Arctic Fire (41 page)

He quickly pulled on the jacket and sat down in
the chair to appraise his situation. His first thought was to have
a well-deserved pity-party. After all, just a week ago his biggest
concern was whether or not he would lose his pilot’s license. Now,
he was in a life and death struggle with a madman who wanted to
take over the world. Yeah, he deserved a pity-party all right. He
wondered if you served tea and crumpets with a party like that. He
smiled to himself, and shook his head no, he didn’t have time for
self-indulgence.

Looking around he began to think if he could use
anything in the storage room to help him escape. Sitting in the
middle of a giant ice ship, he wondered if Geffory Pyke, Cain’s
inspiration, would be proud to see his dream had come true in
Cain’s monstrosity.

Suddenly Pike had an idea and he shot out of the
chair as if it were electrified. He started pacing, talking quietly
to himself as he brainstormed. Normally when he had a problem to
solve, he would write out all the pros and cons of the idea. It
helped him make more sense of the situation if he could actually
see what his options were. But with no pen and paper at hand,
pacing back and forth like an expectant father in a waiting room
would have to do. Cain’s inspiration had come from a man involved
in WWII and so did his, the famous Jasper Maskelyne.

Maskelyne was a renowned magician used by the
British during World War II to help them defeat the Germans.
Maskelyne took the art of sleight of hand and transformed it to a
whole new level. In Africa, he used paint, canvas and plywood to
make tanks look like trucks, trucks look like tanks and he even
created an entire army that didn’t exist. His largest and perhaps
most famous illusions were concealing the City of Alexandria and
the Suez Canal from German bombers.

Pike mulled his idea over and over and knew that
to escape he would have to create his own illusion. He had to make
the guard see what he wanted him to see, and
not
to see.
Being tossed into the room while it was still dark was big plus; he
was betting that his captor wasn’t familiar with the room nor did
he really care, which meant he could paint the scene with a blank
canvas so to speak.

Pike headed straight for the pile of tarps to
see what props he had to pull off his own vanishing act. Much to
his delight, he found an old toolbox buried underneath the pile. It
contained a hammer, a couple of screw drivers, some nails and a
pair of pliers. He unrolled the canvas tarps, and all three of them
looked clean and unused. He spread them out, took the hammer and a
few nails out of the toolbox, then grabbed the ladder.

He took the first tarp and hung it on the far
wall, being careful to cover the head of the nail with his sleeve
to keep the pounding as quiet as possible. It fit the wall
perfectly except for a small overlap at the bottom that he just
folded under. He did the same thing on the other two walls and when
he was finished, he stepped back and admired his handy work. The
room looked empty and nondescript. Phase one was now complete.

He put the chair back in the middle of the room
where it had been then he laid the ladder on the floor in the right
corner and tucked the toolbox under it. He took out the hammer and
the screw drivers and hid them in the hem at the base of the canvas
on the left and right walls in case the guard saw the box and
decided to take it.

Now for the first test. Pike took a deep breath,
then pounded on the door and shouted. He quickly stepped back and
stood in front and just to the left of the chair. He heard the door
unlock, then the door swung open and the guard came in. Pike
studied him carefully as he walked in. His cold, dark eyes darted
about the room, too fast to really take in any detail, all his
attention was being focused on him. Perfect.

“What do you want?” The guard said in a gruff
voice.

“It’s very cold in here. May I please have a
blanket?” Pike stood there with his arm at his side trying to look
as docile as he could. The man stared at him for a moment then just
turned around and shut the door without saying a word.

That went well Pike thought to himself, the
guard saw just what he expected to see. He had to work fast now
before the guard came back. Pike quickly unburied the ladder then
moved the canvas coverings on both sides of the room out six-inches
out from the wall and re-hung them from the ceiling. He quickly put
everything back exactly the way it was originally, then sat down on
the chair and waited. Phase two was done.

Pike had waited thirty minutes when he heard the
lock rattle. He sprang to his feet and stood exactly where he was
when he had asked for the blanket. With slightly less caution than
he had before, the guard opened the door, saw Pike standing there
and threw him the blanket.

“Thank you.” Pike said. Just as the guard
started to leave, Pike spoke again. “Would you please tell Mr. Cain
that I would like my last meal. Being a civilized man I’m sure he
will understand. I would like a Porterhouse steak, bone in please.
It gives it extra flavor, I think. A whole lobster tail, baked
potato with the works, tossed salad and a mug of root beer. Thank
you. Again, the guard failed to say anything when he left.

As soon as the door shut, Pike grabbed the
ladder and repeated his routine by moving the canvas walls again,
but out another six inches. After he finished, he returned
everything to its exact location then sat down in his chair and
waited. Forty-five minutes later, Pike’s head was nodding as he
fell in and out of sleep when he heard the keys turning in the
lock. Instantly he was awake as he jumped to his feet and stood
again, only five inches further to his right this time. With his
heart pounding in anticipation, he watched as the guard opened the
door and shoved a tray in, then left. Pike let out a huge sigh of
relief as once again the guard paid no attention to his
surroundings and hadn’t noticed the walls.

He picked up the tray and returned to his seat.
Even though getting the food brought in was just part of his plan,
it didn’t mean he was going to let it go to waste. As he ate, he
reviewed his plan. Like Maskelyne, his plan depended on deception.
First he gave the guard exactly what he expected to see, a beaten
and broken man and an empty room. And each time the guard entered,
the room looked just the same as it had the visit before. What he
had failed to notice was that the room was now smaller. He had
created a false wall that he could now hide behind and leap out and
surprise the guard, which brought him to another point: could he
kill the guard if he had to?

That was a question that had no easy answer.
Could he kill another human being so that he could live? He knew
without hesitation that if someone broke into his house and
threatened his family, that person was gone. Was this the same type
of situation? His mind wandered to K.D. and the way she looked
laying on the bed. She had no part in this; she was just an
innocent bystander. Suddenly, the emotions of seeing her like that
and the feelings of his own loss overwhelmed him.

But instead of breaking down and crying which he
knew he’d do later, he let the emotions strengthen him. The
feelings of loss turned to anger, then resolve. If Cain were
successful with his plan, then the emotions he was feeling right
now would be multiplied ten thousand times over. He could live with
his own personal loss and grief, but what he could not live with
would be that thousands of other people would feel exactly like he
did now because he failed to act. He would not allow his own
indecision to affect others.

He knew it wouldn’t be easy but at least now he
knew he could try. Downing the last swallow of his root beer, he
set the tray down and grabbed the hammer then shoved both
screwdrivers into his back pocket. Time for phase three, all or
nothing.

Pike set up the ladder where he usually stood,
draped the blanket around it then put his parka over the top of
that. A cursory glance by the guard and he would see what he
expected to see, a man in a parka standing where he always stood.
Next he set the food tray on the floor by the door and piled the
dishes into a precarious pyramid.

Pike stood by the door and played the scene out
in his mind. The irritated guard would carelessly open the door to
see what he wanted. As the door opened, it would hit the tray of
dishes and send them crashing to the floor. He would look down to
see what happened and would probably become angry, narrowing his
senses. He would look up at what he thought was Pike, start to look
back down at the mess on the floor but then his mind would react to
what he saw and he would do a double take. All the distractions and
similarities would last only for a second, but that’s all the time
he would need to spring from behind his false tarp wall and attack
the guard. What could possibly go wrong?

Pike stood in the middle of the room, surveying
his vulnerable house of cards. To say he was nervous would be the
understatement of the century. His stomach was twisting and turning
like a tilt-a-whirl and he could pick enough cotton out of his dry
mouth to knit a sweater. Everything was in place.

With his arms feeling like lead, he raised his
fist and pounded on the door and called out to the guard then
quickly slid behind the tarp. He peered out between the crack where
the wall and canvas met and waited for what seemed like an
eternity. As the seconds fell away, Pike felt his resolve slipping
away as well as he began to hear the whispers of self-doubt.
Who
do you think you’re fooling? Do you really think you can pull this
off? Do you really think that you’re the Blast from the Past, Hot
Shot?

Hot Shot.

Suddenly a collage of memories and images
flashed through his mind. Images of his family, growing up, but
mostly images of K.D. There were no monumental or life changing
moments, mostly just everyday things. That’s when he realized that
while life does have its big moments, it’s usually not those big
events we think of but rather the day to day moments that we
remember and that really shape our lives.

Pike tightened his grip on the hammer, feeling
himself growing angry. He didn’t know if he and K.D. would ever
have been and item. Who knows, they may have broken up when he
found out that she left the lid off the toothpaste or she might
have left after he left the toilet seat up one too many times. He
was angry because now he would never get the chance to find
out.

Suddenly the lock clicked. Pike’s heart was
pounding so hard now he was getting a headache. Peering through the
edge of the canvas, he saw the door swing open and the guard walk
in. He wanted to leap out and attack, to get this over with but he
knew he had to wait, he had to be patient or else everything would
be lost. The door hit the tray and the dishes went clattering on
the floor. Just as he had hoped, the guard stopped and looked down,
muttered something, then glanced up to where Pike was supposed to
be.

His timing was perfect, just as the guard’s eyes
were registering that something wasn’t right and his head was
turned, Pike attacked. He raised up Thor’s mighty hammer ready to
vanquish his foe, but when he brought it down, the hammer got
tangled in the canvas.

The guard spun around, surprise filling his
eyes, until he saw the hammer stuck in the canvas. Pike managed to
bring the hammer down, but by then it was too late.

The guard easily brought up his right forearm to
block the blow then jabbed Pike in the ribs with his left fist.
Pike doubled over from the blow and dropped the hammer. His jailer
rushed forward, grabbing Pike by the neck and pinned him against
the wall.

Pike remembered hearing about people getting
super-human strength in times of crisis, like lifting a car off a
trapped loved one after an accident, but the strength of Samson was
failing him here. Gasping for air, he struggled to break the
vise-grip that the guard had on his throat but couldn’t get free.
Instead, he felt himself growing dizzy and his vision was beginning
to fade. He knew he was dying and couldn’t do a thing about it.

Suddenly he could breathe again. Then he felt
himself floating. Was he dead? Was he winging his way to heaven?
His question was answered as he slammed down hard onto the floor of
his cell.

The guard roared with laughter after having
thrown Pike across the room.

“Nice try,” the big man said as he walked over
and stared down at Pike. “It’s lucky Mr. Cain has other plans for
you.” He added, then viscously kicked Pike in the stomach and
laughed again. He examined Pike’s redecorating, then tore all the
canvas from the walls and dragged it outside. When he finished, he
walked back to where Pike was lying on the floor and went to kick
him again, only this time Pike caught the boot in his hands before
it smashed into his ribs. The guard stared hard at Pike for a
moment, laughed again, then turned and walked out the door. Pike
felt more beat up than a Seahawk’s lineman. With great effort, he
pulled himself onto the chair and just sat there, resting. It hurt
to move but he knew if he sat there too long, his muscles would
stiffen up and the pain would be even worse, but for now, it was a
chance he was willing to take.

Plan A had failed, but where there’s a plan A,
there’s always a plan B; he just hadn’t thought of it yet. He
squirmed in his chair trying to get comfortable, to find a position
that didn’t hurt, but there was none. With great effort, he
struggled to his feet then bent down and picked up his parka. With
even greater effort he put it on. By the end of his ordeal, he
wasn’t sure if the pain was worth the warmth.

Semi-reluctantly, he started shuffling back and
forth, not only to help him think but to keep his sore muscles from
stiffening up. Looking around, he was happy to see that in his fury
and feeling of self-confidence the guard had ignored the other
items in the room, taking only the tarps, his hammer, and
screwdrivers.