Nuclear War Club: Seven high school students are in detention when Nuclear War explodes.Game on, they are on their own. (21 page)

“I just study, read, and think,” Doron answered. It seemed to David that Doron really enjoyed Ashley’s deference.

“If we make it to the Rockies before finding a government, we should be able to get great radio reception from the mountaintops,” Jorge said.

“Yes, we need to find a shortwave Yacht boy portable radio,” David said.

“So does the team agree we head east?” David asked.

“Well, we sure can’t go
west
, the Pacific is pretty deep,” said Zeke, as they laughed.

“David, tell them about what we talked about the different focus areas,” Jorge said.

“Well it’s just a suggestion for the Team,” David said. David was very aware that Doron and Ashley resented his leadership, and they needed to build a consensus.

“We need a specialist in military defense and ambush, medical care, food, water, sanitation and electrical and machine adaptation. We need to train as a group in ambush defense and attack, and practice medical care,” David said.

“Why would we need ambush practice?” asked Ashley. David remembered she was still, despite everything, repulsed by guns. Anti-gun propaganda indoctrination is hard to overcome, David thought.

“If we are chased by an attacker, we may be able to form what is called a hasty ambush and destroy them. But we have to practice as a group. Also, it has a double benefit, training for an ambush will help us recognize where we may be ambushed,” David explained.

“This makes good sense,” Doron conceded. “Let’s practice ambushes and shooting tomorrow morning. Then we head east looking for a library to split up the specialty areas, and find a Yacht boy radio,” Doron said.

“We need to find railroad switching yards and storage
areas for the semi-trailers hauled by railroad cars. They should be the mother lode of supplies,” Doron said.

David was very pleased with the tribal council. Doron had some great ideas, especially traveling on the power line right of way.

And most importantly, no one even considered breaking up the team and separating.

They had all reenlisted in the Nuclear War Club.

47.

Doron stopped the truck when he saw the ridge, and pointed his hand down repeatedly. Karen, David, Zeke, Jorge, and Liu immediately fanned out and stopped their motorcycles. Karen reached Doron first, “Ashley saw fresh bodies ahead,” Doron said.

Ashley scanned the power line path with the binoculars while Doron drove. One male adult, one female adult, and two boys about ten, all shot. It looked like the adult male had run to the battle scene late, and had been able to kill three of the attackers before he died.

Ashley handed her binoculars to David, who jumped into the truck bed to get a better look over the cab.

“This recently happened, the blood is still seeping,” David said. “Lock and load.”

“Karen, you get the M16 with the scope. You set up a sniper nest here on the ridge. Doron, you stay and spot for Karen with the binoculars. Ashley, you guard their back with a shotgun, and watch the truck. Blow the whistle or fire a shot if you see a threat, especially if you see an ambush.”

“Karen, you are our reserve. If we get into a firefight, and it’s prudent, drive the truck down the hill,” David said.

“Got it,” Karen nodded.

“But we need you to stay here as a sniper and lookout unless we get trapped,” David emphasized.

“Zeke, Liu, and Jorge come with me,” David said. “We will track down on the left.”

“Hold it!” said Doron, louder than he wanted to sound.

“Let’s take a break and use our brain
before
we get into another firefight. Why not just drive away?” Doron asked. Ashley nodded.

“Yes, let’s get out of here!” Ashley urged.

“These killers are very close. They are like rattlesnakes
in your house. You either find and kill them, or they will kill you,” David hurriedly explained.

“They will track us down, like the greens did, and attack us at night,” David replied. “They don’t know we are here yet, we have the element of surprise—so we attack NOW.”

Zeke and Karen nodded. Liu was scanning the house.

“Okay,” conceded Doron.

“Doron-excellent question,” David said as they moved forward. Despite himself, Doron basked in David’s public praise.

“Shoot to kill,” David said. “They were just murdered. Heads up for ambushes.”

“Three yards apart,” David said, holding up three fingers.

Zeke sped off, looking over the ridge for a few seconds before he climbed down the rocks on the left of the power lines.

Liu saw the tracks first, and pointed them out to David. The tracks led to the bodies, then back through the fallout ash to the brick house on the right. It seemed the male adult had run up to help the kids when he was shot. The back of the house was surrounded by a horse corral, and he saw two sets of footprints leading back to the brick house.

David motioned for Jorge and Liu to circle to the left of the house. Zeke had already started, David hurried to catch up and circle to the right. David looked back up the ridge to Karen, and saw Doron tap her shoulder as she looked through the scope. Doron raised his left thumb up. All clear.

David tried to remember what the Ranger book said about clearing a house. He would pry open the back sliding glass door. Liu and Jorge would cover the front, and Zeke would follow him in. Karen could cover anyone coming out the back sliding glass door which faced her.

Zeke understood David’s plan, although Zeke rushed to go first.

David pried the sliding glass door open with his knife, and then slid the screen open. He immediately jumped to the right, and pointed his M-16 towards the hallway.

David turned to Zeke and motioned to his left. When Zeke entered, David stared down the hallway.

He could see two men in their twenties relaxing in recliners, smoking marijuana. Several Ziploc bags of pot were scattered on a table, next to their guns, some meth, and three cans of energy drinks. Heavy curtains blocked the sunlight, the room was dimly lit and hazy with smoke. The video screen was hooked up to a 12 volt car battery inverter, and the soundtrack of a porn movie blared down the hallway.

David stopped as he heard a sound from near the video screen. A gurgling, struggling sound that he could not identify. It was live, though, not part of the porn soundtrack. David couldn’t see the source of the sound, the wall blocked his view from the right.

Zeke moved forward from the left, then raised his 9 and immediately shot each man in the forehead two or three times.

David lost count, and was stunned that Zeke had shot without any hesitation, no warning, and no surrender demand. A memory flashed through his mind of Zeke telling Jorge about killing the greens, “It’s just gun and done. You do it, then think. “The gunshots at close range assaulted David’s nervous system, ratcheting up the adrenaline.

David burst around the corner, and saw blood and tissue splattered all over the recliner, the floor, and the wall. Next to the video screen, David saw now what Zeke had seen. A woman tied up to a chair, with their brains splattered all over her chest. Her hands and feet were bound with an electrical extension cord. She was gagged and bleeding slowly from a chest wound. White, frothy pink bubbles oozed from wounds in her chest.

David left the woman, and jumped in the first bedroom, as Zeke opened the closets. Then Zeke went into the second bedroom, and the bathroom. David checked the closets.

All clear.

David and Zeke then returned to the woman, with the porn movie still playing. David pulled out his knife to cut her loose. He angrily kicked the television monitor over to silence the porn movie. She suddenly tried to throw herself at him, a final attack.

“I am just going to cut you loose,” David said, calmly. “We are here to help.”

David cut off her cloth mouth gag, ripped off the duct tape, then cut the electrical extension cord binding her arms and legs. She had struggled for a long time. The electrical cord had sliced her deeply. Blood seeped in some areas, gushed in others.

Zeke handed her the heavy pink housecoat on the floor. She quickly covered up.

“Are there any others here?” David asked.

She seemed to have trouble talking. Her throat was bleeding and she made a gurgling sound.

Zeke handed her his canteen. Her hands shook as she frantically gulped the water.

“My son is in the attic,” she gasped, spewing blood and water out of her mouth.

“They are the only two,” she said, pointing to the two dead men. “My husband was able to kill the other three before he died.”

“Where is your son?” asked David.

She pointed to the garage. David saw a pull down door in the ceiling. He inserted his knife and a cord fell down. He pulled the cord, and a step ladder came down, folded over taunt against a heavy duty spring.

“Samuel, come on down!” she said from the living room.

A young boy, about three years old, peered down the trap door, saw David, and darted back into the attic.

“Samuel, come here,” the woman said with less force. She was fading, David thought.

Suddenly they heard a loud crash, a whistle blow, as David turned his barrel to the front door.

“Coming in, Karen and Doron!” Karen screamed.

David lowered his gun. Karen rechecked every room. David had noticed Karen always personally double checked to make sure guns were really unloaded, and that every green was actually, and totally, dead. “Dad always said a dying man can pull a trigger, and drop you dead with his last breath,” she had told him.

“This is Doron, he is our Medic,” Karen said to the woman.

David and Zeke had turned their back, away from the trap door. The little boy climbed down the trap door, and ran to his mother.

“Samuel, go with this woman……” she paused, looking at Karen.

“Karen,” Karen said

“Go with Ms . Karen
outside
,” she gasped, looking knowingly at Karen.

“
God sent these young people. Now go!
” Samuel’s Mom ordered.

David never forgot the look of desperation in her eyes.
She didn’t want her son to see her die
.

Karen hesitated, but Zeke grabbed Samuel’s hand and started down the hall. Samuel grabbed Karen with his other hand, like his Mom had told him to do, dragging her along.

Samuel turned to his Mom as he was leaving. Her hands trembled as she clutched her pink housecoat to cover up. David saw her try to hide the bloody portion of the housecoat from Samuel. David moved to let her lay on the floor, but she struggled desperately to keep standing until he disappeared out the door. The minutes Samuel left, she completely collapsed.

Doron frantically checked, but there was no pulse.

“No breathing. She’s gone,” Doron said, with his ear to her mouth and nose.

David realized she had simply refused to die until they
found her only surviving son.

48.

“Take the sheets off the beds, we will use them to bury Samuel’s family,” Karen said. “Be sure Samuel does not see blood.”

Since Samuel’s Mom had bled all over, and her blood was still oozing through the pink housecoat, they cut out a section of floor carpet and wrapped her up. It took them about half an hour to dig a grave. They decided to bury them all in one deep grave, as they needed to leave with enough time to find a campsite before dark. The criminals were left to rot.

Karen watched the young men lower the Mother first, then the Father, then the Aunt, and finally the two boys. David then went over to the truck to bring Samuel, Karen, Liu, and Ashley to the graveside.

Everyone gathered around the grave. David quietly stood with his back to the grave near the pickup, keeping watch during the funeral.

No one said anything.

Karen knelt down next to Samuel, looking him in the eye, with her arm around him. Samuel looked scared.

“Remember your Mom said we would take care of you?” Karen asked.

Samuel nodded his head. He was crying, rubbing his eyes, then held his trembling hand near his mouth.

“Well, that’s just what we will do,” Karen said.

Karen paused. Do three year olds even understand death? Maybe he had a grandparent die, or a pet, she thought.

“Samuel, did you go to Church?” Karen asked.

“Yes,” said Samuel, “and Vacation Bible School.”

“Did they ever sing any songs,” Karen asked.

“Yes,” said Samuel.

“
Jesus Loves Me
,” Samuel remembered.

Zeke knew the song and started singing, and Jorge, Karen, Ashley and Liu picked it up:

Jesus Loves me this I know

for the Bible tells me so

little ones to Him belong

they are weak but He is strong

Yes Jesus loves me

Yes Jesus loves me

Yes Jesus loves me

The Bible tells me so

Samuel clapped and sang the chorus and the verse three times. Then they all sputtered out. That was all the words they could remember. Karen knew there were other verses, but she couldn’t remember them either.

There was an awkward silence. No one knew what to do.

David walked over and said “Amen,” and that was the end of the funeral.

Karen took Samuel back into the house so Zeke, Doron, and David could top off the grave with dirt.

“Did you have a bedroom?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said pointing.

Karen grabbed his school backpack, and emptied several pillowcases, filling them with clothes from his drawers. She specifically searched for shoes and socks.

“Where is your brother’s room?” Karen asked. Samuels showed her, and she added a couple of pairs of their larger shoes to her bag.

She saw a small red hardback book,
My First Bible in Pictures
, by Kenneth N. Taylor, with illustrations by Richard and Frances Hook.

“Is this yours?” Karen asked.

“Yes, Mom and Dad read it to me every night,” Samuel said.

Karen put the red kid’s Bible in his backpack.

Karen saw a DVD player in the corner. A DVD was sticking out. Someone had written in black marker on the DVD, “Home movies, Samuel’s Bible Stories”.

“What was this?” asked Karen.