by R Arundel
To cross the base of the steep slope, Larry had spaced them out. If they did trigger an avalanche, they were spaced far enough apart that they would not all get buried. Larry sprinted to avoid the wall of snow but was knocked off his feet. He is unconscious. The gash to the side of his head has re-opened.
Sarah had been in a good position. She easily avoided the avalanche. She watches as the snow settles and formulates her plan. Larry is unconscious but breathing. Matthew is the one who is buried. She had watched the avalanche overtake him and then bury him in a matter of seconds. She saw exactly where Matthew was buried. It was sinister the way the snow engulfed him.
Now it is calm. After the thunderous noise of the avalanche stops, the whole area looks like it did just before they started crossing.
Larry has trained them well. Sarah is confident and she springs into action. Even though she thinks she knows exactly where Matthew is buried, she follows Larry’s instructions. She pulls out a long orange pole. It telescopes out to eight feet. She goes to the area where she thinks he is buried and pushes the pole into the snow. She pushes it far down. She does not feel Matthew. He is not there. An urge to panic and start sticking the pole everywhere almost overtakes her. She controls herself and then follows what Larry has taught her.
She methodically pushes the pole into the snow in quadrants. After a few minutes, she hits Matthew’s helmet. It feels like a long time has passed. Her muscles burn.
She leaves the pole in that spot, takes out her shovel, and begins digging. Within a few minutes she uncovers his face and removes the snow from Matthew’s nose and mouth. She continues to dig and remove the snow from around his chest. At this point Larry is digging from the other side. It is over very quickly. Sarah pulls Matthew out of the hole, rips off his backpack, and lays him on the ground.
He is breathing. He has a pulse. He coughs and sputters. Matthew opens his eyes, Initially all he can see is white. Sarah’s bright white hair is in his face. He gets up on his feet and puts on his back pack. He walks around slowly, stretching his arms.
Sarah and Larry put on their backpacks. Matthew walks toward Sarah. He has a sheepish grin on his face.
“Thank you.”
“Matthew, I . . . ” Sarah gives Matthew a big hug.
“I almost died.”
“The same could happen to me. I just want you to know that if it happens, I chose to be here, to do this. To spend my time doing it with you.”
“We’re all getting off this mountain. Don’t worry.”
They continue to embrace.
Larry says, “Break it up. Save it for when you guys get home. We need to get off this mountain.”
They continue the trek. Sarah in the lead, Matthew in the middle, Larry guarding the rear.
Chapter Forty-One
Dr. Spencer Lambert is deeply troubled by Ryan Smith’s case. Here is a good man who seems to be getting all the bad luck. There is no doubt he needs some help. Spencer has brought in the social work team. He has some good news that may cheer Ryan up.
Dr. Lambert says, “Good news.”
“For me? You sure you have the right patient?”
“I’m sure,” Spencer sits on the arm of the chair at his bedside. “We were able to straighten out the funding for your hospital stay. All bills are paid. And any future bills are as well.”
This is indeed good news. Ryan had finally struck up the courage to look at his finances. His bills are huge, and he has no way to pay them. This, indeed, is good news. He grabs Spencer and gives him a bear hug. Spencer is surprised.
“Thanks.”
“It was not just me; it was the team. We all realized this did not make sense. It’s all taken care of now.”
Spencer leaves the room smiling.
***
It is clear that the worst has passed. There is grass on the ground. The lush vegetation and thick trees surround them. Matthew hears a quiet chirp. He looks up in the sky and sees a gray bird circling a tree. They are still above the village, but they can now see the brightly covered buildings far in the distance. They are on a leisurely hike. They survived.
There is a great deal of urgent work that needs to be done, but they have survived. Intuitively, they all understood and pass the remaining time in personal reflection.
The air is dry and warm. Matthew, Sarah, and Larry take their heavier clothing off and put it in the backpacks. They reach a stream. The sound of running water is musical.
“Stop.” Matthew pulls out his cell phone, and he has reception. He sends a quick text.
They follow the stream.
Matthew says, “Larry, that was your bonus.”
“The amount agreed on?”
“No.”
“No?”
“This trip has put some very important pieces in place. You should know that you have helped to save many lives. Without you we would never have made it to the cabin.”
“Thanks.”
“Without you we also would have never gotten off the mountain. The bonus is far in excess of the agreed amount.”
“Great, thank you.”
“Are you going back to school?”
“I stayed on Karakatura to work some things out. I was hiding from some things. This trip has been good for me, made me do some real thinking.”
Sarah says, “We could always use you. Why don’t you come back to America with us? If you want excitement, we seem to have it.”
“Getting shot at is not my idea of fun,” says Larry.
Matthew says, “Trust me, after a while you get used to it.”
Larry says, “I think I’m ready to go home.”
Matthew laughs as soon as he hears the loud bark. He is far away, but Matthew has no doubt who the small chocolate brown fuzzy creature is who runs toward them.
“Oscar.”
The dog jumps on Matthew and begins licking him.
Sarah says, “You have a friend for life.”
“I missed you, buddy.”
The stream widens as the water meanders across some rocks. Oscar is the first to run through the stream. Matthew, Sarah, and Larry put the backpacks over their heads. The water feels refreshing. They cross the stream with ease, but Sarah has an obvious limp. Oscar rubs his head against her weak leg.
Larry says, “Sarah, your leg is cramped up from the climb.”
“I’m overtired. It happens sometimes.”
“Yeah, that was some climb. I’m very proud of you and Matthew. You did good.”
“Thanks.”
“Good news—we’re going to have some fun soon. You won’t need to walk.”
Larry leads them to a rope attached across a hundred-foot gorge. The zipline is well-used.
“Now for the fun,” says Larry.
Matthew can’t remember the last time he was on a ride at a fair, but that’s what it reminds him of. He holds Oscar as he ziplines across. Oscar yelps with delight. After the zipline they walk to the outskirts of town and set up their tents. Larry’s friends are waiting to take their gear. Both Sarah and Matthew are sorry this part of the journey is ending.
Chapter Forty-Two
Jason Cooper has an outside firm sweep his office. An old friend from his covert operations days organizes it. Something is not quite right. He has put people in place to spy on Quentin but is still not sure what is going on.
Jason sits at his desk, looking at some photos. He sees a man in his early thirties. The man had approached Caroline MacAulay in Central Park. He spoke briefly to her and then disappeared. Jason picks up the picture and stares at it intently.
Why didn’t those stupid agents follow this guy? It is obvious he would have led them to Matthew. Why didn’t they at least question him? Jason throws the picture on the desk.
The man has now vanished and cannot be traced. It is very strange. They had run active drivers’ licenses, looked at social security numbers. This face cannot be identified; there is no living person in the USA with that face. But there he is.
&n
bsp; Even with the most advanced facial recognition technology, no hits. The man has eluded all law enforcement tools. He has to be a friend of Matthew’s, giving his mother a message. They have pictures of all Matthew’s acquaintances. They have quality close-ups of his face; it definitely is not Matthew in disguise. There is no way it’s a transplant, either, because Jason has seen the thick scars around the ears that the procedure leaves. Jason knows this is a crucial piece of the picture. He just can’t fit it together. The loud ring of the telephone breaks his concentration.
“Did you ID our mystery man?” says Jason.
Jason pulls at the telephone cord. “Put two units on Ms. MacAulay. If this guy shows up again, one unit is to apprehend him. If necessary leave Ms. MacAulay and use both units. My hunch is he will contact her again; he’s definitely a friend of Matthew. Go over his high school and medical school acquaintances. Something may turn up.” Jason reviews the facts. As much as Jason hates Matthew, he is not the mastermind. Quentin Taylor is leading the charge to kill Matthew. Quentin knows of Jason’s history with Matthew. It is no coincidence the Secretary of Defense chose him for the job. Maybe he is flattering himself to think the assignment was based on his ability. Jason will kill Matthew at the first chance he gets, no questions asked. He is just not sure if he should be reserving a bullet for Quentin Taylor as well.
He pulls out the file he assembled on the Secretary of Defense. Quentin Taylor is relatively new to the job. He was appointed due to the untimely death of George H. Brown. Quentin has the ability to orchestrate all the murders.
Jason is close to breaking the case wide open—he can feel it. There are just a few pieces missing. Quentin’s instructions regarding Matthew are becoming less and less coherent. Jason had tracked Matthew to Karakatura. He was obviously going to find Michael at his cabin. There is a credible report that another team followed Matthew’s group and fired at them.
Jason pulls his intelligence file on Michael. He is at his cabin on Karakatura. Michael had gone up with a group of people. The report could not be more specific. The group went up with Michael, but the guides interviewed are positive the group came down without Michael. Jason rereads the section about the man who kept his identity hidden. A tall, thin man went to great pains to keep his identity secret; he always stayed in the shadows. The mastermind has turned on his lieutenants. Jason is certain that Michael was killed in the cabin on Karakatura.
George H. Brown dies climbing Karakatura, with his friend Michael Coulson. A tragic accident. Quentin replaces him. How convenient. Does the mastermind plan to kill Matthew?
He is really getting a bad feeling about Quentin.
So Jason is back to square one. A sharp knock on the door.
“Enter .”
Quentin Taylor enters. He takes a seat in front of Jason’s desk and wastes no time getting to the point. “What’s your assessment?”
“I’m not sure he’s our man. Matthew’s an underling. I went out to a village near Karakatura, a group which definitely had Michael in it climbed the mountain. I showed them Michael’s picture. They identified him positively. I have an eyewitness account from one of the guides. They had a man in the group who was always hidden. The guides were told Michael was in charge. Michael handed out the pay. The other man stayed in the shadows. He was almost completely covered. The guides believed, without a doubt, he was the leader. Michael feared him.”
“Did they say more about this man? Race? Size?”
“He was tall and thin. That’s it—he was always concealed.”
“How much weight can you give the statements of those guides?” says Quentin.
“I think we need to explore alternate scenarios.”
“We need to get Dr. MacAulay.”
“I think I would like to hear Matthew’s side; he should be coming off the mountain soon.”
“What’s your plan?”
“He doesn’t know I tracked him. I know he is coming back by plane. We think we have found out how he’s moving about.”
“How?” says Quentin.
“Liam Rasulov. He has a pilot’s license, lots of aviation contacts. We got a tip. We think we know which airport they will use. It’s in California.”
Jason knows the plane is landing near Manhattan. He doesn’t want his operation compromised.
“Good work. How many men are you taking?”
“I have cut the men I will take to the airport to just ten. Any less and we risk lacking overwhelming force.”
Jason is only using two men, but to tell Quentin will arouse suspicion.
“What about Michael Coulson?”
“I don’t know what happened to Michael’s group. The guide that took them disappeared. Michael has not surfaced.”
“What do you make of it?”
“Not enough to go on. I left a man; he’ll call if there is any news.”
“Matthew’s our man. We need to take him out. I don’t think you should waste time on anything else.”
“He might have something interesting to say.” Jason puts his hands behind his head and leans back in the chair.
“I think he would just embarrass us all with his lies and deceit. He’ll try to smear innocent people.”
“He may have a story; he may lead us up the food chain.”
“Anything he might tell you would be a lie. We can’t listen to anything he says. Kill him the first chance you get. No interrogation, do you understand? That’s a direct order from the Secretary of Defense.”
“Yes, sir.” Jason closes the door behind Quentin and opens a new set of photos. The crime scene at Amanda Soto’s home was grim. It was very bloody. He sits at his desk and spreads out the photos. He has them digitized on his computer, but he still likes to study the hard copies.
“Hello, this is Chief Riggs.”
“Special Agent Jason Cooper here. How are you doing, the heat getting to you?”
“We’re in a little bit of a heat wave, New York summer.”
“Good excuse for a nice cold one.”
Chief Riggs laughs heartily. “You bet, sir. What can I help you with?”
“I emailed a photo to you. I am interested in the man in the photo, the officer with the cap on.”
“I looked at the photo. He’s not one of ours. Not state, not local.”
“Any idea who he is?” says Jason.
“No. I asked the men. He didn’t say much, and they thought he was one of yours. No one remembers much about him.”
“Have a nice day, Chief.”
Jason lays out the photos, looking carefully at the one photo with the best shot of the man. His uniform is that of a senior police officer. He wears his police cap a little lower than normal. He is tall, thin. It didn’t seem odd, but now Jason can see the man’s cap covering his features. All Jason can say for certain is that he is a thin male, about six foot. He looks at the digitized image on the computer. No more details are available. The man kept to the shadows. As Jason slowly goes over the other photos, one strikes him as odd. He makes a copy of the photo and places it in his pocket. Jason is sure—this is their man. This guy leaves no loose ends. If this guy gets to Matthew before he does, Jason won’t lose any sleep.
***
The president receives his final instructions on The Freeze. It has been successfully deployed around the United States in secure locations. WMD238, more commonly known as The Freeze, is fully operational. The antidote will be sent to each military base that holds The Freeze within a week.
There is a charge that runs through his body. He is the President of the United States of America. He uses his power wisely, and he is the most powerful person in the world. The Football makes him the most powerful person in the world. It has been updated to now handle the firing of The Freeze. “Your alphanumeric code is on this laminated card.” The soldier holds up the card which is on top of the briefcase’s computer keyboard. “The Secretary of Defense must enter his code on his briefcase. This will allow the Football to go live.” The Sold
ier points. “The green light will flash, indicating that your Football is live. From that point on, only you have the ability to enter codes to authorize a weapon system. You will override any local weapon system controls.”
The president holds up the papers. “Green bioweapons, red nuclear weapons.”
“These give detailed instructions. The analysts have prepared first strike and defensive strikes. Most likely, you will contact the Security Council to plan this. But these files allow you to enter the codes based on the scenario and fire the weapons yourself. As with the nuclear codes, this system allows you to bypass and override all the normal channels for weapons firing. Wherever you authorize the strike, it will happen. Keep in mind the bios are all defensive—nukes are first strike. You must be very sure before you activate this system. There is no failsafe. There is no abort.”
“There is no way to stop it?”
“I must emphasize, as soon as you punch in the codes and hit the red button, the sequence cannot be altered.” The Soldier gently touches the red button. “This is something best thought of as a response to a surprise attack on American soil—if we are sucker punched.”
“I take over everything.”
“Yes. If all other military personnel and all lines of communication are gone, you are the only person in our country who can save us.” The soldier pauses. “You are the last man standing.”
“What is on the laptop screen?”
“Depending on what is authorized, you will receive real time data or live images to confirm strikes. Missiles are tracked in real time right to target; they also have cameras on the delivery system so you can see the strike.” The soldier closes the briefcase. “You should think of yourself as the entire military if you ever choose to use this system. Hopefully, it will never be tested in real life.”
“Let’s hope,” says the president. “Has the Secretary of Defense been briefed?”
“He will have his briefing Wednesday and get his new briefcase with the updated bioweapons data at that time.”
***
The airfield is just outside Manhattan. Jason is very careful in his planning; he will never underestimate Matthew again. Liam meets with Matthew and Sarah at an airstrip just outside the US. Liam then flies a small plane into a private airport. They have been using this routine for most of their covert flights to avoid detection. When they land Jason’s men will secure the hangar. He trusts his men, but he doesn’t want them to see what happens inside the hangar. They will remain outside and allow no one to enter. Jason will arrest Matthew and whoever is with him as they leave the plane.