"Hey Dad. How are you doing?" Alex called as he entered the doctors office.

"Hey Son. Looks like I'm on bed rest for a while, but otherwise, I'm fine. So... What's been going on while I've been out?"

"Um, I think I'll wait for Tim to get here."

"Oh? That much?"

"Sort of."

No sooner had Alex said that than Tim came through the door as well. Between them, they told Bob about the underground room Todd had, the list of names, and the fact that Maria and Michelle were both on it. They also told him of their plan to patrol further out from town, using the go-cart. As he listened, the expression on Bob's face grew ever more grave.

"I don't like this at all. This is very bad. Tim, did you find any car keys when you searched them?"

Tim thought for a moment and said, "No. I didn't see anything like that. Why?"

"You saw the way they were dressed. Those clothes may have been fashionable, but they weren't meant for wandering around in the countryside. The nearest town from here is what, seventy miles or so from here?" He looked at Maria.

"Seventy-three." She answered.

"Obviously they didn't walk that far. They had no food, no canteens, nothing but the girl, and their guns. I'm willing to bet that we'll," He could feel Kathy's stare at his back, and changed what he was going to say. "YOU will find some kind of vehicle within two miles of here. Chances are that the keys are still in the ignition." Bob thought for a moment and spoke again. "The patrolling idea is a good one, but it will have to wait for a bit. Alex, I want you and Tim to take your mothers' 4X4 and find it. Let Tim drive."

"Why not me?"

"Son you've been hunting with me for a long time. You know how to look for sign. Tim might miss it. I want you to concentrate on that and that only. You'll be looking for tire tracks leading off the road into some brush, or a gully. Once you find it, I want you to take that thing at least two hundred miles from here, and hide it again. DO NOT take anything you find inside from the vehicle. I don't want to give anyone any clues about what happened to those three. When you get out, wipe any fingerprints you've left off of the wheel, shifter, or whatever. You understand?"

"Yes Sir."

"Wait a minute Bob, how do you figure anyone is going to be looking for them? Seems to me that they were the sort nobody would miss."

"Before I answer that Tim, you have to answer something. Alex do you remember what I told you about the rabbit?"

"Sure."

"Ask Tim."

"How does a rabbit survive?" Alex asked. "Considering that the creature has no real 'weapons' for attacking other animals, and it's only defense is speed and camouflage, how does the individual rabbit stay alive?"

"I hadn't thought about it. I don't know. How does he stay alive?"

"He notices every change in his environment, by being constantly alert. Have you ever tried to sneak up one one? You can't do it. The rabbit knows that the first time he misses one of those details, he becomes a hot meal for something else. So what we have to do is become a rabbit. Right Dad?"

"Just so. Speaking of noticing things, Alex since when have you started wearing body armor?"

"Didn't you know? This is this years new fashion statement."

"Well, I must say, I approve of it. You see Tim, that is what I'm talking about. You don't have to worry about everything, just be aware of changes. Now to answer your question, those guys must have driven here, to arrive in such good condition, with no food or water. And why would they drive all the way out here? The answer is Maria and Michelle. That means that someone gave them their names and location. That information could only come from someone in the camps. THAT in turn means they were sent here. We have to make it look like they either never got here, or they came and left again, to throw people off the scent."

"O.K. I get it. But how do we do that, other than moving their car, or whatever?"

"To start with, do you have the list?"

Tim nodded and handed it to Bob.

Bob looked at it and almost absentmindedly he said, "Good, good. Does anyone have a number two pencil?"

Kathy handed one to him. Then Bob picked up another piece of paper, and made a few practice scribbles, trying to duplicate the ones on the list. Satisfied, he crossed out the names of Maria, Michelle, and one or two others, then handed it back to Tim.

"When you park the car, leave this inside. Hopefully whoever finds it will believe that Maria and Michelle have already been 'taken care of' and not come back here looking for them. What I'm more concerned about right now is if those guys were tagged with RFID."

"RFID?" Tom asked.

"It stands for Radio Frequency IDentification. For the past few years, those tags have been put in just about everything. Clothing, tires, passports, even money. Some of them could only be read at close range, while others could be read by a satellite in orbit. We have to find a way to make sure that nobody ever uses those tags to track down our friends out there."

"How do we do that?" Said Maria.

"As far as I know, there are only two ways to do it. First is to microwave the tag, although that might be a little difficult. I saw an article one time that showed the eye of President Jefferson on a twenty dollar bill would explode and burn when you did that. The only other way I know of is to use a hammer on it. The problem there is you have to know the exact location of the tag. There are ways to mask them. Wrapping them in some kind of metal foil works. But I don't think anyone here wants to either strip the clothing off of dead men, for microwaving, or wrap them in tinfoil. So what do we do?"

"You need metal?" Michelle asked.

"Yes. The thing is you need enough mass to prevent any signal from reaching it."

Michelle looked at her mother. "What about that wagon at 'Dead Mans' Curve'? Do you think that would work?"

"That's a good idea."

"Wagon? Dead Mans' Curve?" Bob asked.

Maria smiled, "I guess about half of the towns in the country have, or at least had, a 'Dead Mans' Curve'. It is always a dangerous curve that street racers couldn't resist trying to take at high speed. Often with tragic results. In this case the name is literal. Just north of here is a curve that if you lose it, the choice is slamming into the mountain, or going over the cliff. It's three hundred feet to the bottom. About five years ago, a family in a station wagon went over the edge. It was very sad, nobody lived. Anyway the wagon came to rest on its' side. If we were to put those three next to it, then roll the car over them, that should be enough to block any signal, shouldn't it?"

"I do believe so. Alright, it is kind of late today, so we have our plan for tomorrow. Alex and Tim ditch the car far away from here. While they do that, Sam, Tom, Maria and I will take my truck and dispose of those three, once and for all."

"You can't use the truck. There are a couple of places it won't fit in the canyon at the bottom of the curve. But I think the go cart would fit."

"Can't say I care for that. It's a two seater. The idea of taking them one at a time into the canyon isn't very good."

"Bob, why does your go cart have a trailer hitch?"

"I had a little trailer I used to remove yard debris back home."

"Well, I have a trailer that I think would do for this job. John and I used it for the same purpose. We can put those guys on it and take them out to their final resting spot."

"Works for me."

"What about me?" Michelle asked. "What am I doing while all of this is going on? I'm just as good as any of you men."

"You are going to stay here, and help Kathy keep an eye on the kids, and our new friend."

"Don't you think I can handle it?"

"I'm sure you can, but someone has to be here with Kathy, and you might be able to get our friend to say a few words. You're closer to her age than any other woman here. Stands to reason she'll be more comfortable with you than anyone else. Maybe you can get her to at least tell you her name."

"Barbara. My...name...is Barbara."

As one, they all turned and looked at the girl.

"And I want to thank you for rescuing me."


BW, Vietnam Vet