Moon Hoax (Hoax Trilogy Book 1)

by Paul Gillebaard

  Peter called Gavin soon after leaving the hospital to inform him he would accept the mission in his dad’s honor. Gavin offered his condolences and said he was both pleased and saddened by Peter’s acceptance. Though Gavin never met Tom, he knew of his accomplishments and always spoke highly of him around Peter. The president had given the mission the go. Gavin said he had mixed feelings about Peter accepting the assignment, especially so soon after his father’s death. Peter assured him it would not have any impact on his success in accomplishing the mission. In fact, it motivated him even more. Understanding this, Gavin still hated losing one of his best agents. He asked if Peter wanted another agent to accompany him, stating he had a few in mind. Peter had already considered Gavin’s offer prior to the call and knowing the specifics of the mission had decided there was just as good a chance of success going alone as with another agent, so he declined.

  Allen Ferguson of SpaceQuest was expecting him to report at their training facility in Los Angeles the day after his father’s funeral. A mockup Soyuz to train in, along with all the other needed equipment for the mission was on its way. The goal was to launch from Cape Canaveral in thirty days, a very ambitious goal. Gavin informed him from this point on he should no longer communicate with him or the CIA, and wished the best of luck. Peter understood and followed up with his resignation letter emailed directly to the director’s office. He was now on his own, to pull off a miracle mission to the moon, an assignment to restore America’s dignity and his father’s good name. But first he had to lay his father to rest.

  As Peter and his mom were putting her favorite tablecloth on the dining room table, his mom blurted, “Peter, I forgot to tell you, Viktor called this morning and said he will make it to the funeral. He also said Dmitri and Anya will be coming too. You remember Anya don’t you?”

  Peter grinned, remembering when he last saw Anya in D.C. Seeing her again was a nice thought considering all he had been going through. He was also happy to hear Dmitri would be attending, hoping to get some insight from his friend on the mission. “You mean that little fifteen-year-old girl with braces and acne?”

  “I’m sure she doesn’t have those anymore,” his mom said with a wink. “In fact, they sent a Christmas card a few years back with a family picture and from what I remember, she grew up to be a beautiful woman. I think your dad has that card somewhere in his desk. Let me go get it.” Suddenly on a mission, she bolted toward the hallway.

  Peter quickly grabbed her arm. “Mom, you don’t have to get it.”

  Anne turned with a determined look. “Peter, I want you to see what she looks like. You never know, you might find her interesting. I remember what a sweet girl she was. Besides, I believe she had a crush on you.”

  “She’s in her late thirties by now, Mom. She’s probably married.” He couldn’t help throwing out an obstacle knowing his mom was always trying to find the right girl for him. Though she would never tell him what to do, she made it known she thought his playboy days should be over. He sensed with dad now gone, she was desperate for him to finally settle down and start a family.

  “No she isn’t—or her family would be in the photo too. Just take a look.”

  Peter thought it best not to tell her Anya showed no interest in him when they last met, especially since the idea seemed to be cheering her up. He was curious to see what Anya looked like in the picture anyway, so he told his mom to stay and finish up while he went to his dad’s office.

  His mother chirped. “I think it’s in the top right drawer of your father’s desk.”

  Peter turned and walked down the dark hallway to the office.

  The office door was closed. He had not visited the office since being home. Knowing this was where his father had his heart attack, Peter braced himself as he put his hand on the doorknob and prepared to open the door. Slowly turning the knob, he began to peer inside at his dad’s sanctuary, a place where his dad could get away from it all, to relax, work, or just sit and reminisce. The office was his father’s favorite room. All along the walls, cabinets, and desk were all kinds of mementos, awards, and pictures of his life and career. This was the only room where his dad showcased treasures from his NASA days. Looking around the room was like going down memory lane. Before stepping inside, Peter stood transfixed at the entry, honoring his dad’s legacy. He scanned the entire office taking in the overall magnitude of his life. The room was unexpectedly large for a home office. In the center of the room was a beautiful mahogany desk in front of a large mahogany bookshelf. Two black leather chairs angled toward the desk with a small wooden table between them. One wall was covered with personal photos. Peter hesitated when he came to his dad’s treadmill, imagining that terrible moment. He looked down and saw drops of blood still in the carpet. His mom had already tried to scrub most of it away, but the stain was still noticeable. He shook his head, still amazed his father was gone.

  Peter took a deep breath as he walked toward the many pictures on the wall. Pictures of his dad with fellow astronauts, presidents, and even Hollywood stars. One with Viktor and his dad, both in spacesuits, arms around each other, taken in Russia during their training days for the U.S.-USSR mission. Viktor had signed the picture, “Tom, You saved my career! I owe you one….or two…or three… Your friend and comrade, Viktor.” Peter smiled, remembering back when he was a confused young boy wondering why his dad was asking him to lie. Peter had grown to realize he did the right thing, seeing firsthand how his dad put others ahead of himself.

  Two frames held mission and name patches, along with the American flag cut from his dad’s space suit worn on each of his missions. Peter looked closely at the frame with the patches worn on the moon, studying those historical artifacts. He could still see moon dust on them which made him wonder how in the hell China could argue such evidence. He shook his head in silence.

  Next to these was a picture of Tom standing on the moon in his spacesuit, saluting the American flag. Ever since he was a young boy, Peter loved that picture. His dad told him soon after that picture was taken he wrote Peter’s initials in big letters next to the flag as promised. Staring at the picture, Peter thought how he could actually be orbiting the moon in just a little over a month, the first American in deep space since the moon missions forty years ago. Though he did not know what the exact flight plan would be for his mission, he knew he had to fly over at least one American landing site and take detailed pictures. How cool it would be to fly over his dad’s, and what if the cameras provided were powerful enough to pick up those initials drawn in the lunar dust? How ironic!

  He continued down the wall, coming to an enlarged copy of the family picture his dad left on the moon. As Peter looked at this one, he put his hand under his tie and through his buttoned shirt, feeling the locket hanging around his neck. He rubbed the locket between his fingers. Somewhat overwhelmed, he said out loud, “Dad you were a wonderful father. Thank you.” He wiped away a tear that rolled down his face.

  More pictures showed military jets his dad flew while in the Air Force. Some he was sitting in, some he was standing by with his helmet to his side. Peter smiled as he looked at these and couldn’t help but think what a handsome man his dad was. Many family friends said Peter looked like his dad, which he always took as a compliment. He came across pictures of planes his dad owned, one a 210 Cessna. Standing in front of the small plane with his dad was Peter when he was eleven years old. His dad had his arm around him, and both wore big smiles. Peter remembered when that picture was taken—the day his dad let him take the controls and actually fly the plane. From that moment on he was hooked and wanted to be a pilot like his dad.

  Peter turned around so he was now facing the back side of the desk and pulled out the desk chair. As he sat he looked over the clean desk, empty except for two framed pictures, one of his mom, and his own official NASA photo. He picked up his photo, remembering how proud his dad was when he became an astronaut. His dad told him how jealous he was going to be when he flew in the Shuttle
. Sorry that never happened, Dad.

  He set the picture back down and pulled open the top right drawer. He shuffled through it looking for the Christmas card. All he found were old planners and business cards scattered about. He wondered why his dad would have a Christmas card in there anyway. Thinking he was looking in the wrong place and getting ready to give up, he came across a picture card and pulled it out. In the picture was the whole Alexandrov family. The caption on the top of the card was in Russian, the bottom in English saying, “Happy Holidays from The Alexandrov Family.” He focused on Anya. Wow, she sure is beautiful!

  Peter studied the card which had all four Alexandrovs along with Dmitri’s wife and two kids, on some farm with snow on the ground. Anya was sitting on a short wooden fence wearing jeans, cowboy boots and black leather coat. Anya looked pretty damn hot in those tight jeans and boots. Peter figured she would probably look good no matter what she wore. He turned the card over and read a note to his dad from Viktor.

  Tom,

  Thank you for nice flowers. Maria would love. I miss her. This picture took last year before die. It hard be in house alone. I wish your family happy. Dmitri and Anya do good and help me.

  Your Friend,

  Viktor

  Peter felt for Viktor after reading the card. His dad used to say how much he liked hanging around Viktor because the jovial Russian always made him laugh. Peter remembered Maria as such a sweet lady who made the best tea cakes. He called them Russian cookies.

  He turned the card over to look one last time at the family. What a nice family. He focused on Anya’s smile, the curve of her dark hair against her cheek. And what a hot daughter.

  ANNE ELECTED to have Tom’s funeral at a small church they attended. She wanted to keep the service small and private for fear of hoax proponents disrupting it. She invited family, friends and select coworkers from NASA as well as other companies where Tom had worked. Peter and his mother sat in the front row of the church with Aunt Virginia. A few friends had come up prior to the start of the service and offered their condolences. Since Peter was seated before many arrived, he was not sure exactly who was in attendance. His mom held his hand throughout the service, occasionally squeezing it. One of the last eulogies was by an old NASA buddy of his dad’s, David Grant. Peter was to be the last speaker and was scheduled to go up after David. He could tell David was getting ready to wrap and his pulse rate rose as he prepared himself mentally to give the best tribute he could to his father.

  David finished with a story. “Many of the early astronauts loved to play practical jokes on each other, and Tom was no exception. I remember the time Tom took his family on vacation. I decided to put a for sale sign on his front lawn. Us being one of their neighbors, some of the folks interested would come over to our house asking for information on the home. I said all kinds of things, like ‘the folks who lived there got a large inheritance and didn’t care what they sold it for,’ or ‘someone died there and they were desperate to sell.’ Right before the Novaks returned home I removed the sign. Tom told me for weeks he couldn’t understand why he was getting bombarded with calls from folks wanting to buy his house, some even talking about people dying in his home. Finally I couldn’t hold it in any more and started busting up. Right then Tom knew it was me, but never said a thing.

  “About a week later on a nice leisurely Saturday morning I was lying in bed watching cartoons with my youngest daughter, Ashley. I asked her to go get Daddy the newspaper. A few minutes later Ashley came back empty handed with a dumbfounded look on her face, and I asked, ‘Where’s Daddy’s paper?’ She said, ‘Daddy, you know the Road Runner cartoon we just saw that had the wall the coyote built?’ I had no idea what she was talking about, but said ‘Yeah, why?’ She said, ‘There is the same wall at the front door.’ I was like, ‘What?’ and ran downstairs. I opened the door and to my shock, there was a brick wall covering the whole front entrance, and in front of the wall was a sign that read ‘Sold.’ I just cracked up. Tom got me.”

  Everyone in the church laughed. David finished with, “Tom was a true friend. Not only was he one of the best astronauts NASA ever had and a national hero, he was just a damn good guy.”

  David looked at Peter, giving him the signal he was done, and backed away from the podium. The church stayed quiet as David walked back to his seat. As Peter got ready, his mom turned toward him and smiled, giving him an encouraging look. Peter leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead, and turned and squeezed Aunt Virginia’s hand before he started toward the altar. As he passed David, he smiled to show he appreciated the tribute to his father. How odd that no one claps after eulogies. He felt David deserved applause. There was always that awkward silence as one speaker finished and the next went up.

  Peter worked his way through the cold silence that hung in the air as he climbed the few stairs. He smiled at the minister before turning toward the podium. He got his first look at the crowd. The church was packed, which did not surprise him. He took a moment to look around, noticing all who had gathered, silently acknowledging people he knew. He took a deep breath before beginning. “It’s always difficult to talk about someone you love so much who has left you suddenly. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to say today, until I visited my father’s office. For those of you who have never been in it, it’s where he has all the pictures and awards of his life and career. I slowly walked around looking at it all, and though I had seen most of it before, I was still amazed at the life he lived. No matter how famous my dad became, he never felt he was better than anyone else. I believe that was one of his greatest attributes. He was a humble man and always said the successes in his life were due to the support and efforts of many around him. He always said he was a lucky man both in his career, and in finding the right woman. In his later years whenever we spoke, Dad would always tell me how lucky he was to find Mom, his soul mate.” Peter took a moment to look at his mom, who was now crying. Trying to keep his composure he continued, “He always hoped I too, would be so fortunate and find that right mate.” Now talking to just his mom and dad he said, “I still have time, and I hope I do, but Dad, I’m glad you found yours.” His mom smiled as she dabbed the tears from her eyes with a crumpled tissue.

  Peter looked back at the audience, composing himself he went on. “My dad was a wonderful father. He was my hero, my friend, my teacher. He was everything I would have ever wanted in a father. Right before Dad passed away, he asked if I thought he was a good father. I thank God I was there to tell him how wonderful he was. How lucky I was to be his son, which brought a smile to his face.”

  Peter was getting choked up, and stepped back for a moment to wipe the tears from his eyes. The church stayed quiet, waiting for him to continue. This gave him a few seconds to think of those last moments with his dad and how upset his dad was with those false claims. Peter wasn’t sure if he should address China’s lies. No one had done it to this point. He knew some of his dad’s NASA colleagues felt they shouldn’t even acknowledge such bullshit. But the whole situation pissed Peter off, and he knew he had already signed up for a one way mission to prove the lies wrong.

  Cementing a stern look on his face, Peter stepped back up and spoke confidently. “Everyone in this room knows my father walked on the moon. Some of you even helped him achieve that goal. Walking on the moon was very important to Dad—it was a dream come true. I will not let anyone or any country take that away from him.” Peter looked up toward the ceiling as if talking directly to heaven. “Dad, I will do whatever I can to prove those Chinese bastards wrong!”

  In the middle of the silenced church, one lone man stood and started clapping. Everyone turned to see who it was, including Peter. A big smile came across his face when he saw it was Viktor. Soon everyone stood and started clapping. Peter continued to smile as he walked back to his pew, listening to the standing ovation for his father.

  13

  A TWO-MAN JOB

  Peter’s parent’s home was packed with friends a
nd family for his father’s wake. His mother was happy many came after the funeral, and the mood of most attending was upbeat. Many were laughing, some crying, but all discussing fond memories. In some ways, the wake was a farewell party for his dad. His mom was happy to have Tom’s friends and family there celebrating his life. Many came up and told her stories of Tom, some she and Peter had heard, some not. But hearing them made dealing with his death much easier.

  Peter was talking with some of his dad’s friends when his mother whispered in his ear, asking if he had talked with Anya yet. Peter was definitely interested, but wanted to speak with Dmitri first. He had decided to discuss the operation with Dmitri, hoping to get someone on the inside of the FKA who could support him after he hijacked the Soyuz. Even though the Soyuz was an escape pod on the International Space Station, it was still owned and operated by Russia. Once he hijacked the ship, he would be dealing with Russia’s mission control. He and Dmitri had complete trust in each other and Peter was prepared to give his old friend full details in hopes of getting his support. He had been trying to find Dmitri ever since the funeral ended. However, as he searched, friends and family of Tom’s kept offering their condolences and he was obligated to stop and have a brief conversation.

  Thinking maybe his mom could help him find Anya, and figuring Dmitri would probably be with her, Peter whispered, “No, I haven’t talked with Anya yet. Do you know where she is?”

  Her eyes widened as she nodded “yes” and politely excused Peter from the crowd, practically dragging him through the room. As she maneuvered her way through the house, friends tried to approach to offer their condolences, but Peter shrugged as if to say he had no choice but to follow his mother.