"No need to do that, I have no weapon," Collins said from the darkness of the cave.
Sagli had stopped dead in his tracks as the man beside him went to one knee. The Russian mobster held a flashlight and he pointed it in the direction of the voice. In the light, Jack stood erect and his hands were held out in front of him, palms outward.
"I knew you would get away, Jack. One can always depend on you giving it your all," Alexander said as he forced the muzzle of the gun into Sarah's temple.
"Don't do that, Punchy" Collins said with cold intensity.
"Don't be so melodramatic, Jack, my boy. Now come on, let's finish up here. The access panel has been removed and we're ready for your expertise."
As Alexander finished speaking, there was a loud noise from behind as Mendenhall, Henri, and Everett burst through the opening, yelling and happily slapping each other on the back.
"They're big, but we're faster!" Carl shouted as he helped hold Farbeaux up from the exhausting run they had just endured.
Jack never turned around. He stepped back a foot as Sagli adjusted his light on the others.
"Oh," was all Mendenhall said, getting the attention of the Captain and Frenchman.
"I knew there would be a catch to this cave," Everett said looking over at Farbeaux.
He just shrugged and bent over and rested his hands on his knees. "Any port in a storm, Captain" — he managed to look back up at Carl—"it's not always a friendly port, however.
"Alright, we're all here. It's time, Jack."
Outside, Collins heard the drumming of clubs against the trees come to a sudden stop, it was if the animals knew that this thing would be over soon, for better or worse. Before he spoke he felt the hand of Everett slap him on the back, and then Carl saw the strap wrapped around Jack's shoulder and then he straightened quickly.
"You sneaky bastard — what makes you think they don't see what you have dangling from your back?" he hissed through his teeth.
"Because, I told you all along when you're dealing with these people, they're not soldiers, they're just stupid," Collins mumbled back at Everett.
"If you don't get over here and enter that damn code, Jack, whatever you just whispered will be the last thing this little lady ever hears from you. And, if you could, please hurry. The wildlife around here is beginning to make me a bit nervous."
"Punchy, I think it's time we talked," Jack said, keeping his backside as far from the light as possible.
"The time for talking is over," he said as he roughly shook Sarah and actually slammed the muzzle of the gun harder into her cheek.
"Sarah, look at me," Collins said as he was now flanked by Mendenhall on the right and Everett and Farbeaux on his left. They were all four covered by the three Spetsnaz to their front and Sagli, who looked anxious to shoot, someone, anyone. "Do you believe that everything is going to be alright?"
Sarah nodded her head, not doubting, just hoping Jack had a plan.
Collins looked down at the prone bodies of Ryan and Lynn.
"They needed persuading that I was in charge. Don't worry, Jack, they're alive, and they'll stay that way, just as long as you do what is asked."
"As I said, Punchy, we need to talk."
Letting out a deep breath, Alexander cocked the automatic, letting Jack know that any pressure whatsoever on the trigger would send a bullet into Sarah's head.
"Okay, let's get this over with. Talk."
"October 1962, the United States was in the process of trying to convince the Soviets that President Kennedy was dead serious about getting those missiles out of Cuba. The threat of a blockade didn't seem to be scaring the high command, or the leadership at the Kremlin that Kennedy meant business on this issue. So, Operation Solar Flare was devised, a top-secret scenario that would take the head of the chicken off at the neck, with a weapon so powerful that the war would be over before it ever started — what's known as a doomsday device."
"You are wasting time, Jack. I am growing bored with a story I know as well as you."
"Well, here's something you didn't know, Punchy, you stupid son of a bitch. It was a bluff. The Soviets were allowed to learn of Operation Solar Flare before it was launched in October of that year. They were allowed to see not one, but two aircraft take off that night. One from McCord Air Force Base in Washington State, the other from the carrier USS Oriskany in the Sea of Japan. The Soviet high command knew they had no defense against anything like the Hyper Glide device. A highly precise standoff weapon with such a huge punch was game over for them. They folded their hand, bluffed out of the game by a bold and well-planned lie. So you see, Punchy, what you have there is a small amount of active plutonium, placed there so their detectors, stationed in vans and trucks around all of our bases, knew they must be live weapons, when all it was is a case with enough plutonium in it to light up your bedside clock."
"You're lying!" Alexander shouted. "Why would the U.S. spend millions of dollars in a recovery effort?"
"No, Punchy, I'm not lying. The bluff continued for years after; we had to make the Soviets believe we weren't the kind of country to run a poker game on them. They had to know the threat was serious and would continue to be just in case their memories failed them at some point. Colonel Farbeaux?"
"Yes, Jack?" Henri said eyeing Punchy and then turning his eyes toward Collins.
"Explain the situation to the director of Internal Security for the province of Montreal, please."
"Sorry, Mr. Alexander, the colonel's story is a fact — or more to the point, the truth about a lie, which the Americans have become pretty adept at, of late." Henri looked at Jack and nodded; Jack remained still, focusing solely on Alexander.
"Kill the Frenchman!" Alexander shouted. As the three Spetsnaz and Sagli flinched at the order, Jack saw his opening.
As Mendenhall, Everett, and Farbeaux dove for cover, Jack used his hip to swing the AK-47 up and into his hands. The weapon had been hanging upside down across his shoulder waiting for Jack's chance to use it. The first of the weapon's bright flashes caught the three Spetsnaz totally unaware. By the time one of them turned in Jack's direction, rounds had stitched across the chests of all three. As they fell, Collins trained the weapon on Sagli, who immediately dropped his gun. Jack tilted his head and pursed his lips.
"Sorry," he said as he fired a single round into the Russian's head.
Alexander wasn't taking any chances. He backed away from Collins, screaming, "I'll kill her, Jack! You know that I will."
Collins held his hand up when Mendenhall and Everett stood and made to move forward. Farbeaux reached for one of the fallen flashlights and shone it on Alexander.
"You just don't know when to quit, Jack. Well, this time it's going to cost you."
To the surprise of Collins and everyone else, he didn't shoot Sarah, but quickly aimed the pistol at the prone, unconscious body of Lynn, lying next to Ryan. As he depressed the trigger, the light in Farbeaux's hand caught a sight that none of them would have ever believed. A giant hand reached out and caught the weapon in Punchy's hand just as the gun fired. His wrist was bent up and snapped in two. Alexander screamed just as Sarah was torn from his grasp. She fell to the ground and Jack rushed forward. The light still played on Alexander as the giant beast that had came up behind him grabbed the large Canadian by the neck and lifted him free of the cave floor.
"My God," Farbeaux said as the full view of the beast was illuminated in the bright light. Jack and Sarah looked at the giant towering over them and saw not only brawn, but intelligence.
The giant ape, the reason behind twenty thousand years of myth and legends, from the Arctic Circle to the Rocky Mountains, stood erect, and the intelligence in its eyes would forever be undeniable to all who looked into them. He held Punchy, gazing calmly at the humans before him for a moment, and then it roared. And every man in the cave knew he'd been challenged, been dared to try to take what was now his. When none of them moved — though Mendenhall began visibly shaking — it turned and stepped into the da
rkness beyond the power of the flashlight to see it.
Mendenhall stood and walked over and sat down upon the first thing he came across. It was the casing for the Hyper Glide bomb. He sat and was actually grateful for the warmth he felt penetrating through to his wet butt. He placed his head in his hands and tried to calm his heart. It was Jack who slowly stood and touched Will on the shoulder, and even Farbeaux gingerly reached out and touched him on the opposite side.
"Will, you may want to get off of the five hundred megaton nuclear weapon."
Mendenhall looked up, a sad look came across his face as he took in the colonel.
"Not a bluff?" was the simple question.
"No, not a bluff," Jack answered as he let go of Will's shoulder, and winked at his young lieutenant.
"Perhaps you could help me stand up, Colonel Farbeaux?"
"Yes, Lieutenant, I think that would be best."
Everett had gone over to Ryan and Lynn and found both just coming around. Jack kissed Sarah on the top of her head, but that didn't stop her from plopping to the ground as the last few moments caught up with her. Collins went to his sister and lifted her off the ground and Farbeaux shone the light on them both as Lynn's eyes fluttered open.
"When you were a kid, you always managed to fall asleep at the end of the good movies," Jack said, smiling, "or throw your hands across your face at the scary parts."
Lynn didn't say anything. She just placed her arms around her big brother and hugged him.
"Okay, I missed something again, didn't I?" Ryan said as he tried to gain his feet. Grimacing, he sat down again, leaning against the wall well away from the bomb.
As Sarah stood, watching Jack and his little sister, she heard someone behind her. She slowly turned fully expecting to see another animal, but instead she saw an older, slightly built man leaning against the cave wall. His hair was wild looking and his glasses were bent so badly that it was difficult to figure out how he was able to see. The cave wall was clearly all that was holding him up.
"Charlie!" Sarah said as she reached out to help him.
"I'll be damned," Everett said as he raced forward to help Sarah. "What in the hell have you been up to?" Carl asked when he smelled the odors coming off of Ellenshaw.
"I'm not going to dignify that with an answer." Charlie looked around. "I see my savior saved you nonbelievers as well."
Jack walked over after propping Lynn up next to Ryan. The lieutenant, who was really seeing her for the first time, suddenly leaned over and kissed her on the swollen lips. It happened so fast that she couldn't even get angry, but she could give him a shocked grin as she took stock of the wiry little navy aviator.
"Sorry," Ryan said. "Just thrilled to be alive."
Ellenshaw wearily sat down in the glorious light. His eyes had adjusted to the dark well enough to see what he was dealing with.
"I would say Giganticus Pythicus is a fact — to be taken out of the realm of myth and legend forever? Does anyone disagree with my theory?" Charlie looked at the faces turning toward him in the shadowy cave with a smug look on his face. When no one said anything, he was satisfied. "Good," he smiled through his obvious pain as Sarah patted him on the back. "Colonel Farbeaux?"
"No, you have no argument from me, Professor. What I saw here tonight—"
"No, Colonel, I was about to say you may want to look in the cave just a little farther back — you may find two wagons and the ornate box that this used to lay in." Charlie Ellenshaw tossed a small object toward Farbeaux and he caught it in midair. He shone the light on it and then smiled.
"So, are you going to accept such a large payment for doing your duty, Colonel?" Jack asked, already knowing the answer.
As Farbeaux looked at the second half of the Twins of Peter the Great, he returned Jack's smile.
"Bad guy, remember?"
Collins nodded his head, satisfied that Henri was still Henri.
"Hey, where is the girl?" Ryan said looking around with another flashlight he had picked up.
"I believe young Marla ran in that direction," Charlie said as he pointed toward the rear of the cave.
Before any of them could follow the trail back into the dark interior of the cave, they were shocked when one of the Sasquatch appeared from the front. It roared and then stepped into the light. Jack and the others watched as it angrily kicked at the bodies of Sagli and his commandos. The bodies were tossed as if they were nothing more that beanbags. The beast roared again. They all saw the small bones that were entwined in its long hair. The club it carried struck out at the rock wall, knocking free stone and dirt with the powerful blow.
"I thought they were on our side," Mendenhall said as he took in the giant, Bigfoot.
"Look at its side, it's been shot, and it looks to be a mortal wound," Charlie said, actually stepping forward until Jack halted him.
"Doc, I don't think it cares who shot it; it only sees us at the moment."
The beast roared for a third time. With its mouth wide they could see the blood as it coursed through the throat from another wound they couldn't see. The great animal kicked out once more, its large foot striking the Hyper Glide, sending it into the stone wall of the cave.
"Whoa!" Ryan said as he grabbed Lynn and retreated a few steps. The beast saw the movement and screamed once more, making all of them cringe.
"Don't move, the weapon can't be armed without the code," Collins said, gesturing for Ryan and Lynn to stop moving.
The beast saw the two stop and stare at it, and it obviously thought that was a threatening gesture. This time it swung the massive club and again it struck the large bomb on its outer casing. When it did, the outer primer popped free and that was when they saw the electronic display on the Hyper Glide come to life. The numbers were the old-fashioned kind seen at NASA in the early days before LED lights. The bright numbers started counting down from five minutes."
"Oh, shit," Farbeaux said. For the first time his cool was evaporating. "Colonel, you seem to be taking this current situation rather calmly."
Collins watched the device as it counted down, but at the moment he was more concerned with the enraged animal before him.
"The Hyper Glide can count down all it wants, it may be armed but it would be impossible for it to detonate."
The beast roared again when Jack spoke, silencing him. Then the animal wavered and leaned against the rock wall, finally getting weaker from its wounds.
"Now, why would it be impossible for this rather large weapon to explode?" Everett asked as he, too, watched the Sasquatch.
"Because it was designed to detonate at minus three hundred feet; it was a giant bunker-Buster. For safety of the local surface population the bomb had to bury itself in three hundred feet of earth before it went off."
The beast was breathing its last. The animal let out a cry, not unlike a human would when death was close. Then the beast laid its head to the side and rolled over to the floor.
The men and women in the cave visibly relaxed as Jack moved toward the bomb.
"I don't mean to be a stickler, Colonel, but you were wrong about the weapon not being able to be armed without the codes; so what if you're wrong about this?" Henri asked, joining him as Jack looked the bomb over.
"I'm not wrong. The device must have rotted through its wiring and disabled the sequencing of the installed code. Now look here," he said, pointing to a set of smaller numbers below that of the larger countdown digits ticking off. "That is plus or minus altitude, the numbers from the countdown have to match in sequence with the minus numbers in altitude, in this case, three hundred feet minus zero altitude, in other words, three hundred feet below ground."
Farbeaux breathed easier as he saw that Collins was right, at least he hoped so.
"Well, I guess we'll find out in four minutes, but may I suggest we use that time to—"
They were all caught off guard when the beast half rose and roared once more. In its death throes it lashed out with its large club and barely missed the Fre
nchman and Jack as they dove away from the strike. Instead of hitting them, the club struck the Hyper Glide one last time. The powerful blow sent the weapon sailing against the wall one more time. Only this created the bounce that would kill them all. It struck the floor and then the giant weapon teetered on the edge of the large shaft that Ryan had found earlier. As Jack jumped for the weapon to steady it, it tilted and went down. They all were stunned. They heard the Hyper Glide collide with the bottom of the shaft far below them just as the animal lay its head down and died.
Collins rolled over onto his side and stared at the ceiling of the cave in frustration. "Mr. Ryan, how deep would you say that shaft is?"
Jason swallowed and leaned over the hole in the cave's floor. He grimaced and then looked at the people around him.
"Uh, real deep, Colonel, maybe even three hundred feet."
"Oh this is a fun time, thanks, Jack," Lynn said as she sat in frustration.
They all heard the grunt before they turned and saw the giant animal that had absconded with Alexander. It was sanding erect and watching them. It grunted once more and then its eyes fell on the fallen Sasquatch. Its angry eyes went from its fallen family member to those humans standing and sitting in the cave.
It was Ellenshaw that moved first when he recognized that the beast was the artist that had saved his life after he was shot. He quickly reached out and after closing his eyes, grabbed the animal by its massive arm. The beast grunted and then shook Charlie's arm loose as it continued to stare at the fallen Bigfoot before it. Charlie tried again, this time the animal looked down at him and its mouth opened, showing its massive incisors it leaned over and breathed heavily into Ellenshaw's face.
"For God's sake, Charlie, what are you doing? We have another situation here that requires attention," Everett called out.
"I think I know what I'm doing," he answered. He then pulled on the hairy arm until the beast allowed itself to be pulled along. The animal barely cleared the twelve-foot ceiling as Charlie led it toward the hole. The others quickly scrambled out of the way. Once in front of the hole Ellenshaw pointed down. The beast grunted and then it growled once again, this time it was far more menacing than the grunt before it.
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