The Dragons of Men (The Sons of Liberty Book 2) (76 page)

You are Victor Castle, correct? Highest ranking Recruit in Little Rock?

Victor nodded his head. Adam looked to the others and smiled before speaking again.

I am Adam Reinhart. Do you remember me?

Victor slowly nodded again.

We have received word that the Patriarchs were destroyed in New Orleans and the serum in your system is no longer able to be activated. Can you tell me if you’ve felt anything since the battle that could prove otherwise?

“No,” Victor said, though his voice was nothing more than a leaden bass he could not discern. “Are we free?”

Adam smiled before kneeling down and speaking again.

You are free.

“Thank you,” Victor said, fighting back tears. “Thank you so much! I have prayed for this day for months. I have—”

Adam held up a hand, cutting Victor off.

Victor, twenty-nine hundred of your men and women survived the battle and are being held until we decide what to do. We haven’t heard if Texas captured Rendell Boss and we wanted to speak with someone who had been in charge.

“Whatever you wish of me, I am your man till the end.”

For now, we only wish your honesty
.

Adam hesitated as a frowning woman to his right said something indiscernible. After a pause, Adam began to speak again. As he did so, the woman grew visibly cold and angry, though she said nothing more.

Your men and women claimed a lot of lives attacking Fort Harding, though I know you had very little control over your actions. The woman next to me is Nadia Andreou. She was the governor here. Her husband died because of wounds he received on this very field. I won’t lie to you. There are those who think you are all better off dead. There are many like Nadia who do not know when you might turn rabid again and therefore want to see you gone, though there are others who want to see you rebuild the lives you had lost. I don’t want to execute or forcefully deport twenty-nine hundred men and women because they were involuntary forced into besieging Fort Harding, but I won’t ask my friends here to risk our safety unless we’re confident of the outcome. So tell me, what do you honestly think happens if you remain here with us? And no bull-crap lies. Just the truth.

Victor was taken aback as he read the final two lines, a strange sense of hope and anticipation passing through his body. He had thought he and the others would have been cast away as soon as possible, never dreaming they’d be allowed to stay behind and join those they had nearly destroyed.

“There are those who might cause trouble, but that is not the majority,” Victor replied. “You have to understand, no one can resist what we were subjugated to. We had our will torn from our very souls. I’m not going to pretend we don’t own our sins, but we have existed without hope for months. If you give us a chance, I believe most of us would be more than thrilled to help you rebuild and restore America. Hope like that would send shockwaves through these people.”

Adam hesitated, turning to the others and speaking briefly. After a pause, Adam drew a knife, leaned in closer, and cut Victor’s bonds. As he helped Victor to his feet, Adam spoke, holding out the screen for Victor to read.

We all own our sins, Mr. Castle. If you’d be willing, I’d like to work with you directly. Together, I think we could help my people and your people remember the inherent good inside us all.

“It would be an honor,” Victor replied, failing to hold back the tears.

Adam smiled and shook his hand, motioning for Victor to follow.

“Shouldn’t I stay here with them?” Victor asked, glancing around as the other survivors looked at them with a newfound sense of hope.

We’ll bring you back later. For now, I would like you to join us for an announcement we are about to make.

“What announcement?” Victor asked.

Adam paused as he smiled.

If we can begin to rebuild a country by giving hope to twenty-nine hundred hopeless souls, imagine what we can achieve once we give hope to a shattered world.

Elizabeth Holt hummed with song and eagerness as she walked with Eva at the end of one hand and Grace at the end of another. She smiled as they passed by the old brick buildings that had once been home to thousands of eager students. Elizabeth thought about yesterday’s young intellects—the lives they had lived and the hope they had held for the future, wondering if they had felt the same exhilaration she did as she walked toward the American Heritage Building, ready to watch Adam Reinhart change the world.

“Daddy!”

Eva ripped away from Elizabeth’s grip and Grace soon followed as they spotted Adam and a group of others nearby. The two girls skipped as they neared, throwing themselves into his arms as he knelt down and embraced them both.

Elizabeth smiled, thinking of the first time she had ever met Adam. She had gambled so much on the decision to bring him into her circle of trust. During the months that led up to the collapse, she couldn’t have been happier with that decision. In the dark days that followed—when she thought him dead—she had felt a very real void inside her. She had believed from early on that Adam was the man to breathe life back into the nation and fend off those who wished to destroy it. Now that he was back, Elizabeth had begun to believe in that hope again.

“Hello there, Mr. Smith,” Elizabeth said, approaching Gene Smith. “I can’t say it’s getting old seeing you every day again.”

“Elizabeth,” Gene said, shaking her hand.

“Are you really going to tell me we’re still at handshakes?” Elizabeth replied, grabbing his hand and pulling him closer. “Get over here, you big brute. You’ll never be too tough or high ranking for my hugs.”

“Glad to know,” Gene said with a grin as he hugged Elizabeth back.

“How are you, Elizabeth?” Adam asked with a smile.

“Fine as a dandelion,” she replied, her accent more southern than a tall glass of sugary sweet tea. “I was actually looking for you, Mr. Smith. I finished revising that old poem of yours. You know, the one about dragons and all other sorts of nonsense?”

“My what?” Gene asked, glancing over at Adam.

“Oh, don’t look at him. He only hinted at the existence of such a thing a couple of days after we were all reunited. I’m the one who snuck in your room while you were away and played the part of thief. The Dragons of Men…never took you for a poet, but I’ll say you have the knack.”

“Elizabeth,” Gene began, “you can’t just—”

“Oh pipe down, would ya’? You can’t really be upset with a nice gal like me, can you now? Besides, it was a fine rhyme and I think I was able to correct what needed correctin’. I’ve already made some adjustments and penned something that flows a bit better. I was actually hoping you might want to read it during your speech, Mr. Reinhart.”

Elizabeth removed the poem from her back pocket and handed it to Adam.

“The Saints Within,” Adam said as he recited the title. He scanned over the poem, a smile curving his lips as he read.

“I suppose it’s good to mention that it’s not just for me,” Elizabeth said. “It’s not for you or Gene or any one person. I like to think of it as an ode to those who have survived these evil days behind us. May the world hear those words and hold on to them dearly as we shout at the darkness ahead.”

“It’s perfect,” Adam finally said, leaning forward to give Elizabeth a kiss on the cheek as he hugged her.

“Your parents would have been so proud to see you now,” Elizabeth said. “Your father died helping us because he thought America might still live through us. He would have been thrilled to know just how right he was.”

“I’m sure you’re right,” Adam said, his eyes glistening.

Trey walked up from Elizabeth’s right, passing by a budding row of bushes and grinning as he approached.

“We’re about ready,” Trey said. “It was a little more difficult than I had originally thought it would be, but you should have at least a four minute window.”

“And you’re pretty sure it will work?” Adam asked.

“Adam, one thing you’ll come to know during our time together is that there is pretty sure…and then there is me,” Trey said, leaning forward with an annoying smile that screamed
am I right or am I right?
“We’ve done our best to replicate and enhance what General Hewitt did at Fort Bragg and what Lukas did in DC during the State of the Union. If there’s a screen with power anywhere in the world, they should see it.”

“What about cities shielded by Graystones?” Gene asked.

“You know, ever since I heard about those things a few months back, I thought a lot about what it would take to create such a device. I had a theory on how to temporarily disable them. Now, I finally have a reason to test that theory.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Sit back and watch my code go to work,” Trey replied with a grin. “I’ve managed to utilize
my
expertise to break into a few nuclear power plants and schedule routine brownouts all along the east coast. Being the power hogs we know they are, I’d like to assume most of their Graystones are grid dependent. We should cut them off for around four minutes—thus your window of opportunity. I figure most every screen up and down the east coast will light up with that face of yours. Besides, I figure those who don’t see the speech will quickly be caught up to speed by those who do.”

“Let’s hope you’re right,” Adam replied. He glanced back across the campus, concern touching his eyes. Elizabeth quickly saw his apprehension and cleared her throat.

“Don’t you worry, Mr. Reinhart,” Elizabeth said. “She’ll be here soon.”

“I won’t do this until she’s here,” Adam replied.

“Nor should you,” Elizabeth replied. “Come. Let Sarah worry about moving her pretty little butt over this way while you worry about your speech. It’s not every day a man resurrects a dead nation.”

“No, Elizabeth,” Adam said, looking at her with a smile. “I don’t suppose it is.”

Adam sat patiently in Fort Harding’s command room, waiting as Trey and his legion of technical masterminds worked their magic. He stared at the camera, surprised at his lack of nervousness. He was about to have his words broadcast to billions across the globe, but it felt right—not terrifying. It was an honor and he meant to take it as such.

Sarah, Judah, and Alexandra walked into the room. Adam smiled as they approached, standing up to embrace Sarah with a kiss.

“Hey you,” he said once he pulled away.

“Hey ya’ back,” Sarah replied with a smile, though a hint of sadness creased her eyes.

“Are you okay?” Adam asked.

“I’m fine,” Sarah said, moving in close to kiss him again. “The real question is: are you ready for this?”

“Compared to what I’ve gone through, delivering a live speech to the world seems like a Sunday afternoon walk in the park,” Adam replied after a pause. “Honestly, I don’t know how I survived what I have. I don’t think it was luck, chance, or anything inconsequential like that. I think I survived because I was made for something more.”

“And what does a man like Adam Reinhart think he was made for?” Elizabeth asked.

Adam paused, shifting his gaze across the room. He suddenly realized they were all looking at him—waiting for him to begin. He took a deep breath and looked over at Elizabeth.

“To remind the world that hope still exists,” Adam said. He kissed Sarah once more before nodding to Trey and sitting back down.

Everyone stepped away as a crew prepared the final touches on the lighting. As Adam waited, he looked over at the American flag that hung beside him. He thought about everything it stood for—not just what he was raised to believe, but the very ideals that were etched into each interwoven strand.

It was more than simply an American banner. It was a symbol of liberty—a thing Adam never truly understood until it was taken from him. It was a sign of courage, beckoning all men to shout into the darkness,
I will not bow!
It was knowing that the righteous can remain as such without the threat of change, so long as their battle was with evil and not the individual man.

It was a belief that the Son of God died long ago as atonement for all, slaying the dragons that dwelled within the foulest of men before they were even born.

Adam took a deep breath and looked down, reading over Elizabeth’s poem once more. After a few more moments, Trey began counting down from ten. But instead of focusing his attention on the speech at hand, Adam closed his eyes and used the few seconds he had to do what he knew he needed to do most.

God, thank you,
Adam prayed.
Whatever we face tomorrow, let us face it with you guiding our hands and feet.

The light above the camera lit up.

Lukas Chambers sat quietly next to a slow burning fire, looking up to gaze into its heart as it blackened the logs that lay within the hearth. The flames glistened off his dark eyes, a tall glass of whisky in one hand and his time-worn journal in the other. His eyes flickered back down to the yellowed parchment, reading over the words he had penned so many long years ago.