Left Behind Series - The Remnant Part 9

"This I've got to see."

"You will."

"And where am I while Chloe's doing her thing at headquarters? "

"waiting in the Jeep, eyes and ears open. The impression is, yeah, there are two of you, but it takes only one to pick up directions for the boss."

"And where will you be?" Chloe said.

"On the phone to Chang and then to the kid at the airport. I want that Rooster Tail ga.s.sed up and ready to go."

"You going to tell him we'll have a prisoner with us?"

"I'll play that by ear. If we don't find a weapon in George's car, I've got one for him and one for me anyway. You've got your side arms." "Think we'll need them?"

"At least for show. There's nothing suspicious about a superior officer bringing armed staff with him on a

visit like this." Chang hurried as casually as he could to his quarters during his afternoon break and flew across his key

board, trying to track his sister. She was better at this than he expected. He wished only that she had let him in on it so he could have helped pave the way. Maybe if she arrived somewhere and discovered he had pre

cleared her for transport on a.s.signment, she would

know he was watching.

Peacekeeper Chow was already in the system. Apparently "he" had gotten out of Chicago and found himself a ride to Long Grove, Illinois. Chang was glad his sister had avoided Kankakee and the old Glenview Naval Air Station. Though short-staffed like everywhere else, they had been burned by Judah-ites for the last time and were impossible to hoodwink. But Chang had never before

seen anything on his system that mentioned even an airstrip in Long Grove.

He finally found an executive runway that had recently been reopened for limited commercial routes. With his break time running out, Chang contacted the tower there as a high-ranking official in the GC aviation administration, "requesting routine confirmation of a

Peacekeeper from international sector catching a ride on a commercial cargo plane bound for Pawleys Island, South Carolina. "

Chang couldn't wait for the response and hurried back to his desk. There it became clear that Suhail Akbar himself was interrogating the first pilot to return from Petra. Chang could only a.s.sume that the second was also bound for Suhail's private conference room. With a few keystrokes, he activated the bug in that office to record, and later he would download it from the central system. Chloe appreciated that Hannah seemed sensitive enough to leave her to her thoughts on the drive back in to Ptolemais. "You're okay with my doing this, right"

"Makes perfect sense," Hannah said. "If I was going to get checked, this would be the place."

Chloe tried to slow her pulse by breathing deeply and trying to doze. It didn't work, but she knew her life depended on what Mac referred to as her ability to play bored. Irritated was all right, if it came to that. But bored would play truest.

Squadron headquarters was on the top three floors of a four-story building with an abandoned first floor that appeared to have been some sort of business.

One of the men Chloe and Hannah had encountered on the street sat in the dark near the elevator at ground level, smoking and reading by the sliver of light from the street. He stood when he saw her and saluted. "Elevator's broke, ma'am," he said. "You want the stairs there behind you."

"As you were. This your a.s.signment?"

"Yes, ma'am. Somebody's got to tell people or they'd wait all day for that thing."

"No one thought of a sign?"

"Yeah, but the commanding officer wants the personal touch. "

She nodded. "He's the one I'm here to see. Could you tell him that Fr n-"

The young man held up both hands. "I have no way to tell him, ma'am. There's a receptionist up there."

"Thought you people were understaffed."

He shrugged. "Doing what I'm told, ma'am."

The stairs led to a dingy, tiled room with about half the fluorescent lights working. No one was at the receptionist's desk, but another Peacekeeper began to rise from the end of a tired couch. Chloe stopped him with a wave. "What's your role here, son?"

"GC Morale Monitor, ma'am. And telling people the receptionist is not here."

"I can see that."

"Well, telling them she will be right back."

"How soon is 'right back'?"

He looked at his watch. "Supposed to have been ten minutes ago, so should be any minute now."

"Couldn't you just as easily inform Commander Stefanich that Ms. Irene is here from Senior Commander Johnson's staff? "

"Well, I could, ma'am, but I was instructed to-" "Just do it. I'll take the heat."

"Yes, ma'am. Ms. who from what?"

"Never mind, I'll find him," Chloe said, reaching for the door.

"Oh, I can't let you do that, ma'am. Now, please. I'm sorry I forgot your information."

"Is your hand on your gun, Monitor?" she said.

"No, ma'am, well, yes, ma'am, it is, but not on purpose. I "

"Read my name badge, son, and get that memorized. Now all you have to know is Senior Commander Johnson. "

"Got it. One moment."

Chloe shook her head. It was a wonder the GC accomplished anything. The door had barely shut when it opened again and the Morale Monitor gestured her in with a nod. He pointed to a gla.s.sed-in office in a corner of the floor where the commander sat at his desk, a female underling stationed outside. "I have to get through her too?" Chloe said.

"Yes, ma'am. That is the commander's secretary."

Most of the other desks were empty, and the lights here were intermittent too. It seemed all this commander had were enough people to keep him buffered. Chloe strode toward the older woman in uniform. The woman smiled expectantly, but Chloe swept past her. "Irene, Johnson's staff, to see Stefanich."

The woman had no time even to protest. Nelson Stef anich looked startled and began to rise.

"Hi, sorry, sir, but Senior Commander Johnson doesn't have time for me to work my way through all your layers.

You have some information for him?"