Faith Defiled (Gray Spear Society Book 14) (20 page)

"What do you expect me to do?"

"Think of something! Use that keen mind I pay such a pretty penny for."

"Yes, ma'am," he said.

"Bye." Iris put away her phone.

She sent her consciousness back to the woman with green eyes. Maybe Iris could figure out where the Society was going on its road trip.

* * *

Marina led her team into the office of Soar Away Charters. The walls were a bland yellow, and the furniture was brown. Dust dulled the leaves of a fake palm tree in the corner. Posters showing jet aircraft provided a touch of color and style.

The tall man at the front desk had distinguished gray hair. He was wearing a pilot's uniform, but it lacked any official insignia.

"Can I help you?" he said.

Marina nodded. "We need to fly to Chicago immediately. It's urgent."

He gave her a funny look. "That's going to be a problem."

"Why?"

"Do you watch the news? The entire city is under strict quarantine. Cannibals are everywhere. The Army has locked down the whole region, and nobody is getting in or out for the foreseeable future."

"Oh." She furrowed her brow. "You can't sneak us in?"

"Only if you want to get shot down. The military isn't screwing around."

Marina realized she would be going into a war zone.

"OK," she said. "Forget Chicago. We'll go to Milwaukee."

"Sure. We have several fine aircraft to choose from..."

"The fastest."

The man raised his eyebrows. "That could be expensive, ma'am. We have a Gulfstream G650..."

"Sounds perfect," Marina said. "We'll pay now. Just tell us where to board."

"Uh."

She leaned towards him and glared. "Ring it up."

"Yes, ma'am." He swallowed.

* * *

The van parked in front of the executive terminal of the San Francisco International Airport. It was on the north side of the runway, far from the commercial airlines used by common folk. The terminal consisted of a single, large, square building which was mostly a hanger. Airplanes that couldn't fit in the hanger were parked off to the sides.

Marina and her four
legionnaires
got out. Ipo, Hanley, and Yang grabbed gray duffle bags out of the back of the van. The team had packed standard mission supplies before going to the Golden Gate Bridge, and bringing the bags to Chicago couldn't hurt. One big advantage of a charter flight was the ability to carry weapons. The computer Marina had grabbed was left in the van.

She followed the directions she had been given and quickly found the jet. It was a beautiful aircraft, as sleek as a fighter. The tips of the wings were bent vertically, and twin engines were mounted near the tail.

A staircase was already placed in front of the open hatch. The Spears clambered onboard and sat on soft, white seats. There was room for eight executives to travel in great comfort.

A pilot stepped out from the cockpit. "I heard you were in a hurry. Is everybody ready to go?"

"Yes!" Marina said. "Get this thing in the air. I'll give you a ten thousand dollar cash bonus if you can get us to Milwaukee in three hours."

"Yes, ma'am!"

* * *

Is that Laurence?
Iris thought.
Finally!

A police car parked directly in front of her hiding spot. Laurence stepped out wearing a police uniform instead of his usual black suit and cape. With his sparse, white hair and gaunt face, he didn't look much like a cop, but the disguise didn't have to work for long.

He came around and opened the passenger door. Iris checked to make sure none of the real cops or FBI agents were looking. She opened the door of her hiding spot, dashed across, and huddled down in the car. It felt good to move around after being stuck in one position for several hours.

Laurence ran to get back in the driver's seat. He pulled smoothly away and headed for the dirt access road. He had to skirt around the mess from the explosion, and some of the investigators made angry comments.

"Where did you get the car?" Iris said.

"I killed for it, ma'am. Same with the costume."

She nodded. "Well, the good news is I locked onto a member of the Gray Spear Society, a woman with green eyes. She might even be the commander here. From that perspective, the plan worked perfectly. The bad news is the enemy chartered a jet, and they're already out of my range."

"Why?" He glanced at her. "Where are they going?"

"They left after receiving some kind of message from the Great Adversary. I don't know where they went, but they used a place called Soar Away Charters. The company will know where the jet is going. That's our next stop."

"You actually saw the Great Adversary?"

"I saw a lot of white light," Iris said, "and there was a feeling... It's hard to describe, but I'm pretty sure it was Him. I wish I knew what He told the Society. It was probably very important. What's the status of the Warriors?"

"Forty-eight survived, although some are in bad shape. I found safe places for them to recuperate. Walfred is one of the survivors."

"As usual. That man is like a cockroach."

"Yes, ma'am," Laurence said, "and with the second team coming in, we'll have plenty of manpower. We just need the girl's location."

Iris clenched her jaw. The plan had been going so well.

Getting to Soar Away Charters took two long hours. They had started on the wrong side of the Golden Gate Bridge and couldn't get back across the direct way. Traffic elsewhere in the Bay Area was horrendous. It was ironic that the traffic jams were Iris's fault.

Laurence finally parked in front of a brown building in a generic industrial park. A red awning was the only dash of color. He and Iris ran into Soar Away Charters.

The bland décor didn't impress her, but she focused on the man behind the desk. His uniform was reminiscent of an airplane pilot without actually being one.

"A woman with red hair and green eyes was here a few hours ago," Iris said. "She chartered a jet."

The clerk nodded. "Yes. So?"

"Where did she go?"

"Our clients' destinations are confidential."

"Oh?" Iris drew a gun from under her jacket. "Let's see if we can change that policy."

It took some encouragement, but the clerk finally confessed the enemy had gone to Milwaukee. He produced paperwork to prove he wasn't lying. Once she was satisfied, she shot the man dead.

"Come on," she said. "We have to get to the airport fast."

Iris ran out the door, and Laurence followed.

* * *

Marina was staring out the window at a solid layer of clouds. She hadn't seen any sign of land for a while. A storm had swallowed up the world.

"Ma'am?" Ipo said.

She turned to him. He wore green cargo pants with plenty of pockets. A soft jacket with a hood covered a sweatshirt, and the word "49ERS" was printed across his chest. He had brown leather hiking boots. He hadn't had a chance to change after the Golden Gate Bridge assignment.

"Yes," Marina said.

"Maybe you should give us a briefing before we land. Tell us what to expect."

Katie, Hanley, and Yang immediately turned to her. The chairs on the jet could rotate in place.

"I don't know much more than you," Marina said. "Whatever is happening is probably because of the twins. The legate went to Chicago to personally protect them during the final days of the firewall project. It's a very big deal."

"You mentioned that project several times," Ipo said, "but you never gave us any details."

"I don't have many details. Bethany and Leanna are going to fix the universe somehow, and they have God's full support."

"God mentioned the 'entire Society.' Do you think the entire Gray Spear Society is going to Chicago?"

"It seems likely," Marina said. "The Lord doesn't exaggerate. We may get to meet all seven legates." She paused as the gravity of that statement sunk in. "Regardless, we'll clearly be foot soldiers in whatever happens. We'll just follow orders, and the honor of the San Francisco team is riding on our performance. Don't embarrass me."

"Yes, ma'am," her
legionnaires
responded.

"Can you tell us more about Aaron's team?" Katie said.

"The headquarters is in a secret bunker on top of the hotel," Marina said.

"Not underneath?"

"Aaron was trying to be clever, but he was a little too clever. He's had problems with security. The
legionnaires
are Smythe, Norbert, Tawni, and Sheryl. Smythe has an amazing gift for healing."

"He fixed my knee," Hanley said.

"That was nothing," Marina said. "He once repaired the heart of the President of the United States. Smythe used only his bare hands and didn't spill a drop of blood. He and his girlfriend practically raised a man from the dead a year ago."

Her team appeared appropriately impressed.

She went on, "Tawni's gift is almost as cool. She uses shadows as a deadly weapon. I'd watch out for her. Her mean streak is almost as wide as mine."

The airplane began to descend at a steep angle. Everybody faced forward and buckled their seatbelts.

Marina couldn't see anything but clouds for a while. Finally, the jet emerged into open air, but the world below was still white. A thick blanket of snow covered everything.
This weather will be a problem,
she thought.

They were landing at the Lawrence Timmerman Airport, a county airport to the west of Milwaukee. From the air, Marina saw two runways and a collection of buildings with white roofs.

The jet touched down lightly. It had trouble stopping on the snowy runway, but the pilot handled the difficult conditions expertly. After a few scary skids, he brought the aircraft under control and taxied over to a terminal building.

The pilot stepped out of the cockpit and opened the hatch. "We're here!"

Marina felt a blast of frigid air. She and her
legionnaires
gathered near the hatch and looked outside. She had expected a winter storm, but the conditions were even worse than she had imagined. The snow was several feet thick in the places where it hadn't been cleared. Wind whipped it around and made the entire world white.

"What kind of frozen version of Hell is this?" Ipo said.

None of them were dressed for the Wisconsin blizzard. They had light jackets appropriate for a cool day in San Francisco.

"We just have to run," Marina said. "We won't freeze to death before we get to the terminal. Gather up our stuff."

The men grabbed the bags while the airport staff brought over a staircase. The staff was wearing bright orange parkas, snow pants, heavy mittens, and full ski masks.

"Ready... go!" Marina said.

The whole team ran outside. She slipped on ice and almost fell on her face, but her natural agility saved her. The freezing air felt like a sharp knife against her skin. Katie actually did fall, and when she stood up, the front of her body was covered with wet snow.

They made it into the terminal. Shivering, Marina took a moment to gather her wits.

Her team had dismay on their faces, so she put on an expression of confidence. It was time to act like a leader.

No civilians were nearby. She took out her phone and called Aaron.

He answered immediately, "Hey! I was hoping you'd call. Where are you?"

"You know I'm coming?" Marina said.

"I heard the whole damn Society is coming. Wesley keeps asking about you in particular. He has a huge secret to reveal to us."

"Oh. That's not good. My team and I just landed in Milwaukee. We'll drive down there as quick as we can."

"Be careful," Aaron said. "You'll be dodging soldiers and cannibals. The Army has barricades everywhere. They're under strict orders to contain the crisis by any means necessary."

"Wonderful. What's your status?"

"I'm in the middle of an unbelievable shit storm, but I don't have time to debrief you now. It can wait 'til you get here. Oh, by the way, Ethel is in Washington, DC. She went to save the President, and Tawni is with her."

"Save him from what?" she said.

"He was kidnapped by fake secret service agents. You didn't hear?"

"I've been busy."

"Me, too," he said. "Hurry! I love you."

"I love you, too." Marina put away her phone and looked at her team. "We need transportation."

"And warm clothes, ma'am!" Katie said. She was wet and shivering.

"Yes," Marina said. "We'll take cabs to the nearest rental car place and get a van. We'll hit a department store on the way to Chicago for a quick shopping trip. I don't want to take any long detours. Sorry, Katie, but you'll have to use God's breath to warm up until then. We have the advantage that I used to live here, and I know the territory very well. I should be able to find back roads that will get us around the Army. Let's go."

She walked off at a quick trot, and her team followed.

* * *

Iris looked up at her private jet. Built in the year 2000, the Boeing 717 had started life as an ordinary commercial aircraft. She had purchased it slightly used from a bankrupt airline. The aluminum skin was still the same, but the guts had been replaced since then. She had spent many millions on upgrades giving the plane performance characteristics more like a fighter jet. It could get in and out of tight spots in a hurry, and that feature had saved her life more than once.

Iris normally maintained a very low profile, but the big jet had been necessary for her business. She travelled frequently to clandestine locations in the dead of night. She needed reliable transportation available at all hours and pilots who never asked questions. Sometimes, she had to secretly move large quantities of men and equipment around the world. The Warriors of Dagda had come to California in her jet.

Iris and Laurence climbed a steep flight of stairs and entered the aircraft. She poked her head into the cockpit where two men sat. They were short and slender, and they were dressed as civilians even though they had a military background.

"Milwaukee," Iris said, "and hurry!"

"Yes, ma'am," her pilots said.

She and Laurence went to the cabin. It was an open space, designed for cargo as well as people, but two seats were currently installed. Slots in the metal floor allowed up to a hundred seats to be locked into place.