Hatred in the Ashes, page 20
"I have plenty, but forget it. The wrong clerk would put it together, and you'd be caught. Then I'd have to come in and try to get you, and I'd be caught. Then we'd both get seriously dead. Got any more suggestions?"
"You have such a way with words, Pops. No, I guess I don't have any more suggestions."
?Thank you. Now would you please shut up and try to get some sleep?"
"One more thing."
"What is it?"
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"Thank you for coming to get me, and I love you."
That caught Ben off guard. After a moment, he cleared his throat a couple of times and said, "Well ... think nothing of it. And I love you, too."
"Now go to sleep."
"Yeah, right. Sleep. "What a good idea."
They had found what was left of another old barn and had settled in for the night. It was summer, but the nights were still surprisingly cool.
In the timber, something popped, followed by the faint murmur of voices.
Ben and Anna were instantly alert, weapons in hand. Behind them, more voices could be faintly heard, but the distance was still too great for the words to be clear. The darting beams of flashlights flashed in the early evening.
"I think we have company, Baby."
"No kidding?"
"Smartass," Ben muttered.
"If we play this right," Anna said. "We'll both have new boots in a few minutes."
Ben cut his eyes to her. "You're really a delightful kid, you know that, Anna?"
"You're all right yourself, except when you get all crotchety."
Before Ben could whisper a response a voice called, "Here's two sets of footprints."
Behind them, more voices could be heard. They were trapped ... at least momentarily.
Ben pulled a rucksack to him and spilled out some grenades, giving half of them to Anna.
"You stay here," Ben said. "I'll take the rear."
"I'll wait for your signal. Good luck, Pops." She kissed him on the cheek and slithered off into a better position.
Ben got into place.
They waited.
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Chapter Twenty-two
The command was given, clearly heard by Ben and Anna. "Easy now, they might be in that old piece of a barn. Lewis, put your light over there."
Ben and Anna waited, weapons at the ready. The beams from several flashlights flashed over the barn, front and back.
"Can't see anything, Captain." The voice came from Ben's side of the barn. "No tracks, nothing."
"Same here in the front," Lewis called. "I can't see nothing."
Another voice was added. "They're in there. The tracks lead straight up to the barn and stop. I been trackin' for years, boys. We got 'em."
Ben and Anna slipped their fingers from the trigger guards to the triggers.
"Does that million dollar reward apply to us?" The question was tossed out.
"No. Just the satisfaction of killing that traitorous bastard Raines."
"That's good enough for me." Another voice.
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"Let's do it, people," the commanding voice called. "Barnwell, toss a grenade into that barn."
Barnwell never got the chance. In the shadowy dimness Anna watched him jerk the pin and draw back his arm. She shot him. A few seconds later the grenade exploded, flashing in the early evening.
The night blew apart with gunfire, and the old barn vibrated from the impact of slugs.
Ben and Anna were behind good cover inside the barn. They kept their heads down and waited out the first barrage.
"Cease fire!" the order was shouted. When the firing stopped, the captain shouted, "How's Barnwell?"
"Dead, Captain. The grenade blew him apart. He's all over the damn place."
"Barny was my buddy!" someone shouted. "Goddamn those people. I'll get them!" The man stood up to charge the barn, a shadowy figure in the night, and Ben shot him.
"Green troops," Ben muttered. "Or just awfully stupid. Probably a combination of both."
"Don't anybody else do anything that stupid!" the captain yelled.
"Somebody get on the radio and call for support. Tell them we've got Raines and the bitch trapped. Give them our position."
"No can do, Captain Jennings," a voice called. "Ted was standing next to Barnwell. He's dead, and the radio's blown all to hell and gone."
"Goddamnit!" Jennings cussed.
"We can take them." Ben recognized the tracker's voice. "Hell, there's only two of them. We've got them outnumbered."
Ben crawled over to Anna. "We've got to get out of here before it dawns on those idiots they've got bloop tubes and start dropping grenades in here. The fire so far has come from front and back. Both sides are clear, I think."
"There's a ditch on the west side," Anna said. " 'Bout twenty feet from the barn. But there isn't much cover from here to there."
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"We've got to risk it. Stay on your belly and go as soon as the firing starts. I'm going to give them a long burst from the other side of the building. I probably won't hit anything, but that should get it going."
"I'll wait for you in the ditch."
"You keep going, Baby. One of us has to make it. You hear me?"
"I said I'll wait for you. And that's what I'll do. You hear me?"
"You're a hardheaded brat."
"I'll never deny it."
"All right. Get ready to go when I fire."
Ben crawled back to the rear of the barn and cut loose, first with a grenade, then with a full magazine of 5.56 rounds in short spurts, to make the fire last longer.
Changing mags, he cut his eyes over to where Anna had been. She was gone. She had made it. Ben crawled to the front of the barn and heaved another grenade and burned another full mag. Then he was gone, quickly crawling out the busted side of the barn and sliding into the ditch.
"Thank you so very much for green troops," Ben muttered. Then he turned and bumped into Anna, waiting for him.
"Leads straight into the woods," she whispered, pressing her mouth against his ear, her voice just audible above the panicked shouting and the roar and rattle of gunfire from the green Federal troops.
"Lead the way."
In a couple of minutes they were deep in the timber and heading south.
The Federals were still firing without letup into the old barn.
"Is that you, Dick?" The voice had suddenly sprung out of the darkness just a few feet off to Ben's right. "Jesus, what's happening back there?
Sounds like a real firefight going on."
"Yeah," Ben said, and he stepped close enough to pop the lone sentry on the side of the jaw with the butt of his
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CAR. Ben had left his smaller and less accurate machine pistol with the abandoned car.
The sentry went down without making a sound.
Ben quickly took the unconscious man's weapon and ammo, then his walkie-talkie, web belt with canteen and pistol attached, and field pack and heavy rucksack. He did not bother to check the contents of the rucksack. He checked the man's boots: too small for him, and too large for Anna.
"Can't have everything," Ben said. "Let's go."
Another mile of walking and they came to a highway that ran north and south.
"This is the old scenic route highway," Ben said. "I remember now. This will lead us into what used to be a national forest... still is, I suppose. I can't remember the name of it. If we can make it to the south edge of the forest, I can call in and we can be evacked out."
"Good," Anna said. "This damn rucksack you handed me is heavy. What the hell is in this bag?"
"I don't know. Open it and see."
She reached inside and smiled. "It's full of grenades, Pops. A dozen or so of them."
"Good. I imagine we'll be needing them before we're out of this mess. I got half a dozen full mags from that stupid sentry. We'll be needing them too, I imagine."
"How far to the edge of this forest?"
"Thirty miles, at least. With what's left of these low quarters, we'll both be practically barefoot when the choppers come."
"I can sure believe that."
"Well, let's go. We'll stay on the shoulder of the road for easier walking. Keep your ears open for traffic."
Ben looked far down the old highway, faintly shining in the night. For the very first time, he felt confident they would make it back to the SUSA.
And then ...
Civil war.
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Chapter Twenty-three
Ben and Anna walked the lonely highway until just after midnight before calling a halt to the night's march. They saw only a few vehicles, and had plenty of time to get off the road and into the timber before they passed. Only one of the vehicles was military, and it sped by without slowing.
Ben and Anna slept for a few hours and resumed their walking south about a hour before dawn. They were footsore, weary, and in need of a bath.
But they were a few miles closer to home territory.
They came to what was left of a tiny village in the middle of the old National Park and rested.
?About halfway there, Kid," Ben said after taking a drink of water.
"How're the feet?"
"Sore. My shoes are about shot."
"So are mine. But they'll make it a few more miles. You want something to eat?"
"Yes. I sure do. A sixteen ounce T-bone steak, rare, with baked potato, salad, and a big glass of cold milk. Think you can arrange that?"
"Maybe in a day or two. Right now, would you settle for some field rations?"
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Before she could reply they heard the faint sounds of an approaching vehicle. Ben and Anna quickly headed for the timber and brush. Over the years since the collapse and the Great War it had grown right up to the rear of one of the three remaining buildings in the village.
They bellied down in a shallow, brush-covered ditch, weapons at the ready, and waited.
The expensive-looking SUV slowed, then pulled over in front of the building where Ben and Anna had been resting in the shade. Three men and one woman unassed the vehicle. They were all wearing black jumpsuits.
"FPPS dickheads," Anna whispered. "Let's whack them and take their ...
whatever that thing is."
Ben returned the whisper. "Only if they start it, Kid. From now on until this war really gets going, the Federals are going to have to start every skirmish. I don't want history to state that we started it."
"You didn't hesitate to shoot when you came after me," she reminded him.
"That was different. The Federals had kidnapped you. They had invaded our territory and committed an illegal act. Now be quiet."
"Yessir, Boss," Anna said with a grin.
"Mack," one of the FPPS men said, "as you can clearly see, Raines and his bitch kid are not hiding here."
"I know that, Darin."
?Then why did you insist on stopping in this godforsaken place?"
"Because I have to take a piss, that's why."
"Well, go over there behind that building before you haul it out," the woman said.
"Yes, Alice," Mack said. "Whatever you say, ma'am."
"Hey!" the fourth agent said. "Listen. Another vehicle coming our way."
"Brilliant of you, Beck," Darin said. "The damn road runs right by here, so anyone driving the road would have to be coming our way."
"Fuck you, Darin," Beck said.
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"You'd never go back to girls, Sweetie," Darin minced about, one hand on a hip.
"Knock it off!" Alice said.
"It's George and his team," Mack said, as the SUV came into view "I wonder what's up."
"Nothing," Alice said. "We'd have heard it on the radio. They're probably just goofing off."
"Yeah," Beck said. "Like us, they lost the trail and don't know what to do next."
The big SUV pulled in and parked next to the first team's vehicle.
"You want to try to make a run for it?" Anna asked in a whisper.
"No. The brush is too dry. We'd make too much noise. But we may have to shoot our way out of here. Jesus, how many people are in that big SUV?"
"Six, it looks like."
"Ten to two. Great odds."
"Well, maybe Mack will pee and they'll leave."
"They're getting a big ice chest out of the SUV. I think they're going to have lunch."
"I'd kill for a ham sandwich," Anna said wistfully.
"I hate to say it, but so would I. If Mack turns the wrong way while he's back here taking a whiz you're not only going to get a cheap thrill, but we're going to have a fight on our hands."
Anna made a gagging sound at that and stuck out her tongue at Ben. "If he waves his pecker in my direction, I'll shoot the damn thing off."
"Be quiet. Here he comes."
Mack kept his back to Ben and Anna as he relieved himself. He started to zip up and got the zipper stuck. He cussed and hopped around and jerked at the zipper. Nothing worked. The zipper remained jammed.
"Shit!" Anna whispered in disgust.
"What the hell are you doing back there, Mack?" Darin yelled. "Come on, we're gonna have lunch."
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"My damn zipper's stuck!" Mack yelled. "I mean, it's jammed up tight."
As the others laughed at him, Mack turned and looked straight at where Ben and Anna were hiding in the ditch. He stopped working at the zipper and stared for a moment. Something didn't look right to him.
"What the hell ..." he muttered. "What is that?" He shrugged and half turned, then stopped and looked back.
After thinking it over for a few seconds, he took a couple of steps closer to the shallow, brush-covered ditch, his hand moving to rest on the butt of his pistol. He cocked his head to one side, a very puzzled look on his face. He took a couple more steps, then stopped as what he was really seeing finally dawned on him.
Then he looked right into the eyes of Ben. His mouth dropped open in surprise.
"Jesus H. Christ! Goddamn, it's Raines!" the FPPS agent shouted, and jerked out his pistol.
Ben had no choice. He shot the man.
Anna had shifted positions the instant Ben fired, and was able to cover one side of the building where the other agents were, facing the road.
One FPPS agent came boiling around the side of the building, a submachine gun at the ready, and Anna shot him, knocking the legs from under him and sending him yelling in pain and sprawling to the hard ground.
"Get on the damn radio!" Alice yelled. "Advise the CP we have Raines and the girl pinned down, and get some help out here right now."
"I don't think so," Anna muttered. From her position, she was able to cover both Federal vehicles. She waited for an agent to make a move.
One did. The FPPS agent called George tried a fast run for his SUV, and Anna brought him down, the impacting 5.56 rounds knocking him face first onto the cracked concrete of the old parking lot. George rolled over a couple of times, and came up on one knee, leveling his CAR.
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Anna gave him another burst and turned out George's lights forever.
Ben lobbed a grenade into the rear of the old building, and when it blew the concussion just about finished what was left of the frame structure.
The front half of the building gave it up and collapsed outward, the debris burying two of the FPPS agents.
"Get this shit off me!" Nickie hollered. "I can't get out from under it."
"Help!" Pat yelled. "I'm pinned in here. I can't move."
Ben tossed another grenade and the rest of the termite-infested old building fell apart, settling to the ground in a cloud of dust.
Both Ben and Anna moved during that shattered minute of dusty confusion-Ben a half dozen yards to his left, Anna a half dozen yards to her right.
They could now cover the road and the vehicles.
Anna held up a grenade and Ben nodded, pulling the pin on a grenade.
Father and daughter hurled the lethal mini-bombs, which landed just behind the front of the debris and blew, sending shards of wood and chunks of concrete block flying in all directions.
One small chunk of concrete hit Alice smack in the center of her forehead and knocked her as goofy as a road lizard. She lost her weapon amid the dust and falling debris. She crawled around on Ithe ground, dazed and confused and bleeding from a cut on her forehead until she finally collapsed, out of it for a few moments.
Agent Beck emerged from the jumble of fallen crap and got off half a magazine before Ben and Anna riddled him with bullets.
Darin tried a run for his vehicle and Anna put him down, stitching him across the waist. Darin tried to crawl, but his legs would not function.
He died face down in the dust.
"Shit on this!" Pat yelled as he finally managed to work his way clear of the rubble that had buried him and Nickie. He burned a few rounds in Ben's direction. Bad move on his part. He forgot to take Ben's shift in position into
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account, and his shots hit air. Ben didn't miss. Ben shot him in the chest, and Pat went down on his back. His legs trembled once, then he was still.
"Hey, folks!" Hal yelled. "Listen to me for a minute. Stop shooting. How about a truce? Huh? I'm not all that keen on dying."
"Sounds good to me," Ben said. "All of you toss out your guns and stand up, and you'll live. But it had better be unanimous, and no tricks."
"I'm out of it," Roy said. "I need a doctor. I'm hit in both legs."
"Sounds OK to me," Agent Paul called. "Here's my guns, coming out." A pistol and M-16 came clattering out onto the concrete.
"Get the rest of this crap off me, and I'll be more than happy to give it up," Nickie yelled. "But I can't move. My legs are pinned."
"Alice is unconscious," Hal called. "So I'll vote for her. We're done, General Raines. Like through, man."
"Toss all the guns out and stand up. Behave, and I promise you that none of you will be hurt. One of you go help the woman get clear of that debris that fell on her. And a couple of you help your wounded partner."
Anna gathered up all the weapons and looked at Ben. "The big SUV," he told her. "Let's ride in style."
She grinned and winked at him. Anna's spirit was indefatigable.
After putting the weapons in the back of the big wagon, Anna stood guard over the agents while Ben checked the wounded man. His wounds were certainly painful, but not at all life-threatening. He put a field dressing on the wounds, gave the man some antibiotics in tablet form, and then gave him a pain pill.
