Thompson’s eyes widened with realization just as Colton pulled the trigger, twice. Both bullets hit the sheriff in the chest. He spun away, hitting the dirt, and then rolling into the ditch.
Colton roved the gun to Ivan.
“Nyet!” screamed the Russian.
He ate a bullet that exited the back of his head. The other two men took off running. Colton aimed the barrel at the fat man on the right, but he had never shot a man in the back before, and hesitated again.
You can’t afford to have mercy.
With the sights lined up, he shot the man in the back three times. The second man turned and shielded his head, knocking off his baseball cap on the process.
“Please,” he said. “Please don’t shoot me. I have a family.”
Colton looked over to Thompson, who lay in the dirt at the bottom of the ditch, his sightless eyes staring up at the sky.
“Please!” the man entreated.
Colton slowly lowered the Glock. “Tell your friends that Estes Park is off limits. If anyone shows their face there, they will meet the same fate as Thompson.”
The man nodded rapidly. “Yes, sir. I promise.”
Colton scanned his handiwork as he backpedaled to the truck; the fat man lay sprawled on the pavement with blood ballooning around the holes in the back of his coat; Ivan was face down, snow flurries falling into the gory exit wound where his skull had been moments earlier; and finally, Thompson.
A month ago, executing three men in cold blood would have made Colton throw up. But he was no longer that man. This was no longer that world.
After Afghanistan, he’d thought he had seen the worst humanity could do to each other, but atrocities like the burned-out FEMA camp in the distance, and the dead civilians hanging from poles on the side of the road, had taught him how cruel humans could be. Witnessing the things Thompson had done was sickening, but it had been necessary in teaching him what he needed to do to protect those he loved.
He was no longer a lawman.
He was one of the damned now.
***
Raven patted Willow on the neck. The mare snorted and continued up the trail. The sun was starting to go down over the mountains, leaving an orange streak across the iceberg-shaped clouds.
Chilly wind whipped Raven’s long hair across his face. He pulled the curtain back and redid his ponytail. His ear was really hurting from the cold. The stocking cap helped a little, but he was really starting to worry. An infection could cost him his ear, or worse.
“It’s cold as balls out here,” Dale Jackson said. He rode Colton’s horse, Obsidian. Saddlebags packed full of elk, deer, rabbit, and even squirrel meat hung over both horses.
“You think this is cold? Man, you white people don’t know cold,” Raven said.
Dale heaved a laugh, his breath coming out in a cloud of white. “You know, I didn’t like you much at first, but you’re a good guy, Sam. Funny, too. I didn’t realize you had a sense of humor.”
“I don’t,” Raven replied. He thought of the night of the North Korean attack, when Dale had nearly shot him on the road, and added, “For the record, I didn’t like you much, either.”
Dale hung his head ruefully. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinkin’ straight when I said those things to you. Went a bit crazy that night. Reminded me too much of…”
“No need to explain,” Raven said. “I’m a combat vet too, you know.”
“Right, and that makes us brothers.”
“Yes it does.”
He gave Willow a nudge, and continued down the road in silence, save for the sound of hooves clicking, as the sun retreated behind the mountains. They were headed for the new supply bunker on the eastern edge of town to store the meat. Raven had his crossbow strapped over his shoulder, wary of wild animals like coyotes and anyone that might be watching. He cradled an AR-15 and searched the woods framing the road for movement, but all was quiet.
After thirty minutes of trotting down the frontage road, they came upon the soccer field in the middle of the forest. It was a very odd place for it, but the perfect place to hide their supplies. Only two trails led to the area, and it was surrounded by forestland. The field was owned by a private school a mile away, and Lindsey had worked with the administrator to secure the land.
A pair of guards stood at the gate at the end of the dirt road. Dale dismounted and walked alongside Obsidian on the approach.
“Who goes there?” shouted one of the sentries silhouetted in the shadows of the pine trees.
“Raven Spears and Dale Jackson,” Dale said.
“Ah, good evenin’ gentlemen,” replied the guard. They both lowered their rifles and opened the gate.
Raven saw the face of the first guard in the waning light. Rex Stone, the father of Melissa, nodded at him. Standing on his right was Jim Meyers, the former manager of the Stanley Inn.
“Todd and Susan Sanders brought home quite the prize today,” Raven said. “They took down a buck with a couple of bows. We’re dropping it off, along with a few other fresh kills, and then taking a tally before heading back out on patrol.”
“Good news,” Rex said. He finished opening the gate and gave Willow a pat on her neck.
“Pretty quiet tonight,” said Meyers.
“Just the way we like it,” Raven said.
“Heard things weren’t so quiet on the highway today, though,” Rex said.
“You heard right,” Dale said. “But don’t worry. We’ve got the situation under control. Right, Raven?”
“Yeah.” Raven wasn’t sure if he believed his own words, but the last thing he wanted was to scare people. Rex looked up as Raven and Willow passed, with the sad eyes of a grieving father. At least he had something to do. Being out here was better than sitting at home thinking about his little girl. Lilly, his wife, was working inside the bunker beneath the field tonight.
Raven and Dale guided their horses around the edge of the grass, and finally stopped when they got to a metal shed. After tying up the horses, they grabbed the satchels of fresh meat and lugged them inside the building while Rex and Jim stood guard.
The building looked like a machine shed, with racks of tools hanging on the walls and several tables in the center of the room. But under those tables was a trap door. Raven put the satchels down and then, with Dale’s help, moved the table covering the industrial carpet. They pulled the carpet back and then opened the door, revealing a stairwell that led into a basement lit with an orange glow.
During the Cold War, the bunker had been built to shield the private school kids from a nuclear explosion. Now it was the best-guarded secret in Estes Park. And it was protected by a woman who wouldn’t hesitate to blast an intruder in the face with her shotgun.
“Who goes there?” said Lilly Stone. She angled the gun up the stairs. Raven moved his head back and announced himself.
Lilly lowered the barrel. “Oh, okay. Come on down.”
Raven and Dale brought the meat down in several trips. The chilly basement was a large open space with tables and racks full of canned food, massive barrels of water, medical supplies, and countless other goods. They had even turned a storage room into a refrigerator that doubled as the meat locker.
All told, it made up sixty percent of the town’s supplies. The meat stored on Trail Ridge Road had also been transferred here.
Lilly handed Raven a clipboard, and he signed off on the new shipment. Then he went through the ledger, noting the supplies they had handed over to Thompson.
“That really hurt us,” Lilly said. “Over five percent of our stock.”
Raven scratched at the back of his neck. “I know, but like I said, we’re going to get it all back, plus some. Trust me.”
He didn’t blame Lilly for her dirty look. After all, he hadn’t been able to save her daughter. Even though it wasn’t Raven’s fault directly, he was sure Rex and Lilly hated him for his failure to bring their little girl home.
“You ready, Raven?” Dale asked.
&nbs
p; “Yeah.”
Raven handed Lilly the clipboard and followed Dale out to their horses. A few minutes later, they were on their way through the Beaver Meadows. Raven wanted to start the patrol off with a quick check of the area where Jennie and some of the other refugees had seen the figures they described as soldiers.
They only made it halfway when the walkie-talkie on Raven’s duty belt crackled.
“Raven, this is Lindsey. What’s your current location? Over.”
“I’m just about back to town hall,” Raven replied.
“We need you at the roadblock on 34. There’s a vehicle. Meet me out front of the station. You can ride with me.”
“We’re on our way.”
Raven clipped the radio back on his belt and gave Willow a gentle kick. “Let’s go, girl,” he said.
The two horses took off, breaking into a full-blown gallop along the side of the road. Lindsey was waiting with Detective Ryburn in the Volkswagen Beetle outside the station when they arrived. They started the car as soon as Raven and Dale rounded the corner. Saving gasoline was a huge part of their effort, which was part of the reason Raven and Dale were patrolling on horses, but this was an emergency. It would take thirty minutes to get to the roadblock on Willow.
Lindsey sped away as soon as they were all inside. They passed the first roadblock without even slowing, the car zipping through the open barriers at almost full speed. Another message came over Lindsey’s radio as they approached the second roadblock, but she stayed focused on the road, flipping on the beams as the final glow of the sun receded.
“Get ready,” she said.
Raven flicked the safety on his AR-15 off as Dale whispered a prayer. Lindsey slowed on the approach to the barrier. Raven squinted, unable to make out much. What he could see was several of the militia guards posted there with rifles lowered. They had someone surrounded.
“A refugee?” Lindsey said as she killed the engine. She hopped out, and the men quickly followed her.
“What the hell is going on out here?” Lindsey asked.
Raven hurried over with his rifle at the ready, but paused in his tracks when he saw the battered face of the man the militia soldiers had surrounded.
“Chief Colton?” Lindsey gasped.
Raven took a step forward, confusion setting in. Was this some sort of a trap?
Colton moved out into the moonlight. His entire face was marked with a patchwork of cuts and bruises, and his right eye completely swollen shut. A gash divided his lips.
“Chief, what the hell happened to you?” Lindsey asked.
Colton wiped his mouth with a sleeve. “I killed ’em,” he grumbled. “I killed Sheriff Thompson and his men.”
Everyone went quiet, waiting for the chief to continue. But Colton just shook his head. He looked over at Raven, their eyes locking for a moment. Raven could see something had changed—something bad had happened to Colton out there.
“Get ready,” Colton said to Raven, his voice raspy.
“For what?” Dale asked.
Colton shot him a glare. “For war.”
— 8 —
Albert Randall sat up in bed. The pain was bad tonight. The worst yet. But that’s what happened when you took a 5.56 mm round to the gut and refused most of the painkillers. He didn’t want to end up like his sister—all doped up to the point he couldn’t think or move.
After finally managing to prop his back up with the pillows, Albert watched Dave and Ty, who were sitting in chairs across the small room.
“Don’t they have any movies in this joint?” Dave asked.
The boy Albert had discovered hiding in an abandoned apartment in Charlotte hadn’t shut up for the past hour. Ty, on the other hand, had remained mostly quiet, waiting anxiously for his mother to come back from her trip. And, despite the doctor’s orders, Albert was playing babysitter to them both.
“This place is boring. I want to go fishing. I thought they said we were gonna live at the ocean. I don’t see no water.” He tapped his tennis shoes on the ground, the noise grating on Albert’s already frayed nerves.
“There are some movies in the lounge,” Ty said. “But I don’t think they have anything cool. Just sappy drama stuff.”
“They got Lord of the Rings?” Dave asked.
Albert chuckled despite himself, and then gritted his teeth to fend off the pulsating pain.
“Yo, Mr. Big Al! When are we going to get out of this place and get back to our quest?” Dave asked. “We haven’t completed our mission to Mordor yet.”
Albert couldn’t tell if the boy was being serious or not.
Neither could Ty, apparently. “You’re joking, right?” he asked.
Dave grinned from ear to ear. “Kinda. I’ve slayed enough Orcs for now. There shall come a day when men fail, but that day is not today.”
Albert shook his head. The kid had slaughtered the movie quote.
“That’s not how it goes. Besides, you’re not a man. You’re just a kid,” Ty said.
Dave stood with his hands on his hips. “How dare you talk to Frodo like that.”
“You’re not Frodo either,” Ty said with a heavy sigh.
“And you’re not gonna join the Fellowship. You can’t walk anyways.”
Ty quickly furrowed his brows, and then looked at the ground. Seeing the boy’s pain almost hurt Albert worse than the gunshot wound. It was a different type of pain that made his heart ache.
“Knock it off, Dave,” Albert growled. “Ty is more than capable of keeping up with us when we head back out on our mission to Mordor.”
Dave ran his sweatshirt sleeve across his nose, dragging a strand of snot.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean you can’t come. You can be a Hobbit too,” Dave said. He waited a moment for Ty to respond, but Ty just shrugged a shoulder.
“Really, I’m sorry,” Dave entreated.
“It’s okay. I’m used to it.”
Albert’s heart continued to hurt for the boy. This wasn’t the first time he had been put down for his disability, and Albert knew it wouldn’t be the last.
“For real, though. When the Fellowship heads back out, you’re coming with,” Dave said.
Ty cracked a half smile. “Okay.”
“I’m coming with, too,” Albert said. “Keep you stinkers out of trouble.”
The kids both chuckled, but Albert had to force a laugh. Ty and Dave had both seen the horrors out there. Hopefully, neither of them would have to face it again. Not if Albert could help it. That’s why he had to get better. As soon as he was on his feet again, he had a feeling he would be heading back out into the fray.
A heart rate monitor chirped next to Albert’s bed.
“What’s that?” Dave asked. “Does that mean the Orcs are coming?”
“Yes,” Albert said, trying to keep a straight face. He gritted his teeth again at another wave of pain through his gut. It felt like a hot knife jabbing his insides.
Both of the boys watched Albert anxiously, concern painted on their faces.
“Are you okay, Mr. Big Al?” Dave asked, his nasally voice cracking.
“Yeah, I’m…” Albert groaned. “I’m fine.”
“I think Officer Randall needs to rest, boys,” came a voice from the open doorway. Doctor Parish stood there, her arms folded across her white coat.
“Aw, man,” Dave said.
“Let’s go see if we can find a good movie,” Ty said. He wheeled his chair toward the door, but Dave walked over and put his hand on Albert’s.
“Feel better, Mr. Big Al. I miss hanging out with you.”
Albert patted Dave’s hand. “Thanks, kid.”
Dave flashed a toothy grin and then followed Ty out of the room, pushing past a skinny figure standing in the doorway beside the doctor.
“Jacqueline,” Parish said. “I didn’t realize you were up.”
Albert hardly recognized his sister. She was gaunt as a scarecrow, and her wrinkled face appeared ten years older than he remembered. The
drugs had nearly destroyed his twin sister. But there was hope for her now. She was finally safe.
“Mind if I talk to my brother for a few minutes?” Jacqueline asked.
Parish looked at Albert, and he gave her an approving nod.
“Make it fast, ma’am. He really does need to rest.”
Jacqueline dragged a chair over to Albert’s bedside and took a seat. This was the first time she had visited him since he had woken up from surgery. She still hadn’t looked him in the eye, her gaze constantly flitting from side to side, focused on anything but him.
“Hey, sis,” he said.
“Hi.”
“I’m glad I found you.” He struggled to find the right words. “I’m… I’m sorry it took me so long to try and make up for the…”
He didn’t even finish his sentence before she started crying. The tears streamed away from the crow’s feet framing her dark brown eyes.
“Hey,” Albert said, reaching out. “Don’t cry, Jackie. It’s going to be okay. You’re safe now. You’re going to get the help you need.”
“I don’t deserve it.” She finally met his gaze. “That’s what you don’t understand, Al. I wasn’t just getting high when you found me. I was trying to end the nightmare.”
Albert swallowed hard, unsure what to say. It was difficult for him to fathom just how dark a place she had been in. How could his own sister, his twin, want to end her life? But then again, the world had gone mad, and she was addicted to heroin. The combination could drive anyone over the edge.
He reached out, and she huddled closer so he could wrap his arms around her. The embrace hurt, but he didn’t care about the pain.
“I love you, Jackie.”
“You too.”
Albert looked up to see another figure standing in the doorway. This time it was Charlize. She backed away to give the siblings some privacy, but Albert held up a free hand to tell her to wait.
As soon as Jackie pulled away, Albert said, “Secretary Montgomery, how was your trip?”
The hard look on her face told Albert there was trouble. She hadn’t just come to see how he was feeling. It looked like he might be headed back into the field even sooner than he thought.
Trackers Omnibus [Books 1-4] Page 84