“Sorry Mrs. Morse. He insists that you accompany us now.”
“But it takes forever to get in to see my doctor.”
“Please. We insist,” he said opening the door.
She looked around. She thought about yelling but she knew it would do little good in the end. She reluctantly got into the back seat of the car.
“Please buckle up Mrs. Morse. We wouldn’t want something to happen to you.”
To her, even that sounded ominous. They drove to the former CIA headquarters and ushered her inside. She was taken to the fourth floor and placed in an interview room.
Twenty minutes went by before Taylor Spears came in and sat down across from her.
“Please Mr. Spears, I really need to get to my doctor’s appointment. You know how hard it is to get in to see one,” she pleaded.
“Mrs. Morse, I would like for you to tell me all about your meeting with Mr. Walker.”
“Walker? Mark Walker?”
“You know of another Mr. Walker?”
“No, I just meant I never had a meeting with him.”
“What about at the park bench where you sat and talked with him for nearly thirty minutes?”
“I don’t...oh that. No. It wasn’t a meeting. I mean I was sitting there and he happened to recognize me and sat down for a few minutes.”
“So it was purely by chance?”
“Oh my, yes. It wasn’t a planned meeting if that is what you mean,” she professed.
“And you just chit-chatted about things, the weather, families, stuff like that?”
“Exactly. I mean I hardly know the man. It was just a chance meeting.”
“But you said it wasn’t a meeting.”
“I didn’t mean it like that.”
“You’re sure about that?”
“Absolutely,” she replied.
Taylor took a tape recorder out of his coat pocket and laid it on the table. He spun it around a few times and then sat it up so the speaker was facing her. He pushed the play button:
CMA: “You were not followed?”
MW: “Heavens no. No one even knows I am investigating what is going on.”
CM: “That’s what you think. Do you know that for one-hundred percent certainty? Don’t answer because I know you would only be guessing. They seem to know everything. They are listening to everything and watching everyone.”
MW: “You’re talking about the ISS?”
CM: “ISS, the White House, or whomever you want to add. They need no warrants for taps on anyone. NSA is listening into every conversation and if you don’t understand that, you’re not the reporter I thought you were.”
MW: “Easy Cheryl. I’m not the enemy here.”
CM: “Maybe not but you could still get me in big trouble or worse.”
MW: “Worse?”
CM: “One of the people in the White House found a top secret copy of a memo that was supposed to be shredded. It listed some of the duties of the ISS Battalions. What hasn’t been made public and won’t be is that there are three more. Battalion 103 is used as a cleanup squad, Battalion 104 is the removal squad, and a group called FS for Final Solution.”
MW: “What are you saying? What does clean up mean?”
CM: “From what they understood, it means they come in and clean up situations where they need to take out large groups by deadly force. Basically they are killing squads. Then 104 comes in and does the removal of the bodies and takes care of handling the cover story. The FS or Final Solution is for situations where high profile targets need to be removed without arousing suspicion. A Senator whose plane crashes, a sudden heart attack, or any number of things.”
MW: “Cheryl. That’s third world stuff. This is America. That can’t be done here. Someone is yanking your chain.”
CM: “Well Mr. Investigator over the next few months I suggest you start counting the bodies that suddenly turn up dead. I’m sure you are going to see a wave of them, everything from Senators and Representatives to groups that oppose the current administration. Somehow those groups will be eliminated because of some ‘traitorous action’.”
MW: “That’s crazy. The news will find out what is going on.”
He pushed the stop button and just looked at her. She had gone almost totally white.
“Mrs. Morse?” he asked.
“I...I mean, it isn’t like it sounds.”
“Pretty lame Mrs. Morse. Of course it is exactly like it sounds. Did you really think you could just spill your guts to a reporter and get away with it? We have already arrested Mr. Walker. I believe it is time for you to join the others that have been working against the government,” he told her.
“You’re arresting me?”
“Heavens no Mrs. Walker. We are taking you directly to jail. You don’t even get to pass ‘GO’ and collect your two hundred dollars.”
“But what about my family?”
“You should have thought about them before you became a traitor to your country. For heaven sakes, you work in the office of the Vice President. What did you expect would happen?”
She just sat there stunned. Everything she had told Walker was coming true.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
“Taylor I would like a full status report on all activities.”
“Well, not that much has changed since our last report.”
“Really? So you have just been sitting around twiddling your thumbs?” she asked.
“No madam President. I just meant that we have made some progress but it has been just a few weeks so it won’t have changed that much.”
“What I would like, Mr. Spears, is a straight answer. Better yet, a straight status report. How many people are currently in internment camps?” she asked.
He flipped through some papers and finally found what he was looking for.
“As of the last count; 123,450 people are currently incarcerated.”
“Is that number excluding deaths?”
“Yes ma’am. 1,126 have died from one thing or another. Some natural causes, some as a result of not adhering to the established rules.”
“I understand you found the mole in the Vice President’s office. A Mrs. Moor.”
“Mrs. Morse, but yes. She has been sent to one of the facilities in Alaska.”
“Good. A traitor in the second highest office. Totally unacceptable. What about her family?”
“They have been raising a bit of a fuss but nothing we can’t handle.”
“I don’t want you to handle it at all. Ship them off. The entire lot.”
“Yes ma’am,” Taylor said.
“And Mark Walker?”
“In New Mexico at the Monticello facility.”
“Excellent. What about the officers?”
“The military ones who resigned?”
“Come on Taylor. Who else would I mean. Of course I’m talking about them,” she said disgustedly.
“Of the 91 who refused to sign the oath of allegiance to you, we have rounded up fourty-nine of them. Fourth-four are in internment camps.”
“The other five?”
“Killed during their arrests.”
“What about the gangs. Have you made progress on that yet?”
“Yes ma’am. The largest ones in cities like LA, Chicago, New York, and Detroit still have significant numbers. We are no longer trying to arrest them. We are simply eliminating them at this point.”
“Very good. That is exactly what you should be doing.”
“And the Southern Border?”
“The detectors are being installed. They finally arrived. We are expecting everything to be fully functional by next month.”
“You know that we are going to have to close the border to Canada as well. Probably nothing as drastic as a fence, but with stronger border patrols. Once we get the Mexican border sealed, I want us to close that as well. I don’t want Americans slipping out of the country.”
“We will have to get Canada to help if it is going to be really effec
tive.”
“You let me worry about that. You just start thinking about what we can do.”
“What about flights to foreign countries?”
“Glad you asked. Passport regulations are going to change significantly in a few months. I have an entirely new procedure we are going to enact. It won’t be easy for people to either come in or leave. We are also going to initiate a sweep of illegal aliens in this country and deport them.”
“We’re talking about even more people,” Taylor told her.
“Of course. So what? Hire whomever you need and get them trained. We are going to have uniforms that designate one Battalion from the other soon. At some point I would like your input on that.”
“I would be more than happy to.”
“Good. Anything else I should be aware of?”
“Not at the moment.”
“Then get the gangs off the streets so we can start on other things. We are just scratching the surface,” she told him.
****
“Well, what do you think?” Don Casey asked after Thomas, Lincoln, and Lance had been given a tour of the facility.
“Darned impressive. I have to hand it to you, it is not what I expected,” Lincoln told him.
“I know. Most people think of the Militia as a bunch of wannabe solders. That may be true in some places but in this state we take it seriously.”
“I would have to agree,” Lance said.
“You said this was the 2nd Idaho Militia. That implies that there are more. How many more and do you have any idea of the total soldiers you have?”
“There are six Idaho Militia Regiments in the state. There are others that we know of but ours are the six main ones that are all affiliated.”
“Who is in charge?” Thomas asked.
“General Weston.”
“Albert Weston?” he said surprised.
“Yes sir. General Al Weston. We just called him AJ. I take it you know him.”
“Heck yes. He was my adjunct for a while a few years ago. I knew he was sharp. I guess he got out while the getting was good,” Thomas replied.
“He did the same thing the rest of you did. He refused to carry out the illegal orders and just resigned and took off. Like you guys, he has a reward on his head as well,” Don told them.
“I’m just glad he got to safety,” Thomas replied.
“He will be here tomorrow. He is making the rounds of the various headquarters.”
“Outstanding.”
“Is that the young man that was under you at Ft. Benning?” Lance asked.
“That’s the one.”
“Good man. Glad he is on our side,” he replied.
****
Militia General Al Weston stopped the Jeep in front of the headquarters building, got out and stretched. Just as he was starting toward the building Don came down the stairs and they shook hands.
“Long trip?”
“It’s this last part that is the killer. You really have to watch what you are doing. It is a long way to the bottom.”
“Well you’re here safe and sound. I told you we had three new recruits. I think you are going to be pleased with what they can do for us.”
“I’ll take any talent at this point. As you well know, we are pretty thin in leadership.”
“I think these guys can help a great deal.”
“Good. Let’s go meet them, shall we.”
Don led him up the stairs and opened the door. Admiral Bix, General Uber, and General Waggoner snapped to attention.
“Attention on deck,” the three shouted out in unison and saluted.
Weston just stood there with his mouth open. He was seeing them but his brain wasn’t really registering.
“I...I can’t believe this,” he stammered.
“Well you lowly adjunct, you had better return our salute. We are getting tired of standing here.”
He laughed and gave them a half-hearted salute. They all gathered around and shook hands.
“I can’t believe it is you guys. Holy smokes. I’m going to get you for this Don,” he said shaking his finger at him.
“Didn’t want to spoil the surprise,” he replied.
“What a fantastic thing. I just can’t believe it. Are you guys really going to join us?”
“It depends sir,” Thomas said mockingly, “on whether we have KP duty right away.”
“Well I guess we can make an exception this time. Damn, it is so great to have you guys here. Look, I know you are all senior to me and believe me, I have no qualms about turning the command over to you.”
“Relax Al. We are civilians. We are here to support and serve. Who gives the orders is not our concern. We will act in whatever capacity you need. We have all talked it over and the last thing we want to do is disrupt the Idaho Militia,” Thomas answered.
“But you have a lot more experience,” he argued.
“Tap into us when you need us. Put us where you think it will do the entire organization the most good.”
“Wow. What a banner day. I never in my wildest dreams thought I would be walking into this when I started out this morning.”
“We’re glad to be here as well,” Lincoln replied.
CHAPTER THRITY-SEVEN
Mark wanted to talk to some of the men as they came in from working but they shunned him. The ISS planted too many spies to report back on what was being said about them. If it was disparaging in their opinion, the person would often have an ‘accident’ or simply disappear during the night.
“Hi, I’m Mark Walker. You’re Tim right?”
The man just looked at him but said nothing.”
“Tim?”
“I am 9433 and you are 12125. I know of no one named Tim,” he said and lay down on his bunk and rolled over.
Mark tried to talk to several others but the results were always the same. No one was interested in talking with him. Just as he was about to climb in bed, the man on the top bunk leaned over and looked at him.
“It is best to not talk much. You will need your strength for work. No one will talk to you until they are sure who you are. I have already said too much but I remember what my first days were like. Now, go to bed and just do as you are told,” he said and disappeared back over the top of the railing.
Mark had a thousand questions running through his head but it was apparent that he would have to wait. He would do as the man suggested and just go about the job he was assigned. He certainly didn’t need any extra attention. He climbed into bed and was surprised to find himself falling asleep within a few minutes. The last thing he thought was that he would keep a diary of what went on in the Monticello Internment Camp.
****
President Helen Clemons was relatively pleased with the way things had gone the first year. There was still much to do but overall, it was a good start.
Her next two big items on the agenda were the most dangerous but then they were also the most necessary for her overall plan. She would dismiss both the House of Representatives and the Senate when they went on their next break. She would then implement Martial Law to put down any mass civil disobedience. It was critical that the internment camps be ready for the expected influx of new criminals that would try to rise up against the government.
She was still evaluating Taylor. While he was strong in some areas he wasn’t ruthlessness enough for her liking. She needed someone who didn’t worry so much about the repercussions and just got the job done. Excuses were something she simply could not stand. It wasn’t that she didn’t like Taylor; he did have many good qualities but this was just like any other business. You are only as good as your last deed. What you did in the past doesn’t really matter, only what you can do next.
She decided she would draw up a list of potential persons whom she felt she could rely on to go along with her vision.
****
By the end of the year, America was no longer the same country it had been just one year earlier. The Bill of Rights had been trashed. The
re was no freedom of speech as in the past. There was no right to bear arms, the ISS officers could evict residents as they pleased. Reasonable search and seizure was a joke. Maybe as important as anything, trials by jury were suspended. Most of the time citizens were charged as guilty of crimes they never committed. They were simply hauled off to internment camps. Even whole families routinely disappeared.
Soon Martial Law would be declared and Congress would no longer be allowed to represent the people. The ISS would have unlimited powers to arrest, detain and question people at their sole discretion and in any manner they chose. America was becoming a Police State and like always, many would just accept it as a way of life, afraid to create waves or to draw attention to themselves. There would be others who would stand and fight. The heroes of tomorrow had yet to have their names carved in the history books.
PROJECT BLUEBOLT BOOK II
THE
GULAG JOURNAL
Marshall W. Huffman began writing after he retired from teaching. He decided to start with a trilogy based on a cataclysmic event. Marshall’s first trilogy is THE EVENT and consists of THE END, THE BEGINNING, and THE REVELATION. With THE EVENT series’ success, he decided to write a second trilogy. It is a frightening look at the events that could lead to THE SECOND CIVIL WAR. It is made up of: Book I – A NATION DIVIDED; BOOK II – A NATION AT WAR; BOOK III – A NATION HEALING.
He has also published a series of books entitled: the ANGIE BARTONI CASE FILES with a central cast of characters. In addition, he has two another series entitled: THE NORRIS FILES with its own set of central characters and THE LOGAN FILES. He enjoys writing mysteries, techno-thrillers, and Sci-Fi. His other Sci-Fi books THE BRINK – DEEP FLIGHT and CLOSE PROXIMITY are intense techno-thrillers with Sci-Fi intertwined. He has also added BLACKSTAR and CHIMERA to his techno-thrillers.
PROJECT BlueBolt - AMERICAN GULAGS: BOOK I - AMERICAN GULAGS Page 19
