Hell To Pay
Chapter 6
VI
The coffin opened, and Jim and Dan both reached in to touch the corpse. It looked like Michael. It even had injuries evident on the body… injuries that might have been sustained by falling from a motorbike and by being shot with a high-powered rifle. It felt real to the touch. But a careful examination of the face revealed a small bulge at the neckline. Jim pried at it with his fingertip until the bulge became larger. Then the entire face peeled off. Jim handed the "face" to Dan Lubetkin.
"Another mask," Dan said, passing the mask to Liz, who was sitting beside him in her wheelchair. "Jim, I don't understand any of this. What's going on?"
"The judge might be able to help us with that question, Dan," Jim said… "when he wakes up."
"You think aliens had something to do with this, Jim?"
"No."
"Well, that's good. I was worried that you were going to go that route… like your father did."
Jim looked up, his face stern and sober. "I thought my father was deluded, too, Dan. But there were things going on that led him to the conclusions he came to. I'm not at liberty to tell you everything I know, but this crime was committed by humans like you and me."
Jim looked back at the "wounds" on Michael's "body…"
"Well, maybe not quite like you and me," he clarified, the anger evident in his voice.
"Jim… if these bodies are all fakes… where are the real ones?"
"That's what I'm going to find out, Dan… That's assuming you and the judge will let me do my job now."
Dan nodded. "You won't have any problems from the state board or me, Jim. I think I can promise you that. I'll make sure that Judge Lewis leaves you alone, too."
"That would help a lot," Jim said.
"Sir?" Deputy Hansen interrupted, "Have you noticed the hardware on these caskets?"
"What about it, Deputy?"
"Well, it's all military issue."
Jim looked at it… "How do you know that? It just looks like regular hardware to me."
"No, sir. Hardware made for military use has a higher brass content, and some pieces contain titanium… too expensive for your average use. See the color? And look inside…" Hansen pulled part of the ticking away from the casket lid to reveal the hardware from the inside. There were tiny letters, LMM, on one hinge.
"Military hardware often is stamped with letters indicating the plant at which the hardware originated. It helps to track down where something was made when a plane crashes or something."
"Deputy, remind me to give you a raise."
Hansen smiled.
"The army, Jim?" Dan said. "You think the army has the bodies?"
Jim just looked at Dan without answering.
"Why? What would the army want with some high school kids' corpses… unless…"
Jim nodded.
"Jim, this is… I don't know… maybe I ought to stay out of this."
Dan and Jim both turned around as they noticed a commotion building behind them. Deputies Carter, Davis, and Johnson were trying to hold someone back… and apparently having little success. Deputy Carter yowled, as a woman's voice rose over the din…
"Get out of my way or I'll kick you somewhere that'll hurt even worse!"
"Amy," Jim sighed… "Deputies… let her pass."
The deputies moved aside reluctantly, and Amy charged up to Jim, her face a myriad of conflicting emotions.
"Jim, what is going on here? I hear you're opening the graves up and checking the bodies, and there's rumors all over town that the bodies are being mutilated… and taken away."
Jim shook his head emphatically. "No, Amy, that's not it! I assure you, we're not doing anything disrespectful."
Amy noticed Judge Lewis lying on the ground and the bloody "hand" beside him. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she began to shake.
Jim quickly picked up the hand. "It's not real, Amy… See?" He peeled a layer of latex from the hand. Dan walked over and showed her the "face" Jim had removed from Michael. Amy gasped.
"Jim, what's going on? What is all this?"
"That's what we're trying to find out," Jim said, trying to sound comforting and in command. "We don't have all the answers yet."
"But you know something, Jim. What is it?"
Jim swallowed and realized that he was going to have to tell Amy something.
"The bodies we've dug up aren't real, Amy. They're fakes… latex mannequins… made to look exactly like Max and Michael."
"And Maria?"
"We haven't checked hers yet… or Isabel's."
Amy grabbed the shovel beside Michael's open grave and walked quickly over to Maria's grave then began to dig.
"Amy, we'll do that!"
"When, Jim? When you get around to it? I need to know if that's my daughter in there or… or something else." Amy began to sob, and Jim put his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. "I need to know where she is, Jim. I need to know if she's…"
"We'll find out," Jim said. "I promise you, Amy. We'll find out."
Jim motioned to the gravediggers, and they immediately began to dig Maria's grave up. In less than twenty minutes, they had the coffin on the ground. Jim held Amy, as she watched, her face white and her eyes wide with fear.
"Open it," Jim said. Amy turned her face against Jim's chest and began to cry as the coffin opened and she glimpsed the body inside. "Is it her, Jim?"
Dan and Jeff carefully turned the face, looking for the telltale evidence. It took some time, but Jeff put his fingernail under an almost invisible seam and pulled, and the seam became larger.
"Look, Amy," Jim said. Amy turned around, as Jeff pulled the face off, leaving a blank head-shaped object where Maria's face had been.
Amy took the latex mask in her hands and looked at it then looked at the fake body again.
"Who did this, Jim?"
"We think the army may have them," Deputy Davis said.
Jim shot the deputy a look that let him know immediately that he was out of line.
"I'm… I'm sorry," the deputy said. "I mean, we don't know… we were just speculating."
"Amy," Jim said, "we have reasons to believe that the army was interested in Max and Michael… and Isabel and Liz and Maria."
"Because of the alien thing?" Amy asked.
"You know about that?" Jim asked, surprised.
"Well, I knew they weren't Czechoslovakians, Jim, for God's sake. I can put two and two together."
"You never let on…"
"What was I going to say, Jim? [i]Maria, you can't go out with Michael. He's an alien?[/i] Maria was too much like me, Jim… rebellious and head strong…"
"You, Amy? No…"
Amy shot Jim a sharp look, which all considered, was a lot easier than Deputy Carter had got off.
"Jim, I'm not saying Michael or Max was a real alien, just that there was something different about them, and Maria knew it. Maybe she thought they were aliens. Hell, maybe they were. This is Roswell, right? But I do know that there were certain people who were unusually interested in those kids… including the FBI and some army types. I wouldn't be surprised if they actually thought they were aliens. And I wouldn't be surprised to find out that's where they are now…" Amy looked at the latex "face" again. "I'm going to get answers, Jim. You can count on it. One way or the other… I'm going to get answers."
**********
At the gate to the army base, the young sergeant was trying heroically to hold his own, but it just wasn't enough.
"Private, you can get out of my way or you can get run over, but either way, I [b]am[/b] going to see the person in charge here."
"Lady… I'm a sergeant. See the stripes? And secondly, nobody just waltzes in here to see the person in charge. I'm not even sure who that would be."
"Well, sergeant," Amy said, edging her Jetta forward, "I'll find out!"
The young sergeant placed himself squarely in front of Amy's car and took his AK-47 off of his shoulder. "Lady," he said with exasperation evident in his voice, "if you pass this spot, I WILL have to shoot you."
At that moment several TV vans pulled up and began unloading cameramen and videocams. Amy smiled, and the young sergeant realized that their arrival was not by coincidence. Obviously, she had called them.
"BACK OFF!" the young sergeant barked at the TV crews in his most authoritative voice. "Lady, turn around NOW and leave… ALL OF YOU… You are trespassing on federal property! I have the authority to shoot anyone who does not leave. Put the cameras down!"
The cameramen looked at each other uneasily and lowered their videocams. Amy edged her Jetta forward again, this time pushing the young sergeant onto the hood. He rolled and jumped off, coming back to his feet in a crouching position with his AK-47 pointed directly at Amy. Immediately all the videocams went back up. The young sergeant hesitated a moment, and that was all it took. Amy pressed down on the accelerator and left desert dust between her and the sergeant, as she drove off toward the base. He raised his weapon again then looked back at the videocams all aimed in his direction. Then he pulled out a walkie-talkie and pressed the button.
"Sir, there's a civvie on her way in… She's driving a Volkswagen Jetta. I couldn't stop her."
i"That's why we give you a gun, sergeant! Alright. I'll have her stopped."/i
"Roger."
The young sergeant looked at the camera crews again. "Well, what are you waiting for? The shows over! Get out of here!" To punctuate his order, he pointed his AK-47 in the direction of the nearest cameraman. The crews slowly got back into their vans, then one by one, they drove off.
About a mile down the road, Amy saw a humvee headed toward her moving very fast. She moved to the right slightly to give it plenty of room to pass, but something told her that that wasn't what it intended to do. Her intuition was right. As the two vehicles drew closer to each other, the humvee swerved in front of Amy, cutting her off. Then, as she tried to go around it, gunfire riddled the side of her Jetta, and she momentarily lost control on the edge of the road. Trying to get back onto the road, she spun the car around, then before she could get it aimed straight again, her doors were jerked open and she was dragged roughly out of the car and thrown on the ground hard. A boot came down on her back, and an AK-47 was placed against her neck.
"Get your foot off of my back, or I will break that leg," Amy threatened with sincere vehemence, but the corporal only pressed down harder. Amy screamed, as her back felt like it was going to break, and tears came into her eyes. She reached back with her left hand –her right hand was pinned beneath her- and grabbed the gun barrel, pulling it away with a jerk. Not expecting this, the corporal accidentally depressed the trigger for a second, firing ten or twenty rounds into the ground beside Amy. Before he could recover his wits, Amy had rolled over and sat up, biting him hard on the inside of the knee. The corporal howled, and the private with him came to his aid, grabbing Amy and trying to restrain her. Amy, however, had no intention of being subdued again without a fight. She came up off the ground with a handful of dirt in her fist, letting it fly in the private's face. Momentarily blinded and choking, the private made his biggest mistake. He turned his back on Amy.
Confident that the private would subdue Amy handily, the corporal was still moaning over his injury, his pants leg rolled up beyond the knee so he could see the damage that had been done. Before either one realized what had happened, Amy had the private's AK-47 in her hands. Seeing Amy grab the private's gun, the corporal grabbed his own gun and aimed it at Amy, who already had the one in her hands aimed at him.
"Give me back the gun," the corporal said threateningly.
"It's not yours," Amy said. "It's his."
"Then give it to him… before I shoot you!"
"It looks to me like a standoff," Amy said. "You shoot me, I shoot you."
The corporal swallowed and breathed deep for a moment. "What do you want, lady?"
"I want to see the person in charge here."
"You can't."
Amy shrugged. "Then we can stay here and see who blinks first. I've never used one of these before. I never liked guns. I hope my finger doesn't twitch."
The corporal paled slightly, realizing that there was a certain honesty in what Amy was saying. He was also hoping that the private didn't do something stupid like making a grab for his gun while it was aimed at him.
"Okay, look, I'll call the general… see what he wants to do… Okay? But you're in a heap of trouble. You don't know what you've got yourself into, lady… You'd be a lot better off hightailing it out of here and never being seen again."
"Can't do that," Amy said. "And my hand's getting tired. This gun is heavy. That makes my finger twitch."
"Alright… alright… look, could you just… point it slightly that way… in case your finger… you know?"
Amy shook her head. "Call the general."
The corporal swallowed again then took out his walkie-talkie with his left hand, as he held his gun on Amy with his right hand.
"Sir, we have a… a situation here."
i"What's the problem?"/i
"I, uh, I don't have complete, um, control of the subject."
i"How the hell can you not have complete control, Connors? Either you have her or you don't!"/i
"We sort of have each other, sir."
There was a long pause on the walkie.
i"So you let the subject gain control… Is that what you're saying?"/i
"She wants to see you, sir."
Again, there was a pause.
i"Then bring her in,"/i the voice on the other end said at last. That was all the general said.
The corporal motioned toward the humvee with his free hand. "Well, you got what you wanted. God help you. You're gonna need it."
**********
The general stood up and stared at the wisp of a woman walking into his office. Then he looked at the corporal and the private. Both men looked like they had been through a major battle… scratched, dirty faces and arms… and the corporal was obviously hobbling. The general could barely suppress a smile.
"Is this the demon that got you guys whimpering with your tails tucked between your legs? I'd have you both neutered, but apparently you already have been."
Both men stood at attention, and both respectfully answered, "Yes, sir" together.
"You're dismissed. I can handle the big bad lady."
"Yes, sir," both men said again, turning to leave.
The general sat back down in his chair, smiling.
"So what is so important that you're willing to get shot for it?"
"My daughter," Amy replied simply.
"Oh? And… what would I have to do with your daughter?"
"That's what I need to find out," Amy said.
"Who is your daughter?"
"Maria DeLuca."
The general's smile wavered then disappeared, but he quickly smiled again as though he didn't recognize the name.
"Don't know her."
"Max Evans, Isabel Evans, Michael Guerin…" Amy said. "Do those names ring a bell?"
The general shook his head. "No. I'm afraid not."
"Liar!" Amy said. "Trials were held here on the base for men from your special unit who killed them. You wouldn't forget that."
"Oh, yes! Now I remember. A shame what happened to those poor kids. But the men that did it were court-martialed. They'd been drinking you know…"
"I was out at the cemetery this morning."
The general sat quietly for a moment then shrugged. "I know all about it already. I know the sheriff was out there digging the graves up… and I know what he found."
"And that doesn't surprise or shock you, General?"
The general tapped his fingers on the desk, trying to decide what the best way to handle this would be.
"What do you think he found?" he asked at last.
"Dummys… mannequins… fakes! Our children… my Maria… isn't there. I think you can tell me where they are."
"That's a bit presumptuous of you," the general said. "I wouldn't know where they are. I suggest you ask the county hospital… or the morgue… or the mortician."
Amy closed her eyes momentarily. "The coffin hinges were military hardware."
The general's smile, already faked and weary, disappeared completely.
"You'd better be very careful what you're insinuating, lady…"
"Amy. Amy DeLuca."
"Mrs. DeLuca… yes, well… if you spread those kinds of insinuations publicly, I will have to reel you in."
"And just what does that mean," Amy asked.
"The army will sue you, Mrs. DeLuca. And you may be thrown in jail… for a very, very long time."
"General, if you see me shaking, it's from indignation and anger. You don't intimidate me."
"Well, maybe I should," the general said matter-of-factly.
"How can you sit here and lie about what happened to those children, general? Doesn't your conscience ever bother you? Didn't your mother teach you right from wrong?"
The general smiled again. "I didn't have a mother, Mrs. DeLuca."
"Well, I would almost believe that, general. Except that it's physically impossible unless you're a clone, and I pray to God there's only one of you."
"My mother gave me up for adoption when I was a baby, Mrs. DeLuca."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. I didn't miss anything."
"Somebody raised you. Obviously they didn't have any morals or didn't bother to teach you any."
"Hey! Grandma Hawkins was a saint! Don't bring her into this!"
"Didn't she teach you not to lie?"
The general glared at Amy. "Mrs. DeLuca, you are not going to find your daughter's body on this base. I can assure you that. You have used up your welcome. I'll have you escorted to the gate."
"No, you won't. Not until I get some straight answers. I didn't risk my life coming here to be brushed off."
The general pressed a button on his desk, and a voice on the intercom asked him what he needed.
"Please have someone escort Mrs. DeLuca to the main gate… and make sure that she does not return."
i"Yes, sir."/i
Within seconds, two burly-looking guards stood in the room.
"Go with them, Mrs. DeLuca. And do yourself a favor. Drop this hunt of yours. It's only going to bring you to grief. There's nothing for you to gain from it."
Amy stood silently, then the guards led her from the room. General Hawkins leaned back in his chair and sighed deeply, calming his nerves, then he buzzed the receptionist again.
i"Yes, sir?"/i
"Jeannie, call my masseuse and have her come to my office… and tell her to bring a bottle of scotch. I need to relax."
i"Yes, sir."/i
The general leaned back again and rubbed his temples. Then the buzzer rang again.
"Yes? General Hawkins here. What is it?"
i"Sir, the lady has escaped."/i
General Hawkins sat up suddenly, his face turned bright red, and the veins in his neck seemed to throb. "Well, get some backup, then! Get her back… and get rid of her!"
"Permanently, sir?"
The general was silent for several moments, as he thought about it. "No… somebody probably knows she's here. It would be hard to explain… on top of the other problems the sheriff has caused us this morning. Just get her and escort her off the base… IMMEDIATELY!"
"We're working on it, sir."
"What does that mean?"
"We don't know where she is, sir. She's disappeared."
**********
In her house above the CrashDown, Liz looked up suddenly. In front of her stood Maria.
"Maria?" Liz gasped. "How did you get here?"
Then Liz realized that the figure in front of her was a vision.
"Can you hear me, Maria? No… I guess not."
i"Liz, if you can hear me or see me… I tried to use the power that Isabel was teaching me… to dreamwalk with you… but I don't seem to be able to do it. Maybe I'll learn to… but right now… Liz, I saw you in a vision. I guess I'm developing some kind of power like that, but I still can't seem to do it when I need to. I know you're alive. I want you to know… where we are… We need you…"/i
The vision of Maria began to fade away.
"Maria! Wait! Maria, come back!" Liz said. "Where are you?"
But the vision was gone.
tbc
Coming up: Judge Lewis makes other plans to get rid of Liz. Amy continues to terrorize the army base. And Liz makes an unexpected connection while trying to contact Maria… with someone much further away.