Primal Estate: The Candidate Species (40 page)

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Authors: Samuel Franklin

BOOK: Primal Estate: The Candidate Species
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I had to go out. Will be at the PE. Might be out all night.
I’ll be on my cell if you need me.
Love, Dad.
He left the note for Carson on the kitchen table, in case something happened and he needed him.
Rick drove like a maniac. He was late by about fifteen minutes, and she would get there before him. He didn’t want any complications. Rick put the pedal down and took care to be extra vigilant for deer, elk, cows, or horses in the road, continually scanning ahead of him side to side, like he did when he used to fly. Nothing was going to stop him from getting there. Rick looked at his watch again. Twenty minutes of back roads and I’m there, he thought.
One hour later, Rick was lying on his back in the sand, wearing only a smile. The afternoon sun was warming his body and the sultry waves were receding around him from the most recent rush running back down the beach. He sunk his feet into the sand and put his hands behind his head.
He was a little worried about sunburn on his scalp. But that was his only worry. Rick was on a tiny deserted island somewhere in the south Pacific. Nwella was sitting on top of him, also wearing only a smile.
It doesn’t get much better than this, Rick thought. He was expecting conversation and a little romance, maybe at a campfire on his plot in Colorado, not a trip around the world. What a date! Nwella said she wanted to go running down the beach later... sounded interesting.
Rick thought about how much his life had changed. He had millions in cash hidden away in various locations, many more millions in gold stashed in so many locations he could afford to forget half of them, and enough weapons and ammunition to start a small army. Nwella had been good for him. She would be an asset to all he had planned.
She leaned down and kissed him on the lips the way he’d taught her. At first she hadn’t liked it, but she seemed to be coming around. Then she added her own variations. First, she’d nibble on his lip, then work her way around his mouth with both of her lips, then go in for the full kiss. She had initially been repulsed by kissing. She complained to Rick that it seemed too much like eating, but after a little experimentation she became enthusiastic.
Nwella dismounted and strolled down the beach a short distance. Her sweaty body glistened in the sun. The combination of her feminine curves and her fit muscles on top of impeccable bone structure gave Rick an idea that he tried to suppress. He wanted to have children with her, but he knew that was impossible. They were different species, the politics were life threatening, and he might be dead soon anyway. It just wouldn’t work. Does this mean I love you? Rick wondered. He wasn’t sure.
As he looked after her, she looked back. She wanted him to follow, he could tell. She glanced back again and with a smile, took off running. Rick jumped up and, with his new body taking him faster than he thought possible, he sprinted after.
Chapter 28
DisappEaring and othEr rEcipEs
Tony felt like his relationship with Rick was getting more pertinent. Each day, the news gave indicators of people disappearing. He knew the time was coming when something had to be done. In fact, he would force it if he had to. He hadn’t heard from his sister in two weeks and believed that he never would. His mother was in a depression about it, but even so, Tony still couldn’t convince her to get back on her anxiety meds or any others, no matter how hard he tried. She wasn’t taking anything right now, and the only reason he didn’t seriously fear for her life was that she was old. The Provenger wouldn’t target old people. At least, he didn’t think they would.
Rick hadn’t left a signal for him in two weeks. If there was nothing there for him today, he was going to call again. Tony had a handful of men all dedicated to training as a militia unit. They believed they were organizing according to their rights under the Constitution. And while they all had feelings that their government was overstepping its bounds, they were in no way ready to take up arms against it. People who genuinely were prepared to use violence against their government were truly rare. But they were all good men, and Tony had confidence that if they could be convinced of the existence of the Provenger, they would be the kind that could take action.
Tony felt bad about leading them into a situation where their lives might be at risk, especially for a purpose they had no idea existed. Worse yet, it could be a suicide mission. As he imagined events progressing, he hoped they would have a chance to back out if they chose to. But he wanted them to understand there was a chance they would be collected in a harvest anyway. And these men were the kind who would rather go down fighting.
Tony had seen in the news natural disasters happening everywhere. People disappearing, never to be found, not a body or even a body part. Planes and ships gone. People blamed it on anything they could think of – the weather, terrorists, and even the apocalypse. Some blamed it on a belief that the magnetic poles were starting to reverse. Everyone picked their favorite reason, as people often do. The building anxiety was real. And now he was almost certain that his sister was a victim.
Tony finally saw a signal from Rick at the Walmart, went to the drop where the meeting location was given, and followed its directions. This is where Tony would give Rick the ultimatum.
Tony approached the west edge of the pond at Parque De Vida, a nicely appointed public park near the center of Cortez. It had beautiful open spaces, playing fields, and park benches lining the water, a good place to meet someone while being able to scan the surroundings. Rick was already there, standing next to a bench. They sat down, and neither knew where to begin.
“A lot has happened since we first met, Tony.”
“No shit. I’ve been working my ass off trying to get a crew together. What have you been doing?”
“I’ve been working some angles. What have you got?”
“I’ve got almost a dozen guys. They’re good, good men. But I’ve got to warn you, they’re not killers. They’re interested in doing what’s right. They all have military experience. I think if we get them together and tell them what’s going on…”
“They’ll think we’re insane.”
“No, they won’t. Not if we show them the evidence. They’ve been watching the news. They’ve seen the issues with people disappearing, whole groups, whole towns, in natural disasters. That doesn’t just happen. Rick, you’re gonna hate me for this, but I told them I’ve been working with you.”
“You did what? What kind of a dumb shit move was that?” Rick reacted with a low-toned tirade. “I can’t be stuck out like that. What did you tell them we were ‘working on’, putting together a revolution or something?” Rick thought of the disastrous implications. This changed everything. The only way Rick could feel safe with this relationship was to maintain his anonymity. “Tony, really, I can’t believe you. What the fuck were you thinking? All that’s gotta happen is one of them says something to the wrong person, and the next thing I know I’m getting dragged out of my office like a criminal. Synster’s gonna see the word spread and either frame me as insane, then make me disappear, or just cut to the chase and make me disappear.” Rick leaned forward and put his head in his hands. “Shit.” Rick could think of only one way out of this mess, and it made him sick.
“They know something’s going on. I had to involve you to give it credibility. I didn’t mention the NSA. I just told them you had inside information. The government is coming out with the gallbladder thing and the medicine ban proposal. They want to do something. When they do meet you and find out who you work for, they’ll be pissed. I had to ease them into it. They’ve gotta be prepared somehow. You can’t just show up. They need to know you’re on our side. It’s way beyond just a government thing now. They see what’s going on in the world. They’re not stupid. We’re not at the top of the food chain anymore.”
“Tony, you don’t get it. They’ll think we’re kooks feeding off the news. They’ll think they’re being set up. We can’t do anything yet anyway.” Rick was horrified with Tony’s flagrant abuse of their relationship.
“What do you mean can’t do anything? We’ve got to do something. We can’t keep letting them do this to us. We’ve got to show them there will be a cost. I’m not backing down on this, Rick. We’re doing something.”
“We’re not doing anythi…”
“We are.”
“Tony, we can’t. I’m telling you. We don’t have the ability.”
“Rick, you don’t understand. I’ve lost my sister. If I lose anyone else, I’m going to start talking.”
“Apparently, you’ve already started talking.”
“Unless we do something now, I’m going to go to the papers and tell them about you and your work. I’m going to go to your office and tell them you’ve been using their computers to check for the alien’s probes and passing on if the government knows anything…keeping watch for them. I’ll talk to anyone who’ll listen.” Tony paused trying to think of another threat to tack on. “I’ll tell the authorities about your new live-in girlfriend.”
Rick shot a glare at Tony, wondering how and what he knew about her.
“Rick, I’m serious here. And I know what you used to do for the military. You told me what you did in Afghanistan. I know what you must be capable of. We can do this. I know you can do this.”
“You don’t know shit about me!” Rick knew Tony was screwing him. The problem was that Tony knew too little. He really had no idea what Rick was capable of. Tony had received his last warning.

“I told the guys that if something happens to me, they should come looking for you.”

Tony watched Rick get red and swollen in the face as he was talking. Maybe I shouldn’t have gone this far, Tony thought. He was quickly regretting all he’d said. He’d pushed Rick too far. There was a long pause.
“Okay, Rick, I’m sorry I said all that to them. It was just after I knew I’d lost my sister. I was frustrated and angry. I knew this was going on and I hadn’t done anything about it. Well, I’m going to do something now.” Tony was glad he’d kept talking. Rick seemed to have calmed down right when it looked like he might blow.
“Tony, you can’t do any of those things; it wouldn’t be productive. We’ve got to focus on what will work. The stakes are too high. This isn’t about a few years in prison, and this isn’t about principle.” Rick’s volume was growing, and he had to remind himself to tone down. “This is about preventing our planet, humanity, from being the food supply for an alien race. One or two or a dozen or even a thousand people don’t matter. We’ve got to wait until the time is right.”
“I understand that, but the sooner we start resistance, the better our position will be. People are going to find out anyway, and soon.”
“What you’re advocating will lead to the managed collectivization I told you about. Resistance would be improbable or impossible under that situation,” Rick tried to reason with him.
“That’s where we’re going anyway! You’re just worried about your own ass, aren’t you?
“That’s not it.”
“Yeah, I think it is. Don’t worry. You won’t be implicated. We still need you on the inside. We need to kill a bunch of these guys. You need to let us know how, when, and where, and we’ll do it. If we make it costly enough for them and make an example, maybe they’ll see we’re not worth it.”
The more Tony tried to convince Rick, the more he became convinced that he would do nothing. This was all bad. All they needed was for some kind of action to be taken. They couldn’t keep waiting, Tony thought. But Rick wouldn’t listen. The more they talked and the more Tony threatened, the less he was convinced that Rick was committed to the destruction of the Provenger. Now Tony’s frustration was coming to a boiling point.
“What have you been doing? Do we have a way to kill them? Can you get us on the ship? I’ve got access to explosives we can set.” Tony didn’t want to actually say he had them.
Finally, completely surprising Tony, Rick calmed and acquiesced. “Fine, we’ll take action. I’ve been working on something, and I think it might pan out. I have more information now than I did. I’ll contact you next week. I’ll have an answer.”
Tony felt better but was still disappointed that Rick was so hesitant. He’d been so motivated at first. Had somebody gotten to him? Tony looked at Rick a little closer. “Do you have a sunburn?” Tony asked, looking at his face and then his hands, which also looked sunburned.
“Yeah, I’ve been doing some work outside,” Rick replied.
An hour after he’d left Rick, Tony pulled up to the Cortez pistol and rifle range just east of town. Some of his buddies were already there. He felt a little guilty pressuring and deceiving Rick as he had. His team wasn’t exactly composed of the stalwart military men he’d described. The fact was that they were the hodgepodge antigovernment group that Rick had always been concerned about. They were prone to conspiracy theories and had negative, fertile imaginations.
Tony had already put them together to execute whatever they thought appropriate once they’d figured out what the NSA was doing in Cortez. Tony’s idea was to blow up some equipment. He didn’t intend to hurt anyone but simply garner support from like-minded patriots, show that there were people that cared, that were willing to put it all on the line. He wanted to show that aggressive action could be used safely. He imagined that if it was done carefully and professionally, no one would get caught.

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