“Wait a minute,” Vann said with a sigh, “there are things you need to know before you leave. I will explain what is going on and then if you get in trouble at least it will be heads up.”
The twins sat back down and Ethan remained where he had been sitting.
“This starts back over ten years ago. Chief Onn’s tribe had
really gotten too big to operate under the loose rules that all of the jungle tribes accept. At that time, we were operating some riverboats as well as several others. Chief Onn solve the population problem by controlling as much of the riverboat trade as possible. This scattered men and women all up and down the rivers from Atlanta City to Southport. Thus, dropped the number of people in the villages down to a more reasonable number. But even when a large percentage of our young men and women liked the adventure of working on the rivers and seeing the big cities, there also were some who wanted to go back to the very early type of village life.
“Over the last fifteen years a number of our young people, most from different tribes, left the traditional villages and set up their own type of village life. I do not know where, exactly, it is located but Chief Onn does. They have kept to themselves and generally out of trouble. However, this last couple of years some of them tried to get into the riverboat trade and there have been rumors of violent activity on their part. Nothing substantiated. But they do have a medicine man that has extra-ordinary powers and wears a silver mask.”
“When I first heard about the plant ban it was always connected to someone getting hurt or disappearing. I asked Chief Onn in private one day about the ban but he just told me to leave it alone and do not talk about it to anyone. So you can see why I don’t want you three wandering off into the jungle. You might find the wrong thing and never come back.”
“Vann, you never told me about this,” Therme exclaimed, “why not?”
“Like I said, the Chief doesn’t want to us to talk about it. Apparently there is only one small area where in grows, and that is in the part of the jungle the ‘rebels’, so to speak, control. We just don’t go there and then there is no problem.”
There was skepticism written all over Therme’s face, but she didn’t say anything else. Tamara and Kristina remained standing but did make any motion towards the door.
“Our friend, Charlie, said he was coming here to get help finding those plants,” Tamara said. “Would everyone in the village have told him they were a banned substance, and if so, where is he? I can’t see Charlie tramping off into the jungle without a guide.”
“Not everyone knows about the ban, but then again not everyone knows where the plants grow. I can’t go around asking questions about that plant because of the ban, but maybe you could. Stay together and go nowhere with anyone Ethan doesn’t know.”
“All right,” they both said in unison, “we will see what we can find out.”
“Are you coming with us, Ethan,” Tamara asked?
“I guess,” Ethan said without a lot of enthusiasm. “I have a couple of friends who keep up with the goings and comings in the village. They are paid to keep the village clean so they are around all of the time.”
Ethan and the girls left Vann and Sheila’s house and started walking into the village proper. Meanwhile Vann was getting a work-over by his wife.
“I didn’t want to worry the girls when they were here but now I want to know what is going on,” Therme said in a no-nonsense tone of voice.
With a big sigh, Vann told his wife, “I don’t know what is going on, but something is definitely happening. I didn’t lie to the girls, I don’t know what is going on, but no one will tell me anything. That is why I let the girls loose to explore. They are Captain Santos’ daughters and if anything happens to them, she will tear the place apart to find the culprits. So maybe what we need is a good shaking up. I think those rebel kids are behind this and somehow they got a choke hold on the Chief,
“None of this makes any sense,” Therme said. “I think you need to tell the Chief about the two Santos girls. Maybe he can help them.”
“All right, you have convinced me, but what if I can’t find him?” Vann conceded. “He hasn’t been in the village much lately and I need to take a riverboat down to Southport this evening.”
“Get one of the other riverboat masters to take your place,” Therme replied. “It is more important that you be here the next few days than running the river.”
“You aren’t to let this rest until I do it, aren’t you? I think the Chief may be going into Atlanta City to talk with Captain Santos about the comm system being down. I will try and catch him first so if the Captain starts asking questions about her daughters the Chief will know what is going on.”
*****
“Do you get the feeling that Vann is holding out on us Tamara?” Kristina asked her sister.
“I certainly do, but I don’t know what about. How about you, Ethan? Have you heard anything about a ban on certain plants?” Tamara asked the young man
“This is all news to me. Oh, I have heard some gossip indicating this new rebel tribe is going to solve all our problems and anyone that want to get in at the start should go visit that tribe,” Ethan said. “Lots more all similar. I don’t pay any attention. As soon as I became old enough to leave the farming and start work on the riverboats I did just that. Running the rivers is all the action I could ever want. Besides, working on riverboats put on a lot of muscle which always helps with the girls.” This last Ethan said with a smile as he looked at the twins. The fact that he wore only a sleeveless vest above the waist and shorts below, gave the girls lots to look at. They laughed with Ethan when he said that but remembered that it was a good-looking tribesman that ended up being their father. All three were in a happy mood as they headed to where Ethan’s friends could be found.
*****
“Vera, we just got word that their armored aircar just left heading north,” panted one of the village runners who had just come from the communications shack. “Also, the civilian and law enforcement comm systems are turning on and off.
“What do you mean ‘the comm system are turning on and off. Do you mean the static isn’t working anymore?”
“No, the whole systems, except for our private system, is turning on and off. Obviously someone is mess with the system. One of the communication technicians thinks the on/off is creating a pattern, maybe even a code.”
“All right, you have told me, now get back to communications.” Vera turned to her other two partners. “Someone is still alive on that island and it isn’t the satellite technicians so it has to be one or two of the OSI officers. That is two bombs and two duds.”
“What do we do now, Vera,” asked Professor Blake?
“You and the rest of your team need to keep harvesting those plants.” Vera said. “The plants aren’t our major goal but we are going to need the money we can get for them. Lots of money. Too bad you had to kill Ja’haal; we could have used another pair of hands.”
“Didn’t have any choice, did I,” said Professor Blake, a little defensive? “She was going to expose us and she knew enough to sink the whole project.”
“If we could have gotten her here to the village, we could have gotten some work out of her and could have disposed of the body easily.”
“If those two idiots had made sure she was dead before they left her to find a container, she would have just been another disappearance like the rest of the team.”
“That is water under the bridge,” said the other partner. “What are we going to do, if anything, if they get the satellite comm system working again?”
“They won’t,” Vera said smugly. “There is no way we can stop that armored vehicle and I won’t risk any of us trying. I had a back-up plan I hoped I wouldn’t have to use because we will need that satellite system in the future. There is a large charge of explosives that can be set-off by a signal from one of our aircars. The aircar has to be within a kilometer and should take out the whole building and anyone on
the island. I will dispatch an aircar as soon as we finish here. With a nice lead that armored aircar should be on the island when the explosives are set off. Anything that degrades our enemy’s equipment is always going to be a plus. Now back to work, partners.”
*****
Liam had a very sleepless night. On ninety-nine percent of his assignments he gathered all the information he needed to solve the problem, and then turned everything over to the responsible law enforce agency. This time he felt he was being pulled into the case while there was still a lot of information he needed. And then there was Amanda. He couldn’t admit, even to himself, that he had fallen in love with her and any help he gave was the same as he would do with anyone else. Yea, he thought to himself, when pigs fly. Finally, late in the afternoon, he pulled himself together and headed for OSI headquarters. He noticed additional security measures had been installed, including moving the landing pad a hundred meters away from the main buildings. Liam wasn’t allowed to leave the pad until approval had come from higher up, and they had an officer to escort him into the reception area.
“What can we do for you Professor Smithe,” the receptionist asked politely. The officer escort had remained at Liam’s side.
“Has there been any progress in finding Captain Santos or her daughters,” Liam asked?”
“I am sorry, but I can’t give out that type of information. I know you have had some personal contact with Captain Santos, but the investigation is continuing and I suggest you go home and get some rest. God only knows when we will get any.”
“Then I would like to speak to which ever officer is currently in charge.”
“Lt. Baker is currently acting Captain, but he is far too busy for visitors.”
“Are there any other Lieutenants currently in the building that I might talk to?”
“The same thing applies. There is no one that has time to answer
questions from a civilian.”
Liam was getting increasing frustration although he knew that OSI was dealing with a crises and had no time for a civilian. But he wasn’t a civilian. He tore a leaf out of his notebook and scribbled several words on it. He then folded it several times till the writing was totally obscure. “Please take this note to Lt. Baker or any other lieutenants that have a free moment or send someone with it. Do not attempt to open it. I promise that Lt. Baker needs to see this immediate and delay could cost lives.”
The receptionist took the note and then hesitated. She had come across nut cases before, but there was something about Professor’s Smithe’s bearing that made her first impulse, to trash the note, the wrong action.
“Here, Stan, take this note into Lt. Baker’s office and do not read it. If he still has Sargent Manns in his office just hand it to him and return immediately.”
Stan took the note and walked briskly down the office hallway.
“Would you like some coffee or santee while you are waiting, Professor Smithe.” The receptionist offered. “It might be a while to get a response from Lt. Baker since he is doing some de-briefing with Sgt. Manns.”
Liam rather doubted a long wait unless the Lt. did not open the note right away. But he had to encourage good behavioral in the receptionist staff.
“Yes, I would love a cup of coffee,” Liam told the receptionist. But even before he received his cup of coffee a man Liam recognized as Lt. Baker came rushing down the hall way.
“Are you really… he started to say, then paused a few seconds. “Is what you wrote in that note real?”
“I wish it wasn’t sometimes,” Liam replied. “I suggest a secure room and any of your top staff that you need to have there. There is some indication that you have a mole in your department.”
Lt. Baker did not respond to this last statement but instead started back down the hallway, collecting Lt. Adams and waking Lt. Owens from where he had crashed for some sleep. Lt. Baker didn’t tell Lt. Owens why he was being awakened but just said it was urgent. Lt. Baker led them down a flight of stairs and down another hallway with a steel door at the end. Upon opening it, a comfortable conference room was revealed.
“This is our secure room,” said Lt. Baker, “All the walls, floor, ceiling and door have been treated with a substance that is totally opaque to any kind of transmission radiation known to man at this point.”
“Now, Professor Smithe, please provide back-up to what you said in your note, if you would.”
Liam removed a small, titanium square from an inner pocket. When he pressed on the sides of the box that was only half a centimeter thick, a holograph picture of Professor Smithe appeared above the surface. Pressing on the top produced a second hologram which was of the Federation Council and script below that identified Professor Smithe as a Federation Special Agent. The three Lieutenants were frozen in astonishment.
There were only twenty Federal Special Agents in the whole of the Federation. They reported directly to the Council and were sent when a problem arose that could harm or destroy the Federation. Their word was law. They out-ranked planetary governors and had to explain their actions only to the Federation Council. Lt. Baker was the first to get over the shock of a Federal Special Agent being on the planet and actually talking to them.
“What in the world are you doing here,” asked Lt. Baker? “I mean that…of course you can come here. We will help you – whatever you need. What do you need?”
“I want an update on Captain Santos and her daughters, but first, there is to be absolutely nothing said about my real position. You will answer to everyone that asks that you have hired me as a consultant, and nothing more. Agreed?”
“Certainly! …What do you want us to call you,” Lt. Owens asked?
“Professor Smithe works for me. I actually have an advanced degree in social biology / anthropology, which is why I got this assignment.”
“Well, Professor, our forensic team has determined that besides the traces of the explosives used there was one body in the aircar. Also the aircar was on the ground when the explosives went off, leading to the tentative conclusion that a timer was used to set off the explosive, and there may have been someone who survived the incident. Since Captain Santos had Sargent Onn with her in the aircar; it is possible that Captain Santos survived. Our crime lab, if that is what you want to call it, expects to have identification of the burned body finished in a few hours.”
“And the twins,” Liam inquired?
“I will let Lt. Adams update you there,” Lt. Baker said, “He is coordinating that search.”
Clearing his throat, Lt. Adams said, “We finally got records from most of the shuttle and ‘for hire’ outfits. It helps that we were looking at a short timeframe, from when we got the first call, supposedly from one of the daughters, until midnight. Of course it is possible that they went on foot to a friend’s house and stayed there last night.”
“What did you find?” Liam asked.
“There isn’t a lot of kids running around that late at night. About half an hour after the crises call two females caught a shuttle to Riverport. The driver was off today and we haven’t caught up with him, but the dispatcher thought the two women were older, somewhere around twenty-five and thirty, and they were dressed more like women from the jungle tribes. Of course lots of teenagers dress that way; their idea of fashion varied from time to time. Other than that, no leads what so ever. We are trying to get a list of the twin’s friends as that seemed very possible. We talked with Charlie Norton’s mother, but she hadn’t seen Charlie for quite a few days. The officer that interviewed her thought she was on drugs or some other mind alternating substance since she really did care about Charlie being gone day after day.”
“Is there anything else you need to know or need us to do,” asked Lt. Baker?
“I do need some office space; a small room or large closet will do. I have been working out of my hotel room, the way I usually do, but this is going to be the communication center until this is over. Speaking of communications, did you get the static pr
oblem fixed?”
“Not fixed, no,” Lt. Baker said as he looked at the other two Lieutenants. We have lost contact with the two officers that were sent out to Satellite Control to find the problem. Captain Carlos of the City Militia is working on the agency that supplies the staff for the facility. Nothing back there yet but I sent a patrol aircar out this morning to try and find the two officers.”
“Let me see if I have this straight, there is an almost complete shutdown on the civilian and the law enforcement comm systems. You sent two officers to check it out, and they have disappeared. There is something smelly at the staffing agencies, and it must be pretty bad to send a Militia crew to investigate them, and now you sent another aircar to try and find your missing officers?”
Lt. Baker was quite aware that he could end up as a store room clerk if this Federation Special Agent didn’t like what he was doing. “I sent an armored patrol car with six men, carrying heavy, to the island. I don’t like losing officers.”
“What does ‘carrying heavy’ mean,” Liam asked.
“It means that I have released and approved of the use of laser firearms. That type of weapon is restricted to law enforcement agencies and have strict protocols regarding their use. In the twelve years I have been with OSI, and this applies to the City Militia also, they have never been used. But I am not going to put the men in danger without the ability to defend themselves. At least we have better weapons than whoever is causing this.”
“Don’t bet your life on that Lt. Baker. The bad guys can get any type of weapon they might want, smuggled though the spaceport. Anything else is wishful thinking. I am not totally convinced this all ties in with my investigation. But until I am sure I am going to keep following your crises. Has any trace of Professor Blake or members of her research team turned up?”
“Investigator Townsead has been working with a Militia Officer trying to track down whomever killed Ja’haal. They have determined that she was initially stabbed in a warehouse owned by the Traders Association but ran into a stone wall after interviewing Trader Association staff.”
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