by Warren Ray
Bassett was afraid he’d say something like this. “Still, I need to make sure everything else is up to snuff.”
“Snuff, what the hell is that suppose to mean?”
“That everything is in order.”
Cox’s demeanor turned even nastier. “I don’t have a whole lot of fuel just to give it out willy-nilly. I gave you a car that was full of fuel and you used it all up. That was your allotment.”
Bassett interrupted. “I understand, but…”
Cox cut him off in mid-sentence. “You apparently don’t understand. I’ve got a whole parade of vehicles that have to run across the state in the morning so I’m going to need every drop I can muster up.”
“No, you don’t understand. I work for some powerful people, people who won’t be happy with the way you’re neglecting to co-operate with me.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“No, it’s just that…”
Cox stood up, cutting him off again. “You listen to me you son-of-a-bitch, I don’t give a damn who you work for. I have full authority here and what I say goes.”
Bassett wanted to get away from the man. “Okay, well if you’re dead against it, then I’ll leave it at that.”
“Leave it at that? Really? And just what are you going to do for the rest of the day?”
“Well, I don’t have much of a choice, so I’ll keep myself busy till morning.”
“You going to run and tell your mommy now? You going to call Washington and cry to them?”
“No, that’s not my style.”
Bassett could see that Cox was not satisfied with his answer. The yelling had attracted some attention. He turned to see a couple of cops at the door and didn’t like the looks they were giving him.
Cox waved them in. “I want this man arrested.”
Bassett’s mouth dropped. He turned as one of the cops put a hand on his shoulder. Bassett grabbed it and twisted until the man dropped to the floor. He then threw his knee into the man’s face. Blood spurted on the floor as the man yelled out in agony. The other cop pulled out his nightstick and whipped it across the back of Bassett’s neck. He stumbled into Cox’s desk. More blows fell across his back. He then dropped backwards onto the floor. More cops rushed in and fell on him. They slapped handcuffs on him and pulled him up on his feet. He staggered between the two cops who held him. The blows hurt but he managed to put the pain out of his mind.
“That’s how we do things around here, Mister Washington,” said Cox.
They took him downstairs, threw him into a cell and slammed the door shut. They then bounded back up the stairs and locked that door as well.
He sat down on the bench and wondered if that was his bed as well. There was no mattress, but at least he had a toilet. He rubbed the back of his neck trying to work out the pain, which was now spreading. He considered himself lucky to have received only one blow on the neck. It could have been much worse. The blows to his muscular back were nothing and he soon forgot about them.
Bassett was pissed at himself for letting the conversation escalate the way it had. Words were never his forte. “Guess I’ll never be a politician,” he snickered aloud. Knowing he didn’t have any options, he began wondering what the hell he was going to do.
He moved to the sink and turned on the water. A brown liquid came flowing out. Bassett gave it a minute and watched it turn clear. He cupped his hands and splashed some on his face. He did that a couple of times trying to clear his thoughts. After a few more, he sat back down. As he sat there, he went through the conversation with Cox. The way it escalated so quickly led him to think that Cox did indeed have to answer to others. He thought back on what Hadley had told him regarding this Mordulfah character. With what he had witnessed in those burned out towns, he figured Cox and Mordulfah had to be behind it. Because of the news about Winters, he had forgotten to tell Green about the burning of the towns. It was definitely more important for him to know about Winters, but, learning about Mordulfah, and now Cox, he wished he’d told Green more.
Chapter 35
South Bend Indiana
Dusk had settled on the campus. Winters saw Reese and Sadie come walking back inside with smiles on their faces after Meeks had finished with their shooting lessons. He also noticed Sadie had a holster hanging from her waist. He let out a deep breath at the sight. She came running up, excited to tell him all about their afternoon.
“That was so much fun,” she said.
“Was it now?”
“Oh, yes, it was.”
“I’m glad to see you enjoyed yourself.”
“Meeks gave me my own gun,” she said as she pulled it out, releasing the magazine, pulling back the slide, and emptying the chamber like an expert.
“It’s a Ruger 22, an…SR22,” she turned to Meeks for help.
Meeks nodded. “That’s right, an SR22.”
Winters looked up at Meeks.
“Don’t give me that look, Captain. She got the hang of it real quick. Besides, you never know when she might need it.”
Winters shook his head. He turned to Sadie pretending to be happy about it.
“I know it’s not a toy, and I promise to be responsible,” she said as she put up a pinkie.
Winters took a moment before grabbing onto the gun. It was a black two tone with silver on top. “Just remember, you don’t pull that thing out unless you intend to use it.”
“I’ll remember, I promise.”
He handed the gun back to her and she ran off to show Amber.
Meeks sat down with a slight smile on his face. “Hey, I had my own gun when I was her age.”
“Can she handle it well enough?”
“Yeah, she can. It’s a good gun for her, got a nice small handle on it, and fires real easy. I even taught her how to strip it down. You should have seen how she took to it.”
“Well, I now wish I had joined you.”
“Hmm, kind of glad you didn’t, something tells me she wouldn’t have it now.”
Winters scoffed and gave him a slight smile.
“Reese did a fine job as well. I think the lessons helped take her mind off of things for a while.”
“I am glad for that. I’m a little surprised how she and Amber are handling things after losing their loved ones, especially, Reese.”
Meeks nodded. “Yeah, no doubt. It’s a hard reality for all of us for sure, but for them, I don’t know how they’re doing it.”
Winters thought about it. “Given everything that’s been happening, I guess it’s not too much of a surprise. You just have to accept the reality of the situation and move on as best you can. I can see why they wanted to stay, gives them a sense of purpose.”
“Mix in a little revenge with that.”
Winters let out a breath. He knew all about that. Revenge did have its appeal, one he himself had enjoyed. However, the joy, if you could call it that, didn’t last long. It was a dangerous thing, especially if you let it consume you. He had let that happen in the beginning, allowing his Mr. Hyde to surface at times. Teetering on that line was something he still had to remind himself. He hoped these girls wouldn’t follow the wrong path. He would keep a close eye on them and would warn them if he noticed any changes in their attitude.
“Where’s Scar at?” Winters asked.
“Seen him outside with Bill Taylor. Looks like Bill and his boys had a good day scavenging.”
“Let’s go see.”
The two of them got up and walked outside. They walked over to the parking lot where Scar was chatting with Taylor. The two men were standing by a pickup full of boxes and fuel cans. Winters could see they really did have a good day scavenging.
“Captain, I think we did alright today,” said Taylor. Bill Taylor was the man who had led the Shadow Patriots to Mr. Peterson’s farm when they were on the run from the National Police in the Chippewa National Forest. He was also a bit on the crotchety side. He was the one who had given Major Green sass when he had attacked their camp killing ma
ny members of the Shadow Patriots.
Winters looked in the back of the truck and saw the boxes were full of dry goods, cans of meat and vegetables. “Very impressive, Bill, as always.”
“After hearing about them girls, well let’s just say me and the boys were extra motivated.”
Winters nodded approvingly.
“We’ll all be ready to go hunting for them pedophiles in the morning.”
“As are we, Bill,” said Winters, looking at Scar and the others standing around nodding their heads.
They stood there conversing as the sun was setting, Winters enjoyed the camaraderie of the men and was glad so many of them were back with the group. Some he knew, but there were also a lot of new faces he got to know over the next hour as they shared stories of what had happened in their own home towns. Even though the many names and places were different, the stories of hardship were the same.
After the group broke up, they moved the supplies inside and got something to eat. Following dinner, Winters had Taylor set up a guard rotation for the night.
Chapter 36
Detroit Michigan
Bassett opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. He was surprised to see his watch read midnight. He got up and moved to the sink to splash water on his face. Cupping his hands together, he drank some of the water and then sat down rubbing his neck. The pain from the blow had mostly subsided, but the beating had taken more out of him than he’d expected. He wondered if anyone had come downstairs to check on him. Being a light sleeper, he thought he would have heard if someone had. He then began to wonder if they’d simply forgotten about him.
He heard a lot of movement upstairs and figured they were getting ready to leave for South Bend. He began to get frustrated as the movement increased over the next hour. He saw the failure to warn Winters as his fault, and his anxiety started to get the best of him. Why hadn’t he just stolen some fuel and taken off rather than confront Cox the way he had?
As time went by, he heard less and less movement overhead, but vehicles were starting up and leaving the parking lot. He read his watch: 0100. The cops should be there around 0500. It would be an early morning raid.
Just as he had resigned himself to failure he heard the door at the top of the stairs unlock. Then a man came stomping down the stairs. He stood up to see that it was Hadley, who was approaching the cell as if he was on a mission.
“What’s going on?” asked Bassett.
“Where were you really going today?”
Bassett stared into the young man’s eyes and thought about what to tell him. He sensed that Hadley was not sympathetic to his unit’s mission, and decided to go for broke and tell him the truth.
“I was going to go and warn the Shadow Patriots.”
“You know them?”
“Yes, I do, and they’re good men, they’ve been fighting the actual bad guys.”
“What about all that stuff they’ve been saying about them?”
“It’s all lies.”
“Then they’ll stop the raping?”
“I have a feeling they’ve already been doing that.”
Hadley seemed relieved at Bassett’s answers. He grabbed a key from his pocket and unlocked the door.
Bassett was both surprised and grateful. He held out his hand.
Hadley grabbed it, giving him a firm handshake. “If we hurry we can still warn them.”
“We?”
“I’m going with you, I’ve got my own car out front, fueled up and ready to go.”
Bassett gave him a nod and ran up the stairs. The two hustled outside and jumped into the car. Bassett took hold of the wheel, shoved the gearshift in drive, and floored the pedal. The car tore out of the parking lot.
“That convoy will be taking I-94. We can take Route 12 and should be able to get ahead of them.”
“How many men do they have?”
“A couple of hundred, counting this unit and another that will be coming in from Minnesota.”
“Did you pack us some weapons?”
Hadley reached into the back and grabbed a Colt M4 Carbine. “I’ve got two of these and a couple of nines.”
Bassett nodded approvingly. “Ammo?” he asked.
“Got plenty.” He reached back again for a paper bag. “I thought you might be hungry, so I grabbed some sandwiches.”
“You’re the man,” said Bassett taking a hold of the bag and reached in for a ham and cheese.
They drove in silence as Bassett devoured the contents of the bag. Hadley handed him a jug of water. Bassett looked up and silently thanked God for the intervention. He only hoped that they would get there in time. Not only would they have to beat the cops, but they would also have to locate where the Patriots were staying. It was a big campus and he had no idea of their location. He thought about what their initial moves should be upon their arrival. He would have to be careful and be on the lookout for any cops that might already be keeping an eye on the situation. His other concern was how to best approach the Shadow Patriots to let them know who he was. If no one recognized him, it might present a problem.
Chapter 37
Cox sat in the passenger seat of the lead vehicle. He was in a good mood. Not only was he going to capture the Shadow Patriots, which would give him some notoriety in the force, but Mordulfah would also pay him. He fantasized on just how much it would be. Besides a nice financial reward, perhaps he’d let him have his pick of the harem. He had been enjoying his time at the party houses, but he knew that Mordulfah was keeping the best girls for himself.
He turned to his driver, Alan Millsap, a man with whom he had grown up, and gotten into trouble with most of his life. Neither of them liked sports in high school and had the same contempt for the jocks. They had also shared the same hobby, drinking and getting stoned. Barely graduating, they had both relied on Cox’s uncle to get them on the force. Without his help, they would have ended up working crap jobs. He loved being a cop because the badge allowed him to continue his loose morals while affording protection from scrutiny. It also enabled him to get even with those he thought had wronged him. The list was quite long and continued to grow as time passed.
Once the war started, young men by the thousands signed up to fight, quite a few of them came from the National Police. This left gaps in the force, and Cox, with no desire to put himself in harm’s way, was more than happy to stay behind and take advantage of the situation. With the help of his uncle, he was promoted to be the commander of a station. Cox couldn’t be happier than right now. He was about to increase his stature in the force, which would allow him to continue getting away with most anything he wanted to do.
“How much further?” he asked Millsap.
“We’re an hour away, should be there by five.”
“Good, should be close enough to radio those guys from Minnesota. What was that guy’s name again?”
“Which guy?” asked Millsap.
“The douche bag that’s bringing in the other forces.”
“Oh, that guy. It’s Stiver, Lieutenant Stiver. If I remember right his men call him Junior.”
“Junior, really? Yeah, he’s a douche bag all right. Junior, who the hell would let themselves be called Junior?”
“Probably a faggot.”
Cox laughed in agreement then keyed up the radio. “Lieutenant Stiver, Stiver come in, over.”
After a moment, the radio crackled. “Stiver here, over.”
“Stiver this is Captain Cox, where are you at, over.”
“Not too far out, maybe thirty minutes, over.”
“Don’t be going in there without us,”
“We won’t, we’ll wait for you guys up on I-90. How far out are you? Over.”
“About an hour, over.”
“We’ll see ya in a bit then, over and out.”
Cox put the mic back in the cradle. Those bastards had better wait for us he thought to himself. No one was going to steal his thunder, and if anyone did, he’d take them out personally.
Stiver turned to his friend, Durbin, who sat in the passenger seat. “Who the hell does that guy think he is?”
“Someone who wants all the glory, that’s for sure,” said Durbin.
“With what we went through, we deserve it. Hell, we chased these guys all the way up into Canada.”
“Hell yeah, we did.”
“Those bastards belong to us.”
“Man, they killed our buddies.”
“You thinking what I’m thinking?”
“You mean go in there and grab the glory ourselves?”
“That’s what I’m saying,” said Stiver slapping the steering wheel.
“What if some of them escape.”
“That’s why I brought Jake and Elwood with us.”
Stiver was referring to their two canines. The dogs were the ones who found the trail of the Shadow Patriots in the Chippewa forest and tracked them until a downpour washed away the scent. They lost the scent but got the cops close enough for them to give them an idea the direction the Patriots were headed. Stiver regretted not bringing the dogs with them when they raided the Peterson farm. Had he done so, they would never have escaped. When he received word from Cox, he knew he wasn’t going to make that mistake twice.
Chapter 38
Bassett and Hadley had been racing across the state of Michigan on Route 12, which was a more direct route to South Bend. Parts of the road were in dire need of repairs, but because Michigan ran out of money, they stopped maintaining them. Even so, Bassett liked not having to worry about construction zones or traffic as he flew down the road at over a hundred miles per hour. His passenger was nervous at the speed, but he didn’t care at the moment. He was glad he had jumped in the driver’s seat of Hadley’s car. He didn’t want to be disappointed by having a slow driver and have to tell him to pull over and switch.
