Jack’s eyes grew wide. “Asylum?”
“Dr. Putelli had sent them there for evaluation. They complained about hearing voices and he thought they might be suffering from a psychiatric episode.”
“Were they?”
“No, but the alternative was even crazier.”
“Crazier than Grant suddenly being able to bench three hundred pounds? Try me.”
“The girls are exhibiting signs of…” Mia paused before tossing the word out like a stone heated in a blazing fire. “Telepathy.”
Jack became visibly uncomfortable. “As in via electronic implants? I read an article not long ago about that sort of thing.”
“We looked into that. The girls haven’t been operated on. When one of them forms a thought, the other seems to instantaneously know it too. I know it sounds way out there, but I’m convinced there’s a scientific explanation.”
“Do you mean explaining it away with science or understanding how it might work?”
“The latter. You think I’ve lost it, haven’t you?”
Jack cocked his left eyebrow. “Let me put it to you this way. Five hundred yards beyond this mess hall, there’s something that looks like a swirling black hole, a black hole I voluntarily stepped into, so the idea that two people might be able to read each other’s thoughts doesn’t sound all that farfetched to me. Least not anymore. Whatever’s happening here, we’re dealing with a civilization that is clearly hundreds, thousands and maybe even millions of years older than ours. Can you imagine what the first farmers in Mesopotamia ten thousand years ago might have thought if they saw a jet fighter or even a helicopter?”
“They would have thought they were seeing God.”
Jack nodded. “Or the Devil.”
Chapter 10
After they had eaten, Jack returned to Northern Star to see if Gabby and Eugene had made any headway with their analysis of the portal. Admiral Stark had ordered that any further exploration be put on hold until they had devised an appropriate game plan. They were dealing with an alien ecosystem inhabited by an unknowable array of creatures. And thus far, at least one of those had revealed itself to be terrifyingly aggressive. Then rumors began to circulate that Alan Salzburg was calling in a highly specialized team to accompany them. Needless to say, the deadly efficient operators from both SEAL Team 8 and Delta already present didn’t take the news very well. With this new team set to arrive anytime now, Jack steeled himself for the inevitable return to that alien world and whatever else might await them there.
As expected, Jack found Gabby, Eugene and Anna in the astrophysics lab, hunched over a computer monitor.
“Find anything yet?” he asked, causing Gabby to jump.
“Sweet Jesus, you scared me,” she said, leaning back and clutching her heart.
Standing by Anna’s heel was Tink, who greeted Jack with a friendly yap.
“We’re studying the portal,” Eugene informed him. “Trying to figure out what it is and how it works.”
“My guess is it’s been swirling in place for millions of years,” Jack said, leaning in to see if he could make sense of their results.
“You may be right,” Eugene continued. “But it’s been difficult to get any reliable readings.”
Jack’s brow scrunched up. “Why’s that?”
“According to our instruments, the amount of electromagnetic radiation emanating from the object is truly astounding,” Gabby said, swiveling in her chair. “Truth be told, it should be frying anything that gets within a few hundred yards. But something inherent in the portal itself is preventing that.”
“Or pulling it inward,” Eugene added. “The gravitational readings are off the chart. For all intents and purposes, the portal is behaving more like a singularity than a doorway.”
“Singularity,” Jack repeated, the words rolling off his tongue slow and deliberate. “You’re saying this thing is like a black hole.”
Eugene motioned emphatically. “Not like, Jack, it is one. But whoever created it also made sure it wouldn’t destroy the planet.”
Gabby stood and rubbed her swollen knees. “And here’s where things get really weird. Along with black holes, Einstein also theorized the existence of white holes. So while a black hole’s gravity prevents objects from escaping, a white hole prevents them from entering. In one end and out the other, right? But that’s nothing more than a one-way ticket. The beings who created this portal managed to allow it to operate in both directions.”
“It’s a white and black hole all rolled into one?” Jack said, marveling at the idea.
“Perfect racial harmony,” Eugene said with a smile.
“Except how on earth did they do it?” Jack said, thinking out loud.
Anna turned to him. “Dr. Greer, the answer may lie with another reading Dr. Bishop and Dr. Jarecki obtained. When we were away, they pumped the air out of the decontamination chamber to create a vacuum and brought in electromagnets and an exahertz laser. The spikes in X-ray emissions we detected have led us to believe we may be dealing with a new particle, one currently unknown to science.”
“This could be the big one, Jack,” Eugene said, practically vibrating.
Jack’s head tilted slightly with confusion. “You talking about the graviton?”
“No, dark energy.”
Jack walked to the window on a pair of wobbly legs. He stared out at the blowing snow, watching it glide along the ground like a pack of restless spirits. For years scientists had sought an ever-evasive unifying theory that sought to explain the world of the large and the world of the very small. But as important as that might be, dark energy and dark matter were widely considered the Holy Grail of physics. Could it be humanity was on the cusp of perhaps the greatest scientific discovery in history a piddling handful of days before the world was meant to end? The cruel irony was difficult to bear.
Anna approached from behind and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Are you all right, Dr. Greer?”
He looked over and then back out the window. “I’m fine, Anna. Worried, but fine.” Jack was busy considering how such a momentous discovery might be made to work in their favor when he spotted a large cargo plane touch down on the icy runway. It seemed Alan Salzburg’s team of specialists had finally arrived.
Chapter 11
Jack and the others watched as men dressed in dark blue parkas and matching coveralls filed past with a series of large crates.
“What’s Volkov Industries?” Gabby asked, reading the bold white letters stenciled on the back of their jackets.
“I’m not sure,” Jack replied, concerned. “Never heard of them.”
“They sure do have a lot of equipment though,” Eugene said, running a hand across his brow, as though tired from merely watching the work they were doing.
One of Stark’s military men was waving them on.
“Where’s all this stuff going?” Gabby asked him.
“The library in the social module,” he said. “These folks needed a base of operations, so they removed all the books.”
“Yeah, great,” Eugene said with stinging sarcasm. “Who needs books anyway, right?”
The two largest crates were the last to arrive. A strange whirring sound signaled their journey down the engineering corridor and into the social module. Metal poles projected from both ends of the narrow crate and fixed onto a robotic pack animal at either end, their rubber-padded feet thudding into the floor as they went by. An array of sensors in the robots’ heads guided them forward. It almost looked like a litter carried by slaves during the Roman Empire. Which only magnified the question. What was in those crates?
“You don’t see that every day,” Jack observed, scratching his head.
Even Anna’s eyes grew wide at the sight. “Hello,” she said to one of the pack mules as the second case thundered by. But the robotic animal didn’t flinch. Anna’s digital mouth turned into a frown.
Jack put an arm around her and smiled. “Kids at school ignoring you?”
“School?” Anna asked, confused.
“Figure of speech.”
“What do you think this is all about?” Gabby asked.
“I’m not sure,” Jack replied, “but I’m about to find out.”
•••
Not surprisingly, the former library, which was now the de facto headquarters for Volkov Industries, was a hive of frantic activity. What was less remarkable, given the company’s name, was that everyone wearing those dark blue coveralls was speaking in Russian.
“You should not be here,” said a squat man in blue cammies. He stood about five foot five, sporting a shaved head and the tortured face of a pug. “This area is off limits.”
“What seems to be the problem?” asked a young man in a hoodie and jeans. Hardly a day over thirty, he had the air of a Silicon Valley brat, or whatever passed for one in Russia. “Dimitri, that’s enough. We are all on the same team.” That last word sounded more like ‘tim’ than ‘tēm.’ (note for gary, don’t read that last bit) “Yuri Volkov,” he said, waving Dimitri away and offering Jack his hand.
They shook.
“You’re into robotics?” Jack said, at the risk of stating the obvious.
“Among other things,” Yuri replied with no shortage of mystery. The tech geek’s eyes flickered over Jack’s shoulder. “And what, may I ask, is your name?”
“Anna,” she replied shyly. “And this is Tink.” She held the dog up, its mechanical tail wagging. “I think she likes you.”
“Then Tink is a wonderful judge of character.” Yuri grinned, his teeth about as white and straight as the keys on a baby grand. He turned back to Jack. “Is it yours?”
“Anna is a she, not an it,” he replied, noting this wasn’t the first time he had had to explain the simple concept that she wasn’t an iPhone or a smartwatch.
“Of course. It’s amazing how much we tend to project personalities onto our creations.” Yuri clapped him on the shoulder. “But Jack, my friend, rest assured we’re not here to compete with one another. If we manage to find a way out of this mess, I have a chain of hotels in Moscow. A model like Anna would make a great front desk clerk or maybe even a maid.” Jack’s cheeks must have flushed at the suggestion because Yuri’s expression shifted. “Now, if there is nothing else I can do for you…”
“I hope everyone’s getting along,” a resonating voice called out from behind Jack. He turned to find Alan Salzburg flanked by two men in black suits. “Yuri, I want to thank you again for accepting the president’s offer. Your expertise is precisely what we need.” He rotated. “Anna, is it?”
She nodded, a look of uncertainty on her face.
“You will make a great addition to Yuri’s team.”
“Pardon me,” Jack cut in. “Anna already has a team and we’re it. Besides, she can decide for herself.”
Alan smiled. It had all the hallmarks of a caring expression but without any of the warmth. “I’m afraid that following Rajesh’s passing, MIT is now Anna’s sole custodian and arbiter of her fate. And I happen to have a letter from them giving President Myers and the United States government full discretion in her use and deployment. Which is another way of saying that I get to decide where she goes and what work she’ll do.”
Jack felt the rage bubble up through his gut and down his arms. The fingers of his right hand closed into a tight fist, one he had every intention of using to smash Alan’s face in. The security men behind him saw Jack’s anger and tensed, as though preparing for his attack.
That was when three chimes sounded over the intercom. “Could all essential personnel please report to the mess hall in Northern Star at once. I repeat, all essential personnel. Thank you.”
The corner of Jack’s mouth rose as he and Alan locked eyes. “Saved by the bell.”
Chapter 12
Kay was in her car, heading to the local police station as quickly as her rickety old Corolla could get her there. Normally that meant a ten-minute drive, but it felt to Kay like the trip was taking forever. But the sense of distorted time was understandable. She was still reeling from finding Derek’s body slumped over the bathtub, an image she was starting to think she would never be able to erase for as long as she lived. Uncertain what to do, she had opted to cover him with a white bed sheet and inform the police of his murder.
She knew right away they would ask her if Derek had any enemies who might want to take advantage of the current social unrest to exact revenge. And she also knew exactly what she would tell them. Sentinel had done it. There was no doubt in her mind. Of course, there was no telling how they might react to her claim that a shadowy group had killed her boyfriend and kidnapped her parents. Nor what they could possibly do about it.
If the perpetrators were not in question, then neither was the motive. Blowback from Kay’s article. She had made that connection the minute she found the house empty. The man she’d met that night at the warehouse in Washington had threatened to turn her loved ones into social pariahs if she refused to play ball. That was one of the reasons her father had decided to leave the family home and set up with his flock at the church.
She had gone straight there after leaving her house only to find the congregation waiting for them in vain. They had bombarded her with a million frantic questions. The flock was missing their shepherd and she sympathized with the fright and despair they must be feeling. That was why she hadn’t told them about Derek. She wasn’t sure she could speak the words without falling apart. But she also knew such news would throw these people into a full-blown panic. Her father always sought to calm and reassure his congregation, so that was what she did.
Pulling into the police station, Kay was immediately struck by how few cop cars were around. At any one time, the small parking lot normally held a dozen or so patrol cars, officers coming and going on a regular basis. A sign on the front door read:
This entrance no longer in use. If you have an emergency, dial 911.
“I did, dammit, and got nothing but a busy tone.”
Then she saw the Bristol board next to the entrance. Normally it was for internal police use, reminders about meetings along with a few community outreach posters. What Kay saw in its place went beyond frightening. Dozens, maybe even hundreds of pictures of missing people spilling over the board onto the wall beyond it. Soon even that space would prove insufficient. The dates on many of them were within the last three days. Some of the notices were for friends who had fled D.C. without informing everyone. But even with that latitude, Kay had the uneasy feeling something else was going on.
A young woman in her twenties struggling with a double-wide baby carriage appeared next to Kay. She reached up to a vacant spot on the wall and taped a picture there.
“Is that your husband?” Kay asked.
The woman’s face began to shift. “Have you seen him?”
“No, I’m sorry, I haven’t. I’m looking for my parents.” She paused, noticing the twins in the carriage didn’t look more than a few weeks old. “May I ask what happened?”
The woman pressed a tissue to her swollen eyes. “He went to stand in line at the grocery store to get us something to eat and never came back. I called his phone a thousand times. Now it goes straight to voice mail.”
“Have you spoken to the police yet?”
“I tried,” she said, her eyes shimmering with tears. “I can’t get a hold of anyone and every time I’ve shown up to report him missing, no one answers the door. That’s probably why people started putting up these pictures.”
Kay stepped back, eyeing a wall filled with desperation and fear, an image made all the more unsettling by the smiling faces staring back at them.
“I need to know if he’s still alive,” the woman said, her voice quavering. Kay pulled her into a hug and the woman wept. “I need to know he didn’t decide to walk away.”
“There’s no way he would leave you at home with newborn babies,” Kay said, trying her best to soothe the woman but knowing she was only one of thousand
s, perhaps millions who were suffering the same heartache. “If you need something to eat, here’s the address to my parents’ place. Feel free to take what you need. Just promise you’ll only go to the kitchen.”
“I promise,” the woman said, shocked by Kay’s offer. “You would do that for a complete stranger?”
Kay looked at the babies and smiled. “It’s what my parents would have done.”
The woman left after that, Kay watching her walk away with a growing sense of despair. In a sense, giving away what was left of her parents’ food was a subconscious admission she wasn’t going to see them again. She knew her father thought nothing of worldly goods and would have insisted on sharing if it meant helping to feed a child in need. But there was something about this wall of the missing that wasn’t adding up.
What if Sentinel hadn’t been the ones who’d killed Derek and abducted her parents? What if something else was going on, something far worse?
Chapter 13
58 hours, 37 minutes, 15 seconds
“What’s got you all hot and bothered?” Mia asked as she grabbed a seat next to Jack in the mess hall. Close to forty other members of the expedition were there, representing a whole of array of scientific disciplines and governmental departments. Close by were the others from Jack’s immediate group: Dag, Gabby, Grant, Anna and Eugene. Toward the front of the room, Admiral Stark was busy speaking with Alan and Yuri.
“Your boyfriend’s a much bigger prick than I expected him to be,” Jack told her, his gaze never wavering from Salzburg’s lean, delicate frame.
Mia shook her head and folded her arms over her chest, uncertain for a moment. “Oh, Alan. Just wait until the authorities find out that he basically kidnapped me, not to mention whatever he’s done to poor Ollie.”
“Good luck with that,” Jack shot back, drawing his voice down to a near whisper. “The President of the United States takes orders from the guy. The military may have tried to cut us off from the outside world for national security reasons, but I had Anna gather everything she could find on him. Did you know the Post has an article claiming Sentinel pulled off the coup that put Myers in office?”
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