by Warren Ray
“Elliott, stop. They’re at the end of the street,” said Winters.
He handed him the binoculars.
“Yes, they are,” said Elliott.
Winters keyed up the radio. “We’ve got Jiji’s here. They’re down by the lake.”
“Nothing over here yet,” said Burns.
“Scar.”
“We’ve spotted them. We’re moving in closer to see who they’re fighting with,” said Scar.
Elliott put the truck in reverse and parked on the side of the street. They both got out and hurried across lawns to get a closer look.
Moments later, Scar radioed in. “Captain, you’re not going to believe who’s in this firefight. It’s that same major we took prisoner.”
Winters and Elliott exchanged glances.
“Major Green? I thought they were all on the same side,” said Winters into the radio.
“It doesn’t look like they’re on the same side today, cuz the Jijis got 'em pinned down. They’ve got nowhere to go.”
The Shadow Patriots regrouped and huddled around a map of Detroit Lakes.
Scar pointed at the map. “Captain, they may have the major boxed in, but the dumb-asses left themselves wide open to get themselves surrounded. We should bring our people in the same way we just did our recon.”
Burns added. “With their attention on the soldiers, we’ll be able to sneak right up behind them, Captain.”
Scar looked at Burns. “How about we come in on their flanks first? This will squeeze them into the center. They’ll try to escape back up this way. Then we can ambush them.”
Winters liked what he was hearing and with their new equipment and radios, he had little doubt they could save Major Green. He shook his head at the thought of having to save a man who was trying to catch him. At their last meeting he had told Green he had no doubt he'd have the pleasure of tying him up again. Winters was only joking but here they were.
Winters shrugged his shoulders. Life's full of ironies and coincidences.
The Shadow Patriots split into the three groups. Scar and Meeks took twenty men and headed east. Burns and Murphy took another twenty and headed to the west side. The rest stayed with Winters.
The gunfire echoed non-stop as Winters moved his men into position. They ran behind the houses and when they got near the school, everyone found a shooting position. Some inside houses, others behind bushes and fences. They positioned themselves all up and down the street and across the high school’s parking lot.
“In position, Captain,” said Scar over the radio.
“Give us another minute here,” stated Burns.
When Burns was ready Winters gave them the okay to engage. Winters lay on the ground between two houses with Elliott and Nate. Their set-up was right across from a big wide-open parking lot. It was the perfect ambush site.
Winters' pulse increased as he tightened his grip around the Colt M4 the Canadians had given him. He was thankful for weapons and the training his men received in Canada. For the first time since they started, he felt like his men were ready for anything that came their way. The orderly way they moved into position showed their confidence had grown with the new skills they'd learned. Winters also noticed, for the first time, that his leg didn’t start shaking in fear. He thought about what General Standish said to him about being thrown into a dire circumstance and finding out who he really was. He would find out today what that really meant.
Winters turned to Elliott when they heard their friends start firing. They nodded to each other.
Chapter 64
Green ordered another AT4 hoping to put the fear of God in his enemy. He rolled his eyes knowing that these terrorists wished to die in battle. How else would they get their seventy-two virgins?
Regardless, he needed to thin their numbers as much as he could before they came in for a final assault. He only had twenty-five men against four to five hundred Tangos. Unfortunately, he just had a couple more grenades. He hadn't expected anywhere near these kinds of numbers and wasn't adequately prepared. A mistake that would haunt him. Though the bigger mistake was someone in the chain-of-command screwed up royally on the number of terrorists. He put that aside for now but would deal with it later.
Lieutenant Crick was on the other side of their perimeter firing down North Shore Drive towards Madison Avenue. The Tangos had spread multiple vehicles across the road blocking off any chance of escape. His sergeant fired their last remaining AT4's. The explosions reverberated through the air putting the barricade on fire. It stopped the firing down at that end for a few minutes but it picked back up again.
“Major, they've got an RPG,” yelled Bassett from the turret as he spun the big .50 caliber around toward the threat. He let loose with a barrage of fire. Lead tore through the gunner, causing him to drop the launcher on the ground.
The young Corporal Bassett aimed at the launcher hoping someone else would try to pick it up. He didn't have to wait long before another Tango tried his luck.
A slight smile formed on Bassett's lips as he laid down a curtain of bullets. The Tango didn't even get to put his hand on it before a round blew his arm off. The man screamed in pain for help but none dared to expose themselves.
“C'mon, ya little bastards,” dared Bassett.
“You got that handled, Corporal?” snapped Green.
“It ain't going anywhere, though I doubt it's operable now.”
“Don't take any chances.”
Bassett nodded and fired at the RPG. Bullets slammed into it, hurling it into the air. The launcher was torn apart and would no longer be a threat.
Green headed toward Crick and yelled up to the gunners. “Be on the lookout for RPG's.”
“That's a game changer,” acknowledged Crick.
“Yes, it is. But, they may have had only the one launcher. Why else would they have waited to use it?”
Crick nodded.
Green was satisfied with the assumption. They had fired their own at the enemy and it took a while for them to respond in kind, but still, they'd need to be ready. He hustled back over to Bassett.
“Got a large group of Tangos sneaking in through those trees,” yelled Bassett as he turned the M2 toward them and sent a hail of lead at them. Hot shell casings tinkled the metal turret as tree branches snapped off and dirt kicked high in the air. A few Tangos screamed out as bullets ripped through them.
Their returned fire exposed the weak points in the soldiers' fortified position. Green fell to the ground as bullets hissed above him. His heart began pounding knowing he was inches from death.
A lull in the gunfire gave him the chance to tighten his position. He jumped up and ran to the lead Humvee. He threw it in drive and pulled it around the corner. This would force the enemy to fan out and make them work harder.
Picking up the binoculars he watched them fire at him. Rounds bounced off the armored vehicle. Their faces turned to frustration as they realized they were wasting ammo.
Green continued to watch them and estimated at least a hundred of them had gathered in the trees. They had the numbers to flank them. It wouldn't take them to long to realize that the houses by the lake would be an ideal position.
He keyed up the radio. “Lieutenant. Get a squad back into those houses.”
“Roger that.”
The soldier in the turret above him continued to engage, but the enemy was using the trees to their advantage. Green gritted his teeth watching them move in closer. His frustrations grew ten-fold when the gunner above him ran out of ammo.
“I'm empty, Major.”
Green fought to control his temper. He took a deep breath and willed himself to relax. Slowly, he got his heart rate under control. Think. Think. He tilted his head thinking, if push came to shove, he'd get everyone back in the Humvees and try and plow through the barricades.
The radio squawked. It was Crick. “We've been overrun. We're peeling back. I repeat, we're peeling back.”
Green grabbed the radio. “Bassett
cover them.”
“I'm on it.”
Green turned and saw Crick and another soldier coming up the driveway. Each carried a man on his shoulders. They were just about back when Crick fell forward and dropped his man.
Green's eyes grew wide when he realized Crick had been hit. He threw open the door as bullets hit the Humvee. He squatted down and ran to Crick. He grabbed him by the back of his chest rig and dragged him back to the center of their Humvees while lead buzzed over his head.
“Get a kit over here,” ordered Green.
Their medic rushed over and started to go to work on Crick. He was in bad shape and the color was draining from his face.
Green stared at his friend who was struggling to breathe. “Stay with us, David. Stay with us.”
“Major!” yelled Bassett. “Major!”
“What?” howled Green.
“You hear that?”
“Hear what?”
“Listen. The gunfire. It's changed.”
Green stood up and had to will himself to focus. It took him a couple of seconds to realize that Bassett was right. Something had just changed. “What is it?”
“There's new gunfire coming in behind them. Look, the bad guys are running away, sir.”
Green raised his binoculars and scanned the area. The enemy was retreating. But why?
Chapter 65
Winters' eyes narrowed as the Jijis began running toward his position. They were in a hurry as their flanks were caving in on them thanks to Scar and Burns' group. Their numbers started small but snowballed, just as he had expected. This was why he spread everyone out along both sides of the street. He wanted as many in their trap as possible before they opened fire.
More terrorists spilled into the street. Winters got as low as he could. His senses were on high alert and his heart pounded in his chest. The enemy was close enough he could see the lines on their hardened faces. He turned his attention back toward the parking lot across the street where a vast number of Jijis were running his way. Just another moment and they would open fire.
At least seventy-five rapidly retreating Jijis now filled the parking lot. The unexpected assault on their flanks had definitely thrown them off their game.
Winters looked at Elliott and Nate and mouthed NOW. He tightened his grip, leaned against the stock of his M4, took aim and squeezed the trigger.
For a split second, only Winters’ shots rang through the air. A precursor of what was to come. A Jiji jerked his attention to Winters, saw the muzzle flashes and as if in slow motion, resignation registered on his face. He knew he was going to die. Bullets ripped into his chest as he dropped to his knees and fell forward.
Gunfire reverberated from all the Shadow Patriots weapons, and Jijis began dropping onto the street as the bullets rained down on them. The wounded screamed as they tried to crawl away. One pulled himself up in a sitting position, grabbed his gun and depressed the trigger. He instantly became a favorite target as bullets riddled his body, which jerked with multiple impacts and was kept upright longer than it should have.
The Jijis were confused and chaotically ran in different directions. Some started to return fire, shooting wildly at anything: trees, shrubs, or houses. Others formed a group at the school and piled into a car. It took off, leaving the rest of them behind. The car sped toward the gauntlet of Shadow Patriots with desperate men leaning out of the windows, rifles at bay, firing at anything and everything.
The car tore by Winters and he watched holes appear on the doors at a rapid pace as bullets penetrated the metal. He could barely see the driver, who was hunkered down low in the seat. A Jiji in the back window kept firing despite blood running down the side of his face. The tires blew out and the car crashed into a large oak tree. The delirious driver, bleeding, and shouting opened the door and stumbled out. He raised his AK-47 in a vain attempt to prolong his life. Several of Winters' men rushed the car, firing as they charged it. The driver fell back into the car as his blood spilled on the grass. The rushing Patriots stopped beside the vehicle and poured bullets into open windows at the mangled bodies inside.
The remaining group at the school took advantage of the distraction caused by the car. Thirty Jijis came storming up the street charging at the Shadow Patriots.
Winters saw them. “Guys!” he yelled pointing at them.
Bullets flew over their Shadow Patriots' heads keeping them pinned down in prone positions. The bad guys were heading straight toward them. Nate flicked the switch on his M4 from semi-automatic to full. He drew down on them and fired until he had emptied the magazine. Four of them fell dead. The Jijis spread out, as they got closer. Elliott and Winters were expending ammunition at a fearsome rate. Two more fell. The wounded didn’t stop coming. Their faces were determined as they screamed “Allah Akbar.” Nate grabbed another mag and slammed it in. Keeping the weapon on auto, he emptied it in seconds, taking down several more.
As the Jijis got closer, their bullets kicked up grass in front of Winters and Elliott. Their position was becoming vulnerable, but at the same time, the onrushing Jijis were becoming easier targets.
Winters yelled for Elliott to take the right side while he concentrated on the left. The bullets zipping over his head were unnerving. He forced himself to slow down and take better aim.
They methodically dropped the enemy one by one. There was less than half remaining when some of the other Shadow Patriots noticed what was going on and concentrated their fire at the charging terrorists.
Seconds later, it was all over.
Winters got up with his M4 locked against his shoulder while he inspected the enemy. Moans came from the dying Jijis. Bloodied bodies were strewn throughout the ambush site. He looked at his men and couldn’t help but be proud of them. They came here to meet an enemy, not knowing what to expect and performed magnificently. His men moved confidently around the dying, removing their weapons and taking charge.
Some sporadic fire still came from Scar’s position but soon stopped. Winters got on the radio to check on the outlying teams.
Scar reported in first. “We’re all good here, a few got away, but we killed most of them.”
“Same here,” said Burns.
Winters and Elliott then hurried down the street to confront Major Green.
Chapter 66
As Winters moved down the street toward the soldiers, he passed the dead terrorists with a look of satisfaction on his face. He hated them for what they were and what they did to innocent people. Moving by a young one riddled with bloody bullet holes, he wondered what he might have become had he not been born in an environment where his only choice in life was to be terrorist.
Winters was anxious to hear why Major Green was in Minnesota. As he neared the soldiers, he could see Green had lost a couple of his men. He came to a group working on one who had taken a bullet in the chest. Blood spurted from the wound and cascaded onto the grassy ground. The men worked frantically trying to stop the bleeding. One of them screamed in vain for the dying man to hang on as he bled out and struggled to take his last breath.
Green took a deep breath and glanced at Winters, as he approached.
Winters spoke softly. “Major, I’m sorry for your losses.”
Green acknowledged him with a nod.
“What’s his name?”
“David Crick. He was my Lieutenant and my friend.”
Winters looked sympathetic. “I am truly sorry, Major.”
“Well, had you not shown up, it would have been all of us lying here on the ground, so I owe you a big thanks.”
Winters didn’t respond.
“How did you know we were here?”
Winters shook his head. “We didn’t.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Cuz we knew these guys were here.”
Green gave him a confused look. “How did you know that?”
“I don’t want to give away my sources, but some new friends of ours told us.”
Green interrupted. �
��The Brits?”
“Yes, the Brits,” said Winters impressed with his guess. “We were chased into Canada and that’s where we learned of the terrorists’ location. Question is, why are you here?”
“My commanding officer got intel that some terrorists were running around up here, and we came to engage them.”
“You mean Colonel Nunn.”
“That’s right, Colonel Nunn.”
“You didn’t come here very well prepared. Didn’t you know how many there were?”
“Our intel said around fifty lightly armed men.”
Winters shifted his body. “Major, we knew how many there were when we fought them in Brainerd. We killed a bunch of them. We even lost ten of our guys in the process. As we were pulling out, the National Police came after us. They were in the area for a reason, which makes me wonder why you didn’t know because the cops had to have known.”
Green broke eye contact and shook his head. His thoughts were in overload trying to put the pieces together. He looked back at Winters. “You sure it was the National Police?”
Winters nodded.
“I don’t know what to say. I can only assume someone in the chain-of-command got the intel wrong,” rationalized Green.
Winters adjusted his hat. “Major, I find that hard to believe, especially when there is something else that you obviously don’t know. My new friends up gave me the low down on some of the nasty things the National Government are doing. They even knew what the Patriot Centers were being used for. They’ve obviously been keeping things from you.”
Green’s facial expression transformed from uncertainty to anger when he started to realize the ugly truth.
“He set you up, didn’t he?” asked Winters. “Colonel Nunn, he sent you up here knowing you’d be outgunned.”
Green paused for a moment staring into the distance. “It would appear so. We got into an intense argument and I confronted him about what you’d told me. I went to the train station and saw those dead men in the pit. He didn’t even try to deny it.”