A Warranted Box Set

by Shannon Nemechek

  Chapter 15

  “Sammie, you done in there?” Raleigh yelled through the door. “Why you got the door locked, darlin’?” Raleigh asked, puzzled that Sam had locked him out of the bathroom.

  “What you say?” she yelled back. “I’m in the shower.”

  “I know, baby. Why did you lock the door?”

  “Sorry, I didn’t realize it locked.” Samantha reached her hand out of the shower, grabbed the handle, and popped the lock free.

  Raleigh swung the door open, pulling the shower curtain at the same time. “Gotta see that sexy ass, shake it for me,” he said laughing. Samantha joyfully obliged, but it wasn’t but seconds when she closed the curtain and said, “It’s too cold unless you are gonna jump in this shower with me to warm me up. Besides, we gotta finish getting ready and go over for that meeting this morning. Don’t want to keep your buddies waiting,” she teased as she tossed a soaked washcloth his way. It smacked right into his backside, leaving an enormous wet spot on the back of his uniform.

  “Awe, Sammie, now I am gonna look like I pissed my pants.”

  Samantha couldn’t help but laugh and reply, “Well, if the shoe fits.”

  Raleigh pulled back the curtain and swatted her ass, then moved his hand between her thighs, finding her wetness as he explored. “Aren’t you a bold one today? All full of piss and vinegar.” A grin stretched across his face, and he said, “That’s okay. I got your number, and I’m countin’ down the minutes. When I get down to zero, we will be back here. I am gonna put you over my knee and spank that fine ass of yours, then I just might have to bend you over and give you a stiff…” pausing then, he grinned wickedly and said, “…drink. A good stiff drink.” They both laughed uncontrollably.

  She looked at this incredibly sexy man who had already made her so very happy and had filled her life with fun and laughter. She smiled as she grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her breasts.

  “I’ll be ready in a few minutes. Do you think you could run to the machine and grab me a Diet Pepsi? Please?” she begged as she grabbed another towel and twisted her hair into it.

  “Yes, my queen, anything for you.” He bowed, then she grabbed her towel and slapped him with it.

  “Funny! Ha ha, now get!” She giggled, chasing him out the door as he laughed, avoiding her swings, then blew her a kiss as the door closed.

  ***

  Samantha grabbed her uniform, quickly getting dressed and lacing up her boots. She pulled her hair back into a bun and was putting her makeup on when Raleigh returned with her Diet Pepsi. He stood in front of her as he bowed and held his hand out to her with the soda in his hand. He looked down at the floor and said, “My queen, you are too beautiful for me to gaze upon. Please take this Diet Pepsi as a signal of my unwavering loyalty and undying love for you.” Getting down on one knee, he held out the soda, and as she reached down to grab the drink, Raleigh grabbed her hand and kissed it.

  “Rise, Sir Raleigh. You shall be my jester for the day,” she said as Raleigh rose to his feet. When he heard the word “jester,” he let out a belly-jiggling laugh. Samantha slapped him on the top of his head with her hat. “Funny man today, huh? Well, two can play that game,” she replied.

  “Not trying to be funny, Sammie. You are my queen, and you deserve to be treated as such. I will make it my life’s work to serve you any way you want.” Then he winked at her, repeating his previous promise, “Anyway, Anytime, and Anywhere.”

  “I will hold you to that, Raleigh Dwight Fitzgerald. Till then, I need to finish getting ready, so we can get to this meeting. How much time we got?” Samantha asked as she was finishing her makeup and spraying her wet hair down with hairspray to keep it sleek and hold it in place for the day.

  Raleigh stood and watched her, leaning into the bathroom door frame. “About forty-five minutes, enough time to grab some breakfast sandwiches at the shoppette and a coffee for me,” he replied. “You can fill up that huge foam cup you carry around everywhere. How big is that thing anyway?”

  “It’s forty-four ounces of pure heavenly fizzy caffeine,” she replied, grabbing her jacket from the chair and buttoning it. She grabbed her hat and looked at Raleigh. “Okay, darlin’, I am ready for the day.”

  Raleigh watched her as she walked past him and grabbed her backpack from the table. She turned around and asked, “You coming or do I gotta drag ya out the door?” She smiled, waiting for his response as she opened the door.

  “Not yet, but I plan on doing it a lot tonight, for you and me both,” he replied, grabbing his bag and giving her a playful shove out the door.

  ***

  Raleigh

  Once they arrived, Raleigh checked in with Matt, and they all walked down the hallway to the general’s office. Raleigh knocked on the door and waited for the general to acknowledge them.

  “Fitz, is that you?” General Andrews yelled.

  “Yes, sir. I’m with Major Chambers and Sergeant O’Hara. May we come in?” Raleigh stood in front of the general’s door yelling. He looked at Samantha and whispered, “I feel like an idiot yelling at this door.” Samantha giggled as the general ordered them to come in. Chance Maxwell was already in the room, seated in front of the desk as General Andrews continued to tell Chance his story. “So as I was saying, when we got to the LZ and had been waiting for at least twenty minutes, my damn cell phone rang. I picked it up, and it was the commander of the Eighty-Second, and apparently the damn pilot had dropped them in the wrong LZ—they were twenty-five miles away. I never laughed so hard in my life! Then I turned around and told the commander, ‘Well, you are the Eighty-Second, so ground pound it back here,’ and they ended up doing a twenty-five-mile road march back here. Damn fly boys will fuck it up every time. Got my people out there to support them with water and MREs, but I will never forget that shit as long as I live. That damn battalion commander wanted the division to come pick them up in buses. No fucking soldier of mine is gonna bus it back when they have the chance to road march.”

  “So how long did it take them to get back?” Chance asked.

  “The whole damn day. Got back here at twenty-one hundred hours. And since they completed it, I gave the entire battalion a four-day weekend.”

  Chance nodded and replied, “Well, seems it was worth it to ‘em then.”

  “Yeah, appeared that way, but some whiny little bitches complained to the Inspector General, then I had IG all up in our asses. But they found that we broke no regulations, so it was cleared up.”

  Chance laughed and replied, “There are always one in every group. Doesn’t matter if it’s the Eighty-Second or the CIA, there is always one.”

  Raleigh cleared his throat to try and regain the general’s attention. It worked because the general replied, “What’s wrong, Fitz? You got a dick in your throat?” He laughed as he stood up and reached for Raleigh’s hand and shook it. “How was your night, Fitz? Didn’t get your room shot up again, I hope?”

  “No, sir. Was just a quiet evening. Sergeant O’Hara and I went over some paperwork then hit the hay.”

  General Andrews grabbed Raleigh by the elbow and whispered, “Paperwork, huh?” They smiled, and in agreement, Raleigh winked back at his friend. The general stepped back and changed the subject to cut down the thickness of the room air. “Is it getting hot in here?” He laughed. Raleigh quickly changed the subject.

  “Sir, if I may. Can I ask how the transfers went?” Raleigh wondered.

  “Fine, Fitz. Transfers went through Human Resources command without a hitch. Chance called Langley and gave the orders a push through. So you will both need to get with transportation to have your household goods moved here. Sergeant O’Hara, you are attached to the Criminal Investigation Division, but you will be reporting to the old post office just down the road. Fitz, you will be assigned back to the Ninth, but you will be attached to the old post office under my command with Agent Maxwell and yourself as lead investigators. Sergeant O’Hara, I will have personnel change your MOS back to Military
Police with Unit Supply as your secondary. Is everyone happy?”

  Raleigh and Samantha nodded their heads in agreement, and General Andrews smiled. “Good, one big happy family. Everyone ready to work now?” he questioned.

  “Yes, sir,” they all said in unison.

  “Well, let’s get down to brass tacks then. What are we looking at here?”

  Chance was the first to speak up. “Well sir, we have a couple of scenarios goin’ on here. First, we have Saheed Al-Balshera and his Al-Qaida cell organization. Second, we have the Thompson couple’s murders in their jail cells. Third, we have Senator Josh Warren’s connection to Saheed. Fourth, the attack on Chief Fitzgerald in his hotel suite. And fifth, we have maps and financial records and a possible abduction of UAV pilots in the area of operations in Afghanistan. Whew, I think I covered it all. So what I believe that we need to do is prioritize and divide and conquer.”

  “Well, that is a lot of god damn scenarios, Mr. Maxwell. How would you propose that we divide and conquer?” the general asked, tapping his fingers on his desk.

  Chance paused then replied, “I propose that Chief and Sergeant O’Hara work the case they have been working, the murders of Jared Thompson and his wife Semeana, as well as the Saheed connection to the UAV pilots. I will work the Senator and Saheed connection, and we will meet daily if possible but be in constant communication. Sergeant O’Hara, at times you and I will be working together, so be prepared to go back and forth between cases. I know you will have no issues and may be able to provide more insight since you will be knowledgeable about both. Chief, is that okay with you?” Chance asked Raleigh.

  “Yes, that works. Sergeant O’Hara is quite well versed in our investigation as well as a capable investigator herself. So I know she will be prepared to handle both of us and can give briefings on the status of both inquiries. Sergeant, are you prepared to deal with us both?” Raleigh asked. “You know I am quite a pain in the ass already. You just have to learn to deal with another,” he said, laughing.

  Samantha thought for a second, placing her hand on her chin as if she was in deep thought, and replied, “Well, Chief, the way I figure it is if I can put up with you, I can deal with anyone.”

  General Andrews burst out laughing and quickly replied, “Sergeant, you hit the nail on the head on that one. You already have them both in the bag—these two are exactly alike—both huge pains in the asses.”

  “Hey now…” Raleigh replied, laughing. “I resemble that remark.”

  Chance joined in. “Yeah, I think the old man knows us pretty well, Chief.”

  “Chance, I’ve known you since you were still suckin’ on your momma’s tit. So ya best behave, or I will tell your momma on ya.” General Andrews snickered then opened his desk drawer, grabbed a set of keys, and handed them to Raleigh. “Chief, these are the keys to the old post office. Have Major Chambers take ya down there to do inventory. You can grab the sheet from my adjutant then when you’re done, sign the hand receipt and hand it back to him. He will file it away. Chance, I gotta have a green suiter sign for the building. I hope you understand?”

  “Yes, sir. I sure do. No problem,” Chance replied, grabbing his bag. “I think I will go with them if you don’t mind me getting a feel for the place. Are the secure lines hooked up?”

  “Yep! They are hot so you can start working immediately,” the general replied.

  “Perfect. I need to send some of this information Chief found in the strong box and have Langley review it, see if there are any overlapping records or matching financials,” Chance said as he scooped up some of the paperwork and handed it to Samantha. “I will let you carry this, and once we get to the post office, you can scan them into SIPRnet for me.”

  “Sure thing, sir,” Samantha replied.

  “It’s Chance. You can call me Chance since we will all be working closely together.”

  “All right, Chance it is,” Samantha replied, her arms stuffed with the contents of the strong box that she and Raleigh had collected at the post office the day before. She looked over at Raleigh, waiting for his signal to leave the office and head down to the truck.

  “Well sir, I think we will head over to the building and get set up. If you need anything, you have my cell, and I will keep you briefed. Thank you for everything, sir,” Raleigh said as he grabbed both his bag and Samantha’s since her arms were full of paperwork and maps.

  “Okay, Chief, stay outta trouble and don’t get shot on the way over there,” General Andrews said as he walked over to Raleigh and shook his hand.

  Raleigh laughed, shook his old friend’s hand, then followed Chance, Major Chambers, and Samantha out the door and to their vehicles.

  “Mr. Maxwell, why don’t you follow us over and we will get this inventory knocked out? Then you can get started with Sergeant O’Hara on what you need to get done. Major, if you can call over to the detention center and set up some interviews with the guards who were on duty the other night, that would help tremendously.”

  Both men agreed, got into their vehicles, and followed Samantha and Raleigh down the street to the old post office building. As they rode over, Raleigh looked over at Samantha, placed his hand on her leg, then asked, “Sammie, how are you feeling, darlin’?”

  “I’m okay. I’m feeling better than last night for sure,” she replied.

  “Good. We’ll grab lunch down at the officer’s club after this inventory. How does that sound?” he asked.

  “Sounds great! You know me, I am always hungry,” she said.

  “Oh yes, and that is one of the many reasons I love you. You eat. You aren’t one of those girls that act like they are afraid of gaining a pound,” he said as he parked the truck in front of the old post office.

  “You ready to see our new digs?” he commented as he opened his door and walked over to help her out.

  “I am always ready.” She smiled and followed him to the door. Chance and Matt were already waiting when they arrived.

  Unlocking and opening the door, Raleigh held it as Samantha and the others followed her in, then Raleigh switched on the light of the old place. “Looks like it needs some cleaning but it should do with what we need it for. Thanks again, Matty. I know you had something to do with this,” Raleigh said as Matt stepped into a room just off the lobby area.

  “Chief, I figure this will be your office. It was the Postmaster’s office. It needs some cleaning too, but it has got this big old oak desk.” Matt pointed to the massive desk in the back of the room. “Damn, I think that desk is as big as my office back in Alabama. I can definitely get used to being a pog desk jockey.” He laughed as he got comfortable in the enormous leather chair that sat behind the desk.

  “I can think of some other stuff that might be fun at this desk, too.” Raleigh winked at Samantha.

  Matt’s face scrunched as he thought of what Raleigh had just said. “Awe, man keep that shit to yourself. I don’t wanna know what you do when the door is closed.” But he laughed just the same. “Fitz, you just ain’t right. I’m gonna go find myself an office. You two make yourself comfortable, but not too comfortable. We still got a full day of work.” Matt winked at Raleigh as he stepped toward the door. “I’ll give the suit a hand with his stuff outside.”

  Chapter 16

  “Hey, Agent Maxell, can you come in here please?” Raleigh asked the agent who had walked past his door.

  “Yeah, What’s up, chief? By the way, you can call me Chance. We are gonna be working together,” Chance said as he sat down in front of Raleigh’s new desk.

  “I just wanted to let ya know myself, Sergeant O’Hara, and Major Chambers will be heading over to the detention center to start interviews. Major Chambers was able to get all the guards and visitors the day of the murders of Jared and Semeana Thompson, so I doubt we will be back today.” Raleigh leaned back in his chair then turned slightly to grab his laptop bag.

  “Oh, that’s fine. I’ve got to run down some leads on Jahan and the Senator that Langley was abl
e to track down for me. When I get some information, I’ll give you a call. If you find out anything, I’ll have my cell on. Otherwise, we will chat soon.” Chance stood up and extended his hand to Raleigh. “We both have jobs to do, and as long as we keep each other in the loop, I think we will work fine together.” Chance and Raleigh exchanged handshakes and Raleigh headed toward the door. Samantha and Matt were already waiting in the hallway to head out to get the interviews started.

  “We’ll talk later, Chance. Be careful out there,” Raleigh replied as he motioned for Samantha and Matt to follow him.

  “Will do, Chief. You too,” Chance said as he crossed the hallway to his office.

  ***

  When they arrived at the detention center, a crowd of news reporters and cameras surrounded the entrance of the building, so Matt turned around and had Raleigh and Samantha follow him to the side entrance. “No need to mess with those news crews right now. We will never get away from them if we stop and give a quote. Besides, the general wants a lock down till we know something concrete.”

  Raleigh paced himself a little quicker to catch up with Matt and left Samantha a few paces behind. “Hey, do you have any idea how many we are interviewing today? I got a couple things I wanna take care of before the end of the day, and I wanted to see if you could keep Sammie busy for an hour or so while I go do that?”

  “Yeah buddy, sure. What’s the big secret?” Matt queried, trying to pry the details, but Raleigh stood steadfast.

  “I promise I will tell ya but not right yet. Not here, gotta wait until Sammie’s not around.”

  Matt gave Raleigh a grin and a raised eyebrow. “Oh, I gotcha. I will take her over to the Twisted Kitty, but I still don’t know how I am gonna get her to go with me and leave you behind.”

  Raleigh thought for a moment. “Well, I hadn’t thought of that yet. I will let ya know. But we gotta be sneaky—she can spot a con a mile away.”