The Crimson Fall (The Sons of Liberty Book 1) (41 page)

Rhys nodded to Sigmund with a smile. “An hour ago, I contacted Fort Bragg. I spoke with a handful of generals, congressmen, and senators—including Adam Reinhart—and told them what
you
have assured me you are willing to do.”

“And what would you have your loyal dog do?” Lukas asked. He could see everyone but Maria and Jacob had smiled at his response.

“You will join me later today on a video conference with Fort Bragg, and you will confess to everything. You will then be taken into federal custody where you will remain guarded for a week. During that time, David Malcovich, Adam, and I will work to gather everyone we can for next week’s emergency State of the Union address where you
will
resign before the entire nation. With the vice president dead, I will become president of the United States. Once I have been sworn in, Adam Reinhart will take the stage where he will begin to share everything that has transpired. That is precisely when
your
rogue assassin will strike, murdering the congressman. The rumors will fly—bouncing the blame back and forth between China, Russia, the new Republic of Texas, and a handful of others that will be quick to deny any involvement. As the fires begin to engulf every corner of the globe, we will do the one thing we can to preserve the human race. We will save the world by dissolving all borders and uniting everyone behind one banner. Anyone who chooses to stand against us will fall before our onslaught as we unleash the drone armies that are approaching over thirty American ports under the cover of our digital umbrella.”

“I will do whatever it is you ask,” Lukas replied. “Just let me die afterward.”

“You will now and always reap what you sow,” Sigmund said. “Never did I wish for things to unfold the way they did. Contrary to whatever you may believe, I do not wish you eternal torment. Should you choose to follow through with what we have commanded, then I assure you, we will administer the antidote and eradicate the robotic microbes festering inside you. It will destroy everything—not just the bad but the good as well—and you will continue to age like everyone else. You will be allowed to live out your life in peace. After all, I am a just god, and I do not wish ill on those who serve me well.” Sigmund nodded to the others and rose. “Come. Let us leave our dog and his bitch to themselves. I am sure they have much to talk about.”

The men rose and began to leave. Sūn opened the door and eight drones piled in, their red bug eyes fixated on Lukas. Sigmund turned to speak one more time, but Jacob spoke instead.

“Wait. I cannot leave that bastard alone with my daughter.”

“We have discussed this, Jacob,” Sigmund said. “We need everyone at Fort Bragg to trust that Lukas will hold up his end of the bargain. They know Maria is one of us, and they need to see her cooperation as well. In their eyes, she will be punished alongside Lukas, but any penance she might face will be only momentary. You will have your daughter back once Rhys is president. Until then, she will remain under our control.”

“And who will protect her from Lukas?” Jacob asked. “His drones? Would they care if he beat her to death? No. I will watch after her, and when Lukas, our devoted dog barks his final yelp, then she can and will be free of him. In the past, she has labeled herself as little more than a trinket to be passed around, so I will use her as such. Let me protect my daughter now, and I will make her yours, Rhys. You will finally have what you have always wanted.”

Maria’s shoulders shook as she lowered her eyes and wept. Rhys only smiled.

“Fair enough,” Sigmund said with a nod. “You will remain behind. But before I go, Lukas, I want you to know one thing.

“What is that, my lord?”

“I want you to know that whether I release you from your service or cast you into the fiery abyss, it is my sincerest hope that you may continue to live forever.”

The door shut behind them and Lukas collapsed to the couch, hunching over as he began to weep. Maria crossed the room and began to sit down next to him.

“Lukas, I am so—”

He rose quickly, shoving her to the couch as he screamed into her face.

“Why?” he cried. She only stared back at him frightened as he clenched his fist tightly, raising it as though he meant to strike her. Tears filled his eyes and he shook with rage. He hated that the only woman he had ever truly loved had merely proven what he once believed.

No matter how nice they may act in the beginning, they will crush your soul in the end.

“Do you have nothing to say? Did you ever love me?” Her terrified face and lack of response only infuriated him more. “Tell me!”

“Would you shut up for a few minutes and get off of her?” Jacob said. “Do not make me use this, Lukas.”

Lukas looked over at Jacob and lowered his head in defeat. He sat back on the couch and buried his head in his hands as he continued to cry. Maria rose and stared uneasily at her husband, breathing heavily as she smoothed her unraveled hair.

“Now I swear to you both,” Jacob began, “if you move or speak in the next fifteen minutes, I will end you right here, right now. Do not test me!”

Jacob looked down at the floor and clicked something inside his pocket. He stood there, doing nothing as the three of them remained still and quiet. After twenty seconds or so had passed, Lukas heard a second click. Jacob shook his head and looked up at the drones with a sigh.

“Maybe now we will have some privacy,” Jacob said. “Now Lukas, remain quiet and know that my daughter still loves you very much.”

“Then why?” he demanded. “Why would—”

“Did you not listen to what Sigmund said? She is under
our
control as well.”

Lukas paused, staring back at Jacob quietly as he realized what had happened before his arrival. After a few seconds had passed, he looked over at his crying wife and spoke with a shaky voice. “They did this to you as well?”

“I didn’t want to obey,” Maria said as she wept. “All I could think about was the cardinal in Geneva. I was so afraid. I was afraid they’d push the button if I didn’t bring you. Oh Lukas, I’m so sorry. I never wanted this. Was it . . . did it. . . .”

Lukas could tell that his wife simply wanted to know what might await her. He shuddered just thinking back on his suspended animation of agony. The mere memory made him want to shriek again. It was almost as though the vicious fire was back, heating up for round two as it joyfully anticipated the pain.

“It was hell,” he replied before turning to Jacob. “Forgive me, my master, but there is no other way to describe it. Now please, what would you have your loyal dog say?”

“I would first have you refrain from calling me your master, my son.” Jacob hesitated—appearing to struggle with his inner thoughts—before moving to sit down on the couch across from them.

“You are safe for the time being,” Jacob said reassuringly. “I have bought us some time.”

“What did you do?” Maria asked.

“I have them watching a computer-assisted loop. It will not fool Sigmund for long. We have perhaps fifteen minutes or so before we must resume the ruse. Perhaps twenty if we’re lucky, but we will make do with the time we have.”

“Why would you want to fool Sigmund?” Maria asked. “Is this some sort of trick?”

“No,” Jacob replied with the shake of his head. “No deception, no tricks. This is not who we are. This was never the way it was meant to be. We were supposed to bind the world together as we stood united as one. We were never meant to push one another away. I have long feared things might come to this as Sigmund’s lust for inflicting pain and gaining total authority has grown over the years. We were meant to be all and one in league together, but he only sees himself as a god above all others—murdering anyone he believes to hold a different opinion than his. His actions here tonight, against you, have only proven what I feared the most.”

“Which is what?” asked Lukas cautiously.

“First, answer me this, Lukas. What was it about the Patriarchs that you loved so much?”

“It was the hope,” Lukas replied quickly. “It was a dream to abolish all hatred and differences once and for all.”

“As it was for me,” Jacob said somberly as he looked down at the floor and twiddled his thumbs. “What would you do for that hope, Lukas? What would you risk to see it set free from the men who have corrupted it?”

“Anything,” Lukas replied. “Everything.”

Jacob looked up from the floor and over to the white door where the men had exited earlier. After a few seconds, he took a small black cylinder from his pocket—a device similar to, yet subtly different than the silvery cylinder that Sigmund had used before—and stood up from the couch.

“Then we must hurry,” Jacob said as he approached Lukas. “We do not have much time.”

C
hapter
T
wenty

This Day of Days

Adam Reinhart sat quietly, smiling as he watched his children play merrily on the large brown field at the center of Fort Bragg. They ran about stiffly with a dozen other children—their arms and legs unbending due to the many layers of thick winter clothing. Their joyful screams were intermixed with high-pitched giggling as they cavorted around without a care in the world. Eric and a few other soldiers had joined in earlier and chased after them on the field, laughing with the kids as they squawked happily. Even Elizabeth had entered into the fray, her white hair waving in the wintry breeze. Adam grinned, thinking back to days when the world had been less complicated and more receiving of those who only wanted to live in peace. For now, he pushed that idea out of his head and focused on the moment at hand. He had learned to be thankful for every blessing he had, no matter how small or trivial it seemed.

Sarah sat next to him, wearing a silvery wool sweater to keep her warm. She had wanted him to stay ever since he told her he was going to Washington. At first she had pleaded with him to let someone else take care of the nation for once. However, she also knew that they were so close to saving the country, and she reluctantly agreed with his decision to go. Even so, Adam had wanted to stay. He had wanted to forget about the men who had crippled America, and let Washington deal with Lukas Chambers. As much as he wanted to be selfish for once and sit the danger out, he knew if he could persuade the country to remain united, then everyone—not just the Reinhart family—could begin the long process of rebuilding what had almost been destroyed.

The video conference with Lukas had given Adam a reason to hope once more. Lukas had confessed to everything before being escorted back to a prison cell where he awaited his televised resignation. After his confession, the governor of Texas had announced that once Lukas resigned, he would revoke his announcement to secede. Fort Bragg and many other military installations had also ensured Adam that they would do the same. The plan was to broadcast the speech to the entire nation utilizing the same technology that Fort Bragg had used to announce their secession. Adam, David, and Rhys had worked tirelessly for five days to locate and gather up every politician they could find. They wanted everyone to be there at the State of the Union, as a testament of their unity for those watching. When they had done all that they could to find most of the remaining politicians, Adam had flown back to Fort Bragg so that he could spend time with his family before the speech. He had cherished every good and pure moment he had with his wife, his son, and his two daughters those last two days. Yet, as it is with everything, the time had come to say goodbye.

An Army pilot approached and tapped Adam on the shoulder.

“Mr. Reinhart, it’s time.”

Sarah looked over at Adam, her big eyes immediately fighting back tears.

“Sarah, I—”

“It’s okay,” she said with a sniffle as she rose. “Kids!”

Judah, Grace, and Eva stopped playing and ran over to Adam, wrapping their arms around their dad and tackling him to the ground. He laughed and wrestled with them for a moment longer before the young pilot cleared his throat and spoke again.

“Congressman, we need to leave soon if we’re going to make it on time.”

“Okay,” Adam said with an elated sigh. “I’ll be right there. Alright kids, Daddy’s got to go.” They stopped laughing, and his two girls wrapped their arms around him again.

“Where, Daddy?” Grace inquired.

“Daddy has to go to work one more time.”

“To get the bad guys?” Eva asked innocently.

Adam couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s right, sweetie. To get the bad guys.” He leaned in close and gave them each a kiss on the forehead. “You two girls obey your mother, okay? And look after your brother for me.” Judah stood quietly to the side a few feet away, his arms crossing his chest defiantly as he struggled to avoid Adam’s gaze. “Judah, you watch after the girls until I’m back, okay?”

His son took a deep breath and began to tear up.

“Don’t cry,” Adam said. “I’ll be back in a few days. I promise.”

His son looked up with red, watery eyes that reminded Adam of the little boy who had failed to hit the target a year and a half ago.

“Don’t go,” Judah mumbled.

“Son, it’s okay. I’ll—”

His son threw his arms around his dad and began to sob.

“Please, Dad! I don’t want you to die. Don’t go!”

Adam fought back his own tears as his boy pleaded with him. He had known Judah would be upset, but he had never thought that his son feared he might lose his dad. Instead of bestowing him with more elaborate words of comfort, Adam kneeled down in front of his son and removed what he had tucked behind his belt earlier that morning.

“I want to show you something.”

Judah looked down at his dad as he wiped away the tears.

“I met a man here on base a couple of months ago. When things got bad, he made the decision to leave everything behind and come here to stay with his son. The man had made hunting knives for a living at one point in time, and after seeing some of his work, I was able to barter with him to make this.” Adam held up a hardened rawhide sheath, unfastening a braided cord before drawing an eight-inch dagger. The full-tang blade curved ever so slightly from the base of a bowed Ironwood handle. Judah took the knife and rotated it, inspecting it with curious eyes. One side of the shiny steel had the name ‘Reinhart’ engraved on it; the other, an elegant script of lines flowing across its smooth surface.

“What does that mean?” Judah asked.

“In English, it’s pronounced ‘Aryeh.’ It’s the Hebrew word for lion. I never told you this, but when your mom and I found out that we were pregnant with a baby boy, I had been reading through the Bible at the time and read that Christ was described as the Lion of Judah. Those words stood out to me like they were printed in bold ink, and I knew immediately that was what we were supposed to name you. Listen, I know I haven’t always been the dad I should have been, and in a way my own personal struggle with God has caused me to fail you as a parent. But if I’ve come to know one thing over this past year, it is that we are completely and utterly hopeless without God. I wanted to give you this as a symbol so you may always remember that I am your father, you are my son, and no matter what happens, we are both children of a powerful and loving God. Never let the failures of men be the reason you fail to remember the real Lion of Judah. Keep this with you always and remember that I love you, Judah. You are truly your own man now.”

Adam embraced his son before standing up and approaching Elizabeth.

“Elizabeth, I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done. You’ve helped save this nation.”

“Well now, Mr. Reinhart, I am only the gardener,” she said with a smile. “You are the seed that has blossomed into a new tree of liberty. From that little speech you just gave, I can say with great joy that my greatest prayers for you seem to have been answered.”

He chuckled softly and hugged her. He let go and went over to Eric Corsa. Eric reached his hand out and Adam gripped it firmly.

“Captain, thank you for everything,” Adam said before pulling the man in close, whispering into his ear. “And I need you to swear to me you will watch my family until I get back, no matter what happens.”

Eric nodded. “You know I will.”

Finally, Adam approached his wife.

“This is it, Sarah,” Adam said cheerfully. “It will all be over soon.” She wrapped her arms around him and cried softly. He held her tightly, wanting that moment to last forever. “I swear to you. When Lukas is removed and this nation is back on course, I will never spend another day or night away from you again.”

Sarah stood back and chuckled. “I’ll hold you to that.”

Adam stepped back—fighting the tears that formed in his eyes—and said one last goodbye before turning and heading toward the waiting helicopter. As he walked, he thought back to the words he had spoken to his son. He wanted nothing more than for God to watch over them. With the breeze whirling around him, he closed his eyes—a solitary tear falling across his face—and prayed.

God, please. Protect my boy. Shelter my girls in the palm of your hand. Watch over my wife and help her to never lose sight of you as I have done in the past. I don’t care what happens to me as long as I know they are safe. I know I have failed to find you over the past many years, but I am here now. Work in my heart and cultivate a faith that will never falter again. Let tonight be the final battle in this fight for freedom, and let this be one nation, under God, indivisible once again.

He mounted the steps and entered the helicopter, continuing to pray as he buckled himself in. He prayed as the engines roared to life and the helicopter left the ground—his family and Fort Bragg disappearing far below as he began his flight toward Washington. He prayed and he prayed as the day went on until he found himself sitting wordlessly inside the Capitol Building.

The room was abuzz with senators, congressmen, justices, and military officers—men and women who now eagerly awaited the president’s arrival. They hustled around, running to and from the media that had been allowed to attend the extraordinary event. Adam sat alone in his seat, his mind wandering as he stifled a yawn. He almost laughed as he fought to keep his eyes open, thinking of how odd it was that his thoughts could drift in boredom even right before one of the most significant speeches of all time. However, when the commotion died down, his eyes shot awake as he realized it was about to begin.

Adam stood up with the rest of those in the room and looked over at David—nodding hopefully as they waited. Rhys Howard had ordered the jamming signals that peppered the East Coast and Gulf States to be shut down two days before the speech so that everyone would be able to watch. Minutes earlier, the technicians had spliced into every TV screen, radio, nVision display, and any other device that had power. Adam hoped every person who was watching or listening would begin to hope once more. He prayed one last time for God to be on their side as the doors at the rear opened.

“Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States!”

Instead of the usual applause, cheers, and jeers, a hush fell over the room. Adam turned like everyone else in the chamber and watched as the nation’s most notorious leader ever entered the room, ringed by a squad of ten American soldiers and underneath six hovering drones. The hum of the drones and the soft footsteps of the men walking across the iconic blue carpet were the only audible sounds in the massive room. Adam watched as a man he had come to loathe walked down the aisle. He marched forward—his head held high like a prideful prisoner approaching the axe man and his bloodied block.

When the president was halfway down the walkway, an unknown voice cried out from the crowd.

“You’re going to hang, you son of a bitch!”

The nameless crier was quickly dwarfed by other curses and insults aimed at the president. Angry leaders and red-faced politicians roared at the man. Adam, however, remained silent. While he was happy that he would finally see justice served, a small part of him pitied the man. Lukas Chambers had the entirety of his sad life thrown out in the open for public display. It was a miserable tale of a confused boy who had been failed by those around him as a child. It proved how great the damage could be that was born out of an absent mother, a controlling father, a cruel friend, or even an uncaring nation. Though Adam was thankful that the president’s plans for a new world were about to be shattered, he still felt sorry for Lukas Chambers, the man.

The president climbed the stairs and stood behind the podium, ringed by watchful American troops. Twenty other troops were stationed throughout the large room—accompanied by six times as many that guarded the rest of the Capitol Building. Adam had wanted to protect everyone inside from any potential threats, and Rhys Howard had agreed with him. The president had been given the strictest instructions that should he deviate from the speech that had been prepared—a speech that would remind the nation of the great past that lay behind them before confessing to everything he had done—that he would immediately be removed. The president waited a few moments for the shouts to calm down before starting the speech that Adam hoped would act as the first step toward repairing the United States of America.

“In my attempts to formulate the necessary words that I believe I should convey to you tonight, the first words were the hardest to choose. The presidents who have come before me often began with the phrase, ‘My fellow Americans.’ However, I stand before you tonight humbled with the understanding that what I have done over the past several years has culminated with the hardships you have recently endured. Therefore, I can only begin by saying that I no longer consider myself worthy to be labeled as an American.

“For two eventful years I have been your commander-in-chief. It has been a period of both triumph and failure. My success as a leader stemmed from my many years as an American who was devoted to the perfection of this great nation of ours. Despite my best intentions, these past few months have truly tested the limits of what we can withstand.”

“Burn in hell, Lukas!” The random voice that cried out from the audience was quickly hushed. Lukas paused for a moment, looking up with hurtful eyes before continuing.