Arctic Wargame - Страница 26

“I see,” Justin said, thinking about how to change the conversation.

“Well, you may have been out cold, but that chopper saved your ass, when you and your crew were as frosty as a polar bear’s balls.”

A small man appeared out of the Radiology Unit. His presence cut short the sarcastic lashing Justin was enduring.

* * *

Of course, the x-rays would reveal nothing unusual about Justin’s abdomen. But the trip to the Radiology Unit had enabled him to decide on one of the crucial elements of his getaway plan.

Now, if I can only find out where they’re holding Carrie and Anna, we can be on our way out of this place, Justin thought, as the small man led him back to the waiting room.

Sergeant Brown wasted no time in demanding their prompt return to the Intensive Care Unit. Nobody was walking down the halls, but Justin felt he had enough to set his plan in motion.

* * *

Sergeant Brown allowed Justin to close the blinds in his room. At almost 8:00 p.m., the sergeant felt he could afford a single act of kindness. His babysitting chores would be over in an hour.

Once sheltered behind the blinds and away from the vigilant eyes of the guard, Justin had no difficulties dismantling the wheelchair, despite the near darkness in his room. It took longer than he had planned, but by using the tip of his plastic knife — which he had safely hidden inside his pillowcase — Justin was able to loosen the flat tip screws. Once the wheels came off, he dissembled the armrests, the cross braces of the frame and its backrest rails, which he set aside to use as future batons.

* * *

“Oh, crap,” Justin shouted.

Even if his voice was not loud enough, the noise of the wheelchair crashing against the wall was a good enough reason for Sergeant Brown to jump to his feet. He slid open the door and barged into the room, stepping right into Justin’s trap, who welcomed Sergeant Brown with a blow of an aluminum tube to the back of his head. The sergeant took a plunge next to Justin’s bed.

“Sorry about that, Sergeant,” Justin whispered, leaning over the sergeant’s body. “I just need your clothes, sir. And your gun.”

Chapter Fifteen

Thule, Greenland

April 13, 8:25 p.m.

Justin had finished changing into the sergeant’s uniform and was buckling the belt when Emily appeared in the doorway.

“Don’t make a sound,” he said softly, reaching for the M-9 pistol on his hip.

Emily held her breath. “Oh, did you… did you kill Tom?” she said, staring at the sergeant’s body lying in Justin’s bed, covered with the bed sheets and the blanket.

“No.” Justin walked over to her, his pistol pointed at her chest. “And I won’t kill you either. He’ll be unconscious for a while. I’ve got to get out of this place, and this seemed to be the only way out.”

“Oh, really? You didn’t think to ask?”

“I did. Your commander placed me under arrest, chaining me to Sergeant Brown even when I went to the washroom.”

“It’s for your own good. This is a US military base, not a rehab. You can’t just wander anywhere you please.”

“I won’t try to convince you. I know you’re loyal to your country. But you have to understand I have to be loyal to mine. Where are Carrie and Anna?”

“Four doors down.”

“Take me there. Slowly. And for your own sake, be quiet.”

* * *

Emily unlocked the door of the room 4A without knocking or otherwise announcing their arrival.

“Who’s there?” Carrie asked, flicking on a nightstand lamp. She did a double take at the unexpected sight of the pale-faced nurse and the tall, uniformed airman, whose face looked familiar, in spite of the dim light.

“It’s me,” Justin said, staying two steps behind Emily. “Just different clothes.”

“Finally.” Carrie stood up from her bed, ran to Justin and gave him a big hug. “I see you took some time for grooming.” She rubbed his arms.

“I had a guard dog at my door, and I needed to distract him.”

“Hey, Justin, you’re back,” Anna said, holding back a yawn. “I guess I must have dozed off. You look good in uniform.”

“Thanks. Now, change out of your gowns. We’re getting out of this place.”

“Where are you going?” Emily asked. “It’s a blizzard out there.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Justin replied.

Carrie glanced around the room, but there was nothing on the coat hanger by the door. “What happened to our clothes?” she asked.

“Someone must have taken them down to the laundry,” Emily replied. “They were wet and gross, probably.”

“Where’s the laundry?” Justin asked.

“Downstairs. First floor.”

“Take us there,” Justin ordered Emily and headed for the door.

“No,” Carrie said. “The base is small, and someone will clue in you’re not one of them. I’ll go with her.” She gestured toward Emily. “Do we have a car?”

“I said it’s a blizzard, a snowstorm, out there,” Emily said in a loud, annoyed voice. “Why isn’t anyone paying attention to me? You can’t drive anywhere!”

“You’re right about that,” Justin said. “I won’t, but you will.”

“You’re crazy. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Oh, I think you will,” Justin brandished his gun.

“You said you weren’t gonna kill me and now—”

“He might have said that,” Carrie said, “but I’ve made no such promise.” She took the pistol from Justin’s hand. “I’ll go with her to get our clothes back. Wait here.”

* * *

Five long minutes passed after Carrie’s departure. Justin and Anna endured every second in silence, hoping and praying for her safe return. Occasionally, Anna would take a quick peek through the blinds, but nothing disturbed the tranquility of the empty hospital hall. Each moment that passed increased their fear someone had detected Carrie, Emily may have let out a scream, or somehow things had taken a turn for the worse.

“Where is she?” Anna asked, after taking another glance. “Why is it taking so long?”

“Relax,” Justin replied. “It’s only been a few minutes. Carrie will be back as soon as she can.”

“What if she’s been discovered or caught?”

“Let’s not worry about that.”

Anna sighed and paced around the room. She sat at the end of the bed and toyed with the edge of her white patient gown. Justin placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, and she looked into his eyes, searching for a glint of hope. Finding what she sought, she replied with a big, hopeful smile and stood up.

“They’re here,” she whispered.

Justin opened the door, and both Carrie and Emily entered in.

“Our clothes weren’t ready yet, so I grabbed whatever was there,” Carrie said.

She was wearing a pair of black jeans, a gray sweater and a brown jacket. Emily had changed into a red cushion jacket, two sizes too large and baggy blue jeans.

“Take this and hurry up.” Carrie handed Anna a black laundry bag stuffed with clothes.

Anna pulled out a blue Gore-Tex jacket, a pair of green and black camouflage pants and black boots. Justin got an orange and black leather jacket, with the Harley-Davidson logo and an angry wing-spread eagle on the back. He turned around, as Anna changed into her new clothes.

“I checked two different phones on the way to the laundry room,” Carrie said. “The lines are dead.”

“Happens often in storms like this,” Emily said.

“That means we can’t inform Johnson and can’t call in help.” Justin changed jackets. “At least at this point.”

“I’m ready,” Anna said after a few seconds. “Let’s go.”

“OK. Where did you park?” Justin asked Emily.

“In front, where I always park. My truck’s a red Ford. The third one to the left of the main entrance.”

“Too risky,” Carrie said. “The main door will certainly have guards or at least receptionists.”

Justin nodded. “Take us to one of the back doors,” he said to Emily. “The closest one. We’ll walk around.”

She gave them a bold stare, holding everyone’s eyes for a brief second, as if deciding which one of them to take down first. Carrie gestured with her pistol toward the door. Emily led them down the hall and to the left, toward the elevators.

They rode in a tense silence to the first floor and followed Emily, as she turned right. They continued in the opposite direction of where the nurse had brought Justin for his x-rays and passed by a series of closed doors.

“Where’s the back door?” Justin asked.

“Over there.” Emily pointed further ahead and to their right. “Around the corner.”

“You’re not dragging us deeper into the hospital?” Justin said.

“No,” Emily replied, “you’re the ones dragging me into your crazy schemes.”

“Keep your voice down,” Carrie said.

As they rounded the corner, the hall opened into a small lobby, where three different halls connected. Emily proceeded for the one to the right, just as a woman in a white doctor’s coat walked into the lobby from one of the other halls, about thirty feet away from the group.

“Emily, I need your help in the lab for a muscle biopsy,” she said, while studying their faces and their mismatched clothes.

“Sue, help me,” Emily shouted. She tried to break away from Carrie’s tight grip around her left arm.

“What’s going on here?” Sue took a few steps toward them as Carrie and Emily began to struggle.