Fifteen minutes later, the lights were out and everyone was lying down—the kids in the living room, and each set of parents taking one of the bedrooms. Try as she might, Martina couldn’t fall asleep. Her mind spun with the possibilities of what the next day might bring.
Several hours later, when she was finally beginning to drift off, she heard someone go outside. A moment later a car door opened, and she could hear the faint muffled sound of the radio.
Her dad, probably, or Mr. Weber.
She was tempted to go join whoever it was, but her eyes closed once more as sleep finally took hold.
She’d been the last awake, except, of course, for the person who’d gone out to the car.
Who was neither her father nor Mr. Weber.
28
THE RANCH, MONTANA
9:08 PM MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME
MATT HAD BEEN forced to call off the search for Brandon as sundown neared. He couldn’t risk losing anyone else as the cold night took over.
The biggest problem was that there had been no clear indication of which direction Brandon took. The best they could do was split up again and follow the paths Miller thought were the most likely. But as the afternoon wore on and there had still been no signs of the boy, Matt couldn’t help thinking it was more likely that those in the helicopter had taken Brandon.
Once back in the Bunker, he’d gone straight to the control room and had Christina bring him up to speed with what had been happening elsewhere. It turned out that most of Europe and Asia, and several countries in Africa, had jumped on the curfew bandwagon. Pretty soon the whole world would be on lockdown.
Maybe it would be enough, he thought. Maybe the virus will be stopped before it can even get started.
But he didn’t really believe that.
“Have there been reports about anyone getting sick?” he asked Christina.
“Not yet.”
Though no one in the control room would say it, they all knew that was odd. During the original Sage Flu outbreak, the time between exposure and first signs of infection was often less than half a day. The containers had started launching the virus into the air a day and a half earlier. There should have been some people already sick. Hell, not just some, but a lot. Even the deaths should have started.
For the first time, he began to wonder if maybe something had gone wrong. Perhaps prolonged exposure to the air had killed the virus. Or perhaps the virus itself had mutated into a nonlethal bug without the Project realizing it.
The president had said that “with the exception of a few minor variations,” it resembled the Sage Flu virus.
Maybe the variations were unanticipated flaws that would cause the Project to fail.
“Matt?”
With a start, he pulled himself out of his thoughts.
Rachel was standing in the doorway to the control room, still looking as if she were single-handedly carrying the weight of humanity on her shoulders.
He walked over. “How are you feeling?”
“Did you find Brandon?” she asked.
He hesitated, then shook his head. “We’ll start up again in the morning.”
“Josie’s been asking about him. I’ve tried to reassure her, but…”
He put a hand on his sister’s arm. “I’ll talk to her.”
As he started to walk out of the room, she touched his back. “I’m…I’m sorry about before.”
“You shouldn’t be.”
“I didn’t mean what I said. I was just—”
“Tired? Frustrated? Angry?” He smiled. “I know. And if you need me to say it, you’re forgiven, but you weren’t saying anything the rest of us hadn’t already thought.”
There were thanks in her eyes.
He pulled her into his arms and gave her a hug. “I’d better go find Josie.”
He located her down the hall in the cafeteria, sitting at a table by herself.
“Is it true?” she asked as he sat down.
“Is what true?”
“I heard Mr. Hayes is dead.”
Matt hesitated, then said, “Yeah. I’m afraid it is.”
“And Brandon’s still out there?”
“Yes.”
“So he’s alone?”
“He’ll be fine.”
“If he’s still out there, why did you come back?”
“It’s dark. We could walk right by him and not see him.”
“But you might also find him.”
“Morning will be easier,” he said. “For him, and for us. He’s a smart boy. I’m sure he’s tucked away somewhere safe.”
“You can’t let him stay out there. That’ll be two nights!”
“I know you’re concerned. I’m just as worried about him as you—”
She pushed herself up. “No, you’re not! You don’t care! You’re leaving him out there by himself while we’re all safe in here. He’s just a kid!”
Matt felt what energy he had left drain away. “I need my team to get a few hours of sleep at least. Then we’ll go back out.”
“Before the sun comes up,” she said. Not asking—telling.
“Yes, before the sun comes up.”
“All right,” she said, still not looking happy. “Maybe I should come with you. If he hears my voice—”
“Absolutely not,” he said. “It’s not safe.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but before she could, Christina’s voice came over the intercom system. “Matt, return to the communications center immediately.”
Josie said, “I could help.”
“You could also get lost, and I’d have to look for two children,” Matt told her.
“Matt,” Christina said over the intercom, “you need to come back now!”
Josie’s brow creased as she narrowed her eyes. “I’m not a child.”
Instead of debating the point, he stood up and said, “You’re staying. If you try to follow us, we will turn around and come back. Is that understood?”
He stared at Josie until she nodded, then he hurried back to the communications center.
“What is it?” he asked as he entered the room.
“The jet,” Christina said. “They’ve just called in.”
“Our jet?”
She nodded.
“Where are they?”
“They’re requesting permission to land.”
__________
THE FLIGHT SOUTH to Montana would have taken Ash and the others about six hours if they’d been able to fly direct, but due to a shortage of fuel at Grise Fiord, they’d been forced to make a stop at Baker Lake, the same place they’d landed on the way north.
Even then, it shouldn’t have taken more than an hour to refuel and get back into the air. But it did, due to Implementation Day.
“Permission denied,” the person manning the control tower had radioed back as they neared Baker Lake. “The airport is closed.”
“We have a fuel emergency,” Harlan explained.
“I’m sorry, you’ll have to go somewhere else.”
“There’s nowhere else close enough for us to land before we run out!”
This time there was no response.
“Baker Lake? Baker Lake, do you read me?”
Harlan glanced over his shoulder at Ash, who was hunched behind him. “What do you want me to do?”
“Do we have a choice?” Ash asked.
“If we’re lucky, we might be able to make it to one of the outposts along Hudson Bay, but it’ll be a close call.”
“That doesn’t sound like a choice to me. Take her down.”
Harlan nodded. As he and Barry set to work getting the jet onto the ground, Ash returned to the passenger cabin, and grabbed one of the guns before retaking his seat.
Chloe eyed him suspiciously. “Trouble?”
“Same problem we had at Grise Fiord.”
With a nod, she unbuckled her belt and retrieved two guns, giving one to Red before sitting back down.
The landing went as smoothl
y as always, and as soon as the wheels touched down, Ash returned to the cockpit.
“They’ve been yelling all the way in for us to abort,” Harlan said.
“What did you tell them?”
“Nothing.”
Harlan maneuvered the plane onto the taxiway and headed toward the fueling area.
“We’ve got company,” Barry said.
Sitting across their route were a police car and a small fire truck. Standing in front of the vehicles were several men holding what appeared to be rifles.
Harlan flipped a switch on the dash, and the controller’s voice came over the speaker. “…made an unauthorized landing, and are ordered to immediately take off. Do not open your doors or attempt to leave your aircraft.”
“Tell him we’re—” Ash began.
Harlan raised a hand, stopping him. “I got this.” He activated his radio mic. “All right, if that’s what you want. But I should tell you I’ve only got just enough fuel to get us in the air, which means we’ll be coming back down pretty damn quickly. I’ll probably only have time to bank the plane to make sure it takes out the center of your fine little town.”
There was no reply for several seconds, then, “You are ordered to stay where you are. Do not open your doors. If you do, we will shoot.”
“We just need some fuel.”
“Stay where you are. We will contact you with further instructions.”
Harlan pulled off his headset and leaned back. “Okay, I guess we wait.”
It wasn’t long before one of the men at the roadblock climbed into the police car and drove off toward the tower. As soon as he left, the fire truck repositioned itself so that it was more in the center of the taxiway.
Four minutes later, a new voice came over the radio. “This is Officer Thomas Belford, RCMP. You have violated a direct order not to land at Baker Lake. This is both a territorial and federal offense. If you do not get your plane back into the air, you will be placed under arrest.”
“My turn,” Ash said to Harlan.
Harlan nodded at Barry, who handed Ash his headset.
“Officer Belford,” Ash said. “I’m sure your superiors would not be fond of planes falling from the sky because they were denied landing rights.”
“I don’t care.”
“You don’t care?”
“The citizens of Baker Lake have voted unanimously to close the town to avoid any outbreaks here. No one gets in.”
“We’re not trying to get in,” Ash said. “We just want to refuel.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t allow you to leave your plane.”
“Fine. We’ll stay on board. One of you can do it for us.”
“No one is getting anywhere near your aircraft.”
“Then what exactly do you expect us to do?”
“I already told you that. Get yourself back in the air.”
“I believe we explained to your friend in the tower what will happen if we do that.”
There was silence for a moment before Belford said, “You are to remain right where you are.”
“And then?”
“Just stay there.”
Ash frowned.
“So?” Harlan asked.
Ash looked out the cockpit window. About another hundred yards beyond the fire truck was the fueling area. So close. He thought there might be enough room to skirt around the edge of the truck, but that was only if it didn’t move back in the way and the men with the guns didn’t shoot.
Ash keyed the mic again. “Officer Belford, let me give you something else to think about. If you just leave us sitting here, at some point we will try to get out. Maybe you’ll shoot us, maybe you won’t. Either way, if we’re carrying the virus, it’ll be out there potentially infecting you and your men. Wouldn’t it be in your best interests to help us get on our way?”
The silence that followed made him wonder if his message had been heard. The answer finally came thirty minutes later, when the men standing in the road climbed onto the fire engine.
As the truck pulled away, Belford’s voice came back over the radio. “You are to proceed to the fueling station, but remain in your aircraft. At no point are you to even touch the handle on your door. Do that, and we will burn your plane with you in it. Understood?”
“Yes,” Ash said.
It was another hour before they were in the air again. They were just beginning to relax when Ash was called back to the cockpit.
“What is it?” he asked as he entered.
Harlan pointed out the window to his right, then the one on the left. Pacing them about one hundred feet to either side were two military fighter jets.
“Have they tried to contact you?”
Harlan nodded. “Wanted to know where we’re headed. Told them back to the US from one of the research stations up north.”
“And?”
“Said they’re going to make sure we make it through their fine country with no problems.”
The jets paced them until they were within a quarter mile of the border before finally peeling away. Ash expected to be greeted by two more aircraft, with US Air Force markings, as soon as they were back in the States, but the sky was empty.
From where they crossed, it took them only another hour to reach the Ranch. Not wanting to draw attention from anyone else, they waited until they were almost ready to descend before radioing in. Unlike at Baker Lake, they were given immediate permission.
At first, as they swooped down toward the ground in the early evening, the darkened valley seemed unchanged. It wasn’t until they were almost on the ground that Ash sensed something was wrong. They should have been able to see the lights of the Lodge and the dorm, but everything was dark.
Ash returned to his seat and buckled in just before the wheels touched the ground. As soon as Harlan taxied the plane to the parking area, and the engines began to wind down, both Ash and Chloe headed straight for the door. She beat him there by a step, and was the first one out. When he stepped out onto the tarmac beside her, he was surprised to find no one there to greet them. Granted, they had just radioed in, but there should have been plenty of time for someone to drive the half mile down from the Lodge.
“Not exactly excited to see us, I guess,” Chloe said.
Ash jogged over to the road, and looked in the direction of the Resistance’s headquarters. No cars coming as far as he could tell, just the night filling the void.
“Where is everyone?” Red asked from the plane’s doorway.
“Don’t know,” Chloe said. “Ash, you see anything?”
“No. Just—” He stopped. From somewhere not far down the road, he heard a noise. “Hello?” he called out.
There it was again. Steps, he realized.
“Hello?”
“Captain Ash?” a voice called back.
“Who’s that?”
Out of the darkness emerged the shapes of four men. “Captain Ash. It’s Ross Miller.”
Ash didn’t allow himself to relax until he saw the man’s face and was able to confirm that Miller was indeed who he said he was. “Where is everyone?”
“In the Bunker,” Miller said. He looked past Ash at Red. “Tell Harlan to shut everything down and go dark.”
“What’s going on?” Ash asked.
“Let’s get you all inside first. Matt’ll brief you.”
Ash frowned, wanting to know now, but held his tongue. “We have an injured man. Is someone bringing a car?”
“Sorry. None available at the moment.” He turned to the men who’d come with him. “Tony, radio in for a stretcher, then meet them halfway to escort them in.”
One of the men, who must be Tony, nodded and ran back in the direction of the Lodge. But Ash wasn’t content to wait for him to get back.
“Red,” he called out. Red stuck his head out the doorway again. “Stay here with Gagnon until help shows up.”
“Will do.”
Ash looked at Chloe. “I’m heading to the Bunker. You coming?”
/> “Hell, yeah,” she said.
“I’ll have to guide you,” Miller said.
“We know how to get in,” Ash told him.
“Actually, I’m pretty sure you don’t.”
Ash narrowed his eyes. “What the hell is going on?”
“This way,” Miller said, and started down the road.
Ash and Chloe shared a quick look before taking off after him.
Halfway to the Lodge, Miller veered off the road into the trees.
“Where are you going?” Ash asked.
“Back door.”
“Why the back door?”
Miller paused, and looked back. “Because the front door is blocked.”
“By what?”
“The remains of the Lodge after it burnt down.”
“What?” both Ash and Chloe said.
Instead of following Miller, the two of them ran down the road. When they reached the spot where they could see the Lodge, they stopped.
Though the moon wasn’t out yet, their eyes had had time to adjust to the night. What remained of the Resistance’s headquarters was a disorganized mound of debris. There was no need to go any closer. The building was completely destroyed.
Ash heard Miller jog up behind them. “How did this happen?” he asked without turning.
“We went to full cover,” Miller said.
“Why?”
“We were attacked by the Project.”
Ash whirled around. “My kids. Where are they?”
“Please. Let’s just get inside.”
Ash grabbed Miller by the arms. “Where are they?”
“Captain Ash, please let go of me.”
“Tell me,” Ash said.
Miller hesitated. “Your daughter’s in the Bunker.”
“And Brandon?”
Another pause. “He was caught outside during the attack.”
A bitter freeze rushed through Ash’s arms and chest. “What…happened to…”
“We’re not sure what happened to him. One of our men was with him. They hid in the woods.”
“So they got away?”
“Please. Matt has all the information.”
“Tell me what you know!”
This pause was the longest of all. “We have no idea where your son is.”
Ash stared at him, unable to speak.
“What about the man who’s with him?” Chloe asked. “Can’t we get ahold of him?”
Pale Horse (A Project Eden Thriller) Page 19