massacre on the smugglers, and smugglers didn't do it. I believe the Feds lied to hide something else." Steve was careful to use their terms. He pointed to trees at the edge of the clearing, "Now, I'm sure. Smugglers don't have weapons that could do that. Now, do you want to help me get the bad guys, or do I have to do it by myself?" No response. Steve shrugged, "The Wizard . . . can you tell me anything about him? The Feds have him in Boston."
"You got that wrong. They got the wrong guy." Butch decided to tell him; the money was good. And if the reporter was lying about his desire to 'find out the truth,' things would be no different than before. He walked up to the reporter. "Give me the money and follow." Steve handed Butch the cash and entered the clearing with the boys. "It's okay to come out in the open as long as you're with me or Thad. Everyone around these parts knows us. But there's a guy around with a Ruger semi-auto that would just as soon pop you in the face as look at you." He turned to his brother with a smirk, then walked over to a brush pile in the center of the clearing where the AutoMan had sat.
Boulders and stumps held a foot and a half of snow mounded above open ground. A pile of flowers were blanketed with a dusting of fluff; they had been laid there within the last couple of days. Butch pointed to the larger brush pile. "That's where the RoboGun sat, in that brush pile there. It shot tank-killer bullets that could go through anything. The bullets were made of depleted uranium, encased in a hardened, teflon-coated, titanium case." Butch made it his business to know about weapons and ammunition. He listened to Max and others talk.
"RoboGun? How do you know all this?" Steve's mind raced with questions. General Paz had told him about the military's AutoMan, the same type of weapon the boy spoke of.
"We're members of the Ghost Pack 220. Only members of the Ghost Pack know what really happened up here."
The reporter became impatient with Butch. "Well, are you kids going to tell me?"
They shook their heads no. "Only the members know the real story," replied Butch.
"You speaking for your brother too?" asked Steve.
"My brother doesn't talk since the massacre but I know what he means." Both boys stood side by side, unified in their response.
It occurred to Steve that the Rousells needed more from him than just the money. "How do I join, boys?"
Butch lifted the side of Thad's hat and whispered in his ear. Thad shook his head yes. "We was held back at the end of the Pack to help as assistants to Mr. Ronolou; he was old and we could help him 'cause we're rugged. A Scout in the middle of the Pack noticed the red lights of the sensors. Then all hell broke loose. The Akela took three bullets in the chest but yanked my brother and me down behind that rock over there before the bullet spray widened."
Steve looked in astonishment as the lad recited the folklore. He thought no one had lived through the attack, and now, here he was in the presence of the only two survivors. It meant an exclusive interview for him. Steve found the story difficult to swallow at first, but as the tale progressed, with the intricate details and names--the fact that Butch described the AutoMan--the impact was overwhelming.
"Me and Thad popped out of the dirt over there, loaded up our friend Barry and hauled ass down the hill. Thad's the fastest Cub in the Pack, you know." Steve shivered in the blistering wind that now blew freely on open ground; he listened in awe to a finely honed tale of bravery, loyalty--and death.
Washington, D.C. (December 19)
"Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States."
"Only once in history has the life of this Union of
"You got that wrong. They got the wrong guy." Butch decided to tell him; the money was good. And if the reporter was lying about his desire to 'find out the truth,' things would be no different than before. He walked up to the reporter. "Give me the money and follow." Steve handed Butch the cash and entered the clearing with the boys. "It's okay to come out in the open as long as you're with me or Thad. Everyone around these parts knows us. But there's a guy around with a Ruger semi-auto that would just as soon pop you in the face as look at you." He turned to his brother with a smirk, then walked over to a brush pile in the center of the clearing where the AutoMan had sat.
Boulders and stumps held a foot and a half of snow mounded above open ground. A pile of flowers were blanketed with a dusting of fluff; they had been laid there within the last couple of days. Butch pointed to the larger brush pile. "That's where the RoboGun sat, in that brush pile there. It shot tank-killer bullets that could go through anything. The bullets were made of depleted uranium, encased in a hardened, teflon-coated, titanium case." Butch made it his business to know about weapons and ammunition. He listened to Max and others talk.
"RoboGun? How do you know all this?" Steve's mind raced with questions. General Paz had told him about the military's AutoMan, the same type of weapon the boy spoke of.
"We're members of the Ghost Pack 220. Only members of the Ghost Pack know what really happened up here."
The reporter became impatient with Butch. "Well, are you kids going to tell me?"
They shook their heads no. "Only the members know the real story," replied Butch.
"You speaking for your brother too?" asked Steve.
"My brother doesn't talk since the massacre but I know what he means." Both boys stood side by side, unified in their response.
It occurred to Steve that the Rousells needed more from him than just the money. "How do I join, boys?"
Butch lifted the side of Thad's hat and whispered in his ear. Thad shook his head yes. "We was held back at the end of the Pack to help as assistants to Mr. Ronolou; he was old and we could help him 'cause we're rugged. A Scout in the middle of the Pack noticed the red lights of the sensors. Then all hell broke loose. The Akela took three bullets in the chest but yanked my brother and me down behind that rock over there before the bullet spray widened."
Steve looked in astonishment as the lad recited the folklore. He thought no one had lived through the attack, and now, here he was in the presence of the only two survivors. It meant an exclusive interview for him. Steve found the story difficult to swallow at first, but as the tale progressed, with the intricate details and names--the fact that Butch described the AutoMan--the impact was overwhelming.
"Me and Thad popped out of the dirt over there, loaded up our friend Barry and hauled ass down the hill. Thad's the fastest Cub in the Pack, you know." Steve shivered in the blistering wind that now blew freely on open ground; he listened in awe to a finely honed tale of bravery, loyalty--and death.
Washington, D.C. (December 19)
"Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States."
"Only once in history has the life of this Union of
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