by JC Ryan
“Everyone must die sometime, my friend. No, I don’t think they will kill me. But, I have a safe house to go to. I will not be at work for the next day or so, until this matter is settled. Contact me through email, as before. I’ll prepare the data for you and let you know where to pick it up when you need it. Good luck with your grandparents.” With that, to Daniel’s further surprise, Raj got up and melted into the crowds on the sidewalk.
It was time to form a plan to rescue his grandparents; he couldn’t trust their safety to the honor of an admitted murderer.
~~~
The most obvious solution was to contact David. Daniel still had his card with the private cell phone number to be used in case of dire emergency. If this wasn’t a dire emergency, Daniel didn’t know what would be. He got up, leaving his unfinished coffee and Danish on the table, and went back across the street to the pay phone to make the call.
Daniel counted three rings, then the line simply went dead. Frustrated, he tried it again, every five minutes for the next fifteen or twenty minutes, with the same result. Unable to even leave a message, he muttered to himself, “Well, then I’ll do it myself, said the Little Red Hen.”
He mentally ticked off the tasks he needed to accomplish in the next twenty-four hours. He had to get to Little Egg Harbor, and the fewer people who knew he was on the way, the better. That included Sarah, who would just worry about him. He’d fill her in when it was over. He wanted just two people with him, and their numbers were in his primary cell phone’s memory. He was running out of change for the pay phone, and he was going to need new disposables anyway, so he ran to the nearest Walgreens where he could buy some. While on his way, he called Owen and breathlessly told him that he’d eaten something bad at lunch and come down with food poisoning. Would Owen make his excuses? He’d be back to work when he felt better.
Daniel transferred the two phone numbers to the first of the new disposable phones. The first number reached a man who’d been medically retired from the Marines five years previously. Sgt. Ellis and he had stayed in touch after Ellis contacted Daniel to thank him for saving his life. Daniel knew that the man stayed fit, despite his artificial leg. “Ellis speaking,” he answered.
“Ellis, its Daniel Rossler.”
“Rossler, you old dog! How’s it hangin’?” Ellis roared.
“You’d like to know that wouldn’t you?” Daniel answered with a smile. If there were time, he’d tell Ellis and Pierce all about his Sarah, but not now. “Hey, buddy, I’ve got a problem.”
“Point me at it, dude, I’ll take it out,” Ellis responded.
“I was hoping you’d say that. But you’d better hear what it is first. This is genuine combat stuff,” Daniel answered.
“All the better. I haven’t seen action in five years, I’m in desperate need of kicking someone’s ass.”
As Daniel spoke, giving the background and the current situation as succinctly as possible, Ellis’s ebullience turned to concern. He waited until Daniel was finished, and then said, “Typical spook doublespeak. I’m in; we’ve got to teach them not to fuck with a Marine’s family or friends. Where do your grandparents live?”
Daniel couldn’t speak for a moment. It choked him up that this hero, this damaged Marine, asked no questions about whether it was advisable to leave it to the cops, or in this case the CIA. ‘Teaching ‘em not to fuck with him’ was exactly what Daniel planned, and he was overjoyed to have Ellis at his back.
“They live in a little township in New Jersey called Little Egg Harbor Township. But there are no big airports nearby. Can I fly you here?”
“I’ll meet you at LaGuardia on the first plane I can get. And no, you can’t fly me. It’s the least I can do. Is Pierce in?” Ellis asked.
“I called you first. He’s next on my list,” Daniel answered.
“Good choice, buddy! Give him a call and have him meet us there. We can plan our approach on the way to Pullet Egg, or whatever you said.”
For the first time since the first phone call, Daniel actually laughed. It was going to be good to see his friends again, doubly good when he needed reinforcements. “Okay, let me know when you’re arriving.
His call to Pierce went much the same way. His exact words were, “Those sons of bitches need their asses kicked right away my friend. They need to learn not to fuck with the Marines. I’m ready - just tell me where I meet you and when. Oorah!”
As a precaution against an unexpected communication from Sarah, he sent a text saying he would be busy with a friend that night and would call her tomorrow, hoping she’d read between the lines. Even though Daniel thought Raj was already outed, his habit of sending only non-sensitive communications on an open line was deeply ingrained by now. He wouldn’t want someone going after Raj, thinking he’d be there, when instead he was headed for Little Egg Harbor. Her return text said, ‘Understand. Love you.’
Only a few hours later, both men were in Daniel’s car, heading for New Jersey and putting off talk of old times and what came in between until after their mission was accomplished. Daniel carefully described his grandparents’ house, isolated as it was by a large lot in a neighborhood of large lots, with plenty of trees to hide one neighbor from the next. At one point, they switched drivers, so that Daniel could bring up a satellite image of the house and surroundings on Google Earth. By the time they reached the sleepy little town, their plan was in place.
Daniel and Ellis would make their way through the neighbor’s yard into the Rosslers’ back yard, taking care not to be seen. When they were in place, Pierce would knock on the front door and pretend to be a door-to-door salesman. He would keep whoever answered the door engaged until Daniel and Ellis could storm the back door. It was risky, but Daniel didn’t think the bad guys would think of him taking this kind of action, so it was likely they wouldn’t be holding guns on the old folks. He’d rush to find them while Ellis kept the remaining bad guys at bay with the weapon he’d checked in his baggage and declared according to TSA regulations. When he heard anything from the back of the house, Pierce would rush the guy he was talking to and secure him before going to help the others.
The plan wasn’t perfect. There was no time for fancy planning or tactics. It was a simple plan but if executed correctly, with the element of surprise on their side, could work. They were bargaining that the bad guy who phoned and his henchmen in the house would not expect anything from Daniel. Particularly since he’d sounded so frightened on the phone. The only thing they didn’t know was how many of them were in the house. To learn that, Pierce would do a quick recon when they got there.
They discussed what to do if the captors sent Bess or Nicholas to the door instead of going themselves. They had to take into account that one would probably be watching the exchange, so the plan was similar, except that it involved Pierce taking down a grandparent as gently as possible and covering him or her while the other two secured the house. It would have to do. Both of the ex-Marines agreed with Daniel that under the circumstances, he couldn’t count on the bad guys just letting his grandparents go when it was all over. And Daniel knew that his grandfather would fight tooth and nail if he could, so that gave them the advantage if there were only two of the bad guys; maybe if there were three. If there were more, this was likely to go south, but they had to try.
By the time they reached Little Egg Harbor, dusk was approaching. Daniel hadn’t ever reached David, and he was unwilling to leave his grandparents in jeopardy overnight if he could help it. He and his friends had agreed that dusk was as good a time as any. It was only slightly less plausible that a desperate salesman would continue his rounds that late, and the long shadows would help disguise the movements of the others. Accordingly, Daniel had Pierce, who was driving, stop a quarter of a mile away. The three friends swiftly covered the distance on foot.
While Daniel and Ellis hung back at the property line, sitting behind the neighbor, Mrs. Baker’s, shrubbery to avoid detection, Pierce crawled swiftly down the side yard and so
on disappeared altogether. Twenty minutes later he was back with good news. “I saw your grandparents. They seemed to be all right, but they’re tied to chairs in the kitchen. I only saw two mutts, both little scrawny shits, but they both had pistols. We can take ‘em, no doubt, but we’ll have to be careful no one takes friendly fire.”
He drew a crude diagram of what he’d seen in the kitchen, so that the others could see where in the kitchen the older Rosslers were bound. A nine millimeter slug could pierce walls and still do harm. When they each understood what they were to do and when, the three put out their hands, made a swift downward gesture with their joined fists and whispered, Oorah! It was showtime.
Without further ado, Daniel and Ellis began making their way from shrub to shrub through the neighbor’s yard, working toward the Rossler yard. Daniel thanked whoever had banned six-foot fences in the tiny township that there were no artificial barriers to their progress. Meanwhile, Pierce continued up the street to the Rossler house, several hundred feet to the east. His cell phone vibrated, indicating that the others were in place. Pierce knocked on the door. He waited a minute, then knocked again. They hadn’t talked about what they’d do if no one answered, and he was getting worried, when the door finally opened, and a man who looked too young to be Daniel’s grandfather regarded him with suspicion. “Yes?”
“Sir, I’m glad you’re home. I represent Acme Roofing. We’re going to be in your neighborhood to replace your neighbor’s roof next week…”
“We’re not interested,” interrupted the man.
Pierce put his hand on the screen door handle. “But, sir, have you noticed the condition of your roof? You have several loose shingles, and we’re prepared to offer a multiple house discount to all the neighbors who…”
“I said, we’re not interested.” The man stepped back, half turning his back on Pierce, prepared to close the door. Pierce hoped Ellis and Daniel were in place, because he couldn’t wait any longer. With a swift move, he snatched open the screen door.
“Hey!” the man said sharply, turning back to Pierce in annoyance. That’s when Pierce felled him with a right uppercut to the chin which would have done any heavyweight world champion proud. It dropped the joker to the floor like a sack of potatoes before he could make a sound. Pierce stepped all the way into the house, dragged the guy out of the doorway and shut the door softly. From the back of the house, he heard, “Jack, who was that?” Pierce thought quickly. If he didn’t answer, the other one was sure to come looking for his friend, and he had a gun. Pierce strode quickly to the wall, where he waited for the man to come through. Just as he heard footsteps approaching rapidly, the back door burst open, and he lunged at the perp to prevent him from going back.
A gunshot echoed through the house, followed closely by a woman’s scream, and then Daniel was there to help Pierce subdue the man he was struggling with. With a swift roundhouse kick, Daniel swept the perp off his feet, where Pierce pounced on him and pinned his gun hand. Daniel wrested the gun from him.
“Get off, man, I can’t breathe,” said the hostage taker. Pierce slowly disentangled himself, watching for tricks, but Daniel was holding the man’s own gun on him. They took him back to the kitchen, where Ellis had stopped to untie the old couple. Now they used the same clothesline to bind the bad guy to the chair, then Pierce took the gun to watch over the other until he regained consciousness. Bess rushed at Daniel, who caught her in his arms and hugged her fiercely.
“Are you all right, Grandma?” He also looked up anxiously to find his grandpa and assess his condition. A trickle of dried blood on Nicholas’s lip sent a wave of rage through him, but since the only place to take it out was a tied man and an unconscious man, he suppressed it.
Nicholas had found his voice, and now scolded Daniel. “What were you thinking? Couldn’t you let the authorities handle this? I’m glad to see you, boy, but that was a hell of a risk.”
Keeping one arm around his grandma, Daniel pulled his grandpa in for a hug. “Hell, Grandpa, I couldn’t wait for them. I’d like you to meet two of the finest Marines I ever knew, Sgt. Ellis and Sgt. Pierce. Hey, guys, do you have first names?” His expression was so comical that everyone broke out into helpless laughter at the non sequitur.
“No, man, the Marines take away your first name in boot camp. Ellis and Pierce will do,” Ellis said. Pierce didn’t get a say because he was still in the front room guarding the unconscious man.
Bess said, “I can’t thank you men enough for helping Daniel.”
“Least we could do, ma’am. You may not know it, but your grandson here saved our lives outside of Kabul a few years back. Marines leave no one behind, you know. Now we’re even.”
Nicholas was on the phone to the local constabulary, who would soon on their way to take the two hostage-takers into custody. Before they arrived, Daniel cautioned everyone not to say much, as he didn’t know if even the cops in the tiny township could be trusted. They agreed on a half-truth; that they’d dropped in on the Rosslers as a surprise and were shocked to find them taken hostage. Since they were combat veterans, they just acted instinctively to rescue the old folks, and they had no idea why anyone would want to take them hostage in the first place.
Daniel was fairly certain the perps wouldn’t say a word, and he was right. When the police showed up, they both asked for lawyers and then went quiet. The officers were far more concerned about making sure Nick and Bess were all right than about any questions about Daniel’s and the Marines’ role in the rescue. After checking them over themselves, they called a local doctor to come and check them as well. Living in a small town did have advantages sometimes. Because it was late, they even told Daniel and the others that they could come in the next day to give their statements. Then they left with the uncooperative hostage-takers.
~~~
It was later that night when Daniel took another call from David. He was still at his grandparents’ house. Grandma insisted on whipping up a supper of pancakes, eggs and bacon, but afterward he had made sure his grandparents were safely tucked into their bed. Then he talked to Sarah and filled her in, absorbing her distress and anger at him for not telling her before. Then he assured her he would be there the next day and wouldn’t leave her side until the ringleader was apprehended.
He was trying to get comfortable enough on the living room sofa to sleep when David’s call came through.
“Yeah,” he said, letting his annoyance be heard.
“Daniel, its David. Have you been trying to reach me?”
“Hell, yes! I had a crisis and needed your help, but you weren’t answering the phone, so I had to deal with it myself,” he complained.
“Oh, man, sorry about that! I’ve been having trouble with my phone, just realized I missed your calls. Why didn’t you leave a message?”
“Your phone kept cutting me off without giving me a chance. Do you even care what happened?” Daniel’s grievance was just, but he realized he needed to dial it back a bit. He still needed David’s help. “Look, I’m sorry, it’s just, things were a little nuts here for a while.” He explained what happened.
David said, “Well, good job then! I’ll coordinate with the police there. Glad it worked out. I’ll be in touch.”
“Wait, David!”
“Yes?”
“The guy that called me gave me twenty-four hours to get him the data. As soon as he realizes his team has been arrested, he’ll go after Sarah. You’ve got to swear to me that you’ll keep her safe until I can get there.”
“Daniel, don’t worry. I’m on it. Sorry I let you down,” David said.
Daniel knew he had an important errand back in New York the next day before he headed for Providence. He needed to contact Sinclair O’Reilly with the news. The man could still back out, now that the stakes had been raised. But when he said as much to his grandfather the next morning at breakfast, Nicholas told him he’d bet on Sinclair being all the more eager to help.
“Nothing that boy likes better than a
fight,” Nicholas said. “He’s Irish, you know.” Daniel got a kick out of Grandpa calling Sinclair a ‘boy’, since he had to be at least sixty.
“Well, he ought to like this, then. Our IT specialist has gone to ground in a safe house, our math guy is dead, and now look what happened to you two. We’ve got to get this done and out, before they catch up with us and someone else dies.”
Pierce spoke up then, and said, “I’m not doing much of anything these days, gettin’ too fat for my own good. Could you use my kind of help?” Ellis was nodding his agreement.
“Guys, I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done here, but I think we’ve got it covered now,” Daniel said. Was it his imagination that his buddies seemed disappointed not to have more action?
Once that was settled, Nicholas wanted to talk about what Daniel thought could be so valuable in the pyramid code.
“I don’t know, Grandpa. But there doesn’t really have to be anything valuable in it, only the idea that there might be. I wish you and Grandma would go somewhere safe until we get to the bottom of all this.”
“Where would you suggest, boy? It seems your enemies have some deep resources,” Nicholas retorted.
“I was thinking Mom and Dad’s,” Daniel said. “But if they could find you here, they could find Mom and Dad, too. Can I send you on a cruise?” he asked, only half-joking.
“I’ve got a better idea,” growled Pierce. “How about Ellis and me go with them to wherever your parents live, and make sure all of ‘em are okay?”
“You’d do that for us?” Daniel asked. “That would be outstanding, but how would I ever be able to repay you?”
Ellis raised his artificial leg and waggled the articulated ankle. “You already did, buddy. You already did.”
It was settled that Pierce and Ellis would drive the older Rosslers to Asheville, North Carolina, where Daniel’s parents and two younger brothers lived, and stay in the area, keeping watch outside the house whenever Daniel’s mom and grandparents were home alone. Daniel felt a huge relief, knowing that now he didn’t have to choose between his family and Sarah in keeping them safe.