Tularosa: A Kevin Kerney Novel (Kevin Kerney Novels) by Michael McGarrity Page A
Book: Tularosa: A Kevin Kerney Novel (Kevin Kerney Novels) by Michael McGarrity
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Authors: Michael McGarrity
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close to Sammy's duty station. He asked about outsiders with up range access and learned that state and federal game and conservation officers were allowed in. All carried law enforcement commissions and had security clearances. The lieutenant didn't know who among them had been around when Sammy went A.W.O.L., but she pulled out a file folder with names and phone numbers, explaining with great seriousness that conservation and the environment were of vital concern to the Army.
Kerney copied the list into his notebook-two dozen names, including a wildlife specialist who came down from Santa Fe to manage the bighorn sheep herd, a National Park Service ranger who supervised the wilderness area, and a Bureau of Land Management officer who looked after the wild mustang herd. He thanked the lieutenant for her time and left wondering how the Army kept track of two dozen men and women roaming around the five thousand square miles of the missile range. Probably with satellite locators, he decided, as he parked outside the service club. The club was closed, but the office at the back of the building was open. The young woman inside gave him an annoyed look when he entered. She covered the open paperback book on her desk with a piece of typing paper. Kerney introduced himself and showed his credentials.
"Captain Brannon said you'd be coming by." She had a flat midwestern voice, thin lips, and a pageboy hairdo.
"What can you tell me about the jeep excursion program?" he asked. "It's very popular," the woman replied, her hand resting on the covered book. Her long fingers flowed down from a skinny arm and bony elbow.
"Base personnel and their dependents may sign out to use service club vehicles for wilderness excursions and recreational trips. I'm usually booked solid a month in advance."
"The paperwork must really pile up," Kerney suggested. She smiled briefly in agreement.
"It does. I have to complete a monthly report that records vehicle mileage, trip destination, all drivers and passengers, times in and out, and gasoline consumption." Kerney asked to see the records.
"How far back did you want to go?" she asked.
"Ten months."
"That's a lot of paperwork," she cautioned.
"I don't mind." She scooted her chair to a bank of file cabinets behind the desk, searched through a drawer, extracted two thick accordion folders, held them out for Kerney to take, and tilted her head at an unoccupied desk.
"You can use the sergeant's desk. He doesn't come in until noon."
Kerney took the files and sat at the desk. He read the material carefully, jotting down each of Sammy's excursions. His trip tickets showed that he went in all directions, but none listed Sheep Mesa or Big Mesa as a destination, where Alonzo Tony said he'd gone with Sammy.
Finished, Kerney raised his eyes. The secretary was reading a romance novel. He coughed to get her attention, and the paperback book quickly disappeared from sight.
"What is it?"
"If I signed out for a jeep, how would I know where I could and couldn't drive?"
"You get a map with everything clearly marked."
"Can I see one?" Wordlessly she held up a map for him to fetch. He took it from her and returned to the desk. Sheep Mesa was definitely off-limits, as was all "casual and recreational" travel from Big Mesa, once part of the old 7-Bar-K Ranch. Sammy definitely liked to go where the spirit moved him. In one accordion file was a folder marked "Special Events." Sammy had gone on only one such outing. The trip ticket and an attendance roster were stapled to a flyer. It read:
KNOWN SURVIVORS A ONE-DAY TOUR OF NATIVE AMERICAN SPANISH AND
ANGLO HABITATION IN THE TULAROSA BASIN CONDUCTED BY DR. FRED UTLEY
FEBRUARY 5
PARTICIPATION LIMITED SIGN UP BY JANUARY 15
BROUGHT TO YOU BY YOUR SERVICE CLUB'
He decided to pay Dr. Utiey a visit and found him loading provisions in a four-wheel-drive utility vehicle in front of a prefabricated metal building. Utiey stopped and gave Kerney a friendly
Kerney copied the list into his notebook-two dozen names, including a wildlife specialist who came down from Santa Fe to manage the bighorn sheep herd, a National Park Service ranger who supervised the wilderness area, and a Bureau of Land Management officer who looked after the wild mustang herd. He thanked the lieutenant for her time and left wondering how the Army kept track of two dozen men and women roaming around the five thousand square miles of the missile range. Probably with satellite locators, he decided, as he parked outside the service club. The club was closed, but the office at the back of the building was open. The young woman inside gave him an annoyed look when he entered. She covered the open paperback book on her desk with a piece of typing paper. Kerney introduced himself and showed his credentials.
"Captain Brannon said you'd be coming by." She had a flat midwestern voice, thin lips, and a pageboy hairdo.
"What can you tell me about the jeep excursion program?" he asked. "It's very popular," the woman replied, her hand resting on the covered book. Her long fingers flowed down from a skinny arm and bony elbow.
"Base personnel and their dependents may sign out to use service club vehicles for wilderness excursions and recreational trips. I'm usually booked solid a month in advance."
"The paperwork must really pile up," Kerney suggested. She smiled briefly in agreement.
"It does. I have to complete a monthly report that records vehicle mileage, trip destination, all drivers and passengers, times in and out, and gasoline consumption." Kerney asked to see the records.
"How far back did you want to go?" she asked.
"Ten months."
"That's a lot of paperwork," she cautioned.
"I don't mind." She scooted her chair to a bank of file cabinets behind the desk, searched through a drawer, extracted two thick accordion folders, held them out for Kerney to take, and tilted her head at an unoccupied desk.
"You can use the sergeant's desk. He doesn't come in until noon."
Kerney took the files and sat at the desk. He read the material carefully, jotting down each of Sammy's excursions. His trip tickets showed that he went in all directions, but none listed Sheep Mesa or Big Mesa as a destination, where Alonzo Tony said he'd gone with Sammy.
Finished, Kerney raised his eyes. The secretary was reading a romance novel. He coughed to get her attention, and the paperback book quickly disappeared from sight.
"What is it?"
"If I signed out for a jeep, how would I know where I could and couldn't drive?"
"You get a map with everything clearly marked."
"Can I see one?" Wordlessly she held up a map for him to fetch. He took it from her and returned to the desk. Sheep Mesa was definitely off-limits, as was all "casual and recreational" travel from Big Mesa, once part of the old 7-Bar-K Ranch. Sammy definitely liked to go where the spirit moved him. In one accordion file was a folder marked "Special Events." Sammy had gone on only one such outing. The trip ticket and an attendance roster were stapled to a flyer. It read:
KNOWN SURVIVORS A ONE-DAY TOUR OF NATIVE AMERICAN SPANISH AND
ANGLO HABITATION IN THE TULAROSA BASIN CONDUCTED BY DR. FRED UTLEY
FEBRUARY 5
PARTICIPATION LIMITED SIGN UP BY JANUARY 15
BROUGHT TO YOU BY YOUR SERVICE CLUB'
He decided to pay Dr. Utiey a visit and found him loading provisions in a four-wheel-drive utility vehicle in front of a prefabricated metal building. Utiey stopped and gave Kerney a friendly
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