The McClane Apocalypse Book Nine

by Kate Morris

  She shrugs.

  “I ought to…” he threatens, his grin becoming bolder.

  “No, thanks,” she blurts and spins. Then she jogs back to the barn to get away from him. At her back, Simon laughs loudly and keeps up.

  She rushes ahead of him and picks up the pace to put distance between them. When she reaches the barn, Cory jogs over to speak with Simon, so she is able to walk the rest of the way without him. Good, he is the distraction she needs to be around the least right now. She has erected a wall around her heart to keep him out, and Sam has no intention of letting him back in, even if he has an adorable grin.

  After dinner, they hold a meeting with Dave, a few of his men, their neighbors, a few of their friends from town who they trust, and Paul and K-Dog. They are holding it in the wide aisle of the horse barn, which seems to be the only place they’d all fit. She thinks they are doing this so that the children can go to sleep and also not have to hear it.

  “We found traces of them off route 431,” Cory tells them.

  “How do you know it’s him?” Sue asks.

  He explains, “Fresh tracks, looks like whoever he was with helped him switch cars. Probably ran out of gas or something.”

  “How many people do you think are with him?” Grandpa asks.

  “From what we can gather, about a dozen,” Cory states. “That’s how we figure that it’s their tracks, the car salesman and his buddies. The trail from the mansion ran cold, but we were able to pick up on a new one. They headed northwest.”

  “Toward Pleasant View?” Reagan asks with a frown.

  “Yeah, unfortunately,” he answers. “The trail is going cold, what with the rain we had last night. We’re going back out in the morning.”

  “I’ve got a Bloodhound I could offer up,” the sheriff says. “She’s a good little tracker. Was my huntin’ dog for years.”

  “That’d be great,” Kelly says. “Thanks.”

  “I can meet you up on 41 first thing,” he volunteers and indicates two of the men he’s brought tonight. “Roy here and Clarence can come with me.”

  “Thanks again,” Kelly says.

  “During the raid,” Cory starts and pauses, “I heard one of them say ‘they’re here now’ to his friend as if he expected us to be hitting their compound but just not that night.”

  John nods and says, “Yeah, that seems suspicious.”

  “They’re getting tipped off,” Simon reiterates.

  Kelly nods, “I agree.”

  “Anyone have any ideas where these dipshits could be moving to or if they’re even still in the area?” Derek asks next.

  Sam sits on top of the wooden grain bin and listens as the others bring forth suggestions.

  Her uncle says, “They’ll need somewhere safe. If any of them is injured, they’ll need medical care. So many people we treated in town were suffering from smoke inhalation and burns from the buildings catching fire while they were still in them. It’s possible the ones who escaped are in the same situation.”

  “Good point,” Derek states.

  Simon walks up to her with a steaming mug and hands her black mittens, “Here, Sam. I know your hands get cold when it’s like this outside.”

  Tonight, the temperature must be in the low thirties. She feels as cold as an iceberg, even in the barn. The warmth inside Cory and Simon’s cabin, which is where she and her uncle are staying, will be even more welcome tonight.

  “Thanks,” she says and takes them without hesitation.

  “Hot tea?” he asks and offers forth the mug as the rest of the group continues their discussion.

  “I’m good,” she shakes her head.

  Simon leans his hip against the feed bin next to her.

  “And with this weather, they’re not going to stay alive on the road,” Paige adds to the conversation.

  “Yeah, you’d know,” Cory comments, earning a nod.

  “Right, we always had to find somewhere to shelter in, even if it was just in a shed or an abandoned building.”

  An idea strikes, and Sam says out loud, “What about those cabins in the woods? Do you think they would’ve gone back to those?”

  Everyone is perfectly silent for a few moments, which makes her feel like her suggestion might’ve been stupid.

  “Hey, she could be right,” Cory states.

  “Yes, she could,” Derek says. “I hadn’t thought of that. It’s familiar. It’s what they know. We also know that they had sources of heat and water at those campsites in the woods.”

  “Right,” John agrees. “And they’d know the layout, the area around them, and how to secure entry points.”

  “With what few men they’ve got left,” Kelly says.

  “We should move on this tonight,” Cory says. “Forget waiting till morning. We need to find them as soon as possible. If there’s even the slightest chance they could be in those camps, we need to find them. If they move, we’ll lose them again.”

  “I agree,” John says.

  “You guys are fried,” Derek points out. “You’re running on empty.”

  “No such thing,” Dave states and holds up a thermos. “Nothing a little caffeine can’t fix!”

  Everyone laughs, and the men make plans and decide who is going to which camp and the teams they’ll work on.

  John comes over to her and says, “Good job, kiddo.”

  A few others also praise her, but Sam wonders if she just signed someone’s death warrant. She doesn’t care so much about the outcome of the highwaymen’s final stand other than how it will affect her family. If anything happens to any of them, she will never forgive herself.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Cory

  They’d found four camps in the woods when they were still hunting the highwaymen and trying to pin down their location. Four campsites were discovered, two by them and two by Dave’s men, and those were just the ones they know about for sure. Tonight, they must split up into teams to check them out. He is working with Simon and Dave and two of his men. The others have gone to check out the rest of the campsites. Sam’s theory makes sense. These men are not going to survive on the road like he was forced to when he’d left the farm. The car dealer is a pampered princess, used to the conveniences of living off of the hard work of others and stealing from those who were weaker.

  “I’ve got something,” Dave says in his ear from his spot on the other side of the ridge.

  “Where?” Simon asks in his throat mic.

  The Professor is lying prone in the leaves covering the forest floor about thirty yards to Cory’s east.

  “Chimney smoke,” he says. “Someone’s definitely home, over.”

  “I’ll call it in,” Cory tells them since he’s the one with the radio.

  “Tell them to come in real quiet-like,” Dave reminds him. “We don’t want to scare them off just yet. By the time they get here, it’ll be dawn. Let’s take them when they’re still cozy and snug as bugs, over.”

  “Roger that,” Cory says and calls John and then K-Dog, who are working separate squads. Kelly and Derek have stayed behind on the farm with Lucas, who is injured anyway. It has taken them hours to hike into this spot so that they didn’t raise an alarm with the noise of vehicles. This was the first campsite he and Simon found. He wonders if there is a significance to this particular one or if this is just the one that had the most advanced setup for survival. It seems dumb to Cory that they’d even returned here. They could also be wrong, and this isn’t the highwaymen or the car dealer down there. It could be squatters, people moving through the area who needed a place to stay for the night or someone else who took over the site. Either way, they’ll wait until backup arrives and the sun rises so they know who they’re approaching.

  Within an hour, the other groups have arrived on the scene to help, and they regroup. The sun has just started to rise, casting the area in gray, shadowy light, which makes it easier for them to see who they are up against.

  Cory stalks closer with John
until they are within twenty yards of the main cabin. Nobody has reported guards or a patrol unit yet, and he hasn’t seen one either. A horse whinnies somewhere closer to the cabin, likely on the other side. John hits him with an uncertain look.

  “Did you see tracks?” Cory whispers.

  John shakes his head. “They must’ve brought them in from another route than we took.”

  “Or they were already here.”

  No matter. They aren’t in the business of horse wrangling.

  “I’ve got movement,” Simon forewarns them from his perch up on the hill. “A man’s coming out of the cabin behind the main structure.”

  “Roger that, Professor,” Dave says since he is closer to the second cabin. “Rusty’s on it.”

  Cory knows he means that Rusty will take the person out silently or will at the very least incapacitate him.

  John nods to him that they should keep going. When they get within fifteen feet of the house, John whispers, “In position.”

  “Roger and go,” Dave says without hesitation.

  He and John creep quietly up the three stairs of the small porch and pause only a moment before John tries the doorknob. It turns without impediment. Cory breaches first, followed by John. The room is open and wide and without walls. The sun has not risen completely, so there are shadows everywhere. Stacks of boxes and crates and plastic tubs would indicate they have stockpiled for an extended stay and a quick exit if needed. First, he notices that there is a man on the sofa, a dingy, used one, and he is dead asleep. Another is sleeping under a window in a sleeping bag. Snoring coming from the loft area lets them know there are others.

  “We’ve got confirmation,” Dave says next. “It’s them. Take ‘em out, boys.”

  John wastes no time, doesn’t question the intel, and swiftly moves toward the one under the window. Cory mimics his moves and rushes over to the man sleeping on the sofa. They use their knives so as not to awaken the rest of their group. When the deed is done, Cory pauses to listen as someone in the loft moves around.

  His eyes meet John’s and they quickly duck under the loft floor so that if someone peeks over, they won’t see them. There is a hallway that likely leads to bedrooms. Someone stumbles down it toward them and stops with a surprised gasp.

  “What the…?”

  John’s custom Kimber rings out. He shoots him point blank to the chest. Pretense is gone. Game on. It’s time to do what they came to do and with less noise. It seems like the whole house awakens at the same time. Footsteps above them and in the rooms that shoot off in both directions from the center hall let them know the enemy is alert.

  Another man comes down the stairs in just his underwear with a wild, startled expression and a raised HK91. Cory quickly dispels him to hell and secretly hopes to claim that rifle for Huntley later.

  Down the hall, John has moved away from him and fires into one of the bedrooms. A man runs out of the room just past his friend with a pistol in his hand, so Cory protects his partner and shoots the man in the face.

  Outside, all hell has broken loose, as well. Shots are being fired off one after the other as Dave, and his men engage. A high-powered, long-range round rings through the valley loud enough to awaken the dead. Simon is no doubt killing people who try to run away. A second later, glass shatters upstairs followed by a scream, which tells him Simon is popping people there, too. K-Dog comes in the front door behind him, letting him know he is there. Cory signals he should follow him up the stairs. K-Dog sends his two men down the hall with John, who is a one-man killing machine.

  Creeping up the open stairs carefully, Cory waits when K-Dog pulls and throws a flashbang into the loft. Shots ring out hitting the wood paneling on the walls and the ceiling. More glass shattering comes next. Cory has a bad feeling they are going to try to escape again. K-Dog rushes ahead of him and fires off a few rounds as he steps onto the loft floor. Cory is right behind him. He manages to take out a man to their right in an alcove near a small, round window. K-Dog kills two more with headshots. Then they push forward together and come to a locked door.

  His friend gives it a solid kick, and it flies inward to reveal a bedroom with two other doors, probably leading to a closet and bathroom.

  The room would appear empty, but someone had to have locked it. They move forward. Cory whips open the door to the closet, but it is empty, too. There are boxes of canned goods on the floor, though. Then they move to the bathroom where the door is also closed and locked. Cory takes the lead and applies two kicks until it crashes inward. A man shoots at them, misses and hits the doorframe, and Cory takes his own shot and hits him in the shoulder. He slams backward, drops his pistol, and slides to the floor, leaving a bloody streak. He screams as he goes down.

  “Fuck, that’s him. That’s the car dealer,” K-Dog announces.

  They have all memorized the faces of the car dealer and the senator in case any of them were to find them without one of the McClanes with them.

  “Yeah, that’s him,” Cory agrees as he looks at the man before them. “We’ve got him,” he says into his mic.

  “Area secure,” Dave states.

  “Ditto,” John says.

  “Get up, douche-hole,” K-Dog orders and grabs the man by his jacket.

  He is dressed as if he was going to try to flee. There is also a piece of luggage on the floor. He must’ve heard the first shots and decided to ditch his men and go.

  “I’m hurt!” he cries out and stumbles.

  “Move it, shit-bag,” K-Dog says angrily and gives the man a shove out the door past Cory. He falls and K-Dog kicks him in the ass to motivate him to his feet again. He’s a great motivator.

  They convene again near Simon, and Cory makes sure to take that HK with him. K-Dog is jealous. John says they’ll send someone back for the horses and any other livestock.

  “Anyone see women?” Dave asks.

  “There weren’t any women with us,” the car dealer offers up.

  “No,” he and John answer, ignoring him.

  K-Dog bitch slaps the car dealer and says, “Don’t speak unless spoken to, asswipe.”

  Cory knows K-Dog’s friend was killed, the guard he had watching this clown. He has a score to settle with the car dealer.

  “Let’s roll,” Dave says.

  They begin the long hike out of the woods to their cars and trucks, dragging their prisoner along with them. Cory is hoping this is it, that it’s finally over. There is still information they need from this prick, but he and the men in the cabin were the last ones in their group of murderous dipshits. Their reign of terror is over.

  They drive to town where they secure the car dealer in the basement of the town hall where they have kept all the highwaymen they’ve captured. Other than the teenage boy who worked with them to find the highwaymen, who now lives with his mother in town, everyone from their group has been executed with the same mercy they showed their victims.

  Today is a clinic day, so Doc and Reagan are in town anyway, and they let them know what’s going on. John also already called Derek to tell him what happened.

  “This man has been shot?” Doc asks. “We need…”

  “No, he’s not getting medical care, Doc,” John butts in. “All we need to know from him is who’s been tipping him off and who this ‘president’ guy is.”

  “Yes, but if he doesn’t give you the information, he could die before you get it,” Doc points out.

  “He’ll give it,” John says with force, presses a gentle kiss to Reagan’s cheek, and nods for Cory to follow him. The man is an enigma. He is tender and gentle with his wife and kids but flips that switch in a heartbeat and beats men to death in the next. Cory idolizes John very much.

  “Later,” he says to Doc and Reagan, who both look concerned.

  Cory jogs to catch up to John. “Think he’ll give us what we need?”

  “Absolutely,” John answers with intensity.

  They join Dave in the basement and have K-Dog watch the hallway leadin
g to their interrogation room. They don’t want anyone interrupting them.

  When they enter the room, the man they have hunted for months is a weeping, bleeding pile of remorse. Except that Cory doesn’t believe he has the ability to be remorseful because he is evil incarnate.

  “We’re gonna make this real simple, bud,” John states. “We know who you are. We know about the Gaylord. We knew about those camps in the woods. We’re the McClanes.”

  “I figured,” he says weakly. “I know who you are.”

  “We’ve got questions, and you’re going to give us answers, or we’re going to hurt you. Badly. When my friend and I get tired of hurting you, I’ve got a long line outside that door waiting for their turn.”

  “Let’s just talk, ok?” he suggests in fear.

  “We’ll ask the questions, and you’ll answer them. Bargaining time is over,” John informs him.

  “Fine, fine,” he expels in a rush. “Just…”

  “Who are you working with?” John interrupts impatiently.

  “What do you mean?”

  John actually chuckles, but the sound is humorless. “Buddy, you don’t want to play games with me.”

  He doesn’t answer but stares unwaveringly. Blood from his gunshot wound is plopping at a pretty steady pace onto the floor.

  “Who are you working with?” John repeats.

  “You killed him,” he says.

  “Do you mean the senator?” John asks and gets a nod. “I know. But that’s not who I mean, and you know it. Someone is feeding you information. Someone’s been tipping you off when we’re coming, where we are, who we are. I want to know who it is.”

  No answer. Cory punches him in the side of the face without pause. He cries out and actually howls, “ow, ow, ow!”

  “This is just the tip of the iceberg, car dealer,” John tells him and leans down. “Waterboarding comes next followed by leaving you tied up out in the woods for a few days for the wild animals to gnaw on before we bring you back here.”

  The man’s eyes grow wide with fear. He’s not a particularly big man but has a sense of entitlement about him that Cory finds especially distasteful.