Caldera

by Larry LaVoie

  When the noise stopped, Jason peeked out from behind a tree. Nothing in the wreckage resembled the small airplane. The truck was jackknifed, blocking both lanes of the highway. Carlene was on the ground with her head covered less than ten feet from him, but he hadn’t noticed her until now. Jason helped her up. “If you’re all right, I’m going to a check on the truck driver.”

  Carlene brushed herself off. “I don’t think I’ve run that fast since I was eight and a Brahma bull was on my tail.”

  Jason rushed up to the truck driver who had opened the door and was wiping his brow with a large red handkerchief. He was a man in his fifties, short, paunchy and wearing wide suspenders.

  “Jesus, Mary and Joseph,” the man said as Jason approached. “What the hell were you doing on the highway?”

  “Emergency landing,” Jason said. “Are you injured?”

  The driver crossed himself. “I’m fine.” He climbed down from the cab. “You better have a god awful lot of insurance.”

  “Can you use your radio to get the authorities out here,” Jason asked.

  “Radio don’t work anymore.” The driver searched the floor of the cab for his cell phone. He held it up. “I’m only authorized to use this in emergencies. There’s going to be hell to pay.” He looked down at Carlene. “Well, little lady. If I were you I’d give up flying with this nut.”

  “He was with me,” Carlene said. “I’m the nut who was flying.”

  The driver lowered his tone. “Then they ought to jerk your license.”

  “Fine,” she said. “I think I’m through flying anyway.”

  While they waited for the sheriff to arrive, Jason explained to the driver the ordeal they had been through. “I’m sure a patriotic person like you will want to make sure these terrorists are caught,” Jason finished.

  The driver stuck out his hand. “The name’s Fulton. Roy Fulton. And I heard all about those bastards holding hostages back east.”

  Jason shook his hand and introduced Carlene.

  “Nothing personal,” Roy Fulton said, “but I still got to press charges. Somebody’s got to pay for this mess.”

  “No problem,” Jason said. “The little lady will make sure you’re taken care of.

  Carlene jabbed Jason in the ribs, causing him to double over in pain. In the distance a siren could be heard.

  “Get ready,” Jason said still gasping for breath. “They’re not going to believe a word of this.”

  Jason had been right. The local sheriff was skeptical enough that he called the FAA. Carlene and he were sitting in separate rooms waiting for the FAA to arrive, but the sheriff had told them with all that was going on in the country it may be a few days.

  “Then call the FBI,” Jason said. He had no idea whether the FBI was coming or not. After several hours of waiting in the sparsely furnished surroundings he decided to speed up the process. He got up and tried the door handle. To his surprise it was open.

  “Where you going, boy?” A gruff voice came from behind him.

  “I need to make a phone call,” Jason said.

  “Can hardly get a line anymore,” the deputy said. “Now I suggest you take a seat until we get this all straightened out.”

  “Three cities are going to be held hostage if you don’t let me talk to the FBI,” Jason persisted.

  “Listen, boy. You threatening me?”

  “Has everybody around here got their head up their ass?” Jason exploded. He stuffed his hands in his pockets to keep from hitting something or someone.

  “Betty,” the deputy called. “Lock him up so he don’t hurt nobody. And make sure he don’t have any sharp objects on his person.”

  A television outside Jason’s cell was perpetually on, but all that came on the screen was snow and intermittent reports from CNN. Television was restricted to an hour a day and emergency broadcasts. The news was dominated with the massive extent of the Yellowstone eruption and what it meant to the future of the country. A flash regarding a hostage situation in Philadelphia caught Jason’s attention, but the reporter treated it as if it was another annoyance, not like a threat on the nation. Yellowstone had been enough turmoil. What interested Jason was the way the public was accepting the devastation. People had pulled together in every corner of the nation. National Guard was on full alert and bringing humanitarian aid to the areas hardest hit. All government agencies had been reassigned to tend to the immediate need of thousands if not millions of people without the necessities of life, and still, outbreaks of disease and dehydration and starvation were more than the system could handle. It was in these reports that Jason realized the full genius of the Nicolai plan. They had given the headquarters a massive blow, but what if there were other centers for direction? Would the plan still be carried out? Had Nicolai provided redundancy in their plan providing for the possibility of a headquarters meltdown? Was Jason the only person who realized the Nicolai plan was already in motion?

  The news abruptly stopped and the screen turned to snow again. Totally frustrated, Jason settled back on his bunk and closed his eyes. He worried about Carlene, his family, his report to the FBI if they ever showed up. Then he remembered the card he had been given by the agent who had been looking for Talant. He had specifically asked if he had heard of such a person. Did they know Talant was engaged in terrorist activity? Did they know Talant was his father?

  Jason jumped to his feet and yelled for the guard.

  “In my billfold is a card with an FBI agent’s name. If you can contact him I’m sure he’ll come. Tell him I know Joseph Talant.”

  The Hispanic female guard gave Jason a suspicious stare.

  “Look,” Jason said, “Joseph Talant is one of the people who kidnapped us. The FBI has been looking for him. Make the call, please.” He had decided begging might get more mileage.

  The guard rolled her big brown eyes back in her head, turned and disappeared down the hall.

  Five minutes later Jason was still standing with his hands on the bars. He heard a door open. The guard reappeared with a wireless phone. “It took a while to run him down. Communication with Washington D.C. is down.” She handed him the phone. “He wants to talk to you.”

  Jason took the phone. “This is Jason Trask, who am I speaking with.”

  “Special Agent Fielding on this end. I understand you’ve had contact with Talant.”

  “A little more than that. I’ve been trying to tell the sheriff that we were kidnapped and taken to Nicolai headquarters just before Yellowstone erupted.”

  “Where is Talant now?” the agent asked.

  “Far as I know he’s dead.”

  Silence on the other end.

  “You will excuse me if I’m a little skeptical. Dr. Trask, if that’s who you are; you’re listed as one of the scientist who didn’t make it out of Yellowstone in time. How did you get out?”

  “You don’t believe me?” Jason was incredulous. Jason explained the kidnapping again.

  “My call time allowance is coming up. I’ll come down and see you.”

  “Time allowance?”

  The phone went dead.

  “What time allowance?” Jason asked the guard.

  She took back the phone. “All communication by telephone is restricted to two minutes. New Federal regulation.”

  “Where’s he coming from?” Jason asked.

  “San Francisco. With the air traffic restriction he may be able to catch a military flight, but don’t expect him soon.”

  “May I have a pencil and paper?”

  “Sorry, all paper products are in short supply. We’ve been told to restrict their usage to official business.”

  “Did the fallout reach Oregon?” Jason asked. “My family is up there.”

  “I don’t know the extent of the fallout. At present there is no communication with Oregon, I can tell you that much.”

  “Look,” Jason said, he read her name tag. “Juanita, may I call you that?”

  “If you wish.”

  �
�Juanita, Carlene and I have been cut off from everything since Yellowstone erupted. Is there any way you can get me a computer so I can connect to the web and find out the extent of the damage?”

  “Not a chance, Mr. Trask.”

  “Why not?”

  “We have a restriction on electricity, or hadn’t you noticed.”

  Jason looked up at the lights. They were out, but he in fact had thought nothing of it. “Thanks for your help. Am I under arrest?”

  “You’re being detained. Under emergency rules we are allowed to detain anyone for up to seventy-two hours if they’re suspected of illegal activity.”

  “Illegal activity? What am I charged with?”

  “We are determining that,” Juanita said.

  Carlene couldn’t believe she was a captive again. After all she had been through this was not what she expected. She and Jason had risked their lives trying to prevent a national disaster, had been ignored by the government and their own bosses, kidnapped and now locked up for trying not to die in a plane crash.

  She was still angry at Jason, though she wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was just easier to blame someone. Jason had helped them escape. If it weren’t for his persistence she’d still be sitting in the dark under a mountain in Nevada. Then again she wouldn’t have been there in the first place had she not insisted in standing by him. Then it hit her. The others were dead. Thomas Kelly, Jean Randolph, Paul Preston. She would have been with them had she not stayed with Jason. He was impossible at times, but his intent was genuine. He had insisted she get her family to Oregon. She still didn’t know if they’d made it. If she had to be angry she should be angry with herself, she concluded. Jason was only trying to protect her.

  Chapter 32

  It was after midnight. Agent Fielding stood under the dull glowing bulb from a small portable generator outside Jason’s cell. Jason had heard the generator fire up outside and was awake. Fielding was not in the suit and tie he’d been wearing so inappropriately in Yellowstone Park the last time Jason had seen him. His shirt was wrinkled and open at the collar; his slacks baggy and worn in need of cleaning and pressing. He hardly looked like the same man.

  A guard opened the door and Jason stepped out into the light.

  “Special Agent Fielding,” Jason said. “You asked about Joseph Talant. Well Carlene and I know a few things you need to know.”

  Carlene entered the small room. “Jason,” She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed. “We’ve been through a lot together,” she said explaining to Fielding.

  Jason went through the story from beginning to end with Carlene filling in some details. Both left out the part about Talant being Jason’s father.

  “I’ve already checked a few of the details,” Fielding said. “We had a report of an explosion in Yucca Mountain and after our phone conversation we sent a crew to investigate. They found the complex you described and are clearing the rubble to look for bodies. We also found the crashed helicopter with three charred bodies. We’re checking identities. The three cities you mention are of particular interest. We’ve been watching the activity of a subversive group in each of these cities for the past two months. We knew Joseph Talant was a key leader along with a man who calls himself Telska. Without the leadership from Nevada the terrorists gave up without a fight. Without your help we wouldn’t have been able to stop them so quickly.”

  “Glad we could be of help,” Jason said.

  “I am surprised at one thing,” Fielding said.

  “What’s that?” Jason asked.

  “That you didn’t mention Joseph Talant was your father.”

  “You knew all along?” Jason asked.

  Fielding nodded. “That’s why we were at Yellowstone. We needed to make sure you weren’t part of Nicolai.”

  “The reason I didn’t mention it,” Jason said, “is I didn’t believe it. You’re telling me it’s true.”

  Fielding grimaced. “I’m afraid so.”

  “How does a person get an animal like that for a father?”

  “We can’t pick our parents, Dr. Trask. By the way I spoke with your mother and sister. They’re fine.”

  “In Oregon?”

  “They still have some hydroelectric power in Washington and parts of Oregon. The upper Columbia River is clogged with ash though with widespread flooding in the area around Kennewick and Pasco. There’s a lot of damage still being done. I suppose it’ll affect everyone in the years to come.”

  “Can you get us out of here,” Carlene asked. She was still clinging to Jason’s arm.

  “You’re free to go,” Fielding said. “I already cleared it with the sheriff.”

  “Can you get us home?”

  “Home?” Fielding asked.

  “Oregon,” Carlene said.

  “It won’t be fancy, but I can arrange Air National Guard transport to Portland. I guess we owe you that much.”

  EPILOGUE

  Five years later, Yellowstone Wilderness Area

  The Yellowstone caldera had stopped erupting three months earlier and a group of scientists from Hawaii were commissioned by USGS to organize the first expedition to assess the full extent of the devastation. The new director of the Cascade office, Jason Trask, waited with Carlene Carlson at Portland International Airport. It is sad, Jason reflected. His former boss Sandy Sanders had been forced to resign after losing his wife and child to the terrorists. His actions to protect his family from the terrorists had resulted in the deaths of thousands in the wake of the eruption. He had left the USGS, a bitter and lonely man. Jason couldn’t fault what he’d done; he probably would have done the same thing. “I think that’s them,” Jason said to Carlene. They were waiting for three senior scientists from Hawaii to arrive and had no problem recognizing them.

  Francis Danforth, Ted Raymond and Fred Allen came down the corridor all wearing flowered island shirts. Jason and Carlene greeted them and three hours later they were circling the Yellowstone crater in a military provided rotorcraft.

  Pools of water were spouting steam giving evidence of new geyser systems forming. What had once been Yellowstone Lake was a huge glacier stretching twenty miles in every direction. No recognizable features of the former Yellowstone National Park had remained. No Norris Basin, no trees, no wildlife. Vast lava flows had filled in the valleys between the mountain peaks. The new crater, now located in the northwest corner of the old park boundary was under perpetual freezing temperatures. The park would be waiting for the next twenty-thousand years for the ice and snow to melt and form lakes. Through the process of thousands of years of erosion, new rivers would cut new canyons for unknown generations ahead to discover.

  In all, thirteen states had been turned into wasteland from a thick layer of ash. Another seven were suffering severe crop loss from ash cover. The devastation circled the globe and was still ongoing. Global temperatures had plummeted nineteen degrees F in the northern hemisphere causing long winters and short summers. You could almost watch the glaciers grow; they were advancing at such a rapid pace.

  “I’ll be damned,” Francis Danforth broke the silence. “I never thought I’d have to admit it, but Milton Bainbridge was right.”

  “Ted Raymond leaned across the aisle toward Jason. “It took a lot for him to say that. He had to come see for himself.”

  Mount Saint Helens

  Carlene tucked her arm under Jason’s and stared out at the Mount St. Helen’s caldera. Before this trip she had been reluctant to consider a future, to marry, to start a family in a world with so much turmoil, but Jason had insisted on bringing her up “the mountain” as he called it. Only yesterday she had asked, “Who would bring a child into a world at the start of an ice age?” But this trip had changed her mind. He had shown her new forests with abundant wildlife. They had hiked through a meadow teaming with wildflowers and watched salmon swimming in a crystal brook. This trip had given her time to reflect on her family and their many blessings. All were safe. Billy had finished med school and was now an int
ern at Oregon Medical School. Her father had found a job consulting with cattle ranchers desperate to increase their herds on the fringes of the Yellowstone fallout boundary.

  Though she no longer had a desire to monitor volcanoes and was out of work, there was no doubt, this trip to St. Helen’s had brought her new hope. The worst natural disaster in the history of modern man had happened nearly under their feet and they had survived.

  Jason squeezed her hand and she felt something velvet. “What?” she asked confused.

  “Open it,” Jason said.

  Carlene’s hands trembled as she lifted the lid on the small box. She slipped the ring on her finger and looked up at Jason through teary eyes.

  They kissed as snow started to fall in large wet flakes. Carlene cuddled up to him. “We’d better go,” she said.

  “Another minute,” he said pulling her closer. St. Helen’s had once held a special place in his heart and now it did again. His family didn’t make the annual trips anymore; May 18th was only his birthday, no longer a day of mourning. His mother had taken the news about his father hard. She had turned gray overnight, but she had recovered. Molly had taken the news in stride. She was now married and his five-year-old nephew was curious about volcanoes. He reminded him of another small boy who so many years ago had watched in horror as this mountain erupted, not knowing that day would impact his life forever. He took a last look at the gaping caldera, a lasting reminder that a mountain so deadly could also hold hope for future generations.

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