“You can try and escape, but my sister will hunt you down and finish this. She will kill you,” Nathan sputtered with confidence. He looked up at the smoking muzzle, trying his best to be strong in the last seconds of his life.
“No!” shouted a voice.
Nathan flinched at a crack. There was only a second of pain as the round splintered through his head and buried into his brain. Somehow, he was still aware—aware that the crack wasn’t the gunshot, but rather his shattering skull—aware that this wasn’t something he could survive. The fear rose to an apex when he thought of his sister and nephew, but then vanished with the sweet release of darkness that flooded over his mind. Charlize was safe. Raven would rescue Ty. There was nothing left for Nathan to do now but let go.
***
Charlize had chewed one of her fingernails bloody. Surrounded by President Diego, General Thor, Colonel Raymond, and Albert, she had watched the choppy feed of a mounted cam on one of the Black Hawks from Buckley AFB. The men stared in silence, all of them with arms folded across their chests. All except Albert, who was praying under his breath as he paced back and forth.
The hastily planned mission had gone smoothly at first. The four fire-teams of Army Rangers easily eliminated the defenses in the camp the Sons of Liberty used as their forward operating base. From there, the teams infiltrated the actual Castle through mineshafts, killing dozens of the escaping SOL soldiers. Unfortunately, Fenix had taken a different route with the main force of his personal army. He blew those shafts in his retreat, killing four Army Rangers in the blast.
The Black Hawk that had gone to search for the escaping soldiers had found half a convoy instead. The chopper had taken fire, and the video feed was cutting in and out. She watched in horror as the majority of the vehicles sped down a dirt road that led through a dense forest. The remaining vehicles were scattering. A Humvee tore through the meadow, and a pickup truck followed close behind.
“The pilots are putting down, Madame Secretary,” said Colonel Raymond. “But they assure me that the enemy left the hostages behind on the road. Apparently a sniper ambushed the convoy before they could all escape.”
Charlize looked around sharply. “One of ours?”
“No, ma’am. Frankly, we have no idea who he is or where he came from.”
President Diego flung an uneasy glance at Charlize, but she focused on the screen. There was a sickening lurch in the video as the Black Hawk landed in the field, disgorging Army Rangers into the grass. The feed transferred to the helmet-mounted display from the leader of the fire-team. He motioned his men toward the pickup and dirt bikes still on the road. A figure near the truck was waving at them, both hands raised.
“Don’t shoot, don’t shoot! You got a friendly here,” he shouted.
“That must be the sniper,” Raymond said.
Charlize stepped closer to the screen, studying the pixels for any sign of Ty and Nathan. If they weren’t there, or if the worst had happened and they were both dead, she wasn’t sure she would be able to keep it together in front of these men.
At this point she really didn’t care. If she lost her family, nothing else would matter.
“The other choppers are back in the air and pursuing the convoy, ma’am,” Raymond announced. “We’ll get those bastards, don’t worry.”
As the Rangers closed in on the road, a large hand closed over hers.
“It’s going to be okay, Charlize,” Albert said.
It was the first time she could remember him calling her by her name for a while. She realized then that Albert was her family, too. Maybe the only family either of them had left now. A sob tried to climb out of her throat, but she shoved it back down and straightened her back.
Onscreen, the Rangers strode out on the road, weapons flitting over the terrain. Bodies were sprawled in all directions. The sniper had killed at least a dozen of the enemy combatants. It was hard to believe one man had done that much damage.
A shot cracked as one of the Rangers finished off the SOL soldier trying to escape into the forest. The team-lead then trained his rifle on the man standing in front of the pickup truck.
“Hands on your head!” he shouted.
It was obvious this man wasn’t one of the Aryan soldiers. For one thing, he had shoulder-length black hair. He put his hands on his head and got to his knees, still shouting that he was a friendly. Several kids sat in the dirt behind him, crying and holding onto each other.
Charlize searched their faces, but she didn’t see Ty.
The lead Ranger lowered his gun and walked over to the kids while two of the other Rangers spoke to the long-haired man. Charlize couldn’t hear what any of them were saying. She gripped Albert’s hand until her bones creaked and her burned skin threatened to split open over the knuckles.
“They have your son,” Raymond announced. He cupped his earpiece again, and his smile slowly vanished.
“What is it?” she asked, barely recognizing the shrill voice as her own. “What’s wrong?”
Raymond met her gaze. “They’ve also located your brother, ma’am,” he said.
Charlize wanted to scream. If Albert hadn’t been holding her steady, she might have run at the colonel and snatched the earpiece to listen for herself. “Is he alive? What’s happening?”
“I’m so very sorry, Madame Secretary, but it seems that your brother has been killed.”
— 21 —
Three days after Raven had returned from rescuing Ty Montgomery, Estes Park finally found the time to honor the dead properly. Rays of light from the setting sun speared through the clouds, illuminating the mounds of fresh dirt covering those lost in the aftermath of the North Korean attack.
Captain Jake Englewood. Officer Rick Nelson. Melissa Stone and the other victims of the Water Cannibals. There were almost a dozen graves in total. Major Nathan Sardetti wouldn’t be buried here, but Colton said a prayer for him anyway.
An hour earlier, he’d given his condolences to both Jake’s family and Rick’s family without tearing up, but the tears had welled around his eyes after leaving the cemetery. He gripped the hands of his wife and daughter, holding on as if they were the only things keeping him anchored.
His heart was heavy, and his mind was filled with worry.
There’d be a lot more fresh graves soon. He’d done the math. Without food and medicine, they would lose seventy-five percent of the residents over the winter, maybe more.
He looked at Raven as they walked away from the cemetery. Creek, Sandra and Allie strolled next to him. The dog’s tail had been wagging ever since Raven returned from the Castle, but most of the other townsfolk weren’t happy about Raven’s return after finding out about his connection to Nile Redford. Colton had no doubt Don had spread the information, but there was nothing to be done about it now.
Colton studied Raven from afar. Something had happened to him out there—something that had changed Raven. His jokes and smiles were absent, and he hadn’t said a word about what he had done and seen.
Colton wasn’t asking questions. Raven would talk when he was ready.
The Spears family joined them on the path back to town, the girls shyly waving at each other while Kelly and Sandra hugged. All of them had been through hell in the past week, but they were alive and Colton was going to do everything he could to keep it that way. He didn’t need to ask if Raven felt the same way.
Lindsey jogged over to them through the departing crowd of citizens. She jerked her chin at Colton. “Need a word,” she said. “You too, Spears.”
The three of them walked a few paces away to the side of the dirt road.
“What’s going on, Detective?” Raven asked. If Colton needed any more proof that Raven was troubled, it was that he didn’t bother to look at Lindsey’s figure or make even a half-hearted attempt at flirting. Sam Spears had grown up sometime in the last week, and Colton wasn’t sure anymore if that was a good thing.
Lindsey spoke in a low voice. “Don is rounding up the new mi
litia this afternoon. Just got wind of it. He plans on kicking out anyone who wasn’t a citizen of Estes Park before the day of the attack.”
“Son of a bitch,” Colton said. “I hope to God some of these new deputies don’t follow the orders.”
“I wouldn’t bet on that,” Lindsey said. “We got enough elk and salvaged supplies to last a few weeks if we purge the town of tourists. I doubt those men will say no if it means saving their families.”
Raven looked down at the ground. “This is my fault, isn’t it? If Mr. Redford hadn’t taken the supplies, then we wouldn’t need to kick anyone out.”
“Don wanted this long before Mr. Redford showed up,” Colton said. “Trust me, Raven, this isn’t your fault.”
Raven lowered his voice. “I’m going out there to look for Mr. Redford. I’ll bring back everything he stole.” He looked down at his dog, petting the Akita’s soft fur. “Don’t worry, boy. I’ll bring you with me this time.”
Creek wagged his tail and barked. Sandra glared at Raven and stalked over. Kelly did the same thing. Both women wore the same disapproving looks.
“I know that look, Sam Spears,” Sandra said. “You’re planning something, aren’t you?”
“Come on, you might as well hear it,” Colton said, waving them over. They deserved to know what was going on after all they had been through. He explained, as briefly as possible, what had happened and Don’s plans to run the tourists out of town.
“I have an idea,” he said after he had finished. “Hopefully, it’ll prevent Don from starting civil war in town.”
“Let’s hear it,” Kelly said.
“I’m all ears,” Lindsey said.
“I’ll make Don an offer he can’t refuse,” Colton said. “Thing is, even if we kick the tourists out, we’re only buying ourselves a few weeks of survival. By the time those supplies run out, we’ll be too weak to fight. We need to go after Redford while we still can, using our militia.”
Lindsey smiled. “I agree, sir.”
Raven nodded his approval. “That sounds like a great plan. I was just gonna shoot him.”
“My patients aren’t going to survive without antibiotics. We need medicine,” Sandra said. “I’ll do anything I can to help.”
Kelly hesitated at first, but then nodded. “I’m not sure what use I’ll be, but if this is what you think is right, I’ll support you, Marcus.”
“All right, it’s settled then,” Colton said. “I’ll bring it up at—”
The distant rumble of a jet cut him off. Every face on the road turned to the western mountains just as a squadron of F-22 Raptors tore through the clouds. As the roar of the engines faded, Colton heard the shouts and cheers of the townsfolk. Over the cacophony came another sound Colton hadn’t heard since the floods of 2013.
“Choppers, too,” Lindsey said, pointing.
A long black silhouette emerged in the western sky. The Chinook was flanked by four smaller birds, all Black Hawks. Hanging from ropes attached to the belly of the Chinook was a blue shipping container.
The birds flew across the purple sky toward the heart of Estes Park. Everyone around Colton took off running to meet them. He remained frozen in place, still not believing his eyes.
“Come on, Marcus,” Kelly said, taking his hand. With a wide smile, he ran with his wife and daughter toward Bond Park.
By the time they reached town hall, the Black Hawks had already touched down in the parking lot and street. Soldiers were unloading boxes and stacking them in the grass.
Colton led his family to the front of town hall, where Mayor Gail stood with Don.
“I’ll be damned,” Don said, taking off his cowboy hat to mop his forehead.
The Chinook circled overhead and finally set the blue crate down in the middle of Bond Park before rising back into the sky.
“Nathan came through on his promise about helping Estes Park!” Raven shouted. He clapped his hands together and grinned, his first real display of emotion since he had returned. Creek barked and stood on his hind legs as Raven jerked his arms and legs. It took Colton a moment to realize that Raven was trying to dance The Robot.
“Boom! What do you think of them apples, Chief Aragon?” Raven said, chuckling. “I guess my mission to rescue Ty Montgomery paid off after all. I got friends in high places, man.”
Don shrugged, clearly not amused. “You don’t know this is because of you.”
“Raven, you are the worst dancer I’ve ever seen in my life,” Lindsey said with a laugh.
Colton chuckled, but not for long. He grew serious and approached Don.
“Well, Chief,” Colton said. “Thanks to Raven, it looks like we got the help we need to get us through the winter, so I guess you won’t be needing to kick anyone out of town after all.”
Don looked at Gail. She took a moment to think on it, and then nodded. “Marcus is right. We have a lot to be thankful for today. You can tell the militia to stand down, Don. The tourists can stay for now.”
“You got to be kidding me, Mayor,” Don protested.
Creek bared his teeth at Don, who took a step back. Raven had stopped dancing and stood next to Colton.
“The mayor told you to call off the militia,” Lindsey said.
Don hesitated another moment, glared at Colton, and then turned to his motley force of mercenaries and volunteer deputies, who had been standing around watching the real soldiers do all the work.
“Help them unload the supplies,” Don ordered.
A detail of Marines and a large African-American man wearing the filthiest Air Jordan sneakers Colton had ever seen approached across the green space. They walked in formation around a woman wearing an Air Force baseball hat.
“Who’s in charge here?” she asked.
Gail started to raise her hand, but then looked at Colton. After a pause, she turned toward the entourage of military officials with a politician’s smile.
“I’m Mayor Andrews,” Gail said.
Colton held out his hand as the woman in the Air Force hat approached. When she reached out to shake it, he noticed she had sharp green eyes that matched Nathan’s.
“I’m Marcus Colton, ma’am, and I have a feeling you’re Secretary Charlize Montgomery.”
“You’d be right,” Charlize said.
“I knew your brother only for a short while, but he was a great man,” Colton said. “He did a lot to help our town.”
“One of the best men I’ve ever met,” Raven said, stepping up to join them. “I was privileged to fight by his side.”
A moment of realization passed over Charlize’s stern features. She lifted a brow and said, “You’re Raven Spears, aren’t you?”
“Yes, ma’am, I am,” Raven said with a ghost of his usual cocky grin.
“You’re the reason I came here,” she said, loud enough that the people milling around could hear her. “I wanted to meet the man who saved my son. Ty wanted to be here to thank you personally, but he’s still recovering.”
“I hope he’s doing okay,” Raven said.
“He’s been through a lot. But thanks to you, I have him home.”
Charlize continued down the line, nodding at Kelly and smiling at Risa. She shook several more hands as her security detail stood guard behind her. Colton wouldn’t want to tangle with her bodyguard, who looked like he could bench press an elk.
“My brother made a promise to get your town help before he died,” Charlize announced when she had finished shaking hands. “I’m honoring that promise today. He sure thought a lot of Estes Park.”
She paused to look around with her hands on her hips. “My brother was right. You have a beautiful home up here. I hope these supplies will help get you through the winter. President Diego’s goal is to try and have part of the nation’s grid back up and running by this time next year. Until then, stay safe and know your government is still working for you. We will get through this, and we will rebuild.”
“Thank you, Madame Secretary,” Gail said, clapping.
A few people in the crowd joined in.
Secretary Montgomery nodded. “I wish I could stay longer, but I have a lot of work to do.”
“What about Fenix?” Raven asked. “Have you caught that bastard yet?”
“I’ve got ten gold bars for any man or woman who finds him,” she said without a flicker of emotion. “Dead or alive.”
Colton watched the security detail close in around Charlize like a Roman phalanx as they crossed the park and loaded into one of the Black Hawks.
The choppers rose into the sky, the whoosh of the rotors slamming into the citizens below. Colton followed them across the sky, gripping Kelly’s hand and holding Risa close. He hoped there wasn’t anyone out there watching the birds, but he had a feeling they had attracted plenty of attention. Men like Mr. Redford, General Fenix, and other enemies would be watching and waiting for a chance to strike. Estes Park was still at risk—even more so now that they had something worth stealing again.
It would take everyone in Estes Park—locals and tourists—working together to fight off the coming storm.
—End of Book 2—
Turn the page to continue the adventure with
Trackers 3: The Storm
TRACKERS 3
~
THE STORM
For my grandfather Angelo ‘Jake’ Angaran, my grandfather Marvin Smith, and all the other veterans of World War II that risked their lives to fight the Nazis. We will never forget your bravery and sacrifice.
“The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.”
—Sun Tzu
— Prologue —
Secretary of Defense Charlize Montgomery marched with an entourage of heavily armed soldiers down a well-lit concrete hallway. Both Charlize and Albert Randall, her security agent and closest ally, carried a military-issued M4 and wore a ballistic vest. The snug armor seemed to compress her pounding heart. Each step she took, it got tighter.
Trackers Omnibus [Books 1-4] Page 52