Bug Out! Texas Book 4: Texas Battle Cry Read online

  Bug Out! Texas

  Texas Battle Cry

  Book 4

  Robert G Boren

  Contents

  Previously - in Bug Out! Texas Book 3

  Chapter 1 – Road to Laredo

  Chapter 2 – Mountain City

  Chapter 3 – Dark Road

  Chapter 4 – Secrets

  Chapter 5 – Rendezvous

  Chapter 6 – Change of Route

  Chapter 7 - Sydney

  Chapter 8 – Austin Retreat

  Chapter 9 – Awakening

  Chapter 10 – Reacquired

  Chapter 11 – Fear and Bliss

  Chapter 12 – Hardware Run

  Chapter 13 – Conference

  Chapter 14 – Park Models

  Chapter 15 – Quail Hunting

  Chapter 16 – Flatbeds

  Chapter 17 – Violet and Cami

  Chapter 18 – Choices

  Chapter 19 – Web Meeting

  Chapter 20 – Doctor's Call

  Chapter 21 – Exodus

  Chapter 22 – Almost

  Chapter 23 – Bloody Sedan

  Chapter 24 - Battle of Baffin Bay

  Chapter 25 – Celebrity Witness

  Chapter 26 – Interrogation

  Chapter 27 – Air Power

  Chapter 28 – White Flags

  Cast of Characters

  Copyright - About the Author

  Previously, in Bug Out! Texas Book 3:

  The Texas Patriots living at the Fort Stockton RV Park saw Islamist fighters try to hijack a convoy of four M-1 Battle tanks on I-10, being moved on massive flatbed trucks. They swept in and took the tanks away from the enemy, using Curt’s heavily armed Barracuda off-roader. The tanks became part of the group’s armament and were used to guard the RV Park. The group figured out later that the hijacking was an inside job, aided by Islamists who had infiltrated Fort Bliss.

  Falcon Lake was attacked with a device which created a giant wave. The wave took out the dam, draining the lake in minutes. Brendan, Juan Carlos, and Richardson barely got their patrol boat to the beach before the wave hit.

  All the characters saw news reports of nuclear attacks in the US and elsewhere. Panic spread quickly to every corner of the globe. Austin locked down during the attack, with leadership heading to the bunkers under the State Capital building.

  Kip Hendrix helped Maria with her disturbed younger sister after a suicide attempt. This and the rapidly approaching war pulled them closer together. Maria realized that Kip had fallen in love with her, but she wasn’t sure what to do about it.

  Curt fabricated a weapon mount for Kyle’s truck, using his 3D printer and machine shop set up in the back of his toy hauler. He installed a remote-controlled .50 cal machine gun on the truck’s roll bar, with a sight unit inside the cab.

  Brendan, Juan Carlos, and Richardson were relocated to the Gulf Coast, near South Padre Island. Richardson’s girlfriend Lita was there, working in her father’s bar. She introduced her friends Madison and Hannah to Juan Carlos and Brendan. Sparks flew from the start.

  Eric, Kim, and the people from Deadwood finally made it to central Texas. They had to fight their way through a terror attack on the freeway in Austin, eventually taking refuge at the Finley family homestead outside of Fredericksburg.

  Austin was attacked by thousands of Islamist fighters with tank support, turning the south side of the city into rubble. Kip Hendrix and Maria barely escaped with their lives. They took refuge in a bunker under the Hendrix’s residence. Love blossomed between them while they were there.

  Curt used his cellphone tracking program to find the enemy supply depot supporting the Austin attack. He gathered up Jason, Kyle, Kelly, Junior, and others. They headed for the small town of Mountain View to carry out an assault, leaving their women behind to worry.

  South Padre Island and nearby Port Isabel were rocked with a massive air strike by the enemy, causing Richardson, Brendan, and Juan Carlos to flee with their women. They got out just in time…

  Chapter 1 – Road to Laredo

  Madison was in bed, propped up on her elbow, looking at Juan Carlos as the sun came up. The explosions and flashes of light went on until after 2:00 in the morning, but Juan Carlos fell asleep anyway. She looked at his peaceful face, strong and yet gentle. Is he the one?

  Juan Carlos stirred, eyes opening to see her staring at him. He smiled. “Good morning.”

  She smiled at him. “You look proud of yourself.”

  “Yeah, I am,” he said, pulling her naked body back against him. “What time is it?”

  “It’s not even six yet,” she said. “Uh oh, what’s that I feel?”

  “Guess.”

  “Oh, God, again?” she asked. “Last night won’t hold you for a while?”

  “I’ll never get enough,” he said, bringing her in for a kiss. Madison gave in to him, moaning as his body came over hers. They built each other into a fever pitch, laying back afterwards, breath coming down slowly.

  “Listen, you hear that?” Juan Carlos whispered. The muffled sound of a woman moaning and crying out floated into their room.

  Madison giggled. “Hannah is getting it good.”

  “You sure that’s Hannah?”

  “I’m sure,” she said. “We’re roommates, remember? I don’t remember her sounding quite this passionate before, though.”

  “It’s having an effect on me,” Juan Carlos said, moving closer to her.

  “No!” she said. “I’m sore. I need some recovery time.”

  “Okay,” Juan Carlos said, covering her forehead and cheeks with kisses, ending up at her mouth, where they kissed each other deeply. Then he stopped and pulled back, looking into her eyes with an intensity that made her uncomfortable.

  “What?” she asked, trembling. “You look scared.”

  “Son of a bitch,” he said. “This is what it’s like.”

  She watched as his expression changed from fear to reverence. He reached out and petted her cheek. “Oh, shit,” she whispered.

  “Something wrong?” Juan Carlos said, looking in her eyes again.

  “You’re looking at me the way Richardson looks at Lita, and I like it.”

  “You do?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “Tell me you don’t feel it,” Madison said.

  Juan Carlos sighed. “Okay, I feel it. What now?”

  “We wait and see if it sticks around.”

  Suddenly Juan Carlos felt calm and warm, becoming joyful. “This hasn’t happened to me before. Not like this.”

  “It’s scary,” Madison whispered. “How can this happen so quickly? I feel out of control.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Madison opened her mouth to speak, but then stopped.

  “Out with it,” he said.

  “No, it’s embarrassing,” she whispered.

  “C’mon,” he said.

  “Let’s get up now,” she said.

  “No,” Juan Carlos said. “What did you mean?”

  “Dammit. Don’t hold me to this. I don’t understand it, and don’t feel like you have to do anything about it.”

  “Out with it, all ready,” he said softly.

  “Okay, okay,” she said. “I keep having images of us together, and I want it so bad.”

  “We’re together right now.”

  “No, you don’t get it. I want to be your woman. I want to follow you everywhere, and have your babies.”

  “Oh,” Juan Carlos said.

  “You look scared,” she said. “I should have kept my mouth shut.”

  Juan Carlos laughed. “You don’t know why I’m scared.”

  “This is too much pressure on you,�
� she said. “I’m sorry. It’s probably just me being scared.”

  He pulled her against him and kissed her again. “Now it’s you that doesn’t get it,” he said softly. “I’m having the same thoughts.”

  She looked at him, tears flowing down her cheeks. “You aren’t going to run away?”

  “Only if you’re with me,” he said. “You can consider me yours.”

  She studied his eyes, looking for that hint of doubt.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked her.

  “I’m looking for doubt in your eyes,” she said.

  “Well?”

  She took a deep breath. “There isn’t any.”

  “So what does that mean?”

  “It means you can consider me to be yours, I guess,” she said. “I can’t believe I’m saying this.”

  He kissed her again, passionate and hard, then pulled back, eyes intense again. “I lo…”

  “No! Don’t say that yet. Let’s give this a little time, all right?”

  There was silence for a moment as they studied each other.

  “Okay, let’s see how it goes, but can we act on what we feel?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “Meaning what?”

  “Meaning we act as if we’re together. Give it a chance to grow.”

  “Or die,” Madison said.

  “Yeah, or die, but it’s not going to.”

  “What makes you so sure?” she asked.

  “I just know,” he said. “Let’s get up. We need to be going pretty soon.”

  “Okay.” Madison threw back the sheet and stood up, turning to him, showing him her soft white curves.

  “My God you’re beautiful,” he said.

  “Stop it or we’ll never get up,” she said. “Sounds like Hannah and Brendan finally finished.”

  “You think they feel the same as we do?”

  “Oh, I’m sure I’ll get a detailed report.” Madison giggled as she reached down for her clothes. “Get dressed.”

  They were startled by a knock on the door. “You guys up?”

  “Yeah, boss,” Juan Carlos said. “We’re getting dressed now.”

  “Good,” Richardson said. “We need to be out of here sooner rather than later.”

  “It’s just past six,” Juan Carlos said.

  “I know, but the enemy is on their way. We need to be on the road in ten minutes, so chop chop.”

  “Oh, geez,” Madison said. She watched as Juan Carlos jumped out of bed and dressed.

  “Don’t be scared, sweetie,” Juan Carlos said. “We’ll be okay.”

  “Sweetie?”

  “You’re mine, remember?”

  “Yes,” she said softly.

  They went down the stairs into the entryway. Lita and Richardson were there, putting food and water into a box.

  “Juan Carlos, put this into the suburban, all right? I parked it in front of the door.”

  “Will do,” he said.

  “Need help from me?” Madison asked.

  “Yeah, I have more food we can bring,” Lita said. “C’mon.” Madison followed her into the kitchen.

  “Hurry up, Brendan,” Richardson called up the stairs.

  “The parental units left lots of food here,” Lita said. “We’re lucky they flew out.”

  “We all going to fit in a Suburban?” Madison asked.

  “It seats seven,” Lita said, “with room in the back for supplies and guns.”

  “Hey,” Hannah said, walking into the kitchen. Lita and Madison looked at her and snickered. “Was I too loud? I’m so embarrassed.”

  “You really like him, don’t you?” Lita asked.

  “I could get used to him,” Hannah said. “How about you, Madison?”

  She had her back to them, loading dry goods into a box.

  “Are you crying?” Lita asked, rushing to her.

  Madison turned around, wiping the tears out of her eyes.

  “He didn’t hurt you, did he?” Hannah asked.

  Madison smiled and shook her head no.

  “Oh, hell no,” Lita said. “Already?”

  Madison shook her head yes.

  “Him?” Lita said.

  Madison shook her head yes again.

  “Get out of here,” Hannah said. “You just met the guy.”

  “You aren’t feeling anything?” Madison asked. “I know what you usually sound like. You sounded different. Last night, and especially this morning.”

  Hannah’s face turned red. “Shut up.”

  Lita giggled. “Struck a nerve there, I see.”

  “Okay, so he knows how to push my buttons,” Hannah said. “All of them.”

  “C’mon, girls,” Richardson said. “We have to leave right now.”

  “Coming,” Lita said. “This will be enough. Let’s go.”

  They rushed out through the front door with the boxes of food. Juan Carlos and Brendan loaded them into the back. Lita locked the house as the others got in, Richardson behind the wheel. Lita got into the front passenger seat. “I know a short cut out of town.”

  “As long as it’s heading north,” Richardson said. “Juan Carlos and Brendan, keep your eyes open, and keep the SMAW close by, but don’t fire that thing from inside the car.”

  “Got it,” Brendan said.

  “My shortcut will take us to the road your boss said to get on,” Lita said. “I-69E. If we try to use route 100 to get there, we’ll sit for a while. That road clogs up too much.”

  “Okay, which way?”

  “Turn right at the first stop light. The road will get smaller as we get out of town. Part of it is dirt. Just trust me, okay?”

  “Got it,” Richardson said. He got to the stop light and made the turn. Before they went two blocks there were explosions behind them.

  “Damn, dude, that sounds like artillery,” Juan Carlos said.

  “Sure does,” Richardson said, speeding up. “What next, honey?”

  “The road goes into a low-rent residential area. Keep going past all the houses and take the dirt road it turns into.”

  “How long is the dirt part?” Richardson asked.

  “Six or seven miles. If any of it’s wet, just pop this sucker into four-wheel drive.”

  Richardson nodded, keeping his speed up as the road thinned. Then there was a huge explosion behind them.

  “My God, look at all that fire,” Hannah said. Lita looked back and cried.

  “Port Isabel,” she said between sobs. “Oh no.”

  “Good thing we got out when we did,” Brendan said. He pulled Hannah close as she began to cry. Madison leaned against Juan Carlos in the third row of seats, taking his hand and holding it tight.

  “There’s the dirt road up ahead,” Richardson said. He glanced into the rearview mirror when he caught a flash of movement. “Dammit, we’re being followed. Got that SMAW handy?”

  Juan Carlos passed it up to Brendan, then grabbed a couple more rounds from the box behind the seat.

  “I got it,” Brendan said.

  “I’ll pull behind that tree. You jump out and fire at the vehicle. Juan Carlos, hand up the rifles and get ready to fire.”

  “You got it, boss,” Juan Carlos said.

  Richardson swerved off the road behind a huge oak and Brendan got out, diving into the road, getting a bead on the vehicle. He pulled the trigger and the rocket flashed out, hitting the vehicle and exploding.

  “Holy shit!” Juan Carlos said, looking out the back with a rifle in his hand. “Look at it burn. Nobody survived that.”

  “Yeah, and it blocked up the road real good,” Richardson said. “Get in, Brendan.”

  Brendan climbed in and Richardson took off before he got the door closed.

  “Nice shot, bro,” Juan Carlos said. “You’re getting good with that thing.”

  “It’s handy,” he said, handing it back to him. “Don’t touch the barrel. It’s hot.”

  “How did they know to follow us?” Madison asked.

  “Yeah, I’m wondering
the same thing,” Lita said.

  “Maybe it’s our cellphones,” Brendan said. “Remember what we heard in that briefing?”

  “We haven’t talked to anybody who’s infected,” Juan Carlos said.

  “Correction. We haven’t talked to anybody who we know is infected,” Richardson said. He fished his phone out of his pocket and handed it to Lita. “Call Captain Jefferson. Put it on speaker. His contact name is Cappy. Should be pretty high up in the recents.”

  “What’s your passcode.”

  “Your birthday,” Richardson said. “Month and day.”

  Lita gave him a sweet look. “I guess you do like me.”

  “Stop it,” he said, looking at her and smiling.

  Lita hit the contact and pushed the speaker button. It rang twice.

  “Lieutenant Richardson, thank God,” Captain Jefferson said. “We feared the worst, since I told you to stay later.”

  “What the hell was that?” Richardson asked.

  “Field artillery. Hit some LNG tanks. Blew up most of the town. Glad we got so many people out over the last couple of weeks. Still lost a lot.”

  “I know where those tanks were,” Lita said. “Probably would have killed us all.”

  “Who’s that?” Jefferson asked.

  “Lita, my girlfriend,” Richardson said.

  “Where are you guys?”

  “On a dirt-road shortcut that Lita knew about,” Richardson said. “It leads to I-69E. That route still safe?”

  “No route is safe, but that’s better than most,” Jefferson said. “We underestimated the strength of the enemy.”

  “Shit,” Richardson said. “Figures. I called for a reason. Got a question.”

  “Shoot,” Jefferson said.

  “Remember that business about the cell phone tracking?”

  “Yeah,” Jefferson said. “You think your phones might be compromised?”

  “We got followed on the dirt road by an enemy vehicle,” Richardson said. “They had no other way to know where we were.”

  “Dammit,” Jefferson said. “We were told there was no problem. My suggestion is to dump the phones. Buy burners when you get to the first town. Call the headquarters land line as soon as you get the new phones. Don’t call any DPS cellphones.”