Chapter 41

They took the long way back. Big Bend to Del Rio to Kountze to Town Bluffs Dam to Woodville to Tyler.

Del Rio because the DEA chase plane insisted ... they fueled up on the government dime.

Kountze, Town Bluffs and Woodville because E'veen wanted to see it.

Tyler ... well ... their planes were there. Besides their jobs.

On final approach into Pounds Field, E'veen agreed to Bill's scheme.

"It's Science Fiction, Bill ... but what we're doing is just as bad. If anyone had told me I'd be a sixteen year old in 2005 I'd have laughed in their face. If it doesn't work ... you have the watch."

"Eighteen, E'veen. You're eighteen. You had an exciting life, E'veen. More exciting than mine ... and mine has been a hoot. You're ten years older than me. But I'm 21 and you're 16 ... life has it's moments."

"Yes, especially when you can drop back and do it over."

The Pounds Field Historic Aviation Memorial Museum was pretty happy when Bill gave them the Lysander they flew in. This one truly needed restoring. So Bill wrote a post-dated check for half a mil and dropped a hundred grand from the bottomless debit card.

"I suppose we should to to work."

They called the District offices and the nice lady sent a car. The driver took them to 211West Ferguson. The local office was nice. Small, but nice. They had to show their badges to the Secret Service door guards and foot it up to the third floor. Room 307.

The nice lady who had sworn them in was sitting behind a tall counter desk ... knitting.

"Good Afternoon ... what have you done with John?"

"He's not back?"

"No."

"Who's running the show?"

"Me." She said, "I'm Alice ... and I'm the assistant Agent in Charge. I have a job for you two."

She handed them several DVD cases..."Watch these. In the morning, I need you to escort a prisoner to Dallas. The procedures are on the DVD's." She flustered for a minute. "I know it's sudden, but John took three Marshals and what I have left are out on an escaped prisoner hunt. He's partners with your transport so be careful."

She stuck them in an office with a huge flat screen computer monitor, booted it up and put the first DVD in the tray. Every procedure had a test at the end. They watched the set, took the tests and went back out to Alice ... she was still knitting.

"So, Alice ... our mode of transportation is our choice?"

"Drive or fly. Dallas isn't far so a car would be the first choice. Austerity budget."

"Can we use our own aircraft? We'll even pay for the fuel. We have an idea."

"As long as you abide by procedures you can get her there by bicycle for all I care." Alice suggested the hotel across the street ... special rates for deputies. "You need to find a place or places to live but I guess I'm just pitching you in the trenches with no training. There's a range in the basement. Go shoot ... Shoot once a month and qualify. There's a bonus for practicing. If John is back in the morning, we'll talk and one of the other deputies can take the prisoner."

It was a 'social distances' range. A typically bored range officer was reloading ammo.

"Hi ... you're the new guys ... guy and lady ... kinda young but who am I to judge. Alice said you passed the background check. I hope you're here to shoot. I get bored so I reload."

'Chatty Cathy, ' thought Bill. He pulled his pistol, dropped the magazine, ejected the round in the chamber and laid the pistol on the bench. "We passed the background check? Evidently someone kept their mouth shut."

The range officer chuckled. "Keeping one up front, I see. Good idea."

"Empty gun makes a decent paperweight," said E'veen. She had cleared her weapon, too. "Do you have a cleaning ... thank you. I've never shot a Glock but I assume you pull here, push here, lift that and there it is. Floating barrel ... I don't like that. You reload fired rounds?" That got a nod. "It must be hell resizing the cases."

"I'm impressed. Can you shoot?" the range officer asked.

"I'm not fast but I generally hit what I'm aiming at. My experience is running coyotes. Mom used to give me a 1911 with one mag. I generally brought back one hide per round. But I have been known to miss." She rubbed her butt remembering the punishment for missing.

"Bill? How about you?"

"I plink." Bill looked at E'veen. "Show me how this comes apart?"

"Clear the pistol ... Pull the trigger ... pull the slide back just a bit ... push that and it's pieces in your hand. Gunny? Are all Glocks this greasy?"

"They're made in Austria, I've always assumed they packed them in cosmoline for the shipping."

"Hell's Bells ... it's PLASTIC?"

"Polycarbonate."

"Good Lord."

"They shoot, they're a joy to the hand, and they don't misfire," under his breath he mumbled, "even if they do look like Hi Points."

"If you say so."

While the conversation was going on she was scraping and poking and shaking and wiping ... using up cloth after cloth. "Gunny? Got any alcohol? Cotton swabs?"

A few more cloths and a good wipe-down... "Gun oil? and a toothpick?" She was still shaking the slide and listening. "Is the firing pin spring loaded?"

"Yes and no. Problem?"

"No rattle."

The range officer took the slide and shook it. "All this heavy cleaning was supposed to be done in Washington ... I can see them missing a piece now and then, but two in a row? I don't think so."

"Can I watch?" asked E'veen. She was curious now. A plastic gun and the government bought foreign goods??? What ever happened to Smith & Wesson or Colt? Her government, the government of the early fifties, bought American made.

The slide was a lot more complicated. The firing pin chamber was chock full of heavy grease. E'veen was following along with Bill's Glock cleaning just like the range officer. Bill's was even worse. The pin chamber was so dirty his pin wouldn't move.

The range officer noticed. "You would be dead if you had to fire either one of these in the line of duty. Criminal ... I'm going to have to check the unissued guns before any of them can go out. What a mess." He finished putting the slide together. "Here ... try this one." He placed three loaded magazines and three loose rounds on the counter along with some CLP and a toothpick.

He ran out a target, put on his earmuffs and stepped out of the range. He had just closed the door when it sounded like someone was firing a fully automatic.

"Ooo! I LIKEY!" said E'veen. The target was run in and the head area was shredded.

"Wow, You want a fresh target?"

"Yeah ... and three more magazines. This must be Chinese." That got a look. "One fun gun!"

"You shot all three mags?"

"And one extra round."

Bill said, "one magazine was falling to the floor and there were still empties falling from the first mag when she was shooting from the second mag. I noticed a camera ... do you record these practice sessions?"

"I do," the range officer said. "So I can point out bad practices."

"I wanna see!" E'veen exclaimed.

The digital movie was played back. E'veen was shooting one handed but switching from right hand to left and back to right hand for the third magazine. The empty hand was finding the new magazine, slapping it on the counter to settle the cartridges and turning it to slide in the mag well.

The range officer was speechless. Slowing down the high speed images it was possible to see the last three empties still in the air as the first new empty was being ejected. Both empty mags hit the floor with three empties from the new magazine in the air.

"You've never shot a Glock?"

"Military issue 1911's only. I've never even shot a .22."

"Why both hands?"

"It's the only way I can reload quick. Was that bad?"

"Not at all ... not a bad thing at all ... I'm sending a DVD of this to the head office. You're amazing.

"Why head shots?"

"People shot between the eyes don't shoot back." She grinned, "or so I've been told. Coyote's stop running if you shoot them in the ear. Momma didn't like holes in the hides."

"Have you ever shot a combat course?"

"What's that?"

"I send out several targets sideways ... you can't see what they are. You load and fire when the target turns toward you. You have to recognize the criminals and shoot them, but not shoot civilians who may be in the picture."