The Road Home Read online

“Where’s Madison and Juan Carlos?” Lita asked Hannah as she walked over to the couch.

  “They went into their stateroom. Three guesses.”

  Brendan snickered. Richardson plugged in the laptop and turned it on. While it was firing up, he grabbed the remote and switched the TV on. Harley came out of his room.

  “Oh, you heard,” he said, stretching as he walked. He sat next to Richardson. “You gonna take a close look at the apps?”

  “Yeah,” he said. “Probably going to look like a fire ant hill after you pour water on it.”

  “Turn on one of the cable news channels,” Brendan said.

  “Yeah,” Richardson said. “Don’t know what the channel lineup is around here.”

  “I’ll find it,” Harley said. “You work the laptop.”

  “Okay,” Richardson said, sliding the remote across the table to him.

  Harley flipped through channels. “CNS okay?”

  “Sure,” Richardson said. He watched as the high-res app loaded, then zoomed out to see their area. “Whoa.”

  “What?” Brendan asked, rushing over.

  “There’s a mass exodus of icons coming out of San Antonio.”

  “I didn’t know there were that many left there,” Harley said.

  “There’s been lots,” Lita said, walking over to the table, “but they were spread around in very small clumps.”

  “They don’t feel safe being alone anymore,” Richardson said. “They’re leaving the cities. They’re gonna find places to gather and make a stand.”

  “The only way they’ll be safe is to leave the country,” Harley said. “Look, there’s a story coming up now, but it’s not from Texas.”

  “Where is that?”

  “Minnesota,” Harley said.

  “Turn it up a little, okay?” Hannah asked.

  “What’s going on, dude?” Juan Carlos asked, coming out of the hallway.

  “The apps went wide,” Brendan said.

  “What happened to Madison?” Hannah quipped. “You break her?”

  “Funny,” Juan Carlos said. “She wanted to try the shower.”

  “Uh huh,” Hannah said. Brendan shot her a glance and snickered. “Maybe we ought to try the shower.”

  Madison walked out, her hair wrapped in a towel. “That shower isn’t so bad.”

  “Oh, crap, are you guys hearing this?” Harley asked.

  They gathered around, but the newsreader had finished talking, and there was video of a group of Muslim women crying.

  “What’d he say?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “A bunch of citizens came to the mosque and shot up about thirty men, claiming they had RFID chips. Of course their wives are saying they were good, upstanding citizens, and that’s the way the news broadcast is portraying it.”

  “This will be the enemy line,” Richardson said. “Anybody who has one of those RFID chips is a traitor, straight up.”

  “No doubt,” Harley said. “We can perform autopsies and prove it.”

  “Their families will say they didn’t mean it,” Lita said. “Wait and see. They got the chips to get over here, but never intended to be part of the invading army.”

  “Uh oh, something else is happening,” Harley said, nodding at the screen. A Special Bulletin banner replaced theIslamophobia in America banner which had been up seconds before .

  “The news reader is back,” Brendan said. “He doesn’t look happy.”

  “Several nuclear devices have been detonated along the Mississippi River. None of these were large devices, leading authorities to speculate that they came from tactical nuclear artillery warheads which were stolen several months ago. Cities hit were Minneapolis, Cedar Rapids, St. Louis, and Memphis. The blasts weren’t large enough to destroy any of these cities, but they have made the Mississippi River unusable for transit and shipping. Casualties are in the millions.”

  Everybody in the room froze, mesmerized as video of the devastation was shown.

  “Oh, God, not this again,” Lita said, her eyes brimming with tears.

  “Did they do this because of the apps?” Madison asked.

  “It is a hell of a diversion,” Richardson said, grinding his teeth in anger. “Those bastards.”

  “Those damn heathens are gonna wish they didn’t do this, dude,” Juan Carlos said, on the verge of tears.

  “Wonder if that son of a bitch newsreader is gonna keep claiming Islamophobia after this?” Brendan asked.

  Richardson was quiet, staring at his laptop screen as the others continued to discuss the bombing. Lita noticed, and sat next to him.

  “Are you too upset to talk, or do you see something?” she whispered.

  “Groups of Islamists are moving all over the place. It’s like a snowball. See, they’re picking up more as they go. There’s a group of them heading north on Highway 281.”

  “You don’t think they’re coming here, do you?”

  “No, but I’m watching them.”

  “How many?” she asked.

  “In this clump? About three hundred, and growing.”

  “What’s up, boss?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “Nothing,” Richardson said, “just watching movement of enemy forces.”

  “Are they doing what you’d expect?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “You know, I never thought that much about what they’d do, and it is surprising me a little bit.”

  Juan Carlos got closer. “Are they trying to disappear into the woodwork?”

  “Too early to tell that, but they aren’t staying in small clumps. They’re joining with others, and getting on the road.”

  “Makes sense,” Juan Carlos said. “There’s more strength in numbers than there is alone.”

  “Some of them might try to dig the chips out,” Harley said. “We’ll be checking people for scars in the coming months, I suspect.”

  “Probably right,” Richardson said.

  “Look at that damage,” Brendan said, watching the TV, with Hannah sticking to him like glue.

  “The world just changed,” Hannah said. “It’s going to get more dangerous before the war is over.”

  “Hope they don’t have more nukes,” Madison said. “You know those people protesting Islamophobia at that mosque are probably dead or dying as we speak. One of the bombs went off in Minneapolis.”

  “They are dead,” Harley said, pointing at the TV. There was a picture of the reporter on the screen, the caption saying Veteran Reporter Killed in Attack. “That’s the guy who was doing the remote with the wives of the terrorists.”

  “Hell, the guys who killed those Islamists are probably dead too,” Brendan said.

  “Or will be soon, dude,” Juan Carlos said. “Fallout.”

  “If the enemy thinks that the nuke blasts are going to help them, they aren’t very bright,” Richardson said.

  “Why?” Lita asked.

  “That attack on the mosque would’ve built support for the UN and the EU to become more involved in the war,” Richardson said. “Let’s see them try to do that after what just happened on the Mississippi.”

  “There’s going to be a lot more of this,” Harley said.

  “Nukes?” Madison asked.

  “No, attacks on Islamists,” he said, “and the government-controlled media are gonna portray it as unfair, even a crime. Won’t fly in places like Texas, but wait till it happens in New England or the Mid-Atlantic.”

  “Don’t forget that a lot of non-Muslim enemy operatives have RFID,” Richardson said. “Even up to high government officials.”

  “Yeah, we should be seeing the government get cleaned out in a hurry,” Brendan said.

  Hannah got a hopeful look on her face. “Maybe that will end the war.”

  “If I was in the EU Navy, I’d want to get very far away from here in a hurry,” Richardson said. “Once the traitors are gone from DC, the US Navy and Air Force will be free to destroy them where they sit.”

  The TV screen went blank, then came back up as a test patte
rn.

  “Whoa,” Juan Carlos said. “Did they just take one of the government’s favorite mouthpieces off the air?”

  “Let’s check some other channels,” Harley said, switching around. He tried the other cable news channels, finding all of them down.

  “Shit,” Brendan said. “Go local.”

  “Yeah,” Harley said, switching to the local network affiliates. “The big four are down,” he said as he clicked through. “Ah, here we go. This is an independent, out of San Antonio.”

  “Holy shit,” Richardson said, watching live video over Washington, DC, the damaged Capitol Building being surrounded, as well as the White House. He got on his laptop and checked that area with the high-res app.

  “Geez,” Lita said. “I didn’t think we were using the Capitol at all while it was being repaired from that bombing.”

  “There’s a bunch of bad guys there,” Richardson said. “More in the White House and other government buildings.”

  “This just in,” the news reader said, brow furrowed. “A list of government officials who have RFID chips has been published on several large internet outlets.” He paused, eyes full of terror. “You know what’s on here?”

  “Yes, go with it,” said a voice off-set. “It’s already out there. This ends now.”

  “Maybe we should let the big boys handle this.”

  “I said go with it, or I’ll get somebody up there who will,” the off-set voice said. “The big boys have all been taken off the air. They’re all infiltrated, just as I suspected. Controlled by enemy elements in the government who have been exposed.”

  “You’re the boss,” the newsreader said, loosening his tie. “The list of enemy agents in the government includes the heads of most committees in Congress, the President, Vice President, most of the cabinet, and half of the Supreme Court.” He paused again. “This is most of the US Government. As of now, we have no US Government.”

  “Hey, video coming from the Pentagon,” somebody shouted from off-set. “Going up in 3-2-1.” Video of a raging battle around the Pentagon came up, a mixture of uniformed military and civilians firing at the building. The newsreader just watched the feed, not saying anything.

  “I think this station is out of its depth,” Brendan said. Harley and Juan Carlos chuckled, as Richardson and Lita quietly watched the laptop.

  “What are you seeing?” Harley asked, leaning in to look at the laptop screen.

  “The bad guys just turned east on Highway 46,” Lita said.

  “Oh, God, are they coming here?” Madison asked.

  “That’s what I’m guessing,” Richardson said. “There’s no other destination that makes sense.”

  “Why would they bother?” Harley asked. “It’s not like they can hide out. It’s not remote.”

  “I know, I don’t get it,” Richardson said.

  “You don’t think they’re after us, do you dude?” Juan Carlos asked. “If they are, there’s still a plant somewhere.”

  “I can’t believe that,” Richardson said. “It’s got to be something else.”

  “It’s gonna be dark pretty soon,” Lita said. “There are a lot of places they can hide.”

  “But we can see them,” Brendan said. “Dark or not, we’ll know where to attack.”

  “There’s only a few of us,” Hannah said. “We aren’t gonna attack shit.”

  “Dammit,” Brendan said. “Start looking at the approaches to other large lakes.”

  “Why, honey?” Hannah asked.

  “Yeah, why dude?” Juan Carlos asked.

  “Remember what happened at Falcon Lake?”

  Richardson froze.

  “What, you mean that submarine weapon they used to take out the dam?” Juan Carlos asked. “There aren’t that many people below this dam. New Braunfels is there, but it’s not huge. It’d be easy to evacuate.”

  “If they take out that dam, we lose water and electrical generation,” Harley said, “that would be worse than you think.”

  “Shit,” Richardson said. “I see a group heading towards Lake Travis.”

  “You sure?” Harley asked.

  “Lot more people living around that one,” Brendan said. “Not as bad as some of those Dallas lakes.”

  “I need to call Director Wallis,” Richardson said, pulling out his phone. He hit the contact and put it on speaker. It rang five times, Wallis finally picking up.

  “Richardson, is this urgent? We’ve got our hands full.”

  “Yeah, it’s urgent.”

  “Okay, go ahead,” he said.

  “There’s a growing band of Islamists heading towards Canyon Lake.”

  “Why would they do that? They think they can hide out there?”

  “I also see a group heading towards Lake Travis.”

  “Look, honey,” Lita said. “Lake Conroe, north of Houston.”

  “What the hell?” Wallis asked.

  “Remember that submarine weapon the enemy used at Falcon Lake?” Richardson asked.

  “Oh, God,” Wallis said.

  “Lewisville Lake north of Dallas,” Lita said. “Same thing. They’re closer to that one.”

  “Thanks,” Wallis said. “I’d better call the governor. You might want to get off that lake.”

  “We’ll keep watching,” Richardson said. “We’ve got a very heavily armed barge, you know.”

  “Don’t get killed,” Wallis said. “Talk to you soon.”

  The call ended.

  “You aren’t really thinking we can stop them, are you?” Lita asked.

  “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  Chapter 16 – Southern Retreat

  Maria was at the PC in the console room, looking at the roads leading into Lake Travis, then switching up to the lakes around Dallas.

  “See what I’m saying?” Wallis asked, his grim face on the console split-screen with Gallagher.

  “This could hurt us badly,” Nelson said. “Might be the enemy’s last big operation, but the impact to water resources alone would be devastating.”

  “Should we start evacuating?” Gallagher asked.

  “Might push them into speeding up their attack,” Hendrix said. “Hope there aren’t any nukes around here. How sure are we that they’ll be using those anti-sub weapons?”

  “We’re not sure at all,” Wallis said, “but we do know there were more bought on the Russian black market. We expected more attacks after Falcon Lake, remember?”

  “There’s still missing nukes,” Nelson said. “Had a conversation with one of the few FBI leaders who wasn’t dirty.”

  “That would make our water supply radioactive,” Gallagher said. “That mess on the Mississippi will impact this country for years.”

  “I’d rather concentrate on the problems we can do something about,” Nelson said. “Dammit. This is crazy. So much is going in a positive direction, but there’s so much danger too.”

  “We don’t even know who’s running the country right now, after what happened in DC earlier,” Wallis said.

  “Talked to General Hogan lately?” Hendrix asked.

  “He’s been too busy to take calls,” Wallis said.

  “Well, at least our hands are free to defend ourselves at this point,” Ramsey said. “There’s no Feds around to mess with us anymore.”

  “No, actually things are worse,” Hendrix said. “There’s a power vacuum with the Federal Government on the ropes. That might hand a true victory right to the UN or the EU by itself.”

  “That’s what I’m worried about,” Wallis said.

  “I’m not worried about that,” Gallagher said.

  “Why not?” Hendrix asked.

  “There are 340 million US citizens out there who are completely pissed off,” Gallagher said. “You really think we’re gonna sit still and let the UN or the EU take over? We’ll kill them all.”

  “Yeah, I agree,” Nelson said. “Spread the word to all of our forces to bomb the convoys of enemy fighters making for our lakes. Prioritize those whi
ch pose the largest danger in terms of loss of life when the dam comes down. Got it? Move on that right now.”

  “I’ll give the orders,” Gallagher said. “You know if we do that, we’ll lose our air cover in the gulf, and the EU Navy is still on the way.”

  Nelson sighed. “Yeah, I know. I’m less worried about that than I am about losing all of our fresh-water reserves.”

  “Who knows what’s going to happen there now, with the Federal Government gone,” Wallis said. “The EU Navy might high-tail it. They’re no match for the US Navy, and they know it. I don’t see a good reason for the US Navy to stand down anymore. I think they’re gonna go on a rampage.”

  “EU Navy ships are docked at several of the eastern ports now,” Hendrix said. “Started before the apps were released wide. They were welcomed as friends.”

  “And those who did the welcoming are probably dead now,” Gallagher said, “or in hiding.”

  “We need more info,” Nelson said, “and we also need to start thinking of ourselves in a different way.”

  “How so?” Ramsey asked.

  “We have to think less about Texas and more about being the southern gate into the United States,” Nelson said. “It’s time to work that transition, if we want our country back. California needs to do the same, and the other states where the enemy is on the run or gone.”

  “The enemy has lost control of all the ports south of Wilmington, North Carolina,” Wallis said. “The US Navy might base there and start running up the coast to take the EU Navy out.”

  “They can’t use Charleston anymore, though, can they?” Ramsey asked.

  “That was hit with one of the larger nukes early on,” Wallis said. “It’s a no-man's-land now. Will be for a long time. Pity.”

  “Okay, let’s refocus,” Nelson said. “Gallagher, get on that hunting operation pronto. Wallis will fill you in on anything else, okay?”

  “Yes sir,” Gallagher said, leaving the screen.

  “Let’s list the trouble spots,” Wallis said. “The lakes, which we’re working now. The Gulf. Dallas. The western border by Big Bend. The Louisiana Border to the east. I miss anything?”

  “The border issues will become the least of our problems,” Hendrix said. “The biggest problem we have are the enemy fighters trapped inside Texas.”