by Mark Goodwin
The team continued north on the rail tracks, until they reached the row of five houses built out on the point where Danny and Gwen had observed Schlusser by the pool a week earlier. Danny pointed to the farthest house. “That one will give you the best shot.”
“So do we knock and see if anyone is home?” Jack inquired.
Danny nodded. “Yeah. I’m not kicking the door of some unsuspecting person.”
“We’d be as bad as Schlusser if we did that.” Gwen followed Danny down the road toward the front door of the house.
“Looks like they’ve done had ‘em some visitors.” Catfish pointed to the marks on the door jamb left by a crowbar or similar instrument.
Danny knocked gently and the door swung open. “Hello? Is anyone here?”
“I think it’s safe to say no one is home.” Chris walked in.
Danny let the others walk in, then closed the door and flipped the deadbolt behind them.
“Wow, this is a nice place!” Dana looked around at the beautiful home. Other than having been ransacked by looters, the house was immaculate.
Jack took a deep breath through his nose. “And best of all, no dead people.”
Chris seemed to pay no attention to the plush furnishings. Instead, he walked to the sliding glass door, which overlooked the river, and retrieved his binoculars. He gazed across the water. “Look at this old man with the young girls drinking by the pool. I bet that’s him.”
Danny gritted his teeth. He hoped that Chris would have the common sense and self-control to not let his rage ruin the mission. “As soon as the first shot pops off, he’s all yours. Just make sure that when you pull the trigger, you’re doing it for justice, not revenge.”
“What’s the difference?” Chris kept the field glasses against his eyes.
“To Schlusser, if that’s him, there’s no difference. He’ll be dead either way. But, to you it’s all the difference in the world. If it’s justice, you’ll be proud that you’ve done your job as a warrior, making the world a better place. If you pull the trigger out of vengeance, you’ll feel empty, like you’ve been robbed of some satisfaction. Just like everything else the devil dangles in front of you, it’s a bill of goods that doesn’t deliver.”
Dana put her hand on Chris’s arm and gently pulled the binoculars away from his eyes. “Whatever you do and for whatever the reason, wait for the raid to commence. Otherwise, you’ll give away the element of surprise. A lot of good men from our side will die if you don’t wait. Maybe Danny or Antoine. Maybe even me.”
Chris looked at her with concern. Whether it was romantic or not, in that moment, Chris’s eyes showed that he cared more for Dana than for his desire to kill Schlusser. Even if it were only temporary, Dana had tamed the savage beast which was eating away at Chris.
Danny said, “We should get back to the staging area. Chris, Jack, do you guys need anything else?”
“Just let me know the second I can take a shot.” Chris redirected his attention to the house across the river.
“We’ve got MREs, so we’re good on food.” Jack dropped his pack on the couch and walked out the door with Gwen.
Danny started to follow when Dana grabbed his arm.
Danny looked at her curiously.
Dana winked. “Can we give them a minute?”
Danny cracked a smile. “Yeah. One minute.”
Sixty seconds later, Danny led the way out the door. Jack and Gwen were engaged in a passionate kiss.
Danny cleared his throat, and the two lovers slowly pried their lips apart.
“You better be safe.” Jack still held her hands.
Gwen pulled back, her face blushing. “You, too.”
Danny, Antoine, Catfish, Gwen, and Dana headed back to the staging area.
“Let me tell you ‘bout my younger years. The women folk swarmed around me like flies on horse manure.” Catfish began to recount his glory days.
No one commented.
“First kiss?” Dana asked Gwen.
“Yeah.” Gwen’s voice was giddy.
Danny looked at Antoine and rolled his eyes.
Antoine chuckled. “They make a good couple.”
“I suppose you’re right.” Danny relented.
When they arrived back at the electric plant, Danny pulled his polo out of his bag. He also took out an MRE. He dropped the tailgate on the F-150, sat down, and began eating. He watched the sun getting lower. He missed Alisa but he was glad that she was safe at home. Safer than he was, anyways. Danny turned on the radio he’d taken from the airport. It was preprogrammed with the frequencies Schlusser’s men used. He scrolled through until he found the frequency they were using Saturday night. He listened to the chatter. It was mostly thinly veiled references to the men who were supposed to be on watch drinking, getting high, or hooking up with a girl from the terminal.
Ben and Lucas walked over to the Ford. Danny handed the radio to Ben. “Here’s the frequency they’re using tonight. When they see Parnell coming, we’ll hear about it over the radio.”
Ben copied the frequency into his radio and handed Danny’s back to him.
Lucas shook Danny’s hand. “We’re going to start moving to our position. We’ve got a three-mile walk, so we need to get going before it’s pitch black. Only a few of us have night vision. We don’t want to use our flashlights and tip off Schlusser to our presence.”
“That reminds me. I have something for you and Antoine.” Ben handed a small olive green duffle bag to Danny.
Danny opened it. “What is it?”
“PVS14 on a head mount harness. Gen 3 night vision.”
Danny smiled as he retrieved one of the units from the bag. “Thank you.” He placed the harness on his head and handed the other unit to Antoine.
“If you guys get in trouble, call me. I’ll come running,” Lucas said.
“I appreciate that.” Danny waved as the two men led their teams toward the train tracks.
“I don’t need no night vision. I’ve got eyes like a cat!” Catfish said.
“Opossums see well at night too,” Gwen added.
“You watch your mouth youngin’, or I’ll tell Miss Jennie how you was a carryin’ on with JC’s boy,” Catfish scolded.
Gwen made a tisking sound. “Whatever.”
Danny picked up his rifle and checked to make sure he had a round in the chamber. “It’s time. Let’s roll out.”
Only the faintest remnant of sunlight glowed from the western horizon as Danny and the others crossed the river on the pontoon. Once there, he secured it to the dock. Danny led the team quietly toward the row of houses on the river bank, which were occupied by Schlusser and his men. They found a secluded area of woods where they could watch and wait. Danny turned the radio on very low and held it close to his ear. The mindless chatter of the guards let him know that they had not spotted any of the approaching teams.
Finally, Danny heard the message he’d been waiting for. He held the radio out from his ear just enough for the rest of his team to gather around and listen.
The man on the radio said, “This is scout four zero alpha to base. A convoy of vehicles is headed southbound on I-85. You better tell Gorbold. He’s gonna want to know about this.”
“10-4, scout. This is base to plantation security. Did you get that?”
“10-4, base. I’ve already sent a runner to Commander Gorbold.”
Danny whispered. “Commander. He was just a sergeant when I was here. I guess he’s Schlusser’s right-hand man.”
Seconds later, Gorbold’s voice screamed over the radio. “Let me talk to the scout!”
“This is scout four zero alpha.”
“How many vehicles are in the convoy, and what type of vehicles are they?” Gorbold was obviously agitated.
“Twenty or thirty have driven past my location. I can’t see the northern end of the convoy, so I can’t say how many more. So far, it’s been a hodgepodge of trucks, military Humvees, and a couple black up-armored vehicles with law en
forcement insignia.”
“What kind of law enforcement insignia? Could it have been Cabarrus County?”
“I couldn’t see, Commander. But, they looked like the type of vehicles used by a police SWAT unit.”
“Sound the alarm! We are under attack! Cabarrus County is attacking the airport. All men not on shift, report to the armory. We have to get roadblocks formed on all roads coming in from the north and the east. All other guard stations, drop to a skeleton staff and send all available men to the armory. I want that force stopped right now!”
Chris’s voice came over the other radio. “Danny, a black-shirt just came out to the pool area. He told the old man something and he got up. He’s heading inside. I have to take my shot now.”
“Negative. The order to strip down the security force on the peninsula was just given. Wait another ten minutes for them to clear out.”
“I don’t have ten minutes. I’m taking the shot. Over.”
“Chris!” Danny whispered loudly.
Chris did not respond. Danny heard the loud crack of the .338 Lapua. A second shot rang out moments later. Danny gritted his teeth and looked at Antoine. “I shouldn’t have brought him.”
“Wasn’t nothing going to keep him from being here. Don’t blame yourself,” Antoine whispered.
The other radio chirped. “The Regent has been hit! Lock down the plantation! All guards on the plantation report to the Regent’s villa.”
Directly after the announcement, large flood lights popped on, surrounding Schlusser’s house.
“So much for the element of surprise.” Danny slumped down lower in the woods as the vivid white light was bleeding past the tree line.
Three more shots rang out from the Lapua.
Gorbold’s voice came over the radio. “We have snipers across the river from the Regent’s home. Divert a team across the river. Shoot to wound. I want these people found alive so I can kill them myself!”
“Everyone is heading toward the convoy, Commander.”
“Then send the checkpoint team from the Wilkinson Boulevard Bridge! They’re closer anyway! These snipers are right across the river.”
“Yes sir, Wilkinson checkpoint, did you copy that?”
“We’re on our way.”
Gwen grabbed Danny’s arm. “You have to warn Jack!”
Danny pressed the talk key. “Chris, you’ve got company coming. You better get out of there fast. If you come this way, make sure they don’t follow. Cut the rope and let the ferry float away.”
“Almost done,” Chris replied. Four more loud shots echoed from across the river.
Danny looked at the flood lights piercing the cover of darkness. “Antoine. Follow me. Catfish, girls, cover us. We’re going to the house with the generator. Hopefully, all the guards have moved on to Schlusser’s. Either way, we have to turn off those lights.”
“Ready when you are.” Antoine squatted low.
Danny led the way out of the trees and ran to the house with the gray roof. He scrunched down behind the cover of the generator. “Watch my back.” Danny removed the fuel cap, retrieved his extra shirt, and cut a piece of the garment with his knife. He stuck the rag in the fuel tank, hit the shut-off switch on the generator and lit the rag. The flood lights went black and the only light was from the burning cloth. “Back to the woods! Go!”
The two men switched on their night vision scopes and dashed back to the tree line.
“Now what?” Dana asked.
“We wait to see if Schlusser’s men come to check the generator. If they do, we take them out. If not, we’ll work our way over to the main house and start sniping them off.” Danny canceled his night vision and focused on the flame burning toward the generator’s fuel tank. When the fumes from the tank met the blaze climbing the fragment of cloth, a loud pop preceded a burst of fire and a flash of dazzling light. Danny keyed the mic. “Jack, how far out are you from our location?”
“Assuming you’re near that bonfire, we’re roughly ten minutes from you.” Jack's voice came over the radio.
“Okay. We’ll stay together until you get here, but hurry. We might have trouble coming our way,” Danny said.
Jack said, “I would imagine you do. Your campfire exceeds federal regulation guidelines. Smokey the Bear is probably on his way to issue a warning.”
While he waited, Danny switched radio channels so he could listen to the details of Parnell’s assault against the airport. Danny heard directions being barked out and the sound of heavy gunfire in the background.
Gwen tapped Danny on the shoulder and pointed forward. “Look!”
Danny saw a team of roughly twelve men heading toward the house with the gray roof. All of them had flashlights attached to the front of their rifles. He switched the channel back to the frequency designated for his team. “Everyone spread out and pick a target. Fire on my signal, and then find another target. Lather, rinse, and repeat until all the flashlights stop moving.”
Keeping his night vision scope flipped up and out of his view, Danny raised his rifle and used the ambient light of the collective flashlights to position the iron sights of his AK-47 over his first target. “Fire on zero. 3, 2, 1.” POP! POP! POW! CRACK! POP! The five rifles fired nearly in unison.
Three of the flashlights fell immediately. Danny’s team let off another volley of rounds, dropping two more flashlights before Schlusser’s men were able to identify the direction of the incoming rifle fire. The beams of the remaining flashlights began to shine in Danny’s direction and were soon followed by a barrage of lead, which peppered the foliage and leaves around Danny and the others.
“Take cover!” Danny shouted as he rolled behind a large tree. He pressed the talk key on the radio. “We could use a little help over here. Bad guys are the ones closest to the bonfire.”
“Roger that. We’re in range to lay down suppressive fire.” Jack’s voice came back over the radio.
Seconds later, gunfire echoed from a distant southern location. Danny peeked around the side of the tree. The remaining flashlights scrambled between the tree line where Danny was hiding and the approaching gunfire from the south.
Danny took his time to line up a shot. He knew the spray-and-pray method would give away his position, but perhaps he could get off one well-placed shot without Schlusser’s men being able to pinpoint his location. Danny was close enough to take a headshot. He took up the slack in the trigger, took a deep breath, and slowly let it out as he squeezed. The AK-47 barked, and another flashlight fell to the ground.
The other radio sounded. One of the men hunting for Danny called out. “We’re getting picked off. They’ve got a squad over in the bushes adjacent to the utility house. Another squad is coming in from the south. We need backup.”
Danny quietly signaled for his team to melt back into the woods. He pressed the talk button. “Jack, they’re sending in more men. We’re going to fade back into the woods. Circle around, we’ll fall back two hundred yards.”
“Are they using night vision?” Jack’s voice was low.
Danny keyed the mic. “I haven’t seen any yet.”
“Good. Give me about five minutes to work my way towards that general direction, then turn on your PVS 14 and look in my direction. I’ll be able to see your IR illuminator with my night vison scope. I’ll use that to find my way to your exact location.”
“Roger that.” Danny used his night vision to pick a path through the woods, away from the house with the gray roof.
He came to a shallow ravine, created by rain runoff heading to the river. Danny led his team down the short bank. “There’s a couple inches of water near the center, but the rest is fairly dry. This is a defensible position if they pursue us this far back into the woods.”
Antoine helped the two girls down the three-foot embankment. He offered to help Catfish, but his assistance was rejected.
Catfish waved his hand in protest. “I’ll get myself down. I ain't no invalid, and I sure ain't no woman!”
“Keep it down!” Danny glared at the cantankerous old man.
Danny peered through the PVS 14 toward the south. He saw the illumination of Jack and Chris’s illuminators heading in his direction. He powered his night vision off and on three times, causing his IR illuminator to flash. He watched, as one of the illuminators moving toward him flashed three times in response. “Jack and Chris are about fifty yards out,” Danny whispered to the rest of the team.
Chris and Jack arrived at the ravine minutes later.
Danny and Antoine held their weapons as they jumped down into the natural trench. Danny handed the AR-15 back to Chris. “Where’s your Lapua?”
“I stashed it under the dock.”
“You guys cut the pontoon boat free?” Danny asked.
Jack replied, “No. We tied it up on this side of the river, but we did reel the rope in so it can’t be used to cross over by Schlusser’s men. We didn’t leave any sign that indicates that’s where we crossed.”
“Okay.” Danny turned to Chris. “We lost the element of surprise. So we have to come up with another plan. What’s worse is that our friends from the airport may already be on the peninsula. They were counting on us to stick to the plan.”
Chris dropped his head. “We’ll improvise. I’ll make it up.”
“When you go off the reservation, you put us all at risk.” Danny turned back toward the woods to see if Schlusser’s men were coming.
“I’m sorry.”
“The damage is done. Let’s just hope we can still pull this thing off.” Danny couldn’t spot any movement coming toward them. “We’ll split into two teams. Catfish will go with Jack and Chris. Dana and Gwen will come with me and Antoine.”
“Why can’t the girls come with us and you guys take the fish?” Jack looked at Gwen.
Danny blew a gasket. “When I give a directive, I expect it to be followed. This is war, and we can’t have three different people calling the shots. Your brother’s insubordination may yet cost us our lives. If you two can’t follow orders, go do your own thing, but stay the heck away from me. Not that I owe you an explanation, but Gwen, Antoine, and I have survived one mission in this hellhole. And unlike Chris, we can anticipate what the others will do. Besides that, I’m all too aware of what it’s like to have your mind split between the mission and protecting someone you’re romantically involved with. If I say something, I have a reason for it. You guys know me. If I’m not confident of my decision, I’ll always ask one of you. But, when I don’t I expect immediate compliance!”