CHAPTER 5
The adventure at the grocery store rattled their nerves. J.J. turned on the television to see if the Thompson murder made the evening news. Lila poured herself a stiff drink and J.J. guzzled down the last of his cold beers in the refrigerator.
Nearby, Sophie played with colored paper and glitter crayons. She loved the way the pink ones sparkled in the light. The crayons were a gift from J.J.’s sister Kate to help pass the time during recuperation. Sophie drew mermaids, unicorns and princesses. There were no pictures of billy goats.
J.J. scanned the television channels until he found the National News Network.
The attractive woman on the television was adjusting her auburn hair. She was unaware that the camera was recording her every move. When she realized the camera was on, she feigned a smile and began her report. “This is Jennifer Brown reporting from Sanderell Beach. Earlier today, this popular beach was shut down indefinitely due to the sightings of hundreds of whales roaming the coast of Sanderell. Local police wouldn’t comment on the situation other than to say that residents were not in immediate danger. However, the beach does remain closed. Let’s show you the footage taken earlier today by our National News Network Cameras.”
“Look!” shouted Sophie. “There’s mommy!”
“Hey, babe, you are the best looking professor on the beach,” boasted J.J.
“Oh, great,” muttered Lila in her sarcastic tone, “I’m as white as a ghost. Look at my arms!”
“The sun doesn’t shine inside a laboratory,” said J.J.
The television showed exactly what the Jenkins’ had seen in person. Then the tape switched to the video shot by the network helicopter crew.
The reporter continued speaking while viewers watched the tape roll. The helicopter’s blades in the background gave his voice a staccato sound. “What we’re watching is from high atop the drama on the seas. This reporter has never witnessed anything like this. We’re going to replay the last few seconds in slow motion for you.”
What the Jenkins clan and millions of other people saw was an overhead shot of hundreds of blue whales. They appeared to be pushing containers towards the shore with the skin directly above their baleen plates.
The telephone rang and Lila grabbed it right away. “Hi, Dr. Massey, it’s me. Yeah, I’m watching it. No, I don’t think they’re pushing the barrels. That doesn’t make any sense. Don’t believe everything you see. I’m sure there’s an explanation for how it looks. I understand, I’ll be there right away. Bye.” Lila hung up and turned to J.J. “That was Carlin. The staff is gathering right away. I told him I’d be there. I think we’re in for a long night.”
“Mommy, don’t go,” cried Sophie.
“Baby, it’ll be fine. Daddy has you all to himself and he’ll stay in your room until you fall asleep.”
“You go ahead and save the whales. I’m taking Sophie to her room and I’m going to tell her the best bedtime story ever.”
“Promise me. The best ever,” agreed Sophie.
“Ever,” said J.J.
Reporter Jennifer Brown continued her story. “Scientists speculate that the whales have altered their usual migration patterns due to the unusual weather in this region. I spoke earlier today with Dr. Carlin Massey and I asked him one question.
“Dr. Massey, could this change in migration patterns help prove that the warming of the planet may be factual and not the ranting of those aligned with the ‘Save the Planet’ movement?”
“I don’t think it’s fair to suggest that the unusual actions by these whales constitute a condemnation of our society or how we’ve dealt with the rising global temperatures. We shouldn’t rush to judgment. When we have a better grasp of the situation, I’m sure you’ll be the first to report it,” said Dr. Massey.
The view returned to a live shot and she continued her report.
“Off camera, I pressed Dr. Massey on the crisis. All he told me was the image of these containers would be reviewed by many parties using the footage provided by our network and that he anticipated enhanced satellite imaging technology would be able to offer a better answer in the coming days. This is Jennifer Brown reporting live from Sanderell Beach.”
CANAMITH COMMUNICATION DEPARTMENT
Update #77
Death at sea
“…Three whaling ships capsized today in the choppy waters of the ocean. The ships disappeared off the radar early this morning.
“The captain of one of the lost ships, The Webster, noted in his final ship entry that large whales surprised the crew by hitting the ship from underneath. The hulls of the ships were breached and began taking on water. The damage could not be contained and the ships were lost, taking at least two hundred men down to their watery grave…”
CHAPTER 6
At 8:00 PM, Lila rushed into the college faculty parking lot and hurried by the security guard stationed by the iron gates of the parking area.
“Hey, Professor Jenkins, slow down!” shouted the guard.
Lila ignored him. Her mind was racing with ideas.
The security guard at the front of the building recognized Lila and opened the big glass doors as she was fishing for her faculty pass. She hated that picture. It was taken a few hours after oral surgery and the right side of her mouth was swollen to twice its usual size. Massey had suggested that she re-take the picture to avoid any future security problems. It wouldn’t be a problem as long as Whittaker and Finch, two long-time guards of the main science building, remained at their jobs. The identical twin guards had been employees of the college for the last twenty years.
Finch was on duty tonight. Lila hardly acknowledged him as she hurried past the startled guard on this night, forgetting to say her customary greeting, “Hi, Finch Bear.” That was the nickname she gave him because he reminded her of a bear. His thick beard covered more of his face than any other person she had ever met, except for his twin brother. His thick build was draped in the dark brown school security coat. The matching brown pants didn’t provide much contrast, hence the bear reference. The majority of people couldn’t tell them apart. Lila found that Finch smiled easily and her cheerful greeting was designed to determine which twin was working, not an indication of how happy she was to enter the parking lot.
Lila rode the elevator to the fourth floor. A few steps to the left and she entered lab room three, her own personal hideaway and the room she called home when she wasn’t with her family. She spent countless hours in this room that she knew each piece of chipped paint, crooked nail, worn seat covers and the precise location of her years of research. Each year of study was safely stashed away in an ever-growing row of filing cabinets stuffed to the brim with science papers and computer discs.
As a professor she taught several classes each week. “All Things Explainable” was her favorite motto. She stamped “A.T.E.” on her students’ papers that she deemed worthy of such exemplary work. Lila’s version of an A+.
Lila switched on the computer that connected her to the school’s main database. Moments later, Aldo Gorrell entered the room. Sweat poured down his neck.
“Good, you’re here,” he puffed. “I was beginning to think you weren’t coming.”
“Typical graduate assistant, giving me grief and the night is young. Won’t Dr. Massey teasing you all day be enough to satisfy your bruised and battered ego? You would not believe the day I’ve had today. First the beach, and then we went to the grocery store and we saw Willie Thompson shot. I’ve never been that scared in my life, and oh, poor Sophie, she was inconsolable when we reached home. I think Willie’s dead. Then I saw the television report. It’s gonna be a long night. I see you brought coffee. Thanks,” said Lila.
“You saw a man get shot? Tell me what happened.”
“It doesn’t matter now. It’s too horrible to discuss. I’m trying to put it out of my mind. Did Dr. Massey tell you anything?
“Nothing much, I think I have more valuable information than he does.”
“W
hat do you mean?” replied Lila.
Aldo combed his thin multi-colored hair with his fingers. His shirt hung outside his jeans. That was his usual attire. The tee shirt had the name of a rock band on it.
“Who is Train Wreck?” asked Lila.
Aldo smiled, pointing down at the image of five guys on his shirt. “These guys are great. You’d love them. Three guys that play guitar and an unbelievable drummer. The keyboard player is blind. They have a recent hit. It’s called ‘You Rev my Engine all Night’.”
“Nope, can’t say I know that one.” Lila tastes in music were stuck with the mellow twelve string guitar sounds created years ago and she didn’t care for modern music.
Lila gulped down her coffee. The black steaming hot liquid felt soothing going down her throat. She sat back in the swivel recliner that her J.J. bought her last year for their anniversary. Aldo scooted his chair to within a foot of hers.
Lila’s left eyebrow rose half an inch as she waited. “I’m listening.”
“Okay. Here goes.”
Aldo flipped open his computer and opened the file labeled “World Incident Report.” He began to read aloud.
“Item one,” said Aldo. “’Over a thousand coal miners were killed today when a fire burned out of control in one of the world’s largest mineshafts. Local firefighters had no chance of extinguishing the blaze. It is the worst single-event tragedy in the long history of mining. Mine officials were meeting to determine how the fire started. One local councilman said that the fire started when an oxygen line exploded at the mine entrance.’” Aldo interrupted himself, “I didn’t even know that many people could fit in a mine shaft.” He didn’t wait for a reply. He pressed on.
“’Local Authorities were surprised by reports that local fisherman said two-thirds of their boats returned back to the dock empty. Seventy- two of the seventy-nine registered fishing boats stated that even with optimum conditions, their boats returned with less than two percent of their customary catch. The remaining seven boats claimed to have had moderate success. The captain of the vessel Taz’s Wonder said in an earlier report, and I quote, ‘I’ve been fishing the waters of this sea my whole life, and I’ve never seen such a thing.’’
“You’re not impressed. There’s more. ‘The Federal Department of Transportation reported that six tanker trucks careened off the road and exploded. The ensuing colossal inferno killed four of the drivers immediately. Two others were rushed to local hospitals and remain in critical condition. Three bystanders were also killed in the explosion. Eyewitnesses of two of the crashes said that the drivers of the trucks were waving their arms around the cabin in a frantic motion. No other details are available at this time.’”
Aldo continued. “’Wire reports today say that animals attacked 500 people in the nation’s capital. Domesticated animals were listed as the culprit in most of the attacks. Unsubstantiated reports said that horses, raccoons, and cats were mentioned as the aggressors too.’
“’Police dismissed the reports, saying that in a large city that falls within the normal range. Speaking under the promise of anonymity, one police spokesman did admit that 500 is indeed a large number of reported incidents, but views the day as a ‘statistical abnormality’.’ Professor Jenkins, 500 is a big number. I bet you dogs were biting people. Listen to this one…
“’Thousands of sheep have died from an unknown source. The herd was in perfect health one week ago, but a large number of them died in the last six days. The Center for Disease Control Administration has dispatched a team to review the disaster. It is too early to ascertain what happened. The director of the Sheep Bureau has not ruled out foul play. Scientists are heading to the region to begin their internal investigation into the matter.’ Do sheep really need a director?” asked Aldo.
Lila stared at the ceiling. She saw a new spot on the ceiling tile that showed water damage from the room one floor overhead. It was Professor Whitcomb’s classroom. He was continuously doing outlandish things with water in his freshman “Hydration” class. Her attention went back to Aldo.
“Those poor dead miners. That’s awful news, Aldo.”
Standing in the doorway, Dr. Massey interjected his own opinion. “Nicely done, my boy. You’ve discovered the news wire.” He continued as he inched closer to the duo, carrying a large briefcase. “In here, a spot typically reserved for budget information, classroom assignments, and the rest of the humdrum events that go on at this institute of higher learning, I’ve had material sent to us from the Capitol. There’s a briefing in the conference room. This is hush-hush stuff, no phone calls, leaks to friends, etcetera… Mr. Gorrell, your intentions are noble, however, if you think that these sorts of things don’t go on all over the world then you have more to learn than I imagined when I hired you. By the way, I hired you with the full blessing of the lady sitting next to you. Remember, ten minutes… don’t be late!”
Dr. Massey turned and left the two as silently as he entered.
“What a jerk!” said Aldo.
Lila didn’t like his tone. “Aldo!”
“I’m sorry, Professor Jenkins, gimme a break! All he does is ride my ass each time I see him. Just once it would be cool if he said to me ‘good job, kid’, or ‘keep up the outstanding work.’”
“Aldo, I’m waiting for that day myself. You picked the wrong college if you think that day is coming,” said Lila.
Eight minutes later, Lila and Aldo strolled into the conference room. They grabbed seats at the end of the cherry wood table. The windows in the room started at the floor and continued to the ceiling. This created an abundance of natural light during the day. The university window washer wasn’t a big fan of the design. The room was used for weekly staff meetings. Five stale donuts remained in the cardboard box from yesterday’s meeting. Smears of raspberry jelly clung to the opening of the napkin dispenser.
Dr. Massey consumed his lunch in this room when he could. He scarfed down his food in front of his computer on most days. Dr. Carlin Massey was not a popular man among his peers. He knew one way to run a department, and that was to enforce a sense of strict discipline with a little bit of humor tossed in. Dry humor.
He appreciated Aldo Gorrell’s skills. He respected his knowledge and long hours of work for little pay but didn’t think Gorrell was mature enough to handle the position of Head Research Assistant. The clothes, that fuzzy stuff growing on his chin and the humor were the reasons Massey wasn’t convinced Aldo would grow into a full- time faculty position with the University. Lila had persuaded him to give the kid a try.
Everybody knew Massey’s achievements in the scientific community. Anyone interested in animal behavior had several volumes of Massey’s books on their shelf. His books were frequently used as the definitive source for all levels of students ranging from age seven, Animals and Me, to the College Freshmen bible, Massey’s World of Animal Behavior, to the casual fan, Animals: An A to Z Compendium.
Dr. Massey cleared his throat. The men and women in the room understood that meant that the boss was ready to begin. Among those attending the meeting on this night were Lila and Aldo; Dr. Emily Goldman, the Chief of Staff at the Center for Treatment of Diseases; and Dr. Roberto Morales, noted bestselling author. His fields of interest included morphology and cytology. He had left the college two years ago on sabbatical that sent him crisscrossing the country promoting world health issues and hawking his best- selling books at retail locations close to the schools. He could be found occasionally sharing herbal tea with Lila in the Student Union Center. It maddened the university staff that nobody knew where Dr. Morales was or what he was doing. If there was a problem, he would invariably show up to assist Lila and Dr. Goldman, and when the crisis was solved, he disappeared as quickly and quietly as he had arrived.
Jenkins, Goldman, and Morales were known as the “ABC” gang. “A” represented Lila Jenkins’ knowledge of the animal kingdom; “B”, a slight twist on Goldman’s status for knowing “Bugs”, as in germs; and Morales earned t
he “C” for the study of cells. Together, the “ABC” gang had solved many national problems during the last five years.
Dr. Massey sat at one end of the table, a tall glass of ice-cold water next to his ever-present yellow notepad and his ten-cent pen. Dr. Massey began. “At 1300 today, a large pod of whales was seen close to Sanderell Beach. I was summoned by the local authorities to review the incident and provide any expertise to those in charge. I bumped into Professor Jenkins at the beach. Imagine her nerve, trying to enjoy time with her family.”
Nobody was in the mood for laughter.
Dr. Massey continued. “At 1400, helicopter pilots flying over the whales captured these digital images. Initial reviews were inconclusive. The Government Satellite Imaging System realigned their coordinates to the beach. Their results were astonishing.
“As we sit here tonight, teams of hazardous materials handlers are sifting for clues on the beach. It remains off limits to all citizens. Authorized military personal are maintaining their surveillance of the area. They believe the satellite photos prove that the whales are pushing large containers towards the shore. I’m an expert in many fields, but I don’t claim to understand this cetacean behavior.” That comment drew a small chuckle. “These barrels, or containers, have been resting in the same spot all day.
“Within the last thirty minutes, I’ve conversed with the governor, who has speculated, and I emphasize, speculated that these barrels may be from the Western Border Nuclear Power Plant located 200 miles away. Early indications are that these barrels were scheduled to be stored in the Mountain Storage Facility twelve years ago. It’s not clear what the barrels contain. Maximum efforts are underway to determine the precise material we’re dealing with.”
Escape to Canamith Page 3