got out and the group slid into one of the five waiting cars. All five vehicles pulled out onto the street and went in different directions.
“We assume someone will be tracking the Senator,” Dave said. “This is our version of the shell game.”
Dave drove for ten minutes, and then turned into another multi-level parking structure. Three more cars waited—different make and color, tinted windows, and identical license plates. They traded cars once again and drove away.
“This would give your friends at the NSA headaches,” Dave said to Honi.
“It would,” she replied. “How long did it take you to organize something this complex?”
“This? This isn’t complex. We put this together while you were inside the mountain learning about the reflector satellite.”
“You know about that?”
“We know a lot about a great number of things, ma’am. It’s just part of the job.”
“I bet,” she replied looking over at Senator Thornton. From the look on his face, the realization that no one was going to rescue him soon was sinking in. An hour later they arrived at a small farmhouse in the hills of Virginia. Two more members of the President’s Unit were waiting for them. Senator Thornton was ushered in and strapped to a stout wooden chair with large plastic zip-ties. Jake pulled a chair over and sat in front of Thornton. Honi stood, watching, as did Dave Smith.
“Okay,” Jake said. “This is how it’s going to work. You are going to get a lot of opportunities to talk with me. In between those opportunities, these guys are going to have an opportunity to do what they do.”
“You haven’t read me my rights,” Thornton said. “You can’t use any of this in a court of law.”
“That’s because there isn’t going to be a trial. You don’t exist anymore. Your future is being moved from one black site to another, each one worse than the one before.”
Thornton looked over at Jake. He had a mixture of fear and superiority on his face.
“I’m not going to be here that long.”
“Oh,” Jake said in an exaggerated tone of understanding. “You think the Phoenix Organization is going to rescue you, just as they did General Teague? The only reason they bothered with Teague is they still needed him for the second weapon.”
Thornton looked startled.
“Yeah, we know about the Event. It’s in…” Jake held the countdown watch on his wrist up so Thornton could see. “Fifteen days, nine hours, three minutes and twenty-seven seconds. Keep in mind—you’ll be well underground at that time. This isn’t going to end…well, not pleasantly…or quickly. So if you don’t have anything to contribute you’ll have another opportunity later today.” Jake started to get up.
“Wait.”
Jake sat back down. “I’m listening.”
“You don’t know what you’re dealing with. I can help you understand the technology. I can…”
“You mean the saucers, the anti-gravity drives, going to the Moon and to Mars, how the EMP reflector works, the gold bonds, the trillions in counterfeit hundred dollar bills, the secret university research? We already understand all of that. Now, if you want to talk about the names of people who are at the top of the Phoenix Organization, I’m listening.”
“You pathetic little moron,” Thornton said in a loud voice. “You have no idea of the power that stands against you. Just because you barbarians happen to capture me doesn’t change anything. I’m a sacrificial pawn. You won’t learn anything from me. You’re not worthy of the knowledge we have. You’re just ignorant cattle, nothing more!”
“Give me the name of the person you report to,” Jake said calmly.
“I don’t know! Everything is extremely compartmentalized. It’s run by dead drops and cut outs. Nobody knows who they work for or who works for them. It’s an anonymous network!”
“You knew Sylvia Cuthbert.”
“Who’s that?”
“Your contact inside the NSA,” Jake replied, carefully watching Thornton’s face.
Thornton looked down at the floor. “I didn’t know her name. I didn’t know where she worked. All I knew was the sound of her voice and that the information she gave me was reliable.”
“Who did you pass the information to?”
“I told you, I don’t know.”
“How was the information passed?”
“I used a burner cell phone with preprogrammed numbers. The only thing that remained the same was the sequence of the programmed numbers. Speed dial number one was always the guy I reported to, the rest were people I gave orders to, always in the same order. Every week I got a new phone with new numbers.”
“How did you get the phone?”
“Every Monday night, once it got dark, I would put the phone in a plastic box hidden in the shrubs at the back of my yard. First thing Tuesday morning a new phone would be in the box.”
“Was there any surveillance of the area?”
Thornton gave him a disgusted look. “Do you think I would risk the lives of my family members by doing that? Of course there wasn’t any surveillance. I’m not stupid!”
“Where is the burner phone now?”
“It’s in my briefcase, in my office. By now, my secretary will have locked it in the safe. You’re never going to get it in time.”
“Where is the control center for the satellite located?”
Thornton shrugged. “I have no idea.”
Jake stood up and walked over to Honi and Dave. “What do you think?”
“I think he really doesn’t know
anything more than that,” Honi said.
Jake looked at Dave. “Probably true. If I was going to set up a network like that, I’d do it the same way.”
“It would help if we could get his briefcase,” Jake said.
Dave tipped his head toward the back room. The three of them went through the open door, which Dave quietly closed behind them.
“You mean this briefcase?” Dave asked.
Jake looked at the expensive-looking tan leather case. That’s what was inside the satchel one of the soldiers had carried into Senator Thornton’s office.
“We swapped it out. Thornton’s secretary put an identical briefcase with six pads of blank paper into the safe. We have his computer, burner phone and a few other items we picked up in his office. You put on a great show when you arrested Thornton. Everybody was watching you, which gave us the chance to collect some evidence. Nice job, by the way.”
“I didn’t see any of that,” Jake said.
“You weren’t supposed to. Neither was anyone else.”
“So what do we do with Thornton?” Honi asked.
“Can you keep him out of circulation?” Jake asked.
“Sure,” Dave said. “We have the perfect place.”
“Meanwhile, Agent Badger and I have to get back to the NSA building,” Jake said. “Now that we have Thornton’s phone and computer, we will understand more about how the Phoenix Organization’s communication network functions. We have to modify our database.”
* * *
When Jake and Honi arrived at the NSA building, Stafford and Ken were waiting for them in the lobby. Honi led them down to B6, area 4.
“Brett,” Honi said. “We have to modify the phone plot. Phones are swapped out every Monday night, so every Tuesday we have new numbers, but the phone sequence within each phone remains the same.”
“Okay. Hierarchal structure?”
“Yes.”
“So the person will call subordinates and his or her boss, but the boss will not call his or her subordinates. That kind of structure?”
