Chapter Twenty-Five
Panic ripping through her veins, Sky, Kane, her dad, and the Chief quickly returned to the station to regroup. Harvey and Elmer joined them as they sat in a circle to come up with a plan to find their beloved Harriet. Sky shoved her confession as to why she’d run off, to the back burner for the moment. Finding Harriet was all that mattered now.
Kane kept looking over at her, sympathy in his eyes, but he must have understood that now wasn’t the time to talk. Dixie, Harriet’s sister, wanted to be in on the discussion, insisting they call in the FBI, but the Chief and her dad told her they would do everything they could to find her sister.
“Ms. Dixie,” Sky said. “It would be best if you went home and waited for any word from Harriet. We’re doing our best to locate her. I promise we’ll let you know if we discover anything.”
When she hesitated, Kane moved in front of her and took hold of Dixie’s hand. “You know how you can really help us?”
“How?” she sniffled.
“Keep the coffee coming. You make the best stuff at the diner.”
Her eyes sparkled. “If you’re sure it’ll help, Mr. Kane, I’ll do it.”
The man seemed to be able to sway every female around. Dixie hurried back to the cafe to do his bidding.
“I know I’m on suspension, but I want to help too,” she said.
“Thank you,” the Chief replied.
As if Kane was in charge, he made eye contact with each person in the circle. “No holds barred. Everyone with me?”
In unison, they chanted, “Yes.”
After they batted around what they were going to do and when, Kane asked that they go through the facts one more time to make sure they hadn’t missed anything. “Chief, you start.”
“Last I remember, Harriet was dishing up a batch of her fresh chocolate chip cookies right here in the office and left work at her usual time, happy and helpful like always.”
Harvey piped up. “Dot said she saw Harriet at EBE’s around five thirty, grabbing her usual chicken salad sandwich and then poof, she vanished.”
Kane leaned forward, his hands dangling over his knees. “Poof?”
Harvey nodded. “Apparently, Harriet paid and left, but forgot her glasses on the table. When Dot went out to return them, Harriet was gone. Poof. Couldn’t have been more than ten seconds, she said.”
“Okay, poof it is.”
The Chief spoke up again. “Maybe we should wait to see if they return her, like they did Sky and Dan Joe.”
“It’s Harriet,” Sky said. “She’s no spring chicken. She’ll be scared. We need to help her now.”
The Chief nodded. “You’re right.”
Elmer held up his hand, as if he still thought he was in school. “I’m not sure they will return her, like they did with Sky. They know we know about them now. Maybe they’re trying to lure us, and once we get inside the Base, they’ll show us there is nothing in there but military stuff—no aliens and no hostages.”
She didn’t buy it. “If that’s true, we need to strike before they bail and hide any evidence.”
They went through their options. In the end, they chose the “Wookie Gambit” trick, the device used in the Star Wars movie, in which Sky would pose as a prisoner, and Kane would be a sentry and escort her back in. Sky wasn’t sure it would work, but with Kane at her side, they might have a chance.
Kane finally spoke directly to her. “Sky, I need you to see if Dr. Williams will agree to our plan.”
“I’m on it.”
The Chief puffed out his chest. “Harvey, how about we do a little reconnaissance?”
Harvey looked like he’d been asked to wear a purple tutu and dance around town. “Of what?”
“The military Base, you idiot.”
“Isn’t that dangerous?” Harvey sounded scared.
“It can be.”
“Take some night vision goggles,” Kane said.
The chief’s chin sunk. “You got some?”
“In my Jeep.” Kane slapped his thighs and stood. “If you find out anything, Chief, let us know.”
They all agreed that when Sky reached Dr. Williams in Page, they would reconvene in the morning, as they needed Dr. Williams’s assistance before undertaking the operation. As they walked out, Kane suggested they drive to Page tonight.
“The morgue closed at five.” It was after that now.
“He might open up shop once he knows this is a matter of national security.”
Kane had a point. “Doc Williams might believe us more if the General called him.”
Kane pulled open the door for her, something she’d come to expect. “You’re good, I’ll hand that to you.” She thought she caught a wink.
She stopped. “Wait. I almost forgot. I have my car, or rather my loaner here. I’d rather not leave it on the street. Why don’t I meet you at the house and you can call your friend?”
He stood over her and looked down. “What happened to your car? I saw the bruises and the spot of blood on your shoulder at the restaurant but then the Chief rushed in and everything went crazy.” His shoulders slumped. “Don’t tell me you totaled the VW too.”
Sky looked to the side and shuffled her feet. “Um, I was in a bit of an accident.”
She went into a shortened version of how a farmer pulled out in front of her on the way to the airport.
His chest seemed to cave. “You didn’t end up leaving. Was it because you had a change of heart or because you wrecked your car and couldn’t get a ride to the airport?” His mouth firmed.
Now wasn’t the time to go into detail, but she wanted to come clean. “I changed my mind. The farmer offered me a ride to Page, but I was too beat up and looked a mess.” From the way his eyes darkened, she might have made things worse.
“Oh.”
Now why hadn’t she told him the truth? Chicken, chicken, chicken. She could have sworn Harriet was right behind her, whispering in her ear.
“In light of your third wrecked car in as many weeks, I don’t think you should be behind the wheel,” Kane said.
“That’s not fair. The last accident wasn’t my fault.”
His brows rose. “I’m sure. How about you ask Elmer to have the rental place pick up the car?”
Sometimes, Kane could be the most infuriating man in the world. “Fine.”
They headed back inside the station and gave Elmer the rental car key. He seemed happy to have something useful to do and was out before she had a chance to snap her seatbelt or figure out why her stomach was in turmoil.
Once they arrived at her house, she wanted to lock herself in the bathroom and never come out, but she was hungry and didn’t want Kane to think she was some psycho case. Sky walked out in the cleanest pair of jeans she could find and a fresh top. She still looked like hell, but at least she didn’t have bloodstains on her anymore.
Kane glanced up at her, his cell phone to his ear. She could have sworn his eyes sparkled when he noticed her. “Thank you, sir. I’ll keep you in the loop.” Kane pocketed his phone. “All set. You have the swipe card, right?” He was very matter of fact. She could handle him acting all military. It was the sweet, kind man she could do without right now.
“Yes. The Chief reluctantly let me have it, and then said he was sorry he had accused me of taking evidence without permission.”
“I’m glad he noted the error of his ways. Let’s go.”
Sky wanted to talk about the note and why she’d left, but it wouldn’t do to distract Kane now. There’d be time later. Besides, she wasn’t in the mood to listen to his excuses about why he wasn’t interested. Because it was better to let it go, they discussed their plan to free Harriet.
Dr. Williams was waiting outside the morgue when they pulled up, and from the way he shifted from foot to foot, he wasn’t anxious to help, but a command from a top military official was probably hard to turn down.
“Sky. Mr. Cornell.” Williams unlocked the door. “You’ll have to tell me which finger you want.” From the way his voice was high, he wasn’t pleased to be doing this.
Putting him in this bad position almost made her sick, but they needed to get into the military base.
“Index,” she and Kane said in unison.
“You do know this is illegal.” The doc’s lips pinched, and his cheeks were paler than usual.
“The military needs this.”
He nodded and Sky cringed. She was already one step from losing her badge, and could only hope that what they were about to do was never found out. It didn’t matter someone in the military had sanctioned it.
In silence, they followed the doctor to his room. After the morgue door closed, the air was heavy and filled with a sickly sweet odor of death. He pulled out the drawer containing Randall Tyler. “A cousin came forward to claim the body, but I wasn’t sure if I should release him. I was waiting for you to get back to me.”
The doc was a saint. “Thank you.”
“This will take a minute.”
Sky didn’t want to watch him cut off the man’s index finger. It shouldn’t matter the guy was dead and didn’t have a head; it was still dismemberment to her. The sawing noise grated on her nerves, but from Kane’s calm expression, he didn’t seem to mind. Good thing he’d be the one wearing the dead man’s finger and not her.
* * *
The drive back to her place involved Kane rehashing the details of what was going to happen when they attempted to find Harriet. The whole time, her stomach remained in knots. To keep from fidgeting too much, she played with her straggly hair.
Tell him.
She couldn’t—not yet. As soon as they rescued Harriet, Sky would tell Kane how much he meant to her, since holding out on Kane was eating her alive.
Once home, he ordered her to sit in the kitchen while he found a pen and paper. It was after ten p.m., and while she wanted nothing more than to crash, Kane insisted on drawing a few diagrams. She understood full well the need to be on the same page, but come on. It wasn’t rocket science to have him drag her to the entryway and claim one of their prisoners had gotten loose.
Mr. Morris, Mr. whistleblower himself, had detailed what the area looked like and how to get to the lower levels. His intel would be invaluable.
“It’s 22:25. Let’s go.”
Her stomach tumbled, her nerves raw. “You said we’d go tomorrow night. We’re supposed to meet up with everyone tomorrow morning, remember?”
“I wanted them to think that.”
Her heart hammered in her chest. “So you don’t trust them either?”
“No.”
“Who do you think is the traitor?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Me, neither. I trust Elmer and that’s about it.”
“Ready? You can say no if you want.”
As brave as she’d been throughout her career, right now, she wasn’t so sure she was emotionally ready to break into a military base and risk it all. She could end up in the prison underground forever. “We don’t even know they’re holding Harriet prisoner there.”
He stepped so close she could feel his breath on her face. “Are you saying you don’t want to do this? Because if you don’t, we won’t go in.”
He was giving her the option to say no, but Kane needed her, and so did Harriet. “No. I’m in.”
“Good. Remember the whistleblower said prisoners escaped periodically but were always caught. The numbering system he gave us might not be exact, but it should allow us to gain access. We won’t have a lot of time to find her, so you do understand we can’t search every room or every level?”
“Yes. Men will be patrolling and checking everywhere.” She made sure her phone, with its camera, was charged, and then inhaled deeply. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Then let’s put on our costumes.”
She hurried as fast as she could, carefully applying the makeup. A few minutes later, she stepped into the living room where Kane was dressed in fatigues, like the kind the guards wore.
He tapped her nose. “You look cute.”
Where had that cheer come from? She gave him a defiant stance. “My hair is all ratted, I have brown streaks all over my face, and I’m wearing horribly tattered clothes. I can’t possibly look cute with fake blood on my cheek and arm. At least the purple bruises are real. It saved me makeup time.”
He seemed to be fighting a smile. “It’s mission time.”
Without saying another word, she followed him to the Jeep. He went over the details one more time as they headed to their lot a mile from the base. They parked there because it had to look like she’d escaped.
It was chilly, so they jogged to keep warm. A coat would only prove she hadn’t escaped from the DUMB. As they drew near, he pulled up. “I need to put the cuffs on you.” His tone implied he didn’t relish the idea.
She nodded. This was the uncomfortable part, and the memory of her boss slapping them on her wrists returned. Kane issued some orders loudly, and in less than thirty seconds, four men with guns arrived. Her pulse was racing so fast, she didn’t need to fake the fear.
“Halt. Where are you going?”
Kane stepped forward and held up his badge. “I found prisoner 45813 wandering about a mile from here. I’m just returning her.”
Silence.
She tried to jerk out of Kane’s grasp, as a real prisoner would do, but it was fifty-fifty whether they’d believe the story. They leaned close to each other and conferred. Sky improvised. She doubled over and pretended to vomit. In the dark, they wouldn’t be able to see if she was spewing her guts or was dry heaving.
“Take her inside.”
Kane saluted and trotted her toward the shed. She stumbled, and this time she wasn’t faking it.
He swiped the card and the door clicked open. The moment she stopped to look around, he jerked her arm and dragged her toward the ramp. From here on out, she had to act like his prisoner, and that meant no whispering and no improvising. She hoped Harriet appreciated their sacrifice.
The shed had been a new addition since Whistleblower2 had been there, and they had no idea if there would be stairs or not. They took the paved pathway downward, and as they reached the end of the long ramp, there were two doors. One required a fingerprint scan and the other an eye scan. Guess that answered the question why the killers took Randall Tyler’s head. The eye scan must be for more secure area.
Kane pressed the dead man’s finger over the scanner and tossed her an evil glance. Because cameras were probably watching their every move, she hung her head. The extra makeup she applied was to make her look like she’d been beaten.
The door clicked and they slipped in. She couldn’t help but take in the bizarre surroundings. “Oh, my God.”
“Silence,” Kane said, acting super tough.
The entryway looked like a subway station, only instead of tiled walls, the rounded sides were reinforced with steel girders. A train track ran as far as she could see, rounded a bend, and then disappeared to who knew where. While there was a walkway along the side of the track for human or alien traffic, there appeared to be no doors or windows. The place smelled of grease, dirt, and sweat. Gross.
“Move it.” Kane gently shoved her.
“Can’t you uncuff me, now? I ain’t going anywhere.”
He tossed the key a few feet in front of her to make it look like he was in charge. She knew he was acting tough for all the watchful eyes. Playing along, she dropped to her knees and picked up the key. With much deliberation, she unlocked her cuffs, and the relief was considerable. Regardless of the circumstances, cuffs hurt.
Whistleblower had told them that once they were through the main doors, the way to the prison was down four levels. First, they had to walk several hundred yards to get to a second doorway. They re-scanned and entered an area that looked similar to the one they’d just crossed, except this one had no train tracks. This air was stale and seemed to be a mixture of oil and cement dust. It wouldn’t be a nice place to work, especially since lung disease had to be prevalent. Sky wondered if they’d brought her here when they’d taken her. Unfortunately, she couldn’t remember.
“Keep moving.” Kane’s tone sounded gruff, but she could tell he didn’t like issuing the orders any more than she liked hearing them.
After a good three minutes, the path rounded a bend. What she wouldn’t give to take photos and document this place, but that would land them both in a cell.
Once they passed the parking garage, they came to a large room off to the side that was filled with huge tubs of what looked like grass or some kind of thin green vegetable. Six-foot diameter heat lamps sat overhead and workers tended to the plants’ care. It appeared the Base made some of its own food, unless the grass was there to help with oxygen production or feed animals.
Kane shoved her again. “Stop gawking.”
She kept walking until the sidewalk turned to dirt, and the walls became rock. So far, Whistleblower hadn’t steered them wrong. They rounded another curve and were faced with a fifteen-foot tall door that was twelve-feet wide. Given the size, it had to be at least three feet thick, reinforced again with steel bars. It wasn’t something anyone could escape from. So how had she supposedly gotten away? Dear God. If they were caught, no one would find them—FBI or no FBI.
Kane must have sensed her despair, because he grabbed her neck. She bet he made it look rough to any onlookers, but when he massaged her muscles, she almost sank against him. She wondered how he had gone on missions where he could have been blown to smithereens at any moment or tortured and held captive when he didn’t have anyone around to rub his neck or give him comfort. She shivered at the thought.
They entered the big doorway. Behind glass windows were science labs run by humans. The typical equipment was there, ranging from computers with large screens to machines that probably did tests on different materials or on humans. It wasn’t something she wanted to think about.
If they couldn’t find Harriet, she and Kane needed some evidence to show what the military was up to—whatever that was. Several armed men in uniform strode by. A few saluted, but they mostly ignored Kane and his prisoner. They then passed what she guessed was a cafeteria next to an empty library. She darted inside.
“Prisoner. Stand down.”
When no alarm sounded, Kane ducked in behind her. This looked like a small high school library with maybe twenty rows of books, fifteen-feet tall. She was surprised they had any books, unless they figured electronic files were too easy to hack into. Four tables housed artifacts that could have been alien or pieces from a space shuttle. On the second table were several large books. She flipped through a couple of them, noting all were in foreign languages she didn’t recognize, and the paper felt old. Then there was a sealed glass container that held the first two pages of some kind of legal document. She quickly scanned the contents.
“Holy crap.”
This time she didn’t wait for Kane to come over. She pulled out her camera phone and snapped two pictures of the contents.
“Sir, what is the prisoner doing in here?”
She froze.