A Tommy Logan Story
Page 21
“Where are you?”
“Grundy ASA.”
“Stay there. I’m about to lift off with a unit, we’re coming straight there.”
“I can’t stay long,” I mumbled.
“Why?” he asked. “It’s done. You’ll be named a national hero with Wellis’ testimony.”
“He played me… Goddammit, he played me.”
Concern overtook Johnson’s voice. “What do you mean?”
“The whole time, he had his cell on. A call to some encrypted number. He mentioned my name and specifically mentioned Shey and Sara. I’ve got to get to them before they do.”
“Logan, this country is under a state of emergency. The largest mobilization of our armed forces in history is happening right at this very moment. Every branch, every soldier, sailor, airman, marine, guard, reserve, you name it. Even the coast guard. Where are they, we can get to them much faster.”
“Florida.”
“Where at in Florida?” he asked.
“I don’t know exactly. I thought it best to not know specifics.”
“We’ll make the whole state a priority. We’ll find them.”
“Thank you, Sir.”
“Thank me by staying put until I get there.”
“I will.” I hung up the phone and slid it into my pocket. Robins’ chair sat at the smaller table at the back of the conference room. I thought I’d join him, so I pulled up a chair. My backpack plopped on the ground beside me. “Robins, wake the fuck up.” He remained unconscious until I delivered a smack across his face. Robins roused around, trying to speak before he realized his mouth was taped shut. “You’re going to listen and not make a peep, understand?” Robins nodded his head. The green faced watch Shey had bought me ignited. “May 25th, 2026,” I said. My hands dug into my sweatshirt pocket for my smokes. I lit a cigarette and tossed the worn pack onto the barely lit table. “Almost a year now, I think I can tell my story now … Her story.” I pulled my mini-cassette recorder from my bag and all the blank tapes I had. Ratliff’s tape was set to the side. “Check… Check… Check…” I spoke into the recorder. I played it back, verifying it worked. “July 27th, 2025 seems a fitting place to begin…”
A Nation Shaken
Logan lit his last cigarette. A haze of smoke clouded the room. With an exhale, Logan blew smoke over Robins’ attentive face. “This all started as a search to bring my sister’s killers to justice.” Logan took another draw, once more exhaling on his former commander. “It couldn’t be that simple. It couldn’t just be some bad guy that I could find and put down.” The cigarette burned brightly with yet another drag. “My sister died for this. No telling how many more have died before her. Maybe the good book was right? Money is the root of all evil. That’s what all this was about, right? Money?” Robins groaned through the tape, shaking his head. “Or was it power? It doesn’t matter. You’ll all pay, now.” Logan stood, flicking his cigarette on the floor. Reaching over, he hit stop on the mini-cassette recorder. A stack of tapes labeled by date sat on the table. Off to itself was one tape labeled “Ratliff”.
Logan drew his sidearm and aimed it at Robins’ head. “You know why I have to do this? You made me. I can’t walk away. I can’t let go. You took my sister, but that wasn’t enough. You tried to take everything and everyone I loved.” Logan quickly stepped around the table and pushed his weapon to Robins’ head. “That’s what you caused!” he screamed. Robins muffled sobs were paired with the seeping tears from his eyes. The Commander was all that was left in Logan’s quest for vengeance. “All this time, I’ve told myself I had to do the right thing. But now, I know this was for me too. It wasn’t just for Angel, Shey, or the life you took from me and Sara. It was for me. The satisfaction of killing you all.”
The roaring sound of a chopper’s rotors loomed over the agency building. Moments later, the sound of military personnel storming the lobby could be heard. Logan put the gun to Robins’ head. “It’s over…” The crack of the thundering gunshot echoed through the agency building. Logan stared down on the bloodied remains of Robins’ head as the sound of the door being kicked open entered his ears. Flashlights poured into the room while Logan slowly turned his head.
“Drop the weapon!” screamed a soldier. Logan tossed the weapon on the ground and turned to face the soldier. The room was full of Army personnel in full kit.
“Put your hands behind your head! Now!” commanded the soldier.
Before Logan could react, Colonel James Johnson entered the room. “Stand down, soldier!” he commanded. The soldiers lowered the weapons as Johnson approached Logan. “You’re wounded.”
Logan glanced at his shoulder, then back to Johnson. “It’s a graze. I’ll be fine.” Logan looked to the corner of the room to the restrained Senator Wellis. “There’s Wellis, alive and well.”
“You’ve done good, Logan.” Johnson rested his hand on Logan’s right shoulder. “You’ve made your country proud, but you’ll need to appear before a Military Tribunal with the President as its head.”
“Am I on trial?”
“Not if I have to say anything about it. The Secretary of Defense has also ordered me to reinstate your commission, effective immediately, Captain.”
Logan took a deep breath as he glanced around. He shook his head and stepped away, walking towards the exit of the conference room. “Not interested, Sir. I’m done with war.”
“Logan, you’ll still have to appear.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll show up.” Logan pulled out his phone. “Everything that happened is on those tapes. Everything I did and why.”
Johnson looked down at the table. He picked up one of the dated tapes and studied it, then Ratliff’s tape. “Logan?” Logan was gone.
Logan walked out of the agency building, dialing a number on his phone. It rang repeatedly until a familiar voice answered. “Uncle Tommy?”
“Hey, Shey. It’s over.”
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine, are you and Sara alright?”
“We’re fine, just staying inside. The military is all over the place outside, I even think I’ve heard some gunfire.”
“Stay inside. Where are you?”
“Clearwater.”
“I’m on my way. Put Sara on the phone.”
A few moments later, a smile crept across Logan’s face as Sara’s sweet voice entered his ears. “Tommy?”
“I told you I’d keep my promise.”
About The Author
Darren D. Lee is an author from Southwest Virginia. After six years as a member of the United States Armed Forces, he now resides with his family nestled deep within the Appalachian Mountains. When Darren isn’t writing, you can find him on a riverbank, or behind the wheel at the race track. Darren has overcame many dark and troubling times. In his writing, he tries to convey that hope can lift even the darkest veil.
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