War Dogs Trilogy: Wounded Warriors of the Apocalypse

by AJ Newman

  I listened patiently as Mom covered the status of our crops and then said, “Mom, even after the harvest, we won’t have large trucks to haul enough of the crops to survive the winter in another place. If the General wanted me dead, I’d be dead by now. He apparently knows where we are, but is more interested in growing and feeding his new empire. Let’s make ourselves indispensable to him by tripling our crops. It’s only early June, and we can plant much more corn, beans, lettuce, and carrots. Those are what the General needs to feed his army.”

  Kat said, “If we can’t beat them, we’ll join them and slowly take over their army.”

  Maria said, “I was thinking the same.”

  I said, “I chuckled to myself when Kat first brought that up, but the more I think about it, the more I like it. The problem is, the more people who know the plan, the larger the chance of leaks.”

  Mom cleared her throat, and everyone stopped shelling peas. “Jason, Kat’s right, and if the General wanted you dead, he would have placed a sniper at that meeting or on a hillside near the farm.”

  “Mom, I agree, but why hasn’t he killed me?”

  “The General may hate you, but he needs you to lead the other groups into the fold. You need to get close to him while the rest of us infiltrate his group. Oh, don’t kiss his ass but rather challenge his ideas with better ones. Show him we can produce more crops than all the others can. As Kat said, become indispensable. Deliver the other groups along with ours.”

  Kat said, “Y’all do know he probably has a spy in our group and perhaps in the others. I say we lay some groundwork with our team and then convince the other groups to join the General as fast as possible. Jason, blame your mom and me for the change of heart. “

  Our group became the underground resistance that day. Now, the most significant task was to convince our people that joining the General’s force was a good thing, after doing such a great job of painting him as a villain. Then we had to work on the other groups.

  Mom called everyone, including Syd, to the meeting. Mom covered the results of our secret meeting with the other groups, and as expected, there were mixed feelings. Mom said, “Everyone, calm down. We haven’t made a decision yet.”

  Karen asked, “Where would we go that’s better than this place. Won’t there be bad guys there too?”

  I answered. “That’s the nut we have to crack before we make a decision. You all know I was against staying and joining the General’s group. Mom and Kat have done a great job of painting a picture of the two other scenarios. The first – we fight. We can’t beat a vastly superior force. The ones left alive are forced to join the General. The second – we flee to the south or woods a few hundred miles west of here. We won’t have enough food to survive the winter and will probably run into other groups like us, or worse, bad people who won’t share their food. So, in either case, we end up fighting to survive.”

  A hush fell over the forty-plus people seated around me. Rick said, “Jason if we stay, we live even if we don’t like the terms. At least we’d be alive to make decisions about how we live the next few years.”

  I said, “I guess that’s what I’m trying to get across to you. We’ll live to survive another day. We fight now, and we’ll all die. Perhaps the General will surprise me and need us so much for our farming skills that he’ll treat us with respect and won’t rule with an iron hand.”

  Karen said, “Jason if you can go along with joining the General, I guess the rest of us can join you.”

  ***

  Mom conducted the meeting with the rest of our neighbors who hadn’t joined the General’s team at our home. She did a masterful job of convincing them there were worse things out there to be scared of than the General. Mom ended the meeting by demanding a decision from each group.

  Three of the four groups decided to go with us and join the General. Norene’s leader said, “Hell, no, we won’t join them. We’ll fight if they attack before we can get ready to leave the area.”

  I said, “You were told about the gangs raiding north and east of you. I respect your decision, but be careful.”

  Mom said, “I’ll schedule a meeting with the General or one of his people to discuss terms.”

  I called everyone together, and Mom covered the meeting results with the rest of our small group. The tone was somber but with a bit of relief, since no one had to pull up roots and leave. Life wasn’t great, but we were doing more than just surviving these days.

  ☆

  Chapter 9

  Walter Hill – near the Walker farm

  Sergeant Wilcox waited in the shadows above the Walker farm about halfway to the Posey place on up the hillside. She was much later than usual, and he was about to leave when she appeared out of the darkness. Wilcox hoped to move into the mansion when the dust had settled down a bit, and the apocalypse was a bit more bearable. The villa hadn’t been wrecked by the looters passing through because it was so isolated from the rest of the area’s homes and businesses. He liked the woman, and she was good in bed, so why not stay with her until someone better comes along?

  “You’re late.”

  She walked up to Wilcox, kissed him, and said, “But I’m worth the wait, or do you have someone else now?”

  Wilcox unbuttoned her pants and pulled them down as she pulled her t-shirt over her head. She lost her balance, causing both of them to fall to the pine needles below them. A short time later, they caught their breath, and he asked, “Well, what have you learned about their plans? Is Walker planning on fighting or fleeing?”

  She hit him on the chest. “So, you got what you wanted and now just want information? I guess that’s all I am to you, just another woman to lay with.”

  Wilcox lied. “No, darling, I love you and only you. It’s my boss. He’s been hot after information on the Walker clan. I just don’t want him after my ass. But I do care for you.”

  She said, “At least you lust for me. Did you bring me a care package?”

  “Of course. Now the info?”

  She opened the bag and found cans of meat, chocolate bars, and two bottles of wine. “Okay, things have changed. Jason married that skinny runt called Kat. Kat and his mom have totally declawed Jason. They’ve convinced him that fighting or fleeing would end the same in their fight for survival, and they should give the General a chance.”

  Wilcox had a puzzled look. “He still hates the General and the General hates him. What gives?”

  “We had a long discussion about that. The thinking is the General knows where Jason is and could have killed him any time he wanted to, so perhaps the General has a use for Jason.”

  Wilcox said, “Sounds fishy to me.”

  Smyrna Golf Course Club House - Smyrna, Tennessee.

  Sergeant Mitch Wilcox relayed the info to his captain, who passed it up the chain of command. Colonel Griggs listened and then slapped his knee. “That damned soldier is smarter than I thought. He knows he can deliver the rest of the groups in the area, and perhaps the General will be grateful to him. Get your guy to get a message to Walker. The message should say that if Walker gets his friends and his group to join us, the General will give him better terms than the others and place him on his counsel.”

  “Sir, that would make him privy to our long term plans.”

  “The General will never know about my deal. We’ll pit the Walker clan against the General once they begin to feel safe. Now, tell your sergeant to have the raiders begin small attacks on the group up in Norene until they decide to go along with the Walkers and join us. Steal food, cows, or whatever’s important to these people. Don’t destroy crops or kill anyone. A beating or two should work.”

  ☆

  Chapter 10

  The Walker farm - Walter Hill, Tennessee

  I woke up with Kat snuggled up against me, with my arm around her and her head on my arm. I know that sounds romantic, but my arm and bladder were crying mercy right when the rest of my body was ready for romance. I didn’t want to wake Kat up, nor did
I want to cut my arm off. Instead, I slowly withdrew my arm and headed for the bathroom.

  Kat said, “That was pretty good, but I was awake the whole time. Hey, close the door if you’re going to do that.”

  I said, “The honeymoon’s over.”

  “Open the window when you’re done.”

  I finished my morning rituals and walked back into the bedroom to see Kat curled up around MMax. “Kat, I’ve been thinking about the Norene group. I want them to stay with us and join the General. They’ll probably die if they flee to the woods. Would you like to go up there this morning? It’s only about eight miles. We can take the horses.”

  Kat rolled over and kissed my chest. “Girl, you do that, and we’ll be late going up to Norene.”

  “I’ll go with you, but we’re going to be late.”

  We left an hour later than I’d planned. My life wasn’t all killing, building hydroelectric projects, and survival. You know, sometimes life gets in the way of your plans and just happens. Kat was my life, and she didn’t plan much and always knew what to do to distract me from my worries. She also knew when to stop me from doing something I’d regret.

  I didn’t get a chance to tell her that Jay was going with us, but she was in an excellent mood that morning and seemed to enjoy Jay’s company. I think even as rough as Kat appeared at times, she had a motherly instinct.

  Now, back to our visit with the people of Norene, this was the first time anyone from our community had visited Norene since the SHTF. We were shocked by what we saw. Norene had become a thriving town starting in 2025 when the vast Amazon distribution center was built two miles northwest in the city on the highway. The area around Norene had a housing boom with many lovely homes and several trailer courts popping up. The city went from a few hundred people to over five thousand people over the next six years.

  We saw a devastated town. A cargo jet had crashed and wiped out the center of town. The one large shopping center had burned to the ground, along with most of the homes nearby. Rats were everywhere. I hate rats. No one challenged us when we rode down the middle of town with rifles ready.

  I said, “I’m sorry I brought Jay and you along. This is a disaster.”

  I placed MMax across my lap so he wouldn’t have to walk on top of all the broken glass. We rode through town and finally saw a couple of people on their front porch a half-mile northwest of the city. I recognized the man as one of the men their leader had brought to our meetings. I greeted him. “Fred, where are all of your people?”

  “Hi, Jason. I’m afraid Carl might have misled you a bit. There were only twenty of us on a good day. We had a vote, and the folks voted to join you and the General. Carl stole two of our only working trucks and left with his family. He lied about our entire situation. We’re barely getting by, and now we need your help.”

  I lowered MMax to the ground, and we climbed down from the horses. We shook hands, and I asked, “What do you need?”

  Fred said, “We have plenty of crops in the field, cows, pigs, and chickens, but we need vegetables and greens for the kids.”

  Fred went on to say there were only fifteen people who belonged to the four families left in town. They were unorganized, and morale was non-existent. I had a brainstorm. “What about bringing your livestock and moving in with us? We don’t have any fancy homes, but we do have mobile homes and campers in a nice community. We have running water, toilets that flush, and the food you need.”

  Fred said, “Are you sure? If I mention this, my folks will be loading up two seconds later. We can come up and tend the fields and bring in the crops in the fall.”

  Fred introduced us to his wife, two grown sons, and their oldest son’s wife first, and then we met the others. I know I went out on a limb by not checking with Mom, but they needed us, and we needed them. There were four men, seven women, and four children ranging from twelve to sixteen. This pleased me because they could all do a day’s work and fight if needed. Usually, I would be happy to see so many beautiful women, but a few more men would be nice to help with the heavy lifting.

  Jay surprised Kat and me when he said, “Will there be enough food for them and us? I’ve been hungry for most of the time since the lights went out. We had run out of food when that soldier guy found us. Mom was nice to him and made me be nice to him so he would feed us. I don’t want to be hungry again.”

  Kat asked, “Why did your mom leave the guy?”

  “Two more soldier men showed up one morning and talked with Mitch, and he kissed my mom and just left us,” Jay said.

  I asked Jay to tell me about any conversations his mom and the soldier had. Jay said, “I remember Mitch gave Mom directions to your home and then said goodbye.”

  ***

  Fred was wrong. It took four hours for them to load up the truck, car, and two wagons. The wagons were mule powered and slowed down the trip to Mom’s farm. Also, we had to drive the cattle and pigs to their new home. The chickens were placed in cages and piled on the wagons and the truck. I guess we looked like a band of gypsies moving through the countryside.

  We only had to cover about eight miles, so it wasn’t far, just a boringly slow pace. Two of the men and three of the women rode horses and knew how to herd the cattle. The sows pretty much followed us since Fred had placed most of their piglets in the wagons, and the boars followed the sows because… Oh, hell, you know why the boars followed the sows.

  Our five cowboys or maybe cow people knew what they were doing and kept everything moving along at a slow pace. Now, I knew why it had taken six months to get to Oregon from St Louis. Kat and I helped a bit but mostly kept an eye out for any dangers.

  Our little caravan was less than a mile from the farm when our world took a turn for the worse. We were attacked by two cougars. I saw a blur, and one of the men fell from his horse. A cougar jumped from an overhanging limb and bit the man’s neck from behind. The big cat pulled the man to the ground, breaking his neck on the way down. MMax threw himself at the big cat and clamped down on its neck. Blood flew when the big cat shook its head to throw MMax off him.

  Another cougar ran out of the brush, grabbed a large piglet, and dragged it down the road. I raised my rifle and drew a bead on the cougar. I missed, but the round was low enough that it ricocheted off the pavement into the cat, causing it to drop the pig. I turned back to the others just in time to hear a shot.

  Kat waited until she had a clear shot and killed the cougar attacking the man. She shot it with her 9 mm pistol. She had to shoot three times before it gave up, trying to escape with MMax clinging to its neck. Kat jumped to the ground and checked the man’s pulse, but by the way his head hung down, I knew he was dead. Kat stood up, and Jay, who had begun crying, ran into her arms blubbering. He was scared the cats would eat him.

  ***

  MMax didn’t smell the big cats but reacted lightning fast when he saw the blur hit the man on the horse. As he’d learned, slicing the throat was the best way to kill the big cats. He hit the lion hard and snapped his teeth into the lion’s meaty throat. MMax was in his element and actually relished the fight with the lion. While he was wary of the felines, he felt it was his duty to attack them and keep them from harming his human.

  This lion was powerful and tried to rip MMax’s stomach open with his rear claws, but MMax kept him off balance, which forced the lion to keep all four paws on the ground. The beast gave a mighty shake and flipped the fifty-pound Malinois over its back. That’s when MMax heard the explosions, and the lion fall to the ground.

  MMax rolled to his feet and saw a smaller cat about to pounce on his human’s mate. MMax jumped with all his force and hit the lion in the side, knocking him down. MMax squared off against the cat and tried to bite its neck only to receive a painful swipe of the monster’s sharp claws.

  MMax saw the smaller lion run away and calmly walked over to his human and wagged his tail, waiting on the much-deserved praise.

  ***

  Before we could regroup, a smaller lion r
an toward Kat and Jay. Jay was in Kat’s way, and she couldn’t draw her pistol. Just when the cat leaped to pounce on them, MMax flew through the air and hit the cat on the side, knocking him down. MMax and the lion circled each other with MMax growling and nipping at the small lion. MMax charged and bit the beast on the neck only to receive a glancing blow to the side from the cat’s sharp claws. MMax yelped, and the lion ran away before I could get a steady bead on it.

  I patted MMax on the head and said, “Good boy,” then I inspected MMax’s wounds and asked Kat to tend to him while I checked on the others.

  Kat tended to MMax while Jay clung to her. MMax had only received a few deep scratches. While Kat tended to MMax, I dragged the lion and pig back to the wagon and said, “We can still eat the pig, and our dogs will eat the lion meat. The furs will come in handy this winter.”

  We stopped long enough to bury the man and load the cats onto the back of one of the wagons. The dead man’s wife bawled her eyes out but climbed into the truck before we pulled out. She had a son who needed her, and she knew it. Life was hard back then.

  Jay wouldn’t leave Kat, so I let her get on her horse and then held him up so he could join her. She wrapped an arm around him and rode the rest of the way back to the farm with him in front of her. I liked seeing Kat with my son. I heard her say, “Jason Michael Posey.”

  I about fell off my horse with MMax in my lap, when I heard Jay say, “My name’s not Jason Michael.”

  My mind raced through several thoughts, and then I heard him say, “My name is Michael Jason Posey.”

  Kat looked shocked and turned toward me. I placed my finger over my lips and rode on to the farm watching for those damned cats and dogs.