by A. American
Thad patted his belly. “Guess so.”
“When was the last time you ate anything?” one of the other men asked.
Thad glanced away and said, “It’d been a while.”
“Thad, I’d like you meet Sheriff Billy Holland,” Taylor said, nodding his head toward one of the other two men at the table.
Thad looked at him. He didn’t look like a sheriff; he looked like everyone else around here. He wore the same BDU-style pants, black T-shirt and sheriff’s jacket that they all wore. Thad looked at him and said, “Nice to meet you, sheriff.”
The sheriff nodded and sat there looking at Thad for a minute before glancing at the man beside him. The other man just raised his eyebrows and went back to swirling the coffee in his cup.
“Thad, Captain Taylor tells me you had a run-in with the DHS, that true?”
“I wouldn’t say I had a run-in, but my wife and boy did.”
“That’s what I heard, and I also heard what you did about it. Was all that true?”
“Ever last word.”
The sheriff nodded his head. “Well, I’m sorry for your loss; I only wish you had made it here sooner. Lake County will not be taking any shit off any federal acronym.”
“That’s nice to know, sheriff. If I can do anything to help, just let me know. Far as I’m concerned we ain’t even yet,” Thad said.
“Where were you heading?” the sheriff asked.
“I was heading to a friend’s house. We walked together for a long ways when we was trying to get home. He’s the only person around here that I know now.”
“You walked home? From where?” Captain Taylor asked.
Thad spent the next few minutes telling the story of his trip home and all the things he and Morgan had been through. When he finished, the three men looked at one another, then back at Thad.
“Where’s your friend live, and who is he?” Taylor asked.
“The address is on a piece of paper in the front seat of the truck. It’s somewhere in Altoona. His name is Morgan and he’s a good man.”
The sheriff looked at Taylor and motioned with his head. Taylor got up and left the tent. The sheriff went to the serving line and returned with two cups of coffee, handing one to Thad.
“Thanks.”
“No problem. Your friend, his last name Carter?” the sheriff asked.
Thad nodded.
“Thad, this quiet guy over here is Captain Hall. He’s head of the jail.”
Thad nodded to Hall as he took a sip of the coffee and Hall did likewise. It wasn’t long before Taylor reappeared with the slip of paper and handed it to the sheriff, who looked at it and handed it back.
“Thad, under our current situation I am having to confiscate all running vehicles. One as useful as yours would be a big help to us right now. But where you’re going there are a couple of our men there. If I was to let you leave with the truck, would you turn it over to them when you got where you’re going?”
Thad sat thinking for a minute, staring down into his cup. He wasn’t sure what the hell was going on here. Were they actually going to let him drive out of here? If they did, he would turn the truck over, no big deal to him; he just wanted to get to Morgan’s house. After draining the cup he set it down and said, “Sheriff, I’ve been an honest man my whole life. I’ve never taken anything from anyone and I always provided for my family. I don’t have a family now. All I have now are a couple of friends, and at this point all I want to do is get to them. If you let me drive over there I’ll be happy to turn the truck over to your folks.”
The sheriff said, “Well, all right, then.”
Thad pulled out onto Highway 19 and couldn’t stop smiling. He had a letter, on Lake County Sheriff’s Office letterhead no less, that made sure he would get to where he was going. That they had taken the M4 and the tactical vest was an even trade in his mind. He reached over and picked up the hand-drawn map that Taylor had given him, and again he smiled and shook his head.
Thad kept an eye out for Lake Shore Drive. They had said it was the fastest way to Morgan’s house. Lake Shore was closer than he expected, and he made the left on it without having to wait for the light. This was just getting better and better. Thad enjoyed the ride along Lake Eustis; it was a huge lake and the road wound its way along the shore under a canopy of oak trees. On the right there were some large houses that faced the lake to his left. Thad looked at those big houses and wondered about the people that lived in them, what they did to make all that money and what they were doing now.
As Thad crested the bridge over the canal for the boat ramp, he slammed on the brakes. Sitting in front of him in the middle of the road were two Humvees. On the road on either side were sandbag emplacements. In each of these there was a machine gun mounted and both of them were pointing at him. Shit, Thad thought as he slapped the steering wheel. Several men were approaching the old Scout with their weapons raised. They ordered him to put his hands up and, with no other choice, he did as instructed.
As the uniformed men approached, they ordered him out of the truck and he again complied. Two men on the other side opened the passenger door and looked in. “Clear!” one of them called out. A man that Thad assumed was in charge of the operation came up holding his M4 across his chest as the two men who had ordered him out were searching him.
“He’s clean, LT,” one of them said.
“Where you headed?” the lieutenant asked.
“Just trying to get to my buddy’s house.”
One of the men from the passenger side came around the truck and handed the lieutenant a piece of paper. He read it then looked at Thad and handed it back to the soldier that brought it.
“The sheriff give you that?”
Thad nodded his head. The lieutenant stared at Thad for a moment as if he were searching him for some sign of deceit. After a long moment he called over his shoulder, “Find anything in there?” One of the men searching the truck replied, “He’s got some guns and shit, nothing major, though.”
The LT pointed at the truck. “You can get back in.”
Thad climbed in and shut the door. The lieutenant walked up and said, “Let me see your pass there,” and held out his hand. Thad handed it over and watched as the lieutenant took out his pen and made a note on it then handed it back.
“There’s another checkpoint you’ll have to go through on the other side of town. Just show them this. I’ll let ’em know you’re coming, and they won’t give you any trouble. If the sheriff says you’re good to go, that’s enough for me.”
Thad gave the man a nod, and the lieutenant stepped back and waved at his men. “Let him through!”
It was early morning, the sun was up and it was still a little chilly out. Downtown Eustis had a mix of business and residential areas, all intermingled. As he drove down the quiet street, Thad didn’t see any people; it was eerily quiet. He drove by the post office, then past a little strip mall. As he was negotiating a curve in the road, he again had to stop abruptly. In the road ahead was another roadblock. This time the men manning it didn’t instantly raise their weapons. One of them simply walked out to the Scout. Thad waited for the soldier to approach and held up the pass.
“Mornin’,” the soldier said as he came up to the window.
“Mornin’,” Thad replied.
The soldier looked at the pass with a quick glance. “LT said you were comin’. Where you headin’?”
“To my buddy’s place in Altoona.”
The soldier stood there for a minute looking at the truck. “How’d you manage to hang on to this old relic?”
“Just lucky, I guess.”
“Well, good luck.”
As the soldier started to leave, Thad asked, “Is there any trouble up ahead?”
The soldier turned back. “Nah, not really. It’s pretty quiet around here as far as we know. T
he farther you get from here the less we know, though, so be careful.”
According to the map Taylor had given him, it was straight shot up 19 to Morgan’s place. Thad made it to Umatilla in only a few minutes. There were a few people out, but not many. At the McDonald’s, he passed two men on horseback, and they stared at him as hard he did them. Before, it had been an oddity to see people on horseback in the middle of the road; now it was odd to see a moving car. It was as if some rift in time and space had opened up and two peculiarities were brought face-to-face for just an instant.
Thad made it through town and continued down the road. After winding his way through the small hills on the north side of town, he saw the sign for Altoona. Picking up his map, he saw his next reference point was Highway 42. Just a moment after putting the paper down, he saw the three little stores that marked the intersection of the two roads. The parking lot of the big Kangaroo store looked like a flea market. Makeshift tables had been set up and people were setting up their wares for the day’s trading.
The one thing that caught his attention was the two men in full camo holding rifles. He watched as one reached out and grabbed the other, pointing at Thad and his Scout. Thad kept his eyes on the two men as he passed them, and they also kept their eyes on him, talking between themselves and motioning toward the truck. In short order he passed the store, and as he passed the fire station Thad checked the mirror for the two men, but they weren’t there. Thad noticed the field on the left, just where Taylor said it would be, and he slowed the Scout, looking to the right side for the road sign. There was a barricade with armed men behind it, and they were looking at him.
• • •
Mike was firing his M4 at the helo that was coming straight at them, but with the bouncing he probably wasn’t coming close to it. Captain Lewis was still leaning on the cab, looking wide-eyed as the gunner raised the weapon to his shoulder. Doc, with his foot to the floor, was leaning over the wheel to look up at the approaching bird. Sarge was lying on his back, firing over the cab. His rounds too were probably ineffective. When the gunner opened up and the first rounds passed over the truck, Mike began to scream, a guttural, primal growl; flipping his weapon to full auto, he held the trigger back.
The first 30mm round passed through the rear compartment of the helo, coming in on the gunner’s side and going out the other. The men in the truck watched as he jerked his head to the right and fumbled for the MIC button for his intercom. He wasn’t fast enough, though, as the gunner in the Apache let loose a six-round burst that slammed into the engine compartment and tail boom of the ship. The guys in the truck watched as the helo folded, found its way into the blades and exploded into a blur of flying metal. As the helo spiraled to the ground, the gunner was flung out of the spinning ship. Mike and Sarge looked on as the man was spun around the falling ship from the end of his safety lanyard.
The Apache roared overhead and behind the tumbling aircraft, then made a hard turn and raced to catch up to the other one that was chasing the second DHS bird. Shouts and cheers erupted from the bed of the truck as the flaming wreckage of the helo landed in the trees to the right of the road.
“Raven Two-Two, Stump Knocker.”
Lewis grabbed his mic, and over the rush of wind and banging of the truck he replied, “Go for Stump Knocker!”
“Stump Knocker, we have you in sight. Looks like there is a clearing about half a click ahead of you that we can get into if you want us to.”
“Roger that, Raven Two-Two. See if you can fit and we’ll rendezvous there!”
“Roger, Raven’s inbound.”
Lewis slapped the roof of the truck and leaned around to the driver’s door and told Doc to look for the clearing. As he was talking, the Black Hawk roared overhead.
A clearing opened up on the left side of the road and Doc pulled off. As the Black Hawk flared for a landing, the other orbited the LZ to provide cover.
Everyone bailed out of the truck before it came to complete stop and were getting their gear together. Sarge was handing Pelican cases out to be loaded up. Captain Lewis looked at Sarge and said, “We don’t need any of that; let’s get aboard!” He shouted above the roar of the Black Hawk.
“We may not need it, but I do. It’s going!” Sarge made sure all of his radios as well as all of their weapons were loaded up and asked for an incendiary grenade. No one had one.
Lewis asked, “What do you want it for?”
Sarge pointed at the truck. “Burn it.”
They all hopped into the Black Hawk and it lifted off. The crew chief was scanning the tree line for threats, swinging the GE minigun back and forth as he did. Sarge tapped the gunner on the shoulder.
Pointing down at the truck, Sarge keyed the mic for the intercom and said again, “Burn it.” The gunner looked at Captain Lewis, who nodded, and the gunner lined up on the old Dodge and fired a short burst, missing the truck but quickly adjusted his aim and rounds began pouring into the truck. The other gunner, seeing the stream of red tracers spewing out of the other ship, began to fire on it as well. It wasn’t long before the truck was burning, the sheer number of rounds hitting it setting it on fire.
Sarge sat there looking out the open door at the fireworks. It was a bittersweet moment for him. On the one side the damn DHS wasn’t going to get his beloved old Dodge, but on the other side he was losing it.
Ted kicked Sarge’s boot, and when he looked over Ted nodded out the door. Off the starboard side of the Black Hawk they could see the two Apaches come up in formation with them. Sarge looked back at Ted and smiled, and Ted gave him a thumbs-up.
Chapter 26
Running with a weapon slung around your neck is a pain in the ass. I am not an Airborne Ranger, and I don’t want to be one. I had just rounded the corner onto my road when I saw an ATV start heading my way from the barricade. It was quickly gaining speed and I could see it was Reggie. He came past me in a blur, not even waving. I had to stop and stare at him; there was a person lying across the seat in front him, and while I couldn’t see the head as it was hanging off the other side, what I did see was that the feet were bound.
I stood there looking at him as he sped down the road, slowing just enough to negotiate the corner onto his road. What the fuck is that all about? I wondered. At the moment, though, I had other shit to do and headed for the house. As I came in the gate, Meathead met me and followed me back to the shop. I was pretty out of breath when I jerked the door open. Jeff jumped and let out a howl, shaking his thumb then sticking it in his mouth and dropping the soldering iron he had in his other hand.
He looked at me with his thumb still in his mouth. “I booned ma tum.”
“Sorry about that,” I replied, still breathing hard.
He watched me as I crossed the shop and started to pull cartons from the shelves. I grabbed the two packages of Ensure then started looking for other stuff to take them. I was thinking high-calorie and high-protein. Grabbing an empty box, I threw in a jar of peanut butter, a few cans of sardines in tomato sauce (the big ones), a few cans of beans, a couple cans of spinach, canned corn, green beans, a couple packs of spaghetti noodles and two cans of sauce. All of this stuff I had a lot of—thank God for Aldi and Save-A-Lot.
“What the hell are you doing?” I heard Jeff say, his thumb now out of his mouth.
“One of our neighbors has a daughter who is starving to death and he’s too damn proud to ask for help.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Oh, need any help?”
“Naw, how’s that going?”
Jeff looked back at the bench. “It’s almost done. It should work fine; it was easy.”
“I’m going back over and drop this off, then I have other shit to do. I’ll be back later.”
“Cool, I’ll be in here probably; that laptop needs some work. Do you even know what a disk cleanup is, or how to defrag a hard drive?”
I looked at him k
ind of wide-eyed. “You mean you can do that?”
Jeff pressed his lips together and gave the finger. I took my box out and put it on the cart. Meathead was sniffing the box, and I pushed him with my knee. “Get out of there, nosy.” That made me think and I looked at the box. While you couldn’t see into it unless you were standing over it, someone might be out walking around, and it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to start wondering what was so heavy in the box that I needed a cart. I pulled it over to the woodshed and piled on wood to cover the box. It didn’t take much, and I’d leave that with Tom too. At the gate I had to push Meathead back in and close it behind me to keep him from following.
At Tom’s house I pulled the cart up close to the porch and carried the box inside. I took out the Ensure and handed it to Tom’s wife. “Take these and mix ’em with water, half and half, for a couple of days. Don’t give her too much at a time; take it slow at first.” She nodded and carried the case into the kitchen. I followed her with the box and set it on a small table. Tom came in and looked into the box. He started setting the items out on the table. Tom’s wife came over and watched as he unloaded the box, and both of them started to tear up.
Tom looked up at me. “I don’t know what to say. There is no way I can repay you for this.”
“It isn’t much, but it’s all I can do. I can’t give you any more, understand?”
He nodded and looked at the table again. Tom’s wife left the kitchen with a cup of the Ensure for Rene. Tom and I followed her back to the room and stood in the hall watching as Rene slowly sipped the mixture. I caught Taylor’s eye and motioned for her to come out. She came out into the hall and we walked out into the living room. “I’ve got some stuff I need to do. You want to hang out here while I do it or do you want to come down to Danny’s with me?”
Without hesitation she replied, “I want to stay here.”
“Okay, stay here until I come get you. Don’t walk home alone and don’t talk about how things are at home, got it?” She nodded and I continued, “If anyone asks anything, we are just as hungry as they are and things are just as bleak, got it?” Again, she nodded.