Episode 33

Chapter 128

Julia

12:12 pm, November 3^rd, 2006

I got lunch and looked for a seat in my usual area. For some reason, empty seats didn't seem to be so hard to find today.

At least lunch didn't look like road kill today. It always helps the digestion when I am able to in fact eat the food.

As I sat down, I realized that the lunchroom was a bit emptier than normal. I gave a quick check out the window. Nope, no blizzard. As far as I knew there was no special events going on today that would give that many students a good reason to not show up.

So I did what I usually did at lunch. Try to eat while listening for interesting gossip. It took most of my sandwich before I heard what I wanted.

"You know," some girl was saying, "Heather would really be glad if she was here today. Rumor has it that Stone got in trouble again. This time in the Middle East."

"What are you talking about?" the girl's table mate asked.

"I overheard some people in the Principal's office talking. Jacob's disappeared. Nobody's heard anything from him."

"What's that got to with my question about so many people missing today?"

"That's the odd thing. If I heard right, a lot of our missing students are staging a rescue."

"You must be smoking something. Why would a bunch of athletes go helping him after last week?"

"Because last week Stone changed too. He softened when he didn't have too. Plus they want to make sure there is no chance he will take out any lingering hatred of Koke on them."

"What happened to Koke anyway? I haven't seen him all week."

"Nobody has from what I've heard. No loss if half the stories about him are true."

"We have to talk." somebody said decisively behind me.

I looked over my shoulder. "Hi Krissy. I wasn't expecting you today."

"I don't believe you. You had to know that after last night I would have some questions."

"Yes. You should be asking Karl though."

"I tried. All I got was some confusion about not being sure how we felt about where we are in the relationship and how fast we were moving. So I have to talk to you."

I put down what was left of my sandwich. "Ok. How am I supposed to help?"

"All I want is the answer to two questions. How much of last night was planned? I also want to know why?"

"That's all?"

"Yes."

"O.K. First, how much of last night was planned. All of it up to the call by the fire dept." I looked around, and then told Krissy to have a seat. "I'll tell you why first. Karl offered me a deal. If I helped him with last night, he's go easier with me during school. You have to know how I feel about my punishment. Everybody else in the school knows."

"O.K. I can see that. But why? My rep around here is not soft. God only knows the mess you'd have been in if Karl was wrong."

"True. But look at it from my view. I was in a no win situation. The best I could hope for is that he judged you right and kept his word about the deal."

"Did you know about his plans beforehand?"

Chapter 129

Jacob

Personal log (voice), J. J. Stone, Captain of the Flying Dutchman,

12:30 pm, November 3^rd, 2006

6:30 am November 4^th, 2006 (local time)

I think I invite trouble. I had just about stopped bleeding when I heard some noise outside my cell. So I started singing a song I heard on Public Television's Classic Concert Series. Its called 'Have You Been to Jail for Justice?' by Peter, Paul and Mary.

Shortly after I started, one of the interrogators came in and punched me in the mouth.

Was my singing that bad?

"Get up traitor."

I looked up defiantly. "Excuse me???" I shook my head no to reinforce my point. "I beg your pardon??? You could not have just said what I think you said."

Two others came in. They picked me up and slammed me against the wall.

I started bleeding again.

"You heard me." the interrogator snapped. "There is no excuse for you, and you'll be begging for a lot more than our pardon by the time we're through with you."

"Sure, and buffaloes write poetry."

"Tell me the master command code."

"I thought you scared Ashley into giving it to you."

"We thought we did too. Turns out she tricked us."

"Or she didn't know it." I replied, far too smugly for the position I was in.

The two guys pressing me against the wall grabbed me, and shoved me into the opposite wall.

"Well, you do."

"Are you sure?" My, was I being the smart mouth today.

"We're sure."

"Good. Somebody make a note. This guy actually knows something."

That upset the interrogator. He came up and punched me in my back.

I screamed.

The guys pinning my face to the wall flipped me over.

The other guy smiled and held up his hand. It had a brass knuckle on it. "Go ahead, scream. We love to hear a traitor scream." Then he punched me in my crotch.

I screamed again before passing out.

A few minutes later I was soaked. I came to shivering.

The interrogator was laughing. "The ice water cold enough for you?"

I was getting to the point where I did not know what I was going to do next. But I was pretty sure it was going to be stupid and futile.

"Now tell us the master command code, traitor."

"No. And I'm not the traitor here. You guys are. You're traitors to everything the founding father's meant America to be. You're traitors to the ethics that guide when men in uniforms are needed. Hell, you're even traitors to the military codes of honor and decency. There is no way in any hell you can imagine that I'm giving you any codes."

"Is that all you have to say?"

"Yes."

"Very well. Break his knee. In his bad leg. Then call a medic. Give the medic orders not to use anesthetics. Maybe some well deserved pain will soften him."

Chapter 130

Major General Edwards

1:50 pm November 3^rd, 2006

The guard who checked me into the Pentagon acted as though it was a normal day. For him it was.

For me, it was not.

I was seriously worried. If I had any more, or any less information for that matter, I'd be seriously panicked.

I practically ran to the briefing room and threw ceremony to the wind. We are, as my high school daughter would put it, in deep shit.

"Calm down," an Air Force Two Star told me. She waited while I caught my breath.

A Marine General looked skeptically at me. "How can we be in trouble?"

"Jacob Jehosophat Stone."

The Navy Admiral looked at me. "I thought he was in the Middle East for a family funeral. I got a report from Rear Admiral Brent. I thought that progress was being made with him."

"And I know General Smith had made a deal with him. Between him and the Rear Admiral, Jacob was calming down. What happened?"