“No problem,” said Daniels.
I headed over towards them not sure how to say what was on my mind, but determined to say something. Most people have this filter in their brain that most of us call tact or even good sense. Sometimes, my filter doesn’t work so well. Sometimes, things come out before I’ve had a chance to find a more delicate way of saying it. This would prove to be one of those times.
“What the fuck, SIR?” I said, perhaps a bit more harshly than I intended.
“I know what you’re going to say,” he said, calmly. “You’re not used to pulling tail-end Charlie on a mission. But the fact is I need you back there.”
I managed to engage the filter and prevented another verbal fusillade. I figured tact might serve me better at this particular moment. At least I’d hear them out before hurtling obscenities.
“We discussed this before deciding,” said the LT. “We came to the conclusion that the last group out of the building would be in the most danger. From the deputies we’re leaving behind, from the zombies and from being left alone to deal with it all. We couldn’t think of anyone more qualified to accomplish such a difficult task than you and Specialist Wilder.”
“Thanks, I think,” said Spec-4.
“The fact is you guys have pulled off the impossible on more than one occasion,” said Daniels. “If anyone can release those guys, fight their way out of the jail and still catch up to the convoy, it’s you two.”
“Why don’t you just wait until we get outside?” I asked.
“We need to get the convoy out and moving before you let those idiots out of those cells,” said Daniels. “If they make it to Master Control before we get out, they’ll be able to shut the gate and block our escape.”
I had to admit he had a good point. It would be better to let them get a head start, just in case we ended up fighting with Patterson and his people. I’m sure we could come up with a better way, given time. Unfortunately, time was a luxury we didn’t have. The bombing could start at any moment. I didn’t have to like the Sheriff’s plan, I just had to do it.
“Alright,” I said. “Let’s get this over with.”
Everyone headed out for their respective vehicles while Spec-4 and I headed upstairs towards Master Control. We walked in silence through the empty building. The door to Master Control was propped open and we stepped inside. It seemed odd to me to find it empty. In all my years as a CO, I’d never seen Master Control empty, except when Wright staged her coup. It was a sad moment. To me, it was confirmation of the end. We were abandoning the jail.
“Daniels to 700,” said the Sheriff’s voice on the radio.
I hit the button for the mic on the base unit and keyed up.
“Go ahead,” I replied.
“Convoy is ready to depart,” he said. “What’s your status?”
“Almost ready,” I said. “Stand by.”
“What’s up?” asked Spec-4.
“How about you go out and open the vehicle gate for them,” I said. “Shut it once the Humvees are clear. Then we can open it again when we’re ready to leave.”
“Good call,” she said. “That should keep intake clear of zombies while we get ready to roll.”
She headed out of Master Control and down the stairs. Once I’d buzzed her out into Intake, I grabbed the radio mic. I hesitated for just a moment; knowing that this was probably the last broadcast I would ever make from a place that had been a big part of my life for years. I closed my eyes and shook my head, bidding a silent farewell to all of those we’d lost.
“700 to all units,” I said, softly. “Standby to depart.”
I watched on the monitor as Spec-4 got into the vehicle/gate and waved a “thumbs-up” in the direction of the camera.
“All units standing ready,” said the Sheriff.
“Godspeed,” I said, and opened the gate.
Spec-4 opened the intake gate and the Humvees quickly departed, leaving our Humvee alone in the parking lot. Spec-4 didn’t hesitate and shut the gate behind the last vehicle to exit without allowing any zombies inside. She was out of the car like a shot and running towards the intake door. I buzzed her in and hit the intercom.
“Block those doors open and stand by,” I said. “Wait for me there. I’ll only be a couple minutes at the most.”
“Got it,” she replied, taking a position where she could watch the gate and the door at the same time.
I snagged a set of emergency keys out of the locker in Master Control and headed for Alpha Pod. There were two duffle bags setting by the door to Alpha that Ian Shane had left there for me. They contained enough body armor, pistols, shotguns and A/Rs so that each Deputy we were leaving behind would have one. There were also a few hundred rounds of ammo for each. We’d left six cases of MRE’s on the Booking Counter for them.
When I reached the door to Alpha, I paused then keyed open the door. When I walked in, I saw that the Deputies were all staring at me through the windows of their cells. I took the stairs to the upper floor and headed into a section where they couldn’t see me. I hid the set of keys in a cell under the toilet. Then I walked all the way around to the other side of the upper tier and climbed down the other stairs, so they wouldn’t have any idea where I’d left the keys.
They began to scream and bang on the cell doors as I exited the pod, locking the doors behind me. After I had the doors secure, I ran back down the hallway to Master Control. Once inside, I switched the computer screen over to Alpha Control’s system and activated the intercoms in the cells that were occupied.
“Listen up,” I said, harshly. “I told you I wouldn’t leave you locked in your cells, and I meant it. Even though there’s no doubt that you’d have left us to die in there. So here’s the deal. I’ve hidden a set of master keys in one of the cells on the upper tier. Once I open your doors, you can find them on your own. With those keys, you can open any lock in the jail. I’ve left armor, guns and food for you. You’ll find them once you exit Alpha Pod.”
I let that soak in for a moment before proceeding.
“That should give you enough ammo and food to last for a little while. You’ll have to find more on your own. From this point on, we’re enemies. Cross my path again and I promise I’ll shoot every last one of you in the fucking head.”
Then, I deactivated the intercom and cycled the doors open. I watched for just a moment on the camera to make certain they all got out of the cells, then I ran for the door. Taking the stairs two at a time and rounding the corner at the bottom, I headed for the Intake doors. Spec-4 was waiting for me. The look on her face told me something was wrong.
“What’s up?” I asked as I ran towards her.
“I hear aircraft,” she replied. “Sounds like jets.”
“Oh shit,” I muttered and ran out the door.
Once in the Intake area, I could hear the jets overhead. I couldn’t see them but I knew that if they were there, it was not good news for us or the convoy. I ran towards the cruiser that was attached to the gate. Yanking open the door, I reached in and grabbed the portable radar gun. Then I turned and ran for the Humvee.
“What are you doing?” she asked, following me.
“Buying the convoy some time,” I replied, pulling a coil of rope out of the back of my Humvee.
“What do you need me to do?” she said, looking apprehensive.
“Get the gate open and get inside the Humvee,” I said. “Button down inside and wait for me. I’ll be down to you as fast as I can.”
“What if zombies get inside the intake area?”
“Most of them should have followed the convoy,” I replied. “If they didn’t, then this might get a little interesting.”
Spec-4 ran for the vehicle/gate and dove inside. I opened the driver’s side door to the Humvee, and then readied my M-4. The gate slid open and I was relieved to see that there weren’t any zombies in the immediate area. I still covered the area as she ran back to the Humvee and climbed inside.
“I hope you know what you’re doing
,” she said, shutting the door and locking it.
“Me too,” I whispered, running for the open Intake door.
Once inside, I shut the door behind me and ran for the stairs. I just hoped that the Deputies upstairs wouldn’t find those keys any time soon. The last thing I wanted was a firefight in the Hallway. I rounded the corner at the top of the stairs and headed into the corridor to Alpha Pod. The duffle bags were still outside the door, right where I left them.
I could hear muffled voices, arguing over which key they needed to open the door. They’d found the keys faster than I’d anticipated. I slid to a stop at the door to the roof access stairs and keyed it open. No sooner than I pulled the door shut I heard the door to Alpha Pod open and the voice of Patterson.
“Son of a bitch,” he said. “I guess he really did leave us guns and body armor.”
“Sounds like he’s a better guy than you gave him credit for,” said another.
I didn’t stick around to hear the rest. I took the stairs to the roof as fast as I could and keyed open the door. Once I emerged on the roof, I began scanning the sky looking for the source of the jet noise. I didn’t have to look long. I could see a pair of fighters taking a slow turn around the city. I was afraid that they’d notice the convoy and take it out. I had nothing in my inventory that would allow me to take out a pair of fighter jets. I was going to have to improvise.
I ran to the edge of the building overlooking the Intake lot and positioned myself directly above the Humvee. Then I tied off the rope around an air conditioning unit and lay the coil on the edge of the roof. Giving the rope a hard yank to make sure the knot would hold, I nodded once in satisfaction and turned back to the circling jets.
They were now in formation and accelerating towards the main part of town. I knew they were on an attack run. Their path would take them right over the jail. If they were using fuel-air bombs, then it would take out the biggest part of downtown. I doubted that anything would survive, including us. I didn’t think the convoy was far enough away to escape, either. It was officially crunch time.
As the two jets came in on their attack run, I leveled the radar gun at them and engaged the beam. Instantly, both jets broke formation and hit their afterburners, climbing for sky. Their automatic systems launched chaff and a retaliatory strike. I knew I only had seconds before a pair of missiles took out the top of the jail.
Dropping the radar gun, I ran for the edge of the roof and the waiting rope. I snagged the rope and jumped off the edge of the roof, quickly wrapping a length of rope around my waist. I hoped that my estimate was good or I’d hit the roof of the Humvee with enough force to kill me and still have slack on the rope.
“Odin!” I bellowed as I fell, not sure if I was asking for protection or letting him know I was coming.
I fell for what seemed like an eternity. The rope went taught and yanked me to a stop with gut-wrenching force, just as the missiles hit the roof. I felt the pressure and heat wash over me as the top of the building went up in fire. I didn’t know if the Deputies inside had survived, but right then they weren’t my highest priority. I started to swing towards the building when the rope gave way.
I fell the remaining few feet to the top of the Humvee. I hit hard enough that it knocked the breath out of me. Coughing, I rolled off the roof and onto the hood. I had only barely missed impaling myself on the SAW. I’d seen a zombie do that once and didn’t think I wanted to try it for myself. I rolled off of the hood and onto the ground. My ears were ringing and I threw up on the ground.
“Wylie,” screamed Spec-4. “Get in!”
I glanced up to see about a dozen Shamblers coming in through the intake gate. One of them began to shriek as soon as it saw me. I forced myself up on my hands and knees, then onto my feet by holding onto the front of the Humvee. I dropped the remains of the rope and steadied myself. Spec-4 popped up out of the turret and opened up on the crowd with the SAW. The Shrieker immediately went silent.
I found myself moving, as if my legs had a mind of their own. The driver’s door was already open for me. Spec-4 must have opened it when she got into the turret. Next thing I knew, I was inside and securing the door. The engine was already running as I turned to glance up at Spec-4.
“Get inside!” I yelled. “We’re out of here.”
I put it in gear and mashed the accelerator to the floor as Spec-4 climbed back inside, securing the hatch. I crushed my way through the zombies at the gate and out onto the street. Screeching a hard right, I raced after the convoy. As I was turning left at the intersection, I saw the jets make another pass and unleash their full fury onto the jail. My last glimpse of the building was one of utter destruction. It looked like the entire back half of the jail had collapsed, along with part of the courthouse next door.
“What the hell was that?” demanded Spec-4.
“I bought us some time,” I said, my mouth still tasting of bile. “Those jets were about to the bomb the shit out of the heart of the city.”
“So you thought it was a better idea to get them to shoot at you?”
“I used the radar gun to activate their threat alert system,” I said. “I didn’t expect the retaliatory strike would come so fast.”
Instead of replying, she just looked at me with wide eyes and shook her head. I couldn’t believe I’d survived it, either. Now we just had to catch up with the convoy.
“Do you think anyone survived that explosion?” she asked.
“Doubtful,” I replied. “I’m shocked that we did.”
“You’re one crazy son of a gun,” she said, scowling. “Tell me you didn’t plan that.”
“Actually, I thought I’d have more time and I’d just rappel down,” I said. “But when I saw those missiles streaking towards me, I knew I had better just grab the rope and jump for it.”
“Good thing you did,” she said. “You almost got bar-b-qued.”
“Don’t mention food,” I said. “My stomach is still heaving.”
“Serves you right,” she replied, scowling.
“Just keep an eye out for the convoy,” I said, grinning.
Chapter Fifteen
Convoy Duty
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
- Friedrich Nietzsche
We drove in silence for a few minutes. There were a lot of zombies on the move. They seemed to be heading towards the explosion. By the time they noticed us, we were well past them. When we reached the community college campus, it looked like we might get through unscathed. I drove over the edge of a roundabout that they’d placed at the front of the little college. I could see the tracks in the flower beds where the Hemmitts had smashed their way through. It served them right. I hate roundabouts.
Lightning lit up the overcast sky and it began to rain. It was a light sprinkle at first and then it began to pour down in heavy drops. As we cleared the campus, I keyed up my radio and tried to reach the convoy. All I heard was static. Without the repeater towers, my radio didn’t have much range. Spec-4 just shrugged and reached for the mic to the SINCGARS. With a smug grin, she powered up the set and activated the mic.
“Rogue Six to convoy,” she said and released the transmit key.
There was no response.
“See,” I said, smiling. “Your fancy radio isn’t any better than my crappy one.”
“They must not have their sets on,” she replied, shaking her head. “The SINCGARS has a decent range.”
I shot across the intersection at National Avenue and didn’t slow down. We had the speed advantage over the rest of the convoy. One lone Humvee could move much faster than a heavily loaded convoy. When I made the turn onto the street that ran next to the National Guard Armory, I saw the tail end. They were just making the turn onto Division Street for our direct run to the Underground.
“829 to convoy,” I said into my mic.
“Wylie,
” came the voice of Sheriff Daniels, “nice of you to join us.”
“We ran into a couple of delays,” I said, containing my temper. “It would have been nice to have had some help back there.”
“Sorry about that,” he replied. “I didn’t think there would be trouble.”
“I’ll tell you all about it once we reach the secure perimeter,” I said. “We have you in sight and should be on your six in less than a minute.”
“Copy that,” said Corporal Winston. “I see you.”
I could see Winston in the turret of the rear Humvee. He was manning the SAW and constantly sweeping the sides of the road. Winston was a pro. When we pulled in behind him, he panned his SAW to the left side of the road and Spec-4 took the right side. I kept my eyes on the road and watched for signs of trouble.
“Hey Wylie, I just saw a jingle-truck,” said Cal Sanders over the radio.
“What the fuck is a jingle-truck?” I asked.
“Back in the ‘ghan,” he explained, “the locals would bolt all kinds of crap to their vehicles. It made them rattle and jingle when they drove.”
“What did you just see?” I asked, almost yelling.
“I just saw a SUV in the parking lot of the grocery store with all kinds of metal bolted to it,” he said. “Looks like they were trying to armor it, or something.”
Suddenly, there was a huge knot in the pit of my stomach. I was just crossing the intersection at Glenstone and could see the grocery store on my left. I didn’t see the truck, though. My mind started screaming a warning. I frantically keyed up the mic to try to warn everyone when I saw the smoke trail from what I knew was an RPG[14]. From the explosion, I knew it had hit a vehicle.
“Ambush!” I screamed into the mic.
I instantly heard the report of automatic weapons fire up ahead. I turned the wheel and slid into the far left lane. Up at the front of the convoy, I could see the wreckage of a Humvee still flipping over and burning. With a sense of dread, I realized that it was the lead Humvee. Cal Sanders wasted no time in raking the parking lot of the grocery store with his SAW. Spec-4 and Winston joined him, opening fire on the area that Cal was shooting at.
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