Fall of Houston Series | Book 5 | No Man's Land

by Payne, T. L.

  All the activity appeared to be concentrated upon the east end of the runway where extremely large, wooden shipping crates made out of one-inch-thick oak planks sat on the tarmac. There was a flurry of activity as the crew prepared for the cargo plane to land. They wouldn’t have long to recrate the gold and get it ready to be flown to the Port of Houston and loaded onto the Brazilian cargo ship.

  Will observed for several minutes before moving closer so he’d have a better view when the plane landed. When he heard the plane’s engines, Will’s stomach flip-flopped. He was filled with nervous anticipation. In minutes, he could possibly see his wife walking down the ramp. Will couldn’t bring himself to consider any other alternative. As he waited, he imagined their lives together, settling in at the compound in Williams Junction, establishing a home, and someday maybe even having children. Will smiled. Cayden would make a great big brother and Savanah was sure to spoil her new niece or nephew rotten. There had to come a day when bringing children into the world would seem more like a blessing again. They were all fighting hard to bring that day to fruition.

  Will tensed as the plane came into view. His eyes followed the C-17 as its wheels touched down and eventually came to a stop at the end of the runway. Will’s right leg bounced up and down as he crouched behind a parked vehicle waiting for the plane to taxi to the unloading area. Sweat poured down his face, and he wiped it away with his sleeve. A knot formed in his stomach as the plane began moving and eventually slowed to a stop to be unloaded. After an eternity, the rear cargo door slowly creaked open revealing two rows of Humvees.

  As the loadmasters ran to the plane and began unloading the vehicles onto the tarmac, Will shifted positions trying to get a better view inside the plane. After several moments, the Humvees had all been unloaded, the K loader was moved to the ramp, and several pallets of small wooden crates were removed. When the K loader backed away, Will spotted Colonel Sharp and a man he didn’t recognize approaching the ramp. Behind them were several soldiers from 3rd Platoon. The soldiers looked relaxed and relieved to be back on the ground. When Stephens appeared, Will stepped away from his concealed position. He wanted to somehow get her attention, but the pilot hadn’t shut down the engines and there’d be no way she’d hear him over the noise.

  Will craned his neck anxiously awaiting for the rest of the passengers to disembark the plane. He spotted Hogan and Collins from Team Lonestar but no one from Isabella’s squad. Will's inside twisted. She had to be on that plane. If not, where the hell was she?

  Stephens had gathered with three men Will didn’t recognize and was walking toward the hangar. Will slipped out from behind the vehicle and ran toward them. Someone called for him to stop, but he ignored them and kept running.

  “Stephens!” Will shouted. He was within fifty feet of her when he was tackled to the ground and his hands cuffed behind his back. Stephens saw the commotion and arrived just as two MPs pulled Will to his feet.

  “Was Isabella with you? Did her squad make it to the rally point?” Will blurted.

  The look on Stephens’ face told Will all he needed to know. She hadn’t made it. She wasn’t on that plane. He hung his head.

  It took some convincing and finally an order from Sharp for the MPs to release Will from their custody. As Sharp and 3rd Platoon prepared to re-board the C-17 and fly the gold the rest of the way to the Port of Houston, Stephens escorted Will back to his barracks and filled him, Jason, and Walker in on what she knew about Isabella, Fisher, and the rest of their squad.

  “Their last transmission was from somewhere south of Ellsinore, Missouri. They're safe, but their satphone died when they were talking to Colonel Sharp.”

  “Where the hell is Ellsinore?” Will asked.

  “Not far from the Arkansas border. They hadn’t made it very far after separating from your squad. They also reported that the combination of heat and terrain had been taking a detrimental toll on the horses. They’d stopped for the night when the ambush took place. Isabella and Fisher appear to be the only survivors of the attack,” Stephens said.

  “How bad are her injuries?” Will asked.

  “She’s okay. She and Fisher had stopped the bleeding in her arm. Now, we know this because they have the squad's satphone—but it died during Sharp’s last contact with them. That's all we know.”

  Will ran a hand over the top of his head. His wife had been shot and needed him, but he was stuck there two hundred miles away. He stood and grabbed his rucksack.

  “Where are you going?” Stephens asked.

  “I’m going to rescue my wife. It appears the Army is more concerned about getting the gold to Houston than going after two of its soldiers stranded behind enemy lines.”

  “Will, wait. You can’t do this alone. Just wait a second,” Stephens said.

  Will spun on his heels to face her. “Every second we wait is a second longer she’s out there alone without support or medical attention.” He clenched his teeth. “You know what they’ll do to them if they’re caught.”

  Stephens reached out and touched his shoulder. “I’m not going to let you go it alone, Will. Just give me a few minutes. Okay? “Let me try to round up a team. We need to be able to slip in there, grab them, and get out before Region Five knows we’re there.” She squeezed his arm. “We’ll be out there on our own. They won’t be sending a rescue team in for us.”

  “That’s screwed up,” Jason said.

  “With losing 1st and 2nd platoons, we’re down to the bare minimum, and no one with the expertise to handle a mission like this is available anywhere near us. There’s no one left to send.”

  “Who are you going to get to go with us, then?” Walker asked, sliding his arms through the straps of his own pack.

  Will hadn’t asked Walker and Jason to go. They all knew what it could mean. They’d been ordered to remain in their barracks. There were no orders to leave the base to rescue Isabella and Fisher. Will, Walker, and Jason would be declared absent without leave. Going AWOL these days was such a serious offense and they could face serious consequences when they returned—if they returned.

  “Wait here for me. I’ll make some arrangements and then send for you,” Stephens said, backing out the door.

  Thirty-One

  Stephens

  Little Rock Military Base

  Little Rock, Arkansas

  July 15th

  Event + Ten Months

  Stephens found Rank, Aims, and Harding at the dining facility. Rank ran his hand down the length of his long black beard as Stephens explained what had happened with Team Razorback and Isabella’s squad. She could see in the Marine’s eyes that he understood the challenges of the mission.

  “How many enemy troops did they report seeing?” Rank asked.

  “Fisher said the force that hit them in the night looked to be an entire platoon, at least. Maybe even a company. They were completely overrun before anyone really knew they were under attack. They were wiped out in minutes. They didn’t stand a chance.”

  Rank shook his head and pursed his lips. He glanced across the table to Aims and Harding. “That’s going to be quite a shit storm you’ll be driving into. You know that, don’t you?” Rank said, turning his attention back to Stephens.

  “I can’t leave those women out there, Rank. Isabella’s husband and two other men are going—I’m not going to be able to stop them.”

  “Well, shit fire, I just got here. I didn’t even get to finish my strawberry shortcake.” He spooned a scoop of it into his mouth, pushed his chair back and stood. “What do you say, Aims. Wanna go put some butt hurt on Dempsey’s army—again?”

  Aims lifted one shoulder and let it fall. “Why not? I’m free at the moment.” Aims looked to Harding who sat stoically with his hands folded in his lap. “I know you need to go to Austin and enter your report on Dempsey. I guess I’ll see you down there sometime.” Aims pushed his chair away from the table and stood.

  “Be careful out there, my friends,” Harding said, standing
and extending his right hand to Aims.

  Stephens felt encouraged. Rank and Harding were a start. Six people were better than four.

  “Who else you got going?” Rank asked as they walked toward the door.

  “So far, myself, the two of you, the husband, and two from his squad,” Stephens replied.

  “That’s going to be tough.” Rank stopped outside the door. “How far is Poplar Bluff from Fort Leonard Wood?”

  Aims scratched his head. “Two, maybe two and a half hours, I’d say. What are you thinking?”

  “You know what I’m thinking. I say we find ourselves a radio.”

  While Stephens went to procure the vehicles, weapons, and ammunition they would need, Rank and Aims went to make a call to their friends back in Missouri. Stephens had no doubt that Lugnut, Ryan, and others from Rank’s old group were loyal friends, but would they be willing to walk into another hornets’ nest for more complete strangers? Their odds of success and making it out alive would sure be greatly improved if Rank’s battle-hardened friends joined them. Perhaps they would have an interest in learning about the enemy army operating in their backyard. Dempsey’s army would no doubt present a problem to the Evening Shade group sooner or later. Stephens thought she’d rather know sooner if it were her group.

  Back at the barracks, Stephens found Will, Jason, and Walker going through their gear preparing for the mission. She handed Will a map. “I found a few more people to go with us, and I’ve got two Humvees waiting for us at the back gate. We don't have as much ammunition as I would have liked though. It seems you guys used up a shit ton out there already.”

  Will unfolded it and ran his finger up Highway 167 and Highway 67 north all the way to where she’d drawn the circle on the map. “Ellsinore,” Will said. “Do they have a radio--can we reach them by radio and let them know we’re coming?”

  “Not unless you want Dempsey’s men crawling up their asses,” Rank said, appearing around the corner of the building. “They’ll be monitoring all radio transmissions. If they learn there were survivors from that ambush, they’ll scour that area until they find them. We have to go in quietly.”

  “And we don't know if they even have a radio,” Stephens said. “Will, this is Rank. He has years of combat experience as a Marine serving in Iraq and Afghanistan prior to the EMP,” Stephens said.

  Will looked Rank up and down before giving the big man a nod. “Thanks for your help.”

  “This is Aims. He’s very familiar with Dempsey and his tactics. He served with him back in Illinois.”

  “I’m sorry to be meeting under such circumstances,” Aims said, stepping forward and extending his hand to Will. “We’re going to do everything we can to help you get your wife and the other soldier back.”

  Will shook his hand. “I appreciate that.”

  “Are we ready then?” Walker said, exiting the barracks followed by Jason.

  Stephens turned to Rank. “Are we ready?”

  Rank nodded. “Lugnut and the guys will meet us there.”

  Stephens surpassed a smile. Their odds of success just went up. From what she’d seen of that group, they might just pull this one off as well. As they loaded into the Humvees, Stephens asked Rank how he’d been able to reach his friends so quickly. It wasn’t like one could just pick up the phone and call someone these days.

  “You remember Quincy, Nelson’s Ham operator?” Rank asked.

  Stephens didn’t, she’d been too concerned about the gold and getting it safely back to Fort Leonard Wood to pay attention to who was who in Nelson’s crew.

  “Some of our group hung back at Nelson’s ranch. I had your comms guys radio Quincy and he got a message to Lug and the group. They sent word back that they’d met us there. They’ll come locked and loaded with plenty of Nelson’s weapons and ammo.”

  “We can sure use the help—and the ammo,” Stephens said. “Did they have any intel on Dempsey’s army operating down in that area?”

  “They didn’t know a thing about them, just about Nelson’s crew operating in the area. I’m sure Lugnut will be anxious to find out, though. That many traitorous bastards roaming the backroads is something they’ll have to deal with. Best to take care of it before it reaches the home range.”

  “So, you’ve dealt with these guys before?” Will asked.

  Rank chewed on his bottom lip. Stephens sensed a hesitation to discuss it. It could be that he didn’t know Will enough to trust him yet. She’d informed him that Will and Jason hadn’t been military prior to the EMP and that Walker had been in law enforcement.

  “We’ve gone a round or two with their comrades,” Rank said. He stared down at his boots. As everyone grew quiet, Rank appeared lost in thought. She’d learned about his history with Dempsey’s goons in St. Louis. Lugnut had given her the abbreviated version during one of their stops on the way to Fort Leonard Wood. He’d said it had changed Rank—made him more distant. Being captured and tortured would do that she imagined.

  Thirty-Two

  Will

  Southeastern Missouri

  July 16th

  Event + Ten Months

  Just south of Walnut Ridge, Walker turned their Humvee north heading back the way they had gone before days earlier. Will nervously twisted his gold wedding band around and around his finger and stared out the side window as time slowly ticked by. Walker was pushing the Humvee hard down Highway 67 toward the Missouri border. The second Humvee carrying Stephens and the two men she’d picked up in Missouri followed them. Aims was driving, with Rank wearing goggles in the turret manning the .50 cal, his long black beard hanging on for dear life, flapping in the wind.

  There hadn’t been time for Will to find out the details from Stephens about what had happened in Missouri, or how they’d lost their platoon, yet still retrieved the gold. The fact that she’d brought civilians back with her and the gold gave him an idea. She’d somehow managed to assemble a team of locals to assist her. It appeared that among the few survivors there were in the world, Stephens had happened to come upon people with the skills needed to accomplish her impossible mission. The mission that had cost two platoons their lives and stranded his injured wife and her battle buddy behind enemy lines. The folks who had helped Stephens must be a bunch of bad asses to have pulled this one off. The strong survive, Will thought. His wife was strong—she'd survive this, he told himself.

  Will had resented how happy the crew had been as they exited the plane after landing in Little Rock with the gold. He’d lost so many, and even though they’d secured the gold that would purchase the equipment and ammunition the country needed to stay in the fight, it had come at such a high price.

  As they approached the bridge spanning the Black River in the town of Pocahontas, Arkansas, Walker slowed the vehicle to a stop.

  “See anything?” Walker called to Jason, who was sitting in the turret manning the .50 cal.

  “The bridge is clear from what I can see. Hand me the binos.”

  Will grabbed a pair of binoculars from his pack and handed them up to Jason.

  “The cables are still there and the Humvee is in the left-hand lane where we left it.”

  Will leaned forward and strained to see for himself. The scene looked the same as they’d left it.

  “Is it safe to proceed?” Walker asked.

  “I say go for it,” Jason said.

  “What’s the hold up?” Stephens called over the radio.

  Will briefed her on the encounter on the bridge with their recon team. “Just making sure the bridge is clear now,” he answered.

  “Copy that,” Stephens replied.

  The Humvees crossed the bridge at speed and weaved through the town before turning north onto Highway 115 toward Maynard and the Missouri border. They were fifty-five miles from Poplar Bluff. In one hour, Will could be holding his wife in his arms. He didn’t know what their future held after that, and at the moment, he didn’t care. He just wanted to get to her before Region Five’s army did and get her
back to Texarkana, far away from the front lines. He’d worry about his courts martial for going AWOL when they returned to base.

  Not long after crossing the border, as they approached the town of Doniphan, Stephens instructed them to stop at a small convenience and bait store on their right. A Humvee sat in the parking lot facing the road. Walker pulled in next to it and the doors opened. A large man wearing a long beard stepped out, followed by three other men dressed in tactical gear.

  The Humvee carrying Stephens stopped next to Will’s vehicle, and everyone got out except Jason pulling security in the turret. Following fist bumps and man hugs, the group began discussing the rescue mission. Will and Walker stood by, listening in silence as the obviously more experienced men plotted their approach to the gas station where Isabella and Specialist Fisher were supposed to be holed up under the bridge.

  “Twenty-five miles is too far to hump it in this heat carrying an injured girl. We need to risk it and get closer, Lugnut,” Rank said.

  “You said they called in that they were overrun by at least fifty enemy. That’s a shit ton of combatants to evade. You know as well as I do, without being able to do proper recon on their position, we’re flying blind. Those bastards can pop out of nowhere,” Lugnut said.

  Will was with Rank on this one, solely because he wanted to hurry and get to Isabella. She needed medical attention and they didn’t know how much blood she’d lost.

  “I don’t think we have time, but we’ll wait here if you and Ryan want to drive up there and check it out,” Rank said sarcastically.

  Will didn’t know these guys’ history with one another but he sure hoped they knew what they were doing and worked it all out in a way that saved Isabella and Fisher. That was what the men had come to do. They’d driven there from their homes to risk their lives for two strangers. That, alone, spoke volumes about their characters. They were part of Rank’s group, and Stephens trusted them. Will had no choice but to trust them as well. He had to—Isabella’s life depended on them now.