Chapter VIII

ack Guinn was standing with his back against the wall.  In front of him was this gorgeous FBI agent, Sharon Travis.  And she was getting rough.  She told him she was going to bring him in, and that he was under arrest.  "Now," she continued.  "Do you come peacefully, or do I take you down physically and cuff you on the ground?"

"I don't believe you can take me," Tack said baiting her.  "You can suit yourself, but whether or not I take you or you get the best of me, you are coming with me!"

"How can you be so sure of that? he sneered"

Sharon raised her hand gave a little signal.  The procession was identical to the team Rice lead in when William was arrested.  "Last call she said."

"I still believe I can take you he said."

The growl that emitted from her throat was much more powerful than any ever heard from a wildcat in the woods.  "So be it,"she simply said.

Years of pent up rage bubbled to the surface.  All they had gone through thundered through her brain.  All the hurts, the insults, the tears, the being split apart, the nights she had sat with William as he trembled and sweated his way through another excursion with the monster of the Crawley Caper surged and catapulted her at him so quickly he had no time to set up his defense.

She hit him with her full weight knocking him to the ground.  She pinned him against the wall and tore into him like a maddened mama bear.  He suddenly screamed, and strove to get away from her fists which were literally taking the skin off his face.  Blood was being splattered on the wall, and the big tough men carrying AR15's simply stood in awe.

Never had they seen anyone beaten so ferociously and so fast.  She turned him over and cuffed him.  She frisked him and pulled out two thirty-eight snub-nosed revolvers, a shank and an Arkansas toothpick.  She also ripped his badge from his shirt.

"You are under arrest for the murder of Walter Bension, Lane Wardlow, Judge Baker, William Travis, and Len and Melinda Mathers."

"They are not dead . . ."  Tack spat, then shut up.

"You can help yourself a long way by giving us their locations Tack."  She paused a second then said, "If I have my way about it, I'll be the one in the interrogation room asking the questions.  And this time, there will be no one to pull me off you."

"I'll cooperate.  But I'm clamming up until I get my lawyer here."

"That's good because I can't stand to hear another word from you."  She then turned to the leader of the SWAT team and asked, "did your other team pick up Rice?"

"Yes ma'am."  The man was quick and picked up on Sharon's bluff.  Then, on a whim added, "And there was a man with him by the name of Boslo.  Seems as if Boslo was running some arms somewhere.  A whole truckload of them."

Tack looked at him in complete surprise.  There was no doubt, these men were good!

Sharon had no idea of who Boslo was, but the name did sound vaguely familiar.  She would learn about him later.  At this moment she had her prize and she meant to get some info out of him.  But she did not intend for him to live just so he would be freed by some liberal lawyer.  Between her and Victor, they would get the truth.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Victor was on the phone in the Chiefs room when Sharon came through the door.  She was a mess, but a happy mess.  She set her satchel down, and headed for the women's restroom.  When she came back she was much more presentable.  She opened the satchel and took out a sweep, and began going over the entire room looking for bugs.

Finally she found one hidden neatly in the handle of the letter opener on the desk.  It was in the shape of a Buccaneer sword, and had been one of Walter's prized possessions.  He had picked it up in a gift shop in Las Vegas.

Victor buzzed the dispatcher in the next room and asked for Lieutenant Perry.

"Yes sir, what can I do for you?" he asked as he entered the office.

"Take this sweep and go over the entire building," Victor said.

"Sir, we just swept the building yesterday morning," he responded.

"Lieutenant, did you sweep it with this sweep?"

"No sir.  Okay, now that we have that out of the way, do you think you can do as I told you?"

"Yes sir!"

Lieutenant Perry snatched the sweep as Victor added "and bring everything you find to me on the double!"

"Yes sir!"

Sharon held up her hand said "Victor, I'm going home to freshen up.  I haven't been home in over a week!

Victor, already back on the phone, held up a hand in acknowledgement.  After she left, he buzzed the dispatcher.  He said to the person on the phone, "excuse me for just one second."  Then holding his hand over the phone, he told the dispatcher, "Nancy, send in Dale Pearson."

"Right away Mr. Walters."

Within ten seconds Dale Pearson stepped in and stood waiting in front of the desk where Victor sat.  Victor excused himself from the person on the phone again, and stated to Dale "take a trusted man with you, and watch over Sharon. Set up a round the clock surveillance.  If someone approaches her that doesn't look friendly or that you don't know, take 'em down.  If they resist, shoot 'em!"

"Yes sir!" responded Dale.  He thought to himself "I think we're going to be able to stabilize Stillwell Creek after all!  The hanging judge is here!"

All was quiet around the Travis home until around four-thirty.  A light was switched on, and then off.  Then a shot.  Someone came busting through the window of the front porch backwards falling on their back, and lay still, with one leg draped over the edge of the porch.  Dale and his partner was running full out with weapons drawn and jumped up on the porch.  Dale took a glance at the man laying on the ground, and knew he was already dead.

Calling through window he identified himself.  "Sharon, this is officer Dale Pearson.  Are you OK?"

There was no answer and Dale stepped through the window.  On the floor lay Sharon and she was bleeding from a stomach wound.  Dale yelled at his partner to get an ambulance here as soon as possible.

Dale did his best to staunch the flow of blood, but it was deep.  Sharon was already out and he didn't know if she was going to make it.  There was still an element operating within the Stillwell Creek Township that was attempting to tear law and order down.

And Dale Pearson knew he was in trouble.  Whether Sharon lived or died, he had let her be harmed and that, after strict orders from Victor Bension to protect her at all costs.  He'd be lucky to not be in jail by daybreak and even luckier to have a job.

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