The Face of Freedom. Benjamin Vance

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СКАЧАТЬ my agent did not go rogue. He’d finished the assignment and was waiting on another.”

      “Don’t you mean ‘she’ Roland? I hear she was a plant with one of the militia groups and actually ended up helping the terrorist escape. I think she may have ‘gone over’. The explosion was probably due to a miscalculation with high explosives. They may have even been constructing a ‘dirty’ nuclear bomb. You miscalculated on this one Roland.”

      “Mr. President, please keep your radar up on this one. It isn’t going to be simple. If I find anything new on my end, I’ll inform you.”

      “You turn it over to Steven Northfield, Roland. I put his agency in charge. It’s really important you stay in the chain of command on this one and keep your eyes and ears open. Thanks for your info. Say hello to the wife.” The President hung up.

      Roland Franks could not believe his ears. He murmured, “The wife ... the wife?” Charles Able was definitely a part of this debacle, or he’d been told perfect lies. He hung his head, rubbed his temples and allowed himself a WTF moment. After he pulled himself together, he called his National Security Branch Chief, Tom Mitchell. It was time to cover his ass.

      20.

      Martha Matley was arranging her night goggles, camoflage outfit and tape recorder when Joanna Pinks called, “Hi kid. You wanna poke around in the damage zone while I go try to wring every ounce of information out of old Arty Simms?”

      “Funny you should call. I was just arranging my cammie outfit to go out on the town. Yeah, make sure you get all the info you can. I know you have a soft spot for Chief Simms. ‘You wanna meet later at the office to discuss what we know, and compare notes? That’s assuming you don‘t go to his place after dinner and wring something else.”

      “Give me a break! I love him, but I don’t ‘love’ him. I think he’s still crazy about me though, and I’ll use him if I have to. I’m feeling there’s one hell of a story here. See you about ten tonight? Is that okay? You be careful out there. Don’t get caught with a camera. I might never hear from you again.”

      “Okay, I’ll be careful. See you about ten at the office.”

      ***

      In Montana, Ralph Lazenby was stirring things up locally, claiming his “wife” had been kidnapped. When he refused to contact the police or FBI, most astute people realized there may be something amiss. About half of them thought he may have done away with her or she may have run off with the walker. When two FBI agents arrived and questioned Ridge Parker and his family, everyone suspected the worse. Duncan briefed all who would listen.

      Despite misinformation and rumor, Duncan had a good grasp on the situation. He believed the explosion in Coeur d’Alene was purposeful and probably took the life of the walker and Isadora. He, Julie and their mom and Dad had a lengthy discussion regarding the walker and Isadora. Through inference and intuition, the ladies understood there was more to Isadora than met the eye.

      Duncan’s logic also led him to believe Isadora rescued the walker. The walker was not the type to pick up a stray woman. Julie assumed they were headed toward Idaho, so the explosion seemed to fit. She was afraid for the walker’s life and desperately hoped he and Isadora were not intimately connected. Ridge and Altrise hoped for the best and assured the young ones the walker and Isadora were attracted to each other and probably would pop up again together in another patriot group. Duncan and Julie talked privately. Certain their parents were not attuned to the situation; they decided to make some calls. She called the newspapers first.

      Duncan started driving toward Idaho by the most direct route. Julie contacted the Coeur d’Alene Press and two others, but found all administrative offices closed. She called Duncan and informed him. They agreed he would inquire on-site whether the newspaper offices were open or not. It took him three hours to make the trip.

      He arrived late and tried the Press offices first. Of course the main doors were sealed, so he went to every entrance until he found a well-dressed lady just coming out a side door. He startled her when he drove up beside her and rolled down his window. In his fervor and resolve to get information, he wasn’t aware other people had their own agendas. However, Joanna Pink’s demeanor was drastically changed when Duncan asked if she knew anything about the bombing last night.

      She stopped dead, her reporter antenna up, and asked why this forward young man thought it was a bomb? Duncan said, “Did I say ‘bomb’?”

      “You sure did. Why do you think that?”

      “Well, I’m not sure, but I drove over here to check on a man and a lady who had been in our area two days ago. They disappeared in a hurry and we’re trying to find out what happened to them.”

      Jo started to walk away. Looking back she said, “Oh, your girlfriend run off with another guy?”

      Duncan kept pace with her in the truck, talking out the window. He said, “It’s nothing like that. I can understand why you must think I’m a fruitcake for asking you these questions this late at night, but the guy is or was very important to us. I don’t know if you’ve heard of him. People call him the walker.”

      Jo stopped dead again, looking straight ahead. She slowly turned her head, but not her body toward Duncan. She said, “What the hell did you say?”

      “I said people call this guy the walker. He was addressing our little band of patriots in Montana day before yesterday and then he just took off with this woman from our group. They acted like it was an emergency or something. He’s a great guy and has… .”

      Jo interrupted him, “The walker? You mean the guy who’s been going around to all the Minute Man groups and attempting to combine them?”

      “Well, yes and no. He is attempting to get all of us to talk and form a political base.”

      “Yeah; right! He sounds to me like one of those who want the notoriety and power himself.”

      “I can tell you haven’t met him. He’s nothing like that. If you ever met him you’d know what a kind and selfless person he is. One reason he won’t tell people his name is to combat that very stigma you insinuate.”

      Jo grinned, “My, oh my. You seem to be taken with this guy.”

      Duncan hit the power window switch and Jo panicked. She’d pushed too far. She yelled at Duncan, “I’m sorry. I’d like to talk to you about him. I have met him.”

      Duncan left the window up and pulled forward. Jo’s heart sank. She mumbled to herself, “Smart ass. Now you’ve done it.”

      Then Duncan pulled into a parking space. Joanna ran as fast as she could in her high heels to the driver’s side of the truck. She apologized to Duncan and invited him in to her office. Once inside, she called Martha to see what she’d found, and informed her what Duncan shared. Martha whispered that she was on to something so she couldn’t come immediately. Jo and Duncan continued their conversation after Jo got them coffee and removed her heels. It was ten in the evening on Monday.

      Duncan started talking after his second sip of coffee. He said, “To give me a little credence, my father is a Montana state representative, and I run our lumber business in Great СКАЧАТЬ