Genomorph

Chapter 45

CHAPTER 45

Kyle Laughlin looked again at the picture of the young blonde woman. The thick file had been delivered an hour earlier by a courier from the Commander Naval Special Warfare, Admiral Michael Hammerstein. The information within was incredible to say the least, but the source was unimpeachable.

“You knew about this?” Kyle asked, his eyes fixed on Karen’s.

“I know Brandi, she’s my friend,” Karen said. “She told me everything about her transformation. She doesn’t even know the full extent of their plans though, so neither did I until I spoke with the Admiral.”

Kyle continued to look at Karen intently for a moment and she wondered if he was re-evaluating her. Her failure to divulge her knowledge of Brandi’s existence and location could technically be seen as a violation of national security.

“Kyle, if you feel I can’t be trusted after this, I understand,” Karen said. “These people have to be stopped.”

Kyle’s expression softened and he almost smiled as he said, “No, I’m just amazed that you would still want to work in government service after knowing what these people had done to your friend.”

Karen sighed with relief, “If anything what happened to Brandi made me want it more.”

Kyle looked back at the picture with the file, “This is really Brandon Anderson?”

“That was Brandon Anderson,” Karen said. “Brandi is someone totally different. She has all his memories and experience, but she is definitely her own person.”

Inside Kyle was furious. For two years he had carried what happened to Brandon Anderson like a weight around his neck. He told himself that he had not conveyed the seriousness of the threat strongly enough and that was why the information had not been passed on. To know now that it had been intentionally withheld by an agency of the government was bad enough, but to find out that agency was working to subvert the government was too much.

“Well I guess CTAG is going to get into the game a little earlier than planned,” he said at last. Turning his attention back to Karen, his face became hard again.

“They went after your friend Melissa and they will probably come after you too,” he said. “Have you had any weapons training?”

Karen smiled, “Not extensively but I would dare say my instructor was the best there is. I have a gun but I’m not licensed to carry.”

Kyle picked up the phone on his desk, his eyes remaining locked on Karen, “I’ll have your clearance upgraded to level five within the hour. That authorizes you to carry a weapon.”

Karen heard a muffled voice from the phone and Kyle spoke into the receiver, “Gunny I need you and your two best men in my office now.”

After hanging up the phone Kyle spoke once more to Karen, “I’m going to have two of our marine security detail escort you to the Plaza. Grab your things and come straight back here. Until this is over you’re staying here, we have a few rooms set aside for use as bunk rooms during extended operations.”

There was a knock on the office door and a moment later three Marines entered. There was no mistaking which was the person Kyle had spoken too. Gunnery Sergeant Alfonso Garibaldi looked like he had walked right out of a Marine recruiting poster. From his barrel chest to his chiseled jaw and high and tight hair, he was the very stereotype of a Marine; all that was missing was the Smokey Bear hat. His service “B” uniform was crisply pressed and the left chest of the khaki shirt was heavy with ribbons. The two young Marines with him, though identically attired and equally immaculate, seemed to pale in comparison.

“Gunny, we have a situation,” Kyle said. He quickly outlined the situation and showed Gunny Garibaldi selected portions of the file Admiral Hammerstein had sent over, holding back anything directly pertaining to Brandi’s transformation.

“Sir, I don’t exactly know what we can do about any of this,” Garibaldi said after reviewing the material. His face was stony but his eyes burned with outrage.

“Exactly what you are assigned to do, protect this facility,” Kyle said. “Miss Meadows here has key information and has been targeted by these people. I want her escorted and protected around the clock.”

“Hicks and Hudson here are the best, sir,” Garibaldi said.

“I want this clearly understood, no one is to touch her,” Kyle said. “I don’t care what kind of badge they flash, if anyone tries anything you are authorized to take them down on my authority. Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” Corporals Hicks and Hudson replied in unison.

“We’ll be in a meeting and when that is over you will escort Miss Meadows to her hotel and then back here with her belongings,” Kyle said. “We are now officially in a Level One state of alert.”

The Marines nodded and smartly left the office, with the two young corporals taking a position immediately outside the office door.

“I want you to take the lead on this,” Kyle told Karen as he rose and moved towards the office door.

“Kyle, I don’t have that kind of experience,” Karen protested.

“You have a good head and you’re committed,” Kyle said. “You understand better than anyone what these people are capable of. I’ll be right here the whole time. I’ll be making the decisions and giving the orders, but I want you to be the contact point for everyone.”

“All right, but we don’t have to tell everyone about Brandi do we?”

“Only if it becomes absolutely necessary,” Kyle said. “I’ll leave that decision to you.”

Karen nodded feeling like a swarm of butterflies had taken up residence in her stomach. A week ago she had been a grad student wondering what the future held for her, and now she was the point person of an operation that was going to attempt to prevent the overthrow of the government.

Kyle helped her prepare handouts of the relevant material for the upcoming briefing, and then they entered the briefing room. Several people were already assembled, including Mira Gallo. When everyone was assembled they passed out the material and gave them a few minutes to look over the documents.

“Let’s get to it,” Kyle said. “I know what you’re reading seems incredible, but it is all verified.”

“Alien technology?” Mira said. “Incredible seems a bit of an understatement.”

Kyle looked at Karen and nodded.

“I can’t go into details but I have seen the product of some of this technology,” Karen told them. “Incredible is an understatement. It is capable of feats that seem like magic, but that’s not the point.

“We have to get beyond the notion of alien artifacts to the real threat; a group operating within the government of the United States that intends to subvert and subjugate that government. This organization has operated with very little oversight and almost total anonymity for decades. They have used this technology to cement their base of power and now they intend to turn the legal authority of this nation into a puppet government.”

“So what can we do?” One of the analysts from the Pit, a bespectacled young man named Craig Foster asked. “We have less than two dozen analysts here currently. We have no field personnel. We’re just the new kids on the block.”

“That is our biggest advantage,” Kyle said. “They have likely infiltrated every other intelligence agency, but they have probably overlooked CTAG. No one even cares about us, or thinks about us.”

“But we have the most advanced computer systems in the world,” Mira said, a wicked smirk on her face. “And we are interfaced with every government agency there is.”

“What we need is data, hard evidence,” Karen said. “If we can establish a pattern of activities through the years, we can demonstrate intent. If we can get our hands on some of their actual documents and plans, we can nail them cold.”

“Karen has the lead on this,” Kyle said, causing all eyes to shift to Karen, most with looks of surprise. “She has a unique knowledge of the situation. Bring everything you have to her and give her every bit of your support.”

“I know I’m very new at all this,” Karen said, still very uncomfortable about her role.

“Karen, don’t sweat it,” Mira smiled. “We’re all new at this, remember?”

*****

The UCLA campus was still sealed off, and the crowd of media gathering at the police barricades seemed to swell by the minute. Seaman Andy Talbot made his way through the crowd of reporters until he was near the barricade and then raised the video camera he was carrying to his shoulder. It was a real camera, but the microphone was a highly sensitive shotgun mic and as he recorded the activity beyond the barricades he was able to listen in on distant conversations. He finished his eavesdropping and lowered the camera and then made his way out of the crowd and back to the fake news van the team was using.

“They haven’t got her,” he said as he entered the van. “From what I picked up they’ve got a dozen dead mercenaries and several more wounded but she and her friend got away clean.”

“Not entirely clean,” Matt Branch said, gesturing to a monitor. It showed Melissa supporting Brandi as they made their way to the garage and disappeared inside.

“We got the feed from a live web cam,” Branch said. “She was hit pretty hard.”

Branch ran the recording back and let it run. It was obvious when Melissa was shot, and then Brandi too. But moments later the two were limping away, after Brandi had taken out four men almost completely concealed and at a range at the extreme limit of the weapons she was using.

“They should both be dead,” Talbot said.

“Yeah, what does she need us for?” Vasquez wondered. “It looks like the mercs got off lucky; she was more interested in getting away then taking them apart.”

“She was probably worried about her friend and collateral damage,” Chief Wright said. “These assholes sure didn’t care if anyone got caught in the crossfire.”

“All right, we’re out of here,” Branch said. “If they got away they’ll make for the safe house in the hills.”

The door to the van opened and Petty Officer Lewis entered, out of breath as though he had been running.

“What’s left of their tac team just left the campus heading north,” he said.

“They may know about the safe house,” Wright said.

“We have to assume they do,” Branch said. “Lock and load, we’re going in hot.”

*****

Fortunately Karen had not unpacked many of her things, just the outfits that needed to be hung up. She quickly put them back in her garment bag. Before leaving the room, she retrieved her Smith and Wesson revolver from her big suitcase and clipped the holstered pistol inside the waistband of her skirt. It had been a pain to fill out the paperwork required to get it on the plane with her checked baggage, but now she was glad she had. Her blazer concealed it completely, and she added several speed loaders to her purse before hefting her bags and heading for the door.

~ Thank God for wheeled luggage, ~ she thought as she left the room. The two Marines were waiting right outside the door and Corporal Hudson relieved her of the largest bag, pulling it along with his left hand so that his right was free to grab the pistol holstered at his hip if needed.

Outside the hotel, they were nearly to the car when two men dressed in dark suits approached.

“Miss Meadows we need you to accompany us please,” one of them said politely, though the expression on his face conveyed something entirely different.

Hudson released the suitcase and the two Marines immediately stepped forward to place themselves between Karen and the two men.

“The lady’s not going anywhere with you,” Corporal Hicks said.

“Stand down Marine,” the agent said, his hand reaching under his coat. “We’re federal agents.”

Hicks did not reply, he acted, grabbing the man’s wrist with his left hand and holding it so that he could not withdraw it from beneath his coat. Before the agent could protest Hicks had his sidearm out and pressed to the man’s face. The other agent started to move but froze as Hudson drew his own Berretta nine millimeter and pointed it directly at him.

“Game over, asshole,” Hudson snarled. “Move an inch and I’ll drill you a new navel in your forehead.”

“I don’t care if you’re J. Edgar Hoover’s momma,” Hicks said as he shoved the other agent against the car. He reached into the man’s coat and pulled out what he had been reaching for, a large silver pendant with a purple stone set in it.

“Doesn’t look like a badge to me,” Hicks said.

“Be careful with that, Corporal,” Karen said.

Hicks nodded, passing the pendant to Karen and then relieving the agent of his weapon as Hudson did the same with his partner. “What should we do with these two, ma’am?”

“Bring them,” Karen said, examining the strange pendant. “Maybe there’s a way to convince them to help us.”