Chapter 91

I was still sitting on the porch when Tran and the girls came out to go to town. I got my hugs and kisses goodbye as they all headed for the Jeep. Of course I was told they were going to have their Jeep washed while they were in town and I was not to drive it to the plant after it was clean again. Tran had the last word as she climbed into the Jeep, which I was expecting.

"Harry, your pills are on the coffee table. Please try to stay out of any physical confrontations today. You need time to heal and I need my husband back."

I was wondering what she meant by that remark as they headed down the driveway. I got on the ear bud and let the radioman know they were going to town. He told me they already knew and had an escort watching them and Sean's family, who had also left about ten minutes ago headed for town. I heard a horn honk in the distance and about five minutes later Beau was pulling up in front of the cabin. I had to admit the new 4x4s, looked good, but I remembered what Doris had told me about how they were constantly having to work on them. I was glad I had the Jeep and my Power Wagon. When Beau got out, he opened the back and got a large bag out and came up to the porch. I offered him a cup of coffee which he accepted. I got a refill and a cup for him and went back out to the porch with them. He was sitting on the top step where he could stretch out his bad leg and I handed him the coffee.

"Harry, do you have any idea what kind of safe it is that's in the cave?"

"I don't have the faintest idea, Beau, but the damn thing is huge."

I went on to give him a good description of it and how big it was. He seemed to know what kind it was almost immediately.

"Sounds like and old Frederick, Harry. If it is, it won't take long to open it. It will probably take us longer to drive there than it will to open it."

"I got news for you my friend. We aren't driving but catching a ride in a chopper. Besides, it will be a whole new experience for you."

"Yeah, I guess, but are you sure it's safe?"

I looked at him in shock and busted out laughing.

"It's not funny, Harry. I watch TV and have seen how easy it is for them things to crash. I'm not sure about this at all."

It was then that I realized he was serious and feared flying in one of them.

"Beau, I have been flying all around this part of the state for the last month or so. If I didn't trust them, I wouldn't put my life on the line because of Tran and the girls. It's just as safe as you are, driving your cruiser. Probably safer, because there is no traffic for you to hit or be hit by up there. If you keep an open mind, I think you might enjoy it. Besides, I need the chopper to bring back the contents of the safe."

"All right, Harry, but I reserve the right to be dropped off if I don't like it."

I almost said the only way to get dropped of was by parachute, but I caught myself at the last second and just chuckled. I got on the ear bud and called for a Whisper, telling the radio man it was to land in total quiet mode and that I wanted Captain Triplett on board also. I got an affirmative back and signed off.

"Come on Beau, our ride is on the way. We have to walk to the meadow where he will land to pick us up."

I quickly took our cups inside and grabbed my cells and the pills in case I needed them. I already had the Glock on but had to wear the sport vest. I had thrown away my nylon jacket because of the bullet holes in it. As I went back out the door, I noticed the vest lying on the stand and wondered if Tran had seen it. Dammit, I should have left it in the cave. But, like an idiot, I had hung onto it for some reason. I knew deep inside I wanted the bullets as a memento, but don't ask me to explain why, because I didn't think I knew myself.

I was still stuffing extra mags and the cells into my pockets as I went out the front door again. Beau was already walking down the path to the meadow when I caught up with him. We walked in silence and watched as the Whisper set down without a sound or any wind whip. I almost busted out laughing again at the expression on Beau's face when it did. He just looked at me in awe as I told him to climb in and buckle up. I also told him to set his bag between his feet and put the helmet on so we could talk. He followed my directions, and when he was buckled in, I saw him take a deep breath. I introduced him to Stumpy and then Stumpy started in on me.

"Harry, why am I here? I am still busy going through all those papers from the cave and fielding calls from insurance companies about those cars and trucks. Most of them said they have already written the cars off years ago, and they don't want to incur the expense to come get them. They have started sending clear titles to me so we can do whatever we want with the cars. Some of the guys already want to talk to Zeke and see if they can buy them for a fair price. But again, why the hell am I here when I have all that work to do?"

"Stumpy, I wanted to have a private talk with you and Preacher. I have some news you both need to hear and the cave office will be the best place for me to explain."

"Stinger, what the hell have you volunteered us for now? I though this whole mess was winding up finally."

"It is, Stumpy, and you should be returning to Bragg in a couple of weeks. What I want to talk about goes back to Nam, so drop it until we get to the cave, will you?"

He nodded and gave me a puzzled look, but he kept silent the rest of the way. When we set down in front of the cave, I told the pilots to shut it down and wait. We might have cargo to take back. As we were climbing out, Preacher came out of the cave. He seemed surprised to see Stumpy climb out of the bird with me. He didn't say anything as I introduced him to Beau again and we headed inside. I thought Beau was going to have a heart attack when he laid eyes on all the old cars and trucks that were still sitting along the wall. He dropped his bag and walked over to them in a trance like state. He touched several of them like they were long lost loves. As I watched him, Stumpy was telling Preacher the news about the titles and what the insurance companies had been telling him. Preacher immediately asked about the Cuda and the Firebird, but Stumpy told him he forgot the list since I had hustled him out of the room so fast.

Sure, I was thinking, blame it on me. I got Beau's attention and he grabbed his gear and we all headed for the office. Preacher was giving Stumpy hell for not remembering any of the cars on the list and I just smiled to myself. I was thinking how much this sounded like old times, with these two arguing like they were. It used to be three of them, and the one missing was Monk. I knew if he were here, he would be egging them on to see if he could start a fight, just so he could break it up. Back in the old days, these three would fight like cats and dogs among each other. But, God help anyone that got between them. As we walked to the office, I did notice that they were having a ball trading insults, just like the old days.

When we arrived at the office and Beau got his first glimpse of the safe, we were immediately forgotten about as he went over and examined it. We had used several men to slide it out from the wall, and it was all they could do to move it. I caught a whiff of fresh coffee and immediately knew by the smell who had made it. I grabbed a cup and sat down behind the desk and Preacher and Stumpy did the same, sitting in folding chairs in front of the old desk.

"Ok, both of you, listen up. This is classified so it doesn't leave this room."

Preacher immediately pointed to Beau who had turned around to give me a funny look.

"I'll vouch for Beau, fellas. He is more close mouthed than you two are if he needs to be."

"Ok Harry, what's so damned important that you wanted to talk to the two of us in private way out here?"

I sat back and lit a cigarette. I coughed a couple of times, flinching from the pain of doing so, and started into my story. I sat and talked and they listened, never saying a word. I spent the next two hours telling them what I knew and had been able to find out, I went into what I figured had happened to several teams that we all knew that had disappeared while on patrol in Nam. I ended up with a play by play of the death of General Brown, and why I thought it had to happen for the good of our country. I added in a few other things that I had figured out. I finished by lighting another cigarette and getting a fresh cup of coffee as I waited for the explosion I knew was coming. Beau had stopped and had also been listening to me. When I got done, he started getting tools out of his bag to open the safe.