He turned his attention to Chuck and they talked about the coming trip over the mountains. Chuck said, “I’ve checked the sand supply and we are in good shape there. At the station I looked at the last track report and found out the main line is clear all the way to Pittsburg. When do you want to pull out so I can tell the engineers?”
Greg said when the ‘operation knitting’ company comes back we will take off.”
Chuck laughed and said, “This is the first bit of humor I’ve heard in a long time.”
They sat a while longer talking about safety and other things. Bubba came in and sat down with them and Greg told him about the president joining his exercise class tonight. Bubba laughed and said he felt silly, but nothing else to do. “Besides it will do everyone good to get the stiffness out of their bodies and make them sleep better. We have, as you know, some sleeping cars and I’ve been working on a schedule for the rotation so everyone can enjoy a good night's sleep once in awhile.”
Greg complimented him on his plan and the three of them sat talking until the colonel came back an hour later with a smile on his face. It seems the soldiers had found a fabric store and loaded up their sleds with enough items to keep a lot of people knitting for a long time. Greg was delighted and his wife would be happy to hear the news. Meanwhile Greg told Chuck as soon as the train was ready he could make for the mountains. There were two small cities before the mountains but no stops were intended. Troops would be at the ready when going through the towns but at this point it appeared no trouble was expected until maybe Pittsburg.
Chapter 14
The train moved at fifteen miles an hour. Two days passed and they started up the mountains. Passing through Harrisburg the train experienced no trouble and when they stopped at the small station, they didn’t find a soul around. They continued on and when night fell on the second day after Philadelphia, the train started up the mountain. Chuck was in the front engine staying there the whole time up the mountain. Daylight broke as the train reached the top and most of that day the train moved through the mountains and at dark descended down the mountain towards Pittsburg. Greg told Chuck to make sure that it was daylight when they came into Pittsburg in case of any trouble.
The train lumbered through the mountains. Looking out the windows it was nothing but white swirling snow. Inside the train it was noticeably colder. Not as cold as the fateful mountain train from Chicago, but the passenger’s felt a little scared. Bubba was busy running up and down the train and the bounty hunters in the forward cars were doing the same thing: keeping passengers calm and busy.
Our two bounty hunters had their meeting with the president and a close relationship was developing. The three of them had spent a lot of time together working on some details after arriving in Colorado. It was obvious to Greg that the president was working hard at forming a new type of government for these troubled times. Occasionally she sought his advice on a matter or two and he was impressed at her intelligence and foresight.
On the way down the mountain the train slowed down to about ten miles an hour. Chuck was trying to time the train’s arrival in the daylight. But it was impossible to tell where they were exactly so he didn’t take any chances and slowed the train down. Most were asleep so nobody noticed the slower pace. Greg was in a meeting with his boss and the FBI director talking about security with the colonel and the captain when they arrived in Pittsburgh.
Most of Pittsburgh’s history contained many blue collar people who had gone through times when oil, coal and steel were the main sources of income for the citizens. Tough people and tough times brought out the worst and the best in people. Greg was taking no chances as he went through the details on when the train stopped at the over one hundred years old station in Pittsburgh. We must be prepared for any eventuality he told the group.
Everyone was peering out the windows and it looked like it was getting brighter by the minute.
Someone said, “My god the sun is coming out! I don’t believe it. Can it really be that this nightmare is over?”
The colonel said, “Don’t get your hopes up as it is only the eye of the storm and soon we will be back in the same type of weather as before.”
All looked out on a winter landscape that looked like an Arctic wasteland. Building that they passed looked like cemetery markers with the snow drifted along the sides or fronts of the buildings. Power poles and street lights looked like black sticks and white cobwebs stretching across the streets and down the power lines. Many wires lay against the poles snapped by the weight or the wind from the storm. Cars that were parked along the streets looked like moguls on a ski slope. Nothing was moving as the train slowly made its way to the ancient station.
The president said, “How can anyone live in this climate? Is this the picture of the whole of the United States?”
The sun was shining brightly now and it hurt their eyes to look at the winter landscape. Someone said they were not far from the station and the colonel took his leave to alert his men of the upcoming stop. Greg was nervous and had his eyes glued to the windows. The engineer was instructed not to sound his horn, but to come into the station slowly and quietly. Greg saw the station and drifts of snow lay piled against the platform. The wind continued to blow and snow was still blowing around the train making it a little difficult to see outside.
The engineer was also instructed to stop the train where the car of soldiers were stationed in case of any attack might occur. No sooner had the train stopped when a volley of gunshots was heard coming from the station. On the opposite side of the train about ten snowmobiles sped down the street with a rider on the back of each one with a rifle firing at the train.
Hilary was at her conference table talking to the two bounty hunters Janet and Carol when they heard the shots being fired. The president’s car was down the line from the center engine and just in front of the center engine was where the troops were stationed. Janet and Carol immediately drew their hand guns. Hilary was taken by surprise by how quickly and seemingly from nowhere hand guns appeared. Sounds of noisy snowmobiles drew their attention to the other side of the train opposite the station. Looking out the window on a sun covered landscape they saw many snowmobiles moving down the street with men on the backs of them firing rifles at the train. Secret service men appeared and asked the president to retire back to her room for safety. She complied as the bounty hunters headed out the door to see if they could help.
The troop car was a special armored car much like a tank. On each side portholes with machine guns, four each side, gave the car a formidable strike force. Each machine gun fired one thousand rounds a minute. The colonel gave orders to fire at both the station and the snowmobiles. In two minutes all was quiet. The snowmobiles were rider less and a white flag was sticking out of the station doors. Over a loud speaker from the troop car, the colonel gave orders to the men inside the station to come out with their hands in the air. A Special Forces team was hugging the side of the station making their way through the snow drifts piled up against the building.
Rifles were thrown out the door and slowly came the attackers from inside. One by one with hands raised they came out and stared at the car. The colonel asked if that was all, as about ten men stood on the platform in a line. A burly type guy answered in a gruff voice that nobody alive was inside the station. The Special Forces team had the bad guys on the ground and hog tied in no time. Some of the attackers were screaming for their rights and the colonel laughed. On the other side of the train another team checked each snow mobile rider and his companion. None were alive.
Greg had put on his Arctic gear and met the colonel on the platform. The colonel had already dispatched a team to check out the station room by room. The sun shining hurt their eyes and Greg had found some goggles to put on. Greg said to the colonel, “Take this bunch inside your troop train and let’s see what is going on here in Pittsburgh.”
Greg went inside the station to find three bodies lying on the floor. These unfortunate g
uys were too close to the door when the machine guns erupted with a force hardly imaginable.
A captain ran up to Greg and said there were a lot of people down underneath the station. No guns were found, but a lot of hungry people were happy to see them. It seemed like these attackers were exploiting the citizens for food and other things best not mentioned at this time.
Greg said, “Captain get a count and see if there is a leader among the group, If so, bring him to the troop train.”
“Yes sir,” the captain replied.
Greg didn’t want to go down there. He felt he would see the same thing as in Philadelphia and in Albany. Greg went back outside and stood looking the train up and down. He saw Chuck and Bubba together checking out the train. Chuck gave him thumbs up sign and Greg moved to the end of the platform and looked around what he could see in the area: mounds of snow covered vehicles and buildings were blocked from an entry for the drifting snow. Not a sign of life anywhere. Greg made a note to send out some scout snow mobiles to look around. He turned around and walked back to the troop car to interview the bad guys.
Inside the car the ten attackers sat with a downward look. The bushy bearded guy with wild eyes glared at all who looked at him. To Greg this was the leader and he would see from the rest of them how strong a group they really were. While Greg took off his snow suit the captain came in with two men from the underground community. A table sat at the end of the car with the colonel’s desk next to it. Greg asked the two men to sit down and tell him their story.
The story was much the same as before. Most were passengers going somewhere for Christmas. Stranded here they explored the underground and found fuel and lanterns left over from years ago. Lucky for them a warehouse of canned goods and other things was just in the back of the station. The station crew told them about it and then he told the story of the bad guys coming into the station about three days ago.
“Seems like they didn’t like to cook or do any work so they forced the people to cook for them and, sadly, took liberties with some of our younger girls. The ones on the snowmobiles are part of this same gang of bad guys. They have some four wheel drive jeeps in the parking lot. If I’m not mistaken, there are other gangs like them roving around the city.”
Greg said, “Thanks for your information and are you in need of anything in particular?”
“No, we are fine here for the time being. I hope this sun keeps shinning and maybe we can all go home soon.”
Just then it started to darken up outside. The wind picked up and it started to snow again. Greg hurried into his snow suit and made his way to the president’s car for a report. By the time he reached her car the wind was howling and the wind cut like a knife in the heart. He made his way to his room and took off his snow suit. The kids were anxious to hear what happened and he said he would tell them later. All was fine now and not to worry. He hurried to the president’s car and found all the principals waiting for his report. On his way in Janet and Carol was standing outside the door looking very serious. He asked them to come and join the group. A hot cup of coffee was waiting for him and he took a sip or two and tried to relax. Everyone was staring at him, but all were patient knowing he was gathering his thoughts. They had all come to respect this man. He was a born leader and his anticipation of things to come was amazing.
The colonel was sitting next to him and Greg asked him to report what the exploration team was doing. “We gave the leader a hand radio and now that it is storming again, I called them back. My question now is what do we do with our prisoners?”
Greg told the story of a gun battle and the subsequent capture of ten men. How all of the snowmobile riders and their companions died. He went on to relate the story of the station community and what the gang of thugs had done to the people. The president sat there and listened carefully and when Greg had finished she sighed and said, “Well, Greg, you were right in thinking what we might find here in Pittsburgh. Now we have to deal with the prisoners. Is there any among you who thinks we should not pass judgment and carry out a sentence of death to the perpetrators? God help for being judge, jury and executioners. However, I have declared a state of emergency and by the power vested in me we shall carry out the sentence forthwith. Colonel prepare the prisoners and ask for volunteers for a firing squad.”
A few minutes later the prisoners were lined up against the door of the station. The president and all of her staff were present when she said, “All of you have been found guilty of crimes against humanity and by the power vested in me as the President of the United States, you will be executed and god have mercy on your souls.”
The president walked away and her staff followed. Once inside the car shots rang out and silence hung in the air like the smoke from the guns a few moments ago. Strange the wind died down at the moment and then rose again to blow snow over the ten men lying on the platform.
Greg and Chuck were standing by the troop car and he told Chuck to proceed with the trip when ready. He turned to the colonel and nodded needing not to mention being on the lookout for more marauders cruising the city. Chuck walked to the lead engine and he would cast a keen eye on the tracks for any obstructions. Greg went back to his car and his promise to talk to the kids and his wife.
Greg made his way to their room and once inside sat down on the small bed opposite the kids. He told them the story in some detail. He wanted this incident remembered by them. A new era was being born in America and he wanted his kids to grow up with the new America knowing what was right and wrong. He asked the kids to make a diary of their trip so when they were older and had kids of their own they could read about the train ride to Colorado in the middle of a blizzard. History was in the making and when he was saying this to the kids, his thoughts ran deeper into a new type of system both economic and political.
“Kids, you are witness to a new America and most likely the America we once knew, will fade into the history books. Many challenges lie ahead of us forming a new system for living. The old ideas of entertainment are gone for the time being. New forms of entertainment must be developed. There won't be any television, computer games and such things for a long time to come. I think maybe when we find a city that doesn’t have bad guys in it, we should find some musical instruments and learn to play music. Is this a good idea kids?”
Their eyes lit up at the idea and asked when they could start.
“Soon kids, soon,” he said with fatherly love.
Becky hugged him and said, “Greg that is a wonderful idea. I’m sure somewhere on this train is some music minded person and I will ask around and have Bubba check the forward cars. The sewing and knitting are keeping the passengers busy. So far everyone seems happy and content to be cooped up in a confining space such as this train. Starting tomorrow we will have school classes beginning with reading. Maybe when you stop for the music supplies you could also pick up some school supplies too?”
Greg nodded his head and said he would be back soon. He had something on his mind and needed to talk to the colonel. He left and made his way to the dining car where he hoped Chuck and Bubba were hanging out and the colonel too.
He found all three drinking coffee and deep in conversation about the events this morning. The first thing Greg asked Chuck was whether or not all was ready to make their way towards Chicago.
Chuck said, “We are as ready as will ever be, but the colonel thinks maybe some more bad guys might be lurking down the tracks a ways.”
On the table a fairly detailed map open to Pennsylvania and it showed the many towns the train would travel through.
Greg said, “Maybe we should go slowly until we reach the outside of the city.”
Chuck replied, “I already told the engineers to proceed at ten miles an hour until we are clear of the city.”
Greg nodded his approval and turned to the colonel and said, “What can we expect our boys to do if suddenly we have something blocking our way or a track has been torn up.”
The colonel says with c
onfidence, “I have a team of two snowmobiles out front of the train for just that purpose. They have radios and we will run them in shifts until we are clear of the city.”
Greg thought that was a good plan and said he would report to the president and her staff. In the meantime he joined their chatter and drank some coffee. An aid came and said if he had time the president would like to see him. Greg stood up and followed the aid to the president’s car.
Walking in Greg noticed the president had a drawn look on her face. The stress was getting to her. Her decision to execute the prisoners was taking its toll on her. Greg decided to stick his neck out a little and talk to her about the ‘Buck stops here’ syndrome. Jasper was lying at her feet as usual. Jasper only came home to their car once in awhile to see how the kids were doing and he would hang around for awhile then whine at the door to return to the president’s car. He always slept with her and Hilary wondered how the dog knew she needed him.
Greg sat down next to her, which was unusual as he normally sat at the opposite end of the table facing her. Jasper greeted him by raising his head up and small sounds escaped his throat.
“Coffee.” She asked him.
“Sure, one never knows when it might be the last cup,” he said with a smile to loosen her up. “We will soon be leaving the station and preceding us will be two teams of snowmobiles with radios looking for anything in our path, including roving marauders. I think once we are clear of the city we can pick up the pace a little.”
“Greg, I need to talk to you about something very important. I hope I’m not paranoid, but as you are well aware, I’m surrounded by men and the military. If someone wanted to take over power from me it would not be difficult. In addition to the secret service, I’ve appointed Janet and Carol as personal bodyguards and from tonight they will stay with me here in my car. Now having said that, I want you to consider what I have to say to you about a new position. Titles are just that: Titles, but I want you to take command of this expedition and in the final analysis be my second in command. I know some feathers will be ruffled, but in reality, you are the best we have to lead this group of pilgrims into the next stage of American life. If you want to think about this and let me know later, that is fine with me.”
Unearthly Snowbound Page 11
