would want blood and he knew most would want to go to war. They would see this as the sign they had been waiting for, all they had planned and trained for. Marilyn came out from the bedroom. She looked groggy, but rested. "I am going to have some tea, anyone else want some?"
His thoughts were interrupted "I'll have more coffee and one of those brownies that were baking when I came in, they smelled amazing!" he smiled at her. He was trying not to let on the weight that was on his shoulders with Mark gone. He wanted to simply care for his sister and her beautiful girls, but he couldn't. He had a nation to care for.
Chapter 2
It was 9 pm and the house was quiet. John had arrived with the kids and they were all asleep upstairs. John, Thomas and Bobby were going to the meeting at Dove Pond. Reggie was staying at the house just to make sure there weren't any issues with the press or anything else. Teresa had gone home but would be back for the funeral and then in a few weeks for the annual 4th of July BBQ. She was still teaching and the kids were still in school, their calendar goes much later in June. She would call and check in everyday and if needed she would come back, but needed to finish up at home. Maggie and Marilyn were having tea and brownies at the table and Reggie sat down with a large cup of black coffee to join them. Bobby came in to say good night and to tell them not to wait up. They were heading out early and taking two trucks in case they needed to separate or take a weird route. Everyone was concerned that the press would follow them. It was more paranoia than fact, but they really didn't like the idea of having this meeting with the press right outside her door, but it couldn't be avoided. Bobby was concerned that groups would go off half cocked and it would be not just a mess, but a complete failure and the one thing they could not do at this point was fail. They pulled out of the driveway and went in different directions. The plan was for John to go to the local grocery store and gets some things before he headed to the meeting. Thomas and Bobby would stop for gas and snacks headed out the other way. So people would see them locally. Once they had a full tank of gas they headed to Dover Pond. There was a small hunting/fishing lodge there over looking the pond. The owner was the head of the local chapter. Mark had recruited people very carefully there were only meetings in places he felt were secluded enough, but a meeting looked completely normal. Although he didn't attend meetings at all chapters, all chapters met regularly. All information was verbal. There were no lists of members or locations. No plans written down. No phone calls with conversations. Only face to face and only after everyone involved felt comfortable they were not being recorded. All cell phones and devices were placed in a lead box at the beginning of the meeting and returned at the end. Next meeting dates were announced at the meeting and posted on a web-site but they looked like a regular meeting, tonight's meeting was posted as an emergency discussion about the pollution and garbage being dumped into Dover Pond, voting members only to attend. This gave the location and told the groups only one or two representatives should attend. There were over 400 groups in the US. If everyone sent two that would be 800 people at the meeting it would raise suspicion. Many of the west coast groups wouldn't attend on short notice and in a few days members who attended the meeting tonight would head to those groups and pass on the information.
Bobby and Thomas entered the building. They dropped there phones in the box and headed into the next room. There were almost 200 people both men and women, but no one under the age of 16. Mark felt that this was not a joke and he was not looking to indoctrinate children. If they turned 16 and felt they wanted to join great, but this was an army people signing up knew that there could and would be consequences. The biggest of which could be death so those were the rules he set. Bobby was surprised at how many people were in the lodge many had made a serious effort to attend in the back of the room he saw the man George who had represented the sheriff's department earlier that day, he was dressed in jeans and a t-shirt that said "work is for people who can't fish" he looked very different, but fit in at this meeting very well. Everyone greeted Bobby with a mixture of sadness, anger and joy. Many were glad to see him because they had not in a while. All were sad about the loss of their leader and some were extremely angry. Bobby had been carefully choosing his words for tonight's meeting. He stood at the front of the room and addressed the room.
"Welcome, and first let me say thank you for attending on such short notice. I was afraid it might be too short, but I was also afraid to wait too long an not address the issue. On behalf of my sister and my family thank you for your kind words and we appreciate as much privacy as you can give us at this time. Next, I do not at this time have any real information on whether this was a weird coincidence or a deliberate act taken against Mark. However, that being said I think we need to move forward and put the plan into action. I have not set a date yet, tentatively I am thinking Labor Day, but I will set a definite date right after the funeral." the crowd started to murmur. Bobby could tell that people were not happy. He turned to the crowd "anyone not comfortable with this action please let me know. If you feel we are not ready or Mark's death is not enough of a reason to move forward please let me know. No one is being judged, I am trying not to set us up to fail.
A member in the front raised his hand. He was an African American approximately 45 years old wearing a hunting cap, a sleeveless flannel shirt and jeans. Then he stood up "with all due respect Bobby it should be July 5th." The crowded spoke quietly in agreement. "Everyone here is ready, we have been ready for quiet some time, our brothers and sisters across the country are ready. We could even do it tomorrow, but then it would be sloppy and we owe it to Mark not to be sloppy and not to fail. We can use the cover of 4th of July BBQ's to finalize plans and secure loved ones where they will be safe. I knew your brother in law he was in my hardware store often, first working on the house when they first moved in. Then the deck, the play house, the dog run and whatever else he was working on. Then for odds and ends when Marilyn had a little project she wanted done. He was a great man, a family man and a patriot. No matter what we decide accident, coincidence or deliberate his death was a result of that protest. A protest that stood for everything he believed in, that we believe in! It cannot be 3 months down the line it must be soon." He was getting red in the face. trying to be forceful without yelling, they had a rule about yelling if you couldn't control your anger how could you be trusted to execute your piece of the plan? Then he smiled "besides the thoughts you might all be having about the 4th being a poetic date Marilyn will kill us if we ruin her annual BBQ." this caused the room to erupt in laughter and conversation as he sat back down.
Many of the locals knew about the BBQ. Some were invited others helped her create the perfect event she wanted each year. She did all her own cooking, baking and prepping, but the butcher was sure she had the finest meats. The grocer the freshest fruits, veggies and ingredients. The pool man knew how important it was for the pool to sparkle and the local rental place where she ordered her tents and tables from. All were present here in the hall. They respected the fact that she used local markets and not box stores, not that she didn't shop in box stores, the woman went through a lot of paper towels, but they knew her and respected her and her husband outside of the cause. They all agreed July 5th was the best date.
"Thank you, I myself was concerned that just less than a month was not enough time, but based on what I am hearing in this room we are indeed ready. Therefore, each of you will see me or Thomas before you leave, check in and let us know what groups you will be heading to, your numbers, your targets and your back up plans. We will have another meeting here June 18th, a celebration of the lodges 100th birthday to address any issues that may arise between now and then. If you have any issues before then you know who to contact in the chain and we will get you assistance as quickly as we can to address whatever the issue is." everyone around the room was nodding in agreement. "OK meeting.." John whispered in his ear. "Oh we have decided that we will buy some security devices to monitor activity around the lake to try to catch the polluters. We will post signs that cameras are being used and that footage is being stored off site." everyone nodded knowing that the signs and cameras would be posted, but no video would be saved because no one would want all of them on video. This was simply to make the meeting look legitimate and keep people off the property as well. "Meeting adjourned."
Thomas
