by Mark Goodwin
Jason let himself in the back door and walked into the dining room. “Mom said I can go.”
“Great. Go to the barn and ask Antoine if he wants to come along. His security shift ends in half an hour. If he says yes, get your fishing poles and tackle box.”
“Okay, be right back!” The excited boy darted out the back door.
Danny finished his breakfast and washed his dishes in the water Nana had left in the sink.
Alisa, Dana, and Gwen came in the back door carrying baskets filled with green beans, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, squash, and corn.
“Wow! The garden is doing great.” The bountiful early summer harvest gave Danny a feeling of security.
“Yeah. I guess we’ll be canning all day.” Alisa placed her basket on the kitchen counter.
Nana walked into the room. “We’ll be canning for the rest of the summer if we want to have anything to eat this winter.”
Danny dried his plate. “Wish I could help, but I’ve got to put together a message for church tomorrow.” He retrieved his Bible from the small table on the back porch and stuck it in his day pack.
“Where are you going?” Alisa asked.
Danny slung his AK-47 across his shoulder. “Over to JC’s pond where it’s quiet.”
“By yourself? That’s not safe.” She put her hands on her hips.
“Antoine and Jason are coming with me.” Danny waved as he made a rapid escape from the house.
He spotted Jason walking toward the barn carrying two fishing poles and a tackle box. Danny sprinted to catch up with him. “Hey.”
“Hi, Danny. Antoine said he would come with us, but I only have two poles. This one was my dad’s. You can use it.”
“Thanks. That means a lot to me. I’m sure the pole is special to you. Would you mind if Antoine and I take turns using your dad’s pole?”
“That’s fine. Just don’t break it.”
“We’ll be careful, I promise.” Danny tousled Jason’s hair. They reached the barn, and Danny opened the door.
Antoine descended from the loft, which was the primary lookout position. “I’m just waiting on Chris to relieve me then we can head on over to the pond.”
The three of them walked outside. Chris and Jack were approaching the barn carrying their weapons and a duffle bag each.
“Hey, guys.” Danny waved. “Do you know if your dad stocked the pond with fish? We were thinking of heading over there and dropping a line in the water if you don’t mind.”
“Yeah, go ahead.” Chris walked past them and opened the barn door. “He stocked it with bluegill, bass, and catfish, but who knows if people have been over there fishing it out.”
“What do y’all have in the bags?” Antoine pointed at Jack’s duffle.
Jack continued following his brother. “Physical therapy equipment, basically. Chris’s shoulder is back to about ninety percent of where it was before he was shot. My leg might be seventy. Anyway, we’ve got two weeks to get in the best shape we can.”
“What happens in two weeks?” Danny thought it might just be a personal goal, but the statement sounded peculiar.
Jack suddenly had a look which implied he’d said too much. He looked at his older brother, as if to ask what he should do.
Chris turned around and looked at Danny as he put his hand on the ladder to climb into the loft. “We’re going to Charlotte.”
Danny didn’t need to ask why. “By yourselves?”
“You’re more than welcome to tag along, but it’s my operation. I’m calling the shots.” Chris started up the ladder.
Danny wasn’t sure what to say. “What do you hope to achieve?”
“I’m going to kill Schlusser.” Chris stepped up into the loft and dropped his bag.
Danny walked over to the ladder and looked up at Chris. “You don’t even know what Schlusser looks like.”
Chris peered down through the opening. “He’s the big boss. I’ll know him if I see him. Anyways, Jack knows what Gorbold looks like. I’ll take his scalp for a consolation prize.”
Danny leaned against the ladder, still looking up. “How do you think you’ll find either one of them?”
“I’ve been listening to everything you, Antoine, and Gwen have said about the layout of the airport and the peninsula. Jack and I will set up a sniper’s nest on the other side of the river. We’ll sit there day after day and watch the houses on the peninsula. Sooner or later, we’ll figure out who Schlusser is and take him out. He’s overconfident. He’s going outside and enjoying the view of the river. I’m sure of it.”
“You don’t even know which house it is,” Danny protested.
“He’s the boss. It’s the biggest one on the peninsula.” Chris’s voice was very matter-of-fact.
“Jack’s leg isn’t going to be a hundred percent in two weeks.” Danny crossed his arms.
“It doesn’t have to be. We’ll be lying still and just watching for the first week or so. Once we identify our target, we’ll take him out from the other side of the Catawba. We’ll hustle back to the truck and be long gone by the time they ever get to our side of the river.”
“Then what?” Danny inquired.
Chris squatted to get closer to Danny. “What do you mean?”
“What’s your next move? If you kill Schlusser, another one of his men will pop up to take his place.”
“So what?” Chris’s voice grew more agitated and loud. “My mission is to kill the monster that took my dad, Jack’s dad, and Annie’s dad. Can’t you understand that, Danny?”
“So your whole plan is to risk your lives for revenge.”
“Yes, Danny. That’s about the sum of it.”
“You’re putting Jack at risk also.”
“He can make his own decision. He doesn’t have to go if he doesn’t want to.”
Danny made a conscious effort to speak calmly so as not to make the conversation any more heated. “And what about Annie? Does she have any say in this? If you two leave, we’re down to three adult men for lookout duty. You’re also putting your little sister and your mom at risk.”
“Put the girls in the security rotation. Alisa, Gwen, and Dana have all seen combat. They can surely sit in a barn for a few hours and look out a window.”
“They’re carrying the brunt of the gardening work and tending the animals. We’re spread thin, Chris.”
“Well, that’s not my problem. Just figure it out, Danny.” Chris stood back up and walked away from the opening to the loft, as if to signal that the conversation was over.
“See you later.” Jack didn’t look at Danny as he climbed the ladder to join his brother.
“Are we still going fishing?” Jason asked.
Danny turned to the boy and forced a smile. “Absolutely. Come on.”
As the three of them left the barn, Catfish stepped out of his trailer located just a few yards away. “Where y’all a fixin’ to go with them poles?”
Danny paused before answering. He knew Catfish would likely want to tag along and that would be the end of his hope for a quiet trip. Of Catfish’s many skills and peculiar capabilities, being silent was not one of them. Danny quickly came up with a plan to dissuade the bizarre old fellow. “It’s more of a reconnaissance trip than anything. We’re going to see if there are any fish left in the Castell’s pond. But, you should see all of the produce the girls brought from the garden. Miss Jennie is cooking it up as we speak.”
Catfish waved his hand across his face. “Nah. Might get henpecked to death in there with all them women. I’ll get my pole and come along with you boys.”
“Do you have an extra fishing pole, Catfish? We only have two so far.” Jason held his poles up.
“I might.” Catfish rubbed his long, disheveled gray beard. “I just might. Say, what are y’all usin’ fer bait?”
“Lures.” Jason shook his tackle box.
Catfish’s forehead puckered. “Oh, no. That won’t do. We’ll flip a few cow patties over on the way and scrounge us up
some night crawlers.”
“If you’re coming, bring a rifle and ammo for security.” Danny tried not to let the disappointment in his voice be too evident.
Catfish went back into his trailer. He returned minutes later carrying his rifle and fishing gear. “Won’t Miss Jennie be surprised if we come home with a mess of fish for dinner?”
Danny led the way back through the woods to JC’s place. The pond was less than a fifteen-minute walk.
Antoine kept pace with Danny. “What do you think about Chris’s idea?”
“I think it’s stupid, reckless, and selfish.” Danny’s scowl softened. “But I understand how he feels.”
“Me, too,” Jason said.
Danny hadn’t realized the boy was listening. “Yeah, I guess you know better than any of us. But, you know, Jason, carrying a vengeful attitude around doesn’t hurt the person you’re mad at. It only hurts you. If you can find it in your heart to forgive the men who killed your dad, it will make your life a whole lot easier.”
“I don’t know if I can.”
Danny put his hand on Jason’s shoulder. “Pray. Ask God to help you. And remember, either way won’t make any difference to Schlusser.”
“You and JC went to try to kill all those people in Charlotte. How is that any different?” Jason asked.
“I didn’t go because I wanted revenge. I went to try to keep you and everyone else at the farm safe.”
“So I could forgive Schlusser and still want him to die?”
“That’s a tough one.” Danny looked over at Antoine to see if he could get any help.
Catfish was quick to offer his pontification. “Sure you can. You can forgive him, and that’d be a fine thing to do. But, that ol’ fox is a bringin’ a heap of trouble on these parts, and there ain't a thinkin’ man around that don’t want to send him straight to the devil. And the sooner the better, I say.”
Jason looked at Danny to see if he would refute the philosophy of the backwoods sage.
Danny bobbed his head from side to side. “That’s not the way I would have said it, but I suppose Catfish’s reasoning is generally sound.”
“How do you know Chris hasn’t forgiven Schlusser? Maybe he just wants us to be safe.” Jason walked beside Danny.
Danny lifted the strand of barbed wire for Jason to crawl beneath. “You can see it in his eyes, hear it in his voice. It’s all over Chris, like a cloud of darkness. Revenge is eating him up inside like a cancer. And it’s not hurting Schlusser one bit. But, it can be contagious. If Jack isn’t careful, it will start gnawing at his soul as well.”
Jason stood up on the other side of the fence. “Still, I hope Chris kills him.”
“We all do, son. We all do.” Catfish leaned his rifle and fishing poles against the post and stepped over the barbed wire.
Antoine hung back with Danny while Catfish and Jason hurried toward the pond in the middle of the field. “You do admit Schlusser needs to die, though. We’ll never see any peace until he’s gone.”
Danny sighed. “I agree, but it’s a tall order. If you kill Schlusser and leave the rest of his infrastructure in place, someone else will just pop up and take his place. I don’t have a clue how we’d ever take the whole operation down. Even with Ben and every fighting man in his county, we can’t come close to taking out Schlusser’s compound.”
“What if we could get Sheriff Parnell of Cabarrus County to help?”
Danny looked at Antoine. “He’s not willing to fight. In fact, you’re the one who told me that. Remember, you said he’s the live-and-let-live type.”
“I could be wrong. I’ve never met the man. If he knew the layout of the airport where Schlusser’s troops were housed and how the operation ran, he might be more inclined to attack. Obviously, he’s strong enough to take Schlusser. Otherwise, Schlusser would have already taken him out.”
Danny bit his lower lip as he shook his head. “You’re leading me off on a wild goose chase.”
“Danny, if Schlusser isn’t shut down, Sheriff Parnell’s days are numbered. And so are ours. This isn’t one of those problems that goes away by itself.”
Danny huffed. “How would we get to Parnell? If we go walking into Concord asking to speak to the sheriff, we’ll be arrested as spies.”
“Maybe not.”
“Do you have any ideas?”
Antoine lifted his shoulders. “I had a buddy that was on the Concord Police Department.”
“The police department is separate from the sheriff’s office. That won’t do us any good.”
“They were separate before the lights went out. That all changed the second the EMP hit.”
“I don’t mean to be insensitive, but you don’t even know if your friend is still alive. We don’t even know if Sheriff Parnell is still alive.” Danny walked toward the pond. “How about we stick a pin in it? Let’s just relax and enjoy fishing for the next hour or two.”
Antoine smiled. “We can do that.”
CHAPTER 3
The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
Psalm 58:10
After breakfast Monday morning, Danny walked upstairs to check on Alisa. “Are you feeling any better?”
She was fully dressed but reclining with her feet up on the bed. “Yeah, I just got a little nauseous. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll skip the shopping trip today.”
“You’ve been looking forward to this outing. The flea market is all I’ve heard you and Gwen talk about for the past week. Dana even seemed interested. And that’s saying something. She’s having a hard time dealing with Steven’s death.”
“I know. But, I’m afraid I’ll get motion sickness if I ride in a vehicle. The girls know what size I wear, and they know what I need. If they see something, they’ll get it for me.”
“I’ll keep my eyes open as well. I’ll bring you something.” Danny took a seat on the side of the bed and placed his hand on her forehead. “You’re not hot. I wonder if that fish we had Saturday night was tainted. Something was bothering your stomach yesterday morning too.”
“I don’t think so, Danny. The fish was fresh-caught. I’ll be alright. I just need to lie here a while longer.”
Danny bent down to kiss her. “Okay. Feel better. We’ll be home before dark.”
“Be safe. I love you.”
“I love you too.” Danny winked and headed down the stairs. He picked up a plastic milk crate with canned vegetables.
“You be careful with those, Daniel.” Miss Jennie followed him to the door and held it open for him so he could take the crate to the old F-150 pickup truck.
“I will, Nana. We’ve got cardboard between the jars so they won’t knock together.”
“Make sure you get as many Mason jars as you can. We ain’t got no other way to keep all these vittles from spoilin’.”
“I will, Nana.”
“Lids and rings, too. Jars ain’t going to do us no good without lids and rings. If you see them old timey cannin’ jars, get every one of ‘em they’ve got. You know which ones I’m talkin’ about?” Miss Jennie followed him to the truck.
“The ones with the glass top that clamp down on a rubber gasket?” Danny placed the crate gently in the truck.
“Right. You can use them over and over. Sooner or later we ain’t gonna be able to get no more new cannin’ lids.”
“Catfish came up with a way to melt rubber and paint a new seal on used canning lids.”
“I wouldn’t hardly trust that man to make a cup of coffee that wouldn’t kill me, much less put any faith in his recycled cannin’ lids. If them jars spoil, everyone on this farm will be deader than a door nail. You can’t fool around when it comes to cannin’ food.”
Danny knew when not to argue. “Yes, ma’am.” He got in the truck and pulled around to the back of the barn. Chris and Catfish motioned for Danny to back up to the carcass of the cow they’d just slaughtered.
“We ain’t got no but
cher paper, so we just left the skin on it to keep it from gettin’ filthy.” Catfish placed one of the front quarters in the bed of the truck.
“Make sure you guys come back hungry. We’ll have the other half of it cooked off when you get home.” Chris helped Catfish load one of the rear quarters into the back of the vehicle. “Cami and Miss Jennie are going to can some of it, and Catfish claims he can make jerky out of part of it, but the rest of it will have to be eaten within three days.”
Danny smiled. “I’ll be able to put away my share. It’s been a while since we ate fresh beef.”
Antoine and Dana walked up to the truck, each wearing a day pack and carrying a battle rifle.
Danny adjusted his pistol belt. “Hey, guys. I was thinking we’d let the ladies ride up front. Antoine, would you mind riding in the back with Jack?”
Gwen came out of her trailer ready to go. “I don’t mind riding in the back. Antoine, you can ride up front with Dana and Danny. I like the feeling of the wind in my hair.”
Dana crinkled her nose. “Are you sure? Huge chunks of dead cow are going to be sliding all over the back of the truck.”
The sound of Jack’s trailer door closing came from across the courtyard. Gwen turned to look in the direction of the noise. “I’m sure.”
Jack was the last one to arrive. “Hey. Are we ready?”
“Yep. Load up.” Danny got in the driver’s seat and closed the door.
Chris covered the beef quarters with cardboard and wrapped bungee cords around them, securing them to the side of the truck bed. He slapped the side of the truck. “You guys be safe. Hurry back.”
Antoine waited for Dana to get in the middle seat before getting into the passenger’s side. He pointed at Catfish. “You better save me some of that ribeye.”
Catfish stuck his thumbs in the straps of his overalls. “I ain’t makin’ no promises.”
Danny chuckled as he put the truck in gear and drove away.
Antoine pulled out a sheet of paper and looked it over.
“What do you have there?” Danny asked.
