by Lesley Davis
“Agent Mays was using an undercover vehicle at the time of her being called in. It’s been a better ride than I expected. At least it meant I could sleep in the back while we took turns driving here.”
“What are your thoughts on her?”
“She’s CIA, sir.”
Russom snorted his amusement at Sofia’s wry tone of derision. “That she is. Knows all and sees all, am I right?”
“And has an answer for everything, whether it’s correct or otherwise in my view.”
“You two seem to have a rapport going.”
“I have had little choice, sir. We met under very strange circumstances. CIA or not, she saved my life and I owe her for that. After all, my own superior on base left me to die and I can’t forget that either.”
“Well, Jones is the least of both our problems now if he was abducted.”
“About that, sir. Agent Mays is very insistent I find out if we have any information about the abductees. Anything at all.”
“Her family was taken, she said?”
“Yes. We saw it happen. I’ve never witnessed anything like it. Our saucers could never get the beam to work. It’s…” Sofia couldn’t help letting her admiration slip out, “a masterful piece of equipment. It suspends the abductees in stasis and pulls them into the ship.”
“It must be something specific to the alien physiology. You can look into it again once all this has died down.”
Sofia was astounded by his assertion that all that was happening with the invaders was just a minor scuffle that would be over soon and life would get back to normal. She wanted to argue with him over such a crazy mindset, but she had worked with him long enough to know which battles to pick. She’d revisit that another time. “I’d have to start from scratch. All my files and schematics were lost along with Area 51, and the original craft are lost there too. Equipment, my templates, they’ve all been laid to waste. They were irreplaceable.”
“Don’t worry about that. That’s easily remedied.”
Sofia was getting irate at his calm demeanor about all her hard work being destroyed in the attack. “How? We can’t just go out and get another saucer, because the ones flying above our heads appear to be eluding our weapons.”
“You won’t need one of those. This is a mirror base for a reason, Captain. What was done at Area 51 was echoed here. You need saucers? We have them here. All your equipment is here. Engineers copied every move you made to replicate what you helped refine and design. I’ve got you a fleet of saucers in Hangar Five poised and ready for you to continue your work.”
Sofia was dumbfounded. “And you never thought to mention this before now? Sir, if those saucers are exact copies of mine then why aren’t they up in the air fighting against the alien crafts? We’d be on an equal footing finally. We’d have an equal show of force.”
“It’s not time for us to show our hand just yet, Captain. All in good time.”
“People are dying, sir. People are being abducted. The aliens are blowing the planet apart.”
“And we will step in and stop that, but I need something finished first because we’re not stepping into this fight armed with sticks and stones against their technology. We know what they are capable of.” He looked out his window over the base. “But they’ll soon learn we are capable of so much more.”
Before Sofia could question him, there was a knock on the door. She turned to see Emory there, standing to attention.
“You called for me, sir?”
“I might as well kill two birds with one stone here, so to speak.” Russom gestured for her to enter. “Agent Mays, it appears that your meeting at Area 51 was to offer you a place on my team. You were to be vetted as to your suitability for such a role. The last CIA agent I had working for me unfortunately didn’t live up to standards and needed to be replaced. Do you think you have what is necessary to do that, Mays?”
Sofia noticed the subtle stiffening of Emory’s body. She couldn’t help but feel that for all the secrets Russom had kept from her, Emory was doing exactly the same. Sofia was getting sick and tired of being the only person who knew only half the game that was being played.
“I’ve been looking into your credentials. You have had quite the career. I’m surprised we haven’t crossed paths before.”
“I’m kept on the down-low, sir.”
“Your bosses sing the praises of your investigative work.”
Emory smiled. “I like to believe that if there’s something out there I need to know, I can find out about it. One way or another.”
Sofia had to admire Dink’s crafting of Emory’s real job into her fake persona. She was thankful he wasn’t working against her. That I know of.
“So you’re one of the rare Men in Black, ones that go in and find out what people have seen and you do what exactly?” Russom looked fascinated.
“I dissuade them from speaking out about whatever it is they believe they’ve witnessed. It’s easy enough to do. Threats are so much more powerful when the fear for family or life is employed.” Emory stepped closer to his desk. “So you have a place open for someone like me in your team, sir? Can I ask what you’re recruiting me into that needed me at Area 51 of all places and then here?”
Sofia was frightened of the dangerous game Emory was getting herself into. She was playing a role that could so easily backfire on her with just one wrong word. If Russom found out who she really was, that she was the one that was going to publish the existence of a secret agency hidden in the military, Emory wouldn’t just get thrown in the brig. Sofia swallowed hard against the unmitigated fear rising in her throat.
They’ll kill her.
*
The hangar that housed the fully functional human built flying saucers caused Dink to dangerously hyperventilate in Emory’s ear. Emory had to physically force herself not to run over and touch them to assure her eyes she was seeing correctly.
Sofia had no such compunction. She stalked over and ran her hand over the underside of the nearest craft. “I wish you’d seen fit to tell me these existed, General. If for nothing else than the fact I need to run my own checks on these before they are deemed fit for flight.”
Emory’s head whipped around. “You can fly these?” She heard Dink going into raptures. Neither of the officers paid attention to her.
“I assure you, we followed your work down to the finest detail,” Russom told her.
“I’d still like to check.”
Sofia’s look was one Emory recognized all too plainly. It was her “don’t argue with me because you won’t win” face. Emory was amused to see even Russom conceded to it. It appeared no one was immune to that glare.
Emory trailed behind them as Sofia looked each saucer over with a critical eye. Unable to resist any longer, Emory reached up to touch the underside of the craft.
“I am sooo jealous of you now. What’s it feel like?” Dink asked.
Emory’s fingers slid over the metal without encountering any traction stopping it. “This is like nothing I’ve ever felt before.” Emory pressed her palm flat against it. It didn’t radiate the heat from her hand nor was it cool to the touch. Next she rapped her knuckles on the hull, but there was no sound. Emory tried again, fascinated by the lack of noise. She wandered all the way around the craft. “Okay, I give. Why are there no windows?” She traded a droll look with Sofia. “Because that would totally explain why they crashed at Roswell.”
“These ships are made from a very unusual metal, one we didn’t have knowledge of until we were able to break down the compounds and make something very similar.” Sofia turned to Russom. “At least, that was the history I was told when I took over the work. Did they figure it out by themselves or were the aliens alive when they crashed and found a way to communicate how their ship flew?”
Emory was intrigued by the edge to Sofia’s voice, especially in addressing a senior officer.
“Oh oh, sounds like the captain here is questioning her directives.” Dink chuckled. “Yo
u’ve been rubbing off on her.”
I wish, Emory thought, noticing that Russom didn’t bother to answer Sofia, which only seemed to make her face turn even more thunderous. Emory stepped in to defuse the situation because she wanted to know more and was going to take any opportunity she could. And what better place than in a hangar full of alien technology. “How do you even pilot this thing if there’s no door either?”
“There’s a hidden hatch that you trigger.” Sofia touched a spot that Emory couldn’t see anything different about and yet the metal seemed to evaporate, leaving behind a doorway. “Once inside you can see through the metal. There’s no need for actual windows. You can see a full three hundred and sixty degrees around you.”
“Wow,” Emory breathed. “Any chance I can get a look inside one of these?” She poked her head through the doorway to see as much as she possibly could. This was every science fiction fan’s dream come to life. She was desperate to go inside and explore. Sofia opened her mouth, but Russom beat her to it.
“Maybe later, Mays. You’ll get your chance when we have to get them prepped in order to go up against the invaders.”
Emory couldn’t help herself; she grinned. “Really?” She caught sight of Sofia shaking her head behind Russom’s back. She was obviously warning her that such exuberance wasn’t exactly becoming of a CIA agent and to tone it down.
Russom just laughed. “I like you, Mays. You’re certainly different from the last agent I had to deal with.” He put a firm hand on her shoulder and steered her toward the exit. “I put my trust in him and he let me down badly. He jeopardized everything we have built here. He was given a position of trust and betrayed it. I trust you won’t do the same once you see what your new role entails.”
“I was obviously sent for a reason, sir. I’m intrigued as to what else you could possibly show me after these.” She waved a hand at the saucers.
“Oh, believe me, that’s merely the beginning,” he said.
“Emory,” Dink’s voice was soft and low. “While hunting through Jack Carter’s personal files to insert you into his communications, I found some information that was all too familiar. Our informant? Remember he said the agency was run by a highly secretive individual that he very rarely came into contact with? And that there were other members, each with their own role to play? Our informant was trying to find out all of the names of the key players so we could go public with them. Carter has some stuff on his hard drive that needs a decryption code to view it. I’m decoding it now. I want to see if he knew anything seeing as our informant disappeared before he could furnish us the identities.”
Emory had been steered inside another hangar bay. This one had an elevator. Emory wasn’t surprised to see it, even as out of place as it looked.
“Seventy-five percent complete,” Dink said. “Oh, another elevator. Just like the one at Euphoria. If he shows you aliens on ice be sure to ask about the blue one. Our fellow theorists and I have a wager on the planet of origin. I have my money on Gliese, which, as you know is strikingly similar to Earth but in a galaxy far, far away. I’m thinking that might be why they sought out ours. But you know my ravings on that subject.”
Emory nearly blurted out her own prediction and only just managed to keep her tongue in check.
“I put you down for Titan because I know you’ve looked into it having volcanos and other similarities to Earth. And you always pick it. It’s your go-to planet.”
Emory nodded nonchalantly, knowing Dink would pick up on her movement. He knew her all too well when it came to them picking planets to place bets on.
“I’m in,” Dink announced. “Let’s see what these files needed to have kept hidden. I think I’ve…got something here.”
Emory watched Russom press the button to call the elevator. She could sense Sofia watching her, knowing that Dink was talking in her ear because Emory was uncharacteristically quiet.
“We’ve got it, Em! Fuck me, I’ve got it! Dionysius is the name of the agency. Truno wasn’t lying about that. That’s the people we’re after. Hang on. This says seven members, which we already know. Oh, seven people from different areas too. All the military bases were covered, air force, army, navy, then there’s the CIA involvement, the government. Huh, no surprise there.”
The elevator dinged as it reached the hangar’s level.
“I need names, give me the names…got them. Everyone gets a designation. They’re called Damocles and get a number assigned them. Truno was Damocles Six. Oh crap! Russom’s the head of it all. He’s the big boss.” Dink’s voice rose. “Get out! Get out now! You’re being taken into Dionysius’s base of power by Dionysius himself.”
Emory hesitated a second following Russom and Sofia onto the elevator. Sofia frowned at her as she faltered. Their eyes locked as Emory listened to what Dink was informing her.
“Don’t you dare get on that elevator! Abort! Abort the mission! Get your ass out of there! Emory, if you’re found out, you’re dead. Russom doesn’t play games. He was obviously the one who stopped our informant and who set the lawyers after us. You’re in danger there, Emory. Get the fuck out of there NOW!” Dink was screaming. “Oh God, no! Emory, there’s a Captain S. Martinez on the list. Sofia’s on this freakin’ list. She’s part of the agency too. She’s one of them. You’re walking into the lion’s den and she’s led you into its trap.”
Emory saw the second Sofia realized what was going on. There was just a glimpse of the sad smile that fleetingly touched Sofia’s face before it disappeared behind her professionalism. It’s too late. Emory wished Dink could hear her thoughts. I’m already in over my head. She stepped onto the elevator so as not to draw any more attention to herself. As the doors closed on her fate, Emory felt Sofia’s fingers briefly touch her own.
How ironic. Turns out she is one who I’m here to expose, and instead I end up exposing my heart to her.
The elevator numbers ticked off as they descended deep underground. It was delivering Emory into the clutches of the agency she’d tried so hard to uncover.
“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Dink said, his voice resigned.
God, so do I.
Chapter Twenty-three
The elevator was larger than the one at the Euphoria base but had the exact same number of buttons. Emory was focusing on every detail to keep her mind from freaking out over just how much danger she was in. She was studiously ignoring Dink’s grumbling in her ear about her suicidal tendencies and sheer stupidity. Emory believed she didn’t have anything to lose now, what with the aliens above and her enemies standing right beside her. She couldn’t bring herself to look at Sofia but knew that Sofia kept sending side looks her way.
Why didn’t she tell me? Emory wondered, more hurt than angry at being duped. I merrily told her what I was trying to uncover, and she knew of the agency’s existence because she’s a part of it. She told me I was crazy. Emory sighed under her breath. Like that’s anything new. She just joins the long list of people who have lied to me and made me feel stupid when all along I have been right. I get that she couldn’t have told me of her involvement, but I wish she had trusted me enough to give me a clue.
The floors whipped past and Emory knew they were going deep. She broke her silence. Might as well ask all my questions now before I’m found out and left down here to rot. “How similar to Area 51 is the layout here, sir?”
“Did you get a tour of the facility there?”
“No. I was escorted to what looked like an interrogation room and left there waiting for my liaison to arrive, which he never did. When all hell broke loose, I was left wandering around. There wasn’t exactly a lot to see where I was, except for endless rows of desks. To be honest, I was frightened to touch anything in case I ended up being accused of inter-agency spying if I even happened to breathe by someone’s laptop.” She didn’t need to look around to know that comment had hit its mark. Emory felt a certain smugness at her petty dig. Admittedly, she had stolen a laptop from the base, but it w
as the principle of the thing now. She winced as Sofia’s nails found their way into the back of her hand. Trying to be nonchalant, Emory shifted her hand away from her and rubbed at it, pretended to be warding off the cold. She shot a glare at Sofia.
“Speaking of spying. I looked up your file. It made for some very interesting and informative reading. I believe your superior was grooming you for me because of your investigative talents. They had high praise for your interrogation methods too. There’s a need at Dionysius for those kinds of skills since the last CIA agent was terminated.”
Emory tried not to flinch.
“What does he mean, terminated?” Dink said. “Our informant disappeared. What the fuck did this guy do?”
“Dionysius? I had a feeling I was being considered for a new position, but I never dreamed it was for this. I’ve heard whispers but never thought I’d ever get picked for something so highly classified that it’s the top of top secrets. I’m looking forward to seeing what the agency entails, sir. I know I have a high rate of success getting people to open up to me.” She gestured to herself. “It’s the all-American beach girl look. They see blond hair and think I’m a pushover. It’s worked in my favor many a time. I’m also told I can be very persuasive in helping people forget what they have seen.”
Russom smiled. “That’s why I know you were the new recruit for our work here.”