The Road to Round Mountain: The Betrayal by (20 page)

Before we got out the Sheriff added, “We’re going to  hole up here for a while, if miss Fussy Britches decides to  start anything she’ll meet up with a bit of resistance. If you  two were wondering, the food here is much better”, he finished with a grin.

The food was the last of my worries. It now seems that  everyone associated with me is in danger. The two FBI agents  were murdered while trying to help me stay safe from Agent  Boling. The three of us were almost killed by a speeding  truck, whom I’m sure was hired by Agent Boling. That leaves  Jennifer and I’m sure that since we were all being watched,  that Boling is well aware of her. If Agent Boling tries to harm  Jennifer in any way, I will take my gloves off and start the  barbeque. I believe they would call that justifiable homicide.

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The County jailhouse was not much to look at, just your basic cinderblock building painted an awful light brown.  The Sheriff had mentioned that the building was a good fifty years old and it looked every bit of it. The white paint on the windows was peeling and you could see old caulking just hanging ready to fall to the ground. The inside did not improve much, an old swinging gate to come to the main counter was weathered and squeaky. The floor was hardwood but has not shined for years. An assortment of old wooden chairs and metal desks lined the back side of what you would call the office area behind the counter.

The Sheriff took Gordon and I back behind the counter

through an open doorway that led to the collection of desks.  Back behind the desks was an office with the Sheriffs name

painted on it; this is where he led us. The Sheriff closed the  door behind us as I asked, “I told Jennifer I would call her  later, but I would like to know if I could talk to her a little  sooner, you know to give her a heads up since what we just  went through. I don’t want anything to happen to her just  because she knows me”. The Sheriff nodded and replied,  “Use the landline on the desk, it’s the only secure line left in  town by now, come on Gordon let’s get something to drink,  bring you back something Billy”. “Dr. Pepper, or anything at  this point, thanks”.

I pulled Jennifer’s number out of my jacket pocket and  started dialing. She picked up on the second ring, “hello”.  “Hi, it’s me Billy. “Thank god, I thought something had  happened to you, when I saw the Sheriff department come  up on my caller ID”. “No, it’s okay we’re fine, but I wanted  tell you that someone tried to run us over on the way back

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from the Point. Did you notice any big city trucks going past  you when you left”? There was silence for a moment when,  “Come to think of there was. I don’t usually pay attention to  those since they’re normally going to a job site”. “It was going to a job site, only we were the job”, I replied.

I spent the better part of fifteen minutes explaining what  had happened. I even told her about my other little secret,  about moving things with my mind when she reminded  me that’s how we met since she popped her head inside my  room because I was flicking the light switch off and on with  my mind, and that I wasn’t really mobile enough to run back  into bed after doing it with my hand. I hope someday to be  as smart as she is. It’s funny, I wasn’t trying to keep anything  from her, but she had already figured it out.

We continued on about the truck, and what Agent Boling  is trying to accomplish with me. I warned her to keep a close  eye out for anything. She had mentioned that she already  had told her uncle(Poopy Pants) Detective Hargrove about  what’s been going on, and he will pick up the flash drive and  have some of his technical people look it over. I didn’t ask if  he remembered me, the answer was already apparent.

“You need to be careful Billy, I don’t want anything to  happen to you”. She sure knows how to make me feel good.  “I will, but I still have Friday night to contend with and it’s  the only way I know to keep Gordon safe. I also have a feeling that Agent Boling will try something that night anyway”. “What makes you say that”? “She’s been watching our  every move from day one. I’d be willing to bet she planted a  bug or two at where I’ve been staying”. “You sure do have a  nose for this type of work Billy, maybe my Uncle can put in

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a good word for you if you decide to try your hand in law enforcement”. “Maybe someday”, I replied, “Right now though,  I just can’t let anything happen to you; I won’t let anything  happen to you, I promise”.

The line was silent for a moment; I could hear sniffling.  “Jennifer are you still there”? She finally responded, “Yes  Billy, sorry but I’ve never had anyone as concerned for me  as you are”, her voice still a little shaky. “I am and I hope you  feel for me the way that I feel for you”, now my voice was  getting shaky. “Well I do and if anything new comes up you  can call me at the Hospital, talk to you soon”. I think that  she already knew that I would because on that other side  of the paper she wrote her home number on she had the  Hospitals number on it. Okay, now I feel better and I need  to pick Gordon’s memory bank about what else he may have  overheard of the Four Horsemen’s plans.

I opened the door to the Sheriff’s office and saw the  Sheriff and Gordon sitting on a wooden bench right outside  his office. Gordon had inhaled his Mt. Dew as he was trying  to shake a final few drops from the can. The Sheriff handed  me a can of Dr. Pepper; sweet. “Thanks Sheriff”. “It’s the  least I could do for someone who saved my skin”, as he motioned for us to come back into his office. I whispered to  Gordon, “I think it’s time to tell him”. Before Gordon could  reply the Sheriff said, “Tell me what”. Damn, I thought  Gordon had good hearing.

“It’s about Friday night”. Gordon shrugged his approval,  “What about Friday night”, The Sheriff asked. I pointed to  Gordon and he reluctantly started filling the Sheriff in on  what he overheard and when everything was going to happen,

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and who helped to make this happen, Frankie’s Uncle.

“Diamonds, from Bay Ridge you say, and they’re supposed to hit a bunch of other places to make it seem like  random robberies”, the Sheriff asked? Gordon nodded and  added, “They beat the crap out of me and Joey because we  overheard their plans. Joey died and they have the same intentions for me.” Gordon started rubbing his hands through  his curly red hair while the Sheriff looked at me. “So you’ve  been running interference for Gordon to help keep him safe  by using your”, as he pointed at my head referring to my new  found telekinetic abilities.

“I’ve been lucky so far, I guess, but you need to make sure  that we are back by Friday afternoon so we can go to the  Movies”. The Sheriff gave me a look of confusion, “I don’t  follow”. “You see, you guys are going to be busy with Agent  Boling and that will free me up to intervene with robberies; plus I think we both know that Agent Boling knows  what we know, except for the flash drives that is. So maybe  tomorrow you go over to the Coast Guard base and tell Mr.  Watkins about what’s going down and make sure to include  the part where Gordon and I are going to the movies, just  to be on the safe side. You see that way she’ll know where  I’ll be at and I’m sure that she will make a move sometime

that night; this is where Gordon comes in. Gordon nodded  reluctantly and added, “This better work”.

I filled the Sheriff in on our plans and he was truly impressed. He did have a few questions and I was able to answer  most, but he added, “It would make this a little more feasible  if we had some answers from the flash drive”. That reminded

me of something the Sheriff should know. After I told him

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about the second flash drive, he wasn’t disappointed like I  would have thought, but said, “That makes sense actually,  that way if something happened to one of them, the other  would still have the backup drive. Are you sure Detective  Hargrove has the other one”?

“Jennifer said she gave it to him and he’s going to have  some of his technical people look it over”. “Sounds good”,  the Sheriff added, “You sound pretty sure that she bugged  the Coast guard base”. I nodded while chugging the last of  my Dr. Pepper, “It’s the only explanation for how she knows  where we’ve been. I know that when Mr. Watkins walked

me out of his office, and introduced me to the others, Agent  Boling was still in the office, and I’m guessing that she put  one in our sleeping quarters as well”. The Sheriff ran his  hand through his hair and surprised to find that his hair still  had bits of soot scattered about.

“I suppose I could do that shortly, then run a quick  check for any unwanted electrical devices that shouldn’t be  there. I believe that I’ll run home real quick and shower  off some of this smoky smell and then I’ll stop by to see  Mr. Watkins about another set of clothes for you two. We  have showers and stuff in the back. You’ll be fine here, you  got two Deputies out front and two on the roads trying to  locate her vehicle”.

Gordon and I handed over our keys to our lockers for the  Sheriff when I asked, “if you remember, could you bring my other tennis shoe, I think I’m ready to lose this”, as I pointed at my walking boot. Now all I have to do is pick Gordon’s memory bank for any useful information for Friday night.

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30

gordon And I
 
made ourselves at home in the Sher-

iff’s office when Gordon noticed something sticking out of  the side of the Sheriffs computer monitor, “Say isn’t that the  flash drive you gave the Sheriff. What do you say we have a  peek at what’s on it”? I shook my head, “No way, I wouldn’t  know where to begin”. “Not a problem, I’m the local computer geek”, as he sat down at the Sheriff’s desk and began  tapping on the keyboard, “Shit password protected”. I was  relieved, I didn’t want the Sheriff to walk in and see us prying  in on his computer.

“Well how about we run over what Frankie and the Boys  said, in particular the car. I’m sure somewhere you overheard either Frankie or someone else comment on the car,  you know what type, color, where he’s supposed to pick it up  at”? Gordon looked at the blank screen on the monitor. He

seemed to be trying to maybe re-in act the events of what he  overheard as he was moving his fingers back and forth as if  retracing footsteps. I just sat back in one of the padded arm  chairs in the office while Gordon was hard at work.

Gordon continued moving his fingers around much as  Picasso might have done while creating a new masterpiece.  Maybe if I got him canvas, brushes and some paint, he could show me what they said. Then out of nowhere Gordon stood up quickly and said, “I sure hope it runs like a goat”. To say I was disappointed was an understatement, I’m sure Frankie’s

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Uncle wasn’t sending him a goat; hell there’s no trunk on one of those things. “I give up what’s that supposed to mean”?  Gordon continued with his fingers, it looked as though he was about to explode, “I heard B.B. say, I sure hope it runs like a goat, then Sully chimed in with, 1960’s he couldn’t get us a newer one than that”. Gordon sank into the Sheriffs

high back chair, he looked exhausted.

“Well that’s a start, now all we have to do is figure out  what the hell a goat is”. Gordon snapped back to life with,  “Let’s ask one of the deputies if we can look something up  on the internet; maybe we can find out what that is”. That  was a pretty good idea, I hope the Deputies will let us on one  of their computers. “Cool, it won’t hurt to ask”, I added.

I opened the door and Gordon went out first; I quickly  followed. One of the Deputies had his back to us sitting on  a large stool behind the counter that you see when you first  come in. The other one was pecking away at his computer.  He was noticeably smaller than his partner, and quite a bit  younger too. We couldn’t see the other Deputies face, but  could see a lot of gray hair poking out from his hat.

“What do you boy’s need”, the younger deputy asked?

“We were wondering if we can look up something on the  internet, it won’t take but a minute”, I was guessing but didn’t  want to sound too needy. “What is it you need to know”, the  younger one asked? Gordon and just looked at each other, we  weren’t prepared for this line of questioning, when Gordon  said, “We wanted to look up a 1960’s goat of some sort”.  That must have sounded as stupid to them as it did to me.  Without turning the older Deputy said, “1968 GTO, 400  cubic inches with 360 horsepower, man oh man could that

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thing fly, and its nickname was The Goat”.

According to the smile on Gordon’s face, I think we hit  pay dirt. “Was that the only year they made those”, I asked.  “Oh, hell no, come on over here you two I’ll show you”, the  older Deputy replied. We hustled around the other desks and  made our way up to his monitor. By the time we got there he  already had Numerous GTO’s on his screen. I stood back a  few steps as the monitor started to flicker. He was explaining  some of the features to Gordon as I was studying the various body styles. For the 1960’s models I didn’t think I would  have any problem spotting one of those. The front ends really didn’t change much at all until 1968, but it still had the  same type of grill. Great now we knew what, now all we had  to figure out was where.

Gordon had asked me if I was thirsty, and of course I  was so I asked the helpful Deputy behind the counter, “Say,  where is that vending machine that the Sheriff got our  drinks from”? Without turning the Deputy replied, “Go  back towards his office go left down the hall and turn right.  We don’t have vending machines, just a big fridge filled with  a bit of everything”. Gordon and I headed down the hall  and turned right as instructed, and noticed a small kitchen  area complete with sink, stove some cabinets and a fridge.  I opened the fridge and heard Gordon let out what sounded like a squeal of delight. Turning my attention back on  the contents of the fridge, I understood the meaning of his  squeal. There must have been at least three cases of assorted  soft drinks, good god, I think we hit the mother load. I wasn’t  sure, but I thought that I could hear angels singing softly  in the background. I’m sure I was mistaken but this loaded