Strengthen What Remains (Book 2): A Time to Endure Read Free Page B

make it difficult for them.” Sitting in his patrol car he
advised dispatch to secure two dump trucks. “Use one to block the highway at
the narrow spot near the top of the hill and bring the other to the Westmore
farm.” He took a deep breath and then continued. “They killed two of the local
guardsmen just west of town.”
    “Roger, Sheriff. The bodies of two other guardsmen
were found east of the city limit along the highway.”
    Hoover sighed. “Notify the auxiliaries, the
Legion, VFW and the guys who volunteered before. If they want to help, have
them come to the Westmore farm. Out.”
    He hung the microphone back on the radio and, with
furrowed brow, stood beside his car.
    As the sound of gunfire echoed across the valley,
they waited.
    “I called Mom.” Vicki walked up to Zach. “She
wants us to stay put till the soldiers leave.”
    He nodded. “She makes sense—when she’s sober.”
    Vicki walked off in a huff.
    Using his binoculars, Trevor scanned the area. “I
can’t see any lookouts.”
    “Wouldn’t they be hidden?” Maria said.
    “Probably. They are trying to conceal their
movements from Caden, but they haven’t bothered hiding from us. I don’t think
they’re concerned about the civilians—that’s their mistake.” Trevor pointed to
the highway. “The dump truck is coming.”
    Zach looked in that direction. Police and other
cars followed the truck.
    The parade of vehicles rumbled up the dirt
driveway to the Westmore home and formed an arch around part of the house and
barn like the circling of wagons from a different era.
    Soon a small crowd of people waited at the edge of
the porch. Trevor moved to the top of the steps while Hoover stopped at the
bottom.
    Trevor told the assembled men about the two
guardsmen that were killed along the highway. As he did he pointed to the spot
in the distance. “Two more were shot east of town. They may be soldiers, but
they no longer respect our laws, our traditions, or our Constitution.
Furthermore, they are trying to kill those among us who are standing up for
those principles. We want to keep these men out of our town, like we stopped
the looters after the nuke attacks.”
    There was a murmur of agreement.
    During the chaos of the terrorist attacks Zach’s
girlfriend, DeLynn, had suggested that he volunteer as a guard on the blockade,
but his mother had called him a kid and said, “I won’t have you messing with
guns.” So he watched and did nothing while others saved the community. This time I won’t ask her. DeLynn will be
proud of me.
    Hoover nodded slowly and then walked up the steps.
Standing beside Trevor on the porch he said, “Ben Franklin once said, ‘We must
all hang together or, we shall all hang separately.’ Everyone needs to
understand, once we engage the army there will be no turning back. Either we
succeed, die trying, or die as traitors.”
    “We’ll succeed, just like we did before,” someone
said.
    Again, there was a murmur of agreement and the
crowd dispersed toward the vehicles.
    Zach walked with the flow. This time he was
determined to be part of the action.
    At the edge of the cars, an old man with a
scraggily gray beard stood beside an ancient red pickup. “Do you have an extra
gun?” Zach asked. “I’d like to help.”
    The old man looked at him with a skeptical eye.
“How old are you?”
    “Eighteen.”
    He rubbed his beard and looked at the boy doubtfully.
    “I was going to enlist this summer.” It was a lie,
but Zach told it with all the conviction he could muster. He saw two military
type guns in the cab and hoped that the man would not give him one as he had no
idea how to use it.
    The man reached behind the seat and grabbed a
rifle. “Here,” and handed it, and a box of ammo, to him.
    Zach knew it was a hunting rifle, but knew nothing
about the caliber or where the safety was located. “Thanks.” He jumped in the
back of the pickup. He slid down so no one, especially his sister, would