by Hunt, Jack
It was far from over.
Rounds cut into the truck, the echo of an M4 was deafening.
“Ma’am, is there anyone else in there?” Sam asked.
Her chin dropped and she shook her head.
“He’s trying to get into the bunker,” Dawson said firing off a few more rounds.
“He won’t be able to. It’s sealed. The only way in is through the escape hatch now,” Mia replied.
“He can still launch it,” Dawson said.
“He won’t,” she said confidently. Dawson shot her a glance. “If he wanted to, he would have done it by now. Without immediate protection it would be suicide.”
Sam had no qualms about him being crazy enough to do it but not all terrorists were willing to die for a cause. Was he?
“Get her out of here,” Sam said to Dawson realizing they were in the crosshair and receiving the bulk of the assault. “We’ll cover you,” he said ripping off a smoke grenade from his jacket. He twisted, pulled and launched it over the top of the truck into the kill zone. Two tires were down, all the windows shattered on the truck and the panels must have looked like a colander.
All three of them focused on the door and windows as a steady onslaught of rounds echoed loudly.
After confirming the capsule was sealed, Thorn returned to the surface and staggered back into the hallway to find only four of his men still alive. Gunfire continued, rounds tearing up the lot beyond the doors. Dmitry pulled away from the entrance. “Thorn! Give the order to launch now!”
He shook his head, no.
It was one thing to bring the grid down and send the nation into chaos, another to know when it no longer served a purpose. While his hatred for the U.S. ran deep, as did Dmitry’s for Russia, he knew, as he did when the NSA first caught him, when it was time to bounce.
If launching the missiles meant he could escape he would have done so in a heartbeat but this was now out of his control, and he wasn’t ready to die — just as he wasn’t prepared to go to prison. Not now. Not for the USA and not for Russia.
“No, we leave now,” he said.
Dmitry scowled. “Leave?” He towered over him. “I did not come this far, or lose this many men to turn back now.” He charged past Thorn and scooped up the radio and began barking orders.
“Come in, Niles…”
Before he could spit the rest out, Thorn plowed into him, making him drop the radio. He cracked him with several blows to the jaw and delivered a hard uppercut but it barely fazed him. Dmitry spat blood on the floor, and went for his handgun.
Thorn was already one step ahead of him.
He finished him with two shots to the heart.
Dmitry slumped to the floor and then Thorn got on the radio.
“Niles. Meet me at the highway.”
“But.”
“The mission is compromised,” he bellowed. “It’s time to leave.”
Thorn didn’t inform the others, they were the distraction. None of them were brothers, close friends or anyone he gave two shits about. They were joined only by their hatred for the government and their expertise in hacking.
He grabbed his rifle and headed out the rear.
Attempting to reach the trucks, which had been brought around the side, wouldn’t work; all he could hope for was that the other guys would hold them at bay long enough for his escape to remain unknown.
Dawson ran at a crouch, eyes flitting towards the structure as they made it to the second truck. Michelson tossed him the keys and joined the other two while he reversed out, heading backward towards the gate. The truck let out a loud whining sound as he leaned back and smashed his foot on the accelerator.
Just as he swerved it out of the gate, kicking up a curtain of dust, he jerked the wheel to his left and his eye caught a lone figure darting across the flatlands that framed the facility. Dawson squinted. Although the person had put some distance between himself and the building, he was certain he knew who it was — Thorn.
That coward.
A swell of pain from losing his son and wife gripped him and he jammed the gearstick in drive and took off in pursuit going around the facility and bumping out onto the open plain. In the distance, Thorn cast a glance over his shoulder and broke into an all-out sprint but it was pointless. Dawson blocked out the sound of Mia, the gunfire behind him and all reasoning — only the drive to kill him dominated.
Within seconds the truck closed the gap. It roared as it raced across the field, and Dawson bounced in his seat. As they got closer, Thorn turned, squeezed off rounds, a desperate attempt to survive the inevitable.
It failed.
Dawson relished the thud, and crunch of the truck as it plowed over him.
He glanced over his shoulder, stuck the gear into park and hopped out.
Thorn squirmed across the ground, moaning and dragging his limp body. Dawson thought of Kelly, and Aidan’s final moments — the look of pure terror in their eyes, and the knowledge that they were about to die. He wanted Thorn to taste that.
This was for them.
Upon reaching him, Dawson looked down, shaking his head, unable to believe that this one person could be responsible for the downfall of a nation. Thorn rolled over, dirt clinging to his clothes. He stared up with pitiful eyes, his lips opening as if to beg for mercy.
He wouldn’t give it.
Without another word, Dawson crouched and removed the knife from the sheaf wrapped around Thorn’s leg. He rolled it in his hand a couple of times letting the glint of the sun catch his eye before he said, “You should have killed me.”
Dawson heard air catch in Thorn’s throat as he lunged forward, slashing his throat. Blood gushed out, and he made a choking sound. He wanted him to know what his son suffered. He wanted to see the same hopelessness in his eyes that Aidan had.
He saw it.
There in the middle of nowhere, he listened as Thorn took his last breath.
Dawson scooped up Thorn’s rifle nearby and returned to the vehicle, satisfied but broken.
Chapter 22
Five Days Later
In the aftermath of the raid on the missile launch facility, only two of Thorn’s ten men survived, and they surrendered without incident. Niles Black and Garrett Forester were found waiting beside the highway for Thorn to return — the look of surprise when Sam’s team showed up was priceless. What Sam came to understand from Dawson was that this wasn’t a group of suicidal terrorists, hardened criminals that had any form of combat training — they were opportunists, hackers, guys that usually operated alone. In fact that was why his team had been successful in taking back the facility with minimal loss of life. It was the reason why neither Niles nor Garrett put up a fight when they came upon them.
Dawson didn’t say much about how Thorn died except to say that he no longer posed a threat. They returned Lieutenant Hart to the facility and established radio contact with the military.
Within the hour, several Black Hawks arrived from Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station to relieve her of her position, to secure the perimeter, and to take Blake Dawson back with the hope of using his expertise to bring the grid back up.
It was the last time Sam would ever see Blake.
Their farewell was as brief as their meeting. Blake shook hands with those he’d fought alongside and promised he would do everything within his means to turn back the tide.
Upon return to Breckenridge, they weren’t greeted like heroes. Few knew of the operation. For Sam this was normal but he could tell some of the group had expected the streets to be full of cheering people. The reality was they received nothing more than a pat on the back by Chief Sanchez. There was no reward to be had as in reality their circumstances hadn’t changed.
Tim Snyder was handed back to his family for burial. They opted to keep the funeral private, so few words were exchanged that day but Sam told them he didn’t die in vain and his name would always be remembered.
Sam was horrified to learn about Anna’s injury but overcome wi
th gratitude for the brave actions of Chase, Amanda and Mason. They’d all come a long way, overcome dangerous obstacles and were stronger for it.
“Are you sure you won’t come with us?” Chase asked Sam.
Over the past twenty-four hours Chase had brought up the conversation again about journeying to California. He was eager to see if his family was safe. Although it had been Sam’s initial goal to return to California, his situation with Anna had changed.
With the town still without power, Sam had accepted a temporary position with Breckenridge Police Department. Although the city didn’t have much to offer, the resolve of the officers at that department had proven that good still existed in light of all that had transpired. It gave him hope for the future even if it was in darkness.
Despite the riots and fires that occurred days earlier, town residents showed a surprising show of force for good. Like a man pushed into a corner, the town revealed its true colors under duress and fought back. Fires were extinguished. Trouble makers were arrested, and home invasions dwindled. Breckenridge as a community was stronger than he thought. It was stronger than the few that attempted to take advantage of it at its weakest time. It was for these reasons and more that he decided to stay.
Sam stood beside Anna with his arm around her shoulder. “Thanks but no. My home is here. It always has been. And if there was ever a time this place could use some help, it’s now.”
Although a section of Helen’s home had been destroyed by fire, it wasn’t anything that he didn’t think he could fix. The local lumber company and hardware stores in town had stepped up to the plate and offered those whose homes had been damaged, the tools, supplies and equipment needed to rebuild.
Those who’d lost homes were offered temporary housing in real estate that was empty. Although Sam knew that not every town or city would come together and work for the good of each other, it encouraged him to see it in Breckenridge.
Chase shook Sam’s hand, and got into the derby car.
“You sure we can’t convince you to come?” Mason asked Amanda.
She shook her head. “No, but if you ever make it back this way again, be sure to drop in, okay?”
He smiled and gave her a warm hug before Amanda headed back into the house with Anna. Mason stood in front of Sam, a smirk appearing on his face.
“Well sir, it has been one hell of a ride.”
“That it has,” Sam replied.
He extended a hand and Sam pulled him in and gave him a hug. “Stay safe out there, my friend. You hear me?”
“Always.”
They pulled away from each other.
“I hope he doesn’t annoy you too much,” Sam said with a head nod to Chase.
“If he does…” Mason tapped the Glock in his holster and they both laughed. “You going to be okay here?”
Sam looked back at the house. “I think so.”
“No, I meant with dickhead.” He smiled.
“Richard? Oh, you didn’t hear?”
Mason’s brow pinched. “Hear what?”
Sam got this devilish grin on his face. “Keith Boone — you know, Howard’s brother — tried to strike up a plea deal to get a lesser sentence for his involvement in the attempted shooting at the town hall meeting. Which I might add was later confirmed by several witnesses. He told Chief Sanchez a number of toe-curling stories about Richard’s involvement with him and his brother. It seems Richard’s influence and power in this community has come to an end.”
“They’ve arrested him?”
“Not exactly. It depends on what evidence they find in Howard’s home. But rumor has it Keith said he could lead them to a vault of damning evidence. Seems it’s not the first time their paths have crossed. So who knows what he’s responsible for? All I know is that no one has seen Richard in over three days. Let’s hope it stays that way.”
“Huh! Coward probably fled,” Mason said.
Sam nodded. “Let’s hope so.”
Mason breathed in deeply, patted him on the shoulder then gave a salute and headed for the car.
“Hey, Mason.”
He turned. “Yeah?”
“You think you’ll ever return?”
The corner of his lip curled up. “I don’t know… Colorado can sure be cold in the winters. And I hear the California sun can be quite addictive.”
Sam laughed.
Mason jabbed his finger. “But if the lights come back on. You have my word.”
He winked and slipped into the driver’s side. Sam listened as the two of them began to bicker like two old ladies. Mason fired up the engine.
“Hey you think I can drive?” Chase said.
“You at the wheel? Over my dead body,” Mason said.
Sam chuckled as Mason honked the horn and pulled out. He stood a moment longer looking out into the darkness, the smell of pine lingering in the air. A cold breeze blew in chilling him to the bone. The nation had been without power for over two weeks, he’d witnessed towns crumble and communities fight back. They’d seen the desperation of many and the brave determination of the few. There was no telling when or if the power would ever come back on again. The fate of the country now relied on the goodwill of other nations, and the expertise of Blake Dawson, a man who had for a second time shown that where there was a will, there was a way.
“Hey dad,” Anna called out. “You ready to eat?”
Sam looked over his shoulder, nodded and turned to head in.
As he began strolling towards the door, the lights in the house blinked on.
Anna twisted and frowned. “What the heck?”
“Did you fire up the generator?” Sam asked.
She responded no with a shake of the head.
Sam glanced off to his right, through the trees he noticed the faint glow of yellow coming from a neighbor’s house. He put up a finger and walked briskly to the end of the driveway. As he rounded a cluster of trees and came out onto the main road, his eyes widened at the sight of more homes. All the lights were on. Can it be? Oh God, please. His pulse sped up as he broke into a jog and climbed up a section of hillside to get a better view of the town at the base of the Rocky Mountains. Sam clambered over a rise and smiled thinking of Dawson’s promise.
At the top his question was answered.
“You did it,” he said.
Sam breathed heavily, as he caught his breath and soaked it all in.
A multitude of lights across the landscape flickered on like a thousand fireflies.
A Plea
Thank you for reading the final book As We Break: Against All Odds Series Book 2. If you enjoyed the book, I would really appreciate it if you would consider leaving a review. Without reviews, an author’s books are virtually invisible on the retail sites. It also lets me know what you liked. It also motivates me to write more books. You can leave a review by visiting the book’s page. I would greatly appreciate it. It only takes a couple of seconds.
Thank you — Jack Hunt
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About the Author
Jack Hunt is the best-selling author of horror, sci-fi and post-apocalyptic novels. He currently has three books out in the War Buds series, four books out in the EMP survival series, two boos out in the Against all Odds duo logy, two books out in the Wild Ones duology, three books in the Camp Zero series, three books out in the Agora Virus series, five books out in the Renegades series, one book out in The Armada series, a time travel book called Killing Time, a science fiction book called Blackout, another called Darkest Hour, another called Final Impact and another called Mavericks: Hunters Moon. Jack lives on the East coast of North America.
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Also by Jack Hunt
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The Agora Virus series
Phobia
Anxiety
Strain
The War Buds series
War Buds 1
War Buds 2
War Buds 3
Camp Zero series
State of Panic
State of Shock
State of Decay
Renegades series
The Renegades
The Renegades Book 2: Aftermath
The Renegades Book 3: Fortress
The Renegades Book 4: Colony
The Renegades Book 5: United
The Wild Ones Duology
The Wild Ones Book 1
The Wild Ones Book 2
The EMP Survival series
Days of Panic
Days of Chaos
Days of Danger
Days of Terror
The Against All Odds Duology
As We Fall
As We Break
Mavericks series
Mavericks: Hunters Moon
Time Agents series
Killing Time
Single Novels
Blackout
Defiant
Darkest Hour
Final Impact
