The Ranch

by Sean Liscom

  “Yeah, no problem but there’s something else you should know....” he stopped walking and looked at me in all seriousness. “Your wife is PISSED.”

  “I don’t doubt it,” I grumbled and began walking again. As Jill and Doc got closer, Bill peeled off and headed back to the underground security office.

  “What the hell was that about?” Jill bellowed as she got closer. She was pointing toward the gate and by the way she was walking heavy on her heals, I knew she was angry before the words ever left her mouth.

  “Wait!” I held up my hand and looked to Doc. “Those trucks are full of vaccine. I need you to get all of us dosed, now. The missiles carrying the biological weapons are in the air so, there’s no time to waste. Get moving!” I said before he had the chance to speak. Without questioning my orders, he did an about face and headed back to medical. Looking back to my wife, I could see the fury being constrained on her face. That storm was about to be unleashed.

  “What the hell did you do out there? You killed that guy in cold....”

  “Stop, right there.” I held my hand up again. “He, not I, made his choices. He is the one who attacked Eliza. He is the one who made the play for her weapon. And do I even need to say it? He is the one who thought he could hold the ranch hostage over the vaccine. We are DONE going down that road. No more waiting for the other guy to swing first. Those rules are out the window!”

  “What are you going to do now? Go out there and shoot the rest of his men while they are all trussed up!”

  “No, I’m not! They are the least of my worries right now and I’ll deal with them when I get a chance. For now, they’re contained, and they can think about what they did that got them all hogtied in the middle of the road,” I spotted Alex trotting across the grass and yelled at him to come over. I turned my attention back to Jill. “Yes, I killed that man and he had it coming. The rest of his men, we’ll deal with. As much as I just wanted to shoot them, I didn’t, and I won’t. Not unless they get really stupid all of a sudden.”

  “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again; I’m done playing with people like that! If they want to get their shit together and lead productive lives, fine! If they don’t, then natural selection is going to be a real bitch for them!” I was fuming mad when I said it. Alex halted his approach about 20 feet short when he realized we were arguing. I waved him closer.

  “Yes, sir?” he asked.

  “Find Kari and rally up everyone that’s going to Ambrose. Draw supplies for the trip and then draw some more. I don’t need you guys running out of fuel or ammo on your way up there. Then, make sure those five-tons that we just acquired are ready for the trip. You’ll be taking one of them with you. I want you to vaccinate as many people as you can on the way. Make sure you save enough to cover everyone when you get to Ambrose. Got all that?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Good! Get moving because I want you out of here before nightfall. While you’re running around here, find Dan and tell him to see me!” when I looked back to Jill, he knew the conversation was over and took his leave.

  “You still haven’t answered my question; what are you going to do with those men?” she asked, tight lipped.

  “I don’t quite know, yet. Trust me though, you’ll be there with me when I make up my mind.”

  “Promise me you won’t kill them like you did their leader.”

  “I promise. The only thing that’ll change that will be their actions when the ropes come off. Otherwise, they will leave here upright and breathing. Good enough?” I asked. After a moment, her lips and jaw relaxed a little. She dropped her crossed arms to her side and took a step closer.

  “Good enough,” she replied. She was still pissed but I could see she was beginning to move past it.

  “Look, I took no pleasure in that. I did what I had to do and what I’m probably going to have to do again before all of this is over, before we can have a normal life. I don’t like it, not one bit, but when it comes to the security and safety of this ranch and the people I love, I’ll make NO exceptions. None.”

  “I know, hon. I just..... I don’t want to see you end up like your father....” her voice trailed off.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Your father did things and it drove him mad. It broke him and he may have been okay with that, but I’m not.”

  “I’m nothing like Jack!” I protested.

  “You are though. You won’t admit it, but I see a lot of him in you and I have since before the pulse. You’re dancing on that razor-sharp edge and one misstep could send you plummeting down a very dark path. I know you don’t see it, babe, but the edge is closer than you think,” she took another step closer. “Out there, you were teetering, you almost fell.”

  “Then I need you there to catch me. Just like the day I caught you on the mountain....”

  “I’ll catch you, you know that, but I need you to step away from the edge. What I saw out there scared the hell out of me.”

  I had to look away, I had to break her gaze. I knew I had to be better than what I’d just done. I didn’t regret it, but I had to be better. The edge she spoke of was nothing but a blurry line in the shifting sands for me. I knew I’d crossed it on a couple of occasions and what really terrified me was how easy it had become. I’d been pissed off when I shot Greg, the Presidents security guy and I’d been pissed off when I shot the Enforcer. I wondered if I was allowing my emotions to rule over me just as my father’s emotions had ruled over him. It was emotion that drove him over the edge, and it was raw emotion that had kept him there....

  “This is about all of us, not just me and the kids. If you ever want to see that normal life, we need you to keep it together and make good decisions. Right now, you’re relying on a flawed, emotional response. If anybody can deliver us a normal life, it’s you. You’re the key to the whole damn mess, Jason,” she took another step forward. “I, we, know you’re tired. You’re exhausted, you’re in pain and you’re wondering how much you have left in the tank. Your mind is racing, wondering what in the hell can go wrong next and it’s wearing you down. It’s making you dull. You’re losing your edge and all the while you’re playing at the edge of sanity,” she reached her hand out and took mine.

  “Step away, let some of us help you with the load that’s on your shoulders. That’s why we’re here but we can’t help if you won’t let us. You asked Dan to run the ranch, let him do the job. You’ve asked others to command the teams, let them. Your job is to watch over all of us, to see the big picture. You can’t do that if you are down in the trenches. You need to do the job you’re best at and that’s leading all of us. You’re not a one-man army and you certainly ain’t in this alone,” she finished, taking my other hand in hers.

  “Once again, you’re right,” I mumbled. “I’ll do better....”

  “Let other’s do better. Let them do what you’ve asked them to do. That’s all I ask. Okay?” I answered her with a nod. When she pulled me into a tight hug, I could see Dan approaching from behind her. He started to hesitate, but I waved him over. Jill let go of me and took a small step away. “What do you need me to do?” she asked.

  “Can you work with Doc and coordinate getting everyone here vaccinated?” I asked sheepishly.

  “Yes, sir.” She replied with a smile. Instead of a salute, she gave me a kiss on the cheek. With that, she spun and jogged toward medical.

  “Everything alright?” Dan questioned.

  “Yeah, just got another reality check.”

  “Alex said you wanted to see me?”

  “I do. I’m sending.... I want you to get Wolf and Specter teams on the road north. In addition, mobilize Badger and the Mustangs to go with them as far as Elko. Wolf and Specter will take a truckload of vaccine north and vaccinate as many people as possible on their way. Badger will take another truckload to the east while Mustang will take one west, again, vaccinating along the way. When Badger hits the Utah line, turn them south. I want some of that v
accine to end up in Vegas. Vegas and Blisshaven. We owe them that much.”

  “What do you want to do with Wraith? Keep them here in reserve?”

  “Yes. We need their manpower to stand the watch and Wolf and Specter will probably need their vehicles to complete their weapons load-out.”

  “I’m on it. Anything else you need me to do?”

  “I need someone to bring President Dixon back to the ranch. Elko may not be safe for her. I also need someone to deliver a message to Governor Calvert.”

  “Let me get everyone lined out and I can take care of that, personally.”

  “No, send someone else. I need you here to keep this place on the rails. Once everyone that’s leaving has left and once everyone who’s staying is inside these four walls is here, I want the gates locked down. Nobody in or out. Period. Only people we KNOW have been vaccinated will be allowed to come and go. Got it?”

  “Got it! Anything else?” he questioned.

  “I’m sure there will be but it’s not coming to me right now. If something pops up, just take care of it.”

  “I can do that. If you need me, call me on channel one,” he gave a sloppy salute and took off at a jog. I started for the house, I really needed to talk to Tara and Luke. I needed to make sure they knew I, we, would keep them safe.

  “Jason, I need you downstairs!” I’d just set foot on the first stair leading to the deck when Bill’s voice burst into my earbud.

  “What’s up?” I asked.

  “I got a call you’re gonna want to take,” he said cryptically.

  “On my way,” I double timed it onto the deck, through the front door and down into the underground. The door to the security office was closed but that didn’t even cause me to break stride. What did stop me in my tracks was Jacks face filling the screen of his laptop. Behind Jack, I could see electrical sparking and the room he was in appeared to be filled with smoke. Some of his beard was missing and he had burns on his face.

  “What the hell....” I said, shocked.

  “Jason, where’s Braden? He needs to hear this too,” Jack asked.

  “He’s on his way to Ambrose with Tyler. What the hell is going on?”

  “Damn. Make sure he knows, I tried to stop this. I tried!”

  “Where’s Melissa?”

  “I don’t know if she made it out in time. I haven’t seen her since before the explosion and fire. If she made it, she’s got some vaccine for you, for all of you!”

  “Don’t worry about that, we’ve got it covered,” I sat in the chair Bill had just vacated. “What happened? What went wrong?”

  “Ashton Blake is what happened. He sabotaged his launch key and we weren’t able to destroy the missiles. He also rigged this place to self-destruct. I couldn’t stop that either. Listen, Mel has a laptop and it’s got all the information you’ll ever need. If she made it out, that is,” a particularly bad explosion from the doorway behind him caused him to duck. Flames rolled across the ceiling.

  “JACK!”

  “I’m still here, son. I don’t know how much longer I’ve got so I’ll just go ahead and say it; I’m sorry. Kenshaw got too powerful after Olivia died. I couldn’t hide him any longer. I’m sorry about everything! It’s up to you boys now. Make sure you survive but don’t become like me. All it will do is get you and everyone you care about dead. If I can do one good thing before my meeting with the reaper, I can tell you that!” a second explosion briefly knocked out the signal from his end.

  “…… you and yours will survive what’s coming! That’s all that.... to.... That’s all I ever wanted!”

  “You’re starting to break up, Jack. Can you get out of there?”

  “Negative on an escape. It just ain’t in the cards this time. I can’t even get out of this room. That last expl.... in the stairwell and there is fire everywhere. I can only…… Mel made it out.”

  “C’mon, Jack! You’re a crafty bastard, if anybody can figure something out, you can!”

  “Not this time, son. It’s…… end of the line for me and Kenshaw. Finally,” he looked at something off screen and he visibly relaxed a little. He suddenly took on a calm demeanor. “The fuel cells have reached critical temps are gonna blow any second now. Tell your brother I’m sorry, I’m sorry for everything.”

  “I’ll tell him. Dad, I’m sorry too.”

  “You got nothin to be sorry about! Hold your head high.....” the screen flashed a bright yellow and suddenly went black. The only thing on the screen was the flashing white curser and a message. “Transmission Terminated at Source.”

  Tuesday, September 6th, 2017

  The ARK.

  Melissa slowly began to regain consciousness. Through the fog of pain, her eyes focused on the floorboard of the trolley car and the blood that had pooled on it. She felt the car shake again and fine concrete dust settled over her. When she moved her arms to push herself off of the dash, she screamed from the pain that shot through her left arm and shoulder. Tears fell from her eyes in an involuntary reaction to the agony.

  Taking a moment to clear her mind, she used her right hand to push on the floor. No matter which way she moved, the pain was a constant antagonist. After what seemed like forever and nearly blacking out twice, she’d managed to push herself up and back. Now sprawled out on the hood of the trolley, she took stock of her injuries. The dislocated shoulder was by far the most painful with the broken ribs on her left side running a close second. She was bleeding from a laceration on her forehead and without a mirror, she couldn’t tell how bad it really was. It was still bleeding, and she knew she had to do something about it. The constant trickle of blood was running into her right eye and blurring her vision even more.

  Even with great care, rolling off the hood proved to be an agonizing ordeal. When the ground shook again and the lights flickered, she knew her injuries would have to wait. It was past time to get out of the tunnel. Looking around and wiping blood from her eye again, she spotted the laptop and moved gingerly to pick it up. She set it on the seat of the trolley and sat behind the control panel. Removing one of the pendants she had taken earlier, she swiped it across the control panel as Captain Boone had done.

  The electronic screen came to life and she let out a small sigh of relief. She slid the controls in the direction she wanted to go, and the car instantly began to move. Since there was nothing as far as a steering wheel went, she took a minute to secure her useless left arm. Removing her belt, she set the clasp on the last hole and slipped it over her head. She wiggled her right arm through it and then pulled her left arm into a vee, so her hand was up by her chest. Pulling on the clasp, she tightened the belt until her arm was secured in place. She felt for a pulse in her left wrist and breathed another sigh of relief when she felt it. Her arm still had good circulation.

  The ground shook again and the trolley momentarily lost power along with the lights embedded in the ceiling of the tunnel. The urgency of the situation didn’t escape her, she slid the control lever farther to the rear. That’s when she spotted the white, metal box with the big red cross on the front of it. It must have slid out from under the seat when the car had accelerated. She leaned down, picked it up and opened it. Removing the packet of 4x4 bandages, she tore it open with her teeth and placed the bandages on her forehead. After a few minutes of applying as much pressure as she could, the bleeding finally stopped.

  In the bottom of the first aid kit, she found a half dozen packets of ibuprofen. After tearing all of them open, she swallowed the little pills dry in one gulp. She had just begun to relax a little when the power went out and stayed out. The trolley car coasted to a stop in the pitch-black tunnel while Melissa whispered every curse word she knew, even making up a few new ones. Resting her head against the headrest, she let the darkness wash over and consume her. The only interruption to the silence was an occasional rumble from the direction she’d come from.

  With no idea how far it was to the place where they first boarded the trolley or how far from the AR
K entrance she was, she decided to just sit for a little bit. Hopefully it would give the ibuprofen a chance to kick in and subside the throbbing pain in her shoulder, she thought. That’s when reality began to set in. She could remember flying through the closing doors of the ARK and crashing down on the trolley car. The exact moment she’d lost the vaccine was vividly clear in her memory. The one mission priority Jack had given her was lost forever.

  “Jack....” she whispered. Even as evil as he had been, she still shed a tear at the memory of the man she’d known for nearly a lifetime. The gravity of her failure was weighing heavily on her and the tears began to flow freely. She allowed her grief to consume her just as the darkness had. After a while of sobbing, she had calmed herself down enough to only let out the occasional whimper. The slightest hint of a foreign sound stifled those as she sat upright and peered in the direction the noise had come from. There was nothing but black in every direction.

  “You done?” a familiar voice boomed.

  “Captain Boone?”

  “The one and only,” a brilliant flashlight beam sliced through the dark, blinding her. “You look like hell.”

  “Thanks,” she muttered and moved to get out of the trolley. She froze when the sound of the hammer being cocked filled the void.

  “Where’s Jack?

  “He’s probably dead by now.”

  “Did you kill him?”

  “No. It’s a long story.”

  “Did you see him die?”

  “No. I barely made it out. What’s going on?”

  “If you didn’t kill him and you didn’t see him die, well, you know what they say about cockroaches, right?”

  “Trust me, Nate. He didn’t make it out of the ARK. That place was going into lockdown again and those rumbles, that’s the ARK blowing up!” she started to move again.

  “Stay right there!”

  “I have to get out of here! I have to get back to the ranch!” she argued and finished standing.

  “You’re not going anywhere, Melissa. Remember what I told you would happen if you double crossed me? Remember that little conversation?” he hissed.