“I need you to walk a couple thousand miles with us, Hank. You have to come with us, without complaint, otherwise I’ll have to turn you loose, where you’d die out there, wouldn’t you, buddy? Nope. First thing tomorrow, Hank, we’re going for a run. You and me, no dicking around. Got it?” The grizzly’s expression didn’t change.
In the distance, a car engine revved.
***
Gerry had tied the horses to a pair of old fence posts. As the horses whinnied and bucked, Terry thought the posts would give way as he ran into the middle of them, grabbing reins and trying to calm them down.
James, Lacy, and Gerry arrived next, followed by Timmons, who ran with a hitch as he continued to hold his injured arm. Char followed, looking into the distance.
“What is it, Char?” Terry asked, looking into the night and not seeing anything.
“Wolves,” Char replied.
“Werewolves?” Terry was confused.
“No. Just plain wolves,” she answered, slowing and relaxing. “I think Ted is taking care of them.”
The sound of snarling and growling came clearly through the warm evening air. They heard the fight, two wolves battling for supremacy. A yip and a cry later, it was all over. They heard the unmistakable howl of a Werewolf.
Bold and confident he howled, joined by smaller voices, the call of the pack. Ted’s pack.
The horses continued to prance and whinny. Char shrugged and walked back to their camp. Timmons walked slowly behind her.
Terry headed into the scrub toward the sounds of the pack. “Ted?” he called.
“Just a moment, don’t come too close,” Ted called in his human voice. “Let me bring them to you.”
Terry’s enhanced eyes saw better in the dark than any human, but not as good as a wolf or Werewolf. He felt vulnerable while he waited. He crouched and swiveled his head back and forth, listening for any sound of their approach. Ted appeared pasty white in the darkness.
Terry forgot that he’d be naked.
“Hey, Ted, you might want to hold up. You know what they say, it’s all fun and games until you stumble upon a naked man in the dark.”
“Pish posh,” he called back and continued walking. The shadowy forms of the wolves appeared behind him. One, bigger than the others, limped and its neck hair was caked with blood.
Ted held out his hands and the wolves stopped. “My pack. Ten of them, the former alpha.” Ted swept his hand back and forth, then stopped and pointed at the injured beast.
“Clyde opened the door to all this,” Terry lamented. “Ted, tell me what the fuck we’re going to do with a wolf pack?”
“I don’t know the answer to that,” Ted replied, standing close to Terry.
“Would you get some clothes on?” Terry requested. “And how are we going to keep them away from the horses?”
“I told them to leave the horses alone. Hang on,” Ted said and changed back into Werewolf form. He was shaggy gray too, just like Timmons. He growled and snapped, barked a couple times and ended by touching noses with all of them. Terry looked away when they started sniffing butts.
All of a sudden, Ted was there and nodding happily to Terry. “They’ll be back in the morning and then we can be on our way.”
Ted whistled as he walked back toward the fire. He heard Lacy cough and James say, “Come on, man!” as Ted excused himself to get dressed.
***
Shonna gunned it a little more than intended, barking the tires before letting off, then easing the gas pedal back down.
“Yeehaw!” she yelled as they settled into a smooth twenty-five miles an hour, slowing to take the corners because she saw the shape the tires were in. Old rubber, cracked and ready to give way. She didn’t know if they had any spares.
But the roar of the engine was exhilarating. Shonna really wanted to stomp it and let the horses run, but the roadster would come apart. She didn’t want to be that person, so she slowed down, hung an arm out the window, and enjoyed the slow cruise.
Then she remembered that she forgot the tools. They burned a U-turn and headed toward the power plant. Merrit laughed.
“Some co-pilot you are!” she yelled over the sound of the straight pipe exhaust. Billy and the mechanic hadn’t bothered to install a muffler.
Why?
At the power plant, they found the mechanic, but the engineer had already gone home. He was more than happy to help with the tools, but insisted that he come along.
“The more the merrier,” Shonna called. Merrit detailed what they would be working on as they found the tools they needed and loaded everything into the small trunk. They had to put the weld machine in the back seat, taking care to brace it with boards so it didn’t rip the fragile upholstery.
Then they headed out again.
“This is the second time I’ve ridden in the car,” the mechanic hollered from the back sat. “One test drive and then it was just for Billy to chauffeur his woman around.”
Shonna and Merrit both nodded. The one working headlight didn’t illuminate much and the pavement was marginal, to say the least. It had decayed over the years. What had been potholes before the fall were car-swallowing craters now. Shonna used her Werewolf vision to its utmost as they slowed further.
But it beat the hell out of walking and hand-carrying all the tools.
Merrit smiled and bobbed his head. He wanted more of this. “Do you think Chicago will have what we need?” he yelled.
“Yes,” Shonna answered, having no idea. She would wait for the return of the alpha, who would make the decision and then they’d do what she said. She wouldn’t risk the pack and it seemed that her mate wouldn’t risk the people of New Boulder. Terry and Char would make the decision that had the greatest chance of success for survival first, and second, the opportunity to improve their lot in life.
“Char will take us to a better place,” Shonna committed.
Merrit stopped bobbing and watched the world go by. The mechanic felt like he was on top of the world. He had done no work outside the power plant in a long time. Billy had forbidden it.
They arrived at the first greenhouse, dug out the weld machine and tools, and went to work. The dim electric lights gave them everything they needed to dismantle the pumps. The weld machine made quick work of the repairs, although they had to drill holes in a couple of the cast parts to wire cases together and put a bead of weld filler metal along the seam to help the seal.
From one to the next they traveled, fixing the essential equipment. By the time they parked the car at the fifth greenhouse, that of Pepe and Maria, false dawn cast its first light.
Even the Werewolves were tired. The mechanic had wedged himself into the back seat and was sound asleep. Shonna and Merrit laid down in the greenhouse, under the exhaust fan, and were soon out cold.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Terry and Char had the last watch. They walked around the camp, but Char shook her head. There wasn’t anything out there except the wolf pack and they were a few hundred yards away sleeping.
They saddled the horses, trying to be as quiet as possible, so the group could leave at first light. There was enough venison for two more days, then they’d have to hunt again. Unless they started feeding the wolves.
“By all that’s holy, a pack of wolves?” Terry whispered.
“When you let me into your Force de Guerre, you conceded that non-humans were welcome,” Char said softly. “You have ten new recruits. I hope you treat them with the same respect that you treat the rest of the Force.”
“New recruits? What planet are you on? They’re wolves! Real fucking wolves, hairy, slobbering, butt-sniffing wolves.” Terry waved his hands animatedly as he tried to make his point.
“You know that Ted is out there, right? He’s sleeping right in the middle of his pack, because they’ll protect him,” Char said calmly.
“I’ll be damned. You’re not going to do anything about that, are you?” Terry asked.
“Do what? Make sure that Ted
can’t protect himself? Of course I’m not going to do anything. Go with the flow, TH.” She caressed his stubble-covered cheek before pulling him tight for a long and passionate kiss. His hands found their way to her backside, where he gripped tightly.
“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re doing,” he finally managed to say. One hand was inside her shirt, caressing her bare back. He’d grown to crave her Werewolf heat, enjoying the burn.
“You’re manipulating me with sex and I tell you, I won’t stand for it,” he toyed with her.
“No. I’m not a fan of standing either. When next we grapple, let it be horizontal,” Char declared, winking one purple eye. The sparkles were like glitter in the dew of the early dawn.
Someone cleared their throat.
“Dammit!” Terry snapped.
“I heard Gerry coming from the moment he left camp. Shame on you, Colonel. You used to be so good before you proved you were so good at something else. I guess it’s one or the other, not both. Pity,” Char quipped.
“Maybe having a wolf pack around isn’t such a bad idea. It seems that I need lots of help.” Terry was only half-kidding. He liked being in control and someone sneaking up on him without even trying was unconscionable.
That put him in a bad mood. He grunted as he headed back to the camp.
“You keep sneaking up on us like that, do you understand, Geronimo? The colonel thinks he’s lost his mojo, but that’s not it at all. He’s better now than he ever was and doesn’t realize it,” Char told the young man.
“I just wanted to water the horses. I thought I saw a pond not far off, that’s all, ma’am,” Gerry explained.
“Then carry on, by all means,” Char replied. She casually strolled back to the camp. Terry was drinking warm water from a flask. Timmons was up, but cradling his arm.
“Still hurt?” Char asked.
“Like I’ve been dipped in lava.” Timmons winced and groaned. “I’ll be fine.”
“Give it a few days.” Char didn’t know what else to say. She pulled Terry aside. “Did you think that maybe you heard Gerry, but dismissed it as not a threat without even thinking about it?”
“What?” Terry asked, skeptical of the idea.
“Is there anything out here that can hurt you?” she demanded. “Anything at all? So what are you worried about?”
Terry had to collect his thoughts, starting with why he loved a Werewolf. She refused to accept status quo or to sympathize with him. She challenged him every day to be better.
And they were both better because of it. “I’m worried about taking three hundred and fifty people on a two-thousand-mile trek,” he confided.
“Exactly. No one is going to sneak up on us. I will guarantee that for you. I’ll take care of the little things and you take care of the big things. If anyone can pull this off, it’s you.” She nodded, eyebrows raised as she emphasized her point.
“Deal, but I still think you’re using sex to manipulate me,” Terry cocked his head waiting for a witty comeback.
“Of course I am. Isn’t that what all women do?” she asked pointedly.
“No,” he answered quickly, not wanting to get trapped in the corner that he talked himself into. “You make me feel funny.”
“Yes, Major Payne, I make you feel funny, but you’re still a big, tough Marine. Now that we have that settled, I think it’s about time we started eating into those two thousand miles, don’t you?”
Terry looked around, finding everyone mounted with Gerry holding the leads of Terry’s and Char’s horses. The animals were calm, despite the fact that a pack of wolves waited not one hundred yards away. Ted was to the side, almost as if blocking the vision of the other horses. He kept stroking his horse’s neck, cooing to the animal.
Terry thanked Gerry and climbed up. Char mounted her mare and sat tall in the saddle, looking regal when outlined by the morning sun.
“Wagons, ho!” Terry called, chopping an arm downward and pointing north.
Ted chuckled. “Come on, my pretties, time to hit the road. We’ve a long day ahead,” he said, seemingly to himself.
***
The first farmers to arrive found that the irrigation system had been working overtime, so they rushed around to drain the channels before the roots got too wet. Once a few boards were loosened and excess water ran toward the fields, they felt much better.
It was the same story for the first four greenhouses, but for the fifth, the pump had not yet been fixed. Pepe and Maria found the mechanic, Shonna, and Merrit sleeping. Maria never liked to wake people up, so she went about her business, stepping over them when she needed to.
Pepe pumped the handle valiantly. The pump was better than it was before James fixed it, but not as good as it needed to be. He never managed to get enough water. His grunting and the squeaking of the pump finally brought the two sleepers around. Merrit sat up and looked around.
“Where am I?” he asked, looking confused. His hair was sticking up and was clotted with dirt and leaves.
“Our greenhouse, sonny!” Maria said proudly. “Would you like some toast with jam?”
Shonna blinked. “What time is it?” Her eyes rolled around in her head as she tried to focus. Maria helped both of them into the chairs at the small table where Pepe and Maria usually sat during their first morning break.
“The pump. We ran out of gas. Where’s the mechanic?” Shonna stood quickly, swayed drunkenly for a second, then grabbed the piece of bread and shoved the whole thing in her mouth as she dashed outside.
The mechanic was wedged into the back seat of the car.
“Get up, you lazy bastard!” Shonna joked. She reached in to shake him, but he was cold and stiff. “Shit!”
Shonna walked back inside to get Merrit. She didn’t say anything to Maria, who was put out at seeing her homemade bread eaten in one bite. Shonna led Merrit outside.
“Son of a bitch,” he cried. “Did you see anything wrong with him last night?”
“No. The opposite! He was as happy as could be. I think it was just his time,” Shonna stated. “So what do we do?”
Merrit shrugged. They hadn’t been there long enough to know. They worried that someone would think they killed him. They turned to ask Maria, but she was already there, standing right behind them, watching. “Madre de Dios,” she said and crossed herself. “Pepe!”
The older man joined them and sighed heavily. The ashen pallor of the mechanic was obvious when one took the time to look. “Billy needs to know,” Pepe told them.
Merrit and Shonna said they’d take care of it, but that they’d be back to fix the pump as soon as possible. They left the weld machine and the tools, started the car and slowly drove away.
It didn’t take long before they were parked outside Billy’s home. They climbed out and stood there, not having had enough time to figure how they wanted to tell the mayor that his mechanic was dead.
Too late. Billy spotted them from the upstairs window. Of course, he’d heard the car drive up. It didn’t have a muffler and there were no other man-made sounds.
“What’s up?” he called. “It looks like you have a dead guy in the back of my car.” Merrit and Shonna looked shocked and froze.
“NO!” Billy yelled. “You wait right there!”
They heard him pounding his way through the house, throw open the front door, and race out. He stopped when he saw who it was. “Aw, mother fucker. Mechanic? Why did it have to be you?” Billy turned his attention to the Werewolves.
“What happened?” he demanded.
Merrit looked to Shonna and nodded. They’d all seen how Billy looked at the women, so bad news coming from a beautiful women would have to be received better, he reasoned. Shonna agreed.
“We worked in the greenhouses, fixing the pumps in the first four. That took all night. By the time we got to number five, we crapped out. The mechanic took the back seat of the car and we slept on the ground in the greenhouse. That’s it, I swear. Look at him, not a mark on his bod
y. He looks like he’s peacefully sleeping,” Shonna suggested, waving toward the corpse.
Billy relaxed. He moved closer and leaned in. “He does look peaceful. He said that bad hearts ran in his family and that the apocalypse was good for him as he outlived all of his ancestors.” Billy kicked the dirt. “I liked that old guy. He was good people.”
Felicity walked out carrying Marcie. She nuzzled her husband and then told him to go back inside. “The cemetery is down that road.” She pointed. “I’ll get you a shovel.”
Merrit and Shonna didn’t know how they got volunteered for gravedigger detail, but didn’t want to upset the apple cart any more than it was already. Someone had to tell the engineer.
Roman would be upset.
“I guess we’ll be working in the power plant until we leave,” Merrit said flatly.
“Yup,” Shonna agreed.
***
“Come on, Hank! I ain’t got time for any bullshit. We’re running because that’s what you need to do if you’re coming with us,” Blackbeard tried to reason with the grizzly cub.
He had a chain around the creature’s neck, but that only encouraged Hank to sit down, paw at it, and bite it.
He finally removed the chain and went with a hearty walking stick. He opened the gate and blocked it with his body until the bear calmed down, then he took off running as if playing chase. Hank ran after him, quickly catching Blackie and bowling him over.
The two tumbled, wrestled, and Blackie stood up, scratching the back of the bear’s big head. The telltale neck hump of a grizzly was already there. Hank was a notorious digger, able to move a ton of dirt in less than a minute when the mood took him. Which was becoming more and more often the older he got.
“Come on, Hank. You have to run with me,” Blackie pleaded and started jogging again, keeping the bear away by using the stick. Hank started loping along, looking around as he ran. Just when Blackbeard was feeling that the bear understood, Hank bolted into the brush and started digging. The rabbit hadn’t gotten far into its hole when the bear caught him.
Hank killed it by biting it in half, and then devoured it. Hank found a bush nearby with blackberries. They weren’t big, suffering from the heat and a lack of rain, just like everything else, but Hank cleaned off the bush without hesitation. Then he grazed the grass behind the bushes.
Nomad Unleashed: A Kurtherian Gambit Series (Terry Henry Walton Chronicles Book 3) Page 17