An Unlikely Hero (1) (18 page)

“I, I,” Tessa didn’t realize she was stuttering. Instinctively she offered him assistance to stand. She’d never seen someone killed. “I’m going to be sick!” Tessa turned and grabbed a trash can under the exit light. Since she hadn’t eaten since the day before all that came out was dry heaves.

Just then more soldiers began rushing down the corridor, Captain Hunter in the lead with Zoric bringing up the rear. Everyone was accounted for, it seemed. “I see you took out the two that got away,” the captain breathed a sigh of relief. His eyes then went to Tessa who had her head stuck in the trash can, coughing and gagging. “Did she see you do this?” The tone of concern sounded more like a growl.

“She saved my life, captain.” He nodded down at the stabbed man. “If she hadn’t come in here and pepper sprayed him I’d be dead. He had me cold. I owe my life to her.” One of the other soldiers helped prop him up and retrieved his knife.

Captain Hunter moved to her side. “Are you alright?” His calm, unemotional voice caused Tessa to jerk her head up and fall back against the wall. There was nothing left in her so that she could speak. She couldn’t nod, grunt or cry. Carefully Captain Hunter removed the carbine from her arms then handed it to Zoric. He snapped his fingers at one of the men and was brought something to wash her face. His touch was gentle. Next Chase carefully took her hands and cleaned them too. The cooling sensation helped her to swallow and look into the captain’s dark eyes that were only visible because he’d lifted the night vision apparatus. The light of the exit side cast a peculiar glow over his face and neck. He never took his eyes from hers while he cleaned her hands. Later she realized he’d been showing her the blood spilled today was not on her hands.

Many years earlier Tessa had read a book about angels. It was a work of fiction but based on some rather interesting facts and experiences of people who had encountered angels. All of them had said they weren’t cherub like creatures, but mighty warriors that were enormously strong and resolute about their objectives. Looking into the unflinching eyes of Captain Chase Hunter, Tessa began to wonder if he wasn’t one of those warrior angels. Doesn’t the Bible say that angels walk among us? A weak smile of relief toyed with the corner of her lips.

“Drink this, Mrs. Scott.” Chase held a bottle of tepid water to her lips until she began to drink. “Better?”

“Is everyone,” she looked down the wide corridor expecting someone to appear, “safe? Were they hurt?”

The captain informed her all were accounted for, locked securely in various locations on this sublevel. Several had cuts and bruises from their encounters with the gunmen but there were no deaths. Some would need medical attention but not so soon as to jeopardize the completion of the mission. The gunmen had open fired and were quickly subdued. Two were now locked in a room with several scientists who volunteered rather eagerly to watch over the intruders. The captain’s men bound their wrists and ankles along with a rather uncomfortable gag before leaving. The scientists were not in danger of learning anything vital considering neither of the gunmen could speak English.

Taking one last sip of water, Tessa handed the bottle back to the captain. “Thank you.” Her voice sounded like she’d been gargling thumb tacks.

“Ready?” Chase tried to offer an encouraging grin. “You’re doing fine. This will soon be over, Mrs. Scott.” Chase motioned everyone out into the stairwell with a slight motion of his thumb. Reaching out to Tessa, he took hold of her elbow and tugged her away from the wall. “I need you, Mrs. Scott.”

Tessa found herself inches from the captain’s body. A hard swallow sounded in her throat as Chase’s steady, brown eyes bore into her. “You, you do?” Something about this man made her anxious, irritated and mesmerized all in the same instant. She knew her voice sounded like a love sick school girl looking into the eyes of a rock star.

The captain stepped back toward the door leading Tessa forward. The dead body had been removed. Tessa squinted to try and see the blood splattered glass. One of the captain’s men nonchalantly slipped in her line of vision and pulled the door back so far that the darkness blocked out any hint of blood. She couldn’t help but grab Chase’s forearm as the darkness began to engulf them.

“We need to move to the fourth level where the super vault level is located, Mrs. Scott. What can you tell me about it?” He began gently leading her down the flight of stairs. “How many have access? Size? Purpose? Capabilities? Anything, Mrs. Scott.” His men gathered at the bottom of the stairs in anticipation of the next assault. Bodies tense with fortitude, the men looked to the captain for instructions. Chase suddenly stopped, feeling the landing beneath his feet. He carefully assisted Tessa as his eyes went to the solid concrete wall.

There were no more stairs and no place to go. Had Tessa been mistaken? After all, it had been nearly twelve years. He waited patiently for Tessa’s response, noting that she swallowed with a little difficulty as she cleared her throat. Tessa licked her lips nervously. Fear still revealed itself in her eyes that seemed to sparkle in night vision.

“Mrs. Scott?” Chase realized she was blind in so much darkness. He should have retrieved the night vision goggles from the wounded soldier at the top of the stairs who now guarded the stairwell. Tessa would have felt more confident. But then he wouldn’t have been able to observe her so closely and freely as he did now.

Her eyes drank in the darkness, wide and blinded by the abyss of black. Shifting them at the sound of a restless soldier’s feet caused Tessa to reach for Chase’s arm with a feathered touch of her fingertips. The jolt of satisfaction he experienced both disturbed and pained him as tightness gripped his chest. Chase made a mental note to see the Enigma doctor upon completion of the mission. Heart attacks didn’t happen to men his age and in his physical condition. After shouldering his weapon, Chase laid his hand on Tessa’s to discover how cold her skin had become with the fear she must be experiencing.

“Mrs. Scott, there is nothing here.” Chase motioned for one of the men to relinquish his goggles.

Tessa quickly donned the goggles and examined the wall before her. Chase watched her curiously as she reached out and touched the cement wall. “Yes. This is it, Captain Hunter.”

“I see nothing, Tessa” Zoric commented as he stepped forward to stand beside her.

This time Tessa didn’t shy away. The intense focus in her eyes gave both Zoric and Chase pause as they studied the woman who had become instrumental to this clandestine state of affairs. Both men looked from the woman to the wall. When she smiled Tessa turned to face the men.

“Yes!” Tessa’s sudden enthusiasm made her a little breathless. “Yes! It’s here! Look,” she said waving at the entire wall. “It’s not just cement blocks. You see here,” she pointed to a row of blocks, “it’s a grid. Twenty-six across, twenty six down, each block representing a letter of the alphabet.” Tessa touched the wall. “They also represent numbers. The trick is to put in the correct numbers and letters to open it.”

“We’re screwed, captain,” one of the men whispered. “How do we get in?”

Chase turned his eyes back to Tessa, knowing her assistance probably had come to an abrupt end. “How many people have this code is hard to say. It was still in the planning stages when I left. Dr. Haskins didn’t plan to make it accessible to just anyone at the ORNL. He was definite about that. Although the vault was completed before I left, Dr. Haskins hadn’t completed all aspects of the security.”

Chase sighed in frustration. “These walls are too thick to blow with what we’re carrying. We need someone with the code. Any ideas, Mrs. Scott?”

Tessa looked to the wall on her left, farthest away from the stairs. Walking awkwardly because of the night vision apparatus, Tessa reached the wall and touched one of the blocks without any reaction. After the third time a glowing computer screen appeared.

The shock of the light made Tessa step back, nearly falling. She felt familiar hands catch her and jerk the goggles from her face. Managing to look up into the deep brown eyes of Captain Chase Hunter gave Tessa energy to push away and straighten herself. He too, now stood goggle free. Others were lifting their goggles up onto their foreheads.

“Mrs. Scott, you have a lot of explaining to do when we get out of here,” Chase said nodding at the blinking computer screen. “You know the code, don’t you?”

“I’m not sure.”

“What do you think it is?”

“E=MC
²
.”

“Brilliant. What lame brain thought of that one?”

“I did.” Tessa said simply ignoring the insult. “No one would suspect a graduate student outside of Dr. Haskins department would be allowed to do such a thing. He’d just made me read Einstein’s biography so E=MC2.

“Oh.” Again Chase sighed with irritation. “Why didn’t I guess that one? Do it,” he motioned with his weapon that he removed from his shoulder.

“Computer?”

“Yes, Tessa. It’s been a long time.” The voice was male.

“The computer recognizes your voice. Priceless,” Zoric chuckled.

“What do I need to do in order to access the super vault?”

“Hand and retinal scans must be successful before further directions will be initiated.” A picture of a right and left hand appeared on the screen along with two eyes. Tessa placed the palms of her hands inside the drawing and leaned in to look into the life like blinking eyes. Within seconds the picture disappeared. “Thank you, Tessa. Do you still like ham and cheese sandwiches?”

“No. I like BLTs, hold the mayo.”

“That’s right. You may precede, Tessa.”

“Now what?” Chase inquired as Tessa turned to face him.

“Just wait.” Then in a bright flash, the smaller grid on the wall came to life with bright letters, going both horizontally and vertically creating a square. She began touching letters what seemed to be randomly after first counting spaces between the letters.

“That is incorrect, Tessa. Would you like to try again?”

Chase looked down at his charge and wondered if God was playing a cruel joke on him. “Try it,” he ordered.

Tessa frowned up at him and shook her head. “I’m sure the doctor has a short cut now but I would never have been privy to that information.’ She turned back to the computer. “No thank you, computer. Look back in your memory. This is correct.”

“And if it isn’t?” Chase inquired, bewildered at her knowledge of such sensitive government security systems.

“Then another inner wall will seal us off and only Dr. Haskins can release it. Explosives would be of little help. Computer?”

“Great!” Chase fumed, trying to think of another way inside the vault. Just as he was about to give the order to retreat up the stairs, the wall became opaque, like frosted glass, as it slowly began sliding back within itself, revealing a well-lit warehouse of monumental portions.

Stunned at the revelation, the men tensed and readied their weapons. All eyes searched the inside perimeter. “What the hell?” Chase whispered. “Remind me to thank you when this is over.”

“I can’t believe it! What is all this?” Tessa too, stood in awe of the enormous operations so far underground.

“This, my dear Tessa,” Zoric grinned, “is your tax dollars at work.” He nudged Chase with his elbow. “Can we keep her, Dad?” Zoric teased as his bloodshot eyes cut to Tessa who seemed mesmerized by the science fiction world that lay before her.

Chase frowned as he stepped forward, “Now what, Mrs. Scott?”

Tessa motioned toward a reception desk where a series of security computers exposed the various sections of the underground laboratory. “There should be some information there.”

Chase motioned for two of his men to attend to the security system and quickly returned with directions and video feed. “Take a look at this, captain. Looks like our boy is helping them retrieve something out of a container.”

The container, barrel round and yellow carried the international symbol for radioactive. Several more rested precariously on a table where men dressed in black examined a way to open them. Dr. Haskins chastised them anxiously, saying they risked radiation exposure if the containers were damaged. Someone interpreted the warning and the terrorists took several steps back for safety.

Enigma commandos began to fan out upon some silent command given by Chase. They were converging on an area some one hundred yards deep into the super vault. No one had time to speculate on the types of scientific discoveries and secret projects operated in this underground think tank. It apparently also had living areas set aside for long, uninterrupted stays. The independent power source had not been affected by Vernon’s long distance computer wizardry as proof of the low hum of working machines and bright halogen lights.

As Chase approached silently, he motioned for Tessa to get down and behind several of the armed soldiers. She nodded and for once followed instructions. Voices began to reach his ears. Sounds of arguing, begging and even a female voice whimpering could be heard between the clips of destruction emptied into the room through a semiautomatic weapon. He didn’t need a video feed to hear the desperation ahead.

“Stop! Stop!” came the cries of frustration and hopelessness. “You’re destroying years of work!”

A strangled, hyena laugh ensued then more gunfire. “I need the isotopes now, doctor, or I’ll start shooting the hostages, starting with the pregnant one whimpering like a spoiled child.” He cut his dark eyes toward the young woman cowering in the corner, tears rolling down her puffy red face. “Then I’ll have your family eliminated. You know your wife is quite attractive. Maybe my man will pleasure himself first.” His mouth formed into a crocodile smile. “And when we find your sons, and make no mistake, we will find them, well let’s just say they…”

“Enough! I’ll do what you want. But, please, let Penny go. She knows nothing about this isotope project. She’s a lab tech. That’s all.”

Chase neared the hostages in stealth style. He activated his camera on his ear piece. Are you getting this, Ben?”

“Roger that, Chase. His wife’s terrorist has been taken down. She’s on the way to the airport. Dr. Haskins has two sons attending Stanford. They’re hiking near Tahoe. Extraction in progress.” Chase waited until he could zoom in on the terrorist for further information. “No face recognition in our system. I’ll have our people keep working on it. By the looks of it, five of the top U.S. scientists are in that room. Their death or capture could be devastating to national security. Do whatever is necessary to stabilize the situation.”