Event

Ryan,' he said as he looked from the boy to his mother. 'Well, my mama said I was special,' he said in answer to her statement. 'What's your name, little man?'

'B... B... Billy,' he stuttered.

'This is my son, and I would appreciate you talking with me and not him,' Julie said.

Ryan flinched. He was not used to having a woman come down on him that quickly, at least until they knew him a little better.

'Sorry, ma'am, didn't mean any harm.' He brought his right hand up and lightly touched his chest. 'I'm Lieutenant Jason Ryan, United States Navy.' Then he stuck his hand out to the woman. 'The prideful army-type fella behind me is Staff Sergeant Mendenhall.'

Julie looked at the outstretched hand, then wiped her hands on the apron tied around her waist, then took the lieutenant's hand in her own and nodded over Ryan's shoulder at Mendenhall.

'Looks like no navy uniform I've ever seen, and I apologize, we're kind of on edge around here,' she said, arching her left eyebrow.

Ryan looked down at his dusty black nylon jumpsuit, then the holstered nine-millimeter pistol. 'Oh, this old thing.' He looked up and met her green eyes. 'Doing some fieldwork out there.' He gestured out the window and into the desert beyond. 'We're the good guys, really.'

'What'll you have?' Julie asked in defeat.

'You mean you're open?'

'No, we're still closed, but I can make you something because the grill's still hot. Does your quiet friend want something?' she asked, going through the batwing doors that separated the kitchen from the bar.

'Yes, ma'am, eggs over easy and sausage would be fine, and some coffee if you have it,' Mendenhall answered.

Ryan set his helmet on the long mahogany bar and pulled up a stool next to the boy. He heard and felt Mendenhall do the same to his left. Jason nodded at the boy. 'Going to be some loud noises here in about ten minutes,' Ryan said quietly, and winked.

Billy paused with a forkful of scrambled eggs halfway to his mouth and looked at the man in the funny suit. 'Really?'

'Really. Going to be some very big planes setting down on Highway Eighty-eight right out there just about a half mile from town.' Ryan looked at his filthy face in the mirror behind the bar.

As of one-half hour from now, the small town would be under quarantine. No one would be allowed in, and for the time being, no one would be going out until escorted out by armed security and placed in a safe hotel far, far away in Phoenix.

'All of this is for whatever's out there?' Billy asked, pointing toward the window with his now empty fork.

Ryan and Mendenhall exchanged looks, then Ryan smiled and looked down at the boy seated to his right.

'Out there?'

Billy took a drink of the milk his mother had given him. When he set the glass down, a nice white milk mustache covered the boy's upper lip.

'Yeah, whatever it is that's out there,' he said, exasperated at the slow wit of the navy guy.

'You think something's out in the desert?' Jason asked.

Billy glanced at the batwing doors and heard his mother out in the kitchen making cooking noises. Then the boy just shrugged his shoulders and slid off the stool. 'I have to go now,' he said, grabbing an off-road helmet from the table behind him.

Ryan looked at the sergeant again, then back at the young boy. 'Come on, you saw something out there?'

Billy placed the helmet on his head, squishing his ears against his head as he did so. 'That's what I mean, mister, I haven't seen anything'

'What do you mean by that?' Mendenhall asked, leaning back on the barstool.

Billy stopped and turned. 'Late yesterday I seen a whole bunch of rabbits and coyotes running away from the mountains, and since then I haven't seen anything, not even birds. It's like they were scared of something.' The boy shrugged his shoulders, then walked out of the dining area.

'Hey, you stay close by because--'

But the boy wasn't listening. He was already through the door.

The two men were quiet as they watched the boy leave the bar and grill. Then they turned and Mendenhall shrugged.

Julie came through the door with two platters. She set them down in front of the two men and slapped napkins with silverware rolled up inside beside the two heaping plates. Then she wiped her hands and looked out of the large window in time to see Billy leave on his ATV.

'Damn, that looks good,' Jason said.

'You didn't say how you wanted your eggs, so I just made them like I made the sergeant's' Julie said to Ryan, reaching for the coffeepot under the bar.

'Well, you guessed right,' Jason replied, diving into his eggs and sausage.

As the two men ate their breakfast, Jason noticed a man on the television set above the bar. He was holding a microphone to his silent lips, with a caption below it that read, Capitol Building, Phoenix, Arizona.

'Ma'am, could you turn that up?' Ryan asked Julie.

Julie reached up and turned up the volume on the television set.

'... said the disappearance of the two state troopers has law enforcement agencies statewide on the alert. Now Eyewitness News has learned of a possible military deployment to the mountains just northeast of the small town of Chato's Crawl. What this means is anyone's guess, but there is a rumor starting from the halls of the capitol stating there may be some sort of outbreak among cattle in the nearby area. This is Ken Kashihara, Channel Seven, Eyewitness News, at the capitol building in Phoenix. Back to the newsroom.'

'Well, that's got to please everyone from the president on down,' Mendenhall said.

'Just what are you guys doing out there? You helping look for those bikers and state troopers?' Julie asked, hands on her hips.

Before Ryan or Mendenhall could think of what answer to give her, a thunderous roar filled the interior of the bar. Mirrors shook and glasses clinked and chimed as Juan and Carmella, who had been dusting around the green- felt-covered pool tables, turned and grabbed for Julie's antique storm lamps. Then the two cleaning people crossed themselves and cowered in the far corner by the dance floor.

Ryan swallowed the last drop of coffee in his cup and threw two twenty-dollar bills on the counter, then stood.

'Thank you, ma'am, it was delicious. Have to go to work now,' he shouted over the noise. 'I'll stop back by if that's alright with you, I like the way you cook.' Ryan turned and followed the sergeant out the front door.

Julie ran to the window and watched the two men climb into a Humvee. The vehicle tore out of the parking area and headed out of town. She shook her head in amazement at the forwardness of Ryan, but pleased for some reason, she had to smile as the noise that surrounded the small town continued to grow louder. Then she looked to the right and left and saw both patrons and owners alike empty out into the street eager to find out what was shaking their quiet world on this Sunday morning.

The ten U.S. Air Force personnel Ryan had left on the highway one mile out of town had been busy. They had placed blue and white strobe lights every ten feet on both sides of the highway, and they were now flashing brightly. They were similar to the ones seen at any airport. This part of the highway had been picked for its flatness as there were no large dips, and it looked as if it would bear up under the excessive weight that was to be placed upon it. As Ryan and Mendenhall pulled up, an army specialist from the Event Group staff ran forward and saluted. Ryan returned the salute as he scanned the sky overhead. The security man was wearing a regular army BDU so he would blend in and wouldn't be asked any questions about his real outfit.

'All ready?' Ryan asked.