The Shelter: The Aftermath Page 5

  The sheriff is led away with his wrists zip-tied behind his back under the watchful eye of four army military police soldiers who have orders to shoot to kill if he tries to escape. Captain Black looks at his Sergeant, “Now we have to locate the true owners of the property. The Russians thought they were chasing them, the Sheriff thinks they are still here which means they must have built a shelter. We need to locate this shelter. I want to meet this Jay Tolson. However, I don’t want to risk any of our people in a night search, we have no idea what type of booby traps they left behind. Quarter our people in the castle and the back yard, we’ll begin the search in the morning.

  “Captain, we’ve found the remains of what must have been a hell of a battle. Remains of trucks, two burnt school buses, we’ve discovered a small factory that was used to build mines and traps and piles of empty 50 caliber ammo cans. Sir, there must have been tens of thousands of rounds in those cans.”

  “Did you find anything else of interest?”

  “Sir, we’ve found over fifty empty cases of AR magazines and the damnest fighting trench you’ve ever seen. It’s an updated World War One trench, if our troops had the same in France, they would have killed a lot more Germans with fewer causalities.”

  “That’s something I’d like to see. Do we have enough lights for me to check out the trench?”

  “Yes, sir. If you’ll follow me, I’ll show it to you, I suggest you follow my footsteps and stay within the marked lanes. We’re finding mines and traps buried everywhere.”

  “I assume, the owner didn’t like uninvited guests.”

  “Sir, you’ve got that right. We’ve dug some up, I’ll show them to you.”

  “What else have you found?”

  “Sir, the castle was being built to provide defense for the entire area. There are firing ports and places where large crew mounted weapons could be installed. The walls are bullet proof.”

  “Sarge, what can you find out about the owner? Any military background, anything unusual in his background? Why did he build this monstrosity, is there something about this area we should know about? Sarge, something doesn’t fit. We have Russians, a Sheriff and the remains of a large-scale battle that was fought here. What aren’t I seeing?”

  “Sir, I’ll get right into it. I honestly don’t know anything about the owner. I’ll get online and see what I can find out.”

  “Let’s see this fighting trench, my curiosity is peaked. I’m ready when you are.”

  “Sir, follow me, you are not going to believe this. The fighting trench goes all the way around the group of homes, there were mines planted in the bottom, we found the holes they left when they were command fired. Whoever they were fighting must have overrun the defenders, we found blood and odd body parts in the trench. We also found spare magazines and brass up to our ankles.”

  “I’m coming, lead on.”

  The two men exit the castle, the sergeant leads Captain Black to a trench, “Sir, it starts here, the defenders could have exited their home right into their fighting trench, it leads to a close in defense line and the main trench.” Captain Black’s boots crunch on empty brass that covers the bottom of the trench, he steps over blast holes. He says, “They paved the bottom of the trench and installed drain holes to keep the water out of the trench, very smart. They learned a valuable lesson from the first World War.”

  The sergeant nods his head, “Sir, look at the cutouts, every few feet there are nooks for magazines, food and water. They planned to be in here for a while. Notice there are the remains of folding chairs in here too.”

  Captain Black bends over looking at the cut outs for supplies, he looks through the firing ports and plays with the wire hanging down, “Sarge, is this to hold rifle barrels?”

  “Sure is, they are at every firing port, they could attach their rifles so the barrels didn’t rise to the right. I assume this meant they had full auto assault rifles.”

  “Sarge, I see a lot of shotgun and 9mm brass too.”

  “Yes, sir. We assume they used shotguns for close in defense, the 9mm were a surprise until one of the PFCs found Uzi mags. Sir, that’s not the most unusual, when was the last time you saw a Thompson drum mag?”

  “No shit? A real Chicago piano? I haven’t seen one for many years.”

  “We’ve found two empties and one full. It was loaded with alternating rounds, FMJ, and JHP.”

  “That must have hurt.” Shining his flashlight in front of the trench he asked, “What’s with all of the holes?”

  “Mines, punji pits and buried hunting traps.”

  “Punji Pits? Hunting traps? What the hell did we walk into? Is this America?”

  “Sir, looks like a small group of defenders fought off a much larger group. One they knew was coming and had time to build defenses against. It looks like both sides fought hard, maybe even to the death.”

  “Not our Jay Tolson, he’s hiding someplace, maybe even watching us right now.”

  “If he is, I hope he knows we’re friends. Based on the tricks we’ve seen here, I don’t want to run into these guys in the dark.”

  “I think we should start a very detailed search tomorrow at first light.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Map the entire area, I bet you find a pattern to how the mines are laid out.”

  @@@@@

  Jay’s mind is full of fog, he can’t hold on to a thought, he feels like he’s drifting over his own body. He looks down seeing himself lying on the hospital bed with tubes and cables running all over his body. Jay thinks, I look like a damn science experiment, they’re remaking me into an Android. I remember the six-million dollar man, ‘we have the technology to rebuild him.’ I wonder what they’re doing to me. Will I survive? What’s the future going to hold for me? For my family? What will happen to Lacy and the kids if I don’t make it? Stay calm, Dad said it wasn’t my time, I should relax and rest. Surely he would know, he’s been on the other side for fifteen years. I’m sure he’s been watching us. I’m so tired, maybe if I just close my eyes and sleep a little everything will be okay. Just a short nap is all I’ll need. As Jay’s closing his eyes, his mind begins to drift again, he starts slipping away when he hears, “Jay, I told you not to give in, this isn’t your time. You have to be strong, if you give in now, the dark side will win, they will use you to defeat all you’ve prepared for and dreamed of. You have to be strong, you have to fight, fight like you’ve never fought before.”

  “Dad, I need my weapons.”

  “Jay, your heart is the only weapon you’re going to need, just be strong, they will offer you everything to get you to change sides, stay strong. Jay, I have to go, they are coming.”

  I’m left in darkness, floating just above my motionless body, the only sound in the room is the beeping from the medical equipment and the hissing and pumping sounds from the oxygen machine. It’s peaceful looking down at myself, I wonder when I’ll heal enough to be with Lacy again. I sit up in the air, folding my legs under me, this is almost fun, I don’t feel any pain, for the first time in many years, it’s good to be painless. It’s getting cold in here, I don’t remember ever feeling cold like this, I hear something in the air, I feel a vibration, something I haven’t felt before.

  I hear a deep, soft voice, “Hello Jay, we’re glad to meet you, we’re here to help you. If you come with us there won’t be any more pain, all of your worries will fall away. All you have to do is agree. Why suffer, why lay there in pain, why worry about your family, why worry about anything? We can take the load off of your shoulders. We can take the pain your body is feeling away forever. We can give you power you’ve never dreamed of. Maybe you should feel the pain your body will experience without us.”

  In a flash every nerve in my body is on fire, pain sweeps over my entire body, I feel like I’m on fire, I feel like I’m burning from the inside out and from the outside in. I see my organs burning, my skin burning. I can’t breathe, I can’t focus on anything except the pain. Opening my mouth to screa
m, no sounds emerge, only silence, I can’t release a scream of protest to release the stress from the pain.“

  “Help me, I can’t take it.”

  In a flash of light, the pain stops as quickly as it started. I can breathe, “What was that?”

  “That’s what your future holds for you if you don’t come with us. We can’t help you here.”

  “But, I don’t want to leave Lacy and my family, I love them.”

  In a flash, my breath is taken away as the pain returns suffocating me, my mind goes blank, all I can focus on is the pain. Before I can try to say anything, the pain stops.

  “Why? What is love? Pain, pain weakens the body and the mind. We can make you strong and alive again. You’ll be in a position of power. You’ll never feel pain again. You’ll be envied by many.”

  “All I want is Lacy and my family to be okay and healthy.”

  “Even Ricky? Do you realize that while you lay there like a vegetable he’s plotting against you? He’s planning on creating turmoil and friction, he’s going to try to unseat you as the leader of your group. If you come to us, we can promise you he’ll get what he deserves.”

  “I want to be with Lacy, I don’t want to leave her.”

  “What about if you can’t move again? What if you have to spend the rest of your measurable life as a vegetable? Do you want to be a burden to Lacy? Do you want her to have to care for you as a baby? Is it fair to her to have to spend the rest of her life like that? What’s going to happen to you if something were to happen to her? You’ll be left in bed unable to move or speak, you’ll die in your own waste, your body covered in bed sores, it's not a pretty picture is it? Your body will be screaming in pain, yet you won’t be able to call out for help. All you have to do is agree to join us.”

  “Who are you?”

  “We are the power that will control this miserable plane of existence, we can make you a real power broker. You will be one of a select few yielding real power and strength. One who will have a say in the future of this world.”

  “My dad told me it wasn’t my time yet.”

  “He was wrong, remember your childhood, you knew how many times he was wrong, how he yelled at you and didn’t respect you. You spent your childhood trying to get his respect, something he withheld from you until it was too late. Isn’t it time for you to get even and have the last word. Don’t you want to get even for all those years he terrified you?”

  “Who are you? What do you really want of me? I’m a nothing in the world.”

  “You don’t know what the future potentially holds, just leave that to us.”

  Chapter 5

  Ricky sits in the mess hall smiling as he sips a cup of coffee. He sees Tim and his family grab trays and start down the food line. Ricky raises his hand to motion them over to where he’s sitting.

  “Hi guys, how are you doing since we’ve had to come back down here?”

  Sharon, Tim’s wife nods responding, “Hi Ricky, we’re not doing so well, we’re depressed, our house was trashed, we’d just started the repairs when the Russians attacked, driving us underground. We’re not happy, but we understand the need to be back here. It might have been the only way to save the boys and give us another day to retake our home. We don’t like it, but we really don’t have a choice do we? We have no idea what’s going on. No one has told us the plan for us to go home.”

  Tim adds, “We’re trying to use the time to make remodeling plans for our home. There were always things we wanted to change in our house, now we have an excuse to do it. Not that we have a choice. Our house was totally trashed.”

  “Aren’t you scared you’re going to rebuild and get pushed out again? All your work will go down the drain a second or third time. Don’t you think we need a change?”

  Sharon looks at Ricky, “What are you suggesting?”

  “Look, Jay’s my father-in-law, I love him. He saved my family’s lives. He saved all of our lives. I could never repay him for all he’s done for us. The problem I have is who is going to lead us while Jay is in a coma. What happens if Jay doesn’t make it? Are we going to be stuck down here forever or until our supplies run out? Who’s making plans to get us home?”

  Tim jolts upright in his chair, he looks at Ricky, “Whoa, what do mean he’s in a coma? We heard he was wounded, but like Tony and John, we assumed he’d be quickly released and be back to normal.”

  Ricky lowers his voice, “Tim, my father-in-law is in a coma, he was seriously wounded, there’s a chance, slim, yes, but a chance he won’t make it. What will we do then? Who will lead us back to the surface? Who’s going to lead us in battle if another battle comes to us? How many more battles can we survive? Sooner or later our odds are going to run out, a force Jay didn’t prepare for is going to defeat us. When that force attacks us, we’re all going to die. There is another way versus constant fighting. If we continue to fight, our odds will run out. It’s a simple math formula.”

  “Ricky, do you really think our odds will run out?”

  “Tim, every enemy we’ve fought has been stronger and more powerful, our numbers aren’t increasing, in fact, we’re decreasing through death and wounds. We weren’t a large force before the gang and mob, let alone the Russians. What happens next if a really well-armed force attacks us? We could all end up dead, who would protect and raise our children?”

  Tim and Sharon exchange a troubled look between them. Sharon whispers, “Ricky what are you thinking?”

  “Sharon, Tim, I think maybe it’s time to try a different approach, maybe it's time we begin to share what we have and make friends versus making enemies with everyone who comes to the farm. If we didn’t fight everyone, we would be living in peace and not in constant fear. We could be friends with everyone, we’d be building a new foundation for a brave new world.

  Sharon nods at Ricky saying, “You know, you’re making sense. I promise you, we’ll think long and hard about what you’re saying.”

  Ricky smiles thinking, I count them as a yes, they’ll just need a little more time and an extra push to come all the way to my side. I’ll do the same with every family. Soon, I’ll be dictating terms to the crazy old man who thinks he’s the leader. Soon, I’ll be the one calling the shots and he’ll be on the outside looking in. I’ll force him to tell me how to access his safes and I’ll be set for life.

  @@@@@

  Tony walked out of the medical unit with his arm in a cast and a sling. He thought to himself, Damn Russians, I knew I didn’t like them before, now, I hate them. I’ve had to fight the Russian mob who tried moving in on my territory, I showed them. I bet no one ever finds their bodies. I’m a righty, where’d they shoot me? In my right arm. I can’t write, can’t type, hell, I’m not sure I can even wipe my own ass with a cast on. Christ, Nancy’s going to skin me alive when she sees me. Where is she? I thought she’d be waiting for me at the medical unit. Did something else bad happen while I was inside? I’ve got to find her and learn what’s going on. As Tony walks towards his room, he hears Nancy’s voice, he pauses to listen, “I’m sure he’ll be alright, you’ll see. I’ll talk to Tony, I’m sure he can arrange for you to sit with him.”

  Tony thought, Crap, that’s Lacy she’s talking to, something really bad must have happened to Jay. I better get over there to support them and learn what’s going on. Rounding the corner Tony sees Lacy and Nancy together, he takes note that both have tear tracks on their faces. “I’m back, a little worse for wear, but I’ve been discharged. What did I miss? Are the two of you okay?”

  Nancy smiles and jumps into Tony’s good arm, “Hey, I’ve got a busted wing, you’ve got to be careful. You’re going to have to take care of me for a while.”

  Nancy cries, “I thought they were going to hold you until tomorrow.”

  “I’m such a nice guy the doc released me.”

  Lacy smiles, “Translation, you were such a pain in the ass they kicked you out so they could have some peace and quiet.”

  Smiling, “Since
you put it that way, you already know my sparkling personality got them where it hurt.”

  Lacy nods her head, “They couldn’t take you awake any longer so they asked you to leave, I can hear the doc saying, get this asshole out of here so I can get some real work done.”

  Tony smiles, “Know me that well do you?”

  Both Nancy and Lacy hug him, Lacy turns serious, “Tony, did you see Jay? What can you tell me about him?”

  “Do you mind if I sit?”

  “Please do, take a corner of the bed.”

  Tony sits on the bed, he adjusts his right arm, “Lacy, I know Jay’s in the medical unit, I could hear bits and pieces of conversations, the doc won’t tell me anything about his condition which tells me all I need to know. It’s serious, but I don’t know any more than you do.”

  Lacy’s eyes fill with tears again, Nancy whispers, “Tony, he’s in a medically induced coma, he was wounded very badly. The doc told Lacy they’d lost him once or twice on the table, they don’t know if he’ll make it.”