by Robert Boren
“And where will you be during this?” Sam asked.
“There with you, if you’ll allow it,” Ivan said. “Jules and his team are also on the way to you.”
“Old home week,” Sam said.
“What does that mean, daddy?” Mia asked.
“It means some old, dear friends are going to join us, sweetie,” Sam said.
“You’ve got a daughter, partner?” Tex asked.
“Yep,” he said.
“Social later,” Ivan said. “I do not command you people. I’m running this by you all. Are there objections to the moves I’m suggesting?”
“I’m for it, as long as it work,” Ji-Ho said. “If help doesn’t really come through, we just opened back door to enemy. Millions of innocents are in danger.”
“If we don’t beat the enemy, they in danger anyway,” Jules said. “They just march to I-8.”
“He’s right,” Sam said. “Highway 94 isn’t even half the capacity of I-8, and there’s nothing to stop the enemy from getting on that big road and going full bore into San Diego.”
“I’m not hearing any objections,” Ivan said.
“Me neither,” Garrett said. “I’m for it. Let’s do this.”
“I agree,” Tex said.
“Me too,” Sam said.
“Okay, then let’s make some detailed plans,” Ivan said. “We don’t need to have the whole group together to do that.”
“Hey, everybody,” Seth said, raising his hand. “Something’s going on!”
“Who’s that?” Ivan asked.
“That’s Seth, our data guy,” Sam said.
“What do you see, partner?” Tex asked.
“Those two-hundred thousand enemy fighters from the north turned around. They’re going northeast. Most of them are on I-15 or heading in that direction.”
Ivan laughed.
“What’s so funny?” Sam asked.
“I think I know,” Jules said, a sly grin on his face.
“Well, are you gonna tell us?” Sam asked.
“My guess is that Saladin has been called back to the Utah base,” Ivan said. “He pulled a very stupid move last night, and it cost him a couple hundred thousand fighters.”
“What happened?” Sam asked.
“We happened, partner,” Tex said, a look of glee on his face.
{8}
Clackers
T ex woke up next to Karen before it was light, not able to sleep anymore. The plans they agreed to last night were spinning through his head like a North-Texas twister.
“Hey,” Karen said, turning to face him. “It’s early. You okay?”
“Nerves,” he said. “I’m fine, though. You can sleep some more. I’m getting up.”
“I’ve got a better idea,” she said, sitting up and pulling her short nightgown over her head. Tex smiled as she covered him. “My breath might be a little rotten.”
“I don’t care,” he said, his arms going around her. They made love quietly but passionately, ending up on their backs, Tex’s right hand intertwined with her left.
“What are we gonna do after the war?” Karen asked, turning her head towards his.
“I haven’t had time to give it much thought,” he said. “You have some ideas?”
“Do you think we’ll last together after it?”
Tex chuckled. “Still?”
“Still what?”
“You’re still doubting our relationship?” Tex asked.
“You said we’d be together as long as both of us wants it, remember?”
“And I’ve said different things since, remember?”
She turned on her side, facing him. “I’m serious.”
“What do you want to happen?”
“I asked you first,” she said.
He turned on his side towards her, staring into her beautiful face, framed by her thick red hair. “You’re really going to make me say it right now?”
She rolled her eyes. “I can tell when you’re teasing me, you know.”
He smiled, reaching to brush her hair from her eyes. “You’re the love of my life. I hoped that would be the case when I was pursuing you. I’m pretty sure now.”
“Pretty sure?”
He chuckled. “When I say pretty it means very. You know that. Why do women ask questions about things when they already know the answer?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Because we need to, I guess.”
“Are you gonna tell me what you want, then?” Tex asked.
She laughed. “You’re doing the same thing you just accused me of doing.”
“Answer the question,” he said with a stern expression.
“I just want to be with you. Whatever direction that takes us is fine with me. It’ll be an adventure.”
“That wasn’t the answer I expected,” he said.
“Oh, you think I’ve got this vision of what our life together will be?”
“We’ve been living our lives together for a while now.”
“We’ve been on the run together. When this is over we won’t be on the run anymore.”
He sat up and scratched his head. “What makes you think we’re gonna settle down into some boring relationship?”
“Do you think that’s what I want?”
He laid back down. “No, that’s not what I think you want. I can’t tell if you want me to be serious or romantic or both.”
She laughed again. “You do know how that came out, right?”
“You’re not going to get mad, are you?”
She elbowed him, on the verge of laughter. “Living with you won’t be boring, I suspect. You’re right, I don’t want the little house with the picket fence, and at this point I’m not that interested in having a bunch of kids.”
“Why not?”
“Why not what?” she asked.
“Why not a bunch of kids?”
“We aren’t suited for it. Maybe I’ll let you knock me up during a weak moment, but I doubt that will happen. We’ll have adventures together instead.”
“Travel the world, huh. Or walk the earth.”
She rolled her eyes. “Stop with the Tarantino references. I had a boyfriend who worshiped him. Don’t be that guy.”
Tex laughed. “Who’s Tarantino?”
She elbowed him again. “Stop it. Do you want kids?”
“At this point in my life, I just want you. Fully and completely. If life leads us to having kids and we both want it, I’m down, but neither of us know if that’s going to happen.”
“What about the big M?”
“I told you I’d do that,” Tex said.
“You’re not sure about anything long term, but you’d marry me?”
“Yes,” he said, getting out of bed.
“Where are you going?”
“We’re leaving early, remember?”
She pulled the covers back, revealing herself to him, smiling at his reaction. “Sure you’re in such a hurry?”
“Yep, and you know we have to be,” he said. “You’re waiting for me to say something, but I’m not sure what that is.”
She shook her head, looking a little frustrated, and got out of bed.
“You’re really getting upset,” he said, walking to her. He took her into his arms. “You’re afraid that when the battle is over, I’ll lose interest in you. In us.”
“Sorry,” she said, looking up at him, her arms going around his waist.
“I’m not going anywhere. I want to be with you for the rest of my life. That’s not going to change. We’ll live out our lives doing the things that make us happy. For me, that’s going to include getting married.”
She held him tighter. “Why do you care about being married?”
“Maybe I want the exclusivity that it forces,” he said. “Maybe I want us to own each other. Or maybe I’m just a romantic Texan who has more traditional values than I care to admit.”
She turned her head, resting it on his chest, holding him tighter still.
“You
okay?”
“I’m happy,” she said. “I’ve got the man I’ve always dreamed of.” She broke the hug. “Okay, you can get dressed now.”
She turned towards her dresser and got out clothes, as he watched her, shaking his head.
They had a quick cup of coffee, watching out the window as the off-roaders loaded backpacks onto their vehicles, getting ready to go.
“I’m gonna unhook the utilities,” Tex said, heading for the door.
“Okay, I’ll stow things,” Karen said, making eye contact. “Thank you.”
He tipped his hat and disappeared through the door. After a second there was a soft rap on the side of the coach.
“Yes?” Karen asked.
“It’s me,” Shelley said.
“Hey, come on up. I’m about done. You guys ready to go?”
“Yeah,” Shelly said, climbing the steps. She had on a tight-fitting t-shirt and jeans. “Tex had a smile as big as Texas.”
“We were chatting about after the war. I can’t believe I resisted that man. He’s a jewel.”
“He is,” she said, sitting on the couch.
“Okay, what’s up?” Karen asked, eyeing her.
“You can’t tell anybody,” she whispered.
“I have an idea.”
“I think I’m pregnant,” Shelley said. “Just had to tell somebody.”
“You sure?”
“Pretty sure, but I’ll get one of those test kits when we get a chance.”
“Does Jules know?”
“No,” Shelley said, “and don’t tell him. I want to wait until I’m sure, but I’m just going crazy.”
“Your secret is safe with me,” Karen said.
“Hey, Shelley, you guys ready to go?” Tex asked as he came back into the coach.
“Yep, we’re ready,” Shelley said. “I’d better get back over there. Talk to you later, Karen.”
“Bye,” Karen said.
“See you, Tex,” Shelley said, shooting him a smile on the way out.
Tex got behind the wheel and started the engine. “What was that all about?”
“Oh, nothing, just girl talk,” Karen said.
“Uh huh.” Tex shot her a sidelong glance. “The gate is opening. Time to go.”
Karen sat in the passenger seat, watching Tex as she put her seatbelt on. “I love you.”
“I love you too, little lady.”
***
Jacumba Hot Springs had become a mini-metropolis. Every flat spot in town was covered with parked cars, and the wilderness between the town and the fortified stretch of Old Highway 80 was covered with tents of every shape and size. Truckloads of weapons had been coming down the highway, and there were men with the trucks to teach citizens how to use them.
“Where’s all this stuff coming from?” Doug asked.
“Yeah, that’s what I’d like to know,” Jorge said.
Conrad smiled. “All over. We’ve got some Marines showing up in a few minutes.”
“They gonna fight with us?” Doug asked.
“Oh, they’ll be fighting, but I’m not sure if they’ll be here or not. This is a supply and training visit.”
“We’ve already been trained with the M60s, M19s, and a lot of other stuff,” Jorge said. “What else is there?”
“You ever heard of the M18A1 Claymore mine?” Conrad asked.
“We’re gonna mine the area?” Doug asked.
“Yeah, but these aren’t like your normal mines. They’re anti-personnel weapons. Good when you have a massive number of enemy fighters heading your way.”
“Maybe that’s them coming right now,” Jorge said, pointing to a military truck coming towards them from town. Conrad stepped forward and motioned to a parking place. Citizen fighters moved out of the way to let the truck pass. It parked, and the cab doors opened, two men getting out and walking over.
“Are you Conrad Kowalski?” asked the older of the two, a man in his thirties with a muscular build and a square jaw.
“I am,” Conrad said.
“Good. I’m Corporal Callahan, and this is Private First-Class Alito. We’re here to provide training for the M18A1 Claymore mine. Do you have men picked out to receive the training?”
“Haven’t gotten to that. How many men do you need?”
“For a deployment of this size, twelve would be optimum,” he said.
“I’m willing to be a trainee,” Doug said.
“Me too,” Jorge said.
“I’m good with that,” Conrad said. “Both of you learn fast. I have ten others in mind. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
He turned and left, coming back in less than five minutes with the other men.
Callahan was looking at the border fence through binoculars. “We’ll need to be on the other side of that. Does somebody here have the key?”
“Yes sir,” Conrad said. “I got it from the border patrol. Do we need a place to drive that truck through? There’s a larger break in the K-rail line about fifty yards east of here.”
“That would be helpful,” Callahan said. “Let’s go. You can ride in the cab, the others can climb in the back, but don’t mess with the crates. Understand?”
“Yes,” Conrad said, looking at the others. “You heard the man.”
The men climbed into the back of the truck as Conrad followed the Marines to the cab. They backed out and went down the road, turning off between two K-rails, heading for the gate in the border fence and parking there. Everybody got out, and Conrad unlocked the gate. He pushed it open, the rusted hinges moaning.
“Thank you,” Callahan said. “First we’ll talk about the weapons. Let’s gather around the back of the truck. Alito, get in there and grab me one.”
“Yes sir,” Alito said, his wiry frame jumping inside. He came back with a canvas bag, about the size of a large purse, sliding it to the edge of the truck.
“Normally we use this bandoleer to carry the weapon in the field,” Callahan said. He opened the flap on the top and pulled out a curved rectangular item, olive drab in color, with the embossed words Front Toward Enemy on the convex side. It had folding spikes on the bottom, two ports on the top, and a sight between the ports. “This is the mine. It’s C-4 plastic explosive behind ball bearings, which are set in epoxy. When the C-4 is detonated, the ball bearings fly forward in an expanding pattern, going out as far as 250 meters, but at that range it’s not optimum. We’ll place these to get the most effective range, which is about fifty meters.”
“Sounds like a shotgun,” Doug said.
“That’s about it,” Alito said.
“How many ball bearings?” one of Conrad’s men asked.
“About seven hundred,” Alito said.
Jorge stepped up to take a closer look. “It’s not very big, is it?”
Alito grinned. “No, but it packs a good punch.”
Callahan smirked, then pulled two more items from the bandoleer: a long wire, wrapped around a rectangular spool, and a metal item with an electrical plug and a lever over a cylindrical button, which he held up next. “This is the M57 detonator. We call it the clacker. You plug one end of the wire into this port, and the other end of the wire to the blasting cap assembly, which is installed on the mine. Note the safety arm, which will go in place like this, to prevent the lever from pushing down on the detonator button.” He worked it in front of the men.
“Where’s the blasting cap?” Doug asked.
“Inside the spool for the wire,” Callahan said, picking it up and removing the blasting cap assembly from one end. “We’ll be using a daisy chain to connect the mines together in several rows.”
“How long is that wire?” Jorge asked.
“One hundred feet,” Alito said.
“Yes, and that makes this a dangerous job,” Callahan said. “We’ll set these up in staggered rows, starting a hundred meters from those hills out there, and bringing them in about one hundred meters for each row. We should have enough to cover the entire area on the Mexican side of th
e fence, and at least one row on our side. The last of the detonations will be from behind the K-rail you have set up there. Nice job, by the way.”
“That’s it?” Jorge asked.
“That’s the gist,” Callahan said. “Alito, take the men out with forty mines and set them up about a hundred meters this side of those hills.”
“Yes sir,” Alito said, climbing back into the truck. “Somebody come give me a hand.”
Several men climbed in and helped him load the first forty bandoleers onto the back end of the truck, then the men picked up three or four each and followed Private Alito through the gate. Conrad stayed behind with Callahan.
“How far are the enemy fighters now?” Callahan asked.
Conrad pulled his phone out and fired up the app, focusing on it and then showing it to Callahan. “Forty-five miles. They’re moving slower than we expected.”
“That’s what I saw this morning,” Callahan said. “They’re slowing down because they’re waiting for something. That might not be good for us.”
“Did they give you guys the apps?”
Callahan chuckled. “They’re working on it. They need to buy a whole lot of smart phones. Damn military wouldn’t let us just use our own.”
“What’s to stop you from doing that anyway?”
Callahan pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Nothing, but I’ve been told not to encourage that. All my men have them, but if you tell my CO I’ll deny I knew about it.”
Conrad laughed. “Not much different than it was when I was in.”
“Marines?”
“No, Army,” Conrad said.
“If they really throw a half-million men at this line, these mines will slow them down for a very short period of time. You know that, right?”
“Yeah, I know that,” Conrad said. “We’ll have thousands of men up here with M60s and M19s. We’re already making plans on how to proceed when we’re close to being overrun, though.”
“What are you going to do?”
Conrad smiled. “We have the cars arranged so we can get into them and live to fight another day,” he said. “Helps that the enemy is on foot. The mines will help some, but they also complicate matters. We’ll probably lose the first few men we have on the detonation line.”
