The Road Home Page 18

“All of them? Even Parkland?”

  “Every one between Medical District Drive and Inwood Road,” she said. “This might sting a little bit.”

  “Ouch!” he said as the disinfectant streamed into his wound. “They did that on purpose, didn’t they?”

  “What?”

  “Taking out all those hospitals like that.”

  “Oh,” she said, wiping the excess running down his forearm. “You’re lucky, the bullet went all the way through.”

  “Yeah,” he said, watching her cut gauze.

  “Parkland sounds familiar,” Kitten said.

  “That’s where they took JFK,” he said. “I hope they didn’t ruin the history. You know how those bastards are.”

  “They probably had no idea,” Dr. Patel said, coming back over. “You almost done with that, Kitten?”

  “Yep. Got another one for me?”

  “I do,” Dr. Patel said. “Five beds to the left. Another head trauma.”

  “I’ll be right there,” she said, taping the dressing in place. “See you soon, Doug. Try to sleep.”

  “Thank you. Let me know if you hear anything about Alex, okay?”

  “Will do,” she said, rushing to the next patient.

  The work went on for the next several hours, as person after person was brought up from the river bed, streams of ambulances rushing patients away for further treatment. More battle wounded came in from the fighting to the east, which was ramping up as the enemy got more desperate and citizens flooded into the battle. Kitten was startled by her phone, buzzing with a call. Her first thought was about her father. She hadn’t heard anything since he arrived at the hospital, and the worry was nagging her.

  “Hello?” she said into the phone, not even looking at the number.

  “Kitten? It’s Chance.”

  Her eyes lit up. “Hi, how are you?”

  “We got back into Texas this morning,” he said. “You weren’t in the middle of that mess in Dallas, I hope.”

  “I’m right in the middle of it,” she said. “Working in the field hospital downtown.”

  “Oh, geez,” he said. “You haven’t been wounded or anything?”

  “I got shot at. Our bus was attacked as we were moving the field hospital to a new place. Almost everybody on board got killed.”

  “Oh no. You’re safe now, though, right?”

  “The fighting is to the north and east,” she said.

  “Who’s winning?”

  “I think we are,” Kitten said, “but it’s house to house, even man to man.”

  “Your dad?”

  “He’s at the hospital,” Kitten said, trembling, trying to hide it in her voice. “He was in the riverbed when the flood came down. Head injuries. I don’t know how bad yet. They took him for an MRI.”

  “Oh God,” he said. “I wish I was there with you.”

  “Where are you?”

  “Almost to Lubbock,” he said. “I think we’re headed to Dallas after a night’s sleep. We’ve been on the road for quite a few hours.”

  “Kitten, we need you over here,” Dr. Patel shouted.

  “Uh oh, I’ve got to go. More victims just came in. Is this a phone I can reach you on?”

  “Yes,” he said. “Hopefully I’ll see you soon.”

  “I hope so too. Bye.” She ended the call and rushed over to Dr. Patel.

  Chapter 28 - Lubbock

  Carrie woke up after sleeping for a couple hours. She made her way to the front of the motorhome. “Need me to take over again?”

  “Nah, we’ll be in Lubbock in about ten minutes,” he said. “Chelsea, move so your mom can sit down, okay?”

  “No fair,” she said.

  “You hungry, sweetheart?” Carrie asked. Chelsea’s eyes lit up, and she nodded yes.

  “Okay, I’ll get you something. Get in the dinette and put on the seatbelt.”

  She scampered there as Carrie went to the fridge and got her some food.

  “We’re on the outskirts of Lubbock already,” Jason said. Carrie joined him after a moment.

  “What’d I miss?” Carrie asked.

  “Brenda got us a place to stay, but the locals are nervous as hell.”

  “Because of us?”

  “No, because there’s a couple hundred thousand Islamists coming down Highway 385 from Colorado,” Jason said.

  Carrie eyed him, then picked up her phone and loaded the app. “I see them. They’re not trying to hide themselves. They’re in the Oklahoma panhandle, but they’ll be in Texas soon.”

  “Yeah,” Jason said. “Don and Sydney’s team are already working recruitment, but it’s slower going than normal, since so many of the folks around here went to fight in Dallas.”

  “The enemy fighters aren’t near Big Bend anymore,” Carrie said, moving her fingers on the screen. “Weren’t there a lot of Texans there to hold that area?”

  “This is why I love you,” he said. “Text that to Don and Sydney.”

  She did that, laughing at the reply. “They hadn’t thought about that either. They’re on it.” Her brow furrowed. “That’s a five-hour drive. The enemy is under four hours away from Lubbock right now.”

  “Shit,” Jason said under his breath. “We’re gonna be down to the wire again. Maybe we can hold off the force until the reinforcements arrive.”

  “With the tribe here, we’ve got a lot of people.”

  “I know, but it’s a far cry from two hundred thousand,” Jason said. Their phones both dinged.

  Carrie looked. “Brenda.”

  “Directions to the RV Park?”

  “Yep,” she said. “It’s on Highway 84, a few miles past Lubbock. Get off at Woodrow.”

  “Got it.”

  “If taking on this enemy force is too dangerous, we should move towards Dallas and tie in with the larger group there,” Carrie said. “I don’t want us to get killed right after we get back on Texas soil.”

  “Yeah, I’m thinking the same thing,” he said. “It’s already mid-afternoon. It’s possible that the enemy force will bed down for the night instead of driving right through. They’ve done that before.”

  “I don’t think we can count on that,” Carrie said, reading her phone. “It’s possible they’re being chased. They got defeated in Colorado.”

  “Where?”

  “Denver, Colorado Springs, and Pueblo,” she said. “It’s possible that we might have more help than we think following them down, too.”

  “Assuming they don’t stop at the Colorado border. Maybe they just want them the hell out of their state.”

  “That’s possible,” Carrie said. “Wow, we’re past the main part of the city already. Thought Lubbock was bigger.”

  “We’ll need to have a quick meeting when we get there.”

  “I know,” she said. “I was hoping we’d have a soft landing.”

  “It’ll be okay,” Jason said. “There’s our turnoff.” He took the off-ramp, following the line of coaches and other vehicles through the left turn and under Highway 84, then turning right into the park.

  “This doesn’t look big enough for everybody,” Carrie said, looking around as they got into line. An old man came out and directed coaches into empty spaces.

  “They have additional parking across the street there, at that truck-stop,” Jason said, stopping the coach where he was directed.

  “Can we go outside?” Chelsea asked.

  “Yes,” Carrie said, standing up. Jason opened the door, and the three of them came out, meeting the others.

  “Kind of a small place, pencil neck,” Curt said, walking up with Amanda.

  She rolled her eyes. “You didn’t read the text, did you?”

  “I was driving,” he said.

  “There’s a bunch of extra parking across Woodrow,” she said. “I heard we’re gonna meet pretty quick.”

  “Yeah,” Jason said, “but hopefully not for too long.”

  The others gathered around. Jason walked to the office. An old woman was beh
ind the counter, smiling through cigarette smoke. She was slight of build with stringy silver hair, wearing a wrinkled shirt and jeans.

  “Hi,” Jason said. “Thanks for taking us on.”

  She cackled, screwing the cigarette out in a massive ash tray beside her. “Are you kidding? We’re dying for business. Even if it’s just one night. I’m Jean.”

  “War kinda knocked down your trade, huh?” Stanton asked, joining Jason. Kyle followed, with Don and a few others.

  “It’s better than it was, but yeah, the damn war really screwed things up around here. My hubby doing okay with his directions out there?”

  “Yeah, no problem,” Kyle said.

  “Is there a clubhouse we could use for a meeting?” Jason asked.

  “Sure, but you might have to brush away cobwebs.” She laughed. “I’ll give you a good deal on some catered food if you all are hungry. My sister-in-law has a business on this end of town.”

  “That might be good,” Don said.

  Jason nodded in agreement. “Is the clubhouse locked?”

  “Nope, it’s wide open. Just tell Chuck that I said it was okay.”

  “Your hubby?” Kyle asked.

  “The one and only,” she said. “We’ll settle up on the spaces later.”

  “Sounds good,” Jason said. He led the others out the door, seeing the crowd assembled on the flat ground in front of the office. “We’re gonna have a quick meeting, folks, in the clubhouse.”

  “I’ll help you,” said the old man, with a bald head, wearing battered overalls. “I’m Chuck.”

  “Good to meet you,” Jason said, shaking his rough hand. “Jean told me who you were. Said to tell you she gave us the okay to use it.”

  “Good,” he said. “Ain’t been cleaned lately. Sorry about that. We’d have done it if we’da known.”

  “No problem, we just need to have a quick conversation.”

  “Where are you coming from, friend?” Chuck asked as they walked.

  “New Mexico,” Jason said.

  The man slowed down and turned to them. “You aren’t those Fort Stockton folks, are you?”

  “Why, would that be a problem?” Kyle asked.

  The man laughed, looking at all of them. “Hell, I love you guys. Know all about what you’ve been up to. Make yourselves at home. Want some beer?”

  Stanton laughed.

  “Maybe in a while, thanks,” Jason said.

  “Well, here it is,” Chuck said, opening the doors and turning the lights on.

  “Wow, this is huge,” Kyle said as they walked in. “I thought you said this was a mess. Looks okay to me.”

  “It’s dusty as hell, and look out for scorpions,” Chuck said. “Little buggers have a way of getting in here.”

  “Thanks,” Jason said. “Stick around, if you want.”

  “There’s a flat-screen over there if you need it. I can crank up some coffee if anybody’s interested.

  “That would be great, thanks,” Stanton said.

  Chuck nodded and shuffled into the kitchen as the rest of the group filed in, filling the massive room after a few minutes. Jason stood on a chair to address them.

  “Everybody here?” he asked.

  “Most,” White Eagle said, “Some of our people are setting up camp across the street, but I’ll fill them in.”

  “Sounds good,” Jason said. “You’ve been watching the apps, right?”

  “Yeah, pencil neck, we see the slugs coming down Highway 385,” Curt said. “We gonna go after them?”

  Jason shook his head. “Don and Sydney, how’s the recruitment going?”

  Don stood on another chair. “We were in trouble until Carrie reminded us of the forces by Big Bend. They’re on their way, but they’re about an hour further than the enemy.”

  “Might not be a problem,” Dirk said. “The enemy stopped in the Oklahoma panhandle. I think they’re down for the night.”

  “That would help us a lot,” Sydney said. “If they aren’t coming here, are we gonna chase them?”

  “Possibly,” Jason said. His phone rang. He looked at it. “Got to take this—it’s Chief Ramsey. Keep going.”

  He got down. “Hi, Chief.”

  “Hey, Jason. You in Texas yet?”

  “We’re in an RV park southeast of Lubbock.”

  “Got a TV nearby?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “Turn it on. Governor Nelson is about to speak. You’ll want to hear what he has to say.”

  “Okay, we’ll turn it on,” Jason said.

  “Great, I’ll talk to you soon.” The call ended, and Jason got back up on the chair.

  “Governor Nelson is going on TV. Chief Ramsey said we should watch.”

  “I heard ya,” Chuck said. He shuffled over to the TV and switched it on. “Which channel?”

  “Probably anything that carries news.”

  “Most of them been off for a few days,” Chuck said, watching the picture come up. “Hey, they’re back. That’s the state seal. Probably where we want to be.” He went back to the coffee maker, then cursed, and dumped the coffee from the basket back into the can.

  “What’s wrong?” Amanda asked.

  “Lost count of the scoops,” he said, shrugging as he started again.

  “Here he comes,” Kyle said, grabbing the remote to turn the sound way up.

  “He looks tired,” Sydney said.

  “So do we,” Kim quipped. A few people laughed, quieting down as he got behind the podium.

  “Hello, fellow Texans,” he began. “Hope this hour finds you well. A special thanks to those who rose to the challenge in Dallas. The fight is still going on, but we’ll win. It’s not the last of the battles. Our hearts go out to those who have been killed or wounded. We know that number is large, made so much worse by the Lewisville Lake dam disaster.”

  The crowd murmured as he paused, taking a drink of water.

  “I have an important announcement to make. Effective immediately, I’m declaring that Texas is no longer a sovereign republic. We are re-joining the United States of America, now that our government is out of enemy hands.”

  “Whoa,” Clancy said, others murmuring, their eyes darting around to each other.

  “This was always the plan, but I know there are some citizens who will not be happy. Please have an open mind. There are some very important reasons why we’ve made the move at this time.”

  “Wonder what those reasons are?” Francis asked.

  “We’re about to find out, I suspect,” Chance said.

  “Since we are once again part of the United States, an attack on Texas is an attack on said United States,” Nelson said. “The US Army, Navy, and Air Force are now tasked with insuring our safety, and we will work with them closely in the coming weeks. The biggest immediate danger is the gulf coast. Remnants of the Venezuelan Navy are approaching, supported by an EU Navy carrier group, which is currently anchored in Havana Harbor. We can now count on the US Navy and Air Force to support us in our efforts to repel the enemy on our southern coast.”

  “Good,” Junior said. “The EU Navy is no match for the US Navy, that’s for damn sure.”

  “Please understand that the United States is not out of the woods yet. There are still over a million enemy fighters inside our borders, and open battle is still going on, not only in our state, but also on the eastern seaboard, California, the greater southwest, and parts of the Midwest. It’s likely that the EU and the UN will stay actively involved. We may find ourselves at war for a considerable period. I ask that all of you do what you can to aid the war effort and help Texas to be a shining star in the great United States of America.”

  “They don’t stand a chance,” Dirk muttered.

  “We’ve been weakened quite a bit as a nation,” Clancy said. “We’re all going to be in this fight for a while.”

  Dirk nodded in agreement.

  “I’ll close with a few remarks about Texas,” Nelson said, choking up, his eyes glassy with tears. “
The people of this state have saved us all. Your bravery and sacrifice will be lauded for hundreds of years. We were attacked mercilessly and we took the fight right back to the invaders. Many have distinguished themselves all over the country in this war, but none more than the great patriots of Texas. For that, you have my everlasting admiration, respect, and love. Thank you, and God Bless Texas.”

  People in the crowd were openly weeping now, hugging each other, watching as Governor Nelson left the podium.

  “Right back at you, Governor Nelson,” Junior shouted. A cheer went up in the room.

  “What a great man,” Stanton Hunt said to Jason. “Almost makes me want to become a Texan.”

  Jason smiled, then his phone rang. “Chief Ramsey again. Better take it.” He walked away with the phone to his ear.

  “That was quite the speech,” Jason said.

  “Yeah, the old man had us all in tears,” Ramsey said. “Listen, about those enemy fighters coming down Highway 385.”

  “Uh oh,” Jason said.

  Ramsey chuckled. “Those frigging idiots were camped out in an unpopulated area, south of Boise, Oklahoma. They’re being pounded by the US Air Force right now. They’ll all be dead within the next twenty minutes.”

  “Excellent,” Jason said. “What do you want us to do next?”

  “Get a good night’s sleep, and head for Dallas in the morning. Seems like the enemy from the north half of Texas is heading there as fast as they can. They’re gonna try a last stand. We’ll need everything we have to defeat them.”

  “Yeah, can’t be bombing the hell out of them around there,” Jason said. “Understood. We’ll be on the road again tomorrow.”

  “Thanks, Jason,” Ramsey said. “Look, about those comments Nelson made. It’s been people like you and your team who have made the difference. It will be remembered.”

  “I’m a Texan,” Jason said. “It’s what we do.”

  “Yes,” Ramsey said. “Take care. I’ll talk to you sometime tomorrow.”

  The call ended. Jason got back up on the chair.

  “Listen up everybody!”

  The crowd stopped milling around and turned in his direction.

  “That large group of enemy fighters is being pounded by the US Air Force right now. Chief Ramsey just called me. We won’t have to fight them. They’ll be dead before they get anywhere near Texas.”