“I know, as hard as it is to believe, it was just dumb luck that I ran into you. I was in Lander getting gas and I couldn’t believe it when you drove up and got out. And, yes, I recognized you immediately. I wasn’t sure what to do next so I just decided to follow you and see what you were up to. I know, not my best move. but you have to understand, I’ve gotten into trouble with the ISS myself and they say they are watching me. I just wasn’t sure what to do. I followed you on a whim, I swear.”
“Mr. Walker you are a reporter. You are licensed by the government. In a roundabout way, you actually work for them. You report exactly what they tell you to report. We know there is a reward out on the three of us, actually on anyone who has refused to follow the President’s agenda. So tell me just why we should believe one thing you tell us? You know the general area we are in and that could be disastrous for us. I’m sure you can see the predicament we find ourselves in,” Thomas said.
“I swear this wasn’t planned. It just happened. I am not going to tell the ISS that I ran into you,” Mark said.
“The problem is, we simply cannot take that chance. Lincoln, why don’t you ride with Mr. Walker and follow us.”
“Got it. Mr. Walker, let’s go.”
“What are you going to do?” Mark asked.
“Ensure that you are not going to know where we are headed and give us a chance to get put some distance between us and you.”
“Look, I can just turn around and go back the way I came,” Mark told them.
“I think we will do it my way. Please, don’t make this get ugly.”
Mark got in the car and Lincoln got in the passenger side.
“Do you have a gun?” Mark asked as he buckled up.
“What do you think? Now, please just follow the General,” he said.
****
When they reached Wind River Canyon, Thomas turned off on a one-lane dirt road and drove for another half hour before stopping. It was too rugged for Walker’s car to go any further.
Thomas got out and walked back to the other car.
“This will do,” he told Lincoln.
“You can get out Mr. Walker.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Not what you think. Please just get out,” Thomas instructed.
Mark got out thinking that they were probably going to kill him. He was cursing himself for deciding to follow them.
“Here is the thing Mr. Walker, our lives are on the line. You already know the ISS wants us dead or alive. That’s pretty harsh for just refusing to follow an illegal order no matter who gave it. It isn’t like we absconded with military secrets. You say it is just coincidence that you ran into us, but the thing is, we just cannot take that chance. Our quandary is what to do with you. No, we are not cold blood murderers so you can put that out of your mind. I think the best thing is to just give ourselves the chance to go our way and, in time, for you to go yours.”
“What do you mean ‘in time’ go mine?”
“I am going to take your keys and leave them at the turn off. Don’t worry you will be able to find them. By the time you walk there and back and then get out of here we will long be gone.”
“And I can just go on my own way?”
“Absolutely. We all have weapons. If we wanted you dead we wouldn’t be talking. I am going to take a chance that you will just go about trying to find out what you came for and not report seeing us to the ISS,” Thomas told him.
“I have no love for the ISS.”
“Alright. I will give you one tip. Monticello, New Mexico. That would be a good place to start.”
“They have internment camps there?” Mark asked.
“Just be careful. It is well guarded and they have patrols in the area to keep the curious away. Get too close and you could become a guest for a long time.”
“Alright. I really do wish you luck. I hope you can avoid the ISS. I give you my word that I will not turn you in.”
“Good luck to you Mr. Walker. Again I caution you, be very, very careful. I wouldn’t ask questions. They are paying people to turn in anyone who is a stranger asking questions. You can’t afford to trust anyone in that area. The people are good people, but the ISS is putting a lot of pressure on them to be their eyes and ears,” Thomas told him.
A few minutes later the Jeep was driving off leaving Mark standing there. It was going to be a long walk so there was no used hurrying. He sighed and headed after the retreating Jeep’s dust trail.
THIRTY-THREE
It was nearly dark by the time Mark finally got back to the car. Just getting it turned around was no easy chore. He finally got turned back in the right direction. He headed south toward Colorado.
He decided he would head to New Mexico and poke around. His first obstacle would be finding a place to crash for the night and to pick up a cell phone and a GPS system. He had been meaning to do that but just hadn’t gotten around to it yet.
He stopped in Cheyenne, Wyoming and bought a cheap phone and a GPS system. He found a nice motel and decided to stop for the night and get an early start tomorrow. He walked to the attached restaurant and ordered from the breakfast menu.
“Coffee?”
“Sure. Do you know how far it is to the Colorado border?”
“Hon, you practically there. It isn’t more than fifteen miles down the road.”
“Thanks.”
“You headed to Colorado, huh?”
“Just passing through. I’m on my way to New Mexico actually.”
“That’s a ways further down the road. Good luck going through Denver.”
“Bad?”
“Worse than bad. Why people live there is beyond me. They have all that land and they pack into Denver like cattle going to slaughter. It’s just stupid.”
“I looked at a map earlier and it looks like that is my only real option,” Mark said.
“Kind of slick how they did that, huh?” she said heading off to turn in his order.
****
Mark left early the next morning heading south on Interstate 25. Just as he crossed the border he saw that several cop cars were lined up and waving selected cars to pull over. The cop looked at him and motioned him to head to an inspection area.
“Good morning officer,” Mark said.
“License and car registration,” he said without acknowledging his remark.
Mark handed them over and waited.
“Just stay in the car,” the cop said and walked over to one of the patrol cars.
He sat there wondering what this was all about. Maybe searching for drugs or who knows what. It was a good five minutes before the officer came back.
“Mr. Walker, get out of the car please.”
“Is something wrong?”
“Just get out of the car,” the cop said putting his hand on his gun.
Mark shrugged and got out of the car.
“Open the trunk and then go stand over there,” the officer said pointing to a taped off area.
Mark opened the trunk and walked a few feet to where he stood with two other men and one woman.
The cop started going through the trunk, pulling out everything including the spare tire.
“Do you know what this is about?” Mark asked the man next to him.
“Not a clue. They just told me to open the trunk and come over here.”
“Same for me,” the woman added.
“Are they looking for drugs?” Mark asked.
“They sure aren’t going to find any in my car,” the woman said.
“Mine either,” the man next to him said.
Finally the cop motioned for the woman to come back to her car. A few minutes later she was repacking the trunk and a short time later drove off. The two other men standing with Mark soon followed. Instead of calling Mark over, the cop came and told him to follow him.
“What’s the problem?” Mark asked.
“You’re Mark Walker correct?”
“That’s correct.”
“You are out of your home state.”
“I’m on vacation. Is that a problem?”
“Did you notify the ISS that you were leaving the state?”
“What? No. Why should I? Are you telling me I can’t leave the state without approval from the ISS?”
“Are you aware that you are on their ‘Watch List’?”
“Hell no. I don’t understand any of this. I asked my boss if I could go on vacation. I haven’t been on one in over ten years. Suddenly that is against the law?” Mark said starting to get worked up.
“Mr. Walker, the ISS has a list of people they consider potential dissidents. You are on that list. You are required to get permission not only to leave the state but the city you live in as well.”
“That’s crazy. No one ever mentioned that to me. How would anyone know about such a ridicules rule?”
“Not knowing is not an excuse for breaking the law.”
“Are you telling me it’s a law?”
“Mr. Walker you are going to need to come with me while we sort out what the ISS wants to do with you.”
“This is crazy. I’m just taking a vacation,” he said disbelieving.
“Just come along and we will get this all straightened out,” the officer said.
Mark sat in a patrol car for well over an hour before the officer came over and opened the door.
“Mr. Walker. I have been instructed to get an itinerary from you. They want it detailed,” he was told.
“Geez, I don’t know exactly where I am going. I’m just sightseeing. Have you ever taken a vacation where you knew exactly where you were going to be all the time?”
“We aren’t talking about me. ISS wants yours.”
Mark just shook his head. This was so crazy.
“I’ll do the best I can but I can’t put down everything because I don’t know exactly what I intend to do.”
“Just write it down,” the officer said handing him a pad of paper and pen.
Mark spent the next hour looking at maps of Colorado, Idaho and New Mexico and trying to piece together a reasonable looking itinerary. It was intentionally vague in some areas. Visit the White Sands Area. Visit the Gila Cliff Dwellings were listed but no real specifics.
When he was finished and he felt it looked fairly reasonable he looked up the officer and gave it to him. The cop looked it over for several minutes.
“Alright, I’ll fax this to them. If I were you I would make sure I stick to the itinerary or you could just find yourself in a world of trouble Mr. Walker.”
“Can I go now?”
“You are free to go. Thank you for your cooperation.”
In a pig’s eye, Mark thought as he climbed back in his car and took off down the road.
He drove straight through Colorado stopping only to eat and get gas. He wanted to get out of the state as quickly as possible. He crossed the state line at 3:15 a.m. and stopped at the first hotel he could find. At least he had made it to New Mexico without having been stopped at the state line again. He was half expecting it to happen.
He was asleep almost before his head hit the pillow. He slept for the next eight hours and would have slept longer except for housekeeping. He finally took a shower, dressed and checked out. After a quick breakfast, he hit the road again. He was anxious to do some sightseeing just in case he was asked about the places he had put on his itinerary. It would be better to take his time and be safe rather than sorry.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
General Billings was watching from fifty yards away as the Jeep stopped in front of his cabin. He recognized the three men but wanted to make sure no one was following them. He had heard helicopters flying low overhead the past two days and was spooked.
He watched as the men knocked on the door several times before circling the place and then getting back in the car and sitting there. Finally he stepped out into the clearing and started walking toward them.
The three climbed out of the car when he walked up and they all shook hands.
“We thought you might have taken off.”
“Actually I was close to doing that very thing.”
“Problems?”
“I’ve heard choppers the past two days. Just over the ridge. I haven’t seen them but I wouldn’t be surprised if they were military.”
“That is certainly not good news. Lance said too many people knew about your place and he may have been right.”
“So are you guys are on the move?”
“Actually we don’t know what we are going to do just yet. We have been talking about it ever since we left Lance’s place. One thing for certain, we need to gather up as many of us as we can before we become a priority to the ISS again.”
“I agree. Look, I have hooked up with some militia guys, not just play soldiers, but real militia. These are serious people with serious fire power. What would you think about at least talking to them?”
Thomas looked at the others and just shrugged.
“When you say militia you don’t mean a bunch of rednecks just shooting things up, right?”
“No. I mean ex-military, several from special forces. Good people and damn good tacticians. I was going to join up with them until Lance called and said you were on the way,” Billings told them.
“What do you guys think?” Thomas asked.
“I don’t see how it could hurt,” Lincoln said.
“Fine with me,” Lance added.
“Hold on. Listen,” Billings suddenly said.
“What?” Lance asked.
“Chopper. Coming over the ridge. Quick, get in the car and head for those trees,” he said.
All four piled in the Jeep and Thomas raced across the field and plunged the car into the trees. He didn’t stop until the car was impossible to see from the air. They waited and watched.
A few minutes later a military chopper came in low and circled around the cabin. It leveled out and just hovered for several seconds before finally slipping over and setting down next to the cabin.
A man with an M16 jumped out and made his way carefully toward the house. He cautiously made his way onto the porch and took a quick peek into the window. He banged on the door with the butt of his gun and waited. He did it two more times then walked over to the chopper and got in. A few seconds later the chopper lifted off and headed back over the ridge.
“They will be back and soon,” Thomas said.
“You’re right. They probably sent for more people to check the place out.”
“Then we don’t have much time,” Thomas said backing the car out and heading to the cabin.
“Get what you absolutely have to have and let’s get the hell out of here,” Lincoln said.
All four of them loaded guns, ammunition, and a few clothes in the back of the Jeep. It was just about maxed out in terms of space.
“Can we get out of here in a different direction?” Thomas asked as they all piled in the car.
“We can, but it is really rugged. We are pretty well loaded down,” Billings told him.
“I think we had better chance it. I doubt if going back the regular way is a safe option now.”
“Okay. Over there between those two boulders there is a rutted road that runs back into the forest and eventually comes out near a two lane road.”
“Hang on boys and girls, it’s time for us to get our butts out of here,” Thomas said stepping on the gas.
****
“Where are we at?” Lincoln asked when he woke up.
“Right before the at,” Thomas said.
Lincoln groaned, “Not another grammar Nazi.”
“Sorry, my gram’s was an English teacher.”
“Well she’s not here so stop it.”
“Anyway, we are just a few miles inside Idaho. It’s time to wake Adam so he can direct us.”
Lincoln woke Billings and told him they were in Idaho and needed further directions.
“We’re on US 30, right?” he asked.
“Yep.”
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“Okay, we have a ways to go. We are looking for Montpelier. US 30 will run into US 89. We will take that turn right onto 89 which is the same as Montpelier Canyon Road. We follow that until we get to the Montpelier Reservoir. A couple of their guys will meet us there and take us to their base of operation.”
“I’m cool with that. I like the fact they have some kind of security system in place,” Lincoln said.
“You have no idea,” was all Adam replied.
They drove along mile after mile until they finally arrived at the Montpelier city limits.
“Okay. We are looking for US 89 or Montpelier Canyon Road. It’s a major road so it shouldn’t be hard to find.”
Four stoplights later they were there. Thomas took a right and they followed the canyon road for several miles before they saw a sign indicating the reservoir. He turned and followed the road to a big bend in the road. Two four wheel drive trucks were parked at the side of the road.
Thomas pulled up and stopped the car. Adam got out and walked over to the trucks. Three men and one female got out and they could see him shaking their hands and gesturing to the Jeep. A few minutes later Adam waved them over.
The three of them got out and walked over to where Adam and the others were standing. Thomas could see that they were all wearing side arms on their hips.
“Boys, this is Don Casey. He is the leader of the Idaho 2nd Militia. That’s Al Sharp his XO, Terrance Jones, first squad leader and Kim Dare, squad platoon leader,” Adam told them.
They all did the handshaking routine as Thomas and the others introduced themselves.
“Pretty good, an Admiral and three Generals. Make’s us kind of look like pikers,” Don said.
“Hey, we are civilians now. Wanted civilians, I might add,” Thomas said.
“Still you bring a lot to the table. Adam say’s you’re good people and that is good enough for us. If you want, follow us and we will take you to our base camp,” Don said.
“Lead the way. We are anxious to see what you are all about,” Lincoln said.
They followed along for about an hour, going deeper into the hills until some fairly large peaks started to crop up. They took a turn between two of the larger summits and finally climbed almost to the top before they came to a clearing.
PROJECT BlueBolt - AMERICAN GULAGS: BOOK I - AMERICAN GULAGS Page 17