Roachia 04 Under the Cover of Darkness Read online

  "Sounds like we've got ourselves a plan." Frank's scowl finally eased from his face. "Let's check out the map and get on our way!"

  Jeff simply sighed, praying Sam was safe.

  six days later, Gillard in Sealand Province

  "Jeff," Frank called softly, shaking his friend's shoulder.

  "Hmm?" Jeff mumbled, trying to pull himself out of the deep sleep he'd been in just moments before.

  "We're here," Frank answered glumly. Jeff's eyes popped open, then studied his friend's grim face. A sinking feeling filled him as he climbed out of the ORV. Jane had parked them on a small wooded rise just outside of town. The rest of the group were in a line, staring at the mountains before them, the rising sun throwing deep shadows from the rugged terrain. Wordlessly, Frank handed Jeff the binoculars.

  Taking a deep breath, Jeff adjusted the lens for his eyes, then examined the scene before him. He could spot several mounds evenly spaced halfway up the mountain. "Damn," he whispered. The Roaches had protected their flank by running the microwave fence along the mountain side. After a long trip of driving, hiding, scrounging for fuel, and avoiding Roachian installations and patrols, they had run into another obstacle.

  "What about the airfield?" JD asked.

  Jane halfheartedly waved to the left. "There must be three craters along the runway, and there is nothing left of the hanger." She felt almost sick, leading them all here to a dead end. Jane wanted to get back to her lab, to see if there was some way she could protect the humans from the information she had given to the Roachians. However, it seemed like she might have to continue living with her guilt.

  "How well does that fence work in rough country?" Josiah asked, still studying the hillside.

  Jeff shrugged. "They usually make it seamless, but sometimes there are holes near the bottom. It'll take time, but it's possible to find one."

  "Meaning we'll need a base of operations while we do the scouting," Frank thought out loud. He turned to Mullway. "Where's that school you use to go to?"

  Challenger Mountain School, Gillard in Sealand Province

  The scene from the top of the hill caused Josiah to step on the brake. They all looked through the windshield at the damage. "They even bombed a school?" Casey whispered sadly.

  Jane felt heartsick viewing it. Not only had she spent her last two years of secondary school here, but she had also spent her breaks helping to teach and mentor the young men and women. "I just hope they were given enough time to evacuate."

  "Would they have been in session yet?" Frank asked, his scowl deepening.

  "Yes, they ran summer sessions" Jane sighed. "They had taken in many teens who had been displaced by the Roaches. Those kids had no place else to go."

  Jeff briefly thought of Sam alone, then shoved the thought out of his mind. "Guess we'd better see if there's any building we can hide in for a while."

  Jane directed them around the destroyed Administration wing to the partially standing food commons.

  "Now, in addition to shelter, we also need supplies," Josiah told them as they climbed out of the ORV. "Food, towels, dish soap, whatever looks to be salvageable."

  "And be careful," Frank cautioned. "Roaches are all too good at hiding in debris."

  They each carefully picked their way through the broken plaster and boards. Jeff had gingerly knelt to examine a bent metal pan when he heard the click of a gun. Raising his eyes, he found himself staring into the barrel of a shotgun. "Hello," he slowly drawled.

  "Stand up," ordered the fierce voice softly. Jeff hid his pain as he casually stood up, studying the dark-haired young woman staring coldly at him. He gauged she was around Blair's age, though the face was harder than he'd ever seen his son's. She would be beautiful if her expression was not so harsh.

  "Bella Torres?" Jane called out.

  The barrel lowered from its aim at Jeff's chest. "Dr. Mullway?" Within an instant, the young woman changed from fierce to delighted. She gracefully sprang across the debris to greet the older woman with a hug. "We'd been told you were taken by the Roaches!"

  "I had been," Jane explained, giving her a warm smile. She waved a hand to indicate Jeff, who was still keeping a wary eye on the shotgun. "But Dr. MacGregor and I were rescued by his friend and some other survivors."

  "Dr. MacGregor!" Bella exclaimed, her hand covering her mouth and turning around. "THE Dr. MacGregor? I'm sorry!" Her face was crestfallen. "I didn't know, sir."

  Jeff gave her a friendly smile. Jane noted that its charm worked just as well on the tough girl as it did on her and Casey. "That's okay. I'm willing to forget it if you'd put the safety back on." He gave the gun another pointed glance.

  "Oh yeah!" The young woman swiftly clicked it into position.

  "Why are you still here?" Jane asked, barely aware of the others from their group walking over to join them. "Weren't you able to evacuate?"

  Bella shook her head. "No one expected them to sweep in so fast. We lost a lot of people during the bombing." Frank's scowl deepened as Jeff's eyes grew somber. They both could guess at how many students and teachers had been lost in the destruction. "Then Mrs. Patterson diverted the invading Roaches' attention by blowing up the rest of the Admin building while we rushed the survivors into the caves." Her hand indicated the foothills behind her. Then dark eyes grew even darker. "She had already been severely wounded, so she insisted that Harry and Jack go with us while she stayed behind."

  Jane closed her eyes a moment, mourning the loss of her dear mentor and friend. "How many made it to the caves?"

  "There's 41 of us." Bella turned and waved. Two teenage girls and a boy climbed out of their hiding spots in the debris. "There's Doc Fraiser, Gail Meredith the language instructor, the driver Jack Dalton, plus Harry Kim and myself who were assisting this summer. The rest are students."

  "Hi Judy, Hi Eric," Jane greeted the two she knew.

  "This is Lisa Woodrow," Bella introduced the shy young woman hanging back from the others.

  "Hi Lisa," Jane gave her a gentle smile. Then she quickly introduced her group. "Do you think there's room for us to stay with you?"

  Bella gave her a wide smile. "There's plenty of room."

  After helping Bella and her group pick up a few boxes of can goods and other supplies, they followed them back into the foothills. Jeff was impressed at how well hidden the caves were on the hillside. Bella pointed out a spot where they could hide the ORV, then they all picked their way over the rocky terrain. Between the steep climb and his already fatigued body, it was especially hard on Jeff. He stumbled a couple of times on the loose rock, only to have the shy girl named Lisa help him to catch his balance. Jeff gave her a grateful smile and was doubly thankful when Bella led them behind a boulder into a cave.

  The cave was cool and dark but the floor was fairly level. Bella and the kids turned on their lights and led them to the back of the cave and through a narrow bend. Josiah was just barely able to squeeze through. Jeff's tired mind hazily noted that it would be almost impossible for drones to get through.

  The bend widened, then Jeff realized he heard a generator. Another gradual turn led them to a place of light. The passage opened up into a wide cavern. Inside electric lights, running off the generator he'd heard, circled the center. Jeff spotted five portable camp stoves with several makeshift tables behind them. On the outer edges of the circle were numerous small tents made out of various blankets and canvas material. Several people stopped what they were doing when they noticed the extra people Bella had brought.

  "Jane!" A slender woman with deep reddish brown hair broke from the crowd and ran up to greet her friend with a hug. Several more soon joined her around the alumni. Jeff smiled faintly at the warm welcome. Perhaps their luck had finally turned, though it would help if the room would stop spinning. Jeff noted his knees buckling as if they belonged to someone else. He was vaguely aware of Frank and Lisa catching him as the room turned black.

  Dad...

  Sam?

  Dad, where are
you?

  Sam, I'm right here!

  Dad...

  Sam! Sam, answer me! SAM!

  Jeff jerked upright, wrapping his arms around his throbbing ribs. Once the pain eased and his head stopped spinning, he cautiously opened his eyes. He was inside a small tent sitting on a sleeping pad. Absently, his fingers smoothed a wrinkle in the soft blanket as he studied the empty sleeping pad next to him. He groaned as the memory of his collapse swam through his aching head. What a way to make an entrance.

  Still feeling lightheaded, Jeff gingerly stood up. He stepped out of the tent once the world righted itself. Jeff paused once outside, trying to orient himself. To the left he could see JD with three other teenage boys, working to put up another tent. Straight ahead he could see Jane chatting with the woman who had greeted her earlier. They were watching a group of teens washing dishes. Off to his right, Josiah and Frank were sitting at a table, talking with Bella and a burly man about his age in a leather jacket. A young man of about college age was hurrying towards them. Pushing a lock of his straight black hair out of his almond shaped eyes, he unrolled a map onto the table. The others quickly leaned over to study it.

  Taking a deep breath, Jeff decided to join Frank and see what was going on. He was only a couple of yards away when Frank spotted him. His friend was by his side in an instant.

  "What are you doing walking around?" Frank growled demandingly.

  Jeff yanked his arm from Frank's grasp. "I'm all right."

  Frank glared at him, not missing the pale face nor the faint catch of pain in Jeff's voice. "Right, and I'm the president's chief advisor." Jeff rolled his eyes at him. "The doc said you need food and rest, bro."

  "I think I've rested enough." Jeff was peeved at himself for his fatigue. He had to find a way back to Sam and his body would just have to get with the program. Reading the stubbornness on his friend's face, Frank sighed and walked him over to the table.

  Josiah, who had watched the exchange out the corner of his eye, just barely kept the smirk from his face. He'd witnessed several such encounters and had rarely seen Frank win. He stood up so that Jeff could have his seat, then indicated the burly man with his hand. "Jeff, this is Jack Dalton. Jack, Jeff MacGregor." Jeff shook Dalton's hand before taking the seat. "The young man is Harry Kim," Josiah continued. Harry greeted him with a friendly smile. "And you've already met Bella." The slightest hint of a blush crept into the young, yet tough, face.

  Jeff gave her an understanding smile, then looked down at the map. "This is the microwave fencing?" Jeff ran a finger along a red dotted line. It looked like a recent addition.

  "Yes," Harry spoke up. "Now that the Roaches don't have the patrols like they did when they first invaded, we've been able to do a little scouting."

  "Colton says that there can be holes?" Jack asked. "We've been telling the kids to stay away from it, both due to the danger and the possibility of border patrols."

  "Sensible," Jane replied as she approached the table. She sat a bowl of soup next to Jeff's elbow, along with a glass a juice. She met Jeff's stubborn eyes with her own.

  Knowing she was right, Jeff sighed and sipped the juice, still studying the map. "Holes are not easy to find." Jeff launched into a quick explanation of how to locate areas under the fence.

  Next evening

  Jeff watched from the tables as Frank slipped into the tunnel, Casey and two other teens on his heels. The adults had decided to set up teams to search for holes in the fence, each consisting of an adult and three of the older teens. Since they had a better chance of staying out of Roachian sight in the dark, they decided to wait until twilight. Jeff tapped his pen against a pad of paper as the last of the teams departed the cave. It was frustrating not to be out with them. Yet Jeff had to admit he was, as Frank had put it, 'in no condition to be traipsing around the mountainside playing tag with the Roaches'. Sometimes Frank sounded just like his mother, Tess.

  Closing his eyes and taking as deep a breath as he dared with his ribs, Jeff forced the frustration out of his mind. He attempted to feel for Sam, but again ran into the barrier. Another good reason to allow himself some rest. Apparently his mind needed to heal as well as his body. Not that he planned on being idle. There were still many other things that needed to be worked out. Jeff turned the pen to the paper and started scribbling.

  Of all the chores, Lisa hated carrying water the most. It was a long trip down to the underground river that flowed through the cavern below. Once full, the buckets were really heavy. Simply due to the location, you were carrying the full buckets uphill. Then if you weren't careful, the water would slosh all over, getting your clothes and shoes soaked. She was always so glad to finish filling the water barrels.

  She glanced at Dr. MacGregor as she brought in the last buckets. He kind of reminded her of her dad with his long arms and legs. Then he had a really nice smile like her dad, too. Her dad's smile had always made her feel good. She could still remember him smiling and waving as her train left for Gillard. If she had known that have would been the last time she'd see him, Lisa would have hopped off that train and ran back to him. But he wanted her to go so she'd be safe, so she had gone.

  Not that she'd been that much safer. Thoughts of the bombing still sent a wave a fear through her. Only by crawling under the heavy workbench in the art room had Lisa survived. The fact that she'd managed to pull 10-year-old Cassie under the bench with her had won the girl's devotion. Doc Fraiser's daughter often tagged along behind her when she could.

  Lisa spared another glance at the scientist as she dumped the water into the barrel. News always traveled fast within the group of teenagers, but the story about the new people had broken speed records. She had heard all about what the Roaches had done to Dr. MacGregor and how they had threatened his son because the drugs didn't work. Bella said that her friends back in Glendale had met Sam MacGregor and thought he was pretty cool. Lisa hoped he was all right, if only for Dr. MacGregor's sake.

  Setting the bucket down, Lisa frowned when she noticed Dr. MacGregor absently wrapping his arm around his ribs. It had really scared her when he had collapsed yesterday. She had overheard Doc Fraiser say that he had several cracked ribs, yet he didn't like taking the pain meds she'd given him. Lisa didn't want him to be in pain. Without much thought, she walked over to the cool box and pulled out some juice. Pouring it into a glass, she replaced the jug, took a deep breath, and walked over to the man at the table.

  Jeff glanced up when he heard the light shuffle of steps against the cavern's stone floor. The young teen who had helped him into the caves approached the table hesitantly. "Hello, ah Lisa, right?"

  A shy smile stretched across her face. Jeff noticed it was a rather sweet smile. "Yes, Dr. MacGregor." She sat the glass of blue juice on the table in front of him.

  Jeff stared at it a moment, feeling his stomach cringe at the thought. "Thank you, Lisa, but you didn't need to bring me anything."

  "I thought you could use some juice to take with your pain meds," the girl suggested ingenuously.

  Jeff blinked, noting his aching ribs as he realized he'd been had. This girl was better than either Frank or Mullway. Raising his eyes to meet her eager ones, he could only concede defeat. "All right, thank you." He pushed the pad of paper away as he gingerly slipped his hand into his pocket to retrieve the bottle.

  Lisa leaned over the table to look at his writing. "What are you doing?"

  "I'm doing some logistics," Jeff replied. He tossed a pill into his mouth, quickly swallowing some juice to send it on its way. He grimaced as his stomach protested, but it seemed to stay down.

  "What's logistics?"

  "It's a fancy word for making sure you have everything you need when you need it for a project." Jeff slid the pad so Lisa could read it, too. "When they find a hole in the fence, we have to figure out how to get everyone out and to the safe zones without getting caught."

  "Wow, I hadn't thought about that yet," Lisa replied admiringly. "I guess 47 people is a lot to send
through a small hole and get away before the Roaches see us."

  "Well, we do have surprise on our side." Jeff shot her a smile. "They probably don't know we're all here." Jeff pushed out the fact the Roaches were probably searching for him. That Chosen One seemed pretty determined to make Jeff talk. He prayed that the kids wouldn't be hurt in an effort to reach him.

  Lisa was looking at the map. "How far do we have to go?"

  "Well, I'm hoping they aren't planning to push their border further north before next spring, since they have the fence up." Jeff lightly ran the pen over the fence on the map. "Most likely they'll do a few more bombing runs to make sure the humans don't sneak back here."

  "But how could we, with the fence up?"

  "Some of the commando units have devices to get through the fences. Unfortunately, I don't have the classified materials I'd need to make one." Jeff sighed, thinking of how easy he could whip one up if he had his lab. "So I'm guessing the closest bases would be here on the Toga River, the Front Ridge base, and the naval base at White Shores." He pointed to each one with his pen.

  "The Toga base would be closest," Lisa remarked.

  "Yes, but we'd have to walk across the plain here, and that would be wide open with few places to hide. Front Ridge would be a little farther, but we could hide in the mountains and this canyon for most of the way."

  "What ya doing?" They both looked up in time to see a young girl hop onto a chair opposite them.

  "Cassie, shouldn't you be in bed?" Lisa asked, exasperated.

  Cassie shook her head, her strawberry blonde ponytail swinging back and forth. "Mom's busy looking at Davey's leg."

  Jeff gauged the child to be about 10 years old. "Aren't you a bit young to be going to the Challenger school?" he asked with a smile.

  She grinned back at him. "I just live here. Mom's the doctor."

  "Ah, your Dr. Fraiser's daughter, Miss..."

  "Cassandra, but you can call me Cassie."

  "All right, Cassie." Jeff felt a small pang in his heart, his thoughts drifting back to his son who had found him at around the same age as Cassie. He swiftly turned his thoughts away from Blair and concentrated on the girls at the table. "Are you waiting for your mother to tuck you in?"