Porter Island (standard:action, 1620 words) [1/3] show all parts
Author: Brian Cross	Updated: May 07 2024	Views/Reads: 443/219	Part vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Agent Betty McCloud, alias Amanda Thornton, embarks on her most hazardous assignment yet, and she's not getting any younger.

PORTER ISLAND A Betty McCloud novel by Brian Cross Chapter One 

The call came early morning. Much too early for Betty McCloud's liking,
having barely finished and rubbed down from her routine dawn workout. 
Sighing at the unwelcome intrusion, she marched across her reinforced 
gym floor and snatched the receiver from its cradle. “Yes,” she blared. 
“Whoa—whoa,” came the gravelly voice on the line.  “What's got you in 
such a doggone mood?” 

Betty sighed and rolled her eyes. “Mike Anthony. I don't get to hear
from you in a year or more, and then you call barely past dawn. What's 
so drastically important that you disrupt me at this unheard of hour?” 
“Aw, I knew you'd be up, Betty. Quit with the grumpy manner.” A deep 
breath and then, “We need you out of retirement,” came the blunt 
statement. 

“Just like that ...” 

“Just like that. Betty, we've an assignment that requires your
exceptional powers.” 

“Mike ...” Betty heaved a breath and twirled a lock of her thick, black,
shoulder-length hair around her finger. “I'm forty-four years old; 
those powers aren't exceptional any longer.” 

“That so? We'll see. My guess is that they are. But we'll put you
through your paces.” 

“Just hold on, Mike. I haven't agreed to anything.” Betty's voice rose a
notch. “I haven't said I'll do it, and come to that, you haven't told 
me what it is that ...” 

“Not over the phone, Betty. You know better than that. And besides,
you've never been able to resist a challenge. So, okay, I'm asking you 
formally, “How about it?” 

“Okay, here's the deal.” Betty chewed her lip. “You disclose the nitty
gritty, and I'll consider it. But mark my words ... I'm not what I 
was.” 

“Says the woman who tamed a whole notorious town single-handed. But be
that as it may,” Anthony added before Betty could retort, “we get to 
decide that.” A pause as Anthony appeared to deliberate. “Tell you 
what, we'll come to you. There's a quiet joint about fifteen miles out 
of Corrisville, a place by the name of Whispering Pines, Guilder's 
Creek, you ...” 

“Call that coming to me?” Betty scoffed. “Yeah, I know it. When?” 

“Tomorrow at ten-thirty,” Anthony croaked. 

“That soon, eh?” 

“Correct,” Anthony asserted. “Come on, Betty. You'll have gathered by
now this is a priority matter.” 

And with that, Anthony was gone. Betty replaced the receiver a little
less forcefully than she picked it up. Were her powers declining, or 
was that just a line? Certainly her speed wasn't what it was, but her 
physical strength hadn't declined one iota. Her muscles were as well 
developed as ever, her brain was as quick as any, and the prospect of 
renewing her association with the FBI was tempting. 

She thought back to her arrival in Corrisville. The town had gained a
reputation of such lawlessness that it attracted the attention of the 
FBI and, subsequently, Betty McCloud. Betty having gained the 
reputation of being the finest in her field, had been assigned to the 
mission in the guise of a schoolteacher and gradually, due to her 
combination of enormous strength, speed, and quick thinking, had 
single-handedly transformed the place into a normal, peaceful US town. 

But that was a few years ago, and in those few years, things had
changed, and in terms of age, not necessarily for the better. How would 
she perform in any so-called test? It would be interesting to find out, 
and Mike was sure right in one thing – she couldn't resist a challenge. 


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