1st Amendment Rights
Since nothing was open on Tango Key, the National Guard had secured a ferry to transport soldiers, law enforcement, and supplies from Key West. Sheppard and Delgado waited in a short line behind a couple of Humvees and Jeeps and within five minutes, Sheppard drove the DOD truck onto the ferry. It wasn’t crowded. They had their choice of spaces on the top deck.
They got out and stood at the railing, watching the long lines of cars, vans and campers that waited to board the other three ferries for evacuees. The stragglers, Sheppard thought. The holdouts. They’d ignored the initial evacuation orders and at the last minute, decided to get out.
“You sure Home Depot is open, Shep?”
“Until six. Key West is still under curfew, but there’s no mass exodus out of there. Everything’s open until curfew begins. Carmen and I made a list of what we need to fix up Ian’s office. We can at least get a front door installed before dark.”
“The island’s going to be so empty by nightfall that robbery won’t be an issue.”
“And a new door won’t keep out the Crows if they decide to return for more medical supplies. But it’ll put Carmen’s mind at ease. Where’re the canine units coming from?”
“Miami.”
“How many dogs?” Sheppard asked.
“At least a dozen. They’re trained specifically for combing through disaster areas—after a hurricane, quake, explosion—to find survivors.”
Sheppard nodded and tried not to think beyond this second and the next and the next. Keel’s DOD sidekick had found several EM fields in Rincon’s office, but said she had to analyze them before she could determine whether they were generated by equipment in the office or by the crows. If that wasn’t bullshit, it had bought them a little time, he thought, to track down the Crows, Mira, and Rincon before the DOD initiated whatever horror they had in mind.
But how much time? Even if Eden determined the EM fields were generated by the Crows, Hull probably would go forward with the neighborhood searches because otherwise it would make the DOD look bad. But how long after that would they make their move? A few hours? Ten? Twelve?
Since Keel had admitted they wanted at least one of the Crows, Sheppard assumed he would do whatever he could to avert their annihilation. But with Keel, everything smacked of I may change my mind. Maybe a dead Crow would work just as well for any experiments Keel and the DOD had in mind.
The ferry pulled away from the dock, its whistle a forlorn sound. In addition to military vehicles, there were two sanitation trucks, a nursing home van, a recycling truck, a pair of vans from the Tango Key Historical Society, and a large gasoline truck with NATIONAL GUARD across the side.
“Carlos, can you find out when the dogs are getting here?”
“Sure.” He tapped away at his cell. “Driver says they’ll be arriving with their handlers by military transport before dusk. He wants to know who’s going to be in charge of the house to house searches.”
“FBI and the Tango PD.”
Delgado snickered. “Good. Keel and Hull aren’t going to like that.”
“We should be back on Tango well before they arrive and can meet the dogs at the airport. I’ll let Goot know and have him alert your guys.”
Sheppard texted Gutierrez, then glanced back at what remained of the bridge. Reconstruction had stopped with the mandatory evacuation orders. Cranes stood motionless, tall and majestic in the afternoon sun. Steel girders glinted in the light. And the six-mile hole in the bridge gaped like a giant’s mouth. The night it had happened felt like the distant past, but had occurred only a matter of days ago. How many days? Sheppard could figure it out if he looked at a calendar, but right this second, he didn’t know. Events, time, emotions, everything had melted together.
“How about if Annie and O’Hara join our dog teams?” Sheppard asked.
“That’s a given, amigo. I already texted them. O’Hara’s two new pieces just went up and holy shit, Hull is going to lose it. Maybe Keel will, too. Depends on which side he’s on. Go take a look.”
Sheppard brought it up on his phone.
Evacuation of Tango Key
If you live on the island or are visiting, you’re now under a
mandatory evacuation order from the governor. Holdouts will be
arrested. This order came down because the Crows abducted Mira
Morales, owner of One World Books, and just this morning, they also
abducted the island coroner, Ian Rincon.
There’s speculation that the Department of Defense believes
these Crows are machines—AIs—and are planning on obliterating them—
and the island.
“Jesus,” Sheppard remarked.
Delgado nodded. “Yeah, no kidding. Makes the DOD look like a bunch of terrorists. Read the second piece.”
1st Amendment Rights
My editor and I have been threatened with arrest if we don’t
remove the article I posted earlier this morning, an article that
told the truth. I’ll continue to report on the situation here as long
as I can.
Rudy Hull, who works for the Department of Defense, plans
to annihilate the Crows even though Mira Morales and Ian Rincon
are still their hostages. I believe that any such attack must be ordered
by the governor, who has been notified. If you’re planning on staying here,
I advise you to reconsider leaving ASAP.
In the event our website is taken down, contact me @ my personal
email: jonoha@gmail.com and leave your email address and cell # so
I can keep you updated.
Hull had really overstepped himself, Sheppard thought, but at the moment, the only person who could rectify that was the governor.
The ferry slowed as it approached the Key West ferry depot. Beyond the dock, Sheppard could see traffic on U.S. 1, a slow parade of cars that was normal for the snowbird season. Tourists apparently weren’t deterred by the curfew or by the events on Tango Key, and he suspected most of them were arriving to witness the event, as though it were a huge concert. Or the total eclipse of the sun.
As they docked, Sheppard called O’Hara. He answered on the first ring. “Shep.”
“I just read your latest two pieces. Have you gotten any flack, Jon?”
He laughed, a quick, nervous sound. “Flack? Are you fucking kidding? That asshole Rudy Hull has ordered my editor to take it down and threatened to arrest both of us for disclosure of classified info.”
“Where’re you staying?”
“Right now, Annie and I are at my place.”
“Find someplace safer. Carlos and I just docked in Key West for supplies. When we get back to Tango, let’s meet at the bureau office. The search dogs are arriving this evening and we’ll start the searches as soon as the island is completely evacuated.” On the other end of the call, Sheppard heard the tick-tock of silence. “Jon?”
“Yeah, I’m here. Shep, this is totally messed up. First we hide from the Crows. Now we’re supposed to hide from the DOD? Fuck that. The first amendment says…”
“I know what the first amendment says. Thing is, we’re in a state of emergency and no telling how Hull and his cronies may spin that. So keep your readers engaged. Keep reminding them you’re being threatened with arrest for telling the truth.”
“Done. Hold on. Annie wants to talk to you.”
“Put her on.”
“Shep? Anything new on Mom?”
“Not yet. But maybe Jon’s columns will flush out the crows. Just keep in touch, Annie.”
“Where’re you?” she asked.
He explained, then added, “We’re going to find her.”
“Love you,” she said, her voice soft, choked, and the connection went dead.
2
Within an hour, O’Hara and Annie had left his place and retreated to the two bedroom apartment at the dolphin center. Annie’s boss used it when she was tending to baby dolphins and had to stay overnight to feed them. The place was comfortable enough, had Wi-Fi, and a stocked fridge.
His most recent two columns had gone viral. Thousands of comments and emails with cell numbers poured in. A community. He and Annie sat at the tiny kitchen table with their iPads and started compiling a mailing and cell number list.
“You’re going to win a Pulitzer for your coverage, Jon.”
“Yeah, sure. I can see the headline now. Jailed journalist wins Pulitzer for releasing classified information. To avoid prison, I’ll join Snowden in Russia.”
His cell rang, Keel’s name came up. Ignore it or answer? He decided to answer and put it on speaker so Annie could hear it, too. “Hey, Frank, what’s going on?”
“I honestly didn’t think you’d pick up.”
“I almost didn’t. But I figure it’s possible you’re not on board with your boss’s intention to arrest me or my editor or to annihilate the crows.”
“My only concern is finding them and freeing Mira and Rincon, then figuring out what makes them tick.”
“Yeah, by doing what, exactly? Capturing one so you can experiment on it?” O’Hara asked.
“No. Rudy’s sidekick thinks they’re not human, that they’re AIs who are a threat to national security, therefore they’re expendable.”
“I doubt if even an AI can turn to stone when he or she dies.”
“Well, not only does Rudy want you arrested, but he’s going to try to stop the canine search.”
“Then maybe he’s the one who needs to be arrested,” Annie snapped.
“My thoughts exactly,” Keel said. “Are Shep and Goot with you two?”
“Shep and Carlos went to Home Depot in Key West,” O’Hara said. “I think Gutierrez is in the office.”
“Okay, thanks. I’ll call him.”
“My editor also wrote the governor about what’s going on,” O’Hara added. “I don’t know if she has heard back yet.”
“I’ll call the governor. Keep me in the loop and I’ll do the same.”
They disconnected. “You trust him?” Annie asked.
“More than I trust the DOD.”
“Let’s see if the dolphins are around.” Annie pushed back from the table, walked into the adjoining living room, and threw open the wooden porch doors. It overlooked part of the canal and beyond it, the Atlantic that lay between here and Key West. Two ferries plied the twelve miles between them. Off to their right, the remnants of the bridge loomed.
They stood at the railing and Annie turned on the recording of the dolphins’ songs the night they had freed them. O’Hara turned on his, too, they cranked up the volumes, and that orchestra of exquisite music drifted out into the afternoon air. After a few minutes, O’Hara heard an echoing sound.
They turned off the recordings. The echoing music continued. “It’s them,” Annie whispered. “The three of them.”
They flew down the porch steps and ran over to the canal. Prissy, Boss, and Rose were visible now, rising from the ocean, water shooting from their blowholes. Their songs were so joyous that O’Hara felt choked up and Annie’s eyes filled with tears. They stretched out on their bellies, their upper bodies dangling over the edge of the seawall, and all three dolphins came right up to the wall to greet them. Boss blew water on O’Hara and he laughed and stroked the dolphin’s head.
“I hope you guys are okay out there,” Annie said. “I’ll always call you with your own music. I wish you could find my mom. And Ian.”
The dolphins swam to the end of the canal adjacent to where their former tank was, then let out delighted squeals, turned and dived. They surfaced midway up the canal and O’Hara and Annie trotted along the seawall, following them as they made their way back out to sea.
3
Until now, Mira only had driven through this upscale neighborhood on the west side of the island. The house where they’d taken refuge sat on a shallow rise above the Gulf, about a mile from the Airbnb place Hal had wrecked. The lots here were two or three acres, surrounded by tall hedges and gorgeous trees, so there was plenty of privacy. Mira figured the place was worth a high seven figures.
Some of the furnishings—like the hot tub on the screened back porch and the fifty-five-inch TV mounted on the wall in the living room—held a particular fascination for the Crows. Nico, Cam, and Red were glued to the big screen and Trixie and Liz yucked it up in the hot tub on the screened back porch, where the pool also was. They passed their second bottle of wine back and forth and got progressively shitfaced, making so much noise that Mira and Rincon could talk without being overheard.
They sat at a wicker table nearby, whispering in Spanish. “I think the wine may be our best way out,” Rincon said.
“And maybe Cam.” With Squirt sleeping in one of the bedrooms and Hal snoozing on in his morphine- induced sleep, they had a chance. “He doesn’t want to seize the island, says he’s tired of fighting.”
“Interesting. And I’d just as soon get outta here before Hal wakes up. He’s been out for more than four hours now. He should last at least another eight, but… It’s also possible he could wake up in the next five minutes, too.”
“Hey, Normals,” Trixie called. “Come join us for wine. Tell us what it’s like being a Normal in the twenty-first.”
Rincon shook his head. “Thanks, but I don’t drink.”
“Me, either,” Mira added.
“I said, join us for a drink.”
Trixie threw her arms up in the air and Mira’s chair slammed back against the floor, knocking the air out of her. The chair kept sliding toward the hot tub with her still in it, Trixie and Liz cracking up. Rincon, moving toward them, shouted, “Knock it off, you’re hurting her!”
“Shut up, you old fart.”
With a flick of her arm, Trixie threw Rincon back against the wall and he slumped to the floor. Their laughter got louder.
“Make her dance, Trix,” laughed Liz. “I’d love to see the bitch dance!”
Mira felt the energy pounding through her, one powerful wave after another, a tsunami of such incredible magnitude that every muscle and tendon in her body snapped to attention, every capillary and vein burst open, her heart felt like it exploded. And she was back in that locker room, jerking down the bully’s gym shorts.
She tore free of Trixie’s hold on her, leaped to her feet, and directed the energy at the hot tub. Trixie shot up from the tub, arms flailing, her shriek of surprise so shrill it shattered the wine bottles and glasses. She slammed through the screen and crashed to the ground outside. Liz scrambled out of the tub, Mira snapped her right hand, catapulting Liz back against one of the poles that held the screened pool area intact. It knocked her out.
Mira ran toward the torn screen. Trixie, groaning loudly, pushed up from the grass, her right arm bleeding, her cheek smeared with blood, and before she could do anything, Mira attacked her again. Trixie jerked up from the ground like a marionette and Mira hurled her into the closest tree. It felt so deeply satisfying that as Trixie slumped to the ground, Mira lifted her up and tossed her into the air again. When she glanced back to check on Liz, Rincon was getting to his feet, favoring his left arm, and Cam, Nico, and Red stood in the doorway, aghast.
“Don’t get in my way,” Mira shouted.
Cam instantly camouflaged himself as Mira and now the same powerful energy coursed through him, she could actually see it, the waves like brilliant white flames that he hurled at Nico and Red. They pitched forward and hit the floor.
“Take Trixie!” Cam shouted in her voice. “I’ve got Liz!”
Mira spun and launched herself through the hole in the screen and landed upright just three feet from Trixie, who spat, “You fucking hostage bitch.”
She catapulted Mira back through the screen, and Mira’s energy wrapped around her and pulled Trixie with her, back into the pool area, as if they were conjoined. They landed in the deep end of the pool and Trixie instantly panicked, kicking her legs wildly, beating the water with her fists, screaming, “I can’t swim, oh my God I’m drowning…”
Mira scrambled out of the pool seconds before a dazed Liz struck the surface of the water and started sinking. Rincon, Cam, and Mira raced through the patio door. As they swept out into the darkness beyond the house lights, Cam camouflaged them as armed soldiers—Cam and Rincon as men, Mira as a woman—thank you, thank you! She pulled out her weapon, hoping it was real enough so she could shoot it if she had to.
They made their way down a shallow dune overgrown with shrubs and reached the beach. They paused briefly and Mira got her bearings—the lighthouse ahead of them, the wilderness preserve and her and Sheppard’s cabin beyond it. Three miles max. If they could make it there, if the crows remained out of commission, if, if, if.
Cam ended the camouflages and Rincon sank to his knees in the sand. Mira rushed over to him. “Are you hurt, Ian?”
“My right shoulder aches but otherwise I’ll live. What about you, mi amor?”
“Bruises, aches, nothing broken.”
“What you did—shit, it was incredible, Mira.”
“It… busted out of me when she threw you against that wall, Ian. But I don’t know if I could have gone on without Cam’s help. I’m forever grateful to you, Cam.”
“Hey, you gave me an excuse. I’d been sitting in the living room with Nico and Red for hours, listening to their shit about how great Hal is and how they were going to turn Tango into a Crow paradise and what they were going to do to you and Ian. I felt like I was going to explode. And then we heard all the commotion out here, Trixie’s shrieks, and came barreling out and… and there you were.”
Rincon glanced around nervously. “We need to keep moving. We…”
Cam said, “Ssshhhh.” Then: “Someone’s coming. We’re about to become dolphins.”
He clutched Mira’s hand, she grabbed Rincon’s, and they splashed into the water until they were deep enough so even tall Cam couldn’t stand, and he camouflaged them and they dived.
Mira didn’t know what she had expected, but this wasn’t camouflage. It was immersion. In the ways that mattered, she had become a dolphin. Yet, once she was underwater, she panicked because she couldn’t breathe. Then she suddenly did what dolphins did, surfaced for air, water shooting from her blowhole, and her entire sensory experience blew wide open. As a dolphin, she had never been alone.
From the moment of her first breath, she was connected to other dolphins through their collective memory and consciousness as a species. She could communicate with dolphins on the other side of the world or with dolphins in her vicinity, even camouflaged dolphins like Rincon and Cam. Their language was comprised mostly of sounds, an emotional complexity that humans lacked.
Rincon and Cam felt her initial panic, she felt Rincon’s shock, Cam’s joy. And then it all became beside the point. They were connected at such a profound level that they moved in unison, dived simultaneously, surfaced at the same, clicking, whistling. Within minutes, three other dolphins joined them and Mira recognized them: Boss, Prissy, and Rose.
Her heart swelled at the sight of them. They swam over to her, squealing, chittering. Boss brushed his snout against the side of her face, and an image of Annie and O’Hara filled her consciousness.
Where? she asked.
Another one of the three slipped up beside Mira. Rose, she thought. This one was Rose. She made a sound that Mira translated as, We’ll show you.
Then Prissy moved in between Mira and Cam on one side and Boss swam between her and Rincon on the other, and they followed Rose through the clear blue waters.
When Mira surfaced, she saw a beachcomber moving along the beach. Not any of the Crows.
Not yet.
They dived again.