by Robert Boren
Kim picked up her phone and punched it into her map app. “You’re pretty good. Says two hours and forty-two minutes. Should be an easy day.”
“That only gets us even with a dry-ground border,” he said. “Then we have to go west and find a way across. It’ll be a long day, I’m afraid.”
“Oh,” she said. “Should have thought about that. We’ll go to bed early, but then I was going to drag you in there pretty soon anyway.”
“Do tell,” he said. “Why?”
“Stop it or I’ll change my mind,” she said.
Eric sighed. “Well, you said I had to get used to it.”
Chapter 29 – SMAW Attack
Juan Carlos checked out the patrol boat engines as Brendan loaded the guns.
“We got enough ammo?” Juan Carlos asked.
“Yeah,” Brendan said. “How about gas?”
“The maintenance crew filled her up before I got here.”
“Good,” Juan Carlos said. “Here comes Chauncey. What’s he got there?”
Brendan stood up and watched Chauncey coming towards them on the dock, dragging a wagon, his way lit by the dock lights.
“Hey, guys,” Chauncey said. “Ready to go?” He stopped walking and pulled the wagon near the side of the boat.
“We’re ready,” Brendan said. “What’s that?”
“A little insurance,” he said.
Brendan jumped onto the deck and looked inside, pulling his cellphone and shining the flashlight inside. “Shit, that looks like a little bazooka.”
“Close,” Chauncey said. “It’s a SMAW.”
“What’s a SMAW?” he asked.
“Shoulder-launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon,” Chauncey said. “Nice little piece of hardware.”
“Where’d you get that, dude?” Juan Carlos asked.
“Director Wallis,” he said. “They’re afraid we’ll get stuck out there with our pants down again.”
“Are we really just spotting for air strikes?” Brendan asked, a slight smile on his face.
“Yes, that’s the mission,” Chauncey said. “Like I said, this is just insurance.”
Brendan shot a glance at Juan Carlos, and they helped Chauncey load the launcher and the rockets in the boat.
“We ready to go?” Brendan asked.
“Yeah, man,” Juan Carlos said, getting into the pilot’s chair. “Where we going?”
“Arroyo Del Diablo,” Chauncey said.
“Well, at least it’s close,” Juan Carlos said. “Untie us.”
Chauncey and Brendan got on the bow and took off the lines. Brendan came back and got the stern line, and then Juan Carlos backed out of the slip. They turned towards the harbor opening and cruised, jumping onto a plane when they cleared the breakwater.
“Not much moon tonight,” Juan Carlos said.
“Yeah, but easy on the floodlight,” Chauncey said. “Don’t use it unless you have to.”
“Got it,” Juan Carlos said. They cut across the glassy lake in the dark, getting to the mouth of the Arroyo Del Diablo inlet in about fifteen minutes.
“Slow down and hug the shore,” Chauncey said. “Then cut the engines when we’re in good spot to let the current take us across the mouth.”
“You got it, dude,” Juan Carlos said. Brendan eyed the shoreline, getting up to man the port-side gun. Chauncey got up and manned the starboard gun. Juan Carlos cut the engines and they drifted, eyes peeled.
“There!” Brendan whispered. “Huge barge. Crap, there’s another one behind it.”
“Call it in, Juan Carlos,” Chauncey said.
He picked up the mike. “Zapata, come in. Over.”
“Zapata here. You see the enemy? Over.”
“Two large barges coming out of Arroyo Del Diablo. Haven’t seen that big cutter yet. Over.”
“I’ll relay the info. We have an F-16 standing by. Be ready. Over.”
“Thanks. Over and out.” Juan Carlos put the mic back on the holder. “F-16 on the way, boss.”
Chauncey nodded.
They watched as the two big barges cruised towards the opening.
“We’re drifting too close, dude,” Juan Carlos said. “They’re gonna see us.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Chauncey said. “Hear that. It’s the jet approaching.”
“I see it already,” Brendan whispered, pointing in the sky.
“Missile,” Juan Carlos said. “See it?”
Suddenly the first barge exploded into flames, pieces of metal and flesh flying into the air.
“Yes!” Brendan said, getting on his gun. “Should we shoot?”
“Fire at will,” Chauncey said. Both guns opened up, tracer bullets making their way towards the burning hulk and the men in the water.
“Hey, man, that other barge is still coming,” Juan Carlos said.
“See it,” Chauncey said, pouring fire on it. “Better armor than they had yesterday.”
“No matter, here comes that jet again,” Brendan said. He fired another volley as the first barge slipped below the surface of the water.
“Hey, shit, look at that,” Juan Carlos said, pointing into the air. “That’s an F-35! The Feds are back!”
“That might not be good,” Chauncey said.
“There’s that cutter,” Brendan shouted. “They’ve got a gun on board now. Watch it.” He turned the big gun towards them and opened fire. “Shit, they’ve got good armor on that thing.”
“No!” Juan Carlos said. “That F-35 is chasing away our guy. Dammit.”
“Son of a bitch,” Chauncey said. “I knew it.”
“Fight, dammit,” Juan Carlos shouted at the sky.
“Yeah, like an F-16 is gonna take on an F-35,” Brendan said. He fired at the big boat again.
“Time to try out our new toy,” Chauncey said, leaving the starboard gun and picking up the SMAW. He loaded a rocket and leaned on the bow, aiming at the barge. “Don’t be behind this thing.”
“Roger that,” Juan Carlos said, moving out of the way.
Chauncey fired, the rocket screaming towards the barge, busting through the armor and blowing up. The magazine on the barge exploded, the armor flying off. The big cutter took off towards the US shoreline.
“Juan Carlos, get those engines going again, and follow that cutter. Brendan, splatter the rest of the men on that barge while I reload.”
“On, it,” Brendan shouted as he continued to fire at the remains of the barge and the men in the water surrounding it.
Juan Carlos fired up the engines and floored them, heading after the cutter. Men on the stern fired small arms at them.
“They can’t aim their big gun at us when they’re moving away,” Brendan yelled, laughing. He fired away at the stern, killing several men and forcing the rest to flee.
“I’m ready to fire,” Chauncey shouted, holding the SMAW. “Get me closer, dammit.”
“We’re gaining, but that cutter is fast,” Juan Carlos shouted. “I got her floor-boarded now.”
A few more men came to the stern to fire at them, but Brendan cut them down before they could get in position. “I’m running low on ammo.”
“Get on the other gun, dude,” Juan Carlos shouted.
“Okay, we’re close enough. Hold her steady.” Chauncey leaned on the bow and aimed. “Shit, we’re bouncing around too much. Cut the engines.”
Juan Carlos stopped the boat.
“Perfect,” Chauncey yelled, pulling the trigger, the rocket flying towards the boat. It hit the stern, blowing the back of the boat off as men screamed and dived off. Chauncey reloaded the SMAW as Brendan fired the other gun, hitting men as they tried to escape. The cutter was dead in the water.
“Hit them again, dude,” Juan Carlos yelled.
“You got it,” Chauncey yelled. He fired another rocket. It flew into the open rear end of the boat and blew up deep inside, setting off a huge fireball. The boat sank quickly as they watched.
“Damn, bro,” Brendan said. “I think that kill
ed most of the men still on the boat.”
“Yeah,” Chauncey said. “Let’s head for home.”
“Wonder if the Feds will be waiting for us?” Juan Carlos asked as he started the engines.
“Don’t worry about it,” Chauncey said. “Just get us home.”
“How many men do you think we killed?”
“Between the two barges and the cutter? Six or seven hundred easy,” Chauncey said. “A drop in the bucket from what I’ve been hearing. We better get used to this.”
“We need better boats,” Brendan said. “The US Navy ought to be in here, not the damn Texas highway patrol.”
“Yeah, and why the hell did that F-35 chase away our jet, dude?” Juan Carlos asked.
Chapter 30 – The Pool
“Dammit, my bathing suit won’t fit anymore,” Carrie said.
“Baby bump?” Jason asked.
“Yeah,” she said. “This sucks.”
“I’ve got a couple big t-shirts. You can wear one of them with some panties.”
“We’re going by ourselves, right?”
“Yeah, Kyle said they were gonna hang out here,” Jason said.
Carrie giggled. “Probably want to do more he’n and she’n without having to be quiet.”
“Probably,” Jason said, tossing her a t-shirt. “Chelsea, you got your suit on yet?”
“Yes,” she said, coming out of the bathroom.
Carrie put on the t-shirt and walked out of the bedroom.
“I’m gonna enjoy that when it gets wet,” he said.
“Shut up,” she said. “That’s why I asked if we were going alone.”
“You could wear a bra under it.”
“I only brought three, and I’m not getting one of them wet just for this.”
“You could hang it… oh, never mind.” He grinned at her. “I’d rather you didn’t wear it anyway.”
“Men,” she said, walking towards the door. She took Chelsea by the hand. “Stay with us all the time, okay?”
“Okay, mommy,” she said.
“I’ve got the towels,” Jason said as he followed them out.
“Where’s Uncle Kyle and Aunt Kate?” Chelsea asked.
“They’re playing house,” Jason said. Carrie punched him in the arm, but then cracked up.
“Uncle Kyle and Aunt Kate? Seriously. Did you tell her to call them that?”
“You know she’s always called Kyle that,” Jason said. “She knows they go together. Good for her.”
Carrie shook her head as they walked along the trail. “Why’d you bring the pistol?”
“Just in case,” he said. “There are hogs around, you know.”
“I thought they only came out at night.”
“They do, unless we stumble upon one and wake him up,” Jason said. “Don’t worry about it.”
“There it is!” Chelsea said, pointing. “It’s got a waterfall.”
“Yes, it does, sweetie,” Carrie said. They got on the sandy bank and Jason spread out the towels, setting his phone and gun on the end one.
“Don’t get too far away from mommy and daddy in the water, Chelsea,” Carrie said. “It drops off faster than the pool at home, and the water isn’t clear either. Understand?”
“Yes, mommy,” she said.
Jason was about to get into the water when his phone rang. He looked at it. “Eric. I’ll take it real quick.”
“No problem, honey,” Carrie said, wading into the water holding Chelsea’s hand.
“Hey, Eric, what’s up? You get to Houston?”
“They got the damn Texas border shut down, Jason.”
“What? I didn’t hear anything about that.”
“Me neither, and we had the radio on. They’re turning away anybody who can’t prove they are current residents.”
“You were born here,” Jason said.
“They didn’t care.”
“So what are you gonna do?” Jason asked.
“We’re heading north. Gonna try to cross the border on the other side of the Sabine river.”
“They’re probably watching all the big roads.”
“Yeah, we’ll take one of the dirt roads over,” Eric said. “Hopefully we won’t have to go all the way into Oklahoma to get in.”
“This sucks,” Jason said. “When I get back to camp I’ll call the department and find out what the hell is going on.”
“Daddy, c’mon!” Chelsea shouted.
“Where are you guys?” Eric asked.
“Down at the pool,” he said. “You know.”
“Yeah. It still nice?”
“Beautiful,” Jason said. “I’d better go. Keep in touch, okay?”
“Will do, bro. Talk to you later.”
Jason ended the call, tossed his phone on the towel, and waded in to join his family.
“That didn’t sound so good,” Carrie said.
“They’ve got the Texas border sealed up. Residents only.”
“He was born here,” Carrie said.
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Wow. Why isn’t it on the news?”
“Might be now,” Jason said. “I haven’t been paying attention. We probably better listen to the radio when we get back. Who knows what’s been going on. Things are nuts right now.”
“Seriously,” Carrie said, brow furrowed. “Are we gonna be okay?”
“Don’t worry, honey,” Jason said, pulling her close.
“Daddy, can you twirl me?” Chelsea asked.
“Sure, sweetie,” he said, picking her up and holding her over the water. He spun Chelsea around as she squealed and laughed, Carrie watching them, breaking into a smile. They played in the pool until they were tired and water logged, then sat on their towels.
“We better get going,” Carrie said. “Otherwise Chelsea is gonna fall asleep here. We don’t want that. She’ll be up all night.”
“I’m ready,” Jason said, getting up. “C’mon, Chelsea, we’re going back to camp. Time for lunch.”
“Okay,” she said, eyes groggy.
They walked back slowly.
“You didn’t bug me about the wet t-shirt,” Carrie said.
“Oh, I noticed,” he said. “If it was just the two of us, I would’ve had my way with you.”
Carrie giggled. “Yeah, I bet you would. And I would have pretended to resist, for a few minutes anyway.”
Jason put his arm around her shoulder. “I love you so much, honey.”
“Me too,” she said, leaning her head against him as they approached camp.
“You guys are too mushy,” Chelsea said. “Kissy kissy.”
Kyle and Kate were sitting on the chairs.
“Hey, guys, you ought to go check that out,” Carrie said. She stopped when she noticed the grim looks on their faces. “Oh, no, what now?”
“We listened to the radio,” Kyle said. “We’re at war.”
“What?” Jason asked. Carrie looked scared to death.
“What’s wrong, mommy?” Chelsea asked.
“Oh, nothing, sweetheart,” she said. “Go get out a Lunchable from the fridge, okay?”
“Goody!” she said, rushing inside.
“So what happened?” Jason asked.
“Somebody shot down an airliner full of people as it took off from the San Diego airport, for starters,” Kate said, face flushing.
“Oh no,” Carrie said.
“Yeah,” Kyle said, “and there’s a huge battle going on along the California-Mexico border. We’re talking tanks and planes and infantry. Sounds like Mexico lost control of their military.”
“Son of a bitch,” Jason said.
“That’s not all,” Kyle said. “Some Islamists captured a bunch of DPS Patrol Boat guys on Falcon lake night before last. Beheaded them all and posted the video.”
“Shit,” Jason said. “Well that explains what happened to Eric this morning.”
“Eric? He okay?” Kyle asked.
“Yeah, but he couldn’t get into Texas. The border
is sealed. Residents only.”
“They didn’t mention that on the radio,” Kate said. “Wonder why?”
“Good question,” Carrie said. “Jason and I were wondering the same thing. Eric told him they had the radio on as they were driving in. Nothing.”
“Where’d he try to cross over?” Kyle asked.
“I-10 outside of Houston,” Jason said.
“What’s he gonna do now?” Kyle asked.
“He’s going north to look for a place he can sneak over,” Jason said.
“Hell, that’s a pain in the ass,” Kyle said. “He’s got to get north of the Sabine river. That’s quite a few miles up.”
“Yeah, it is,” Jason said. “This puts a whole new spin on things.”
Chapter 31 – Chase in Louisiana
“It’s so pretty here,” Kim said as they drove north on Hwy 171. “You still with me?”
“What?” Eric said. “Oh, yeah. Sorry.” He glanced at both mirrors.
“You’re looking in the rear-view mirrors a lot,” she said.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said.
“No frigging way, Eric,” she said. “We’re partners, remember? Don’t worry about scaring me.”
He sighed. “Okay. There’s a pickup truck following us. The driver looks like he might be middle-eastern. Probably nothing.”
“Shit,” she said. “Should I bring guns up here?”
“Nah, like I said, it’s probably nothing. We have to stop in Mansfield to get gas. We’ll see what happens after that.”
“If they approach us, shouldn’t we have some firepower up here?” she asked. Eric thought for a minute.
“Okay, I’m convinced,” he said. “There’s a Winchester lever gun in the back closet. Grab that and the box of 30-30 rounds.”
Kim went to the back, followed by Paco. She opened the closet door next to the bathroom and found the gun leaning against the back corner, behind hanging clothes. She grabbed it and one of the ammo boxes on the floor of the closet.
“Here it is,” she said, setting the gun between the seats in the cab. “Any more?”
“Yeah, there’s a sawed-off pump shotgun under the cushion, rear bench seat in the dinette.”
“Aren’t those illegal?” she asked.
“I won’t tell if you won’t,” he said.
She nodded and went to the rear, walking back with the shotgun and a box of shells.
