Resistance Rising

by Matthew Savage

  A loud whistle went off. The pair of double doors leading into the factory opened. Groups of people came out. They walked so slow out the doors. USSB guards flanked them on both sides. They had their weapons on the workers who moved to the far side of the factory. Nolan watched trying to determine who they were. His stomach sank.

  “I see, children. A large group of them.” Nolan said.

  He felt sick as another large group walked past the people leaving. They were going into the factory. Nolan spotted more children. These ones were older maybe teenage years.

  “I think,” Nolan started, “I think we found the town’s people.”

  Chapter 15

  The Note

  Sarah’s standing orders were that she and Steven would stand guard until being relieved in the morning. The sun shined through the front window, Steven had recently woken up and was getting ready in the bathroom. Sarah couldn’t help but smile when he was around. It was as if something was alive inside her stomach and the thing there couldn’t stand still. Sarah had to try and control her feelings. She had a big day today. She needed to keep her head on straight. Sarah was in the kitchen looking out the back window when she heard a knock at the front door. Sarah looked through the peephole and saw Mary standing there. Sarah opened the door.

  “Morning Sarah,” Mary said as she entered the home.

  “Good morning,” Sarah replied.

  “How did things go last night?”

  Sarah suppressed a smile. The thing in her stomach did a backflip. Sarah was happy that Mary couldn’t see how she was feeling.

  “It went fine, Sergeant. Nothing to report.”

  Steven came down the stairs he was in his normal clothes. Sarah couldn’t help but notice how good he was looking. Did he always look that good or was this an effect of the sex? She couldn’t be sure. She averted her eyes from him. She didn’t want Mary to think something was up.

  “That is what I like to hear,” Mary said. This brought Sarah back to reality. “Orson made contact with command last night. He sent them our report. We had to leave out our contacts name. We sent the demands though. As far as I know, we are waiting to hear back.”

  “Did we send the code for the type of contact we have?” Steven asked.

  “We have a code for that?” Sarah asked. This was something had had never been brought up before.

  “Of course we do. We call them our first stringers.” Mary informed. “This is a signal that they are high on the ranking scale. We try not to use names so groups have call signs. As you know our call sign is Foxhound. So we use that and that we have a first string contact.” Sarah nodded her head in understanding. “This is something I wanted us to go through more,” Mary continued. “I think it is important we all can do this stuff in the event we ever lose Orson and need to make contact with D.I. Command.”

  Sarah didn’t want to think about any of her team members ever being killed. She understood Mary’s concern. It was something that needed to be planned out but Sarah didn’t want to be the one to plan it. To her, it felt like she would be jinxing them if she did.

  Mary told Sarah and Steven they were allowed to head back to the main house. Mary told them that the night was low key. They didn’t have any issues but Captain Underwood had concerns about staying.

  “It is just that we all found it strange too how Mr. Schweppes reacted to the gun. If he is working against us and this whole complex is his then we aren’t safe here. We talked over ideas where we should go. Will is toying with the idea of using Ms. Hill’s safe house and we return to be picked up for the meeting. This gives the impression we are here. We could have several people stay at the hotel to keep a lookout.”

  “That isn’t a bad idea,” Sarah said.

  The group left the house out of the back door and walked along the fence. They walked towards the main house. Mary continued to explain different ideas. They entered the main house through the back. Ms. Hill and Captain Underwood were sitting at the kitchen table.

  “We set up the meeting. It should be around noon. Steven can join but he isn’t sitting in on the meeting,” Captain Underwood started. He seemed tired. He had bags under his eyes and Sarah had the feeling that he hadn’t had much sleep. Captain Underwood continued. “Mr. Reese will be meeting with you three.” He pointed at Ms. Hill, Mary, and Sarah.

  Sarah noticed immediately that it was only the women. Was that coincidence? Judging by how he seemed towards Sarah she didn’t think so. They went over the plan. Orson received word early in the morning that they were allowed to have contracts but the position of, power-over-his troops, was denied. This was what Mr. Reese wanted most.

  “If you all can find something else he might want then, that might be enough to get him to join,” Captain Underwood explained.

  “There should be something,” Ms. Hill said. Sarah felt she was thinking out loud, rather than talking to any one person.

  “A man like him, with such power already can only want one thing,” Sarah started. “More power.”

  The group nodded their heads. Ms. Hill instructed that she will do most of the talking. Sarah didn’t need to be told this. Ms. Hill was the ranking member at this meeting. Mary and Sarah were going to follow her lead. Orson came into the room.

  “I received information from Command.” He explained.

  “I was just telling them about it,” Captain Underwood said.

  “I received more information. Command wants these negotiations to come to an end as soon as possible.”

  “Why?” Ms. Hill asked.

  “The Communications Department has intercepted messages being sent to US intelligence,” Orson explained.

  “As in the CIA?’ Ms. Hill asked.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Orson said. The message said that there was a possibility of D.I activity in Canada.”

  “Did they say where in Canada?” Captain Underwood asked.

  There was a real concern in Captain Underwood’s voice. Sarah suspected he was trying to work out if the CIA knew where they were.

  Orson continued. “It didn’t say, however this message was intercepted in this area. Command believe’s that CIA agents could be in Canada.”

  “What would they be doing here?” Mary asked.

  “It could be anything. They could be investigating something else and got warned of our activity.” Captain Underwood explained.

  He paced the room thinking. The meeting with Mr. Reese was in two hours. This didn’t give them much time to do anything. If they were going to leave and head to the safe house they could miss the meeting. At the same time, if the CIA was closing in on them then they were in great danger.

  “We have to make this meeting,” Captain Underwood finally said. “This means only one thing. We need to keep this area secure,” Captain Underwood looked out the front window. “Ms. Hill you still have agents in our motel rooms?”

  “I do. Agent Mason is keeping watch.”

  “Good. Sarah and Steven, I need you two to do a sweep of the perimeter.” Captain Underwood ordered and Sarah and Steven nodded their acknowledgment. “Mary take Sergeant Miller through the houses. Make sure they are clear.” Mary nodded and walked to Sergeant Miller who was sitting on the bottom stair.

  “Come on Scott, lets work on your building searching,” Mary said in a joking manor.

  Captain Underwood looked at Orson. “I need you to get on the waves. See if you hear anything that points to them coming for us.”

  Orson left the house quickly, and headed to the makeshift communication station located in the motel room. The group separated to go do their assigned tasks. Sarah knew they should prep for the meeting but the CIA having a suspicion about their activity was the greater threat at the moment.

  Sarah and Steven left the house through the back door. They started making their way around the complex. Sarah was on high alert. She wasn’t looking for anything specific but she kept expecting to see CIA agents coming over the tall fence.

  “How do you think t
hey found out about us?” Sarah asked Steven as they walked.

  “It could have been anything. Someone from the restaurant could have tipped them off, no one else knew who we were.”

  “You don’t think it was Jonah?” Sarah asked. This had been where her mind went immediately.

  “It crossed my mind. However, he could have given the CIA our location at any time. It would be so easy, he already knows we have been here. If it was him, then the CIA would be here because they are not, then it makes me think it is someone else.”

  They continued their perimeter sweep before heading back to the main house. When they arrived back at the house Ms. Hill was waiting for Sarah in the front room.

  “Private Hunter, come here please.” Ms. Hill called. Sarah had entered the front room and Ms. Hill signaled for her to take a seat. Steven stood at the door to the room. Sarah wondered if he wanted to hear what was being said or if this was part of his protection. “Sergeant Nelson can you give us a minute,” Ms. Hill’s voice was even but Sarah knew this was a roundabout order. Steven gave Sarah a look. She wasn’t sure if it was a ‘be careful’ kind of look or a grudgingly look. This was the second time Ms. Hill wanted to speak to Sarah alone. Last time they were alone Ms. Hill tried to get Sarah to help her keep Will, calm during the meeting. She had failed. She wondered if she was going to be chewed out for that.

  “We need to talk about our plan when we go into this meeting. We have to find something he wants more than a high position in our government.” Ms. Hill started. “If you think of something write a note and pass it to me.”

  Ms. Hill gave Sarah some paper and a pen. Sarah was surprised by this but it made sense. If Ms. Hill was going to be doing most of the talking she might miss something.

  “What do you want to do about the CIA threat while we are there?” Sarah asked.

  “We will have Sergeant Miller and Sergeant Nelson keep an eye out. Captain Underwood will be circling the area in my car making sure there isn’t anything suspicious. If there is, he makes a call, and we leave.” Ms. Hill smiled “I am afraid this is what we deal with being the rebelling government trying to find allies. Our meetings are dangerous. I remember working for the government thinking that meetings were the most boring thing. They were time-consuming and generally led to nothing. We could do it anywhere. Now everything is planned we are watching over our backs the entire time.”

  She paused and looked out the window. Sarah thought she might have been thinking about ‘the good ol’ days’. Sarah had only ever been on missions where there was a great danger. She couldn’t even imagine going on a mission where she wasn’t afraid for her life.

  Mary came into the room and the three of them talked about the plan for the meeting. Mr. Schweppes said they would be meeting at the headquarters of the Domino Defense Corporation. They talked until the car picking them up arrived. The three women followed by Steven and Sergeant Miller all left the house and got into the SUV. They had a different driver than before. This made Sarah uncomfortable. If the drive last time gave up information than this one could do the same. It was one more person who knew where they were staying. Mary made small conversation with the driver. This one was more talkative. He told them how long he had worked for Domino Defense. Sarah knew what Mary was trying to do. She was trying to get information. It turned out that he was private security and he was hired by Mr. Schweppes. The Driver who was very young and had a kind looking face, told them that Jonah Schweppes was born in the United States but got deported because he had dual citizenship in Canada. Sarah wondered how he would react if he knew his company was thinking about joining the Democratic Insurgence.

  The car came to a stop in front of a large skyscraper. The building was very modern looking. Sarah thought that it almost seemed futuristic. The driver opened the door to the car for them and led them to the entrance of the building.

  “You’ll have to turn in any weapons to security.” The driver told them.

  The group nodded their head. As they walked into the building they were greeted by guards and metal detectors. They went through one at a time turning in any weapons. Steven and Sergeant Miller turned in their firearms. They had a hunch this was going to happen. If they couldn’t have guns at a dinner they certainly wouldn’t be able to carry while walking through the headquarters. Looking around Sarah wondered how many people worked for this company and how many were capable of being in combat.

  After they went through security the group was led down a small hallway. A door opened behind them. Mr. Schweppes exited the room. He smiled when he saw the group.

  “It is good to see you all.” Mr. Schweppes said in an overly happy voice.

  He couldn’t be happy to see us. Sarah thought to herself. The last time he saw them they had put a gun in his face. Was he more relaxed because he knew they weren’t allowed to carry guns? Their guide seemed irritated with Mr. Schweppes but didn’t argue with the conversation.

  “I know our last meeting wasn’t too pleasant but I wanted to tell you all no hard feelings. I can’t make the meeting today. I hope I catch you all on the way out.”

  Just like that Mr. Schweppes left the hallway. Sarah was confused. Sarah looked at Mary for clarification but Mary’s face showed she was just as confused as Sarah. Ms. Hill cleared her throat to the get group moving. They came to the end of the long hallway and their guide opened the door to a large conference room. There was a large dark wooden table in the center with elegant chairs all around. Their guide told them that Mr. Reese would be with them in a moment. Ms. Hill took a seat at one end of the table. She instructed Mary and Sarah to sit on each side of her. Steven and Sergeant Miller both stood on either side of the door. The group did not speak. This part of the mission was clear. There was a possibility that the rooms had been bugged and if they were, they didn’t want anyone listening in.

  The door opened and Mr. Reese entered the room. It seemed to Sarah he liked to make an entrance. He came into the room like someone who walked on stage. He greeted Steven and Sergeant Miller. Steven wasn’t thrilled with his act. He came to Ms. Hill and shook her hand. He did the same to Mary and Sarah but kissed Sarah’s hand. Sarah shot a glance at Steven whose face went slightly red.

  “I’m sorry for being late. I had a meeting that went long.” Mr. Reese began.

  “We understand.” Ms. Hill said.

  “I am pleased you took up my invitation, for another meeting. I feel some of us got off on the wrong foot.” Mr. Reese smiled. “I figured having a small group we could get more done.”

  “I can understand that.” Ms. Hill said a friendly voice.

  “It does tend to get easier when you don’t want to meet with the people who you disagree with,” Mary said.

  Ms. Hill gave Mary a look that said not to start anything. Mr. Reese continued to smile. He gave a little chuckle before continuing.

  “The Captain wasn’t being reasonable. I can’t negotiate with someone who doesn’t even want to work with me.” Mr. Reese held a hand to stop Mary from talking. “I know he doesn’t want to work with me. Frankly, if he was the one running everything I wouldn’t even be having this conversation.” He wasn’t smiling now. “I know Mr. Powell wants my resources.”

  “President Powell.” Sarah corrected.

  “Excuse me?” Mr. Reese asked.

  “I think you heard me right. It is President Powell.” Sarah said in a stern voice.

  “Last time I checked the United States only had one President. You aren’t a country. You all are part of a group. He is just as much a President as I am.” Anger sparked in Sarah. She started wondering if there was a way to not work with Domino Defense. “I apologize that was out of line,” Mr. Reese started. “I understand his point. Starting a revolution with someone who wasn’t elected is a sticky situation. I have a question when does he get elected?”

  “What do you mean?” Ms. Hill asked.

  “Will he get elected? What does the new government look like if you win? Will it be the sam
e as before? How will you all be better than the US?”

  Mary looked at Ms. Hill for an answer. Ms. Hill had a grin come across her face.

  “That will be determined by a council. We will have a convention as we did in 1787. There we will build a new and better government.”

  “Good answer.” Mr. Reese smiled. “You all still need to win the war. You have a very small chance of winning without my company. I know your General. I can’t remember his name but he would love my supplies. What is that General’s name again?” Mr. Reese asked.

  “Not sure who you are referring to.” Ms. Hill replied.

  Mr. Reese chuckled before continuing. “Have you thought about what I need to join?”

  “We let command know what you were looking for. They can guarantee you will get future contracts and we can do two years of no taxes.” Ms. Hill informed him.

  “My position?” Mr. Reese asked. “Will I determine where my troops go?”

  “They are still deliberating on that.” Ms. Hill lied.

  “I see. I will need an answer before I give mine,” Mr. Reese thought for a moment. “You know when I worked with other governments…”

  “No one ever let you decide how to do things.” Ms. Hill interrupted. “I worked for the US. Government. They went somewhere and hired you to go to any area. You weren’t given a choice.”

  Mr. Reese’s face turned into a frown. Sarah could tell he didn’t like Ms. Hill putting him in his place.

  “What we can do is offer you a spot at the convention. Help rebuild the country.” Ms. Hill said.

  “Tempting but not sure that is my style. Let me know about President Powell’s decision,” He emphasized President. “When you get an answer get in touch with me.” He stood and nodded at them all. He winked at Sarah before leaving the room. This group and left. When they entered the hallway.

  “That could have been worse,” Steven said.

  “We still didn’t get anywhere.” Ms. Hill said. “This was completely useless.”

  The group made their way into the entrance area. Sarah was feeling as though this was a lost cause. There had to be a better way to get supplies. Sarah was surprised to hear her name called as they were about to walk out of the building. Mr. Schweppes was running to them. When he caught up to them he was struggling to catch his breath.