"Great . . . red, baggy eyes from no sleep. I'm exhausted. Momma will go into full mother hen mode, and Daddy will start lecturing me about taking better care of myself. Maybe that's what I need right now," she said, while wiping her eyes and blowing her nose.
The front door opened, and her mother appeared with a broom. As she began sweeping the porch, she glanced up at the car in the driveway and stopped.
Amanda turned off the car and stepped out. As she slammed the car door, her mother dropped the broom, and rushed off the porch. As Amanda stepped onto the sidewalk, her mother wrapped her arms around her and hugged her. Amanda began to cry and hugged her back.
"Amanda, are you all right? You don't look well, and it's not like you to cry like this. What's wrong?" Selma asked, while guiding Amanda toward the house.
"I'm okay. It's just that work has been really hard lately, that's all," Amanda said, holding her mother's hand as they walked onto the porch.
Her father appeared in the doorway, a cold beer in hand. Amanda began crying again as he hugged her. He set the beer down as they walked toward the swing. A tissue appeared from her mother's apron, and Amanda wiped her eyes as they sat down.
"I like the swing. It's big enough for all of us," Amanda said, tears welling up unbidden, as the swing began to sway.
"It’s the first thing your father made after we moved in. He was going to set up his workshop in the basement, but I wouldn't have it. Too much dust would get in the house. So he set up his workshop behind the house, in an old garage," her mother said.
"So what's going on, baby girl? Why are you so upset?" Will asked.
"Daddy, you know that I work for the CIA. There are just things that I can't talk about. The last few days have been stressful. I'm taking some time off, and I just thought that I'd pay you both a visit. I'm sorry I haven't come down here before," Amanda said, relishing the physical contact of sitting between her parents.
"We're glad to have you for as long as you can stay. You don't have to apologize for anything," Selma said, while patting her daughter on the knee.
Amanda winced, and both her parents noticed. They glanced at each other.
"Amanda, are you hurting?" Selma asked.
"Yeah, maybe a little bit. Did you hear about the explosion in South Carolina?" Amanda asked.
"Yes, it was all over the TV. After the President's speech, I was in a tizzy. Then the explosion happened, and the people on the news said that it might be connected to the horrible things that the President was telling us. Does that have anything to do with you?" Selma asked.
"I was there, Momma. I kind of got caught up in the blast. The man in front of me was killed," Amanda said, and began crying again.
She knew that she wasn't supposed to talk about it, but things just started to spill out. Before she knew it, she had told them almost everything.
"Amanda, you need to find another job, and I mean right now. You need to call up your boss and quit. That stuff is too dangerous for a woman," Will said.
"Will, just hush. This isn't 1950. A woman can have any job she wants," Selma said.
"Daddy, I know you both care, and that you're worried about me. But I'm the one who found out about these weapons that the President talked about. Me . . . your little girl, figured it out. You both raised me to be strong and independent. You raised me to be proud to be an American. I want to help my country, and my country needs me. I can't just quit and walk away," Amanda said.
All three began crying as Amanda put her arms around both her parents. No words were exchanged. They all just sat, and rocked, and hugged each other as the sun set, and the coming darkness loomed.
CHAPTER 41
Harris Nuclear Plant
5421 Shearon Harris Rd
New Hill, North Carolina
August 2, 2017
2000 hours EST
West of the Security Building
"Lieutenant, we searched all the buildings. We found less than a dozen people. There are so many places to hide that I can't guarantee that we got everyone," Jian said, as he and Chonglin ran up to the rear of the Security Building.
"Our friend, Sergeant Davies, has blocked all outside calls from land lines and internet service. Cell phones will work, but it won't make any difference if any people are left. It's time for Phase 2. I want you two to escort the device to the north end of the Fuel Handling Building. Heng, you bring the truck up. When you get to the door, it should already be unlocked. You know the rest of the plan. If you have any problems, call me," Aiguo said.
As the truck drove off with the three men and the device aboard, Renshu and Bingwen could be seen exiting the Turbine Building. Bingwen discarded a chicken leg, and wiped his hands on his pants, as they walked up to Aiguo.
Aiguo said nothing, as he stared at Bingwen.
"What? I was hungry. They were sitting down to eat. After taking care of business, I figured . . . why waste the food? There's plenty left," Bingwen said.
"The Main Control Room and all the operators are dead. I had one of them trip the reactor before I killed him," Renshu said.
"Good, the device is on the way to the Fuel Handling Building. Sergeant Guan and Team Claw have the towers. They will maintain security on the perimeter and the open areas inside the fence. If anyone moves in the open other than us, they're dead. I have another mission for you two," Aiguo said, as he turned and began walking back into the Security Building.
Tool Room
Waste Process Building 236'
2015 hours EST
"Damn boy, you weren't kidding. These things are huge. I bet they weigh 30 pounds," Chris said, as he lifted the huge bolt cutters from their storage stand and put them back down.
"So where's the nearest security locker? I hate walking around this place unarmed. Sooner or later those bastards are going to start searching this building to find us," Tommy said.
"There's one locker on this level, just inside the key card door going into the Reactor Auxiliary Building (RAB). It's on the wall opposite the Personnel Air Lock (PAL)," Steve said.
"Damn, you're right. The guard sits beside it during every outage when we have to set up access to the Reactor Containment Building (RCB)," Tommy said.
"So then what, we go all A-Team and start hunting these guys down?" Kay asked.
"A-Team? How old are you, Kay?" Chris asked.
"Screw you, Chris!" Kay replied, and added a gesture, along with her comment.
"Kay, we have to get outside. We've got our cell phones, but they won't work in here . . . too much concrete. We have to make sure that the outside world knows what's going on in here," Tommy said, as he picked up the bolt cutters and began walking down the hall toward the RAB.
"I'll feel better when we're armed. I don't like being shot at and not being able to shoot back," Cornell said.
"Remember what the President said about these guys. They're the Chinese equivalent of Delta Force. These guys are trained killers, not rent-a-cops. We don't hunt anybody. We don't want to get in a shootout either," Steve said.
"I still know how to shoot," Cornell said.
"So do I," Tommy said.
"Yeah, you ever had a deer shoot back?" Steve asked.
They were silent until they approached the massive security door leading into the RAB.
Steve was reaching for his key card when Chris said, "Wait, the light's already green. See if it's unlocked."
Steve pulled on the heavy door and it opened. They all ducked inside, and Steve shut the door as quietly as possible.
"Hey, there's the cabinet, and that is a big padlock," Kay said.
"Shit, that's nothing. Watch this," Tommy said, as he walked over with the bolt cutters.
"Damn, that's hard steel. Chris, give me a hand," Tommy said, as he began squeezing the long handles of the bolt cutter together.
Soon, all four men were on the handles and trying to cut through the padlock.
"Let me help," Kay said, as she grabbed an open space on the handle and b
egan pushing.
A few seconds later the hasp on the padlock snapped. The padlock spun and fell to the floor. The four men stared at Kay.
"Girl power, boys," Kay said, while crossing her arms.
"Holy crap! Look at all this stuff," Chris said, as he opened the door to the cabinet.
"Four M16A2s and four 9mm Berettas. What are those, some kind of grenades?" Tommy asked.
"Flash bangs . . . stun grenades. Security wouldn't want anything that would tear up equipment, like a fragmentation grenade. But a flash bang would definitely knock somebody down for a while," Cornell said, while picking up one of the M16A2s and two 30-round magazines.
"Kay, have you ever shot a weapon?" Tommy asked.
"Point and pull the trigger . . . it can't be that hard," Kay said, as she picked up one of the M16s and placed the butt of the stock in her shoulder.
Cornell lifted the barrel after she pointed the weapon at him.
"Rule number one; don't ever point a weapon at someone unless you're gonna shoot them," Cornell said.
"Does Chris count?" Kay asked.
"Kay, watch me, and I'll show you how it's loaded," Cornell said, then demonstrated.
"I'll take a handgun. They're easier to use," Steve said, while strapping on a holster.
"Long gun for me. I haven't touched one of these since Boot Camp, but I do own a Ruger Model 44. This will do just fine," Tommy said, as he took the third M16A2.
After they were all armed, Chris asked, "Now what?"
"I say the Main Control Room. If we try to go outside, they'll find us for sure. We'll stay in the RCA to get there. We don't want to get in a gun fight with these guys. Then we check the Main Control Room and then try for the roof. We can get a cell connection there," Steve said.
The others nodded in agreement, and began walking through the 236' level of the RAB toward the north stairs that lead up to the Main Control Room on 305'.
CHAPTER 42
Troop C Headquarters
North Carolina Highway Patrol
1831 Blue Ridge Road
Raleigh, North Carolina
2000 hours EST
"Hey, Sarge, you're going to love this one. 911 got a call from some woman claiming that the guards at the Harris Nuclear Plant were killing everyone on site," Master Trooper Mac Williams said to Sergeant Louise Baker, Shift Supervisor on nights.
"Why does this always happen on night shift when I'm in charge? Is it a full moon tonight? I swear all the crazies come out during a full moon," Sergeant Baker said, while staring at Trooper Williams.
"The 911 operator thought it was legit. That's why she called us," Trooper Williams said.
"See who we've got on US 1. Have Dispatch vector them to Harris and have them check in with the guards at the entrance. If this was real, we should have gotten more calls from the plant by now. I've toured out there. The place is a fortress, and the security force is first class. This is bullshit, but we'll check anyway," Sergeant Baker said.
"That's not the only one from that area. Another woman called and said that Chinese soldiers had taken over her house and terrorized her family. She claimed that she had just killed one of them and was fleeing for her life with her two little girls. It was some place on Avent Ferry Road, a few miles from Harris. The Sheriff's Department is looking into that one," Trooper Williams said.
"Like I said, full moon and all the crazies come out," Sergeant Baker said.
Harris Nuclear Plant
2020 hours
Three North Carolina Highway Patrol cruisers turned onto the Harris Nuclear Plant access road and stopped at the top of the hill. The sun was starting to set, and the clouds above the plant were violent shades of swirling red and orange.
"You guys wait up here. I'll go talk to the guards and verify that everything is sat," Senior Trooper Destiny Jones said, over her radio.
"Roger that," replied the other two troopers over the comm net.
Destiny Jones was cautious by nature, having grown up in southeast Raleigh. The neighborhoods there were rough, and she never took any situation for granted.
"Something doesn't seem right. I've only been out here twice, but I remember the guards were always visible," she thought, while approaching the guard shack.
She stopped 50 feet from the shack, and waited.
"They should come out when a vehicle approaches . . . always," Destiny said, as she picked up her mike.
"Both of you, get down here. Fan out on either side of this guard building. Exit your vehicles and cover the building. When you're in position, I'll go check the area," Destiny said.
She waited for a confirmation, then parked her vehicle facing the shack, and turned on the dash cam.
When the other two cruisers were in position, the officers left their vehicles, using them for cover as they drew their weapons.
"Okay, girl, let's go see what's going on," she said, while exiting her vehicle and drawing her service pistol.
At 20 feet from the guard building, she could see the blood trails leading around the shack. From the pattern, she could see that two people were shot outside the building and dragged to an entrance on the left side.
"I see indications of a shooting . . . two victims. I'm going for the entrance," Destiny said, over her comms to the other two troopers covering her approach.
She crouched, her weapon forward, and approached the closed door. She could see that the building was designed to be a fighting position for the guards if attacked. The walls were steel, and firing ports were built into the sides. After checking the rear of the building, she looked through the glass, and saw three men piled up on top of each other. All had been shot at close range. She turned, and ran back to her cruiser.
"Dispatch, this is Senior Trooper Destiny Jones, over," she said.
"Dispatch, over," they replied.
"I'm located at the guard shack at the entrance to the Harris Nuclear Plant. Three guards have been shot and killed. I repeat, three security personnel have been shot and killed, over," she said.
"Understand three dead at the security entrance to Harris, over," they said.
"Correct . . . Dispatch this looks serious. We're going to drive up to the plant. We need backup and an ambulance, over," she said.
"Roger that, backup and medical," they said.
As Destiny talked on the radio, another trooper approached the guard shack. He had intended to verify that the victims were deceased. As he opened the door, the explosive that Chonglin had left behind detonated. The trooper was hurled 30 feet through the air. He was dead before he hit the ground. As the smoke cleared, Destiny stared at the shack. The bulletproof glass had resisted the explosion. She could no longer see inside. All she could see was blood coating the inside of the windows of the guard shack.
CHAPTER 43
Harris Nuclear Plant
5421 Shearon Harris Rd
New Hill, North Carolina
August 2, 2017
2010 hours EST
Behind the Main Control Room
"Chris, if you walk through that radiation portal monitor and make it alarm, I'll shoot you myself," Kay said, as the five night shift workers prepared to exit the Radiation Controlled Area and enter the Main Control Room complex.
"Sorry, hard to break the habit," Chris said, as they all slipped past the portals and walked up to the door leading into the rear section of the Main Control Room.
"I'll go first. It should be empty, but if I yell, run back into the RCA," Steve said, while sliding the 9mm out of its holster.
They all nodded. Steve cracked the door, and slid inside the server room located behind the Main Control Room. A minute later, the door opened. Steve signaled for them to enter. After they were all in the room, Steve pointed at the exit that led to the Main Control Room.
"We'll do it the same way. I'll go first," Steve said, as he approached the door and walked through.
A minute later he ran back in and threw up in a trash can beside a desk.
"Jesus, Steve! What did you see?" Chris asked.
"Bodies . . . they're all dead, all shot up, but where are the rest of them? We need to check the AO (Auxiliary Operator) Corral. The Operators were having a big meal tonight," Steve said, while wiping off his mouth.
"We'll go around back. I don't want to go in there again," Steve said, as he holstered his pistol, bent over the trash can, and threw up for the second time.
"Steve, you and Kay wait here. We'll go check the AO Corral. Cornell, you cover our backs," Tommy said.
The light on the key card door was green as the trio approached the side entrance to the AO Corral. Tommy pushed the massive door open as Chris and Cornell covered him. After closing the door, they began to search the various offices and bathrooms. The last room on the right was the AO Corral. It was filled with operators' cubicles with a large open area in the middle. The long table in the middle was used for briefings, and once a week for a shift dinner.
Tommy went in first, then froze in the doorway. Chris stood ten feet behind him, waiting for Tommy to enter the room.
"What is it? Move in. Let's get out of the hall," Chris said.
Tommy backed out of the room, leaned against a wall and slumped to the floor. Cornell bypassed them both, and walked into the room.
"Holy Jesus, they're all dead," Cornell said, while stepping into the room with the M16A2 braced into his shoulder.
The room was silent, but the smell of death was overwhelming. Chris ducked past Tommy and entered the room. The sight of bodies piled on top of each other struck him first, then the smell of so much blood. His mind went numb as he recognized the faces of so many friends, people that he had known and worked with for years.
"Yeah, it smells just like this. You never forget the smell of death once it gets into your nose. Give it a couple of days and it's ten times worse," Cornell said.
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