Push Back: A Post Apocalyptic Thriller (The Disruption Series Book 2)

by R. E. McDermott

  “It’s like I told you, it’s better for you if you don’t—”

  “Would you give me a frigging break? In the last week, I’ve shot five SRF thugs. I’m pretty sure that qualifies me for a place on FEMA’s hit list all by myself. And we’re traveling together, for God’s sake. Do you honestly think if we get caught, they’re going to believe I don’t know anything about whatever it is you did before we met? So since we’re at risk anyway, I’d at least like to know why.”

  Anderson hesitated a long moment, then told her the whole story of how he ended up guarding Simon Tremble, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and how that duty caused him to be a wanted fugitive.

  “But how did you end up in FEMA to start with? You’re not like those other assholes.”

  Anderson shrugged. “Decent pay, health insurance, and benefits. Look, I went to work for them like five years ago, and it was just a pretty good law enforcement gig. It’s not like there were posters of Darth Vader saying things like, ‘Welcome to the Evil Empire.’ In fact, a lot of the FEMA people are decent folks, or were anyway. It was a job, that’s all, and I was pretty good at it. I got transferred to Mount Weather, which was a plum assignment.” He shook his head. “Then came the blackout and everything went to hell fast. I didn’t particularly like what was going on, but like a lot of people there, I figured I didn’t know the whole story, and I certainly didn’t want to quit and end up out in the chaos. Then I ended up guarding the Trembles, and I didn’t feel right about that at all, but what exactly was I supposed to do? In the end, the decision was made for me, and as tough as it’s been, I’d rather be here than there.”

  Cindy reached over and squeezed his hand. “So they never caught the Trembles?”

  “I’d say no, since the guys chasing me thought they were chasing him.” Anderson shook his head again and chuckled. “Simon’s a crafty bastard, I’ll give him that.” She heard the admiration in his voice.

  “So you’re one of the few people who actually knows Tremble is still alive, and who is a firsthand witness to the President’s illegal actions?”

  Anderson shrugged again. “I guess so. At least one of the few people that’s not actively involved with it. But so what? All that’s likely to get me is a bullet in the head and a shallow grave. Why? What’re you thinking?”

  “Wilmington.”

  “Delaware or North Carolina?”

  “North Carolina. Just before those FEMA goons swooped in to confiscate radios, there was a lot of chatter on the ham networks, and Wilmington was the source. They have some defectors from the SRF who were putting out word about what FEMA was actually up to. It sounded like they were doing okay down there, all things considered, and beginning to offer an alternative to FEMA,” Cindy said.

  “I still don’t see what that’s got to do with me, or us.”

  “Don’t you think they’d like to have an eyewitness to illegal government actions? They’d probably welcome you with open arms,” Cindy said.

  “I doubt it makes any difference, and you may not have noticed, but I’m not really hero material. I just want to find a place where everyone will leave me the hell alone, and I’ll do likewise. Is that too much to ask?”

  Cindy studied him through the gloom. He could barely make out her face. “Yeah, George,” she said, “in this screwed-up world, it probably is. I mean, we tried that and it didn’t work out. People kept showing up trying to kill us. The way I look at it, our choices are to hide in the woods, hunting and scrounging food and becoming less human every day, or using what resources we have to get to Wilmington, where we can join people trying to make a difference.”

  “Who you THINK are there trying to make a difference. We haven’t had any information in over a week,” Anderson said.

  “Granted,” Cindy said. “Have a better option?”

  Anderson shook his head. “So how do we get to Wilmington?”

  “Not a clue,” Cindy said. “But we’re sure not going down I-95. We have to steal a map.”

  Epilogue

  1 Mile off the Appalachian Trail

  Near Virginia-West Virginia Border

  Five Days Earlier

  Day 31, 8:25 a.m.

  Congressman Simon Tremble (NC), Speaker of the House of Representatives, suppressed a grunt as he grabbed a sapling to pull himself up the steep slope. Fifty feet ahead of him, he watched his son, Keith, top the hill and turn to look back at him with a wide grin.

  “Come on, old-timer, you’re almost there,” Keith taunted.

  Tremble laughed and closed the distance with ease, though it took more of his reserves than he’d ever let on. Things had started getting a bit more challenging after he hit fifty, but he was too stubborn to acknowledge it.

  He grinned at his son. “Just hanging back in case I had to carry you.”

  “Hah! That’ll be the day. So did I pass?”

  Tremble frowned. “I’m sorry, I can only give you fifty percent.”

  Keith’s face fell.

  “You don’t get the other fifty until you get back to the bottom without reinjuring that ankle,” Tremble said.

  “You’re on,” Keith said, starting down the steep slope.

  ***

  Tremble stood in front of the cave, inspecting their gear. He’d lashed together pack frames from pliable green limbs, essentially wicker baskets to hold the black garbage bags they’d mooched from Wiggins and Tex. The pants of their FEMA uniforms were now secured with paracord drawstrings, and the web belts had become pack straps. Their homemade packs each held a supply of squirrel and rabbit jerky, wild onions, and dried mushrooms. Bulging water bladders improvised from a double thickness of condoms rode in the wicker packs but outside the garbage bag liners, in case the condoms burst or leaked.

  The one thing that wasn’t improvised was their weaponry. They both carried M4s taken from the FEMA cops, and each had a 9 millimeter Sig and ammo for both in their packs.

  “How long will it take us, Dad?” Keith asked.

  “How long, I can’t say, only how far. Wiggins and Tex picked up the AT at Black Horse Gap, but they were paralleling it in a car. By the trail that’s a little over two hundred and fifty miles. Then they used the Blue Ridge Parkway and rural roads from this guy Levi’s house, they said about five hundred miles, all told. I don’t know quite how far his house is outside of Wilmington, but evidently he has a place on the Black River. I’m thinking if we can find a way to get to the Black, we might be able to float down into friendly territory and right into Wilmington.”

  Keith shook his head. “That’s gotta be like twice as far than if we just stayed off the interstates and just took back roads! I still think we should go as direct as possible.”

  Tremble nodded. “We might not have a choice. They ran into problems northbound at Front Royal, and I doubt things have improved. We’ll just have to play it by ear. But that won’t be a choice we have to make for a few days yet.”

  Tremble reached down and shouldered his pack, and Keith did the same.

  “Ready?” Tremble asked.

  “I’ve been ready,” Keith said. “I just keep thinking about the look on that bastard Gleason’s face when we get to Wilmington and you start broadcasting the truth.”

  Tremble nodded and smiled as they set off up the hill, though he felt far from confident. His mood improved as they plodded up the hill back to the Appalachian Trail. Perhaps Keith’s youthful optimism was contagious, or maybe it was just the effect of setting out with a purpose at last, surrounded by the beauty of nature.

  That sense of purpose grew with each step, and as they reached the ridgeline and moved onto the trail, Tremble felt the doubts and fears slip away, replaced by grim determination. I’m coming you bastards. I’m coming at last. And at that moment, the Honorable Simon J. Tremble of North Carolina, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States of America, promised himself as long as there was breath in his body, he’d never stop fighting to put things right—or at least as rig
ht as he could make them.

  There was a new spring in his step, and Keith looked over and grinned as he matched his father’s faster pace. “You gonna run all the way to Wilmington, Dad?”

  Tremble grinned back. “I just might at that, so try to keep up. We have promises to keep.”

  Author’s Notes

  I guess I’ll start with the question I’m most often asked, “When will the next book be available?”

  Rather than overpromise like I did on Push Back, I think I’ll be smarter this time and just say sometime next year (2017). Because the simple truth is I really don’t know. I have an outline and I’ve made a start, but this story seems to have a mind all its own, and I’m pretty sure my outline will be useless before I’m halfway through Promises to Keep, the third and final book of the series.

  That said, I’m going to do my dead-level best to publish it early in the year.

  Part of my problem is structure—I don’t have any. Some writers can develop an outline and follow it religiously to produce a book within a certain time window. My method (if I may charitably call it that) is a bit more chaotic. Oh, I try to develop an outline every time and start with the best of intentions, but around about page three, I have a ‘better idea,’ and I’m off and running. The ‘better idea’ is often a new plot point or sometimes a new character. I have a lot of ‘better ideas,’ probably far too many.

  All my ideas usually get developed and written, though many are eventually discarded. Then there’s always the idea I dream up around page two hundred that requires a substantial rewrite of everything I’ve written thus far. For every page you read, I often write three or four. What you get to read are the ‘keepers,’ the polished scenes and plot points that fit together nicely to advance the story. There’s a lot of trial and error involved, mostly error, but to date I’ve always been pleased with the final product.

  I avoid deadlines because I never know how long the process will take, and I don’t want the artificial pressure of a deadline to nudge me to compromise the quality of a story. Honestly, I could make more money if I wrote faster (probably quite a bit more), but I doubt I (or you) would like the product as much. And the day I’m not proud of my work, I’ll choose another line of work.

  So there you have it; I’m pretty much stuck in tortoise mode here at McDermott Publishing World HQ (aka our spare bedroom). I console myself with the knowledge the tortoise actually won the race.

  I appreciate the patience of all you Dugan fans out there. There will be more Dugan stories, though the timing is uncertain at the moment. I’m still trying to conjure up another semi-realistic scenario involving a middle-aged marine engineer turned ship owner.

  Now back to work for me, while I hope you take a moment to consider badgering your friends and loved ones relentlessly until they buy my stuff. Really. I need the money.

  All the best,

  Bob

  P.S. For those of you who haven’t yet tried the Dugan books or who haven’t read all of them, there are links at the very back of the book that will allow you to read a free sample of each with no obligation.

  Thanks and an Invitation!

  There isn’t any shortage of thrillers in the world, so I’m truly honored you chose to read one of mine and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it.

  If you did enjoy this book, I hope you’ll check out my other books (listed below) and consider subscribing to my email notification list. Subscribers receive early notice of new releases, as well as limited time opportunities to buy new releases at deeply discounted prices.

  Learn more about my notification list at http://www.remcdermott.com/mailing-list-sign-up-2016. There's no obligation, so check it out.

  One other point. Given the limited keyboards of many reading devices, it may be easier to learn more by just typing the URL of my sign up page (http://www.remcdermott.com/mailing-list-sign-up-2016) into the browser on your computer.

  With that out of the way, let me say I truly enjoy hearing from readers, so if you're so inclined, feel free to shoot me an email via my website contact page at: http://www.remcdermott.com/contact.

  And finally, independent authors such as myself live and die on the strength of our Amazon reviews, so for us they’re a very big deal. But it’s not enough to just accumulate a lot of good reviews, as factors in the Amazon quality ratings also include both the frequency and timeliness of those reviews. Thus a book with a lot of great reviews will tumble in the ratings if reviews don’t continue to accumulate on a regular basis.

  So the bottom line is, I regularly beg for reviews and appreciate every single one.

  Reviews need not be lengthy, and a sentence or so with your opinion of the book is more than sufficient, so please consider returning to Amazon and leaving a brief review of Push Back (or any of my other books). It will be most appreciated.

  On that note, and whatever your decision regarding a review, I’ll close by thanking you once again for taking a chance on a new author, with the hope that I’ve entertained you at least a bit, and with the promise that I’ll always strive to deliver a good story at a fair price.

  Sincerely,

  R.E. (Bob) McDermott

  P.S. Check out my other books on the following page.

  More Books by

  R.E. McDermott

  Deadly Straits - When marine engineer and very part-time spook Tom Dugan becomes collateral damage in the War on Terror, he's not about to take it lying down. Falsely implicated in a hijacking, he's offered a chance to clear himself by helping the CIA snare their real prey, Dugan's best friend, London ship owner Alex Kairouz. But Dugan has some plans of his own. NOT SURE? READ A FREE SAMPLE ON Amazon.com (US) or check it out on your own country's Amazon site (UK, Canada, Australia, etc.) by clicking this link.

  Deadly Coast - Dugan thought Somali pirates were bad news, then it got worse. As Tom Dugan and Alex Kairouz, his partner and best friend, struggle to ransom their ship and crew from murderous Somali pirates, things take a turn for the worse. A US Navy contracted tanker with a full load of jet fuel is also hijacked, not by garden variety pirates, but by terrorists with links to Al Qaeda, changing the playing field completely. NOT SURE? READ A FREE SAMPLE ON Amazon.com (US) or check it out on your own country's Amazon site (UK, Canada, Australia, etc.) by clicking this link.

  Deadly Crossing - Dugan’s attempts to help his friends rescue an innocent girl from the Russian mob plunge him into a world he’d scarcely imagined, endangering him and everyone he holds dear. A world of modern day slavery and unspeakable cruelty, from which no one will escape, unless Dugan can weather a Deadly Crossing. NOT SURE? READ A FREE SAMPLE ON Amazon.com (US) or check it out on your own country's Amazon site (UK, Canada, Australia, etc.) by clicking this link.

  Table of Contents

  Push Back

  Dedication

  Author's Notes

  Thanks and an Invitation

  More Books by R.E. McDermott