Bug Out! Part 10: RV Race to Battle (15 page)

“I’m beat, but I don’t think I can fall asleep just yet,” he said. “That was crazy.”

“It was crazy to listen to in the web meeting,” she said. “It was better than not knowing though.”

“I’m glad,” he said, moving her hair away from her eyes gently, and kissing her. She moaned and leaned into him. When he broke the kiss and moved back, he saw the tears streaming down her face. “It’s okay, I’m back. I’m safe.”

“I know, but I was so scared, and there’s still tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? Oh, yeah, the apps,” he said. “It’ll be okay. I was beside myself when you guys got attacked here.”

“Yeah, that was scary. I was afraid our trailer would get blown up, for one thing.”

“I was more worried about you. That bunker could turn into a nasty death trap.”

“My dad got the cameras and the Wi-Fi up just in time,” she said.

“So I heard,” Terry said. His eyes were getting heavy.

“C’mon, let’s go to bed,” she said. She pulled him up, and they went into the bedroom.

"I wonder if we should all move into the bunker tomorrow, just in case,” Terry said, sleepily.

“Nobody’s said anything,” Trish said. “Why?”

“If the enemy still has choppers left, they’re liable to lash out just about anywhere they can. They know where we are.”

“You know, that’s a good point,” Trish said. “Don’t worry about it tonight. Sleep.”

***

General Hogan was sitting on a couch in the lounge of the bunker, looking down, deep in thought. His son came over and sat next to him. “You okay, pop?”

He turned to him and smiled. “I’m okay. Was just thinking about Sanchez. I keep seeing his face while he’s going down the slide at our pool, grinning ear to ear.”

“I know,” Private Brown said. “We’re lucky he’s the only person we lost. That was a crazy battle.”

“How bad is Jeb?”

“The paramedic said he might not make it to the hospital,” he whispered. “But he’s one tough son of a bitch. Hope he doesn’t die in surgery. They’re working on him right now.”

George and Heidi walked over with Malcolm, Frank, Jane, and Charlie. They pulled chairs closer and sat.

“We aren’t disturbing you, I hope,” Charlie said.

“No, no, not at all,” General Hogan said. “We need to talk.”

The Sheriff, Kurt, and Mary saw the gathering and came over. Jake and Dobie joined them too.

“Kinda cramped down here,” Dobie said, carrying two barstools over.

“The clubhouse got shot up,” Charlie said. “Nothing too serious though. We’ll have to patch the roof and fix parts of the floor. Didn’t look like we lost any windows, believe it or not.”

“We need to chat about tomorrow,” Frank said.

“Yes, that’s what I was thinking,” the Sheriff said. “The enemy knows where we are.”

“Well, maybe they do,” Dobie said. “It’s possible all the folks that knew where we are got killed at Capitol Reef.”

“Possible, but not probable,” General Hogan said. “Those choppers weren’t based at Capitol Reef. We would’ve seen them in the satellite imagery.”

“How important is it that Saladin is out of action?” Charlie asked. “You think he was coordinating all the command and control?”

“Hard to tell,” General Hogan said. “I’m thinking that those mid-to high-ranking folks we took out at Capitol Reef were more important. Same with the high-ranking folks in DC who we took out.”

“What are you going to do with those pictures you took of Saladin?” the Sheriff asked.

“I’m going to post them on social media everywhere. I’ve got men working on that now. He looks like a scared child in one of those shots. We’ll make sure it goes viral.”

“When are you posting it? To coincide with the app release?” Jane asked.

“Yep, that’s the plan,” General Hogan said.

“What’s the military going to do?” Dobie asked.

“Clean out their ranks first, and then go after the enemy strongholds,” the General said.

“I wish they’d bring enough troops back from Mexico to get the job done right,” Jake said.

General Hogan smiled. “Oh, trust me, the apps will help in a big way. We’ll have these guys on the run, but they’ll still be dangerous for a while.

“I figured,” Charlie said.

“There’s something you don’t know about the forces in Mexico,” General Hogan said.

“What’s that?” Charlie asked.

“That’s where the infiltration was the worst, by far,” he said. “There will be a huge battle between the traitors and the real army. We’ll win. After that’s over, the problems in Mexico will become manageable.

“Good,” Frank said.

“There is one other big factor, of course,” General Hogan said.

“The role of the citizens,” George said.

“That’s right,” the General said. “In the first few hours, the army will be busy fighting themselves, purging the ranks. Plans are already in place for that. The citizens are going to have to pick up the slack.”

“What about local authorities?” the Sheriff asked.

“We’ll be sending communications to all of them, across the entire country,” General Hogan said. “Same with the National Guard and the State Militias. Our enemy will find themselves in the middle of a massive shit storm, and it’ll come from so many directions that they’ll be completely overwhelmed.”

“What do we do tomorrow at zero hour?” Jake asked. “Should we be looking for an attack?”

“Maybe we should move everybody down here for a while,” Charlie said. “A day or two. Couldn’t hurt.”

“That might be prudent, just in case any more choppers find their way down here,” General Hogan said. “We need to keep our eyes open, that’s for sure.”

“You expect massive amounts of people removing the chips?” Jake asked. “I know it’s hard, but it’s life or death for these folks.”

“You heard what Mary told us,” Charlie said. “It’s easier said than done.” Mary nodded in agreement.

“I can attest to that,” Private Brown said. “Those guys that got the jump on us at the end. They were a mess. It’s a big deal.”

“The enemy made it tough on themselves,” Mary said. “They probably wanted to prevent people from deserting. The chips didn’t need to be so deep.”

“Wonder where Daan Mertens is?” Frank asked. “Knowing him, he’s already found out what’ll be going down.”

“I’d bet on that,” General Hogan said. “But he probably doesn’t know the timing.”

“How many in the military know?” the Sheriff asked.

“Very few know the exact time,” General Hogan said. “I don’t think Mertens is in the country, anyway. He’s probably in Europe.”

“I think we ought to call a meeting early tomorrow, and get people rounded up down here with their most valuable stuff,” Charlie said. “Just in case.”

“Agreed,” General Hogan said with a sigh. “I’d leave the dogs up there, and watch the video cameras, and the apps.”

“There’s one last thing that’s really bothering me,” Frank said.

“What’s that?” Charlie asked.

“We saw a large gathering at Capitol Reef before the attack, remember? Looked like prep for a big meeting. They were planning something. We caught them flat-footed with that nuclear device. How many more are out there?”

“That’s what I’m worried about,” George said. “Something was up. No doubt in my mind.”

“It’s possible Daan Mertens is in the country because of that, too,” Frank said.

“You think perhaps our toys should come out to play tomorrow?” Malcolm asked. “Maybe set up the M107 and get sniper nests set up?”

“We’ve got sniper nests set up already,” Charlie said. “Just for normal long guns, not for a .50 cal, but we could add to that, maybe even set up the mortars. Just in case.”

“Don’t you boys think the enemy will have their hands full tomorrow?” Jane asked.

“I say we do it, just in case,” Jake said. “Better safe than sorry. What else are we gonna do, anyway. Play Parcheesi?”

The Sheriff laughed. “How can you argue with that?”

***

Scott was still driving. Kerry was sitting in the passenger seat. The noise from the bedroom was finally starting to die down. When it got especially noisy, Kerry would look over at Scott with a quizzical expression. They were almost to Richmond now. That’s where Bailey wanted to be dropped off. The bedroom door opened, and Howard staggered out, a big smile on his face. He came to the front of the coach.

“Wow.” He heard a rustle behind him, and turned to see Bailey coming out, trying to pull her pants up on the way. She plopped herself on the couch and smiled at Howard.

“Damn, Grandpa,” she said. “Haven’t been taken like that for a long time. You made me a little nervous when your hands were around my neck though.”

Howard laughed. “You were safe.”

“You still want to get off in Richmond?” Scott asked. “It’s only about a mile away.”

She sat silently for a moment, thinking. “What are you guys gonna do? Really…no BS.”

“We’ll stay on the road home and kill people along the way. Then we’ll make plans for a big event,” Scott said. Howard laughed, looking at Bailey with a wickedness that should have scared her. It excited her instead.

“Can I stay with you guys?” she asked, eyes on fire.

“Now why would you want to do that?” Howard asked. “You could end up on death row, you know, or worse.”

“Are you guys going to kill me?” she asked. “I know that’s why you picked me up.”

“You’re too valuable to kill, missy,” Scott said. “You’re one of us. We know our own. We’d be glad to bring you into our clan, wouldn’t we, Howie?”

“I could live with that,” Howard said, watching her thinking it through. “Make sure this is what you want, though. It’s dangerous, and if we think you’re going to turn against us, we’ll take you out in a heartbeat.”

“I thought she was a
dumb bitch
,” Kerry said.

“I was mistaken, Kerry. Think of her as more of a big sister,” Scott said, chuckling.

“Big sister, huh?” Bailey laughed. “How could I turn down a gig like that?”

“Here comes Richmond,” Scott said. “It’s now or never.”

“My mind’s made up,” she said. “I’m with you guys. What next?”

“Howard, you should fill her in on the backstory,” Scott said.

“Later, Scotty,” Howard said, “but let’s give her the near term plans at least. You know how fast things happen out here.”

“Sure, go ahead,” Scott said.

“Yeah, fill me in,” Bailey said.

“Okay,” Howard said. “We’re going back to Scotty’s home base in Columbus, Ohio. On the way, we’ll kill at least one more young lady, and leave her to be found with our markings on her. Then we’ll take one or two while we’re in Columbus, and use Scotty’s fine facilities to play with them for a while.”

“You’re trying to leave a trail,” she said. “Why?”

“Our main home base is in Kansas, and there are interlopers there,” he said. “It’s a result of the war, mainly. We think they’re watching us. We want them to think we’re heading away from them. After a short period of time, I’ll go back there and lay the groundwork for an assault.”

“Who are the interlopers?” she asked, mesmerized.

“A bunch of old fart retired folk,” Scott said.

“Now be honest with her, Scotty,” Howard said, looking up at the front of the coach. Then he looked back at Bailey. “I know these people. They’ve seen combat with the enemy and come out on top several times. This isn’t going to be a walk in the park.”

“Wonder if any of them like hot young chicks like me?” Bailey asked.

Howard cracked up. “You know, Scotty, this could work out well.”

“Yes, it could,” Scotty said. “She could be the loving sister of a slow boy, down on her luck.”

“Yeah, that could work,” Howard said. “You’ll have to change your image though. A little less punk rock, a little more country western, if you get my drift. We’ll need to hit someplace like Sears for some new clothes.”

“I get it,” she said. “You want me to seem like a safe, upstanding young lady, who’s good enough to look after her challenged brother all by her lonesome in this war-torn country.”

“Like I said, Howie, I think I’m in love,” Scott said.

Rosie sat in the waiting room,
half asleep. Hilda and Gabe were sitting on chairs across from her, looking at their phones. A doctor came in.

“He’s out of his first surgery,” the doctor said.

Rosie snapped out of her dozing and looked up, worried. “Jeb okay?”

“Yes, he survived the surgery, but he’s not out of the woods yet,” he said.

“You said first surgery,” Hilda said. “He’s going to need more?”

“Yes,” he said.

“What his chances?” Rosie asked.

“Right now, I’d say about 60%. It’ll help if he’s a fighter.”

“That sounds pretty serious,” Gabe said.

“When next surgery?” Rosie asked.

“Day after tomorrow,” the doctor said. “The first surgery repaired the bleeding. He’s got a nick in his spine, and some bullet fragments we need to take care of. It’s amazing he lived through this.”

“We’ve learned never to count Jeb out,” Gabe said.

“He’s had a fairly recent injury,” the doctor said. “Looks like he was shot in the leg.”

“Yeah, he was treated here,” Hilda said. “I’m surprised you didn’t see the records of that.”

“The enemy destroyed our computer system,” the doctor said. “We lost everything.”

“Oh,” Hilda said.

“When can I see?” Rosie asked.

“Give us about two hours,” the doctor said.

“Thank you, doctor,” Rosie said. “I be here. You let know?”

“Yes, I’ll make sure the nurse lets you know when you can visit.”

He smiled, then turned and walked away.

“Well, what now?” Gabe asked. “Do we find a place to hang out for a few days?”

“There used to be a motel right down the street,” Hilda said. “Wonder if it’s still open?”

“I sleep here tonight,” Rosie said.

“There’s not much of ‘tonight’ left,” Gabe said, laughing. “It’ll be light in a couple of hours.”

“It okay,” Rosie said, stretching herself out on the couch. She closed her eyes. A nurse came over to them.

“There’s a few beds that aren’t occupied,” she said. “The doctor told me to take you to them, so you can get some rest.”

“Oh, that would be perfect,” Gabe said. “That okay with you, Rosie?”