bewilderment.
Finally Marcus spoke up and said, “We can finish this when we get home. Kim, take them to the helo and head for home. I’m going to set this place for self destruct and I’ll be right behind you.”
“Marcus, NO,” said Kim. “Just leave it and let’s get out of here.”
“I can’t do that. I could have saved lives if I had done something about the Jackals earlier. I have to finish this. Don’t worry, like I said I will be right behind you. Jocelyn is going to help me do this and we won’t have to worry about them again,” said Marcus.
Kim could tell Marcus was determined so she didn’t push any further. With the woman following behind, Kim and the other man put David’s arms over their shoulders and headed to the helo.
Leaving in front of them, Marcus headed to the stairwell and up three more flights of stairs. Stopping at the stairwell door, Marcus eased it open and scanned the entire floor. The secondary control room was huge. Except for a few small side rooms, it covered the entire floor. There were huge displays lining the walls and computers everywhere. It took Marcus ten minutes to find the correct computer. He was glad he had Jocelyn talking him through it or he would have never found it. He had just initiated what he thought was the startup on the destruct system when he heard a voice behind him.
“What are you doing?” said the voice.
Marcus turned to see a man in military camouflage with a pistol pointed at him. Marcus put his hands in the air and said, “The boss just sent me up to run some diagnostics on the perimeter. He wants the perimeter fence back up and running ASAP.”
The man moved forward slightly and said, “Liar.”
Marcus jumped to the side and narrowly missed being shot. At the same time, he drew his own pistol and shot the man. The man fell onto the floor, struggled for a moment, and then was still.
“Whew. That was close…” said Marcus.
“Marcus, we have a problem. Someone has already set the self destruct. It has been running for ten minutes already. You only have five minutes to clear the base,” said Jocelyn.
Marcus was up and running for the door. “Has Kim cleared the area yet?”
“Yes, Marcus. They have taken off and are already several miles away. The other helo is malfunctioning. I was able to get it close to the building but I’ve had to reboot the systems,” said Jocelyn.
“Just get it going!” he yelled as he flew down the stairwell.
Chapter 18
As fast as his legs would take him, Marcus flew down the last flight of stairs.
“Joce! Is it ready to fly?” asked Marcus as he raced out the door and across the parking lot towards the Black Falcon helicopter. Marcus could tell that the blades and rotor still were not turning.
“Negative. Systems are finishing their reboot. I will update you as soon as I have a systems status and run a quick diagnostic,” said Jocelyn.
“Forget the diagnostic… Just crank it up and let’s get out of here,” yelled Marcus.
About the time he reached the Falcon helo aircraft, the huge blades started to rotate. He jumped into the cockpit and they lifted off. Marcus watched out the window as the helo gradually gained altitude.
“Joce, are all systems functioning?” asked Marcus.
“Flight controls and most of the defense systems are up. Stealth mode is not functioning. I repeat. Stealth mode is not functioning. Also, the interior monitors and secondary systems aren’t functioning either,” she said.
“Take us out over the Shenandoah National Park and away from the city and step on it,” said Marcus.
He checked his watch. Fifteen seconds. Marcus didn’t know who started the self destruct sequence. It might have been the man in camouflage or it was possible that it was set remotely. The man he encountered didn’t seem to fit the Jackal profile. Ten seconds. It was puzzling to Marcus.
Finally Marcus spoke up and said, “We can finish this when we get home. Kim, take them to the helo and head for home. I’m going to set this place for self destruct and I’ll be right behind you.”
“Marcus, NO,” said Kim. “Just leave it and let’s get out of here.”
“I can’t do that. I could have saved lives if I had done something about the Jackals earlier. I have to finish this. Don’t worry, like I said I will be right behind you. Jocelyn is going to help me do this and we won’t have to worry about them again,” said Marcus.
Kim could tell Marcus was determined so she didn’t push any further. With the woman following behind, Kim and the other man put David’s arms over their shoulders and headed to the helo.
Leaving in front of them, Marcus headed to the stairwell and up three more flights of stairs. Stopping at the stairwell door, Marcus eased it open and scanned the entire floor. The secondary control room was huge. Except for a few small side rooms, it covered the entire floor. There were huge displays lining the walls and computers everywhere. It took Marcus ten minutes to find the correct computer. He was glad he had Jocelyn talking him through it or he would have never found it. He had just initiated what he thought was the startup on the destruct system when he heard a voice behind him.
“What are you doing?” said the voice.
Marcus turned to see a man in military camouflage with a pistol pointed at him. Marcus put his hands in the air and said, “The boss just sent me up to run some diagnostics on the perimeter. He wants the perimeter fence back up and running ASAP.”
The man moved forward slightly and said, “Liar.”
Marcus jumped to the side and narrowly missed being shot. At the same time, he drew his own pistol and shot the man. The man fell onto the floor, struggled for a moment, and then was still.
“Whew. That was close…” said Marcus.
“Marcus, we have a problem. Someone has already set the self destruct. It has been running for ten minutes already. You only have five minutes to clear the base,” said Jocelyn.
Marcus was up and running for the door. “Has Kim cleared the area yet?”
“Yes, Marcus. They have taken off and are already several miles away. The other helo is malfunctioning. I was able to get it close to the building but I’ve had to reboot the systems,” said Jocelyn.
“Just get it going!” he yelled as he flew down the stairwell.
Chapter 18
As fast as his legs would take him, Marcus flew down the last flight of stairs.
“Joce! Is it ready to fly?” asked Marcus as he raced out the door and across the parking lot towards the Black Falcon helicopter. Marcus could tell that the blades and rotor still were not turning.
“Negative. Systems are finishing their reboot. I will update you as soon as I have a systems status and run a quick diagnostic,” said Jocelyn.
“Forget the diagnostic… Just crank it up and let’s get out of here,” yelled Marcus.
About the time he reached the Falcon helo aircraft, the huge blades started to rotate. He jumped into the cockpit and they lifted off. Marcus watched out the window as the helo gradually gained altitude.
“Joce, are all systems functioning?” asked Marcus.
“Flight controls and most of the defense systems are up. Stealth mode is not functioning. I repeat. Stealth mode is not functioning. Also, the interior monitors and secondary systems aren’t functioning either,” she said.
“Take us out over the Shenandoah National Park and away from the city and step on it,” said Marcus.
He checked his watch. Fifteen seconds. Marcus didn’t know who started the self destruct sequence. It might have been the man in camouflage or it was possible that it was set remotely. The man he encountered didn’t seem to fit the Jackal profile. Ten seconds. It was puzzling to Marcus.
Similar Books
