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Logan took the bridge out to the Cale Industries airstrip. CI had bought the airfield at pennies on the dollar, when no one in the Northwest could afford air travel anymore. A few plain hangers had been installed and a 20-foot fence had been erected. Otherwise, nothing else had been done to fix it up. The skies were quiet overhead, since flights usually took off only once or twice a day. Rows of grey, unpainted converted Boeing 747 planes lined the airfield. Years ago, the planes had all borne the white and gold Cale Industries logo, but the Pulse had changed all that. Desperate pirates and hijackers had found the slow, heavy planes easy targets, so CI had decided to disguise their shiny cargo in ugly duckling grey paint.
Logan pulled the Aztek up to the security gate. He fished out the VIP pass that he used once a year to attend the mandatory board meeting that was a requirement for his allotment checks.
The security guard was busy counting the minutes until the end of his shift. He hardly gave the pass a glance before waving him through. Logan cut across the tarmac, heading toward the main loading area. The heat coming off the black surface created shimmering waves and he could feel the temperature change even in the car. The rainy winters in Seattle were legendary, but people forgot how hot the summers could be.
Logan felt the warm air coming out of the vents. The Aztek was only four months old, but the air conditioning was already acting up. Of course, since the Pulse, you never knew if your new car was actually new. He pulled up near the loading dock and got out of the car. The heat hit him like a furnace as he felt the sweat bead up on his neck and inside his shirt. By the time he reached the door of the hanger, he could even feel the black rims of his chair heating up under his hands.
"What can I do for you?" One of the loading dock workers suddenly appeared at the door. Apparently, the security guard had been paying better attention than he had thought and had radioed ahead.
"We don't usually see much of upper management down here," the worker sneered.
"Mind if I get a quick look at the payload that's going out tomorrow? Just trying to see if we can squeeze a little more inventory into fewer flights," Logan fibbed. He had tried to think of a plausible enough pretense that wouldn't bring Jonas or Bennett running down to the airport to investigate.
"Suit yourself." The foreman shrugged. Logan didn't seem to be looking for fault in their operation, so the man stepped back to let Logan through.
Inside the hanger was hotter than outside, if that was possible. Fans the size of Volkswagon Beetles circulated the air around, but the temperature still topped 95 degrees inside the metal building. Workers were busy, loading boxes onto hand trucks and pulling them up the ramp into the payload area of the plane. The foreman shouted something to the other workers who glanced up at Logan, then gradually cleared out of the building for a break.
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Except for the foreman puttering around in his office, Logan was alone in the hanger. He stole a glance toward the office, but the foreman seemed engrossed in his own duties. Logan scanned the piles of crates and pallets. Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, he moved closer toward the plane. A man stepped out into the doorway of the plane's rear cargo hold. He waved to Logan to follow him and disappeared into the plane. Logan pushed his way over to the ramp and started up slowly. It was steep and Logan gritted his teeth in frustration. By the time he reached the top of the ramp, his shirt was soaked. The air was close and heavy. Since the plane had been converted from a passenger to a freight plane, the windows had been blacked out, so the interior of the plane was dim.
Logan made his way slowly past the boxes. Glancing ahead, he thought he saw some movement further in. A dark-haired man stood just inside the door to the next compartment, beckoning to him again. Logan gestured at the steep ramp and at his wheelchair, shaking his head, but the man stood his ground. As Logan pondered his next step, the airplane engines roared to life and the maintenance crew began its last minute checks.