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  He was coming down Glebe Road and saw the mall up on the left. It was a big mall with a multi-level parking garage. An Iceplex was connected to it where they used to play professional hockey, when there was still a league.

  He wasn’t sure where to go but figured ,out front, meant the parking garage. He slowed down and took a left just as the light was turning red. The entrance to the mall veered to the right, and as he came around the bend, he saw a girl with baggy sweatpants and a white t-shirt. He did a double take as the girl approached the car and opened the door.

  “Thank God, you’re here,” she said leaning over to kiss his cheek.

  “What’s going on? What happened?”

  Green parked the car as she filled him in.

  “So, I didn’t know what else to do,” she finished.

  “You did good, Lady Storm,”

  Stormy smiled hearing the nickname he had given her.

  “You played it smart by coming here. A lot of nice cars in this garage.”

  “Kinda what I was thinking.”

  “We’re going to have to get rid of your car. We can take it to one of my storage units.”

  Stormy let out a sigh of relief. “I feel so much better now that you’re here.”

  “This is my fault for not thinking about this. I should have known better.”

  “No. The fault is mine for mouthing off to Reed in the first place.”

  “Well, regardless, we need to stash you somewhere.”

  “I grabbed a suitcase before I left.”

  “Okay. Good. Where’s your car?”

  “One level up.”

  Green backed the car out of the parking space and drove up another level.

  “Towards the back…and there it is.”

  Green parked next to it, and she hopped out to retrieve her suitcase. She threw it in the backseat and jumped back in.

  “Did you get a chance to call your artist friend?”

  “I did, and he’s totally up for it. Said he can meet us tonight.”

  “Okay.”

  Stormy put her hand on his arm. “Thanks for this.”

  Green’s pulse quickened making him wonder again if she liked him. Their eyes met, and he didn’t have to wait long as she leaned in to kiss him. Her lips were warm and soft making Green melt in his seat. He hadn’t kissed a girl in quite awhile and hoped he wasn’t disappointing her.

  She pulled back with a grin. “Sorry, for being so forward.”

  “That’s a bad thing?” asked Green with a lopsided smile.

  “It’s not?” she asked.

  “Does remove all the guesswork.”

  “You’ve been guessing?”

  Green’s cheeks blushed. “I have.”

  “I thought so. I was wondering if you were going to make a move.”

  “It’s not that I didn’t want to, but with all the craziness I wasn’t sure.”

  Stormy leaned back in her seat. “Well, now you know.”

  “Yes,” said Green as he put the car in reverse. “And now my mother is going to go absolutely crazy.”

  “I love your mom. She’s so sweet.”

  “That’s good because that’s where we’re headed,” said Green as he pulled out of the garage. He could still taste her lips and couldn’t wipe the smile off his face. The casualness of their encounter was pleasing because he didn’t like a lot of awkwardness. Their experience the other day was probably the main reason for the easy way they were beginning to form a relationship. He was still smiling as he glanced at her to see the same expression on her face. He was glad to see that he wasn’t the only one who was giddy about this.

  She met his gaze and reached over to grab his hand. “This isn’t so awkward, is it?”

  “I was just thinking the same thing.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah.”

  “It’s nice.”

  Green had to force himself to concentrate on the road. She was an enjoyable distraction, but he feared that because of her he might lose focus over the coming days. Business and pleasure were often a bad mix. He had a lot to think about, and a relationship could get in the way. Then again, he deserved to be happy, and it had been a long time since he’d had a relationship.

  He pulled into the driveway and saw his mom tending her flowers. She turned and then stood up.

  “Oh, this is going to be so much fun,” giggled Stormy.

  Green bowed his head and shook it.

  “C’mon, your mom is going be so excited.”

  “You have no idea.”

  “Oh, I think I do,” said Stormy as she opened the door.

  Green got out as his mom approached the car.

  “Stormy, what a pleasant surprise,” said Sarah. “What are y’all doing here?”

  “Oh, your son is my knight in shining armor,” said Stormy as she grabbed a hold of his arm and leaned on him.

  Sarah’s eyes grew. “Is this what I think it is?”

  “It is,” exclaimed Stormy.”

  “John?”

  “Mom! Try to control yourself,” said Green.

  “Oh, John, don’t worry. I’m not going to embarrass you…too much,” she said with a wink.

  Green looked at Stormy and said. “I told ya.”

  “Oh, she’s adorable.”

  “C’mon inside. I’ll make us some lunch,” said Sarah as she grabbed Stormy’s hand.

  While she made lunch, Stormy told her about what happened with the cop. With everything Sarah and her son had been through, she took the news in stride. They had all faced some dangerous situations and knew they’d face even more in the coming weeks. Sarah served them lunch and suggested that Stormy change her appearance. They could go to Manassas and let Alison O’Connor, who had once worked in the business, change her hairstyle.

  Chapter 33

  Winnipeg

  Winters rounded the corner to find Murphy finishing his physical therapy session. It had been a few months since they’d rescued the girls from the party house and he’d been shot in the sandpit. He was with his friend Burns when they had taken up a position behind their truck to help Nate protect the rescued girls. Four cops flanked them by climbing a sand dune and then firing down at them. The cops killed nineteen girls and injured many more including Murphy. His injury had been more severe than Nate’s because the bullet had migrated, destroying muscle tissue in his back and rotator cuff.

  “Captain,” said Murphy extending his hand.

  “Murphy,” said Winters as he met his hand and leaned in for a slight hug.

  “Heard you were here.”

  “Oh?”

  “Sadie. She visits me all the time.”

  “She is something, isn’t she?”

  Murphy nodded. “She said you came here with more girls?”

  “Oh, yeah,” said Winters as he took a seat on a bench. He waited for the physical therapist to leave before he briefed Murphy.

  Murphy shook his head throughout. “I’m sorry about your daughter, Captain.”

  “Thank you. I’m doing better with it. Helping all those girls did a lot to restore my morale.”

  “Yeah, I get that. You know, had I not seen the party house, it’d be almost unbelievable a whole town could fall for that.”

  Winters nodded. “How’s your therapy doing?”

  Murphy raised his arm up halfway. “It’s getting better. I should be able to straighten it in the next few weeks or so. You say Nate got shot in the shoulder?”

  “Yeah, in the front,” said Winters pointing above his chest, “and right out the back. Not as bad as yours, but still, he should have come here. He refuses to leave though, and now that Elliott’s been shot, he won’t leave his side.”

  “It’s got to be driving him crazy missing the action.”

  Winters let out a laugh. “Oh, yeah, you know Nate. What about you?”

  “Can’t wait to get back.”

  “Yeah, me too.”

  “When you leaving?”

  “Toni
ght. I got three trucks full of supplies.”

  “Butler and his crew helping you?”

  “Yeah. You’ve met them?”

  “I have, and I can’t say I trust ‘em, especially Fowler. I get bad vibes from him. He seems a bit on the creepy side to me.”

  Winters gave him a concerned look. “Really?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “It’s just that we’re taking two of the girls back home first.”

  “Is that wise?”

  Winters shrugged his shoulders. “I’ve got ‘em with Hicks for the whole day.”

  Burns smiled. “Sergeant Hicks will fix ‘em right up.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Still, keep ‘em with you on the drive back.”

  “I will and on that note I need to go.”

  “Captain, thanks for stopping by and tell everyone I said, hey.”

  “I will,” he said shaking his hand.

  Winters would liked to have spent more time with him, but he wanted to check on the girls’ progress and tie up some loose ends with the supply sergeant.

  He headed to the gun range and was surprised to see Sadie in one of the lanes shooting a pistol. Her back was to Winters as he approached the window, so he took a seat and watched her empty a magazine at a target ten yards away. The gun looked big in her little hands but it didn’t have too much of a kick, so he figured it was a 9mm.

  The instructor brought the target back. Her shots were in a tight grouping but just to the right of center. The instructor held up his trigger finger to show her how to better place it on the trigger. The little things made all the difference when on a target twenty feet or more away. She tried again and took the lesson to heart, as her grouping was dead center.

  She noticed Winters and smiled while waving him inside. He grabbed some ear and eye protection before joining her.

  “Shouldn’t you be in school?” joked Winters.

  “I am in school, aren’t I, Mike?” she answered looking at Sergeant Spencer.

  Winters rolled his eyes and shook Spencer’s hand. “How she doing, Mike?”

  Sergeant Mike Spencer was a Canadian soldier and an expert in small arms. He had been working with Winters this morning and had instructed all the Shadow Patriots.

  “She’s one of my best students.”

  “Is she now?”

  “Seriously, she really is. She actually listens and doesn’t have an ego like a lot of guys do. I’m getting ready to move her up to .45’s.”

  Winters put his arm around her shoulder. “I’m glad to hear that.”

  “You wanna take a turn?” asked Sadie.

  “No, no. I just came down to check on the girls. Where’re they at?”

  “Sergeant Hicks has them in the Urban Warfare Course. I had them for a while after you left.”

  “How they’d do?”

  “They both did good, especially Laney. She took right to it. Collette took a bit longer, but she came around. Both are quite competent and comfortable with weapons now.”

  Winters let out a sigh. “Good. I’m happy to hear it.”

  “Believe me, by the time Hicks is done with them, they’ll be able to defend themselves. Last time, I checked, they were knocking down the right targets and not freaking out about hitting the wrong ones. And like Sadie, they listen.”

  Winters remembered going through the course and how much it taught him about tactics, leading a squad, what to look for, speed and time management. Hicks ran them through the course multiple times a day over a month’s time until he was satisfied with their performance. The girls won’t need as much in-depth training but will come away with valuable skills to keep themselves and their families safe.

  Chapter 34

  Detroit Michigan

  The 747 shut down its engines as the aircraft-boarding ramp was pushed over to it. The Detroit Metro Airport like all the other airports was closed down after the fall of the government. The only people who still flew were the well connected or government officials. Mordulfah was the only person who used this airport with his private jet. His uncle Faisal owned the big jet that had just landed. Inside were five hundred experienced soldiers who would be helping Mordulfah clear out the upper Midwest but more specifically the Shadow Patriots.

  The men disembarked and gathered their stowed gear and weapons. Everyone wore light camouflage fatigues and a confident manner. They were orderly and didn’t hesitate to load their equipment into the charter buses Mordulfah had provided.

  Colonel Khan stood off to the side with his captains and watched. He was pleased with this assignment. He stood to make a lot of money from Mordulfah and whatever else his men managed to loot from the various towns they would raid. He promised his men riches and plenty of virgins.

  He was aware of Mordulfah’s penchant for young girls and shared the same notions. All he was asked by the prince was to give him first choice to fill his harem back up. After that, they could have as many as they wanted, which would be a lot. Besides his men, he had to consider Mordulfah’s men who had been fighting in Jackson.

  These men had drifted in from the surrounding areas and were not trained fighters but would still want a piece of the action. It would be better to give them something rather than to have a mutiny on his hands. Despite their lack of training, there were still fifteen hundred of them, more than enough to hamper his efforts.

  He also had to consider the local cops. He had heard about the girls that were taken from them as well. No doubt, they wanted to refill their party houses as quickly as possible. The cops didn’t impress him, but it was another entity that had to be pacified. Because they were locals, they would come in handy in providing support.

  Khan had been making plans with his captains while enroute and had decided the sooner they attacked, the better before their enemy knew of their arrival. He was to meet with Mordulfah’s military leaders and the cops as soon as they got to Grosse Pointe, which would be in another thirty minutes.

  The buses pulled up to Mordulfah’s mansion, and Khan was the first off to be greeted by the prince.

  “Colonel Khan, I trust your trip was uneventful.”

  “It was, thank you.”

  “My man Wali will direct your men across the street. We have prepared food and quarters for them.”

  “Excellent.”

  “I’ve also taken the liberty of telling the men on the borders that you’re coming and that they’re to not engage with the enemy until they receive your orders,” said Mordulfah. He had done it out of selfish reasons. Not only did he not want the men to think that Khan was taking over, but that he felt the men needed a confidence boost after yesterday‘s shoot out in the Proving Grounds.

  Khan nodded.

  “Come inside,” said Mordulfah escorting Khan into the smaller house on the grounds. Since materials were in short supply, work on the larger dwelling hadn’t begun yet as materials hadn’t been gathered.

  Mordulfah introduced Khan to his captains, which included Vatter who was visibly nervous being there. He hadn’t seen Mordulfah since the rebels attacked the mansion and wondered if Khan was there to replace him.

  Everyone took a seat at the rectangular table with Mordulfah on one end and Khan on the other end.

  “Gentlemen, I want all of you to give Colonel Khan your assessment of the rebels and what you’ve seen them do.”

  Everyone blinked nervously, not knowing at each other unsure if they would be losing their heads.

  Khan removed his hat. “I’m not here to judge. I need only to ascertain their tactics and capabilities.”

  They let out a collective a sigh of relief and one by one began to report all they had experienced when fighting the rebels. Throughout the briefings, Khan would periodically ask questions to probe for more detail. None of these captains had military experience and as such, what they thought was important wasn’t always the case or vice-versa.

  After they finished, Khan leaned back in his chair and thought for a few moments. The rebel
s were well trained and used good tactics. They were also well equipped, and more than likely had night-vision optics since they preferred to operate at night. There was only one way to overcome that advantage, and that was to fight them during the day.

  Khan got up and looked at the map of Jackson, which indicated the locations where all of their men were currently positioned and where they thought the rebels had guard posts. It was really a simple thing. The rebels were outnumbered and wouldn’t be able to thwart a quick full-on assault. Any of the locals who volunteered to fight would fold as soon as they saw what was coming at them. Especially now since that he had brought better munitions than Mordulfah’s men had previously had access to.

  Khan turned back to the men. “We will attack at first light.”

  They all looked at each other with excited eyes.

  “I will divide my men into two companies,” said Khan as he picked up a pointer. “They will enter here,” pointing at Ann Arbor Road, “and here on Page Road. Now, I need Captain Vatter to keep his police on US 12, that way we can squeeze them together. And all the men on Highway 60 will come across on McCain Road. We will do this all at the same time.

  We will set fire to the houses as we advance to squeeze them south where they will meet their fate. By doing this, we will avoid much block-to-block resistance. Anyone seeing what is happening will run away right, into our funnel.

  We will strike the hospital first, where many of their men sleep. This is where we will be able to take out most of their force. This will also divide them into smaller groups making them less effective. It will only be a matter of time before we snuff them out.

  Khan looked around the room and saw the excitement in their eyes. These rebels may have had considerable success, but they hadn’t been up against an organized, well trained army such as the one he they would confront tomorrow. His men were battle-hardened and loyal to Allah. With His blessing, they would achieve a quick victory and destroy the infidels. Perhaps a higher blessing was in store for him with the capture of their leader and a proper beheading.

  Chapter 35

  Jackson Michigan

  Reese pulled into the eight-stall garage Bill Taylor had been using to service all the vehicles while in Jackson. It was also the staging area for the evacuation of citizens. He and Nate were the car experts, but since Nate’s injury, it fell upon Taylor and a couple of other mechanics to take care of all the vehicles.