Chapter 19

I remembered in the National Guard shop, when I was getting the tank. That couple, Roger and Emily threw something to distract me. Didn’t work, but at least they tried. I had to come up with something like that. A rock would do it, nor would my infrared goggle light do it. Suddenly I remembered the Matches and Sterno. It would take too long to do the Sterno, but I could set the book of matches off and the flare should cover my actions for at least a second. It wasn’t much but it was the only chance I had. I shoved the rifle hard in the direction of my next move and then jammed my hand in a pocket trying to find that book of matches. After several pocket searches I found them. It was a full book, which I was extremely thankful for.

I figured the man was shooting a semi automatic weapon. Just by the short amount of time in between shots. With a bolt action, he would have to reacquire the target. That took a moment to do, but this guy was popping off accurate shots way too fast for a bolt action. I had my revolver in one hand, my matches in another and I needed both to strike the matches. I didn’t want to holster my gun again, as that would hamper my rolling. Instead I gave the gun a toss in the same direction as the rifle. Now I took the matches and pulled one out. I folded the cover behind the rows of unlit matches and struck the single one in my hand. Quickly I held it to the book and the matches began to flare. With a toss over my head, I gave it my all and rolled to the side and kept rolling. The pain in my chest was enough to kill me, and that’s what I thought I had done. I was safe behind my much larger pile of debris and could even move behind a broken wall. First I found my rifle and set it to the side and felt around for my revolver. That I found up against the rocks. I had more ammo for my magnum, but none for the M16. It didn’t matter, even with a wound to the chest, I felt like I had a new lease on life.

Now I heard more shots break out down the street. The girls were facing more trouble, and here I was hold up behind a pile of rocks, with a sadistic bastard trying to kill me. I sure wasn’t doing any body much good where I was, not even myself. Taking my Sterno Can, I tried to hold it just over the edge of my pile of rocks. I was hoping to see if it reflected enough light or heat or what ever, just to draw fire. Nothing happened. I thought to myself, he wasn’t falling for the old Sterno Can trick.

Since I wasn’t doing any good here, I could see where I could crawl around the back side of my pile and disappear behind the broken wall. From there I could beat a retreat or head down the street and help the girls. I started to position myself to crawl and the pain hit me again. I faced the fact that I was hit pretty hard. Just putting weight on my shoulders was enough pain to make me feel like peeing my pants.

I kept thinking that guy had a thermal device. I didn’t have one of those and he did. I wanted that thermal device. Now how was I going to get it. He was across the street, must be well protected and concealed or one of the girls would have shot him. A nagging fear hit me. Maybe they tried and in doing so exposed themselves. They wouldn’t know that he had a thermal vision. I looked for my radio, and found it laying in the open where it came off me when I rolled. I still had my ear piece, so I gently took up on the cord and pulled the radio to me.

Now I told them that the guy shooting at me, had a thermal vision, and not to stick their heads out. “He can see in the dark, in daylight or in any kind of weather. So keep something between you and him.”

I didn’t get a reply and hoped they were just busy doing something else and didn’t have time to answer. This was not turning into a good night. The shooting had all stopped now and I waited, listening to the quiet and hoping my hearing would adjust. With all the shooting, I probably wouldn’t hear a parade passing by if there was one. I was able to scoot on my rump back around behind the wall. I just felt that a change of position was a wise thing to do. I hoped he wouldn’t see me through a wall.

I tried my goggles again, I could see some, the stars were out, and provided some light. I didn’t know much about the moon or when It rose or set. The times were all different, and I never paid any attention to it. Now I wished I had. Course even knowing all that wouldn’t help me now. With the goggles I could see some. I saw my small pile of rubble that was now even smaller having been picked and plunked by my foe. I heard some rocks roll against each other and knew someone was coming.

Thinking back to my Sterno Can, I got an idea. I lifted my shirt and pressed the can to my flesh. I also discovered then that I had blood all over my front. I didn’t see it, Just felt the wetness and how the can was slick against me. Well, I knew I’d been shot, so what did I expect? I thought about what I might stuff inside my shirt to stop the bleeding but if I had anything it was back in my bag at the post.

I could hear someone moving their feet, and they were moving toward me. The sound was like a person injured, and having difficulty walking. I wondered if he wasn’t wounded too. Feeling my can, it was no longer cold, but at body temperature. Now was the time, to do it. It wasn’t much of a plan. Still the same old throw a rock and distract them. It was all I had. So I took the can and tossed it in the direction of the foot steps.

The can hit the ground, but no shots followed. I didn’t expect any, all I expected and hoped was that he was wearing his thermal goggles and picked up on my body heat transferred to the can. All he had to do was follow it with his eyes. Hoping that he was doing just that, I rose up, wearing my night vision and saw a fuzzy figure just passed my large jumble of rocks. I fired right at him, and thumbed back the hammer and fired again. The gun flash blinded my night vision and I couldn’t see after the first shot. I kneeled back down, putting the pile between us again. I didn’t hear him fall or hit the ground. There was nothing. For all I knew he could be standing there, like the ghost he looked like in the goggles.

I was getting dizzy, if it was daylight I’m sure that I would have probably noticed that I couldn’t see very well. It was dark and I slumped over against the wall. I looked up once to see if anyone was coming around my pile of rocks, but saw nothing. I felt my gun slip from my hand, and remembered thinking I should pick it up. That was the last I remembered. When I opened my eyes again it was daylight. I was still laying against the wall. My chest hurt and my gun was on the ground beside me. I was also very cold. I think that is why I awoke. The cold was uncomfortable and I tried to move my legs. I was stiff, my legs moved, but everything hurt when I did.

I could tell that the dawn had just happened minutes ago. There was a heavy dew on the rocks and grass. I started to get up and again felt pain shoot through me. I thought about using that M16 as a cane, but decided to leave it lay when it hurt too much to bend over. With the wall as a leaning support, I rose to my feet and looked around. I could see over the pile of rocks, but not directly behind it. Across the street and on the side walk was a body laying still. I could see the man I shot first on the ground next to the wall he’d been standing against. I took a few shaky steps and moved around the Pile of Rocks to find indeed there was a man laying facing straight up. On his head he wore some odd shaped goggles, with a power pack.

It took me awhile to kneel down, but I did it. Once down, I slid those goggles off him and said a silent thank you. The rifle beside him was indeed a semi auto, with a thirty round clip. A couple more clips lay on the ground beside him. I didn’t know the make or caliber, but it had sure kept me hugging the ground. Tempted as I was for the rifle, I passed on it. I had the goggles and that was all that mattered.

Now there was the question of what became of my partners. I moved slowly, for fear that any faster and I would pass out. I reached the middle of the street and looked both directions to see if there was any sign of the girls. I was afraid that it had been a very bad night. My intention was to go down to the next posts and check on the girls but I just couldn’t make it. I found a trash can laying on it’s side and sat down on that. Up the street in the direction of our motor pool, I could hear a vehicle coming. I had my revolver and figured I could make a last fight with it. I just wasn’t capable of moving from that spot. When the vehicle came into view, I saw that it was our all wheel drive APC. I felt relief that I was going to live a little bit longer.

The APC came down the road and stopped near our first post. I thought, oh boy their giving away it’s position. Didn’t matter, after last night, they probably knew them all now anyway. After several minutes the vehicle started up again and moved down to stop in front of me. Three young girls got out and began checking the bodies laying along the street. I recognized one of the Charmer sisters, the oldest one, Pearl. She came over to me, and looked inquiringly.

“Your hurt?” it was more of a statement than a question.

“Some.” I said.

“Can you walk?” she indicated the APC as to where she wanted me to go.

“I don’t think so.” I was doing my best just to stay seated in an upright position.

Looking back at the others, Pearl called for more help and soon I was being lifted onto a stretcher. Inside the APC, I found Nicole wrapped in a blanket. A large black and blue lump on her forehead. I learned that one of the grenades had gone off in front of her and she suffered a thump to the head. She would be alright, but like me, she wasn’t too sure where she was. Marla was found holding Nora who had a broken arm. Her post had come down on her during the fire fight and Marla had to dig her out. Marla was okay. Only her finger nails were broken short, from digging for Nora. I noticed a shocked look when they opened my shirt and began dressing my wound. Later, after Anna had dug around and got the bullet out and several tiny pieces of my shirt too, Marla was at my bed side, holding me. I didn’t know it because I was completely out of it. Anna had put me under to do her repair work, and told me later that Marla spent the whole time with me and Nora.

What I remember after coming out of surgery, was Anna telling me that I had to stay down. At first I thought we were someplace else, but then the fog began to clear. She was referring to my, staying in bed and not trying to get up. The truth of the matter was, I didn’t feel like moving anything. I saw Marla sitting next to the bed, and she looked tired. Anna looked tired too. I think everyone was becoming tired of the fighting, the whole struggle of living from day to day. We wanted something to go right for a change.

Anna said she was surprised that I lived through the operation. The bullet took out bone and damaged my right lung. My full recovery was going to take months. The bone was expected to mend but the wound would leave me with a very noticeable scar. A nice shirt would take care of that problem. My lung was the real problem. What was damaged was lost. I would heal alright, but the damaged tissue would never function again. My right lung would only work at 70percent of normal. The news was disappointing, but not as bad as I expected. I think I recovered more than what was expected due to Anna pushing several different vitamins on me. Every day I was given a handful of assorted vitamins and as many glass’s of water that it took to get them all down.

During my recovery Marla and Nora made sure I walked and got exercise every day. In particular they made sure I walked with my shoulders back and not slumped over. I sure didn’t feel like walking with my shoulders back, but somehow managed it. The damage to my lung was evident by my difficulty breathing. My exercise sessions were very short and I required many rest stops. The pain I felt, was almost more than I could stand. Only because of the insistence of my two companions did I continue the physical therapy. Nora with her broken arm in a sling, was more than just inspiring. Whenever I wanted to quit, I felt ashamed of my weenie attitude. Nora was there every day, broken arm and all, encouraging me, and never a whimper about her own injury.

It was Marla who first started dressing in more revealing clothes, then Nora appeared wearing things that helped show her charms. Even with her arm in a cast, she looked good. At first I wasn’t feeling well enough for it to affect me. As the days and weeks went by, I not only noticed, but took an interest in them. I was looking, but in truth, I wasn’t up to doing the things I was missing. I suffered a few coughing fit’s that brought up some blood. It seriously concerned both girls and Anna too. That only happened in the early days, and after two months I could cough with no sign of blood. My health was improving, but oh so slowly.

Marla and Nora’s duties took them from my bed side, and I only saw them in the off hours. Rarely did they both appear together in my room. When they did, it was more like a party with them laughing and making half promises of things to come for me. I was really getting interested. I think if it hadn’t been for the tubes sticking out of my chest, we might have gotten it on right there in the hospital. A small section had been enclosed for my privacy, but it still wasn’t home.

After two months I went back into the Head Mans Room. That surprised me, as I was no longer consulted about anything. Violet did refer to me once as being a war chief or something. I guess the title gave me the perk of having nice quarters. Nora liked being back in the large bed, as she could sleep with me and have room for her injured arm. I learned that when I wasn’t using the room, Violet informed both Nora and Marla, they couldn’t stay there without me. I was a little irked about that, but the Bunker was Violets and she was doing a good job of running it.

When I recovered enough to leave the Bunker again, the fields were showing promise of some good crops. During that time, Greg kept me informed as to his progress with the Tank, and creating ammunition for the main gun. He and Bill were training several of the young people on how to operate the different positions in the Tank. We had several that wanted the gunners position, same amount wanted to drive, but only a couple wanted to be the loader. Bill fixed that, by declaring everyone had to be able to function at each position. When I asked who was going to be the Tank Commander, Bill and Greg looked at me like I’d just said something crazy. Then they both told me, I was the Tank commander. I don’t know if they thought I was the best one for it, or were they just sticking me where I wouldn’t be re-injuring my healing chest. Whatever the reason, I knew I could function at that position. I had tried firing my rifle at our range at the Motor Pool compound, and discovered the recoil was more than I could handle. Later with more healing and bone growth, it might be different. So being Tank commander was fitting. I could still use my revolver, because I didn’t shoot that from my shoulder.

The attack on Fort Sally had been put on hold, until I could take part. That was nice, but I was under the impression that we needed to do something soon about Fort Sally. They said it was still on the list, but since out last shoot out, they hadn’t attacked or probed us. What I learned was that there may have been as many as fifteen or more in the attack. What they were aiming for, no one knew. I suspected the attack was just to kill as many of us as they could. Five bodies were discovered in my area, and accounted for the people I saw. Two more bodies were found down by Nora’s position. They found several blood trails leaving the area, and that gave rise to the idea they had suffered badly. Perhaps, they just didn’t have the man power to attack us again.

The idea in everyone’s mind was that soon as I was able, I would lead the attack on Fort Sally, and wipe them out for good. I would be in the tank, with the new ammunition Greg was turning out, and Bill and Nora would be at the controls of the two APC’s. Each had fifty Cals mounted and could support the Tank. They had mapped out several avenues of attack. Each one converging on a central point in Fort Sally’s compound. One building, the largest and close to the east gate, seemed to be the hug of all the activity. We only had the monthly pass of the satellite to update our intelligence on what was going on in Fort Sally. Even with satellite up dates, I didn’t figure it was enough information to base an attack on. There was time to modify the plans, and even come up with a completely different one. I wasn’t looking forward to the attack and realized the only reason they had waited for me to recover from my injuries was because they didn’t want to do it either. I hopefully wishing for the fighting was over between us, but I knew better.