“By all means,” Cole said, not waiting for the President to speak.
“Mr. President?”
“Use them,” was all he said.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
“What are you up to?” Jamie asked.
“Painting an elephant, what’s it look like I’m doing?” Crocker said, rolling out from under his truck.
“Looks like you're messing something up to me,” she shot back.
“Well, sad to say, you’re mostly right. I took the oil pan off to replace the oil pump but now I can't get it back on. The damn gasket holes and the oil pan holes won’t line up and it’s so damn tight I can barely get my hands where they need to go.”
“Ah...poor baby. You want me to do it for you?”
“Hell no. No girl is messin’ with my truck.”
“Hey suit yourself. Look, I’m headed over to Toler. Got to drop off some stuff to the elementary school. You want to go along?”
“What the heck, I not doing any good here. I need to walk away from this for a while anyway. Let me get cleaned up and we can take off. You want something to drink while I’m cleaning up?”
“Got a coke?”
“You bet,” he said ushering her inside the house. He gave her a coke and went upstairs to clean up.
Jamie strolled around the front room looking at pictures and books that he had stacked on shelves. She was surprised to find ‘Out of My Later Years’ and ‘Ideas and Opinions’ by Albert Einstein. There was also one by Stephan Hawking entitled ‘A Stubbornly Persistent Illusion’.
She had just sat down when Crocker came down the stairs. His hair was combed and he had shaved. His shirt was pressed as well as his pants. She was quite surprised at what she saw.
“What? You think I can’t clean up decent?” he said when he saw her looking at him.
“Amazing. You look like a real person. Damn, now I feel bad. I look like crap,” she bemoaned.
“Not to me you don’t,” he said and started blushing again.
“Come on, I’ll even let you drive. You can drive a stick shift can’t you?”
“If it moves, I can drive it,” he said.
When they got outside he stopped and looked at the car.
“What the...”
“It’s a 1957 MGA.”
“What are you supposed to do with that little thing?”
“Hey, it’s bigger inside that you might imagine,” she said.
“How do you even get in,” Crocker asked looking for the door handles.
“Oh, yeah. You pull the wire inside the door,” she said showing him.
“And just how am I gonna’ get my legs in that thing?”
“Okay. Stand on your left foot and slide your right leg in and kind of fall in the seat. Then pull your other leg in.”
“Right.”
After several attempts he finally managed to get his tall frame in the car. He was surprised at the amount of leg room considering the size of the car. He sat looking at the dash for several seconds. He reached up and turned the key. Nothing happened.
“Dead battery?” he asked.
“Oh, sorry. You have to pull the knob that has the ‘S’ on it. Make sure you have the clutch pushed in,” she told him.
He pushed in the clutch and pulled on the knob. The engine sprang to life.
“Kind of sounds like a sewing machine,” he said.
“It has more pep than you think. You are going to have to put it in reverse. Put it in neutral first, then slap the shifter toward you and pull back.”
He looked at her like she was nuts for a second before doing as he was instructed. He felt it go into gear. He let out the clutch and backed the car up and then finally found first gear. A few seconds, later off they went.
“Oh, just so you know. If you have to downshift, only 2nd, 3rd and 4th have synchros. You have to be stopped to put it in 1st.”
“Some doodlebug,” he muttered.
They headed south on US 119. Crocker’s head stuck up over the windshield. Even though it was a cramped little car, he found that driving it was a real blast. They drove along shouting to each other over the noise. He wondered if he could even fit in the MGA if the top was up.
They came to stop light where US 119 and 319 splits off.
“Where are the turn signals?” he asked looking around.
“Oh on the dash. Far left hand side. That white knob.”
“What in the hell do you do with it?”
“Shove the bottom the way you are going to turn. To the left,” she said.
As they were getting ready stop he downshifted to second and then tried to get into first. The gears ground.
“Damn. I forgot,’ he told her.
They turned left and a few hundred yards later they turned right into the Southside Elementary School. He pulled up to the front and turned off the engine.
“What do you think?” she asked.
“It’s kind of fun. Why do you have it?”
“It was my dad’s. He restored it from the ground up. When he died I just couldn’t get rid of it so now I drive it.”
“It’s definitely unique.”
“I’ll run the stuff in. It won’t take a minute.”
She got out and came around to the driver’s side.
“I need to reach behind you to open the trunk.”
“Does this car do anything normal?”
“Hey, it’s British, what do you expect?” she said pulling on the lever that popped the trunk.
She grabbed the books and went inside the school. She was only gone a few minutes before she returned.
“That was fast,” Crocker said as she got back in.
“Just had to drop them off. She wasn’t there so I just left them for her.”
He turned the key, pulled the starter knob and off they went. They were just coming up on Belfry High School when a C-130 flew overhead.
“That’s kind of strange,” he said.
“What?”
“The cargo door is open and something just came out of the back of the plane.”
“I see it. It has a parachute attached.”
“Oh crap,” Crocker said slamming on the breaks.
“What?”
He could see something hanging from the parachute and it looked big. He quickly turned right on Ivy Hill, stopped and yelled for Jamie to get out of the car.
“What’s going on?” she said but he already ran around the car and grabbed her hand and was pulling her toward a ditch that ran alongside the road.
Without ceremony, he shoved her to the ground and covered her body with his.
“Aaron,” she yelled pushing against him.
“Open your mouth as wide as you can,” he yelled at her.
“What is wrong with you?” she said struggling to get out from under him.
He held her tighter and reached up and squeezed her jaws, forcing her mouth open. Suddenly a huge noise filled the air. Even as far away as they were lying, it was so loud that it hurt their ears. A millisecond later an incredible shockwave followed.
It hit he MGA with such force that it picked it up and flipped it over two times before it came to rest back on its wheels. Dirt, rocks, and tree limbs rained down on them. A section of the High School roof bounced over them.
Just when they thought it was over a second shockwave rolled over them. Not as strong as the first but it was still strong enough to pile even more debris on them. The air was stifling as they lay there.
“My God. Did they drop a nuclear bomb?” Jamie asked.
“No. It wasn’t a nuclear bomb but just as bad. I think it was one of those air-fuel bombs.”
He carefully shoved the debris off of them and stood up. He helped Jamie to her feet. They both had their mouths open as they viewed the huge thick black cloud rising from where the town of Williamson had been. The center of the cloud was deep orange.
“My God. What did they do?” Jamie whispered.
“They fire bombed the entire town.”
“You mean they killed everyone?”
“That would be my guess,” Crocker replied.
They stumbled out of the ditch and walked to the MG. One door was missing, and the windshield and hood were gone.
“What do you think?” Jamie asked.
“Worth a try,” Crocker said and climbed in.
He turned the key and pulled the starter knob. It ground a second then sprang to life.
“No way,” Jamie said climbing in.
She couldn’t close the door, it was gone.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
“Well?” Hanna Cole said.
“Done. Gone. Obliterated,” General Ascot replied.
“Excellent,” the President said.
“How do you know it got everything?”
“Our reconnaissance drone confirmed the amount of damage done. There is not a house or building standing.”
“I want you to send a team in to visually verify the results,” Cole said.
“Yes ma’am.”
“General, how many of these bombs do we have?”
“I don’t know right off hand but several.”
“Several. Meaning?”
“Probably fifty or so.”
“Very good. I would like you to put together a list of the top fifty cities in the so called American Republic. I want it by both population and density,” the President said.
“Yes sir.”
“Thank you General,” he said by way of dismissing him.
When he had gone Cole said, “What are you thinking?”
“I am thinking we need to show them that we are not going to fool around any longer. All we are really doing is fighting small skirmishes. They wanted a war, I think we should accommodate them.”
“That will escalate things,” Cole said.
“I’m not going to let them get away with this. They will come back into the fold and they will answer for what they have done,” he said forcefully.
“I couldn’t agree more,” Hanna replied.
****
“Slow down son,” General Adams said.
“But they killed everyone. They wiped out the entire town,” Crocker reported.
“Where did this happen?”
“Williamson, Kentucky. Well, part of the city is in Kentucky, the other part is in West Virginia.”
“We need to get you to Nashville ASAP,” Adams told him.
“Okay, but why?”
“It’s were the new Government is located. You need to tell this to the President and his staff.”
“The President? Look I’m not Mr. Personality. Maybe Jamie should talk to the President.”
“I’ll get you both there. I’m going to have Sargent Boling take you to the airport and get you to Nashville. I’ll have them put some sandwiches on the plane so you can eat in the air and get right to the Capital Building.”
“But look at our clothes. We’re not lookin’ too good right now.”
“We will get you set up with some BDU’s. Sargent Boling can take care of that as well.”
“Man. I just don’t know about talking to the President. Who is it anyway?”
General Adams laughed and slapped Crocker on the back. His name is James Jason. He used to be the Vice President under Quasim until he got tired of his crap and came over to our side.”
“And you trust him?” Jamie asked.
“Absolutely. He fought with the President many times trying to get him to stop his foolishness. Finally he had enough.”
“Huh,” she said.
“Now, if you will follow the Sargent we will get you on your way.”
****
“Man oh man,” Crocker said as they were seated in the plane.
He and Jamie were the only two on board.
“Don’t worry so much. You will do just fine. Look, I’m going to be right there with you. If you get into trouble I’ll jump in if it’s alright with you.”
“You bet it is. I get pretty nervous around big shots.”
She reached over and squeezed his hand. He held it and didn’t let go. She just smiled at him.
It was less than an hour later when they started their descent into Nashville International Airport. When they got out they were met by a full bird Colonel. They didn’t even have time to look around before they were placed in a black SUV and whisked off toward downtown Nashville. Two motorcycles with lights flashing and sirens blaring were leading the way.
“Man,” Crocker said shaking his head.
“It’s going to be fine. Just enjoy it. Let’s face it, how many times are we going to get our own plane and chauffer driven limo?” she said patting his arm.
When they arrived at the Capital Building, guards were standing outside in full combat gear. They snapped to attention and saluted as the Colonel led them inside. Two more guards were standing beside one of the elevators. The Colonel inserted a key and the door slid open.
“You will be met when the doors open,” he said as they slid shut.
“How will we...” but the doors had already closed.
“Know which floor?” he finished.
“No buttons. Must only go one place.”
When the doors opened a Major was standing there with two more guards.
“Welcome. We have been waiting anxiously for your arrival. The President is eager to hear what you have to tell us,” he said leading them down the hall.
More guards stood outside a set of large wooden doors. One of them opened the door and they followed the Major in. A large conference table dominated the center of the room. Seated around it were eight people. They were dressed casually which rather shocked Crocker. He was expecting them to be all dressed up fancy.
“Welcome, a white headed, distingue gentleman said from the head of the table.
He stood up and waved to a chair, “Please, Aaron and Jamie, have a seat.”
Crocker hesitantly walked over and took a seat. He looked at the man and assumed he must be the new President. He reminded him a little of the actor, Donald Sutherland.
“I’m James Jason and these are my advisors,” he said.
James Jason? Not President Jason? This was just too unreal he thought.
The President went around the table and introduced each of the people in the room stating briefly what their position was. Aaron knew he would never remember all of their names. They should have some of those little sticky tags on so he would know who they were.
“Now. I know you’re a little nervous. General Adams called and told me you were hesitant to come. This isn’t like the White House where everyone has to walk on eggshells. We’re just a bunch of people trying to put a country together. So relax and tell us all about what went on in Williamson, Kentucky.”
“Uh, yes sir.”
“James.”
“What? Oh. Well...James a few days ago the Kentucky Militia decided that if they were going to survive they would need to have control of the railways. We were running short on everything,” he said, starting to loosen up.
Twenty-four minutes later he finished his story with Jamie jumping in from time to time to clear up details.
“And it was a C-130?” MacMillan asked.
“Yes sir. I certainly know what a C-130 looks like.”
“Okay, and the back bay was open and you saw the package come out and it was supported by a parachute?
“Two actually,” Jamie said.
“Ah. And then all hell broke loose.”
“Yes sir,” Jamie interjected, “I thought it was an atomic bomb. It picked my car up and flipped it over.”
“How far away were you?”
“Five miles,” Crocker said.
“And the shockwave flipped your car over and took off the roof of the High School.”
“Yes sir. That’s correct.”
“Everything was gone. Burnt to the ground. Even the roads were melted and buckled,” Jamie added.
“Well,” the President said, “I guess we should expect as much fro
m Quasim.”
“I’m sure the VP added her two cents worth,” Mary Lake said.
“Undoubtedly.”
“Sir? What did they say?” Crocker asked.
“They put out a news report that the Kentucky Militia came across the West Virginia border, killed everyone and burned the place to the ground to cover up the viciousness of the attack.”
“Sir. That’s a damn lie,” Crocker said, half rising out of his seat before Jamie put a hand on his arm.
“Son, relax. We know how they do things. They got their asses whipped and didn’t want anyone to know about it so they planted the story.”
“And the news went along with it?” Jamie asked.
“It seems they have little choice now. They have suspended the First Amendment as well as the Second Amendment” the President said.
“Man oh man,” Crocker responded.
“Indeed. If it isn’t too much to ask, would the two of you mind staying here a couple of days? I’m sure the General and his people will have more detailed questions. If you can’t it’s no problem.”
Aaron looked at Jamie and she shook her head ‘yes’.
“Sure, we don’t have a home to go to anyway,” Crocker replied.
“You are more than welcome to stay here. We have joined forces with militia from all around the American Republic,” the General said.
“Would we have to be in the regular military?’
“That would be up to you. Do you have a specialty?”
Jamie looked at Crocker and he looked back.
They both smiled and said, “Oh yeah,” at the same time.
That was a luxury that neither of them had ever had in their life time. It would probably be the last as well.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
After Aaron and Jamie left the room, the President sat looking pensively out the window.
“They are stepping up the game. They killed civilian men, women, and children and it didn’t matter which side they were on. Quasim is crazy,” Beau Zimmerman said.
“I can’t believe he dropped the damn thing. An air burst fuel bomb. It must have incinerated everyone instantly,” Mary said.
“Not a pretty picture no matter how you cut it. Maybe we should try to talk to the other side. Sort of a peace conference. Make sure we rule out certain weapons. The Atlanta and Houston bombings were bad enough, but this, this is nuts,” Mary said.
A NATION AT WAR - The Second Civil War Book II (The Second Civil War - BOOK II 1) Page 12
