End of Days | Book 5 | Beyond Alpha

by Isherwood, E. E.

  All except Doctor Perkins. A perfectly polite Army nurse had come by and informed her the gentle old man had been taken to the infirmary due to his failing heart. The woman was cordial about letting her know she was not able to visit him since she was not authorized by anyone in charge.

  After a few hours of pacing, she was visited again, this time by two uniformed men with rifles. With barely a goodbye to Benny and his wife, she was whisked outside to the convoy of waiting vehicles.

  “Good morning, Doctor Sinclair.”

  A woman sat in the next seat over. Like all the soldiers, she was dressed in long pants and a long-sleeved shirt with a computerized blue and tan camouflage pattern. The woman was about her age, mid-forties, with her ink-black hair pulled behind her head in a perfect bun. She was tanned like she spent most of her career playing at the beach, but her voice was raspy and formal like she’d never had a day of fun in her life.

  “Ma’am,” she replied. The woman’s insignia was fancy with lots of stars as if she had a high rank. “Are you in charge here?”

  “Driver. Go.” The lady carried an old-school riding crop, which she used to tap the elbow of the driver. After the vehicle was in motion, she adjusted her body to address Faith. “There is no one in charge, as best I can tell. We were told there was an Air Force General Smith leading this facility, though I have to admit the name seems made up.”

  “Oh, he was real,” Faith lamented.

  “And no one has been able to find Doctor Johnson. He was supposed to be in charge of the civilian personnel.” Her eyes were searching Faith’s intently.

  “I hope you don’t think I had anything to do with Johnson. I’ve been locked up, thanks to your people.”

  “We found you wandering outside. If we locked you up, we did a poor job of it, don’t you think?”

  That was true, but she held back from telling her that Dr. Johnson had wanted her in the control room or that she’d witnessed his disappearance. The woman’s stuffy manner rubbed Faith the wrong way.

  “I guess,” she allowed.

  “My name is General Gillian Strauss. I was first in my class back at West Point, and I’ve worked hard to get where I am. Did four deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan before I got stuck in Washington working with the eggheads behind the experiments you’ve been running here. My instructions were to take over for General Smith, but since no one has seen him either, I’m doing what needs to be done.”

  It dawned on Faith that she had been the last person to see either man alive.

  The vehicle sped out of the confusing parking lot, which was filled with tanks, Humvees, tractors, and was surrounded by civilian cars, which had been shoved aside to make room. Her own Jeep was somewhere in the wreckage.

  Strauss sighed. “That leaves you as the senior person in this complex.”

  “I’m in charge?” A flicker of hope sprang to life. It further surprised her that Bob Stafford, her ex and a man who was always quick to try to get ahead, hadn’t tried to lay claim to the title of head guy at SNAKE. Maybe he really had turned over a new leaf.

  “Of course not,” Strauss snarked. “I need you to pretend you’re in charge for ten more minutes. When we get to the end of this road, I’m going to stand you up in front of all those refugees, introduce us, then send them on their way. When that’s over, you and I are going to do the same thing back in the auditorium, then you will be placed in a dark cell until I can decide what to do with you.”

  “What? Why in a cell?”

  “Doctor Johnson might not be around, but he did send reports to his superiors. He said you were a danger to our mission and had a hand in the disappearance of General Smith. I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, Doctor, but I don’t want anyone in my chain of command who doesn’t know how to be a team player.”

  The drive off the hilltop perch of SNAKE was brief. She already saw the grassy plain on the far side of the hogback, and the new ocean wasn’t far behind it. The grass field was filled with thousands of civilians who’d driven or walked into SNAKE’s protective ring as the experiment concluded.

  “You don’t have to throw me in a cell. Look at all these people. They’re going to need our support, right? You could put me in charge of their care, and I can act as a bridge between SNAKE and the people.”

  The Humvee skidded to a stop on a patch of road above the arriving crowd.

  Strauss opened her door but hesitated before getting out.

  “Doctor, let’s get two things straight. First, I’m in charge.” The general was definite about that. There was no negotiation or further discussion.

  “Sure,” Faith answered.

  “Good. The second thing is that you won’t have to waste your talents on those people. Other than a few, uh, selectees, we don’t have the supplies or manpower available for any of them. My mission is to support the team I brought with me. These clingers have no value to that effort.”

  Despite the gravity of what she’d said, General Strauss exited the truck as if it were no big deal.

  Strauss peeked back in through the door.

  “Remember, I’m in charge. You don’t speak unless I give you a specific question. You will then answer in the shortest possible manner. You will not undermine me. You will not offer any opinions. You will keep your mouth shut.”

  Faith listened as the stern woman laid out ten more rules faster than a machine gun. By the end, all she could do was nod her head in agreement and hope it was enough.

  The other woman locked eyes, but she held her own.

  Finally, she pushed herself out the door.

  This ought to be fun.

  Buck’s Rock

  “Hey, Lydia. Do you mind if I talk to my son for half a minute?”

  “Take the whole minute, sir,” she replied in a serious tone.

  He and Garth exchanged amused glances. The boy probably had a million zingers he could hit her with since she wasn’t from anywhere close to the current time. However, he wanted to stay serious since his business with Garth was important.

  “Thanks,” he added as she followed Connie and Mac.

  “What’s up, Dad?” Garth asked.

  He took a proud-dad moment to look at his son.

  “Your mother would approve of Lydia. You’ve given that girl a rock to hold onto in what must be a very confusing time for her. And by the way, I’m sorry for interrupting your smooch.” He reached over and gave him a manly chuck on the shoulder.

  “Thanks, I guess.” Garth’s face went fire-engine red. “She’s a little different, but she grows on you fast. We’ve been through so much, it’s almost hard to believe she hasn’t been with me my whole life.”

  “Believe me, when you find a woman like that, she’s definitely a keeper.”

  Buck laughed, then got serious again.

  “These past few weeks are what I wanted to talk to you about. This has been some of the worst time of my life, and surprisingly I’m not just talking about all this history unraveling stuff. When you and I last saw each other back home, I said some things I didn’t mean—”

  “Oh, geeze, Dad, you don’t have to worry about that. I can’t even remember what we were arguing about. It doesn’t matter, you know. The only thing I care about is helping Lydia survive moving forward. Well, helping all of us survive.”

  He took a long moment to admire his son.

  “Is that all?” Garth pressed. His eyes darted to Lydia. Buck understood why.

  “I know you don’t see it this way, but I tried to cross the whole country to find you, so I’m going to take the opportunity to tell you I’m sorry for back then, I love you today and for always, and I’m relieved as hell we’re both in this together.”

  It seemed appropriate to hold out his hand, which Garth took after a short pause.

  “Everything has changed,” he said as he held his son’s grip, “and it isn’t enough to say you’re becoming a man anymore. The truth is you are a man right now. You’ve got to shoulder responsibility and w
atch over those you love without hesitation. Without question. Those are the ingredients for survival you can’t live without, you know?”

  “I know, Dad.” Garth tightened his grip. “I won’t let you down.”

  “I know you won’t, son. It’s not possible.”

  They broke their clasp.

  Garth again looked toward Lydia.

  Buck took the liberty of admiring Connie’s backside.

  “Okay, we talk enough man to man,” he said in a mock caveman voice. “Boys now find girls, hit on heads with bam-bam stick. Make ours.”

  They shared some laughter.

  His heart soared at the sound.

  Whatever else happened with the world, he’d at least made the amends he’d been dreaming about for weeks.

  Outside SNAKE

  Phil walked away from his mother after spending the two most satisfying hours of his life catching up with her. She told him all about her strange transfer through time and how she’d ended up with Buck the badass truck driver who’d saved her, as well as their final race for the safety of the SNAKE property.

  He, in turn, shared his experiences getting out of Afghanistan after fighting Soviets from 1984, his scientifically unexplainable bounce between Switzerland and a pine-covered hilltop in Colorado, then how he’d helped bring civilians, including his mom, to safety.

  His mother cried about how he’d grown up and hugged him profusely, which in any other circumstance would have embarrassed the hell out of him. This time, it restored a piece of his soul.

  To stay busy while chatting, he enlisted the help of a group of young adults to clean the crap off Buck’s tractor-trailer. His intention was to restore some of the balance from when the Marine had knocked down more fence than him, but secretly he knew he would do anything that guy asked as thanks for saving his mom.

  But too soon, duty called him back.

  He watched as Buck took his mom by the hand and walked toward the arriving Army unit.

  “Grafton, talk to me.” He held down the mic on his small radio. “What do you see?”

  “They came down from the main building in three Hummers. All their tracked stuff is parked. Besides some sentries on the perimeter, they don’t appear to be pushing out. They’re content to sit on their asses inside their bunker.”

  He immediately thought back to the unit designation of the soldiers he’d “captured” back by the exit. There hadn’t been a chance for him to return, so there was no way to know what the three airmen had done with the prisoners. However, nothing over the past few hours had changed his mind about the unusual nature of the occupying unit. There was no such thing as the 130th Infantry Division on paper, so he wasn’t ready to let his guard down around them.

  Whoever they were, there was no denying they’d come to SNAKE with support. They had dozens of tanks, a hundred Humvees, and likely thousands of soldiers. It would be impossible for him to fight them, but he wasn’t going to join them until he knew they were legitimate. That was why he’d tasked Grafton and MacIntire, the two men from Task Force 7 he’d tracked down after the blue light, with recon.

  “MacIntire? What’s your situation?”

  The line hissed for ten seconds.

  “MacIntire. You there?”

  “Yes, sir. Sorry. I swear I still see that blue lightning stuff out in the woods. I’m trying to move to a better location to see behind our target. I should have more for you soon.”

  “Well, stay out of sight. We don’t know what happened to our airmen friends or their captives. Let’s get as much information as we can before that comes back to bite us.”

  “Roger that,” MacIntire replied.

  With his immediate tasks done and unsure where Ethan, his CO, had gone, it was up to him to keep the task force running. As far as he was concerned, the 75th Ranger Regiment represented the only local force he knew for sure was authorized by the US government. He intended to do the Founding Fathers proud.

  He blended into the gathered crowd and made his way to the front so he could see and hear what the guy in charge was going to say. After passing through numerous families, gaggles of teens, and older couples anxiously searching for answers, he came up behind Buck and his mom, along with Buck’s son, his girlfriend, and the three truckers who traveled with Buck. They were all in the front row.

  To Phil’s surprise, the leader of the 130th wore a rank he didn’t recognize. And she was a tall, stocky woman.

  His stomach tightened into a fist as he suffered disappointment.

  It wasn’t because the general was female. He’d served with several competent women in the modern service. No, his problem was with the circle of shiny stars pinned to the front of her officer’s cover.

  There were five of them, making her rank General of the Army. The last person to hold that rank had been Omar Bradley shortly after World War II.

  Phil would have at least recognized a dozen senior generals eligible for the most powerful role in the entire United States military, man or woman, but not her.

  Yet, there she was.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m the General of the Armies of the United States of America and the United Nations Gillian Strauss.”

  His sinking feeling got worse.

  Three

  Outside SNAKE

  “That title is a mouthful,” Connie whispered to Buck.

  He agreed. He wasn’t sure he could buy she was the commander in chief of all the armed forces. General of the Armies of the United States? There was no such organization. Her slick hair, the weird cover on her head with all the gleaming gold stars, and the small contingent of soldiers around her made it seem fake. It didn’t help that Phil had expressed misgivings about the military unit running the place.

  “I first want to welcome you to the grounds of the Alpha Site. It seems we’ve been blessed with a miracle of the highest order. This ring of science has provided shelter against a cataclysmically changing world. You, my friends, might be the only humans left for thousands of miles.” With a dramatic flourish, the general pointed at the open sea.

  After a few moments of chit-chat among the crowd, she resumed speaking.

  “I do not know of the circumstances which brought us all together here. I’m just a general in the Army. I do tanks and planes, you see, not science experiments. However, I do know how to run a successful rescue operation. I’ve spent time in Rwanda, Pakistan, and India. I’ve seen disasters, so you’ve got nothing to worry about when it comes to my leadership team. You’re welcome.”

  “Self-centered much?” Garth said out of the side of his mouth to Lydia.

  The general might not have heard what his boy said, but she did look at him. For reasons he didn’t understand, that brief gaze was threatening, as if being on her radar meant a missile was inbound.

  “Thanks,” Buck said aloud to the woman, using his best sincere expression.

  Her gaze turned to him, as expected.

  “Ah, you are very welcome,” she repeated with satisfaction.

  A few other people joined in the chorus of thanks. Buck wasn’t happy to have them all fluffing the feathers of the big turkey up there, but it did give him an opportunity to reach over to Garth.

  “Hey, no more wisecracks. Got it?”

  “Yeah, sure,” Garth replied, embarrassed.

  The speech went on for far too long and explained far too little. She somehow managed to dance around the questions that mattered most, like what they were supposed to do next and where were they going to stay, and there was no mention of latrines.

  Eventually, when he was sure no answers were going to be volunteered, he raised his hand.

  General Strauss seemed surprised someone would interrupt her.

  “Yes?” she allowed.

  “Uh, yeah. Buck Meadows. Truck driver. I run that rig parked by the big rock.” He casually flicked his thumb over his shoulder. “I’d like to volunteer to haul some of these civilians up to your office space. They can use the restrooms, get drinks, a
nd get out of the sun. I’m sure if you’re here to rescue us, that’s where you’re going to need us to go.”

  A woman with short blonde hair stepped out from next to the general. She wore a white lab coat, as one might imagine someone who worked in a science laboratory would. Until that moment, Buck hadn’t noticed her since she was a head shorter and not nearly as big as the stout general.

  “That’s a great idea,” the scientist said with excitement. “We could definitely—”

  “Take your idea under advisement,” Strauss cut in. The woman carried a riding crop, which she kept folded under her arm. “Trust me, we need all the help we can get to take care of these people, but we aren’t quite ready for any additional personnel on the inside of the facility. Other than the frightful state of the exterior, which is filled with dangerous shards of broken glass, the inside was the scene of the terrible failure of a science endeavor that we’re still trying to understand. Having civilians inside could put them in grave danger.”

  Buck read the face of the second woman. By chance, she was looking directly at him. He was certain she shook her head as she held her ground next to the big boss. What did she really want to say?

  “I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce my exuberant companion. This is Faith Sinclair, head of the former facility here, which was known as SNAKE. She’s one of the Alpha Site workers from the civilian side. She has graciously volunteered to be the point of contact between you and your families and me and my military family inside the complex. If you have any questions about transportation, sanitation, food, and so on, she’ll be your go-to.”

  That got a smattering of applause for some reason.

  Faith could have been swishing a lemon around the inside of her mouth, based on her sour look. Buck thought he was a pretty good judge of people, and Faith was not happy to be working with the general.