Lone Survivor (Book 4): All That Rises Page 17

  Bennington smiled and breathed in the salty air. “I would love to do that except they’re not here.”

  “Really?” Sam replied. Bennington nodded. “They didn’t arrive today in those Humvees?” he said pointing to them farther down by the dock. Bennington cast a glance over his shoulder and pulled a face.

  “No, those are for us to use. Replacements for the one your son dumped in the bay,” he said looking over at Landon, then at Max with a scowl. Max flipped him the bird and Bennington jabbed a finger at him as if to indicate he would deal with him later.

  “Look, we already know they’re here, so you might as well get them on the radio now or this conversation is over,” Sam said.

  “Landon.”

  “I’m with Sam on it. You should make it quick. There are a lot of people here who would love to squeeze a trigger and I don’t think you want to get caught up in that, do you?”

  Hesitation. A moment when Landon was certain that soldiers would open fire. Instead, Bennington told them to lower their rifles while he got on the radio. “Get me Harris.” He looked back at Sam with disdain. A few seconds later Harris came on the line. Bennington stepped out of earshot to talk but returned a minute later.

  He nodded. “Okay, they are open to adjusting the percentage… on one condition.”

  “Name it,” Landon said, feeling hopeful.

  “You hand over Max.”

  Sara rushed forward and got in front of him. “He’s not going anywhere.”

  “All of this, is because of your son. We didn’t arrive at this point because we opened fire. You might not like how I’ve handled matters but the facts are facts… your son opened fire on innocent civilians. They are dead because of him. I’m afraid there are consequences for that. So you decide. Your son, or the deal’s off the table.”

  “No, there has to be another way,” Landon said. He took a few steps forward and looked back at Max before getting close to the barrier. “Let’s be reasonable here, Bennington.”

  He responded fast. “I am. More than you know!”

  Landon waited, expecting him to change his mind. He didn’t. Landon nodded, looked back at Sara who was shaking her head. He began weighing the odds. “What would happen to him?” Landon asked.

  “He would be sent to the FEMA camp. From there I can’t tell you.”

  Landon gave a nod. “Give me a moment, would you.”

  Bennington made a gesture. “By all means.”

  Landon walked over to Max, his back turned to Bennington. He huddled around his family. “You’re not seriously thinking of…?” Sara asked, her brow furrowed, before he cut her off.

  “Of course not, Sara. It’s taken me this long to see you again, I’ll be damned if I’m losing another kid.” He smiled at Max and wrapped a hand around his neck. Although he understood what Bennington was getting at, handing him over wasn’t in the cards. This was a power move. Nothing more. An attempt to control them. “I love you, son.”

  He turned toward Bennington. “I’ll agree to those terms but you take me instead of my son. Do we have a deal?”

  Sara reached for his arm. “Landon. No.”

  Bennington chuckled. “Sacrificing yourself for your son and the community. That shit is noble. But so stupid.” He paused. “Fine. Agreed. Take him instead.” Two soldiers moved around the barrier to get Landon.

  “Dad. No. You can’t!” Max said coming to his defense. He raised his rifle at the soldiers. “Back off!”

  A moment of yelling ensued, soldiers shouting for him to drop the weapon before Landon turned toward Max to get him to calm down. “It’s okay, son.”

  “No it’s not,” he said. “We just got you back.”

  As Landon hugged his son and tried to get him to stay calm, the community began to protest. In the midst of it Sam brought up a radio to his lips. “Ray. Come in, over.”

  “Go ahead,” Ray said as if expecting Landon to contact him.

  Sam fixed his gaze on Bennington, brought up his weapon then replied, “Take the shot.”

  20

  Crack! Like a starting gun announcing the beginning of a race, one single shot echoed. Landon whirled around in time to see Bennington hit the ground, a dark bloody hole through one eye. His mouth widened as he threw himself in front of Sara and Max and pushed them back toward the safety of nearby stalled vehicles.

  What came next was an eruption of loud gunfire from both sides.

  He felt two rounds hit him in the back and his body crashed to the ground.

  Sara screamed. Max returned fire over him while the crowd scattered and people on both sides were caught up in the crossfire. Bodies dropped, and rounds peppered vehicles. Dragged behind the rear of a car, Sara tore open Landon’s shirt to find his ballistic vest. “I thought you…” Tears welled in her eyes.

  “And risk dying?” he replied groaning as he pressed back against the trunk of the sedan. All around residents and militia on the ground and on rooftops opened fire on the soldiers, killing many of them and forcing the rest back toward the vessel. Max scrambled over while Beth covered him, unloading arrow after arrow.

  “Dad.”

  “I’m still here, son.”

  He hugged him tight. Across the way behind a van, Sam was slapping another magazine into his rifle. He shot him a look, saluted and went back to returning fire. “We need to get you two out of here.”

  “I’m staying,” Max said.

  “So am I,” Sara added.

  He could tell it was pointless to argue with them. All of them had felt the heat of battle in one way or another and come through it alive, this was no different. He gave a nod and once he had caught his breath, brought up his rifle and joined the fight.

  The attack was swift and brutal.

  Bennington’s body still remained where it was, soldiers retreated and the community pushed forward. In the distance he saw armed personnel escorting Harris and Stephens down to a Humvee. They were cowering beneath soldiers as the onslaught continued.

  “Ray!” Landon yelled over his radio “Harris has reached the Humvee. Any update on your men at the checkpoint?”

  “They’re working on it.”

  “Better get them to try harder as those Humvees will be heading that way.”

  “I’m on it.”

  Another flurry of rounds unleashed causing Landon to drop to a crouch behind the barriers. The roar of Humvee engines, and the sound of bullets pinging off metal and concrete filled the air. “Sam! Cut them off!” he yelled pointing to the Humvees. He gave a nod and darted into an alley behind Castine Variety. The Humvees were heading for Water Street which would take them north up around the perimeter of the peninsula.

  Landon pressed in to support the residents as Sam and Ray vanished out of view.

  Humvees weren’t fast vehicles, with a top speed of 77 mph, but trying to keep up with them on foot would have been impossible. “This way!” Sam bellowed cutting through backyards, his eyes scanning for horses. Following Ray were four of his guys. It didn’t take Sam long to find what he was looking for. Tied up outside a home off Green Street was one horse. Ray bellowed to his guys to head back up Water Street and support the others while Sam leapt onto the horse, and Ray untied it and got on the back. Sam dug his heels in and the mare broke into a gallop taking off up Captains Way. He figured he could zip across the green at the end of the street and come out over on Court Street. That road ran parallel to Water so there was a strong chance of cutting them off. How they would stop them was another challenge entirely but having them escape wasn’t an option.

  Ray got on the radio as they bounced on the horse, wind whipping their faces.

  “Jenkins. You through?”

  “The checkpoint is clear.”

  “Good work. Be on the lookout for the Humvees. Whatever happens, they are not to leave. Push stalled vehicles into place if you must but do whatever you have to do to block that road.”

  “Roger that!”

  The horse was at a full gallo
p hurrying down the road. The Humvees would have to come out at Dyer Street and merge with Court before they could make it onto State Street which would take them up to the checkpoint. Far ahead of them, Sam saw the first Humvee swerve out followed by the second. There was no telling which one Harris was in. Sam veered the horse off the road just after Dyer and they crossed the field behind the Castine Historical Society. He glanced over at the Humvees as they hung a left onto State Street.

  “How do you wanna do this?”

  “Get me alongside it,” Ray yelled.

  “You got it.”

  The horse’s hooves beat out a rhythm against the hard ground as they burst through a thicket of trees and found themselves side by side with the second Humvee. It swerved trying to knock them but Sam managed to keep out of the way.

  “You need to get closer,” Ray said.

  “We get any closer and we’re done.”

  Ray tapped him on the shoulder. “Get up behind it, and then veer around fast and pull away.”

  “You sure?”

  “Just do it,” he bellowed over the sound of the wind.

  Sam gave it all he had, the horse moved up closer and then he darted to the left of the vehicle. One second Ray was behind him, the next he was hanging off the back of the Humvee. It swerved and Sam took the horse into the ditch and pressed on, glancing back to see Ray climb up. Up ahead he saw multiple cars filling up the road and Ray’s guys pushing more into place. There was no way in hell that Humvee was getting through and yet it barreled ahead as if it was going to smash right through.

  Sam looked back and saw the door open on the Humvee. One of the soldiers was trying to shoot Ray on top. Coming to his aid, he quickly brought the horse up the incline of the ditch and kicked the door crushing the guy’s hand. The handgun dropped and disappeared behind the vehicle. Ray gave a nod of appreciation before pushing the door open and lobbing inside a grenade, then, without concern for his own life he launched himself off the Humvee and landed hard, rolling down into the ditch.

  Seconds later, a loud pop was heard and the Humvee swerved, barreled down into the ditch and collided with multiple trees.

  Sam yanked on the reins and brought the horse to a stop before dismounting and hurrying over with his rifle at the ready. Ray got up and brushed himself off. He’d obviously hurt himself in the fall as he was now limping.

  Smoke was pouring out of the Humvee but no one got out.

  “Harris?” Ray asked.

  Carefully Sam approached and used the barrel of his gun to push one of the doors open. Inside, four soldiers were slumped over, Harris wasn’t inside.

  “He’s not here.”

  They glanced down the road to see the other Humvee plow through the barricade of vehicles. It didn’t get far before it came to a halt. Sam and Ray got back on the horse and hurried toward the carnage. Ray’s men moved in on the vehicle, guns raised, bellowing at the occupants who were falling out coughing and spluttering. Smoke rose up from the engine. Harris, Stephens and two soldiers emerged, a third was slumped over the wheel, unconscious.

  This time it was Sam who was quick to react. Taking out a Glock from his holster he made a beeline for Harris. Harris’ eyes widened in horror; his hands went up. “Please. Don’t shoot.”

  Sam climbed over vehicles to reach him. He grabbed him and put the barrel to his head. “Give me one reason why not?”

  “It was Bennington. I tried to reason with him but he wouldn’t listen.”

  Sam glanced at the woman who was bleeding from the head and under the watchful eye of Ray’s men. “This true?”

  “We were only authorized to take 10 percent not fifty. I wasn’t aware of that,” she said.

  Harris tried to pass the blame. “No. No. I didn’t authorize it.”

  “But you didn’t stop it, did you?” Ray said limping over. “We would have helped had you been reasonable but 10 percent wasn’t enough, was it? You had to have more. Now good people are dead because of it!” He lifted his gun but Sam put a hand up.

  “No. Wait.”

  “For what?”

  “The people of Castine should decide his fate.” Sam looked at Stephens. “Let her go.”

  “Let her go?”

  “If we kill them all we are no better.”

  Ray stared back at him.

  Stephens climbed down from a vehicle hood and brushed herself off. She wiped the blood from her forehead. Sam motioned to the horse. “Take it. The soldiers can go with you.”

  Stephens hesitated. Sam handed Harris over to Ray’s guys and instructed them to take him back to town. He began protesting and pleading. “No. Please. C’mon! I work for the government. You can’t do this! Please. We can talk about this. Brooke!” he yelled but she ignored him as she mounted the horse.

  Sam walked over to her and looked up. “Don’t return.”

  She winced in pain. “Trust me. I don’t plan on it.”

  With that said she nudged the horse and it trotted forward with the two soldiers walking either side of it. Sam dropped his head and shoved his Glock back into the holster. He let out a heavy sigh before taking a seat on the tailgate of a stalled truck. Ray walked over and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. Sam took one and Ray lit it. “You know she might come back,” Ray said as Sam blew out smoke.

  “No she won’t.”

  “Bennington did.”

  Sam glanced at him. “She’s not Bennington.”

  Ray squinted and looked over at Harris who was being led away in the distance by three of his guys. “They’ll hang him.”

  Sam chuckled and nodded. “Probably.”

  “If I’m not mistaken, Daniels, you almost seem happy.”

  “I am. We’ve got our home back.” He glanced at him and patted him on the back. Truth be told there was little to be happy about that day. For even though they had reclaimed Castine, it had come at a great cost. As he took a hard pull on his cigarette he thought back to what Bennington had said. Was it really Max’s fault or was it the consequences of a country that had fallen into chaos?

  There at the end of Wadsworth Cove Road they looked out over the Bagaduce River as the sun beat down, and reflected off the surface.

  Epilogue

  A month later

  Few knew how Harris died, only that Sam told the community that he was no longer a threat. Although the townsfolk were given the choice of determining his fate, reaching an agreement wasn’t easy. Eventually Ray took it upon himself to handle it, citing that Harris had been behind his brother’s death even though Bennington had pulled the trigger. All that was known was Harris took his last breath twenty-four hours after the battle for Castine. Some said he was shot, others said he could be found hanging from a tree in the center of Belfast. Sam was quick to dispel those rumors as hearsay, telling Landon that Harris’ final resting place was somewhere at the bottom of the bay. It seemed a fitting end to a man who rolled the dice on the lives of those who would have gladly helped had it not been for his greed. As for Teresa, she never returned. Though only a rumor shared by those who left the FEMA camp in the weeks that followed, they said Harris had killed her prior to his arrival. Whether there was any truth to that was to be seen.

  All that mattered now was picking up the pieces.

  Carl and Jake would eventually recover from their injuries and go on to work with Sam and the community to rebuild, farm and secure Castine. The challenge before them was great but if anyone was capable it was them. Ray stuck around for a few weeks but soon returned to Belfast, assuring them that if trouble raised its head, he’d be there for the community.

  Landon and Sara stood at the end of the old wooden dock that Ellie had caught her first fish on as a warm morning breeze blew in, and a bright orange sun rose above the horizon. He wiped sweat from his brow and said a prayer under his breath.

  “You know, I can still hear her laughter and see her smile,” Landon said. Sara had her arm looped around his as they looked out across the water at the break of day. Max, Eddi
e and Beth were out fishing in a boat not far from the shore. “I miss her.”

  “Me too.”

  “I hope you know, if I could have done anything…” he trailed off and a tear welled in his eye.

  “It’s okay. I know,” Sara replied, dropping her chin and giving his hand a squeeze.

  He pawed at his eye and cast a sideways glance at her. “You and I good?”

  She frowned. “Of course. What is it?”

  “Well… I know I’ve made mistakes, Sara, and… I’m no Jake but...”

  She removed her arm. “Landon.”

  “No, listen to me. I get it. I just want you to know that I get it. And if you ever feel trapped, know that I wouldn’t stand in your way or hold any resentment.”

  She stared at him as if expecting him to expand but he didn’t, instead she smiled. “Listen. Jake is a good person. Really good. He’ll always be a close friend, well… not too close… but… he’s not you. My home is with you,” Sara said.

  He studied her face and only looked away when the boat knocked up against the dock. “Oh c’mon!” Eddie protested. “You told us you never fished before.” He tossed fishing lines onto the dock. “Mr. Gray. Beth is a hustler.”

  “What? I’m not!”

  “Could have fooled me,” Max said, agreeing with Eddie.

  “I told you I hadn’t fished in waters this large. But I’ve fished,” Beth said stepping out of the boat with a grin on her face, and holding a huge trout in hand. The damn thing could have won a prize. “It’s not my fault you two caught nothing.”

  Sara laughed.

  Landon wrapped his arm around Max, and she did the same with Beth.

  “Come on, let’s go have breakfast.”

  “Um, hello! What about me? Hold up!” Eddie bellowed, tripping up behind them as he juggled two handfuls of fishing gear, and multiple lines. A few seconds later he let out a howl. “Oh brother! I think a hook just went in my ass cheek!”

  They all broke into laughter.