by Mark Parragh
And Team Kilo’s been sitting on this for how long? It’s a miracle we’re still here at all.
“What you do with this power is, of course, up to you,” Redpoll said on the other screen. “I’ve found it prudent to use it sparingly. The fear of our power has proven nearly as effective as power itself. But I can’t know what challenges you face or will come to face as the world we know begins to collapse. I’m sure they will be immense. I have entrusted you to oversee the fall of this world and the rise of a more stable and sustainable order. Here you’ll find the tools you’ll need. I’m sorry I’m apparently not there to see our plans finally come to fruition. But I have complete faith in you, or you wouldn’t be here now to see this.”
Redpoll leaned forward toward the camera, reaching for the off button. “Good luck,” he said with a quick smile, and then the screen went blank. On the other screen, files kept flashing by—photographs, legal documents, something that looked like it had been signed in bloody thumbprints.
What is that, a deal with the devil?
If someone did make one, this is where it would be. This is like the devil’s filing cabinet.
And it’s all mine.
Josh realized he was trembling, one knee bouncing up and down as his body tried to burn off nervous energy.
The trick is using it without turning into the devil yourself.
What? You can’t actually use it. It’s like the One Ring. You have to take it to Mordor and throw it back into the Cracks of Doom!
The left screen remained blank. The other continued to silently scroll random information at him. How was he meant to use the thing? He leaned forward and studied the other two buttons. He could just make out two symbols almost invisibly engraved above them.
Keyboard. Eject.
He hit the first button, and a small keyboard slid out of the bottom of the machine on silent runners. At the same time, the screen faded to a gentle-colored background with a search box at the top.
Josh took a breath. He typed a random name and hit return. Hits immediately scrolled down the screen. He tried again. More hits.
If this got into the wrong hands…
What makes you the right hands?
Wait, do we know this is the only copy? What if someone else has this? Does the world need someone out there able to use it for good?
Everyone thinks they can use the ring for good! Nobody can handle this without being corrupted by it!
One person could.
Oh, come on.
No, seriously, he could.
Who? Go ahead, say it, see how ridiculous it sounds.
Hey, I’m not embarrassed.
Say it, then. Who wouldn’t be corrupted by all this unchecked power?
Mr. Rogers.
Josh hit the keyboard button again and watched it slide quietly back into the machine and vanish behind its narrow metallic door. He couldn’t bear to look at any more right now.
He sat back in the chair, still shaking.
So it’s our official position that Mr. Rogers could safely wield the One Ring?
I’m comfortable with that, yes.
You don’t think we’re getting a little off track here?
I want to be off track! The track scares the hell out of me!
Nonetheless…
Okay, okay, just do what Mr. Rogers would do and you can’t go too far wrong. What would he do with this?
Well, he wouldn’t just leave it here. Something this dangerous, he’d put it away so nobody gets hurt.
Josh leaned forward and pressed the eject button. Again, a panel in the machine swung open, and something slid silently out at him. It looked like a hard drive enclosure, with a hinged metal handle that folded out of the end. He reached forward and paused for a moment before he touched it. Then he grasped the handle and pulled the drive out of the machine. It was a handmade metal case, sealed, with connection pads for power and data.
It looked like it would fit nicely into the suitcase waiting on the shelves.
Okay. You’ve got it. You’re taking it. You’re not just walking away. So, again, what does Mr. Rogers do now?
What did he say about when bad things happen?
Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.
So be a helper. Lot going on out there. Find someone in trouble and help them.
He took the drive to the case, fitted it into the protective foam, and closed the lid. He moved slowly and carefully, as if the thing might blow up in his face. Then he turned and started back up the stairs. Mr. Makama was waiting exactly where Josh had left him. He said nothing, but simply followed him back up the long stairway.
Josh suddenly remembered a discussion with Crane.
We can’t just go around getting cats out of trees. We need some larger vision.
But that’s how you go wrong, isn’t it? You try to be subtle, to cover the big picture, and before you know it, you’re the problem and you don’t even know it. Look at Redpoll and his grand vision. He died thinking he was the good guy. But he hadn’t been the good guy for a long, long time, if he ever was.
Baby steps. See someone in trouble, help them.
Lot harder to go wrong that way.
I’m comfortable with that.
He thought about it all the way back up the stairs. Crane raised an eyebrow as he returned and asked what was in the case, but Josh said nothing. He walked silently back up to the top of the dam and out into the sunlight, like he was returning from the underworld with the elixir of life. Maybe he was.
It was Crane who made their goodbyes to Chief Engineer Thamae and assured Mr. Makama that he should still watch the door and wait for someone to come with the passphrase. Crane gave him a number to call if that should happen.
So I guess we’re paying him now.
Then they were alone on the patchy grass at the foot of the path that led up to the landing pad. The sun was bright, and it gleamed off the puffy white clouds and the deep blue surface of the lake. A warm breeze ruffled his hair.
It’s really gorgeous out here.
Good day to do something important.
“Are you okay?” he asked Crane.
“Yeah, sure.”
“No,” he said, “I mean, are you okay?”
Crane nodded in understanding. “Ah. Yes. Really, I’m okay.”
“Good,” said Josh as he set off toward the waiting helicopter. “We’ve got a lot of work to do.”
Crane fell in beside him. “Yes, we do.”
They crested the slope, and Josh gestured to the pilot to start up the helicopter. “Then let’s get to it. It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.”
The End
Afterword
And so now you’ve experienced the third full-length John Crane adventure. If you’ve read the first two, Rope on Fire and Wrecker, you’ve seen Crane and his nerdy billionaire patron Josh go through something of a transformation. As Rope on Fire opens, both Crane and Josh think they understand how their world works, but they soon learn there’s more going on behind the scenes than they knew.
They’re plunged into a whole new world and the ongoing theme of the adventures that follow is the two of them learning to navigate the new world they’ve found themselves in. They struggle to understand its rules so they can do the right things. Sometimes they’re fairly successful, sometimes not.
The end of Shot Clock brings this first “act” of the Crane story to a close. They’ve learned the ropes, and they have the knowledge they need to make deliberate choices. That transformation has come at a price for both of them. But it’s now complete, and irreversible. From here, nothing will ever be quite the same. Crane stories set after Shot Clock will take place from a slightly different perspective. The first act is over, but the second act is about to begin. I hope you’ll come along and enjoy the ride with me.
At this moment, I can’t say exactly where those new stories will take Crane. But I do know one thing…
John Crane will
return.
Enjoy the other adventures in the John Crane Series!
Rope on Fire
Suddenly out of work when the Top Secret Hurricane Group is shut down, Crane agrees to take on a side mission for idealistic young billionaire Josh Sulenski and soon finds himself in deeper than he planned. As the trail of danger leads him from Puerto Rico to the Czech Republic, Crane closes in on an unexpected discovery that will change his life forever.
Read now at Amazon.com.
Wrecker
In Baja California to check on a friend’s daughter, Crane finds himself crossing swords with a deadly American fugitive, the cartel that’s taken him in, and something even more dangerous using them both. Meanwhile, Josh’s kindness to a former mentor reveals a dark conspiracy with disturbing connections to Crane’s mission. Suddenly the stakes are higher than ever before, and the danger strikes far too close to home.
Read now at Amazon.com.
Bird Dogs
John Crane goes to Buenos Aires on the trail of “Tamarind,” a former blackmailer and gigolo Crane hopes will lead him to bigger game. But he soon learns Tamarind hasn’t given up his old profession, and Crane isn’t the only one following him. Alexa Ibarra is a private detective seeking revenge for her client, and perhaps a little something for herself. Crane and Alexa make natural allies, but only to a point, and eventually Crane must decide what matters most in a game someone has to lose.
Read now at Amazon.com.