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“Hey!” Miranda twisted around to watch them, lying across Andi to manage a closer look out the window.
Andi seemed to think it was an embrace and hugged her, but it wasn’t.
There were flatbed trucks, several sweeper trucks, and a crane lumbering along at the rear of the progression.
Finally Andi saw where she was looking. “They must be going to clean up the wreck.”
“I— Wait! Stop the car. I need to talk to them.”
Commander Piazza kept driving. “Sorry, ma’am. Priorities.”
“But I need them to preserve several elements of—”
“I gave them orders that if they bent, broke, or disposed of anything over one foot square, they’d have me to contend with. I also said they had to keep every scrap from the cockpit. It will all be stored in a hangar until you release it. Is that sufficient?”
“But in what order? Will it be a jumble or fully documented?”
“It will be however they place it there. Does it matter?”
Miranda considered. The flight path, the flaps, they already had the QAR and flight recorders… In the past, after scouring the debris field, she’d have focused on the cockpit and surrounding area to see if a physical checklist had been in use. While physical emergency checklists were still retained, electronic ones were more commonly used. Its use, or lack thereof, would be logged in the Quick Access Recorder.
“And you’re the sort of lass they wouldn’t want to contend with?” Holly asked with the broad Strine accent that indicated she was teasing. Miranda was unsure why, as the question was valid.
Miranda saw Susan look up into the rearview mirror. Miranda looked away quickly so that she didn’t have to look at her eyes.
“Yes and no,” she spoke to Holly. “By chain of command I technically have no authority here beyond my rank, but Iamthe sort of person people have learned not to challenge.”
Holly made a friendly humming noise, as if she was the one wagging her tail. “Works for me, mate.” Well, if it worked for Holly, that was good enough for Miranda under the circumstances.
The commander turned from the main runway onto the taxiway and headed for the primary Air Force hangars where they’d parked her plane. Except her plane was gone, already towed indoors. Further support to Susan’s statement of authority.
Instead, a Gulfstream G550 sat on the tarmac.
“Is that a C-37B?” Andi whispered. “I thought those were restricted to the top levels of the executive branch, like the Vice President and Cabinet members.”
It had the trademark blue-and-white paint job and the long labelUnited States of America.
“They are.” The executive transport/command aircraft, the latter part being the key, were quite new. “Look at the additional antennas along the top of the fuselage. Satellite communications. It is also hardened against EMP attacks and is said to have several active defense capabilities.” She and her entire team had the security clearances to know the details, but she hadn’t had a need to know so she hadn’t inquired further.
“If they sent us that plane, some bad shit must have gone down,” Mike spoke from the front seat as Susan stopped the vehicle.
“That would be an understatement,” Susan snapped her fingers and scooped up Sadie when she trotted forward. “You’ll be briefed in flight. I was at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island in Washington State when the order came through. I was told to divert here immediately and find your team.”
They delayed only long enough for Miranda to make a complete copy of the QAR from the KC-46 Pegasus crash. Then Susan arranged secure shipping of the drive and the flight recorder to NTSB headquarters and they were aboard.
Miranda had rather hoped the dog would be boxed and shipped away as well. Instead, Susan carried it to the plane.
“How is a Naval commander traveling with a pet pooch?” Mike asked as they boarded. “Can’t say as I ever saw that before.”
Miranda knew that it wasn’t allowed except on a rare, case-by-case basis.
Then she knew. “Sadie is a registered service dog.”
Susan nodded, “She is. Very useful in my line of work.”
“Oh? And what’s that?”
Susan merely smiled and the crew closed the plane’s door and hurried them into their seats.
