Enduring the Crisis (18 page)

The agony that Tammy felt that morning when she opened her eyes was excruciating. She tried to roll over and it was much worse. Then she heard what woke her. The house was vibrating from something out on the road outside her house and there was banging on the door.

She crawled around her bed looking for her robe and her stun stick. Taking her first step off the bed was a huge mistake. She couldn’t bear to put any weight on it at all, the pain was so severe, it brought tears to her eyes, and she collapsed on the bed.

When she hobbled out of her room, the girls were sitting up in their bunks, rubbing their eyes and yawning.

“What is it?” Mae pulled her blanket up over her scrunched up knees as she sat in the far corner of her bed.

“I’m not sure.” Tammy did have an idea though and she hoped it wasn’t so as she slowly climbed the stairs, doing her best to keep weight off her ankle. They banged on the door more insistently.

“Open up. This is a house check by the National Guard,” they yelled.

She paused. It was what she feared. She looked around the room. There was the tote of games near the garage door. Paint was still splattered across the floor from the night before and she dared not look in the kitchen where Zoe had bled all over.

The banging rattled the pictures on all the walls. Tammy ran a hand through her long wild unwashed hair before she started unlocking all the locks on the door.

Two troops in full combat gear stood at her door. One was managing a clipboard. She started to tremble before they asked any questions.

“Sorry to wake you, ma’am. We’re doing house safety checks in the area, checking on the status of families in the neighborhood.” The young man was probably barely older than Amanda.

“As you can see, I am home.” She tucked her trembling hand behind the door. That made it harder to keep her balance on one leg.

“Are all your family members accounted for?” The older one with the clipboard asked.

“My husband is not home but the rest of us are.” Tammy looked past their shoulders. A row of military trucks were lined up, sitting in front of her house.

“The rest of you are?”

“The rest of my family is still in bed.”

“I mean, what family members do you have inside? How many? Male or female?”

Tammy clenched her jaw at the older man. Not a bit of friendliness to him and she was apprehensive to tell him anything.

“Ma’am, we have the authority to do a welfare check and see who is residing in this residence at this present time.”

“Sorry, we’ve had multiple run-ins with a gang that has been in my house more than once. I’m a little apprehensive telling any group of males who is in my house.” She pointed at her face and then showed them her swollen and very bruised ankle.

“We have a medic if you want them to take a look,” the younger one said.

The older one glared at his companion and nudged him in the side. He looked up at Tammy with his pen poised over the clipboard. “We need a number.”

“There are six of us.”

“Are you in need of food or water assistance?” He asked.

“No.”

“Nothing?” He looked at her with wide eyes.

“I’ve have great neighbors. We’ve been taking care of each other.” She looked down at the ground and rubbed her arm. She almost lost her balance on her good leg. “Sorry.”

“It looks as if you are in need of medical assistance,” the younger one said.

“I think I’m fine,” she said, not wanting them to focus on her at all.

“We understand there has been some gang activity and unexplained deaths on this street. Does any of that activity have anything to do with your injuries?”

“I kind of told you it did.” She returned his stony-faced look.

“Do you know who was responsible for the murder of seven men that appears to have happened outside your house?”

“I don’t know. I did my best to stay locked in my house with my children. Even that didn’t keep those men out. They wouldn’t stop bothering us. If only you all had been here days ago. Oh, and if you were here before it got as bad as it did, perhaps I would be able to walk this morning and move both my arms without pain. Are we done yet? Because I really need some pain medicine.” She tightened her robe around her, holding it tight and wished she hadn’t done that. It made both her arms scream in pain but she kept the look on her face unflinching so they’d leave.

“At this point we are only doing house checks and taking a head count. Later the relief effort will start. FEMA and our troops assigned to the relief effort will be going door to door taking inventory of what you have and what your needs are.”

“Honestly, they don’t need to stop here. I don’t help. I don’t want anyone taking inventory in my house. I’ve had more than my share of unwelcome visitors. Put that on your clipboard. Skip my house.” Tammy tapped the clipboard emphatically.

“I’m sorry, but they must stop at every house. Taking you off the list isn’t an option.” He moved the clipboard away from her reach.

“I’m not letting anyone in my house. The only help I need from you is to keep murderers and thieves away from my neighborhood.”

“That is why we’re here. We are trying to restore order.” He frowned at Tammy. “I understand you’ve had a hard time but there are rules being put in place. You do not get to pick and choose what kind of aid you get. That’s just the way it is.”

“Fine.” She could feel the burn in her cheeks. “When will they be coming? When shall I roll out my welcome mat and offer them some milk and cookies? Well, I don’t have milk.” She drummed her fingers on the back of the door and glared at the one giving her grief.

“There’s no schedule. Depends on how long it takes in the neighborhood they’re in now and what street they start on in this one.”

“I hope they stop at the park first. That place needs more help than anyplace else here.”

“We will be taking care of that area too.” He rested his clipboard against his leg. “I believe we are done here. Make sure you answer the door to any troops that arrive. We have you and your family on your list. They will enter by force if necessary.”

Tammy clenched her jaw and dared not say anything. She nodded and watched them leave her front porch.

She needed to hustle out of town before anyone came to take inventory on what she had. If only her body wasn’t telling her something different.

Ben was relieved the next morning when not only did he get a full night’s sleep without interruption, but Anderson was taking his turn in the wheelhouse. Even though he almost won the flicking giant over when he helped fix the boat the day before, he still wasn’t easy to be around. Nate still wasn’t a fan either.

The men greeted Jackson as they entered the galley.

“Well, you fellas had a good night’s sleep. At least there wasn’t any crazy action going on like yesterday.” Jackson poured himself a cup of coffee. “You look like you need some of this.”

“No thank you.” Ben poured himself a small cup of orange juice. He was being conscientious about what he’d consumed since they’d been on board, and he was starving.

“Help yourself to some oatmeal or eggs and bacon. I have plenty. I assumed you’d eat like men.” Jackson took a seat at the table. “The good news this morning is we can see Kodiak Island, cruising along side it as we speak, and our radio is working again as is our radar. That cutter stayed with us for quite a ways last night. However, I’m happy we’re on our own again. I don’t need them babysitting us. Especially when we have no plans to stop in Kodiak at all.”

Jackson finished eating and was about to head out the door when he paused. “You gotta come see this.”

Nate and Ben went to the door and it was a breathtaking sight. The island reached up out of the water. Deep gray stone cliffs with dense intense green vegetation, dark green pine trees worked their way up and stopped right before the top of the snow-capped mountains.

“That is some rugged landscape. Doesn’t Alaska just say wild all over it?” Jackson smiled as he took in the view.

“Not so much where I’ve been all summer. It was flat, those little gnat thingys everywhere, and just plain miserable. I still don’t see how people have any desire to live there. Right here, now that’s more like it.” Ben leaned against the wall.

“I hear there is fantastic hunting on the island. That is if you don’t meet a Kodiak bear. Those bears are huge.” Nate leaned on the edge to get a better view. “That stuffed one they had at the airport in Anchorage was jaw droppingly huge.”

“What’s nice is that the water is so calm this morning so it’s like we’re taking the scenic tour around the island. Look at the snow on those peaks.”

Ben did look at the snow. “Winter comes early here.” He felt something very somber wash over him.

“We’ve got time,” Nate said. “If we can hurry and get to Anchorage, we still have plenty of time.”

“Those peaks on the island are really high, Ben. Higher than they look. Don’t let that discourage you.” Jackson cupped his hands around his coffee mug as if he was using it to warm them up.

“I’ve never been on the Alcan Highway. I’m sure there’s going to be plenty of mountains there. Where there’s mountains, there tends to be snow.”

“You need to relax. The locals I’ve talked to have said that snow doesn’t usually stick until October. I know you aren’t planning on hanging around. So you have plenty of time.” Jackson handed Ben and Nate deck chairs. “Why don’t we sit back and enjoy the view.”

Ben couldn’t sit still on the posh chair. It would have been very comfortable if he was able to relax like Jackson was sitting beside him.

“I’m going to enjoy some sightseeing while Anderson is at the wheel. Keep your eyes open for whales.”

Ben was taking in the amazing coastline. The mountains were impressive even though the snow was freaking him out. Rugged strips of land jutted out to sea and fjords carved back in toward the island. With each strip of land that reached for the boat, he’d try to spot wildlife.

“That’s not where the show is, Ben.” Nate pulled on his coat sleeve and pointed at the water on the other side of the boat.

He didn’t see a thing. The water glistened and reflected in his eyes as he searched for what Nate had seen. He finally saw it, the spray and the back of a whale. He scooted to the edge of his seat as another jet of spray and much larger dark patch of a whale’s back emerged. Sitting in the middle of the deck wasn’t good enough. He was on his feet and got a great view of the tail. Both men rushed to the side of the boat searching for more.

Jackson joined them as he casually leaned beside them. “This never gets old.” He pointed closer to the boat and they could see the wake created by another one that didn’t quite surface.

“You think they’ll breach?” Nate asked.

“Depends on if they’re playful or busy eating. They should be migrating. It’s a toss up.” He shrugged.

“Jackson, we have company.” Anderson’s tone didn’t sound like he was appreciating communing with the whales.

Then they heard it, motors from speedboats.

Jackson was off to the wheelhouse. “Get down,” he shouted.

Shots rang out. Ben and Nate flattened onto the deck.

“What do we do?” Nate covered his head when wood splintered from the rail as the bullets made impact way too close.

“Crawl over there.” Ben motioned for the living quarters. “I can’t see if they’re surrounding us from down here.”

Anderson darted across the deck all crouched over and skidded on his knees near the bow. He waved for them to come over as he pried up some of the decking.

“No, I’m not coming over there. I’m sure he wants us to get hit with stray bullets.” Nate went for the door.

That left Ben by himself.

Anderson was insistent. “Come on. If you can’t tell, they aren’t the friendly type.”

“Neither are you,” he mumbled as he army crawled across the deck. He thought for sure he was about to be a gonner when he felt something whiz past his head. He flattened on the deck.

“I need a hand. Hurry before we’re all dead.” Anderson was sitting inside the hole he made on the deck.

Once Ben finally made it over he saw the long metal box Anderson was struggling with inside the secret compartment in the hull.

“It’s so heavy, it won’t come off without two people lifting it at the same time.”

Ben spun his body around and eased his legs down to the floor in the secret compartment.

“What’s in here? Guns?”

“Better.” The smile on his face concerned Ben.

He undid the latch on the box closest to him and tried to stay hunched over as he helped lift the very heavy lid off the box with only one hand.

“I can’t shake them,” Jackson shouted over the intercom.

“Got it. This is why I didn’t think you guys wanted to be a part of this journey.” Anderson looked as if he was about to eat his favorite candy as he rubbed his hands together before reaching in the box.

“What? This? We’ve been chased plenty. We almost didn’t make it to Dutch Harbor.”

“And we’ve been hauling some secret stash just for a moment like this.” He motioned for Ben to get out of the way before he uncovered what was hidden in the box.

“You can’t be serious? So where were you before you stopped in Dutch Harbor?” Ben scooted out of the way when he saw it, forgetting that he was dodging bullets moments ago. He hit the deck and backed away from Anderson.

He pulled out an RPG 7. The next thing Ben knew, Anderson was loading it with the largest grenade that Ben had ever seen.

“You better clear out of the way,” Anderson shouted.

Ben scrambled to get as far away from the weapon as he could and still remain on the boat.

Anderson was still in the compartment when he stood and searched for the nearest speedboat. A loud
phoom
sounded and Ben felt the impact in his chest.

He couldn’t help it when he sat up to see where the grenade hit and he watched the boat explode. He closed his eyes so he didn’t see the occupants body parts flying in all directions.

Anderson burst out in maniacal laughter. “One for one.” He reached down for another grenade.

“You have to be kidding me.” Ben scooted even farther away. He wasn’t fast enough to miss witnessing another boat blow up. He covered his head when boat parts and who knew what else landed on the deck.

It wasn’t long before all the guns were focused on Anderson. Ben was not in a position to be any help. The man was a lunatic as he set up the next one as if he was invincible. One more boat took a hit and exploded in a massive fireball.

Anderson was invincible no longer. He screamed in fury and ducked into the compartment when he lost his grip on the RPG.

Ben didn’t know whether to help him or try to save his own life. When Anderson stood holding the RPG against his other shoulder, Ben figured his own life was in serious danger if he was going to attempt to launch another grenade while wounded.

The boats weren’t shooting at them as fiercely as before. When Ben dared to peek over the side of the boat, he could see they were tailing them instead and keeping far away from Anderson.

He staggered out of the compartment in the deck and carried a couple of grenades with him as he headed for the rear of the boat. Ben headed for the door on the other side and desperately wanted to join Nate inside. He sure hoped they weren’t about to meet their end.

Ben had barely opened the door when he heard another grenade explode and Anderson screamed in agony directly after. No doubt he was in serious pain that time.

Nate was nowhere to be found.

“Anderson is down and we’re about to be boarded. I need one of you to help my brother while I try to keep them from boarding.”

Ben clenched his jaw. Anderson was huge. There was no way he was going to be able to move the giant by himself without risking getting killed. An idea. He needed a sheet. Running down to the nearest bed, which happened to be Anderson’s, he pulled the flat sheet off. Still no sign of Nate as he ran up the stairs and had to skid to a stop before heading out on deck so he didn’t fall on his face. Jackson weaved the boat back and forth and was turning it in a tight circle before heading the other way.

“Is someone going to save my brother?” Jackson shouted over the intercom.

Ben was working his way there, hanging on to the side of the boat while on his knees when Jackson weaved again.

“You’ve been hit a couple times, huh?” Ben tried to assess his injuries. “I’m afraid the method I need to use to move you is going to hurt your shoulder that’s quite the bloody mess.” He rolled the sheet up and was about to hitch it around his arms when Anderson stopped him.

“No, please no. Unroll it and let me lay on it,” he pleaded.

Ben hurried as fast as he could to untangle it. The speedboats were keeping pace on each side and another was about to overtake them in front.

“If Jackson crashes into them head on to get away, we’re done for.” Anderson closed his eyes in pain.

“So he just needs to sideswipe them.” Ben finally had the sheet laid out for Anderson. He touched the man’s good shoulder lightly. “Ready.”

“Our boat’s too big and cumbersome compared to them. Get me inside. Maybe we can ambush them once they board. Because they’re going to board.” He moaned as he moved his leg onto the sheet.

“You’re losing a lot of blood.” Ben looked around for something.

“Really?” He glared at Ben. “Get me inside and then you can find something to stop it.” Anderson reached out for Ben’s arm to help him but it caused him too much pain.

Forcing the smile to go away that crept into the corners of his mouth because it wasn’t nice at all to relish in the suffering of the insufferable, he pulled Anderson towards the door to safety. Shots were fired at his head anytime Ben stood a little too high.

Even with the boat still weaving, he managed to get the giant to the door. “Nate! I need your help.” He struggled to lift Anderson over the threshold.

“Just stop for a minute.” He tried to help himself over the extra high lip at the bottom of the door and he yelled when he inflicted pain instead.

“You want me to leave you there?” Ben folded his arms and glared at Anderson. He didn’t want to wait around and he needed to find a safe place to hide when the boat slowed down considerably.

“Here, help me to that drawer over there.” Anderson was struggling to pull his body with one arm across the floor.

“What do you need?” Ben headed for the drawer.

“I need my body over there.” He slid a little further.

Ben pulled the sheet and didn’t stop when Anderson’s heel caught the threshold and he screamed.

“You idiot!” he rolled onto his side and held his leg.

“The idiot needs to find a safe place to hide. That is if you can manage your drawer now.”

Ben backed away slowly and almost froze when he saw a man jump from the speedboat with a gun in his hand. “They’ve boarded. Who are they?” He thought for sure his heart was going to escape and leave him behind.

“Could be pirates or could be whoever is trying to invade Alaska. Go, hide. Jackson’s armed. I have my gun now. ”

“You’re already shot. You can’t exactly get away.”

“I can hide in here. Go. I can manage.” He pointed at Ben to leave. “I have my doubts about you.”