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Bruce sat impatiently in the front seat of the MRAP, waiting for Mayor Reese to arrive. He had considered heading directly into town to meet with the mayor, but figured the less people in Kane who saw him there, the better. It didn't take long for the mayor to arrive, and it was Colonel Harris this time who motioned to the woods where they could meet in private.
Mayor Reese led them to the same location they had met before. Once the mayor sat down, Bruce began. “Alright.... A lot has happened in the past twenty-four hours that I need to bring you up to speed on. For starters, Lieutenant Jenkins is dead, so that plan we were discussing won't be needed."
"Wow! You work fast," Mayor Reese chuckled. "Remind me never to piss you off."
"It's not like that," Bruce raised his hand, objecting. "He was killed during an ambush yesterday afternoon on our return from Tionesta."
"Somebody attacked those bullet-proof trucks you guys roll around in?" Mayor Reese asked dubiously.
"That's what every one of the men in the convoy saw," Bruce answered. "Regardless, he's dead now and the problem we face is that I'm sure they will probably be sending a replacement."
"I'm sure they will," the mayor agreed smugly.
"We need to act fast for my plan to work, and I'm going to need your help," Bruce requested. Mayor Reese nodded his understanding, so Colonel Harris continued. "I met with the mayor of Tionesta and his town council yesterday. They were attacked earlier that morning and lost a few men. However, they managed to kill about a dozen of the raiders, some of whom, to no surprise, were wearing prison jumpsuits. So I have a dozen or so dead bodies at my disposal which I’d like to put to good use. My plan is to dress the dead bodies up and place them in an empty farmhouse somewhere in the area so I can coordinate an airstrike from HQ. It should present a really nice cover should Jenkins's replacement want to inspect the actual strike site. So, what I'm going to need now are the Rangers to turn over their uniforms.
"At that point, I'll issue them 10th Mountain uniforms and station them as a security force against future attacks in Tionesta. They won't have any interaction with my men in Warren, and the townspeople in Tionesta won’t have any reason to believe they are not part of my Regiment. No one should be the wiser." Bruce smiled at himself and the plan he had put together with Sammy. “I have been stalling as long as I dare, but I have to make a call to HQ no later than tonight to report Lieutenant Jenkins’ death. I have no idea how long it will be before they send a replacement, so we need to move fast. If Jenkins’ replacement shows up before I can coordinate the air strikes on the farmhouse, we're screwed. I need to speak with whoever is leading the Ranger platoon tonight! I know what you told me before, but I have a feeling you know how to get in touch with them or at least know where they can be found," Bruce insisted.
"Yes, I have a general idea," Mayor Reese admitted. "The problem is, their current location is near the McKean Prison, and it's not safe to travel in that area."
"Well, we're going to have to figure it out. If I have to bring an entire platoon down here tonight to escort you, I'll do it," Bruce insisted.
"Yeah, that will go over real well,” the mayor responded sarcastically. “Let's roll up on a nervous group of Army Rangers with a platoon of your soldiers."
"You have a better idea?" Bruce asked impatiently.
"No, but I don't like that one," the mayor held his ground. "It'll be better to travel fast and light through that area. I reckon I'll just go by myself."
"You sure?" Bruce asked skeptically with a sideways glance at his belly.
Mayor Reese sucked in his stomach and gave it a hard slap. "You're speaking to a First Team All-Conference defensive lineman mister."
"Oh, yeah? What century?" Bruce asked with a lighthearted smile.
"Hey, watch it!" Mayor Reese joked back. "I can make this body move when I want to."
"Alright, alright," Bruce said, clapping him on the shoulder. "I'll be back tomorrow morning at 6 a.m., so make sure they are here and they have their uniforms with them."
"I'll try," the mayor offered.
"Don't try, Reese. Make it happen. If they don't want to live the rest of their lives looking over their shoulders, then I suggest they get on board with the plan."
"Okay," Mayor Reese nodded. "What about me? Should I pack my gear and head out to Tionesta with them?"
"No, we have to work your story separately. If you show up in Tionesta on the same day as the Rangers it could look suspicious. They have recently come across some ham radio equipment which I’m not sure if they have the expertise to deploy. I was thinking you could use that as a way in. You can use the excuse of visiting a relative and then offer your services if they’ll let you stay. That is, if you have the expertise to set up a ham radio tower?”
“Yeah, I have had my ham radio operating license for over twenty years now. I won’t have any problems helping them get set up, as long as they have all the necessary equipment.”
“From my limited discussion with their mayor, they should have everything they need. There is one caveat to all this: You do realize that once you leave this town, you can never transmit ‘Freedom America’ again. I won’t have you leave one town, only to place a bull’s-eye on the next town you move to. You understand, don’t you?” Bruce asked sincerely.
“I do. I’ve known this day was coming for months now,” Mayor Reese said sadly.
“Alright, then. Give your final broadcast tomorrow night and make sure you let the airwaves know that you are moving out of state and will no longer transmit. I’m fine if you want to let people know that your life is in danger from the government, but you can’t give any specifics about anyone involved or how you found out. Don’t mention my name or even hint about our presence here in Warren. Okay? If you slip up and reveal even the smallest hint about what we’ve done here, you will sign my death warrant. And like we’ve discussed before, my replacement may not be so willing to stick his neck out for you guys.”
“I understand perfectly the risks you are taking,” Mayor Reese said defensively. “I know what I can say and what I can’t. Don’t forget, I’ve got numerous sources throughout all levels of the government that I have kept safe for years.”
“Yeaahh...about those sources...,” Bruce changed the conversation curiously. “I need to double check some of my intel and I was hoping you might be able to help.”
“What intel?” Mayor Reese asked bluntly.
“Well, before Lieutenant Jenkins’ death, he made a comment that the President might be behind all of this. I don’t trust Jenkins as far as I can throw him, but it would be nice to know who we are ultimately dealing with here. We still have no idea who Jenkins worked for. All I know is that he reports back to a General Oates at the Pentagon. Do you think that you can find out what we are into here?”
“I could ask around, but you have to realize that my sources need to be careful too,” Mayor Reese explained. “What about you? Surely you have to have friends who are in charge of other Regiments. What are they saying?”
“That’s the problem. Since the EMP, my only contact has been with my immediate chain of command through satellite phone. We aren’t authorized to use the phone for any other purpose. I don’t know the government’s current abilities to track phone calls, so I’ve been leery about trying to reach out to my peers.”
“Well, that’s not good. By controlling the lines of communication and keeping each Regiment isolated, it would be pretty easy for a single individual or special interest group in Washington, DC, to run their own private mini-army. If you don’t have a way to raise concerns over the legality of your mission, then they can just give soldiers orders to do things that you normally wouldn’t do,” Mayor Reese observed.
“That’s exactly my concern,” Bruce agreed. “I understand my mission here to restore order, but wiping out entire towns for political targets is insane and wouldn’t fly with any of the commanders I know. I am actually curious if they have been getting orders or missions from this General Oates or other people outside their normal chain of command as well. I just don’t know what to do from here. I’ve really stuck my neck out already trying to protect you and the Rangers.”
“Well, I appreciate it and I think I can confidently say that the Rangers do, too, even though they don’t know about it yet. You’ve saved hundreds of lives already,” Mayor Reese commended sincerely.
The compliment reminded Bruce of one life he couldn’t save, and he glanced down at his watch. “I need to get going, Mayor. I’ve got an appointment at noon, and from there I have to run back down to Tionesta. I need to meet with their mayor in private this time and set some of these plans in motion. From you, I need those Rangers on board!”
“I’ll do my best,” the mayor promised.
“Okay. Don’t forget to have them bring their uniforms,” Bruce reiterated.
“I won’t,” the mayor chuckled.
“Alright. I’ll meet you back here at 0-600 tomorrow morning.” Bruce shook the mayor’s hand quickly and reluctantly walked back to the waiting convoy of trucks and the noon appointment he didn’t want to attend.
BRUCE RODE IN SILENCE all the way to Tionesta. He felt thoroughly sick to his stomach and couldn’t get the mental image of Jenkins’ execution out of his head. The scene kept playing over and over, no matter how hard he tried to focus on something else. He had tried to have another conversation with Jenkins and even pressed him on the President’s involvement Jenkins had alluded to earlier. But it was all for naught. Jenkins wouldn’t even make eye contact this time and just ignored every one of the colonel’s questions, regardless of how hard Bruce pleaded with him. Bruce even tried to get information about Jenkins’ parents to write them a letter letting them know their son had been killed in an ambush, but Jenkins flatly refused to speak.
Eventually Bruce gave up. The prisoner was led outside and secured to a large tree in the front yard. The rest of the security force that had travelled with Colonel Harris to Kane had been instructed to wait down the road while Colonel Harris brought a single vehicle with the same men who had been present in the MRAP when Jenkins had been knocked out and captured. Bruce read aloud Lieutenant Jenkins’ charges to try and make it more official, but it didn’t really work. At the end of the day, there was nothing official about what was going to happen, regardless of how warranted the execution was. Hell, their prisoner was tied to a tree.
When Bruce finished reading, the six of them minus the driver lined up ten yards in front of Jenkins while Shifty slowly walked forward and placed a pillowcase over his head. On the ride back from Kane, Shifty had instructed Sergeant Timms to place a blank 5.56 cartridge in each of their rifles and one live round in two random rifles. The point was that each man could be at peace because it was most likely not his rifle that made the kill shot. But Bruce would never find peace over the events of that day. Regardless of whether or not it was his rifle that killed Jenkins, it was still his order that sent the man to his death.
Bruce didn’t even remember pulling the trigger. He couldn’t remember his rifle firing, or how much recoil the M4 produced. All he remembered was the white pillowcase turning red. His head kept playing the scene over and over. At first, there were only two small red dots in the front of the pillowcase where Jenkins forehead would be, but when his head fell forward the entire pillowcase turned red within seconds. Bruce just couldn’t believe how fast the pillowcase turned from white to red. He didn’t feel nauseous or sad afterwards, just numb. Now that they were twenty minutes down the road towards Tionesta, he felt his stomach churning. The rest of the men must have sensed his mood because it was a silent ride to Tionesta with Jenkins’ body wrapped in a black body bag in the rear of their MRAP.
They arrived at Tionesta’s perimeter a short while later. Bruce climbed out of the MRAP and straightened his uniform as best he could before walking forward with Shifty and Sergeant Timms. One of the town’s guards walked forward to meet him halfway. “Good afternoon, Colonel,” the man said as they shook hands.
“Good afternoon. I need to speak with the mayor on a matter of some urgency,” Bruce said in a somber voice, still reeling from Jenkins’ execution.
“No problem, Colonel. Let me radio him for you,” the man offered as Bruce nodded his head in thanks. The man stepped back behind the vehicles and a moment later one of the cars was rolled out of the way to let them through. Colonel Harris strode forward and approached the man he had spoken to a moment before. “You are good to go, Colonel. He said that he would meet you at the town hall shortly.”
“Actually, I don’t have time to spare as this isn’t really a social visit. Could you please ask him to meet me up here?” Bruce asked, just wanting to get back to the base.
The man looked confused, but he agreed and quickly radioed the mic. “Mayor, this is Buck again. The colonel says that he is in a hurry and has requested that you meet him up here.”
There was a pause before the radio squawked back, “That’s fine. I’ll just need you to come down and pick me up, Buck. I’m at the West Greenhouse.”
“Roger that. I’ll be there in five.... over.” Buck looked up from the radio and smiled at Bruce. “I’ll be right back.” Bruce nodded his thanks once more, and walked back to the MRAP. Once he was inside, he turned around in his seat and quietly asked the driver to turn the engine off so he could speak to the men.
Colonel Harris turned to Shifty and then Sergeant Timms. “Sergeant, you and your squad have done more than should ever be required of a single squad.” Sergeant Timms started shaking his head in protest but Bruce cut him off by holding up his hand. “Sergeant, I just want you to know that I appreciate what you and your men have done for me and for the Regiment. You too, Captain Whalen. These are unsettling times and I’m glad to know that I’ve got men of your caliber at my back. I want you to know that I am going to be asking you men to perform some more uncomfortable tasks in the days to come. Due to the sensitivity of what we are doing, I can never fully honor you all in front of the Regiment properly.
“I know that some of you may have questions and not know entirely what’s going on, but it’s been for your own safety that I’m keeping you in the dark on these matters. I feel it’s warranted, especially after Jenkins’ execution, that I give you some type of explanation. Lieutenant Jenkins was not a lieutenant in the Army. He was a member of some black ops group posing as a lieutenant and under the directive of some very powerful people in Washington, DC. He was sent to take out a platoon of Rangers. I’ve come to find out that the Rangers were innocent and men of honor. They received illegal orders to wipe out a small town in order to kill a single man for purely political reasons. Instead of following orders, and like me, with no lines of communication to go around their chain of command to get answers, they decided to go AWOL. They have since stayed in the area to help protect the same town they were ordered to attack from local looters. We were lied to in the briefing from Gen. Oates, who told us they were actually involved in the looting.
“After all we’ve seen and done as a Regiment since the EMP, I recently made a decision that I am going to stop blindly following illegal and criminal orders. I swore an oath to protect the men and women of this country, not to act as a private army for some ‘spook’ back in Washington, DC. With my decision, I have unfairly dragged your squad along with me and there may be dire consequences to our actions if we are ever discovered. So at this point, it is only fair to offer each of you men a way out of this. They will probably be sending a replacement for Lieutenant Jenkins in the near future and I’m guessing this individual is going to be asking questions around the Regiment. If any of you are uncomfortable with the risks we are taking, then feel free to leave. There will be no repercussions from me and you can be moved wherever you want within the Regiment.”
Colonel Harris looked to each man individually, and received a nod of support from each of them. Shifty just smiled, “We’re with you a hundred percent, Colonel.”
Bruce turned and looked at his driver, who just shrugged. “Count me in, Colonel. It’s not fair what they are trying to do to our boys. You tell me where to drive and I’ll take you there.” Bruce squeezed his shoulder in response and turned back to the men.
“Okay, then. I’m going to lay out what I need you to do and it’s not going to be pleasant. But before I begin, I can’t stress to you enough how vital it is that everything you do must be kept secret from the rest of the Regiment. It’s not that I don’t trust the rest of the boys; it’s just that we all know how fast rumors can spread. If Jenkins’ replacement catches wind of what’s really going on, I’m going to be in a lot of trouble...and possibly anyone they can prove has been helping me. Don’t even hint to anyone that you are doing anything out of the ordinary. Am I being clear on this?”
The men all shook their heads in unison, so Colonel Harris continued. “Alright. The plan is to take the bodies of the men that were killed during Tionesta’s skirmish with the looters and dress them up in the Rangers’ uniforms. We are then going to place those bodies at a random farmhouse near Kane and I will call in an airstrike. If Jenkins’ replacement shows up and wants to see the strike site, there should be enough evidence there to satisfy him. I am then going to give the platoon of Rangers 10th Mountain uniforms and station them here at Tionesta as a security force. No one else from the Regiment is to have any interaction with them except for your squad. In the future when they need resupplied, you men will make the delivery. Okay?” They all nodded their heads in understanding.
“Does anyone have any questions or concerns they would like to bring up?” Bruce asked the men.
Corporal Lopez raised his hand sheepishly from the rear of the MRAP, resulting in a stern look from his squad leader, Sergeant Timms. “No, it’s okay, Sergeant,” Colonel Harris interjected. “I want each of you to feel free to speak up at any time, especially if you have concerns. Go ahead Corporal.”
Corporal Lopez cast a quick glance towards Sergeant Timms before beginning. “Colonel, how are we going to retrieve those bodies without the townspeople knowing?”
“Good question, Corporal,” Bruce praised the young man, wanting the rest of the men to feel comfortable asking questions. “But I don’t have a solid answer for you yet. I am going to meet with Tionesta’s mayor privately in a few minutes and see if I can persuade him to hand over the bodies discretely. We need those bodies. If I am going to get out from under the thumb of whoever is pulling the strings on this in DC, then we need to remove the Rangers from the equation. Otherwise, we are going to have another ‘spook’ poking around the area trying to figure out where the Rangers are. I don’t know who I can trust in my own chain of command, so my hands may be tied. We need to make this happen ASAP before Jenkins’ replacement arrives.”
“When will that be?” Sergeant Timms asked, obviously feeling more comfortable asking questions of his Commander after Lopez’s question was so well received.
“I’m not sure. I have a call in to HQ tonight to inform them of Jenkins’ death, so I should have a better idea later. The plan is to leave your squad behind to load up the bodies and I’ll return with the rest of the convoy. Hopefully, Mayor Reese can locate and coordinate a meeting with the Rangers at first light tomorrow morning. If so, I plan to call in the airstrike tomorrow around noon.”
The MRAP’s driver interrupted Bruce before he could continue. “Colonel, the mayor is here.”
Bruce turned to look through the front window. He could see the mayor walking towards them. “Okay men, we’ll finish this later. Captain Whalen, would you mind accompanying me?” Shifty grabbed his rifle and dismounted, meeting Bruce at the front of the MRAP. They were greeted by the mayor of Tionesta warmly as they approached.
“I’m glad to see you again so soon, Colonel,” Pastor Dan greeted them. “What’s up?”
“Same to you, Mayor. I am actually in a bit of a hurry, but I need to speak with you privately if I could. There is a matter of some urgency that I need to make you aware of. Would you mind stepping into the woods here with me and Captain Whalen?”
The mayor looked a little confused for a moment, but he shook it off. “Sure, no problem.”