The cousins Dando were waiting near the door to the headquarters building.
“Ben Barstow, Will and Stan Dando,” Jack said as they drew near.
“Oh my word, you’re the biggest human being I’ve ever seen!” Will said.
“I thought you were just a legend!” Stan blurted out.
Ben scowled. “These are Rangers? They look like trouble to me,” he said with a quick wink at Jack.
“They are, but I have to return them to Mead,” Jack said, sounding disappointed.
Will and Stan glared at Jack and smiled.
Ben laughed. “I gotta get back. We’ll see each other again, Jack.”
The two men shook hands, and then Jack followed the Dandos inside to map out their return to Camp Mead.
The three Rangers decided to follow a similar route out as the one that brought them in.
Ranger Captain Holden had the letters he wished delivered to Mead ready for Jack by the time they were preparing to depart.
While Jack and the two Dandos waited by the gatehouse for full dark, the woman whom Jack spoke to about hope after their arrival that morning returned to speak with him.
“I am glad I caught you before you left, Ranger. I wanted you to know I told as many people as would listen what you said. Some folks thought it was empty talk, but most felt better about things because of what you said.”
“That’s nice, ma’am. I just hope I didn’t promise something we can’t deliver,” Jack replied.
“You seem an honest sort. They say you’re Gordon’s kin. I think you’ll do what is necessary to see this through. God bless you Ranger,” she said as she patted Jack on the arm before departing.
“I hope your mouth isn’t writing checks the Rangers can’t cash, Jack,” Will said.
Jack sighed. “Me too. It’s dark enough. Let’s go.”
The Rangers followed the same route out, and other than encountering one raider patrol that they easily evaded, they had an uneventful journey back to the cove where they had hidden the johnboat.
The wind picked up as the night went on, which was both help and hindrance. The wind masked the sounds of the Rangers, but it also made it more difficult for them to hear any raiders that might be nearby.
When they arrived in the area where they landed, Stan went forward to scout the area where they left their boat. He returned with bad news.
“I think we got made. The plug in the johnboat is gone, and I am ninety-nine percent sure I saw men not far down the bank from the boat,” Stan said.
“Do you think they were waiting for us to try and use the boat?” Will asked.
“Maybe. Or maybe they are just waiting to catch someone near it,” Stan replied.
“Any ideas?” Jack asked.
“We could try and find another boat, or make our way to the railroad bridge and cross that way,” Stan answered.
“Maybe we can pick our way through the raiders by the bridge before dawn. The wind ought to help,” Jack said. “The time factor is going to be tight.”
The cousins agreed, and the three men made their way to the bridge, but as they got within sight they saw barricades across the bridge and at least twenty raiders illuminated by the wind-whipped fires burning near the bridgehead.
“I hear you can shoot, Jack. You think you can get all those guys before they get us?” asked Will.
Jack gave him a stern look and said, “No. Next idea.”
“Nope, sorry. That was the only one I had. You got anything, Stan?” Will replied.
“Swim? Build a raft?” Stan offered.
“How about we try and find another boat? We have less than an hour till dawn. We head closer to the shore and see if we find anything. If we don’t, we get back into these trees before it gets light and figure things out then,” Jack said.
“That’s good. That’s why he’s in charge, Will.”
Will smiled. “I see why Ranger Lewis likes him. Maybe you should try the take-charge tactic with her, Stan.”
“How about I make a raft from your corpses?” Jack grumbled. “C’mon, we’re burning darkness.”
The Dandos laughed silently.
“A raft from our corpses. That’s good. It has a certain macabre elegance to it,” Will said as they moved to the shore.
Jack chuckled and shook his head.
The three Rangers moved away from the rail bridge and toward the water’s edge. The search seemed to be a lost cause and with the early pale streaks of color quietly announcing dawn’s impending arrival, the three started moving back to the tree line when Stan said, “Wait! There to the north. I think those are boats under a tarp.”
“We don’t have much time. Let’s go,” Jack said.
The Rangers moved in a quiet trot across the sand to the tarp. They pulled the canvas cover back and discovered there were two fiberglass boats set bottoms up in the sand.
“Which one?” asked Stan.
“Take whichever one looks to be in the best shape,” replied Will.
“This one, come on, we gotta move,” Stan said.
The two cousins lifted the boat and carried it into the water while Jack picked up the oars and ran behind. They put the oars into the oarlocks and as the Dandos situated themselves inside, Jack pushed the boat into deeper water before hoisting himself over the transom.
“Row! We gotta move,” Will said from the seat in the bow.
“What does it look like I’m doing?” Stan said as he hauled on the oars, sitting on the center seat facing aft. The waves kicked up by the wind did nothing to aid their progress. The whitecaps splashed water into the boat, so Will began bailing, telling Jack to cover the shore with his rifle.
When the trio were two hundred yards out, Will said, “Oh shit! We aren’t just taking on water from the waves, we have a leak. The hull is cracked.”
“What do we do?” asked Stan.
“We keep going. We have raiders on the shore behind us. Keep your heads down, I’ll fire if it looks like they have us spotted,” Jack said.
Stan rowed as hard as he could while Will bailed as fast as possible. It seemed like Will was holding his own with the incoming water, when a shot rang out from the shore.
Jack could see numerous raiders running for firing positions in the early light. Jack began to fire as accurately as he could from the bobbing vessel, knowing he was unlikely to score many hits under such conditions. His goal was to make the raiders uncomfortable enough that they would not be able to return fire with any accuracy, or better yet, stop firing altogether.
The raider fire slowed as the Rangers moved away from the shore, then finally ceased once the Rangers were far enough away that the raiders realized the futility of being able to hit the small boat. While the danger from raider rifle fire was gone, the danger presented by the larger waves away from the shore grew and the boat began to take on more water than Jack and Will could deal with.
“Turn south, go for the railroad bridge. We’ll see if we can climb up somehow,” Jack yelled over the wind.
Stan turned the boat to starboard and headed south while Jack and Will bailed furiously. As they neared the bridge, Jack looked desperately through the water drops on his glasses to try and find someplace they could land or climb to the top of the bridge. As the boat got closer, Jack could see ropes hanging from some of the concrete bridge supports that protruded from the water like legs on a stool.
“Those ropes. If we can grab on we can climb up. Will, see if you can get one,” Jack yelled.
Will turned and faced the bow just as a rope passed to the starboard side. He reached out, grasped the rope with both hands, and was pulled out of the boat.
“Go! Climb, we’ll follow,” Jack yelled as he grabbed the rope just below Will’s feet as he knelt in the stern.
As Will climbed, Jack said, “Stan, go up.”
“What about our rucksacks?” Stan yelled.
“I’ll take care of it. Go!” he replied as the water threatened to engulf the boat.
Stan began cl
imbing while Jack clamped the dangling rope under his right arm, looped the end through the straps on the Ranger’s rucksacks, and tied a knot just as the water came over the gunwales. Jack grasped the rope in both hands and began to climb his way to the top, hand-over-hand.
Jack struggled to get himself onto the top of the bridge and the cousins reached over and pulled him up.
“I guess we lost the rucks?” asked Stan.
“Only if my knot came untied,” replied Jack, panting from effort.
“You heard the man, pull it up, Will,” said Stan, gesturing at the rope.
As he pulled the rope up hand over hand, Will grunted, “I wonder why the raiders didn’t chase us in the other boat.”
“Maybe because they weren’t as crazy and desperate as us?” Jack replied. “Or maybe they were too busy wondering why we took a leaky boat.”
The cousins laughed. The three Rangers rested for a short time and made their way across the bridge through the gusting wind until they met Rangers guarding the eastern end. Once the Rangers identified themselves, they were clear to make the almost five mile journey to Mead following the railroad tracks back to the town.
. . . . .
Chapter 7
Old Enemies, New Challenges
The trio of Rangers arrived in Mead by mid morning and sought out Captain Briscoe to deliver Captain Holden’s message. After the captain read the letter, Briscoe was interested to know what the Rangers had seen in Kings Town, and seemed very concerned by what Jack and the cousins Dando told him.
“Captain Holden says he sent an identical message for Straily. Did you deliver that yet?”
Jack shook his head and replied, “Not yet.”
“I’ll take it over to him. You guys go drop your gear off and meet me at the operations center in a half hour. Commander Straily may have some questions for you.”
Jack handed Captain Briscoe the letter and walked to his quarters, a small building a couple of minutes walking distance from the Ranger headquarters building. There were two beds in the building, but Jack was the only Ranger currently staying in the quarters. Jack changed into a clean set of clothes and laid out items from his rucksack that were still wet from the dunking they received in the lake earlier in the morning to allow them to dry.
Jack left his quarters and walked to the operations center. As he approached the headquarters building, he could hear the sound of men arguing. He entered the op center and saw several Rangers around the map table, and discovered Captain Briscoe and Commander Straily were the source of the noise.
“The way things stand now, we might just have to pull back to Durant for strategical reasons.”
“What are you saying Commander?” asked Captain Briscoe.
“I’m saying we are likely to lose this fight. Plain enough for you, Captain?” Straily said tersely.
“I know that is a possibility, Commander. But we cannot abandon the people of Kings Town,” replied Captain Briscoe.
“As distasteful as that might be, we may have to do just that,” Straily said.
The commander noticed Jack giving him an incredulous look and asked, “Is there a problem, Traipse?”
“Yes sir, there is,” he replied, nodding slowly, his look becoming stern. Jack was aghast at what the commander had said. “Rangers find a way, sir. Strategically running away to Durant isn’t going to win this fight. We have to find a way. Those people in Kings Town are counting on us, Commander.”
“What the hell do you know about it!” Straily yelled, face turning red in anger. “We have thrown everything we have at these bastards and they keep running circles around us. Or maybe with your vast knowledge of Ranger tactics you’ve picked up in the short time you’ve been a wearing the star you can come up with a plan? If not, then shut the hell up,” he seethed.
“How long do I have?” Jack said with dead seriousness, stung by Straily’s comments.
“I’ll give you eight hours, smart guy,” he said with a glare. “That’s right, I called your bluff.”
“It’s no bluff, Commander. Who do I see about maps and intel?”
Commander Straily pointed at Barbara Louis, “Right there. Barlo will get you what you need. I’m very interested to see what you come up with. You ain’t playing with tin soldiers on your mommy’s kitchen floor. We’ve thrown every Ranger available at them, and if I had twice as many I doubt we’d do much better,” Straily said as he looked at Jack with contempt.
“A wise man said to me recently, ‘more Rangers ain’t the answer, we need to fight smarter, not harder.’ and I am inclined to think he’s right,” Jack replied calmly.
“Corporal Art fucking Sierra, right? Art isn’t wise, Traipse. He’s just pig-headed. He’s always been pig-headed. Stop spouting nonsense and get to work. The clock’s ticking,” he said as he stomped from the building, pushing aside Will and Stan Dando standing near the door. A grim-faced Captain Briscoe followed on Straily’s heels, apparently not finished arguing with the commander.
What did you just step into? Jack thought.
Once Straily was gone, Ranger Pitts—who was one of the Rangers in the room— said, “Jack, I hope you know what you’re doing. I think you might be poking a bear here, but I’ll help if I can.”
“Me too, Jack,” Barlo Louis chimed in.
“Whatever you got in mind, we’re with you, too,” Stan said as Will nodded in agreement.
“We’ll help you cash that check you wrote in Kings Town,” Will said.
“Thanks, all of you. Mike, can you grab up a small group of Rangers that know who and what we are actually dealing with out there? I mean Rangers whose judgment you trust.”
Mike smiled. “Yep, I know some. Gimme a little time to round’em up. Back shortly.”
“Maps and intel, Jack. Follow me. I don’t have any tin soldiers though,” Barlo said with a wave of her arm.
. . . . .
Less than thirty minutes later, Ranger Pitts was back with three Rangers, Sergeants Norman and Wright, and Ranger Hal Daley, recently from Geneva. Mike Pitts had told the other men what had occurred with Commander Straily, and they were eager to help.
“If this gets things moving in the right direction, we’re on board, Jack,” Sergeant Norman said.
“I appreciate that, but will most other Rangers feel that way?” Jack replied. “Why would anyone trust a plan that has me as the front man? I’m a two-month crash course Ranger with zero experience.”
“Jack, you’ve actually been into Kings Town. Yesterday in fact. You know what’s going on there,” Sergeant Norman said. “None of us except the Dandos can say that. You are the son of Hardin Traipse, and Gordon and Art are your uncles, and that carries a lot of weight, a lot. Everybody knows about the aliens you piled up in Pea Ridge, and the ogre in Demon Station. You locked horns with Straily over this thing when nobody but Captain Briscoe dared, and every damn Ranger here knows about it by now. Straily will let you make your play just to see you fail, and that opens the door to get something done right. You combine all of those things together and, like it or not, you’re the man everybody is looking to right now. We’ll do everything we can to help you, but you are the man with the plan.”
Fuck me. “Damn it... let’s get to work then.”
The Rangers that Mike brought in possessed a wealth of information about the situation. Recon teams that had crossed the Washita River had learned the raiders were operating for the most part out of Madill and the area east of there to the Washita River, but were now keeping a sizable force in Tishomingo following the failed Ranger attack. By doing this, it provided the raiders with the flexibility to keep the pressure on Kings Town to the south, and be able to respond to moves made by the Rangers out of Mead.
The raider group that made up the bulk of the forces fighting the Rangers was the Cuervos. Led by the infamous Joe Crow, the Cuervos had pulled in numerous smaller raider groups that constituted a force that was several hundred in number. A sizable portion of the raiders operated on
horseback, which made them very mobile, providing them with a rapid response against the Rangers. It also provided them the ability of initiating hit-and-run raids on towns and homesteads.
“You said earlier that Joe Crow doesn’t usually lead the raids himself. Do we have any idea where Crow frequents?” asked Jack.
“Frequents? You mean where he stays? Not for sure. I think the recon guys narrowed it down to two or three places though. Why, you got it in mind to take him down?” replied Sergeant Wright.
“Yes, we overheard some raiders talking about him on our way into Kings Town. They revere the guy. I believe they’d be thrown into disarray if he were removed.”
“It’s a good idea. We discussed this a couple of weeks back, but even if you got Crow, you’d never make it back out. Not alive anyway,” said Sergeant Norman.
“I had in mind a way to draw out most of the raiders—”
“And take Crow down while they’re gone,” Barlo interrupted, smiling.
“Not bad, Jack,” Hal Daley said. “But how do you cover two or three places? How do you get in there before the raiders return from being drawn out?”
“You preposition them, that’s how,” Sergeant Norman said.
“You get three teams over the river and stealth your way in. Yeah, Rangers are sneaky bastards,” Mike Pitts grinned, glancing at the cousins Dando. “We could do that.”
“That’s good, Jack. Real good, but it will take crackerjack timing,” said Sergeant Norman. “What did you have in mind for drawing them out?”
“I thought if we could convince them we were making a try at Tishomingo again, they’d come out in force. This time though, the attack is a feint to draw them into an ambush.”
“Where at?” asked Sergeant Norman.
“There are Rangers in Fort Washita, and more of them covering the bridge over the Washita river to the west of the fort, right?” Jack asked.
Sergeant Wright nodded. “Yep. There are fifty or better at the old fort and at least a dozen Rangers with belt-fed MGs blocking the bridge. They’re dug in like ticks.”
“This area to the northwest of the fort,” Jack said as he pointed to a spot on the map, “at the confluence of these creeks, have any of you been there?”
The Blastlands Saga Page 30
