The Beginning of the End (Book2): Road to Damnation

by Kidd, Sean

  “I got this one,” Beck said addressing the Master Chief, “have you seen my truck? If anything gets in my way, I plan on running them down. It probably won’t even slow me down.” Beck said smiling.

  “What if the bomb does go off, when you’re hooking it up?” Cecilia asked.

  The Master Chief glanced over to his fellow soldier, “The bad news is, we will lose Beck. The good news is, the bomb will liquify him before he even knows it went off. But you have to understand, that’s not going to happen, God forbid, even if it does go off, he’s going to give us that thirty-minute head start window so we’ll all be just fine. Now does anyone else have any questions?”

  The group said nothing and looked around at each other. No other hands went up.

  “Good, so if there are no more questions, then let’s head down to the Tahoe and Beck can start the clock.”

  Sawyer walked over to the wall and unplugged the communicator battery packs. He attached the mic around his neck and twisted the earpiece into his canal. He tossed the second to Beck.

  “What do we need these for? The range is only a couple of miles.”

  “Just in case,” Sawyer said.

  “In case of what?”

  “Just wear the damn communicator. That’s an order. I want to be in communication with you when you’re clear from the device. It will also make it easier for you to find us in Newark.”

  “Yes, sir.” Beck said strapping the two-way radio device to his head. Sawyer stepped up to Beck and stood at full attention. He waited for a second, and snapped off a salute, “I’m proud of you son.”

  Beck saluted back, “You don’t have to worry, Master Chief. I’ve done this before. It’s two wires, and it’s dummy proof.”

  “It’s not the bomb I'm worried about, Beck. It’s the fact that there are seven million zombies walking around town and for the life of me, I can’t seem to find one of them. My instinct tells me you’re going to have a bitch of a time clearing this ville.”

  “Don’t worry, Master Chief. Like I said to Destiny, I’ll run 'em all down.”

  Sawyer gave Beck a slap on the arm, “I hope so my friend. I really hope so. Now, let’s head down to the Tahoe and get the hell out of here.”

  When they got to the vehicle, everyone was loaded up, except for Daniels and Kaden.

  Daniels gave Beck a firm handshake and wished him luck. Kaden waited until they finished, but didn’t say anything.

  “What is it, little man?” Beck asked.

  “I want to stay with you. I’m good with the rifle, and I can watch your back.”

  Beck smiled and threw his arm around Kaden, “I appreciate the offer, kid. But you’ll just slow me down. I work better alone. I’ll meet you in Newark in a few hours and then you can ride with me and be my co-pilot. How’s that sound?”

  It wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but it would have to do. He crawled into the back of the Tahoe, as Sawyer gave Beck one last handshake, “We’re out of here, buddy. Keep that communicator on in case I need to contact you. Remember, set your countdown timer to thirty minutes, and then connect the remote detonator. Let’s sync up our watches, in three, two, one, mark. The second that timer goes off, I want you to hook that thing up and high-tail it out of here. We’ll see you on the other side of the river in an hour.”

  “I’ll be right behind you,” Beck said as he lifted his wrist and tapped his watch, “just over twenty-nine minutes, you better get moving.”

  “Good luck,” Sawyer said, as he gave Beck a quick nod and broke into a jog heading toward the deck exit.

  A few seconds later, he was jumping in the passenger seat of the Tahoe. Daniels was already in the driver’s seat and had the engine running. Sawyer glanced back, between the group, at the all the food they’d taken from the Intrepid. They were packed in there like sardines.

  Sawyer slammed the passenger door closed and ordered Daniels to step on it, “We’ve got about twenty-eight minutes to make it over the bridge. Beck is going to connect it whether we’re ready or not, and then he'll meet us on the other side of the river.

  Bunker pulled himself forward from the back seat, “I just want to make sure I’m clear about this. When Beck hooks up the detonator, it’s not going to go off, right?”

  “Right,” Sawyer answered.

  “Okay, I just want my boy to be all right,” Bunker said, “No offense, but you can’t always trust the government. If your detonator is a fuse, I say, fuck it. We go back and get Beck and let President bum fuck come back here and set it off himself.”

  Sawyer chuckled, “It’s not like that, Bunker. I wouldn’t leave a man behind like that. I assure you he’s going to meet us on the other side of the river this afternoon. By the time that bomb goes off, we’ll probably be in Atlanta telling the General that the detonator's installed, and then he sets it off.”

  Bunker leaned back in the seat, feeling a little better. Daniels glanced over at Sawyer and muttered under his breath, “You better be right.”

  Chapter 52

  Beck sat on the deck, inches from the bomb, practicing sailor’s knots on a piece of nylon rope he’d found tied to the backpack. In between knots, he’d check the time. It moved agonizingly slow. He wanted this job finished. Then he could catch up with his new friends. Maybe staying back at the ship alone was a bad idea. He wished for the company of another person.

  He checked his watch again, eleven minutes to go. Beck got up to his feet and headed for the side of the deck. He scanned the horizon looking for movement or any sign of the Tahoe.

  Inside the side pouch of his MOLLE vest, he kept a pair of low powered binoculars. They weren’t the best, but maybe enough to see traffic on the George Washington Bridge. Beck stared at the bridge and worked his way backward along the Henry Hudson Parkway searching for any movement. There was nothing. Maybe they’d already crossed. He glanced down at his carbon-reinforced polycarbonate Luminox watch on his wrist. Six minutes left.

  “I suppose it’s time to set up,” he said talking to himself.

  Beck kneeled next the pack, unclipped the top, and removed the laces from the pack side.

  The backpack holding the bomb wasn’t like the traditional school kids pack or an army rucksack. It was a modified H-912 container covered in green military straps, securing it to an aluminum frame. The top unlatched, giving full access to the upper part of the bomb while the side had a single split running down to the bottom with 550 cord. Unlacing the cord, like untying a shoelace, gave full access to the device, also making it easy to remove from the pack without damaging it.

  By the time Beck finished unlacing the pack, he was down to seconds. He carefully slid the device from the bag onto the deck and set the remote detonator next to it. The side pocket on the container shell had a small tool kit with everything he’d need to remove the access panel on the bomb. The device was armed, so pulling off the access panel, and working on the control board made the chance of it going off a distinct possibility. Inside the tool kit, Beck found the anti-static wrist strap. This was nothing more than a wrist-strap with a piece of metal inside of it connecting to a wire which alligator clipped to the exterior shell of the device. A mere static discharge inside the control board would be enough to make it go boom. That was the last thing he wanted.

  Beck paused and pushed the button on his com-link, “Master Chief, I’m about to connect the detonator. Are you guys clear?”

  Beck waited for a response.

  When he didn’t get one he tried again, “Master Chief, can you hear me? Are you clear?”

  Without realizing it, because of the radio’s poor reception, Sawyer had been trying to radio Beck.

  “Can you hear me? Beck come in. We’re not even halfway. The Henry Hudson Parkway is overrun with dead. Hold off on connecting the detonator until I tell you we’re clear. I repeat, avoid the parkway on your evac. It’s been overtaken with dead. I will radio you with a better route when we find one. Damn it, Beck. Can you hear me? These damn buildings.”r />
  Beck tapped his earpiece a few times. For a brief second, he thought he heard Sawyer speaking, but it was covered with static.

  He glanced down at his watch again. I’m already five minutes late. It’s time to get this girl hot.

  Beck pulled the screwdriver from the tool kit and removed the four screws holding on the access panel cover. He popped off the cover exposing ribbons of rainbow wiring and connectors. Sawyer had armed the device and done a diagnostics check earlier. With the bomb powered up, the six red LED numbers displayed zeros. It sent a chill through Beck, knowing the power this device had. He regained focus and found the wire strip he was looking for in the panel. It consisted of two wires, one red and one black.

  Beck pulled the harness connector free from the control board and picked up the remote detonator from the deck. Only a single wire harness hung from the detonator, with the corresponding red and black wires. He slid his fingers down to the white plastic connector and lined it up with the nuclear weapons control board.

  Beck paused for a second, working up the courage to plug it in, “Here we go,” he said as he pushed the connector into the control board. He had been trained how to do this but had never done it for real. It had only been simulated in a classroom. He didn’t expect for the bomb to do anything, but something seemed to be happening.

  The device emitted a sound that sounded like his wife’s expensive camera’s detachable flash charging followed by a click. Beck’s heart pounded so hard, he thought it was going to explode inside of his chest. His first thought was to remove the black and red wires he had attached but during his classroom exercises, he knew that was a sure way to set off the bomb. He kept telling himself, “It will be alright. It’s just cycling and connecting to GPS.”

  About the time panic was setting in, the sound stopped.

  “Thank God.” Beck sighed

  He picked up the access cover panel to re-attach it when the red LED number started cycling. Zero through nine, so fast you couldn’t read the numbers. His breathing increased again, as the radio went off in his ear, startling him.

  “Beck, can you hear me? Come in, Beck.”

  He pressed the com-link, “Master Chief, I’m here. Can you hear me?”

  “Thank god, I can hear you. All the routes are blocked. We’re just past the halfway point. We’re going to come back to you. Do not connect the detonator. Do you copy? Do not connect the detonator.”

  “Master Chief, you’re too late. It’s connected.”

  “It doesn’t matter. We’re coming back to you anyway. The route is blocked. We’re going to try to find a boat and take it down the river. Do you copy?”

  “I copy, Master Chief. I’ll start looking for a boat for…”

  Beck was distracted by a high-pitch beep coming from the control panel. He looked down at the bomb, and his jaw fell open. The LED clock set itself to five minutes and was counting down backward.

  “Oh fuck,” Beck sighed.

  He pressed the button on the com-link, “Master Chief, it’s counting down. Get out of here!” Beck screamed into the radio.

  “What?” Sawyer answered.

  “The bomb. It’s counting down. Four minutes and thirty-nine seconds until detonation.”

  Sawyer screamed on the radio, “Get out of there now, Beck! That’s an order, go!”

  Chapter 53

  “Go, go, go,” Sawyer, screamed at Daniels.

  Daniels didn’t ask any questions. From listening to one side of the Sawyer’s conversation, he knew something was wrong. He pushed the pedal to the floor. The Tahoe revved as it plowed through a horde of zombies.

  A few minutes earlier, they had contemplated heading back to the Intrepid, but now they had no choice. Daniels pushed the 4 X 4 button on the dash. Just to make sure nothing was going to stop them. Then he worked up the courage and asked what was going on.

  Sawyer looked at his watch and said, “We’ve got about four minutes until the nuclear weapon goes off.”

  “We’re never going to make it!” Daniels screamed as he pushed on the accelerator even harder.

  Bodies thumped off the front end, as Daniels pulled the cell phone from his shirt pocket. He tried to drive and type at the same time, “Ty, we’re not going to make it. Stay away from the city there’s a nuclear bomb about to go off here. Tell your mother I love her, and she was the best thing that ever happened to me. Tell Chevy I love him too. Take care of your mom, Ty. It’s your job now. I love you, Dad.

  Chapter 54

  New York City had been in sight for almost thirty minutes. The closer we got, the more excited and worried I became. People in the Humvee spoke to me, and I didn’t answer. We were all on edge, and I wasn’t hiding it as well as could be expected.

  Everyone was complaining in the back, and I did my best to tune them out until Chevy gave me a nudge.

  “Snap out of it, man. We’re almost there. You should be excited, not pissed off.”

  “I’m not upset, Chevy. I’m just really nervous. I’ll feel much better when I see Dad.”

  “I understand too,” Mom said from the backseat. “How much farther do you think it is?”

  “I’m not exactly sure,” I said, “I’ve only been here a few times, but there are signs for Bridge Plaza, Hudson Terrace, and Fort Lee so we must be close.”

  No sooner had I said that the bridge came into view.

  “There it is,” I celebrated.

  The double-decker suspension bridge looked forgotten in this new wasteland. Other than a few wrecked cars the bridge stood desolate.

  I stopped the Humvee in the middle of Interstate 95. I check my mirror and saw Cowboy’s team coming up from behind.

  “I’ve got to take a pee. Come on, Charger,” Sage said as she climbed out of the back seat.

  “That’s not a bad idea,” Mom said, as she followed Sage.

  Judging from the rest of the rumblings coming from the back, I think everyone was ready for a pit stop.

  Cowboy pulled up next to me as I stepped out of the Humvee, “Piss break, hoss?”

  “Yeah, we’ve been on the road for a while. Dad is supposed to meet us on the bridge there. I think it might be a good idea to get tactical, we’ll set up some lookouts, and make this camp until we hear from dad.”

  I reached back in the Humvee and grabbed my phone and hit the home button.

  There were no new messages. I opened the texting app and typed, “We’re on the west side of the GWB. We’re going to set up here and wait. We’ll have eyes on the bridge. Please message me when you get this.”

  “Anything?” Cowboy asked.

  “Nothing yet,” I said, “but while driving earlier, we got a message, it was illegible, but it was enough to let us know my dad is still alive.”

  “Let’s hope he’s here soon, I don’t like being this close to the city. After we hit the head, Luther and I will take first watch.”

  “Sounds good. I think Chevy and I will walk down to the bridge and check it out.”

  Just as I said that, my phone’s text message ringtone went off. Chevy was close enough to hear and ran over, as I pulled out the phone. I hit the app button and read the message out loud.

  “A bomb,” Chevy said as the three of us looked toward the city in time to be blinded by a flash of light. We covered our faces and turned away. I heard one of the girls scream.

  When the immense light disappeared, I turned back toward the city where I saw a mushroom cloud forming. It was bigger than all the surrounding buildings. I dropped to my knees and screamed.

  We watched as a circular rolling wall of fire washed over the city, originating from the center of the blast. It stopped just before reaching the other side of the bridge. A hot blast of air collided with us, forcing us to turn away again.

  When it subsided, I turned and saw my mom running toward me. She didn’t stop until she threw her arms around me. I didn’t need to read her the text message, she already knew Dad was dead. She let go of me, turned toward the city an
d screamed, “Nooooo!!!”

  * * *

  “My goodness, brother. Would you look at that? It’s almost like they want us to find them.”

  To be continued………..

  Thank you for purchasing The Beginning of the End Part 2 Road to Damnation. If you enjoyed this book, please take a moment to leave an Amazon Customer Review. Please feel free to contact me with any question or comments. I love hearing from you and almost always reply. See you in part 3.

  Sean Kidd

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