The Shadow Patriots Box Set 1

by Warren Ray

  Bassett turned into the driveway. Tall trees overshadowed the entrance, a white farmhouse sat to the left and a red barn further behind on the right.

  “Think anyone’s home?” asked Bassett.

  “We might want to check,” said Eddie. “Hate to see someone come out with a shotgun.”

  They slid out of the SUV and looked around. The place was completely quiet with the exception of the annual cicadas mating calls.

  They grabbed their weapons, extra ammo and binoculars, headed to the front door and gave it a hardy knock. They waited over a minute before deciding no one was home. They headed over to the barn, found a ladder and climbed up on the roof.

  The height of the barn gave them a perfect view of the interstate and they could see the Jijis had moved all the vehicles they had destroyed earlier to the median. The Jijis were just milling around as if nothing had happened.

  “What the hell are they doing?” asked Bassett while looking through his binoculars.

  “Sure aren’t in a hurry to leave.”

  “No, they’re not. What should we do?”

  Bassett remembered Burns’ Sun Tzu quote. “By holding out baits, he keeps him on the march, then with a body of picked men he lies in wait for him.”

  “Yeah, but who's baiting who?” asked Eddie.

  “Only one way to find out,” smiled Bassett as he grabbed his radio. “Badger, come in.”

  With the institution of teams, Bassett, in good fun, had come up with some nicknames for his team leaders. Taylor was Honey Badger or Badger for his short temper and fearlessness in the face of danger. Bassett gave him the name because he had first witnessed Taylor’s bravado when he and Major Green stormed the Shadow Patriots camp back in Wisconsin. Despite his capture, Taylor gave Green such a hard time that Bassett had never forgotten it and always laughed whenever he thought about that day.

  A moment later, Taylor responded.

  “I need you to go on a little fishing trip.”

  “Whatcha got in mind, Twinkle.”

  Bassett shook his head and rolled his eyes. Taylor said Bassett wasn’t even a twinkle in his mom’s eyes when he was out flirting with her as a younger man. It was a silly jibe, but it did make Bassett wonder if his mom actually knew Taylor.

  “Got eyes on Jiji and she ain’t moving. I need you to give her a tease and see what she does?”

  “She’s probably playing hard to get. I’ll see if she can’t resist my charms.”

  “You’ll need a wingman.”

  “Not my style, but if you insist.”

  Bassett put down the radio and looked at Eddie. “This should be interesting.”

  Ten minutes later, Bassett spotted two cars coming from the west. It was two of theirs and they were coming hard and fast.

  “Here they come.”

  Bassett moved his binoculars to the Jiji command center and watched their response. The Jijis became alerted, grabbed their weapons and scattered to take cover. The Jijis had now positioned men on top of the overpass and they raised their weapons waiting for the cars to approach.

  At five hundred yards away, the two cars slammed on their brakes and sat in the middle of the road. Taylor got out of his car and raised binoculars to take a good look. Then a shot rang out.

  Chapter 44

  Winters thought about the Jijis just sitting on the interstate. It seemed odd to Winters that the Jijis were out in the open. They had to be getting ready to attack Jackson. He felt good about the ambush sites they had scouted earlier. They would have the advantage of height and at least, for a while, be able to hamper their movements. It would give them time to fall back and set up another offensive position.

  With that front taken care of, he now had to deal with the cops south of here. He had Elliott stop on 127 and reluctantly walked over to Amber and Reese. He wanted to use them as bait for the cops. He figured the cops were on the hunt for more pretty girls for their party houses. It was getting dark and he didn’t think they would recognize Reese who had been a prisoner at the out of business house in Saline.

  “Hey, could I talk to you and Reese?”

  The two girls walked over to the side with Winters.

  “What’s up, Cole?” asked Amber.

  He looked at them. “I’ve got a big favor to ask and, please, if you’re not comfortable with it, don’t feel any pressure to say yes.”

  He explained his plan to use them as bait and both willingly agreed. Reese, especially, liked the idea. She wanted nothing more than to extract revenge with the cops. After getting the girls’ consent, Winters gathered everyone around and explained his plan to them.

  The plan was a simple one. Amber and Reese will drive one of the SUVs ahead of everyone else. They chose one with dark tinted windows so two men could hide in the back with radios. Nate and Meeks volunteered for that assignment. The rest wouldn’t be far behind. Once the cops pulled them over, Meeks would radio in the situation.

  Winters wanted to box them in so he split his force sending Scar’s team east to the town of Brooklyn and down State Road 50. He sent Burns’ team west on Liberty Road to be able to head south on South Jackson Road.

  He gave Scar and Burns a ten-minute head start. Winters walked over to the SUV where Amber was waiting to go.

  He gave her a reassuring smile. “We’re going to be right behind you.”

  “I know,” she replied. “We’ll be alright.”

  “You got your guns ready?”

  Reese leaned forward from the passenger seat. “Don’t worry about us, Cole, ain’t nothing gonna happen to us with Nate and Meeks back there.”

  “Yeah, Captain, don’t worry,” said Meeks.

  Winters had every confidence in Nate and Meeks. He just couldn’t help but worry about Amber and Reese. It was the father in him. It was just something that never left you.

  Ten minutes later, both Burns and Scar radioed they were in position.

  Winters gave Amber a nervous look. She leaned forward, gave him a kiss on the cheek and reassured him they’d be all right. She hopped into the driver’s seat and took off.

  Winters shook his head and smiled as she pulled away. He looked at Elliott “We’ll give them a couple of minutes.”

  The two minutes seemed to last an eternity as Winters sat in the passenger seat with his arm out the window, tapping his fingers on the side of the truck. As soon as the watch ticked past two minutes, Elliott pulled out. Winters grabbed the handset and did a radio check. Meeks whispered back that everything was good.

  A few minutes later, Meeks radioed again. “They’re stopping us now.”

  Winters looked at Elliott who floored the pedal.

  Chapter 45

  Washington D.C.

  Cara woke up after taking a two-hour nap. She didn’t realize how tired she was, but then remembered she had been partying hard Saturday night with her boyfriend, Jay, and their roommates. Knowing it was going to be her last night with Jay, she had secretly celebrated.

  She lay there thinking about what she was doing and how exciting it was. She was going to become a spy like some movie superhero. She thought about pulling out a gun and holding the bad guy at bay and then slapping cuffs on him, only he’d try to escape so she’d have to shoot him down. The President would pin a medal of bravery on her and she’d become a celebrity. It all appealed to her and she couldn’t wait to get moving on her mission.

  Cara looked at the clock and saw she still had a couple of hours before she was to meet with Lieutenant Wagner again. He was taking her out to dinner tonight and bringing some girl along who was supposed to help her. She slid out of the king sized bed, walked over to the stereo and found an alternative radio station. She turned up the music and danced her way over to the bathroom. She looked in the mirror at her new haircut she’d gotten a few hours ago. She ran her hands through her now shoulder length hair and was amazed at how silky it felt. She hopped into the shower and danced under the multiple showerheads.

  After getting ready, Cara he
aded to the lobby to an awaiting limo in which the driver took her to the restaurant. She walked in and immediately felt comfortable at the laid back atmosphere of the restaurant. Big screens hung on the walls throughout the place, most playing foreign soccer games. Cara knew she’d be able to get a thick juicy cheeseburger at a place like this.

  “Cara, there you are,” said Wagner. “Hey, I like the hair, you look beautiful.”

  “I’m liking it a lot,” said Cara running her hand through her hair. “It feels so silky.”

  “C’mon, our table is over here, CC is already here.”

  Wagner escorted her to a high round table in the corner. Sitting in the corner was a lanky girl about five-eight and maybe a hundred and fifteen pounds. Her fit and wiry physique suggested a confidence that endorsed her striking appearance. Her blond hair was cut short on top and the razor cut sides were her natural brown. She slicked it all over to one side. Black rimmed glasses sat just under her thick dark eyebrows. Multiple earrings decorated her ears. She wore dark jeans and a sheer black shirt that covered a black bra.

  “Cara, this is CC.”

  She stood up and stuck out her hand. “Hi, Cara, I’ve heard great things about you,”

  Cara didn’t respond. She felt shy around CC whom she was in awe of.

  “I’m so jealous of your tan. How long were in you Florida?” asked CC

  “The whole winter.”

  “I bet you had fun.”

  Cara broke out in a smile. “I had so much fun there, partied a lot, and met some really cool friends.”

  “I’ll bet.”

  A waitress came to get their drink order, and then they looked over the menu. When the waitress returned with their drinks, they put in their food orders and Wagner got down to business. He told Cara that CC was going to be her contact and friend here in the district. He then filled her in on Major Green. He informed her that her dad had once taken him hostage and Reed now suspected Green to be helping him. He instructed her on the approach she should take with him. She was to tell him she didn’t believe what the media was saying about her father, that he would never do anything to hurt her mother. The plan was to trick Green into confiding to her and give himself up in the process. If Green asked, she was to say she was staying with CC, whom she had met in Florida, and they had come to town because CC is from the area.

  Chapter 46

  Woodstock Township Michigan

  When Amber reached the intersection of Route 127 and Route 12, cop cars came from all directions blocking the SUV from any escape. The speed at which they came surprised her. Within seconds, the cops surrounded them, pointing their guns and ordering them to get out of the car.

  Amber rolled the window down a few inches. “What do you want?” she yelled out.

  “Is there anyone else in the car?” asked one of the cops.

  “No, it’s just me and my sister.”

  Two cops shined lights through the tinted windows. A dark blanket completely covered Nate and Meeks from view.

  “We’re clear,” said one of the cops with a flashlight.

  “You need to step out of the vehicle.”

  Amber and Reese looked at each other and opened their doors. As soon as the doors opened, cops began yanking them out.

  “Look what we got here, boys,” said a skinny cop with a mustache pulling Reese to the front of the vehicle.

  Reese looked at the skinny cop and remembered him. He had been one of the more abusive ones. Especially when he was too drunk to perform, so he had a fondness for slapping girls around. She called him Jaeger because he smelled of Jaeger bombs.

  “Hell, we won the friggin lottery, look at the racks on them,” laughed one who was sporting a scruffy beard.

  “Damn, hottest ones we’ve gotten so far,” said Jaeger.

  Neither Amber nor Reese put up a fight. Winters had instructed them not to but to be submissive instead. This would lull the cops into letting their guard down. He knew none of them were trained police officers and were only using the position for power and a paycheck.

  “What do you boys have in mind?” asked Amber. “My sister and I wouldn’t mind partying.”

  The cops started laughing and slapping each other on the backs. The bearded cop went up to her and saw that she had a sidearm. He took it away from her and did the same from Reese.

  “Hey, you can’t blame a girl now can you,” said Amber sheepishly. “I heard there’s bad men around here.”

  This lightened the mood and took the cops even further off guard.

  The bearded cop saw more cars coming down the road and ordered Jaeger to get the girls across the street.

  He forced Amber and Reese into a squad car and drove them across the street to an empty building behind an abandoned gas station. The place looked like it used to be a restaurant and had trash strewn about the place. An odd odor hit their senses when they entered. Amber recognized the smell of blood and urine mixed, and remembered the same odor back in South Bend when the men came back with the wounded girls from the sandpit. She had never experienced such an odor before, but she would never forget it. The smell seemed to be coming from the back of the building. She figured there were dead bodies in the back. She turned to Reese and saw an intense look in her eyes as Jaeger started rubbing up against her.

  “Is there anyone else here?” asked Reese.

  “Oh, you want to party, huh?”

  “You bet I do.”

  “That’s what I like to hear.”

  “Do you remember me, Sweetie?” asked Reese as she stealthy slid her right hand down into her boot and grabbed a hold of the knife that Nate had insisted she carry.

  The cop stopped what he was doing. “What?”

  “Yeah, don’t you remember me? I used to call you Jaeger cause, well you know why.”

  He pulled back. “You bitch.”

  He started to wind up to slap her, but Reese had him beat. She jammed the knife right into his stomach. Jaeger’s mouth fell open and a rush of air came out. He couldn’t speak and just stared at her as he grabbed his stomach.

  A half smile formed as Reese clenched her teeth. Her legs were like rubber as the adrenaline began to pump through her veins.

  “How’s that feel, Sweetie?” she asked as she slowly pulled the knife out.

  Blood ran down the blade dripping onto her hand. She grabbed the hair on the back of his head and pulled down. His eyes told her that now he recognized her.

  “I see you do remember. I remember every smack you gave me.”

  She tightened the grip on the knife before plunging it in one more time and pushing him backward. He fell over moaning in pain before taking his last breath.

  Amber stood to the side wide-eyed. She looked down at Jaeger then back up at Reese. The satisfaction on Reese’s face was obvious. It made Amber wonder just what kind of hell she and the other girls had gone through at that party house. She didn’t judge her though. She would never judge her.

  Nate and Meeks lifted the blanket that was covering them and watched through the tinted glass while the cops put Amber and Reese into a squad car. Nate began to move when Meeks grabbed him and told him to wait. Nate slapped Meeks’ hand off and jumped over the bench seat just as a cop got into the vehicle. Nate ducked behind the bucket seat. Luckily, the darkness had kept him hidden. The cop put the car in gear and drove down the street to the back of the same empty building where Jaeger had taken the girls.

  Nate pulled an eight-inch blade from his boot and waited for the cop to stop. As soon as the cop put the transmission into park, Nate sprang between the bucket seats with the knife in his right hand. He whipped it around the throat of the unsuspecting cop.

  “Don’t make a friggin move,” he whispered.

  “I won’t,” answered the nervous cop.

  “Where did you take the girls?”

  “They’re right inside there with the others.”

  “Others? How many others?”

  “Like fifteen or so.”


  “How many are guarding them?”

  “Just one.”

  Nate lightly jabbed the skin of the cop’s throat. Blood trickled down his neck. “Just one huh? You’re a liar.”

  “Please don’t hurt me.”

  “Then tell me the truth. How many?”

  “Okay, okay. There’s two guards.”

  “That’s more like it.”

  “We knew you’d come.”

  “You what?” asked a surprised Nate.

  “You’re the Shadow Patriots aren’t cha?”

  “What of it?”

  The cop let out a chuckle which distracted Nate momentarily. He recovered when he heard the sound of a slight jingle of coins come from the cop’s pocket. He shifted his head and saw the whiteness of his left hand moving across to a holstered weapon. Nate reacted instantly. A quick thrust of his knife was all it took. The cop reached for his bloody throat as he let out a couple of gurgles before he drew his last breath.

  “Damn it, Nate, did you have to kill him?” asked Meeks who had climbed over the seat.

  “The son-of-a-bitch was reaching for his gun.”

  “Hell, he was just getting to the good part.”

  “I know, I know.”

  “If they know we’re coming then we’ve walked right into a trap,” said Meeks as he pulled out his radio. Before he could say a word, he heard gunfire coming from several directions.

  Chapter 47

  As Winters got closer to the intersection, he picked up his binoculars. He grew anxious when he didn’t see Amber’s SUV and the only people visible were cops scurrying to take cover. The cops moved two vehicles to block off the intersection. He dropped the glasses and ordered Elliott to stop. He grabbed the radio and instructed Scar and Burns to move in. He put the radio on the dash and as Elliott slowed down, Winters noticed some movement in the trees to his right. A shiver shot down his spine as he realized his perilous position. Foliage bordered both sides of the road. The cops had the road up ahead blocked off and he had a string of vehicles behind him. The cops had them in a shooting gallery.