Claire had
called Jason into the main office. She was sitting far up the back and in front
of a computer.
‘I did it. I
manaed to hack the security cameras of Jandakot Airbase. It was heavily
protected but i-‘
‘Claire. You
got in. that’s all I needed to know’ Jason told her’
‘I’ve only had
about fifteen minutes before they found me, which they didn’t’ Claire told him.
‘Show me
what you’ve got’ Jason told her. Claire pulled up some footage.
‘I was lucky
enough to see them at the end of a shift and I heard this’ Claire played the
footage. It showed a military truck carrying personnel leaving through a
checkpoint. All Jason could hear was static.
‘I don’t
hear anything’ Jason said.
‘Neither did
I, at first anyway. Listen to just the static’ Claire said as she removed the
video and played just the static. Jason still didn’t hearing anything. She
played it again and again until finally he heard it. The faintest beep amongst
the static background.
‘I don’t get
what it means’ Jason told her.
‘The outer
defences of the airbase are not going to give in easily from assault. If we
want to get in then we need an identification card and move from the inside
out’ Claire said.
‘They’ll
never let all of us in at the same’ Jason said.
‘So we get a
small force in on a shift and have them let us all in. Shift’s change every
eight hours so next won’t take place for another six or seven’ Claire told him.
‘So we need
to move fast and get as much info as we can’ Jason said.
‘But most
importantly is the ID card. No point in any of this without it’ Claire said.
‘Ok. I’ll
have Carlisle put together a force and you can conduct the interviews with the
Nexus prisoner’s if we’re lucky they’ll already have one, if not they’ll know
someone who does’ Jason said.
‘Why me?’
Claire asked.
‘You don’t
have to personally do it. You can have someone else do it, have them report to
you and then you report to me,’ Jason told her. ‘Also, look into that envelope
again. We might’ve missed something with the spy’ Claire nodded.
‘Alright’
she answered. There was a knock at the door. Carlisle was there.
‘It’s time’
he said. Jason nodded, getting up.
‘Time for
what?’ Claire asked.
‘Stay here,’
Jason told her. ‘Keep working’ and Jason
walked out and into the main grandstand with Carlisle.
‘What’s she
working on?’ he asked.
‘You’ll find
out soon enough. What’s the vote count?’ Jason asked.
‘One hundred
and twenty-three to forty-seven. Guilty. That’s more than the fifty percent
plus one that you need’ Carlisle answered.
‘I want to
talk to him first’ Jason said. They were at the door to where Miles was being
held.
‘Alright,
just don’t take too long’ Carlisle told him. Jason opened the door and walked
down to see Miles.
‘How you
doing Captain?’ Jason asked, sounding confident. He knew he needed to be if he
was going to get anything out of Miles now.
‘Been
twenty-four hours hasn’t it?’ Miles asked gruffly. His voice had become deeper
and scratchier during his imprisonment.
‘It sure
has. You wanna know the count?’ Jason asked him.
‘I’m
guessing it’s not good news otherwise you wouldn’t be down here right now’
Miles replied.
‘Oh, I’d be
down here anyway. But you’re right, it’s not good. For you anyway’ Jason said.
There was silence for a minute.
‘Well are
you going to tell me, or keep me hanging?’ Miles said testingly.
‘One
twenty-three to forty-seven in favour of guilty. So, if you have a name for me
now would be a really good time to tell me’ Jason told him.
‘I swear to
God I don’t know’ Miles said.
‘Well. We’ve
got about an hour to sunset so why don’t you have a good think?’ Jason said,
smiling.
‘I know
other things. Other things that are useful’ Miles said quietly.
‘Going to
elaborate on that?’
‘Things
about your father. There were rumors’ Miles replied.
‘No way. No
way he was a spy’ Jason replied.
‘No, no, no.
Not him being a spy. The rumors were about his death being orchestrated’
‘The
military wouldn’t kill him. He was their best soldier. Their best commander’
‘That’s
right. He was next in line after Carson to take command’ Miles told Jason.
‘And the
last thing the Nexus would’ve wanted was my father in command of the military.
Alright, I’m buying so far. But I still need a name’ Jason said.
‘I told you!
I don’t know!’ Miles yelled at him.
'Death
penalty is still on the table. Enjoy your last hour’ Jason said as he left.
The hour
passed and Miles was marched out the parking lot outside the racecourse where
he was surrounded at gun point by soldiers.
‘If it’s
alright with everyone, I’m going to skip over the vote count, because everyone
already knows the number,’ Jason said, the silenced forty-five millimetre
pistol in his hand. ‘Captain Miles, as you know, you have been found guilty by
the court of your peers. Do you have any last words?’ Jason said.
‘I’m an
innocent man-‘
‘Go to hell’
a soldier said as he spat on the ground.
‘I’m an
innocent man,’ Miles said again. ‘So kill me if you must. But I’ll still be
here. I’ll be that voice in the back of mind, constantly reminding you that you
killed the wrong man. That you put an innocent to death. That you betrayed the
memory of your father’ Miles finished.
‘You done?’
Jason asked. Miles nodded.
‘Yeah I’m
done’ Miles replied. Jason stepped around him, pointing the pistol at the back
of Miles’ head.
‘I don’t
savour bloodshed. In these times, every drop spilled is a loss and a waste and
I was hoping that it wouldn’t come to this. That you would give me a name.
Captain Miles, by trial of peers you have been found guilty of treason. Under
the laws of the military, treason is punishable by execution and you are hereby
sentenced to death’ Jason said, cocking the pistol. He turned his head, closing
his eyes. He couldn’t watch, he didn’t want to watch, and as he took a deep
breath in he felt his finger squeeze the trigger and heard the shot followed by
the sound of a body hitting the ground.
‘What do you
want done with his body?’ Carlisle asked.
‘Bury it. He
may have been a traitor but he’s still human and therefore deserves the same
respect anyone else would get’ Jason said, handing Carlisle back the gun as he
walked back inside the Grandstand and then back to his tent where he found
Celeste waiting for him, sitting on the edge of his bed.
‘Hey’ Jason
said, sitting to her. Celeste kissed him softly.
‘While I was
in my tent, I realised I never really thanked you for saving Sarah, so thank
you’ Celeste said. Jason closed his eyes, sighing.
‘Yeah,
saved’ He said. Celeste gave him a look.
‘I know
she’s dead, but at least you tried. And then you saved my life too’ Celeste
said.
‘I know.
What were you thinking Celeste?’ Jason asked her.
‘I wasn’t. I
was drunk. I was devastated and I missed her. To lose her once was bad enough
and then to have you bring her back I couldn’t say goodbye, was too painful.
Add that to the loss of the baby…’ Celeste said. Jason put his arm around her.
‘I get it.
It was a lot to process. If I were you after losing the baby, Sarah would’ve
been the only thing keeping me going’ Jason said.
‘She was’
Celeste admitted to him, wrapping her arms around his middle. Jason wanted to
tell Celeste that her sister was alive, but he knew that the truth was more
horrifying than letting Celeste believe that Sarah was dead.
