Bonner Incident (28 page)

An hour and a half after William had been taken from the school, Buck had jumped in with Cory and they’d headed north as the radios started working again. The normal fifty-minute drive from Sandpoint to Lamb Creek took only fifteen.

Blowing past the roadblock, Buck looked at the empty tents and saw that all the National Guard vehicles were gone. “Glad we didn’t have to deal with them,” he said and pulled out his pistol, flipping the cylinder open. Seeing the six bullets, he flipped his wrist to close it.

Then, as they blew past the side road that lead to Sonya’s, they saw a line of cars waiting to pull out. Clearing Lamb Creek, Cory hit triple digits heading the ten miles to Nordman. “Cory, if they shoot me, open fire,” Buck said when they reached Nordman and saw a roadblock manned by feds.

Two wooden sawhorses blocked the road. “Blow through,” Buck growled and Cory didn’t slow the SUV.  Seeing the turn for Reeder Bay Rd, Cory tapped the brakes as he guided the SUV onto the turnoff heading to the resorts.

Keeping his speed at fifty, Cory took his foot off of the gas, seeing the road blocked with cars ahead. “Sheriff, I don’t think I can plow through that many cars,” Cory said as he slowed down.

“Just pull up to them and stop. Here’s as good a place as any to have a shootout,” Buck said grabbing the door handle. When Cory stopped a few yards from the cars blocking the road, Buck jumped out. Turning around, he saw cars stopping behind them and people poured out, running towards him and carrying guns. “Spread out!” Buck yelled. “If I go down, open fire! Kill them all and get the boy!”

The men and women running towards him stopped and spread out across the road and into the forest. Buck turned around to see Agent Griffey at the roadblock. “Sheriff, I must remind you, that this is interfering with a federal investigation,” he said wearing his customary fake smile.

“Give me William Anderson now or we start a war,” he said cocking the hammer back on his pistol but keeping in pointed down.

“Sheriff, surely even you realize that you are outgunned,” Griffey said.

“Wrong, you’re surrounded. Hear that whine out on the lake? That’s over a hundred boats heading here. We are leaving here with William Anderson and will kill every one of you to do it,” Buck said and Griffey could hear the whine of the boat engines.

Griffey held up an envelope. “This gives me the right to secure William Anderson, in respect that the state CPS failed to provide adequate safety for him.”

“Are you ready to die today Griffey, because I am,” Buck said and heard a car driving up behind him, but he knew both lanes were packed. He turned to see a new caddy driving toward him rather fast in the ditch bouncing up and down over the uneven ground and people were jumping out of the way. The caddy skidded to a stop in the ditch, ten yards behind Buck.

“Griffey, you don’t have long,” Buck said as Sonya jumped out of the passenger side, holding a pump shotgun and Mrs. Anderson got out of the driver’s side, reaching back and dragging out a long double barrel shotgun. Buck spun around, “Give me the boy now,” Buck sneered.

“I’ll kill every cocksucker here!” Mrs. Anderson screeched out and feebly walked out of the ditch. Glancing over his shoulder, Buck saw her raising the shotgun to her shoulder, looking down the two massive barrels. Buck knew that if she pulled the triggers, that ten gauge would throw her down.

“Give me my baby!” Sonya shouted running toward Griffey and brought her pump shotgun to her shoulder, aiming at Griffey’s face while several dozen men behind Griffey aimed their weapons at her.

“He’s not your child,” Griffey said calmly, but Buck could see he was sweating in the cool air.

“Hold on,” Moore shouted moving up beside Griffey. “It was a lawful warrant.”

Buck turned his head over his shoulder. “Prepare to fire and advance to get William Anderson. You will kill everyone that has a federal badge. No quarter will be given. No wounded will be taken. You will kill all of them!”

“Yes sir!” a bunch shouted.

“Hell yeah, we’re with ya’ sheriff!” many others shouted.

“Give me my grandson or I’ll kill you now!” Mrs. Anderson screeched, cocking both hammers back.

Throwing his hands up, Moore screamed. “Hold your fire!” he turned to the men around him. “Lower your weapons now or face a board of inquiry.”

When his men lowered their weapons, Moore lifted a radio to his mouth. “Bring William Anderson to the primary roadblock.”

“We lost another officer and this is how you respond?” Griffey said looking at Buck.

“You were about to lose a lot more,” Buck said and turned to Cory. “Tell Duane that they are bringing him out and hold off the attack from the lake.”

“Yes sir,” Cory said grabbing his radio.

Turning back around, Buck saw a car drive up to the roadblock and William jumped out. Before anyone could stop him, William took off running toward them. Letting out a cry, Sonya dropped her shotgun and William ran at her as she opened her arms.

Buck looked at William’s face and saw his right cheek was swollen and his eye was black with dried blood under his nose. “Fuckin’ Gman!” Mrs. Anderson shouted seeing William’s face and brought her shotgun up to her shoulder again.

It seemed like nobody doubted she would fire, since Moore, Griffey and all those around them dove for cover. Buck spun toward her and stood at the end of the barrel. “Mrs. Anderson, don’t,” he said calmly.

“They beat my grandbaby, I’m killin’ all the bastards!”

“Mrs. Anderson, William is away and if any shooting starts, he stands a good chance of getting hit.”

Gritting her teeth, she lowered the shotgun. “I’m goin’ to get more bullets,” she said to Buck. “Sonya, William, get in the car.”

“Mount up and wait till they reach their house then head back home, but stay by your phones!” Buck shouted and people started moving to their cars.

“The boy did that to himself, hitting our officers,” Griffey said getting up.

Buck spun around, “You fuckin’ touch one more person in this town and the next time, we aren’t talking. That is a thirteen-year-old boy you kidnapped to get at his dad. Well, I’m here to tell ya’, your plan will work. You’ll be hearing from Joshua soon.”

“Sheriff,” Moore said getting up. “What would you have done if the boy hadn’t been here?”

“You would all be dead,” Buck said turning around and Moore shivered, knowing that Buck wasn’t bluffing. “Just a word of advice; your other five choppers at the airport? I heard they were sabotaged, so don’t fly them. Don’t worry, I’m opening an investigation.”

“Hold on sheriff,” a man shouted, running up from behind the feds with a group of people. “We want to go with you.”

Buck recognized him as the manager of the Elk lodge and the employees. “What about your cars?”

“They won’t let us drive them here, we have to be picked up in Nordman,” the man said.

“Hop in a ride,” he said pointing down the road at the line of cars waiting to turn around.

“You can’t leave,” Griffey said as the man stopped but the others kept on going.

“I’ve talked to my attorney sir, and he’s informed me that the government has agreed to purchase this establishment. So you sir, can kiss my ass. We are out of here,” the man said and left.

When all the cars had turned around, Cory followed them out. “Stop by Sonya’s,” Buck said holstering his pistol. He held out his hand to see it shaking. Squeezing his fist tight and dropping it to his lap, Buck looked up feeling old and tired.

“I don’t think they will try nothing like that again sir,” Cory said.

“Yes, they will,” Buck said. “They just never believed that I would run up there with an armed insurrection.”

As Cory slowed at Sonya’s road the dozer pulled out of the way and there were armed men and women everywhere. Coming to a stop at the house, they saw Mrs. Anderson walking back to her caddy carrying a box of shotgun shells. “Only had those two. Now I’m ready,” she said tossing them in the car.

“We have him Mrs. Anderson,” Buck said wearily. “Don’t go, they will need you here,” Buck said and grabbed her arm gently. She looked up at his tired face and the anger inside her subsided.

“Okay Buck,” she said reaching up and patting his face as Sonya and William came running out.

“I’m sorry William. They took my deputy by surprise,” Buck said getting down on one knee.

William held out his hand. “It’s okay Buck.”

Sonya stepped around William, bent down and hugged Buck. “Thank you.”

“Will you two come and stay at my house, please?”

“No, they aren’t going to run us off,” Sonya said glancing over at Gene.

“Hey, you can go, but we are coming with you,” he said with a nod.

“Keep William home then,” Buck said getting up.

“Oh, I am,” Sonya said. “You’re worried they will try it again, aren’t you?”

Buck shook his head and turned to Gene. “What am I worried about Gene?”

“Joshua is going to come down on them hard for this and they will want to retaliate,” Gene said.

Nodding, Buck looked around, “Keep your people more spread out.”

“Mom, what do you think Dad is going to do?” William asked.

Gene stepped over, “Live up to his namesake, he’ll bring biblical fury.” Nobody could have even guessed how right Gene actually was.

Chapter Seventeen

That afternoon Joshua woke up just three miles away from where Buck was ready to start a war on the slope of Watson Mountain. When he listened to the FM station, Joshua grabbed his gear, running to get on King having only heard, “The federal government kidnapped William Anderson from school using helicopters and SWAT teams.”

It wasn’t till he’d jumped on King bareback and grabbed a handful of King’s mane did he hear, “Sheriff Harper led a group of deputies and private citizens to the Elk Lodge and reclaimed William Anderson from federal custody. Eyewitness reports state that Sheriff Harper was ready to go to war to get the thirteen-year-old William Anderson back.”

Almost panting, Joshua slid off of King and landed on the ground hard, feeling lightheaded. The government’s plan would’ve succeeded because he would’ve charged in. He wouldn’t have surrendered and the government would’ve won.

As the relief left his body, Joshua got back up, feeling his mind turn cold. “I’ll show you a war,” he said and packed up his camp. He rode hard ten miles north and picked up the explosives and then he turned back around. In what should’ve taken him six hours, Joshua was back on Watson Mountain in three hours and moved south toward the resorts.

The sun had been down for two hours when he tied up King and the mule a mile away from Elk Lodge. Not knowing how much explosives he would need, Joshua took fifty pounds. Since he had on the vest with all his magazines, he left his pack.

Walking down the ridge, he could see out over Priest Lake and took his time. Reaching Reeder Bay Rd, Joshua held up in the trees. Down the road past Ledgewood Drive he saw a roadblock with two SUVs. He looked at the SUVs and saw that they were forestry service law enforcement division. Looking the other way down the road, he didn’t see anything.

Darting across the road, he dropped down when he’d reached the trees. Not hearing that he’d alerted anything, Joshua eased up in a crouch and moved on. He could see the houses and cabins around him, many with lights on.

Slowing to a snail’s pace, Joshua moved quietly forward, paralleling Elkins Road. Reaching the boat launch parking area, he moved up behind a tree and laid on his stomach. A huge tent was just ahead with lights around it. Past the tent he saw two generators, and he could just make out another tent in the main parking lot of the lodge.

Having spotted one target, Joshua crawled back further into the narrow stand of trees. He looked around as he pulled the bag with explosives to his chest. With the big industrial area work lights only a hundred yards away, he had more than enough light to work by. Not knowing what was in his target area, Joshua used half of the fifty pounds. Wiring the caps to the clock he’d used, Joshua set the alarm.

Moving to the north past a fire pit, Joshua used the trees and shadows to go around the lit up parking area. He saw a few people walking around, but they seemed unafraid and relaxed. Most were carrying papers from this tent to the tent in the main parking lot.

Dropping the bag with the rest of the explosives, Joshua kept watch till he didn’t see anyone and trotted over to his target. Crawling underneath it, Joshua shoved the bundle over the axle of his target. He froze when he heard two people talking as they walked past. Not ten yards away from him.

When they’d passed, he moved from behind the wheels and looked toward the next tent and saw his next target. The problem was that this target was only twenty yards from the other tent, and this tent made the other thousand-square-foot tents look small. From where he was, he could see through an open door to the inside the tent. Tables ran in huge rows with computers sitting on them and on the road heading to the dock, he saw rows of satellite dishes aiming up at the sky.