Liberty Betrayed

  Chapter 10

  Silas pulled in their driveway when his cell phone began to ring. “Damn it, who would be calling at this time of the night? I’m in no mood for any more crap.”

  He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and pressed the answer button. “Silas Greer. Are you sure? Don’t do anything. Stay inside, and I’ll be right there.”

  Jen could tell by the look on his face that he was not pleased. “Is everything okay? Who was that?”

  “It was Paul Jackson. He said he was in his office, counting the receipts for the day when someone tried to break in the back door of the grocery store.”

  “Oh no, who would do something like that?” Jen could not remember the last time they had someone try to break into one of the businesses in town. The low crime rate was one of the things she loved most about living in Sandley.

  “I don’t know, but I sure hope it’s not who I think is. I’ll see you in a bit; I need to go.” Silas leaned over and kissed Jen on the cheek, and then waited for her to get out of the truck.

  “Be careful.” Jen could not explain it, but she had the strangest feeling come over her.

  “I will. Now, get inside the house and be sure to lock the door. I’ll call you as soon as I know something.” Silas smiled and gave her a reassuring wink. Once she had closed the truck door, he watched her walk to the front door. Then once she was inside and had closed the door, he put the truck in reverse and backed out of the driveway.

  “Okay, let’s go see what’s going on.”

  Silas pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store and noticed Paul standing just inside the front door. Most of the lights inside the store were dim, except for the one shining down on the entry and Paul. Once Paul realized the truck pulling in the parking lot was Silas, he stepped outside to greet him.

  “Thank you for coming so quickly. I think they’re still back there.” Paul Jackson was a tall, slender man, with a balding head and nervous demeanor.

  “Okay, I need you to go back inside, lock the door, and stay there until I come for you. Do you understand?” The last thing Silas wanted or needed was Paul getting involved in a scuffle.

  “Are you sure? I can help…”

  Silas held up his hand, letting Paul know that he was serious. “I don’t have time to argue. Now get inside and lock the door.”

  Realizing there was no sense in arguing; Paul turned and went back inside of the store. He had to admit he was glad Silas did not need him because his heart was pounding in his chest, and sweat beaded on his forehead. “Be careful,” Paul whispered to himself.

  Silas was thankful it was a full moon that night. He made his way around to the back of the store, doing his best, not to alert any unwelcome visitors. He paused a moment. What’s that?

  Silas reached down and unclipped the safety on his holster, and slowly withdrew his 1911 Colt .45, bracing it with his other hand.

  “Police! Police!” The sounds of frantic voices speaking in Spanish from near the back door of the store brought Silas to full alert.

  “Freeze! Don’t move!” Silas rushed toward the two young men while keeping a keen eye out for any others that may be hiding and waiting to attack. Silas aimed the .45 in their direction, letting them know it was best not to move.

  Once they had placed their hands above their heads, Silas slowly walked toward the young men. Without warning, out of the shadows from behind the dumpster; another one jumped Silas, pushing him to the ground.

  It had all happened so quickly. Dazed, Silas fought to get to his feet, as the young man jumped to his feet, laughing. He then kicked Silas in the side with such force that it knocked the breath out of him, causing him to crumble to the ground.

  “Run! Run!” the young man yelled in Spanish to the others.

  “Stop…” Silas struggled to get to his feet then suddenly something hard hit him on the head. The last thing Silas heard, as he slipped into the darkness was laughter fading off into the night.

  “Nurse, he’s waking up!” Jen had been by Silas’ bedside the entire night, praying that he would wake up and let her know that he was okay.

  Paul had found Silas unconscious on the ground with a gash on the side of his head, and had called for help. After an MRI to make sure there was no bleeding on the brain, the doctor stitched him up and put him in a room for observation. Jen had paced the floor while waiting for the results of the MRI. She had prayed and cried until the doctor informed her it was clear.

  Silas did, however, have a couple of cracked ribs from the kicks in his side while he was on the ground, but, all in all, he was in good shape.

  “Hi baby, what’s going on?” Silas spoke is a raspy whisper, as he reached up and gently touched the bandage wrap on his head.

  Jen reached for his hand and pulled it away from his head. “Don’t mess with that now, sweetheart. You got a mighty, hard hit to the head, and you’re in the hospital. Do you remember anything that happened?”

  Silas closed his eyes, trying to remember, but his memories of the night before seemed lost in a thick fog. He just looked at Jen and slowly moved his head from side-to-side. “No, not really.”

  Not wanting to press him too much, Jen lifted his hand to her lips and gently kissed it. “Don’t worry about that now. You need to feel better first. Why don’t you rest for a while? I need to go make a phone call. I’ll be right back in a few minutes.”

  Jen left the room and went out to the hallway. She closed the door to the room before she pulled her cell phone out of her jacket pocket then dialed the number and waited. “Come on, answer.”

  The phone rang several times before it finally went to voice mail. “Andrew, this is Jen. Silas is awake, but he doesn’t seem to remember anything. Will you please come to the hospital? We need to talk about something important.”

  Jen ended the call and tucked the cell phone back inside her pocket. She was hoping to speak with Andrew about the attack, but she figured he was busy with other business. She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes when she heard someone speaking to her.

  “Good morning, Mrs. Greer, I hear he’s awake.” Jen liked Silas’ treating doctor. He seemed to take a sincere interest in his patients, and their families.

  “Yes, he is Doctor though he doesn’t seem to remember anything from last night.”

  “That’s not at all surprising. He had quite a blow to the head so it may take some time for him to remember everything. Well, I think I’ll go check on him, and see for myself how he’s doing.” The doctor reached for the door handle and pushed the door open.

  “Are you coming in?” he asked Jen.

  “Not right at this moment. I need a cup of coffee, so I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”

  Jen turned and walked toward the nurse’s station where they had a coffee pot with freshly brewed coffee.

  Jen walked up to the coffee pot and reached for one of the Styrofoam cups sitting on the table. She filled the cup and then turned to return to Silas’ room when she heard a voice from behind her.

  “Mrs. Greer, may I ask you a question?”

  Jen turned around to see one of the nurses standing there with a concerned look on her face.

  “Sure, what can I help you with?”

  The nurse was a lovely woman, maybe in her mid-forties, with chocolate brown eyes and a pleasant smile. “Do you know who did this to your husband? Was it some of those people the government moved here?”

  Jen did not know how to respond. She had wondered the same thing when she received the call from Paul. He had said that when he heard the scuffle outside of the back door, he had opened it in time to see three teenaged boys run down the alley and disappear into the darkness.

  “We don’t know who did it, and unfortunately, Silas doesn’t remember anything yet either.” Jen hated to lie to the woman, but she knew it was for the best. Until they knew more, she did not want to cause a panic amongst the townspeo
ple.

  The nurse nodded her understanding, but she still felt no better. The news of the new residents had been quite a surprise to most of the people of Sandley. Most worried about how a small town such as theirs could handle so many new people all at once, let alone any problems they may have brought with them. She had heard reports of sick children and dangerous gang members, and she wondered if there were any among those gathered at the old mill.

  “Thank you, Mrs. Greer. I’m so thankful that we have a good man like your husband. I’m also grateful that he’s going to be alright.”

  “Thank you for your support of Silas. It’s always good to know the people appreciate him for what he does for the town. Well, I need to get back to his room. It was nice talking with you.” Jen turned and began walking back toward Silas’ room when Andrew charged out of the elevator door.

  “Jen, what’s wrong. What do you need to talk about?” He rushed toward her breathless, and with his face flushed a bright red.

  Jen took him by the hand and led him down the hall, and away from the nurse’s station. Once assured they were alone, she turned to Andrew and said in a near whisper, “We have a problem. When Paul found Silas, his gun was nowhere around. Plus, the magazine is missing from his belt. Paul said he searched everywhere but couldn’t find either of them. Oh, Andrew, whoever attacked him has his gun and 17 rounds of ammunition.”

  Andrew looked at Jen, not sure of what she meant.

  “His .45 holds 1 round in the chamber, and 8 in the magazine. I know that he keeps another magazine on his belt next to his handcuffs. The cuffs were still there, but the extra magazine was missing along with his side arm.” Panic filled Jen at the thought of hoodlums on the streets of Sandley with Silas’ gun and plenty of rounds to cause a real problem.

  Andrew could not believe what he was hearing. “Jen, what’s going on? Things like this just don’t happen in Sandley.”

  Jen felt nauseous, she knew it had to have been someone from the group out at the mill, but how could they prove it? Silas had told her how the ICE officer had made it clear that those people were to be left alone, but surely, this changed things.

  Jen and Andrew looked at each other with a sense of dread consuming them, and neither of them knowing what course of action to take.

  “How’s he doing this morning?” Andrew thought it best to change the subject.

  Jen could tell that Andrew was worried, and honestly, so was she. “He’s awake and seems to be doing better.”

  “That’s good to hear. Why don’t we go in and check on him.” Andrew stepped back and allowed Jen to lead the way to the room.

  “Oh good, you’re still awake. Look who’s here to see you.” Jen walked over to the bed where Silas was sitting up, and sipping on some juice.

  Andrew stepped around to the other side of the bed and looked at Silas for a moment before he spoke. “You scared the crap out of all of us. It sure is good to see you awake and enjoying some juice.”

  Silas did not reply, he merely nodded and continued drinking.

  Jen looked at Silas, not sure of what to say. “I’m not surprised that you’re thirsty.”

  Silas set the empty glass on his bedside table and rested his head back on the pillow. “I was, besides my mouth tasted like dirt.”

  Jen reached up and touched his cheek. “Would you like me to get you some more juice?”

  Silas looked at Jen and grinned, “Actually, I’m starving. I sure would like something to eat?”

  “Of course, I’ll be right back.” Jen leaned down and kissed him on the cheek then she walked toward the door.

  “Tell them that I would love some scrambled eggs if it’s possible.”

  Jen looked back over her shoulder and winked before she grabbed the door handle and left the room.

  Silas looked up at Andrew and could see the sadness in his eyes. “Don’t worry about me, I’m just fine. It will take a lot more than a bump on the head and a couple of cracked ribs to get rid of me.”

  Andrew pulled the chair sitting in the corner over to the bed and sat on it. He knew he should tell Silas about his missing gun, but he did not want to worry him.

  “Well, I always knew you were hard-headed.” Andrew forced a smiled, but his eyes betrayed him.

  Silas could see the concern in Andrew’s eyes, and he wished he could say something to make him feel better. He knew that everyone wanted to know what happened, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not seem to remember. He was about to speak when Jen came back in the room.

  “I talked with the nurse and she said that she’ll have the kitchen send you something to eat.”

  Jen walked over to the bed and noticed the look on Andrew’s face. “Is there something wrong?”

  Silas looked over to Andrew, and then to Jen. “No, Andrew was just saying how lucky I am to be so hard-headed.”

  Jen looked at Andrew and noticed the surprised look on his face.

  “Did you just make that discovery, Andrew? Heck, I’ve known it for years,” Jen laughed when she saw the look of relief on Andrew’s face.

  “Is there somebody hungry in here?” An older woman walked through the door, carrying a tray with a covered plate. I hear that you wanted some scrambled eggs.”

  She walked over to his bedside table and set the tray down in front of Silas. “Enjoy, Mr. Greer.”

  Silas reached for the lid over the plate and removed it. “Thank you, this looks delicious.”

  “You’re very welcome, and I hope you feel better soon. Lunch will be here around noon. Just set your tray on the table by the window, and we’ll get it then.” The woman smiled and then walked back toward the door.

  “Thank you, ma’am,” Jen said.

  “Anytime, Mrs. Greer.” The woman left the room, closing the door behind her.

  “Boy, that does look good,” Andrew leaned forward, breathing in the aroma of the crispy bacon.

  Silas looked at Andrew and narrowed his eyes playfully. “Stay away, this is mine.”

  Andrew pulled back, laughing at the look on Silas’ face. “I would never dream of taking an injured man’s bacon.”

  “I would hope not,” Silas chuckled then he reached up and touched the side of his head.

  “Are you okay?” Jen could see that he was experiencing some pain.

  “Yeah, I guess I need to take it easy for a while, but I still plan to finish this delicious meal.” He picked up a piece of bacon and took a big bite.

  Jen looked at Andrew with a look of concern passing between them. Each knew that things could have ended much worse for Silas, and they each said a silent prayer of thanks.

  No one spoke while Silas finished his meal, as they each contemplated what to do next. Once he was finished eating, Jen took the tray and set it on the table for the kitchen crew to pick up later.

  Jen looked at Silas and realized that he seemed ready to rest. “You look tired. Why don’t Andrew and I get out of here and let you take a nap? I’ll come back in a couple of hours, okay?”

  Silas wanted to argue, but he had to admit that he could use a nap. His head was pounding, and his body ached, so he thought some sleep might be a good idea.

  “Okay, I am a bit tired. Thank you for dropping by, Andrew. I just wish that I had more answers for you.”

  Andrew stood and pushed the chair back to its place in the corner. “Don’t worry about that at this time. You just need to focus on getting better.”

  The two men exchanged knowing glances, aware of how things were never going to be the same in Sandley.

  Jen leaned down and gave Silas a kiss, then whispered in his ear. “I love you, sweetheart. Get some rest, and I’ll see you soon.”

  Jen then looked at Andrew and said, “Come on, let’s get out of here so he’ll get some rest.”

  Andrew noticed a tear escape Jen’s eye, and he felt his own emotions building. He cleared his throat, and then gently patted Silas on the shoulder
. “I need to get home. Nancy wants to go pick up a few things for Sheila, so if I keep her waiting for too long, there will be hell to pay.”

  Jen never did understand why Nancy never learned how to drive. Jen had asked her once, but she only said there was no need because Andrew was there. “Then you better get going before you get yourself in trouble.”

  As Jen and Andrew walked toward the door, Jen glanced back over her shoulder and noticed that Silas was already asleep.