by Liscom, Sean
“I didn't need that this morning,” Lance whined.
“Take these people outside and get them lined out, I'll take care of her,” Don said slinging his rifle. Instead of going toward Jill, he instead walked into the bathroom and grabbed a hand towel. Going into the kitchen he got a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water. He took both of them to Jill and knelt down next to her. She was still on her hands and knees. “Here, wipe your face.” he said as he handed her the towel. When she was done with that he handed her the water. “Something to wash your mouth out. Just spit it on the floor, gotta clean it up anyway.”
“Thank you,” she mumbled. After rinsing out her mouth and spitting it on the floor, she drank the rest of the water and handed the glass back. She sat back on
her knees and tried to collect herself.
“Don't hurry,” Don said as he started wiping up the vomit. It took two trips to the kitchen to clean out the towel. When he was done, he brought her another glass of water. “Here.”
“Sorry about the mess,” Jill apologized.
“Do you need to go to the hospital in town?” he asked.
“No. I think it’s just a lack of sleep and nerves.”
“Believe it or not, this happens a lot. My name is Don, by the way.
“Thank you again, Don. I'm Melissa,” she stayed in character.
“Melissa, you're from the ranch right?”
“I am.”
“Okay. I'm gonna take you downstairs and put you in one of the bunks. You need to get some rest and its cool and dark down there. Should make it a little easier,” he offered her a hand up. She took it and he pulled her to her feet. He steadied her for a moment and assisted her down the stairs. After getting her in one of the bottom bunks in the room at the end of the hallway, he turned and started to leave.
“Don, thank you again,” she said. “Can I ask you a question?” he paused in the doorway and turned back to her.
“Sure.”
“I..... Well..... I don't normally eavesdrop, but I heard you and that other guy talking outside the dining room window, and.....”
“You heard all that?”
“I did and I'm really sorry, but, I have to know something.....”
“What?” he asked.
“I heard the other guy say something about the Sterling’s..... Are they dead?”
“I don't really know, Melissa. The convoy that they were traveling in was ambushed and only two people escaped. They sent a team back to recover the bodies and account for everyone. That's all I know,” he said.
“I hope they are okay.”
“You and me both. For different reasons, obviously,” he replied.
“Why do you do this?” she asked. He shook his head.
“I've been asking myself that same question a lot lately. Now, you get some rest, okay?”
“Okay.” Jill said as she put her head down on the pillow. He stepped out of the room and closed the door. She heard his footsteps all the way up the stairs. She looked at her watch and told herself to wait five minutes before she made her move.
Tuesday, August 15th, 2017
Southern Nevada
“I can't believe you actually struck a deal with that bastard!” Melissa said loudly. We had been moved from the holding cell we were in and
into a private quarters. Once we were behind the closed door, Dana had removed the handcuffs and brought us food and water. The food was nothing more than some re-hydrated vegetable soup and stale crackers but I was starving. Melissa hadn't touched her food.
“That's quite enough, Melissa. I get that you don't approve of the deal that I made, and frankly, I don't care. I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but you aren't the one who has to look at the bigger picture,” I scolded her again.
“You made a deal with the guy that got Rex killed! The very same guy that shot your wife! He killed your father! How in the hell is that looking at the bigger picture?” she asked hotly. There wasn't any backing her down. I pushed my bowl back and leaned back in my chair.
“Alright, you tell me what you would have done! Let’s start with the surrendering of the ranch, you tell me.”
“We should have scrambled our forces and waged a guerrilla type of action against them. Hit 'em and vanish. We could have used roadside
bombs, two or three man teams with rockets could have done a lot of damage against their armor!” she said proudly.
“One problem.”
“What's that?”
“You'd be dead. At the first sign of resistance, they would have just burned everyone
and everything down and moved on. Didn't you see what happened to Eureka? They resisted and they are dead.”
“But you scrambled everything we had, just like Major Jackson said you should, but you sent them into hiding! You sent them with orders to not engage. They are doing nothing to take the ranch or city back!” she protested.
“It's true I sent them into hiding and I also gave Ray false information as to where and why they left. I bought them time. I had you impersonate Jill to throw them off even further. It was a calculated gamble that paid off. As far as they know, there is no leadership left at the ranch and they are in the clear to do whatever they want. Meanwhile, I can guarantee you that Jill is already putting a plan in place so that when the time is right, she can retake the ranch. It's all about timing, Melissa,” I stopped long enough to take a drink of water and then started in again.
“Now you’re pissed off because you think that I sold the memory of Rex Foster down the
river. Listen to this, young lady. Rex Thomas Foster, born September 19th, 1995. He was the third and last child of Julie and Richard Foster. His big brother, Wade, joined the Army and was killed in action in Iraq in 2009. His big sister, Monica, was a nurse in Cincinnati, Ohio and hasn't been heard from since the EMP..... You want to talk about memories, try that on for size.
The day you and I were blown up on that godforsaken stretch of highway, you told me all about your brothers. Jill mentioned them the day before, you want to know something? I already knew all about them. I knew about your parents. I know about every student that comes through my gate. I memorize every pertinent fact about them I can get my hands on,” I paused again to stare at her. Her mouth was hanging open.
“I want to know everything that there is to know about them so that I can carry their memory with me for as long as I walk this planet. You're pissed because you think I made a shitty deal, but let me tell you something else. In this fucked up day and age, I'll take an ally who is willing to admit that he made some mistakes, who is willing to sacrifice himself to help others. You see the asshole who killed Rex. I see the man who is looking at the bigger picture and has figured out that he fucked up. Now, if you want to wear these big kid pants, I'll gladly take 'em off and hand them over. Until then, why don't you
back down, pull your head out of your ass and look at the big picture!” I finished.
“Yes, sir,” she finally said. It came out so quietly that I almost didn't hear it.
“I'm not perfect, Melissa. I've made more mistakes than I can count. I never asked to sit in the big chair but someone had to do it. I rely on people who are smarter than me, people who
look at things from different angles. You have to be able to take all of that information in and try to make the best decision you can make. You're a squad leader, that doesn't make you right all the time. Just as your team helps you to excel, mine helps me. Sometimes we lose members of our team, it sucks but it happens. We have to pick up the pieces and carry on. You can't go looking for vengeance that will get you killed. Okay?”
“Yes, sir,” she repeated.
“They are going to kick us out of here tonight and I'm going to need you to bring your A game. Eat, hydrate and get some rest. We are going to have a long trip back to the ranch and we are going to be short on time.”
“If you don't mind my asking, do we have a plan?” she asked meekly.
“The g
rand plan? We head north as quickly as we can. Everything else, we'll make up as we go,” I replied as I pulled my bowl back in front of me and began to eat again.
“I still don't understand why they can't give us a vehicle, it would make this so much easier,” she said as she began to eat.
“If he gave us a vehicle, he would lose respect as a leader. Doing it this way makes the most sense. His people get some sense of punishment, maybe a little closure. He gets to keep their respect. He's gonna need that with the fight that he's fixin to pick.”
CHAPTER 18
Tuesday, August 15th, 2017
The ranch.
Jill waited the full five minutes and decided to give it five more. Her stomach was still upset and she didn't want to heave on the floor again. When she was satisfied that she wasn't going to barf, she slipped off of the bunk and went to the closed door. She put her ear against it and listened in the pitch black darkness. Sure that there was nobody there, she slowly turned the knob and cracked the door open, light from the hallway spilled into her room.
She slipped out and gently closed the door behind her. She first went to the stairwell and risked a peek up the stairs, no one there either. She walked silently to the supply cabinet at the other end of the hall and began waiving her arms in the air. It was nearly impossible to spot but there was a miniature camera built into the clock above the cabinet. She strained to hear the click of the wall locker being released from the lock that held it against the wall.
There was an almost imperceptible “Click”. She looked back toward the stairs and slid the locker away from the wall revealing the darkened passage behind it. She stepped in and pulled the cabinet/door closed behind her. Again there was
a click and it was locked into place. Making her way down the passage as quickly as she could, she came to the sealed blast door and was about to knock on it when it was pushed open from the inside. Alex was there to shut it again after she entered the well-lit living quarters.
“Where's Bill?” she asked.
“Security,” the young man replied. She walked quickly through the living area into the passage that led to security and medical. Opening that door she double timed it into the security office.
“What are you doing?” Bill asked
“Have you got comm’s back yet?” she ignored his question.
“Yeah, they came back online after their jamming rig left, why?”
“Judges convoy was ambushed last night, they said there were only two survivors. What do you know about that?” Bill sat back down at the radio set and looked at his daughter. He was hoping that he wouldn't have to tell her this news until after they had regained control of the ranch. He knew what her temper could be like.
“It's true. Judge and his driver were the only ones to escape. All of the other rigs were destroyed when they stopped to get fuel,” he said flatly.
“Where?” she demanded.
“Amargosa valley. It happened about four
this morning,” he immediately regretted his admission. The features on her face softened, her breathing slowed, and there was an unmistakable calmness that came over her.
“Two days. Two days and we will have this ranch back in our control. When that is done, I'm going to go bring them home. I don't give a fuck if I have to go all the way to Vegas to get them,” she said. It wasn't so much what she said that caused Bill concern. It was the tone that she said it in that scared the hell out of him. He'd seen that Jill before.
“Alright, Jill. Don't do anything stupid up there. It's bad enough that you faked being sick so that you could slip down here.....”
“I faked weakness so that I could get information,” she said evenly as she turned and headed into medical. She got some anti-acid and left her father alone with his thoughts. She left the underground the same way she came in and slipped back into her room before anyone ever noticed that she was gone.
Once the door was closed and she was back on the bunk, she pulled the pillow over her face and began to sob uncontrollably. Once she had expended all of her energy, a fitful sleep took her.
Tuesday, August 15th, 2017
Southern Nevada.
Melissa and I were awoken by a loud knock at the door of our room. I sat up on the cot that I had been sleeping on when I heard the door being unlocked. Paul and Dana came in and closed it.
“The sun is going down, it's time to send you on your way,” Paul said. Melissa was just starting to put her boots back on.
“The bad news is that Judge as sent a bunch of men out on dirt bikes. They didn't find your bodies in Amargosa, so they are out looking for you,” Dana said as she put two canteens of water on the table.
“Wonderful,” I remarked.
“Look, I'm sorry that we can't send you with any guns or a vehicle. If you keep on the move at night and hide during the day, they probably won't find you. Stay away from the small towns and keep moving, you should be alright,” Paul explained.
“Here,” Dana reached into her pocket and produced two gold Krugerrands and dropped them next to the canteens. “If you can find someone to trade with, this should get you quite a bit. Might even buy you out of a bad spot.”
“Where did you get these?” I questioned as I picked them up off the table.
“One of Ray’s guys had 10 of them in his pocket. I found them after the ambush last night,” Dana said. I chuckled a little and that got
me a sideways look from both Dana and Paul.
“These came from the ranch. They were probably in a red velvet pouch,” I said. Dana pulled the pouch from her other pocket and tried to hand it to me. “Keep 'em. Maybe you can get a guard to look the other way or buy some information.”
“Thanks.”
“Okay, we need to get the cuffs back on you and we will escort you outside. The sooner I can get the two of you out of here, the sooner I can get back to work,” Paul said, producing two sets of handcuffs. Melissa and I each took one of the canteens and I gave her one of the gold coins. There was still a half of a package of crackers on the table so I put it in my thigh pocket with the canteen.
Melissa and I held out our arms and allowed him to cuff us. When that was done we were escorted by Paul, Dana and two guards out into the corridor. The entire time we had been here, I'd not seen one window which I found odd. We went through a set of double doors at the end of the corridor and it opened up into a massive, manmade cavern.
It was well lit and I counted nearly a dozen older vehicles and one semi-truck. Almost
everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at us as we were escorted toward, what I guessed to be, the exit. This was a smaller cave,
still big enough to drive a semi through and there were two very large doors sealing the cavern. We stopped just short of them and one of the guards went to an electrical panel on the wall. He opened it and turned off the lights.
Next I heard a heavy metallic clang and the doors began to swing outward allowing the waning light from outside to spill in. Even though it was almost fully dark, the hot desert air assaulted us immediately. Before the doors were fully open, we were taken the rest of the way outside. Here I could see a huge concrete parking area with a large bridge crane standing over some railroad tracks. The guards stayed at the doors while Dana and Paul took us all the way to the 10 foot tall, chain link gate at the edge of the parking area. There, we stopped and the cuffs were once again removed.
“That's north,” he pointed over my shoulder. “If you follow the road down the mountain, there is a sand wash that runs north-south for quite a ways. There are some places that you can seek shelter during the day but not a whole lot of water. Conserve what you got. Remember, it can get to 120 degrees out there during the day,” he extended his hand.
“Ya know, Paul, in different life we might have been friends,” I said taking the offered hand.
“You're probably right, Sterling. Maybe we
can work on that after all of this has settled down.”
&nbs
p; “If we live long enough, we'll have to work on it,” I released his hand and extended mine to Dana. “Thanks for not killing me last night,” she just nodded and smiled a little. Both of them stepped back inside their perimeter and he pulled the gate closed. The sign on the gate read “Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository”.
“That's one hell of a no trespassing sign,” Melissa quipped.
“It keeps people away. Good luck,” Paul said as he and Dana headed back to cave. Melissa and I turned and looked down the road.
“Shall we?” I asked.
“Let's do this.” she said and we began our next journey.
Tuesday, August 15th, 2017
The ranch.
It was the dream of charred bodies that jolted Jill from her sleep. Her breathing was heavy and she was drenched in sweat. She was frantic for a moment as she tried to remember where she was. Someone had turned the reading
light on at the head of her bunk and there was a glass of water sitting on the floor next to it. She sat up in the bed and put her feet on the cool floor. She had no recollection of taking her boots
off but there they were, right next to the bed.
She gulped down the water and rubbed her puffy eyes before she reached for her boots. After getting the left one, she went to put on the right one and found a piece of paper folded inside of it. She removed it and unfolded it. “Thirteen bodies accounted for. Eight unidentifiable. Two unaccounted for,” She could recognize her father’s handwriting anywhere.
“I knew it.” she whispered. The message that Bill had given her was the best news that she could hope for. It was pure luck the van Judge had used to jam their radios had left when it did. Otherwise she would be totally in the dark still. They had assumed that they controlled all of the radios at the ranch and there was no longer a need to jam them. Bill immediately began to scan for the frequencies that they were using.