Lean on Me

by Claudia Hall Christian

  Hector James and Hermes were thriving.

  Around the time when Wyatt Klaussen moved in with Max, her old sensei Steve Pershing appeared. He arrived two hours after she had been medically cleared to work out. The next week was like a scar of pain on Alex’s brain. Steve set up brutal workouts for Colin, Max, Matthew, and Alex. By the beginning of the second week, Alex could almost walk by herself. The third week, she and Max ran the stairs at Red Rocks. She was pain free and fit for duty.

  Max’s partner, Wyatt, was a great addition to their household. Having grown up in a large family, he took to the flow of people and housework. He encouraged Samantha to join him in evening walks around the park. He and Fionn came up with a plan to create garden beds in their backyard next spring. To “catch up with Max’s better half,” he and Alex began having early morning coffee together. Cian gave him a long list of weekly chores, which he did without comment. Much to Alex and Max’s delight, everyone fell in love with Wyatt.

  The next snapshot was more private and softer. Weaved among the boring work, terrible pain, and family interactions, Alex remembered John. His kindness was as deep as his willingness to bully her into health. In these moments of pain and struggle, Alex felt like she saw her husband with new eyes. He was handsome, well, gorgeous in her eyes. He was also funny, smart, and gloriously fit. He loved her. She’d known these things.

  In the private, secret moments, she felt touched by the beauty of his soul. They made love as much as they could. They laughed more than they probably should have. They played with the kids, went to movies, read books, and streamed old television shows until they could repeat the dialogue. Somewhere along the way, their love deepened.

  By the time there was snow on the ground, Alex knew one thing for sure. She might be good at rescuing hostages; she hoped she was a kind sister; she was sometimes a great spy; she worked to be a capable soldier; she tried to be a loving daughter; but she was placed on this planet to love this man, and this man alone.

  “Whatcha thinking?” Raz asked.

  “Nothing,” Alex smiled.

  “Ready to work?”

  “Let’s find some hostages.”

  FFF

  Thursday night

  December 24 – 11:47 p.m. MST

  The Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception

  Denver, CO

  Alex watched her mother’s mouth move. She was talking, but Alex wasn’t listening. Everything was good, too good to listen to her mother’s nagging. Max shifted on her right side. She turned to smile at him. John slipped his arm around her and commented on whatever Rebecca was saying. Alex looked toward the front of the Cathedral. Across the pews, she saw old friends and a few new faces. At the end of the pew, she noticed Julie slip in next to Colin. He put his arm around her and kissed her head. She leaned into him. Alex smiled. She was so focused on watching people that she didn’t notice when her cell phone buzzed. Max tapped her shoulder.

  “Your phone’s vibrating against my leg,” Max said.

  “Makes you hot, doesn’t it?” Alex asked.

  “Kind of,” Max said.

  “What are you going to do about it?” Smiling brightly, Alex raised her eyebrows, daring him to do something crazy in church.

  “What’s going on over there?” Wyatt asked from the other side of Max.

  “Don’t ask,” John said. “It’s best to ignore them.”

  Alex and Max laughed.

  “Your phone?” Max asked.

  “Oh right,” Alex answered her phone. “Hargreaves.”

  “Alex?” a woman’s panic-filled voice came through her phone. “Is that you?”

  “This is Alex Hargreaves,” Alex looked around the church. If she got up now, she would miss the service. If she missed the service, she’d hear about it from her mother. Max grimaced and nodded. He thought she would have to get to work. He waved.

  “Alex, it’s Dani,” she said. “You remember that thing we wanted to do, and did, but then were ordered not to do after it was already done? We tracked it because we weren’t ordered not to track it, just not to do it, but we’d already done it, and then it went dark?”

  Alex stood up and moved to leave. Concerned, John grabbed her hand. She gave him a soft smile. She mouthed “work” and he nodded. She leaned down and kissed his cheek. He whispered “love you.” She smiled at him and moved toward the aisle.

  “Dani, I’m in church,” Alex said. “Can I call you back in…?”

  “No. Don’t you dare hang up on me,” Dani said. Alex could hear her start a vehicle. “Don’t hang up. Don’t hang up. Don’t hang up. Don’t hang up.”

  “Okay, okay,” Alex said.

  “It took me forever to get your number. I had to threaten to post the night Sergeant’s novel on Pirate Bay to get this number.”

  As Alex moved down the aisle, the music swelled to signal the beginning of Mass.

  “Aren’t you on maternity leave?” Alex asked.

  “That’s what I’m trying to tell you,” Dani said.

  She looked up to see Matthew, Zack, and Colin moving down the aisle with her. Vince stood near the door waiting for them.

  “What’s going on Dani?” Alex grimaced at the blast of cold air outside the church.

  “You remember we did that thing…” Dani started.

  “I remember,” Alex said. “But it’s been dark.”

  “It was dark,” Dani said. “I marked the signal as important. The signal went bright about ten minutes ago, two minutes before my phone rang. I’ve been called into Cheyenne Mountain. I wish this stupid car’s heater worked. It’s freezing cold.”

  She heard Dani pound on the car’s dashboard.

  “Cheyenne Mountain? Why?” Alex asked. “Where’s the signal?”

  “Some place in North Dakota. They won’t tell me where,” Dani said. “But Alex, you’d better get there. It’s brass and they aren’t happy. ‘Get out of bed. We don’t care that it’s Christmas. Guess you’ll have to get here fast so your children won’t miss Santa.’ And crap like that.”

  MJ came out of the church.

  “The Jakker’s with me,” Alex touched Zack’s arm. He nodded and took out his cell phone. “Most of the team is with their families all over the country for the holiday, Dani.”

  “You’d better show,” Dani said. “That’s all I can say.”

  “I’ll be there,” Alex said.

  “See you under the mountain,” Dani said.

  The phone went dead. Alex tapped the disposable phone against her top lip. MJ dropped her heavy winter jacket over her shoulders.

  “I want to remind you that you still have an infection,” MJ said. “This cold…”

  “We’re going under the mountain,” Alex said.

  “What?” Vince asked.

  “I’ve been summoned to Cheyenne Mountain,” Alex said. “Colin, I order you back inside. Your wife needs you.”

  “But…” Colin started.

  “No buts,” Alex said. “Back inside.”

  She waited for him to go back inside before continuing.

  “I would understand if any of you would like to go back inside,” Alex said. “This is Christmas. Given that we’re going to Cheyenne Mountain, we could end up anywhere in the world. I’m giving you permission to spend Christmas with your families.”

  “The Fey Team is my highest priority, sir,” MJ said. “My family’s as well.”

  “I’m in,” Matthew said. “I’m calling Joseph. He’s going to want to be there.”

  “Where are we going?” Raz appeared at the bottom of the Cathedral steps. She held out her hands in “How?“ “The night Sergeant called me to get your cell number.”

  “Why are we going to Cheyenne Mountain?” Vince smirked at her.

  “Larry Flagg has been found,” Alex said.

  F

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  An hour later

  Friday early morning

  December 25 – 12:47 p.m. MST

  Ch
eyenne Mountain, CO

  “Would you like to tell me why you were tracking this GPS signal?”

  A young and angry Captain strode across the control room to Alex. Raz stiffened to ward off an attack. MJ and Matthew shifted to ready. Joseph stepped to her side.

  “Would you like to tell me why you’re yelling at me, Captain?” Alex said. “We were instructed to come right away so we’re still wearing our civilian clothing. But I’m pretty sure you can read my identification.”

  The Captain peered at Alex’s identification tag.

  “Will someone get his reading glasses?” Alex asked.

  The men and women in the tight control room didn’t move.

  “The Lieutenant Colonel gave you an instruction,” Joseph said.

  The people scattered like mice.

  “Lieutenant Colonel?” the Captain asked.

  “Yes, Captain?” Alex asked.

  “You’re speaking with Lieutenant Colonel Hargreaves,” Joseph said.

  The Captain stood at attention.

  “At ease, Captain,” Alex said. “What is the problem?”

  The familiar heavy footfall of her boss’s boss, the Admiral, came from behind her.

  “Anyone want to tell me why I’ve been awoken from my slumber?” the Admiral asked. “Ma was in her kerchief and I was in my cap. We’d just settled down for a long winter’s nap and everything.”

  Alex had to work to keep from laughing.

  “If this is about some Santa report?” the Admiral asked. “So help me God… All of my kids are in town to meet our newest grandson. My wife expects me to be there tomorrow morning. And, unless we’re going to war, I’m not going to disappoint her.”

  Alex turned to see her boss, Colonel Gordon, walk down the hall. He looked at Alex and at the Admiral. The Admiral nodded to Colonel Gordon.

  “This is an active watch,” Colonel Gordon said. “Where is everyone?”

  “The Lieutenant Colonel requested that they find the Captain’s reading glasses,” Joseph said.

  The Admiral clamped his mouth closed to keep from laughing.

  “Sir, I had no idea that she was a Lieutenant Colonel and…”

  “She does look fairly squirrelly,” Colonel Gordon said. “Trust me. She can kill you before you think she’s moving in your direction.”

  “Yes sir,” the Captain said.

  Two Air Force soldiers came back into the room. One of them gave the Captain his reading glasses. The rest of the team trickled in behind them.

  “You got an Admiral, a Colonel and a Lieutenant Colonel out of bed on Christmas. Not to mention, me, I’m a Major with three small children waiting for me,” Joseph said. “Lest we forget, you dragged Captain Hougah here from her maternity leave. Would you like to tell us what’s going on Captain?”

  “Sir,” the Captain looked at Joseph.

  “Sirs,” Joseph said.

  “Sirs, at approximately 11:27 p.m. a GPS signal lit,” the Captain said. “The signal had been tagged by Captain Hougah as ‘significant.’ However, in looking at the history of this specific signal, the location of the signal has usually been in the Middle East or in Colorado.”

  “Where is the signal?” Alex asked.

  “North Dakota, ma’am,” the Captain said.

  “You call the Fey ‘sir,’” Matthew said.

  “You’re the Fey?” Everyone in the control room turned to look at them. The Admiral laughed.

  “I’ve been called that,” Alex said. “Which field?”

  “Grand Forks, sir,” the Captain said.

  “Flight?” Alex asked.

  “Would someone like to tell me what’s going on?” the Admiral asked.

  “Sir, as you know, there are three active Minuteman missile fields in North America,” Alex said.

  “There is an active field of one hundred and fifty Minuteman III ICBMs around Minot,” the Admiral said. “Why are we talking about it on Christmas Eve?”

  “Yes, sir,” Alex said. “We’re referring to Grand Forks AFB decommissioned Minuteman III ICBM silos.”

  “They were decommissioned in 1998 with the START II treaty,” the Admiral said.

  “Yes sir,” Alex said.

  “We were dragged out of bed to discuss decommissioned missiles in North Dakota?”

  “My team has been researching locations to stash hostages, sir,” Alex said. “One of our second teams did a tour on a missile team. He suggested the decommissioned ICBM fields. We’ve researched the empty silos.”

  “The Air Force sold the silos or destroyed them,” the Colonel said.

  “Mmmm,” Alex said. “Which flight?”

  “H, sir,” the Captain said. “The entire H flight.”

  “You have a GPS signal over the entire flight?” Alex asked.

  “Yes,” the Captain said.

  “Why is Cheyenne Mountain monitoring an inactive ICBM field?” the Admiral asked.

  “We monitor the entire region,” the Captain said. “Malmstrom, Warren and Minot are flickering off and online due to the heavy snow and wind.”

  The Captain pressed a button. A large flat-screen monitor showed North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and the northern reaches of Colorado covered with heavy snow clouds.

  “Blizzard Albert is moving in,” the Captain said.

  “Now, that is very interesting,” Alex said.

  She pointed Raz to a computer station. He sat down and logged in.

  “The GPS signal is within a hundred miles of the active missile fields,” the Captain said.

  “Minot,” Alex said.

  “Yes sir,” the Captain said. “The 91st Missile Security Forces Squadron is scrambling to that flight, which is why I requested your presence here.”

  “So now we know why,” the Admiral said. “What are we looking at?”

  “I believe they’ve intercepted a signal from one of the missing teams,” Alex said.

  “Who?” the Admiral asked.

  “Sergeant Lawrence Flagg.”

  “This is about Flagg?” Colonel Gordon asked. “Lieutenant Colonel Hargreaves you were ordered not to do that. People are not cattle. They do not need ear tags.”

  “Yes sir,” Alex said. “By the time I received that order, Sergeant Flagg had obtained a GPS implant. He was in theater, sir. I’ve been unable to remove it.”

  Colonel Gordon used his eyebrows to indicate that now was the time for her to state her case. Alex gave him a slight nod.

  “Sergeant Flagg and his team have been missing since this debacle began. As you are aware, we believe he was chosen due to his close relationship with the Fey Team,” Alex said. “This is also true for Marine Captain Heath Wheeler. We believe it is no accident that we have not been able to return them.”

  “Captain,” Colonel Gordon said. “What other data do you have?”

  “Nothing sir,” the Captain said. “There’s a blizzard warning for the entire region. Well, you can see it. We have signal; that’s all.”

  “You need to get us everything you can,” the Admiral said. “Captain Houglah, you are dismissed.”

  “Thank you sir,” Dani said. She touched Alex’s shoulder and mouthed “Call me.” Alex nodded. As she left the room, she said, “Merry Christmas everyone.”

  “Sir, I request permission to activate the Fey Team,” Alex said. “We need to retrieve these soldiers.”

  “Permission granted,” the Admiral nodded.

  “Lieutenant Colonel?” Raz said. “You need to see this.”

  Alex went to where he was working. He pointed to something on the screen.

  “Did you bring it?” Alex asked. He held up a flash drive and she said, “Go ahead.”

  Raz plugged the flash drive into the console USB port.

  “Oh you can’t be serious,” the Admiral said.

  “What is he doing?” the Captain asked.

  “Your system has been infiltrated by a virus-like program,” Alex said. “This program is designed to control what you see and who you commun
icate with. Agent Rasmussen is introducing a quarantine for the virus-like program,” Alex said.

  “The missile control system has been infiltrated?” the Admiral asked.

  “Yes sir,” Alex said. “We were manipulated into coming here. Raz?”

  “Here’s the actual satellite reading,” Raz said.

  The screen shifted to heavy snow clouds with no sign of precipitation on the North Dakota missile field.

  “Oh my God,” the Captain said.

  “I wondered about that,” Colonel Gordon said. “Blizzard Albert is more central and eastern. It might get as far north as Grand Forks by sunrise but not to Minot.”

  “Weather Channel?” The Admiral turned to look at Colonel Gordon.

  “We’re hoping Missy and her girls will be here tomorrow,” Colonel Gordon said.

  “Lieutenant Colonel, get your team to work,” the Admiral said. “I need to call the President. In the meantime, I’ll speak with the commanders of each Air Force base in the Minuteman chain.”

  “Yes sir,” Alex said.

  “Lieutenant Colonel?” Colonel Gordon turned to look at her.

  “Yes sir.”

  “You’d better get your men and go,” Colonel Gordon said. “There’s no way to know the consequences of making our nation’s missiles secure.”

  “Sir, we must also assume that it was no accident that you, the Admiral, and myself were summoned here,” Alex said. “We all need to go. Now. Sirs, how did you get here?”

  “I brought two of my men,” the Admiral said. “They are waiting on the helipad.”

  “Zack? Are the Admiral’s guys still there?” Alex asked.

  “Yeah,” Zack said.

  “Colonel?” Alex asked.

  “I drove over,” Colonel Gordon said. “My youngest is home from Afghanistan. We’re having Christmas on post.”

  “We’ll drop you,” Alex said. “I’ll get someone to return your car when this is over.”

  Colonel Gordon nodded.

  “The program will clean through your system to the node,” Raz said. “It may take a couple of hours.”

  “Button up until it’s done,” the Admiral said to the Captain.

  “Yes sir,” the Captain said. “We’ll wait until you’re clear.”