by Dale Cadeau
“It’s out in the motor home in a safe under the bed. I’ll have to show you. I had it built for just the purpose of hiding important documents. I got the idea from the cottage we found Avery’s father’s drugs in. You’ll never find it even with that clue.”
“I know more than just computers, James. I take this as a challenge, lead the way.” Grant got up with James following him as they made their way to the stairs and outside to the motor home.
“Isn’t he on our side?” Jared asked Clay. “Shouldn’t he have just told us to save time and get on with the job?”
“You would think so, but James was the leader of our unit, and likes to keep us all on our toes. This is just a little test to keep Grant up on other skills that don’t include a computer. Don’t worry. They’ll be back soon. Grant might look like a computer nerd, but he is one of the best at spotting clues or anything that doesn’t fit. He’ll find it with no trouble and be back here updating your system in a few minutes.”
Stan and Brad, after listening to the exchange between them, turned to another computer and started a scan of the area. They were only halfway through the scan when Grant came in with a laugh, holding the paper that had the specs on it, with James following behind, also laughing.
“Didn’t think he got soft. It took him a little longer than I would have liked, but he still has the touch,” James told Brad, Clay, and Angel.
“Don’t forget that you have to show me your new toy of a motor home before you let me get into the bedroom, where it was hidden.” Grant sat at the small table and started going over James’s specs, while Angel went over the information that Grant had printed out earlier.
“I think we’re too late for that fancy system update to do us much good.” Jared turned from his computer with a worried expression on his face. “Stan, go up and grab the women. I think we have incoming. And I don’t think they are friendly.”
Stan got up and rushed up the stairs with Angel and James on his heels.
“What the hell is going on?” Clay asked as he walked up behind Jared, who had turned back to his computer.
Grant who, at hearing Jared’s words, went to another computer and started pounding on the computer keys. Looking up, Grant said, his voice also laced with worry, “He’s right. We have incoming. I’d know those military helicopters anywhere. What are they doing around this area?”
Stan and Angel, with James leading, shepherded the women down the stairs and into the basement. The women were talking a mile a minute and seemed not too friendly about having their chat interrupted. They stood in a group at the bottom of the stairs, surrounding James, Angel, and Stan, and not moving. Clay raised his fingers to his lip and let out a loud whistle. “Pipe down, we have a situation here. Stan, get the women into the shelter right now.”
The women stopped their questions and became silent as they listened to Clay. Stan herded the women into the safe room he and Jared had updated for situations just like this. Kissing Janet on her forehead, Stan told her, “Make everyone comfortable. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”
“Can’t you at least tell us what is going on?”
“No, not yet.”
Stan closed the steel door with all the women glaring at him. He felt terrible doing this to them, but their safety was more important than their hurt feelings.
After he had fastened the door, he joined the others looking over the shoulders of Jared and Grant as they watched the computer screens. On it they could see the cabin and two black military helicopters circling overhead.
“What the fuck. What are they doing?” James stood back and looked at the other guys. “It looks like your secure safe house has been found.”
“Why would the army be coming after us? As far as I knew only the Feds and the General had any interest in Laura.” Clay walked to the wall that held an assortment of arms and grabbed a machine gun off the wall. “Well, we better get ready for whatever they’re here for.” After checking the gun, he pulled more off the wall and heaved them through the air at each man, who caught them in hand and started checking them out.
Jared, after checking his gun, looked at James. “You must have tipped them off, and until you two showed up we were safe.” He sneered at James.
James looked up from checking him weapon. “It’s not us. Do you think for a minute Angel and I would bring our women here if we thought it wasn’t safe?” James walked over and got into Jared’s personal space with a pissed off look on his face.
“Guys, we don’t have time for this,” Clay said, striding over to them to try and defuse the situation.
James’s cell phone rang. Looking at the caller ID he stepped aback and looked at Clay “It’s Grace. Maybe she can shed light on what the hell is happening.”
Grant looked up from his computer. “She better do it fast. There are army trucks coming up off the main road.
Gathering back around the computer, the men watched as four military vehicles turned onto the dirt road leading to the cottage. The bells on the alarm system went off and Jared hurriedly turned them off.
The cabin rocked as they watched one of the helicopters still circling above fire a missile at James’s RV, blowing it up.
“Son of a bitch, now they got me mad. I just bought that.” James opened his cell and barked into the phone, “Grace. What’s up? It’s not a good time to talk right now.”
James was surprised when a man’s voice came over the phone instead of Grace’s. “James, are you and your unit caught up in shit again? You never learn.”
“Who the fuck is this? Where’s Grace?” James barked back at the man.
Clay and the rest of the guys stopped moving after hearing James’s harsh words and silently listened to him on the phone.
“Don’t worry about Grace. She was trained by the best and always lands on her feet. She made a great receptionist for you. You guys have really slipped since you left the army.”
“Look, whoever you are, we don’t have time to chat now. Get to the point.”
“Oh, James, we have time to chat. They won’t do anything else without my word. The motor home was just to get your attention.” James could hear the satisfaction in the man’s voice.
James knew who it was.
They were looking for the General, but it seemed he had found them first.
Chapter Eighteen
“You bastard. This is General Brown, if I’m not mistaken.”
“Good for you. At least you haven’t lost all of your army training.”
“Just get on with it.”
“Oh, James, didn’t your seer see it coming this time? What’s his name, Angel?” His voice held a laugh.
Clay walked over to James and grabbed his shoulder, adding his support as he could see that James was starting to lose it. Taking the phone from James, he spoke into it.
“This is Clay, you bastard. Tell us what you want and let’s put an end to this charade.”
“Oh, Clay, the level-headed one. It’s not a charade. You’ll all find out soon enough. You will see that my men have got you surrounded now. If you want this to end peacefully, send Laura or whatever she calls herself now, out. There is no way that bitch is taking me down.”
“No fucking way are you getting Laura. And how did you get the army to do your dirty work?”
“Well, Grace helped, I must admit. She called the army and told them of a terrorist group that Braden security was after, but needed help. Since you still have some friends in the army, and with my prodding, it wasn’t hard for them to come to your assistance. We army men have to stick together for the good of the country.” He paused for effect.
“Go on, spit it out,” Clay said between clenched teeth.
“So, here’s the situation. Either you send Laura out and they take her into custody, or I have the men blast the place. Homeland security takes terrorist groups seriously. They will shoot first and ask questions later. And by then it will be too late. Think of all your friends and their wives. Are you w
illing to take the blame for all of their demise, over one woman? I will give you an hour. I will get the men to back off until then. I’ll tell them we are negotiating. But only one hour.”
The call was dropped and Clay snapped the phone shut. He turned to the other men gathered around him listening to the conversation.
Clay looked each man in the eye. “I think we’re fucked. The army thinks we are a terrorist group. We have one hour to give Laura up before they come in.” Clay wiped a hand over his face. “Sorry, guys, I never knew it would blow up like this.”
“Maybe we will have to give them Laura,” James said as he moved away from Clay and behind Grant now sitting back at his computer.
Clay in a rage grabbed James, by his shoulders, and turned him around and took a swing. “No fuckin’ way are they getting Laura.”
James, who had seen Clay walk toward him, moved his head and blocked Clay’s punch with his hand.
Holding his fist in one hand, James grabbed Clay around the neck with the other. “Hold on, old man. I don’t mean that we would actually give Laura up. Hell, he’s not getting near any of our women.”
Clay took a minute to calm down and for James to release him. “Well, what did you mean? That scumbag is not getting Laura. Don’t even think it. I will take you down, James, any of you for that matter, if that’s the plan.”
Angel, Brad and Grant, who had watched the display between the two men, ready to jump in if needed, walked over to Clay. “Think, man. Nothing means more to us than our women. James wouldn’t let anything happen to Avery or any of the women. He must have a plan in his head. Let’s just hear him out.”
Jared and Stan, who had just stood back and let the guys hash it out, stepped forward also.
“I can tell you’re a team. You fight like brothers,” Jared broke in. “But I think the best plan for now is to get out of here.”
Clay turned a disbelieving look at him. “And how the hell are we supposed to do that? Haven’t you been listening and seeing the same things we are? We are surrounded by the army, and they think we are a terrorist group. They’re not going to just let us walk away. Brown gave the orders. With one word from him, we are all toast. I think we are going to have to fight our way out.”
“Oh, ye of little faith. Do you think that we haven’t thought of all the possibilities that could happen when we rigged this cabin? You’ll see that my uncle was well prepared. Follow me.”
Jared and Stan led the men to the far corner of the basement and stood there with their backs against the brick wall.
Waiting until they were all gathered around, Jared reached above his head to the air vent on the ceiling. Pulling at one of the vent slats, he slid it out of place and reached up and moved a lever inside.
Suddenly the wall moved behind them and all they could see through the opening was a dark tunnel of some kind.
Stan reached into the dark area and flipped a switch. Light lit up the space beyond. Stepping aside, he gestured for the others to follow him.
They found themselves at the start of a large tunnel. On one side they could see golf carts parked as they cleared the door.
“What the hell is this?” James asked.
“Well,” Stan answered, “you didn’t have time to hear all about Jared’s uncle. He was a conspiracy theorist and thought everyone was out to get him, especially in the end. Nobody was going to get the drop on him. He had enough money to make all his wild schemes come to fruition, like this tunnel through the mountains. When we have more time, we will sit down with a beer and I’m sure Jared will tell you all about the black sheep of his family.”
“That’s right,” Jared replied with a grin. “He sure was a character. But right now I suggest we get the ladies and head out of here before they blow the place up.”
“It’s a lot to lose. Maybe we could really negotiate with them and bypass the General. There’s the chance they’ll listen to us,” Clay added, feeling bad about them having to lose all this.
“Don’t worry, Clay, it’s all insured, even for being blown up by our own army. Lloyd’s of London insurances everything. My uncle always said he had to be prepared for when the army would come after him. Well, he was right. We’ll just rebuild,” Jared replied as he walked back out of the tunnel and toward the steel door to unlock and get the women out.
“I’m with him,” James replied and, with Clay and Angel on his heels, they hurried back into the computer room and started gathering up their guns and any information that they didn’t want to get into the wrong hands. Grant grabbed his computer and threw James his remote box. Jared walked over to the computers on the wall and pulled a switch beside them. All the computers in the room blanked out. Next, he walked to the hole in the wall and waited just outside it. He watched as Stan and Brad got the women in the tunnel and the last of the men followed them.
“Wait!” Clay said before Jared could pull the crank in the roof over his head. “We have to ditch our phones. James, that’s how you knew where to find us. And Grace knows about our tracking system. If we keep them, they will be able to track us anyplace we go.”
“Fuck, Clay, you’re right. I wasn’t thinking.” James reached back in his pocket and removed his cell phone.
Clay walked to each of the men and was handed their phone. Taking them over to the computer table, he laid them down on it. When he was safely back inside the tunnel with the others, he nodded his head at Jared.
Jared turned a crank and a cement slab from above came crashing down on the computers, printers, and small tables they had been working on. Jared wiped his hand on his pants and hurried after the group, pulling the last switch after he got in the tunnel, which sealed the door shut.
Laura, Avery, Cyn, and Janet were scared out of their wits and had had enough of the men shoving them around and not telling them anything. When they had been herded like sheep from the kitchen into the basement and the safe room, all of them had been too shaken to demand answers. The men hadn’t even tried to talk to them or explain what was going on. After the cabin had shaken from some kind of blast, they were determined that the men were going to take the time to clue them in.
When the door of the safe room was opened by Stan, they allowed him to lead them into a tunnel of sorts. But when Stan and Brad tried to grab their arms and make them take seats in the golf carts, they stood firm. All the women became dead weight.
Laura used to always stay in the shadows, but this time she spoke up. She knew all this was happening because of her. She couldn’t let the others take the blame for causing a disturbance and demanding answers. Friends didn’t do that to each other.
Spotting Clay loading the back of one cart with guns, she walked over to him and grabbed his shoulder.
“What’s going on, Clay? Tell me what’s happening or I’m going to go back out there and find out for myself. It’s the General, right? He caught up with us. Didn’t he?”
Clay, after unloading his arms full of guns into the cart, turned to Laura and took her arm. He led her to the side of it and tried to get her to take a seat. “It’s not the time to get into it right now. Just get in the cart and when we are safe, I will tell you everything.”
Laura turned when she heard Avery squeal and looked around. Cyn had cornered Angel, and Janet had Jared and Stan’s attention. Avery was held up in James’s arms and was being soundly kissed. Brad and Grant just carried on loading the carts, ignoring the men and their ladies.
Clay, noticed her attention was diverted by the others and looked around for himself. He knew the ladies had questions, but they didn’t have time for them right now. First thing they had to learn was to follow orders and leave the questions for later. Clay put his fingers in his mouth and gave a shrill whistle. Everyone stopped at the noise, but before Clay could say anything the cabin was rocked again.
“Shit, Angel,” James said as he lowered Avery to the floor. “I think that’s your motor home now. It’s a good thing we only leased them.”
Clay gav
e James a dirty look. “We don’t have time for this. All this chitchat will just have to wait. Stan, you and Jared should drive. You’re the only ones who know where this leads. Ladies, if you all don’t want a sore ass when this is over, you will all hurry and take a seat in a cart on your own man’s lap. Let’s get out of here.”
“What about my lap? What about Grant’s?” Brad said as he jumped into the back of one cart. “It’s just not fair.”
Clay glared at him, then picked up Laura, took a seat in the cart, and sat her on his lap. Finally everyone was in the carts so they could leave.
Stan and Jared took off with only the cart’s small headlights to guide them through the passage.
Three quarters of an hour later they emerged into a large underground parking lot. There they found two older-model, dusty black SUVs parked, waiting.
Handing the ladies out as soon as they stopped, the men joined them and all stretched their muscles after the confining cart rides they’d just had.
“This is quite some setup you have here,” James told Jared as he looked around the neat underground lot.
“This is still my uncle’s doing. He wanted a way out. As for there being two trucks parked here, he wouldn’t keep only one. He was too paranoid of one not starting and leaving him trapped. He was eccentric to say the least. Let’s gather our stuff and get out of here and see if we can clean up this mess.”
Laura stopped Clay with her hand on his chest, as they were walking toward the truck. “Where are we going to go, Clay? If the General found us way up here, he’s going to find us no matter where we go.”
Clay picked up her hand and brought it to his lips giving it a kiss.
“Laura, please trust in me and the rest of the guys. We will be able to get the bastard in the end. He’s only won round one and even then we got away. Just leave it to us, OK, baby? Let’s get you in the truck and I will find out from James where we’re going and tell you.” Clay helped Laura in the truck that held the other women.
Closing the door, he made his way back to where James and the others were gathered after they had seen their women safely in the trucks. He heard James curse that their office wasn’t even safe because of Grace’s betrayal.
