by Dirk Patton
On either side of me, Johnson and Igor both fired. My guy dropped to the floor, minus a chunk of his skull, and two more of his assholes tumbled down as well. Each of us shifted aim, taking out three more men before they realized they were under attack. The four men surrounding the General opened up as we continued picking off targets. Within less than ten seconds, they were the only ones still standing.
I scanned each of the bodies quickly, satisfied to see that none of them were moving. Checking on the group protecting the General, I wasn’t surprised to see that they had taken cover behind some equipment and had their weapons trained on us.
“Should have guessed you’d survive, Nitro,” I shouted into the darkness.
There was no reply for several seconds, and I could well imagine the confused expression on my former teammate's face.
“Who the fuck’re you, esse?” He shouted back.
“John Chase,” I answered, stepping around the landing gear into full view.
“No fuckin’ way! Boss? That really you?”
“They’re lowering their weapons,” Johnson reported in a quiet voice.
Mine was lowered, too, and I couldn’t see anything other than the small areas that were lit by the flashlights the militia had dropped when they’d died. A few seconds later one of them was picked up and slowly began coming towards me. Leaving my rifle hanging, I walked forward.
“Goddamn, Nitro,” I said with a grin when we met halfway across the open space. The light reflected off the smooth concrete, giving each of us a good view of the other’s face. “How the fuck did you get uglier? I didn’t think it was possible!”
“Barrio handsome, Wedo,” he said, laughing as he stepped close and wrapped me into a bone crushing hug.
32
I stepped back from Nitro and waved my small team forward.
“Johnson,” I shouted. “Get Rachel to check on Vance!”
He nodded as Igor stepped into view. As he popped the bay doors open, Nitro turned and signaled for his people to approach. They came forward with caution, and no small degree of trepidation, weapons pointed at the floor but firmly gripped in their hands.
“Wanna tell me just what the fuck is going on?” I asked.
“Bunch of fucking half-wit wannabes,” Nitro growled. “It’s a long story, but we got bigger problems at the moment.”
“More of them inside?” I asked, looking over his shoulder as the other three operators walked up, the General leading the way.
The woman was even more beautiful than I’d realized from viewing her through a rifle scope a few days earlier. She was roughly my age and was still a stunner. She stepped forward, stopping next to Nitro’s bulging shoulder and looked me up and down.
“Yeah,” he said, watching Rachel, Irina and Tiffany hurry past to check Vance.
Without even looking at her, I could tell Rachel had noticed the General standing in front of me. It’s kind of like you can feel the vibes when a woman is jealous. Maybe, someday, I’ll figure out how the hell that works.
“Seems like you know them,” I said, staring at Nitro and the General with hooded eyes.
“And you are who, exactly?” The woman asked in a low, husky voice.
“John Chase,” Nitro replied, introducing me. “He was my team leader in Delta, ma’am.”
“You didn’t answer me, Nitro. What are you doing with the militia?”
Nails clicked on the smooth floor and a second later Dog sat down next to my leg. He stared at Nitro and the other men who had formed a half-circle behind him and the General. His lips peeled back to expose his teeth and a low growl rumbled in his chest.
“Easy,” I said to him, placing a hand on his head.
Igor and Johnson took up positions on either side of us, staying back and eyeing Nitro and his small group.
“Look,” I said to Nitro and the General. “Are we gonna have a problem, or not? You’re either with them, or you aren’t. Where do we go from here?”
“We were with them,” the General said. “Or, they were with us. Things have changed. You stumbled into me trying to set things right. Do you have a way out of here?”
I stared at her long enough to make her uncomfortable. She shifted her weight and began to look away before catching herself and crossing her arms across her chest in defiance.
“Maybe,” I said. “That man strapped to the table over there is our pilot. The woman working on him is a doctor. Hopefully, he’ll be able to fly. But, first things first. How many militia are inside and what are we up against?”
“Wait,” the woman said, eyes flashing. “These are my men. You’re not going to start…”
I took my hand off Dog’s head and held it up like a stop sign.
“Lady, if you want to walk out that door, be my guest,” I growled, patience wearing thin. “The only reason we’re even talking is because of Nitro. Him I know and trust. You? And these guys? I’ve got no idea who you are or what your agenda is, and I don’t care. But, I’m going to get my people out of here. If you want to come with us, I’m happy to have you along, but we’re going to do things my way. Take it or leave it!”
She glared back at me, the three men behind her subtly shuffling their feet, spreading out in case things went sideways. Dog growled again, and I saw movement to my right as Igor took a step to the side.
“Ma’am,” Nitro said, turning to her. “You trust me, and I trust him.”
After a few seconds, her eyes shifted from me to Nitro. Finally, she nodded and turned back to face me again. The men behind her visibly relaxed a notch when Nitro looked at each of them and nodded.
“So, where will we go?” She asked.
“One step at a time, General,” I said, noting the surprise on her face when I called her by her rank. Without turning my attention from her, I said, “Johnson, get your ass down the shaft and bring the Master Chief and the rest of our people up here.”
“You want the lights back on?” He asked.
I thought about that for a second, then nodded. It would be easier to hunt the militia if we could see without having to depend on our rifle scopes.
“Yeah, have Nicole restore power.”
“Yes, sir.”
He was to my left, and I couldn’t see him move away but could hear his boots on the floor as he ran for the hatch in the far wall.
“Sir?” Nitro asked, squinting at me.
“I’m a Major, now,” I said, shrugging. “Long story. So, how many are we facing and where are they?”
Nitro stepped forward and pulled a sharpie out of a pocket. Kneeling, he began sketching a crude outline on the floor, talking as he drew.
“Here’s the exterior entrance they breached. The corridor is in bad shape, nearly impassible between the bomb damage and fire, but you can get through. That’s where they came in. They’ve got ten men outside, guarding the hole, and another five on the interior side of the damage. Pretty sure they put a guard on each level at the central elevator shaft. At least, that’s what one of the ones pulling duty at the breach said. And, they’ve got others spreading out to see what’s worth taking.”
“They have anything other than small arms?” I asked, kneeling next to him.
Dog had wormed his way under my left arm, on the opposite side of my body from Nitro. He’d stopped growling, but every time I looked at him, his teeth were exposed in a silent snarl.
“Not inside,” Nitro said. “They got their hands on some medium and heavy weapons at Nellis. We were there, trying to direct them away, but they found them anyway.”
“OK,” I said, looking at the sketch and nodding as I thought. “Take two of your shooters and clear out the guards on the inside of the breach. Leave one of them here to guard the civies. I’ll take two of mine and take out the searchers and have the fourth stay here with yours.”
We all reflexively looked at the ceiling when the lights suddenly popped to life, buzzing loudly as they warmed up. When I lowered my eye, Rachel was approaching at a fast walk.
She came to a stop next to Dog, and I didn’t miss the look that passed between her and the General. I had no idea what it meant, but they probably did.
“How’s Vance?” I asked.
“Hurting,” she said, scratching Dog’s ears. “They cut open his scrotum and poured salt directly into the wound.”
All the men around us grimaced, several of them muttering quiet curses.
“He OK?”
“I just sewed him up, and he’s asleep at the moment. The salt, as bad as it had to hurt, will probably wind up saving him from a nasty infection. But, he’s got a lot of swelling already and lost quite a bit of blood. I need to get him to medical and on IV antibiotics.”
“That’s going to have to wait,” I said. “We’ve got intruders wandering the halls. Think he’ll be able to fly when the time comes?”
“Maybe,” Rachel said, lifting her hands in a shrug. “If he’s able to sit in a cockpit. How soon can you get me to medical? He’s going to need some pain meds, too.”
“Soon as I can,” I said, standing.
“Sooner is better,” Rachel said, putting her hand on my arm.
“Got it,” I said, turning as Johnson, with Gonzales, Nicole and Chelsea trotted up.
Nitro and his men noticed the thick swaddle of bandages on the Master Chief’s face but didn’t comment or ask any questions.
“OK, people. We’ve got work to do,” I said. “Nitro, get moving. Johnson and Igor, you’re with me. Master Chief, stay put and keep everyone quiet. We’ve got militia searching the facility, and you don’t want to draw their attention. Questions?”
“I did find something yesterday that might help,” Johnson said. “I think it could seal off areas if we needed to.”
“What’d you find?” I asked.
“Took a while to figure out what it was,” Johnson said, stepping forward. “Guess they were developing some sort of system to seal up a breach, or maybe disable a vehicle. I pressed a button and damn near glued Nicole to the wall. Damn thing shoots out a jet of high-pressure foam. Sticks to cement like a fuckin’ barnacle, then expands and hardens. Don’t know how the hell you’d get someone out of it if they got trapped.”
“How big of an area will it seal?” Nitro asked.
Johnson looked at me, and I nodded for him to answer.
“Covered about fifty square feet in less than a second, then the foam expanded and doubled in size.”
“We take out the guards inside the breach, that could seal it up,” Nitro said, reaching out and tapping a spot on the sketch he’d drawn on the floor. “At least until they bring in some more explosives.”
I nodded, liking the idea.
“You could have mentioned that before I set up the Willie Pete,” I groused at Johnson.
“Sorry, sir. Didn’t think about it at the time.”
He shrugged and gave me a half-assed grin.
“Where is it?”
“Couple levels down,” he said after thinking for a few seconds.
“Do you need help moving it?” I asked.
“No, it’s on some sort of wheeled platform. I can move it by myself. But I’m going to have to use the elevator to bring it up. It’s not man-portable.”
“Alright,” I said. “New plan, everyone. I want two men in the corridor to keep watch and make sure no more militia make it beyond the guards and into the facility. Two men stay here. The rest of us are going with Johnson to get the… thingy.”
There were a couple of muted laughs when I said that last word.
“Then what?” The General asked.
“Then we seal up the breach and go hunting,” I said, earning nods from all the warriors.
33
We quickly got our shit together and prepared to head out. Nitro barked some commands, and two of his men called Bunny and Monk took off at a trot. They’d set up around a bend from the breach and keep an eye on our uninvited guests. I told them to make sure that no more of the militia made it into the facility.
We already didn’t know how many we’d be facing, and sure didn’t need that number to grow. Everyone huddled and pooled resources, and when they headed out, they were equipped with nearly a dozen fragmentation grenades and a couple of WP grenades that Igor had held back.
A tall, thin man that Nitro referred to as Goose was selected to stay behind with Gonzales to protect the girls. He was a former SEAL, and it took him and the Master Chief all of half a second to bond and begin sharing sea stories. The rest of us, me, Nitro, Johnson and Igor would go collect the foam machine. But, before we could head out, Tiffany came running up.
“Here,” she said, thrusting what at first I thought was a bra into my hand.
“What the hell’s this?” I asked, holding it up to unfurl.
When it did, I was confused for a moment. It was a bra or had been at one time. A small, black, frilly thing. But she had cut the fringe off as well as one of the cups, done some reshaping of the remaining one and stitched the whole thing back together. She’d made me an eye patch.
“Don’t even look at it like that,” she said, hands on her hips. “I had to talk one of the girls out of her bra, then it took some time to make it work.”
I looked at it for a few moments, then up at Tiffany.
“What?” She said, challenging.
“Thank you,” I said, smiling. “I’m actually touched that you went to all this trouble for me, but I really don’t think I need it.”
“It will give you some protection,” Rachel said. “You need to guard that eye until we can get you to what’s left of civilization and a good surgeon. Right now, you won’t even see something coming that could cause more damage. Wear it!”
After a beat, I worked it over my head, settling the modified cup over my damaged eye. It wasn’t perfect, and I probably looked ridiculous, but if it would prevent any more damage, I was willing to give it a go. Adjusting the fit, I noticed Igor turn away, but not before I saw the grin on his face. Nitro was doing his best to ignore me.
“Thank you,” I said again to Tiffany.
She beamed before heading back to join the other girls who were clustered around the still unconscious Vance. Rachel squeezed my hand and followed her. I turned to lead the way to the door, coming face to face to the General.
“Bring my men back,” she said softly.
I saw something in her eyes that changed my impression of her. Genuine concern for the well-being of the warriors under her command. That, more than anything else she could have done or said, softened my attitude towards her.
“I’ll do my best,” I said.
She nodded and stepped out of the way as the four of us took off at a trot. Dog fell in beside me, seemingly happy to be heading out to wreak mayhem on our attackers. I’d considered leaving him with Rachel for an extra layer of protection, but knew he’d be an asset. And, if we did our jobs, he wouldn’t be needed in the hangar.
“Hey, boss. How’s it feel to have a bra on your head?” Nitro asked as we ran across the hangar.
“Shame she didn’t use a pair of panties,” Johnson quipped.
Igor snorted a laugh and I sighed in resignation. It was going to be a long day. And the worst part was I had no doubt Nitro was going to rub off on both of them.
I slowed at the door, leaning out to scan the corridor before stepping through with my rifle up and ready. The rest of my team followed close behind, the hatch closing softly behind as Gonzales secured it. The heavy locking bolt refusing to go home. It was bent from the militia having forced their way in earlier.
It took some time to reach the central hub where the elevator shaft was located. The smell of fire was strong in the air from where they had tripped the WP grenades I’d set up. It was carried to us on a gentle current blowing in from the corridor where Nitro’s men had set up.
“That WP wasn’t a half bad idea,” he mumbled to me as we paused. “Killed a couple of ‘em, too. But, it really pissed off the rest.”
“How many are outside?”
I asked.
“’Bout four hundred,” Nitro said, shrugging like it didn’t matter.
Shaking my head, I moved to the stairwell entrance and peeked through the tall, narrow window set in the door just above the handle. We’d have to use the elevator to bring the equipment back up, but I didn’t want to ride it down and alert any of the militia that we were on the move. Seeing nothing, I cracked the door open and gave Dog a moment to sample the air. His nose twitched briefly, then he looked up at me, waiting to see what I wanted to do.
Trusting his senses, I pushed through and began descending, happy to have him. If I’d left him behind, there was no way I’d be taking point with only one eye. Nitro, Johnson and Igor stayed close behind as we silently padded down the concrete stairs. I paused at each landing, carefully looking out through the window. On level C, I pulled back quickly when I saw movement. Two men carrying rifles were approaching a door Johnson had left open during his search.
“Scroungers,” I mumbled to my small team. “Two, going into the first room on the left.”
“Kill them,” Igor said, earning nods from the other two men.
I made my decision in less than a second, signing our stack order to the men before turning to approach the door. Nitro’s big hand on my arm stopped me.
“Boss, you know I trust you, but you the right one to go through the door first?”
He reached up and tapped his left eye, then pointed at mine.
“Sorry, boss,” he said softly.
I was immediately angry. Nearly told him to go fuck himself since I had Dog by my side. But, he was right, and I had no business being mad at him. Swallowing my pride, I stepped aside.
“OK. Nitro takes lead, Igor then Johnson. Dog and I have got rear security.”
Everyone nodded and we took a couple of seconds to re-shuffle our positions, then Nitro pushed out of the stairwell. Igor and Johnson were tight on his back. They quickly moved to the door, pausing just before the jamb. While they were focused on their entry, Dog and I put our backs against the wall, scanning up and down the corridors for any threats.
