isn’t much time. Pete, you first,
so you can help everyone else up,” he shouted over the increasing din of
thunder. LB and Travis climbed atop the rock pile and gave Pete a boost up as
he yanked himself over the lip and then sprawled flat on the surface, while lowering
a hand down to Evelyn. Becka and Katy went next. The water was cascading into
the cave now as LB and Travis tried to maintain a foothold on the angular heap
of slippery rocks. The cavern floor had become a broth of sticky clay causing
Jim to sink in past his ankles while trying to avoid the swift-moving torrent
plummeting into the tunnel. Jim unearthed his boots from the brown muck and
staggered up to the rock pile as the swirl of water rose around them. They
grabbed him under the arms, beneath his cumbersome pack, as he struggled to
stay upright.
Jim removed his pack and attempted to hand it to
Pete but his grip was unsteady and he fell backward, dropping the pack at the
water’s edge with a splash. With terror-stricken eyes, he reached for it, but
missed, while Travis grabbed him by a belt loop, tugging him back. “Let the
pack go, damn it,” shouted Travis, in the deafening roar of water. Jim pushed
Travis’s hand away and made a desperate lunge for a shoulder strap, as the pack
swirled by the rocks beneath his feet. At the last second, LB shot forward, grabbing
Jim’s shirt and yanking him back to the diminishing cusp of the rock pile,
while Jim clutched the pack against his silty shirt.
LB pulled him up, while they both looked down the
roaring black tunnel, whose mouth he had come close to entering. With wide eyes
and heavy panting, they felt the rain hammering down into the shrinking cavern.
“We have to go, come on!” Travis shouted. He grabbed Jim by the arm and pushed
him to the top of the rock pile. “Get your ass up there now.”
He and LB coaxed Jim’s limp figure up towards waiting
arms. With the water’s edge lapping at his boots, Travis motioned LB to climb
up on his shoulders and ascend. After LB crested the rim, Travis leapt up and
grabbed Pete and Katy’s hands. He could feel the rock pile slide out from under
his encrusted boots, as a whirlpool carried away the remaining foundation.
Chapter 9
The two-story, cobblestone building at Northern
Arizona University looked like any other hall of academe on campus. The wooden
sign in front of the building simply read, Sciences. Beyond the
sandstone-block walls were double doors, where hundreds of students had passed
on a daily basis, unaware of the secure facility that lay three levels below.
Back in the 1960s, the university had been one of several institutions to
receive substantial grants from the Department of Energy to conduct experiments
on microwave radiation. The facility had, in recent years, been used for
experimental biology research.
“The new HQ in Flagstaff is almost operational. I’ve
got my usual team of twelve mercs and recon efforts for the Professor will
commence from here,” said a dark-haired woman dressed in tactical gear with a rose
tattoo on her left arm. She spoke into the laptop at an older man’s televised
image. “The former cartel members and his thugs will soon be dialed into what I
expect and the consequences if they fail.”
“We scoured the river-rafting company warehouse in
Flagstaff but no signs of any intel yet on the passenger list. We did find some
photos at the river guide’s apartment and I am uploading the scanned images
now. Your facial software database will pull up anything we have,” said the
woman, with a heavy southern inflection.
“And your presence is low-profile still?” said the clean-cut
man on the laptop.
“We drove in two nights ago from the north without
incident. We come and go through the underground walkways between buildings and
have control over the main facility down. Several of my men are working on
insinuating themselves among the local rabble.”
“Excellent. And what of Flagstaff and the
so you can help everyone else up,” he shouted over the increasing din of
thunder. LB and Travis climbed atop the rock pile and gave Pete a boost up as
he yanked himself over the lip and then sprawled flat on the surface, while lowering
a hand down to Evelyn. Becka and Katy went next. The water was cascading into
the cave now as LB and Travis tried to maintain a foothold on the angular heap
of slippery rocks. The cavern floor had become a broth of sticky clay causing
Jim to sink in past his ankles while trying to avoid the swift-moving torrent
plummeting into the tunnel. Jim unearthed his boots from the brown muck and
staggered up to the rock pile as the swirl of water rose around them. They
grabbed him under the arms, beneath his cumbersome pack, as he struggled to
stay upright.
Jim removed his pack and attempted to hand it to
Pete but his grip was unsteady and he fell backward, dropping the pack at the
water’s edge with a splash. With terror-stricken eyes, he reached for it, but
missed, while Travis grabbed him by a belt loop, tugging him back. “Let the
pack go, damn it,” shouted Travis, in the deafening roar of water. Jim pushed
Travis’s hand away and made a desperate lunge for a shoulder strap, as the pack
swirled by the rocks beneath his feet. At the last second, LB shot forward, grabbing
Jim’s shirt and yanking him back to the diminishing cusp of the rock pile,
while Jim clutched the pack against his silty shirt.
LB pulled him up, while they both looked down the
roaring black tunnel, whose mouth he had come close to entering. With wide eyes
and heavy panting, they felt the rain hammering down into the shrinking cavern.
“We have to go, come on!” Travis shouted. He grabbed Jim by the arm and pushed
him to the top of the rock pile. “Get your ass up there now.”
He and LB coaxed Jim’s limp figure up towards waiting
arms. With the water’s edge lapping at his boots, Travis motioned LB to climb
up on his shoulders and ascend. After LB crested the rim, Travis leapt up and
grabbed Pete and Katy’s hands. He could feel the rock pile slide out from under
his encrusted boots, as a whirlpool carried away the remaining foundation.
Chapter 9
The two-story, cobblestone building at Northern
Arizona University looked like any other hall of academe on campus. The wooden
sign in front of the building simply read, Sciences. Beyond the
sandstone-block walls were double doors, where hundreds of students had passed
on a daily basis, unaware of the secure facility that lay three levels below.
Back in the 1960s, the university had been one of several institutions to
receive substantial grants from the Department of Energy to conduct experiments
on microwave radiation. The facility had, in recent years, been used for
experimental biology research.
“The new HQ in Flagstaff is almost operational. I’ve
got my usual team of twelve mercs and recon efforts for the Professor will
commence from here,” said a dark-haired woman dressed in tactical gear with a rose
tattoo on her left arm. She spoke into the laptop at an older man’s televised
image. “The former cartel members and his thugs will soon be dialed into what I
expect and the consequences if they fail.”
“We scoured the river-rafting company warehouse in
Flagstaff but no signs of any intel yet on the passenger list. We did find some
photos at the river guide’s apartment and I am uploading the scanned images
now. Your facial software database will pull up anything we have,” said the
woman, with a heavy southern inflection.
“And your presence is low-profile still?” said the clean-cut
man on the laptop.
“We drove in two nights ago from the north without
incident. We come and go through the underground walkways between buildings and
have control over the main facility down. Several of my men are working on
insinuating themselves among the local rabble.”
“Excellent. And what of Flagstaff and the
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