5 Years After (Book 2.5): Smoke & Mirrors

by Correll, Richard

  “Foreign reports,” Maggie digested the words before speaking again. “You mean how other countries are doing?”

  “Exactly,” Tom picked a file off of the read after the must read file and opened it. “Take Russia for example.” Maggie’s head turned to one side in a natural physical statement of curiosity, he decided to continue.

  “As far as we can tell, the government is somewhere in Siberia.” Tom was reading now.

  “Somewhere,” Maggie was clearly interested. “We don’t know?”

  “These are Russians, paranoia and secretiveness comes second nature,“ he looked up for a minute and smiled before continuing. “Our best guess is Novosibirsk, Yakutsk or Archangel.”

  “They moved all their factories to Siberia in World War Two, sir.” Maggie offered, “Maybe they can do it again.”

  “In World War Two, they could make plans, Maggie.” Tom felt somewhat more pessimistic. “After the Nazis invaded, they had a full year to move things out there.”

  “I see,” Maggie nodded seriously.

  “This crisis happened overnight.” Tom had a thoughtful moment. “It caught us all off guard.”

  “Yes sir, I have seen that.” Chicago was back in her mind like a smothering blanket.

  “Also, most of the government offices in Russia can be found in a five square mile area of downtown Moscow.” He shrugged at the file, Russia was reeling. It hadn’t stopped them from espionage, but that was another story. “They’ve lost their state run systems and their major cities. They are starting from scratch, almost.”

  “Sometimes the key to winning is to go away and hide for a while.” Maggie offered some strategy to the conversation. “They have a big country. There are plenty of places to go and lick their wounds.”

  “Okay,” Tom nodded at her answer and seemed to arrive at a decision. “What do you think of Japans situation?”

  “Sir?”

  “From what we can figure out, the Japanese have decided to move their Government and some citizens to off shore islands like Hoshima.” He was reading from another file again, he looked and asked: “Good idea?”

  “I don’t think so, sir.” Maggie’s mouth was a serious line as she leaned back in her chair to answer.

  “Why not?” Tom’s arms naturally crossed. The file report thought it was a great idea, that we should consider such a move to the east coast.

  “On an island they can be safe for a while but it can’t work in the long run.” Maggie tried to cover all the bases quickly. “A population needs to be fed. They need fresh water and sanitation,”

  “Go on,” Tom was curious now. The file was a forgotten prop in his hands.

  “If you lock yourself up out there, you will have to come out sometime and they will be waiting.” Maggie made eye contact while speaking. “In the meantime, disease, dysentery and maybe even starvation destabilizes your government and kills your people.”

  “Look sir,” Maggie leaned forward and seemed to be looking at her hands while formulating her thoughts. “I don’t know how deep the water is between the islands and mainland either. If it’s deep enough, the hostiles will be crushed by the depth of the ocean. If it’s shallow, they will come knocking on your door eventually. You saw that in Ottawa.”

  “Indeed,” Tom had to agree. “General Davidson will bring the map in any second.”

  “How much do you trust Davidson?” Her directness made Tom look up for a second as the door knocked two precise times.

  “That would be General Davidson.” Tom opened the door and Clay stood in the hallway waving a cardboard tube. Maggie was already rising out of her chair and coming to attention. Davidson entered and chanced a look at the woman almost half his size.

  “Remain at attention, Captain.” Davidson’s voice was a command and Maggie showed no emotion in following it. Clay’s voice dropped down to conversation level when he turned to Tom. “Aren’t you going to answer the question?”

  “Sorry….?” Tom paused, off guard was his posture.

  “Answer the question,” Clay’s mouth turned into a sly grin but his eyes were two rivets of steel. “How much do you trust me?”

  “Implicitly,” Tom replied sincerely and made eye contact. He couldn’t help but feel regret for a few weeks ago in Ottawa but it had to have been done.

  “Thank you,” Clay nodded casually before taking a few steps toward Maggie, he towered over her now. “Did you hear that, Captain?”

  “Yes sir.” Maggie’s eyes didn’t move.

  “So what makes you think you can question my loyalty, Captain?” Clay’s face was inches away from Maggie now.

  “Permission to speak honestly, sir…….”

  “Let’s hear it.” Davidson took a few steps back and stood beside Tom without taking his eyes off Maggie.

  “Sir, there was a lot going on in that room today.” Maggie began.

  “Welcome to politics, Captain.” Davidson cut in sarcastically. “There’s always a shit load going on in any room.”

  “That’s not what I meant, sir.” Maggie’s tone demanded his attention. Clay slowly rotated his head to one side and briefly considered waking the neighborhood with a verbal broadside, instead he held his temper.

  “I haven’t got all night, Captain.” Davidson growled. “If you have a point, make it now.”

  “Yes sir, there are four points to consider.” Maggie tried hard to not even blink while concentrating on keeping her voice steady. “The general impression I felt from that room was that these are just random marauders, thieves.”

  “Point one, they have many vehicles, point two, they obviously have supplies like gas to run these vehicles. Point three, they always seem to figure out your route and timing, point four, the railway link has just been cut. These are random marauders?” Maggie kept her eyes straight and took a breath before finishing up. “Begging the General’s pardon, but……..c’mon…..”

  There was a weighty silence that descended between Davidson and Maggie. It left her with a sense of regret. Why does this always happen? She stood firm and rode out the coming storm.

  “I say we tell her,” Tom whispered with his head turned to Clay. Davidson’s reply was a thoughtful nod of his head.

  “Thank you for your honesty, Captain. It is duly noted.” Maggie made no move, Clay watched her before adding: “As is your insolence and disrespect.”

  “No disrespect was intended, sir.” Maggie softened her voice but stayed ramrod straight.

  “At ease,” Davidson pointed to the corner piece of furniture that Maggie had originally been sitting in. “Pull up a chair.”

  “Yes sir, thank you, sir.”

  “Do you remember our conversation in front of the court house in Orangeville?” Tom had not moved for a minute or so. He was hard to read as Maggie moved her chair closer to the bed. It was the only place large enough for the map to occupy.

  “Yes sir,” Maggie nodded as she sat down and tried to focus. “I remember.”

  “The Prime Minister’s plane,” Tom continued, this was starting to feel like a cross examination. “You said it might be the opening move of a coup.”

  Sir, I was just shooting in the dark.” Maggie felt a need to be defensive.

  “Bulls eye, Captain Hunter.” It was Davidson.

  Maggie looked up to see both men watching her carefully. Her mouth opened slowly, she was unsure what to say. Her gaze began to move from one man to the other. The faces were calm, yet the core of their expression was poised to pounce. Yes, other people had poker faces, too.

  Don’t look so shocked, Captain.” Davidson spoke first. “We’re a big country and isolating parts of it would be a logical next step.”

  “We’ve pretty much lost touch with parts of Western Canada past the Manitoba border.” Tom was removing the map from its tubing. “We need to re-establish communications with some of our communities in Saskatchewan.”

  “Wouldn’t they be attacking these communities right now?” Maggie decided that inform
ation gathering would be a good way to find some solid strategic ground.

  “Our current crisis has been helping us in that department.” Davidson was finding a spot in the room to look at the map. “They’re just like us out west, everything needs to be guarded.”

  “Could it be they just aren’t strong enough yet?” Maggie asked and felt the pause in the room. “They might be unsure of who is on their side and who is not.”

  “Then we have the same problem, Captain.” Tom replied with a hint of dryness. ”That’s why we’re meeting here, just the three of us.”

  “And what is said in Vegas stays in Vegas.” Davidson looked over at Maggie while standing. “Am I clear?”

  “Perfectly, sir,” Maggie nodded. What the fuck? It was the only way to sum up her emotions.

  “We have isolated communities that are friendly in Saskatchewan,” Tom was pointing at a destination in the province called Regina. “This is the capital. It is still holding on.”

  “How about the surrounding communities?” A few locations that were larger than others stuck out.

  “We had to abandon Moosejaw.” Davidson pointed at a place nearby. “We moved the military base to Regina. We couldn’t hold both from the hostiles so we had to make a choice.”

  “It didn’t make us a lot of friends out west.” Tom observed and then pointed northwards. “Saskatoon had to be abandoned as well.”

  “Who is with you and who is not?” Maggie needed bullet points on this, in the past it would have been easy to find the answers. Now, the world was growing larger and larger with the shrinkage of resources. Saskatchewan seemed like halfway around the world.

  “That’s the tough question.” Tom let the emotional uneasiness linger in the air.

  “We’ve tried calling them?” Maggie’s question was greeted with more silence. Tom cleared his throat for a second.

  “The phone lines are starting to become an issue as well.” Tom’s voice seemed somber. “Communication has been……….inconsistent.”

  “Captain,” Davidson interjected carefully while still offering insight. “There are many subtle differences between Canada and the country you call home.”

  “Sir?” Maggie hoped this urging would spur the conversation on.

  “There aren’t as many highways and there are far fewer phone lines extending out west.” Davidson continued in a low, explanatory voice. “The infrastructure is more vulnerable to being…..”

  “Cut.” Maggie finished his sentence and got a serious nod for her troubles. “You are telling me the phone lines have been cut.”

  “We are staying in touch with cell phones and satellite links.” Tom completed the picture while his fingers encircled themselves in a nervous double fist. “The patchwork is proving to be only occasionally reliable.”

  “So whoever this is,” Maggie sat up in her chair and faced Davidson first then turned her attention to Tom. “My guess is they’re moving faster now that you have been busy moving the capital.”

  “Yes.” Tom made it sound like an admission of failure.

  “We don’t have much in resources,” Davidson added to spread the guilt around.

  “Sir, I like to suggest that we don’t look at our situation.” Maggie tried to change the course of the thinking in the room. “Perhaps we could concentrate on what they have.”

  “Okay….” Tom played along.

  “Have they tried to take any communities by force, sir?” Maggie turned to Davidson. He paused for a second before shaking his head. “So, all they’ve done is destroy some rail links, cut phone lines and attack supply trucks.”

  “That’s about it.” Davidson seemed taken aback for a second.

  “A very small group can do this.” Maggie looked at the map for a second, before continuing. “They are a threat, but I want to try and take them on.”

  “How?” It was Tom this time.

  “I need just a few troops and some weapons.”

  “Both are in short supply, Captain.” Davidson had to remind Maggie.

  “Most of the stuff I want we don’t use when we fight hostiles, sir.” Maggie had a small piece of paper she was jotting a list on.

  “What’s the plan?” Tom was intrigued, this felt better than study groups and more study groups.

  “We’re going to drive on the Trans-Canada highway and see who shows up.” Maggie had a slow smile on her face.

  “Then what?” It was Davidson.

  “Then we’re gonna pick a fight, sir.”

  *

  Don’t look at them. They were like the sun and sky as the bus travelled north in Ontario along the Trans-Canada highway to Saskatchewan. They were everywhere. Maggie almost accepted them as part of the landscape now. They moved on the highway in that slow careful motion that betrayed what they were so far away. It was like they were daring you to run them down. The survivors after five years were too smart for that now. Contact with the hostiles created opportunities for them. They could get hit by your car and go airborne through your windshield. Still alive, the advantage became theirs. An enclosed space was just the perfect scenario. All they needed was just one bite. They damage your car with the collision, forcing you to stop. Then, you were at their mercy and it was something they never were in a habit of giving. Did they think like that? Were they a hive mind or something? The question was disturbing enough even without the answer.

  Maggie saw spatters of red on the highway, they looked like the tell tale places where ruby colored paint cans had exploded. As the bus continued on its path the buildings added to the scenery as silent husks. The windows were streaked with mud and debris. It was a panorama of desolation, the splashes were closer together. Maggie felt like she was watching the conclusion of a dark drama playing out on an asphalt stage.

  There, figures in the setting sun pulling, grasping and fighting. A few lost their footing in the fight and fell backward. The wheels of the bus created another paint can explosion on the highway. Maggie could guess that the origins at the center of the battle were animals, raccoons, skunks or possums. It did not matter anymore, it was just meat.

  She turned away and closed her eyes while contemplating the day, life felt completely bizarre for a second, like memory vertigo. What you just saw at the side of the road is the new normal. But, feeling your Blackberry vibrate in your pocket is tantamount to incredible. Maggie’s fingers found the hard plastic edges and she pulled out the phone. The screen was obediently blinking, damn it was Molly………

  “Hey,” Maggie felt a rush at the anticipation of Molly’s voice.

  “How’s my sister?” Molly must have had a smile on a mile wide. Maggie could just feel it over the phone. Yeah, sisters were like that.

  “Somebody’s dru-unk.” Maggie sang into the phone.

  “Yeth,” Molly replied with a giggle. “At least I’m getting there.”

  “Good for you, girl,” Maggie added a bit of envy to her voice. She still couldn’t shake the image of clutching blood red hands in a circle. Hunks of meat carried away to be devoured. Is that everyone’s prophecy? She decided to focus on the good, like her sister. “How ya doin’?”

  “I’m good, I just remembered something.” Molly replied. Maggie could have sworn she was sidestepping some personal feelings. Instead of calling her on it, Maggie let things play out.

  “What?” Maggie’s world was happily reduced to girl talk for a moment.

  “Daddy once told me that I had to be the one to tell you.” Molly was half serious. Well, as half serious as you could be after a few glasses of pinot grigio.

  “Tell me what?” Maggie perked up at the possibility of family secrets forthcoming.

  “That one of us is adopted.” Molly explained.

  “Um…… yeah.” Maggie tried not to be too silly. “I kind of figured that one out by myself.”

  “Good,” Maggie heard Molly take another sip. Damn, the wine sounded delicious. How long had it been since the two of them got drunk? “I don’t like there to be any s
ecrets between us.”

  That was when it started with a sudden bolt of lightning out of the blue from both sides of the phone. They were laughing, the kind of uncontrollable-side-was-hurting-but-who-the-hell-cares type of emotional release that only comes from family. The bus drivers head turned halfway in surprise.

  “Oh, my fucking god,” Maggie finally blurted out when she came up for air.

  “I guess I really just needed to check in and hear how you were.” Maggie listened to her voice and felt like a cue was being given.

  “I’m good,” Maggie assured her warmly. “How about you?”

  “Some days are good, some days are bad.” Maggie listened to Molly’s voice and tried to remember when she had ever been melancholy. “It’s just been a crazy few days.”

  “Where were you?” Maggie tried to open up the pathways of conversation.

  “Fort……….” There was a pause, then the pace of conversation resumed. “I was in Kentucky.”

  “…..and…?”

  “Just saw some things. That’s all.” Sadness was starting to make its’ way into Molly’s voice. “It just made me wonder…..”

  “I bet, but you have to remember.” Maggie needed to jump in now. “No matter how bad it was, it’s gonna be okay.”

  “…..this is far from over.”

  “I need to hear you say that again.” Maggie could feel the emotion drain from Molly’s voice. It was replaced by…….desperation? What the fuck had just happened? “I need to hear you say that again.”

  No matter how bad it looks,” Maggie sat up in her chair and evened out her voice. “It’s gonna be okay, this is far from over.”

  There was a blank in the silence. They were approaching a dead zone in the meager cell phone coverage that was left. Maggie felt herself panic, she wanted to tell Molly every emotion inside, let her see and feel them both together again. They were always stronger when they were close. Maggie in the hallways with the students stepping aside to let them pass, Molly up late, helping Maggie through her finals. They were unstoppable then. The world was not going to come between them, even if it was coming apart.