“You know why we’re here,” Kendall snarled.
“My guess is you want the vaccine.”
“That’s right. What we didn’t count on was you being short a hundred doses or lying to us about the culture,” Hayden said.
“What are you talking about?” Lucas demanded.
“You know damn well what I’m talking about,” Hayden replied, his fists balled by his sides.
“There are only four hundred doses of vaccine,” Joel explained. “I thought maybe you had the other hundred.”
“Why would I?” Lucas snapped at Joel. “But back up. There are only four hundred? When was the last time you checked the bags?”
“I… Yesterday. They were all there.”
Hubert cut them off. “Enough of the ‘Who’s on First?’ routine. We’re short in a big way, and your man here tells me that you can’t produce any more, and you knew but didn’t tell us for whatever reason. Guess how we’re responding to being misled and used?”
“You’ve been used? How? Did you forget that I lost half my team bringing the vaccine to Astoria?”
“Because you wanted us to endanger ourselves as a distribution point. It was a two-way street. Now the doc is dead, there’s no culture with which to produce new vaccine, and we don’t have an adequate supply to inoculate the town. Forgive me if the only thing that comes to mind is…thanks for nothing.”
“I’ll bet you won’t be at the end of the line for the vaccine, though, will you?” Lucas asked. “Somebody else will have to do without, isn’t that right, Mayor? Can’t have the town leadership endangered, right?” Lucas spat by his boots. “Your trading post has been wiped out. Butchered. Everyone dead. No radio. I don’t know what’s going on around here, but whatever it is, it’s bad. And the best you can do is alienate the people who busted their humps to help you?” Lucas threw up his hands. “Got no words for that.”
“The council voted. We want you to leave. We’ll provision you, but we want you out by nightfall,” Hayden said, with the solemnity of a judge.
“I can’t leave Ruby,” Lucas said.
“We’ll tend to her. She can ride back when she’s able.”
Lucas’s eyes were slits. “Your gratitude extends to sending a sixty-something-year-old woman off on her own across thousands of miles of trail? Gee. What a guy.”
“You’re lucky we don’t throw her out with you,” Hayden said. “That’s the only deal you’re going to get. This isn’t a negotiation. You did your job; now we’ll clean up the mess. And your thanks for nothing sentiment goes both ways.”
“I want to see Ruby.”
Hubert stepped forward. “That’s reasonable. In the meantime, I’ll arrange for as much provisioning as you can carry.”
“You aren’t curious about who made off with the missing vaccine?” Lucas asked, his voice softer.
“It’s done. We can’t unwind it. Of course I’m curious, but I have limited bandwidth, and with radiation washing down into the bay, the vaccine issue, and all the rest, I have bigger fish to fry.”
“You’re letting a small problem turn into a bigger one.”
“What do you mean?” Kendall demanded.
“Your doc’s drugs were stolen. Now the vaccine’s been stolen. You don’t think they could be connected? Find who did it, and you find the killer. Find the killer, and find out why the most important man in town was murdered.” Lucas shook his head. “Or keep bumping around in the dark like blind men. Not my problem. I’ve about had my fill of this place anyway.” He looked to Hubert. “Let’s go check on Ruby.”
“Hayden?” Hubert said.
“Just steer clear of me, Sheriff. I’m not in the best mood right now,” Lucas warned.
“That makes two of us.”
“Joel? See to it that we get plenty of dried goods. Got a long ride ahead of us.”
“Will do.”
After a brief visit with Ruby, who appeared considerably improved as the antibiotics took effect, Lucas returned to where Joel waited with the animals and inspected Tango’s now full saddlebags stuffed to the brim with provisions. After a parting scowl at the mayor and his quislings, Lucas led Joel to the second gate, where he hoped to avoid a repeat of the angry scene at the main gate. The gambit paid off, and they were able to slip into the opposite end of the tent city, where it appeared calmer than the area around the bar – perhaps because all the disgruntled were gathered at the latter.
They dismounted so as not to attract undue attention and walked their mounts along a trail between hovels constructed from detritus, Lucas lost in thought at the unexpected turn of events. Joel hurried to keep pace with Lucas’s determined stride and called out after several minutes, clearly exasperated.
“What are we going to do? We can’t just turn tail.”
“No. Mainly because we can’t leave Ruby. That’s not an option.”
“So?”
Lucas slowed. “I think we find someplace quiet and make camp, and give them some time to cool off. They’re not thinking – just reacting. And I suspect Hayden had a lot to do with that. He couldn’t wait to get rid of me.”
“The vaccine going missing is plain weird.”
Lucas gave a snort of disgust. “Not weird. Someone obviously stole it while you were supposed to be guarding it.”
That put a damper on any further discussion, Joel having no defense to the obvious. Lucas searched among the tents until he spied a promising patch of ground someone had recently vacated and guided Tango there. Joel trailed him with reluctant steps, still silent, his expression morose. When they arrived, their neighbors eyed them suspiciously, and Lucas nodded to each in turn – a young man with a woman who looked no older than sixteen, obviously very pregnant, three men sitting around a campfire, playing cards with a worn deck in front of a filthy canvas shelter propped up with branches, and a pair of older men as rough as a pair of worn construction boots, lying on bedrolls in front of a three-man tent that appeared to have been to hell and back.
“This spot taken?” Lucas asked the card players.
One of them shrugged. “Folks who was there took off a couple days ago.”
“We’ll be your new neighbors, then.”
The man spit and fiddled with his cards. “Just make sure you use the latrine ditch for your business.”
Lucas dipped his head. “Fair enough.”
One of the other card players regarded Lucas’s M4 and Tango’s healthy coat with hungry eyes, and Lucas met his stare with a stony one of his own. “Pretty safe around here?” Lucas asked, his tone conversational. “Last place we stayed, had to kill a couple of fellas who tried to steal my pony in the middle of the night.”
The man looked away, any interest in Tango gone. “No problems. Everyone’s just trying to get by.”
“Good to know,” Lucas said, his point made, and returned his attention to Joel, who loosened his bedroll from behind his saddle while Lucas extracted his tent from one of his saddlebags.
“You can get water from the river over there,” the girl said, pointing to the tributary that flowed into the bay from the south. “No dead fish or anything in it, like the big river.”
“Appreciate that. Might have to boil some in a few. My name’s Lucas,” he said, tipping his hat. “This here’s Joel. We’re just here for a short spell.”
“I’m Melanie, and this is Bobby. We’re from Portland.”
Lucas nodded. “Heard it’s rough there.”
“It’s rough everywhere,” Bobby said.
Lucas offered a sad smile. “Ain’t that the truth. How long you been camped here?”
“Three weeks. It isn’t so bad. Plenty of berries and rabbit, and that stream’s got a fair number of fish in it.”
“Might have to try my hand at fishing, then.”
“Where you from?” Melanie asked.
“Texas,” Lucas said in a tone that didn’t invite further discussion. She didn’t take the hint, or didn’t care.
“Long way from ho
me.”
Lucas’s thoughts flashed to Sierra, and he unfolded his tent and studied a stake. “Wherever I lay my head’s home now.” He looked around the small clearing and nodded to her again. “Nice to meet you both, but I need to get this rigged before it gets too late. No offense.”
She snuggled closer to Bobby, who smoothed her hair with a filthy hand. “No problem. Do what you got to do.”
Chapter 35
Joel sat at The General’s, a half-finished glass of moonshine in front of him, his head throbbing from stress. Night had fallen hours earlier, but he hadn’t been able to sleep, and when Lucas’s soft snores in the tent beside him signaled that he was out for the count, Joel had decided to find his way to the bar for a nightcap to calm his nerves.
That had been two hours earlier, and he’d run through all his extra ammo buying shots for himself, shunning the companionship of any of the cadaverous women selling themselves, preferring to watch the pathetic drama play out as a spectator rather than a participant.
His ego still stung from the tongue-lashing Lucas had inflicted over his allowing the vaccine to be stolen right under his nose, more so because Joel knew he was right. He’d only been charged with one thing for the most important trip of his life, and he’d repeatedly failed when tested. The booze helped numb the pain from the realization that he’d ruined everything he’d been entrusted with, and he sought its comfort without regard for the cost.
A shadow darkened the crate upon which his drink rested, and he looked up at the familiar profile of Alex, who was standing in front of a nearby torch. The deputy grinned at Joel, took a seat opposite him, and waved to the server, who was frantically trying to keep up with the orders. The man made his way over to them and Alex pointed at Joel’s glass. “Two of what he’s drinking,” he said.
The server frowned. “We’re almost out, and when we run dry, that’s it. Price is double the normal. That okay?”
“You can’t get any more?” Alex asked.
“No. With The General’s still out of commission…we’re going to be down to berry wine pretty soon, and lucky to get much of that.”
Alex came to a decision. “Then make it four shots. No point waiting, is there?” he said, eyeing Joel.
Joel shrugged. “What’re you doing here?”
“Taking a load off. Done making my appointed rounds and keeping the world safe.” He hesitated. “I heard about the council voting you out. That sucks.”
“Can’t believe someone broke in and stole the vaccine.”
“We’ve had some of that before – break-ins. It’s not like we live in some crime-free paradise or they wouldn’t need me and Hayden.” He paused. “Should have realized you might be a target. Sorry. Closing the barn door after the horse, but we should have put some guards outside the house.”
“Would have been nice to know,” Joel said bitterly.
“I don’t think what they did was fair. It wasn’t your fault.”
“Meanwhile I’m sleeping on hard dirt near a sewage trench,” Joel spat, and tossed back the last of his drink.
“How long you been in here?” Alex asked.
“A while.”
The moonshine arrived, and the server put two in front of Joel and left a pair for Alex, who raised a tumbler and took an appreciative sniff. “Smells like turpentine.”
“At least it tastes like diesel,” Joel said, reaching for one of the glasses.
They knocked back their drinks with grimaces, and Alex looked around the bar, which was packed. “Everyone with any ammo is sucking it up while they’re still serving. Once they’re out, it’s going to get ugly.”
“Nobody else makes hooch?”
“There’s a guy up Portland way I told you about, but he makes small batches and sells it mostly there.”
“How’s the wine?”
Alex made a face. “Leaves you feeling like you got mule kicked the next morning.”
Half an hour later they had finished their drinks, and the server told them that he only had wine left. Alex swore and eyed Joel, whose words were now slurring.
“Screw that,” Alex declared. “I know someone who’s got a stash of the General’s stuff. Bet I can talk him out of a bottle. No way I’m drinking that berry crap.”
“Where?”
“Not far. He’ll be around now. He’s a night owl. We should blow this joint while the getting’s good.” Alex regarded him. “You up for it?”
Joel shrugged. “Don’t have anything better to do.”
They settled up the tab and Alex led Joel to the entrance. Joel swayed as they stood looking out at the nearby bay, and Alex clapped him on the back and grinned.
“You got a horse?”
Joel shook his head. “Hell no. I walked. I’m one of the grunions now, remember?”
“Then let’s hoof it. It’s not that far.”
They made for the edge of the brush fifty yards away and began walking along the tree line. After a few moments Joel stopped, glancing around as though disoriented. Alex turned and frowned.
“What’s up?”
“I…I don’t know if this is… I don’t feel so good.”
“You’re sobering up. We can fix that.”
“No. I think I drank too much. That last shot just about killed me.”
“You’ll catch a second wind.”
“I…no. Really. I think I’ll pass.”
“Dude, come on. Man up.”
Joel waved him away and made an ungainly half turn. “Nah. I’m done. I’m going back to my tent.”
“We’re almost there.”
“I think I’m gonna barf.”
Joel took three steps, and then a blinding flash of pain at the back of his skull stopped him in his tracks. His legs turned to water and the stars above him spun like a Ferris wheel, and then everything went black and he was falling backward, eyes rolled into his head.
Alex caught Joel as he collapsed, his revolver in one hand, and swore. He’d hoped to lure the idiot under his own power, but that obviously wasn’t in the cards. He leaned Joel against a tree, wiped the pistol butt on Joel’s shirt, and holstered the gun, and then dragged him into the brush and onto a trail that led into the darkness.
After a half hour, Alex stopped in front of a shed with a single window. Inside, a faint light glowed from a camping lantern. Alex kicked the base of the door and called out in a stage whisper, “You in there? Open up.”
The door scraped as it opened. Grant stood framed in the doorway, backlit by the lamp.
“What happened?” Grant asked.
“He was going to bail, so I conked him with my pistol.”
Grant stepped forward and took one of Joel’s arms. “Let’s get him in here.”
They deposited Joel on the dirt floor, and by the time they were done, both men were breathing heavily. Alex regarded Grant with frightened eyes.
“After this we’re done, right? I did what you wanted. But I don’t want any part of the rest.”
“For which you were well paid,” Grant countered.
“I don’t care. I can’t have you holding the drugs and all the rest over my head. This is it.”
“Nobody told you to steal the doc’s stash, nor the vaccine. Those were your bright ideas, not mine.”
Alex’s tone hardened. “And I’ve done what you asked. So we’re even.”
“We’ll see. Tomorrow’s another day, right?”
“I mean it, Grant. I’m through.”
Grant considered the younger man and nodded slowly, a tight smile in place. “I heard you.”
“What are you going to do with him?”
“That’s none of your concern,” Grant snapped. “Why don’t you go back to that bar of yours and buy some liquid courage? You’re nervous as a cow headed to slaughter.”
“Don’t try to blackmail me anymore. We’re done.”
Grant waved a limp hand, his attention now on Joel. “Yes, yes. I get it. Now leave me in peace, and don’t come back.”
Grant’s laugh was dry, the sound harsh and abrasive.
“Trust me. That’s the least of your problems.”
Chapter 36
The tent city had been dark for hours, ground fog blanketing the shoreline, when the night erupted with distant gunfire from the main gate. Lucas threw open his tent and was on his feet in seconds, M4 at the ready. Tango stood nearby, eyes alert as the sound of a pitched battle echoed off the water, the staccato barking of assault rifles answering each other in a manner all too familiar to Lucas.
Other tents opened and the occupants rolled out, most with fearful expressions. Lucas moved to Joel’s tent, only to find it empty. He made for Tango with his saddle and, after strapping it on, set the saddlebags in place and retrieved his night vision scope. After bolting it to the rifle, he pulled himself onto Tango and pulled the reins, guiding him toward the shooting as the neighbors looked on curiously. Bobby called out to him as Tango picked his way among the tents.
“Where you going?”
“See what’s happening,” Lucas answered, his eyes on the trail as the gunfire continued. Bobby said something else, but he missed it, now focused on making it to the main gate without being gunned down on the way. The mood in the shantytown had grown increasingly uneasy as dusk had darkened the sky, and he didn’t trust that someone wouldn’t try to pick him off if they thought they could do so anonymously.
The shooting grew louder as he neared the gate, and once around the final bend he could make out the orange blossoms of muzzle blasts from beyond the barbed wire. Screams split the night as rounds found home, and Lucas raised his M4 to peer through the NV scope in an attempt to figure out what was happening.
He spotted several men on horseback firing at the checkpoint, and at least fifty gunmen on foot, who’d launched a full-on assault on the gate, obviously in an attempt to overrun it before reinforcements could arrive. A quick look told Lucas they were succeeding, with only a few shooters returning fire from the gate. He counted a dozen riders – what looked to him like marauders, in flak jackets and brandishing AK-47s – urging on the unmounted fighters, who seemed more like squatters than a unified force. The impression was reinforced when he glimpsed their weapons: a combination of pistols, shotguns, hunting rifles, and an occasional assault weapon.
The Day After Never - Insurrection (Book 5) Page 18