As we neared the gate, I could see smoke rising from several different areas and I could hear cheering coming from the guards in the tower beside the gate. I climbed up to the tower as soon as I arrived and a most amazing sight greeted me. Four vehicles had emerged through the cut on the east end of the valley. The second and third vehicles in line were an armored car, such as is used to transport money and a Humvee similar to the ones we had. It was the first and last vehicles that caught my attention. Both were the seven ton version of the standard military transport truck. They had armored cabs and instead of the normal canvas covered bed, these had an armor sided bed. They were painted tan and quite large but what had my attention was mounted at the front of the troop compartment. It appeared to be some type of water cannon that had been modified.
As I watched, the cannon in the lead vehicle discharged a long gout of flame and immolated a group of six Stinkies. The zombies continued to shuffle toward the truck engulfed in flame for a few seconds before they finally crumpled to the ground and stopped moving. The truck crept forward a few yards until it was in range of another group of Stinkies. Once again the flame erupted from the cannon and again the group went down. This kept up until they reached the first barriers of the serpentine leading to the gate.
They were close enough now that I could see the person working the flame cannon. He appeared to be a large fellow, well over six-feet and fairly muscular. Where ever he had been he had not endured the lack of food the rest of us had. He wore old style woodland pattern camouflage utilities and had a headset on with a microphone in front of his mouth. He raised one hand from the weapon he directed and waved at us in the tower. I waved back and he went back to burning the Stinkies.
The truck continued forward until it was only a few yards from the gate. All of the Stinkies that had been trying to get in now turned toward the truck. As they moved toward the newest thing to gain their attention, the man behind the cannon sprayed a long stream of fire covering the entire group. Just like that, there were now thirty less of the creatures. If these guy’s, whoever they were, kept this up our problem with the Stinkies would soon be over.
Once the last of the latest group to be set on fire fell, the truck inched forward until they were close enough for us to yell to each other. The large guy behind the fire cannon pulled one of the earphones back and pushed the microphone down under his chin. He looked up toward the tower and in a loud voice asked, "Hey, who's the honcho here?"
"That would be me," I replied. "That's an impressive toy you've got there."
He laughed and patted the top of the cannon. "Yeah, she's something alright. Anyway, is this place the Dell?"
Surprised that they were looking for us I yelled back, "Yes, this is the Dell." As soon as I said this he pulled the mic back in front of his mouth and depressed a button attached to his chest rig. "How'd you guy's hear about us?" I asked. He held up a finger to indicate he was listening to his headset and after a few seconds pushed the mic back under his chin.
"Hey, my boss wants to know if you want us to take care of the rest of this little problem?" he asked, then answered my question, "Oh, and yeah, we were talking on the HAM set with a guy named L.B."
L.B. and his radio. I wondered why he hadn't told me he'd been in actual contact with someone. I'd have to ask him after I got back to town. Right now we had a chance to break this siege and I wasn't going to blow it. "We'd appreciate all the help we can get. Who and where is your boss so I can thank him in person?" I replied.
The big man laughed again. "Boss is a she not a he. Lieutenant Commander Camille Ruiz, USN. She's in the armored car. I'll let her know she can come on up." I thanked him and he shrugged. "No sweat. Couple of hours and we'll have this cleaned up. Course it's gonna look like a barbeque in Hell went bad. No worries, we're Sea Bee's. Just as good at cleaning shit up as we are at fucking it up. Couple days and this place will be good as new." He keyed the mic and spoke for a couple of seconds then looked back at me. "Boss will be up momentarily. I'm gonna get started frying these shits. Talk to you later." And with that, the truck lurched backward and wove its way out of the serpentine.
Once they were back out in the open the big man’s truck cut right and started along the anti-vehicle ditch. The other truck turned left and they both started spraying fire as they eased around our perimeter. The smell was incredible. I had thought the smell of the decomposing Stinkies was bad but it could not compare to the smell of burning human flesh mixed with the odor of gasoline. I tried not to retch as I watched the horrific scene of the burning Stinkies trying to catch the truck until they collapsed in to little flaming piles. I knew this new horror would be forever locked in my mind.
As I watched the Stinkies being fried, I failed to notice the armored car and HUMMVE approaching along the road. By the time I became aware of them they were pulling up to the gate. I climbed down and went to greet our guests. I instructed the guards to keep the vehicle covered with their weapons from the tower and to only open the gate a crack. I advised them if things went bad to slam it shut and not to worry about me. The guard reluctantly agreed but didn't look happy about it. As the gate opened, I squeezed out and stood in the open alone facing whatever came out of the armored car.
As I stood in no man’s land all of the times I had faced someone down alone ran through my mind. I always worried my luck would run out. It's a fact that eventually every fighter meets someone just a little tougher or quicker and, though I had a lot of experience, I’m getting older. I hoped my luck would hold out a while longer. Either way, I was committed.
I didn't have to wait for long. Within seconds of me walking through the gate the rear door of the big heavy truck swung open. A young man and a young woman, both wearing camouflage and carrying M-4 rifles came around to the side of the truck, but didn't approach. A second later, I noticed an older woman wearing a pair of cammy trousers and a khaki shirt. She was short and stocky with short jet black hair. As she joined the first two they came forward together. When they were a couple of steps away from me, the two in front stepped aside to allow the woman in back to step forward.
I got my first good look at her. Her dark hair and eyes along with her complexion were testament to her Latino heritage. I estimated her age at around forty and her short hair accentuated her features. She was not attractive with wide set eyes and a crooked nose that looked like it had been broken several times set in a wide flat face. Little gold oak leaves pinned to her collar points identified her as a Navy Lieutenant Commander. I was surprised when she spoke and her physical appearance hid the loveliest Spanish accent I had ever heard. "I am Lt. Cmdr. Ruiz, U.S. Navy. You are Mister Williams, I hope?"
I nodded and asked her to call me Scott. "Okay Scott, my people have traveled a long way to get here and it was a costly trip." I could see from her face what she meant.
"How many?" I asked.
"Five. Five good people but if this place is what we were told it was worth it. Is it?" She looked at me with those hard dark eyes as she again. “Is it what we were told?”
I smiled. "Well I don't know what you were told. L.B. is known to exaggerate." This got me a smile in return. "But after helping us with our little problem it wouldn't be very neighborly of us to turn you away. Yes, Mrs. Ruiz, you and your people are welcome."
"Thank you." she said. "And it's Lieutenant Commander."
"Not here, it's not," I told her. I wasn't trying to start an argument but I wanted her to know who was in charge and it was our rules they would have to obey. The U.S. Navy no longer existed and while her rank might mean something to her and those in her group, they were just another band of survivors to us. Albeit, a band of survivors with a great skill set but survivors just the same.
I continued to smile so she wouldn't see my comment as such a challenge and I tried to explain. "Here we have our own security and our own rules. The chain of command is well-established and while your opinion will be valued you and your people may or may not be part of the security
element. If you do become part of the security section you would fall under their chain of command. We have our own rules and one of them is that you will have to agree to abide by all of our rules to gain admittance." This time I looked her right in those dark eyes and kept my face as serious as I could manage. "Can you do that?"
She looked at the woman on her right and the man on her left then back at me. "I think we can do that," she said smiling.
"Good." I told her. "Now let’s get your vehicles inside so you and I can discuss what happens next." I turned and motioned for the guards to open the gate.
The gate opened fully, and Lt. Cmdr. Ruiz motioned her vehicles to follow her inside. I radioed Jim and asked him to have Doc Groves head over to the barn to get ready for our new inhabitants. He radioed back he'd take care of it and I had one of the guards on an ATV guide the vehicles to the barn. I told Ruiz that as soon as the other two trucks showed up I'd send them to link up with her. She shook my hand and climbed back into her vehicle for the short ride to the barn.
I asked Dave to check on the progress of the fire trucks and he jumped on another ATV and roared off toward one of the far towers. I stayed at the gate to make sure that everyone got inside. A few minutes later, Dave called on the radio to inform me that the truck crews were doing fine and had the perimeter about half cleared of Stinkies. I told him to keep an eye on things and let me know if anything went wrong.
It took far less than two hours to clear our perimeter of the Stinkies. The two truck crews finished in the record time of one hour and ten minutes. The siege was broken. We could send out foraging parties in the morning. The Dell had been saved by the intervention of strangers and I wouldn't let them down by allowing them to starve to death. Ruiz and her crew still had a few supplies left but they were in almost as bad a shape as we were. Without resupply we could have held out for another three weeks. We had cut it close.
With our luck holding for the first time since Thanksgiving, I had a sense of hope again. The good feeling over the intervention by our new friends spread throughout the village and although more subdued than euphoria, the old attitude that we could accomplish anything returned. Restocking our supplies would get us through until mid-summer and time for our first harvest. If we could make it that far we might accidentally make it all the way—if you believe in miracles.
Chapter 20
The Coming Storm
I talk a lot about luck and, yes, I believe in luck. It doesn't matter how good at something you are, eventually you encounter a situation that's beyond your control and only being lucky will see you through. If you are unlucky, well you probably won't have to worry about what comes next. Luck has always played a part in my successes.
Don't get me wrong, I've worked hard to be good at what I do. When I was in the Army I was extremely competitive and after I got into Law Enforcement I strove to be the best cop I could. I studied to learn as much as I could about doing investigations and it made me a good detective. I hated having an unsolved case and worked diligently to close every case. That's when I first figured out that luck always plays a part in how successful you are. You can follow every lead, find every clue to solve a case, and if luck isn't on your side there will be something that keeps you from making the arrest.
Since the Event, I'm an even bigger believer in luck. I had no idea how to make it in this new world that Kat and I found ourselves in. I did what I thought was right and sometimes it turned out okay and sometimes it didn't. I have learned a lot since those first days but mostly what gets you through the uncharted waters is luck. So far my luck has held for the most part. It was luck that got us through the battle with the Road Gang in Lebanon. It was luck that Jenny Moss found the valley we now inhabit. It was luck that brought us Lt. Cmdr. Ruiz and her people at a time when we were desperate.
I'm not superstitious and I don't think you can re-charge lost luck. You are either lucky in a given situation or you aren't. I have known many unlucky people throughout my life and they all have one thing in common. They don't believe in luck. It's their belief that they can make their way strictly on their own abilities but the sad truth is no matter how able they are; without luck they never make it far.
I didn't know it in February when Ruiz showed up but a storm was coming and luck would play a big part in our continued survival. It's the end of March now and as I sit in the little cottage in the oak trees writing this we’re preparing for the final battle. With the coming of dawn we will fight to determine whether we are to survive or not.
In the days following the arrival of the Sea Bees we did our best to welcome them. The three-day quarantine passed with clean bills of health for everyone and the security interviews didn't reveal anything of concern. We took extra care with the questions. We had learned our lesson with Marvin Hamilton. They assimilated into our group with ease. Most of them joined the security detachment including Camille Ruiz. Dave had never had an Executive Officer or XO. He had always acted as mine but looking forward to a time when we moved to an elected government and I retired, Dave would need an assistant. Camille filled that spot nicely. When I told Dave his comment was, "A Navy Lieutenant Commander working as the assistant to a Marine Staff Sergeant. Yeah, that sounds right." I laughed so hard I about pissed myself.
The days passed and February became March and with the change in months came a change in the weather. The cold of January and February gave way to warmer temperatures and rain. As spring closed in we were busy getting ready to plant our first crop. There would be a few more cold nights but we had survived our first winter in The Dell. Now that the foraging parties and the hunters were able to be out again our food stocks had increased to the point we could make it until harvest time.
During this time I learned the story behind the arrival of Camille’s group. I had, of course, asked L.B. why he hadn't told me about their approach. He told me he didn't know they were coming. He hadn't talked to them since last August. When I asked Camille about this she confirmed the last time they'd talked had been sometime in late summer and they had been trying to get here since then. They were from Biloxi, Mississippi and had been in hiding on the Navy base since the Event. They were beginning to run out of supplies. They had been trolling the airwaves looking for other survivors when they heard L.B. He told them about The Dell and that they were welcome if they could get here. The group had spent about a month preparing and stocking up on supplies. They had also used that time to perfect the flame weapon that had saved them many times on the trip and us after they arrived.
They had run into trouble immediately when they were swarmed by Stinkies once they left the base. They had lost three people in that fight. The rest were lost during an engagement with a Road Gang outside of Memphis. Memphis is still a dangerous place. I told her about our losses during our travel through Memphis. Loss is the one thing that we all have in common.
The important thing was that they made it and now they were part of our group. The population of The Dell was increased to two hundred and fourteen with the arrival of the two survivor groups. This place has already become a sanctuary for the remaining humans. If our farming’s successful and we became self-sufficient, I thought of a time when we would seek out the small pockets of survivors that had to be scattered across the country. If we could get them here it would increase our population and our knowledge base. The Dell could be the starting point for the rebuilding of the entire country. I know I was over eager but success breeds’ success and hope.
These were the things going on as the first weeks of March passed. That is until the seventeenth. That was the day our world changed again and it would be a miracle if any of us survive this time.
It started at around 10 a.m. I had stayed at the cottage drinking coffee and talking to Kat. We were trying to spend more time together and I had been going out later than normal. We sat on the porch when the weather was decent and in front of the fireplace when it wasn't. We drank coffee in the morning and Bookers bourbon in the evening and t
alked. No subject was off limits, not even our parents, not even Alex our son. I've loved Kat since the first time I met her and we have never had problems communicating. We always talked. After the Event, our conversations were mostly about staying alive, but here now. We had started to talk again about us. About the future.
The morning of the seventeenth Kat and I were sitting on the porch, her wrapped in a blanket her legs curled under her, cradling a cup of coffee in both hands. I was dressed as I normally am in a pair of fatigue pants, hiking boots, and a sweater to fight the morning chill. The ever-present AMT 45 pistol in a tactical holster on my right hip. I only carried the rifle when I knew I'd need it. I had a cup of coffee, my third of the morning. I don't remember the topic of discussion but I do remember Kat was laughing when my radio came to life with Dave's voice.
After I answered him he said, "Just got a call from the gate tower. They have movement on the road where it comes through the hills on the west."
"Movement?" I asked, "What do you mean? Are there vehicles coming?"
"There’re vehicles but they aren't moving forward. They've stopped at the cut and there’re troops moving around like they’re setting up security," he replied.
"Troops? Are you sure it's not Stinkies?" I asked, trying to figure out what’s going on.
"Not Stinkies, for sure. I'm heading down to the gate to get a handle on what’s happening. I've had Camille put the rest of the security detachment on alert." He paused for a moment. "It might be a good idea if you came down."
I looked a Kat, knowing she would be disappointed we couldn't finish our conversation. She smiled and told me to go do my thing. I kissed her and headed for the ATV parked beside the cottage. She waved at me as I drove down the road away from our home.
We Go On (THE DELL) Page 22