“Shauna told you? Is she here too? Where are they?” Eric could barely contain his excitement at the thought of an imminent reunion with this family that very day.
“No sir, Mr. Branson. I mean, yes, your wife told me, but no, she’s not here, and neither is your daughter, Megan. Your wife and nephew, Jonathan, came here looking for her though.”
“Megan’s not here? Was she here before? Do you know where she is?”
“No sir. She was never here since the refugee center was established. I have no idea where she is.”
“Well, what about my wife? Where did she go if she’s not here?”
“I’m not sure exactly. When she was here she asked about Megan’s friends, and it turned out that one of them is being held here, in the detainment sector. Your wife went in and spoke with her and I think she must have learned something of your daughter from her. They left here to go somewhere else in search of her.”
“Who is this girl? I’ve got to speak with her myself then! I’ve got to find out everything she knows!”
“Mr. Branson, I went way out on a limb to get your wife inside. It was extremely dangerous to do so and the repercussions for both of us could have been severe if we were found out. I can’t do that again.”
“Sure, you can! If you did it once, you can do it again!”
“Look, I don’t think there’s a reason to anyway. Let’s just say your wife compensated me for the risk I took. She got her information, and then she said she’d make it worth my while if I’d do her one more favor.”
“One more favor? Like what?”
“She told me you might show up here eventually if you were still alive. She asked me if she could leave a letter for you in case you did. She said that you would likewise compensate me in the same way when I delivered it to you.”
“What are you saying? You want me to bribe you to give me the letter?”
“No one knows it exists but me. Your wife said you would want it and that you’d gladly give me another one of those shiny South African coins for it. You know, the ones with the pretty antelope on one side? The ones that contain a half-ounce of gold?”
“Or, I could just take it!” Eric said. “It sounds to me like you’ve been more than compensated for your trouble, Miss Tonya Dale!” He glared back at her face after glancing at her name tag.
“You could try that if you want, sir. Then you might get lucky and get to visit with your daughter’s friend in the detention sector after all, but more likely you’ll be shot by the guards before you even have a chance to open the envelope. Do you think it’s worth it?
Eric continued to glare at her for a moment and then broke into a big smile. He couldn’t blame her really. Shauna had already given her gold and promised he’d give her more if he turned up here. She was just taking advantage of an unexpected opportunity like any good capitalist would, and he had to respect that. The gold wasn’t worth a damned thing to Eric other than a means to get what he wanted, and right now what he wanted was that letter.
“Okay, you win. Just excuse me a second while I turn around and get it out. Don’t worry, the guards have already checked me for weapons, but it just so happens that the last one of those I happen to have is hidden inside my trousers.
“It was in a secret pocket,” Eric said, smiling again when he saw the look on her face as she was deciding whether or not the coin he placed on her desk was safe to touch. “Is this what you wanted? Now, can I have that letter? And do you mind if I read it right here before I leave in case I have any questions for you afterwards?”
“Fine with me,” she said as she put away the coin and handed over the sealed envelope. “I don’t know anything I haven’t already told you though.”
Eric crossed to the other side of the room and opened Shauna’s letter, skimming it quickly once and then reading the words more carefully, he saw that Tonya was right. There was nothing else she could tell him. Of course, he could ask her if she knew anything of the place he now knew that he was going to next, but Shauna had cautioned him not to. She hadn’t mentioned Tonya outright, but her words implied that it might be best if the authorities here didn’t know where Megan and her friends went. Eric decided she was right; the less anyone knew, the better. The letter was worth far more than its weight in gold, which is what he paid, because now he knew where to look, for both Megan and for Shauna and Jonathan. The date Shauna had written at the top told him how much of a head start the two of them had on him. It was significant, but he knew that the terrain would slow them down if they went all that way on their bikes. Maybe he would catch up before they got there, or maybe not. Either way, it was time to get moving. He thanked Tonya and told her he didn’t have any more questions. He left the building and headed down the street to where his ride was waiting a couple blocks away. The two soldiers in the Humvee had orders to drive him here and then to take him back to their headquarters if that’s what he wanted but giving him a lift elsewhere wasn’t part of the deal. They made that clear when he told them his new destination was west, into the mountains.
“Sorry sir, but that’s outside of our AO and off limits to us. We can drop you off a few miles past the edge of town, but that’s as far as we can go. I wish we could do more, but I know you understand orders.”
Eric assured the driver that he did. Lieutenant Holton had made good on his promise and had delivered Eric to Boulder; he expected nothing more in the way of official help. He had weapons and provisions and a backpack to carry them in, and a destination that he could reach on foot if he had to. But when the other private in the Humvee asked him how far he was planning to go, Eric named the valley that Shauna had described in her letter. He told him that she and Jonathan planned to use the Continental Divide Trail for part of the way as a shortcut and that he figured he’d do the same.
“If they went that way, I sure hope they weren’t caught out up there in the high country in that storm.”
“What storm?” Eric asked.
“The first real front of the season. What was it, seven, eight days ago?” He asked, turning to his companion.
“Yep, a week ago Monday, wasn’t it?”
“Was it a lot of snow? Like a blizzard?” Eric asked.
“Up there? You bet. Not a good place to be for folks that aren’t familiar with the weather around here, that’s for sure.”
Based on Shauna’s letter, Eric knew the two of them were likely en route to the ranch at that time. He didn’t know how fast they were traveling, but it wasn’t fast enough to get that far on the bikes and certainly not on foot if they had to hike part way. He could only hope they were in one of the valleys when the storm hit, and that they found a place to take shelter. Storms like that in the mountains weren’t to be taken lightly and could easily prove fatal to the unprepared.
“That route will still be passable now,” he continued, as long as you don’t get caught by the next storm, but if you’re going on foot, you don’t want to go the way they went. If you’re hiking anyway, there are shortcuts out of the valley here on other trails that’ll take you to the divide.”
“I don’t suppose you have a map?”
“No, not here with me, but I can pretty well sketch out the route from memory. There are National Forest Service trail signs at the major junctions, and most of the trails are well-marked—or at least they were before—but who knows what the vandals out here may have done since? They may have torn all the signposts down, for all I know. But even if you don’t have any trouble following the route, it’s going to take you days, man. Even using the shortcut.”
“Well, if I had a better option, I wouldn’t be walking at all, but you guys have your orders and unless you know someone I can hire to take me there, what other choice do I have?”
Eric thought the conversation would end there, but then the driver spoke up. “You could find someone to take you for hire, the problem though, is how are you going to pay for it? Most people are leery of cash right now, and you can’t blame them. Th
ings like food and ammo go a lot further, especially on the black market, but if everything you’ve got is in that pack, you’re not carrying enough of anything to trade for a ride like that. Gas is hard to come by, and folks that have it aren’t going to burn it unless they’ve got a damned good reason to go somewhere.”
“I’m well aware of the situation regarding cash,” Eric said. “And the gas shortage. And yeah, you’re right that I’m not carrying enough food or ammo to trade for much, but since I’ve been back from overseas, I’ve found there’s a lot of interest in an old trading standby that never seems to go out of fashion.”
“Oh yeah? And what would that be?”
“Gold.”
“Gold?” The soldier laughed. “Yeah, I suppose gold would hold its value in times like these, but who the hell carries gold around with them?”
“I do,” Eric said. “So, if you know someone willing to drive me to that ranch, I can give them a solid ounce of the stuff. And in the form of an internationally-recognized coin that is stamped with the content of that particular metal by weight. It was easily worth more than a grand even before the crash, and a lot more now, no doubt.” A full Krugerrand was a lot to pay for a ride that should only be a few hours one way, but Eric knew if he had to hike it, he was looking at several days, minimum. And now that he knew where Megan had gone, he didn’t care what he had to pay to get there faster. He needed to make sure he arrived before Shauna and Jonathan left with her, as he knew they would if Shauna had her way. He simply didn’t have days to spend hiking. And so he made an offer that would get some attention, and it certainly worked.
“A whole ounce of gold? No shit? Man, I think my son will drive you there for that. He’s got a four-wheel-drive Toyota truck, and he knows all those backroads. If you’re serious, we can stop by and ask him.”
“Damned right I’m serious.” Eric handed him one of the Krugerrand coins, letting the two of them inspect it closely. When they pulled away from the university, they made a detour off the direct route back to the checkpoint where the soldiers were stationed and turned into an exclusive gated community that was now occupied by security forces and their families. Eric waited in the Humvee with the other soldier while the driver went into the house he’d been assigned to get his son. When they came out, Eric saw that the son wasn’t quite the teenaged kid he’d expected, but a young man of perhaps thirty.
“This is Kyle. He’s grown up hunting in those mountains where you’re going, and he knows the roads. He’s got a full tank of gas in his Tacoma and jerry cans with more strapped in the bed. He can get you to that ranch today and he’s willing to do it for what you said you’d pay.”
“Can I have a look at that gold piece?” Kyle asked after Eric introduced himself and shook his hand.
“Sure,” Eric handed him the coin. “That’s a South African Krugerrand. One ounce of 22-karat gold, guaranteed. I’d say it’s a more than enough to cover your expenses and time for a quick jaunt into the mountains.”
“There’s more to driving around out there than just the time and the fuel. There’s a lot of risk in it too. Some folks will kill for a pickup with a full tank these days.”
“I don’t doubt it. If you’re not up for it, I don’t blame you. I’ll try to find a ride somewhere else.”
“No, I’ll do it. I’m just telling you like it is. We could run into trouble.”
“I’ve been running into trouble ever since I got back to this country. I’m ready for it. You don’t have to worry about the trip on the way out, but if you have a weapon, you’d better bring it. You’ll be driving home alone.”
“He’s not supposed to be carrying weapons as a civilian,” Kyle’s dad said, but there aren’t any checkpoints where you’re going and so of course, he will. Kyle’s got a Daniel Defense AR and a Sig pistol. He can take care of himself. The main thing is that if you two are going to agree on this, you need to get going now, so he’ll have plenty of time to get back here before dark.”
Kyle’s pickup was equipped with front and rear winches and in addition to extra fuel, he had other emergency supplies and tools stashed in the toolbox and behind the seats. He’d brought a stack of maps out of the house too for Eric to peruse on the ride. They included National Forest Service maps of the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests, as well as Continental Divide Trail maps and state maps showing the bigger picture of the location of the ranch that was Eric’s destination. After talking with Kyle and seeing all this, Eric didn’t have the slightest regret in paying him what he’d offered. And if they reached that ranch and found Megan and Shauna and Jonathan, he already knew he would reward the young man by doubling that. There would still be enough between what he had and what he hoped Shauna was still carrying for them to make their way back to Louisiana, where the rest of his stash was safe aboard Dreamtime. But Eric knew it was pointless to plan that far ahead just yet. He was still hours away from that ranch, even with the pickup ride, and he knew anything could happen out there on the road. Naturally, it did.
They were on a gravel forest service road Kyle had taken to cut a significant distance off the trip total, winding up a series of steep switchbacks to a pass over the Continental Divide when disaster struck. Other than a few mule deer and a single black bear crossing the road, they had seen no sign of life up there and certainly no other traffic. But upon the approach to the apex of a blind bend that disappeared ahead around the side of the mountain, Kyle and Eric were suddenly faced with two SUVs barreling downhill towards them at speeds that bordered on suicidal on a road like that one. Kyle was hugging the loose shoulder as far to his side as possible, and in the passenger’s seat of the cab, Eric felt as if he were already hanging over the edge of the steep slope that fell away into the canyon to their right. But Kyle had no choice but to try and ease over even farther to avoid a head-on collision, and when he did, Eric felt the right-side wheels drop away as the two SUVs blew by. The Toyota truck began to tip over, seemingly in slow motion, before it rolled sideways down the slope. Both of them were wearing their seatbelts, and Eric had just enough warning to get a good grip on the handle above his door, but there was little else that either of them could do, as gravity was in control now.
Unlike many of the slopes they’d passed on the way up, this one was heavily wooded with closely-spaced conifers, so it wasn’t really possible for the truck to roll all the way down to the creek they’d seen hundreds of feet below. Instead, the spruce and fir trees brought it to a stop after one full 360-degree roll and another half turn that left it upside down and smashed against the rocks and tree trunks some 15 feet below the roadway.
Eric glanced at Kyle to check that he was still alive and then braced himself against the top of the cab so he could release his seatbelt. He had bumped his head pretty hard against the pillar, but the aftermarket roll bar Kyle had installed on the pickup prevented the cab from being crushed. Kyle was bleeding from a cut on his face, but considering how much worse it could have been, Eric felt they got off light. He could still hear the SUVs tearing down the mountain road in the distance, the drivers not caring whatsoever that they’d just forced another vehicle off the road.
“Are you okay?” Eric asked. “Anything broken?”
“I don’t think so,” Kyle said, as Eric cut him free.
The smell of gasoline was overpowering, and Eric remembered the extra fuel cans Kyle had lashed in the back. He reached over and switched off the ignition and then kicked the rest of the broken glass out of the window on his side. There was just enough room to squeeze out next to one of the tree trunks that had stopped their plunge. “Let’s get clear! I don’t like all that spilled gas!”
When they had crawled out with their weapons and moved their other gear to a safe distance, Kyle stared at his wrecked truck and then went into a rage, kicking a tree and cursing the drivers that had done this with every combination of profanity he could recall.
“It looked to me like the vehicle in the rear was chasing the other one. Th
ey were oblivious to us or anything else. Otherwise, you’d think they’d have seen what happened and turned around to see if they could help,” Eric said.
“Yeah, it was a chase all right. Assholes! I didn’t have a choice but to move over. We’d probably be dead if either one of them had hit us head-on.”
Eric agreed that he’d done the right thing. Both of the SUVs were full-sized. Tahoes or Expeditions or something of that type, though he hadn’t been looking for brand emblems at the time.
“My truck’s pretty much totaled. But even if it was still drivable, there’s no way in hell to get it back up there on the road. Dammit, we’re screwed!”
“No, it would take a wrecker with a crane to get it out of there, and you can’t just call one up now. But at least we’re both uninjured and we can still walk. And we’ve got our weapons and gear. It could be worse.”
“It’s going to be a hell of a long walk back home for me,” Kyle said.
Eric knew it would be, and he felt bad for him, but what could he do? Kyle had already driven him more than halfway. The Continental Divide Trail crossed this very road at the top of that pass they’d been headed for. Eric had no choice but to keep going until he reached it, and then he would take the trail south until he reached the road that led to the ranch he sought. Kyle would have to set out for home the way they came. If he was lucky, maybe someone would come along and give him a ride all or part of the way.
“I’m sorry about your truck, buddy, I really am,” Eric said. “I’ll tell you what, though. I was going to give you a bonus if you got me all the way to that ranch. We didn’t make it, but you still saved me days of hiking. If you’ll give me those trail maps, I’ll throw in another Krugerrand. It won’t replace your truck, but maybe it’ll help you get home.”
Fifteen
ERIC REACHED THE HIGH point of the road where it crossed the Continental Divide a little over two hours after leaving the scene of the wreck. It was an unfortunate accident, and even though both of them came out of it relatively unscathed, Eric knew that it put Kyle in a lot of danger, having to walk all that way back home. He was an experienced outdoorsman though, familiar with the area and well-armed, so Eric didn’t waste a lot of time worrying about him. He’d paid him double what they’d agreed on, and Kyle was the one behind the wheel when it happened, not Eric. There was little use in speculation as to what the drivers of those SUVs were up to either. They didn’t come back while Eric was on the road, so that was all that mattered. Out here, well away from human habitation, he was hiking with the M4 out of his pack and ready for action. But he reached the trail without needing it, and after pausing to study Kyle’s maps to make sure of his location, Eric set out to the south on the well-trodden footpath. If Shauna and Jonathan succeeded in what she’d laid out in her letter, then the two of them had passed this way a week or so ahead of him. Eric smiled to himself, thinking about that Florida kid’s reaction to this stunning scenery. From the pass he’d left at the road, the trail quickly wound up a ridgeline that fell away thousands of feet on either side, with vistas of jagged, snow-capped peaks as far as the eye could see in the distance. Even down there not far above the pass, there was nearly a foot of snow on the ground in places from the recent storm, and Eric knew more would be coming. In the weeks to come, this high country would be nearly impassable, but the weather was fair and clear now, and if he didn’t have any more setbacks, he could make that ranch before the next storm hit.
Feral Nation Series Box Set 2 [Books 4-6] Page 14