by Robert Boren
“Hilda awake now,” Rosie said. “You could ask her too.”
“Oh, excellent,” Frank said.
“Thanks,” the Major said. “We won’t be gone long. Take care.”
The Major and the Sheriff went to the squad car, and drove off.
Rosie and Jane and Frank walked over to where Hilda was laying. She looked a little groggy, but she smiled when she saw them approach.
“Hi, Hilda,” Jane said. “How are you feeling?”
“Pretty good, considering,” she said. “How’s my Charlie?”
“He’s beside himself, honey,” Jane said. “You’ve got him hooked real good.”
She started to giggle, but then put her hand to her abdomen.
“Hurts to laugh,” she said. “Is he in here?”
“No, he’s been manning the roof of the store with Jeb, but he’s been down here pretty often to check on you.”
“Good,” she said. “You need something?”
“Yes,” Frank said. “The Major is going to stay here with the army for at least a week.”
“Oh, thank God,” she said.
“They need somewhere to put four Humvees so they can’t be seen from the road or from the air. Is there space in that barn behind the maintenance building?”
“The barn,” she said. “Yes, but we’ll have to move some stuff out of there. We used to run hay rides at the park years ago. There are several wagons sitting in there. The horses are all gone now, of course.”
“Is it locked?” Frank asked.
“Yes, it’s padlocked. Go into the office in this building. The key ring is in the top middle drawer of the desk. Help yourself.”
“Perfect, thanks,” Frank said. He got up and went over to the office. He came back out with the keys.
“Earl and Jackson, want to give me a hand?”
“Sure thing,” Earl said, and they trotted over to him. They went out the back door of the clubhouse, past the militia vehicles and the maintenance building. The barn stood behind, imposing in size. There was a chain through holes in the big wooden double doors with a large padlock. Frank started trying keys, finding the right one quickly. The padlock opened, but was pretty stiff.
“I don’t think this place has been opened for a while,” Frank said. “Give me a hand.”
He pulled the chain away, and then they grabbed the doors. They creaked as the men pulled them open. There was some fluttering of wings, and a couple of doves flew out of a hole in the roof, over the horse stalls on the far wall. The space was huge, but hot and stuffy. There were three large wagons, with hay still on the back, and a small carriage in the middle.
“Look,” Jackson said. “Swamp coolers. I wonder if they still work?”
“Let’s see if the electricity works,” Earl said. He saw a light switch and flipped it on. Several hooded lights hanging from the ceiling came on, giving the room a golden glow.
The men looked at each other and smiled. Jackson walked over to the first of the swamp coolers. He turned on the water valve and heard water flow. Then he flipped a switch, and the fan squeaked to life. He looked over at the other men and gave a thumbs up, then went over to each of the other four units and got them fired up.
“Wish we still had a horse or two,” Frank said. “These wagons are going to be heavy.”
“If we can’t handle them, we can just wait until the Major gets back, and then bring one of the Humvees back here to tow them out.”
“Good point,” Frank said. “What was I thinking?” He laughed.
Jackson walked back over. You could already feel the cold air flowing out of the coolers.
“If you’ve got the dry heat, these things work great,” Jackson said. He looked down at the floor, which was covered with straw. “This is a whale of a fire hazard, though, so we need to be careful. No smoking, for sure. I wouldn’t want to pull a car with a hot catalytic converter in here either.”
“Do Humvees have catalytic converters?” asked Frank.
“Good question. We need to find out. I think we might want to rake this up and get it out of here.”
“Good job for privates,” Earl said, grinning. “Let’s shut the doors and let the swamp coolers do their job for a while. The Major and the Sheriff will be back any minute.”
The men left the barn, closing the doors behind them but leaving it unlocked. They were walking up to the club house when they saw the Sheriff’s squad car pull up the driveway. The Sheriff, Major Hobbs, and Lieutenant James all got out and made their way to the clubhouse.
“Great to see you again, Lieutenant,” Frank said.
“Same here, Frank,” he said.
“You guys find a place to stash the Humvees?” asked the Major.
“Sure did, in the barn back behind the maintenance area. We’ve got swamp coolers running in there now, cooling the place off. We’ll need to tow four wagons out of there, though.”
“Yeah, and we probably want to rake out the straw on the floor,” Jackson said. “I wouldn’t want to park a hot vehicle on top of it.”
“Excellent,” the Major said. He turned to the Lieutenant. “Feel up to getting the men busy back there?”
“Yes sir,” the Lieutenant said, and he left.
“I’d better go check with the CO to make sure that the chopper got back to base alright. Be back in a minute.”
Jane walked up to Frank.
“How did it look?” she asked.
“It’s huge,” Frank said. “Looks just about perfect.”
“That’s great,” she said. “We don’t have much daylight left.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Remember that I’ve got a job for you tonight,” she said.
“Been on my mind for most of the day,” Frank said. He pulled her close and kissed her forehead.
The Major rushed back in. He had a worried look on his face.
“Uh oh, what?” asked Frank.
“The chopper never made it back,” the Major said.
Chapter 3 – Canada On Fire
“How long should it have taken for the chopper to get back to base?” Frank asked. “It only just left.”
“It should have been back within twenty minutes,” Major Hobbs said. “Fifteen if they had a tail wind. The base isn’t all that far as the crow flies. It’s a ways to drive to because of the way the highways are laid out around the hills.”
“So it’s only about half an hour late at this point?” asked Earl. “Maybe they stopped to help somebody else out.”
“Maybe,” Major Hobbs said. “They can’t get them on the radio, though. That is worrisome.”
“Yes, it is,” Jane said.
“We should have just shot that creep here,” Jackson said. “He has an uncanny way of making it out alive, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
“Why don’t we go about our business and not worry about it right this second,” Frank said. “We need to get those cameras up. And I’ve got some software to write.”
“Agreed, Frank,” the Major said. “We don’t have much daylight left, but if you can get started, and we can get the Humvee’s stashed in the barn, it would be good.”
“I’m going to go get Charlie,” Frank said.
“Frank, I’ll go relieve Jerry so he can come back here,” the Sheriff said.
“Thanks, Sheriff,” Frank said. “Don’t you need to be getting back to the town, though?”
“No hurry. I still have the deputies down there, and I was able to touch base with a few key people while we were down there picking up Lieutenant James. It will keep.” He left the clubhouse, and Frank did too. He got into the store and climbed the steps to the roof.
“Hi, guys,” Frank said. “I have some disturbing news.”
“What now?” asked Jeb.
“The chopper that was taking Officer Simmons back to the base is overdue.”
“Did it get shot down?” Jeb asked.
“We don’t know yet,” Frank said. “I figured we should get back to the
tasks at hand, though, while we wait for more info.”
“Makes sense,” Jeb said.
“Charlie, ready to start working the security system?” Frank asked.
“Sure am,” he said. “Alright if I take off for a while, Jeb?”
“No problem,” Jeb said. “I’m doing fine. Getting a little hungry, though.”
“I’ll ask somebody to bring something up to you,” Frank said. He went down the stairs with Charlie.
“What’s the plan?” Charlie asked.
“Back to where we left off,” Frank said. “We took pictures of the map we drew up in the clubhouse with the tentative locations for the cameras. Let’s break into two groups….you, Earl, and Jackson, and Jerry and I. We’ll walk the perimeter and mark spots that will work well for camera placement.”
“Sounds good. We’ve already marked the two spots in the back, before that last battle happened.”
“Excellent,” Frank said. He saw Jerry walking over from the back of the park, carrying his AK-47.
“Ready to get busy?” Jerry asked. “Don’t have much daylight left, but we can at least get most the places marked.”
“You must be a mind reader,” Charlie said, laughing. He poked his head inside the clubhouse. “Hey, Earl and Jackson, grab those tablets and the markers and come on out. We are going to try to get the perimeter walk done.”
Frank walked into the clubhouse, and motioned to Jane.
“Could you get some food together and take it up to Jeb? He’s getting hungry.”
“Of course,” she said. “You are going to get started on the security system stuff?”
“Yes, we should be able to get the perimeter walked and the locations for the cameras marked before dark, if we hurry.”
“Alright, good luck,” she said. She got on her tiptoes and kissed him.
Charlie and Earl and Jackson walked off to their side of the park. Frank and Jerry went to the other side.
“Got some news for you, Jerry,” Frank said.
“Uh oh, I’ve seen that expression on your face before,” he said.
“That chopper that was taking Officer Simmons to the base is overdue, and the base can’t raise them on radio.”
“Shit, I was afraid something like this would happen. They don’t know if it crashed or if the pilot was a plant, I suspect.”
“That’s about the size of it,” Frank said. “Major Hobbs is trying to keep up to date on it.”
“He’s sticking around for a while, I take it?”
“Yes, for at least a week. We are hiding their Humvees in the barn behind the maintenance shed.”
“Good,” Jerry said. “I’m impressed with our new Sergeant, by the way. Sharp as a tack, and he knows how to listen too. A rare combination.”
“There’s our first camera location,” Jerry said. “How about that tree right there?”
Frank looked over to where he was pointing.
“Perfect,” he said. They approached the tree and Frank pulled out the marker and made a large X.
They continued on to the next spot. It was in back of the buildings.
“There’s a good spot,” Frank said. “Wish these cameras had panning capability. We won’t get great coverage here.”
“Maybe we can get some more cameras in town,” Jerry said.
“Not a bad idea,” Frank said. He went over to the tree they both liked and put the big X on it with the marker.
They continued down that side of the park, and got just past the barn.
“Who goes there?” somebody said.
“It’s Frank and Jerry, setting up the security system,” Frank said.
Lieutenant James came walking around the corner, smiling.
“Security system, huh?” he asked. “Good idea. Where’d you get the equipment?”
“Hilda’s husband bought it a few years ago but never put it in,” Frank said. “It will take some work to tie it into the Wi-Fi system we have here, but it’s doable. We’ll be able to access the cameras from any device on the network once I’ve got it set up.”
“You know something about this sort of thing, I take it?” asked the Lieutenant.
“Yes, both I and Jerry worked on this kind of stuff,” Frank said.
“Excellent,” he said.
“How’s the barn working out?” asked Jerry.
“Well, now that we have all of the straw raked out of here, it’s going to be perfect. Thanks for turning on these swamp coolers. It’s nicer in here than it is in the clubhouse, believe it or not.”
“Good, glad to hear it,” Frank said.
“We have a little extra room. I was wondering if you guys wanted us to bring the militia vehicles in here too.”
“Good idea,” Frank said. “We don’t need to have those spotted from the air either.”
“From the air?” asked Jerry. “Does the enemy have aircraft again?”
“Forgot, you weren’t in on that conversation,” Frank said. “The enemy doesn’t have the ability to fly anything large. Our Air Force is blowing anything out of the sky that they see in short order. They do have some small drones, though. If you hear a model airplane sound and see one of those commercial drones flying around, shoot it down.”
“You know that the radio range on those puppies is short, right?” Jerry said. “If somebody is flying one around here, they’ll be within 100-200 yards of it.”
“I had a feeling that was the case,” Frank replied.
“By the way, I have one of those small drones in my rig, Frank,” Jerry said. “I’ve got a camera on it. Great fun. If we need it for some reason, just let me know.”
“Good,” the Lieutenant said. “Nice capability to have. We have some at the base, but they’re bigger and take trained personnel to handle.”
“We better get going, Jerry,” Frank said. “We’re running out of daylight.”
“Alright, let’s go to the next location.”
“See you guys later,” the Lieutenant said. Frank and Jerry nodded and kept going.
“You know what’s really going to suck?” asked Jerry.
“What?”
“If that chopper went down in some ravine around here, it might take years to find it. That means we’ll be looking over our shoulder for a long time.”
“I was thinking the same thing, and I know it’s chewing up Jane.”
“Yeah, I can imagine.”
“Wonder if we’d see smoke if it crashed?” Frank asked.
“Good question. Depends on a lot of things.”
“And of course, it might not have crashed.”
“Yes, the militia might have that chopper right now. Remember any call numbers on it?”
“No,” Frank said. “I’m kicking myself for that now. I’m going have to make myself remember to pull out my phone and take pictures in cases like that.”
“Was it a gunship?” asked Jerry.
“No, it was armed, but it wasn’t an attack helicopter. No mini-guns or missiles.”
“Good,” Jerry said.
“Next site,” Frank said. There was a good tree in the right position. He looked and Jerry, and saw him nod, so he marked it.
“We’d better hurry, it’s getting dark,” Jerry said.
“I don’t think we’ll get them all done tonight. There’s about ten to go. We’ll have to finish in the morning.”
“Agreed. We want a good view of the sites,” Jerry said. “One more?”
“Yes, we’re almost to the spot.”
“So what’s the world going to look like in five years, Frank?”
“I don’t know, but I’ve been giving it a lot of thought. Jane and I had planned on a lot of relaxing years, split between traveling in the motor home and hanging out in Redondo Beach. Now I’ll feel lucky if we survive the next few months.”
“Make plans and the devil laughs. That the next spot?” Jerry asked.
“Yep, that’s it. Nice tree right there.” Frank marked the spot. “Alright, let’s head ba
ck to the clubhouse.”
Jerry nodded, and they turned back towards the front of the park. They could see Charlie’s team heading back too. They met up on the Clubhouse veranda.
“How’d you guys do?” asked Charlie.
“We have eight or nine to finish. Got too dark,” Frank said.
“We only have three left,” Charlie said. “Catch them in the morning.”
“Yeah, it won’t take long,” Jerry said.
Jasmine saw Jerry walk in, and she ran over and hugged him.
“You done for the day, honey?” she asked.
“Yes, finally,” Jerry said. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m fine,” she said. “I’ll help you guys with the camera setup tomorrow. Maybe we can get it all done if we blitz it.”
“Hopefully,” he said.
Jane walked over to Frank and leaned against him. He looked at her and smiled.
“I’m going to go be with Hilda,” Charlie said. “She got moved into her bedroom. What about Jeb?”
“Somebody will have to relieve him,” Frank said. “Maybe we can get the Army to help us out.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Charlie said. “I’ll be back later.” He walked out of the clubhouse.
Major Hobbs and Lieutenant James walked in. They were talking to each other in hushed tones.
“Frank and Jerry, have a minute?” asked the Major.
“Sure,” Frank said. He walked over and Jerry joined him.
“Any news about the chopper, Major Hobbs?” asked Jerry.
“Nope, it just vanished,” he said. “They’re sending out some choppers with night vision to see if they pick up any heat profile. This area is huge with a lot of canyons, though, so it’s kind of like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
“Exactly what we’re worried about,” Frank said.
“How much chance is there that the crew of that chopper were plants?” asked Jerry.
Major Hobbs looked down for a minute, thinking.
“Of course that thought has crossed our minds,” he said. “So far the plants have been lower level folks who joined since the administration started the service for citizenship program. The pilot of that chopper was a twenty year man, so I don’t see him being in on it. There were two airmen on that chopper that were recent enlistees, though.”