Читать книгу The Face of Freedom - Benjamin Vance - Страница 17

By the time they reached Coeur d’Alene, it was late and the back roads and slow traffic had worn them out. She asked if it would be okay to spend the night on the south side of town. He knew little about Coeur d’Alene except it was beautiful and hard to pronounce. He agreed to a stop and soon they were in front of a small, but beautiful English Tudor nestled in about five acres of meticulously kept foliage. She told him to wait and went to the porch. She was met at the front door by an older man who hugged her and then motioned for the walker to come in. She introduced the man as her uncle and gave his name as Ike Larson, lieutenant colonel, USMC retired. He was one of the good men the walker preferred not to meet.

He was greeted with dignity and kindness. He found that Ike’s wife had died the year before. He offered his condolences and they were accepted. Ike didn’t ask many questions. He gave the walker an upstairs bedroom across from his. Jen had the downstairs bedroom. Ike and Jen fixed a great dinner while the walker checked the outside of the house for “rat holes” that human rats might see as weak points to gain access to the home. He didn’t find any. Even the windows were barred on the inside, so that one could get out, but not in.

After retiring for the night, he heard a light rapping on his door. Expecting Jen he opened it. It was Ike. He invited him in. Ike made himself comfortable in one of his late wife’s wing-back chairs.

He said, “I can’t shake the feeling I know you from somewhere. Were you in ’Nam? Were you in the Army or the Corps?”

“I can’t tell you Ike. It’s nothing against you at all; it’s just me. I’ve taken an oath not to reveal my identity until it’s discovered by the government.”

“Why?Are you one of these guys in the witness protection program that Jen tells me about?”

“No sir! I’ve just decided that for the sake of others, I need to keep my history private. I’m trying to carry a message that would not be as effective if people knew who I am and what I’ve done.” He saw Ike stiffen and quickly added, “No; nothing that I could go to jail for, at least legitimately.”

Ike thought for a moment; looked at him intently and put two and two together. He slowly whispered, “Sheeeit, you’re that guy everybody’s talking about. The, the … walker guy, aren’t you?”

“Well, that’s what some people call me, because I don’t like to use vehicles. It’s too easy for the gov to monitor me unless I walk or at least hitch an anonymous ride here and there. For all we know, they know I’m here now!”

“You think?”

“Absolutely Ike, and given the right priority and circumstances, they could spy on me walking through the woods. If they think I’m a threat to the administration, they’ll kill me ... period! The only fly in the ointment is they think Jen has left the building and will be waiting on another assignment. They don’t know she’s left the reservation. They have no idea, I hope, that she’s endangered her career to help me. If I work it right they‘ll never know.”

“Soooo, what do we do? What can I do?”

“Nothing, I can think of. If we get some rest, maybe I’ll think of something tomorrow. Right now, Jen needs the rest more than I do. Just in case, can you give me the layout of your house and any alarms or possible weak points?”

“Hell, yeah. Come on with me. We’ll start in the basement.”

He gave the walker the grand tour. Meanwhile, Jen was listening to the two old timers talk superficially about guns, ammo, the government, and early warning systems. She’d already reconnoitered the house and grounds. It looked tight.

After the tour, Ike and the walker talked some more about voting responsibility, guns and the constitution. They were both all too ready to express what they thought about the government’s recent crackdown on human rights. When they said their goodnights, Ike said, “Like I’m going to be able to sleep a wink tonight.” They both grinned. Jen lay in her bed and grinned too, at the notion these old guys hit it off so well.

At about 1:00 a.m. the walker crept outside with a blanket and his pack; very bad dreams again. A big evergreen tree of some kind in Ike’s “back forty” had beckoned to him after they arrived. He lay under its low sheltering branches and the whispering of a breeze through their needles slowly rocked him to sleep. At about 3:22 a.m. hell came to earth.