Terror Grips the Beach

by Steve McMillen

  Mr. Dalton is perplexed. What does he have to do to talk to someone about possible terrorists?

  “Don’t tell me, a bomb went off at the beach,” I remark.

  “Guess you’re watching the news.”

  “No, Jim just came in and told me about it. What can we do to help?”

  “Well, how about finding out who they are and where they are located. We seem to be at a dead end. There were no cameras near the explosion and it looks like a pipe bomb in a trash can.”

  “Okay detective, we’ll hit the streets and see if we can find out anything. I’ll keep you updated.”

  She hangs up without any further comment. The tone of her voice tells me she is frustrated.

  After a few minutes of contemplation, I return my call to Mr. Dalton. “Sorry Mr. Dalton, a bomb just went off at the beach. Everyone seems to be in a tizzy right now.”

  “That’s what I’m calling you about, Mr. MacCandlish. I may have a lead for you on the terrorists.”

  I can’t believe what he just said. “I’m all ears, Mr. Dalton. What have you got?”

  “Well, before I give you any details, I would like you to agree to let me tag along when you go to check out my information.”

  After a few seconds, I respond. “Tell you what I’ll do. Tell me what you know and I’ll make my decision based on that info. If it sounds worthy, of course you can tag along.”

  He fills me in about what he is thinking and what happened at the RV the other day. “Why did you wait a day to call?” I ask.

  “I was debating whether to call you or the police. I wanted to be part of the take down and finally decided the police would not go along with that.”

  “So, give me a description? You said it was a man and a woman?”

  He describes both suspects and the vehicle they are driving. They fit what I remember except his description of the woman is that she had blonde hair. The real kicker is that he also noticed two other men at the RV and they were driving a van. He also stated that he has not seen the other two men with the van in the last couple of days.

  “So, Dave, do you know if they are there right now?”

  “Not right now. I saw them leave about two hours ago and they haven’t come back.”

  “What is your location? We’ll be there right away. Whatever you do, don’t go in on your own, okay?”

  “No problem. I understand what backup is.” He gives me the address and I give him my cell phone number just in case they get back before we get there.

  CHAPTER 49

  My next call is to Sam. “Detective, I may have a lead on the whereabouts of the terrorists. I just had a call from a guy who thinks they may be staying in an RV park.”

  She quickly replies, “Oh, my God, that’s great. Give me the address and I’ll have SWAT over there in a matter of minutes.”

  “Well, there is a problem. They are not there right now. Would you like to hear what I think you should do?”

  “No, but I’ll listen anyway.”

  “Since they are not there, I believe they are out placing more bombs around town. So why don’t we go over there and cover the location, while you and all of your people hit the beach and the streets to try and catch them before they set off any more?”

  There is silence on the other end. I’m beginning to think I’ve lost the call, until finally she says, “Too late, Mickke D, there was just another explosion at the beach. Pipe bomb, trash can.”

  “Damn. So what are you going to do?” I quickly ask.

  “Give me the address, go over there and I’ll send backup later. Just keep me advised,” she replies.

  “You got it. Good luck.”

  I grab two more clips from my desk drawer and run down the hallway to Jim’s office. “Have you found Mark?”

  “No, he must be out where there’s no signal.”

  “Okay, we need to go. Do you remember Dave Dalton? He came in looking for a job about a month ago. He thinks the terrorists are staying in his RV park and Sam wants us to check it out. Bring all the ammo you have. Let’s take your vehicle. They know mine. But we need to stop by mine. I put my M-16 in the back which may come in handy.”

  *****

  Every police officer, including State Highway Patrolmen and Sheriff’s deputies in Horry and Georgetown counties are out searching for the terrorists. They are at the beach and on the streets. They are particularly interested in areas where there are trash cans and no cameras. They have a description of the suspects and the car they are driving.

  *****

  Phil and Anna ditch the Impala and steal another car. They transfer all of the remaining pipe bombs to the new vehicle and look for new locations to wreak terror on the population of Myrtle Beach.

  *****

  We arrive at Mr. Dalton’s without any problems. Jim knew exactly where it was. I didn’t ask how he knew that. We park Jim’s SUV in Mr. Dalton’s driveway and go inside. I can’t help but notice armored vests lying on the couch. “Are you expecting a war Dave?” I ask in a kidding manner.

  “Well, you never know. Didn’t know if you guys had any of these. Help yourself.”

  Without a second thought, Jim and I put one on. “Is there anyone else here with you?”

  “No, I sent my wife over to our daughter’s for the day.”

  “Do you have any kind of a map which shows the location of the RV you think they could be staying in?”

  Without hesitation he replies, “I sure do. Take a look at this.”

  He shows us a site map, which shows every lot and RV location. The one he is referring to is at the far end, closest to the beach. The map also shows a fence between the park and the beach dunes.

  “Dave, does that fence go all the way around the park?”

  “Yes, it does. They have to come and go through here if they’re driving a vehicle. However, there are several pedestrian gates which you can go through if you’re walking to the beach.”

  I look at Jim. “I guess we should do a drive by and see if they’ve returned home. Dave, do you have a key to get in the RV?”

  “Sure do. Let me get it.”

  He returns in seconds with the key and we get into Jim’s vehicle. We drive slowly toward the end of the RV park. I tell Jim I want him to stop before we get to the location so we can have a look around before going in. Dave points and says, “There it is, that black one over there.”

  We are about 50 yards away and there isn’t much going on around the suspect RV. “Dave, are any of those other RVs occupied?”

  “No, the closest one is that blue one five lots away. All of the others are empty.”

  After a minute to gather my thoughts, I say, “Okay, here’s what we are going to do. Dave, I want you to stay here and cover us. If you see any civilians coming this way, stop them. Jim and I are going in and see what we can find. Let me have the key.”

  Dave replies, “Be careful, it could be booby trapped.”

  I quickly say, “Yeah, I thought about that.”

  Jim has his .44 caliber pistol and I have my .45. I get in the trunk of Jim’s vehicle and gather up my M-16, which was a gift from my commanding officer at Ft. Bragg, Colonel Townsend. Jim and I walk slowly toward the black RV. I’m not sure about these vests right now. They are bright blue and have POLICE written across the front. We are not going to sneak up on anyone with these on.

  We reach the door of the RV without any problems. I look at Jim and nod my head. He places the key in the lock, turns it, and nothing happens. He tries it again with no success. He looks at me and whispers, “The bastards changed the locks.”

  “Okay, let’s get back to the vehicle and wait around,” I say.

  We go quickly back to where Jim’s parked and get back in his SUV. My heart rate finally begins to slow down as we ponder our next move.

  CHAPTER 50

  On the sixteenth day, at around 11 a.m., the Coastal Carolina students get a nice ping on their metal detectors. They flag the location and a second set of studen
ts begin to remove the topsoil to try to figure out what caused the metal detector to register. TC is in the area and comes over to check it out. After almost thirty minutes and nothing to show for their efforts, TC suggests they bring over the high-powered machine and take a look with it. After about twenty minutes of going back and forth over the location an image appears. He calls over the Coastal Carolina person in charge. “So, what do you think this is?”

  “Not sure, but we are going to find out. It almost looks like a coffin.” She gets on her phone and calls the dig crew over to begin the excavation of the location. Word spreads quickly among the students, and everyone migrates to the location. Just seconds after the crew arrives, she gets a call. She looks at TC, and sighs. She says to the dig crew, “Shut it down. We have to pack up and leave the area.”

  TC is dumbfounded. Somehow, the word “coffin” got back to the people in charge at Hobcaw Barony. If anyone discovers a burial site or cemetery, they need permits from the county and the state before going any further. Even though this may not be either of the above, they can’t take any chances.

  “So now what?” he asks.

  “We file permits and wait until they are approved,” she replies.

  “And how long will that take?” he asks, frustrated.

  “You never know, a week, a month, six months. Depends on who does the work.”

  “What can I do to speed things up?”

  “Unless you know people in high places, there is not much you can do.”

  He thinks for a second, “Is the governor a high enough place?”

  CHAPTER 51

  Phil and Anna notice the uptick in law enforcement in the area and decide to shut things down for the day and wait for a day or two before finishing the job. Phil tells Anna to head back to the RV and he reminds her, “Be sure and remind me to turn off the alarm when we get in there.”

  They wired an alarm system to a detonator when they first moved in, just in case someone tried to break into the RV. Ten seconds after entering the door, the RV will go up in a ball of flames if they do not turn the alarm off.

  “No problem.”

  *****

  Dave hears a vehicle coming our way and looks out the back window. “Everyone duck, here they come. Different car, but that’s them.”

  We hug the seats as the car slowly goes by. They stop at the end of the street and then cautiously turn into the small driveway next to the RV. All of a sudden, we need to decide if we should try to take them outside the RV or wait for them to get inside. I answer the question, “Okay guys, let’s do it and spread out. I doubt if they’re going to give up without a fight.”

  We exit the car and my thoughts go to the movie “Gunfight at the OK Corral.” We are walking right at their vehicle with guns in hand. They must have spotted us, because, all of a sudden, the doors open, and a man and a woman scurry out of the vehicle. Both are armed and pointing weapons at us. The man fires, as the woman makes a dash for the RV.

  “Get down and fire!” I yell. All three of us hit the grass and fire our weapons. Bullets are whizzing all around me as I slowly take aim with my M-16 at the man with the gun. Pop, pop, he goes down. I turn my attention to the woman who is now unlocking the door of the RV. She grabs her leg as either Dave or Jim hits their target. She is turning the lock and opening the door as I fire again. She falls through the front door of the RV.

  Tick tock, tick tock. We slowly get up and walk toward the RV. Tick tock, tick tock. For some reason, I stop and hold my hand up. Jim and Dave stop as well. “What’s wrong?” Jim asks.

  Tick tock, tick tock. Ka-boom! The RV explodes in a ball of flames. We are all picked up and knocked to the ground by the force of the explosion. After what seems like an eternity, I pick my head up and look around. The car they drove up in is on fire and the RV is pretty much gone. I say, “Everyone okay?”

  Jim answers, “I think so, but my ears and eyebrows can’t take too many more of these.”

  “Dave, you okay?”

  “I think so. Is this what retirement is all about? I’m going back to the Police Force. It wasn’t nearly as dangerous.”

  We hear sirens coming our way. I tell everyone to drop their weapons and raise their hands. We don’t want to get shot by friendly fire. The SWAT team bounds out of their vehicle with guns drawn. The same guy we met in Longs says, “Stand down.” and the men lower their guns. “Gentlemen, we need to stop meeting this way. Is everything under control?”

  “Yes sir, I think they are both dead. One was outside near that car and the other was inside the RV when it exploded.”

  Sam arrives next, along with Woolever and Stratton. “Mickke D, you guys okay?”

  “Yeah, I think so. But if we do this much more, we need to be on your payroll.”

  She gives me that are you kidding me look and moves on to talk with the SWAT team leader. She returns and staring directly at Jim, says, “You all need to come down to the station and write down what happened today. And by the way,” looking at Dave, “who are you?”

  “Dave Dalton, retired Charlotte police.”

  “Well Dave Dalton, retired Charlotte police, you should be there as well. I’ll find out then how you got mixed up with these guys.”

  “No problem,” he replies.

  CHAPTER 52

  It has been two weeks since Hobcaw filed the proper paperwork with the “powers that be” for the permits to dig up whatever might be there. TC decided not to contact the governor. He finally gets the call to meet everyone at the office the following day to go back to the dig site.

  It seems like the shuttle takes forever to get to the site but finally they arrive. The site is almost 100 yards from the drop off place and TC is the first off the shuttle. He walks briskly toward the site, stops, looks down, and as everyone watches, he sits down in the grass next to the site and puts his head in his hands.

  As the rest of the party arrives, they notice a mound of dirt next to the location. They look down into an empty hole. They see an old wooden ladder, some mud, bones, and the remains of some sort of a wooden box. Most of the students are excited about the bones, but TC is not one of them.

  The supervisor in charge arrives, looks at the site, and says, “Oh, my God, what happened?”

  TC looks at her and replies, “What does it look like happened? We’ve been robbed.” After a short pause, he continues, “Can I speak to you in private?”

  “Sure, let’s go back to the shuttle.” She looks at the students and barks an order, “Everyone cool it and don’t touch anything. I’ll be right back.”

  They walk in silence back to the shuttle. After sitting down, TC asks, “How could this have happened? Don’t you have any security that could have prevented this?”

  “I don’t know. The gate is locked at night when we leave and everyone who comes in is with a guide.”

  TC looks at her and points. “What about the bay, do you have that covered as well?”

  “Oh, my God, they came in by boat?” she exclaims. “Do you think it was an inside job, maybe one of the students?”

  “I doubt it. They never knew what they were searching for. Do you mind if I bring my partner down to look around? He’s a private investigator.”

  “No, I don’t mind. Should we excavate what’s left at the location?”

  “No, let’s wait until he gets here. I’m going to call him right now.”

  CHAPTER 53

  Terror no longer grips the beach. It’s been a week since the terror threat was removed. We all did our interview with Detective Concile and she thanked us in her own small, roundabout way.

  The newspapers, radio, and TV stations have been having a ball second guessing law enforcement. Everyone is asking why a private investigator was involved with the demise of the terrorists. On the positive side, the publicity has been good for our business. We have seen an increase in calls coming into the office. Jim is not happy with that because it cuts into his golf time.

  *****

&nbs
p; I’m contemplating my next move and right now I have two choices. I would love to go down to Colombia and wipe out the Valdez cartel, which would hopefully stop people from that part of the world trying to kill me, but I also think I should go back to my hometown of Lancaster, Ohio, and see if I can figure out what happened to my old high school friend, Jake.

  While I’m thinking, my cell phone rings. It’s TC. “Mickke D, I have a job for you.”

  I yank his chain a little. “Hey TC, nice to hear from you and how are you doing today?”

  “I need you down at Hobcaw Barony right away. We’ve been robbed.”

  There goes that we bit again. I haven’t been robbed, at least not that I know of. I continue to pull his chain. “So I take it there has been a problem with finding the buried treasure?”

  “Problem? You might say that. Someone came in while we were waiting for permits and took whatever was at the site. I believe it’s all gone except for an old wooden box, some bones, and a lot of mud.”

  I think about it for a few seconds. It’s hard to turn down anything that has to do with old buried pirate treasure, and TC knows that. “Okay, I’ll be there in about an hour.”

  “Thanks Mickke D, I really appreciate this. I’ll meet you up front in the reception area.”

  As I’m leaving the office, I ask Jannie to call up to Inlet View Bar & Grill in Shallotte Point, N.C., and make some dinner reservations for Saturday night. I want to take everyone in the office out to try to make up for the fact I almost got them all killed.

  On my trip down to Georgetown, I continue to think about my next move, Colombia or Lancaster. I also am thinking about who would possibly want to steal the treasure from TC, and only one name keeps popping up. Stephanie Langchester.

  As far as Colombia is concerned, I’m thinking, I can’t call Colonel Townsend again for help. He did more than his share the last time I went to Colombia and attacked the Valdez cartel. This time I will be on my own, although he may be able to get me the firepower I will need.