Her Name is Beth: Alone: Book 5 Read online

Finally, after the delay seemed to drag on forever, a round hatch opened atop the structure.

  A head rose up just high enough to clear the bunker. The lone figure was outfitted in gear Dave knew only too well. A Kevlar battle helmet covered with Marine desert camouflage. Dave had worn a similar helmet when he was stationed in Iraq. Although he could only see the tops of the man’s shoulders, Dave could tell he was also wearing a standard issue tactical vest.

  Dave placed the sights of the sniper rifle dead center on the man’s head. He was still a possible target, until he convinced Dave he’d do Karen no harm. If he grabbed her or threatened her in any other way Dave would send a round right through his face. It might not kill him outright, but almost certainly would fairly quickly without immediate medical care from someone who knew what they were doing.

  Dave doubted the men in the bunker could treat such injuries.

  He hoped he didn’t have to shoot.

  The man looked in all directions, then shouted to Karen directly.

  “Stop right there. Don’t come any closer until I come to get you. You don’t know where the mines are planted.”

  Dave couldn’t hear the man’s words without the aid of the Giant Voice speaker. All he saw was Karen suddenly freeze in place. And it sent a shiver up his spine, but he didn’t know why.

  What happened next distressed him even more. The man climbed out of the bunker, then down a series of iron steps embedded into the concrete on the west side of the pillbox.

  He walked toward Karen, looking at the ground the entire way as though he were being extremely cautious about where he stepped. Occasionally he changed his path in a zig-zag pattern.

  Watching him from a distance, Sarah and Lindsey were puzzled by the man’s odd behavior. But Dave knew exactly what he was doing.

  The man reached Karen and hugged her. He stood talking to her for a couple of minutes while Dave pondered his next move. Although he wasn’t comfortable with the situation by any means, he decided to let it play out.

  However, he kept his sights trained on the man every step of the way. Just in case.

  When the two finished talking, Karen turned and waved her arm back and forth in Sarah’s general direction.

  Dave swallowed hard and caught his breath. Karen wasn’t combat trained. Had never had any survival training either, as far as Dave knew. Surely she didn’t realize she’d just given away Sarah’s position. A bad man with an automatic weapon inside the bunker could have sprayed gunfire in the area of the woods where Karen had waved and taken out Sarah and Lindsey with ease.

  He held his breath and prayed that his wife and daughter were low crawling away from the area as fast as they could.

  But there was no gunfire.

  The man turned and walked carefully back toward the pill box. Karen, apparently following the man’s instructions, walked directly behind him and at close interval.

  The man walked up the iron rungs and Dave started muttering in a low voice, “No… no… don’t do it.”

  But she did. Karen followed the man up the ladder and into the bunker. Someone, probably the second sentry, pulled the hatch closed behind her.

  “Damn it!” Dave said a bit louder than he should have.

  “What? What’s the matter?”

  The question came from Sarah. She and Lindsey had started making their way over to Dave as soon as they saw Karen make contact with her old friend.

  She asked again, “Honey, what’s the matter?”

  “She shouldn’t have gone in with him. If they decide to hold her against her will, it’ll be next to impossible to get her back out of there.”

  “Baby, she said she’s known these men a very long time. She said they’re good men.”

  Dave was frustrated but tried to remain calm.

  “Sarah, I have no doubt they once were. But the world has changed. It’s gotten colder. And people have changed too. We’re more hardened than we used to be. We’re more cautious and more calculating. More willing to do things we wouldn’t have done before to protect our people and our belongings. And if those men have been cooped up in there for a year without a woman, they might just be thinking about keeping her.”

  But Sarah was adamant.

  “No. She said they’re good and decent men and that’s good enough for me.”

  But inside her head, where Dave couldn’t hear her thoughts, Sarah was praying for Karen’s safe return.

  Chapter 6

  Karen hugged Mark Dykes as her family watched from a distance.

  “Hi, Karen. How have you been? Where’s Tommy?”

  “Tommy didn’t make it, Mark. He was shot by some very bad men. Escapees from Fort Leavenworth Prison.”

  “Oh, no. I’m sorry, Karen. We thought you had all the bases covered. We thought with your surveillance cameras and hidden tunnel, you’d be able to fend off any marauders that came along.”

  “Oh, we were able to fight off the first couple of attacks. But they got twenty men together and attacked us from all directions. We were outnumbered and overwhelmed. Some of us could have gotten out the tunnel, but we would have had to leave our wounded behind. We chose to stay and hold our ground, but in the end we lost.”

  “And Tommy was killed in the battle?”

  “No. He was executed by a coward of a man who thought it easier to kill the men than worry about them rising up against him.”

  “I’m so sorry. Hey, let’s get out of the open. Do you trust me enough to come inside and tell the others what you’re telling me?”

  She didn’t hesitate.

  “You trusted me enough not to shoot me on sight. If you wanted me dead you missed a great chance. So, sure.”

  He turned around and said over his shoulder, “We’ve got some land mines out here. You can’t see them, but I have an ear piece and Mason will guide us safely in. Stay close to me, and try to walk in my footsteps as closely as you can.”

  The thought of stepping on a land mine terrified her, but she’d come too far to turn back.

  “Okay,” she said, and followed him to the pill box and into the bunker.

  She was greeted warmly by Mark’s brothers: Jonas, Jacob and Mason.

  “I don’t have long,” she said after explaining a second time how her husband was killed. “What’s left of my family is out there, waiting for me to return.”

  “What can we do to help you, Karen?”

  “That’s why I’ve come. Dave is my brother-in-law. He’s the only man among us. And he’s getting ready to leave in search of his young daughter who was sold into slavery. He needs to go and find her, but he’s hesitant to leave us alone. He thinks because we are women and children we can’t defend ourselves.”

  Mark, the oldest of the brothers and their unofficial leader, chose his words carefully.

  “Karen, I know you’re tough as nails. But he’s right. And it has nothing to do with you being women and children. It has more to do with a basic premise of survival in a post-apocalyptic world. There is strength in numbers. How many are in your group once your brother-in-law leaves?”

  “There are nine of us in all.”

  “Would you let me talk it over with my brothers before we decide what we want to do?”

  “Certainly.”

  “Have you had anything to eat today?”

  “Yes. I’m not hungry, but thank you.”

  “Thirsty?”

  “Yes. Thank you.”

  “Have a seat on the couch over there. Grab something to drink from the fridge. There are some snacks in there as well if you see something you like. Jacob and I are going up to the box to discuss our options with Jonas and Mason. We’ll be back shortly.”

  “Thank you Mark.”

  The two men climbed a set of stairs leading to the pill box and Karen opened the refrigerator door.

  Her knees suddenly went weak. Her mouth watered at the sight of a cold six-pack of Coca Cola.

  She was amazed at her body’s reaction to something she once took for g
ranted. For more than a year she hadn’t seen any canned soda. Much less a cold one. It was a treat she never thought she’d see again.

  She reached out for a can, then thought better of it. Surely such a delicacy was in extremely short supply. Probably reserved for special occasions. It just wouldn’t be civil to help herself to one, especially after her neighbors and friends had been so generous thus far.

  Instead, she selected a bottle of water and sat down on the couch to drink it.

  Even it was something to be savored.

  Since her farm had run on generator power since the blackout, she was used to having to conserve electricity. She and Tommy hadn’t planned well, and had gotten a generator that was too small to meet their requirements. Their thinking was that a bigger generator would require them to stock more fuel, and that much was true.

  But the smaller generator was taxed unnecessarily hard when asked to power everything they felt they needed.

  Their solution was to run it for several hours in the daytime to power the air conditioning system and to make ice in the freezer. And to keep frozen food more or less frozen.

  At night they unplugged the air conditioner and freezer and used the generator to power room lights and a community television and DVD player.

  Only a certain amount of ice could be produced each day, and Swain had decreed early on only his men would be allowed to use it. So even though the farm house was legally hers, Karen had been restricted to drinking warm well water for over a year.

  A bottle of cold water was a slice of heaven and she savored every swallow as though it were fine champagne.

  She looked around the room. It was long and narrow, and the corrugated walls gave away its secret.

  The room was in reality a shipping container buried ten feet underground. It was considerably cooler than the outside air. A bit too cool for her tastes, but she suspected the brothers adapted to it after spending so much time there.

  Chapter 7

  She was still pondering that thought when Mark returned.

  “I’ve talked to my brothers and we’ve agreed. We’d like to offer your group an invitation to join us, here in our bunker, while your brother-in-law is gone.”

  The invitation caught Karen completely off guard.

  “But… as kind as that offer is, all of our provisions, all of our personal items, are still at the farm. I was hoping a couple of you could come over and help us defend the place against aggressors until Dave came back.”

  Mark was ready for her argument.

  “We talked about that option, but we can’t break up our own group. It’s just not prudent.”

  She looked crestfallen, and said simply, “I understand.”

  “Look, Karen. We want to help you. But one thing we won’t do is leave our sanctuary. It’s kept us healthy and safe for over a year, and we’re comfortable here now. That leaves but a single option. You and your group will stay here with us until your brother-in-law comes back. It’s the prudent thing to do and the safest for everybody concerned.

  “Bring your personal items. Everything you’ll need for the time he’ll be gone. We’ve got plenty of books to read, movies to watch, games to play. You’ll have plenty of distractions to help pass the time. You can even help with chores and guard duty if you want to pitch in.

  “As for your provisions, we have plenty. We stocked up for years with the goal of having enough for twelve people for ten years. But there are only six of us so we’ve got a bunch of food we haven’t eaten for the past year that’s extra. We didn’t count on it. But if it makes you feel better, you can bring in some of your provisions if you want. Just so you won’t feel like you’re imposing.”

  “You said there are six of you?”

  “Kara was Jacob’s girlfriend when the lights went out. We consider them legally wed now, since there’s no judges or preachers to make it official. They had a daughter, Misty, three months ago. Delivering that baby was trying for all of us, being ham-fisted men and all. But we brought in some medical journals for research, and were able to get through it okay. Kara is in the back of the bunker feeding the baby. You’ll meet them both when you come back. You’ll like Kara. She’s a sweetheart. And we all take turns holding Misty so she’ll know she’s well loved.”

  “But what happened to the rest of your people?”

  “My girlfriend and I broke up just a few days before the blackout. She said she was going to California to see her mom and start fresh. I’d have invited her in anyway, but there’s no way to get ahold of her. I can only hope she’s safe.

  “Mason’s girlfriend and her family were invited in. They were preppers too and had their own safe place. So they chose to go on their own. We’re still in contact with them by ham radio and Mason goes over to visit with her occasionally. Sometimes he’ll bring her here for a night or two when they want to be romantic. We tease him that it’s not much of a relationship, but it seems to work for them.

  “If you want to discuss it with your group, you can make your decision and let us know. Just wear the same yellow dress when you come back so we don’t accidentally shoot you.”

  But Karen had few options and she knew it. It would be a big change, living underground with a bunch of strangers, most of whom were men.

  But then again, maybe not. It was a band of men who’d forced their way into her home a year before and turned the women and children of the house into slaves.

  At least these men were civil and friends.

  So Karen made a command decision without consulting the others.

  “Yes. We’ll accept your kind offer. We’ll bring whatever provisions we think will go out of date in the next few months, and we’ll help with the chores and guard duty to help earn our keep. Thank you so much, Mark.”

  “No need to thank us, Karen. We’re big believers in taking care of our own. That includes our good friends. And you and Tommy would have done the same for us.”

  Chapter 8

  Outside the bunker, from just inside the tree line, the Speer family watched the pill box with rapt anticipation.

  Sarah wasn’t worried.

  Dave’s mind, on the other hand, was a jumble of thoughts. He was trying his best to determine the best way into the hardened bunker without putting Karen’s life in danger.

  It was Lindsey who finally spotted movement and broke the tension.

  “Look! The hatch is opening.”

  Dave breathed a huge sigh of relief when Mark’s head popped up and he climbed out of the pill box, followed closely by Karen.

  The two climbed down the rungs and walked carefully through the mine field and over to the tree line where Dave and the others stood to meet them.

  Dave left his rifle on the ground and held his hands out to his sides while they approached. He knew that at least one rifle, maybe more, were aimed directly at him, and he wanted to convey that he wasn’t armed. He wasn’t comfortable in doing so. But then again, no man is ever comfortable when they know a gun is aimed at their chest and a finger is on the trigger.

  “Dave, Sarah, Lindsey, this is Mark Dykes.”

  Sarah’s face lit up in recognition as she shook Mark’s hand.

  “I remember you. You came by Karen’s farm a couple of days after the power went out. It was supposed to be the day of the wedding.”

  “Yes. I traded Tommy some beef jerky and frozen venison for a box of ammo. I’m sorry to hear that Tommy’s gone now.”

  Mark and Dave shook hands and Karen told them of the discussion within the bunker.

  “Mark and his group have invited us to stay with them for the time being, until Dave returns with Beth. They want us to go get our clothes and personal items. They said we don’t have to, but I want to bring all the canned meats and vegetables that will expire within the next few months. These days it’s a sin to let anything go to waste.”

  Mark asked, “The provisions you’re leaving behind… are they well hidden so marauders and nomads don’t find them?”

&nbs
p; “Yes. I think so. We’ve hidden most of the dry foods in the walls and other places they’ll never look. A lot of it’s buried around the farm or in the basement.”

  Dave offered, “I’ll seal the basement before I leave and cover the doorway. They’ll never even know it’s there.”

  He turned to Karen.

  “The provisions you’re bringing… will they fit in the back of the Explorer?”

  “Yes, if we use the back seat too. But everybody can walk over here.”

  Mark’s eyebrows went up at the word “Explorer,” and the implication Dave had a working vehicle. But he said nothing.

  “Okay, then. Let’s get started.”

  Mark walked with them back to Karen’s farm. He couldn’t hide the fact he was a bit nervous.

  “Other than an occasional hunting trip I don’t get to spend a lot of time in the sun.” he said. “I forget how good it feels on my face. But I’m a bit jittery because I know what evil these woods hold. Maybe it’s not as bad as it was a few months ago, but I know bad men can come jumping out at any time.”

  He and Dave held their rifles at the ready. Dave had already given Sarah his handgun. All were relieved when they made it back to the farm without incident.

  It took all of them working together about three hours to pack everything and load it into the Explorer.

  Sarah drove the vehicle slowly toward the bunker, at walking pace, with Mark walking in front of it, Dave walking behind. Both of them scanned the woods on each side of the narrow road which linked the two neighbors, and would have opened fire at the first sign of aggression.

  Karen and the others walked a bit farther behind, where they’d be safer if a skirmish broke out. They had instructions to scamper into the woods and scatter at the first sign of trouble, then to meet up again just west of the farm at sundown.

  But there was no trouble. Everything went smoothly. Mark complimented Dave on his being able to get the Explorer running again.

  “We were mainly focused on hoarding food and building a shelter. That’s where we spent most of our energy. We did manage to save a couple of Gators, but now I wish we’d have saved a good sized truck.”