Only Time Ch. 02

She then turned to everyone and said "We became aware of threats by the Cartel against Dr. Laura Fredricson, who was a very high-level CIA Officer until she recently retired, and who is on Staff at University Hospital here; and her husband, Police Commander Donald Troy, who is here and waving that red crowbar around now. They declined our offers of Witness Protection."

"And look what that's got you now." sneered Halsey. "Your wife nearly dead, and how many others, including babies are dead, because of you?" It was utterly silent in the tent as I turned to front him, and Muscone made sure to position himself between us.

"You're quick to accuse." I said. "What do you think you know? That you're keeping from us?"

"Commander Troy," Muscone said, unnecessarily loudly, "do you believe the Cartel was behind this attack?"

"No." I said. "The Cartel would not risk all-out war with the United States by indiscriminately bombing a hospital just to get at one person. And I question their ability to time it so well; my wife came into the Hospital to deliver a baby by C-section, and incoming babies usually don't announce their schedules in advance------"

"Well!" said a short blonde woman wearing an 'ATF' windbreaker. "Nice of you to let us know that information."

"Nice of you to cooperate with the TCPD and SBI." I fired back. "And just so you know... no one interviewed me. At all, Agennnnnnt..."

"Special Agent Lindsey Black, ATF." said Special Agent Lindsey Black. "So, we have you here now. Anything else you'd like to share with us?"

I replied: "Just finishing my sentence that if it were the Cartel, it would be extraordinarily good luck for them to know in advance that my wife rushed here for the delivery, and would be able to put this kind of operation into motion that quickly. And from that, I deduce that they didn't. This attack was going to hit the Hospital anyway... and then we're back to the Cartel risking the wrath of the United States Government, thus creating an existential threat to themselves. Ergo, I eliminate the Cartel as the perpetrators."

"So who were they after?" asked Miles Winters.

I turned back to him and said "If it was a terrorist attack, they may not have been after anyone in particular, n'est pas?"

"That's why we're investigating." said Robin Isley, taking control. "Halsey, get ready for your Press briefing. Everyone else, get back to it. Mr. Muscone, as our liaison to the TCPD and SBI, escort Commander Troy to wherever he is going... after he leaves this tent, not to be admitted back inside."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Jack Muscone and I went to the TCPD tent. I briefed the Sheriff, Chief, and Deputy Chief on what I'd learned from Winters.

"Were they being straight-up with you, Crowbar?" Griswold gruffly asked.

"Winters was, sir." I replied. "Halsey was lying to my face. The rest? I dunno; mixed bag. What's absolutely clear is that they have no intention of working with us or letting us work with them."

"No doubt about that." growled the Sheriff. "As you know, Crowbar, in situations like this, they very often have the local Sheriff speaking to the Press. In this case, they not only won't talk to me, but when I addressed the Press separately, they tried to stop me from speaking to them."

"Whose side did the Press take?" I asked whimsically.

"KXTC took their side, but a lot of the others stayed with me." said the Sheriff. "And I didn't hold back letting them know that the Feds were not cooperating with us."

"That'll never make the airwaves, though." Cindy said. "Priya told me that the FCC has already threatened to pull the licenses of any network that puts out information that is not approved by the Feds."

"The entire Swamp Frog Government is mobilized against us." I said. "The entire..."

I went into a reverie. When I came out of it, several minutes had passed. Sheriff Griswold finally noticed me blinking and said "You okay, Crowbar?"

"Uh, yes sir." I said. "So... what else is going on?"

Cindy said "Did you remember we were supposed to have our Board of Inquiry today?"

I blinked in shock. "No, I'd totally forgotten about that. What happened? Was it postponed?"

"Nope." Cindy said. "Mike Todd and the Union Rep got wind that Silas had called Finneran and they were going to hold it despite the attack on the Hospital. Mike called Mr. Fitzgerald, Mr. Landau, and Mr. Morse, and they all showed up in time, as did Mike and the Union Rep."

Cindy: "Silas refused to postpone the BOI, and was going to rule summarily against us for not showing up, and Finneran supported that. But the others shouted Silas down. It ended up a 3-2 vote to acquit and indemnify us, but Silas said he would take it to Court because we didn't show up. The Union Rep and Mike said they were filing a lawsuit against Silas for trying to convene the Board without notifying Mr. Morse and Mr. Landau, and for not postponing the hearing due to the crisis at the Hospital."

"If they voted to acquit, let it go!" growled the Sheriff strongly.

"No, Sheriff, we can't." I said. "We cannot let Silas get away with it. We should swear out a warrant and arrest him."

"No, I forbid it." said the Sheriff. "Do not go around me on this, Crowbar. Nor you, Ms. Ross. I'll handle Silas and all this mess with them."

I held up my hands in surrender. "As you wish, Sheriff." I said. Cindy nodded briefly in reluctant agreement.

"All right, I'm going to go make a Press statement and then go home." said the Sheriff. "Y'all have a good night. Get some sleep, Crowbar; your wife is going to need to see your fresh, smiling face tomorrow." He left the tent. Cindy said goodnight and followed him out.

Precinct Captain Abram was on duty. He was a full Captain now, but still had the elevated title of 'Precinct Captain'. "They had me get some sleep today, so I'm handling things here overnight, sir." he said to me when I looked over at him.

"Good." I said. "Did Commander Croyle go home?"

"Yes sir." said Tanya Perlman. "And I'm getting a vibe that this handsome FBI Agent is about to come home with me."

"I can drop you off." said Muscone. "But I'm going to the Federal Building. That's where Isley is relegating me."

"Keeping you out of the way, eh?" I said.

Muscone nodded. "Assistant Director Lange told me to just roll with it, for now." he said. "He left for the Federal Building hours ago. I'm going to talk to him there..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

After talking to Captain Abram for a few minutes, I headed out for the south parking lot, intending to go home. As I left the tent in the darkness, someone came up alongside me.

"May I walk with you, Commander?" said Dr. Robin Isley.

"Looks like you already are." I said acerbically. "And you have courage to do so. Not only for what you said about my Captain of Detectives, but my wife does not like you. She doesn't finger loaded firearms for just anybody, you know."

"Okay, I apologize for what I said about Captain Perlman." Robin tried.

"It's not me you need to be saying that to." I said. "Tell her, and her fiancé."

"I will." said Isley, surprising me.

"So, Dr. Isley... tell me about your relationship with my wife." I said.

"What do you mean?" asked Robin.

"I cannot allow you to continue to think I am an Agency of the Weak Minded." I said. "We are not friends in any way, yet you give me a passcard to be in the Hospital to see my wife, and you've shown concern for her a number of times."

"You're not an Agency of the Weak Minded, for damn sure." said Isley. "I just saw that in that briefing. As to your wife and me, you should ask her about that."

"I already have." I said, then slowed to a stop to face her. "I want to hear your side of the story."

"All right." said Isley, looking right into my eyes. "I started out in the Company. I worked for Dr. Fredricson, and like almost everyone else who knew her, I had more respect and loyalty for her than anyone else I've ever met. I wanted to be just like her, and achieve the things she achieved. I even applied to medical school, but I really wasn't cut out for that." I nodded.

Isley: "I led a number of missions for the Company, some of them pretty daring an dangerous; they could make James Bond movies out of them if they weren't still classified. And I admit: I was trying to get noticed, and move up. But Dr. Fredricson moved to the Science and Technology Branch, and didn't take me with her. And that crushed me. I didn't hold it against her, but I never understood why she didn't take me with her." I nodded.

Isley: "About that time, I went to work for a man named Brendan Chapel. He's the current DNI. He was nowhere near as good as your wife, and he climbed the ladder by making political connections. I hitched my wagon to him, and it paid off, at least as far as my career is concerned. Here I am, an EAD, though for the FBI. And that's why your wife had a gun ready when I went to see her; she literally thought DNI Chapel might've sent me to kill her. But you have to believe me: I would rather kill myself than hurt her."

"I believe you." I said. We started walking towards my Police SUV in the now-shut-off south parking lot.

Isley finished up: "So I know your wife loves you and you love her, and if I could help you go inside and be with her at her bedside, I had no problem making that happen."

"I appreciate it." I said.

"And if you're with her," Isley said, "she's protected all the more. So you don't think it's the Cartel?"

"No." I said. As we got to my vehicle, I said "If you truly want to find out who's behind this, there's one thing you can do."

"What's that?" Robin asked.

"Keep us in the loop." I said. "I've got world-class CSIs and Techs, outstanding Detectives and Data people, and I've solved a crime or two myself. We can get you a lot further down the tracks."

"I would if I could." said Isley. "But it's not my call. The DNI himself put out the edict that it's to be an exclusively Federal investigation. And there are people in that tent that are far, far more loyal to Chapel than I am or ever will be. Have a good night, Commander." She turned and began walking back to the tents. I got in my vehicle to go home.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

10:00pm. I was not sure why, but something was nagging at me to go to the Federal Building. So I did, and went up to the FBI suite on the third floor, my FBI Consultant card getting me access.

I'd asked to see Assistant Director Owen Lange, and was ushered into the Conference Room with the plexiglass 'cube'. A few moments later, Lange came in.

"My apologies, I was upstairs in the Communications Room, talking to Washington." said Lange. The Communications Room was the most top secret place in the building. "So what did you want to talk about?" as he sat down, and indicated for me to do the same.

"I'm sure you know that the Feds are not cooperating with us locals very much." I said. "I was wondering if you'd be willing to tell me things they won't."

"If you'll wait just a minute," said Owen Lange, "I've called Muscone and asked him to come in, too. So how's your wife?"

I told him of her injuries and how lucky we all were that we didn't lose her. Lange nodded. Then the door opened, and Jack Muscone came in. Lange 'buttoned up' the plexiglass cube, and began talking.

"I'm almost as badly out of the loop as you guys are." said Owen Lange. "I've never seen anything like this, ever. Let me start here: the field guys are gathering a huge amount of data and evidence. Normally they'd be working with locals and State agencies on something like this. That gives them more manpower to collect more information more quickly and efficiently, and it increases the brainpower; sometimes they find a diamond in the rough, like you, Don." I nodded.

Owen Lange: "Here, they're not doing that. They're keeping the locals and the SBI completely out of the loop. The SBI got frustrated to the point that they took their balls and went home, and Governor Jared is probably going to put out a Press statement tomorrow blasting the Feds." I nodded.

Owen Lange: "And the data they're collecting is being sent to Washington. We've got a number of facilities where the evidence can be sent for analysis, but they've been directed to send all of it to one specific facility outside D.C." I nodded.

Owen Lange: "What's more, while the various Agencies out here in the field are working fairly well together, just doing their normal things, in Washington it's a different story entirely. Everything is compartmentalized. Tightly. A special task force has been created. It has some BATFE people, some FBI people, but it's mostly the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Office of Naval Intelligence. I was able to get what I'm telling you because of my own ONI contacts, who are not part of that group."

I said: "Get as many names as you can, of those that are part of that special task force. They're all Swamp Frogs, and loyal to the one guy who's behind all of this: DNI Brendan Chapel."

Owen Lange just stared at me for several seconds. Finally, Jack Muscone said "Four hundred years ago, sir..."

"Yeah." growled Lange. "One day you really are going to be burned at the stake Commander."

"Yes sir, probably." I said agreeably. "But I did not mean to interrupt your narrative, so why don't you continue telling SAC Muscone what you were telling us?"

Lange exhaled, then said "Yeah. Yes, DNI Chapel personally formed this task force, and the people he's named to it are known to be sycophants loyal to him. And ditto that for ATF SAC Halsey and FBI EAD Isley. They play for his team, too." I nodded.

"So what happened at the scene, sir?" I asked.

Owen Lange: "I haven't gotten that, yet, except for one piece of information that might be interesting. The explosives used weren't ANFO. They're thinking it was high-grade plastic explosives, like RDX or HMX."

Jack Muscone said "But those are tremendously expensive, especially compared to what ANFO would cost to make and use. And it's not like you can just buy that stuff off the shelves at the hardware store..."

"Exactly." I said. "Exactly..."

Part 13 - Relentless

Arriving at The Cabin, I was met at the door by Paulina Patterson, who had been crying for a lot of the day over Laura.

"She's going to be okay." I said as I hugged her. "She's going to be okay."

Also in the front room, watching the ongoing television reports, were Nextdoor County Police Chief Molly Evans and my mother Phyllis.

"Cindy and Betsy are staying with Mom." said Molly. I nodded, then saw two outstanding dogs at the back door.

"I'll take the dogs out." I said. I went out onto the back deck as the dogs scurried around the side of the building. I could see the klieg lights to my left at the base of the mountain where the Hospital was, then I looked out over the twinkling lights of the Town. As a train came out of the western horizon and rounded the curve south, I went into another reverie.

I'm missing something, I thought to myself.

Something is not right, here. I've seen something, and my mind is not understanding it. What is it?....

The dogs came back around, snapping me out of it. As I turned, I noticed Tiger Mom sitting on the deck rail, watching me intently. Knowing she was too tense to try to pet due to the presence of the dogs, I left her alone and went back inside...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

2:00am, Thursday, October 17th. I was in bed with Paulina, dozing lightly. Sleep was not coming easily as the thoughts and images of the day crowded my mind. I was in that darkened hallway, seeing the images of the remains of the blasted truck, the gaping hole in the ceiling, the debris all over the place, the pieces of electronics, the scattered------

The pieces of electronics. That's it! I thought to myself as I fully woke up.

"Don, what is it?" Paulina asked sleepily as I sat up.

"I... I just remembered something." I said. I flung myself out of bed and began getting dressed. "I've got to get to the Hospital. Laura's in danger..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The orderly, dressed in scrubs, came down the hallway with a collection cup and a clipboard with papers. He was not really noticed by other persons as he came down the barely lit hallway; many lights had been turned off to conserve power, as generators were still providing some of it, until electricians could safely rewire the mains.

He saw the female TCPD Officer sitting in the chair at the junction of the hallways; she was asleep. He saw the male Officer sitting in a chair just down from Dr. Fredricson's room, also asleep. He took out his .22 WMR auto pistol with silencer attached, and wished he could put a bullet in the cops's heads. He promised himself that he would do so, but only after he completed his primary mission.

He slowly opened the door to Dr. Fredricson's room, and pointed the gun at the lump on the bed in the darkness.

*FWUP* *FWUP*

To be continued.