by Chris Pike
“You ready?” Luke yelled.
“As much as I’ll ever be little brother. Let’s roll!”
Luke hit the gas, the tires spun, leaving a trail of grass and gravel. He made it to the highway and floored it.
Chandler crouched low and held on to the launcher, waiting for the helicopter to make an appearance. Flying low and fast, the chopper rose above the treetops and came straight toward the diminutive looking truck.
Chapter 36
Seated behind Burkov, Dorothy gauged her options, none of which were any good. The noise of the whirling blades drowned out the chatter in her mind, and her thoughts focused on her life and what she needed to do. As a single mother, she had struggled to raise Anna and provide a stable home. She worked two jobs, raised chickens, and when she had downtime she cleaned other people’s houses with Anna in tow. Dorothy regretted leaving Anna home alone so much, but had noticed her daughter possessed a mature quality other children her age did not. Dorothy now realized that quality would help Anna face her future.
She herself had been branded as a traitor, and once Burkov had paraded her around in the helicopter for everyone to see, the whole town knew it. She and Anna would be outcasts. She would probably go to jail for a long time if convicted of treason, thereby leaving Anna motherless. There was one person who would take Anna in though, and that thought gave her the courage she needed.
Dorothy thought about the events leading up to her current predicament, and she wondered if it was part of a bigger plan, one in which she would be a major player. Like a row of dominoes standing rigidly and seemingly indestructible, the entire line could be toppled by a tap or a wiggle, and Dorothy considered herself the defining domino.
Her life had had several defining moments, one of which was Anna’s birth. She was a heroic little girl who all by herself braved the night to find her mother the antibiotics she needed; the brave little girl who tried to defy Burkov; the brave little girl who tried to rescue Dillon.
Nothing would destroy Anna’s will and spirit, and it was now up to Dorothy to be the domino which could topple the rest.
She had the power now and she knew what she had to do.
In the folds of her shirt, she removed the grenade Dillon had lobbed into the helicopter. At the time when Dorothy surreptitiously hid the grenade, her actions had gone unnoticed.
Holding the grenade in her hand, she wondered how many seconds she had between when she pulled the ring and when it would explode. Flashes of scenes from war movies came to her, and she figured she had around five seconds.
A calming and spiritual influence washed over her and guided her next action. She grasped the grenade and looped her index finger through the pull ring.
“Colonel Burkov,” Dorothy said. “Look what I found.”
Burkov wasn’t used to being told what to do by an inferior, but something in her voice indicated steadfast resolution, and he didn’t like the sound of that. He held the helicopter steady then took a furtive peek over his left shoulder at her. His eyes dropped to the grenade she held. He neither blinked nor breathed for fear of startling her into accidentally pulling the ring. An explosion in a confined area would cause the most destruction and would be absolutely deadly, and he stood no chance of surviving it.
There was no noise, no commander to impress, no war to win, no politics to play. There was nothing anymore in the world, but him and her. He needed to distract her.
“Dorothy, don’t do this,” he said, his voice low and steady. “What would Anna think of her mother?”
“How dare you bring my daughter into this, you bastard.”
“Please, just think a moment. I can get you anything you need. Anything at all. I have connections in high places. You want a home. It’s yours. You want money. I can get that for you. Anna can go to the best schools in Russia, and—”
“Shut up! You tricked me once and you’re not going to do it again.”
“Dorothy, you’re a brave woman, and the kind Russia needs.” Burkov kept lathering on the accolades while his right hand moved toward his hip where he kept his sidearm. “I can get you a good job, if that’s what you want. You can teach English and I can get you the training you need.”
He unsnapped the holster.
She hadn’t noticed.
“You want me to teach English to people who would wage war against the United States? Then you don’t know me very well.”
In one deft motion, Burkov withdrew the pistol, aimed it at her, and—
The helicopter took a direct hit from a rocket propelled grenade, shaking it violently.
Dorothy stumbled and the grenade flew out of her hand and lodged next to Burkov.
The pistol fell away from him.
The chopper dropped dangerously close to the ground before Burkov regained control.
Out of the corner of the eye, he saw Dorothy lunge for the grenade. He reached for it at the same time she did.
With one hand, he tried to keep the chopper steady while struggling with Dorothy with the other.
She was stronger than he anticipated.
Before he could utter another word, she pulled the safety ring.
Burkov opened his mouth and screamed, “Noooo—”
A wave of panic gripped Burkov so tight he couldn’t breathe. He had a brief thought about the life he wouldn’t live and how all his cunning and posturing to become a general would be cut short by this woman. This inferior woman, and he cursed her with all the fervor he possessed. His life and all the pomp and circumstance which was his birthright came to him, and his goal of becoming general was within his grasp, so close he could taste the success.
A second ticked by, then another.
In one last desperate attempt, Burkov decided to jump. If anyone could survive the fall he could, and broken bones would be a small price to pay for his life. He fumbled to unbuckle himself, losing a precious second in the attempt. He bent over and took a step toward where the sky shined blue and the green trees swayed.
He grasped the edge of the door.
Escape was a second away.
Dorothy closed her eyes and whispered, “Anna, for you. Be brave for your mother. I love you.”
The grenade detonated the spare rockets, and the resulting fiery explosion ripped apart the helicopter and blew with such a tremendous force that the shockwave ripped off the tops of nearby trees.
Wire, metal, fuel, and indistinguishable pieces of the flaming helicopter rained down on the East Texas land. The cockpit landed with a heavy thud, gouging a furrow in the dirt.
Blades sliced through trees.
Pine needles sizzled from burning debris.
No distinguishable body parts were left.
* * *
Chandler, Luke, Holly, and Uncle Billy gasped at the explosion and a brief mixture of jubilation and horror followed at the realization that not only was Burkov dead, but so was Dorothy.
Their undulating emotions were cut short when another attack helicopter appeared over the treetops.
Chandler barked an order. “Man the guns and give them everything you’ve got!” Just as Chandler was about to let loose, he recognized the differences between the two helicopters. “Wait! Don’t fire. It’s one of ours!”
The attack helicopter bore United States markings.
Chandler had never seen a more beautiful sight. Whoops of elation, high fiving, back slaps, and general euphoria abounded among the ragtag patriots as the chopper laid down firepower on the Russians, who were quickly overpowered.
Minutes later, the American attack helicopter came in for a landing just short of the Mi-24 main wreckage.
A man stepped out of the chopper, and it was clear he was in command. He had on the uniform of a high ranking officer, his back was washboard straight, hair cropped short, and he carried an air of undeniable determination.
“I’m Colonel Samuel James, U.S. Army.” He took a sweep of the area. “Who’s in charge here?”
Chandler walked up to the C
olonel and extended a hand to shake. “I’m Chris Chandler. Dillon Stockdale is the man you want, but he’s out of commission for now.” Chandler waited for additional questions, but when there were none, he asked one of his own. “We’ve had no intel for months now. Can you tell us what’s been happening?”
“The Russians launched a coordinated EMP attack on the continental United States. There have been reports of massive casualties from the breakdown of infrastructure and resulting disease and starvation. That’s the bad news. The good news is that there have been pockets of people like yourselves who used guerilla style tactics to inflict as much damage on the Russians as possible. The United States of America thanks you, Sir.”
“You’re welcome. It was our duty,” Chandler said. “What about our borders? Are they secure?”
“Yes. That was one of our main priorities, and the reason we couldn’t get here before. We knew the Russians were in East Texas and gearing up to claim Texas as one of their sovereign territories. They wanted the oil in East Texas, and they were going to do whatever they needed to secure the commodity. Earlier today, we sank two of their ships in the Gulf of Mexico, and shot down several of their fighter jets.”
“We were able to do that?”
“Affirmative,” Colonel James said. “Several of our bases were EMP proofed, including our fighter jets and attack helicopters stationed there. I flew in from the Gulf of Mexico when we intercepted Colonel Burkov requesting reinforcements. We pinpointed his location and decided you could use the help.”
“It came just at the right time. Thank you. Can you tell me anything about the grid coming back on?” Chandler asked.
“We have teams working on it as we speak,” Colonel James explained. “Some of the major cities now have a few hours of electricity every day. I can’t tell you when your area will be resupplied, but with any luck you may get intermittent service. It should be enough to watch TV or to use the oven. I can tell you the Americans living in the country had it much better than those in the cities. We are working to restore law and order in the cities. Just know the government is still functioning. The President wants to rebuild America into a pre-eminent world power again.”
“That sounds good,” Chandler said. “We are very grateful. Feel free to check on us from time to time.” Chandler shook the Colonel’s hand when the pilot restarted the Blackhawk’s rotors.
“It’s been a pleasure. I hope to meet Dillon Stockdale on my next visit.”
“Before you go, I have a couple of requests. Do you have a doctor on board? Dillon needs medical attention.”
“I’m afraid not. I can give you a surgical hospital kit. Would that help?”
“Absolutely.”
“What else do you need?”
“Ammo. We are precariously low.”
“We can do that too. I’ll have my gunner deliver what you need. For now, I must go.”
As Colonel James left, Chandler saluted him. The colonel stepped into the Blackhawk and said something to the gunner, who immediately instructed several soldiers to deliver the ammo and the medical kit.
* * *
Three days later Dillon was resting in a makeshift hospital in Hemphill. He had been treated by Ryan, who used his medical school training to tend to his future father-in-law and the other wounded patients.
Andrey was sitting in a wheelchair, and although heavily bandaged, he was alive and would recover thanks to the antibiotics provided in the surgical kit. Due to his bravery and the fact he saved many American lives, he had been assured he would be given quarters and be placed on the fast track to become an American citizen.
“I’m glad you made it, Andrey,” Dillon said.
“Me too.”
“What are your plans?”
“I’m not really sure. I have a distant cousin in Austin, so I think I’ll go there.”
“Chandler’s folks are in Austin, and I’m sure they can help you. Did you know his mother descends from a Russian sniper?”
“That is quite interesting. I think I would like to meet her.”
“I’ll try to arrange it.”
The door squeaked open and Holly came in. She carried a tote bag with clean clothes, some toiletries, and homemade goodies.
“Dillon, how are you doing?” Holly asked, setting the tote bag on the nightstand.
“Not too bad,” he said. “Ryan tells me I can go home in a couple of days. I’ll be good as new.”
“I’ve missed you.” Holly leaned over and kissed Dillon on the forehead. “I’m ready for you to come home.”
“I am too.” He reached for her hand and held it in his.
“I’ll just leave you two alone,” Andrey said. “I’ll be in the waiting area.”
“There is no waiting area,” Dillon said.
“I know. I’ll pretend.”
After Andrey left, Holly said, “Anna is waiting outside the room. Have you considered what we spoke about earlier?”
“I have.”
“What are you going to tell Anna about how her mother died?”
“I’ve already decided to tell her that her mother died a hero.”
“How can you be certain of that?”
“The explosion that took down the Russian chopper came from within. It had to have been Dorothy. I think she must have kept the grenade I threw–the one I forgot to pull the pin on. I had a concussion and wasn’t thinking clearly at the time.”
“But what she did could amount to suicide.”
“Or a very heroic act that saved a lot of lives. We will never know for sure, but that’s what I choose to believe.”
“Alright. What about the other issue we discussed?”
Dillon didn’t answer the question. “Bring Anna in and we’ll both tell her.”
Holly went to the door and opened it. “You can come on in.”
“Anna!” Dillon exclaimed. “Come here.”
The wisp of a girl ran into the room and stood next to Dillon’s bed. He sat up, leaned against the headboard, and propped a pillow behind his back.
“Are you okay?” she asked hesitantly.
“I’m okay. The docs say I’ll be home in a few days.” Dillon patted the bed, motioning for Anna to sit down. “There’s something I want to tell you.”
Anna’s eyes became hopeful.
“I know you’ve had a lot of questions about your mom.”
Anna nodded.
“Your mom died a hero, Anna. You should be very proud of her. We all are.”
Anna’s gaze fell to the floor. “I heard some people say bad things about her.”
“Listen to me, Anna. Grownups aren’t perfect, and when you grow up you’ll understand that. We all make mistakes, including your mother, but that didn’t make her a bad person. She did what she had to do to protect you. We heard from one of the Russian soldiers who told us Colonel Burkov threatened your mom that if she didn’t cooperate, he’d hurt you.”
Anna’s eyes got big. “Is that true?”
“I’m afraid it is. He can’t hurt you anymore, because your mom made sure of that. She sacrificed her life so you’d be safe.”
“I wish she was still here. I’m really sad.”
“I know.”
“Did it hurt when she died?” Anna’s face was flushed and her eyes red and teary.
Dillon reached under his pillow to get a Kleenex then wiped away a tear on her cheek. “No Anna, your mom didn’t feel any pain. The moment someone dies, it’s very peaceful, and there’s no pain, only the love of our Heavenly Father.”
“How do you know?”
“Anna, I’ve never told anyone this. I was visited by an angel once. It happened when I drowned in the swamp, before Holly saved me. When the moment came, when I died, it was the most peaceful feeling in the whole world.” Dillon cleared his throat and swallowed a lump that had formed. “It’s hard to explain because it’s not an Earthly feeling. It was warm and peaceful. I had no worries, and I was blissfully happy. Do you understand?”
/> “I don’t know.”
“Well, let me help you. Have you ever held a warm puppy in your hands?”
“I have.”
“Were you gentle with the puppy?”
“I was.”
“And were you happy?”
Anna nodded.
“It’s a little like that. Heaven is like holding a warm puppy. Right now, I know your mom is happy, not because she isn’t with you, but because she’s in Heaven. That was her eternal reward when she sacrificed herself so all of us would be safe. She died a hero, and that’s something only the bravest of people can do. So don’t listen to anyone who says anything different. Promise me that.”
“I promise,” Anna said, sniffling. “What’s going to happen to me? I don’t have anywhere to live.”
“Holly and I have been discussing something else.”
“What?”
Holly came forward and took a seat next to Anna. “Sweetie,” Holly said, “Dillon and I want you to be our daughter. We want to adopt you. But we want to know what you think about that first.”
Anna’s gaze flicked from Holly to Dillon then back to Holly.
“But you’re not even married,” Anna said.
Dillon and Holly broke out laughing.
“We will be soon,” Dillon assured her.
“Okay.” Anna scratched her chin. “Does that mean Cassie will be my big sister?”
“She will be. I’ve already talked to her and she’s excited for you to be her little sister. She’s an only child, but won’t be if you become our daughter. So…what do you say, Anna?”
“Umm, I think it’s okay.” Anna perked up. “Can I get a dog?”
“That would be a great idea, especially since Buster is missing,” Dillon said. “Perhaps we can get you a puppy.”
Anna nodded. “I’d be really gentle with the puppy, and I think my mom would approve of me living with you and Holly. So you’ll be my new parents?”
“We’ll be your parents forever.”