by Dennis Elder
“Yes,” said Mark. “On both sides.”
“But we have so many guns,” said Patti. “Why don’t we just get behind a hill or something and just shoot um when they ride by?”
Frank looked sideways at Mark. Patti was so new to the group. She and the two new teenagers hadn’t had any training and unfortunately no target practice. They were just civilians and a frankly a liability.
“The problem is we are now in very open country,” began Mark. “We must stay ahead of our pursuers as long as we can and look for a defensible position. Then we’ll have a chance.”
“But we can take um,” said Jacob. “Jake can shoot them from a thousand yards or more. I’ve seen him do it.”
“Unfortunately, we are down to our last nine rounds for the TAC sniper rifle,” said Mark. “It shoots a very unique fifty caliber bullet that we haven’t seen since we left LA. And I’ve instructed Jake not to fire those remaining rounds unless I order it.”
“Like if we get into some kind of Alamo last stand thing,” said Nancy.
“Something like that,” said Mark.
Suddenly things didn’t look so good.
“Even though we have some difficulties ahead,” said Mark. “I’m convinced that if we stay together, don’t panic and follow orders we’ll come our winners in this thing.”
Silvia had been sitting down. But she suddenly stood up and faced Mark.
“We appreciate what you’ve done for us Major,” said Sylvia. We all know that we would have never gotten this far if it wasn’t for you. So, I want you to know that you have my full support and I will follow whatever orders you give. No matter what that includes.”
Mark had grown to love and respect Sylvia. When they’d first met she wasn’t so sure about the Major and his band of Army Rangers. He hadn’t been so sure about her either. But slowly she came around to Mark’s way of doing things. She still didn’t always agree with Mark, even now. But she had become a very reliable member of the team.
Jake faced the Major too.
“I’m also grateful, Major,” said Jake. “You just say the word and I’m there for you.”
“Me too,” said Connie.
The rest of the kids added their support as well.
Then Kevin stepped up.
“We’d be dead if it wasn’t for you and your team,” said Kevin. “We’re behind you.
Mark looked around at the group. They’d all come so far in such a short time. He hoped he could get everyone all the way to Salt Lake in one piece.
“I appreciate the confidence,” said Mark, trying to reflect a measure of thanks in his reply. But it wasn’t time for making friends. Mark shifted immediately back into his command voice.
We’ve got a long day ahead of us and the sun will be up soon. So, shake a leg people and get packed up.”
The Marauders turned immediately to their individual tasks and began to break camp.
Chapter 168: Strange
By the time Mark’s team was riding on the road, Beaver’s group had already been moving for 20 minutes. It was still dark when they started but Beaver insisted they leave early, again driving the men to pick up any ground they could on the target ahead.
“Ride hard now!” barked Beaver, when they pushed off. “We are close. Should maybe catch ‘um in a day or two.”
The men grunted to get moving. Soon they were beating out a steady rhythm on their bikes.
Two hours later they rode past the three men that had tried to sneak up on Mark’s group the night before. The convicts looked down at the dead men lying in the middle of the road, their bodies now swarming with files. But nobody stopped. Beaver wouldn’t let them.
“Told you they wouldn’t be coming home last night,” laughed Beaver as he rode by the bodies. “Shoulda stayed back with us, morons.”
Finally, the group climbed above the last of the long steep grade and to their great relief, the road flattened out a bit. Soon they crossed a bridge over a small steam. But a hundred feet later one of the men toward the front shouted he had a flat. Everyone pulled over to wait while the rider began his repair. They hadn’t had many flats since they left Vegas.
Once the repair was finished the men started riding again. But after another hour two other men suddenly got flats and the convicts had to stop again.
While the repairs were in progress, Ivan noticed the broken end of a light bulb lying near the center of the road. He walked over and picked it up. He noticed the glass spread around it.
“Strange,” thought Ivan to himself.
The men finally completed their repairs and so Ivan tossed the broken light bulb to the side and made his way back to his bike.
At 1:30 pm Ivan commanded the men to pull over for lunch. It was a quick affair and 35 minutes later they were moving North again.
Chapter 169: Five miles back
When Tyrone just couldn’t go any farther, Mark pulled the team over to the side of the road. It was almost dark anyway. Mark ordered Frank to scout ahead for a good place to camp. They were done for the day. About a hundred yards ahead Frank found a level place an open field behind a large cattle watering trough and old barn. They were about 13 miles North of Cedar city in the middle of a long flat section of freeway.
Ten minutes later Jack and Jacob rode up to join the group. Everyone else was setting up their tents for the night. When they saw Jake and Jacob ride up they all ran over, wanting an update on how close their pursuers were.
Mark waited until everyone was close. No reason to sugar coat their report.
“OK, said Mark. “Give it to us straight.”
Jake carefully laid his bike down on the ground. Jacob leaned forward on his bike’s handlebars, resting his upper body.
“They’re about five miles back now,” said Jake. “Even with all the flats we gave um, they still picked up four miles on us today. Based on our present progress they should overtake us around 1700 hours, or by 4 pm, tomorrow.”
That was it then. The group had done all they could but they were out of options.
“Why don’t we just get off the road and let them pass?” asked Marylin, with some panic in her voice.
Mark shook his head.
“I’ve considered it several times,” said Mark. “But then they’d be ahead of us. Even if we hid out a week somewhere we’d never know if they’d given up and gone back or were still out there ahead of us. And we might accidently stumble on to them around a sharp canyon corner. No, our best chance is to bring them to us in a place where we have the better defensible position.”
“But there is no good ground around here,” said Teresa, swinging her head around.
“Here no,” said Mark. “But about twenty miles ahead I think there’s a good place to make a stand.”
The group didn’t have any other questions. So, after a few more seconds Mark his final orders for the night.
“OK then,” tonight we eat and rest. Tomorrow we ride until about 1600 hours, or 3 pm. Then we dig in and wait for them to come to us.”
With that the marauders split up, got to work setting their tents set up. Frank posted guards at the South end of the camp. Tonight’s guards would once again watch the South though their SmartScopes.
Chapter 170: Little birds
When Mark and his team came to the top of a mountain hill he suddenly stopped the column. Then he looked at his watch. It was straight up 1500 hours, or 3 pm.
“This has to be the place,” he thought, with a little panic.
Before him lay a flat valley about a mile long and half that wide. The high spot where he stood gave him a good look at the entire valley below. It was obviously used for feeding cattle in the summers and had nothing in it but a busted down barn on the West side. The freeway ran straight down into the small valley, across the bottom and then climbed back up another set of high hills on the North side of the valley.
Mark pulled his map out and studied their current position. After a few seconds he was convinced this was definitel
y the place.
Jake walked up with the binoculars in his right hand.
“Major,” said Jake.
“Yea, said Mark, as he pulled up his SmartScope to his right eye and searched across the Northern hills ahead.
“The guys behind us are about two miles back now, and coming hard,” said Jake. “They’ve been able to see us for a while now.”
Mark turned back to the group.
“OK,” he began. “This is where we’ll make our stand.
He walked back to his bike and mounted it. There wasn’t any time to waist.
“Follow me, double time now,” shouted the Major, as he and the others pushed off down the hill.
They were across the flat valley in five minutes and climbed halfway up the hill on the North side before coming to a stop. He got off his bike quickly and turned back to the group.
“Frank,” shouted Mark.
“Sir,” replied Frank. “Take Doc, Gracie, Sam, Susie, Lenny, Pam, William, and Caroline and create a defensive line along that rise on the East site of the road. Make sure your flanks are protected. Take all your equipment, food and water, hide the bikes and trailers. Make sure you place yourself where you and I can exchange hand signals. Your team will be without a radio.”
“Got it,” replied Frank, and then turned away already shouting out his own orders. Those with Frank moved quickly.
“Jake,” barked the Major.
“Yes sir,” replied the sniper.
Take a radio and the TAC 50 up the mountain. Bring your gear and food. We might be here a day or two,” explained Mark. “Find a high place where you can see the whole valley and the hills to the South. You’ll be our stop gap in case they try and swing around either side. Call me when you get into position, and don’t forget to hide your bike.”
Jake was gone in an instant. After he stashed his bike behind a cedar tree, he picked up his supplies and the heavy TAC 50. Then looked at the Northern hills above him and scouted for a best way up to the highest peak.
“Jacob,” said Mark. “I need to you to command the Alamo.”
“Sir?” questioned the young man.
“Find a defensible position somewhere up the road behind us,” Mark said as picked up his big binoculars and pointed them toward the Southern end of the valley. “Make sure you find a spot that can’t been seen from the road. Take Connie, Billy, Nancy and the little ones. Hide your bikes so they can’t be seen from the road. Bring all your supplies and food with you. And don’t come out unless you hear from one of us. Now move!” shouted Mark.
Jacob didn’t want to go, but he’d promised to follow the Major’s directions. So, he gathered up those he was in charge of and started North, up the road.
Mark put his binoculars back into his saddlebags.
“The rest of you are with me, on the West side there,” as he pointed to a level position to his right. Hide your bikes and bring all your sleeping gear, ammo and food supplies!” shouted Mark.
Sylvia, Randy, Tyrone, Teresa, Jeremy, Mary, Kevin, Marylin and Connie followed Mark’s commands and moved quickly to hide their bikes to the side of the road. Then, when they were all ready, they scrambled up into the hills to the West right behind Mark. As he climbed with them he would stop every so many feed and place one of them behind a mound or a rock. He kept moving in a straight line across the hill. He placed his more experienced men on the extreme ends of the line. Mark would put himself in the middle. He knew Frank would position his line the same way.
“Get down, comfortable and make yourself invisible!” he shouted to his team. “Our best chance is to take them by surprise!”
But they wouldn’t surprise anyone today. Before the last of Mark’s team had dug in completely, Ivan and is gang of convicts rolled to a stop on the top of the Southern hill where the Marauders had stood only 15 minutes earlier. The convicts could see Mark’s team moving among the Northern hills on the West side of the freeway. Several of them pointed to the North.
“There they are!” shouted one man.
“We did it,” said Beaver. “We got ‘um.”
But the Russian didn’t move the men forward. Instead he walked to the front of the column and looked toward the end of the valley. Ivan had always believed that the key to a long life was the prudent exercise of caution. He pulled out his own binoculars and started scanning the group on the other side of the valley.
“We found, yes,” said Ivan. “But have them… we don’t, yet.”
Beaver came forward and eagerly stood by his Russian boss.
“Let me take half the men up the East side of the road and work our way around them,” begged Beaver. “We could rush um before they get set.”
Ivan didn’t answer. He was looking at the hills on both sides of the freeway. He didn’t see any one on the West side. But that didn’t mean they weren’t there.
“No,” Ivan said. “Before we move forward, we must know their positions.”
Beaver could hardly believe it. They’d come all this way and now the women were just over there for the taking.
“I know we could take um,” begged Beaver again. “Just give me ten men and we’ll have the women before the sun sets, I promise!”
But Ivan wasn’t budging. He knew the value of the women. Now that they’d finally caught up with them, he’d be very careful how they were collected.
“Take easy cowboy,” said Ivan, attempting to calm his remaining Boy Scout. “There will be time and place for action. For now, we think and develop best strategy. Tell men to set up camp and take rest they have earned. We will decide what to do in morning.
“But what if they run,” questioned Beaver. “They might get away.”
“They will not run,” replied Ivan, still searching the Northern hills for signs of other positions. “We have been gaining on them each day since town of St. George. They know they cannot out run us now. They are trapped here hoping we go back or make mistake if we attack.”
“But we’re definitely attacking, right?” asked Beaver. He couldn’t believe they’d come all this way and now had to wait.
“Oh, we will triumph, of that I am most sure,” said Ivan, dropping the binoculars for the first time. “But we will be careful how we accomplish this.”
Ivan turned his thick body toward Beaver’s, his dirty clothes resisting his massive frame and twisting motion.
“Now go and do as I say,” commanded Ivan. “Tell men to unpack and set camp for night. And don’t worry so much. Little female birds will still be here in morning.”
Frustrated, Beaver turned to the men and issued commands to set up camp. Ivan turned back to the North and continued scanning the hills with his binoculars.
“Yes, birds will be here in morning. Of that I am sure,” whispered Ivan.
Chapter 171: Lots of apologies
Once it was dark, Mark began to work his way along the line of defense he’d set up when it was still light. Now he could move without fear of being seen. Besides the men at the other end of the valley didn’t seem interested in coming forward tonight. To Mark, this meant the convicts had spotted his group’s position before they could get completely hidden.
He stopped with every one of the team. To the non-Rangers he told them to: keep in their present positions, pull their sleeping pads out and place them on the ground, with their sleeping bags on top. Then lay their tents flat across their sleeping bags to keep them dry in case it rained or snowed. The brighter tents were to be turned upside down so the darker underside faced up. This was better for camouflage. They were to cook, eat, stand guard and sleep in their current positions. They could pee as needed but were to always crawl backward keeping a low profile. He warned them it might take a day or two before the men across the valley finally decided to attack them. He also told them they needed to shift their sleep to the day and keep awake at night.
Mark knew the less experienced team members would most likely fall asleep during the night, especially since they were already lying down.
So, he rose ever hour or so and woke those that had dozed off. He heard a lot of apologies during the long hours of the night.
He called Jake on the radio just after dark and told him to hold on to his remaining rounds unless he spotted someone trying to work around their flanks. But once he was out of 50 caliber ammo he was to come down and join the defensive line on the West side of the freeway.
Once he was back in his position, Mark’s mind continued to work through possible scenarios. There was always one more thing to do in combat. But he couldn’t think of anything at the moment.
After another hour the Eastern sky began to glow red.
