by Robert Boren
Kim looked at him. “Seems so long ago that we were in Florida.”
“Yep, it was a different world,” Eric said. “Wonder what’s going on there. We don’t get much news.”
“I read that the states south of Virginia have all thrown off martial law,” Kim said.
“Yeah, heard that too, but it was quite a while ago.”
“Morning,” Rachel said, sitting outside the Brave. “You’re up early.”
“So are you,” Eric said. “Junior up?”
“No, he got a late call from the Governor last night, and had some trouble getting back to sleep.”
“Uh oh,” Kim said. “Problems?”
“They needed somebody to look at the apps for them,” Rachel said.
“Why doesn’t Hogan give them the apps?” Kim asked.
“Initially, Hogan’s team was afraid they’d use it too much in Texas, and give away its existence,” Eric said. “I think they had a tough time with the decision to give them to us, too.”
“Really?” Kim asked. “We were lucky, then.”
“They gave them to us when we started helping them with the New Mexico problem, remember?” Rachel said.
“Yep,” Eric said, “and they could pull them back when we cross over into Texas again, but I doubt they will.”
“Why do you doubt it?” Kim asked.
“They’re almost finished with the apps,” Eric said. “They’ll be released to everybody when they’re done.”
“Oh,” Kim said. “Do you think this war is close to over?”
“No,” Eric said. “The major part might be ending before too long, but we’ve got so many enemy fighters in our country. It’ll be a huge battle to get rid of all of them.”
“Where’s Junior?” Kelly asked as he came out of his trailer, Brenda following him.
“Quiet!” Rachel said. “He’s sleeping. Got a call from Governor Nelson last night. Messed up his sleep.”
“Oh, sorry,” Kelly said.
“Why’d Nelson call him instead of Jason?” Brenda asked.
“We got no leaders here,” Kelly said.
“True, but Jason works for Ramsey, and Ramsey’s part of the leadership team,” Eric said.
“Oh, yeah,” Kelly said, “forgot about that. I don’t think of Jason as an Austin cop anymore. He used to be the enemy.”
Brenda chuckled. “Yep.”
“Funny how things work out,” Eric said.
“Sure is,” Kelly said. “Jason’s one of the people I know who I’d risk my life for.”
“I think most of us in the group would give up our lives for each other,” Kim said.
“Yeah, it’s a beautiful thing, actually,” Kelly said. “Now let’s stop this before I start bawling like a baby.”
“Have you guys been watching the apps?” Eric asked.
“Yeah,” Kelly said. “Was going to chat with Junior about it. The enemy is moving west on I-40. It’s like they know the next target on our list.”
“I don’t think they have a mole telling them that,” Rachel said. “Look at the map. It’s the only objective that makes any sense at all.”
“She’s right,” Eric said. “I’m going to propose that we go into Arizona and crank up Highway 191 to I-40. Blast the hell out of it.”
Rachel smiled. “That’s a damn good idea. Think we can still get support in Arizona?”
“That’s something we need to find out,” Eric said.
“We should discuss it in our meeting this morning,” Kelly said.
“I agree,” Kim said. “Eric, maybe you should pose the question to Jason so he can start looking at it ahead of the meeting. He can probably send questions to Ramsey and the others too.”
“It’s almost seven now,” Eric said. “Maybe we ought to wander over there.”
“I’ll go if you need some moral support,” Kelly said. “Send him a text and see if they’re up.”
Eric nodded, pulling his phone out. He sent the text, then turned to Kim. “Let’s take Paco back and feed him.”
Kim nodded in agreement.
“We’ll come back by here on the way,” Eric said. “Maybe Junior will be awake by then.”
“Does he need to be there?” Rachel asked.
“He’s the last person who talked to the leadership team,” Eric said. “He probably knows some things we don’t. Something kept him up last night.”
“Good point,” Rachel said, watching them walk away.
“This group blows me away,” Kim said. “So little fear. So much rational thinking.”
“Yep, we’ve got a good mix of people,” Eric said as he opened the door of the coach. Paco scampered up the steps. “Somebody’s hungry.”
“He’s always hungry,” Kim said. “I’ll feed him. You can pack up your laptop.”
“Okay,” he said. “I want to eat, too. Maybe a granola bar or something.”
“Good idea,” Kim said as she got Paco’s food out. “Was Kelly really some kind of outlaw?”
Eric laughed. “He was a redneck, from what Jason and Kyle told me, but they never had any real serious issues with him. I heard he and Junior were banned for life from the Salt Lick.”
“The Salt Lick?”
“You remember, that barbeque place near Dripping Springs. It’s famous.”
“Oh, I remember something about it,” Kim said. “Why were they banned for life?”
“Drunk and disorderly, and brawling,” Eric said. His phone dinged. “Jason’s ready for us any time.”
“Good.” Kim set Paco’s food on the floor. He attacked it like it was the last meal he’d ever get. She plopped onto the couch, Eric handing her a granola bar. They ate silently, washing them down with what was left of their coffee.
“Ready?” Eric asked.
Kim nodded yes, and they left the coach, picking up Kelly and Junior along the way.
“Get enough sleep, Junior?” Eric asked.
“Shut up,” Junior said, shaking his head.
“What kept you awake?” Kim asked.
“Big Bend, Dallas, and the gulf coast,” Junior said. “Also Mexico.”
“I thought the gulf coast was safe now, with the US Navy patrolling it,” Eric said.
“Something’s wrong down there,” Junior said. “I was looking at it with the long-range app. Lots of enemy ships there again. There were none a week ago.”
“Shit,” Eric said.
“What’s going on in Mexico?” Kelly asked.
“Movement of a huge number of troops,” Junior said. “Looks like they’re fixing to waltz right over the border, either in New Mexico or Arizona.”
“Dammit,” Eric said. “Maybe we shouldn’t get so anxious to cross back over into Texas.”
“Bite your tongue,” Brenda said.
Jason was waiting for them outside his rig, setting up chairs under the awning. The sun was already heating things up. “Morning. Have a seat. Want more coffee?”
Nobody wanted any. Everybody but Eric sat down. He fumbled with his laptop, then showed it to Jason and the others, explaining the route they could take to hit I-40.
Jason thought about it for a moment.
“Well?” Junior asked.
“We need to talk to the leadership team. I don’t know what kind of agreements they made about us. They might not want us crossing into Arizona.”
“That’s why we’re here,” Eric said. “Thought it would be a good idea to check this out before the meeting.”
Jason reached for his phone. “Might be too noisy out here to do a conference call.”
“Anybody in that Parks and Rec building yet?” Junior asked. “Maybe we could move this discussion in there.”
“That would be good,” Eric said. “I could plug this laptop in. It’s almost out of battery.”
“Okay, let’s go,” Jason said. He stuck his head into the coach. “Honey, we’re going to the Parks and Rec building to have a conference call. Want to join?”
“No, I’ll
stay here with Chelsea.”
The group walked across the wide field to the park property, and went through the doors into the building. Don and Sydney were already there with their social media team, setting up on a row of tables near the back.
“What’s up?” Sydney asked.
“We need to get the leadership team on the horn,” Junior said. “Too noisy outside.”
“We’ll keep it down to a dull roar over here,” Don said.
Jason led the team to the far end, picking out a table close to an electrical outlet. Eric pulled out his laptop power cord as Jason made the call. After a moment, Jason put the cellphone on speaker and put it in the middle of the table. “Hear us okay?”
“Yes,” Maria said. “They’ll be on in just a minute, okay?”
“Sounds good,” Jason said.
“Jason?” Ramsey asked.
“Good morning,” he said. “Got you on speaker. There’s a handful of our core group here.”
“Good morning,” Ramsey said. “The Governor will be here in a second, and we’re patching in Gallagher and Wallis.”
“You guys were probably up later than I was,” Junior quipped.
“It was a late night,” Ramsey said.
“Hi, all,” Nelson said. “We got Gallagher and Wallis yet?”
“Just coming on now, sir,” Maria said.
“It starting?” Hendrix asked in the background.
“Yes,” Ramsey said. “Pull up a chair.”
“Gallagher and Wallis are on,” Gallagher said.
“Good, then I think we have a quorum,” Nelson said. “What’s on your minds?”
“Go ahead Eric, it was your idea,” Jason said.
“Okay,” Eric said. “I noticed last night that the enemy fighters are heading west on I-40 from Albuquerque. Don’t think we can follow I-25 up to that junction and do what we need to do. I’d like to suggest an alternative.”
“Go ahead,” Nelson said.
“I propose that we go west into Arizona and take Highway 191 up to I-40. Then we can take out the roads there, and come back south, taking Route 60 east, ruining it as we make our way back to Texas.”
“We need to chat with General Hogan about that,” Wallis said.
“I agree,” Nelson said. “We can’t assume that he’ll be okay with us taking those apps into Arizona.”
“That’s why we wanted to talk,” Jason said.
“Let me see if the General is available,” Gallagher said. “Be right back.”
“Pull up a map, okay?” Hendrix asked.
“On it,” Maria said. There was murmuring on the leadership side as they waited for General Hogan. Jason shot a glance to Eric, who held up his phone with the app running.
“Look,” Eric whispered. “They’ve increased the number of people they put on I-40.”
“Hello, everybody,” General Hogan said over the line, sounding less clear than the others. “Sorry, the connection here isn’t the greatest.”
“Thanks for joining, General Hogan,” Nelson said. “Our Fort Stockton group has a suggestion. We wanted to run it by you.”
“Shoot,” Hogan said, “but make it fast. We’ve got some problems to deal with up here.”
“Will do,” Nelson said. “The enemy is flooding I-40 west of Albuquerque. That cuts our ability to head that direction and blow up the road.”
“Dammit,” General Hogan said. “Haven’t been watching down there for a while. So you want to bring your folks back into Texas?”
“No, the team had a suggestion,” Nelson said. “They want to go into Arizona and use Highway 191 to get up to I-40.”
“Hmmm,” General Hogan said. “Just a second, let me look at my app and the map.”
“Thanks,” Nelson said.
“I see what you’re talking about. I have no problem with this, but be aware that there’s been a lot of enemy activity along that corridor. Not huge numbers, but frequent hits.”
“We’ve been seeing that too,” Eric said, “but it’s not nearly the hornet’s nest that the junction between I-40 and I-25 is now.”
“Agreed,” General Hogan said. “I’ll leave this up to your team. You can either send them that way or bring them back into Texas. Don’t risk them going up I-25.”
“Okay, General,” Wallis said. “Thanks.”
“I’ve got to run, folks,” General Hogan said. “Godspeed, whichever way you decide. Shoot me a text, though.”
“Will do, General,” Gallagher said. “Thanks for your time.”
Hogan’s line went dead.
“Okay, you heard the man,” Nelson said.
“Do you want them to just come home?” Hendrix asked. “We’ve got a lot of problems here.”
“No, I’d like to bust I-40,” Nelson said. “It will take a lot of pressure off Hogan’s forces, and that will help us in the long run.”
“You guys all okay with that?” Ramsey asked.
Jason smiled. “I’m okay with it, but we’re about to have a meeting with the whole group. If we get pushback from the team, I’ll get back with you right away.”
“Fair enough,” Ramsey said. “What do you think, Governor?”
“I’m good, just let us know if you’re coming home instead,” Nelson said. “Fair enough?”
“Fair enough,” Jason said. “Thanks.”
“Talk to you later,” Ramsey said.
The call ended.
“Well, there you have it,” Eric said.
“Should we mention to the team that we have the option of going home?” Brenda asked.
“Yes,” Jason said. “We’ve always been honest and above board with our people, and I don’t want to stop that now.”
“I wouldn’t be so anxious to get back to Texas anyway,” Junior said. “They’ve got a huge mess. The operations we’ll be doing when we get back will be at least as bad as this one.”
Kelly chuckled. “Yep, that’s for sure.”
Jason glanced at all of them, making eye contact with each. “Okay, then let’s break for now. Meeting in an hour, okay? Spread the word.”
“All right,” Eric said.
The group dispersed.
Chapter 14 – Cut or Run
Maria shut down the call as Governor Nelson, Hendrix, and Ramsey sat silently.
“Part of me wishes they’d decide to come home,” Ramsey said.
“Funny, I was thinking the same thing,” Nelson said. “What do you think, Kip?”
Kip eyed them for a moment, then sighed. “I think we should stay on target. General Hogan knows this will only be a temporary fix, but he still wants us to do it.”
“Temporary fix?” Ramsey asked.
“Yeah,” Hendrix said. “There’s not a spot on that part of I-40 that we can mess up to the extent that we did on I-25 over the river. No big bridges that the enemy can’t get around.”
“Then why should we bother?” Ramsey asked.
“It will be a magnet for their forces, at least for a few weeks,” Hendrix said, “and the alternative is worse for us. If we bring our folks back, they’re liable to be followed by a good portion of the enemy fighters who’d otherwise be fixing the road.”
“Shit, you’re right,” Nelson said. “Maybe we should be a little more firm on the mission.”
“They already know,” Hendrix said. “They’ll go into Arizona. They know it’s the best play.”
“Okay, you’ve sold me,” Nelson said. “Those people are wicked smart.”
“Well, hopefully they get it done fast and get back here in a hurry,” Ramsey said. “The big group that was helping them doesn’t have the leadership they need to be effective. The core group does that function. We need the focus back.”
“And we’ll get it,” Nelson said.
“It’s too bad that so many of our National Guard officers turned out to be dirty,” Ramsey said. “We’re so short on leadership.”
“Speaking of that, what happened with the DPS folks?”
“Wal
lis was still waiting to hear during that last call,” Ramsey said. “Want to call him?”
“Nah, he’ll get with us as soon as he knows,” Nelson said. “Maybe we ought to have some coffee.”
“I made some right before this call,” Hendrix said. “Ought to be done by now.”
“Good, let’s go,” Nelson said, standing up. Then the console beeped.
“Speak of the devil,” Hendrix said.
“Yep, call coming in from Wallis,” Maria said. “I’ll get it set up, and then go get coffee for you guys, okay?”
“Fair enough, Maria,” Nelson said. “Thanks.”
Wallis and Gallagher’s faces showed up on the screen, both grinning ear to ear.
“Looks like good news for a change,” Nelson said, rolling his chair closer.
“We rescued the DPS folks,” Wallis said. “They’re getting debriefed now. We also sunk sixteen enemy ships in the gulf.”
“Excellent job,” Nelson said. “Now let’s see what the EU and the UN do.”
“I could care less what those assholes do,” Ramsey said.
Hendrix and Nelson laughed.
“Tell us what you really think,” Gallagher said, grinning. “We might have some repercussions, but it won’t be much. We aren’t the priority. All the states with martial law are rebelling now. Just got some info off the wire.”
“Even California?” Hendrix asked.
“Especially California,” Gallagher said. “Ivan the Butcher. That guy’s a riot. He’s giving Daan Mertins fits. Most of LA and Orange County have been liberated.”
“Good, hope they continue to drive them out,” Nelson said. “What’s going on with Richardson and the crew?”
“After their debriefing, they’re going to need some sleep,” Wallis said. “Then we’ll have to decide what to do with them. We’ve got boats, but only one crew at this point.”
“Put them on training,” Ramsey said. “We should be able to find them some recruits. Running those boats isn’t rocket science.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking,” Wallis said. “That’s why this group was so important. Especially Richardson. He’s the best man I have left.”
“Okay, you go tend to that,” Nelson said. “I want to talk to some of my contacts about fallout of us operating in the gulf. Talk to you guys later.”
