Read Learning to Stand for Free Online

lines. “The last explosion must have connected the
wires.”
    “ Major?” Alex’s Sergeant
asked. “I can hear you talking but I can’t tell what you’re saying.
Cheyenne Mountain reported a ping from Shelter 17. I informed them
you reviewed the shelters last week.”
    “ Sergeant? Can you hear me
now?” Alex moved over to the phone.
    “ Oh, thank God,” her
Sergeant said. “Colonel Gordon is here as well. He’d like a
report.”
    “ Sir, we were taken to
Shelter 17 prior to explosion. The explosions began while we were
in the stairwell. Outside of minor injury, we are all accounted
for.”
    “ And that little
weasel?”
    “ He and his guards are
present.”
    “ Well done, Major,” Colonel
Gordon said.
    “ Sergeant, the last
explosion seems to have knocked out our power. Can you ask Cheyenne
Mountain about back up power?”
    “ Major,” Colonel Gordon
said. “We have a report from the Jakker. The last explosion caused
extensive damage to the mountain. He’s hovering right over Shelter
17 and believes he can see the door. We are sending a team into the
area.”
    “ Sir, we experienced an
explosive chain. Let’s wait to be sure. If we get
power...”
    There was a mechanical hum. The lights
flickered before coming on. Climate control kicked in and the room
began to cool off.
    “ Power and climate control,”
Alex said. “Thank you, Sergeant.”
    “ Cheyenne Mountain has
control of the room. They needed to know how many people to control
the oxygen flow. They say there’s MREs near the front of the room.
Do you remember where to find water? Latrine? Field protective
masks? Oxygen?”
    “ Yes, Sergeant. Thank
you.”
    “ We’ll wait to hear from
you,” Colonel Gordon said. “In the meantime, sit tight.”
    “ Sir?” Alex’s Sergeant
asked.
    “ Yes, Sergeant.”
    “ I will stay at base so you
don’t have to rely on back-up assistance. You can reach me when you
need me.”
    “ Thank you, Sergeant,” Alex
said. “Oh, and Sergeant?”
    “ Yes, Major?”
    “ What happened to Sergeant
Flagg?”
    “ He’s at Fort Carson bossing
everyone around.”
    “ Can you relay a ‘knock it
off’ message from me?”
    “ Yes Major. They have locked
him in a room. Will that do?”
    “ Yes Sergeant,” Alex said.
“Thank you.”
    Alex turned around to see all of the
expectant faces. In each face, she saw competence, intelligence,
and arrogance. They’d wanted to work for her. They’d each jumped at
the chance to stand right here with her.
    And she had no idea what to do next. The
familiar ache and annoying longing for Charlie returned.
    “ We sit tight,” she said.
“Raz, what’s our oxygen supply like?”
    “ The room is set up to
generate oxygen from the atmosphere,” he said. “As long as we have
power, we have oxygen.”
    “ Matthew, what did Cheyenne
Mountain say?”
    “ The mountain is on fire
from the explosions. The forest service is flying to put out the
worst of the fire before it spreads. They believe we’ll have snow
soon.”
    “ How much snow?” Alex
asked.
    “ A lot,” Matthew replied.
“Couple of feet at the minimum. The Jakker is in the air over our
site. He’s waiting to get us but, the snow...”
    “ He can’t fly in a blizzard.
We either risk the fire or wait out the snow storm. Any idea of how
long that might be?”
    “ Three days.” Matthew looked
away from her. He crossed his arms then looked back, “Probably
five.”
    “ Five days of snow?” Alex
asked.
    “ We’re over 10,000
feet.”
    “ Ok, what are you not
telling me?” Alex asked.
    “ Vince and I checked the
door while you were talking to base.”
    “ And?”
    “ We’re buried. I don’t know
what Zack sees or thinks he sees...”
    “ And that means?”
    “ I estimate we’ll be in this
room for at least a week,” Matthew said. “Maybe longer.”
    “ I’m not spending a week in
this room,” Troy said. “I have a date tonight.”
    Alex tugged on her hair in irritation. What
would