Page 83 of Operation: Silent Angel
The man complied, crawling partially out of the stairwell as he did.
After Kegger had the man secured face down, his hands zip tied, he offered Mac his hand to help him the rest of the way up.
“Third Tango secured,” Kegger transmitted. “Control, notify Needles; we need him onsite,” he added when Mac still looked pained.
“Negative, that’s not necessary,” Mac said.
“Are you okay, Mac?” Yvette asked.
“Roger, Control. I’m a bit sore, but I’m fine.”
Cooper and Kenny ‘Ducky’ Gallup led the mullet-wearing bartender down the stairs. He wore nothing but boxer shorts. They sat him in a chair. Then Gallup went back up and brought down a woman in her forties with long black hair. She wore a pair of men’s boxer shorts and an oversized white tank top. Ducky also had her purse in his hand. They sat her in a chair beside Billy Lane Smith.
“Meet Peggy Sue Draper,” Gallup said, reading her driver’s license.
“And who are you?” Mac asked the old man, kicking his foot, which he instantly regretted as it caused another spasm in his back.
“That’s my dad, leave him alone,” Billy Lane Smith yelled.
Gallup and Robinson got the old-timer up and sat him in a chair as well.
“Billy Ray Smith, I presume,” Robinson said, pulling his wallet from his pants to confirm his identity.
“The one and only,” the old man said.
“And before we go any further,” Cooper said, nodding at Gallup and Robinson. They both pulled their FBI creds. “We’re law enforcement, just wanting to ask you a few questions.” He held up a revolver. “I’ll hold on to this, Billy Lane. As an ex-con, you shouldn’t have a gun.”
“I didn’t pull it on you, man. Running a bar, I have to be armed.”
“Maybe you should keep your back door locked if you’re worried about being robbed,” Robinson said.
“I unlocked it when I got in this morning, assholes,” Smith Senior said. “I was down at the dock on my boat when you two boys went in the back.”
“You were seen on a recording visiting the cabin of the four men who disappeared the night before they went missing,” Cooper said to Billy Lane.
“Can you prove it?” Smith Junior asked.
“I just told you we have a camera recording of you at the cabin door. Rick Fees stepped out to talk to you. Why were you there, and what was discussed?” Cooper asked.
“I plead the Fifth. I have that right,” Billy Lane said.
“Oh, good lord!” Mac exclaimed. His back was still spasming, and he definitely was not in the mood to dance around with this asshole. “If you didn’t kill them or have anything to do with their disappearance, we don’t care if you were there to sell them drugs, rob them, or any other crime you can think of. We are just trying to get any info whatsoever about them. Now why the hell were you at the cabin?”
“You promise you’re not going to jam me up if I tell you?”
“Yes,” Mac moaned.
“And no one can know I talked to you,” Smith Junior said.
“Jesus Christ! We’re not going to tell anyone, now spill it!” Mac said.
“Yeah, I was there. Ricky Fees is one of them preppers, you know, end of civilization as we know it guys. He needed some supplies he bought from me, was planning on dropping them at this bunker he’s got out in the middle of the woods somewhere.”
“Where is it?” Mac pressed.
“Hell if I know, somewhere out in the woods.”
“So you brought him the supplies that night?” Cooper asked.
