by A J Newman
“Will asked, “Major, what should we be doing to prevent the Walkers from overrunning the Horseshoe?”
“Keep doing what you’ve been doing but get everyone on board with eliminating any threats. You also need to find ways to stop the threats without expending valuable ammunition. You might try ditches with diesel fuel, flamethrowers, snares, and poison. Save as many bullets as possible.”
Maddie responded with, “Bows and arrows. We can get the arrows back and reuse them.”
“Great idea.”
Jack added, “It’s been a full-time job burying the hundreds of bodies that have stacked up just in the past few days. We’re taking them out of the Horseshoe and burying them in trenches over by the old reactor.”
“That’s what I’d do. Bury them before rats spread disease.”
Ben said, “Now moving on, I propose that we institute a council made up of an equal number of people from each group, and they can select a chairman to conduct the meetings but does not have any authority over the group.”
They all agreed, and Ben was selected to be the interim chairman.
“Now, I’d like to close the meeting and have a meeting with just the leaders of the three communities.”
The rest of the group left, and Ben looked Jim and Bob in the eyes and said, “Gentlemen we are at war with O’Berg and his henchmen. We need a plan to defeat them, and we must accomplish that task quickly. My sources tell me that approximately a month from now FEMA is sending men, weapons, and supplies to support O’Berg who they think is the elected leader of the area.”
“That would tip the balance of power in his favor, and we might not ever regain control of our communities,” said Jim.
Bob replied, “We have several options. We can take out O’Berg, take out his entire team, capture the convoy bringing the men and supplies, or move from the area and start a new community.”
Jim said, “My team has identified the community leaders who support O’Berg and O’Berg’s, henchmen. My vote is to start a guerilla action to cut the head off the snake and end the threat before it gets stronger. We need your Wraith to focus his efforts on the Senator.”
Ben came to attention and asked, “Who is the Wraith?”
Bob replied, “Someone has been killing gang members, outlaws and thugs in the area around the Horseshoe and whoever he is, he leaves his signature. The Wraith. The people outside the Horseshoe think it’s someone from our group. I’m not convinced that’s accurate; however, we could use about twenty Wraiths to clean up Lebanon.”
Ben replied, “I’d like each team to give me four volunteers with military experience to start a hit squad to take out the Senator and his loyal followers.”
They all agreed to supply people for the hit squad, and Bob began to wonder whom he could get to volunteer. He only had a few ex-military in his group, but he did have several who were excellent snipers.
Jim replied, “The top four are O’Berg, Walt Long, Fred Ham, and Bill Middleton. I’ll get a list and location of the next level below those four.”
“Wait a minute; Jo had a partner named Walt Long on the Louisville police force,” answered Bob.
“It has to be the same asshole. This guy was a cop in Louisville, and he came south looking for his girlfriend.”
“Shit that sounds like Jo’s partner. I’ll check with her,” replied Bob.
***
“Pop, that almost has to be my partner from Louisville. Jim says he has turned evil?”
“Yes, he has taken over the police force and has ruthlessly killed anyone who speaks out against the Senator.”
“Walt was odd and a pain in the ass, but I never thought he’d go rogue and start killing people,” replied Jo.
Bill spoke up, “It doesn’t surprise me at all. I always thought he was an explosion waiting to happen. Jo, I wasn’t going to tell you this, but I caught him holding your hand in the hospital when you were unconscious.”
“Bill, don’t be jealous. We were partners.”
“No that’s not it. When I confronted him, he basically said that he could take better care of you than I could and threatened to take you away from me. He is obsessed with you. I think you are the girlfriend that he is looking for.”
“Oh shit, I think you are right. That last day he flipped out when I told him that I was going to report him if he didn’t stop flirting with me. He probably went off the deep end. Bill, he might try to kill you!”
“I’ll kill him first.”
Jo looked at Bill and said, “I believe you would.”
Jo saw Izzy and took Helen over to meet him.
“Helen this is Izzy, he is a dear friend and a great person. Izzy this is Helen. She was lost, and we brought her here to live with us. Izzy, Bob wants you to show Helen and her daughter Gabby around the Horseshoe.”
Izzy and Helen left and caught each other up on the past two weeks while Maddie and Jo finished their last cup of coffee. They chatted just like old friends as he led her around the Horseshoe.
“Well mom, that takes care of Helen. We will probably have to throw a little gas on their romance fire, but the twinkle in his eyes told me he will fall for her.”
“I feel the same about her liking him. Mission accomplished.”
***
Ben wouldn’t accept Maddie or Jane to be on the hit squad, and it royally pissed Maddie off.
“Momma-Jane, I know that I don’t have a lot of experience, but I can learn quickly and want to rid this country of these assholes.”
“Darling you can call me Jane now if you want to. Darling, the killing is easy. It’s trying to forget killing that eats away at you the rest of your life. Don’t start unless you are strong enough to block the shit from your mind afterward. You love Will and want to marry him. What will the poor boy do if you get killed in a raid?”
“Mom, I don’t want to kill people. I hope no one wants to kill people, but Will and I want to have three kids and raise them in a safe, loving environment. We can’t do that if these thugs rule the world. Can you train me Miss Wraith?”
“How long have you known?”
“Since I saw you come back in late that morning. How do you slip away from Bob without him missing you?”
She laughed and replied, “I take him to bed and let’s just say that when I’m done with him, he sleeps like a baby too worn out to get up in the night.”
Maddie blushed and said, “So there are other perks to getting rid of assholes.”
“We’ll begin your training this evening after work is done. Let’s train Will and Missy at the same time, so Will won’t wonder why we keep slipping off to the shooting range and training area.”
Will and Maddie were assigned to guard duty now that the wall and fence had been constructed. Will was on horseback patrolling the east river bank while Maddie manned the east side guard tower. They waved at each other when Will rode near the top of the Horseshoe by the wall. Will always blew her a kiss, which she faithfully returned.
Will saw Hoss and Jim on their side of the river throwing three large bundles in the river and then they waved and drove off in Jim’s old truck. Will knew they had taken out some trash and threw the weighted bodies in the river. He thought for a minute and made a note to never drink from the river without using a LifeStraw.
Will’s replacement showed up at 4:00, and it was time to pick Maddie up at the tower. He galloped north to the tower when he heard a shot from up ahead and urged his horse to run faster to where Maddie was located.
He arrived just as another shot rang out from the tower. He looked and couldn’t see what Maddie was shooting at. A minute later, she climbed down from the tower with her .338 Lapua chambered rifle on her shoulder.
He kissed her and said, “Babe, what were you shooting at?”
There were some biker scumbags trying to rob a couple across the river. I nailed two, and the rest took off like the scared scumbags they are.”
“Damn, how far away were they?”
“I don’t know for sure; they were past the range finder’s capacity. I guessed it was 850-900 yards and aimed a bit high. I got the first one in the ass, adjusted, and got the next one in the chest. The farmer finished off the first one and waved back at me.”
“Darn, you’re getting good with that rifle.”
“Papaw Bob has really helped me with my accuracy. Now the training with Momma Jane will help make me a real expert sniper.”
Will took her in his arms, kissed her, and said, “My baby the avenging angel.”
“What does that mean?”
“Baby, Papaw, and I also know that Grandma is the Wraith. We guessed Grandma would intensify your training. Papaw will be speaking to her tonight on how we can help y’all get rid of the scum without getting your cute little asses shot to pieces.”
“Jane thinks Bob doesn’t have a clue.”
“Baby, Papaw Bob was just happy as hell with her method of making him sleep all night.”
“So you know what I was going to do to wear you out?”
“Papaw is a gentleman and kept the details to himself; however my imagination has been running wild.”
“Why you little shit. Just for that, I’ll just slip you a sleeping pill.”
“Unh-unh, I want to full treatment,” he said as he pulled her close and kissed her.
Missy was pleased that their Grandma was going to give them the much-needed training and joined in enthusiastically. Jane gave all of them gun safety, proper shooting techniques, and plenty of range time the first day. It was fun shooting the Stoeger high-powered pellet guns but not as fulfilling as shooting the real weapons but saved ammunition.
The training went on for several days as Jane went on to cover knife fighting, camouflage, infiltration/exfiltration, and a hundred ways to kill with your bare hands. Missy and Will had taken Jujitsu classes, and both were ahead of Maddie on hand to hand fighting.
They were riding in an ATV back home when there was a loud bang from a bullet ricocheting off the ATV’s frame. The bullet disintegrated, and several pieces hit Will and Maddie on their backs. The bullet strike was closely followed by the sound of a gunshot from across the river.
Jane gunned the motor and drove behind a small rise to block the sniper’s view.
Jane said, “Is everyone okay?”
“Maddie and I were hit by fragments. I’m okay, let me check Maddie’s back.”
Maddie pulled her shirt over her head exposed her back, and Will saw two wounds with the fragments still on top of the flesh. Will picked them out using his knife while Jane handed him two bandages from the first aid kit.
“Her wounds aren’t serious and have already stopped bleeding, I’m going to kill the bastards that hurt my girl,” Will exclaimed.
There was a steady drone of gunfire from across the river from close and far away.
“I think they are trying to soften us up before they try to invade again. Maddie, get your .338 and follow me to the far end of the rise,” said Jane.
As they crawled to the end of the rise to get a good position to return fire, they heard return fire from the guards and people inside the Horseshoe. They crawled to the end, and Jane used her binoculars to spot the snipers on the far side of the river.
“Maddie, see the tall oak tree about a hundred yards left of the barn. There is a man about half way up the tree and two more on top of the barn. The range is about 750 yards. Adjust your rifle and try to hit all three. Will, your .223 probably won’t be accurate enough, but I want you to shoot the man on the left side of the roof on the barn. Get ready.”
Will’s AR had a 3x9 power scope and he quickly figured out which cross bar on the reticle to place on the target, Maddie’s rifle was sighted in for 900 yards, so she just had to check for windage to be ready.
Jane said, “The wind is very mild but is blowing right to left. Aim slightly left of dead center and pray. Ready, shoot.”
They took a deep breath, kept the reticle on target, and squeezed the triggers with the ball of their fingers. Both guns fired simultaneously, and Maddie’s man fell out of the tree. Will’s bullet hit the roof to the left of the man, so he adjusted and fired again. The man rolled from the roof followed by the man next to him after Maddie’s .338 tore his heart to pieces.
Jane scanned the far side of the river and found two more snipers hiding on top of an old oil tank about 500 yards away and pointed them out to Will and Maddie.
“I’ll get the one on the left. You nail the other one,” Will said.
“Bet you a big kiss I get mine with one shot, “Maddie replied.
Will took aim and fired when Jane gave the signal. Maddie fired at the same time, and both men fell from the tank.
Jane scanned the other side for a few minutes and said, “I can’t find anymore. Let’s head on down to the house and check to see if everyone’s okay and make sure there are no snipers shooting at our family.”
“Grandma, we have to get more radios. I’ll bet the news of the attack didn’t spread quickly enough to avoid casualties.”
“Son, you hit the nail on the head. We have to be able to react and send our people to the hot spots much quicker.”
They drove on to Bob’s house, and during the short drive, they were shot at several times from long range across the river. Jane didn’t stop because she was worried about her family. They pulled into the driveway under heavy fire and dove for cover. The sons of a bitches were targeting Bob’s house in hopes of killing the leader of the Horseshoe.
They crawled to the side of the house and found that the house blocked the bullets. Jane, Will, and Maddie climbed up an old TV antenna tower beside the house and joined Bob and Jo on top of the roof.
Bob yelled, “The bastards are across the river lobbing bullets at us. Most of the rounds are puny assed .22 Long Rife or several of us would be dead. He pointed to a wound on his back. Poor little Jake got hit on the foot. He’ll be okay the bullets were spent by the time they hit us. Be careful because they do have at least a couple of deer rifles.”
Jane replied, “I only see three roof tops and the bridge where the shots could be originating from. The .22 shots are poke and hope.”
A bullet hit between Will and Maddie, and then they heard the rifle report from behind them. Will and Maddie both spun around aimed and shot the two men on top of Bob’s barn.
“Pop, they had a fucking forward observer. Pardon my French,” Maddie yelled as the men tumbled from the roof.
Jane laughed and said, “Bob and I speak fluent French. Good shots.”
“Will added, “I’ll bet we just got a new radio tuned to their frequency. I’m going to redirect their fire.”
Will scrambled down from the house, ran over to the dead men, and found the radio. He scanned the area around him, placed his handkerchief over the mic, and said. Aim a little to the left you’re drifting away from the house.”
“Will do. Have they spotted you yet?”
“Hell no. I shot one of the women and almost hit Karr. He’s been wounded, and they drug his sorry ass into the house.”
The bullet strikes drifted slowly to their left as Will had directed. This gave Jane and Maddie the ability to focus on the houses across the river, and they found the bastards and began to eliminate them one by one, as Bob kept firing on the ones to the south. The targets were from 950 to 1,150 yards away, and only Maddie had the longer range .338 to get first shot kills. Bob and Jane’s 30-06 had the stopping power at that range, their scopes were low quality, and they hit their target about every third shot.
Even with those issues, all of the long-range shooters were eliminated in about 15 minutes, and then they started looking for the assholes lobbing the .22s at them.
Jo yelled, “Hey, look to the left of the bridge across the creek by the old welding shop. There is a small crowd with rifles pointing up to the sky.”
Bob aimed his more powerful binoculars in that direction. He saw the people shooting and said, “The bastards have to aim for the sky
to lob those puny bullets at us. Everyone set up for about 1,100 yards, and we’ll bombard their asses. Maddie, you can aim directly at them the rest of us will aim high and let the bullets fly. Will and Jo, shoot a whole magazine at them without stopping. We will scare the hell out of them if nothing else. I’ll spot and direct your fire. Maddie, you are own your own.”
They all made their best guess on elevation and began to fire on their unsuspecting target. Maddie’s first .338 took out the window of a car behind them killing two people in the car. She saw the window shatter and adjust elevation and began picking off the bastards before they realized they were dropping like flies. Jo and Will fired their 30 rounds, shoved another 30 round magazine in, and kept firing randomly at the area. Jane fired the 30-06 with some accuracy and hit a few of her targets.
The gunfire from the other side stopped, and all hell broke loose on the sorry assed people shooting at their neighbors. Twenty of the large group lay dying as their friends lost their courage and ran like the rats they were. The odd thing was that most of these folks were from the area and had been mostly law-abiding people until the food ran out.
Mother’s saw their twelve-year-old son’s dying in the parking lot beside their Marlin and Ruger.22 LR Rifles. Husbands died beside their son’s trying to kill their neighbors to take their food. The worst part was that Bob and his family would row across the river in an hour, see the carnage, and cry for the men, women, and children who died trying to kill them.
Maddie finally understood what Jane had meant about being able to live with the killing.
Bob radioed Jack and found out that Jack and Ben took a raiding party over to the other side and were engaged in a running gun battle with the attacking force.
