The Man With a Limp

By Timothy Nugent

We follow the adventures of a restaurant owner and Iraqi war veteran. The Purple Heart recipient returns home lost and bewildered. Lucky decides to hitchhike home to Santa Cruz; no money in his pockets, he walks into the Santa Cruz Experience, a restaurant on the beach and meets a generous owner named Jack. With one simple salutation; “Hi!

• Language: English
• Publisher: LitFire Publishing
• Release date: Aug 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9781640459069

Timothy Nugent

My name is Timothy M. Nugent, a retired gentleman eager to see the world. In good health, I love to travel via ultra classic Harley Davidson. I travel with my girlfriend, Corina, and my two puppies, LaLa and LuLu. We currently live in Costa Rica and are enjoying pura vida (the good life). My wife passed away in 2008. To fill a large void in my life, I bought a full-dress Harley. I began traveling the western United States. I bought an iPad to take on my trips instead of my computer. I began writing poetry while I was on the road. In Cambria, I finished my first book, “Odes to Life and Love.” My wife and I loved Cambria and Monterey. Soon I had plenty of poems from my memories of her. Two more books followed: “Passages from Her Cards” and “Travels with the Wildman.”

Book preview

Chapter 1

The Man with a Limp

It is a cold winter morning in Santa Cruz, California. It is windy, rainy and no one is at the beach. A lone man, about twenty-four years old is walking with a six-foot bamboo walking stick. He is wearing a rain poncho, a rain hat, and rubber boots. He has thick long black hair down to his shoulders and a massive long black beard hanging down to the middle of his chest. He walks with a limp on the left side. His hand is curled up, and his left arm hangs down, appearing to be a useless appendage. He is smiling; it is obvious he likes to walk in the rain. With him, as he walks is a large German Shepard who has scars on its face and a large scar on his chest. I own a restaurant on the beach called The Santa Cruz Experience. It is an inexpensive diner with the usual Santa Cruz decor: surfboards and surfing pictures hang on the walls and a Harley Davidson motorcycle setting inside to the right, by the front door. I like to ride. My name is Jack.

The Man with the limp first appeared two months ago. He came into the restaurant with his dog Max, an assistance dog. The young man's name is Lucky. His Mom called him Lucky because he was fortunate to make it through birth. Mom almost died during pregnancy because of a terrible car accident that caused a premature birth. As an adult, Lucky dropped his last name. He said his Father did not deserve to have his son use his name. Father was never there for him or his Mom. Mom was ok with Lucky not taking the last name. Mom went by the name of Sunny and decided not to have the last name. After the divorce, She had her license changed to Sunny to approve her son's actions. Sunny lives in Santa Cruz and enjoys a relaxing lifestyle. Sunny works at the hospital as a surgical nurse. She makes fabulous money and lives modestly.

Sunny wanted her only son to live with her, but he says no. He came back from Iraq and was having some problems and did not want to hurt his Mom.

Lucky is a quiet man and does not speak about the war in Iraq; it was a terrible experience, and he is working at forgetting his experience. Lucky enters the restaurant with Max. He goes to the counter and chooses an end seat to sit, and Max lays down beside him.

Hi my name is Jack, can I get you some coffee? I ask.

Hi Jack, a cup of coffee would be great, my name is Lucky.

I turn around and get a cup of coffee, a menu, and hand it to Lucky. Thanks.

He orders his usual breakfast, Joe's Special; garlic, hamburger, spinach mixed into scrambled eggs with Monterey Jack cheese over some spicy potatoes. Lucky is enjoying his breakfast;

You know Jack I love this breakfast. If I have bad breath, the garlic would mask it.

Lucky laughs as I smile and thank him for coming in.

Glad you enjoy the breakfast, I say.

Too early for the servers to come in Jack?

Yes, the next person comes in an hour, I say.

I excuse myself and turn to talk to my cooks to plan our day. Fifteen minutes later I hear a ruckus. I see a transient laying on the ground, and Lucky has his walking stick pressed on the man's chest.

Why did you kick my dog asshole?

As Lucky pushes harder on his stick, He was growling at me! The man bellows out.

Of course, because you were acting menacingly towards me and he is taught to protect me at all times. If I let you up will you leave peacefully?

Yeah, let me up.

Lucky lets him up and backs up giving the man distance, and the man lunges at Lucky with a knife, and Max bites the man's wrist and will not let go. The man falls to the ground screaming,

Get him off of me! Get him off of me!

Lucky waits a few more seconds and calls off Max, just as the police enters the restaurant. Lucky explains what happened and I confirm the details, and they take the man to jail as he screams back,

I will get you for this!

The restaurant is quiet once more, and my first server comes in the door, What happened here?

Oh, a little excitement to fill our dreary day, isn't that right, Lucky?

Lucky nods his head and drinks his coffee. Lucky reaches in his pocket to pay his bill and has lost his money while walking on the beach.

Lucky I seem to have lost my money; Can I come back tomorrow and pay for the bill?

Sure! I will put the bill on the board in my office so I will not forget it is there, Says Jack.

Thanks Jack! See you tomorrow!

Lucky leaves to enjoy the rest of the day. Max jumps up and faithfully follows. The next day Lucky comes in from the beach with Max by his side;

Hi Jack! Here is the money for yesterday, sorry I lost my money. Says Lucky.

Outstanding, I am happy to see you again. Want some coffee? Ask Jack.

Yes and my new favorite breakfast, that Joe's Special, isn't that what you call it? Ask Lucky.

Sounds Great!

Says Jack as Lucky and Max enjoy the early morning and enjoy some hot coffee and breakfast. Lucky finishes and pays his bill,

Jack, my Mom gave me a few bucks so I will be busy for a few weeks. See you soon.

I wouldn't see Lucky for a month and it is business as usual. The weather is beginning to heat up, and the rain has finished for a while. The beaches are exceptionally beautiful; blue skies and clean beaches, and a nice breeze for our morning entertainment. I decided to open our outside area with the tables on the sand. It should be an enjoyable morning. In the front of the restaurant, the walkways are abuzz with inline skaters, bicyclist, runners, and walkers. The young ladies are wearing halter tops or bikinis enjoying the cool breeze and early morning sun. Lucky walks in from the sand, his appearance, decidedly different: his beard is clean cut, and his hair is cut short. Not military short, but it is a big difference.

Hi Lucky, You are looking mighty fine today! I exclaim.

Thanks, Jack, I came from an interview for a job. I think I am ready, Lucky says.

I will be a bomb consultant for Homeland Security. Max and I are a team; just like we were in Iraq.

Today Lucky will sit at a table on the sand, and I decided to sit and talk with him for a while.

You retired from the Army? I ask him.

Yes, I was recently released from the hospital. Max and I went into a house to look for a bomb maker. The first room was empty, Max went to the door of the next room and began to bark. I tell Max, quiet and the door swings open and a twelve-year-old boy throws a bomb into the room. I was caught off guard because he was so young, and I hesitated. Max grabs the bomb and runs outside and drops it in a metal box for bombs . I followed Max out and go to lock the box, and it explodes pushing open the lid. I could not get it locked. Max gets shrapnel in the chest, and I get some in my ankle and shoulder. My face is scarred by the incident, that is why I have a beard.

Your face looks good, I say.

Thanks, I guess it is ok.

How did you train Max to put a bomb In a box? I ask.

I didn't; I guess Max saw me put bombs in the box so often he thought he should do it. I am still mystified by this experience. It most likely would never happen again. Max and I received Silver Stars for our duty in Iraq. Max will do anything to protect me.

Will you do the same kind of work? I ask.

No, not the physical work. I will advise about how to disarm the bombs. I will teach the correct methods of bomb disposal and train new dogs for the Government.

Does that mean you will leave from time to time? I ask.

I will be accepting cases of terrorist threats, but mostly for classroom assignments.

I walk away from Lucky's table to order his food and to go back to work. Daydreaming today is easy. The weather is California beautiful: beautiful blue skies, a slight breeze, the waves splashing against the sand, sounding like a symphony reaching a soft crescendo, and tons of beautiful women. What else can a man ask for? It will be a month before I see Lucky and Max again. It is a quiet Sunday morning when Lucky shows up with Max. They jumped into the ocean to play for a while. Max enjoys the water and runs into the ocean to fetch a ball. Lucky keeps throwing the ball and Max goes and retrieves the ball. They are having a wonderful time.

Suddenly shots ring out. A man is firing at Max and missing terribly. The man yells out,

I am going to kill you and your damn dog!

He walks closer toward the water, stumbling drunk as Lucky and Max dive into the ocean. The man walks closer and closer. The man does not hear me running behind him. I tackle him as hard as I can, and the gun flies into the ocean. The man pushes me over and starts to pound my face. Blood is streaming from my mouth, and the sky is going round and round. Lucky jumps out of the water and kicks the man on the back of the head. Knocking him to the sand where Max is sitting on his chest growling.

Do not move or I will tell Max to take your head off.

Ok! OK!

He says as I shake off the dizzy sky. Lucky grabs my arm and pulls me up; we wait for the police. I asked my server to call the cops as I was running to intercept the man. The police arrive rapidly taking the man to jail. This time for attempted murder to a federal officer. He will not see daylight for a long time. Lucky thanks me for saving his life and to my surprise, Max jumps up and shows me his gratitude.

Lucky, life is getting too exciting, you need to do something about that.

What? What excitement are you talking about?

How about some Margaritas?

Are you going to buy?

On a Sunday morning at nine a.m.?

Yeah, too much excitement for me! I exclaim.

My server brings us a pitcher of Margaritas and two glasses, and I take the day off. Lucky fills the glasses and raises his Margarita and says,

Heres to you and I hope we are friends a long time!

You too my Friend! You too!

Max barks his approval, and we enjoy the rest of our Sunday. Terrorist activity has increased in California. Some people are upset with Governor Bilky. He is putting a hold on immigration in liberal California. The Latin Communities are incensed and threatening some violent action if he passes his non-sanctuary state reform. California has been lucky. There has been no violence because it is such a liberal state. Isis, The Islamic State of Iraq has infiltrated the country. Homeland Security believes that the group is in the mountains of Santa Cruz; building a quiet militia to terrorize the state of California.

By disrupting California, which has the fifth largest GDP in the world. Isis believes it can control the country. California is highly sports active. Every month of the year there is a significant activity. I sponsor a triathlon for the coming weekend. People will arrive from all over the world to participate. Over three hundred participants are competing for a world title. Our Santa Cruz athletes are competing. The American Broadcasting Company will have a booth outside my restaurant. Five of my tables were taken out for ABC. ABC paid a flat fee to use my space. I gave them a server to take care of their needs. Free publicity for my restaurant; the cameras will point towards the back doors and table area when the announcers are talking to millions of television viewers. This year's event will coincide with the upcoming Olympics in Australia. The swim will be 1.5 km or .93 miles; the cycle event will be 40 km or 25 miles and running will be 10 km or 6.2 miles.

Homeland security will have their hands full. Lucky tried to persuade me to close the restaurant, but my people and I want to be part of the fun. The swimmers will go straight out into the ocean to a floating cone. The swimmers must swim to the left of the cone and around the cone to the right and swim to their bicycles were they would change and cycle through the streets of Santa Cruz; down highway one, a half mile passed Moss Landing, circle a cone and stop at the town limits. From Moss Landing, they will run highway one to Struve Road in Moss Landing turn around and head back to the starting point of the series. On all bicycle and running areas, there will be water, and Gatorade stops to grab refreshments along the way. Highway one will be closed to one lane to protect the participants of the competition. There will be a lead car to help protect the members as well as a rear car. Ambulance of Santa Cruz volunteered their vehicles for emergencies. The local hospitals volunteered Doctors and Nurses for the event. A hundred private vendors are walking their goods on the streets of Santa Cruz. Never before has this event garnered so much attention. Two weeks before the event Homeland Security is getting Santa Cruz ready for the game. The bosses have a meeting with the town officials to recap their plans they established a month before the event.

The new man, Lucky has suggested a few refinements to the scheme:

1. Homeland will be supplied a feed from ABC during the event, 2. Homeland receiver vehicles will be a station at various areas of the city (key restaurants, government buildings and the town square) and the starting points of the contest. 3. Portable wireless cameras will be on several city blocks, and at the beaches of Santa Cruz, the command vehicle will be in my private driveway on the side of the restaurant. All the vehicles are unmarked vans except the command vehicle which is a school bus made to look like a recreation vehicle. Homeland Security has decided to have everyone unmarked. That is to say no government symbols on hats, coats, sweaters or marked clothing of any kind. Homeland will be using wireless earphones and asked all members not to wear pilot type sunglasses. Most members went to the local stores and bought touristy type sun wear and glasses. Shorts, bathing suits and lots of sunscreens to blend in with the crowd. There will be one hundred bomb sniffing dogs and handlers amongst the crowd. Swat snipers will be on rooftops out of site of people. The snipers will be in position at four in the morning of the event that starts at eight am. My restaurant already employs the wireless camera technology, which is set up on my computer. Homeland Security is ready for the event. I will have a busy day and hopefully a safe event this Saturday.

Chapter 2

The Event

You could not ask for a more beautiful day. Lucky and Max meet me at the restaurant at four in the morning. The restaurant is closed, and I make some coffee and a couple of Joe's Specials. The command post is ready. Hopefully, people will believe I rented the spot to tourist for the event this morning. Lucky's bosses are in the control center resting; believing they are ready for all contingency. Lucky tells me to monitor my cameras and let my people run the business. A good Idea I tell Lucky. It is five thirty in the morning, and the sun starts to rise over the eastern mountains. Beautiful orange glow in the sky, reflecting on the curling waves rolling orange into the sand. People are out early grabbing space on the sand for the coming event.

Homeland is expecting fifty-thousand tourist and spectators to crash down on the beaches and streets of Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz police are in charge of crowd control and traffic. It will be an exciting day. Six am people start to roll into the restaurant. I put a time limit on the tables because of the event. No one can sit more than an hour at a table after receiving their food. We receive a few grumbles, but I explain it is for their safety. No one is allowed to watch the event inside the restaurant. The tables outside has no restrictions, but we ask people to understand the servers have a living to make. The event goes off without a snag. The fire of the gun and the swimmers are off.

The security is on the move: checking trash cans and sniffing for bombs. Off to the right of the restaurant on the sand, two sets of bleachers are set up by the city. The restaurant is full, and a young man with a back-pack sits in the middle of the restaurant. He is a college age boy, blonde hair, blue eyes, and dressed expensively. He puts his backpack on the floor and goes to use the restroom. He is gone several minutes, and I call Lucky. Max comes charging through the door as Lucky follows. Max stops in the middle of the room and sniffs. Suddenly he turns away and charges over a table and attacks a man; knocking him to the floor. The Man pulls out a detonator, and Max bites his hand so hard he twists off two fingers and the man was unable to push the button.

Lucky rushes over to grab the detonator from the man. It is a wireless remote. On the man's body under his baggy shirt is a vest of C4. It would have killed hundreds of people. The young man comes out of the restroom, and three agents grab his arms and frisk him. Another detonator, the officers handcuff him and find C4 in his backpack. The Agents take him to a unique building set up to interrogate any terrorist at the event. The word is instantly sent out to look for pairs of individuals working in tandem. Lucky tells his people it only takes one explosion to cause enough distraction to set off several more bombs.

Lucky receives a call on the beach. Another bomb is in a trash can. It has a timer configured to go off in four minutes. Lucky grabs a weapon box hooked up to an off-road vehicle and rides to the trash can. A minute and a half left on the timer. He looks at the timer, lifts the trash can and puts it in the box and locks it quickly as the bomb explodes bouncing the box up in the air, three feet up and back to the ground. People scatter from the vicinity; Lucky talks to the command post and ask if they see anyone leaving the bomb that just exploded. The boss sends him a picture of a young man with a backpack wearing sunglasses, Giants baseball hat, a yellow Hawaiian t-shirt, and black shorts with Monarch butterflies on the shorts. Lucky puts out a search for the Boy. ABC anchor Tom Malloy sees the kid in the middle of the crowd and notifies command. Things are happening quickly. Lucky informs the sniper on my restaurant to look for the person in the midst of the crowd and shoot him dead if he pulls out the detonator. The shooter finds the boy and watches him look up in the sky as if he was praying. A shot rings out, and the boy drops like a pile of washed linen. He had his hand in his pocket. A young girl, standing next to him has blood splattered on her face and bikinied body. She stood stiff and frozen like a little Barbie doll, frightened, tears rolling down her checks. Her eyes are frozen in time, unable to comprehend what just happened.

Lucky runs up to her; a towel in hand he softly asks her how she is as he gently wipes the blood from her face. She collapses into his arms as he holds her tight and listens to her sobs:

What is happening here? She asks.

Lucky calms her down and gives her to a medic. An agent finds the detonator and the boy wrapped in a vest of C4.

What is with these young kids becoming the terrorist? Where are they getting C4? Ask Lucky.

The agent does not respond; he has no answer for Lucky.

Suddenly there is a massive explosion out on the street. A young boy exploded himself by accident. He walked into a trash bin in an alley and accidentally killed himself and his partner as they tried to exit the alley. What is happening here? Lucky thinks to himself. This terrorism is not Isis; then who is it? Who would want to cause domestic violence? Lucky calls the interrogation building and gives them a heads up that he believes it is domestic terrorism. Homeland does a great job and foils plots in Capitola and Santa Cruz. The event goes on without a hitch, but it will take a few days to identify the terrorist. No one is talking, but background checks are beginning. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security in a team effort raid the homes of Albert Conrad, Stephen Imes, and Mathew Hines. Respected students from well to do families and find bomb-making supplies and equipment. They formed a new group called LACE. LIBERATION AGAINST COUNTER- ESPIONAGE, their parents were arrested and jailed for crimes against the Government. They were arrested because of the monitoring on their Facebook page by the FBI. The Patriot Act allows the government to spy on their people. The parents found that the government wanted to spy on Facebook and random emails and they voiced vehemently about the intrusion of their privacy. They were arrested for using words such as uprising, force, change in government and violent overthrow of the government if necessary to protect our way of life.

Reading the constitution and their patriotic rights was a mistake because the parents are in jail for two years now. Their bank accounts were frozen and their children forced out of their parent's homes. Now in desperation, they fought back. Lucky closes out this chapter in Homeland Security wondering if in the future we can prevent this kind of terrorism. Because of the actions he took to save lives, Lucky is given a Medal of Honor by the Governor of California; the President of the United States gives him the Medal of Honor: the Congressional Medal of Honor for his work. He is on Time Magazine's cover. He decides to walk away from Homeland Security because he is saddened by the events of the World Triathlon of 2017. His quote is on the front cover: I believe great care must be shown in the administration of the Patriot Act. So undue harm is not inflicted on the American people. Lucky and Max frequent my restaurant. He would become a best selling author and travel the world doing seminars on counter-terrorism.

Chapter 3

Lucky's Return

Lucky is home in Santa Cruz. He is home for a needed rest. It is April 21, 2018. He has been to Australia, United Kingdom, Columbia, Brazil on his latest trips. He sits on his favorite stool with his pal Max laying on the floor next to him. He is