by Akart, Bobby
“I’m on it,” said the lieutenant. He turned to hustle toward the stairwell. “Oh, hey, Chepe. Where’s the kid?”
“Nobody will know that except me. It’s better that way.”
Chapter Fourteen
Haven Barn
The Haven
The mood was solemn as the bulk of the Haven’s security team gathered at Haven Barn that morning. A skeleton crew, coupled with drone surveillance, monitored the perimeter while the residents buried their dead. Three men and Ethan Hightower were laid to rest in an emotional scene that left everyone in tears.
However, in the apocalypse, life goes on despite the death of a loved one, and everyone quickly pulled together in order to survive. Alpha gathered up his available personnel, and Ryan had the Sheltons, Rankins, and Cortlands join him at Haven Barn to discuss Hannah’s rescue. Blair, who’d already been working with X-Ray on gathering information, was there with the young man who’d suddenly become an important part of saving Hannah, despite his previous poor choices.
The chatter rose to a crescendo as everyone discussed the events of the prior day. Ryan checked with Alpha and Blair to make sure they were ready to get started, and then he moved to quieten the crowd.
“Okay, everybody, listen up.”
The chatter dropped to a low murmur, and eventually the group gathered in the barn to give Ryan their undivided attention.
“Thank you. Okay, first let me thank you all for keeping your chin up throughout this ordeal. We never expected to get attacked like we did yesterday. Well, at least not that soon, anyway. Sadly, I can’t promise you that it’ll be the last time, either.”
“We’ll be ready for the next bunch!” shouted a woman from the rear of the group.
Ryan pointed in her direction. “That’s exactly right. We learned a lot yesterday, albeit the hard way. As a result, we’ll be better prepared for an organized attack on the Haven if and when that might happen. That’s part of the reason I’ve called all of you in this morning. The next twenty-four hours are critical to our safety and the life of a little girl.”
“Are we gonna go get Hannah?” asked a man in the front.
“Yeah! We need to get her and then get even for what happened!” shouted another.
Ryan raised both hands and motioned to tamp down the enthusiasm. “That’s certainly what we have in mind, but we have to be extremely careful. For one thing, we can’t gut our security here. Hannah’s kidnapping could be a ploy to induce us to weaken our defenses. The Haven needs to remain well protected for the benefit of all our people.”
“What about Hannah?” asked the first woman who spoke up.
“We’re going to put that plan into effect today. It will be carefully thought out and executed with precision. For that reason, I’m going to leave the planning and team selection up to Alpha. He will use his military experience and knowledge of you guys to determine who goes on the rescue operation.”
Ryan stepped to the side and allowed Alpha to address the group. “Okay, I need the following people to meet me in the conference room. Bravo. Charlie. Delta.” Alpha reeled off his top people who had military or law enforcement experience. He also selected six extra personnel to act as drivers and backup when the rescue operation was initiated. They all made their way into the conference room. The Cortlands, X-Ray, and Blair followed them.
Ryan took over once again. “Today and this evening, I’ll be asking a lot of you guys. We’re short of manpower because of the losses yesterday, and the fact that we’ve got to spend a considerable amount of time going over our rescue plan. Everybody will be pulling double shifts until we bring Hannah home tomorrow. I know it will be taxing on you physically and emotionally.”
One of the men spoke up. “Don’t you worry about us, Ryan.”
“Yeah, we’ve got this,” encouraged another before adding the sentiment of the entire group, “You make sure that little girl comes home safe and alive.”
Ryan smiled and said thank you to those who’d keep the Haven safe while the others ventured outside the walls. He addressed the Rankins and Sheltons before he entered the conference room.
“Tom, shouldn’t you be in bed resting?” he asked and then he turned to Angela. “Is he supposed to be up and about?”
She replied, “Yes, as to bed rest, and no, as to up and about.”
“He’s not good at following orders,” interjected Donna.
“I was, back in the day,” said Tom with a grin. “Now, not so much. Ryan, what can we do to help?”
Ryan looked at his loyal team and became emotional. “You guys are incredible. Thank you.”
Angela was the first to hug the man who’d conceived of the Haven and carried the burden of protecting all of its residents. “Don’t be stressed. We’re here to help in any way we can.”
Ryan smiled and thanked her. “Well, I’ve gotta spend the day planning this rescue, and then I’ll be pacing the dang floor while it’s going on. Blair won’t let me go.”
“Good,” said Tom. “I saw whom Alpha chose, and he picked a good team. Your job is right here.”
Ryan reluctantly agreed, and then he assigned duties to them. Angela would remain in charge of the hospital, but she’d check on Tom frequently, who was to stay at Haven House. Ryan asked him to constantly monitor the drone surveillance. He still wasn’t positive that the kidnapping wasn’t a form of misdirection.
He asked Tyler to take charge of the drone brigade in Alpha’s absence. The Rankins agreed that their kids were able to resume their duties, and Tyler jumped at the chance to monitor their activities. Donna was asked to be a roving ambassador, of sorts. Her job was to check in with the injured personnel from the firefight, including her husband. Also, she was to stay in contact with the grieving families.
Ryan believed the first twenty-four hours were critical to holding the group together. The last thing he needed while they were shorthanded was unexpected drama. He’d already dealt with the sheriff that morning when he’d showed up with two deputies at the crack of dawn. Front gate security personnel hailed Ryan on the radio, and he sped down the gravel driveway to address the sheriff. When the sheriff said he’d been alerted to gunfire at the compound, Ryan deftly explained it away as target practice. The sheriff was skeptical, but legally, he had no basis for entering their private property without a warrant, which were in short supply, as no judges were reporting to their courtrooms.
After everyone finalized their new assignments, Ryan made his way into the conference room, where Alpha was laying out the basic approach he wanted to take to rescue Hannah. After he finished his initial remarks, Ryan added a few thoughts and told the group about their timetable.
Ryan was careful to choose his words wisely so he didn’t unduly frighten Meredith and Cort. They were putting on a good front, but he knew they were torn up inside.
“Like Cort and Meredith, I’m very anxious to bring Hannah home to the Haven. Planning and execution are more important than rushing headlong into a firestorm, one that would most likely get people hurt.”
Alpha took the floor. “If we were organizing this rescue through law enforcement or the military, we’d take days or even weeks to get ready. We’d create a mock-up of the building where Hannah is being kept. The teams would make multiple dry runs and then discuss tactics, strategies, and potential pitfalls.”
“We’re not going in there blind, are we?” asked Bravo. The seasoned military veteran was more than capable of taking down half of the anarchists by himself. “Not that I’d mind. Charlie and I’ll kill every last one of ’em!”
He and Charlie exchanged fist bumps. “Oorah!”
Alpha continued. “Under normal conditions, both LEOs and the military personnel would have eyes in the sky, intel, and lots of fun hardware to give them an advantage. We have some things that will help us.”
“Like what?” asked one of the backup security personnel.
“For one thing, we’re smarter than they are, and we’ve got combat and law enforcement experi
ence. The jerks we’re up against, based upon what we’ve learned, are nothing more than a bunch of thugs who like to destroy other people’s property. They’re anarchists who rely upon fear and intimidation to succeed.”
“We don’t scare easy!” exclaimed Charlie.
Bravo quickly corrected her. “Hell, we don’t scare at all!” The two high-fived and adjusted their tactical vests as if they were getting ready to attack at that moment.
“You’re right,” added Alpha. “We don’t scare at all, and powered with the information X-Ray has for us, we’re not going in blind either. Tell ’em, kid.”
Chapter Fifteen
Haven Barn
The Haven
X-Ray sheepishly took the floor. He was timid anyway, and in many respects unsure of himself. After betraying the group and giving information on Cort’s whereabouts, he had a huge sense of guilt plaguing him, making it very difficult to face the people whose trust he’d broken.
He began by reminding them what his initial value was to the Haven—access. He had the ability to look inside the government’s computers. While Blair prided herself on the ability to conduct background research using private investigative tools, by virtue of his role within the Minutemen network of hackers, X-Ray had been given the keys to the kingdom.
“I was able to access the servers at the NSA and FBI, which enabled me to further research records for Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. Can I summarize my findings?” he asked, turning toward Ryan.
“Yes, please. Regarding our approach to the building, however, we’ll need to spend more time on the details of the property and its surroundings.”
X-Ray nodded and continued. “Using the NSA satellite video archives, I was able to trace the attackers by their vehicles. I saw when they came in, and I followed them back to Charlotte after they left.”
“Did you see Hannah?” asked Meredith.
“No, ma’am. Because of the tree cover, most of the grounds around the Haven are obscured. I was only able to pick up the vehicles coming and going.”
Meredith turned to Cort and he hugged her. “Thanks anyway,” said Cort.
X-Ray moved to his laptop and powered on one of the television monitors mounted on the wall behind him. He used the television remote to find an open input, and then he returned to his laptop.
“Right now, using Bluetooth technology, I’m pairing the laptop with the monitor so you can have a look at what I found. Just give me a moment for the devices to hook up.”
The group positioned themselves to have an unobstructed view around the monitor. Within seconds, the screen came to life and an aerial view of the Varnadore Building appeared.
“This is an abandoned office building that has been vacant for many years, according to property records. It’s owned by a 501(c) charitable trust that was established by the Schwartz family in the eighties. It has changed hands a couple of times, but all within their vast network of charities or real estate entities.”
“Why would they take her there?” asked one of the drivers.
X-Ray banged away on the keyboard and produced a mugshot that filled the screen. “Because of this guy. His name is Joseph Jose Acuff, also known as Chepe. When Frankie died just after midnight, the last word he uttered was Chepe. I spoke with Delta about this.”
“That’s right,” said Delta as he raised his voice to get everyone’s attention. “This guy was known for his anarchist activities in DC and Philly back when I was on the SWAT team. Frankie had arrested him on behalf of the feds. I didn’t know they’d kept in touch.”
X-Ray walked closer to the monitor. “Chepe is connected to the Schwartz family, the owners of the Varnadore Building. He’s heavily involved with the Black Rose Federation, aka Rosa Negra.”
“I saw their logos in DC and Richmond,” interrupted Hayden. “There has to be a connection.”
Ryan provided some more background. “Based upon my conversations with all of you, we believe that Chepe, using resources and direction from Jonathan Schwartz and his father, has been organizing unrest along the East Coast since the New Year’s Eve attacks.”
“Are they the ones responsible for what started all of this?” asked one of the drivers.
“I knew it! Schwartz is a liberal scumbag. Of course this is all his fault!” proclaimed another.
Ryan’s eyes darted from Blair to Cort and then back to the group. “We don’t have all the facts on what happened on New Year’s Eve, and for now, we’re focused on getting Hannah back.” He paused and then gestured for X-Ray to continue.
The young man returned to the screen that displayed a satellite view of the building. “We are very fortunate to have this static perspective of the Varnadore. Ordinarily, the NSA satellites move in a synchronous orbit around the planet. However, it appears that due to the attacks, the ECHELON surveillance satellites have been placed into a stationary orbit.”
“Echelon?” asked Bravo.
“Yeah, it’s old technology, dating back to the cold war days of the sixties and seventies, but is still widely utilized by the NSA. For our purposes, it enables me to continuously monitor the Varnadore Building and its surroundings, but unfortunately, I don’t have the control capabilities like zoom and infrared that are available to the operators within the NSA.”
Bravo asked another question. “You were able to follow the vehicles back to the nest, right?”
“Yes, in the archived videos. That won’t help us with the rescue. We’re gonna need real-time footage so I can guide the teams in.”
“What do you have in mind?” asked Blair.
X-Ray fidgeted and glanced over at Alpha. “We’re gonna deploy our two infrared drones to help. Two of our drivers are also experienced drone operators. After the teams are dropped off to mount the rescue, they will operate the drones with my guidance.”
“Wait, won’t this guy Chepe and his people hear them? I mean, as quiet as it is, and with a lack of traffic, they’ll be noticed as soon as they get close.”
Alpha addressed Blair’s concerns. “We’re gonna create a loud diversion—one that leads their attention away from the point of insertion and also generates noise to mask the sound of the drones.”
“The two teams will only need a few minutes to get past their perimeter defenses,” added X-Ray. “The diversion will give them time, and the drone cameras will give them a set of eyes.”
“Plus, we have our own night vision to assist,” added Alpha.
He moved to a table behind him and picked up two black-zippered pouches. He opened one of them and pulled out a square device that resembled a small camera. He continued. “This is a night-vision monocular. It doesn’t have the capability of those used by the military and private contractors, but for the money, it’ll do for our purposes. It has six-times magnification, digital zoom, and is also capable of recording onto a micro SD card. Each team will have one of these that, coupled with X-Ray feeding us information from the drone, will allow us the ability to see in the dark.”
X-Ray paused as Alpha finished discussing the benefits of night vision and also the two-way communications system the teams would use to keep in contact with X-Ray. Once he was finished, he turned his attention to the more difficult aspect of the operation. He returned to his laptop and, with a few keystrokes, pulled up a set of blue-lined drawings from the early sixties. They were the original schematics of the Varnadore Building when it was permitted for construction.
He explained as he flipped through the pages of the drawings using a program called Scribd. It was a digital library subscribed to by the NSA and embedded within their secured website.
“Although it won’t be easy getting the two rescue teams inside the building, the real challenge begins with finding the needle in the proverbial haystack,” began X-Ray. He caught himself as he made eye contact with Meredith. “Um, I’m sorry, ma’am. I meant no disrespect.”
Meredith gave him a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, X-Ray. Thank you for doing this. Please go on.”
>
He nodded and continued. “Anyway, the building has been empty for over ten years, and during that time, vagrants and now Rosa Negra has occupied the space. I sat down with Echo just before our getting together this morning. He did business with the Varnadore company many years ago when they wanted to buy a part of his farm for a subdivision development. I learned a lot from him regarding the layout of the building. We’ll plan the rescue operation based upon his recollection of the floor plan, and our expectations of how that might have changed over time.”
One of the drivers raised his hand. “I noticed that you’ve referenced just two teams. Is that gonna be enough? I mean, we have lots of people capable of stormin’ the place.”
Ryan took the question. “Hannah’s life would be in danger if we took the building head-on. We’ve got to be stealthy in our approach, but once inside, based on Alpha’s plan, we’ll use what these people fear the most—anarchist tactics.”
Chapter Sixteen
Haven Barn
The Haven
“Anarchists utilize tactics that instill intimidation and fear in those they oppose,” explained Ryan. “They dress in all black and often cover their faces to obscure their identity because, after all, they’re breaking the law when they engage in protests accompanied by property destruction.”
Alpha picked up on Ryan’s thought. “We plan on blending in with them, relying on the fact that this hastily assembled group in Charlotte may not be entirely familiar with one another. All we need is the slightest hesitation, a brief moment during which our enemy tries to process who we are, in order to have the upper hand.”
Charlie added to his statement. “I take it we’re going in weapons hot, but we’ll try to use alternative methods to take them out first.”
“Initially, during our approach to the building, we’ll use X-Ray’s overhead sets of eyes to identify targets for us. We’ll eliminate them using blades until we’re inside the Varnadore. Then I’ll take Foxy up the service elevator shaft to start a top-down sweep of the building. I expect the stairwell to be well guarded. Based upon the drawings he found, and Echo’s input, the former executive offices on the top floor are the most likely location of Chepe and Hannah.”
