Chapter 62

Charger and I took the cab back to Car Row and bought a four-wheel drive, electric blue, Toyota Tundra Super Cab. We took possession and hit the highway while it was still light with no earthly idea where we were headed.

How can a grown man start over so many times?

At some point we needed to head back to the house in Fort Lauderdale, but the men who took care of things for me had repairs, as few as the house needed due to its construction, under control. They sent me pictures which confirmed the progress. With no better idea, we pointed the truck north and decided to visit the Hudson River Valley of New York.

Charger seemed to like the new truck. It was a spur of the moment purchase. I saw the electric blue color and just had to buy it. At least if we got into snow we would have four-wheel drive and very tough tires under us, so it was all good.

Charlotte to Dutchess County New York was going to be bit of a long drive. After we had been on the road about four hours or so, Charger gave me the evil eye, and I pulled into a Cracker Barrel for supper and a pit stop for my buddy. The nice people at the restaurant fixed a wonderful looking supper for my boy and we sat beside the truck, out behind the restaurant while he ate and ran around, working off his meal.

We were in no hurry, and no one was waiting for us anywhere, so I used the Marriott app to reserve a suite for us and we quit for the night. The fact that I was able to shake off my growing attachment to Ann Marie told me that we were both right to end things before one of us got hurt.

Charger got me up before dawn to take him out and it was a good thing. We were out of the building, a couple hundred feet from the hotel when a car bomb went off, totally destroying the side of the building where we were staying. The debris caused by the blast was still settling on the ground when I scooped up the dog and headed for the truck. I’d put my pants on to take Charger out which meant I had my wallet and keys. Everything else went up in smoke and flame. We carefully got in the truck and slipped away without anyone noticing.

If that bomb was meant for me, then someone would be looking at the security film to see which way we went, so I drove straight out of the hotel and into the neighborhood beside it to lose myself from prying eyes.

Then I called the White House.

“Good Morning Mr. President. How can I help you this morning?” The voice was pleasant but unfamiliar to me. The days of calling and talking to Stacy were over forever, and that kind of depressed me.

“Please connect me to the on duty officer at Homeland Security.” There was no point in explaining this to anyone but the people who could do something about it. A secretary wasn’t that person. The duty officer wasn’t either, but getting a call from a former President reporting a terrorist bombing would get me to the highest ranking official possible at that the of the morning.

“Mr. President, this is Deputy Director LeMay. We are tracking the explosion that occurred at your hotel and, quite frankly, Sir, we thought you might have perished in the blast. It is good to know you are alive and apparently mobile.

“Give me your location and we will have you picked up within thirty minutes, Sir.” We talked for just a few seconds while he confirmed details of the meeting. Charger and I spent the next thirty minutes essentially hiding from anyone connected to the bombers.

At the twenty-two minute mark I saw four black clad men walking towards our parking spot. By their demeanor and weapons it was obvious that they were not my retrieval squad. Charger sensed my mood change and growled threateningly. The hair on his neck stood up and I agreed with his general sense of our problem.

Patting him affectionately, I dropped the truck in four-wheel high and took off across a small park that bordered the hotel. My pursuers weren’t quite ready for me to bolt, and I was able to put enough distance between us to make their shots impotent.

As we left the area of the park I slewed the truck onto the highway, avoiding the entrance ramp and running right up the embankment. Charger fought to remain on the seat but it was a challenge.

My phone rang.

I prayed it was the Secret Service, Federal Marshals, or Homeland Security. “Yeah,” I shouted, trying to drive like a maniac with one hand.

“Mr. President we are near your hotel. Please remain close by so that we can pick you up and evacuate you somewhere safe, while we figure out exactly what happened.”

My response was not as calm. “For the record, I’m not stopping or waiting for anyone. There are four very well armed men attempting to close in on me right now. My dog and I are driving away with all possible haste to avoid them.”

I drove like a lunatic until there were no cars behind me. Then I began a series of evasive turns to make it impossible for any vehicle to follow without me seeing them. Those maneuvers lasted about thirty minutes, at which time I hit redial and told the person who answered where to meet us.

The Secret Service was all over us by then. “Mr. President we have had you covered from the air since you spoke to us earlier. IF you would go straight ahead to the next exit and stop in the empty parking lot, we will retrieve you and your companion by chopper.” He stayed on the phone until their bird landed and four extremely dangerous looking men hustled us into the helicopter.