Those Who Remain: A Postapocalyptic Novel (The New World Book 7)

by G. Michael Hopf

  “Fuck you!” the man answered before lunging at her.

  “They’re animals, look at them,” Elizabeth said, shocked to see such behavior.

  “Tie them up,” Gordon ordered.

  Two Marines took out plastic zip ties and bound the men’s hands behind their backs.

  “Put them on their knees,” Gordon barked.

  The Marines immediately did as he said.

  Seeing that Gordon had something in mind, Elizabeth whispered to Gordon, “What are you doing?”

  “Time to interrogate them,” Gordon smirked.

  “Go ahead,” Elizabeth said and stepped back.

  Gordon approached the kneeling men and asked, “How many in your group?”

  Neither man spoke.

  “How many in your group?” Gordon again asked.

  The first man smiled and said slowly, “Fuck…you!”

  Without a second thought, Gordon punched the man squarely in the face sending him backwards.

  “Pick him back up,” Gordon ordered.

  Back on his knees, the man snarled. He opened his mouth to speak but was stopped by Gordon’s fist. Like before he went back.

  “Pick him back up,” Gordon said.

  As soon as he got back up, Gordon struck him again.

  Elizabeth stepped forward and said, “Is this what you call interrogation?”

  He looked at her and said, “This is the foreplay before we begin.”

  “Is this sort of violence necessary?” she asked.

  “This isn’t violence, that is,” Gordon answered and pointed to the bodies.

  Elizabeth lowered her head and said, “Proceed.”

  Gordon looked at the man. His two front teeth were now missing and blood poured from his mouth. “What say you?” Gordon asked the second man.

  Fear gripped him, but he resisted the urge to comply and spat out, “Go to hell.”

  “Very well,” Gordon said then punched him in the face.

  The man didn’t fall back; he absorbed the punch.

  “How many are there?” Gordon asked.

  The first man mumbled something unintelligible.

  Gordon leaned in and asked, “What’s that you say?”

  “…ck…you.”

  “This guy. He just won’t learn.” Gordon laughed as he pulled out his sheath knife.

  The first man’s eyes widened.

  “Van Zandt, what are you doing?” Elizabeth scolded.

  “Me and my knife are about to have a conversation with this gentleman,” Gordon quipped.

  She marched on him and whispered, “Too far, you’re taking this too far.”

  “Was that too far?” he asked once more pointing to the bodies lying on the frozen ground.

  Elizabeth didn’t look at the bodies, she didn’t need to. She pressed Gordon again. “There has to be another way to extract information from these men.”

  Gordon lowered his knife and thought. Deep down he knew his tactics were a bit harsh and that they spawned from a pure hatred and need to exact revenge for those who had died.

  She leaned in closer and softly but urgently said, “I know you’re angry. I am too. What these men did will not go unpunished, but let’s get what information we can. After that you can do whatever you want with them.”

  “I hear you, but I’ve met men like them before. They don’t understand polite society. They only understand brutality; they only respect violence,” Gordon said.

  “But what do you want your people thinking of you? You’re the president of the council, you’re the leader. You can’t be the one doing this.”

  “A leader can never ask of his people what he wouldn’t do himself,” Gordon said.

  “But you risk so much,” Elizabeth warned.

  Gordon pondered why she cared so much. She fought him on almost everything.

  “I need to do this,” Gordon insisted.

  “And what is that? Be no different than the people you’re fighting against?”

  “I’m nothing like Jacques,” Gordon said.

  “I don’t think you are, but right now you seem like you could be.”

  Gordon was getting annoyed and bored with the conversation.

  “You’re the president. Presidents don’t conduct themselves this way,” she blasted, suddenly losing her cool.

  The second prisoner mumbled, “You’re President Van Zandt?”

  Gordon looked back at him and said, “Yes.”

  “I’ve heard about you.”

  “Oh yeah,” Gordon replied.

  The first man went to say something but only coughed up blood.

  The look on the second man’s face had changed from defiant to desperate upon hearing Gordon was their interrogator.

  See this shift in composure, Gordon pulled away from Elizabeth and stepped up to the man. He looked down at him and asked, “How many others are there?”

  “Eighteen, they’ve headed towards McCall,” the man confessed.

  The first man lunged at the other.

  The Marines held the first man back.

  “What are you doing here?” Gordon asked.

  The second man gave his colleague a cautious look and said, “We were sent to—”

  “…ut up, ssshut up!” the first man bellowed, his words difficult to understand.

  The second man grew quiet.

  Gordon turned to Elizabeth and said, “You may want to cover your eyes.”

  “What are you going to do?” Elizabeth asked.

  Gordon faced the second man and asked, “Would it be easier for you to answer our questions if your friend wasn’t here?”

  The man nodded.

  “Just as I thought,” Gordon said. He walked up to the first man, looked down at him and said, “I’ll actually be merciful compared to what you did to those children.” Gordon grabbed him by the hair and slid the long blade against the man’s throat. Blood sprayed and began to gush from the gaping gash in his neck.

  The second man looked on in horror.

  “Oh my God!” Elizabeth groaned.

  Gordon watched the first man gasp and gag before he slumped over. He turned his attention back to the second prisoner and said, “Please continue.”

  “Um, we…” the man said but paused.

  “Go ahead,” Gordon insisted before seeing the man was urinating all over himself.

  “We were sent here to hunt…”

  Gordon took a step closer with the intent of striking fear in the man. “Please finish what you were saying.”

  “We were sent here to hunt and kill…”

  “Spit it out, man!” Gordon snapped.

  “You!” the man cried.

  “What?”

  “We were sent by Jacques to hunt and kill you and your family as well as the others in leadership!”

  When Gordon heard those words, he pulled out his radio and called, “Mike Three, this is Victor Actual. Come in. Over.”

  “This is Mike Three.”

  “Mike Three, proceed to my residence and provide additional security. Contact me when you’ve arrived and have contacted Victor Two,” Gordon said.

  “Copy that. En route.”

  “Mike November, this is Victor Actual. Come in. Over,” Gordon said now calling the northern checkpoint.

  “Go for Mike November.”

  “Be advised, we have eighteen, I say again eighteen enemy tangos heading your direction. I believe they’re probably on foot now. Increase all patrols along the northern boundaries and have a secondary perimeter established. I’ll follow up with more later. Copy?”

  “Copy that. Mike November, out.”

  Gordon shoved the radio back in his tactical vest and began marching towards his Humvee. “John, follow me.” As he walked, he pulled his satellite phone from another vest pocket and held down the number one. The phone connected and began to ring. “Pick up.” The phone continued to ring but no answer until the voicemail picked up. “Sam, I’m just checking on you. Call me back.” He disconne
cted and pocketed the phone. He prayed they were safe and assumed they were, but he wasn’t taking any chances.

  John hustled over and asked, “What’s the word, boss?”

  “Stay here; ensure these bodies get the proper burial they deserve. Bring the prisoner back to McCall. We need as much intel as we can get from this guy.”

  “Okay. What about the dead prisoner?”

  “I don’t care what you do with him, but don’t bury him alongside the others, he doesn’t deserve it.”

  “You headed home?” John asked.

  “Yep.”

  “Stay in contact, let me know,” John requested.

  “Will do,” Gordon answered.

  Gordon got to his Humvee and opened the driver’s door.

  Elizabeth jogged over. “I want you to know that I plan on bringing up your conduct here with the other council members.”

  “Whatever, just send me a memo on what you spend hours blathering about. I have a war to win,” Gordon said and slammed the door.

  Elizabeth cut her eyes at him and backed away. “Your conduct will be a topic tomorrow when you present your final plan.” She strode to her SUV, but stopped short of opening the door. She looked up and saw the gray clouds breaking. She mused if the rest of the day would be sunny.

  Behind her, she heard Gordon speed off.

  “Ma’am,” one of her guards asked disturbing her moment.

  “Oh yes, let’s go.”

  The guard opened the door for her. She got in, turned to her driver and asked, “Did you get all of that?”

  Her driver lowered a video camera and said, “Everything.”

  McCall, Idaho, Republic of Cascadia

  Samantha folded her arms, but it wasn’t enough to cut the chill. “Brrr, it’s freezing in here,” she said as she stood in the garage, watching Luke tinker with the snowmobile.

  “Then go back inside. I’m old enough to get the sleds prepped,” Luke said.

  “I know you’re old enough. I’m just, I don’t know, having bad feelings about you going out today,” Samantha said, referring to a nightmare she had the night before concerning Luke.

  Luke was sensitive to Samantha’s emotions, so he stopped what he was doing and walked over to her. “Mom, I’ll be fine. Lance Corporal Sanchez and I go out every other day and patrol. It’s not a big deal.”

  “I know, but I’m just nervous today for some reason.”

  Luke put his arms around her and squeezed. “I love you. Now please go back inside before you freeze.”

  “You’re warm. Don’t let go.” Samantha chuckled.

  “Mom, go inside. I’ll be fine. Plus, when Lance Corporal Sanchez shows up, I don’t want him to see you watching over me like a mother hen.”

  “I don’t care what he thinks, that’s my job. And didn’t he get promoted?” Samantha said.

  “I keep forgetting, Corporal Sanchez, oops.” Luke went back to the snowmobile.

  “Will you be back the same time?” Samantha asked.

  “Mom, enough. These patrols are eight hours. I’ll be back in nine, as it takes us a half hour to get to our patrol vector.”

  The rumble of a two-stroke engine echoed off the side of the house.

  Luke looked up and saw Sanchez coming down the snow-covered driveway towards them. He ran over to Samantha and gave her a kiss. “Love you. See you later.”

  “Now you packed a lunch and you have plenty of water?” she asked.

  “Yes.”

  “And you have a first aid kit and extra fuel?”

  “Yes,” he answered as he stepped onto the sled and put on his helmet.

  “Oh, one more thing, did you bring extra ammo?”

  “Yes, for both,” Luke replied, referring to his Glock 27 .40 caliber and his newly issued M-16 A2 rifle.

  “Sounds like you’re ready,” she said.

  Sanchez spun around in the driveway before stopping. He lifted his visor and hollered, “You ready, kid?”

  “Yes!” Luke exclaimed. He turned the key to ON. Lights on the small dash came to life with color. With his right hand, he pulled hard on the starter handle until the engine cranked. He slowly released the starter handle and tapped the throttle. The two-stroke engine of the Polaris Rush 600 crackled and popped. Luke’s blood rushed through his body. He loved riding snowmobiles, but what gave him greater enthusiasm was being able to do so in duty to his new country.

  Sanchez waved to Samantha. “Hi, Mrs. V.”

  Samantha couldn’t hear Sanchez over the sound of the competing engines, but she did return the wave.

  Luke pulled out of the garage and alongside Sanchez.

  “Are you five by five?” Sanchez asked.

  “Yes.”

  Sanchez tapped his radio and said, “Radio check.”

  “I have you loud and clear,” Luke said through the built-in microphone in his helmet.

  “I have you same-same,” Sanchez replied. “Let’s do this.”

  “I’m ready,” Luke said.

  Sanchez sped off, cutting through the side yard and towards Jughandle Mountain.

  Luke was right behind him.

  Samantha closed the garage door and went back inside the house. Through the large windows that faced east, she watched as they bounded up and down across the expansive fields until they disappeared out of sight. Her heart tugged when she lost sight of him, but she chided herself for being a nervous mother.

  Haley came into the room. “Mommy, I’m hungry.”

  “Okay, sweetheart, go sit down. I’ll make something,” Samantha said, but she found it hard to pull away from the window. She looked again to see if she could spot them, but they were gone.

  ***

  “Today’s gonna be interesting,” Sanchez said over the radio.

  “Oh yeah?” Luke replied, overjoyed at the exciting news.

  “Yep, there’s some bad guys somewhere around here, so be on the lookout. There’s eighteen enemy tangos out there somewhere, so if you see anything suspect, don’t hesitate to let me know.”

  “Roger that. I’m ready for some action,” Luke said. He had become very comfortable; in fact, his use of military jargon was second nature now.

  “Don’t be too excited. I hear these guys murdered a family in New Meadows. They’re not to be underestimated,” Sanchez warned.

  “I can handle it,” Luke said with bravado.

  “Don’t get cocky, kid. If I’ve learned anything in my twenty-some odd years of life, it’s that there’s always someone out there who’s faster, smarter, and capable of kicking your ass.”

  Sanchez’s advice did the opposite for Luke; instead of striking fear, it motivated him. Up ahead of them a long flat field beckoned him. With is enthusiasm riding high, Luke punched the throttle and lurched forward.

  “Hey, where ya going?” Sanchez asked.

  “There’s eighteen bad guys to find. Let’s go track them down.” Luke laughed as he pulled further away.

  South of Joseph, Oregon, Republic of Cascadia

  The wind whipped through the valley and sent a chill down Lexi’s spine. She looked at the clothes on the line and grumbled. “Screw this, I’m just grabbing these and folding inside.” Quickly she snatched the stiff clothes from the line and tossed them in a basket and raced inside.

  Inside, the smell of fresh-baked biscuits hit her nostrils. “Wow, those smell amazing.”

  “I hope you’re hungry. I’m almost done with the chipped beef and gravy,” Katie hollered from the kitchen.

  Lexi put the basket on the dinette table and went to work folding. “Sorry, but it’s too chilly to do this outside.”

  Katie didn’t pay no attention. “We need to enjoy this, as I just used my last can of chipped beef.”

  “Well, I hope you made enough for three, because I’m eating for two,” Lexi joked.

  “Don’t worry, sweetie,” Katie said, stirring the saucepan.

  Lexi paused and looked at Katie. A slight smile appeared on her face. She was so appre
ciative of Katie and everything she had done for her and her baby. Without Katie, she might not have survived. It took a lot for Lexi to trust, but Katie made it easy.

  “Okay, it’s done. Push those clothes aside and let’s eat,” Katie said joyfully as she scooped out the gravy and poured it over the open-faced biscuits.

  Lexi’s mouth was watering with anticipation of the food.

  Katie put the heaping plate in front of Lexi. Steam rose from the hot gravy and wafted over her. “God, that smells so good.”

  “Dig in,” Katie said as she prepared her plate.

  “I’ll wait,” Lexi said out of consideration for her friend and host.

  Katie joined her at the table and, as she always did before she ate, said a prayer.

  Lexi wasn’t a religious person, and when Katie prayed before, she’d just watch her. Now she joined in and prayed along.

  “Amen,” Katie said.

  “Amen,” Lexi said.

  “Oh, I almost forgot,” Katie said and sprang up from the table and sprinted to her bedroom.

  “But your food, it’s gonna get cold,” Lexi called out, her mouth full of food.

  Katie came back into the room but had one arm behind her back. “Close your eyes.”

  “Huh?”

  “Close your eyes. I have a surprise for you.”

  Lexi grinned and did as Katie asked. She pressed her eyes closed but continued to chew the food she had just stuffed into her mouth.

  “Open your eyes,” Katie sang out.

  Lexi opened her eyes and there in front of her on the table was a wrapped box. “What is this?”

  “A gift.”

  “A gift? For what?”

  “Just because,” Katie said, her hands clapping with excitement. “Hurry, open it up.”

  Lexi hadn’t received a wrapped gift in what seemed like forever. She also felt odd about receiving one and not for any occasion.

  “Open it up, c’mon.”

  Lexi picked it up and removed the wrapping to reveal a Dillard’s clothing gift box. “Was there a sale?” Lexi joked.

  “Ha, you’re funny.”

  Lexi took the top off and lifted the gift paper to find a knitted cap, sweater, pants and booties, all sized for an infant. “Awe, they’re so cute,” Lexi gushed as she removed the clothes and began to admire them.

  “Do you like?”