EMP [Collateral Darkness] | Book 4

by Tony Mastrolacasa

  “Man, it’ll be so nice to have some wheels again.” Mars said.

  “No shit. I just hope they find a lot of them because these little trucks are only two seaters. I can’t imagine anyone being interested in riding in the box.”

  “Any chance we can mount a plow to them?” Mars asked.

  “That’s the problem.” Xander replied. “They’re four wheel drives and I know they kinda look like Jeeps, but these things are way lighter. The frame is almost nonexistant up front. They were only designed to transport a couple of guys around and a bit of cargo. They all have ‘Rock-Grippers’ on them, so they might do alright in the snow, but they’re definitely not snow tires. I doubt they’d be able to push much snow even if we could mount plows to them.”

  “That could be a big problem, Xander. It’s mid January, man.”

  “Yeah, like I said, we gotta roll out soon.” Xander said. “The good news is they all have decent frames in the rear with hitches welded to them, so at least they can pull our snowmobile trailers. We’ll just have to see how far south we can get before we get snowed in. Whether we keep everyone together or not will depend on what we find. When Mick and his crew were cycling their way back up north, they said that they saw a few places that looked like they were doing alright.”

  “Joe told me they were all piss ant little places, a few cottagers working together.” Mars said. “He didn’t think they’d support more than a few of us.”

  “Well, if we can’t find a place big enough, we might have to split up into smaller crews. We’ll have everyone fend for themselves until the spring.”

  “And then what? Get the band back together?” Mars asked. “We won’t even know where everybody is.”

  “I’m not really sure.” Xander replied. “How many days until spring anyway? Just over 100 maybe?”

  “Depending on when we split up, that’ll take us to early April, yeah.”

  “So, that’s what we’ll do then. Pick a place that everybody knows and meet up there in 100 days. If they show, they’re in. If they don’t, screw ‘em. If we intend to get down south and take over some Mennonite or Amish community, though, we might need everybody.”

  “It won’t take many of us to chase out a bunch of damn Mennonites.” Mars said with a smirk.

  “We ain’t chasing anybody out, Mars. What the hell do we know about farming, let alone farming with horses? We’ll force them to surrender, disarm them and then have them work for us. It’ll take a lot of guys to keep an eye on everything, especially in a larger community.”

  “Do those people even have guns?” Mars asked.

  “Hell if I know.” Xander replied with a shrug. “They won’t once we get there. We’ll move into their houses and they can sleep in the barns with their damn horses.”

  “Maybe their daughters can stay with us.” Mars added with a wink.

  “My man.”

  ◆◆◆

  A few days later, Bray stood up from his seat at the kitchen table and looked towards the front window.

  “You guys hear that?” Bray asked, furrowing his brow. “Sounds like somebody’s coming in.”

  “Take a look, Kenny.” Xander said.

  Ken got up, jogged over to the front window and craned his neck to see down the road to his left.

  “Yup, looks like some trucks driving up the road.” Ken said. “Yellow ones.”

  “About time.” Mars said, getting up from his chair as well. “They’ve been gone for three days.”

  “Grab our coats, Kenny.” Xander said. “This better be worth the wait.”

  As soon as Xander, Mars, Bray and Ken stepped out onto the front porch, Mick turned into their driveway driving another Minecat UT99. Behind him, stretching far down the road, several others were parked neatly one after another. Apparently, when Mick was given a job to do, he took the matter to heart.

  “Awesome!” Bray said.

  “This is looking pretty good, boys.” Xander said. “How many you count, Kenny? I got 21.”

  “Yup, looks like 21 to me too, Xander.” Ken replied.

  “Every single one of them brought one back… perfect.” Mars said.

  They continued watching as Mick climbed out from behind the wheel.

  “What do you think?” Mick asked with a slightly arrogant smile.

  “I think you just made captain, Mick.” Xander replied.

  “I accept.” Mick said without expression. “Where do you want them?”

  Xander walked down to shake Mick’s hand and have a word in private.

  “Park them all inside the warehouse.” Xander said. “The other four are already there. You can have the men hook up the trailers, but we won’t start loading up our stuff until tomorrow morning. I want you to relieve all of the guards over there and give them the night off. You guys will be looking after the place yourselves until we move out. There’s 21 of you, so no less than seven guards on duty at any given time.”

  “You expecting trouble?” Mick asked.

  “We had another group take off yesterday. That’s 60 men we’ve lost this week. The last group tried breaking into the warehouse before they left, but the guards scared them off. I imagine they were going after the sleds, but most of our weapons and ammo are in there too. These little trucks might be just enough for the next bunch to give it a try. I’m sure everyone would love to get their hands on a few of these machines. I need guys I can trust down there.”

  “You got it, Xander.” Mick said. “I’ll figure out a sleep rotation.”

  “Good. Come back up to my place tonight at sunset for a captain’s meeting. Which one of your guys would you consider your number one, Mick? Your little brother?”

  “Not a chance.” Mick replied, shaking his head. “He doesn’t have the temperament. Larry’s probably a better choice. He’s the most dependable. Most level headed anyway.”

  “Then bring Larry with you and leave your brother in charge at the warehouse. I need planners with us tonight, not fighters. I’ve got a few rabbits that we’ll cook up for supper.”

  “Perfect. I haven’t had any meat for days.” Mick said. “I’ll see you at sunset then.”

  “There’s one more thing, Mick.” Xander said, grabbing him by the elbow and bringing him in close. “I’ve already told everyone that the warehouse is strictly off limits, so if anybody unexpected comes out there, don’t stop shooting until their bodies stop twitching.”

  After a short drive down to the first intersection, Mick turned right and led the convoy the short distance to Xander’s warehouse. It had been home to a cereal company at one time, but after sitting empty for years, Xander had purchased it for a song a few years ago. Originally intended as a place to store, repackage and ship out all of The Company’s stolen goods, it was now the housing location for almost all of their belongings.

  As a way of legitimizing his operation, Xander had opened it up as a restoration center, a place where people could buy a freshly restored piece of history. He even had the floor littered with several projects in various stages of completion. Despite the subterfuge, however, no actual work took place there. Instead, he had a few shops in town do the restorations for him. He would then buy them, display them on his showroom floor and pass them off as his own.

  The exceedingly inflated prices that he’d ask for them ensured that he maintained a decent showcase. Surprisingly, every once in a while some fool would come in and pay what Xander was asking, but for the most part the entire restoration business was only a front.

  Mick came to a stop by the gate and smirked as he looked up at Xander’s hastily installed sign. Parts of it had already fallen off.

  ‘ UDBURY

  VINTAGE SN WMOBILE

  RES ORAT ONS’

  As Mick waited for one of the guards to open the gate, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

  I wonder how many of those old snow machines they actually managed to fix up?

  He pulled into the fenced in compound and drove towards the bay door tha
t was already being opened for him. All 20 of the other trucks followed closely behind. He proceeded cautiously through the door as he transitioned from the cold and snowy outdoors to the warm and dry indoors. As expected, the temporary effects of snow blindness immediately took hold. As it slowly started to wear off, the warehouse floor began to reveal itself to him.

  These guys have been busy.

  Lining the walls were 10 double wide snowmobile trailers, nine of which had two meticulously restored snowmobiles strapped down to their decks as well as one pull behind sleigh. The first four trailers were already hitched to the four Minecats that they had found earlier in the week, so Mick backed up to next trailer in line. The other drivers waited for their turn to do the same. By the time all of their engines were shut down, 10 of their trucks had a trailer attached to the back of them. The other 15 were parked off to the sides and out of the way.

  “Welcome back, Mick.” One of the guards said as Mick got out of his truck. “I can’t believe you guys found all these!”

  “Yeah, it was a good score.” Mick said. “We probably could have found more if we had more time and a few more drivers.”

  “How far down you go?”

  “It was really hard to find any markers in the dark, but I’d say we were probably a kilometre below the surface. You don’t know black until you’re down a mine with nothing more than a little flashlight.”

  “Shit, man, I believe it.”

  “I’m sorry, what was your name again?” Mick asked.

  “Finn.” He replied. “I came in from Espanola a few months ago, just before you guys got back from down south. I was actually the one that greeted you when you guys came riding up on those bicycles.”

  “Oh yeah…” Mick said, feigning interest as he took in his surroundings. “That was a fun little bike ride… 175 kilometres with zero supplies.”

  “Ha! Yeah, me and my buddy rode up here on bicycles too, but Espanola’s only…”

  “…You guys been spending all your time in this warehouse?” Mick asked, eager to end this asinine conversation. “I don’t recognize a lot of you.”

  “Just about, yeah.” Finn replied. “We were assigned guard duty and they don’t really let us out much.”

  “So, who’s in charge of your crew?”

  “That would be Lane.” Finn replied, pointing to the group of guards over by the garage door. “The guy wearing the Dallas Cowboys jacket.”

  “You might as well follow me over there, Finn.” Mick said. “I’ve got a message from Xander for all of you.”

  “Sure, no problem.”

  Mick and Finn walked over to the guards and waited patiently for them to finish their conversation. Whether it was an intentional attempt to be disrespectful or not, Mick couldn’t tell, but the discussion lingered far longer than it should have. Already Mick could tell that he wasn’t going to like this ‘Lane’ guy.

  As he continued to wait, Mick took a moment to glance back towards his crew. When Joe looked back, Mick knew that his back was covered.

  “Alright, fellas.” Mick said, finally running out of patience. “Lane, you guys have got the night off. Tomorrow morning we’re moving out and we need you guys fresh and ready to roll.”

  “Who the fuck are you to tell me anything?” Lane asked defiantly. “I don’t take orders from some dick that just showed up a few months ago.”

  Mick smiled and sized the man up for a moment.

  He could be just putting on a show for his crew. I’ll give him one more chance to leave without a fat lip.

  “I’m Mick, the man in charge. I’m also a captain.”

  “Ha! Since when?” Lane said with a laugh. “I’ve been with Xander and Mars from the beginning and you’re a captain? I don’t fuckin’ think so.”

  “Listen, pal, I didn’t just spend three nights in a stinkin’ nickel mine only to come back here and be told off by some meathead with an inferiority complex. I’m only gunna say this one more…”

  “…What’s the problem here?” Joe asked, coming to a stop beside his old friend and leader.

  “There’s no problem, Joe.” Mick said. “Just go back with the others.”

  “Yeah, fuck off, Joe. Go back to picking your ass with…”

  …Joe threw a punch that landed right on the tip of Lane’s nose. Before Lane even had a chance to finish his insult he was already lying flat on his back with a face covered in blood. Mick grabbed Joe by the back of his coat as he attempted to jump on top of him and finish the job. Joe was a scrapper, but he was no heavyweight. Mick had no trouble holding him back.

  “Joe, that’s enough!” Mick shouted. “Back the fuck up!”

  As Joe reluctantly backed off, Mick instantly calming himself again and turned back to the guards.

  “Fellas, I strongly suggest you walk back to the neighbourhood and enjoy your night off. You can take this up with Xander if you want, but I imagine it’ll only result in you getting your noses broken too. Don’t forget to scrape this idiot up and take him with you.”

  “You got it, Mick.” Finn said as he rushed in to pick Lane up.

  “A night off sounds good to me.” One of the others added, quickly giving Finn a hand.

  They got Lane back onto his feet and held him for a few seconds while his wobbling legs stabilized a little. Then they slowly led him away.

  “This… isn’t over!” Lane shouted over his shoulder. “I’ll be back for you… fuckers!”

  Mick hung his head and exhaled loudly. He couldn’t just let a threat like that go unanswered. Unfortunately for Lane, Mick wasn’t the type of guy to shy away from dealing with threats.

  Why’d you have to go and say that, meathead…? Stupid.

  He waited for all six of the guards to get outside and then called out to them.

  “Hang on a second, guys.” Mick said as he walked out to them.

  “What? We not moving fast enough for ya?” Lane asked as he turned around with the others.

  Coming to a stop in front of them, Mick said, “Lane, you’ve gotta be the dumbest son of a bitch I’ve ever met in my life.”

  “Fuck you, assh…”

  …Without a hint of emotion, Mick drew his Sig and fired a round straight into Lane’s forehead.

  His men, startled and terrified for themselves, let Lane’s body slip lifelessly from their grasp. Then they waited helplessly with their hands raised hoping they wouldn’t be next. Not one of them made the slightest move towards their weapons. Their rifles remained shouldered and their pistols remained holstered. Mick’s pistol remained half raised, but firmly grasped in his hand with smoke still wisping from its barrel.

  “Do any of you have anything to say about that?” Mick asked.

  “No sir. Please, we’ll just go!” one of the guards replied.

  “Lane was a dick. We’re not like him!” added a second.

  “I won’t be looking over my shoulder for the rest of my life.” Mick said. “You make a threat against me or any of my men, you die. It’s that simple.”

  “We don’t blame you, Mick.” Finn said. “Lane threatened you. We all heard him.”

  “If I find out you guys ran to Xander and told him this wasn’t justified… I’ll come for you next.” Mick said.

  “None of us will say anything to Xander, Mick.” Finn said “Will we, guys?”

  None of them said a word. Instead, they simply shook their heads nervously.

  “Speak up, guys!” Finn shouted, demanding that they say the words.

  “We won’t say anything!” they all said.

  “Mick, you tell Xander whatever you want. That’s your business.” Finn said. “He won’t hear shit from us.”

  “Good.” Mick said, holstering his pistol. “Finn, this is your crew now. Strip that piece of shit of his weapons and ammo and drag his ass into the ditch on your way out… And before you leave him, make sure you all take a piss on that Cowboys jacket.”

  ◆◆◆

  “Mick, Larry. I thought I heard someo
ne pull in.” Bray said, holding the door open.

  “Xander leave you to prepare dinner by yourself?” Mick asked as they stepped inside.

  “Ha. No, he’s out back. Xander insists on doing all the barbecuing himself.” Bray replied. “Go ahead and take your stuff off and then you can help me with the drinks. He’ll be finishing up shortly.”

  As Mick and Larry worked away at their coats and boots, Bray went back to his salad. It wasn’t much of a salad really, being only a collection of pickled beats, olives and carrots, but it would do. Vegetables were particularly hard to come by, especially these days. Fortunately, vegetable canning was extremely popular in the Sudbury area, a fact that The Company had been quick to take advantage of.

  “Didn’t Mick have a woman living with him?” Larry asked, having a look around as he removed his coat.

  “She went back home a few days ago.” Bray replied as he sprinkled some basil into a bowl. “Mars and Ken are out right now seeing if anybody else wants the job.”

  “The job?” Larry asked with a puzzled expression. “I don’t get it. I thought those two were… together.”

  “Ha! We don’t keep girlfriends, Larry.” Bray said with a laugh. “We hire ‘associates’ to keep us company.”

  “Okay, you’re gunna have to…”

  “…These guys bring back women from town, Larry.” Mick said, deciding to explain it himself. “They have a kind of… ‘companionship for food’ program.”

  “Not just food.” Bray added. “Supplies and security for her entire household, even medicine and a doctor if anybody in her family needs it.”

  “They come voluntarily?” Larry asked. “You don’t have to force them?”

  “Nobody forces anybody to do anything.” Bray said firmly. “There’s a lot of people in town that aren’t doing very well. You might have a hard time believing this, Larry, but a lot of those desperate families have mothers and daughters that would love a chance to spend a week with us. I bet Mars and Ken end up with 20 to choose from.”

  “That’s unbelievable.” Larry said. “I thought that woman was Xander’s wife, the way she was acting.”