"We could put them behind those boulders, and they could open up when they hear the .50.
"You and Tom could join them there?"
"We could. I like that idea, because we can tell them to not fire until we are with them and that would stop one of those dumb asses from killing us."
"Why do you dislike them so much?" Erin stared at him with what appeared to be confusion.
"With the exception of Carl, they were all willing to just go back to San Diego and let the whole thing drop."
"So were you."
"That was because of you; it's not the same thing. Plus, we've already done our share of fighting, and as you know, this is not our fight."
"It is now, and you know it. It always was, but you were willing to walk away because of me. It still is the same thing, and that is why we're here. If we walked away from this, it would just get easier the next time."
"Next time you decide to completely contradict yourself, could you give me some notice so I don't have such a hard time following you through the curves?" Stryker grinned.
"No."
"Thanks a lot."
"I'm here for you."
Stryker stared at her for a long moment and then shrugged. "Thanks."
"For being here for you?"
"No, for reminding me of my obligations."
"What do you mean?"
"I was made for this. I'm good at it, but I was going to give it a pass. You dragged me back into the fight, and I'm grateful for it because you're right. If we let this go by, we'll start looking for excuses to not do the right thing. And, that gets corrosive to your character and your understanding of where you fit in and what is really important."
Stryker and Erin were starting down the hill when they noticed Tom waving at them. Stryker placed both hands over his forehead to block the sun and waited until he saw Tom pick up the binoculars and focus his direction. He raised his right hand, pointed at his chest, and then made a walking motion toward Tom with his index and middle fingers. He then pointed at the sun and traced its future path toward the ocean, indicating sundown.
Tom raised his right hand with the thumb up.
Stryker nodded back and headed downhill again.
"Well, at least we know he won’t shoot us," Erin said.
"True."
They walked over to where Jose sat in the Humvee, still reading his magazine.
"Jose, do those men ever post sentries?"
He just looked confused, so Stryker repeated the question in Spanish.
"Not that I ever saw," he replied slowly.
"Not even at night?"
Jose shook his head. "That's when they party. Usually, they go to bed around midnight, but without the generator running, they sleep in those chairs that you can make flat."
"Lounge chairs?"
Jose nodded his head.
"So, if we attack them and run, do you think they will follow us?"
"Sure. They are violent men, and nobody has ever attacked the base. Big Carlos would make sure they try to kill anybody who attacks them."
"So, nobody ever has?" Stryker asked.
"No, not since I started working there. Who would be crazy enough to attack them? They all have guns and there are a lot of them."
Stryker turned to Erin. "That explains why they have no sentries. They can't imagine someone coming after them."
"But we killed a bunch of them, and they must know by now that the two men in Cabo are off the board. I don't think we can count on them being lax. They have to know we are out here somewhere."
"Arrogance is hard to overcome."
"Yes, it is." She fixed Stryker with a meaningful look.
"Confidence is not arrogance," he replied with a wounded tone."
"It can be if you choose to underestimate your opponents."
"All right. We'll be careful to approach quietly, fire one of the .50s long enough to get their attention, and then head back here."
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The moon was high in a cloudless sky as they crept across the gap between the two hills. Stryker was in the lead with Carl and Erin following. He stopped every so often and glanced toward the base, noting a faint flicker of light, barely visible but creating a faded halo around the structure closest to the beach.
The rest of the sailors had headed to the boulders before Stryker's group left. They all met briefly before the sailors left and reviewed the plan for the evening battle.
"Just remember, no firing, no matter what, until we pass your position and turn around. The only exception is if you see Erin firing. And, I do mean see, not hear. We will be chased by the Mexicans, if this works, and you may hear gunfire, but if you don't see Erin's gun firing, do not fire. Are we clear?"
"Yes," a man named Jim answered. He was senior in rank, so Stryker put him in command. Although he seemed thoughtful and competent, none of the men had combat experience and Stryker was almost more worried about them than he was about the Mexicans.
"Okay, shove off and we'll see you soon."
The men left in a small clump, leaving no spacing between them and presenting a large target.
Stryker thought about calling them back and explaining things, but decided it didn't really matter. The enemy was far enough away and well out of range.
"When do we leave?" Erin looked impatient.
"Let them get in position first. I don't want to present two targets at the same time."
"They can't see anything from the base," Erin insisted.
"True, but you wanted to be cautious, so let's not assume they don't have NVGs."
After a half hour, they set out.
So, what's the plan?" Tom asked.
"Well, I thought you and I would walk in there and get on the two Humvees with the .50s and tear the place up for a while and then retreat back here with the vehicles."
"Both vehicles?" Tom seemed troubled.
"Why not?"
"If they are chasing us, it’s going to be fairly hard to provide covering fire if we're both driving."
"Good point. So we get into the first Humvee, shoot the .50 dry, and then hop in the second one and come back."
"What if they don't start?"
"Then we fire them both dry and run like hell. But, whatever happens, we have to deny them access to either .50. I don’t want them firing those things at us, so we make sure they are either either dry, or we take off with the one that still has ammo." Stryker was starting to get annoyed. He stared at Tom for a bit. "This was your idea."
"Why did you come back?"
"It was her idea." Stryker jerked his head toward Erin. "Now can I get on with the plan?"
"Sure, but I'm not crazy about it so far."
"Fine, but let me finish."
"Fair enough."
"The rest of your men are over behind those boulders," He pointed toward the rock formation. “You and I will retreat in the second Humvee until we're with them, and then we all open fire."
"Where are Erin and Carl?"
“On your Humvee firing the .50 after we pass. Erin will be on the weapon, and Carl will do suppressing fire to keep them off of her if they try to take her out."
“Why is Erin on the weapon?”
"Because Erin has fired the weapon before, and Carl hasn't. Have you fired the Ma Duece?"
"Only once."
"Well, then I guess I will be the gunner."
Tom seemed to review the plan for close to a minute. "If those Humvees don't start, we have a problem."
"That's why I brought the grenades. If we have to break contact we can just lay a carpet of them until we break away."
"I guess it could work," he finally admitted.
"Good, we leave when we can't see that light anymore."
"What light?"
"You see that faint light coming from the front of the structure closest to be beach."
"Yeah, I didn't notice it before."
"That building is where the Mexicans stay when the generator isn't wor
king and they don't have air conditioning in the barracks. They sleep on a patio there and, according to Jose, they get drunk and high, party until around midnight, and then all go to sleep."
"What about sentries?"
"They don't have them, at least not recently."
"Why isn't the generator working?" Tom looked doubtful.
"They have to scrounge the fuel for it from around town and they run out frequently, according to Jose. He thinks they will go looking for more tomorrow."
Tom again looked thoughtful and started to ask a question, but stopped himself.
"What is it?" Stryker’s voice sounded vexed.
"Are we coming back here with the lights on?"
"Of course. We want them to drive into the trap behind us, and if they can't see us, they can't follow us."
"We are going to stand out like a sore thumb."
"That's the idea. We want them to pay attention to us, not the ambushers."
Tom fell silent again and Stryker was running out of patience. "Do you have another plan?"
"No."
"Then let's get on with mine. We can't stay here forever. We need to get back to San Diego, so let's get moving."
"Okay."
"Good. I'm going to check my loads and then take a nap. Wake me up when the light disappears."
"You are going to sleep now?" Tom looked incredulous.
"I don't know when we will have a chance again, so why not?"
After checking his mags for both the M-4 and the XD, Stryker walked a few paces away, used his pack as a pillow, and was instantly asleep.
An hour later, they made their way across the desert floor. The moon was high and the sky still cloudless, so they could see well enough to move at a cautious, but not slow, pace.
As they approached the base, Stryker slowed down and stopped after every step, listened briefly, and then took another step. They passed through the open gate and made their way to the back of the first Humvee.
Stryker glanced at the .50. The belt was fully loaded and the second Humvee's weapon was also ready to rock. He sank to one knee behind the first vehicle and motioned for Tom to do the same.
"This one is the getaway vehicle," he whispered into Tom's ear. "When I start firing, get this started and turned around. If it doesn't start, get in the one I'm on and do the same. Got it?"
Tom simply nodded.
Stryker climbed quietly into the Humvee, got behind the weapon, and swiveled it until it faced the building. Tom was in the driver's seat of the other vehicle and watching Stryker.
Stryker's eyes traversed the structure from left to right and then back again. He was thinking about how much to depress the muzzle so that his shots would be at the level of a man sleeping in flat position on reclining deck chairs. He reviewed his assumptions, calculated the trajectory again, and opened fire.
The big gun spit slugs downrange with a loud chugging sound as Stryker swept the barrel across the back of the building. He reversed directions with the barrel depressed slightly from the first pass. He stopped for a moment to see where the slugs entered the back of the building and heard the sound of the second Humvee starting. Then he traversed the building again twice with the Ma Duece at a slightly higher elevation.
He glanced down and saw half his ammo had been expended and fired again. The gun was recoiling violently and Stryker was fighting to keep the barrel at the proper angle to the building. He stopped firing again, and faintly heard the sound of men moving inside, realized he was partially deaf from the gun's constant firing, and finished the belt.
He jumped off the vehicle and into the one parked next to it and again opened fire on the target with the second .50 as Tom sped away from the battle scene.
"Turn on the lights," Stryker yelled.
Tom complied and then yelled back, "Why aren't you firing?"
"I'm saving the ammo for the ambush."
Tom shook his head and accelerated away from the scene.
"Slow down," Stryker said in a more normal tone of voice. "Nobody is moving yet."
"This is nuts," Tom replied.
"We don't want to discourage them," Stryker said with a broad grin.
They drove on for another klick.
"Stop the vehicle."
"What?"
"They're still not moving. I don't want them to lose sight of us."
"Mother of God," Tom muttered. "This is some chase scene."
They waited another thirty seconds, and then a group of men charged around the side of the building, firing AKs in every direction.
Stryker saw Tom flinch.
"Relax; we are way out of their range." He turned back and watched the men mill about the area for a moment and then made out a man pointing in their direction.
"Okay, let's go but keep the speed down for now.”
A minute later, Stryker saw lights flickering on in the building next to the barracks, and four vehicles that looked like Humvees left the base, passed the gate, and headed directly toward them.
"It's working," he said quietly.
Stryker watched as the column grew closer. Tom was glancing repeatedly into the rear view mirror and was clearly getting nervous.
"Okay, pick up the speed a bit." They were still two klicks from the ambush site and the vehicles were closing quickly. Gunshots began ringing out of the column, and Stryker heard the roar of another big .50 interspersed with the lower zipping sound of AKs.
"Open it up," he roared as rounds began walking toward them from the rear.
Stryker fired a short burst at the lead vehicle, which braked briefly and then again accelerated toward them.
"Keep it to the metal until we pass the ambush site and then get out and join the other guys. I'll stay on the .50 until they are in range."
Tom drove toward the mound of boulders, passed it, and turned the vehicle around to face the oncoming attackers. He then jumped out of the Humvee, ran to the large rocks, and pointed his weapon at the column.
The return fire from the attackers was blistering, and Stryker saw the sailors duck behind the rocks, even though the slugs were not impacting close to them.
Stryker waited patiently as the attackers grew closer, waiting for Erin to open up.
The roar of another Ma Deuce split the air from above, and Stryker opened fire, the big gun again jumping in his hand. Then, the sound of the M-16s on full auto joined the riot of noise.
The first vehicle veered to the left and came to a stop. Stryker engaged the second vehicle and saw that Erin was firing on the third.
The return fire was weak and sporadic and mostly came from the second and third vehicles. Although Stryker’s group was able to keep their .50s out of the fight, rounds were inbound and Stryker glanced over when one of the sailors was hit. He turned back to the fight and continued firing.
When the last Humvee stopped to turn around, Stryker finished the rest of his belt on it, and soon the entire battlefield was quiet.
The last Humvee rolled to a stop with smoke billowing from the engine compartment.
"Let's police them up." Stryker left the vehicle and walked over to Tom. "Move off to the right and cover me."
When Tom was in position, Stryker shouldered his M-4, grabbed the XD, and walked toward the motionless vehicles.
One of the attackers exploded from around the back of the second vehicle and brought his weapon up. Stryker shot him twice in the chest, and then one to the head, and continued moving.
He passed a man who was still breathing but was bleeding out and shot him in the forehead.
Another man moaned as he tried to get to his feet. His left arm was missing and blood spurted two feet away from his body. Stryker shot him twice in the chest and he went down.
Approaching the end of the column, Stryker heard an M-16 open fire, spun around and down with his weapon up, and saw a man in the third vehicle fall out of the Humvee.
He passed back through the destruction toward the ambush site and checked each man again.
They were all dead.
Stryker walked back to where the men stood in a circle around their fallen comrade. The sailor lay on his back, with a neat bullet hole in his forehead. Stryker checked the man’s pulse by touching his neck. “He’s gone. It was instantaneous.”
He walked away to talk to Tom, but was intercepted by Erin and Carl.
Erin looked anxious, and Carl seemed relieved more than anything else.
“You okay?” Erin’s eyes roved up and down his body for signs of wounds.
“I’d be better if you’d stop ogling me; Carl is standing right there.”
Erin shot him the finger with a grin.
“I know now why you wanted Erin on the .50. Damn, that woman can shoot.” Carl said it slowly and with a tone of wonder.
“I know.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The entire group slept in Humvees or on the ground that night, and grumbles of whispered complaint could be heard throughout the early morning. Stryker cringed at each utterance, but he tried to ignore it and stay focused on the buildings he watched from the hilltop.
Erin lay down next to him on her belly and was silent for a while. “What do you think?”
“Just wondering if they have any coffee on that base,” Stryker muttered.
They watched until sunrise before driving to the army base.
While the others waited outside, Stryker and Tom cleared the buildings. They worked on the assumption that the missing gang members were on their way to Cabo to find out what happened to their men.
When the structures were all cleared, Tom motioned the group into the base, while Stryker went to find coffee. He found an old percolator, a gas stove that worked, and a pantry full of canned coffee grounds.
He poured the urn full, added the coffee, lit the flame and stood over it like a dog eyeing a bone that was just out of reach.
“We’ve gone over and over this a hundred times,” Stryker said. “If you don’t have enough payback now, you never will.”
“I want big Carlos.” Tom had a stubborn furrow across his brow. “When he is dead, that will be enough.”
STRYKER - OMNIBUS: BOOKS 3-5: A Post Apocalyptic Tale Page 47