The Ark of Asylum (The Ark Series Book 1) (6 page)

As the carts arrive at the Ark, only seconds after leaving their departure points, security personnel is there waiting to assist them with getting off. The safety bars lift up once the carts come to a complete stop. John jumps out and helps the children get out of their seats.

“Please exit the carts promptly, and proceed to the holding area,”
The alarm voice repeats over and over again as people file into the large room adjacent to the unloading area. Carts continue to arrive, carrying several people each and often pets. The holding area quickly begins to fill up, and everyone chatters together somewhat nervously. Many of the children are crying and holding onto their teachers’ or aids’ hands, at least the ones that are available.

The alarm voice sounds,
“All citizens accounted for, thank you.”
John makes his way to the front of the room with his family and steps up on the raised platform and taps on the microphone.

“Can I have everyone’s attention? Please, everyone quiet down!” The nervous and confused crowd starts to settle down. “Thank you all for your cooperation, and can I just congratulate you all on your first and very successful emergency evacuation drill. You can all give yourselves a round of applause for doing such a great job.” The group claps and cheers in elation.

John then welcomes everyone, especially those who don’t know they are now inside the Ark, explaining that this is a heavily fortified giant bomb shelter in the heart of the mountain that they all play and live on. It is similar to the military base, NORAD, in Colorado Springs, only much more high tech and advanced. Once John tells them that in the event of a natural disaster or nuclear, chemical or biological attack or another world war, this will be their home for however long the threat lasts, the crowd quiets down.

He assures them that this has been built with an air and water purification system and a full sanitation system. He assures them there’s enough food to last them for years, along with a giant hydroponic growing system so they can grow their own food. He assures them that there are enough apartments and housing for everyone, along with recreation areas and such.

He quickly changes subjects by letting them know that they will all be gathering in the mess hall for a feast to celebrate this kind of the grand opening of the Ark. After dinner, they will conduct tours for everyone to check the place out and see what it’s like. He closes things out by saying that he prays to God that they will never have to use the facility and that he hopes it will never be necessary. But he then reminds them that with the way the world is going, it almost seems inevitable, so they can all feel a little bit of comfort knowing that this place is here to protect all of them.

“So, once again, I want to thank you all, and we will be conducting these drills periodically so that everyone gets used to and gets good at the evacuation. Now, let’s go eat!” John jumps off the riser and takes his family’s hands as the crowd starts to walk toward the LED screen that displays ‘Mess Hall.’

The entire town eats in a massive dining hall on a feast fit for a king, and they are shocked when they are told that everything they are eating was grown or raised on the mountain with some even produced in the Ark. After dinner everyone is invited to tour the entire complex. They are assigned an apartment that is adequate to the size of the family. The majority of people are pleasantly surprised by how nice everything is for what is basically a concrete bunker, and they are also shocked by how clean and fresh the air is. After the tour, everyone is encouraged to give feedback and suggestions on what they think should be changed or added to the Ark, but not much is mentioned, hopefully meaning that they are, overall, very happy and impressed with everything.

After the tour and orientation is over, everyone is thanked and congratulated for a near perfect emergency evacuation and then dismissed. They all leave the Ark and walk down the mountain base to their homes, jubilant and overjoyed by the experience.

John kisses the kids and Kate and says, “I have to go speak with Adam on how the evacuation went from security’s perspective. Are you okay with getting the kids back to the house yourself, or do you want me to go with?”

Kate responds, “We’ll be fine. I can manage. You go ahead, and we’ll see you back at the house in a little bit.”

“Sounds good. I’ll see you soon, and by the way great job, you guys. I’m so proud of you girls and my little man!” He raises his hands and gives them all high fives.

“Thanks, Daddy. See you soon,” Ashley replies. Kate and the kids start to walk down the mountain as John walks back into the Ark and into the security office.

John walks into the room and starts clapping as everyone turns their chairs around. “Excellent job, everybody. I was very impressed with how everything turned out. It was well planned, well executed, and from my perspective, damn near perfect!”

Adam walks over to John and shakes his hand. “Thank you, sir. On behalf of all of us here, we appreciate that. Now if you’ll follow me into my office, we can go over the details of everything.”

“Lead the way,” John waves his hand in the direction of Adam’s office and follows him in.

“Please have a seat, sir.” Adam sits down at his desk as John sits across. “I wanted to go over the statistics and trouble spots we encountered from the drill.” Adam begins going over the details of the evacuation by first stating that he felt that, overall, everything went great, and he thought that the evacuation times were stellar across the board. He points out that the only problem areas were in the places they already expected, which were the orphanage, the school, and the zoo.

He tells John that some of the younger children were pretty scared and very upset and reluctant to go down the slide and into the carts. The teachers’ thoughts on how to speed up the process in the future are just getting the children more used to everything by increasing their practice time on lining up and going down the slide and into the carts. They also thought that the number of teacher’s aides should increase or else that they might possibly train some of the older kids to help out. But they were afraid in the heat of the moment, and in a real emergency, they may freeze up and buckle under the pressure.

Adam moves onto the other issue of the zoo animals. The reports from the trainers, vets, and vet techs were that, generally, everything went well. But, even though not all animals would enter the secondary blast doors at first, eventually they did. Adam adds that the trainers had some ideas on how to get them in quicker. After he finishes with saying they should leave it up to the experts, John is quick to agree. Their conversation is cut short when the intercom beeps, interrupting them.

“Excuse me, sir. I need to take this.” Adam presses the intercom button. “Yes, what is it?”

The voice on the other end says, “Pardon the interruption, sir, but you need to get in here. We have a situation.”

Adam and John rush into the control room and over to the radar specialist. Adam says, “What is it, Chris?”

Chris pulls up an aerial camera feed of a caravan of cars on the screen. “Sir, I’m tracking a large caravan of four vehicles about three miles out traveling at a high rate of speed and moving this way. What you’re looking at is a camera feed from the service road. Heat signatures from each vehicle estimate about half a dozen bodies per vehicle. I’m pulling up the sat feed now so we can get a better look. Would you like me to deploy a drone, sir?”

Adam hesitates then says, “Yes, get a drone in the air for recon, and bring up the sat feed on the big screen.”              

John nervously stares at the screen, eyes glued to the image. “What the hell is going on? Are we in any danger?”

Adam breaks his concentration and turns to John. “I’m not sure, sir, but I think good old Uncle Sam is paying us a visit. I had a feeling this might happen when we didn’t hear anything further from them.”

Chris displays the satellite feed from his computer. “Sir, I’m bringing up the sat feed now, and the drone has been deployed. It appears to indeed be a four-vehicle caravan of most likely ATF agents. They are about two miles out. What are your orders, sir?”

Adam hesitates for a moment, contemplating his options, and then responds, “Give me armed guards around the perimeter but out of sight. Use the tunnel system, and have them stand by in their fox hole. We don’t want to seem aggressive, so give me incognito snipers on the mountainside overlooking the perimeter. I want everyone on high alert, and they are not to use force unless fired upon. Is that clear, everyone?”

Multiple voices in the room respond, “Sir, yes, sir!”

Chris continues to type on his computer while he displays various camera feeds on multiple screens. “Sir, I’ve also detected a small unidentified flying object entering our airspace. Looks like it’s one of their drones out for recon, as well. Would you like me to electronically disable it?”

Adam shakes his head and answers, “No, let it do its recon. We want them to know that we aren’t doing anything that would incite an aggressive response. Just make sure they are aware of our drone and that we’re watching them as well, but they most likely knew about it the moment it was deployed.”

John anxiously asks, “Do we need to evacuate everyone into the Ark? Does this situation look at all threatening in your opinion?”

Adam scratches his chin and replies, “Not yet, sir. We don’t want to spook the ATF. They are trigger happy, and we don’t want them getting nervous. It will only make things worse. Just have everyone go about their day as usual. We don’t want to cause a panic with the townspeople. We’ll make sure no one goes near the perimeter or has any contact with the ATF.”

              Chris continues to pull up multiple camera views on different screens. “Sir, the ATF has arrived at the front gates. They have deployed armed men and appear to be setting up a perimeter around our fence. I’m not seeing any heavy weapons, just your standard issue assault rifle and hand gun and—oh, wait, hold on, it also looks like they’re setting up multiple snipers.”

“Copy that. Okay, let’s just wait for them to establish communication. It should be any minute now. When the call does come in, I’ll feed it through the speakers.”

Everyone in the room stands there in complete silence, all staring at the large screens with the satellite and drone feeds displayed on them when the call comes in. Adam picks up the telephone and presses a button.

“This is Adam Wescot, head security agent for the Ark. With whom am I speaking?”

The voice on the other end responds in a slow Texas draw, the booming voice resonating throughout the room. “This is special agent Smith with the ATF. Are you the person in charge, or should I be speaking with someone else?”

Adam responds, “I am in charge of all security, but standing next to me is the owner of this property, John Angelite. Would you prefer to speak with him?” John shakes his head no.

“I’m sure you’ll be fine.” Agent Smith clears his throat.

“Why are you here and surrounding our perimeter with armed men?”

“Oh, I’m sure you already know the answer to that, my friend, but for the record, I and my men have been ordered by the United States government to establish contact with this compound and have access to all areas within. Failure to do so will require my men to breach your gates and come onto your land. Have I made myself clear?”

John grabs the phone and pulls it toward him. “Over my dead body!”

“Well, this must be the infamous John Angelite. I’ve been very well briefed on you, and I’m not surprised by your response. Let me assure you that entering your compound with force is the last thing we want. Now you can avoid all of that by just letting me and my men into your gates to tour your facility, just as simple as that.”

John yells again, “You can go to hell, you son of a—”

Adam covers the receiver then pulls the phone back. “Sir, please, you’re just going to make things worse. Just let me handle this.”

John throws his hand up. “Fine, just handle it then, and I’ll shut up!”       

Agent Smith chuckles a bit and says, “I understand your frustration, Mr. Angelite, but the fact still remains that I am under strict orders. Hell, if this were my land, I would probably feel the same as you. But you have to understand that the U.S. government has to know that you are not some kind of terrorist group aiming to do harm to the American people. Surely you can understand that?”

“I can assure you we are no terrorist group nor have any heavy weaponry or explosives. All we have is a supply of legally purchased assault rifles, hand guns, and rifles that we have slightly modified to make them safer.”

“Well, I appreciate the honesty, but if I trusted anyone who said they weren’t terrorists when in fact that’s exactly what they were, well then, I can assure you, I would be out of a job. Fact is we don’t know what you have in there, and that’s why we need to come take a look. That’s all. It’s for the American public’s safety.”

Adam hesitates for a second and glances at John. “At this time, I cannot permit you to step foot on this land, and may I inform you that I have armed guards established in defensive positions ready to defend their home at any cost. That, of course, is the last thing that any of us want, but my men have sworn to protect this land and will do so if they feel they or any of these people are in any danger from an outside threat. Do I make
myself
clear?” He finishes with a dominant tone to his voice.

Agent Smith replies with a typical hillbilly chuckle, “Crystal, and again that is the last thing any of us want. Listen, I realize tensions are very high right now, so all of my men are ordered to stand down for the time being. Let’s give things forty-eight hours to cool down, let you think about things, and we’ll go from there. How’s that sound?”

“Copy that. We’ll be in contact. Over and out.” Adam hangs up on the agent.

John apprehensively asks, “Okay, now what?”

Adam looks at John, looks at the screen, and then back at John and then tells him that what John decides in the next forty-eight hours could be one of the most important decisions he will ever make. And even though they really don’t have a lot of options, the outcome of how they handle this could have some dire and unforeseen repercussions. Adam isn’t one to go up against the United States government, so he feels it goes without saying what he thinks they should do. He expresses how this small convoy of ATF agents is most likely only the first wave of what they all knew their government could bring to the table. He believes they would be putting the entire town in danger by not cooperating with the ATF.

But John believes the opposite.

Adam wraps up his thoughts on the matter. “Now, that being said, a part of me agrees with how you feel and the stand you want to make on them imposing on our civil liberties. I know we have done nothing wrong here, sir, and something inside of me says that I need to take a stand and not allow these men on our land. So that’s about all I have to say for now. What do you think, sir?”

John sits there for a moment weighing his options and concludes that Adam pretty much summed up what he was trying to figure out. John tells Adam that he’s just not sure what to do. For now, he’s going to go home, discuss this with his wife, and go from there. He’s almost positive that what will most likely happen is that they will have a town meeting and put it to a vote. He knows this puts the entire town in danger, and he thinks they should have some say in the matter.

“So I’m going to do just that. I will contact you tomorrow, and we will most likely have a town meeting sometime tomorrow. Until then everyone, thank you as always, and you all need to think about how you feel about this. Have a good night, men.” John walks out of the room as most of the men and women say goodnight. A lot of them don’t look him in the eye and just stare at the ground, unsure of what to say if anything.

John walks out of the Ark and waves off the stable girl offering his horse. He wants to walk to his house so he can contemplate the predicament he and his town are in. He stops at a fallen tree and sits down and puts his head in his hands. He mumbles the words “fuck” and “damn it” over and over as he attempts to release some of his anger and frustration before talking to his wife. Whenever he’s unsure what to do, he knows he needs the clarity and wisdom of his better half. He thinks to himself how he hasn’t made a huge decision like this on his own without getting her insight ever since they were married, and he sure was not about to start now.

He stands up and throws a rock in the direction of the ATF, gives the finger, and yells a few obscenities and then walks down the mountain to his house.

As John nears the house, he can hear his children playing outside and soon sees them all playing on the jungle gym behind the house. His wife is sitting on a bench, reading a book, completely unaware of the situation. He walks over to the bench and sits down next to her.

She says, while continuing to read her book, “Hey, babe, how’d your meeting go? Was Adam happy with the outcome of the evacuation drill?” After John doesn’t answer and just sits there staring at the children, she finally looks up at him. “Ah, is everything okay, hon? You look like the world is about to end.”

John shakes his head and exhales. “Sorry, just got a lot on my mind, but it’s funny you should mention that because ah—we need to talk. Um, I’m not quite sure where to start, so I’ll just tell you everything.”

“Ah, okay, is everything alright? You’re making me nervous.”

“Well, do you remember when I told you that the U.S. government made an inquiry about our weapons modifications, so we sent out some of our modified guns?”              

“Yeah?”

“Well, at the time they said they wanted to come here and inspect everything and pretty much make sure that we’re not a bunch of terrorists,” John says as he tries to fake an assuring smile.

“Okay, and . . . ?” Kate turns to face him better.

“Well, we never heard back from them after we told them it wasn’t going to happen. So, long story short, the ATF is here at the front gates and is pretty much demanding we let them in,” John slowly inches away from his wife.

“What!” she yells as her jaw gapes. “What are you telling me? Are you saying there are armed men outside our front door demanding we let them in?”

“Pretty much, yeah, in a nut shell.” He finishes his words with a tiny smile on his face.

“What! What! What! Are—are you . . .” She tries to compose herself. “Are you telling me the ATF has surrounded our land and is pointing guns at us as we speak, John? Is that what you’re telling me?”

“Ah—”

“So, then, I should probably assume that our children are in danger and that we should get them inside. Should I make that assumption, John? Is that what you’re pretty much telling me, John!” Panic and worry overcome Kate as she tries to get the words out, not wanting to express how she really feels and yell in front of the kids. She looks down at them and yells out, “Kids, come inside, okay! Playtime’s over. It’s time to come in!”

Ashley looks up from playing and yells, “What, Mommy?”

John grabs his wife’s arm and gently pulls it down. “Wait, just listen.” He yells down to the children, “Nothing, kids, just keep playing!” He pulls her hand over to his lap. “Everything’s okay, honey. Just calm down. It’s not as bad as it seems. It’s not like a bunch of men are going to barge in here, guns blazing, and shoot up the place. We don’t need to run inside the house and potentially spook the spooks, okay?” He clinches his lips and tries not to smile.

“Is this funny to you? Are you finding humor in all of this?” She asks, trying to keep her composure.

“No, but we talked to an ATF Agent Smith, and we’ve come to an agreement that we’ll talk in forty-eight hours.”

She turns and lightly hits him in the chest. “Well, you didn’t tell me that you talked to someone, ya jerk!” She said, lowering her voice on the last few words.

“Ouch! Well, you didn’t give me a chance to tell you!” He rubs his chest, pretending like it hurt.

She turns away, closes her eyes, and takes a deep breath and exhales. She purses her lips and again takes a very obvious breath with a loud exhale, followed up with a popping sound as she pulls them apart. She looks over at John, then down at the kids. “Okay then, I’m sure you’re going to let them in, right?” She looks up then cranes her neck to stare at him, waiting for his answer. “You’re going to let them in, right, John? Please tell me you’re going to let them in?” She continues to stare at him.