by Nees, David
“No you can’t. But don’t panic. There’s no way for anyone to connect you to the shooting.” Michael paused for a moment. “You’re sure they’ll find the spot?”
“Can’t miss it. They’ll go right to the roof. Jason set something up there. Snipers don’t shoot standing up and holding their rifles, I don’t know what you call it, free-hand or something.”
“Off-hand, I think it’s called.”
“In the end it doesn’t matter. They’re already convinced it’s Jason. Where he took the shot is not important. What’s important is that he’s sown the chaos he talked about.”
Michael paused for a moment to think.
“Did you do any good over in East End?”
“A little. I’ve got some men, tough guys who worked the bars and games. They’re under the mob’s control even more now and they don’t like it. They could be helpful if we need them.”
“Can we rely on them?”
Luke shook his head. “Not sure you can rely on anyone. Everyone’s going to be hedging their bets now. Not sticking their necks out and trying to play all sides as things get crazy.”
“I wonder how long you can do that? Play all sides.”
“Not too long,” Luke said. “You get caught out and then no one trusts you. Not a good position to find yourself in.”
“Okay. Let me know how to get in touch with these guys. I’ve got the mayor going to work his old connections to see what he can come up with.”
“Why do you need these contacts of mine? They don’t know you. Better to let me work this side of the street.”
“I agree, but I need you to do something for me…for us.”
Luke looked at Michael, one eyebrow raised in suspicion.
“I need to send you to Atlanta with a message. Maybe we can get some help from FEMA down there. They’ve got things pretty well under control, from what I last heard.”
“Me? Go on the road? It’s dangerous out there.”
“You told Suzy you came from Atlanta. Everyone thinks so. So now you get the chance to live the story.”
Luke was shaking his head. “No, no. Don’t need to do that.” He looked up at Michael. “I could get killed.”
Michael sat back and thought about the situation. He couldn’t really order Luke to go, but he had some leverage. Luke needed Michael for his cushy job and cover. Maybe he could set up some security for him and mislead the capos as well, getting cover for himself along the way.
“Here’s what we’ll do. I’ll get in touch with one of the capos. I’ll tell them that I’m sending you back to Atlanta to tell them things are under control here. The mob won’t want FEMA coming around. They’ve stayed away because I tell them things are good here. If they heard about this, they might be worried and send people.”
“That’s nice, but it won’t help me out on the road.”
“It gets better.” Michael smiled. His brain was now humming with schemes and connections. “I’ll get you some help…maybe a vehicle, a Humvee. You recruit a couple of your bouncer friends from the neighborhood to go along as protection. We’ll make sure they’re well-armed and you’ll be sent out with the mob’s blessings.”
Michael now beamed. “What the mob won’t know is that you’ll be giving FEMA my message and getting them to come here.”
“What happens if they do come?”
“Doesn’t change what we’ve said to the mob capos. We’ll just tell them FEMA didn’t believe us. By then things will have changed dramatically here anyway.”
He leaned back and crossed his hands in his lap with a satisfied look on his face.
Chapter 43
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J ason needed to get out of the city. As he drove through the streets, the car began to splutter and misfire. He looked down at the gas gauge. It read empty. Shots must have hit the tank. Now he had a big problem. The car was not going to be his ticket out of town and the militia was coming. They would fan out in the last direction they had seen him go. They’d stop everyone they saw; people will have seen him pass and could easily describe the car he was driving. Not many cars drove on the streets these days. However imprecise, his pursuers would close in on his direction of travel and set up a new perimeter to close him in. The attempts to cordon off the downtown blocks would have been abandoned by now. They’d be in full pursuit.
He passed close to Frank’s store but didn’t stop. He didn’t want to catch Frank and Ramona up in his trouble. He headed to Vincent’s office. Vincent had a car and it would probably be there. Ears would have the keys. But Ears was not going to be easily intimidated. He and Vincent might not even be there, but it was worth a try.
The car gave out three blocks from Vincent’s office. Jason pulled into an alley as the car gasped for the last of the fuel. He grabbed his M4, shouldered his backpack, and started down the street. He was on high alert even though there were only a few people out. Jason watched them as they passed by, looking for any signs of recognition. Nothing. Most looked away, averting their eyes.
When he got to Vincent’s building, he took a breath and stepped inside. At the top of the stairs, he pulled out his 9mm and opened the outer office door.
Ears was behind his desk, reading an old magazine. He looked up. There was confusion in his face. Then he saw Jason’s semi-automatic. His eyes went cold and hard. Jason swung the pistol up to cover Ears.
“Just stay seated. I need the car. Give me the keys and tell me where it is.”
Ears just stared at him.
“Come on, Ears. Give me the car and I’ll be on my way. I don’t want to shoot you.”
“What the fuck are you up to? Did you whack Joe? He just put you in charge of a big deal. What the hell you go and do that for?”
“I don’t have time to explain things to you. And keep your voice down. If Vincent comes running out of that office, someone’s going to get killed. No need for that.”
Ears shook his head. “I ain’t giving you any keys. You’ll have to take them from me.”
His face was set in a hard expression. Jason locked onto his eyes. They were cold.
“Ears, I like you. But you gotta know I have my reasons for what I did. And now I got to leave.”
“Rat fuck. That’s what you are. Double crosser. I take guys like you and get rid of ‘em, slow and painful.”
“Not a rat. Just on a different side.”
“You pretended to be one of us. That makes you a rat.”
“I never was one of you. You forget. Your club’s pretty exclusive. If you aren’t family all you can be is an associate. Second-class member. So, to hell with that bullshit. I’m defending my family and town against whoever threatens it.”
Just then Vincent opened the door.
“What the hell?”
“Don’t move or both of you get killed.”
Jason swung the gun over to Vincent and then back to Ears as the man reached behind his back. Jason fired and hit Ears in the arm.
“Fuck! Son of a bitch!” he shouted.
His gun dropped to the floor.
Jason swung back to Vincent.
“Don’t reach for anything. Next shot will be to your chest.”
“What the hell are you doing here? You the one who shot Joe? Why the fuck do that?”
It seemed to Jason that Vincent hadn’t yet heard about Big Al.
“Just give me the keys to your car and I’ll be on my way.”
“I told you no way you bastard,” Ears said. His voice was filled with pain and anger. “I helped you out. Defended you when some of the boys ragged on you, called you a pansy for not being tougher. I’m gonna kill you.”
“Sorry Ears. We’re on different teams.”
“Ears,” Vincent said. His eyes didn’t waver from Jason. “Give him the keys. We’ll get him later.”
“Boss?”
“The keys. I don’t want you shot again.”
Ears cursed half under his breath and took out the car keys w
ith his good hand and threw them at Jason.
“It’s around back,” Vincent said. “And I’ll see you later.”
“Maybe, maybe not.”
Jason stooped down to pick up the keys, not taking his eyes off Ears. He motioned for him to stand up. Then he picked up Ears’ .45 and slipped it into his belt. He pointed to the inner room.
“I hear you come out before I’ve left, I’ll shoot you through the door.”
He closed the door, then backed out of the office and ran to the stairs. He heard a flurry of sounds coming from the office as he flew down the stairs and ran to the back of the building.
The car was sitting alone in a small parking lot. Jason jumped in and turned the key. The engine turned over. Come on, come on. He glanced at the back door. In a moment the two men would come out guns blazing. Just then the engine caught. Jason pulled the shift lever into drive and stomped on the throttle He was exiting the lot when Vincent and Ears burst through the door. Shots were fired and a rear passenger window shattered as he drove down the alley and back onto the street.
He drove as fast as he could, heading north. He’d go up the west side of Lake Norman. It was less crowded and offered more options if pursuit caught him. Even though his pursuers were not going to be organized, he had no idea how large the group might be. It would include militia vehicles and some heavier weapons. A stand-off fight was not possible.
He rolled his window down in spite of the cold day. He could hear the rumble of diesel engines somewhere behind him but couldn’t tell if they were closing in on him.
When Jason disappeared, Vincent stopped shooting. He turned to Ears and checked out his arm.
“Looks like the bullet went through cleanly. Let’s get something to wrap over the wound.”
“Let’s go after that son of a bitch. I want to kill him.”
“You’ll get your chance.”
After binding Ears’ arm, they went back out on the street. Vincent could hear engines some blocks away. He fired his pistol in the air twice, waited a minute and then did it again. Within a few more minutes, a couple of Humvees came down the street.
The vehicles pulled up; a door opened; and Roper got out.
“Did you see anything?” he shouted.
“Jason. He stole my car and headed north.”
“Which street?”
“I’m going with you. I’ll show you.”
Roper motioned for Vincent to get in.
“You get over to the hospital,” he said to Ears “Get that arm bandaged properly,”.
“I want to go.”
“Don’t be stupid. An infection’ll kill you. If we capture him, I’ll make sure you get a chance to interrogate him.”
Vincent jumped into the Humvee and they roared off in pursuit.
Jason found Route16 which went north and west of the lake. He drove as fast as he could. The road was clear in sections and he floored Vincent’s old sedan, pushing it to eighty or ninety miles an hour. Some sections were more congested and he had to slowly weave his way around abandoned cars and trucks. Here he could go only twenty miles an hour or less. The Humvees won’t fare any better. He began to hope he could outdistance them.
He had no idea how many were in hot pursuit. Certainly, a larger force had been assembled. The assassinations had sewn some discord; maybe it was enough to cripple any serious, large-scale pursuit. If the capos descended into fighting one another for power, they might enmesh the militia and the chaos would spread.
At one point, the route looked completely blocked. Jason stopped. He shut the engine off and got out to survey the jam. The shoulder was steeply sloped and he ran the danger of slipping off it and getting stuck in the ditch. He had no chains or straps to pull the vehicles apart. As he was pondering his situation the breeze brought the faint sounds of engines from behind. They’re coming!
There was no time to speculate. He needed to make a path quickly and get moving. He picked a spot where he could push and wedge open a gap. He gently brought his car up to one of the vehicles. It was a smaller car, so he had chance to move it. He got out and put the stalled car in neutral.
His older car’s bumper nudged up against the rear quarter panel of the newer car. With the angle, his radiator was not involved in the contact. After inspecting the connection, Jason got in, put his car in drive, and pushed down on the accelerator. The older car’s rear wheel started to spin but the other car began to move sideways. Ever so slowly, the gap opened. After a minute of pushing with his engine racing, wheels spinning, the gap was wide enough. Jason backed up and straightened his car out. He drove through with both front doors screeching as they scrapped along the sides of the blocking cars. His outside mirrors tore off. It didn’t matter, he was through.
He realized that what slowed him down only helped his pursuers. It didn’t matter. He had to push on.
Chapter 44
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T he light was beginning to fade. Jason switched on the headlights. There were no lights when in his mirror which was a good sign. As the dark grew Jason knew it would make getting through tight spots even harder which would play into the hands of his pursuers. Still he had no choice. There’s always the woods. If they got too close, he might have to abandon the car and go on foot, but there were mostly fields along the highway, with only smaller patches of woods. He would go as far as he could on the road.
Up ahead, in the dark, Jason thought he saw a flash of light. He’d seen no one on the highway since he got out of town. He slowed slightly and kept looking in the direction of where he had seen the light as he navigated through the stalled vehicles. Then he saw it again. Not my imagination. It couldn’t be bandits. They wouldn’t be so careless. It had to be refugees on the road. Unusual this many years after the attack, but that was the only explanation he could think of.
There was a clear section and Jason floored the abused sedan and roared ahead. Now he saw the light clearly. It flashed on some figures, people trying to get off the road and hide in the ditch.
He pulled up just before the point where he’d seen the figures disappear and stopped the car. He got out with his M4 in his hands. The road was congested here and he would have to move through it slowly. He didn’t want someone shooting at him as he worked his way around the stalled vehicles.
He moved to the edge of the road, keeping a stalled car between him and where he’d last seen the figures.
“Who’s there?” he called out. “I’m not going to hurt you. I’m just passing by, but I don’t want you to shoot at me when I go past. I have no interest in you.”
“Jason?” a man’s voice called out from the ditch.
“Who’s that?”
“It’s me. Ernie. I’m here with my family. We heard you coming and then you got here so fast we were caught off guard and couldn’t get to the woods.”
“My God. Is this all the farther you’ve come?”
“Ruth sprained her ankle. It’s been slow going. You’ve got a car. Can you help?”
“Get up here right away. There are people coming after me.”
The group emerged from the tall brush in the ditch along the road. Jack and Ernie helped Ruth and the others followed.
“Thank God you came along. We’re not making much progress and Ruth could use some time off her feet.”
Jason took Ernie aside as the kids helped Ruth sit down on the pavement.
“The militia is pursuing me. They’ll kill anyone they find with me. You sure you want a ride?”
“What choice do we have? We’re going too slow. Our food and water will run out before we get to safety. We’ll be prey to any bandits out here. The farther away from the city we go, the more dangerous it’ll be. With six of us, it’s hard to move quick.”
“True enough. Just so you know the dangers.”
“I’d rather we go with you. At least for a while.”
Jason looked over at the group.
“Everyone, get in,” he shouted. �
�Ernie, you and Jennifer sit up front and keep your pistol out. The rest of you cram in the back but leave room for Ruth. She should sit sideways and put her leg across your laps.”
The boys, especially Jack and Bobby, looked shocked.
“It may be uncomfortable, but it’s best for Ruth. Don’t complain.”
Everyone piled in the car which settled low on its springs. Jason started off. He could hear the engines behind them, not too far away.
He had to drive without the headlights now. The pursuers wouldn’t hear his engine, they were making too much noise. But if they saw his lights, they’d know they were closing in and increase their pace. It was slower going, which frustrated Jason.
“They’re going to catch us before too long,” he said to Ernie.
“How long?”
“We’ve got an hour, maybe a little longer.”
“What do we do then?”
“Abandon the car and get in some woods. I can hold them off as you move on.”
“We’ll be going so slow. They’ll catch us for sure.”
“Maybe. I can do a lot of damage. It’s what I was trained for. I may even stop them. Make them wait for reinforcements. In any case it’s the only chance you’ve got. Unless you want to bail out now and hide. Let them go past you.”
Ernie thought about this offer.
“We’d still run into them somewhere up ahead as we go north. Remember I’m an escaped prisoner in their eyes, so are the boys.” He shook his head. “We’ll stick with you.”
“Not many good options. They find our tracks, they’ll put dogs on our trail and we’ll be caught for sure. I can hold them off, but if they send a sizeable force, they’ll overwhelm me.”
Jason’s mind went through all possible options as he swerved his way through abandoned cars and trucks. He relished the open spaces where he could accelerate and try to maintain the distance between him and the pursuers.