Operation Orion - Kevin Dockery [99]
“Looks like somebody lives here but they’re not at home,” he concluded.
They tried several other doors with similar results, but on their fourth try they received a “Who is it?” response when they knocked.
“Friends from home,” Jackson replied before pushing the button to open the door.
This room, like the previous compartments, was a two-bed berth. One man, an elderly Asian, was there, sitting up in his bed and watching the vidscreen. He wore the same black pajama garb as the exercise group and blinked in surprise when he saw the four humans.
“Who are you?” he asked in Mandarin. The translator in Jackson’s ear smoothly rendered the question into English. “Friends? From which home?” he added pointedly.
“We are looking for the diplomats and their companions from Earth,” Jackson replied immediately. “Were you with those aboard the Pangaea?”
“Yes!” the man declared excitedly, swinging his legs to the floor. “But…who are you? How did you find us?” He tried to push himself to his feet but fell back to a sitting position. “Forgive me. I am unwell,” he explained. “I am with the Chinese delegation, Deputy Undersecretary of Trade Chin Lu.”
“Don’t try to get up,” Jackson said. “But maybe you can help us. Do you know where the ambassadors are? Or the locations of any of the UN officers?”
“Yes! Continue down this passage. There is a fork at the end. You will find the UN contingent to the left, the Americans to the right. Do you think you can help us get out of here?”
“I intend to do everything in my power to make that happen,” Jackson pledged. “Thank you for the information. Now, please tell no one about this. We’ll be back.”
Closing the door behind him, he had to restrain his urge to jog, and forced himself to maintain a casual pose in case they were being watched by unseen surveillance. When he reached the fork described by Chin, he turned right. There was a large door at the end of the hall, and he went directly to it, knocking several times.
“Come!” sounded the reply in the unmistakable tone of a commanding officer.
Jackson opened the door and stepped inside the spacious chamber, which looked like a conference room. Several men sat around the table in the middle of the room, and at the far end was the man who had barked the command to enter.
It was Ball-Breaker Ballard.
“Admiral Ballard, sir!” snapped Jackson, instinctively coming to attention. As he was utterly out of uniform, he did not salute. “I’m glad to have found you.”
The four-star old sea dog blinked almost comically, then rose to his feet. “Jackson?” he asked. “Of the SEALS?”
“At your service, sir. This is Master Chief Ruiz, Electrician’s Mate Baxter, and Medical Corpsman Teal.” The LT suddenly felt sheepish about his old coveralls. “Please forgive the costumes, sir. We’re on a recon and felt it best to use some disguises.”
“Of course, of course, man. It’s damned good to see you. How in all the universe did you find us?”
“It’s a very long story, sir. You should know that the Pegasus is near this station. We haven’t been able to locate the Pangaea, but Captain Carstairs is working on that problem right now. We’re hoping to effect a rescue, and this is only the first step—to establish contact with the delegation.”
“Yes, of course. Come in, sit down.” There were extra chairs at the table, so the SEALS joined the august gathering, which, as Ballard made the introductions, turned out to include the five-star army general in charge of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as high brass from the air force and marines.
“How many humans are being held here?” the SEALS officer asked.
“Something like a hundred, I guess. They left most of the crew and passengers aboard the Pangaea but took the ones they judged to be the most important, as far as I can tell,” Ballard replied. “We were taken by surprise—pirates, we thought, until this savant bastard came aboard. Just one look from the SOB was enough to turn my knees to water, I’m ashamed to admit.” The blustering admiral truly did look chagrined. “He opened his mouth,