“You just killed more people than I know, and you think I’m the one with the control problem?” She gaped at Cory in disbelief.
“I’m starting to wonder if we should have stopped,” Cory growled, intending it as a joke. When her face blanched he added, “just kidding.”
“What about the pistol?”
“What do you think, Ben?”
“Don’t see why not, so long as she promises not to fire unless we tell her to open up.”
“Can you live with that?” Cory asked.
“Sure,” she replied, shrugging.
Cory handed her his Glock butt first, and she expertly dropped the mag, checked the pipe, and slammed the mag back into the pistol. She looked up, smiled at Cory, and said, “I hate being unarmed more than almost anything.” Cory and Ben both stared at her in amazement. Two hours earlier she was naked, staked to the ground, and a group of men were about to rape her. Ben shook his head approvingly.
“I’m going to the ATV to get the ammo cans and food and water. We need to top off all the mags we shot tonight and then get the hell out of here.”
After placing the NVGs on his head again, Cory left the room and slipped out the back patio.
“What’s his deal?” Tiffany asked.
“What do you mean?”
“He walked into the middle of twenty armed men and got out alive,” she replied. “Is he Special Forces or something?”
“No, he’s a park ranger,” Ben replied. She stared back at him with a look of disbelief.
“I didn’t see everything, but I saw him shoot at least ten men,” Rose whispered. “Gunfire was all around us, and he was walking around like he was shopping at Walmart.”
“Well, Cory is a bit unusual,” Ben acknowledged, after pausing for a moment to think. “He doesn’t seem to be afraid of anything. All of us who know him think it’s a bit unusual, but that’s just Cory. So we don’t dwell on it much.” The room fell silent until Cory came back in through the patio door carrying the box they had loaded with ammo cans and the MREs and water bottles. He dropped the box on the table and removed empty mags from his vest. Ben did the same. They spent a few minutes devouring the food and then Cory stood up.
“Show them how to reload the mags,” Cory said to Tiffany. He grabbed one, got a handful of rounds out of the ammo can, and began reloading the mags for the Glock. Tiffany reached into the ammo can containing the .223 rounds and started filling the clips for the ARs. Rose and Grace watched her fill the first mag, and then joined in.
“Don’t push too hard on the rounds,” Tiffany cautioned. “When you feel some tension, stop loading. There are springs in the bottoms of the mags, and if you put too many rounds in, those springs will lose strength.” The two women nodded their understanding and filled the mags until they had a pile on top of the coffee table. Both Cory and Ben glanced at the mags to satisfy themselves that they were properly loaded. Cory then examined each mag, touching the top round in each. After he finished, he handed two spare mags to Tiffany, saying, “you ride back drivers side and cover that side of the vehicle. Ben has the passenger’s side. No firing unless we are fired upon. Agreed?”
“Yes.”
“Ben, we haven’t heard any engines running for close to an hour now. They’re probably waiting for us to start ours so they can come after us,” Cory said.
“I know,” Ben shrugged.
“Well, what do you think?”
“We either walk in or we make a run for it.”
“Explain that to me,” Cory said.
“We’re only a half-mile from 44th Street. If we push the ATV to Tatum Road, we can start it and be across 44th in a minute or two, at the most. If the gangs don’t have a roadblock there, we can pass through and we’re home free.”
“If we walk?”
“We take a lot longer to get there, and without the ATV, we have to come back here to get it at some point. So we have to run the gauntlet again to get out of town.”
“Tiffany, you have any idea if the gangs have a road block ahead?”
“No,” she replied. “But I don’t know why they would. The police have them because the gangs are trying to get in. I don’t think the gangs would have them, because they don’t care if anybody gets out. Still, I don’t know,” she finished.
“You want to make a run for it?” Cory asked Ben.
“I think so. Even gangs have to sleep sooner or later.”
“I guess we have to roll the dice.”
“I don’t want to leave,” Rose said. “We’re safe here. Can’t we just get some sleep and leave in the morning?”
“We gotta go,” Cory replied. “We have night vision and they don’t. It’s the only advantage we have, and we have to use it.” Rose looked doubtful.
“He’s right,” Ben said, gently helping both women to their feet. “We need to go now.” He led the women out the door and to the back seat of the ATV and helped both into the vehicle.
They took off with Ben and Cory pushing the ATV through the alley, while Tiffany steered the vehicle wearing Cory’s NVGs. When they reached Tatum Road, Cory took the driver’s seat and put on the NVGs. Ben hopped in the passenger’s seat and Cory started the engine. He glanced around once and then floored the pedal, and they sped up to 40 miles per hour.
The surroundings were a blur, but Cory narrowed his focus to keeping the ATV on the road while Ben scanned the area on the passenger side of the vehicle. Tiffany watched the driver’s side from the back seat, and they chewed through the half-mile in what seemed like a minute. Cory slowed the vehicle as the approached a roadblock, illuminated by a small fire, and stopped the vehicle.
“I’ll go talk to them,” Tiffany offered, hopping out of the ATV and walking toward the barricade. She reached the checkpoint, chatted with the men briefly, and returned to the vehicle. “We’re cleared through,” she reported. “One of them knows my dad. They’re going to escort us to the police station.”
“I don’t want to go to the police station,” Cory said. “I want to go get my sister.”
“They don’t really care about that. We need to do what they want us to do for now. Then, I can get my dad to let you go, and you do what you want. It’s a small price to pay.”
“I want my Glock back,” Cory said.
“No. I’ll keep it until I get another weapon.” Her expression was flat. Cory’s expression grew dangerous. She stared back at him for a minute and then relented. “Go ahead and take it,” she said, extending the pistol, butt forward, to him.
“Good choice,” Cory said, placing the Glock into his empty paddle holster.
“You didn’t have to push it,” Tiffany said.
“That was your choice. It’s not smart to push me, either. I don’t like it, and won’t tolerate it.”
“I saw that,” she replied, wondering who in the hell this guy was. Why did he risk his life for them, and how did he get out alive? She saw how many wasted rounds he fired during the gun battle, and he certainly wasn’t the best shot in the world. But the guy stood up and just kept firing through the entire episode, and that made him freakish in her book.
She looked at him again, and noticed how tall and lean he was. His sandy colored hair hung over a long face and she realized she found him incredibly attractive. Tiffany glanced at his left hand and noted the wedding ring. She sighed inwardly, thinking that all the good ones were already taken, and then glanced away.
Cory drove to the police station with a Phoenix PD cruiser leading the way, and both Ben and Cory were in slack-jawed amazement. It was as though they crossed a border from a third-world country and entered the America they remembered. Stalled cars were nowhere to be seen, and many vehicles of all descriptions moved freely through the streets. Street corners were filled with vendors and shoppers; people moved around, very few of them armed, as though nothing had happened. The women in the back seat were equally amazed, having passed through hell on their way there. They passed by two semis, both carrying FEMA designat
ions on their sides, which distributed food packets to people waiting patiently in line.
“My God,” Cory exclaimed, “how did they get everything working here?”
“It looks like the power is on,” Ben replied. “Pull over and let me ask those FEMA boys a few questions.” Cory pulled the vehicle to the curb and parked next to one of the trucks. The group got out and approached a guard who carried an M-16 and wore a vest with FEMA markings. The police cruiser pulled over ahead of them, and two officers got out and watched them move toward the semi.
“How’d you get the power back on?” Ben asked as they approached. The man examined Ben for a moment and concluded he represented no threat.
“We had a hardened storage area with spare parts for turbine generators in the south part of the city, so we have power up to here, but not farther north.”
“Did you get the water back on, too?”
“Same story for the pumps. But, again, nothing farther north. We can’t get in there to fix anything.”
“That’s amazing. You guys really did think ahead.”
“That’s our job.”
“The light is pretty faint, though.”
“It is. We only have one generator running right now.” Storefronts were lit with a faint light that washed dully into the street. When they passed through the police checkpoint, they had relinquished their long guns, but were given receipts so they could collect them on their way out of the protected zone. However, they were allowed to keep the rest of their gear, including the Glocks. Cory was uneasy with the arrangement, but there was little choice, so he had grudgingly agreed.
They got back into the ATV and headed toward town, with Tiffany giving directions from the back seat. “Pull over!” Tiffany screamed. Cory startled, looked around and saw no danger, and stopped the ATV. Meanwhile, Tiffany jumped out of the back seat and rushed over to a police officer, who turned in time to see her, and swept her into his arms. After a minute of hugging, kissing, and more than a few tears on both sides, they walked back to the ATV, where Cory and Ben stood in front of the vehicle.
The officer walked to where they stood with a quietly sobbing Tiffany still wrapped under one protective arm. He said, “my name’s Frank. I’m Tiffany’s father.”
“I’m Ben. This is Cory.”
“What happened out there?” he asked. “Tiffany said you two saved them, but started crying when I asked about it.”
Ben shrugged, and then replied, “they had a run-in with some gang members and we helped them out.” Cory remained silent, examining the man carefully, and concluded that there was little family resemblance. Tiffany was tall and slender. The man before him was a few inched shorter than his daughter, and stocky.
“They saved us, Dad,” Tiffany said through her tears. “We were about to get raped and maybe worse.”
“What happened?”
“The gang captured us when we tried to get around their camp,” she explained. “Then these two showed up and killed about twenty of them, and took us to a house. We hid there and then made a run for it.” She wiped the tears from her eyes with a shirtsleeve.
“You’re safe now, baby,” he said, his voice low and reassuring. Frank looked at Ben and then glanced at Cory. “You killed twenty gang members?”
“I wasn’t counting,” Cory replied in a wry tone of voice.
“Me either,” Ben shrugged. “We did go through a lot of ammo, though.”
Rose and Grace joined the group in time to hear the last of the conversation, and Tiffany introduced them to her dad. They shook hands and then Rose said, “Cory walked into the middle of it and just started shooting people. I can’t believe he didn’t get shot.” Her tone was one of wonder.
“You have a medic around? Or a doctor?” Cory asked.
“You hurt?” Frank replied.
“No, but the gang members were doing some cutting on them when we got there. They seem fine, but you might want to have them looked after,” Cory said. Frank’s expression changed back to one of worry.
“You okay?” he asked.
“We’re fine, Dad.”
“They were using a knife on their breasts,” Ben stated in a flat tone that conveyed the anger he felt.
“Let’s go inside,” Frank said. “We need to have you all examined. We have a small field unit set up in the precinct, with a few doctors and nurses.” He ushered the women into the precinct house, looking at Ben and Cory over his shoulder. “You two stay here. I want to have a talk with you.” His tone was all business, not the concerned father he was a moment before.
“We’ll be here,” Cory answered.
“No good deed…” Ben sighed.
“Let’s just get this over with and go find Rachael. We don’t need to get into detail with him.”
“Okay.”
A few moments later, Frank came out of the police station, ushered them into the building, and went to what was apparently his office. He sat down, pointing to two chairs in front of his desk, and said, “what the hell were you two doing out there, anyway?”
“Going to 44th Street and Camelback to get my sister,” Cory replied.
“You’re from Prescott, according to Tiffany.”
“We are,” Ben answered. “But we have family down here, and we want to get them back to Prescott.”
“Okay, what was the deal with the shootout you had with the gangs? And, why did you even bother to stop?”
“Right thing to do,” Ben replied, in an even voice.
“They needed killing,” Cory added, then fell silent.
“So you’re the one who waded into the thing with both pistols blazing?” Frank asked.
“That would be me.”
“Dumb thing to do.”
“Not if you’re Tiffany,” he replied in a cold voice.
“You think you’re some kind of hard ass or something?”
“I kill men that need killing, and I brought you your daughter back and you’re wasting my time.”
“Calm down, Cory,” Ben said. “He’s trying to do his job.”
“Sorry Ben,” Cory replied, “he’s really pissing me off.”
“Me too, but he doesn’t know what we do, and he probably doesn’t really understand what it’s like out there, so cut him some slack.”
“You’re not helping yourself by being uncooperative,” Frank said.
“Why don’t you just return the favor, and let me get to my sister? We don’t need anything from you, so just let us go. And I want our weapons on the way out.”
“Let’s go see how the ladies are doing,” Frank said. “Then we can talk about your leaving.” As they walked out of the office, Frank added, “and, thank you for what you two did. I guess we got off on the wrong foot there and I owe you an apology. We’ve all been on edge. To be honest, most people arriving from the north are gang members that had a falling out with the rest of their gang. They come here and try to blend in, but they are what they are. So most of the crimes committed here are the former gang members.”
“We look like gang members to you?” Ben asked.
“You’d be surprised. A lot of good people got caught up with the gang. The choice was to join the gang or leave that part of town. Besides, the gang is the only source of food left in that area. So we’ve had any number of people who were in the gang that would surprise you. They don’t follow the old patterns anymore.”
“Fair enough, I guess,” Cory replied, shrugging once before he continued. “We’re leaving right after we know the ladies are all right. No more delays after that,” Cory said firmly.
“Fair enough.” The men walked out to the corridor that led to Frank’s office and down to the back end of the building, where they found the three young women dressed in medical exam gowns and resting on couches that lined a makeshift medical center. When Tiffany saw Cory enter the room, she ran to him and hugged him fiercely. Cory stared over her shoulder at Frank.
“She seems okay to me.”
“Fine, but I
want to talk to them.”
“Okay, but make it fast. We need to get out of here and get back to Prescott.”
“Tiffany, what exactly happened? Take it from the time you were captured until you got here.”
“Well, the gangs caught us trying to get around their camp. They ripped our clothes off and staked us to the ground. They were lining up to rape us, and then these two showed up. Dad, give them whatever they want. They’re good men. You can trust them. Hey, you might even want to hire them. They’re both fearless and aggressive. Cory’s not the best shot in the world, but he makes up for inaccuracy with the volume he puts out,” she added wryly.
“It would seem so,” Frank replied dryly. He turned to Cory and added, “let’s go back to my office. I need to show you a city map before you go.” He spun on his heels, and left the office with long, determined strides. Cory followed him, with Ben bringing up the rear. As the men left Tiffany glanced at the girls, and then walked to her father’s office, where the three men stood examining a city map on the wall.
“We have to get back here to pick up our other ATV and gear,” Ben said as Tiffany entered the room. “Any ideas how we can do that without having to pass through gang-controlled territory?”
“The only safe thing is to go west until you’re out of town and then double back. But that’s going to cost you a couple of hours. You can also take a bit of a chance and cut north around here.” His finger touched the map on Central Avenue. “We control more on the west side of the city, so you’re safe until you get to around Thunderbird Road.” His finger again touched the map. “National Guard units are holding the area north of Thunderbird, so it’s ours during the day; but they fall back before nightfall. The gangs are active at night. We’re still fighting over that area, but we’re making progress now. I would say you should only take the route if you know you can be out of town by sunset,” he concluded.
“I guess we can take that route. And we can get to the house in around an hour or two, after we get my sister,” Cory responded as he leaned closer to the map and studied it again. “You ready, Ben.”
Prepper's Crucible: Volume Five: A Post Apocalyptic Tale Page 3