by Robert Boren
“They wanted to secede. They were willing to join the Islamists to do it,” Stacey said.
“Yeah, but think about why they wanted to secede,” George said. “They wanted to be left alone by the Federal Government. They didn’t want it to become totalitarian, and as we later found out, there was a real danger of that happening. They were right, but they made a poor choice of allies.”
“You really think the UN and the Islamists have a chance to defeat us?” Ned asked.
“Yeah, how many Islamists are left?” Wedgie asked. “We aren’t seeing them outside of the detention centers on the apps.”
“We estimate there are about three hundred thousand Islamist fighters hidden in southeastern New Mexico,” General Hogan said.
“How could they have that many shielded vehicles?” Spence asked.
“They’ve got shielded buildings all around that area,” George said, “plus Carlsbad Caverns, which is huge.”
“That’s not all,” General Hogan said. “They’re building a conduit for reinforcements coming through the Gulf of California. We’re organizing a response to that, but we’re late on it because of the problems we ran into with infiltrators in DC.”
“Ned, are we really gonna consider this?” Wedgie asked.
“Keep in mind why we’re here,” Ned said, standing up. “We’re here to plan a rescue mission. We need to save Dick, and Jeb and Rosie too. Let’s have an open mind, but remember our top priority. We can make a final decision on where we stand and what we do after they’re safe.”
“Hey!” Kurt shouted, “car approaching!”
“How far out?” George asked, standing up.
“It’ll be in sight any minute,” Kurt said. “Just one vehicle.”
Charlie’s phone rang. He answered it.
“Charlie, it’s Terry. Car approaching. Is it somebody you guys expect?”
“No,” Charlie said.
Chapter 9 – Cheyenne
The old Range Rover approached the RV Park at a good clip, and slowed as it approached the gate. Jackson and Earl had their rifles aimed at the vehicle. The driver noticed them and started to back up. Two of Clint’s men jumped out of the back of the armored semi with M-16s and blocked him, as Charlie, the Sheriff, and George ran out with their guns.
“Hands on the wheel,” the Sheriff shouted. The scared man inside complied right away, eyeing them. He was in his early thirties, with thick brown hair and a light beard.
“I’m not here to mess with anybody,” he said. “Just looking for answers. I swear.”
“Pull in and park by the clubhouse, and we’ll talk,” Charlie said. “We won’t hurt you unless you try to hurt us.”
“Okay,” he said, voice trembling. He put the Range Rover in gear and drove through the gate as the men followed him.
“Get out real slow, hands in the air,” the Sheriff said. The man got out, still looking around nervously. The Sheriff frisked him. “He’s clean.”
“All right, let’s go inside,” Charlie said. They led the man into the clubhouse and sat him down at the table right inside the door. “What’s your name, son?”
“Josh,” he said.
“You’re Howard’s kid?” the Sheriff asked, sitting across the table from him.
“Yeah,” he said.
“How’d you find this place?” Charlie asked.
“I’ve been here before,” he said. “Dad used to bring me here when he visited Chet.”
“You knew Scotty,” George said.
Josh’s eyes narrowed. “I didn’t like him.”
“Why are you here?” the Sheriff asked.
“I’m just trying to figure out what happened to my dad,” he said, on the verge of tears.
“You didn’t know anything about Scott?” the Sheriff asked. “About what Howard and Scott were doing?”
“No,” he said. “Dad told me to avoid Chet’s family. He told me that years ago, when I was in my teens. After Chet died.”
“You said you didn’t like Scotty,” the Sheriff said. “Why?”
“He was a few years older than I was, and he always picked on me. Him and Sherry.”
“You knew Sherry too?” Charlie asked.
“She wasn’t a friend, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I don’t think we need the guns, men,” the Sheriff said, putting his pistol back in his holster. “Sorry, we’ve got to be cautious.”
“I don’t blame you,” he said. “Was my dad really with Scotty? I know he was found at that house. Was he really a willing participant?”
Kurt walked over, leaving the video monitoring to Mary and Hilda.
“I knew Howard the best of everybody here,” he said as he walked up. “Sorry for your loss.”
“I remember you,” he said, smiling. “You were always nice to me.”
“I remember you too,” Kurt said. “You were a good kid.”
“Do you know what happened? Why was my dad with Scotty?”
“None of us know for sure, but I’ll tell you what my guess is,” Kurt said.
“I’d appreciate it,” he said.
“Scott staged his own death,” Kurt said. “Or rather took advantage of the situation in New Jersey.”
“I know my dad thought he was dead,” Josh said.
“Right,” Kurt said. “When we first arrived, we talked to Howard. I knew him and Chet, and we needed an RV Park to stay in, so I asked about this place. Your dad told us it was sitting here empty, and that Scott had gotten killed in the nuke attack. Had no next-of-kin. Howard helped us get title to the park.”
“How’d he do that?” Josh asked.
”He knew several people on the city council, and they made a deal with us. We could have title as long as we agreed to pay the taxes.”
“Oh,” Josh said. “So you guys never had any problems with my dad?”
“No, he was helpful and we considered him a friend. We didn’t know about Howard or Chet’s past until we found the dungeon. It was a huge shock to me.”
“The dungeon?” Josh asked, eyes getting bigger.
“Yeah,” Kurt said. “It’s two levels below the barn. We found films and video tapes down there. They showed Chet murdering people. Howard was in some of those films. It was when he was much younger. Late teens to early twenties.”
“Oh, no,” Josh said. He teared up.
“You didn’t know, did you?” Charlie asked.
“No, I didn’t,” Josh said.
“We never confronted Howard about what we saw in the movies,” Charlie said. “And then he disappeared. We never saw him again.”
“What about Sherry?” he asked. “I talked to people in town who said you guys were in on that fire fight with her.”
“We were working with Sherry,” George said. “Howard talked her into running his store, because he got caught on the far side of the Mississippi after those nuclear attacks.”
“Working with her?” Josh asked.
“Yeah, we knew that Scotty planned to come back here, kill all of us, and take his park back,” Kurt said. “We think that he coerced Howard into re-joining him. That’s what Sherry thought too.”
“Why’d you kill her?” Josh asked.
“We watched the VHS tapes she was on,” the Sheriff said. “We didn’t like what we saw. Malcolm figured out she’d been killing people in town, too. Recently.”
“Malcolm Davis, right?” Josh asked.
“Yeah,” Kurt said. “Heard of him?”
“I’ve read about him. The cops who were questioning me don’t like him very much.”
George chuckled. “Yeah, not unusual, but he gets results they only wish they did.”
“Did the cops tell you what happened to Howard?” Kurt asked.
“They say he killed an FBI agent, and then got killed himself and put in a freezer,” Josh said, eyes tearing up again.
“In my book, Howard wasn’t a good person,” George said, “but I’ll tell you what the FBI reports say about his
death.”
“I’d appreciate that,” Josh said.
“According to ballistics, Howard shot Agent Keith of the FBI down in that basement. As Agent Keith was dying, he returned fire and hit him.”
“That’s what the cops told me,” Josh said.
“Did they tell you that Agent Keith was a dirty agent, and that he was trying to use your dad and Scott to kill Malcolm Davis and me?” George asked.
“No, they didn’t,” Josh said. “He was dirty?”
“Yeah,” George said. “He staged that thing on the jogging path, after raping the coed he was supposed to be protecting.”
“She said that?” Josh asked.
“No, she was dead,” George said. “Killed by Scotty. Forensics figured that out. DNA, and evidence of rape.”
“Oh,” Josh said. “What do I do now?”
“You have a going business in a nice town and a lovely wife,” Charlie said. “What your dad and Scotty did is not your fault. Live your life and try not to look back. Remember the good times with your dad.”
“If it’s any consolation, Howard was nothing but kind to us here,” Kurt said. “I cried when I saw him on those movies. He’d been a good friend for years. Same with Chet. I had no idea about their dark side.”
“Thanks for that,” Josh said. “I’ll get out of your hair now. Sorry to bother you.”
“No problem,” Charlie said. “You’ll probably see us at your store from time to time. You’re welcome here too, but call us first. We get a little trigger happy when unexpected guests arrive.”
“Thanks,” he said, getting up. The men walked him to his car, and he drove away.
“Wow,” Charlie said as they walked back inside. “That was something.”
“Yeah,” the Sheriff said. “I feel bad for the kid.”
“Me too,” Kurt said. “Funny, I remember him not wanting to be left alone with Scotty when they were kids now. Forgot all about it.”
“Everything’s okay?” General Hogan asked as they rejoined him.
“Yeah,” the Sheriff said.
“How long until the conference call?” George asked.
“Half an hour,” he said.
***
“Here comes Cheyenne,” Frank said, looking at the sign as they passed it. “I’m ready to stop for the day.”
“Me too,” Jane said. “I’ll find a place to spend the night.”
“Good,” Frank said, eyes ahead. “Pretty country.”
Jane nodded as she moved her finger on the screen of her iPhone. “Here’s a place. I’ll make reservations.”
“Good,” Frank said, eyes ahead.
Jane called the park.
“Should I take this off-ramp?” Frank asked.
“No, next one,” she said, pulling the phone away from her ear. She went back to the call for a moment. “Done. We’ve got three spaces, next to each other.”
“Perfect,” Frank said. His phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket and looked at it. “Malcolm.”
“Here, I’ll take it,” she said, reaching over, then putting the phone to her ear. “Hi Malcolm.”
“Hey, sweet pea, we gonna stop pretty soon?”
“Next off-ramp,” she said. “Got reservations for us.”
“Perfect,” Malcolm said. “I’m beat and hungry.”
“You and me both,” Jane said. “Talk to you in a few minutes.”
“Okay,” he said. “I’ll call Gabe.”
“Thanks,” she said. She ended the call and handed the phone back to Frank. “You know, he’s a real charming guy.”
“Yeah, I like him. George too. Wonder how long they’ll stay with us now that Scotty’s dead?”
“Hard to say,” Jane said. “Probably until we get past the big battle.”
“There’s the off-ramp,” Frank said. He took it, Malcolm’s rig and Dobie fifth-wheel following. “Which way?”
“Just stay on this street,” Jane said. “It’s about half a mile.”
They drove through the quiet town as dusk settled. Jane opened her window.
“Chilly,” she said.
“Yeah, further north,” Frank said. “I’ll bet it snows like crazy up here in the winter.”
“Probably,” Jane said. “There it is. To the left.”
They made the turn, pulling into the staging area. Malcolm and Dobie followed, barely fitting.
“You want to do the honors?” Frank asked. “I’ll take Lucy out.”
“Sure, honey,” Jane said. She headed for the door of the coach as Lucy jumped up and down, wagging her tail.
“Okay, girl, we’re going,” Frank said as he put the leash on her.
Malcolm and Dobie walked up and followed Jane into the office. They were done in a few minutes, coming out with their tags and park maps.
“Ready?” Jane asked.
“Yeah,” Frank said, letting Lucy into the coach. “Pull through?”
“Yep,” she said. “This place is pretty empty. Surprised, since it’s still the weekend.”
“Getting colder,” Frank said. “The season is probably over now.”
“I don’t know,” Jane said. “The woman at the desk was wondering about it too.”
Frank drove into the park as Jane directed him. They pulled into their space.
“Level and slides?”
“Sure, why not,” Jane said.
They got to work on the setup. Dobie and Malcolm did the same, then they met outside of Malcolm’s coach.
“Just got a call from George,” Malcolm said. “Conference call in about ten minutes. Want to use my coach?”
“Sure,” Frank said. “Is it gonna be with the militia guys?”
“Yeah, and Ned’s group too.”
“Good,” Frank said. “I think I’ll grab a beer.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Malcolm said.
“Hell yeah,” Gabe said.
“That look a little strange to you?” Malcolm asked, pointing over at the front gate. “Why so many coaches leaving this early in the weekend?”
“The woman running the front desk mentioned it too, remember?” Gabe said. “Look, the guy across the road from us is getting ready to leave. Maybe we ought to ask him what’s up.”
“Yeah,” Malcolm said.
“Good idea,” Frank said. They went over. An older man was working on his trailer, getting ready to hitch it up.
“Good evening,” Frank said. The man froze, then turned to him.
“Evening,” he said. “I’m Harry. Help you?”
“We were just wondering why everybody is clearing out so early in the weekend,” Frank asked.
“You haven’t heard?” he asked. “Damn UN is hitting all the parks, demanding to search rigs. They ain’t up this far yet, but they’re hitting the parks between Steamboat Springs and Salt Lake City.”
“Uh oh,” Frank said. “Where you going?”
“Northeast,” Harry said. “You might want to go too.”
“I think we ought to do the same thing we did in Grand Junction,” Frank said, face flushing red.
“No, Frank,” Gabe said.
“What’d you do there?” Harry asked.
“We killed them all,” Frank said.
***
General Hogan’s phone rang. He answered it, and got a smile on his face.
“Okay, gather around,” he said. He put his phone on speaker. “Hear me?”
“Yes, general,” Hopper said.
“Good. I’ll get Frank on the line.” He fumbled with the phone for a second.
“Frank, hear us?”
“Yeah, general. We’re with Malcolm in his coach. Jane, Gabe, Ted, Dobie, and Agent Williams are with us, on speaker.”
“Great,” General Hogan said. “Who’s on your side, Field Marshal Hopper?”
“My senior staff,” he said. “Jacob Orr, Walter Stennis, Chuck Goodnight, Hector Gonzalez, and Shirley McKenna.”
“Okay,” General Hogan said. “In this room we have George an
d Heidi, Ned Branson, Clint Smith, Charlie and Hilda, the Sheriff, Kurt and Mary, and others.”
“Where are Frank and his team?” a woman’s voice asked. “This is Shirley.”
“We’ll tell you that if you give us your location,” General Hogan said.
There was murmuring on the line.
“Fair enough,” Hopper said. “We’re at Gabe’s RV Park in Colorado.”
“You’re kidding,” Gabe said. “Things okay there?”
“Yeah,” he said. “Great place, and we’ll leave it in good shape for you. Blowing that bridge saved it.”
“Good,” Gabe said. “We’re in a park just outside of Cheyenne. We need to talk about that.”
“Uh oh, what’s happening?” Hopper asked.
“We noticed that a bunch of coaches were leaving,” Frank said. “Unusual for this early in the weekend. We just talked to a guy across the street from us who was on his way out.”
“What’d he say?” General Hogan asked.
“He said the UN has been hitting all the RV Parks between Steamboat Springs and Salt Lake City,” Malcolm said. “So of course they’re expecting them to show up here.”
“Dammit,” Hopper said. “Didn’t know they’d made it that far north yet.”
“What are you gonna do?” General Hogan asked.
“Stay put for now,” Frank said. “We’ve got considerable firepower between us. If they show up, I think it might be a good time to show our will.”
“Here here,” Hopper said. “Blast the bastards.”
“There’s only a few of you guys,” Mary said.
“We’ve got a mortar and some grenades,” Dobie said. “Even have a little willie pete.”
“I’d be careful, and remember the mission,” General Hogan said. “We’ll have plenty of time to blast them. If we can lay a trap for some high ranking folks in Boise, that’s more important than a show of strength right now.”
“He’s right, Frank,” George said.
“Okay,” Frank said. “I get it. Should we take off?”
“We’ve been driving all day,” Dobie said. “We need to rest for at least a few hours.”
“I’ll go talk to the person in the office after the call,” Frank said. “Maybe they can give us some early warning.”
“Yeah, you do that,” General Hogan said. “Now, on to business. Field Marshal Hopper, your team has agreed to fight the UN and the WTO with us, correct?”