Wildfire Run

by Dee Garretson

  “If you don’t go, I’ll have to carry you,” Isabelle said.

  Luke felt his feet moving forward, picking his way carefully until he stumbled outside. The sunlight blinded him for a moment, and then he saw Sal on the outside of the electric fence. The gate was closed between them. The Marines stood in a group by their truck. Hector gave a thumbs-up to Luke, and even from where Luke stood he could see Hector’s smile.

  “Don’t touch the gate!” Sal said in a loud voice that verged on a yell.

  “Don’t worry, Sal; we know it’s electrified. Right?” Luke said, turning to Theo and Callie. He was alarmed by the blank expressions on their faces. “Are you guys okay?” Luke watched them closely.

  “I think I bumped my head,” Theo said.

  Luke pointed at a nearby tree. “Maybe you should sit down until you feel better.”

  “Why is the gate closed?” Callie asked. “It was opening right before the crash.”

  “I’m not sure,” Luke said, and then the image of the colonel came into his head. “The colonel had his hand on the gate lever when the car hit him. I think either he pushed it when he fell or something fell on it.”

  “I think I bumped my head,” Theo said again.

  “I think you did too. Callie, here.” Luke pulled off his T-shirt. “Can you wipe your face?”

  Luke didn’t know whether Callie’s head cleared at that moment, or the sight of his scrawny, pale chest shocked her back to life, but she straightened up and grabbed the T-shirt. At least she didn’t laugh. When she was finished, she handed it back to him. Luke didn’t want to put it back on. It was all smeared with blood, but he felt funny standing around without a shirt on. He pulled it over his head, trying to ignore the damp spots.

  “Please, Callie, can you make Theo sit down?” Luke said. “He’s acting so strange. I’m going back in to help Isabelle.”

  “Okay, Theo, come on.” She took his hand and led him away. He went without a word.

  “Don’t go in there, Luke!” Sal shouted, reaching his hands up as if he wanted to grab the gate.

  “I’m just going to go see what’s happening. I’ll stay outside.” Luke turned around even as Sal continued to tell him not to move.

  At the edge of the building Luke stopped, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the gloom inside. He saw Isabelle balancing on a chunk of stone by Grant’s motionless body. She had her finger to the side of his neck.

  “Is he…is he dead?” Luke called.

  “No, he still has a pulse.” Isabelle spoke into her microphone. “Sal, Colonel Donlin is alive, but he’s trapped under the car. Grant is breathing but his pulse is very weak. It looks like at least an arm is broken. Adam is unconscious; I don’t see any obvious injuries. I’m going to climb over and get the rubble off the gate control and try to reopen it. It looks twisted, from what I can see.” Isabelle listened for a moment.

  “Luke, you are making Sal a crazy man,” Isabelle said. “Get back where he can see you.”

  “I should be helping.” Luke fought the urge to go inside. “It was my fault.” If he’d held on to Comet, none of this would have happened.

  “I know you want to help, but right now the best thing for you to do is to go back to your friends.”

  “I think Comet is still in the car.”

  “Leave him for now. Please go outside.”

  Luke knew from the tone of her voice not to argue. “I’m just going to call for him while I walk out, okay? Comet! Comet!” When the dog climbed out the car and padded slowly toward him, he felt relieved. Adam moaned then, and anger surged in Luke. If only Comet had stayed still!

  Outside, he didn’t know what to do. He wanted to help, but he didn’t know how. Callie ran over to him, motioning toward Theo, who was leaning against a tree trunk, his eyes closed.

  “I think he’s really hurt,” she whispered. “He has a big bump on his head and he keeps repeating himself. We’ve got to get out him of here!”

  “Don’t worry,” Luke said. “Isabelle is going to get the gate open.”

  “I really smell the smoke now. Don’t you?”

  Luke hadn’t noticed before, but now he could smell it big-time, like it was a monster bonfire. “Yes,” he said, fighting to stay calm. “But we’ll get out of here soon. They won’t leave us in here.”

  “It’s a good thing you’re important,” Callie said.

  “It’s not just me,” Luke protested.

  “Sure,” Callie said, turning away from him.

  A park ranger drove up in a Jeep, his tires squealing as he came to a halt next to Sal’s SUV. The ranger hopped out almost before the vehicle had come to a complete stop, and rushed toward Sal. Hector moved to intercept him.

  “You’ve got to get out of here right now.” The ranger’s voice was loud. “Park Road is already cut off to the east, and the fire is getting out of control. It’s moving fast because of the high winds.”

  “How many firefighters are on-site?” Sal asked.

  “Not enough. Some of the crews were already on their way to help in Missouri.” The ranger wiped his face. It was bright red, as if he had been running, and Luke could see the sweat stains on his uniform. “Why isn’t that gate open? How are the firefighters supposed to get inside if they need to?”

  Sal still had the same calm expression he always had, but Luke could see a trickle of sweat running down his face. Sal spoke into his phone. “We need the remote-access control to open the gate. We need at least two helicopters, one for Speeder and one for the wounded. Now.”

  “You are going to be cut off if you don’t leave now,” the park ranger told Sal. “You’re out of time. The rest of the park is evacuated, and the way the fire is spreading, the whole place will be on fire in a couple of hours.”

  Suddenly a loud popping noise and a flash of light came from the remains of the gatehouse.

  20

  The Outer Zone

  “Isabelle! Isabelle, do you copy?” Sal cried into his microphone. “Isabelle, come in.” The expression on Sal’s face changed, and Luke knew he didn’t hear anything.

  Luke didn’t dare turn his head to the gatehouse. He didn’t even want to breathe.

  Finally, Sal spoke. “Luke, here’s what I need you to do. Walk around to where you can see into the gatehouse. Do not go inside or touch anything. See what happened to Isabelle.”

  Luke went toward the gatehouse, feeling like he was walking in slow motion, not wanting to see inside. If Isabelle wasn’t answering, he knew it would be bad. He came around the back of the car and peered through the gloom. It was very still. No Isabelle. Sal had said not to go inside, but he couldn’t see unless he did. If she was hurt, he had to find her.

  He climbed in over the pile of debris. Once inside, he still couldn’t see Isabelle. A beam above him shifted, sending a shower of small particles down and dust up. He hesitated, unsure what to do next. A moan came from the front of the car. Luke crept forward, feeling sick to his stomach. He didn’t know if he could make himself look in front of the car. He knew Colonel Donlin was trapped there, but he didn’t know what to expect.

  Bracing himself, he kept moving forward. Colonel Donlin lay propped up against the front wall of the guardhouse, inches from the front bumper. Luke couldn’t see his legs. Isabelle lay in a crumpled heap, her body partly on the front bumper and partly against the wall. The moaning came from the colonel.

  “Colonel Donlin, it’s me, Luke.”

  The colonel opened his eyes. “I tried to tell her not to touch the lever, but she didn’t hear me.”

  “What happened to Isabelle?”

  The colonel coughed weakly. “The lever’s damaged. She touched it and got an electric shock. I was watching her; she lost her footing and her arm grazed it. The shock threw her back here.”

  “Is she…is she alive?”

  “Yes, I can just touch her with my fingers and I think she’s still breathing.”

  “I can reach her.” Luke climbed over the hood of the SUV and
reached down to touch Isabelle’s arm. As soon as he did, he felt his fright drain away. He thought he could see her breathing.

  “I can get her out,” Luke said, excited.

  “Luke, no,” the colonel said. “I saw her head hit the wall when she fell. If she hurt her neck and you try to move her, you might make it much worse. Leave her until help arrives.”

  Luke climbed back over the car. “I’m going to tell Sal what happened.”

  Callie was at the gate talking to Sal. “What happened, Luke?” She sounded frightened.

  “Isabelle got a bad shock when she touched the lever,” Luke said. “She’s unconscious, and the colonel doesn’t think I should move her. The lever is damaged. We can’t open the gate from here.”

  “We’re working on that,” Sal said. “There’s some glitch in the software controlling the remote access, but we also have helicopters coming, Luke. They should be here soon.”

  Luke saw Hector come forward. “Sir,” Hector said to Sal, “why can’t we try to send a rope line across the fence? We could attach it to a tree on this side, and try to get it to catch on a tree on the other side. I know Luke can climb up those trees. Everybody knows he climbs like a monkey. He could tie it on the other side. I’ll go across and help them back over.”

  “Sergeant, it’s a good idea, but it won’t work,” Sal said. “We thought of climbers as a potential threat when the fence went up. The trees large enough to support a rope line were either cut down or pruned to prevent just that sort of attempt. If you try to use a tree that is too far back, the rope will sag right into the fence. If we had a launcher and a metal cable it might work, but we don’t have either.”

  “Callie, how’s Theo?” Luke tried not to flinch when he looked at her. With all the dried blood on her face, she looked awful.

  “I can’t tell,” Callie said. “He’s being quiet now. I don’t know if that’s good or bad.”

  Luke didn’t know either, but he couldn’t stand to just wait around for something to happen.

  “I’m going in the gatehouse.”

  “Luke!” Sal sounded furious. “Wait.” Most of the Marines were climbing back into the truck, and Luke saw Hector looking at him.

  “Luke, the fire is getting very close. You’ll have to move up the road just a short distance, away from the fence,” Sal said. “Don’t go too far. Stay on the road and the helicopter can land there to get you.”

  Luke thought he could hear a crackling sound. The air was getting hotter and thicker.

  “What about you, Sal? You need to get out of here. The park ranger said you would be cut off.” Luke didn’t see the ranger anymore. He must have decided not to wait around.

  “I’ll go as soon as the helicopters get here,” Sal said, taking out a handkerchief and wiping his forehead, now covered with sweat.

  Theo came up to the fence, his watch in hand. He had tears running down his face but he didn’t seem to notice. “It’s bad. It’s really bad.”

  “What do you mean, Theo?” Luke asked.

  “We don’t have much time. I’ve been thinking about it. We don’t know how fast that fire is going to move, but it’s not very far away because we can feel the heat and see the smoke. The woods aren’t as thick inside the fence as the forest is outside, so it won’t spread quite as fast here, but it won’t slow down that much if the wind keeps up. We have to get out. Look!” Theo’s last words ended in a choked sob as he pointed to the road behind Sal.

  There was fire there, glowing red in the underbrush. The grass next to the road was sparkling with little bits of cinders and some of the trees were aflame. Luke knew Sal wouldn’t leave the entrance as long as Luke was trapped inside, even if the fire came right up to the agent and consumed him. Luke was determined not to let that happen. He knew what he had to do.

  21

  The Quagmire

  “Sal, we’re going to the back gate,” Luke said. “We’re taking one of the cars. Send the helicopters there, because we’re taking Isabelle and Adam and the colonel too.”

  “No! Just move up the road a little ways,” Sal commanded. “You are not leaving here. You are not driving a car. It’s too dangerous. That’s an order. The helicopters will be here any minute.”

  “Sal, we’re going,” Luke said. “The fire is getting too close to you.” He held up the chain around his neck, the disk on it shining in the sunlight. “If the helicopter gets here before we get there, they can find us by my locator disk. We’ll see you soon. Come on, Callie!”

  Sal’s strangled “no” was the only sound Luke heard as he and Callie ran back to the gatehouse.

  Callie knelt by the colonel and he opened his eyes.

  “Colonel,” Luke said, “the fire is getting closer, so we’re going to the back gate. We’ll move the car enough to free you, and we’ll get Adam and Isabelle in the car Isabelle was driving. I…I don’t think we can take Grant.” Luke knew just by looking at the size of the beam that lay across Grant’s back that it couldn’t be budged. “Someone will come back for him as soon as we get the gate open.”

  “No, son.” The colonel struggled to get upright. “You’re never going to be able to move this vehicle, not with all the rubble in here. Don’t worry about us. You need to get out of here, but you have to listen to me first.”

  “We’re not leaving you, Colonel,” Luke said.

  “Please listen. It’s hard for me to talk and you need to listen. The camp is in automatic lockdown. Do you hear the sirens?”

  In all that had happened Luke had forgotten the sirens still wailing near the main buildings, their sound muffled by the trees between the gatehouse and the center of the camp.

  “What does automatic lockdown mean?”

  “Luke, Sal is calling you,” Callie said.

  “Will you go see what he wants?” Luke asked. “The colonel’s trying to tell me something important.” He didn’t want to see Sal. Sal would just keep telling him what not to do. He heard Callie move away and turned his attention back to Colonel Donlin.

  “The system thinks there’s an attack on the compound and the fence has been breached. It has gone into emergency mode.” The colonel stopped talking and drew a few breaths. “You can’t follow the road back through the center of the camp and then out to the back gate. The inner perimeter defense ring is on and it cuts right through the road in two places.”

  “We’re on the outside of the defense perimeter, aren’t we? We’re trapped between it and the electric fence.” Luke sank back on his heels. There was nowhere to go and no one to help them.

  No wonder Sal was so frantic.

  Colonel Donlin roused himself.

  “No, Luke, you’re not trapped. Think. You know the woods are like a big band around the central zone with all the main buildings. Inside the woods, the defense perimeter beams are located so that they form a continuous circle. It’s like an invisible fence. Do you understand?”

  Luke tried to comprehend what the colonel was saying. Colonel Donlin knew Camp David better than anyone. He had been there for years. If anyone could get them out, it would be him. Luke thought about the colonel’s words. Trying to focus, he put his finger down on a dusty part of the floor and traced the image forming in his head.

  “I think I understand. Camp David is like a doughnut. In the center where the hole would be are most of the buildings, that’s B, the woods are the doughnut itself, and the electric fence is the outside edge of the doughnut. The defense perimeter ring is like a thin ring of frosting. The main road cuts the whole thing in half, top to bottom. We’re here.” He wrote FG at the bottom of the circle, to stand for the front gate. “And we need to get here without going through the perimeter ring, the frosting.” He wrote BG at the top of the circle, to stand for the back gate.

  The colonel gave a gasp that might have been a laugh. “That’s right. I never thought of it that way, but you’re right. You won’t get through the defense ring in the woods, and because the road goes through the ring in two places, y
ou can’t take the road. You wouldn’t be able to tell which part of the road is protected anyway. The devices generating the perimeter are too well concealed.”

  “You said the defense system was a ring. Can’t we just crawl under it? Is it aimed so it would hit someone who was trying to run through? Like a tape across a finish line at a race?”

  The colonel coughed, his face gray. When he spoke again, Luke had to lean in to hear him. “Think of an invisible fence about ten feet tall and about a foot thick. There are hundreds of millimeter-wave-generating units positioned on the trees to create the wall. Every tree in that ring has two units, one on each side of the tree, and they’re aimed at the trees next to them in the ring. A person can’t crawl under it. It goes all the way to the ground. But there’s another way.”

  “I get it.” Luke understood exactly what the colonel was trying to tell him. “We go through the woods, around the outside of the ring to the back gate. We won’t cross the defense perimeter that way.”

  “Right. The defense perimeter system is about a hundred feet outside the circular nature trail. I know you know where the trail is, but keep close to the fence, just to be safe.”

  “Can we get an SUV through the woods? We can’t get Adam and Isabelle there any other way.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe, but it would take some time to find places the car would fit between the trees. Luke, you need to get out. Don’t worry about the agents. They wouldn’t want that.”

  “I’m not leaving them. Besides, my friend Theo really hurt his head. I’m not sure how well he can walk.”

  The colonel was quiet for a few seconds. “Take my jeep. It’s parked behind the gatehouse and the keys are in it. If any vehicle can get through the woods, it can. Don’t go too fast, though. The President will be pretty mad at me if you get hurt.” He gave raspy sound like a chuckle.

  “I’ll be careful,” Luke said. “But we can’t just leave you here.”

  “I’ll take my chances. Besides, it’s my job to be the last one out.” The colonel smiled a little. “Help will be here soon. The fire may slow down or go around us. They don’t always do what you expect them to. And, Luke, I expect that jeep back in pristine condition. Not a scratch on it.”