The Last Blade Of Grass (26 page)

I think to myself,
We’ll have to deal with this later then
.

I ask, “Is there anything else someone wants to say to Mike or find out from me?” We are all quiet until Simone tells Mike he should go in and sit with his mother. She hands Benjamin to me and heads to put Amelia and William to bed. Mike follows her out of the room.

I turn back to face Greg. “Greg, I want to talk about Samantha and Arthur again. How many men did these girls say were at Wal-Mart?”

Greg frowns, “About forty.”

“Forty? I can’t believe it!”

Greg nods at the look of surprise on my face.

“The girls’ said thirty maybe forty, which to me means forty maybe more. They know for certain that they counted thirty different faces and were pretty sure there were other men there that didn’t come near the section they were barricaded in. The girls, including Emily, had heard other men’s voices that they didn’t recognize from their
visitors
or their guards. So, apparently there are some men there that aren’t into raping the girls, that’s a positive.”

I just grunt, and add, “Unless there is another section where they keep boys locked up for the others.”

Greg shakes his head, and says, “I thought that too and mentioned it to Julie and Ava, but they told me about two of the other girls that had their brothers with them when they were captured by the roving patrols. They said their brothers were too young to be effective fighters, but they would have been attractive to any guy that was into that. Those girls’ brothers are being held in a different part of the Wal-Mart, and they get to see each other occasionally. One of the men said it keeps the girls motivated to be accommodating during the visits to know something might happen to a family member. And according to the girls’ brothers, nothing has been done to them.”

I just shake my head. “Greg, I don’t like it. I bet the girls’ told their brothers the same thing. That nothing was happening to them. Is there anything else that they said that sounded strange, like there might be other people there? Being held captive, I mean?”

“Well,” Greg says slowly with distaste, “they play music as a distraction. The men take them to the bathrooms together at different times, and when they do, they play music on a radio. But the music is turned on at the opposite side of the store, where the girls’ brothers are being held. They play the music to keep one group from hearing what is happening to the other, or so they can’t hear the men’s movements, or the occasional comment.

“Julie mentioned she thinks she knows when the other captives are being taken to the bathroom, because the radio is turned on in front of the girls’ barricade. And they know when some of the girls are going to get raped because they turn on three radios. One at the front of the store by the bathrooms, where they take the girls to rape them, and one by each barricade to make sure no one can hear anything but the music.

“The only other thing is that, they are using some type of walkie-talkie when they are out on patrol.”

I nod silently and think for a while, trying to absorb everything. “Did Samantha or Arthur take a radio with them, or did you arrange to meet them at a specific place and time?”

“They said they would stage their main area at the cemetery to the east of Wal-Mart. There is some tree cover there. They have those GMRS radios from here, but we didn’t arrange any specific time to meet up or call each other.”

Simone walks back in and sits down next to me. Benjamin climbs out of my lap and into hers.

“What did I miss?” she asks.

“Well, I have an idea on how we can help free Emily and the other people that are being held there. Unless Arthur and Samantha have figured out a way to do it and are on their way back already, but I doubt it.

“Greg says there are supposed to be forty men there, possibly more. More people than just the girls are being held hostage, and the groups are being held separately. There isn’t a way for Arthur and those people to blast their way through so many armed men and survive. And even if they did manage to live through the assault, there is no guarantee that the hostages would. The kind of fight necessary to win against that number of people in a building the size of Wal-Mart would likely kill everyone inside. Plus, those assholes holding everyone would probably kill the hostages anyway, just to make sure the truth about what they were doing died with their victims.”

Simone looks concerned, and asks, “So what do you think we can do? If it is so hopeless for Arthur, Conner, and the entire group from our ranch, then what can we do that won’t just get us killed as well?”

“We can bluff,” I say with a shrug and a smile. “The good news is these guys have cleared out the area around the Wal-Mart. To what extent, we don’t know, but if they are sending out patrols with only three or four men, then they aren’t too scared of coming in contact with an infected group. The bad news is Grants Pass had a population of thirty thousand people, so if these guys have been able to clear out the infected that survived the freeze, then they are too bad ass to do anything about directly. And even if they are a bunch of losers, they have at least forty men, to our what, twenty-five people?”

“Then how can you seriously consider going, Eddie? We just got back ourselves, and you nearly died! Heading out after them is a death sentence going up against so many men, and let’s not forget the infected runners!”

“I think they may have figured out a way to trick the infected, maybe even the runners. Greg says the girls gave a description of infected being kept in fenced enclosures around Wal-Mart’s perimeter. Quite possibly, if any wandering infected sees these other ones just standing there, they might assume there are no humans or animals to eat in the area.

“These guys may be bastards, but there are some smart or creative bastards among them. With this tactic, they can keep their home base relatively attack free, and venture out to slowly kill off the local infected population. That is what I think is more likely than their having finished off the entire Grants Pass population in these past eight months.

“As for the bluff, if our people haven’t attacked yet, or made their presence known to the Wal-Mart group, we might make it work. We can use several boxes of those laser pointers that we have to tape about three to each person’s gun and spread out around the entrance to the store. We will need at least two people covering the back, but the sides and front can be covered by the rest of our group spread out. If we have twenty guns, we can tape three lasers to each of them. That will give the impression of at least sixty snipers taking aim at the place.

“The real bluff will be in letting these guys think they are eavesdropping on our conversation and make it sound like we have a large attack force surrounding the area. This is all with the presumption that their group is monitoring radio traffic and that Samantha and Arthur have found out which band they communicate on. If we do a good job with our acting then we can pull off a good enough ruse to get them out without a fight. If not, then we aren’t really any worse off than we already are.”

Simone touches my arm, and quietly asks, “What about the kids, Eddie? Do you think just you and I will go?”

I nod.

She asks, “If you think it is so bad after what we have been through to have to leave the kids here, then why would we get involved?”

I’m surprised that she is asking me this. Simone has been my anchor the whole time we have been married and amazingly strong when I am floundering about. I guess my near death experience has hit her harder than I imagined. Still, we have worked our marriage always from a point of direct honesty, so I can’t play nice to save her feelings.

“Simone, it’s probably that bad, or worse. This isn’t one of the silly action movies we have on the shelf, where we can run in there outnumbered two to one and expect to save everybody, and keep ourselves alive. I would guess we have a twenty percent chance of pulling this off, maybe just five percent to save the people inside. The odds are one percent or less to do it without at least one person on our side dying.

“If we have to fight, then it will probably be quite a firefight with us having to retreat, and escape their capture. That is why we can’t have the kids with us. If we need to run, we will literally be running for our lives to get out of there. We can’t move slowly and watch out for the hidden infected, we will have to move quickly, and hope we avoid all of the runners and slower infected that will be attracted to the sound of gunshots. Hannah could make it with us, but she needs to be here to take care of the others if we don’t or can’t make it back.

“The other bad thing about this, is if any of us gets caught and tortured, or even if Emily gets tortured, eventually these guys might find out where this property is. That is also why we need to get involved, Simone. These men have made a stronghold for themselves and will continue to expand the area they control. We may be out in the mountains and the woods here, but it’s only about two hours to Grants Pass by bicycle, and half an hour by car if they had one running.

“We can’t let men like that be the restart to civilization in the area. The longer they stay intact there, the more people like them they will add to their numbers, and the stronger they will become. They are a threat to us already, as much as if not more than the infected. If it looks like we have to fight them, then I’ll use the gas bombs to burn them out.”

Greg stands up and starts pacing back and forth, and says, “I didn’t put all the numbers together like you. What do we do here at the ranch if those men beat all of you?”

“If they make it through all of us, there won’t be that many of them left. You have a lot of buildings to hide in and plenty of guns and ammo to finish anyone off that comes along.”

Greg asks, “When do you think you will leave, in the morning?”

I shake my head, “No, not that long, probably in a few hours. I need get some rest, I still feel disoriented from the fever, and Simone hasn’t slept at all since this morning.”

“Yesterday morning,” Simone corrects me, since it is just after midnight.

“Why don’t you go to bed right now, Simone? I would like to leave in three hours so we can get there in the early morning before the Wal-Mart group is likely to send out patrols. Greg and I will get the bikes and supplies ready, and I should be able to get two hours of sleep as well,” I say.

She nods and carries a sleeping Benjamin to her room.

Greg asks, “What do you want to take with you?”

I stand and think for a moment. “I think we should get all of the bikes ready, or at least the ones I’m not taking, get them ready tomorrow to make a hasty escape to the far side of the property. If anyone shows up after we are gone that you don’t recognize, you need to shoot them on sight. We will not send any of the hostages here without an escort, so if someone shows up, man or woman, assume the worst and shoot them, okay?”

I can see Greg hesitate so I need to make it clear to him what is at stake. “Listen to me, Greg. If those men find their way here, they aren’t just going to move in and share this house with you. And they won’t just kill you either. They will rape everyone and keep them as their slaves just like they are doing at the store. If I make it through this and return here to find someone inside this fence that I don’t know or didn’t send, I will shoot them, and then I will shoot you, do you understand?”

Greg chuckles.

I smile at him even though I mean what I say. “I’m glad to see you relax a little Greg, but I am serious.” And I motion for him to look at Patricia, who gives him a look, and a nod that makes him stiffen up and turn back to face me.

“I have never left my kids where I cannot personally protect them, and if I feel you have compromised their safety in any way, I will make you pay. You know what I am capable of, so you do understand where I am coming from, right?”

Greg nods, and says, “Yes, I understand. You don’t have to worry about it. I’ll make sure Jessica and Lilly know what might be coming. You can count on them to make sure no one gets in here to hurt the children.” He pauses, and then ads, “What do you need me to do?”

“Are all the bikes still loaded?” I ask, and he nods. “Then I need you to take the supplies and stack them by the house. I am going to get what I think we need for this trip and pile it by the front door. I have less to do, so when I am finished, I’ll help you unload, and then get the new supplies loaded up. Sound good?”

“Actually Eddie, I think I’ll just unload your and Simone’s bikes, and then help you with the supplies. I can finish unloading everything else after we get your bikes loaded and you get to bed.”

I nod in reply, and we head out to get things done.

What a crazy life this is. I’m so stiff I can barely walk, and I get to make a two hour bike ride through an infected land in the middle of the night to face overwhelming odds in battle. How wonderful.

I write out a checklist of what I think we should take: Zip-tie handcuffs, night vision goggles, two-way radios, boxes of laser pointers, electrical tape, trauma kits, regular med kit, guns, ammo, and some food and water. Perhaps a Bradley armored vehicle would go nicely with this plan. Where can I find one of those about now?

*

I just finished getting all the supplies out by the bikes with Greg, and he is loading them up for me so I can get some more sleep. We didn’t talk much, just questions of, “Where is this?” and, “How much do you want of that?” Greg and I both know the odds of this turning out well are minimal. I will have to figure out how to put a tremendous amount of fear into these guys at Wal-Mart in order to get the hostages out without a fight. Maybe some kind of idea will hit me after I sleep or on the bike ride down there.