Bug Out! Part 11: Motorhomes on the Dark Road (2 page)

“I wanted to see if you two felt the vibe. I do. It’s exhilarating.”

“I feel it,” Bailey said. “This place has evil dripping down the walls.”

“Wait until you guys see the basement. The door was nailed shut, down at the bottom of the stairwell. I don’t think anybody had been in it for decades before I cleared the stuff out of the stairwell and pried open that door. The old lady tossed anything she didn’t want down there. On purpose. Couldn’t even see the door at first. Probably didn’t help her avoid the vibe.”

“I’ve never heard of the Torso Murderer,” Bailey said. “How long ago was he active?”

“Mainly in the 1930s, but some think he was active into the early 1950s.”

“Yeah, some think he was actually responsible for the Black Dahlia murder,” Howard said. “I always thought the evidence was a little thin.”

Scott gave him another sly grin.

“No way,” Howard said. “What did you find down there?”

“We can go look in the morning,” Scott said. “You’re tired, remember?”

“Screw that,” Howard said, laughing. “You think I can sleep now?”

“Look at our girlfriend,” Scotty whispered, nodding over towards Bailey. She looked like she was about to swoon with excitement.

***

“What should I do?” Hilda asked. She had one eye in the rear view mirror, watching the van that was following them.

“Too many other cars on this road to blast them here,” Gabe said. “Let’s just drive casual and stay on the interstate. Better than getting off at this point.”

“Yeah, I agree,” Earl said. “I’m still not getting anything on the short range app. They’re close enough.”

“Okay, I’ll keep heading for Grand Junction,” Hilda said.

“Why don’t you pass me the rifle without the scope, just in case,” Gabe said.

Earl picked it up and handed it to him. “You got ammo?”

“They’re both fully loaded, and there are two boxes of ammo in the back. I’ve also got my pockets full, in the coat down there on the floor. Left them in there after our tour of Hilda’s park.”

“Good,” Earl said. “Then I say we relax and keep an eye out.”

They rode along silently for the next half hour, Hilda splitting her time between the road ahead of her and the rear view mirror. It was getting dark. Earl dozed off, but Gabe was still sitting sideways in the front seat, watching through the back window.

“We can stop in Grand Junction and switch if you want to,” Gabe said.

“I think that’s a bad idea,” Hilda said. “You can shoot a whole lot better than I can.”

“That’s a good point,” Gabe said. “This guy isn’t trying to hide himself. He’s changed lanes a couple of times, but he’s going at the same rate of speed as we are.”

“Maybe it’s just cruise control,” Hilda said. “I’ve been running that all along, set at 70 mph. My legs cramp up otherwise.”

“Yeah, if he’s set at the same speed, he’s going to stay back there.”

“I’ll bump it up to about 75,” Hilda said. She hit the gas and made the adjustment.

“He’s falling back, slowly,” Gabe said. “Maybe we’re worried about nothing.”

“How much further to Grand Junction?” Earl asked, sitting up, stretching.

“Ten minutes, give or take,” Gabe said.

Hilda’s phone rang. She answered.

“Hi, Charlie!”

“Oh, thank God,” he said. “You guys okay?”

“So far. We’re just outside of Grand Junction.”

“The hospital got attacked.”

“No! Everybody okay?”

“Yeah, the army detail killed all the bad guys. They coordinated a code change right before they attacked, which took the apps down for about three minutes.”

“Oh no, then they know Jeb is there.”

“Yep. We’re still trying to figure out how they got so close before the apps went down.”

“Well, I wasn’t going to tell you this, but we’ve seen a van behind us. It might be following us.”

“Crap. Have they made any moves?”

“No, not yet, and we have two rifles and a pistol with us. Earl’s got one in his lap, in the back seat, and Gabe’s up front with the other. I’m driving.”

“Good. You stopping in Grand Junction?”

“No, we were going to get on Route 50 there, and drive straight through.”

“That’s a really long drive.” Charlie said.

“We’ll take turns.”

“Is the van close enough for the short range app?”

“Should be, but we aren’t getting a hit, Charlie.”

“Okay. How’s your gas? Maybe it’d be good to gas up in Grand Junction. Lots of people around there.”

“Probably a good idea.”

“You do that. If that van shows up again on route 50, call me.”

“Okay, Charlie. Don’t worry, it’s probably nothing.”

“Hope so. Talk to you soon.” She set her phone back in her purse, beside her on the seat.

“Charlie?” Earl asked.

“Yeah. The hospital got attacked, but the army took care of it.”

“Gathered that from the conversation,” Gabe said. “We’re getting further ahead of that van. It’s probably not the enemy.”

“Yeah, looks like that to me, too,” Hilda said. “Charlie thinks we ought to gas up in Grand Junction since there’s so many people around there.”

“Sounds good,” Gabe said. “I could use a bathroom break, anyway.”

“Okay, there’s the first off-ramp. I’ll take it.”

She drove off the interstate, and cruised down the main road, choosing the third gas station she saw.

Gabe got out of the car and pumped gas while Earl got out and stretched his legs. Hilda went to the restroom. The area was well lit, with plenty of people around, but Gabe was nervous. He scanned for the van.

“Mind if I go hit the restroom?” Earl asked.

“Go ahead,” Gabe said. Earl walked away, passing by Hilda as she returned. She had a bag in her hands.

“More goodies?” Gabe asked.

“Soft drinks, cookies, and chips,” she said.

“Good, I could use a snack. I’ll hit the restroom when Earl gets back.”

“No sign of our friends?”

“Nope. Why don’t you get on your map application and find us a good way to get to Route 50. I’d rather do surface streets if we can get away with it.”

“Okay, on it,” Hilda said. “Want me to keep driving?”

“For a little while,” Gabe said. “You okay with that?”

“Sure, stretching my legs helped. Here comes Earl.”

“This thing just finished filling,” Gabe said, pulling the nozzle out and putting it back on the pump. He waited for his receipt.

“Good, all done,” Earl said.

“Yep. Be back in a minute,” Gabe said, walking off towards the restroom.

***

The general rushed back into the clubhouse. “Major Harrison found the vehicle.”

“How does he know it’s the right one?” Charlie asked.

“They came in a modified van,” he said. “The interior is shielded, from right behind the front seats to the back end. Lead plates.”

“No, seriously?” Jerry asked. “Son of a bitch.”

“Hilda and Gabe saw a van following them,” Charlie said. “I just got off the phone with her.”

“Uh oh,” Frank said. “If they’re being followed by a shielded van, they won’t know about it until it’s too late.”

“What about the driver?” Jackson asked.

“The two men up front had scars on their arms,” General Hogan said, “both of them got shot in the gun battle with the rest of the cretins.”

“I’d better call Hilda back,” Charlie said.

Charlie called Hilda.

“Charlie, what’s up?”

“We found out how the cretins got near the hospital without being seen.”

“How?”

“They tricked out a van. The back had lead lining inside. The driver and front passenger both had their chips removed.”

“Clever. Wonder if the van that was following us is set up the same way?”

“Is it still behind you?”

“No, but we aren’t back on the highway yet. We’re taking surface streets to route 50.”

“You already hit the gas station, I take it.”

“Yeah. No problems there. No sign of the van. Lots of people out and about, too. Feels almost normal here.”

“Well, I just wanted to let you know that the apps might not protect you. Keep your eyes open.”

“Will do, honey. Don’t worry. I think if they were really after us, they would’ve shown up at the gas station.”

“Talk to you soon, Hilda.”

“Bye.”

“Sounds like everything is okay,” Frank said.

“I think we ought to get on the road and meet them,” Charlie said. “This makes me nervous as hell. If the cretins do make a move, we won’t be able to get there in time.”

“I’m with you,” Jackson said. “What do you want to take?”

“We can take my SUV,” Charlie said. “Maybe we should see if anybody else wants to go.”

“I’ll go,” Dobie said.

“Good,” Charlie said.

“I’m going to send my boys in the Humvee too, if you don’t mind,” General Hogan said. “This doesn’t smell right to me.”

Jerry started to say something, but Jasmine jumped in. “No, Jerry, don’t even say it. You’re staying here. Having my mom out there is bad enough.”

He looked at her and smiled. “Okay, I understand,” Jerry said. “I was actually thinking more of following and then going on towards the hospital.”

“It’s too early,” Jasmine said. “Jeb won’t be released for a few weeks. I’m thinking we ought to take the coach there when it gets closer, maybe with an escort.”

“That’s a better idea,” Frank said. “We don’t need everybody gone from here at the same time. We’re vulnerable, remember, and the enemy knows where we are. We’re already a little thin with Earl, Gabe, and Jeb gone, and now Charlie, Dobie, Jackson, and the privates are taking off. That’s enough.”

“Yes, that is enough,” general Hogan said.

“Okay, I get it,” Jerry said.

“I’ll go talk to my boys,” the General said. “When are you leaving?”

“We can be ready to go in half an hour,” Charlie said. Jackson and Dobie nodded in agreement.

“Okay, sounds good,” General Hogan said as he walked out the door.

“Charlie, why don’t you call Hilda and let her know you’re on the way?” Frank asked.

“I’ll do that from the road,” Charlie said. “So she can’t try to talk me out of it.”

“Think we should take Duchess?” Dobie asked.

“Couldn’t hurt,” Charlie said. “There’s room in the back.”

“All right, let’s load ‘em up,” Jackson said. The three of them left the clubhouse.

“You think this is a good idea?” Jane asked.

“Yeah,” Frank said. “Otherwise I don’t know how we can save them, if they
are
being followed.”

“What about the army?” Jasmine asked.

“We want them fighting the enemy while it’s still like shooting fish in a barrel,” Jerry said. “That window of opportunity is closing fast.”

“Wonder who’s running things for the enemy now,” Jane said.

“Good question,” Frank said. “The highest ranking people not in custody are the guys south of Big Bend.”

***

Scott led Howard and Bailey down the steps to the basement door. The walls around the stairs were scratched and pitted. The door had a new dead bolt on it, which stuck out like a sore thumb over the old-fashioned glass doorknob and key hole. The musty smell hit them in the face as Scott pushed the door open.

“This lightbulb is liable to go out any time,” Scott said as he pulled the chain to turn it on. “Looks like it’s from the 1930s.”

The room was bathed in eerie yellow light.

“What’s with the stuff on the back of the door?” Bailey asked, looking at the thick padding fastened on the inside.

“Poor man’s soundproofing,” Scott said. “Probably worked okay.”

“This looks like a 1940s photographic studio,” Howard said, looking at the light stands and the backdrops hanging on one wall, and the selection of props sitting on a table to the left. There was a changing screen on the right side of the far wall.

“Yes, this was the photo and screen test room,” Scott said. He turned on another bank of lights, and the room brightened up. It didn’t look dangerous. More photo and movie hardware came into view, including small boom microphones and an expensive looking movie camera.

The only thing that looks odd is the window up near the ceiling,” Bailey said. “More of that soundproofing stuff.”

“Makes sense, if you’re going to make sound movies down here,” Howard said, chuckling. “Perfect cover.”

“He’s got the same stuff around all of the windows down here,” Scott said. “That’s why it’s so stuffy. None of them open anymore.”

“Wonder what they did about that problem back in the day?” Howard asked. “Had to be a tip off to the victims.”

“Good question, Howie. I’m going to run some vent pipes up through the roof. Ought to hide the noise okay. Check out what’s back here.”

Scott went to a door on the far wall and opened it. There was a seal around this door made of rotten rubber. They walked through, and Scott pulled the light chain just inside. This was a much larger room, with the look of a dungeon.

“This is where the sausage was made,” Scott said, grinning.

“Nice cells,” Howard said, looking at the three cages along the wall. “Why so many, though? Didn’t this guy work alone?”

“Nobody
really
works alone, Howie,” Scott said. “You know that.”

“Look at that table!” Bailey said, rushing over to the middle of the room. There were tools hanging on one side by hooks. Bone saws and other orthopedic medical tools. The table top had a channel all the way around the edge, going to a spout that was over a dirty old tin bucket. “Did he cut people up down here?”

“Yes, that’s the way this guy worked,” Scott said.

“Is that what you do?” she asked, wide eyed again. “Cut them up down here?”

“No, that’s not the way we mark,” Scott said. “I’ve used it for torture a few times though.”

“This isn’t all that much different from what Chet set up back at the park,” Howard said as he looked around.

“Where do you think my dad got his ideas?” Scott asked.

“They knew each other?” Howard asked, a shocked look on his face. “He never told me about that.”

“Yeah, he was funny about this guy, for some reason,” Scott said. “He told me he had a friend who lived a couple blocks away from Ohio State, but that was all he’d say. You don’t know how many old houses for sale I’d looked at in this neighborhood before this one came on the market.”