Blind Justice (29 page)

CHAPTER NINETY-FOUR

Wielding a fallen log as a weapon, Deacon Munroe crouched low behind a tree and waited. He wished that he would have brought his folding white cane, but he had left it back in the vehicle. When in its folded state, it could be used as quite a nasty little club.

The sounds of the forest surrounded him, the chirping and croaking and humming of a hundred thousand small creatures. Being in the woods reminded him of playing hide and seek with Gerald among the trees and dilapidated outbuildings of the family plantation. Gerald had mastered the art of hiding. He was fearless. Once, Munroe had searched for hours and finally given up, declaring Gerald the winner. He had heard Gerald laugh from somewhere up above and looked into the rafters of the old barn. Gerald had climbed up into the braces and hung there like a monkey, laughing his head off.

Many of the noises ceased as Black came closer. The big man
’
s pace had slowed from exertion, but he still sounded like a rhino tearing through the brush.

Munroe heard another sound through the trees, maybe fifty feet away. A rhythmic banging. Katherine making noise as he had instructed.

Experience had taught him to gauge distance accurately from sound, and the crunching of dried leaves betrayed Black
’
s exact location.

He stepped out from behind the tree, took a deep breath, and swung the log at Black
’
s head. The heavy club sliced through the air and struck something hard.

Too hard. It didn
’
t give like flesh. He must have accidentally struck a tree. The impact sent pulses of pain through Munroe
’
s forearms. The log snapped and dropped from his grasp.

And then Black was on top of him, screaming. Black pounded him with the ferocity of a gorilla, not with precise punches but with wild flailing movements. He felt himself float upward as Black hefted him over his head and tossed him through the air.

He landed on the moist ground and rolled down a hill. He heard Black raging after him. Scrambling to his feet, he stumbled through the darkness. His instinct was to run but knew that would lead to his death. Instead, he found another tree and slipped behind it.

Black stumbled and rolled down the hill after him like a wild beast. But then, unable to locate his prey, the big man
’
s hysteria peaked, and he attacked everything around him.

If Black wasn
’
t stopped soon, he would either kill one of them or cause terrible injuries to himself. Munroe knew that Black had to be subdued, and it was up to him to accomplish the task.

Heart pounding, he waited for the right moment. He gauged the big man
’
s location from the heavy breathing and sound of pounding combat boots. Black moved past him, and he jumped out from his hiding spot and leaped onto his opponent
’
s back. He snaked his arms around Black
’
s throat in a chokehold.

His feet left the ground as the big man thrashed wildly through the trees.

Munroe held firm, squeezing tightly around the other man
’
s muscular neck as he was thrown back and forth like a rag doll. Finally, he wrapped his legs around Black
’
s enormous frame and locked his ankles together.

Black ran in circles and slammed his back into the trees, trying to shake his attacker. The pain shot down Munroe
’
s spine with each impact as branches sliced his skin. But Munroe refused to let go, and after a moment, Jonas Black finally relented. Defeated, the big man fell to his knees and slipped into unconsciousness.

CHAPTER NINETY-FIVE

Annabelle barely paid attention to the dark and lonely roadway as it stretched out before her. Her mind was elsewhere. She couldn
’
t shake a memory of the girls when they were young. Chloe dressed up like a princess and giggling with delight. Makayla scowling in disapproval. Deacon sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of a miniature pink table with a multitude of brightly colored barrettes filling his short hair.

A large Dodge Ram truck sped past the GTO, and as it merged back into the right lane, its headlights illuminated a blue sign that read, Hill Crest Landfill - Construction/Demolition Debris Only.

Her eyes immediately shot to the right. Another vehicle came up quickly behind her, and its beams cast a pale glow out over the massive open area filled with mounds of dirt, construction equipment, and huge concrete cylinders. Everything clicked into place. The girls were out there somewhere beneath that ground. She could feel it in her bones.

Her fingers scrambled to pull out her cell phone and call Deacon to let him know of her discovery. She glanced down to dial, and Corrigan screamed, “Look out.”

Annabelle looked up to see the red glow of tail lights. The Dodge Ram that had passed her had abruptly locked up its brakes and skidded to the side, blocking the roadway.

Dropping the phone, she slammed down on the GTO
’
s brake pedal. The tires squealed, and the air filled with the stink of burning rubber.

Her eyes flicked to the rearview mirror. The lights at her back and the vehicle attached to them kept coming, showing no signs of stopping.

She twisted the wheel to the left in an attempt to abandon the roadway and take the ditch, but the maneuver came too late. The vehicle at her rear, another Dodge truck, caught the GTO
’
s hindquarter and spun the car in a tight circle. They caught the gravel shoulder, hit the ditch, and rolled over.

Glass, dirt, and rock consumed the air as metal twisted and compressed.

She felt her head strike something hard and immovable and the air leave her lungs. Then the lights blinked out.

CHAPTER NINETY-SIX

Munroe searched the pockets of Black
’
s Nomex flight suit and found several pair of flex cuffs. He used them to tightly secure Black
’
s wrists and ankles and then called out to Katherine. Using her phone as a light, now that they weren
’
t being chased, she was able to lead them back to the compound. It was a slow and back-breaking walk as they carried Black
’
s sleeping form out of the trees. They stood on each side of him, grasping each other
’
s arms and forming a cradle beneath the unconscious man.

When the lights of the compound came into view and they were clear of the trees, they dropped Black roughly to the ground and caught their breath. All in all, the entire operation had been a complete and total disaster. Almeida had escaped with an extremely dangerous chemical weapon. The HRT members were all likely dead or at least out of commission. And Munroe
’
s daughters and Black
’
s nephew were slowly suffocating in a dark hole.

“What now?” Katherine said, breathing hard.

“Is the chopper still there?”

“Yes.”

“
Then let
’
s carry Black over to it.”

“Why? What are we going to do when we get him there?”

“We
’
re going to hitch a ride.”

~~*~~

After throwing Black into the rear of the helicopter, Munroe and Katherine climbed inside and approached the pilot. He was young with blond hair and a pink scar down one cheek. Even with the damage to his face, Katherine thought that he looked like a teenager.

Munroe said, “Get us back to DC.”

The pilot looked toward the compound, confusion evident on his face. “I can
’
t do that, sir. I
’
ve lost communication with the team and—”

“So call in backup,” Munroe interrupted.

“I did. A SWAT team from the Baltimore field office was already getting prepped. They
’
re on the way now.”

“Then the situation here
’
s under control. When we
’
re in the air, you can call and tell them to go in with Tasers or other non-lethal weapons. The six men from your team have been exposed to a chemical weapon and will have to be subdued. And we need to get into the air and back to the city, or that same weapon will be released on the US Capitol Building.”

PART SEVEN

CHAPTER NINETY-SEVEN

After switching vehicles, the three men exchanged their tactical gear for tailored suits and headed into the heart of Washington, DC. Almeida knew that he should have been pleased. They had the weapon, and their goal was in reach. But the black case Miguel had retrieved from the research facility still bothered him.

Unable to contain the question any longer, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number for Ramon Castillo
’
s disposable phone. Castillo greeted him warmly and asked for an update. He explained their progress, but finally, he said, “Miguel retrieved the black case for you.”

Castillo hesitated. “I know. I should have told you about it. It
’
s not that I don
’
t trust you.”

“Then what is it?”

“Miguel and I have another mission to complete. I just didn
’
t want to distract you from your own assignment. He
’
s going to tell you to drop him off at a location away from the Capitol. Please do as he asks.”

“What is this other mission?”

“
I don’
t want to say over the phone. We
’
ll talk about it when we regroup after our victory is complete. Trust me, my friend.”

“Of course, Vaquero. When we speak again, the American system of government will be in chaos.”

He hung up the phone, but despite Castillo
’
s assurances, Almeida knew that something was very wrong.

CHAPTER NINETY-EIGHT

Inside the FBI Director
’
s private bathroom located on the seventh floor of the J. Edgar Hoover Building, Jonas Black splashed water over his face and popped two more Tylenol into his mouth, although he probably should have been in a hospital. The headache wouldn
’
t let up, and he hurt all over. But thankfully, he hadn
’
t broken any bones, and he hadn
’
t hurt anyone else, at least not permanently. Things could have gone much worse.

He checked his watch and gritted his teeth. In just a few hours, the kids would run out of air. They had let Almeida escape again, and Annabelle
’
s last report had told them that Munroe
’
s latest idea about a golf course had proved futile.

Even with the door to the bathroom shut, he heard Munroe arguing with the others. With one last splash of water, he slipped his leather jacket over the filthy T-shirt that he had worn under the Nomex flight suit and stepped back into the fray.

“I
’
m telling you, this is his target,” Munroe said.

Dark cherry desks and tables and brown leather couches and chairs sat atop cream-colored carpet. The wood-paneled walls matched the cherry color of the furniture and gave the room a cultured but dark ambiance. The other three men and women sitting around the conference table—including FBI Director David Cortez, Director of the Secret Service Peter Hulett, and the Secretary of Homeland Security Linda D’Addario—didn
’
t seem convinced by Munroe
’s arguments.

“You have no actionable intel to suggest that he even intends to attack, let alone what the target will be,” said Cortez, a short black man with wire-framed glasses and a bookish appearance.

“Think about it. A man who has made claims of this being a war started by our government is now in possession of a chemical weapon. And you think that it
’
s a coincidence that all this happens the same day that the US Senate is about to enact a new bill declaring several of the Mexican cartels, including the Castillo Cartel, as foreign terrorist organizations.”

The new legislation allowed the US government to take the fight against the cartels to a whole new level and gave law enforcement in the United States enhanced tools to combat those groups. Among other things, it permitted the government to freeze money tied to the cartels and enhanced the criminal penalties for those found to be aiding them. It also made it much easier for the US military to take full-scale action.

Director Hulett ran a hand through his gray hair and said, “So, on your hunch, you want us to shut down the US Capitol Building and evacuate the Senate?”

Munroe didn
’
t flinch. “That
’
s right. There
’
s also a major event taking place on the National Mall today. I heard something about it on the radio. I
’
d like you to cancel that as well, just in case.”

“I thought you said he wouldn
’
t attack a civilian target?”

“
I don’
t believe he will.”

Director Cortez shook his head and sighed. “It can
’
t be done, Munroe.”

Leaning against the bathroom doorframe, Black spoke up. “I know firsthand how dangerous this weapon can be, and if you don
’
t do something to stop it, C-Span is going to be broadcasting a bloodbath.”

Linda D’Addario looked more like a second grade teacher than the head of a government agency with a budget of nearly fifty billion dollars. She pursed her lips and said, “We understand your concerns, and we don
’
t doubt the serious threat that this weapon poses. However, the US is a constant target. We receive threats all the time with more substantiated evidence than this. We can
’
t just shut down the government because the facts suggest that an attack
might
be coming. If we did, our government would cease to function.”

“
You can
’
t just ignore this threat,” Munroe said.

Cortez responded first. “We
’
re not ignoring anything. Security around the Capitol is on high alert. All of our agencies are out in full force. Plain clothes agents have been positioned around the Capitol and the surrounding blocks. We
’
ve distributed Almeida
’
s picture. If this man comes within a thousand yards of the Capitol, we
’
ll nail him.”

“It won
’
t be enough.”

Linda D’Addario said,
“Listen, Agent Munroe, we
’
re doing all that we can. We all know about the situation with your daughters and our hearts go out to you. We know how bad you want to catch this guy. But we can
’
t rush major decisions such as this based on emotions and gut feelings. We—”

Munroe gave a terse nod and stood. “Very well, I appreciate your time. But I would like my suggestions and concerns on this matter noted officially. Mr. Black, it
’
s time for us to go.”

~~*~~

Katherine had cleaned up as best she could in a public bathroom and then waited in the lobby as Munroe and Black tried to convince the bureaucrats to take action. She didn
’
t expect that they
’
d succeed. The directors of the agencies usually didn
’
t work their way up from the bottom like any other organization. These men and women were political appointees, and shutting down Congress wasn
’
t good politics.

Black appeared around the corner with Munroe in tow, and she stood to greet them. “Well? Any luck?”

Munroe said, “They
’
ve beefed up security around the Capitol, but I don
’
t think it will be enough.”

“I told you. Those people are political animals. If they evacuate and they
’
re wrong, it would derail their careers.”

Munroe stiffened. “
Derail,
” he said softly. He grabbed the phone from his pocket, held a button, and issued the voice command, “Call Joey.”

Munroe had contacted the computer genius earlier from the chopper and ordered him to the facility near Fort Meade. He wanted Joey to get into the laboratory
’
s server and find out whatever he could, while the FBI went through any physical files or manifests. Unfortunately, Almeida had used an electro-magnetic device to fry the server once he had retrieved the digital files for himself.

Katherine listened intently to Munroe
’
s one-sided conversation. “Joey, I need you to do something for me. Can you hack in and retrieve the schedules for all of the Senators and their chiefs of staff for this morning?…No, it
’
s not treason. Use somebody from my father
’
s office, if you need to…Okay, once you
’
re in, I want you to find out if any of them have meetings with a constituent. Anyone from a business, interest group, campaign donor. Then check out who those people really are. We
’
re looking for someone who
’
s not who they claim to be. Hurry, we don
’
t have much time.”

When Munroe hung up, he said, “I need the two of you to get to the Senate office buildings. I
’
ll stay here and coordinate. I
’
d just slow you down.”

“Why? What are you thinking?” Black asked.

“My father
’
s office is in the Hart Building. Katherine reminded me of that place when she said, ‘
derail.’
There
’
s a special train just for the Senators and their staff that transports them underground from their offices to the Capitol Building. Most of the Senators will be taking that train today. Imagine if someone placed those motion sensor dispersal units in the train cars or in the hallway leading up from the train.”

Katherine followed his logic. “Of course, security will be thinking that they
’
ll try to do something while the Senate
’
s in session, in order to expose all of them to the weapon at once. But you wouldn
’
t have to do it that way. Black said that it took several minutes before the madness had fully set in. That may even depend on dosage, and maybe they can adjust that on the dispersal devices.”

“Which means that each Senator could be exposed while riding the train and not even know it. A bunch of ticking time bombs.”