Chapter 87

By the time we were through with the party, it was almost midnight. I got the girls into the unit and we headed back to the cabin. Of course they were asleep five minutes after we left the restaurant. I did notice Tran just wore the shoulder part of the seatbelt this time and I had to smile to myself. George had told me he was staying in town and wouldn't be back for a couple of days. I figured he was staying at Doris's place. I wondered when they planned on going back to his home to clean it out.

When we pulled up in front of the cabin, it looked quiet so I got out. I was met by one of the guards who agreed it was quiet and asked how my party had gone. Damn, everyone must have known about it but me, I thought, as we got the girls out of my unit. There was no argument about bed. They were so tired we had to help them put their pajamas on. When they were finally settled in, we went to bed too. There was no play tonight, and I think we both fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow.

When I woke up the next morning, the sun was just starting to rise. Looking at the clock, I saw it was a little after five. I knew I couldn't go back to sleep so I got up and showered. I got dressed and went down stairs, and then I realized I hadn't preset the coffee pot. I hurriedly made a cup of instant that would keep me until the pot was ready, and then went to my usual chair to watch the sun rise. I had grabbed the sat phone as I went out, expecting to get an early morning call from Preacher. I was on my second cup of coffee when he called.

"Harry, all these cars are stolen and the arms are part of the stolen batch out of Miami. There are about seventy cases of grenades from Ft. Bliss that were stolen last year. The list goes on and on. We are going to need at least thirty flatbeds to haul all of this stuff out. I had one of the guys follow the dirt road and it comes out a couple of miles above the other camp. I hope you don't mind, but I had one of the trucks routed there to pick up what they have. I called the cadaver team from Nellis to come out to remove all the bones from that hole, and what are we going to do with the five tanks down here because they were sold as surplus legally?"

"Slow down a little, Preacher. Have Nellis make sure they send extra guards for all the trucks until this stuff is in storage on base. I damn sure don't want to lose any of it now. Ok, the tanks will have to be removed, so have Nellis send some lowboy trailers. The cars we will let the insurance companies handle. I will have someone from the director's office call them today to make arrangements. Did you find some kind of inventory list of what's in there and maybe a clue to where it all came from?"

"Harry, I don't know who did the books here, but everything is listed piece by piece. We found a large office with file cabinets full of paperwork. Harry, everything in this cave is listed. Where it came from by date and city, and even the surplus stuff is listed by where and what sale they bought it from. Also, there is a huge old safe that we will have to blow open. I couldn't find the combination anywhere. Your friend the sheriff has already set up guards at the entrance of the camp to keep everyone out and Zeke has roving patrols out in the woods to watch for strangers. He said I could bring in the other two teams for the same thing if I wanted to. Man, he is sure anxious to get this stuff out of here."

"I have someone who will open the safe, so don't worry about it. Have the other two Seal Teams come in and provide extra security. Also, have them bring in weapons for the other teams. Make sure you tell Zeke what is going on so his people don't panic. I will call the Director and get extra security for the trucks while they are on the road to and from Nellis. See if there's some way we can drop a few trees or something so the choppers can land in front of the cave instead of above it. Also, have one of the clerks come out with a typewriter to do the titles and other paperwork for Zeke's people. I will call back shortly, as soon as I talk to the Director. Put everyone with you on alert, just in case of trouble from outside sources."

"Already done Stinger, and the other two teams are enroute as we speak."

I went for another cup of coffee, trying to get a plan together to make sure we could hang onto the weapons until they were destroyed. Just because the fire at the lumber company had killed those people, it didn't mean that more were not still around. Then I had one of my brilliant ideas. I would use the State Police special teams for extra security. I called Butch to see if I could borrow them for a few days. When he answered the phone and I told him what I needed and asked for permission to use them, he busted out laughing.

"What the hell is so funny about that, Butch?"

"Harry, you're the Commander of the State Troopers. The Governor just appointed me as temporary. If you need them, all you have to do is call them in. They have been itching to work for you in any capacity. Hell, Charlie really put a dent in their pride with what he did and they all resent him for it. I'll put out the alert and have them gather at your county garage today so you can brief them. I'll come along to introduce you and get the low down on why you want them so fast. I must admit, you have my curiously aroused too."

I thanked him, and got off the phone with him to call the Director and bring him up to speed. He must have been with the President because he immediately put me on speaker. I told him all I knew and what I planned on doing. I also told him about the cars and the tanks along with the stolen grenades, and how many trucks it was going to take to haul all of this stuff. I heard someone say, "Holy Shit", in the background and wondered if it was the President or maybe the General. I went on to say that I needed extra security to escort the trucks to make sure we didn't lose any of the weapons this time. I heard a lot of conversation, then the President came on saying that he was sending three hundred Military Policemen to my location immediately. I would be in charge and they would escort the convoys back and forth. He said that if I got any static from anyone, I was to bring them up on charges immediately.

"Mr. Hanson, you have done an excellent job on this so far, and I want you to keep running it until we can get those weapons safely in our hands again. You can also tell those people in the camp that they have a very large reward coming for finding them for us. They deserve something more than a few worn out vehicles. If you have any problems at all, you call and we will handle them for you. Thank you Mr. Hanson, from a grateful nation."

"Mr. President, a lot of the kudos should go to the men and women here who have made my job easier. I would appreciate it if you could see your way clear to maybe give some of them promotions, the drone operators especially. They were directly responsible for getting us to where we are now. They have been dozing in their chairs the whole time this has been going on, sir. They refused to leave their posts because they wanted to make sure we had coverage over the camp. The men of Seal Team Two deserve a lot of credit too. They were the ones I had trusted my family with and who made sure they were safe while I ran this little operation. There are a lot of personnel at this little base that deserve more than a pat on the back, sir."

"I get your point, Mr. Hanson. I give you my word there will be some promotions and a lot of commendations for the personnel there. Now, I will leave you to talk to the Director because I have a press conference to attend in ten minutes. Before you ask, it's not about your find. That we will keep secret as long as possible until we can get those weapons back under our control. Have a good day, Mr. Hanson."

I found myself on the end of a dead phone. I hung mine up only to have it ring again in a couple of minutes by the Director.

"Harry, sorry about that. He was in such a rush he hung up the phone instead of handing it to me. Now, where were we?"

I was chuckling as I told him a couple of other things I wanted for the convoys and he agreed fully with me. He said all I had to do was tell the Major with the Military Police what I wanted and it would be done immediately. We talked for another half hour, going over some details and situations that could occur. I was able to finally get off the phone and went into the house to find Tran up and sipping tea. I got a big kiss, and sat down next to her, telling her what was going on, and that I would have to leave soon but this was almost over. After I said that, I got the look. I just settled back in my chair waiting to see what I had done wrong this time.

"Harry, if you go running out of here before the girls get up they will be heartbroken. They, as well as I, have birthday presents to give you. They wanted to wait until we got home to give them to you."

"Ok hon, I'll start breakfast. The work can wait on me for a change."

I got that thousand watt smile I loved so much as I headed for the stove to start breakfast. I decided to have eggs, ham and home fries, with toast for us all. I was almost done cooking when the girls came running into the kitchen. When they saw me still there cooking, they ran to set the table and every one of them had a big smile on her face. I didn't let on I had to leave, just kept it all routine, but I knew that there would be some questions after we were done eating. If I hadn't known better, I would have thought the girls hadn't eaten for several days the way they went through the food. I barely got any toast, and Sandra grabbed the last piece of ham before I could reach for it. When I gave her a dirty look, she cut a piece of it and very slowly put it in her mouth, smacking her lips as she did. Of course Dina and Dana both thought this was hilarious. I looked at Tran, trying to put a hurt look on my face, but she refused to look me in the eye and was smiling as she finished her eggs. I put my head in my hands and they all cracked up at me.

I looked at them and stuck my tongue out at them. I told them to clean up the kitchen as I grabbed my coffee and headed for the porch. I sat down with my coffee, chuckling at how they enjoyed teasing me all the time. I had to admit, having them here sure made life interesting at times. I had been sitting outside about ten minutes when the door opened and they all came out carrying wrapped presents. Dina gave me a new leather jacket with lots of extra inside pockets that she said were to carry my extra bullets for my cannon. Dana gave me leather hat like I had seen a certain actor wear, saying I had better wear it with my jacket because it matched. Sandra came up and handed me a flat present to open and I saw she had two more by her side.

When I opened it I almost broke down. It was an exact copy of the mural she had in her room. She handed me the second one and I opened it with trembling hands and saw a painting of the sun setting down over the ocean. It was signed by my daughter and dated a year before she had passed away. The third one had, "From your family", written on the outside and it was a portrait of Tran and all the girls standing in front of the cabin with the setting sun behind them. They all seemed so real in the painting, and the sun was reflecting softly off their hair. They were all smiling at whoever had taken the picture.

"Thank all of you for these gifts. I couldn't have asked for anything nicer. All three of these will be up in my room, where I can see them everyday when I wake and go to bed. They will remind me how much I love all of you."

"Harry, I still haven't given you mine yet. When you open this one, I want you to know we all picked it out with the thought that you would never take it off."

I took it from Tran with trembling hands and slowly opened it. They were all smiling as I did. It was a necklace with the figure about the size of a silver dollar. Looking closely at it, I realized it was a golden Buddha on one side and on the other side it was engraved with the words; "From your girls with all our love." I immediately fastened it around my neck, making sure the Buddha was facing outward.

"This is the first necklace I have worn in years and it will be the last. As long as I am wearing it, I will always be thinking of my girls. Thank you all again for one of the greatest birthdays I have had in many years."

I then got my kisses and hugs from the girls and they went back into the cabin, leaving Tran and me alone on the porch. I pulled her down into my lap and kissed her.

"Hon, if you don't mind me asking, why a Buddha of all things?"

"It was Sandra's idea, Harry. I am Christian but she explained that the monks believed that a Buddha was all seeing and all knowing. She also said she believed that the Buddha was the protector of all things. We all discussed it and thought it was a good idea. The engraving was my idea so we would always be close to you when you're away. She told me about the necklace her mother gave you and how much you had cherished it. Did you know she has it in that little safe she keeps in her room? It is just a few of the things her mother said were her most precious of gifts. She told me about how it had been stolen and Sean had recovered it unopened. Harry, she went through it with me and the girls one afternoon. Some of the jewelry is worth thousands of dollars. She said her mother had a lot of it hand made by the different Indian tribes she met in Mexico. Oh Harry, some of the pieces in that box are the most beautiful pieces of jewelry I have ever seen. She gave both of the girls and me an authentic Mayan necklace that has to be hundreds of years old. She said her mother traded for them from some of the villagers."