Emmett ran his large fingers through is quickly thinning hair.
“Well, it turns out they had stashed a lot of food and water in the semis. We used nearly all of the food now; the water didn’t last as long. Most towns’ people had enough food at first to last a bit of time, but the rationing took place with the trapped travelers,” he replied.
“So Nate, what brings you in town? I must admit I am surprised to see you. Last I heard, you were still with the Army. I bet they could use you right now,” he said smiling.
Nate grinned some before speaking. Emmett had also done a short stint in the Army, but he got out after two years. Emmett mostly just wanted to get the GI Bill at the time.
“I’m here because of something dad heard on the Ham networks. Have you heard anything about Glen Rose nuclear plant blowing up?” Nate asked.
He knew the answer from the look of shock on Emmett’s face.
“What? Oh no! What the hell happened?” he asked Nate.
“That’s unclear; but reports are that massive amounts, I’m talking about hordes of people, are moving this way, Emmett. Have you heard or seen anything out of the ordinary arriving lately?” Nate asked.
Emmett stood and looked toward the door where the two young guards stood. “Nate, now that you mention it, I have seen a few newcomers in town. They arrived just yesterday on an old Harley. The lady was pretty ill. The man with her seemed anxious, but seemed ok. She was visibly sick,” Emmett answered.
“A report from a Ham operator eighty miles away said his town had the ‘visitors’ as he called them, traveling through like a swarm of locust, headed this way,” Nate said in a whisper, leaning toward Emmett.
Emmett backed up from the news. “Eighty miles? When was that?” Emmett asked.
“Last week, Emmett,” Nate replied, looking down at his watch. He needed to get going. He had already spent more time in town than he planned.
“Dear God, if they get here and see this body of water, they won’t leave like the others. How many people? A few thousand?” Emmett asked.
“Emmett, it’s not just the Glen Rose area. The cloud of radioactive fallout was heading east. It’s rumored that most of the Dallas/Fort Worth metro area is headed west in some direction or another. We are talking millions.”
Emmett sat down now. His wife was gone – his support structure, his Rock of Gibraltar. He wasn’t sure how to get through this onslaught without her
. “Nate, I need you to do something for me…no, for your town. Can you go east, like a scout, and see what’s coming? You don’t have to give me an answer now, but please think on this. I know with your skills you can pull it off. We don’t have anyone else,” Emmett asked desperately.
Nate felt the concern in his old friend’s voice. Nate asked himself if could he do it, and knew the risk, but felt he could. However, knowing you can do something doesn’t mean you should.
“I will think about it. I may have a few requests if I do, but we can discuss that later,” Nate replied as he stood and extended his hand to Emmett.
Emmett looked outside, then back at Nate.
“How did you get here, Nate?” Emmett asked.
Nate smiled. “Horseback, Traveller is parked just past that graveyard you spoke about,” Nate replied.
“Well, I’ll be…old Traveller? I haven’t seen you on that horse in years. Glad to hear he is doing fine,” Emmett replied. “Hey Nate, let me have one of my men give you a ride at least to the graveyard. It’s getting dark; you really don’t want to be in town after dark. It’s not the Fritch you know anymore,” Emmett stated.
Nate was glad to accept the ride. His legs were still tired from the journey home.
Emmett directed one of the guards to go get the UTV that was locked up, and give Nate a ride to the graveyard. The men seemed confused at first, but Emmett explained to them that Nate’s mode of transportation was there. Nate asked Emmett if he had access to any Ham operators in Fritch. Nate passed on his dad’s station number. Nate would soon give Emmett an answer about the mission requested.
One of the men rode up on an older version of the same UTV Nate owned. Nate waved goodbye to Emmett and sat down in the passenger seat. The man floored the vehicle and they took off down the street.
Nate couldn’t believe how rundown the town appeared. Many homes seemed abandoned, but with no power it was hard to ascertain.
“Sorry about pulling our guns on you earlier,” the man suddenly spoke. His voice made him sound even younger than he looked.
Nate smiled. “Don’t apologize; you did exactly what you should have done. In this day and age, you need be extremely careful,” Nate replied.
The man seemed to ease up on the speed some after Nate’s words. “Emmett said you are an Army Ranger?” he asked.
“I was…yes. However, those days are long gone,” Nate remarked lightly. They were on the edge of town now not far from the graveyard.
“I guess you have seen a lot of action. I was going to enlist in the Army, but I decided on college first; then halfway through, this economic stuff occurred,” the man replied.
“My name is Nate Michaels by the way,” Nate said, reaching sideways to shake the younger man’s hand. His hand was soft like a paper pusher, or a student.
“Marcus Frazer. I’m Emmett’s nephew, well one of them,” Marcus replied, shaking Nate’s hand. “How long have you known my uncle?” Marcus asked. The ride was bumpy as he headed off road.
“Since high school. We played football together. Keep close to him, Marcus. He will need your support.”
The graveyard was insight now; the UTV came to a slow crawl.
“I will, he’s all we have right now,” Marcus replied.
“Keep your eyes open and your weapon at ready; things will continue to get worse before it gets better!”
As Nate finished his sentence, a loud gunshot rang out echoing off nearby hills. The bullet slammed into the frame nearly missing Nate and Marcus. Nate jumped over to take shelter behind a nearby rock.
“Get down now; over here!” Nate yelled at Marcus who followed Nate’s lead.
The shot came from the area they already passed through. Whoever it was must not have been able to respond fast enough at that time to take a shot at them. Nate could see the graveyard clearly and the trail leading up to his horse. He knew he couldn’t leave Marcus though…not like this. Nate removed from his jacket a folded AR 15 made by Kel-Tec called the SU-16c. The .223 caliber rifle had a folding stock that made it easier to conceal in certain chest riggings. Marcus’s eyes opened wide when he saw Nate remove the gun.
“What the heck is that?” Marcus asked.
Nate briefly explained the weapon. However, he only brought with him two fully loaded magazines.
“I never detected you had any weapons on you at first glance,” Marcus said, remembering back at first drawing down on Nate.
“We can discuss that later; let’s get out of this first,” Nate replied, thinking about the area the shoot came from. He knew they were not up high. They were shooting up. Nate had the high ground, but not by much. Nate would try to flank them, ending the fight.
“Marcus, I need you to draw their fire. The sun is going down and will be in their eyes in a few minutes. I’m going to flank them, you know…get behind them. The sun is starting to set. As it does, stay down low and move to that uplifted rock formation. Their shoot came from below us based on how the trajectory appears. I will move the opposite way and come up from below them, I hope.”
Marcus silently shook his head. He appeared to be calm. Nate then remembered he did survive the big battle with the truck drivers.
“I understand. How will I know if you get them?”
Marcus asked a good question. Nate didn’t want to be stuck up behind some rocks all night.
“I will fire two shots then yell ‘I’m coming up, so don’t shoot!’” Nate said half-serious. Marcus nodded his head again. Nate turned and started to crawl away, keeping himself out of
view behind rocks. Marcus watched as Nate slowly disappeared over the ridge and down the hill.
Marcus waited a few minutes to give Nate time to get down the slope, and for the sun to set some more, giving him a better chance to make it to the rock formation. Once safe, he would shoot a few rounds down range before Nate had time to be in the line of fire.
Five minutes after Nate left the UTV, he heard two distinct sounds from a pistol come from above, and west of his position. Nate smiled knowing that Marcus must have gotten to his position. He is pretty good, Nate thought to himself. Nate was moving swiftly through the hilly area listening for any strange sounds. This area was mostly dry rocky terrain without much cover. When he felt he was far below the area the shot came from, he turned and headed back up. It wasn’t long before he found the trail that led to the UTV.
Marcus could hear some voices, but he could not make out what was being said. It sounded like whispering. Then all of the sudden, two men came up and over the slight crest of the trail. He moved quickly to the other side of the rock formation and watched. Apparently they did not wish to wait to see if it was safe. They appeared to be very slim. Both men wore coveralls and carried rifles of some kind. One man had a small folding shovel strapped to his backpack. Now Marcus could hear them discussing the whereabouts of the two on the UTV.
Marcus started to aim and then saw the weapons more clearly. One was a deer rifle, the other was an AK-47. His little pistol might do the trick, but he wasn’t sure with the distance now. He reconsidered and remained hopeful that Nate would appear. One man dropped to his knees quickly and studied the ground. His eyes turned toward the direction of Nate’s last travels. Marcus knew he was in trouble then. The ground was giving them both up. His fears were confirmed when the other man caught a glimpse of Marcus hiding behind the outcropping of rocks.
“Hey boy, come on out here. We don’t wish to waste any more bullets. We just want whatever you have on you, then you can go. We promise,” the man said, giggling afterwards. The sound of his voice reminded Marcus of something off of some redneck movie. He couldn’t place which one, but something he had seen once as a kid. The movie was old, having come out in the 1970s. The men took cover behind the UTV but seemed unafraid. Marcus didn’t wish to reveal to them that he had a weapon until it became necessary. He knew enough to keep the element of surprise.
“Where did your friend go? He should have stayed for the party too. I’m not going to tell you again, boy…get your ass down here now!” he said more forcefully and louder.
The man with the AK raised his weapon and fired off a burst at the rocks. Marcus dove to the ground as bullets blasted away at the top portion of the formation. Small fragments of rocks showered Marcus’s back as he lay on the ground.
“There’s no help out there in those desert areas,” the other man yelled.
“I will give you thirty-seconds before I come up there and put a bullet in your boy to get down here,” the man with the AR yelled.
Nate heard the thirty-second remark and was now in sight of the two men. He made his approach from the right of them. Nate stayed in the shadow area with their vision hampered by the sun’s rays. Nate was currently in an over-watch position. He had successfully set himself up in a concealed position with a clear view of his area of battle. He was not as high as Marcus, but by using the shaded area created by the setting sun, he was able to see without being seen.
He waited for the loud man to keep his word, and with the first step, he aimed and fired one round through the man’s knee. He dropped to the ground in one motion screaming now louder than he did before. The other man raised his rifle in the general direction of the shot, and started to pull the trigger. Nate didn’t move, he could tell from experience that the man had no clue where to return fire, or even the common sense to hit the ground. Nate fired one shot into the ground in front of him.
“Move again or fire that gun once more, and I will end you both!” Nate yelled, making his voice boom over the rocks. Slowly, the standing man tossed his gun out.
“Now slowly grab the other rifle and toss it also!” Nate yelled. The man leaned down and slowly did as commanded.
“Now lay on the ground, cross your legs, and put your hands behind your backs. Hey, I don’t care how much your knee hurts, do it!” he said, adding the registered complaints of the one man.
Nate stood and cautiously walked to the two men. They were old. They both appeared very thin and likely hungry; but regardless, they would have killed Marcus and Nate if they had the chance.
“Well, look what the cat dragged in,” Nate replied, aiming down at both of the old farts.
“Shouldn’t you two be at some watering hole, telling old jokes from the 1960s?”
“If you are going to kill us, just get it over, boy,” the injured man said.
Nate smiled. “Listen Wounded knee, if I wanted to kill you, I wouldn’t be talking to you. You are lucky though that no harm came to my friend,” Nate said as Marcus was climbing down.
“You ok?” Nate asked Marcus, not saying his name on purpose. Anonymity was important at times like this around people you don’t know.
“Yep, better now that you arrived,” Marcus said, half laughing.
Marcus’s gun was a small frame .9mm. He couldn’t tell what model. It would not have given him much help in the position he was in.
Nate picked up both rifles handing them to Marcus. The AR was in great shape, the older Ruger was not too bad.
“I am willing to bet these two fine outstanding citizens of Fritch may also have a future pistol or two for you to take back to the jail,” Nate said.
He stood watch as Marcus checked them both over from head to toe. Nate was correct, both men did have pistols.
“Well, that’s a nice Glock 31 and a Kimber Model Warrior SOC,” Marcus handed the Kimber to Nate. Both guns were nice, but the Kimber was very special. Marcus had it in his hands looking it over. He removed the magazine and caught the chambered round as it snapped out of the chamber. He looked up at Nate and handed him the large frame custom pistol.
“Here, hang on to this; they won’t need it,” Marcus said, placing the Glock unloaded in his jacket pocket.
Nate took the gun and looked it over.
“I suppose not,” Nate replied.
“This is a very expensive gun; wanna tell us where or who you stole this from?” Nate asked.
The man it came from rolled his head over, looked up at Nate, and spoke.
“We found them,” he replied.
Nate smiled.
Marcus secured both men’s hands behind their backs with zip ties and then escorted them both to the UTV. He placed them both in the rear seat and tied their legs around the seat mounts with rope he had in the storage bin of the UTV. Once secured, Marcus walked back over to where Nate was inspecting the two rifles.
“Marcus, take these both with you; your brother will need all the firepower you can get,” Nate said, handing both rifles over to Marcus.
“Down the hill in the middle of the path I put their duffle bags that I found before coming up the hill. They have some more goodies you might find interesting,” Nate stated.
Marcus just smiled.
Nate assisted Marcus with making sure the two men were very secure before he headed back to town. Nate assumed they had a jail or someplace to hold people who are a threat to society. Nate didn’t have much time to discuss current jailing situations.
“Marcus, I’m sure we will meet again. I have to get back now. I have some family waiting on me,” Nate said, extending his hand.
“Take care, Nate; and thank you for saving my ass,” Marcus replied.
“Good people need to take care of good people; the bad will be killed, or will kill one another off. That’s the way it’s always been my friend,” Nate said, turning to head up the trail.
Marcus stood watching Nate disappear up into the trail and out of sight. He then turned toward the two men. Neither could talk. Nate knew the two
men would likely drive Marcus nuts with their constant mouthing off, so he used thick small twigs, and two pieces of rope to essentially gag the men. Marcus thought they looked like dogs with a large bone in their mouth. It worked, and neither man could be heard over the sound of the UTV.
Chapter 4
Scouting out the Future
The short trip back went without any issues for Nate. He put Traveller down for the night and walked up to his folk’s home. Everyone was sitting outside on the porch peering through an old Meade telescope.
“Hey dad,” Ben yelled when he finally saw Nate walking up the road. Ben left the side of his grandpa and ran after Nate. Nate was glad to be back. There were many reasons why he chose to live outside the towns and cities. The seclusion and peace of mind were perhaps the primary factor.
“Well, someone missed me,” Nate said as Ben slammed into his chest with a stronger than expected welcome back hug. They walked back up to greet his parents.
“So how was Fritch?” Betty asked her son, smiling. Nate decided to be honest. He briefly looked at his father, and in an instant his father nodded his approval.
“Mom, it isn’t good. It’s not the Fritch I or you guys knew any longer,” Nate replied with a slight tone of disgust in his voice. Ben stood next to Nate with one arm around his waist, listening.
“Did either of you know, or hear about, the trucker incident after the collapse?”
Henry looked at Betty, and both simultaneously nodded a negative. Nate went on to explain what happened and it brought tears to Betty’s eyes. She tried to remain calm in front of Ben, but the news was too sad. Ben reached out to console her.
“It will be ok,” he said, trying to comfort his new grandmother.
She smiled as she wiped a tear away from her cheek. Ben was a sweet boy, she thought to herself.
“I met up with Emmett also. Rachel is gone; she didn’t make it after the supplies of type 1 diabetic medicine ran out for her.”
Nate knew they would understand. The reaction was still one of shock. Neither of his parents ventured back into Fritch since a few days after the economic meltdown.
Escaping Home Page 4