Tom Swift Jr #35, Chapter 7: The Man From Texas

“My luggage!” Irene screamed. She stared at their plane in horror as it became a raging inferno. Thick black smoke bellowed from the aircraft and began rising high in the desert sky.

“Run faster!” Tom shouted. The explosion had startled the crowd, and when they saw the plane burst into flames they began to scatter. Tom quickly looked around for a way of escape and spotted a small vehicle up ahead.

“That way!” he said, grabbing Irene and pulling the short girl away from the plane. The two began running with all their might toward the jeep Tom had spotted, desperately hoping to reach it before the mob regained their senses and came after them. The jeep was parked beside a small propeller-driven aircraft that had landed just before Tom’s jet. The pilot had already disembarked and was busy carrying the passenger’s copious amount of luggage to the back of the vehicle.

What really caught Tom’s eye was the plane’s passenger. A rather large, sun-bronzed man stepped off the plane right after the pilot. The balding individual was wearing an incredibly bright red-and-yellow outfit that was covered in sequins. It was one of the gaudiest pieces of clothing Tom had ever seen, and yet the man was wearing it with all the pride of someone who had just purchased a thousand-dollar suit.

The explosion startled the two men, and they ran to the jeep. The plane’s passenger beat the pilot and jumped into the driver’s seat, forcing the pilot to the seat beside him. Just as they were about to leave Tom and Irene reached the vehicle and leaped into the back seat.

“Let’s get out of here!” Tom shouted.

The brightly-dressed man nodded his head and floored it. With tires squealing he whipped the jeep around and plowed out into the desert, away from the mob and the airport itself. When he had a moment to catch his breath he spoke up. “Brand my pitchforks, but that’s some mob behind us! What in tarnation is going on?”

“I wish I knew,” Tom said, as he watched his jet burn to the ground. “We’d just gotten off the plane when they showed up.”

“I can’t believe they destroyed my luggage,” Irene said angrily. “Who do those rats think they are?”

The driver shouted over the roar of the jeep as he drove it at high speeds across the uneven ground. “I reckon we oughta run now and ask questions later. Pleasure to meet y’all! Name’s Charles Winkler, though my friends call me Chow.”

“And I’m Captain Thorndyke,” the other passenger said. “We’d just flown in from Texas.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Tom said. “My name is Tom Swift, and this is my friend Irene Goddard.”

“Ya don’t say,” Chow replied. He swerved to miss a ditch, and plowed over a bump that rattled Tom’s teeth. “Hey, you ain’t kin to the famous Tom Swift, are ya? I’ve heard he’s real bright.”

Tom bit his lip, and Irene tried to suppress a smile. “Yes, Tom Swift is his father. We just flew in from Swift Enterprises. Nitro gave us a bit more of a reception than what we’re used to. Believe me, I would so love to return the favor.”

By now the jeep had left the airport behind them and had found its way to a major main road. Tom glanced at the speedometer and saw that they were going in excess of 90 miles an hour.

“Is it legal to drive that fast?” Tom asked.

Chow shrugged. “I don’t know ’bout you, son, but when fellers start tossin’ grenades and such at me I figure it’s time to get gettin’. Speed limits ain’t intended for war zones.”

“That was a grenade?” Tom asked. “Are you sure?”

Irene sighed and slumped down into her seat. “It doesn’t really matter, Tom. We can find out what it was after the mob leaves. I’m sure your dad will have the authorities come out and investigate, and they’ll tell us what happened. But our luggage is gone forever.”

“It sounds like y’all need a hand,” Chow said. “I don’t hafta be at the ranch until tomorrow. What say I drive you into town and we rustle up some supplies?”

“That may not be a good idea right now,” Tom warned. “I’d like to know why the townspeople tried to kill us before we start strolling down main street. For all I know they might try it again. They seemed to think we were one of the harbingers of the apocalypse.”

Captain Thorndyke spoke up. “I find it hard to believe that the average man on the street would have access to grenades. I don’t mean to pry, but you don’t have any enemies, do you?”

Tom smiled wryly. “The Swifts have always had enemies, Captain, large and small. It comes with the territory.”

“We need to call your dad and let him know what happened,” Irene said. “Maybe we can do that at the safety of the Institute. It’s pretty well-guarded.”

“If you don’t mind, where were you headed?” the captain asked.

“Swift Enterprises is building a research facility about fifteen miles outside of town,” Tom said. “That was our intended destination.”

“Then let’s do this,” the captain replied. “What if Chow drives us to the research facility and drops us off? He can stay and make lunch for you while I drive into town, pick up some supplies, and see what’s going on. Do you think you’ll be able to contact your dad from there?”

“We should be able to,” Irene said.

“I am getting kind of hungry,” Tom replied.

“Then yer in fer a real treat,” Chow said. “Cookin’ jes happens to be my specialty, and I’ve got everything I need right here with me to rustle up somethin’ tasty. Kin you steer me toward this place o’ yers?”

“Absolutely,” Tom said, smiling. “And thanks so much for your help.”

* * * * *

An hour later Tom, Irene, and Chow were at Institute. The captain had just dropped them off and took the jeep back into town, promising to be back with clothing and other supplies later that afternoon.

“This here’s some place you got, Tom!” Chow said. “Ain’t never seen nothin’ like it.”

Tom smiled. As far as the eye could see there was nothing but crumbling rocks in a vast, empty desert. In the distance were some pink cliffs, but there were absolutely no signs of civilization at all. The compound was walled off from the rest of the world by a large, barbed-wire fence, and guards constantly paroled the perimeter. Inside the grounds were scaffolds, construction materials, large earth-moving machines, and the skeletons of enormous buildings. Even two weeks before Christmas the construction site was still bustling with activity.

“We’re building our newest research laboratory here,” Tom explained to Chow. “This is where we’re going to split atoms.”

“Whatever you say, boss,” Chow said, as he began unpacking his cooking utensils. “I’ll handle the cookin’ and I’ll let you handle the atom-smashin’.”

“Where are you going to cook?” Irene asked.

“Right here, o’course,” Chow replied. “Where’d you think?”

Irene looked around. “But we’re not near a kitchen, Chow. I don’t even know if there’s a functional kitchen anywhere on the premises.”

“That ain’t no problem, miss. I’m a range cook. All I need’s a fire and my pans. There ain’t much in the way of kitchens out in the open prairies of Texas.”

“I guess not,” Irene replied. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Thanks, but I can handle it, ma’am,” the cook replied. Then he got a thoughtful look in his eye. “Although let me know if ya see any rattlers in the area. I cook a real mean rattlesnake soup.”

Irene gasped, and Tom burst out laughing. “Sure thing, Chow.”

“He’s serious,” Irene whispered. “Are you nuts?”

“C’mon, Ace. Where’s your spirit of adventure?”

“I left it at home in the glove compartment box of my car,” Irene said tartly. “There is no way I am going to eat a rattlesnake. Period.”

Tom shook his head mockingly. “What a pity.” He then spoke up so Chow could hear him. “Say, Chow, the residential quarters are over there. Irene and I are going to head in that direction to see if we can call Dad and give him a quick update. We’ll be back shortly.”

“Don’t you worry none,” Chow said, as the two began jogging toward the building. “I’ve got it all under control. When y’all get back I’ll have the best vegetable soup ready you’ve ever tasted.”

Thirty minutes later Tom and Irene started walking back to Chow. The residential facility did not have any telephone lines, but it did have a radio and Tom was able to get in touch with George Dilling, the chief radio operator at Swift Enterprises. He quickly tracked down Tom’s father and the two had a brief conversation.

“Dad took that pretty well, considering,” Tom remarked.

“He’s just glad we’re alive,” Irene said. “No one thought that coming down here might be dangerous.”

Tom nodded. “I do think he’s right about one thing, though. It’s just too risky to fly into the Nitro airport anymore. Until we know what’s going on we shouldn’t take any chances.”

“I agree, but that won’t really help you and me, though,” Irene remarked. “I mean, I know your dad’s putting every available man on the job, but there’s no way he can build a world-class airport out in the middle of the desert in just a couple of days.”

“Not necessarily,” Tom said slowly. “You really don’t need all that much to get a plane in the air. I think he can put together a rudimentary airstrip pretty fast. I just feel bad about losing that jet. That was a nice plane.”

“By the way, I didn’t realize George still worked at the plant. For some reason I thought he’d been transferred to that island.”

“Oh, you mean Fearing?” Tom asked. “No, not yet. Dad wanted to finish the Institute before starting construction on the new rocket base. We’re still a few years away from building spacecraft.”

“But that day will come,” Irene said. Her eyes sparkled. “Space travel! Can you imagine? Who knows what we’ll find out there?”

Tom grinned. “As long as we don’t encounter any rattlesnake soup you should be fine.”

Irene glared at him.

Chow had lunch ready shortly after they got back. After assuring both of them that it did not contain any unusual meats the two dived in.

“This is delicious!” Irene said. “But where did you get the food to fix it?”

“It’s always best to be prepared, ma’am,” Chow remarked. “I’ve seen an awful lot happen, ‘specially when you’re dealing with the desert. Texas ain’t always a forgiving place.”

When lunch had been cleaned up the three of them spent some time touring the grounds. Chow told them stories of his days as a chuck-wagon cook in the wide-open spaces of Texas, and as the day wore on they slowly forgot the traumatic events of the day and returned to their usual selves.

That evening Thorndyke returned in the jeep. “I got all the supplies you mentioned,” he said, as the group unloaded the jeep and carried the supplies into the Institute’s dormitories.

“Thanks,” Irene said warmly. She elbowed Tom gently. “Tom here will be more than happy to repay you.”

“Oh, right,” Tom said, getting out his wallet.

As she went through the bags to see what Thorndyke had forgotten to purchase Tom spoke up. “Did you find out what was going on?”

“I’m afraid so,” the captain said grimly, handing Tom a newspaper. He glanced at the headline and gasped.

“NUCLEAR FALLOUT IMMINENT!” he read aloud. “This afternoon Tom Swift Jr., the sixteen-year-old son of Tom Swift, is scheduled to begin testing his own nuclear-powered aircraft. Experts warn that the experimental reactor could easily become critical and explode, showing our fair city with nuclear fallout.” Tom gritted his teeth in anger. “That’s completely wrong!”

“I know,” Irene said. “You’re actually seventeen. They missed your birthday.”

Tom ignored Irene and continued to read the rest of the article silently. When he was done he gave the paper to her. “This is terrible! No wonder we were met by an angry mob.”

“Is there any truth at all in the article?” Thorndyke asked.

“There’s very little,” Tom said. “It’s true that I am looking at ways to apply nuclear power to aircraft, although how they knew that I don’t know. That’s one of our most top-secret projects. But we are months away from even beginning the construction of a test aircraft, much less actually fly it. The only reason we came out today was to look at the construction site, and that was supposed to be a secret too.”

“Apparently y’all got a leak,” Chow commented. “Looks like yer secrets are front-page news down in this-here town.”

“So it would seem,” Tom replied sourly. “But look, captain. I don’t know who this ‘expert’ is, but the idea of the reactor exploding like a nuclear bomb is completely ridiculous. I won’t go into all the details, but even in a worst-case scenario the type of fuel used in a commercial nuclear reactor isn’t nearly enriched enough to explode. The worst that could happen is it could melt down and release radioactive material, which is a very far cry from turning Nitro into a crater. But even that should be impossible thanks to our Tomasite shielding.”

“I didn’t catch hide nor hair of that, Tom,” Chow said apologetically. “Ya gotta make it real simple.”

“I can handle that,” Irene said, as she finished reading the article and handed it back to the captain. “The article is a pack of lies that got my entire summer wardrobe burned to ashes. I intend to find whoever wrote it and hang him from the nearest tree.”

“We’re in a desert,” Tom pointed out. “There aren’t any trees.”

“I’ll think of something,” Irene said threateningly.

“Now that I understand,” Chow said. “But how’re ya gonna find out who’s responsible?”

“She’s not,” Tom said. “I’ll call Dad and let him know what we found out, and he will let the legal arm of Swift Enterprises handle it.”

“Speak for yourself,” Irene said. “This doesn’t call for lawyers, Tom. It calls for a direct and overwhelming response.”

Tom sighed. “Look, Ace, I know you’re upset. But we both know that Xanthus is behind this. I’m sure we haven’t heard the last of him, and I’m also sure that there’s nothing I can do about it. I’d really rather just get back to work.”

“Who?” Chow asked.

“An old friend of the family, apparently,” Tom said off-handedly.

“Tom,” Irene said, “I know I’m upset. But someone tried to kill us today. If I were you I wouldn’t let other people handle it. In my book, attempted murder is significant enough to warrant a little personal attention. If Xanthus isn’t stopped he will keep coming back, and each time he does the stakes will get higher and the destruction will become greater. Today he told us that he’s playing for keeps.”

“I know,” Tom said, sighing. “But look, Ace, Dad has dealt with things like this many, many, many times. He can handle it. It’s what he does.”

“Maybe so,” Irene said. “But remember this, skipper: death is forever. Once you die you can’t come back.”