Reaching for The Moon by ThePekingNoodle
-----------------------------
Chapter Eighty-Four: Red Herring
In which the noose begins to drop around our heroine…
The next morning found Logan still working at his computers. He had briefly tried for some sleep the night before, but his bed had been too empty for comfort. When he dozed off and then woke for the third time in an hour, with his hand groping to find Max, he had uttered a short curse and given it up. Instead, he had made himself a large pot of extremely strong coffee and had gone back to work on what Lydecker had supplied him.
He still had nothing concrete but his instincts told him that something was wrong about the information on Zack. So he went back to the beginning and started reviewing it all over again painstakingly. In any event, he figured he had nothing better to do and it helped keep him from brooding over Max.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Original Cindy had left for work and Max was alone in her apartment. Alone with too much time to think.
She was still angry with Logan over his deception, but mixed in with that was a real worry about Zack. Even if Logan didn't help Lydecker, she was sure the Colonel wouldn't wait forever before moving in on him. She pulled a slip of paper out of her pocket and sat staring at it. Before she had left the penthouse she had logged into Logan's computer and printed out the directions to Zack's location. She could always take a short trip to Portland to warn Zack. That done she could come back here. Maybe by then she'd have an idea on how to handle Logan.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Colonel Donald Lydecker paced restlessly in the Manticore Operations Center located just outside of Seattle, Washington.
"Any signs of anyone approaching the location yet?" He asked a tech.
The tech leaned back from his banks of equipment. "So far none of the surveillance gear has picked up anyone at all approaching the location, sir. Other than some rats and a stray cat or two. Even the neighborhood bums don't seem to go into that building."
"We knew that. Why do you think we chose that particular location?" Lydecker's voice was icy. "Maintain surveillance." He turned and strode away from the technician to a young woman who was seated at a computer workstation. "Has Mr. Cale sent us anything yet?"
"Negative sir."
"Send him a reminder. Let him know I want his results within the next three hours."
"Yes sir."
Lydecker didn't wait to see her execute his order before leaving the center.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Logan's computer began beeping, an indication of incoming email. He punched some keys, and two email envelopes flashed on his screen. One was from Sebastian and the other was from the Colonel. He opened Sebastian's first. After he read it, he opened the second one. When he finished reading it he clicked on his messenger icon and selected Sebastian's code. Within seconds Sebastian's face came up on his screen.
"You can't find any indication that Zack is at that location?" Logan asked without preamble.
"My indications are that he is not." Sebastian's metallic voice responded. "In fact it now appears that rather than deserted, the location is housing at least 10 –15 troops. I can't be more exact since I'm basing it on
satellite infra-red which is unreliable at the distance and magnitude we're talking."
"So it's a trap. That confirms what I've found out as well. If anyone shows up there to try to warn Zack they get picked up, and so do I for leaking the information."
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to advise the Colonel of my findings of course. Then the next move is his."
"Good luck, Logan. You're playing a dangerous game."
"I don't have much choice, Seb." Logan closed the connection and sat back in thought.
You should have waited. If you hadn't been in such a rush Max could have stayed.
This time.
Maybe for a long time. Don't you think you panicked for no reason? Or was it something else that panicked you besides Lydecker?
I panicked because she wanted to go after Zack and warn him. I could tell.
Good thing you didn't tell her the location then. Otherwise she probably would have gone on her own. And walked right into Lydecker's trap.
"Oh my god." Logan sat up in his chair with a look of alarm on his face. He started to punch commands into his computer. A screen began to scroll in front of him. It was a listing of every command typed into the system in the last forty-eight hours. Logan leaned forward reading the list. Then he reached out and stopped it. There it was, right in front of him. A command to open and print the email Lydecker had sent detailing Zack's supposed whereabouts. It had been done the night Max had left. Just before dawn when Logan had been sleeping.
Logan quickly opened Lydecker's most recent email, He hit the reply button and began typing, informing the Colonel that all of his searches indicated that the location given for Zack was a false lead. That done he sent the email on it's way.
Then he clicked back to talk to Sebastian. "Seb I need your help again. I have to make a trip to Portland. To the location."
"Logan, I would advise against that."
"I've already told the Colonel that I know it's a phony. But there may be someone else on their way there. I'm hoping my email will cause the Colonel to stand down his troops. I just don't know if it will be in time. I need you to monitor the location and hit me on my comm if anything at all appears to be going down there."
"I'm not going to ask who is heading there Logan, although I can hazard a guess. I'll do what I can. Link your frequency into my system and I'll stay on it for you."
"Thanks Sebastian." Logan didn't waste any time on pleasantries. He clicked off the monitor and signed off of his system as soon as he had the comm link set. Then he reached into his desk drawer and pulled out his gun and several clips of ammunition, which he dropped into the pocket of the jacket he had pulled on.
"Thank god they delivered the car yesterday," he muttered to himself as he grabbed a set of car keys. His laptop case was slung over his shoulder. With a quick glance around the apartment he headed out. The only thought going through his mind was a prayer that he would be in time to stop Max. He refused to think of the alternative if he arrived in Portland too late.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Max gunned the engine of the Ninja as she sped towards Portland. It felt good to be on the open road and good to be doing something to take her mind off of Logan. She figured she could make it to Portland in under three hours. She'd get a warning to Zack and then head back to Seattle. Given some luck she'd be back in time to meet Original Cindy and go to CRASH with her.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Donald Lydecker read the email from Logan and then sat back at his desk. He turned to his assistant. "Well it appears that our friend Mr. Cale is as good a hacker as we thought he was. He's figured out that the X5 is not at the location."
"Shall we stand down the troops and surveillance, sir?"
The Colonel thought for a moment. "I'm a cautious man. We'll let them stay there a bit longer."
"Yes sir." The man saluted and left the Colonel sitting there deep in thought.
End of Chapter Eighty-Four…TBC
