CHAPTER 8
19.34.
Sundown.
Destiny Angel enters the control room about fifteen minutes after
leaving the three American tourists by their old Cessna. She had listened carefully to all that Melody has to tell her
about what had happened of and on the base during the day.
Now Destiny is very concerned, as she looks upon the girls all reunited
in the room. Becky Evershaw has
taken back her station in front of the radio and the radar screen, while
Rhapsody now comes to Destiny with a cup of hot drink that the newcomer smells
out intensely.
“What, tea?” Destiny asks Rhapsody, with a puzzled look. “No coffee?”
Rhapsody gives her a somewhat apologizing smile. “I didn’t think it would be
wise to get you some.”
“Right. Maybe you’re
right.”
Destiny takes a sip and glances at Symphony, sited at the table, just in
front of her. She nods to her
attention.
“Melody has told me what happened.
So mister Black has giving you some problems.”
Symphony frowns. “CAPTAIN Black.
And he has giving problems to ALL of us.”
“Yes, I know that.” Destiny
turns to Evershaw: “No word from Charlie yet, Becky?”
“Not one word.” Evershaw answers, with her deep accented Australian
voice. She turns from her station
to look back at Destiny: “And nobody has ever left the station unchecked. If he had tried to reach us, we would
have known.”
“He must already know about all this.” Melody remarks.
Harmony concurs with her. “There is no way Black would have taken all these
decisions without Charlie’s consent.”
“Yes, let’s remember that Black had authorisation papers for all that.”
Symphony agrees. “Well,
except specifically for the prisoner.”
“But he had the authorisation to do as he pleases?” Destiny asks her.
“That’s right.”
“I’m beginning to have quite enough of that “Captain” Black. He had taken quite a few liberties with
us lately.”
“Yes.” Melody muses.
“Remember the way he claimed the helijets, four days ago?”
Destiny frowns. “You nearly had a fix, yes.
Hadn’t Charlie called by that time…
Well, I do believe you would have knock Black off.”
“And I would have missed that?” Symphony grins.
“You were on patrol at the time.” Melody says. She turns to Destiny: “Speaking of
which, I should have been on patrol myself since nearly a half hour ago. Should I go now?”
“Wait a little longer.”
Destiny addresses Evershaw anew: “Anything on the radar screen?”
“Nothing so far. All is
calm, since the Cessna has landed.”
“The Cessna. Now that’s
another problem.”
“Was it wise to let it land on the base, especially considering the
situation?” Rhapsody asks Destiny.
“Even if I had known about what had happened, that wouldn’t have change
my decision regarding that old plane.”
Rhapsody sighs. “Right. That wouldn’t have bee really charitable
to let it crash in the desert.”
“Now I understand why you have come to the runway with Lewman.” Destiny says to
Melody. “No sense in taking any chance with these newcomers.”
“Who are they, anyway?” Symphony asks.
“Oh! Three American
tourists who got themselves a little bit to far away in the desert. Seem like the adventurous type.”
“Probably loaded, too.” Melody nods.
“Two of them were wearing pretty fancy clothes. A bit dirty, perhaps, but it’s probably
due to the circumstances… the crate
they were flying had probably caused them a lot of troubles through out their
trip.”
“Three guys?” Harmony muses, frowning.
“You’re sure they really are tourists?”
“That’s what they said, anyway.” Destiny shrugs.
Symphony smiles. “Good-looking fellows?”
“Well,” Melody muses, “The brown bearded one wasn’t too bad…”
“Are you kidding?” Destiny protests.
“Kowalski is definitely better looking.
Blond, blue eyes… Very tall…”
“Every man is very tall to you, Juliette.” Symphony remarks, laughing.
“He really IS tall, honey.”
Melody grins. “He has put himself on Juliette’s good side because he speaks a
little French.”
“All right!” Rhapsody sighs. “Kidding apart: would you care to tell us what is going on with these guys
and what will happen now?”
Destiny tells them all what she had decided. Harmony shakes her head after her explications.
“You were right, Mag: That
kind of plane is too much older for Harrison.
Maybe I should give it a look.”
“You just want to see those three gorgeous guys.” Symphony says
teasingly to her.
“Well, if the view is good…”
“You think you could repair that plane for tomorrow morning, Chan?”
Destiny asks.
“I didn’t see yet in what state it is.
But I’ll do my very best.”
“All right, then. How soon
can you get to it?”
“Give me some minutes to settle some few things in Hangar One. Then I’ll get my tools and I’ll be on my
way to work.”
“Good. Lewman, the security
guard, is with the three men, right now.
Monsieur Kowalski wants to talk to you before you get to work on the
plane. Then Lewman will escort them
to the officers’ quarters where they will spend the night.”
Symphony screws up her eyes to her.
“You keep them under close surveillance.”
“Yes. Like I said, there’s
no sense in taking any risk.
Especially under the circumstances.
These guys seem harmless enough, but… who knows?
Nothing tells us they could be here for that other man in the brig.”
Rhapsody turns a little pale. “You can’t really believe that?”
“Hey, anything is possible.” Melody replies. “The thought has crossed my
mind too.”
“Black has told me that the captive has accomplices who would want to
get him back.” Symphony muses, almost to herself.
Rhapsody turns her eyes upward to the sky.
“Oh, great! Really great! We may be on this base with a bunch of murderers.”
“Terrorists.” Symphony corrects,
smiling.
“Whatever. That’s not a
very comforting thought.”
“Well, don’t let it frighten you, Dianne.” Harmony reassures her. “I don’t see anyway this terrorist’s
friends could find out where he is.”
“If he really is a terrorist.” A gloomy Melody adds.
Symphony frowns. “You have already said before that you
have doubts about that.” She nods
toward Juliette: “Did you tell to Juliette how that man is dressed?”
“What?” Destiny asks, curious.
“What is he wearing?”
“I didn’t have time to fill you up in all the details.” A hesitating
Melody says. “So here they are…”
Melody tells Destiny about the prisoner’s arrival in handcuffs and black
hood, making it impossible to see his face. She also mentions her suspicion of him being gagged under the
hood. There is already a gleam of
perplexity in the French girl’s eyes when she hears that. That quickly changes into incredulity
when Melody tells her about the WAAF uniform and the ranks of colonel she had
inadvertently seen on the man’s shoulder.
Then Destiny has trouble hiding her indignation when she learns the
captive was thrown into the isolation cell, without being freed of his
handcuffs, hood and gag.
Destiny puts down her empty cup of tea on the table, trying not to let
her temper gets hold of herself.
The other Angels can’t be fooled.
They know how annoyed and troubled she is about all this. They all fell about the same.
Destiny casts a thoughtful look toward Symphony and Rhapsody.
“Karen, you’re with the Universal Secret Service, and you, Dianne,
you’ve been with the Federal Agents Bureau…
You two have some detective’s skills… What does all this tell you?”
Rhapsody lifts an eyebrow. “Frankly?
Well, I would say that logically, there is only one explanation why they have
kept that bag over his head and gagged him…”
“…They don’t want US to see who HE is.” Symphony continues.
Rhapsody nods. “Exactly.”
“So that makes it quite possible that he really is a WAAF colonel.”
Destiny muses.
“You have figure out that too, he?” Rhapsody smiles. “You’re not too bad
a detective yourself, Juliette.
“There was a time in my life when I was in the WAAF Intelligence Corps.
Before I joined the fighters aircrafts squadrons.”
“Do you realize that if that man’s really a WAAF colonel, we may be in
trouble deep?” Melody remarks.
“Especially you, Juliette. You’re still
in the WAAF.”
“That doesn’t really frighten my, you know. I’ve been in hot sports before.
I even got nearly sacked from the WAAF from a general because he wasn’t
too thrilled of me going out with his son…”
Harmony frowns. “You call THAT a hot spot?”
“You didn’t meet the old man.
Anyway, that’s not the question:
I don’t want YOU girls to be in trouble because of this. So I will make a decision… which could also put me in another hot
spot if my feelings are wrong about all this.”
“What do you intend to do?” Melody inquires.
“Quite simple.” Destiny answers.
“Since Captain Black willingly keeps up in the dark about all this, and
as Charlie neglects to call to tell us what’s going on exactly, I see only one
option: I’ll go to see that captive
in the brig and ask him what he knows.”
There is silence following Destiny’s words; she takes that as some sort
of uneasy disagreement.
“As designated leader of the
Angels Pack,” Destiny adds carefully,
“I’ll take full responsibility for this decision.”
Rhapsody smiles. “Do you really think we would let you take the heat all alone?”
“If you get in trouble, we’ll all get in trouble.” Harmony says.
“That’s right: we’re a
team, girl!” Symphony concurs.
“Beside, we were kind of hoping you would make a decision like that.”
Melody adds.
Destiny looks at each of her friends.
If she’s not really surprised by their position to stay by her side, no
matter what could happen, she is rather touched. Becky Evershaw, still sitting at her station, is gazing at
them with a broad smile. Obviously,
she has quite an admiration for the five female pilots, willing to stick and
take the heat together.
Destiny sighs. “All right,
girls. It will be as you wish.” She smiles.
“Thanks.”
“Don’t thank us.” Harmony tells her.
“It’s only natural, Juliette.”
“Okay, then. But before doing anything…” Destiny turns to Evershaw:
“Becky, you’re off the hook.”
Evershaw frowns. “You’re keeping me out?”
“Yes, and don’t argue with it.
That concerns only the Angels, here.
If anybody asks, you don’t know anything.”
“All right, I won’t discuss it.”
“You stay at your station and you keep your eyes peeled on the radar and
your ears opened on the radio. I
want to know THE SECOND Charlie should call.”
“Understood, Destiny Angel.“
“
Melody,
you won’t go on patrol, tonight. I
think you would be more useful here at the base, if something wrong should
happen. But you’ll keep inside
Angel Two, ready to take off if Becky should see anything on the radar screen
and give you the word.”
“And on the contrary, if you should call me up, I’ll be with you on the
double.”
“Right. Harmony, you’ve got
work to do on the Americans’ plane.
I want them out of here early in the morning.
If you have any doubt that plane won’t be ready, you tell me immediately. We’ll ship these guys to the nearest
town without delay.”
“And be careful.” Rhapsody adds.
“If, by any chance, they should prove to be anything else than they seem
to be…”
“I can take care of myself, don’t worry.” Harmony replies. “And I’ll have Lewman as an extra
protection.”
“Rhapsody, Symphony, you’ll come with me.” Destiny says to the two
remaining Angels. “We’re going to
the brig. Let’s try to persuade
that sergeant to let us see the prisoner.”
Melody smiles mischievously.
“I bet Karen will be able to persuade him.”
Symphony frowns with puzzlement over that remark.
“How’s that?”
“The sergeant has the hot for you.”
“What? How do you know
that?”
“He practically told me so.
He asked me he wanted to see you, so he would apologize for his previous
behaviour toward you. I could tell
how he was feeling…”
“That uncivilized brute?” Symphony snorts. She’s about to get angry and then all of a sudden, calms
herself, and smiles broadly, much to her friends’ surprise: “Well, maybe that can get us something of an advantage over
that poor sergeant…”
*
* *
After retrieving the
magnetic key of the brig, Destiny, Symphony, and Rhapsody leave the Control room
building. By the same time, Melody
accompanies Harmony to Hangar One.
Entering the building in
which is the brig, Destiny’s opens the door leading to the basement, closely
followed by Symphony, with Rhapsody bringing up the rear. When they reach the top of the staircase
and look down, they could see the sergeant, sitting upon the principal door of
the brig, apparently slumbering.
Apparently, keeping a close and constant watch is a bit too tiring for
him.
He does not see the three
women looking down at him from up the stair.
“Now what?” Rhapsody
whispers.
“Now we go and talk to him.” Destiny
says in the same tone. “Maybe he
will let us in.”
Symphony shakes her head. “Fat chance.
Let me at him. I’ve got an idea.”
Rhapsody frowns. “What do you intend to do?”
“Nothing much. Just make good use of some feminine
charms… Keep hidden.”
Before the two others
could stop her, she begins to get down the stair. About in the middle of it, she casts her eyes on the sleepy
guard. She then produces her most
radiant smile and clears out her throat loudly.
Most instantly, the
sergeant seems to wake up then gets on his feet. When he sees Symphony on the stair, looking down at him with
bright eyes and a marvellous smile, his jaw drops down.
“Hello, sleepy eyes.”
Symphony says with a gentle voice.
“My, you seem really tired. Maybe I
should come back later.”
“No, please… stay, lady.” The sergeant stutters. He smiles: “Seeing you have wake me up
completely!”
Symphony comes down the remaining of the stair.
“Flattering. Melody has told
me your message.”
“Melody? Oh!
The lieutenant… Rather an
odd name. What’s yours?”
“They call me Symphony.”
“That’s not your real
name.”
“I’m not allowed to tell
you my real name. «Symphony pauses, watching as the sergeant makes a moping
face, and then she smiles again: “It’s Karen.”
“Karen. I’m sorry, Karen, if I acted like a real
jerk with you earlier.”
A real jerk? That’s putting it mildly, thinks Symphony.
Still, she gives the sergeant a broader, brighter smile.
“Don’t put yourself down,
sergeant, and let’s not talk about it again.” She says. “Now tell me YOUR name.”
“Martin.”
“So, Martin, the watch is
difficult, it seems. What would
Captain Black say if he’d know you were sleeping on the job?”
“Don’t tell him, please.
He’s liable to put me in front of a firing squad.”
“Did you know they used
to do just that, in my country, in the 19th Century army? If a sentry was caught asleep, he was
court-martialled and then put to death.”
Martin grins. “Americans are so bloodthirsty.”
“So are the Scots, as I
recall.”
“How do you know I’m…”
Sergeant Martin stops. “The accent, he?”
“It has given you away
right from the very start.”
Symphony looks around, looking conspicuous.
“So, Martin, what do you say about a
break?”
“A break?” Martin
repeats, with surprise. “I can’t. I’m on duty, here.”
“You must be for a long
time, now, isn’t it? Anyway, you’ve
been watching that prisoner for hours.
How about something to eat?”
“I would like that, thank
you.”
“So why don’t you follow
me to the galley?”
“How about bringing me a
sandwich here, instead?”
“Sure, I could do that.
But I’d have thought you would prefer something warm.
And we could use the time to speak and… get to know each other’s.”
“At the galley? Wouldn’t we attract attention?”
“Everybody is in duty, at
this hour. There’ll be nobody in
the galley but us.”
The sergeant is still
reluctant to accept the invitation.
Obviously, he feels a certain guilt to leave his station. Seeing that, Symphony smiles anew.
“Look, if you’re afraid
of what Captain Black would say and do…
he won’t find out.”
“It’s not just Captain Black.” Martin interrupts suddenly. “There’s also your friend, the lieutenant… she had expressively told us not to
wander alone on the base.”
“Well, you’d be with me.
You won’t exactly be alone.”
“I don’t know, lady…”
“If you don’t tell
anybody, I won’t either.”
Symphony gives the
sergeant something of a promising look.
That’s the finishing stroke.
Martin smiles broadly.
“Okay, Karen. You’ve convinced me.”
He motions to the stair,
but Symphony stops him and nods toward the other end of the corridor, in which
they’re presently standing.
“We’ll go that way. Nobody will risk seeing us… beside, it’s
shorter to the galley.”
She leads the way, the
grinning sergeant hot on her heels.
As they disappear at the
corner of the corridor and their steps fade away, Destiny and rhapsody get down
the stair, smiling mischievously.
“Talk about some nerves!”
Rhapsody remarks, almost laughing.
“We’ve just seen a real pro at work here, my dear Juliette.”
“A pro? An artist, no less! And seeing at how she despises that guy… Well, she’s not one of the Secret
Service best agents for nothing!”
“Think she’ll be all right, though?” Rhapsody
asks, a bit worried anyway. “The
way she was coming at the guy, it would surprise me if he doesn’t try to get a
little more than what she promised him.”
“She’s a big girl. She’ll be able to manage.”
Destiny swipes the
magnetic card into the lock and the door opens in front of the two women. They enter the brig. Rhapsody can’t help a shiver from coming
down her spine.
“I hate these kinds of
places.” She mutters. “They’re always too sinister for my taste. Have you ever come down here?”
“Once.” Destiny nods. “In
the first days I arrived here. I
have visited the entire base, including the brig. I’ve never came back since.
I, too, find it sinister.”
They look at the empty
cells. Then glance at the close
door, with the heavy magnetic lock in the back.
“That’s the isolation
cell.” Destiny says.
“...Where our prisoner
is.” Rhapsody adds.
Destiny nods
thoughtfully. Her right hand
strokes the handle of the small pistol she had taken in the cabinet along with
the key, before leaving the control room.
“Just in case”, she had said at the time.
She shrugs now.
“I don’t think he would
cause us any trouble.”
Rhapsody looks at her with a faint smile. “Who are you trying to convince? Yourself or me?”
They approach the door
quietly. They hear no sound from
the other side.
“Well, he seems pretty
quiet, anyway.” Destiny notes.
Rhapsody scoffs. “Handcuffed,
gagged and with a bag over my head, I should think I would be quiet, too!”
“Right. I open the door, now. Be ready.”
Rhapsody nods her
agreement. Destiny slides the
magnetic key into the lock. The
door opens.
The room the two girls
see before them is nearly as pitch as black.
If not for the light coming from their side of the door, they would not
see a thing.
As it is, they DON’T see
the prisoner.
By the time they realize
that he must be by the side of the door, a dark figure suddenly appears before
them, with a loud roar that makes Destiny steps back and Rhapsody freezes on the
spot. Strong hands grab the later
by the collar of her vest and pull her into the cell.
The young British woman
finds herself brutally slammed, her back to a concrete wall. Her breath drained out of her, she lets
out a stifled moan, more out of surprise than of pain. The strong hands, which she sees tightly shackled together,
still hold her firmly against the wall. She looks up past them to find herself
gazing straight into the blue eyes of the most handsome man she has ever saw,
and who, in turn, is looking at her with obvious bewilderment.
“You’re a girl!”
“Nice of you to notice.”
Rhapsody responds, with a shaky, rather raspy voice.
Before any of them could
say or do anything else, Paul Metcalfe feels the cold metallic contact of a
barrel against the back of his skull.
Not again, he thinks. This is turning into quite an annoying habit…
“Have a care, monsieur!” Destiny says with an angry and stern tone. “I don’t take
kindly at some bully manhandling one of my girls! Release her that instant!”
Metcalfe stiffs and
frowns at the sound of that voice.
He recognizes it, with that thick French accent.
But it does not seem possible…
To Rhapsody’s surprise,
she sees her attacker starts to laugh softly:
“It’s not the first time
you call me a bully, honey. But you
have never pulled a gun on me before!”
Destiny frowns
incredulously and takes a step back, lowering the gun, if just a little.
“That voice… Mon Dieu!
I’d know that voice anywhere!”
“And I sure know yours!”
He looks to the young
woman over his shoulder, with a twinkle of amusement in his blue eyes. Destiny’s eyes widen and she gets the
gun down completely.
“I can’t believe it!
Paul! It’s you!”
“Hello, Juliette.” Metcalfe says with a large smile.
“How are you?”
“What are you doing
here?” Destiny exclaims.
“You know that guy?” Rhapsody almost mumbles to her fellow pilot.
“Yes, Paul and I are old
friends.” Destiny smiles.
“Then would you mind
telling your old friend to get off of me?” Rhapsody adds, between clenched
teeth.
Metcalfe lets go
instantly of the your red-haired young woman.
She does all she can to get herself back to a more dignified composure.
“Sorry.” Metcalfe tells
her, apologizing. “I didn’t want to
hurt you, miss.”
Rhapsody looks at him with blazing eyes.
“Oh! You didn’t hurt me. Much.
And you could’ve been sorrier.”
“Excuse me?” A perplexed
Metcalfe says.
“When Juliette recognized
you, I was about to hit you low and hard so you would let go of me.”
For a moment, Metcalfe
doesn’t say a word following Rhapsody’s declaration. He then lets out a whistling sound.
“My, you’re a feisty
little thing, aren’t you?”
“And you, sir, may well
be the bully Juliette has called you.” Rhapsody replies coldly.
Metcalfe smiles and turns
toward Destiny.
“Charming your friend,
Juliette. Really charming, indeed.”
Destiny smiles back to him. “She’s a compatriot of yours, Paul. Dianne, meet Colonel Paul Metcalfe, of
the WAAF Special Forces. Paul, Lady
Dianne Simms.”
Metcalfe eyes Rhapsody with curiosity. “A genuine lady?”
Rhapsody groans and seems uneasy. “I do wish you had not brought that lady title
up, Juliette. It seems so out of
place here.”
Metcalfe grins. “Nevertheless, I’m pleased to meet you… miss Simms.”
He slightly bows to her,
notwithstanding the awkwardness of his shackled hands. A smile extends on Rhapsody’s face who
can’t help finding in this man a rather roguish charm.
“Paul, since when are you
a terrorist?”
“Come on, Juliette!”
Metcalfe grumbles. “Don’t tell me
you believe that story!”
“Of course, I don’t
believe it!” Destiny smiles. “I
know you could never be a terrorist.
What would your father say about that?”
“Please, don’t start with
him, Juliette. I know you don’t
like him much, but he’s still my father.”
Metcalfe frowns. “What are YOU doing
here, anyway? Last time we say each
other’s, you were looking into others opportunities outside the WAAF. Is that what you do now? Kidnapping and keeping WAAF officers as
prisoners for God knows what purposes?”
“You’re not really a good
joker, isn’t it, colonel Metcalfe?” Rhapsody sighs.
“Officially, I’m still
with the WAAF, Paul. As for my
being here… it’s a long story.” Destiny looks thoughtfully at her friend. “And
you? It’s rather a surprise for me
to find out YOU’RE that mysterious prisoner that was brought to our brig with
such secrecy. What have you done to
find yourself in that situation?”
“As far as I can tell…
nothing.” As the two young women glare at him with sceptic looks, Metcalfe
frowns: “Hey! Nothing outside of the law, to be precise. And certainly nothing to warrant such a
harsh treatment. I just respond to
some official… invitation, that has brought me to Perth. The first thing I know, I’m attacked, beaten, tied up,
gagged, and send over here… wherever HERE is.”
Rhapsody is still a bit suspicious.
“That’s your story? As simple as
that?”
“Well, no… It’s a rather succinct way of telling
it. It’s much more complicated and
confusing that that, actually.”
Rhapsody addresses Destiny: “Now we know why they have kept that hood over his
head and put him in confinement.
They must have known you might recognize him.”
Metcalfe frowns. “Who are those guys, anyway? And what have you, ladies, got to do
with them?”
“You mean you don’t know
who they are?” Destiny asks him.
Metcalfe sighs. “If I knew that, Juliette, I probably know why the hell I’m kept
as a prisoner, here!”
He hesitates: “Am I… still considered a prisoner,
here?”
Destiny tries to sound serious: “I don’t know…
Maybe we should consider it carefully before letting you out.”
She witnesses the look of
dismay on her old friend’s face.
“I could have you court-martialled for
imprisoning me without reason, you know.” Metcalfe notes, almost growling.
Destiny laughs. “You wouldn’t do
that to me and you know it as well as I do.
Beside, if I free you, I could get in trouble as well.”
“We could ALL get in
trouble.” Rhapsody nods. “It’s
already a breach of procedure that we have come here to talk to you.”
Metcalfe looks at the two girls one after the other.
“From whom are you
expecting troubles exactly?” He asks, frowning. “That guy… what’s his name… Captain Black?”
“Well, at least you know
his name…” Rhapsody notes.
“Just because I’ve
overheard it.” Metcalfe replies, almost snapping.
“Captain Black is the
least of our problems, Paul.” Destiny tells him. “Our superior could be ticked off at us for freeing you.”
Rhapsody nods. “REALLY ticked off.”
“Your superior? Who is
he? Can I talk to him?”
Destiny shakes her head. “I’m
afraid that’s impossible. He’s not
here. He’s NEVER here. He supervises us from a distance. We don’t know ever know
what he looks like. And we don’t
know where he is, and how to reach him.”
“Only HE can reach US,
when needed.” Rhapsody adds.
Metcalfe frowns even more deeply. “And you don’t find that odd?”
“Oh, yes! Definitely.” Destiny says quietly. “But until your arrival here, we just
followed instructions without asking any question.”
“And now?”
“Well, now we’re asking
ourselves questions…” Rhapsody muses.
“And what about me? You’re not serious at keeping me captive
here, do you?”
“That’s rather a delicate
problem, Paul.”
“You ladies are serious
about this.” Metcalfe then sounds
suddenly desperate: “Well, at least can you get a prisoner something to eat?
I haven’t got anything since five this morning!”
“You really should be
more considerate about yourself, colonel.” Rhapsody tells him.
Metcalfe mumbles. “It’s not really by choice if I’m running on an empty stomach,
you know!”
The two women laugh
heartily. Destiny takes Metcalfe by
the arm.
“I think we have made
enough fun with him, now, Dianne.”
She smiles at her obviously relieved friend.
“I’m acting as leader of the base over here, Paul. So, I’ll take full responsibility for
releasing you. Come on. We’ll get you something to eat. And we’ll get you out off those cuffs.”
Rhapsody looks thoughtfully at Metcalfe’s head. “And we better take a look at
that wound of yours. It looks
rather nasty.”
“That? Don’t worry; it’s just a scratch.” A sudden thought hits Metcalfe. “What about the guy who was supposed to
watch over me? What have you done
with him, by the way?”
“I almost completely
forget about him.” Destiny sighs.
“We’ve got to take care of him, in one way or the other. In the meantime, I hope Karen is not
having too much trouble with him…”
*
* *
As it is, Symphony Angel
is having quite some trouble with sergeant Martin.
The guy, thinks the young
female pilot as they walk slowly in the corridor, is a real pain. A little too enterprising. If not too much… He’s that kind of man who imagines that when a girl gives him
a smile, he could ask for far more and obtains the world.
And it doesn’t take him
very long to make his first advances.
They’re still far enough from the galley when he puts his arm around her
shoulders. She glares irritably at
his hand, and then quietly takes it off, between her index and thumb.
“Let’s not burn any
stages, now, shall we?” She tells him, smiling rather dryly.
The sergeant smiles in
return, and by that smile, Symphony understands clearly that he doesn’t get the
message. Well, she doesn’t have
much to fear, anyway. She knows
exactly how to handle those kinds of situations.
If sergeant Martin goes to far, she’s pretty sure she will manage to repel him.
The thing is, however,
she doesn’t want him to get back too quickly to his station, before Destiny and
Rhapsody are finished with the prisoner.
They have climbed a
stairway to reach the door of the galley, which has a direct access to the
runway. By that time, the cook is absent, back
to his quarters, now that everybody on the base has eaten up and the cantina has
been cleaned. But the door of the
galley is never locked, as everybody is welcomed to it at any time of the day
and night.
As Symphony extends her
hand to reach the handle, the sergeant puts one of his arms around her waist and
tries to nibble at her ear.
Now THAT, thinks
Symphony, is really annoying! She
gets the man’s arm off of her and tries to be as gentle with him as she
presently is able to be.
“Don’t you remember what
I said?”
“Yeah, I know, but…”
“There is not ‘but’ about
it.” Symphony takes a firmer tone.
“Look, so far, I’ve been patient with you. But if you go too far – and you’re beginning to go to far – I
will be forced to take measures with you.”
Martin smiles. “Is that a promise?”
“I’m serious, Martin.”
Symphony answers, frowning.
“So am I.” Martin says cynically. “What are you planning to do? Tell your lieutenant about this? If I’m not mistaken, you could end up
in even deeper trouble than myself…
After all, it’s YOU who has come to take me away from my station and bring me
here.”
“Don’t be so sure I would
be in so much trouble for that.” Symphony replies rather coldly. She shows Martin the door to the galley:
“Now, do you want to eat or not?”
Martin shrugs. “All right.”
He pushes the door and
enters, then he turns toward Symphony and gives her a promising smile.
“But I’m telling you,
lady: I’m hungry for far more than food.”
He has barely said the
last word that a frying span suddenly appears behind him and hit him over the
head with a loud thud. Symphony
jumps in shocked surprise as Martin collapses on the floor before her. She gazes at the unconscious body with
a perplexed frown, wondering exactly what had just happened. Then, she raises her eyes, to see a
blond man hesitantly showing himself from the side of the door to look at her. He gives her a somewhat shy smile, while
agitating the span still in his hand.
“Hi! Er… please, don’t cry out?”
Symphony has absolutely
no intention of it. He seems
harmless enough, she thinks. The
coy look on his face, the somewhat apologising way he had spoken to her, tell
her clearly enough that this man won’t do her any harm.
“Thank you.” She calmly
says. “I was wondering how I would
rid myself of that jerk.”
Adam Svenson smiles
cheerfully. This young lady seems
rather cool face to unexpected events.
“I thought you could use a hand.” He says, shaking his head.
He strides over the
unconscious man to go to Symphony.
He stops right in front of her, absentmindedly playing whit the span. He is very tall, notices the young
pilot; some inches over six feet…
With broad shoulders… The
eyes are blue, clear, and bright.
“So, what’s a nice girl
like you doing with a dork like that?” Svenson asks with a broad smile.
Symphony frowns. “You
must be one of the Americans who have arrived with the distressed Cessna.”
“Guilty as charged,
miss.”
“What are you doing here?
Surely, you’ve been informed that this base is a restricted area.”
Symphony stops, a sudden thought coming to her mind: “And how have you been
able to foil Lewman, anyway?”
Svenson scratches his ear, rather shyly. “The security guard? We pulled a rather dirty trick on him, I’m afraid.”
“What did you do,
exactly?” Symphony asks him, suspiciously.
“Nothing really serious,
I assure you. Maybe he will get a
headache in the morning…”
“Don’t you thing you’ve
gone a little far?”
Svenson looks over his shoulder toward Martin.
“Well, I think my friend was far less brutal with Lewman that I was with
your boyfriend here.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,
he’s a swine.” Symphony cuts him abruptly.
“And Lewman is a good, honest man.”
She looks at him intensely. “You still haven’t answer my first question.”
“Which was?” Svenson asks innocently.
Now Symphony begins to be very annoyed.
“What are you doing here?”
Svenson looks at her thoughtfully. “I think I’ve made a wrong turn. I was looking for a friend and ended up
here.”
“As I recall, your
friends should be at your plane. Or
in the officers’ quarters.”
“I’m not talking about
those friends. I’m looking for
another one.” Svenson’s voice then
takes a more serious tone: “That
friend was brought here against his will.”
Symphony blinks;
suddenly, she understands that this man is not exactly what he appears to be.
Despite her sudden nervousness, she does her best to keep her calm.
“So, you and your friends
weren’t really in distress after all…”
She remarks matter-of-factly.
“That’s more complicated
than that.” Svenson replies, a bit dryly.
“But granted, we are here under somewhat false pretends.”
“You’re here to rescue
your friend, who’s a prisoner here.”
Svenson does not produce even the slightest smile when he answers back: “Now you’re beginning to understand. And I see you don’t even try to deny
it.”
“Why would I deny it?”
Symphony screws up her eyes to him:
“You don’t look like a terrorist.”
“And you don’t look like
a kidnapper.”
Symphony gasps in surprise. “A kidnapper?
I’m not a kidnapper. I’m a pilot.”
Svenson smiles back coldly. “I’m a pilot too.
Guess we have something in common.
What make you believe I’m a terrorist?”
“The prisoner in our brig
is a terrorist.”
“Well, if it’s Paul, he’s not a terrorist.”
Svenson says, grinning. “And
I’m certainly not one either.”
“Your friend… He’s well
built, almost as tall as you?”
“Blue eyes, black hair.
Good looking. Talks with a British accent.”
Symphony’s look is a thoughtful one.
“Well, that I really can’t tell…”
“What do you mean, you
really can tell?”
“…But he’s wearing a WAAF
colonel uniform.”
Svenson nods.
“Yep. That would be Paul Metcalfe.”
“Well, I don’t know what
his name is…” Symphony stops suddenly, then looks at Svenson with eyes opened
with surprised horror. “Did you say
‘Metcalfe’? As in ‘general Charles
Metcalfe’, from the Winchester Air Base in England?”
“Well, Paul did say to me
that his father’s a general…”
“Oh, God! HIS SON?” Symphony exclaims suddenly. To a puzzled Svenson’s ears, she sounds
desperate, and she shakes her head, seeming not to believe what he has just said
to her. “God! We’re SO dead!”
“What are you talking
about? You know Paul’s father?”
“Not personally.” Symphony looks at him, bewildered. “But everybody in the Service knows
about general Charles Metcalfe, commander of the Winchester Base… And he’s certainly no laughing matter.”
Svenson frowns.
“’Everybody in the Service…’ To
what service are you referring?”
“Universal Secret
Service.”
“YOU’RE with the USS?”
Svenson asks with an incredulous tone.
“Yes.” Symphony rolls her
eyes and sighs heavily. “Well, not
for long, if what you tell me is true.
How may years in prison for the imprisonment of a WAAF colonel, who
happens to be the favoured son of a very influential general?”
Svenson smiles, somewhat amused. “I
really don’t know.”
“And Destiny… She’s still in the WAAF. Firing squad, no doubt!”
“Aren’t you dramatizing
things a bit, here?”
Symphony does not even seem to hear him.
“Now I understand why Black has insisted that the prisoner kept the hood and be
held in isolation.”
“Hood? Isolation?”
Symphony frowns deeply. “That son of a gun didn’t want us to know who the
captive was!” She almost growls. “I
could kill that double-crossing bastard!
Getting us into trouble like that!
Who does he think he is, to try to get away with a thing like that?”
“Whoa! Slow down, here! You have lost me!”
Svenson glances at the young woman with a suspicious look: “You don’t seem to doubt any of the
things I have said, as if you’re willing to accept my words as gospel truth.”
Symphony scoffs. “I have no reason to doubt you.
Everything you’ve said so fare has added up to the mystery of all that
happens today… and before today, for that matter.”
“I’m afraid I’m as in the
fog as a minute ago.” Svenson sighs. “Will you explain to me… er… what’s your
name?”
“Karen.” She has not even hesitated to give him
her first name. Svenson produces a
smile.
“My grandmother’s name
was Karen.”
“And what’s yours… mister
Kowalski?”
Svenson laughs coyly. “I see
Destiny’s been talking to you.
Actually, it’s Svenson. Adam
Svenson.”
“If you so want to find
your friend, Adam, please follow me.
I’ll take you down to the brig.”
“And what’s telling me
that’s not a trap?” Svenson asks, still suspicious at her.
Symphony shakes her head. “Come on,
now! As I trusted you with all you’ve said,
the least you could do is trust me in return!”
She looks at him mischievously.
“What’s the matter? Lost
your nerves?”
“I’ll follow you. But I suppose my friend’s been watched.”
“Oh! He was.” Symphony nods. She points toward the unconscious man on
the floor behind Svenson: “You just
put his guard to sleep.” She
smiles. “I was acting as a decoy with him until my leader could talk with your
friend.”
As Svenson is looking at
her, without really understanding, she laughs quietly.
“You see, the prisoner
has stirred up quite some questions around here, and we all were tired of
waiting for answers. So we thought
he could shed some light on what is going on.”
“I see.” Svenson smiles
gingerly and thumbs toward the unconscious sergeant. “I knew you had too much taste to be interested in such a
jerk.”
“What do we do with him,
anyway?”
“Leave him be. He will still sleep for a while. Beside, if he wakes up soon, he’s liable
to think YOU decked him.”
“I would have if you
hadn’t intervened.”
“Yes, I believe you would
have done it.”
“So, you come with me or
not?”
Svenson nods. Then he turns toward the commando and
takes his riffle lying on the floor, and the pistol on his belt, and comes back
to Symphony. In spite of the
weapons he’s now holding, he doesn’t frighten the young pilot much.
“Lead the way, Karen.”
Symphony smiles, and then
takes the corridor, coming back from where she has been earlier. Svenson follows her closely. He seems uneasy. Maybe, the young woman thinks, he does not trust her
entirely.
The trip back to the brig
is short and quick. When they find themselves at a few feet only of the first
door, Svenson stops Symphony.
She turns back to face him, and he motions her to keep quiet.
The door leading to the
brig is opened and voices come from the other side. Despite the fact that Symphony has previously told him that
her leader was asking the prisoner some questions, Svenson was still uncertain
about all this. Years of trying to
avoid assassination after assassination can do that to a man…
Symphony watches where
she stands as he motions silently toward the door, rifle ready. She shrugs.
He doesn’t much look like a pilot, she thinks, rather like a commando of
some sort. She follows him.
Svenson is about to enter
the brig when he comes face to face with another man, and they stop short in
front of each other’s. Symphony
recognizes the uniform. And by the
description giving to her by Svenson, she has no doubt now that he has found his
friend… who looks at him with astonishment.
“Adam! What are you doing here?”
Svenson laughs. “Well, to rescue you, that’s what I’m doing here! Am I glad to see you’re all right!”
Svenson puts his free
hand on Metcalfe shoulder in a friendly gesture. The colonel smiles widely in response. Destiny Angel then appears by his side, while behind his
broad shoulders, Rhapsody could do nothing more than tiptoe and stretch her neck
to see what’s going on.
“Mister Kowalski?” Destiny says with a
surprise look on her face, upon seeing Svenson.
“Oh! Hi, miss Destiny.”
Svenson responds, rather shyly.
Metcalfe frowns. “Kowalski?”
“I guess I just uttered
the first name that came to my mind when me met.” Svenson says, somewhat
apologizing.
Metcalfe looks curiously at Destiny.
“And… Destiny? Where’s that name
coming from, Juliette?”
“Juliette? You’re already on first name basis?”
“Er… Juliette and I are
old friends from way back when.” Metcalfe answers, a bit hesitant.
Destiny hits him angrily on the chest.
“Not THAT far away!”
Svenson catches a glimpse
of Rhapsody behind Metcalfe back.
He grins wryly.
“It figures! We risk life and limbs to rescue you,
and meanwhile, you pass time surrounded by gorgeous women. Life stinks!”
Symphony smiles and then
approaches the group. She
acknowledges Destiny.
“So, you and colonel
Metcalfe know each other’s?” She tells her.
Destiny frowns. “You know his name?”
Symphony nods toward Svenson. “HE told me.
I must admit, it had taken me aback a little…”
“We know each other’s,
miss?” Metcalfe asks her.
“Personally, no. We have met on the runway earlier, but
you would not recall. You had a
hood over your head.”
“I recognize your voice,
though. Thanks for having taken my
defence against those brutes.”
Symphony sighs. “Be sure to tell THAT to your father.
Him, I’ve heard about. A
rather stern man, who, if I’m not mistaken, would cause us tons of trouble if
he learns what has happened here.”
“Tell me about it.”
Destiny mumbles grimly.
“Juliette, please. Now is not the time for old resentments.
And my father reputation is worse than what he really is.”
Destiny snorts. “You’d have a difficult time trying to convince me of that! Besides, he adores you and has put you
up on a pedestal. You can’t really
tell me he would do nothing if he ever learns what has happened to you here!”
Symphony lifts an eyebrow. “Wait a minute…
I take it Metcalfe was the general you were talking about earlier? The one who almost got you thrown out of
the WAAF because…”
“Save it.” Destiny
interrupts her abruptly. “Tell us
where you came about your friend here.”
“I found him in the
galley, lurking about. He… knocked
over the commando with a frying span.”
Destiny looks suspiciously at Svenson. “That’s how he came in possession of that
rifle?” She notes.
“Don’t worry.” Svenson
tells her. “I won’t use it. I didn’t want to leave it to that man… And well, I feel rather safe with it.”
“So, your name is not
Kowalski.”
“No, ma’am. It’s Svenson.”
“ADAM Svenson.” Symphony
specifies. “He says he’s a pilot.”
“I AM a pilot.”
“You’re chief agent of
security at the WAS.” Metcalfe replies.
“But I’m still a pilot.”
Svenson insists.
“Well, that he is.”
Destiny nods. “A good one judging
by the way he flied that piece of junk and landed it on the base’s runway.”
“What piece of junk?”
Metcalfe asks with curiosity. “Adam, the last I heard of you and the others, you
were supposed to be stranded in the desert.”
Svenson smiles. “We were.
But then, Donaghue came to our rescue.”
“Donaghue?” Metcalfe repeats, almost without
believing it.
“Surprising, isn’t it?”
“I can see you two have a
lot to talk about.” Destiny remarks.
“And if you don’t mind, I would like to hear all of it.”
“We ALL would like to
hear all of it.” The voice of Rhapsody then says behind Metcalfe’s back.
The WAAF colonel looks over his shoulder to her:
“I almost had forgot about you!”
“You’d wish.” Rhapsody replies dryly.
“Why don’t you push yourself a little, you big oaf?
I would like to get out, you know.”
Metcalfe smiles mockingly and steps aside. “By all means, your ladyship.”
“Why don’t we go to the
control room?” Destiny suggests.
“The others will want to ear about this also.
Symphony, why don’t you go back to the galley and bring something to eat
for Paul? He says he’s famished.”
“I’m on the brink of
starvation!” Metcalfe says, with a grim look.
Destiny smiles lightly. “Poor thing!
We don’t want to let him suffer any longer.
She looks over Svenson. “Why don’t you go with her… Adam? You would be so kind as to take sergeant
Martin back here in the brig. I
believe colonel Metcalfe’s cell is free.”
“I like your way of
thinking, miss Destiny.” Svenson answers, grinning.
“By the way… you could go
fetch your friends by your plane.
They’re welcomed to the control room, too.”
Svenson presents his arm to Symphony:
“Shall we go, Karen?” He pauses and frowns, puzzled: “Or is it ‘Symphony’? What kind of a name is that?”
Symphony takes his arm and beginning walking away with him. “Only a codename.”
“Well, I rather like it.”
“So, you’re really a
security agent?”
“I am, if you really are
a spy from the Secret Service.”
“We prefer to be called
‘agents’.”
The rest fades as they
move away. Metcalfe, Destiny, and
Rhapsody look at them, thoughtfully.
“They seem to have hit it
off pretty nicely.” Metcalfe remarks, smiling.
“I would say…” Destiny pats Metcalfe ‘shoulder with a
knowing glance at him and Rhapsody: “…Much like you two.”
She steps away toward the
stair, leaving them speechless for a moment. Then they look at each other’s and go after her.
“What’s that supposed to
mean?” They say with the same voice.