| Mystery and Crime Fiction posted August 10, 2014 | Chapters: |
...34 35 -36- 37... 
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Barry tours and the detectives plan.
A chapter in the book Bel Air: A Bard's Guide
Barry at the Compound, Bard Nearby
by michaelcahill
| Background From Bel Air, through Catalina to Vegas and now Utah following the trail of kidnapped children. Can the Bard rescue them all? If anyone can, it's him. |
Previously, Barry arrived at the compound and introduced himself to the troops. His position as commander was not questioned. The Bard, Lucy and Tenaya devised a strategy to have the Bard captured and turned in to the authorities at the compound. Lucy and Tenaya would pose as volunteers and turn him in themselves thus helping their credibility. The hope was that the Bard would be held close to where the children were. We pick up the story now as Barry tours the compound.
~~~~~~~The Winston Compound in Utah
Barry took the tour with of the compound with Fluffy. Her basso-profundo voice took some getting used to. She had feminine features that could be called pretty and a very shapely figure to go with them. When you touched her shoulder though if felt like someone had covered a bronze statue with a thin coating of soft foam. Her skin felt soft to the touch and looked smooth and youthful. However, the muscles underneath defied belief. They weren’t for show either. She had ridiculous martial arts skills and looked unreal when demonstrating them. Barry kept looking around when she performed her routines for Hollywood special effects technicians.
"These are the main boot camp facilities here, sir… Barry. Winston kept the quarters sparse and the obstacle course is even more difficult than the one the regulars train on. I hold the course record."
"I'm not surprised, you look… fit. Uh… where do they keep the children?"
Fluffy went blank for a moment? "The children? None of us has our family here, sir. Not even the women. This is strictly a military outfit. No room for babies and kids running around. War is no place for children."
Barry considered that for a moment. They should tell that to the people bombing them since the beginning of time. Well, no money in that. "Oh, I see… umm… I thought Winston… well a… where are prisoners housed then. There are prisoners, right? Or, at least facilities for prisoners. You know, spies and such."
"Oh yes. There are prisoners. They are off limits to us, sir. Only officers interact with prisoners. I can show you to the location if you wish." Fluffy seemed uneasy about the line of questioning.
Hmm. Winston kept the kids a secret from the regular troops. Wise move. I'll keep it that way. "Okay, show away. Of course, you'll have to wait outside. We don't allow regular militia in for a reason. You understand, right?"
Fluffy nodded her head in the affirmative and headed north towards the hills and a large overgrowth of trees. Barry followed her taking in the scenery. The facilities were camouflaged expertly. There would be no way to spot it from the air or the highways that traversed the area. The people themselves could be seen involved in their activities, but if they were secure in their quarters, no one was visible. Even the guards were not visible to Barry as he came upon the prisoners quarters nestled within a small canyon surrounded on three sides by rocky cliffs and fronted by a stand of trees.
Fluffy stopped outside the trees. "Malone and Stockton."
"They're retired." A voice called out from somewhere behind the trees.
"They're making a comeback." Fluffy said.
"We can win the title then." Again, the voice from behind the trees.
Barry looked puzzled.
Fluffy could see an explanation would be required. "Sir."
"I told you before, call me Barry."
"Well, it's a code. They're making a comeback means that I',m bringing a visitor. They're retired is a question, see? Are they civilian or one of ours?"
"They're making a comeback- one of ours. If I'd have said, "they were traded", that would mean I'm sending in a civilian."
"We can win the title, I suppose that means that everything is okay. What if it isn't?"
"I'd say "First round loss". In that case, they'd come out firing. You'd be gone before your heart hit the next beat."
"Okay. Very efficient. Am I clear to enter then?"
Fluffy indicated with a nod of her head towards the stand of trees that Barry was free to enter. He walked confidently in saying, "Coach Sloan on his way."
He came upon two guards in quasi military attire complete with loaded M-16's. They were expecting him based on their exchange with Fluffy. They stood on either side of a large grey metal door in silence.
"I'd like a tour of the facilities. With Winston out of the picture, I'm in charge of operations now." He didn't mention the children that should be there.
"Sir, yes, Sir." They answered together in almost one voice.
The one on Barry's right pulled out a key and unlocked the doors, pushed and they creaked open. The sounds of children greeted them immediately. They weren't the sounds of distress, but they weren't the sounds of happy youngsters either.
Barry could see that the mountain itself acted as a barrier to escape. The pre-requisite iron bars were in place, but much of the back wall was the actual mountain face. He noticed what looked like a giant tunnel between two sets of cells. "What is this? A mine? Where does it lead to?" He noted that it was partially sealed off, but still easily accessible.
The tall slendor one spoke. "It leads into the mountain sir. This was once a silver mine. I've gone inside quite a distance, sir. But, it seems dangerous. The support beams are very old. It hasn't been worked since the 1950's from what I know of it. Some of the guards talk about doing some mining with the cost of silver and all. We're pretty busy here though."
~~~~~~~The detectives on the road.
The Bard, Lucy and Tenaya pulled off the road into a secluded area behind a few trees that dropped off at a slight incline.
Tenaya studied the Google Map screen on her notebook. "From this spot, the signal is right over that ridge. The road continues on straight and then curves sharply towards that area. There are no service roads listed here. He had to drive his car in though. The compound has to be over that ridge. There sure as hell is no motel or McDonald's out here in the middle of nowhere. We need to go on foot from here. Winston's no fool. We have to remember that Winston set this place up, not Barry. Barry is just an opportunist. We have to play it like we're up against Winston. Agree?"
Lucy seemed anxious to speak. "Assuming that Winston set this up, how do we know that Barry was even successful in taking charge. For all we know, he's one of the prisoners already. But, either way, it's a huge camp. We can blend in. Dammit though, Barry has met the Bard. I wonder how that will play out. There's always the chance that Barry won't even see him. It doesn't matter, I suppose. Barry's an idiot, but he's a lucky idiot. All that money… "
The Bard had a look on his face like someone had explained the lyrics of Baa Baa Black Sheep to him and he realized for the first time that it actually was about sheep.
"WOW. This is like déjà vu. You remember the time that the three of us all went to Utah together. We were chasing that kidnapper… uhhh… don't tell me… Barry, that's it. He had all of that publisher's money and had joined up with an army of soldiers and we were supposed to go in and infiltrate them. Remember that? What happened?"
Lucy didn't skip a beat, "Well, you taught the soldiers how to do the twist, but they got too excited and couldn't stop so they all screwed themselves into the ground and me and Tenaya were able to walk in and rescue the whole flock and make sweaters. We got ten bucks a piece until we were arrested for selling our wares in the middle of K-Mart. Is that the time you're talking about?"
"No, the time that Tenaya was abducted by that poet who held her hostage until they'd bring his laaaayyyydaaay in to kiss him."
"Was it something like this?" Lucy climbed in the back seat and started kissing the Bard.
In between kisses he kept saying, "I'm just not sure, don't stop, I'm right on the verge of remembering."
Tenaya looked in the back seat. "That's so tender and sweet. This is just lovely for me. Please don't stop on my account. I'll be fine up here. I've got the notebook to love me."
Soon the action will get rolling inside the compound. Any suggestions? Always open to ideas, critiques or thoughts. You've been the life line that keeps me writing this. Thank you so much.
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