“Well, it’s like my campaign manager said, you can’t attack a man’s wife like that,” Liam said.
“Before we go, I would like to ask each of you to give one final speech as to why each of you should be elected President,” Henry said. “We’ll start with Mr. Green, then Mr. Sanchez, then Mr. Hensen, then Ms. Hall.”
“Even in these troubled times, we cannot overreact to these events and go reaching for either extreme. We must stay the course and things will get better,” Tom started. “Under my Presidency, we will take the middle road between two extremes, and calmly move forward on the current path. Sometimes, things get worse before they start getting better. We need to stay the course and carry on, which will help America recover from these troubles.”
“Bold action needs to be taken to cure what ills the country,” Javier said. “We cannot sit idly by and wait for things to magically get better. We need to take care of ourselves and take care of each other and the only way we do that is with a stronger federal system. I would take this bold action to use the resources our government has to help each and every American find their way in the world.”
Liam paused for a moment, trying to pick his words carefully. “For too long, Americans have been divided and we have refused to work together to help better ourselves and the country. Under my administration, that would change. Our administration would lead to a more inclusive America, where we would rely on each other and not ourselves. Our nation would be stronger for it if everyone was taken care of, if everyone had a job, and if everyone worked together for each other.”
“This nation grew strong on the strength of the individual, not because of the oversized, out of control, centralized government,” Felicia said. “We need to roll back the size and scope of the federal government and limit the powers that the bureaucracy. Once this occurs, then Americans will be able to use all of our economic prowess, one that is unhindered by the Federal government. With this accomplished, the economy will recover, our streets will become safe again, and the world will be better again.”
“Thank you all for tuning in tonight,” Henry said. “In three weeks time, the country will go to the polls to choose one of these four to become the next President of the United States. I hope that you all have learned much this evening and will take that knowledge to the polls.”
Liam walked off of the state after shaking hands with the other three candidates again. He went to the room where his campaign team would be waiting for him. “How did I do?” he asked as he entered the room.
“You did fine,” Abby said. “I don’t know how it’ll change peoples’ perceptions though.”
“I’m not either,” Ryan said. “But I’m glad it’s over. We’ve got twenty days. We need to get to work.”
“Where are we going then?” Liam asked.
“The Eastern Seaboard,” Ryan said. “We’re going to hit up every state touching the Atlantic Ocean…and New Hampshire.”
Chapter Forty-Two
Exposed
A deep freeze spread over the Midwest as October began to draw closer to its end. Rebecca woke one morning to find her balcony window covered in frost patterns. The room was colder than she cared for as well and resolved to ask Ed about getting a space heater to help with this issue. She was still used to the hot temperatures that she had experienced over the Summer and the cold was beginning to annoy her.
The cold was not the only thing beginning to vex her. Rebecca was still having a hard time spending quality time with Spencer because of the increase in Continental activity. She had not seen him in two weeks, not since he had told her that the main leadership of the Continental Army was relocating from New York to Kansas City. Spencer had been busy managing that and he could barely even text Rebecca, let alone spend time with her.
Rebecca was also getting annoyed with Georgia as well. It was not that she was annoying her directly, but that her absence was causing Rebecca stress in other ways. Georgia had not come home in a couple of weeks, with Spencer explaining it away vaguely. It sounded like Georgia was in hiding at the moment to Rebecca, but she could not get a straight answer out of Spencer on the subject.
The problem was that Ed and Kathleen were beginning to grill Rebecca on the matter. No matter how Rebecca explained it, they still did not seem to understand that she did not know where Georgia was. She had told them that she was involved with the Continental Army, but had not been able to tell them anything beyond that. She simply did not know and did not care to know. In Rebecca’s view, Georgia had her own problems to deal with and she did not want to get involved with it.
On that cold October morning, Rebecca heard a knock on her bedroom door and said, “It’s open.”
The door opened and Ed walked in. “It’s cold in here,” he said, rubbing his arms.
“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that,” Rebecca said. “Can I get a space heater up here?”
“Yeah, that shouldn’t be a problem,” Ed replied. “Rebecca, there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“What is it?” Rebecca asked.
“It’s about Georgia,” Ed replied. “Look, I did not want to get the authorities involved because we are a foster family and losing one of our charges creates a lot of issues for us. So, before I report her missing today, is there anything that you can tell us about her?”
Rebecca sighed. “I really don’t know anything, other than that she was working for the Continentals as a spy. She was trying to infiltrate the Black Hand.”
“So, you’re saying she might be missing doing that?” Ed asked.
“I guess so,” Rebecca replied. “But I swear I don’t know anything beyond that.”
“That’s good, Bec,” Ed replied. “We can just say that she may have been abducted by the Black Hand.”
“What would that accomplish?” Rebecca asked.
“It would not threaten our ability to keep or take on more children,” Ed explained. “I know it seems heartless, but I worry about all of you and I’d hate for any of you to have to go back to the system, or into it in the first place in your case. I was scared that we would lose you all because of Georgia.”
“You shouldn’t worry about that,” Rebecca said.
“I know, but I do. When you’re a parent, you’ll understand,” Ed told her. “Anyway, I’m going to contact the authorities now. Why don’t you go ahead and start working on that chemistry homework I assigned you.”
“What?” Rebecca asked.
“Did you not get that assignment?” Ed asked, frowning. “Let me see your tablet.”
Rebecca handed it over to him and he looked around for the assignment. “Ah, here it is,” Ed said. “It’s in a separate folder from your algebra homework. You’ll probably need some algebra to get through the chemistry problems I have laid out for you.”
“Great,” Rebecca said, sighing.
“Is there anything bothering you?” Ed asked.
“Yeah,” Rebecca said. “I’m worried about Georgia and I haven’t been able to see Spencer in weeks because he’s been so busy.”
Ed rubbed her shoulder and said, “I know that having a boyfriend is really important to you right now, but you have a lot on your plate right now. You just need to be strong for yourself during this phase and it will work out.”
“You sound like my therapist,” Rebecca admitted.
“Sometimes my advice could be good enough for therapy,” Ed said, smiling. “Others, however…”
“That macaroni recipe was awful,” Rebecca said, laughing.
“And I’ve apologized for that,” he said, getting up. “Well, I’ve got to call the police. Go ahead and work on that homework and I’ll get a space heater up here for you when I can.”
Later that night, Rebecca was lying in her bed, reading a book as she liked to do. Though her homework had taken a fair amount of time, she managed to get it done and graded successfully and contented herself with reading to take her mind off of other things. As the sun went
down and night fell on the house, Rebecca didn’t move to turn on the light, instead letting the light slowly fade away until she couldn’t read any more.
Her phone suddenly buzzed and she picked it up to see Spencer had sent her a text message. It read, “Meet me out back. It’s about Georgia.”
Rebecca was confused by the message for a moment, as she had never known Spencer to do something like this. She got up nonetheless and headed downstairs towards the back door.
Upon opening the door, she found that Spencer was indeed there. He grabbed her close and said, “I’m sorry I haven’t been around much lately. I really do want to make time for you, but it’s hard.”
“I understand,” Rebecca said truthfully. “But why are you here now? What’s with Georgia?”
“I couldn’t tell you over the phone or text because the Fed records those kinds of things and I couldn’t risk the Black Hand getting their hands on it somehow. A few weeks ago, the Black Hand issued a nationwide crackdown on spies in their ranks. Most of the spies were Continentals and a lot of them got swept up in the raid. They’re either all killed or missing.”
“So, Georgia’s dead?” Rebecca asked.
“I knew that she wasn’t,” Spencer said. “I just didn’t have a location on her. She disappeared right before the purge started. She’s been in hiding ever since and she only just now made contact with me.”
“Where is she?” Rebecca asked.
“Hiding in a shack in the damage zone,” Spencer said.
“So why haven’t you picked her up?”
“The place is crawling with Black Hand informants,” Spencer explained. “You remember how we found them in there? They’re still all over that place.”
“So she’s stuck there?” Rebecca asked.
“That’s why I’m here actually. I need a distraction to get her out of there. If they see me anywhere near there, then the Black Hand will follow me wherever I go. But if I draw them away from the area using some of our fighters, you could go in and pick up Georgia and bring her here to safety. The Black Hand doesn’t have a reason to suspect you as far as I’m aware.” Spencer explained.
Rebecca did not respond immediately. After a moment, she said, “I suppose there is no escaping this shit is there?”
“There is,” Spencer explained. “This is only a one-time gig. I won’t ask to do anything for the Continentals again.”
“Are you sure?” Rebecca asked.
“Yes,” Spencer said firmly. “This a very special situation.”
Rebecca nodded. “Fine, I’ll go pick her up.”
“This is her location,” Spencer said, showing the address to her. “You can follow me out to the river, but then you need to let me get away so I can draw the Black Hand away.”
“What about your fighters?” Rebecca asked.
“They’re already up by the river,” Spencer said. “They’re waiting for us, or for me, depending on how your answer went.”
“Let’s go then,” Rebecca said. “Ed and Kathleen have been up my ass about Georgia missing and I want this over with.”
“Well, that is as good as reason as any,” Spencer said, as he headed for his car.
A short while later, Rebecca found herself on the edge of the tornado damage zone. It had been nearly half a year since the disaster, but the city had recovered little. The President had declared the damage zone eligible for federal disaster funds, but due to the Black Hand and gross mismanagement, nothing substantial had been fixed.
Spencer had gone ahead into the damage zone, along with a dozen other Continental fighters spread out in three other cars. The Black Hand was still using the damage zone as a base to conduct secret meetings and hide from the authorities. However, under the light of the full moon among the flattened neighborhoods, there was no hiding from Spencer.
Spencer found his first pack of Black Hand gathering just north of the river, about a mile away from where he knew Georgia was hiding. He drew up closer to the them to see if they were really the Black Hand and was able to confirm it when he recognized the telltale arm band. He fired shots in the air to grab their attention and shouted, “Death to the Black Hand!”
The Black Hand did not react at first, seemingly perplexed by Spencer’s outburst. Spencer, not one to give up an opportunity like this, fired directly on the Black Hand soldiers. He made contact with a couple of them and drove off.
The gang members reacted belatedly, perhaps caught completely off guard by the drive by shooting. They ran off into the night towards the vehicle and got on their phones to get ahold of other Black Hand soldiers in the area. There were not that many in the area tonight, due to the excellent visibility provided by the moon, but there were still enough to cause Spencer headaches as he drove deeper and deeper into the damage zone, away from where Georgia was hiding.
Rebecca heard the distant pops of the gunfire and waited a few minutes for the noise to die down. She turned on her car and drove across the river slowly, looking around for any sign of other Black Hand soldiers. There were none and Rebecca picked up the pace towards the address that Spencer had given her.
After some time had passed, Rebecca came across the makeshift shack that Georgia was allegedly staying in. She got out and went to the door, looking around for any sign of movement. There were a few people, but they appeared to be moving away from her. Rebecca knocked on the door and said, “Georgia? Are you there?”
The door flew open and it was indeed Georgia. She looked a bit worse for the wear after having been in hiding for the last several weeks. “What took so long?” she demanded.
“Spencer had to draw away the Black Hand,” Rebecca explained as Georgia exited the shack. Rebecca noticed that she had a handgun with her and Georgia drew it, pointing it in the distance at the people that Rebecca had noted.
“Good,” Georgia said. “I’ve already had enough fighting over the last three weeks just to get to this point.”
They both got into the car and drove south away from the damage zone. The gunfire was beginning to pick up in the distance and Rebecca wanted to get out as quickly as possible. As they approached the river, they saw another car approach them. The car suddenly swerved in front of them, forcing Rebecca to stop.
“Shit!” Georgia said, pulling out her gun.
“What are you doing?” Rebecca demanded. “You can’t shoot them!”
“I’m going to if they try to shoot us first,” Georgia said.
Two people got out of the car and approached the vehicle. Rebecca recognized one of them from the riot as the Black Hand agitator that she had had a staring contest with when she had tried to warn the crowd that the Black Hand was there. “SHOOT!” Rebecca shouted.
Georgia leaned out the window and opened fire on them. She made contact with one of them in the leg and the other one ran behind the car to hide from the bullets. Rebecca backed the car up to be able to get around the Black Hand car and sped off to the south.
Rebecca pulled out her phone once she was clear of the damage zone and called Spencer. “We’re out of the damage zone,” she said. “Where are you?”
“I’m busy at the moment. I’ll get back to you in a bit,” Spencer said, harried.
Rebecca pulled the phone away from her ear and looked at it strangely. “What is that look for?” Georgia asked.
“He didn’t sound right,” Rebecca said.
“Didn’t you hear that gunfire?” Georgia said. “He might be a bit occupied. “
Rebecca felt fear explode in her. “He’s in a firefight?” she asked hoarsely.
“How did you think he would draw off the Black Hand?” Georgia asked incredulously.
“I thought he would use some of his fighters, I didn’t think he would be doing it himself!” Rebecca cried out.
“This is how he works now,” Georgia said. “Ever since the Continentals have grown since last month, he’s been a bit more hands on. He wasn’t too busy to see you because he was trying to organize them, he was too busy beca
use he’s been getting into shootouts with the Black Hand all over the city.”
“Why didn’t he tell me?” Rebecca whispered.
“Well, clearly to avoid a reaction like this,” Georgia said. “He’s the son of a Marine, Rebecca. He knows what he’s doing.”
Rebecca looked unsure as she said, “I hope you’re right.”
Spencer was handling himself well, but it was a bit more chaotic than he would have liked. The Black Hand had followed him when he fired on them, but they had also called in reinforcements. The damage zone was beginning to fill up with Black Hand insurgents and Spencer knew that he had to get out of the area quickly before he became overwhelmed.
“There’s an area I know these pricks won’t be,” one of his fellow Continentals named Kelsey said. “Weren’t we drawing them away from somewhere?”
“Yeah, that was the point of this whole charade,” Spencer said with gritted teeth. “Are you saying we should try to exit that way?”
“Georgia’s out of the way so it’s not like we’re going to draw them to her. We’ll have a clear path,” Kelsey said.
“Fine,” Spencer said, swerving his car to the south. “You better keep constant fire on the bastards though!”
Spencer drove toward the south, trying to put some distance between himself and the swarming Black Hand interlopers. They drew near the shack that Georgia had been staying in and a quick glance let Spencer know that it had been abandoned. He carried on towards the bridge that would take him south of the river and into Johnson County.
As he approached the bridge, he saw a car in front of the bridge with two men sitting on the car. One of them was clearly injured and the car had been impacted by numerous bullets. Spencer surmised that Georgia would have shot at them on the way out of the area and that the two men would have been a part of the Black Hand.
“Do we have anyone tailing us?” Spencer said.
“No, we’ve lost them for now. Do you want to ask them a couple of questions?” Kelsey asked.
“Yes, but let’s be quick about it,” Spencer said.
Autumn (Four Seasons Book 1) Page 39