Читать книгу Freedom Earned - Ronald Price - Страница 13

Chapter 8

Fate

Cal sat silently looking out the windshield when he spoke, “Tork, why don’t we rent a couple of motorcycles? Might be easier to move around on dirt bikes.”

Tork thought for a moment and then answered Cal. “The ground around here is very sandy and loose, and there’s a lot of hard rocky stuff as well. A good four-wheel might come in handy if we have to cut across country, and we wouldn’t have any room for our equipment. Besides, we’ll have water and food if we have to hide in the desert. I think maybe we should stay with the Jeep.”

“That sign we just passed, Tork, it looks like the same one I saw the other night. Yeah, I’m almost positive. No, damn it. I am positive. That’s where we turn when we come back. It’s the one that will take us to that new road I told you about.”

Tork reached down and reset the trip meter. “Well, we’ll be able to find it easier when we return.”

As they pulled into Shoshone, Tork started looking for a small motel, no frills, just some place to use as their headquarters. They didn’t want to draw any attention to themselves, and he thought it would be safer if they were kind of out of the way—incognito as the word he wanted to use.

*****

The phone rang and an orderly picked it up. “Freedom Corporation.”

“We’ve spotted them north bound, and we have surveillance cars on them. They’re driving a green four-wheel. Looks pretty loaded. We will try to implant a sensor on them, if we get the chance to. We will advise you if successful.”

The caller hung up, and the orderly redialed his phone.

It rang only once when the colonel answered, “Yes, what is it?”

“Colonel, the two men are heading north. Looks like they may have missed us. Maybe Mr. Varner can’t find the turn off again. We’ll continue to maintain surveillance.”

“Thank you. Be sure I am made aware of their movements at all times. Understand?”

“Yes, sir,” he replied.

The senator looked over to Colonel Duncan and spoke, “Colonel, with the two men located, I think it’s time I returned to Washington. Please have Emory prepare our plane. Upon my return, I will be reporting to the committee. It looks like we can continue the count down. Let me know when you have them both in custody.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll let you know.” The senator picked up the phone and dialed the operator.

“Yes?” came the reply. “May I help you?”

“Get me Emory Watson. He should be in the VIP quarters.”

“Just a moment please.”

The phone rang several times and a heavy voice answered, “Hello?”

“Emory, Senator Forthright. How soon can you have the plane ready for our return flight to Washington?”

“The plane’s ready now, Senator. Shouldn’t take more than a half hour for me to preflight her. Maybe less. Everything was ready when I put her to bed. How soon would you want to leave?”

“I’m ready now. Have you had enough rest, Emory?”

“Yes, sir. I’ll call you when we’re ready to leave.”

When Emory opened the door to the operations room, he could see the returning Falcon through the windows of the underground hangar. The door to the aircraft opened and two men holding up a frightened girl came out. They helped her down a short ladder to the ground.

She looked unsteady, almost like they doped her up or something.

“May I help you?” Emory looked toward the Ops counter. A tall, smiling redhead looked at him and asked again, “May I help you?”

“Yes, the Falcon on the left. We’ll be leaving within half an hour. I would like to make sure it’s been serviced and in-flight is on board. I’ll be back in twenty minutes to do a preflight on it. Okay?”

“Yes, sir. We’ll have it ready for you.”

Emory went to the desk, sat down, and pulled out his charts. He prepared a flight plan for the return flight, double-checked it, and took it to the attendant. “Like this filed for an immediate takeoff.”

He then checked his charts a third time and recalculated his speed required to meet the deadline. It was essential he be back in Washington on time. Freedom Earned was getting closer, and nothing could happen to cause a delay at this crucial period. Far be it for him to be the cause of something going wrong at this point.

The attendant returned with the flight plan and nodded. Only thing left was to call the senator and tell him they were ready.

*****

It was just past midnight when Tork and Cal left their motel and headed south. It was a cool night with little traffic on the roads. As Tork drove, he went over his plans with Cal. It was important they were together on what might happen.

If the men that had chased Cal were there or someone else were to intervene, they would need to be ready to react quickly.

“Cal, I brought a camouflage tarp and a mountain tent. They’re in the back. I’d like to set up an observation point on high ground so we can watch what goes on both at night and during the day. We have rations enough to cover us for a few days and plenty of water. It’ll be hot, so we need to see if we can find a gully to pitch the tent and hide the Jeep. We’re going to need to spread out and look for a place before daybreak if we want to be in position before the sun comes up. And we must be well hidden. I’d like to observe the area, the roads, and anything else we can before first light. Remember, we can see more under cover during the day than we can at night.”

“What about weapons, Tork? Do we have any?”

“No, I thought it best we don’t have anything that could go against us if this is a government project you stumbled into. Remember, they weren’t trying to hurt you. Not once have we been shot at. Only when I tried to intervene and then they could have shot me, but they only knocked me out. No, they weren’t trying to do that. Killing wasn’t in their game plan. There is definitely something else going on, a real involvement of some kind.”

“There, to your right, about two hundred yards up. Yeah, that’s it, our turn off. I’m sure off it. Turn off there, Tork.”

Tork checked his trip meter. Cal was right.

In the headlights, Tork could see the road start to narrow as Cal had described it to him. Tork turned off his headlights as they slowed, almost crawling as their vehicle cleared the brush. Tork suddenly felt the ride turn from a bumping hard one to a smooth one, almost like a new asphalt highway feels when you first drive on it.

“Boy, that’s smooth. Hard to see in this light, but it looks like it’s getting wider. We had better get off the road and park before we go any farther. And look for those sensors I suspect are out there. If they are, we can expect company real soon.”

Cal said, “Well, I figured I had gone at least a mile when I decided to turn around. We haven’t gone that far yet, so maybe we haven’t tripped any of their sensors?”

Tork pulled off the road, engaged the four-wheel drive, and felt it dig in as they started into the sand. He was going slowly to keep the sound of the engine low. “Okay, Cal, we’ll get out here and start looking for a place to hide the truck and ourselves.”

Cal started getting his gear together, flashlights with a red filter lens, compass for each, canteens, shelter covers, sleeping bags, binoculars, night glasses, and some army MRE field rations.

“Tork, where in the world did you get the field rations?” Cal asked.

“Picked them up at a survival store in Concord. Thought I would be using them when I went hiking. Didn’t expect to use them this way.”

Tork and Cal dismounted from the vehicle and started looking for a good observation point on high ground if available. Both men started in opposite directions moving slowly, stopping at intervals, eyes straining to find what they needed. It was taking time. Both feared the unknown.

As Cal moved in toward what he thought was their meeting place, he felt a slight downward movement on his legs. He tried seeing ahead, but the red light could not give him any distance. He knew he was moving down. Suddenly he lost his footing, dropped to his knees, and started sliding down. He caught himself and realized he was in a deep depression in the ground. He stopped, stood up, and could see from the skyline he was about six to eight feet below ground level. It looked like a good place to park the Jeep, if there was an easy access in and out.

Cal checked his compass and started toward the rendezvous area. As walked, he could feel the gradual incline start, and he walked straight up into the area above him. He looked in the direction of the Jeep and tried to see it in the darkness. Then Cal hesitated to move. It was so still. Suddenly he could hear the sound of someone moving through the brush and sand, moving toward him. Cal lay down on the ground so he could use the dark sky as a focal point to see above. He could hear the movement getting close, and though straining his eyes, he could see nothing. Suddenly he felt his ribs caving in as a heavy weight fell on him, and a “damn it” in a familiar voice came to his ears.

“Get off me, Tork,” he cried.

“Hell of a fall when you don’t expect it,” Tork replied.

Cal told Tork about his find and how they could move the truck down out of sight.

Tork looked around using his red light and felt Cal was right. This could be a good place to hide the Jeep before daylight.

Cal and Tork returned to the Jeep and moved it down into the gully, put the camouflage tarp over it, and started looking for an observation post where they could survey the entire area.

After an hour of searching, they found a knoll that set them up high enough to see completely around them. They dug in and piled rocks around their position with observation openings. It was tight, but it would do. They would need to lie down, and it would be difficult to turn, so facing in opposite directions was necessary.

They had everything they needed from the Jeep and both exhausted from their work required rest and sleep. Cal fell asleep, and Tork lay their thinking about the day’s events and what lay ahead. Soon he would have the answers to their quest. Whatever spooked them should be revealed during their reconnaissance the next day. Tork looked up at the sky, clear, and bright with stars, a really black desert night. He yawned, and the day’s excitement flooded in on him. His eyes shut and he was sound asleep.