The Enemy Within by Kurt Winans (To the Republic #3)

THE ENEMY WITHIN Copyright Š 2018 Kurt Winans All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher.

This book is a work off fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Published by Open Window an imprint of BHC Press Library of Congress Control Number: 2018936809 ISBN: 978-1-947727-56-4 Visit the author at: www.bhcpress.com Also available in ebook

ALSO BY KURT WINANS TO THE REPUBLIC Fractured Nation (Book One)

Lone Star Rising (Book Two)

THE NEW WORLD Pilgrimage (Book One)

Second Moon (Book Two)

Evolution Shift (Book Three)

TRAVEL BOOKS College Football’s American Road Trip

chapter one

PUZZLE PIECES

A

t the insistence of President Harwell, Heath proceeded to verbally detail the list of various clues which he had uncovered throughout nearly ten months since the attacks of the previous November. He had injected personal reasoning and investigation into his initial suspicions and beliefs to uncover various additional clues, and then slowly put together the pieces of what he deemed to be an elaborate puzzle. Within the course of fitting them in place, Agent Bishop believed that he had identified the actual culprit behind those attacks. Now given an open invitation to do so, Heath was determined to prove his case to the President and his Chief of Staff.

Beginning with what had been discovered during the first few days after the attacks; Heath reminded the President about the briefing from the Director of Homeland Security with regard to what little remained of two corporate jets which had been found in Mexico. No authoritative agency from either the United States or Mexico had subsequently identified any remains of the eighteen people who were onboard the planes which supposedly crashed south of Chihua9

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hua after fleeing from Colorado. That was strange because even with the intense fire which enveloped both planes for multiple hours, some measure of DNA would have been recovered from the nearly unrecognizable aircraft if any of those people had been aboard. Heath stated that based on the evidence then, and the inability to refute it at any time since, he believed that the jets were intentionally set ablaze with an incendiary device after the passengers and crew had deplaned. He continued by adding that the Director had established a possible, albeit slim, link of eighteen people who missed a flight in Chihuahua bound for Mexico City, and eighteen more under different identities who in turn missed a flight from Mexico City to San Paulo Brazil. According to his report, the Brazilian authorities then informed the United States that those same individuals were then bound for Syria. Unfortunately the Director took that information to establish a link between Syria and the attacks, and passed the belief on to the White House.

Heath then reminded the President about the air traffic controller at Centennial Airport in Denver, and how he had obviously been executed for the sake of silence. There was also the man killed in similar fashion in Highland Falls New York. In both cases it was determined that a member of a preemptive force was responsible for the death and simply tying up what he or she deemed to be a loose end before the main attack. Unfortunately both investigations ended at that point. Although that belief could have been substantiated in Colorado based on the reported time of death being several hours before the attacks, it was not so easily explained in New York. That coroner determined that the time of death in Highland Falls had occurred within minutes of the attack upon West Point.

Then there was the Maryland State Trooper and the civilian outside the stadium at Annapolis who was identified as a brave soul that attempted to thwart the escape of an attacker. Both of them had been shot dead in the parking lot away from the mass of other victims, but it was never determined who shot them. With no other glaring possibility to explore, their cases were lumped into the Syrian scenario. Of 10

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course it was possible that Syria had somehow been responsible for the various actions against the United States, but there simply wasn’t any real tangible evidence to support it.

Moving forward in time, Heath talked about the pre-Christmas bombshell which Texas dropped upon the nation. In the midst of a half-hearted investigation by federal agencies into any connection which did not involve Syria, Texas diverted the focus of those agencies and the power structure within Washington D.C. by declaring that it wanted to splinter off. Heath took a moment to express his admiration not in the motivation behind it, but in the timing of that action by Texas. He believed it to be a masterful move in the political game of chess. Those from Texas who had made such a declaration did so at the exact time when the powers that be in Washington D.C. needed to answer the outcry of the nation by taking action against someone or something. The American citizens were screaming for retribution over the attacks, while also being consumed by a fear that further attacks would come. In addition, there was then a new concern based on an uncertainly over the solvency of the nation at large.

With their perceived safety and way of life as the primary motivator, most American citizens sought a place to lay blame for disrupting the balance. With no other plausible explanation to fall back upon, and with little time to act before the nation could potentially reach a state of rebellion or anarchy, Syria became the scapegoat for all of the recent turmoil in America.

Heath then admitted to the President that he had spent most of his two days off for New Year’s looking over multiple reports, and that was when he discovered that the timing of what Texas was doing had to be more than just coincidence. Everything about separating from the United States seemed too well planned, and as the Vice President had surmised shortly after their announcement, Texas just didn’t come up with the plan overnight. That belief had been proven via various actions throughout subsequent months, as time and again the new republic seemed fully prepared to take advantage of any leverage 11

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which could be obtained. The earliest example of that was when Texas somehow knew of the plan for the withdrawal of border patrol agents at the stroke of the New Year. Then they had used that supposed misunderstanding, as explained by the United States, as a legitimate reason to have all other occupied facilities within the republic no matter what their intended function be vacated.

Perhaps the most glaring of evidence in the following months was the story of the two pilots who had been shot down, and how they had eventually escaped from Syria. By their own accounts they would not have been able to fulfill such a quest if it weren’t for a series of people, which included some government officials, who wanted to prove to the United States that Syria was not responsible for the terrorist attacks. Heath stated that based on previous encounters with Syria over multiple years, the American State Department and the military ignored the claim because they simply refused to believe their cry of innocence. At that point Heath stated that any prior doubts he had as to the innocence of Syria disappeared. In his humble opinion there had never been enough evidence brought forth to implicate, let alone substantiate, Syria as the culprit. The safe return of the pilots simply added validity to that belief.

About that same time there was his quick visit to Crockett Texas while returning from the mandatory vacation at Lake Tahoe.

Although he had been treated with hospitality while delivering some sad news of an execution style shooting, and that his read of their response to it was nothing more than circumstantial, Heath confessed that he believed the family was hiding something from him. There had been no specific words of guilt or betrayal, but Agent Bishop was highly trained in the Secret Service to read body language. Based on extensive observations throughout the years, in his assessment those assembled within the Tillman mansion were guilty of something on a grand scale.

More clues came his way during the Memorial Day proceedings at Annapolis and West Point, and Heath mentioned to the President what 12

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he had noticed about the curious lack of names from Texas on the two memorials. He had since checked various hospital records to ascertain who had been treated for injuries in the hours and days after the attacks, and the results showed that there were very few from Texas. Although some may have seen both of those categories as pure coincidence, in Heath’s mind, the engravings and medical files had just become one more piece which fit into the puzzle. He believed that the vast majority of those midshipmen and cadets from Texas at the respective academies were aware that an attack was eminent, and had accordingly come up with some excuse to remain well clear of each stadium on that fateful day. By identifying their actions as non-coincidental Heath solidified his previous notion that Syria was not to blame, while further substantiating a belief in those who most probably were.

By that point in his lengthy explanation Heath had provided enough of a blueprint that his two attentive listeners began to nod their heads positively. However he wasn’t sure if those nods were simply in recognition, or in agreement, with his overall assessment. Both President Harwell and Christopher Westin had taken close mental note of all which Heath had conveyed, and were ready to admit that he could be on to something.

Then President Harwell stated and asked, “That is all very interesting Heath, and it does make sense. Now do you have anything else to add?”

“Yes Mr. President. You may not want to hear this sir, but I believe that a faction from Texas, possibly in conjunction with government officials, has put all of this in play so that we would believe Syria was responsible for the attacks of last November.”

“Well that’s a strong accusation Heath, and it’s difficult to fathom that Texas would want to do something of such magnitude. Now I will admit that you do make some plausible connections, but I’m not sure that it’s enough for me to act upon.”

That was when Heath Bishop pulled a new Texas one dollar bill from his pocket to show the President. Jordan Harwell had not actu13

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ally seen one in person yet, but was intrigued that the republic had chosen a light color blue for the currency. Then Heath pointed to a tiny set of numbers and letters positioned in the lower left corner on the back side. Most people would probably not notice them, or care to think about what they might represent, as the square paper was dominated by a picture of the Alamo. Nevertheless, they were there, and they read 2M1N1O. With that the President squinted to focus on them and asked, “So what do you think they mean Heath?”

“Well Mr. President, I believe that like the picture of the Alamo, the numbers and letters could be some sort of an identifier developed in order to pay homage to the valiant. They could mean that two Texans were lost in Maryland, and one in New York.”

President Harwell looked closely at the numbers with astonishment, while Christopher Westin sprang to his feet so that he could also inspect the bill.

After each man had viewed the note for a moment, the White House Chief of Staff looked over at Heath and uttered, “Maryland and New York?”

“Yes sir. It would correspond with the two midshipmen at Annapolis, and the single cadet at West Point.”

“Alright. But if that were true, then what about the number ten at the end?”

“Well sir, that could be the number ten. However it could also be the number one followed by a capital O which would fit with the pattern of the M and N.” “So then in your assessment, what could that mean?”

“Perhaps that would imply that a single operative was lost during the attacks.”

Looking more closely at the sequence, Christopher Westin gasped and said, “Well I’ll be dammed! That is excellent work Agent Bishop.”

The President echoed the sentiment, and asked, “How did you ever make that connection Heath?”

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“Well sir I didn’t at first, but when I took a brief detour to Texas in April I wasn’t sure if my credit cards would be accepted. As a precaution I got some cash at the airport for my journey. I had five twenties and they all had a picture of the Alamo and the group of tiny numbers and symbols on the back. When I eventually stopped for a snack, the paper change I received of a ten, a five, and a couple of ones also had the Alamo and the identical markings. I didn’t think too much of it at the time, but they did stick in my head. Then I got to thinking about the letters between the numbers and the concept of actual symbolism came to mind. It wasn’t until after we witnessed the unveiling of the two memorials and I saw the engraved names of those from Texas who had been killed that I put it together with the picture on each bill denomination. The battle cry of Texas for longer than my lifetime has been “Remember the Alamo”, so I realized that the two and one coincided with those from Texas who had died in battle at the academies.

The final number and the capital O which completes the code could represent an operative who died during their escape, but that is speculation based on having no proof. However as we never found any of the attacking force dead or alive, they could have taken the dead body with them. If so, then it would seem to go in line with the other symbolism Mr. President.”

When Heath concluded his explanation, President Harwell didn’t waste any time in responding. He had now been convinced by the last piece of evidence which Agent Bishop had put before him, and would therefore act accordingly.

Moving behind his desk once again, he pushed a button on his phone and said, “Mrs. Dawson, will you please contact the Secretary of Defense. Tell him that I need to see him in the oval office as soon as he can get here.”

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chapter two

TIGHT CIRCLE

D

uring the late afternoon of Wednesday September eighth, the American Secretary of Defense was enjoying some relaxing time at his vacation home along the southern reaches of Chesapeake Bay. Although not presently concerned over any unusual threat to the United States, his mindset quickly changed after receiving a phone call from his Chief of Staff. She informed the Secretary that the reason behind her interruption was due to Mrs. Dawson making contact from the White House, and that President Harwell required his presence in the oval office at the earliest available moment.

With no questions asked, the Secretary informed his wife that he would return as soon as possible. Then he and his driver headed back to Washington D.C. from Deltaville, but the journey northward along Highway-17 and then 301 had taken a few hours.

Still dressed in casual attire, the Secretary of Defense arrived at the oval office just prior to nine o’clock and stated, “Good evening Mr. President. I’m sorry to have kept you waiting.”

THE ENEMY WITHIN

With a slight wave the President replied, “No need to apologize Mr. Secretary, Mrs. Dawson relayed the message to me from your Chief of Staff that you were away for a family retreat. Thank you for interrupting your vacation to come in on such short notice.”

“You’re welcome sir; it’s no trouble at all. Now how can I be of assistance?”

Gesturing to the right from behind his desk, the President responded, “You know my senior protectorate Agent Bishop don’t you? Well, he has brought forth some interesting information that I believe you should hear. This will take some time, so please have a seat and keep an open mind while Heath presents his findings.”

Throughout the next several minutes the Secretary of Defense listened to everything Heath conveyed, and at the conclusion of the briefing thanked Agent Bishop for bringing the information to light. Then, turning his attention away for a moment the Secretary began to mull over the implications that now lay before him while shaking his head from side to side in disbelief. He was thoroughly irritated that portions of the pieced together information had gone unnoticed by various investigators or chains of command, but then he remembered that a significant problem for decades in Washington D.C. was that of complacency. It was well-known to the Secretary that certain individuals or agencies had been guilty in the past of either ignoring a problem, or not wanting to risk their reputation by suggesting that one existed at all. Although he couldn’t be sure at the present moment if such disregard for one’s personal duty had occurred in this particular instance, there had obviously been some oversight which Agent Bishop was able to identify.

While viewing the obvious physical response from behind his desk, President Harwell asked, “Well Mr. Secretary, what do you think? Are you shaking your head because you don’t believe in the data presented, or is it something else?”

Looking up at his boss the Secretary responded, “I’m sorry Mr. President, but I’m just attempting to wrap my head around all of 17

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this. I have no doubt in the data that Agent Bishop has presented, but sir…”

After the lengthy pause, Jordan Harwell said, “It’s alright Mr. Secretary, please speak freely. I summoned you so that I could hear your opinion on this matter.”

“Yes sir, thank you sir. Well then Mr. President, I must say that at this point the information we possess just doesn’t fit together tightly enough.”

“That’s a fair assessment Mr. Secretary, as we are talking about the most serious of accusations. Now with that in mind, do you think that the information at least establishes a foundation to contradict previous beliefs? And if so, can it be fit together more completely?”

Looking first at Agent Bishop, and then back to the President, he replied, “Well sir. I do think that there is something tangible here, and that it merits further investigation.”

“So do I Mr. Secretary, so do I. Now to act upon our common belief, my plan is to have Agent Bishop continue his investigation into this possible treason. He will need to work alone and covertly in a manner which will not raise suspicion or connect him directly to any of our intelligence agencies, but he will be able to seek assistance from those whom I trust.”

“That seems like a prudent course of action Mr. President.”

“I’m glad that you agree, because you Mr. Secretary are one of those trusted individuals. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Standing from the couch to face the President directly, the Secretary stated, “Yes sir. I believe that I do sir. You are ordering me to provide whatever assistance possible to Agent Bishops’ investigation, with an understanding that it must be done very quietly.”

“That is correct. But it would be better if we identified your actions in this matter as more of a personal favor to me than as that of following orders.”

“Very well Mr. President, consider it done. But if I may clarify sir, and with no intended disrespect toward Agent Bishop, what 18

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about any requested information which would be above his current security clearance?”

“Well I don’t think Heath will be asking you to provide him with the nuclear launch codes or anything of nearly that level of significance, but you do have a point. Agent Bishop has dutifully protected me in the past, and has sworn to take a bullet for me if the need ever arose. I think that level of devotion and patriotism merits significant latitude with regard to his security clearance. However if you ever feel that he is requesting something which you are uncomfortable with openly providing, then don’t hesitate to contact me for approval or denial before releasing the information.”

“Yes sir Mr. President, I understand.”

After an approving nod, President Harwell turned to Agent Bishop and asked, “Heath, do you have anything that the Secretary could help you with at this time?”

“Yes sir Mr. President. As a matter of fact there is.”

“Well since you have a captive audience, please proceed.”

Turning toward the twin couches, Heath asked, “Mr. Secretary, how would I go about learning why certain Midshipmen or Cadets were absent from the stadiums at Annapolis or West Point during the terrorist attacks?”

“By checking the respective duty logs. Then check the records of the infirmary and any disciplinary reports which would prohibit an individual from attending the game.”

“That was my thinking as well sir, but such information is difficult to obtain. Could you assist me in acquiring any records which would be relevant to the day in question?”

After a moment of contemplation, the Secretary replied, “Perhaps I could claim to initiate an independent study into the prolonged psychological effects of having been absent from the event which killed or injured so many of their respective academy brethren. That would provide a reasonable excuse for me to obtain the list of all those which you seek without raising any questions.”

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“That sounds like an excellent idea Mr. Secretary, but wouldn’t there eventually need to be a report on the findings of such a study?”

“Yes, eventually. But such results could be fabricated if need be. Besides, the information you obtain from the list may uncover a greater deceit. If that turns out to be the case, then the fictional study will be of no concern to anyone.”

“Could such a list include the state of origin for each Midshipman or Cadet?”

“Yes Agent Bishop, it could. However I believe that including such information might raise questions and possibly be misconstrued as a tainting factor to the study. Therefore I will have a member of my personal staff look up the state origins for you.”

“That sounds as if it would work Mr. Secretary. Thank you for the assistance.”

“You’re welcome Agent Bishop. I just hope for the sake of our country that you are mistaken about all of this. But if you are correct, then I say good hunting.”

“Thank you Mr. Secretary. I hope that I’m mistaken as well, but unfortunately, I don’t believe that will be the case.”

Moving from behind his desk to shake the hand of his guest, the President said, “Thank you again for coming in on such short notice Mr. Secretary, and for your future cooperation with Agent Bishop on this matter. I believe that the two of you will work well together, which could lead to positive results. Now I do have one final request of you, but to be more precise, I must make this one an order.”

“What’s that sir?”

“We must maintain a tight circle with regard to the content of this evening’s discussion. Therefore I want to make sure that you have absolute faith in the person who will research the cadet and midshipmen state origins for you. He or she doesn’t need to know why you have requested the information, but they must remain silent about the task.

In addition, I don’t want you to tell another soul, not even the most senior members of your staff, about the direction we are heading.”

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“I understand Mr. President.”

“That’s good Mr. Secretary. We don’t know as of yet if there is an information leak, or where it is located if one does exist, but we can’t risk having any knowledge of our intentions getting back to a deviant individual or group who might reside in Texas.”

“As you wish sir, and rest assured, I will hand pick someone who can be trusted.”

While still clasping the Secretary’s hand, President Harwell turned his head toward Agent Bishop and added, “Heath, I want you to turn over every rock that you think should be looked under in search of more tangible evidence. And don’t hesitate to inform me or the Secretary directly if you are in need of any resources up to and including additional personnel to assist in your efforts.”

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chapter three

MIRAGE OF BLISS

W

hile completely unaware of the meeting that was taking place within the oval office, Samuel Tillman and the rest of the family went about their everyday business of life. As far as he and his flock were concerned, everything with regard to the rise of Texas and the further enhancement to the vast wealth of all Tillman interests was running along smoothly. The only inescapable and undeniable snag within the perfection of their current situation and extreme comfort was that of Savanah and her health. Unfortunately there were some aspects of life which couldn’t be controlled or overcome regardless of how much money or other resources were put into it, but Samuel and Victoria had certainly attempted to do so over much of the previous two years.

Like many afflictions throughout history which had claimed numerous lives at far too young of an age, the disease Savanah battled would continue to do so as well. Perhaps through research a cure for her particular enemy within would someday be found, but that was of little solace in the present time to Kyle, Ashley, and other members

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of the family. Diagnosed with ALS just a month prior to the Manhattan New Year’s Eve visit with her father and grandfather, Savanah had been a brave young girl while staring adversity in the face for twenty-one months.

Her affliction, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, would ultimately become a death sentence. Although sad but true, no cure had been discovered during the more than eighty-six years since the demise of the Yankee hall of fame first baseman in June of 1941. To magnify the gloomy outlook for the future of Savanah was another harsh fact. More than ninety percent of ALS cases resulted in death sometime between two and four years after onset. However while exhibiting tremendous strength of character for someone of her youthful age; Savanah still maintained a healthy and happy attitude in spite of her personal understanding and acceptance of the fate which awaited her. Based on that admirable trait, the youngest of the Tillman clan had made things a little bit easier on her parents and the extended family. Nevertheless, Samuel understood that certain aspects of daily life would become unbearably difficult for his oldest son and daughter-in-law once their youngest child could no longer exhibit such composer.

Separate from that turbulent future, other forces which Samuel was unaware of were at work to destroy the bliss that he and his family had created. Those forces would ultimately attack from various fronts over an extended period of time, with each representing either damaging or potentially dangerous scenarios, but exactly where and when they would come from remained a mystery.

Had Samuel been aware of what Heath conveyed to President Harwell and the Secretary of Defense, then he would recognize that such an investigation, if vigorously pursued, could bring troublesome times for many within the organization and Texas. As a result Samuel would have attempted to prepare a counter offensive, but as he was currently in a state of blissful ignorance, the point was inconsequential. However a more immediate threat would soon be brought to the 23

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attention of Samuel, and it could not be defended against. There was a governing entity, separate from the United States federal bureaucracy, which was fully prepared to flex its substantial power upon the Republic of Texas.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kurt possesses a spirit of adventure, which drives his thirst for experiencing new places and activities. He maintains a love for the great outdoors, and enjoys traveling whenever his schedule permits. One of his favorite activities is hiking in the clean mountain air, where the tranquil locations provide him with an opportunity to develop characters and storylines for his books. Kurt currently resides in Northern Nevada, where he and his wife have lived for more than a decade.