Chapter Three
By the time the sun started going down, the group inside the shop were frustrated beyond any sort of reason. They’d all searched through the papers Wyatt brought back with him, to no avail. Not a one of them could figure out what the papers meant.
Most of the pages were nothing but broken lines, while some had a border and some did not. The other papers seemed to be a list of sorts but no one could figure out how to decode it. Someone had ordered pizza for a late lunch around three but it was now going on seven and tempers were getting frayed.
Trudy sat back in the corner of the room just watching everyone. Her dogs were laying on either side of her sleeping and no one else had bothered her for a long time.
Finally, Dewey suggested, “Let’s quit for the night. Everyone can get some sleep and we’ll start again, in the morning with a clear mind.”
Everyone groaned and grumbled but they all filed out to go to their own houses.
Trudy sat there alone for the first time all day. They’d forgotten she was even there and she had to smile at the irony of it all. Dewey insisted she stay, then he forgot she was even there. It suited her just fine. She made herself comfortable and fell asleep for a while.
When she woke up it was to complete darkness. Someone had closed the big front doors and shut off all the lights. Glancing at her watch, she noted it was close to one in the morning.
She got up and stretched. The dogs stayed on the floor and after watching her for a few minutes, they rolled over and went back to sleep. Trudy went over to the main door and snapped on the lights. She wandered over to the table and glanced at the stack of papers left there. Like everyone else, they didn’t seem to mean anything to her. Then something clicked inside her brain and she began to see a pattern forming.
By three a.m., she began laying the pieces to the puzzle out on the floor. A little while later, the puzzle was complete. Trudy stood and stared at it for a moment then taking a few steps back, she sat down. Bringing her knees to her chest, she sat there and stared at the puzzle.
When she heard footsteps outside and the screech of the doors opening, she turned her head as Dewey came in.
“Oh shit, I forgot you were even here.” He ran his fingers through his hair. The sight of her seemed to startle him when he walked through the door. Then his eyes moved to the floor and they widened as he took in the papers resting there. “What the fuck is this?” Moving closer, he could see the outline of the United States map. It was the inside where several states were missing that concerned him. States like California, most of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Georgia and other states were just gone. The United States lay in pieces with huge chunks of the land missing. “What is all this?”
“This is what your guy Patrick has in mind. This is his master plan,” Trudy whispered.
Dewey turned to stare at her. “But how can anyone do this?”
“I’ve decoded some of it,” she explained wearily. “But I need more time to finish.”
“You work on that while I tape this map together. I don’t want to lose any part of it.” Dewey nodded.
Trudy went back to the table and picked up where she’d left off a few hours ago. The code was well hidden but she had cracked it around two this morning after she’d finished the map. She didn’t see Dewey call in the others, nor did she notice when they began gathering a short time later.
She startled when someone put a cup of coffee near her. Glancing up, she found Parker’s face close to her own.
“I’m sorry we forgot you last night,” he said quietly. “Things got very tense before we called it a night.”
“No worries.” Trudy shrugged.
“So what’s with the map you found? What does it all mean? And how the fuck did you find it?”
“I found a common pattern and followed it through. It took me some time to find it but I did.”
“What about the rest of this mess? Can you make any sense of it?” Parker asked.
“I am making progress. I think I know the how, I just don’t know the why.”
“That doesn’t matter at this point,” Dewey interjected her as he and Stone joined them. “All that matters is we find out how to stop this.”
“You have more at stake than just what’s happening here,” she announced.
“What more?” Cade asked from across the room. “What could be worse than this?” He motioned at the wall where Dewey had taped the map of the broken United States.
“There are two other cells in strategic places waiting for the signal to take out the leading military personnel we’ll need to stage a comeback from what will be the worst terrorist attack in our history,” Trudy informed them. “Not only will many thousands die on our own soil, but our leading military men and women will die by ambush on foreign soil.”
“How do you know that?” Cade asked.
Trudy handed Dewey a couple pieces of decoded pages. “This is a list of military personnel in the Middle East at the moment. To lose them would seriously cripple our defenses. They are all targets.” She handed him another piece of paper. “This list hit a little closer to home. It was a list of six names, their own names, along with their family members” She pointed at a third page. “This is another list. People he’s going to personally take out.”
Dewey passed the paper to Parker who passed it to the others. “Did you find out when all of this is going to happen?”
Trudy nodded. “December 31 at the beginning of the ten second countdown of the dropping of the ball in Times Square.”
“How does he hope to break the nation in half?” Parker asked. “That would take more than he’s got to do that.”
“Not really.” Trudy shook her head. “From what I was able to decode so far, he has been here long enough to bury several high test bombs along the New Madrid Fault line. Some of these bombs have been buried for years just waiting for the right code to be activated.”
“Are you fucking serious?” Colten asked with a stunned expression on his face.
Trudy nodded. “He and his team have been working with drilling companies before he joined the service. He’s older than he appears. He has a frac drilling background, along with a military one. At least on paper, he’s very knowledgeable.”
“Fuck me,” someone whispered loudly.
“So if he places bombs along the fault and sets them off, that alone with crack our nation?” Dewey asked.
“It will start a chain reaction. States will crumble and when the crack is wide enough with nothing to hold it in place, the San Andreas Fault will give way, crashing California into the ocean, leaving the western states in peril. Some of them will not survive with no borders to hold them in place,” Trudy informed the group quietly. “But before all that can happen, Patrick plans on hunting each of you down and taking you out. He feels you all betrayed him.”
Dewey took a deep breath. “Okay, today is the twentieth of December, we have eleven days to find this prick and stop him.” He turned to Wyatt and Alea. “Did you hear anything about when he was coming back here?”
“He got here three days ago, according to his timeline. That’s why I couldn’t wait to get ahold of you.” Wyatt answered. “I had to take a chance that someone could get to you before Patrick showed up.”
“Alright, first we need to get ahold of the military over in the sandbox and put them on alert,” Dewey made the announcement. “Right now, we have the element of surprise on our side. They don’t know we know yet. That should give them some time to set up protection for those on the list. Then we can begin our search for the bastard before he finds us.”
“What about the bombs?” Parker asked. “What do we do about them?”
“I don’t know. We don’t have enough men to cover all of it,” Dewey admitted. “Not even with Stone’s men. We’re going to need some help with this mission and right now, I don’t know who to call.”’
“I could call in some friends if you need manpower,” Trudy offered softly.
Dewey and the others turned to stare at her. “What are you talking about?”
“I have some very good friends who love this country just the way it is. I could get them to help track down and deactivate the bombs.”
“How many men are we talking about?” Stone asked.
“As many as you need.”
Dewey weighed the offer then he looked at his men and they nodded one at a time. They knew they couldn’t do this alone. Glancing at her, he nodded. “Make the call.”
Trudy got her cell phone out and dialed a number. A few minutes later, she told them, “They are on the way.”
“Who are these guys?” Parker asked.
“They call themselves the Crimson Tide but in reality, they are vets just like you.” Trudy explained. “They have fought in wars no one wanted and came home to a government that let them down but they all still believe in this country. They, like you, won’t let this happen and they will die before they allow it.”
“How long will it take them to get here?”
“Maybe an hour or so, they have to come from Louisiana.”
“That should give us enough time to get things set up,” Dewey said. “We’re going to need a place for them to stay and some food around here.”
“I’ll run to the store,” Cade offered.
“We can set up some cots here in the shop,” Jake suggested. “Depending on how many actually stay.”
A little over an hour later, the whole group was startled to hear the roar of motorcycle engines. The air filled with the growls of the machines as the men made their way to the foreyard of the compound. The street beyond the gate was filled with all types of cycles as the dozen or so men beyond the gates waited for it to open.
“Holy shit,” Colten swore. “These guys are your friends?”
Trudy grinned. “Yup, they are my friends.”
Dewey walked slowly toward the gate and when he got there, he caught the eyes of the president of the group. The man revved his engine as he waited. When the gate was opened enough to get his bike through, the man slipped in. One by one, they all came in. The head man parked his bike in front of the shop and swung his legs over his bike. Standing, he was a big man, six foot three inches of pure muscle. His hair was slightly grey and brushed back off his forehead. His cut was made from black leather and his name was embroidered across the back.
“Boomer,” Trudy yelled as she ran toward him.
Boomer turned and held out his arms. When she ran to him, his arms tightened around her. He lifted her off her feet and laughed. “How the hell are you, baby girl?”
Trudy grinned. “I’m doing okay, old man.”
Boomer set her back on her feet and watched as his men got off their cycles and waited.
Trudy turned and grabbing Boomer’s hand, she walked over to Dewey and Stone. “Boomer, I want you to meet Captain Dewey Mann and Colonel Stone Masterson and their men. They need some help.”
Dewey stared at Boomer for a long minute before he held his hand out. “Navy SEAL team, Special Forces team 111, Iraq.” He jerked his thumb to Stone and whispered loudly, “He’s Marine but don’t hold it against him. He’s one of the best.”
Boomer laughed. “Army Rangers, sniper squad, Desert Storm.” They shook hands. Boomer looked a little surprised at the strength behind the grip Dewey had. Raising an eyebrow he asked, “What can we do for the SEALS, Captain and the US Marine Core, Colonel?”
“Maybe we should take this inside,” Dewey offered as he motioned to the door.
Boomer and the others followed Dewey and Stone back inside the shop. The first thing Boomer saw was the map Trudy had discovered. He and the other men he brought with him gathered in front of it and studied it carefully.
Boomer turned and found Trudy. He didn’t want to talk to anyone but her. Motioning her to the side of the group he asked, “What the fuck is this, baby girl?”
“This is what they need your help to stop.” Walking toward him, she took his hand and motioned to the map. “There is someone out there who has bombs planted along the New Madrid fault line. The bombs are waiting for a code to detonate. We haven’t decoded everything yet, but we know enough to know what will happen if those bombs go off.”
“Is this just a best guess or reality?”
Trudy shook her head. “We don’t know for sure but this could be our future, if we don’t try.”
“How much time do we have?” Boomer asked.
“Maybe ten days, eleven at the very most,” Dewey answered for her. “This will become reality the moment the New Year comes into play.”
Boomer looked over at the older man who wore a cut matching his own. “Cyrus, you’d better call in our demolition squad.”
Cyrus nodded and moved away from the group.
Boomer turned to Dewey and Stone. “We have a number of men who love taking bombs apart. They will hunt down the bombs and deactivate them, if we know where they are.” He walked over to the table and sat down. “What else did you find, baby girl?”
“What makes you think she found anything else?” Dewey asked.
Boomer smiled. “If anybody found this, she did. She’s gifted that way. How did you find it?”
“I found the pattern and followed it.” Trudy shrugged.
Boomer nodded. “Thought so. So where in the world did you find this shit?”
“This is the brainstorm of a fellow American or so we thought,” Dewey explained as he glared at the familiar way Boomer talked to Trudy. “Now we don’t know for sure just who he is.”
“What else is there?” Boomer asked.
“There are two more cells in Iraq waiting for the right time to take out all the military leaders we would rely on to get us through the chaos this would bring to our nation,” Trudy replied. Then she motioned toward the men who lived here. “Also the asshat and his cell are coming after Dewey and his men. He’s taking them out for personal reasons.”
Boomer shook his head. “You uncovered a shit storm, baby girl.” Looking at Dewey he said, “You were right to call us, you are gonna need our help. What do you want us to do?”
“I’m going to call my old C.O. in Iraq and tell him about the hit list over there. They can protect their own. You said your men could find and disarm the bombs. Then we can hunt down this little bastard and put him out of our misery.”
“Sounds like a plan to me,” Boomer agreed.
“I have more data to decode,” Trudy told them. “I’d better get on that while we have time.”
“Get after it then, baby girl. We need to know everything we can before we get under way.” Boomer smacked her on the ass as she passed him.
Dewey glared at the other man. When Trudy was sitting at the other table lost in thought he asked Boomer, “So how did you meet Trudy?”
Boomer glanced at him then turned to study Trudy. “Maybe you should ask her. It’s not my story to tell.”
Dewey shook his head. “I don’t have time for that. I need to know what kind of person she is and if she can be trusted.”
Boomer nodded. “I can understand that. I still think it’s for her to decide but I can say this, I met her seven years ago. Some lowlife drug dealer had caused an accident that trapped her sister in her car and he and two others were beating the hell out of Trudy. Old Cyrus, myself and two of my boys taught the drug dealer and his friends some manners then we took care of baby girl and her sister. We’ve been friends since then.” He turned to stare at the other man. “I’ll tell you something else, if she’s on your side you got nothing to worry about. She’s true.”
“So what’s her deal then? Do you know?” Dewey asked.
Boomer nodded. “Yeah, I know. Her old man kicked her out when she was fourteen. She messed up the drug dealer and sent him to prison for three years and her old man found out about it. She wasn’t involved with the dealer, her brother was and the little bastard allowed her dad to kick her out. She’d been on the streets for about four years when I met her but even then, she knew how to survive. She worked hard and got her GED when she was fifteen, then she learned everything she could about how a computer works and she’s been doing very well on her own.”
“We saw her place earlier today. She has quite the setup,” Dewey agreed. “I still don’t understand how she could decode everything.”
Boomer laughed. “She once told me she sees patterns in her mind and ever since she was a little girl, she’s been reading everything she could find about codes and how to break them. She plays everything down but that girl is an asset the government would very much like to meet.”
A while later, even more men bearing the Crimson Tide cut came to the compound. Another dozen men joined Boomer inside the shop.
Parker joined Trudy at the desk and took her hand. “Have you found anything about the location of the bombs yet?”
Trudy glanced up at him as if in a daze. Blinking her eyes, she focused on his face and smiled. “Sorry, I was concentrating so hard, I was lost in my head. Yes, I think I found the bombs.” She began going through the papers on the desk. Picking one from all the others she got up and joined Boomer, Dewey and the others. Handing the paper to Dewey she said, “This is the only mention of places with the bombs.”
Dewey searched the cities listed and passed the paper to Boomer.
After Boomer looked at it he said, “We need copies of this list.”
Trudy noticed all the extra people and making her way over to Cyrus, she gave him a hug. “Hey, there.”
Cyrus enfolded her in a hug and mumbled, “Bout time you noticed me, baby girl.”
Trudy giggled as she hugged him, then turned to the man sitting next to Cyrus. “Hey there Tracker, how are things?”
Tracker snorted. “You just laid a shit storm on us and ask how things are?” He shook his head. “Things are fucked up big time, girl.”
“Hey, I didn’t plan this picnic, some other asshat did.” She chuckled.
“You did good work as always,” Tracker commented before he grabbed her and hugged her hard. “Now, it’s our turn to shut him down.”
“Let’s hope you can.” She looked toward the map behind her.
Tracker turned her and wrapped his arms around her. “We aren’t gonna let that happen, believe me on that,” he whispered in her ear.
Trudy shuddered. “God, I hope not. So many people will die if that happens.”
Boomer came up to Tracker and handed him one of the papers in his hand. “This is a list of places Trudy believes the bombs are hidden. We have a schedule here, so we need you guys to leave as soon as you’re ready. We have no idea what you’re gonna find, so be prepared for anything.”
Tracker studied the paper. “How long have these bombs been in place?”
“Some have been in place for a number of years,” Dewey answered. “The man who placed them was with our unit in here and in Iraq for several years. We lost touch over little over a year ago. We thought he was killed but according to Wyatt, he simply walked off with the soldiers who set off some bombs in our path.”
“What a nice guy.” Cyrus scoffed.
“Yeah, we’re still looking into his background,” Parker told them. “We haven’t had time to discover anything yet.” He motioned toward the map. “We had to figure this out first.”
Tracker nodded toward Trudy. “She’ll figure him out. If anyone can find him, she can.” He got to his feet and glanced at the others in his group. “Okay boys, let’s dance.” He gazed at Boomer. “We’ll call in when we’ve located the bombs and taken care of them.”
Boomer nodded. “Take care of yourselves boys and all of you come back alive. Don’t let this bastard win.”
“No chance of that big guy.” Tracker laughed.
Trudy watched as the twelve men left the compound. She said a little prayer for each of them to come home safe.
Cade chose that moment to return from the grocery store with the back of his truck loaded with food stuff. Everyone grabbed a couple of bags and brought them inside. Trudy went back to her desk and Cyrus began unloading the bags.
Boomer asked Dewey if he had a hotplate and a grill and when it arrived, Boomer told them to leave the cooking to Cyrus. Boomer then motioned for Dewey to follow him.
They both walked outside and Boomer came to a stop beside the second shed. “So what happened to your team in Iraq?”