She sat there for several moments, still looking at the phone. Where was this facility located? Come to think of it, the location was never really mentioned. She dug around in her files and found the picture that had been released to the media.
It certainly looked good enough. You could tell from the structures that it was near an airport. She tossed the picture back in the folder. So why had the guy called? What was he hinting at? Maybe she should ask her editor what he knew about this medical facility.
“Ah, our prodigal engineer returns,” Randal said as Buck bounded into the trailer.
“I do indeed. I just wanted to give you slackers a heads up,” he said.
“A heads up. Now there is a first since all this started. Someone actually telling us what is happening before it is too damn late,” Mark replied.
“Well then, let me be the first. By Monday we will have the cradle ready to use.”
“Hey, way to go. You’re a few days ahead of our projected date,” Randal said.
“We got lucky. I located a streak of bedrock just thirty feet below the coal vein. I was able to get solid anchor points. We still used the concrete around the upper joints but I’m happy with the results.”
“If you're happy, we’re all happy,” Mark replied.
“So what’s the next step?” Randal asked.
“I’ll be starting tests this afternoon. I know what the Doppler says but I am going to make damn certain. We will lower the cradle with your and the other guy's equivalent weight plus a ten percent safety factor and make sure we hit bottom and that it works like it should.”
“So we could go as early as Tuesday” Ronald asked.
“I see no reason why not.”
“Unless the thing crashes to the bottom of the pit,” Mark said.
“That’s why we added the extra ten percent. In case you get fat between now and Tuesday.”
“Nice. Really nice,” Mark said.
“I’ll let the military know so they can have their man here on time.”
“Have him come Monday. I’ll need you too Mark. I want to show you how everything works. The lights, the power override and a few other small things.”
“Gee, my skiing gondola doesn’t have all those gizmos,” Mark replied.
“It doesn’t go straight down for five miles either.”
“Good point.”
CHAPTER FORTY
When the commanding officer had left his office, Sargent Roundhouse was deep in thought about what he had said on his way out. What in the world could this all be about?
He didn’t have to wonder long. Within a few minutes the door opened and two men came into the room. They were civilians, Roundhouse surmised from their appearance.
“Staff Sargent Roundhouse. Thank you for coming,” one of the men said.
Neither offered his hand so he just sat there looking at them. He could feel they were checking him out. One of the men opened a briefcase and removed a substantially thick file. He passed it over to the other man who flipped it open.
“I know you have a lot of questions but this will go much faster if we explain the situation and you listen. If you don’t understand something, by all means let us know. Fair enough?” he asked.
“Yes sir.”
“Please, no sir stuff. I’m agent Dan and this is Bob. If it’s alright with you, we'll just call you Kid.”
“Alright Dan,” Roundhouse said.
“Good. Then let’s get started. I’m sure the Commander will want his office back sometime today,” Dan said smiling quickly and looking down at the file once more.
“I’m ready whenever you are,” Roundhouse replied.
“What we are about to tell you is considered Ultra Top Secret. Nothing, and I mean nothing that is said in this room can ever be repeated. Kid, this comes from the highest level of security in the nation. You must keep that in mind at all times. You are to be made aware that divulging any information given to you here today can and will result in your immediate arrest and detainment. Do you understand that provision?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Sign here attesting to that fact.”
When he was done signing Dan read off ten more provisions and he was required to sign that he had understood each one.
“Knowing and having attested to that fact, do you wish to continue?”
“Well, I know what happens if I do listen and say something. What happens if I get up and just walk out right this instance?”
“We will look for another candidate. You were chosen because you fit the profile we were looking for. There are others but you were our first choice,” the man called Bob explained.
“How many others have you told that to?” Roundhouse asked the man.
The two looked at each other and didn’t say anything for a few seconds.
“I like you Kid so I’m going to be honest. You’re the third we have interviewed,” he said smiling.
“You told the number two guy that as well.”
“Yep, we did. And if you walk, we will tell the number four man until we find the right person to do the job,” Dan replied, closing the file and handing it back to Bob.
“So, why don’t you tell me what this is all about? I guess I’ll be your number one man,” Roundhouse said, leaning back in his seat and relaxing for the first time since he had been called to report.
“Excellent. Bob, why don’t you fill him in on the background and then I’ll explain the actual mission?”
“Alright Kid. This will take a little time but it is important to know how we got to this point. It all started back in the mid-sixties. Johnson was the President. The war in Vietnam was sputtering along and people were starting to get disenchanted with the whole thing…”
It was almost an hour before Bob finished and Dan took over explaining what his mission really was.
“Are you sure about your facts?” Jane asked.
“Look, I worked here when they were building the place. This is it.”
“It sure doesn’t look anything like the picture,” she replied.
They were lying in the grass on a small knoll. She held a pair of binoculars to her eyes.
“They seemed to have left the barbed wire fence out of the publicity shot.”
“Not to mention the guards and dogs patrolling the area,” Jane added.
“What is that?” her companion asked, pointing to a military truck stopping at the front gate.”
Jane didn’t bother to answer, she was watching intently as the truck pulled up to one of the buildings. She watched as they opened the doors and guards surrounded the truck. They were all wearing full face masks and green protection suits. More startling was that they were all carrying automatic rifles.
“Are you seeing this?”
“Yeah, I’m seeing,” Jane replied.
“Look at the way they are handling them. That doesn’t look like any medical procedure I know of,” he said.
“Holy moly, are you believing this?’
While they were watching one of the biggest men suddenly leaped and grabbed one of the guards. He pulled his mask up and wrestled he gun out of his hand. He turned and started firing at the other guards. The sound of a machine gun fire filled the air before it was joined by several others. They watched in horror as the big man suddenly dropped his gun but the others kept shooting. He fell hard to the ground and still rounds pumped into his prone body. Finally the firing stopped. The sudden stillness was almost deafeningly eerie.
“That is no medical facility,” Jane said, taking her eyes off the binoculars.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
“I’m telling you what I saw,” Jane told her boss.
“And I’m telling you that all I have is your and Carson’s version of what went on. You are not going to write a sensational story getting everyone worked up until you know a whole lot more about the situation.”