The Siege Page 7

  They watched the monitors above their heads, but didn’t see much. The cameras on that side of the compound didn’t have night vision capability. An oversight on Mark’s part, and one he planned to correct someday soon after they got their home back.

  In the absence of something to see on the monitors, the group in the mine focused instead on the radio console to keep them informed of the progress of the mission.

  Bryan left Mark at the ladder and slowly made his way to the base Salt Mountain. Salt Mountain was a misnomer, of course. It was given that name by a geological survey team with a sense of humor. It wasn’t a mountain at all, at only three hundred ten feet high. It was more a significant hill.

  But it was high enough.

  It was slow going. He knew he had the cover of darkness on his side, but he also knew that this side of the mountain was covered with loose rock. And if he knocked too much of it down, it might attract the attention of the sentry on the roof.

  He wasn’t worried about getting shot at, necessarily. He was more worried about the man on the roof getting spooked, knowing that someone was out there who he couldn’t see. If that happened, he might fire blindly in the direction of the falling rock, sure. But the chances of him connecting with a lucky shot weren’t likely.

  No, if he had heard some sound from the mountain to the east, it was more likely he’d go to ground. Hide behind the wall bordering the top of the roof. Or even worse, leave the roof completely.

  If either of those things happened, the mission would be wasted.

  It took Bryan a full twenty minutes to make his way to a spot where he had a clear view of the roof. Along the way he passed the body of Smitty, the bastard who’d shot Sami in the shoulder, and was in turn shot off the mountain by Mark.

  Smitty’s body was pretty much reduced to bones by now, picked clean by flocks of central Texas turkey buzzards and coyotes who somehow survived the freeze.

  Once Bryan was satisfied his new firing position was stable, he began to prepare himself.

  In the mine, the group watching the monitors for movement still saw absolutely nothing. The third floor hallway camera showed no activity from the stairwell leading to the roof. The sentry was still up on the roof, but they had no idea what he was doing.

  John wondered if the man had an inkling when he went up on the roof that he might die tonight.

  The man on the roof, Toby Hance, was in fact on the west side of the roof, gazing out over the compound. He squinted his eyes, trying to make out any movement in the darkness. He was growing restless and wanted something to shoot at. Anything.

  He was tired of walking this roof every night, knowing that something was going to happen. But not knowing what or when. That was the thing that irked him the most… the not knowing.

  Finally, Bryan was ready.

  The weapon had already been charged in anticipation of a firefight. Bryan knew that. But he checked it anyway. Then he used his right thumb to flip the safety selector switch from “safe” to “fire.”

  He reached up to the small Motorola radio that was clipped to the epaulet of the camouflage field jacket he wore, and he keyed the mike three times.

  Three short bursts of static suddenly went over the airwaves of channel five, and everyone knew he was in position and ready to fire.

  On cue, Mark climbed up the ladder and peered over the wall. He knew he couldn’t be seen in the darkness, but he kept a low profile anyway.

  Mark’s role in the mission had nothing to do with the man on the roof. His role was to provide cover fire for Bryan as Bryan climbed back down off the side of the mountain.

  There were only three other men in the big house now besides the man on the roof. Mark didn’t know their names, of course, or anything about them. But he did know that one was standing guard in the hallway, just inside the east entrance. Mark could see him, behind the glass, leaning nonchalantly against the wall in the hallway.

  The other two were off duty. One was asleep in the adjacent apartment. Apartment 101. It used to be Sami and Brad’s place.

  It would be again.

  The fourth was across the hall in apartment 102. He was off duty, but couldn’t sleep. He was watching a movie.

  Mark knew the two unseen men would hear the gunfire and would be come running. After that, there was no way of knowing where they would go or what they would do.

  Mark drew a bead on the man inside the door. As soon as he heard Bryan’s shot from the mountainside, Mark would fire three quick rounds through the door’s window, and into the body of the man posted there. Because of the angle, he knew there was a chance the first bullet might ricochet off the heavy glass. But surely it would shatter it, so that the second bullet wouldn’t be impeded. The third shot was just for good measure.

  After the three shots, Mark would hold his ground, in case one of the other men exited the building. If he did, he’d be taken out as well.

  The seconds ticked by. Mark had the man’s upper torso in his sights, and waited for the crack of Bryan’s rifle.

  Then the man made the most unexpected move imaginable. And the most boneheaded as well. Obviously complacent from many hours of inaction, he got sloppy. He leaned his weapon against the corner of the hallway.

  And he stepped outside to pee.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” Mark said under his breath. How could anyone be so stupid? He wanted to take the shot, but couldn’t. If he shot first, the man on the roof would take immediate cover. And Bryan’s shot would be ruined.

  So instead he kept his composure, and kept his sights locked on his target, awaiting Bryan’s gunshot.

  On the side of the mountain, Bryan had his own sights set on Hance’s chest.

  Hance was sitting on a galvanized steel ventilation box in the center of the roof, smoking a stale Marlboro Red. He knew enough to move away from the edge of the building before lighting up, thinking that no one would be able to see the bright red glow on the tip of his cigarette.

  But Bryan could see it clearly in his StrikeFire scope.

  What Hance couldn’t see as he stared off into the sky was the red dot glowing in the center of his chest.

  And after all, how often does a man lean over and look at his own chest?

  Bryan had once studied theology in college and had flirted with the idea of being a minister. He was still devoutly Christian. He said a brief prayer, and asked God to forgive him for what he was about to do.

  Then he moved his index finger from the trigger guard and rested the pad of the finger firmly on the trigger itself. He adjusted his stance one last time, took a deep breath, and exhaled half of it.

  Then he squeezed the trigger.

  Hance instantly tumbled from his perch, the cigarette expelled from his mouth and sent flying. He lay upon the asphalt roof on his right side, eyes glaring at the glow of the still burning cigarette.

  But he couldn’t see it. He’d never see anything again.

  Chapter 20

  Joe, standing in the feed barn at the entrance to the tunnel, heard the shots and keyed the radio mike four times. The group at the security console heard the signal and understood its meaning: the deed was done.

  Now, they collectively prayed that they’d hear nothing else. Five bursts on the radio would mean there was a firefight going on.

  Immediately after Bryan fired, Mark did as well. Davis never had a chance. He crumpled to the ground, dead, his body blocking the exit door he’d walked through just seconds before.

  Hance and Davis were the only two men in the decimated gang who’d had any backbone. And now they were gone.

  Bennett, the man who’d been unable to sleep, ran to the center of the building, to the lounge area next to the dining room. And he hid behind a couch.

  Bennett was a scared little rabbit. He knew that Hance would have returned fire from the roof, if he was still alive.

  But there was no return fire. Only the single shot, from outside the compound. He put two and two together. And two plus two
equaled a dead leader.

  There was only Bennett and O’Neal now. And they had no radios. There were spare radios in the compound, but they were well hidden and only Mark and John knew where they were.

  So the two had no way to communicate. They froze into place, Bennett behind his couch and O’Neal in Sami’s apartment, trembling. Sure that an assault was imminent, and that they’d seen their last sunrise.

  At the console, the group couldn’t see O’Neal. The apartments didn’t have cameras. But they could see from the hallway cam outside of Sami’s apartment that he had never come out.

  And another camera showed Bennett, curled up in the fetal position behind the couch. They could clearly see the look of terror on his face.

  Brad commented, “Look at that fool. He ran off so fast he didn’t even bring his weapon with him.”

  Brad continued, “Maybe we should have sent in a couple more people to storm the building. Before they get their wits about them again. We could have taken him easily, probably without firing a shot.”

  “No,” John said. “The guy in 101 is still a wild card. He could come out of there at any time, guns blazing, and catch one of us dead to rights in the hallway. It’s better to back off, formulate our next move, and then hit them again when they’re not expecting it.”

  Brad appeared visibly disappointed.

  “So now we wait a few more days?”

  But John had another trick up his sleeve.

  “No. That’s what we did the last two times, after the tunnel collapse and the ambush on the men at the gate. It’s what they’ll be expecting. So we’ll throw them another curve ball. We’ll go back later today. In the daylight. You guys go get some sleep. Meet me back here at thirteen hundred.”

  Chapter 21

  “Did everybody get a chance to eat their lunch? I don’t want any stomachs growling and ruining my meeting.”

  John’s attempt at humor fell flat. There was a lot of tension among the group. Some of them were having their reservations.

  “Look, this isn’t a dictatorship. I’m not the boss. As the head of security, I’m giving you my best effort at an effective strategy. I know some of you aren’t comfortable with going over there in the daytime. All I ask is that you keep an open mind. Let me explain my logic, and my plan. Then we can debate it, and if I’m outnumbered I’ll back off. Fair enough?”

  He looked around at the group. A couple nodded their heads. A couple more shrugged. He noticed that Sami was hanging on to Brad’s arm with a death grip.

  “Here’s my logic… the biggest advantage we have is the element of surprise, and thus far it’s worked quite well for us. But there are a couple of other things we have working in our favor today that may not be there tomorrow.

  “One is that neither of them have slept in quite awhile. The one who was hiding behind the couch last night has been up for more than twenty two hours, according to the log book at the security desk. We know he couldn’t sleep before the shooting, because we saw him on the monitor coming to the doorway to shoot the breeze with the door guard several times.

  The other one, the one who was in apartment 101, disappeared into the room and out of the camera’s eye at just after 2200 hours. That means he had at best three hours sleep.

  “While you all were snoozing this morning, David sat at the console and kept an eye on them. Neither of them got any sleep after the shooting. I knew they wouldn’t. They’re both too tense. The second man eventually came out of apartment 101 and low crawled to the kitchen and found the other one. They’ve been huddled there ever since.

  “Here’s another thing that’s to our advantage. They’re both scared shitless. You can tell by the way they’ve stayed in the same close quarters for hours. One of them even went and pissed into the kitchen sink because he was afraid to leave the kitchen area to find the bathroom. Those fools are terrified.”

  John suddenly smiled. It was uncharacteristic and out of place under the circumstances. He grinned like a Cheshire cat. Like he knew a great secret that no one else knew.

  “And here’s the best part. When the second guy came out of 101 and low crawled to the kitchen, he took his AK with him. But he left the magazine in the room.”

  He stepped up on the security console and pointed at the rifle, in the corner of monitor 7.

  “It’s been leaning against a table in the kitchen ever since. And neither of them has noticed that it has no magazine in it.”

  Mark pointed out the obvious.

  “There could still be a round chambered.”

  “That’s very true, Mark. They may have one shot. But the other guy isn’t even armed. So at best they have one shot between them.

  “I think if we go soon, before they get over their fear, while they’re exhausted and confused, we may be able to take them without firing a shot.”

  “When do you want to go, John? And who?”

  “I’ll go myself, if two of you will volunteer to go with me.”

  Mark and Bryan stepped forward immediately.

  Brad looked at Sami and then stepped forward too. He said, “How about three of us?”

  Sami’s hand immediately went to her mouth, but she didn’t say anything. She wanted to scream, but she stayed strong.

  John said, “Okay. We have our team. The girls can do the coordination and spotting. I wanted to wait until this evening, to give them more time to get worn out, maybe even doze off. But I think the missing magazine is a gift from heaven, and something we can’t pass up. I say we go now.”

  Bryan said, “Agreed. Let’s go.”

  He looked at Mark, who didn’t say anything, but who walked over to the gun rack next to the security console. He took an AR-15 from the rack and handed it to Brad. He handed two more to Bryan and John and then took another one for himself.

  For the next half hour, the group put their heads together and formulated their plan.

  Chapter 22

  Just after four p.m., the group of four approached the same section of wall where Bryan left his ladder a few hours before. The ladder was still in position, precisely where he’d left it.

  All four of the men had radios clipped at their shoulders, and ear pieces stuck in their ears. At the control center, Hannah was providing a running commentary of the goings on in the big house every thirty seconds, unless there was a significant change.

  Since reception was spotty between the compound and the deeply recessed mine, Joe stood just outside the mine’s entrance and relayed Hannah’s words.

  The team of four stood by the ladder while Joe recited the latest update.

  “One man is in the kitchen and appears to be making a sandwich. The other man is in the lounge, on a chair, with his head in his hands. The one in the kitchen is about twenty feet from the rifle. The rifle still has no magazine.”

  John knew that neither of the men could see their activity. This was a good time to go. He waved to Bryan, who picked up the ladder and moved it about forty feet west north along the fence line.

  Once the ladder was in place, he climbed to the top of the fence and looked over, to the right and to the left.

  Then he scrambled back down the ladder, moved it another twelve feet, and repeated the process.

  He was trying to line the ladder up with a similar ladder on the inside of the fence.

  Each of the four interior walls had a ladder leaning up against it. The ladders served a dual purpose. Their main intent was to throw any attackers off their trail if they had to evacuate the compound through the tunnel. The thinking was that if the evacuation took place before the compound was breached, the invaders would assume that the group evacuated over the walls instead of through the tunnel. They’d waste their time searching in the woods for them, when they were actually in the safety of the mine.

  To that regard, the plan worked perfectly. They were able to get away unnoticed when they evacuated. It was only the sharp eye of Alvarez and their muddy footprints in the feed barn that gave them away several day
s later.

  The other purpose of the ladders was to serve as a real evacuation method if the tunnel was ever inaccessible or compromised for any reason.

  The ladders on the inside walls were never expected to allow them to reenter the compound after the evacuation. But they would serve that purpose as well.

  On the third attempt, Bryan was able to line up the two ladders, so that the men could climb up one ladder and down the other.

  They waited to go until the latest update from Joe:

  “No change. First man is in the kitchen. He appears to be cooking something in the microwave to go with his sandwich. Second man hasn’t moved either, except that he’s leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed.”

  John said, “Let’s roll.”

  Bryan was already at the top of the exterior ladder. As soon as he stepped over the top of the fence and onto the interior ladder, Mark scrambled up behind him. It took no more than a minute for all four men to clear the wall.

  Once inside the compound, they took refuge beneath a 53 foot trailer, emblazoned with the Walmart Logo.

  They couldn’t see the big house from their new position. But that was a good thing. That meant that no one in the big house could see them either.

  They waited until the next update.

  “Okay, sandwich guy took his food out of the microwave and stuck his finger in it. Apparently it’s still cold. He stuck it back in and punched the keypad. Three times, but Hannah couldn’t make out the numbers. The second guy is still sprawled back in his easy chair. He may have fallen asleep.”

  John gave the go signal again, and the four ran to the east entrance of the big house and flattened themselves against the wall just adjacent to the doorway. Bryan grabbed the shirt of the dead man blocking the doorway and dragged him out of the way.

  Again, they waited for the next update.

  “Okay, sandwich guy is on the move. He’s leaving the kitchen. Again, he’s leaving the kitchen. He’s going to the far end of the lounge area and into the men’s room. The rifle still hasn’t moved.”