Schoolhouse Rock Ch. 05

This story is part of an ongoing series. The chronological order of my stories is listed in WifeWatchman's biography.

Feedback and constructive criticism is very much appreciated, and I encourage feedback for ideas.

This story contains graphic scenes, language and actions that might be extremely offensive to some people. These scenes, words and actions are used only for the literary purposes of this story. The author does not condone murder, racial language, violence, rape or violence against women, and any depictions of any of these in this story should not be construed as acceptance of the above.

Part 21 - Shadows In The Night

Jerome and I waited, not moving a muscle, as the steps got closer and the flashlight flickered in the doorway more brightly.

"Wait!" I heard a whispered voice say. "There's lights on in there. Someone's here."

"Ohhhh, shit." said the other voice. I almost groaned out loud. I gave Jerome a withering look, put my finger over my mouth in a 'hush' sign to warn him... and then I hurled my red crowbar at the entrance to the control room.

***CLANG!!***

"Oh Jesus!" gasped one voice. A red laser dot appeared on the floor as the flashlight light concentrated on the red crowbar now lying on the floor.

"Ah, crap." said the other voice. "Don! Is that you?" The voice was that of FBI Special Agent in Charge Jack Muscone!

"It is a dangerous habit to finger loaded firearms in a darkened hallway." I said out loud in an excellent paraphrasing of Professor Moriarty's words to Sherlock Holmes. As I got to the door I bent down and picked up my crowbar, then said "Yes, Jack, it's me."

"Jesus, you scared the shit out of us!" said the other man, who I now recognized as DEA Special Agent Dwight Stevens.

"Serves you right." I said. "You scared the shit out of us, too. What the fuck are you two doing here?"

"I might ask you the same question." said Stevens.

"You said 'us'." said Muscone. "Who else is here?"

"Detective Davis. Come on in." I said. "Jerome! Don't shoot the Federal agents, please."

"Yes sir." said Jerome as he came back over and sat down in his original chair as I sat down in mine. I introduced everyone, then said "Pull up a couple of chairs, guys. I just pray to God that you weren't seen by the perps. If you were, we're blown sky-high."

"Looks like you didn't tell us a few things, or we might not've walked in here." said Stevens. "How were we to know you'd be here?"

"That's my fault, Dwight." said Muscone. "Don did tell me a lot of it. I should have realized that he meant Valley Villages when he was talking about doing reconnaissance on this."

"I'm curious as to how the two of you found your way down here." I said. "Oh, wait. Let me tell you... Chief Warrant Officer Logan, the Army CID."

"I told you he was that good." said Muscone, to Stevens, about me.

"So it appears." said Stevens, who was obviously still very irritated at me. "Yes, Logan really is an Army Warrant Officer with the CID, but he's been working with the DEA for some time now. When we heard about MSG Terhune's death, we asked him to check it out as a possible link to this big State-wide drug ring. Logan got back to us and said it was very possible that there was a connection, but he wasn't sure what had happened. He also wasn't sure he could trust the local Sheriff here, so he didn't say anything to the Sheriff. Then you showed up with one of your Detectives..."

"Why, it was this very Detective here." I said, nodding my head towards Jerome, who grinned as he watched the monitors. "We didn't know anything about the drug ring at the time, though."

"Well, Mr. Muscone and I thought they might come back here, so we decided to give it a shot and come look around." Stevens said. "Mr. Muscone remembered this underground facility and suggested we use it to keep out of sight while we monitored the area."

"Good idea." I said, then added: "Not very original, but good." Jerome was trying hard not to laugh.

Then I said: "A little 'tough love' for you, here. You were lucky. First of all, I saw you come into the hotel parking lot, then check in. I can't help but think you were also observed by others." Muscone nodded.

"Second," I said, "I guess you found a way to come down from the upstairs without having to go outside?"

"Yes." said Muscone. "One of the elevators goes down an extra few floors if one has a key to turn the lock on the panel, and I had such a key. I heard that a condo complex in the City had a similar arrangement."

"Sounds like a fun place." I said, remembering the Wynand Building in the City. "Anyhoo, you were even more lucky in that they came back here this weekend, though it's a trap to see if they're being watched. They usually don't return to the same location after such a short time, and they were here the weekend of MSG Terhune's death."

"So how did you know where they'd be?" asked Stevens.

"We'll have to discuss that later." said Muscone. "Suffice it to say that Don has found their means of communications."

"And you didn't tell us?" Stevens said, again as an accusation.

"Yes, he told me." Jack replied. "And if he's not talking about it, it's not out of a lack of trust, but an overabundance of caution to keep the bad guys from realizing that we know.

"And they're realizing that anyway." I said. "Anything out there, Jerome?"

"Yes sir." said Jerome. "I'm counting six bogey vehicles that have been driving in strange circles all about Valley Villages, stopping at various times and places in a way that suggests they're looking for heat signatures with infrared and night-vision scopes. I've also counted seven drone flights, though it may not be that many actual drones, but repeat flights. They are really scouring the area to see if they're being watched."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

10:00pm, Saturday, January 26th. Large trucks began coming in. They looked like the largest 'U-Rent-It' trucks available. 'U-Rent-It' was a wholly-owned subsidiary of SPS, State Parcel Service, whose CEO was Edward Blassingame. (Author's note: For more, read 'Delivery In The Rear'.) I got as many license plate numbers as I could, so we could check to see who rented the trucks.

"Wow," I said as I trained cameras on the trucks, "there's a ton of people in those trucks. Heat signatures galore." As we watched, each truck that came in at five minute intervals off-loaded their supplies at the loading dock on the far side of the school. Then the personnel in the trucks got off and were waiting inside the school and around the perimeter. When I switched to the night-vision camera, it became more clear that these guys were all heavily armed with 'assault' rifles.

"That's a lot of protection for any shipment." said Dwight Stevens.

"It's not protection." I said. "It's troops for an ambush, in case the DEA shows up. Well, in case any LEOs show up."

"There might still be drugs in those containers they're off-loading." said Stevens.

"Probably something like sugar, flour, or washing detergent." I replied. "Like I said, they're anticipating the good guys showing up. I hope you weren't planning a takedown tonight."

"No, just a recon mission, like you're doing." replied Muscone. "By the way, are these the same guys driving the trucks that normally would be the drivers? If not, they might be somewhere else making a delivery."

"If they are, then they are getting away with it tonight." I said. "But it's a good thought that it's not the regular drivers... unless they're getting paid extra to do it."

"Are they using radios to communicate?" asked Muscone.

"No, sir." said Jerome as he monitored everything. "We're not picking up anything. They may be using cellphones very sporadically."

"And that's one thing I can't pick up on." I said. "If they have a password or sign-and-countersign arrangement, we don't have any frickin' clue what it might be..."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Two hours later, a bunch of smaller delivery trucks arrived. Drones had been flying around in the interval, and were still flying around, and the various vehicles driving around the area were still on the prowl. The trucks began siphoning off the people inside the school. Soon there was only a handful left.

I said "One interesting thing is that no one parked at the school today. There has got to be someone on the inside, to let the perps in and to run interference if the Police show up. It was hard to tell if anyone that came tonight was that school employee. But they must've come in with someone."

"Maybe that SUV that got here early, parked and watched for everyone coming in?" asked Jerome.

"Could well be." I said. Then to the Federal agents I said: "By the way, guys, you're not leaving here tonight. Jerome and I are going to leave at dawn, when there's too much sunlight for the infrared and night-vision devices to see, but not too bright so that we can get back home without being easily noticed."

"How long do you think they'll be on the lookout for us?" asked Stevens. "All the way until dawn?"

"Maybe." I said. "We'll have to see about all these vehicles that have been going around looking for us.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

By 2:00am there was no one left around the school, and I was not seeing any more vehicles in the Valley Villages area driving in anything resembling a weird pattern.

"Okay, guys, it looks like it's over." I said. "If you guys want to get some sleep on those bunks in the other room, we'll stand watch for a little longer."

"Yeah, I might as well get some sleep." said Muscone.

"Jerome," I said, "go ahead and get a couple of hours sleep." Jerome did not argue; he left behind Muscone.

I got some food out of my ruck and offered Dwight Stevens some of it. He accepted it gratefully.

"You know, Don," he said as we ate the food and drank some water, "We're on the same side."

"I know." I said. "You'll have to forgive my methods and my reticence to share info. I've had some bad dealings with some very bad Federal agents in the past."

"I've heard some of the stories." said Stevens.

"One man I do trust, and completely, is Jack Muscone." I said. "He's vouched for you. He says you're one of the good guys. So you're at least that far along with me."

"Good, I appreciate that." Stevens said, trying to be diplomatic. "I guess my question is if you're going to let the DEA help you bust up these fuckers. Not trying to steal your props, but we'd really like to make a big bust."

"I'll make this deal with you." I said. "I'll let you bring in the DEA, as long as you do one thing and understand one thing: Follow my lead. I'm in charge of the operation. I'm going to plan it, I'm going to execute it, I'm going to take down the mastermind behind it. You can have all the credit if it goes well, and I'll take the blame if goes wrong. But it's my show all the way until it's done."

Stevens agreed, and we shook hands on the bargain.

Part 22 - Extraction

Dawn, Sunday, January 27th. Muscone and Stevens took the elevator back up to their rooms. Jerome and I made one final sweep of the area, then shut down everything, packed up our stuff, and left.

Though we looked out of place with our rucks, we walked along the roads then took a shortcut through the 'woods' to get back to Jonathan Davis's home. As Jonathan and Jerome cooked breakfast, I went and checked Jerome's car for any bugs that might've been planted. There were none.

As we ate breakfast, Jonathan asked "Did you find out anything?"

"A lot." I said. "And I remain suspicious of the Sheriff and LEOs around here. All that activity at the school, and they didn't even go over and check it out."

"It was Saturday night, and Saturday nights are quiet around here, unless there's a party at the golf course Clubhouse." said Jonathan. "So they may just not do much patrolling."

"Even though there are trucks coming into the school in the dead of night?" I replied. "No, that is what we call a 'strangeness'."

"Dad, we Detectives have learned that when Commander Troy says something is a 'strangeness', it's a BFD." Jerome said to his father. I chuckled at that.

"This whole thing is a BFD, isn't it?" asked Jonathan. Jerome and I both nodded vigorously in agreement.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

We thanked Jonathan for his hospitality, and set out for home. I'd checked for bugs again (yes, I'm paranoid) and found none. We watched carefully as we sped up the University-Midtown Highway, but saw no one obviously following us. Either there was no one, or they were that good.

Jerome dropped me off at The Cabin. When I went inside, the 'sister wives' Laura and Paulina were there, as well as Molly. I was greeted at the door by two outstanding dogs... but no kids.

"Where are the kids?" I asked after all the appropriate greetings and dog-pettings.

"Upstairs, attic room." said Laura. "Massive Lego building project underway."

"Daddy!" I heard Carole shout as she came down the stairs. She ran up to me and hugged my legs.

"Hey, Fussbudget." I said. "Get your coat and let's take some dogs out." The dogs heard the words 'dogs' and 'out', and made the correct deduction. They ran right to the back door.

Once outside, the dogs went to do their business as Carole and I sat down. She asked "Did you have fun on your trip, Daddy?"

"Yes, it was good." I said. "How was your day yesterday?"

"Great!" Carole said. "Murrree (Marie) and I played with our dolls and watched the new Wonder Woman movie and the Supergirl TV show!"

"Good." I said. "You didn't say anything about the Marcie Harper videos, did you?"

"No, Daddy." Carole said. "You told me not to."

"That's right, I did." I said. "And it's even more important now that you don't say anything about those videos and what you saw on them... even if you're asked, okay?"

"Okay, Daddy." said Carole. "But what do I say if someone does ask?"

"If someone does," I said, "then it's okay to lie and tell them you didn't see anything, or you can tell them about the math lesson. But don't mention the trains above the chalkboard, okay? If you're asked about them, then it's okay to say you didn't see a thing."

"Okay, Daddy." said Carole. "Daddy, is Ms. Newton in trouble?"

"Why do you ask?" I replied.

"The principal, Mr. Butler was yelling at her on Friday." said Carole. "He looked like he was really mad, but he's always grouchy so maybe he wasn't that mad."

"Thanks for telling me." I said. "And Ms. Newton will be all right." I realized I had to make sure that happened, and that meant telling Yvonne Newton to be very careful...

"Speak-ing of trains," said Carole, "here comes the train now!" She pointed out to where a train was coming out of the western horizon towards the River...

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I put myself through a hard workout, then joined everyone for a great lunch of cheeseburgers and potato chips. We'd just finished when Jack Muscone came to visit.

"Sorry, Jack." I said. "Jim and Ian ate your hamburgers. They've got hollow legs." Jim and Ian laughed out loud at that.

"That's okay." said Jack. "They're growing boys. Don, have you got a minute to talk?"

"Sure." I said. We went into my office. In an abundance of caution, I turned on the electricity that ran through the metal bars in the walls; this office was a Faraday cage.

Jack said "Stevens told me about the deal he made with you, and he intends to honor it. I'm going to make sure he keeps that promise, too. On the flip side, I had to tell him some of what you told me about the code you found. I told him to not try to get into the Marcie Harper website because it would just tip them off that we were on to them."

I nodded. "Well... we'll see on Wednesday, when the next Marcie Harper video comes out."

Jack said "I also don't want you to think you're dealing with an Agency of the Weak-minded. You're not logging in as an SBI Agent because you want to make this bust without the SBI, and especially the SBI-NTF, so that you can take some ammunition out of Katherine Woodburn's hands."

I grinned. "I would never think that you're an Agency of the Weak-minded, Jack. Of course... if you don't set a date to marry Tanya soon, I might just make a reassessment of that."

"That's all on her." said Jack. "That's all on her..."

Part 23 - Morning Coffee

"This is Bettina Wurtzburg, KXTC Channel Two News!" shouted the redheaded MILF reporterette at 7:00am, Monday, January 28th, from in front of the State Office Building off Courthouse Square. "We are reporting on the increasing tensions in the State Legislature as they struggle to pass a Budget bill!"

Bettina began: "Former State Senator Maxine Watts, who was defeated by Republican Sharon Marshal for Lieutenant Governor, issued a statement urging all Democrat legislators and especially Persons of Color to 'resist' the policies of the Republicans, and to demand a Budget that is 'friendly to minorities and women' be passed. Ms. Watts also said that no Budget should be passed unless and until a second Independent State Counsel is created to investigate the murder of superstar singer Jasmine Nix."

"Asked for comment," Bettina continued, "Sarah Honeysuckle, spokeswoman for the deeply unpopular Val Jared Administration, said this. Roll tape."

Tape rolled, showing Sarah saying "Like any private citizen, Maxine Watts is entitled to her opinions, including wild conspiracy theories about a murder that has been solved long ago. However, she is not an elected official in any capacity, and her words are of no value to Governor Jared nor the Budget process in the Legislature right now."

Back to Bettina live: "There were furious condemnations of Governor Jared, including accusations of racism, when those comments were made. House Ways and Means Chairman Elijah McKinney, who is black, said that the comments were 'disturbing and unhelpful'. A spokesperson for Maxine Watts's PAC stated that Jared had proved he was a racist by making those highly insensitive statements."

"And in local news," Bettina said, "District Attorney Miriam Walters is expected to announce sometime this week her decision on whether or not to charge former TCPD Commander Della Harlow with conspiracy charges in the alleged attempt to slander now-Mayor Daniel Allgood during the race last Fall. Former TCPD Internal Affairs Detective Gayle Tunnin was criminally charged after former TCPD Lieutenant Janice Holloway went undercover and recorded Tunnin planning the alleged political slander attack."

Bettina went on: "District Attorney Walters also stated that more charges will be filed against Heritage Cloisters HOA President Gus Bradshaw, but declined to give specifics. When asked if State Senator Katherine Woodburn was also under investigation, D.A. Walters said she did not expect charges to be filed against Senator Woodburn, but that the SBI's Office of Ethics and Review as well as the Federal Elections Commission and the FBI might still have ongoing investigations. Neither the SBI-OER nor the FBI would return our repeated attempts to contact them for comment."

"State Democrats rushed to Senator Woodburn's defense," continued Bettina, "saying that neither the Senator or her Campaign had any knowledge of the Heritage Cloister HOA issues, and that no laws were broken by Senator Woodburn nor her campaign. The State Democrat Caucus also issued a statement demanding the SBI-OER and FBI investigate the Republican voter fraud in last Autumn's caucuses, as well Governor Jared's continued abuse of power and intimidation practices by calling for the SBI-OER and FBI investigations."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"Hello and welcome!" said Catrina Pierce at 8:00am, in the KFXU studios. "it's been an eventful weekend. She's Meredith Peller, and I'm Catrina Pierce."