Titus nudged Marcus toward the microphone and encouraged him to speak. Marcus grumbled "Thanks!" to his father before turning to face the crowd. "Thank you, everyone! And thank you to each and every one of you who stood with us last night!" He paused looking for the words to say and tears came to his eyes and ran down his cheeks. "I've never been more proud to be an Arizonan than being here with you wonderful people. Thank you!" The crowd roared their thanks then began to chant..."Arizona! Arizona! Arizona!"
The mayor called others to speak and they did so one by one...each giving thanks to their defenders. Finally, the mayor opened the meeting to floor. Some took the microphone that was passed around the room to ask after family members or friends. Others thanked the defenders profusely.
Then a middle aged man stood up and took the microphone. "I'm Bill Montag and I own the general store, gas station, and laundry mat here in Sasabe. I want to be on record that I feel the Governor and the State Legislature have violated their authority in breaking with Washington, D.C. and in violating our open borders with Mexico. When I lived in California..."
The crowd began to boo and shout. Another man, several years older than Montag, stepped forward. Marcus thought he looked familiar; tall, distinguished with dark hair smattered with gray, his beard and mustache the same. The man was accompanied by two large, beautiful Huskies who followed quietly at his feet. The man reached over and took the microphone from Montag's hand. "Yeah, yeah," the man said. "We've all heard this before...'when I lived in California this' and 'when I lived in California that'. Well, Montag, you aren't living in California now! And you haven't been living in California for many years! Folks, I'm Liam W. Evanston...most of you here tonight know me. I've lived in Sasabe for the past thirty years. Montag, ever since you moved here five years ago, we've heard nothing but how great California is. If it's so great, then why the HELL did you move here?" The crowd roared again! Obviously, they had heard Montag's mantra too many times themselves.
"Look, Bill...if you ain't happy here in Arizona, may I suggest you move BACK to California and the Left Coast!" said Evanston. More cheers.
Montag shouted, "I have a God-given right to voice my opinion!"
"God-given right? Since when are you so religious?" asked Liam Evanston. "For years you've done nothing but deride the fine, church-going folks of this community. The closest thing to a religion we've heard you talk about is Progressivism! You and people like you have led this country to the place we're at now. And frankly, I for one am sick of it! So sit down and shut the HELL up! We're tired of your bullshit, sir!" This time, the clapping and cheering took almost three minutes to die away. Before it did, Bill Montag left the fire station in a huff to more cheers, jeers, and no small amount of laughter.
Chapter 11
The following morning found Marcus in his office in the ASGuard Compound. A knock on the door interrupted his train of thought as he tried to write his After Action Report on the Battle of Sasabe. His aide poked his head into the office. "Sir, there's a Ms. Dolenz who would like to see you!"
Marcus sighed. He had been interviewed by Ms. Michelle Dolenz following the town meeting the night before. She had been professional but still asked some pretty politically skewed questions. Ah, the weight of command, he thought. Well, let's get this over with. "Send her in, please," he said rising from his chair and walking around his desk to greet the newswoman.
A scent of expensive perfume trailed Michelle Dolenz as she entered the room. She had obviously scrubbed the dust and grit of the battle from her person and donned a clean and very expensive dress suit. She shook his hand firmly, accepted the chair the major offered, and declined something to drink.
"Major Roman," she began, taking her seat, "thank you for seeing me!"
Marcus smiled and replied, "You are most welcome, Ms. Dolenz. How may I help you?" He returned to his chair and sat down.
"First, major, I'd like to apologize for my rudeness the other day. I obviously came here with some preconceived notions that were...well...less than accurate," said the young woman.
Marcus chuckled then said, "It happens to us all at one time or another."
"Well, Bud, my cameraman, and I witnessed the whole battle. We've examined the evidence that Governor Alvarez described. It is clear to us that the cartels, gangs, and even terrorists were behind the attack. They drove those poor innocent people ahead of them...using them as human shields to get close to you and the other defenders. You and the others here in Sasabe did everything you could to avoid shooting the civilians...even when it was clear that there were armed insurgents amongst them. You endangered yourselves to protect strangers...innocent lives." She paused for a moment, obviously trying to control her emotions. Tears welled up in her eyes.
She opened her eyes to see the young major holding a tissue out to her. "Thank you," she said. "Bud and I just want you to know that we were wrong. We apology for what we said to and about you. You can bet my coverage of the ASGuard and the Southern Border Defense System will be of a more positive nature from now on!"
"Thank you, Ms. Dolenz! I will pass that along to my personnel," said Marcus.
Michelle Dolenz rose from her chair and held out her hand to Marcus. They shook hands and the young woman took her leave. No sooner had she left than Teresa entered the office.
"Whee-ohh! Someone put on way too much perfume this morning!" she said waving her hand in front of her face to try to displace the heavy scent. "So what did the news beyotch have to say?"
Marcus took his wife's hands in his own and drew her close. "She actually apologized for her behavior the other day. Seems that some folks actually can learn!" Marcus and Teresa shared a quick kiss before anyone could interrupt. "So, Lieutenant, how may I help you this morning?"
Teresa snapped to attention. "Sir! LT Roman reports. Sergeant Major Templeton is awake, alert, and has gone A...W...O...L from the medical center. We thought you may be able to assist the medical staff in prying him out of the chow hall before the chief medical office puts him on report, sir!"
"Finally! A mission of worthy of my rank and station," said Marcus in mock seriousness, grabbing Teresa by the hand and racing through the door. "We're heading over to the chow hall. If anybody comes looking for me, tell 'em I ran off with a beautiful woman!" he hollered over his shoulder to his aide as he and Teresa left the compound headquarters.
As usual, there was quite a bit of noise coming from the chow hall as Marcus and Teresa entered, but it wasn't quite what Marcus expected. The large room was packed! A narrow open space ran from the door to the table Templeton was seated at. Teresa pulled Marcus through the crowd until they reached the senior noncom's table.
"Sergeant Major," Marcus began," what are you doing here? You are supposed to be in a bed in the medical center!"
"Sir, if I was in the med center, I'd miss out on this," Templeton replied.
"Miss out on what, Temp?" Marcus asked. Templeton smiled and pointed at something on the wall behind his commanding officer. Marcus turned to see what his friend was pointing at. There on the wall hung a large, colorful banner: "Congratulations, LTC Marcus A. Roman!"
"Surprise!" yelled everyone in the room before breaking into cheers and clapping. Major General Roman stepped through the crowd who opened before him so as not to jostle his injured shoulder. The crowd quieted down as he stopped in front of his son. "As of this morning, the Governor of the State of Arizona has approved the promotion of Major Marcus Aurelius Roman to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Arizona State Guard with all due rights, responsibilities, and privileges. Congratulations, Lieutenant Colonel Roman!" The general reached forward and carefully removed the gold oak leaf insignia from Marcus' collar and attached two silver oak leafs insignia in their place. Cheers and clapping erupted anew and personnel stepped up to Marcus one at a time to congratulate his on his promotion.
With the congratulations out of the way, the chef wheeled in a giant cake adorned with two silver oak leaves and waved Marcus to one
side of the cake. Teresa handed him a cake knife and server. Marcus carefully sliced the first piece then lifted it onto a small, paper plate. He picked up the plate and began to offer it to his father, then stopped and started to offer it to his wife then paused again. Marcus smiled at the crowd then dug into the piece of cake himself! Everyone laughed at his little joke.
Marcus set the plate down and sliced more pieces and served them to each person present. When the last piece of the cake was passed out, he paused then smiled when the chef brought out another cake! Soon, everyone had a piece of cake and a cup of punch. Teresa stepped forward and raised her cup, "To my husband!" Titus raised his cup and said, "To my son!" Sergeant Major Templeton stood up, faced Marcus, and raised his cup. "To my stomach!" Templeton downed his drink in one gulp to the cheers of all assembled. Templeton picked up another drink, and holding it in the air, said, "To Lieutenant Colonel Marcus Aurelius Roman!"
As the promotion party went on, many ASGuard personnel left the chow hall to report to their duty stations, while others entered the room as they came off duty. Finally, Marcus handed out the final piece of cake to the last trooper and was able to sit down with his father, wife, and Templeton.
"Great job on the surprise, guys!" Marcus said. "You could have knocked me over with a feather."
Titus smiled. "The Governor told me last night that she felt you deserved a promotion and who am I to argue with her. I saw first-hand the tremendous job you did at the Wall the other night. I just had to gather a few conspirators together to make it come together today." He put his good arm around his daughter-in-law and nodded at the sergeant major. "Thank you," he said to them.
The chef came out to ask what they would like for dinner that evening. Titus said, "Thank you, no, master sergeant. I've got to get back to ASGuard HQ or they'll start to think they can run the place without me. Come on, kids, walk me to my vehicle. Sergeant Major, you get feeling better and get back to keeping my boy out of trouble." Titus reached over with his good hand to shake the senior noncom's hand.
Marcus and Teresa followed the general to his vehicle which was standing by outside the chow hall. Titus looked at his son and daughter-in-law and said, "Well done, both of you!" He gave each of them a hug and nodded at their salutes because his right arm was still in a sling. He started to climb into his vehicle, stopped, and turned around. "Oh, Teresa, here...these are for you!" He handed her a box containing a set of captain's bars. "You better get back to the chow hall. Chef should be wheeling out YOUR cake about now!" He winked at them, climbed in his vehicle, and signaled the driver to take off.
**********
The following morning, work continued in earnest on repairing the damage caused by the attack and closing the gaps in the Wall and Ditch. Crittenger's construction workers moved at a feverish pitch while members of the ASGuard, BP, National Guard, and other units remained on high alert to repel any aggression.
Within a week, the Ditch was repaired and completed and the heavy equipment used in its construction was driven back across the border into Arizona. A day later, the final concrete slabs were tilted up to position and secured to the Wall. Once the fill material was in place and compacted, concrete was poured in to cover it and provide a solid floor for the border guards to walk on between guard posts atop the Wall.
The people of Sasabe threw a big party for the construction workers at the town fire station. The entire community and those from the surrounding communities and the border defense units were invited to attend. Marcus and Teresa attended the festivities and wandered amongst the people, chatting with those they knew and introducing themselves to those they didn't.
Conspicuously absent was Bill Montag. When Marcus asked several folks about him, they told him to speak with Liam W. Evanston. Curious, Marcus sought out the older gentleman and found him sitting quietly at a table in the fire station's vehicle bay. His two ever-present Huskies lay beneath the table at his feet.
"Hi, Mr. Evanston," Marcus began. "How are you this boisterous evening?"
"Why hello! And congratulations are in order for you both, I hear," said Evanston shaking Marcus' hand! "Are you and your wife enjoying our town's hospitality this evening?"
"Yes sir," Marcus replied. "It looks like everyone is! Well, almost everyone. I don't see Mr. Montag around."
Evanston smiled at the Romans. "Yep! He definitely ain't here. I figure he and his family are packing up their household about now. You see, I had a little chat with him yesterday. Told him that I was going to buy him out. I'm now the owner of the general store, gas station, and laundry mat. Hired a nice couple to run them for me and told them to check the prices at similar establishments in the area and lower our prices to match. Montag's days of price gouging the people of Sasabe are over."
"So, what did you say to him, Mr. Evanston?
"I basically told him what I said the other night. If he doesn't like it here, he should move back to California. With this breakdown between the states, it doesn't look like his kind of politics will be welcome here much longer," replied Evanston. "It didn't hurt that I offered him more money than his properties are really worth and he jumped at it. Apparently, I wasn't the only citizen to speak with Montag...the others just didn't have as much money as I do and weren't as polite as I was!"
Marcus leaned against the wall and was silent for a moment. "I imagine we're going to see more moves such as that in the future."
Evanston nodded and answered, "Yes, we will...in both directions. Those who are unable to live under a Constitution-focused government and willfully fight the restoration of the Constitution will move to those states where the government is more to their liking. And conservatives in liberal states will move to conservative states even faster."
Teresa tapped Marcus on the shoulder and pointed to a band warming up. Marcus nodded to his wife then turned back to Evanston. "Well, thank you for some interesting conversation, Mr. Evanston."
Evanston rose and shook Marcus' outstretched hand. "My pleasure, colonel...captain! Congratulations again on your promotions. Drop by the house sometime, if you'd like to continue the conversation. C'mon, pups, it's time for us to head home and let these young folks enjoy their evening. G'night now!" Evanston and his huskies left the fire station, chatting with people here and there as they went.
"I'll do that, sir! Goodnight!" replied Marcus. He then turned and took Teresa's hand and walked away. Reaching the dance floor, he put his arms around his beautiful wife and she put her arms around her husband. The young lovers slow danced, swaying to the music, blocking out the world around them.
Later that night, as they prepared for bed, Marcus was curiously quiet. When Teresa asked him what was wrong, he replied, "Nothing. It's just that Mr. Evanston seems very familiar to me and, for the life of me, I can't remember why!" The two retired to their bed and Teresa was just dozing off when Marcus sat up abruptly, snapped his fingers, and chuckled.
Surprised, Teresa asked, "What is it, honey?"
"I just remember where I know Mr. Evanston from!" replied Marcus. "Dad has quite a collection of military/adventure novels that he has read and re-read over the years. I've read quite a few of them myself. Mr. Evanston was quite a prolific and controversial author. His books all took a conservative slant causing those on the Left to froth at the mouth! Dad's favorite story was about a guy who tried to set up a new form of government following what was basically World War III."
"Wait, Evanston also wrote a whole bunch of western novels as well, didn't he? Yes! My abuelo loved his western books!" said Teresa. "Hmmm...I wonder if I could ask him to autograph a book for my grandfather."
"And one for my Dad, too! Next time we take a jaunt to Tucson, I know a bookstore we can visit that will probably have a copy of their favorite books in stock!" said Marcus. The young couple lay back down in each other's arms and soon drifted off to sleep.
The following morning, Marcus e-mailed his father while Teresa e-mailed her grandfather. After letting their relations know th
at they had met Liam W. Evanston, they prepared to go on-duty. Before they could leave their quarters, Titus and Ernesto responded, each asking if he could get an autograph from their favorite author!
**********
The completion of the Southern Border Defense System dramatically slowed, but did not totally stop, illegal border crossings from Mexico. All along the Arizona/Mexico border new approaches were being tried to circumvent the SBDS. Some tried to use grappling hooks and ropes to climb into then out of the Ditch then over the Wall. A few of these were injured in the attempt and had to be rescued. These people were given basic medical treatment, were photographed and thumb printed, and were then turned over to the police in Aduana del Sásabe. Others were caught on the Wall and were processed and then sent to the Mexican village.
Others tried to tunnel under the SBDS. What they didn't know is that special sensors had been embedded unground in the area between the Ditch and the Wall along the whole length of the SBDS. Each tunnel was detected long before it breached the surface in Arizona. Border defense personnel would stake out the anticipated break through point and catch the invaders in the act. Three warnings would be broadcast down the tunnel warning anyone still in it to evacuate immediately. Fifteen minutes after the last broadcast, a concrete would be pumped down the opening, effectively sealing the tunnel.
While this was going on, the drug cartels stepped up their use of specially prepared cars, trucks, planes, helicopters, and even unmanned aerial vehicles. The Arizona border defense forces developed new techniques to examine cars and trucks to non-destructively detect hidden compartments. Few of any ground vehicles carrying drugs or illegal immigrants made it through the border crossing facility with their cargos.
The Arizona State Guard Trilogy Page 13