Fight Like Hell [America Falls Series | Books 1-6]

by Medbury, Scott

  Riley’s eyes widened, and Orton could see his leader’s brain working overtime.

  “We must make the offer to them. This professor sounds invaluable, and Concord sounds like the perfect staging point for our expansion to the east coast.”

  Orton knew by ‘offer’ he meant ultimatum.

  “I agree. How do you want to proceed, Sir?”

  “Well now that your men have slaughtered and tortured their scouting party, an envoy would seem to be out of the question. Still, we can deny any knowledge. I would rather take the city intact, and I’m sure they’ll be willing to swear allegiance when they understand we can crush them if they fight.”

  “Might I suggest sending our own scouting party with strict instructions not to engage, first? It would pay to size them up before giving the ultimatum.”

  “Yes, alright,” said Riley after thinking for a few seconds. “I guess we’re in no rush and a clearer picture of what we’re dealing with would help.”

  “Yes sir, I’ll organize it right away.”

  Riley watched his general go. He was aware that William Orton didn’t always agree with his decisions or the way he ran things. He didn’t care. The fact was, Orton was a big part of the reason they were where they were today. His strategic thinking had been crucial to their rapid expansion and Riley was careful to heed his advice.

  The downside was, the man had a cruel streak and bore careful watching. Minutes before Orton arrived, one of Riley’s spies had already informed him of the death of the Concord man and everything he’d told Orton. He also knew Orton had stayed to watch the man die.

  Yes, Orton had his secrets but so did Riley. One of them was the fact that Riley had ordered a tunnel from the Brownhouse to the ‘secret police’ headquarters be built. It hadn’t been dug from scratch, but his hand selected team had made clever use of the old sewers, only having to dig through three sections to fashion a tunnel that ran almost directly from one building to the other.

  Yes, best to keep an eye on things. No one was 100 percent reliable.

  8

  Two days after Luke’s homecoming, he and Isaac were travelling back to Concord. Luke had spent those days getting to know his daughter and was surprised at the depth of emotion he felt now at leaving her for just a few hours.

  “It’s okay Luke; I’ll look after her and I have Uncle Ben to keep me in line okay?” Indigo had told him. “Go! Have fun.”

  After another two minutes of instructions and hugs and kisses, Isaac had finally dragged him through the door.

  Isaac drove to Concord in the Jeep. They had a meeting scheduled with Randall to discuss the captured members of the Brotherhood. Luke also wanted to pay a visit on Diana and find out how long before she was fit enough to move to Manchester. He didn’t say as much to Isaac, but he was also looking forward to seeing Becky, the colonel’s PA, again.

  As for the brothers, he had mixed emotions about how to deal with them. While he knew they couldn’t all be bad, the only experience he’d had with them was that they were either killers or following the orders of killers.

  There was a new checkpoint on the road into Concord with two armed guards stationed at a boom gate. Orange water barrels blocked the sidewalk on both sides of the road.

  “What’s this?” asked Isaac, as he pulled up.

  “No idea,” said Luke.

  One of the guards, a fresh-faced kid who could have been no older than 17, came over.

  “Hello sir’s,” he said, clearly recognizing them.

  “Morning. We’re here to see the colonel.”

  “Yes sir, we were told about your visit, you can drive on through.”

  “What’s with the new checkpoint?” Isaac asked him, as the other guard raised the boom gate.

  “Colonel’s orders sir,” he said. “They’re on all the major roads in, north south and west.”

  “Do you know why?”

  The kid looked like he was going to say something but then changed his mind.

  “It’s above my pay grade, sir.”

  “Okay then. Thanks, see you on the way out,” said Isaac, heading through the checkpoint and into town.

  They noticed more activity as they drove, side streets being barricaded, people in a park filling sandbags with soil.

  “Looks like he’s preparing for an invasion,” said Isaac.

  “Maybe the scouting party Randall sent east is back?”

  While security on the roads had been beefed up, they walked into Randall’s headquarters without anyone stopping them. Luke led the way up to the third floor, his leg and crutch making it slow going. Becky was behind her desk, just as he had imagined. She looked up as they approached.

  “Luke!” she said, standing up from behind her desk. She was dressed, as she had been last time, in a black skirt and white blouse, but her hair rather than being pulled back in a tight bun was down and fell over her shoulders in soft waves.

  “Hi, Becky.”

  “I heard you were back,” she said, meeting him and giving him a brief hug. “You were the talk of the town the other day. How is your leg?”

  “It’s okay. Hopefully I’ll get rid of this crutch in a few days,” he said, then thought back to his rescue and being reunited with Erin. “Yeah, the other day was all a bit of a blur, sorry I didn’t get to see you. You know Isaac?”

  “I sure do, we met when he came to visit the colonel last time. Hi Isaac,” she said and held out her hand.

  Isaac shook it.

  “Hey Becky, is the boss in?”

  “Sure is. One sec.”

  Becky turned and knocked on the door. Luke pretended not to notice Isaac looking at him curiously.

  “Isaac Race and Luke are here, sir.”

  “Show them in,” came the gruff voice.

  Becky held the door open for them. Luke felt his face heat up as he squeezed past the smiling girl. Randall came around the desk and shook both their hands as Becky closed the door behind them.

  “Have a seat, boys. How are things going in your neck of the woods?”

  “Pretty good,” said Isaac. “The tower is fully populated now, and we’ve been working on our defenses. Speaking of…”

  “Ah, the checkpoints? Seems a bit of overkill given how well defended we are, I guess.” He looked troubled. “The team I sent east to scout and find out more about this ‘army’ is a week overdue. I thought it might be time to plan for the future…”

  “Maybe they’re just delayed?” said Isaac.

  “No, not these guys,” said Randall, his face a little pinched. “If they were physically able to, Branson would have had them back. No, a week means they’ve been intercepted, and I have to assume the worst.”

  “No comms obviously?”

  “No, sat phones are useless junk since the Chinese took control of our tech during the invasion. We have walkie talkies and CB radio, but obviously they were out of range.”

  “You think they’ve been killed?”

  “Captured at the least, maybe killed. I’m assuming a worst-case scenario.”

  “Which also means you have to assume they might have been interrogated…” said Luke.

  Randall nodded.

  “Are you sending another team?” asked Isaac.

  “Yes. I liked your tactic of the boys on the motorcycles when you were dealing with the Marauders; it was clever. So, this time I’m sending Bowman and another man. Two-person tag team. I want intel this time, so they’re under strict instructions to return once they have something to report. Or, in the case of a troop movement, they get their asses back here asap.”

  “You really think this New America is that aggressive?” asked Isaac. “It seems a long way to come.”

  “If what we’ve heard is correct, they will come. They hold sway over the entire state of New York. More concerning is that they have a large presence in Albany. Apparently it was their first capitol. I’ll send Bowman and the other man to watch the main route between Rochester and Albany. I assume if they m
ake a move, they’ll head from Rochester to Albany first, then make that their staging point if they do decide to cross Vermont and come after us.”[JM1]

  “Hopefully they stay their side of the border,” said Luke.

  “We’ll see. Now, how do you boys want to deal with the seven prisoners?”

  “I’ll let Luke tell you his idea,” said Isaac.

  “I think we should send them back,” said Luke. “I’d like to talk to the one who ordered them to surrender. He saw Brother Jarryd had betrayed them and, while I don’t like the way they do things, I think if we allow them to return with a message that we’re not looking for a fight, it will be one less thing to worry about.”

  “Good plan, son. They’ve been treated well since they surrendered, so I don’t think there’ll be any complaints. They’re in cells at the PD. When do you want to do it?”

  “Now’s as good a time as any I guess,” he said waving vaguely in the direction of the police department that was two doors down. “It’s close.”

  “Yes, I’ll come with you. Maybe my gray hair will lend some authority to the situation.”

  A short time later one of Randall’s men opened the door of the first cell. It contained the one called Simon and three more. Simon stood when the door opened, his eyes widening when Luke, leaning on his crutch, filled the doorway. The other men stood up, alarmed.

  “It’s okay boys,” he said, holding up his good hand. “I’m only here to talk.”

  “What do you have to say?” said Simon, taking a step toward him.

  “I have an offer for you but let’s go somewhere more amenable to conversation.”

  A minute later Luke led Brother Simon into the conference room of the station where Isaac and the uniformed colonel awaited. Simon stopped in his tracks when he spotted the old man. While he’d seen that some of the soldiers were in their thirties, he hadn’t seen anyone with gray hair nearly six years.

  “You look like you just spied a ghost son, take a seat.”

  “He kind of did,” said Luke, as Simon sat down. “Not many of you elders around anymore.”

  “Sorry,” said the still shocked brother. “I haven’t seen anyone really old since before…”

  Randall laughed as Isaac and Luke suppressed giggles.

  “Well, there are a few of us around,” he said. “More here in Concord than you’re likely to see on the entire continent. But, let’s get to it. Luke?”

  Luke sat down at the head of the table and looked at Simon earnestly.

  “We’re letting you go.”

  “I see,” said Simon after the words had sunk in. “But?”

  “No buts, just a proviso. You’re free to head back to your people, but we want you to give a message to your leadership. Stay in Maine. No revenge attacks. No mischief this side of the border. You’ve seen our firepower here; we have an army of more than a thousand men.” Luke ignored the quick look Isaac gave him. “Understood?”

  “You’re letting us go?” asked Simon, perhaps more used to the Brotherhood’s version of justice.

  “Yes. We’re willing to let bygones be bygones, even after the pain and suffering you caused for the people of Willatan Green, but any aggression from the Brotherhood will be met with fire and fury. Is that clear?”

  “Yes, sir,’ said Simon. “I’ll be sure and tell them how well we were treated, too.”

  Luke nodded and held his hand out to the younger man. They shook.

  “Excellent,” said Randall, standing up. “Now that’s settled, I’ll see you on your way with some supply packs.”

  Simon stood. He flinched when Randall put a big paw on his shoulder and squeezed as he directed him through the door.

  “Don’t let us down, Son…”

  After they’d gone, Isaac looked at Luke.

  “A thousand men? Fire and fury?”

  Luke grinned.

  “Well, it doesn’t hurt to embellish details a little. Was ‘fire and fury’ too much? I was going to go with shock and awe, but I’ve always been a fan of alliteration. Friends will flip-flop fast when facing trouble.”

  “Come on,” said Isaac, shaking his head happily. Clearly the old Luke was on his way back. “Let’s go see your friends.”

  ***

  Diana was on the mend and happy to see Luke. Samuel was being looked after by Cathy in a wing of the hospital that had been set aside for accommodation. He got to see his mom every day.

  “So, you haven’t changed your mind about coming to live in Manchester?” he asked. “I mean, they’re a bit more advanced on the road to civilization here in Concord.”

  “No, not at all. Besides Sammy would kill me if I told him we weren’t going to go and live with Uncle Luke. That kid idolizes you.”

  “Can you blame him?” Luke joked.

  “No, I can’t,” she said, seriously.

  Isaac rolled his eyes at Luke’s aww shucks face.

  They made small talk for twenty minutes before Isaac and Luke stood up.

  “The medic says you’ll be fit for travel in a few days. We’ll be back to take everyone then.”

  He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

  “Okay,” she said, as they headed to the door. “And Luke, thanks again for everything.”

  “No sweat, I’ll see you in a couple of days.”

  9

  Luke eased into his new life as a father with a lot of help. Indigo, Ben, and Diana were his main support when it came to Erin and, while tentative in the first few weeks, within a month he couldn’t have imagined how life was before she arrived.

  Diana and her group had been transported to Manchester as soon as she’d been fit enough for travel. Luke had insisted upon it. Diana and Samuel had moved in on the top floor with the rest of the core members of Isaac and Luke’s original group, in a room next to Ben. Like Luke, who had discarded his crutch after a week, her wound had healed nicely and, apart from stiffness in her back on cold mornings, she appeared unaffected by her ordeal.

  In fact, the weight of the world looked to have been lifted from Diana’s shoulders since her arrival, and Luke realized how much being responsible for the people of Willatan Green had worn her down. She looked years younger and just plain happier than the taciturn, jaded woman he’d had the good fortune to meet the night the dogs had attacked him.

  To his great satisfaction, she and Ben also seemed to have it hit off. While he and Isaac had spoken of the obvious attraction between the two, so far it hadn’t bloomed into anything other than friendship. They were careful to avoid the usual ribbing they might have given their English friend. Hopefully, it would morph into something more in its own time.

  As a bonus, Samuel and Cade had become good friends, and by the end of their first month, Cade had been ‘adopted’ and moved in to live with Diana and Samuel.

  In late September, six weeks after Luke’s return, they had their first council meeting since populating the Brady-Sullivan. They met in a large conference room on the 19th floor. The first item on the agenda was voting for the three-member leadership team.

  “I nominate Isaac,” said Luke automatically.

  “I second that vote,” said Ben. “And I also nominate Luke for the leadership team.”

  “I second both of those votes and nominate Diana for the third position,” said Indigo.

  “Oh, I don’t…”

  Diana was interrupted by Paul, Allie, and Ava.

  “Second!”

  “Anyone else?” asked Paul, who was chairing the meeting.

  “I nominate Paul!” said Diana, finally recovering from the shock of being nominated. She had been watching Paul and his organization skills as he oversaw the population of the building and allocation of jobs and thought he was great leadership material.

  “No,” said Paul, immediately reddening at the sudden attention. “Sorry, I’m not really a leader. These guys definitely are, and you too by all accounts.”

  No one else was nominated, and the three were voted to the lead
ership group with no dissenters.

  “Next on the agenda, is birthdays,” said Paul. “Indigo.”

  “Thanks, Paul,” said Indigo standing up. “Well, some of you mightn’t be aware, but Isaac turned twenty-one while we were on the run from the Farm. He made me swear not to remind anyone, but now that we’ve settled into our new home, I think its time to celebrate. Not only that, but Luke is also turning twenty-one on November 10.”

  There were oohs and ah’s from the rest of the people around the table. The boys just looked embarrassed.

  “We don’t need to…” started Isaac.

  “Yes, we do!” said Indigo. “I propose we have a 21st birthday celebration party on the roof of the tower on the 10th of November.”

  A chorus of seconds followed. Neither of the boys was fond of the idea, but they were outvoted 11-2.

  “Fine,” said Luke in the end.

  He was more of a showman than Isaac, and the idea of being the center of attention began to grow on him almost immediately. Isaac was watching him as the hands went up around the table and just shook his head laughing as he watched his friends face change from reluctant to supremely happy in the space of a few seconds.

  What? Luke mouthed.

  Isaac just shook his head and conceded the party would go ahead.

  The rest of the agenda covered more mundane topics such as the continuing work on their new home.

  “Jamal, do you have an update on the power situation?” Paul asked.

  “I sure do. Its good news. The team that Colonel Randall sent last week has gotten everything ready with repairs but came across something we couldn’t fix. The professor arrives tomorrow, and he should be able to kick the plant into gear within a few hours. When it’s done, we can move off the generators and can distribute power to the whole Manchester grid as we get bigger.”

  “Wow, that’s awesome,” said Isaac. “Even better that we have a hydro powered plant so close.”

  “Yeah, the Merrimack river turned out to be a real bonus. It has powerplants dotted right along it. That’s also how they power Concord.”