Frank Klus - Azaleas Don't Bloom Here

Then Armstrong felt someone poke his back. He noticed Ray and Cassandra were out of his sight. They probably have a plan. Look at Wrenn over there, with the smirk on his face. He knows what’s going on. Ray and Cass will need cover. Will he provide it?

Junior kept waving the rifle around. Mac just stared forward, breathing ever more rapidly. Ray kicked him in the back. Mac moaned something.

“All right, I’m coming,” yelled Wrenn.

Junior fell for the ruse.

Wrenn came up to Mac, who looked surprised at seeing him. Wrenn just stood there, looking scared. Junior’s vision of his boss was blocked. Cass reached over his left shoulder with two hands locked together by thumbs. With palms down, she came down hard on the gun, pushing it down to the ground. She made sure the barrel didn’t point up. At the same time, Ray put a shoelace around Mac’s neck, jerking it up and back with quick ferocity. Mac let out a slight groan and a whimper. Junior never picked up on it.

Cassandra wrenched the gun out of the dying Mac’s hand. Mac fought well, but quickly gave up the struggle and slumped back. Cassandra quickly aimed the gun at Junior and fired. Whether Junior woke up to the danger just in time or fired in reaction to being hit is uncertain, but he fired the rifle, and Pamela collapsed to the ground. Cassandra fired a second time and Junior was down.

Armstrong jumped into action. “Ray, Cass—get your weapons and go after the wounded guy. Go in the same direction Gene went. Wrenn, Foote—do the same, but go toward the office.” They moved quickly. “The rest of you—wait. Who’s missing?”

“Hayfield,” Moore said. “He followed Gene and the wounded man.”

“Christ, what the hell is he thinking? Never mind. The rest of you go with Moore. I want all of you together in his room.” Then he gave Moore the piece that Cassandra got from Mac. “Know how to use this?” Moore just stared at it. “The safety is off. All you have to do is aim and pull the trigger. Do not touch the trigger when you aren’t prepared to shoot. Keep your finger on the trigger guard, like this.” Armstrong showed him how to handle the gun. Moore indicated he understood and went with the rest to the room.

Sandy stood over Pamela’s body, crying hysterically. “Sandy,” Chad said. “She’s dead.”

Sandy just stared up at Chad. “We can’t just leave her here like this. Please, Chad, help me get her in my car. I don’t want her to die right here in this place; like this. She’ll be pronounced dead in New America. She can be with her brothers as she always wanted.”

Chad obliged, and then got Sandy in Moore’s room. Then he headed toward his own room to get his piece.

Eugene Sulke ran around the corner looking for a place to hide. The wounded man got the drop on him. Eugene froze. “That’s it, punk. Set your handgun down on the ground and come over here.”

Just then Horace Hayfield leaped on the wounded man’s back and grabbed his gun hand. Eugene picked his weapon back up, but couldn’t fire for fear of hitting Hayfield. He ran over and tried to wrestle the gun away from the man when the gun went off. Hayfield slumped to the floor and the wounded man now pushed Eugene back and took dead aim. Then another shot rang out. The stunned man whirled around only to be shot again. It was Ray.

Armstrong got the group assembled again. The next stop would be New America. Armstrong would lead the way. He would be followed by his two sharpshooters, Wrenn and Foote; and then came Sandy, with Pamela’s body in the back seat. Eugene would follow her, driving Pamela’s car. Moore was followed by Ray and Cassandra.

It was two hours earlier than planned, but still well after dark. They drove for the Highland barricade. There, they would shoot the guards, break the fence they assumed was padlocked, and drive to freedom. When they got there, however, they found the fence heavily fortified. Armstrong just made a right-hand turn at the fence, so as not to raise suspicions, and headed back toward the Lazy Tourist. The group pulled over to assess their situation.

“Christ, it’s like they know everything about our plan,” Ray said.

“Could, dare I say, one of us be a spy?” Cassandra asked.

Armstrong mulled that one over. “The only possibilities I see would be Hayfield and Moore. Hayfield just gave his life for Eugene, and Moore nearly had his brain torched. No, I don’t think any of us are spies. I’m certain that rat lawyer, Phillips, told them about us.”

“Still,” Cassandra said, “how did they know about tonight?”

“It could be a coincidence,” Chad said. “Phillips knew that we know every checkpoint in front of every border. Local authorities might have decided to increase security at every checkpoint. There’s probably a bounty on our heads, and no doubt Phillips wants to claim it for himself. He probably bribed the civil patrols with part of the bounty.”

“If what you say is true,” Eugene said, “then how will we ever get across?”

“One thing at a time, Gene,” Armstrong said. “Let’s go to the kid crossing one.” Henry Piper told them of the crossing where the parents brought their children with them when on patrol. “If heavily fortified, we’ll pull over someplace and reassess the situation.” Everyone agreed.

The group resumed their trip only to find the same situation. There were several additional men, and no children.

“No question,” Ray said. “They know our plans and they’re going to block all the access points.”

Sandy suggested trying another time, but Chad, and the others agreed that they were out of time. They would get across the border tonight or die trying. Armstrong and the other Blues got together to hammer out a final plan.

“I believe we’ll have to get around the border fence,” Ray said. “We can use the woods to hide in. Sneak around, take out the guards, open the fence, and then drive through.”

“Sounds like the plan,” Armstrong said. “Ray and Cassandra, you take the right woods. Me, Foote and Wrenn will take the left. Turn your phones to airplane mode. We’ll coordinate our assault by time; half hour should be enough.” They told the others of their plan and decided for an assault for exactly 11:30.

All agreed on the plan, except Terry Foote. “You know, I’m a little uncomfortable about dividing up and then not being able to communicate with each other.”

“The woods may be full of enemy folk,” Armstrong said.

“All the more reason why it’s a bad idea,” Foote said. “What if one side needs help? What if they get the drop on one of us? Nobody else will know.”

“Foote’s got a point,” Ray said.

“But two groups have a better chance at succeeding instead of one,” Armstrong said.

“But which groups do the civilians join?” Ray said.

Armstrong paused to think, and then began shaking his head in agreement. “You’re right. We’ll have to stay together. I’ll take the lead. Ray and Cassandra, you lag behind. Wrenn and Foote: you take the flanks. Everyone else in the middle.”

“We should have a scout,” Cassandra said. “I’ll volunteer.”

“I don’t like that idea,” Ray said.

“In most cases that would be a good idea, but not now. We should stay in close quarters,” Armstrong said.

Everyone agreed, and the group started out, out of sight of the guards. The plan was to circle around to the back of the guards, and catch them napping. Wrenn took the north point and was the first to spot an enemy patrol. He was spotted and darted behind a tree, but the trunk was too small to offer much protection. He took his AR70 out, but then stopped. What if there are a lot more in there?