“People are quick to give up information when the USSB comes asking. They do terrible things to people who refuse questioning. That is how I got here.” Anthony said.
This was something Nolan didn’t know about. Either way, Anthony was right.
“My father was tortured for months before they killed him,” Nolan started. “He didn’t talk, but other people might.”
“We aren’t going to join a group that only wants to win and doesn’t care about the people,” Danny said.
“We care,” Ian said.
Nolan knew where he was going.
“We can help find out what happened to the missing town,” Nolan said.
“Is that right?” Lee asked.
“If we find them will you consider joining the D.I?” Nolan asked.
Lee looked at his father. Danny didn’t take his eyes off of Nolan.
“I won’t force the people here to do anything they don’t want to. I will show my support and hopefully, the others will follow.” Danny finally said.
“Good. We need to see this city. There might be evidence of where the people went.” Nolan said.
“I will take you,” Lee said.
Danny smiled.
“You’re a lot like your father kid. He had a way of getting people to follow him too.” Danny said. He turned his wheelchair around and left the room. He called back to them, “Let me know how it goes.”
Lee led them outside. Mark and Terri were sitting on the steps waiting. They stood as Lee and the others stepped outside. “They are going to help us find out what happened to Lucas Valley,” Lee said. He didn’t tell them everything. Nolan wasn’t going to correct him as to everything that was said. Terri smiled.
“Good, a little help would be useful,” Terri said and winked at Nolan.
“I am going to take them there. We are going to have a look around.” Lee informed them.
“If you think that is a good idea, then let’s go,” Mark said.
“You can’t come,” Lee said. “You are too important. You can’t get caught or even seen with us. The sun is out and people can’t know we spend so much time together.”
Mark nodded his head.
“I am coming though,” Terri said. “I am not important to anyone.” She led the way towards a van. “Let’s get moving.”
Nolan heard Lee whisper under his breath. “I think you’re important,”
Red Squadron grabbed their weapons from Mark’s truck. Mark told them if they needed their things to come pick them up. Nolan thanked him for helping. He then led this squad to the van where they piled in. Ian and Anthony went in first. Terri hopped in the front seat. She smiled as she got in. Nolan couldn’t help but notice her clothes hugging her body. Nolan got in last, Lee started the van and they left for Lucas Valley.
Chapter 10
First Impressions
Sarah waited for Ms. Hill to get ready. She informed them of a store nearby that they could purchase formal wear. As Ms. Hill talked, all Sarah could think about was ‘how the hell were they going to pay for this?’ Captain Underwood always gave them money in case they were separated and needed to find a way back. That money was not intended to be used for clothes. Ms. Hill explained how she would take the women and Sergeant Miller, to go and get clothes for everyone. Mr. Schweppes had transferred money to a payment card that Ms. Hill was using. Captain Underwood wasn’t thrilled with the idea but considering Mary was going with it, this seemed to put him at ease. The team gathered at the door. Captain Underwood came to see them off.
“Be careful. Keep an eye out to make sure you are aren’t being followed. Sarah, Mary you both have my number on speed dial. If you get into trouble dial me. I will be there as fast as I can.”
“Yes sir,” Sarah responded.
“Will, we are going to be fine,” Mary said.
Mary Kissed Captain Underwood. Steven waited in the kitchen and Sarah made eye contact with him before she left. Sarah wanted to say something but didn’t know how. Walking outside she scanned the area before deciding they weren’t being watched. Sergeant Miller and Mary walked out behind her before Ms. Hill stepped outside. Sergeant Miller got into the driver seat of the car. Mary sat in the front seat leaving Sarah and Ms. Hill to the back.
As they left the complex Sarah was able to observe the city. She tried her best to get a brief layout in her head. She wanted to make sure that she could get back to the complex. Sarah made notes in her head about intersections of streets and which direction they headed. The store was around a mile away from the complex. Sergeant Miller found the store and circled around the back. The plan was for Sergeant Miller to wait in the alley behind the store while the girls go in and get the necessary clothes.
“Alright, I will be waiting here,” Sergeant Miller started. “Try not to take too long we only have an hour and a half before the dinner,” He looked at his watch as if to double check to make sure he was right.
“We won’t be long,” Ms. Hill said.
They left the car and walked into the store. Ms. Hill walked around as if she owned the place. Sarah felt that she and Mary seemed more on edge. Sarah knew they should keep their cool because if they seemed off it would draw attention to them.
“I can’t remember the last time I went shopping,” Mary said. She was looking at price tags for a dress. “It almost feels like we are normal.”
“Almost,” Sarah reminded a little sarcastically.
“Still it is kind of nice to be a little normal. I mean we are going to be in dresses.”
Mary had a smile on her face. Sarah had never seen her like that. Sarah had the feeling that this is how things would feel when the war finally came to an end, the feeling gave Sarah hope. She looked forward to what the new United States would be like after the war was over. A thought crept to the front of her mind. She had only been in one battle and her team had barely made it out of their alive. Nolan had been hurt and her father was killed. That was only one battle. What would happen when more battles start and more people die? Did she think she could actually live through a war?
Ms. Hill found a couple of dresses for the girls. Mary picked out several dress shirts and pants for the men. Captain Underwood wanted a couple of the guys to keep watch. He was worried that this dinner might be a trap. The whole situation had rubbed Captain Underwood the wrong way.
Ms. Hill made Mary and Sarah try on the dresses. Sarah couldn’t remember the last time she wore a dress. Since she had joined the Insurgence the most formal thing she had worn was her dress uniform at graduation. After that, it had always been a uniform. Before she joined all she did was work. Sarah guessed it might have been years since she had worn a dress. They went through the checkout and left the store. They walked around the back of the building where Sergeant Miller was waiting in the car. He was a little startled when they opened the door.
“I thought you ladies were never going to come back,” Sergeant Miller said with a laugh. “You have fun on the shopping spree?”
“Scott, if you keep teasing, you’ll be waiting in the car during dinner,” Ms. Hill teased.
“I’ll be good, mom,” Sergeant Miller teased back.
Ms. Hill gave him a don’t-call-me-mom look. Sergeant Miller started the car and they left to go back to the townhome complex. Sarah looked at the clock in the car. They had an hour and fifteen minutes before there dinner. This meant when they got back everyone needed to quickly get ready in order to get to the restaurant early to survey the area. The team wanted to clear the area before going in. While they are in the restaurant they will be vulnerable.
The car pulled up in front of the townhome and Sarah could see Steven in the window. She wondered if he had been there the whole time. Was he waiting for them? He came outside to help them bring in the clothes.
“Everything went as planned?” Steven asked.
“Nothing to report,” Sarah said. She thought his concern was cute.
They brought the clothes inside and distributed them
. Steven went over the radio to call Orson back. He had been in the hotel with Agent Young. Steven explained that Orson was showing him how to keep an eye out on the perimeter.
Orson and Joshua were going to hang back during the dinner to keep an eye out. The other members would be dressed in formal wear but would act as Ms. Hill’s security, while Sarah and Mary would act as aids. Sergeant Miller offered to send both of his agents but Captain Underwood insisted on having both groups keep watch. Orson had experience in these types of situations which Sarah felt was the only reason Sergeant Miller didn’t object. Ms. Hill handed Sarah a dress and showed her to a room to change. Sarah found this weird that she was going off alone with Ms. Hill.
“I need to speak to you about something,” Ms. Hill said in a whisper.
Sarah wondered what they would need to talk about.
“I have heard stories about Mr. Reese. He likes pretty women. I don’t want you to do anything that would make you uncomfortable but be nice and polite to him. He is the kind of person who likes to be in charge. He doesn’t like people to act or even be more powerful than he is. For this reason, you need to talk to Will about how to talking to him. We need to make it seem as though Mr. Reese is in control. He is very different than Jonah. Remember we need this man. He is most of the reason we have spent so much time here. He has the resources we need to win this war.”
“Why are you telling me?” Sarah asked.
“I am telling you because Will doesn’t trust me. He trust you. Don’t say anything,” Ms. Hill held up her hand and stopping Sarah from arguing back. “I know he is starting to but not enough for me to tell him that he needs to relax, when this guy is talking.”
“You want me to tell Captain Underwood to not be uptight. Is that what you are asking?”
“Yes, Basically. Mr. Schweppes told me that his boss is sometimes hard to chew. I don’t want Will to lose his temper. It could jeopardize the whole mission,”
Ms. Hill was serious and Sarah knew it. She wasn’t nervous for this dinner until now. The way Ms. Hill described this guy made it seem that he isn’t always the most pleasant person. Sarah agreed to talk to Captain Underwood. She was going to change quickly and would talk to Captain Underwood.
The dress fit Sarah perfectly. She did her hair as best she could considering that her beauty supplies were almost nonexistent. She styled her hair and borrowed some perfume from Ms. Hill who didn’t have a lot to spare. After Sarah was dressed she went over to the room where Captain Underwood and Mary were changing. Sarah knocked on the door. Mary answered the door. She opened the door enough to only see her. Clearly, Captain Underwood was changing.
“Sergeant,” Sarah started. She wanted to be clear to Mary that what she needed was serious. Mary’s face showed she understood. “I need to talk to the Captain.”
“I’ll get him,” Mary said.
Mary closed the door and it was only a moment before Captain Underwood came out to talk to her.
“Will, I need to talk about this dinner,” Sarah started.
“What about it?” Captain Underwood had a concerned look on his face.
“Ms. Hill pulled me aside to talk about Mr. Reese. She said he likes to feel like he is in control.” Sarah wasn’t sure how to say this next part. “With all due respect, sir. I think you will need to have a good handle on your anger if we are to make this a successful dinner.”
Captain Underwood looked at her for a moment. She wasn’t sure if he was angry or if he considered what she had said. He nodded his head and didn’t say anything else to her. He turned to back into the room to finish changing. Sarah hoped he wasn’t angry with her and would take Ms. Hill’s advice. Sarah walked downstairs to the kitchen, she was at the last step of the stairs and she looked around the room. The only people waiting were Orson and Steven. Steven caught Sarah’s eye and he smiled. He had locked his gaze on her. Sarah’s stomach did a backflip. He was in his dress clothes and Sarah couldn’t help but notice how good he looked.
“Take a picture you too,” Orson said. He laughed and watched the two of them. “It might last a bit longer.”
“What are you talking about?” Steven said coolly.
Steven acted like they hadn’t been staring at each together. It was a little awkward as they waited. Sarah tried extremely hard not to stare at Steven as they waited. Sarah looked at her watch they had forty-five minutes before the dinner. Ms. Hill and her guards were the next to come down. Followed by Captain Underwood and Mary. Another car pulled up to the complex. Sarah was nervous but Ms. Hill assured everyone that Mr. Schweppes had sent a car for them all to travel.
“That is one of those things you need to tell us,” Captain Underwood said.
“I am sorry. I should have told you.” Ms. Hill apologized.
Captain Underwood looked at Sarah and she knew the look was one of how am I supposed to trust her? Sarah had a terrible feeling that Captain Underwood wasn’t going to listen to her advice. She hoped that the CEO wouldn’t be so upset that he would turn them over to the US government.
The group headed to the large SUV. Captain Underwood instructed his team members to get the other car but the driver stopped him.
“Mr. Reese, instructed me to drive all of you to the event. So please, I must insist you take your seats. I don’t wish to make you all late,” The driver said in a soft yet stern voice.
Grudgingly Captain Underwood instructed everyone to pile into the back. Captain Underwood insisted on sitting in the front seat. Despite everyone being in the back they still seemed to have a lot of space in the SUV. The driver didn’t speak much in the car even though Captain Underwood tried to make conversation. Sarah suspected that was his way of trying to gather information. The most he got out of the driver was where they were going. Sarah once again made notes as to how to get to the restaurant in case they need to get back. The car ride lasted twenty minutes.
The car pulled into a parking lot behind a restaurant called Cibo Familiare. The restaurant judging by the name seemed to be an Italian Restaurant. Sarah knew right away why they were dressed up. The outside of the restaurant was covered in dark brick which gave the building an almost futuristic look to it. There was a large outdoor seating area that was lite by large torches. Sarah got out of the car and the smell hit her. It smelled like home cooked meals from her childhood. The driver walked them to the front door. He pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked it. He held the door open for everyone. When the last person was in, the driver closed the door and locked it. This made Sarah uneasy. So far things were not going the way they planned and this seemed to be Mr. Reese’s plan. In the entrance hall of the restaurant, there were several guards posted. The largest of them all spoke to the group.
“My men will be searching all of you for weapons. If you have any put them on the table here. Trust me we will find them. No one is allowed to see Mr. Reese with weapons,” The guard commanded.
Sarah didn’t have room for any weapons and so far as she knew the rest of the team didn’t have any weapons. To her surprise Captain Underwood, Orson, and Joshua turned in weapons. Sarah was shocked but not nearly as shocked as Ms. Hill was. It was one thing for the Captain’s team to try and do this but one of her men had a weapon also. The group was searched before being allowed to enter. Joshua and Orson hung back trying to keep to the plan as best as possible. The guards didn’t seem to enjoy this but didn’t object. A thin man in a tuxedo led them to back room. He opened up the double doors. Mr. Reese was sitting at the table drinking a glass of wine and reading a newspaper. Maximillian Reese was in his late forties. He had a chiseled jaw, and had the look of someone who had always been in good shape. He had dark hair that made his dark green eyes look almost black. His beard was turning gray but it looked good on him. Sarah thought he was attractive in a rugged sort of way. He smiled when the door opened. He stood and held out his arms in a welcoming way as if to give the group a large hug.
“Welcome!” Mr. Reese called. Mr. Reese walked up to Sarah and
shook her hand. “Secretary Hill, It is a great pleasure to meet you at last.”
Sarah looked at Ms. Hill confused.
“I am not Ms. Hill,” Sarah corrected. “I am Pri- I am Sarah Hunter, one of Secretary Hills aids.”
“I am surprised. I thought for sure you were the Secretary. Beautiful, confident, everything I would have expected,” Mr. Reese looked at the group before finding Ms. Hill. “There you are,” He grabbed her hand and kissed it. “You are also very beautiful.” He looked at her up and down. “My apologies for the confusion. The young pretty girl was in front and I just assumed.” He giggled. “When Jonah mentioned bringing people I didn’t expect you would bring a whole party with you. Not to worry.” Mr. Reese called to several of the staff and they pulled tables together.
“It is for her protection.” Captain Underwood said. He took a step forward.
“You must be Wilson Underwood. I have heard about you,” Mr. Reese looked at Captain Underwood. He seemed to examine the Captain with his eyes. “I suppose that is why you felt the need to bring weapons to a dinner and stationed men outside.” This he said with a hint of anger in his voice.
“Thank you for meeting with us,” Ms. Hill interrupted. “We are very pleased you made the time to see us.” It seemed to Sarah she wanted to do most of the talking before Captain Underwood got a chance.
“Of course, Rebels from the States. I couldn’t resist a chance to hear what you have to say. Jonah seemed confident in you all.”
“As he should. We have won several battles at the moment.” Captain Underwood added.
“Two.” Mr. Reese said.
“Excuse me?” Captain Underwood asked.
“Two battles. You have only won two battles. If my history is right you don’t win wars by winning two battles. During the first battle the area you were going to take ended up being destroyed. Which means, you would have won ruins. The second was a sea battle and I believe you lost a ship. I wouldn’t be so cocky if I was you, Captain.” Captain Underwood opened his mouth to respond but Mr. Reese put his hand up as if to silence him. “It is impressive though, given what you are dealing with. Your numbers don’t seem large and your supplies are limited.” Mr. Reese spoke.
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