Knights of the Golden Circle

by Eugene Lloyd MacRae

  Rory looked quickly to see Chet had fallen to a sitting position, a dark wet spot showing he had taken a bullet to his right shoulder.

  Chet kept firing with his left though, struggling to keep the weapon on target.

  Rory looked behind them. The last youngster disappeared around the far corner. He tapped Chet on the knee and indicated he should get moving.

  Chet nodded, struggling to his feet and running down the hallway, his right arm hanging.

  Rory began backing up, laying down cover fire as they all headed for the back of the building.

  Skye finally led the way through the last door. There was a slight movement on her left. She turned and took out two guards with a steady burst of 9 mm shells. Staying low, she waved the youngsters towards the transport trucks at the loading docks and then lifted her weapon to her shoulder, watching towards the double doors for more guards.

  Donna-Lou rushed out of the hallway along with the kids, weapon at the ready.

  "Get the kids in the back of the truck," Skye instructed, "I'll cover you."

  Just as Donna-Lou moved, half a dozen men burst through the double doors.

  Skye dropped to one knee, bullets passing over her head and burrowing into the wall behind as she opened fire.

  Donna-Lou turned and began firing past the line of crates at the men.

  The youngsters screamed and flattened to the concrete floor as bullets ripped into the walls behind them.

  Chet came running out of the doorway along with more youngsters. He ran low to the left, his right arm dangling. He dropped to his knees and one-handed he added his own bullets to the thousand flying back and forth.

  The guards were bunched together and the two in the front went down under a savage hail of bullets. The other four men turned, only to be cut down by Skye and Donna-Lou.

  Rory was out behind the last of the youngsters and he knelt beside Skye and Donna-Lou, "I'll work with Chet to cover you. Get the kids into the trailers."

  The two women immediately went to work to get the youngsters inside the trailers.

  Chet kept his submachine gun trained on the double doors with his left hand. The barrel began dropping, along with Chet's head and then it snapped up as he fought to keep from passing out.

  Rory glanced over at him, "Just hold on, Chet."

  Chet nodded and grimaced in pain as he leaned back in his effort to keep the submachine gun up and aimed at the doors.

  Black SUVs suddenly screeched around the back of the building. Men in bullet-proof vests jumped out before the vehicles had slid to a stop.

  Donna-Lou turned toward them quickly and brought her weapon up.

  "Don't," Skye yelled as she placed her hand on Donna-Lou's weapon. "They're ATF."

  ATF personnel began climbing into the loading bays, scrambling into position to cover the doorways. One of the agents yelled out, "Everyone okay? Anyone need medical help?"

  Rory got up and went to Chet as he yelled, "Just one. Chet's been wounded."

  Donna-Lou turned and immediately showed concern.

  Helping Chet to his feet, Rory moved with him towards the trailers as the agent talked into a mic at his shoulder.

  As Chet came close, Donna-Lou cried out, "You're hurt!"

  Chet's face showed agony and pain but he said, "I'm fine. It's okay–"

  Donna-Lou dropped her weapon. As it clattered to the cement, she threw her arms around Chet's neck, hugged him and then planted a big kiss on his lips.

  Chet's eyes stayed wide open in surprise and he turned bright red.

  Donna-Lou broke off the kiss and she turned bright red herself. She withdrew her arms, looking sheepish as she whispered, "Sorry about that."

  Corry was standing beside his mother, "Ewww, I like the badass stuff better than the kissy-face stuff."

  Chapter 24

  RORY'S CELL PHONE RANG as they entered the highway heading back to Golden. Donna-Lou was in the back seat with her son Corry and Emma on her left. Chet was sitting in the passenger seat. He was half asleep from the pain killers the paramedics had given him when they patched him up and the smell of antiseptic was still evident. He had refused to spend the night in the hospital, preferring to get away from the area as soon as possible with the others.

  Rory hit the answer button on the steering wheel, "Hello? You're on speaker."

  "Rory? It's Ryan Bowman of the ATF."

  "Yes sir, what can I do for you?"

  "I just wanted to thank you and the rest of the folks for cracking this kidnapping ring," Bowman said. "You were fortunate, we found out they had moved nearly two hundred kids from that factory to a new one in Louisiana and were probably about to ramp up more kidnappings. We have FBI agents on the way there now. Hopefully, they didn't get wind of what happened in Leflore County."

  Rory glanced into the rearview mirror and saw the look in Donna-Lou's eyes. She was partly happy but also showed the torment at the mere thought they might be still looking for Corry if they had moved him.

  Bowman continued, "The other good news is, we were able to find addresses in foreign countries where other kidnapped children are being held. These folks had quite an extensive organization. The government had already opened up talks with several foreign governments right now to send in police and free the other children."

  Donna-Lou spoke up loudly from the back, "But what about the rest of it? They were killing people. These people are talking about rising up against the government–"

  "Yes, I'm aware of what was alleged along those lines–"

  "Alleged! These people are killers," Donna-Lou expressed loudly.

  "I can understand your anger," Bowman said. "But all the evidence we've come across so far only pertains to the kidnappings–"

  "What about that Old Tuck guy?" she said angrily. "Why aren't you making him talk?"

  "There's no sign of him anywhere," Bowman said. "We found an extensive network of underground tunnels and it–"

  "You let him get away? I can't believe it–"

  "Do you have a lead on him?" Rory asked.

  "No," Bowman said. "And no one is talking. We'll work on them but these men are extremely loyal to their cause, no matter how misguided it is. I doubt very much if anyone we have in custody will co-operate in any significant way. I have to go. I'll let you know if we learn anything more. Thanks again."

  The call ended.

  Donna-Lou crossed her arms in a huff, "I can't believe it. What if this Old Tuck or his men come after us again?"

  Chet stirred in his seat, his voice groggy, "If he's on the run, I doubt he's gonna take time to go on a treasure hunt."

  "You don't know that," countered Donna-Lou angrily. "The man's a nut case. Kidnapping children, killing people. And all over a treasure that probably doesn't–" She cut herself off and said in a huff, "I don't want to hear any more talk of that stupid treasure, Chet Calhoun. You hear me?"

  Opening his mouth, Chet shut it instead of arguing and the next several miles were ridden in silence by everyone.

  It was finally Corry who spoke up, his voice quiet, "But...we do have to go find the treasure, mom."

  "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no," Donna-Lou firmly said, wagging a finger at him. "That isn't happening young man. Your treasure hunting days are over."

  "But we have to, mom. We have to," Corry insisted.

  "I said no," repeated Donna-Lou.

  "But they're going to buy an atomic bomb," Corry said.

  Shock and silence filled the car.

  A moment later, a shocked Donna-Lou sat up straighter, "Where in the world did you get such an idea?"

  "Because I overheard them talking about it," Corry said.

  "Yep, I overheard them too," Emma confirmed with a nod. "That was when they first took us there."

  Rory sat up straighter in his seat, adjusting the rearview mirror so he could glance into the back as he drove, "Are you sure you didn't hear it wrong, kids?"

  Emma shook her head firmly, "No. They said they already made a do
wn...a down...?"

  "A down payment?"

  "Yeah, that's it...a down payment," Emma confirmed with another firm nod. "They used the money from the clothing they sold to make a down payment on an atom bomb. But they need to dig up the treasure to finish paying for it."

  "That can't be," Donna-Lou insisted. "Why would they need a bomb–?"

  "They're going to attack the White House, mom. We have to stop them," Corry insisted.

  Chapter 25

  THE TALK OF USING an atomic bomb against the White House hung heavy in the car. Chet swore and asked, "Are you sure Corry? I mean, that's movie type stuff and...."

  "Yeah. I'm sure. That's why they took me down there," Corry explained. "They wanted me to help them find the treasure."

  "Yep. They called him treasure boy," Emma added. "He didn't have to work like the rest of us."

  "That's right. They kept me in a room and they kept talking to me over and over and over again," Corry said.

  Chet twisted in this seat, groaning a little at the pain, "Why would they need you to find the treasure? They're KGC. Don't they know–?"

  Corry shook his head, "Nope. Me and Emma heard them talking. Some of the members of the Knights of the Golden Circle decided to move the treasure for some reason a long time ago."

  "The men we were listening to called them traitors," Emma added.

  Corry nodded and he sat forward, eager to tell the story, "There was a big fight and some of them were killed over it."

  Emma nodded, "Yep. And then they found out the ones who buried the treasure made up signs to the new spot."

  "And they fought over that too," Corry added.

  "And then some more were killed," Emma said.

  "But they found out someone kept the stuff to find it. But the others didn't know where it was and then they found out–" Corry's voice suddenly cut off and he looked stricken like he had said too much.

  Donna-Lou looked at her son, realization suddenly dawning on her, "And that...stuff...they were looking for...? You found it in our attic, didn't you?"

  Corry lowered his eyes

  Emma jumped in, "Corry told some of the boys at school about a skin he found in the attic. A skin that can lead to the treasure. And those men found out."

  Corry nodded, "The men kept asking me where I got it. I told them...I found it..." His voice trailed off again and he sat back and didn't seem to want to say any more.

  Donna-Lou glanced at Rory and Chet. Then she shifted slightly in her seat towards her son, "Corry, where did you say you found it? Corry? You have to tell us. It's important."

  Corry's head hung down, "I didn't want them going to our house, mom. So...I told them I found it in the old house over on Carmichael Street."

  Donna-Lou put her hand to her mouth in shock.

  "I... I didn't know who lived there before," Corry said. "It's really, really old and...I'm sorry...."

  "Whose house are we talking about?" Rory asked.

  "That's where Jesse Flint's family lived," whispered Chet.

  Rory wasn't sure who they were talking about until it dawned on him, "You mean Jesse...from the diner?"

  Donna-Lou nodded, "She was raised by her grandparents. They were very poor and that house was almost unlivable, even when she was there as a little girl."

  "They're gonna go after Jesse because of me, mom," Corry blurted. It looked like he was about to cry.

  They rode in silence for a few moments, everyone digesting the information.

  It was Chet who spoke up, "Corry, is the treasure up near Cherokee Ridge?"

  Well, I'm pretty sure we have to start up there."

  Chet shook his head, "But...how can anyone find the treasure now, when at least two of those signs no longer exist up there? We saw the photocopies of the signs you had on that whiteboard. But...we have no way of knowing where they were–"

  "I do," Corry answered, suddenly eager again. "One of the signs was on a tombstone. Someone was building a dam and other buildings up there and one of the things they removed was the graveyard."

  "They said the Knights of the Golden Circle tried to stop them from doing that and there was some more killings over it," Emma added.

  "Yeah," Corry said. "But a photographer recorded each grave because they were moving it."

  "That's fine and all but you still don't know the direction, Corry," Chet countered.

  "I could tell which direction the sign was pointing from the old picture they sent me from the Historical Archives in Atlanta," Corry explained. "I could see the western part of Cherokee Ridge in the background."

  Rory and Chet looked at each other.

  "I guess we didn't ask enough questions," Rory said.

  Chet nodded, thinking some more. Then he turned with a grimace from the pain and looked over the seat at Corry, "Okay. But that still leaves one sign...."

  "I think the photographer was a treasure hunter too because he took a photograph of that one as well," Corry said.

  "Or he was a member of the Knights of the Golden Circle too," Emma added.

  Corry nodded, acknowledging the possibility, "Anyways, it was on an old tree that was removed. And you can tell which direction it's pointing in, too. All we need to know is where the tree was growing when they cut it down and removed the stump."

  Rory and Chet looked at each other again. Rory then looked into the rearview mirror at Corry, "Okay, I'll bite. How exactly do you figure that out?"

  Corry shrugged, "That's how you find any of the signs. You find two or more signs, and they point to a spot where you find another sign. That's what I was doing when they kidnapped me. I was trying to figure out the spot where that last sign was located."

  Chet shook his head slowly, "Told you the kid was better than any of us."

  "The only problem is that I heard them say they got the skin," Corry said. "I think I can remember the layout but–"

  "Rory and I got the skin back," Chet said. "Well... Rory mostly..."

  A big grin split Corry's face, "Cool. So now we can go up to Cherokee Ridge and I'll help you to find out where the last signs are–"

  "Let somebody else do it," Donna-Lou insisted. "I'm not losing you again."

  "But I know which signs are false and which are real. And I can help find it faster," Corry insisted. "And if we don't, they could buy a bomb. And if they go after Jesse...."

  "We can protect her," Donna-Lou replied. "We'll keep her safe–"

  "When daddy died you said that sometimes bad things happen to good people. That we can't always keep them safe," Corry said. "I don't want bad things to happen to Jesse...or you...."

  Donna-Lou put a hand to her mouth and shook her head. Now it looked like she was about to cry.

  "We got to go help her first, mom," Corry whispered. "And then...."

  Finally, she said, "Okay. Maybe we can call Jesse and have her leave Golden–"

  "I'll make a call and see if Skye can go up there to take care of her," Rory said. He hit the call button on his steering wheel, "If she can catch a plane, she'll be there quicker than we can."

  "Oh, thank you, Rory," Donna-Lou said in relief. "She's always been good to Corry and me."

  "And then we can go and find the treasure. Right, mom?" Corry asked.

  "I'm going too," insisted Emma as she crossed her arms. "I have to protect my boyfriend."

  Corry Haney rolled his eyes.

  Chapter 26

  SKYE STEELE CIRCLED GOLDEN, trying to orient herself in the darkness. After she had received word that the office still had not been able to contact Jesse to alert her, she had decided a change of plans and a more aggressive approach was in order. Besides, it gave her an opportunity to fly the Air Tractor 501 crop duster she had spotted back at the cotton farm where they found the kids. The 1100 hp Pratt + Whitney turboprop engine purred as she climbed back around for another pass. If her recollection of the Google map she had looked at before take-off was accurate, she had only one choice.

  Swinging the aircraft aroun
d, Skye began a quick descent. Street lights flashed below her. She banked right and swung lower. Skye wasn't an adrenaline junky but she had to admit it, there was a thrill in what she was about to do because someone was in danger. She passed just over an old barn, aiming for the old road on the edge of Golden, one street over from Jesse Flint's house. The crop duster had a wingspan of 48 feet and should fit between any poles on the road's edge. Should being the operative word. The crop duster dropped lower, then hit the pavement with a slight bounce. The low wing aircraft tilted up on one wheel and then she brought it back down and braked hard, bringing it to a quick stop.

  Skye was out of the cockpit and running within seconds. Slipping through the darkness between two old houses, she found herself on the sidewalk, looking at a dark street lined with old, two-story houses. The smell of a backyard barbecue hung on the air. Just as she was about to start looking for house numbers, Skye spotted two state trooper vehicles and a large, dark sedan parked in front of a house at the far end of the street. She paused and checked on the nearby house numbers. She concluded the vehicles were parked right in front of the house she was looking for. She was either too late and the troopers were working a crime scene...or they were members of the Knights of the Golden Circle gang she was told about.

  Jogging casually along the sidewalk toward Jesse Flint's house, Sky kept an eye out for any attacks from the darkness around her. Reaching a spot just across from the police cars, Skye bent over, hands on her knees, pretending she was resting. But her eyes were scanning for any movement around her. No one would be expecting her but she couldn't afford to take any chances. Not detecting anyone, she slipped leather gloves out of her pocket and put them on. Then, turning on her toes, Skye ran low and quiet across to the dark sedan in front of Jesse Flint's house. She wanted to know who this vehicle belonged to, who she was up against, besides state troopers. There was a South Carolina government parking sticker on the windshield on the passenger side. She spotted a few folders in the backseat. Pulling a small penlight out of her pocket, Skye flashed it over the folders. A label on the thick top folder identified the contents as trial papers for a Circuit Court Judge, The Honorable Vernon P. Teague. Interesting. Why would a circuit court judge be visiting Jesse Flint along with state troopers late at night? She couldn't see any lights on in the house at all. Everything was dark. If they were working a crime scene you would expect lights on everywhere. Something else was happening inside.