Rescuing Liberty: Perseverance Book 1 (29 page)

“
Even at the Fort, our numbers are not
great.” Concern was etched into the lines around Boom’s
mouth.

The numbers didn’t make sense to Connor.
Sure, a lot of people had died. But where were the rest? “We came
from Olympia and saw very few civilians. If they didn’t head for
the bases, where are they?”

“
Conman, very few stayed with the
army. Most went home to their families during the crisis. We had no
control. But the Progression fanatics are dedicated, and the
absence of monetary compensation did not discourage their loyalty.”
His eyes scanned the area. “And now, they’re recruiting with very …
compelling enrollment benefits.”

Connor nodded. “Yeah, I got the whole ‘join
or die’ proposal.”

“
I can’t believe you were not aware of
this. Where have you been? In a hole somewhere?”

“
No.” Connor frowned. “In a safe
actually.”

“
A safe?” Boom waited, but Connor just
nodded.

Talk of the safe reminded him that Ashley
and Liberty still weren’t back. In response, anxiety started
wreaking havoc on his stomach, giving him all sorts of disturbing
images. “Where are my girls?” he asked. “What’s taking your men so
long?”

Boom didn’t answer. Instead he picked up a
canteen leaning against the barricade, took a long pull, and then
offered it to Connor.

Connor drank then followed Boom to each of
the machine guns, where he endured introductions to the four
soldiers; Mathers, Stein, Shortridge, and James, while his heart
screamed in frustration. Salutes and reports were given while
Connor’s mind explored hundreds of scenarios that kept the girls
from getting to the cave. Each ended badly. He tuned out the men
and paced in front of the barricade.

A loud, shrill whistle came from the trees,
announcing incoming. Everyone drew their weapons and positioned
themselves behind the barricade. Another whistle announced that the
incoming men were friendly. Soldiers relaxed as a group of men
emerged from the foliage on horseback; one of which was attempting
to detain a writhing, shouting Ashley.

“
I said let me down!” she demanded.
“If you don’t tell me where Connor and Liberty are right now, I
swear I will—”

“
Ash,” Connor called out as he
approached. “It’s okay. I’m here.”

“
And ano—” She turned, looked down at
him then flung herself into his arms, still sobbing.

“
I told her you wouldn’t walk out on
us.” She gripped Connor tightly. “Where’s Libby?” She craned her
head around. “No one tells me anything. They won’t let me look for
her. Oh and she’s
sooo
mad at
you.”

“
Isn’t she with you?” Connor glanced
from horse to horse, then man to man, but Liberty wasn’t there.
“Where was she the last place you saw her? What do you
remember?”

“
Uh, we were on bikes the last time I
saw her.” Ashley studied the men around her. “When I woke up, that
guy—” She pointed accusingly at the mounted soldier whose horse
she’d just leapt from, “was squeezing my arms and making me sit in
front of him on the horse. No one would talk to me.”

Connor’s stomach sunk.
I should have gone back.

Ashley’s face mirrored the anxiety he felt;
eyes round, lips pinched. She grabbed his shirt and tugged him down
to her eye level. “Where is she? You have to find her!”

“
I know. I will.”

Boom appeared beside Connor, counting his
men. “Twelve? Where is Simmons?”

The men shook their heads as they
dismounted. Boom crossed himself, said a few words and kissed his
rosary.

Another whistle sounded from the trees.

Connor waited. Against all odds he prayed
for good news.

Three short whistles shattered his hopes. He
grabbed Ashley’s hand and sprinted for the cave. Boom yelled at
everyone to get into positions. Horses were pushed into the cave as
soldiers prepared to defend. A line of men knelt behind the
barricade, drawing weapons, and snapping on night vision
goggles.

“
Get in the cave.” Connor pushed
Ashley behind the barricade. “I promise. We’ll get through this,
then find her.” He kneeled in front of Ashley, staring into eyes
identical to his own. “I need you to
stay
in the cave
. Get toward the back and hide under those
blankets.” He pointed at a pile of linen. “Don’t come out until I
come get you.”
And if I don’t make
it?
The thought punched Connor in the gut. Moments ago
he’d been resigned to take his own life, and now he desperately
wanted to live. But he needed to be prepared, just in case.
He
pointed at Boom. “See that man? He’s my good
friend. You can trust him if anything happens to me.”

“
If anything—” She shook her head, and
then threw her arms around Connor.

He hugged Ashley, and then tapped her
shoulder until she released him.

She pulled back and wiped away her
tears, forcing a smile. “I knew you’d come back. And I know you’ll
be fine. And we
will
find
Liberty.”

Connor
smiled at the
little girl he never wanted, but couldn’t imagine living without.
Her eyes were large with hope and love and everything else that
made life worth fighting for. He promised himself that if they
lived through this he’d stop being a coward and tell her he was her
biological father. “I love you, Ash.” He kissed her forehead and
sent her into the cave to hide.

“
Love you too,” she called over her
shoulder.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

SOMEONE THREW A vest, helmet, and night
vision goggles to Connor. He geared up and kneeled behind the
barricade, close to the entrance of the cave, and aimed his machine
gun at the trees.

Another whistle rang out. False alarm. A
soldier stumbled out of the bushes with his hands raised.

Boom stood and lowered his weapon. “Koyama?”
He motioned the man forward. “Report. Where are your men?”

“
We were captured, Commander.” Koyama
eased forward. “I escaped during the chaos of the
fight.”

Connor watched the man, struck by his
familiarity. To get a better look, he pulled his night vision
goggles down around his neck right as Koyama raised his left arm to
block the last rays of the setting sun. A familiar tattoo wound
around Koyama’s forearm. Without taking his eyes off the man,
Connor leaned closer to Boom and whispered, “He was not captured.
He defected.”

Boom’s brows scrunched together and he gave
his head a slight shake. “Are you positive?”

“
Snake on his arm?” Connor asked
between gritted teeth.

Boom didn’t have to answer. The expression
that twisted his features said it all. “Bring him in alive if
possible,” he said to Connor. “We will need some answers.”

Connor aimed his gun at Koyama. “Drop your
weapons and walk in slowly.”

“
What?” Koyama asked. “Boom, what’s
going on?” Then he seemed to notice Connor. “Aha,” he said with a
chuckle. “I don’t know what this guy has been telling you, but when
I was captured, I saw him getting cozy in the Progression
tent.”

“
You didn’t look captured to me,”
Connor replied. “And I would have been hard to miss since I was
sitting right next to you before you attacked Liberty. After what
you’ve done, I’d like any excuse to kill you, but unfortunately,
Boom wants you alive.” He wiggled his trigger finger, barely
resisting the urge to shoot. Koyama would still be able to talk
without his kneecaps after all.

Koyoma lowered his gun and knife and put his
hands on his head. Then he eased forward. He was almost to the
barricade entrance when a white flash appeared at the tree line.
Koyama went down.

Connor lunged for Koyama, grabbed him by the
shoulders and dragged him behind the barricade. Koyama wasn’t
wearing a vest and the gunshot had torn through his chest. His
shirt was drenched in blood. Connor tried to apply pressure to the
wound, but knew it wouldn’t matter. Koyama was as good as dead.

“
Now do you see why man shouldn’t be
as cruel as nature?” Connor asked. “Survival depends on
it.”

“
It is not the strongest or the most
intelligent who will survive.” Koyama started coughing. His eyes
were clouding over as life ebbed from his body. His voice was
quieter when he spoke again. “But those who can best manage change.
The world has changed. We adapt or we die.” Then he closed his eyes
and released his last breath.

“
Oh yeah?” Connor asked. “And how’s
that working out for you?”

Only gunshots replied. More flashes lit up
the tree line and the soldiers behind the barricade returned fire.
Boom grunted and dropped to his knees. Connor abandoned Koyama’s
body and crawled to his friend’s side to find out where Boom was
hit.

“
My arm,” Boom said when he saw
Connor. “I can’t see how bad it is.”

Connor examined it and told Boom to quit
being such a baby over a flesh wound. Then he motioned for the
medic and pulled his night vision goggles back on and rejoined the
fight. The enemy troops moved out from behind the trees and pushed
their assault. It was a careless move, leaving them unprotected in
the clearing. The soldiers behind the barricade picked them off one
by one. A second wave advanced more cautiously, hiding behind the
bodies of those who had fallen and firing on the barricade as they
moved.

One soldier behind the barricade fell. The
medic rushed to help him and Boom resumed his position next to
Connor. Side by side, they fired at Progression troops until the
camp was shrouded in darkness. The stench of gunpowder and sweat
hung in the air, making it difficult to breathe. Connor arms ached,
but he kept firing, then reloading and firing again.

Eventually the shooting slowed, and then
stopped altogether. The few remaining enemies broke and scattered.
Connor leaned away from the barricade and looked down the line.
Including Boom, only three were wounded. He counted it a miracle
that no one had been killed. But still, fifteen uninjured soldiers
would be grossly inadequate against the Progression forces. Pushing
away worries about tomorrow’s fights, Connor sought the darkness of
the cave to search for Ashley, calling out her name as he went.

A pile of blankets wiggled then erupted,
spewing out a static-haired, tear-streaked little girl. She bolted
for Connor, practically knocking him over when she reached him. “I
was so worried!” she exclaimed. “There was all this shooting and
yelling and I wanted to come out, but you said not to and it—,” She
wrinkled her nose. “It really stinks in here.”

Connor smiled, amazed by the stark contrast.
Outside was death, pain and sorrow, but the inside of the cave was
life, hope and humor. For the first time ever, he understood the
power of a child. He took a deep whiff. “Smells good. Like a men’s
locker room.”

“
Gross.” She pushed him away
half-heartedly. “Hey, is everybody okay?” When he nodded she asked,
“Did you find Libby, yet?”

He shook his head and took Ashley’s small
hand in his. As much as he wanted to rush off and find Liberty,
there was something he had to do first. Just in case he never got
the opportunity again. Still holding her hand, he squatted down
until he was eye level with the girl. “I will find Liberty,” he
assured her. “But first I need to talk to you, Ash. Please try to
understand, and don’t be angry with me. Or with your parents for
that matter. Jacob and Cathy loved you very much.”

“
I know,” Ashley replied. Her dark
eyes held questions, but she did not voice them.

Connor’s palms began to sweat. “What all do
you know about the birds and the bees?”

“
Seriously?” Ashley asked. “You know
I'm almost thirteen, right?”

“
You’re barely twelve,” Connor
replied, trying not to smile at her indignant expression. “Well,
Jacob couldn’t … He couldn’t get your mom pregnant. They wanted a
baby really bad, so they asked if they could borrow some of my
…”

“
Sperm?” Ashley asked.

“
Yeah. So I went to the doctor’s
office and … well … nine months later you were born. Do you
understand what I’m saying?”

Ashley nodded and looked away.

She’s disappointed. Of
course she’s disappointed, I—
“Ash—”

When she looked back her eyes were wet with
unshed tears.

“
I’m sorry,” he said. “I know this is
a lot to lay on you. Especially right now, when Liberty is missing.
But I had to tell you. You’re an amazing kid, and you deserve to
know the truth. Jacob was your dad. He was a great father and he
loved you so much. This doesn’t change any of that.”

“
I know,” Ashley said after a time.
“You’re the biological father. I already knew that.”

Surprised and confused, Connor asked, “Did
Liberty tell you?”

Ashley shook her head. “Mom did on
accident.” She frowned.

“
What’s wrong?”

“
I just don’t know what to do now. You
said it doesn’t change things, but it does. Or it could, right? I
mean do I call you dad now?”

A bolt of panic pierced Connor.
Dad?
That wasn’t a title he’d ever
considered. “I could never take Jacob’s place,” he said. “I
wouldn’t want to, even if I could.”

Ashley’s smile seemed forced and artificial.
“Yeah,” she replied. “That’s probably for the best.”