Forgotten Forbidden America | Book 7 | Highway To Hell, page 22
part #7 of Forgotten Forbidden America Series
He had done what he was told. He had fought like he was supposed to. His little girl was dead, his wife locked up, his son taken from him, and he had done what his government told him to do. Taking his M16 off his shoulder as he stood in front of his captain’s tent, the dad put the barrel in his mouth and pulled the trigger. Another sin had been consumed and word spread why the young specialist had taken his own life in front of the captain’s tent.
Chapter Fifteen
First Family is fun times!
It was December thirteenth and riding in the back of her SUV, Brandy looked out the window at the snow-covered Texas countryside. Dallas only got three inches from the front, but Missouri and Arkansas, all the way to the coast, got six and another front moved in right behind it. Projected to run right through the middle of the country dumping another four inches, Brandy couldn’t help but think it was ironic.
It seemed even God was against the feds because the storms had centered on the projected battlefield. Latest intelligence said the feds were still planning to attack on or near Christmas Eve after the last front moved through. The skies would be clear but forecasts still said a warm front would roll in after Christmas and much of the snow would melt, turning the projected battlefield into a mud quagmire.
These weren’t plains the battlefield was going to be waged on, but huge swaths of farmland that had been farmed for generations. Brandy had learned in Missouri when land that had been plowed repeatedly for years got wet, the mud got deep. With her own eyes, she had seen tanks rolling over a field and nearly sink from sight. Some had to be left in place because nothing could get close enough to pull them out until the ground dried out some.
Hell, she had watched tanks in defensive positions sink a foot into the ground, just sitting in place when the ground soaked up water. She couldn’t help but hope the feds did this because it would make their stuck tanks easy targets for air and small mobile teams with anti-tank rockets.
Reynolds had already advised that they not advance even after they’d stopped the first wave so their armor didn’t get stuck and Brandy wholeheartedly agreed. But near the New Year, a cold front was projected to come in and freeze the ground and that would let tanks move, but troops would be exposed to biting cold. Brandy was expecting the attack to come then.
Across from her, Reynolds and Wagner couldn’t help but grin at the excitement Brandy was showing as they rode with her. They’d been in their nine o’clock briefing and her military staff had just informed her that Indonesia was attempting to invade Australia, when word had come in that Fern had woken up. Jumping up, Brandy told them she was heading to the hospital and offered them a ride. “Madam President, even though he’s awake, the doctors said it would be a month at the soonest before Fern could retake the office,” Reynolds reminded her.
“I know, but this means I don’t have to stay,” Brandy responded with a grin. “I’m sick of talking to other leaders and heads of this collection or that. Just do your damn job for the citizens you work for.”
Even though he loved Fern, Reynolds really wanted Brandy to stay on a bit longer. Unlike Fern, Brandy made the tough decisions and felt no remorse in them. The only thing that made Brandy feel bad was losing troops but she knew this was war and just made sure the other side lost more.
When they reached the hospital, Brandy barely waited for the SUV to come to a stop before she jumped out and headed for the doors. “Mom… Madam President!” Isaac shouted, jumping out of his LAV and running after Brandy. Brandy wasn’t running, but she damn sure was walking fast.
Catching up to Brandy, Isaac fell into step with her and glanced around the entrance at the Texas Rangers and troops already at the hospital guarding Fern. “Let your detail get set up before you just jump out,” Isaac whispered harshly at her.
“You see how many are already here?” Brandy snapped, waving her hand out as she headed for the elevators. Rangers were waiting, holding the doors open as Reynolds and Wagner jogged to catch up.
“Mom!” Isaac grunted in a low voice. “You’re the acting president. Let your detail get set up and stop this ‘I have a fucking gun’ routine. If you have to shoot, it means we’ve failed.”
Falling in behind the two, Reynolds fought the desire to grab Isaac and kiss him. Brandy outranked him in every way possible, but Isaac was going to tell his mom, or president, what he thought because she was his mother.
Stepping in the elevator, Brandy turned to Isaac with a scowl as the others filed in. “You’re treading on dangerous ground, young man,” Brandy warned. “We still haven’t talked about ‘YOU’,” she stressed hard, “Pulling six LAVs off the line to use guarding me! Not to mention six helicopters!”
As the doors closed, Isaac put his hands on his hips and stared right back at Brandy. “The Governor of Missouri sent my old unit ten Abrams tanks, fifteen Bradleys, and seven helicopters! General Walls has called me twice asking if he could send another company to assist if he was going to get exchanges like that!” Isaac popped back.
Brandy knew the front had equipment but like all commanders, the more you had the better, so everyone wanted more but there had to be a limit. Michelle had just pulled from Missouri’s stores to send to the Marines. It wasn’t like Brandy could tell her ‘no’ because as president, the Republic was still in debt to Missouri.
Staring at her son with narrowed eyes, Brandy shifted her gaze to Reynolds and Wagner. “We signed orders last week. Major Yassa is outside of our chain of commands and reports directly to you,” Wagner informed her, and Reynolds nodded in agreement.
“Andrea!” Brandy barked.
“Yes, ma’am,” Andrea yelped from the corner of the elevator.
“Remind me I don’t like my military staff or protection detail for the rest of the day,” Brandy ordered.
Shaking his head, “You sound just like your daughter when she was ten and if I remember correctly, you spanked her butt when she said that,” Isaac stated.
Holding her chin high, “I have standing,” Brandy informed him as the doors opened and she walked out.
Watching his mom walk out, Isaac wore a huge grin. “Man, Dad would be so proud of her,” he declared and followed.
Grabbing Reynolds’ arm, “I’ll have the order typed up and we’ll sign it when we get back,” Wagner whispered and Reynolds again nodded while Andrea stifled a snicker but would never say anything about it unless forced to.
The staff parted as Brandy led the group into the intensive care unit and found a group of doctors waiting. “Andrea,” Brandy called over her shoulder and Andrea ran up beside her. “Get Michelle on the phone so they can tell her and she can explain to me,” Brandy ordered.
“Sorry, Bureno’s wife worked last night and I knew you wouldn’t want to have her get up, find a babysitter, and run down here,” Andrea said, pushing past the doctors and grabbing a phone.
“Isaac, take lessons from Andrea,” Brandy said.
Scoffing, “Yeah, right,” Isaac responded. “You told me the same thing about Kandice but every time I took my baby sister’s lead, I got in trouble and she didn’t.”
Not even replying, Brandy walked in the room and saw Fern sitting up in the bed. He was smiling but looked slap worn down. The left side of his face had a slight droop, giving him a lopsided grin. “Sorry, I can’t take over yet,” he said as Brandy moved to his bedside.
“Oh, hush,” she said, reaching out and patting his right cheek. “You get better. I have this until you get better. With you up, I know if something happens to me Michelle won’t be pushed into this spot.”
Fern’s smile wavered a bit because he clearly heard the emphasis on ‘pushed’. He would try to bring that back up later. “They are preparing a room so I can receive briefings to keep updated,” Fern told her, then his smile fell all the way off. “You know, all I wanted to do was end this war and just fish. I’ve only been fishing three times in my life, but I loved it and never got back around to it.”
Reaching down and resting her hand on Fern’s, “You need rest, but let me tell you something,” Brandy said. “On my land in Mountain View, I have a fifteen-acre lake stocked with bass and crappie. I have a two-acre pond stocked with catfish and two large streams running through my property that’re loaded with trout. Why don’t you go there to rehab and recover?”
Hearing the dream, Fern was speechless for a bit. “Are you serious?” Fern managed to get out. “I mean, on the fishing first and rehabbing second?”
“Isaac!” Brandy snapped, startling Fern. He turned to the door to see a marine in full combat gear stop just inside the door. Then his eyes dropped to the name tag and saw Yassa.
“Yes, ma’am,” Isaac reported.
“How’s the fishing at the land?” Brandy asked out but kept her eyes on Fern.
“On the land it’s called catching, Mom, not fishing,” Isaac informed her. “Because of that lake, I can’t take my kids fishing anywhere else because they expect to always catch like that.”
With wide eyes locked on Brandy, “You have a lot of family there already, I can’t burden them,” Fern panted out.
“Isaac, tell Andrea to relay to Michelle to have a team build a guesthouse between the house and barn so Fern can rehab there. I’ll leave it to Michelle how big it needs to be,” Brandy ordered. Isaac gave a nod and stepped out.
As Isaac left, Reynolds and Wagner stepped to the other side of the bed. “You look better, sir,” Wagner grinned.
“Liar,” Fern chuckled, then turned his attention back to Brandy to protest but really wanted to head to Mountain View right now.
Knowing what was coming, Brandy held up her hands. “Fern, another house was going to get built, you’re just giving me the excuse. I hate to say it, but some of my daughters-in-law and I butt heads,” Brandy stated and was glad Isaac wasn’t in the room because his wife was the main one. Brandy denied it, but everyone else said they acted just alike.
“I swear, I’ll try to recover fast,” Fern told her, still feeling guilty.
Shaking her head Brandy could see it, Fern was going to die when he returned to the office. The job and war had aged him decades, and Fern knew it was going to kill him but was willing to do what he had to do. In his mid-forties Fern was a bachelor of politics and his career, but looked near sixty. “I’ll tell you what, Fern, you get better and when you feel you can return in good health, I’ll head back home. I’ll stay here for you and the Republic as long as I’m needed but I want your word, if something happens to me, you will come back and not force Michelle to take the office. If it’s until the election or end of the war, I’ll stay here if I’m needed,” Brandy told him, then dropped the smile. “I won’t like it, but I’ll do it. This war has already claimed too much and it doesn’t need to claim you as well.”
Not believing what he’d just heard, Fern nodded. “I’ll take it,” he mumbled as Wagner and Reynolds cheered on the inside. They could take the tongue lashings because Brandy never hesitated on the hard decisions, then moved on.
“You aren’t to go fishing until you’re cleared to,” Brandy smirked and Fern laughed. “My daughter can teach you and trust me, she’s good. You can receive briefings there to stay up-to-date, in case you have to return sooner.”
Reaching out and taking Brandy’s hand, “I really am sorry, Brandy. I tried putting it off until this was over,” Fern admitted.
“I should kick your ass for waiting as long as you did,” Brandy replied.
Leaning to Wagner, “What do we do if they fight? Technically, we can’t break them up,” Reynolds whispered loudly.
“I have ten on Brandy,” Wagner responded, and everyone busted out laughing.
“Put ten on Brandy for me,” Fern laughed out, making the group laugh harder.
When they were done, Brandy patted Fern’s cheek. “You get rest, call if you need anything,” Brandy told him and stepped out of the room. She found Andrea on the phone. “They talk to her?” Brandy asked nodding to the doctors and Andrea nodded, holding the phone out.
“I was just relaying what Major Yassa told me,” Andrea replied.
Taking the receiver, “Andrea, you’re allowed to call him Isaac and if he pisses off his momma, you’re allowed to call him Asshole,” Brandy declared as Isaac gasped behind her. Michelle relayed in layman’s terms what the doctors said only confirming what Brandy knew, it would be six months at the earliest before Fern could return to his duties but even then, the doctors said the stress would kill him before the next election. His cognitive functions were recovering, but Fern was having trouble with short-term memory that the doctors were certain would pass in time.
“How many bedrooms you want this house to have?” Michelle asked.
“Three or four,” Brandy answered.
“Okay. I’ll have Dallas get his group together and start when they can but Brandy, I’m also building a barracks for the marine detachment there,” Michelle told her. “They’re sleeping in tents. I’m tired of having some campers hauled up there, but I so forgot what it’s like dealing with hard-headed marines.”
Brandy nearly responded, ‘Try having to deal with one that’s your son’ but held her tongue, not sure how Michelle would handle that. “You do what you want and if they give you shit, call me. I have two goddamned helicopters that’re so big, I could use one as a house,” Brandy said. “I’ll fly up there and set them straight.”
Scoffing, “Brandy,” Michelle chuckled, and Brandy could tell it was a real chuckle and not forced. “I was an MP. Trust me, I can deal with marines.”
“Call if you need anything,” Brandy said.
“You do the same,” Michelle replied as they hung up.
When Brandy turned around, she saw Isaac moving forward and knew he was going to defend his troops’ actions. Holding up her hand, “Isaac, I’m not in the mood,” Brandy warned. “I’m dealing with enough stubbornness as it is. I told you the day you got married, I will still spank your butt, and I meant it.”
Puffing his chest out, “You can use my belt,” he stated proudly.
Shaking her head as she walked past, “That’s why I always got your dad to spank you. It’s real hard not to get mad when your son yells out- ‘Was that a fly?’ when you spank him,” Brandy grumbled. “I should’ve grabbed a bat. Thank God you were mostly a good kid and the only spankings you got were for backtalk.”
Following his mom to the elevators, “Dad told you to get a bat,” Isaac reminded her, then gave a long sigh as they reached the elevator. “Mom, I’ve told you I was sorry like a hundred times for that,” he mumbled.
Shaking her head as the others joined them, “I hate to admit it, but I did the same for my momma,” Brandy admitted. “I just shouted out, ‘That didn’t hurt’.”
Chuckling, “I know, Granny told me. Where do you think I got the idea from?” Isaac told her.
“Oh, I’m so glad your kids are at the house,” Brandy smirked and Isaac gasped.
“You wouldn’t dare!”
Only when the elevator dinged and came to a stop did Brandy glance over at Isaac. “Never know,” she said, then walked out.
Glancing over at Wagner, “Talk about a First Family that’s fun to be around,” Reynolds chuckled.
Nodding, “To be honest, I think it’s just what the country needs,” Wagner said. “To show the Republic, nobody’s trying to be perfect. We’re all human and the same, just doing our best.”
***
It was after midnight when Reaper walked out of Tartarus carrying a laptop under his arm. The netting overhead was covered in snow and it wouldn’t be long before some would have to be knocked off again. Anywhere outside of Hades where Sin Eaters moved was covered by nets and even among the trees, but those were taken down during the summer because there were leaves. Now they were back up and Oracle checked the view from above quite often, but had never been able to spot signs the Sin Eaters were there.
UAVs were constant with the feds, but mainly stayed near major bases or cities. Not that the feds had an abundance of them now, but they did have a few. Bases that housed long-ranged UAVs were hit by the Republic and those bases the Republic wouldn’t hit, the Sin Eaters did. One thing the feds did have were satellites, but they were predictable and could be avoided. It still amazed Reaper just how detailed an image from space was in taking a picture on the ground. Oracle had proven it. On a satellite pass overhead when they were in Ohio, Reaper had stood out in a field when a Republic satellite passed overhead. He’d held out a quarter, heads side up. Ten minutes later, Oracle had informed him the year on the quarter was 1994 and she’d been right.
After that, Reaper started taking satellites into account whenever he moved and attacked. Sometimes he wanted to be seen, but mostly he didn’t. Oracle was a big reason in that, but he still took the precautions.
Glancing at his watch, Reaper felt the stress leaving the closer the time got and was thankful. This attack was a lot of effort and would be a huge sin consumed. It was the fact it had been worked on for so long and could’ve been easily discovered was what got him stressed. The reason he didn’t like stress was Nelson came out more, and now was definitely not the time for Nelson to ease up on Reaper.
True, some of the stress Reaper had brought on himself in this game he’d set up with Marshall, but that game was also a sin. That was something he couldn’t get Havoc to understand. Marshall had Gifford’s and many other high-ranking officials’ ears in the feds hierarchy. Rattling Marshall rattled those he reported to and undermined Marshall for not closing the deal. Nobody Marshall had ever gone after had taunted him. Few even knew they had been targeted when Marshall hunted them. Now, here was someone Marshall was hunting, but they were communicating to Marshall and didn’t seem worried.
Using Marshall, Reaper felt would end this conflict much sooner than doing it on his original plan. Now he had an inside man to harass among the top crew.
