Sanctuary: A Postapocalyptic Novel (The New World Series) (27 page)

“What’s that?” Cruz asked, looking confused.

“The blood, it gets everywhere. Kinda like sand in a way.”

“Ah, yeah,” Cruz answered him. “Mr. Van Zandt, I want to thank you for taking me as far as you did. I know the circumstances weren’t perfect but you did a good job, thank you,” Cruz said, putting out his hand.

Gordon looked at him, then his hand. He then held up his bloodstained hands.

“It’s okay,” Cruz said, his hand still hanging out there.

Gordon took it firmly and shook it. “My pleasure, Mr. Vice President.”

“Secretary Wilbur told me your story, at least a little bit.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing,” Gordon joked.

“For whatever it’s worth, we have a lot more in common than you think.”

Gordon just started at him, not knowing what to say.

“Both of us are doing what we think best to protect our families. I just believe that doing whatever we can to get this country back on its feet is the best way. I wish I could convince you of that,” Cruz said.

Gordon looked at the now thin and weathered vice president. It was odd in so many ways that the Vice President of the United States was standing in front of him and having a conversation. He opened his mouth to speak but knew what he’d say wouldn’t add to the conversation and now was not the time to get into a discussion.

Cruz waited for a response from Gordon but finally figured one wasn’t coming. “Let me know if we can help in any way, okay?” Cruz finished and turned around to go back to stand by the Humvee to await the troops.

“Mr. Vice President,” Gordon called out.

Cruz stopped and turned around.

“There is something you can do for me.”

Cruz stepped back up to Gordon and said, “What is that?”

Gordon hesitated.

“What is it?”

“When you get back to Cheyenne can you make a call back to Coos Bay for me?”

“Sure. That’s an easy request. Who am I calling?”

“Her name is Brittany McCallister. I don’t know where she’s living, but Gunnery Sergeant Smith with STA platoon, Second Battalion, Fourth Marines, will know where to find her if you can’t. Tell her that I made it home.”

“Is that it?”

“Yeah, that’s it. Tell her that.”

“Sure thing,” Cruz said and turned back around.

Gordon watched him get back into the Humvee. He then looked at his bloody hands one more time. Seeing the blood on his hands took him back to that day in Fallujah after he had been pelted with shrapnel. He remembered looking at his bloody hands then and wondering if he’d make it out of there alive.

“Daddy, Daddy!” Haley squealed out from behind him.

The dark memories were washed away with the sweet sounds of Haley’s voice. He turned and saw his precious little daughter.

“Daddy!” she screamed out and ran toward him.

Tears welled up in his eyes when he saw her. He could feel the strength leave his legs as he fell to his knees and opened up his arms. “My baby girl! Come here!”

She ran straight into his arms and hugged him tightly.

Gordon couldn’t control his emotions and he began to cry loudly. “Oh, my baby girl, how I’ve missed you so much,” he whispered as he kissed her face and head.

“Daddy, I’ve missed you so much!”

“I’ve missed you too, honey.”

“Why didn’t you come home sooner? I needed you!” she said, holding his face in her little hands.

“I’m sorry, sweetie, but Daddy had to do something,” he said softly, the tears streaming down his face.

She rubbed the healing wound on his face and said, “What happened, Daddy?”

“Oh, I got cut, that’s all.”

The mention of his face brought back memories of Hunter. He pulled her in close again and continued to cry.

The door opened and Samantha stepped out to the emotional scene. She took a step but stopped herself. She wanted to go to them both, but she knew that Gordon and Haley needed this moment. Tears began to flow from her too as she watched them both hold one another.

“Daddy, how did Hunter die?”

The question shocked him, but it was an honest one and needed to be answered.

Samantha heard the question and now took this uncomfortable moment to step in. “Haley, sweetie, it’s cold and you don’t have a jacket on.”

“No, Sam, let me answer her question.”

“Really?”

“Please, she has a right to know,” Gordon implored.

“I don’t think this is an appropriate topic,” Samantha scolded him.

Ignoring her, he looked at Haley and said, “Haley, sweetheart, your big brother died bravely. He was strong.”

“I miss him every day,” Haley whimpered, tears now coming to her eyes.

“I miss him too,” Gordon said, and pulled her in close again. Just as he hugged her he reached out and grabbed Samantha’s hand.

At first, she flinched from his touch. He reached again; this time she allowed it and knelt down.

He looked at her and said, “I love you, Samantha, so much. I can never say I’m sorry enough for all the pain I’ve caused you.”

She touched his face. His warm tears ran through her fingers. “I love you too, Gordon.”

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Dylan ran into Conner’s office unannounced.

“Mr. President, good news!”

“It better be with that kind of entrance.”

“Vice President Cruz is alive and well. He’s in Boise, Idaho.”

“Boise?”

“I don’t know the specifics, but I just got off the phone with the governor of Idaho and they’ve sent troops to his location.”

Conner interrupted Dylan and said, “I don’t care about the details, send a few helicopters to bring them back here. Go get them!”

“I thought you’d say that, so I gave the order to Baxter. Helicopters are on the way, sir!” Dylan exclaimed, then left the room as fast as he had entered it.

Conner swung around in his chair and stood up. He made a fist and raised it in the air. “Yes!”

The news was very good indeed. Having Cruz back would be a big morale boost. He missed his old friend and was excited for the future. He knew together they could rebuild a future in Cheyenne.

The one major obstacle was the PAE. But with Barone aligned, and additional ground combat elements close by, they could challenge Pablo and his mercenary army. But today wasn’t a time to think about those challenges. Today was a day to celebrate, and that is just what he intended to do. He jumped up, grabbed his coat, and headed out the door.

He saw Dylan, who was dialing a number on the phone. He interrupted him and said, “When you’re finished with the call, meet me downstairs, let’s go celebrate. I hear Pat has a damn good Irish coffee!”

With a smile from ear to ear, Dylan joyfully responded, “I’ll be right down, sir!”

Conner walked into the hallway and again fist-pumped the air with excitement. After weeks and weeks of bad news, this was a bright spot. Cheyenne had so far proven to be a bold and successful move and now he’d have his friend and colleague back. He wasn’t optimistic enough to think that more bad news wasn’t around the corner, but he decided to enjoy the brief respite that came his way today.

Eagle, Idaho

“What the hell happened here?” Sebastian gasped as he pulled up to the gates of Eagle’s Nest.

“I don’t think we should go in,” Annaliese cautioned.

“That last Gordon sign pointed to this place right here. I have to check it out. Slide over and get behind the wheel,” Sebastian said as he stepped out of the truck.

Dead bodies were scattered everywhere.

Sebastian walked by each one to make sure they weren’t Gordon or anyone else he knew.

He moved a few out of the way so Annaliese could pull in without running over the corpses.

Once in the neighborhood Sebastian jumped back in. “Let’s drive around.”

The neighborhood seemed empty until they saw a small group of people huddled around a Humvee.

“Over there, that looks promising,” he said as she pulled up to the house.

Everyone around the Humvee stared at the truck as it pulled in. Gordon didn’t know who it was and was on alert. They didn’t think Truman’s group would be back, but they could never be sure. He kept his hand on his gun, just in case.

Sebastian looked at Annaliese and said, “Stay here and keep the truck running.”

Gordon’s grip on his pistol tightened as he saw the passenger door open. Wilbur too had her gun at the ready.

When the door opened, Gordon couldn’t believe his eyes. There in front of him was his brother, Sebastian.

“Sebastian?!” Gordon asked, elated. His eyes lit up.

Sebastian squinted and noticed his brother. “Gordon!”

“What the hell!” Gordon exclaimed.

Cruz looked astonished at what seemed like an endless parade of reunions.

Sebastian ran up and hugged his brother.

“What are you doing here?” Gordon asked.

“I was heading to McCall when I saw the signs.”

“Same here! I saw the signs with my name on it.”

“What do you mean?” Sebastian asked, confused by Gordon last comment.

“I only arrived here a little before you did.”

“I don’t understand.” Sebastian looked at him oddly.

“It’s a long story; we’ll have plenty of time to share.”

Annaliese opened her door and exited.

“Who’s this?” Gordon asked.

Annaliese walked up to Gordon, and just before she hugged him, Sebastian said, “Gordon, this is Annaliese, my wife. Annaliese, my brother, Gordon.”

“Wife?”

“You’re not the only one with long stories,” Sebastian joked.

“Uncle Sebastian!” Haley squealed when she saw him from the house. She ran from the house and right into his arms.

Sebastian held her tight and squeezed her. He didn’t want to let her go. Holding her, he realized how much he had missed her and Hunter. “Where’s Hunter?” he asked, looking toward the house where Haley had appeared from.

Gordon looked down and couldn’t quite say it.

Haley didn’t have that problem. She said, “Hunter died.”

A grim look wiped away the joy he had. “What? What happened? Oh my God. Gordon, I’m so sorry, brother.”

Gordon didn’t answer right away. With a slight tremor in his voice he said, “Let’s talk about it later.”

“Sure thing.”

They all had so much to share.

...

The remainder of the daylight was spent removing the bodies of Truman’s people and preparing the corpses of those in their group. With the ground frozen, Gordon had ordered that Truman’s group be burned. Mack, Scott, and Frank’s bodies would be buried aboveground. The numerous granite rocks that littered the surrounding area would be used to cover their bodies until the spring.

Troops from Mountain Home had made it to the community less than an hour before and had taken Wilbur, Cruz, and Christopher with them. Gordon said his good-byes and Cruz reminded him that he’d pass on his message.

With the evening now all to themselves, Gordon, Samantha, Haley, Sebastian, Annaliese, and Luke gathered inside Samantha’s house for dinner and drinks.

The yellow glow of dozens of candles illuminated the stark dining room. Gordon rose from his chair at the head of the table and raised his glass of wine. “I want to give a toast.”

Everyone raised their glasses and waited for him to continue. “To those loved ones here and to those loved ones who will never sit at our table again.”

After he finished the room was silent. In each person’s mind thoughts came of those loved ones who were lost.

For Gordon, Samantha, Haley, and Sebastian, there were thoughts of Hunter.

For Annaliese, she thought of her father and her mother.

And for Luke, he thought of his parents and even of Brandon.

Gordon, still standing, looked carefully at each person sitting before him. When he came to Samantha’s face, he smiled and winked.

She returned his wink and smile but also blew a kiss.

There was much for them to discuss but now was not the time for that. Tonight they would revel in their reunion.

...

“I can’t believe you’re married,” Gordon remarked, taking a sip of wine.

“I know, sometimes I can’t believe it either,” Sebastian replied.

“For what it’s worth, she seems like a good woman and I think Mom and Dad would have been proud.”

“I don’t think about them all that much. That’s sad, right? Is there something wrong with me?” Sebastian asked.

“Not at all, brother, that was literally another lifetime ago. I do miss them, but I know Mom wouldn’t have wanted to live like this and Dad would have been—”

“A stress case!” Sebastian injected.

“Yeah, he would’ve been for sure,” Gordon laughed.

“So what happened?”

“With what?” Gordon asked, suspecting the direction the question would lead.

“With Hunter?”

“I fucked up, pure and simple,” Gordon answered somberly.

“I’m sure it’s more complicated than that,” Sebastian countered.

“It’s not. Like someone told me, I made a choice and that choice was the wrong one; it got Hunter and others killed.”

“I can’t say enough how sorry I am for your loss.”

Gordon just stared at the hot coals in the fire pit. Thoughts of Hunter flashed in his mind.

“So where did you go?” Sebastian asked.

“Where didn’t I go? By the way, I ran into your old unit in Oregon,” Gordon said, clearly attempting to divert the topic of the conversation.

“No shit?”

“Yeah, I was in a bit of a scrape in Oregon and guess who showed up like the Seventh Cavalry? Gunny Smith!”

“Seriously? That’s crazy!”

Gordon and Sebastian chuckled about the irony of the encounter.

“He told me what happened with you. They chalked you up as probably dead, but I just knew in my heart you couldn’t be. I refused to believe it.”

“I thought about what you did and I have to say, you’re braver than I am. I probably would have just gone along with it,” Gordon said smugly.

“That’s because you gave up on the country a long time ago,” Sebastian said.

“Well, like I’ve said a hundred times, it gave up on me. Don’t fool yourself, Sebastian. Those bastards are only taking care of themselves right now while the rest of us fight each day to survive.”