by Steven Bird
Hearing both engines of the Baron cough and belch themselves to life as the propellers began to spin, Jessie rounded the corner, cocked the hammer and fired at the cockpit. Cocking the hammer and firing a second shot, Jessie saw a bright flash of muzzle blast as well as the accompanying crack of the shotgun’s powerful muzzle report as Peronne fired the shotgun with one hand out the co-pilot side-entry door as he began taxiing the aircraft with his feet and free hand at the controls.
Speeding out of the hangar, wildly swerving the aircraft to the left and taxiing under what was near takeoff power, Peronne headed for the runway while Jessie fired the last remaining shots from his revolver, seemingly having no impact on the aircraft as it sped away.
Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Jessie saw one of Peronne’s SUVs rapidly approaching from across the airport, following the trail of destruction that Jessie and Peronne had left during their vehicular pursuit.
Crap! Jessie thought as he began to retreat toward the hangar while he simultaneously flipped open the loading gate on his pistol, ejecting the spent shell casings as he ran, in preparation to reload. Stopping just short of the hangar, Jessie saw a woman behind the wheel of the vehicle. “Leina!” he shouted as she came to a stop. To his surprise, he saw Angela exiting the vehicle from the passenger-side door, both of the women rushing toward Jessie.
Pointing at the escaping aircraft, Jessie shouted, “That’s him! That’s Peronne!
Turning back toward the SUV, Jessie watched as Angela pulled out her long-range precision rifle and ran as fast as she could, to get into a position to fire. As the aircraft reached takeoff speed and rotated into the air, Leina knelt down in front of Angela, who placed the barrel of her rifle onto Leina’s shoulder to steady her shots while Leina covered her ears, took aim, and fired at the departing aircraft. Cycling the bolt, chambering another round, Angela fired again, and again, until her five-round box magazine was empty.
As the three of them watched Peronne fly away, the aircraft slowly began to list to the left, entering a left-wing-low turn, spiraling down to the ground. The aircraft was completely destroyed on impact, bursting into flames, with its wing-tanks full of volatile and highly flammable Avgas.
Jessie walked over to the two women, hugged them both, and then the three of them stood there and silently watched as Chief Peronne’s wreckage burned into nothing more than a smoldering heap of twisted aluminum and ashes.
After several moments of silence, Jessie turned to Angela and Leina, and asked, “How? What?” as he tried to figure out how the two of them had joined forces to follow him in the pursuit.
Leina spoke up, saying, “I just couldn’t drive away and leave you there to die. It would have haunted me for the rest of my life. I would have rather died, right there with you. By the time I got back, chaos had erupted as Angela here, and several other townspeople had begun to engage Peronne’s men. She knew who I was. Evidently, everyone did. Anyway, we watched your trail of dust as you chased Peronne out of town, so we decided to follow.”
Turning back to view the smoldering wreckage, Jessie said, “Thank God you did. Thank God you did...”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Several weeks later...
As Jessie pushed his chair away from the dinner table at Jack’s home, he looked at Angela and said, “That was a damn fine meal. The best I’ve had in, well, years.”
“You’re welcome. It’s nice to have a semblance of normalcy around here again. I can’t believe how fast the town seems to be recovering from the hell that Peronne put us through.”
Looking to Jack at the head of the table, Jessie said, “Well, with Mayor McGuigan here in charge of things, I’m sure it’ll all work out just fine. How exactly did you con the rest of the people here into giving you that job, Jack?”
“It’s not something I was aspiring to be, trust me on that,” he replied. “I just want to help get some legitimate local leadership established, and get a militia made up of all of the people, the entire population of able-bodied adults, up and running, so that we never run into a problem like Peronne again. We will never be disarmed again. We will never let anyone, elected or not, run roughshod over our individual, God-given rights, ever again.”
“Amen to that,” Jessie said, as he raised his glass with everyone in the room joining him for a toast.
That evening, after everyone had gone back to their own homes and retired for the night, Jessie sat on the front porch with Jack, quietly taking a sip of home-brewed beer, made by one of the locals. Breaking the silence, Jessie said, “I just wish Leina hadn’t slipped away in the middle of the night like she did. I mean... I understand. She’s never going to be able to rest in this world without trying to find her children, but she didn’t have to go on her own.”
“Now, Jessie, you know as well as I do, that sometimes people need to set out on their own for a mission that even they know, they probably won’t complete. As a matter of fact, that sounds like the story of someone else I know,” Jack replied, taking a sip of beer. “Damn, that’s good stuff, all things considered.”
Noticing that Jessie had suddenly become tongue-tied as he stared blankly at the wooden porch floor, Jack added, “As a matter of fact, it seems to me, like you’ve got such a thing stewing in your mind right now. You know, you don’t have to leave. We just happen to have open, the position of sheriff, who will, of course, be our militia leader as well. Do you know anyone around here that has the qualifications to fill such a position? I think I might know someone who does.”
Rocking his chair back and forth, patiently waiting on Jessie’s reply, Jack asked, “So, Sheriff Townsend, do you know anyone who holds such qualifications?”
Looking up at Jack, Jessie replied, “Sheriff Townsend died a long time ago. I’m just Jessie, or J. T. now. And you’re right, I know exactly how Leina must have felt when she left, leaving nothing but a goodbye note behind.”
“You’re not gonna leave a note, though, are you?” asked Jack.
“I... I’ve got to...”
Interrupting him before he could finish, Jack said, “I know, Jessie. I know. Your soul will never rest either, just like hers. Just promise me, if you ever find room in your heart to be a part of a community again, that you’ll consider us here at Fort Sumner. We’d be honored and lucky to have you as one of our fellow citizens.”
“Thanks, Jack. I’ll always keep you good people in mind and in my heart. Take care of Angela, or rather, I guess I should tell her to take care of you.”
With a laugh, Jack replied, “Yeah, that’s a more appropriate statement these days. She’s something else.”
“You did well, my friend. The world needs more parents like you, if we’re going to make it through all of this.”
Answering only with a smile, Jack tipped his glass and took another sip of beer, as he and Jessie gazed out at the stars, enjoying each other’s company, for what they both knew was the last time.
~~~ The End ~~~
A Note from the Author
As I sit here before my keyboard, having completed my eighth book, I reflect upon what an amazing journey it has been. I’ve met a lot of people along the way, both in person and online, who have greatly inspired me to continue down this path. People from within the industry as well as readers have made this a true labor of love for me that I plan to continue for my foreseeable future. I thank you each and every one for that, from the bottom of my heart.
If I have not had the honor of making your acquaintance and if you like my work, please find me on Facebook at http://facebook.com/stvbird
and at my blog at http://www.stevencbird.com. You can also follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/stevencbird. In addition, my Amazon author page can be found at http://www.amazon.com/Steven-Bird/e/B00LRYYBDU/ where you can see all of my available work.
I look forward to hearing from each and every one of you, and may God bless you and your loved ones in all of your future endeavors.
Just as Jack and Jess
ie shared a drink in the final chapter, I raise my glass to each and every one of you, and offer you my friendship and thank you for yours in return.
Respectfully,
Steven C. Bird
About the Author
Steven Bird was born in Harlan, KY in 1973, where he lived until joining the U.S. Navy in 1992. He spent the next thirteen years living in Northwest Washington State, where he served on active duty for eleven of those years. After leaving active duty, he completed twenty years of service in the Navy Reserve retiring as a Navy Chief Petty Officer. While in the reserves, he pursued a civilian flying career, serving as a flight instructor, charter pilot, turboprop first officer, jet first officer, jet airline captain, and he currently flies as the chief pilot and captain for a corporate flight department based out of Knoxville, Tennessee. He has served in both military and federal law enforcement capacities and holds CFI, CFII, MEI, and ATP pilot certificates with numerous jet type ratings, as well as a bachelor's degree in eBusiness.
In his spare time, Steven has been involved in off-road motorcycle racing, competitive shooting, hunting, fishing, hiking, and myriad other outdoor activities. He currently focuses his free time on his family as a happily married father of three. He and his wife Monica have a farm in Deer Lodge, Tennessee, where they raise their own fruits and vegetables, in addition to raising horses, donkeys, chickens, Katahdin sheep, American Blackbelly sheep, and various breeds of cattle.
Steven Bird is a self-sufficiency-minded individual with a passion for independence and individual liberty. He puts this passion into his writing where he conveys the things that he feels are important in life, intertwined with action-packed adventure and the struggles of humanity.
