The Traveler Page 32

  “Zero,” Jack said as he lowered the nightscope. “I don’t intend to wait around here and allow something to get close enough for us to identify it.” He turned to a nervous Charlie Ellenshaw. “Doc, you said the odds of the local animal or humanoid life escaping Antarctica’s frozen future are a basic zero, right?”

  “Yes,” he said as he wondered what Jack was thinking.

  “So we won’t be altering the destiny of any living species occupying this land?”

  “That’s just a theory, of course, but the anthropological departments and also natural history concur. Europa reported that all the animal life here at this time will perish.”

  “Good. Master Chief, give me a three-hundred-round spread just into the tree line on all sides. Let’s see if our visitors’ interest in us is a motivated one.”

  “Right,” Jenks said with a gruff chuckle.

  “Very scientific of you, Colonel,” Henri said as he lowered himself to form a smaller target just behind one of the empty trailers.

  Collins raised the glasses once more and saw that the white blurry targets were gradually easing themselves closer to the first line of trees. The jungle floor hid most of their bodies from view.

  “Thirty-five three-thousand-watt bursts from each laser should make our chicken friends think better about dropping in on us without calling first.”

  “If that’s what’s out there,” Ellenshaw said as he hunkered next to Farbeaux.

  “You just add the most wonderful elements to any discussion, Doctor, you know that?” Henri said, looking at crazy Charlie as if he had lost his mind.

  “Ah, you ought to be used to me by now, Colonel.”

  “That’s what’s worrying me—I am.”

  “This shouldn’t hurt us too much with the system’s portable battery. Here goes nothing. Firing sequence—now!”

  The six long poles with their strange little black boxes affixed to their tops activated and started tracking the closest moving targets inside the tree lines on all sides of the camp. As one target was picked by one weapons system its sister tracked the next in line and then the next, all the while feeding their own targeting information to the base system controlled by Jenks. The targets were then prioritized as to threat and all of this happened in less than a microsecond. The lasers started their silent destruction. The sound of a small battery-powered generator fired, giving the laser its umph. Small pinpoint beams of light burst from each weapon with an audible pop as the argon laser cleared the glass apertures of the black boxes. The shots were faster than the speed of light and the green dot of burning energy was hard to pick up in the glow from the south. But soon the pace of fire was so rapid that it looked like a science fiction war. Beads of light struck trees and other things that cried out in the night. Like tracers from low-caliber weaponry, the lasers punctured the initial line of trees and jungle. Then all was silent with the exception of the animal cries in the jungle beyond.

  Jack examined the black boxes housing the lasers. They were hot but looked as if they had operated as designed. He leaned over and looked at the battery drainage from the light assault. Down only two percent.

  “My God, they sound like the screams of children,” Charlie said with horror written across his features.

  As much as Henri didn’t want to agree with Charlie, he was right. The wounded animals sounded like children and it was damn-well unnerving to the Frenchman.

  “I hope we didn’t screw the pooch here, Colonel,” Jenks said as he laid the targeting hologram down. Jack looked and nodded at the device. “All activity with the exception of a few blips have all gone. Listen, the cries are fading. So at least we know one thing.”

  “What’s that, Master Chief?” Charlie asked, but it was Jack who answered with a concerned look.

  “Whatever they are, they carry off their wounded.” Collins looked at the darkened and quiet tree line. He then faced the men. “Doesn’t sound like an animal to me.” The colonel raised his M-4 and made sure the weapon was charged and safed. “Okay, two on, two off. Fifty percent alert. Charlie, you’re with me. Jenks, you and Henri get some rest, we have a hell of a lot of work to do tomorrow.”

  With that note, the camp had a very lousy sleep.

  17

  BROOKLYN NAVY YARD

  As Ryan held the door for the unwelcome visitors, his radio crackled to life.

  “One, this is main gate, the six vehicles have turned off the main drive and have gone beyond my view. We’ve lost them, Commander.”

  “Roger, make your way back to building one-seventeen, consolidate what we have.” Ryan lowered the radio and saw that the small group was waiting on him inside the old reception area.

  “Problems?” the Russian asked with a mockingly concerned look on his face.

  “None at all.” Ryan again raised the radio to his lips. “Five, this is one, copy?”

  “Copy,” Will said from outside.

  “Inform the local authorities we may have a security concern.”

  “Roger,” came Mendenhall’s reply, and then the radio was silent.

  “A wise precaution, my friend. Wise indeed.”

  “You know, I’ve always noted the comic book ways you guys talk, a much more precise language, trying to be more sophisticated than you are, when in the end you are nothing more than those pathetically depicted comic book villains.”

  The smile faltered for the briefest of moments and Jason could see that his words had angered the Russian. He smiled and gestured that they should follow him.

  Joshua Jodle directed the first Explorer in line to the south side of the navy yard toward the original building 114. The windows of the building were dark as all of the activity had shifted to building 117 a quarter of a mile away.

  “The tunnel better be there.”

  The small man looked over at the brute who was wearing a black leather jacket that didn’t do much to hide the small automatic weapon he held.

  “Of course it’s there. I supervised the construction myself,” he lied. “How do you think we could move about from one building to the other while reengineering the doorway without being noticed by the navy yard staff? It’s there, it goes directly to the subbasement of building one-seventeen.”

  The man nodded and then opened the door. He removed the Israeli-made Uzi from his jacket and then waited for his fifteen men to join him.

  “Remember, once we are in, there is to be no firing of weapons. I am informed that there is some very delicate equipment inside that does not react well to gunfire.”

  The other men nodded and Jodle cringed as he saw the explosive firepower of the Russian mob firsthand.

  The former concentration camp survivor moved the men into the darkened building where the first doorway had allowed much more honorable men to invade the heart of Nazi Germany not many years before.

  But tonight his task was not so noble and he felt guilty as the men made their way to the basement and the tunnel that would lead them to the time machine.

  * * *

  Sergeant Hernandez stepped in front of Director Compton when he tried in vain to move past him and the meeting just outside the observation room.

  “Step aside, Sergeant,” Niles ordered as calm as he could.

  “No, sir, can’t. Commander’s orders, sorry,” Hernandez said, and truly felt bad. He realized he just told the man in charge of Department 5656 and secretly one of the most influential men in the world that he couldn’t do something. “After the reaming we took from the colonel … I mean … can’t you see we’re on thin ice here?” The sergeant looked for help from the only other person in the observation room, Moira Mendelsohn, but she only shook her head. No help there, he thought.

  “Sergeant, the bite of Colonel Collins is nothing compared to mine. I swallow military personnel whole, now open that door,” Niles said so calmly that the large army sergeant took an involuntary step back. After all, he had never once spoken to the kind, scholarly man before. And now here was that same kindly
and scholarly gentleman threatening to swallow him whole. He reached out and opened the door—as far as the sergeant was concerned it would be a pleasure to get court-martialed by Ryan. At least he didn’t have to look into the scary one-eyed visage of the small director. Compton took the wheelchair’s handles and bypassed the battery system of Madam’s chair and they left the office together.

  * * *

  “Ah, there she is,” the Russian said as Niles limped behind the chair and both he and Moira entered the reception area where the ghosts of World War II secretaries gossiped over the latest Cary Grant film sixty-five years before.

  Virginia looked angry as she took in Niles. She should have known he would pull something like this. The man hated being told what to do. This Group had spoiled their own boss too damn much. The assistant director wanted to throttle the man.

  “I was just telling this asshole here that this is a private concern and that he can go fuck himself. Do you have anything to add, Doctor?” she said as her eyes bored into Compton’s only good one.

  “No, sounds like a good position to me,” Niles said as he made his way over to a chair and sat down. Moira was silent as she took in the scene before her. Her eyes sadly found the Koblentz family and she wanted to call out to them but she forced herself to remain still. Then she saw the small baby wrapped tightly against the night. She had heard a few days before that the mother had gone into labor. She had always insisted on being informed when the offspring of one of her children were born as each child received a full scholastic scholarship. But now it looked as if all of that were over for her and her extended family.

  The Russian half bowed and then looked at the small balding man who had just taken a seat. The portly man was in poor shape as the Russian soon discovered. He was scared and had a limp and an arm that didn’t seem to work quite properly. All in all these people were not the meek scientific types he had expected. They would bear watching.

  “Alexi Doshnikov.” He straightened after the brief protocol of the bow.

  Virginia and Niles had heard the name and they could see by the look on the Traveler’s face she had heard of the mobster herself. It also looked as though a small smile eased across her lips. Compton looked up and he could see one of the outside monitors in the reception area and saw the face of Xavier Morales appear and then disappear almost as fast. Suddenly he saw that Europa had shut down all of the monitors inside the building. Even the cell phones died in the Group’s pockets. Europa had pulled the plug. At least he knew they were being monitored by an outside source.

  “The police have been called,” Ryan said as he looked angrily toward the director. The act of defiance started here at Group right at the top of the heap and worked down.

  “Oh, that,” Doshnikov said with a sad smile on his face. “The local authorities have a small terrorist act on their hands, nothing major I assure you, but it seemed to be directed at Brooklyn’s pride and joy of an arena, so it looks as if any response time from the police may be an extended and lengthy proposition.”

  “See what I mean about talking as if you’re a sophisticated villain,” Ryan said angrily, but kept his smile from reaching his eyes.

  “My friend, your little quips of humor have a decidedly harsh and mocking edge to them, and I am growing tired of it. Out of respect for the Traveler, I will not have you shot in front of her, but keep in mind there is no help coming and that mouth of yours is a severe liability to the survival of this innocent family.”

  The door opened from the outside and Will Mendenhall, Sarah McIntire, and Anya Korvesky walked in as if they were unaware of what was happening. Jason noticed none of them were carrying the M-4 rifles they had had earlier, but at least all of them played the role well as their eyes widened in mock surprise as they slowly raised their hands into the air.

  “These are the two that were on top of the building this afternoon,” one of the larger men said as he stepped forward and frisked Mendenhall. Will had to smile when he saw the melted nylon of the man’s coat pocket.

  “Have a little accident there, Ivan?” Will asked as he nodded at the man’s pants where the confiscated cell phones had melted down. The Russian angrily tossed Mendenhall against the wall and made a far more thorough and rough search of the captain. Ryan winced as he realized Mendenhall was trying his best to provoke these men.

  “Where are my four men?” Doshnikov asked as he stepped menacingly toward Ryan, who held his ground.

  “It seems we left them in the loving arms of some very motivated Italian folks. You might know them since they ran these neighborhoods a hundred years before you were born, Stalin.”

  The backhand to Ryan’s jaw caught everyone but the navy man off guard. Jason shot Will a look to let him know that he just took the heat off of him and for the captain to knock off antagonizing these assholes. That was his job and he prided himself on doing it well.

  “I will deal with our Italian friends another time. For now you will take us to see this marvelous machine you have stolen from our poor Madam Mendelsohn. If you do this, we will utilize this golden ticket”—he nodded at the young family and the baby the mother held close to her chest—“one time and one time only. And then you can return to rescuing Jews or whatever it is you people do. I couldn’t care less. I need one night only, one trip only.”

  “What do you hope to accomplish?”

  All eyes turned and faced the Traveler. She was leaning forward in her chair and waiting as if a patient teacher had asked a backward student a question.

  “A great many things, Madam. They may not be the noble endeavor you and your associates have planned, but one that will benefit this great city very much. One that I might add benefited your own company very much indeed. Ah, don’t tell me you are unaware how your board of directors made their fortunes, are you? Come now, who’s being the naive one here, Madam? Yes, we have a far less noble, but yet beneficial endeavor.”

  “And that endeavor is?” Moira asked just as patiently as before.

  A warning look from Alice Hamilton failed to still the questioning by the brilliant scientist.

  “Alas”—Doshnikov looked from Alice then back to Moira—“I’m afraid my quest is one of avaristic value alone, just as your board of directors before me. Only I won’t be nickel-and-diming, as these Americans like to say. I’ll be making my moves all in one night, and the special thing is, and I mean very special, is the fact that other than the use of this magnificent doorway, it will all be completely aboveboard and legal. You see, I plan to be running this city this time next year and I plan on having the financial backing to do it.” He smiled and stepped closer to the wheelchair-bound Moira. He patted her old hand and then turned over the wrist and saw the tattoo: 674392. “And your miracle of science is going to supply me with that opportunity.”

  Moira only smiled as she pulled her arm free of the man’s grip. Then she turned and gestured for the new mother and held out her hands for the baby.

  “That is not recommended,” Doshinikov said as he stepped between the mother and the Traveler. “As the child has yet to be burped, and we wouldn’t want that, would we?” he joked, and then saw that the tattooed Ryan wasn’t laughing.

  Niles nodded that they should adjourn to the observation room. He waited until it was just him, Virginia, Alice, and a Russian guard before following. He nodded descreetly toward the darkened monitor. Both Virginia and Alice knew then that Xavier Morales was knowledgeable of their situation.

  But could the new computer whiz do anything about it?

  * * *

  As the Russian took in the stirring sight of the Wellsian Doorway and the many technicians who were preparing for the return dimensional shift when and if the signal was received, they could not prepare themselves adequately for the size of the operation. Seeing the many angry-looking technicians made Doshnikov momentarily hesitant about the size of his task. But seeing the doorway eased the problems to the back of his limited brain.

  “Everyone is just s
o busy, a stirring sight indeed,” he said as he placed a manicured hand onto the shoulder of one of Virginia’s female operators. The specialist recruited from George Mason University but five weeks before turned her body away from the man’s cold touch.

  “We aren’t going to allow this, you know that, right?” Ryan said as he nodded at the director to hurriedly escort the young science tech from the room.

  “Oh, I think we can come to an understanding,” Doshnikov said as he nodded toward the baby and the closing door where the female operator had just left.

  “We won’t be killing the baby, you will, along with the doorway,” Ryan said as he didn’t want the director speaking directly to this man.

  The Russian looked at his watch as he again stepped to the window.

  “Oh, we will be killing far more before we even get to the child.” He turned and smiled as the noise was heard from below through the speakers on the observation room wall.

  Ryan stepped hurriedly to the glass and saw that the room had filled with many men and all of them were carrying automatic weapons. They had bypassed external security somehow and entered through a portal the Event Group had no idea was even there. The plans for the building didn’t include another exit.

  “Oh, these dramatic shifts in circumstances always give me that comic book thrill,” he said, smiling, and with mock excitement as he took in an even angrier Ryan. “Or is that too wordy for you?”

  Below on the platform floor, the Event Group technicians were rounded up and forced against the wall and held there.

  “Now,” Doshnikov said as he turned and faced the people in the room, “let’s see if we can make this expensive slot machine pay off.” He pushed Ryan toward the stairs. “Shall we?” Jason made eye contact with Niles on his way out. He silently pleaded with the director to not antagonize these men. As he told Will earlier, that was his job to keep the black-hearted men off balance.