The ELI Event B007R5LTNS

alarm.”
    “Yes, sir?”
    “Very nice.”
    Grochonski grinned. “Thank you, sir.”
    “But,” Pettis added flatly, “if you ever assume authority like that again without my permission, I’ll have your stripes. Do I make myself clear?”
    The grin disappeared. “Yes, sir. Perfectly clear, sir.”
    “Good. Dismissed.”
    As Grochonski left, Davies returned, shaking his head. “I couldn’t come up with anything on the taxi, Major. Nobody got the name or number of the cab, not even the other drivers. Apparently they’re all independent operators, which means they don’t talk among themselves much. Well, that, and the fact that no two of them speak the same language. Sorry, sir.” Pettis nodded. “Major Pettis, I wanted to ask—how did you know the boy would come to Denver?”
    “It wasn’t much of a stretch, Lieutenant. He had to get out of Colby as quickly as possible. The only way out is by bus, and the first bus came here.”
    “I see. Good thinking, sir.”
    “The question is, what is his goal here?”
    “Could he be headed for NADCOM, sir?”
    “Possibly, but I doubt it. If he wants to sabotage the installation, he’s already proved he can do that remotely. Why go to NADCOM HQ in person?” He removed his cap, ran a hand over his short black hair, replaced the cap squarely, tugged once at the brim. “Nah, I don’t buy it. There’s just no point.”
    Grochonski returned, looking frustrated. “Neely checked the ticket purchase, sir. All he knows is that it was charged to an American Express card issued to someone named Duncan, K. D. Duncan. It’s a lead, sir.”
    “Not much of one; probably a stolen card,” Pettis frowned. “Still, let’s check it out with American Express customer service.”
    “Sir, if I may make a suggestion?” Groucho offered. “Wherever he’s gone, our technical facilities back at base give us the best chance of finding him.”
    “Right you are, Groucho. May as well head for home and resume the search from there.”
    “I’m okay to fly now, sir,” Davies said, displaying his bandaged hand, gauze and tape sticking out everywhere. He turned to Grochonski, smiling. “I gotta say that’s a really homely patch job, Sarge.”
    “Yeah, well, it may be ugly, but it works. ‘In function there is beauty,’ as my friend Larry used to say. You still need to have it looked at, though. If I didn’t set it right it won’t heal straight.”
    “Right, right. I’ll do that when we get back to base.”
    They walked around the building and headed across the bus station’s parking lot where they had set down the Huey. Grochonski climbed into the back as Davies took the pilot’s seat and prepped the Iroquois UH-1N for flight.
    Pettis joined Davies in the front of the chopper, still thinking about the boy. “If he’s not interested in threatening NADCOM,” he said aloud, “then why come to Denver?”
    “Maybe Denver has something he needs,” Davies suggested.
    “Jesus Christ!” Pettis suddenly shouted. He whirled in his seat, the truth dawning on him. “Of course Denver has something he needs! Colby, Kansas isn’t in the middle of nowhere, it is the middle of nowhere! It’s a one-horse town, no culture, no attractions, no tourism...”
    “And no airport!” Grochonski finished.
    “Exactly! This kid knows we’re onto him, and he knows he can’t handle us by himself. He’s got to hook up with his accomplice, wherever he is—and to do that he needs an airport. Denver isn’t his destination, it’s his departure point. Now we have a lead!”
    “To the airport, then, sir?” Davies asked.
    “No,” Pettis replied sternly, “not to the airport. If I wanted to go to the airport, I would have said so. Take us back to NADCOM HQ, as planned.”
    “But sir, don’t you want to stop him from leaving Denver?”
    In the next instant Pettis’s arm flashed out and gripped Davies’s injured hand as it rested on the chopper’s control stick. He squeezed, hard. Davies gasped but did not cry out. “No, Lieutenant, I want him to lead us to his accomplice! Do you follow me?” Davies just whimpered. “I said, do you follow me? ”
    “Yes, sir,” Davies grunted, bolts of searing pain shooting up through his arm.
    Pettis squeezed again. “Now, before we lift off, are there any other orders of mine you’d like to question?”
    “No, sir,” Davies breathed through clenched teeth.
    Pettis released his grip. “Then what the hell are you waiting for?”
    Davies