Free Eyes Of Danger by M. Garnet

ants in the barren yard if you stood still very long. On top of it all was the heat that melted everything. As the evening moved in, the heat didn’t let up, but the humidity increased. Finally, the so-called Colonel suggested they move inside where, God Bless, he had an air-conditioned office.
    Franklin watched through an unwashed window as his right hand man talked on his satellite phone pacing with a frown. That was a bad call. This was a bad meeting. The so-called Colonel was willing to cooperate on helping them locate a group that the US Marshals had hired them to find, but the cost was prohibitive.
    Finally, he decided to call it quits with a bluff to find out what the call had been about, so he agreed to the Colonel’s price, made their excuses, shook hands, and got his men loaded up.
    His man asked him if everything was agreeable. “Just keep smiling. Act like everything is wonderful. Get me out of this fucking hellhole. I agreed to his price to make sure that the whole thing was quits tonight, but that asshole will wait for another ice age before he gets any of our money. In fact, I want to put a hit on him. Let’s blow his ass off this planet and we will deal with his next in line .”
    They finally reached the paved road. “You going to give me the bad news from that phone call?”
    The aide looked out the side window for a moment and then just jumped into it. “Myers and the woman, Michelle Tompson, are off the radar.”
    Franklin sat in quiet shock. As he thought, things got worse. Right now, he wanted to go back to take one of the bazookas in the back. He wanted to blow the shit out of the cabin in the woods. He wanted to inflict serious damage to anything and anyone. He saw nothing but red. He had been told that his blood pressure was pushing behind his eyes. He literally did see red because the veins were swelling. He also knew it was dangerous to his health—but, fuck, he really needed to kill someone.
    “Take me directly to the airport. I will take the Jetstream back, myself. Have the team gather up my stuff. Everyone can bring it with them either in the Hummers or rentals.”
    There was silence except for the driver, who called the airport to warn them that the Commander would be there for takeoff in about an hour and half. At the airport, he stood in the damp heat of night at the drop down steps to give his orders.
    “Wipe out that southern bastard in a horrid manner that sends a message. Take out as many of his men as you can at the same time in one hit. Then, bring in everyone who is on this continent to find Myers and that woman. I don’t want to hear that there was any hesitation or worry about cost.” He turned, entered the plane, and they heard him give the order for his favorite whiskey.
    The media around the world carried the headlines. One of the largest contributors to his elections had almost killed the Governor of Georgia. Due to some miscalculation and the fact that the Governor was delayed, a huge bomb was set off too early. It took out, not its intended target, but the so-called Colonel who headed up the plan along with several of his cohorts who were in the vehicle, planted on the route the Governor would take on entering the city. “The entire plan was later unfolded to State Police from several followers of the Colonel who were hunted down and arrested after a gun battle at a sequestered camp in the deep words of Georgia. Unfortunately, the camp was entirely destroyed by hidden explosives being stored at the sight. Although no police or Marshals were killed, several were injured and many of the camp’s residents died in the damage.”
     
    * * * *
     
    Michelle
     
    I gathered up my things and got on the road. It didn’t take me long to get a ride going north with a trucker. The talk was pleasant, but best of all, he didn’t hit on me. I got almost half a day’s ride before we stopped at a truck stop. I decided it was time to cut out.
    My next ride was with a salesman who