Sleeper Cell Super Boxset (77 page)

No time to explain anything to the police
, Craig told himself.

They opened both sides of the van and tossed all the supplies in the back. Craig slouched down in the driver’s seat, exhausted and in pain. 

“Are you okay?” Husein asked, worried by Craig’s pale appearance.

“Yeah, just peachy,” Craig replied.

The police sirens roared from only a few blocks away. He started the van and drove carefully out of the neighborhood to a back road east of the lake. The sudden, uneven pavement made everything inside the van shake. Husein gripped the armrests of his seat as Craig steadily steered through curves and hills, enamored with anticipation of their impending arrival. A thick cloud of dust trailed the van as it roared on, traveling a familiar, beaten path. The glaring sun followed them, sending shafts of flickering light into the van from atop the tree line.

“Your family is at the cabin?” Husein asked.

“I’m counting on it.”

“They drove there, too?”

“No, they took our boat through the lake.”

“Why did they not just drive, like us?”

“Because it’s faster on the boat. I can only get us so close. From there, it’s going to take some walking.”

Husein groaned and then turned around to look out the back windows of the van. No one was following them. There was only dust.

“Do you think the police will find us?” Husein asked, sounding worried.

“No. We’ll be fine.”

Craig’s mind brewed with thoughts—none of which made him feel any better. His world had imploded, and he was hanging on by a single thread.

***

Rachael was worried. She hadn’t heard from Craig in over twenty-four hours. The news of an attack on an FBI convoy had made it to the radio. Earlier, when she had a phone signal, she had called the agency repeatedly, but reached only an automated message saying that all lines were busy.

Now her cell phone barely got reception. Perhaps the towers were overloaded, or perhaps something more sinister was happening. It was only morning and she didn’t know how she was going to get through another day without Craig. Nick had grown restless and irritable.

Being away from his friends and video games was already starting to take its toll. He had grown testy with Rachael when she asked him to do the slightest thing, and more than once, they came close to arguing. Her patience was nearing an end.

“Thousands of people are dead, Nick. Do you understand that?” she had snapped at him the day before. He had looked hurt as a result of her heavy words.

“I’m sorry,” she had said.

After the exchange, Nick had started to be more helpful. They had cleaned the cabin and inventoried their canned food, powdered liquids, and other supplies.

That morning, striving for normalcy, she got started on breakfast: precooked sausage and powdered mashed potatoes from the food supply. Nick was awake and walked out of his room eager for a news update.

“Any word from Dad yet?” was his first question.

“Not yet,” she answered. She pointed to some empty gallon jugs on the counter of their cramped kitchen. “Can you fill these up with water from the pump, please?”

“No problemo,” he said, grabbing them up and heading outside.

She heard the patio screen door slowly wheeze and slap shut. Rachael placed a heavy frying pan over one of the burners of their propane stove and turned it on. Unwrapped sausage links rested on the counter to her side. Above the sink was a small open window where daylight streamed inside. She looked out and saw nothing more than trees, elms mostly, their leaves moving in the morning breeze.

She expected another hot day and had already opened all the screened windows. They had a few solar-powered and electrical portable fans placed throughout the cabin just to circulate the air. The radio in the kitchen was always on. It barely left her side, along with her cell phone. And as she heard the latest morning reports on the terrorist attacks, she knew that they had made the right decision fleeing to the cabin.

The news announcer continued,
“A massive hunt is underway for the terrorists involved in the deadly port attacks that have led to mass casualties and evacuations of some of the most populated areas throughout the country. In a quick and decisive retaliation, several drone strikes have swept through targets in Iraq and Syria in an attempt to eliminate ISIS leaders allegedly responsible for planning the attacks.

“A formal declaration of war has not been issued. Emergency responders and military personnel have since been deployed to contaminated port areas with high levels of radioactivity and chemical fallout.”

Rachael tossed the sausages into the frying pan and then set both hands on the counter. As the food sizzled and popped, she lowered her head and quietly sobbed. She could hear Nick outside pumping water and tried to get control before he returned.

She caught her breath, raised her head, and opened her watery eyes just as she heard Nick call from outside.

“Dad!”

Rachael turned quickly to the front door, knocking over an empty coffee pot and some dishes onto the floor. She stepped over the mess and rushed outside, down the steps, and to the side of the cabin. Two abandoned water jugs sat next to the pump. Nick had run off toward a scraggly, disheveled-looking man who had emerged from the trees and brush with a boy who looked like a teenager.

She squinted in the sunlight and took a second, closer look, calling out to Nick to come back. The man was wearing a hat that shadowed his face. His face was bruised, and he walked with a limp. One eyelid was half shut. He was armed with a rifle and carrying a backpack, his blue T-shirt covered in sweat.

She had no clue who the teenager was. Nick ran into the man’s arms. She could see it now. Like something out of a dream, it was Craig. She sprinted across the dirt as her flip-flops flew off.

“Dad, you’re here!” Nick said.

Rachael ran past Nick and threw her arms around Craig, nearly knocking him over. Husein moved to the side, startled by the sudden commotion.

“Hey, everyone,” Craig said, exhausted and with a weary smile.

“Where have you been?” Rachael asked.

“How did you get here?” Nick said.

Rachael looked up at him and gasped. “What happened to your face?” She ran her hand across his cheek, feeling the bumps and bruises.

“Did you get in a fight?” Nick asked in wonder.

“Something like that. It’s nothing, really. I’m fine.”

“We were so worried,” Rachael said.

Craig rubbed her back. “I’m proud of you guys. You made it here in one piece.”

Rachael backed away with a more stern expression. Tears glistened on her cheeks. “I want to know everything. What happened and where you’ve been. Why haven’t you called? Do you know how worried I’ve been?”

Craig placed a hand on her shoulder, interrupting. “I’ll tell you everything, but first, let’s go inside and get out of the sun.”

A quick silence came over the group as they looked toward Husein, who stood sheepishly to the side. Nick and Rachael examined him. His curly hair was mess. His clothes were tattered and dirty, and he looked every bit as exhausted as Craig.

“I’d like to introduce Husein,” Craig said. “Husein, this is my wife, Rachael, and my son, Nick.”

“Nice to meet you,” Husein said.

They nodded back. Rachael said, “Hello.” Nick waved. After the initial awkwardness, they headed back to the cabin, with Craig telling them, “I’ll explain later.”

After setting down their backpacks, Craig and Husein sat on the couch where Rachael handed them each a bottle of water, which they gulped down.

From the kitchen, she continued her line of questions. “How did you get here?”

“We have a van. Parked it on the back road and walked the rest of the way,” Craig answered. He tilted his head back and finished the last of the water.

“I heard about the attack on the FBI building,” Rachael said. “It’s just terrible. But now that you’re back, I can breathe again.”

“I’m sorry for worrying you,” Craig said.

Rachael turned to them. “So tell us: How did you meet Husein?”

Craig glanced at Husein and then back to her. “He’s part of an ongoing investigation. A special witness. We ran into some trouble but made it through just fine.”

Craig suddenly rose from couch and limped toward the bedroom. Rachael looked up.

“Where are you going?” she asked.  

“I need to check on something real quick,” he said, heading toward the bedroom, unable to postpone for another minute what had been in the back of his mind. He stopped before passing Nick and he put his hand on his shoulder. “How have you been holdin’ up here, buddy?”

“I’m okay,” Nick said. “A little scared though.”

Craig squeezed Nick’s shoulders. “We’re safe here. There’s nothing to be scared of.”

“It’s not just us, Dad. I’m scared for everyone else out there.”

Craig sighed. “Listen, things are bad right now. I’m not going to lie to you.”

Nick pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and held it up. “The Internet doesn’t even work. All I’ve been getting lately is this.” His display screen read:
This page cannot be displayed
.

“It may be like that for a while,” Craig said. “We’re just going to have to adjust.”

“For how long?” Nick asked. 

Craig looked at him, uncertain. “I don’t know,” Craig said softly. “In the meantime, we hunker down. Look out for each other. Got it?” 

Nick looked down. “Yeah.”

“You’re doing good, son. I’m proud of you.” Craig touched Nick’s arm again and walked into the bedroom.

Nick, suddenly hungry, decided it was time to help his mother with breakfast. He followed the aroma down the hall and to the kitchen eager to lend a hand.

On the twin bed in Craig’s room sat his backpack. He zipped it open and took out a slim laptop wrapped in a bath towel. He went to a small desk in the corner, placed it on top, pulled up a chair and sat down. He flipped the MacBook open and turned it on: A log-in screen appeared.

“Shit…” he said under his breath.

In the kitchen, Rachael was getting everything ready. She had exchanged a few words with Husein as he waited in the living room, and she was intent on finding out a little more about their unexpected visitor.

“So you’re from Chechnya?” she asked.

“Yes, that is correct,” Husein answered.

“Wow. That’s amazing…” Her attention was suddenly diverted to the bedroom, where Craig had just shut the door. “Hurry up before it gets cold.”

“Be out in a minute!” Craig shouted.

Rachael shook her head just as her cell phone vibrated on the kitchen counter. So they had a signal again. She jumped and looked at the screen. It was a call from Craig’s phone, a call she had been anticipating for the past two days. With him returned she didn’t understand what was going on. She picked up the phone and walked to their room where Craig was seated in front of a laptop.

She held up her vibrating phone. “Did you lose your phone or something?”

Craig narrowed his eyes as the room went quiet. He shot out of his chair and walked over to her, taking her phone. There was no mistaking the contact displayed on the screen. Someone was calling from his phone. Rachael saw the deep concern in his face and his hesitation to answer.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

Craig pressed the answer button and held the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

Immediately, he was sorry he had answered. He knew who was calling and he knew the signal could be tracked. The line was full of static. There was a pause. Then a voice spoke, heavily distorted
. “Hello, Agent Davis.”
 

Craig knew enough. He knew they had his phone and had somehow gotten into it, just as he had been trying on the laptop to bypass into their system.

“What do you want?” he asked angrily. Concerned, Rachael moved closer, trying to listen in.

“You know very well what we want.”

“Who is this?” Craig barked.

“My name is Ghazi, and I believe I’ll be making your acquaintance soon enough.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Craig asked.

“We’re close, Agent Davis. Very close. I’m afraid your options are very limited, so I’d listen carefully if I were you.”

Craig paced back and forth, looking out the window. Rachael asked who was on the line, but Craig didn’t respond.

“You will listen to me carefully.”

Craig left the room with the phone pressed tightly against his ear and headed outside.

“Are you still there?”
the voice asked.  

“Yes. What do you want?”

“I’m happy to get to the point. We want the laptop you stole and we want you to surrender yourself to us.”

“That’s hilarious,” Craig said. “I’m with an analyst expert right now. In five minutes, we’re going to find out what’s on that laptop and expose your entire operation.”

“Way out there in the woods?”

Craig froze.

“We were hoping to find you at your house. But there was nothing but police there. Lots of them. More of our brothers martyred at your hands. Mark my words, there will be retribution for your actions when we get there.”

“Get where?” Craig asked.

“Why, your cabin, of course,
” Ghazi answered. 

“I don’t believe you.”

“The laptop has told us exactly where to find you.”

Craig froze and then dashed back inside, stomping across the hardwood floor and into the bedroom where he slammed the laptop shut.

A laugh came over the other line.
“No use in turning it off now. Allow me to provide our terms. You meet us with the laptop, unarmed, and we’ll spare your family. You should be quite honored, actually. Our Supreme Commander wants to personally speak to you.”

“You come within one hundred feet of this cabin, none of you will make it back alive,” Craig said.

Ghazi laughed again.
“We have more terms. You see, we have a team stationed outside the house of Meredith and Tony Adams. I believe this to be your wife’s parents, yes?”