Rescuing Liberty: Perseverance Book 1 (25 page)

* * *

biked north on Highway 9 until we
reached an extremely big lake, unimaginatively named
Big Lake
. The day was warming up, but
Ashley was not. The only noises that came from her direction were
made by her bike. I was the one who remained, so I was the
unfortunate recipient of her anger.

Annoyed by her silent treatment, I stopped
my bike and turned on her. “Look, I’m doing the best I can. I’m
angry too. I’m confused and disappointed and … and all the things
that you’re feeling right now. I feel them too. I don’t know why he
left us. I can’t make him come back. I’m sorry, Ash. If he was here
now, I would shoot him, or stab him, or at least kick him really
hard. But he’s not here. So what do you want me to do?”

Tears rolled down her face. “I’m sorry,
Libby. I know … I just …”

I laid down my bike, walked over, and held
her while she sobbed.

“
I could have gotten to like her. I
would have tried.” Her words were spoken between
hiccups.

“
No.” I squeezed her. “This is not
about you. And we don’t know for sure. They may have taken
him.”
Yeah right. Mrs. Perfect and Jeff
…
I winced. I liked Jeff.

Ashley continued to weep.

“
We’ll be okay, I promise.” I patted
her back. “I’m not going anywhere without you.”

She cried out her tears then we climbed back
on the bikes and resumed our route. We rode in a mournful silence
until she broke it.

“
What’s Canada like?” she
asked.

Thankful for the topic change, I
shrugged. “I’ve never actually been there, but Michelle has been
living in Kamloops for about five years now. She said it’s a lot
dryer than western Washington. The winter is shorter and the summer
is longer. In the pictures she sent me, it looks a lot like my
hometown in south-central Oregon; sagebrush, mountains, and
juniper.”

Ashley’s look of interest encouraged me to
continue. “It’s a large city, about 100,000 people.”

“
That’s like twice the size of
Olympia.” Her eyes grew round.

“
Yeah, it’s pretty big.” I raised my
eyebrow at her. “You know, you’re going to have to work on a few
things.”

“
Hm?” she asked.

“
Well, you’re gonna
have to start saying
‘eh’
after every sentence and pronouncing about
as
‘ahboot’
.”

She looked at me sideways, and I could
almost see the wheels spinning in her head.

“
That
right,
eh
?
Ahboot
time
I start
—
” An eruption of
giggles impeded her progress.

“
Mahvelous dahling
.” I made some
goofy, grand gesture with my hand. “You’ll pass for a Canuck
yet.”

Ashley’s body suddenly collapsed and she
toppled from her bike with a thud.

“
Ash!” I screamed

A sharp pain pierced my neck and darkness
overcame me.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

~Southwestern border of
Mount Baker National Forest, Washington, June 26

COMMANDER ORTEGA STUDIED the cave
before him. It was large and easily defendable with a small stream
flowing beside it. He crossed himself and bowed his head. “Thank
you, Father—your blessings are plentiful.”

A soldier approached and saluted,
waiting to be acknowledged.

“
Niehls.” The commander nodded at his
man. “Report.”

“
Sir, we’ve located their base six
miles due west.”

The commander’s eyes widened. “God is
good.” He kissed the crucifix that hung around his neck. “Did
anyone get close enough to get a head count?”

“
Yessir. It’s gonna be
rough.”

“
Come then. Let’s call a counsel. No
time to waste.”

* * *

In the darkness, Connor could barely
distinguish the outlines of men closing in on him.

Gina whispered, “Just come with us. Be easy
and no one will get hurt.”

“
What about them?” he nodded toward
the girls.

“
Up to you.” She shrugged. “They can
come, or we can leave them behind.”

She held all the cards. Connor wasn’t about
to drag the girls along into God-knows-what. Now that he’d gotten
Gina talking, he’d seen her true elitist Nazi colors. No doubt her
father and the rest of their whacked out followers held the same
beliefs. Liberty and Ashley were far from weak, but he didn’t know
if they’d fit into Gina’s twisted ideals about strength. No, the
girls would be safer if he pretend not to care about them.

“
They’ll just get in the way,” Connor
said, handing her his Glock. “Leave them.”

“
Good.” Satisfaction dripped from her
voice as she accepted the gun.

“
Wow,” Jeff said as he approached, his
voice hostile and sarcastic. “You’re leaving behind a woman and
child to fend for themselves? You’re a real piece of work,
Dunstan.”

You have no idea, kid.

Gina turned on her brother. “You shut your
mouth. You know nothing! And if you wake them up, you can stay here
with them. Permanently.” She ejected the clip from Connor’s gun,
studied its contents, and snapped it back into place.

Jeff squared his jaw. “Gina, we can’t just
leave them.”

“
Ugh, you’re so weak. You shouldn’t
even be along for this. We can, and we will. And if you have a
problem with that, you can take it up with Daddy. Now, why don’t
you go … counsel someone?” She stormed off into the
bushes.

Jeff shook his head at Connor then crept
back to his bag and started gathering his belongings.

Shadows had kept their guns trained on
Connor throughout the exchange. They continued to follow him as he
rolled up his sleeping bag and shouldered his pack. Still fuming,
Gina reappeared and grabbed her things, announcing it was time to
leave. Then she turned and stomped off. Jeff glanced back at the
girls then followed his sister.

The moon was in the middle of the sky
when they left. Ashley and Liberty slept through the departure
without so much as a peep. It all seemed unreal, like there should
be some sappy goodbye, tears, or something. Anything.
They’re gonna be so pissed.
Connor
had
promised Jacob he would take care of Ashley. As he
silently and unceremoniously bid the child goodbye, he wondered if
his brother would have made the same choice. It seemed the only way
Connor could keep the promise he’d made was to walk out on it. If
he thought about that enough, he’d go crazy.

More shadows joined the group once they
reached the road, bringing the armed escort count up to six.

“
Search him.” The order came from a
voice sounding barely past puberty.

Someone grabbed the pack from Connor’s
shoulders while hands roughly patted him down. They confiscated the
knife in a holster around his waist and another strapped to his
ankle.

“
He’s clean.”

No one returned Connor’s pack. He leaned
close to Gina and whispered, “Who are these people and where are
they taking us?”

“
Don’t worry, baby, I got you.” Gina
patted his arm like he was some sort of invalid.

Connor narrowly resisted the urge to wrap
his hands around her neck and squeeze. Everything about the woman
disgusted him; from her fake smile to her annoying laugh. He hated
the way she looked down her nose at Ashley and Liberty and detested
her overpowering perfume and the way she’d manipulated him. Now
she’d forced him to leave the people he cared most about. The only
thing keeping him from taking her down was fear of retribution. If
he struck, one of her goons would likely kill him. Then what? Would
they go back for Ashley and Liberty? Connor needed to understand
exactly who and what he was dealing with before he made a move.

“
And I’m thankful for that, but I do
need to know who these people are,” he replied.

“
Daddy’s soldiers. They’re taking us
to him.” She searched the group. “Where’s Jeff? He better be here,
or I swear, I will slit his lying throat myself.”

“
Soldiers?” Connor asked. “Your father
has soldiers?” They were wearing fatigues and packing guns, but
they sounded so young. “Your dad is what … military? Connor felt a
twinge of hope.
Is the military
reorganizing?

“
Not exactly. Well, not anymore.” She
sighed. “Jeff! Dammit, where is he?” She pointed at one of the
soldiers. “You.”

The man nodded. “Yes ma’am.”

“
Find my brother. Shoot him if he’s
not with the company.”

“
Yes ma’am.” The soldier saluted and
turned away.

Jeff appeared and draped his arm over Gina’s
shoulders. “Aw, shucks, sis. I didn’t know you cared.”

She elbowed him in the side and he pulled
his arm away, covering his stomach. “You think this is a joke?” she
asked. “I put my butt on the line for you. And if I catch you
running off to aid the castoffs … well, you know Daddy won’t be
pleased.”

“
Oh, no.” Jeff covered his mouth in
mock horror. “Anything but the old drunk’s displeasure.”

Gina slapped him. “You’re an ungrateful
dirt-bag. That ‘old drunk’ is our father and he’s doing more to
help this country than anyone else. He deserves your respect.”

Jeff and Gina seemed to stare each other
down in the darkness. Then finally, his shoulders slumped in
defeat. “I’m here aren’t I?” he asked.

She didn’t answer.

Jeff’s stopped walking and his shadow fell
behind, to the back of the group. Gina watched him, and when he
took a step forward she returned her attention to Connor.

“
What do you mean, not exactly?”
Connor asked.

“
Hm?” Gina sounded puzzled.

“
How is your father not exactly
military?”

“
Oh.” She glanced at the men around
her. “These guys weren’t military. They were part of the
Progression.”

Connor’s blood froze.
Oh, hell.

“
What?” she asked. “That’s not going
to be a problem, right?”

Connor’s brain screamed, reminding him of
all the reasons why it was a huge problem. The Progression
definitely wasn’t military. They were more like a lab experiment
gone horribly wrong. Only the test subjects were kids whose service
earned them side effects much worse than cancer. The Progression
was a disaster, created in an attempt to better supply the nation’s
military with fully prepared soldiers. With the best intentions in
mind the department of defense had created monsters.

Headed by Lieutenant Donovan Justice, the
program started as MTCT, or Military Training Camps for Teens. The
goal was to provide young adults with a better understanding of
military life and patriotism. Initially, MTCT focused exclusively
on preliminary training; obstacle courses, marches, first-aid,
navigations, communications and team building. The children
excelled at the menial tasks, encouraging their leaders to advance
them to hand-to-hand combat. Artillery training was the next
natural step.

MTCT began only months before Connor’s tour
ended. By the time he began practicing law, Lieutenant Justice had
transformed the program into a controversial branch of the military
renamed the Progression. Arguments ensued about giving children—who
didn’t fully understand the value of life—the power of death. After
a long and expensive political battle, the military was granted the
freedom to arm their guinea pigs. The pliable and easily swayed
children were taught a whole new level of dedication and the
government had a terrifying new tool.

And now Connor was their captive.

* * *

The sun was coming up when Connor and his
captors reached Big Lake. They turned down a side street and
continued on when the road ended, following a man-made trail away
from civilization. Crossing streams and ducking under branches,
they marched until early afternoon.

Connor observed two patrols before the
forest opened up to reveal the Progression camp. The camp consisted
of six large tents and numerous smaller ones, running along a small
stream. A waist-high barbed wire fence surrounded the area to
discourage anyone from coming or going except by the main entrance.
To further dissuade uninvited guests, armed men marched in pairs
around the fence.

“
Welcome home,” Gina said. Her
perfectly thin lips spread over her perfectly straight teeth in
another perfectly plastic smile, making Connor perfectly
nauseous.

He pasted on an equally artificial smile.
“It looks … efficient.”

Soldiers led him around the fence, through
the main entrance, and toward the large tent in the center of camp.
Conversations buzzed around, but the loudest voice came from inside
the tent. One of the guards slipped inside, and a few minutes later
Connor was invited in to meet the major. It took Connor’s eyes a
moment to adjust to the dim light of the tent. He blinked rapidly
and glanced around.

“
Ah, here you are.” A
barely five and half foot, stocky man wobbled
toward Connor, favoring his right leg.
His
russet colored hair was short and thinning, framing a face made up
of hard angles and sunken features. As he neared, his breath reeked
of whisky and his arctic, calculating eyes seemed to strip away
Connor’s disguise.