**** **** ****

Bill guided the blue and white Ford pick up through the TVA complex, passing beneath the massive concrete decks that connected the buildings over Broad Street. At 11^th Street, he turned left and they found the parking garage where they had last seen the hit car.

Bill pulled in but could go no further because of a red and white barricade. He looked and saw the machine to deposit money or swipe a pass card along with a sign indicating the hourly rate. With a sigh, he dug into his pocket and pulled out fifty cents. He fed the machine and a moment later, the barricade lifted. A ticket printed and spit out at him but he didn’t bother to grab it. He drove on ahead into the garage.

The truck crept along slowly as Bill, MaryAnne and Enos looked for the hit car. Seven floors and almost ten minutes later they reached the top of the parking garage. There was no black Dodge Charger.

Bill sighed as he turned the truck around to head back down.

“Them boys could be anywhere,” Enos said.

“Yeah,” Bill grumbled. “We know where they’re not. They’re not here and judging from the lack of activity at the hotel across the street, they’re not there either.”

“And Enos and I don’t know Chattanooga any better than you do,” MaryAnne said, “so we don’t even know where there are other hotels or places where this conference could be takin’ place.”

Bill sped quickly through the parking garage, causing the tires of the pickup to chirp as he rounded the turns. In no time, they were back at the bottom floor of the garage. At the exit, another red and white barricade blocked the path. Bill stopped the truck and looked at the machine to his left. He needed to insert the ticket he should have received when he came in to validate it and be allowed to exit.

“Oh boy…” he muttered. “Ticket to get in, ticket to get out. Do not pass go, do not collect $200! Geez!” Bill put the truck in reverse and backed up several feet. Neither Enos nor MaryAnne had any doubt about what he was going to do.

“Hopefully the barricade will break and not the truck…” MaryAnne said.

“Hang on…” Bill hit the gas and the truck lunged forward. They busted the barricade, snapping it off its post and splintering it into at least three pieces. Bill hit the brakes to keep from careening out into traffic and pieces of the barricade tumbled out into the road…

…right in view of a Chattanooga police cruiser.

Bill, not exactly paying attention, pulled out into the road and turned right. Suddenly a short whoop! from a police siren came from behind.

“What?” Bill looked in his rearview mirror. “Oh great…”

MaryAnne and Enos both looked out the back window as Bill pulled to the side of the street. “Well, this may not all be bad,” Enos said. “Maybe the local police got your message about the hit car, and they’re checkin’ the garage too.”

“Well, they’re wasting their time,” Bill replied. “But you’re right, maybe this cop can help us.” Bill turned to the window as the cop came up.

“Okay, sir,” the cop said, “you wanna tell me what the purpose of that was?”

“I’m sorry, officer,” Bill said, “I can explain this whole thing. My name is Bill Maxwell, I’m with the FBI in Atlanta. I called your department earlier to report that there was a group of men who were plotting to assassinate the governors at the economic conference that’s taking place this morning. They’re driving a black Dodge Charger and they had it parked in this garage.”

“Yeah we got a report about a black Charger. You got any ID on you?”

“Uh, well, those cretins took my badge and my gun…um, I have a driver’s license though…” Bill retrieved his wallet and removed his license, handing it to the officer.

The officer looked at the California driver’s license and then looked at Bill almost as if to say, you’re kidding, right? “You stay put,” the officer said, “while I check this.”  He turned to walk back to his cruiser.

“Boy, he’s not buying that story even if I discount it,” Bill muttered.

“Well, ya gotta admit Agent Maxwell it looks a little odd,” MaryAnne said, “you tell him you’re a Fed from Atlanta yet you have no badge on you and you hand him a California driver’s license.” MaryAnne couldn’t help but grin. “You really ain’t from around these parts are ya?”

“No,” Bill replied without a smile. “And the time it takes for Muldoon there to get the story straight from his superiors, we’re going to have seven dead governors.” Bill looked at his watch. It was almost 7:30. “We’re running out of time and we have no idea where to look next.”

“What about that street we passed on the way here?” Enos said. “Just before the TVA complex. There was a couple of police cars there, like they mighta been waitin’ for somethin’.”

“I saw that too,” Bill said. “I think it was 13^th Street?”

“Yeah,” Enos concurred.

“That didn’t look like a hotel tho’,” MaryAnne said. “But I’m no expert.”

“Could be part of the route they’re having the governor’s come in,” Bill suggested. “If that’s true, then we may have a shot at this.” He looked at the rearview mirror. The cop was still sitting in his cruiser.

“I hate to do this,” he said, “but...” Bill put the truck in gear and suddenly pulled away from the cop.

The cop looked up as the truck took off. “HEY!” He pulled his door closed and followed.

In his haste to pull away from the cop, Bill passed Chestnut Street, the first opportunity to get over to 13^th Street. He kept going down 11^th Street to the next street, Carter Street, and hung a left.

The police car stayed with him, siren blaring. Although Bill sped down Carter Street and weaved around traffic, he had no worry he would lose the cop. He preferred having the cop coming directly behind him anyway, the more back up the merrier. Too bad though, he didn’t have a chance to brief the cop. He could only hope the officer was prepared to do his duty for whatever was about to happen.

Down Carter Street, they passed the Chattanooga Convention Center on their left. There was no East 12^th Street on this block, only West 12^th, as the convention center took up two city blocks. The first street they came upon was 13^th.

Bill turned left down 13^th Street and slowed the truck to a normal speed. Behind him, the police cruiser’s siren quit. The patrol car stayed with the truck but did not attempt to overtake it or cut in front of it.

Bill, MaryAnne and Enos all but forgot the patrol car was even behind them. They were fully alert to the street in front of them. They rolled past Fort Street on their right and could see light bars blinking a distance down 13^th Street ahead of them. They were half way to Chestnut Street when a big black car pulled out from it onto 13^th Street.

“There they are!” MaryAnne exclaimed.

“There they are indeed, hang on!” Bill slammed the accelerator and the old Ford lunged forward.

They blew by Chestnut Street and were just about a car length behind the Charger. The black car was speeding down the road toward what Bill, MaryAnne and Enos now realized was the Tennessean Hotel. The presence of several police cars apparently was not a deterrent to the hit car.

The limousines that carried the governor’s were already inside the hotel’s courtyard, parked across from the hotel’s main entrance. The governor’s themselves were gathered in a group for a photo op on the courtyard lawn. European and Canadian officials were also gathered about. All were oblivious to the impending threat.

Bill’s only concern at the moment was to prevent the hit car from even entering the hotel grounds and he only had a few hundred feet to do it.  He pulled the truck to the left side of the hit car and pulled up to run even with the tail of the Dodge. The police officers stationed at the entrance/exit drive of the hotel were watching the black Charger and old pickup that were speeding toward them. Realizing a threat, they suddenly took up positions behind their cars and aimed weapons at the oncoming vehicles.

Gunfire crackled through the air. Bill aimed the truck toward the sidewalk and jumped the curb, staying at the same speed as the Charger. He sped over the brick laid path, squeezed between a lamppost and a brick column at the entrance to the hotel and bounced off the sidewalk, blocking the entrance into the hotel.

Enos, MaryAnne and Bill braced for impact. The hit car, of course, had tried to beat the truck to the entrance and had no time to stop once the pickup was blocking its path. The front of the Charger creamed into the front right fender of the truck.

The police car that had been behind Bill the whole time, pulled broadside to the back end of the hit car, blocking it in. But the Charger, and its occupants, weren’t about to give in so easily.

“Abort it!” Jay yelled. “Get us out of here, Ronnie!”

Ronnie shoved the Charger into reverse and tires smoked as the tail of the Dodge plowed into the police car. Ronnie pushed it back out of the way enough to turn the wheel and clear the Dodge from the truck. David, meanwhile, helped clear the path for escape by spraying bullets from his rifle out the front windshield.

Officers dove for cover behind vehicles. Stray bullets pierced the side of the pickup truck. The Charger’s tires spun forward and the black car was tearing away from the scene.

Bill hit the accelerator again and the truck, despite the abuse it had taken so far, still moved. He jumped the next curb across the driveway and drove down the sidewalk between the hotel and the trees that lined 13^th Street. At the first opening, Bill cleared the sidewalk and the truck skidded back on to the road, following hot on the trail of the hit car.

The Charger blew through a red light and took a sliding left turn on to Broad Street, rounded the Tennessean Hotel and headed toward the heart of downtown Chattanooga. In the backseat, Jay watched as the truck, with the police joining in the chase behind it, pursued them. “Who the hell is that?”

“It almost looked like those two deputies and that Fed,” David replied.

“What?! They should be dead!”

“Told you we should’ve shot them first,” David said.

“Well shoot them now! Get them off our tail!”

David turned in his seat and leaned out the passenger window with his silver-barreled rifle.

“Watch out,” MaryAnne said, “he’s got the artillery…”

“Get down,” Bill urged the two deputies. They did and Bill edged the truck to the left to spoil much of a clear shot for David. Unfortunately, Jay had an arm sticking out the right side of the Charger with what looked like Bill’s .45 in hand.

The chase raced through the TVA complex, sending TVA employees scattering as the vehicles and the gunfire roared under the decks of the building.  Bill swerved the truck from left to right to avoid as much of the gun fire as he could, but the truck still took lead and one shot cracked through the windshield on the passenger side. Enos and MaryAnne were both okay but Bill tried not to think about the bleeding red paint that had covered the windshield of the pickup from Jay’s practice course…

Through the TVA complex, the chase continued down Broad Street, past 11^th Street, weaved around traffic, busses, and nearly clipped a mail truck. Horns blared and pedestrians ran for cover.

The red light at 10^th Street was immaterial. The Charger cut to the left hand turning lane and zoomed into the intersection, cutting off another car. Bill was forced to slow down behind the car, as the right hand lane had a vehicle in it and there was oncoming traffic. He laid on the horn in frustration. BLAATT!!!

At the first break in oncoming traffic, Bill pulled around the slower car and zipped past.

On West 9^th Street, between Broad Street and Carter Street, the General Lee was parked in front of the Read House hotel with Maverick behind it. The Dukes and Rosco were standing on the sidewalk watching Carter Street when the sound of sirens, gunfire and racing engines got their attention behind them. They spun around to face Broad Street as the behemoth black Dodge came barreling through the intersection. They saw gunfire spit back at a blue and white Ford pickup truck causing the left front tire of the truck to blow out violently.

MaryAnne and Enos both sat up straight as the truck jumped a small grass median and lurched leftward through the intersection onto 9^th Street and toward the Read Hotel. Bill fought with the useless steering wheel and the truck slid across 9^th Street coming to a crushing broadside stop against a parking meter and one of the trees that lined the sidewalk in front of the hotel.

When the truck settled, Bill looked at the two deputies. “You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, we’re awright,” Enos said, “but them fellas are gettin’ away!”

“Yeah, I know! Dammit…”

A couple of blocks up on Broad Street in an alley between the stone edifice James Building and the similar looking McMellen Building, Carl was waiting in the Crown Vic with the engine running. Jay had radioed ahead that the hit was botched and they were fleeing. The doors of the Crown Vic were open and waiting for Carl’s confederates.

Ronnie slammed the brakes of the Charger and the car skidded to a stop at the mouth of the alley. The three men spilled out of the hit car as the police were crowding up on them within seconds. Jay, Ronnie and David ran to the Crown Vic, jumped in and Carl took off before all the doors of the sedan were closed. The police remained bottlenecked at the alley because the Charger was blocking the way.

Carl drove through the alley, which spilled out into a small parking lot behind the McMellen Building. From there, he swung out onto Chestnut Street, turning left, which put him back in the direction of West 9^th Street.

Back in front of the Read Hotel on 9^th, Bill had tried to restart the truck but it wouldn’t kick over.

MaryAnne could smell gas. “Either you flooded it or we’re gonna blow!”

Either way, the truck was useless. Bill abandoned the ignition and pushed the driver door open jumping out of the truck. He turned to reach back for MaryAnne and Enos, making sure they were safely out of the truck. The three of them moved a safe distance away.

They stood out in the middle of 9^th Street, looking like lost puppies. Another police cruiser screamed through the intersection heading in the direction the hit car was last seen going.

Bill’s shoulders slumped. “Damn!”

“Enos! MaryAnne!”

Bill spun around with the two deputies to the voices. The Dukes and Rosco were running toward them. It was then Bill spotted the bright orange car that belonged to the Dukes parked down a bit from where he had crashed the truck.

“Rosco!” MaryAnne exclaimed. “Boys! Oh man, am I glad to see you fellas!”

“Me too!” Enos said. “How’d you ever find us here?”

“We can explain all that later,” Luke said. “Are you three okay?”

“Yeah, we’re awright, but those boys Agent Maxwell’s been after are gettin’ away,” MaryAnne said. “They were gonna try to kill seven southern governors at an economic conference here.”

“Holy smokes!”

“Yeah. We stopped ‘em but now they’re gettin’ away and we don’t have any wheels!”

“Oh yes, you do!” Rosco said. “I brought Maverick, the Dukes got the General Lee and them bad guys have got—“

“My car!” Bill exclaimed, looking toward Chestnut and Carter Streets. Everyone turned and saw the grey Crown Vic as it was fishtailing through the intersection.

“Let’s get after ‘em!” Luke said, “Enos, ride with us!”

“C’mon, Agent Maxwell!” MaryAnne said. She, Rosco and Bill ran to the blue Firebird while the Dukes and Enos climbed through the windows of the General Lee.

Rosco pulled open the driver door of Maverick and Bandit squeezed his way out of the backseat and made a beeline for MaryAnne.

“Bandit!”

The dog rose up on his hind legs and reached his front paws up to MaryAnne, who caught him into a quick hug. The Shepherd licked MaryAnne’s face.

“I’m glad to see you’re okay!” she exclaimed happily, holding the dog another moment before letting him down to all fours again.

“Yeah, the Dukes found ‘em,” Rosco explained as the General Lee went tearing past them. “That’s when we figured somethin’ was really wrong.”

On the passenger side of the Firebird, Bill was standing impatiently. “Uh, I hate to break up the happy reunion here but could we get going??”

“Yeah, c’mon Bandit let’s go nail these suckers,” MaryAnne said. Rosco climbed into the backseat of the Firebird and then Bandit followed in after. Bill settled into the passenger seat as MaryAnne grabbed the keys from the ignition and went to the back of the Firebird.

“Now what is she doing?” he wondered.

MaryAnne popped the trunk, removed a handgun and extra clips and slammed the trunk shut. As she got behind the wheel, she handed the weapon to Bill. “Here. This might help.”

Bill accepted the weapon and didn’t even stop to wonder why this country girl had a 9mm pistol in the trunk of her car. That thought would hit him much later. For now, he was in full pursuit mode and he expertly loaded a fresh clip into the firearm as the Firebird peeled away from the curb. They followed the General Lee down West 9^th Street.

“There’s an on ramp right up ahead here,” Rosco said, pointing. “We found a photograph in that cabin back in Hazzard of this street and that on ramp. Figured it was part of their escape route.”

Bill chuckled. “For all their planning and preparation, they leave you an engraved invitation. That’s terrific.”

“Well, it wasn’t ‘zactly engraved,” Rosco said. “We could only guess it was Chattanooga as that’s the closest big city we got to Hazzard. But when I told Commander Mayson about it and then he told me about that economic conference with the governors n’ all---”

“The sorghum hit the fertilizer,” MaryAnne said.

“It sure did!”

MaryAnne followed the General to the on ramp for US Route 27 north and as they came clear onto the highway, both cars let loose and were soon achieving speeds beyond 80 miles an hour. Although Bill never took his eyes off the road in front of him, he was very much aware of MaryAnne’s fast and smooth handling of the Firebird’s stick shift. The two northbound lanes of the four-lane highway were scarce with cars going out of Chattanooga at that hour of the morning. The southbound side was heavier with commuter traffic heading into the city.

About a quarter of a mile ahead of them, Bill’s Crown Vic was tearing up the road. Maxwell had his doubts, despite the orange Charger’s racing appearance and the sleek fast look of the Firebird, that they could catch the brand new Ford.

“That’s a police package Crown Vic,” Bill said. “A lot of power under the hood, a lot of speed.”

“Yeah, it has its advantages and disadvantages,” MaryAnne said, unfazed.

The chase sped away from downtown and crossed over the Tennessee River. The twinkling from several police light bars in the distance reflected in Maverick’s rearview mirror. With the speed of the pursuit and the open highway, it was taking only minutes to cover miles.

The advantage for Jay and his crew in Bill’s Crown Vic at the moment was that it didn’t take much finesse to drive a car fast on a straight shot road. Weaving around and blowing past slower moving vehicles presented little challenge too. It wasn’t until the Crown Vic did finally run into some traffic that it was forced to slow down, allowing the Dukes and MaryAnne to catch up.

But being closer to the Crown Vic wasn’t necessarily any safer. Jay and his men had no idea who they had behind them in the orange Dodge Charger or the blue Firebird and they didn’t particularly care. Ronnie did note that the orange Charger was the same one they had seen in Hazzard but they didn’t waste time on speculation as to why the car was now part of this pursuit. The police looked to still be a safe distance back beyond the two civilian cars and as far as Jay was concerned, he wanted to keep it that way.

In the front seat of the Crown Vic, David loaded a fresh clip into his rifle. He turned in his seat toward the open passenger window, putting one knee on the seat for leverage. He leaned out the window, holding the rifle in his left hand and aimed it back toward the Dukes and MaryAnne.

“Bo, watch it!” Luke exclaimed as gunfire ripped through the air. Bullets skidded across the front fascia of the General and dug a path across the hood. Bo moved the General toward the left lane to try to avoid the gunfire, when both boys and Enos saw Jay now leaning out the back window on the left side of the Crown Vic with a gun in hand.

Bill was getting the sense of déjà vu. “Those boys are going to get themselves killed! They shouldn’t even be in this thing!”

“Ha!” Rosco said from the back of Maverick. “Try tellin’ them dat.”

MaryAnne grabbed up her CB mike. “Bo! Luke! Back off a bit fellas, you saw what happened to us earlier. They blow out one of your tires you’re gonna be in big trouble at this speed!”

“Better yet,” Bill said, “tell them to get out of the way and let us take the lead.” He held up MaryAnne’s 9mm. “And give back some appropriate answers here.”

Bo had the General in evasive maneuvers, swaying back and forth on the highway to avoid any mortal shots. Luke agreed with MaryAnne’s request and if Bo needed any further convincing it came when a bullet smashed through the middle of the General’s windshield.

The boys flinched as Enos had ducked down in the backseat. “Enos!” Luke said. “You awright?!”

“Yeah, I’m awright,” Enos replied, sitting up straight again. “MaryAnne’s right y’all, you better back off.”

Bo quickly checked his mirrors to see where MaryAnne was at and he moved the General over to the other lane. He tapped the brakes to slow up, letting the Crown Vic widen the distance.

Maverick and the General ran even with each other. David and Jay fired an occasional discouraging shot at the two cars.

Luke’s voice came over the CB. “As long as those guys have guns, we won’t be able to get very close.”

MaryAnne glanced at Bill as he chambered the pistol. She replied to Luke, “I think we’ gonna try to even the score here fellas. Stand by…”

“Sheriff,” Bill said to Rosco. “You got a firearm on you?”

“Yeah..?”

“Why don’t you get the dogs down behind the seats here, and give MaryAnne some cover?”

“Ooo, you got it.” Rosco shifted around in the back seat, moving the dogs. He persuaded Flash down to the floor behind Bill’s seat and then got Bandit to lie down on the back seat. Rosco settled in behind MaryAnne and took out his pearl handled .38.

“Ready,” he said.

“Pull up ahead,” Bill told MaryAnne. “Get closer, but not too close. Keep it steady. We’re going to take out Mr. Wonderful there and my gun. Sheriff, I need you to fire some discouraging shots at them on my command.”

“Awright…”  Rosco readied his gun at the window, near MaryAnne’s shoulder.

MaryAnne nosed Maverick ahead of the General. Bo and Luke could see the gun in Agent Maxwell’s hand.

“Be ready for anything, Bo,” Luke said.

“Yep…”

The Firebird pulled a length ahead of the General and moved over to straddle the white center line. Jay fired a shot.

“Give them something to think about, Sheriff!”

“Khee!” Rosco opened fire. His shots really didn’t go anywhere near the Crown Vic and for Bill’s plan they didn’t have to. One bullet unfortunately smashed MaryAnne’s side mirror.

“GAH!”

“Oops. Sorry.”

“Rosco, yer supposed to shoot at them! Not us!” MaryAnne exclaimed.

Nonetheless, it did what Bill wanted. Jay had sought cover when Rosco had opened fire but once the bullets stopped, he was back at the window again to return fire.

And Bill was ready. The Fed leaned out the Firebird’s window and took aim. As soon as he saw Jay’s hand with Bill’s own .45 in it, Bill opened fire.

It looked like a firecracker exploded in Jay’s hand. The .45 was shot out of his grip and went tumbling down to the asphalt. Jay was gone from the window.

The Crown Vic suddenly swerved over into the other lane in front of the Firebird. David was still leaning out the passenger window and he answered back in a horrific volley of gunfire.

Sparks flew from the nose of the Firebird and two of the car’s four square headlamps shattered. Everyone in the car flinched and ducked and MaryAnne sent the ‘bird into evasive maneuvers but had really nowhere to go. Another round of gunfire danced across the top of the windshield, leaving a trail of holes in its wake.

Bill ducked and MaryAnne hunkered down behind the steering wheel. Maverick skidded in the road briefly. MaryAnne corrected the course and held the steering wheel straight, all the while trying to stay low behind the steering wheel and dashboard.

“You ok?” Bill asked.

“Yeah,” MaryAnne replied. “But I’ve about had enough of these dudes!”

“So have I…” Bill concurred.

The gunfire ceased briefly as the Crown Vic was back in the outside lane again to avoid another car on the highway. Maverick and the General Lee followed it and the army of police vehicles that had been following the entire chase were coming up closer.

Once they were clear of the slower car, MaryAnne immediately pulled back to the inside lane.

“Agent Maxwell,” she said as she pushed the Firebird’s accelerator to the floor. “Since you did such a great job takin’ that gun out, how about goin’ for a tire this time?”

Bill was happy to oblige. The nose of the Firebird was soon running even with the tail of the Crown Vic. Jay didn’t appear to have another gun to use against them and David was out of the line of fire based on the way he was situated on the passenger side of the Ford. Bill had a clear and open shot to the tires of his Crown Vic.

That is, until David shifted his position and was now sitting on the passenger door of the Crown Vic with his rifle aimed across the roof of the car at Bill.

“Oh Lord!” MaryAnne exclaimed. “Maxwell!” She was ready to slam the breaks when Bill saw David and changed his aim. He fired at the would-be hit man and hit him in the right shoulder.

David reeled at the shot. Before he could recover enough to either take a shot back at Bill or slide back into the Crown Vic, the left back tire of the Ford blew out.

The Crown Vic lurched a little and David lost his rifle in the melee. Carl managed to hold the car straight long enough for David to slide back in through the window before he lost his life completely.

One wounded tire, however, wasn’t enough and Bill rendered the same treatment to the left front. MaryAnne hit the brakes on Maverick as the Ford lurched decisively to the left, bounced off the center guardrail and went sliding across the highway, the backend swinging around as the car launched down into a field. The Crown Vic rolled over the embankment and then tumbled, flipping side over side down into the basin before coming to a rest on its roof.

MaryAnne and the Dukes each slowed down and pulled over at the edge of the highway. Bill jumped out of the Firebird and led the way down the embankment. It took a moment for Enos to join the group as he struggled to climb out of the General’s windows. Once out of the car, he hurried down the embankment, almost tripping. What looked to be hundreds of police cars came up next and turned the Tennessee highway into a parking lot

Bo and Luke, who had brought their bows and arrows with them but had had no opportunity to use them before now, carried the weapons down the embankment with them to provide some back up for Agent Maxwell and the Hazzard law. Each Duke took up a position on either side of the smashed up Crown Vic as Agent Maxwell, Rosco, MaryAnne and Enos got the suspects out of the car.

Bruised and disoriented, the men clambered out of the car. Rosco and Enos gathered up Carl and Jay while, Bill and MaryAnne tended to David and Ronnie. David held a hand to his wounded shoulder, looked at Bill and then at Bo with his bow and arrow. He had no desire to try to escape at this point and simply put his other hand up in surrender. Ronnie, who had worn Bill’s aviators during the entire event, took a couple of unsteady steps upon standing and paused to remove the crooked sunglasses from his face.

“I’ll take those,” Bill said.

Ronnie looked at Bill and then proceeded to drop the sunglasses to the ground, stepping on them. He then turned to face the Crown Vic to assume the position.

MaryAnne and Bill both looked down at his crushed aviators. “Aw, that’s wonderful…” Bill grumbled. “Geez…”

Tennessee state police and Chattanooga city police surrounded the flipped Crown Vic and swiftly took control of the situation. Jay, Carl, Ronnie and David were placed under arrest. The men were patted down and from Jay the officer removed Bill’s badge.

“That’s mine,” Bill said, hurrying around the Crown Vic to retrieve his badge before somebody dropped that and stepped on it. “Bill Maxwell, FBI…”

The cop looked at the ID and then at Bill and determined it was a match. He handed the badge to Bill.

“Thank ya…” Bill tucked his badge away into his suit jacket and he smirked at Jay. “Hi Jay. Nice morning for a drive…”

“How…did you three get out of that building…?”

“Jay, the only thing you need to know is that you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You also have the right to attorney and if you can’t afford one, one will be appointed for you before any questioning. You understand all that, Jay?”

“Yeah, yeah I understand. Only I won’t remain silent. My message will still be heard! I will still show this country that---“

“Oh get him out of here,” Bill said with a shooing motion of his hand. The Chattanooga cops obliged and hauled Jay and his confederates up the embankment with Jay still spouting off his economic diatribe.

Bill turned away and faced the Dukes and the Hazzard law. MaryAnne had picked up his busted sunglasses and handed them to him.

“Sorry about your sunglasses.”

“Yeah...” Bill looked at his aviators and then at the wrecked Crown Vic and sighed. “Just like back home…”

~Chapter 14~