Bug Out! Part 7: Mile High Motorhomes (20 page)

“I see it,” Frank said. “No cretins showing up on the Long Range app?”

“Not a one, and they haven’t made it across the ravine where the bridge was, either.”

“Hopefully route 82 will be easier. I’d like to stop and gas up.”

“You want me to drive after that?”

“How do you feel about switchbacks in the dark?” Frank asked.

“Scared, but I’ll try it if you want.”

“Maybe we should wait until we get on the downslope towards Kansas. I can keep going, if I have some coffee. I slept good last night, and it’s not that late yet.”

“Okay, Frank, but if you change your mind, tell me before you go nodding off.”

“No worries there,” he said.

The engine started to make more noise as they climbed the last grade. It got too noisy to talk again, and they sat silently as the coach climbed. Then they were on the down side. Frank had to hit the tow-haul button to keep the coach from racing down the hill.

“What a beautiful little city,” Jane said, as they approached. “I’ll bet this is insane during the ski season. There’s good hills all around the town.”

“Yeah, I think you have to book a ways in advance for this place,” Frank said. “Check out the truck stop situation.”

Jane looked at her iPhone.

“There’s a good one right at the beginning of town,” Jane said. “I’ll call Gabe.” She dialed her phone.

“Hi, Gabe.”

“Jane, how you holding up?”

“Good. We need to stop for gas. I see a big truck stop on the edge of town.”

“Yeah, I know the place. I need to gas up there too. There’s a pretty big parking lot in the back…we could even overnight there if we needed to.”

“Maybe…we might want to keep going, though. There were a lot of enemy hits showing up where you guys blew that bridge.”

“They aren’t going to be able to fix it. Not without a couple of big cranes, or some big choppers. Even then, it’d take days if not weeks.”

“We’ll talk about it when we get there,” Jane said. “Thanks.” She put her phone back in her shirt pocket.

“He wants to spend the night here?”

“Yeah, I think so,” she said. “I’ll take a look at the Long Range app and see if there’s any change back at the bridge.”

She looked at her phone. Frank saw the line of coaches slow in front of him as they got onto the city streets. Then he saw the big sign for the truck stop ahead. “There it is!” He saw Gabe pull in, and the coaches behind him started to slowly pull in, most of them getting in one of the lines for a pump.

“No movement on the bridge,” Jane said. “In fact, I think they might be giving up. There are less of them around, and I don’t see any on the other side.”

“The thirteen decoys still show up?”

“Yes, I can still see those.”

“Good,” Frank said. “Maybe we should stick around for the night.”

Frank drove onto the truck stop’s lot, and over to the gasoline pump. He was the first gas coach there. Jackson and Earl’s coaches pulled up behind him. All of the diesel spots were filled, with coaches in line behind them.

“I’m going to take Lucy out,” Jane said. “She’s got to need it by now.”

“Good,” Frank said. “If you see the others out there, tell them that we want to pull into the back and chat a little bit before we take off again.”

“Will do,” she said as she took Lucy out the door.

Frank got out and started the gas flowing into his rig. Jackson walked up.

“Figures, we all have the gas fill on the same side,” he said, laughing.

“You could drive around and head the other direction,” Frank said. Then he saw Earl doing exactly that, getting into position quickly. He came out of his door and started his fueling, then walked over.

“Hairy drive back there, especially towing this backhoe,” Earl said. “I didn’t even know that back way existed into Aspen.”

“Me neither,” Jackson said. “I was wondering how we were going to get east without getting close to Leadville.”

“We aren’t seeing any bad guys around there anyway,” Frank said. “If there are any around, they don’t have chips in them.”

“Or they aren’t close enough to a cell tower to get picked up,” Earl said.

“Yeah,” Frank said. He looked at his pump. It was getting close to finished.

“What now?” Jackson asked. “We gonna keep driving tonight?”

“You guys haven’t been looking at the Long Range app?”

“No, we’re both alone,” Earl said, “and that was a two handed drive.”

“Good point,” Frank said. “There were about three hundred bad guys showing up at the blown bridge.”

“Uh oh,” Jackson said. “Any chance they can fix it?”

“Jerry says no, without a couple of dual rotor choppers. Jane was looking right before we pulled in here. She said the number of folks there has gone down quite a bit, and there aren’t any hits on the other side of that ravine. Looks like they’re giving up.”

“I take it you still don’t want to stop yet, though,” Earl said.

“I’m a little apprehensive about it,” Frank said. “I’d rather get a lot closer to the Kansas border.”

“I’m with you,” Earl said. “Besides, the road gets a lot better from here. We’ll still have grades and switchbacks here and there for a while, but then it’ll settle out, and we’ll have some full speed stretches.”

“That’s what I was hoping,” Frank said. “I’d like to at least get to Colorado Springs.”

“You seeing any movement on the south side of Denver?” Jackson asked. “It’s not a hard drive from Denver down to Colorado Springs. They could be on us in a hurry.”

“Shit, good question,” Frank said. He pulled out his phone and looked at the Long Range app. “They’re still mostly to the west of Denver…and to the north side heavier than the south side.”

“How many?” Earl asked.

“Quite a few thousand,” Frank said.

Jackson got a grim look on his face. “Why isn’t the army stopping them?”

“Another good question,” Frank said. The gas pump shut itself off. “Good, I’m done. I’ll see you guys around the back, on that big parking lot back there.”

“Alright, see you in a few,” Earl said.

Frank got back into his coach and fired it up. He saw Jane walking over with Lucy. He shut off the engine for second, so the steps would come down when she opened the door. She got in and shut the door, letting the dog loose. Then she sat back down in the passenger seat. Frank started the engine again, and drove to the back area. Charlie and Hilda were already back there, talking to Gabe and Dobie. They drove up just as Jake’s bobtail was pulling up. There were lots of spaces around, with only a few big rigs parked here and there. Frank and Jane got out of their coach and were walking over to the others when Jerry and Jasmine’s coach drove over and parked.

“How you guys doing?” Frank asked.

“Good to stretch our legs a little bit,” Gabe said.

“I’ll bet,” he replied. “Quite the road you took us on.”

“Yeah, it gets a little hairy at times. Sorry about that. I didn’t want to take us too close to Leadville. They haven’t fixed that bridge back there, for one thing.”

“Gotcha,” Frank said. Jerry walked up with his portable bug detector.

“Ah, I was thinking about that,” Gabe said. “Didn’t have time before we flew the coop.”

“I thought I’d better check everybody out. Some of the coaches that left early aren’t here, though.”

“Noticed,” Frank said. “Need any help?”

“Naw, this is easy. It’ll take about two minutes per vehicle.” He walked off, checking each of them.

Soon all of the vehicles were finished fueling up, and they assembled next to Gabe’s Suburban. Jerry walked over.

“All the vehicles clean?” Charlie asked.

“Yep, all clean,” Jerry said. “There are some folks missing, though.”

“Not in the inner circle,” Jane said.

“No, all of the inner circle are still here,” Jerry said. He looked over and saw Jasmine coming from the store with a brown paper bag in her hands. He grinned at her. She nodded, then opened the door of their rig, tossed in the bag, and came over.

“Looks like we’re all here,” Charlie said. “Let’s chat.”

“We need to figure out how far we go tonight,” Frank said.

“Maybe we should spend the night here,” Gabe said.

“I think we could all use the rest,” Jeb said, “but is it safe enough?”

“I’m not seeing anybody on the app that Frank gave us,” the Sheriff said. “One thing to consider, though. We’ve got to go through Colorado Springs. You guys should look at the map and see where that is relative to Denver.”

“We’re not on the big roads, here, folks,” Jake said. “We’re on highway 82 for a while, and then 24, and then 285, and then back on 24. You know how long that drive is?”

“No, how long?” Jane asked.

“Over six hours…probably worse in the dark,” he said.

“Oh,” Hilda said. “That’s not a good idea. Not tonight.”

“What are the downsides if we stay here?” the Mary asked.

“The way I see it, there are two risks,” Frank said. “First, we have the concern that the Sheriff brought up. It’s a straight shot from Denver to Colorado Springs. Some enemy fighters could barrel down I-25 and be waiting for us.”

“They’re on the northwest side of Denver,” Jerry said. “I know Denver. No way could a decent sized group of these guys make it through the suburbs and down that road without being caught.”

“They might be able to sneak a truck or two down there,” Jeb said.

“Maybe, but they’ve got their hands full in Denver,” Jerry said. “I just don’t see them taking the chance.”

“What’s the other risk?” the Sheriff asked.

“The Long Range app showed about three hundred cretins massing by the ravine where the bridge used to be. If they can fix that bridge, they could come after us.”

Gabe shook his head. “No way, and even if they did, they probably don’t know the back way into Aspen. There are stretches of that road we were just on that aren’t even on the map.”

“Yeah, like the stretch where I almost went over the side,” Mary said. “I love our big pusher, but a 44 foot rig isn’t a great choice on that road.”

“Realistically, what are the chances that they could get past that ravine?” Charlie asked.

“The only way they can get that bridge repaired is with a couple of dual rotor choppers, or a couple of cranes.
Big cranes
,” Jerry said, “and even then, we aren’t talking hours, even with a military bridge set. We’re talking days, maybe even weeks. I had a good look at that ravine, and I have some experience with temporary military bridges. They don’t work that well in a spot like that. I think we’re safe.”

“What if they climb across on foot?” Jasmine asked.

“They’re going to be walking for a while,” Jackson said. “I knocked the draw bridge down into that moat right before we left.”

“Hell, there’s only one vehicle there anyway,” Gabe said. “That old pickup truck, and it’s got a bad radiator. They wouldn’t get five miles in that sucker before it overheated.”

“You got neighbors nearby with vehicles to hijack?” the Sheriff asked.

“The nearest is about forty miles,” Gabe said,” and I called the guy. I told him to look out for people coming around looking for us. He’s an ex-Army Ranger. I kinda hope they do try something with him.” He started laughing.

“Okay, so it’s sounding like we could probably stay here the night,” Charlie said. “I suggest we get some shut-eye, and get moving early in the morning…six am or earlier.”

“Anybody object?” Frank asked. Nobody said anything.

“We’ve got extra space for those of you who aren’t in an RV,” Hilda said.

“Us too,” Frank said.

“Me too,” the Sheriff said.

“Well, thanks, but I think I’m going to check into that place right there,” Gabe said, pointing to the small motel across the street. “I need a shower big time.”

“I’m with you, Gabe,” Jake said.

“Alright, then,” Charlie said. “Let’s all get some shut-eye, and be ready to move out early tomorrow.”

Everybody nodded. Gabe and Dobie walked over to their vehicles and drove across the street to the motel. There was a good sheltered place to park Dobie’s truck. He tended to his dogs when Gabe was in the office getting rooms for them. Jake walked over from across the street.

“You leaving your truck over there?” Dobie asked as he approached.

“Yeah, it’ll stick out like a sore thumb over here.”

“Trish staying with you?”

“I’ll leave that up to her. Terry’s going to stay with the Sheriff. I told her she can stay there too, if she wants.”

“Well, I guess he’s as good of a chaperone as anybody,” Dobie said, laughing.

“I don’t care about that,” Jake said. “Marriage ain’t important to me.”

“Yeah, I figured,” he replied. “Wish I had an RV.”

“When we get past Colorado Springs I’ll probably try to buy one. At least a cheap one.”

“Me too. See you in the morning, my friend.”

“Alright. Pleasant dreams, Dobie.”

Jerry and Jasmine made their way back to the rig. They climbed up.

“Rosie with Jeb tonight?” Jerry asked.

“Yeah,” she said. “I think they’re really enjoying each other.”

“Good. What’s in the bag? Is it what I think it is?”

“I told you what I was going to buy.”

“I was hoping. You gonna use one tonight?”

“No, not tonight,” she said. “I’m kinda tired. I don’t feel like reading instructions.”

“Okay,” Jerry said. “Let’s hit the sack.”

Trish and Terry walked over to the Sheriff’s rig.

“Wait here, so I can make sure, okay?” Terry asked.

“Okay.” She watched as Terry went up the steps.

“Hey, uncle, you mind if Trish and I sleep here tonight?”

“No problem here,” he said. “Jake alright with that?”

“He suggested it.”

“Oh. Then sure, no problem. You know where the bedding is. The dinette bed is pretty comfortable. I’m beat…talk to you in the morning.” He went into his bedroom and started to slide the door shut.

“Okay, thanks, uncle,” he said, stepping back outside. He reached his hand down to Trish and helped her up.

“Sure it’s okay?” Trish whispered.

“Yeah, he just wanted to make sure your dad was alright with it.”

“Okay,” she said, looking around. “Where?”

“He said the dinette bed was comfortable.”