Through Many Fires (Strengthen What Remains) (11 page)

A
s Caden walked into the
lobby, David walked toward the room, looking at his clip board. He talked with
half a dozen people before getting to Caden.

“
A
secretary took Maria to this guest house.” He wrote the address down and handed
it, along with two keys on a ring, to Caden. “Has the Governor briefed you on
what he wants?” David briefly reiterated the Governor’s instructions while
Caden nodded. When David was done he crossed out a line on his list. “Good. Go
to this office in the Wainwright building. It’s on the same floor as the
Emergency Operations Center. They will get you official orders and a uniform.”
He handed Caden another piece of paper. “We have a staff meeting scheduled for
Monday at 9:00 a.m. Governor Monroe wants a report on conditions from as many
counties as possible. I’ll see you then. Okay? Good.” He turned.

“
Oh,
two things before you go. What day of the week is it?”

“
Today?
Monday. The meeting is next Monday.”

“
Yes.
Just making sure.”
A week at home and back here. Good.
“Also, is there a
phone that I can use to call New York? I need to contact a friend in the
administration.”

“
Try
my office,” He pointed, “but long distance calls are always problematic.”

As
Caden stepped away, David called to a person across the lobby and lined out
another item on his list.

Picking
up the phone, he glanced at his watch.
Nearly two in the afternoon, that
would be five in New York. She’ll still be at work.
After a half-hour of
attempts, disconnections, phone trees and transfers he was getting worried, but
finally he heard Becky’s voice.

“
Caden
is that really you? I thought…I feared…is it really you?”

“
Yes,
it really is me. It is great to hear your voice. I was afraid you died in the
Atlanta blast, but then three days ago I saw you on TV.”

“
I was
afraid that you were in Atlanta when it happened. I’ve really missed you.”

“
I’ve
missed you too,” he said, but the words sounded strangely hollow. “A road block
stopped me or I would have been right there looking for you. When did you get
out of the city and how did you end up as the press secretary for President
Durant?”

“
It
had been an incredible two weeks.” She described being on the edge of the metro
area, seeing the flash and feeling the torrent of wind buffet the van she was
in. “I think I was close like you were. The remote studio was damaged. It took
two days to get back on the air and almost as soon as we were, President Durant
asked me to join the administration as his press secretary. How could I say,
“no?”

I
could have found a way.
“That’s a great opportunity for you, but only for a few
months. Is Durant going to run for president? The election is in nine months
and, the last I heard, Governor Monroe is the only candidate still alive.”

“
There
isn’t going to be an election. Parts of the country are already under martial
law and by the end of the month the whole country will be. President Durant
plans to cancel the elections until martial law is lifted.”

“
Elections
are conducted by the states. The federal government can’t….”

“
Durant
appointed new Supreme Court justices. They will approve his martial law
declaration and the cancellation of the election.”

“
How
can there be new justices if there is no senate to confirm them?”

“
The
senate is not in session so President Durant made nine recess appointments.”

Caden
was stunned into silence. Durant was acting within the letter, if not the
spirit, of the Constitution.

“
Caden,
this is all for the good of the country. The nation doesn’t need elections
right now. It doesn’t need a bickering congress, it needs security. America
needs strong leadership and a guiding hand. Durant is that leader.”

You
sound like his campaign chairman.

“
Come
to New York as quickly as you can. Now both money and power are centered in the
Big Apple. This is where the action is going to be in the coming years. Working
with Durant could make both our careers. I could get you a position in the
administration.” She paused. “I’ve got to go, another meeting. I love you.”

“
I
miss you.”

“
Come
here quickly. We will make a great team.”

He
ended the call with a promise to think about it.

*
              
*
              
*

Caden
looked in a mirror as he adjusted the collar of his new ACUs.
It’s strange
to be back in uniform.
He placed the Velcro rank insignia on his chest.
And stranger still to see the oak leaf of a major on my uniform.
Cold wind
buffeted him as he left the new National Guard offices on the capitol campus. A
low sun hid behind the gray buildings. Caden flipped up the collar of his
uniform jacket to the cold and shifted the weight of the duffle bag on his back
and then continued on toward the guest house just off the plaza. Two soldiers
standing watch on the corner saluted. One said, “Good night, sir,” as he
passed.

Caden,
deep in thought, mumbled his reply. It had been a long and perplexing day.
Assume command of the armory.
What if no one is there? How do you command an
armory with no soldiers?
Secure the weapons.
What if it has been looted?
Act as a liaison.
What if the farmers don’t want to listen?

The
call with Becky stirred an array of emotions. He had feelings for her, but was
it love? Besides beauty and education, she was career orientated and mixed well
in Washington circles. Three weeks ago those last two were qualities he
cultivated in himself and admired in others.

His
thoughts returned to his family.
What if they are dead or gone?
He pulled
out his phone and dialed home once again. The phone rang several times.

“
Hello.”

Caden
was shocked to hear a voice and hesitated. “Ah, hello…Mom?”

The
line went dead.

Did
I really hear her say hello? Yes, yes I did, but was that Mom or my sister? Did
the line go dead or did she hang up?
He tried several more times, but never
connected.

At the
steps of the guest house, he slid the phone back into his pocket. The building
was an old, two-story mansion with a large, covered front porch. He walked up
the steps and looked back. The capitol and surrounding office buildings were in
full view. Turning toward the door he fumbled with the keys. One unlocked the
front door, the other had the number three on it. Caden walked up creaking
stairs to the second floor. He opened the door and gently set the duffle bag
down. In the dim light of a fading winter day he could see Maria curled around
the baby on the bed. Standing in the doorway he paused to admire the beautiful
picture before him.

She
opened her eyes.

He smiled.

She
blinked, then screamed.

Waving
his arms he said, “Me…just me…Caden.”

She
sat up, held a crying Adam to her chest, and looked him up and down. “You
enlisted?”

“
Actually
I’m an officer.”

Confusion
spread across her face.

“
Officers
don’t enlist.” Walking toward her he said, “I’ll explain the difference later.”
He sat on the edge of the bed. “I’m sorry I frightened you. I’m surprised you
were so deeply asleep.”

“
I
didn’t sleep well in jail.”

He laughed.
“No, I guess I wouldn’t either.” He explained that the governor called him to
duty so that he could take charge and secure the armory in Hansen. Then he told
her all that happened during the day, except the call to Becky.

“
Are
you hungry?” she asked. “This house is really a Bed and Breakfast. The owner
lives in an apartment downstairs. There’s food in the fridge in the kitchen.”

“
I’m
famished.” He frowned. “I haven’t eaten all day.”

Placing
the sleeping baby in a large cushioned chair with blankets around him Maria
went to the kitchen with Caden. Later in the dining room they ate, talked and
laughed about everything and nothing until the moon was high in the night sky.
Only when they both yawned did they return to the room.

While
Caden hung up his uniform Maria said, “The bed is big and comfortable…we
could…I mean you could sleep on it, in it together…well not together,
separately, but to…you know what I mean, I hope… I’m going to shut up now.”

Over
the last two weeks they had slept in the same room, the same car, beside each
other on a plane and in sleeping bags side-by-side, but this would be a new
level. “Thank you, but I’ll sleep on the floor. It isn’t the first time I’ve
slept on a hard surface.”

She
nodded.

Caden
laid out blankets beside the bed, turned off the light and climbed into a
sleeping bag. For several minutes he stared at the ceiling. “You still awake?”

“
Yes.”

“
Remember
I told you I lost someone in Atlanta?”

“
Yes,
someone you loved.”

“
Her
name is Becky and I talked with her today.”

“
She’s
alive?”

“
Well,
yes, and we were, are engaged, but….” Caden sat up. In the dim light of the
room he could see Maria’s head turned toward him. Her eyes were open and locked
on target. “It’s complicated.”

“
Such
things often are.”

“
No,
no, you misunderstand me. I’ve been thinking about this all afternoon and…well…
please listen.”

“
Okay.”

“
Three
weeks ago I worked at the hub of power and influence in this country. My boss,
Senator Stevens, was often mentioned as a future presidential candidate. That
is all gone now and everything has changed, is changing. Maybe I’m changing.

“
When
we talked today, Becky urged me to come to New York. She said that is where the
power and money are. That we’d make a great team. There was a time when the
thought of being married to a woman like her was, well, exciting. I’ve been
thinking about that and more all day.”

He lay
down again. “Becky may be on the power and money team,” he concluded, “but I
don’t like the direction that team is going and it disturbs me that she is so
willing, eager even, to be a part of it. I don’t want to be part of that team.”

After
a long pause Maria asked, “Do you love her?”

“
Love?
I still care for her, but no I don’t love her. We’ve moved in different
directions. We’re not the same people. We won’t be getting married.”

He
waited for Maria to ask the next, more difficult question, did he love her?
But, that query did not come and soon he heard the gentle rhythmic breathing of
her sleep.

M
aria sat on the porch
swing with Adam, as Caden drove up to the guest house in a dark blue SUV. When
he stepped from the car she said, “I wondered how we would get to Hansen.”

“
The
guys at the motor pool told me they have several dozen abandoned cars that were
towed in. Some still had keys inside.” He leaned against it. “This was one of
them.”

“
And
they just gave it to you?”

“
Loaned.”

He
picked up the bags beside Maria and they walked to the car.

“
Getting
a vehicle was not the problem, finding enough gas to fill the tank took me over
an hour.”

“
Is
that enough gas to get us to your home?”

“
Yes
and hopefully we can get more after we get there.”

Caden
retrieved their bags from the room and loaded them in the back of the car.
Then, with Maria in the passenger seat and Adam on her lap, he drove to a
parking lot near the old capitol. Several Humvees and Fuelers, a couple of APCs
and a Stryker vehicle, filled the lot. “We’re heading south on the interstate
with this convoy.”

As the
line of vehicles moved out Maria asked, “Are they going to Hansen?”

“
No,
they’re heading farther south to refugee camps outside of Longview and
Vancouver. We’ll have to leave before then and do the last part of the trip on
our own.” Caden drove over and joined the convoy near the rear.

As
they rolled onto the freeway Maria clutched Adam tight in her arms. “We should
get a car seat.”

Caden
chuckled.
I may not be married or have a kid, but I’m going to look like it.
“I’ll put it on the list of things we need.”

The
slow progress of the convoy allowed Caden to observe much of the scene along
the freeway. Boarded and burnt buildings, broken windows and yards strewn with
trash were the mute reminders of the desperate exodus from Seattle and Tacoma
just days ago. Humvees parked on many of the overpasses kept order on a largely
empty freeway.

“
I’ve
often driven this route with my parents and when I was in college.” On his
right a long line of rail cars covered with graffiti came into view. “It sure
looks different now.”

Gradually
the buildings gave way to forest. The wider shoulder and gradual slope allowed
abandoned cars to be pushed off to the side.
How many wrecked and burned
cars have I seen today?
As they drove by he counted a group of eight
vehicles.
Have we driven past a hundred?
The convoy paused as soldiers
pushed a burned truck out of the way.
More than a hundred. How many people
fled down this highway after the Seattle bomb?
He recalled fleeing from
Washington D.C. and then away from Atlanta. He remembered the body of Adam’s
mother and finding the baby.
So many people dead.

He
recognized a home in a field along the freeway and pointed it out to Maria. “An
old school friend lived there.” As they came close he saw the windows were
broken, burn marks scared the walls and the front door hung haphazardly in the
frame. Behind the home, a greenhouse stood with its door swinging in the wind.

I
hope the family is okay…and my family. God, please let them be okay.

After
nearly an hour the convoy rolled off the freeway and into the large parking lot
of a truck stop. Children swarmed around the vehicles like bees around a hive.
Adults from the tents walked toward the convoy as soldiers took up positions
along it.

Fragments
of plywood were scattered around the broken windows of the convenience store.
Extension cords hung out the shattered windows and ran to several nearby RV’s.

Along
the edges of the parking lot, cars of all descriptions sat randomly. Tents
lined the grassy edges of the lot.

A
group of children hovered around the SUV staring in the windows. Caden gently
opened the door and stepped out.

“
I’m
hungry.” “Do you have food?” “Who are you?” “Are you in the Army?” “My Mom is
sick—can you help?” “My Dad needs gas.” “Where did you get gas?” “When can we
go home?”

Caden
had few answers. Frustrated he walked on.

A
child pointed east. “Are you going up the road there?”

“
Yes,
I’m going to Hansen.”

“
There
are robbers that way.”

Crunching
broken glass under foot, Caden walked up to the store and peered in a large
broken window. Only garbage, strewn on the floor, remained.

Maria came
up beside him and looked in the window. “I guess they don’t have baby formula
or diapers.”

Caden
smiled weakly. “No, I think they’re out.” He turned away. “I need to speak to
the officer-in-charge.” It didn’t take long to find him talking to other soldiers
hemmed in by children.

Caden
gradually pushed his way through. “This isn’t a camp. It’s a wide spot in the
road. Why are all these people here?”

“
This
is where they ran out of gas and,” he pointed across the road to a church,
“that congregation gave out food until they ran out. Many just stayed here
hoping to survive until they can go home.”

“
If we
could get them fuel could they go home?”

The
officer shook his head and motioned for Caden to follow him. Between two noisy
trucks he said, “Most of them are from the Seattle red zone. Their homes were
either destroyed by the blast or burned in the fires afterward.”

“
They’ll
die here.”

The
officer nodded. “We’ve moved most to the southern refugee camp. These people
won’t go for one reason or another. Hunger will eventually change their minds.”
He looked east and west along the two lane country road. “Which way are you
headed?”

“
East
to Hansen.”

“
One
of the refugees told me bandits have blocked the road that way.”

“
I
heard something similar. Who talked to you?”

He
pointed and they walked over to a man sitting on an ice chest. Behind him was
an older Ford minivan. A tarp duct taped to the top and supported by two tree
limbs formed a canopy over him. It reminded Caden of the covering Maria made at
Rucker.

“
Henry,
this is Major Westmore. He needs to get to Hansen.”

Henry
shook his head.

“
Can
you tell him about the road block?”

“
We
heard there were farms out that way.” He pointed east. “Several of us pooled
the little gas we had. We hoped to get food or maybe work for food. But, about
ten miles in there is a causeway crossing a river…”

Caden
nodded. “That is just a mile or so before Hansen.”

“…
and
on the far side two dozers blocked the road. I got a glimpse of several bandits
with rifles.”

“
How do
you know they were criminals?”

“
They
shot at us.”

“
How
many shots?”

“
Just
one that I heard, but we didn’t stick around and let them improve their aim.”

“
So no
one was hit?”

“
No.
We slammed it in reverse and got out of there.”

Caden
thanked him, started to turn away then paused. “Why are you staying here Henry?
Wouldn’t it be better in the refugee camp?”

“
I was
up north with my family.” He pointed to a woman and two boys around a fire at
the edge of the lot. “We were visiting friends when Washington was hit. We
headed home to our farm in Oregon the next morning after Los Angles was bombed.
None of us want to go to a FEMA camp. We just want to go home. If I can somehow
get ten gallons of gas I’ll make it.” His head slumped down.

Caden
had less than five gallons in his tank and no certainty of getting more.

As
they walked away the officer asked, “Are you still going to Hansen?”

“
Yes.”

“
Good
luck.”

Caden
nodded and headed off to find Maria. It wasn’t hard; she was surrounded by
children. After he got her away from the kids, he told her about the roadblock.
“I’d like you to stay here while I find a way into Hansen.”

“
No.”

“
Be
reasonable.”

“
I am.
I’ll drive. You keep your gun ready and give me directions. Also, you might get
another gun before the convoy pulls out. You know I can shoot.”

Caden
could find only one fault with the plan. “What about Adam?”

“
Well,
we are not going to leave him with strangers, so you find a way around the
roadblock and we keep Adam with us.”

“
You’re
pretty logical—for a woman.” He smiled and stepped away.

She
thumped him on the back before he got out of range.

Minutes
later he returned. “The lieutenant wished us a safe journey, but he gave me
this.” Caden held out a SIG P228 pistol and two 15-round magazines. Together
they buckled the baby into the backseat as best they could and as the convoy
pulled out of the parking lot heading south, they headed east.

The
homes along the highway were damaged or burned. None appeared inhabited. As
they moved away from the freeway the forest thickened and the homes thinned.
About eight miles in, Caden told Maria to turn right onto a smaller road. “This
will take us to a bridge that crosses the river. From there we can loop back to
the highway behind the roadblock.” Minutes later he said, “Slow down. Stop when
you get to that bend up ahead. I’ll be able to see the bridge from the other
side of that hill.”

Caden
got out of the car and sprinted into the woods. He crested the nearby knoll and
worked his way along until he had a clear view of the crossing. He strained to
see as much as possible.
Wish I had binoculars.

Logs
were laid out at the far end of the span. Any approaching vehicle would need to
slow to a crawl to get through the ‘S’ shaped barricade. Caden saw two men
dressed in jeans, hunting jackets and ball caps. One sat in a sandbagged
position up the side of the hill while the other stood near the far end of the
log road block. Both had rifles.
This isn’t set up like a bandit blockade;
this is a guard post.

“
Turn
around,” he said upon returning to the car. “The bridge is blocked, but there
is a logging road nearby I want to try.”

It
took ten minutes to reach the dirt road and another twenty to reach the river
crossing. Where once had been a large culvert, there was now a free-flowing
waterway.

Caden
sighed.

“
Are
there any other ways to get to Hansen?”

“
Yes,”
he looked at the fuel gauge, “but we don’t have the gas to try them. Head back
to the main highway. I have a hunch.”

“
What’s
your idea?”

“
That
these aren’t bandit roadblocks, but are really guard posts.”

“
What
kind of a hunch is that?”

He
shrugged. “Perhaps a crazy one.”

At the
highway Maria turned right. The road sloped down into the river valley where
Caden had camped, fished and played as a child. The forest was thick and reached
right down to the shore of the lake less than a mile ahead. “Pull off just up
there.” He pointed to a wide spot in the pavement. “Wait here while I take a
look.”

She
nodded. “Be careful.”

Again
he sprinted into the woods and up a hill. In a few minutes he was in a good
position to observe the roadblock on the far end of the half-mile long
causeway. Even more so at this distance he wished he had binoculars. But he
could see that Henry had been right. Two bulldozers blocked the far end of the
road. Again, they appeared to be offset to form an ‘S’ shaped position and he
could see three men with rifles. One was clearly watching the road while the
others sat near a fire.

They
aren’t hiding. Anyone coming down the road would see them long before they were
in effective range. That is a defensive position. I’m sure of it.

Caden
stood and walked down the hill toward the lake. As he stepped on the road he
looked back over his shoulder to ensure that Maria couldn’t see what he was
about to do.
No reason to let her kill me before the bandits have a chance.
He continued onto the causeway.