Joseph didn’t have to awaken Miriam, for two minutes later she was knocking at his trailer’s door.
In the early light of dawn, the team assembled on the parking lot. Piping-hot coffee was served to temporarily alleviate the morning chill. While the crew members milled about the campgrounds, curious as to what the line of traffic visible a half-mile away meant, a single van cut off towards Ocean Beach Park. A cloud of dust trailed behind it as the vehicle snaked down the narrow access road and ground to a halt in the lot’s far corner.
Four men immediately emerged from the van’s interior. Two of these individuals proceeded to the rear of the vehicle, where they began unloading a large television camera and other video equipment.
Another of the men began setting up a tripod, on top of which he mounted a sophisticated 35-mm. camera.
The fourth individual merely stood beside the van, catching his reflection in its side windows. Tall, handsome, and immaculately dressed in a suit and tie, he studied his appearance as Miriam and Joseph approached.
“Good morning,” greeted Miriam rather sheepishly.
Not in the least bit surprised by this intrusion, the man made a final adjustment to his collar, then turned and flashed the two newcomers a broad, toothy smile.
“And a top of the morning to you two,” said the tanned gentleman, his dark eyes quickly sizing up his visitors.
“And I thought we had this story all to ourselves.”
“You’re Roger Winslow, the TV news reporter, aren’t you?” queried Joseph, his dark eyes beaming.
“This is me in the flesh,” answered the anchorman boldly.
“KXBC’s finest will scoop the networks yet once again.”
“What do you mean by that?” quizzed Miriam, who was an infrequent television viewer.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” replied the reporter.
“You mean to say you honestly don’t know what we’ve been called out of our warm beds to witness this morning?”
Catching the pair of puzzled expressions on the faces of his two ragtag visitors, Roger Winslow stifled a laugh.
“And here I thought that you guys were from Rolling Stone, or some other ecological journal, here to record your own story. I guess we’ll have an exclusive after all. May I ask what brings you guys to this godforsaken portion of the California coastline? It sure can’t be for the surfing.”
It was Miriam who answered.
“We’re here on an archaeological dig for the State University.”
“Ah, a bunch of genuine bone-pickers,” jested Winslow.
Rather impatiently, Miriam continued, “Would it be too presumptuous of us to ask exactly what you’re doing here this morning?”
Checking his watch, Winslow then angled his line of sight to catch the progress of his cameramen.
“I guess a single leak won’t hurt in this instance. You’re going to damn well know what this is all about soon enough anyway. Might as well be ready for it.”
Shifting his glance to the south, the direction the assembled cameras were now facing, the reporter pointed to the fog-shrouded hills that lay in the distance.
“In a couple of minutes, if all goes as scheduled, we’ll be witnessing the launch of a Titan rocket.”
With this revelation, a look of genuine surprise showed on Miriam’s face.
“So that’s why they made us leave Tranquillon Ridge! At least Colonel Lansford could have told us about it.”
“I’m afraid not, lady,” retorted the newsman.
“This whole launch is strictly a hush-hush affair, on a need-to-know basis only. We only heard about it late last night, through one of our ever-loving moles stationed inside Vandenberg. From what he gathered, it seems even the Air Force was caught off guard by the speed with which this whole thing came down.”
“Well, this should really be something!” exclaimed Joseph.
“I’ve always wanted to watch a real launch.
Why don’t I go over and tell the kids what this is all about. They’re going to be thrilled.”
As Joseph hurriedly crossed the lot to share the news with the rest of the dig team, Miriam found her gaze locked on the southern horizon. There, the surrounding hillsides were barely visible, covered in a cloak of thick, gray fog.
“Do you think this fog will delay the launch any?” she asked softly.
“I doubt it,” answered Winslow.
“If the Air Force was worried about fog, they sure wouldn’t have chosen Vandenberg as their Pacific missile-launch site.
As I’m certain you’re well aware, if you’ve spent more than a couple of days here, clear mornings are an exception, and definitely not the rule. I seriously doubt if this fog is going to stop them.”
The reporter’s attention was diverted by a hand signal from one of the nearby technicians. Checking his watch again, he squared his shoulders and took a last look at his reflection in the van’s window.
“It looks like it’s show time. I’d better get over to my crew and check out those last-minute details. If you’re still around afterwards, maybe we could get together. I’d like to know more about what you folks are digging for up here.”
Not giving Miriam time to respond, the reporter took off to join his crew. Miriam watched as he stationed himself before the tripods. A tiny microphone was clipped to his tie and a dab of makeup applied to his cheeks and forehead. Standing there with his back to mist-shrouded Tranquillon Ridge and the hills beyond, the handsome anchorman looked out of place in his suit and tie. It was while Miriam was contemplating this fact that a familiar voice came from behind her.
“Hey, Boss!” cried Joseph.
“Why don’t you join us? We’re going to climb up the railroad trestle to see if we can get a better view of the launch site.”
Deciding that this didn’t sound like a bad idea, Miriam crossed the parking lot and rejoined her group. Seconds later, they were off to the path that led towards the beach.
Once the group had made it to the top of the hill that held the railroad tracks, they settled down on its sandy shoulder. The view indeed proved to be an excellent one. From this vantage point, the Pacific could be seen crashing to their right, while both the parking lot and the valley leading to the city of Lompoc were visible to their left. But all eyes remained focused straight ahead, to the hills lying to the immediate south.
One of the students had thought to bring a thermos of coffee and a supply of cups, and they were soon available to all those who desired them. Contentedly sipping her coffee, Miriam savored its warmth and taste. As she brought the mug to her lips, she noticed a bright blue patch of sky visible above them. Well aware that the morning fog was already beginning to burn off, she stirred when a strange deep-throated rumble sounded in the distance. Steadily rising in intensity, the resulting noise was almost ear-shattering.
Accompanying this deafening blast was a burst of brilliant white light. This was soon followed by a plume of billowing smoke as the first portion of the rocket became visible.
Larger than she had expected, the missile rose skyward from the valley directly adjoining Tranquil Ion Ridge. It was comprised of a long central fuselage, painted white and silver, and two shorter white boosters that straddled it. Ascending steadily into the air, the rocket roared with great power from its engines. It was unlike any sound that she had ever heard before, and Miriam found herself invigorated and thrilled. Only when the Titan momentarily disappeared into a low bank of clouds did she turn to share this unique experience with her team.
With eyes glued skywards, her crew seemed mesmerized.
Only Joseph Solares met her gaze. A wide, wondrous smile etched her assistant’s lips, and Miriam returned a simple nod of acknowledgment.