“SETI” Search for Exterrestrial Intelligence-Chapter 36
36
Richard nervously tapped the steering wheel as he watched the armed main gate guard talk on the telephone. Richard was the only vehicle in sight on State Route 247.
Out of Barstow, the road led to Fort Irwin, then ended. The main gate was situated at the entrance to three major government installations: the Fort Irwin National Training Center, the highly restricted Naval Weapons Center, and the equally restricted Goldstone Deep Space Tracking Station.
Richard’s goal was a few hundred feet beyond the main gate, then left down NASA road for four-point-nine miles to another gate that led to the headquarters of the Goldstone facility, Echo station.
The lights at the guard outpost made it hard for Richard to see the buildings ahead. Darkness had obscured most of the nearby unlighted buildings, and beyond, twinkling lights were the only evidence of human activity. The surrounding mountains were invisible.
The moon had not yet crossed over the eastern horizon, so the night sky was filled with pinpoints of light. Richard noticed that he could see stars just above the mountains. It was a sight he could never see in Los Angeles. The glow of millions of city lights had long ago obliterated stars and other astronomical phenomena near the horizon. That, of course, was the reasoning behind the placement of the dishes and the listening outpost in the Mojave Desert just south of Death Valley. Light and radio pollution was negligible there.
Because of military restrictions, the area was one of the most desolate places in the continental United States. Considering the heat and the lack of rain and facilities, it was a wonder that anyone would want to live or work in the area. The U.S. government expended substantial funds to maintain life at that location, which was much less like the planet Earth than the planet Mars. Unbearable hot days were often followed by intolerably cold nights. The animals that lived in that environment rarely appeared during the day, but the night was filled with the sounds of animals, large and small, scooting across the desert in search of one another, looking for a meal and something to drink.
Trees and cover were rare, so Richard did not contemplate sneaking into the facility. He hoped that he could show his credentials and get into the control room. That was all he needed to do. He needed just a few minutes at the main control desk. History would judge him kindly for his daring and cunning.
The guard was a tall, muscular man. There were usually two men working the main gate at all times. Richard knew the schedule well. He had helped create many of the new security procedures. The second guard was required to check the work of the first and to dissuade anyone from trying to trick a guard into letting him on the grounds. The second guard was also supposed to keep both guards awake and alert. It was comforting to know that another human being was with you in the middle of a hostile environment that was a target for terrorist acts.
Richard glanced as nonchalantly as possible at the guard, who was now looking directly at him while talking on the phone. Richard suspected that this oaf did not need another guard’s help; he probably ate live wild game just to ‘keep his edge’.
The guard hung up the phone and approached Richard’s NASA sedan. Richard could not tell by looking at the man’s face whether he was going to be allowed on the premises or not. The emotionless guard leaned against the driver’s door.
In a deep but quiet, restrained voice, the officer said, “Yes sir, Mr. Redden. I am sorry for the delay. But I had to make a call to especially clear you. We’ve been getting a few phone threats lately, and I just wanted to be sure.”
“I understand, officer. I designed your job-posting responsibilities, so I understand the enormous pressure you must be under.”
The guard pulled his six-foot, five-inch frame erect and held out Richard’s photo ID badge.
“Here you are, sir,” the guard said, returning the badge to Richard.
“Thank you, I appreciate your…”
The guard ignored him. He pointed toward the intersection of 247 and NASA Road. “I’m sure you know the way — down to NASA Road and turn left. Go down approximately five miles.”
“It’s less than five miles, you blithering idiot,” Richard muttered to himself. He didn’t gladly suffer fools and security guards.
“The guard at Echo Gate will ask for ID, then clear you for Echo Station. You are to wait there for…”
The guard stopped talking in midsentence. He realized that he had already said too much. Richard noticed. What did that mean “you are to wait”?
Then he realized what was happening. The big boys at NASA, and probably the FBI or some other goon-squad organization knew that he was on the premises. Wait? For what? For them to arrive by car or helicopter to pick him up and haul him away?
He smirked at the guard. The guard still did not think that Richard knew what was about to occur — that Richard would be nabbed inside Echo Station. But he guessed that Richard would not become violent. It wasn’t his nature — at least, he didn’t think so, judging by his past encounters with the deputy director of JPL.
The guard thought that the best course of action would be to merely shut up and wave the man through the gate. He did just that.
Richard slipped his ID into his shirt pocket and waved as he drove away.
In his rearview mirror, Richard watched the guard turn and run to the telephone. He was humorously amazed by the guard’s lack of discretion and by the way he handled his job. The guard never gave away his position, right? Richard laughed.
He knew that once he got inside the headquarters building, it would be very easy to slip into the main transmitting/receiving control room. But he also knew that the farther he drove along NASA Road, the deeper he was going into government property and the more difficult it would be to escape.
But soon, very soon, he would be a hero. He reached over for Sam’s META box and placed it on his lap.
“Do you wanna go? Or maybe I should,” Eugene said.
“You’re bigger. You go, just in case the guy tries to pull something,” Eddie replied.
The two men at Echo Gate were ready for Richard Redden. Richard knew them both.
Richard slowed his vehicle to a crawl as he approached the small guard gate. He drove into a pool of light in the darkness of the two-lane road. Approximately one hundred yards past the gate were the main HQ and control building; beyond HQ, Richard could see the giant dishes pointed skyward.
Eugene stepped out of the guard shack and leaned toward Richard’s car.
“Good evening, Mr. Redden.”
“Good evening…uh…Eugene, Right?”
Eugene straightened and smiled nervously. “Yes, sir.”
“Eugene, I’ll be here for about an hour or so.”
Richard released the brake and started to roll forward. Eugene grabbed the door handle and held up his hand.
“Uh, OK. But I’ve got some expanded procedures that I’d like to show you first.”
Richard looked straight ahead at the headquarters building. The last thing he wanted or needed was to be held up by a guard, looking at security cameras or card-entry systems. He needed to get into that control room alone and unencumbered. He dropped his pleasant demeanor.
“Look, Eugene. I have some important work to do, and I don’t…”
Eugene glowered at Richard. “It will only take a second. I want to show you the sign-in sheets for the reception counter.”
“All right. Get in,” Richard barked.
Eugene was not much taller than Richard, but his bulkiness made him seem to loom over Richard. But Richard knew that the man ultimately reported to him through vendors that provided service to JPL and NASA, so he could decide the man’s fate. At least he had that edge.
The light in the small reception and holding area was intense. Richard squinted. Eugene closed the door behind them, and they approached another guard, sitting at a small Steelcase desk. To the right of the guard were a card-key lock and a heavy door that led into the office suites and control room.
“Mr. Redden, can I ask you to wait here while I get together my, uh, security suggestions?”
Richard knew that he was being detained. He looked at the hallway entry and gripped his briefcase. The small bulge of the META box in the canvas briefcase did not arouse the suspicion of the guards.
“Eugene, lemme use the head, and I’ll spend as much time as you like. I do have to take a leak.”
The guards stared at each other. Eugene looked down at Richard’s briefcase. He knew that two guards could restrain Richard if necessary. Eddie was at Echo Gage, and another guard was at the main gate. His orders were to detain Richard, not to arrest him or place manacles on him. All Eugene knew was that the man was to be detrained for some unknown reason. At least Richard was in the building and could do no harm. And while Richard was in the restroom, Eugene had a good opportunity to call Pasadena.
“Sure, go ahead, Mr. Redden. I’ll wait here for you.”
“OK. Great.”
Richard relaxed, pulled his card key from his suit pocket, and jammed it into the receptacle. There was a buzz, and the door opened.
Eugene watched him walk down the narrow hallway toward the restrooms at the far end of the hall. The heavy security door closed with a bang.
Eugene leaned over to the guard seated at the desk.
“Quick — call Bettman at JPL and tell him the guy is in the building. I’ll try to talk Redden silly. But tell them to get here quick and do whatever they are gonna do, ’cause I can’t hold him here forever.”
Richard stepped out of the restroom and past an office. The night supervisor of the facility saw a form dart past his office door.
Short, nervous, somewhat chubby Byron Irtysh jumped up from his chair and stuck his head into the hallway just in time to see Richard step into the control room. He heard the click of the door lock, the dragging of a chair inside master control, and a thump against the door.
Irtysh turned and saw Eugene step cautiously into the hallway.
“Who is that, Eugene, and what is he doing in control?”
