by Mack Norman
A woman spoke up, “Mr. Max, you told us a bunch of lies about how things would work. Everything started out the first week like you said. Then a week ago, the free clinic wasn’t free anymore, and people were forced to work in those businesses that Tony told us we would be kept out of sight away from us. My best friend’s daughter was forced to become a whore. Go away and take that monster Tony with you.”
“Lady, I’m sorry these things happened, didn’t have anything to do with them. We have returned to make things right again. Now go into your house and don’t come out until we have defeated that gang.”
On their drive back to meet Oscar, Amy said, “Max, it appears the real Tony was always just below the surface ready to show what a monster he truly is, and how mean he can be to people. We must end his reign before he gets too strong to defeat. We should also find out which of his soldiers would blindly follow orders and harm the good people around our community.”
“Amy, don’t beat yourself up. He had me convinced he was Robin Hood, but now I see he was actually a greedy sociopath who would kill anyone to keep his power and expand it across the country,” Max disclosed.
They arrived at Oscar’s location and met privately with him. Oscar said, “During the attack, we need a sniper to shoot Tony, so it looks like someone got a lucky shot off and killed our beloved leader.”
Amy replied, “I’ll take one of the sniper positions and Roger will take the backup slot. Roger approached me in Lawrenceburg with several issues concerning Tony’s behavior. Apparently, he caught Tony molesting an underage girl one night and was disgusted. He was afraid Tony would find out that he knew and have him killed, so he only told me because he planned to run away while on your trip to Lawrenceburg.”
Max thought for a minute and then responded, “What is our backup plan?”
“I guess we’ll have to play that by ear,” replied Oscar.
“No! We need to plan for success. If he can’t be killed in battle, then I say one of us kills him, and the others say a gang member did the dirty deed. We will need to plant evidence and make it convincing for those few who have swallowed the Kool-Aid. Then, of course, there is his new girlfriend. She could be a problem,” Max pleaded.
Oscar and Amy listened, shook their heads in agreement, and agreed to work out an alternate plan before morning. They turned in early to be ready an hour before daylight to commence their part of the operation.
Amy was late getting to bed since she cleaned her AR10 and prepared it for the nasty job tomorrow. She looked eagerly to when she had the sight on Tony’s head, squeezed the trigger, and ended the bastard’s life.
She crawled into bed and found Max asleep, so she took up her favorite sleeping position with her head on Max’s chest and a leg thrown over his left leg. She didn’t sleep that night. Her mind kept playing out the various scenarios that might happen the next day when the attack began. She would have never been able to dream up what would really happen.
“Max, wake up it’s time to get ready. We have to kill a bunch of rat bastard gang members and one king rat,” Amy said as she woke him up running her fingers over his chest and nibbling on his ear.
“Screw the war, stay here with me for a couple of hours, and I’ll show you a good time, beautiful,” Max playfully laughed.
“Don’t you mean about five minutes,” she replied with a mischievous grin.
“Five minutes my ass, I’ll cut you off totally if you keep sullying my manhood young lady,” Max replied as he grabbed her and began tickling her sides.
“Oh, shit stop. I can’t stand that, you asshole.”
He stopped, held her close, and kissed her before saying, “That’s Mr. Asshole to you, Mrs. Asshole.
”Hold the phone. That’s Ms. Asshole until you put a ring on my finger,” she replied.
He realized what she had said and kissed her until he said, “I’ll find a ring tomorrow.”
“She held him tight and replied, “I’ll believe it when I see the ring. Let’s go Mr. A.”
The first stage of their attack was to put fuses in the bombs the Sheriff of Lawrenceburg had supplied for their use. Then they placed several around the building the gang leaders were fast asleep in and more bombs in the adjacent building where their soldiers slept. They also had plenty of the smaller handheld bombs to pitch through the glass into both buildings. It would be a repeat of the attack on the Clan in Northeastern Alabama.
While Max and Oscar prepared for the attack on the sleeping quarters, Amy and Roger infiltrated the area in front of the warehouses to catch Tony as he led the assault on the gang.
☆☆☆
Tony and Liz retired early, and Tony made love to her for hours before falling asleep. Liz had quickly gotten over her infatuation with Tony once she saw the real man behind the smokescreen he presented to his underlings and the community. He was a vicious and spiteful man who went berserk when he didn’t get his way. Liz knew better than to try to avoid sex with him or to displease him in any way. The bruises on her back and stomach told the story of the times she had bucked him. She hated Tony but loved the power and good life he gave her.
Tony had made a big deal about leading his army into battle the next day, but Liz knew him for the coward he was. She fully expected him to come up with a reason for not leading his men in the morning. She prayed he would go into the battle and not come back.
Liz couldn’t sleep and lay there thinking of ways to kill the piece of crap that wouldn’t bounce back on her. She fell asleep knowing she was a coward just like him. She wouldn’t do anything for fear of his retaliation, but she knew she could work her charm on men. She planned to implement the plan she had been working on for the last week.
One of Tony’s men stuck his head into their room and said, “Boss, it’s time to get ready.”
Tony put his clothes on, strapped on a shoulder holster, and tucked his paddle holster into his waistband. He armed himself with two Berettas. Then he strapped a Smith and Wesson .38 to his leg and pulled his pants leg over the bulge. He placed the body armor over his head and strapped the bulletproof vest to his chest. He looked at himself in the mirror and knew he was ready to meet the challenge ahead.
Liz watched Tony preen in front of the mirror and reached for her Ruger LCP but was too afraid to pull the trigger. She slipped out of the room and met with her secret lover.
☆☆☆
Oscar waited for the signal from Tony and ordered the men to ignite the fuses on the explosives. His men waited until the last possible second before they threw their bombs, shattering the glass. One of the bombs landed among the thugs inside their rooms. Shots rang out across the area as Oscar’s men killed their targets. The rest of Oscar’s men had infiltrated the gang’s guard posts. They shot the gang members outside the buildings the second the explosions ripped the sleeping quarters apart.
The explosions detonated close together but not at the same time. They were strung out over about five seconds. Several men made it outside the doorways only to be cut down by the shrapnel from the explosions. There was a tremendous blast, a huge fireball, and then body parts and debris fell for a hundred yards around the two buildings.
Amy and Roger waited for Tony and his guards to walk out of the building when the action died down so he could claim that he led his victorious men into battle. Amy and Roger both saw the four familiar men who made up Tony’s personal guard, but something was amiss with Tony. Amy couldn’t put her finger on it but dismissed the doubt. She thought that maybe Tony was sick or something. She fired first, and Tony’s head exploded as the .308 bullet came out the back of his skull. Before his body could fall Roger placed a well aimed shot into Tony’s chest, ripping his heart into pieces. They left their sniper’s nests without being seen and joined Max and Oscar by Oscar’s truck.
“Yes Tony, I hear you, Tony. We’ll find the bastards who shot your assistant,” Oscar said,” and then added, “No, it couldn’t have been her. She was a few feet from me fighting off an atta
ck on our position. No, Max was by her side. Tony, it was the gang.”
Oscar was fuming as he turned toward Max and Amy and then said, “The fucker had a body double walk out into the battle. The chicken shit didn’t come out until a minute ago. We have to go to plan B.”
Amy asked, “Did I hear right? Did he immediately assume Max and I shot at him?”
“Yes, the man is paranoid. Hell, if I didn’t know better I would think he is taking drugs. His mood changes every day. We have to solve this problem quickly, or he will kill us all.”
“Let’s take him on a tour of the neighborhoods so he can brag to the community that he single handedly saved the world. Then Roger and I can shoot him from a block away with suppressed rifles,” Amy suggested.
Oscar quickly replied, “That would work if we wait a couple of days for Tony to feel safe after he was almost killed today. Well, put smiles on your faces and let’s go see the boss. He wants to thank us for a job well done.”
The three of them drove through the gate and on to Tony’s building where they were ushered into his office. Tony didn’t get up to greet them and still had the body armor on. All four of his guards were in the room.
“Boss, I’m glad you are okay. That had to be a sniper from that gang getting a lucky shot off as we kicked their asses. We blew up their hideout and killed most of them in their sleep. After that, it was just mopping up,” Max told Tony.
Tony wasn’t smiling as usual after a victory. This worried Oscar as Tony probed, “What happened down in Lawrenceburg? I still haven’t made contact with any of my men.”
Oscar replied, “Our men have control of the city and are searching for Lorenzo and his crew. Most of his soldiers were killed in an attack by the KKK Clan, and then the citizens saw how weak they were and rebelled. We had to kill over a dozen to get them back in line. I left one of my lieutenants down there to run things until you decide what to do.”
“We will meet, after I send the others away, to discuss operations. Now, Amy, how is my favorite girl doing?” Tony queried.
“Tony, I am fine. I survived the kidnapping and Max rescued me from the Clan. I’m afraid we stirred them up a bit, and they might have attacked the town thinking we were there. Max has asked me to marry him, and we plan to have a wedding in the near future. I am so glad you weren’t injured leading the battle. I …”
Max thought Amy was laying it on a bit too thick and interrupted her, “Boss, we need to capitalize on this victory and should make sure everyone knows that our team has kept them alive and safe one more time,” Max suggested.
“Thanks for the input Max. Please give your thoughts to Brad Potts; he is the new Sheriff of Gallatin. I’m sorry, but we all thought you and Amy were dead, and we had to move on. I’ll find a new position for you next week. Until then you and Amy can get rested,” Tony said and then waved at his head guard. The man drew his pistol and pointed it at the three of them.
“Men, arrest these three for treason against our leader and lock them up in the supply room until we can have the trial,” Tony said.
Oscar looked at Tony with pain in his eyes and said, “Why, Boss? Amy and I have been loyal to you for over twenty years.”
“Oscar, I don’t know who planned the coup, but I do know that there are ten of your closest men who will want to live. We will start killing them one by one until they tell me who is behind this coup.”
“Boss there isn’t a coup!” Oscar pleaded.
They were stripped of their weapons, searched, and handcuffed before being thrown into the supply closet. Max pulled out a tiny flashlight, looked around the room, and said, “Piece of cake. This is exactly the same design and floor plan as the one I escaped from a couple of weeks ago.”
∞
Chapter ❺
Mad dog & Long Live the King
Max quickly found the paperclips, made short work escaping from the handcuffs. He then explained to the other two what to expect when they climbed into the ceiling. They made improvised weapons from a broom handle, floor scraper, and a support beam for the metal shelves holding the supplies. Oscar took the screws connecting the shelves to the metal leg and then bent the leg until it broke into two pieces. He now had a two foot piece of angle iron with a jagged end.
Max lifted the ceiling tile, shinnied up through the hole into the space above the ceiling, and then reached down for Amy. He pulled her up while Oscar pushed her up from below. Oscar was next and climbed like a cat into the space between the roof and ceiling. There was plenty of room because the warehouse had a thirty-foot span from floor to warehouse ceiling, and the offices were only eight feet high. The trick was to make sure you only walk on something sturdy enough to hold your weight.
“Be careful and only step on this support beam while holding on to the load wires,” Max cautioned and then added, “We will walk toward the front offices and stop when we think we are above Tony’s office.”
They proceeded at a good rate when Oscar’s foot slipped off the beam and went through the ceiling tile, causing the tile to drop down to the floor of an occupied office. Oscar lowered his head and apologized to the man and woman in the room.
“Sorry for dropping in on you. Just checking out a security issue. You might want to be a bit more discrete when choosing your rendezvous place.”
The man who had literally been caught with his pants down, said, “Sorry, I’ll never do this again.”
They continued on their mission and arrived above Tony’s office. Max lifted a ceiling tile revealing Tony asleep at his desk and no one else in the room.
Max placed his finger to his lips and then indicated to them that they would remove a tile and drop down into the room. Oscar lowered himself, keeping an eye on Tony, and then helped Amy to the floor. Max lowered himself to the floor, club in hand. He lifted Tony’s head and covered Tony’s mouth. Then he realized Tony was dead.
“Son of a bitch! He’s already dead. He is foaming at the mouth as if he’s been poisoned,” Max exclaimed.
“Who the f…,” Oscar said. As the door opened, he stopped speaking.
Tony’s girlfriend, Liz, marched into the room with Tony’s personal guards at her side and said, “Arrest these people they killed my husband and our leader.”
Oscar lunged forward and said, “We didn’t kill him. He was dead when we entered the room.”
Liz laughed and confessed, “Of course you didn’t. You dumbasses just arrived earlier than I planned. I poisoned the monster myself with the help of my new husband Jack, Tony’s head of his personal security. We will now rule the kingdom that Tony built. You three are the only ones standing in the way. Place them in chains and keep guards in the cell with them this time so they won’t escape.”
“Liz, how long have you been plotting this,” Amy asked.
“Ever since the bastard started beating me over a week ago. That was one sick SOB. He was going to turn our community into a sick image of his own illness. He would make slavery, drugs, rape, and torture the norm.”
Max said, “We want the same thing you do Liz, and we're going to overthrow Tony to keep everyone free. Why can’t we join forces?”
Liz laughed wickedly and barked, “There can only be one Queen, and this will be my new country. Remove these pathetic people from my sight.”
☆☆☆
Jackie contacted Rob to set up a clandestine meeting with Greg, Sam, and a few others as soon as she was able to leave her office next to Tony’s room. She had heard all of the conversation. Maintenance had not replaced the water damaged ceiling tiles in her office, and Max had removed one in Tony’s office. Jackie was shocked that Liz had killed Tony and was framing her man, Oscar, and his friends.
“Greg, I didn’t misunderstand or get confused. Liz poisoned Tony and is framing our friends for the murder so she can become queen of the community,” Jackie confirmed.
Sam interrupted Greg before Greg could answer and said, “We all have to admit that Tony had to be removed. A coup was only we
eks away, but we can’t replace him with this power hungry witch. We need to rescue our friends and run Liz and her friends out of the community.”
Bob had been quiet the entire conversation and said, “We are next.”
Rob blurted out, “What do you mean ‘we are next?’”
“Liz knows that we were in the first group Tony founded at the airport and that we are loyal to Max and Oscar. She will find a reason to arrest us next. We need to scatter and tell everyone you know the story Jackie heard before she captures us. Let’s meet in four hours at the Auto Parts warehouse in the shipping department,” replied a scared Bob.
They scattered and began informing the people they trusted, gathering support to fight. Bob sent runners out to the neighborhoods around the warehouse complex in an attempt to get the ordinarily peaceful people to rise up and help them.
☆☆☆
“Phil, why would I kill Tony who was my best friend for twenty years,” Oscar pleaded with the man guarding them.
Phil responded, “That’s above my pay grade. I just do what I’m told.”
Amy said, “Phil you were on Tony’s detail with me at the airport. We were staged there to jump in and break Tony out of the custody if the deal fell through. Right?”
“What’s your point? You know I was there.”
“Do you remember what Tony told us before he was taken into custody?” Amy asked.
“Yes, he said he trusted Oscar and you with his life. He said that we were to do what you say when you say it every time, and we would be successful,” Phil replied as he wondered what to do about this impossible situation.