His pistol was drawn before he even realized he was doing it. The others spilled from the cabin and took up defensive positions, rifles at the ready. The light was fading from the sky. Better cover for us, who knows the terrain here. He welcomed the sight of Dranko sprinting across the open space to take up a position opposite the cabin’s entrance, near the Airstream trailer. Cooper ran to his left and took cover behind a water barrel about fifteen yards to the left of the cabin’s doorway. His muscles tensed and he forced himself to take a deep breath to try and relax.
A beat up Corolla came churning around the last bend in Dranko’s driveway. The driver brought it to an abrupt stop in front of the cabin, gravel spitting from the front tires.
Cooper drew a bead on the driver side door. The door swung open and a woman emerged. It took Cooper a second to recognize her. Bethany. He exhaled in surprise, “What the…”
“Cooper,” she yelled, her call so loud it echoed off of the cabin’s walls.
He stood up, holstered the pistol, and walked forward.
“Yeah?”
She pivoted from looking at the cabin’s door and immediately rushed over to him. The others slowly stood up from their hidden positions. She stopped for a moment, surprised.
“What do you want?” Cooper asked, coming to stand a few feet from her.
“I know where they have Jake,” she panted excitedly.
Cooper did a double-take, “What?”
“I know where they have taken him!”
The others drifted in to stand around them. Curious looks adorned their faces.
Cooper’s mind whirred.
“Where?”
“It’s an abandoned hunting cabin up in the hills. Just above 224, a few miles outside of town. In the Mount Hood National Forest.” Her words came in a rush.
Dranko stepped in, “Why are you telling us?”
She turned to him, confused, “What?”
Cooper stepped in and grabbed her by the collar, “You’re with Junior, ain’t you?”
Her head snapped back to face him, “Well… yeah… but…” she stammered.
“But, what?” Cooper growled.
She grabbed and wrenched his hands away from her. He didn’t resist her efforts.
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
He just stared at her in disbelief.
Her eyes blazed, “That’s between Miles and me. Yeah, I love the nasty son-of-a-bitch! It’s true. But, I know what I’d do if someone took one of my kids. It ain’t right!” Her tone struck Cooper like someone explaining an obvious thing to a stupid man.
Cooper stared at her for a long moment. Her eyes burned back at him, unwavering. Finally, he nodded.
“Alright, can you show us on a map?”
She nodded, “Sure. I don’t have much time. I don’t want Junior to know I went missing.”
Cooper caught Dranko’s skeptical look out of the corner of his eye.
Fifteen minutes later, they had finished debriefing her. She had indicated where the cabin was on one of Dranko’s maps of the area. She told them that the place was heavily guarded. Eight to twelve of Hodges’ best men had been sent up to guard the place; she couldn’t be sure of the exact number. She knew that there was at least one machinegun in the mix, but likely other automatic weapons. She had clambered back into the Corolla when she was done, wished him luck, and quickly drove away.
Dranko and Cooper watched her tail lights round the first corner and disappear.
“You believe her,” Dranko grunted.
“I do.”
“Could be a trap,” he retorted, eyebrow raised.
“I don’t think so. I made my living reading people. I saw truth in her eyes,” Cooper said evenly. “Besides, if Hodges wanted a shootout, he could have just stormed us here.”
Dranko nodded in agreement. “Alright. Enough said. So, what’s the plan?”
“Let’s convene the war council,” Cooper raised his voice so the others could hear him and then turned back toward the cabin.
Timothy’s body had been moved out at some point, but the hasty cleanup effort had left smeared bloodstains across the floor near the entryway. Cooper dipped his head in respect as he carefully stepped over them. I owe you, Timothy.
Cooper moved to the head of the table as the rest of the group drifted in and stood around the table.
He cleared his throat, “Here is what I’m thinking. I want to go and get my boy.”
His short, obvious statement elicited awkward laughter from around the table.
“We need more firepower,” Dranko said matter of factly.
“Yeah, I know. I figure we could probably get Miles and a few others.”
“That’s not enough,” Dranko responded curtly.
Cooper looked at him sharply, his voice rising, “You got any solutions or just problems?”
Dranko didn’t back down, “I won’t apologize for stating the facts.”
“Go piss out your testosterone in the bucket outside, will you two?” Angela chastised.
“Where can we get more men?” Cooper asked, thinking.
“Or women,” Angela added.
“Michael Huynh.” Calvin said, slowly, resignation clouding his words.
“Who?” Buck Floy asked.
“He leads the Vietnamese Protection Society in Portland. He hires out armed men, for the right price, of course,” Cooper answered.
“He is a gangster,” Calvin said with disdain. “Let us call it what it is. I do not like it one bit, but he is the only resource right now.”
“Good idea. But, we don’t have time to get back and forth to Portland. We need to make this happen tomorrow morning,” Cooper responded.
“I know how to reach them over the Ham radio,” Dranko said.
“What? How?” Cooper asked.
“I pay attention. I know who talks on what frequencies,” Dranko responded, his voice full of self-satisfaction.
Cooper took a step backward, “Alright. What can we pay him with?”
“That’s easy. The weapons we take from Hodges’ men. I can sweeten the pot with some gold,” Dranko continued.
Cooper looked at his friend with warm, thankful eyes. After a moment, he turned to the rest.
“This will be beyond dangerous. I can’t ask you to come, but I’d welcome…”
Calvin looked at him askance, “Really? What are we surviving for if it is not to go and save a boy from this madness?”
As Cooper surveyed the table, the others nodded agreement with what Calvin had said. Cooper was nearly overwhelmed by their support. He choked out a “Thank you.”
“So, what are you going to say to Hodges? You going to tell him we’re coming for his sorry ass?” Buck Floy asked, eyes alight.
Cooper shook his head, a wry smile fleeting across his face.
“Just the opposite. I’ll follow the advice from Sun-Tzu’s Art of War.”
“What’s that,” Calvin asked.
“I forget the exact quote, but it’s something like, talk sweetly before waging war. Bark loudly when preparing to retreat. So, I’ll act distraught and beg for my son’s life. I’ll agree to anything he says. Try to lull him a bit.”
Cooper fingered the handheld speaker for the ham radio set. Earlier, Dranko had radioed Hodges’ men to arrange a call over the radio between Hodges and Cooper at eight o’clock. The black plastic was cold in his hands. He turned it in his hand, changing the grip, getting its feel. It was a good distraction as he gathered his final thoughts.
Angela and Calvin had been dispatched to Miles’. They were going to find out how many more would join them in the attack on the compound where Jake was being held. He knew the pool was small. They could only talk to a few highly trusted people. If Hodges got wind of their plan, it would he hopeless before they even started.