DEADLY DILEMMA by Dan Stratman (story read aloud .txt) 📗

His deep brown eyes were gazing down at her. “You can do this. If you can handle teaching judo to a bunch of bratty little kids, this will be a piece of cake.” He looked back over his shoulder then turned back. “Don’t forget to swing the cable over to me when you get to the bottom.”

“Rocko will be slobbering all over you very soon.” She winked. “You have my word.” Cyndi took a deep breath then said, “Now!”

Lance let go.

Cyndi disappeared into the fog as she swung away.

The rubber sheath on the outside of the cable had become slippery from the damp fog. Before Cyndi could grab hold with her other hand, she began to drop. She latched on to the cable with both hands and gripped it with all her might. It did little good. She plunged down the side of the silo, clasping the slick cable.

Suddenly, her body jerked to a stop. Her hands had slammed into the metal receptacle at the end of the cable. Excruciating pain radiated up through her arms. Her cries were swallowed up by the fog. The natural reaction would have been to let go of the cable to stop the agony. Cyndi gritted her teeth and forced herself to hold on.

Suspended in the fog, Cyndi had no idea how far she’d fallen.

“Hurry, Pierce is getting closer,” Lance yelled out from above.

Cyndi might have been the combat commander in the LCC, but gravity was calling the shots now. She bent her knees slightly to help absorb the impact.

Then she let go.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Cyndi landed on a steel grate five feet below the end of the umbilical cable. She straightened up and looked around. A catwalk encircled the bottom of the silo. When Cyndi turned around, her mouth dropped open. She was three feet away from the bell-shaped exhaust nozzle protruding from the bottom of the missile’s first stage. She reached out and tapped it with her knuckle. It gave off a solid thud.

If the missile had lit off, the searing exhaust blasting out of the nozzle would be powerful enough to launch the massive missile into space at over 15,000 miles per hour.

She grabbed the catwalk railing and tilted her gaze upward. Sixty feet above, obscured by the thick fog, was the business end of the Minuteman. She shivered at the thought that ten live nuclear warheads were sitting right above her with no one controlling them.

Cyndi’s hands slipped slightly on the railing. She pulled them away and looked down. Blood dripped from both hands where the sharp edges of the receptacle had sliced into her flesh.

“Are you okay?” Lance yelled out from above.

She wiped her hands on her flight suit. “I’m good. It’s only a five-foot drop.”

“Swing the cable over. Pierce is getting closer.”

Cyndi grabbed the bloody receptacle and slid the cable along the silo wall.

“Got it!” Lance said.

“It’s slippery. Grab the cable with both hands and wrap your legs around it. You’ll know when you reach the bottom. There’s an attachment receptacle at the end.”

BAM! BAM!

Shots rang out from above.

The cable swung away.

“Lance!”

Cyndi turned an ear upward.

He didn’t respond.

She cautiously crept over to the same spot she’d dropped onto the catwalk and looked up.

The end of the cable swung back and forth.

“Lance! Are you—”

Suddenly, bullets ricocheted off the metal grate.

Cyndi turned and sprinted along the catwalk, dodging to avoid the projectiles.

Gunshots reverberated off the silo walls, making it impossible to track where the shots were coming from. Being trapped inside a dense fog only made the situation worse.

Cyndi squinted, trying to see through the fog while she ran. As she looked back, Cyndi slammed into something, sending her crashing to the metal grate. The abrupt impact had left her dazed and lying flat on her back. Cyndi blinked rapidly and shook her head, trying to regain her senses.

A large figure loomed over her in the mist.

He extended his right arm and pointed it at her.

Cyndi launched her left foot upward, aiming for his kidney.

He snatched her foot, twisted it, and knelt into the back of her knee joint.

Cyndi rolled over to prevent her ankle from snapping.

Her right foot swung across in an arc, striking him in the head. His grip loosened.

Cyndi yanked her foot away and jumped up into the defensive position.

Lance was standing on the catwalk, holding the side of his head.

“At ease, killer. It’s just me,” he groaned.

“You scared the crap out of me,” Cyndi shot back. “Why didn’t you say something?”

He put one finger up to his lips and looked back over his shoulder. Whispering, he said, “In case you forgot, a psycho assassin is coming for us. He can’t see us, but he sure as hell can hear us. Let’s not make it any easier for him.” Lance rolled his head in circles to help shake off the painful foot strike. “I slid down the cable just before he grabbed me. Then I ran like hell.”

Cyndi gently laid her hand on his temple. “Sorry I kicked you in the head. I thought you were Pierce.”

Lance winced at her touch. “The way today is going, a concussion is the least of my worries.” He reached up and moved her hand away. Lance felt a warm liquid on his palm. He turned it over and gasped. “You cracked my skull open!”

Cyndi raised both of her bloody hands. “It’s not you; it’s me.”

A shot rang out.

A 9 mm slug slammed into the silo wall behind them, sending concrete chips flying.

They crouched down to minimize their profile.

“Pierce is tall enough to reach the cable,” Cyndi said quietly. “It won’t be long before he figures out how to get down here.”

“We’re trapped. All we’ve done is delay the inevitable.” Lance looked around, desperately searching for a way to escape their impending demise. He looked up in awe. “Jesus…” His heart was in his throat.

He was one of the few people on earth who could launch a nuclear missile. But security restrictions had never allowed him to be anywhere