Stolen Liberty: Behind the Curtain

by Thomas A. Watson

  “Take your heart out of this and get your mind in the game, Shadow,” Charlie snapped back. “Now, options?”

  Shaking his head and taking a deep breath, “There’s a large store to our north. We move behind it and cross Sauk in a strung-out group and hope they don’t see us. Moving across in small groups, we stand a good chance of getting cut in half,” Randy said, calming down.

  “Who are the troops?” Robbie asked.

  “I saw National Guard, regular Army, and Marine troops, with German troops wearing blue helmets,” Randy said. “Those US troops are just scared shitless kids.”

  Turning and glancing at Randy’s face, Charlie saw he was holding back. “What else?”

  “Book, I didn’t see that many senior NCOs amongst our troops. I saw one platoon sergeant that might have been twenty years old. Hell, I saw a marine gunnery sergeant that was younger than that. The youngest I’ve ever seen a gunny was late twenties. If that one I saw wasn’t a teenager, I’ll lick your boots clean,” Randy said, shaking his head. “None of this is making sense.”

  “What about officers?” Charlie asked.

  “Book, I’ve never seen so damn many officers in my life. I counted fourteen butter bars,” Randy answered. “A lieutenant colonel is running the show from an MRAP set up in front of the large department store in front of us.”

  “Butter bars?” Clark whispered to Kristi.

  “Second lieutenant,” Kristi told him.

  “A light colonel is running a company?” Cody asked.

  Shaking his head, “No, Babyface, a company is right in front of us. We have platoons spread out around us,” Randy answered, then looked down at Charlie. “Book, if we don’t move soon, they will bottle us up. Granted, the troops aren’t carrying much ammo on their person, but they can run back to the command area for more.”

  “Odds of making it across?” Charlie asked as the gunfire picked up in the subdivision.

  “We hoof it hard? Pretty damn good,” Randy told him as an explosion sounded to the north and Charlie looked at him. “Our troops don’t have grenades, but the Germans do and to remind you, the sergeant I talked to was right. The UN troops are carrying full combat loads.”

  “Any other UN troops?” Robbie asked.

  “I saw a British officer, but couldn’t see his rank, Blaster,” Randy answered.

  “What’s your play, Shadow?” Charlie asked.

  “We move up and when we see a chance, haul ass across that road and don’t stop running for several miles,” Randy told him. “If we can get by this, we can move into cover. This is the last concreted area for us.”

  Giving a nod, “I agree, let’s go,” Charlie said, getting up. Grabbing Kristi’s arm, “Tell the kids to stay with you and if one of us tells you to go, move to the rally point at Deer Creek. Do you remember?”

  “Yes, bend in the creek, north of Crete-Monee Road,” Kristi recited in a trembling voice. “Hold one hour, then move to next rally point at Plum Creek where it Y’s. Wait one hour, then move to the next rally.”

  Holding up his hand, “No, after Plum Creek, you move to the campsite. If we aren’t there by 1100, you head on,” Charlie said and pushed his map into her hands.

  Looking down at the sealed plastic bag holding the map, “You better make sure your asses get there,” Kristi told him, then shoved the map in her thigh pocket.

  “If we aren’t there, we’re dead,” Charlie told her, walking off.

  Hearing Emily take a breath to ask, Kristi held up her hand. “Don’t ask, baby,” Kristi said, grabbing Tabitha’s hand and putting it on her shoulder. “Clark, Emily, in front of me.”

  With Chase still holding his backpack, Clark followed Charlie with Emily behind them. Shaking her hands Kristi opened and closed them, looking at her soaked gloves. “Please watch over us, baby,” she mumbled, moving off.

  Chapter Thirty

  Richton Park, Illinois

  Creeping through the thinning trees and making out a large building ahead, Charlie saw Randy dive to the ground. Dropping down, Charlie glanced back to see Tabitha dropping with Kristi and Ryan slowly kneeling. Cursing under his breath, Charlie looked forward and saw four MRAPs and several HUMVEEs in the parking lot of a giant box store.

  Two large portable lights shined over the area and then Charlie turned, looking out further and saw a huge cluster of people in another parking area across Governors Highway. That parking lot was surrounded by portable lights while the people stood out in the rain. Looking at the massive crowd, Charlie knew it was thousands. Hearing voices to his front getting closer, Charlie slowly turned his head to see a group wearing Army fatigues walking along the building.

  Counting seventeen, Charlie studied their faces in his NVGs and had to agree with Randy; they were young. When he saw a sergeant first class pin on the lead soldier, Charlie scoffed, knowing that kid wasn’t even old enough to buy alcohol.

  The group carried M4s at the ready and walked alongside the building to the rear and continued heading to the subdivision. The one in the lead lifted his rifle up and fired off three short bursts, and Charlie saw two people that had been hiding behind a house drop. “Any we see in this subdivision are hostile!” the young sergeant shouted out.

  Forming up into two groups, the young sergeant guided them into the subdivision. Hearing gunfire to his left, Charlie turned and saw three people, who had run out from the holding area parking lot, laying in the street. Watching a soldier wearing a blue helmet walk over to one person rolling around and holding her leg, Charlie sucked in a breath when the soldier raised his weapon and shot the woman point blank in the face.

  “This is medieval,” Charlie mumbled and heard gunfire to his left. Glancing left, he could see the flashes playing off the houses from the gunfire in the subdivision. ‘If we don’t get out soon, we won’t’, Charlie thought.

  Seeing Randy slowly get to his knees, Charlie did the same. He glanced back and saw everyone ready to move and reached up, squeezing Randy’s shoulder.

  Pushing up, Randy trotted from the trees and across the parking area on the side of the building, then stayed close to the back wall. With gunfire increasing on their right from the subdivision, Charlie and Cody held their weapons across their bodies, keeping the muzzles aimed at the houses.

  Feeling very exposed, Randy fought the urge to just haul ass but slowed down when he reached the end of the building. Keeping next to the wall, he heard the unmistakable sound of a HUMVEE from the west. A few seconds later, the HUMVEE drove past and then slowed, pulling into the front parking lot.

  Reaching back, Randy pulled Charlie close but kept his eyes forward. “I’m moving up. You see me cross, bring the others. I get spotted, pull back and wait. I’ll meet up at one of the rally points,” Randy breathed out. Acknowledging he’d heard, Charlie squeezed Randy’s arm.

  Taking a deep breath with a last look around, Randy ran from the corner and across the side parking lot until he reached a tree beside the sidewalk. Pausing for a second, he looked both ways and didn’t see any vehicles or sentries and took off.

  Seeing Randy take off, Charlie followed with the rest.

  Clearing the road and running through the parking lot of the building across the street, Randy turned around and saw the group just reaching the road. Willing them to move faster, Randy pulled his AR into his shoulder, watching Charlie lead the group across the road.

  Behind Charlie, Randy groaned to see a person fall and take out another. Seeing they didn’t have weapons, Randy knew it was Tabitha and Ryan.

  Kristi stopped and turned to grab Tabitha but Cody reached down, grabbing Tabitha by the hair on her head and lifted her up to her feet. As Cody let her hair go, Tabitha reached up to hold her head where Cody had pulled her hair, crying. Seeing Tabitha wasn’t moving, Kristi reached back and grabbed Tabitha’s arm, yanking her into a run.

  As he ran by Ryan, Robbie grabbed his arm and yanked him up, then saw Tabitha fall down again.

  “Halt!” a voice shou
ted from the subdivision.

  Lifting his AR, Randy sighted in on the figure standing at the first house in the subdivision. Flipping his safety off, Randy squeezed the trigger and watched the figure jerk before dropping to the ground.

  “On the main road!” another voice shouted deeper in the subdivision. Feeling the pucker factor increase tenfold, Randy turned to see Kristi dragging Tabitha across the road and Ryan was passed by both.

  “Get the kids back,” Charlie said, lifting his rifle up.

  Hearing Charlie’s rifle cough as it touched his shoulder, Randy moved off with Clark and the kids following.

  Seeing a group of troops running out of the subdivision, Charlie opened up by snapping off quick shots into each target, just trying to slow them down. Snapping a quick shot, Charlie would move and then re-engage.

  “Sniper!” one bellowed and the rest just aimed forward, holding down triggers.

  Ten M4s opened up while Kristi pulled Tabitha past Charlie with bullets whizzing around them. Seeing her kids ahead of her and red tracers arcing around them, Kristi let Tabitha go and leaned forward, pushing her legs hard.

  Cody dropped down prone and rolled while bringing his rifle up to center on the first flashing muzzle and squeezed the trigger rapidly until the figure dropped. Moving his aim, Cody kept squeezing the trigger, moving from target to target.

  Robbie moved past Charlie while Charlie moved to a new firing position. Lifting his rifle, Robbie started engaging and saw only two still shooting at them. Hearing engines cranking up, “We have got to go!” Robbie shouted, shooting one of those left and Cody dropped the other.

  “MRAP coming!” Cody called out, getting up and changing magazines.

  When Cody passed him, Robbie turned and followed, running behind a shopping center. Then Robbie heard the heavy thump of a Ma Deuce over the growl of a diesel engine. He could hear the heavy bullets punching into the building beside him and glanced back to see the MRAP pulling down a small side street.

  Skidding to a halt, Robbie dropped to one knee and lifted his rifle up until he saw the hot silhouette of the gunner. Squeezing the trigger rapidly, Robbie cursed when he saw his rounds hit the cupola. The gunner dropped down inside, and the Ma Deuce stopped firing. Jumping up, Robbie took off to see Charlie ahead and aiming back.

  The MRAP slowed as the gunner climbed back behind the fifty. Lifting his head over the steel plate, the gunner’s head snapped back, and the lifeless body dropped back down into the MRAP.

  “Show off,” Robbie said, running past Charlie.

  Hearing more engines on the other side of the shopping center, Charlie turned and ran past Robbie. “We have to buy time,” Charlie said when a fifty opened up on the other side of the building. They could hear the bullets punching through the building and blowing out the cinderblock wall behind them.

  Hearing the cinderblocks exploding closer, they knew the gunner was just hosing the storefronts. With trees ahead, they pushed their legs harder, expecting any minute for a chunk of lead to knock them down. Just before reaching the trees, the Ma Deuce fell silent from the front of the store.

  Running into the trees at full speed, they dodged the trucks and saw Cody and Randy ahead. They skidded to a stop, panting. “Have two more MRAPs and three HUMVEEs coming,” Randy said with no emotion. “Kristi moved with the others across the train tracks.”

  “I’ll deal with the armor,” Charlie said, ejecting his magazine. Pulling a magazine from his left thigh platform, he seated it and ejected a live round when chambering the first round of the new magazine. “How much time do we need to buy?”

  “Three minutes. Then pull back and buy another three, then disengage and try to break contact,” Randy answered, moving north through the trees that bordered the parking lot of the shopping center.

  “That better be AP you put in, Book,” Robbie said, following Randy.

  “API, Blaster,” Charlie grinned. “I only care enough to send the very best.”

  They followed Randy up and saw the MRAP in the parking lot while the gunner reloaded the Ma Deuce. Lifting his gun up, Randy slowed his breathing down, keeping the reticle on the gunner’s head. Squeezing the trigger, he watched the gunner jerk back and drop down inside the MRAP.

  Charlie moved further down next to a tree, seeing the vehicles rolling down the road in front of the shopping center. Holding his reticle over the front windshield and aiming where the driver would be, because no thermal worked through glass, Charlie slowly squeezed the trigger.

  The armor piercing incendiary round streaked across the distance, punching a hole through the thick glass and hitting the driver in the shoulder. The driver yanked the steering wheel to the left and the MRAP rolled over two small trees and then across a parking area before slowly rolling to a stop.

  Moving to the next MRAP that was speeding toward them, Charlie held on the windshield when the gunner opened up, spraying the trees over Charlie’s head. Squeezing the trigger twice, Charlie watched two holes appear in his thermal on the window.

  The first bullet hit the driver in the throat and the second hit in the center of his chest. Fighting to breathe, the driver’s foot pushed down while he grabbed at his throat and the steering wheel spun to the right sharply.

  With the squeal of tires, the massive weight of the truck wanted to continue forward but the wheels cut sharply. The MRAP’s left side slowly lifted up and gravity did the rest. With a loud crash, the MRAP flipped on its side, throwing the gunner out of the cupola.

  Turning to the next vehicle while he moved to a new spot, Charlie gave a sigh to see it was a HUMVEE, then he noticed dozens of troops moving across the parking lot and heading for them. Squeezing the trigger, Charlie watched the rounds punch through the window, but the HUMVEE kept coming and the gunner opened up with a machine gun. Flipping his safety on, Charlie relocated to another spot.

  Watching a cluster of troops enter the parking lot, Cody dropped and opened up, working from the right. Dropping five, he changed magazines and started back up.

  Seeing the forms charging into the parking lot, Randy started working from the far left on those closest to the building. Dropping two, he moved to another spot and centered on another while Charlie set back up and shot the gunner of the HUMVEE heading for them.

  The driver had been ducking down in the seat and when his gunner dropped down missing most of his head, the driver slammed on the brakes and tried to turn around. With the side of the HUMVEE toward him, Charlie bracketed the passenger door with six shots, hitting the passenger and killing the ducking driver.

  Lying prone now in the same spot with his bolt locked back again, Cody changed magazines and then started back up when the line of troops reached halfway into the parking lot and dove down, realizing over half of them were gone. They aimed at the trees and just cut loose. “Babyface, you have got to move!” Randy shouted, diving to another spot.

  Seeing someone climb up on the MRAP in the parking lot to reach the Ma Deuce, Cody swung his rifle over to squeeze off three rounds, catching the figure in the side. Watching the figure roll off, Cody turned back to the line and saw the last HUMVEE weave off the road after Charlie had shot the driver. Seeing the gunner still in the cupola, Cody squeezed off three rounds.

  Watching the gunner grab his arm and drop down inside, Cody moved his aim back to the line of troops laying prone. Shooting two more, Cody rolled to the side, pulling a magazine off his chest and slapping it home as the empty dropped out.

  “Babyface, I know you heard Shadow. Move after you shoot!” Robbie shouted, running past him before dropping down and firing.

  Grabbing his empty magazines, Cody dropped them in his dump bag and then ran a few feet, dropping back down. Lifting his rifle, Cody heard the bullets impacting around him. Hearing the fast fire of a SAW, Cody moved his aim and found the SAW gunner laying prone, popping his feed tray open.

  “Time’s up,” Cody said, squeezing the trigger and watching the figure jerk from the two impacts.

>   Emptying his magazine into the stalled vehicles, Charlie paused while looking north, hearing a buzz. “Oh, you have got to be fucking shitting me,” Charlie growled, dropping his magazine in his dump bag and pulling another magazine from his thigh. “Chopper coming in!”

  Randy lifted his aim and saw the chopper in his thermal as a spotlight turned on, lighting them up. “Oh, you have FLIR,” Randy groaned, and he steadied his aim when the chopper slowed.

  With bullets whizzing around him, Charlie knelt down while taking slow breaths and holding on the bubble of the chopper. Slowly squeezing the trigger, the rifle bucked and then Charlie held on the chopper, squeezing the trigger rapidly to bracket the body of the small chopper.

  Randy saw the chopper dip and a small explosion go off under the blades before the chopper started spinning wildly. With the co-pilot trying to get the stricken bird out of there, smoke poured from the engine and the wild spin started getting faster when the body started counter-rotating with the blades.

  Watching the small chopper spin to the earth, Randy lost sight of it when it crashed behind the shopping center. “Damn it, Babyface, will you fucking move after you shoot?!” Robbie bellowed.

  Dropping two he’d seen get up, Randy turned and saw bullets impacting all around Babyface as he lay prone, still firing. Turning to the troops, Randy started firing while Robbie ran over and grabbed Cody by his arm and jerked him up. Robbie pushed Cody into the trees as Charlie yelled, “Time!”

  Moving his aim and seeing a troop stand up, Randy saw the group of detained people in the parking lot holding area swarm out. The troops running to back up those they were engaging, turned and opened fire, but were swarmed over by sheer numbers.

  Still seeing the troops in the parking lot of the shopping center advancing, Randy spun around and took off. Changing magazines, Randy patted his vest and felt six empty slots. “Okay, now I’m pissed,” Randy said, dropping his hand to his left thigh and pulling one of the four magazines there. Slapping it in, Randy passed by Robbie as he continued to bitch at Cody, “You shoot and move, not take up residence!” Robbie shouted.