by Robert Boren
“Oh, that’s not true,” he said.
Jane just shook her head. “Yeah you are. By the way, you really outdid yourself with the new PC app. We can tell how many vehicles the enemy is coming in. It’s that detailed.”
“Good,” Frank said, smiling. “I was hoping. It can be a little buggy.”
“Its fine, Frank. Go to bed. I’ll be home later.”
He went up into the coach, and Jane walked back over to the barn.
“Anything happen?” Jane asked.
“The big group is getting closer,” Jasmine said, turning towards Jane as she walked up. “Looks like our guys must have taken out a sentry. Up on the ridge. There’s been no movement on that icon.”
“Can you see any other sentries on the ridges?”
“Good question,” she said. “I’ve been watching the trucks, mainly. I just went back to the canyon and noticed that sentry a few minutes ago.”
“Well, take a closer look,” Jane said. “Our team might not see them. You could text the info to the team. I’ll go check on the caravan.”
Jasmine nodded, and turned back to her screen. “Shit,” she said.
“What?”
“Two more sentries. One is on the ridge on the far side of the Canyon. The other one is at the mouth of the canyon. They might have a decent chance to see our guys. I’ll let them know.”
“Good,” Jane said, as she focused in on the string of icons along I-80.
Jasmine got on her iPhone.
Guys, see 3 sentries on ridge. 1 appears dead, hasn’t moved. About where I’d expect to see you guys, on ridge closest to road. 2nd sentry by mouth of the canyon, probably watching for caravan. 3rd on far ridge. Be careful, they might see you easier than the ones on the canyon floor.
“Okay, message sent,” Jasmine said. “How close is the largest group?”
“The first vehicle is just about to pull onto the dirt road now,” Jane said, her voice trembling. “The rest will follow pretty quickly. They spaced themselves out a little wide on the freeway, but I expect them to tighten up on the dirt road.”
Jane and Jasmine’s phones both dinged.
“Jeb,” Jasmine said. “He got the message. They did take out one sentry.”
“This program is going to be a big help.”
“You got that right,” Jasmine said. “Too bad we don’t have an iPhone version.”
“Frank told me the small portables don’t have enough power to run it,” Jane said. “Oh, there we go. First vehicle is in the canyon. The four men have swarmed around it. Number two is about a hundred yards back, and gaining fast.”
“Here it starts,” Jasmine said. “I’m really nervous.”
“You and me both. They’ll let all of the vehicles get in the canyon before they open fire. It’s going to take at least 15 minutes for all of them to get there, unless they tighten up in a hurry. Oh, there, second vehicle in the canyon.”
“No movement of the sentries, but the icons on the canyon floor are wandering around in pairs. I’ll bet they’re carrying things out of their vehicles.”
“Oh, no,” Jane said.
“What?”
“The last three vehicles that were on I-80 kept going. The rest are on the small highway now, headed for the dirt road in a hurry.”
“Uh oh. Wonder if the three are going to meet up with the motorhome?”
“Could be,” Jane said. “It might be their demolition team. Two more vehicles just got inside the canyon. They’re really tightening it up now. It won’t take as long as I thought.”
“I’m going to text the team and let them know that three vehicles have split off,” Jasmine said.
“Good. How many people are we talking?”
“Twelve,” Jasmine said, as she typed into her iPhone.
Jeb, last 3 vehicles, 12 men total kept going on I-80. Rest are on their way to the canyon. Maybe those 3 are going to link up with motorhome.
“Okay, sent. How many more vehicles yet to go?”
“I count sixteen that are still on the road. I see the ones in the canyon moving inside deeper to make room, too. Must be getting crowded in there.”
Their phones both dinged.
“Jeb got the message,” Jasmine said. “They’re getting ready.”
“The rest of the vehicles are bunched up at the entrance to the canyon now,” Jane said. “Looks like they’re having to jockey around to get the vehicles all out of sight.”
“Yeah, I see that,” Jasmine said. “Where are the three that split off?”
“Nearing the off ramp for the big RV Park,” Jane said. “We’ll know in a few seconds if that’s where they’re going.”
“Good. Only three vehicles outside the canyon now. Icons swarming all over the canyon floor. Too many to count.”
“The three vehicles just took the off-ramp to the RV Park,” Jane said. “Better call your mom.”
“Yeah,” Jasmine said, voice wavering. She wiped tears out of her eyes, picked up her phone, and dialed.
“Mom?”
“Jasmine, what go on?”
“Three of the enemy vehicles split off from the main group and are heading into the RV Park now.”
“I tell Heidi. She gave me radio. How men doing?”
“They’re all set up around the ridge, and all the cars just got inside the canyon.”
“Good. I hope we take out trash. Thanks. I call Heidi now.”
“Be careful, mom.”
“I will,” she said. Jasmine set her phone down.
“How’d she take it?” Jane asked.
“No problem. She’s going to tell Heidi.”
“Good. There’s going to be action any second now. All the vehicles are inside, and the men are unloading things.”
“Whoa,” Jasmine cried. “Both sentries down. Icons moving fast on the canyon floor!”
“Yes, I see it. Looks like an ant hill after you dump water on it.”
On the ridge, the men watched as the last of the vehicles moved all the way into the canyon. Jeb got a text message, from Jackson.
Jeb, I can take sentry on far side of the canyon. I’m closer than you guys.
Jeb replied okay. Then there was the crack of a rifle, and the sentry fell and rolled down the hill. Everybody in the canyon froze, looking up at the ridges in a panic. Then there was a loud bang from the M107, and the other sentry got hit so hard that he flew off the ridge and onto the ground hundreds of feet below.
“Get the cars near the entrance,” Kurt shouted. Then there was the muffled pop of Jackson’s mortar, and a blinding flash near the canyon entrance. No cars hit, but now there was a big crater. Jackson backed off a few degrees and then dropped another mortar round in. The round popped, and then there was an explosion right on top of the cars, turning that side of the canyon into an inferno. Shots started to ping around them now. George started up with the M107, hitting the vehicles in the engine compartments as quickly as he could, as Earl loaded up a Willie Pete round. The other men were firing away with their hunting rifles.
“Hit them with the Willie Pete!” Jeb shouted.
“Way ahead of ya,” Earl said. Then there was the pop, and a rush of heat and light as about a third of the canyon floor went up in flames. The snipers fired away at the men trying to escape.
“Oh, my God,” Earl said, looking down. Then he adjusted the mortar deeper into the canyon and dropped another Willie Pete round in. There was a pop, and then that rush of light and heat again.
“That’s pretty good coverage,” Malcolm yelled. “Concentrate on killing the survivors before they can get up the hills.”
The men all had their rifles in hand now. George was going crazy with the M107, firing round after round. Jackson’s rifle cracked a couple of times, hitting two Islamists who were trying to flee in his direction. There were several following them. They dived behind one of the bullet-riddled cars and opened fire in Jackson’s direction, forcing him down. George opened up on them from the other side, and they
crept further behind the wrecked hulk of a car, towards the far side of the canyon.
Several Islamists made a run for the opening of the canyon. Jeb, Malcolm, and Kurt got a bead on them, and opened fire. They got behind cars and fired back.
“Hey, George, you think you could shoot through these cars?” yelled Malcolm.
“In a minute,” he said. He was raising the OICW and pointing it at the car close to Jackson. The Islamists behind it were still wailing away at Jackson’s position. George pulled the trigger. There was a pop, and a sizzling sound as the projectile flew down towards the car. Then an explosion. The Islamists fell dead.
“Wow, that thing is something,” Earl shouted.
“George!” Malcolm yelled.
“On it,” George shouted back. He got back on the M107 and riddled the cars with .50 cal rounds. A couple of Islamists tried to run, but George and Jeb shot them dead. Then there was silence.
“Think we got ‘em all?” Kurt asked.
“Let’s get the girls to look for movement,” Jeb said. “Also, refresh your short range apps.” Jeb pulled out his phone and started texting.
Jane, any moving? Think we got all of them, but hard to see.
“I only see about twenty icons now,” Malcolm said, looking at his iPhone. “Shouldn’t they all show up?”
“The fire,” Kurt said. “It ruins the chips. That tells me most of the bad guys burned up in the Willie Pete and gasoline fires.”
“Jane replied,” Jeb said. “She’s not seeing any movement here, but she said that there’s a lot of activity back at the RV Park.”
“Shoot,” George said. “Any movement towards our coaches?”
“She didn’t say, but I’ll text her and let her know to watch for it,” Jeb said.
“I think we ought to get back there,” George said. “Just in case they want to carjack any additional motorhomes.”
“He’s right,” Jeb said. “Let’s get our asses back there.”
“We don’t want to make sure everybody down there is taking a dirt nap?” Earl asked.
“I wouldn’t bother,” Malcolm said. They have no vehicles left, and we’re a ways into the boonies. If we go down there, one of us is liable to get killed by a survivor. Screw it. If they’re wounded, they won’t last long anyway.”
“That was a lot of fire,” George said. “The authorities might be on their way here, too, you know. Time to get out of here, but keep your eyes open. Don’t expose yourself to the canyon floor on the way out, just in case.”
“Text Heidi and let her know we’re on our way,” Malcolm said.
“I just texted Rosie,” Jeb said. “She said that the cretins are getting ready for something. They’re loading stuff from their cars into that motorhome.”
The men started picking up their equipment and headed back to the jeeps.
Jane turned to Jasmine. “The boys are leaving,” she said.
“Good. I don’t like all of those bad guys within a hundred yards of my mom.”
“Seriously,” Jane said. “Maybe one of us should stay focused on the canyon, and one of us on the RV Park.
“Agreed.”
“Wonder if the enemy leadership has any idea who just hit them?” Jane asked.
“Good question,” Jasmine said. “Shoot! The Islamists are in two of the coaches near their site.”
“Uh oh. How close are they to ours?”
“Not very,” Jasmine said. “They’d have to come quite a ways to grab ours.”
Jasmine’s phone rang.
“Mom?”
“Hi, honey. Bad guys just grab two more motorhomes.”
“What happened to the people in them?”
“Too far to see good, honey. They not coming over here. Too many other coaches between us and them. Just got call from Jeb. They on way back now. Better keep eye in sky, and tell them how to sneak in.”
“We are, mom. Be careful.”
“I okay. See you soon.”
“Any movement in the canyon?” Jasmine asked.
“Nope, not yet. There’s not very many icons left there, either. Only about twenty. The rest of the bad guys must have burned up.”
“They hit them with the white phosphorus, I suspect,” Jasmine said.
“Willie Pete,” Jane said. “Bad way to go.”
“Serves them right.”
“Uh oh,” Jane said, voice trembling.
“What?” Jasmine asked.
“I just zoomed out a ways. There’s another group of enemy icons showing up, coming east on I-80.”
Chapter 7 – Street Pickup
Jeb’s jeep led the way this time, with Malcolm’s following closely behind. They raced down the dark highway, heading for the interstate.
“Any other movement?” Jackson asked, seeing Kurt looking at his iPhone.
“At the RV Park? No, still the same number of icons. Hope Jane and Jasmine are watching. They get a lot more detailed view. I can’t tell if they’re heading towards our coaches or not with this app.”
Jeb’s phone dinged. He pulled it out and looked at it as he drove.
“The girls?” Kurt asked.
“Here, read it,” Jeb said, handing his phone over to him. “I’m about to get onto I-80.”
Kurt nodded and looked at the text message. “Uh oh.”
“What?” Jeb asked.
“There’s another group of cretins heading east on I-80.”
“Really? How many?”
“Jasmine’s saying about forty. Probably wondering why they lost contact with their away team.”
“That means they’ve probably alerted the cretins at the RV Park.”
“Probably,” Kurt replied.
“She also says that they’ll guide us into the park when we get there. We’ll want to sneak in.”
“Should we take the cretins at the park out?” Earl asked.
“No, I’d say we stick to the plan. Try to follow them to the bridge they were gonna blow, and ruin their day,” Jeb said. “We’d better make sure they can’t follow our coaches back to Kansas when we’re ready to leave.”
“Roger that,” Jackson said. “Wish we had a safer place to hang out.”
“You and me both,” Earl said.
“Well, better get ready,” Jeb said. “It’s only a couple of off ramps up.”
“Here’s your phone,” Kurt said, handing it to Jeb. “I’ll text the girls on my phone.”
Jeb nodded as Kurt sent the text.
Only 2 off-ramps away from RV Park. Should we drive in?
Jeb’s phone rang. He pulled it out and answered it.
“Jeb?”
“Hey, Malcolm. Almost there.”
“Yeah. We were thinking that we should go in first. Maybe you guys could hang back a few blocks from the park for a few minutes. We’ll call you.”
“Sounds like a plan. See you soon,” Jeb said. He put his phone back in his pocket.
“George and Malcolm are going in first. We’ll hang back for a few minutes.”
“Good,” Kurt said. His phone buzzed in his hand. “There’s the short range app kicking in. We’re within half a mile.”
“Yeah, mine went off too,” Jackson said.
“Me too,” Earl said.
They took the off-ramp, and went down a couple of blocks, looking for a good place to park.
“How about that grocery store parking lot,” Jackson said. “Looks like the store is still open.”
“Good idea,” Jeb said. He turned into the parking lot and stopped, in-between two cars, not too far from the front entrance. “Refresh your short range apps.”
“Yeah,” Kurt said.
Malcolm drove slowly onto the RV Park driveway, and input the code. The gate rolled open. It seemed so loud to him, and his heart started to beat faster.
“Should we turn off the lights?” George asked.
“I think not,” Malcolm said. “If the bad guys see us driving around with our lights off, they’ll know we’re trying to
sneak in. I say we just drive in around the back of the park. They probably won’t even notice us.
“Okay,” George said.
They went slowly down the road, through rows of coaches, most of them with their lights on. There were a few people sitting on the veranda of the clubhouse, chatting and drinking beer.
“Maybe I won’t go all the way to the back,” Malcolm said. “Better to be in amongst the coaches here. We can get all the way to our space this way.”
“Yeah,” George said. They rolled along, getting to their coaches in a couple of minutes. Malcolm parked behind his, out of sight of the enemy space.
“Let’s go,” Malcolm whispered. They quietly opened the doors and got out, checking their handguns as they stood up. Heidi came out of the Tiffin and walked quickly over to George, hugging him.
“Getting a little spooky here,” she whispered. “Those enemy fighters got here and loaded a bunch of stuff into their coach. Then they went into the coaches on either side of them. I think I heard some silenced gunshots.”
“Rosie okay?” Malcolm asked.
“Yeah, we’ve been in radio contact the whole time,” Heidi said. “I just told her that you guys pulled up. Where are the others?”
“We told them to hold back for a little while,” George said. “They’re in a grocery store parking lot, about a quarter mile back.”
“Good idea,” Heidi said. “I was watching the enemy with the binoculars. I don’t think they noticed you guys.”
“That’s good,” Malcolm said. “Let’s get inside.”
George reached in and picked up the cases for the OICW and the M107. “Damn, this M107 case is warm.”
They all went into the Tiffin, and George stowed the gun cases under the bed. He grabbed the shotgun on the way out to the front of the coach. Malcolm was behind the driver’s seat, looking at the enemy with the binoculars.
“Yeah, they didn’t notice us,” Malcolm said. “They’re getting ready to leave, though. One of the guys is undoing their water and sewer now.”
“They probably heard about our handiwork,” George said, grinning.
“Did you guys kill all of them back at the canyon?” Heidi asked.
“Probably,” George said. “We thought it was too risky to go down there and poke around, but we ruined all of their vehicles. Anybody who lived through it is goint to have to walk out.”