"Yes, sir. Did-did we hit him?"
"I wish we had. We may have a ninja aboard."
"Oh, God."
There was an immediate search of all available hiding places. They even emptied the wall waste receptacle.
"No ninja in here, Major."
"Let's keep it that way. Don't open the door for anyone except me."
Grimm passed through to the next car just as the rear-end security team was entering from the other end.
"Any sign of that fool ninja?"
"No sir, Major sir."
"Damn. Could we have messed up?"
"Not possible, sir. All hiding places checked out clean."
Grimm went to the intercom and got the security car. "Security cameras. Anything?"
"No, Major. Nothing visible on the outside of the car. Sensors indicate nothing crouching along the right-of-way."
"Damn. He must be on the train. He's not on board. So where the hell is he?"
"Did you check the missile-launch car?"
"Now, how would he get in there? It's locked up tighter than my mother-in-law's constipated ass."
"Well, he is a ninja, Major. You know how they are."
"I'm beginning to get a nasty inkling," Grimm said bitterly.
Exiting the car, they locked it up and surrounded the Hy-Cube car.
Grimm faced his security team. "I need a volunteer to enter the MLC car."
Several airmen raised their hands. One stepped forward. Grimm decided he liked the man's initiative. "You game for this, Airman?"
"Yes, sir. I've seen a lot of ninja movies. I know what the little buggers are likely to do."
"Okay. Just don't get yourself strangled."
Two airmen ducked under the Hy-Cube car and undogged the underside hatch with a special tool. The volunteer airman crawled under next and, flashlight in one hand and side arm in the other, started to squeeze in.
"See anything?" Grimm hissed.
The airman's "No" was hollow.
His belt disappeared, and then his legs pulled up and out of sight.
They waited for word. Five minutes by Major Grimm's watch. When it was ten, Grimm hissed, "What's keeping that airman?"
The security officer shrugged helplessly.
Taking a flashlight, Grimm crawled under and used the light. He washed light all over the access tunnel and saw nothing.
"Airman. Call out."
Silence came back.
"Airman!"
"Maybe he can't hear way in there," someone suggested.
"Damn. Somebody rap on the side of the car."
Flashlights banged the side of the modern Hy-Cube boxcar.
"Airman!" Grimm shouted.
The airman failed to respond or reappear.
Ducking out from under the car, Major Grimm said, "I need another volunteer. One with ninja movie-watching experience preferably."
This time Grimm got sheepish expressions instead of waving hands.
"The national security of the U.S. of A. may be at stake here. If I don't get a volunteer, I'm going to have to pick one."
Two men stepped forward, faces stiff.
"Fine. You both go in. One first and the other right behind him. Make a human chain. That way, we don't lose voice contact."
It was an excellent plan. It fell apart when the first airman thrust his upper torso into the access hatch and fell back down on his butt-minus his head.
The head tumbled down to fall into his lap. It looked very surprised. The mouth opened and it seemed to be trying to say something when the eyes rolled up to show whites, and a tiny sigh escaped from both ends of the severed windpipe.
"Get that body out of the way!" Grimm snapped.
The security team started dragging and vomiting.
"Okay. We have the ninja cornered. All we got to do is flush him out. Suggestions?"
"Can we open the roof doors?"