Moosehill Militia (Book 1): INFECTED (15 page)

Bruce took that as his Que and jumped into the water swimming for shore. Damn was it cold he thought, and then he thought about the inquest that was sure to follow. Well it was fun while it lasted he thought. Bruce made it ashore with the surf crashing against him and was helped by residence of the beach. He could see that beach residence had brought out blankets and were taken people into their sea shore homes to make them comfortable.

The attendant he saw in the doorway came up to him, her name tag said Beth. “Hi Beth, you okay?” he asked.

“No are you?” Thanks for saving us. What happened?” she asked.

“I don’t know all the electrical started to shut down. I was barely able to make it here.”

“One of the passengers told me she saw another plane going straight down inland from us.” She stated while looking out at the tail section still above water.

Bruce had a cold chill run through him and started walking toward the nearest house. Beth followed him.

When he walked up the steps, he was greeted by an older couple who gave him a blanket and a cup of hot something.

“Ma’am Sir. Can I use your phone please?” Bruce asked.

“Of course you could young man, but you’ll have to wait for the service and power to come back on. We lost it right before you landed out there. That was the damnedest thing I ever saw. Are you the Pilot?” the elderly gentlemen asked.

“Yes sir I was. If you can call that a landing.” He said dejectedly.

“I would! You walked away and saved many lives. I flew a Bomber over Vietnam and that flying compares with anything I’ve ever seen.” The man walked away to help some other arrival with blankets and hot drinks.

Bruce had a sinking feeling that no help was going to come.

***

Mike spent the night in his fifty by ten foot survival shelter for the first time. The unit had small built in night lights so it wasn't pitch black. He turned on his night stand light and stretched, went to his bathroom showered and took care of his morning rituals. He dressed in BDU’s and buckled on his weapons load out and left his unit, sealed his door and headed to the Moosehill Command Center. Mike designed it like a CIC of a ship, there is a command bridge raised a foot off the floor or so surrounded by a dozen work stations with computer screens and radios. The walls were covered with screens showing a selection of the three hundred camera’s covering the base. There is an air operations center that basically gets everything repeated from the Airport Controllers with a radar unit back up that repeats everything the controller is seeing.

Mike walked into this room after being cleared by security, which was annoying, since he owns the place, but procedures are in place for a reason he reminded himself and thanked the guards at the door.

“Morning everyone, I see we survived the night. What time did you activate our electronics Mac.” “We got the all clear from our equipment around six a.m. that the Solar Flare was over. We have been testing our systems and every things seems to be up and running fine. The same can’t be said for our friends in Leicester and Spencer or any community's that we can tell. The men we left in Leicester report that all communications and the power grid is out everywhere as far as they can tell. The six men we left at the Leicester Police with Rory are wondering when they can expect pickup. They also got word that there are several hundred people taking refuge at the High School and Primary School. There’s also been a dozen deaths they know off from virus victims killing people. They personally killed two virus infected, when they attacked a family in front of the police station. Basically Rory and his men are under siege at the Police Department. We also had another three hundred or so seek shelter with us overnight. I kept then topside until they can be medically cleared and in processed.”

“Okay we need to get into town pick our people up and anyone else that wants to shelter here. You want to go this time?” Mike asked Mac. “Sure I need to get out, I’ve been cooped up here for weeks it seems like. I’ll take both Alpha and Bravo Company and head for the school bus yard and try and get those up and running, use them for transportation. Then head to the police then the school and wherever else we need to go.” Mac stated.

“Sounds good to me Mac, get going.” Mike waved his hand in a get moving gesture.

***

“Sir, we need to get you out of here to Camp David. We have Marine One and escort on the back lawn waiting. The fence is in real danger from the people infected with this virus, there pressing against it, a collapse could happen at any time.” The head of the Presidents Secret Service detail told the President.

Eliazar Quintana was the first Latin American President elected. He beat out a eccentric billionaire in his own party and then in the general electing defeated the wife of a previous President who just had too much scandal and baggage surrounding her.

President Quintana’s family was already at Camp David with a Marine company stationed there as security.

“Okay, Louis, it’s time to go, I can’t believe this is happening on my watch.” The President said. They exited out the rear ground level doors and walked the sixty yards or so to Marine One a new VH-60N Whitehawk, a jazzed up Blackhawk. Across the lawn they could see a large group of Infected pushed up against the fence being pushed from behind. The president realized that the fence indeed was about to fail. He entered Marine One Whitehawk with his security detail and the chopper immediately lifted, about the same time the fence failed and the President had a firsthand look at the carnage happening below him.

The Infected stumbled over the downed fence and went after the secret service people still on the ground. The agents were firing into the infected mob and it was having no effect until one was hit in the head. He could see the agents shift aim to the heads of the Infected, but it was too late. He was sick seeing agents get overrun by the swarm of Infected and start eating them while they were still alive and screaming. In a minute it was all over.

Marine One flew into the country side of Maryland toward Camp David. He was told to hold on, the helicopter was not responding right. The pilot came over the speaker. “Our electrical systems are shutting down. We are going down brace for an emergency landing.” He announced. Oh God, where going to die, the President thought.

The chopper pulled off an auto rotation landing, a means to land when you have engine failure in a helicopter, it’s very trick with the timing but Marine One would have the best pilot’s in the service. Marine One back up didn’t fare so well, they hit too hard and flipped over and caught fire.

They came down to the north east of the White House near Georgetown University. One look told them they were dead. All around them students were roaming Infected, thousands, converging on the two downed helicopters.

The President held out his hand to the head of his Secret Service detail and shook his hand. “I’m sorry it ends this way Louis. Can I have your backup gun please?” Louis didn’t say a word, but reached around to the small of his back and pulled out an M & P shield. Agents second gun is a personnel choice he liked the thin profile, made it comfortable to carry concealed. “Sir save one bullet for yourself, right here.” he pointed to the roof of his mouth.”

President felt a little sick at that. Soon the other four agents were outside the downed chopper and firing at the closest Infected, dropping them with each shot to the head. Soon he heard the screaming and cursing then silence as feet shuffled closer to the broken door opening. The President shot the first five in the head that reached through the door, then he felt hands grabbing his legs and he was being pulled out something bit his leg. Eliazar put the barrel in his mouth against the roof and pulled the trigger.

CHAPTER NINE

Day +1

Mac rode with Bravo Company today which took the lead on a beautiful spring New England morning. His APC was in the middle of the column. They advanced quickly to Route 9 slaloming around motor vehicles broken down all the way to Leicester Center and south on Route 56 having to maneuver around vehicles until they reached the school bus depot. People who came out of their houses were told to stay inside unless they think they could get to Moosehill safely. Along the route the Troops on top of the M113A2’s shot and killed a few dozen Infected. The Infected hearing the armored column coming came after it, the noise attracted them.

Today was the first time most of the men operated in company strength, usually they trained at platoon level size before the event, in the woods behind the complex around the test route for the APC’s, so far, so good Mac thought. Of course most of these guys spent time in the Middle East fighting everybody at one time or another.

At the bus depot it took a good hour or so but seeing as there’s little electronics to effect on the school buses they managed to get ten up and running. Mac’s task force headed back up Route 56 to Route 9 passing Memorial school and the police station where Mac went into the station to speak with Rory.

“Good morning Chief. Rough night?” Mac asked.

“You could say that Mac. We had one officer killed down in Greenville, he was bitten so bad he bleed out before he could be transported to the hospital. That’s if we had the ambulance personnel to transport him in the first place. We had multiple reports of attacks before the power went out. Even our generator is no good after the Solar Flare. I hate to ask you but I think where done here and need to evacuate and relocate to your facilities. Oh, also we have a half dozen officers with their families and around five to seven hundred sheltering at the High School.” Rory apologetically told Mac with a sheepish look.

“Rory, we were expecting refugee’s I think we can help you, although you will fall under Mike Mohan’s authority. He’s my boss now. I think we’re not going back to the old ways anytime soon. We need to think about security, housing and food for all the civilians we find or rescue, and I predict there will be a lot.”

“Mac, I can live with that. He seems to have made all the right moves so far and the rest of us none. So yes, I’ll willingly put myself and my officers under his authority. I’m sure the Spencer Police will too, or for that matter any police departments still operating near here.”

Chief Rory Scannell gave the order to evacuate the station. They were already preparing. The armory was emptied of guns and ammunition along with any other useful equipment. They managed to protect four explorers overnight by putting them in the Police garage and disconnection all electronics that they could and improvising a Faraday cage around them. Bravo Company led off with the school buses between Alpha and Bravo Company. They wasted no time and headed north on Route 56 and were entering the High School drive five minutes later. The APC’s pulled up and cordoned off the front of the school shooting a few Infected by the playground close to the Primary school making a bloody mess, at least the kids won’t be playing there for a while if ever Mac thought.

In front of the High Schools main doors about a dozen or more dead infected were on the ground around the entrance with brain matter splattered on the sidewalk area along with blood and fecal matter, he forgot about that when someone died there bowels let loose often. When the armored column moved in, several police officers came out the Main entrance to the school armed with M4’s from their Police cruisers. They had put them to good use overnight protecting the civilians in the school. The police from the school and the ones that joined the column earlier quickly swelled to several hundred. The civilians taking refuge in the Primary School came out the side doors only a hundred yards away from the High School parking lot and came out after the infected near the playground were eliminated. The Police at the school had organized them and had everyone carrying supply's from the school cafeterias before entering the buses. Mac thought great. More supplies, with this crew and the ones they already picked up or showed up, were going to need everything we can get our hands on.

Thank God it’s early spring he thought. He gave the signal to move out once everyone was loaded up. The buses and the APC’s were loaded with people. Forty minutes later the over packed relief column was passing the gates into Moosehill Base.

***

Rear Admiral Aki Rin Commander of CSG Bush and now acting Commander of Second Fleet welcomed all her ship CO’s that were close enough and could make the conference, the rest would have to attend by video, which was set up on a white board.

“Thank you all for coming, before we get started I’d like Captain Sharp C.O. of the Bush to read Section 1.A paragraph one for everyone present. Captain Sharp Begins. “To: Commodore Rin, Aki. Commander CSG USS George H.W. Bush. From: COMLANTFLT. You will immediately assume the duties and responsibilities of Rear Admiral O8, and take command of all U.S. Navy and Marine unit’s in the Atlantic Ocean and Eastern seaboard and assume the Command of Second Fleet effective immediately. As Commander of Second Fleet you will move to establish a safe zone including the Islands of Bermuda, Nantucket, Martha’s vineyard and any other land masses in the Atlantic and Caribbean that you deem appropriate to conduct ongoing rescue operations on the Continental United States and its Territory's. Furthermore you will coordinate your efforts with any other United States Armed forces or government agency's that you deem necessary. Signed COMLANTFLT: Admiral Richard Perry.” Captain Sharp finished.