Bug Out! Texas Book 2: The New Republic

by Robert Boren

“Yeah,” Eric said. They sprinted to the back of the truck, grabbing several more grenades and rushing to the front of the store. Dirk was lying on the sidewalk in front of the windows, pinned down by fire coming from inside. Eric got his attention and held up a grenade. Dirk smiled and nodded.

  “What should we do?” Kim asked.

  “Shoot out the window and I’ll toss one in,” Eric said.

  “Okay,” she said. Eric crawled closer as Kim opened fire. Islamists opened up through the window at her, firing wide. Eric tossed a grenade in, and a swirl of glass and fire blasted out. Dirk put his hands over his head and curled up, trying to avoid the storm of fragments.

  Eric tossed a second one in, and it blew up further in the store. Then Dirk got up and ran through the broken window, firing madly, Arabic screams coming from the inside. Eric sprinted in and joined him, followed by Don and Chance. Kim kept watch outside with Paco. After a few minutes there was silence.

  The men came out, tired, carrying their weapons.

  “Everybody okay?” Kim asked.

  “Kenny,” Dirk said, breaking down. “He got killed right at the beginning.”

  “Keep your guards up, guys,” Eric said. “There weren’t enough trucks here. Remember that Kim and I saw twenty drive down the road. We stopped three in that first battle. There was six at the gas station, all disabled now, and three here. That leaves eight. Any idea where they might be?”

  “If they’re close enough to hear this, they might be here any second,” Chance said.

  “Where’d you get the grenades?” Dirk asked.

  “That truck that we used to bottle up the driveway into the loading dock,” Kim said. “Big wooden crate of them in the back.”

  “We’d better check all the trucks,” Don said. “I’ll bet there’s a lot of stuff we can use.”

  A group of men ran forward. Don turned towards them and smiled.

  “Hey, brother,” he said. A large older gentleman rushed over and hugged him.

  “Nobody got killed?” Dirk asked.

  “Nope,” the man said.

  “We lost Kenny,” Dirk said.

  “Oh, God no,” he said, eyes squinting. Tears ran down his cheeks.

  Don hugged him again, then turned towards Eric and Kim. “This is Francis, my brother. Town Constable.”

  “I’m Eric, and this is Kim,” Eric said. “You see other trucks?”

  “Yeah,” Francis said, trying to calm down. “We wasted five of them on the far end of town. That’s why we weren’t here when you guys showed up. Three trucks got away. I already called Carthage. They’re setting up a nice welcome, and they have a lot more people than we do.”

  “Thank God,” Kim said.

  “Where you folks from?” Francis asked.

  “Florida, but I’m a Texas native,” Eric said. “We were coming home to bury my parents and take revenge on the Islamists who beheaded them in Fredericksburg.”

  “Oh, shit, you’re related to that Austin cop,” Francis said, stepping forward to shake his hand.

  “Brothers,” Eric said.

  “You going to join him?” Francis asked.

  “Yeah, if I can find him,” Eric said. “They’re headed for West Texas.”

  “Well, I’m glad you guys showed up when you did,” Dirk said.

  “Me too,” Eric said. “I think we’d better get our motor home and high-tail it out of here before more of these cretins come along.”

  “If they haven’t already,” Kim said.

  “We’ll follow you back,” Dirk said. “Hey, Francis, think you could follow us with a couple of your tow trucks?”

  “Sure,” he said. “Why?”

  “There’s three of these troop transport trucks blocking the road back there.”

  “Yeah,” Francis said. “Let’s go.”

  “Mind if we take some of those grenades?” Eric asked.

  “Hey, finders’ keepers,” Dirk said. “We’ll check the other trucks. There’s probably more.”

  “Yeah,” Don said. “We’d better go. I have a feeling there’s more of these folks coming. We might want to set up a roadblock.”

  “Just thinking that,” Francis said.

  “All right, guys, see you soon.” Eric said. He and Kim walked by the back of the truck. They picked up the rest of the grenades and hurried to the Bronco, Paco following them.

  “I like those guys,” Eric said.

  “Me too.” Kim got into the Bronco and patted her lap. Paco jumped up, and she shut the door as Eric backed out. They headed back to the trucks.

  “Still there,” Eric said. “Half expected to find more Islamists trying to clear them out of the way.”

  “I know,” she said. They slowed down, Eric looking around, trying to see an ambush. Nobody was around so they drove around the trucks.

  “Go slow when we get near the crest of the hill,” Kim said, looking ahead nervously.

  “Yeah,” Eric said. He slowed to a stop. “I’m gonna peek over.”

  “I’ll go too.” They grabbed their weapons and moved up, crawling on their bellies to look over.

  “Nobody I can see,” Eric said.

  “Nope, thank God,” Kim said. She looked over to the side and saw a rock the size of a basketball. “Let’s roll that down the hill.”

  Eric looked at her and grinned. “Yeah, let’s do that.” They moved over to it and rolled the heavy rock to the crest of the hill, pushing it over. It rolled down. Nothing. “I think we’re safe. Let’s go.”

  They ran back to the Bronco and got in, heading over the crest and down the road, making the right turn back onto the small dirt road. The coach was un-disturbed. Eric drove behind it, then got out and hitched up the Bronco as Kim took Paco into the motor home. Eric got in and they rolled down to the road slowly. Then they took off, Eric’s eyes darting between the rear view mirrors and the road in front of him every few seconds.

  “You look really nervous,” Kim said.

  “Damn straight,” Eric said. “We should have asked those guys to call Longstreet. Hope the Islamists didn’t kill everybody there.”

  “Yeah, me too,” Kim said. “Think we’re going to make it?”

  “Probably, but we got some rough times coming.”

  Kim watched him for a moment. “Wonder how it’s going for your brother? Wish we still had phones.”

  “Here comes Oilfield road,” Eric said, making the left turn. They sped up, but had to hold it under forty miles per hour.

  “Think they got the road cleared yet?” Kim asked.

  “We’ll see,” Eric said. “Hope the folks in Carthage took out those last three truckloads.”

  “How big is Carthage?”

  “A lot bigger than Deadwood,” Eric said.

  Kim laughed. “I wouldn’t even call Deadwood a town. It’s a wide spot in the road with a few stores.”

  Eric chuckled. “Yeah, that’s about it.”

  “Here comes that bluff again. Think we ought to stop and take a look?”

  “Nah, we know nobody came through since we got the coach moving, and we know where those last three trucks went,” Eric said.

  “There’s no other ways here?” Kim asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Eric said. “Now you’ve got me nervous.” He stopped the coach, and they got out and rushed to the crest of the hill. They peered over. Dirk and his men were down there. The three trucks were out of the road, and they were busy moving supplies from them into their vehicles.

  “Maybe we shouldn’t have shot the tires,” Kim said as they drove down the hill.

  “Yeah, maybe,” Eric said. “If they want the trucks, they could fix the tires easy enough.” He rolled to a stop, and Dirk trotted over.

  “Thanks,” Eric said.

  “Don’t mention it,” Dirk said. “No problems between where your rig was and here, I take it.”

  “None,” Eric said. “I was thinking. You guys might want to call Longstreet. Warn them about this traffic. I’d do it myself,
but we had to ditch our cell phones.”

  “Yeah, that’s a good idea. I’ll pass it along to Francis.”

  “Good. Any word on those last three trucks?”

  “Yeah, the police in Carthage captured them without a fight. There were thirty enemy fighters in those trucks. They’re all in jail now.”

  “What are you guys gonna do?” Eric asked.

  “The Army National Guard is sending a detachment down here to set up some roadblocks,” Dirk said. “They see four different routes that could be a problem. We’ll help them set up, and then hopefully go back to a normal life.”

  “Good luck with that,” Eric said. “Maybe you guys are remote enough to avoid any more problems.”

  “Yeah, hopefully,” Dirk said. “The cities are a mess. Heard what happened earlier today?”

  “No,” Eric said.

  “Attacks in Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio,” he said. “Citizens and the local police put them down quickly, everywhere except San Antonio.”

  “What happened there?” Kim asked.

  “The enemy got into city hall. Killed the mayor and all the city councilmen who were there. They got a standoff going right now, with hostages.”

  “Dammit,” Eric said.

  “The only good news there was outside. Citizens and police killed over a hundred enemy fighters in the downtown area.”

  “Good,” Kim said.

  “We’d better take off,” Eric said. “Thanks again for your help.”

  “No, thank you,” Dirk said, reaching inside to shake hands. “Maybe we’ll meet again someday.”

  “Wouldn’t surprise me,” Eric said. “Take care of yourself.”

  “You too,” he said, stepping back from the rig. Eric drove forward, waving to the men by the trucks.

  “It’s going to get dark in a few hours,” Kim said. “We might have to spend another night out here in the boonies.”

  “Hope not,” Eric said. “Let’s see what time it is when we get to Carthage. That town is large enough to be safe.”

  Chapter 10 – OPEC Creek

  “There it is, dude,” Juan Carlos said, pointing at the makeshift docks and temporary buildings at OPEC Creek.

  “See it,” Brendan said. “Look, men coming onto the docks.”

  “Yeah.” Juan Carlos slowed the boat as he approached, men rushing over to assist.

  “Where’s the rest of the boats?” Brendan asked.

  “I hope they’re out on patrol,” Juan Carlos said.

  “Yeah, that’d be better than on the bottom,” Brendan said as he tossed the bowline to one of the men. He rushed to the stern line and tossed that to another man as Juan Carlos shut off the engine.

  “Glad to see you guys,” a man walking up said. “I’m Lieutenant Richardson.” He was a man of medium build with freckles and red hair. “Heard you guys have a fuel-line problem.”

  “Yeah,” Juan Carlos said. “Bullet hit the armor on the transom and bounced back. Nicked the main fuel feeder line. See?”

  Lieutenant Richardson got closer and looked, seeing the oily sheen on the water in the mid-morning sunshine. “You got here just in time. This leaked a little.”

  “Not surprised,” Juan Carlos said. He stepped off the boat. “You know about Chauncey, right?” he asked, pointing at his body on the deck.

  “Yeah, we heard,” he said. “Sorry.”

  “How many did we lose at Zapata?” Brendan asked.

  “Too many. You guys need more ammo, I suspect,” Lieutenant Richardson said.

  “Yeah, more .50 cal,” Juan Carlos said. “I don’t suppose you got any more rockets for the SMAW?”

  “No,” he said. “Where the hell did you get that thing?”

  “Chauncey brought it,” Juan Carlos said. “He got it from the DPS Director.”

  “Wallis, eh,” Lieutenant Richardson said. “He’s missing.”

  “You mean missing from the attack at Zapata?” Brendan asked.

  “No, before that. Just disappeared. Heard rumors about the Feds being after him.”

  “Who’s in command here?” Brendan asked.

  “Captain Jefferson,” he said. “He’s waiting to talk with you. We’ve had a Major General from the National Guard here too. Not sure if he still is.”

  “Gallagher?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “Yeah, that’s him. You know him?”

  “Met him at Zapata,” Juan Carlos said.

  “You better get in there,” Lieutenant Richardson said. “Furthest building.”

  “Okay,” Juan Carlos said.

  Brendan joined him, and they left the dock, walking on the dirt path to the buildings.

  “This is messed up, dude,” Juan Carlos said. “Hope Wallis is okay.”

  “He’s probably just in hiding,” Brendan said.

  “If that was true, wouldn’t Gallagher be missing too?”

  “Good point, man,” Brendan said. He pushed the door to the third building open and held it for Juan Carlos. Captain Jefferson saw them right away and motioned them over.

  “Good job, men,” he said. “So sorry to hear about Chauncey. How’d he get it?”

  “Snipers on the cliffs,” Brendan said.

  “Shit,” Jefferson said. “That hurt. Can’t afford to lose men like him. Let’s go in the conference room, okay?”

  “Okay,” Juan Carlos said.

  Jefferson lead them to a door and held it open for them. Major General Gallagher was sitting at the far end of the table.

  “Good to see you men again,” he said. “Sorry about Chauncey.”

  Juan Carlos and Brendan nodded and sat. Captain Jefferson sat across the table from them.

  “What the hell happened at Zapata?” Brendan asked.

  “Venezuelan Air Force, flying Russian attack helicopters low enough to stay off the radar,” Gallagher said. “Got in and out before we could do anything.”

  “How many did we lose?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “About half the men there,” Jefferson said. “Luckily none of the boats were there when they hit us. They were all out on the lake.”

  “We lose any other boats?” Brendan asked.

  “Yeah,” Jefferson said. “Four, two sunk by cutters, two hit by those choppers when they were on their way to Zapata.”

  “What’s going on with our air power?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “Yesterday they were in the west, over Mexico,” Gallagher said, “helping along the California and Arizona border. We have a bigger problem there than we do here.”

  “You talking the US Airforce or the Texas Air National Guard?” Brendan asked.

  “Both. Don’t worry, we’ll get them back soon enough,” Gallagher said. “If we don’t stop the invasion in California and Arizona, we could lose the entire southwest. I know it’s tough for us, but we’ll survive.”

  “How?” Brendan asked. “If they’re flying choppers at us, we won’t survive.”

  “We took care of the chopper situation,” Gallagher said. “Their base in northern Mexico was hit last night. They won’t have more until they can get them from Venezuela, and we’re making that a lot tougher.”

  “I thought you just said we didn’t have our air power,” Juan Carlos said.

  “Calm down,” Jefferson said.

  “No, I don’t blame him,” Gallagher said. “The enemy choppers were based just south of Arizona. Our birds hit their base on the way west. Hit them again on the way home.”

  “Where’s Director Wallis?” Brendan asked.

  “Safe,” Gallagher said. “This doesn’t leave the room. He’s in a secure location along with other key people, ahead of the Governor’s announcement in a couple of days.”

  “What announcement?” Brendan asked.

  “Governor Nelson is declaring Texas to be a sovereign nation,” Gallagher said. “We alluded to this possibility in the last meeting, remember?”

  “Yeah, I remember,” Juan Carlos said. “This isn’t making sense to me. Not at all. Every time we
think we’re gonna get air support, we end up holding the bag on our own.”

  “Juan Carlos,” Jefferson said. Gallagher put his hands up.

  “I want to hear his concerns,” he said. “We’re in the fog of war. The situation has been changing by the hour. Last night I had no idea we would send our air force to help with the situation in California and Arizona. The entire southern border is like a big leaky dike, and we don’t have enough fingers to plug all the holes at the same time. If a hole gets bigger all of a sudden, we rush help over there. That’s what has been going on. Believe it or not, this stretch here along Falcon Lake is the best protected section of border we’ve got. You can’t walk it, and it’s too wide to swim across. We’ve taken some awful casualties here, but we’re gonna turn the corner soon. Trust me on that.”

  “How do we get more SMAW rockets?” Brendan asked. “We asked for re-supply on the dock, and the lieutenant had no idea what we were talking about.”

  “Chauncey was piloting those on the QT, working with Wallis,” Gallagher said. “They obviously make a difference, but we’ve been keeping it close to the vest. They were beyond what we got approval for from the Texas Senate, but that situation was rectified yesterday.” He paused and smiled. “Follow me. I want to show you something.” He led the men out of the conference room and down the hall, into another room. Gallagher switched on the lights and motioned them in.

  Brendan gasped when he saw what was in there.

  Juan Carlos laughed. “Bitchen, dude.”

  There were several rows of automatic rocket launchers and gimbal assemblies stacked against the back wall.

  “We’re going to mount these on the boats, aren’t we?” Brendan asked.

  “Yeah,” Jefferson said. “After the briefing from Chauncey on the first attack run, it became pretty obvious that we needed a hands-free stabilized solution, controlled by the boat’s pilot. Here it is. We’ll be making an announcement about these in about four hours. They’ll be installed over the next three days. You guys get the first one.”

  “Excellent,” Brendan said. “We get to keep the hand-held SMAW too, right?”

  “I suppose so,” Jefferson said. “Why would you want that?”

  “We were just forced onto the beach, remember?” Brendan said. “We got lucky and were able to fix the problem with our boat. If we hadn’t been, the SMAW would have helped a lot.”