Solly ran out into the darkness, moving from one puddle of light to the next and, all the time, looking out for figures in black uniforms. He was passed by squads of soldiers and was ordered back to the civilian area more than once, but he waited for them to head away and then followed them in the direction of the main complex of buildings.
Beyond, on the airstrip outside the safe zone, sat three helicopters, the flashes of gunfire reflecting from their glossy black exteriors. Solly reached a building and looked up at the plate. D3.
Gunfire from his right and he dodged sideways into the gap between buildings and crouched down. So far, everyone he'd seen with a gun was wearing a variant of the standard US military uniform and was heading toward the command center.
He ran down the side of the low white painted brick building, ducking below the windows, until he reached the corner and peered around it. He could see figures running in the distance, so he headed to the left, away from them, in the hope that there'd be some logic to the numbers and that he was now in row C.
Darting across the gap between rows, he heard someone order him to stop and then, almost immediately, rounds spat past him, one shattering a window in the building he was heading toward. Just as quickly as it started, however, the gunfire stopped as his attackers turned their attention to the main battle area.
Building C3. He crouched and ran along it as quickly as his ungainly posture allowed. C4. He was now heading toward the sounds of fighting, and he prayed that they hadn't gotten there first.
This was it. He turned ninety degrees, expecting at any moment for someone to call out or simply shoot him without warning. A plate beside the door said Technical Lab, and he took a deep breath before turning the handle and plunging inside.
"Halt, or I fire," a voice called. Solly stopped instantly and put his hands up. The building was made up of a single main room and there, at a bench half way down, stood a man pointing a handgun at him, its tip trembling.
"It's alright," Solly responded, forcing down his fear. "I'm not with the Lee Corporation—they're the ones attacking the base. Have you got the cylinder here?"
"You can't have it! It's too dangerous."
Solly edged forward. "Look, I'm not armed. Can I come closer?"
The man didn't respond, so Solly moved toward the bench. On it sat something cylindrical, but it didn't look like the device Solly had carried.
"Yes, this is it. I covered it in shielding as the commander said it could be tracked."
"I guess you added the shielding elsewhere and then brought the device here?"
The technician looked surprised. "How could you know that?"
"Because the Lees have pinpointed their attack on the last known location and if you'd done it here, they'd have broken down the door and taken it by now. My name is Solly, by the way."
"Brendon."
Solly felt sorry for the man. Barely out of his twenties, he was at the center of something much, much larger than he was and way beyond his resources. Felt familiar.
"We can't let the Lee Corporation get their hands on this, Brendon, and the only way to stop that is to get it away from the base. Do you understand that?"
Brendon shook his head uncertainly. "I've had barely enough time to do any analysis. I'm not sure what it is, let alone what it does."
"Neither am I, but people I trust have told me it's vital to stopping the Lee Corporation from unleashing a second wave that will kill or enslave the survivors of the Long Night."
The shaking became more pronounced. "I hardly understand a word of what you just said."
Solly came right up to the bench as Brendon put down the gun, looking for all the world like a lost child. "I don't have time for a full explanation, not that I have one, to be honest. I'm as certain as I can be that they were behind the killings, acting through the BonesWare—"
"Yes! That's my theory. Mine was offline that day. It's not a perfect theory, though, because there are many among the survivors with working BonesWare implants—"
"That's right. But I think they plan to unleash a second wave to mop up survivors."
Brendon threw his hands up in astonishment. "But why would they do that? That's insane!"
Solly shrugged. "I don't know, I honestly don't. My contact said they intend the second wave to enslave rather than kill, but he also said they were wrong, and it would lead to another massacre. Extinction, Brendon, that's what we're fighting here."
While he was speaking, Solly's ears strained for any sign that the fighting was getting closer. There was no time.
With a speed that surprised even him, he reached out and grabbed the gun before turning it on Brendon, who shrieked in fear.
"I'm sorry, I just don't have time to debate this. It needs to get away and I'm going to take it. I don't want to have to shoot you, I really don't. But if I have to, I will."
"Take it, take it!" Brendon said. He reached down and disconnected the cylinder from the diagnostic equipment and held it out to Solly at arm's length, as if it might infect him or even explode.
Solly took it from him. "I wish you well, Brendon. Keep yourself safe." He turned and ran back to the door before pulling it open.
"Solly," Brendon called from behind the bench. "One thing I did find out."
"What is it? Hurry!"
"There's a mind inside that thing," he called, his voice wavering. "It's alive."
Chapter 14
Jake's recovery had been borderline miraculous. It had been only three days since they'd arrived at Lackland Air Force Base, and most of that first day had been spent waiting to be processed.
Once Jake's condition had been assessed he was rushed to the base's infirmary and operated on within the hour. As expected, he'd signed his enlistment papers before being admitted and so, as he was now under the care of the military, Bella had been forced to wait in temporary accommodation until the news that the operation had been successful finally arrived.
She and Maddie had been allowed to visit him at his bedside over the following couple of days and by the evening of the day after their arrival, he was walking confidently on his bandaged leg.
"Look at this, Mom," he said before opening the locker beside his bed and pulling out military fatigues. He held up the jacket. "My name will go there: Private Jacob Masters. How cool is that?"
Bella forced a smile. "You know you'll have to follow orders, don't you? You won't be able to argue with every single decision like at home?"
"Mom, I'm in the military, of course I'll have to follow orders," he said, before sitting on his bed. "I've already started my training."
Jake handed over a small black device with a row of buttons and the words Basic Orientation on a paper label. "It's like an MP3 player. I've been told I have to work through the whole thing, then I'll be tested, and if I pass, I'll get to join my new unit for basic training."
"That's nice, dear."
"I didn't know Texas had been independent before, did you?"
"Yes, dear. But then I paid a little more attention at school."
Jake deflated a little, but then puffed out his chest again. "Well, whatever. I'm gonna help it be independent again."
"And New Mexico and Louisiana," Maddie piped up.
Jake shrugged. "I suppose so. My training only talks about Texas. Maybe in the other states they have their own training."
"What have you learned about the new president?"
"Oh, loads," Jake said. "He's a veteran, you know. Fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. Purple heart. Lots of other military awards. He saw what was going on after the Long Night and decided to do something about it. He's a great man."
Bella's heart sank at hearing him talk like this. In general, as with most teenagers, Jake wasn't impressed by anyone over the age of twenty-five, but this had all the hallmarks of an obsession. Maybe even brainwashing.
"Well, I hope he looks after you. That's all that matters to me," Bella said, as she sat alongside her son and put her arms around his shoulders. Wi
ll this be the last time I do this? she thought, then, pulling herself together, she looked up at the clock. "Visiting time's over. We'll come in and see you again tomorrow."
Jake smiled. "Good. I don't think I'll be here much longer, though. The doc reckons I'll be ready to go join my team in a day or two."
Bella and Maddie hardly exchanged a word as they walked back to the accommodation block where they shared a room. The base was a bustling hive of humanity and it had taken them a couple of days to get used to the crowds and the sheer level of activity. The place felt like an ants' nest preparing to make war on a neighbor.
They picked up a coffee each and took it back to their room. It was an adapted office block as the barracks were all being used by the military. Families of incoming recruits waited here to be assigned permanent quarters, and Bella wondered whether she and Maddie were going to be trapped in this new state or whether they'd be allowed out again. She'd been forced to reconcile herself to the fact that Jake was, for now, in the military, but she had no desire to stay here long term.
For one thing, the rules and regulations of the TLX were harsh and authoritarian. She'd seen no evidence of any civilian involvement in the new government, so all laws were passed in the interests of the military alone. Justice was fast and brutal, though this had only become apparent once they'd arrived at the base. The countryside outside Lackland was, to all appearances, at peace, but almost the first thing they'd seen when they arrived on the base was a group of prisoners in orange boiler suits being marched somewhere. They'd since discovered that, behind the makeshift prison block, there stood a set of gallows.
She wasn't completely naive. She knew well enough that strong government was needed in extraordinary times like these, but it was a thin line and, from what she'd seen, the TLX was stepping across it.
"Mom, what's this?"
Maddie had picked up an envelope that had been slid under the door of their room.
Bella ripped open the seal and read the letter inside. At the top was printed what she'd come to recognize as the symbol of the TLX.
To: Mrs. Isabella Masters 1029BH192
Miss Madeline Masters 1029BH193
You are hereby instructed to vacate your temporary accommodation and to report to the following locations to receive your work assignments.
Mrs. I Masters: Community Farm 14, reporting to Angelique Leguard
Miss M Masters: Cedar Ranch, reporting to James Ham
Full details follow.
"They're splitting us up?" Maddie said, her face white.
Bella was already pulling her coat around her shoulders and heading for the door.
Minutes later, she walked up to the front desk of the administration building and slammed down her letter.
"Who do I see about this?" she snapped.
The uniformed young woman on the other side of the desk read the letter and shook her head. "You don't like your assignments?"
"I don't like the fact that my daughter and I are being split up!"
"It's standard policy."
"To separate families?"
The young woman leaned forward and lowered her voice. "No, to assign different duties to women of child bearing age."
For a moment, Bella was so shocked she couldn't speak. "And which of us does this apply to?"
"Your daughter."
"She's fourteen!" Bella hissed.
The woman nodded. "I understand this is a shock, but these are challenging times and it's government policy to ensure that the birth rate rises quickly to ensure the future." It was as if she was reading from a script.
"You mean she's going to be married off!"
"She has been found a suitable match."
"She's fourteen!!"
With a little shrug, the woman on the desk said, "It’s always been legal to marry at that age in Texas."
After another momentary pause as Bella tried desperately to lubricate the gears of her mind, she grabbed the letter and pulled Maddie behind her out of the office.
"We're getting out of here," she whispered.
It took only minutes to get their belongings into the car, and only a few more for Bella and Maddie to rush to Jake's bedside and explain their departure. He was as shocked as they were at the prospect of Maddie being married off to a stranger, though it didn't obviously dent his resolve to serve in the military.
Bella wiped the tears of parting from her eyes as she sat behind the wheel. She'd told Jake that they were heading back to the beach house since it, for now, remained outside the control zone of the authorities. He was signed up for a year and, though even that seemed like an eternity, she doubted the authorities would let him out after so short a time. She was resigned, for now, to not seeing her son for the foreseeable future and so she sobbed as she turned the key. She had done her best to help him, but it was now her daughter she needed to think about
She remembered the words of Margaret, the little girl Ethan had introduced as his daughter. They were a fake family, but whereas Bella had assumed that Margaret had been adopted for her own sake, it now seemed likely that Ethan's wife had also been a stranger to him only weeks before. That wasn't going to be Maddie's future if Bella had any say in the matter.
The car pulled forward and Bella headed for the gate they'd entered through. The barrier was down, and a soldier came out of the guard box and walked toward her as she wound down her window.
"Yes ma'am?"
"I'd like to leave the base," Bella said, doing her best to keep her voice steady.
"Can I see your permit, ma'am?"
"Why would I need a permit to leave?"
The soldier removed his sunglasses and regarded her steadily. "Those are the regulations, ma'am. Movement into or out of the base is controlled by permit. No permit, no exit."
Bella sagged. "Where do I get a permit?" she said, resignedly.
"The administration building," he responded. "Do you need directions?"
"No," Bella said. There was no escape this way, and likely no escape at all—Lackland was, after all, a military base.
She turned the car around as the tears started again.
They found two uniformed men in their room when they returned to it.
"Mrs. Masters," the first said, a tall man with a crisply ironed jacket of yellow and green camouflage. "Please explain your attempt to leave the base."
"Are we prisoners here?" Bella snapped.
"You are citizens of the free states of Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico. As such, you have a duty to obey orders."
Bella threw her arms up in frustration. "What orders?"
"I understand you received your orders in the form of a memo this morning."
"They weren't orders, they were accommodation assignments."
The man nodded. "Exactly. You were instructed to prepare to depart tomorrow, were you not?"
"Yes, but I assumed that was only if we wanted to take up the offer."
"I understand. What you saw as an offer was, in fact, an order. I am pleased to clear up the confusion. You will take up your assignments."
"So, this is a police state now, is it? This wonderful new start for humanity? Where are we, North Korea?"
The officer's face tightened. "Not a police state, no. The people of the TLX are under military protection at present, though that is intended to be temporary. In the meantime, citizens who seek our protection and help are expected to do their duty and follow lawful orders."
"My son is doing his duty," Bella spat.
"And so must you," the man said, before turning to Maddie. "Miss Masters, please come with me. I think it best that you begin your assignment immediately."
"Mom!" Maddie cried, grabbing Bella's arm.
"You can't do this!" Bella said. "Please, don't take her away! She's all I have left."
"We have all lost, Mrs. Masters, and we must all make sacrifices as we build a new country for children. Your daughter will help with that."
He turned to the man behind him and g
ave a gesture.
The man, who wore sergeant's stripes on his arm, stepped forward, his face grim and held out a hand to Maddie. "Miss," he said.
"Don't let them, Mom!" Maddie cried, wrapping herself around Bella.
The sergeant took hold of her and gently, though remorselessly, pulled her away.
"Mom!!"
Bella threw herself at the sergeant, wrapping her arms around his thick neck and pulling him backwards. For a moment, he staggered as, with a shriek, Maddie was taken from his arms by the officer.
The sergeant brought his elbow around and caught Bella on the ribs. She cried out in pain, tears filling her eyes, as she fell to the floor. She scrambled onto her knees to see that they were already opening the door, dragging Maddie, who was kicking and yelling, through.
Bella howled at them to stop, but last thing she saw of her daughter was Maddie's red, desperate face as tears streamed down her cheeks. She screamed as she was bundled out and Bella sobbed until she felt as though she was an empty, soulless, husk. Father, son and daughter lost over the course of three days. Her world was now truly ended. She had no one.
There was the click of a key turning in a lock.
She spent hours there, lost in despair until her door was unlocked again and, feeling as though she needed to do something, anything, she went in search of Jake. She didn't know what she expected him to be able to do about it but was told he'd already been moved to quarters elsewhere on the base from where he'd join his new unit. Her mood, briefly galvanized by the thoughts of seeing her son, fell lower than ever and she shuffled back toward the civilian quarters without noticing where she was or what she was doing.
"The line's moving, lady," a gruff voice said from behind her.
Bella found herself in the canteen queue, a long gap in front of her. She moved forward, wondering how she'd gotten here and then realized how hungry she was. Clearly her subconscious had brought her here while her thinking mind was wallowing in despair.
She ran her tray along the counter, nodding and shaking her head as she went, then took it to the least occupied table she could find.
Scattered: Book 2 in the Thrilling Post-Apocalyptic Survival series: (The Long Night - Book 2) Page 11