Josh received a nod of approval from Basilia and replied, “Okay, but I want details.”
No sooner had the group fixed their plates and said ‘Amen”, as Josh asked, “All right, let’s have it.”
“The Brits have advanced their timetable and started orchestrating the removal of diplomats from American soil. Rayburn started freaking out and my replacement still has an overgrown respect for the office. He’s having issues being candid with the man.”
“And this means what to us exactly,” Evan asked.
“It’s our turn to move a piece on the chessboard,” Brent replied.
“What are the options?” Evan countered.
“Yeah, and what’s Operation Delta and what’s a ‘POTUS’?” Basilia added.
“POTUS is just military jargon for the President. As for Operation Delta, before I retired we came up with several contingency plans. Operation Delta is where we thumb our nose at the Brits and begin moving resources. This option was designed to remove any conflict from the cities and localize it.”
“Can someone please translate that,” Basilia countered.
Josh interceded and said, “The U.K. and their allies want to be repaid for their portion of the U.S. debt. They want it in tangible goods like gold, silver, etcetera. All of those resources are housed in the Federal Reserve Banks and the United States Mint facilities.
“There are twelve primary Reserve Banks and Branches located around the country. All of which are essentially high population centers. There are only five Mint locations. Those are in spots like San Francisco, Denver, and Philadelphia. The other two are Fort Knox and West Point. Both of those already have a military contingent attached to them. What the General is saying is that Operation Delta is consolidating the remaining assets in specific locations.”
“That just about sums it up. President Rayburn doesn’t want urban warfare in American streets, but he’s also willing to fight,” Brent added.
“So where’s this fighting going to take place?” Evan asked.
“Well, that’s the thing. We can’t move all of it to one location. So, we looked at the geography of the country and made some decisions,” the General began to answer. “The assets in the Reserve Banks and Branches were shipped to Omaha, Nebraska. Well, as much as we can quickly get there at any rate. It’s in the middle of the U.S. and not easily accessible from either coast. It’s open terrain out there and that equals tanks. We have a lot of those. So we moved some of the Armored Brigade Combat Teams from Fort Carson in Colorado to defend that facility.”
“What happened to the divisions?” Josh asked.
“The face of war changed after 9/11, Josh. Those were appropriate organizational structures sixty years ago, but they became so massive it took months to deploy. You remember how long we had to wait to get all of our elements into Saudi Arabia for the first Gulf War. These smaller units are much more agile and more to scale for the types of engagements we are encountering today,” Brent answered.
“And the Mint resources?” Samantha asked.
“That’s where it got interesting. The material at West Point will stay where it is. Fort Knox is empty and functioning as a diversion. We’ve reinforced the New York based combat teams for a dug in defense of the site,” Brent replied.
“You’re stalling, General,” Josh said. “Where are the rest of the materials headed?”
The former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs played with the food on his plate and didn’t look up.
“Where’s it going?” Basilia asked innocently.
“Well, we couldn’t very well leave it in San Francisco or Philadelphia. And we definitely didn’t want to draw any UN forces towards our NORAD facility in Colorado Springs by keeping anything in Denver,” the General replied.
Josh slammed his fist on the table and growled, “Where is it headed, Brent! Stop dancin’ and start talkin’!”
Josh’s aggression startled the man and he quickly looked up.
He met his former pupils anger with his own and shot back, “Don’t bark at me like some sort of junk yard dog, Josiah! I’m still your commanding officer!”
The student returned fire with, “Not out here you’re not!”
Samantha interceded and calmly said, “General, what Josh is having difficulty articulating is that we would all very much like to know what the location is for the Mint resources. We are all adults here. Whatever you tell us will be handled maturely and rationally.”
The two alpha males dialed down their intensity after hearing Sam’s calm reassuring tone.
Brent looked around the room and saw anticipation and fear on the faces staring back at him.
“Fine. In addition to the Omaha location, Operation Delta calls for the repurposing of the reserve facilities in Cleveland. All available assets from the other three mint locations are currently en route. President Sarkes is managing the effort.”
“Why there?” Juan asked.
“We picked that location because we didn’t feel that the probability of an invasion force heading up the St Lawrence was a viable threat. Happy? Can I eat in peace now?” Brent responded.
Josh sat back in chair in stunned silence.
After a few long moments, Abelardo asked, “What’s wrong with that, Patrón? It’s not anywhere near us.”
The group began looking around the table. Each person was wondering who was going to answer the question. Most were thinking the same thing. What’s the big deal.
After regaining his composure, Josh said, “Omaha and West Point aren’t an issue for us here. Cleveland and Fort Knox, are however. In order to get from one to another, which the British and their UN lackeys are sure to do, they have to come awfully close to us.”
“I’m no geography major here, Josh,” Evan’s wife started to reply. “But McArthur, Ohio isn’t exactly on the beaten path. They have to go through Louisville, Cincinnati, and Columbus to get to Cleveland. We are almost two hours from the capital. What do we care if they have stashed the stuff in Cleveland?”
“It’s a problem when the standard operating procedure, which the good General here left out, dictates that military forces stay off the main road and out of the major cities. When conflicts have arisen in other nations the world over, most assets will bypass urban centers unless their mission calls for it. There are too many places for ambushes and insurgents to hide, so they are avoided.”
“When they sidestep these three populated areas, you’re saying it could possibly bring them to our doorstep?” Basilia asked.
“Well, that depends,” Josh replied.
“On what,” Basilia quickly asked truly disturbed by the conversation.
“It –,” Josh started to answer when Samantha cut him off.
“What he means, guys,” Sam interjected, “Is that if their forces swing south of these larger cities, McArthur isn’t off the beaten path anymore. Route 93 goes right through McArthur and takes them well clear of Columbus. Compounding this is President Sarkes’ movement with said resources. Sarkes is the rabbit that the hounds will be chasing to Cleveland.”
“Won’t he be on-site before they arrive on our shores?” Evan asked. “How do they even know where he is?”
Then it dawned on the group. They were all being watched.
* * *
Layla and her sister were sleeping soundly in their tent when Heather quietly shook them awake.
“What? What is it?” Katherine replied groggily.
“I spotted something and I think you guys should take a look,” she whispered in reply.
“This better be good,” Layla added as she unzipped her bag and began searching for her boots.
Several minutes later the three were dressed and standing outside their tent in the frigid winter air. Once their eyes had adjusted to the lack of light in the night sky, they saw why their sister had awakened them. Off in the distance there was a glow emanating from the other side of the ridge. It was faint, but it could be seen.
“What is that?�
�
“That, ladies, is our ticket out of here,” Heather replied. “I betcha.”
When the three women were unceremoniously kicked out of the vehicles with their gear into the rugged wilderness of the mountains of West Virginia, they were given two instructions. The first was, ‘find your own food’.
They had successfully accomplished that when Heather and Katherine tracked and killed a deer. She taught Heather where to aim and she had done the rest. Layla went foraging and brought back plenty of edible greens. The pair watched as Katherine field dressed and butchered it right on the side of the mountain. With each delicate movement of the blade, Katherine explained what she was doing and why. Heather vomited.
Juan had observed the entire lesson from a distance with a set of binoculars and radioed it back to the others.
The second instruction was, ‘successfully raid our camp and we go home’.
“This smells like a trap and it has Uncle Dallas written all over it,” Katherine said flatly. “There is no way in this world that any of those three would allow that much light pollution. They would have had to have made a giant bonfire for us to see it from here. That, ladies, is a homing beacon for disaster. You two can do what you want, but I’m out.”
Katherine started heading back to the tent when Heather said, “What about some recon? We could just go up and scout it out. It would be like tracking, right?”
Katherine stopped and turned toward her sisters. She didn’t say anything. She was standing there and thinking.
After a few moments of awkward silence, Heather leaned toward Layla and whispered, “What’s she doing?”
She stepped closer to hear Layla’s response when a large smile appeared on Layla’s face.
“What is it?” Heather asked.
“That my dear sister, is what it looks like right before we win this thing and get the hell off this mountain,” she answered quietly.
Dallas took the binoculars down and queued his headset. “It worked,” he said into the mic.
He knew his niece well. If a spark of imagination entered Katherine’s mind, she would work her way through every feasible scenario and permutation until she settled on a plan of action. He couldn’t hear what Heather said to provide that motivation, but it was clear Heather was the muse to whatever Katherine concocted.
The youngest of the group was a natural leader, always had been. Heather lacked the experience and Layla required determination. However, both deficiencies were rapidly changing. Katherine was her father’s daughter. She asked for input effectively, knew what resources were available to her, was decisive, and was willing to take the calculated risk. Her uncle’s had quickly recognized this skill set. The ‘camping trip’ only confirmed their suspicions.
Through his binoculars, he saw Katherine say something to the other two and then they all returned to the tent. Dallas continued to observe.
Inside the tent, Katherine began breaking down packs looking intently for a specific item. Heather and Layla sat on their sleeping bags saying nothing. Suddenly she stopped and held something up in each hand to show them.
“Where did you get those?” Layla whispered.
“Christmas present from Sam,” Katherine replied.
“What are they,” Heather asked.
Her sisters grinned at each other. Katherine handed her one and said, “Put it on and find out.”
Heather inspected the weird device, but did as instructed.
“Now move the toggle forward. It’s between the two eyepieces.”
The world went from dark to light inside Heather’s retina. She could clearly see her sister sitting in front of her making faces at her.
“Whoa!” she exclaimed.
Her siblings quickly shushed her.
“Push the button on the right hand side,” Katherine instructed.
Heather complied and what was once green, was now shades of red. “What is this thing?” she asked in amazement.
“It’s a night vision headset. Complete with thermal imaging,” Katherine replied proudly in a faint whisper. “Okay, here’s the plan. Two of us are going to cut a hole in the back of the tent and sneak out. One of you has to stay here and keep up appearances. Act like nothing is out of the ordinary. Stoke the fire, make rounds, all of it. So who’s it gonna be?
“Heather’s the better tracker, take her,” Layla determined.
“You go next time?” Heather asked.
“Sure,” her sister replied with a smile.
“Now that that’s settled, here’s how we get off this mountain,” she began as she unfolded her makeshift map.
“Where did you get that?” her sisters wondered aloud.
“I’ve been constructing this since they booted us from the SUV’s a couple days ago. Every patrol and each hunting expedition provided more and more intelligence. I think we should take the western route toward the location because it’s the least passable. We could use the cut through to the east, but it’s too obvious. If we know it’s there, they probably do too. If that’s the case, they’re watching it. That leaves only west.
“Why not go straight over the top to the north? The shortest distance between two points,” Heather stated.
“They are probably expecting us to come straight over the ridge. They will have directed their defenses in that direction with a back-up toward the cut through. I think we should swing west of their little bonfire and flank them. One of them has to be observing us so that leaves only two at the camp. We’ll use the night vision to approach in stealth until we see where they are hiding.”
“Then what?” Heather asked her new leader.
“Once we pinpoint their locations, we’ll divide our force and capture their camp from opposing sides.”
“Like the raptors in that Jurassic Park movie?”
“Huh?” Katherine asked.
“That’s how Papaw described a flanking maneuver. One person may be seen, but the others are concealed until it’s too late.”
Katherine shook her head at the analogy and replied, “Something like that. Layla, just stay here and act normally. Got it?”
“Roger,” Layla replied.
“We are going to head out in five minutes. In four minutes,” she said looking at Layla, “I want you to get up, put a log on the fire, and make your rounds. That will give whoever is watching us something to look at besides the tent.”
“How will I know if it worked?” Layla said excitedly, but quietly.
Heather pulled a flare gun out her bag and handed it to Katherine. She held it up to show Layla.
“We’ll fire this thing off.”
“Got it. Good luck guys,” Layla replied and then glanced down at her watch. “Four minutes and counting starting... now,” she said as she exited the tent.
The two snuck out of the tent unseen and began working their way toward the ridge from the west. The rocky vertical landscape made the journey strenuous, but the pair worked cohesively and most obstacles were cleared in short order. The glow in the distance grew brighter as they neared. The bonfire that was once ablaze had subsided. The embers that remained provided enough of a signal to find though.
The sisters sat huddled together several hundred yards away. They used their collective body heat to help keep each other warm while they rested and observed. Several hours had passed since they had seen the initial glow. The sun would be up in a little over ninety minutes. They needed to get the scene scouted and then determine the course of action.
The duo started at the fire and then visually inspected the surrounding area with the night vision equipment. Heather took the sector north of the fire, toward the ridgeline, and Katherine the southern toward the valley below.
“Got one!” Heather exclaimed in a whisper. “Go three hundred yards north of the fire toward the ridge. See that rocky outcropping?” she instructed.
“Yeah,” Katherine replied.
“Now switch on the thermal imager.”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Oh, Uncle
James just poked his head out. He sure is a sneaky one. That little cave he’s in is lit up like a Christmas tree. What’s he got in there putting off so much heat?” Katherine asked.
“Could be a solar blanket,” her sister replied.
With the lull in their conversation Heather added, “Does this terrain look familiar to you? If I didn’t know better, I’d say we came through here two days ago while we were tracking that buck. I don’t think their camp is here. You were right. This was just a diversion. A trap.”
In the excitement of the excursion and finding Uncle James, neither of them had noticed that there was no camp near the fire. Katherine zeroed in on the remnants of the inferno that had drawn their attention and began visually inspecting the area again. She started searching beyond the fire pit toward the east. Over another ridge was a smoke line stretching toward the heavens.
“I think we’ve been looking in the wrong place, Heather. Come back to the embers and go straight over the rise. What do you see,” Katherine said.
She followed her sister’s instruction until they were both scanning the ridge.
“Bingo.”
“Let’s go handle Uncle James and remove him from this equation,” Katherine directed.
The two approached his position from behind, spread twenty yards apart. Before heading towards the outcropping, Katherine scribbled something on a piece of paper and handed it to her sister with some fishing line. She smiled, folded it, and then stuffed it in her pocket for safe keeping.
Heather casually walked on top of the rocky outcropping and lowered the note in front of the opening as her sister closed in from the side. There was a tug on her thin filament as James snatched the message from it. The two giggled once they heard him read it aloud.
“Bang! You’re dead!”
Just before sunrise, Layla saw the flare emerge from behind the eastern ridgeline. “Way to go, sis,” she said as she smiled and calmly began striking the camp site.
Chapter 16
Mama Renie’s Pizzeria and Restaurant sits at the corner of the main crossroads in downtown McArthur and has been the central hub for activity for over fifty years. The matriarch namesake had long since passed, but the family owned operation was a mainstay in the small town. The locals always seemed to congregate there to either celebrate or commiserate with the players and their families after game at the small rural high school.
Hannibal is at the Gates Page 15
