Absolute Power (Book 1): Origins (26 page)

“Ah, here are my enforcers now,” Jess said when they came into the room.

There was a small girl sitting across from Jess.  The girl was clutching a stuffed rabbit and sat motionless in the oversized chair.

“If you don't talk, I'll have them break your legs,” Jess joked.

The girl forced a smile.

“You don't believe me?”  Jess pretended to threaten.

“No,” Eve said.

This time the girl's smile was real, but she quickly hid it.

“Fine, get out of here,” Jess acted upset.  “You better get your act together or else.”

The girl slid off the chair with her rabbit and left.

“She's so sad,” Shruti said.

“Yeah, since she’s been here I haven't got her to talk once,” Jess told them.

“Perhaps she doesn't know what to say,” Eve suggested.

“And that's why you're my aid,” Jess smiled.  “Who best to understand kids with problems, but someone who has them?  Plus, you might learn something from them.  But don't tell anyone else about the secret plot.”

Eve had been following along until the part about the plot.  “I don't understand,” she said.

Shruti explained, “She's talking about the advisory classes, and the fact that the kids haven't figured out it's a trick.”

“Yup,” Jess agreed.  “Instead of throwing you guys in a room with a psychiatrist, we give you advisory class.  That way when you're helping a teacher you don't notice you're learning to solve your problems.  Like you, Eve my love, have a lot to learn about being an adolescent.”

“Since I've been here many people have told me that they appreciated my non-adolescent behavior,” Eve said.

“Being an adolescent is about pushing things around, getting to know what you can do, what you like to do and who you are as a person,” Jess said.  “That's as important as learning math or science.  'Cause if you don't know who you are, how are you going to make choices in your life?  And if you don't know what you're capable of, how are you going to be awesome.”

Shruti looked away, because she’d seen this part of Eve’s file, even though she wasn’t supposed to.  Jess however was pretty much laying it all on the table.

In Eve's case, her conundrum was that she lived by what her superiors told her.  So even if it rubbed her the wrong way, she was going to try to do whatever they wanted.

Somewhere near the Rio Meta, one hundred miles east of Bogotá, Assault Team Four made camp as they waited for orders.  The team had been together six years serving under Captain Torres.  For an assault team, it was common to be in the field for long stretches of time.  Usually, the Colonel in charge would issue commands from the comfort of his office, and the Captains would execute the commands how they saw fit.  This, in Captain Torres’ opinion, was the only reason they were still alive.

Two months ago, the daughter of a government official had been kidnapped.  It was The One's policy to stay out of local affairs, but Colonel DeCosta had a liberal idea of such policies.  Especially since the government official was a friend.  DeCosta classified the mission as civilian aid and ordered AT4 to intervene.  Torres reluctantly followed orders and led his men in blind.  If he hadn't been so hesitant, or if DeCosta had been calling the play-by-play, they might have lost everyone.  As it was, the girl had been murdered before they even arrived, and the place was packed with explosives.  It was a trap.  He lost all of Green team and two people from Red team, one of which was a Lieutenant.

With eight people dead, AT4 was pulled off of active duty until replacements could arrive.  Then last month five fresh-faced rookies showed up at camp.  Standard operating procedure dictated that they were supposed to have four teams of five people.  Three of the teams led by a Lieutenant and the other by the Captain himself.  Except, now they were one man short and a Lieutenant shy.  It was typical command, cutting corners, so Torres would have to make due.

He ended up having to give out an unwarranted field promotion, knowing full well that it was a bad idea.  So Daniel Muir became the Lieutenant in command of Red team.  Corporal Silva had to be moved from Blue team to Red team because Torres didn't want Muir in charge of four rookies.  That left the new girl, Lieutenant Godfrey; she took Green team instead of Sergeant Orlando, who did deserve a promotion, but it was bad timing.  Godfrey came with a letter of recommendation from Colonel Porter, and that carried a lot of weight.  Of course, he'd seen plenty of kids come up on some Colonel or General’s recommendation. Most of them couldn't hack command, which is why he moved Orlando to her team, along with Private Mallory, who was also up for a promotion.  Captain Torres took the three remaining rookies onto his team.

Reorganizing teams was never a good idea; too confusing, but it had to be done.  The time it took them to adjust would cause a lot of trouble; too many new names and dispositions to get used to.

Angie sat next to a small fire drying her socks.  Her gear was laid out behind her on a tarp to keep the jungle floor from soaking it.  Orlando had done the same thing, but was busying himself by brewing coffee.  The two of them had gotten along well enough, considering she had killed his promotion.  It was the kid who she was worrying about.  Jason Mallory was sitting with Muir and his team, talking and joking.

“So these kids are throwing rocks at us,” Mallory is telling a story, “and Danny, who I didn't even see circle around, turns into a wolf and comes up behind them.  I swear, when he roared they crapped their pants.”

Red Team started laughing, and Muir soaked up the attention.  He and Mallory had been good friends before the teams were reordered.

“I even took a swipe 'r two at 'em,” Muir added to the story.  “Not so sure I was trying to miss 'em though.”

Angie’s instincts told her Muir was trouble.  They were alike; he had the ability to turn into part wolf, but that was where the similarities ended.  Muir’s abilities seemed to influence him more than physically.  Even when he wasn't in animal form he acted like one.  His leadership was questionable, and he often enticed his men to use more force than necessary.

Muir must have sensed Angie watching, because he called out to her, “Godfrey, if you find us so entertaining why don't you have a seat over here?”  He patted a spot next to him and grinned.

Muir was Irish, with thick black hair and blue eyes.  Angie saw how most women would find him attractive.  However, there was something about him that put her off.  And she knew that there were only a few reasons why the European section would send someone to South America, none of them good.

“You should be prepping to move out,” Angie replied.  She was looking at Mallory when she said this, but the kid turned away.

“We haven't had new orders for near a month,” Muir said back.  “What we should be doing is drinking that booze we confiscated.”

His team agreed loudly.

“Cut it,” Captain Torres said.  Earlier his team had made their way up a hill to use the radio.  They had reappeared from the trees.  “Got orders.  We're to patrol the villages out this way.  Some rebels are causing problems, and we are to protect the locals and secure supply lines.”

“We're no the bleeding Red Cross,” Muir spit.

Torres ignored him and added, “Colonel DeCosta says to take 'preemptive action' in regards to our orders.  Which means we have to sweep and clear thousands of square miles of jungle.”  Torres left it at that because he knew if he kept talking it would turn into insubordination.  But who ordered nineteen people to search the entire jungle?

Angie was still watching Muir and Red team.  None of them had started to pack, and Mallory was following suit.

Orlando, who was crouched next to her asked, “You think it's going to be a problem?”

“Now that we have orders, it should be easier to keep them separated,” Angie answered.

Over the last couple of weeks, Angie came to learn that Orlando had a good head for strategy.  It was a shame that he was passed up for a promotion.  He would have made a better Lieutenant than Sergeant.  She was also surprised at how non-confrontational he was.  Another soldier would have hated her or Muir.  Orlando cared, but he wasn't going to make enemies.

Angie ordered Orlando to get the team on their feet while she grabbed Mallory.

They traveled through the night taking only a few short breaks.  They could spot their destination by the smoke in the air.  Before the sun was completely over the horizon, the company found themselves at a small village.  It had been built on a muddy hill, and only by a miracle it hadn’t slid down the mountain.  Animals were locked in pens near the center, and a fire burned somewhere.

Captain Torres ordered Blue and Red team to sweep the surrounding area for threats.  Angie's Green team watched Torres' flank as they entered the village.  A pudgy man with a straw hat approached Torres and started to talk.  The discussion became heated, and Angie made her way over to see what was going on.  Her Spanish was terrible, especially compared to the Captain, who was Columbian born.

The village head sounded angry.  To Angie it seemed like Torres was taking it in stride.  Then the village head said something firmly and walked away.  Captain Torres scratched at his neck swearing softly to himself.

“How much of that did you get?”  The Captain asked Angie.

“Very little, sir,” she responded.

Torres sighed.  “About a week ago some rebels stopped here.  They took the supplies we left for the village and killed some of their men.  The rebels say, if the village keeps working with us, they'll do worse.”

“That doesn't make sense, sir,” Angie said.  “They take the supplies and warn us not to bring more?”

“Two for the price of one I guess,” Torres said.  “They get some free stuff and a chance to threaten people.  But that is only part of the problem.  Tomas,” he nodded to the village head, “is blaming us for everything.  He thinks it's our fault his people were killed.”

“Is he saying he didn’t find those supplies useful?”  Angie was getting irritated.

Torres laughed because it took a lot to get a rise out of her.  “Doesn't matter.  He wants us gone, but this is the only waypoint between Yopal and San Jose.  So we need a solution.”

“Preemptive aid,” Angie suggested.

“We'd have to be sure to wipe out the rebels,” Torres said, “or these people will suffer the consequences.”  He pulled a map from his pocket and looked it over.  “How do you feel about taking a trip?” He asked.

“Ready and willing, sir,” Angie stood at attention.

Torres grabbed his radio and called Red team.  He ordered them to take a defensive position on the eastern perimeter of the village.  Blue team was ordered to do the same on the western side.  Angie and Torres’ teams headed south along the same path the rebels had taken.  It was likely they had a base somewhere close.  There was a main road a couple miles north of the village and another to the southwest.  The rebels would try to stay clear of high traffic areas like that.  The strange thing was that AT4 had just marched through the area.  In that entire time, they hadn't seen a single sign of life, let alone a base.  Of course, it was easy to hide out here.

Night came, and the two platoons made camp on the side of a hill.  They set up a watch and those who got a chance to sleep took it.  Angie slept lightly, always aware when her people changed watch or stirred.  In the morning she felt rested enough, then after a brief stretch was ready to go.

Captain Torres handed her a cup of coffee when she went to see him.  “I want you to take your platoon ahead,” he said.  “Give the jungle a cursory sweep, and we'll come through and follow any leads you find.”

“The rebels knew the village,” Angie ventured. “That means they've been there before.  So they must have a trail.”

“If they do, I haven't seen it,” Torres said.  “Get moving.  It's a bad idea to leave Muir alone for too long.”

“Yes, sir,” Angie agreed.  To her team she shouted, “Green, get up and get moving.”

Mallory sat up with a grumble.  Orlando and Santiago kept their complaints to themselves.  For once, being a man short was going to work in their favor.  Smaller scouting parties could move faster.

“We're taking the lead,” Angie explained to Orlando.  “Organize a sweeping pattern.  I want you on the far right.  I'll take far left.”

Orlando nodded and turned to the others.  “Sweep the jungle.  Santiago center right.  Mallory center left.”

They had been walking along for several hours when Angie came across an animal path.  The underbrush almost hid it from sight.  It would make an excellent route for anyone who didn't want to be found.  Not only that, but it went in the same direction that they thought the rebels might be hiding.  Angie followed it for a couple of miles until it let out at a stream.  She crouched and listened to the jungle.  The animals went on with their daily routine, undisturbed.  There was no one else out here, but that didn't mean the rebels weren't using the stream and paths to travel.

After wetting down her head and neck, Angie pulled out her radio and switched channels.  They were observing tactical communication, which meant cryptic conversations.  “Green to Yellow, come in.”

“This is Yellow, go ahead,” Captain Torres answered.

“I'm approximately two miles south of your position,” Angie said.  “There’s a stream here that could be what we're looking for.”

“Copy that,” Torres said, “We'll check it out.”

The next five hours were uneventful and slow going.  Angie's platoon had covered ten miles of jungle.  At sundown, they regrouped and made camp.  Sometime in the middle of the night a call came over the radio.  The sound snapped Angie awake.

“...enemy contact,” she could just make out Muir's accent, “...bad... …support... We're under heavy fire.”

Torres cut into the radio transmission, “Green team fall back to the village double time.”

Orlando already had the team packing their bags.  There was no way they would make it back in time to be of any help.  Still, they moved fast incase the minutes made a difference.  After having scouted the area, they already knew the quickest path.

“Green to Yellow, come in,” Angie said into her radio quietly

“What's your position?”  Torres asked.

“Five hundred meters from the village,” she reported.

“Blue team is moving east,” Torres said, “In pursuit of three tangos.  Red team is not responding.  Secure the village and be careful.”

“Copy, secure village,” Angie replied.

From her pack, Angie pulled out binoculars to scan the village.  It looked deserted and as far as she could tell there were no signs of a fight.  That probably meant Red team was somewhere in the surrounding jungle.  The fact that she couldn't see any villagers troubled Angie.  It was best to assume that the village was under enemy occupation.

“Orlando, take Mallory and swing left to give us some cover fire,” Angie ordered.

“We're short manned; it’d be easier to blast the village out from around them,” Mallory argued.

Angie ignored him.  “Santiago, you and I will clear the buildings.”  She turned directly to Mallory.  “Don't let anyone get behind us.”

This time Mallory kept his suggestions to himself.  He nodded and then went with Orlando.  The two of them moved through the concealment of the jungle.  Angie followed their progress with her binoculars.  When they were in position, Orlando waved.  Angie and Santiago slipped their packs off.  They had to cross a lot of open ground, and they needed to move fast.  Santiago would make the sprint easier.  She had the ability to distort physics, changing inertia, mass and force.  It would make the two women fast and agile, more so than they already were.  Santiago took a second to make sure her hair was pulled back tight.  When she was ready, she nodded to Angie.  They dashed out of the jungle at full speed, heading for the nearest house.  Angie went left and Santiago right, as they zigzagged across the open field.