by Saxon Andrew
“If you say so.” Tilly grabbed the cart’s handle with Janet and they pulled it over to the small opening in the rocks.
They couldn’t fit the cart through the small opening , so they walked everything into the cave. Janet went in and was impressed. The entrance to the cave was about four feet high and opened into a room that was about ten feet deep and extended fifteen feet to the left of the entrance. Janet looked at the section to the left and saw it had been chiseled out after the first cave was made. “Who expanded this, Tilly?”
“The young man who lived here for four years expanded the cave.”
“He did a good job of installing those shelves. It looks like you have enough food to last you a year.”
“I guess. The generator makes a huge difference in making it bearable. The fans help a lot during the day.”
Janet looked at the generator and said, “Do you have enough fuel to run it for an extended period?”
“There’s a tank behind the rocks over this ledge. The young man who lived here transported two gallons a week out here for more than two years. The company who delivered the tank did it gratis. It seems the store owner who bought most of his goods liked him a lot. She had the tank replaced and paid for it to be delivered. It’s a two hundred gallon tank and it’s full.”
“That’s not a good thing, Tilly.”
“It’s under the overhang and can’t be seen from the air. Mike put a camouflage net over it before he left. Besides, the generator is also government built and Mike told me it’s military grade. It’s silent and can operate on a gallon of gas for two days. I don’t use it except during the heat of the day and to recharge my television and cell phone. I have enough fuel to last me almost two years if it came down to it.”
“Why didn’t the young man use a generator?”
“I think by the time he filled the tank he had acclimated to the desert and decided he didn’t need it.”
Janet looked around and said, “Where is the other case?”
Tilly went to the back of the cave and pulled it out of the suitcase. Janet smiled at the plaid colored suitcase and took the hard black colored case. She opened it and whistled, “This one also has infrared capability.”
“Is that important?”
“Night vision goggles only work so far. This scope rules the night.” Why are there two of those scopes in the case?”
Janet looked at Tilly, “I am going to assume Mike taught you how to shoot.”
“He did.”
“And how good are you?”
“I beat him half the time.” Janet stared at Tilly and Tilly saw her skepticism, “Don’t look surprised; women are naturally more relaxed than men.”
“That second scope is for your rifle. We need to install it and get it sighted in.”
“Mike told me that the rifle was engineered so that replacing the scopes wouldn’t change the accuracy.”
“Is that a fact?” Tilly nodded and Janet said, “Then you won’t mind if I humor myself by taking a few shots to verify the truth of that statement.”
“Not at all.”
An hour later, Janet shook her head, “I would have never believed it but it appears he’s right.”
“He’s not wrong very often.”
“What has he ever been wrong about?”
“He trusted that Colonel Jameson.”
Janet nodded, “All of us did.”
Tilly looked at Janet, “Why did you leave?”
Janet climbed down off the wall and put the rifle into a long plastic bag. “I grew tired of seeing a crime committed.”
“Oh?”
“Satellites record everything even if no one is looking at the tapes. I had a lot of time on my hands when I was in the tank and I decided one day to take a trip along our southern border with Mexico. I saw several vehicles were parked together in the Arizona desert. They just seemed out of place. I brought the view in closer and saw men transferring large bundles from one truck to another. I realized they were drug runners. I queried the satellite and it pulled up thirty instances of those vehicles on the border. It appeared they always came to the site late Sunday night. I reported it to Jameson and he said it was none of our business. That was up to the civil authorities to handle. He told me to let it go.
“I did let it go for more than a year but it just ate at my soul. I contacted the authorities in Arizona and the Immigration bureau chief but was told thank you very much, now leave me alone.”
“What did you do?”
“I took a two week vacation, drove to Arizona, purchased a Winchester 300 with a night scope, and drove out into the desert.” Tilly stared at Janet. “Tilly, those drugs were going to kill Americans. I couldn’t live with that on my conscience.” Janet sat down in the cave, “The thought of killing those drug runners didn’t bother me; I’ve killed enemy soldiers in Iraq and it never bothered me.”
“What happened?”
“It wasn’t easy; I shot four of them before they knew they were under attack. I shot out the tires on the trucks and put a bullet into the gas tanks. One of them tried to get into a truck and I made it clear that was sure death if they tried that. They started firing at random into the desert and it took about another thirty minutes to take out two of the three survivors. The last one took off running into the desert. I had night goggles and I cut him off. He heard me coming and lifted an Uzi and sprayed a clip in my direction. I took him out and it was over. I walked over to the last one and saw he had been running with two large suitcases. If he had dropped them, he might have got away. I turned him over and saw he was only a teenager.”
Janet grew silent and Tilly said, “Then what?”
“I opened one of the suitcases and it was filled with hundred dollar bills. I took them back to the trucks and set fire to them. I guess I burned eight million dollars of cocaine. I put the bags in my truck and left. I think a helicopter was brought in at daylight and it was reported as a drug deal gone bad. I was planning to contact the DEA and report the money but Mike called my cell phone and left a message. Jameson recognized the site of the attack and had reported me to criminal authorities as a possible murderer. I kept the money and never went back.”
“So you just disappeared?”
“I did. I had learned in my military training how to make that happen. Only one person in the government ever found me.” Tilly tilted her head and Janet said, “Yep, Mike. He knocked on my door one day and I was shocked to see him.”
“What did he say?”
“He asked if I would do it again.”
“I told him that I hated that I was forced to do it by a government that didn’t care about its citizen’s welfare. Under the same circumstances, I would do it again.”
“He smiled at me, Tilly and gave me hug. He said to be careful and he was proud of me.”
“How did he find you?”
“That damn truck of mine; I just can’t let it go.”
“Truck?”
“It belonged to my father and I’ve babied it. I painted it a two tone blue and white. He used the satellites to report any truck with the identical shade of blue from a picture on my desk. He did it to protect me. He showed me that if he could find me using my truck, others could as well. I immediately made sure it stayed undercover.”
“That’s why you came here?”
“Janet shrugged, “I owe him, Tilly.”
Tilly smiled and said, “Let’s try some of that beef jerky.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m talking about.” Tilly decided that Janet and Mike were very much alike. She also saw that Janet was probably a better shot than Mike or her. Janet had fired a three shot group two hundred yards away that looked like they all went into the same hole.
Chapter Twelve
“Jess.”
“Yes, Elle.”
“Is Jess Smith your real name?”
“Why do you ask?”
“I may have the same name someday.” Jess snickered. “What do you find funny?”
“I guess Jagged Edge of Sanity doesn’t feel right.”
“Now I think you’re getting the point.”
“My birth certificate has Joseph Edward Sanchez Rollins. My parents called me Jose or Eduardo. Eduardo if I was in trouble.”
“You don’t look Spanish and you don’t have an accent.”
“That happens when you’re fifth generation United States Citizens. My father insisted I learn Spanish and refused to use my American name until I did. My mother’s maiden name was Smith. Her mother’s maiden name was Sanchez.”
“So Jes is actually your initials.”
“That’s how my friend came up with it so fast.”
“Do you speak Spanish?”
“Fluently, my mother and Father were adamant about it and would often go weeks without speaking English. They felt it would be a huge asset when I went out to find a job.”
“I only speak English.”
Jess looked up, “Peter.”
“Yes.”
“How many Earth languages are in your databanks?”
“Fifteen.”
“Could you transfer Spanish to Elle?”
“I’ve never done that before. However, I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.”
Elle sat up straight, “Pete, could you transfer the language used by the aliens.”
“The process would be the same.”
Jess shook his head, “You constantly amaze me.”
“We need it.”
“I know, I know; I just didn’t think of it. Pete transfer both of them to Elle and transfer the Alien language to me.”
“Jess, I have three different versions of Spanish in my databanks.”
Jess laughed, “Alright, give me both of them.” They reclined their chairs and Elle held Jess’ hand as the transfer began. She was still holding it when they opened their eyes.
Jess moved his chair vertically and said, “Pete, how did that alien make himself look human?” Elle looked at Jess with a frown.
“That was done through a device that built the structure around him. It’s actually an energy field that feels solid.”
“Could we be made to look like one of the aliens?”
“Which one?”
“The ones at the prison.”
“Those are the same species as the one that died on your planet. They’re called Neman and to answer your question, the device has their structure loaded into it.”
Elle frowned, “What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking that perhaps instead of fighting our way into that prison, we just walk in and take a look around.”
“You haven’t given up on going after your family?”
“I’ll never do that; however, I need to know if they’re alive before I can make any long range plans. You need to know as well.”
“The Neman have the largest settlement satellite. The plans show a large section of it is designed to house oxygen breathers.”
“We need to go take a look, Elle.”
“You may want to delay going.”
“Why?”
“Hetzel is there now questioning the humans.”
“Who is Hetzel?”
“He’s the one in command of the Q ships. It’s been him you’ve been hearing since you lifted from your planet.”
“How many Q ships are at that facility?”
“I have no way of knowing without going and taking a look.”
“Do they normally keep a Q ship there?”
“No, that facility has little intrinsic value.”
“Then his ship may be the only one there.”
“That is a suggestion that is supported by normal procedures; but these are not normal times.”
“Why not?”
“One of your species now controls a Q ship; I suspect the interest in humans at the facility may be higher than normal.”
Jess looked at Elle and after a moment said, “We need to have answers to several issues. We need to know if the dark energy prevents you being detected. We need to know if our family members are at that facility. We also need to see if your weapons are decidedly more powerful. We can answer some of those by going there.”
“Are you prepared to fire on any Q ships in the system?”
“No that will be a last resort; however, I do hope you can get one of them to fire on us.”
Elle said, “Oh hell no.”
“Elle, Pete said at the beginning that one ship can’t harm him; right. Pete?”
“That is correct.”
“He should be able to determine how much his force field is increased by measuring the effect of the shot; right, Pete.”
“Yes, but there might be one problem.”
“What is that?”
“If they don’t see or detect me; how are they going to fire at me?” Jess looked at Elle and began rubbing his face to the top of his head with both hands. Pete said, “Let me work on that; it may not be an issue if I’m detected.”
“What about the exhaust tubes?”
“That would do it.”
Jess looked at Elle, “What about the exhaust tubes?”
“Remember when he converted a small amount of Dark Matter to energy it blew out of the exhaust tubes and shoved the ship.” Jess nodded. “That blast blew beyond the force field. They should be able to see that.”
“Pete, would that go through your force field if it was at full power?”
“The force field is like a one way mirror. It stops things from penetrating but allows energy and physical objects to go through. That’s how I fire my beams.”
“Well, I guess we need to go take a look.”
Elle nodded, “Pete, don’t go in so close you can’t run.”
“That is the word for the day.”
Jess said, “What.”
“Run.”
• • •
Mike came in over the trees and saw the large C-47 Chinook in the clearing with its rotors still spinning. He landed a hundred yards from the huge chopper and turned off the engines. He kept his night vision glasses on and moved slowly toward the three men standing next to a giant illuminated X. Seals began dropping in from the night sky and landing on the X. Most of them hit it dead center and ran away pulling their chutes into a bundle.
• • •
The Seal Captain watched his boys land and felt pride at their skill. He knew how good they were and what he was about to do weighed heavily on him. He waited until all of them landed and formed up into ranks and said, “At ease. All platoons, pair off with your partners.” The eight platoons of sixteen seals lined up into two lines. “I am going to give you orders and you will not question them, you will do as ordered. Sit down and face your partner.” The Seals wondered what was going on and they followed the Captain’s orders. “Now, I want you to look your partner in the eye and keep you full attention on him.” Captain Dunbar watched and saw the platoons not moving. “There is an organization in the forces of the United States who are planning the overthrow of our government.” Dunbar waited a moment and said, “If your partner was not shocked by what I just said, raise your hand.” Sixteen hands went slowly up.
“The partner of the ones with raised hands will fall out and come forward.” The sixteen Seals stared at their partners as they slowly stood up and moved into a single file in front of the formation.
Mike moved around the Chinook and was confronted by the pilot. He held up a plastic badge to the pilot and he studied it. Mike put his finger to his lips and the pilot nodded.
• • •
Captain Dunbar faced the sixteen Seals in front of him and said, “You have given your oath to defend our country and the Constitution. You swore this and that oath has been kept by all our brothers that have gone into harm’s way to protect our nation. Now you are going to have to decide if that oath and the promises to your brothers here mean more than your allegiance to the ones that have turned you. How many of you are part of this conspiracy and will you stand with us when
we go to remove it?”
A Petty Officer in the line stepped forward and the one standing next to him reached to stop him. He shook the hand off his arm and said, “I stand with my brothers.”
“Sailor, how many are in our unit?”
“Twenty, Sir.”
“Who is not standing here?”
The private said, “Lieutenant Snow, Barnes, James and Adams, Sir.”
Dunbar stared at the Lieutenant standing next to him and said, “Join them, Captain.” He looked out at his unit and said, “The others named will join this group.”
The Lieutenant moved into the line and suddenly pulled a gun and aimed it at the Captain. A shot rang out and a hole was punched through the Lieutenant’s forehead and out the back of his skull. His eyes went wide and he fell backwards. Captain Dunbar turned around and saw Mike walking forward with a nickel coated handgun pointed at the line. He yelled, “First platoon, search the line for weapons with live ammunition.” Twelve Seals rushed forward and removed the Seal’s weapons. Six of them had weapons with live ammunition. Dunbar looked at the other thirteen and said, “What, you didn’t get the order to come armed?”
A Seal stepped forward and said, “I received the order, Sir; but I will never do anything that would harm my brothers.”
Mike turned to the Seals and said, “Lay all of your weapons on the ground.” The Captain stared at Mike but remained silent. Mike moved into the center of the units and said, “The left hand rank will eject the magazines and determine if any of your partner’s weapons carried live ammunition.”
Suddenly, one of the Seals tried to pick up his machine pistol. His partner kicked him in the head knocking him head over heels. The Seal bent down and said, “This one has a live clip, Sir.”
Dunbar looked at Mike, “They had to have a mole none of the others knew about.” Mike nodded. The Captain turned to the thirteen who had come without live ammunition and said, “Can you be trusted to keep your oaths?”
A tall Seal said, “Sir, they have threatened my family if I betray them.”
Mike said, “Did you bring it?” Dunbar looked at him and nodded. “Please set it up.”
Dunbar looked at his two senior Chiefs and nodded toward the Chinook. The Chiefs pulled a huge monitor out of the landing bay and plugged it into an outlet inside the giant helicopter. Mike walked over to the monitor and plugged a long cable into it and then into his cell phone. He looked at the Captain and nodded. The Seal Commander said, “Assemble in front of the monitor. The seals moved forward in an orderly manner and the Captain looked at the nineteen standing in line, “That also means you.” The twenty seals moved over and stood in a group away from the other Seals.
