Intelligent Design: Revelations to Apocalypse (11 page)

Heat flushed Riesman’s face—of course she didn’t want it! She tossed the device against the wall, then wiped her hands on her ruined dress and was about to ask where they were going when Vespere’s small, strong hands pushed her off balance. She fell, but instead of hitting the floor, she plummeted through the trapdoor, barely clearing its edges, and landed firmly in Lux’s cable-like arms.

“You can afford to miss a meal, Riesman. All that sugar, rice and processed food will do you in,” she said as she pushed Riesman off. Vespere jumped through the trap door and landed solidly on her legs. The heavy door closed above them.

“Thanks for the warning.” No one replied, and Riesman wondered if they understood sarcasm. She followed the others across an empty room and through a door into the public hallway. As soon as they stepped into the common area, Dee Dee, who was helping Perez, pulled a fire alarm. Sirens screamed and red lights flashed.

The hallway began to fill with nervous people evacuating, and the group walked away from the elevators and into another apartment. Once inside, Dee Dee turned to Vespere.

“Blow the apartment.”

She produced a small device that emitted green light, flicked a switch, and pressed a button. The light changed to red and a huge explosion rocked the building above them and to the far right. They moved on before the shaking and sound subsided.

“Okay. So you’re an Epsilon Force from where? UK?” Riesman asked under her breath.

“We are not from around there either,” Vespere said.

“Let me guess … the apartment was set to blow. So you were prepared,” Riesman continued, aware that her familiarity with Seals helped her adapt quickly from Thanksgiving dinner conversation to an elite commando unit on a mission.

“Yes,” Lux replied.

Perez and these women left nothing out, nothing to chance and made no mistakes. And they killed an entire FBI strike team. But they couldn’t be FBI. They‘d planned to kill her, and the three women, just like they had Damon and Hiaki. Riesman wondered what she’d fallen into.

Lux opened a closet door and pushed the back wall. It opened into another part of the building, where they walked through more empty apartments. Once in a different public hallway, Vespere pulled another alarm. People came out in waves, and Riesman and the team flowed onto the street with everyone else.

Outside, large numbers of people milled around, and in the confusion, they didn’t notice three small women wearing all black helping an injured man and a barefoot woman covered with blood. Riesman glanced behind her. A large police barrier obstructed the road nearly half a block away. Above her, helicopter wreckage was embedded in the third floor, and two stories above that, the penthouse burned. Brilliant yellow and white flames curled skyward and spread across the entire top floor.
Impressive.

She turned her gaze to the front and walked on with Lux at her side. “Where are we going?”

“To a very fast vehicle,” Lux replied.

“And that fire back there?”

“A little something-something I concocted to not only burn rapidly but to such high temperatures that it should melt metal, bone, teeth and everything around it. They won’t be able to identify anyone. If they know we were all there, they should believe that we are all dead. Hopefully, they won’t make the connection unless they find the trap door, which was at the epicenter of the blast.” Still smiling at her handiwork, she opened a car door and assisted Riesman into the back seat with Dee Dee and Perez. Lux and Vespere climbed into the front. Dee Dee, observing Perez closely, removed blood-soaked bandages and replaced them with clean ones. Only then did Riesman realize that Perez had been hit.

“Oh my God!”

“Not to worry, Riesman. Two bullets cleared vital organs though one looks like it collapsed a lung. If we get him to the ship quickly, he should be fine once we clear the landing zone. Vespere, go to the emergency extraction zone on the island; we are going to the old fort in Boston Bay.
Silent Star Falling
has made all of its pickups and is already preparing to land, but it has only five windows to accomplish this between the Earthers' aircraft traveling over it and the possibility of pursuit. There is a small landing craft exposed to open ocean that will take you to the yacht.”

“Excellent! We’ll be able to go fishing. I love the ocean,” Lux said as the car took off at a fast clip.

“The chart, course, and supplies are all in place. Once I leave, take the new Milites and Dr. Riesman to the new location and continue with the preparation. Also, the Keeper apparently left three pounds of chestnuts for you both in the boat.”

“Praise the Keeper and may she have long life!” Lux cried.

Riesman swam in a sea of information with no idea of what to do. Should she make a break for it once the car stopped, or continue on with them? After all, throughout everything, Perez and these women could have let her die—a couple of times. But they hadn’t. She looked at Perez. He appeared to be unconscious. It hit her how brutally Agent Harper had killed her boss right in front of her and brazenly admitted to killing Hiaki. She realized that the people she could trust might be only the ones with her right now.

“Dammit,” she said quietly.

Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors-
Confucius

“I'm sorry for all of this, Bobbie Jo.” Perez spoke with difficulty from where he lay on the back seat of the car.

Riesman knelt beside him with the door open, her back towards a large open field. His face had swollen, and bandages and compresses covered his body. “Don’t talk, Anthony. You’re working on one lung …”

Perez frowned as if trying to remember something. “It makes sense that you take over … Roberta Joanne Riesman: retired Major, Executive Director of Readiness, Disaster Logistics, Office of Response and Recovery at FEMA, US Office of Naval Intelligence, Ph.D. Psychology, MPH … it makes sense … you’ll understand the issues … the disaster, hysteria …” he muttered.

Not knowing what to do, she put her hand on his shoulder. It seemed to bring him back to the present, and they sat quietly for a moment in an empty field in the middle of an abandoned fort in Boston Bay.

“Just rest, Anthony. I guess help is coming,” Riesman said. He nodded and closed his eyes.

She surveyed the open, desolate field tucked at the end of a peninsula. A Civil War fort stood in ruins on a nearby hill overlooking the vacant field and ocean. Light swept across the sky from the automatic lighthouse beside it, and faint light from the Boston skyline bled through the fog. Riesman took a deep breath, and the refreshing smell of sea salt, ocean and some kind of flowers eased her tension.

I’m alive.

Only the constant flow of air traffic heading over the island into Logan International Airport marred the setting. The roar of engines moved from a distant hum in the east to a loud thunder as they passed low overhead, and then faded as the planes coasted in for landing. Always another plane followed right on their tail.

Dee Dee stood by the driver’s door staring at her tablet while Vespere and Lux organized back packs, five of them by Riesman’s count.

This is an operation. Some kind of extraction
, she thought.
How many times have I been here … usually with my own gear and boots …
Cold rose through the soles of her mangled shoes, and Riesman’s heart grew heavy as she tried to figure out what to do next.

As if reading her mind, Perez spoke quietly but clearly.

“You know you can never go back, Bobbie Jo. Those people back there are killers. They killed Hiaki and your boss with ease. You and the other girls were on the list, and I would have joined you shortly, I’m sure.”

“I can go to the police. I have friends in D.C. …”

“And then the same people that set your boss up, interrogated Hiaki, and killed them both would find you. They would assume you know something.”

Riesman raised her voice above the airplane noise.

“But I don’t know anything!”

“I know that, Bobbie Jo. I know that,” Perez said. He took in a deep breath and continued. “But they don’t. And these are the kind of people that don’t like loose ends. The people who sent that hit team don’t know how much or how little you know, and they won’t be happy until you’re dead.”

Riesman tried to find fault with his logic, but considering that she’d escaped death less than two hours ago after being compelled to be a part of entrapping a German national, Perez’s analysis seemed accurate.

“But what about my family? My sister and nieces …” Yet another plane rumbled in the distance.

“They'll be safe if you’re presumed dead. If they think you’re alive, they become bait.”

Perez shuffled across the seat towards the door. Taking the cue, she assisted him outside, and he leaned on the car facing the field, looking settled but tired. The sound of the plane overhead receded and, surprisingly, none took its place. Riesman looked east and didn’t even see any navigation lights.

“Looks like my ride is here. Do me a favor and hold onto this until I get back.” Perez handed her his tablet. “I may get a new one, but I want you to hold onto this because it belongs here, and it will help you with some answers. I’m going to be gone for a while.” She frowned.

“Anthony? What are you saying?”

“Right now it’s rebooting and should be back online in about a week. The transmissions are weak and it desperately needs recharging,” he explained.

Though reluctant to touch it in light of what happened last time, she took the tablet. The night had grown strangely still, the roar of descending planes having ceased. She turned and looked east again—no oncoming planes, just an empty field.

She turned back to Perez with a frown. He took another deep breath, as if the prior conversation had exhausted him, and pointed directly upward. She looked up and gasped, eyes wide, heart suddenly racing. Above them, a massive, black bird silently descended. Riesman took a step back, shaking her head in disbelief. A moment later, landing gear emerged from the smooth, black ship.

Earthers, Terrans, Venus, not alone in the universe … spaceships? Another planet?

“Holy Crap! My God! What in God’s name is that?” Riesman said with bated breath.

Dee Dee provided a casual explanation of the vehicle in standard military, minimalist vernacular while she assisted Perez.

“An interplanetary, stealth spaceship typically used for observation, surveying, immediate evac, and pickup runs. Minimal weaponry so it’s very fast while having a guidance and landing system that uses the Earth’s molten core and magnetic field as a means of landing rather than the usual chemical fission thrusters required on Terra and Venus. Due to Earth’s rapid rotation, the magnetic field alone will suffice for lift off.”

Slack jawed and wide eyed, Riesman watched the massive ship settle on landing struts, and felt a sudden need to go the bathroom.

“Immunes Vespere and Lux—you’re now in command. If all goes well, I’ll see you both in ten years or less. Good luck and instruct your Milites well,” Dee Dee said as she helped Perez to the opening ramp. Both women stood silently at attention and placed a closed fist over their heart in salute.

This can’t be happening! A spaceship? For real?

“Bobbie Jo? Bobbie Jo—go with Vespere and Lux. They’ll make sure you’re safe. Once the tablet recharges, it’ll tell you what you need to know. Then you can make your own decisions,” Perez said.

Slowly, Riesman recovered from the shock. With Dee Dee’s support, Perez ambled to the ship. Two other women that looked just like Vespere and Lux passed them at the edge of the ramp.

“Let me come with you.” Riesman spoke out of desperation, not even sure what she meant. Dee Dee and Perez stopped and looked back at her, obviously as surprised as she was for asking.

“Hiaki is dead. I’ll have to hide and never see my family. There’s nothing to stay here for,” Riesman blurted out as tears filled her eyes.

Perez motioned her closer.

“Bobbie Jo, if you hear what the Keeper tells you, you may decide to take a path that will create an entirely different and more important life than you could ever imagine. I’d hoped to be around, but this is your place, here on Earth, while I need to be elsewhere with my daughter. As long as you have the Keeper and your team, you’ll never be alone unless that’s the journey you take.”

Riesman shook her head. His words hadn’t reassured her, and she had too many unanswered questions. Where was his daughter? And who is this Keeper?

“Have faith in yourself. Trust me, you’re the right person for this. Even if they call you Giant, the role you’ll play with this planet’s history is monumental. You’re actually trained for this kind of change, both the real dangers and the more …existential one. ”

He and Dee Dee ascended the ramp, and it started to close. Riesman stepped out of the way, feeling suddenly alone, empty, and exhausted. The ramp closed, and the struts silently retracted.

“No … don’t leave me here alone.”

“You’re not alone, Riesman. You do not have to be unless that’s what you wish.” Vespere said in a quiet and unusually gentle voice. Riesman turned. Vespere was looking up, watching the large ship slowly ascend as quietly as it had descended.

A few moments later, the black spaceship was nearly invisible, and planes flew in again from east to west. Riesman’s gaze fell to the ground. She felt as if she were going to weep.

What am I going to do?

A familiar voice jolted her.

“Vespere! The new Milites—Bella and Pax? They have never been on the sea, which does make sense, considering! They are in for such a treat,” Lux said from behind her. She looked back to see the two new women donning the packs she’d seen earlier.

“Is it true about how there are chestnuts and lemons that fall from trees and are just left there?” the new soldier, Bella, asked eagerly.

“All true. And there is more, including great fishes in the ocean which you will see. Now we must go—the chestnut and lemons await us on the yacht, but we must clear the bay and be in open ocean before daylight,” Lux said.