A Hole in the Sky (33 page)

Capelli was running. And so were dozens of others, pounding towards the steel bridge, as a mob of angry regulators thundered after them. Bullseye tags stuttered past. One of them hit a woman in the back and drew half a dozen projectiles to her body. She staggered, threw up her arms, and landed facedown. One of their pursuers opened up with a grease gun and a hail of .45-caliber bullets dug divots out of the bridge deck as Capelli waved the survivors forward, shouting, “Stop at the end of the bridge! We’ll hold the bastards there.”

Some of the people who were fortunate enough to make it across the bridge continued to run. But most remained. “Take cover!” Capelli shouted. “Wait until they’re halfway across and let ’em have it.”

Capelli, Shaw, and a half-dozen others took up positions behind the rusting tow truck that was angled across the approach to the bridge. The rest of the fighters crouched to either side of the span, where steel girders and concrete supports would offer some protection. The regulators were on the span by then. They had seen their attackers turn and run, so they were confident of victory.

Ramsey had given his orders, and his followers were eager to obey: “Follow the scum home and annihilate them.”

But the bridge was two lanes wide, which meant only four horsemen could ride abreast. And that made them vulnerable. “Fire!” Capelli ordered from his position behind the tow truck, and what happened next wasn’t pretty. As members of the alliance opened up, the leading horses stumbled. Some tumbled head over heels; others reared up and threw their riders off as hundreds of projectiles ripped into the mass of tightly packed flesh. Horse screams overlaid human screams as a pink blood mist filled the air and the regulators located towards the rear of the column tried to stop.

But it was too late. As their mounts ran into the barrier of dead and dying flesh, the latecomers were caught up in the meat grinder as well. Some managed to dismount and take cover behind the pile of bodies. But it wasn’t enough to save them as Auger fire stuttered through the mound and cut them down. The whole battle lasted less than five minutes. “Cease fire!” Capelli shouted. “Save your ammo. You’ll need it later.”

A heavy silence settled over the scene. The defenders seemed dazed by the way in which their fortunes had been reversed as a man went forward to put wounded horses out of their misery. By the time the gunshots were over, friends had sought friends, relatives had sought relatives, and small groups were beginning to depart.

Capelli tried to hold them by explaining the need to not only defend the bridge, but prepare for a second assault on Tunnel-Through.

“You must be joking,” a man from Junk Yard said. “I lost my brother-in-law and a friend today. Sure, we stopped ’em here, but that won’t put an end to it. Ramsey has more men. Lots of ’em. And they’ll be gunning for us. We can knuckle under or run. And there’s no place to run to. So stay if you want to—but there ain’t no point to it.”

Maybe Mayor Locke or Mr. Potter would have been
able to stop the exodus. But Capelli was no orator, and it wasn’t long before he was left with three men from Haven and two Osage warriors. That wasn’t enough to hold the bridge—not in the face of a concerted attack. And there was the town to consider. There were other bridges. And for all Capelli knew, Ramsey’s forces had already crossed one of them. If so, Haven would need every gun it could muster.

After thanking the Osage for participating in the attack, Capelli released them. Then, with his fellow townsmen at his heels, he began to jog. Susan was very much on his mind at that point. Had she escaped the carnage? Fear for his wife’s safety was like a lead weight that rode the pit of his stomach.

It took three hours of running and walking to reach Haven. And when they did, it was to find that the town was on high alert. Kosmo had lookouts posted all around the community, heavy weapons had been deployed to strategic locations, and a fast reaction team was ready to respond at a moment’s notice.

All of which was good, but inadequate, considering the extent of the losses the town had suffered, and the likelihood of reprisals. But before Capelli could worry about that, something more pressing required his attention. So when he saw Terri inspecting a newly created barrier he went over to speak with her. The mayor’s eyes were red with fatigue, her skin looked gray, and Capelli could tell that she was battling to maintain a positive attitude. “Have you seen Susan?”

Terri forced a smile. “Joseph! I’m glad you’re safe. Susan arrived an hour ago along with Bo and some of his braves. They crossed the river up towards the east fork, where the water is pretty shallow this time of year. The first thing she wanted to know was whether I’d seen you.”

Capelli didn’t wait to hear more. He went in search of
Susan and found her in the underground meeting room, which had been converted into a makeshift hospital ward. There was no mistaking the look of joy on her face or the warmth of her embrace.

“Joseph!” she said into his shoulder. “Thank God. I’ve been so worried.”

“Me too,” Capelli said earnestly, as he led his wife over to a corner. “I have to leave soon, and I will feel a lot better knowing that you’re safe.”

Susan frowned. “Leave? Why? Where are you going?”

“Blackwell,” Capelli answered grimly.

“Blackwell? The town where we parked the Stalker? It’s crawling with stinks.”

“Exactly,” Capelli replied. “There are enough Chimera stationed there to destroy Tunnel-Through six times over. All I have to do is show them where the tunnel is.”

Susan was silent for a moment. Then she nodded. “That’s brilliant. And I think we can make it work. We’ll go there, get the stinks to follow us, and lead them to Ramsey. And, if we do it fast enough, the Chimera will destroy Tunnel-Through before the reprisals begin.”

“That’s the idea,” Capelli agreed. “Except for one thing. You aren’t coming.”

Susan opened her mouth to speak, but Capelli raised a hand. “I know … You don’t take orders from any man. But there’s an exception to every rule. And I’m asking you to make one now. For me, for little Joe, and for us.
Please.
”

Susan’s eyes narrowed, then softened a bit. “Okay … But only if you agree to take someone else with you.”

“I will,” Capelli promised. “Plus Rowdy. He’s been cooped up for days.”

“When do you plan to leave?”

“Just before sunrise.”

“Come with me,” Susan said as she took hold of his hand. “We need to tell the mayor, find a volunteer, and collect the gear you’ll need.”

“And I could use a bath,” Capelli added.

“With or without me?”

“I could drown without a lifeguard.”

Susan laughed, and Capelli was reminded of all the little things that made life worth living.

Capelli, Rowdy, and Mike Unver left Haven at 0432. Mayor Locke, Mr. Potter, and other members of the council were present to see them off. “Thank you,” Terri said earnestly. “Thank you very much.” She looked like she was going to cry but managed not to.

Susan did cry, but didn’t say anything other than, “Shoot straight.”

Capelli and Unver were mounted on sturdy horses with a heavily loaded mule in tow. Having racked up only six hours of sleep, Capelli was tired, but painfully aware of how important the mission was and determined to accomplish it. The sky was clear, the stars glittered like diamonds, and there was enough light to see by.

They followed the same path Capelli wanted the stinks to use, only in reverse. The plan was to leave weapons, ammo, and a little bit of food at key locations along the route. That would allow him to travel light, which would be very important, with what could be hundreds of Chimera on his trail. And thanks to Unver’s technical skills, Capelli was equipped to plant some very nasty surprises along the way as well.

With fresh mounts, and Rowdy out front, they made good time at first. But they had to hide when a shuttle appeared off to the west, and each one of the stops took time. Especially since they now had to cache the items left behind. So when the sun neared the western horizon,
Capelli and Unver were still a good five miles short of Blackwell.

But that was to be expected. Capelli knew what was coming, and so he was in need of some hot food. Not to mention sleep. So they watered the animals, made camp in among some trees, and cooked a simple dinner.

“So,” Unver began once the canned stew had been served. “What time are we going to get up in the morning?”

“I’m getting up about 0500,” Capelli replied levelly. “But you’ll be at least ten miles east of here by then—because you’re leaving right after dinner.”

Unver frowned. “Like hell I am.”

“Oh, you are,” Capelli replied confidently, as he swallowed a swig of water. “Because if you go with me, both of us are going to die. And I’m not ready to cash it in yet.”

“Who says?” Unver demanded defiantly.

“I say. Look, Mike, no offense, but you’re too damned old for this. And if you come along you’ll slow me down. Then the stinks will kill you and me, and Ramsey will be free to take Haven. Is that what you want?”

“No,” Unver replied reluctantly. “But I promised Susan that I’d stay with you no matter what. She said she’d shoot me if I came back without you.”

Capelli chuckled. “That sounds like her all right. Don’t worry about it. Her bark is worse than her bite. Listen, Mike … It took balls to volunteer for this mission. And you put me right where I need to be. But this is as far as you’re going. So eat up, take those hay burners, and get the hell out of here.”

Unver left forty-five minutes later. And as soon as the schoolteacher was out of sight Capelli broke camp, followed Rowdy west, and found a second place to sleep. That way Unver wouldn’t be able to reveal Capelli’s location if he was captured.

Capelli thought he was alone as he slipped into his sleeping bag, but that wasn’t the case.
You don’t trust anyone, do you?
the voice inquired.

I trust Susan. And Rowdy
.

How about me? Do you trust me?

You don’t exist
.

Maybe I do and maybe I don’t
, the voice said evasively.
But I have a piece of advice for you
.

Which is?

When the stinks come after you, run like hell
.

Peals of laughter were still echoing through Capelli’s mind when he finally went to sleep.

Capelli awoke earlier than intended. The sun wasn’t up yet, but he could see the stars through foliage above him, and figured it would be a sunny day. But cold.
Very
cold. Which would burn more energy.

Knowing it would be his last meal for a while, and that he was going to need lots of energy, Capelli forced himself to eat a large breakfast even though his stomach felt queasy. A sensation he had felt many times during the hours prior to combat.

Rowdy, who was feasting on a can of hoarded dog food, showed no such reservations. Of course he had no idea what lay in store for him, and ignorance is bliss.

Once the meal was over, Capelli wrapped his sleeping bag and cookware in a shelter half and hid them up in a tree despite the fact he was unlikely to return. Because he couldn’t afford the extra weight—and it went against his grain to abandon good gear.

Then it was time to fill his canteens from a nearby stream before heading due west. The LAARK was heavy, as were the backup rounds, but critical to his plan. The idea was to send the stinks a message they couldn’t ignore. Then, once they were hooked, it would be time to employ the Marksman. A Magnum completed his armament.

Security around the Blackwell base had been lax when Capelli and Susan passed through. But was that still the case? Capelli hoped so but knew better than to take something like that for granted. So as the sun started to rise, he entered the east side of town. The houses in front of him were silhouetted against a soft glow that came from up ahead.

He worked his way between abandoned structures and along darkened streets until what looked like a single headlight appeared in the distance. He grabbed Rowdy’s collar and pulled the dog behind a garage as a Patrol Drone hummed past. Then, once the machine was gone, it was time to continue west.

As Capelli zigzagged through the streets, the light he’d seen earlier grew even brighter and the Chimeran base appeared ahead. The newly constructed fence glowed as if lit from within, and Capelli figured it was charged with electricity. Hybrids could be seen patrolling the perimeter as well. All of which was interesting but didn’t matter, because Capelli had no intention of entering the base. The LAARK would take care of that for him.

Capelli told Rowdy to stay, placed the Marksman on the ground next to his right knee, and ducked out from under the rocket launcher’s sling. He freed the weapon and then checked to make sure it was loaded, and that an extra two-round magazine was ready for use.

Now he had to choose a target. Something taller than the intervening fence. And as Capelli stared into the sight, he found he had a number of choices. Two buildings were tall enough to qualify as targets, in addition to the smelter’s smokestack. It bore the company’s name, and given the angle he would be firing from, looked like the best bet. So Capelli brought the LAARK to bear, aimed as close to the bottom of the structure as he could, and took a deep breath. After the first rocket left the launcher there would be no turning back.

Capelli thought about Susan, his right index finger tightened, and the LAARK jerked as a rocket sped through the frigid air. It hit dead center on the stack. A wink of red-orange light, then a resonant boom. The explosion blew a hole in the brick chimney but left it otherwise intact.

So Capelli fired a second missile. He heard the impact but was too busy loading a new magazine to view the results. Then the rocket launcher was up on his shoulder, ready to fire again. The ragged hole in the smokestack was bigger than before and an undulating siren could be heard. Capelli ignored the temptation to look around and focused all of his attention on the target. The third rocket hit home, but the fourth flashed through empty space, because the one-hundred-foot-tall stack was falling by then.