Ninety Degrees Out

“Here they come.Heading for the infirmary like I thought,” Armaruq reported.

“How many?” Hakan asked.

“Four.They’re splitting now.Head’s up in the camo tent.”

Four double clicks on the radio signaled everyone heard.

“I’m coming down. Jett, you have comms now.”

Another double click in his ear was enough for Armaruq to nod his head.Everyone was on top of their assignments.

Hakan’s voice came through next.

“Damn, two of them are coming to the barn. Why would they want to hurt the animals?”

“Be right there. They’re sick. A barn fire would light up the sky and make Rico feel like he’s got the world by the tail. Not going to happen.”

Armaruq jogged up the back trail along the forest to the corral.Slipping into the dark shadows he asked, “Are they coming in from the big doors?”

“I’m up in the loft.Coming down now. They’re at the corner closest to the runway.”

He ran down the length of the barn and peered around the corner. Yup, one of them was setting their bomb right at the big sliding doors. Horses were asleep right behind it. The office window was just to the left.

It has to be an RCMP guy standing there with his gun drawn.I hope….

“Where are you?”

“Came out of the door to the tack room.Are you on the other corner?”

“Yeah, let’s see if our buddy needs help.If he doesn’t, lets get over to the infirmary.”

As Armaruq spoke, he heard a barked command.

“Hands up.You’re under arrest.Put your hands behind your head.”

He stepped around the corner just in time to see Jax kick his prisoner between the shoulder blades.

“I’ve got him, this one is Rico. Go for the infirmary. They were planning to loot for drugs before setting the bomb. Not what we wanted. Bran is with them. Our boss, like I explained.”

Armaruq waved at Hakan and pointed across the runway. Sprinting, he knew his best friend would be right behind him.

“In from the back?” Hakan asked as they approached the tent.

“Yeah, let’s roll under the gap at the back of our storage area.”

He angled over to get between the hangar tent and the MASH tent. Hakan was right behind him and dropped to roll under the canvas he lifted. He wriggled under after checking to make sure no one had seen them.

“Damn it’s dark in here.Do you remember how to get through this maze?” Hakan asked.

“Was here yesterday.Keep your hand on my back.”

Armaruq used his hands feeling for the end of the shelf unit, turned to the right. Counting each row of shelves as he passed them, he spotted the slit of light under the door which opened into the back of the infirmary beside their one hospital bed.

“They’re in there. Not sure what’s going on,” he whispered.

“It’s quiet, let’s get in there. They can’t see us if we’re where I think we are.’

He barely heard Hakan’s low pitched reply. The quiet snick of the doorknob releasing sounded like a gunshot. He knew it wasn’t, but his heart was thundering. It was a whole different thing than sneaking up on a rogue bear or trying to get the best shot on a moose.

Slipping through the door they went up past the hospital room wall toward the mobile x-ray machine. The two doors beside them were Dr. Mike and Dr. Anya’s offices. Whoever left the lights on for them was the best thing since sliced bread.

“Okay, last door, they’re on the other side.” Armaruq said.

“Let’s listen for a minute or two.”

“Yeah, I hope Grange keeps his cool”

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Grange sat inside the infirmary waiting room beside the drug refrigeration unit. They were lucky to have sources of certain drugs supplied buy the Coast Guard. The clinic treated animals and humans with almost equal frequency. Helping Dr. Anya and Alicia with the horses turned out to be a bigger thrill than he every imagined. As his eyes adjusted to the tiny sources of light from the moon and stars glimmering outside the window, his ears picked up stealthy footsteps. His mother always said he had the ears of a bat.

“Here they come.Heading for the infirmary like I thought,” Armaruq reported.

Grange double clicked his mic and ignored the rest of the radio babble. He had his instructions.

It was him against a murderer. These guys had the worst of intentions. And considering the damage they already did in Anchorage and down into St. Rupert in Canada, he wasn’t ready to show any mercy.

Grange went over to stand where the door would give him a shadow to hide in. Voices outside caught his attention.

“I’ll set this Grange. You go inside and search for drugs.”

“Man, you guys have been the best. Never thought we’d find like minded types from anywhere else. People are shooting to kill, and I can’t wait to blow these idiots—”

“Shut your trap. We don’t know if anyone’s listening.”

“Sure Bran. See you inside. How long till it blows?”

“Fifteen minutes. So, get your butt in gear.”

Holy fuck!The asshole has the same name as me.How could he be such a shithead? What did we ever do to make him think he could get away with bombing us out of existence?

The door swung open. For the first time he regretted their policy of never locking the infirmary door. Dr. Mike insisted it stay open and the radio on the desk was always on. Emergency aid availability was essential. They would deal with problems when they happened.

The lights flipped on.

The man was the same height as him. Solid. A bit over six feet and he moved like a cat. This is the one Jax said was the most dangerous. He had a pack on his back, and he went over to the cabinets, opened the first one, and started sweeping drug bottles into it. His mistake.

Two quick leaps across the room, and he wrenched the man’s rifle off his left shoulder. The pack went flying and his opponent reached for his belt. Grange lashed out with a quick kick to his wrist and heard the satisfying snap of bones snapping.

A thin scream tore from the guy, and the door on to the storage room banged open. Armaruq came in low, with Hakan covering from above.

“I’ve got him, grab the damn pack. He’s got half our drug supply in it.”

Grange stepped on the other Grange’s wrist, eliciting moans of pain. The guy's eyes were rolling back in his head.

Hurry up and pass out.Wow never thought I wouldn’t have sympathy for someone who is hurt.

Armaruq bounced to his feet.

“They got Rico over at the barn. Waiting to hear from Randy and Chay. Do you guys want to go up the trail to check on them?”

“Gotta grab a sleeping horse to do it. Let’s wait. I expect they’ve got it under control.”

Hakan’s statement didn’t reassure him much. No one knew where Angel was.