by Mark Church
“Promise.” Kayla pats his chest with her hand
The tender moment is broken when Jake begins to hustle them all out, “We need to get moving. Gena, are you sure you want to stay here with the children? You can come with us if you want.”
“They’ll just get in the way, it’s better to keep them here. Besides, someone needs to watch over the Refuge.”
“Your choice. Mike, you ready?”
“Yep, ready when you are.”
“Then let’s get a move on.”
Everyone shares goodbye hugs and kisses before Jake and his group head for the truck. Those traveling to the Communication Outpost grab their gear and head for the back door.
Amy reminds Gena, “We’ll be back tomorrow afternoon. If you have an emergency, shoot into the air three times and we’ll come running.”
“Will do. You all be safe.”
Gena hugs each of them as they head out the door. Eli is the last to leave. He is hugging Grace and explaining to her that he’ll see her soon. Grace seems a little upset, so Emily and Luke redirect her with the promise of a game of hide and seek. She brightens up and hugs her dad one more time before running off to the living room with the other two children.
“I’ll take good care of her.” Gena makes a point to reassure him.
“She’s all I’ve got left,” Eli explains dolefully.
“Not true,” Gena whispers kindly, “you have us now too.”
Eli smiles and gives Gena a heartfelt hug before turning and exiting the back door to join the others.
Gena closes the door and looks out the window to watch as they cross the back yard before disappearing into the thick woods.
Gena quietly prays, “Dear God, I ask that you watch out over these people. Maybe they’re not all blood but they are family just the same. Please keep them safe and free from harm. It’s by your grace, and according to your will, that this will be done. I pray this in Jesus’ name, Amen.”
21 the recruits
Jake pulls the truck to a stop on the west side of the historic Fort Davidson battlefield. As intended, they are an hour early. He and the others exit the truck. They pause to look over the approximately four hundred, relatively flat acres that make up this hallowed ground. The vegetation consists of mostly tall grass, some scrubby brush, and a few large trees that haphazardly dot the landscape. The historic battlefield is bordered by two mountain’s – hills by Colorado standards – Pilot Knob and Shepherd’s. Valleys stretch out to the west and north but they, too, are boxed in by mountain ranges.
The battlefield and what remained of the old Union fort were regular stops for American Civil War history buffs when the country was thriving. The once modern museum and visitors center is still standing but it has been badly damaged by weather and wildlife, its artifacts looted long ago.
The fort was rudimentary even when it was actively manned. Its defenses consisted of raised earthen ramparts that served as perimeter walls, and wooden parapets to look out over open fields.
Jake notices a brass plaque lying in the high grass. Upon further inspection he sees the larger words that read, The Battle of Pilot Knob.
Upon closer inspection he is able to make out text that describes the infamous battle: ‘Eight thousand confederate soldiers marching towards St. Louis were directed to take Fort Davison before moving on to engage the union forces in the city commonly known as the Gateway to the West. The Union solders, led by Brig. General Thomas Ewing, outnumbered almost ten to one, fought valiantly, and the missteps of the confederate Major General Sterling Price enabled the much smaller force to repel the initial assault. The Union commander subsequently received orders to abandon the fort so he led his men through the enemy’s lines in the darkness of night, leaving a few behind to detonate the ordinance stores that would serve as a diversion. Confederate General Price, having believed the explosion to be an accident, waited until daylight to investigate only to find the fort empty. Due to his heavy losses from the fighting the day before, and the demoralizing escape of Ewing’s forces, Price was forced to abandon his planned assault on St. Louis. This battle, one of the biggest in Missouri, is perceived as a great victory for the Union army; and it very likely saved St. Louis from falling into Confederate hands’.
“Even though I’m not much for superstition,” Jake mutters, “we could use some of General Ewing’s luck.”
“Let’s consider it a good omen,” John agrees. “Superstitious or not, it’s way better than a bad omen.”
Jake and the others use the time before their volunteers arrive to walk the large field. They are looking for anything that could give them a strategic advantage.
John notes a creek that runs through the property. Years of flooding have carved a deep ravine that would be a perfect place to conceal fighters.
Pointing at a large rock outcropping on the top of one of the bordering mountains, Cole asks, “Is that the lookout you were talking about?”
“Yeah,” replies John. “I’m going to hike up there later today and...”
“We have company.” Mike interrupts while pointing east across the field. “I hope they’re friendlies.”
A group of men and women are approaching on foot. Still a long distance way, Jake raises his arm and waves. Those in the front respond in kind.
“It looks like our first volunteers are here.” Kate prepares to greet the newcomers.
Looking at his watch, John raises his eyebrows, “They’re a bit early. I suppose that’s a good sign.”
“It’s going to be a race to see who gets here first,” Cole points in the opposite direction, “there are some vehicles coming down the highway.”
It’s as if someone blew a starter’s whistle signaling the beginning of a race. People are coming from every direction and using every mode of transportation imaginable. Some are on foot and some are in vehicles, while others are on horseback or in horse drawn wagons. The approaching mass begins to congregate near the center of the field.
“Well,” Jake nods his approval, “I suppose they passed the punctuality test.”
“At a minimum, they showed up.” John watches the various groups mingle as the field fills with volunteers.
A caravan of six trucks pull up near where Jake has parked. Tim exits the lead truck and makes his way over to Jake. The rest of the vehicle’s occupants follow.
Tim seems genuinely surprised by the turn out, “It looks like we have a militia.”
Surveying the volunteers in the center of the field, Jake starts to smile, “By God, I think we do.”
Jake estimates approximately four hundred people have arrived, men and women of every ethnicity ranging in age between mid-teens to late seventies. Some have come from as far as thirty miles away.
Those who hadn’t attended yesterday’s rally strain to get a glimpse of the man who has called them to action. Some are pointing in Jake’s direction and talking among themselves. Jake is too far away to hear what they are saying.
“It appears that your militia is anxious to meet you.” Tim nudges Jake forward.
“So it seems. I guess there’s no time like the present.”
Jake begins walking towards the eager group. John and the others follow. The crowd instinctively quiets as he approaches.
Jake climbs onto the bed of a truck parked near the crowd’s perimeter. He invites John to join him.
Jake faces the crowd and yells so all can hear, “I have requested that you come here because we face an imminent threat. A threat that, if left unchecked, will destroy everything you hold dear and that includes your families and your communities. You have two choices. You can run, which would be futile. Or…you can stand and fight for what you have worked so hard to build. Hopefully you are here because you choose to stand and fight. If that is not your intention, I invite you to leave right now.”
Jake pauses as he looks over the crowd. No one moves.
“Okay, then,” Jake continues, “from this moment on we are brothers and sisters
in arms. A free people united in one goal. The goal of self-preservation, the preservation of family, and the preservation of community!”
The crowd roars their approval. Jake lets them go on for a few moments before gesturing for them to quiet down.
Jake sweeps his hand towards John, “This is John, our military commander. He will prepare us to face our enemy. He will make an army out of us and he will lead us to victory.”
Once again, the crowd cheers.
It’s pretty obvious these people have been looking for someone to unite them, to give them reason for optimism. In their hearts, they’ve known the government would come for them. It was never a matter of if, but when. Now they have their champion, someone to organize and lead them, someone to give them hope.
Now that the pep talk is over, it’s time to get to work. Jake and his folks, as well as Tim and some of his people, begin reviewing the recruit’s skills and organizing them based on abilities.
During the interviews they learn about a warehouse near town that contains tents and camping equipment previously used for Civil War reenactment. These items would be very useful to his burgeoning militia. Jake sends Cole and a few others to investigate.
The interviews also yield a list of useful assets including countless cases of dynamite stored in a nearby mine and various small arms and military-style long rifles along with ammunition.
Individual’s skillsets include everything from demolition experts to cooks. They’re also fortunate to find that they have numerous ex-military folks in their rank who saw action in the war. Their experience will definitely come in handy when they begin selecting platoon leaders.
When Cole returns from investigating the warehouse, he approaches his father, “Pop, we found a few hundred canvas tents, blankets, cook utensils, and other stuff I think we can use.”
“Great! Organize some volunteers to bring it all here tomorrow.”
“Will do.” Cole sketches a salute. “We’ll get on it first thing in the morning.”
Cole continues to impress his father. While he may be young, he’s a natural leader. And while Jake’s proud of his son’s maturity, he worries that youth more often than not goes hand-in-hand with reckless behavior. He’ll have to be careful not to push Cole too far, too fast.
The day is long, but much is accomplished. Before they call it quits, Jake tells his recruits he intends to sequester them at Fort Davidson Mondays through Fridays, and that they’ll only be allowed to return to their communities for the weekends. There is some minor grumbling about his order but overall it is generally well received.
The sun begins to set. Before he relieves the militia for the day Jake orders them to return at 8:00 am in the morning. He also tells them to bring a few days’ worth of food and other essentials to hold them over until other arrangements can be made.
Jake is hoping that by next week the detail he assigned to logistics will be able organize enough food, water, and other items to supply his militia. He’s counting on all of the communities to contribute.
Defeating the government’s army is the ultimate goal but before that they’ll have plenty of other challenges to overcome and keeping food in the militias’ belly is problem number one.
✽✽✽
Those making the trek to the Communication outpost arrive unscathed. Their trip is uneventful, no cats and no twisted ankles.
The compound appears to be just as Cole and Kayla left it a few days earlier. Shadow and Bull sniff around the area and while re-marking their territory with fresh urine.
“Come on, I’ll show you around.”
Kayla begins by showing them the main cabin. To Hannah and Eli’s surprise, the cabin is well kept and cozy. They will need to tidy up a bit but aside from that, it‘s move-in ready.
After they have time to fully explore the main cabin, Kala leads on, “I’ll show you the communication building next.”
Amy sees a quick movement in the woods to her left as they move between the buildings. Almost simultaneously, the two dogs freeze and appear to scan the area before growling and bolting in that direction.
“What’s gotten into them?” Eli watches the dogs bound through the underbrush.
“They must have seen what I saw,” Amy comments.
“What was it?” Now Hannah is scanning the tree line looking for them too.
“I’m not sure.” Amy has an idea what she might have seen but doesn’t want to scare the others.
“Was it someone,” asks Hannah, “or something?”
“Something. And it was big.”
Eli readies his rifle and walks towards the area in question. The wary women scan the area for more signs of movement. The dogs can be heard barking off in the distance.
Eli returns, “Whatever it was, it’s gone now.”
“I bet it was that cat,” Kayla proposes.
“It’s probably been stalking us.”
“I’m surprised the dogs didn’t know it was there.” Amy is puzzled by the dog’s behavior.
“It stayed upwind,” Eli observes.
“That’s why the dogs didn’t smell it.”
“Clever cat. You two are going to have to be careful up here with that thing lurking around.” Amy warns Hannah and Eli.
The two dogs reappear from between the buildings. They are panting but otherwise unharmed. They circle and rub against Kayla with wagging tails. They are obviously looking for praise after chasing away the threat.
“Good boy, good girl,” Kayla exclaims as she makes over the dogs. Their mouths spread wide in a typical Pit Bull smile as their tails whip the air.
“I’m assuming you are taking these two back with you?” Eli asks.
“I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t have it any other way. They go where Kayla goes.” Amy explains.
“Too bad. It’d be nice to have watch dogs around.”
“We’ll be adding to our pack very soon. Shadow here is about to deliver her pups.” Kayla is happy to think of some of Shadow’s pups staying in the family, so to speak.
“I can see that, though it hasn’t seemed to slow her down much.” Hannah is clearly fond of dogs too.
“She’s a tough girl,” says Amy, “I imagine she’ll act pretty much the same until the moment she goes into labor.”
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to place my order,” Eli asserts, “Grace would love to have a puppy of her own.”
“Consider yourself first on the list,” Kayla agrees proudly.
“Let’s keep moving, I want to get back before dark.” The unseen presence in the woods has spooked Amy a bit.
When they enter the building where the radio equipment is set up, a pencil eraser sized light shines brightly in the dim light.
They pull back the shades covering the window. It turns out the glow is emanating from a light on the inverter box next to the word Power. The broadcast equipment sitting beside it is idle.
“It looks like we have power to the inverter,” Eli confirms.
“May I try the radio?” Hannah sits down next to the equipment.
“Go for it.” Amy is eager to see Hannah in action and is impressed at the proficiency Hannah is now displaying.
An audible click is heard when Hannah turns the power knob. The radio comes to life as squelches and static sounds fill the air and lights illuminate the equipment’s gauges.
Hannah adjusts the volume to a comfortable level and then begins turning the frequency dial until she hears voices. The voices are speaking English and seem to have American accents. The conversation is somewhat businesslike but friendly. They are discussing encounters with soldiers. They continue to listen, hoping to get a clue about the broadcasters’ locations. Unfortunately, the conversation ends before that information is revealed so Hannah notes the frequency and continues turning the dial.
It’s not long before Hannah comes across another conversation but this time it’s in Spanish. Fortunately, she speaks Spanish.
Hannah listens until the conversati
on ends.
Hannah translates, “They said that the government soldiers ambushed one of their scavenging parties. Four were killed and two were badly injured.”
“It sounds like the government might be ramping up its attacks everywhere,” observes Eli.
“They are probably probing defenses, which likely confirms our suspicions that an all-out offensive is on the horizon.” Amy makes a mental note to fill Jake in on these developments.
A palatable feeling of distress settles over everyone as Amy’s observation sinks in. They’ve heard the concerns many times before but hearing it from other people, in other places, makes it all the more real.
Sensing their dread, Amy abruptly changes the subject, “Let’s see the rest of the facility.”
The tour continues with Kayla showing them the deep well before climbing the lookout tower to see the beautiful valley views.
They indulge themselves for a few minutes enjoying the scenery, before descending from the tower. When they reach the bottom, Amy yawns and asks, “Is that the end of the tour?’
“Nope.” Kayla looks mischievous. “I’ve saved the best for last.”
“Ohhh! There’s more – and it’s better than what we have already seen? I can’t wait!”
Kayla walks them to a familiar mound near the perimeter of the compound not far from the residents’ cabin. “Here it is,” she announces.
“Here’s what?” Amy looks about in puzzlement.
Kayla begins moving brush and debris from the storage cellar access door. When the others see the exposed door they move closer for a better look.
“I can’t believe I forgot about the storage cellar!”
Kayla grabs the doors handle. She rotates it clockwise and, with a little effort, pulls it wide open.
Having exposed the entrance, Kayla reaches inside and flips the light switch. LED lights illuminate the interior of the storage cellar.
With a sweep of her arm towards the illuminated room, she says, “Tada!”
“How are the lights working?” Hannah wonders.
“The repaired turbine has had time to recharge the batteries. The entire place is powered that way.”