by Mark Tufo
“We found them!” Harry said excitedly. Everyone except for Jimi, who was maintaining the Phoenix’s position, rushed to the bow.
“Now what?” Derrick asked, watching the mass of infected that now crowded the road, half focusing on the fireboat sitting out of reach and the other half still clawing at the apartment building.
Harry was watching the Guardsmen on the roof. The soldier with the binocs shrugged his shoulders in an exaggerated manner, as if to ask the same question that Derrick had just posed. “Phil, do you think you can create a wide enough gap with one cannon for those people to get through the infected?” Harry asked.
“It would be better if we used two,” Phil replied, indicating the second water cannon on deck. “One would work but two would allow us to cut a wider path through those things.”
“I’ll get on the other one,” William, the state trooper offered. “I worked a fireboat out of Anchorage and these water cannon are similar.” Phil quickly outlined the pattern he had found worked best at the marina and made certain William knew how to operate the water cannon.
Harry had been formulating a plan as he continued to scan the horde, the apartment building, and the people on the roof. The soldier was looking fixedly through his binocs toward the fireboat. Harry finally came up with what he thought might work.
“Phil,” Harry began, still looking through the binocs in his hands, “I want you to put some water into that crowd for a couple of minutes, then shut ‘er down.”
Without further comment, and while Harry continued to look at the other soldier, Phil activated the powerful cannon, sending a heavy high-pressure stream into the horde of infected. Dozens were knocked off their feet, while those to the right and left of the heavy flow of water scrambled to back away from it. Harry was relieved to see that the jet of water nearly reached the apartment building before Phil shut it down.
The soldier on the roof immediately gave a thumbs up, indicating that he understood what was going to be tried. After which he extended his hand showing all five digits, closing it once, then repeating. Harry assumed the soldier meant they would be ready in ten minutes.
Harry told everyone what he had seen and they all got into position: William and Phil on the water cannons, with Harry, Derrick, Frank, and the nurse shoulder-to-shoulder at the Phoenix’s bow to add whatever support they could, although they would be unable to fire directly into the horde. The soldiers would be on their own getting to the Bay. As an afterthought, Harry had Jimi maneuver the fireboat as close to the breakwater wall as possible, since the Guardsmen would have to jump into the water once they reached the breakwater. There was no way Harry could land onshore with that many infected milling about, and he was concerned if the fireboat got too close some of the things might jump aboard.
Once the fireboat and everyone on board was in position, all they could do was wait. Harry had the binocs fixed to his eyes waiting for a signal from the survivors on shore while the ten minutes seemed to pass very slowly. When that signal came, and Harry had no doubt it was the signal, it took him by surprise. Gunfire erupted from the lower floor of the apartment building, increased to a crescendo, and was then followed by three very loud explosions that rocked the horde closest to the structure.
“That sounded like flash bangs!” Derrick said from Harry’s left side.
“NOW!” Harry shouted to Phil and William.
Within seconds, thousands of gallons of high-pressured water poured into the horde. Phil and William gradually widened the gap down the middle of the infected like the parting of the Red Sea. Almost immediately after the water began flowing, Harry watched as six figures emerged from a large window in the building about ten feet above the ground. The six soldiers dropped down, formed a line and began to run the gauntlet between the two walls of infected flesh created by the water streaming from the fireboat.
The precision with which the soldiers executed their escape impressed Harry. He could clearly see three with weapons pointed to the right and three pointing to the left, all six firing into the horde as they ran. Each soldier carried a large pack, but two of them had what appeared to be equipment strapped to their backs.
Harry heard the report of Derrick’s weapon from his left and saw a runner brought down to the rear of the fleeing soldiers. There were three more shots from the sniper rifle before the soldiers made it to the breakwater wall and jumped into the cold Bay waters. Everyone on the fireboat held their breath as each of the heavily-laden soldiers popped to the surface and began their swim toward the Phoenix.
The soldiers made it to the fireboat and were helped on board, each dropping their packs and stripping out of their fatigues after being handed survival blankets to wrap up in. Harry could but marvel as he realized how young these five men and one woman were. They were in their early to mid-twenties at best. Once he could be of no further assistance, Harry made his way to the pilot house to have Jimi start the Phoenix back to Angel Island at full throttle. He also radioed Cecil to update him on the rescue.
37
Derrick made the introductions between everyone. Out of uniform and shivering under the silver-colored blankets, he thought they looked more like high school teenagers than the professionally-trained military personnel they were. Derrick felt a great sadness overtake him while chatting with these young people. He wondered what the future held for them and the generations to come. Glancing up toward Harry, Derrick felt a renewed commitment to the man and a deeper understanding of why he was continuing to fight instead of finding a hole and covering it up after crawling in.
Shaking off his melancholy mood, Derrick finished the intros by saying, “The guy by the wheel is Jimi, and that old dude on the radio is Harold Lancaster.”
The soldiers exchanged what Derrick thought were confused looks. “I know my humor is sometimes misconstrued, but please understand that I have a great deal of respect for Lieutenant Lancaster,” Derrick quickly said, feeling as though he needed to explain his remark about Harry.
“We understand that completely, Officer Washington,” Corporal James Woloshin said. He had the dubious honor of being the highest ranking National Guardsman that had survived on Treasure Island. At twenty-five years old and with the rank of corporal, he had found himself in the middle of hell after the outbreak that swept the refugee camp. Within three days everyone was either dead or had joined the ranks of the infected. Everyone except the five others who had placed their lives in his hands.
“Let me explain, sir,” James continued, then spent the next five minutes relaying information that, although remarkable, brought a huge smile to Derrick’s face, shortly followed by emotions that nearly brought him to tears. Derrick asked a few questions, and the answers he received confirmed beyond a doubt what he had just been told.
After a few minutes of consideration, and looking each of the soldiers in the eyes, Derrick said, “Not one word to anyone! We’ll all sit down and talk after we get you settled. Do you understand me, Corporal? That goes for the rest of you as well!”
“Yes, sir, we understand. This is pretty amazing, and the odds of all this coming to together are astronomical,” James replied with no small amount of awe in his voice.
“We’ve experienced some pretty amazing things up to this point, young man. I’d have to classify this under miraculous!” Derrick said with the smile returning to his face.
After Harry completed his update to Cecil, he joined the group at the back of the boat. Derrick introduced each of the soldiers, and as Harry shook hands he picked up an odd sense from them. Nothing negative, and if he had to put a label on the feeling the word would have to be a muted excitement. He quickly shook those thoughts off as he continued to chat with each of them in turn.
The Phoenix pulled into Ayala Cove within twenty minutes after the rescue. Every person on Angel Island who was not involved in a critical assignment was at the docks as the fireboat came to a stop at the refueling dock and shut down. As the cold and half-clothed Guardsmen got off th
e boat, the applause and cheers from the other survivors was louder than those Harry and Cecil had experienced. Each soldier was welcomed and taken off to find dry clothes and a place to store their gear.
Frank had quickly bonded with the only female soldier in the group. Allison Hernandez reminded Harry of the actor Michelle Rodriguez: beautiful, athletic, and quite capable of taking care of herself. Frank was like a teenager telling his best friends about Allison as he described her to Harry and Derrick later that evening. Allison, twenty-four years old and with an I.Q. that matched Frank’s, had spent time in the regular Army where she trained as a Cobra Attack Helicopter pilot. After being wounded in Afghanistan, she’d decided to leave the Army and pursue a career as a commercial airline pilot.
“Okay, so that means she has a real license to fly helicopters, right? Maybe you could get lessons from her then, Rookie!” Derrick ribbed Frank after listening to him go on about how ‘cool’ she was. Frank just looked at Derrick like he had grown an ear on his forehead. That just made Derrick laugh harder.
At 7:00 p.m. Cecil called a stop to all work for the night. Everyone was running on fumes as they continued to set up the island and he knew they needed to decompress. The people who had taken over as cooks created a fantastic meal out of some very basic supplies they had gathered, and the survivors enjoyed an evening of relaxation. Genuine laughter was heard as they all pushed the horrors they had experienced out of their minds. If only for the night.
Harry watched the soldiers and Derrick talking among themselves as he ate with Cecil and the other council members. He’d caught them glancing in his direction several times. Curiosity was getting the best of him as he wondered what the hell they were talking about.
Excusing himself, he wandered over to the group and said, “So what’s up, folks?”
Derrick looked at James for a moment, then nodded toward the visitor’s center. “Harry, we need to talk. Let’s go inside the center.”
Harry was perplexed as he, Derrick, and James entered the quiet building. Frank came in a moment later to join the small group.
“Okay, what’s this all about?” Harry asked
“James has some news he received. News that affects you directly, Harry. I want you to know that I believe what he is about to tell you,” Derrick said as he leaned forward in his chair.
Harry looked from Derrick to James. “Okay, son, what do you have?”
“I am not sure how best to begin so I will just say it, sir. I have been in contact with your nephew in Indiana,” James said, and suddenly became very uncomfortable at the expression he saw come over Harry’s face.
Harry immediately jumped to his feet, his head spinning. “What the hell do you mean you’ve been in contact with my nephew? Eric? How the hell have you been in contact with him?” Harry grabbed James by the collar with both hands, dragging him to his feet. “What kind of fucking sick joke is this? You had better explain yourself very quickly!”
Derrick was on his feet almost as quickly as Harry had been. Placing a hand on his friend’s shoulder, he said, “Harry, you need to hear him out.”
Harry’s eyes clouded with tears and emotion blocked his ability to speak. He released James as he sat heavily back down. In an almost whisper he managed, “What do you mean you’ve been in contact with Eric?”
James smoothed the front of his shirt but remained standing as he spoke. “We spoke twice. The first time was several days ago, six days to be precise, and via satellite phone. The last time was two days ago. Apparently your nephew found a sat phone in an abandoned Guard vehicle.” Seeing the sheer terror that now creased Harry’s face, James quickly added, “But he’s okay, sir. At least he was when I spoke to him last.”
Harry began to stand again as he said, “Get him on the damn thing! Right now, Corporal!”
Derrick gently kept Harry from gaining his feet and said, “Let him finish, Harry.”
James did not wait and continued. “I would have done that the moment we found out who you were, sir. But the battery in your nephew’s sat phone died. I could tell it was happening so I got as much information as possible before it did.
“Apparently the group of people he was with came under attack by a large group of infected while they were in transit to a safe zone. The infected were put down without anyone being injured, but the vehicle your nephew, your sister and brother-in-law were in ran off the road during the initial attack and flipped. Everyone on board was fine other than a few bruises, but the vehicle could not be salvaged.
“As they were transferring the people and supplies from that vehicle the convoy was hit by another group of infected. Derrick told us you call them runners. Your nephew and a few of his friends had been helping carry supplies when the infected hit. Apparently they came out of the woods that surrounded them.
“Your sister, brother-in-law and most of the others made it onto a bus that had been brought in, but your nephew and his friends were cut off. They were able to hide until the infected moved on. He did not go into much detail about what happened during the attack, but I got the impression it was bad.” James finally sat down and stared at the floor.
Harry sat in stunned shock as tears coursed their way down his cheeks. “What else?” That was all that he could manage for the moment.
James looked up to Harry, and after taking a deep breath he continued. “Your nephew is with his friend Tyler and a few others. This all took place just outside of Carmel. The military had set up a staging area at a place called the Monon Community Center where they had the area residents assembled for evacuation. They were being relocated north of Kokomo to a safe zone that had been established. I don’t have all the details, though.
“Once the infected left the area after the second attack, your nephew organized the other teens. They collected the weapons and supplies that had been abandoned when the other survivors fled. That’s how they found the sat phone. Here again, I can’t give you many details, but the kids made their way to Carmel High School and were able to secure the building.
“Your nephew set up a rotation of the kids to send out brief calls on the sat phone and that is how we picked up the first one. Apparently they started to dial random numbers, trying to reach someone, and our equipment picked up the transmission from the phone, since it is military. After the second call, as I told you, the battery in their phone finally went dead. I was able to pass along some suggestions and answer a few questions about the weapons they had collected.
“I understand your nephew is only fifteen, sir, but with all due respect, he really has his shit together! He asked pertinent questions and seemed satisfied with my answers. I’m not certain how I would have handled all this at his age, but I am sure that he was solely responsible for saving the other kids with him and has kept them alive since!
“You should also know that just before the sat phone went dead your nephew gave me a message for you. Although at the time I had no idea I would ever have the opportunity to deliver it. He said to tell you that he’s all right and that he remembered everything you two had talked about. That he would do what he could to keep the others safe.” James cleared his throat in an obvious attempt at removing the lump that was quickly forming. “He said to tell you that he loved and respected you more than you could ever know. There was more that he started to say but static garbled it and then the phone went dead.”
38
Harry had finally gotten his emotions under control, and was now trying to put what he had heard in some order of understanding. His sister was apparently safe, as was Eric; for now at least. Tyler was Eric’s best friend and together they made a good team. Both boys had matured well beyond their ages. They played sports together and many of the other things teens enjoyed, but were both leaders in their group. Eric more so with his good looks, intelligence, and quick wit. He was a natural leader that people were drawn to. Both he and Tyler were over six feet tall, athletic, and easily able to handle themselves. But neither of the boys had ever used their
size to intimidate, both being the first to stand against bullying. They were well-liked and respected by their peers and teachers.
They had supplies and were in a safe location. Harry was not going to ponder how long either would last. Carmel High School was a very large campus. Eric’s graduating class alone had been nearly thirteen hundred students. Harry had no idea where Eric and the others would have secured themselves in the school, but he knew Eric would find the safest and most logical location.
Derrick interrupted Harry’s thoughts. “Harry?”
Harry looked around the room and found all eyes on him. “I’m good, Derry,” he replied.
Turning his attention to James, Harry then said, “James, I apologize for my reaction. This is a bit of a shock to say the least. I just can’t get my head around the odds! But I want you to know how much I appreciate this information, and thank you for helping Eric with the information you were able to offer. He is a very smart and capable kid and I know you increased their odds greatly.”
Harry then turned his focus on Derrick and Frank. “I’m leaving in the morning. I know you guys have said you would go but I’m not holding you to that. This island is safe and I think given time it will become a beacon of hope. Between Cecil and the others, you two could at least find some peace until this all gets sorted out. God knows you’ve done enough.”
Derrick could no longer remain silent, and with very rare tears forming in the large man’s eyes, he said, “Harry, you and I have been through some shit not only recently but over the years. Not to mention all the good times we’ve had. You invited me into your family and they accepted me the moment we met. You are the closest thing to a brother I have, and if you think for one moment I’m going to let you traipse off alone you’re just sorely mistaken! We started this together and we are going to see it to the end together!” Crossing massive arms across his chest, he looked to the floor as a single tear found its way down his cheek.
