There was nowhere to run or hide. Even if they found an abandoned building to hole up in, then they ran the risk of being surrounded and pinned down. Turning around and going back wasn't the answer either. The safest thing they could do was keep moving forward. They had reinforcements just over the border and Evan had already called them. The Wyoming men were moving northward and would hopefully meet up with the motorcade before anything happened.
"Fuck, I hate the waiting." Reed's head was looking from side to side, squinting at the inky blackness whenever he wasn't on the radio. They were all on edge, the minutes ticking by with an excruciating slowness. Their nerves were stretched to the brink of snapping. Tanner could feel the sweat beading underneath his bulletproof vest and he restlessly shifted in his seat. These feelings were familiar, and his mind and body went on autopilot, the rest of the world ceasing to exist. There was only this place and this moment.
His senses became sharper. He could hear every pump of his heart, the whoosh of blood in his veins. He could smell the leather of the seats and hear the tapping of Reed's fingers against the radio. Tanner let his instincts take over, gaining comfort from them. They'd never let him down before. Once a soldier, always a soldier.
Logan's face in the dim light looked carved from granite and Reed looked like a predator ready to pounce on its prey. It was almost a relief when they finally heard the sounds of a chopper in the sky.
* * * *
Fenton’s adrenaline raced when the chopper hovered over the second motorcade. He hadn't known exactly what road they would be on, but this was southern Montana. There weren't too many to choose from unless they wanted to take twenty hours to get to Florence, zigzagging from country road to country road.
The headlights of each vehicle were turned off but the bird swept the spotlight over the motorcade from back to front. Six SUVs and the armored truck tucked in the middle. This wasn't going to be easy. He'd lost about half a dozen men taking out the first motorcade. He'd augmented with others from his organization but they weren't what he would describe as battle-ready. As it was, he'd be lucky to get Kerr out without losing most of his men.
It didn't matter in the long run. There were always men willing to do the dirty work if you paid them enough. Fenton had long since stopped being surprised by the lack of morals in the average man.
One of those men now had an M203 40mm grenade launcher mounted under his M16A2 held tight into his shoulder, pointing it at the lead car. Some sparks came from the High Explosive Dual Purpose shell and it flew straight down, eliminating the car in a fiery blast. The explosion illuminated the darkness and Fenton could see the shadows of his ground force heading in.
This time there would be no mistakes.
The next target was the last car in the motorcade. Then the middle cars would be trapped and he could pick off the Feds, one by one.
* * * *
The minute Tanner saw the explosion up ahead he knew what the cartel was planning. The convoy screeched to a stop, and Evan yelled over the radio to back up. Logan threw the SUV into reverse, but Tanner already knew the outcome.
He turned around in his seat and looked out the rear window as the last car in the motorcade was blown to smithereens by what could only be an RPG.
"Son of a bitch," Reed whispered under his breath at the yellow and orange light show. Tanner shook his head in disbelief. Four good Marshals were down and the rest of them were trapped in the kill box. They couldn't move forward or backward.
"Don't move!" Evan's voice came over the radio as Tanner watched the ground game begin. Surprisingly there were only about ten men and two of them were still in the chopper. They must have lost a large number when they ambushed the other team.
Tanner's heart galloped in his chest as he forced himself to stay in the bulletproof vehicle. He had to fight every instinct to jump out and start firing but that was a suicide mission. He'd wait until the cartel was distracted blowing the armored car door and then try and pick them off one at a time.
They'd discussed their positions if they were attacked. Tanner, Logan, and Reed were to focus on taking down as many men as possible from their location right behind the armored truck. Evan and Seth had the main responsibility of ensuring no one got Kerr, but ultimately that was everyone's job.
The headlights from the vehicles and the helicopter pierced the darkness, and Tanner could see the cartel men, dressed in dark clothing. They were huddled around the back of the armored truck with five men fanned around them keeping watch. The guards were armed with automatic rifles but one man looked uneasy, holding the firearm awkwardly, his gaze jumping nervously from side to side.
"Now." Evan's voice came over the radio and Tanner slid the passenger side door open, crouching behind it and pointing his rifle. He put the guard farthest to the right in his sight and squeezed the trigger. The man went down as the door blew, falling uselessly off its hinges. The two other guards began spraying bullets and Tanner was forced to take cover. His gaze sought Logan and Reed to make sure they were okay.
Logan had done the same as Tanner, and he was kneeling behind the driver's door firing shots when he had the opportunity. Reed was also ducked behind a car door, but Tanner could hear talking on the radio and Seth's voice. Reed was updating the armored car on what was happening behind them, which meant Evan was trying to put an offensive together with Griffin and Jared.
Tanner lifted his rifle to target another guard when he watched in horror as Morey pulled a small handgun from his boot, aiming and firing at Kerr. The prisoner must have been watching also because he managed to jerk away despite the chains holding him to the metal bench. A red stain was spreading across Kerr's leg and he was screaming in pain.
The man who blew the door lifted his rifle and double tapped Morey's forehead. The Marshal froze for a moment, his eyes wide open before falling to the floor of the truck. Tanner kept firing at the guards each time they paused their spray of bullets. Griffin, Jared, and Evan appeared on the roof of the truck shooting downward from their positions on their bellies. Two men went down and one jumped in the truck with bolt cutters, freeing Kerr.
A man streaked out of the chopper toward the truck and Tanner instantly recognized Fenton Jacks even in the dim light. Tanner tried to get a shot off but the spray from the automatic rifles held him until Jacks dove down under the vehicle. The man in the truck grabbed Kerr and pulled him out, tossing him on the ground next to Jacks.
"Jacks is going to get him on the bird. We need to take out the chopper," Tanner yelled, not sure he'd be heard over the gunfire. Reed relayed it to Seth, and Tanner watched as Seth stepped out of the armored car and started firing at the helicopter. Tanner gave him as much cover as he could but his stomach churned as Jacks and another man held Kerr and made a run for it. The men that had been spraying fire from behind the armored truck jumped between Jacks and Tanner and held the Marshals at bay.
Evan ran to the front of the roof and fired at Jacks. Jacks turned around and shot back, Evan jerking and then falling to the ground. Tanner and Logan fired into the mess of smoke and bullets but Jacks stuffed Kerr into the helicopter and used the other man as a human shield.
Tanner could swear he saw Jacks smile as the chopper began to lift from the ground. Tanner and Reed fired at the circling bird as it rose nose down clawing for more speed, and then it disappeared into the night sky leaving the rest of Jacks's men to fight it out.
Jared and Griffin took out a few more men and at that point the cartel was outnumbered. The last two started to make a run for it, but Tanner easily plugged one in the shoulder and Logan got the other in the leg. They would probably live, but they would sure as hell be able to talk.
Seth was kneeling next to Evan, and Tanner ran up and crouched next to him, the acrid smell of smoke and gunpowder in the air.
"How bad?" Tanner asked.
"He's alive," Seth replied. "He's got two slugs in his vest, one in his shoulder and one in his leg. Plus a big lump on his head from that fall.
"
Tanner looked down and Evan's eyes opened. His pupils were dilated and unfocused.
"Stay down. Reed's on the radio calling for help. You're going to live, man."
Evan licked his lips. "They got Kerr?" His voice was raspy and filled with pain.
"Yeah," Tanner nodded grimly. "We'll get him back. Kerr was shot by Morey so Jacks will have to get him medical attention."
"Morey?"
He was sure Evan already knew the answer–apparently he needed to hear it. "Dead. Two in the forehead."
Evan closed his eyes and tried to move. Seth put a hand on Evan's good shoulder and pushed him back. "Stay put. We'll have you terrorizing nurses as soon as we can."
The sound of sirens in the distance drew Tanner's attention. Logan was standing over them pointing north and then south. "Ambulances from Billings and the Wyoming guys."
Tanner scraped a hand down his face and stood. "A day late and a dollar short." He turned to see Reed still on the radio. "Who is he talking to?"
"Your DEA agent. We should hear the helicopter any minute."
Griffin and Jared had climbed down from the top of the truck and had joined them. Tanner slapped them on the back. "Good shooting today. You saved a few lives, not to mention my own."
Jared shook his head, a muscle working in his jaw. "It wasn't enough."
"Hey, we were boxed in. Shit, the odds of us even surviving weren't in our fucking favor. Yet we’re standing here. Still breathing. We'll get Kerr back. It was Fenton Jacks who took him."
Griffin ran a hand through his hair. "And just how will we find him?"
Evan drew a loud breath from where he lay on the ground. "We have him chipped. We knew this was a possibility. We can GPS him."
Logan rubbed the back of his neck. "Fuck a duck, the government really does know where we are all times of the day and night. You fucking microchipped him? Shit."
"My bet is they'll dump the helicopter and move to a car," Seth said.
"I agree. Add in the fact that Kerr's bleeding pretty bad. Jacks is going to be desperate," Logan observed.
"That might be to Jacks's benefit. He may withhold medical attention until Kerr tells him what he wants to know," Jared offered.
Griffin snorted. "If Kerr tells him what Jacks wants, he'll never see a doctor ever again."
Tanner shrugged. "Stranger deals have been made. Jacks can't withhold medical attention forever or he'll lose his cash cow. Kerr will know that and use it to his advantage."
Two ambulances careened up on the shoulder of the road and came to a screeching halt. EMTs jumped out and ran a stretcher over to Evan while another chopper was closing in. Tanner tensed for a moment but then saw the familiar red and white paint job. DEA Agent Jason Anderson.
The man would have news of how badly the other motorcade had been hit. Tanner steeled himself for the news and the next phase of the job. They had to find Kerr and get him to Florence.
Personally, Tanner was going to take great pleasure in finding Fenton Jacks and book him an adjoining cell right next to Kerr's. Tonight Jacks would be stopped, once and for all.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Sherry yawned as the closing credits of the movie scrolled down the screen. It was late and she should probably crawl into bed. Madison would be up at the crack of dawn making pancakes and some of that supposedly healthy turkey bacon. Bacon in any form wasn't supposed to be good for you, it was simply supposed to be eaten.
Pushing up from the couch, Scout jumped down to the floor and ran straight to the front door. Sherry groaned in disbelief.
"Are you kidding? Now?" The dog pranced around, apparently needing a walk. "Well, shit. I shouldn't have fed you all that cheese. It made you thirsty. Hold on a minute."
She was in her pajamas but the chance of running in to anyone she knew at this hour was slim. She grabbed her boots and pulled them on, then shrugged into her coat, zipping it to her chin. It was colder than hell out there tonight. Her gloves and hat were in her pockets and they went on as well. She might as well give Scout a good walk so he would sleep in tomorrow. When she and Madison had walked him earlier, it had taken him forever to find a place to do his business so Sherry didn't expect this would be quick anyway.
Sherry lifted the leash off the hook by the door where Madison kept her car keys and smiled at Scout.
"Okay, sweetie. Aunt Sherry will take you for a little walk. How's that sound?"
Scout ran around in a few circles and then sat down to have his leash attached, his tail going a mile a minute. She pocketed Madison's keys. It wasn't Sherry's usual practice if she was only going to be gone for a few minutes, but the fact that Tanner had a deputy driving by the house every ten minutes or so spoke of a man who was concerned. About what she had no idea, and Madison was decidedly tight-lipped on the subject. Sherry assumed that Tanner had pissed someone off by arresting him and he was probably making empty threats.
The cold hit her the minute she opened the front door but Scout was already on the front porch looking at her with an expression of doggy disdain. She leaned down and ruffled his fur.
"You have a built in fur coat to keep you warm. I have to layer. All right. Let's get this show on the road."
She walked him down Fountain Street all the way to the cul de sac before turning around and heading back. Her breath made mist and her face was beginning to go numb, but Scout appeared determined to sniff every tree and bush between here and the house. As they neared the neighbor’s bushes, Sherry stopped in her tracks and tugged on Scout's leash. She took a few steps back until she was partially obscured under some low hanging branches.
As she watched Madison's house, several men with flashlights splayed out around the outside. Two men, partially carrying a man in between them walked around toward the clinic side of the home. It looked like someone was injured and needed Madison's help. That wasn't all that unusual, but what was with the men stationed all around the house like guards?
Her heart started beating faster in her chest and the feminine intuition that Dan often made fun of reared its ugly head. This didn't look right at all. The men were looking around as if they were watching for someone. Trying to keep people out.
Or keep people in?
They reminded Sherry of the Secret Service men she'd seen on television, but the man they'd taken to the clinic probably wasn't the president. They'd shown up in two dark, nondescript sedans, not a mile long parade of limousines.
Scout whined and pulled on the leash and Sherry tugged him back until she could wrap her arms around him.
"I don't like the look of this, Scout. I think we need to find that deputy that's supposed to be patrolling the area."
Sherry's hand automatically went to her pocket for her phone, but she'd left it inside the house.
Craptastic.
Her phone was practically a third appendage and the one damn time she really needed it, she'd left it behind. She hated to leave Madison in that house with whomever had gone in there, but standing in the frigid cold freezing her ass off wasn't doing anyone any good. She turned and led Scout back down the street, taking a short cut through the Ames' back yard and over to Courtney Avenue. Luckily Madison lived close to downtown. If she cut through a few yards, she could come out right across the street from the sheriff's station.
She took off at a jog with Scout at her heels, adrenaline zipping through her body. Tanner might have been on to something when he had a deputy watch the house. Madison could be in real danger. Sherry had to sound the alarm.
* * * *
Evan was on his way to the hospital in Billings along with men from the other motorcade. Of the eleven Marshals, five had survived, three of which were critically injured. Tanner's team had taken less casualties. The four Marshals in the front and last cars were dead–of that there was no doubt. Evan would be fine but was going to be off duty for awhile healing. Of the deputized sheriffs, Jared and Griffin had both taken a slug in the vest that had knocked them backwards but were fine.
DEA Agent Jason Anderson had relayed that the first motorcade had thinned the cartels numbers by about half, which probably explained how their survival rate was better. The scene was crawling with DEA, Marshals, and state and local cops, the highway completely closed to traffic.
"We found the chopper abandoned in a field not far from here," Jason said, shoving his cell back in his pocket. "My team took pictures of the tire tracks and is running them right now to see if we can get a make and model."
"Government law enforcement sure is different than local. We'd put out roadblocks and a BOLO." Tanner slugged back the coffee that had somehow appeared. "Are your men at the hospitals yet? Kerr was bleeding out pretty bad."
"We've got every hospital in a three hundred mile radius covered. If they show up there, we'll get them," Jason affirmed.
Logan paced. "I feel so damn useless. What can we do?"
Jason shook his head. "Nothing at this point. You did the job Uncle Sam asked you to do. Let us do our job now."
Tanner scowled. "We didn't do it well enough. Kerr's gone."
Jason stroked his chin. "When someone is determined, it often doesn't matter what we do. You kept a lot of people alive, and you captured some of the henchmen. That's good work where I come from."
Logan stopped and crossed his arms over his chest. "They'd be crazy to go to a hospital, Anderson. Jacks has to know you've got this area crawling with agents. Where would he feel safe? Where can he get the help he needs?"
Son of a bitch.
"Maddie," Tanner growled. "Jacks feels safe in Springwood. He can take Kerr to Maddie. She has a clinic right in the house, for fuck's sake. We need to get there now!"
Tanner made to move but Jason caught his arm. "Hold on a minute. Who is Maddie and how would Jacks know to take Kerr there?"
"Everyone in town knows Maddie and her father have their medical office in their home. Everyone," Tanner grated, impatient to get out of there. "And she's my girlfriend. I'm going to marry her."
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