Menace on the Mountain

When the Reverend Frederick Alton Stroh directs his small band of militant religious zealots to hijack a helicopter and use it to steal a sea container full of automatic rifles from a freight train, all hell breaks loose in the small town of Syracuse, Montana. Agents from the FBI, ATF, and even CID are sent to investigate. But they aren't the only ones trying to crack the case. Burlington Northern Railroad has its own police force, and they send Special Agent R. T. Spencer in undercover to look after their interests. Spencer once lived in Syracuse and served in Vietnam alongside John David Jackson, now the county sheriff. Never mind the irreverent detective happens to be confined to a wheelchair. That does not alter the fact that he is a capable investigator and a formidable opponent. An all-out downhill wheelchair race proves that. Supplementing Stroh's band of misfits are two soldiers of fortune who seek not salvation, but monetary gain alone. The double murder of a local couple results in their two daughters returning home to bury their parents. One of the daughters, an oversize stripper from Denver, allies herself with R. T. Spencer while he endeavors to infiltrate the tightly knit group of militants. As sparks fly between R. T. and Belinda, a major forest fire ignites in the mountains surrounding Syracuse, complicating the effort to bring justice to the small band of fanatics. A gutsy helicopter logger pilot, a frustrated FBI agent, a voluptuous sheriff's deputy, and the wife of a zealot who grows doubtful of Reverend Stroh and his phony church, all play key roles in keeping the pages turning in this fast-paced novel.