The Hermetrius Conspiracy Read online

  Jack rounded up the others in the Living room thirty minutes later and explained the situation. “I’ve only spotted four people in the surveillance team, two in front and two in back, which means they’re just keeping an eye on us until a larger assault team is put together to close in. We can’t let that happen, so we need to get away from here. If we go this afternoon they can follow us from the air, so we’ll have to wait until dark. Harriet, check on your computer and see when the moon comes up tonight so we can leave before then.”

  “The moon rises at 11:42 tonight, Jack.”

  “Then we should leave an hour and a half before that, as soon as it’s really dark out there. That gives us six hours to make a plan, get the cars loaded up, and decide where we will go. I’ve laid out a tentative plan but I’ll need any inputs you have.

  First item is how we get out of here. Rick will drive Lynn’s Jeep with Harriet and Tom. Lynn and I will be right behind you in my truck. We’ll take O’Malley with us. The key is to surprise them and get out before they can react. I looked at this place on Google Earth, and there’s a track through woods on the west side of the property that will take us to a county road. When we get there, Rick, you turn right and follow the road to across the river to Rosemont, Maryland. We’ll turn left and pick up Highway 7 to Winchester. From there I printed some maps with directions to my cabin 30 minutes outside of Mill Creek, West Virginia. It’s about a four-hour drive from here, so it will still be dark when we get there. I printed out an overhead photo with a clearing marked about a mile from the cabin. Whoever gets there first will park there and give the other a call.

  Tom, you and I will leave the cars there and walk the perimeter of my property looking for signs of surveillance. The Bad Guys may have placed some wireless cameras, both inside and outside the cabin. These cameras don’t transmit video unless the motion sensor gets triggered by someone walking within 25 feet. I have a laser gadget in my truck that will disable the motion sensors from as far away as 50 feet, so we’ll have to spot the cameras before we get too close. I’ll use night vision goggles to look for the heat emissions from the camera power supplies. We should be able to see them from at least 50 feet. Question, Tom?”

  “If there are cameras inside the house, the sensors will pick us up as soon as we enter. What do we do about those?”

  “Good question. We’ll look in the windows to spot any cameras that cover the entrance and disable them. Then I can go inside and check out the other rooms one at a time by sticking my head around the edge of the door. If I see a camera, I can peek again and disable it with the laser. The motion sensor won’t trigger unless I show most of my body. Once I have the house cameras disabled I’ll give Rick a call so he and Lynn can bring the trucks down into the garage. I’ll have the doors open so you can roll in quickly. So is everybody on board with that part of the plan?” They all nodded.

  “Good. let me have all your cell phones before we leave and I’ll take the batteries out so they can’t track us. I have a box full of unregistered throw-away phones in the truck, so we can have two of those in each vehicle. Tom, you’re a short, skinny guy. Would you go out and slide under the trucks to make sure they haven’t managed to sneak a bug on them? While you’re doing that, I’ll put another set of license plates on them.”

  “ Next up is what to do if we get chased or pick up a tail. If we get chased on the way out of here, I’ll deal with that. If we get chased after we split up, both trucks have big engines, so try to outrun and outsmart them. That’s why I want you driving Lynn’s Jeep, Tom. You and I have been trained in evasive driving so we stand a better chance of getting away. Lynn and I have our side arms with us. How about you two?” as he looked over at Tom and Harriet.

  “They took mine when they captured me”

  “Mine is locked up at home. I haven’t been back since I went to the hospital.”

  Rick added “ I have a revolver at home, but nothing with me.”

  Jack responded “I carry some extras in my truck. I’ll give all three of you a semi-automatic pistol with plenty of extra bullet clips for quick reloading. I also want a rifle in each vehicle in case we need it. We’re talking life and death here, folks, so don’t hesitate to start shooting if you have to, if only to slow them down.”

  Rick volunteered to fix supper for them. “How do steaks, baked potatoes, and a salad sound?”

  “It sounds like a prisoners last meal on death row.” Lynn added somberly.

  Chapter 41

  By dark they had everything loaded in the trucks – guns, some changes of clothes, and the maps that Jack made them all memorize. Jack had also stored his cabin’s location in both GPS units, and got out some night vision binocular for both vehicles.

  They kept a lookout at the house windows for infrared signatures of people or trucks in case an attack group was forming already, but everything stayed quiet until it was time to leave. They turned the lights out downstairs first, then turned off the upstairs lights to make it look like they were going to bed.

  Tom stopped in the kitchen and scribbled something on a note pad, then they got into the trucks and pressed the garage door remote control. Rick backed the Jeep out first, followed by Jack’s truck. They hit the gas and sped toward the opening in the woods. Tom had his lights on so he could hit the gap as quickly as possible. Jack was right behind him with his lights off, trusting Tom to find the path.

  As they reached the woods, Jack saw a pair of headlights turn on behind them as a large pickup truck launched itself from among the trees to the left. He waited until Lynn had driven the truck deep into the trees where the track narrowed down, then he turned to Lynn. “Slow down up ahead and I’ll roll out the door. You keep going for a couple hundred yards and wait for me. If I don’t show up in five minutes or if you see lights behind you, take off and follow the route to my cabin.”

  “I can’t leave you behind, Jack!”

  “If you don’t we risk letting this conspiracy take over the country. I’ll get away and get back to the cabin on my own if I have to.” He grabbed the rifle, opened the door, and rolled out into the trees.

  Jack burrowed into the leaves and brought the M-16 into firing position. As the truck behind them approached Jack fired at the left front tire and heard a satisfying sound as the tire blew. Next he took out the headlights, then put three more rounds into the truck’s radiator. With the lights out, he jumped up and ran toward where Lynn was waiting. But he was suddenly bathed in bright light as they turned on the light bar over the cab, and a shot rang out. Jack stumbled and fell, but was able to roll into the trees. He crawled deeper into the thick brush and assessed the damage. The bullet wound was in his rear end, but it didn’t seem to penetrate into the hip. Right now it was numb, but it wouldn’t stay like that for more than a few minutes. He needed to cover as much ground as he could before the pain hit.

  Jack started moving through the brush, perpendicular to the stalled pick up a so he could keep out of their lights. He was worrying about the noise he was making until he heard the truck radiator blow up. The roar of the spewing clouds of steam gave him all the cover he needed to get a safe distance away. He stopped and listened to see if they would try to find him, but all he heard was two men arguing about who was going to report this to their boss.

  He covered a hundred yards when the pain kicked in. At first it was so bad his legs gave out and he collapsed. He checked for blood flow from the wound. It wasn’t gushing, so they hadn’t hit an artery, but he needed to get some pressure on the wound so he wouldn’t bleed out. The gluteus maximus muscles weren’t well situated for a tourniquet, so he would have to improvise. He took off his jacket, shirt, undershirt, and belt. After folding the undershirt into an absorbent pad, he tightened his belt around his hips it to hold it over the wound. He put the shirt back on along with his jacket and tried to stand. After a couple of tries he stayed on his feet and started moving toward where he thought Lynn and the truck should be. He found a dead branch to use
as a crutch and was able to make better time.

  After ten minutes he stopped. Something was moving through the brush ahead of him. He pulled out his pistol and got behind a tree. Did the surveillance team come looking for him after all? There was only one of them, so he waited until he passed, pointed the gun at his back and said quietly “Freeze. Don’t make a sound or you’re dead. Face down on the ground. Now! Hands where I can see them. Toss your gun into the brush.”

  The man complied, spreading his arms and legs out wide. Jack picked up the pistol, a Glock 9 mm. He kept his distance – well-trained fighters could cover eight feet quicker than he could react, although this one didn’t seem very muscular. Now I want you to roll over on your back, keeping the arms spread wide so I can get a look at you. He rolled over, but the fur-rimmed hood covered the face.

  “Jack, is that you! It’s me, Lynn.”

  “What are you doing out here, Lynn. You’re supposed to be far away from here on your way to the cabin.”

  “Are you going to help me up or just stand there jabbering.”

  Jack reached down and pulled her to her feet and she immediately threw her arms around him. “I heard shots and an explosion and thought . . . Oh God, I’m glad you’re safe. I hid the truck in the trees on up the road and came back to see what happened. Come on, let’s get you out of here.” As she pulled his hand to follow her he fell to his knees. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

  “Yeah, I pick up another bullet wound. In my butt this time. I have a pressure pad on it, but we’ll have to take it slow.” Lynn pulled his arm over her shoulder to support some of his weight and they hobbled back to the truck. Lynn helped him into the front seat and saw him wince with pain as he put sat down. “How bad is it, Jack Are you bleeding a lot?”

  “I don’t feel blood running down my leg, so I guess not.”

  “We need to get you to an emergency room. Winchester is about 30 minutes away; they will have a hospital. Can you make it that far?”

  “No doctors and no hospitals. They’ll be watching those. Stop at the first cheap motel you come to and rent us a room. We’ll stay just long enough to get me cleaned up. I have a first aid kit in the back with antiseptic, bandages, and pain medication.”

  #

  Once they got on the county road, Lynn picked up her speed and headed for Purcellville, the closest town. As they got close she turned into a motel parking lot. She pulled out one of the false identity packages Jack had given her and checked in. She helped Jack into the room and laid him face down on the bed, then went back out and to get the first aid kit.

  “O.K. Jack, lets get those pants off so I can have a look.” She could tell he was in a lot of pain from his pale complexion and streaming sweat, but he couldn’t pass up the chance to say “Is that an indecent proposal, ma’am?”

  “You bet it is.” She helped him get out of his pants and saw the blood-soaked undershirt. She slowly eased it away from the wound. “It’s a pretty small hole, Jack, maybe a 22 caliber. I expected something bigger.”

  Jack pushed the mental fog out of the way long enough to think. “I could tell it was a rifle shot. I think this means they don’t want to kill us; they want us alive so they can question us. That’s a little bit of good news in all this. Take the forceps from the first aid kit and probe to see how deep the bullet went.”

  “This is really going to hurt. Can you handle it.”

  “I’ve been through a lot more pain than this. Go ahead a dig. If it’s not too deep, see if you can get it out.”

  Five minutes later Jack was passed out on the bed and she had the bullet in her hand – it was a 22 caliber long rifle. They can pack a pretty good punch. He was lucky it hadn’t lodged in the bone. She didn’t know how long Jack would be out, so she called Harriet.”

  “What’s the matter, Lynn. Did something go wrong?”

  She explained the situation and asked Lynn what to do.

  “The first thing, while he’s still out, is to pack the wound with sterile gauze soaked in antiseptic. That will stop the bleeding until we can get him to the cabin.

  Next, it won’t do us any good to arrive at the cabin before you two, so we will check into the first independent motel we find and wait for your call. They probably already have people out looking for us, so we have to get on the road by dawn. Our separate routes to the cabin come together in Winchester, so we’ll meet there and travel on to the cabin together.”

  Lynn was up before dawn and showered and dressed before Jack woke up. Lynn sat down beside him and nudged him awake. “You look a bit better than you did last night. Your color is starting to come back. I got some fresh clothes out of the truck. I’ll help you get them on.” Jack started to protest, but Lynn cut him off. “I saw you naked last night when I was cleaning you up, so there’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

  “Where was I”

  “You were out cold. You missed it. I took some pictures to post on the Internet.” Lynn said with a grin.

  After he was dressed he took some antibiotic pills, and a couple of painkillers from the first aid kit, and limped out to the truck. Lynn helped him get carefully situated in the passenger seat, got in the driver’s seat and was back on the road just before dawn. As she drove Lynn told him about her conversation with Helen and their agreement to meet in Winchester. Jack gave Tom a call to let him know they were back on the road.

  Chapter 42

  The trucks pulled up side by side in the clearing overlooking Jack’s property and opened the windows. Tom leaned out the window of the Jeep. “Obviously you can’t walk the perimeter with me, Jack, so I’ll have to go alone. But now it’s broad daylight, so I’ll really have to be careful of the cameras when I take out the motion sensors. Show me how to use this laser gadget, Jack.”

  “It’s pretty simple. You just point it at the camera and push the button for three seconds. I have some cameras and sensors down there too, but mine are all but invisible. Let’s hope they were a little sloppy where they put their units so you can see them. In daylight you won’t have the night vision goggles to find the camera power supplies, so you’ll have to rely on binoculars and sharp eyes. Take your time and be thorough. We can wait up here as long as we need to.”

  Tom called from the cabin an hour and a half later. “I found four cameras in the woods around the cabin and one on the front porch. The inside rooms were clean. I’ll be ready to open the garage doors when the trucks get here.”

  Ten minutes later they were all sitting in the living room letting the tension flow out of them. Jack asked Lynn to pour him a double whiskey, straight, to help numb the pain. “Shouldn’t I just pour it over the wound, Jack?” she said with a smile.

  The others chimed in. “Yes, we want to see the wound. Show us your butt.” Helen added “I would love to see that cute butt of yours.” as she gave her husband a wink.

  “Lynn is the only one who gets to see that, and only until the wound closes up.”

  After Jack finished his drink, he went to his room to catch up on sleep.

  Lynn helped Jack out of his pants and shirt and got him down on the bed. She eased his boxers down and lifted the wound dressing for a look. “It’s really swollen, Jack, but I don’t see any sign of infection around the bullet hole. Harriet said I should leave the packing in the wound for a couple of days if I didn’t see any sign of infection.”

  Lynn looked in some drawers and found a pair of Jack’s pajamas. “I’ll help you get these on and sit with you until you go to sleep.”

  Jack laid on his side and Lynn sat and held his head in her lap until he was snoring. She looked down at him and thought how close she had come to losing him last night. Tears started running down her cheeks, followed by a smile when she thought ‘I love him. I really do love him.’

  #

  Jim Norton was in a foul mood. The head of the new security firm he hired to replace Blackworth, Alexei Brusilov – the one who told him confidently yesterday that his men had them cornered in a far
mhouse in Virginia – had called in the middle of the night to report they had escaped. A search of the area was planned as soon as there was enough daylight.

  Jim debated waiting until after the morning search to report to Winston, but remembered where that got him last time. It was 4 a.m. on the east coast now, so it would be morning in London. He dialed Winston’s secretary and asked to be put through.

  “How is the operation for tonight coming along, Norton? Is everything ready to close the trap?”

  “Um . . . that’s what I’m calling about, sir. It seems they slipped away from the farm late last night. There must be a leak somewhere at our end somewhere, someone who warned them.”

  Norton held the phone away from his ear while Winston shouted expletives through the phone. When he heard a pause, he put the phone back to his ear. “. . . Have you got that, Norton!”

  “Yes sir! We may learn something when they search the area of the shooting in the morning, maybe some clue about where they went. In the meantime, Alexei is canvassing all the hospitals and veterinary clinics in the area where he may have gone for medical treatment.”

  “Keep me in the loop on that. What bright ideas do you have for finding them again?”

  “Alexei is coming up with a search plan widening out from the farm. His men will cover every possible place they might have holed up, including barns, parking garages, and old warehouses. We don’t know which way they went, so it may take quite awhile.”

  “Call me as soon as they finish searching the farm.”

  As Norton heard Winston’s phone click off, he thought ‘that could have been worse. He could have fired me. I’d better head out to the farm house so I can coordinate the search with Alexei.

  #

  When he got to Leesburg he called Alexi for directions and met him at the front gate. “Has the search turned up anything, Alexei?”

  “No we just got started. We have to search carefully so we don’t disturb any evidence. We waited until you got here to start on the house. Do you want to go up there now?”

  “Lead the way.”

  Norton, Alexei, and two of his men entered the front door. “These two men were once police investigators back in Russia, but they got caught embezzling state funds and had to leave the country in a hurry. There is a contract out to have them killed, so I keep them well hidden and pay them for their loyalty. Of course, they know that if they cross me, I’ll collect on that contract myself.”