Autumn (Four Seasons Book 1)

by Robert Sullivan

  “What happened when you were over there anyway?” Greg asked.

  Zach glanced over at him and said, “You do realize that most of everything that happened over there is extremely classified and I could be prosecuted for breathing a word of it, right?”

  “You’re a part of a militia that engages in brazen vigilantism,” Greg replied sarcastically.

  Zach shrugged his shoulders. “It’s not quite the same.”

  Greg continued to look at Zach, who sighed and said, “Greg, I’m serious, you can’t breathe a word of this to anyone. It doesn’t matter if I probably won’t end up prosecuted even if you did.”

  “I understand,” Greg said seriously.

  “When it became apparent that Iran was extremely close to a nuclear weapon in 2033, it was decided that the leadership in the country needed to be removed and insurgents that were friendlier to the West be installed. We knew that we couldn’t do anything about the warheads or the enriched uranium, so they just decided that we needed somebody more trustworthy with them.

  “We went in late at night flying down from the Caspian Sea, with other commandos from the United Kingdom, France, and Saudi Arabia. We were to meet the insurgents outside of the city and then infiltrate it, taking the Ayatollah and the President in one fell swoop. We linked up no problem and we followed the insurgents into the city. Our forces moved in from several directions and all told, I think we got over a thousand people into the city.”

  “It was a really cold night when we there. We moved in during Winter because the nighttime would be the longest at that time, giving us the most cover. My company got into the city and made straight for the Presidential palace. It was snowing as well, which helped give us cover and kept people off of the streets while we were moving in. I was amazed at how far we got before being discovered. We were within a couple of blocks of the palace when we were found out.”

  “It turned into a horrendous firefight. We had no idea what we were doing and we didn’t know if we were hitting friend or foe. It was the only time I’ve ever been afraid I’d lose my life.”

  “How the hell did you get out of that?” Greg asked, amazed.

  “One of the people in my squad had disappeared right before the firefight. I thought the crazy bastard had made a break for it, but it turned out that he was flanking the enemy. He always insisted on carrying around a lumber axe for some reason and he was able to sneak up on the hostiles and start using that blasted axe of his.”

  “Wait, you were with the Berserker?” Greg asked.

  “I knew him as Lieutenant Joshua Hayes,” Zach replied simply. “And probably most of what you heard about what he did was overblown. But he did provide us a tactical advantage. He distracted the hostiles and we were able to break through their line. We took the palace and resistance throughout the city fell apart.”

  “Anyway, that fight was a tactical nightmare. We had no idea where the enemy was because of a lack of intelligence and obviously the poor visibility. That’s why I like to plan out every engagement carefully to minimize casualties,” Zach finished.

  “Which is why you wanted to scout out this area by Carmel?” Greg asked.

  “Yes. I don’t think there will be a specific problem with it, but I do want to get a feel for the land,” Zach said. “I think some snipers and mines in the area will work in our favor. Would you rather go for capturing or killing them?”

  “Capture,” Greg said quickly. “We can turn them over to the Fed since we wouldn’t be able to hold them ourselves.”

  “No, we wouldn’t,” Zach said. “That might be a problem later down the road if someone takes control of the Fed that’s unfriendly to us.”

  “I think whoever ends up in the White House will be more unfriendly to the Black Hand,” Greg reasoned.

  “They may view us as the same kind of threat, Greg,” Zach said. “We need to be careful. Personally, I don’t think that the evacuation plan is a bad idea.”

  Greg had forgotten about the evacuation that Eric had suggested. “This fight in the city might just end up being a delaying action,” Zach continued. “I say that we use this ambush to gain notoriety around the country, then get out of the city where the Black Hand is the strongest. We’d be in friendlier territory somewhere out West.”

  Greg sighed. “Let’s just focus on this ambush first, then talk about our options after that.”

  After a couple of hours, the two of them arrived at Ninham Mountain State Forest, north of the town of Carmel. The morning mist had yet to burn off, which shrouded the forest in a light fog. “Do you think that this fog would help?” Greg asked.

  “It would help us if we’re prepared for it,” Zach said, looking around. “We need to make sure this forest is clear of civilians on the day of the attack. I’m sure you can bring it up to the President and he could do something about it. As for the fog, we can set up infrared sensors around the place so we can locate hostiles as they come in.”

  “Do you think there will be any issues with this location though?” Greg asked.

  Zach looked around the trees, then up into the canopy. “I think this will be sufficient. There are plenty of places for us to conceal our forces and for Ashley to set up cameras for her propaganda videos. I’m going to have my soldiers out here preparing the place as soon as possible and I’ll escort your girlfriend out here as well so she can do what she needs to do.”

  “Keep her safe, Zach,” Greg warned.

  “You needn’t worry, Greg,” Zach reassured him. “There won’t be any danger out here until we get the Black Hand out here.”

  “Shall I tell everyone else that we are good to go then?” Greg asked.

  Zach looked around one last time and said, “Yes. Let’s set up our trap.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Date Night

  “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had any algebra?!” Rebecca said indignantly as Ed put a tablet in front of her.

  “At least a year, I know,” Ed said. “I’m sure that I can walk you through it though.”

  “I don’t know, Ed,” Rebecca said uncertainly.

  “We’re just going to do some basic stuff today,” Ed replied. “I need to make sure you can do the arithmetic required to do the algebra.”

  “Why do I need this?” Rebecca asked.

  “Do you want to go to college?” Ed asked.

  “I don’t know what I want to do,” Rebecca said glumly.

  “Well, maybe this will help inspire you to pursue something,” Ed replied.

  Ed walked out of her tower to go see to the other children. Rebecca leaned back in her chair and stared out of the balcony window, staring at the brilliant blue late August sky. It was the time of year for school to start and Ed had insisted on starting the home school regimen for his foster children. For Rebecca, that meant learning high school level subjects for the first time in nearly two years.

  It provided her a welcome distraction from other things going on in her life. Therapy was hard for her, being forced again and again to relive the hardest moments of her life. Despite its challenges, she did feel like she was recovering from losing Anne and starting to build herself into a stronger person for it. She would not admit that to the therapist yet, however.

  More of an annoyance was the fact that she had not been able to go out with Spencer yet. For the last month, Spencer had been embroiled in Continental actions, trying desperately to drive recruitment in the wake of increasing Black Hand control of the city. Despite his efforts, he had little to show for it; the leadership and local media were perfectly content there was no problem which dulled the residents of the city to the Black Hand insurgency. Compounding matters was the fact that the Black Hand was not proving to be as destructive as the previous gangs had been. They appeared as less of a danger to the city as a result, despite the high-profile events in New York.

  Though Spencer would never admit it out loud, Rebecca knew that he blamed the tornado for the hard time he was having
as well. Spencer had been forced to explain again and again that the leader of the previous militia had foolishly gotten many people killed and despite the fact that Peter was dead, people were not interested in the Continentals, much to Spencer’s chagrin.

  Rebecca heard Ed coming back up the stairs and quickly looked back at her tablet to see if there was anything she could do about it. She was still staring at it as Ed walked in and said, “How’s it going?”

  Rebecca shrugged. “I haven’t started it yet,” she replied simply.

  Ed nodded and sat down next to her, closing the door. “It’s just basic arithmetic, it won’t bite.”

  “I was just thinking about other things,” Rebecca said.

  “Like what?” Ed inquired.

  “Just about other things,” Rebecca said evasively.

  “Are you thinking about Anne?” Ed asked warily.

  “No,” Rebecca said. “I’m just thinking about other things.”

  Ed looked at the door, as if to check if anyone was listening in, and said, “Is therapy going well for you then?”

  Rebecca was flabbergasted. “How did you know?”

  “I got a bill from the office you were going to,” Ed explained. “We got it taken care of, but you really should have told us beforehand, Bec.”

  “I was embarrassed,” Rebecca replied sheepishly. “I didn’t want to admit that I needed help.”

  Ed put his hand on Rebecca’s shoulder and said, “Rebecca, Kathleen and I are your parents. You don’t have to be embarrassed around us, if you need help, we’re going to help get it for you. Is therapy working for you?”

  “A little bit,” Rebecca admitted.

  “Then keep at it,” Ed said confidently. “I remember the bright, optimistic young lady that I found in that shelter back in January. I’d love to have her back.”

  Rebecca cut not help but smile. “Thanks, Ed,”

  “You’re my daughter, Rebecca,” Ed told her. “I’ll support you when you need it.”

  “Can you help me with this math then?” Rebecca asked.

  Later that evening, Rebecca was sitting on her balcony reading a book for her school work that was related to American history. It was an interesting read for her; if she had had any interest in a subject at school, it was history. Whatever troubles she may have had with math and science did not make themselves present with history and she read as much as she could on the subject.

  Rebecca’s phone was sitting nearby, but she had not checked it in some time. The phone suddenly began to ring, distracting Rebecca from her book. She picked it up and saw that it was Spencer and answered it quickly. “Hello?”

  “Hi, Bec,” Spencer said. “How’re things going?”

  “They’re going okay,” Rebecca said. “I’m starting school again.”

  “That’s cool. Where at?”

  “Ed and Kathleen are just homeschooling me,” Rebecca explained. “It’s looking hard already though because I haven’t had a real education in a long time.”

  “I know you can do it,” Spencer said.

  “How are you?” Rebecca asked.

  “I’ve been busy with the Continentals,” Spencer said. “We’re making some progress with recruiting, but we’re waiting for some good news out of New York that’ll help next month.”

  “What kind of good news?” Rebecca asked.

  “They wouldn’t tell me,” Spencer replied, sounding slightly annoyed. “Apparently it’s going to be big news though.”

  “I hope,” Rebecca said.

  “Are you going to come back with us?” Spencer asked urgently.

  Rebecca paused. She had been so busy with her own life that she had not given a thought to the Continentals. “I don’t know, Spencer,” she replied. “I don’t think that it’s for me right now.”

  “I understand,” Spencer said. “You don’t have to feel any pressure to come back, Bec. If you feel like coming back, we’ll take you at any time.”

  “I’ll consider it, Spencer, I promise,” Rebecca said.

  “Now, I remember you asking me out some time ago,” Spencer said airily.

  Rebecca froze. “I did. Are we ever going to?”

  “I know we should have by now,” Spencer said. “I’m going to make time for you though so we can go out. Are you free next Saturday?”

  “I’m always free,” Rebecca replied.

  “Great,” Spencer said. “I’ll pick you up that evening and then we can go out on a night on the town. Does that sound good to you?”

  “It does,” Rebecca said. “I can’t wait,” she added.

  “Neither can I,” Spencer said. “I’ll see you Saturday evening.”

  The next week passed uneventfully. The weather cooled down slightly and drier air filtered in as well, which Rebecca hoped would lead to a pleasant evening. She had no idea what Spencer had meant by a night on the town, but she was willing to trust him as long as he did not try to drag her to some Continental function. She brought this up with him during the week and he reassured her that he would not. With that concern allayed, Rebecca let herself get excited for the date, which was the first time she had felt that in a long time.

  Saturday dawned overcast and muggy, throwing off Rebecca’s vision for how the night would go. She urgently checked the weather and saw that there was a chance of storms later that day. She was instantly annoyed, but felt a tingle of fear as well. She had not thought much of it, but since the violent tornado some months prior, she had developed a phobia of storms. On nights when storms had swept the area, she had found herself unable to sleep as she listened to the rumble of thunder and the push that the wind made on her tower.

  Rebecca distracted herself for most of the day by reading. Occasionally, she would get up and stare out her balcony window at the overcast skies, annoyed as they refused to break at all. She tried to distract herself from her annoyance by more reading, but as the day wore on, she no longer could focus on her book and simply sat on the bed, waiting for the time to pass.

  At long last, the time arrived for Spencer to arrive. Rebecca rushed downstairs to wait in the living room. Ed and Kathleen were watching the news, where the reporters were talking about the Presidential election. “You look excited,” Ed commented as he noticed Rebecca enter the room.

  “Spencer is supposed to be here soon,” she replied.

  “Ah, the mysterious Spencer,” Ed replied. “I’m looking forward to meeting the young lad.”

  Rebecca was confused and said, “Didn’t you meet him before?”

  “Should I have?” Ed said suspiciously.

  Rebecca realized that Ed and Kathleen had not been at the house when Spencer and Himmat had visited before. “Actually, you wouldn’t have,” she said. “I think it’s for the best anyway, you would have met him at a bad time for me.”

  “Fair enough,” Ed replied. “Do you want to watch the news with us? I figure you would be interested in the election with the way you’ve been tearing through those history books.”

  Rebecca shrugged her shoulders and said, “Sure. What’s going on?”

  “Oh, apparently the Center candidate put his foot in his mouth,” Ed replied. “Tom Green made some comments to that were interpreted as him saying that it’s women’s fault that they get raped.”

  “What?” Rebecca said indignantly.

  “Of course, he’s just saying that he was being misinterpreted,” Ed said, sensing danger in Rebecca’s changed tone. “But he’s made comments like that before. He’s very prone to the gaffe.”

  “So is he winning?” Rebecca asked.

  “Oh heavens no. He’s close to falling to fourth at this point. The race is coming down to the Conservative Felicia Hall and Globalist Liam Hensen,” Ed explained.

  “Who are you two voting for?” Rebecca asked.

  “We’ve talked about it and we haven’t really come up with a choice yet,” Kathleen explained. “Fortunately we have two months to make up our minds.”

  “I’ve already made u
p my mind for the Senate here in Kansas though,” Ed replied. “I’m going for the Conservative Katherine Taylor.”

  “Wouldn’t that mean you would go for the Conservative for President too?” Rebecca asked.

  “Not necessarily,” Kathleen said. “Sometimes you agree with someone for a local election, but other times someone from a different party is better on a national level. We’ve voted split ticket for years now. It just depends from candidate to candidate.”

  “I wish I was old enough to vote,” Rebecca said dourly.

  “I know you just missed it by a few months,” Ed replied. “You’ll be able to do it next time.”

  “I can’t wait,” Rebecca said.

  The doorbell suddenly rang. Rebecca tried to get up to answer it, but Ed got ahead of her and opened the door first. Spencer was standing there and looked surprised that Ed had answered it first. “Hello, I’m Spencer Hayes. Is Rebecca home?” he asked.

  “She is,” Ed replied, feigning suspicion. “What exactly do you want to do with my daughter though?”

  “I’m going to take her out to dinner and then something indoors to avoid the weather,” Spencer replied confidently. “I’ll have her home at a reasonable hour.”

  Ed eyed him suspiciously and said, “Alright then. Rebecca, you have a gentleman caller. Do you want to accept his invite?”

  Rebecca had to keep from laughing out loud and said, “Yes, Ed, I do. I’ll be back later,” she added, as she swept past him and exited the house.

  “Drive safe you two!” Ed called after them as they went to Spencer’s car.

  “We will!” Rebecca called back.

  Spencer opened the car door for her and helped her in before going to his side of the car and getting in. “Where are we going for dinner?” she asked.

  Spencer froze. “I didn’t really know what you liked to eat, but does a steak house sound good?”

  Rebecca felt her mouth water in anticipation. “Yes it does.”

  “Great,” Spencer said, relieved. “I know of a place where we can go then.”