by Bobby Akart
The man had said that the cops and firefighters he knew had opted to protect their families first rather than risk their lives to defend a lost cause. He confirmed to Chepe that looting was rampant in all parts of the city, and those responsible were from all walks of life. Desperation and panic had set in as America descended into the abyss.
“I think we have everything in place, Chepe,” announced one of his top lieutenants, who’d just emerged through the roof access stairwell. He stepped over a series of pipes and half walls to get closer to the undisputed leader of the Black Rose Federation. “I’ve got people posted throughout the building and within radio distance of our perimeter. When they come for us, we’ll know it.”
Chepe motioned for the man to join him next to the parapet wall overlooking the front entrance. “Did you put everyone out there like I asked?”
“Ten-four. They’re already grumbling about the long shift, and all I promised the outsiders is that we’d rotate them inside, you know, to be fair.”
“They’ll be coming for us soon,” said Chepe as he stared up and down Independence Boulevard. He was pensive, trying his best to put himself in the shoes of a distraught father who’d be desperate to recover his child. “I don’t think it’ll be during the day, but we have to be ready.”
“Are you sure the guy won’t come alone? You know, be the great dad and give himself up for the sake of his kid.”
“He’ll bring his wife for sure,” replied Chepe. “I mean, there has to be somebody to hand the kid over to, right?”
“And that’ll be it?” His lieutenant appeared skeptical.
Chepe abruptly turned to him. “Think about it. He knows he’s gonna die. He’ll make the ultimate sacrifice for his kid. Now, once we make the exchange, that’s when the trouble will begin. They’ll risk his life to try to get him back because they know he’s a dead man anyway.”
“What if they try to rescue the kid?”
“That would be real stupid, but I’ve thought of that. First off, we’ll know they’re coming, and even if they were to get into the building, I’ll have some surprises for them. I call it the King Koopa defense.”
“Huh?”
Chepe laughed and slapped his man on the back. “Come on, let’s head inside and I’ll explain.”
The two made their way back into the attic access stairwell and walked down one level to the top floor of the Varnadore Building. It was the only floor in the building that hadn’t been at least partially gutted.
Chepe explained, “King Koopa was the dragon-monster guy who had to be defeated in order to complete the Super Mario video game. I used to love playing classic Nintendo games as a kid, and in order to beat Bowser, or what most people called King Koopa, you had to get through a ton of bad guys and challenges. That’s what I have in store for them if they think they’re gonna rescue their little princess.”
He and the lieutenant walked down the hallway, and Chepe pointed out features of the rooms that would be awaiting any potential rescuers.
“It’s like a maze on this floor,” commented the lieutenant.
Chepe laughed. “More like a house of horrors. They’re gonna have to search each of these rooms after they enter the hallway through the stairwell. We’ll have traps laid for each of them. If they manage to make it to the conference room at the end, they’re gonna be surprised.”
“Why’s that?”
“Come on, I’ll show you.”
Chepe led the man into the large conference room, which doubled as an executive dining area. A professionally designed kitchen was located behind a set of double doors at the rear of the room. It was pitch black inside, as the power was not on and the kitchen had no windows. Chepe reached into his pocket and retrieved his lighter. He used the flame to look around.
“I can’t see anything,” said the lieutenant.
“Good. Now, they’ll probably have flashlights, but they’ll be hyped-up and anxious. They’re not gonna check what’s behind these cabinet doors.”
The lieutenant slowly walked through and opened the cupboard doors above the countertops.
“Let me show you,” said Chepe as he moved past the cooktop toward the end of a long stainless-steel table. He reached a two-door cabinet and knelt next to it. “Dammit!”
They were suddenly thrust into darkness.
“What?”
“I burnt my finger,” complained Chepe, who switched hands and flicked his Bic once again. “Look, check this out.”
He opened the doors, revealing a bottomless void inside. The lieutenant crawled on his hands and knees and looked inside.
“It’s kinda dark down there. Is that a hole in the floor?”
Chepe replied, “Yeah. It’s a laundry chute to a large basket below. We’ll gather up all of our bed linens and blankets to fill it up. If they get this far, I’ll take the girl down the chute and double back to the stairs. They’ll think we were never here.”
Chepe released the lighter and felt his way through the darkness into the conference room again. Once they were back in the hallway, he stopped and counted the office doors.
“What do you want me to do?”
“Gather up eight of your best people. I want them armed and ready to fight. I’ll work with them on how to stage an ambush. If they do attack us, this floor will be where it ends.”
“I’m on it,” said the lieutenant. He turned to hustle toward the stairwell. “Oh, hey, Chepe. Where’s the kid?”
“Nobody will know that except me. It’s better that way.”
Chapter 14
Haven Barn
The Haven
The mood was solemn as the bulk of the Haven’s security team gathered at Haven Barn that morning. A skeleton crew, coupled with drone surveillance, monitored the perimeter while the residents buried their dead. Three men and Ethan Hightower were laid to rest in an emotional scene that left everyone in tears.
However, in the apocalypse, life goes on despite the death of a loved one, and everyone quickly pulled together in order to survive. Alpha gathered up his available personnel, and Ryan had the Sheltons, Rankins, and Cortlands join him at Haven Barn to discuss Hannah’s rescue. Blair, who’d already been working with X-Ray on gathering information, was there with the young man who’d suddenly become an important part of saving Hannah, despite his previous poor choices.
The chatter rose to a crescendo as everyone discussed the events of the prior day. Ryan checked with Alpha and Blair to make sure they were ready to get started, and then he moved to quieten the crowd.
“Okay, everybody, listen up.”
The chatter dropped to a low murmur, and eventually the group gathered in the barn to give Ryan their undivided attention.
“Thank you. Okay, first let me thank you all for keeping your chin up throughout this ordeal. We never expected to get attacked like we did yesterday. Well, at least not that soon, anyway. Sadly, I can’t promise you that it’ll be the last time, either.”
“We’ll be ready for the next bunch!” shouted a woman from the rear of the group.
Ryan pointed in her direction. “That’s exactly right. We learned a lot yesterday, albeit the hard way. As a result, we’ll be better prepared for an organized attack on the Haven if and when that might happen. That’s part of the reason I’ve called all of you in this morning. The next twenty-four hours are critical to our safety and the life of a little girl.”
“Are we gonna go get Hannah?” asked a man in the front.
“Yeah! We need to get her and then get even for what happened!” shouted another.
Ryan raised both hands and motioned to tamp down the enthusiasm. “That’s certainly what we have in mind, but we have to be extremely careful. For one thing, we can’t gut our security here. Hannah’s kidnapping could be a ploy to induce us to weaken our defenses. The Haven needs to remain well protected for the benefit of all our people.”
“What about Hannah?” asked the first woman who spoke up.
“We’re goin
g to put that plan into effect today. It will be carefully thought out and executed with precision. For that reason, I’m going to leave the planning and team selection up to Alpha. He will use his military experience and knowledge of you guys to determine who goes on the rescue operation.”
Ryan stepped to the side and allowed Alpha to address the group. “Okay, I need the following people to meet me in the conference room. Bravo. Charlie. Delta.” Alpha reeled off his top people who had military or law enforcement experience. He also selected six extra personnel to act as drivers and backup when the rescue operation was initiated. They all made their way into the conference room. The Cortlands, X-Ray, and Blair followed them.
Ryan took over once again. “Today and this evening, I’ll be asking a lot of you guys. We’re short of manpower because of the losses yesterday, and the fact that we’ve got to spend a considerable amount of time going over our rescue plan. Everybody will be pulling double shifts until we bring Hannah home tomorrow. I know it will be taxing on you physically and emotionally.”
One of the men spoke up. “Don’t you worry about us, Ryan.”
“Yeah, we’ve got this,” encouraged another before adding the sentiment of the entire group, “You make sure that little girl comes home safe and alive.”
Ryan smiled and said thank you to those who’d keep the Haven safe while the others ventured outside the walls. He addressed the Rankins and Sheltons before he entered the conference room.
“Tom, shouldn’t you be in bed resting?” he asked and then he turned to Angela. “Is he supposed to be up and about?”
She replied, “Yes, as to bed rest, and no, as to up and about.”
“He’s not good at following orders,” interjected Donna.
“I was, back in the day,” said Tom with a grin. “Now, not so much. Ryan, what can we do to help?”
Ryan looked at his loyal team and became emotional. “You guys are incredible. Thank you.”
Angela was the first to hug the man who’d conceived of the Haven and carried the burden of protecting all of its residents. “Don’t be stressed. We’re here to help in any way we can.”
Ryan smiled and thanked her. “Well, I’ve gotta spend the day planning this rescue, and then I’ll be pacing the dang floor while it’s going on. Blair won’t let me go.”
“Good,” said Tom. “I saw whom Alpha chose, and he picked a good team. Your job is right here.”
Ryan reluctantly agreed, and then he assigned duties to them. Angela would remain in charge of the hospital, but she’d check on Tom frequently, who was to stay at Haven House. Ryan asked him to constantly monitor the drone surveillance. He still wasn’t positive that the kidnapping wasn’t a form of misdirection.
He asked Tyler to take charge of the drone brigade in Alpha’s absence. The Rankins agreed that their kids were able to resume their duties, and Tyler jumped at the chance to monitor their activities. Donna was asked to be a roving ambassador, of sorts. Her job was to check in with the injured personnel from the firefight, including her husband. Also, she was to stay in contact with the grieving families.
Ryan believed the first twenty-four hours were critical to holding the group together. The last thing he needed while they were shorthanded was unexpected drama. He’d already dealt with the sheriff that morning when he’d showed up with two deputies at the crack of dawn. Front gate security personnel hailed Ryan on the radio, and he sped down the gravel driveway to address the sheriff. When the sheriff said he’d been alerted to gunfire at the compound, Ryan deftly explained it away as target practice. The sheriff was skeptical, but legally, he had no basis for entering their private property without a warrant, which were in short supply, as no judges were reporting to their courtrooms.
After everyone finalized their new assignments, Ryan made his way into the conference room, where Alpha was laying out the basic approach he wanted to take to rescue Hannah. After he finished his initial remarks, Ryan added a few thoughts and told the group about their timetable.
Ryan was careful to choose his words wisely so he didn’t unduly frighten Meredith and Cort. They were putting on a good front, but he knew they were torn up inside.
“Like Cort and Meredith, I’m very anxious to bring Hannah home to the Haven. Planning and execution are more important than rushing headlong into a firestorm, one that would most likely get people hurt.”
Alpha took the floor. “If we were organizing this rescue through law enforcement or the military, we’d take days or even weeks to get ready. We’d create a mock-up of the building where Hannah is being kept. The teams would make multiple dry runs and then discuss tactics, strategies, and potential pitfalls.”
“We’re not going in there blind, are we?” asked Bravo. The seasoned military veteran was more than capable of taking down half of the anarchists by himself. “Not that I’d mind. Charlie and I’ll kill every last one of ’em!”
He and Charlie exchanged fist bumps. “Oorah!”
Alpha continued. “Under normal conditions, both LEOs and the military personnel would have eyes in the sky, intel, and lots of fun hardware to give them an advantage. We have some things that will help us.”
“Like what?” asked one of the backup security personnel.
“For one thing, we’re smarter than they are, and we’ve got combat and law enforcement experience. The jerks we’re up against, based upon what we’ve learned, are nothing more than a bunch of thugs who like to destroy other people’s property. They’re anarchists who rely upon fear and intimidation to succeed.”
“We don’t scare easy!” exclaimed Charlie.
Bravo quickly corrected her. “Hell, we don’t scare at all!” The two high-fived and adjusted their tactical vests as if they were getting ready to attack at that moment.
“You’re right,” added Alpha. “We don’t scare at all, and powered with the information X-Ray has for us, we’re not going in blind either. Tell ’em, kid.”
Chapter 15
Haven Barn
The Haven
X-Ray sheepishly took the floor. He was timid anyway, and in many respects unsure of himself. After betraying the group and giving information on Cort’s whereabouts, he had a huge sense of guilt plaguing him, making it very difficult to face the people whose trust he’d broken.
He began by reminding them what his initial value was to the Haven—access. He had the ability to look inside the government’s computers. While Blair prided herself on the ability to conduct background research using private investigative tools, by virtue of his role within the Minutemen network of hackers, X-Ray had been given the keys to the kingdom.
“I was able to access the servers at the NSA and FBI, which enabled me to further research records for Charlotte-Mecklenburg County. Can I summarize my findings?” he asked, turning toward Ryan.
“Yes, please. Regarding our approach to the building, however, we’ll need to spend more time on the details of the property and its surroundings.”
X-Ray nodded and continued. “Using the NSA satellite video archives, I was able to trace the attackers by their vehicles. I saw when they came in, and I followed them back to Charlotte after they left.”
“Did you see Hannah?” asked Meredith.
“No, ma’am. Because of the tree cover, most of the grounds around the Haven are obscured. I was only able to pick up the vehicles coming and going.”
Meredith turned to Cort and he hugged her. “Thanks anyway,” said Cort.
X-Ray moved to his laptop and powered on one of the television monitors mounted on the wall behind him. He used the television remote to find an open input, and then he returned to his laptop.
“Right now, using Bluetooth technology, I’m pairing the laptop with the monitor so you can have a look at what I found. Just give me a moment for the devices to hook up.”
The group positioned themselves to have an unobstructed view around the monitor. Within seconds, the screen came to life and an aerial view of the Varnadore Building appear
ed.
“This is an abandoned office building that has been vacant for many years, according to property records. It’s owned by a 501(c) charitable trust that was established by the Schwartz family in the eighties. It has changed hands a couple of times, but all within their vast network of charities or real estate entities.”
“Why would they take her there?” asked one of the drivers.
X-Ray banged away on the keyboard and produced a mugshot that filled the screen. “Because of this guy. His name is Joseph Jose Acuff, also known as Chepe. When Frankie died just after midnight, the last word he uttered was Chepe. I spoke with Delta about this.”
“That’s right,” said Delta as he raised his voice to get everyone’s attention. “This guy was known for his anarchist activities in DC and Philly back when I was on the SWAT team. Frankie had arrested him on behalf of the feds. I didn’t know they’d kept in touch.”
X-Ray walked closer to the monitor. “Chepe is connected to the Schwartz family, the owners of the Varnadore Building. He’s heavily involved with the Black Rose Federation, aka Rosa Negra.”
“I saw their logos in DC and Richmond,” interrupted Hayden. “There has to be a connection.”
Ryan provided some more background. “Based upon my conversations with all of you, we believe that Chepe, using resources and direction from Jonathan Schwartz and his father, has been organizing unrest along the East Coast since the New Year’s Eve attacks.”
“Are they the ones responsible for what started all of this?” asked one of the drivers.
“I knew it! Schwartz is a liberal scumbag. Of course this is all his fault!” proclaimed another.
Ryan’s eyes darted from Blair to Cort and then back to the group. “We don’t have all the facts on what happened on New Year’s Eve, and for now, we’re focused on getting Hannah back.” He paused and then gestured for X-Ray to continue.
