Saturday, April 27, 2024

The Farmhouse

PxHere
Morgan was looking down the road, they were a ways out into the boondocks as he remembered his father calling it, when he saw something ahead which he didn't like.

"Hey Ephraim, we might have a problem."

Johansen looked up from the book he was reading, "Shit, just keep going."

At the turn off to the safe house was a military vehicle, two soldiers were standing near it. While they weren't exactly blocking the road, they were obviously watching it. For what Morgan didn't know.

"Are you going to slow down?" Johansen asked Morgan.

"Why should I? We're just a couple of good old boys headed down to the lake."

"To do what? Country boys don't just 'go down to the lake.' Are we fishing, what if those troops stop us, what's our story?"

"Oh buddy, you should read up on the places we operate in, rather than ... What is that you're reading now?"

"Caesar's Commentary of the Gallic Wars. Good stuff."

Morgan shook his head, "Caesar mention anything about a little beer garden next to the marina on the lake. Ain't you thirsty, boy?"

Johansen had to laugh at Morgan breaking into his Southern accent. "I suppose. Damn it, the soldier boys want us to pull over."


Hurley Thompson and Wilson Hackett were members of the National Guard. They had been on duty when the call came in that some Federal agency needed backup at a raid in their county. So they'd signed out weapons, ammo, and a Humvee.

Their sergeant told them, "Head out to the Macready place on Sackville Road. Look for one of those obvious black government sedans parked by the road."

Thompson, a corporal, said, "Seems pretty odd, Sarge. Don't these Feds have any people of their own they can call for backup?"

Staff Sergeant Herb Myers shook his head, "Hurley, I just work here. It's Saturday, we've got the duty, and the State Adjutant himself gave us a mission. You wanna call him back and ask him yourself?"

"I get it, Herb, I get it. Come on Wilson, let's go babysit some Feds."

They had been briefed by the senior agent on scene to watch out for anything suspicious. Thompson saw a couple of fellows in a older Ford, the driver was wearing a ballcap, the older man on the passenger side had his nose buried in a book.

"I'm gonna wave those fellows down, Hurley."

"What the f**k for, Wilson?"

"Just ask 'em if they've seen anything out of place. I'm bored outta my mind."

Thompson shook his head, "Suit yourself."


Morgan groaned when one of the soldiers stepped out, his hand in the air. His rifle was still slung but that didn't give Morgan a warm fuzzy. They didn't need any eyes on them out here. Johansen rolled his window down and put his book in the seat pocket, where his hand found the grip to his Browning Hi-Power.

The soldier leaned in, Johansen could see that the name tape on his uniform read 'HACKETT.'

"Afternoon, fellas. How's it going?" the soldier spoke, he was smiling.

"Fair to middlin'. What are you boys doing way the hell out here, lost?" Johansen was smiling as well, though the smile didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Nothing much, some Feds are checking out the old Macready place. It's been abandoned for years but some local boy said he saw people inside. Seems there was a terrorist attack up in the capital last night, Feds are running around all over the county."

"Damn. Terrorists you say?" Johansen asked in a scoffing tone.

"Yeah, don't know what flavor, Hurley here thinks it's Middle Eastern types. But hell, those boys would stand out like a sore thumb in these parts."

Johansen began to speak, but Morgan cut him off. "So you boys need our help or something? We're going down to Addie's Beer Garden, we worked all morning and we're kinda thirsty."

Thompson decided that Hackett had had enough fun. "You fellas seen anything out the ordinary around here?"

"Other than a couple of Guardsmen standing by the road? Nah, we ain't seen nothing." Morgan laid it on a little too thick for Johansen's tastes.

"Okay, keep your eyes open, call the sheriff's office if you see anything odd. Other than us, I mean."

That made Thompson chuckle. "You boys aren't from around here, are you?"

Johansen got a better grip on his pistol. Morgan spoke again.

"Nah. We that obvious? Our folks are a bit west of here. Up in the hills."

"Yeah, I thought so, okay boys, have a good one."

The Ford pulled out and continued down the road.

"Okay, Wilson, we don't stop any more unless they're really suspicious. That was just a couple of working fellas headed out for a beer by the lake."

"Can't be too sure, Hurley."

"I s'pose."


DuPont was a little annoyed, he'd come all the way out here with the day shift team and a couple of Guardsmen for very little reward.

But the tip had been correct, the house had seen people in it recently. Trash in the kitchen and spoiled food on the counter. Whoever had been here hadn't been planning on staying long term. Which was suspicious as hell.

He got on his cell phone. "Yeah, Alpha Gold Two-Fiver, DuPont. I need a forensics team at the Macready place."

He listened, "Yup, that's the one. We've got signs of recent occupancy. I want it dusted for prints, see if any match up with the M-60 the terrorists left behind."

He listened some more. "Yes, damn it. Send them by helo, my agency's picking up the tab on this one."

DuPont then turned to the team leader, "Anything else, anything?"

The man held up a single round of ammunition, "7.62 NATO, found it under the counter in the kitchen."

DuPont looked at it, the team leader was wearing gloves, so he wasn't worried about his prints on the brass. "Bag it as evidence. Forensics should be here in an hour or so. Gentlemen, I think we might have our first lead."



40 comments:

  1. We've established the feds, that's a start! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Uh Oh, the plot sickens. I mean thickens. Still plausible and therefore scary.
    juvat

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Who is who? Who is on what side? We shall see.

      Delete
  3. Nitwits left the M60 behind? Wow. I recall in the old IRA such action would get you a drumhead review and likely knifed in front of the band.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If the IRA left one behind the Brits were terrified of touching it and the Bomb Squad was called in.

      But for a plausible way to misdirect the Feds attention (including "prints" on that single round) brilliant.

      It was old school IRA habit to make attacks from known Brit favoring villages as to draw unwanted British troop response. Often created more IRA supporters that way.

      Delete
    2. No doubt most guerrilla organizations do that, if they're smart.

      Delete
    3. DNA is becoming the gold standard of high profile FBI cases. Every Body drops hair.

      The Old IRA had little to worry about with finger printing. The British had to catch you to check if your finger prints was on last year's event. No computer records.

      Today Cellphone tracking, use of all video available (including Ring) and then they can track your vehicle until you get out and remove your ski masks. Then computer matches your face to your driver's license on record.

      I was once medical support for a police "Body grab" target was under observation until he went to CVS and 4 large plain clothes police snatched him before he was able to reach his waist band.

      Moral is once you "play in the streets " your never going back to "normal go to work " life.

      Michael

      Delete
  4. So, locals, NGs, Feds, messy squatters ... this is a stew of humans you're collecting. And the terrorists. And those by and on the lake, innocents and not. What ... your Muse will tell.

    ReplyDelete
  5. M60 still functional? If it is, why leave it? Inquiring minds want to know. Forensics team arrives, does the helo leave? if so, hit the forensics team if possible. Good thread going Sarge.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Why leave it? Because it's hard to exit carrying a 25lb gun that's 3-4 feet long and obviously looks like a machine gun.

      Delete
  6. Crusty Old TV Tech here. Old Musie must have been holed up with Mirror-Universe Spock somewhere. This story crosses Clancy with The X Files, and throws in a bit of Jeb Stuart for good measure. Wondering when Alas, Babylon comes in. Good story thread, thanks to Sarge and his Musie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, I have been reading a lot of Stephen Coonts lately.

      Delete
  7. So, the state Adjutant General approved/directed the NG folks to go out to support the feds? Posse commitatus violation, perhaps? Are they acting under state authority or federal authority, and is this for possible violation of federal laws or state laws? Who is the the on scene commander?
    "Just following orders" does not excuse illegal behavior.
    JB

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's a messy situation, to say the least.

      Delete
    2. A lot of lines were blurred under the Patriot Act and it's extensions, expansions and various unknown findings and directives that transferred a helluva lot of state powers to the Feds.

      Delete
    3. Even worse these days with a Congress which refuses to act.

      Delete
  8. Sarge: International mystery man of multiple genres.

    Interesting choice of books. It has been years since I read it, but I do not recall him being my favorite of authors (that, and I am sympathetic to the Celts, of course).

    ReplyDelete
  9. "Said Alice."

    Who is playing whom?

    Wilson (interesting that his Christian name rather than surname is on his uniform) seems a chatty soul, doesn't he? Open, giving out lots of information without being asked. And "danged fur'nurs" pretending to be Good Ol' Boys.

    And, sloppy, sloppy, sloppy....leaving a valuable MG behind at the scene of operations as well as, at the safe house, something to maybe connect it to those who operated the operation.

    Definitely another "Said Alice" chapter.



    Re the formatting - on my Samsung phone it looks to be something like Georgia, on my desktop (actually, my wife's desktop) it's some form of Trebuchet font, maybe Trebuchet MS.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The name tag was Your Humble Scribe being an idiot. That's been corrected. (D'oh!)

      The new format uses a "font family," whereby you list a number of fonts and the system will use them based on availability on the device you're using. So on your phone, Georgia, on your wife's tablet, Trebuchet MS. (The latter is first in the font family, Georgia is the second.)

      Good eye, Joe!

      Delete
    2. Ah! And there I was seeing it as some cryptic clue we grateful readers had to decipher.

      I cheated...did a copy and paste into Word to see what it said the font is for the Trebuchetb
      MS. Georgia and Bookman Old Style are my go to for everything on which I have the option except my receipt (recipe) files, for which I use Times New Roman. Title in 24 point unless dropping size a little keeps it on one line. Everything else in 16 point, ingredients in 2 columns, directions in single column.

      Delete
    3. I'm really glad you caught that.

      Delete
  10. I think we have the makings of a Tom Clancy book written by Chris Goodrich!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, Mr. Clancy was a favorite of mine. I'm still in mourning over his loss.

      Delete
    2. Tuna - I was thinking the same thing. But for that to happen we have to keep the Sarge focused and on task… or someone does, anyway. 😜

      Delete
    3. I require adult supervision from time to time. 😉

      Delete
    4. Skip, that's next to impossible

      Delete
  11. Going to give Eaton Rapids Joe a run for his money, eh?

    So, a single lose round "under the counter." A plant or poor housekeeping & inventory? Tune in Monday!

    /
    L.J.

    ReplyDelete
  12. So who doesn't sanitize a safe house when they leave? Amateur move.
    As for the Feds; there's an exchange from an old Joe Wambaugh book that has stayed with me "But Sarge, I'm wearing gloves! I'm not worried about the prints you leave, I'm worried about the prints you're smudging"
    Boat Guy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're seeing the layers. Amateurs, Feds, Guardsmen, it's going to get messy.

      Delete
    2. Ah! But exactly WHO are the amateurs? The "amateur" moves I've seen so far have been made by the Guard and the Feds.

      Or....

      Was Hackett's disclosure really an amateur move? Maybe dangling some bait in hopes of getting a bit? Or dropping hints to his real comrades as a warning?

      Did that fed pick up the round to smudge any prints? Did he really find it? Or supply it himself as a false scent?

      Wheels within wheels within wheels...said Alice.

      Delete

Just be polite... that's all I ask. (For Buck)
Can't be nice, go somewhere else...

NOTE: Comments on posts over 5 days old go into moderation, automatically.