by Hunt, James
“I don’t want anything from him,” Mike said.
“Then don’t open it,” Ben said, leaving the cell.
***
Mike just sat there looking at the cloth bundled by his foot at the end of the cot. Whatever was inside was something Wyatt believed could change his mind.
Mike paced the confined space, staring the cloth down. He reached out his hand a few times to grab it, but then abruptly pulled it back.
“Stop it,” he said.
He turned his back to the cot and pressed his hands up against the wall. He tried to bury his hands in the concrete. The flesh around his fingers and knuckles turned white from the pressure.
When his hands finally felt as if they were going to break off he stopped. He turned around and slammed his back into the wall.
Mike reached for the cloth and when he felt the outline of the object he knew what it was. He backed up quickly, running into the wall again. His entire body was shaking.
The silent sobs that came were followed by low cries. His head hung heavy between his shoulders and the tears hit the concrete floor.
“You son of a bitch,” Mike said.
Wyatt must’ve known there weren’t enough words he could say to make him change his mind. He had to bring something that was personal, something from home.
Day 28 (Cincinnati)
Once Mike knew where the factory was he pressed the button on the transmitter, and when he took his family to the pickup point Dr. Wyatt’s men were right where they said they’d be. He brought Katie, Sean, Mary, Nancy, Erin, and Sam along with him, but the soldiers were giving him trouble for the extra weight.
“We were told there would be three. This is nine,” the lieutenant said.
“I know what was supposed to happen, but things changed. You’re taking these people with you,” Mike replied.
He wasn’t going to let Katie and Sean stay here, not after what happened with Nelson. And he couldn’t leave Mary and her sisters to fate. He trusted Sam to keep everyone safe.
“I can’t guarantee Dr. Wyatt will take them in,” the lieutenant said.
“He’ll take them.”
Anne was holding Freddy’s hand. Mike gave his wife a kiss and knelt down to his son.
“I need you to take care of mom for me. Okay, buddy?”
“Okay.”
Kalen was off to the side, standing by the rubble of what was left of a store. She had her arms folded across her stomach and was looking out over the river.
“Hey,” Mike said.
“I should be going with you.”
“Kalen, we’re not starting this again.”
“I can help, Dad. I’m a better shot than any soldier that came across the river, and you know it.”
“I do know it. That’s why you’re staying with your mom and brother.”
Kalen uncrossed her arms and hugged him. He could feel her face buried in his chest and he held the back of her head gently.
“I love you,” Kalen said.
“I love you, too.”
The lieutenant signaled to Mike that it was time to go.
“Once I take them to the factory they’ll radio to send you guys across the river,” Mike said.
“Be careful,” Anne said.
“I will.”
On the way to the factory the lieutenant wanted to stay south to allow the rest of the units coming across the river to catch up, but Mike insisted on keeping north.
“There will be more of a chance of Bram’s men seeing us if we stay south,” Mike said.
“It’s a good thing they don’t know we’re coming then,” the lieutenant said.
“How long have you been in the military?”
“Since I turned eighteen.”
“So that was last year then?”
“You don’t think I know how to do my job, do you?”
“I think you’re cocky. And that doesn’t work in the world now,” Mike answered.
“You know how many men I’ve lost in my unit since this whole thing started?”
“How many?”
“None.”
“Well, I hope it stays that way.”
***
Beth was given a post at the factory along with the unit of men that came with it. When Cain introduced her there were no questions asked. Everyone accepted her as their officer in charge.
When Beth walked around the factory the soldiers would salute her, then go about their duties. They respected her simply because Cain told them to.
Her mind kept going back to Cain in the moments she was alone. She wondered what he was doing, what he was planning. His eyes concealed a mind that was constantly active, preparing for what was next.
Beth hadn’t seen her son since they arrived. She wasn’t sure where he was, and felt no sense of urgency to try and find him. She didn’t feel like a mother anymore. The only person she had to look out for now was herself.
The only other distraction in her mind was trying to find Mike. She knew he had taken his family here, but she hadn’t seen him yet.
It was a slow burn inside her, constantly pushing her forward. The steady anger never seemed to grow or fade. It was an anger that was at peace, perfectly balanced and designed to accomplish whatever she wanted to do. And she wanted Mike and his family dead.
***
Blueprints were piled over Bram’s desk. They were stacked on top of each other and Bram was shuffling through them.
“If we can’t override the silos, then we can’t launch, and if we can’t launch then we lose the one strategic advantage we have,” Bram said.
“Sir, we’ll find a way to do it. Our men are working on it as we speak,” Cadogan said.
“Well, tell them to work faster!” Bram said, knocking the blueprints off his desk.
He’d come too far for this to happen. All of the preparation, the planning, the blood that was spilled to get to this point couldn’t have been for nothing.
“I’ll take care of it personally, sir,” Cadogan said.
Bram let out a sigh.
“I’m sorry, Andreas. I know you’ll make sure it’s done. You can tell Sergeant Blake to come and collect the blueprints,” Bram said.
“Yes, sir.”
“Andreas.”
The colonel turned around and Bram walked over to him. He rested his hand on Cadogan’s shoulder.
“You’ve done well,” Bram said.
Cadogan bowed his head. Bram didn’t toss out compliments on a regular basis, so he knew what it meant to the colonel.
“Thank you, sir,” Cadogan replied.
As Cadogan left Cain walked in.
“Bram, we have a problem,” Cain said.
“What is it now?”
“I need to see the files of everyone that’s arrived in the city over the past week that wasn’t brought in by a recruiter.”
“All of those records are in the administration building. What’s going on?”
“The woman and boy I brought with me from my recruitment trip told me of a man and his family that were on their way to Cincinnati.”
“So?
“I need access to those files.”
“Why?”
“Because they’re a threat to our cause.”
***
Paul pulled open the filing cabinet and thumbed through the folders inside. He pulled out one labeled “Mike Grant” and handed it to Cain.
“You cleared him yourself?” Bram asked.
“I did,” Paul answered.
“This profile is shit,” Cain said, thumbing through the pages of Mike’s file.
“I followed protocol in every are—”
“Where is his family?” Cain asked.
“The hotel on Seventh,” Paul answered.
Cain left without another word. Bram followed him out of the office, jogging to catch up with him.
“Tell your men to hold his family,” Cain said.
“I was told that Mike Grant was killed at the bridge. Holding h
is family won’t accomplish anything, Cain.”
“Not according to his profile.”
***
Sergeant Blake busted down the door to Mike and Anne’s room.
“They’re not here,” Blake said, through his radio.
“And the children’s room?” Bram asked.
“Empty.”
Bram slammed the radio on the ground. He knew that if the family was gone, then Mike was still alive, and if Mike was still alive, then Wyatt had got to him.
“Son of a bitch,” Bram said.
“We need to gather whatever resources we have and comb the city. According to the reports his wife was at her job yesterday, so the earliest they could have left was last night. Unless they managed to steal one of the vehicles, they can’t be far,” Cain said.
Bram gritted his teeth and shoved his finger into Cain’s chest.
“Find them. Now.”
Sergeant Blake exited the hotel and met Bram on the street.
“I want this city turned upside down. If they’re still here, then I want them found, understood?” Bram asked.
“Yes, sir.”
“And double the men at the factory. I don’t know how much Mike knew, but if he found out about the factory, that’s something Wyatt would have pried out of him.”
Blake ran off and Bram hopped back into his Jeep.
“Take me the factory,” Bram said.
***
Freddy’s legs were swinging off the edge of the seawall. His heels smacked the concrete. Kalen was sitting next to him. All of a sudden he gasped, making Kalen jump.
“Jesus. What was that?” Kalen asked.
“I left it,” Freddy said.
“Left what?”
“Kalen, we have to go back.”
He was grabbing her hand, pulling her toward the city.
“Freddy, go back for what?”
“I left the watch Dad gave me in our room.”
“It’s okay. Dad won’t care. Trust me.”
“I care!”
He started crying. He couldn’t believe he left it there. His dad trusted him enough to let him have it, and he’d taken such good care of it. He couldn’t lose it now.
“Freddy, we can’t go back,” Kalen said.
“Kalen, please.”
His hands were folded together, begging her to take him back.
“It won’t take long,” Freddy said.
“You know exactly where you left it?” Kalen asked.
“Yes,” he said, nodding emphatically.
“All right, we don’t have a lot of time though. Come on.”
***
They were almost to the factory. Mike had over one hundred men behind him. He did his best to keep them out of the paths of what traffic still existed in the city, but it was harder with the larger numbers.
The lieutenant joined Mike at the window of the building they were hiding behind. Mike nodded to the end of the street where the factory was located. There was a lot of activity going on, more so than when he located it earlier.
“There it is,” Mike said.
“Shit.”
“What?”
“I knew it’d be guarded, but I didn’t think they’d have that many men.”
“Your guys can’t handle it?”
“A lot of the men that Bram has were men I used to serve with. Even with everything they’ve done it’s not easy killing your brother. I was hoping we could avoid as much death as possible.”
“It’s impossible to avoid that these days.”
Mike held up his part of the bargain. He brought them to the location. Now it was time for the lieutenant to hold up his end of the deal.
“All right, I brought you to the factory. Now, you get me and my family out of here,” Mike said.
The lieutenant nodded and radioed the unit watching Mike’s family.
“We’re good here. Take the Grants and the others across the river.”
This was it. Mike was so close to getting out of here, getting his family somewhere safe.
“What?” the lieutenant asked. “Well, find them.”
“What’s going on?” Mike asked.
“Your kids ran off.”
***
Freddy and Kalen kept to the outskirts. Kalen didn’t want to turn deeper into the city until she absolutely had too.
They finally made it to the cross street where their hotel was located. She could see a few military vehicles sitting out front.
“They know we’re gone,” Kalen said.
She knew how much Freddy wanted to get that watch, but this was too risky. There was no way they were going to get inside that building. It was locked down.
“Freddy, we should go back. We can’t—”
Kalen turned around and he was gone. She panicked. She looked down the street and could see his figure sprinting down the sidewalk toward the hotel.
“Shit.”
He was fast for a kid, but she was gaining on him. She could feel the stitches on her forehead throbbing. It felt as though they were going to burst and blood would just pour out of her, but she pushed through it.
Freddy was fifty yards from the hotel, and Kalen was ten yards from Freddy. The soldiers had their backs to the both of them. Kalen reached out her hand and grabbed Freddy’s shoulder.
She yanked him into an alleyway, concealing them from the street. He squirmed, but she had a good grip on him.
“Are you crazy?” Kalen asked. “Those soldiers are there because of us. If they see you, you’re a goner.”
“I’m not leaving it behind.”
Freddy pushed Kalen off him. She recognized that stubborn look and realized he wasn’t going to give up.
“C’mon then,” Kalen said.
Kalen led Freddy down the alleyway of the building with the fire escape next to the hotel.
They climbed the metal stairs, as quickly as Freddy’s legs would let them, and when they made it to the top Kalen walked to the edge of the roof.
“We’ll have to jump for it,” Kalen said.
Freddy tiptoed to the edge and peeked over. His eyes were as wide as watermelons. She knew he wasn’t going to jump.
Freddy took a few steps back and when Kalen walked over to him he sprinted off.
“Freddy, no!”
Before she could grab him he leaped over the edge and barely landed on the other roof.
Kalen’s feet skidded to a stop right before she reached the edge herself.
“Jesus Christ! What were you thinking?”
“You said we had to jump. So I jumped.”
His answer was so innocent and matter-of-fact that she had to chuckle a little bit. She backed up and jumped over to join him.
Kalen tussled Freddy’s hair and shook her head.
“You’re one crazy kid.”
The two of them descended the stairs and found the window where their dad snuck in. Kalen poked her head through first to make sure the coast was clear then went back for Freddy.
Once they were in the room Freddy made a beeline for the table next to the bed and pulled the drawer open.
“Got it!”
“Okay, now let’s get the hell out of here. Mom’s probably losing her mind.”
When they made it back to the window to leave, the sirens went off. Kalen wasn’t sure which direction it was coming from, but when the gunfire echoed in the distance she was afraid that she and her brother missed their chance to get out of the city.
***
“Concentrate fire on the west side!” the lieutenant ordered.
The moment Mike heard that his kids disappeared he ran back toward the river, but the lieutenant stopped him.
