Jesse's Starship (14 page)

“You told me to anticipate anything you might want to know and there is something you should notice.”

“What is that?”

“There was a slight modification made to the blaster that isn’t in the module. The small slide on top, if pushed toward the rear, will turn the blaster off when it’s in the holder. This was done when two of the blaster’s engineers accidentally shot themselves in the legs pulling it out.”

Jess nodded, “It must have hung up on the holder.”

“That’s exactly what happened. Your solution to that problem was much easier than modifying the weapon.”

“I understand the slide on the bottom of the blaster determines whether it will stun or kill.”

“That feature has not changed.”

Jess thought for a moment, “How long will it stun the one it hits.”

“About two hours.”

“How do I set it to training mode?”

“Press the green button on the handle until it locks.”

“Is it possible to unlock if gripped tightly?”

“No; it will have to be depressed and held in place for ten seconds to unlock it.”

“While Elle’s receiving the transfer, why don’t you start the holographic training module?” Jess pushed the green button in and held it until it clicked.

The bridge changed and Jess found himself walking through a jungle. He swore it was real but saw his hand pass through a large plant. He smiled and walked down the small path. Suddenly, a green reptile jumped out of a bush in front of him and he drew the blaster and fired at it. He missed it completely. “Pause the training.” The holograph disappeared. “I need some targets to get this thing aligned properly.” A holographic image of thirty different sized shapes appeared across the bridge. Jess took the blaster and started firing the red beam at the targets. He stopped after he missed the first three and said, “I’m consistently high.”

“Blaster beams are not affected by atmosphere or wind.”

Jess nodded. He should have figured that out; a beam doesn’t drop. The sights should be set for no change in trajectory. He turned and sighted at another target and hit it in the center. He started slow and then picked up speed. By the time Elle woke from the transfer, Jess was no longer having to hold a sight picture to hit his intended target. It took him a week to teach Elle how to fire a blaster accurately. She didn’t have to ask why he insisted on teaching her; they would be needed during a prison break. Once she learned how to fire the hand and shoulder blasters, Jess put the force field on her belt and made her learn again. The field distorted the beams slightly and forced them to compensate a little. Jess was thankful the alien who died on Earth didn’t know that a personal force field was available. If it had known, none of this would have happened and Earth would be a dead rock.

“M
r. Sanders, I really wish you would reconsider.”

“Colonel, can you explain how those killers managed to get into the hospital and lay an ambush for my wife and I?”

“No, we’ve identified the ones that did it and there’s nothing about them that would indicate they were any different from all the other soldiers.”

“Where did they get the Uzis?”

“What do you mean?”

“Colonel, I flew here in a Raptor directly from Washington. I’m sure whoever set this up knew I would be coming to be with my wife. They managed to contact those soldiers, plan an attack, and get Uzis into their possession from off this base in less than four hours. Whoever has the clout to make this happen can easily do it again and there’s no way you can prevent it. I’m taking my wife to a place where she will be safe.”

The Colonel nodded as a Captain rushed up with a large handset, “The President would like to speak with Mr. Sanders.”

He handed the large handset to Mike, “This is Mike Sanders.”

“I’ve just learned about the two attempts on your life.”

“I was lucky, Mr. President.”

“I understand you’re taking a helicopter and leaving without a forwarding address.”

“I have to make sure Tilly is not in danger.”

“After all that’s happened, is that possible?”

“It is now, Sir. There aren’t any satellites to keep track of my movements. By the way, how is your cos?”

“My what?”

“It’s cold in Washington and you need to avoid catching a cos. It’s dangerous during the winter.”

“Take the handset with you.”

“It won’t operate where I’m going.”

“It’s a short wave radio that will operate in places that would amaze you.”

“How do I know it’s secure?”

“You don’t; however, it was made by my brother who teaches at MIT. He designed it for scientists that were in isolated areas to communicate with the outside world. He assures me it is encrypted and impossible to track. It was sent to that base by special courier to make sure you had it. I need your help, Mike.”

“I’ll contact you soon, Mr. President. Take care of that cos and be safe.”

Mike ended the call and took Tilly’s hand and went out to the two seat gunship. It didn’t carry rockets but did have six stinger missiles in two pods. It had a 30 millimeter chain gun and two 7.62 mini guns. The MH 6M was the Army’s smallest attack helicopter and was called Little Bird. It was developed from a recon model and proved to be deadly. This particular helicopter was fitted with an oversized fuel cell which gave it a range of fifteen hundred miles. The scout copter was silent until it was right up on you and extremely maneuverable. The radar mounted under the shaft could be shut down if stealth was required.

The Colonel watched it lift and head north. He watched it disappear and went back to his office. He took a phone out of his desk drawer and dialed a number. “He headed north until I lost sight of him….no, he had the transponder removed and the mechanic was ordered to stand by the copter until he arrived. There was no way to place a tracker on it.” The Colonel ended the call and pulled a forty five out of his side desk drawer and chambered a round. He put the barrel to his head and pulled the trigger. The blonde nurse that was killed was his daughter. He didn’t know she had taken a friend’s shift and was in the hospital. He wasn’t going to allow his other children and wife to be used as hostages to prevent his taking revenge.

• • •

The President looked at the phone and replayed the conversation in his mind. He knew Sanders was trying to tell him something. He knew Mike was brilliant but he kept mispronouncing cough. That wasn’t like him. A cos could be dangerous. COS could be dangerous. Chief of Staff. The President looked across the Oval Office and saw Carl Davis on one of the phones. Surely not Carl! He raised his hand and motioned Carl over, “Please ask Mr. Henderson to come here. Then order a Limo for a trip to the Capital Building. I’d like you to go with me.”

Carl hung up the phone and the President pulled out a sheet of paper and started writing. When Bill Henderson arrived the President handed him the sheet of paper and said, “I want you to go with me to the Capital.”

Bill was reading the document and he looked up at the President with shock on his face. The President nodded and he said, “I’ll notify the detail.”

Bill left the room and the President didn’t want to believe what Mike had indicated. However, he was taking no chances.

• • •

The President went to the line of Limos and walked to the third one. He looked at Carl and smiled, “You go in the last one and I’ll meet you inside.”

“Yes, Mr. President.”

Bill Henderson opened the door for Carl to enter the limo and touched his hand as he put it on top of the door. Carl felt a small sting and looked at the back of his left hand. He saw a small dot of blood and then things started spinning and darkness took him. The Limo pulled out of the convoy and drove across Washington to a brownstone house. The gate opened in front of the house and the limo disappeared behind a tall brick fence. The CIA operatives came out with a stretcher and took Carl out of the limo and rolled him into the building. He was injected with a hypodermic needle before he regained consciousness. When his eyes opened, he heard a voice ask, “Who are you working with behind the scenes?

Carl smiled broadly, “Oh, they’re such great patriots and an example for all of us to follow.”

“Who are they?”

Carl started talking and Bill Henderson began to feel sick. He looked at his best friend and shook his head. The CIA operative was not a friend of the Military. He watched his friends lie in the Mideast when the Military refused to send help when their embassy was attacked. He stayed on task and collected more information when Bill was certain there was nothing left to learn. “Is he going to be alright?”

“No, he’s going to have a severe stroke.”

“WHAT?”

“I’ve recorded this; what do you think is going to happen when this traitor regains consciousness? He’s going to notify his handlers what’s happened and they’ll go after the President. You need to take him straight to Georgetown University Hospital. Tell the press you were taking him to Congress with the President and he started complaining about feeling bad. Say you left the motorcade to drive him home but before you arrived, he collapsed.” The operative stuck a needle into a bottle of clear liquid and withdrew three cc’s. He injected it under Carl’s big toe nail and said, “You need to hurry.”

Bill knew he had just witnessed a murder. But he had the recording and he knew the current situation called for desperate measures. He called the hospital and told them he was bringing in the President’s Chief of Staff who had collapsed in the limo. The emergency team of physicians met him at the emergency room and rushed Carl into an operating room; they were able to keep him alive with a respirator.

The President was notified and he was rushed to the hospital. Bill opened the President’s door and gave him a hand out of the Limo. The President felt something in his palm and he closed his hand around it. Bill stayed at the limo as the President rushed to the hallway outside the operating room. He sat down and opened the slip of paper and read one word…traitor. The President closed his eyes and felt extreme sorrow at the betrayal of his lifelong friend. Who could he trust? He left the hospital when Carl’s wife chose to turn off the respirator. He had to pull it together to give a speech about the long and illustrious career of someone who was a traitor. He chose to ride in Bill’s limo and Bill stuck out his hand and said, “I’m sorry of his loss, Mr. President.” The President shook Bill’s hand and shook his head. “Thank you for doing all you could to save him, Mr. Henderson. I’m sure his family will want to thank you as well. The President stepped into the limo and saw he was holding a micro recorder. He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief leaving the recorder in his pocket. Three of the Secret Service Agents assigned to his personal unit watched the President closely but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. The electronic listening devices in the limo didn’t hear anything spoken during his ride back to the White House. The one riding in the front seat with Bill reported that he just stared out the window all the way back without saying a word. Bill knew his partner was a traitor but he gave no indication he knew. He blew out a loud sigh and the agent looked at him, “I wish I had taken him directly to the hospital.”

“Don’t blame yourself; things like this just happen.”

Bill nodded and waited for the President to tell him what to do.

The President went to bed early and plugged an ear piece into the micro recorder and turned the volume down where he could barely hear it. The listening device in his bedroom detected a male voice and matched it to the Chief of Staff.

• • •

“What is he listening to?”

“It’s Carl’s voice; he’s probably replaying conversations they had.”

The first man listened and wondered if something had happened that would endanger the coalition. After a moment he shook his head; it was getting to the point where he was paranoid about everything. He stood and left the listening room.

• • •

The President sat in bed and listened to Carl blabber the names of the ones intending to overthrow the government of the United States. His shock at the information left him speechless and he learned he was being listened to; even in his bedroom. His shock soon turned to rage and he made a decision. It was time to do something about this and he knew someone that could help him. His wife joined him and he forced himself to close his eyes. Sleep didn’t come easy.

• • •

“How did you find this place?”

“The young man lived here for four years.”

“It’s a perfect place to hide out even if the satellites were still operating.”

“The investigation teams left a week ago. This is the last place they would expect me to go.”

“What are you going to do?”

Mike turned to his wife, “Tilly, I can’t do what needs to be done if I expect something to happen to you every time I turn around. I just can’t function that way.”

“Let’s think about it and try to come up with a plan. Does that TV work?”

Mike looked at the battery powered miniature television and nodded, “I need to take the antenna up to the top of the rise so it could receive the signal from Phoenix.”

“Why don’t you do that; it would be a diversion after all that’s happened.”

Mike took the spool of cable and handed an end of it to Tilly, “Don’t let go of this.” Mike climbed the wall and reached the top of the rise next to the cave. He hammered a sharp titanium staple into the rock locking the antenna down and climbed back down to the small space between the rocks. He hooked up the antenna and pressed the power button. He went through the VHS channels and suddenly, a clear picture appeared. A TV reporter was speaking and rolling across the bottom of the screen was a banner that said, “Carl Davis dies from massive stroke.” Mike shook his head and blew out a breath. Tilly looked at him and said, “What’s going on?”

“Carl Davis is part of an underground movement in the military to take control of the government. I let the President know he was a danger to him.”

“That’s what you meant when you said, ‘Cos’.”

Mike shook his head, “Tilly, you never cease to amaze me at how smart you are. The President had to act on that piece of information and I’ll bet the farm the Chief of Staff’s death is a product of it.”