Chapter 24: Invisible Men to the Rescue!

June,1985

[“Charlie, get your ass to Dupage Airport as fast as you can! I’ll meet you there ... your dad and his buddy have been kidnapped!”]

I flashed Greg and told him what happened. Then I flashed Bob. “Dad’s been kidnapped in Pittsburgh! Where are you right now?”

“What the fuck? ... HOW!?? ... I’m in West Chicago, I just finished a job.”

“I DON’T KNOW, but, he needs our help, get to Dupage County Airport as fast as you can. I’ll meet you there!”

Capt Gregory (Jim) and Agent Callas (Fred) were already there and waving me inside. Greg flashed that he was two minutes out and closing fast. Bob was about the same. I told Jim and he started smiling, “So ‘all hands on deck’?”

“YES! Please don’t say they can’t come?”

“That’s up to YOU ... You know this could get ugly?”

“You KNOW I might kill those bastards! I’ve never been this pissed-off or scared in my life.”

Agent Callas said, “Wait, Charlie has a BROTHER?”

Jim got an evil grin, “Yes! And I’ve seen what they can do together. A whole squad of Ninja’s wouldn’t stand a chance against them. And THAT time, they WEREN’T pissed off ... Well, not as pissed as he is now.”

“And WE don’t have a whole bunch of rules to follow!” I snarked.

Fred was looking at Jim with a concerned frown. Jim shrugged his shoulders, “They’re going to be trying to save their dad’s life. And We are going to let them do WHATEVER it takes!”

We were on the jet seconds after Bob and Greg got there, quickly heading towards Pittsburgh.

Agent Callas began telling us what he knew.

“Your dad and Agent Terence Johnson, ‘TJ”, were on their way to the warehouse, after learning that Frank had already cleaned out his office. The task force was maybe 10 minutes behind them. Since Frank had been tipped off by his brother, he must have figured they were going to go to the warehouse. Somehow, Frank and an unknown number of accomplices got the drop on them and subdued them.

“Our office got a call at 3:30 this afternoon, local time, and were given an ultimatum. Either we turn over all of the evidence against Frank’s brother and 1 million dollars, or they were going to be executed. They are still ‘negotiating’, but Frank knows that it would take some time to do what he wants

“He, of course, wants Jack released from jail before he releases Lenny and TJ. An agent is supposed to deliver the evidence, Jack and the money tonight at 9:00 PM local time.”

“Well, WHERE’S JACK? Or aren’t you planning on turning him over?”

Jim put his hand on my shoulder and grinned, “RIGHT HERE!” This morning, I noticed that YOU are built much like Jack. My plan is to exchange YOU instead of Jack! We’ll put a black bag over your head to conceal your identity. I didn’t know about Bob, so now, I’m thinking of having him lying on the floor in the backseat till they realize they’ve been deceived ... Can he do his thing looking through the window?”

“Yes”, Bob said, “Charlie can ‘tell’ me when to move, then I can get out and help Charlie do whatever we have to. I’ll be able to tell what’s going on, even if we can’t see each other.”

Fred looked puzzled until he saw Jim grin.

“What can I do?” Greg asked.

Jim said, “You’ll be with the backup team in the van, relaying information from Bob and Charlie. Just like you did in Rockford. That way, we won’t have to use radios that could be intercepted.”

Fred looked baffled, “How’s he going to do THAT? I know, from what I saw this morning, Charlie’s some kind of martial artist, are you saying he’s ‘TELEPATHIC’ too?”

Jim started laughing, “Fred, EVERYTHING you see tonight is ‘Top Secret’. Charlie doesn’t actually know shit about karate ... HE DOESN’T NEED TO. Trust me!”

“OH WOW!”

I smirked, “I’m not BULLETPROOF though.”

“No, but you and Bob WILL be wearing bullet proof vests.” Jim said.

“Dad, it’s Charlie! Where are you?” I flashed, hoping he could ‘hear’ me, now that we were halfway there.

Greg was already headed to the cockpit. “Have your dad tell us when we’re overhead! The pilot says there’s only one airport on this side of Pittsburgh, and IT IS near a bunch of warehouses.”

Dad flashed, “Thanks Greg! I’ll do that. And thanks for coming.”

“Don’t mention it. We’re FAMILY Pops!”

We were ALL peering out the windows as we felt the landing gear drop.

“Now!” Dad flashed. “NOW” I told everyone.

Jim said, “We’re just past I-76. That should help us get close.”

Bob had been telling Jim and Fred what Dad and I had been talking about. Fred was dumbfounded by it all. “You’re telling me they were ALL communicating with Lenny?”

Jim was nodding, “Lenny’s got some pretty amazing kids, doesn’t he!”

“Shit, I feel like I’m in ‘The Twilight Zone’!” Agent Callas shouted.

Jim grinned, “Welcome to the club Fred. You ain’t seen nothin’, YET!”

We were met by three FBI agents, who were obviously friends of TJ. Fred introduced everyone as we headed to a command van, not far from the exchange site. The agents were, ‘Big Ed’ Phillips, who looked like a Linebacker, at 6’4” and 240 Lbs., Moe Blake, a black guy, 6’ and 225Lbs and Janet Franks, 5’8” and athletically built. At the Command Van (that looked like a nice RV), the FBI Section Chief, Blake Bryant, filled us in on the current situation.

“We discovered the warehouse and stolen steel. There was far more than we were expecting. More than enough to build 3 buildings! We think, based on that, this goes much deeper than just one heist. That part of the investigation is still ongoing, but has been hampered by the fact we didn’t recover any evidence from Frank’s office. The CEO is being detained, and his bank records show a check from Frank for $10,000. We’re expecting to hear from the kidnappers at 8:30, but, we still don’t have any idea where the hostages are being held.”

Fred interrupted, “We think they’re being held in a warehouse about a ¼ mile SW of I-76 in-line with the Pittsburgh-Monroeville Airport!”

Janet looked serious, “And HOW would you know that?!”

Blake looked at me, “You’re Lenny’s son?”

“Yes sir, and Dad TOLD ME when we passed overhead! ... Ooops, does everyone here know about my dad?”

They all said (Except Blake) “No, what do you mean, ‘He TOLD you?”

Blake looked nervous, “Look, what you’re about to hear is Classified Top Secret! Not a word about this is EVER to leave this room. Lenny has been working for us since the late 60’s. He’s a verified clairvoyant. These are his sons, Charlie and Bob. They have telepathic capabilities, far beyond even Lenny’s. These two ALSO have other abilities that I’ve never witnessed, but have reason to believe border on supernatural! BELIEVE what they tell you! They’re here to assist us in rescuing TJ and Lenny. ANYTHING any of you might witness is Classified Top Secret- For Your Eyes Only! We are honor bound to cover up ANY reference to Bob or Charlie. It’s also, the least we can do for the service Lenny has given us for the last 15 years.”

The other Agents all looked at us with astounded stares.

“Charlie and Bob are going with Big Ed to make the exchange. Charlie is masquerading as Frank’s brother, to get their guard down. Bob will be on the floor, waiting for a signal from Charlie. We have a box with the evidence against Frank’s brother and a duffel bag with $1 million. We don’t plan on them ever getting anything, but we have it just in case. We want to get our hostages back at all cost! Greg, Charlie’s friend will ride with the back-up team, relaying information. We WILL NOT use radios at all until the threat has been resolved.”

Pretty soon the call came, as expected. A voice said, “One agent will come ALONE with my brother, the cash and the evidence. He will be met by my associates who will make the exchange. Your people will be released after I get my brother.”

“No deal! You can have the cash and evidence, but we’re keeping your brother until we get our agents!”

“OK, we’ll do a mutual exchange, but your man had BETTER be unarmed. We’ll search him. Any funny business and he and the hostages will be executed!”

“Where’s the meeting going to be?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know? Your agent is to stop at the Dairy Queen on Northern Pike Road, just west of Mosside Boulevard. There’s a pay phone, he needs to be there at 8:55 and answer it when it rings. He’ll be given information on the meet from there. We’ll be watching to see if he’s followed, your agents will be executed immediately if you play any games!”

The line went dead.

Blake got out a very detailed map of the area.

After looking at it for a few minutes he said, “That Dairy Queen is almost 6 miles from the warehouse area you think your dad is being held. I’m guessing the meet will be somewhere in between. I’m sure he’s not stupid enough to guide you all the way back to that warehouse. We have three radio jammers, but we need to be within 300 feet to be effective. Charlie and Big Ed will have one and make sure you turn it on as soon as you’re at the meet. Team One will take the ‘roach coach’ van (it looks like a mobile lunch truck) and head to the warehouse area now, since THEY don’t know that WE KNOW where they’re at. See if you can figure out exactly where they are, but if you can’t, sit somewhere centrally located and turn on your jammer when we tell you to. Greg, you’ll be with Team One.

“Charlie, I know you and your brother want to work as a team, but we might have to separate you so that all three of us can communicate. Is that going to be a problem for you?”

“No, that might even be a better idea. Since we have no idea what’s really going down, there’s no point having us BOTH in the wrong place.”

Blake smiled, “That’s kinda what I was thinking, Frank’s not stupid and he might be sending you on a wild goose chase. If things go sideways, maybe one of you will at least be in a position to help. With that said, then, Bob should go with Team One instead of Greg and Greg can stay with me and Team Two.”

Bob, Moe and Janet left to head to the warehouse area, as Big Ed and I headed to the Dairy Queen.

Blake and the 4 others, including Greg, were headed to a commercial area not far from the Dairy Queen.

Ed and I got there 10 minutes ahead of schedule.

Bob flashed that they were at the warehouse area, and felt they knew which one Dad was in. It wasn’t the one where the stolen steel was located. They reported that a Ford Crown Victoria had just left with four people inside. There were also two armed guards patrolling the area by the front door, smoking cigarettes.

“Dad, are you in the Crown Vic?”

“NO! They left us here. It’s a setup. They plan on KILLING us as soon as Frank gets his brother back. I think Frank is in the car. He has slicked back hair and a ‘Hitler’ moustache. He looks like Jack, but more chiseled. They’re going to radio the four guards he left here when he’s sure Jack’s safe.”

Everyone was listening and got the scoop.

“Dad”, Bob flashed, “we’ve got a team just outside the warehouse we think you’re at. We just saw two guys with rifles walking around smoking cigarettes. You said there were four, are two still inside with you?”

I was looking through Bob’s eyes, as one guard’s head snapped 360° in a fraction of a second! His lifeless body fell to the ground. His buddy turned towards him when he heard the snap, but that was the last thing he heard, as his head did the same thing. I heard Janet whisper in Bob’s ear, “HOLY FUCK! Did you just DO THAT?”

Bob just nodded his head and whispered, “Moe, make sure you have a good hold on your rifle and DON’T scream. I’m gonna set you on the roof, nice and easy, to see if you can take out the two guys that are left guarding Dad and TJ.”

Moe’s eyes got big and just as he nodded, I watched Bob lift him up and put him on the roof, setting him down gently. Moe’s eyes were now as big as pie plates as he looked back at Bob, slowly shaking his head, but he was grinning.

Janet whispered, “You gotta give me a turn sometime Bob, that was COOL!”

Two shots rang out and Moe screamed, “GO, GO, GO, I only WINGED one of them!

Bob made the door fly in, as he and Janet rushed in. Both thugs were down, one had a bullet hole in his forehead and the other one was just reaching for his gun, as one more shot rang out and the back of his head exploded.

Dad and TJ were both smiling, as Janet cut the ropes holding them to their chairs. They both looked like they had just gone 10 rounds with Mohammed Ali.

I flashed, “Four down, four to go! I can’t wait to get my hands on Frank!”

Dad flashed, “Charlie, as much as you might want to kill him, we gotta take Frank alive. The bastard has managed to not let me touch him and this whole thing is much more involved than any of us thought. We need a whole bunch of answers!”

“Okay Dad, I hear you. I was just hoping to have a little FUN with him.”

I felt Dad laughing. “I didn’t say you couldn’t have any FUN WITH HIM, Charlie, just make sure he can still TALK when you’re done.”

“Got it Dad. Stick with Bob and I’ll keep you guys posted.”

I just finished telling Ed, “four down, four to go”, when the phone rang. Ed was still looking at me flabbergasted when he picked up the phone and said, “Hello, this is Agent Phillips who am I speaking with?”

“Do you have everything you’re supposed to have?”

“Yes I do, the money, the evidence and your brother.”

“Let me talk to my brother!”

“You can talk to him as soon as I can talk to Agent Johnson.”

“Fine, we’ll wait, there’s a big church on old Penn highway, just west of the interstate. Go to the north parking lot. When you see me flash my lights you stop and turn your lights off. Then get out and let my brother get out.”

The line went dead and Ed looked at me, “You know they’re going to shoot me as soon as you’re clear.”

“I know, you’re supposed to put a black bag over my head, but somehow I need to be able to see or there’s not much I can do to help you.”