Embrace the Fog

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 3

Travis sighed after he examined the seat frame that he had welded. Even after smoothing, it would look as if it had just been done.

"Damn," he muttered to himself for the last thing he wanted was to give any indication that he had meddled with the Jaguar.

Jacey, as usual on a Sunday had gone back to school to catch up with work so for a few hours he was on his own. He bolted the seat back and decided to take a trip across town to the car wreckers where he had found many items when restoring the vehicle. Now if they had a seat he could replace the whole thing. It wouldn't be too hard to add the new leather covers.

Jacey had taken the Forester so he took the Jaguar itself and twenty minutes later drove into the Xotic Parts, the wreckers. As usual on a Sunday it was reasonably busy with teenagers and guys like himself wandering around the rows or wrecks and through the shed piled high with all manner of automobile parts. To a stranger, it looked one gigantic jumble but Paddy Singleton, the owner knew where anything and everything was.

After Travis climbed out of the Jaguar and ambled across to the office, Paddy greeted him.

"Hello there, Travis," he said. "Your Jag looks pretty posh, if I do say so meself. Last time I saw it, it looked like a piebald horse."

Travis grinned. "Took me six coats of the finest lacquer, not to count the undercoats to get it looking how it is now."

Paddy dropped a cigarette he was smoking to the bare wooden floor and squashed it with his boot. "So what can I get yah?"

Travis explained and the old guy nodded. "Only got seats for the newer models but they could be adapted." He grinned. "You'd want the genuine original though, I reckon."

"If possible."

Paddy ran a hand over his stubble. "Want a whole car?" he asked.

"A Mark IV like this one?" In spit of himself Travis was interested then thought about it. "If it's renovated it'll cost fifty grand and I can't spend another five years redoing another wreck." He shrugged. "Couldn't afford it either."

"Nope. It's pretty original and still goes. An old farmer out of town died and his widow is selling it off. She brought it in here but my offer was too low for her."

"So she's out to get a high price?"

"Not necessarily. Offer her three thousand and I reckon she'd take it. Hurry though, once those used car jokers get wind of it, one of them buy it for two grand, drive it to their lot and sell it for ten." He grinned. "Or more to you vintage guys."

*

An hour later Travis drove into a modest looking farm property after ringing the owner of the car Paddy had mentioned. As he stopped the car, an elderly woman came out of the house.

"I'm Susan Westly," she said and held out a frail hand. "You're the gentleman who rang?"

Travis introduced himself, shook her hand and made a few casual comments about the weather.

"My late husband's Jaguar is in the implement shed. I'll take you over," she replied.

She led him across a typical farmer's yard and into a large galvanised iron shed. There amongst several tractors, a couple of farm bikes and a quad-bike, sat the Jaguar. The black paintwork was faded and the interior worn but it looked to have the original fittings. Travis wandered around and examined the bodywork. It was in comparatively good condition with no rust or signs of bumps or scrapes

"Can I take it for a drive?" he asked after he noticed that it had a current registration and warrant of fitness.

"Of course," Mrs Westly said and handed him a key. She stood back watching as he started the engine and drove off.

Considering that it probably still had its original engine and brakes, it ran well. He drove a couple of kilometres up the road before he turned around and returned to the farm where Mrs Westly still stood in the yard. Travis glanced at her and realised she was a lonely old lady who was still grieving for her husband.

"The gentleman at the wreckers only offered me eight hundred dollars but even I know it is worth more than that," she said after he stepped out of the car. "It's not that I need the money but I'd hate one of those teenagers to buy it and race it around like they do. You obviously care for vintage cars so if you make reasonable offer, I'll take it."

Travis coughed. "My advice is to get it an independent evaluation for it. I have no idea what it is worth but an enthusiast like myself would offer you quite a sum. Just don't sell it to one of those used car dealers."

Susan Westly smiled. "I may be old but being a farmer's wife for fifty years has taught me how to judge people. On the other hand, there are so many other things I have to deal with…" She gazed into space. "Five thousand and it's yours."

Travis grinned. What would Jacey say? However, like Paddy said, he could double the price without doing a thing to it… "I'll take it!"

*

"You what?" Jacey asked in a whisper that could have been a shout. "You went out to buy a seat and bought another vintage car?"

"It's good value," Travis replied meekly. He knew it was useless to argue when she took that tone.

Surprisingly, Jacey smiled. "So you paid this lady with a bank transfer and had all the ownership papers made up online at her place?"

"That's about it. If I had my toolbox with me I would have swapped the seats over while I was there."

"I see and when is the other Jaguar arriving?"

"We haven't worked that out yet"

Jacey almost smirked. "So this new car is now officially registered in your name?"

"Yes. I can transfer it to Crichton & Roden Family Trust like our other vehicles, if you like?"

"No. That's just perfect." A gleam appeared in her eyes.

"Okay, what are you scheming?"

He grinned as Jacey explained what she had in mind.

*

Late that afternoon, Travis and Jacey drove into Susan Westly's farm to find the other Jaguar all washed and polished and parked near the house.

"I'm a bit nervous about driving Travis's old cars," Jacey said. This was a white lie for she was every bit as confident as he was at driving any sort of vehicle from school buses to trucks but it fitted in with their plan. She smiled sweetly. "Would it be possible for Travis to put our Jaguar in your shed for a few days?" She laughed. "You know men with their new toys, Mrs Westly?"

The old lady smiled. "Call me Susan. That's fine. It'll be safe there. Since Gary died I make a point of locking the shed every night. I've just boiled the kettle. Would you both like a cuppa tea or coffee?"

Jacey grinned. "We'd love one," she said. "Travis brought his tools with him and would like to swap the driver's seat over between the two cars. Will it be okay if we do it here?"

"No problem," Susan replied. "There are plenty of extra tools in the shed if you need them. Gary was a bit of a mechanic himself."

Both Jacey and Susan helped Travis swap the driver seats between the two cars. He was quite surprised how helpful the old lady was. She grinned when he commented on the fact and said that farmer's wives had to be more than a pretty face and over the years had given lots of help on the tractors and farm machinery. With the seats swapped and another cup of coffee drunk, an hour later they drove their newly purchased vehicle home and parked it in their garage.

*

On Monday afternoon Travis arrived back from work just after five to find the police car and a silver BMW in the drive. He pulled onto the front lawn just as Jacey, two constables and Major McBride walked out from the garage.

"They have a court warrant," she said in a serious voice and handed him an official looking document.

Travis read the sheet and hid a grin. The number plate mentioned in the vehicle's description was that of the Jaguar they had just bought and there were no further details such as engine or chassis numbers included. They had obviously looked up his name in the registration records. Luckily, the court clerk hadn't noticed that he had owned the Jaguar in the garage for only one day.

"Okay, take it," he said in a cold voice. "If it is damaged at all I shall be speaking to my lawyer about compensation."

"Unless something illegal is found, your vehicle will be returned within ten days," McBride replied.

"And if something is?" Jacey asked in an unrealistic nervous voice.

"In that case you might need that lawyer you keep mentioning." McBride turned. "Constable, you can drive the Jaguar back to the police compound."

The young man glanced sympathetically at Travis. "We will take good care of it, Sir," he said and walked into their garage.

Jacey grinned up at him as they watched the Jaguar follow the other two vehicles up the street. "Did you see the details?" she asked.

Travis grinned. "Yes. Legally, we have done nothing wrong for they have the car they asked for." He reached up and placed his arm around her shoulders. "Your plan worked perfectly."

"For now," Jacey warned. "I have a feeling that this is just the beginning of something long and perhaps sinister. "

*

Two minutes later, Travis heard a whine of a high-powered jet fighter. He glanced up and saw a small delta winged object heading straight towards them. Before he could even shout or move, the flying dart raced in, sort of lifted and careered over less than fifty metres above the house. Wind buffeted him and seconds later an almighty boom cut through the air and a cloud of black smoke mushroomed into the air from around the corner.

"Come on!" he screamed at Jacey

He raced up the street with her right behind, came to the corner and joined a throng of other spectators. In the centre of the road was a crater of towering flames through which he could see the flaming silhouette of burning cars.

"The Jag," Jacey gasped as they stopped for the heat from the explosion forced everyone there back.

Travis felt ill. "It was heading for our garage," he whispered. "I saw it change direction, loop up and fly over us."

Jacey was white and shaking as she grabbed his hand. They stood back as crowds of people arrived, sirens sounded and within moments, two fire engines, an ambulance and a squad of police cars arrived. Firemen ran forward with high-powered extinguishers and began pumping foam over the inferno.

"What was it?" Jacey gasped.

"A guided missile or drone," Travis replied. "It looks as if it hit the Jag, exploded and took out the BMW with it. Those in the cars never had a chance."

"School!" Jacey screamed. "We need to get to school!"

"Why?"

"That transmitter from our Jag is in the safe there. If another missile homes in on it…" She stood there shaking.

Travis doubted if they could do anything even if that was about to happen but he just nodded. They ran back home and, a moment later drove their Forester out and in the opposite direction from the burning wrecks. Fifteen minutes later they arrived at the silent and empty Wakefield Avenue School. Even the smoke from the bomb was hidden by the hills around.

Relief flooded through Jacey's face. "The school's fine," she gasped. "I'm going to check it out."

"And if a second missile is homed in on it?" Travis asked.

Jacey pouted. "Wouldn't it have arrived by now and the school be burning down?"

Travis shrugged. Everything was happening too quickly. "Okay, but if it shows any sign of sending out a signal we get out, quickly."

"Okay but I have to check."

She unlocked the administration block, put the code in the security alarm and almost ran to her office. The safe was under the floor beneath where feet went under her desk, She knelt down, pulled aside a carpet square, punched in a seven-digit code and swung open a steel trapdoor. Inside was a circular container with shelves filled with documents and a cash drawer that she pulled out. She reached behind it and brought out the silver cylinder.

"Let me see," Travis said and frowned as he turned the object around. "What if this is just the opposite to what I originally thought?" he said.

Jacey also frowned. "Meaning?"

"What if this was a device to block incoming signals and protect the car. When it was removed, another transmitter hidden in the door may have been traced and the missile sent out to destroy it."

"You mean a sort of anti-missile or stealth electronic gadget?"

"Yes. It may have protected the car for years."

"And that missile was waiting somewhere to attack when it discovered a target."

Travis nodded. "Something like that."

Jacey screwed her nose up. "Sounds farfetched. Using your theory, it could have been waiting fifty years."

"So! We already know there is some other world or existence through that fog. Their technology could be years ahead of ours. Imagine what our electronics will be like in say fifty years?"

Jacey nodded at the silver cylinder. "So you don't think this device is dangerous?"

"No. I think we should put it back in our Jaguar."

Jacey sighed. "Not all that ripping the seat apart again."

Travis shook his head. "No, we can just tape it in somewhere. I doubt if any authority will be examining it, not after that explosion.

"You're wrong. I think we should leave this thing here and keep the Jaguar at Susan Westly's place," Jacey warned. "If we take the car home, anything could happen. There must be military and police teams everywhere around our area by now."

"I hope you're right about this cylinder," Travis said.

Jacey placed it back in the hiding place and closed the safe. "So we go home and wait for the fuzz to arrive and drag us away screaming to be interrogated."

Travis grinned. "A slight exaggeration but you could be close to the mark."

*

That evening there was a knock on the door. Travis looked at Jacey who shrugged but left it for him to answer. Outside stood a neatly dressed elderly man. If anything he appeared nervous rather than officious but Travis was still on the defensive.

"Yes, I am Travis Crichton, Jacey Rowan is my partner and we owned the Jaguar car that blew up around the corner," he answered in reply to the man's opening questions. "Could you please tell me who you are and why you are interested in the vehicle and ourselves?"

"Kevin Petersen. I was once a professor at the university. You may have heard of me."

"No but Jacey could have. She has more to do with the university than I do. I guess you are following up the explosion."

The man nodded and glanced back as if he was afraid that someone was there. "Unofficially but yes. May I come in? "

Travis stepped aside and let the professor in. Jacey raised her eyebrows as she shook the man's hand and invited him to take a seat. "I'm interested in knowing why our car being destroyed has anything to do with archaeology, isn't that your expertise, Professor Petersen?" she asked.

"One of my specialities. My other interest is in the paranormal phenomena."

"Isn't that the realm of superstitious fanatics rather than scientists?" Travis ignored Jacey's frown.

Kevin Petersen smiled. "Possibly, but ancient superstitions at times had an element of truth in them."

"Hence the reason for you being here?" Jacey asked.

"Yes. Before I explain things further, would you be kind enough to describe what happened to the Jaguar car?" He spread his hands wide. "I've already seen the official reports and eye witness accounts so am more interested in your personal account of those few minutes before the actual explosion."

"There's not much to tell," Jacey began. "We heard a whoosh, saw a dart-shaped missile fly over the house and..."

"You what?" The professor almost leaped out of the armchair.

"We heard and saw the missile before it hit the car that by then was out of sight around the corner." Travis caught Jacey's eyes. The man's reaction surprised them both.

"Explain exactly what you both saw."

"For a second we thought it would hit us." Travis explained about how the missile sort of looped over the house.

"Is something wrong?" Jacey asked.

"Indeed there is. No eyewitnesses saw or heard any missile. Authorities believe that it was a bomb attached to either your car or the BMW that exploded."

"But?" Jacey gasped.

"I have been following a theory about this for three decades but that was all it was, a theory. Whenever I tried to explain the details to my colleagues I was ridiculed as a crank."

"What theory Professor Petersen?" Jacey asked.

The man had sat back in the armchair but looked white. "Of course. I see the connection now," he muttered to himself and glanced across at Jacey. "Your surname! Are you related to Susan Westley?"

"I don't think so. We've never met her before we went to check out her Jaguar as it was a similar vintage to ours."

The man just stared at her. "One of the Jaguars... Do you mean that there's another one?"

Jacey again looked at Travis who grimaced. Should they trust this strange old man? "Jacey and I need to discuss the turn this conversation is taking," he said and nodded at a nearby wine cabinet. "Help yourself to a wine. We won't he a moment." He grabbed Jacey's hand and almost dragged her into the hallway.

"He knows something about the car," he hissed. "Do we trust him?"

"I don't know," she whispered. "All I can tell you is that I know he was a professor at the university." She shrugged. "We really need more information but who can we turn to? That major was killed and I never trusted him in the first place."

"How about checking with the only other person who may be able to help?"

"Who's that?"

"Susan Westly." Travis replied. There was something genuine about the elderly lady's personality that he felt he could depend upon.

"I know it sounds silly but deep inside, I feel I should trust both of them," Jacey whispered. "Let's go and hear what else Professor Petersen has to say."

*