15

 

When a thorough perimeter check revealed no sign of Global, the ERT gave Angie Strickland the go-ahead.

Just after nine am, Angie, Alex and Eugene brought a very jubilant Max to the courthouse by taxi. Alex and Max were both decked out in big hats, sweat pants, and oversize jackets. They entered the courthouse, a couple of guys from out of town, ready to give testimony. Once they were safely inside, Angie remained at the entrance while Eugene followed them in carrying Max’s briefcase.

Max went directly to the court clerk’s office and handed over his documents for filing. The clerk read the cover pages and looked up in surprise but said nothing. Max smiled and said nothing. He was done and ready to leave the courthouse by nine thirty am.

When everyone joined Angie, still stationed at the entrance, they found Bannon with her.

“Thank you so much, all of you! This wouldn’t have happened without you.”

“Let’s get you back home,” said Angie.

“I guess I can’t go visit Rose.”

“Absolutely not,” said Bannon. “Now let’s get him out of here.”

“Does Knightley know you’re here Al?” asked Angie, innocently.

“No,” said Bannon.

“I imagine he’ll find out soon enough.”

“Yeah,” said Bannon. “I just couldn’t let it be.”

Angie smiled and motioned to two guys in plainclothes, one on either side of the entrance.

“ERT,” she said. “Apparently they had orders to avoid the courthouse altogether.

Bannon smiled.

 

 

Alex was in the kitchen when his regular phone buzzed. It was in his jacket pocket, where he’d left it, in Max’s study.

Max was in his study, taking care of something online when he heard the phone. He fished it out of Alex’s jacket pocket and brought it to him.

“Someone is trying to reach you,” he said, handing it to Alex.

Alex read the message and a wave of fear surged through him.

We have your father. You will get further instructions shortly.

“Alex, you okay?”

“No,” said Alex, his voice barely above a whisper.

Alex called Eugene.

“They have my dad.”

“I’m on my way.”

“The fucking bastards!” said Max.

Alex went outside to where the ERT were stationed.

“My father has been abducted by a couple of the Global Guard crew.”

Alex showed the message to the team leader.

“Jesus!”

“My mom is at the college. She lectures there. She could also be in danger.”

“Find out where is she right now?”

Alex called his mom.

“Hi, Alex.”

He put her on speaker.

“Mom, you’re on speaker. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, dear.”

“Are you at the college?”

“I’m just finishing up. Then I’m off to the grocery store. I’m on supper duty. What’s up?”

“There’s no easy way to say this. Dad has been abducted.”

“Alex! No!”

“Was he at the museum, Mom?”

“Yes. I talked with him about an hour ago.”

“The abductors just messaged me.”

Meaning they hadn’t taken him that long ago, thought Alex. But where would they take him?

“Can your mom lock herself in somewhere?” said the ERT leader.

“Mom, where are you right now?”

“In my office. I just locked the door.”

“Good work, Ma’am. My name is Reggie. Two men from the ERT team are coming to get you. Don’t let anybody in. What room are you in and what wing are we coming to?”

“South wing, third floor. My office is Room 243. Park in the lot on your left when you enter the grounds. It’s closest to me.”

“We’re leaving now, ma’am. When we get to your door, I’ll knock three times and give you my name.”

“Okay Reggie.”

Reggie copied Vera’s number into his phone.

“We’ll advise you as soon as she’s safe, Alex.”

“Mom, I’m going to stay on the line with you till they get there.”

“Good. Can the police set up a roadblock?”

“I can’t put the police on this, not yet, Mom. I was warned to come alone. A roadblock would put Dad in serious jeopardy.”

“What are you going to do? And why would someone kidnap Ron?”

Her voice had started to shake with fear.

“It’s not Dad they’re after, Mom. It’s me.”

Neither spoke for a half a minute. Alex was thinking about how he’d handled this. First, he put Melva in danger. And yes, she got him the information he needed. Then he had to scramble to keep her safe. Now they had his dad… his dad.

“Mom, are you still there?”

“I’m still here, Alex. Don’t beat yourself up.”

“This is my fault Mom.”

“My dear son. This is not your fault. We are all in this fight and we are all at risk. There isn’t an Indigenous person alive who doesn’t know that.”

“But Mom?”

“Listen to me Alex. Your dad is a courageous man. This is not his first go round with bastards who have no regard for us. He is a man of great courage. What I want to know is how on earth did they get in? The museum is like Fort Knox.”

“Global Guard is a big outfit, and you can bet that they have the most advanced technology there is available to them. They must have disabled the alarm somehow.”

Or they just knocked on the door, thought Alex.

Alex returned to where Max and now Connie were waiting.

“The ERT are on the way to get mom. She’s safe right now. She locked herself in her office.”

“Oh, Alex!” said Connie.

“I’m so sorry this happened!” said Max.

“Who’s that?”

A surprised Connie looked at Alex’s phone.

“I’m Max’s mom, Connie King. And my son Max is here with me.”

“Hello to you both. Alex, you don’t need to stay on the line with me. I’m sure I’ll be fine. Please sweetheart… just find your father.”

“Mom, do not hang up! Please, keep this line open!”

“Okay, I will. What are you going to do now, Alex?”

“I can’t plan anything till I know what I’m dealing with. I’m waiting for Eugene. He should be here any minute.”

This was Eugene’s cue to pull up in front of Max’s place, tires squealing. He was out of the car and bounded up the steps.

“What do we know?”

Alex’s regular phone dinged. Another message from LePlant.

“Mom. Stay on the line. I have a message from the abductors.”

“Okay.”

Come to the crossroads of Township Rd 16 and McMaster Ranch Rd. Wait there for the next message.

Come alone or your dad is dead

If you share this message with anyone your dad is dead

“You’ll be wide open there, but so will they,” said Eugene.

“Maybe they won’t be there,” said Alex.

“Right. They’ll be watching via satellite.”

“So, I’ll need to go alone.”

“I’ll be in the trunk.”

“The trunk? Right.”

“Is that a smart watch,” asked Eugene, indicating Alex’s wrist.

“No. They’re too easy to hack.”

“We have to track you somehow. They’ll probably make you ditch your phone.”

“Wait a minute. This is my regular phone. They don’t know about the burner.”

“Ron knows about the burner?”

“Sometimes I have to call him on it.”

“But LePlant doesn’t know about the burner?”

“He doesn’t.”

Alex handed the burner to Max.

“Put a tracker on it.”

Max took off inside and Alex returned to the call with his mom.

“Mom, you still there?”

“I’m still here. Have you heard anything?”

“Yes. Eugene’s here and we have a plan. We’re leaving now.”

“I’ve been watching out the window, and I think my guys just arrived. They do look a bit formidable. It’s them for sure… they’re running to the entrance.”

“They’re going to bring you back to Max’s.”

“And you’ll bring dad there too?”

Vera was crying softly now.

“I’ll bring him back to you, Mom. I promise. Please don’t cry. I have to go now.”

“Good luck, son.”

Alex knew better than to make that kind of promise, but it was hard to hear his mom crying.

“I’ll let the ERT know what we’re doing,” said Eugene heading outside.

Alex found Max in the study.

“Have you talked with Melva today?”

“Just a while ago,” said Max, while he fiddled with the burner. She’s quite happy. Norm bought her a new laptop.”

“Are they still at the hotel?”

“Till tomorrow.”

“Good,” said Alex.

Alex waited till Max was done, then called Melva on his burner.

“Hi, Alex. Is everything okay?”

“No. A couple of goons from Global Guard have kidnapped my dad.”

“Shit.”

“I have a big favour. It won’t get you in any trouble.”

“How can I help?”

“I’m going to give you two locations. You know where the Secwépemc Museum is?”

“Yes.”

“Dad was abducted from there.”

“Fuck! No!”

“Two men are involved. Start searching for a site where they might be holding him within a half hour’s driving time from the museum, so between forty and fifty kilometres from the museum and then maybe branch out from there. I’m just guessing here.”

“Okay. We’ll figure it out.”

“The next text I got, about half an hour later told me to be at the crossroads of Township Road 16 and McMaster Ranch Road. It’s all I have to go on. That’s about forty minutes from the museum.”

“That crossroads is ranch country so there’s going to be a lot of wide-open space, which should make it easier. I’ll get on it right now and pull in a few others. Don’t worry, Alex. We’ll search every inch of ground. We should use SkyFi, if we think we’ve found locations worth checking out. It’s real-time, but costs major. We’re maxed out right now.”

Alex pulled out his card and quickly read the number to her. “Don’t worry about the cost.”

“Got it.”

“One last thing. Recent vehicles the goons used include a grey Nissan SUV and a brown Dodge Ram.

“Got it.”

“I really appreciate this, Melva.”

“Is your new partner helping you?”

“Yes.”

“Good luck, Alex. We’ll all be praying for your dad’s safe return.”

“We’re gonna need it.”

Alex ran out to the cruiser and hopped in. Eugene pulled away from the curb and headed downtown, siren wailing.

“We’ll take my jeep,” said Alex. “Roomy trunk.”

“The ERT are on standby. Angie and Al are coordinating an aerial search from the station, looking for possible locations where your dad might be. They know where we’re meeting LePlant and they’ll be close by, ready to move in when needed.”

“I just brought in some friends to help with the search.”

“The more people looking the better.”

“Fuck, Eugene. The bastard has my dad!”

“There is only one option here, Alex. We’ll have to take out LePlant.”

“Him and his backup.”

“Him too.”

Alex was left with his own thoughts while Eugene drove. There was one thought that had his stomach in a knot. LePlant had no reason to keep his dad alive. He looked at Eugene. The set of his jaw told Alex he was thinking the same thing.

 

 

Melva put out the word, and while she waited, she and started the search herself. She opened another window and started an account with SkyFi. She kept checking and as soon as she had three people online, she got them started.

mel: good news and bad news … the good news is the white blizzard is blowing everywhere! 22 lawsuits have been registered so far and the day isn’t over yet

majishin: whoo hoo!

kamloopa: i’m so excited about the blizzard … fuck i hope it works

mystyc: something good will come of this i just know it!

mel: now for the bad news and it’s very very bad … Alex’s dad has been abducted from the museum … global guard is behind this … i think they’re after Alex because he knows too much

mel: two guys took him

kamloopa: we’ll find those fucking assholes!

majishin: you bet we will!

mystyc: how are we doing this?

mel: recent vehicles the bastards were using include a grey Nissan SUV and a brown Dodge Ram … watch out for either of those

mystyc: but they aren’t necessarily driving those vehicles

mel: right. it’s just a possibility that will help narrow the field

kamloopa: might help

mel: alex has been told to go to the intersection of township rd 16 and mcMaster ranch rd

kamloopa: that’s 38 km from the museum.

mel: alex wants us to start the search band at 30 km from the museum

majishin: complete circle or an arc from the crows nest down to the river?

mel: let’s start with 360 … We can always narrow it down … there’s four of us … Lets split into four pies: I’m north, majishin south, mystyc east, kamloopa west … I’ve got SkyFi open … your job is to feed me likely spots … I’ll need the coordinates … and I’ll get the real time video on those spots only

majishin: okay

kamloopa: okay

mystyc: is Alex alone?

mel: no … a friend is with him … more on that later … let’s get to work

 

 

Alex stopped the jeep just short of the crossroads and killed the engine. He’d only passed a few vehicles after he left the highway. Eugene was confined in the trunk space, but they’d removed the wall that separated the trunk from the rest of the vehicle, so Eugene had an unobstructed view of the front seat.

“Anything,” asked Eugene quietly.

“Get ready,” said Alex. “There’s a truck coming this way on McMaster Ranch Road. Wait… No. It’s a blue truck; it’s towing a horse trailer.”

Alex watched as the truck came closer and closer, then slowed down a little as it approached the intersection before driving on through. It passed by the jeep and kept on going.

“I’m going to step out and have a look around.”

“Okay.”

He got out of the jeep and walked to the intersection. He looked around in all directions but there was no sign of another vehicle approaching. He walked back to the car and got in, leaving his door ajar. He spotted another vehicle approaching from the east on the Township Road.

“Another car coming,” said Alex quietly. He watched as a dusty red vehicle approached the intersection, then drove through and kept on going.

“You okay back there?”

“I’ll survive.”

Alex looked at his watch.

“We’ve been here nearly ten minutes. What’s the holdup?”

“It won’t be long, buddy.”

A few more minutes went by. Alex’s phone dinged. He read the message out loud.

A car will pick you up in fifteen minutes.

Confirm you received this message

Alex sent a confirmation text.

“Says they’ll pick me up in fifteen minutes.”

“Where the hell are they?”

“I’m betting it’s getting more than a little cramped back there.”

“I’m good,” said Eugene as he moved around to ease the strain.

Alex texted Melva for an update.

Nothing yet. You still at the crossroads?

Yes

“Nothing yet from the detachment?”

“Nothing,” said Eugene, from the trunk.

“I’m just going to step out of the car again for a minute.”

“Okay.”

His sense of impending disaster was through the roof. Alex got out of the jeep and checked the time. It was nearly four pm. Dusk had fallen. It would be completely dark in minutes and there would be no moon tonight. He listened intently for the sound of approaching vehicles and was rewarded when he thought he heard a car approaching from the north on McMaster Road.

But he was mistaken. No lights. But he could still hear the whine of a motor, though it was faint. Darkness blanketed everything in the distance. The car must be travelling east to west, just out of sight. The whine was definitely louder now.

Odd, thought Alex. It seemed to be moving towards them. The whine was much louder but still, no sign of headlights. And then it hit him.

“Drone!” Alex screamed. “Eugene! Run!”

Eugene was out of the trunk in an instant and running for all he was worth away from the jeep, Alex right behind him.

When the drone hit the jeep, the force of the blast lifted them off their feet. Eugene ended up in the brush beside the road. Alex not far from him on the pavement. Dazed, but conscious, he watched as his jeep burned.

There was a second explosion as the gas tank caught fire, sending yellowish blue flames leaping into the air. The roof was gone and what was left of the jeep was engulfed in flames. The smell of burning rubber and gasoline filled the air.

Alex pulled himself to his knees. Spotting Eugene, he got up unsteadily and moved to his side.

“You okay?”

“I think so. I just need a minute.”

“They’ll be here soon to make sure the job’s done.”

Alex helped Eugene to his feet. Eugene pulled out his phone and called Angie.

“We’re at McMaster Road and Township Road 16. LePlant just tried to take us out with a drone. Alex’s jeep is toast.”

“We heard that! We’re heading in your direction now. Jesus! Are you two okay?”

“We’re conscious and mobile. How close are you?”

“We’re not far out. Ten to twelve minutes.”

“Eugene,” said Alex. “Someone’s coming from the north.”

“We have company from the north on McMaster.”

“Copy that,” said Angie.

“Let’s move in close to the vehicle,” said Alex. “I’ll take the field on the other side of the road.”

“I’ll take this side.”

Alex crossed the road and shimmied through the fence on the other side. He made his way toward the burning jeep, getting as close as he could with the heat. He looked across in time to see Eugene take up a position across from him and drop to the ground. He did the same with just moments to spare.

A Dodge Ram pulled up on the other side of the intersection.

Two men got out. Rifles ready, they crossed the intersection and moved in on the burning vehicle.

Alex watched the man who got out on the passenger side closely. He tried to approach the driver’s side, but leaping flames, billows of thick black smoke and intense heat kept him from coming too close. He pulled up his visor.

It was LePlant.

Alex steadied his hand, aimed for his neck, took a deep breath in, and fired. LePlant’s hand went to his neck, then he spun in a half circle and landed on his side, well away from the jeep.

Not sure if he’d got him, Alex was on his feet now, moving in on LePlant. LePlant’s partner saw him fall and spun quickly before retreating—but too late.

Eugene missed the head shot but got him in the thigh. He was down but still moving, and he still had his automatic. Eugene was also on his feet now. He got off another shot, hitting his arm and the shooter dropped his rifle.

Suddenly, LePlant was on his knees in a low crouch. He’d spotted Alex and rolled to his left, hiding in a wave of billowing black smoke.

Alex, who was out in the open, moved quickly to his left, away from the blazing car, but not quick enough. LePlant’s first shot grazed his left upper arm. He couldn’t see Eugene and he couldn’t see LePlant’s partner.

He moved slowly to his left again, watching intently for a break in the smoke. He knew LePlant was probably doing the same. But then, Alex had a glimpse of him, retreating towards his truck and he got off two shots. When there was no answering rounds, Alex, adrenaline pumping, headed for the intersection.

In an instant, Alex took in LePlant lying on his side in the middle of the intersection, his rifle aimed right at him. Alex dropped to the tarmac as shots rained over his head and shoulders. He took aim and fired. LePlant’s rifle fell away from his body and his head fell back against the tarmac.

Alex moved quickly to his side and leaned in close.

“Where’s my dad, you fucking bastard?!”

LePlant opened and closed his mouth, raised one hand a few inches, let it drop. It was the last thing he would do on this earth.

Eugene had easily overcame LePlant’s accomplice. He cuffed him, then called for an ambulance.

“Is he alive?” Eugene was beside him now.

“No.”

Two cruisers roared through the intersection, sirens blaring. Four people jumped out.

Alex raised his head, to be met full on with the blinding light of the Ram’s headlights.

“The truck—the GPS!” yelled Alex, up and running past the cruisers to the Ram.

“The other guy’s alive and cuffed. We need to find Ron,” yelled Eugene to his right as he ran afterAlex through the intersection to the Ram. “I called an ambulance!”

Bannon and Strickland and a couple of uniforms watched them go. Bannon walked over to LePlant’s body.

“One of these guys is LePlant.”

“Too bad about the jeep?” said one of the uniforms.

Angie Strickland approached the wounded guy, lying just outside the intersection.

“What’s your name?”

He rewarded her with an expressionless stare.

“He’s not talking,” she said, stooping down to get a better look at his leg wound.

“Ooh, that is nasty. I bet that hurts. We better get a tourniquet on that.”

The guy was holding his right forearm.

“Looks like you were shot in the arm as well.”

She went to get the first aid kit in the cruiser.

“So, these guys are Global Guard?” said the other uniform, standing with Bannon who was still in the intersection.

“Apparently,” said Bannon. “Our boss is gonna change his tune now.”

Angie Strickland was back beside the wounded guy with the first aid kit. She pulled out a doughnut and some gauze.

“This will hurt,” she said, as she applied it to his leg wound and tied a bandage tightly over it.

There was a slight wince, then his face was once again expressionless.

“Now, let’s have a look at your arm,” she said, examining the wound. “It doesn’t look too bad.”

The wail of the ambulance siren could be heard in the distance.

“I’ll let them take care of that.”

“Maybe this guy will talk,” said the uniform beside Angie.

A look of worry crossed the wounded man’s face, but was quickly replaced with the expressionless stare.

 

 

Alex pulled up the GPS. There were only two stops between the crossroads and the museum.

“How bad is your arm?”

“He just nicked me,” said Alex. He took off and drove at top speed to the last stop shown, due east of them.

“That took about eight minutes,” said Eugene.

“I don’t see a building,” said Alex. “I don’t see anything.”

“Maybe they texted you from here.”

Eugene was rummaging in the glove compartment, looking for a flashlight.

“No flashlight. I’ll check the back.” He went to the back of the truck and started searching.

“We’ve got no moonlight, Eugene. No light at all out here!”

“Guns, ammo, vests,” mumbled Eugene, tossing things around. “Flashlights… yes!”

He handed one to Alex. They got out and started searching along the road on either side of the truck.

“Dad, it’s Alex. Can you hear me?” Alex repeated over and over.

“I don’t think Ron is here,” said Eugene, after a few minutes.

“I don’t either.”

They returned to the truck and Alex cued up the next GPS location.

“It’s about twenty kilometres from here,” he said, taking off at full speed, knuckles white on the steering wheel.

The cab was quiet. Both of them had their eyes on the road ahead and what limited view was afforded by the high beams. They had travelled eighteen kilometres and hadn’t passed a single building. At nineteen, Alex slowed down, and they carefully scanned the road on either side. Still nothing.

They were coming up to the twenty kilometre mark when Eugene spotted a property sign.

 

Alan Dopplemeer Developments

Eugene had his window open and was scanning the side of the road with his flashlight.

“Take the exit coming up on your right.”

Alex pulled into a badly rutted laneway. He slowed to a crawl.

“Twenty kilometres in three… two… one.”

“You have arrived,” agreed the GPS.

Alex stopped the truck, and they got out, flashlights on full. Alex found his dad with the first sweep, half sitting, half lying, his back against a tree.

“Dad!” he yelled, running to his side, Eugene right behind him.

Alex took his pulse.

“He’s alive! But his pulse is very weak.”

“I’ll get the first aid kit.”

Ron’s shirt was covered in blood from a jagged hole in his chest. His skin was cold.

“You took your time,” Ron murmured feebly.

“Don’t talk, Dad. Save your strength.” Alex took off his jacket and snugged it around Ron’s shoulders, which alerted him to the exit wound.

“There’s an exit wound.”

“Copy that,” said Eugene, back with the kit, now open beside him.

He quickly found what he needed, wadding up thick dressings.

“Put this dressing on the exit wound,” he said while he unfurled a long compress bandage.

Alex held it in place, while Eugene secured it and pulled the ends of the compression bandage to the front.

Alex grabbed more dressings and placed them over the entrance wound. Eugene pulled the bandage over them and secured it tightly.

They improvised a chair, picked Ron up and carried him the short distance to the truck.

“It’s probably easier to pull him up, torso first,” said Eugene, getting the passenger door open while still holding onto Ron.

Alex pulled down the passenger step with his foot and shifting his grip on his dad’s upper body, he pulled him up into the truck, while Eugene pushed up from the bottom. Somehow, they got him into the passenger seat.

“Compress bandage and padding, still in place,” said Alex. He buckled him in.

“I’ll grab the kit. We might need it,” said Eugene, hopping out and running back for it.

“Stay with us, Dad,” said Alex, starting up the truck. He turned the heat to the highest setting and backing up in a slow, bumpy arc, turned the truck around. Eugene hopped back in with the kit.

“I’ll grab some blankets to wrap him in.”

Alex pulled out slowly, keeping a careful eye on his dad.

“You sure you’re okay there, Dad?”

“Hmm.”

Eugene was back with blankets. He arranged one blanket over Ron’s knees, tucked it in, then, unbuckling him, wrapped his upper body in blankets.

Ron groaned in pain.

“Sorry, Ron. I’ll be done here quick as I can.”

He settled Ron back against the seat and buckled him back in.

“What do you think?”

“Blood is still oozing,” said Eugene. “I think that’s a good sign. I don’t think the bullet hit a lung, or he’d be coughing up blood. Eugene slipped another blanket over Ron’s knees.

“They must have known he was still alive,” said Alex.

“My guess is they never bothered to check.” said Eugene. “It was a kill shot. It’s a frigging miracle Ron’s alive.”

Ron moaned softly.

Eugene crawled over Ron and buckled into the middle seat. Alex was at the road now. He pulled out and gunned it.

“The hospital is half an hour from here.”

“Make that fifteen,” said Alex.

“What’s Ron’s blood type?”

“O positive.”

“Anything else they should know?”

“He has the heart of a lion,” said Alex, his voice breaking.

“Copy that.” Eugene called in the Emergency, gave the particulars of wound, that there was an entrance and an exit wound and told them Ron’s blood type.

“We’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

He wanted the hospital prepared to operate when they arrived. Ron passed out while he was on the phone.

“He passed out Alex, probably from the pain.”

Eugene checked his pulse.

“Heart rate is very weak, but it’s still steady.”

“Stay with us, Dad,” said Alex. “I’ll get you there fast as I can.”

Alex took the road at breakneck speed. The silence in the cab was broken only by Alex talking gently to his father. Eugene tended to Ron and kept a watch on his vitals.

When they arrived twenty minutes later, the gurney was waiting and so was the operating room.

“You fellows okay?” said one of the Emergency nurses.

“Just a little stiff,” said Eugene.

“Stiff,” said Alex, nodding.

“You’re covered in black soot! Both of you!”

“We’re good,” said Eugene. “Find a seat, Alex. I’ll check in with the ERT.”

Alex found a couple of chairs in the hallway not far from the OR and sank into a chair. Eugene joined him a few minutes later.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, then they both got out their phones.

Alex texted Melva that he’d found his dad, that he’d been shot, that he was in the OR.

She texted back that one of them had found a site that they thought might be linked to Global Guard.

Then Alex called his mom and told her he was coming to bring her to the hospital, but she insisted he stay where he was.

“Ron needs you there, Alex. Max will drive me to the hospital.”

After some hurried conversation at her end, Vera came back on the line.

“Connie’s coming with us. I’ll call Manny now.”

“Thanks, Mom. I’ll call Gwen.”

Gwen’s phone went to voicemail. Alex kept the message short. He asked her to call him back as soon as she could.

Off the phone now, Alex listened while Eugene brought Bannon and Strickland up to date. They were still at the crossroads.

“So, Bannon will take care of updating the ERT leader at the house.”

There was more discussion.

“What about Rose?” said Alex.

“Can someone pick Rose Barlow up at the safe house,” asked Eugene.

There was more discussion.

“Angie’s going to pick her up when they’re done,” said Eugene.

Eugene said nothing for another minute.

“Great then. Thanks Angie. See you back at the office.”

Eugene turned to say something reassuring to Alex, who was coming down from a massive adrenaline surge. In a futile gesture, Alex wiped his face with his hands, then let them fall to his lap. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“I’m going to get us something to drink. What would you like?”

“Anything. Doesn’t matter.”

“Hungry?”

“No.” Alex stood up and headed down the hall with Eugene. They passed the family room and Alex poked his head in. It was empty.

“I’ll wait at the entrance for mom and bring her here.”

“Okay. Then get someone to patch up your arm.”

Alex nodded.

 

 

Alex, his brother Manny, Vera, Connie, Max, and Eugene had been waiting in the family room for several hours. Ron was still in surgery. Manny and Vera had talked for a while, but the room was quiet now.

Max had been on his phone for nearly an hour. He was smiling; a lot.

He must be texting Rose, thought Alex.

Eugene’s phone dinged. It was Angie Strickland.

We just got a call. Ray Palmer has been murdered

Eugene replied:

Do you need me there?

Angie replied:

Stay with Alex, Bannon is with me

He showed the messages to Alex.

“Retribution?”

“Could be,” said Eugene. “Maybe one less problem?’

“To be so lucky.”

“What,” said Max quietly.

“Ray Palmer is dead,” said Eugene, quietly.

Max held up his phone. “I’m texting with Rose right now.”

“It will be public knowledge soon,” said Eugene.

“She’ll be devastated,” said Max.

Alex was sitting beside his mom.

“Your dad’s been in surgery for more than two hours,” said Vera, her eyes welling up.

Alex took her hand in his. She looked at him.

“You need to find a new line of work,” said Manny, from where he sat.

Alex looked at his brother but said nothing.

Vera looked over at her son. “Not now, Manny.”

“I, for one, think that your brother Alex is a very brave man,” said Connie, her voice quiet and measured.

“With other people’s lives,” said Manny.

“And with his own,” she said. “Alex, his friends, and a few good police saved the lives of my son Max, Rose Barlow, and Ari Rosen, and I hope and pray, your father as well. All of them have put themselves on the line.”

Manny’s eyes went to Alex’s bandaged arm; the bruise on Max’s cheek.

“All of them are fighting for our right—everyone’s right—to clean water, clean air, to put an end to the environmental degradation that we are now surrounded with. We all hold some responsibility for the fact that my husband is fighting for his life right now.”

Manny didn’t respond.

There was a knock on the door and a surgeon entered, mask down, gloves off. Alex, Vera and Manny were on their feet in an instant.

“I’m Dr. Hakeem,” he said with a smile.

“I’m Vera, Ron’s wife.”

“I’m Manny. This is Alex. We’re his sons.”

The doctor nodded to them all and addressed Vera.

“I’ve come to tell you that I completed my surgery, but your husband is still in surgery, with Dr. Mackie, a spinal cord specialist, who is just finishing up. I want you to know that Ron came through what was a very difficult surgery, surprisingly well. Your father has a strong heart.”

Vera started to cry softly. Manny put an arm around her.

“Your father was very, very lucky, as far as the passage the bullet took. The surgery was lengthy because we had to repair a tear in an artery. Also, there was tissue damage to an area of the spleen, but we did manage to save it.

“A real concern was the extensive tissue damage close to the spine, where the bullet exited. We were lucky and were able to pull in Dr. Mackie, who was available to operate.”

“Can we speak with Dr. Mackie,” asked Vera.

“When can we see dad?” asked Manny.

“We will be taking your dad up to ICU when Dr. Mackie is done. He’ll be available to speak with you then. If you could wait here until Ron’s settled, that would be best. Once he’s there, you’re free to visit for brief periods, as long as you mask and gown. But I should warn you that he won’t be able to talk with you as we’ll be keeping him sedated for the next twenty-four hours. It was a long surgery, and he needs to rest now.”

“The surgery took almost three hours,” said Alex.

“Is there anything we should be worried about?” asked Vera.

“We can’t know for sure ma’am. We’ll have to wait and see how he does post-surgery.”

“Will he be able to walk?” asked Vera.

“It’s best you speak with Dr. Mackie. That’s really all I can tell you right now.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” said Manny.

“Good night,” said Dr. Hakeem and he left.

It was another half hour before Dr. Mackie was finished. He dropped in on the family for a brief visit. Everyone rose.

“Your husband has a strong heart,” he said, speaking directly to Vera. “He just came through hours of surgery, and he’s doing well, all things considered.”

“Do you think he’ll be okay?” Manny asked.

“We’re hopeful, but I can’t say for sure right now. I wish I could tell you more. We’ll know better tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” said Vera. She sat down, weary and completely exhausted.

“I’m going to go check on the shooter we have in custody,” said Eugene. “I text you an update, Alex.”

He headed to Emergency.

“I’ll take Mom home, Manny,” said Alex.

“I’m not going anywhere,” said Vera.

“How long are you staying?”

“As long as needed.”

“Okay,” said Manny. “I’m going home to grab some sleep. Are you staying here?”

“I’ll stay with mom.”

“Okay. Let’s talk tomorrow.”

 

 

Norm had gone to do some shopping and pick up takeout and had just gotten back to their hotel room. Melva looked up from her new laptop as he opened the door and came through.

“Norm, Alex found his dad!”

“Thank you, Creator!”

“He’s not okay, Norm. He was shot.”

“Oh no. The fucking bastards! Do they know if he’s gonna be okay?”

“I’ve no idea. He’s in surgery.”

“So I guess you guys are off duty.”

“Kamloopa found something she wants me to check out with SkyFi.”

Melva was bent over her laptop, zeroing in on the coordinates she’d been given. Norm brought a plate of food to her and one for himself and settled into a chair beside her.

“Okay. What are we looking for?”

“Here. Kamloopa says there’s something about this area that grabbed her interest. It’s about thirty kilometres above the Thompson River. She thinks there might be a bunker in this hilly area.”

“A bunker? No way,” said Norm. “She’s a bit of a conspiracy theorist don’t you think?”

“I do not think that!”

“You’re going to check it out?”

“I’m going to do that now. We haven’t found anything else worth checking.”

Melva opened the SkyFi account she’d created earlier and plugged in the coordinates kamloopa had given her. She started a slow pan.

“I can’t see much in the dark. Maybe I should wait till the morning to do this.”

“Wait. Look… right there,” said Norm, pointing at the screen. “That’s a grey SUV. Weren’t we supposed to be on the lookout for one. I don’t see the Dodge Ram though.”

“I’ll think I’ll get a minute or two of footage.” She started a video and took a shot of the SUV.

A truck with a boat trailer attached pulled into the yard.

“What’s that guy doing, the guy with the boat trailer,” said Norm. “It looks like he’s backing it into the wall?”

They watched in silence as a blue truck manoeuvred the boat trailer until it was nearly up against what looked like a hill. The driver hopped out of his truck, walked up to the wall and fiddled with something.

“What’s he doing?”

As she spoke, a recessed wall began to slowly rise, exposing a brightly lit, well reinforced cavern.

“Wow. Do you see that?”

“I sure do!” said Norm. “I wonder how far back that cavern goes,” he said.

A number of vehicles and equipment they couldn’t identify were parked inside.

The driver hopped back in his truck and slowly backed the boat into the cavern, then kept going, straight back until he disappeared. Several minutes went by before the truck reappeared, without the boat and trailer, and drove out of the cavern. He got out once again and accessed the control panel.

“Mel, zero in and see if you can get the code.”

“Or the guy’s picture,” she said.

“That too.”

“I’m trying but it’s just too dark and there’s too much shadow to see properly.”

They watched as the recessed wall slowly closed. Then the driver went to one side and pulled over a huge swinging door made of wood slats and locked it in place. Then the driver got into his truck and drove away.

Melva ended the SkyFi session and downloaded the video.

“It’s official, Mel. Our kamloopa is psychic.”

“She has never claimed to be psychic. She is definitely very observant. She spotted what she thought might be a door in a very odd location.”

“In the side of a hill definitely qualifies as an odd location. But I didn’t see anything that suggested that was a door.”

“Hmm,” said Melva.

“That aside, Mel, unexplained phenomena exist.”

“Come on, Norm. I know how you love the psychic stuff.”

“It isn’t that I love the psychic stuff, Mel. If you had ever worked at a hospital—where life and death experiences are a part of the everyday—and experienced some of the things that I’ve experienced, firsthand, I might add, you would be far less inclined to be so patronizing.”

“You’re right.” She sighed. “It’s this psychic stuff. I really don’t understand how you can believe…”

“You mean, believe in things that happen that have no other explanation?”

“There’s always an explanation.”

“No, Mel, there isn’t always an explanation.”

“Hmm.”

This conversation never went anywhere. Norm gave up and changed the subject.

“So what’s the deal with the new partner that’s joining Alex at the PI firm?”

“They were partners before, when Alex was still in the force. He seems to have a lot of faith in the guy.”

“He’s not Indigenous, is he?”

“No.”

“Have you brought it up with the redz?”

“Not yet. It will be up to the group whether we read the new guy in.”

“We could handle his involvement in some other way. All information through Alex on a need-to-know basis. We’ll work it out somehow.”

“You’re right. We will. I’m going to send the video to Alex now. He’s not going to believe this! And it only cost him $380. What a steal!”

 

 

Everyone was still waiting for Ron to be brought up to the ICU when Alex phone dinged. Seeing a message from Melva, he left the family room and went out into the hall.

Check your account. I sent a video. Very interesting. Did the Global guys have a boat?

Thanks Melva. Yes, they had a boat at their disposal.

Alex viewed the video, then texted Eugene, who’d returned to his place, once he knew that Ron had survived the surgery.

My friends have found something very interesting. Where are you?

Alone, at my desk. “What did they find?”

“Sending you a video. You can’t share it just yet.

Alex sent the video and waited. Eugene called back and Alex moved down the hall where he wouldn’t be overhead.

“That’s a bunker,” said Eugene. It’s pretty big. And the boat. They’ll want to get forensics on that boat.”

“There has to be a way to pass this information with the detachment. But I don’t want to put my friend at risk. I’ll talk with her and get back to you.”

“The forensics guys are coming up from Surrey early tomorrow morning to go over the truck.”

“I wouldn’t hold my breath.”

“I won’t.”

“I’ll get back to you about the video.”

“Okay.”

Alex called Melva. She picked up right away.

“Hey Melva. Can you post the video online without it leading back to you?”

“Of course.”

“Do that, then get someone to call it into the tip line.”

“I’m on it.”