by Chris Stout
And now this “Reverend” was coming into town. That definitely put a whole new wrinkle on things. The local militia would have been awfully happy to see him coming. What if they had been arming for his arrival? It was a stretch, but then everything crossing Sam’s mind at this point seemed far-fetched. Weapons brought in… Miranda finds out about them maybe…suddenly the way to vengeance is open. But where were those guns now? Easy, she had them. And was certainly willing to use them. But against whom?
And suddenly the answer was clear. “Check with those remaining militia guys,” the FBI agent had said. “They’re the only link left.”
He was right, they were the only ones left. Which meant they would be next on the list.
Sam burst out of his office, scaring the daylights out of the duty sergeant. “I need every available officer, and I need them now. Tell ’em to meet me in the armory."
Chapter 33
Tim and Eldon continued the ritual of drinking beer and watching pornography, something they had practiced since holing up in Eldon’s trailer almost three days ago.
“We’re getting’ low on brews, Eldon,” Tim announced from the refrigerator.
“Yeah? Well, we can go out together and get some. Just make sure we watch each other’s backs. And you’re buying this time, since you’ve drunk all of mine, practically.”
Tim responded with a hearty belch as he returned to his spot on the couch. “Reverend’s comin’ in tomorrow. We still gonna show?”
“Fuck no!” Eldon looked over at his friend incredulously. “With all the heat that’s been on us? Not to mention the fact that someone out there’s gunnin’ for us. No sir, if the Reverend wants fireworks, he’s gonna have to bring his own.”
Tim breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. I never was real sure about that whole deal anyway.”
“Damn straight. Too many good white folks might get caught in the line of fire. Just ‘cause they’re misguided don’t mean they gotta be killed off. Niggers and spics doin’ enough of that as is. No sir, we gotta preserve and educate the white folks, then fight together against these inferior races.”
Tim’s mouth hung open in awe. “Damn, Eldon,” he finally managed, “You’re a mighty fine preacher yourself. Sound just like the Reverend.”
Eldon shrugged. “Just get riled up when I speak the truth, is all.”
They paused in their conversation to watch two college cheerleaders get intimate in a hot tub. “Some nice tits on that there girl,” Tim said. “Wouldn’t mind watchin’ a few of them fine girls from the school, myself.”
“You got that right. I could sure use some nice box right about now.”
Almost in answer to Eldon’s request, a knock came at the door. The two men looked at each other. “Who the hell do you think that is?”
Eldon shook his head. “Dunno. Ain’t expectin’ no one. Maybe it’s the cops again.”
“Shit.”
Eldon got up and went to the door, looking through the peephole. “Well I’ll be damned. Tim, look here! I was just askin’ for some nice box; didn’t think it’d show up on our doorstep.”
Tim joined Eldon and maneuvered to look through the small opening. “Damn. You ain’t lying. Who is she?”
“Don’t know. You?”
“No idea.” Then Tim’s face fell as a warning bell sounded through his beer-soaked brain. “Oh fuck. Eldon, remember what that one cop said happened over at Jesse’s place?”
“Yeah, there was a bit of gunplay.”
“Yeah, with a woman.”
“Oh yeah.”
“A blonde woman,” Tim pressed. “Like that one out there. She had a silenced pistol. If you don’t know her, and I don’t know her…”
Understanding dawned on Eldon. “Shit, you could be right.”
Tim looked about the trailer. His gaze went to the bedroom, where he knew there was an emergency trapdoor cut into the floor. “You think we should maybe bug outta here?”
Eldon followed his gaze. The woman outside knocked again. “No,” he said. “I’ve got a better idea. You go out through the trap door, all right, only don’t bug out on me.” He turned to the door and hollered, “Be right there!” Eldon turned back to Tim. “Then here’s what you do…”
#
Miranda tapped her foot impatiently. She had heard the call from inside, so she knew Eldon was there. She just wasn’t sure what the hold-up was, or if she needed to worry about it. She thought about going back to her car, getting one of the MP-5’s and hosing down his trailer, but she didn’t want any bullets passing through and harming an innocent bystander. These trailer parks were packed full, and the thin sheet-metal walls weren’t much better than paper for stopping a stream of hyper-velocity bullets. No, it would be better to do this inside, with the silenced pistol.
She heard something rustle under the trailer, but then the door swung open wide. “Can I help you, miss?”
She smiled up at Eldon. “I hear there’s a party going on. Am I at the right place?”
Eldon smiled back at her. “No, dear, but we can get a party started if you want.” His grin widened as he showed her his pistol. “Just come on in and make yourself at home.”
Miranda paled for just an instant. She tried to dive out of his line of fire, but then a second man appeared behind her and grabbed her by the throat. “Where you think you’re goin’, missy?” Tim hissed at her, punctuating it with a click from his own weapon. “Do what Eldon says. Just go on up the stairs and be a good girl.”
“There must be some mistake,” Miranda stammered. “I heard there was a party, and some hot guys…”
“We’ll see,” Eldon said. “Tim, get her up here, and make sure she don’t reach for her purse or nothing.”
Tim gave her a knee in the back, propelling Miranda up into the trailer.
#
Sam was able to round up Arnie Freed, Kevin Jones, Hal Golding and four other officers. He huddled them up in the station’s armory and gave them as much of a briefing as he could.
“Arnie and Kevin were out there yesterday to talk with these guys. They’re belligerent, and definitely don’t like the police. We don’t have anything hard on them yet, so I’m going to go and try to talk to them unofficially. I think there might be gun running going on that they’ve had a hand in, but I don’t have any concrete evidence. But that’s not our biggest problem.” He drew a handkerchief across his forehead. “Of much more pressing concern is that their lives may well be in danger. The same person that killed the Chief and those other clowns, the same person that tried to take me out at Jesse’s, is probably going to make a play for them. And I think she’s going to do it tonight.”
“She?” one of the officers asked.
“Why tonight?” Kevin said simultaneously.
“Yes, she,” Sam said, “and she’s going to do it tonight because I think she wants them out of the way before Unity Day tomorrow. I don’t know if she’s the one with big plans for the event, or if they are. Either way, we’re going to have to be extra careful. Everybody involved, gentlemen, is to be considered armed and dangerous.”
The officers looked around at each other. They all looked grim but ready.
“We’ll take shotguns with us. Arnie and I will make the approach to the residence, see if we can get these boys to come in quietly. Kevin and Hal will make sure no one tries to bug out the back. I want two of you and the entrance to the trailer park, checking ID’s of anyone coming in, especially single young women traveling alone. The other two will go to the near-by neighbor’s places and tell them to keep their heads down, and then provide back-up for Arnie and me, just in case things really go to hell. Any questions?”
“Should a couple of us take AR’s? I’d be a lot more comfortable with the extra firepower.”
Sam shook his head. “Too much chance of shooting through the target and hitting people on the other side. Shotguns will have to do. We’ve got the old Ithacas and some new Remingtons. Take whatever you’re comfortab
le with.”
“Do we have an ID on this mystery woman?” Hal asked.
Sam paused, wondering if his hunch was right. “Not positively. But if Miranda Leider shows up, she definitely should be stopped and handled with extreme caution.”
“Miranda? But I thought…”
Sam held up a hand. “Like I said, I’m not sure. It may be that they’ve got her inside, in which case we’ve got a hostage situation. But I have a feeling that if she’s there, those boys are in a world of trouble.”
Chapter 35
Finding the silenced Walther PPK pretty much cleared up any doubt about what Miranda’s true intentions were. Eldon hefted it in his right hand briefly. “Nice little piece,” he said. “Always liked these German guns.” Then he backhanded her hard across the face.
Miranda stumbled under the force of the blow and dropped onto the sofa behind her. She made no sound other than a brief grunt, but stars danced in her line of vision and she could taste blood in her mouth.
“So what’s a pretty little thing like you doing walking around with one of these monsters?”
Miranda didn’t reply. She sat up on the couch and smoothed her skirt, hoping neither of the men had seen the stiletto strapped to the inside of her left thigh. Eldon tossed the pistol on the kitchen counter and sat down beside her. Tim stood near the trailer door, arms folded across his chest. His pistol was still firmly in hand.
“Where’s Damon?” Eldon asked.
Miranda focused on the floor. She could probably get Eldon with the knife, but there was no way she’d be fast enough to get to Tim before he had a chance to shoot her.
“He’s the one been doin’ this, ain’t he,” Eldon said. “And you been helpin’ him out. Why is that?”
Miranda’s wig was off and also lying on the counter, next to her Walther. Maybe if she got Eldon and spun his body in front of hers…
Another slap left her with ringing ears and a fresh wash of saltiness in her mouth. She held her face briefly and spat blood out onto the floor.
Eldon put a hand on her thigh and stroked it. “You know, we can make this tough on you,” he ran his hand up under her skirt, “or tougher.”
Miranda tried to squirm away, but he held fast onto her. She shuddered. If she pushed him into Tim, she might have a chance to get out. But her car was a fair distance away, parked in a visitor’s lot. They might be able to get her outside. Still, anywhere was better than here.
“Hey Tim,” Eldon said. “Looks like we might get to play with one of them hot college girls after all.”
Tim giggled. “She have a tight pussy?”
Eldon pushed his hand roughly between her thighs. “Feels like it. But I bet it won’t be much longer.”
Miranda gritted her teeth. Eldon was only centimeters away from her last line of defense. She thought she could bear the sexual assault; she’d known all her life that as a woman, she would always be at risk for that. As long as she had a chance to fight back. But if Eldon found that knife, all bets were off. And even if she came out of it alive, it was unlikely she’d get another shot. She had been lucky to even find them, at least until the tables had turned. Jesse, for instance, was out of her reach. She didn’t want that to happen again.
Miranda sprang up from the couch. Tim moved quickly, putting his pistol in her face, but she meekly back away with her hands in the air. Eldon rose and stood behind his partner. For a moment, all that could be heard was the sound of three desperate people breathing heavily.
Then came a knock at the door, the second instance that night. All three turned their attention to the sound.
“Who the fuck is that?” Jesse asked.
“Fuck if I know.” Eldon turned back to Miranda before she had a chance to pull out her knife. “You know anything about this?”
Miranda shrugged and gave him a wry half-smile. “Beats me,” she said. “Maybe they’re my back-up.”
Eldon and Tim exchanged uncertain glances. “Maybe it’s Damon,” Tim said.
“Go see who it is,” Eldon commanded. He turned back to Miranda. His gun was in his hand again. “And you, if you make a sound, I’ll blow your head off and then fuck your dead body.”
Miranda raised her eyebrows and choked back a laugh. Tim stopped and turned around. “Dude, don’t say shit like that. It’s too fucking weird.”
Eldon scowled. “Will you shut up and see who’s out there?”
Tim shrugged but did as he was told. “Shit,” he said. “Hey Eldon, looks like it’s that cop that was here before. He's got a partner this time.”
Eldon swore as well. “All right, get her in the bedroom. Keep her quiet and out of sight. I’ll try to get these two the fuck out of here.”
Tim grabbed Miranda and dragged her into the bedroom. Eldon waited until the door was closed, then went to the door. He opened it a crack. “Yeah?”
“Eldon Marshall? I’m Sam Connor, Detective…”
“I know who you are. Your boys already been here once.”
“Ah, I understand. But it’s come to our attention that you and your friend, Tim Butcher, may be in some danger.”
“Well, I don’t know about that. I think we can take care of ourselves.”
“Right. Well,” Sam scratched behind his ear, “I was wondering if maybe you’d be willing to come by the station tonight and answer a few more questions.”
“What about?”
Sam dodged the question. “And if Tim would come too, that’d be great. Is he here?”
Eldon inadvertently glanced to the bedroom. “He’s sleeping right now.”
“I see. Well…” A loud thump and a scream cut Sam off. Both he and Eldon stared at the bedroom. “Doesn’t sound like sleeping in there…”
“Fuck! The fucking bitch cut me!”
Eldon and Sam exchanged quick glances, each reaching for their pistols. Eldon kicked the door shut slammed the latch home.
Sam swore. “Arnie, get those other two at the entrance to come up here. We’ve got a problem.”
Chapter 35
Tim stormed out of the bedroom, holding a hand to the gash in his arm.
“What the hell just happened?” Eldon’s hands shook.
Tim went over to the kitchen sink and began splashing cold water on his wound in an attempt to stem the flow of blood. “Fucking bitch had a knife strapped to her leg. She jumped me and got me in the arm. I gave her a good thumping, though. She’s out like a light.”
“Well good going, genius. Now we’ve got the cops outside, and I guarantee they ain’t too happy. Hell, that detective tried to pull down on me.”
“Fucker.”
A voice came from outside, spoken over a bullhorn. “Eldon, Tim! This is Detective Connor. I just want to talk with you fellows, make sure you’re all right.”
“Damn it. Bet this place is crawlin’ with police.” Eldon wipe spittle away from his chin. “You all get the fuck outta here, or we’ll kill this bitch!” he hollered.
“Eldon, what the hell?” Tim said. “We don’t wanna get in no stand-off here. This ain’t fuckin’ Ruby Ridge. It’s a trailer park. Let’s just kill the bitch, tell ‘em it was self-defense, and cut our losses. Fuck, she came in here with a fucking silenced gun!”
“Yeah? Well who do you think she’s workin’ for? Probably the Feds. Hell, they done wiped out our unit, her and that Damon kid. They was probably doin’ it for the government the whole time. Reverend was right.”
#
Sam swore at the threat. He spoke to the two newly arrived officers. “Start evacuating people from the near-by trailers. Arnie, get on the horn to the Sheriff; we need more troops here. And put a call in up to Columbus. We might need help from their SWAT team.”
#
“Right now that bitch is our only ticket out of here,” Eldon said. “Go in and get her, so we can show her off to the cops. Maybe we can even use her as a shield.”
Tim licked his dry lips. “I’ll get her all right. Bitch is gonna pay.”
�
�You can have your fun later. Right now, we got to keep it together so we can get outta this mess.”
#
Miranda rubbed at her head. Her fingers came away sticky, and she could feel the knot swelling even without touching it. Tim had thrown her hard into the side of the trailer. Fortunately, her shoulder had taken most of the blow, but it was the same one that was already injured, and she couldn’t keep her head from slamming into the wall. She wasn’t sure how she had missed with the knife. Some survival instinct in Tim’s subconscious must have kicked in, and at the last second he had taken the blade in the arm. She had no idea where her weapon was now.
She picked herself up and moved behind the dresser, crouching there and listening to the exchange going on. Sam was outside; not a good thing. But he thought she was being held captive, which could prove useful. She heard Eldon’s instructions to Tim, and steeled herself.
Tim came charging through the bedroom door like a raging bull. Miranda sprang up to meet him. He was taken by surprise; she didn’t come from the spot where he had left her. He turned and brought his gun up, but she was ready for that and grabbed the barrel of the weapon. Using his momentum against him, Miranda kept the gun moving past her head while she brought a fist up into Tim’s throat. He grunted and gasped, but she didn’t let up, kicking him first in the knee and then in the groin. His grip loosened on the pistol, and she yanked it out of his hand.