by Akart, Bobby
“What’s the plan for us?” asked Bravo.
“Target practice,” replied Alpha. “You two will be equipped with our AR-15s with multiple sixty-round magazines.”
“Why not the hundreds?” asked X-Ray. “I’ve got two drum magazines that—”
“Hold a hundred rounds, but they’ll jam after twenty or thirty,” interrupted Bravo. “We’ve tested every brand made, and the failure rate is ridiculous. They’re a bulky toy and I wouldn’t trust them in battle. I like the Schmeisser sixties, made in Germany. They resemble the Surefire sixty-rounder, but they’re made out of polymer.”
“Pricey,” added Charlie.
Alpha pointed toward Ryan. “Well, thank Ryan for them. When he asked my opinion, he didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger and buy a couple of dozen.”
Bravo got back to the mission. “I’m gathering you want us to light it up.”
“Absolutely!” exclaimed Alpha. “Shock and awe. These jerks break windows and cop cars. We break bodies. When they attacked the Haven, the rules of engagement changed. Now we’re at war.”
“Aren’t you afraid they’ll hurt Hannah when the shooting starts?” asked Cort.
“That’s where our communications come in,” replied Alpha. “Foxy and I will get into position to sweep the top floor, and then we’ll give Bravo-Charlie team the green light. During the chaos, I expect two things to happen. The entire building will panic because these thugs aren’t used to pushback. They’re flamethrowers who know the cops will stand down because they don’t want to make a scene for the media. They’ll cower in the corner when we come at them. Most importantly, Cort, I firmly believe that Chepe will opt for self-preservation. He’ll use Hannah as a bargaining chip to gain his freedom. Otherwise, he knows he’ll take a bullet like the rest of the cowards.”
“What about cover?” asked Charlie. “When we walk in the lobby, they’ll make us immediately.”
Alpha gestured to Ryan, who answered the question. He picked up a box bearing the yellow and black logo for the EG Grenade Company.
“P-40s,” said Delta. “I trained with those when I was brought aboard Philly SWAT.”
“That’s right, Delta,” said Ryan. “EG, which stands for Enola Gaye, started their company in England. I like them because they have a low-heat formula. The stick doesn’t produce an external flame, and the casing doesn’t get hot. You can hold it longer and place it exactly where it has the maximum impact.”
“These things can be pretty toxic,” added Delta. “If the teams are going to use them inside, they’ll have a helluva time breathing.”
Alpha began to toss plastic bags to Bravo, Charlie and Hayden. “These are Holulo full-face respirators. They’re designed to prevent the inhalation of paint and pesticides, but the activated carbon respirator prevents smoke inhalation, too.”
“What made you think of these?” asked one of the drivers.
Ryan took that one. “Well, certainly not for this mission, to be honest. Actually, all you have to do is look around the Haven to realize we live in a huge tinderbox of hundred-year-old wood. These homes weren’t built with fire-retardant materials. They’re all in their original condition and vulnerable to fires. The masks were purchased to aid us in dealing with structure fires.”
“And now, the rescue of Hannah,” added Alpha. “Once you enter the lobby of the Varnadore, you’ll ignite the stick grenades, which produce black and gray smoke. Scream fire and try to flush people toward the front entrance, which will act as a choke point.”
“What about the rear exits?” asked Charlie.
“They’ll be locked off with chains and disk locks. Do not forget this. You’ll only have one way out as well.”
“What about you guys?” asked Bravo.
“Rear fire exit,” responded X-Ray. “The wrought-iron structure has a drop-down ladder that can be extended from the second floor to the ground.”
The room grew quiet as they contemplated the plan.
Finally, Ryan spoke up. “Alpha, are you certain that we can’t add another team or two? You know, to supplement you guys on the inside.”
“Thanks, Ryan, but no. We need seasoned gunners who can handle weapons and threats. If we have too many people in the building, we run the risk of friendly fire. Truthfully, and I’ve already discussed this with Foxy, so she knows where I’m coming from, having Delta on the inside on my team made more sense than her. That said, we’ve trained together at the Haven in the past and understand each other’s movements. Plus, when we find this little girl, I believe a female voice and her gentle touch will be more likely to keep her calm.”
“Yeah,” added Hayden. “She’d probably run as fast as she can from Alpha the way he’ll be dressed.”
The group shared a laugh and then Bravo raised a point. “You guys talked about blending in. Why don’t we dress in all black like they do? That will buy us another few seconds for that whole recognition thing you mentioned.”
“Bandannas. Trench coats. The whole nine yards,” added Delta, who then appeared solemn. “Sadly, my son had a lot of clothes and accessories that might help. I can check.”
“I like it,” said Alpha. “If we go in there with camo and our chest rigs on, it’ll be obvious.”
Blair spoke up. “I’ll speak to our residents and see what they can provide us.”
“Good, thank you, darling,” said Ryan.
Throughout the day, the teams researched every minute detail of the Varnadore Building and its surroundings. They identified and debated points of insertion for the teams. They strategized about the potential countermeasures Chepe and his group might take. Most importantly, they talked about extraction methods once Hannah was retrieved.
Dinner was brought into Haven Barn for the group, and as they ate, Cort addressed them. With Meredith by his side, he spoke from the heart.
“Meredith, Hannah and I are a close family. Because of my responsibilities in Washington, we’re apart a lot during the week, but when we’re together, we’re inseparable.
“Hannah is a warm and loving little girl. Well, you know, I see her as little. She really is more mature than what I give her credit for. I think she’ll be tough and hold on until y’all can rescue her.
“I know the danger that you’re walking into to save Hannah. Your bravery is incredible, and your sacrifices will never be forgotten. Please know this. Meredith and I, and Hannah, will be forever in your debt for what you’re doing for us. Thank you and Godspeed.”
Chapter Seventeen
The Varnadore Building
Uptown Charlotte, North Carolina
The teams arrived near the Varnadore Building from different directions. X-Ray needed to position his van close enough to the building to have his drones in range and to be able to communicate with the teams on their two-way radios. He also wanted eyes on the front entrance, albeit using long-range binoculars. The task of finding a location where he could park to avoid detection by Chepe’s people was not easy. Ultimately, he found a hillside near the east on-ramp to the Independence Expressway, east of the Varnadore. He expected Chepe to focus his surveillance toward the west, in the direction of the Haven.
There were several stalled cars on the ramp, and he hoped pulling his van onto the grassy hill wouldn’t be noticed in the dark. Delta dropped off Bravo and Charlie at the Pierson Drive underpass, a tunnel-like stretch that crossed from south to north under the expressway and a stretch of Albemarle Road that ran parallel with the wider highway. He then parked his car below the tree-lined expressway and out of sight of any curious eyes atop the Varnadore Building.
The tunnel gave Bravo-Charlie team cover as they made their way to a position at the side of the building. Once they were in position, they could advise Alpha-Foxtrot team, who were approaching from the adjacent neighborhood located north of the Varnadore.
By two in the morning, all teams were in position, and two vehicles were strategically placed within a half mile of the building to aid in the extractio
n of the teams and Hannah. Alpha believed in redundancy. If one of the drivers or escape vehicles was disabled, then they needed options. As he put it, “It would be a crying shame to rescue that little girl only to have no way to get the hell outta Dodge.”
Delta arrived at X-Ray’s van and slipped inside. This was his first glimpse of the vast array of equipment at the much younger man’s disposal.
“Impressive,” Delta said as he took in X-Ray’s domain. “How can you monitor all of this stuff?”
“Trust me, it won’t be easy,” he replied with a sigh. He cracked his knuckles and relaxed in his chair. “I have the NSA satellite feed open, just for reference, and I have our people ready with their drones. It’s the comms that will prove the most difficult to keep up with.”
Delta pointed to a radio on the table to his left. “A scanner?”
“Yes. In fact, that’s for you. Here’s where I need your help.”
Delta picked up the portable Bearcat scanner, a device he was thoroughly familiar with, as he kept one at his home in Atlanta. He focused on X-Ray. “Talk to me.”
“As three o’clock approaches, I’m gonna run through a radio check with all the teams. I need you to determine if Chepe and his people have two-way communications. If they do, monitor the channel for chatter. Here’s a list of the most likely frequencies.”
Delta studied the list. “It appears the higher-powered radios use frequencies in the four-six-two range. The lower-wattage types are in the four-six-sevens.”
“That’s right. Most people have Midlands, so I’d focus on the four-six-twos. Once you’ve locked in on the frequency, keep me posted, and I’ll relay it to the team. They only need to hear one voice, you know what I mean?”
“You’re the quarterback,” replied Delta. “What else can I do?”
X-Ray handed him a felt pouch marked FLIR. “This is mine, so please be careful with it.”
Delta studied the Pulsar Helion thermal monocular manufactured by FLIR. He slipped his hand through the strap and felt the weight. “Nice,” he muttered.
“Yes, it is. I offered it to Alpha, but because it has a range in excess of a mile, he thought you could use it to monitor the entrance as well as the highway in case Chepe has the ability to call for reinforcements.”
“Anything that I need to know about it?”
“Not really,” replied X-Ray. “It’s point and shoot. You’ll be able to view in real time and so will I. The built-in video recording will simultaneously appear on this small computer monitor to my right as long as you stay within Bluetooth reception. Don’t wander too far away from the van or I’ll lose the feed.”
“Got it.”
“Okay, it’s 2:45. In five minutes, our team is going to use the diesel fuel and Tannerite to cause an explosion at an oil-change station a couple of miles to our southwest. The used oil stored in the containers will create a lot of black smoke, drawing their attention to it. We want their eyes on the front of the building while our people quickly make their way inside from the back.”
“X-Ray, I’m partially responsible for what happened to Hannah because Frankie came after the Haven to get at me.”
X-Ray shrugged. “Well, Chepe wouldn’t know that Cort and his family were at the Haven if it wasn’t for me. I guess we both need to redeem ourselves.”
Delta patted the young man on the back. “Let’s do this, then!”
Chapter Eighteen
The Varnadore Building
Uptown Charlotte, North Carolina
The driver parked nearly a mile away to the north of the Varnadore Building, ensuring that Alpha and Hayden could get suited up without detection. They both preferred to make the trek through the neighborhood streets and yards, using the sparse tree cover to avoid detection from observation scouts on the rooftop. Once the battle ensued and Chepe’s people were distracted, the driver was instructed to take up a position just to the west of the office building, behind a closed-down pool-table store. This would leave his teams a quick sprint across the parking lot and then easy access to the westbound lanes of Independence Expressway.
As they zigzagged through the backyards, they spread apart, using a leapfrogging tactic known as bounding overwatch. It’s a military technique used when enemy contact was expected during an assault on a fixed target. Bounding overwatch allowed the forward-moving soldier to engage and suppress an enemy before the remaining members of the squad came under fire.
This buddy system was especially effective under the cover of darkness the recent power outage provided them, and the other fortunate stroke of luck—a new moon. Using the night-vision monocular, Alpha took the lead as they traveled into an especially tight area. Hayden caught up and continued with the next leap forward, or if Alpha considered it too dangerous, he’d take that leg himself. As a team, they quickly moved the mile to get into position, where they awaited the detonation of the explosives at the oil-change facility.
By 2:30, they were on Sheffield Drive with an unobstructed view of the roof of the seven-story office building. Periodically, someone would walk along the northern edge of the roof, glance around the surrounding neighborhood, and then move on.
“You’d think they’d have enough people to monitor the entire perimeter at once rather than a single patrol,” Hayden observed.
“Yeah, it’s the same guy every time,” added Alpha. “They may have people positioned in the windows, but your vision can be distorted looking through glass.”
“Alpha, I know we’re supposed to wait for the distractions to kick in, but we’re gonna need to scale the wall that separates that row of houses from the back of the building.”
Alpha thought for a moment. Without the benefit of Google Earth, they’d been unaware of the wall that appeared when they surveilled the houses with their night vision. He wasn’t sure how far it extended, and if they tried to circle around it, they’d find themselves right on top of Bravo-Charlie team, clustered together. That would make them a big target. The success of their assault from the rear was to have each of the teams covering the other as they crossed Bamboo Street to reach the base of the building.
“We could move in sooner. I’m not saying that we’ll scale the wall before the diversion, but at least we could be there when the time comes.”
Hayden reached for the night-vision monocular. She focused on the five houses within her field of vision. “Hey, I’ve got movement.”
“Let me see,” said Alpha. He stood and walked out of their hiding place between a hedgerow and a parked car. “Dogs. Two of them. They’re tied to a tree near a house at the end of the road.”
“They’re being used as warning devices,” said Hayden.
“What?”
“I think they’re strategically placed so they’ll bark if someone approaches. Folks in the country do it all the time. If a burglar approaches their house, the dog goes nuts, warning the homeowners.”
“It’s a force multiplier,” concluded Alpha. “That’s why they’ve only devoted one man to the rooftop. He’s got eyes on the ground and they’re attached to four-legged hounds.”
“Exactly.”
“We have to neutralize those dogs,” said Alpha.
“Or cut ’em loose,” said Hayden. “We need to get movin’. We’ll circle around and then I’ll bribe them with some beef jerky I have in my pockets.”
“Then what?”
“We’re gonna free Hannah tonight, and I’m gonna free these dogs, too.”
Without hesitation, Hayden darted across the street into the backyard of the homes facing the Varnadore. Alpha chased behind, glancing at the building’s rooftop to confirm they were undetected. Once Alpha caught up to her, she made the next bold move by crossing the street a few houses down from where the dogs were now lying in the yard. They weren’t asleep, but they certainly weren’t on high alert.
Alpha caught up to Hayden, who was crouched behind some trash cans. “How do you plan on doing this?”
“I’ll play on their cu
riosity rather than their sense of protection,” she began. “I doubt these two have been fed. Look at them. They’re hounds, not somebody’s AKC champion. They’ll have a great sense of smell.”
“Okay, so how’re ya gonna sneak up on them?”
“I’ll toss the jerky just outside their reach. They might notice the pieces of meat hit the ground and become curious. Then their noses will take over and make them ravenous. They won’t bark at something like that, and they’ll be too distracted to pay attention to me.”
Hayden pulled her knife out of the sheath wrapped around her leg.
Alpha was impressed. He had to ask, “Are you gonna gut ’em?”
“No, no way. While they’re stretching to get at the jerky, I’ll cut through their ropes from the back side of the tree. Once they’re loose, I’ll toss another piece farther into the street, and we’ll sneak into the backyard once they go after it.”
Hayden made her way through the shrubs to the back of the tree, keeping the large oak between her and the resting dogs. She carefully stepped through the grass, wary of any fallen twigs that might give away her position. When she was in position, she threw the first pieces of jerky just beyond the ropes tied around the dogs’ necks as leashes.
Hayden focused on the dogs, analyzing their reaction so she didn’t raise their suspicions, wholly unaware of what was happening behind her.
As Hayden moved forward, Alpha noticed movement in the house behind her. It was just a shadow that crossed in front of a window. He inched forward to get a better look and then raised the night-vision monocular to his right eye. There was a faint light emanating from a bedroom window. It flickered, either from the distortion of the sheers or it was a candle. Either way, there was someone in the house.