Chapter One

"Daddy, I'm still hungry".

John looked at his 10 year old daughter. She looked so different from a year
ago. True she was older, but she weighed far less than she should. Then
again, they all did. Her eyes were pleading with him to do something to fill
the empty spot in her belly. His heart was breaking knowing that there was
nothing he could do to help his daughter. There simply wasn't enough food for
the entire family to begin with. Since the troubles started, everything had
changed so drastically. California had finally had "The Big One" and the
entire coast had been devastated. From the Mexican border, to San Francisco,
anything that wasn't under water, was wreak and ruin. The Pacific Ocean had,
in places, come hundreds of miles inland. Millions had been killed outright.
There was no citrus, no vegetables, no wine, and no food of any kind coming
from there anymore. The only real 'industry' was trying to find, identify and
bury all of the dead, and do what could be done to try
to start to rebuild. But that would take decades, at least.

The survivors and refugees had started to pour out of the state. Shelter,
food, and a chance to start again had to be given to millions. The states
bordering California had borne the brunt of the mass emigration, but the
entire country suffered. With the Pacific Coast no longer able to bring in
oil or fuel, the cost of everything had gone up. The surviving farming
industry had suffered inconceivable setbacks and hardships. Without fuel, it
was impossible to get the much needed fertilizers to the farmers. Farmers in
cases would have to leave their crops in the field to rot, because there was
no way to get them to market. John knew that farmers in the southern part of
the country, while truly sorry for the loss of life, and property, out west
looked forward to increased profits for their crops, since there were fewer
crops going to market to compete with their own.

That is they did until "The Storm" hit. Who would have dreamed it? Well at
least one person had done so. He remembered some wacky sounding person he had
heard about called 'Brother Bob' who had said God had warned him of the
storms years before they had happened. He had told the people of not
only Florida, but much of the entire Gulf coast to get out while they could.
Then, unbelievably, it happened. Three hurricanes in the Atlantic, churned
away, until they merged into one huge storm. Then two from the Gulf of
Mexico, and even one more that had crossed over Mexico from the Pacific,
joined together and had devastated Florida as it raced across the state and
then it combined with the storm in the Atlantic into one huge mega storm. It
had covered nearly a quarter of the North Atlantic at its height. Then it had
slammed into the southeastern part of the country. It seemed everything
within one hundred miles of the coast from the Carolinas to the
Texas/Mexico border had been beaten unmercifully into the ground. That was
less than six months ago. They still didn't have any reports from anything
south of Tallahassee Fla. Roads were either under water, or simply
impassible. The winds had reached well over two hundred miles an hour. Not
much was left standing within thirty miles of the coast. Certainly any
oranges growing down there were being pulled off of the trees and eaten on
the spot by any survivors.

“Daddy, I'M hungry!”

John looked at his little girl again and remembered how happy she had been a
week ago when he had managed to buy a single small orange for her birthday.
It had cost him nearly twenty dollars, but the look on her face had been
worth it. He loved her so much.

With the crops across the country being virtually wiped out by the disasters,
the government had come out and told the people that they would have to get
by on a reduced diet of 1400 calories a day, until further notice. Less than
1400 for those under 16 years of age. They were all hungry, but how do you
explain that to a brand new 10 year old? John was hungry too. VERY hungry,
since he had been insisting that his wife take more of the food than he did.
After all, she was still nursing their newborn son. They both needed the food
more than he did, to his way of thinking.

Then his mind drifted to the Timmons family across the street. He thought
about how he and others had laughed, and made fun of Mike and his wife,
Sarah, for having the two years worth of food they had set aside "just in
case". It seemed so stupid to have so much food put away. Back then, everyone
KNEW that no matter what happened the government would be there to handle the
situation. Life would go on, and everything would be fine. Sure there might
be some temporary hardships, but they wouldn't stay that way. The government
couldn't allow that to happen.

They weren't laughing now. Early on, before the mega-storm, John had gone
over to them and asked about borrowing some food, just until he could pay it
back. After all, the government would be doing everything possible to help
the people. Everybody knew that. What John hadn't expected was the answer he
got.

"John I'm sorry. But if I give you our food, what will we eat? I can't do
it.” Mike had said. “Why didn't you prepare when you could? I warned you that
we were at risk. I told you that this nation was going to be coming under
Gods' judgment. And you even make more money than I do. You could have done
something. You should have done something while you had the chance. Anything
would be better than this. Really, I'm sorry, but if I give you food, then
next it will be the Johnson's down the street. After that, the Smiths from
the next block. I just can't do it, I'm sorry".

John couldn't believe it when Mike had refused him. Even though in the back
of his mind, he knew that Mike was right on both counts. He should have done
something back then while he'd had the chance. He just never saw the need.
Nobody could have predicted this. Except for that 'Brother Bob' guy and
nobody else would have ever thought of this. He also knew that if Mike and
his wife started to hand out food, soon everyone that learned of it would be
knocking, and even pounding at their door. But even so, he didn't think that
Mike could turn him away. They had known each other for years. Their kids
played together. They visited each other’s house, often. And they even
celebrated their children’s birthdays together.

But they had kept their stockpile of food instead of turning it in for the
greater good of the country, when the government had called on citizens to
turn over extra food stocks for the duration of the emergency. Now they sat
there, well fed and relatively happy. It made him mad. The more he thought of
them, the angrier he got. Who were they to think that they were better than
anyone else? Okay they had paid good money for the food, but this was an
emergency. Everyone was in need these days. Why should they be allowed to
keep the food they had bought, when so many were in need? And their kids!
Their kids were such smart alacks. Not that they were disrespectful, it was
just that they were at least two years ahead of other children their age in
their education because Sarah and Mike home-schooled them. Ask those kids
any question, and they would answer well beyond their years. How could his
children compete with that when they grew up? Home-schooling
seemed to work for the Timmons, but he and his wife just couldn't afford to
take the time to do it for their daughter, or new born son when he got old
enough. There were priorities. A man had to make a living after all. Mike and
Sarah should have done like everybody else and sent their children to public
school.

"DADDY. I'm hungry!”

John thought about just going over and taking the food he needed. After all,
he NEEDED it for his family. But sometimes Mike was a little different. He
stored food when there wasn't any need to do so. He and his son went hunting
every year, when there wasn't any need to kill animals for food. The grocery
store was just down the street, he could have bought anything he liked. He
made a decent enough living. Or at least he could before all of this had
happened. John wanted to take the food, he just wasn't sure if Mike had
turned in his guns when the government had outlawed them to settle things
down when the food started to run out. They said it was necessary to keep the
peace. As Johns' stomach growled at him, he knew he was willing to break the
peace for the sake of his family as well as his own needs.

What to do? What to do? He remembered the commercial he had seen on T.V.
before the power had become so unreliable. The mega-storm had done
unbelievable damage to the oil industry along the Gulf Coast. With the west
coast oil industry already so badly damaged, the shortage had driven oil to
well over two hundred and fifty dollars a barrel. Nobody drove anywhere
anymore. It was just too expensive, and naturally the cost of fuel had driven
up the cost of food. Before, it had been just jump in the car and go to the
store. Now when the stores would actually open for a few hours once or twice
a week and, people would travel to them in groups in order to save money and
gas. Not to mention there had been reports of gangs of young men attacking
individual shoppers to steal whatever they had managed to buy.

And then there was the matter of the electric companies. Without fuel for the
generators, power companies had been forced to reduce the number of hours
they ran each day. It was better for everyone to have some power, than
everyone having none at all, was the thought. They tried to provide just
enough power to keep things close to normal. Still, he remembered, there had
been a phone number for tips to turn in hoarders. There was even a reward of
part of the food and/or fuel confiscated to the tipster. He had written it
down somewhere. Maybe he should find it.

John shook his head. What was he thinking? Their kids played together after
school. During the summer, they all went swimming in the Timmons pool, and
had bar-b-ques. John was godfather to Mike and Sarah's son, their oldest
child. Still, they had more food than they needed, and it wasn't fair to the
rest of the people for them to hoard all that wonderful food, while everyone
else went hungry.

"DADDY?"

His mind made up, he spoke to his little girl.

"Don't worry sweetheart. Daddy is going to have lots of food for you in a day
or two. But for now, off to bed with you, and try to sleep."

With this promise, the girl smiled, and went to her room.

Meanwhile, in the Timmons household, across the street, blankets had been put
over the windows. They didn't want to let other people know that they had
power courtesy of the generator they had running in the garage with extra
baffles to keep the noise level down. In times like these, having lights when
no one else did would attract such unwanted attention. Mike, his wife Sarah,
had been careful over the past few months in avoiding the eyes and ears of
other people in their neighborhood. Mike had built a ten foot tall fence
around their back yard. Since burglary had become such a problem because of
the lack of power, and the over worked law enforcement agencies not having
the man power to investigate every call that came in, so nobody thought a
thing about it. Many of their neighbors had done the same thing, trying to
protect themselves from thieves who seemed to no longer have any concern
about being caught. Law enforcement officers were so overwhelmed
by the outbreak of crime, they were almost powerless to do anything about
anything that didn't involve people shooting at each other.

In truth, Mike had built the fence to both protect his family, and conceal
the garden that he and Sarah had planted to provide fresh vegetables for the
family. He had taken pains to make certain that as things got worse, his
family didn't look like they were any different from the families around
them. It just didn't seem wise to him that in this time of need, to show off
how they were in a better position than the others. And it had worked at
first. But he knew it wouldn't last. And this night, they and their 15 year
old son were sitting around the kitchen table, talking quietly so as to not
wake the 10 and 12 year old son and daughter sleeping in the next room, they
were making sure that all was in readiness. The generator had been used for
the last time earlier that day, to freeze some food stuffs before they had to
do what they were now planning to do. They had a simple camping lantern which
was turned down to give only a minimum of light. No sense
in letting people know that the Timmons' family might be up to something at
this late date.

"Mike, are you sure we have to do this?" Sarah asked once again. "This is
such a nice neighborhood. The children like it, and we have friends here. Do
we really have to leave?"

"I’m afraid so.” He answered. “Things are getting out of control. You should
have heard a couple of guys at work today. They were planning on how they
were going to split up the reward food they were getting for a tip they
turned in. And they don't even know how much, if any, that they are going to
get. Do you remember a month ago when I had to pull my shotgun, on two
different occasions, to keep someone from breaking in to steal our food?"

She nodded silently.

"Well, things haven't gotten better since then as you know. I honestly
believe the only reason we haven't had a third visit from thieves is because
nobody is sure if I turned in our weapons or not when the government said to
turn them in. But it is only a matter of time, and I think a short time,
before someone tries again. THEN what do we do? If I shoot, everyone will
know we're armed, and the authorities will be coming to visit. If I don't
shoot, we lose whatever they can carry away, including our weapons. And who
knows what will happen to us."

"Mom, Dad's right.” Tommy said. “Just yesterday some of my friends at school
were asking why I'm not as thin as they are. I've been able to come up with
excuses so far, but it is getting harder to do every day. On top of that, I
noticed two of them pointing at me and talking to each other kind of
secretly. I think they are going to turn us in for food hoarding."

Sarah looked at her son. Realizing once again how hard things were getting
for all of them. He was being forced to grow up much too fast.

"Thank you for telling me that, Tommy. I've been wondering how anyone would
know about our back yard garden, since the fence is ten feet tall. No one can
see over it, so I was wondering how someone might have guessed. What you said
explains how someone figured out to raid our garden.” She bowed her head
slightly and shook it, before speaking again. “I know. You're both right.
It's just that this is our home. I hate the thought that we will be forced to
leave."
Mike answered.

"I know me too. But I'm afraid we no longer have a choice. We are just
starting to look too different from everyone else. The children are all quite
healthy and show it. And the younger two still have the same kind of energy
that all kids used to have. With the three of us it is different. We can fake
it most of the time, but with them, you can't control it. Is everything
packed in the 4X4? Gas tanks topped off from our stash?"

"Yes, Dear. Tommy and I got all of that done while you were at work today.
Are you sure we can get out of town without being noticed? What about the
guns? If we get caught with them..." Her voice trailed off. The penalty of
death for having a firearm was well known to everyone in the country. It was
also well know that the sentence was often carried out on the spot. In areas
under control of the foreign troops that the government had brought in it was
often a case of no exceptions, no excuses, and no appeal.

"I'm as sure as I can be. I know all the back roads to my hunting cabin. We
don't have to spend any time on major roads, and we should be able to avoid
roadblocks, God willing. It is only 60 miles. It shouldn't take more than an
hour and a half to get there. If we leave in the early morning, before sun
up, most everyone will still be asleep, and the military guys on patrol and
the police won't be at their sharpest. Besides, nobody goes out at night any
more. The headlights they are used to seeing are from their own vehicles. We
should be able to sneak through."

Turning to his son, Mike said,

"I want you to get some sleep son. I'll wake you in a few hours, and grab a
little shuteye myself. Then we get the younger ones, and pull out. Sarah,
make sure you keep them quiet. Last thing we need is to have someone call and
report we are acting strangely at the last minute. Now, a few last things
that I want the two of you to listen to carefully."

Mentally Mike did something he hadn't done in years. He went back to his Army
training.

"First, Tommy, you are riding with your mother. I want you to keep the
shotgun out of sight, but close enough to use if you have to do so.
Understand me son, you DO NOT fire, unless, or until I do. The only
exceptions to that are if we get stopped. If anyone tries to get into your
mother’s car, or pull someone out, you DO NOT give them a warning. DO NOT
give them a chance. DO NOT threaten them. You just shoot them. Remember, they
are professionals. Given any excuse, or reason THEY WILL kill you without a
second thought. Then they will kill everyone else in the vehicle just to be
sure there is no more resistance"

To his credit, Tommy took it in stride. It took half a second for the
statement to sink in, and he answered.

"I understand."

"Sarah, if Tommy has to shoot, you understand me, DO NOT wait for
instructions. You hammer the gas and run. Speed is the key. You have to break
contact with them, and then get out of sight as quickly as possible. Take
dirt roads and get under the trees so helicopters won't see you. You don't
stop until you get to the cabin. Don't wait for me. I'll be trying to lead
them away from you, and get back to you as soon as I can. Understand?"

"Yes." Was her only word.

Quietly, mother and son went to bed to try to sleep, as Mike pulled his
pistol from its holster, checking it one more time, before putting it back
and arranging the belt into a more comfortable position. It was going to be a
long night.

As instructed, Tommy woke his parents at four A.M. Mike made one last check
of the 4X4 Sarah was driving, and his pick-up, as Sarah woke the younger
children. The news that they were going to go for a ride was exciting for
them. They hadn't been for a ride in months. Sarah quieted them and warned
them to not make any noise, with the excuse that this was a family outing.
They didn't want anyone else to suddenly show up and spoil their special trip
by asking to come along. Then they all gathered in the garage.

"Okay.” Mike said, “One last thing before we go. Let's pray."

"Mike? Do you think we have time for that?" Sarah questioned.

"Sweetheart, do you really want to try this WITHOUT praying first?"

"Ummmm, I see what you mean."

The prayer was brief, but heartfelt.

"Here Tommy, take this.”

It was a short range walkie talkie.

"This isn't for chatting. Turn it on, but use it only in case of emergency.
No point in telling anyone that might be listening what we are doing."

Tommy nodded, and stuck the radio in his jacket pocket. Then they got in the
vehicles and pulled out, as quietly as possible. Knowing that the garage door
would make more noise to possibly alert their neighbors to something unusual
going on, Mike had left the door wide open. Now, with a last longing look at
the home they had known for so many years, the vehicles pulled out onto the
street, with the headlights off to avoid attention.
To Mike's surprise they made it out of town without attracting anyone’s
attention. Once in the suburbs, he turned onto a service road that followed
one of the major power-lines into town. Knowing that this very rough dirt
road used for maintained was almost totally unused, he knew it would likely
be unguarded as well. After passing the third hill after leaving town, Mike
turned on the parking lights. The sun was just starting to come up. A couple
of hours later and things had gone well. No roadblocks, no patrols, no
trouble of any kind, and Mike was starting to relax as the day brightened.
That is when the radio crackled to life.
"Dad, we are being followed."

He looked in the mirror and saw only the 4X4.

"How close are they?"

"REAL close and getting....HEY!!! Dad! They just rammed us."

"Give me your mother."

"I hear you Mike. What do I do?"

"They want to bump you off the road. Next time they start to come at you,
slam on the brakes."

"WHAT? Mike that makes no sense."

"Sarah, listen to me. Just before they bump you again, hit the brakes HARD.
Trust me. Just do it."

"Here they come again."

Mike waited as he watched the mirror. Suddenly the front of the S.U.V. jerked
downward as Sarah laid on the brakes. Although he couldn't see the pursuit
vehicle, he knew what would happen. At fifty miles per hour, the pursuit car
didn't have a chance. When the front of the 4X4 went down, naturally the back
end came up. The trailer hitch sticking out the back passed above the bumper
of the pursuit car, and crashed through its' front grill, punching a gaping
hole in the radiator. Hot water and steam came boiling out. But even more
important, and what Mike was counting on, was at that speed, the impact
caused the airbags in the chase car to deploy. Blinded by the airbag, and
having his hands also forced off the wheel at the same time, the driver lost
control. The car jerked to one side as Sarah hit the gas, and then it swerved
the other direction. Finally, one wheel dropped off the pavement, dug into
the soft dirt on the edge of the road. It then flipped
and rolled down into the ditch.

"Mike, he's in the ditch. What do we do now?"

"Follow me."

Five miles down the road was a small river. Mike crossed over it on the
bridge, and then pulled off onto the one lane paved road leading down to one
of Tommy's favorite fishing holes. At the bottom, he pulled under the
overpass far enough for Sarah to pull in behind him, and get out of sight
from both the road, and the air.

Once stopped, Mike went back to check on his family. The younger children,
who had been scared at the time of the attack, were now bragging about how
Mommy had saved them from the bad guys. Tommy got out of the car to stretch
his legs he said. Really, he wanted to know if his legs had stopped shaking
enough for him to walk. Sarah continued to sit behind the wheel, and try to
stop from trembling. As Mike came to her, she looked at him and asked,

"Do you think they called us in on the radio?"

"That would be standard procedure. That's why we got out of sight."

"Oh. Yes, I guess you are right."

From the back of the 4X4 Tommy called.

"Dad! I think you should have a look at this.'

Mike walked to the back of the 4X4. The rear hatch was badly damaged. He had
his doubts about if he would ever be able to open it again. That's when he
heard it. A vehicle of some kind was coming towards them, at high speed. He
ran to the pick-up. Reaching through the window, he grabbed a rifle, and
moved to the front end of the truck. He used it as a shield between him and
whoever was coming. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Tommy doing the same
thing at the back of the S.U.V. Sarah and their younger children had gotten
out and now crouched behind the car. Both he and Tommy waited quietly,
fearing any sound could give them away. As he listened to the oncoming
vehicle, he heard the helicopter coming, not far behind. Soon it passed
overhead and kept going. Suddenly the vehicle above slowed, and then stopped
at the edge of the bridge they were hiding under. He heard two car doors
open, then close above them. This was followed by a voice.

"Eagle Three, do you see anything?"

The reply was indistinct.

"That's what I thought. If there was anyone out here, they are long gone by
now."

The radio was still not quite understandable.

"Well, all I can tell you is that Charlie said something about a 4X4 hitting
the brakes, and then he died."

Again, indistinct radio chatter came back.

"If you ask me, Charlie wasn't the greatest driver, and he liked to drive
fast. I think he dropped a wheel off the side, and flipped. I don't think he
knew he was dying, and he was looking for an excuse for the wreak."

More garbled talk from the chopper.

"No. I haven't seen any sign of any thing. Lets' call it quits and go home."

Mike listened as two car doors opened, then closed, the engine start, and the
vehicle slowly turn around and head back to where it came from.

After a moment more, Mike realized his chest was hunting. That's when he
remembered to breathe. Shortly after that Sarah called to him.

"Mike. I'm glad we prayed before we left.”

Chapter Two

The Police Chief sat at his desk studying the list of names of people to be
picked up on the following night. As he was checking it out, he heard 'The
Colonel' coming. He and many other foreign officers had been brought into the
country at the request of the President, and they were meant to help keep
order. But the orders they followed seemed to be the ones of their own
making. And there was no one to stop them. They were completely out of the
local law enforcements' jurisdiction, and answered only to the federal
government. In his case, it wasn't that he was loud, in fact it was quite the
reverse. The quieter he became, the more people became uneasy. The fact was
that as he came into view, everyone fell silent. Nobody wanted to attract his
attention. It was known that those who got on his bad side had a habit of
disappearing. Forever!

As 'The Colonel' entered the office the Chief rose out of his seat to greet
him. The Chief hated to do this, because as he looked into the Colonels eyes,
he saw nothing but pure evil.

"Good morning Sir! How are you doing this fine day?"

"The same as always. I’m waiting for the enemies of the state to become
nothing more than bad memories. How are YOU coming with that?"

The Chief held up the list.

"Here we have it. Every known person who has ever spoken out against the
government, plus the others, the gun owners, the veterans, home schoolers,
they are all on the list.”

The Colonel stopped him with a wave of his hand.

“How can you be so sure about gun owners? I know there are many unregistered
weapons in this country.”

Smiling the chief answered.

“That was easy. If they bought a hunting license, they must have a gun. If
they get certain types of magazines, the probably own guns. There are a
thousand ways to find out.” He paused for a moment and slightly frowned.
“There is good news and bad news. The bad news is that it seems some of those
on the list might have already left town, possibly as recent as last night.
The good news is that most of these disruptor's are still at home, waiting to
be picked up."

"Good, good. Get as many of them as you can tonight."

"Not to worry Sir. If they are anywhere around here, we'll have them by
morning."

"Make sure you get as many as possible." With that, 'The Colonel' turned on
his heel and left the Chief to his task.

The operation began in the smaller cities and towns, as night fell. Larger
cities were surrounded by the foreign troops. Nobody was allowed out, but
anyone foolish enough to try to enter the cities was allowed to proceed. Once
in the city, they wouldn't be permitted to leave again. The smaller cities
and towns were overwhelmed by foreign troops who moved with speed and
ruthlessness that was unknown to the American people. Long before dawn, in
most cases, the round-up was complete. Since most of the people had turned in
their firearms during the time the government was trying to regain control of
the country, things went very smoothly. On the few occasions if there was any
resistance, if it couldn't be quickly and easily overcome, they just backed
off, and called in the tanks. After a few high explosive shells, resistance
ended with the death of those who fought back.

The people in the cities had no idea what was going on in the countryside,
since all communications such as telephones were taken down before the start.
Two way radios were jammed to prevent anyone from talking about what was
happening. Only military frequencies were still clear. None of the civilians
used those channels, for fear of letting the military know where they were
hiding.

It was bloody work, which these men knew well, and had no qualms about doing.
Besides, after it was done, they knew they would have their pick of any women
captured. And if one of them fought back, the choice was simple. Beat them
into submission, or just shoot them and find another. Resistance was quite
limited, and brief.

In the morning, the Chief looked over the railing to the courtyard below.
Last night had been a good one. Nearly everyone on the pick-up lists had been
rounded up. With all of the help he had gotten, first in the months before
this, by the honest citizens of the state. The ones that hated guns were only
too happy to turn in those who had them. The ones that distrusted the home-
schoolers, possibly because the home schooled children usually did better not
only in school, but later in life as well, wanted their children to have a
level playing field. With the home-schoolers out of the way, now their
children had a better chance. Once the food started getting short, almost
everyone was happy to turn on those who had actually prepared for such a
possibility. It was amazing to see how these people would turn on each other
so quickly. Especially when the word got out that by doing so, they would get
part of the confiscated food as a reward. Yes, the honest
law-abiding citizens had made his job so easy. Secondly with the help of the
foreign troops, most of whom couldn't speak a word of English, the sweeps
went so fast it was amazing.

The Chief turned his back on the mass of people below, and went back into his
air conditioned office. It was early, and the day promised to be a hot one.
Besides, some of those malcontents had started looking up and pointing at
him. It made him uncomfortable. As he sat there going over the list of those
few that had managed to escape the dragnet, thinking about who to assign to
go after them, the door opened. Looking up, he saw The Colonel come into his
office. Smiling, he stood to welcome his guest. He knew that this man would
be quite pleased with the results of last night’s raids. He was certain that
he would soon get his "unimagined" reward that had been promised him. The
smile faded from his face, when he saw the three large men, in body armor
with pistols tucked into their holsters, follow The Colonel into the room.

"What's the meaning of this?" He asked as two of them came forward to first
disarm, then to bind the Chief. "I've done nothing wrong. I've gone out of my
way to help you get these malcontents rounded up."

"Yes Chief. You have been a great assistance to us. Nearly all of the people
that might cause trouble are now safely locked away, until they reach the
camps." A stone cold smile briefly crossed his face, as he thought of what
awaited the malcontents there. "We couldn't have gotten it done so quickly or
as easily as you managed to do. And that is why you will be joining them.” He
paused and fixed the chief with a cold stare. “You see Chief....or should I
say ex-Chief, since you have captured and turned over to us everyone we asked
for, how can we trust you? How could we trust someone that betrays his own
people? How could we be sure you wouldn't do the same to us?”

He waved to former Chief to silence before he could say a word.

"No matter what you say, we couldn't believe you. Save your breath. You're
going to need it. Take him away".

Once in the courtyard, the former Chief didn't have to worry about things for
very long. He had just been re-elected. Everyone there knew his face. They
knew what he had done. They weren't happy with him.

The Colonel sat at the desk of his former ally. It had been so easy. A couple
of attacks with scalar weapons to cause the "natural disasters" and the
Americans started to fall apart. Let them stew for a little while, and they
begged for the foreign troops to come in and "help" them. With the assistance
of a few well placed congressmen to disarm the population, and set them up
for the kill, the rest went very smoothly. In his mind, He imagined what it
would be like when his master showed up in Jerusalem to take his throne. Then
he would have his reward. All of those prisoners to play with. So much
delicious meat for the table. And it had been so simple. The only threat left
were the followers of the Nazarene. And the Master had plans for them.

As the sun rose, Mike, Sarah and their children finally pulled up to the
hunting cabin. Mike had never expected this previously hour long trip to take
as long as it did. After the encounter with the pursuit car, they had stayed
hidden under the bridge until it was almost dark.

”Why are we leaving when there is still a little day light left?” Sarah
wanted to know. “Wouldn't it be better to leave when it gets really dark?”

As Mike helped his wife into the car, he explained. “Honey, there have been a
lot of technological improvements over the years. With equipment they have
now it doesn't matter if it's day or night if they think they've spotted you
and really look. They will see you. But despite all the improvements that
have been made, dusk and dawn remain the times when a man’s observational
powers are at their weakest. The changes in light and shadow are hard to
adjust to. Once your eyes get adjusted to one level of light, the lighting
has already changed. This is the best time to make up some distance before
its dark enough for the night vision stuff to work properly and when men have
a harder time seeing.”

Carefully they left their hideout and continued on their way. It wasn't long
before Mike turned off the road onto a small dusty little one lane dirt road.
As she turned the S.U.V. onto the road behind her husband Sarah asked Tommy
if he knew what was going on.

“Oh, yeah. Dad has been taking all these dirt roads around here for years,
whenever we went hunting. He always said that the deer aren't going to stand
by the edge of the Hi-way and wait for you to come by. You have to go find
them. So anyway, he knows which ones go where. I guess he thinks this will
keep us out of sight a little better.”

“I guess that makes sense.” Sarah said as she remembered hitting the brakes
earlier. “But why are we traveling so slowly?”

“Dust. When you go even a little bit too fast down these roads, you kick up a
lot of dust. During hunting season everyone tries to not raise a lot of it as
a courtesy to other hunters. Here and now, I think Dad doesn't want to make
it easy for someone to find us.”

Sarah looked at her son with new eyes. She'd never heard him speak this way
before. He wasn't a child any longer. She thought for a moment before
speaking again.

“So, where did you learn about all of these things?”

Tommy smiled sheepishly and said,

“Mom, Dad and I had a lot of time to talk while we were out here. We talked
about a lot of things. Don't get me wrong, he didn't try and force me to
believe anything he believes in. What he did was mostly answer my questions. “

“Questions about what?”

“Oh, everything. The Bible, politics,” Tommy paused briefly, looked down and
half mumbled, “Girls. All kinds of things. That's why I think he doing what I
said. I got to know him pretty well.”

“So it would seem.” Wisely, Sarah let the 'girls' comment pass without
notice. But she made a mental note to herself to have a talk with Mike.

They continued on through the night at a snail’s pace it seemed. Mike was
driving with only his parking lights on, which made it much harder to see the
road and made him drive very slowly, but he also knew that headlights shining
off the trees at night could be seen miles away. The parking lights wouldn't.
Then Mike started doing something that Sarah had never known him to do. He
would stop as far as possible from an intersection of two dirt roads, turn
off his lights, get out of the truck and look through something for several
minutes. Satisfied, he would get back in the truck, turn on the parking
lights again and move forward.

“Do you have any idea what your father is doing?”

“I think he's checking out the intersections before we get there.”

“How is he doing that?”

“He's using a night vision scope kind of thing he has. He calls it a

monocular. He said he'd like to have one of those really good sets of night
vision that you wear on your head, but they are too expensive. So, what he
has is better than nothing. He's let me look through it at hunt camp. That
thing works really good. You can see a lot more with that at night, than you
can with your eye, that’s for sure.”

Sarah had been looking at her son while he spoken. Now she again looked out
the windshield. She had always known that Mike took his responsibilities as
both a husband and a father very seriously. She just hadn't realized how far
ahead in his thinking he actually was. He identified the need to put away
food, just in case something happened, years before she did. He had made
certain they had many of the things they were going to need when it came time
for leaving, within his ability to provide. He was the one who had insisted
that she be able to at least point a weapon in the right direction before
shooting, but she never really found the enjoyment in it that he did. Tonight
she was glad she learned to handle a weapon. She even understood that some of
what he was doing had to have come from his military training. But, night
vision? When did he get that? Where did he get that? She admitted to herself
that Mike had never tried to hide anything from her. But
he didn’t talk a lot about it either. And most times she didn't even bother
to ask. It was just another of his many pet projects. Yes, she trusted Mike.
She only wished that she'd paid a little more attention to what he'd been
saying and doing. At least that much, she knew she could do something about.

For his part, Mike indeed had been using the night vision piece to
investigate the road ahead. He'd also used it while behind the wheel on a
couple of occasions. He had gotten it off of one of those on line local city
classified ad pages. He had gotten a lot of things that way. Most
importantly, a couple of shotguns, a pistol and a rifle. Since all sales were
local face to face deals, there was no legal requirement to register the
weapons, and he didn't. There wasn't a trace that he owned a weapon anywhere.
He had also figured that walking out of one store with a lot of ammunition
was sure to attract attention. But by walking out of several stores with just
a few boxes, he wouldn't be noticed. Even if he did it every couple of weeks.
Soon there was a sizable stack of ammunition for each weapon. He just hoped
he wouldn't need the weapons tonight. The dirt roads he was taking would keep
him off the main roads almost all the way to their destination. But
there was one section of paved road they had to take that was about five
miles long that they simply would have to travel on. Mike looked upward
briefly and said;

“Lord, I know we've spoken about this before, but we really are going to need
your protection on that part of the trip tonight. Please watch over us all.
Amen.”

The prayer made him think of timing his trip down the paved road. He wanted
to pick a time when any patrols wouldn't be covering that part of the road.
He couldn't know exactly when the patrols might be there. But by knowing the
town they where they would likely be coming from, and how long it would take
them to reach the area, He could make what he hoped was a pretty good guess.
He looked at the dashboard clock and was surprised to learn that they hadn't
gotten very far in the time they'd spent on the road. He wanted to go faster,
but knew that rushing was a mistake. It made you get sloppy, and that would
get you caught. So he resolved himself to continue to check out potential
trouble spots before he got to them. If it took extra time, let it. Better
safe than sorry.

His mind drifted to Sarah. She was a good and Godly wife. He was proud of
her. Unlike many people she too could see the signs of what was coming and
adjust to the circumstances. Like when they had left home. True she needed a
little prodding, but she didn't deny the truth. If they stayed, they'd be
caught and punished for having the foresight to know that having extra food
was a good idea. She didn't always agree with him, and sometimes she had been
proven right. She never said 'I told you so' when those things happened. She
just helped him carry on and never spoke of the matter again, no matter what
it was. And their son took after her in that way.

As the night wore on, Mike realized that a stop from time to time would be in
order to allow everyone a chance to stretch their legs. It was during one of
these stops that Mike and Sarah spoke privately.

“Mike, we can't stay at the cabin forever. What are we going to do?”

“Honey, right now I'm more concerned with just getting there. We should have
been able to make it before sun down today. Then we had that trouble earlier
and that took a lot of time from us. Moving slow like this doesn't help
either. It's nearly two A.M. as it is.” He sighed. “At least the younger two
are sleeping. What about Tommy and you? How are the two of you holding up?”

“Tommy's' fine, and I'm learning a lot about you.” Sarah smiled at him when
he looked at her questioningly. “What kind of questions did he ask you about
girls?”

“You know, I think it's time we got back on the road. We still have a ways to
go.”

“You're avoiding the question.” She called out to his back.

“You bet I am.” Came the reply.

Now here it was. Sunrise on the next day, and they finally arrived at the
cabin. The younger children having spent so much time cooped up in the S.U.V.
Began to chase one another around the front of the cabin. Tommy simply got
out and with shotgun in hand walked over to a rocking chair on the porch and
sat down with the laid weapon across his lap. He turned his head and watched
the road they had come up. No matter how much he rocked, his eyes stayed
glued to the approach to the cabin.

With a promise of more play time later Sarah got the youngest two children to
help her begin the job of unloading the vehicle. Mike again walked to the
back of it to inspect the damage done by the collision. He saw that the
bottom of the hatch had been curled under and he thought if he could just get
the door to open a little he could possibly find a way to get under it to
force it open if necessary. He grabbed the handle for opening the door and
tried it. Nothing happened. He began to work with the handle, lifting it to
see what he would have to do to get it off so he could have a chance to
attack the lock inside. As he stood there thinking about what to do, Sarah
came out of the cabin towards him. She saw the look on his face and knew he
was somewhere again, working on one of his problems. Not wanting to disturb
him, she eased her way in front of him with a polite,

“Excuse me, Honey”.

She stuck the key into the lock, turned it, and lifted the hatch open. For a
moment, she had doubts about Mike’s sanity as he collapsed onto the ground,
laughing at himself.

Chapter Three

Kathy couldn't believe this was happening. After all, this was America, it
couldn't happen here. But it was. Before the power had become so unreliable,
and sporadic, she and her husband Tim, had seen the President come on the
T.V. to talk to the American people. If she had only known what was really on
his mind, she wouldn’t have been so quick to comply with the authorities.

He had said that due to the severity of the disasters, martial law was in
effect. With most of the military engaged in the Middle East, the President
had an idea. One that had been on his mind for a long time. N.A.T.O. troops
as well as others were already in America. Some had been stationed on active
military bases. Others were kept out of sight on bases that had been closed
down for years. None of them cared a bit about the Constitution. They would
do as they were told, without remorse or hesitation. After all, they weren't
shooting their own people. This was America. These Americans needed to be
brought down. They had been running things all over the world for far too
long. The President knew that was what they were thinking. This was his
chance to take full control over the nation. The members of Congress didn't
have a place to meet with martial law in effect. Unless he chose to allow it.
He would make sure they never did. With numerous Presidential
Orders, and Presidential Decision Directives already in place, in case of
something like this, he had the authority to rule by decree.

It wasn't long before the members of different gangs in every major city,
found out that these men weren't what they were expecting. Foolishly they had
assumed they would be like the cops they were used to, and could deal with.
They had expected these troops to follow the law, as did the American
National Guardsmen. They didn't. It was as if they made up their own laws as
they went along. Soon the gang bangers were starting to drop like flies, as
the foreign troops opened fire on them on sight. They didn't even try to
capture them. They just shot them.

Nobody was to leave their home. All citizens were requested to give every
assistance to the foreign troops. Unfortunately the troops had been sent to
the larger cities and towns first. Kathy and Tim hadn't even seen so much as
a military truck yet.

Many people had welcomed these men who were putting a long awaited end to the
gang’s reign of terror. At least in the beginning. But there had been stories
about some of the troops starting to behave even worse than the gangs. Taking
whatever struck their fancy, and there was nobody to stop them. Food, drink,
money, and in some cases it was rumored, even women and children, were taken.
Never to be seen again.

So the surviving gang members had simply moved out of the cities, and were
now terrorizing the countryside.

While Kathy huddled with their children in the back bedroom, Tim, her
husband, gripped and re-gripped the baseball bat in his hands. He knew it
wouldn't be much help in the face of the gang bangers, but it was all he had.
They had never been into the outdoors kind of thing, and when Kathy had
gotten pregnant with their first child, Tim toyed with the idea of getting a
gun of some kind, for protection. However, when he brought up the subject to
her, Kathy talked him out of it. After all, the police were only a phone call
away, and everyone knew it wasn't wise to keep a loaded weapon around small
children. He now regretted that he had allowed his wife to talk him out of
it.

Suddenly shots rang out. Not just one or two, but numerous shots. They seemed
to go on and on in a fashion, almost but not quite, like a machine gun. The
crowd of people scattered. All except those who wouldn't ever go anywhere
again.

That's when her cell phone rang. She answered it to hear;

"Kathy, are you guys alright?"

It was Bob. He lived across the street. She knew he was a veteran, but never
really paid much attention to what he talked about. He was such a paranoid
person.

"Yes Bob, we are still here."

"O.K. I'm in the front yard. I'm coming for you. Get everyone ready to move
to my place."

"Why?"
"Maybe I'm mistaken, but you don't seem to be ready for what is going on
today." Half jokingly he asked, "Do you want me to leave?"

"NO, no. Wait a minute, we are coming out."

“Hold on."

Another shot was heard. Then she heard Bob say;

"That one was faking it. Alright, come ahead. And let's be quick about
getting across the street."

Kathy and Tim both did what they could to keep the children from witnessing
the dead bodies in the yard, and near the front door, but there was no way to
prevent them from seeing at least some of the carnage.

She looked at Bob as they started to jog to his house. He was carrying a
small rifle with an unbelievably long magazine sticking out of it. Somewhere
in the back of her mind, the term "banana clip" surfaced. She noticed a
second one sticking out of one of Bob’s back pockets. He was also wearing
what seemed to be a bullet proof vest.

They moved as quickly as they could, but with young children in tow their
speed was somewhat reduced. Still, in just a couple of minutes they were in
Bobs' home. They noticed that the over-sized glass doors in his living room
were boarded up, all except for a couple of small slits cut into the wood.
Under these slits were sand bags stacked up to just below the level of the
cut out. Between the cut outs were weapons leaning against the walls, with
boxes and boxes of ammunition.

The smaller two children were taken into one of the back bed-rooms, and told
to wait for a few minutes. Bob went into the garage, and started his
generator, which made surprisingly little noise, since he had added
additional baffles to the exhaust. Returning to the children, he turned on a
T.V. and put a suitable tape into the old fashioned V.C.R. and began the show
to keep them busy while the older folks talked.

He then went into the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. Their older two
sons sat in the living room while Kathy and Tim sat in the dining area and
watched in amazement. It was almost as if nothing had changed in Bobs' home.
T.V. with coffee. The food in the fridge was cold, and the ice maker could be
heard filling with water in the freezer. If it weren't for the boarded up
windows, and the pistol that never left Bobs' hip, it might be just like any
other night, before it had all started.

"O.K. folks, coffee will be ready in a moment. But if you'll excuse me, I'm
in the mood for something a bit more stout."
With that, he opened a cabinet, pulled out a bottle of Rum, and poured
himself a drink.

"Alright. I think we need to have a talk. After the events of today, I don't
think I'm going to have to try too hard to convince you both that you need to
have some weapons. Do I?"

Bob was almost shocked when Tim answered.

"Bob, don't get me wrong, we are truly thankful for what you have done. But
Kathy and I talked this over a long time ago, and agreed to not keep weapons
in the house. As a matter of fact, I think maybe you should make sure that
none of your guns are loaded around the kids."

Bob couldn't believe it.

"Tell me something Tim, does it hurt very much?"

"Hurt? I’m not hurt. What are you talking about?"

"Being THAT stupid has got to be physically painful. If it's not, it should
be. Both of your vehicles have been trashed. The same is true for the front
door of your house. When you came out, all you had was a baseball bat. How
much did you expect to do with that?"

The older man shook his head, and continued.

"Son, all you were going to do was die. And I don't even want to think about
what was going to happen to your wife and daughters. Maybe even your sons, if
those gang bangers were sick enough."

He paused long enough to take a drink from his glass, and continued.

"You people almost died today. And I promise you, that death would have been
very ugly and painful. It nearly happened because you have no way to defend
yourselves. Now you want me to disarm myself? It's not going to happen. What
are you thinking?"

Kathy looked at Bob, as he spoke, with renewed respect. It was true he was
sometimes a little rough around the edges, but you always knew where you
stood with him. There wasn't anything wishy-washy about him. He didn't often
give his word, but when he did, you knew he would keep it, or die trying. He
was nothing less than whole-hearted in everything he did. And while
politically conservative, he was usually liberal with his words of wisdom.
Like the time two years before when he was helping Tim remove a couple of
trees that had died and were endangering their home. He worked hard that day,
side by side with Tim, for most of the day. At one point, she had brought him
a glass of iced tea and suggested that he should leave the rest of the
cleanup of the downed trees to Tim and her two oldest sons.
"You've been working hard all day, and that is good enough. Tim and the boys
can finish."

Bob gratefully accepted the tea, took a drink, and said;

"Kathy, haven't you ever noticed how 'good enough' usually isn't?"

He took another swallow, then set the glass down, and went back to work. For
Bob, honor wasn't a word. It was a way of life.

"Tim, wait a minute. Bob is right.” She saw him start to speak and stopped
him. “Hold on. Hold on. I know I was the one that was against having a gun in
the house. I was wrong Tim. Today proves how wrong I was. We aren't going to
get through this without them."

Tim looked at his wife. Surprise plain on his face.

"Honey, are you sure about this? Neither one of us has ever held, let alone
used a gun before. I don't even know how to load one."

"When we were in the house, and those people were outside, breaking in, I
wanted a gun. I wanted to stop those people by whatever means necessary. I
think we can get some instruction on how to shoot, can't we Bob?"

"That can be arranged. In fact, I think since you now own some weapons, it
would be a very good idea."

"Bob? What are you talking about? We don't own any guns."

"Sure you do. I happen to know that you own at least one shotgun and four or
five pistols. I saw them out there on your front lawn. After all, the former
owners are hardly likely to complain about it."

Kathy wondered. How did he come up with these wise words so easily.

Tim felt sick. Just like many Americans, he'd seen the war movies. When
veterans talked, he heard the stories. But nothing he had seen or heard
prepared him for this. He just wasn't ready for the reality of just how much
of a mess that a bullet could make of a man. Nobody had ever mentioned the
horrible smell either.

"Check the pockets for spare magazines and ammo." Bob called out. "Try not to
miss anything of value. Anything we can use to defend ourselves. Radios,
knives, or anything at all. That one closest to the door was the first one I
put down. I saw him stick a handgun in his waistband before he started on the
glass. Roll him over and get it."

Tim noticed the bullet had hit the dead man in the back of the head. He
rolled the body over to retrieve the pistol and made the mistake of looking
at what was left of the face. This time he did get sick.

After a few moments he heard,

"Tim, Are you O.K. now?"

"I think so. Are we done here?"

"Yeah, we're done. Lets' go."

As they again carefully crossed the street, checking both directions to see
if they were being observed. Tim spoke again.

"Bob, how long do you think it will be before we can move back into our home?
After that mess is cleaned up I mean."

"Tim, I wouldn't recommend that. We've been lucky so far. They got badly hurt
the first time. They are licking their wounds right now, but they will be
back. And they will be in greater numbers. Your place is totally
indefensible. There are too many windows, and other places like your sunroom,
where it can be broken into. Thin walls and those glass doors that lead out
to the pool. I'll bet you don't even have the first sheet of plywood to cover
any of that glass, do you?"

Tim shook his head.

"Even if you could secure that place, you have no food to speak of, no
generator to power the stove, or any other means of preparing food. And you
STILL need to learn how to shoot. With just a few handguns, and a pump
shotgun, you won't last long when they do come back."

"What about you? You're only one man. Your house has a lot of glass as well.
Aren't you worried about it?"

Bob smiled grimly.

"I may have gotten out of the service many years ago, but I still know a few
tricks. Have you noticed how any opening big enough for a man to get through
has been either boarded up, or the opening has been at least partially
blocked off?"

"Sort of, but what about your front door? It is still wide open."

"Yes, it is. I WANT them to come to that door. You can't get close to it
without being in the open. That makes them a perfect target. Truth is, Son
that I've arranged for them to come that way. I'm channeling them into a
shooting gallery."

"You are still just one man."

"Yes, but have you ever heard of something called 'force multiplication'?"

"No."

"We'll discuss it later. Right now, lets’ get back inside so we can get
started on your education."

After what Tim had said earlier about unloading weapons to keep the children
safe, Bob had no illusions of how things were going to go next.

"Bob! You can't be serious. Sammy and Tommy are just BOYS. They aren't ready
for anything like this." Kathy exploded.

"Kathy, they WERE boys. After today, that childhood is at an end. From here
on out, they are young men. How old are they now? 14? 16?"

Kathy nodded.

"You know as well as I do that in some places your older boy would already be
looking for a wife. Both of them would be expected to contribute to the
welfare of their tribe or whatever, by hunting, and even fighting should that
tribe be attacked."

"But this is America! We aren't some third world country."

Bob sighed and shook his head. "This WAS America. The world we knew and loved
is as dead as a stone, or hadn't you noticed? There are foreign troops
patrolling the streets, doing whatever they please. They answer only to the
President, while he is ruling by decree. And he’s done nothing to try to
control them. Does that sound like the 'Land of the Free, and Home of the
Brave' to you? It sure doesn't to me. You two better understand right now,
all bets are off. NOTHING will be the same ever again. With those two having
at least a handgun, we have doubled our chances of surviving. And the extra
two sets of eyes will help keep us safe."

"But that doesn't mean they have to have a gun!"

"Well, you tell me. What if something happens, and we get separated from one
of them? And what if they run into people like those from this morning?
Wouldn't you want them to be able to defend themselves? What if something
happens to YOU?"

Kathy searched for something to say. If this were as little as two months
ago, she would have just called the police. Now there were no police.
"Those young men NEED to learn how to shoot. Lives will depend on it."

Shortly after this, Tim, Kathy, Sammy and Tommy, were gathered around the
dining table watching as Bob explained the basics of handguns. Soon they were
all able to load, unload, arm, and disarm the pistols. Bob was about to go
into the workings of the pump shotgun when one of the younger children came
out of the back room.

"Mr. Bob? Why is there a car battery in your hallway?"

"I had to leave it there for a little while. I didn't want those bad people
to get it." He said.

"Oh. Mom, Dad, Mr. Bob, I think I saw some of those bad guys."

"Where did you see them?"

"Down by the end of the house."

"This is it!" Bob said, "Everyone grab a weapon. Remember what I told you.
You don't have training to be marksmen, so just try to get the bullet
somewhere close enough to scare them. If you can’t hit them, just try to keep
them from shooting at us."

Each person old enough to carry a weapon, picked up one from the table, and
moved to a separate view slit in the boarded up windows to which Bob had
assigned them. It was Sammy that spoke up first.

"I see two of them out back. They just seem to be looking at the house. They
aren't trying to get in."

"Nobody’s on my side." Kathy called out.

"Those two in the back yard are starting to go back where they came from."
Tommy shouted from the far end of the house.

"Tim? What about you?"

"Nothing yet. Wait a minute. They are sneaking towards the front door.
They’re right up against the wall."

"Anything in the mirror?" Bobs' home was L shaped. The front door was located
at the crook in the L. He had placed a small curved mirror above the door.
Similar to the kind many truckers had on their rear view mirrors. That way a
person in one part of the L could use it to see what was coming up on his
blind side.

"Yes! I can make out at least three."

"Tim, do you remember me saying something about 'force multiplication'?"

"Yes."

"When they get within six feet of the door, tell me. Then get down."

"NOW!"

Bob touched three certain wires of several sticking out of the wall to the
car battery. From the crook in the L, booby traps, buried just an inch under
the ground, exploded. Bits and pieces of broken glass, nails, and even small
stones fired outward and traveled along the outside walls in both directions.
The gang members were lifted off their feet, and were thrown backwards. Only
the ones nearest the end of the line got up to limp away.

"THAT'S what I was talking about."

After the bombs had been blown, a second group started to rush the back side
of the house. A shouted warning from Tom and Sam was all that was needed. Two
more explosions' went off in the back yard, with the same kind of result.
Several gang members were cut down instantly. The rest of them backed off.
NOTHING in that house was worth these kinds of losses. Soon there was nobody
left outside. At least, nobody that was still breathing.

As soon as Bob and Tim had gathered all the weapons, spare ammo, and other
things they might need from those who wouldn't need them any longer, they
returned to the house. Both Tim and Kathy were surprised to hear Bob say;

"Time to pack up, and get out of Dodge."

"Why?” Kathy asked. “We've shown them it's not safe for them to come here, I
don't think they'll come back after this. We have BOMBS for goodness sake.
They don't what to mess with that."

Bob smiled to himself as he heard Kathy say 'We'. He said nothing, and let it
pass. She was thinking of the group, not just her family or herself. It was a
good thing.

"Kathy, that is exactly why we have to leave. Now, you've never served in
uniform, so I don't expect you to see things as I do. They may not look like
an army, but whoever is directing them knows military tactics. Just like an
army in wartime, they move into an area, either pacify it, or burn it to the
ground, then the move to the next area. Not always in a straight line, but
always where they see the next biggest threat to them.

In a case like this, where they hit a strong point, standard procedure is to
back off, and wait for more men to show up. They will be men with bigger and
better weapons. We have to be gone before they get here. And they'll never be
weaker, or more disorganized, than now. We MUST go now."

"Bob! If we have to pack up, how do we leave right now?"

"We thank God for His provisioning. TOM, SAM, over here please."

Kathy wondered what he was saying, and was a little irked that Bob was
ordering her sons around. But, so far, Bob had done everything he could for
them, and had been right about the gangs coming back. She held her piece to
see what he would say next, while noticing that he now addressed her sons in
a more adult fashion.

"Tom, I want you to take the position by the view slits at the front door.
Sam you take the slits in the first bed room on the right as you go down the
hall. Either of you see anything at all, sing out loud and clear. Understand
me? Good. Take your positions. Tim, Kathy, follow me please."

Bob turned and went to the door leading to the two car garage. He spoke as he
moved through the door.

"Jesus said, just as in the days of Noah, so shall it be...' Well, I'm not as
good of a carpenter, and I don't have time to build an Ark. So, we 'man the
lifeboats'."

As Bob stepped aside, and in the garage Tim and Kathy could see Bobs' old
pickup truck, and his late wife’s S.U.V. Both were packed for traveling, and
strangely enough, pointed outwards.

Kathy sat down on the step. "Bob, this is too much. How could you know about
all of this? I refuse to take another step, until you answer some questions."

"Kathy, ask your questions, but we are running short on time. I'll answer
you, but Tim and I have work to do. Tim, come help me, please. We need to
take out some of this canned food, and make a hollow space in the middle,
behind the front seat, for the youngest two. You pass out the boxes, and I'll
set aside the ones we're going to put back in."

He moved aside as Tim opened the door and got started.

"Kathy, to answer your first question, I have to ask, how did you NOT know?"

"Not know? What do you mean?"

"I know you two are Christians. You even invited me to your church after
Nancy...Well, you know."

They knew. Nancy had been a very good neighbor. Always ready to help others,
and do what she could for them. She even baked cookies and other treats for
her children once in awhile, and on birthdays and other holidays. Then, one
morning while on the treadmill at the gym, her heart just stopped. Nothing
could be done to revive her.

"Anyway, do you remember when we first moved in, about ten years ago? I gave
you a book, called 'Through the Fire, Without Burning' about Dimitru Duduman.
You never read it did you?"

She shook her head.

"Everything that is happening now was prophesied in that book. Not in this
much detail, of course, but an internal U.S. revolution is in there. The man
who gave the prophecies went home to be with The Lord, in the mid nineties,
but not one of his prophecies has failed. If you had read the book I gave
you, you would be ready for today." Interrupting himself, he said, "That's
good, Tim. Now we need to open the hatch and make a little space back there."

"Why?" Tim asked as he moved to do as he had been told.

"Either Tom, or Sam is going to sit back here as a rear guard. You'll have to
choose which one."

"But our pastor told us we'd be taken out before anything bad happened. He
even had all kinds of books on it, and scriptural verses to back him up as
well."

"I'm sure he did. You know, I would be willing to bet he never explained away
Matt. 24:29 to 31. In those verses, Jesus Christ, himself says he will return
AFTER the tribulation. How long after? Do as Jesus said. Study Daniel and the
other prophets. In the last part of Daniel, he says the anti-Christ will rule
for 1260 days. In another place it is 1290 days. Then he says 'Blessed is he
that waiteth and cometh unto the one thousand three hundred, five and
thirtieth day.' What would make him say something like that?

Go back to Matt. 24. What happens just after the tribulation? 'Then shall
appear the sign of the son of man appearing in the east.' Not to mention how
so many preachers will quote Paul when he speaks of us being taken out of
here in 1 Thess. 4:16. And yet they completely ignore what is said in the
verse just before the one they use.

1Thes. 4: 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we
which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent
them which are asleep.
Alive and remain? Unto the coming of The Lord? That clearly identifies that
time as after the Tribulation. Kathy, if you have studied your bible, then
you should know all this. As Paul said to Timothy, 'Study, to show thyself
approved unto God.'" Again he turned and spoke to her husband. "O.K. Tim you
grab the duct tape and follow me. Kathy, would you turn on the head lights
please?"

She climbed into the four wheel drive, and the lights came on.

"Alright, this little trick is called 'cats' eyes'. We are going to tape
across the headlights, side to side, and up and down until there is only a
small slit showing. You won't be able to see much, but neither will they.
Just go slow and stay on my rear. Kathy, watch the light from the head lights
on the door. Tell me when the shadow blocks out everything above the hood."

Bob pulled out a piece of duct tape and held it in front of the headlight.
With Kathy to guide him he soon stuck the tape over the light, blocking out
much of it, and wrapping it well around the side of the truck as well as
across the front grill. He then applied more tape to the lower part of the
light until there was only a space about a inch high, and three inches long
allowing the light out. Passing the tape to Tim, he said;

"Do the same to the other headlight. Use what you can see shining on the door
to be your guide."

"This is going to ruin your paint."

"I think I'll get over it."

As they began to repack the S.U.V. Kathy couldn't help but notice the sheer
volume of food. While Bob and Tim were covering the headlights and tail
lights with the duct tape to help hide their movement, she looked into the
pickup. Behind the front seat were a number of weapons as well as box after
box of ammunition. Sitting next to them was a water purifier. Then there was
another box about a foot square with nothing but bars of soap. On and on it
went, both in the front of the truck, and in the bed.

"Bob? How in the world did you ever get all this put together? I don't think
you've missed anything. How did you find the time and money to do all of
this?"

"A wise man once said, 'Do something, and do it right now. No matter how big
or small, if you do anything, it is infinitely better than sitting around
later thinking about what you should have done'. A wiser man, Paul said to do
all we can, and then stand. ALL is a pretty broad term, so I did what I
could, a little at a time, and now I'm here.

I don't think I have to mention that weapons would be a good idea. As today
has proved the first two people at the scene of any violent crime are the
criminal and the victim. Kathy, you know I'm not a criminal, but I refuse to
be a victim. As for all of this," He waved his hand at the parked vehicles.
"It was a little at a time. I buy a big bag of rice this week, I eat next
month. I also buy another extra bag of rice as often as I can. If not rice,
then spices, ammunition, all kinds of things. The point is DO SOMETHING, and
DO IT NOW. If you wait, you lose. Maybe some money, maybe your life, but you
still lose."

"Okay I understand that, but I mean where did you find all of this stuff?
Didn't anyone ask why you were getting all of this? I can't imagine you
walking out of the store with a box of bar soap under your arm."

"As I said. Bit by bit. Nobody thinks a thing about someone buying one or two
bars of soap. They don't even remember it, even if you do it every week to
ten days or so. That helps to keep a low profile. It also helps when you
spread your purchases out over several stores. One other thing, you would be
amazed at some of the deals you can get at garage sales."

"Garage sales? Are you serious?"

"Yes I am. You know we had them. Truth is, that's where the box of soap you
mentioned came from. Garage sales allowed me to take advantage of things like
that, camping equipment, and other things, while gaining experience in the
fine art of bargaining at the same time." He paused to pick up a stuffed back
pack from the bed of the truck. She saw the letters 'U.S.' stamped on the
bag. Bob spoke again. "Like this thing. A brand new U.S. Army issue ruck sack
with a waist band. They asked for ten, I countered with five and we settled
on seven. It was a bargain at ten."

"How did you explain all of this to Nancy?"

"Sometimes I had a reasonable answer for her, like the generator. Other times
I just bought things and when she insisted I return it to the store, I just
had to stick to my guns and refuse. She didn't like it, but she had no real
reason to complain about it, so she eventually gave up. The things I picked
up in garage sales that didn't work out, either went to a charity, or were
sold in our next garage sale."

Chapter Four

Reports were coming into the Presidents' office, from the Regional Directors.
Things were going well. All major cities and towns were, if not pacified, at
least under siege. Confusion in those places was the order of the day. That
was good. Food shortages were bound to be next. The more the population was
confused, the weaker they were, the less the chance for any kind of organized
resistance. Being encircled, nothing and nobody got in or out. The useless
eaters in them were on their own, with no chance for outside help.

Out in the countryside, things weren't going quite so well. In many places
there was resistance to the rabble of invading gangs, but that meant when the
troops were done doing their job in the cities, there would be fewer to
resist them when they moved out into the surrounding hills, valleys, and flat
lands. The unknowing cannon fodder that the gangs really were would have done
their job by then. If they actually managed to take over a town or two, that
just meant the locals would welcome their deliverers with open arms, just as
they had done in the cities. True, there were a few places where things could
have gone better, but that was already figured into the plan. After all, you
can't make omelets without breaking a few eggs. Besides, no-one cared what
happened to these vermin anyway.

Still, he was bothered about how things were turning out in the south eastern
region, and in certain western areas. It could be, SHOULD be, going smoother.
He picked up the phone. The conversation with the Southern Regional Director
was short, sharp, and to the point. Eliminate resistance, or someone who
could, would be found.

Director Claire put the phone down. His ears were still ringing with the
Presidents' displeasure. Then he picked it up again.

"Find Jose' and get him in here. Now!" was shouted into the phone before it
was slammed back down.

He sat down to look at the reports again. He hated to admit it, but the
President was right. Things should be going much better than this. Here and
there, throughout his region the MS-13 members that had been turned loose on
the population were taking unacceptable losses. Those stupid red-necks out in
the countryside were fighting back. Maybe they weren't organized yet, but
they were doing a lot of damage. As he scanned the lists of known resisters'
names, he couldn't help but notice that many of them were veterans of
military service. Not all, but many of them.

Should these people get together, they already knew how to fight, and they
knew how to give, and how to carry out orders. They could train others. They
were an unacceptable threat. Then, there were the reports from some places,
of people gathering in churches. Most of the time, the gangs waited for the
doors to close, then moved in and began the slaughter. But there were a few
churches, by the time MS_13 moved in to wipe them out, the entire building
was empty. All vehicles from out front had simply vanished. He knew what it
meant. They were getting help from 'the other side'. Helpers sent by 'the
Nazarene'. The problem was he couldn't prove that.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

Director Claire looked up as Jose' entered the room. What a mismatched pair
they were. He stood there in his beautiful three piece suit, and Jose'
walking in wearing torn jeans, a t-shirt, and a sleeveless jacket with the
MS-13 colors and symbols, like the spider-web, sewn all over it. What could
be seen of his arms showed tattoos that were much the same. He smelled of
marijuana and beer, and walked with a cocky self assurance. Behind him came
his number one man. Manuel, who looked very much like Jose', but each of them
knew who was the head man.
"Hey, Director Claire. How’s' it going?"

"You've failed me!" Claire shouted; "You were supposed to have your area
under control by now!"

"Hey man, you never told me that these dumb rednecks would shoot back like
that. This is your fault, not mine."

Clair quieted and calmed himself.

"This is your country, these are your people, you should have known. You
should have known what your enemies could do. You didn't and you've lost too
many men, and the job still isn't done. You failed me."

With that, he picked up the pistol on his desk, and shot Jose' twice, in the
classic style of an assassin. Once in the chest, to put him down, and a
second to the head to make sure he stayed there. He then turned the weapon on
Manuel.

"Looks like you just got promoted. YOU are the head man now. You know what I
want. GET IT DONE!!!"

Wisely, Manuel backed out of the room, keeping his eyes glued to the pistol,
until he could make a dive for the door, and out of the line of fire.

Claire pushed a button on his desk,

"Get someone in here to clean up this mess."

"Alright, we need to be going." Bob said. "I think it best if we put Tim
behind the wheel of the SUV, I'll drive my truck. Like I told you, either Tom
or Sam needs to be in the back, the other one will ride next to Tim. The
smaller children ride just behind him. Kathy, you ride with me."

"Why can't we all ride together? The kids and us I mean." Kathy asked.

"Two reasons. First, to do that means we have to leave more food behind.
Second, I could use someone riding 'shotgun' with me. Kathy, I truly feel
that Tim is the better choice for the SUV. Those young men will need his
guidance.' Bob smiled briefly, "Besides' you are the one with the most
questions, and I did promise answers."

"What about the generator?" Tim asked.

"Leave it. Where we are going, the noise and light might give us away. Think
of this as an extended camping trip."
Tim, Kathy, Tom, Sam, the children, and Bob gathered in the kitchen for a
prayer of protection and guidance before moving to the garage and pulling the
vehicles out. It was just starting to get dark. He was happy to see that the
lights, both front and rear, which had been taped over, gave just a small
amount of light. At this point, Bob stopped, reached underneath his seat, and
pulled out a half dozen roadside flares.

"I'll be right back." Was all he said.

Bob re-entered the home, alone. As he walked down the hallway, memories of
his life here with Nancy, and their son, flooded his mind. The Persian
carpets muffled his footsteps for what he knew was the last time. He gazed
briefly at the photos, and art work Nancy had collected over the years. He
wondered for the thousandth time if his son had managed to survive everything
so far, and how he was doing. He wished he could go to his son, and help him,
as he had done so many times before. He knew it was out of the question. The
young man was too far away, and in one of the cities that was under siege.

Walking back to the bed room he and Nancy had shared, He took one last
longing look. Then he ignited one of the flares, and tossed it onto their
bed. Turning to the doorway leading to their sons' room, he did the same.
Walking back through the house, he stopped only briefly at certain points,
lit more flares, and left them burning on the furniture. He had decided long
ago, if the time ever came when he was forced to leave his home, NOTHING
would be left for those who forced him out to use against him, or anyone
else, or to enjoy for themselves.

As he climbed back into the truck, Kathy looked at him. Then she stared
through the windshield. It didn't seem the time to ask questions, and the
tears on Bobs' face told the story. In fact, she remained quiet as they
slowly made their way completely out of town. She was only a little surprised
when Bob stopped once, got a pair of bolt cutters, and set to work on a fence
that was blocking their way.

Instead of taking the main road, he had gone to the backside of their
neighborhood, to a chain link fence that separated it from the development
behind theirs. The fence was the only thing that prevented them from crossing
from one to the other. After the fence was down, Bob drove across somebody’s
back yard, hit the road out in front, and made his way to a secondary road
leading out of town. He knew it was little traveled, and hoped because of
that, it would be unguarded. He was right. Soon they were out of town and
heading into the night. Behind them, the glow of a major fire could be seen.

Two hours later, Kathy realized that they were going to be following the
service road for the railroad for some time to come. She had also noticed
that the tears, and occasional sniff, from Bob had stopped. She began to ask
her questions again.
"Bob, every step of the way, you have been ready for anything that happened.
Now I think I understand what you were getting at with the Bible verses, and
maybe I should have read that book, but even you said that nothing covered
all this in fine detail. So how did you know?"

"You really haven't heard from them, have you?"

"Heard from whom?"

"The angels."

"What? Bob now you are scaring me. What do you mean 'the Angels'?"

"Just that, angels. You know the messengers of God. You see, it is just like
the Bible says in Amos. 'God will do nothing without revealing His secret to
His servants, the prophets.’ Now I'm no prophet. However a friend of mine,
whom God has used prophetically in the past, told me that when the time came
for me to leave my home and get to a place of His choosing, I would be warned
in a visitation by an angel."

"That is a lot of faith on really thin proof. Bob."

"True. But you know what is written. 'Now faith is the substance of things
hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.' I placed my faith in what I
believed to be a word from God. Like Noah, I moved to prepare an 'ark'
without any sign that I was doing the right thing. I prayed about it a lot as
well. Nancy always thought I was a little off center about it, but I did what
I could." At the mention of her name, tears started to well up in his eyes
again.

"Oh Bob. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories. I'm sure you'll
see her again, when we get to Heaven."

"No, I won't." he sighed. "Nancy wasn't a believer. She was a very good
woman, and I loved her very much, but she refused to accept Jesus Christ as
her Savior. I won't be seeing her again. I'm mourning her, and what she has
lost."

Changing the subject, Kathy asked for more about the angels.

"So, did you get that visitation?"

"Yes I did. But before that, I got a dream. In the dream I knew I was
traveling, and that Nancy's car was right behind me. I knew that I was
running for my life. What I couldn't figure out was who was sitting beside me
in the truck. I couldn't make out the face, and couldn't take my eyes off the
road to look. As the dream started to fade, I was told, 'Be ready to help
those I bring to you.' So even after Nancy was gone, I continued to make
ready for whatever and whoever."
"So when did the angel show up?"

"Just before the gang bangers showed up at your place. I was told to stand
for The Lord, and to rescue you guys."

"Was that all?"

Bob looked up for a moment and prayed.

"Show her, Lord. Please open her eyes for just a minute."

Kathy looked at him, wondering about his mental state. She looked back out
the windshield, and gasped.

"Bob! There is someone sitting on the hood!"

"I know. He's been there since we left. When we get to a turn, he points the
way to go, and I follow his directions."

"No, no. I mean there is someone on the hood that wasn't there a minute ago."

"Kathy, he's been there all along. You just haven't been able to see him.
He's an angel. Look again"

Kathy looked out once more, and there was no sign of anyone on the hood, the
dust on it was undisturbed, and there was no one along the dirt road they
were traveling.

"Ummm, Bob. I think I'm going to be quiet for a while."

"That’s probably a good idea. It is a bit much when you actually see an
angel. I'm sure you have much to think about. Just think about this also. A
lot of good Christian people have died since this whole thing began. We all
have the same promise that The Father loves us and will do what is best for
us, if we let Him. Who am I to say what is best for me in an hour, a day, a
year, or whatever. That's in His hands. All I can do is to trust and obey."

On that, Kathy knew she could agree. As she sat silently after the angel had
disappeared from her sight, she looked out the window of the truck, watching
the scene go by. It was just after the full moon, which allowed her to see,
and aided in the night driving with such little light coming from the
headlights.

She had much to think about. She had always respected Bob. Though she
admitted to herself that at times he did seem to be a little different. While
others embraced the latest technology, Bob seemed to be going the opposite
direction. He relied on things that had to be worked manually. Like the time
Tim had his electronic log splitter die while cutting up logs to be split for
the fireplace that coming winter. Bob, as always, was helping Tim with the
chore.

"I guess that's it for today." Tim had said. "I was hoping to get this
finished today."

"So, let's finish." Bob had said.

"How? The splitter is dead."

"Just watch."

Bob had gone to his garage across the street. He put some things in his pick
up and driven back to where Tim stood, wondering what Bob was up to. Bob
parked and started to unload his equipment. In just a short time he used
metal fence posts and metal plates to assemble a rectangular box like
structure. The upper plate had a log splitting wedge welded to it, pointed
down. Then he bolted a hydraulic car jack to the lower part. The placed
another metal plate on the top of the jack. He reached over and picked up one
of the logs and placed it on the jack plate, and began to pump the jack.
Slowly the log rose until it came in contact with the wedge, and then was
split in two as the jack continued to push it higher. Once the pieces had
fallen aside, he lowered the jack and grabbed the next log. Placing it on the
jack, he looked at Tim and said, "Your turn."

The wood was split and stacked before the end of the day.

"Whatever gave you the idea for that?" Kathy had asked when she saw it.

"My determination to make sure my family stays warm in the winter. Well, that
and the fact that I don't like being totally dependent on high technology. As
today shows, sometimes that technology breaks down at exactly the wrong time.
So don't depend on it. Depend on God and yourself."

After the events of today, she now understood what he had meant much better.
Looking out the window as she thought, Kathy suddenly realized she had no
idea where they were.

"Where are we Bob?"

"We’re about twenty-five miles northwest of town."

"I don't recognize anything around here. Are you sure?"

Before answering, Bob reached into the pocket on the back of Kathy's seat. He
pulled out a large well worn book, and handed it to her.

"This is a 'back roads' atlas. It shows every jeep trail and cow path known
in the state. I've been using it for years. Back roads may not be the
shortest way to get somewhere, but when the traffic is backed up because of
an accident or something, on the main roads, they can be a lot faster. I
think I've driven every back road in this part of the state over the past few
years. And tonight, that knowledge becomes priceless."

"Wait a minute. I thought you were following the directions of the angel."
Kathy said.

"I am. He showed me we need to keep going this direction, and left us a few
minutes ago. As long as we follow his directions, I'm not worried."

"Bob after everything today, not to mention the angel on the hood, I believe
you are hearing from God. Has he told you anything about our future?"

Bob sighed. "Kathy, it is like I've always said. If you know the scripture,
you know what happens from here on out. Things do nothing but get worse until
the return of Jesus."

"Worse! Bob we are running for our lives. How can it get worse?"

"Remember Job? He lost everything but his wife and his integrity. And she was
telling him to curse God and die. I don’t think there is much more to lose
than that."

"I guess I need to refresh my understanding of The Bible." She fell silent
again as she thought about things. She noticed that Bob, who had been
traveling slowly, to start with, was slowing even more.

"Is there something wrong?"

"I’m just making a turn that I've been looking for."

"Turn? There aren't any roads around here, are there? I mean there isn't
anything but pasture land around here that I can see."

"I know, and I mean no offense, but you are looking for the wrong thing. You
are thinking of paved roads. Kathy we can't afford such comforts at this
time. Ah. Here we are."

Kathy looked out the window in time to see a sign go by as Bob turned off the
pavement.

"BOB! That sign said 'DANGER! GAS UNDER PRESSURE', do you think this is a
good idea?"

Bob chuckled to himself. "I hardly think we have anything to worry about. I
don't think The Lord would bring us here just to get blown up. Besides, this
is a good thing."
"What do you mean?"

"Your reaction tells the story. You're concerned about something happening to
us. Don't you think others feel the same way? That means we are unlikely to
find anyone down this service road for the gas line. The same can be said for
electric power lines, and railroad tracks. They all have service roads that
are rough, but usually passable. They aren't well traveled and allow us to
move undetected.

Yes, I do believe The Lord knows where He is taking us, and just how to get
us there. The only thing left for us is to trust and obey."

Kathy fell silent again as the vehicles bounced down the service road. Her
mind was a whirl with all kinds of thoughts. After what she had seen so far
this day, she had to agree with one thing. All that was left was to trust and
obey.

Dawn was fast approaching. Kathy was doing her best to try to get some sleep
when she and Bob were both startled when her phone rang. She pulled it from
her pocket and looked at the screen to see who was calling, and so she wasn't
ready when Bob hit the brakes.

"What happened?"

"Don't answer that." Bob said.

"It's alright. It's just Tim."

"Kathy, don't answer that and let me have it."

Wondering what the excitement was about, she handed him the phone. Bob opened
the door with a quick, "Come with me." over his shoulder and headed back to
Tim and the S.U.V. She caught up with him just in time to hear him say to her
husband, "Give me the phone."

"Who are you calling?" He asked as he handed it to Bob.

"Nobody. And neither are the two of you."

With that, Bob removed the battery from each phone, then turned and threw
both of the phones and their batteries as far into the brush as he could.

"HEY! Bob, that's an expensive phone. What are you doing?" Tim demanded.

"I'm sure it is. Listen to me, both of you. Do you remember the commercials
that they used to have where all the different companies claimed to have more
bars, in more places than anyone else?"

They both nodded yes.

"Have you considered what that really means?"

"It shows the signal strength." Tim said.

"That is only half of it. The way these phones work is by sending out a
signal to the nearest cell tower. THAT tells the tower where you are. The
information is sent by the tower to the main system. That way the system
knows where to send the incoming calls. So anyone who has access to the
providers system only needs to ask where such and such a number is currently
located, and you are caught. What good is it to hide anywhere and then tell
your enemies where you are by a simple phone call?"

Bob saw Tim about to speak and waved him to silence.

"I know what you are going to say Tim. Turning the phone off doesn't work. It
still keeps in contact with the towers even while off. And even if you take
out the battery, as soon as you put it back in, the phone contacts a tower
and your right back where you started. The same is true of lap tops, or any
other device that you communicate with. If you have anything like that, get
rid of it right now."

"Mr. Bob, does that include my C.D. player?" Tom asked from his place in the
back of the S.U.V.

"No Tom. Your C.D. player is safe."

"I'm sure glad to hear that."

The adults couldn't help but laugh at the statement.

As he arrived at the scene, Manuel was actually relieved. The house that had
cost them so dearly yesterday was nothing but smoking ruin now. He didn't
know, or care how it happened, or who did it. The problem was solved, that
was good enough for him.

"Hey Manuel, I think we have a problem." one of his men said.

"I don't want to hear about problems. I just what to hear what you've done.
Like this." he said pointing at the burned down home. "That is a good piece
of work. Did any of them come out, or did they just burn alive?"

"We don't know, and that is the problem. Nobody admits to starting the fire.
And there is something else. There aren't any cars. It’s like they left, and
the place just burned down on its own."

That wasn't good, Manuel knew. They were supposed to kill all who fought
back, not let them escape.

"Don't mention that to anyone else. As far as you know, everyone died in the
fire."

"What about the cars?"

"Say they were stolen by someone else, just don't mention this to anyone,
ever again! Do you understand me?"

"Yeah, yeah. Sure."

It wasn't long, before Manuel decided he knew what Jose's problem had been.
He didn't ask for enough firepower from the start. Since he had gotten extra
weapons, and bigger weapons, places of resistance began to fold like a house
of cards. In many places, there were a number of resistors taken prisoner.
For them, it was short and not so sweet. First they were taken to the stadium
and held until the 'special' train arrived. Then they were loaded onto the
train, and taken away. Where they went, and what happened to them, he didn't
care.

Even better was the fact that now that there was no longer anyone to stand
against them, his men were going through each and every house and apartment
they could reach. Valuables of all kinds were being taken. Food, drugs,
jewelry, money, and even a few cute girls had been taken. More importantly, a
share from each take made its' way into his private pile.

Manuel was enjoying some of his spoils, when the word came. The
Director would be coming to see him. He wasn't worried. There wasn't any more
fighting going on. He was in complete control. He went back to his amusement.
The screams the girl made, pleased him all the more.

Director Claire didn't wait for an escort. Everyone knew who he was, and
tried to avoid him. When he opened the door to the office Manuel was using as
his headquarters, he saw the girl lying on the floor, nude from the waist
down, and quietly crying. He kicked her to the side and walked up to the desk
where Manuel sat, having a beer and a cigarette.

"What is going on here?"

"What? You mean her? We were just having a little fun, that's all."

"I don't care about her. I gave you a job to do. I notice that there are a
lot of names missing from the list of the dead. Where are they?"

"Hey Mr. Director, slow down. Take it easy. There were a lot of fires around
here. We don't even know how many resistors died in them, let alone how many
are on your list. Besides that, you wanted all resistance in this area to
end. Have you heard any gun shots? There isn't anyone standing against us
anymore. What are you complaining about?'

"I'm complaining about the names missing from this list." Claire stated.

"A lot has happened in the past day. Give me a chance to catch up with what
you want."

"You have 24 hours to find out where the people named on this list are at."
Claire shouted, as he threw the list across the room at Manuel. Claire
turned, and started to leave the room. The girl he had kicked, un-noticed, as
he entered had crawled to one side. She lay there trying to recover from the
abuse Manuel had heaped upon her. Claire stopped and looked at her.

"So, how was she?"

"Not bad. Mr. Director."

"We'll see." Claire said. Then he reached out and grabbed the girl by the
hair, and dragged her from the room, behind him.

Chapter Five

Within 18 hours, Manuel realized three things. First, none of those who
followed him much liked the idea of searching burned out ruins for certain
dead people. Second, many of those whom the Director wanted were indeed dead.
Some died in the fires that engulfed their hiding places, others were killed
when they chose to stand and fight against the gangs and their re-
enforcements. Third, He didn't like taking such unpleasant orders from
anyone, much less The Director.

Meanwhile, Director Claire realized that there was far more on the line than
he thought at the first. It was bad enough that the over-all director wanted
answers that he didn't have, but even the President wanted those same
answers. But he still didn't have them. He knew he could put off any
retribution for awhile by pointing out that while it had taken longer than
expected, his region was at last pacified. And after all, everyone knew that
pacifying the southern region would be a tough nut to crack. That would be
enough to buy him some time to get his hands on the rest of those who
wouldn't accept the reality of the New Order.

He looked over at the nameless girl cowering in the corner of the room. He
had his doubts about how well Manuel was going to work out in the grand
scheme of things. She wasn't as good as he had been lead to believe. Still,
there was something he couldn't resist about her helplessness. Unbuckling his
belt, he stood and moved towards her, for the third time that day.
Bob pulled the truck over into a wooded area. As the vehicles stopped, it
took only seconds for everyone to get out and stretch their legs.

"Bob, why did we stop?" Kathy asked.

"Would you go into hostile country without a guide?" he asked.

"No."

"That's why we stopped. Our guide is gone."

"You mean the angel?"

"Yep, I do. And when he says stop, and then disappears, I think it is a good
idea to wait for him to return."

"How do you know he'll come back?"

Bob smiled, "God hasn't lead me this far, just to leave me now. He has a
reason, all I have to do is wait on Him to tell me what to do next."

“Bob, I understand that we might be under judgment, but why? America has done
a lot for God and his kingdom. Why would He judge us?"

"The scriptures say that judgment begins at the house of God. If America is
God’s chosen land, and His chosen people, why not start His judgment with us?
And as far as that goes, the scriptures say the He will NOT hold blameless
those who shead innocent blood. We have been killing over 4,000 babies A DAY
through abortion, for years."

From the bushes came a voice, "And what blood could be more innocent than the
unborn?"

Bob whirled at the sound, pistol in hand, ready to fire. As the young man
came out of the woods, Bob did something he had never done before in his
life. The weapon fell to the ground, completely forgotten.

"ALEX!"

"Hi, Dad."

Bob ran with a speed, he thought he no longer had, to embrace his son. Kathy
and Tim were lost on whether they should watch the reunion, or turn their
backs considering the privacy of the moment.

After a long embrace, Bob pushed his son to arms length. "How did you get
here? What happened to you? Are you alright?" The questions tumbled out of
his mouth almost faster than he could form them.
"Hey Dad, take it easy. I'll answer you, but first, do you guys have
something to eat? I've been here for three days with almost nothing."

Director Claire hung up the phone. He had been right so far. While his
superiors weren't entirely pleased with his lack of progress in bringing his
area under control, they accepted his excuses when he was able to provide the
names of many of the resistors and proof of their death, to them.

Still he knew that he was in trouble. His area should have been pacified
sooner. Up to this time, everything had come off without a hitch. Scalar
attacks, which had created the earthquakes in California, had done a great
deal of damage. Millions had been killed. Their master had been pleased with
that sacrifice. He had also been pleased when the mega-hurricane had hit the
eastern part of the country. It had seemed a waste to him. If a nuke had been
put to use on the Hoover Dam, in his opinion the damage would have been much
greater. But it wasn't his right to question what the master wanted. That was
a very unhealthy thing to do. Right now, he had to get things back on
schedule. These people, mostly those hated Christians, HAD to be either
captured, or killed. What was it they said in this country? 'Failure is not
an option.' he remembered. Well, that was certainly the position he was in,
and things were not going his way.

He knew it was time to become inventive. Something had to be done to get

these people out of hiding, but what? Slowly an idea came to him. Not an idea
really, but a memory from a little over a half a century or so back.

What was that Jews' name? It didn't matter. He remembered the Jewish leader
in Warsaw during the early years of WW II. He had convinced him that it was
in the best interest of his people to not fight the Germans, But to live in
the ghettos they had sent up. Once the vast majority of them were in the
ghettos, they had starved them into a weakened state. When they Jews started
to fight back, they had nowhere to run. It was slaughter, pure and simple.
The master had been pleased with that one. All he had to do was find someone
the Christians would trust, and do it all over again. He might even have to
appear to this fool as an angel of light, but it would work. He knew it
would. Now all he had to do was find one of those types among the prisoners.

He glanced at the body in the corner. Again, he had his doubts about Manuel.
She didn't last any time at all. However, this was Manuel's last chance to
prove himself, otherwise, he would be replaced just as Jose' had been. He
stabbed a button on the desk.

"Bring me the list of all the preacher prisoners. And get someone in here to
clean up this mess."
Alex was happily eating his third sandwich from the ones Kathy had quickly
made just before they had left home. Not surprisingly, Bob never left his
side, waiting patiently for his son to finish, before asking anything more.
It was Tim who finally remembered the pistol on the ground, and had given it
back to Bob, after brushing off the dirt. After accepting it, with thanks,
Bob had quickly taken it apart, checked it to make certain all the dirt had
been removed, reassembled the weapon, and then returned it to the holster.

"That was so good." Alex said, "Thank you very much." Turning to his father
he spoke again. "Dad I owe you an apology. All those things you told me over
the years, since they didn't happen right away, I started to doubt you. After
awhile, I just quit listening. Now, I know you were right, and I was really
dumb not to listen to you. I'm sorry."

"Forget it son. I knew you had quit listening to me some time back. But I
still had to warn you. I still kept on praying for you. And you have no idea
how happy I am to see you again. So tell me. How did you get here? The last I
heard, your town had been surrounded."

Alex smiled, "I may have been mistaken not listening to you, but I'm not
totally stupid. Let me start back at the beginning. You see, three days ago,
just like everyone else, I was sitting at home. Just before martial law was
declared, I had filled my gas tank in case I had to run. Then, well Dad, I
know you will believe me, but the rest of you will have to take my word for
it, I was sitting in my apartment wondering what was going to happen next,
and what to do about it, when an angel showed up. I've got to tell you, it
really shook me up."

Out of the corner of his eye, Bob saw Kathy glance over at him with a knowing
look, but she said nothing.

"Anyway, the angel told me that I had to leave. I didn't even have time to
pack a lunch. He literally forced me out the door, down the stairs, and into
the car before I could do a thing. Now here is the funny part. Do you
remember the 'back roads atlas' you gave me awhile back? I left it in the
trunk. But all of a sudden it was in his hands, and he traced out a route for
me to take. And the really strange thing is the route he pointed out became
kind of 'highlighted' and stayed that way. Then he disappeared. I just
followed the map until I got here. When I did, the car just died, and I
haven't been able to get it started since then. I've still got gas, and there
is nothing wrong with it that I can figure out, it just won't start. I think
I know why now."

"I think so too."

"So, what do we do now?"

"We wait. Let me tell you something. We've had an angelic guide to get us
here. Just as we stopped, he left. I don't intend to do anything until he
comes back."

"Okay, okay, I've listened up to now without saying anything, but come on
guys, angelic guides? Who do you think you are kidding?" Tim said.

"Tim, I've seen one of them too. He was sitting on the hood of Bob's truck,
pointing the way here. Believe what they are telling you. It's true. I KNOW!"
Kathy told her husband.

"Et tu, Kathy? How can you believe this? Why haven't they had anything to say
to me?"

Bob answered. "Most likely, it’s because of two things. First, your own words
show you don't believe that such a thing is possible. Second, what COULD they
have to say to someone that doesn't believe in such things? You'd just find a
reason to dismiss the warning. Like hallucinations or something. Point is,
there is something about you two and your children that The Lord has seen,
and He likes what He saw, or you wouldn't be here. You'd be lying dead in
whatever may be left of your home."

As Bob sat next to his son, Kathy couldn't help but notice he was in fairly
good shape for someone who hadn't had any food or water for three days. She
had heard that a human couldn't last much over three days without water. Alex
should be all but unconscious from dehydration.

"Alex. Don't get me wrong, but if you haven't had any food or water for three
days, how can you be on your feet?"

"I know I said that, but it's not quite true, thanks to Dad. Years ago he
taught me how to make different types of snares. By the way Dad, the rabbit
snare was the only one that worked. Nothing tripped the others."

"What's a rabbit snare, and how do you make it?" Sam wanted to know.

"You first tie your shoelaces kind of like a lasso. Then, when you find a
rabbit trail you push a stick into the ground on each side of it. Then hang
the lasso between them, after you anchor it to one of the sticks or a big
rock or something. When the rabbit comes along he gets his head caught in the
lasso and the anchor makes sure he is still there when you come back. There
are other kinds. I’ll show you when we get the chance."

"What about water?" Kathy asked.

"Oh, that was easy. I made an air well."

"Air well? I never heard of it."

"Come on, I'll show you."

Alex led Kathy, Tim and their children to a nearby clearing. There they found
a sheet of plastic. It was held down by both dirt and rocks. On one side was
a tube sticking out, and there was a rock in the center of it. The rock
depressed the sheet so that it looked like a crater.

"This is my air well." Alex began. "Everyone knows there is moisture in the
ground. Everyone also knows that the sun heats the ground and makes the
moisture evaporate. So, what you do is dig a hole about a foot to a foot and
a half deep and put a cup or some kind of container in the middle of the
hole, with a tube leading from the container to the edge of the hole. Then
cover the hole with a sheet of plastic. Seal the edges with dirt and rocks so
that no moisture escapes and it will collect on the plastic. Now what you do
is put a rock on the plastic right over the container. As the moisture
condenses on the plastic the drops slide down the plastic and drop into the
container. Then you just sip through the tube."

"Okay I understand how you might have plastic sheeting around, but where did
you get you get the tube?" Kathy asked.

"Lets' just say I hope I don't have to use my windshield washers any time
soon. Hey Dad, that guy in that movie was right about rabbits as well as
dolphins."

"What?" Tim asked.

Bob answered. "There was an old movie called 'The Old Man and the Sea'. It is
the story about an old man in a small boat who hooks a huge fish that drags
him out to sea. The rest of the film is how he managed to stay alive until he
made it back to shore. At one point he caught a dolphin. However in a small
boat he had no way to cook it, so he ate it raw. His comment was something
like 'Dolphin cooked is a very good fish. Dolphin raw is a bad fish.'." Bob
looked at Alex. "Couldn't you get the flint and steel to work?"

"I was afraid to start a fire. I thought the smoke might give me away in the
day time, and the light at night."

"That was probably wise."

Bob stood and stretched. "It's been a long night for all of us. I don't
intend to start out again until dark, or our guide returns, whichever comes
first. I'd like to put Alex and Tom on guard together, while the rest of us
get some sleep."

"If we are being protected, why post a guard? Don't you think that God can
take care of us?" Tim asked.

"Certainly He can. But He also expects us to do whatever we can to take care

of ourselves, and trust Him for the rest. Do you remember the story of
Nehemiah? God had instructed him to get the walls around Jerusalem repaired.
God could have protected him, but Nehemiah posted guards anyway. Seems like a
good plan to me."

The radio they were listening to crackled to life early one morning as they
readied themselves to rest. None of them expected what came out of it.

"Brothers and Sisters. Come out of your hiding places. The Lord has been
purging this land. If you can hear my voice, I tell you, come out. Those whom
Satan has sent to destroy us have been driven from the cities. I’m speaking
of the gangs of murderous thugs that would terrorize entire neighborhoods.
But now they now roam the countryside, where you are hiding. They are
stealing and killing at will. But I have been visited by an angel. He has
told me that this has all been part of the plan. These wicked men have been
driven out of the cities, and now you must return to the cities, as a place
of refuge. This will allow the soldiers that are here to help us, to go out
into the highways and byways, and scour this evil of wicked and sinful men
from our land.

Are you cold and hungry? Come back. Are you tired of running? Come back. Are
you weak and faint of heart? Come back. The Lord understands what you have
been through. He knows why you have been running. And now you are bidden, no,
I say commanded, to come back.

Let these men who came here to rid our land of this scourge do what they came
to do. Come back, my brothers and sisters. Bring your children with you.
There is food coming into the cities once again. There is power for the
heaters on these cold nights. There is pure clean water to slake your thirst.
Come back I say, come back to the places where it is safe and warm. Come back
to the places where there is food and water. Come back for God seeks to end
this trouble, and doesn't want any of you to be caught up in the punishment
of those who would do you harm. Come back and enjoy the blessings that are
offered here."

The radio faded.

It had been a couple of days, and two hundred miles, since Kathy, Tim, Tom,
Sam, Bob, and Alex had even considered listening to the radio. Now they sat
and listened with unbelieving ears as the preacher spoke.

"Sounds like things are getting back to normal. Maybe we should go back." Tim
said.

"I think you just may be right." Kathy agreed.

"You must be joking." Bob responded.

"But Bob, you heard him. Things are getting better in the cities. The gangs
are gone. There's power, food, water, and safety. Why shouldn't we go back?"
Kathy asked.

"Listen to me, both of you. We've gotten by so far because of our guide. He
hasn't pointed the way towards any city. Doesn't that mean anything to you?
Are you so ready to run back to the place you barely escaped from with your
lives? Are you so ready to turn your children, and these young men, over to
whatever agency says they are going to take care of them?

Let me tell you something that I learned in the service. Anyplace where you
eat, sleep, or get water from, is the perfect place for an ambush. Why do you
think trappers and fishermen use food as bait? You CAN'T go back there."

"I think you should listen to Dad." Alex said. "So far, he's been right on
the money about everything he's said or done. That's good enough for me. I'd
trust him more than any preacher on the T.V. or radio. It isn't just because
he is my father, he's been right, every time. I can't argue with that."

That caused Tim and Kathy to stop for a moment and think. They knew what Alex
said was true, but still, they longed for a hot shower, hot food, clean
clothes, and a soft bed with warm blankets. The temptation was great.

"Bob, how can you be certain? I mean I haven't seen our guide since that
first night. Are you sure you aren't just following you own instincts?"

"Kathy, you may not have seen him again, but I've been following his lead
every step of the way. You remember what happened yesterday at the turn off,
when you guys wanted to go a different direction?"

Kathy remembered, as did Tim. They were certain that they should keep going
along the smooth road they had been following for a couple of hours, while
Bob insisted that they turn off the road, onto a broken dirt trail. As they
stood there, quietly arguing the matter, the sound of automatic gunfire came
from what sounded like a quarter mile further ahead on the paved road. They
stopped talking, and drove onto the dirt road.

"I can't tell you what to do." said Bob. "That is between the two of you and
God. But let me ask you. Given all you know for a certain fact, are you ready
to trade your safety, uncomfortable though it may be, for a hot meal,
followed by some unpleasant people asking questions, in an unpleasant and
probably very painful manner? Is that what you want?"

Tim spoke up after a couple of minutes.

"I'll tell you what. Why don't I go into one of these towns and check it out?
If everything is alright, I'll come back and tell you."

"And what if you can't come back? Do you really want to leave Kathy and the
children out here without you? Tim, I have to tell you, if our guide comes
back while you are gone, we won't be here IF you manage to make it back. Or
at least Alex and I won’t be. I can’t speak for your family."

The radio suddenly came back up.

"Brothers and Sisters, don't listen to those who tell you to stay in hiding.
They are just afraid. They don't trust The Lord. We know that The Lord told
us in His word that He is coming for us before the tribulation begins. I
admit, times are difficult right now, but this is just the beginning of
troubles, as it is written in The Bible.

If they are telling you that this is the beginning of the tribulation, don't
listen to them. We aren't going to be here when that happens. We will be with
The Lord, at the marriage supper. Come back to the places that have food,
water, and safety. Come back, and join the true believers while we wait on
The Lord to deliver us from these troubles."

The radio faded once again.

"Well, there you have it. Every type of bait they can lay out is right in
front of you. Before you say anything, I want you to remember something. When
we left, we left a lot of bodies behind us. I know that you didn't do
anything. I was the one who is responsible for those gang bangers deaths."

"Uh, Dad? Is there something I should know here?"

"I'll explain later, son."

Bob continued. "Do you really think that anyone is going to listen to you?
All they know is that there are dead people on the ground, and just after
they died, you were missing. I do believe they will be more than a bit
suspicious of you, and they will have some serious questions for you.

Remember one other thing. Right now, the cities are death traps. Nobody who
has entered them has gotten out again. Do you think that you are special? I
don't think so. If you go into any city, you won't come out again."

"Then what are we going to do, Bob? We can't just wander around the
countryside like a bunch of nomads." Kathy said.

"You haven't noticed it have you? Ever since we left we've been headed more
or less westward. We are going to cross the Mississippi."

Claire was pleased with his pet televangelist. All that was needed to get the
Christians to turn themselves in was to have someone say the right words, and
they came running. True, not all of them were so easily fooled. Somehow that
'Nazarene' always managed to keep some small remnant from dying like they
were supposed to do, that had always been the problem. But just like those
Jews from Warsaw, many of these stupid Christians were like horses running
back into a burning barn. All you had to have was someone to say the right
words.

Claire was so pleased in fact, he had decided that this fool could be saved
until nearly the end, since he was so convincing. He would be useful in
maintaining control over the camps. He especially loved how the man had
convinced so many it was their duty to obey whatever the government said to
do, by quoting verses from that hated book, the Bible. One thing that
surprised even him was how simple it was to convince them of the false
doctrine. Just convince them that they are so special, because the Father of
the Nazarene loved them. There wasn’t any way he would let His children go
through that. After all, you wouldn’t let anything like that happen to your
children would you? Besides, look at what is written here, and here, and
here. The stupid monkey never realized that Claire not only knew that book
better than he did, but had eons of experience misrepresenting what they
actually said. What he thought made it even easier to do was that with such
short lives, these creatures wanted as much pleasure and as little pain as
possible. That made it easy for them to accept what was told them. They were
so lazy that they all just found someone to tell them what they wanted to
hear, and then they stopped actually reading that book. They just believed
what they were told because it was easier.

Best of all, his superiors were much less upset at his earlier problems. Yes
indeed. Things were starting to go much smoother. He could even afford some
time off for recreation. He glanced at the twelve year old boy who sat naked
and huddled in the corner of the room. Even this was going better. It looked
as if this one was going to last longer than the girl had, and his screams
were just as pleasing to Claire. Plus his futile attempts at both escape, and
self defense were amusing to him. The kid didn't know just how out matched he
was.

Chapter Six

"Bob, are you sure we should be leaving now? I mean it is still daylight."
Tim asked.

"We need to get to the river before dark. We have to find a certain man
with a certain boat, in order to cross."

"How can you be sure we'll get across?"

"Remember who it is that we serve. Tell me something. How much gas is left
in the tank?"
"The gauge shows full, but that can't be right. We've traveled at least
four hundred miles. I thought it must be broken."

"It's not. The way I see it, if The Lord can fertilize the egg of a
virgin, He can keep our tanks full, until we get where we are going."

"How do you do that Bob? Relate everything to what it says in The Bible, I
mean."

"Tim, The Bible affects everything I do. What was the title of that song a
few years ago?

Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth

Yeah, it has a hand in everything I do. Because I believe that title is

quite accurate"

"I'll vouch for that." Alex chimed in jokingly.

"Son, you be careful now. You know what they say about old dogs. Besides,
you may be younger, stronger, and faster than me, but I'm still meaner
than you."

"I’m just kidding, Dad."

“Old dogs?" Tim asked.

"Never tease an old dog. He just might have one bite left."

As they drew closer to the Mississippi River, Bob was starting to believe
that they had left their troubles behind them. They had pulled all three
vehicles to the side of the road for a rest break, just before a curve.
Alex had gone deep into the brush to relieve himself, and now came out of
the bushes in a hurry.

"Dad, I think we have a problem."

"What would that be?"

"I went kind of deep into the bushes to, um, well, you know. Anyway, I
heard something. I went in a little deeper and I found out this road makes
a hairpin turn. On the other side of the curve is a check point."

"Kathy, Tim, stay here with the children. Show me Son."

Together they quietly worked their way to the spot where Alex had seen the
checkpoint. Sure enough, it was there. Three men with body armor,
automatic weapons, and a four wheel drive S.U.V.

"What do we do? We have to go down this road or turn around."

"We can't turn around, Son. We've been led here for a reason. Let me
think."

Bob looked at the scene, praying about it. Soon he had an idea. The S.U.V.
wasn't blocking the entire road. These men clearly thought that just by
being there with weapons would intimidate any who came down the road. That
was their mistake.

"Alex, listen closely. Behind the drivers’ seat of my truck you'll find a
small white box. Grab three of the soda cans in it, and bring them to me."

"Are you planning on bribing them with soda?"

"Just get them, Son."

Alex soon returned with the cans. He knew better than to argue when his
father spoke in that tone of voice.

"Are these what you wanted Dad?"

"Yes. Thank you. Now here is what I want you to do."

"Wait a minute Dad. Why do these cans have fuses sticking out of them?"

"I'll explain later. I want you to drive my truck. Have Tim drive you
mothers car, and Kathy drives your car. I want you guys to pull up to the
checkpoint nice and slow. Just like nothing is wrong. When I make my move,
hammer down and swing around their 4X4 and don't slow down."

"What move, and what about you?"

"Trust me. You won’t be able to miss it. Don't worry about me. I’ve got an
idea or two. I’ll catch up with you as soon as I can, but you must keep
moving."

“How far do we go?”

“No less than ten miles.”

He got back to the others, relayed his fathers’ instructions and not
waiting for an argument, climbed into the truck, started the engine and
pulled out in the lead.
The three vehicles pulled slowly up to the checkpoint. Alex tried to look
for his father, without looking like he was looking for him. As he tried
to watch the brush out of the corner of his eye, he saw one of the soda
cans come flying out of the woods with the fuse burning. Even before it
hit the ground, a second can came from the same place. Then a third
appeared. All of them began to spew out great clouds of smoke. He hit the
gas. As the truck lurched forward, he saw smoke pour out of the first can,
then the second. A thick cloud appeared from nowhere. It only got thicker
as the third can also fumed. He followed his father’s orders and kept
moving around the S.U.V. and didn't look back.

They were about ten miles down the road before Alex pulled over. The
others did the same. They got out, talking about what to do. Before they
could even really get started, the S.U.V. from the checkpoint pulled up
behind them. Alex, Tim, and Kathy all grabbed weapons and prepared to
fire.

"I hope you aren't going to shoot me." A familiar voice called out to
them.

"Dad?"

"It's me, Son."

"What happened back there Bob?" Tim asked.

"And what were those cans?" Alex chimed in.

"As you guys got close, I threw the smoke grenades. That provided cover
for you. While they were choking on the smoke, and trying to figure it
out, I 'borrowed' their 4X4. They weren’t expecting to be blindsided like
that."

"Where did you get smoke grenades?" Kathy wanted to know.

"I made them. First I got some of those half sized soda cans. Then I
picked up what the local fireworks store called smoke grenades. Really
they aren't. They don't make large enough amounts of smoke. I sliced them
open and put the tablets or powder inside them in the empty soda cans. Add
the fuse that came with them, and seal them with duct tape. Each can had
about the equivalent of four of the store bought grenades. Makes a lot
more smoke that way. Listen, it won't be long before they start looking
for this car, and I want to be long gone before they find it."

“Why not just take it with us?" Alex wanted to know.

“First of all, it’s another vehicle to keep under cover. We don’t need the
trouble. Secondly, it might just have some kind of tracking device that
doesn’t show. Why invite them to our camp? Come on. Let’s get on down the
road.”

The convoy of vehicles made their way towards the river. Kathy and Tim had
been taking turns riding 'shotgun' with Bob, and it was once again Kathy
who sat next to him.

"Bob, Tell me something. How do we get across the river? As far as I've
heard, there are road blocks on each end of every bridge. That means we
need a ferry or something. But, lets' face it. Nobody is going to stick
their neck out for us, without sticking out their hand, palm up, first."

"Long ago, while I was in basic training, my drill instructor pounded one
thing into us day after day. Pardon my language, but he said, 'prior
planning prevents piss-poor performance' and in all the years since then,
I've never known that to fail. Now, I've planned for everything I could
plan for. After that, I depend on The Lord. As Paul told Timothy, you do
everything you can do, and having done all, Stand.'"

"So what's the plan now?"

"First, we find the vessel I’ve been told to look for. It should be
somewhere around here."

“What’s its name?”

“It’s called, wait a minute. Here we are.” Bob nodded at a sign on the
roadside, even as he made a turn going the opposite direction.

As with most rivers, many small fish camps and boat docks had sprung up
over many years. These were communities where everyone knew everyone else.
Strangers really stood out, and weren't trusted even before everything
started to go bad. While martial law had virtually ended road traffic, on
the river, it was a different story. With so many road blocks, trucks were
constantly backed up on every road. Barges, ferries, and other watercraft,
were pressed into service to help keep moving goods from one side of the
river to the other. This had given the river men and women a bit more
freedom than those who lived and worked on land. Besides moving things for
the government, who didn’t pay all that well, it gave them the chance to
make extra cash by taking paying parties across, to the inspection dock on
the far side of the river. Sometimes they avoided the inspection docks,
but that was much more expensive.

It was into one of these places that Bob had turned. He slowly made his
way down to the docks, with Tim close behind in the 4X4 and Alex bringing
up the rear in his small car. Bob pulled up by a barge-like boat, and
stopped.

"Stay here." Was all he said as he got out and headed towards it. He could
see two men working on the deck. As he drew near to the closer man he
called out.

"Excuse me, Sir. Can you tell me where I might find the captain of this
vessel?"

Without looking up the nearer man answered.

"You're talking to him."

"Very good, I’m glad to hear it. Captain, I'd like to get passage across
the river for myself, three vehicles, passengers, and our stuff."

"Do you have any idea what you're asking?" The man said, then he looked up
at Bob for the first time, and his jaw dropped.

"You!"

Puzzled Bob said, "Sorry Sir, I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of
making your acquaintance."

"I've seen you before. I was told....Wait a minute, you said three
vehicles?"

Still curious Bob answered, "That's correct. Are you alright?"

"Fine, I’m fine. You remind me of someone I saw once, that's all. Three
vehicles, passengers and cargo, $3,000 is the best deal I can offer you.
You can off load at the inspection dock on the other side."

"Captain, I'll be honest with you, we don't have a lot of money. But there
might be other things you would be willing to accept in exchange for
passage."

"Such as?”

"Captain, are you sure you want to negotiate out here on the dock? Maybe
there is some place a little more private where we could go."

"Hmmmm, alright. Come on board."

"Thank you, Sir."

The two men went to the wheelhouse of the boat, and the captain motioned
Bob to one of the chairs sitting next to a small table.

"So, what exactly is it that you want?"

"As I said Sir, passage across the river. However I'd like to avoid any
inspections on the far side."

"Well, that is the trick isn't it?"

"Can you do it, or should I look elsewhere?"

"I can get you across alright, but that kind of service comes at a higher
price."

"Understood, Captain. But you recall I mentioned negotiation. Truthfully,

we don't have a lot of money. However there might be something else you
would accept as payment."

"I hope you aren't going to offer me an hour or so with a woman. I must
get that at least six times a day, and my Mrs. doesn't like it."

"No, not that. There is only one woman with us, and she is a married
mother of four. Not only do I think she wouldn't do it, I know her husband
wouldn't agree to it. What I had in mind was something a bit more
practical."

The captain looked at Bob for a moment, seemingly distracted by something.

Then he went to a cabinet and took out a small plate, a box of salt, two
glasses, and a bottle of tequila.

"I've always found this kind of talk to be pretty dry work."

He placed the plate, salt, glasses and unopened tequila between them. Then
he poured some of the salt into the plate. He then gently shook the plate
until the salt was leveled out. But he didn't pour the drinks.

"You mentioned a payment of something besides cash. What did you have in
mind?"

"How much fuel would it take to get us to the other side?"

At this the Captains ears perked up. "It isn't just getting you over
there. I have to also bring the 'Molly B.' back to the berth. Say 10
gallons round trip. Then there is the matter of avoiding complications.
That has to be worth something as well."
"Captain, we will supply the gas for the trip, both ways. I also happen to
know that in that cabinet is a .22 caliber rifle."

The captains eyes widened again, but he said nothing.

"I also know that you are running a little low on ammo. I'm willing to
sweeten the offer with a brick of .22's."

"550 rounds of ammo does’ make it a sight sweeter. Tell me what do you
think of this?"

With that the captain reached out and drew a curved line in the salt.

Bob smiled. He knew this little puzzle. He drew another curved line in the
salt. Together, they made the symbol of a fish. The captain shook the
plate once again, erasing the symbol. Then he poured a drink for each of
them and put a pinch of salt on the web of his hand, between the thumb and
forefinger.

"Call me Jim. Here’s to a safe crossing." He raised his glass.

Bob did as his host had done and answered, "And a safe return."

The 'Molly B.' left the shoreline just after dark. She was an older
vessel, but sturdy and well maintained. With a large flat deck area for
cargo, and a cabin which could be used for either living or cargo, and was
at times used for both. As well as the area below the main deck. The
wheelhouse/bridge set on top of the cabin affording the captain a clear
view of the river. Before they pulled out, the Captain told them;

"Make sure you all stay out of sight. There are patrol boats on the river,
and they can stop and search anything they want, any time they want. Now
if we run into one of them, I think I can talk our way out of inspection,
but if I can't, you have to be ready. Bob, I'd like you topside with me."

That had happened ten minutes before Bob finally spoke.

"Jim, when you first looked at me, you seemed to know me, even though
we've never met before this. What was that about?"

"You answer my question, and I'll answer yours. You said that you happened
to know about my rifle. How did that happen?"

"I was told by someone."

"Same here. A kind of impressive guy, dressed all in white."

The two men looked at each other, and spoke at the same time.

"Michael."

"Have you considered what that might mean? I mean we have been getting
messages from the Commander of The Lords' Host, His army. Kind of sounds
like there might be some unpleasant work ahead for both of us." Bob
observed.

"Or it could mean that we are in need of just that much help."

"True. I hadn't thought of that. Judging by what has happened so far, you
could well be right. That brings to mind another question. Now I'm not one
to tell a man how to run his business, but with patrol boats on the river,
do you think it wise to be out here with the lights on the bow and stern
lighted up like Christmas. I mean that has got to attract attention."

"Not as much as trying to run the river without them. They have all kinds
of devices, and informers all up and down the river.

What I'm doing is acting like it is just another run. Avoid attention, by
not trying to avoid it. I once read a science fiction book, where the main
character gave some very good advice. He said, 'When you get caught doing
something wrong, do not try to play innocent. Whoever caught you isn't
going to believe you anyway. The best thing to do is to try and make the
evidence point to a lesser crime'. These days, that's not so hard to do.
Everyone is doing something wrong, even if it is trying to feed your
family, or hiding ammunition for barter."

Bob smiled at that, until he heard Jim say;

"Uh oh. Patrol boat coming. Get down."

Bob ducked under the level of the window, and pulled out his pistol, just
in case.

"Attention cargo vessel! Cut your engines and stand by for inspection." A
voice boomed out of the night.

Jim pushed a button in front of him, and picked up a microphone.

"I'd love to do that, but I'm running short on time. I need to get this
load to the other side pretty soon, or I'll be in trouble with the people
who commissioned this run."

"I said, CUT YOUR ENGINES."

"Very well lieutenant, as long as you sign my inspection ticket. If I'm
late, I want everyone to know it wasn't my fault."

At this, one of the men in the speed boat used for patrolling the river
shown a light on the bow of Jim's' boat. He spoke quickly to his
commander.

"Sir, it is the 'Molly B.'.”

"Molly B.', Are you making another run for Director Claire?" The
lieutenant asked in a much quieter voice.

"I think if he wanted you to know that, he would have told you, don't you?
Look, I had problems getting loaded, and now I'm trying to make up for
lost time. So, either sign my ticket, so I can turn it in at the end of
the trip, or let me be on my way." Jim answered curtly.

Bob sat and waited for what seemed forever. He wondered if Jim might have
over played his hand.

The men on the patrol boat had trouble deciding what to do. They knew that
the Director sometimes commissioned late night trips like this. They knew
he had used the 'Molly B.' before, it was on a list they had. They also
knew the last man to insist on inspecting one of these late runs for the
Director had gotten an even later at night visit from members of the
Intelligence Division. Nobody had seen him after that.

"Molly B.' have a safe trip. Where are you headed?"

"You mean the Director didn't mention anything about that to you either?"

"I just wanted to warn you that there is a new patch of dead-fall in the
water about a quarter mile down river. Be careful if you are headed that
far."

"Thanks for the information. I will be careful if I go that far. Which

bank?"

“It’s on the western side of the river. You should be able to see it.”

With that, the patrol boat turned, powered up its engine, cut around the
back of the 'Molly B.' and sped off into the night, going upstream with
its spotlight lighting the way.

Bob slowly stood, and remarked;

"Mark Twain had it right. There HAS been a decline in the art or lying.
I've never heard someone skirt the truth as closely as you just did,
without actually telling a lie."

"It isn't too hard with these guys. They are scared to death of the
Director. Nobody dares to get on the wrong side of him. And as long as you
don't do it too often, or make the story too long and complicated, they
will buy it, and leave you alone."

They continued on in silence for awhile, before Jim spoke again.

"So, don't you want to know about hauling loads for the Director?"

"Not really. The way I see it, you could have turned us in when the patrol
boat showed up, you didn't. Besides, would Michael be talking to someone
on the other side of this thing?"

"No, I guess he wouldn't.” Jim took a breath and said, “Okay, I need to
tell you. When we make landfall on the shore, it is going to be in a place
that used to be a popular fishing spot. There is a dirt road that leads to
a good road that’s about one hundred yards up. If you turn to the right,
you are going to be headed right into a town. Maybe it’s a mile up the
road. If you turn left, you're heading out into the country. I don't know
which one you'll be taken down, but my guess would be left. What’s more
even if you do know where you’re going, I don’t want to know. It’s safer
for both of us that way. From there it is about fifteen miles to the next
town. One more thing you need to know. Once the ramps go down, I need you
guys to get off the 'Molly' as quick as you can. I know The Lord is
watching out for us tonight, but I don't want to try His patience."

"That makes two of us. Thanks for the lift, Jim. If we never meet again on
this side, I'll be looking for you on the other."

"Same here, I want to know how this all turns out for you."

With that said, they shook hands, and remained quiet for the rest of the
trip.

Chapter Seven

Director Claire was becoming more pleased by the day. Things were almost
ready. He was actually almost in a good mood by the time Manuel made it to
his office. He noticed that Manuel was really not one for success. His eyes
glowed red, and there were scratches on his face and arms from some woman, he
supposed. He was also unsteady on his feet, as if he were drunk. Well, if he
couldn't control himself when he was in a position of power, it would make
the next deception that much easier.
"Manuel, sit down. There is something we must talk about."

"Hey Mr. Director. What's wrong man? We ain't had any trouble in a while now."

"That's what I wanted to talk with you about. How clever you are to know what
I wanted to say. You are absolutely right. There hasn't been the first bit of
trouble from your sector. I wanted to thank you and your men for all you've
done. I have a little surprise in mind for all of you. But I need your help
to do it. You see I have been putting aside some very special people as a
present for you all, if you know what I mean."

"What kind of people?"

"Oh they are young, good looking, and VERY talented, if you get what I'm
saying. No, no, don't ask any more, I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise." He
arched his eye brows suggestively. "But I need to know where these people
need to dropped off for you and your men. To do that, I need to know where
they are living. You understand?"

"Young and good looking you say? Yeah, I get you. I hope they are as talented
as you say. These local women have no idea how to take care of a man like me."

"Oh trust me, Manuel, they will take care of you like you won't believe. As a
matter of fact, you could say they are specialists. They’re from the city."

"Hey I've known some very special ladies in the city. This sounds good."

"Then you'll help me, by getting those addresses?"

Manuel burped before answering. "Sure Mr. Director, I'll have them for you by
tomorrow. You see, I have to always know where my boys are, so I already have
a list." He smiled at his foresight. He would show this man he could do
things and be useful to him in the future.

"Excellent thinking on your part. I can see things happening for someone with
a head on his shoulders like yours. Now remember, this is a surprise. You
must not tell anyone about it."

"Okay. I'll bring it by in the morning."

"Thank you, Manuel. This makes things so much easier."

"No problem, Mr. Director."

With that, Manuel stood, somewhat unsteadily, turned, just managing to avoid
falling over, and then left the room.

Once he was gone, Claire pushed the intercom button.

"I want the Director of Intelligence in here right now."

It wasn't long before he arrived.

"Manuel has a list of his men in his office. I don't want to take any
chances. I want that list photographed, printed out, and on my desk by 4
A.M."

"Yes Sir."

Claire sat down, and thought about how close everything was to completion.
Soon there would be no need for Manuel had his kind. It wouldn't be long now.
First the American troops were almost done for, but before that, he would
have the pleasure of reliving that night long ago that so pleased his master.
The night of the long knives was about to happen again.

A few evenings after the crossing, all across the southern sector of the
country, men were gathering in abandoned schools, concert halls, and other
such places. They were lean, hardened, heavily armed, combat veterans. In one
of the schools, Director Claire joined the men as they made ready for their
nights work.

"Director Claire. There is no reason for you to be here. My men can take care
of this. No need to risk your life." The Major in charge of the operation
said.

"I know that Major. But there is one stop I want to join in on. Which of
these groups is going to this address?" He handed a piece of paper to the
Major.

Glancing at the address, he said, "I'll take you them."

They moved quickly through the crowd, and came upon a group of eight men. All
of them dressed in black, with body armor, and fully automatic weapons.

"Men, There’s a slight change in plans. The Director is going with you, at
least to one address. Whatever you do, protect him."

He singled out one man, and handed him the address. "Lieutenant, make this
one your first stop."

"Yes Sir."

Within half an hour, all the men were loaded into various vehicles, and were
on the way to their assignments. At first, the Lieutenant thought of trying
to question Director Claire about the change in plans, then thought better of
it, and kept the matter to himself. It wasn’t wise to ask too many questions.
Soon the van they were riding in pulled up a half a block from Manuel's'
address. Quietly and quickly they got out, and three of them moved to the
backside of the house, to prevent anyone from escaping that way. The rest,
with the Director, moved to the front of the house. One man took a position
on each of the front corners of the house, while the Lieutenant, Claire, and
two other men walked towards the front door.

Inside the house, Manuel was waiting for his 'reward', and hoped the wait
wouldn't be much longer. The beer and marijuana were really starting to have
an effect on him. It would be a shame he thought, to be unconscious even
before things even got started. That's when he heard footsteps approaching
the door.

"Come on in." He hollered, "The door is open."

It took him a moment to realize that instead of the woman he was expecting,
Director Claire walked in the door.

"Hey, Mr. Director, This is a surprise. I didn't think you would personally
deliver my reward."

"Oh Manuel, I wouldn't have missed this for the world."

He stepped to the side, and the two black suited men charged in, and took
Manuel to the floor. Once there, they put handcuffs on him, checked him for
weapons, rolled him onto his back, picked him up again, and threw him into
the nearest chair, nearly breaking his arms in the process.

"What are you doing? I've done everything you wanted. You said you were happy
with what I've done. What’s this all about?"

"Manuel, do you have any idea just how much of a fool you've been?" Claire
was feeling confident, and was enjoying himself. He continued.

"I admit you've done a good job. It would have been impossible for the New
Order to fight the military, the police, people like you, ex-military, and
those damned Christians all at the same time. It took decades of careful
planning and work to get to this point. Now we can't be stopped, so there is
no harm in telling you.

You people are so self-centered. If it doesn’t concern you, it doesn’t

matter. You are interested in yourself, and no one else. All we have to do is
find the right bait to set for you. In your case it was easy.” Claire
sneered. “You see, it started by using people like you. The greedy and
stupid, to get many of the American people using drugs. If it wasn’t that,
then we got them hooked on money, or sex, or something. The people who
provided these things made money, and the people started getting complacent.
They started to accept anything. We even had preachers convinced that they
would be gone by now, and that’s what they taught. By now people are
beginning to question what they believe.

Then we started dividing the people. White against black, black against
Hispanic, rich against poor, it was so easy. Instead of taking personal
responsibility for your lives, all of you blame someone else for your
problems. You felt you had a right to whatever you wanted. And you would have
it, no matter what.

But that wasn't nearly enough. We got the military involved in endless,
senseless wars. That bled the economy badly. And it even divided the people
further. Once the military was out of the country, we unleashed more attacks.
On the east coast with hurricanes, the west coast with earthquakes, weather
problems all over the place. Food got short, and people started fighting over
that like dogs over a bone.”

Even Manuel shrank back as far as possible from the evil gleam in Claire’s
eye. Quietly and with obvious joy, Claire continued.

“But then, Manuel, then we started on the end game. Through laws, we disarmed
any who would stand against us. Without the military here, your president,
who threw in with us long ago, and was told of the plan, brought in outsiders
to keep the peace. They are men who don't care for your laws or your people.
Yes, we let your kind get out of the cities. So you could do the dirty work
for us out in the countryside as well. Every one of you that got killed made
our job just that much easier. Not only did it keep us from having to kill
you, but you killed our other enemies at the same time. And you fell for it
beautifully, to satisfy your own lusts. Just like your kind always do. Now
there is nobody left to resist us, and the final pieces are coming into
place. Soon, our master will take his throne, and no one will dare to stand
against him."

"What are you talking about? This sounds crazy."

"What a fool you are. You have crosses tattooed on your body, but you haven't
been inside a church since you were nine. You've never read that cursed book
the real Christians love so much. And you think you know it all."

"Now I know you're crazy. How could you know things like that?"

For just a moment, Claire allowed Manuel to see his true face. Manuel started
to scream. Claire pulled out a knife, at which he was an expert at using, and
moved towards him.

Manuel screamed until the early hours of the morning. But it didn't matter.
There were similar screams coming from the entire southern region.
The group had once again stopped to rest, after leaving the 'Molly B.'. Kathy
used the chance to quiz Bob.

"Alright Bob, I want to know how you have done all of this."

"I told you, Kathy. Bit by bit."

"No, no. I'm not talking about your stuff. I mean how have you learned to do
everything you've been doing. It seems like no matter what happens, you have
the answer. How is that possible?"

"Oh, that. Kathy, I didn't live a sheltered life. I've got scars I will carry
to my grave. Mostly, it comes from a foolishly misspent youth. During that
time, I learned a lot of things. Believe it or not, I learned a lot from the
Boy Scouts. As a matter of fact, look at this."

Bob grabbed a well worn book from behind the front seat of the truck.

"This is one of my most important books. A Boy Scout Handbook from the mid
sixties. It has so many things to teach a person. It has Morse Code, for
example."

"Isn't that kind of old fashioned?"

"You tell me. What does three dots followed by three dashes, then with three
more dots mean?"

"Everyone knows that. It's S.O.S."

"That's right. Now, what is the letter A?"

"Um, I don't know."

"You're not alone. Most people don't know Morse code. They don't even have a
chart to tell them how to read it. That means I can send messages that most
people will be totally clueless about. Another nice thing is that Morse can
be sent using lights, noises, like the old telegraph, or even written out.
But Morse code isn't all that is in here. Can you take balls of twine and
make a rope?"

"No."

"Can you make a rope bridge that is safe?"

"No."

"What about an emergency shelter? Can you make one of those using only things
like tree branches and a knife?"
"No."

“Can you make a safe raft for crossing rivers or lakes?”

“No.”

"See what I mean? The Boy Scouts were teaching young men how to survive in
the wilderness, long before I was born. They had it down to a science. The
only bad thing was when they were forced to become 'politically correct', and
a lot of those things went away. That’s why this is an older manual.

But, of course, The Scouts weren’t my only teacher. I learned a lot from
listening to veterans when I was a boy. Later I learned a lot while I was
serving in the military. It's amazing what you can do with your own two hands
when you have to. I never could stand it when someone would tell me either,
'I can't do that.' or 'You can't do that.' while I knew it could be done.
Those smoke grenades for example. Maybe they weren't all slick and polished,
or state of the art, but they worked. And in the end, that was what was
important."

"What about food, Bob? I know you've got quite a bit in the 4X4, but that
won't last forever."

"Got that covered as well. Take a look."

Bob again reached into the truck, this time into the center compartment
between the seats, and pulled out what looked like a deck of playing cards,
and handed them to her. Kathy looked at the box. The end of the box said;

EDIBLE WILD FOOD CARDS

U.S. GAMES SYSTEMS, INC.
Stamford, CT 06902 U.S.A.

"But whatever made you decide to collect all of this stuff, besides being
nudged by The Lord?"

"You know the old saying. 'Plan for the worst and hope for the best.' I took
that seriously. I once heard of people that died during Hurricane Katrina in
their own attics. The reason why is they didn't plan ahead. When the water
rose and forced them up, they didn't think about getting out. They didn't
take an ax, or even a hammer to make a hole in the roof. Had they done so,
many of them would have lived. When I would hear about such things, I'd
think, 'What would I do?' and then do it."

"Okay, okay, Bob. I understand about getting ready to survive in bad times. I
can even see how the Boy Scouts helped you to prepare for what is happening
now. But, tell me, what about all the other things that have happened? Like
when you rescued us from the gang members."

"That was a matter of Gods' grace, and my training as a soldier. They weren't
professionals. If they had been, we wouldn't be talking now.

"But Bob, you won."

"No Kathy. We lost. Now it's true that I scared them off at first, but they
came back later. Then they were scared off a second time, with heavy losses
on both occasions. But make no mistake about it. We lost. If we had won, we
would be sitting at home right now. As it is, before your family came to my
house both of your cars were useless pieces of junk. Your front door was so
close to falling in, it actually did when you guys came out. As of now, I'm
certain that there is nothing of value left in your home. They've taken it
all. And my home, it's nothing but a pile of scorched concrete, burned wood,
and ashes. No Kathy, we didn't win. We lost, big time."

"But you jumped right into the middle of them and saved us."

Bob chuckled before answering.

"Hardly. If I had 'jumped into the middle of them' we would all be dead by
now. What I did was to stand off a ways and use a rifle. That and the element
of surprise are what made the difference.

You see, they had handguns and a single shotgun. Both are short range
weapons. I was using a rifle that will reach out and touch someone at about
one hundred yards. When I opened fire on them I was at least sixty yards
away. It takes a professional soldier a lot of practice to be able to even
hit a man sized target with a pistol at that range. And I was standing behind
a tree, which made me even a smaller target. Those people weren't
professionals. I put down three of them before any of them had the first idea
where the fire was coming from. Even then, at that range, a handgun is a poor
choice of weapons. For the average person, a target that small, at that range
is impossibility with a pistol. Oh yes, they sprayed the area with bullets,
but none of them came close to me. In the mean time, with the rifle I was
downing man after man.

Once they realized that they were on the losing end of the deal, they
scattered. Then I was able to get you out of there. But when they came back,
it was in force. True, the booby traps I had waiting for them made them leave
a second time. Which in turn, gave us the chance to get out. But all in all,
we lost. They hold our property, and we are running for our lives. The only
victory we can claim is that God in His mercy allowed us to all get away.
That is all. I guess it comes down to what my favorite science fiction writer
once said in a book. 'A wise man, in the course of a long life, is prepared
to abandon his luggage, several times'."

"Meaning, we can't go back?"

"Meaning, we can't go back."

It had been four days since the crossing of the Mississippi. Things had
become just as they had been before. Traveling at night, avoiding cities,
towns, and people in general. Now they were in the Rocky mountains. They had
stopped for the day and were waiting for the important announcement from the
President that had been spoken of earlier. The static cleared as the station
powered up for the broadcast.

"My, fellow Americans. It is with a heavy heart that I come to you tonight.
As we are all aware, these past months have been disastrous for our nation.
Both our west coast and the Gulf States have been changed forever by natural
occurrences that could not be foreseen, either in scale or magnitude. Our
infrastructure has been severely undermined.

We are all aware of the sacrifices that have been forced on us all. Without a
doubt these events have cost many lives since they happened, and we are just
now starting to make headway in our efforts at recovery. Much of that headway
is due to the efforts of the foreign troops that have agreed to come here and
help us in our time of need."

"With help like that who needs enemies." Bob said.

"I want to express the thanks of our people to these selfless men and women
that have left their homes to come here for us. As we have helped them in
years gone by."

"Okay, when does the hammer fall?" Tim asked.

The President paused before continuing.

"Just as we have had to do without here in America, our brave men and women
in the service have had to sacrifice as well. They have had to bare the
burden of shortages of all kinds. Food, ammunition, weapons, fuel, and more
of the necessities of waging a successful campaign are needed. They are all
in short supply."

"I think it is falling now." Kathy answered her husband.

"Our brave young men and women have borne these sacrifices with honor and
dignity. Continuing to carry on with their noble mission of bringing peace
and democracy to the troubled lands of the Middle East."

Again the President paused.

"I must now inform you that our enemies have chosen this time when they
believe we are weakened, and disheartened to launch major attacks against
every American outpost in the region. They are attacking in untold numbers.
They have received more fighters from nations that, before this, had remained
out of the fighting."

"Oh no. Joe!" Was all Alex said, thinking of his high school friend who was
currently serving in Iraq.

"Our forces are making valiant efforts to repel these attacks, but are
hampered by the shortages. We expect casualties to be high on both sides in
these engagements."

There was another pause.

"I have asked for our allies in the region to send to our fighting men and
women everything they can to help in repelling these attacks."

The radio faded.

"Allies!!!" Bob shouted, "What allies? What is he talking about? None of the
Arab states are going to help us. Neither are any of the former Soviet
states. Japan? They are watching out for China. South Korea? They have their
hands full with the North. Israel? They get a lot of their weapons from us,
what can they do? Somebody please tell me I didn't hear what I just heard."

Nobody said a word. They were all as unbelieving as Bob, except for Alex, who
had dark thoughts of his own.

Once again, the static cleared.

"I am also asking that all veterans, who have served our nation in the past,
step forward and serve yet again. I know this is a great sacrifice, but these
are desperate times unlike any we have faced before in the history of this
great nation. Even if you are older, or disabled, we can use you to do things
that will free up combat ready personnel for duty overseas. I have ordered
the Postmaster General to make available space in every Post Office for you
to come in and register for duty."

Disgustedly, Bob turned off the radio.

"That does it. There is no further help for the U.S. We are doomed to the ash
heap of history."

"Come on, Bob. I can't believe that. We'll recover somehow." Kathy said.

"Recover? How? Look at the facts. The President is ruling by decree. He has
no plans to allow Congress to resume its' duties. So, he can do what he
wants, when he wants, without restraint. Last time I checked, they called
someone like that a dictator. Now he wants the only people who might be able
to form a core of resistance to step up and be numbered. That way they
already know where to find you.
There are foreign troops patrolling our streets, with the local law
enforcement not only under Presidential direction, but also under orders to
obey the foreign commanders and the President. What politician have you ever
heard of that willingly gave up that kind of power?

Our food production has been cut by at least fifty per cent, and people are
starving. The only ones with any kind of firearms are the ones that refused
to surrender them, and we are being hunted. What is left of our military is
being over-run in foreign countries, without any hope of resupply or re-
enforcements. Now, they want anyone else who may have the slightest knowledge
of how to resist this New Order, to walk into the Post Office and agree to
serve in whatever capacity they choose. The sad part is that many people will
do it, out of a sense of duty. Once they are gone, almost all resistance
ends. There won't be anyone left to fight, or teach others how to fight. How
do we recover from that?"

"I think you underestimate what God can do. He said that if we pray, He will
hear us."

"Almost right. What He said was; 'If my people, which are called by my name,
shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their
wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and
will heal their land.' 2Ch 7:14.
Tell me, do you see the people of this nation turning from their ways? Or are
they just trying to hold on to what they had, and find an excuse to keep on
doing what they have been doing all along? Do you see much humility? I don't.

Let me tell you something else. Last night the Arch Angel, Michael, visited
me in a dream. I saw some people who turned themselves in to the authorities.
They thought that they were doing the right thing. They thought they would be
safe. The husband watched his wife get raped to death. Then they shot him, in
the head. And it was all done in front of the children. Is that the kind of
thing you want?"

"Bob, this HAS to end. We have children to raise. We can't just keep
wandering through the wilderness."

Bob shook his head.

"You still haven't accepted it, have you? Kathy, this IS the beginning of the
Gods judgment on America. From here on out, things only get worse, and it
won't stop, until The Lord returns.

Think about it, both of you. As long as America stood with Israel, nobody
could wipe it out. None of the prophecies in The Bible concerning Israel and
the end times could happen. We would stand with them. What choice did Satan
have but to destroy this country? Now, America is out of the equation. What
is left of our ground troops will either be dead, or captured very soon. Most
of the air bases we have here have either been too badly damaged to be of
use, or they have been turned over to the foreign forces.

Our Navy is about the only asset we have left, and they won't last long
without fuel. We can't pay for fuel, even if someone was willing to sell it
to us. On top of that, it has been prophesied that we will go to war with
China over Taiwan. What do you think China will do about that? I'll tell you
what. They will nuke the Navy while it is still at sea, and out of range of
their coasts. After that, Russia will hit us with everything they've got, and
we are done for.

Israel will have to stand alone. Only God can help them now, just as it was
foretold.

All of that means, there will be no settling down for us. Oh yes, we will be
able to stop moving for brief periods of time, but we’ll probably never put
down roots. We do that, and we will die."

Chapter Eight

When the group set out once again, Tim was riding shotgun with Bob, and
had his own set of questions.

"Bob, do you mind if I ask you about some things?"

"Ask away."

"I heard some of the things you said to Kathy. They make me wonder. I
mean, I know that uniforms are easy to come by, so anyone can look like a
'professional' as you've put it. But how do you tell the difference?"

"That is easier to say than it is to understand. It isn't any one thing,

it is a combination of things. Mostly it’s attitude and actions. You are
right about one thing. A uniform does not make a soldier. But you can tell
a soldier from a civilian. For example, take that road block. A
professional would have had their car completely block the road. That
would make you have to drive around their vehicle. Those guys just had it
off to the side. I guess to make it easier to handle traffic, or maybe to
make a quick turnaround if someone ran the roadblock. But a real
professional will have the vehicle blocking the road and have people
BEHIND the car or whatever they are using to block the road. Only one man,
or at most two, will come out to check the oncoming vehicle. The rest will
stay behind cover. At that roadblock all three of them came around to the
side you were on. That’s not a good thing to do. It exposes too many
people to a possible hostile fire
situation. So, they weren’t likely to know what to do when things went
wrong. They counted on their show of force. They never expected to be hit
from another direction.

The two things that you need to look for are actions. First, a
professional will always have someone watching his back. Take those gang
bangers that attacked your house on that first day. Obviously they didn't
have any kind of attack plan, besides overwhelming you and killing any who
resisted. If they had been real soldiers, they would have either waited
you out, or offered you a chance to surrender and then taken what they
wanted. They didn't expect to be hit from behind, themselves.

Secondly, a professional is very observant. He tries to see everything

that is going on around him at all times."

"Sounds like being paranoid or something."

"No. It’s not that at all. It's not that he expects to be attacked. He
simply wants to know what is going on. He’s alert, but without fear."

"Alert, but without fear." Tim repeated. "I take it that is what you've
been doing all these years."

"Something like that. I watched the news, checked outside sources on the
Internet, and began to put things aside as best as I could. As scripture
says,

1Ti 5:8 But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his
own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.
I was doing what I could for my family, like anyone would. The difference
was that I believed these days were almost here, and that meant that I
took it a little further than most people did.”

Director of the South Eastern Region Claire and the other regional
directors were gathered in an underground room, buried deep under the
White House. As they waited, they speculated as to why they had been
summoned here. It wasn't long before their speculation was answered. The
President entered the room, and without fanfare, went to the podium at one
end of the room.

"Gentlemen, I want to thank you all for getting here on such short notice.
As you know, the plan is almost complete. Soon this nation will no longer
pose a threat to our master. The armed forces of America are on the verge
of being eliminated. Soon the hated land of Israel will be without aid
from any quarter. This is certain to please our master, and I intend to
make sure he knows that it would not have been possible without your
assistance.

I'm expecting a visit from his messenger at any moment, and expect to
receive the final orders from him as to how to bring this land under
complete subjugation to his will. Within a very short time, all of those
who have been captured, especially the Christians, will be at your
disposal, for whatever you desire to do with them."

A murmur of approval went around the room. This is what they had been
promised. This is what they had long waited for. They could almost taste
the human flesh, and smell the blood. It was hard to restrain their other
evil lusts. Some, like Claire, had already begun to indulge their wanton,
inhuman desires on their captives. The freedom to indulge their every whim
was almost overpowering.

Quietly a side door opened and a small servile man entered.

"Mr. President?" He said in nearly a whisper.

"What is it?"

"Sir, the messenger of the master is here to see you."

"Thank you, I'll be right there." He turned back to his audience. "As
you've heard, our final instructions have arrived. I have taken the
liberty of arranging some 'entertainment' for you. I believe ten years of
age is satisfactory." He smiled at the thought. "Gentlemen, I'll look
forward to seeing you soon."

He then turned and quickly left the room.

As one the directors left the room. Each filled with thoughts of what was
to come in just moments.

The President entered his private apartment in the underground facility.

The thing waiting for him couldn't be considered human except for the fact
he had the usual number of arms, legs, and a head. After that all
similarity ended. He looked at the President with red glowing eyes, and a
smile that was anything but comforting.

"Good to see you. The master is pleased with your work so far, but there
is still one problem."

"Thank you, and thank him for me. I am happy to serve. What problem could
there be?"
"Your Navy. It is still too powerful."

"What can I do? I've reduced it as much as I can without raising

suspicion."

"The master understands. Even as we speak, there is a message being

delivered at the White House, telling you that China is about to go to war
with Taiwan. Your country has a mutual defense treaty with Taiwan in the
case of an attack from China. You will send most of your carrier forces to
defend them. However, you must not allow them to make a first strike. Once
the Chinese have taken out the carriers with their nuclear weapons, you
will allow them to retake the renegade province. Then there will no longer
be any chance of anyone opposing the masters will."

"I understand, and will obey."

It was a small town, tucked away in the Rocky Mountains. At best, the
population couldn't have been more than two hundred and fifty to three
hundred people. Nestled in a valley, it looked peaceful. Both Bob and Tim,
who were looking down on it from a nearby ridge, could tell that something
was very wrong. There were no lights on in the storefronts, no music
playing, there wasn't even a child riding his bike in the streets. There
were doors standing open here and there, and the street was littered with
windblown debris.

"What could be going on down there?" Bob asked himself more than Tim, who
was lying next to him.

"Maybe some sort of curfew?"

"I don't think so. They wouldn't just leave their doors open. Right now,
I'm hoping it isn't some kind of quarantine."

"I guess it could be, but what are we going to do? You know we need
supplies."

"I've got an idea. But right now, lets' get back to the others."

Keeping low enough below the ridge line that they couldn't be seen from
the town, they both walked back to the vehicles. Once there, they
described the scene just over the hill.

"My thought is that Alex and I should go in first. Look around, and see
what we can see."
"Shouldn't I go with you? After all, Alex isn't much older than Tom or
Sam." Tim asked.

"Tim, I don't want to break up a family. If something should happen, Kathy

could lose her husband, and the father of your children. If Alex and I go,
well, it won't be as bad on them."

"Gee, thanks Dad."

"Its’ true son, and you know it."

"Yeah I do, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."

"If it makes you feel any better, I like it even less than you do. I'd
like to have someone to carry on the family name. But I need to have back
up, just in case."

After that, Bob pulled out two small walkie-talkies. He showed Tim how to
use one, and then put the other in his pocket.

"Tim, I want you to go back up to where we were. Keep this thing on, but
don't use it unless you have to do so. Alex and I are going to need to
keep it quiet, until we figure out what is going on. If you don't hear
from us within an hour, you must assume the worst, and take the actions
you see as fit to protect your family. Understand?"

Tim simply nodded.

"Bob, you two be careful down there." Kathy said.

"Don't worry I'm looking after my two favorite skins."

As Alex and Bob got themselves ready to walk down the slope towards the
town, Alex spoke.

"Dad, I have to tell you, I'm kind of scared."

"So am I."

"You are?"

"Son anyone in this situation, and his right mind, would be at least a
little scared. Lets' face it, walking into the center of a bulls-eye is
not something anyone wants to do. Anyone who says he isn't scared doing
something like this is either a fool or a liar."
"What are you scared about? I mean God is on your side."

"Son, I've read The Bible, cover to cover, more than once. I've never seen
one verse or passage that says I'll still be standing when the final trump
sounds. Even if I did, that still doesn't mean I can't be hurt. So yeah,
I'm a bit scared."

"You hide it real good."

"It's like you said. God is on my side. And like scripture says, The Lord
is my strength. That is where my courage comes from to do something as
risky as this." Bob paused a moment. "It's time you learned something
about military tactics."

"I'm all ears."

"This is called a 'bounding over-watch'."

"How do we do that?"

"To start with, I'm going to move down the right side of this road. You
take the left. Now, I'll move out first, and get down there to that
depression by that bush. Do you see it?"

"Yeah. What do I do?"

"You cover me until I get there. Once I do, I'll cover you as you make
your way to that boulder. Don’t run, but don’t drag your feet either. Its’
just the most alert walk you’ve ever taken in your life."

"That will put me in front of you."

"That's right. The idea is we kind of leap frog our way down there. You
cover me, then, I cover you, all the way to the town. Take advantage of
whatever cover you can find on the way. When we get there, you take one
side of the street, and I'll take the other."

"Not to interrupt, but what am I doing while you guys are 'leap-frogging?"
Tim asked.

"From up here you have a better view of the edge of town. So, you watch it
and cover both of us. If you see anything that looks wrong, fire a shot to
warn us. Don't worry about hitting anything. Just keep them ducking so
they can't shoot us. If we are close enough, we'll keep moving forward
into town. If not, we'll beat it back here as fast as we can. Everyone
set? Okay. Lets' do it."
As it turned out, there was almost no cover from halfway between the ridge
line, and the town. Bob decided that he and Alex would have to brazen it
out. They walked slowly down the slope to the town. One of them on each
side of the road. Once on the outskirts, they separated. Bob went down one
side of the main street, while Alex took the other.

"Remember," Bob had told his son when they started down the hill, "Check
every window, and every door, by poking your head around the edge. Get a
quick glance, and pull back. DON'T stand there and look. Just in and out.
If you see anyone, call me. If there are bodies, do not go near them. We
don't know what has happened here, so we don't want to take any
unnecessary chances."

Now they were both doing the same thing. A quick peek, and pull back. When
nothing was seen, they would move carefully past the window or door, and
on to the next one. They worked their way down the street, until about
half way down the street. When Alex reached the general store, he peeked
in the window, and pulled back, then he noticed a piece of paper posted in
the window. After reading it, he called his father over to him.

"What is it?" Bob asked as he jogged up to him.

"Take a look at this."

"I'm sorry, Son I left my reading glasses back at the truck. What does it
say?"

"It says that this town is to be evacuated by the government."

"Evacuated? Why?"

"It says that the government can't spare troops to protect a small town
like this, ‘from roving bands of criminals’. So, they are all being taken
to another place where they will be put in a 'protective facility' along
with people from other small towns. That way they can be more easily
protected."

"I wonder if they are still alive."

"Dad? Don't you think that calling Tim would be a good idea? It's been
about forty minutes already."

"Right you are." Bob pulled the walkie-talkie from his pocket. "Tim, it
seems to be alright down here. Bring the vehicles and park them out of
sight, wherever you can."

"We’re on our way."

When the vehicles arrived, Bob was only a little surprised to see Tom
driving the small car owned by Alex. They were soon out of sight, in
alleys between the mostly wooden and adobe buildings, and everyone started
to get out.

"Tim, I'd like you to come with me. Everyone else stay near the cars until
we make sure it's completely safe."

The younger children were disappointed at losing the chance of exploring

this ghost town, but Kathy made sure that they stayed close to her. Alex
walked back to his car with Tom and as young men do, started proudly
talking about it.

The older men set out walking down the street, using the wall of whatever
building they were next to as cover. It wasn’t long before Tim and Bob had
covered most of the town. For the most part, private homes seemed to be a
little further out from the main part of the town. Soon, however, they
found a small adobe building with windows that had been locked shut with
stout wooden shutters. It also had a thick wooden door and a flat roof.
Strangely enough there were decaying bodies of several dogs lying
scattered over a large area outside.

They tried the door. There was no door knob, only a draw rope high up on
it. They found that the rope refused to raise the bar on the inside. There
was a sliding panel to allow whoever was inside to open it and see who was
outside, before opening the door. But it too was securely fastened.

"What do you think?" Tim asked.

"Mighty curious. Do you think you can boost me up on the roof? A lot of
these places had a trap door up there, and it might be open."

"Lets' find out."

Together they pulled a nearby box up next to the wall, climbed up on it,
and Tim cupped his hands for Bob to step into. They he hoisted Bob high
enough to grab the edge of the wall, and he pulled himself up and over,
onto the roof.

Bob quickly surveyed the scene around the house. Just as out in front,
there were more dead dogs lying on the three other sides of the house. At
a guess, he placed the number at around twenty to twenty-five of the
animals. Then he found what he had hoped for. The trap door was located to
one side of the roof, and it too had a draw rope. Unlike the door below,
this one worked easily. Before dropping down into the dark interior, he
called to Tim.
"I found it. But stay on your toes. There's a lot more dead dogs out
there, and I'm getting a bad feeling about this."

"Will do."

Bob opened the door, and the foul odor of death came up to meet him. He
waited briefly to let the worst of the odor escape. Then, carefully he
felt around with his foot. Finding a ladder with it, and he climbed down.
Once inside, he paused for a moment to allow his eyes to adjust to the
darkness. He located the front door, and moved to open it. The cross bar
was slightly warped, but with a little effort, he lifted it, and opened
the door. Once the door opened, the light that came in was enough to see
the entire room. He saw two more dogs on the floor, and the body of a man
sitting in a chair. Leaning against the table next to him was a shotgun,
and on it, a pistol. Three spent shotgun shell casings were on the floor.
One of the man’s legs was wrapped in a bandage that was dark brown with
dried blood. Cradled in the man’s hands was a clear glass jar, tightly
sealed, with a piece of paper inside. Bob was so absorbed by the scene,
that he jumped when
Tim's' feet scuffed the floor as he came in.

"What happened here?"

"Let’s see if he can tell us."

Gently, Bob pulled the jar from the dead man’s hands, opened it, removed
the paper, and started to read aloud.

"I, Todd Johnson, do declare this to be my last will and testament. I

leave all my property to whoever finds them. I pray that it is a
Christian. Especially my rifle and shotgun. They are good weapons, and
have killed most of the dogs that have killed me.

Beware of the dogs. I hid when the town was evacuated. The people had to
leave the dogs behind. The government wouldn’t allow them to take them.
They have gone wild, and are hunting in packs like wolves. You will find
ammunition for these weapons and my pistol in the cabinet next to the
stove.

I had to get water from the well, that’s when they came back for me. I had
already killed a bunch of them, and thought they had gone. Two got inside
with me. I did them in, but not before they got to me. I'm losing lots of
blood, and don't know how long I will last. So I write this in hopes that
it will help whoever finds me.

Todd Johnson"
Bob folded the paper, and put it in his pocket. Then he sniffed, wiped a
tear from his eye, and looked at Tim. Only to find him doing the same.

"We'd better get back."

Tim was about to agree, when they heard the child scream. They nearly ran
over each other trying to get out of the door.

As they ran down the street, they heard the boom of a shotgun, followed by
two more shots. Reaching the intersection they had turned down to get to
Todd's' home, they skidded to a stop and looked around the corner. The
smaller children were nowhere to be seen. Alex was standing on the hood of
the SUV with a pistol in hand, trying to get a bead on a dog moving around
him on the ground. Kathy was standing, with her back to the door of the
general store, shotgun in hand, with one dog down in the street in front
of her, and two more moving back and forth waiting for the right moment to
attack.

Tim pulled up the rifle in his hands, sighted and fired. One of the
animals in front of Kathy flew sideways as the bullet stuck home. The
second dog stopped, and looked in the direction of Tim's' shot. He barred
his teeth and made a fearsome growl. Kathy saw her chance and took it. The
shotgun boomed again. The second dog went down.

"Kathy, are all of you alright?" Tim shouted.

"Yes. The kids are in the store. Alex? How are you doing?"

"Okay, I think. The one over here took off when the shooting started up
again. I don't see him, and don't know where he went."

"Stay where you are and let us check it out before you come down." Bob
called to him.

"I ain't going no place."

First, Bob laid down, at a distance, and checked under the 4X4. On Bobs'
signal, Tim took one side of the alley, while Bob took the other.

“Watch our rear, Alex.” Bob said as he and Tim entered the alley. They
moved slowly ahead, checking every place the animal could hide. They
looked behind every box, into every doorway, until they reached the end of
the alley. Looking out onto the hillside beyond, there was no further sign
on him.

"Let’s get to the store. Come on down Alex. It's clear."

After they had gathered in the store, Bob found out why the dogs had
gotten so close. At first, they seemed like the kind of pets that they
were used to seeing around. It wasn't until one of the children got a
little too close to one, that the mistake was realized. Kathy was the only
one with either shotgun or rifle, and had to wait until the running child
was out of the line of fire, before she could shoot the dog. The first
shot only wounded it, so she made sure the second finished him.

Most of them had already been in the store when everything started, and
Alex had been checking windows up and down the street when Kathy shot the
first time. He had seen the two other dogs coming at her, and picked up a
pistol from the front seat of the SUV when he heard another dog growling
behind him. He didn't know how it happened, but with one leap, he found
himself on the hood. Turning, the dog was right behind him. In panic,
instead of shooting, he had kicked the dog in the head, and sent it
crashing back to the ground. By the time he remembered the handgun, the
dog had gotten up next to the 4X4 and he couldn't get a shot.

"From now on, nobody old enough to carry a weapon goes anywhere without
one. That INCLUDES going to the bathroom." Bob told them. "We got lucky
today. Nobody got hurt. Next time we might not be so fortunate."

"What about bathing?" asked Kathy.

"We post guards. Obviously, Tim will guard you and otherwise we'll work it
out as we go along."

"Bob, speaking of that sort of thing, do you think we can stay here a day
or two? No offense to anyone, but some of us could, I know, stand to have
some clean clothes."

Bob sniffed and then smiled, "I noticed the same thing. I just didn't want
to mention it. Alright, as long as we can, we'll stay here. Tim, Alex, and
I will look around and find the most defensible place, and we'll set up
shop there. There’s no sense in letting the dogs have another go at us.
That reminds me. From now on, nobody travels alone. Everyone has someone
to watch their back while we do what needs to be done. Oh and one more
thing. Kathy you are the one with the most medical training. I noticed
that this place had a doctor. Would you go to his office and see if there
is anything that we might need that we can take with us. Any drugs,
bandages, and that sort of thing."

Kathy agreed. She was in fact a dentist. How she managed to carry on a
practice, and still manage to care for four children and her husband was a
mystery to Bob, but her children were all well mannered and polite. Their
clothes always clean, and everyone well fed. Bob admired her for that. And
in all medical matters he deferred to her judgment. After all it was good
that a man knew his limitations.

"Alright, the visit to the doctors’ office can wait for tomorrow. Right
now, I want Tom and Sam to stand guard while you and the other children
look through this place for anything we might need." He sniffed again,
smiled and said, "Especially soap. Let’s get to it. I'd like to be ready
in time for tonight's broadcast."

The President sat at his desk looking over the notes for his nightly radio
broadcast. Since radio required less power than television, and most of
the places that still had power on a regular basis, didn't have television
stations, radio was seen as the best way to accomplish his plans.

"Mr. President, you’re on, in 4, 3, 2, 1." the director pointed at the

President to let him know he was on live.

"My fellow Americans, Once again I come before you with troubling news.
Today I have been given undeniable proof, from the Taiwanese ambassador,
that The Peoples Republic of China has begun preparations for a full scale
invasion of the island nation of Taiwan.

I have advised the Mainland Chinese that America finds these actions to be
unacceptable. We have mutual defense treaties with the Taiwanese
government, and will honor them. Therefore I have ordered our naval forces
to send a four carrier task force to the region.

It is hoped that the government of the Peoples Republic of China will see
that even in our current condition, America will not abandon her partners
in democracy. We hope that they will give up on these plans of conquest,
and return to the peaceful path of negotiation.

In the event that they refuse to do so, they must be made aware that this
nation will not stand aside while they conquer their neighbors, in total
disregard for the wishes for freedom loving peoples everywhere, and
international law.

Therefore, I have authorized the overall task force commander to take

whatever actions he deems necessary in order to protect the island nation
of Taiwan.

I ask all Americans, everywhere to join me this night in prayer for the
fate of not only the Taiwanese people but all those who love freedom.
Thank you, and good night."

Once back in his private quarters, the President smiled to himself. He

knew that the Chinese submarine, with the nuclear weapons to destroy the
task force, was already on station. It was just waiting for the order to
fire.

Chapter Nine

As night fell after the first full day in this new town, the group gathered
in the general store to prepare a meal. Tim asked Bob about something that he
had been wondering about.

"Tell me something, Bob. When the government made it illegal to own guns, I
know they sent out people to collect the ones that weren't turned in. And
don't get me wrong, I glad you didn't, but how did you keep them, without
anyone knowing about it?"

"In a word, it was misdirection. Like the magician that gets you to watch the
right hand, while he's pulling the trick with his left. In this case, I did
turn in my weapons. Well, at least the ones they knew about."

"They must have known about all of them, didn't they? I mean they were
registered and everything."

"That’s not exactly true. You see it was a common misconception that all
firearms had to be registered. That was what the government wanted everyone
to believe, so they fostered that idea. They never actually came out and said
you have to do it, they just make you think it’s’ required. Truth was that in
most of the country private sales of weapons weren't required to be
registered. So I didn't register mine. The only weapons that went on the
roles were those bought from dealers. Knowing that the time was coming when
they would come after the weapons, I bought a few that were registered. When
the time came, I dutifully went down to the police station and turned them
over."

"Didn't they check you out to make sure you didn't have any more?"

"Yes, they did. But by the time they got to me, there weren't any in the
house. I had hidden them nearby."

"Let me guess. You buried them?"

"Some of them, but not all.”

"Weren't you afraid they'd find them?"

"Not really. Where they were hidden wasn't on my property, so they could have
belonged to anyone. And as they used to teach us in the infantry 'know thy
enemy'. If you know what he is likely to do, you can take counter measures.
The weapons I buried, I put down far enough that a metal detector wouldn't
find them. The others were hidden in places where there was too much metal
for there to be any hope of them being noticed."

"Where was that?"

"A junkyard."

Kathy looked at Bob. "You know Bob. When we first met, I just thought you
were a 'good old boy' redneck."

"I am. I like hunting, fishing, camping, beat-up old pickup trucks and all
the rest of it. Even hound dogs named 'Blue'."

"Bob, you are much more than that. What is your I.Q.?"

"I honestly don't know. I've never taken an I.Q. test."

"I know they gave you one when you joined the Army. Everyone takes it."

"So, is that what that was?"

"Bob, you're doing it again."

"Doing what?"

"You are playing dumb. I know you are more intelligent than that. What was
your score?"

"Oh yes, I remember that test. Highest possible score was one hundred forty.
Minimum to be allowed into the service was eighty. To be an officer was at
least one hundred fifteen."

"And your score was?"

"Well I wasn't an officer, just a grunt."

"BOB! Stop, being so evasive."

A brief smile crossed his face. Bob looked down and half mumbled. "One
hundred twenty-seven."

"One hundred twenty-seven! Bob, you could have been an officer."

"I know."

"But if you were an officer, you could have retired more than a decade ago.
You wouldn't have had to put on this 'dumb redneck' routine either."

Bob sighed. "Kathy, I don't know if I should be mad or happy. Mad, that even
you have fallen for the deception they have put out. Or happy, that my tracks
have been hidden so well."

"What are you talking about?"

"Kathy, do you have any idea what a redneck really is? A redneck is someone
that is close to the earth. Not in a tree-hugging sort of way, but someone
who respects the earth, and The God who made it. They don't just go out and
kill anything that has fur and moves. Yes, they do kill animals, but only to
eat, or in self defense.” Bob noticed Kathy’s eyes widen slightly at this
remark, but he continued without a break. “They don't just go out and slash
and burn the land. The land and the animals are what keep them alive, and
they know it. The idea that we are people that are some kind of inbred,
racist morons whose' greatest hope is to graduate the fifth grade is
absolutely wrong. You've known me for over ten years. Have you ever heard me
say anything that could be called racist?"

"Well, no."

"Do you think I've got an education that is beyond the fifth grade?"

"Obviously you do. Bob, what is your point?"

"Simply this. By your own admission, I'm not what you would call a redneck,
and by mine, I am a redneck. Who do you think is right?"

"Bob, that's not fair. "

"It's perfectly fair. I'm challenging your prejudices. I'm not saying that
there are no redneck racists, there are. But I've met racists in everything
from uniforms to three piece suits. Hollywood had promoted the idea that they
are all out there in the countryside, barefoot and drunk. And you bought into
it."

Bob shook his head. "I've used that prejudice to conceal what I am really all
about and what I will do. Most people think that rednecks would be the first
to charge heavily armed men in full body armor with both air and artillery
support with nothing more than shotguns and pickup trucks, and expect to win.
Nobody expected that people like us would have the brains to evade the forces
that have been sent against us.

I told you. Misdirection is a very powerful friend. You thought one thing,
but when you learn the truth, it turns out to be something very different.
You think rednecks were basically stupid and lazy. Yet a redneck pulled your
family out of your house. A redneck kept you alive when the gang bangers came
back. A redneck has been feeding your family since we left home. Does that
sound like an inbred moron to you?"

Kathy bowed her head, and shook it.

"Do you begin to see it? I've used peoples' preconceptions to cover my
actions. I'm bright enough to do just about anything I want. I choose to live
simply. If you mistake that for something else that is your problem, not
mine."

"Bob." Tim spoke softly. "You've always said you knew this time was coming.
How did you?"

"When I was a boy, my parents sent me to a school that was run by our church.
One day in the fall of 1966, our pastor was teaching the Bible study. We were
in the book of Revelation. Someone asked if he thought he would see the end
times. He said no, because not all of the prophecies had been fulfilled yet.
Such as Israel regaining their land. As you know, Israel regained their land
in the six day war in June of '67. That made an impression on me. From that
day to this, I've studied Biblical prophecy. That's how I know."

"I never knew you went to a church school." Kathy said.

Bob smiled. "Misdirection is a powerful friend, and 'playing dumb' can be a

great help at times. You never asked anything about my education, so why
should I volunteer it? You just accepted me as a well educated redneck. That
was fine by me. Now you know why. People underestimate you. That means they
never see the surprise coming."

What was planned for just a couple of days turned into five of them. On the
first day, another adobe house was found, just down the road from Todd's
home. Like Todd's home it had stout walls, and a flat roof. Unlike Todd's
place, it had locking doors, and windows. More importantly it had a
generator, which was more than able to handle the load of running the house.
It took two days for Kathy and Tim to get the clothing for their family
cleaned. The load was made somewhat easier by the fact that Tom and Sam had
found clothing that fitted them in the general store. Bob and Alex had
similar luck with their clothing, limited only by Bobs' insistence that his
pants had to be jeans.

"They last longer." Was all he had to say on the matter.

Kathy had asked, "Don't you think we should bury Todd?"

"I'd like to, but I'm afraid that the freshly turned earth would give us
away." Bob told her.
The argument went back and forth for some time. In the end it was decided
that leaving Todd where he was, was the best idea, and certainly the safest
for them all. However, a ceremony was held to honor his memory.

Dogs proved to continue to be a problem for the first two days, but after
five more of them had been killed, they no longer came close to the group.
They knew the dogs were still around because they would still see one of them
from time to time. The rule of all adults, and everyone now thought of Tom
and Sam as such, going armed, and guards at all times, was never questioned.

True to his word, the cabinet next to the stove in Todd's home was well
stocked with rifle, shotgun, and pistol ammunition. The weapons made a
welcome addition to the collection that they already had.

The general store offered even more than some food items, it also had
something Bob had overlooked in his preps. Cards for three different types of
games, plus a couple of board games were added to their supplies. Diversions
the games offered turned out to be just as necessary as ammunition, in order
to keep everyone from becoming too uptight. Two other bonuses the store had
were spices for the food, and coffee. After all the time they had spent on
the road, coffee had become nonexistent. The adults soon made something of a
ceremony of having it with breakfast every morning.

All of them were surprised at two things. First, they were amazed at the
number of things they no longer had to entertain them. Secondly, how little
they missed them. Once, the children were easily bored with whatever
electronic gadget that they were given for birthdays, holidays, or any other
reason. Now that such things were no longer available, they found new
excitement in checkers, chess, backgammon, and card games, which had no set
number of outcomes as the electronic games did, since the outcome was
determined by whatever a live opponent did.

Instead of television, they now listened to the few programs they could get
on the radio during the evenings. The programs they could hear increased in
number when a short wave radio was discovered. Now they could listen to
broadcasts from around the world. The knowledge base of the youngest children
grew by leaps and bounds.

They also discovered that sitting around playing board games and talking
filled them with a sense of togetherness they had never known before. Some of
those discussions brought new understanding to Kathy, Tim, and Alex.

"Tell me Bob, just how long have you been getting messages from angels? I
mean you lived across the street from us for ten years before all of this got
started. Why didn't you say anything?" Kathy asked one evening.

"Michael showed up for the first time, shortly after Nancy died, and again,
just before we had to leave. But I've been getting, well, I call them
'nudges' for years. You know, that small still voice that you aren't quite
really sure you heard at all, but whatever you heard, was the right thing to
do. I can't explain it better than that I'm afraid, but those 'nudges' were
never wrong. They did, however cause more than one argument between Nancy and
myself. Like that generator. It sat in the box in my garage for over five
years, collecting dust. I don't know how many times Nancy told me to return
it to the store, and get the money back in that first year. After it became
obvious that it was old enough that the store wouldn't take it back, she
urged me to get rid of it in a garage sale. I refused. I told her that if and
when the day came we were without power, she'd be glad we had it. You
remember what happened four years ago."

Kathy and Tim remembered. A major storm had gone through the area. They were
without power for over a week. They were grateful that Bob and Nancy had the
generator. It had saved a lot of the food that would have spoiled in their
freezer.

"Anyway, after that storm, whenever bad weather was coming our way again,
Nancy had only one question, 'Is the generator working?' That generator was a
'nudge', just like the long term storage food we've been eating. Same is true
for my weapons and ammo. I had a shotgun, two rifles, and two handguns. Nancy
thought I was a little 'excessive' in my collection. But knowing I was a
veteran she kind of wrote it off to my past. If she had known I also had over
a thousand rounds for each weapon I truly believe she would have reported me
to the mental health authorities."

Kathy nodded knowingly. She remembered the conversations she and Tim had when
he first suggested getting a weapon for their own defense. And she couldn't
forget how dearly it had almost cost them.

"It wasn't until things started to really get bad that Michael showed up. As
for telling you about the 'nudges'. Well, as I've mentioned before, I gave
you a copy of 'Through the Fire, Without Burning' which spoke of a lot of
these things, but you never read it. So, how could I talk to you about the
rest?" Bob smiled, "Maybe YOU would have called the boys in the white coats."

"You said that 'small still voice' was never wrong. How do you know it was
from God?" Tim asked.

"As I said, it was never wrong. I was 'nudged' by it to get the generator.
That wasn't wrong. True, it was years before I even opened the box, but it
wasn't wrong. After that year, I didn't have a need to use it again, until
recently. But it still wasn't wrong. The answers you get from The Lord are
always the right thing to do, even when you don't understand why."

"What about Mom?" Alex asked. "Why did she have to die? It doesn't make
sense. She was the one who was always going to the gym, you didn't. She was
the one who went to the doctor when she felt something was wrong. She sure
seemed to be in good health. So why did she have to die?" Clearly the thought
was troubling him.

"I don't know son. I wish I did. I prayed for her for over twenty years. I
don't have a clue as to why she died unsaved. All I CAN tell you is that
there were many times she saw Gods’ provisions for us. But she always gave
credit to luck, or something else, anything else, but never God. Also there
is no way she would have been able to put up with what we've been through
already. I don't believe she would have been able to handle what is coming."

"What is coming, Bob?" It was Tim this time.

"Dimitru Duduman said he was told that when we go to war with China, over
Taiwan, that is when Russia would hit us from behind, and I quote, 'America
WILL burn.'"

The Presidential radio addresses had also become something of a regular

event. Not so much for any sense of hope, but to let them know just how bad
things had gotten. Bob sat waiting for the war with China to be announced as
a fact, and not just posturing by governments. He was surprised when he heard
of something else that actually happened.

They were calling it 'The Washington Massacre'. The American people didn't
blame the President for the west coast earthquakes. They didn't blame him for
the mega hurricane that had done so much damage to the entire southeastern
coast. Many understood that the armed forces had to deal with shortages, just
as they did. They were dissatisfied with the response that left their sons,
daughters, fathers, mothers, and loved ones of all kinds at even greater risk
than they had been. They became angry when the President pulled two carrier
groups out of the Middle East, to support the Chinese mission. They knew that
that move left their loved ones without a means of getting them all out, if
things got worse.
Then when the carrier groups were wiped out by the Chinese nuclear missiles,
and the troops on the ground in the Middle East came under even heavier
attacks, they did blame him.
The crowds around the White House had started to grow to unmanageable size.
They also became angrier by the hour. When they heard about the loss of the
carriers, they descended on the White House and the Congress building with
the seeming intent of taking them apart, brick by brick.

The foreign troops may not have known what to do about ever growing crowds,
but they knew about quelling riots. They opened fire. They continued to fire
long after the resistance had stopped. The dead were almost beyond counting.

Claire's' televangelist had once again been put on the air pleading for
people to come back to the cities, with promises of food, housing, warmth on
cold nights, and all the rest. Claire had convinced him that it was in the
best interest of the members of the church to come into the cities. That way
they could all be taken care of at once. He just didn’t inform the
televangelist exactly what kind of care he was talking about. The foreign
troops guarding Washington D.C. had no idea who belonged there and who
didn't. But they did have orders to allow anyone trying to get into the city
to enter, just to not allow them to leave again.

"Are you certain the master wants me to do this?" The President asked. "Who
cares what those useless eaters think? Who cares what they want? It doesn't
make any difference."

"Are you questioning me?" The messenger asked in a deceptively mild voice.
"Maybe you are questioning the master himself?"

"No, it isn't that. I just don't understand why I have to speak to them."

"The master has his plans. You just do what you are told. The regional
directors have already gotten their orders, and have left Washington."

"They're gone? I thought they took orders from me."

"We all take our orders from the Master. You have yours, carry them out.
Tonight!”

"I will obey."

Claire and another director were sitting in a plane as they were flying out
of the city. They spoke quietly to one another.

"You are certain of the master’s plan?"

"Yes."

"Why would he do it? This one has helped us a great deal."

"He wants power too much. Do you really think the master will tolerate any
challenge to his authority?"

"No, he won't."

“It would only be a matter of time before that monkey started to think
himself better than the Master. It suits his plans better to take care of
this one this way.”

The President was just starting to speak.

"My fellow, Americans. I want to speak to you tonight about the rising level
of violence in this land..."

That was when the first Russian bomb detonated over Washington. Within
seconds, numerous other cities were also wiped off the map of North America.
The 'Land of the Free, and Home of the Brave' ceased to exist at that moment.

Bob had been itching to leave. He thought that they had been in this town to
long. They had done everything that was needed. Their supplies had been
replaced, they had the chance to rest, and they had even managed to pick up a
few needed items, such as Todd's' weapons, and the games. But, he knew the
longer they stayed where they were, the greater the chance was that they
would be discovered. It was time to move on as far as he was concerned. What
bothered him the most was that Michael hadn't returned yet. He supposed that
he should take comfort from that, but after having spent so much time on the
run, he couldn't get used to staying put.

It was that same night he brought up the matter to the rest of the group. It
was just before the Presidential address.

"I don't know what to think." He told them. "I really believe that we should
be moving on, but I haven't gotten any instructions yet."

"Dad, didn't you say that we shouldn't do anything without our guide?"

"Alex is right, Bob. We should wait for Michael to lead the way. After all,
The Lord hasn't let us down so far. I'm willing to wait on Him." Kathy said.

"I know, I know. You're both right, I just don't like sitting here this long.
What if a helicopter comes by? We've been careful not to disturb much of
anything, but still, anyone who looks carefully can tell someone has been
here recently. I don't like it."

Tim spoke up, "I'm sure The Lord wouldn't leave us here without a reason.
Tell you what. Lets’ listen to tonight's' follies, and then see what we think
in the morning."

The 'follies' was the name they had given to the radio addresses given by the
president. Bob agreed, and the switched on the radio, just in time to hear;

""My fellow Americans. I want to speak to you tonight about the rising level
of violence in this land..."

Unexpectedly, the radio went dead. At first, nobody could figure out what had
happened. Then, suddenly, in the distance off to the southeast, the night sky
became brighter. For a moment, it seemed as if a new small sun had come to
life. Then, just as suddenly, it dimmed and faded away.

"What was THAT?" Tom asked?

"I think that was Las Vegas." Bob answered. "If I'm right, everything that
Dimitru prophesied is happening now."

"What do you mean?" Alex asked.

"If this is what I think it is, Vegas, D.C., New York, what is left of
California, and Florida have all been wiped out. Now I know why we have been
left sitting here. We have to get ready."

"Ready, for what?" Asked Kathy.

"If you were living in a city that hasn't been bombed, say Colorado Springs,
what would you do when you find out what has happened?"

"I'd get out of there."

"What about the troops guarding the cities?" Asked Bob.

"Nothing would stop me. Not even them."

"Exactly right. By this time tomorrow, there are going to be a lot of people
trying to do what we've already been doing. A lot of them are going to die.
Either by troops firing on them, or from not being prepared for this, they
will still die either way. The ones that make it this far are going to be
either have been led here as we were, or the toughest people to make it out.
If they are the second sort, they won't be in the mood for anyone telling
them where they can or can't live. Or what they can or can’t do. They are
just going to take what they want, and kill anyone that gets in their way. We
need to be ready for that."

"Bob. There are only six of us that can fight. How are we supposed to defend
this place? More force multiplication?"

"No. That won't work here. There are too many ways into and out of this
place. We'd never be able to defend them all. Especially with only six people
able to fight. We need another plan. Let me sleep on it tonight, maybe
something will come to me."

"What about those people who are running from the cities?" Kathy asked.

"Even if they left right now, they would still take a few days to get here on
foot."

"Won't they be driving Dad?"

"Those who are close enough to the blast won't be driving anywhere. EMP will
stop them."
"EMP?”

"Electro Magnetic Pulse. It’s a blast of electromagnetic energy given off by

the bomb. It will kill any unshielded electronic device. I'm not an expert,
so that is the best I can explain it. But, that includes car ignitions. Most
people will be on foot, alright. And if they can get outside the affected
area, they will have to fight with the owners of any working cars that are
still around, not to mention each other. I think we have a few days to a week
to work something out."

"Do you think those who weren't in the affected areas will come this way?" It
was Alex. "If they do, how long before they get here?"

"I can't say, Son. But we should be safe enough for tonight. I think we
should all try to get some sleep. It just might have to last us for a while."

With that, they all turned in for the night. However it was a long time
before they all finally fell into a fitful sleep.

The next morning, Bob was the last one to awaken. Nobody wanted to do
anything to disturb his sleep. They knew he would sometimes receive dreams or
visions, and no one wanted to disturb him. When Bob finally did get up, it
was clear he was in a much better mood than the night before.

"Well Bob. Are you going to tell us, or do we have to drag it out of you?"
Kathy said, with a smile on her face.

"That obvious, is it?"

"Yes. When Michael comes for a visit, you become very calm. What did he say
this time?"

"Actually, it wasn't Michael. It was a dream. I was shown that we aren't to

leave here yet. There are others coming, and we need to be here when they
arrive. However, we need to do a couple of things before they get here. Tim?
Could you come here for a minute?"

"What do you need?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't there some mouse traps over in the
store?"

"I think so. Why? Are you having midnight callers?"

"Not that kind. Could you get a few of them for me?"

"Sure. Sam, come with me." Tim called over his shoulder as he started to
leave. The two of them headed towards the store.
"Mouse traps? What do you have in mind, Bob?" Kathy wondered.

"Watch and learn young lady, watch and learn. Alex."

"Yeah Dad?"

"I need to go to the truck. Would you take the other side of the building I'm
next to, and make sure I don't have any surprises."

"You got it."

Bob turned and headed off to his truck. In the back, he had a hodgepodge of
different items, many of which seemed to make no sense. But when something
was needed, he always had something that would do the job. As he turned the
corner, he was brought up short by what looked to him like a sewer pipe
pointed right at his nose. A female voice quietly ordered him;

"Quiet, and DON'T move."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Who are you people, and how did you get here?" She asked angrily.

"We're refugees, trying to hide from the military patrolling the cities." He
looked over the barrel of the shotgun, and saw a woman, about his own age.
She was handsome, rather than beautiful. With a face that was starting to
show the usual signs of age. Her eyes were a deep brown, like her hair.

"Why did you come here? This place is in the middle of nowhere."

"That's why we came here. A lot less likely that anyone is going to be
looking for us out here. Look ma'am, if we are trespassing on your property,
we will be happy to move to another part of town. We truly mean you no harm."

"Sure you don't. How can I believe that?"

"By this.” He glanced over her shoulder, and said; “Alex, put the shotgun
down."

"You don't really expect me to fall for that old one, do you?"

From behind her the woman heard the familiar whack-whack of a shotgun.

"Old, but true." Alex said.

"Alex, I told you, put it down. Obviously this lady lives here. We are in her
town. Besides, if you do anything, I think the young lady behind you would be
VERY unhappy."
Alex felt the muzzle of a weapon in the small of his back.

"Yes, I would." A voice said quietly.

"Okay I get it." Alex lowered the weapon, but still held on to it.

"Ma'am, there is no reason for this to end badly. We really have no intention
of hurting anyone."

The shotgun Bob had been staring into lowered.

"You certainly are a polite one. Well, we'll give you a chance. How many are
you?"

"There are eight of us in all, two aren't yet teenagers. Please let us show
you our good intentions. We still have some things left over from breakfast,
would you like to eat?"

"We could stand to have a meal."

"Then please, come with me."

"Alright. You can keep your weapons, but both of you walk in front of us."

"Mom?" The girl questioned.

"We can't carry them all, and besides this way everything looks normal."

"If you say so."

Bob was starting to like this woman. She thought much like he did. Slowly Bob
turned, and called Alex to walk beside him, which he did. As they moved
towards the adobe house, Tim and Sam were just returning from the store, a
half dozen mouse traps in hand.

"I found them Bob.” Seeing the woman and her daughter, he stopped suddenly
and said. “Whoa! What's going on?"

"Take it easy Tim. We are going to see about breakfast for our visitors.
Bring those, and come along. And Tim, don't make any sudden moves please. It
could be hazardous to my health."

Tim and Sam also turned and started walking to the house. As they got near to
it, Tim called to his wife.

"Honey, we have company."

Kathy looked out the window, and saw the two women behind Bob and Alex. She
smiled.
"About time some other women showed up. I was starting to get a little
frustrated not having someone to talk to about you guys."

It wasn't long before Maria and her daughter, Michelle, Mike to her friends,
were sitting down, both eating and chatting with Kathy, as if they were old
friends. Their shotguns having been set aside during the meal. Bob didn't
know if it was her years as a dentist, or just natural charm, but Kathy had
that affect on people. She could put anyone at ease in record time. Soon the
subject Bob had been dreading came up.

"When we left here a month ago, one of our friends decided to remain behind,
to kind of keep an eye on things. You haven't seen anything of him have you?
His name is Todd."

Lacking the words, Bob pulled the will from his pocket and gave it to Maria.
After reading it, Maria sighed, and said,

"I would have never believed something like this would happen to him. He was
one tough old bird. It's a shame."

Michelle took the paper and read it. She too sighed and handed it back to
Bob, while saying nothing.

Tim cleared his throat to break the silence, and asked,

"Bob, why did you want these things." Tim said and held up the package of
traps.

"Ah yes, I was about to do something about that when our friends showed up.
Wait here."

He left the room, but returned shortly, carrying distress flares from the
back of his truck. They were the kind used by boaters. They were really
nothing more that a pistol like launcher for flares that resembled shotgun
shells. He also had a small spool of wire, pliers, and a knife. Taking one of
the traps, he carefully cut a hole in it, just the right size to hold one of
the flare shells. Then he took some of the wire and wound it around the bar
that would slap down trapping a mouse. He pulled back the bar, slid the flare
under it, and gently lowered it again.

"What is that?" asked Kathy.

"It’s our early warning system. Or, at least part of it. What we do, is
attach this trap to a tree, or rock, with the flare pointing up. Run a trip
wire across the road, or trail to the trap and set it. Something hits the
wire, sets off the trap. The piece of wire I wrapped around the bar, will act
like a firing pin, and that sets off the flare, letting us know that someone
is coming, and from which direction. As we all know, there aren't enough of
us to defend this town, but if we can find out what they look like before
they get close to us, the better chance we have to decide if we should stand,
or bug out."

"What happens if we make the holes in these traps too big?"

"A little of that white paste kids use in school should hold them in place.
Let’s go ahead and set this one on the main road into town. Not on this close
ridge, but the next one out. We'll need as much time as possible."

Bob picked up the trap, and headed for the door, with Tim following close
behind. Once they were outside Bob waved Alex over to him. Speaking quietly
he told him;

"Son, I want you and Tom to take the 4X4 and check the dirt road that leads
up into the hills around here. If we have to leave, I want to use the road
that offers the most cover. Drive out for one hour, and then come back. Get
an idea of what's up that way. When you get back, rest a while, and then do
the same with the dirt road that leaves the other side of town. Understand?"

Alex nodded, and left to find Tom.

"Why not just ask Maria?" Tim asked.

"She has just joined us. She doesn't entirely trust us yet. And I don't
entirely trust her either. As you know, trust is earned, never given. What if
there is something out there that she doesn't want us to see? She could send
us in the completely wrong direction. Best we check it for ourselves.
Besides, with the way Alex was looking at Michelle, I thought it a good idea
to separate them for a while."

Chapter Ten

Between setting up their alarm system, and waiting on Alex and Tom to return
from their scouting, it was the next morning before Maria was able to speak
with Bob again. It happened while they were enjoying their morning coffee.

"Bob. I want to apologize for pointing a gun at you yesterday. I didn't know
who you were, or what you might do to Mike and myself. I had to protect us.
You do understand, don't you?"

"Certainly. I would have done the same thing myself, in that position. But I
would like to ask you not to do it again."

Maria smiled. "No, I won't. I know you better now."

"How so? We haven't said much to each other since... shall we say, since we
met."
"Kathy and I had a long talk yesterday. You were part of it. Is it true that
you have had conversations with angels?"

"Well, mostly I listen. But yeah, the Arch Angel Michael does show up
sometimes to tell me things."

"Has he said anything about what to do about the invasion?"

"INVASION? What are you talking about?" Kathy demanded.

Bob looked at her. "I'm sorry Kathy. I've said so much to so many people,
I've lost count of what I've said to whom. But think about it this way. Do
you think that anyone would bomb us, and NOT follow up with an invasion?"

"I suppose you're right, but why would they invade? I mean there's nothing
left."

"That's not quite true. Yes things were getting short, but there are still a
lot of cattle out there in the fields somewhere. That's also true about all
farm animals, such as horses and pigs. Same goes for crops of every kind.
Things were in short supply, but there were still available. That is also
true of natural resources. We still have oil in the ground, minerals, and
other things. They want what we have, it is just that simple."

"Well, at least they'll have a hard time getting into the country."

"What makes you think that?"

"The West and Gulf coasts are all torn up. They won't be able to come ashore
there."

Bob shook his head. "Kathy, will you think about what you are saying. These
soldiers are trained to land in areas that have undergone a bombardment by
naval and air forces, for an extended period of time. I think they won't have
much of a problem at all. There won't be an army there to fight them off. No
resistance that amounts to anything at all. They have most likely landed and
established a sizable beach head already."

Kathy paled at the thought. "What do we do?"

"We wait until The Lord tells us what to do. In the mean time, we do what we
can to prepare for that day."

"Bob, we can't fight off an army."

"We don't have to. They won't send an army this far out. Maybe we’ll see a
small unit or two, but nothing too large. Besides, like I said before, I was
told that there are others like Maria and Michelle, coming this way. Lets'
just wait and see what The Lord brings our way."

Director Claire was both pleased, and displeased by the current state of
affairs. On the one hand, the invasion by the Russians, Chinese, and Cubans
was going well. The Russians were having the hardest time. An early and heavy
snowfall was slowing them up along the Canadian border, but they were making
progress. His region in the southeast had offered almost no resistance. Of
course, there weren't many left to resist. But now, the director of the north
central region wanted help in getting his area under control.

What had displeased him was when one of the camps full of Christians had been
hit by an off course missile. It wasn't nuclear, but it WAS large. At least
half of them had been killed outright. Another twenty-five percent had been
badly injured. That meant he would have to wait for them to heal, before he
could do anything else with them. Worst of all, after the head count was
taken, ten percent of them had escaped. He knew that this would mean they
would spread warnings about what really happened in the camps, so their
recapture was now high on his list of things to do. And without the gangs to
do the footwork that meant getting the invading forces to do the job, and
they were still a long way from even being close enough to help. What
military forces were left in the former United States weren't going to do
anything. They were too busy trying to do something about the invasion. The
same was true for the local law enforcement. What to do?

He knew the televangelist wouldn't be of any help, even if he had survived

the missile attack. Nobody was going to believe him anymore. Then an idea
came to him.

Calling in his secretary, he dictated an order.

By Order of Regional Director Claire;

Due to the current situation, the Director hereby orders all able bodied
persons to report to the nearest military, or law enforcement personnel, for
service in defense of this region. Any persons not reporting for duty, will
be considered to be aiding the enemy, and will be shot.

He smiled as he thought of it. Either the Christians reported for duty, in

which case they would be recaptured, or they would be shot on sight for not
helping in the regional defense. Either way, the problem was solved. He sent
it out for immediate publication and posting throughout the region.

Director Claire listened to his new televangelist. He actually liked how the
man spoke, and advised his counterpart in the northern mid-west to put him on
the air, in order to help him bring his region under control. Claire had to
admit it. This new televangelist was much better than the last one. While the
last guy had whined and pleaded, this fellow breathed fire and brimstone. He
found the change very welcome. And he was just as easy to delude as the last
one. Where the last one wanted everyone to faun over him for keeping them
safe, this one simply told others what to do and forced those who were less
strong to serve him, because he was ‘Gods’ man’. The ego led him so far
astray so quickly. Claire now listened to him speak. He started slowly, but
where the last man had begged, this one commanded.

"My beloved people. I call you tonight to prayer and fasting. In the past few
days, we have suffered the loss of many of our brothers and sisters. As we
all know, enemy forces have invaded and begun killing our people without
regard to age, or sex. They have been killing men, women, children, even our
older generation. Many of you have heard another dear brother on this
broadcast. Even he wasn't safe from these invaders. Pray for them weep for
them, fast for their souls.

Now we face the greatest challenge we have ever faced. When we were down,
others sought to destroy us. We were invaded by a ruthless enemy. Now, we
know that we have been blessed in this country. And now someone seeks to
steal our inheritance. We have a duty to our church and our faith to protect
them. For it is written;

1Ti 5:8 But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his
own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.

Does that not include defending ourselves, against foreign invaders?

Now our friend and benefactor Director Claire has volunteered to help us with
this righteous and justified act. He will aid in the direction of our people
in the fight. For he HAS military experience. Without a government, we NEED
someone to direct our fighting men and women. He has called for ALL true
believers to bare this burden. I know many of you are frightened by this
task. Fear not. For if The Lord be for us, who can stand against us?

I know there are those who would tell you that we should hide from these
troubles. Let me remind you of something.

Rev 21:8 But the COWARDLY, UNBELIEVING, abominable, murderers, sexually

immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the
lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

WILL YOU BE COWARDS? Will you lose your ETERNAL REWARD by being cowards? I
SAY NO! We are not cowards, and we will stand in the breach, as the men of
old did. Those who tell you to hide are the cowards. And what will you tell
your children and grand children? Will you tell them that you fought for this
land when in truth you hid? Remember what I just read to you. ALL lairs have
their place in the lake of fire. They want you to JOIN them in that lake of
fire.
What do you do, if you know one of these persons? Know this my children; if
they don't stand with us, they STAND AGAINST US. They ARE NOT true believers,
and they are anathema. SHUN them, CAST THEM OUT from among you. Turn them in
to the authorities. You can't have creatures like that at home with your
wives and daughters, while you do your duty, can you men? You WILL BE doing
the work of OUR GOD by turning them in."

Bob snapped off the radio.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I just can't take any more of this
idiot. Talk about a carrot and a stick. Well, they've brought out a club."

"I have my own reasons for not liking what this man had to say Bob, but I'd
like to hear yours. What do you mean by carrot and stick?" Maria said.

"Did you ever get a chance to hear this preacher they used to have on?"

"No. We were still out in the mountains."

"Well, it's like this. The preacher they had on before the invasion, he was
the carrot. He pleaded with people to come back to the cities, or death
factories as I think of them. He offered everything you could want these
days. Either food and water, or a warm bed on cold nights, or whatever you
needed and wanted that you could reasonably hope to get these days. He was
holding it out to you as bait, to get you back to where they could get their
hands on you. I'm sure a lot of people fell for it as well. But that wasn't
enough to get all of us.

Now they trot out this guy. He's the club. Did you notice how he said that if
you don't sign right up to fight, you are not only a coward, but an
unbeliever as well? It seems our 'brother' out there has forgotten the very
words of Jesus Christ, Himself.

Mar 13:14 But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by
Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth
understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains.

Now I admit, this fellow isn't the anti-christ, but I don't think there is
any doubt we are in the end times, so the words of Jesus still apply. And
where is it that Michael has led us to? The mountains! And not only that,
remember what he said to the twelve.

Mat 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you:
and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.

Isn't that what this guy is saying? Turn us in. Because they wouldn't want
those who KNOW what is going on to be left guarding their families.
You have to admit one thing though. It is a clever trap. Sign up, and they've
got you, as soon as they check your name on the list. Don't sign up, and
you'll be probably shot on sight. If you aren't shot as soon as you come in,
you get sent to the front. We die no matter which way we turn." He sighed in
disgust. "Pardon me, but I need some air." With that Bob stepped out into the
night.

He sat on the edge of the front porch, looking at the clear night sky,
wondering how many Christians would be taken in this latest trick. There
would be quite a few that would do as this new preacher told them to do, he
knew. Then there would be those that would have had enough by now. They would
walk in, and surrender themselves, hoping to go to fight, instead of straight
to the camps. That way, they hoped, their families would be taken care of by
whoever stayed behind.

Being so deeply wrapped up in his own thoughts, he didn't hear Maria as she
walked up behind him.

"That was quite a speech. Mind if I join you?" She said.

"Please, take a seat. Sorry if I offended you. I just get so tired of these
so called men of God, that just don't understand that He said what He meant,
and meant what He said."

"Not at all. I agree with everything you said in there, and now, out here. It
makes me happy for two reasons."

"Oh? And what might they be?"

"You know what they say, 'the fruit never falls very far from the tree'.
You're a good man Bob, and have you noticed how Alex and Mike are looking at
each other?"

Bob chuckled to himself. "In the case of Alex, it's been kind of hard to
miss. He's always been there to shoulder his part of the load, but if it is
going to take him anywhere near Michelle, he can't wait to get started. And
he's always the last to leave, as long as she is still nearby."

Now it was Maria's' turn to laugh. "It's been the same with her. If he is
around, she wants the job that puts her close to him."

"Maria, I would like to ask you a favor. You see, I'm not attracted to male
beauty, but I'm not ignorant of it either. Alex is a handsome young man, and
when he chooses to, he can really turn on the charm. I think Michelle needs
to know that."

"I have to ask a favor in return. Mike has always had a strong sense of self
worth. And in the past couple of years, she has been able to really make that
opinion stick with the young men that used to be around here."
"Oh? What happened two years ago?"

"She earned her second degree black belt in karate."

"I see. Not to worry, I'll make sure Alex knows about it.” He paused for a
moment. “Funny how it works, isn't it. I mean, here we are looking the
tribulation in the face, and we're worried about our kids."

Maria grinned at him, but said nothing. They both fell silent for a short
time before Bob spoke again.

"I hope you'll forgive me, but where is Michelle's' father?"

Maria looked as if she wanted to cry.

"John was a trucker. He was taking a load of relief supplies to California.

They told me an aftershock took out the bridge he was driving over. It was
five hundred feet to the bottom."

"I'm sorry."

"That's all right. I don't suppose I'll ever quit missing him, but at least I
don't cry half the night about it anymore. What about your wife?"

"Heart attack, about six months ago. I don't remember everything they told
me, but I do remember they said she never knew what hit her. One minute she's
working out on the treadmill at the gym, the next she was just gone. Nothing
could be done."

"I'm sorry for you. I know it's hard."

"Like you, not as hard as it used to be. But I do still miss her."

Maria rubbed her arms and said, "It's getting chilly. I think I'll head back
in."

She stood, and walked to the door before Bob remembered something.

"Maria? You said there were two reasons. What was the other one?"

She smiled at Bob and said,

"You'll figure it out. Good night."

When Bob announced a hunting trip to be made with only bows, arrows and
pistols, Alex began to get suspicious. It was when Bob said that they would
be out overnight that Alex felt like he knew what was going on. It was a semi
'survival camp'. His father was taking it easy on the rest of them. He was
allowing a small amount of food for each person, and even arranged for a few
gallons of water be placed at a preselected camp site.

However, everyone would be responsible for making their own shelter and bed.
Bob agreed to get the camps fire started, but only because the others had
things more important than that to learn. They were all given only an hour to
get the things they thought they would need, and then Bob started marching
them out of town.

From the moment she heard about it, Michelle was interested. She had no idea
that Bob had already spoken to Maria about his plan, and Maria agreed to let
Mike try it if she wanted to give it a go. Now as Michelle hurriedly got
ready to leave, Maria spoke to her quickly and earnestly.

"Mike, I'm concerned about this hunting trip."

"I'm sure we'll be fine."

"Mike, there isn't much time so just listen to me. While you are gone I want
you to pay more attention to the father than the son."

"Mother!"

"Don't you 'Mother!' me. It's obvious to everyone how you two feel, and we
can talk about Alex later. Bob is taking all of you out to find out just how
much you remember, how much you know, and how much you need to learn."

Hearing the seriousness in Maria's voice she paused long enough to look her
mother in the eye.

"Mom, believe it or not, that's why I'm going. I can handle myself in most
situations, but I've never done anything like this. I think it makes sense.
It’s as if we’re having a trial run before we have to do it for real."

To the surprise of everyone but Alex, Bob set a very easy pace going out
cross country. The two younger members of the group had to be told repeatedly
to take it easy.

"Tom, Sam, are you guys in a race? Slow it down. Do you have any idea how
much noise you're making?"

"No." They answered together.

"Well, you are. For that matter, everybody take a break. Get a sip of water
and get comfortable. I want to explain some things."

Bob had placed them in more or less a straight line. So now they gathered
around and they all found places to sit near Bob, refreshing themselves.
After waiting for a few moments for everyone to get settled he continued,
speaking softly.

"O.K. folks, we need to make a couple of things clear. When you move through
the brush, you have to do it quietly. You two fellows," He pointed at Tom and
Sam. "You can't keep just walking along like you were on a street. You need
to set your foot down, not just let it hit the ground. You have to look ahead
of you and see where your next two or three footsteps are going to go."

"If we do that, we might not see anything." Tom said.

"If you don't do it, you won't see anything. The whole point of this is to
see your prey, before it sees you."

"How do we do that if we're looking down?"

"You look in all directions. It takes a little practice, but it isn't that
hard. First you look down to see where you are going. You look for the next
two, three or four steps, and no more. That way you won't step on something
or kick it. Which is what you have been doing. While you slowly take the next
couple of steps, you look up, then to one side and then the other. Try to
take in everything you can. By the time you've done that, you'll need to look
down again for your next few steps. After that you just repeat it over and
over as you move. Each time you look up and around, you are looking to see if
anything has changed since the last time you looked.

Now you have to understand, The Lord made these creatures to survive in an
environment that can kill them if they don't pay attention. That is why they
always seemed nervous on the old T.V. shows. They are always on the lookout
for something that might attack. That is why you move slowly, and as quietly
as possible. You want to see them first.

But there is also hearing. You need to try to identify every sound you hear.
After a very short time you'll learn to ignore the sounds of things that are
of no interest, birds, insects, the wind in the trees and brush and you will
be tuning in to the sounds that are unusual. I can't tell you of the number
of deer and other animals I've seen, up close, simply by hearing them coming
towards me and freezing in place. You freeze, because movement attracts the
eye. If they see movement, they freeze until they can identify it. Then they
either ignore it, or run from it. You have to do the same. You see, most
animals are color blind, and they depend on detecting movement, not entire
objects. Understand what I mean?"

They all said they did, and he gave them a chance to prove it by putting one
of them in front of him on a rotating basis, until they reached the camp
site. As they worked under Bob and Alex's instruction in building a simple
lean-to type shelter, they all talked about how they had seen so much more
wildlife doing it Bobs' way. The highlight of the trip being when both
Michelle and Bob missed a couple of quick snap shots at a deer with the bows.
It was later that evening, and the fire was small, but burned brightly that
night. It lighted up the front of the three shelters that had been quickly
built with instruction from both Bob and Alex. For his part, Alex smiled
rather smugly to himself as he tended the fire. Once he had built it up a
little, he turned and went back to the log he had been sitting on. He
remembered this game from his youth. He didn't envy Tim, Sam, Tom, or Mike.
They were in for a real workout. His father had always called it 'sneak
attack' or 'Indian attack'. The rules were modified for the circumstances,
but were basically the same. After dark fell, and the fire had been built,
Bob announced that he would be leaving the camp. He showed them a piece of
paper with his name written on both sides. He folded it and put it in his
pocket. Then he gave flashlights to everyone but Alex.

"O.K., it works like this." Bob started. "Your limit is the circle of light
made by the fire. You stay inside that ring, and see if you can spot me. If
you think you have, you shine the light on me and call my name. If it is me,
I have to give up. If not, when you turn your light off you have to close
your eyes and count out loud for five seconds. Sweeping an area with the
light is not allowed. You have to shine it in just one place, at one time. We
are going to see just how good you can detect things at night.

In the mean time, I have to sneak in here and put that paper I showed you
someplace that can be clearly seen from the fire. Then sneak back out without
getting caught. After that, I announce myself and walk in.

Now since Alex has played this game a few times, so his job is going to only
be tending the fire. He can't answer questions, or tell you if he sees
something. That is your job. Ready? Good. I get five minutes."

With that, Bob turned and walked out into the darkness. Alex enjoyed watching
mainly the younger men run around the fire, suddenly stabbing into the night
with their lights and calling out Bob's name. Only to turn the flashlights
off moments later and loudly count to five. He wondered if he had been so
excited about this game, and if he played it this badly when he first tried
it. Soon he decided that at first, he probably did. Even Tim and Mike had
done it once each.

As he sat watching the fire, he first felt something moving around his
ankles. Quickly glancing down he saw his father’s hand slowly reach between
his feet, and place the paper with his name on it against the log Alex was
sitting on, right between his feet. The hand then slowly pulled back, and
Alex never heard his father leave. That was why he used to get upset with his
Dad. He was so good at this game.

Alex waited for a good twenty minutes before he spoke.

"Have you guys figured out that you should just give up yet?"

Michelle looked at him and said, "Have patience. Your Dad hasn't done
anything. I think he's waiting for us to relax our guard and then make his
move."

"Oh, really?" Alex asked. "What makes you so sure?"

"I have pretty good night vision. If he had come anywhere near here, I would
have spotted him. I'm sure."

"I think Mike is right. I haven't seen any movement in the brush, and I
haven't heard anything moving out there."

"Okay." Was all Alex said as he picked up another piece of wood and put it in
the fire. By this time, everyone looking for Bob had drifted towards the
shelters. As Alex turned and walked back to his seat, he called out.

"Alright, Dad. Are you going to tell them where you are, or should I?"

Everyone looked past the shelters following the direction of his gaze. They
were startled when Bob answered from behind Alex, on the other side of the
fire from next to a bush he had been squatting behind.

"Well, I was having fun just listening to them, but I guess it's time I came
in."

As he expected, Bob was greeted with a chorus of 'What the...Where did you
come from?' and other such comments. It wasn't until Sam loudly demanded an
answer that he said anything.

"Hey. Where's your paper? I don't see it."

Before Bob could answer, Alex said, "Right here." bent down and picked it up
to show them.

"Bob, how did you get that paper there? I didn't see a thing out there."
Michelle wanted to know.

"And I was really listening for you." Tim said. "Mike and I decided to each
concentrate on one of those. I never heard a footstep."

"Let me start at the beginning. Once you get away from the fire and your eyes
adjust, you can see a great deal more. The trick is to not look at anything
too bright. I didn't look at the fire, I watched you. From about fifty yards
out, I could stand up and walk around as I pleased. Michelle, you said you
didn't see anything. What were you looking for?"

"Mostly for some kind of movement, like the deer we shot at."

"That's good, but let me show you something.” He raised an arm and pointed
into the night. “Look out here and tell me what you see."
Michelle looked in the direction he pointed and said, "I can see the trees,
that open area, and I can even see that deer trail over to the left."

"Very good, except you didn't see one thing you believe you saw. You didn't
see the trees. You see the shadows made by the trees you saw earlier today,
and call them trees. But look into the shadow. Do you see anything? What is
at the base of that tree? You can't see that, can you? I circled the camp in
those shadows, until I noticed the shadow of the log Alex is sitting on is
low to the ground, but it extends almost to those bushes. I stayed in the
shadows the whole way. That means, the reason you didn’t see anything is
because I was always in the dark, while you were partially blinded by the
fire light. The reason you didn’t hear a footstep is because I crawled the
last thirty yards into camp."

"But why didn't we see at least some movement?"

"First of all it is hard to see into the dark, as I've said. Secondly, do you
feel that breeze? When I started to get close, I only moved when the wind
would cover my movements and sound. Believe it or not, there are animals out
there right now, moving around and making the bushes move. But they remain
away from the light, so you don’t see them."

"Alex when did you see the paper?" Mike wanted to know.

"When he put it there about twenty minutes ago."

"And you didn't say anything? I mean I know you weren't supposed to, but I
mean...Oh never-mind."

"Don't blame Alex. Blame me, I made the rules. Now. Back to the subject.
Looking and listening are fine, but everything changes after the sun goes
down. You have to adjust for that."

"How do you adjust for what you can't see?" Tim asked.

"Alex? How did you spot me?"

"I saw your silhouette in the shadow of the bush you were next to."

"You see, you were looking for me. If it were day light, you'd be looking for
part of my shirt or something. Alex knew to look for a different kind of sign
of me. Chances are if you ask him, he noticed a change in the shadows before
anything else."

Michelle looked at him and he nodded. "I spotted Dad about five minutes
before I asked him to come in."

"Now suppose there hadn't been a breezy night. I would have done the same
thing, just done it a little slower. One other thing you should know. Since
that is also the general direction of our shelters, it broke up what you are
used to seeing. That meant you would be less likely to spot something
different, because everything is different."

"What do you mean different. It's darker, sure, but it still looks the same.
Trees are still trees, rocks are rocks, and so on." Tim said.

"That much is true, but it is your perception of them has changed. I remember
part of a poem I heard a long time ago. It goes like this;

Cold hearted orb, that rules the night.

Removes the colors from our sight.

Red is grey and yellow, white.

But we decide which is right, and which is an illusion.

I've always found that to be true. Like the shadows I was talking to Michelle
about. I'm sure you remember getting the branches for your shelter. You might
have noticed there was a good sized boulder over there. Can you show it to me
now?"

Tim looked in the direction of the tree line. "Uh no, I can't. It's in the
shadows, but I know it's there."

"Oh, I'm sure nobody has moved it, but because of the change in the amount of
light, your perception of it has changed. If you were a ship at night, it
would possibly sink you, even though you knew it was there. Just because at
night you are missing all the usual landmarks and such. Here is a little
thing I want everyone to do, to give you a better idea of what I'm talking
about. First, close or cover one of your eyes. Then we wait for five minutes.
After that, I'm going to take you out of camp, one at a time, so you can see
what I mean."

After several minutes of chatting, Bob stood and spoke.

"Okay Tim. You are our doubting Thomas, so I guess I'll start with you.
Everyone keep that eye covered, Tim and I will be back shortly and then it
will be somebody else's turn. Come on, Tim. I'll help you, so you don't trip
on anything on your blind side."

Together the men walked a short way from the camp. Once they had gotten far
enough away from the light of the fire, Bob turned to Tim.

"The rock I spoke about is right over there." Bob pointed into the night. "Do
you see it with your uncovered eye?"
"No. It's just like you said. It is all shadow."

"Alright, on the count of three, change eyes. Look with the covered eye, and
cover the one you've been using. Ready? One, two, three."

Tim switched eyes.

"Can you see the rock now?"

Tim looked, and was surprised to find that he could indeed, not only see the
stone, but he saw it with much more detail than he expected.

"Now, switch back."

Tim did, and commented. "I am starting to see it with the other eye, but it's
just the outline. I guess I'm getting adjusted to it."

"But do you see how much your perceptions have changed without the light?"

"I do see. Thank you. I guess sometimes you have to see some things for
yourself."

"Here's one more thing. You were talking about listening. Things even sound
differently in the dark. Listen." Bob picked up a rock and threw it. Tim
couldn't believe how much noise it made when it hit.

"Alright, it sounds louder. So why couldn't I hear you?"

"First of all, obviously it made the same amount of noise right now, as it
would have in the day. However at night, there are fewer distractions and you
see less, so your sense of hearing tries to compensate for it. That means you
hear more. If you truly understand that, you adapt the way you move in order
to make less noise. Like when I crawled into camp to put my piece of paper
down."

Bob had a variety of conversations as he brought each member of the group,

with the exception of Alex, into the night. Michelle was next.

"Thank you for showing me this Bob. I'd never noticed it before."

"Let me show you something else. You remember how the poem spoke of how
colors change without the light?"

She nodded without speaking.

"When we left camp, your shirt was a light grey. Mine was blue. Look at them
now."

Michelle looked down and was startled to see that in the dark, her shirt was
almost white. Glancing at Bobs' shirt it looked almost black.

"I guess the change in lighting does more than I knew." She paused for a
moment and spoke again. "I get the feeling you don't miss much, do you?"

"I try not to miss anything."

It was Sam's turn next.

"That's kinda neat Mr. Bob." He was quiet for a moment and spoke again. "Mr.
Bob. You wouldn't use something like this to hunt for deer, would you?"

"No Sam, you wouldn't."

"So why are you teaching us about all of this?"

"You remember when those gang members were breaking into your house?"

"Sure. I've never been that scared before."

"What if things had ended differently? What if you became their prisoner, and
managed to escape? Wouldn't you like to have a better chance to disappear
into the night?"

"Oh, cool. I never thought of it that way."

Tom proved to be a little more thoughtful than others of the group.

"Mr. Bob, you've been teaching us an awful lot that can be used for more than
hunting and some things like this can't be used for hunting at all. Haven't
you?"

"Yes I have Tom."

"You think we might have to use this stuff to protect ourselves, or escape
from the people that are after us." It wasn't a question Bob noticed, and
decided to speak to the young man straight from the shoulder.

"Sit down for a minute. This takes some explaining. Tom, do you believe we
are in the end times?"

"I haven't seen the antichrist yet, but it sure seems like it to me. I mean
storms, earthquakes, famine, wars, just about all of it is happening."

"Have you thought about what that really means for you and your family as
Christians?"

"I guess it means that Satan wants to kill us all."

"That's right. But it also means that anyone that isn't a Christian either
is, or will become your enemy. Did you ever hear anyone talk about different
colored 'pick up' lists?"

"Sort of. Some of guys in my school talked about them. I never listened too
much. It didn't seem like it would affect me. I mean Dad wasn't in the
military. We didn't own any guns. What did we have to worry about? You know
what I mean?"

"Yes I do. Most people reacted the same way. But now you can see that it did
matter. If people had been allowed to have guns, those gang members wouldn't
ever have gotten so far. But, I wonder if you see something else."

"What's that?"

"I'm sure that you have heard that these lists were different colors. Do you
know that there are really only two lists that matter?"

"Which ones are those, red and green? Since they are the first ones killed I
mean."

"No. There only two lists that really matter. The first is the one found in
The Lambs' Book of Life, and second, everyone else. God knows who is on His
list, and He is always looking for more people to join it. However, there are
things people have lost sight of. You see, if your name is found in 'The
Lambs Book of Life' you ARE on a pick up list, because Satan wants you dead.
The only question left is if he gets his hands on you, will they kill you
when they see you, or kill you later? But make no mistake about it. Satan
will kill us all if he can."

"It kind of sounds like we’re done for."

"No, Tom. We are serving God. If He wants us to die, we will die. But what we
will win, after this life, is worth it. If He wants us to live, it doesn't
matter what list you are on, or what the enemy sends against you. You and The
Lord will always outnumber any number of enemies."

"I never thought of it like that. Thanks Mr. Bob."

"My pleasure."

Early the next morning, Alex found his father fixing fresh fish for
breakfast. First he checked the fire to make sure there was enough heat, and
then he turned to his father.

"Good morning. Looks like your mini trot-line worked."

On the day before when they had arrived at the camp site, Bob had taken a
small spool of fishing line and slipped four hooks onto the end of it. Then
he tied an anchor onto the end and pulled a couple of feet of line out,
before he made a loop and tied the first hook in place. Doing the same, he
soon had all four hooks tied in place. After that, he pulled out yet a little
more line cut it and tied it to a small tree near the water’s edge. Then he
attached a cork to the line between the anchor and the first hook. It didn't
take long after that before he had caught insects to bait the hooks with. He
threw the anchor into the water and waited to see if any fish would bite the
hooked insects.

"Tell you the truth Son, I'm surprised we did as well as we have. I caught
two, and you had four on your line. I didn't think a lake as small as the one
we've camped next to would have that many fish."

"So everyone gets fresh fish for breakfast. Don't get me wrong Dad. I like
everybody, but don't you get tired of carrying them like this?"

"Son, I carried you for a lot of years. But that is what a father is supposed
to do.” Bob said without looking up. “And as for everyone else? Well, we all
have our calling. Mine has always been to help. I know, it isn't one of the
more flashy gifts, like prophecy or tongues, but every man of God in
scripture had those who helped him. I guess that puts me in good company, so
who am I to complain?"

Chapter Eleven

Claire couldn't believe his good fortune. He had really wanted to serve the
master in Damascus. Especially since the United States was now out of the
picture and no longer a problem. He was certain that he could stop the
prophecy of 'that book' from happening. And if he could keep Damascus from
being blown up, then the master would have been very pleased with him. Who
knew what the reward might have been. He was so disappointed when he was told
he would be working on bringing down the U.S.

But now, he was happy he hadn't gotten the post. Nobody had really expected
the Israelis' to strike first. But they had. They had seen that with the U.S.
down and out, they were alone, and had acted before their Arab neighbors
could. Damascus, Babylon, Palestina, the land of Moab, and more, all gone. He
was glad he didn't have to answer for this problem. The thought of what could
have happened made him even more determined to make certain it wouldn't
happen to him.

He then turned his attention to the war maps on his desk. Every director had
them, and they were updated on a regular basis. They showed the progress of
the invading forces in their quest to completely eliminate the rest of the
United States from the map, once and for all.

The Russian troops that had landed on the eastern seaboard had made good
progress, until they came up against the Appalachian Mountains. Once there,
it was a different story. While roads remained passable, even for the
heaviest of tanks, the locals held the high ground. It was proving almost
impossible to dislodge them. Even when they could take a hill top, it seemed
like there was always another one nearby that was either higher, or at the
same height, which provided the Americans with good to excellent firing
positions. Clearly someone with military experience was showing them how to
mount a defense using the mountains, he thought.

What Claire didn't understand or realize, was these people had a history of
using the mountains for everything from running moonshine, to re-enacting
Civil War battles. They weren't going to give up. And by calling on every
able bodied person to defend their lands, and their homes he had actually re-
enforced, and re-armed the very people he was trying to eliminate.

The Russian forces that came down from Canada had easy going at first, but
when a savage northwesterly front had caught them by surprise, the Russians
got bogged down in the snow and ice, which made them sitting ducks for the
Americans that rose up to fight them there. Well, as far as that went, it was
the problem of another regional director, not him.

In the southern gulf region, things weren't much better. The Cuban landings
had come off without too much trouble. After that, things had started going
downhill. The problem there was all the swamp land, and thick brush. Vehicles
and troops moved easily on the roads, but once they left them for the swamps,
and thick southern forests, the result was much the same as the mountain
campaign. Still for the time being, he wasn't in trouble with the master,
problems like this had been foreseen, and he was expected to overcome them.

He had considered using chemical weapons in the mountains, but on the first
couple of times they were used, the winds carried the gas down the slopes and
onto the Russian troops waiting to go up into the hills. Nobody was happy
with the results of those days.

He had an idea, it was extreme, but it seemed necessary. He needed to talk to

his counterparts in the north, and west. They had to be ready for what he had
in mind.

Alex was the first one to realize what his father had been doing. Ever since
they had left their home town, Bob had been making a game of teaching
survival skills to everyone. Starting with the children. Bob had a bow and
arrow set that was suited for younger people. He taught them the art of
archery, as a game. They never knew that this skill could someday become
necessary to their survival. Later, he showed them the set of cards he had,
that showed wild editable plants. Soon it became a game of who could find the
most plants in the shortest period of time.
After the younger children were well on their way to gaining these necessary
skills, he and Alex started in on teaching the adults archery. It wasn't long
before everyone was trying to get a smaller grouping of arrows than anyone
else, at longer and longer distances. One day Kathy had asked him,

"Bob, don't get me wrong, this bow and arrow stuff is fun, but what use is
it? I mean, we have rifles, and shotguns, with plenty of ammunition, so why
the Indian routine?"

"Firearms can break. Sooner or later, we will fire the last round of ammo,
what do you do then? Go hungry? Not me. Also, while arrows can bend or break,
we can always make more of them. There is also the matter of while a bow
isn't as silent as the movies used to make them seem, they are very quiet.
Suppose someone who is looking for us is on the other side of the ridge. You
don't know he is there, and he is just as ignorant of you. However what you
do know is that tonight's supper, just came out of the brush twenty yards in
front of you. You could possibly down that deer, or whatever, and he would
never know you were here." He paused before continuing.

"One other thing. Lets' say that the enemy has set up a storage depot on the
other side of this ridge. We have found out about it, and have finally
gathered enough people to attack it and win. You see that cactus just below
the ridge?" Bob drew the bow, sighted and released an arrow all in one smooth
motion. Suddenly the arrow was quivering in the center of the cactus. "That
was a sentry they posted on this side of the ridge. He didn't see us, before
we saw him. Now he won't call out a warning. It's true, he might scream, or
make some other noise. That could be caused by anything. A snake bite, a
turned ankle, or any one of a hundred other things. But a gunshot lets
everybody know what is going on, before our people can get into position to
attack the depot. Understand now?"

Kathy nodded.

"Then let me add something else. It takes a long time, and a lot of practice
to become skilled at living in the out of doors. Some people never do get the
hang of it. I'm sure you remember how it was before all this. Every winter,
spring, summer, and/or fall, you'd hear on the news about someone getting
hurt or killed out in the wilderness somewhere. And they weren't always new
comers to what they were doing. But they would make a mistake somewhere along
the way, and pay the price for that mistake. What I'm trying to do is give
everyone the best chance I can to survive should something happen."

"So how did you learn all of these things?"

"I never said I'd lead a sheltered life, Kathy. When I was young, my father
would take the family camping. Later I learned he did that because it was a
cheap vacation. He wasn't a miser or anything like that we just didn't have a
lot of money. My brothers and I, he took hunting every year, after we were
old enough. Some of this I learned in the service. I've picked up some here
and some there, all through my life. Given our current situation, I now know
why The Lord led me down that bumpy road, and I'm grateful for it. It wasn't
always easy, and sometimes could be quite painful, but the lessons stuck with
me."

Once everyone had learned to at least scare the target with the bow, Bob set
out with his next self-appointed task. He began to teach everyone how to make
different types of snares. That included a basket looking thing, which he
would place in a fast moving river, or creek, to catch fish. He taught them
how to make a fire, and how to find the kindling, even in wet or snowy
conditions. He taught them how to sharpen a knife, and the importance of
keeping it that way.

"Lets' suppose I'm hunting in the winter. The ice on the river looks solid,
but I find out the hard way it isn't. By the time I get out of the water, my
rifle is at the bottom. What do I do? First, I make a fire, and get out of my
wet clothes. Now I have my knife. With that, if I can find the right
materials, I can make a bow and arrows. If I can't, my knife tied to a pole
with a boot lace, makes a spear. It isn't going to be the best spear, but it
is better than nothing. The point is that it doesn't matter how bad things
get, if you keep your wits about you, and carry just a few basic items, you
improve your chances of living through whatever happens."

"What if you lose the knife in the river at the same time you lose your gun?"
Sam wanted to know.

"That's why I always carry two of them. One is on my belt, and the other in
my pocket."

The lessons became more detailed as they learned. But without fail, Bob
always made sure that on Saturday night, everyone was back in their new, if
borrowed, homes. He had also worked out a schedule for somebody to be on the
tallest roof in town, at all times, to watch for flares. It was one such
night, when he was awakened by Tom.

"Something strange is going on." Was all he said.

Quietly, Bob got up and went outside with him.

"What is it?"

"It was really strange. There was a flash of light, way off to the east about
three minutes ago. It was sort of like the time they blew up Las Vegas, but
this one was up in the air. When I started to come get you, there was another
flash just like it, off to the west."

"Thank you, Tom. Tell you what. I'll take the rest of your shift, and you go
get some sleep."
"What do you think it was?"

"I'm not sure right now. I have to wait for daylight to find out. You go get
some rest."

"Yes sir."

As he left Bob on the roof, Bob sat in the chair placed up there for whoever
was on guard. He was pretty sure of what had happened. But there wasn't
anything he could do about it now. If the Russians and the Chinese HAD set
off bombs in the atmosphere to generate an Electro Magnetic Pulse, there
still wasn't a need to wake everyone just yet. The news could wait for
morning.

Everyone had gathered for breakfast, and after the blessing was said, began
to eat. That is when Kathy approached Bob, with a problem.

"Bob. I think there is something wrong with the radio. I couldn't get it to
come on this morning."

"I'm not surprised. As long as everyone is here, I guess we'd better talk
about what has happened. Tom. Why don't you start?"

Tom quickly explained to the assembled group what he had seen in the night.
After he spoke, before anyone could ask any questions, Bob spoke again.

"Now. I want everyone who is wearing a watch to check the time."

All of them did so.

"What's going on Bob? They blow up bombs in the atmosphere, and now our
watches don't work? That sounds a little weird to me."

"Do you remember me talking about an E.M.P.? Well that is how it is done. A
specially designed bomb goes off in the upper atmosphere, and sends out the
pulse. After that, any unshielded electronic device, within range, is dead.
What is left of America has just been sent backwards in time to the 1800s' at
best."

"THAT can't be good. But why would someone do that?"

"My guess is that the Russians, Chinese, and anyone else involved in the
invasion have found out that while Americans love their pleasures, we aren't
going to just roll over and die because we have to do without them. It tells
me there is some kind of fight going on for the remainder of the nation. And
they aren't doing as well as they had hoped. So, knock out any remaining
electronics, and you give the invaders the advantage. Their stuff is hardened
against such measures. Civilian stuff isn't."
"Okay, that makes sense." Kathy said, "But what will it mean for us?"

"It makes sure that almost everyone that might come here will be on foot,
horseback, or be driving an older vehicle, the kind without all the
electronics in them." Bob frowned, "It also means we have to start checking
for radiation."

"How do we do that?" asked Sam.

Bob reached into his pocket and pulled out a radiation detector. "With this.
Hold on Kathy, I can see the questions forming in your mind. Remember I said
unshielded electronics. That shed where I parked the truck and 4X4 is metal.
It is also on a concrete slab, and grounded, like a lightening rod. It should
have protected everything inside. This was one of those things. Lets' see if
it worked."

With that, Bob switched on the detector, and was rewarded when a small red
light flashed on, to let him know it was working. He set it to audio, so that
they could all hear the occasional beep that indicated radiation had been
detected.

"What do the beeps mean?" Tom asked.

Bob explained how the detector worked. At first he saw concern washing over
Kathy's' face, and so he told her.

"There is always some small degree of radiation in the air. Mostly it comes
from the sun. And that's fine. We can tolerate that. At this setting,” he
pointed to the controls located under the meter. “Anything between zero and
twenty-five 'beeps' per minute is safe. More than that, and we are in
trouble."

Bob looked around for Alex, only to find that sometime during the
demonstration, he had left. He had taught Alex about the detector years
before, but it still irked him that he had left just then. He turned back to
Kathy.

"Dear lady, you are our medical expert. Should this thing get to high of a
radiation count, it will be up to you to take care of it."

"How do I do that? We don't have a bomb shelter, or time and materials to

build one."

"With this." Alex called as he re-entered the room. In his hand was a box. He
looked at his father. "Sorry about leaving in the middle of that Dad. But I
could see where it was going, so I went and found this in the truck."

"Found what?" asked Tim.

"Let me guess." Said Maria. "Potassium Iodine."

"Right on the first try." Bob answered.

"Isn't that for protection against radiation?"

"Sort of, Kathy. What it does is fill the thyroid with 'good' iodine. One of
the effects of a nuclear blast is that it puts radioactive iodine in the air.
If it is breathed in, it lodges in the thyroid, and causes all kinds of
problems. The bad news is that after age forty, in most cases, the thyroid
shuts down. So if you are over forty, this isn't going to do you much good.
But for the younger members of our group, it is very important."

Bob leaned closer to Kathy. "These have to be administered according to a

combination of age and weight. That is your job, should it become necessary.
I taped the information about that on some of the bottles."

Kathy reached out and took the box from Alex with a quiet "Thank you." to
both Bob and Alex.

"Maria, how did you guess?"

"John and Todd. They were both vets. And had a lot in common. They were
concerned about the possible need for it. I heard them talking about it."

"Shouldn't we figure out who gets how much of this?"

"Now, Kathy. You know a gentleman never asks a lady her age. You’re the
doctor, so that's up to you."

Everyone in Director Claire’s office was doing their best to either become
invisible, or be somewhere else. Anywhere else was better than being near
him. It had been a little over a week since the Director had gotten the
Russians and Chinese to set off the nuclear bombs to cause the E.M.P. He had
expected that once those who were resisting them were without power, the
resistance would collapse like a house of cards. He was wrong.

Those who he was trying to break so that the final destruction of America
could take place had been toughened by having to do without anything they had
been used to before it all started. They had been nearly starved, frozen,
attacked by roving gangs, and dominated by troops that didn't even speak
their language. And they had had enough. The chance came for them to take a
stand. They even had a preacher on the radio to tell them to stand and fight.
When that happened, unregistered firearms that had been long hidden were
brought out, cleaned, oiled, and loaded. They were still divided on the issue
of who were real Christians, and who wasn't, but for the moment, it didn't
matter. They had business to take care of, and they were doing it with a
vengeance.
Claire couldn't for the life of him figure out how they were doing it. Even
after the pulse, the damned Americans STILL fought on. Satellite photos were
no help either. He had thought that they would show the Russian forces where
the Americans were gathering, so they could accurately direct artillery fire,
and air strikes. They showed nothing of the kind. The defenders had learned
that things like 'space blankets' would defeat most high tech surveillance
devices. All that was needed was to camouflage the blankets after they were
in place. They had learned how to hide the heat signatures from even their
own bodies. And Claire was furious. It was like trying to fight a shadow.

So far today, he had killed three men that had brought him more bad news.
Things were starting to get REALLY bad, and many people who worked for Claire
wondered how they could explain how they had been either tricked, or forced
to work for the director, once they figured a way to quietly disappear.

It had been two weeks since Claire had gotten the Russians and Chinese to
detonate the E.M.P. bombs. Yet STILL there had been only a slight improvement
in the situation for the invading forces. The Russians were continuing to
fail in breaching the Appalachian Mountains. The only progress that had been
made in the south was along the Mississippi River. The combined force of
Cuban and Mexican men had been able to make it nearly one hundred miles
upriver. The bad news was they hadn't been able to exploit the extended beach
head more than five to eight miles inland on either side of the river.

It was that limited progress that had saved him, when the same messenger that
had visited the late president came to see him.

"The master is not pleased with your lack of progress. You were expected to
have made much further gains by this time. You must improve on this
situation. The failure of your counterpart in the north central region has
already led to his being replaced. The movement you've been able to make
along the river is all that has kept him from replacing you. And you know
what that means."

An involuntary shiver went up Claire's' spine. He knew. The thought of the

consequences of failing the master were terrifying even to him.

"Progress is being made, and once we have joined with the Russian forces
coming down from the north, we'll have the country cut in two. After that,
nothing can stop us. We'll have a back door into the eastern mountains, and
crush the remainder of them between our forces and the ones coming in from
the west. I just need a little more time to join with the northern armies."

"The northern armies?" The messenger scoffed, "Haven't you been listening?
They haven't made ANY real progress that is why Dupree was replaced. You
better have another plan for securing your sector. Help from the north will
be long in coming. And if this replacement doesn't do any better, YOU may be
required to help him. Have you thought about that?"

"I didn't think it would be necessary."

"It might be, so think about it. Speaking of thinking, the master isn't
convinced you've been doing a lot of that lately. WHAT made you believe you
would serve our purpose by having that preacher call the followers of the
Nazarene to battle? DON'T bother answering. There is no excuse you could give
that would be believed. You should have had him appeal to the pacifist side
of those people. The master wants you to deal with him. Permanently."

"Perhaps you would like that honor. He was coming to see me just before you
arrived. He is in the outer office right now."

What passed across the messengers face could only be considered a smile by
the number of pointed teeth he showed.

"Yes, I would."

Claire signaled his secretary to allow the preacher to enter.

"Director Claire, I..." His voice failed as he saw the messenger. "What in
the name of God..." that was as far as he got before being backhanded across
the room, to land at Claire's' feet.

"In the name of God I bind you." he shouted.

Claire pulled the man to his feet, and then right off the floor.

"FOOL. What makes you think you can bind us? YOU HAVE SERVED US. Do you think
the one you call on will help you now, when you couldn't even use the name of
the Nazarene? You belong to OUR master." He easily tossed the man back across
the room. The messenger caught him before he hit the floor.

Nobody knew for certain what happened to the preacher. They simply knew he
had entered Claire’s office. There was some shouting, and when the director
called for the cleanup crew, he wasn't there anymore, although it looked like
most of his blood was.

Bob was in the metal shed, making a glass of colloidal silver with a small
'silver generator' that he had, when Maria came in.

"What ARE you doing?"

"Making colloidal silver."

"Ka-who?"
"Colloidal silver. Think of it as alternative medicine." He saw the
questioning look on her face, and continued. "I first heard of this back when
Alex was about six. They say that most viruses and bacteria can't survive in
the same environment with pure silver. I mean .999 fine silver. I thought I'd
give it a try. I've been taking it ever since."

"Does it work?"

"Well, you tell me. Alex is twenty-one now, and every year, up until the time
he left home for college, Nancy would drag him down to the clinic for the two
of them to get their flu shots. About one year in three, one or both of them
would get sick. I never got the shots, and I never got sick."

"Interesting." was all Maria said. After a couple of minutes she spoke again.
"Do you mind if I ask you a personal question?"

"You can ask, but that doesn't mean I'll answer."

"Fair enough. Have you ever thought about finding someone else?"

Bob was quiet for a while, and Maria was starting to regret the question when
he answered.

"That's kind of complicated. You see, Nancy and I were married for twenty-
five years. We were very much in love from day one. Totally dedicated to each
other, and our family. We were also the most mismatched couple you'd ever be
likely to meet. She was a Democrat, I was a Republican. I enjoyed hunting,
fishing, camping, all of that kind of thing. She liked going to Macy's
Department store, and cocktail parties. Then, of course, there was the matter
of faith. I'm a Bible believing Christian. She, on the other hand was
basically an agnostic. She believed that being good was good enough.

Anyway, after she died, I mourned her for months. Until one day I decided
that she wouldn't want me to spend the rest of my life alone. That is when I
made a startling discovery. After all that time, I was so far out of touch
with the dating scene, I didn't even know what the rules are anymore. And to
be totally truthful, I've never been able to figure out what a woman's
motives or intentions are. So, as I was sitting at home thinking about all of
this, the bottom started to fall out. Since then, there hasn't been time to
even think about it."

"I see.” Maria paused for a moment. “Can I show you something?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"This." She pulled a locket from out of her shirt, where it hung by a chain
from around her neck.

"I can't see it very well from here. What is it?"

"Come closer, take a look."

Bob moved to where Maria was sitting, and bent down to look at the locket.
Maria dropped it, reached up with both hands, grabbed him by the neck, and
firmly kissed him.

After a few moments she let him go, looked him in the eye and said,

"Does THAT leave any doubts about my motives and intentions?"

"Uh, no. I'd say that was pretty clear."

"So, what do you think?"

"I think,"

The door to the shed banged open, followed by a very loud call of "DAD!!"

"I'm going to beat my son senseless." He continued. "What is it, Alex?"

Maria chuckled as he turned away and then stood behind him as he and Alex
spoke.

"The flare on the main road into town just went off. Tim is on the roof. He
says he can see about four or five people moving out there."

"I'm on my way." Bob reached over and picked up his rifle, and saw Maria pick
up her shotgun, from the corner of his eye.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"With you. And don't give me any of that macho stuff about it being 'man's
work'. I can shoot as well as you do, and besides they might be locals
returning home. If they are, I'd know them, and you wouldn't."

Unable to argue with the logic, he said,

"Alright. Just be careful out there."

"Yes Sir."

Alex fell in beside his father on the way to the near ridge. After they had
gotten ahead of the others, Tim now having joined the group, he asked his
father,

"Can I ask you what was going on in there?"

"NO, you can't."

"Oookay. Forget I asked."

As Bob moved further out front towards the ridgeline, Alex grinned at his
father’s back.

Soon, Bob, Maria, Alex, and Tim were on their stomachs peeking over the ridge
into the valley on the other side. Looking through his binoculars, Bob saw
two men, a woman, and what seemed to be a teenage boy, but with the jackets
they were wearing, it was hard to tell. Bob passed the binoculars he was
using to Maria.

"Recognize anyone?"

Maria peered through them, for a few minutes.

"I don’t know. I think I've seen at least one of them before, but I can't be
sure." Turning to Bob, she asked, "How do you want to handle it?"

He thought about it for a moment, and then he turned to her. "Feel like a
walk?"

"Wait a minute, Dad. Why you? Why don't I go?"

"Because, after me, you're the best with this." He gave Alex his rifle. "And
these people are going to be wondering what the flare was all about. An older
couple is going to be less threatening than a young man."

"What do you mean older?" Maria asked as she elbowed him in the ribs.

"Okay, middle-aged then. Point is we're less of a threat. They will be less
likely to panic and start shooting."

"Did you see any guns?" Tim wanted to know.

"No, but that doesn't mean they don't have any. Maria, leave the shotgun, and
take just your pistol. I'll do the same. We're going to just walk straight
down to them. If they make any sudden moves, take cover. Alex, Tim, if we
duck, you two do what you have to. Scare them away, if possible, kill them if
you must." He looked at Maria. "Ready?"

Maria nodded.

"O.K. Lets' do it."

Bob and Maria started down the ridge, headed towards the new comers. Tim and
Alex watched them go. Shortly after they had left, Tim spoke up.

"If they are the ones headed down there, why am I so scared?"
"Think you're scared? I'm even more scared." Alex responded.

"What makes you think that?"

"Two things, first I've never shot at someone before."

"That makes two of us."

"Yeah, but second, that is MY Dad going down there, and I'm the one covering
him.” Alex thought for a moment and spoke again. “Tim, I think we need to do
something."

"What's that?"

"A couple of years ago, I was thinking of signing up in the military. Dad
told me some of the things he went through. One thing he told me was that one
of the worst things you could do was to have all of your firepower
concentrated in one place. It was too easy for the enemy to hit that place,
and wipe out everybody. I think we need to spread out a little."

"That makes sense. You go left, I'll go right. Try not to kick up too much
dust and let them know we're here."

"My thoughts, exactly."

Tim and Alex moved carefully until they were about twenty-five yards apart.
Meanwhile, as Bob and Maria moved down the hill, they had their own
conversation.

"Bob. I think we have three men and a girl out there."

"I agree. One of them is a man with long hair. I thought he was a woman. The
smaller one does seem to be a girl."

They fell silent as they continued forward. As they drew closer to the
strangers, Maria spoke again.

"Bob, I made a mistake."

"How’s that?"

"That's not George."

"George?"

"He used to ride with John, as a relief driver. That is not him."

"Good thing to know. Did you notice the men all have side arms?"
"You mean the bulges under their jackets? Yeah, I saw them."

"Well, at least they aren't gunfighters."

"How do you know?"

"Later. What do you think about the girl?"

"She just looks scared."

"Agreed. We don't have to worry about her. I want to stop about fifteen yards
short of them. Most people aren't very good with handguns. These guys don't
strike me as the kind who has spent much time on the firing range. The extra
distance might just make the difference. Besides, they will be slightly above
us. I don't want to get in between them and our people."

"I see."

"Can you do fat, dumb, and happy?"

"What?"

"Act that way to lull them off guard."

"Oh. Yeah, I can do that."

"Good, follow my lead."

They both stopped at the agreed distance. Bob noticed that the girl had a
bruise on her left cheek. He was getting a very bad feeling about the
situation. Still he smiled broadly as they got close to the group, and
affected a western drawl in his speech.

"Howdy friends. Glad to see you. I'm Bill, and this is my sister, Mary."

They waited for an uncomfortable period of time before anyone spoke. Finally
the long haired man replied.

"Hi. I'm Charlie, this is Jack, and he's Johnnie. Nice to meet you. Are you
responsible for the fireworks we saw?"

Bob noticed he didn't even mention the girl, but kept up the friendly face.
"That is our 'doorbell'. It lets us know when someone is coming."

"Well, ding dong, we're here. Is there anyone else around?"

"Oh, the town was evacuated a while back. We weren't here when it happened.
So we've been waiting to see if anyone comes back. I don't recognize you
fellas' you from around these parts?"

Bob noticed as they spoke, Jack and Johnnie had slowly moved to either side
of Charlie.

"No we got out of the city when they started bombing them. Seemed like the
smart thing to do. You know Bill, that's a mighty good looking sister you
have there. You ever miss having a man around, Mary?"

"I'm fine. And in case you didn't notice, Bill is a man."

"Sure he is. But I'm not talking about brotherly love here."

"I'm sure you weren't."

"Wouldn't you like to have a man of your own? Say someone like me?"

"Not really. I like men who know what soap is for."

Bob spoke again. "Maybe you fellas’ should just move on. No point in anyone
getting upset here."

Charlie laughed, followed by Jack and Johnnie. Bob noticed they seemed to
take their cue from whatever Charlie said or did.

"Oh we ain't upset. But it seems a shame for a lady like Mary ain't got a man
of her own. Maybe we ought to stay awhile."

"Maybe you shouldn't."

"Think the two of you can stop us? I don't" Charlie reached for the pistol on
his hip.

"DOWN!!" Bob hollered, and at the same time pushed Maria down behind a large
rock, sticking out of the ground. He felt a blow to his back that spun him
around, before he heard the shot. He continued to roll, as he hit the ground,
until he rolled into a small depression in the earth. He was on his back, and
looked at the three men. Jack and Johnnie were still trying to draw their
weapons from under their jackets, as Charlie aimed at Bob for another shot.
Suddenly, Bob heard a loud smack sound and Charlie was lifted off his feet,
and thrown backwards. The resounding BOOM of Bobs' rifle reached them as he
hit the ground.

The other two men, with weapons now drawn, looked in the direction of the
rifle shot. Bob had also pulled his pistol and fired once at Jack. The bullet
hit him dead center, and knocked him backwards. Johnnie didn't know what to
do. Shots coming from two directions had confused him. He didn't know which
way to turn his attention. That is when the bullet from Tim's' rifle hit him.
He joined his comrades on the ground.
“Bob! Are you alright?" Maria called.

"Yeah, I think so." Bob answered. Then when he started to sit up, pain raced
through the right side of his back. "No, I'm not."

"Lie still." Maria said.

"It's O.K. Look after the girl."

Maria did as Bob said. She moved closer to the girl, who had taken shelter
behind another large rock. As Maria got closer, the girl shrank back from
her. Wondering what the problem was, Maria realized that her pistol was in
her hand. She holstered it, and held out both hands, while speaking softly to
the girl.

"Hey, Sweetie. It's alright. We aren't going to hurt you. Come on out. Let me
have a look at you. Are you alright?"

She moved slowly, and continued to speak to the girl gently. As she leaned
towards her, the locket she had showed to Bob earlier came out of her shirt,
and revealed that a gold cross was on the chain as well. Seeing the cross,
the girl reached out, and touched it, looking at Maria, with an unspoken
question in her eyes. Maria said,

"That's right. We're Christians."

Soon, she was able to reach out and put her hand on the girls arm. Gently she
pulled her to her feet. The girl suddenly clung to Maria as if her life
depended on it, and started to sob.

"Bob? Are you okay?"

"I think they just winged me. My back sure hurts though. Take the girl back
to town for Kathy to look at, and if you see him send Alex down here on your
way, please. I'll wait here."

"Make sure you do that. Don't you go moving around and making things worse."

"Yes, Mother."

Bob really had no plans to do much, his back felt like it was on fire.
However, as Maria and the girl moved away he decided it couldn't hurt to
check the dead men for whatever he could learn.

Bob had expected that these men had actually told the truth about one thing.
They fled the city after the bombings. Their drivers’ licenses showed they
were from Reno, and their clothing was certainly not meant for living in the
country. He heard footsteps coming closer. Looking up, he saw Tim jogging to
him.

"Bob. Are you badly hurt?"

"I'll live."

"Can you get that jacket off? I'll check you."

Bob did so, and Tim was surprised at the amount of blood on Bobs' back, and
after gently lifting the shirt, found a deep furrow carved in his back, right
across the shoulder blade.

"I don't think it went in, you were just grazed."

"Where's Alex?"

"He's, uh, indisposed at the moment."

"Indisposed?"

"After the shooting ended, he wanted to make sure those three were down. He
cranked the magnification on your scope up to the maximum. He got a real good
look at what he did to the first one. I don't think he is going to be eating
anything for awhile."

"I see. Well, lets' get these bodies out of sight. There is a gully over
there, we can put them in there, and bury them later."

"BOB. SIT DOWN!!!"

"What?"

"Bob, you're still bleeding. You might still go into shock. You sit here.
I'll take care of it."

"Nonsense, I'm fine. Let me up to help you."

"Bob, you lived across the street from me for ten years. I saw you working in
the yard countless times, so I KNOW there isn't a big 'S' anywhere on your
chest. Now sit down, or I'm going to knock you down and sit on you until you
show some sense."

Surprised at Tim's' forcefulness, he agreed, and let Tim conceal the bodies.
Then once that was done, he let Tim help him up, and they headed back to
town.

Tim and Bob came across Alex as they made their way back to town. He was
pale, and still a bit shaky, but was standing on his feet unaided.
"Dad. Are you hurt badly?"

"I'll live Son, but thanks for asking."

"I'm sorry I couldn't come to you. I was..."

"Indisposed." Bob finished for him. "I know, Tim told me. Don't worry about
it. I'd be more concerned if you weren't upset by this. Come on, lets' go see
Kathy."

When there reached the edge of town, Sam came running up to them.

"Dad! Mom says to take Mr. Bob to the doctor’s office. She's there."

"Thanks Sam. Run ahead and tell her we are on our way."

"Yes Sir." and with that the youngster turned and ran back the way he came.
As they entered the office, Kathy called out from the back of the building.

"Bring him in here, in the last exam room on the right."

After taking off his jacket earlier, Bob had simply hung it around his
shoulders on the way back to town. Kathy removed it and carelessly tossed it
to the side.

"Lie down on the exam table. Face down."

"Let me take off the shirt." Bob said.

"Don't argue with your doctor. Lay down."

Bob did so, and Kathy walked over to him with a pair of scissors. Once
cutting the hem on the bottom, she slid the razor sharp scissors up through
the shirt, slicing it cleanly until she reached the shoulders and the collar.
With a couple of snips, she was through all of that as well, and opened it to
get a look at the wound. At this point, Kathy realized she had too much
company.

"Tim, Alex, go somewhere else."

"Hey! Wait a minute, that's my Dad."

"Alex, do as she says." Bob hissed through the pain. "Tim, that flare needs
to be replaced. And I'd appreciate it if you could check the pockets on those
three."

"Yeah. I remember. Come on Alex."

The two of them left, and Maria said,

"I guess I'd better go as well."

"No. I need you here. Talk to Bob."

"What do I say?"

"Anything, just try to keep his mind off of what I'm doing. Bob, I'm giving
you a shot to help ease the pain."

Maria moved around to where she could see Bobs' face, and asked him,

"How did you know they weren't gunfighters?"

"By they’re jackets. They had their guns under the jackets. It’s hard to do a
quick draw that way."

"So did we."

"Yes, but our jackets have snaps. Theirs had zippers. I noticed that when we
went down there, you undid the bottom two snaps. Why?"

"John always told me that if I needed to get to it in a hurry...Oh. I see."

"Exactly. You and I undid those snaps, so we could reach our weapons in a
hurry. They had to either pull up the jacket, or unzip them. That takes
longer."

"Speaking of weapons, what is that cannon you're carrying? I almost went deaf
when you fired it."

".44 Magnum. It’s the same as my rifle. I know, I know, a lot of people like
the .9 mm. But I prefer the penetration of a .44. Besides, with rifle and
sidearm chambered the same, if either runs dry, I reach in my pocket, and
feed whatever comes out to either weapon."

As they had been speaking, Kathy had worked quickly to clean and disinfect
the wound. She was happy to see that the round hadn't done more damage than
it had, but she knew that it would require stitches to close it. When she
told Bob what she was going to do, he protested.

"Kathy, I can't do much with stitches in my back. Just put a bandage on it,
and I'll be fine."

Kathy looked at Bobs' back for a moment, and then told him,

"Roll onto your left side. I'm going to give you another shot."

"Why? I'm not in pain anymore."

"Maybe not, but if you are going to be stupid about this, I want to give you
some antibiotics to fight infection."

Bob did as he was told, and Kathy gave him the shot, with more orders.

"Bob, your wound has mostly stopped bleeding on its' own. I want you to stay
here for at least thirty minutes, and give the blood a chance to clot a
little more. Then we'll apply the bandages."

"Okay."

Kathy felt a tug on her sleeve. Turning, she saw the girl who had been
brought in by Maria. She couldn't have been more than sixteen, probably
younger. The girl didn't speak, but crooked her finger and moved away from
the others. Turning her back to Bob and Maria, she signed for Kathy to stand
in front of her. Once Kathy had, the girl looked shyly down, and opened the
front of her blouse slightly for Kathy to look. She inhaled sharply at what
she saw. Closing the girls blouse gently, she spoke to Maria.

"I have to take care of something. Will you please make sure he doesn't go
anywhere for thirty minutes?"

"Of course."

Kathy led the girl across the hall into another exam room and patted the exam
table, telling her,

"Sit here, and take off your shirt please."

She did so as Kathy got gauze bandages, disinfectant, and water for the job
ahead. When she turned back again, the girl was nude to the waist. Her chest
was covered with what seemed to be cigarette burns. Clearly the child had
been through hell.

As gently as possible she began the task of gently cleaning the burns and
treating the injuries. A cold hatred began to burn in her while she did what
she could for the girl. She wondered silently what kind of animal could do
such a thing. After finishing the girls’ front, Kathy walked around behind
her, only to find more of the burns. So intent was she on treating the girl,
she didn't hear Maria until she had opened the door and entered the room. She
gasped at the sight.

"What happened to her?"

"Cigarette burns. Some of them have to be a week old. Maria, are you sure
those three are dead?"

"Yes. Why?"
"I wanted to get my hands on them. What did you want?"

"Oh, Bob seems to have fallen asleep. Is he going to be alright?"

Kathy smiled. "You heard him. Stick band aides on it and let him go. If I did
that, he'd be a lot worse within a week. That wasn't antibiotics. I gave him
something to put him out, so I could sew him up. He'll be out for a couple of
hours or more."

Maria smiled. "I wondered why you gave up so easily. What is it about him?"

"Maria, I've known him for a long time. He's always been this way. Everybody
else's needs come before his own. Every time. No doubt he was already
thinking ahead about something." After a moment, Kathy continued. "Maria, Bob
is a good man, and I don't know if you've noticed how he looks at you,
especially if he thinks nobody is looking. I don't know how you feel on the
subject, but you could do far worse than a man like him."

"That's always been the problem, hasn't it?" Kathy looked questioningly at
her. "A shortage of men. Oh there's always been plenty of adult males, but
far too few men."

"I know what you mean. So does that mean you're interested?"

Maria told her about the meeting between them in the shed earlier. Kathy
nodded approvingly.

"I'm glad to hear it. He needs a good woman, and you strike me as just the
sort he needs."

"That's funny. He said the same thing. Just before he passed out, as we were
talking he told me, ‘You know, I like you. You're my sort of woman.' I just
wonder if he'll remember it when he wakes up."

"If he doesn't, I'LL remind him."

The women smiled at one another as they finished treating their second
patient together.

Director Claire hated to admit that someone might have had a better idea than
he did, but this time he was forced to admit it. The western regional
director hadn't gone after the Christians as he had. Instead, he had relied
on infiltrators to gain access to the scattered groups of believers. Then
when they would gather some place for whatever reason, law enforcement
officers would swoop in and arrest everyone they could put their hands on.
Each arrest, after enough 'questioning', would yield more names of resistors
and Christians to be picked up, and their likely hiding places. Then the
process would begin again. It had proved to be quite successful. Now Claire
would implement it here in the southern region, and bring an end to
resistance to the new order once and for all. When that was done, the
decreased number of fighters would enable the Russian, Cuban, and Mexican
troop to finally finish their task. The death of America.

Tim entered the doctor’s office, and found Kathy and Maria sitting at a
table, sipping coffee, and chatting after having gotten the stitches finally
in place in Bobs' back. Now all they had to do was figure out how to keep him
from being too active while his wound healed.

"Maria?"

"Yes, Tim?"

"Are you sure you didn't know any of those guys from this morning?"

"Quite sure, why?"

"We went back up there and checked them for anything that might give us an
idea of what they were up to, and if they might have been working for someone
else." He paused.

"And what did you find?"

"One of them had a list of names. Some of them were crossed off, others
weren't. Your name, and Michelle's' were next on the list."

Chapter Twelve

"WHAT? Let me see that." Maria shouted.

Tim handed over the list of names. Maria looked at the first names not
crossed off, and turned pale. They were indeed the names of both Michelle and
herself. She then scanned the names that were crossed off. An unpleasant
feeling started to come over her.

"I recognize some of these names. They were members of a prayer group we used
to belong to a couple of years ago." She continued to read. "There are a lot
of them I don't know. Do you think they are coming after the Christians?"

"They've done just about everything else to get us. I'm just wondering if
those guys were alone, or just part of a group out looking for us." Tim said.
"How long is Bob going to be out?"
"I gave him a pretty good shot. It could be hours. What do you think we
should do?" Kathy answered.

"I'm not sure."

"The first step in the resolution of any problem is to define the problem."
Alex said from the doorway where he was standing. Everyone turned to look at
him. "Dad always says that when I have a problem. So, what is the problem?"

"We need to know if anyone is coming after the three we killed, and if so how
many. What else did you Dad say?" Said, Tim.

"The second step in the resolution of any problem is the acquisition of data.
I think he got it from an old science fiction show."

"It's still a good idea. We can't put the flares out any further, we'd never
see them go off. So how do we find out if anymore are on the way? That's the
question."

"What about Dads' go-cart?"

"What?"

"I know, it doesn't go fast, but it goes faster than a man can run. And since
it is so small it gets really good gas mileage. Someone else and I could ride
out there away, and take a look."

"It's kind of loud Alex. It also is very open. Its’ got just a roll cage. You
could get shot."

"I think I have an answer for part of that." Said Maria. "Todd was a
prospector, did you know that?"

Tim and Alex shook their heads.

"Did you know he has an underground room at his place?"

Tim and Alex looked at each other, and both said,

"He does?"

"Yes, that was where he used to make his explosives for prospecting. One of
the things he has down there was a kind of wall, made out of some sheets of
some kind of bullet-proof plastic. He used it as a shield, just in case
something happened. Maybe we can get a piece or two from that, and make a
shield for the go-cart."

Again, Tim and Alex spoke together, "Show us."

After Maria and her daughter had joined the group, it was decided that since
they would be staying in town for awhile, the only decent thing to do was to
finally lay Todd to rest. Now, it seemed strange to Maria to return here,
knowing Todd wouldn't be showing up with his usual cheery 'Hello' and broad
smile. She missed him. It wasn't long before the three of them were entering
the hidden lower room in Todd's' house. Maria warned the men.

"Be careful down here. Todd's' explosives were homemade, and I never really
trusted them. I don't know if he was working on anything when he died. If
that’s so, it could be unstable."

Tim turned on his flash light to illuminate the darkened room. He was happy
that Bob had extra batteries in the shed with the truck and 4X4. They still
had a charge. On a shelf on the far side of the room were bottles, all
clearly labeled, containing various liquids and powders. On the shelf below,
were numerous books, and papers. He picked up one book, to find that it was a
U.S. Army manual. The title was 'Improvised Munitions Handbook', it was dog-
eared with slips of paper sticking out, here and there, to mark certain
passages. Tim had seen explosives used a few times before. The one thing he
learned from those experiences was that if you didn't know what you were
doing, it was a good way to make yourself dead in a hurry. He put the book
down, without looking in it.

"How did Todd learn about this stuff?"

"John said he was in E.O.D. whatever that means."

"Explosive Ordnance Disposal." Alex answered. "Dad said he thought about

doing that, once upon a time, while he was in the service. Then he got sober
and changed his mind. After all, they are the guys that are called when a
bomb goes thud, instead of boom."

"Maria, why didn't you tell us about this before?"

"At first I wasn't sure about you guys, Tim. Now, since Bob took a bullet to
save me, I don't see how I could do anything else. You know how it is. Trust
is something that is kind of hard to give sometimes."

"Earned but never given." Tim murmured under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. Just something Bob said to me. Where are those sheets of plastic?"

"Over by the wall. Todd always put them out of the way when he didn't need
them."

Tim and Alex took a look at them. A foot wide, by four feet high, and over an
inch thick, they seemed to be just the thing. Then they picked up one. It was
heavier than it seemed.

"I don't know." Tim said."Something this heavy might weigh down the cart too
much. It was a good idea though."

"Well, what about these?" Maria pointed to a box just under the shelves. Tim
opened it. Inside were several vests of body armor, and 'coal scuttle' type
helmet's.

"Much better. If anything happens to the cart, they will still have some
protection." Tim thought for a moment, "Maria, is there anything else you
might want to tell us?"

"Not off the top of my head, but if I remember anything, be sure I'll tell
you."

Tim and Alex lugged the heavy box back to the store, where they went about
figuring out how they were worn. They were both amazed at how heavy the box
was, but once they took individual vests out, they realized that separately
they weren't that heavy. Even so, they were still uncomfortable to wear, and
when Alex stepped outside, he learned that they also got hot in a hurry. But,
in the end, they decided they were less uncomfortable than getting shot.

Director of the Western Region Ives was amused. He knew that Claire would
make a mess of things. He always tried for the big play, as these people
called it, every time. Instead of using the tried and true method of slowly
increasing the pressure, until you got the results you wanted. He hadn't
learned anything from his mistakes of the past, while attacking the first
churches in Jerusalem. Claire was the one that had insisted on swooping down
on every church he could find, and grab or kill everyone. It never occurred
to him to infiltrate the churches, gather information on its' members, and
then quietly pick them up, or kill those who resisted. He'd made that same
mistake ever since the first century, whenever they tried to stamp out the
followers of the Nazarene, right up through modern times. When he was asked,
he always advised the same heavy handed methods to the master’s servants in
China, and South Africa. Everytime he did, many would escape, and
start churches elsewhere. And they would spread like a disease. All of them,
carrying the word of the hated Nazarene.

Now here he was trying to adopt Ives' methods, and was really clumsy at it.
Since those who he had already sent out to infiltrate the remaining Christian
resistors were either already known for what they were, or such poor liars,
they were easily found out.

Ives on the other hand knew the value of the ones that were easily led
astray. After all, wasn't it he that had convinced that character Judas to
talk to the priests in Jerusalem? Then Claire had almost ruined everything by
trying for the big play. Sure he got the Nazarene, but his followers had
scattered that night. By the time they had all gathered in one place again,
thousands had become followers. And now look how far things had progressed.
There were more of them now, than ever.

Yes, Ives was amused at Claire's troubles. Even with two armies at his
command, he was still struggling to pacify the southern region. Ives already
had the entire west coast under his control, and the Chinese troops were well
advanced into the foothills of the mountains to his west. A fact which had
been aided by the lack of firearms in private hands. He smiled as he thought
of what the master would do to Claire if only one more thing went wrong.

Director Claire was pacing. His staff knew this was never a good sign.
Something was bothering him, and when that happened, his already short temper
got shorter. Then people died. Claire stopped to look out the window. His
infiltration plan wasn't working. People he sent out all seemed to simply
vanish. No trace of them was found. He was growing angrier by the moment.

That is when he felt it. The building started to tremble. Then a real hard
jolt hit, almost knocking him off his feet. An earthquake he knew, but this
region hadn't had one of this size in a very long time. As he watched,
buildings outside his window began to crumble and fall. They weren't built to
take this kind of shaking. Even the one he was in began to crack, and debris
fall from its' exterior. Then it came to him, it had to be the New Madrid
fault. But if that were true, things were going to get much worse for him.

After a long time, the earth stopped moving. Claire picked up the phone. It
was dead. He tried the cell phone. Nothing there either. He went into the
outer office. Everyone was gone, having fled the building in case of a
collapse. He turned to the radio, but there was nothing but static. He had no
way to warn the invading forces of what was coming.

The destruction was beyond anything that anyone had ever seen or even heard
of before. Millions lay dead in the streets and countryside. When the fault
slipped, the resulting earthquake had caused the Great Lakes to start to
drain into the Mississippi River. The invading Cuban and Mexican forces had
been caught flat footed. Most of them were gone, washed out down the river.
Because of their closeness to the rivers shoreline, vast numbers were washed
away to the Gulf of Mexico, or drowned. Those lucky enough to avoid being
swept away didn’t last long when the Americans that had been forced onto
higher ground came to check on what happened. Claire sat in his office, or
what was left of it, cursing and blaming the one he called the Nazarene for
what had happened.
While Maria agreed the time for secrets was over, the time of caution wasn't.
Todd had given her and John keys to his underground room. Now that everyone
knew about it, she felt it wise to lock it up again after Tim and Alex had
removed the vests and helmets. There was no point in leaving it open and
chance one of the children getting into it. As the men took their box to the
store, she returned to the doctor’s office to check on Bob and the girl.

She gently knocked at the door, and was rewarded by Kathy calling out, "Come
on in, it's open.".

"How are our patients?"

Kathy's face took on a serious expression. "Bob is still out, but the wound
isn't bleeding. If we keep it covered with antibacterial cream, and we can
keep him from over doing it for awhile, I think he will be just fine. But I'm
concerned about the girl."

"You still don't know her name?"

"She hasn't said a word. I know she can hear. I dropped a pan behind her, on
purpose, and she jumped at the noise. I think she is traumatized by whatever
those animals did to her."

"Think she'll recover?"

"It's hard to say. For some people, they do return to normal after awhile.
Others never fully recover." Kathy smiled, "Enough of that, sit down and keep
me company for awhile."

Bob was starting to come out of it. He wasn't sure he wanted to wake up. He
was having such a wonderful dream. He was much younger, and sitting next to
Nancy. She was stroking his hair, and told him the most wonderful thing he'd
ever heard.

"Honey, I'm pregnant."

He couldn't wait to tell his co-workers in the next room. But wait a minute.
He was at work when Nancy called him to give him the news. So, who was
stroking his hair? Bob opened his eyes to see the girl sitting next to him,
as she tried to silently show her concern for him. She glanced down and saw
him looking at her. She smiled.

"Hello there. How are you doing?"

She shrugged.

"Still not speaking? What's your name?"

She looked upset now.

"Are you afraid those men might come back? They won't you know."

She still looked upset.

"It's alright sweetheart. Don't worry about it. You'll talk when you're good
and ready. Don't let anyone push you into it."

A timid smile returned.

"Do you know where Kathy, the doctor, is at?"

She nodded, and started to get up.

"Wait a minute. I want to talk to her."

Bob rolled over, swung his feet around, and started to stand. He found out
two important things. Whatever Kathy had used, wasn't completely done with
him yet. He also found that the girl was stronger than she looked. For a
moment, she was the only thing that kept him on his feet. He saw the look of
concern come back to her face.

"Don't worry honey. It's just whatever the doctor gave me." He smiled at her.

Together they made their way down the hall to the reception room. Kathy and
Maria were sitting with their backs to the door, so they didn't see them
until Bob spoke.

"Kathy, just what did you give me?"

"BOB! What are you doing up? Let me help you."

"Thanks, but I already have a helper."

Kathy noticed her for the first time. "Well, let her help you sit down before
you fall down."

"That sounds reasonable. Want to help me, Darling?" He said to the girl.

Maria had already gotten a chair ready, and with the girls help, he sat down.

"Okay, Kathy. Why did you do it? I told you to just put a bandage on me, and
I'd be..."

"You'd be back here in a week or less with a major infection, most likely. I
could actually see the shoulder blade, Bob. Sometimes you just have to
understand you can't do it all."
"I already know that. For one thing, I can't dance."

"What?"

"It's true. I have absolutely no sense of rhythm."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it. You said it yourself. I'M the
medical expert here. I expect you to follow my medical orders. If you don't,
how am I supposed to do anything for you or anyone else?"

Bob looked thoughtful for a moment, and then told her, "You're right Kathy.
Okay, I promise, I'll be good. Just what are the doctor’s orders?"

"Lots of rest to start with. You can talk about what needs to be done, but
for the next couple of weeks, you let other people do what needs to be done.
AND for the next few days, at least, you check in with me so I can see how
you are doing."

"Rest and checkups. Yes Ma'am. I'll do just as you say. So how long was I
out?"

"About three hours."

"Anything new and interesting happen during that time?"

"I think I'll let Alex and Tim tell you about that. They know what they are
up to better than I do. But for now, I want you at least sitting down for the
next forty-five minutes. You need time for get over the shot."

"Can I ask for someone to send for Alex?"

"That, you can do."

It didn't take Kathy long to convince Bob he needed to lay down for a little
longer to allow the sedative a chance to wear off. Between barely being able
to stand and with his back now only partially numb, resting for a little
while longer sounded like a good idea. They helped him back down the hallway
to the exam table he had been on before, after Kathy had quickly changed the
sheet. Still, Kathy wasn't satisfied knowing Bob as she did.

"Maria. I hate to impose, but would you stay with Bob for awhile and keep him
company? Otherwise, he is going to start walking around seeing what trouble
he can get into."

Maria smiled. "Sure. I'd hate to have to drag him back inside after he falls
flat on his face."

"Ladies, you do know I'm here, don't you?" Bob asked.

"Yes, we know. What we want you to know is that we know you, and sometimes
you take on too much for yourself. Now, under these conditions I out rank
you." Kathy answered. "You stay out of trouble for an hour or so Bob. I need
to see what I can do for our young friend." With that Kathy nodded to both of
them and left the room.

"I'm sorry to put you out like this Maria. You really don't have to stay. To
tell the truth, a little shut eye sounds good right about now."

"I don't mind. Besides, it can't hurt to have someone keep an eye on you
until you are yourself again. You go ahead and nap. Pretend I'm not here."

Bob was already starting to doze off, and didn't answer. With little else to
do, she started looking over Bobs' weapons. Her late husband, John, had
taught her quite a bit about firearms and she now put that knowledge to the
test. Both the pistol he always carried, and the rifle he had spoken of
earlier were old, but both weapons were in perfect working order. The pistol
was a big heavy .44 Mag. revolver. She knew the type well. John had carried a
.357 Mag. when at home, or kept it in his truck while on the road. While the
cylinder would hold six rounds, Bob took the usual safety precaution of
having the chamber under the hammer empty. The rifle was semi-auto. It was
short, but had a powerful scope mounted on top, which told her the rifle
would reach further that it appeared to. She looked at a round of ammo she
had pulled out of the pocket of Bob's blood soaked and now useless jacket.
Like the rifle and pistol, the round was small, but seemed to be
heavier than it should. She knew the power of the weapons, so it didn't
surprise her. She was just amazed that anyone would voluntarily carry the
heavy pair.

"Don't drop that. I reload them, so it is a little hot."

Maria turned at Bob's voice.

"Hi there, I thought you were going to catch a few winks."

"I was trying. I just can't quite seem to do it. Maybe it's the company.”
Smiling Bob said, “I mean that in a good way. Sit down, lets' talk awhile."

"Thank you. I was sure you did. This is quite some cannon you have here. Or
maybe I should say cannons. How did you hold on to them when they started
picking up all the guns?"

"It was a close thing." Bob admitted. "The truth is it all comes back to what
I've said for years. Know Thy Enemy. If you know what he can and is likely to
do under a given circumstance, then you can take counter measures. In this
case, I knew that they knew I had weapons. So I turned in the ones they knew
about. I hid the rest, along with the ammo for them."
"Stop right there. If you turned in the weapons they knew about, why did you
hide the rest, and what made you believe that the government was going to
take them?"

"Know Thy Enemy. Ultimately our enemy is Satan. He wants to set up the throne
of the antichrist in Jerusalem. While the U.S. was able to come to the aid of
Israel, he couldn't do that. So, naturally he had to take America out of the
picture. Even during WW II the Japanese knew better than to try to invade
America because of the number of privately owned firearms. It was Admiral
Yamamoto who said that if Japan invaded America, they would find someone with
a gun behind every blade of grass. Firearms represent power, and every
dictator in history has always disarmed the people they controlled. Otherwise
they wouldn't really have control. The antichrist will be no different in
that respect. He cannot tolerate any threat to his power.

Now we narrow the focus a bit. If the American people had to be disarmed, how
could they do that? How can they identify a gun owner? And what can I do to
prevent them from taking my weapons?

Let’s start with the second question. How do they identify gun owners? Of
course there were the registration lists. They got visits first. Then, anyone
that had ever had a hunting license. Then there were also those who the
government would identify at gun shows."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I guess living out here you might not have heard of it, but yes it's true. I
don't know how long it was going on, but agents from our own government would
sit in the parking lot at those shows taking pictures of people and car tags
as the people would arrive or leave. In their minds, if you were at a gun
show, you must have bought one or more of those unregistered weapons. But
those weren't the only ways to find out. Credit card purchases were traced.
Magazine subscriptions were another good indicator of a firearms owner. If
you don't like guns, why do you have subscriptions for hunting magazines?"

"So how did you avoid all of that?"

"First of all, I paid cash for everything that was even slightly related to
firearms. Any weapon I bought was advertised in the local 'Bargain Traders'
type magazine, or the local newspaper. They came from private owners, so
there was no obligation to register them. I learned as a young man just how
far some people would go to get guns out of the hands of Joe and Jane
Average. In one bill that was proposed to control cheap easily concealed
handguns, back in the sixties, a description of what qualified as a 'Saturday
Night Special' as they called them was part of it. That pistol you were
looking at is a .44 Magnum. It weighs over six pounds when empty and has a
seven and a half inch long barrel. Yet it qualified as a 'Special' under the
provisions of that bill. I knew then if I wanted to own a firearm, it had to
be unregistered. That was the only way to be sure I could keep them."
"Didn't they get your picture at the gun shows?" Maria asked.

"I didn't go to them. Now consider, if you know you are at risk of losing
your weapons, what do you do? By turning in what I had, I knew they would
come looking for more. But that bought me some time. So I had to think like
they do. How would I find a hidden cache of weapons? Most people aren't going
to put their weapons too far out of reach. If they bury them, it won't be too
deep. It is too hard to get to them that way. So a metal detector would find
them. How do you defeat that? There are ways to do it. For example, instead
of making the weapon invisible by burying it, put it in a place where there
is so much metal the detector is useless. A junk yard, a rail road line, any
metal pipeline, and lots of other places have huge amounts of metal. Tuck a
weapon away there, and it is no longer visible. Another option would be to
camouflage them. A rifle has a long piece of metal in the barrel. If you put
that rifle in a couple of plastic bags, and bury it
right underneath any metal water or sewage pipes underground, they disappear.
The same is true of culverts they put under a driveway. I don’t mean putting
them in the culverts. Someone could find them just by looking. I mean bury
them right next to the culvert, so a metal detector won’t be able to pick it
up. That detector can't tell the difference between the barrel of a rifle,
and the pipe very deeply underground, unless it is some of the much higher
tech. gear. And I didn’t believe they would let the average guy use one of
those in the field. Since that pipe is going to be very long, clearly it is
too long to be a rifle, why dig it up? That is what the detector operator is
thinking."

"And so that's what you did, right?"

"Only partially. I'm a great fan of the 'hide in plain sight' philosophy."

"'Hide in plain sight'? How do you do that?"

Gently, Bob rolled onto his uninjured side, and answered. "Again, Know Thy
Enemy. Most people never learn to expect the unexpected. When I was still
quite young, I read a comic book one time that had a fellow being a foster
father to his nephews. One day, he brought home some donuts. Knowing that the
boys would make short work of them, he hid them. Sure enough, while he was
out, the boys came home and could smell the donuts. They tore the place apart
looking for them. They never did find them. Why? Because their uncle had put
the donuts on a curtain rod and hung it back in place. The boys never saw
them.

I did something similar with some of my weapons. Now I admit I was lucky
according to some people. I believe I was blessed. At any rate, a handgun
duct taped to the internal portions of a stove can't be detected by a metal
detector, and the people searching for my weapons were under a time limit.
They had other places to check. While they did pull out the drawer under the
oven and look inside, the oven itself is too heavy to be easily moved, so
they didn't check places that were harder to reach. They weren’t going to
remove the back plate on that stove and check inside.”

“Let's get back to being identified as a gun owner. You mentioned credit
cards. What did you mean about that?" Maria asked.

"Just what I said. Credit card companies keep records of all purchases. That
includes things like cleaning kits, ammunition, targets, everything. A simple
search program for words like those will bring up the name and address of the
person who bought those items and put them on their card. So I used cash
only. Cash has the advantage of always being the right size, shape, and
color. Nobody ever takes it from you and cuts it in half. Except for a very
few places, it was accepted everywhere, and nobody ever asked a question. No
one ever had to wait for it to clear the bank like a check. And everyone was
always happy to accept it."

"Bob you almost sound like you are a very suspicious person. If it weren't
for what has happened to this country, I'd have my doubts about you."

"So would I if there wasn't a reason for it. The Bible tells us that we are
each given certain gifts. I think The Lord designed it that way to get us to
work together, instead of each one for themselves. Two of my gifts are
observation and discernment. When I saw the first signs that gun registration
was coming, I knew confiscation wouldn't be far behind. That's why I never
joined any groups that lobbied for gun owners in Washington. It's also why
when they came looking for them, they didn't know what to look for. They
never knew the number or types of weapons I had or didn't have. If you don't
know what to look for, it makes it hard to know where to look."

Director Ives chuckled as he thought about how Claire must be doing at that
very moment. Ives knew that after the southern invasion forces had been
virtually wiped out, as the Great Lakes poured down the Mississippi River
valley, the hated Christians that Claire had let slip through his fingers
rejoiced and praised the Nazarene for their deliverance. The master was very
unhappy about that. And he had very unpleasant ways of dealing with those who
failed him.

What Claire had failed to do with his heavy handed tactics, Ives had been
doing with his subtle lies and deceits. He left the large churches alone for
the most part. Whereas Claire would try to destroy them, even by making false
arrests in some cases. Most of them were so deceived that they posed no
threat, and could be wiped out at a moment’s notice. It was the small
churches and home prayer groups that Ives had concentrated on. They were the
ones that knew what was happening. While Claire had reduced the numbers of
that religion, in his failure, he had increased their faith. And that could
not be tolerated.

Ives was getting a little concerned about the raids. They were making fewer
of them all the time, and sometimes when they went in, there wasn't anyone
there, even though they had seen people enter the building. But for now, it
was going well.

Bob was true to his word, and didn't try to go against Kathy's medical
advice. Maria was happy about this, because it gave her a chance to know him
better. As they talked, Kathy had re-entered the room. She was shaking her
head as she came in.

"How's our new friend?" Bob asked.

"At least this time she smiled at me when I came into the room, instead of
looking like she wanted to jump and run. That's an improvement, I guess." She
shook her head again. "I can only guess what that poor child has been through
judging by her injuries. It makes me realize just how lucky we've all been
since this all started."

"Kathy, luck had nothing to do with it. We've been blessed. And I think we
all need to make that young lady the subject of our prayers from now on."

"I know what you mean. And you're right. Still, when you think about
everything that has happened to this country, our survival so far has been
miraculous."

"But that's the point, Kathy. We have been saved by The Lord for this time.
It's even more miraculous when you look at the entire picture. For example,
you're a doctor. Did you get the advisories sent out by the Dept. of Homeland
Security or the CDC about the swine flu a while back?"

"Yes, but they didn't say much. Their best advice was to avoid contact with
infected people and to wear masks and gloves while in public."

"Did they mention what kind of makeup was involved with the virus?"

"I'm afraid I don't remember."

"The virus was constructed using genetic material from pigs, birds, and men.
I said 'constructed' for a reason. Tell me something as a doctor. Is it
possible to have genetic material from three so widely diverse species to
combine naturally?"

Kathy got a serious look on her face.

"I'm a dentist, but if I remember my training correctly, no. It's not."

"Well. if that can't happen naturally, how could it happen?"

Kathy's look got even darker.

"Bob, are you saying that it was deliberate?"

"Yes, I am. You yourself, with your medical training, admit that wasn't
possible in the natural world. That leaves only one option. It wasn't
natural. That means it had to be constructed in a lab somewhere. I know that
is really reaching in some people’s opinion. But what I tell you now is the
absolute truth. I once was told that if I did a search on line for
‘Genetically Engineered Swine Influenza Virus and Uses Thereof’ I would find
an application for the creation of the swine flu virus. I didn’t believe it.
So I checked it myself. I found it."

"But it started in Mexico. Who would want to attack them?"

"Have you ever heard of asymmetrical warfare?"

"I can't say that I ever have. YOU are the expert in those kind of things."

"That is a disturbing thought. O.K. it works like this. If you had an enemy
that had to be defeated, but you weren't strong enough to do it by yourself,
how could you get it done?"

"I have no idea."

"You use surrogates to weaken your enemy before you actually attack them. In
this case, I believe that the Mexican population was used to attack us in a
way that wouldn't raise anybodies suspicions. The plan was simple enough.
Infect people that are headed north, knowing that as soon as they cross the
border they were going to scatter to the four winds. Which would spread the
infection like wild fire. Also, once the people still in Mexico became scared
enough, they rushed the boarder in order to escape from being infected or to
seek medical help in some cases. Sad thing is that many of them already were
infected unknowingly.

All of that served to weaken this country in a few different ways. Manpower
used to try to round up the infected people before they could spread the
disease was stretched to the breaking point. Not to mention how porous the
boarder already was, even more men were needed to try to seal it. Medical
facilities were over-whelmed. That, of course, made it almost impossible to
take care of our own people. And the bleeding heart type of people in
government kept insisting we had a responsibility to take care of the illegal
immigrants. That drained the coffers of the government even further. That in
turn made it difficult to buy everything we needed for many, many things.
Like the military for example. As you know, a military has to be strong and
well supplied to do its' job. Lack of money prevented that.

It all comes down to what is known as 'death by a thousand cuts'. Small

injuries might go untreated and even ignored, but once you are bleeding from
enough of them, death is certain. That is what happened to us."
"Bob, that's terrible. Didn't anyone realize what was going on?"

Bob smiled grimly and asked Kathy, "Did you? Most people never make a study
of how to kill large numbers of people in a short period of time. It's not
good bedtime reading for sure. But when you are a soldier, as I was, it is
your job to understand these things. First, so you can do those things to
other people, and secondly, at the same time keeping it from happening to you.

I'm certain that a lot of high ranking government officials knew about it.
The ones who had already sold out to Satan, for their own personal gain knew,
I'm quite sure. And I'm sure there were a number of people in places like the
CDC and Homeland Security as well. Someone had to write those so-called
informational releases. Someone or ones knew that you don't find three or
more different types of genetic material in the same virus. But they kept
that little piece of information from the general public. Tell me something
Kathy. As a dentist, did you see a rise in the number of respiratory
ailments?”

“Now that you mention it, there was a real upswing in colds, the flu and
other things like that, the past several years. Why do you ask?”

“Did you ever notice what some people called ‘chem-trails’ in the sky?”

“Oh, you mean con-trails. Those trails left by planes as they fly over.”

“Actually I mean chem-trails. You see a contrail is made by condensation when

the heat from the engine hits the cold air. Those dissipate within a short
period of time. Chem-trails would go from horizon to horizon and instead of
dissipating, they would spread out enough to cover a miles wide area going in
both directions as far as the eye could see. Sometimes debris from those
trails would make it to the ground. Samples were analyzed and found to
contain a witch’s brew of differing substances. Many of them harmful to
people. And they were capable of inflicting a number of different types of
respiratory problems. But almost nobody stopped to look up. Not many thought
to even question why those trails were appearing. Those who did were usually
ridiculed into silence or simply dismissed as kooks.”

"Then we were betrayed!"

"Yes we were."

"You seem awfully calm about it." Maria said.

"I'm not really, but many of those people were in Washington when it was
nuked. They are already paying a much higher price in Hell than they ever
thought they would have to pay, or I could possibly inflict on them myself.
Mainly, because they put their faith in the master deceiver instead of the
Son of God. It's too late to worry about them, and the rest of them. Well,
I'll never know who they were or are. So why burn up energy on something I
can do nothing about?

Believe me. If I were to have each and every person responsible for this in
front of me, I would personally send them to their just reward. But that
isn't going to happen. I must content myself with the knowledge that The Lord
knows what He is doing. I don't recall the exact verse, but scripture does
teach that He knows how to preserve the wicked until the Day of Judgment. And
for that reason, I actually feel a little bit sorry for them. I can't imagine
what their punishment will be, but I do know it is going to last for a very
long time."

"You're right, of course, but it makes me angry to know that all of this was
done to us by our own people."

"Me too, Kathy. But they didn't act alone, and you can bet that Satan was
pulling the strings all along. He wants every Christian dead, and according
to The Book of Revelation, He is even angrier than we are. He knows His time
is very limited and knows what waits for Him after this."

Bob smiled briefly and said, "You know, everyone always talks about how Satan
will rule in Hell. I have to say that I don't agree with that. Hell was
created as a place of punishment for Satan and His angels. I hardly think The
Father would place Him in charge. I believe that once He gets there, He will
have no power at all. His punishment, I think, is going to be unable to
defend himself when everyone that He has tricked into going to Hell with Him
comes to see Him there. Maybe I'm wrong, but I sure don't want to be there to
find out."

Unnoticed by anyone, Sam had come into the office and had been listening.

"Mr. Bob. Why does the devil hate us so much?"

Turning his head to look at Sam, he answered.

"Sam, I think mostly for two reasons. First of all we know Satan hates God.
But he can't do anything to God. So he attacks us because we are created in
Gods' image. If he can't hurt God, then He wants to destroy the image of God.
That's us. Secondly, as The Bible says, Satan said that he wanted to be God.
Now that shows a whole lot of ego, if you ask me. Since Satan believes
himself to be as good or even better than God, that ego can't stand the
thought that everything He once had, we will inherit when we get to Heaven.
That has to be eating Him alive, and it has been ever since He fell. That is
why he hates us this much. But don't worry. We still have God on our side.
And Satan still can't defeat Him."

"Bob, what happened when we went down into the valley?” Maria wanted to know.
“I thought that with the dreams, and visitations you've been getting, God
would have protected you."
"He did better than protect me. He blessed me. Twice."

"Bob, you got shot. How can you call that a blessing?"

"Do you remember the Battle of AI in Exodus?"

"Not really."

"This was just after Moses had died, and Joshua was put in charge. The
Children of Israel had just come off of their victory at Jericho, and were
feeling pretty sure of themselves. Then they came upon the town of AI. The
spies told Joshua that there was no need to send the entire army up to this
place, they could be taken care of with just a small force. Joshua said okay
and off they went. To be blunt, they got their butts kicked. So, they came
back asking Joshua what happened. Joshua asked The Lord, and was basically
told, "Why didn't you ask Me for help and protection? You sent these men off
to do the job, and left Me out entirely. Now, go back and do the job the
right way, WITH Me’. They repented of the sin of pride, and did as God told
them to do. This time they won."

"That's all very interesting, but what does it have to do with you?"

"I was guilty of the same sin of pride. I admit, just like everyone else, I
got pumped up when those guys showed up. But when we went down to meet them.
I forgot to pray. I left God out of it, and was counting on us to handle it.
That was my mistake. And so, I got blessed twice. First, I'm still breathing.
Second, as the scriptures say, those whom God loves, he chastises. Yeah, I
got hit, but it is going to serve as a reminder for a very long time, not to
do ANYTHING without The Lord."

As they had been talking, Alex returned to the office.

"Hey, Dad. How are you doing?" Alex called as he entered the doctor’s office.

"Hey Son. Looks like I'm on bed rest for a while, but otherwise, I'm fine.
So. What's been going on while I've been out?"

"Um, I think I'll wait for Tim to get here."

"Oh? That much?"

"Sort of."

No sooner had Alex said that than Tim came through the door as well. Between
them, they told Bob about the underground room Todd had, the list of names,
and the fact that Maria and Michelle were both on it. They also told him of
their plan to patrol further out from town, using the go-cart. As he
listened, the expression on Bob's face grew ever more grave.
"I don't like this at all. This is very bad. Tim, did you find any car keys
when you searched them?"

Tim thought for a moment and said, "No. I didn't see anything like that. Why?"

"You saw the way they were dressed. Those clothes may have been fashionable,
but they weren't meant for wandering around in the countryside. The nearest
town is what, seventy miles or so from here?" He looked at Maria.

"Seventy-three miles." She answered.

"Obviously they didn't walk that far. They had no food, no canteens, nothing
but the girl, and their guns. I'm willing to bet that we will…" He could feel
Kathy's stare at the back of his neck, and changed what he was going to say.
"YOU will find some kind of vehicle within two miles of here. Chances are
that the keys are still in the ignition." Bob thought for a moment and spoke
again. "The patrolling idea is a good one, but it will have to wait for a
bit. Alex, I want you and Tim to take your mothers' 4X4 and find that car.
Let Tim drive."

"Why not me?"

"Son you've been hunting with me for a long time. You know how to look for
sign. Tim might miss it. I want you to concentrate on that and that only.
You'll be looking for tire tracks leading off the road into some brush, or a
gully. Once you find it, I want you to take that thing at least two hundred
miles from here, and hide it again. Run the gas tank dry if you have to do
it. DO NOT take anything you find inside from the vehicle. I don't want to
give anyone any clues about what happened to those three. When you get out,
wipe any fingerprints you've left off of the wheel, shifter, or whatever. You
understand?"

"Yes Sir."

"Wait a minute Bob, how do you figure anyone is going to be looking for them?
Seems to me that they were the sort nobody would miss."

"Before I answer that Tim, you have to answer something. Alex, do you
remember what I told you about the rabbit?"

"Sure."

"Ask Tim."

"How does a rabbit survive?" Alex asked. "Considering that the creature has
no real 'weapons' for attacking other animals, and it's only defenses are
speed and camouflage, how does the individual rabbit stay alive?"

"I hadn't thought about it. I don't know. How does he stay alive?"
"He notices every change in his environment, by being constantly alert. Have
you ever tried to sneak up one? You can't do it. The rabbit knows that the
first time he misses one of those details he becomes a hot meal for something
else. So what we have to do is become a rabbit. Right, Dad?"

"Just so. Speaking of noticing things, Alex since when have you started
wearing body armor?"

"Didn't you know? This is this year’s new fashion statement."

"Well, I must say, I approve of it. You see Tim that is what I'm talking
about. You don't have to worry about everything, just be aware of changes.
Now to answer your question, those guys must have driven here, to arrive in
such good condition, with no food or water. And why would they drive all the
way out here? The answer is obviously Maria and Michelle. Their names are
next on the list from what you tell me. That means that someone gave them
their names and location. That information could only come from someone in
the camps. THAT in turn, means they were sent here. We have to make it look
like they either never got here, or they came and left again, after ‘taking
care’ of Maria and Michelle. To throw people off the scent."

"Okay. I get it. But how do we do that, other than moving their car, or
whatever?"

"To start with, do you have the list?"

Tim nodded and handed it to Bob.

Bob looked at it and almost absentmindedly he said, "Good, good. Does anyone
have a number two pencil?"

Kathy handed one to him. Then Bob picked up another piece of paper, and made
a few practice scribbles, trying to duplicate the ones on the list.
Satisfied, he crossed out the names of Maria, Michelle, and a few of the
others, then handed it back to Tim.

"When you park the car, leave this inside. Hopefully whoever finds it will
believe that Maria and Michelle have already been dealt with and not come
back here looking for them. What I'm more concerned about right now is if
those guys were tagged with RFID."

"R.F.I.D.?" Tom asked.

"It stands for Radio Frequency IDentification. For the past few years, those
tags have been put in just about everything. Clothing, tires, passports, even
money. Some of them could only be read at close range, while others could be
read by a satellite in orbit. We have to find a way to make sure that nobody
ever uses those tags to track down our friends out there."
"How do we do that?" Questioned Maria.

"As far as I know, there are only two ways to do it. First is to microwave
the tag, although that might be a little difficult in this situation. I saw
an article one time that showed the eye of President Jefferson on a twenty
dollar bill would explode and burn when you did that. The only other way I
know of is to use a hammer on it. The problem there is you have to know the
exact location of the tag. There are ways to mask them. Wrapping them in some
kind of metal foil works. But I don't think anyone here wants to either strip
the clothing off of dead men, for microwaving, or wrap them in tinfoil. So
what do we do?"

"You need metal?" Michelle asked.

"Yes. The thing is you need enough mass to prevent any signal from reaching
the tag."

Michelle looked at her mother. "What about that wagon at 'Dead Man’s' Curve'?
Do you think that would work?"

"That's a good idea."

"Wagon? Dead Man’s Curve?" Bob asked.

Maria smiled, "I guess about half of the towns in the country have, or at
least had, a 'Dead Man’s Curve'. It is always a dangerous curve that street
racers couldn't resist trying to take at high speed. Often with tragic
results. In this case the name is literal. Just north of here is a curve that
if you lose it, the choice is slamming into the mountain, or going over the
cliff. It’s three hundred feet to the bottom. About five years ago, a family
in a station wagon went over the edge by accident. It was very sad, nobody
lived. Anyway the wagon came to rest on its' side. If we were to put those
three next to it, then roll the car over them, that should be enough to block
any signal, shouldn't it?"

"I do believe so. Alright, it is kind of late today, so we have our plan for
tomorrow. Alex and Tim ditch the car far away from here. While they do that,
Sam, Tom, Maria and I will take my truck and dispose of those three, once and
for all."

"You can't use the truck. There are a couple of places it won't fit in the
canyon at the bottom of the curve. But I think the go cart would fit."

"Can't say I care for that. It's a two-seater. The idea of taking them one at
a time into the canyon isn't very good."

"Bob, why does your go cart have a trailer hitch?"

"I had a little trailer I used to remove yard debris back home."

"Well, I have a trailer that I think would do for this job. John and I used
it for the same purpose. We can put those guys on it and take them out to
their final resting spot. You’ll probably have to make a couple of trips for
everyone and everything, but it beats the one at a time thing."

"Works for me."

"What about me?" Michelle asked. "What am I doing while all of this is going
on? I'm just as good as any of you men."

"You are going to stay here, and help Kathy keep an eye on the kids, and our
new friend."

"Don't you think I can handle it?"

"I'm sure you can, but someone has to be here with Kathy, and you might be
able to get our friend to say a few words. You're closer to her age than any
other woman here. Stands to reason she'll be more comfortable with you than
anyone else. Maybe you can get her to at least tell you her name."

"Barbara. My...name...is Barbara."

As one, they all turned and looked at the girl.

"And I want to thank you for rescuing me.”

Alex had finally gotten his father to allow him to help getting Bob ready for
bed the night after he had been hit. His mind was spinning with a combination
of questions and instructions from Kathy on what he should and shouldn't do,
as well as things he shouldn't allow his father to do. Once Bob and he had
gotten the now slightly blood stained shirt off, he visually checked the
bandage without removing it. He had been warned to expect some blood, but
large amounts of it were to be reported to Kathy at once. He was happy to see
that while there was some blood, it wasn't much. He decided not to bother her
with the news.

"Are you sure you're O.K. Dad?"

"It hurts some, but I'm alright. Thanks for the help, Son."

"Do you want to go to bed, or are you going to sit up for a while?"

"I hadn't decided yet. Why? Is there something you want to talk about?"

"A couple of things. But if you want to rest, I can wait."

"It's okay. I'm going to be awake for a bit anyway. At least until the
throbbing eases off. What's on your mind?"

"With what happened today, I remembered you talking with Tim and Kathy on
that day when we met in the woods. You were talking about 'bodies on the
ground' and all that. What happened back home after I left to go back to
school after Mom died?"

Bob looked at his son for several moments before answering. A flood of
memories seemed to pass through his mind in a fraction of a second.

"Alex, if this was as early as this morning, I wouldn't have answered that
question. But there is no doubt about it. You saved my bacon this morning. I
was looking down the barrel of his pistol when your bullet hit him. You've
earned the right to the unvarnished truth. But to tell it, I want to go back
to just after the time you left to go back to school after we buried your
mother.

As you know, shortly after you left, we had the earthquakes that destroyed
most of the west coast. Then the hurricanes wiped out the southeastern part
of the country. Food production was drastically cut, and our ability to
refine oil was reduced by about half. The shortages of food and fuel led
first to protests, and then riots. Martial law was declared, and the
government said in order to keep us safe, everyone had to turn in their
weapons. Well, with most of the military and National Guard overseas involved
in wars, the law enforcement agencies where simply over-loaded and
outnumbered. That is why, at first, martial law was only in the larger
population centers. However the crooks and gang bangers had a virtually free
reign. Even in small towns like ours, gunshots throughout the night became
almost commonplace. In our hometown, the police started patrolling in groups
of no less than three at a time.

More than that, after a dozen or so times when the police were called out
about gunshots in the dark, only to find themselves the targets of sniper
fire, they quit responding to any calls at night that were less than a
pitched battle. The crooks had a field day. Without weapons in private hands,
there was nothing to stop them.

One night, I'd say about six weeks or so after you left, I was sitting in the
living room. I heard someone breaking into the bedroom your mother and I
shared. First thing I did was to turn off the lights around me. That put me
in the dark, but the night light in the hallway was still on. When he came
out of the bedroom I warned him I was armed and told him if he left then, I'd
let him live. Son, he stood there and laughed at me. He must have been
watching me before that night because he said;

"Let me show you my gun old man."

He started to aim into the living room, I guess to try to either hit me or at
least scare me into submission. So I shot him."
"What did the police say about that?"

"Nothing."

"What? Why didn't they? I mean owning a weapon was illegal by then."

"They didn't say anything because I didn't call them. I knew if I did, he'd
still be dead, but I would go to jail for illegal possession of a firearm."

"Oh. What about him?"

"He didn't call them either."

"DAD! I mean, what did you do about the body?"

"Remember that mini industrial park near our house? I stuffed him into a
couple giant sized garbage bags and dumped him over there."

"Didn't anyone notice anything?"

"If they did, nobody ever said anything. By that time we were hearing shots
every night, so what's one more? By the time I got home again, it was about
eleven. I cleaned up the blood, and patched the bullet hole in the wall with
masking tape and painted over it. By the time the police showed up after the
body was found the next day asking if I'd heard or seen anything, everything
looked normal. I said I'd heard a shot close by, but since it was after
curfew, I stayed inside."

"They didn't suspect you at all?"

"Son, I don't think they even cared. Lets' face it people don't just wake up
one morning and decide to invade a home where they know someone is there. I'm
sure he had a criminal record, and as far as the police were concerned it was
one less bad guy to worry about. So write a report, file it and forget it.
But he was only the first of four invaders that tried it. They all shared the
same fate."

"But it sounds like you didn't even give them a chance."

"No more than the chance you gave that guy this morning. Son I was defending
myself. I didn't go looking for trouble. It came looking for me. Just like
this morning. We didn't want trouble. But those three were bound and
determined to give us some. Do you feel justified in what you did?"

"Well, I'm not proud of it, but they didn't give me a choice."

"Exactly. I feel the same way. I wish it hadn't happened, but it did. I could
only do what I did if I wanted to live. Now let me continue. What Tim, Kathy
and I were talking about was a group of gang bangers that had left the larger
cities and towns came to our town, they terrorized everyone. On the last day
we spent there, they attacked Tim and Kathy's' place while they were still
inside. I can only credit The Lord that they didn't come for our house first,
but when they started to break down their front door, I intervened with a
rifle. I put down several of them and they ran. Later they came back, and
they were sent away with reduced numbers again. Then we ran for it. That's
what we were talking about."

"I need to think about all of this some more. It just seems so wrong."

"I think both of us getting some rest is a good idea. And you're correct. It
is wrong, but we didn't start it. And only God will be able to finish it. Try
to get some sleep."

Bob turned down the oil lamp and laid down to try to find a comfortable
position. He knew the pain was going to keep him awake. Still, he laid on his
side and tried to rest. No matter how he tried to find a good position, as he
would start to doze off, he would move and the pain in his back would bring
him back from the edge. After what seemed hours, he heard Alex call to him
softly.

"You still awake Dad?"

"Afraid so Son. How are you doing?"

The oil lamp was turned back up. Alex rolled onto his side and asked,

"Dad, how do you live with it? Every time I close my eyes, I see it all over
again."

"I wish I could say to do this or that and it would go away, but I'd be
lying. People find different ways. Some good, some not so good. Some people
just try to bury it and pretend it never happened. But that doesn't work for
me. Matter of fact, those who try doing that often wind up with mental
problems from not dealing with it. Others will use something like drugs or
alcohol to numb the pain. That has it's own problems. Others will do whatever
it takes to keep it off their mind."

"So how did you handle it the first time it happened to you?"

"I handled it pretty poorly. I don't remember much of the first couple of
years after I got out of the service. What I do remember is pretty blurry
around the edges. For a couple of years, if I was conscious, I was drunk."

"You?"

"That's right. I'm only a man, Alex. Sometimes things can be hard to take."
"I never knew that. What changed?"

"I did. To be honest, it was The Lord who changed me. You see I had drifted
quite aways from him during my time in the service. Then further away as I
tried to escape from myself in a bottle. Then one day He made me realize some
things. The Bible teaches in the Old Testament that God gave us the right to
use deadly force to protect ourselves and our families. I've heard some
people try to condemn me by telling me that I should be ashamed, because
Jesus changed all of that. It got my attention, because I knew the scriptures
pretty well, and I didn't remember them that way. Then it hit me like a brick
one day. It was Jesus Himself who said that He didn't come to change the law,
but to fulfill it. That would mean the God given right to self defense was
still valid. Even more the people who said that He changed things didn't
realize what they were saying. You see, if The Lord changed the law, then why
did he always place importance on the Ten Commandments?

After all, they are the very first part of the law. If He changed it, then
the Commandments no longer apply. Yet He seemed to think they did. So either
the law was fulfilled and wasn't changed, or Jesus is a hypocritical liar. I
can't believe that, so those people who think He did are just flat out wrong.

Does that make me happy about the things I did? No, it doesn't. But I know I
am forgiven. And I know that even though I didn't want to do those things,
even though I hated them, I didn't do anything that wasn't allowed and even
mandated by the law given by The Father. Does that help you?"

"I don't know. I have to think about it. It's a lot to take in all at one
time."

"Just do one more thing Son. Pray about it. Let God show you what He wants
you to know."

"I will. Thanks Dad."