The Reaper: No Mercy (19 page)

"Wait! What are you doing?" stammered Tom as he gained the strength to stagger to his feet. Then it dawned on him. Short haircuts, muscular bodies, and a very competent attitude. They were military. "You're soldiers!"

"Of course! But we need to get your wounded treated. Grady, are you on comm yet? Did you tell them to prep?"

"Yes, Sergeant."

"Adams, Hendrix. Get in there and assess the wounded. Tom, can one of your people clear the way?"

"Ahh, yeah. Terri, go with them and tell everyone they’re friends." Tom's last words were directed to a short, stout, middle-aged woman with a no-nonsense attitude, and a deer-hunting rifle slung over one shoulder. She nodded and beckoned the two men to follow her. In the background, Tom heard the other solder talking to someone over his radio, then Shue was holding his hand out for the microphone. Shue was working at lightning speed, and as Tom looked over, he saw the Reaper smiling.
Wow, that was a new look for this deadly man
, he thought, then listened in as Shue took over. Still the smile and obvious look of pride was unnerving.

"Give it to me," Shue commanded and the microphone was instantly placed in his beckoning hand.

"Charlie six, this is Charlie two, we need evac for possibly eight critical. My men are assessing them now."

"Charlie two, Charlie six. Preparing an LMTV with stretchers and additional personnel now. Should be your location within five, over."

"Good news. We'll be ready, Charlie six."

"Charlie Two. Can you give me a brief situation report. Should we button up?"

"Total smack down, Sergeant, and that's an affirmative."

"Well, bring everyone in. We'll lock down until the drop."

"Roger that. Charlie two out."

"Charlie six, out. See you in a bit."

Then Shue was handing the microphone back and turning to the Reaper, who held out his hand.

"Thank you, Staff Sergeant."

"No reason to get all formal, Reaper. This was needed a week ago when we arrived. Without your support, there was simply no workable solution."

"Then let's get all these people back and prepare for the drop. It's about to get busy."

"Yes, sir."

Tom shook his head at the exchange, while simultaneously thanking whatever higher power was in existence.

*****

Rodriguez was waiting when Nancy came out of their makeshift surgery. Seeing the expression on her face, he already knew that some of the news would be bad. They had pulled in all the outlying groups they'd identified, including those who'd come forth in the last battle to provide a united front, and to say it was crowded beyond belief was an understatement. Nance came to him, wrapping her arms around him while burying her face against his broad chest.

"Hey hey chica, I can tell there's bad news."

"We lost two, babe. I couldn't save them. I tried but there were so many to treat and I'm not a doctor." His Nance was crying now, and Dennis held on tightly as sobs wracked her body.

"You're all we have, Hun. You did your best. I love you."

"Oh my God, I love you too, but I feel so useless. We needed a full surgical team. No, at least four. We had two bleeding out fast, and my trainees couldn't stop it. I was suturing intestines and I couldn't be in three places at once. It was a nightmare. I've never felt so helpless in my life except for the day we escaped Moberly."

"Shhhhh, chica. Let me talk to the captain. Maybe Newaygo can send a doctor."

"Anything would help."

"Okay, I'll be back." And Rodriguez kissed her one last time before leaving. His tread was aggressive, as his woman needed him, and the people they were protecting deserved better, and more.

*****

"Sir! We need to talk."

The Reaper looked up as Rodriguez spoke. He'd noticed the man's entrance into the cleaning room, where he currently had his M40A1 stripped down and was running a patch coated with CLP down the barrel. (CLP was technically Breakfree CLP, and the most commonly-used cleaner/lubricant the military used.) Rodriguez appeared angry, and the Reaper sensed an impending confrontation.

"Yes, Rodriguez."

"We need a doctor. We just lost two in surgery."

Instantly, the Reaper set down the gun parts and closed his eyes. A brief prayer to the Lord for their lost souls, and his eyes reopened.

"Agreed."

"Wait. No argument? I doubt they'll provide one, but we're losing people."

"Sergeant, I agree. I saw the need before. I simply didn't remember to mention it. We need to communicate with Newaygo now, and not just for medical reasons. I need to speak with whomever they’re sending, and get our basic strategy out there to be dissected by the incoming teams. They'll want a heads up."

"Sir. M-ATV ready when you are." For the first time that afternoon, Rodriguez smiled.

*****

"Newaygo Command, this is Reaper, Code today is Paul. Authenticate over." The Reaper and Rodriguez, along with several of his men, were residing on the hilltop just to the south of the industrial complex, the best location in the area to get reception.

A sharp hiss from the speakers greeted the Reaper’s words as he held the microphone close to his face. Immediately he double-checked the settings on the frequency and scrambler and tried again.

"Newaygo Command, this is Reaper, Code today is Paul. Authenticate over." Frowning, he looked over at Rodriguez who had a pronounced look of trepidation on his face.

"This is not good," Rodriguez whispered. Instead of nodding, the Reaper waited and was just about to transmit a third time when the clear soprano tones of Captain Rider's voice spoke over the airwaves. Captain Rider had originally been Corporal Corey Rider until the governor of Michigan, and the Commanding Officer of the combined elements of the surviving military had field-promoted her. She was loved by everyone in Newaygo, and very competent with her genius-level intellect.

"Jason, sorry for the delay. We just had a zombie incursion. Nobody hurt. Authentication is Sandy. Go for confirm."
The Reaper viewed his code sheet, and after nodding to himself, responded.

"Authentication confirmed. I assume hostiles out of Grand Rapids or Muskegon?" he inquired.

"Yes, primarily Muskegon. We have barriers set up against the horde in Grand Rapids. It's working for now, and my man has a plan to reduce their numbers. The drop is still a go, Reaper, and will proceed as scheduled. "
Captain Rider's man was none other than the governor of Michigan, Jay Scarmon.

The Reaper came straight to the point. "We need a doctor! And I need to talk to the commanders of the teams you’re sending."

"A doctor?"

"Yes, we just lost two souls in action today that might have been saved with proper treatment. Our lead here is a surgical nurse, with two decades of experience, but she rightly asserts they need a full surgeon for what's coming."

"Jason, I don't know. What kind of numbers are we looking at?"

The Reaper turned to Rodriguez, who was frowning. "With the addition of everyone, and our best estimate of the captives’ numbers, what's your guess on total?"

"Well that's easy, close to or possibly over a thousand."

The Reaper instantly turned back to the communications board.

"Call it a thousand which will grow, Corey, as more come in once the area's somewhat safe."

"That's a solid number. Hold one while I check,
" and the carrier went dead for a bit. Then Lieutenant Purcell’s voice responded. Purcell was Jay Scarmon’s aide, a Ranger from the 75th Ranger Regiment out of Fort Benning, Georgia, and the second deadliest hand-to-hand combatant in Newaygo. Only Ashley ranked supreme.

"Reaper, we have no jump-qualified doctors. I understand you need assistance, but the number of doctors are limited and we can't afford to lose one to a bad jump."

"The solution is simple, Purcell. He can tandem with one of the SF personnel. Strap his forward and drop packs to one of the pallets. Whoever he is bellied up to will control the jump, and I'm sure you'll get the chute size right. We need a doc."

"Good idea, and I was considering that after approval. I'm tempted to recommend Dr. Rossi. He's been a pain in the ass since they came back. The man believes in touchy-feely even during the apocalypse. Johnny's really getting irritated with him and they've been fighting constantly, but he is an excellent surgeon with a side of psych."

Johnny Clark, known simply as Johnny, was the leader of the rehabilitation center that Newaygo had saved last month. He also had cerebral palsy. In fact, most of those rescued from the rehab had physical and mental disabilities, and the Reaper had led the charge with four other survivor groups when Newaygo was delayed. Intense action and many lives lost had ultimately resulted in the rescue of over four hundred souls, thirty-two of whom were newborn infants from Mercy Hospital. The Reaper chuckled to himself, remembering when he'd met what Johnny called his gimp brigade, all wielding shotguns, and all confined to wheelchairs. That was an experience he would never forget, nor the Lord's hand in showing to the new world that those with disabilities could not only make a difference but could also excel as a strike force. Then the Reaper remembered the little girl they had rescued and the horror she had experienced and made a decision.

"Rossi would be perfect. His psychological services are badly needed. Some of the victims are under fourteen, and one is severely traumatized."

"Sounds right up his alley. Let me run it by the colonel real quick, and stay online for Captain Sokowski. He'll be one of the team leaders dropping in."

The Reaper knew that Jay would make the right decision, so waited patiently.

"What do you think's taking so long?" Rodriguez asked after more than ten minutes had passed.

"I assume they’re asking for volunteers. Newaygo is busy fighting a war on multiple fronts. They're all busy there, just as we are here."

"Gotcha, still ..." then Rodriguez was interrupted as a voice came over the speakers.

"The commander and Dr. Rossi have agreed. He'll be in the drop, in tandem. Take care of him, Reaper. For all his quirks, he's a good man. Stand by for Captain Sokowski."
Purcell's voice was back, and the news was good.

"Thank Jay for me." Beside Jason, Rodriguez breathed a sigh of relief.

"Roger that. Good luck, and Purcell out!
" A brief pause, then,
"Sokowski! Good to be working with you again, Reaper."
The Reaper now recognized the strong younger voice of the 9th's Special Forces Group and Red Team leader. They had first become acquainted in Ohio when they’d breached the shadow government’s stronghold, and Sokowski and his men had been attached to the Reaper as Jason led the hostage rescue force.

"Sokowski, good to hear your voice," remarked the Reaper.

"And yours. Run the mission down for us, and your current actions regarding the targets. I have satellite images of the area with close-ups before me. By the way, the commander has given you command authority; we are there to assist."

For the next fifteen minutes, the Reaper outlined his plan, took questions from Sokowski, and asked more than a few in return as the strategy was laid out.

"Looks like a winner, Reaper. Given the nature of the enemy, I concur with the overall tactics. I disagree with your timetable though."
The Reaper had explained they would wait a day, while setting up traps of their own, or IEDs, and that the assault would commence the morning after at four a.m., or 0400.

"What do you propose, Sokowski?"

"T plus five!"
That information told the Reaper that Sokowski meant that five hours after time on target they would launch their attack. He and his men would have landed, regrouped, and joined the survivors.

"You'll have no rest."

"We're rested, and according to your information these marauders might attack you if we wait. You just took them on and killed a bunch of their men. This is the best time to hit them."

"Good point. Will that give you enough time to plant the IEDs and train the civilians in the AT4s?

"Easily. Did you forget how good we are, Jason?"
At that, the Reaper chuckled, for the skills Sokowski and his men had exhibited were amazing. For all his Marine Corps service, Jason had never been prouder of his fellow soldiers than during that action.

"No!"

"We'll do a final brief before execution but it's a win, looking at it from our end. We'll discuss the exfil after the op. Getting to work here as we're leaving soon. Handing you over to Rider."

"Reaper?"
Captain Rider was back, her clear voice always good on the ears no matter what the condition of the signal.