CHAPTER 7
Socorro
The trio rode back to the makeshift Backstep offices in Socorro in silence. This was S.O.P. for a reconnaissance mission, each man would be debriefed separately so as not to contaminate each other's data. Then after the data was reviewed, all parties would come together to come up with a battle plan. On arrival, they were met by a very apprehensive looking Bradley Talmadge.
"We may have a bigger problem," he said to Isaac Mentnor as he escorted the doctor away to the pseudo-briefing room. Donovan went off with a laptop to type his notes from the mission. Sam waited for some clue as to where to go next. Olga Vukovitch and Nathan Ramsey strode up to him less than a minute later.
"What was Quantum Leap like, Mr. Parker?" Olga wanted to know.
"Later," Ramsey cut her off. "Did you get everything we need about the power plant or is this going to be another in the famous Parker screw-ups?" he challenged Sam.
"I got it, Ramsey," Sam responded neutrally. He was still unsure of the interpersonal dynamics of this group.
"Does this debriefing have to be confrontational?" Olga quickly intervened.
Sam picked up on her unintentional cue. "Not if Ramsey doesn't start with me," he growled.
"Good. Let us proceed then." And the group went off to an unoccupied office where Sam provided the dimensions; power source and other crucial information needed about the power system at Quantum Leap that he had gotten from Ziggy while alone with the super-computer in the Imaging Chamber.
Stallion's Gate
Telling Sam about the reception on Wednesday reminded Al that all this finance committee business had created a two-foot high stack of paperwork on his desk that he HAD to do. He placed a soft jazz CD on and settled down at his desk to play paper jockey. After whittling the paper stack down to just above three inches, the admiral paused for a stretch.
Tapping lightly at the keyboard on his desk he checked on all the vital functions and personnel at the Project before calling it a night. Drs. Elesee and Beeks had signed out for the evening and the Guest was being seen to by Matthew Davis, the project's relief psychiatrist. As for the Guest, Parker was doing an admirable job of looking distracted and disinterested while keeping totally aware of everything going on around him.
Gooshie had ordered food from the mediocre Chinese/Mexican restaurant in Bingham with the atrocious name of Casa Pagoda and was eating in front of his laptop. The growling of Al's stomach prompted him to glance at the clock on his desk. 1830, no wonder he was hungry! Lastly, but most assuredly not least to Al, Tina Martinez-O'Farrell had returned at 1650 and was in her quarters. After turning off the lights, Admiral Calavicci headed to Tina's to ask her to join him for dinner.
********************
HQ
The Backstep personnel met for a strategy meeting later that evening.
"Between the specifics Frank and Craig brought back of the spider's web of corridors within Stallion's Gate, the access ways to and from the primary bomb location and the power core," Talmadge paused and nodded his thanks to the two men, "Nate and I have developed an attack plan." Turning to the wheeled chalkboard at the front of the room he continued. "The car containing the primary explosive was parked in one of these spaces." Talmadge indicated three spaces to each side of the internal door of the complex. "These two," he said pointing to the two spaces closest to the right of the door, "are our most likely targets. They are guest spaces. This one," indicating the next space on the right, "is designated for Admiral Calavicci. The three on the left are similarly designated for senior Quantum Leap staffers Drs. Beeks, Gershowitz and Elesee."
Donovan slapped Sam lightly on the arm to get his attention. He mouthed, "Elesee? the ice princess" and grinned widely at his buddy. Sam just frowned at him.
Nate Ramsey had taken the floor. "Bradley and I are taking a small squad over to Stallion's Gate in the morning, unannounced, to pay a visit and officially inform Admiral Calavicci about the bomb threat. Donovan, we want you to come with us. The plan is to get Calavicci to accept our men into they security detail over there. While we are there we'll have the perfect opportunity to search the place for the source of the phone call."
"What phone call?" Sam asked.
"While we were in transit this morning Bradley got a phone call from 'Conundrum'," Isaac answered.
"Conundrum?" Sam questioned. "Why do you think it came from Quantum Leap?"
"We traced it as far as we could. The exchange leads back to Stallion's Gate," Ramsey answered hotly.
"Why don't I go with you," Sam offered trying to sound nonchalant.
"No," John Ballard said. "I'd like you here, Frank, to look closer at the..." he faltered. Ballard is a lousy liar.
"The power plant," Olga finished rapidly for him. "You were there and can be a big help in working out a plan to shut it down if we need to." She smiled disarmingly at him.
Sam realized he wasn't going to get anywhere with this group so he let it drop. He listened intently to the rest of the meeting, making mental notes on the raid so he could call and warn Al as soon as he could get away.
Stallion's Gate
Tina and Al's on-again, off-again relationship was currently on and running smoothly for a change. Tina had anticipated Al's mood; she knew how much he hated the rigmarole of proving the need for continued funding. She wore her lavender cashmere sweater-dress with the plunging neckline, kept the lights low and the conversation light.
"Al, honey, I want to thank you again for giving me the day off. Dee and I had a wonderful time in Socorro."
"How is Delilah?" Al asked not so much because he wanted to know about Tina's sister but in order to keep Tina talking. The combination of her lightly nasal voice and the view across the table were working wonders at keeping the stress of the day at bay.
"Still dating that boss of hers, you know, the married one. No matter what I say she won't listen. Al honey, you should have heard her, 'But Tee, he can't leave his wife now. It's an election year and his platform is all about family values.'" Tina rolled her eyes. "Honestly it's enough to make you cry."
Al chuckled at Tina's impersonation of Delilah. If Tina was the perfect combination of brains and bimbo (and she was) then Delilah was truly 100% bimbo. Al had met her only once, several years ago. Delilah had been the cause of one of the couple's off-again times.
"So, where did you girls go after lunch?" he asked.
"Shopping of course, silly you," Tina teased her paramour. "I got the perfect dress for the party on Wednesday. It's scarlet red with ... No, I won't tell you." Tina decided mid-sentence. "You'll just have to wait and see," she said slowly, her eyes promising that the wait would be worth it.
The couple rose from the table, carrying their wine glasses with them to the well-hidden balcony. They stood together looking up at the starlit sky, Tina leaning back against Al's chest, his arms surrounding her. They treasured moments like this. They were so rare. Afraid to spoil the mood, Tina hesitantly inquired about Al's day.
"The most important thing about today," he said kissing her neck, "is that it's over." He kissed her neck on the other side.
"Oh no," Tina replied huskily, "This is far from over." She turned to face her man. He held her close as the two, kissing, slid to the floor to make love.
*************
Socorro
Getting a moment alone to call Al was a lot harder that Sam had thought. As Parker, he was always escorted by 'Salt and Pepper' as Frank had named them in his journal. He had tried to get out to a pay phone. No dice. He went to the hotel bar and tried to slip out through a bathroom window. No luck. His only recourse was to hope that the phone in his room wasn't bugged. Using the phone in his room was tricky, too. Craig Donovan was already there, reading a local newspaper.
"Hey, Frank," Donovan greeted him.
"Ah, hi," Sam returned. Donovan had laid claim to the bed nearest the door so Sam pulled the small duffel he had packed Frank's clothes in onto the inner bed and began pulling toiletries out of it. Donovan watched his every move from behind the sports section.
"What?!" Sam demanded.
"Did everything go O.K. in the sphere?" Donovan asked. "You've been ... I can't put my finger on it ... just different, man. You know, like it's not really you."
Sam thought fast. "And who am I?" he challenged good-naturedly. Sam picked up an air guitar and struck a pose. "Elvis returned from the grave?" He offered a bad imitation.
Donovan laughed. "Never mind." Putting the paper down, he got off the bed and headed for the bathroom saying, "I'm going to shower unless you need..."
"No, I'm fine. Go ahead." Sam answered, releasing the breath he didn't realize he was holding. He waited for the sound of the shower running. Then he picked up the phone and dialed the number Ziggy had made him memorize earlier. The voice mail system announced an innocuous fictitious company name and began to recite a list of names and extensions. Sam hit the combination to Al's office and waited. Ziggy's voice answered with the message that the Admiral was unreachable at this time. Sam entered the bypass code.
"Good evening, Dr. Beckett." Ziggy said.
Sam quickly relayed all the information on the raid and the 'Conundrum call' to the Artificial Intelligence with instructions to deliver it to Al as soon as possible. He went further telling Ziggy to allow the Admiral access to all files on Frank Parker and Isaac Mentnor that were available. He was just hanging up the receiver when the door to the bathroom opened and Craig Donovan, wet and wearing a towel, stepped out.
"What was that?" Donovan demanded.
"What was what?" Sam responded, trying to sound innocent.
"Who were you on the phone with, Frank?"
"No one." Sam recalled the name of Frank's estranged son, "I ... I thought about calling Jimmy and then ... realized the time difference, so I hung up." Sam finished sounding, he hoped, sad.
Donovan looked chagrined. "Sorry I jumped on you. Ramsey has us all seeing spooks everywhere since that 'conundrum' call today." he explained.
Sam smiled. "Please, no, not Ramsey," he said in false horror. Which sent Craig Donovan laughing back into the bathroom to get dressed for bed.
Feeling that he had dodged a bullet, Sam started to get ready for bed. He pawed through the duffel twice looking for pajamas and came up empty. He figured that he had simply forgotten them since he packed half asleep. He was starting to do a third duffel search when Craig returned to the room.
"Bathroom's free if you want it," he casually offered. Sam picked up his toothbrush and paste and headed off to the bathroom. "Frank?" Craig called after him. Sam turned around to face the other man. "I'm turning in," Craig continued, "try to sing softly in the shower, will ya?"
"I ...ah... I'm gonna shower in the morning," Sam said. "I know you have to get up and out early in the morning." Seeing surprise on Donovan's face, Sam followed that with, "and besides, I know what a fan you are of my musical talents," as he closed the bathroom door behind him.
Stallion's Gate
Frank Parker returned to consciousness slowly. He was in a dimly lit room and in restraints. Temporarily, he thought he was back at Hanson Island but the room smelled to clean for that. As memory returned, his conflicting thoughts of 'that bitch' and 'good on her' about Verbena Beeks were uppermost in his mind. He wouldn't underestimate the psychiatrist again. What the hell had Donovan been doing here at Stallion's Gate? Stallion's Gate? Why did that ring a bell? Frank heard the sound of the door opening and someone entered the room. As the lights came up a bit, footsteps approached his bed; heavy male sounding footsteps.
"Mr. Parker?" A baritone voice spoke near his head. He decided to feign unconsciousness and ignore the man. The footsteps retreated and the lights dimmed again. Frank waited. He wasn't sure for what yet.
*******************
Socorro
Olga Vukovitch and John Ballard were more than colleagues and collaborators on the Backstep Project; they were friends. It was not unusual to find the pair together with a pot of tea, exchanging light pleasantries and winding down at the end of the day. At the end of this day, they were having their tea in Dr. Ballard's hotel room and the conversation was not light pleasantries. Their topic this evening was Frank B. Parker.
"I wish I knew more about what happened in the previous timeline," Olga was saying.
"I checked the sphere out top to bottom after you pulled Frank out," John said. "The only unusual findings were an uncharacteristic lack of damage and the abrupt change in cardiac telemetry on landing. Neither of which explains the personality changes we've seen in the last 24 hours."
"Were you watching his face when he was told he had to stay here in the morning?" Olga asked.
"The poorly feigned nonchalance?"
Olga nodded.
"That is just the latest example of Frank's 'tough guy/I don't care' mask slipping. His attitude change," John went on, "it all started with losing consciousness on landing.
"Then not flinching at all during his post-flight exam. And," Olga just realized, "he's not used my first name, not once. Frank usually calls me Olga unless he's angry with me."
"Craig's noticed too. He told me Frank straightened up his quarters before leaving this morning. He's even been civil to Nate." John said with a chuckle.
"I wouldn't exactly say civil," Olga responded, "but certainly more restrained. His language has been a lot less colorful. During our run this morning, he slid on some loose stones..."
"Sure footed Frank?"
"Yes, but not one curse word crossed his lips." Olga finished.
"Something is definitely going on with him." John concluded.
"I just wish I knew what it was," Olga said exasperated.
"You'll spend more time with him tomorrow," John said. "I'm sure we'll figure it out," he reassured her.
"I guess you're right," she said unconvinced. She rose to leave as she wished John, "Sweet dreams. See you in the morning."
Socorro
The trio rode back to the makeshift Backstep offices in Socorro in silence. This was S.O.P. for a reconnaissance mission, each man would be debriefed separately so as not to contaminate each other's data. Then after the data was reviewed, all parties would come together to come up with a battle plan. On arrival, they were met by a very apprehensive looking Bradley Talmadge.
"We may have a bigger problem," he said to Isaac Mentnor as he escorted the doctor away to the pseudo-briefing room. Donovan went off with a laptop to type his notes from the mission. Sam waited for some clue as to where to go next. Olga Vukovitch and Nathan Ramsey strode up to him less than a minute later.
"What was Quantum Leap like, Mr. Parker?" Olga wanted to know.
"Later," Ramsey cut her off. "Did you get everything we need about the power plant or is this going to be another in the famous Parker screw-ups?" he challenged Sam.
"I got it, Ramsey," Sam responded neutrally. He was still unsure of the interpersonal dynamics of this group.
"Does this debriefing have to be confrontational?" Olga quickly intervened.
Sam picked up on her unintentional cue. "Not if Ramsey doesn't start with me," he growled.
"Good. Let us proceed then." And the group went off to an unoccupied office where Sam provided the dimensions; power source and other crucial information needed about the power system at Quantum Leap that he had gotten from Ziggy while alone with the super-computer in the Imaging Chamber.
Stallion's Gate
Telling Sam about the reception on Wednesday reminded Al that all this finance committee business had created a two-foot high stack of paperwork on his desk that he HAD to do. He placed a soft jazz CD on and settled down at his desk to play paper jockey. After whittling the paper stack down to just above three inches, the admiral paused for a stretch.
Tapping lightly at the keyboard on his desk he checked on all the vital functions and personnel at the Project before calling it a night. Drs. Elesee and Beeks had signed out for the evening and the Guest was being seen to by Matthew Davis, the project's relief psychiatrist. As for the Guest, Parker was doing an admirable job of looking distracted and disinterested while keeping totally aware of everything going on around him.
Gooshie had ordered food from the mediocre Chinese/Mexican restaurant in Bingham with the atrocious name of Casa Pagoda and was eating in front of his laptop. The growling of Al's stomach prompted him to glance at the clock on his desk. 1830, no wonder he was hungry! Lastly, but most assuredly not least to Al, Tina Martinez-O'Farrell had returned at 1650 and was in her quarters. After turning off the lights, Admiral Calavicci headed to Tina's to ask her to join him for dinner.
********************
HQ
The Backstep personnel met for a strategy meeting later that evening.
"Between the specifics Frank and Craig brought back of the spider's web of corridors within Stallion's Gate, the access ways to and from the primary bomb location and the power core," Talmadge paused and nodded his thanks to the two men, "Nate and I have developed an attack plan." Turning to the wheeled chalkboard at the front of the room he continued. "The car containing the primary explosive was parked in one of these spaces." Talmadge indicated three spaces to each side of the internal door of the complex. "These two," he said pointing to the two spaces closest to the right of the door, "are our most likely targets. They are guest spaces. This one," indicating the next space on the right, "is designated for Admiral Calavicci. The three on the left are similarly designated for senior Quantum Leap staffers Drs. Beeks, Gershowitz and Elesee."
Donovan slapped Sam lightly on the arm to get his attention. He mouthed, "Elesee? the ice princess" and grinned widely at his buddy. Sam just frowned at him.
Nate Ramsey had taken the floor. "Bradley and I are taking a small squad over to Stallion's Gate in the morning, unannounced, to pay a visit and officially inform Admiral Calavicci about the bomb threat. Donovan, we want you to come with us. The plan is to get Calavicci to accept our men into they security detail over there. While we are there we'll have the perfect opportunity to search the place for the source of the phone call."
"What phone call?" Sam asked.
"While we were in transit this morning Bradley got a phone call from 'Conundrum'," Isaac answered.
"Conundrum?" Sam questioned. "Why do you think it came from Quantum Leap?"
"We traced it as far as we could. The exchange leads back to Stallion's Gate," Ramsey answered hotly.
"Why don't I go with you," Sam offered trying to sound nonchalant.
"No," John Ballard said. "I'd like you here, Frank, to look closer at the..." he faltered. Ballard is a lousy liar.
"The power plant," Olga finished rapidly for him. "You were there and can be a big help in working out a plan to shut it down if we need to." She smiled disarmingly at him.
Sam realized he wasn't going to get anywhere with this group so he let it drop. He listened intently to the rest of the meeting, making mental notes on the raid so he could call and warn Al as soon as he could get away.
Stallion's Gate
Tina and Al's on-again, off-again relationship was currently on and running smoothly for a change. Tina had anticipated Al's mood; she knew how much he hated the rigmarole of proving the need for continued funding. She wore her lavender cashmere sweater-dress with the plunging neckline, kept the lights low and the conversation light.
"Al, honey, I want to thank you again for giving me the day off. Dee and I had a wonderful time in Socorro."
"How is Delilah?" Al asked not so much because he wanted to know about Tina's sister but in order to keep Tina talking. The combination of her lightly nasal voice and the view across the table were working wonders at keeping the stress of the day at bay.
"Still dating that boss of hers, you know, the married one. No matter what I say she won't listen. Al honey, you should have heard her, 'But Tee, he can't leave his wife now. It's an election year and his platform is all about family values.'" Tina rolled her eyes. "Honestly it's enough to make you cry."
Al chuckled at Tina's impersonation of Delilah. If Tina was the perfect combination of brains and bimbo (and she was) then Delilah was truly 100% bimbo. Al had met her only once, several years ago. Delilah had been the cause of one of the couple's off-again times.
"So, where did you girls go after lunch?" he asked.
"Shopping of course, silly you," Tina teased her paramour. "I got the perfect dress for the party on Wednesday. It's scarlet red with ... No, I won't tell you." Tina decided mid-sentence. "You'll just have to wait and see," she said slowly, her eyes promising that the wait would be worth it.
The couple rose from the table, carrying their wine glasses with them to the well-hidden balcony. They stood together looking up at the starlit sky, Tina leaning back against Al's chest, his arms surrounding her. They treasured moments like this. They were so rare. Afraid to spoil the mood, Tina hesitantly inquired about Al's day.
"The most important thing about today," he said kissing her neck, "is that it's over." He kissed her neck on the other side.
"Oh no," Tina replied huskily, "This is far from over." She turned to face her man. He held her close as the two, kissing, slid to the floor to make love.
*************
Socorro
Getting a moment alone to call Al was a lot harder that Sam had thought. As Parker, he was always escorted by 'Salt and Pepper' as Frank had named them in his journal. He had tried to get out to a pay phone. No dice. He went to the hotel bar and tried to slip out through a bathroom window. No luck. His only recourse was to hope that the phone in his room wasn't bugged. Using the phone in his room was tricky, too. Craig Donovan was already there, reading a local newspaper.
"Hey, Frank," Donovan greeted him.
"Ah, hi," Sam returned. Donovan had laid claim to the bed nearest the door so Sam pulled the small duffel he had packed Frank's clothes in onto the inner bed and began pulling toiletries out of it. Donovan watched his every move from behind the sports section.
"What?!" Sam demanded.
"Did everything go O.K. in the sphere?" Donovan asked. "You've been ... I can't put my finger on it ... just different, man. You know, like it's not really you."
Sam thought fast. "And who am I?" he challenged good-naturedly. Sam picked up an air guitar and struck a pose. "Elvis returned from the grave?" He offered a bad imitation.
Donovan laughed. "Never mind." Putting the paper down, he got off the bed and headed for the bathroom saying, "I'm going to shower unless you need..."
"No, I'm fine. Go ahead." Sam answered, releasing the breath he didn't realize he was holding. He waited for the sound of the shower running. Then he picked up the phone and dialed the number Ziggy had made him memorize earlier. The voice mail system announced an innocuous fictitious company name and began to recite a list of names and extensions. Sam hit the combination to Al's office and waited. Ziggy's voice answered with the message that the Admiral was unreachable at this time. Sam entered the bypass code.
"Good evening, Dr. Beckett." Ziggy said.
Sam quickly relayed all the information on the raid and the 'Conundrum call' to the Artificial Intelligence with instructions to deliver it to Al as soon as possible. He went further telling Ziggy to allow the Admiral access to all files on Frank Parker and Isaac Mentnor that were available. He was just hanging up the receiver when the door to the bathroom opened and Craig Donovan, wet and wearing a towel, stepped out.
"What was that?" Donovan demanded.
"What was what?" Sam responded, trying to sound innocent.
"Who were you on the phone with, Frank?"
"No one." Sam recalled the name of Frank's estranged son, "I ... I thought about calling Jimmy and then ... realized the time difference, so I hung up." Sam finished sounding, he hoped, sad.
Donovan looked chagrined. "Sorry I jumped on you. Ramsey has us all seeing spooks everywhere since that 'conundrum' call today." he explained.
Sam smiled. "Please, no, not Ramsey," he said in false horror. Which sent Craig Donovan laughing back into the bathroom to get dressed for bed.
Feeling that he had dodged a bullet, Sam started to get ready for bed. He pawed through the duffel twice looking for pajamas and came up empty. He figured that he had simply forgotten them since he packed half asleep. He was starting to do a third duffel search when Craig returned to the room.
"Bathroom's free if you want it," he casually offered. Sam picked up his toothbrush and paste and headed off to the bathroom. "Frank?" Craig called after him. Sam turned around to face the other man. "I'm turning in," Craig continued, "try to sing softly in the shower, will ya?"
"I ...ah... I'm gonna shower in the morning," Sam said. "I know you have to get up and out early in the morning." Seeing surprise on Donovan's face, Sam followed that with, "and besides, I know what a fan you are of my musical talents," as he closed the bathroom door behind him.
Stallion's Gate
Frank Parker returned to consciousness slowly. He was in a dimly lit room and in restraints. Temporarily, he thought he was back at Hanson Island but the room smelled to clean for that. As memory returned, his conflicting thoughts of 'that bitch' and 'good on her' about Verbena Beeks were uppermost in his mind. He wouldn't underestimate the psychiatrist again. What the hell had Donovan been doing here at Stallion's Gate? Stallion's Gate? Why did that ring a bell? Frank heard the sound of the door opening and someone entered the room. As the lights came up a bit, footsteps approached his bed; heavy male sounding footsteps.
"Mr. Parker?" A baritone voice spoke near his head. He decided to feign unconsciousness and ignore the man. The footsteps retreated and the lights dimmed again. Frank waited. He wasn't sure for what yet.
*******************
Socorro
Olga Vukovitch and John Ballard were more than colleagues and collaborators on the Backstep Project; they were friends. It was not unusual to find the pair together with a pot of tea, exchanging light pleasantries and winding down at the end of the day. At the end of this day, they were having their tea in Dr. Ballard's hotel room and the conversation was not light pleasantries. Their topic this evening was Frank B. Parker.
"I wish I knew more about what happened in the previous timeline," Olga was saying.
"I checked the sphere out top to bottom after you pulled Frank out," John said. "The only unusual findings were an uncharacteristic lack of damage and the abrupt change in cardiac telemetry on landing. Neither of which explains the personality changes we've seen in the last 24 hours."
"Were you watching his face when he was told he had to stay here in the morning?" Olga asked.
"The poorly feigned nonchalance?"
Olga nodded.
"That is just the latest example of Frank's 'tough guy/I don't care' mask slipping. His attitude change," John went on, "it all started with losing consciousness on landing.
"Then not flinching at all during his post-flight exam. And," Olga just realized, "he's not used my first name, not once. Frank usually calls me Olga unless he's angry with me."
"Craig's noticed too. He told me Frank straightened up his quarters before leaving this morning. He's even been civil to Nate." John said with a chuckle.
"I wouldn't exactly say civil," Olga responded, "but certainly more restrained. His language has been a lot less colorful. During our run this morning, he slid on some loose stones..."
"Sure footed Frank?"
"Yes, but not one curse word crossed his lips." Olga finished.
"Something is definitely going on with him." John concluded.
"I just wish I knew what it was," Olga said exasperated.
"You'll spend more time with him tomorrow," John said. "I'm sure we'll figure it out," he reassured her.
"I guess you're right," she said unconvinced. She rose to leave as she wished John, "Sweet dreams. See you in the morning."