by Tony Butler
The front passenger door opened and a woman climbed out and walked towards him. She was smiling as she came and stood in front of him.
“Hello, Adam,” she said.
God, she was beautiful! He reached out and touched the long soft hair and ran his fingers lightly over the smooth skin of her cheek. “It’s been a long time, Jay,” he replied and heard the tremor in his voice.
“I dreamt of you when you were trapped in the ice. You’ve changed, you look older now.” Her eyes met his and then they were in each other’s arms, hugging, laughing and crying at the same time. It was as though he’d come home at last and he sensed that she felt the same. Together, they were whole.
“Adam?” Rebecca looked at him and he could see the wonder in her eyes as she took in the change of his appearance. Scott, too, was looking at him differently and Adam realised that he was jealous. Scott desired Jay for himself.
“Scott!” Jay eased between them and took Scott’s hands in hers, smiling up at him. “You are a kind, wonderful man and I love you. I always will and, at one time just before Mary was abducted, I honestly thought that there could be something more between us. I fancied you, I really did. But I’ve changed now – I’ve become, and Adam can be the only one I could ever give myself to completely, body and soul. Be pleased for me, Scott. Please, be happy for me!”
Adam saw the tears glistening in her eyes and fought back his own as Scott hugged her to him, gently kissing her forehead. Then, raising his head, his eyes met Adam’s and he smiled ruefully.
“Welcome to the family, Adam,” he said.
“What’s that?” Rebecca pointed to the horizon in front of them, and they saw the billowing redness illuminating the distant trees.
“Fire,” Scott said. “That’s a fire and it’s only about five miles away…” his voice trailed off.
“The Motel! The motel where Mary’s hiding should be about there!”
“How do you know that?” Adam spoke sharply, a sudden fear entering his mind.
“Mary has a bug hidden somewhere in her clothes and there’s a tracer unit in this car that we got away in,” Jay said.
“Show me!” Adam hoped desperately that he was wrong as they hurried back to the limousine and Rebecca switched on the tracking screen.
“The green dot here is us and look – the other car is at the motel!” She broke off. It was Scott who asked in a shocked voice, “What’s happened to the red dot, Mary’s bug? It doesn’t seem to be working now.”
Adam reached over and his fingers flew over the computer keys. Several other green dots appeared on the screen, all of them heading towards their car. “They’re using the tracer in this car and know exactly where we are! They’re only about ten or fifteen minutes away from us. We’ll leave this car here and use Scott’s. It’s parked down here!” He pointed down the road. “We’d better hurry because they’ll have road blocks in place by now.”
“What about Mary?” Jay asked as they hurried towards the Chevrolet.
“I don’t know,” Adam said quietly. “But once you and the others are safe, I’ll go and find out.”
“It’s too dangerous!” Rebecca said. “They’ll be looking for us and they’ll be checking out everyone who goes near that place.”
“She’s right,” Scott said. “They’ll be widening the search area. You three get the hell out of here. I’ll go.”
“No way am I letting you go there on your own,” Jay said. “Look, it would make sense to let me or Adam go. With our special abilities at least we’d have a chance.”
“It would make more sense to see if there’s anything on the news. There’s a radio in Scott’s car,”
Adam said.
They reached Scott’s car and Adam switched on the radio.
“…spokesman for the FBI has confirmed that two agents have been killed in a shoot out at the Deer Lodge Motel, and that a female terrorist has also died. However, an eye witness, forty-three- year-old Marvin Helsinki, gave a different version of events to our reporter, Kenneth Jerome, shortly before he was taken to the debriefing centre. What did he tell you, Kenneth?”
“Well, according to Marvin, who was staying in a cabin opposite, it was occupied by the women who had booked in as Mister and Missus Green. Shortly before eleven pm tonight he was outside having a cigarette when the FBI agent’s car, with no lights and the engine turned off, rolled to a stop a short distance away from the Green’s cabin. He states that someone climbed out of the car and, without any warning, fired an incendiary grenade through the cabin window. The cabin more or less exploded in a ball of flame and he said that there was no way anyone inside the cabin could have survived. Then one of the women appeared from the direction of the car park and used a shotgun to kill both the agents, before taking off in her car…”
Scott, looking very pale, switched off the radio. “They killed Mary,” he said. Adam started the car and headed up into the hills. He wanted to tell them how sorry he was about Mary but was loathe to disturb them as they sat immersed in their own thoughts. In the rearview mirror, he saw that both Jay and Rebecca were crying openly and tears trickled down their faces. They clung comfortingly to Scott, who sat erect white faced and silent, his huge fists clenched in rage.
* * * *
“They’re heading towards the Bitterfoot Forests. We have them monitored by satellite. We’ve got troops armed with both ceramic and the latest plastic weaponry closing in from the West, here.”
Russell pointed to the map and all the grim looking military men in the command centre nodded in approval. “They can’t travel East because of the mountains and the lakes block the Southern route. We’ll be following the same route that they took. Gentlemen, we have them trapped. Now, remember I want them alive, especially the male freak. Now, let’s go and round them up!”
Russell hid the emotion he was feeling as he walked to the awaiting helicopter. Janine was alive!
She was the mystery woman who’d helped the freak and the dead Slymond girl to escape, killed Blake and the other agent. He’d discovered that only an hour ago. She’d emptied their account in Zurich. It had to be her because only the two of them knew the six-figure number. Fortunately, she didn’t know about his other account in the Cayman Islands, not that it mattered now. If they could get hold of that weapon, it would mean riches beyond words and more power than any other man on earth. Janine was alive and gunning for him. Well, let her come. He’d be waiting for her, and this time he would kill her himself.
“They’re parked up here!” The State Trooper pointed to a spot on the electronic map about a mile away. “We’ve got them surrounded with troops here, here and here.”
Russell nodded approvingly. The freaks and the others were trapped with their backs to the lake and forests surrounding them. All roads leading away from the lake had been blocked. There was no way out that he could see, except across the lake, and he’d anticipated that.
“Are the nets in place?” he asked.
“Yes, sir, and we have six eight-man teams in inflatables on our side of the nets. If anything bigger than a fish hits the nets, we’ll know about it.”
“What are they doing now?” Russell asked. It shouldn’t have been this easy, he thought.
“They’re sitting in the car. They tried to use the telephone, but we’re blocking the transmissions. As I said, sir, they’re trapped.” He gave a boyish grin that belied his fifty-three-years. “We’re ready to launch the stun grenades and gas whenever you give the order.”
Russell looked at his watch. It was 4.10am. “Attack at oh-four-fifteen hours,” he said.
“Remember, I want the dark haired man and woman alive. You can take out the other two and get rid of their bodies in the lake.”
Russell was in position exactly five hundred yards from the car. He checked the thermal images sitting in the car. Yes, they were still there. He scanned the trees each side of the vehicle and grunted in satisfaction as he saw the images of troops snaking silently on their st
omachs into position. He sensed a disturbance in the air and the first stun grenade landed a yard from the car. He shielded his eyes from the glare as it exploded and was followed by five more. He checked his gas mask and, even as he gained his feet, there were more explosions, quieter than the first barrage and he could see the white mist of the gas rising into the air.
“Let’s go.” He gave the order and led the men cautiously forward. There wasn’t any rush and he wasn’t about to take any chances with the freaks. Dark shapes moved along either side of him. The men were tense and had their unfamiliar ceramic pistols held at the ready. In this state, they dangerous
and liable to shoot anything that moved. The car was cloaked in the mist as they approached it and Russell, who was still expecting the freaks to put up some kind of fight, stopped ten feet away from it and nodded.
“Take a look but be careful,” he said.
A sergeant crept towards the car, keeping low, and slowly, very slowly, raised himself up to peer inside through a side window. “It’s empty,” he said in surprise. Cursing, Russell hurried forward and then stopped as he saw the sergeant shrug and reach towards the driver’s door. “No!” His warning came too late and the soldier pulled open the car door.
* * * *
Adam parked in a clearing by the edge of the lake and checked his watch. “It’s two am. They’ll be coming for us soon, so we have a couple of hours at the most.” He pulled the hood release lever and climbed out of the car. Scott and the others followed him around to the front as Adam removed the tool kit.
“Right, we can’t out run them in this. Scott, you and Jay remove the rear light fittings and Rebecca and I will take the head-lamps. This is what we’re going to do…”
It took about twenty minutes then Adam surveyed their handiwork and grinned. “Not bad, now let’s see if it works.” He flicked on the light switch and they could see glimmers of light coming from the bulbs that now sat on the front and rear seats of the car wrapped in some old clothes that Scott kept in the boot.
“These should fool their image intensifiers,” Adam said. “Now, let’s give them a little surprise!”
He worked quickly and, when he’d finished, Rebecca laughed. “That’ll surprise them alright.”
Adam led them into the trees, carrying the thermal blanket rolled up under his arm and was pleased when, after about ten minutes, Jay took the lead. Her night vision seemed to be as good as his own. They trekked uphill through the trees and, although it was hard on Scott and Rebecca, they never complained. Their faces were set in grim determination.
Adam called a halt. “Right, take a break. It’s all downhill from here and we’re about three or four miles from the car.”
“But they’ll be coming after us. Shouldn’t we keep moving?” Scott asked.
“I’ll be getting us some more transport and Jay will be taking you down towards the road. I’ll pick you up down there.” Adam passed the thermal blanket to Jay.
“We won’t need that,” Scott said. “It’s not even cold.”
“No, but we can use it as a shield against overhead the thermal image surveillance equipment,”
Jay said. “We can use it as a canopy and sit underneath it.”
“I’m going with you, Adam!” Scott said.
Adam looked at the set of Scott’s jaw and knew that it would be pointless, as well as waste precious time, to attempt to talk him out of it. “Good, I could use a little help,” he said. “Jay, look after Rebecca and we’ll pick you up on the road down there.”
They stared at each other for a few seconds and then embraced, patting each other on the back before breaking apart. With a final glance in their direction, Jay turned and led Rebecca down through the trees in the direction of the road.
Adam looked at his watch. It was 3.30am. They would have to move fast. “They’re setting up an HQ over there,” he said, pointing slightly to their right. “I can hear their trucks.”
“What’s the plan? Ambush and take one of the trucks?” Scott asked.
“No, I thought that we’d disable all the trucks and their HQ and steal the helicopter that’s coming in from over there.”
“I can’t hear…oh yes, I think I can now but, Adam, we can’t take on the entire army.”
“We won’t have to – all the troops will be heading towards your car. There will only be a dozen men at the HQ.”
“Only a dozen. Oh, well, that’s alright then. I only hope you know what you’re doing.”
Adam winked before turning and heading into the trees. He tried not to leave Scott behind, but they were running out of time.
It took them twenty-five minutes to reach the clearing where the large canvas military HQ had been set up. They could see a faint glow from the light’s inside it, powered by a portable generator that gave a barely audible hum.
Someone strode towards the tent and Adam recognised Russell, the man who’d killed Eve and Ben. He growled low in his throat.
“Wait here!” He loped silently over, pressed his ear to the canvas wall and listened to the killer outlining his plan of attack. He had to fight the overwhelming rage that erupted inside him, the urge to burst into the tent and rip out Russell’s throat. There would be a day of reckoning, Adam knew that, but not now. He had to look after the others. Russell left the tent and, with a final look at his enemy’s back, he rejoined Scott.
“Come with me!” he whispered and led Scott in the direction from which Russell had come, smiling as he saw the helicopter. “We move when they attack the car,” he said. “Make for the helicopter.”
“Can you fly it?” Scott asked.
“I’ve never tried.” Adam grinned. “But there’s always a first time.”
Scott groaned.
At precisely 4.15am they heard the first explosions and saw the flashes of light, but Adam had already reached the helicopter and wrenched open it’s door. He’d started the engine and strapped himself in by the time Scott climbed in the other side.
“Hold on,” he warned and opened the throttle, lifting the machine off the ground. For a few seconds he thought he was going to lose control but then he steadied it and the helicopter rose up twenty feet. Scott grinned at him and gave him the thumbs up.
Adam tapped his helmet and Scott nodded and put on the spare. Adam passed him the oxygenating gun. “Don’t press the trigger in here, Scott!” Adam warned. “Otherwise this thing will dissolve in mid-air!”
Scott looked at the drill and then back at Adam. “Are you serious?”
“Open your window and don’t bother taking aim. Just sweep it in an arc over that lot down there.”
Shrugging, Scott slid open his window and did as he’d been told. Adam swung the helicopter so that it encircled the HQ compound for three circuits. He saw the radio masts crumple and the trucks collapsing. Satisfied, he broke off the attack. “Okay, let’s get out of here,” he said. Scott slid his window shut and looked at Adam in awe. “I don’t believe we just did that!” he said. “What is this thing?” He looked at the drill and shook his head in amazement.
“I’ll tell you about it later. Right now, I want to pick up Jay and Rebecca. We need to find a safe place to hide.”
Fifteen minutes later they flew low over the mountains then swept down to skim the trees. Adam wasn’t about to get picked up by radar.
Rebecca was talking urgently to the British Prime Minister using the radio phone and when she hung up, she frowned. “Adam, what happened at the Williams’ Ranch? According to the Prime Minister, there have been reports of aliens disintegrating metal?”
Scott laughed. “That was Adam alright, and this gun of his is amazing – you’d never believe what it can do.”
“Is he going to help us?” Jay asked, quietly.
“He’s contacting Craige Rheinheart, the President, and advised us to head for the British Embassy.”
“That’s too risky. They’ll be watching the embassies,” Adam said. “No, for the time being, we’ll hide out somewhere i
n the Mountains and decide what we’re going to do.”
* * * *
“The acting President of the United States of America, Henry Matheson, led the tributes to his predecessor, Craige Rheinheart, who was killed in an aircraft accident last night. Eyewitnesses said that the jet carrying the former President exploded on take-off. Acting President Matheson is due to make a statement of National importance within the next few minutes. There has been speculation that the doomed aircraft was destroyed by the same kind of death ray that it’s claimed destroyed military
equipment in Montana. Although, at the time, this was dismissed as pure fantasy by the military. We’re switching now to the Whitehouse, where Henry Matheson is about to address the Nation.”
Rebecca turned up the volume on the radio and looked at Adam and the others. “They killed him!” she said.
“My fellow Americans, I have to inform you that our Nation has been dealt a severe blow with the murder of President Rheinheart. I use the word murder carefully because that is what it was. Just a few weeks ago, we discovered that a previously unknown group of terrorists, trained in Great Britain, had entered The United States posing as tourists. Upon arrival, we now know that they teamed up with another cell based in New Hudson. These members, too, were of British origin.
“This group is armed and extremely dangerous. They have been responsible for at least five deaths including the President’s. However, three of our finest FBI agents gave their lives but succeeded in destroying one of the terrorists. Other agents are searching for the four surviving gang members at this time. This group is operating under the direct orders of the British Government and are controlled by the Prime Minister himself!
“We have broken off diplomatic relations with Great Britain and demanded the immediate arrest of the British Prime Minister, Roger Thompson, for terrorist activities. Unless he is brought to the United States to stand trial within seven days, we will have no alternative but to consider ourselves to be at war with Great Britain.”
“He’s mad!” Rebecca said. “He’s stark raving mad!”