Crux Read online

  “Too long. But I’m not gonna stay too much longer because I don’t wanna grow old with nothing but an empty house and a dumbass TV set.”

  “Were all your years in Delta?”

  “No,” he shook his head “I was a Ranger for three years, the 72nd. Then I was invited to Delta and qualified. The rest is classified eyes-only stuff locked away somewhere. Even I can’t access records on myself.”

  “Do you like your job?”

  He shrugged. “I’m good at it.”

  “How many missions have you been on?”

  “Seventy-four.” He laughed grimly. “Wounded nineteen times. Lots of shiny medals that I’ll never see. Lots of places that don’t exist. I guess it’s a lot like being you.” He smiled. “How come you joined the CIA?”

  Janet smiled. “I actually just sort of fell into it. I was a lineman after I graduated from college trying to save up for grad school.”

  “A lineman?”

  “Yeah. A lineman for the county.”

  Roy blinked. “You mean, like, a real county lineman? Telephone poles and all that?”

  “Yeah,” Janet laughed. “I took down poles, installed poles. Ran wiring. Worked substations. Fixed substations and every kind of power outage from sleet, snow, hurricane, or tornado. Whatever was needed. I did it all.”

  Chuckling, Roy sat back. “So that accounts for why you’re in such good shape.”

  “You think I’m in good shape?” Janet laughed.

  “Yeah,” Roy nodded. “I do. You’re strong.” He stared to the side before he shook his head with a smile. “A lineman. Amazing. That’s a damn dangerous job.”

  “You bet it is. A lot of good people get killed doing it. But it pays well and I saved up enough to get my master’s. Anyway, I didn’t know I was being tested for the Central Intelligence Agency at first. I was at MIT and they just told me it was an aptitude test. I guess I scored pretty high for whatever they were looking for.”

  “They didn’t tell you your score?”

  “Nope. Anyway, they put me through every kind of psyche test known to science. And then a lie detector test. And then another lie detector test. And then, after all that mess, they sent me to see a shrink for an in-depth psychiatric evaluation. Then I was put on a six-month probation and had to master a truly astonishing programming system ad nauseam. And, finally, I was assigned to a classified job in a classified complex that doesn’t exist.”

  “Let me guess,” said Roy. “Because it’s classified?”

  “Good guess.”

  “Did you have a good view?”

  “When I took a smoke break.”

  “So you smash codes all day now?”

  Janet laughed. “I can’t share that any more than you can tell me how many people you’ve rescued from who, or when, or how, or how many people got killed in some place we were never at. Isn’t that how it works?”

  “Something like that,” Roy nodded with a sip. “Which just leaves us one thing to talk about.”

  “About tomorrow, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What are you so worried about?”

  “First,” said Roy, “get this straight. I don’t want you getting creative or sacrificial or noble on me. I don’t want you thinking you’re a hero because nobody’s a hero. You just do your job and go home. I don’t want you staying behind to make sure the security blackout lasts long enough than absolutely necessary. And right now I want you to be honest and tell me what you wouldn’t say in front of the general or the rest of them.”

  “Why are you talking to me and not Tanto or the general or Susan?”

  “Because you’re one who’s lying to me,” Roy answered without expression. “First, I don’t like lies. Second, I believe you’re in more danger that you’re letting on. Third, you could endanger this whole mission. So why don’t you tell me the truth?”

  Janet almost laughed. “Are you getting sweet on me?”

  “Just doing my job.”

  “I’m touched.”

  “It doesn’t mean we’re engaged.”

  “It’s still sweet.”

  “So why are you lying to me?” he pressed.

  “Why do you insist I’m lying?”

  “Because I plan to personally look you up when this last tour is over.” Roy stared down into his glass. “I’ve done my time. My tour is almost up and I’m not re-upping. I’m going back to civilian life and my cattle ranch. And I have some extra space if you’d like to see a little bit of Texas. And if I can get you out of this deathtrap alive.”

  At that, Janet did laugh. “Don’t sugarcoat it, Roy. Just tell it like it is.”

  “That’s another thing I’m good at.”

  “Well, the feeling’s mutual.” Janet settled back. “I’ve never gone for heroes. But I kind of like cowboys.”

  “Good enough,” he nodded. “Now talk to me. Tell me what you didn’t tell the general at the meeting.”

  Janet released a long, slow breath as if focusing on the unwanted inevitable. “I can guarantee you that I won’t live long enough for either Tanto or the general to reach me. But I can also promise that I’ll take care of Susan. I can send her out of the room because, ultimately, this just takes one person once she delivers the relay to me, so Tanto can reach Susan in time. She’ll be in the corridor. But I’ll be dead by then.”

  “Why is that?”

  Janet took another sip. “What do you know about computers?”

  “Obviously not enough.”

  “All right, the first thing you have to know is that everything in a computer is related to everything else. No command, no impulse, nothing sparks inside a computer without leaving a trace in the network. There is no such thing as isolation. That’s how Israel infected Iran’s entire defense system through a thumb drive.”

  “I remember that,” Roy grunted. “How’d they do that again?”

  Janet shrugged, “Israel just waited until the guy went home and went to sleep. Then they slipped into his house and secretly planted a virus in his personal thumb drive. The next day, he took it back to work, plugged it into his work computer and the entire country’s defense complex was infected within seconds. And, during that time, Iran was completely defenseless. Anybody could have launched anything against them and Iran couldn’t have done a thing about it. Even their telephones and traffic lights were down.”

  For a moment Roy only stared. “So what does all that mean? That you’re planning to crash the whole system? Don’t you think that’s a little obvious? And won’t the place go into some kind of automatic lockdown if that happens? I mean, if our nuclear missile silos lose connection to Washington or Red Mountain, they automatically interpret that as an attack. And that means—”

  “Yeah, that means that all silo personnel are required to carry out their fourth protocol and launch the missiles,” Janet finished. “I know the protocols. And that’s also why I know that this place won’t go into automatic lockdown if I just reboot the security system. That is not some kind of tenth level mondo-emergency. This is just a reboot. But if it turns into a shutdown, then that would initiate a lockdown. Then nobody gets in, nobody gets out. Including us. So I’ll have to stay behind and keep rebooting the system to make it look like a simple computer glitch. Now, I can guarantee you guys safe passage up and down that corridor for thirty minutes. But they’ll find me at a half hour and kill me where I stand. Then it’ll take them another fifteen minutes for them to secure the system and that will give you and your guys enough time to make a clean escape and get safe distance on that place. So you survive. Nobody knows it was us. Everybody goes home. Mission accomplished.”

  Scowling, Roy asked, “Do you really think I’m going to leave you behind or let something happen to you? Are you nuts?”

  “Roy, this place has the best computer trackers in the world,” sai
d Janet. “I won’t be able to throw them off for more than a half-hour even if I reboot the system through ten thousand encrypted satellites. But I can send Susan into the hall in the first minute so that Tanto and the general can grab her while I keep the computer in a loop.”

  “That’s not a plan.”

  “I have to keep the computer occupied for as long as it takes you guys to get the job done. And this job could save the world. There’s no other way.”

  “Well, we’ll save the world but it ain’t gonna happen like this.” Roy shook his head grimly and solidly. “I’ll find another way.”

  “You don’t have a choice, Roy. We’ve only got one shot at this. And I seriously doubt that anybody will ever get another chance to try this stunt again. So we either succeed big or we lose big. And, if we go down, the rest of the world goes down because whatever creatures exist on the other side of that portal are going to kill everything in sight when they come through that gateway.” She bowed her head. “Those damn fools are actually convinced that they can control what comes out of that portal. But what comes out of that portal is going to eat them alive. Then us. Then whoever gets in their way from one end of this universe to the next.”

  Roy released a moan like a suppressed laugh. “That’s funny,” he said quite soberly, “I thought you were a genius. And you think I would let you die in this? When you fell off the turnip truck, did you land on your head?”

  Staring intently, Janet asked, “Do you believe in God, Roy?”

  “As much as the next man, I guess,” he grunted. “I sure as hell don’t believe that whatever we saw in that picture is human. That narrows things down a bit. But whether it’s a demon or an alien, whatever the difference is, I don’t know. I know it’s not of this world but that’s a pretty vague thing. Meteorites aren’t from this world. I’ve personally seen ships that I know are not from this world. I’ve even seen ’em on a submarine.”

  “Everybody knows about those,” Janet replied, a dismissive gesture. “Anyway, I only ask because I do believe in God. And I am willing to die to make sure those things don’t find a gateway into this world.”

  “That’s fine with me,” Roy nodded. “But you ain’t gonna die on my watch. And I’m gonna tweak the plan to make sure that doesn’t happen.” He raised a hand as she opened her mouth. “No. You do exactly what you’re planning to do. Leave the rest to me.”

  For a moment Janet blinked softly, then leaned forward, “But we’re not just fighting for my life, Roy. We’re fighting for the whole world.”

  “Good thing I’m a professional then.” He took a deep breath, a nod. “That’s what I’m good at. Just tell me, doc … It is doctor, isn’t it?”

  “Yes,” Janet smiled. “I have a doctorate specializing in subatomic particle decay.”

  “Okay. Just tell me. What, exactly, did you mean when you said we might face opposition from a force that’s not of this world?”

  “I meant that that thing in the picture is no mistake and it’s no illusion. This collider might be immoral, but it’s very accurate.” She blinked slowly. “If that creature is in this world as we speak, and it discovers you, it’ll kill you if it can. It’ll kill every one of you. So it’s not the humans you have to worry about. It’s the demons that have already come through that portal. Because I think they’re still in that facility. I think they know what you’re planning to do. And I think they’re waiting for you.”

  A grim line hardened Roy’s jaw. He said nothing, then set down the glass. He rose and walked to the door before pausing. “You do exactly what I say tomorrow. You set that thing offline at nine and keep it offline. That’s all you need to know and all you need to do. Don’t do another thing. You got me?”

  Janet nodded, “Take care of Susan, okay?”

  With a frown Roy turned away.

  ***

  It was after midnight when Tanto answered the knock at his door. After he opened it, Roy slid inside and closed the panel.

  “Jesus, man,” said Tanto. “Now what?”

  “We’ve got a change of plan and it stays between you and me, buddy,” said Roy smartly. “Get the remotes. We’re gonna cowboy a few things.”

  ***

  “That’s our way in,” said Isaiah.

  Standing in solid darkness—Amanda had never seen such total darkness and so many stars in her life—she tightened her down jacket. She glanced at the snow-covered fir trees that thickened the slope like sentinels of ice. Then she asked, teeth chattering, “What did you say?”

  “I said,” Isaiah pointed, “that’s our way in.”

  Amanda stared down at the road so far below. “An ambulance? You can’t be serious! I mean, you’re not serious!” A pause. “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’m not!” Amanda grunted as she straightened an arm, pointing. “How are we supposed to get inside an ambulance? And I thought you said we’d take a tour bus!”

  “Change of plans. That’s a private ambulance service. It’s got priority and I’ve got its name. And I bet it’s designated for use at this facility alone. It must be part of a detail that takes care of chemical or radiation accidents. They’d use something like that for this place. All we have to do is get inside it.”

  Amanda stared. “That’s all? Well, that sounds simple enough. Get inside an ambulance reserved for radioactive disasters. And how do we do that?”

  “No muss, no fuss.”

  “Until this moment I liked that phrase.” Amanda fixed Isaiah with a stare. “You’re crazy, you know that? In the first place your genetic memory or whatever it’s called has driven you insane. Secondly, you carry a sword when swords went out of style a long time ago. Nowadays people kill each other in a more civilized manner. And, in the third place, how the hell are we gonna kidnap some EMTs and steal their ambulance?”

  “I didn’t say we were going to kidnap anybody. We just need to find out where they keep those things. They’ll have a warehouse where they do maintenance, check the tires, put chains on it, whatever. But it won’t be abandoned. It’ll have some mechanics. We’ll have to steal it out from under them.”

  Amanda lowered her chin into her coat. “So we’re just gonna sneak into this warehouse and drive away with an ambulance? That the plan?”

  “Well,” Isaiah shrugged, “to be honest, I don’t really plan in the conventional sense of the word.”

  “Ah, yeah, that’s right. You like to make things up as you go.”

  “Something like that.” Isaiah cocked his head. “But considering the rather skeletal intelligence you gave me before we started this fiasco, I didn’t have a lot to work with. It’s not like you gave me a playbook.” He took a moment. “On the downside, I do have to say this is a rather desperate idea. Even for me. But desperate times …”

  “We ain’t that desperate. Even if we do make it inside that compound where are we going to hide all day until we get a shot at Blanchard?”

  “All I know right now,” Isaiah turned back into the fir trees, “is I don’t wanna get killed standing on this ridge. Let’s go.”

  “What time is it?”

  “It’s morning. Let’s find a place to get some breakfast.”

  “Know any place called The Last Supper?”

  ***

  “One thing about Switzerland,” Amanda said as Isaiah swerved along the curving mountain road, “is that there is not a straight road in this country. And that includes whatever goat trail this is.”

  After a moment Amanda patted the dashboard of the rental car. “Why did you rent a car as soon as we landed?”

  “Well, it’s better to have one and not need it than—”

  “Yeah, I know. Than to need one and not have it.”

  Isaiah laughed, “I always rent a car when I land in a new place. After grabbing my bag, it’s the first thing I do. The second thing I do is to
rent a second car and stash it somewhere for an emergency.”

  “What kind of emergency?”

  “Could be anything. But I do it in case I have to ditch the first car.”

  “You don’t trust public transportation, huh?”

  “Funny. No. I don’t like to trust people with my own safety. Truth is, the first time I landed in Rome, the entire taxi world was on strike. Then, the second time I landed in Rome, the entire taxi world was on strike. Guess what was happening the third time I landed in Rome?”

  “Yeah, I get the picture.”

  “Do you blame me?”

  They cruised in silence before Amanda said, “Okay, you’ve told me the mechanics of how this collider works. But if you know so much, then why is it such a mystery to the rest of the world?”

  “The Unread might call it a mystery,” allowed Isaiah. “But anybody who knows anything about that collider knows that it was a dangerous idea from the beginning. The whole plot was corrupt and the people behind it were just plain evil or psychotic or power-mad. Whatever happens to people when they have a house full of gold and a graveyard for a soul. When these psychos conjured up the idea for this place a hundred years ago, they didn’t care about the origins of the universe. But they did have an obsession for gold, political power, and whatever else cranked their tractor. So it goes without saying that they were more interested in power than truth. And the one thing people who crave power hate most of all are people who possess more power than they do.”

  “Who would have more power than a rich man?”

  “Anyone who doesn’t value riches.”

  “Why do you think that is?”

  Isaiah shrugged slightly, “Because they can’t control people who don’t value gold, sex, violence, or political power. I mean, how do they control someone who values God more than gold? They can’t. And they know it. And they can’t stand people they can’t control. Which puts people who hold spiritual values at the top of their list of things to destroy.”

  Hands cradling a thermos of espresso, Amanda mumbled, “Hundreds of years ago they were crucifying witches and warlocks. They were burning werewolves. They had the Salem Witch Trials. A ton of innocent people burned at the stake because of three psychotic children. Then, lest we forget, there were the Spanish Inquisitions that hung bodies from every tree they passed. And, after that, the entire world saw blatant religious persecution from Moscow to Beijing with hundreds of millions of Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Catholics, Christians burned alive, buried alive, hacked into pieces, or just shot dead. And let’s remember to get a basket of fruit for The French Revolution and The Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre. Why would anybody risk their life proclaiming something spiritual when virtually everyone on the planet was getting murdered for it? It’s hard to understand what provoked that kind of persecution.”