“I ever tell you about my great-grandfather?”
Jessica was surprised by the question. She relaxed a little and prepared herself for one of Ben’s infamous stories. “No, don’t think you have.”
“He was a World War II vet, drafted in 1944. He was thirty-two or thirty-three when he went overseas. He volunteered for the draft, but they told him he was too old. Well, by the third year of the war, the army wasn’t as picky, so off he went. My great-grandmother was pregnant with my grandfather when he left and when he came back eighteen months later, he met my grandfather for the first time. They went on to raise eight children.”
“Dear Lord, eight children? Are you kidding? Nobody told him what was causing that little problem?”
Ben winked. “Eight kids! I think they knew how to make ’em.”
“Ben, as much as I love your stories, does this one have a point?”
“Before The Pulse, could you imagine raising eight children? Even four?”
“Hell, no. I couldn’t imagine affording one kid.”
“Exactly. When I thought about having a kid with my ex-wife, I couldn’t stop thinking about my grandfather having seven brothers and sisters. I asked him about it and you know what he told me?”
“The eight of them sang and danced on TV like The Jefferson Five?”
“Jackson Five, and no, they weren’t in a band.”
“They were filthy rich?”
“No, they were self-sustaining.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means they had a garden the size of half a football field and grew tomatoes, green beans, carrots, potatoes, onions, and other things they could eat. It means they had a chicken coop and a hog pen. It means they had two or three cows for milk or to butcher for meat. They even grew pecan trees in the yard. My grandfather and his brothers would hunt squirrels and rabbits with slingshots and BB guns. They took care of themselves. They didn’t depend on a grocery store or go to a Wal-Mart like the one we took when all this bullshit started.”
“I understand what you’re saying, but given what’s at stake, are you really willing to give up that much food? I know we’re gonna have to live off the land at some point, but if we can put it off for as long as possible, I mean it just…”
“We can discuss that another day. For now, I want you to scout out the place. The recon team drew up a map and gave us some basic intel. I’m going to trust your judgment on this and let you deal with the UAE base. If you think you can pull it off, give ’em some good old-fashioned sabotage like we’ve done before – disable their vehicles, cut off communication, create diversions. You know the drill.”
Jessica rolled her eyes. “Uh, yeah. I’ve done this before, thanks.”
Ben smiled. “Have you? I thought you came here for a vacation.”
“Shut up! I heard about the slavers this morning. Damn, I wish I could’ve been there! Been a while since a group of them came to visit.”
“It was a pleasure wasting those pieces of shit. You hear what the UAE is doing about it?”
“Something other than playing dumb while slaves rebuild The Pulse Zone?”
Ben shuffled some papers and found the one he was looking for. “Our friends in the Unified American Empire have declared that, uh, here it is … ‘slavery is an atrocity that must be stopped at all costs. Anyone involved in the slave trade will be summarily executed.’”
“I don’t get it. Why do they give a shit about it now?”
“I have no idea. It doesn’t make a difference around here. Just means the UAE will be doing what we’ve been doing about slavery all along.”
“Speaking of the UAE, isn’t Captain Brown due for his weekly visit?”
“He should be here any minute.”
* * *
“You want to run that by me again?” Ben was not pleased. He didn’t know what to make of the UAE captain’s statement. Was it a deliberate act of aggression? Were they on to him?
“Ben, don’t worry, this has nothing to do with you or your people. My orders are to set up a temporary base of operations here in your parking lot for the next seven days. We’ll be sending out patrols and setting up roadblocks. All southbound traffic will be stopped. I have two teams to the east and west of us doing the same thing.”
“Why? What’s going on?”
“Sorry, Ben, that’s classified.”
“Not good enough, Captain. At least tell me if my people are in danger. Do we need to prepare for something?”
Captain Brown thought for a few seconds and replied. “No, you and your people are safe. You have my word.”
“Okay, but this better not be some lame-ass attempt to overthrow us and take our territory.”
“Ben, please. You’re being paranoid. The UAE has no quarrel with you. You take good care of these people and that means we don’t have to. Relax. Anything else to report?”
“Another group of slavers showed up this morning.”
“You disposed of them?”
“Always do.”
“I’m sure you heard about the new directive.”
“I did.”
“Good. When you get time, I’m going to need you to file a report detailing your past contact with the slavers and get information on the liberated slaves you have here. I’m sure command will be very happy with you.”
Ben tried to act like he cared. “You boys need anything?”
“Well, we’re set up on supplies. The one thing we don’t have is booze.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Captain Brown shook Ben’s hand and returned to his men.
Jessica wasn’t buying it. “You’re not seriously going to just roll over and take this bullshit, are you? What about all that food just sitting in the warehouse?”
“Jessica, you should know me better than that. You and your team will leave ahead of schedule; I want you on the road before dawn.”
“What do you want us to do?”
“I want that warehouse, but more than that, I want to know why the hell the UAE has half the state on lockdown. Something’s going on, and I want to know what it is.
CHAPTER EIGHT
General Richard Dupree had debated for months whether or not to tell his fourteen-year-old son what had happened to his sister. Timothy Dupree had been operating under the assumption that Chrissy was staying with her mother. Quite frankly, Richard didn’t know his son well enough to determine if he could handle the truth. Richard had spent most of his children’s lives behind bars, and he was still getting adjusted to being a father. His son had suffered the trauma of a lifetime, thanks largely in part to him. When Richard was reunited with his son, he was overjoyed to learn that Timmy’s youthful mind had blocked out all memory of that fateful morning. The events that had unfolded in the church nursery—the pedophile who abused him and his father’s role in the pervert’s demise—had been tucked neatly away somewhere in the deepest recesses of Timmy’s ripening brain. With Richard back in his son’s life, however, those lurid mental footnotes were beginning to resurface.
Richard kept telling himself that the time would come when Timmy would be able to cope with the news about his sister. Weeks turned into months, but with the good news Hal had shared with him this morning, Richard new today was the day. Richard had just finished preparing lunch when his son returned from school.
“Dad! So glad you’re back! I missed you!” The strength of his son’s embrace brought tears of joy to Richard’s eyes.
“I missed you, too! I hope you were good for your grandparents.” Richard made a mental note to thank his children’s surrogate grandparents for their help.
“I was! Grandpa and I watched all the Star Wars movies. Uncle Howard says the Star Trek movies are much better. He says I’d like them and should watch them soon.”
“Star Wars is much better. Star Trek has some good movies, too; I think you’d like them.”
“Cool. Wanna watch ’em with me?”
“I’d love to, b
uddy, but uh… I…”
Timmy pouted. “You’re leaving again? But you just got here!”
“I’m not leaving till next week. We can knock out a few of them before then. Son, I need to have a talk with you. Sit down and eat your lunch.”
“Am I in trouble?”
“No, silly, should you be? We need to talk about your sister.”
“Is she finally coming home? When can I see Mom?”
“That’s just it; it’s time you knew the whole story. With everything that’s been going on since we got here, your grandfather and I didn’t think you could handle the truth. You’ve gotten a lot better in the past few months, so I think you’re ready to hear it.”
“Know what? What’s going on?”
“The truth is, I don’t know where your sister is.”
“What happened?”
“Timmy, your sister was never with your mother. I’m not sure where they are.”
“I don’t understand.”
“We’ve never talked about your mother’s boyfriend. What do you think about him?”
“Chad could be nice sometime, but mostly he was mean…to me and Mom.”
“I saw your mom right before I came here. She wasn’t doing well. Did you know your mother had problems with drugs?”
“Yeah, Dad. Kinda hard not to notice. Is she okay?”
“I honestly don’t know, son. After we settled in here, I went back to get her and she wasn’t there. No telling what happened to her.”
“What about Chrissy? When is she coming back? Somebody must be taking care of her.”
“Timmy, the family Chrissy left with…well, they weren’t very nice people.”
Richard’s son began to cry.
“Chad was a horrible person. He sold your sister to them.”
Richard watched, helpless, as the dreadful reality registered on his son’s face.
“I’ve been trying my best to find her. It’s really hard to find out anything with the situation like it is now. The Pulse Zone is getting worse and worse every day. The UAE might not be able to keep it together much longer. I think we have a real shot at finding her. Hal gave me some good news this morning. I don’t think it will be long now and…”
“I hate you! This is all your fault! Why haven’t you been looking for her?” Timmy pushed his father aside as he ran from their quarters. Richard was hurt by his response but it could have been much worse. The boy was angry, which meant he was dealing with the news in his own way.
“Hal?”
Beck Castle’s resident A.I. responded. “Yes, sir. How can I help?”
“I’m sure my son is headed to Morris’s quarters. If he doesn’t get there, please tell me.”
“Of course, sir. I could discern from your conversation that you wanted privacy. Now that your son has departed, I have some reports from the UAE for you to review.”
“Anything of relevance?”
“Yes, sir, there is. One of the reports concerns a group of liberated slaves in Florida. There is a child there by the name of Christina. No last name given, no images available.”
“Do we have any way of contacting them?”
“Not by traditional means, sir. The slaves were liberated by a community taking up residence at Walt Disney World under the leadership of a man named Benjamin Black. The community is quite impressive, based on the report, but they have no means of long-term communication.”
“This is the best lead we’ve had in over a year. If I can’t figure out a way to contact this Benjamin Black, I’m going to Florida.”
“Very good, sir. What about the invasion of California? Will it proceed on schedule?”
“I don’t know, Hal. If we can’t get that cruise ship in Seattle, it might be awhile. I’m going to discuss this with Max.”
“I understand, sir.”
* * *
“Why is this even a question, Richard?”
“Max, I really don’t want to go on a wild goose chase. This isn’t like the old days. I can’t just hop on a plane and fly to Orlando. The UAE restricts travel, and they know I’m the commanding general of the PSA; I’m sure they’d love a chance to torture me for information. It could take me months to get to Orlando.”
“I take it your stealth jet won’t take you that far?”
“The stealth jet has a range of about a thousand miles. It’s three and a half thousand roundtrip to Orlando.”
“Why can’t you just refuel?”
“Howard won’t allow any of the stealth jets to land outside the PSA.”
Max was amused. “If Howard deems it so, then your pilot, Hal, must certainly agree.”
“Exactly.”
Max grunted as he reached for his pill bottle. When he married Elizabeth, he promised to never take Vicodin or any other narcotic again. He’d been taking Tramadol to manage his pain. Healthcare in the PSA put the UAE’s system to shame. “Look, Richard, I know you’ve been planning this invasion for quite some time, but I’m sure you can delegate your plans to your second-in-command. All of us will understand if the rescue of your daughter takes priority.”
“It’s a huge risk; I’d like some definitive proof that it’s her. A girl named Christina could be anyone. I don’t even have an approximate age on this girl in Orlando.”
“Richard, you’re forgetting one very important resource.”
“What?”
“We do have a mole inside Sterling’s camp.”
“Stacy Reid! How could I forget?”
* * *
Stacy Reid was sitting at her desk trying not to think about her former boss, President Malcolm Powers. Today was Malcolm’s birthday. She doubted she’d be able to stop reminiscing about past celebrations they’d shared and what she might have done today had he still been alive. She missed him terribly.
Stacy wondered how much longer she could keep this up before she lost her mind. She was terrified of Simon Sterling and what he might do to her if he discovered she was a spy. The only way she could ease her troubled mind was to keep telling herself that the UAE was crumbling from within and she was, in large part, instrumental in its welcomed demise. She was in constant contact with Howard and fed him valuable intelligence. Howard had programmed Hal to connect with his sibling computer, now under President Sterling’s watchful eye. It enabled Howard to watch Simon’s every move, listen to all phone calls, and read all his digital communication. Howard Beck was the President of the Pacific States of America and didn’t have time to watch his nemesis every minute of the day, counting on Stacy to alert him whenever Sterling was up to something.
Stacy called up the holographic display on her desk and opened a window that showed the hallway leading to her office. The second window connected to the command center in Beck Castle. The face of Howard Beck stared back at her.
“Mr. President.”
“Good morning, Stacy. How are things in my home?”
“Everything’s fine.”
“How’s my wife’s cat?”
“Nala is fine. Sterling hates the animal, but he leaves her alone. He knows I adopted her as my own so he tolerates her.”
“Good. Anything to report?”
“Yes, something very big.”
“Do tell, please.”
“I’m sure you’ve heard the news of Regional Governor Weygandt’s unfortunate accident?”
Howard rolled his eyes. “And so soon after his declaration against the slavers. I’m sure his untimely demise had nothing to do with that.”
“Everyone knows Sterling had him killed, but no one dares breathe a word. You’ll be interested to know that Sterling and all the regional governors will be attending his funeral in Miami. Sterling has restricted all travel south of Orlando for a week. Miami and the surrounding areas are on full lockdown.”
“A wise precaution. The entire leadership of the UAE will be gathered in one place. A very tempting target, to be sure.”
“I thought you might see it that way. I’ll send you the detail
s.”
“When’s the funeral?”
“A week from today.”
“I just might have to send my condolences.”
“It’ll be rough; security will be iron-clad.”
“I’ll see what I can do. On another topic, I have a request for you.”
“Anything.”
“General Dupree has some credible evidence regarding the location of his daughter, Christina. A man by the name of Benjamin Black runs a community at Disney World. Recently, they murdered a group of slavers and liberated the slaves. The report mentions a girl named Christina, but that’s all it has. No last name, age, or image.”
“I’m on it. I’ll doctor some orders from Sterling requesting detailed identification of all liberated slaves.”
“Thank you, Stacy. Richard extends his gratitude as well. What can you tell me about Benjamin Black?”
“He’s a force to contend with. There are men like him all over The Pulse Zone. They set up large communities and provide protection, food, shelter, everything. I have to go, Howard. I’ll get the funeral details to you soon.”
“I’ll talk to you later.” Howard terminated the link. His brilliant mind sped into high gear, exploring a number of scenarios that all closed with the same grand finale: the deaths of Simon Sterling and his miserable lackeys.
“An interesting turn of events, wouldn’t you say, sir?”
“Hal, we have a week to figure out how to take them out. We could end this struggle and begin taking back the country in less than a day.”
“I will endeavor to formulate a suitable plan of attack, sir.”
“I know you will, Old Man.”
“Sir, General Dupree is waiting outside.”
“Send him in, please.”
“What’d she say?” Richard asked as he strolled into the command center.
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