Dystopia (Book 4): The Dark Days

by Cooper, DJ

  Roger nodded, he’d seen it too.

  They split up, with Sam taking one of the militia guys with him and returning to the top of the ridge. While Roger and the other guy made their way in the direction they saw the flash. Sam would come in behind and Roger would provide distraction once he got below the area.

  They could see it periodically flashing as the sun reflected off whatever it was. As soon as Roger was at the base of the hillside below the flash they began thrashing through the woods making as much noise as they could.

  Sam was above and could see someone crouched down behind a down tree with binoculars scanning the farm. Like lightning Sam was up on him. They captured him covering his mouth to keep him from crying out in case there were others nearby. Once they had him they quickly questioned him, asking if there were others on the hillside. The man sat stoic refusing to give any indication of anything.

  They couldn't take the chance anyone else was watching, they couldn’t let them know that this outpost had been taken.

  Sam asked him one more time, “I will turn you over to Ryan in the militia if you tell me what you know; otherwise I’ll just dispatch you immediately because I have no further use for you.” The man didn't understand what he meant by dispatch and just glared at him. Sam rephrased his questions. “You'll tell me everything you know right now, or I will cut your throat and wipe the blade on your dirty shirt.”

  The man's eyes widened as he gauged whether he believed that Sam would kill him so unceremoniously. The militia guy began to object, but Sam put his hand up for him to be silent. Looking back to the gang member, “I have no time for you to be indecisive; start talking or this conversation has ended.”

  “You’re full of shit, we know how you people are. Taking in every stray that comes around. You wouldn’t dare.”

  Sam pulled his knife from a sheath and quickly moved behind the man. Grabbing him with his left hand across his forehead, he began to drag the knife around his throat. With a tiny cut to show the man that he would indeed end him. The man immediately began. “Alright, alright… Holy shit you’re crazy.”

  “Start talking.”

  “Look man, I don't really know nothing. They told me to stay here and watch you guys. I was just supposed to write in this book what you guys do.”

  “What things are you supposed to write down?”

  “How many people there are, what time you change shifts, what you have for supplies, you know man… whatever I can.”

  “Who told you to do that?”

  “Goat, man, he came with that bitch Morgan.”

  “How many guys you got in your group?”

  “Dude, I don't know shit. I was up in Lexington until two days ago, when Rocco sent me and ten other guys down to meet up with these dudes.”

  “Did he say why?”

  “No man, I just wanted some food. I went to one of them camp places 'cause they said I could get food there for my girl and little bro. But when we got there, they took my girl and made her do some girl shit. They put my little bro in a tent with other kids. Then they put this damn tattoo on me and told me I would need to go and take care of some bad guys or I'd never see em’ again.”

  “Show me the tattoo.”

  The man rolled up the sleeve on his right forearm and about midway up on the inside was a circle with 2 arrows pointing toward each other going into the circle.

  “Seriously, I really don't know anything else.”

  “Is there anyone else on this hillside or any of the other hillsides keeping watch?”

  “Yeah, there were 2 other guys they came with me out of Lexington. Dude, their not bad guys. We're all in the same boat, we didn't have a choice.”

  “Do you know where they are?”

  “Yeah, listen man don't hurt em’ one of them dudes got a wife and two kids.”

  “Can you communicate with them?”

  “No, but we can see each other through the binoculars.”

  “Show me.”

  The man got up and set the binoculars to where the man on the right Ridge was located. Sam looked and took careful landmarks from the top of the Ridge down. Doing the same for the other side he located the other two guys.

  Grabbing the walkie talkie Sam called down to Roger. “There are two other guys. One is on either Ridge, I have their locations, I'll walk you in. Capture only, do not kill unless necessary. Over.”

  Two clicks on the walkie signaled he’d heard. A few minutes passed by and the two clicks happened again. Sam returned the signal indicating it was safe to speak. It was Ryan. “Sam can you give the locations I have teams going up from either side of the valley. Over.”

  Sam said he did and gave approximations and landmarks at the tops of the ridges for them to begin closing in on the two men.

  Watching through the binoculars he could see when each of them was taken. Making their way down the hillside they brought the men to the barn for further questioning.

  Once they were all in the barn, the three men stood together. The two men recently captured had masks on their face. As soon as Sam began to speak to them, one raised his mask and winked. Gasps could be heard around the room. The chatter got louder instantaneously. Sam looked at his friend Aaron Mills, tilted his head as if questioning what he was doing with these guys.

  “Come on Sam, you know it's cool. I gave you the thumbs up the other night.”

  “Yeah man I saw you, what are you doing with these guys?”

  “Within a day after getting to Georgetown, the FEMA guys came and started rounding everybody up. Man, I can't believe I got caught in that net. Anyway, they got my wife and kids. But you know me, and you know I ain’t doing their dirty work you saw me take out at least 5 of their guys in that first battle.”

  “That I did. But I don't understand, what are you doing here?”

  “Is there any way I can get a cup of coffee around here? I know you guys, you got coffee hiding somewhere.”

  Sam looked at Tawny and nodded for her to grab him a cup. He motioned him and the other guys to go over and sit on the sofas, nodding to the others. “Care for a cup?”

  They both nodded enthusiastically. Sitting on the sofa's they each looked around and Sam admonished them to keep their eyes front.

  Aaron still standing shook Sam and Ryan’s hand. “Y'all better grab a Cup too 'cause this is gonna take a minute.”

  Walking over to take a seat on one of the sofas he waited for them to join. Sam and Ryan conferenced over at the stove questioning whether Aaron was on the level.

  “I think we need to hear him out,” Sam said.

  Ryan nodded and the two headed for the living room area to hear the tale.

  “Just so you know,” looking to Ryan. “This last run was a diversion; the real target was the infirmary. They know that Dez is there and that's who they’re after.”

  Ryan quickly called a man over and sent a group to the infirmary. Sam had already said it earlier, there was something not right about this attack.

  “I'm not exactly sure why they want Dez, but it has something to do with Morgan. Who exactly she is I don’t know but she’s barking out an awful lot of orders to be a nobody. Y'all gonna need to watch out for her.”

  Sam and Ryan looked at one another passing knowing looks back and forth but saying nothing and allowing Aaron to continue his tale.

  “As I already told you they have my wife and kids. These guys over here?” Pointing to the other two that were on the mountain. “They’re in the same boat. Each has someone that they’re holding, enforcing loyalty. You must believe me that we weren't gonna be doing their bidding. Look at the notebooks, we all have the same things, but all of the information is wrong.”

  Sam and Ryan peered through the books and compared them. Aaron was telling the truth, clearly the information that they’d written down was fabricated. Looking up from the books Sam asked. “Why?”

  “I told these guys that y'all would help them. I'd never betray this group, you did so much for me.
I've been doing everything I could to derail them until I could contact you.”

  Rolling up his sleeve he showed the tattoo that he also had been given. They looked at it and there were a few murmurs.

  “I saw a version of that tattoo on our travels down here.” Danny said.

  John and a few of the others were talking about the tattoo they saw when the group attacked them at the trailer.

  Sam asked, “Are you sure it's the same?”

  “It's a little different, but yeah it’s the same.”

  Aaron continued with what he knew. “This isn't a gang tattoo, it's got a special kind of ink that somehow is also a tracker. We need to have these removed before we can go anywhere. This isn’t a gang running things at all. It's what's left of the old government. I'm not sure of all that's going on but the bits and pieces that I've been able to pick up indicate that the old government was behind much of what went down. There is a new government that is trying to get us up and running but they’re suffering losses, major losses. Unfortunately, it's difficult to tell who was with the old government and who is with the new one because all of the insignia for the military that split looks the same.”

  Roger nodded in affirmation.

  Sam looked at him, “Any thoughts?”

  “Not yet.”

  Aaron continued, “All I know for sure is that camp up there, is more like a prison camp then a relief camp. We can't get our people out of there without your help.”

  At that moment Janice came running into the barn. Her tear streaked face told everyone something was very wrong. Not long after, Amy burst through the door followed by Connor and Tawny who carried Herb. He’d been shot. Sam assessed it saying it was a clean shot. Through and through but he needed to get to the infirmary. “He’s lost a lot of blood and with his other issues we can’t take a chance.” Janice was right on their heels as they loaded him into the back of the truck. Climbing in behind, she sat holding his hand. He smiled at her. “Here’s looking at you kid.”

  Roger and Ray asked to come along. Roger looked to Herb and back to Ryan. “We need to talk to Dez about some thoughts.” Ryan nodded and waved them to the back of the pickup with Janice and Herb.

  One of the guys captured rode with Ryan and Janice while Jeremy hopped into the Jeep with Sam and the other two. They wanted to get with Cory and Arthur to corroborate their story and find out about this camp.

  Chapter 10

  The Greatest Lie

  A tragic situation exists precisely when virtue does not triumph but when it is still felt that man is nobler than the forces which destroy him.

  -George Orwell

  Dez lay still, sleeping peacefully while all around her the chaos reigned. Herb arrived in a whirlwind of action as he was being triaged. Losing blood in a sticky spotted trail behind the stretcher, his skin pale and ghostly. Charleigh held Janice’s hand supporting her. That normally stable person was now a trembling ball of confusion, her eyes begging the doctor for answers as they wheeled Herb past. His hand falling and dangling off the side of the stretcher as they entered the door to the surgical room. Janice sobbed in silent acknowledgement that she would never again speak to her husband.

  Charleigh sat comforting Janice when a voice from across the room caught their attention. “What’s going on?”

  Janice leapt from her seat and rushed to Dez. “Honey, you’re ok.”

  “A little worse for wear, but they say I’ll be good as new soon. What are you doing here?”

  “It’s Herb; he’s been shot.”

  Dez’s eyes widened as she tried to sit up. “What? When?”

  Charleigh explained, “The gang attacked the farm at the same time we were defending the infirmary.”

  “What? There’s something we’re missing here. If they were after a person or supplies, they would have chosen one place or the other. Have we figured out who these people are yet?”

  “Not yet. Mom, Ryan thinks you’re the target they were after here.”

  “After what I saw honey? I think they were after Matty. We need to hide him and Rita.”

  Charleigh and Janice stood there chatting with Dez about how to best take care of Matty and Rita while waiting for news on Herb. Dez reached out and took her hand hoping to comfort her. Janice looked down with a small tear in her eye, a look of sadness covered her as she stood. Shoulders hunched over looking to the floor in a trance of sorrow.

  Dez squeezed her hand. “You have to believe he's gonna be OK.”

  Janice looked back at her. “Herb wasn't doing well before this. Before everything happened, he'd been diagnosed with cancer. He didn't want to go through chemo.”

  “Oh Janice, I didn't know.”

  “We fought about the chemo. I told him being in his seventies wasn’t old. All of this happened only a few weeks after the diagnosis. So, we never really got the chance, and were preparing for it to progress. We didn't want to burden anyone else with the issue. Just figured when it got to the point that he could no longer carry on; that then it would be an appropriate time to let everyone know. We just wanted to spend some quality time with Julie and make sure she was going to be OK and not be a burden on the community.”

  “Janice, no matter what you and Julie are gonna be OK. You all have been such a blessing, you would never be a burden. But anyway, we're gonna hope for the best with Herb. I wish you’d said something sooner, Rebecca has a wide variety of herbs guaranteed to help almost anything.” Dez squeezed her hand and Janice smiled weakly.

  Rita came walking in with Matty and Ariel who both immediately climbed up onto the bed with Dez.

  Rita chastised them, “Now you two don't be crawling all over Dez. You know she needs some rest.”

  Dez smiled and reached out for Ariel's hand while patting Matty on the shoulder. Looking to Rita she smiled. “I'm feeling pretty good after my nap. Let them stay, please?”

  Rita had taken it upon herself to become Dez's keeper as she put it. She smiled slightly and nodded. Turning and heading over to the area were there were drinks, she looked back over her shoulder. “OK, but only for a little while.”

  Charleigh smiled at her and followed. She looked back towards Dez before whispering to Rita. “I'm having a tough time wrapping my mind around Matt's presence here with Morgan. I'm really not clear on what’s going on with her.”

  Rita looked over to Dez before handing Charleigh a cup of coffee. “There's a lot about Morgan that people don't realize. When Matt and I split up she was part of the reason. She has plagued his life since he was a teen. There was something between her and him besides the obvious. For some reason he cheats on everybody he's with with her. I never really understood why they just didn't get together. It's twisted at best. She is cold and calculated, corrupt to the core. He is unable to break away from her. I think deep down that Matt wishes for something different, but he always goes along with what she's doing. When she is out of his life he can be a good guy but it was inevitable that she would come back.”

  Charleigh listened with wide eyes as she continued. “I wanted to tell your mom, I knew he and Morgan were carrying on for about the past year. I think John had an idea, because when Matt would go up North he would always leave John in the lurch to go and see Morgan.”

  Sipping her own coffee, she motioned Charleigh to the chair in the corner. “Before they tried to kill me I heard Morgan and Cindy talking about your mom’s trust. Matt somehow found out, that your mom had more money than she told him about. They knew that there was a trust set up for you guys, and Matt was trying to get in. I know she set a stipulation up for Matty. I think that's why he wanted your mom to marry him.”

  Charleigh laughed, “Mom knew what he was trying to do and that's why she refused to marry him. I know she adores him, but she never really trusted him. She once referred to him as entertainment, telling me that she didn’t love him but that for the moment he served his purpose.” Placing her hand on Rita’s she continued, “He'd already tried going to the attorney. Mom just
thought he was trying to weasel his way in because sometimes that's how he is. None of us had any idea about Morgan. I think this changes things, but not at the core. The only thing that really bothers mom is the lies. The worst of it is that she would have made a stipulation for him, given him free reign to do as he liked to enjoy the ability to explore what he was trying to do. It was oh… about six to eight months ago when she found out what he'd really been trying to do, and it hurt her more than she’ll admit. She’s done a lot for him, financing his every whim. She thought for once someone wasn't just after the money because she never told him about it. We don't know how he found out.”

  Rita looked shocked, “She knew?”

  “Oh yes, she knew.”

  “Wow, I really underestimated your mom.”

  Charleigh looked concerned and asked, “Do you think Morgan could have gathered this gang? I mean, I understand that Matt would want Matty and that they may want to take over the farm. But as it stands right now, there is no money. When the financial collapse happened all of that became a moot point.”

  Rita and Charleigh sat silently sipping their hot brew. The question lingering in the air without an answer.

  Roger and Ray entered the room and asked to speak with Dez alone. Dez nodded and motioned for Charleigh and Rita to come get the kids.

  Once they left Roger approached Dez, who was now sitting up on the bed and offered his hand to shake. “I don't know if you remember me, but I am Roger Morris and this is Ray Saylor.”

  Dez shook his hand. “I remember you.” Glancing toward Ray, “Both of you. Whatcha need?”

  “We haven't been entirely honest with you. When we left with John and the others what we didn't tell them was that we have information from the camp up in Worcester. They know we have it.”