Freddy Anderson’s Home: Book 1 (11 page)

Chapter 16
Drifting

T
he dinner table was set for sixteen people. This required putting leaves in the table. I’d never seen a table that you could climb under and turn a crank to separate it. The leaves were stored underneath, and after you placed them on top, you cranked in the opposite direction to close the gaps. I could think of a hundred ways to make it easier. I took out the pad and pen I always carry with me and started talking out loud. I must have drifted off. I did not realize anything was going on until Becky kissed me on the cheek. I looked up from my drawings on a new table design and saw that everyone was at the dining table, including Captain and Mrs. Crain. I said, “Sorry,” and blushed deep red.

Colleen said, “As I was saying, in college I learned that some top scientists have a tendency to forget everything else when they get an idea. The more intelligent the person, the more he drifts. This may include forgetting to eat and sleep. They simply drift off to another world. Einstein, I am told, drifted for an entire day once. They need looking-after to keep them from walking off a cliff. I am very surprised that Becky could rouse him at all.”

“Especially since we’ve been yelling at him for ten minutes,” said Johnny.

Captain Crain sat back. He was clean and freshly shaved, and there was a happy, satisfied look about him. He wasn’t smiling, but I could sense his amusement at the whole situation. I went to the table and sat down at the place Becky indicated, right next to her. Everyone bowed their heads, and Captain Crain gave the blessing for the food. His prayer was long and meaningful, and I could tell he meant every word he said as he thanked the Lord and asked for guidance. He included a wish for me to find a good home site and build a fine house. When he was done, I thanked him.

“Freddy, is it?” Captain Crain asked.

“Yes, sir.”

“This is Bob Allen; his wife, Deborah; and his two daughters, Pamela and Misty. Bob’s the captain of our sister boat, the
Pay Day
. This is my second mate and his wife, Martin and Nancy McDermott.”

“It’s nice to meet all of you. Have you met Colleen?”

“Yes, we all met while you were out,” said Mr. McDermott.

I blushed again. “I’m sorry about that, sir. I do have this tendency to drift off a little.”

“Really? What’s the longest you’ve ever drifted off?” asked Captain Crain.

I blushed even deeper. “Five days, I think. I can’t remember when I started drifting off, only that I was really hungry by the time I finished jotting down my ideas.”

“Well, I hope you’re hungry now.” He picked up the potatoes and took a big spoonful. As soon as the food hit his plate, the talk started, and the food went around the table. Many questions were directed to Colleen and me. I asked only one.

“Captain Crain, who is the best person to talk to about things I want to do—stuff like building a home, which may upset the surrounding waters?”

The table talk came to a dead halt.

He put his fork down and said, “Depends on the purpose of the talk.”

“I want to make sure that I don’t change the environment in any way. I have an interest in making my home completely safe, while helping the environment at the same time. I am interested in consulting with someone knowledgeable before I do anything that may adversely affect the surrounding waters.”

He smiled. “I like your attitude, Freddy. When you want to do something that may affect the waters, we’ll get the boat captains together and take a look at what you’re planning. I assure you that between the six of us, we’ll know what will be bad or good for the waters.” He put his hand to his chin and rubbed. “Come to think of it, if you want to do anything with your land that would help us now, get the army back in here to clean up the dumping they did in the canyon.”

“Dumping?” I asked, a look of disgust crossing my face. “What dumping?”

Colleen said, “The army has been using the canyon, where the river flows into the ocean, as a dump site for years. I’m sorry to tell you, but it’s right in the middle of your land.”

“The dumping has caused the fish in the area to be inedible,” said Captain Crain. “We have to test all the fish now, because they may have fed off the fish from that polluted area. We see fish coming from there all the time, floating belly up. It’s a mess. Thanks to you, at least they’re not dumping there anymore. We tried to put a stop to it, but the army gave the courts a list of the things they dump, and the courts ruled that the materials are not illegal to dump there and that they have a license. We could not afford to hire outside help with this, as you can’t sue the army, and so there would be no profit in it for the lawyers. For this, they would work on a profit margin, but because it’s the army, they would make no money. We sent letters to congressmen and senators and even to the president. We have heard nothing. A group talked to them in person, but the answer from each was no comment. The site is off-limits, so we have never been able to get in there and prove they were dumping anything caustic or illegal.”

My eyes narrowed; I was very upset. “I want to see that area tomorrow during our flight please, Colleen.”

Colleen nodded.

“Captain Crain,” I said, “I will not put up with pollution on my land. It will be cleaned up.” I sat quietly for a few seconds, deep in thought. “I may need to do some burning and construction that will temporarily cause some mud and soot in the water in order to fix the problem. After I’m done, though, the water will be clean again.”

“If someone doesn’t do something soon, then the fishing here will be closed down permanently. This poisoning of our fishing grounds is the biggest reason that the townspeople wanted you and everyone else out. If you can clean up the mess with just a little mud and soot for a short time, then you’ll be doing more than anything the government has offered to do so far. The current drift is south from your land to the deep water, and then it turns west and finally picks up the current north. The mud and soot will settle before it gets out there. Right now, we’re fishing north and out, so it won’t affect us for the summer. If you can do something before the winter fishing season, we would be most appreciative.”

“I’ll try, sir. Let me think about it some more.”

I immediately started drifting off, forming plans in my head, but Becky took my hand and said, “Think after dinner.” Everyone laughed.

When dinner was over, we all helped clean up. The captains sat around, enjoying their kids, while Colleen and I went upstairs. I had a lot to think about, and when I had finished making plans for a cleanup project, I went back downstairs. It was dark, and everyone had gone to bed. Colleen came down and asked what I was doing.

“I’m looking for the captain so I can show him my plans for the cleanup.”

Colleen took my hand and led me back upstairs. “Freddy, the boats left a couple of hours after dinner. It’s two o’clock in the morning.”

I looked at my watch and said, “Oops, sorry.”

“It’s okay. Becky was going to get your attention, but Captain Crain thought it was more important for you to complete your work. He did tell her that she was to make sure you didn’t starve to death. Please go to bed.”

“Okay. Good night.”

“Good night, Freddy.”

“Typical politicians.”

Everything went black.

“Master?”

“Typical politicians. Allow something to become messed up and then throw it on the military to clean up the problem. They are more like us than I suspected.”

“Master, he was saying that the army—their form of military, though they seem to have several—was the cause of the problem, and the politicians found out and did nothing. Then, they allowed this creature to have the land in the hopes that he would be able to fix the problem.”

“Yes, but did we not find out their military is run by their politicians? Was it not their politicians that forced the military to change tactics, just as they were pushing us back, granting us some victory? I am sure it was not the ‘army’ that caused the mess. The foolish politicians must have ordered them to dump their pollutants.”

“Master, there are no facts to back that up.”

“I don’t need facts. It’s the same with our species. The politicians try to run everything according to their own agenda and end up ruining everything instead. Continue.”

Chapter 17
The Leak

I
was still sleeping when Colleen came in the next morning. “Well, you’re up when you’re supposed to be asleep and asleep when you’re supposed to be up.”

“What time is it?” I asked.

“Six thirty. The car will be here for you in thirty minutes, so let’s get going!”

“Yes, ma’am.” I climbed out of bed and took a quick shower. When I came back to my room, Colleen was looking at my drawings. I started getting dressed, while watching her out of the corner of my eyes.

“Can you really make all this stuff?” she asked.

“Yes. That plan is based on existing technology.”

“Really? Whose? Not any I’ve ever heard of.”

“Mine. Ready?” I grabbed my bag and started for the door. It was very heavy, so Colleen helped me carry it.

There was a different look in Colleen’s eye. I touched her mind a little to see what was going on. The feeling I got was respect. She was starting to understand why I was sent out here, and she had respect for my work. As we were descending the stairs, I asked, “Where did you get your engineering degree?”

“Stanford University. How did you know I have an engineering degree?”

“How else could you read and understand my drawings so quickly?”

“Freddy …” She put her hand on my shoulder and gently turned me around. “Look, I’m sorry for snooping. I won’t do it again.”

“Why? Good minds are always curious. If you’re going to be my bodyguard, then you’re going to see things. It can’t be helped. I’m just counting on you to keep quiet about what you do see, and that includes not telling the admiral. If not, then you won’t be my bodyguard anymore.”

We went straight to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. Mrs. Crain was already making the morning meal. When she saw me, she said, “Is it all right if I set up an appointment for you this afternoon? Mr. Thompson, the owner of the sporting goods store, would like to talk with you about your camping trip. He called last night.”

“Great!” I said enthusiastically. “After the helicopter ride this morning, I’ll have a better idea of where I want to go. Yes, please set up a time for us to meet.”

Colleen and I left as soon as the jeep pulled up. It had no doors or top and the windshield was folded down. The driver was Petty Officer Second Class—or PO2—Denise Potter, and Petty Officer First Class—PO1—Betsy Donet was sitting in the front passenger seat. Colleen put my bag behind the rear seat.

Betsy asked if I’d like to sit up front. I said, “Sure, thanks.”

“I hope you don’t mind the jeep, Freddy,” said Denise, “but it was the easiest transportation to obtain.”

“I don’t mind at all. How does it corner?”

“Not very well. It leans a lot, so buckle up real tight.”

I did, and so did the rest of them. “Betsy, I take it you’re my next bodyguard?” I said.

“That’s correct, Freddy.”

“Cool! Please don’t take offense, Colleen, but it will give me a chance to rest my neck.” They all laughed. The ride was uneventful. When we went through the front gate, we were saluted in a snappy fashion. I asked why.

Betsy said, “Apparently, the stupid marine guards told their commander what happened yesterday, and he called the admiral to apologize. This was before we could get to them and fix the issue. The admiral went ballistic and blamed his failure with you on the marine guards. The commander really went off on his men when he found out that you are ‘presidential priority.’ He called a full-dress inspection and reamed everyone, making sure they knew why he was upset. I think you’ll find all of the marines on the base will be very nice to you from now on.”

“So how long have you had the admiral and the marine commander’s phones tapped?” I asked. I must give credit to the girls—not one of them showed any sign that they were surprised that I knew.

“Since the day we got here,” said Colleen.

“So it’s possible that your whole group knew about me even before the rest of the base?”

“Yes.”

“Then one could assume that a member of the SEAL team is a likely suspect for being the leak on this base.”

Total silence, and then Betsy said, “Freddy, I don’t think that one of our people is the leak.”

I shook my head and said, “Before the flight, I would like to see all of the navy SEAL team members, please—one at a time in the lieutenant’s office, starting with the lieutenant, then the master chief, then the ensign, and down the chain of command.”

We pulled up in front of the building, so no one said a thing. When we reached the quarterdeck, Lt. James was waiting. “The helicopter will be ready in about half an hour,” she said. Colleen took her aside and told her quietly of my request. The lieutenant nodded and said, “Tell no one. Just send them up as we call for them.”

Lt. James motioned for me to come with her. When we entered her room, I motioned for her to keep quiet. I pulled out my scanner, made a small adjustment, and then scanned the room. I found two electronic bugs and pointed them out. We went into another room. I scanned that room, and everything was clear.

“Lieutenant, why do you allow your room to be bugged?”

“I didn’t allow it, Freddy; I didn’t know—a tactical mistake that will soon be corrected.” She was definitely not happy; in fact, she was fuming, but not at me, thank God. “Why did you wish to talk to each person individually?”

I took out another device and turned it on. It was a simple antigravity belt unit, about the size of a deck of cards. I felt that if I was going up in a helicopter, I wanted something to ensure I would land softly if things went wrong. Right now, I was going to use the device as a lie detector. The last thing I wanted Lt. James to know was that I am telepathic, because it would be reported instantly.

“What’s that, Freddy?”

“The answer to your question, Lieutenant. May I ask you a few questions, please?”

“Shoot.”

“How old are you?”

“Twenty-eight.”

“That was a lie, Lieutenant.”

“Thirty.”

“That’s better.”

“Let me see that.” She headed my way. I deactivated the device and used my mind to move the needle. She pointed it at herself and said, “I weigh 180 pounds.”

Nothing happened. “Sorry, Lieutenant. It’s keyed into my body code.”

I took it back, and she repeated, “I weigh 180 pounds.” The needle jumped. “I weigh 142 pounds.” Nothing happened. She looked at me and asked, “How?”

“Not patented yet, Lieutenant. Now, do you know who is leaking information from or around this base?”

“No.”

“Good enough. Next person.”

She opened the door and called the master chief in.

“Master Chief,” I said, “I need to ask you a question.”

“Go ahead.”

“Do you know who is leaking information from or around this base?”

“No.”

“Good. Send in the ensign.”

We continued this until we got to PO2 Bunny Taylor. When she entered the room, I knew right away that she was the leak, but I still asked the question. “Do you know who is leaking information from or around this base?”

“No.”

“Really?” There were now thirteen people in the room, including me. Eleven of the people started toward her. I held up my hand. “Petty Officer Taylor, this is a lie detector, and it is physically impossible to tell a lie without my detecting it. Let’s try my question again.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“That was a lie. Is it you?”

“No.”

“That was a lie. Anyone else?”

“No.”

That got my attention. “That was also a lie. Is it someone in this group?”

“I didn’t do anything! This is illegal. I’m requesting Captain Mast. This is wrong.”

I told her, “One more time, Petty Officer Taylor. If you don’t answer truthfully, the lieutenant and I will go up in the helicopter and leave you here alone with your teammates.”

The lieutenant looked at the master chief, who was looking like she wanted to kill someone. “I’m leaving soon, Master Chief,” the lieutenant said, “and I don’t expect Petty Officer Taylor to be here when I return. I don’t care where or how or in what condition she leaves. We’ll call it absent without leave—AWOL. I’ll let you decide, though. I don’t want to know, and we’ll never talk about it.” The master chief smiled a big, evil smile that caused me to tremble.

I could feel the fear pouring out of Petty Officer Taylor. I asked, “Did anyone help you?”

“I’m really Army Sergeant Nettie Davies. I’m working directly for General Johnson. He set it up for me to be placed in your group just after the incident with his lost clothes. I work with a civilian, and I pass messages to the general through him.”

“What’s his name?”

“Harry Dellavechia. He works at the gas station.”

“That’s why you volunteer to get the gas all the time,” said the master chief. “I thought it was just because you like to drive.”

“Anyone else?” I asked.

“No, that’s it,” Petty Officer Taylor answered.

“Finally, the truth. Thank you,” I said. “Master Chief, next person, please.”

“I don’t see why we need to continue this. We’ve found the one responsible, and she said there was no one else.”

Lt. James said, “And, if you were the general, would you have only one spy?”

“I’ll get her,” said the master chief. She motioned to two of the girls. “Take this one to my office and watch her.”

I added, “Please don’t harm her. She was under orders. I think if you want to harm someone, get the general.”

The next girl came in, but no others were guilty.

“My apologies, Lieutenant, for needing to do this. I know it’s embarrassing, but as you can see, it was necessary. Do we have a minute to scan the rest of the building and vehicles?”

“I think we should make the time,” said the lieutenant.

We scanned and removed twenty-one passive and active devices from the building and two from each vehicle. Some were built into the walls, and one was in the lieutenant’s toilet. They called the toilet the “head”—figure that one out.

Back in her office Lt. James said, “I’m glad that’s over, but she’s not the base leak; it’s someone else. She was just a plant from the general. He would never let her make the mistake of giving out information and possibly being caught. The base leak is someone else. Ensign, the priority is still to find that leak. It’s in the admiral’s office somewhere. I want that information, and I want it now.”

“I’m on it, Lieutenant. Any chance I can borrow that little device?” the ensign asked.

The lieutenant shook her head. “Sorry, it’s keyed into his body code. He’s the only one who can use it.”

“Lieutenant,” I asked, “any chance you can get the admiral to throw a little party—say, one to welcome me to the base? If he put the word out that he had some very important information for me, and if he hid that information in a briefcase and let no one see it, I bet the person would show up. Since I’d be the guest of honor, naturally I’d be talking to everyone. With a few well-placed questions, I might be able to find out who the leak is.”

Colleen said, “Lieutenant, I think that would be placing Freddy in unnecessary danger.”

“I agree,” said the lieutenant.

“What if this leak is not only to the townspeople but to others as well—like some people who would be interested in my inventions?” I suggested. “How dangerous would it be then? Besides, who’s going to know except your team? You and I both know that they’re clean now. You keep it that way, and there should be no danger to me at all. I feel safer already, but I can’t check the entire base. This device works off my body, and it can cause problems that I don’t need.”

“What kind of problems?” asked the lieutenant.

“Headaches, loss of equilibrium. You can see why I don’t use it very often.”

The lieutenant laughed and said, “I very much understand, Freddy.”

So did everyone else. They even thanked me for helping them. The master chief had calmed down by then and assured me that she would not allow the spy to be harmed. She said to the lieutenant, “This cannot go unpunished.”

The lieutenant said, “When I get back, we need to talk about what should happen to get the general’s attention. He needs to understand that this was a bad idea, and Master Chief, we make all of our own repairs and upgrades from now on. Understand?”

The master chief exclaimed, “We’ll need a bigger budget.”

“I think I can get that past the admiral after I tell him what we found and who found it.” She looked at me and said, “I may need to embellish a little about your attitude. You’ve been helpful, even apologetic through all this, but I think it would get the admiral’s attention if you were just a little upset instead.”

I motioned for her to get closer, and she leaned down. I said in an angry tone, “Don’t ever make me do your job again.” Then I winked, saying, “I didn’t want you to lie to the admiral about my being upset.”

Everyone laughed at that, and the lieutenant said, “Time to get you in the air. Master Chief, take care of our friend, but don’t let her go. I have an interesting idea that I’ll explain when we get back. Ensign, you’re in charge. Betsy, you’re with us.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Let’s go.”

“Denise, you’re driving.”