“I’m not sure,” Janice replied.
“If they have been trained then we will supply them with some firearms, otherwise they will be on support staff,” Jared reasoned.
“Support staff?” Julia asked.
“Somebody needs to operate the ferries and set up communications for the people on the island. Do we have a cartographer?” Jared asked.
“I do,” Julia said. “She helps me direct people around Queens.”
“Fine, fine, just get the word out to your people now. We move tonight before John can get dug in on that island,” Jared said impatiently. “I want everyone down there by the time that Ethan attacks the convoy with our gold.”
Greg, Bob, and Zach had retreated to his bedroom to talk privately about the attack. Eric had long since left to follow his march orders and Greg was wondering if there was anything they could do to take advantage of the situation.
“I don’t see why we should get involved in an internal conflict,” Bob said. “It’s not like we can do much about it anyway, because it sounds like the entire Black Hand has been mobilized.”
“If we knew how Bennett fit into all of this we could take him out in the confusion,” Zach suggested.
“Trying to find Jared Bennett among probably fucking thousands of Black Hand is going to be next to impossible,” Greg replied. “I’m not sure there is anything we can do on this one, other than to hope the two sides destroy each other.”
Zach suddenly dived into his pocket for his phone. He read the message and said, “One of my infiltrator’s in the Manhattan outfit says that the borough leader is going to attack the Federal convoy carrying away the rest of the gold. It’s going to happen imminently.”
“Maybe we could help defend the convoy?” Greg suggested.
Zach nodded. “We need to get the bank president back on the phone. Did you get his name earlier?”
“I was worried about other things,” Greg said defensively. “I’ve gotten through life not knowing people’s names. It worked for me when I did press briefings for the Task Force.”
“Greg, if you are going to network with the Fed, you need to know people’s names,” Zach replied. “Anyway, aren’t you the one with the bank president’s number?”
“Yes,” Greg replied, reaching for his phone.
Within seconds the call had connected and the bank president answered the phone. “Yes, Mr. Carlton what is it?”
“We have it on good authority that the convoy transporting the gold will come under attack,” Greg explained quickly. “We were going to offer our services as extra security for the transport.”
The bank president sighed. “I can’t imagine these thugs would take losing the gold easily. It won’t hurt to have you on board, but you need to get to the launch site immediately. I’ll call ahead to explain who you are and why you are there, but the Army personnel transporting the gold will have to give you specific instructions as to how to defend the convoy.”
“Got it,” Greg said. “We will do what we can to help, sir,”
“Call me Ian,” the bank president said.
“Yes sir,” Greg replied, hanging up. He turned to Zach and said, “His name is Ian.”
Zach rolled his eyes. “You lucked into that one.”
“You need to get going, Zach,” Greg explained. “He said we could help, but you have to meet with the Army at the restaurant so they can tell you where to go.”
“Will the Army just accept us?” Zach asked.
“Ian said that he would let them know you were coming,” Greg replied.
“I hope so. I can tell you from experience that if the Army saw a platoon of unidentified, heavily armed men coming towards them, they would not hesitate to open fire,” Zach said darkly, as he turned to leave.
It was the dead of night in the city. The bustling night life that the city usually saw had not yet picked up from the lifting of the curfew, but this night was busy. Black Hand forces were converging on the southern tip of Manhattan, largely unnoticed by the authorities who were focused on securing the remainder of the gold in Midtown. The only Black Hand fighters not in the south of Manhattan were traveling through Midtown, on patrol for the convoy so as to ambush it.
While Zach was heading for the convoy’s launch point, Greg was setting observers in positions to see what was going on in the south of the city. He wanted to get a good head count at the Black Hand’s numbers to see the full extent of what they were dealing with. In addition, he had asked for volunteers to sneak ahead into Staten Island before the attack to see how it would go. He had been reluctant to order people onto the island, as the risk for getting caught in the crossfire was considerable.
Jared was already in the south of the city with the rest of his command team, the borough leaders and their immediate subordinates. He was looking towards Staten Island through binoculars, trying to see if there were any harbor police in their way. On his way down, he had considered changing the launch point to New Jersey or Long Island, both of which were much closer to Staten Island. He had decided to stay with the longer, entirely water route because it was less likely that any rogue Black Hand soldiers would be looking in that direction.
The path seemed mostly clear at this time of night. Jared reasoned that the harbor police were further up the Hudson River to be closer to the transport of gold in case trouble arose. Ethan might be at risk of extra danger, but Jared knew he could handle it after what he did to the police at Central Park three months prior.
“Are we almost ready to go?” Jared demanded.
“We’re getting the layout of the island keyed into the map,” Julia said. There was a digital screen with a detailed map sitting flat on a table that the leaders of the Black Hand were using to coordinate the attack. “We can’t just throw our people out there without telling them where to go.”
“How much longer?” Jared demanded.
“Half an hour, tops,” Julia replied. “It gives us more time to get more boats and people up for the launch.”
“How can we tell them where to go if we don’t know where the traitors are?” Jared demanded. “We need forward units on the island for reconnaissance.”
Julia nodded. “It would help,”
Jared turned to the gathering crowd of Black Hand fighters. “If you have experience in stealth and information gathering, get your ass up here. NOW!”
Several people came forward and Jared could tell that they meant business. Where others were unarmed and looked entirely out of sorts at an armed intervention, these people were fully armed and dressed for camouflage. “You all look like you know what you are doing. Julia, fill them in.”
Julia looked caught off guard at this request, but regained her composure, saying, “We can’t go onto the island blind. We need you to go ahead and scout the area for troop gathering and hopefully the location of the traitor John Baxter. We have radios for you here.”
Julia handed them a wireless radio set that just involved a microphone and an earpiece. “We need precise locations and numbers. And we need them quickly. We have a distraction in place to keep the authorities away from here as long as possible, but we can’t fuck around.”
Their leader, a towering woman nodded and waved her soldiers forward. They acquired a motorboat and moved out into the water as quietly as possible. Jared watched them go through their binoculars as Julia wired him up to be able to stay in communication with them. “Radio check,” he said when she was done hooking him up.
“Check confirmed,” the stealth leader replied quietly. “Establishing radio silence until we get to the island.”
“Confirmed,” Julia said, who had patched herself in as well. “Now all we can do is wait,” she said to Jared.
Jared lost sight of the forward unit as they disappeared into the darkness. “We better not be waiting for long.”
“How many do you count?” Ashley asked.
“Some thousands,” Bob said, frowning while looking through binoculars at the pier.
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“We need a better estimate than that,” Greg said, who was looking at the crowd as well.
“Don’t expect any miracles, it’s the middle of the night,” Bob replied. “It’s a miracle we can see them at all.”
“There’s a boat leaving,” Greg suddenly interjected.
The Conspiracy leaders watched as a single small boat drove off into the night towards Staten Island. “They’re probably scouts,” Bob said.
“What about our scouts?” Greg asked.
“They went to the island hours ago,” Bob said. “We can’t contact them right now because it would blow their cover, but we can expect a full report from them when this is over. Provided they survive.”
“They’ll be fine,” Greg replied. “I’m not saying that like I don’t care about them, but I made sure what they were getting themselves into when they went over there and what kind of danger they would be in. They know the risks and know where to stay out of the way at.”
Bob looked at the mass of Black Hand fighters waiting to invade the island and said, “I hope you’re right.”
Captain James Stanford was overseeing the transfer of the gold from the basement of the Central Park Steakhouse to the waiting Army trucks. They were going to be transported from there directly back into the Federal Reserve vault, which had been repaired and further secured since the devastating attack. No one was going to be able to fight their way into the vault again after the upgrade was finished.
The bank president had called to tell him moments before that extra security would be arriving. Despite his misgivings about people coming in to secure the gold that were not under his command, Captain Stanford had acquiesced to the request. Any extra help against a potential Black Hand counterattack would go a long way.
Just as the last of the gold was being loaded onto the trucks, a series of vehicles arrived. Captain Stanford walked over to the lead truck, where a man climbed out and approached him, unarmed. “Can I help you?” the captain asked.
“My name is Captain Zach Gates of the United States Marine Corps,” Zach said. “This my platoon and we’re here to help secure the route to the Federal Reserve.”
“Marines?” Captain Stanford asked. “I thought the bank was just sending in extra security.”
“They did. They just got lucky in who he found to help,” Zach explained. “Since this is your operation, is there anything you would like for us to do?”
Captain Stanford thought for a minute and said, “Do you have snipers?”
“A couple, yes,” Zach replied.
“We have several set up along the route, so they could join them,” Captain Stanford said. “As for the rest of you, since you are Marines…”
“I’m the only Marine here,” Zach interjected. “We all volunteered to fight the Black Hand and most of them have military experience, but I’m the only Marine.”
“Damn it,” Captain Stanford said. “Well, look, I need someone to scout the route ahead and look for trouble.”
“Your own men can’t do that?” Zach asked incredulously.
“We have specific orders not to let the gold out of our sight, despite the tactical disadvantages that presents,” Captain Stanford said, glowering. “You, however, aren’t tied to that order so you could go ahead and make sure there aren’t hostiles or other impediments.”
Zach nodded. He had received orders that did not make sense tactically in the past as well, so he understood Captain Stanford’s frustration. “We’ll go ahead. We need to stay in communication though.”
“Understood. Lieutenant! Get a radio to Captain Gates!” Captain Stanford shouted behind him at his men.
The lieutenant obliged, providing Zach with a radio. “I have contact with my own people,” Zach said, waving off a second one. “I just need to relay what they tell me to you. When are you moving out?”
“ASAP,” Captain Stanford explained. “Here’s the route we are taking,” he added, giving him a map of the route that stretched through Midtown and the Battery. “We’re taking the most direct route. We aren’t going to be fucking around here; we need to secure the gold as quickly as possible.”
“Understood,” Zach replied. “We’ll go ahead now and see what lies ahead.”
“Thank you, Captain,” Captain Stanford said, saluting him.
Zach saluted him in return, then turned back to his truck. After getting back in, he looked at the map and said to David, “If I were an assailant where would be the perfect place to ambush a convoy on this route?”
David looked at the route and said, “Anywhere really. Lots of buildings to hide snipers, closed streets that could conceal ambushes. We’re just going to have to scout the whole thing.”
Zach groaned. “That’s what I was afraid of. Let’s go.”
Jared was staring out at Staten Island, waiting for any news to come forward from the advance units. Since the initial one had gone out an hour ago, five more had been sent to penetrate various points of the island to give a comprehensive picture of rogue Black Hand forces on the island. None of them had reported back yet, which meant one of two things: either they had not found anything or they had been compromised. Jared could not decide which one was most likely and either prospect made him nervous. Either resistance was fierce or they could not find the traitors at all.
“It’s almost 2 am, shouldn’t they have reported back by now?” Janice asked.
“Not if they haven’t found anything,” Julia said. “They’re maintaining their silence for a reason.”
“Black Hand base, come in this is Lead Squad Four,” a voice suddenly said over the radio.
Julia rushed to respond first, saying, “This is base.”
“We’ve found some of the rogue units in the Cloves Lake Park, in the northeast part of the island. They’ve set up an ambush here,” the squad leader explained.
“Understood,” Julia said. “We are marking that location. Maintain silence again,”
“Copy that,” The squad leader said.
“Where is this park?” Jared demanded.
Julia consulted her map and said, “It’s a mile and a half inland from our projected landing point in the St. George neighborhood.”
“They aren’t going to resist our landing?” Janice asked.
“Not from the information we just received,” Julia replied.
Jared was disappointed. He had been hoping for an immediate fight upon landing so as to teach the traitors a lesson as quickly as possible, in spite of the tactical nightmare landing under fire would have posed. He turned back to the island and continued to wait for more news.
Zach was driving down Fifth Avenue, which would take the convoy most of the way back to the Federal Reserve. The shops were closed this late at night and the night time pedestrians had been moved away from the area hours before. Anyone unauthorized in the area was to be arrested and if they resisted, deadly force had been authorized.
For his part, Zach did not want to fire on civilians, but preferred to get them out of the way before main convoy arrived, who would not have such reservations. There had not been anyone so far; the curfew, though over, still had an effect on the people of the city. It was quiet, which was discomforting to Zach. He had known this kind of quiet before, having experienced it in the streets of Tehran during the height of the Iran Crisis. There was going to be a firefight somewhere.
“Sir, there is an obstruction ahead,” David said suddenly, pointing.
Zach saw it as well; there were trucks blocking the road ahead of them. “Captain Stanford, stand by, there’s a barricade at Fifth and East 42nd. We’re going to clear it.”
“Understood,” Captain Stanford replied. “We’re halting until you give the all clear.”
Zach approached the barricade slowly, in case they were fired upon. When they got within a block, a shot rang out, with the bullet deflecting off of the top of the windshield.
“HALT!” Zach shouted into the radio to his men, bringing his scouting force to a halt.
Several men were getting out of the trucks ahead. They were heavily armed and moved forward cautiously with their firearms raised at the trucks. “Sir, what should we do?” David asked worriedly as they drew closer.
“We can’t stay in the truck, it’s not bulletproof,” Zach replied. He looked around and saw an alley they could take cover in. “I’ll distract them, you get everyone under cover. Go around through the alley and around the building. The library is right up ahead, so I need you to circle around the library grounds and bushwhack these fuckers from behind. Got it?”
“Yes, sir,” David said. He waved those accompanying them in the truck to the back of the vehicle so they could sneak out before the men approaching noticed that anything was up.
“David, if I don’t survive this, you are in command. You know our orders,” Zach said.
“Understood, sir,” David replied from the back of the truck. He opened the door cautiously so as to not make noise, before leaping out. The other soldiers followed his lead and soon the advance convoy was abandoned except for Zach. He had parked the truck at an angle so that the men advancing on him could not see the alley behind. Out of the corner of his eye, Zach watched them go up the alley before turning left to head for the library grounds.
The men finally reached the truck as the lead one said, “Step out of the vehicle with your hands up!”
Zach obliged, doing so slowly so as to not draw the ire of the assailants. The lead man came forward, covering Zach with his weapon. “Who’s in the truck with you?” he demanded.
“No one,” Zach said, truthfully.
“Bullshit,” the man said, shoving Zach aside with his rifle. He clambered into the truck to see where they were hiding, causing Zach to glower. He would never have let his soldiers into an unsecured vehicle, nor would they have taken their gun off of a suspect.
The man got back out of the truck and said, “Where did everyone go?”
“It was just me this whole time,” Zach said.
“Do you think I’m an idiot?” the man demanded.
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