After several minutes, they leveled out and Anderson came forward. He motioned for Kathryn to join him. She stood and shuffled back to where he was standing, looking over his shoulder at Jason’s body bag again. She leaned next to Anderson against two giant bags of gear.
“There is something I didn’t get a chance to tell you outside,” he said in a lowered voice.
She leaned in expectantly.
He looked at the others and lowered his voice even more. “We’re not heading back to McMurdo.”
She raised her eyebrows surprised. “Where are we heading?”
“It sounds like someone pretty high up in my government got a call from someone in yours,” he said with a slight frown. “We have been asked to return you directly back to the Falklands.”
“You were asked?”
He shrugged. “Let’s say asked firmly.”
“This is probably going to sound like a dumb question, but can this plane make it that far with all of this equipment on board?”
“Barely.”
“Well,” she said, looking back at the other team members. “I don’t think anyone is going to object. It just gets us back to civilization that much faster.”
He nodded. “Right. I just thought you should know. Apparently there will be another aircraft waiting for you when we land.”
“I guess someone really wants to get us home in a hurry.”
Anderson shook his head. “No, the plane isn’t waiting for everyone. It’s waiting for you specifically.”
Kathryn woke up when she felt the plane bank hard to the right. She looked out the window and could see land beneath them. Some of the others looked even more excited than she was to see brown land instead of white. Kathryn watched as the plane passed over nearly a hundred small lakes before lining up for its approach. The sky was dark blue with the sun just sinking below the western horizon. One of Anderson’s men sitting nearby reminded everyone to fasten their harnesses and prepare for landing. Hopefully, a much smoother landing this time.
The touchdown was uneventful, and the C130 slowed and taxied down one of the long runways of Britain’s Royal Air Force station. The area was a focal point in 1982 during the war over the Falkland archipelago between Argentina and the United Kingdom. The war lasted just two months but cost the lives of over 900 Argentinian and British soldiers. After the victory, the British greatly reinforced the defense of the islands, particularly on the East Falkland Island where they had just landed.
The plane came to a stop, and all of Kathryn’s team eagerly unbuckled and stood up. The air that rushed in when the side door was opened was noticeably warmer, and she waited for everyone to exit before following them down the ladder. As they walked toward a large waiting bus, Kathryn looked around and spotted the two other planes which had picked up the rest of her team. She reasoned that everyone must already be inside which gave her some solace. It was over, at least for them.
“Ms. Lokke?” a British officer standing nearby asked.
“Yes.”
He reached out to shake her hand. “I’m Captain Dyson. Welcome.”
Kathryn watched the bus close its doors and slowly pull away. Tadri stared at her through the window with a confused look on her face. She gave a small wave and turned back. “Thank you,” Kathryn said.
“We have a plane waiting to take you to the US. I trust you were briefed.”
“Yes,” she said. “I was briefed.”
“Very good. The flight back will be faster, but I’m afraid the accommodations are rather tight. I recommend that you take a few minutes to stretch and perhaps use the loo before you leave. Can I get you anything? Maybe something to eat?”
Kathryn nodded. “Yes, thank you that would be fine. I mean the stretch and a trip to the ladies room. I’m not really hungry.”
“I understand. If you would be so kind as to follow me, I can escort you.” Dyson led her to a small SUV and opened the door for her. “If you do get hungry, I would recommend you not drink anything. There is no toilet on this plane.”
“Good tip.” She closed the door and leaned her seat back.
The plane waiting for her was a surprise. Even with her limited knowledge of the military she recognized the famed SR71 Blackbird when they approached in the car. The Blackbird was a result of the cold war and the need for the US to have a faster spy plane after an earlier model was shot down over the Soviet Union. The SR71’s shape was unmistakable. Most US citizens had seen several pictures of it over the years.
“Um, didn’t I read that these planes were officially decommissioned not too long ago?”
Dyson smiled. “Well, you may have read that.”
He opened the back lift gate of the SUV and pulled out a pressurized pilot suit in her size.
“I have to wear that?” Kathryn asked surprised.
“I’m afraid so. The good news is that this plane is very fast and the flight will not be long. The bad news is that you will be traveling above the speed of sound, and you will need this suit for protection.”
“Okay, this is ridiculous. Who the hell wants me back so fast that I need to wear protection inside the plane?”
Dyson shook his head helplessly. “I’m afraid I don’t know, ma’am.”
“Fine!” She removed her parka and flung it into the car. Next she removed her boots, put a hand on Dyson’s shoulder for balance and slid a leg into the suit.
31
Everyone was standing when President Carr entered the underground conference room at JAX twelve hours later. Vice President Edward Bailey followed him in. Bailey’s stockiness at five foot eight inches stood out in contrast to Carr’s taller slender frame. Both were in their mid-fifties, but while Carr had a long established political career, Bailey’s spanned less than half of Carr’s.
Carr walked to the head of the table, and Bailey stood to his right. “Gentlemen, please have a seat.” He remained standing and continued. “Thank you for getting here quickly. I have just gotten off a call with several heads of state; Russia, China, Britain, and several others. I have informed them of some of our developments here, and I’m sure you can imagine that they were all rather surprised. I will say however that I have not provided all of the details yet as we are obviously still trying to piece things together ourselves. I will also tell you that the United Nations is putting together a team of their top people and plan to have them here within a couple days. What this means is this situation is about to get very political and very messy.”
“Secretary Miller has briefed me on the latest developments which we are all here to discuss. You might also be curious why it took us twelve hours to convene. The reason is that we have added a couple people to the invite. The first is Mr. Lawrence.” Carr motioned to the man sitting across from Langford. “Mr. Lawrence heads the research department of the Department of Energy. He is fully up to speed.” Carr glanced at his watch. “The second person has just arrived and is being escorted to our room. As soon as we have everyone here, I would like to do a formal round of introductions so everyone knows who is who. I would also-”
Carr was suddenly interrupted by the conference room door opening and one of the guards ushering in Kathryn Lokke, who looked disheveled to put it mildly. She walked into a room and looked around, surprised at the large attendance. “Ah Ms. Lokke,” Carr greeted her. “Please do come in.” Mason got up and offered her his seat. “Let me first apologize for the urgency involved in getting you here. I know you have had a very rough couple of days. Do you feel alright and can we get you anything?”