CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
"Looks like this place is a virtual tourist haven," said Ray, pointing to a car that left dust behind.
"Do you know who it is?" asked Attwood.
"I was talking to Señora Leon and her granddaughter. Daniella said she saw a woman talking to the director. "She told me she was quite beautiful for an old woman."
"For someone of Daniella's age, anyone over thirty is old. Maybe we should ask the director." He did almost an about turn. "Did you say Señora Leon? Wasn't she hiding from the Dominants?"
"She got a job as one of the extras. I told her we'd be staying at Mr. Enrique's house, though translation of course. So when are we leaving?"
Attwood looked towards the van and saw Ed signal. "He says we have to stay a while. It appears Tom isn't that good."
"If you can get Sloan out here and talk to Mrs. Leon."
Walter walked over to the van, and had a short conversation with Sloan who came out the back.
"Señora Leon?" she asked.
"Yes. Ray says she's over there. I know what you're thinking, but we can't have her seen with us, but I can arrange for someone to drive her ahead."
At that moment, a car speed in and screeched to a stop besides one of the trailers. By the sound of the wheels, it must have been going over one hundred and twenty miles an hour, terrorizing the extras who scattered beneath the trailer's wheels, or clung to its side.
"Oh it looks like Carl and Enrique's back," said Attwood rather laconically, "that didn't take long."
"I'll talk to the Captain. He might know someone." Sloan went over to Carl who was watching a shootout between two rather ugly characters. "Captain, there's a woman and a young girl talking to Mr. Peterson. I wonder if you could take them in your car."
A few minutes later, Carl escorted Señora Leon and Daniella over to his car. They would drive them to his brother's house, but "I won't be there. I have to go to Washington, DC, not the State. Remember to show the sentry your passes or you won't get in. By the way, who were they talking to?"
The director butted in. "Oh just some crazy broad claims to be Miss Anna's mother. Another one. We had someone here saying he was her brother, one of our photographers even."
"That doesn't sound far fetched," said Carl as he started the engine and drove off.
Feeling the need to explain his decision, the director addressed Attwood and the others. "Look even if he was, we just can't fire one of our actors and put an unknown in his place. Would cost too much money and we're behind schedule now."
"Well thank you for your cooperation," said Attwood with obvious sarcasm. He left for his car, noticing Ray had left.
"He's gone to pick up his wife and son. They're in with a group touring the set. Right now they're at the corral," said Ed.
"All right," said Attwood, "after Tom has rested, we'll be on our way."
An hour later, they left the movie shoot, traveling towards Area 51. Several jets flew in the sky, some of a design that could only be called experimental. The sides of the road were covered with old signs, and the houses were gradually disappearing as if someone had forced the inhabitants out. What vehicles they saw were mainly military issue.
The Air force had control of Area 51 and the now defunct Project Blue Book, but a few Navy pilots and officers mingled with the usual Air force crowd. Most were there giving technical advice on surviving crashes into the ocean and often at night, a van would drive an experimental airplane towards the California coast where a Navy pilot would take it for a test run over the Pacific. This, however, was kept top secret. . The group could see the boundaries of 51 by the steel mesh fence that stretched for miles before them. Even at the distance, they could see the sentry box and the gate and though it appeared to be just one soldier, they knew that any moment a jet could fly out or a jeep could appear behind the horizon.
They approached the sentry. Attwood signaled them, telling them to be careful. As they neared it, he stopped his car, got out, and walked over to the sentry.
"Names, please and your business here, this is a restricted zone," said the corporal.
"I'm Mr. Walter Attwood, special agent, and Sloan Parker, anthropologist, Dr. Edward Tate, specialist in chemistry, Bachelor of Medicine—" He continued listing them. "Our passes."
"Yes sir." He saluted and went inside his post, getting out the exact number of passes. "Keep on the road until you reach the town. This is the commander's address. Be sure to report to him as soon as you get there. You'll need a permanent card." After distributing his passes, he returned to his post, pressing a few buttons. As if by magic, the gate opened in front, remaining for but a second after the last vehicle entered, and just as if by magic, the electronic gate closed.
They had not driven for more than ten minutes when Attwood saw Enrique's car with his brother, a Marine officer, but minus Señora Leon and her granddaughter.
"So what's going on?" asked Walter.
Manipulating his car behind Attwood's, Enrique explained the reason. "Carl has to wait here until he gets clearance from Pensacola. An officer's flying up to see whether the stolen equipment does come from the East. He also has a clerk with him."
"So I guess you're stuck."
"Not for very long," said the accountant, "I'm positive that stolen equipment comes from east of the Mississippi. It won't take long for them to clear it up and for my cousin to return to Quantico. There's a certain Marine Corporal who he has to vindicate." They drove for a while, entering the main base, which almost looked for a regular typed town except that the men and women in civilian clothes were not civilians but mainly Air Force Personnel. He pointed straight ahead. "The Commander's house is just up that hill, the one with the rose bush in the yard."
"I see it," said Ed, looking out his window, "and has Ray got here all right?"
"He's trying to have a conversation with the Señora. She can't speak English and he can't speak Spanish."
"What about Daniella?"
"My daughter-in-law's taken her out to get her registered in the local private school. We thought it'd be better than having her go public. They have a strict admission's policy."
"So no Dominant could show up."
"Not in a public school. In a private school yes, but they're probably thinking of doing the Hapsburg thing." said Enrique and got back into his car.
Something about Enrique's statement puzzled Ed for a moment, but he could not catch what it was. He began to mull the conversation in his head, but it went along to fast. The Hapsburg thing? There was something else funny, and he was just about to figure it out and then Sloan spoke up. "Didn't the Hapsburg conquer most of Europe by marrying?"
Ed shivered. He did not want to see more Kevins, but he did not want to prevent Tom and Sloan being together, not if the drug was responsible for the Chosen being caught. They could use contraceptives, but if they did, how were they going to find out if the two species successfully live together. He also wondered about Kelly's friend and how her family hid her. Perhaps she had been changed into a Dominant, and perhaps suspecting that these members of the New Species would kill her, her parents kept her hidden. He hoped that Kelly's friend was still alive and more than that, he hoped that she in her Dominant stage had not killed her own parents.
They drove up the road towards the Commander's house, Attwood being very careful and looking back to see if no Dominant driven car was behind them.
8/13/2003
"Looks like this place is a virtual tourist haven," said Ray, pointing to a car that left dust behind.
"Do you know who it is?" asked Attwood.
"I was talking to Señora Leon and her granddaughter. Daniella said she saw a woman talking to the director. "She told me she was quite beautiful for an old woman."
"For someone of Daniella's age, anyone over thirty is old. Maybe we should ask the director." He did almost an about turn. "Did you say Señora Leon? Wasn't she hiding from the Dominants?"
"She got a job as one of the extras. I told her we'd be staying at Mr. Enrique's house, though translation of course. So when are we leaving?"
Attwood looked towards the van and saw Ed signal. "He says we have to stay a while. It appears Tom isn't that good."
"If you can get Sloan out here and talk to Mrs. Leon."
Walter walked over to the van, and had a short conversation with Sloan who came out the back.
"Señora Leon?" she asked.
"Yes. Ray says she's over there. I know what you're thinking, but we can't have her seen with us, but I can arrange for someone to drive her ahead."
At that moment, a car speed in and screeched to a stop besides one of the trailers. By the sound of the wheels, it must have been going over one hundred and twenty miles an hour, terrorizing the extras who scattered beneath the trailer's wheels, or clung to its side.
"Oh it looks like Carl and Enrique's back," said Attwood rather laconically, "that didn't take long."
"I'll talk to the Captain. He might know someone." Sloan went over to Carl who was watching a shootout between two rather ugly characters. "Captain, there's a woman and a young girl talking to Mr. Peterson. I wonder if you could take them in your car."
A few minutes later, Carl escorted Señora Leon and Daniella over to his car. They would drive them to his brother's house, but "I won't be there. I have to go to Washington, DC, not the State. Remember to show the sentry your passes or you won't get in. By the way, who were they talking to?"
The director butted in. "Oh just some crazy broad claims to be Miss Anna's mother. Another one. We had someone here saying he was her brother, one of our photographers even."
"That doesn't sound far fetched," said Carl as he started the engine and drove off.
Feeling the need to explain his decision, the director addressed Attwood and the others. "Look even if he was, we just can't fire one of our actors and put an unknown in his place. Would cost too much money and we're behind schedule now."
"Well thank you for your cooperation," said Attwood with obvious sarcasm. He left for his car, noticing Ray had left.
"He's gone to pick up his wife and son. They're in with a group touring the set. Right now they're at the corral," said Ed.
"All right," said Attwood, "after Tom has rested, we'll be on our way."
An hour later, they left the movie shoot, traveling towards Area 51. Several jets flew in the sky, some of a design that could only be called experimental. The sides of the road were covered with old signs, and the houses were gradually disappearing as if someone had forced the inhabitants out. What vehicles they saw were mainly military issue.
The Air force had control of Area 51 and the now defunct Project Blue Book, but a few Navy pilots and officers mingled with the usual Air force crowd. Most were there giving technical advice on surviving crashes into the ocean and often at night, a van would drive an experimental airplane towards the California coast where a Navy pilot would take it for a test run over the Pacific. This, however, was kept top secret. . The group could see the boundaries of 51 by the steel mesh fence that stretched for miles before them. Even at the distance, they could see the sentry box and the gate and though it appeared to be just one soldier, they knew that any moment a jet could fly out or a jeep could appear behind the horizon.
They approached the sentry. Attwood signaled them, telling them to be careful. As they neared it, he stopped his car, got out, and walked over to the sentry.
"Names, please and your business here, this is a restricted zone," said the corporal.
"I'm Mr. Walter Attwood, special agent, and Sloan Parker, anthropologist, Dr. Edward Tate, specialist in chemistry, Bachelor of Medicine—" He continued listing them. "Our passes."
"Yes sir." He saluted and went inside his post, getting out the exact number of passes. "Keep on the road until you reach the town. This is the commander's address. Be sure to report to him as soon as you get there. You'll need a permanent card." After distributing his passes, he returned to his post, pressing a few buttons. As if by magic, the gate opened in front, remaining for but a second after the last vehicle entered, and just as if by magic, the electronic gate closed.
They had not driven for more than ten minutes when Attwood saw Enrique's car with his brother, a Marine officer, but minus Señora Leon and her granddaughter.
"So what's going on?" asked Walter.
Manipulating his car behind Attwood's, Enrique explained the reason. "Carl has to wait here until he gets clearance from Pensacola. An officer's flying up to see whether the stolen equipment does come from the East. He also has a clerk with him."
"So I guess you're stuck."
"Not for very long," said the accountant, "I'm positive that stolen equipment comes from east of the Mississippi. It won't take long for them to clear it up and for my cousin to return to Quantico. There's a certain Marine Corporal who he has to vindicate." They drove for a while, entering the main base, which almost looked for a regular typed town except that the men and women in civilian clothes were not civilians but mainly Air Force Personnel. He pointed straight ahead. "The Commander's house is just up that hill, the one with the rose bush in the yard."
"I see it," said Ed, looking out his window, "and has Ray got here all right?"
"He's trying to have a conversation with the Señora. She can't speak English and he can't speak Spanish."
"What about Daniella?"
"My daughter-in-law's taken her out to get her registered in the local private school. We thought it'd be better than having her go public. They have a strict admission's policy."
"So no Dominant could show up."
"Not in a public school. In a private school yes, but they're probably thinking of doing the Hapsburg thing." said Enrique and got back into his car.
Something about Enrique's statement puzzled Ed for a moment, but he could not catch what it was. He began to mull the conversation in his head, but it went along to fast. The Hapsburg thing? There was something else funny, and he was just about to figure it out and then Sloan spoke up. "Didn't the Hapsburg conquer most of Europe by marrying?"
Ed shivered. He did not want to see more Kevins, but he did not want to prevent Tom and Sloan being together, not if the drug was responsible for the Chosen being caught. They could use contraceptives, but if they did, how were they going to find out if the two species successfully live together. He also wondered about Kelly's friend and how her family hid her. Perhaps she had been changed into a Dominant, and perhaps suspecting that these members of the New Species would kill her, her parents kept her hidden. He hoped that Kelly's friend was still alive and more than that, he hoped that she in her Dominant stage had not killed her own parents.
They drove up the road towards the Commander's house, Attwood being very careful and looking back to see if no Dominant driven car was behind them.
8/13/2003