by Akart, Bobby
The Range Rover was past the wreckage, but the driver paused as if to wait for Tom to follow. He set his jaw, gritted his teeth, and forced the beast of a truck past the debris.
“Is it safe?” asked Donna as she slowly rose out of her crouch.
Tom glanced around one last time as he raced to keep up with the Range Rover. “Yeah, come on up. That woman just saved us.”
“Was she firing the gun?”
“I believe so. She did a good job, too. She only used a few rounds to send those thugs scrambling for cover. Hold on. I wanna catch up to her and say thanks.”
Tom accelerated so that he was next to the driver’s side door. Donna rolled down the window, causing the cold wind to blow throughout the truck. She leaned her head out the window, and the female driver responded by rolling down her window as well. She smiled at Donna and gave a casual, polite wave.
Donna shouted to the driver of the Range Rover, “Thank you! Godspeed!”
The woman suddenly slowed and the Sheltons never heard her response. Seconds later, they were taking advantage of the now deserted interstate. Full of apprehension, Tom focused his attention on the highway in front of them while Donna kept the black Range Rover in her side-view mirror for as long as she could, concerned about the fate of the young woman who’d probably saved their lives.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Interstate 95
Richmond, Virginia
Hayden was puzzled. Did she hear correctly? She slowed down suddenly to attempt to speak to the passenger of the Yukon. She hung her head out the window and shouted, “What? What does that mean?”
The driver took off at a high rate of speed and probably never heard her ask the questions. Hayden couldn’t blame him. She wanted to get as far from Richmond as she could, but first she needed to make sure her truck could continue.
While she inspected the exterior and found everything to be safe, she continuously mumbled the word Godspeed to herself.
“Come on, people. Where is this coming from? Godspeed.”
She urged Prowler to sit in the driver’s seat while she hurriedly removed bits of glass from his seat onto the floor mat. When the center console and seat were cleared of the debris, she dumped all of it onto the side of the road.
Still puzzled, she continued to talk out loud. “I’ve gone nearly my entire life and never heard anyone say that except in some old Charles Dickens movie or some such. Godspeed? Safe travels? Good luck? What’s the context?”
She rolled her eyes and shook her head as she walked around the Range Rover to the driver’s door. A couple of cars sped past, apparently following through the gap she and the Yukon had created. Hayden was more troubled by the use of the term Godspeed in the text messages and from the passenger in the Yukon than she was about the condition of her Range Rover. After all, she had insurance, she thought to herself with a chuckle. Big whoop.
As she got back under way and traveled through Richmond, she saw fires burning out of control in the vicinity of the state capitol. Traffic slowed on I-95, allowing her the opportunity to view the historic colonial-style structure as she passed. She recalled from her history studies that the building had been conceived by Thomas Jefferson and had managed to endure centuries of political turmoil and bloodshed.
Now, sitting high atop a hill in the center of Richmond, the capitol once again appeared to be surrounded by turmoil.
Hayden laughed to herself and then said, “Godspeed, Richmond. Looks like you’ll need it.”
She glanced one last time at the historic structure; then the voice of her former boss, Justice Samuel Alito, came into her head.
“That’s it, Prowler!” she exclaimed, stirring the cat out of his curled position. “Justice Alito said that to me once. I was traveling back to the farm and he said, Godspeed, Miss Blount. I wonder…”
Her voice trailed off as she immediately began to process the events of the last few days and the mysterious texts she’d received. Was there a connection between them and a Supreme Court justice? And why would he reach out to her like that?
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Haven House
The Haven
Ryan entered the kitchen and hugged Blair around the waist. He kissed her on the back of the neck and whispered, in his best Hank Williams voice, “Hey, good-lookin’. Whatcha got cookin’?”
Blair smiled and allowed Ryan to snuggle her before she playfully turned on him. “Get off me. I’ve got hungry children who are demanding breakfast.”
“Breakfast? It’s almost noon o’clock!” Ryan laughed as he turned around to find the girls sitting side by side like statues, waiting for their yummies. He addressed his four-legged daughters. “Don’t you two have school today? Have you cleaned your rooms or done any kinds of chores? Ever?”
The English bulldog sisters simply stared back at him, Chubby’s lower jaw protruding outward with her tongue half out of her mouth while The Roo was more closed-mouth, opting instead to study Ryan. She’s a thinker.
“Pffft.”
Blair snapped her head around and looked at Ryan.
“Shew, Chubby!” exclaimed Ryan as he pulled his sweatshirt up over his nose.
“Don’t blame the child,” interjected Blair.
“What? It wasn’t me!” Ryan’s voice rose several octaves as he pointed down at Chubby, who appeared to be laughing at him. “Look at the smile on her face. She did it!”
Blair pushed past him with two bowls of yummies for the girls. “What kind of father blames his gassiness on the children. So rude, right, girls?”
The girls were less interested in the debate over the guilty gasser and chased after Blair, who placed their breakfast down at the end of the kitchen island.
Ryan feigned a pout. “Whatevs. Hey, I don’t have much time. Can we get caught up before I spend the day with the guys?”
“Yeah, me first,” responded Blair. She fixed them both salads topped with canned chicken and the last of the raw vegetables in their refrigerator. She’d prepared cut celery, carrots, and broccoli to be served with egg dip for New Year’s Eve, but needless to say, the party never got off the ground.
Ryan added some cornbread croutons and doused the salad with low-fat bleu cheese dressing. He often joked about how salads are supposed to be good for you, especially for dieters. But by the time you add shredded cheese, maybe a boiled egg, and your favorite dressing, you might as well have swung through the Chick-fil-A drive-thru window.
“Talk to me,” he said as he shoved a forkful of lettuce into his mouth.
“Well, I heard from Hayden. The good news is that she’s on her way. The bad news is that I lost contact with her in the middle of the conversation. I’m not sure what happened, but it sounded like she dropped her phone.”
“Has she called back?”
“No, and I’ve tried a few times to reach her. She was on the road somewhere. I was just about to warn her about the problems in Richmond when I lost contact.”
Ryan continued eating and nodded his head. “Foxy will be fine. She’s like a younger version of you. You don’t tangle with a wildcat.” Ryan allowed a sly grin and looked up over his forkful of salad to wait for his wife’s response. He loved to tease her and she took great pleasure in giving it back to him.
She closed her eyes slightly and gave him the look. “Shut up.”
That drew a big smile from her husband. “Speaking of wildcats, is she bringing that beast, Prowler?”
“I’m sure she is. I miss our cats from home. I really think they would’ve enjoyed living in the boonies.”
“Lord knows there are plenty of mice to catch,” added Ryan. “Besides, they seem to prefer tropical climates. Whadya have planned for this afternoon?”
“With the new arrivals, I’m gonna do a quick orientation after lunch. I’ll assign jobs to those you haven’t already recruited for your stuff. Also, with the Cortlands’ arrival, our kid population is almost maxed out except for the Rankins. They’re supposedly heading t
his way too after Tyler and Angela get their jobs squared away.”
“Can they get the school ready for Monday? I want everyone settling into a routine and not getting complacent. You know?”
“Yeah. The school will be ready. Let me just tell you where I think we are on several things. Besides school, I think our weapons and ammo numbers are excellent. I’m sure Hayden will add to that significantly. The Sheltons and Rankins, not so much.”
Ryan asked about food and supplies. “Are you gonna send out another shopping team this afternoon?”
Blair nodded. “I think I will. As long as it’s safe and the stores have things we need on their shelves, we’ll snatch it up. Also, I had Echo make a bank withdrawal and sent him into Hickory to the gold dealers. I checked spot gold this morning, and prices are starting to rise.”
“Is the dollar still crashing?” asked Ryan.
“They halted trading, so it’s bottomed out. As soon as I saw the reports this morning, I sent him to buy all he could find before the locals figure out what’s happening.”
“Junk silver, too?”
Blair grimaced. “I doubt it. We buy all they get as soon as it comes in.”
Ryan finished his lunch and cleared their plates into the kitchen. He refilled his water bottle and washed his hands. Blair joined him to wash hers. She rolled her head around, causing a noticeable series of crackles.
“Darling, is there something else bothering you?” he asked.
“No, not really,” she replied. “People are asking a lot of questions. Naturally, they’re concerned about their futures and they’re also starved for information.”
“Yeah, I’m getting the same thing.”
Blair washed her hands as she spoke. “They’re looking to us for leadership, and I think it’s important that everyone is on the same page with what we believe is going on out there.”
“What are you thinkin’?”
Blair wiped her hands and wandered out of the kitchen toward the family room. She stopped to stare at the news reports of riots in major cities around the country. “Your security team is top notch. But you also need advisors and people to act as your right arm. Ryan, you can’t spread yourself too thin because if the Haven gets challenged, you’ll be overwhelmed trying to wear too many hats.”
Ryan took her by the hand and encouraged her to sit on the hearth with him. They stared into the spacious family room while the fire warmed their backs. He squeezed her hand. “I’m listening.”
“Cort is a levelheaded guy and a politician. I like your idea of making him your right arm from an administrative aspect. He can play bad cop to your good cop role.”
“I can be the bad cop when necessary.”
Blair chuckled. “No, honey. You can’t. You’re too nice. I’m a better bad cop than you are. Talk to Cort. He’s a real asset because he’s fought in the trenches of DC’s swamp.”
“I will. What else?”
“Tom Shelton will be here this afternoon, too. He’s a general, for Pete’s sake.”
“Commander,” Ryan corrected. “But virtually the same thing.”
“Okay, a commander. Let him be more involved in the defense strategies of the Haven. I trust Alpha, don’t get me wrong. But he also has a tendency to be very rah-rah, gung ho Marine with his security details. That works well with Bravo, Charlie, and maybe even Delta, but your civilians-turned-security team members may not get it. Tom has experience dealing with all levels of the military. He can handle a direct crisis and the day-to-day security without wearing out our people.”
Ryan smiled. This was just one more reason why he loved his wife. She offered another set of eyes, a different perspective, from which to manage the operations of the Haven. “I agree a hundred percent.”
Blair pushed off her husband’s knees and stood. She reached for his hands and hoisted him upward. They weren’t getting any younger.
“The Sheltons and the Cortlands will both be here before suppertime. Let’s have them and the Echols over to talk about things. Okay?”
“Book it, Danno,” he replied, using one of his favorite sayings from the original Hawaii Five-O television series.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Delta’s Cabin
The Haven
Delta arrived back at his cabin with a sack full of barbecue sandwiches under his arm. He was in a jovial mood after speaking with Ryan about involving the kids in some of the Haven’s activities. He could only imagine what it was like for Ethan and Skylar. They’d been taken away from their home and their things. There wasn’t any television in his cabin, and in the dead of the damp, North Carolina winter, there wasn’t much for them to do outside. Hopefully, the new activities would lift Ethan’s spirits, too.
“Hey, guys! I’ve got some news. Barbecue for lunch, too.”
Ethan emerged from the bedroom looking as if he’d been asleep. “Did you find me a phone charger?”
“Um, not yet,” replied Delta. He wouldn’t be able to hold his son off much longer. “But I have something else cool to tell you about.”
“What is it, Daddy?” asked Skylar, who emerged from the kitchen area. Her hands were covered in multiple colors of paint. Delta frowned for a moment, wondering if the commissioned artwork required a brush, or if she was finger painting. He shrugged it off and motioned for them to join him at the dining table as he unpacked the sandwiches.
“What’s this, Daddy?” asked Skylar.
“Venison barbecue with homemade sauce. Wait’ll you taste it!” Delta unwrapped the foil and slid a sandwich in front of each of them. Both kids settled in and took big bites. A good sign. “And look what else I have.”
“What?” muttered Ethan with a mouthful of sandwich.
Delta pulled out a sixteen-ounce bottle of Mountain Dew. “Do the Dew!”
Ethan chuckled and then snidely remarked, “Very Southern, Dad.”
“Yeah, it is, and I like it,” said Delta. “Okay, let me tell you the news. First, for you, Sky.”
“All right!”
“Yeah, first thing is this. Another family just arrived from Alabama. They have a twelve-year-old daughter.”
“I’m eleven,” she added.
“I know, and guess what, her mom is a teacher. She’ll be one of the ladies who’ll be teaching at the Little Red Schoolhouse.”
“Neat.”
“Sooo, they wondered if you’d like to help them set up the classrooms? School starts in a week, just like it would at home. Miss Meredith and Hannah, that’s their daughter, plan on working on it this afternoon.”
“When did they get here, Dad?” asked Ethan as he continued to eat.
“About an hour ago, but they want to hit the ground running. I met Mr. Cortland and he’s a really nice guy.”
Ethan never took his gaze off his barbecue sandwich. “Does he have an Android phone charger?”
“Ethan, I don’t know, but you can bet I’ll find out.” Delta showed his aggravation, and Ethan’s reaction by raising his eyebrows and dropping his sandwich spoke volumes. Both Hightower men were over the cell phone issue, for different reasons.
“Daddy, when do I get started?”
“Right after lunch, Sky,” replied Delta, who then turned to Ethan. “You’ll have a new job, too, son.”
“Doing what? Scrubbing the blackboards?” His sarcastic tone threatened to put a downer on Delta’s upbeat outlook for his kids’ afternoon.
“No. Actually, it’s something very important for our safety. It requires a lot of responsibility and a good attitude.”
“Are they gonna make me carry a gun? I don’t want a gun, Dad.”
Will finished his sandwich and gathered up the trash to take to the kitchen area. “It’s a job doing security, but not carrying a gun. You’ll be part of the drone surveillance team.”
“Drones?” Ethan’s interest perked up. “Like the kind that fly?”
“That’s exactly right, son. You guys grab your jackets and let’s head out. I promised to d
eliver you both right after lunch.”
“Come on, Ethan! We’ve got jobs to do!” Skylar scurried off and put on her imitation UGG boots and her overcoat.
Ethan slowly made his way to the bedroom, where he donned his black trench coat. Delta loved his son, even though he was trying at times. But first impressions were not good. He wondered if the boy had any clothes that weren’t jet black to match his hair.
The trio loaded up in the truck and headed off to the school. While Ethan waited in the front seat, Delta escorted Skylar inside and made the introductions. The two young girls hit it off immediately, and they set about exploring the schoolhouse and all of the supplies the Smarts had acquired over time.
When Delta returned to the truck, he noticed that his cell phone’s display was illuminated. He suspected his son had attempted to access the phone and found it to be locked by the face-recognition app.
He chose not to say anything to Ethan about the intrusion, opting instead to see how the rest of the day played out. Delta assumed any fifteen-year-old boy would jump at the chance to operate a camera-equipped drone all day. Sure, monitoring the Haven’s perimeter might not be as much fun for a teen as snooping in people’s windows, but it was a start.
In any event, Delta hoped it would be sufficient to distract Ethan from the never-ending quest for a cell phone charger and access to his mother. He also expected a turnaround in Ethan’s attitude.
Turned out, he was wrong.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
HB-1
The Haven
The main barn at the Haven, designated HB-1, had been a central gathering spot from the first day Blair and Ryan Smart had purchased the property. During the filming of the Hunger Games, the existing buildings were left in their original state in order to lend authenticity to the movie. Only the large barn had been updated with modern plumbing and electrical wiring, together with a large meeting room that was now used as a conference room for Alpha’s team.