Society Lost- The Complete Series

by Steven Bird

  ~~~~

  Slipping into the cold, dark water, Jessie took several steps and found himself standing waist deep. “It gets deep pretty quick,” he whispered.

  “Is it slick?” Nate asked, concerned about the footing he would have with his prosthetic leg.

  “The limestone is pretty gritty. I don’t think you’ll have a problem.

  “If you say so,” Nate replied as he, too, entered the water. “Whew, that’s cold.”

  “You ain’t kiddin’,” Jessie agreed, continuing his way forward with one hand on his rifle and the other reaching out into the darkness in front of him.

  With the water now reaching his neck, Jessie said, “I sure hope it doesn’t get any deeper. I’m not a frogman. I’m not sure how well I’d do swimming with boots and a rifle.”

  “Try doing it with only one good leg,” Nate mused.

  “Right,” Jessie chuckled as his fingers grazed the side of the cave. “If I move any more to the right, it seems like it would get really deep, really fast. The left side slants upward. Let’s try to keep to the left for now.”

  “Right behind you,” Nate said, following the sound of Jessie’s voice. Barely holding his face above the water with his head tilted all the way back, he added, “You’re what, an inch, maybe an inch and a half taller than me?”

  “Something like that,” Jessie replied.

  “Lucky bastard. I’d give anything for that inch right now,” Nate said as water entered his ears.

  Feeling a dip in the floor beneath them, Jessie paused and whispered, “Hold up.”

  Doing as Jessie instructed, Nate patiently awaited Jessie’s next move as the two men heard the sound of a metallic thud and the sloshing of water up ahead. The sound was faint, and both men instantly ceased all movements. Listening intently, they could hear the familiar sounds of water swirling around an oar.

  Hearing what they assumed was a boat gliding through the water ahead of them, both Jessie and Nate lowered themselves into the water as far as they could to reduce the chance of being spotted.

  How wide is it right here? Jessie began to wonder. Will there be room for a boat to go past us? How are they guiding that thing? How can they see?

  As the sounds drew nearer, Jessie wanted to bring his rifle to bear, but he knew the sounds of moving it in the water would give away the fact that he and Nate were there. Resisting the urge to act, Jessie hoped Nate would do the same, but mentally prepared himself for that not to be the case.

  When the boat reached their position, Jessie felt the water from the oar wash over his face and into his eyes. Nearly choking on the water as it entered his nose mid-inhale, Jessie struggled to contain his reaction as the boat continued to slip on by.

  Reaching the point where they had entered the water, Jessie could hear the metal-hulled boat dragging against the limestone as he heard what sounded like at least two occupants exiting the boat, and stepping out onto the floor of the cave.

  Raising his mouth above the waterline after hearing the boat’s occupants work their way toward the entrance of the cave, Jessie whispered, “C’mon,” as he continued working his way forward. “They’re gonna see our tracks and find our gear. Be careful, there is a hole or dip right here,” he warned as he felt his way along the cave wall, wading as fast as he could while trying to reduce the sounds he made while moving hastily through the water.

  Having traveled a considerable distance, Jessie realized the water had begun to shallow out. Believing he was reaching the end of the underground waterway, Jessie had started to communicate his findings with Nate when they heard the horn sound yet again. This time, it was behind them, toward the entrance of the cave.

  “They found our stuff!” Nate whispered with panic in his voice.

  Hearing trickling water and feeling a cold current flowing from his immediate left, Jessie felt around and determined it to be a downward flow through an irregularly shaped tunnel. He imagined it would be the source of a strong water flow following a storm on the surface, but with the dry conditions as of late, it was merely a trickle.

  “C’mon! In here,” he whispered, urging Nate to follow.

  Feeling around with his hands, Nate found the passage and began to climb inside, following along behind Jessie who was now scurrying through the upward slanting tube, approximately ten feet inside.

  Hearing heavy metallic thuds coming from the direction of the boat, they knew whoever it was who had been moving around so efficiently in the cave was returning, probably to deliver the news of signs of their presence.

  “Take my hand,” whispered Jessie as he wedged himself tightly in the water passage, reaching into the darkness and hoping to feel Nate take hold.

  With the boat rapidly approaching their position, Nate’s boot slipped, sending him splashing into the water below.

  As the boat drew closer, Jessie heard a grunt as one of the boat’s occupants dove from the boat and into the water after Nate.

  Still below the surface of the water from his fall, Nate heard the splash and felt the turbulence of the boat’s occupant aggressively entering the water. Attempting to swim away, he felt a sting on his thigh, followed by severe, searing pain.

  Drawing his knife, he swung it blindly beneath the water, making contact with a fleshy material as a hand grabbed him by the wrist.

  Hearing the other figure stumble around in the boat as if he was following the struggle from above the surface, Jessie blindly launched himself from his position of visual cover toward the sounds of the boat.

  Feeling his chin contact something hard and angular, followed by the soft fury feel of a large body, Jessie felt as if the entire cave was tumbling as the boat leaned over, spilling him and his target into the water.

  Feeling a sudden impact as his target’s head smashed against the side of the cave underneath the water, Jessie drew his knife and began slashing and stabbing wildly until his victim’s struggles ceased.

  Taking hold of what he had impacted with his chin, Jessie immediately recognized it to be goggles of some sort. Hearing a gasp for air, Jessie struggled to don the goggles, just in time to see a blurry image of Nate breaking through the surface, gasping for air.

  “It’s me!” he shouted as he reached out for Nate, grabbing him by the sleeve and dragging him to the edge of the water. “This way,” he said, pulling Nate toward the nearby rocks and deeper in the cave.

  Struggling to their feet, Jessie asked, “Are you okay?”

  “My leg. It burns,” Nate replied.

  “C’mon. I can see. Those bastards had night vision. Let’s get moving before more of their comrades show up. They didn’t blow that horn because they were alone. That was a signal.”

  Removing the monocular and attempting to wipe it dry to no avail, Jessie looked around to see the distorted image of Nate’s rifle being dragged along behind him.

  “Good call with the paracord,” Jessie said as he picked it up and placed it in Nate’s arms.

  Confirming that he, too, still had his rifle slung securely over his back, Jessie led Nate to a fork in the cavern. To his right was a well-traveled corridor in the shape of an ellipse. To his left was a narrow passage made up of many irregular rock forms and outcrops, as if carved by years of turbulent water flow.

  Seeing something strange lying between the two passageways, Jessie wiped the lens of the night vision once again to see what appeared to be a pile of human bones and skulls. “Holy hell,” he mumbled, taking in the macabre sight.

  “What?” Nate asked.

  “Sick bastards left a warning of sorts. C’mon, this way,” he said, pulling Nate along behind him and into the passage to the left.

  “Watch your head,” he said, leading Nate beneath a stalactite and several other overhead formations.

  Trying to get some distance between themselves and the location of their encounter, Jessie pushed Nate hard, although he could feel his efforts begin to fade.

  “My tourniquet,” Nate muttered through gritted teeth. �
�Here,” he said as he fished around in his cargo pocket. “Put this on my leg. Above here,” he, groaned, pointing to his wound.

  Looking at Nate’s leg with the night vision he had placed over his head with attached headband, Jessie said, “Oh, yeah, that’s pretty bad. That went deep.”

  Working the tourniquet around Nate’s leg, Jessie drew it tight and tied it off. “C’mon. We’ll check it again once we get some more distance between them and us.”

  On the move once again, Jessie began leading Nate up a slippery incline covered with what appeared to be fresh soil and sediment.

  Around a large pile of rocks that were present from an apparent partial ceiling collapse, Nate said, “I see light.”

  Seeing a bright spot through the monocular, Jessie raised it off his eye to see sunlight shining in from the outside.

  “C’mon!” he said, leading Nate up the steepening incline toward the opening above and ahead.

  Reaching the opening, Jessie desperately dug with his hands, quickly transferring to his Marlin rifle, smashing at the rocks and roots above them, exposing more of the cave’s passage to the final rays of the day’s light above.

  Partially climbing out of the hole, Jessie found that they were between two large rocks that reached out from the side of a steep hill in a heavily wooded area.

  Climbing up and out of the hole, Jessie reached inside, taking Nate by the hand and heaving him upward and out of the hole.

  “Fresh air at last,” Nate said jokingly to mask his pain. Taking Nate by the hand, Jessie pulled him over his back and into the fireman’s carry position.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Nate asked.

  “I’m getting you far from here so we can get you fixed up.”

  “We can’t leave her behind!” protested Nate. “We know where she must be now!”

  “We won’t,” Jessie assured him. “Trust me.”

  Chapter Nine

  “Damn, that hurts,” Nate cursed as Jessie administered a more proper level of first aid to his leg.

  “Yeah, well, so will gangrene,” Jessie countered. “Just how many legs do you want to lose? You’ve not got many options left.”

  “That’s not funny,” Nate grumbled. “But you’re right. I’ve got to hang on to that one. It carries the lion’s share of the load.”

  “It’s gonna be dark, soon,” Jessie observed, taking a moment to notice the fact that the sun was almost lost through the trees. “I need to go get help. You’re in no condition to press on, and we know for a fact this isn’t something I can handle on my own. You need help, too. I can’t do both. Maybe those folks on the other side of the bridge?” he wondered aloud.

  “No. Not them,” Nate rebutted. “There’s a reason they knew something was going on here and merely chose to avoid it. I mean… don’t get me wrong. Clearly, they’re good people, but not all good people are willing to trade their own lives for strangers. They’d eventually run out of lives to spare. No, I’d say they’ve seen and done enough of that over the past few years to want to hold their position and hold their own, and not much more.”

  “Then…. Who? Any suggestions?” Jessie asked as he watched Nate pondering their options.

  “Okay, well, I guess you’ve proven you can be trusted,” Nate said with a chuckle. “We, my group, that is, have seen enough people turn on each other in recent times to have good reason to keep things to ourselves. We took on new recruits that seemed as motivated and dedicated as the rest, only to have them turn out to be double agents for the powers-that-be, or to simply give in to the pressure applied to their families in order to save them, at the expense of us, our families, and our cause.”

  “I’ve seen the same,” Jessie conceded. “So has every rebellion or insurgency in history. It’s easy to join; it’s hard to stay the course.”

  “Still, I think the standard of trust I’ve held you to is far beyond reason,” Nate admitted, wincing in pain when Jessie pulled tight on a suture. “After that, though, maybe I should reconsider,” chuckled Nate. “But seriously, I apologize for treating you like you couldn’t be trusted. Clearly, you can.”

  “No need to apologize,” Jessie replied. “You’ve been very prudent, and loyal to your cause.”

  “Anyway,” Nate continued, getting back on track. “Here’s what I want you to do. Travel east to the town of Del Rio. Once you arrive, you’ll encounter armed men guarding every entrance to the town. Unless things have gone awry since I left, they’re good people, and they have the local population’s best interest at heart, even though they may seem rather unwelcoming and threatening to you as a stranger. An armed stranger, at that.

  “They aren’t gonna let you just waltz right into town. Tell them you need to get to the Del Rio Baptist Church to find Pastor Wallace. Tell those guys Nathan Hoskins sent you.

  “Once you get to Pastor Wallace, tell him everything. Tell him to relay to my wife, Peggy, and our little boy, Zack, that I love them more than anything, and I will be home when this is all over.”

  “Will he believe me? That you sent me, that is?” Jessie asked.

  With a sly grin, Nate replied, “They know I’d never give my family’s names and whereabouts away under duress. That’ll be all he needs to hear to know your story is legit.

  “He’ll contact our group, the Blue Ridge Militia, through all of the proper channels. He’ll get you the help we need. There’s no question about that.

  “Del Rio is probably thirty miles or so from here. My map is in my pack back in the cave, so I can’t be sure, but that’s a good guesstimate. That’s a long way by foot, especially given the terrain between here and there.”

  “I’ll do whatever I can to get there as fast as humanly possible,” Jessie replied, patting Nate on the shoulder. “By the way, it’s good to finally receive a proper introduction, Nate Hoskins,” he said, holding out his hand.

  Smiling, Nate reached out and shook Jessie’s hand firmly, and insisted, “Now get the hell out of here.”

  “Wait,” Jessie said. Reaching to his side, he picked up the night vision taken from one of the hostiles in the cave. “This is the good stuff. It’s a PVS-14. I’m not sure how much longer the batteries will last, but this will let you keep an eye on things tonight. Even if those bastards don’t track you here, there may be other critters, like coyotes, feral dogs, or black bear that smell your wound and come looking. How many rounds of ammo do you have left?”

  “I’ve got a few mags,” Nate replied.

  “Don’t give away your position by shooting at a coyote if you don’t have to,” Jessie said, “but, you know that already.”

  Pushing the goggles away, Nate said, “You keep these, you may need them to travel at night.”

  “Nonsense,” Jessie replied. “I’ve got freedom of movement on my side. You don’t. You need everything you can get to level the playing field with whatever may come along, sniffing you out. I’ve still got my torch in the dry bag. I’ll use that if I absolutely have to have light, but once my eyes adjust, the moon may be enough. Like you, I’ve traveled a long way for a long time, mostly in the dark. I feel right at home in the dark now.”

  Standing up and looking around, Jessie looked up at the stars, gathered his bearings, and said, “Well, I’d better get going. Take care of yourself out here until I get back.”

  “I will,” Nate assured him with a nod.

  And with that, Jessie turned and ran off into thick trees and underbrush of the forest, disappearing almost instantly, like a ghost.

  Leaning back against the log Jessie had hidden him behind, Nate picked up his M4 and placed it in his lap, easily within reach, and donned the night vision monocular. Doing a quick function check, and fitting the headband snugly and securely, he powered it down and then flipped it up and out of the way. I’ll save the batteries and use my eyes as much as I can. There’s no telling how long it’ll take him to get back.

  ~~~~

  Jogging through the woods with his Marlin slung across hi
s back, Jessie thought of the miles he’d traveled during his journey and reasoned thirty or so miles? That’s nothing. It’s barely more than a marathon. Time is the only thing that makes it a big deal. Neither Nate nor Britney have time to spare.

  Running in a steady, rhythmic cadence, Jessie leapt over obstacles that lay in his path like a hurdler at a track meet. He’d always been a naturally fit man, and even at his age, he found prolonged cardiovascular workouts to be soothing and rejuvenating, rather than exhausting. Still, thirty miles is two or more days, even at a steady pace. That was two days too long in his book.

  Just get to a town, he thought. Maybe I can find a bicycle or something, but then I’d have to stick to paved roads to make any time. I’m not sure that would work. Something… some opportunity will present itself. I just have to keep my eyes open to see it and take advantage of it. But for now, I run.

  Tripping on a root that lay across his path, Jessie hit the ground hard with a thud, sliding to a stop on his face. “Dammit!” Picking up his hat and dusting himself off, he said aloud, “Keep that up, and you’ll hurt your damn fool self. Then where will that leave Nate and Britney? Focus!”

  Picking up the pace once again, Jessie heard the spine-chilling sound of the horn that had been haunting them since entering these woods.

  Was that for me, or for Nate? he wondered. Focus! You’ll find out one way or another soon enough. Just keep moving.

  ~~~~

  Nearly dozing off to sleep from fatigue, Nate’s eyes immediately opened wide when he heard the sound of the horn echoing through the woods.

  Ah, hell! he thought as he picked his rifle up from his lap. Attempting to focus his eyes in the darkness of the night, Nate quickly gave up such a futile effort and pulled the night vision monocular down over his right eye. I wish I had an IR laser on my gun now, he mused. That’s what I get for not wanting to deal with the extra weight of all the tacti-cool stuff.