Then, another voice, this one much lower: “Hank, what’s… holy crap, you caught Mr. Kane! They’re after you hard, Mr. Kane; offering a huge reward. You better come on down here.”
“Oh, hello there, Stanley. It appears we have a bit of a standoff, I’m afraid. I have some things I need in this room, and I plan to go in and get them, so I can’t go down there. I’ll ask you just as I asked Henry: do you plan to shoot me? If not, both of you should just put down the weapons. If you really want me, you must come up here and get me, friends.”
In the darkened utility room, we tried to be as quiet as we could, but Willard and Ernie were nearly frantic. Zoey Perez motioned for us to come in close and crouch down. “They don’t know we’re in here, and if they find out, it’ll make things much worse. Settle down, both of you. That pacing is making noise.”
As if he heard us, Stanley called up from below: “Mr. Kane, seems like you’re hiding something. Do you have someone with you up there?”
Bill chuckled again, but this time it didn’t sound like he was having fun. “Listen, fellows, I’ve enjoyed chatting with you, but I’m in a bit of a hurry. So, either shoot me or go back to your jobs, eh?”
After a pause, Henry’s voice rang out. “Aww, we’re not killers, Mr. Kane, we’re technicians. You know that. I’m not even sure these guns are loaded. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to turn yourself in to us anyway, would you? They’re offering a lot of cash. You understand.”
“I’m sorry, fellows. I wish I could oblige you, but I have a pressing engagement.”
Then, Stanley’s voice again: “Ahh, Mr. Kane, we’ll have to tell them we saw you. How will we explain that we didn’t catch you?”
Bill looked into the darkness where we were hiding, and said, “Willard, if you don’t mind…”
He jumped up, darted out the door, and rose to his full, imposing height next to Mr. Kane; he looked even bigger than normal in his white hazmat suit. “Would this work, Gentlemen? Just tell them you were overpowered. That would be believable, yes?”
“Um, yeah, yeah, I’d say so. We’ll just leave you alone now,” said Stanley.
Bill chuckled again, this time sounding amused. He rummaged in his pocket and said, “Here, gentlemen. A little something for your trouble.” He tossed something down the stairs, and it clattered on the concrete below. “That should be more than enough to make up for whatever bonus they offered you. Have a pleasant day.”
Bill and Willard hurried back into the darkened room, pulled the door closed behind them, and a row of tiny LED lights in the ceiling came on. “We can’t afford many more delays like that. We have a strenuous climb ahead of us. Lucas, perhaps you should carry Zoey; I’m not sure she would make it in her current state. No offense, Zoey.”
“It’s okay. I was just wondering how I would get up there without collapsing. Can you manage it, Lucas?”
Ava, how are we doing power-wise?
“We’ll make it. We need to soak up some sun when we get to the surface, though, and the radio waves are sparse down here, too. We’ve been running a little low for a while. We’d better bust a move.”
Bust a move?
“It’s a colloquialism from a long time ago… I don’t know why they put all these old things in my memory, but let’s motate. Agitate the gravel. Strike the pavement. Hit the road, sonny boy.”
“Sure, I can make it. Let’s go.”
Bill led us past some tall metal shelves filled with supplies and pushed aside a shelf against the wall opposite the entrance. It just looked like any normal, white wall, but after tapping the surface in a couple of places, a hand panel suddenly lit up about waist high. “Had this set so that only I can operate it. Or, if someone were able to remove my hand, I suppose they also would be able to. That’s an unpleasant thought, eh?” said Bill as the wall slid aside, revealing a roughly carved tunnel going straight up into the dark, a metal ladder bolted to one side. “Obviously, we must go up single file. Lucas, you and Zoey go first. If anything happens, we want to make sure you can get out. Miss Kim, you next, then me. The rest of you can fight over the order in which you will ascend.”
Man, Bill is cool under pressure…
“Yes, almost like he knows what will happen.”
Oh, boy. You’re being paranoid again.
“Just remember, sonny boy, it’s not paranoia if they really are out to get you.”
What the…
“Oh, just put that gorgeous lady on your back, tell her to hold on tight, and climb, shorty. I’m getting simulated claustrophobia.”
Paranoid and claustrophobic?
“CLIMB!”
Okay, jeez. You don’t have to yell.
“If I had hands, I’d punch you right in the gonads, you know that?”
What are gonads?
“Oh, help me, great computer. Just get going, would you?”
As the rest of the group stripped off their hazmat suits, I turned and crouched down so that Zoey Perez could climb on my back, and when she was in place I started up the ladder. The tunnel was narrow, so she had to clutch onto me tightly, and… oh, boy, I won’t say any more about that. The light from below was fading fast, and we were going up into pitch black; I clicked on my internal heads-up display and enabled the night vision, which worked fine for me, but everyone else was climbing blind. “Hey, man, it’d be cool if someone had, like, a lighter or something. I’m kind of scared of spiders and stuff,” said Ernie from the back of the line.
“Oh, my apologies. My eyes are attuned to the dark. Here you go,” said Bill, flicking on a small flashlight and handing it back down the line for Ernie.
We were about two-thirds of the way up the seventy-five meters of straight-up climbing and were moving fast. Even though everyone in our group was in great physical condition, I heard some heavy breathing from below me coming from Willard, Leena, and Ernie.
“Are you doing okay, Lucas?” Zoey Perez whispered in my ear, and even in her exhausted state, her breath smelled like sweet clover.
“Yeah, I don’t really get tired. If my system runs down, I’ll just kind of stop. It hasn’t happened yet, though. How about you?”
“Hanging on like this is tougher than it seems. Maybe we should have tied me on, but I’ll make it.”
“Hey, Bill,” said Cheri, “aren’t you worried about this escape hatch being discovered?”
“Oh, I don’t think it matters at all now, as long as they don’t find it until we are a safe distance away. One way or another, this is the end of the Bright Hand cavern, I’m afraid. It’s sad to tell you the truth. You could say that this has been my life’s work, and in the end all it amounts to is enabling a group of entitled billionaires. I should have known better. No, I did know better, I should have done better. Well, now is my chance to make up for missed opportunities.”
“Hm. Nice speech. It almost sounded convincing.”
Not this again. You’re really… you’re cynical, that’s what you are.
“Cynics can be right, you know. Cuiusvis hominis est errare, nullius nisi insipientis in errore perseverare.”
Oh, come on, have you gone from metaphors to… what is that, Latin? How do you expect me to know what that means?
“Relax a second and search your mind. I think you’ll find you can get the gist of Latin because of our reboot. Try it.”
Oh, boy, you’re crazy, you know that? All right, I’ll give it a try… let’s see… oh my gosh, you’re right, there it is… anyone can make a mistake, but the fool keeps making them… oh, that’s nice. You’re saying I’m a fool for trusting Bill?
“I admit that maybe that went a little too far. Maybe. Just keep your eyes open, sonny boy. We need to follow for now because he has the clavus aurea, but be ready to change course.”
The… what is that… the gold key? Oh, I get it. I know you’re just trying to keep me safe. I’ll stay alert, but please, don’t talk to me in Latin. I have to think too hard.
“All right, Mr. Capus Mortu
um.”
Capus mortuum… dead head? Oh, boy…
We had reached the point where the tunnel went from vertical to an upward slant, which was manageable for everyone, especially because the tunnel here was tall enough that all of us aside from Willard could walk upright. I stopped to let Zoey Perez off my back, and Bill said, “From here I’ll take the lead. I think we can expect that we will encounter some guards when we exit; they are likely to have realized that we must have another way out that they don’t know about, so they’ll be out searching the west side of the hill. Have your flechettes ready.”
We made the walking portion of the tunnel quickly, and there was no talking as we progressed. When we reached the end, we came to what appeared to be a solid wall of rock. As Bill motioned for us to gather, I took a quick look around, and everyone was soaked with sweat and streaked with dirt, and Bill, Cheri, and I were the only ones not panting from exertion. Leaning forward, Bill said, “This next section will take us out and into the open, and it will be dangerous partly because we can only exit one at a time. We had to leave the exit as small as we could to avoid it being discovered, eh, Willard?”
Bending his neck to avoid bumping his head on the ceiling of the cave, Willard grunted. “Bloody oath, mate. I barely made it through that crawly hole. Got a bit scared, you wanna know the truth. I trimmed down a bit since then, though.”
Bill took the tiny flashlight from Ernie and pointed to his right; there, about waist high, was what looked like a huge, flat rock that had been placed there to cover something. “Willard, shall we?” Together they rolled the rock aside, Willard grunting mightily, but Bill not seeming too strained. They revealed a hole that obviously would require crawling on hands and knees to go through. “It’s only about five meters long, friends. Unstrap the gear bags and push them in front of you as you go.”
From the back, Ernie raised his hand. “Hey, Bill, um… I don’t think I’ll fit.”
Grinning, Bill said, “It will be tight for you, but you’ll make it. You go in front of Lucas, in case he needs to push you through. Zoey, how are you holding up?”
“I… I never would have made it if Lucas hadn’t carried me most of the way, but I can do it. It’s just.. I’ve only had about two hours’ sleep in the last forty-eight.”
“I’ve been worried about that. I have concluded that one of us will need to stay here with you to help monitor communications while you get at least a little rest. Lucas, Ms. Kim and I must go to the US, but Willard, Leena, Ernest, it is not essential that any of you go with us. I’m sorry, friends, I imagine you might have been looking forward to it, but at least one of you must stay here. I’ll leave it to you to decide who stays, but you will need to do it quickly.”
It was quiet for a moment. Then, in his strangely musical voice, Willard said, “Mr. Kane, I reckon you’ll be takin’ the corporate jet. Leena did a stint in the Royal Air Force; she’s a pilot. If ya run into a tussle with the regular pilots, she’s your girl. She’s a ripper, too; handy in a fight. Not as good as me, but she’s good, dead set. And Ernie, he’s a yank anyways, I reckon he’s got rellies he needs ta see. Besides, look at ‘im, he’s a walkin’ mountain, and this fella’s strong. They called me over to the jail one time, took five of us ta hold ‘im, and even then it was dodgy. Much as I hate ta say it, it makes loads more sense for me ta stay than anyone else. Sorry, Mr. Kane, wish I could go with ya. Oh, no offense, Miss Perez. It’s not that I wouldn’t want ta stay and help ya, it’s just…”
Bill reached up and put his arm around his brawny shoulders, and it almost looked like Willard would cry. “Thank you, my boy. Always sacrificing for others. You must take care of yourself one of these days, but you’re right, it makes the most sense for you to stay. Well, if it’s settled, let’s push on. I’ll go first, then Zoey, Willard, and the rest of you decide your order. Here we go…”
27
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
MEETING WITH SVC BG, LPJ, JR
121952 18:11
-Has the message gotten out to the Bright Hand security to back off?
-(SVC) One moment, I have Early on the line… yes; they have used their pingers to disseminate the message. What should we do about the bonus we were offering them? We stopped them before they could succeed, so they may expect it because they have done as we asked them.
-I don’t see how we pay them for not completing the mission. They had the chance, they just didn’t get it done. I don’t know, what do you guys think?
-(LPJ) It’ll be bad for morale if we don’t give them at least something, don’t you think?
-(BG) Yeah, why not give them half? That’s still a hefty bonus, and it’ll keep them productive. You might have a revolt on your hands if you give them less than that.
-(JR) Forgive me for having an alternative point of view, my friends. I don’t believe you should pay them any bonus at all. If you do, you have ceded control to the employees, as it were; any time you ask them to perform a task outside of the ordinary, they will expect additional pay, and their attitudes will deteriorate even with the added remuneration. This is basic business theory, as all of you know. You must keep them in a state of gratitude for providing them with a job, not one of dissatisfaction because they are not receiving additional pay any time we need them to do something different.
-Whoa, that’s pretty hard core, (JR). I must say, though, I tend to agree. On the other hand, this isn’t exactly a textbook business environment. (SVC)?
-(SVC) I can see both sides, and the points are equal in my view. I think what (JR) says is true, but that is a long-view consideration. I’m not sure at this point we’re interested in the long view.
-Hm. So, either way they will be unhappy, one will just take longer to foment than the other. We want them happy in the short-term, though, don’t we? At least until we evacuate the essentials out of the cavern?
-(LPJ) Do we have any good reason to be penny pinchers at this point? Money won’t mean anything once we’re off this celestial toilet, and that won’t be more than another year, maybe two.
-All right, (SVC), tell them we’ll give them half and have them back off. Tell Early to have them return to their normal duties in the cavern. Can we all live with that?
-…
-Okay, let’s move on to the plan to capture (WK). We still think it best to wait until after they recover the boy’s father?
-(JR) It is essential for Lucas to get to Area 51, and any attempt to apprehend (WK) before then could jeopardize that. I assume they are setting down somewhere near Las Vegas, so if we can pinpoint their landing point it might make sense to seize him there. Lucas and Chi Kim would not have time to spend trying to save him at that point, and he will be at his most vulnerable when he exits the plane.
-Okay, that’s not bad. Getting off the plane is definitely a choke point. We’ll have to incapacitate him, though… can you imagine trying to fight with them? We could have sharpshooters take him down, but… as someone said, we may be liars and manipulators, but we’re not killers. I don’t even think liars and manipulators is fair; we’re just doing what we have to do to survive. Anyone have any other thoughts?
-(BG) We’ll need a Plan B, but I like (JR)’s outline as a Plan A. We just need to detail it out.
-Good, let’s get to work on it. (SVC), where are those snacks? And how about some libations of the adult variety? We’re all adults here, right? I mean, I’m the youngest by quite a bit, but I can show you my ID if you want.
****
“ Oh, hello, Mr. Kane. We reckoned there was a secret exit around here somewhere. I thought it made the most sense for it ta come out on top of the hill where you’d have the high ground and all that. Looks like I was right, eh, mates?” I heard, while still pushing Ernie through the last part of the low, narrow, five meter exit tunnel. Oh no! I know that voice…
From somewhere behind me Cheri, grunting with exertion, said, “That’s Ronnie! You know, from the Armory, the one who made the mistake of shaking ha
nds with you.”
Then, from out the exit of the tunnel, came Mr. Kane’s voice: “Well, Ronald, I suppose if all of you want to attempt to capture me, you’d better do it quickly. I’m on a bit of a tight schedule, I hope you understand.”
Man, Bill is the coolest guy ever…
“Don’t worry, Mr. Kane. We got new orders, we’re ta back off, head back inside. Tell ya the truth, I didn’t fancy any ‘a this, anyway. The thought ‘a apprehendin’ ya didn’t sit well with me, if I’m bein’ honest. Not sure I woulda followed through even if we were still under orders, the money be damned. Oh, sorry for the cursin’ Mr. Kane.”
Both Zoey Perez and Willard were both out of the tunnel by now, and another voice from outside, one I didn’t recognize, said, “Oi, it’s like a bloody clown car. How many more ya got in there?”
Mr. Kane roared with laughter, and I could just imagine the gleam of the afternoon sun off his dazzling teeth. Ernie’s head was emerging from the tunnel as Ronnie, barely able to get the words out through his guffaws, said, “Look ‘a that, mates! It’s like the hill is birthin’ the world’s biggest baby! Get the boilin’ water and clean towels ready!”
Grunting mightily, Ernie said, “Very funny, dudes. Let’s see how many jokes you make when I get outta here.”
“Now, now, Ernest. It does look rather humorous, no offense meant,” said Bill, still giggling.
Ernie, now most of the way out of the tunnel, said, “Nah, I guess you’re right. Sorry, dudes. It’s just… I used to get picked on back when I was a kid, so, you know.”
“We was just havin’ a laugh, mate. No worries,” said Ronnie.
“Listen, Ronald, If you and the other fellows wouldn’t mind, I will ask you to head back down the hill and into the cavern. We really are in a hurry, and to be perfectly honest if you are here there will be the urge to chat. I hope you understand.”
Reassemble (Singular Book 4) Page 17