by Mark Goodwin
Karen knew what Matt would say. She went back in the bedroom, opened the safe and took out Matt’s AR-15 and followed Justin and Rene out the door.
Rene asked, “Adam is going to speak at the Memorial?”
Karen answered, “Yes, he officiated Wesley’s wedding.” The memorial was a nagging reminder that Matt could be dead, but Karen knew this was going to be a tough day for everybody.
When they arrived at Adam’s, the mood was very somber. Adam had a shoe box on the table. It held a tattered teddy bear, a plastic toy revolver and the neck-tie Wesley had worn in his and Shelly’s wedding. There was a candle burning next to the box and a bouquet of purple and yellow wild flowers lay on each side of a photo of Wesley in a silver frame.
Karen walked into the living room and sat next to Shelly. She put her arm around her and suddenly felt guilty for feeling so bad. At least Karen still had hope. For Shelly, there was none. “How are you holding up?”
“I’ll make it,” Shelly said. “But I’m angry. They stole my husband. We didn’t even have a chance to really get to know each other as a married couple. Four months wasn’t even enough time to have our first fight.”
Adam walked in, “Shelly, whenever you’re ready, we’ll get started.”
“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” she answered.
Adam closed the box with the tie, the bear and the toy gun. He tucked it under his arm and led everyone out to the backyard and past the garden. They walked to the beginning of the woods where a large oak sat with massive protruding roots.
Adam said, “Wesley used to come sit under this tree and read his history books. Because of his understanding of history, he probably saw this battle on the horizon before any of us. This box contains the tie he wore when he got married. It has his bear that he was never without as a child and his toy pistol that he played cowboy with.”
Adam broke down, he began sobbing violently and was unable to continue.
Justin walked over and patted him on the shoulder. Justin said, “I didn’t know Wes as long as the rest of you, but the short amount of time I spent with him was inspiring. We were both involved in the DHS ambush on State Road 421. After you share an experience like that with someone, you feel like you’ve known them a lot longer than you have. We were all together at the Pikeville raid that went so terribly wrong. Wesley was a brave man. He was very good to me. You have all been very good to me and my wife. We came here with nothing, and all of you haven’t stopped giving ever since we arrived.”
Adam regained his composure but was unable to say anything else.
Justin kept going. “I’m not really the Bible scholar that Adam is, but I know Jesus is the Messiah. I also know that Wesley believed that and we will see him again. I think it was Paul who said something in First Thessalonians to the effect that we shouldn’t grieve like those who have no hope, because we know we will see our fellow believers again. Of course we miss them. And of course it hurts. But this is not the end.”
Janice hugged Justin and said, “That was beautiful.”
Adam picked up the shovel and dug a hole near a wide root of the oak that rose so high above the ground that it almost made a bench to sit on. He placed the box in the ground and covered it up. Janice started singing Amazing Grace and soon everyone joined her. Shelly placed the bouquet of wild flowers on the mound of dirt. The tears streamed down her cheek as she said, “Good-bye, my love.”
Karen, Rene and Justin knelt down near Shelly to comfort her. Mandy held Carissa as she cried. Janice stood by her husband as he kneeled near the memorial site and wept.
Janice was the first to walk back to the house. Mandy and Carissa followed her. Next, Karen, Justin and Rene walked back. They each had a cup of hot tea while they waited for Shelly and Adam to grieve.
Janice put together some things to eat. This allowed those who wanted to eat to go ahead. Those who weren’t hungry could eat later if they wanted. They spent the day talking and crying and remembering Wesley.
CHAPTER 14
“Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life; secondly, to liberty; thirdly to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can.”
-Samuel Adams
Karen and Rene hung out at Janice’s until late after the memorial. Adam and Justin geared up for their “secret” mission. Karen knew what they were doing, and she suspected Janice did as well. She kept her promise to Justin and didn’t say anything about it.
Rene hugged and kissed Justin as he walked out the door. “Be safe,” she implored.
“I will,” he stroked her hair as he walked out the door.
Adam assured his two girls, “Daddy will be home tonight to tuck you in.”
They both seemed to have full confidence in his statement, at least more so than Janice, who said, “Be careful.”
Karen noticed the way Janice held her eyes as Adam closed the door. She knows something, she thought. Probably knows exactly what we know.
The four women conspicuously avoided the subject of where Adam and Justin were heading. They all had a cup of tea and Shelly finally made herself a small plate of the finger foods that were still laid out in the kitchen, buffet style. They chatted for an hour or so after the men left.
“So, how is your garden doing, Janice?” Karen asked.
“Good.” Janice took a sip of her tea. “Mandy and Carissa have been a great help. We’ve planted most everything. The green beans are already sprouting, and we put the tomatoes and pepper seedlings in the ground also.”
Shelly said, “I haven’t been much help.”
Janice said, “Shelly, you’re being human. No one faults you for that.”
“I know,” she replied, “but I am going to start getting on with life tomorrow. I really needed this memorial; you know, to sort of help me process things.”
Rene moved over to sit next to Shelly and put her arm around her and gave her a hug. “You’ll be fine. I know you will.”
Shelly said, “Thanks.”
Mandy asked, “Did you leave lots of food out for Miss Mae this morning?” Like many twelve-year-old girls, she was especially considerate of animals and always wanted to be sure they were well cared for.
Karen responded, “Oh my goodness! I forgot all about that! We better get going. The toilette paper will be completely off the roll and it will probably be shredded all over the floor by now. Serves me right.”
Rene added, “It will probably be completely dark by the time we get home.”
The two girls said their good-byes and headed home.
The woods were pitch black by the time they started out. Shelly flicked on the tactical light attached to her AR-15 to illuminate her path. Karen unscrewed the knob that secured the tactical light to her weapon. She removed it and used it as a regular flashlight.
“I’m glad to see Shelly is doing better,” Rene said.
“Me too,” Karen agreed.
“What about you?” Rene asked.
“What about me?” Karen said.
Rene clarified, “I mean, how are you holding up? You know, what’s going through your head?”
Karen sighed heavily, “I don’t know, Rene. I feel guilty if I start having a pity party. I think about Shelly who has no hope of seeing Wes in this lifetime, but then I think at least she has closure. I sort of got my hopes up when Justin said they were going to get this guy who might know something, but I’m afraid he won’t know anything and I’ll be right back where I started. I just don’t know how long I can take not knowing. Does that make sense?”
Rene didn’t answer. Instead, she asked, “Did you leave a light on in your bedroom?”
They reached the point where they could barely see the house through the woods.
“No,” Karen said. “It was light when we left and I thought we’d be back before dark, so I didn’t leave any lights on at all.”
Rene said, “I thought I saw a light in the window. It could have been a
reflection, but let’s turn off the flashlights to be sure.”
“Okay,” Karen pressed the button on the rear of her flashlight.
“There it is again!” Rene said in a panicked whisper.
“Someone is in the house!” Karen’s adrenaline kicked in and her heart pounded.
Rene looked at Karen. “What do you want to do? Should we go back to Janice’s?”
Karen said, “I don’t know. I’m worried about Miss Mae. She’s in there. If they’re crazy enough to break in, they might be crazy enough to hurt my cat. Besides, they could clean us out. Before the collapse, stuff was just stuff. If it was stolen, you could go to work, earn more money and replace it. Now, if they steal our stuff, we might not survive. Given enough time, they can cut the safe out of the floor and steal the whole safe. They could worry about getting it open later. If that happens, that would deplete most of our resources. We’re going to need our stuff to survive this depression.”
Rene asked, “So what do you want to do?”
Karen said, “Kill ‘em.”
Rene nodded. “Do you have a plan?”
“Not really,” she whispered.
Rene inquired, “Mind if I make some suggestions?”
Karen replied, “Go right ahead.”
Rene started brainstorming. “Justin and I played paintball with the militia once in a while. One of the games we played was called capture the fort. When our team was the one trying to capture the fort, we would try to draw the other team to the windows and doors of the plywood shoot house. Then, another team member would try to pick them off.”
Rene bent down and started scratching in the dirt as she continued putting together a plan. She cleared an area on the ground of leaves and rubbish. She placed a stick in the middle of the area and drew a box around it. “We’ll stay on one of these three sides, so we’ll always have the cover and concealment of the forest. When we shoot, we’ll make sure we have a tree for cover. Every time we shoot, the muzzle flash will give away our position. See these three lines that represent the three wooded sides of the house? We’ll always make sure we’re both on the same line, so we don’t get confused and shoot each other.”
Karen’s heart was pounding, but she still managed to crack a joke. “Yeah, that would be bad.”
Rene asked, “How many rounds do you have?”
“I don’t know?” Karen said. “How many bullets goes in this magazine?”
“Thirty,” Rene said. “But Justin never fills his all the way to the top. I have twenty-eight rounds in the magazine plus one in the pipe. Is your gun chambered?”
Karen shrugged. Rene took the weapon, removed the magazine and checked the chamber. A shell flew out and she forced it back in to the magazine. “It’s really tight with this round. I’m guessing you had twenty-nine rounds in the magazine before.” She racked the weapon for Karen and handed it back to her. “We’re going to have to shoot and move. One of us is going to have to draw fire and the other is going to try to snipe off the shooter when they come to the window to return fire.”
Karen said softly, “Alright, which job should I do?”
Rene asked, “How tight are your groups with that rifle?”
Karen said, “What do you mean?”
Rene said, “I should probably be the sniper and you should probably try to draw fire. Your sweater is brown and your jacket is red. You should take off your jacket now and leave it behind this tree. Move up to the edge of the tree line and see if you can make out a target. Plan your retreat before you take the shot. Look for a path that will allow you to move without hitting a lot of tree limbs or branches to make noise and create peripheral motion in the brush. If you see a form through the curtains, take a shot, then move back diagonally into the woods. I’ll wait to see if they poke their heads out. I’ll take my shot then move back to where you are.”
Karen replied, “Okay, now?”
Rene said, “Now.”
Karen moved slowly into position. She found a thick tree trunk for cover. She eyed out a good path of egress and found the bedroom window through the reflex sight. She had no magnification optics on the weapon, but she was pretty close. She waited for a light but saw none. She was far enough around the corner to see the edge of the driveway. Karen saw the bumper of a vehicle. As she looked closely, she could see that it was a van. “Those are the guys that were here bugging Rene yesterday! What creeps!” she said to herself. Karen saw light through the window, but couldn’t make out a form. Confident that Miss Mae would be well hidden, she took a shot. She followed Rene’s plan and retreated back into the woods. She found a safe spot behind a fallen tree and took aim towards the house again.
Within seconds, the curtains were pulled to the side and a dark figure was peering out into the night. Karen saw the muzzle flash from the direction of Rene’s rifle and heard the loud crack of the shot. Seconds later, gunfire was ringing out from the window towards the woods. Karen dropped down behind the shelter of the large tree. When the gunfire slowed, Rene worked her way over to Karen’s position.
“Are they still in the house?” Karen asked.
“Yes,” Rene whispered. “I think I got one.”
“How many are there?” Karen asked.
“I don’t know.” Rene sat low with her head concealed behind the fallen tree.
“I saw a van in the driveway,” Karen said. “Is it the same guys that were here yesterday?”
Rene crawled around to the side of the log and peered towards the drive. “Same van. Maybe the rest of them will just leave.”
Karen replied, “That would be great, but we don’t know what they’ve already loaded into the van. Should we try to shoot out the tires?”
Rene said, “If we do, they’re trapped and have no option but to fight. Then we’re committed to killing them or being killed. I don’t think that is a good idea. We have no idea of how strong a force they are.”
“I see your point,” Karen said, “but resources are tight already. We can’t afford to let them steal anything.”
Rene sat quiet for a moment, then said, “Let’s try this. You circle back around towards the side we approached from. Lay down about ten shots to the bedroom window. Hopefully that will make them think the driveway isn’t covered. I’ll be set up to take out anyone who approaches the van. If I miss, they can still get away and we won’t force them into a fight to the death. Does that work for you?”
Karen replied, “Yeah, but don’t miss.”
Rene said, “Give me thirty seconds to get over there, then pick about three or four trees to move back and forth from to make you appear to be more than one shooter. Don’t shoot more than fifteen rounds. Save a few rounds in case you are attacked. If we do run out of ammo, what’s the plan? Should we try to get back to Adam’s?”
Karen said, “No, I don’t want to bring trouble over there. Especially not with Mandy and Carissa there. I say run and hide in the woods until they’re gone.”
Rene said, “I don’t like that plan, either. I suppose you’re right, though. If it comes to that, keep moving as fast and as far as you can. Don’t worry about getting lost. We’ll get back home eventually, but we have to survive tonight first.”
Rene moved into position and so did Karen. She counted the seconds and started taking pot shots at the windows of her bedroom. She lost track of time and lost track of how many rounds she fired. Soon, she heard two shots in close succession from Rene’s rifle. She sat quietly for a moment then began to work herself around to Rene’s position. As she approached, she could make out a dark form on the ground near the passenger side of the van.
“You shot him,” Karen said.
“Yeah,” Rene replied with a shaky voice.
“Did you see any more of them?” Karen inquired.
“No,” Rene’s voice was still shaking “Someone else must still be inside.”
“Why,” Karen asked.
Rene answered, “He was trying to get in the passenger side. The driver must still b
e in there.”
Karen said, “Unless he was trying to get in the passenger side because it was his closest form of cover.”
Rene said, “Could be, but how do we know?”
Karen said, “If he’s the driver, he’ll have the keys.”
“No way,” Rene said. “I’m not checking his pockets.”
Karen said, “If you’re sure he’s dead, I’ll check them.”
Rene was confident. “I hit him right in the head. He dropped straight to the ground. I shot him again to be safe. He’s dead, I’m sure.”
“Cover me.” Karen started crawling towards the corpse. She took the shotgun out of his hand and began rifling through his pockets. His front pockets were warm and wet. He must have urinated when he died. Karen felt her stomach turn sour and she fought to keep from getting sick. She was ready to abandon the mission when she heard keys rattling. She reached one last time to retrieve the keys and headed back to the tree line. Sure enough, there was a Ford key that likely matched the Ford van. Karen showed it to Rene.
Rene said, “I hope you’re right. Still, we need to clear the house, room by room. Do you know how to clear a house?”
Karen shook her head, “Matt used to make me practice clearing the house when we lived in Florida. I guess it really will come in handy.”
“Okay,” Rene said, “I’ll take point and you stack up behind me. I’ll turn toward the inside of each room and you cover straight ahead of each doorway. We’ll stack back up for each room.”
Karen said, “I’ll give you a squeeze on the shoulder when I’m ready and you’ll signal with a nod when you’re ready?”
“Yes,” Rene said. “And don’t shoot me.”
“I won’t shoot you!” Karen insisted.
Rene asked, “Did the dead guy’s gun have a sling?”
“No,” Karen answered.
Rene said, “Too bad, we could have taken it in as backup. Let’s prop it up behind the van. If we run out of bullets and have to retreat, it’ll be here. In fact, I should see how many rounds are still in it. I heard a few shotgun blasts, but most of the gunfire was from a pistol.”