Wallace was not only a few inches taller than his former Captain, but also about twenty-five pounds heavier. There were no small features on the man. “Me and Cam took a detail to bring some of our equipment to the mountain. The old man himself assigned me to it and ordered me to stay with it until it was returned. If I dared come back without it, he‘d have my ass.”
Former Sergeant Ritchie “Cam” Camarillo was the antithesis of the other two men. He stood five feet seven inches tall, and weighed one-hundred fifty-five pounds soaking wet.
“They allowed you to stay after you brought…. what did you bring anyway?”
“We brought all of our Nett Warrior systems. The Colonel was pissed too, but he couldn’t do anything about it. He was afraid he wasn’t going to get them back. I guess he was right,” Wallace said solemnly. “Anyway, after we waited in line for hours, we finally made it inside. The officer in charge seemed interested in what we had, and gave us an escort to where it was to be taken. Since I wasn’t planning to leave until I got our stuff back, we hung out with some of the quartermaster guys. A few hours later we found out we were here to stay.”
“Yeah,” Keith said in understanding.
“How’d you get here sir, if you don’t mind my asking?”
“My father, invited me and my wife for a tour,” he said looking both men directly in the eyes. They nodded in understanding.
“Well, since you are the only guys I know in this outfit, guess who’s gonna be my new assistant and chief clerk,” Keith said with a grin.
“A clerk,” Camarillo said with resignation.
“Yeah, afraid so Cam; at least until we get outside again.”
“When is that gonna be sir,” Wallace asked.
“I don’t know Wallace, probably not for some time. But we will have to be ready for when it happens, and we’ll have to do our part while we are in here.” They nodded their heads in understanding. “Both of you come with me to the office. I’m going to have to pick a few supervisors for the shifts, and I want your input because you will have to work closely with them too.”
The following morning Keith sat in his office looking over the files of the five men he had decided on the previous night. Wallace and Camarillo sat in the outer office with those men. Keith waved his hand to let Cam know he was to show the first man in. The first four were all middle-aged men who had civil criminal justice experience. For what they were going to do while inside, he thought they were the best men for the job. Like his father, Keith thought the best solution to a problem was to put the proverbial round peg into the round hole. All four seemed competent enough and that settled his first order of business. The last man was something different. When Keith read his file, he wondered if it would have made more sense to let him run this operation. He was a former F.B.I. Special Agent in Charge of the Phoenix Arizona office with fifteen years of experience.
Keith thought there might be some animosity between them once he learned that his new chief’s claim to fame was being his father’s son, so he decided to feel him out to see if he might want some kind of reassignment. Keith gestured for him to be shown in. He stood behind the desk and offered his hand as he approached, “Nice to meet you Trent, my name’s Keith.” As the two men shook hands, Keith first noticed his eyes. There was a smile on his face, but that did nothing to hide the coldness of those eyes. Keith had taken other lives in the line of duty, and he knew the look of those who took pleasure in it. He was looking at one such person now.
“My pleasure,” Trent Gibbs said as they both took their seats.
When anyone was able to focus on him without being repelled by those eyes, they noticed a very ordinary man. He was of medium build and average height with no other distinguishable features including his brown hair and brown eyes. There was an aura of confidence around him, however, and those who had worked with him, knew that aura was grounded by achievement.
“I’m not one to mince words so I’ll get to the point. Looking at your experience, you are much more suited to this position than I am. But, it’s been entrusted to me and I intend to do the job. That being said, would it pose a problem working under me?”
“Not at all,” Gibbs answered instantly.
“Why not,” challenged Keith.
While there was no mirth evident in his eyes, there was an expression of either amusement or respect or both emanating from the former fed in response to the question. After a moment, he replied. “I don’t think we will be here, underground, forever. I believe, sooner than later, we will make our way outside. Things will be different. What I once was is no more. What you once were will probably be again. I am content to wait and do whatever is necessary until that time comes. It may be that I will inherit what you are doing now, or that I will be given a chance to do something similar outside. I do not see us as competing for anything.”
Keith thought about that. It made sense and there was really no glamour or perks relative to either man’s job. It truly was a completely different environment. He could see now what his father was accomplishing with discarding military uniforms and rank. People were not being paid; they could only draw rations and equipment. Incentives were collective not personal.
“Okay. I already have my shift commanders. What I had in mind for you was to handle all investigations; anything assigned to me by my superiors, as well as anything that presents itself over time. Until such work is necessary, you will assist in training rudimentary investigation and interrogation techniques. What do you think?”
“I’d like that.”
“Your office is two doors down. All reports come directly to me. You are separate from the shift commanders and they will be told that. You can have two men to assist you. When you know who you want, let me know.”
“There is one man, a former agent of mine actually, who I would like.”
“His name,” Keith asked as he picked up a pen.
“Culver, Ryan Culver.”
Keith wrote the name on a pad of paper, “You got him. Whenever you have another name for me, give it to Wallace. That’s the big man outside the door. He’s my assistant,” he said getting to his feet.
They shook hands once more as the man left his office. He signaled for Wallace to enter. “He took the job. I don’t think he’s going to be a problem, but you let me know if he gives you or anyone else a hard time.”
“Don’t worry about me boss, I’ve dealt with stranger cats than him,” Wallace said.
FOUR
Shortly after Terri left their apartment, Keith decided to explore as much of the complex as he could. Terri had adjusted well by keeping busy with her work. She was excited by the prospect of getting her doctoral degree in a few more years and was focusing her time and efforts to accomplish that. That was fine with Keith. Their relationship was back to normal, considering what they had gone through, and he was engaged in his own activities.
Everyone in the mountain was required to pursue educational courses. If they already had a degree in one discipline, they had to take up another. It was reasoned that if someone had special skills in one area, then they would be much more beneficial to their fellow survivors with two or more. It was a productive way to use their time anyway. There were no days off, and people who were pursuing a degree could trade working hours with educational hours. Once they completed a degree from their educational center, there was no further obligation to pursue another. If someone wanted to obtain multiple degrees, it was their choice. The extensive computer network that they had facilitated study of any curriculum one desired. It was the culmination of more than a century’s worth of education collected from library and university databases throughout the world. All of the world’s literary classics, and educational disciplines, were available at the stroke of a few keys.