Patriots Unleashed

by Robert Boren

“Hopefully not,” Kelly said.

  “Hey, man, there’s only sixteen bodies here,” Junior said. “I saw thirty of them before. I’d better check the apps again.”

  “That’s not good,” Stanton said, holding his phone in front of his face.

  “There’s at least five down there on the desert floor,” Kelly said. “Eric wasted them, remember?”

  Stanton looked over at him. “Some did escape. They turned around. They’re heading west on Highway 60.”

  “Some were far enough behind the main group to escape,” Curt said. “Dammit. How far out are they?”

  “They’re half way to Pie Town,” Stanton said, watching. He sent a text to his warriors.

  “You gonna have them get involved?” Kelly asked.

  “No, I’m gonna have them watch, in case the militia men decide to make a stop,” Stanton said. “I don’t want our warriors chasing these folks into who-knows-what.”

  “We can see the militia men with the apps,” Kelly said.

  “Well, yeah, but they’re friends with the people who hijacked our tank flatbeds,” Stanton said, “and those friends didn’t have chips.”

  “Son of a bitch, Junior, he’s right,” Kelly said.

  Stanton’s phone dinged. He looked at it. “They haven’t seen anything at the RV park yet.”

  “Good,” Junior said.

  They continued moving the rest of the bodies, and then Curt and Kelly got into their trucks and started pushing vehicles off the side of the road. They joined the others when they were done.

  “These folks weren’t very well equipped,” Kelly said.

  “They didn’t come here expecting a battle,” Stanton said. “They came here to receive weapons from friends.”

  ***

  “Hear that?” Carrie asked. The popping of gunfire drifted to them from east on the road.

  “Dammit, I hate this,” Kate said. “I hate not being with Kyle.”

  “Welcome to my world,” Carrie said. “You sure you want to get pregnant in a hurry?”

  “Yeah, pretty sure,” she said, gripping her BAR. “Hope they win.”

  “The odds are in their favor, big time,” Carrie said.

  “I know, but I still worry. I’d rather be in the middle of it than listening in the distance. This reminds me of the hog blind.”

  “Don’t bring that up,” Carrie said. “That almost killed us.”

  “Yeah, luckily Curt showed up to save the day.”

  Carrie chuckled. “You know, I used to dread when that guy came around. He was such a boorish son of a bitch, and he never did a good job of watching his language around Chelsea.”

  “Your opinion of him has changed some since then, I suspect,” Kate said.

  “I love him like family,” Carrie said, “although I’d never admit it to him or Jason.”

  “Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me,” Kate said. “I was just barely with Kyle then. We got to know each other fast.”

  Carrie snickered. “You spent the first night with him. Didn’t see that coming.”

  “That was only going to be a one-night stand,” she said. “It’d been a while. I had a bad breakup, and my life fell apart. That’s why I left the TV gig when I did.”

  “You never told me that.”

  “Nobody wants to admit they picked somebody up on the rebound. Especially a somebody who turns into a lifetime partner.”

  “I can see that, I guess,” Carrie said, “but I’ve never been judgmental about that.”

  “Most are,” she said. “How long is this battle going to go on?”

  “It’s only been about three minutes,” Carrie said.

  They sat quietly, listening to the explosions and machine gun fire. It went on for nearly five minutes and then died down, stopping completely after ten minutes.

  “Well, sounds like it’s over.” Kate said.

  “I told Jason to text me,” Carrie said. “Let’s see if he does.”

  Kate smiled. “I should’ve told Kyle that.”

  Carrie’s phone dinged. She grabbed it quickly. “It’s over. Jason and Kyle are on the way here.”

  “Thank God,” Kate said.

  “I’m texting the drivers, so they know not to shoot.”

  “Yeah, you do that,” Kate said. Carrie typed the message and hit send.

  “They got that fluid leak fixed, by the way,” Carrie said. “Jason forwarded the text.”

  “Good,” Kate said, watching Carrie. “Something wrong?”

  “No reply from the driver,” she said. “That’s not like him.”

  “Shit,” Kate said. “You don’t think there’s somebody out there, do you?”

  “C’mon,” Carrie said, grabbing her Mini-14. Kate picked up the BAR and they quietly opened the door, slipping out and getting to the road.

  “Listen,” Kate whispered. “Hear that?”

  “Snickering,” Carrie whispered back. “That didn’t sound like any of the drivers. Hold it a sec.” She backed up behind the closest of the flatbeds and typed a quick text message to Jason, careful not to let the light from her screen escape. “Okay.”

  They snuck forward, seeing three dark shapes by the front flatbed. Carrie’s heart hammered in her chest, and she glanced at Kate, who already had the BAR aimed. They crept forward. There was a body lying next to the flatbed, the men standing around it, one of them wiping a bowie knife blade on his dirty jeans.

  “Just a sec. I’m gonna untie Jasper,” said another man.

  “Maybe we ought to leave that worthless idiot here,” the third man said.

  “I heard that, you son of a bitch,” Jasper whispered loud from under the truck. “We ain’t out of this yet.”

  Two of the men got under the flatbed and kicked the hand cuffs till they broke off, causing Jasper to cry out in pain.

  “Dammit, you didn’t have to do it that way,” Jasper said as they dragged him out, ankles still taped together.

  “I don’t know how to pick those,” Gus said.

  “Yeah, me neither,” the second man said.

  “Screw you, Rusty,” Jasper said. “Help me with this damn tape.”

  “Peel it off yourself,” Rusty said.

  “You’ve got a knife,” Jasper said. “C’mon, and don’t nick me, neither.”

  “Bitch bitch bitch,” Gus said, watching Rusty unsheathe the knife and kneel next to Jasper.

  “If you wouldn’t have screwed up, we’d be rolling in dough right now,” Rusty said.

  “How do you know Phillip’s men didn’t win?” asked the third man.

  “Phillip’s men didn’t have machine guns, you dope,” Jasper said. “Ouch. Watch it.”

  “Boo frigging hoo,” Rusty said. The third man shook his head and laughed.

  “Shut the hell up, Kelsey,” Jasper said. “It ain’t funny.”

  “Like Rusty said, you shouldn’t have got took,” he said.

  “Knock it off,” Jasper said. “There were a bunch of men here. The three of us couldn’t have taken them.”

  “Yeah, but you were standing right in the middle of the damn road,” Rusty said. “Moron.”

  “Hey, Gus, there’s somebody nearby,” Kelsey said softly. “Text message just came through on the dead guy’s phone.”

  Kate and Carrie shot each other a glance and aimed their weapons.

  “Mommy, where are you?” Chelsea asked from the door of the motor home.

  “Shit,” Carrie said under her breath, as all four men whirled around and saw them. Kate fired the BAR, cutting down two of the men, but then a shot rang out and she crumpled to the ground.

  “Kate!” Carrie screamed, firing at the last two men with the Mini-14.

  To be continued in Bug Out! Texas Book 10, available now in the Kindle Store and Kindle Unlimited!

  Cast Of Characters

  Texas Hill Country Group

  Jason – Austin PD. Young man with family. Brave, trustworthy, great in a fight, loyal. Six foot four and handsome with thick s
able hair. Considered to be a high-potential employee by Austin PD. Responsible. Mid 30s.

  Carrie – Jason’s wife. Strong, brave, witty, smart. Short dark hair and delicate, pretty face. Girl next-door type. Has calming effect on Jason and others. Good in a fight, brave to a fault. Pregnant. Mid 30s.

  Chelsea – toddler, daughter of Jason and Carrie. Cute, rambunctious.

  Kyle – Austin PD. Partner of Jason. Large man, built like a linebacker, with sandy blonde hair and a sly grin. Cheerful, funny, great in a fight, puts on front of being player, but really a romantic. Worships girlfriend Kate. Mid 30s.

  Kate – strong, beautiful, emotional, witty. Former news reporter for a local Texas TV station. Fell hard for Kyle, carrying his baby. Temper. Early 30s.

  Kelly – leader of Rednecks. Huge man with long brown hair and a beard. Tough, gruff, smart, great judge of character. Strategic thinker. Man’s man. In love with Brenda. Mid 50s

  Brenda – half-owner of Texas Mary’s Bar and Grill in Dripping Springs. Voluptuous with bleach blonde hair and a slightly wild look. Deeply in love with Kelly. Extremely intelligent. Runs business side of Texas Mary’s. Strong but worries about Kelly constantly. Good in a fight. Mid 50s.

  Junior – Kelly’s best friend. A tall rail of a man with a thick beard, usually wearing a battered cowboy hat. Funny, crazy, smarter than most people realize, good in a fight, strong, loyal to the death. In love with Rachel. Early 50s.

  Rachel – picked up on the road. Black hair and brown eyes, short and thin, with a face of delicate beauty. Former drug abuser with difficult past. Lost only child to SIDS, which broke up her first marriage and led to the drug abuse. Leans on Junior, needs strong man in her life. Late 30s.

  Nate – co-leader of Rednecks. A small man with hawkish eyes. Shrewd, brave, temper, known to get into trouble, extremely loyal to friends. Always thinking. Mid 50s.

  Fritz – member of Rednecks. Tall and thin, long hair. Questionable past, can be cruel, loyal to his friends. Not as smart as Kelly, Junior, or Nate, but brave in a fight with good skills. Not one to tangle with. In trouble with the law more often than the other Rednecks due to temper. Early 60s.

  Chris – Brenda’s ex-husband and co-owner of Texas Mary’s. A large, heavyset man with a shaved head and goatee, giving him the look of a biker. Still loves Brenda, but the relationship has been over for years. Brave, careful, measured, good at business, good host, liked by everybody. Not as smart as Brenda or Kelly. Mid 50s.

  Curt – former police officer in Austin, and most recently San Antonio. Large man with a military haircut, clean shaven. Punched superior officer in San Antonio. Genius. Renaissance man. Understands many technical disciplines, creative, skilled. Has temper but with heart of gold. Likes to tease his friends. Would die for them. Skilled fighter who can turn the tide of a battle on his own. Sense of humor can be very crude but funny. Mid 40s.

  Simon Orr – dangerous leader of militia movement, trying to take over Kelly’s group. Large man wearing cowboy garb. Shadowy, cruel. Crossover character from original Bug Out! Series. Wants to become warlord. Playing against every side except his own. Mid 40s.

  Sydney – one of the Merchant girls living outside of Fredericksburg, next to Jason’s family homestead. Grew up with Jason and his brother Eric. Former teenage girlfriend of Eric. Beautiful, smart, funny, avid hunter and tracker, runs family moonshine business with her sister Amanda. Raven hair and stunning bright blue eyes. Mid 30s.

  Amanda – Sydney’s older sister. Raunchy, wild, aggressive, knows what she wants and goes for it hard. Beautiful, deep blue eyes like Sydney, hair bleached blond, contrasts with jet-black eyebrows. Tattoos. Smart, good negotiator, runs family moonshine business with Sydney, more technically savvy. Early 40s.

  Gray – leader of the bikers, originally from southwest Texas. A large man with black hair and a black beard. Brave and resourceful, suspicious of strangers, but loyal once he’s gained respect. Late 40s.

  Cindy – Gray’s wife. Nervous, small dainty blonde with tattoos and piercings. Pretty face ravaged by a hard life. Early 40s.

  Moe – owner of the Fort Stockton RV Park. Overweight and balding with a gray and brown beard, shrewd and strong, strategic thinker, protective, kind. Mid 60s.

  Clancy – Moe’s nephew. Scraggly thin man with a wicked grin and long stringy brown hair. Works at the Fort Stockton RV Park. Smart as a whip with good intuition. Outdoorsman. Protective of the group, good with technology, good at organizing and getting things done. Mid-30s.

  Brushy – owner of an RV Park overrun early in the story. He’s been missing for a while. Small man with a huge beard and long hair, about sixty years old. Good in a fight, fearless, crazy, funny.

  Pat – Brushy’s sister, owner of the Amarillo Oasis RV Park. She’s a couple years younger than Brushy, with a similar look. Short, robust, friendly, smart. Brave, angry at the invaders.

  Jake – owner of a farm house north of Lamesa. Joins the group at that point. Small thin man with a folksy way and a lot of heart.

  Daisy – Jake’s common-law wife. She’s feisty and rail thin, with long gray hair, sporting a Granny Clampett look. Smarter than she looks, always watching out for Jake.

  Jax – huge man with a blonde beard and a shaved head. Joined the group with a huge group of citizens. Gung ho, brave to a fault, cunning and loyal.

  East Texas/Florida Group

  Eric – Jason’s brother. Over six feet tall with a trim but massive build. Was living in Florida before the war started. Private Investigator working elder fraud cases in retirement areas of central Florida. Brave, very athletic. Fast, good with guns and other weapons. Smart, charismatic. Loved by everybody. Loyal to a fault. Mid 30s.

  Kim – Eric’s girlfriend. Red-haired, freckled beauty with a slim build. Tough as nails but gentle, head over heels in love with Eric. Mid 30s.

  Dirk – leader of Deadwood, Texas group. Medium sized man with a muscular build. Gruff, shrewd, brave, sentimental. Loves family and friends. Large man, muscular build. Late 50s, but a young late 50s.

  Chance – best friend of Dirk. Short and chubby but quick, good in a fight. Wise cracks a lot. Good mixture of smarts and bravery, but cautious. Mid 40s.

  Don – single dad widower with teenage daughter. Large man, average build with a conservative haircut. Kind and gentle, smart, protective. Lonely, misses wife. Brave but not really a fighter. Took in daughter’s best friend when her family passed. Late 30s.

  Francis – Don’s older brother. Local political figure in Deadwood. Older man, spry for his age. Smart, good strategic thinker, understands the meaning of events better than rest of group, sage. Mid-60s.

  Sherry – Francis’s wife. Younger than him by ten years. Still pretty, trying hard to live during wartime but having trouble. Depression. Mid 50s.

  Alyssa – Don’s daughter. Pretty, a little self-centered. Misses mother. Terrified of enemy after attacks on Deadwood. 17 years old.

  Chloe – Alyssa’s best friend. Orphan taken in by Don after both parents killed. Mousey, kind, smart, helps Alyssa to cope. 17 years old.

  Daniel – survivor of the Deadwood Massacre. Now leading an insurgent group on the eastern Texas border.

  Alex – Owner of the MidPoint 66 Café, who met the group during the I-40 battle. Older man, bald and heavy set, robust, funny.

  Kitten – Daughter of Alex. Middle aged, chubby with light brown hair and a pretty face. Waitress at her father’s Café.

  Stanton Hunt – War Chief of the Mescalero Tribe. Brave man, thoughtful, severed in the Army for years, friends with General Hogan.

  White Eagle – adviser and spokesperson for the Mescalero Tribe. Doesn’t trust the white man. In favor of keeping an alliance with the Islamists. Dangerous man.

  DPS Patrol Boaters Group

  Juan Carlos – young, handsome Hispanic, full of vigor and enthusiasm. Skilled boat pilot, brave and cunning. Family in Texas since before the Alamo. Loves the state, patriot. Mid 20s.

  Brendan – partner
of Juan Carlos. Also young and handsome, ginger redhead. Loves to joke and tease, but can be serious. Good with weapons, natural fighter. Mid 20s.

  Lieutenant Richardson – Leader of Juan Carlos and Brendan. Handsome man of average size and build with light brown hair. Tough, strong, thoughtful, loyal, brave. Headed for higher rank. Mid 30s.

  Lita – girlfriend of Lieutenant Richardson. Beautiful Hispanic woman with model’s figure and expressive eyes. Witty, smart, brave. Emotional, worships her man. Protective, mothering. Mid 30s.

  Madison – girlfriend of Juan Carlos. Emotional but brave, beautiful with thick blonde hair and curvy figure, college girl forced to quit due to war. Head over heels for Juan Carlos. Mid 20s.

  Hannah – best friend of Madison and girlfriend of Brendan. Dark haired beauty. Slim dancer’s figure, athletic. Self-conscious, afraid to be hurt, passionate, very deeply in love with Brendan. Can rally in a fight if needed, surprisingly brave when pushed. Terrified of losing Brendan in the war. Mid 20s.

  Captain Jefferson – leader of the DPS Patrol Boat group. Thrust into the position after the deaths of others. Black man of average height and build. Still learning, trying to live up to his position. Old friends with Lieutenant Richardson. Early 40s

  DPS Commissioner Wallace – overall head of DPS Organization. Strong, cunning, thinks several steps ahead of most others. Black man, large and imposing. Loves his men. Feeling is mutual. Early 60s.