Starting Over Pt. 07 Ch. 02

Once everyone was in, they would drive to the larger van/mini-bus they had driven from Seattle and load it for the trip back. The temporary van would then be burned, to prevent the finding of any evidence.

---------------------- Friday, October 22, 2021, Chicago, IL -----------

When they got to Chicago, it was almost midnight and they all just went straight to their rooms. George had sent them pictures of the hotel layout and the locations of all the cameras in the hotel. For additional security, everyone wore hats and glasses that would make it difficult to identify them. They were not sure it would ever be necessary, but it was an additional security effort they took.

---------------------- Saturday, October 23, 2021, Chicago, IL -----------

They met up with George and went over everything. He agreed with the changes based on what he saw. Then, they all went to breakfast at an IHOP followed by a tour of the area of the supermarket and the school. Based on George's pictures and intel, the plan was confirmed and they prepared themselves for the actual event.

Saturday was taken up with discussing options and actions based on problems or something going wrong. They cleaned their weapons and checked all their equipment. They verified the batteries in the hand-held radios they were carrying. Their discussions had to cover everything from the possible reaction of the security individuals assigned to Mrs. Baciu, to things like someone seeing them take a security individual down and possibly a subsequent chase of the vehicle.

An additional change was made after discussing what would happen if a chase of the vehicle somehow occurred. John would purchase another old used car to interdict any vehicles chasing the van, and then be picked up or follow them, if possible.

Once the plan was set, everyone retired to their rooms.

---------------------- Sunday - Tuesday, October 24-26, 2021, Chicago, IL -----------

The next three days were nerve-racking for everyone. They were ready to go and had to wait for Wednesday, which was extremely difficult once everything was in place. They played cards, read, and did anything they could to occupy their minds. They took turns watching the Baciu house to see if the security routine had changed. They went over the possible scenarios once a day to iron out everybody's location and response to a change in the plan. They were all ex-military and knew that a plan was only good until first contact. There were many different idioms used that described this and they had all found it to be true.

---------------------- Wednesday, October 27, 2021, Chicago, IL -----------

Everyone was up and out of the hotel by about 0600. They wanted to be out before the normal day shift came on. They loaded up the older used van, the mini-bus they had brought from Seattle, and readied John's used car.

At 0800, they left and dropped off the min-bus they had brought from Seattle, and waited to head to the first location.

By 0845, they were on their way to the store. When they got close, John texted Yvonne on the agreed throwaway phone so that she could shut down the cameras, their WIFI, and jam the cell signals. She had already hacked into both the supermarket and school systems so that she would be ready to go. She responded with a 'Done'.

George pulled the used van around to the back of the supermarket where deliveries were received. John pulled the old car into the parking lot near the access to the rear to watch for anyone following the van when it came out. They had figured that the most likely place to have that problem was at the school. The tranquilizer dart would incapacitate the individual inside for 30-45 minutes. They were hoping that Mrs. Baciu normally took enough time doing her shopping that the individual outside wouldn't suspect something was wrong until well after that.

At 0905, the car carrying the two security guards and Mrs. Baciu pulled up. The driver parked the car in a slot near the entrance and she got out with one of the guards. They went into the store. John chirped his radio twice to let them know. Marty and Carl went in the back and Craig came around to the front. They were all dressed normally, but all had balaclavas in their hands. Marty and Carl were carrying both live ammunition and dart guns. Craig had only a dart gun.

This part of the plan went perfectly, Marty and Carl waited until they saw Mrs. Baciu tell her security individual that she had to use the restroom. They approached the restroom and Mrs. Baciu went into the ladies' room. The security individual stationed himself just outside in the small corridor.

Marty and Carl stepped out of the storage area with guns drawn and balaclavas over their heads. The security individual started to react, but realized they had the drop on him. He wasn't willing to risk being killed to make them give away their position with a shot.

"Follow us back here," Marty said. The guard moved into the storage area.

"On your knees, slowly," Carl said. "Put your hands on your head." The guard complied and Carl went up and took his weapon away, which was on his right hip. "Now, lie down."

As soon as the guard lay down, Craig walked up from behind and shot him in the back of the thigh with a dart. The guard jerked and then looked back at his leg. Craig covered his face so that he couldn't see it, but he didn't put on his balaclava. The guard looked up at them. "You won't get away with this."

Marty grinned. "We'll see."

Marty and Carl then watched as the drug started to take effect and Craig went to get Mrs. Baciu. When he came back with her, she was shaking and nervous. When she saw the guard on the floor, now knocked out, she spit in his direction and then Craig led her out the back.

As they were leaving, an individual working for the store saw them and came up to them. "Hey, you aren't supposed to be using this door!"

Marty and Carl turned and apologized as Criag led Mrs. Baciu out to the waiting van. They came out a second later.

"We need to move now," Marty said into his radio.

"What happened?" John could hear the tension in Marty's voice.

Marty explained about the supermarket individual and said he might find the guard soon. They hid him a little, but as soon as he found him, he was probably going to call the police.

"Okay, get moving and wait at the appointed parking lot." John sent a note to Yvonne, who then stopped her work on the supermarket and took off for the school. John followed the van after watching for a little while for anyone following them. He didn't see anything. But he also stopped two blocks from where the van was going to stop to wait for Yvonne to do her work at the school. He checked all the vehicles and saw nothing.

John got on the radio and told Marty to have Mrs. Baciu call the principle immediately. It might take a while to get the kids out of class and they needed to do it quickly. Marty told him that she had called as soon as they pulled away from the store.

John also called the number he was given to call by Deputy Director Smothers. It was answered by a woman. "We're ready."

"I'm there and ready to get him."

John thought he recognized the voice as that of Allison June, but he didn't say anything over the phone, just grinned and said, "Roger".

After a few minutes, Yvonne sent a note that she was ready.

John notified the team and they went to the school. John looked at his watch. 16 minutes since they left the supermarket. They were two minutes out from the school and he wanted everything done in 22 minutes. That was his estimate based on all the things going on, including the 10 minutes from the supermarket to the school to wait for Yvonne.

John got to the school and parked on the side. He could just see the van pulling around toward the gymnasium exit. He watched closely for anything out of the ordinary.

He was sitting there for way too long, almost 8 minutes, when he saw Mrs. Baciu come out the gym exit with her two daughters. They jumped into the van and it pulled away quickly, but not enough to draw attention. John watched and waited. As soon as they pulled away, Yvonne was going to stop her efforts and leave in her vehicle. He saw a vehicle that looked it might be her pull away from the school about a minute after the van left. He grinned and pulled away to follow the van at a distance.

John sped up as much as possible to keep the van in sight. He knew all the turns, but would lose sight of it at each one. Every time he pulled around and saw it again, he felt better. He saw no signs of anyone following them.

When the van was two minutes from the mini-bus, Marty came on the radio. "Clear?"

"Clear." John had seen nothing dangerous.

The used van reached the mini-bus in an abandoned and deteriorating parking structure. They parked on the second floor and swiftly jumped into the mini-bus. John waited until they were ready to pull out. He pulled into the structure on the first floor for them to come pick him up. John wiped off most of the used car where he had touched it, left the keys in it, and got out.

Meanwhile, Marty doused the inside of the van with gasoline and lit it.

The mini-bus pulled down to the first floor and John jumped in. They left the parking garage quickly and headed away. By the time they got three blocks away, they could see some smoke.

When they got out of Chicago, the little girls, nervous and scared the entire time, suddenly started demanding answers from their mother. She tried to explain that they were going on a road trip to see their father. She didn't say anything about their future. That would have to wait.

---------------------- Thursday, October 28, 2021, on the road -----------

They drove through the night, all taking turns. The seats in the back were comfortable enough for the girls to stretch out and sleep, while everyone else slept in the seats with as much reclining they would do. With all the stops, including a long one for dinner and then breakfast, they didn't get past the Cascades until almost 5pm.

Everyone was tired and the girls were getting fidgety and surly. John told Carl, who was driving at that time, how to get to the cabin he had obtained for this. John called ahead and said they would be arriving in a few minutes.

When they got there, Andre was standing outside waiting, impatiently. His wife and daughters suddenly came alive with energy and had big smiles on their faces. As soon as the mini-bus stopped, they were out of the van and racing to hug Andre.

The others slowly piled out of the mini-bus to stretch. Everyone was exhausted.

After a few minutes, everyone went inside and they all got something to drink while Allison put out munchies.

John grinned and approached Special Agent June; his hand extended to greet her. "Allison, it's good to see you."

Allison pushed his hand aside and gave him a big hug. She held him for a few seconds and then backed up with a grin on her face. "Thanks."

John looked at her quizzically. "For what?"

"Well, after our little dance with that shooter that got me shot, I got to meet Deputy Director Smothers. And since he met me and needed this little job here, he called me directly. And then, guess what?"

"I have no idea."

"Director Smothers said he liked my record and how I worked during that situation. He said he's going to keep an eye on me."

"I suppose that's good?"

"Oh, yes. When he said that, it means that if I come up against a problem, he can help. Or if I'm applying for a different job against some others, he can push me over the top. It's who you know, right?"

"Yes, it is. So how are things going?"

"Great! My shoulder is responding well to all the work I've been putting it through. I'm almost at full strength."

"Outstanding. Was there any problem getting Andre out?"

"Just the fact that I showed up at 0630, a black, female, FBI agent, to take him away from the police."

"What was the ruse?"

"We were taking him in for possible questioning as it relates to Witness Protection. That way if he doesn't come back, they have a good reason for it."

"Nice. Well, I need to go back to Seattle and turn in his mini-bus with some of my compatriots."

"Yeah, I need to head back, too. Who's staying with the Baciu's?"

"For now, Marty and Carl."

Allison turned toward them. They still looked like poster boys for the Ranger Regiment that they served in. Both were around 6', lean, had the closely cropped hair, and still looked, when they weren't smiling, like they wanted to kick someone's ass. "Well, they look to be in good hands."

Both Marty and Carl smiled.

Allison turned toward John and whispered. "Are either of them single?"

"Yes, I believe Marty is. Carl's been married since he was in the Army. Why? Not finding any good prospects in Seattle?"

"Hmph! Most of the good men have already been grabbed as soon as a woman finds out he's decent. Most of the guys I've been dating are closer to being arrested than being a steady man for me."

"Well, I can put in a good word, subtly, of course, if you'd like."

Allison looked over at Marty and then back at me. Marty couldn't hear us but was wondering what was going on. "Does he like strong, black women?" she said.

John grinned. "Who doesn't?"

Allison grinned back. "Most men, who have no self-confidence, and most black men, who think it's their job to take care of the little lady. If he's up to it, tell him to call me."

"Roger that." John turned to everyone. "Okay, the Baciu's and Marty and Carl will be staying here. I'll be returning the mini-bus and Agent June will be leaving. George and Craig can ride with whoever will pass closest to their house. I'll be back on Saturday. By then, Andre and family will need to come up with what they want to do for the future, and let me know how to get paid."

With that, everyone went about their business. John took Craig and he and Craig were picked up from the dealer who rented them the mini-bus by Craig's wife. Allison took George and dropped him off.

When John got home it was 10pm. Nobody was there, so he assumed that Maggie was at her father's house. That was good. He wanted to do something.

---------------------- Friday, October 29, 2021, Seattle, WA -----------

John spent Friday looking for the best bang he could get for a decent engagement ring. He was going to stop this endless circle he and Maggie seemed to be going around.

He got a decent one and then called Maggie to arrange for them to meet that night.

They met at a restaurant and Maggie looked great. She was still a looker. She had very little wrinkles around her eyes and mouth, and her skin looked wonderful. She was rarely in the sun, so that helped.

John waited until dessert and then reached across to grab her hand.

"Maggie, we have been in and out of this relationship too many times." Her look was more one of alarm as she wasn't sure where he was going. He pulled out the ring box and put it on the table. Her look turned into a big grin. "So, let's stop messing around. Will you please marry me?"

"Yes! Yes!" Maggie grabbed the box and opened it. She took out the ring and put it on her finger. She held it up to the light and watched how it refracted the light. "It's beautiful."

Neither was totally gaga over getting married since they were not youngsters. John continued. "Maggie, I don't want a big wedding. Been there, done that. I would like for us to just make the arrangements, do it at the courthouse, and tell your family after it's done."

Maggie was still smiling. "Great idea. Let's make it a small, private affair. But I have to tell Mary, because she'll be my maid-of-honor, and I have to tell Maddie, because she's my daughter and I can't keep this from her."

"Okay, but let's tell the family at a gathering like Thanksgiving."

"Great idea."

---------------------- Saturday, October 30, 2021, cabin in the Cascades -----------

John met with Andre and the family on Saturday. He took more groceries up there based on what the kids said they wanted. Andre said they decided to go into Witness Protection. They didn't have any friends that they couldn't leave in Chicago and they wanted to be safer.

John reminded him that Witness Protection was only possible if he had something that he could provide on some of the gang and testify about it.

Andre smiled and produced a small notebook. "This notebook contains information on the movement of monies by the leaders of the organization. It shows how I moved money around the world for them and then returned it to Chicago looking clean. I can show how about 35 million was moved like that into accounts that were in their names."

"Wow! That's fantastic. I'm sure the Justice Department will love that. However, what about paying me and my people for all the costs we incurred?"

Andre nodded. "Yes, I can provide that. If you provide me access to a computer, I can still get into some of the accounts where the money is initially placed before I move it. I should be able to transfer that around so that it ends up wherever you want it, without strings."

"Okay, that will work."

"How much?"

"I used a known professional hacker in Chicago, rented a mini-bus here and drove it there and back, purchased two used vehicles, both of which we abandoned, used 5 men, and we stayed in hotels in Chicago and travelled a lot. So, what is that to you? Or do you want an exact accounting?"

Andre grinned. "Not necessary. You got my family to me out of a high-risk environment. I can get to one account and move around a million dollars to an account of your choosing."

"A million? Isn't that kind of high?"

"Not for getting my family to me, and it's not my money anyway. I can give you that and still provide plenty of cash to the government. We'll work out the particulars when we get to a computer that I can trust."

"Roger. We can do that some day next week. I have to call and tell the government that you want to provide evidence and go into Witness Protection."

"Oh, and I have another bonus. In a safe deposit box in Champaign, Illinois, I have placed a thumb drive with video of some of the discussions I had with the leaders of that organization. I think there is enough there to make it difficult for them to get out of anything."

"Fantastic. The government will love to hear that."

"Well, it was time to get out of there. I should never have joined. But that's past history and now it's time for me and my family to live normally and move on."

"Okay. I've got a burner cell here and I think you can get some coverage from outside up the hill behind the cabin. We can communicate with that for now."

"Good. Although my daughters seem very happy with the video selection left here. I think almost every Disney movie made is stored in one of the cabinets."

John laughed. "Yeah, that's what I heard. Anyway, I've got to go. I'll see you guys later."

John turned to Marty and Carl. "You two stay vigilant. Once the government is told about this, I'm not sure it won't be broadcast everywhere."

Marty nodded. "We've got it Colonel."

"Okay, see you later."

---------------------- Wednesday, November 3, 2021, different cabin in the Cascades -----------

John and Marty walked up to the cabin that was being rented by the U.S. Marshals Service after being cleared by a marshal just outside the cabin. John had verified that Andre had transferred one million dollars into four different accounts that he had created at four different banks. The method was unknown to him. He had asked Yvonne about it and she had set up some sort of vpn that Andre logged into on one of her computers that would be able to remain masked. He was told it had to do with the way she changed the ip address, connected through several servers, and that the mac address could be found, but by that time the computer would have been destroyed. John knew computer software and databases, but this was a little beyond him. He just nodded and noticed when the money showed up yesterday.