The surviving company was soon further reduced as they faced the realities of traversing the Northern Great Plains on foot. Many were lost to exposure while several others succumbed to starvation. The cold October winds and scarce natural food sources proved too great an obstacle for the weakest amongst them. They were low on food, but they still had their weapons, their training and their unwavering determination. Crimes of opportunity immediately became their only means of survival. Many Western Canadian communities now lay in ruin for the simple misfortune of being along their route as they continued eastward.
Of the many airdrops that were scheduled to arrive, not one had materialized. They repeatedly found each drop location sitting empty with no sign that their resupply had ever arrived. With local communication systems destroyed and nothing but their small handheld radios still functioning, the North Koreans simply had no means of calling their allies for assistance. As a result, they were left to march across the seemingly endless Canadian Prairies cold, hungry and alone, another hardship to be endured.
As perilous as their journey had become, their largest losses had come from an ill-advised attack on a cattle ranch in Eastern Alberta. Within minutes, upwards of 150 steely-eyed men and women on horseback had rode in from every direction. When that day was finally over the hardened cattle ranchers stood over the bodies of almost 100 dead North Korean soldiers. Only their horses’ need for rest saved the 75 that got away.
As they continued their murderous rampage east across Saskatchewan and Manitoba, their numbers continued to decline. By the time they reached Ontario they were down to just 50. Their inevitable end, however, had come at the hands of a small group of tenacious women from Lake Nipissing and a handful of ruthless thugs. Not a single North Korean soldier would reach Nova Scotia and no enemy boots would ever touch Valour Way at CFB Halifax, their intended destination.
It was just as well because the landing force that they had hoped to meet in Halifax had never arrived anyway. The Iranian transport vessels and those of the various nations that they had aligned with all lay in ruins at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The invading armada had been met by a massive contingent of NATO forces months ago. The few unmarked and unidentified enemy warships that had been sent out in support of the Iranian led offensive had also been quickly overwhelmed and destroyed.
In an effort to avoid a nuclear response, something that NATO had recently shown a propensity for, the two powerful nations had been forced to limit their involvement and to hide their participation. The half measures had been successful only in the fact that they hadn’t been found out. With global technologies and satellite surveillance severely limited, all efforts to identify the warships had been thwarted. Suspicions abounded, but evidence would forever elude the frustrated NATO commanders. Regardless, the enemy warships now rest broken and silent at the bottom of the Atlantic as well. There would be no record of their mission and their crews would never be accounted for… or avenged.
“That’s just like you jerks to start my own party without me.”
Xander and his men turned around to see Bray approaching from the cottages with his crew a few paces behind.
“Some party, asshole, I didn’t even get one drink.” Mars said in return.
“Ha! That’s because some prick stole all of my bottles.” Bray said with a grin.
◆◆◆
“…and as soon as we saw they were being overrun, we took off back to Geoff’s shack in the woods.”
“I guess it’s a good thing Geoff shot that moose when he did.” Xander said.
“Yeah, no shit.” Bray said. “That’s the only reason we were all out in the bush when those soldiers showed up. Geoff and Zach came to the house and told us they needed a hand dragging it out and hanging it. Most of it is still hanging from that tree.”
“That’s good because we could use it.” Xander said. “We’re down to a few cans of beans over here.”
“So, before the soldiers came what was your deal here, Bray?” Mars asked. “Did you take the place over or were you guys working with these people?”
“Dude, when we showed up there were 12 guys watching us through riflescopes.” Bray replied. “We were in no position to take anything. Zach had just shot a deer an hour earlier and he had it in the back of his truck. We offered it to them and convinced them we were all hunters and trappers. They agreed to let us stay in this house as long as we kept to ourselves and shared our kills. I’m pretty much the only one that really knows anybody in town.”
“We found that old shack in the woods a few days later.” Geoff said, joining the conversation now. “Me and Zach have been living out there while these guys stayed here.”
“We were lucky to have that shack because they raided this place too eventually.” Bray added. “Those bastards went door to door disarming everyone and then they executed every able bodied man living on this lake. The shack was tight for all six of us, but at least it gave us a place to hide out while we figured out what to do about them.”
“That Linda broad told us the whole barn fire deal was your idea.” Mars said.
“Yeah, we knew we didn’t stand a chance against that army in a gunfight.” Bray replied. “There’s a big fuel tank full of gas out back that we were using to top up our sleds. I remembered the crates of empty wine bottles in the cellar and the idea came to me. We’ve been sneaking back to this house for the past few nights filling those bottles with gas and hiding the crates in the bush.
“The families living here had already cleared out that barn months ago and were using it as a dining hall. I knew they could get all those soldiers inside for a meal, but we needed to find a way to keep them in there for a while longer. I snuck over to Linda’s cottage one night to tell her what we wanted to do and she was immediately onboard. It was actually her idea to hold a barn dance with lots of booze and live music.”
“Why Linda? She in charge around here?” Mars asked.
“It’s either her or another woman named Carol.” Bray replied. “Carol pretty much keeps to herself, though, so I took a chance on Linda.”
“Alright, enough of this shit.” Xander said. “We’re in charge now and that’s all that matters. My only concern is whether or not we stay here or go back to meet Mick and the others at the resort. Will this place keep us all going for a few months or not?”
“Probably, but I can’t tell you for sure until I take a look at what they have left.” Bray replied. “These people were pretty well set, but I’m sure those animals went through a lot of their supplies.”
“Is the hunting still alright?” Xander asked, turning to Geoff.
“We haven’t been out since those soldiers arrived.” Geoff replied. “We already had a moose hanging, so…”
“…Where’s Tom?” Xander asked, cutting him off. He should have known Geoff’s response would only piss him off. Expecting a straight answer out of that guy was obviously too much to ask.
“Right here.” Tom replied.
“You think Mick and the guys will be able to keep it together for a while longer?” Xander asked. “They won’t lose their shit trying to act like normal human beings over there?”
“Ha! They’ll be fine.” Tom replied. “Joe’s the only one that’ll make life miserable for them, but my brother knows how to handle him.”
Turning back to Bray, Xander said, “I told Mick’s crew we’d bring all you guys back there, but I’d prefer to just make this place work until the weather improves. We might have to wipe our asses with Kenny’s t-shirts for a while, but I know these guys will bring back enough meat. There’s plenty of women here at least.”
“Screw ‘em.” Tom said. “Mick already called dibs on that Hess chick and I’d rather snuggle up with one of these women here than any of you assholes.”
“Ha! My man.” Xander said. “Exactly what I was thinking.”
“How many people living here, Bray?” Mars asked.
“I think there’s 24 women, maybe seven kids an
d four old guys.” Bray replied.
Mars looked at Xander knowing that his boss was working through the math. After a few more seconds of thought, Xander told them his plan.
“Alright, at first light tomorrow morning, I want some guys to take the sleds out to that shack and bring the moose back. We’re better off hanging it here at the house where we can keep an eye on it. We can’t do shit on empty bellies, so we’ll have ourselves a decent meal after that. Mars, I’ll leave you and Kenny in charge of getting that moose here. I’ll handle the barbecuing.”
“Gotcha.”
“We’ll need to hold a little meeting with those people tomorrow, tell them exactly how we intend to run this place.” Xander continued. “Bray, I want you to go talk to Linda tonight. Tell her to have everyone out front of her cottage at noon tomorrow.”
“You got it.”
“Did I hear her right earlier? Did Linda tell me those soldiers showed up in a bunch of old plow trucks?” Xander asked.
“Yeah, I guess there’s eight of them parked on the other side of town at the marina.” Bray replied. “They were guarding them pretty closely, so we haven’t taken a look at them yet.”
“Eight… for 50 guys?” Xander asked.
“Like I said, I haven’t seen them yet.” Bray said.
“Alright, take seven guys with you then.” Xander said. “After you talk to Linda, go pick them up and bring them here. I’m not leaving eight operational vehicles sitting around unguarded. Any idea where the keys might be?”
“Ha. I have some idea, yeah, but I sure as shit ain’t going into that barn after them. Not tonight, I’m not.” Bray said, looking over at Mars.
“Don’t look at me, man.” Mars said. “I’m not digging through a bunch of melted bodies.”
“I can get into them without keys.” Ken said. “I’ll go out to the garage and whip up a slim jim. Old highway trucks will probably start with a screwdriver.”
“My man.” Xander said. “We’re all set then. Tomorrow, once we’ve got those women under control, we’ll bring down a couple of trucks and ship out the ones we don’t need.”
“Some of them are getting kicked out?” Bray asked.
“Got no choice.” Xander replied. “Sounds like there’s around 35 mouths to feed down there. This ain’t meals on wheels we’re running here. Any woman with a kid can stay as long as you guys are willing to be responsible for them. You guys get to have a few associates around and a kid gets to survive the winter. Win-win. That means we keep seven women and seven kids. The other 20 or so get the boot. Dibs on the hot mom, by the way.”
“How do you know there’s gunna be a hot mom?” Tom asked.
“There’s always a hot mom, son.” Xander replied.
“There’s more than one.” Geoff whispered into Tom’s ear.
“We’ll load them in the trucks and take them over to the next town, leave them there with a few rifles and some ammo.” Xander continued. “If they survive the winter they can make their way back here in the spring. By then we’ll be long gone anyway. I’ll drive one of the trucks with Tom guarding the women. Mars can drive the other with Easton on guard duty.
“That’s it. That’s the plan… Get to work.”
Xander would pull Mars aside later and have a more candid conversation with him in private. He had already seen what these vindictive women were capable of and he had no desire to have their wrath turned on him. Xander would indeed ‘employ’ several, but the exiled wouldn’t be dealt with nearly as compassionately as he had led on. Selecting Tom and Easton to accompany them was in no way a random choice. He knew both of them to be nearly as ruthless as he and Mars could be. That attitude would serve Xander’s needs well on this particular road trip.
As promised, Xander would indeed provide a taxi service out of town, but he would be trucking them much further away than the next town over. Not only that, but he wouldn’t be handing over of any weapons either. The banished would soon find themselves abandoned far from home with nothing but the clothes on their backs. If any of them gave him any grief about it, Xander wouldn’t hesitate to eliminate their participation… in the rest of their lives.
◆◆◆
After telling the others to wait for him by the road, Bray climbed the front steps to Linda’s cottage to pay her a short visit. Xander’s orders were very clear. He was to ask her politely to have everybody here by noon, so that they could all decide together on a game plan. Of course, Bray had also been warned against divulging too much information to her or saying anything that might cause concern. Linda needed to believe that the bad men were finally gone and that friends had arrived.
Bray was a company man and although he didn’t like it, he would follow orders. He certainly didn’t intend to raise any alarm bells, but subconsciously he couldn’t help himself. He had lived amongst these people for some time now and knew most of them by name. Bray had even begun to think of some as friends. He had grown quite close to Linda in particular. True, roasting enemy soldiers alive had eaten up the bulk of their discussions, but he still felt they had formed a bond… however strange and sadistic.
Linda felt a connection with Bray as well and as he spoke with her, several subtle hints gave her the impression that he was hiding something. The way he refused to come in, choosing instead to stand outside in the cold, was his first tell. His inability to make eye contact with her was the second. The third clue came when Bray was making his way back down her front steps. Watching him leave, she simply asked if everything was alright. Without turning back, Bray hesitated slightly and replied that it was. The crack in his voice, however, chilled her more than the February winds that blew past her door.
As soon as Bray and his men were out of sight, Linda put on her boots and coat and ran next door to Vicky’s place. She had intended to go check in on her anyway, but now she had another more urgent reason to visit.
“Vicky, it’s Linda.” She called, knocking rapidly on her friend’s door. “Open up.”
Vicky soon opened the door a crack and peered out.
“Go home, Linda.” Vicky said. “The pain in my arm isn’t nearly as bad anymore. Carol already redressed it. I just want to go to bed.”
“Let me in, Vicky.” Linda said. “I’m glad your feeling better, but we have another problem on our hands.”
“Alright, come in then.” Vicky said. “Don’t let all the heat out.”
Linda stepped in and quickly closed the door behind her while Vicky stood back.
When Vicky and her friend Liz accidentally knocked their Molotov cocktails together, both bottles had instantly shattered. The ensuing fireball had sent them both diving into the snow with their coats on fire. Liz wasn’t hurt too badly because her leather coat had offered her some protection, but Vicky’s ski jacket hadn’t protected her at all. It had immediately melted and burned her in several places. Most of her burns were superficial, but the injury to her arm was horrendous. She ended up losing half of the skin on her forearm and the rest would probably be lost before long… if infection didn’t kill her first.
“There’s something we need to do, but I’m gunna need everybody’s help.” Linda said. “Where’s Carol?”
“I went to bed a while ago.” Carol said, interrupting from the staircase. “…and I’d still be there if you two hens would stop clucking.”
Linda and Vicky looked over and watched as Carol came down the stairs to join them.
“Sorry about that, Carol.” Linda said. “Get your stuff on… we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
◆◆◆
Bray’s group finally arrived at the marina, their last stop of the night. They were expecting to find eight beat up old relics, but instead their trip would net them seven highway plow/dump trucks and one fuel tanker. Considering they were from the late 70s to early 80s, they were surprised to find that they were all in remarkable condition as well. They all had Saskatchewan licence plates and their signage told them they had once belonged to the ‘Department o
f Highways and Transportation.’ Bray knew nothing about this particular branch of government, but he was sure of one thing… they definitely knew how to stretch out the life spans of their equipment.
The biggest surprise, however, was discovering how the North Koreans were able to transport 50 soldiers in only eight vehicles. Each plow truck had a decent sized trailer attached to the rear. Six pulled travel campers while one towed an enclosed cargo trailer. The campers looked comfortable enough, with beds and couches set up inside, but the cargo trailer was being used to carry most of their gear and pilfered treasures. Having a quick look inside, it became obvious that they had amassed an incredible collection of confiscated hunting rifles and shotguns as well. Several of them had no doubt belonged to the people living here.
Happy with the way this trip was turning out, Bray told the others to check out the marina store while Ken looked after stealing the trucks.
This is where Ken truly shined and Bray had always enjoyed watching him in his element. Braydon Ward was once a fairly decent ‘automobile reallocation enthusiast’ himself, but even he had to tip his hat to the master. He leaned against the tire of one of the enormous rigs and smiled as Ken did his thing. Ken had made several questionable life choices throughout his career, but it had all begun as a car thief. It was an occupation he had a particular propensity for and a skill that he didn’t shy away from showing off when the opportunity presented itself.
One after the other, Ken would hop onto a truck’s running board, quickly pop the driver’s side door lock and move onto the next. Once Ken had them all unlocked, he hopped behind the driver’s seat of the last one in line and disappeared behind the dash. After holding his breath for 30 seconds, Bray heard the truck’s tired starter whirr to life. A few seconds after that the old diesel finally awoke. It sputtering and rattled and blew clouds of black smoke as the cylinders tried to warm the engine’s enormous bulk. Ken even tested the controls to make sure that the plow functioned properly before moving onto the next.
EMP [Collateral Darkness] | Book 4 Page 20