Conner just sat and reflected on Houston’s comments. He knew that in some way the general was right. The task before them was overwhelming, and if they took what they had and spread it across the country they would never chip away at the problem. They would have to commit to one city and work from there. But what city?
“General, I hear you; let’s discuss this topic when we have the info we need.”
All in the room agreed and Conner moved on the meeting.
“General Griswald, since we never heard back from Barone we have to assume he is carrying on with his treasonous path. What have we done about that?” Conner asked.
“We have alerted our forces in Hawaii to intercept them; we have also contacted the commander of the USS Topeka, an attack submarine that is operating in the Western Pacific.”
“Just one sub?” Conner asked surprised.
“I was in error when I said we had three at our disposal. That is what we have to spare right now.”
“Okay, fine. Sorry, not meaning to question you. I just want the colonel stopped and want to make sure it happens,” Conner said to Griswald apologetically. He then continued on with his thoughts. “I have to admit that after each meeting, I get more upset and I feel useless,” Conner said, standing up. He started to walk around the room. “There isn’t much we can do but talk. We don’t have enough food to go around; we don’t have the equipment or parts to get our grids back up. We now are faced with nuclear meltdowns on an apocalyptic scale. We have lost our entire infrastructure and there isn’t much we can do but sit here, talk and wait. I cannot stand this feeling. We haven’t responded to our enemies, we just talk. We sit a mile in a mountain, we are safe and have enough food to last us years, while our countrymen right this minute are struggling to survive. Many will die, they will starve, they will be raped and murdered,” all in the room just watched him pace. The more he talked the more he was getting upset. “How many will die before we stop talking and start doing something? The ultimate question I have for all of you is. Will our country survive this?”
****
USS Makin Island off the southern coast of the Philippine Islands
“We made it through the Malacca Strait and past Singapore with no trouble. Now we’re about to enter the Western Pacific, I don’t know what to expect from here on,” Barone said after taking a drink of his coffee.
He and his son Billy had been getting together almost daily. Barone enjoyed his son’s company and felt blessed that they were able to be together during this time.
“I’m sure we’ll be fine. I can’t imagine the president would attempt to attack us,” Billy said, taking a bite of toast.
“I wouldn’t be so sure son. He’s been a tough talker all of his life while in Washington. Who knows, maybe he’s a chicken hawk.”
Billy chuckled, “Hopefully he is.”
“If all goes well we should be spending New Year’s with your mom and sister.”
“I’d like that, I hope they’re okay.”
“Oh, I’m sure they are fine, it will take a lot to take out that old gal. Your mom is a tough cookie and she has Megan locked down I’m sure,” Barone openly talked with confidence about his wife and daughter’s safety but inside he was deeply concerned.
Barone looked at his son as he ate. Billy reminded him of his wife, Mary. He looked like her a lot and had her fire and strong will. As he looked at Billy, he now wished to himself that he had been home more with him when he was growing up. He now longed for the days when Billy was young. He never really had too many intimate and deeply private conversations with Billy or Megan. He wondered if they resented that he spent so much time away. He wondered if Billy resented that he never went to his baseball games or missed those moments to comfort him when he had a nightmare growing up. Barone had given most of his adult life to the Marine Corps and his country. Now all that time invested was given for what? Why did he make a decision that could prove fatal if he were wrong? He finally admitted to himself that his country was gone and that the Marine Corps he knew died along with it.
“Son, what is the talk amongst the Marines you’re with?”
“Dad, everyone is with you, they are just anxious. We all want to get home as fast as possible,” Billy said, looking up from his plate.
Billy’s words brought comfort to him. He knew his son was smart and in tune to what was happening on the ship.
Their conversation ended when the General Quarters alarm sounded. Both men looked at each other and didn’t say a word. Barone jumped up and ran out of the Mess. The corridors were alive with activity as men rushed back and forth on their way to their assigned duty stations.
He climbed the last ladder well and entered the bridge. Inside he encountered a hub of activity. The radio operator was contacting the other ships in the flotilla.
“Why has General Quarters been sounded?” Barone asked.
“Colonel, we have a submarine on SONAR” a junior naval officer answered.
“Where is it?” Barone asked.
“The sub is approximately…”
“I see it sir!” yelled a Marine on the bridge looking through binoculars.
“Where?” Barone asked. He hurried over to the Marine holding the binoculars.
“Approximately 3000 meters out on our starboard side sir!” the Marine said pointing to where he saw the submarine floating on the surface.
Barone grabbed the binoculars, focused them and saw the submarine.
“Use all channels and hail the sub!” Barone commanded.
Moments passed as the communication’s petty officer attempted to contact the submarine. The ships kept getting closer and closer. Barone had ordered that all ships not engage the sub but to stay vigilant in case the sub took aggressive action. As the ARG moved closer they saw the top hatch of the sub open and a couple of men came out and stood on the sail. Barone stayed glued and curious as to what was happening. He was not sure himself what flag the submarine flew or why it was on the surface of the water.
“Anything yet?” he asked the communications petty officer.
“Nothing, sir.”
The two men on the sail started to wave.
“How close can we pull the Makin Island up to the submarine?”
“Sir, we can get close, but I would recommend not doing so.” the first officer on the bridge said.
“Tell the rest of the ARG to move away from our position and to slow down, I want to pull alongside the submarine and see what’s going on?”
“Yes, sir,” the first officer said.
The USS Makin Island pulled alongside the port side of the floating submarine. By the time they had gotten within a couple hundred meters, the submarine struck colors. Fear and apprehension filled the men on the bridge of the Makin Island when they saw it was a U.S. flag.
Barone was alone in not being fearful. If the sub had meant them harm it would not have surfaced. He stood along the railing with a bullhorn in hand ready to communicate with the men on the sub’s sail.
“I am Lt. Colonel Barone of the USS Makin Island and Commanding Officer of the 2nd Battalion 4th Marine Regiment. Are you in need of any assistance?” Barone said, his voice amplified from the bullhorn.
One of the men on the ship looked at the other and said something that no one could hear. He left and went back inside the submarine. The other man raised his hand to gesture for more time.
“What’s he trying to say?” the first officer asked out loud. He was standing next to Barone.
“I think they want us to hold on for a minute,” Barone responded.
A moment passed and the man who had left reappeared and handed the other a bullhorn.
The first man took the bullhorn and said, “Colonel Barone, what was the name of that blonde from Fremantle back in 1999?”
“What?” the first officer asked out loud. He put down his binoculars and looked at Barone.
Barone was stunned by the question; he kept looking through the binoculars to see if he kn
ew who just asked him the question.
“Who are you?” Barone asked.
“Maybe this will help,” the man said and then continued. “A half pint for a half pint?”
Barone’s eyes lit up. He knew who it was.
“Captain White! What the hell are you doing bobbing in the water?” Barone asked.
“We’re waiting for you.”
Barone was shocked to hear that, he looked around and saw other puzzled looks on the faces around him.
“Get your ass over here,” Barone said.
Capt. White gave a thumbs up.
“Sir, who is that?” the first officer asked.
“Why, lieutenant that is Capt. David White of the USS Topeka and an old dear friend of mine. We go way back. Now get the captain over here without delay,” Barone told the first officer.
****
Barone poured White another drink and sat down. He looked at his old friend, whom he had not seen in five years. The years had not been good to David, his black hair had been replaced with thick white, his eyes sagged and his skin was blotchy. There was sadness in his eyes that was not present before. Barone did not know where the years had gone since they had last spent time together. How easy it had become to move on from friends and colleagues. How could you spend each day with someone, then one day you say goodbye and not see them for five years?
“I appreciate all the bourbon,” White said before taking another sip.
“You’re welcome, old friend.
“Let’s talk about the 800-pound gorilla in the room.”
“800 pounds? More like an 800 million pound gorilla to me,” Barone joked.
White took another drink and put his glass down. “A few days ago we received word from the Secretary of Defense that we were to patrol the waters out here looking for a rogue colonel and his band of mutinous Marines,” White chuckled and continued. “Our orders were to track you down and destroy the ships, take no prisoners, do not negotiate, just sink your ships.”
“I guess the president wasn’t joking when he said he wanted to stop me.”
“I’ve known you for a long time; we had the pleasure of working together years back on that Wes-Pac. You’re a gung-ho Marine. I know your wife, I know your children. You’re a good man,” White paused for a moment to collect his thoughts then continued. “When they told me it was you, I knew you wouldn’t just do something like this without a damn good reason, I couldn’t just destroy these ships and kill you and those Marines and sailors without hearing from you what’s going on.”
“First, let me thank you for not sinking my ships. Second, what I’m doing is taking my Marines and these sailors back home to their families. Our initial orders were to go back and assist the others in the recovery effort back east. With the intelligence we’ve received, it seems as if the entire power grid is down across the country. This leaves our families vulnerable. I could not in good conscience take the men to the opposite coast from their families to help dig up dead bodies. What has happened at home is catastrophic and we may not fully recover for years. If we don’t get back to California soon and help our families there, there may not be a home or family to go back to.”
White just nodded and looked at Barone.
“I thought about this carefully, and our country is gone. It was destroyed within seconds. You know these scenarios, you take away food, water, medicine, law and order and every city will destroy itself within weeks. We may not be able to help everyone when we get home, but we’ll protect our families and there we can start to rebuild with what we have. David, there is a 99% chance that our country will not look the same in a year, hell; could be less time. The way I look at it, I’m not committing treason or mutiny when there is no country to mutiny against,” Barone finished and took a drink.
“Well, I’ve had a few days to ponder what the hell you were doing and I knew you wouldn’t just do something foolish. I knew you had a plan and a damn good reason,” White reached over and grabbed the bottle and poured himself another drink. He took a sip and exhaled loudly. “As you know, the Topeka’s home port is San Diego, and we have family back there, too. Colonel Barone, may we join your pack of wily mutineers?” White lifted his glass in the air to toast.
Barone was shocked and overjoyed, he lifted his glass and tapped White’s glass and said, “Capt. White, you and your men are welcome to join us.”
“Thank you Tony. Now let me tell you how lucky you are we found you first.”
That comment sparked Barone’s interest. He leaned forward and asked, “What do you know?”
“I know that they have a few destroyers looking for you. They also have Hawaii on alert and plan on using land-based aircraft and even missiles to stop you.”
“I guess I’m not getting close to Hawaii then. Is there a way you can keep tabs on where the destroyers are by communicating with them till we are in a safe area?”
“Exactly my plan,” White responded with a grin.
“Cheers again, my friend,” Barone said lifting his glass.
****
San Diego, CA
Gordon and his team had just returned from outside the gates. Each day brought lighter loads and more news of the destruction and collapse of the city. Every new day they pushed further and further into areas they had not gone before only to find few supplies but more death. They constantly encountered hungry bands of people begging for food. Gordon was sympathetic, but he would not budge and commanded his men not to assist anyone unless they could offer value to their community. Resources were tight and adding more people would only take away from their own. It was tough as he looked upon the gaunt faces of those hungry and dehydrated women and children but he would remind himself of his own children and the responsibility he had to them. His teams also were encountering more executions and more graffiti that said, “Villista.” He knew now there was a group operating that was organized and lethal. A new startling development had started a couple days ago; smoke plumes on the skyline were becoming a common sight to the south. No one knew the reason, but someone was setting buildings on fire.
The dwindling food supplies started to create stress on the community. There were some in the community who never had much food in their pantries to start and with the rations being limited and not adequate those people were going to bed hungry. His security force had already broken up three altercations between neighbors over food rations. Gordon knew it was going to get worse unless they could find more large caches of food. The gardens were planted but would not produce food for some time. He had created hunting teams to help supplement but after a few days of hunting they had only brought back a couple of coyotes of which most of his neighbors refused to eat.
Gordon started to see the physical decay in the community now, the grasses had just now started to brown and many of the previously well-maintained flowers were starting to look wilted. Dust and dirt were slowly starting to gather on the abandoned cars. The smell of feces was becoming more prominent as people were not disposing their human waste properly in the backyards. The one fortunate statistic after 12 days after the attack was that only one person had died.
Seventeen families had left the security of the gates to try their luck outside. Gordon never attempted to convince anyone if they decided to leave; he felt it was their choice. He did warn them of the dangers on the outside, but he never would work hard to get them to stay. The thoughts of leaving had also come across Gordon’s mind more frequently now. He did not know how long they could maintain what they had. If the size of the loads that were coming back continued to get smaller, they would run out of food. However; before that happened the community would probably turn on itself.
Ever since he had been subjected to Mindy’s “court,” Gordon had started to work on an alternative plan. He kept thinking of their place in Idaho. Their mountain cabin was located in the town of McCall. The town was surrounded by tens of thousands of acres of public land. It was pristine alpine country and the wildlife was abunda
nt. He had discussed this idea with Samantha, who was supportive of whatever he thought was best. Because of his quick response immediately after the attacks, he had secured enough food to last his family months. Fuel was not an issue, he now had a vehicle himself and sufficient medical supplies. Making the journey to Idaho would be tough, but if he could get a convoy to go with him they just might make it. Gordon had yet to discuss his plans with Nelson or Jimmy.
Gordon had not seen Jimmy for days and was concerned for him. He thought of them often and hoped that he and Simone were doing okay. Gordon also thought often about his brother; he was curious how far the attacks had gone. Every time someone knocked on his door or he was called to one of the gates because a stranger had approached requesting aid he’d look up and expect to see Sebastian. The thought that he’d never see him again also crossed his mind. He’d never see a lot of people again. So many people were a part of his life before. The girl who was a clerk at the grocery store or his daughter’s dance teacher, where were they now? His clients whom he’d chat with regularly over the phone, how were they making out? Samantha’s many friends were scattered throughout the county, their situation was unknown and would most likely remain that way. She had remained relatively calm about her parents; he assumed she knew there wasn’t much they could do for them. The Midwest might as well be half way around the world. So much had changed in a blink of an eye, it sometimes was overwhelming.
The past few days, Gordon had been teaming up with Max. It didn’t take long for Max’s smugness and arrogance to wear on him. His nonstop talking, specifically talking about himself and all the women he used to get. He would complain that the attacks, “fucked up his play.” Gordon missed Jimmy and couldn’t wait for his return to the teams.
After that day’s run, Max had dropped Gordon off at his driveway. Gordon was excited to be done with him and to see his family. He missed them terribly each day he was gone. Just before he made it to his front door, a voice he was familiar with and equally detested came from a few feet away.
The End - a Post Apocalyptic Novel Page 21