“Bacon and eggs. Always a safe bet.”
“Nah. I’ll have what you’re having.” Yoko smiled when Rosie returned to the table with their beverages and took their order.
When the food arrived, it looked exactly like the picture on the menu. “Rosie’s specialty.” Rosie pointed to the food. “Enjoy!”
The women dived into the comfort food, which, Yoko noted, was really, really good.
“See! I told ya,” Kathryn boomed. “Let’s hit the ladies’ room and get going.”
Kathryn motioned for the check, pulled out her cash, and left a hundred-dollar bill under the saltshaker. “Come on. I don’t want Rosie yelling at me. She hates it when I overtip!” They made a beeline for the bathroom, washed up, and bolted.
Before they had left Virginia, Kathryn had arranged for a friend to leave a car at the diner. They would use it for the few hours needed to check out the property. Kathryn pulled out a license plate from the back of the cab. After looking around to see that no one was watching, she swapped the “extra” plate with the one on her friend’s car.
“Grab the road atlas,” she directed Yoko. “I’ll get my gear.” Her gear consisted of binoculars, several cameras, and a drone/camera kit. Fergus had shown her how to assemble the Wi-Fi-enabled drone/camera kit. The camera was equipped to send the photos to Kathryn’s tablet and to Charles. It was a backup in case they couldn’t get onto the property. Aerial photos would be perfect, provided they didn’t get caught and someone didn’t shoot the drone down.
Yoko opened the road atlas and began giving Kathryn directions. It took about thirty minutes before they came upon a chain-link fence topped with barbed wire and a sign that said BEWARE. NO TRESPASSING.
Yoko said somberly, “This looks nasty. And scary.”
“Let’s drive around and see how far this fence goes.” Kathryn drove for almost a mile before they came to the end of the fence at an intersection. “With all the brush and overgrowth, I can barely make out a building in the distance.” She dragged binoculars from her gear bag. “Hard to tell what it is. Except it’s a big building.”
Yoko took the binoculars from Kathryn and looked. “Some kind of factory? Warehouse?”
“But which is it?” Kathryn looked at the photo from Google Earth. “I guess we need to launch our little friend.” She patted the box sitting between them. “Finally, my engineering degree will come in handy.” She opened the trunk to give herself some room to assemble the drone without it being in plain sight. She checked for security cameras. None this close to the road, but she suspected there would be several along the perimeter of the building.
In a few short minutes, she had the device ready for takeoff. “We’ll drive around a bit more to see if there is a better vantage point.” Kathryn shut the trunk and jumped back into the driver’s seat. They turned the corner and followed the fence for another mile. “This is like a compound.” They came upon a gate with the same warning: BEWARE. NO TRESPASSING.
Next to the gate was a camera and a single phone, protected in a box. “I guess they don’t get a lot of visitors. Let’s get away from any prying eyes,” Kathryn said.
She drove the car another mile, to what seemed to be the rear part of the property, assuming the gate was at the front. The car rolled slowly onto the gravel shoulder opposite the property, where they waited for a few minutes to get a sense of the traffic flow. There seemed to be none. The women got out and switched seats so Kathryn could launch the drone without being seen from the road. The real-time transmission and wide angle were in working order. She directed Yoko to ping Charles so he could upload the feed and observe as the drone flew over the fence.
Despite her big hands, Kathryn maneuvered the drone’s control box with the skill and agility of a surgeon. The drone moved up and over the overgrown fence, putting it out of their sight. The only view they had came from the camera mounted on the drone. Using the panoramic lens, Kathryn scanned the side of the building. There were several security cameras, alarms, blacked-out windows, and a dozen steel overhead doors. Nothing gave away the contents of the building. Except they didn’t want visitors.
“Wow. What is this place?” Kathryn asked.
Yoko was about to look over Kathryn’s shoulder when the alert signal went off on both of their phones. The sound meant “Abort!” It came from Charles. Within seconds, a round of gunshots went off.
The women dashed back into the car. As Kathryn peeled away, kicking up gravel and dust in their wake, Yoko kept a steady watch out the rear window. So far, no one was following them. Still, Kathryn kept the pedal to the metal and soared down the country road at eighty miles per hour.
Charles pinged them: Two men dressed in orange coveralls with hoods. He had been able to see them as they ran out of the building with their weapons. Seconds later, the transmission from the drone went dead.
Yoko turned to look at Kathryn. “There must be something very serious going on in that place.”
“You got that right. But what? And how do we find out? Wait. I have an idea. I’m willing to bet that whoever works there goes out for a beer after his shift. Maybe with some coworkers. Let’s check out some local bars tonight.”
Yoko looked stunned at the suggestion. “What are we supposed to do? Walk up to them and ask, ‘Hey, do you work at that secret place where they shoot drones?’”
“Nooo . . . but we could be two people passin’ through, stopping for something to drink,” Kathryn offered.
“Still, what do we say to them?” Yoko pressed.
“We smile and say hello. Start a little conversation. I don’t expect them to spill their guts, but you know how men like to brag. Especially if it’s something they’re not supposed to talk about. After a few beers, they may say certain things. Who knows? Maybe the place is hiring! I think it’s worth a shot.”
“We need to clear this with Annie and Myra,” Yoko reminded her. “We don’t deviate without consulting the others unless lives are at stake.”
“You’re right. See if Charles can reach them. Meanwhile, we’ll head back to the diner. I need a piece of pie.” Kathryn sighed.
By the time they pulled into the parking lot, Charles had got back to them on their idea of staking out a bar. “Just one bar. One night. Keep the radio on.”
Rosie welcomed them again. “Hey, girls. Back so soon? I bet you remembered you didn’t have pie! Am I right?”
“You’re a regular psychic,” Kathryn teased.
“No mumbo jumbo about my cherry pie. You never left before without having some or taking a slice with you,” Rosie reminded her.
“Some memory, you have.” Kathryn smirked.
“I know my customers.” Rosie gave them a wink. “Coming right up!”
It dawned on Kathryn that maybe Rosie had some info on the mysterious property. She leaned in and whispered to Yoko, “We should see if Rosie has the lowdown or some info on that place.”
“Good idea. I’ll start the conversation.”
Rosie lumbered across the room, carrying a pot of coffee in one hand and two slices of juicy cherry pie in the other. “You girls spending some time in our lovely county?” She was half joking.