“Okay, Leah… show time.”
Leah peeked out through the vestibule doorway and smiled at the SEAL guard. “I need to use the facilities, again.” She pointed toward the ice latrine.
The guard lifted his eyebrows. “Okay, ma’am. Come on out.”
Leah pulled herself out of the mountaineering tent and then walked over toward the guard. “How long do we have to stay cooped up inside that tent? I mean, aren’t you all freezing.”
The guard remained stiff. “I have to ask you to use the head or return to the tent.”
“You’ve got to give a woman a chance to stretch her legs first.” Leah looked up at the young SEAL, and then reached out with her hand. “My name’s Leah. You are…?”
CHAPTER 81
Fischer had made the trip inside the buried installation, where he immediately felt claustrophobic and paranoid. “Are they alive?” he asked a middle-aged, balding scientist who looked to Fischer as if he could have been Woody Allen’s long-lost, older brother.
The scientist looked at Fischer nervously. “I believe they are held in cryonic suspension.” He smiled. “My name is Dr. Gordon — I’m not sure we’ve been properly introduced.
“How are you going to get them out of here?” asked Fischer without a hint that he’d even heard Gordon’s introduction.
Dr. Gordon walked over to one of the life-support tubes, touching it lightly. “It appears that each one of these habitats operates on a self-sufficient power source, perhaps designed that way in the event of a power failure in the larger structure.” He shrugged. “We don’t know how long the tubes will continue to operate once removed from the installation. In truth, we don’t know anything about any of this.” Dr. Gordon led Fischer to the door into the room. “I understand Dr. Andrews opened the doors by placing her hand just so. Perhaps she also holds the key to cycling open these tubes.”
“Dr. Andrews has been less than cooperative,” Fischer said, “but that’s about to change.”
CHAPTER 82
Leah’s smile was Academy-Award caliber. When she held out her right hand, the SEAL seemed reluctant to take it, but that smile must have won him over, because his hand met hers. She gripped his hand tightly; when he smiled, Leah knew she had him.
Without warning, she yanked herself toward the SEAL, using his outstretched hand as leverage. Her left hand came up, and in a flash she jammed the needle into his neck and pushed the plunger to the stop. The SEAL pushed her away, and Leah stumbled backward into the snow.
The SEAL reached up to his neck, where the needle and syringe dangled. He took one step forward and fell into the snow.
Jack and Paulson dragged the unconscious SEAL into the tent.
“He’s going to be okay, right?” asked Marko nervously. “You didn’t kill him or anything, did you?”
“How’s he doing?” Leah asked anxiously.
Jack felt for his pulse. “He’s fine. I just hope he doesn’t have some kind of reaction to the morphine.”
“What type of reaction?”
“If he’s allergic, it could be a problem.”
“Why the hell didn’t you tell me that?”
Jack glared back at her. “Would you have done it?”
“No!”
“That’s your answer.” Jack reached into the medical kit and pulled out a syringe. “I’ll give him a shot of adrenaline, just in case.”
“You sure this is a good plan?” Paulson asked.
“You got a better one?”
“Nope.”
CHAPTER 83
Beckam glanced inside the rear of the LC-130 Hercules as the crew scurried to load the contents of the trailer.
“What are the spooks doing inside that structure?” Beckam asked Frantino over the secure communicator.
“Don’t have a clue, Skipper. We’re not allowed any closer than about a hundred or so meters from the snowcats. From what we can tell, they’re using a lift system to take stuff out — but most of it’s covered with thermal blankets, so we can’t really tell. Whatever they’re doing, that damn snowcat with the covered trailer’s already made five or six trips, each time loaded to the gills.”
“What’s the status of the civilians at the mountain camp?
“Getting restless to say the least, Skipper. They keep asking why they have to stay in the tents instead of being shuttled down to the main camp. Any indication when we’re gonna be wheels up? I want to be as far away as possible if the Russians make an appearance.”
“I’ve been riding Fischer’s ass on that, including what his so-called plan is for the civilians. I’m not overly concerned about the Russians. Fischer would be shitting his pants like they were on fire if he thought we had contact inbound. I don’t think anyone wants to be the one to pull the trigger on World War III. Unless they know what’s under the ice, they’ll think twice, maybe three times before they roll in weapons hot.”
“What’s your plan, boss?”
“Keep the guys hot, Danny. Assume Fischer has some surprises concerning the civilians, and us. Be ready to move in a moment’s notice.”
“Copy that, Skipper. Hope for the best. Assume we’re fucked. Standard sit-rep.”
Beckam stole another glance at the rear of the LC-130. “Stand by, Danny I’m going to do a little recon.”
Beckam moseyed over toward the rear of the LC-130 until he caught the attention of one of the perimeter guards, who waved him away. Before Beckam turned back around he got a solid view of the Hercules cargo hold, already packed solid with a collection of gear surrounded by thermal blankets and a variety of other equipment.
He did a silent head count. Beckam totaled twenty-six SEALs, ten civilians and maybe thirty of the spooks and scientists. If they continued to load cargo at the current rate, there wouldn’t be room for the SEAL Team, much less the civilians. Beckam decided it was time to have a chat with the civilian mechanics held in the machine shop.
If Fischer intended to double-cross them, he wanted to make sure they could get out on the Caribou before the Russians decided they’d been patient enough.
CHAPTER 84
“Something’s going down,” Juan told Ridley.
Ridley jammed his face through the crack in the door; armed men ran in every direction. Even their SEAL guard had become distracted as several of the Hercules security team pointed in the direction of Thor’s Hammer.
“What’s the commotion?” Ridley asked the SEAL guard outside the door.
“Your friends aren’t too smart. They’re trying to make a run for it.”
Juan slapped Ridley on the back so hard the old mechanic nearly fell to the ground. “I knew they couldn’t keep Leah tied down!”
“If they’ve got the snow machines, it might give them enough time to get the Caribou cranked up.” Ridley’s thick eyebrows lifted. “Probably help if they had some kind of diversion. Otherwise I doubt they’ll make it.”
“If you’ve got something in mind, now would be a good time.” Rooster pointed at their guard, who was moving farther away from the building, trying to see the action out on the ice.
“There’s no way we can jump him before he turns around and opens up with that grease-gun,” Chase cautioned.
“I’ve got a better idea.” Ridley walked over to where the propane-filled tire had been left for seating. “Help me flip this thing over.”
Juan and Perez manhandled the propane-filled Caribou tire into the middle of the shed and laid it on its side. “Find me a screwdriver or something like it.”
“Wait,” Rooster said. “You start filling this place with gas… one spark and we’re headed for the moon.”
Ridley grinned. “Can’t wait.”