Agent Hill: Powerless by James Hunt Page A

going to shoot one of you in the ass.”

 
    ***
    The small town of Platinum, Alaska, had nothing more than a main road and an airport. Everything else that surrounded it was frigid tundra. The influx of U.S. troops had increased the town’s occupancy tenfold.
    A light snow fell as Sarah pulled into the now-bustling town. People, houses, cars, all painted with a light coat of white dots clustering together in an attempt to completely take over whatever host it landed on. Sarah parked the Humvee next to the command post where they had waited after the flight.
    Two guards stood outside and blocked her from entering. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but the commander’s reviewing some sensitive information. I’m going to have to ask you to get back in the vehicle and wait there.”
    “It’ll just take a minute.” Sarah did a sidestep, and again the guard blocked her, mimicking her motions.
    “I’m sorry, ma’am. No one is allowed inside. No exceptions.”
    “What’s with the ‘ma’am’? Do I look like a ma’am? Do I have a crocheted sweater around my shoulders, hunched over on a walker, looking for a warm fire to rub my bunions by?”
    The soldier looked to his partner, his slack-jawed face the only response he was able to muster. Sarah gave another sidestep then faked right, but the guard was fast enough to follow, giving the feel of an awkward dance-off that neither of them wanted to be in. “All right, enough of this shit.” Sarah snatched the soldier’s wrist and twisted it hard left, bringing the soldier to his knees. Before his partner could put his hands on her, Sarah spun around and brought her heel to the inside of his knee, causing the soldier to join his partner on the ground.
    With the doorway clear, she jumped inside and slammed the door behind her before the soldiers could get off the ground. When she turned around, there were a number of snow-topped heads staring at her as she held her body against the door, holding off the two soldiers who were trying to break in at bay. “I know what you’re thinking and, no, I did not permanently hurt the two men outside. At least not physically. Emotionally maybe.”
    The door finally gave way and shoved Sarah forward as the two guards barreled inside. They immediately went to grab her when Commander Fryson jumped in. “Enough! We don’t need any casualties before this thing starts. She can stay.”
    “Yes, sir.” The two soldiers exited the building, giving Sarah a glare that had a hint of “fuck you” behind it. Sarah caught a glimpse of the map in the middle of the table where the officers had gathered as she picked up the small red case Bryce needed. She recognized the Alaskan coastline and could see figurines that looked like warships in the Bering Sea.
    “Do you have what you need, Sarah?” Commander Fryson asked.
    “Russians,” Sarah said.
    “I’m sorry?”
    Sarah invited herself over to the map, looking down at the outlines of war below. “The imported soldiers, the added artillery. You guys think Russia’s going to make a move. Ballsy.”
    Sirens wailed outside, turning every head in the room to the door. The two guards from earlier burst in. “Sir, we have contact on the shoreline!” The room erupted into a massive scramble, with Fryson grabbing hold of Sarah’s shoulder.
    “Get to Mack. Tell him what’s going on.” Before Sarah could object, she was thrust outside into the ordered chaos of war.
    Hundreds of soldiers ran past her, creating twice as many footprints in the falling snow, which had picked up. The light drizzle had turned into a steady haze of white, swallowing anything and everything in its path. She looked over to the Humvee, knowing full well that she’d get bogged down in the trails on the way back, even if she left now. She brought her hand underneath her jacket and pulled out one of her pistols. “Well, might as well be useful.”

 
    ***
    With no windows in the server building, Bryce and Mack couldn’t be sure