Empire (Empire 1)

As Drew said, “It plain hurts me to be looking at a map of part of the U.S.A. in order to figure out how we can get U.S. Army ordnance across a state boundary line undetected. This is just wrong. No matter who’s President, we should be able to tell them to get their little National Guard boys out of the way, we’re the American Army on American soil!”

The others could only agree.

But the job still had to be done, right away. “We can’t enter from Canada,” he said, “and I think we should avoid Oregon. We get spotted there, it’s almost as bad as Washington itself—their legislature is debating a resolution right now.”

“So,” said Mingo, “it’s Idaho or the Pacific Ocean.”

“Idaho,” said Arty. “I don’t know nothin’ ‘bout boats.”

“You want boats, send Marines,” said Benny.

Most of them were looking at ordinary highway maps of the Idaho-Washington border. Load was flipping through a stack of U.S. Geological Survey maps. Drew had Google Maps and Google Earth up on his laptop.

“We’ve got to come in on a legitimate road,” said Cole, “because once we’re inside Washington, we need to carry our ordnance in regular trucks, not the kind of all-terrain military vehicles that could get in cross-country.”

“We could come in with ATVs and then transfer to trucks.”

“Any way to hide everything under, like, potatoes?” said Babe. “Coming in from Idaho the way we are?”

“Not bad,” said Cole. “Let’s find out how potatoes are shipped from Idaho to Washington. But look at the map. The most direct route is Highway 12. Gets us from Idaho right to Lewis County. National Forest Road 20 leads right to Lake Genesseret. Road 21 leads to the eastern lake, Chinnereth.”

“Can’t go up those roads,” said Drew. “Probably the ones they use.”

“No,” said Cole. “We go in on National Forest Road 48 and then go a mile up 4820. Only a couple of us need to be with the truck. Everybody else goes in like birdwatchers or photographers, in rental cars, on different days, park in different places. We rendezvous here and then cross over the ridge.”

“We’re climbing that?” said Drew.

“You must have the vertical exaggeration set on ‘two,’ ” said Cole. “The ridge isn’t really that high.” “High enough,” said Drew.

“So the guys with the truck,” said Benny. “If they screw up and don’t get there, then what?”

“Then the rest of you have binoculars and cameras,” said Cole. “Take what pictures you can, email them in, and at least we know more than we did.”

“Two trucks,” said Drew. “Twice the chance of getting in.”

“Twice the chance of getting caught,” said Mingo.

“Either we can get in or we can’t,” said Cole. “We don’t want one of the trucks to go in by the second-best route.”

“And I bet you’re with the truck,” said Arty.

“We’ve been working together for a little while now,” said Cole. “I don’t care who goes in with the truck. There’s nobody

here I wouldn’t trust for the job.”

“But you want to go,” said Arty.

“Don’t you?” said Cole.

“No way,” said Arty. “Trucks are great big targets. Trucks run over mines. Trucks get blown up.”

“They haven’t mined the roads,” said Babe, disgusted.

“Not at the border,” said Arty. “But the rebels? Up those National Forest roads they’re using?”

“Start killing park rangers in jeeps,” said Cole, “and somebody’d notice them. There are no mines.”

“What ordnance are we taking, anyway?” said Cat.