“It’s Sunday. Nobody will be there. Maybe those guys know that and won’t pay much attention to it. We can get in and hide out there while we figure out what to do.”
“Hide out?” Rowdy frowned. “I don’t much like the sound of that. I want to fight these guys!”
“We tried that, and it’s pure luck we didn’t get ourselves shot to pieces. We’ve got to lie low for a little while, maybe find away to get some reinforcements.”
“Well … all right. But I want another shot at those guys before this is over.”
“I’m sure you’ll get it,” Jack said.
Alex sank down on the roof and put her back against the low wall that ran around it. Even this early in the day, the black asphalt that coated the roof was hot under her butt. She wouldn’t stay here long, but she had to get her nerves back under control.
She was on top of Wendell Post’s hardware store, closed down since Wendell had been taken into federal custody a few days earlier. She had been sneaking along behind the building when she spotted a ladder lying on the ground along the base of the rear wall. That was when it had occurred to her the roof might be a good vantage point for her to have a look around. She had propped the ladder against the wall and climbed up, swinging quickly over the lip and staying low so no one down below would be able to spot her as she crawled to the front of the building.
She had just gotten into position when a pickup she recognized as belonging to Rowdy Donovan roared down Main Street. At least two people were inside the truck, trading shots with the invaders, and Alex had no doubt the second person was Jack.
The crazy kids! … Crazy, valiant kids …
She had done what she could to help them, all the while gripped by utter terror that she was about to watch her son die right in front of her. Using her pistol, she had picked off several of the gunmen who were shooting at the pickup. She didn’t care if the killers spotted her, not as long as it helped Jack and Rowdy get away.
But that was the funny thing. With all the shooting going on, none of them seemed to notice the sharp cracks of the pistol from the top of the hardware store. Alex pushed her luck, killing half a dozen of the invaders before the truck disappeared down an alley. She stopped shooting then and listened, wincing when she heard the tortured crash of metal against metal.
The engine of Rowdy’s truck continued its distinctive roar, though. Alex knew the sound of it quite well. The pickup might have collided with another vehicle, but it was still going. The sound of it, along with the shots, gradually died away.
Alex started to breathe again. Maybe Jack was all right after all. Maybe he had survived that foolhardy stunt.
When she saw him again, she was going to have a long talk with him about taking such stupid chances….
After her heartbeat settled down, she turned and knelt at the low wall around the roof, surveying what she could see of the town. Nobody was moving around now. Home appeared to still be asleep in the morning sun, as if no one’s alarm clock had gone off today.
That so-called general, Garaldo, had sent his thugs out all over town to frighten the citizens and seize control. For now, he appeared to have succeeded. Quiet gripped the community.
But it was an uneasy quiet, with a brooding sense of something about to happen.
Nearly a hundred years earlier, Alex recalled from her history lessons, Pancho Villa and his followers had crossed the border and raided a town over in New Mexico, bent on plunder and destruction. She had thought the same thing might be going on here, but as time passed, it seemed less and less like these invaders intended to loot Home. They were here for some other reason, she sensed, although Alex had no idea what it might be.
She couldn’t get to the police station. She had seen how many of the gunmen were gathered there now. That was out. The only course of action remaining open to her was to head for the high school and hope that Delgado had been able to find some citizens willing to fight.
They should have fought harder against letting the FPS take their guns away from them, she thought bitterly as she crawled across the hot asphalt toward the ladder. Then they wouldn’t have been defenseless when those damned cartel thugs came in here.
A quick check of the alley told her it was still deserted. She went down the ladder as fast as she could.
Her feet had barely touched the ground when the rear door of the hardware store was kicked open and men with heavy rifles and automatic pistols rushed out into the alley to surround her. She started to reach for her pistol but froze as she realized that if she pulled the gun, she would be riddled with bullets in a matter of seconds.
General Garaldo sauntered out of the store and smirked at her. “Chief Bonner,” he said. “How pleasant to see you again. One of my men thought he saw someone up on the roof, but I did not anticipate that it would be you.”
One of the invaders plucked Alex’s gun from its holster.
“Come,” Garaldo went on. “We will go back to the police station, and you will be my guest for the momentous events transpiring here today.”
And since Alex wanted to know just what those events were going to be—not to mention the fact that she was surrounded and had no choice—she went.
CHAPTER 41
Jack, Rowdy, and Jimmy approached the high school from the back, past the baseball diamond, the soccer pitch, the tennis courts, and the outdoor basketball and volleyball courts the P.E. classes used. They didn’t see anybody moving anywhere as they approached the back of the gym.
The latch on one of the windows into the boys’ locker room had been broken ever since the past school year. A lot of the guys knew about it, but they kept it quiet so they could sneak in and play basketball whenever they wanted to.
That was going to come in handy today, although Jack never would have dreamed before now that sneaking into a gym could play a part in a war.
“I can’t go in … there,” Jimmy said when Jack and Rowdy had levered the window open.
“Sure you can, “ Rowdy said. “Jack can go in first, and then he’ll help you while I give you a boost out here.”
“No, I mean … I can’t break into the school.”
“We’re not breaking in, Jimmy,” Jack said. “The window was unlocked. You saw how we got it open without any trouble.”
“It’s still … trespassing. We don’t have permission to … be here.”
Jack saw the exasperation on Rowdy’s face, so before his friend could say something hurtful, he went on quickly, “This is an emergency, Jimmy. You know all about emergencies. You’ve handled enough of ’em over the years.”
“Well… yeah, I… guess so.”
“Sometimes you have to bend the rules a little in an emergency, right?”
Jimmy shrugged. “The chief says … we go by the book.”
“I know. Believe me, I know. But I also know she’d want us to get somewhere safe and out of sight, so those bad guys can’t get us.”
“Yeah, that’s … true.” Jimmy sighed and nodded. “All right, but it’s … high. I don’t know if I can climb in.”
Rowdy slapped him on the shoulder. “Sure you can, buddy. Like I said, we’ll help you.”
It took a few minutes, but all three of them managed to get inside. Jack felt better right away because of the familiar surroundings, and because they weren’t out in the open where they could be spotted easily anymore.
“We’ll go to the library,” he said. “That’ll give us a good view of the front of the school. We’ll be able to see if anybody’s coming.”
Rowdy had brought the deer rifle from the pickup. “Yeah, maybe we can pick ’em off.”
“We don’t shoot unless we have to,” Jack said. “That’ll just draw attention to us.”
“Don’t you want to kill as many of those bastards as we can, Jack?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I do.” And Jack was surprised to realize he was telling the truth. He had never considered himself a really violent person, but those guys had come into his town and sho
t it up and killed God knew how many people already. Yeah, given the chance, he could pull the trigger on any of them.
Hell, yeah.
With all the lights off, the hallways of the school were dim and shadowy and kind of spooky. Jack had never seen them this empty. Their footsteps echoed hollowly as they made their way through the wings of the sprawling building to the area where the administrative offices and the library were located. The library had several big windows that looked out over the front of the school.
The library doors might be locked, Jack thought, but they would force their way in if they had to.
When they reached the double doors that were half-glass, Jack grasped the handle of one and pulled. It opened easily. That was a relief. With everything that had gone wrong so far today, it was only fair that something go right for a change.
He went in and half-turned to motion for Rowdy and Jimmy to follow him. The door swung shut behind them as they came in.
Someone lunged out of the shadows between some sets of shelves, tackled Jack, and drove him to the floor, knocking the air out of his lungs and stunning him.
Eloise was still alive. That was something to be thankful for, anyway, Alex thought as she was prodded through the police station at gunpoint. Eloise had been tied into her chair at the dispatch station. Her face was pale and tear-streaked, and when she saw Alex, she exclaimed, “Oh, my God! Alex, they got you, too?”
“Yeah, I’m afraid so.”
“What about Clint? Have you see him? Do you know if he’s all right?”
Alex could only shake her head and say, “I don’t know. I haven’t seen him.”
Sounding amused, Garaldo asked, “Who is this Clint?”
“One of my officers,” Alex grated.
Garaldo shrugged. “Then he is probably dead. We have killed all of them we have found, except for you, of course. Four men and a woman.”
Eloise began to sob, and Alex felt her stomach clench in horror at the casual way Garaldo talked about murdering her officers.
But Garaldo had said four men and a woman. The woman was poor Betsy, of course, but there were five male officers in Home, counting the two reserves. Alex was sure that Lester and Antonio would have tried to reach the station when the trouble broke out, only to run into Garaldo’s killers.
That left one man unaccounted for. There was really no way of knowing who it might be, but Alex hoped it was J. P. Delgado. Then she felt an immediate twinge of guilt, because if Garaldo was telling the truth, and if Delgado was alive, that meant Clint Barrigan was dead and Eloise was a widow.
But it was possible none of them would survive this bloody Sunday, she reminded herself. Highly likely, in fact.
Garaldo had her taken on into her office. Hands pushed her down into a chair in front of the desk, while Garaldo himself went behind the desk and sat down in the comfortable old leather chair. He drew his pistol, a heavy Colt.45 automatic that looked like U.S. Army issue, and laid it on the desk in front of him. Then he made a shooing motion with his hand. The men who had brought Alex in withdrew, closing the door behind them.
She was alone with the general now. She gauged the distance between them and tried to figure the odds of her being able to grab that gun before Garaldo could pick it up and kill her.
Of course, even if she was successful, the men in the other room would just rush in and shoot her to pieces.
“You probably are wondering why I don’t simply kill you as we have killed the rest of your police force,” he said as he pushed his campaign cap to the back of his head. He was a stocky, ugly man with the very dark skin, hair, and eyes that said he had a lot of Indian ancestors in his background. “I’ve given orders that as many of the city leaders are to be left alive as possible. The citizens will remain calmer if they know the mayor and the police chief are cooperating with us.”
“I’m not cooperating with you,” Alex pointed out. “I’m your prisoner.”
Garaldo inclined his head. “True, but in a little while you’ll be coming with me. We will drive around town, and using the speaker on my vehicle, you will tell the people to stay in their homes and not cause any trouble. When we have what we want, we will leave and no one else will have to be hurt.”
“What do you want?” Alex asked. “Why have you and your men invaded my town?”
“Your town,” he repeated with a grin. “I like that. I would feel the same way if I were in your position, Chief.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“And why should I? I am in charge here, not you.” Garaldo shrugged. “But what can it hurt? We have time … time to kill, as the old saying goes. The shipment will not be here for several hours yet.”
“Shipment?” Alex frowned. “What sort of shipment? Drugs? One of the other cartels is bringing through a big load that you’re going to hijack?”
Garaldo put his head back and laughed. “This goes far beyond drugs, Chief Bonner. What we are after today is nothing more or less than destiny.” He clenched a fist and thrust it out in front of him. “Destiny! For Rey del Sol, and for me, and for all of Mexico! Destiny, in canisters not much bigger than a tank of oxygen….”
And as Alex listened in horror, General Jose Luis Garaldo continued to talk.
“Hang on to him! Get his gun! Don’t let him up!” “Then help me, for God’s sake!” Jack fought back wildly as the men yelled and grappled with him. Then a woman screamed, “Look out for the others!”
Jack heard a grunt, and the weight that was on top of him went away. Chairs toppled over with a clatter and a crash. A face loomed over Jack, and he struck instantly, driving his fist into it. The man rolled away, groaning in pain.
Jack scrambled to his feet. He saw Rowdy wrestling with another man next to one of the library tables. A pretty woman with disheveled blond hair grabbed one of the overturned chairs and lifted it like she was going to hit Rowdy with it.
“Jimmy, grab her!” Jack said. “Don’t let her hurt Rowdy.”
Jimmy did as he was told, looping one arm around the woman’s waist from behind and grabbing the chair with his other hand. She screamed again as he lifted her off the floor.
With clenched fists, ready to continue the fight, Jack swung toward the first man who had tackled him. That man had made it to his knees. He held up his hands, palms out, and yelped, “Hey, no more! Take it easy, compadre! I think there’s been a mistake made here.”
A surge of surprise went through Jack as he realized the man looked familiar. A second later, he placed the face from various newcasts. This was Clayton Cochrum, that scumbag lawyer who had represented Emilio Navarre.
And the blonde was a TV reporter. Jack remembered seeing her, too. He didn’t know who the other guy was, but obviously not one of the army of thugs that had invaded Home this morning.
“Rowdy,” Jack said. “Rowdy, take it easy. I think we’re all on the same side.”
Cochrum struggled to his feet. “There you go, kid. You’re thinking straight now.” He took hold of his chin and wiggled his jaw back and forth, wincing as he did so. “Damn, you pack a hell of a punch for a youngster.”
“You’re the one who jumped me, mister,” Jack said coldly.
“We thought you were some of those … those killers. The ones who blew our helicopter out of the sky.”
“I saw … that,” Jimmy said.
The reporter twisted and slapped at him. “Put me down, you big oaf! What the hell’s wrong with you? Are you retarded or something?”
“I have … Down Syndrome.” Carefully, Jimmy put the woman back on her feet. “I’m sorry.”
Jack said, “You don’t have anything to apologize for, Jimmy. She would’ve hit Rowdy with that chair if you hadn’t stopped her.”
“So who’s this guy I’m sittin’ on?” Rowdy asked from the floor. “Do I let him up?”
“He’s Wilma’s cameraman,” Cochrum explained.
“Yeah, let him up, Rowdy,” Jack said. “What are you people doing in here?”
“Trying to stay alive. What about you?”
Jack shrugged. “Same thing, I guess.”
Rowdy stood up. The cameraman climbed to his feet and glared at him.
Cochrum said, “After those guys shot down the helicopter, we figured they might come looking for us, so we ran around the school and broke a window. That let us into the kitchen. From there we came up here so we could keep an eye out through the windows. Nobody’s come poking around, though, until you kids.”
“They probably figured you were all on the helicopter,” Jack said. “And we’re not all kids. Jimmy there is a grown man. In fact, he’s one of the dispatchers for the police department.”
“Really?” Cochrum looked at Jimmy. “What are the cops doing to stop those crazy killers?”
“I don’t … know. We can’t find the … chief. She’s Jack’s mom.”
Cochrum turned his attention back to Jack. “You’re Chief Bonner’s son?”
“That’s right. We tried to get to the police station, but there were too many of them for us to get through. We retreated here.”
“You’ve got guns,” the reporter said. “Nobody in Home is supposed to have guns.”
Jack frowned. “Well, lady, you’d better hope that we’re not the only ones, because if we are, there’s a good chance none of us will live to see the sun go down today.”
He might have said more, but at that moment, voices sounded somewhere outside the library, echoing in the school’s deserted hallways. Jack held up a hand and whispered, “Somebody’s coming!”
CHAPTER 42
Since it seemed likely that whoever was responsible for the roadblocks would have all the routes into Home closed off, Ford, Parker, Earl, and Callahan abandoned the pickup and approached the town on foot. Ford, Parker, and Callahan were armed with pistols and rifles. Reluctantly, Ford had even given Earl a pistol, warning him, “If you shoot me, I’ll never forgive you.”
“I’ll try not to, but you’re an awfully big target,” Earl had said.
Callahan had done enough hunting in his life to know how to move across the landscape undetected. So had Ford and Parker, but they had been hunting men, not wild game.
Home Invasion Page 24
