The doors split and C.J. rushed to brief SWAT. Nottingham observed the chaos reigning in his lab. Technicians, scientists, camera operators, and medical professionals scurried about like the newsroom employees from a paper in the 1950s. Nottingham remained steady, focusing attention on the enormous half football-field-sized pit where the returning guests, in theory, would spill upon triggering the recall. A circular working area ringed above the pit, giving him a solid vantage point. “Our brilliant Scarlett must have figured it out,” Nottingham mused.
Lights flashed between the four copper reactors placed strategically around the pit. Stephen’s voice level rose as the clanging, whirling, metallic machinery revved. “What do we do? How many are coming through?”
The brightness intensified to blue from the heat. Nottingham donned his solar eclipse eye protection. A lackey passed around noise-canceling headphones designed to block the soundwaves generated by the machine, but still filter in normal sounds, such as human speech. “Everyone, listen to me. Put your headphones on and remain calm.”
Daughter C.J. clicked onto the deck in her high heels, glasses and ear protection engaged. “This is it, Father. You know what Ace has to do.”
The leader of the SWAT team, C.J.’s husband, arrived. Nottingham grew to despise the man and his arrogant council. He sighed, realizing in this new world he created, men like Ace Atkins proved useful. Also, men like Gilbert Whitehead, though it did not work out. However, given different circumstances, he believed it would. “Very well, bring in SWAT. But they do nothing until I give the order.”
While Stephen sprang into action on the communication system, C.J. narrowed her eyes and enlarged the monitor in her workstation. She replaced the image on the overhead monitor with the picture from her desktop.
The MRI imaging system detailed who traveled through the Apollo Zone portal. “We have fifteen returnees.” She pointed to the scan and the fifteen unique heat signatures. “And a little dog too.” She flipped to a second screen showing Merry Men trackers. “The embedded chips show only three of ours are returning: The female cop from the Midwest, the Asian female and, not surprisingly, your brilliant female scientist.”
“Interesting. It is not the trio I would have picked.” Nottingham hunched over his monitor and punched keys to split the large screen and add his desktop. The monitor, as colossal as one in Jerry World, split into several important screens. “We do have both leaders returning.” The thermal image highlighted Jasper Oliphant’s and Tom Cassidy’s unique heat signatures. The variants and factors could not be microchipped before the experiment, though Nottingham adjusted the Mercury Project. He typed on the keyboard, locating the data to match the other forms. “Several unidentified individuals are coming through. We can assume these are the Malone brothers and Emerson.”
C.J. studied the UNID figures on the screen. “The one on the left is radiating a false signature. Something is seriously wrong with that one.”
“Ah,” Nottingham tapped his finger. “Internally wrecked. It most certainly is Professor Campbell. He tore apart during the initial spilt and his molecules were improperly fused. His body won’t last very long upon his return.”
“We need to question him before he keels over,” C.J. said.
“I intend to have a long chat with my dear old friend.”
“Dad, have you seen Ben?” Stephen asked rolling his chair from the communications table. “He’s isn’t answering his cell.”
C.J. withdrew to address SWAT. Nottingham lasered his focus to Stephen. “I sent Ben on a mission. You handle communications on your own, Son.”
C.J. barked at Atkins, who arrived on the deck a few steps ahead of her. “Deploy now. What are you waiting for?”
Atkins, a forty-year-old former member of the Royal Australian Airforce, cut his eyes to Nottingham. His bulging forearms, thicker than some people’s heads, crossed. “Sir, your orders are clear. You are the only one who can engage this protocol.”
C.J. twisted her mouth into a snarl. Nottingham let a chuckle slip. “Engage, but do not open fire on anyone. The stockpile of weapons they are totting will not be operational after traveling through. But I want them to believe they have some leverage. Watch for my signal.”
For several tense moments, the lights flickered. Metal clanged. Reverberated. All eyes focused on either the pit or the monitors with the zoomed view. In a final bolt of lightning, sparks danced and the noise drained from the pit like water in a bathtub. People in various stages of consciousness appeared in the middle of the pit.
Scarlett, the red-headed Italian genius staggered to her knees and held both hands to her head. One of the leaders dressed in hunting fatigues, Tom Cassidy, shielded eyes against the light as he scanned the pit and raised deck. He gripped his rifle and whispered instructions to the several around him, including two strapping young men. The camping brothers. Robin took orders from the Navy Commander. Interesting. Nottingham combed for the other leader and he settled on the former FBI profiler. This ‘leader’ deferred to the young woman in the cowboy hat. The Cassidy girl, Reagan, apparently snatched the leadership role from Jasper. She whispered to a group consisting of the short blond woman, the Asian man, and Scarlett.
“Mr. Cassidy, whatever it is you’re planning, needs to stop.” Nottingham motioned to the two-dozen armored SWAT team members armed and ready. “You’ve got a handful of guns and a bunch of amateurs against my professionals.”
“We beat your professionals out there,” Cassidy said. But Nottingham, on a zoomed view, watched Cassidy’s knowing storm blue eyes scan the deck. Cassidy gestured to his daughter, to Robin and the Asian man, Pak. “We can’t win this fight just yet.” Weapons dropped.
Nottingham instructed the lab rats to align at the near-end close to his work station, while a couple of SWAT members confiscated the weapons. The cameras tracked applicants and variables and put them on the big screen. Scarlett, Pak, and one of the brothers helped feeble Professor Campbell walk. The brilliant man dressed as a National Park Ranger but it looked like a Boy Scout uniform. “Well now, Nate, did you get your merit badges?”
Nate coughed and rubbed his eyes. He inched closer, supporting his weight on the copper railing, and stared to Nottingham, who lorded over the group like a Roman emperor. “What have you done?”
“Don’t you recognize the experiment we started? I elevated it to another level.” Nottingham expanded his arms. “This old super-conducting-super collider provided the necessary physics to do what was only a theory. You recall the one.”
“It didn’t work right, Archibald,” Campbell croaked. “You can’t mess with laws of nature.”
“With all great human endeavors, we have lost lives and received collateral damage. We learn from these things. This is but a start, Nate, my long-lost colleague.” Nottingham’s smile stretched to his bushy, gray-streaked eyebrows. “For example, C.J. monitored your hallowed Campbell Continuum for predicting personalities and the like. It was mostly a bust.”
Cassidy and his daughter whispered and Nottingham observed the communication travel. The little ragtag group planned their assault when they thought he wasn’t looking. Cute.
C.J. bellowed near the ledge peering at the sad group. “Professor,” she began, “The first glaring error is your leadership guide hit only one of two. The Navy guy passed with aces, but your former FBI profiler was a bust.”
The one called Jasper clenched his fists. “My son was killed, you maniacs.”
C.J. continued. “You did nothing right, FBI guy.” She never bothered learning many names and it amused Nottingham. “You’re a windbag, a whiner, and inspire no one.” She dismissed him with a hand wave.
Taking a printout from C.J., Nottingham continued the thread. Several incongruities clicked in his mind. “Scarlett, it appears you are not who you said you were. Nate’s niece? Interesting.” He peered at his mice. “Nate, my dear old partner, you were quite the surprise running into the void as the experiment began and infiltrating your
relation into my world. No one in the program theorized the possibility of splitting a living person. Certainly, a happy accident. For future experiments I mean. Your presence threw a monkey wrench into my plans for the Apollo Zone.” He chuckled. “But, perhaps the other side of you was better. I quite enjoy the ruthless side. Sadly, you’re a dying man and your days are numbered.”
“You’re sickening, Archibald.” With a groan, Nate studied the others in the lab. “All of you are. What’s the plan from here? Are you going to kill all of these people?”
Nottingham chose not to address the question. “We had quite a few anomalies. The Malone brothers, a couple of Texas cowboys, and the old man there who, according to this profile my daughter prepared, likely believes I’m part of some giant government conspiracy.”
“Is that what this is?” Cassidy stood with arms on his hips, the glint of confidence and the cocky attitude bleeding through. “Are you conducting experiments for our government? Or some other government?”
“No, nothing of the sort. Nate and I spoke of this possibility fifteen years ago. Once he left my employ, I discovered some of our wild theories could work and I didn’t want the government’s grubby hands anywhere near it.” Nottingham scoffed at the ragtag unit below. “Enough blustering. I would like to point out to my son, daughter and fifty percent of my staff I was dead right on Commander Tom Cassidy. You are exactly who I thought you were.”
“What? A monkey in some experiment? We beat your Merry Men. Killed most of them and converted the others. We killed the man you picked to lead, Gilbert Whitehead, and I used one of your team to help us. We mastered your wormholes, united our two groups and figured out the recall. Was all that part of the test? What’s your move, pal?”
“It wasn’t, but I do thank you for making my job easier. Since you’re all here I can move on to the next step. Like all good experiments, you have to correct mistakes.” He loved the next part. After a long dramatic pause, he presented Phase Two of the experiment on the massive monitor. “You people were involved in what we called ‘Apollo Project’. My next step is called the ‘Mercury Project’. Yes, I am going backward. At least in the naming realm. But what I’ve done in this zone, the Mercury Zone.” He pointed to the cameras watching his new project. The ability to directly observe was the first of many changes. “This experiment is leaps and bounds beyond our first go-around.”
“There are people still stuck out in your Apollo Zone.” Tom scrutinized the monitor, which didn’t give away much. A quaint downtown street with minimal traffic. “The kid Gus is innocent and we want him back.” He motioned to the barrel-chested man with glasses. “Davidson’s wife and Doc Hibbert are still inside.”
The cowgirl dusted the Stetson on her leg and curled her lip. “Jacki has Gus. You’ve misjudged her as one of your Merry Men. She’s a sociopath bent on taking all of this away from you.”
The moment Nottingham anticipated approached. His entire spiel led to this moment. A choice. Oh, how he loved the manipulation of the game. Who would press the play again button? Who would have the nerve? “You’re welcome to try and stop Jacki. Or to find this orphan child you claim to care about.” Nottingham used a red laser pointer to direct their eyes to a section of the monitor. “Or you can go help your mother, Reagan.” The screen, a window to the charming town, showed Virginia Parish, Tom’s ex-wife and Reagan’s mother. The woman hadn’t a clue what she got herself into. She looked perplexed and angry. Nottingham wanted her for the first experiment, but this worked out infinitely better. “C.J., my dear, start the countdown.”
A twenty-four-second shot clock projected in the middle of the arena. “Forgive the dramatics, but I do love a climax.” Nottingham pointed to Stephen. “Pull the cord, son.” The trigger opened the whirling portal, a mini tornado of light and wind mixed with electricity. “Do I have any heroes who want to jump in and try to help my new lab rats?”
Reagan bounded, but Tom caught her. The animated conversation lasted a few seconds before one of the Malone boys detained her. The Asian man made a move for the twisting travel portal, but the little blond snatched his arm. Davidson, limping with a cane and murder on his face stormed into the void. After discussion, Tom and pretty Robin, not bright but one of Nottingham’s favorites, scrambled to the void.
“Anyone else?” Nottingham said with the growing noise. The clock slipped under ten.
Cassidy cupped hands to his mouth funneling words to his daughter. “I’ll find a way to bring them all home.”
“I’m coming.” Reagan strained against the cowboy’s grasp, her feet lifting from the ground. Less than five seconds remained.
Scarlett whispered to Nate before joining the departing crew as the clock hit double zeroes. With a whoosh, the twister faded. The dying man gazed at the chaos engulfing the pit. The former protégé and smartest man he ever knew collapsed into a heap. The others screamed.
Nottingham motioned to Atkins. “Gas the rest of them and dump them at Destination Number Eight-Oh-Three.”
…To Be Continued
About the Authors
Brittany E. Brinegar started writing mystery novels after getting hooked on Nancy Drew at the age of eleven. She is a graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington with a Master’s in Business Administration. In her spare time, she enjoys watching baseball, football, and classic television shows. She has two furry friends, Nikki & Penny, the perfect canine writing companions. Brittany is a proud Texan and loves writing about her home state. BrittanyBrinegar.com
J.E. Brinegar is a guy in the next cubicle related to the real writer in the family. He is Brittany’s father. He works at a finance company and has a B.B.A. from Tarleton State University. He claims furry friends Nikki and Penny as his. He introduced a love of Texas, television, football, and baseball to Brittany. The germ of THE APOLLO ZONE started many years ago but exploded into a real novel after a discussion with Brittany on improving the characters and quality of failed sci-fi shows in the early 2000s.
Dear Readers
Thank you for reading THE APOLLO PROJECT. We hope you enjoyed the book and are looking forward to the sequel THE MERCURY ZONE – Coming Soon.
For news on upcoming books, visit:
BrittanyBrinegar.com
amazon.com/Brittany-E-Brinegar
@BrittBrinegar
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Booklist
Enigma of Lake Falls (Spies of Texas Series Book 1)
In the first installment of the Spies of Texas series we meet Sawyer Finn, the fedora-wearing detective with a photographic memory, and Jenny Nicolay, the newcomer with a shadow past. Moments after hanging the open sign, Sawyer’s Investigations hears rumors of a Soviet Spy. The pursuit of the spy leads the heroes across the state of Texas, Arkansas, and Tennessee. Ultimately all the answers lie back home with a stunning revelation.
Coming Soon
Undercover Pursuit (Spies of Texas Series Book 2)
The second installment in the Spies of Texas picks up after the stunning reveal in ENIGMA OF LAKE FALLS. Sawyer and Jenny head to Boston to investigate her mysterious past. While searching for answers, they fall into a world of corruption and Irish mobsters. Despite their new alliance with Waley, the duo finds themselves on the run.
Spooked! (Mystery Madness 1)
This is the first installment of a riveting new series, featuring present-day Lake Falls, Texas. The series follows a group of teenage private investigators chasing criminals in their hometown. A network reality show invades, setting their sights on a spooky, abandoned hospital for their upcoming season. The girl detectives become immersed in intrigue as they attempt to win the game and solve a real mystery.
The Mercury Zone (Mission 2) – Cowritten with J. E. Brinegar
Apollo Project Page 43