Fight for Power (19 page)

While I was listening to Danny and Rachel, I could also hear the wind outside, which was getting stronger. Just to put something in my stomach, I grabbed a peanut-butter cracker from Danny, ignoring his protest, and headed out to check on my ultralight. I wanted to make sure it was safely lashed to the ground.

As I was bending down to recheck the ropes holding it in place, I heard the clip-clopping of horse hooves on the pavement. I looked up and saw Lori riding up on one horse, holding the reins of a second, leading it behind her.

She came to a stop right beside me.

“Howdy, pardner,” I said. “You're out for a little ride, I see.”

“That's the plan. What are you up to today?” she asked.

“I'm supposed to go up on a surveillance flight, but if the winds keep up this strong I'm grounded.”

“Then this is perfect timing. Are you interested in joining me?”

“I'd like to, but I better stay close. If the winds do die down, I'll want to get into the air quickly.”

The truth was, I hated riding horseback. Hated the smell, the awkward jouncing, and the way I never felt nearly as in control as at the wheel of my car or the controls of my ultralight.

“Don't worry about it,” Lori said. “I'm sure I can find
somebody
who would be interested in going for a ride with me. Maybe Todd or Rachel or even Brett.”

“I know Rachel would be interested, but how about I join you this time?” I said. “Let me just tell the twins that I'm going and that I'll be back soon.”

I wanted them to know I was gone and for Lori to know I would only be a sec. I ran to the door, yelled at them, and they yelled back an “Okay!”

Lori was waiting.

She gave me a smile and handed me the reins. Awkwardly I climbed up onto the horse's back. I hadn't ridden much and felt a little nervous, but I wasn't going to let her see that. Lori started off and I gave my horse a bit of a kick with both heels to get it moving. I bumped up and down as he trotted along. What a ridiculous way to travel. I slowed down when we were right beside Lori. Her mount was taller and bigger, and it felt a little weird looking up to her. Then again, I didn't really want the bigger horse. If it was up to me I would have ridden one short enough that my feet were dragging along the ground.

“I love riding,” she said.

“Yeah, it's awesome.” I tried to sound enthusiastic but obviously didn't do as well as I'd hoped.

“But it's not as much fun as flying a plane,” Lori guessed.

“Not even close—” I stopped myself. “Not as much fun for me, but I know it is for you … and lots of other people.”

“You don't have to come with me.”

“That's what makes it fun for me,” I said.

“So you'd never ride on your own?”

“I understand why you like it—it's kind of cool—but I guess I just like to know that when I push or pull or turn the controls on my plane it does exactly what I want it to do,” I said.

“And you like that predictability, that sense of control?”

“Exactly,” I said.

“Well, you're never going to get that completely with a horse—or with a girlfriend.”

This had taken a turn I hadn't predicted or had control over, which I guess proved her point. “It's very different. I'd never want to control a girlfriend, and I hope she'd never toss me to the ground and break my neck—although there's probably still the danger that she'd break my heart.”

I was relieved to see her smile. “I don't think you have to worry about either,” she said. “We have hours until it gets dark, so why don't we ride down by the ravine? We could even go see Leonard and his family.”

“It's pretty far, so I'm not sure that's a great idea, especially just the two of us.”

“I think I've shown I can take care of myself … and you as well,” she said.

“No offense meant. It's just that more is always better. Three is better than two, and four is better than three,” I said.

“I guess we could get a third horse and ask Brett to come along, if that would make you feel safer,” she said.

That was the last thing I wanted, but it would be safer. “I'm sure he would come if we asked him. He likes being outside the wall.”

“He probably would, but to be honest he gives me the creeps,” she said.

I smiled, not just because that was how she felt but because that was how I felt sometimes.

“I guess he's starting to remind me of a vampire—you know, the way he's always dressed in black and only seems to come out when the sun is going down,” she explained.

“Since he's started those night patrols, he needs to sleep during the day,” I explained.

Brett had chosen nine people to be on the night patrol with him, the first of which was the night after we “shopped” at the mall. At dusk, dressed in black and armed to the teeth, they slipped over the fence and disappeared into the dark. I had to admit that I almost envied them, going out there like heroes in an action movie. Then I reminded myself it was no movie. People died out there. It was better to fly over it during the day than wade through it at night.

At one point it looked like Brett might want Todd to be part of his squad. Thank goodness Todd had a good excuse to say no. He was needed to continue to work on the walls with his father.

As it was, most of the people Brett selected to be part of his team were relatively young. A couple guys I knew pretty well. Owen and Tim were a few years ahead of us at school; I'd played football with Owen one year before he graduated. He was a pretty good guy and I liked him. Tim lived on our street, and Todd had dated his younger sister for almost two months. That was a record for Todd, and when it ended badly I thought Todd and Tim were going to come to blows. Thank goodness Rachel was just a kid. Todd was my best friend, but him ever dating any sister of mine was way out of the question.

“I understand why they dress that way to go out at night, but it still makes him and his little army of Goths creepy,” Lori said.

I laughed. “I don't think any of them would be impressed by being called Goths, but they might like being called vampires. I just know I wouldn't want to go out there.”

“Neither would I.”

“But you have to give the guy credit,” I said.

“When did you start defending him? You've
never
even liked him.”

I'd tried to keep that to myself, but Lori was always able to read me even when I didn't say anything. “It's not that I don't like him.” That was a lie. “It's just that somebody has to do it.”

“I get the feeling he gets off on doing it,” she said. “That he likes sneaking around out there in the dark and causing trouble.”

“He told me that he likes the rush of danger, so I guess that's how he's getting his rush.”

“That still doesn't make it any less creepy,” she said.

“He's not just causing trouble, he's getting information. They've also been scavenging while they're out there. Two nights ago they brought back some tools and a bunch of lightbulbs they found.”

We came up to the gate at the northeast corner of the neighborhood.

“Nice afternoon for a ride,” one of the guards said.

“How's it looking out there?” I asked.

“There's still some activity out on the 403, but it's pretty calm.”

“Can you please open the gate?” I asked. “We're going to go out for a short ride.”

“You know we're not supposed to just let people out,” one of them said. “But I guess it's okay because it's you, Adam.” He hesitated. “You have a weapon, right?”

“Yes.” My pistol was always with me.

“And I have this.” Lori reached down and pulled up the butt of a rifle, which was inside a bag tied to the side of her horse.

“Besides, we're not going to go far.” I turned to Lori. “You agree that we're not going to visit Leonard and his family. We're going to stay in sight of the walls.”

She nodded, although she didn't look too happy about it.

The two men opened the gate and let us out. I heard them close it behind us. I would have preferred it to stay open but couldn't really say that. Lori led, and I reluctantly followed.

Lori took a deep breath. “The air out here is better. Can you feel it?”

“Not really, but it does feel better up there,” I said pointing to the sky. “Do you want to come with me when I go on patrol tomorrow?”

“That would be wonderful … except you're probably not going tomorrow. It's going to rain.”

I looked at the sky. There was hardly a cloud in it, but then I remembered about her father.

“Your father's prediction?”

She nodded. “He's hardly ever wrong.”

“Well, if not tomorrow, the next day. Would that be good?”

Lori didn't answer. She was staring back, her eyes wide open. I turned around in the saddle to see flames. The condominium on the southwest corner of Burnham Drive and Erin Mills, just outside our western boundaries, was on fire. Bright orange flames had shattered the windows of one of the units and were licking up the side of the building.

“Come with me!” Lori yelled, and started galloping off.

I pulled on one rein and pointed my horse toward hers, dug in my heels, and chased after her. My horse was moving at a full gallop, bouncing me up and down, moving way too fast for me to be comfortable, but Lori was still pulling away from me.

“Open the gate!” I screamed as we approached the gate we'd only just come out. “Open the gate!”

The gate opened and we charged in—Lori first and me pulling up the rear.

It was obvious that we weren't the only people who'd noticed the fire. All around us people were coming out of their houses, pointing, standing in groups or walking or running toward the corner of our neighborhood that was closest to the burning building. The flames were bright, lighting up the whole top of the building, making it almost glow.

“Slow down!” Lori yelled out.

I pulled at my horse's reins and brought it under control.

“It's not good for their legs to run on the pavement, and they could even slip and fall,” she explained.

We slowed to a walk. We came up close to the wall at the top of the neighborhood, and Lori stopped and climbed off her horse. I did the same.

“I don't want to get any closer. Horses get spooked easily, especially by crowds of people and fire,” she explained.

We tied their reins to a tree and continued on foot. There were already dozens and dozens of people standing around, staring, and pointing, and the crowd was growing quickly.

The building wasn't tall—only fifteen stories—but it was the tallest thing around the neighborhood. Herb had mentioned to me that he was troubled by its presence. He didn't like anything that held the high ground.

Lori looked around. “Shouldn't we do something?”

“What can we do? It's not like we can call the fire department.”

“But don't we have some firemen here in the neighborhood?”

“We do, but they don't have any equipment or a truck or any way of pumping water to put it out.”

“Shouldn't somebody go and rescue the people?” someone else in the crowd asked.

“Most of the units are already empty,” I replied. I'd heard that bit of information while the committee was talking.

More and more people arrived, some on the run, attracted by the fire. It was amazing how fast the fire was spreading. Thick, dark billowing clouds rose up, staining the sky. This was quickly going from bad to worse.

There was a loud crash—a gigantic pane of glass shattered—and people in the crowd shrieked in surprise.

“I can feel the heat,” Lori said.

I could feel it as well. The sound of a car coming up fast behind us made me turn back, and I caught sight of my old sedan. It skidded to a stop, and my mother and Herb both jumped out at the same time. They were instantly surrounded, people asking questions and pointing at the flames. I spotted Howie with a number of guards, the fire captain, and Brett. I guess there had been enough ruckus to wake him and get him out here. I pulled Lori over to them to hear the discussion.

“Just let me go over with a couple of my men and—”

“And do what?” Herb questioned, cutting off the fire captain. “You have no equipment, no vehicle, and no water.”

“But we still have skills. We know how to rescue people, perform CPR, and care for the injured.”

“Or get injured or killed yourself,” Herb added.

“It's just hard to stand here and watch a building go up in flames, not to try to rescue people.”

“I understand your feelings, but you have to understand that we don't know what caused this fire, what other dangers are out there,” Herb said. “Even under normal circumstances a fire department wouldn't go in if there was a sniper.”

“There's a sniper?” the captain asked. “That's ridiculous.”

“There are definitely people out there with guns,” Herb said. “We can't just—”

“I could go over,” Brett interjected. “I'd be just as happy to let the whole thing burn to the ground, but if you needed it, my team could provide security.”

My mother gave a subtle nod.

“Okay, fine,” Herb said. “Get your firefighters together. Brett, put together a security detail.”

“Is there anything I can do?” I asked.

“We're going to have you sit this one out,” Herb said.

I couldn't help feeling a little disappointed, but I could see my mother relax.

“I'd like you to go home and watch the twins,” she said. “You could get Lori home at the same time.”

“I'm going to stay here,” Lori said.

“Is it all right if I stay, too?” I asked. “The kids will be okay for at least a while without me.”

“Well, okay,” my mother said. “But as long as you're staying here I'm going to put you both on guard duty.”