by Robert Boren
“Last we heard they were on their way to you guys, but they were about twice as far away. They were just west of Indianapolis when I talked to them last.”
“Okay,” General Hogan said. “I’ve got to think this through.”
“You got anybody working on that cell tower?” Frank asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “It wasn’t just that. The internet got cut too. We’re being set up.”
“Jake probably knows how to fix that stuff,” Frank said. “Jerry and Jasmine are better with it, but you guys need it up faster than they’ll be there.”
“Roger that,” the general said. “He’s already working it. He thinks the cell tower will be back up in an hour or so.”
“Good, you guys call us as soon as he pulls that off.”
“Will do,” General Hogan said.
“Don’t forget that nerve gas in the front office,” Frank said. “Use it if you need to.”
“Yeah, we know. Get here as soon as you can. Don’t stop overnight if possible. Drive straight through.”
“That’s the plan,” Frank said. “We’re stopping for gas in about five minutes, but after that we should be non-stop. We’ll be there in about five hours, unless we run into trouble on the road. Tell Charlie and Terry that we’ve got another thirty coaches coming with us, plus one heavily armed semi-truck.”
“Okay,” General Hogan said. “We’ve got lots to talk about when you get here.”
“Keep your eyes open,” Frank said. “George on the roof?”
“Yeah, we’re all on watch.”
“Good, see you soon, general. Thanks, Sam.”
“Don’t mention it,” Sam said. “You won’t get bothered by the UN on the way home. We shut them down in the quadrant you guys are driving through, and they don’t have anybody east of there yet. Worry about the Islamists. They’re getting ready for something big. You guys are liable to be right in the middle of it.”
“Got it, Sam. Thanks. Jerry, you and Jasmine take care. Keep in touch. Often.”
“Will do, Frank,” Jerry said. “Talk to you later.”
Frank put his phone in his pocket just in time to drive down the ramp. He headed straight for the truck stop and pulled up to a pump.
“I’ll take Lucy out,” Jane said. “Okay?”
“Yeah,” Frank said. He left the coach and got the gas flowing, watching the big lineup of rigs flood onto the lot. Clint trotted over to him.
“You guys doing okay?” Clint asked.
“Just heard from General Hogan,” Frank said. “They’re okay, but somebody’s going to hit them. Both their cell tower and their internet connection got cut. On purpose.”
“Son of a bitch,” Clint said. “Glad they’re still alive. How long till we get there?”
“Five hours, give or take. I told them to get ready for another thirty coaches and a heavily armed semi-truck.”
Clint chuckled. “I was against spending time and money on that semi,” Clint said. “I was wrong. Hope we don’t run into more UN.”
“We shouldn’t,” Frank said. “Sam Hinton was on the line. He patched us into General Hogan over an army radio. He said they’ve rounded up the UN folks who were after us.”
“Good news,” Clint said. “Heard of Sam Hinton. Didn’t know he was with us. Seen him on TV more than once.”
“There’s bad news too,” Frank said. “Jeb and Rosie have been snatched. They’re being held for ransom by a guy named Daan Mertins.”
“Shit. Heard of him,” Clint said. “Thought he was holed up in the EU.”
“He was,” Frank said. “He snuck over here with a WTO delegation.”
“Figures,” Clint said. “What does he want for ransom?”
“General Hogan, our friend George Franklin, and me,” Frank said, a smirk on his face.
“Over my dead body,” Clint said.
“Not sure what we’re gonna do about this,” Frank said. “There was a phone number on the note. Jerry gave it to General Hogan. Between him and Sam Hinton, we’ve got two good minds working on it.”
“Good,” Clint said. “My rig’s probably about full. I better get her moved up.”
“Me too,” Frank said, watching the pump numbers whiz by. “Still want us in the lead?”
“Yeah, so we can follow you into the park,” Clint said.
“Okay, I’ll pull this around into the back parking lot and wait for everybody to get done.”
“Good place to stage,” Clint said. “Talk to you soon.”
Frank closed the gas cap and walked to the door of the coach, meeting Jane and Lucy.
“She’s relieved, I’ll bet,” Frank said, squatting to pet her.
“Yeah,” Jane said. “We still gonna be in the lead?”
“Yep,” Frank said. “Sure you’re okay with driving? I’m so full of adrenaline again that I could keep going.”
“No, you’re going to crash,” Jane said. “I’ll take over.”
“Okay, pull in the back and wait. When everybody’s done fueling up, we’ll take off.”
“Sound’s good.”
***
“Agent Williams, we found something,” the lab tech said, rushing in the door of the office. Agent Williams, Ted, and Delson’s heads whipped around.
“What?” Delson asked.
“Luminol showed the blood traces right up to the door of a locker,” he said, trying to catch his breath.
“That might not be enough,” Delson said. “I’ll need to see it.”
“Oh, it’s enough,” the tech said. “There’s some on the padlock, too. The perp got it on his hands.”
“Yes!” Ted said. Agent Williams smiled.
“Okay, show me, and I’ll bring the lock cutter,” Delson said reluctantly. “What number is the unit?”
“Second floor, number 212,” the tech said.
“Okay, let’s go,” Agent Williams said. He looked at Simone and Weiss. “You guys stick around here, okay? If somebody shows up at the gate, flash your badges and tell them to come back later.”
“Okay, Agent Williams,” said Agent Weiss. He glanced at Agent Simone, and they walked out to the front of the storage lot.
“Right this way,” the tech said, leading them to the unit. They took the stairs up to the second floor. When they got to unit 212, the other tech was there with his black light. He switched it on, showing the glow of the blood traces to Delson. He set down the lock cutter and took a closer look.
“Okay, that’s good enough for me,” Delson said. He pulled out his cellphone and took pictures, then picked up the lock cutter and switched it on, the diamond blade spinning at high speed. The men watched as he touched the lock, sending a shower of sparks around the hasp. He was through the metal in seconds. “Careful, it’s gonna be hot.” He shut off the cutter and set it down next to the wall by the door, then carefully pulled the remains of the padlock off of the hasp. Ted and Agent Williams got in the middle of the door and reached down, pulling it up. Delson reached in and turned on the light.
“Just a bunch of junk in front,” Ted said.
“Don’t touch anything, guys,” Agent Williams said. He walked in a little further, and saw the two safes and the crate filled with film cans in the back.
“Bingo,” Ted said, looking around from behind him.
“Yeah, there’s your movies,” Agent Williams said. “We’ll put those in my trunk, and I’ll take them back to headquarters.” He turned to the lab techs. “Dust everything, but do the film cans and the crate first, okay?”
“Yeah,” the first tech said. He nodded to the other, and they brought their kits into the back.
“What about those safes?” Delson asked.
“We’ll get somebody from the bureau out here to open them up,” Agent Williams said. “I’ll put Agent’s Weiss and Simone on that when I take off.”
“Mind if I take pictures in here?” Delson asked. “Before you move anything?”
“Be my guest, just keep your hands off,” Age
nt Williams said. “Until the lab guys are done, at least. The FBI is going to take control of this locker for a while.”
“I figured,” Delson said. “No problem. I’ll cooperate.”
He entered and took pictures, while Agent Williams and Ted went out, leaning against the opposite wall in the hallway, watching.
“What now?” Ted whispered.
“We’ll take those film cans with us,” Agent Williams whispered back. “After that, I don’t know. You haven’t heard anything back from Malcolm yet, have you?”
“No,” Ted said. “I’ll give him a call. He’ll want to know about the films.”
He pulled his phone out and hit Malcolm’s contact. It rang a couple of times, and Malcolm picked up.
“Ted, what’s up?” Malcolm asked.
“You sound happy,” Ted said.
“I just heard from Frank. George and the rest of the group are okay, for now.”
“Good,” Ted said. “Still going back there?”
“Yeah. Somebody took down their cell tower and internet line,” Malcolm said. “They’re going to get hit, but they’ll get help. Frank and Jane are on their way back too, with another group of partisans.”
“Interesting,” Ted said. “Anything else?”
“Yeah, some bad news. Jeb and Rosie got kidnapped.”
“No,” Ted said. “By who?”
“Long story,” Malcolm said. “What’s happening there?”
“We got into the right locker. As we suspected, the crate full of film cans is there. We’ve got lab techs dusting it now.”
“Good,” Malcolm said. “What are you guys gonna do?”
“When the techs are done, we’ll load the films into Agent Williams’s car, and head back to Kansas.”
“Good,” Malcolm said. “Anything else interesting in the locker?”
“Two safes,” Ted said. “Probably full of money and guns.”
“Probably,” Malcolm said. “We’ll see you soon, Ted. Thanks for letting me know about this.”
“No problem,” Ted said. He ended the call and put the phone in his pocket.
“Malcolm’s friend is okay?” Agent Williams asked.
“For now, yeah, but somebody cut their communications. On purpose. I need to get back there.”
“We’ll be able to take off in an hour or so, I think,” Agent Williams said.
“Still want to go with us?” Ted asked.
“Yeah,” he said.
***
Sue looked out of the window of her hotel room. She was in the largest hotel Grand Junction had to offer, on the sixth floor. She looked out the window every five minutes, expecting to see Scott and Cindy rushing towards the lobby. Her cellphone rang, making her jump. She picked it up and answered it.
“Sue?”
“Eddie? Everything okay at the park?”
“No,” he said. “The cops showed up a few minutes ago. Somebody snatched a young woman from the park. I think they were in the small Class C rig by the pool. The couple from that coach were in here looking for you. They were pissed that you weren’t around. The man scared me. When I couldn’t tell them where you were, they stomped off, but then I saw them coming back. I locked the office doors and hid.”
“They’re gone now?” Sue asked, her heart pounding.
“Yeah,” he said. “They left in a hurry, and then a young girl ran in, saying that her friend was missing. Her parents came over a few minutes later, looking for you. The mom called 911.”
“Good,” Sue said, trying to catch her breath.
“You left because of these guys, didn’t you?”
“Yeah,” Sue said. “Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Eddie said. “They probably would have hurt you.”
Sue walked to the door and checked the bolt and the night lock. Then she walked back to the window and looked out over the parking lot and the road beyond it.
“When are you coming back here?” Eddie asked. “Some guy named Gabe called the office twice. He sounded real worried.”
“Oh, yeah,” she said. “What’s his number?”
“Just a sec,” Eddie said. “Shoot, I don’t have it. It was written down on a slip of paper, but I don’t see it now.”
“It’s on a resident slip from several days ago,” Sue said. “Never mind for now, but if he calls back, give him my cell number, okay? And have the police call me when they get into the office.”
“Okay,” Eddie said.
Sue’s eyes got wide as she looked out the window. “Oh no!” she cried, her voice trembling. “They’re down in the parking lot. They found my car!”
“Lock your door,” Eddie said. “They in the Class C?”
“No, they’re on foot,” Sue said, shaking. “Shoot, they just let the air out of one of my tires. Oh my God.”
“Call 911 now. I’ll run out and tell the cops,” Eddie said.
“Okay,” Sue said. She ended the call and watched as Scott and Cindy trotted towards the lobby doors. Then they were out of sight. She was dialing 911 when the hotel phone rang. She froze, watching the red light flash on the phone as it rang. She picked it up.
“Hello?”
“Hi, sorry to bother you. Your brother just showed up. Said there was a family emergency. He’s on his way up there right now.”
“Call 911, he’s not my brother. He’s trying to kill me!”
“Oh, no,” the desk clerk said. He hung up the phone. Sue looked around the room for something heavy she could push in front of the door. The dresser. She got behind it. It was too heavy for her to move. She picked up the chair that was by the desk and carried it over, trying to wedge it under the doorknob. There was a knock at the door.
“Sue, can you come out and play?” asked the wicked voice.
Chapter 15 – Ruined Farm
“C’mon, Sue, we won’t hurt you - much,” Cindy said through the door. They tried the doorknob as Sue backed away in horror.
Scott pounded on the door. Sue punched in 911 as she listened to the snickering in the hall.
“I’m on 911 now!” she cried.
“They won’t get here in time,” Scott said. Then he laughed like a maniac and threw himself against the door.
“911 operator.”
“Help me! A killer is trying to break down the door to my hotel room.”
“Are you the one in the sixth floor room at the Cameron Grand Hotel?”
“Yes,” Sue said. “They’re banging on the door now!”
“Stay on the line,” the operator said. “The police are already on their way.”
“C’mon out and play, Susy Q,” Scott sang, slamming his body against the door again and again. It hadn’t budged yet, but the chair fell away from the doorknob. She raced over and wedged it back in, then held it.
“How about the fire extinguisher over there?” Cindy said. “It might be heavy enough to break the door.”
“Yeah, go get it,” Scott said, sounding out of breath.
There was silence for a few seconds, and then a loud crash. The door made a splintering sound, but held. Scott laughed like a maniac again.
“Hit it again, honey,” Cindy said, giggling with glee.
Then Sue heard it. Sirens out front. “The cops are here, you losers,” she shouted.
There was another crash and the door gave, but was stopped by the night lock. Scott stuck his fingers through the crack, laughing, reaching around the night lock as the sirens got louder. Sue ran at the door and slammed into it with all her might, smashing Scott’s fingers. He cried with rage.
“Hear that, Scotty?” Cindy cried. “We need to leave.”
“Okay, bitch, you’ll live another day, but we’ll get you,” Scotty yelled. “We’ll tear you apart!”
“C’mon, Scotty!” Cindy shouted. “Now!”
There was running, and Sue heard the stairway doors open. She picked her phone up off the floor. “They broke through the door, but then they heard the sirens. They just ran down the stairs.”
“The police are in the lobby now. Don’t open the door until they get up there,” the operator said.
“I won’t,” Sue said. “The bolt’s broken. The only thing holding it shut is the night lock.”
She heard shouting in the hallway, and heavy footsteps running to her door.
“You all right in there?” shouted the police officer.
“Yeah,” Sue said. “They took the stairs. Don’t worry about me. Get them!”
“Stay put,” the officer shouted as he ran down the hallway further.
Sue heard more sirens, and more footsteps.
“We’re coming through,” another officer shouted. “Stand back from the door.”
There was a loud splintering crash, and the officer walked in, gun drawn, looking around in all directions. “Stay there, Joe. Watch the hallway just in case they come back.”
The officer rushed to Sue. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” she said. “Did you get him?”
“We’re looking for him now, but I won’t leave your side,” the officer said.
There were gunshots coming from below.
“Found them, sounds like,” the officer in the hall shouted.
“Stay there. We’ve got enough men to take them. If they come back up, shoot to kill.”
“Got it,” the other officer shouted back.
There was silence for a few moments. Then the radio on the officer’s lapel squawked.
“They got away,” the voice said. “Killed Harry out in the parking lot.”
“Shit,” the officer said. “How did they get away?”
“We think they stole a Jeep,” the radio squawked back. “Officer Smith found an old man out at his farm a while ago, throat cut hear to ear. Happened late last night. According to his kids, there’s a Jeep missing. One with the same description was seen leaving the hotel the parking lot. They’re already in the brush by now.”
“Officer, they were in a short Class C motor home at my place,” Sue said.
“Yeah, we’ve been looking for that,” the officer said. “I’m Officer Kent Shockney, by the way.”
“Thanks, Officer Shockney,” Sue said, starting to calm down. “If you guys don’t get them, I’m going into hiding.”
“Don’t worry,” he said. “We’ll protect you.”