Randy watched them come riding into town. He stood there and stared as they passed one after another, and there was nothing he could do but watch. Using the radio was useless because no one could hear over the roar of that many motorcycles coming into town. The ground literally shook as they passed by.
One man stopped next to him, a giant of a man. Sitting on his motorcycle, he was even taller than Randy. He had big arms and was wearing a leather jacket that turned into a vest when the sleeves were removed. He said something to Randy, but Randy couldn’t hear above the roar. The motorcyclist smiled at Randy and showed yellow teeth.
Randy saw they were all heavily armed with shotguns and rifles. Almost all of them had pistols on their waists and sported large daggers. Some of the blades were strapped to their waists while others were strapped to their calves, and many of them had what appeared to be full auto sub-machine guns. There were short guns and long guns, such as AK-47’s, in addition to smaller carbines. There wasn’t much he could do at the moment, so he did the prudent thing… nothing. He just stood there and watched them come from the east out toward Bishop. The big man sped away and Randy felt better about that. He watched as they just kept coming.
In fifteen minutes they passed through and appeared to be headed toward the park on the edge of town. When he could finally use the radio, he called the office,
“Unit five calling the Sheriff.”
Static crackled as he waited. He thought Marci, the dispatcher, was probably using the bathroom. He waited some more. When he heard a shot fired off down the street, he keyed the button again,
“Unit five, I just heard a shot fired down in the direction of Flynn’s Firestone Store.”
Static…
He tried again,
“Is there anyone listening?”
Static…
Randy was thirty one and engaged to marry Janet Rawlins in another month. She was pregnant, but no one mentioned it and she wasn’t showing just yet. They were high school sweethearts and had been going together for years. They split up while he was serving in Bosnia, but when he returned home, they got back together again. The Sheriff offered him a job and he accepted. Being a deputy and a Marine were the only two jobs he ever had, unless you counted the time he was a bag boy at Phillip’s grocery store during high school. He tried the radio again,
Static…
Randy took his night stick off and laid it on the seat next to him, got in, and started the car. He switched on the emergency lights, put it in gear, backed away from the curb, and headed toward the Firestone Store. As he drove down the street, a motorcycle raced by, passing in front of his car. He had to slam on his brakes to keep from hitting the man and the motorcycle was gone in an instant. Randy put the car in park, got out, and looked around.
There was a commotion further down the road and he saw people forming a crowd on the sidewalk, spilling out into the street. It was then that he heard more gunfire. He took the mike from the cradle and said,
“Marci, there’s a major disturbance down by the Firestone Store; send back up now!”
Static…
Just then, three bikers jumped him from behind and another came around the car and started beating him with wooden bats. The first blow broke his collar bone and the second broke his neck. Randy no longer felt anything or was aware of anything, but the beating continued until there was scarcely anything recognizable of what once was a young man. He was a piece of raw bloody meat dressed in a Deputy Sheriff’s uniform, laying in the gutter next to the open door of his cruiser. That was the beginning of things to come in the town of Fitch. His radio came to life and Marci said,
“Randy, can you repeat that message?”
Static…
Bob Waters had been the Sheriff in Fitch for fifteen years. He had lived there all his life and was from a pioneer family, which was a status symbol in town these days. So many people had moved to the small town in such a short time that it was now a town full of strangers. Those who knew each other from childhood were in control of everything and they jealously guarded their pecking order.
The Mayor was an old classmate of Bob’s from Kindergarten on, and he depended on the Sheriff for nearly everything. In fact there were those who said Bob Waters was, in reality, the Mayor. But when Bob heard those rumors, he just scoffed at them. He was perfectly satisfied being Sheriff because it allowed him everything he ever needed or wanted in life.
Being Mayor wasn’t part of what he needed or wanted. Speaking of the Sheriff’s position, now that was something; and he liked it. If anything happened in Fitch, he always heard about it. Everyone who was anyone came to him first. He always had a new pickup and the best of everything, including Marci.
He was attending a conference in Sacramento when the Bikers rolled into Fitch. His Chief Deputy, the Under Sheriff Kjell Svenson, was in charge. Kjell, pronounced “chell,” was at a shooting meet at the range behind the Armory the day they charged into town. There was talk all over the state about what some were calling insurrection and lawlessness, but few believed or thought it would happen in Fitch… until the town was taken over, that is. By then it was too late to do anything about it. Seventy five of the townspeople went to the Randall Brothers’ Wholesale Store and holed up inside.
There were several reasons they holed up there… first, it had TV cameras everywhere on the inside and the outside of the building; second, it was made out of cement, which made it almost fireproof. Third, people could go to the roof from inside the building and defend themselves from the raiders with high powered rifles. The fourth reason was the abundant supply of brand new rifles and ammo in the sporting goods department.
This was a big hunting area and the store always stocked lots of bullets for the upcoming season. They had enough food to feed every one of them for many months and, most importantly, the building had its own diesel generator on the roof . There was a diesel tank buried in the ground that was full with over five thousand gallons of fuel, which would last quite some time if used sparingly.
When the bikers raided the town, the Randalls were on vacation doing a European swing that started in the Greek Islands. They planned to visit the entire coastal areas from there through Spain, Italy, and France, and finally ending in Copenhagen before returning home, but the war caught them in mid-stride. The store manager was running things and opened it up to the townspeople when the bikers showed up and settled in.
Most of them stayed in the book section or over in the furniture department where the plush furniture was on display. Others watched videos from the hundreds of selections available in electronics. They had hot and cold running water and ample bathroom facilities, with hundreds of boxes of real toilet paper. They didn’t know it, but they would be the envy of everyone around the area later.
The bikers made a couple of attempts to get to the people inside, but they gave up after awhile; it cost them nearly fifty men in the process. They tried raiding the Armory, which was also a losing adventure. Several men and women made it to the Armory and were inside the big building with all the firepower necessary to defend themselves, but not much food. They gave up on raiding that place also.
Slowly one or two men left the Armory late at night and were able to get over to Randall’s, where they traded food for high powered machine guns and ammo. These two places were the only safe places in all of Fitch. When the Sheriff came back to town, he was met by Kjell and escorted over to Randall’s.
Mike, Sam, Gregg, and Beth made it back to the children, who were waiting in the small clearing at the edge of the thick woods just south of Fitch. The children were excited to see Beth but when they saw Mike and his people, they were scared and ran behind her for protection. She reassured them it was okay and announced,
“Anybody hungry?”
They shouted and screamed like excited children do, and there was no subduing them. Everyone crowded up toward the front and there was fortunately enough food for all of them. Mike and his men ate some as well and t
hen said,
“We have to head back now; some of our people are coming toward Fitch and we need to make sure they run into us and not that hornet’s nest over there. I’m sure by now that gang knows they were hit. You stay put, and we’ll come for you later.”
She started to protest, and he said in a gentle voice,
“You’ve done a remarkable job getting this far with all those kids, and I know they will love Avalon once they get there…”
She interrupted him, “Avalon?”
“Yes,” he responded curiously, “It’s a big ranch up on top of a mountain over in that direction…”
She interrupted him excitedly, “Are you talking about a great big log construction at the end of an old railroad track bed that goes through this long road and through those great big trees?”
“That’s the same place,” he answered. “Do you know it?”
“When I was a little girl,” she was almost laughing as she began, “I was up there with my dad before he died of cancer and that’s where we were heading. Avalon… I remember that name; isn’t there a big sign just as you come out of the trees that says that?”
“That’s the place,” Mike answered.
“I remember it was pretty rundown when I was there last, maybe fifteen years ago. Lots of room though.”
“You’re in for a quite a surprise, then.” Mike tried to play down his voice. “It’s changed a little.”
“Is there food there?”
“You could say that.”
“Well, I like the sound of that,” Beth was intrigued. “You boys hurry back, you hear?”
Mike and his people turned and walked back toward Fitch. Fifteen minutes later, he prepped them all, “Let’s get one in the pipe, and make sure your safeties are on.”
The metallic sound of slides moving back and then into place again was a crescendo of clicking as they all complied. The plan was to head toward Fitch from here and then turn left toward the west. The predominant wind was directly in their faces and picking up a little, bringing with it the stench and smell of wood fires with just a hint of roasting meat.
They turned west in another ten minutes and continued walking. None of them talked; all were on the alert for Slavers who were probably looking for them at this very moment. Mike guessed the Slavers probably headed north by the trail of dead bodies his group had left behind to indicate they were moving off in that direction.
They walked for another hour and found their dirt bikes right where they had left them. They cranked them up and headed toward the old rail bed.
Chapter 33 Bone Breaker
Bone Breaker was troubled by what he was being told. Whoever took out all those men were good, too good; so he posted a double guard around the perimeter of the camp. He figured they would be here another month, then move toward the coast and turn south. It was too cold to stay here anyway because it snowed on a regular basis, but this was strange weather they were having. It was amazing how warm it was for this time of year and he expected that wouldn’t last.
They would be out of here before the first big snow.
The bodies were stripped; no weapons, no personal possessions of any value, watches, rings, wristwatches, all gone. Whoever they were, they were damn good. Why didn’t he or anyone else hear anything?
They found 9mm spent brass and by the markings, they were fired by an automatic of some sort. But no noise? He understood the knife slashes; they’re a no-sound action, but 9mm? The knife kills were good; he admired almost as much as he hated the guys who did this. He had his men gather around as he stood on a motorcycle with a trunk on the back, a three wheeler. In a booming voice he said,
“I want you to listen to me, people. There is someone out there somewhere, and they are pickin’ us off one-by-one and by twos and threes. I don’t know if it’s the town people doin’ it or someone else, but it really doesn’t matter who they are; they’re good. They came in here sometime earlier and killed a bunch of our people. Look sharp, be sharp, and don’t let your guard down from now on unless you want to join your pals laying here in puddles of their own blood.”
“I want twenty men to go west,” he continued, “Twenty go to the east, another twenty to the south, and I’ll take a group north. If you find him or them, I want the leader for myself. Everybody understand that? The rest of you make sure you guard the camp and the goodies. I am sure we have superior numbers, and we have good fire power. Let’s do what we do and find ‘em!” He was smiling.
It was an evil smile, not one of mirth.
A cheer erupted from the hundreds of Slavers. The groups of twenty gathered and began to move out to their designated courses. Bone Breaker headed north, confident that his group would find those who had killed his men. He lumbered along at a quick pace. There was a small hill ahead with a clump of trees near it. They would go at least that far, maybe a couple of more miles. He yelled at his guys,
“Spread out; don’t walk too close together; we can cover more area that way. Split up, damn you, and quit talking like a bunch of old ladies at a sewing bee!”
Bone Breaker’s group spread out and the others headed in their designated directions, walking along with their weapons off safety and looking at everything. One group walked toward Beth and the children but her lookouts saw them coming way before they knew they were being watched.
She ordered Jasper on a small mound and told him to hold his fire until he was sure of the first shot. The others were all armed, including the other man who was released the same day as Len. Len found a place, laid on the ground, and spread his legs wide. Beth crawled back and forth between her people, coaching them.
“Steady; take nice easy breaths; don’t allow yourself to hyperventilate; calm and steady; we’re the better soldiers; steady and calm.”
She had seven sticks of the dynamite with fuses ready to go and she reached into her shirt pocket to reassure herself that the blue tip matches were still there.
“Steady boys… be certain of your target. I count about eighteen or so bad guys; that’s nothing, we can take them easily. Everyone pick a target, focus on him, squeeze the trigger ever so gently, and after you fire, move right! That way, we can get them all… easy now… boys… easy, just a little farther and we should be able to get half of them or more. Easy… not yet… easy… NOW!… FIRE!”
The first volley took out twelve bad guys and their cronies ran for cover behind a large boulder. Beth took out a match and lit the fuse on one of the sticks; one thousand, two thousand…
“Jasper, Tom, Len, cover me!”
Beth stood up and threw the stick. It sailed over the top of the rock and exploded in mid air above them. The explosion threw rocks and dirt into the air and fractured the big rock. The bikers pushed their faces into the dirt. One of the men behind the rock came out with an arm missing and blood spurting everywhere, like a torn water hose. He fell over in a worthless heap.
Beth ran over to the rock and looked behind it; there were five more dead guys laying there shredded by the blast. She turned and looked around and saw nothing but dead Slavers lying like cord wood that fell off a truck. Her nose was bleeding again, and she said to no one,
“I gotta throw those things a little farther.”
Her face felt just the way it did the day she was playing basketball and someone threw the ball and hit her directly in the face. It burned and stung fiercely, but would get numb soon. She ordered Len and a couple of the others to make sure the Slavers were all dead and strip the bodies. Several of the children were shrieking hysterically, so she walked over and went down on one knee in front of them. They rushed her and she fell over backward.
Two of the Slavers escaped and ran for their lives; it was a slaughter. They headed toward the camp for all they were worth to tell Bone Breaker; there must have been a hundred of them, just waiting and hiding. They were like sitting ducks in a rain barrel. They must have been military or something like that. They rehearsed the story in their minds as they ran toward the
camp. They had grenades and everything. The further they ran, the wilder and more elaborate the story became.
“How many did you count?” Beth was talking to Len perhaps a bit louder than usual since her ears were still ringing.
“I counted eighteen of them.”
“That was about what I counted; I think we got them all. Davey, you and Tom look around in case there’s one hiding down there somewhere. Look hard; we don’t want one of them sneaking up here while we aren’t expecting it.”
Bone Breaker heard the loud boom as they echoed off the surrounding mountains in a drum roll effect toward the end of the long narrow valley, and then it stopped. He looked south but could see nothing. It wasn’t good, a sound like that. Mike and his people heard it too, but were unsure of whether they had heard something or not because the bikes made so much noise. They stopped to listen, but their helmets muffled the echoes that rolled through the valley. They drank some water and headed out again.
The other groups also heard the booms and they didn’t like it. Most of them headed back to camp where, they thought, there was safety in numbers. Bone Breaker and his group made it to the small knoll and spent about fifteen minutes looking for anything suspicious. When they found nothing, they also headed back to their camp.
In about an hour Bone Breaker and his men were back, minus eighteen of them. He called the two who were left of the south group and wanted to know what happened and where the other eighteen were. Reefer spoke first, with his raspy voice and bad cough from all the weed he had smoked in his youth. He was skinny and had hair sticking out of his shirt that grew in profusion on his boney chest. His arms were hairy, too. He said,
“We went south and there’s a small incline that goes up to a small opening in front of a dense stand of trees. They were waiting for us. I think it was the main force, professional soldiers they were. They cut us down with an M-60 mounted on a tripod. We never had a chance! They had grenades and threw one of ‘em at us; that took out half of us. The explosion knocked me and Rick off our feet backward and we rolled down the incline. Lucky for us too, or we’d of died up there with the rest of those boys. There was nothing we could do, so we came back to camp; we figured you’d want to know what happened.”
Avalon: The Retreat Page 26