The Army Comes Calling (8 page)

     “Likewise, the crops are the same way. We have a small crop of corn on the north side of the compound and an identical crop on the south side. If a blight or infestation is detected in one crop, it will be immediately burned. Hopefully before it spreads to the other side. Of course, if we lose both crops, we have seed stores to try again the following year.”

     Montgomery was duly impressed.

     “It sounds like the people who designed this place were pretty intelligent.”

     “I’d say so. They’re all scientists and engineers.”

Chapter 12

     Hannah, still manning the control center, watched as Colonel Montgomery left the compound and returned to the helicopter.

     Montgomery’s men were just finishing up with the animal transfer and were securing their loads for the drive back to Kelly Air Force Base.

     She muttered to herself, “Well, so far, so good.”

     Sarah got on the radio and called out, “Hey, Hannah Banana, how about some status on what’s going on?”

     John had warned her about maintaining radio discipline. He told her ahead of time that when he was with the colonel, the colonel would be able to hear anything that came over John’s radio.

     And he admonished her not to let any unnecessary information get out.

     Hannah answered Sarah.

     “Keep manning your machine gun position, Sarah. I’ll let you know when you can stand down.”

     Hannah closely watched the monitor and saw Montgomery turn and look inquisitively at John.

     She could almost hear Montgomery’s words:

     “You guys have machine guns?”

     Hannah giggled. She’d probably get chewed out when John returned.

     But maybe not. The two of them shared the same sense of humor. And John might like it if Colonel Montgomery thought they were more heavily armed than they really were.

     Sarah pouted. She was tired of being kept in the dark and wondering what was going on.

     As John and the colonel stood near his helicopter, Major Koziol joined them. The major said, “All loaded up and ready to roll, colonel.”

     “Very well. Send them out. And tell them to be careful. The cargo they’re carrying is worth more than its weight in gold.”

     “Yes, sir.”

     Koziol rendered a crisp salute and Montgomery returned it.

     John wasn’t at all surprised. It occurred to him that Montgomery was the kind of man who would always insist on the highest order of military discipline.

     Even after the world had gone to hell.

     John stood next to Frank as each of them shook the colonel’s hand and bid him farewell.

     Montgomery walked away, but only got a few feet before shopping in his tracks. He returned and asked, “Would it be acceptable if I returned soon for a social visit? I could give you an update on your animals and seeds, and perhaps I could offer my apologies to the rest of your people in person.”

     “Come by anytime, colonel. Now that we’ve decided we’re not adversaries, perhaps we can all become friends.”

     “I’d like that. And on behalf of the United States government and the people of Bexar County, thank you again for your help.”

     With that, he boarded his chopper. The major climbed in at the same time, and the craft lifted off into the clouds.

     John and Frank watched until it was completely out of sight.

     The last of the trucks was pulling out at the same time.

     “Hannah, this is John. As soon as the trucks are out of sight you can give everyone the all clear. However, I’d like for the people in the mine to stay there for a couple of hours in case I’ve misjudged this guy and he returns.”

     John had spent many years as a policeman, and even though he and Montgomery had come to terms, he was still a tad bit suspicious of the man’s motives. In all likelihood, he probably always would be.

     “Ten four, John.”

     Then, three minutes later, “Okay. All trucks are out of sight now. Everybody stand down. Those of you who are in the mine, please stay there for the time being. We’ll let you know when it’s safe to return.

     Debbie asked, “But how will we start preparing for dinner if we can’t come out of the mine and get to the kitchen?”

     “Don’t worry about it, Debbie. Sami’s gonna relieve me on the desk shortly. I’ll head for the kitchen and start dinner.”

     Bryan asked, “You’re cooking dinner?”

     “Sure, why not?”

     “Um… can we just have MREs instead?”

     “Oh, shut up!”

Chapter 13

     “Okay, if everyone is pretty much finished eating, I’d like to call the meeting to order.”

     Everyone except Bryan put down their forks and pushed their plates aside. Bryan had a well-deserved reputation for being a bit uncivilized. He didn’t see anything wrong with talking while his mouth was full, even as those around him averted their eyes or cast him disapproving looks.

     Sarah had once tried to break him of that particular habit, which she found annoying and thought it would set a bad example for the children they’d eventually have.

     “But honey,” he whined, “I don’t have that many bad habits. And I always thought my good habits outweighed the bad. All in all, I think I’m quite a catch.”

     “You have good habits? Name one.”

     “Well, I can fix things around the house.”

     “Usually those things only need to be fixed because you were messing with them to begin with. Try again.”

     “Well, I’m cleaner than most men. You never see my dirty clothes scattered around the house like a lot of other guys’.”

     “That’s only because I follow you around and pick up behind you. Try again.”

     “Well, I’m as handsome as a movie star. I make good eye candy for you when we go out.”

     Sarah started to comment, then thought better of it. She bit her tongue and said simply, “Try again.”

     Bryan looked crestfallen, but only for a moment.

     “I can make you make that funny face.”

     “What funny face?”

     “That funny face you make in the bedroom. The one I think is so cute. The face you tell me that you’ve never made with any other man. You know, when your ears turn red and your eyes start to twitch and you scrunch up your nose and look like an old hound dog in pain…”

     “Okay, okay, I get the picture.”

     “Are you sure? Because I can go on.”

     “No, that’s okay. Baby, it’s just that someday we’ll have children. And I don’t want them to pick up your bad habits.”

     “I’ll tell you what. When the kids are born I’ll stop talking with my mouth full. Okay?”

     “How about there won’t be any kids until you stop talking with your mouth full?”

     “Are you implying that you’ll stop making that funny face for me?”   

     Sarah paused. She enjoyed the funny face at least as much as he did. Maybe her idea wasn’t the best.

     So she came up with a better one.

     “How about you work on it, with the understanding that after the kids are born, I will kick you under the table every time you do it?”

     “Deal.”

     Sarah had seen the deal as progress.

     Bryan saw it as a free pass to talk and eat at the same time, until their first child came along.

     “Okay, John would like to start the meeting with a couple of proposals.”

     There was an audible groan from the back of the room, followed by some chuckles.

     Everyone in the compound loved John. His only relative among the group was his daughter, Sami. But most of the others looked to him as a father figure. He was wise beyond his years and an angel of a man.

     The problem was, usually he spoke at a meeting it was to ask them to implement new security procedures, or to chastise them for not abiding by the ones already in place.

     “Wow,” he said. “You guys really know how to make a man feel welcome.”

     More chuckles.

     “I suppose you all think I’m going to start by asking to increase security. But you’re wrong. Dead wrong, and you’ve hurt my feelings. You really have.”

     No one was buying it.

     “I was going to start by telling you how much you all mean to me. Each and every one of you.”

     He looked at Bryan.

     “Well, maybe not
every
one of you. But nearly all of you. You each brighten my day in your own special way, and every night when I hit my knees I thank God above for bringing each of you into my life.”

     They still weren’t buying it.

     “Now with that being said, I’d like to move on to my next item of discussion. I’d like to continue to keep half of the livestock and half of our seed stores in the mine indefinitely, and we’ll need everyone’s help to make that happen.”

     The groan emanated from the back of the room again, this time accompanied by several “I knew it…” glances.

     John ignored them and went on.

     “I felt that the time I spent with Colonel Montgomery was productive. I learned a lot about what’s going on in the world, and specifically about the dire circumstances in San Antonio and Bexar County.

     “And I got the impression that Colonel Montgomery, although a bit gruff, is a good and decent man. Yes, we got off to a rocky start. But now I feel we can trust him when he says he won’t ask anything else of us.

     “However…”

     One of the best things that made John an excellent security manager was his ability to second guess his own estimations. He was his own devil’s advocate.

     “However, even though I consider myself an excellent judge of character, I am not flawless to that regard. Flawless in every other way, sure, but not in that one.”

     There were a couple of guffaws and a lot of smiles. The mood in the room overall was joyful, since everyone thought they’d dodged a bullet when the Army didn’t cause trouble for them.

     “I could be wrong about Montgomery. I doubt it, but one thing I’m not willing to do is to gamble the rest of our livestock and seeds. If we bring everything back into the compound, and then the Army returns and is able to take over the place, then we’ve lost it all.

     “And if that happened because I was hoodwinked by Montgomery, I’d never be able to look any of you in the eyes again.

     “Before I open it up for discussion, let me give you a second reason I’m advocating this.

     “Even if Montgomery is honest and forthright, he still has to answer to higher authority. Granted, a bird colonel is pretty high in the food chain. But he’s still got a general he reports to. So even if his intentions are good, he can still be overruled and ordered to come back in and take our stuff.

     “And those of you who have served in the Army know how bad they are about constantly changing their minds and shifting directions.

     “Okay, now it’s your turn to tell me I’m an overcautious nervous Nellie.”

     Brad stood and spoke.

     “Well, you’re right. You are a nervous Nellie. In this instance, though, I agree with you. But I’d like to hear more details about what you’re proposing before I give your idea my vote.”

     “Quite simply, I’m proposing that the livestock in the mine stay there. Forever. Same with the seeds that are there. And new animals that are born there will live out their lives in the mine. That way, six months from now, or even six years from now, they’re still safe if the Army changes its mind.”

     Sami asked, “What about the animals that are in the compound?”

     “We’ll leave them there. The Army already knows we have them. If they showed up and they were gone, they’d demand to know where they went. And in all likelihood, they wouldn’t stop searching until they found them.

     “But by leaving them there, if they ever do come back, they’ll likely just take the ones in the compound and leave us in peace. They’ll think we have nothing else to give them, and hopefully they’ll leave us alone.”

     Sarah, one of the most kind-hearted of the bunch, said, “I don’t know, John. I see what you’re saying. And it makes sense. But put yourself in the animals’ shoes. How would you like it if you never saw the sunshine, or the stars at night? If you never got to munch on fresh grass, or to run through a pasture?”

     John smiled.

     “Well, first of all, animals don’t wear shoes. If I could put myself in their hooves, I’d likely say that if I was born into the mine, that would be the only world I knew. I wouldn’t even know that sunshine or fresh grass even existed. So how could I possibly miss it?”