The radio hissed and crackled like a living thing, and then the Houston operator’s voice emanated from the speakers.
“Magnus is here. Stand by. Over.”
Magnus’s baritone voice was unmistakable when it barked at Garret. “It better be good news.”
Garret opted for the direct approach. “I’m afraid not. The woman escaped, aided by a force of unknown strength. All told, the Loco cartel lost a hundred and fifty men.”
“What?” Magnus demanded in disbelief.
“I’ve already taken steps to retrieve her. I’m headed back out after my report.”
“How can this have happened?”
“The Locos had her in a tightly guarded facility that I was assured was impenetrable. It obviously wasn’t.”
“How did they gain access?”
“Through the sewer.”
Magnus went silent for several seconds. “They must have had an accomplice on the inside.”
“I doubt it. Everyone at the facility was killed.”
“This is a complete disaster,” Magnus said, and then his voice dropped to a menacing whisper. “On your watch.”
“I agree. But as I said, there’s a trail to follow. We’ll find her.” Garret paused. “We’ll need reinforcements, though. There are only a handful of Locos left. Which gives us an opportunity to move in, of course. We already have Odessa and Lubbock, and I know you’ve been wanting to expand.”
Going after Pecos hadn’t seemed worth the fight if Magnus’s men were going to try to take over the trading town. The paltry spoils would be almost inconsequential; but now, if it could be used as a final staging area before moving into El Paso, it could be worth it since there would be no resistance.
Magnus’s tone changed to thoughtfulness. “That’s an interesting idea. I’ll think about it.” He paused. “Did the woman’s information prove helpful?”
“She told us that she left the girl in a cave to the west, but couldn’t be more specific. She was wounded in the battle that killed the rest of her group, so she was unconscious when the girl was rescued.”
“Who were these men in her group?”
“She said that they were helping because the leader wanted her.”
“I remember her well. She could have that effect.”
Garret went in for the kill. “Send more men, Magnus. We can turn this around.”
“So far your assurances have proven to be empty.”
“I’m working with idiots and amateurs. Doing the best I can. But a group capable of killing three quarters of them must be met with equal force. We can’t rely on these fools. It’s up to us. I can get the woman and child back, but I need competent men I can rely on.”
Magnus’s voice quieted. “I shouldn’t have to remind you of the stakes, Garret. You’re my most valued lieutenant, but there are limits to my patience.”
“I understand what’s in the balance. I will succeed. This is a temporary setback I’m in the process of fixing.”
The next pause lasted longer. When Magnus spoke, his tone was businesslike. “Very well. I’ll send fifty men. Will that do?”
“It should. You have no idea how disorganized this group is. I had to terminate the leader yesterday.”
“Were there any repercussions?”
“No. They believe rivals carried out the execution.”
“Find the woman and child. I don’t want any more reports like this,” Magnus growled.
“I will.”
The operator came back on the airwaves. “Magnus has left. Over.”
Garret pushed back from the console and brushed away sweat that had beaded on his forehead. The report had gone as well as he could have hoped, but he was still uneasy. There was a fifty-fifty chance that one or more of the men Magnus sent would have instructions to kill him – an icepick to the spine, a bullet to the back of the head, poison in his food, the method didn’t matter – Magnus had scores of skilled assassins who could carry out the execution without fail.
Which left Garret with two choices: either he could go after the woman and hope that he could pick up the trail again, or he could keep riding and pray Magnus never found him. The second option wasn’t practical because Magnus would scorch the earth to locate him, and also because without Magnus’s organization, the truth was that Garret was nothing.
His decision made, he moved to the door and pushed through it. He would sleep and then lead a larger team back into the wilderness. If they couldn’t find tracks, they would continue moving north, toward the remains of Loving, and interrogate anyone in their path. Someone would know where their quarry was. Nobody could simply vanish without a trace, at least not a party capable of the attack on the courthouse. That had required organization and timing, especially without a single enemy casualty.
No, he would find the woman, one way or another. As Magnus had underscored, he really had no choice. Too much depended on it.
“Luis!” he called.
The Loco boss entered with a wary expression. “Yes?”
“I want every available man mounted up. We’re going to head north and spread out in groups of three or four. They must have left a trail.”
“What – you mean now?”
“That’s what I said, isn’t it?”
Luis debated reminding him of the hour, but decided against it when he saw the look in Garret’s eyes. “Figure thirty minutes to rouse the men and get them ready.”
“Have them pack for a week in the field. We don’t give up till we find them. Enough men working the area, eventually we will.”
Luis nodded, wondering at the man’s tenacity. Like a pit bull, even if the effort was a wasted one. He saw nothing to be accomplished riding all night to chase dreams, but didn’t voice his opinion, preferring to remain alive another day.
Garret watched him leave and shook his head in disgust. That he had to work with these cretins was bad enough; that he had to tolerate their thinly disguised insolence was another matter – one that he would resolve later. Garret had planted more than a few men in the ground for less than the expression on Luis’s face. Once they found the woman, he’d have a little discussion with the Loco.
Likely the last the man would ever have.
Chapter 40
Ruby turned from the corner where she had been rummaging in a burlap sack, and held up a bottle and two glasses for Lucas to see. She blew dust from the bottle and returned to her seat beside him.
“Glenlivet,” she announced. “Eighteen-year-old single malt. Been saving it for a special occasion. Stashed it here, in the cellar, so I wouldn’t be tempted late at night. But this seems as good a time as any to open it.”
“Not sure I can do it justice,” Lucas said. “But I’m willing to try.”
“That’s all I ask.”
Ruby handed him a glass and poured two generous fingers. After a moment’s consideration she added another half inch, and then poured an equal measure into her own. She set the bottle beside her and screwed the cap into place, and then clinked her glass against his.
“Tumblers might be a wee bit dusty,” she warned.
“Adds character.”
They sipped the amber nectar appreciatively, and Lucas reclined in his camp chair, as relaxed as he’d been at any point since the ordeal had begun. After several moments he closed his eyes and allowed the smoky Scotch to trickle down his throat, savoring the warmth spreading through his stomach.
“They won’t stop. She’s right about that,” Ruby said.
He opened his eyes. “I expect so.”
“They butchered an entire town, Lucas. They’re going to keep coming.” She paused. “What are we going to do?”
Lucas’s eyebrows rose. “We?”
“You can’t go back to the ranch. That’s one of the first places they’ll look.”
“Nothing there for me now. The cows will have to figure things out on their own.” He took another swallow. “Bastards killed the horses.”
“Sending a message.
”
“I replied in kind.”
Ruby scowled. “And my bunker’s history.”
“Maybe not. It’s blast proof. Although the interior’s probably going to need some cleanup.”
“I don’t have it in me.”
“I was kidding.”
They drank in silence, and when their glasses were empty, Ruby poured a second helping. “Got some tough choices to make, Lucas.”
“Seems like they’re being made for me by circumstance, Ruby.”
“That’s not entirely true.”
He scowled. “You see me letting them get their hands on Eve again?”
She shook her head. “Not likely.”
“Like I said – not a lot of choices to be made.”
“So what do we do?”
Lucas rolled some Scotch around in his mouth and then smacked his lips. “You keep saying we.”
Ruby ran her fingers through her hair. “You going to leave a helpless old woman to be eaten by wolves?”
“Helpless?”
“A euphemism.”
“Huh.”
She gave him a chiding stare. “I’m serious. They’ll be here soon enough. We both know it.”
“They won’t know where to look.”
“True, but eventually we have to leave the cellar.”
Lucas grunted. “Eventually we die of old age.”
“Some sooner than others. It’s the meantime that worries me.”
“I know.”
Ruby sighed. “What do you make of her Shangri-La story?”
“She knows how to spin a yarn, I’ll give her that.”
“That she does. Question is whether it’s true – and if so, what we can do about it.”
Lucas nodded thoughtfully. “Sounded convincing to me. What’s your take?”
“I don’t think she told us everything.”
“Agreed. But have we heard enough?” he asked softly, half to himself.
“Let me put it this way: after hearing about that Magnus character, my nightmares will be having nightmares.”
He nodded again, his expression unreadable. “Lot to think on, that’s for sure.”
She eyed him. “What’s going on in that head of yours, Lucas?”
“Nothing. Same as always.”
“Lucas…”
He spoke softly, as if to himself. “Not many places that vest could have gone.”
“That occurred to me.” She paused and regarded him quizzically. “And?”
“And what?” Lucas deflected.
“What about Sierra and Eve?”
Lucas finished his glass, stood, and gave Ruby a grim frown as he handed it to her. He removed his hat and placed it on the back of the chair, smoothed his hair carefully, and inclined his head toward her.
“Be sunup before we know it,” he said.
She stared at him for several long moments and then offered a resigned smile. “That it will.”
“Good night, Ruby. Thanks for the drink and the company.”
She watched him walk to the sleeping quarters, his steps heavy. When he disappeared inside, she drained the last drops of her drink, tapped the side of the bottle wistfully, and shook her head.
“Good night, Lucas. Sleep well.”
Chapter 41
Lucas rolled over with a groan to avoid the sunlight shining through a crack in the door. He shifted on the uncomfortable cement floor and tried to continue sleeping, but it was no use. He checked the time and sat up.
Ruby was snoring softly a few feet away, her head resting on a rolled-up towel doing service as a pillow. Lucas peered into the gloom at the far side of the room and was instantly alert.
He rose, grabbed his M4 and Kimber, strapped on the pistol, and moved to the outer chamber, leaving Ruby to rest. He paused at the cellar door and froze when he saw that Sierra’s rifle and saddle were gone.
Lucas pushed the door open and squinted in the bright morning light. All around him the tall grass shimmered in serpentine waves, undulating in the light breeze. He spied Tango and Jax near the trees, but no Nugget.
“Damn,” he muttered, turning toward the cellar as Ruby shuffled out of the sleeping chamber. “They’re gone.”
“What!”
Lucas nodded, his expression sour. “I know.”
Ruby didn’t have to ask him what he planned to do. He went for his saddle and had Tango ready to ride within a few minutes. She looked up at him with a worried frown as he swung onto the horse’s back. “You think you can track them?”
“Shouldn’t be too hard. Not too many ways out of this area, and she wouldn’t go back toward the bunker, I don’t think.”
“That leaves west.”
“Exactly. Doubt they left before dawn, so they’re only an hour or so out.”
Ruby nodded. “Good luck, Lucas.”
“I’m half inclined to let them keep riding.”
“They’d never make it.”
“Not really my problem – unless I make it mine.”
Ruby pursed her lips. “Little late for that, I’d say.”
Lucas sighed. “I know.”
Sierra had left a trail that posed no problem for Lucas, and Tango was full of energy after a long night’s rest. Lucas let the big stallion trot along the faint trail, and he seemed to instinctively understand what his master wanted, unwaveringly following Nugget’s tracks.
Lucas spotted them half an hour later, Eve on the back of the horse and Sierra in front. He spurred Tango forward and was almost on top of them before Sierra heard him and swung around with her rifle. He continued at speed until he drew alongside her, and then brought Tango to a halt.
“Decide to go for a ride?” he asked, his eyes slits.
Sierra’s jaw clenched. “Lucas…”
He tilted his hat brim at the little girl. “Morning, Eve.”
“Morning,” she replied.
Lucas gave a nod to Sierra. “Nice day for it, huh?”
“We have to try to get the vest. It’s our only hope, Lucas. And you said you’re not going to help, so we’re going to do it alone.”
“When did I say that?”
“Last night.”
“No, I said I was tired and that nobody tells me what to do.”
“I…I can tell you don’t want to.”
Lucas gritted his teeth, trying not to bite back his exasperation. “You can tell I don’t want to risk my life trying to find some note that we may not be able to decode, hidden in a vest whose whereabouts are unknown, to guide us to a place that might not exist? Why do you think that could be?”
“It’s our only chance, Lucas.”
“So you say,” Lucas agreed, his expression neutral. “What were you planning on doing? Help me understand your strategy. You’re wounded, two to a horse, with a five-year-old everyone in the country’s trying to get their hands on, leaving a trail a blind man could follow. What was step one?”
“These Raiders of yours must have it.”
Lucas nodded. “Let’s say that’s right, and that some scavenger didn’t come along and grab it before the Raiders returned to collect what they could. How do you proceed from there?”
“I find them and get it.”
“How?”
Her expression hardened. “I’ll figure it out. I’m not defenseless.”
He nodded agreeably. “No, what you are is stubborn and unrealistic. You don’t stand a chance in hell.” He paused. “Here’s how it would actually go down: you’re female, so the first thing the Raiders would do when they spotted you is enslave you. They wouldn’t ask or care what your views on the subject were; they’d just do it. Then they’ll rent you by the half hour to whoever wants you, and probably do the same with Eve, assuming they don’t sell her to Magnus’s people. And that’s the best case.”
“Without that note, we have nothing.”
“That’s not true. You have your lives. Courtesy of me. Which means I have some say in the matter.”
Sierra bristle
d. “You don’t own me.”
“No. But I have a responsibility, and you now have one to me, whether you acknowledge it or not. You owe it to me to stay alive and to keep Eve safe. That’s your obligation.” He drew a calming breath. “Riding into the badlands throwing a dust cloud the size of a blimp isn’t a good way to do either.”
“Then what do you suggest?”
“Come back with me to Ruby’s. We’ll figure it out from there. What we won’t do is act impetuously and endanger everyone on a whim.”
Sierra’s tone hardened. “I won’t take no for an answer, Lucas.”
“I’m not saying no, Sierra. I’m saying let’s do this the right way – not this way.” He stopped speaking, and a frown creased his face as he stared past her shoulder.
“What is it?” she asked, and twisted to follow his gaze.
“Not our lucky day.” He pointed. “See that?”
She squinted, and then nodded. “Dust.”
“Looks like you attracted some attention.” Lucas raised his binoculars and swept the horizon. “Three men. Riding hard. Be here soon.”
“We have to lose them.”
He eyed Nugget and then Eve before turning back to Sierra. “Not a chance. They’ll follow our trail. No way we can conceal it. Not enough time.”
Her face hardened. “Then we have to ambush them.”
“There are two dust clouds. That one’s just the nearest. There’s another off to the east.”
“What are we going to do?”
He nodded to her AR-15. “You know how to use that thing, right?”
“I’m not a sharpshooter, but I do okay.”
“Follow me,” he said, and spurred Tango forward.
“Where are we going?” she called after him.
“See if we can find some cover. They’ll be on us pretty soon. No more questions. Just follow me, and do as I say.”
Lucas galloped off and she urged Nugget after him, heart pounding in her chest, her hair streaming behind her as she drove the mare forward for all she was worth.
Chapter 42
Lucas cursed as he pushed Tango to the limit. Sierra’s lack of stealth had led the pursuers right to them, leaving him no option but to fight it out. Lucas scoured the terrain and spotted an outcropping of rocks that could serve their purposes. He dared a glance over his shoulder and estimated the approaching dust to be no more than five minutes behind them; whatever they did, it would have to be fast.
The Day After Never - Blood Honor (Post-Apocalyptic Dystopian Thriller) Page 22