She held up her vibrating phone. “Did you lose your phone or something?”
Craig narrowed his eyes as the room went quiet. He shot out of his chair and walked over to her, taking her phone. There was no mistaking the contact displayed on the screen. Someone was calling from his phone. Rachael saw the deep concern in his face and his hesitation to answer.
“What is it? What’s wrong?”
Craig pressed the answer button and held the phone to his ear. “Hello?”
Immediately, he was sorry he had answered. He knew who was calling and he knew the signal could be tracked. The line was full of static. There was a pause. Then a voice spoke, heavily distorted. “Hello, Agent Davis.”
Craig knew enough. He knew they had his phone and had somehow gotten into it, just as he had been trying on the laptop to bypass into their system.
“What do you want?” he asked angrily. Concerned, Rachael moved closer, trying to listen in.
“You know very well what we want.”
“Who is this?” Craig barked.
“My name is Ghazi, and I believe I’ll be making your acquaintance soon enough.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Craig asked.
“We’re close, Agent Davis. Very close. I’m afraid your options are very limited, so I’d listen carefully if I were you.”
Craig paced back and forth, looking out the window. Rachael asked who was on the line, but Craig didn’t respond.
“You will listen to me carefully.”
Craig left the room with the phone pressed tightly against his ear and headed outside.
“Are you still there?” the voice asked.
“Yes. What do you want?”
“I’m happy to get to the point. We want the laptop you stole and we want you to surrender yourself to us.”
“That’s hilarious,” Craig said. “I’m with an analyst expert right now. In five minutes, we’re going to find out what’s on that laptop and expose your entire operation.”
“Way out there in the woods?”
Craig froze.
“We were hoping to find you at your house. But there was nothing but police there. Lots of them. More of our brothers martyred at your hands. Mark my words, there will be retribution for your actions when we get there.”
“Get where?” Craig asked.
“Why, your cabin, of course,” Ghazi answered.
“I don’t believe you.”
“The laptop has told us exactly where to find you.”
Craig froze and then dashed back inside, stomping across the hardwood floor and into the bedroom where he slammed the laptop shut.
A laugh came over the other line. “No use in turning it off now. Allow me to provide our terms. You meet us with the laptop, unarmed, and we’ll spare your family. You should be quite honored, actually. Our Supreme Commander wants to personally speak to you.”
“You come within one hundred feet of this cabin, none of you will make it back alive,” Craig said.
Ghazi laughed again. “We have more terms. You see, we have a team stationed outside the house of Meredith and Tony Adams. I believe this to be your wife’s parents, yes?”
There was a pause. Craig gave no response.
“They will be slaughtered upon my command. Nothing personal, but your parents proved harder to find.”
Craig pictured Rachael’s parents. He looked at his wife.
“Do we have a deal?” Ghazi asked.
Craig walked back outside, past Rachael, who had been trying to keep up with his wild pacing.
“Sure. You want this laptop, come and get it.”
“And you promise not to resist?”
Craig looked up, stretching his neck. There was no denying how trapped he felt. His adversaries didn’t seem to be bluffing. “Yes…” he said, quietly.
“Great. Where should we—”
Craig hung up before Ghazi could finish. He looked around, trying to strategize. He was cornered, there was no doubt about that, but he wasn’t planning to go down without a fight.
Lost and Found
Craig hung up the phone and put it in his pocket. His eyes stared off into nothingness as Rachael stood directly in front of him, trying to get his attention.
“What is it?”
He looked at her, stricken with distress, but trying his best to remain calm. The last thing he wanted was to send Rachael into a spiral of panic.
“I have to call the FBI,” he said.
“The FBI? Tell me what’s wrong.”
Craig looked into her eyes. “We need to go inside.”
As they walked back in, Husein and Nick watched them from the couch wondering what was going on.
Craig turned to Nick and spoke low and calmly. “Nick, I have a job for you and Husein.”
“What?” Nick asked.
“You know that hatch in the other bedroom? The one under your bed?”
“The trapdoor?” Nick asked.
“Yes. I need you to go in there and get out my toolkit. It’s a big wooden box.”
“Awe come on, Dad. There’s spiders down there.”
“I don’t care,” Craig said. “Take it out and bring it out here. Then I want you both to stand watch. One of you at kitchen window, the other one at the front. If you see anything suspicious, yell for me.”
Nick began to look worried.
Husein said nothing. He glanced at the rifle slung on Craig’s shoulder and looked back up at him. “What’s going on?”
“Please. I need you both to act. I’ll explain everything in a minute.”
Craig walked off to his room as Rachael followed. They closed the door before any more questions came their way. Rachael sat on the side of the bed as the mattress springs squeaked. “Okay, will you please tell me what’s going on now?”
Craig turned to her and took her hands in his.
“There’s not much time explain…” he began.
Rachael pulled her hands away and crossed her arms. “Try me.”
Craig pulled the cell phone from his pocket and handed it to her. “I want you to call your parents now and tell them to leave their house at once.”
Her shaky hand reached for the phone. Craig placed it in her palm and squeezed her hand. “But whatever they do, it has to be quick. Tell them to call a neighbor or the police if they have to. They’re in great danger.”
“What are you talking about?” Her voice was trembling.
“I was briefly captured by terrorists,” he said.
Rachael’s eyes widened. She covered her mouth. “I knew something bad had happened to you. How did you get captured? My God, how did you escape?”
Craig spoke rapidly and in hushed tones. “Nick can’t know any of this. Not right now. I was on that convoy that got hit, the one you heard about on the news. We were transporting informants to the Pentagon. After the attack, I was taken to some plastics factory in Detroit, where I was held prisoner. I broke free and escaped.”
“Detroit?”
“They got my phone, my wallet, everything. I had to steal a van to get back here. Husein and I.”
“He was taken prisoner too? Who is he?”
“Yes, he was,” Craig said. “He’s just a boy from Chechnya who got mixed up with the wrong people.”
Rachael held both her hands out, shaking. “That’s it. You’re done with the FBI. Do you hear me? I can’t take this anymore.”
“Please, Rachael. We have to be ready to fight back. The terrorist are on their way. They’re headed for the cabin right now and they want the laptop.”
Rachael shook her head and closed her eyes. “What does this have to do with my parents?” she asked as her hands fell to the mattress.
“That phone call was from a man named Ghazi. He has my phone. They know everything about me.” Craig stopped and took a deep breath. “He made threats against your parents. Said that if I didn’t cooperate…”
Something in Rachael triggered. She jumped up from the bed, and pus
hed Craig. “You give them that damn laptop, you hear me?” she shouted.
Craig stumbled back then regained his footing.
“Giving them the laptop won’t solve a thing,” Craig said back. “We have to be ready to fight them. All of our lives are in danger right now. That’s why you need to tell you parents to go somewhere safe. Ghazi could be bluffing, but I don’t want to risk it.”
Rachael looked at Craig in disbelief. “How did they find us? How did they find my parents?”
Craig stepped forward in an attempt to comfort her, but she backed away, held up her phone, and dialed her parents’ number. With the phone to her ear, she waited.
“There’s still a chance for us to beat this,” Craig said. “You have to trust me.”
Rachael lowered the phone in frustration. “I can’t get through to them. There’s no signal in here.” She attempted to walk past Craig, out of the room, but he blocked her.
“We have to work together on this. It’s the only way. Do you understand?”
She nodded as her eyes closed and tears streamed.
“I want you and Nick to take the boat and get out of here. Husein and I will set the traps. Then I’ll be ready for them.”
As she opened her eyes, he saw a look of pure conviction. “I am not leaving. It’s out of the question. Do you understand?”
“Rachael, please.”
“We’re not going anywhere.”
She left the room and stomped across the hardwood floor. Craig stuck his head out of the room and shouted to her as she swung open the patio door. “Make sure to tell your parents that they’re being watched. Whatever they do, they have to be careful about it!”
She didn’t answer as the screen door swung shut behind her. Craig went to the desk where the laptop rested, deciding what to do. Husein and Nick walked by the room carrying a wooden chest, one on each side.
“Geeze, Dad. What do you have in this thing?”
Craig grabbed the laptop and set it on the bed, next to his backpack. “Uh. Just a bunch of stuff, Nick. Set it down. Don’t mess with anything just yet. Go ahead keep watch.”
“Are we in danger?” Husein asked.
“Not yet,” Craig answered. When Nick and Husein left the room, he dug through his backpack, pulling out four fully-loaded magazines. He stuffed two in each pocket of his jeans and then slid the laptop inside his computer bag, zipping it up. It was time to explain to Husein and Nick exactly what was going on. Craig walked out of the room and closed the door.
Rachael was outside the cabin on her phone, pacing in circles. Having finally gotten the call through, she had been pleading with her parents for the past five minutes to leave their house in Boston, Massachusetts.
Her mother had said that things were crazy enough and that her father, Tony, wasn’t going anywhere. The city, they said, was largely on lockdown, and they didn’t know where else they could go. Rachael tried to explain the situation in the clearest way possible.
“I know what’s going on, Mom. But you and Dad have to get out of there. Yes, that’s what Craig told me. You’re not safe at the house. At least go to a neighbor’s, but do it quietly. Secretly,” she pleaded. “Craig said that terrorists are specifically targeting you.”
“Why us?” her mother asked.
Rachael felt desperate. Strands of hair had escaped from her short ponytail and fallen into her face.
“Can I talk to Dad, please?”
“Your father is busy, but hold on.” As Meredith spoke, the reception went in and out.
Rachael waited impatiently.
“Dad?” she asked. “Dad, are you there?”
“Yes, Rachael. What is it?”
“Please listen to me. Craig…” she stopped, trying to choose her words carefully. “Craig was captured by terrorists yesterday. He escaped and we’re safely in hiding. So they’re coming after you and Mom. You both have to…” She stopped speaking. The phone seemed to have gone dead.
“Dad?” She held the phone out, looking at it. The signal had dropped. “No!” She dialed again and again, but nothing went through. Craig walked outside the cabin and approached with caution. She whipped around at the sound of a twig snapping as he came closer. Her face was red and her tear-streaked cheeks were puffy.
“Did you get the message to them?”
“Lost the signal,” she said, lowering the phone in defeat.
Craig gently took it from her hand. “It’s time. If you’re going to stay here with me, we have to be ready.”
Rachael looked up. Her eyes met his, and they both found a moment’s comfort.
“What did you tell Nick and Husein?” she asked.
“Nick is going to stay with you, by your side, in the cabin. If things go south, I want you all to take the boat and get out of here.”
“Where are you going? What are you going to do?” she asked.
Craig paced around, thinking. “I’m going to meet them halfway,” he said. “Keep them away from the cabin. I’m going to give them a decoy laptop and send them on their way.”
Rachael looked skeptical. “That’s it? What next? They’re just going to go away? You need to call for back-up, Craig. This is serious.”
“I am,” Craig protested. “I’m not walking into this thing alone.”
Rachael eyes fluttered. The same look she made when she made whenever she was conflicted. They were hopelessly stuck. Fight or flee. To abandon their safe house seemed foolish, given the threat of more attacks. Craig reminded her of this.
“When they had me captive, the terrorists spoke of two more attacks. ‘Phases,’ they called them. I’m positive that there’s information on the laptop that will reveal their plans. We can save thousands, if not millions, of lives here.”
“Okay,” Rachael said, softly conceding. “I didn’t realize the laptop was so important.”
“That’s why I need to get on the line with the FBI immediately.”
“Please do. I don’t want you doing this alone,” she said, and heading toward the cabin in haste.
“Hey, wait,” Craig said. He grabbed her arm, pulled her closer, and hugged her. After brief hesitation, she hugged him back.
They broke away and Craig dialed his supervisor, Agent Vince Walker. While waiting for Walker to answer, Craig glanced at the screen. One lone reception bar flashed. If he got through, he’d need enough time to explain that he was alive and that he had information. If the files were encrypted, the FBI would need to send technicians to the cabin immediately. There was a lot riding on his assumptions.
Craig put the phone on speaker and held it up in the air. Finally, a confused Walker answered.
“Hello?”
“Sir, it’s me. Agent Davis.”
There was a long pause.
“Davis? You’re alive. Oh thank God. We—uh. We didn’t know what your status was.”
“I’m fine. Reception’s going in and out, but I have some important information. Are you prepared to copy?”
“Yeah. Go,” Walker said.
“I need an analyst team here. I’ll send over my coordinates.”
“Analyst team? You have information?”
“I have a laptop that belonged to a high-ranking ISIS member.”
“I hate to break it to you, but this country isn’t fit to handle a tornado in the Midwest right now, let alone another terrorist attack.”
“I understand that, sir. That’s why we have to do our best to stop them.”
“Where are you?”
Craig held the phone down and began typing. “Hold on, I’m sending you the coordinates now.” As he typed, the signal went out again and then dropped completely just as he hit send.
“Sir?” Panicked, Craig tried to call back but couldn’t get through. He scrolled through the phone call log. Ghazi’s call had taken place ten minutes ago.
Craig hurried back into the house and found Nick and Husein rifling through his crate.
“Hey!” he shouted. “Did I say you could look t
hrough there?”
They jumped up startled. The crate was full of weapons and other ordnance: a case of 9mm ammo, a small shovel, nails, mini sentry traps, trip wire, .22 rounds for the traps, a chain saw, and a weapons case that held a 9mm Beretta pistol. It was Craig’s secret stash to be used in case of an emergency. If there was ever a time to utilize the equipment, the time had arrived.
“What is all this stuff?” Nick asked.
“You’ll find out soon enough. I’ll need your help setting everything up. We don’t have much time. Where’s your mom?”
“She went into the bathroom.” Nick looked around and then spoke quietly. “Said she had to wash her face. I think she was crying.”
“Just give her a minute. She’ll be fine.” Craig looked to Husein. “Are you ready?”
Husein’s eyes met his. “I guess so. What do you want me to do?”
“Just help me set some traps. You know what these terrorists are capable of.”
“How did they find us?” Husein asked.
“Yeah, how’d they do it?” Nick asked as he brushed his blond bangs away from his forehead.
“They just did,” Craig answered, sparing them the details, but then wondering if he’d been too abrupt. “I don’t know,” Craig said. “I’m sorry.”
The bathroom door opened and Rachael stepped out wiping her eyes dry with tissue.
“You okay?” Craig asked.
“Yes. I’m ready to defend the cabin. It’s the only way.”
“Defend the cabin?” Nick said, confused.
Craig turned to him, stern and emphatic. “You and your mother are going to stay in here while I meet with these men. I’m going to make a deal with them and everything will be okay.”
Craig unslung the rifle from his shoulders and handed it to Husein. “Husein, you’re going to cover me.”
“Why him?” Nick groaned.
“Have you ever fired a gun before?” Craig asked.
“No,” Nick answered, like it didn’t matter.
“Well, now is not the time. You’re staying here and that’s final.” He turned to Rachael. “You know what to do if anyone comes through that front door.”
End Days Super Boxset Page 27