Strengthen What Remains (Book 2): A Time to Endure (11 page)

The
bolt slammed forward startling Zach.
Nope,
don’t want my fingers in the way.

Fletcher
looked across the table with a serious expression. “So, you’re the kid that
shot the gangbanger with the bow.”

Zach
felt his face flush as every eye turned to him. “Yeah, I guess so.”

The
older man nodded. “Pretty good shooting. Maybe you could teach these
knuckleheads how to shoot a bow.”

“My
aim was off,” Zach said with a shake of the head. “I was nervous and should
have shot sooner. Maybe if I had, the other guy, Collins, might have lived.”

No
one spoke for a moment.

Fletcher
broke the silence. In a low soft voice he said, “Private Collins was a member
of this Squad. I’m sure everyone here wishes they had been able to help, but no
one knows the future. No one expected that crazy thug to wait in the woods. No
one expected you to be there. You could have stayed in your house or ran the
other way. All the other civilians that night did, but not you. Even though no
one called, you came, and because you did Major Westmore, a good officer…a good
man, lived. Don’t second guess yourself. You did well.”

Several
soldiers nodded their agreement.

Tears
welled in Zach’s eyes.
Not here. Not now.
He looked down and focused on cleaning the rifle. By the time they finished the
job, Zach was field stripping and cleaning weapons without asking how from
those around him.

“Tomorrow
these guys are going out on the rifle range.” Fletcher said looking at Zach.
“Do you want to go shooting with them?”

“Yes
sir.”

“Don’t
call me sir, I’m enlisted.”

Zach
was confused, but recalled how several of the men had referred to him. “Yes, First
Sergeant.”

Fletcher
stood and smiled. “You might be okay, kid.”
   

The
rifle Zach had kept after the Battle at Hansen lay field stripped on a blanket
in front of him. Behind the shed next to his home, he felt safe from the prying
eyes of his mother. These last couple months she rarely went out, and never
came this direction.

Because
of his training at the armory, he knew the rifle was a semi-automatic AR-15.
Yesterday, when he said he had such a weapon, First Sergeant Fletcher gave him
a cleaning kit. So, this morning he awoke extra early to set the fish traps.
That provided the time to field strip and clean the rifle. Looking at the black
rags, he knew the gun had
really
needed it.

He
also discovered that there were twenty-eight rounds in the magazine. Over the
next few minutes he reassembled and dry fired it once to ensure he had done
everything properly.

Pleased
with the condition of the weapon he considered his, he stood.

The
crunch of gravel under foot came from the driveway.

It’s probably Vicki.
Holding the rifle in
one hand, he slipped the magazine in his pocket and moved cautiously around the
shed. If his mother had ventured outside, he didn’t want to be seen.

The
sound of footfalls on the stony ground told him the person was close. He peeked
around the corner of the shed into DeLynn’s face.

She
stifled a scream. “What are you doing with that gun?”

“Cleaning
it. Sorry I startled you.”

“You
could have killed me.”

He
grinned and pulled the magazine from his pocket. “I didn’t point it at you and
the rounds are in here.”

She
cast a confused look at the magazine and then at him. “I didn’t know you owned
a gun. Did you get it from the Armory?”

“No,
they don’t give them away, it’s mine.” He opened the shed door. From inside he
said, “But, I do have something for you from the armory. He stashed the rifle
in its hiding place and then slung his bow over his shoulder. As he exited he
grabbed his quiver and a bag with several MRE’s in it. He held out the bag.
“Here.”

“I
don’t want you to get in trouble for taking things.”

He
laughed. “This they give to me. Part of my pay is in rations.”

She
sighed and took the bag with a sad smile. “My parents dislike you, but you’ve
been good to them and me.” She leaned forward and kissed him.

“Don’t
sugar coat it. Your dad hates me.”

DeLynn
looked at the ground. “No one in Dad’s law firm has worked since the attacks.
There isn’t much need for contract and business law. We wouldn’t eat if it
wasn’t for you.”

“I
kind of understood it before. I know I have a bad rep. But now after the terrorist
attacks and chaos, I really get it. He’s trying to protect you. I’ve been
trying to protect my sister, you and Mom.” He shook his head. “Helping you is
easy. Helping my mother is the hardest.”

“I
think your mom is hurting.”

“About
what?”

She
shrugged. “Your dad getting killed?”

“That
was a long time ago and why would that make her drink?”

“Sometimes
that’s how people show their hurt…”

Zach
shook his head. “A stupid way to do it.”

“…or
maybe it’s that Bo guy you’ve told me about. He’s got to be a bad influence.”

Zach
nodded. “He’s just bad.” He hugged and kissed her. “I’ve got to go. I’m on the
rifle range today.”

“Really?
Why the bow then?”

“The
guys want to see me shoot it.” As he turned to head into the woods his sister
stepped out onto the porch of their trailer. “What’s up, Sis.”

“I
thought I’d talk to DeLynn.”

He
looked hard at his sister.

“Don’t
worry. I won’t tell her you get teary eyed during romantic movies.”

He
gritted his teeth.

“Just
kidding. Go on, I promise to be good. Unless you want to stay for some girl
talk.”

When
it came to DeLynn, his first girlfriend, he wasn’t sure he could trust his
sister.
Mom is sleeping off a bender so
at least DeLynn won’t see her.
He was apprehensive, but there was little he
could do. With a sigh and a wave to both, he trotted into the forest toward the
armory.

*
             
 
*
              
*

Zach
turned the compass left and right. “What’s this called again, First Sergeant?”

Fletcher
sat on a nearby rock outcropping at the edge of a meadow. “Orienteering.” An
amused grin grew on him.

He
looked at the map and then at the compass. “I don’t need these things to find
my way around here.”

“So,
you think you could walk out without getting lost?” Fletcher asked.

Zach
nodded and pointed. “That way is north.”

“That’s
easy. You can use the sun to figure that out. Which way is the armory?”

“Over
there about six miles.” Zach pointed.

Fletcher
smiled. “More like seven. Which way to the rally point?”

Zach
turned to the side. “Go over the next hill and down to the creek then follow it
to where it joins the river. Follow the river upstream to the rally point at
the bridge.”
 

“A
roundabout way to get there but, okay, you know where you are.” For several moments
the first sergeant gazed at his surroundings with a contented smile. “Come sit
with me for a while.”

Zach
sat on the rock and admired the view with him, while wondering why he wasn’t in
more of a hurry to meet up with the other soldiers.

“Beautiful
land isn’t it.”

Zach
nodded.

“This
parcel connects with the national forest on the south and west. The river goes
along the east side.”

“Yeah,
great hunting in this area.”

“You’ve
hunted on my land?

“Your
land?” Zach felt his face flush. “I didn’t know…I’m….”

Fletcher
laughed. “I don’t care. Enjoy yourself.”

When
Zach’s face felt normal again, he said, “This is a nice place.”

Fletcher
pointed. “You can’t see the spot from here, but the meadow goes down to a road.
A little creek runs out of the hill to nearby culvert.”

Zach
nodded he knew the spot.

“I
was going to build a house there before…well, before my marriage ended.”

Embarrassed
at the openness of the first sergeant, Zach sat silent for a few minutes.
Finally he said, “Shouldn’t we head to the rally point?”

Fletcher
shook his head. “No hurry. I told the sergeants to let the new guys get lost
for a while.”

*
              
*
              
*

Caden
and Brooks sat in the office reviewing plans and rosters.

Suddenly,
the sound of gunfire roared.

Brooks
stood, stretched, and walked over to the window. “We don’t have a surplus of
ammo. Should we be wasting…?”

“It’s
not wasted.” Caden interrupted. “I told Fletcher to limit range time, but the
soldiers, especially the new ones, need to practice so they’re familiar with
their weapons.”

Turning
from the window, Brooks nodded. “Did you hear that Durant froze wages and prices
today?”

“Yeah,
I heard.” Caden leaned back in his chair. “President Nixon attempted a wage and
price freeze. It didn’t work then and won’t work now.”

Brooks
looked doubtful.

“Since
the Roman Emperor Diocletian, rulers have tried it during economic emergencies,
but all it does is increase barter and force people into the black market. Some
of the states are already moving to nullify Durant’s order.”

“Can
they do that?”

Another
volley of gunfire thundered.

“Thomas
Jefferson thought so, the courts said no, but with the country splitting
apart….” He shrugged and then was silent for a moment. “Durant also indexed
mortgages to the inflation rate.”

“What
does that do?” Brooks asked.

“As
inflation goes up so does your mortgage.”

“Then
it won’t affect me,” Brooks said, “Unless I decide to buy the armory room I
live in. Will it hurt your family?”

“No.
When Dad inherited the farm it had a mortgage, but he worked hard to pay it off
years ago.”

“Your
father was wise.”

“I
never thought so when I was growing up. I believed my whole family was a bunch
of rural hicks, with some nutty ideas about survivalism, but having the farm
and all that is there has been a blessing.”

More
shots resounded.

Brooks
stared out the window for a moment. “Mortgage indexing might save the banks,
but people will be angry when they see what they owe going up and up. I think it
will cause more riots.”

“Middle-class
homeowners aren’t the rioting type.”

“They
already have down at the Salvation Army Church.”

Caden
nodded. “Good point. Hunger causes riots. We’re all going to lose weight before
the harvest. Freezing prices and indexing mortgages will just anger people even
more.”

A
myriad of problems and frustrations kept Caden from focusing on the folders and
clipboards before him. He tossed the pen on the desk. “Enough paperwork! I’m
going to see how the men are doing.”

Caden
watched from behind as seven men and one boy fired down range. Zach hit the
torso of the man shaped target more often than Caden expected. On the table
beside Caden was a bow and quiver. He motioned for the First Sergeant to come
to him. “What’s this for?”

“Zach
is going to demonstrate it for the men. I figure it’s a good skill for them.”

“How
is Zach doing?”

He
grinned slightly. “The boy is green, but teachable.”

*
              
*
              
*

Zach
dropped a couple of MREs into his backpack.

“They
actually pay you with those?”

He
nodded. “Part of the pay is money, part is food.”

“If
you call that food.”

“It’s
not so bad. A lot of people would be glad to have them.”

The
soldier shook his head and walked away.

Zach
hoisted his pack onto his back, thankful the day was ending. He had spent much
of the morning in the woods and shooting on the range. That had been fun, but
afterwards the day was mostly cleaning things, rifles, floors and miles of
brass and stainless steel.

But
his work had started well before dawn, with a cold breakfast in a frigid
trailer. He had let Vicki sleep in. Even before the first rays of the sun
peeked over the valley he was setting fish traps along two streams. Then,
loaded with equipment and fish, it was back to the trailer to change clothes.
He smiled as he recalled the meeting with DeLynn in the driveway.
I hope Vicki didn’t talk much about me.
He made a mental note to pry information about that from his little sister.

With
his bow slung across his back, he ran through the forest. The trail was dark,
but he knew the way to Hansen and Library Park where his sister would be
packing up after a day of selling fish.

Coming
out of the woods, he stopped and took a deep breath. His body ached and cried
for rest.
Just a little
more now.
The day is nearly
over.
Once again at a trot he headed down the sidewalk.

Zach
moved against the flow of people at the park. Most were done with the work of
surviving the day and now headed home. For him the last chore, helping his
sister close down the stall, was still ahead.

He
knew the location well and scanned ahead for a glimpse of his sister as he
neared. Zach spotted Bo first of all and groaned inwardly. He didn’t want to
deal with him tonight. Then the potbellied lowlife turned.

Zach
saw that he was holding Vicki by the arm

Bo’s
voice was low like a growl, but Zach couldn’t make out the words.

Fear
etched Vicki’s face.

Bo
raised his free hand.

Vicki
cringed.

In
a well-choreographed flurry of motion Zach grabbed his bow, nocked, drew and
aimed an arrow. “Let go of her Bo!”

A
semicircle of wide eyed people formed around the three and was only open on the
receiving end of Zach’s arrow.

Fixing
his eyes on Zach, Bo raised both arms as if surrendering.

Vicki
ran toward her brother.

“Your
family owes me for the beverages and other stuff I’ve been providing that
mother of yours.”

“We
owe you nothing. Keep your hands off my sister and leave.”

“Leave
I shall boy, but you owe me the money.” Bo turned and walked into the darkness.