by Tom Hansen
“Bonty wasn’t married and he didn’t have no kids,” interrupted Johnny Murphree. “He never talked like he was ever married and he had no pictures in his office. What are you talking about, Bo?”
“Let me explain. Roy needed an insider at the sheriff’s department to make his plan work. Al was a vibrant and outgoing young man and well-liked by everyone in the county. He gave almost everybody a warning instead of a speeding ticket and he smiled a lot back then. That was, until he met Roy. Roy kidnapped Al’s wife and sent her to Jasurbia, where his brother Ray had presented her as a gift to the royalty. Today, she’s part of a harem, but even Ray isn’t sure where exactly.
“Anyway, Roy took the babies and raised them at his ranch. Jimmy and Jenny Jackson are Sheriff Bonty’s kids.”
“What?!” gasped Willy, Otis and Johnny almost in unison.
Bo continued. “Roy has never been married, nor has he ever had so much as a live-in gal around the house. He told Jimmy and Jenny that their mom was killed in a car accident. He told Al Bonty that he would allow him to watch the kids grow up, but he was never to speak to them. Then he shared the masterplan with Al and said that if he joined along with the grand scheme, when it was all over he would release his wife back to him. The blackmail has loomed heavily over Al, but he’s played his role well.
“A month after the kidnapping, the Seminole Bend sheriff, Al’s boss, mysteriously moved to Oregon. No one knew why, including me, even though I have a good idea. He was a southern boy who liked to soak up the sun and fish the big lake. Starting a new life in Oregon made no sense.
“And Judge Boone was one of Roy’s fishing buddies who also chaired the county commission. When the search began for a new sheriff, Boone immediately recommended Al Bonty and the rest is history.”
“What part did you play in all this, Tyrus?” asked Agent Jones.
“Bo and me, we teamed up in South America and gambled that I had gained enough of Oliver and Roy’s trust through the years to be their number two guy. We drowned the chief of Oliver’s Columbian operations and then I was appointed to run the show down there. Had I not been put in charge, we had no backup plan. Once I was picked to head up their Columbian mission, I disabled the last few shipments of jammers, but several original boxes made it to Florida before I took over. Those are dangerous and in the wrong hands as we speak! I conned Oliver into believing that I had a good person working with me who could run the Georgia Nike base, his name being Jim Brown.” Tyrus pointed at Bo.
“Thanks to Sheriff Bonty, we knew about the video controls implanted into airplanes and cars and the remotes used to maneuver them. Janet called me after her last meeting with Roy in Harrisburg and she was terrified about something.” Bo looked at Janet and she nodded back at him. “I guessed Roy was becoming suspicious of her, but then Bonty told me about plans that had been made to test the new lethal combination of a radar jammer together with a video remote controller in an aircraft departing from Chicago. I remembered that Roy had asked Janet to fly down to Florida to meet up with Lew so he would stop snooping around. Least that’s what Roy told her. When I found out that Roy booked her on a connecting flight through Chicago instead of a nonstop from Pittsburgh, I figured Roy planned to take down that Heartland Lakes jet with Janet on it. I intercepted her at the connecting gate just ten minutes before it was to depart. I had no badge, but I approached the CSR’s at the desk and demanded the plane be grounded. I was restrained by airport security but broke free, grabbed Janet and ran. Meanwhile, the flight took off. And . . . it didn’t land.”
Bo walked over to Lance and finished off the last of the Jack Daniels. But whisky would not fade his memory of what could have been prevented had he only had more time.
“When Harfield took down those planes last week, I realized I needed to step up my game quickly. Ray Jackson devised the plan to send me to Baku so I could bribe a Soviet pilot, then steal a Mig-25 and rig up nuclear weapons to nuke South Florida. Ty found out about the plan from Bonty. Ray’s mission was to destroy all the evidence in this house we’re sitting in and force the president to fly down from Washington and declare a state of emergency. Then, Ty was supposed to launch a short-range Hercules missile from the Nike base to take out Air Force One. If that didn’t work from down here, I was the backup stationed at the base in Georgia with a longer range Zeus-B missile. But I had a different idea, one that I didn’t share with Tyrus.
“Years ago, Oliver had requisitioned from the CIA a HoftanJet HJ-15 to have at his disposal when needed. It was waiting at the Gainesville airport to take me to Baku. But I knew I needed to get back to the US faster than that thing could get me here, so I went with my own Plan B. You see, back in the late sixties, our squad was trained to fly jet fighters as soon as we joined the special ops force. President Nixon secretly placed an F-4 Phantom fighter jet and an AH-1 Huey Cobra chopper at our disposal before he left office, and we’ve been flying them covertly ever since. There’s a secluded desert air strip in eastern Turkey near Kars that is near the Soviet border. We planted the chopper there a week earlier hoping it wouldn’t be seen. I convinced Oliver’s pilot in Gainesville that plans had changed and I wouldn’t need his service, and told him to go home and wait for orders. Our Phantom was hidden in a private hangar we had purchased at the Gainesville airport. I flew it to the airstrip in Turkey, then went to Baku with the Huey at night so I could fly below the Soviet radars. Ty thought I was going to replace the MiG’s nukes with incendiary bombs. I didn’t want to tell him the truth or he would have insisted coming with me. Chances were slim that I could pull this off and I wasn’t about to have my best friend’s brother killed in action.” Bo paused and grinned at Willy.
“So I broke into the Soviet jet and rigged up the camera and remote controllers, then left the nukes in place. Prince Adil had already taken care of paying off the Russian pilot, so I got out of there as fast as I could with the chopper. I knew I was cutting it close, but I got back to the Gainesville control center shortly before the MiG took off. Ray Jackson was napping on a cot and never did see me turn on the TV and operate the joystick. It was time to end the Jasurbian connection, and the Mig-25 brought a conclusion to that nightmare. Then I ended the nightmare that was Roy Jackson’s big brother.”
Everyone in the room glanced at each other and gave slight nods. They were starting to see a clear picture of how the third world war may have been prevented.
“Your actions kept the president from flying to Miami,” pronounced Agent Jones with a slight nod to Bo. “This goes beyond the Medal of Honor, Mr. Yardly! Our nation will be forever in your debt.”
“I appreciate your words, Agent Jones,” replied Bo. “But my name can never be associated with these events. As far as America’s concerned, I’m dead and it needs to stay that way. All of this is top secret and we need to protect Richard Nixon’s enshrouded orders. His courageous actions and enormous risk-taking measures are to be commended! But we are not finished until we put an end to Oliver Harfield and his band of outlaws. And it’s time for Tyrus and me to complete this mission.”
“Bullshit, my friend,” stated Willy matter-of-factly. “Two things. One, you are a hero and every dog gets his day. I will make sure of that! Two, you and Ty are not going at this alone. You got a full ride to ‘Bama cuz I blocked so damn well for you in high school! Teammates for life, bro! I’m with you from here on out, you got that?!”
Bo was shaking his head no and about to respond when Agent Jones spoke up. “The FBI is in. We will protect your identity and mission, forever if need be. Nothing in a report whatsoever, but we’re in and that’s not a request.”
“If my two big bro’s are in, me and Lance here ain’t ‘bout to be left out neither,” proclaimed Otis proudly. “Besides, we are now wise detectives, ain’t we, Lance? We got skills!”
Janet put her arm around Lew’s neck and drew him close. “We all love this country,” she said, looking around the table. “We all want to help.” Everyone nodded in agreement.
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Pancho stood and raised his glass of Jack Daniels, then turned to the group. “For mi amigo, Miguel. For what they did to my friend.” He quaffed down the whisky and slammed the glass on the table. Then Pancho walked up to Bo and saluted. “To my death, señor.”
CHAPTER 82
Monday, March 15, 1982
1:15 a.m.
O liver’s personal pilot was refueling the private aircraft from the jet fuel pump next to Roy’s barn using only the light from the full moon. Onboard, its tired passengers were getting comfortable in their leather seats. The flight to Gainesville would be a short one and no one had much sleep in the past twenty-four hours, so it was time for a quick doze. Roy, Oliver, Governor Daughtry, Sam and Yussef had etched out their plans moving forward and that meant using the secret Murphy O’Sullivan Center location as their only base. Ray should be waiting when they arrived, however, Roy hadn’t been able to get ahold of his brother on the shortwave. Perhaps he was sleeping, but that would be strange considering everything that had happened on Sunday.
The group had come to the conclusion that Tyrus Banks and Jim Brown were most likely double agents who were working against them. Sheriff Bonty commented that it would “pleasure him to no end” to drive down to the Nike base in Homestead and “take care of that rat” Tyrus. Roy agreed to let him go, and even thanked him for his efforts.
While the group was trying to catch a few winks in the Learjet before takeoff, Bonty went into the Jackson house and found Jenny sleeping on the couch with Norma Foss’s newborn son nestled comfortably on her chest, as conked out as his babysitter. Al quietly approached the daughter he barely knew and stroked her hair. He hadn’t touched Jenny since she was an infant not much older than Norma’s baby. Then Sheriff Bonty did something he hadn’t done in years. He cried.
“What do you want with my sister, Sheriff?” came a voice from the doorway. Al turned toward the voice and saw his son. He had seen both Jenny and Jimmy many times during the years, but only from a distance.
“Your dad wants me to take all of you to my place in Seminole Bend,” lied Al. “He’s planning on doing some renovations around here in the morning and wants all of you out.”
“So, who is this baby’s mother and father, Sheriff? My sister was convinced he belonged to me. Now we would both like to know what’s going on!”
Jenny was awakened by the conversation and almost forgot the infant was lying on her chest. She arose slowly, cradling the baby in her arms. “Sheriff Bonty? Why are you here?”
“Jenny, you and Jimmy need to pack a suitcase for a week. You’ll be coming with me to my house to stay while your house is being renovated.”
“Daddy never said anything about a renovation and I don’t want to go away for a week.” Jenny’s stubborn eyes met Al’s. She could detect a bit of panic in the way the sheriff raised his eyebrow.
“Something’s come up. I’ll explain later. Please pack and hurry along.” Right then everyone in the house could hear Oliver’s Learjet take off from the decrepit landing strip. No one even bothered to look outside. Small planes had been coming and going for years on the Jackson ranch.
* * * * *
While Jimmy and Jenny were packing and the baby sound asleep in a wicker basket overstuffed with blankets, Sheriff Bonty went out to Roy’s office and unlocked the closet. He then unfastened the handcuffs and removed the gag.
Norma rubbed her eyes and gasped for a breath of fresh air. As Bonty led her out into the office she noticed that no one was around. She looked in all directions, then turned back to the sheriff. “Where is everyone? Where is my baby?!” She grabbed Bonty’s shirt with both hands and shook him. He understood her frustrations and just waited for her to calm down. That could take some time, considering she was drenched in sweat and blood from head to toe.
“Norma, we’re going in the house to get your baby boy. He’s doing fine. But then we’re taking Roy’s teenage kids and all going to my house.”
“Your house? Why your house? I did my part. Just let me take my baby and get away from here. You’ll never see or hear from me again! I promise!”
“It’s not that simple. Come on, get moving and I’ll explain when we get to my house.”
Norma didn’t need any prodding. Her baby was in the house and she moved swiftly to the door with Al trotting behind. She opened the door and found her newborn son sleeping in a basket on the living room coffee table. Norma carefully lifted her son out of the basket and cradled him hard. She would never let go.
A few minutes later, Jimmy and Jenny came down the stairs, each clutching a large duffel bag. Sheriff Bonty greeted them at the base of the stairs with a stern look on his face. “I said suitcase, not duffel bags.”
“We’ve decided we’re only going for one night at the most,” said Jenny as she returned a stubborn look right back at Al. “If Daddy doesn’t want us back here, we got plenty of friends we can stay with.”
Jimmy looked over Al’s shoulder and noticed a lady hugging the baby in the living room. “Hey, isn’t that Miss Foss, our fifth grade teacher?”
Jenny sidestepped Al and she and Jimmy both went into the living room. “Miss Foss, is that you?” asked Jenny as she saw what a mess her teacher from five years ago had become. “Are you alright?”
Norma turned to her past students, still embracing her new bundle of joy, and cried. “Never better, Jenny. Never better.”
“Is he your baby?” asked Jimmy.
“Yes, Jimmy, he’s my son. I’m going to name him Brett in memory of his father who he will never know.”
“The baby’s father died?” inquired a puzzled Jenny. “But your husband’s name is Jim Foss, not Brett. And ain’t nobody I know in town said your husband’s dead, ma’am.”
When Norma didn’t reply and turned to face the window, Jimmy took a step toward her. Gently, but to the point, he asked, “The baby’s father is Coach Berry, isn’t he? He’s the only Brett I know who died.”
“But coach Berry’s wife was pregnant too,” inserted Jenny, who was trying desperately to figure out this mystery. Her naiveté broke into pieces, then it dawned on her what had happened. She stared indignantly at her former fifth grade teacher, who happened to be her all-time favorite. Jenny’s face turned bright red with anger and she stormed towards the hallway, but Al caught her and gave her a hug. Jenny retracted with a push, then looked up at the sheriff’s face and thought she saw a tear.
Jimmy glanced at his sister and saw it too, and he was baffled. “Sheriff Bonty, I do believe you’re crying. Well, that’s a first!” Jimmy walked over, grabbed Jenny by the arm and pulled her away from Bonty. “Come on, Sis. We’re out of here. I’ll drive.” The sheriff released his embrace and watched as Jimmy and Jenny picked up their duffel bags and headed towards the front door.
Norma looked at Bonty and said, “You need to tell them, Al. You need to tell them now before they leave.”
As the front door opened, the sheriff took a step forward towards the siblings and with a loud, forceful tone, declared, “Wait! Jimmy and Jenny, there’s something you need to know. . . I’m your father!”
Jimmy and Jenny froze in their tracks and both duffels dropped simultaneously at their feet. As if they were performing a synchronized swimming event, they both turned with their hands on their hips and muttered the world’s shortest, but most frequently asked question, “What?”
CHAPTER 83
Monday, March 15, 1982
7:00 a.m.
G etting FBI agents out of bed on a Monday morning after they had picnicked with their families all day Sunday was not an easy task. The government operatives cherished the minimal hours they had with their wives and kids, and did their best to stretch every pleasurable moment out as long as possible before donning the blue suits once again. Agent Tecka rounded up fifteen coworkers, and by dawn they were swarming Daughtry’s house in the Everglades. He remained with them to supervise the confiscation of all evidence, mainly the videos.
Meanwhil
e, Agent Jones had faced similar frustrations as Tecka had following a phone call to the Orlando FBI office. Only one agent was on duty as two others had called in sick. It took most of the night, but finally thirty agents from Central Florida Headquarters were gathered, awaiting Jones’ arrival and their subsequent orders. Jones also called the Gainesville police department and they assured him that the SWAT bus would be ready for action when the FBI arrived. He opted to drive the Ford LTD up the Florida Turnpike instead of waiting for a government Learjet to be prepped.
Bo Yardly rode shotgun in the passenger seat, while Tyrus, Willy and Johnny Murphree sat in the back. Willy glanced over Jones’ shoulder and noticed the speedometer was buried to the right, just past the 140 mph mark. The car was moving so fast that it was doubtful anyone seeing the FBI vehicle approaching would even notice the blue flashing light on the dashboard. The southern Florida sky was its old gorgeous springtime self, light blue with a few puffs of clouds. They would be meeting the Orlando-based agents in the parking lot at Tinker Field. Jones and company needed to arrive and get out of there before the spring training crowd of Minnesota retirees started filling in to watch the Twins host the Tigers. It was nearing ten o’clock and they had just flown past the Fort Pierce exit. At this speed, they would be in Orlando by eleven and Gainesville by noon, barring any left lane-hogging snowbirds out admiring the citrus blossoms along the highway. The accelerator was jammed to the floorboard.
Lew was following a not-so-safe distance of fifty yards behind Jones in the Trans Am. But he had no problem keeping close. It was, after all, the Bandit’s getaway vehicle! Janet was next to him in the front, while Otis, Lance and Pancho held on for dear life in the backseat. Jones had told Lew that they would need to wait at the Gainesville PD once they got up there, and Lew lied and said they would. But no one in the car, including Janet, had any plans to sit back and wait. After leaving Orlando they would head directly to the O’Sullivan Center and wait for the FBI agents and SWAT team to arrive.