Read Betrayal: Society Lost, Volume Two Online
Authors: Steven Bird
Quickly diving behind a large maintenance cart containing a hydraulic servicing unit, Jessie narrowly avoided being hit by the buckshot as it penetrated the hydraulic reservoir, spilling gallons and gallons of slippery, purple Skydrol hydraulic fluid onto the hangar floor.
Racking another round into the chamber of the Remington 870 pump-action shotgun, Peronne fired another shot blindly, keeping Jessie pinned down behind the metal cart while he ran across the back of the hangar and out the rear fire exit.
Leaving his position of cover, Jessie ran to the fire exit, and dashed out into the area behind the hangar, looking both ways, but seeing no sign of Peronne.
Damn it, 50/50 chance... left or right?
he quickly thought as he decided to run around the hangar to the left in hopes of catching sight of Peronne before he was once again fired upon.
Reaching the west-facing outside wall of the hangar, Jessie heard a diesel generator fire up, followed immediately by the large electrically actuated doors on the front of the hangar beginning to open. Running on around the large structure to reach the main hangar doors, Jessie caught a glimpse of Peronne as he stood on the wing of the Beechcraft Baron and fired several volleys of buckshot at Jessie, forcing him to dive back behind the side of the building to seek cover.
Hearing both engines of the Baron cough and belch themselves to life as the propellers began to spin, Jessie rounded the corner, cocked the hammer and fired at the cockpit. Cocking the hammer and firing a second shot, Jessie saw a bright flash of muzzle blast as well as the accompanying crack of the shotgun’s powerful muzzle report as Peronne fired the shotgun with one hand out the co-pilot side-entry door while he began taxiing the aircraft with his feet and free hand at the controls.
Speeding out of the hangar, wildly swerving the aircraft to the left and taxiing under what was near takeoff power, Peronne headed for the runway while Jessie fired the last remaining shots from his revolver, seemingly having no impact on the aircraft as it sped away.
Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Jessie saw one of Peronne’s SUVs rapidly approaching from across the airport, following the trail of destruction that Jessie and Peronne had left during their vehicular pursuit.
Crap!
Jessie thought as he began to retreat toward the hangar while he simultaneously flipped open the loading gate on his pistol, ejecting the spent shell casings as he ran in preparation to reload. Stopping just short of the hangar, Jessie saw a woman behind the wheel of the vehicle. “Leina!” he shouted as she came to a stop. To his surprise, he saw Angela exiting the vehicle from the passenger-side door, both of the women rushing toward Jessie.
Pointing at the escaping aircraft, Jessie shouted, “That’s him! That’s Peronne!
Turning back toward the SUV, Jessie watched as Angela pulled out her long-range precision rifle and ran as fast as she could to get into a position to fire. As the aircraft reached takeoff speed and rotated into the air, Leina knelt down in front of Angela, who placed the barrel of her rifle onto Leina’s shoulder to steady her shots while Leina covered her ears, took aim, and fired at the departing aircraft. Cycling the bolt, chambering another round, Angela fired again, and again, until her five-round box magazine was empty.
As the three of them watched Peronne fly away, the aircraft slowly began to list to the left, entering a left-wing-low turn, spiraling down to the ground, completely destroyed on impact, bursting into flames with its wing-tanks full of volatile and highly flammable Avgas.
Jessie walked over to the two women, hugged them both, and then the three of them stood there and silently watched as Chief Peronne’s wreckage burned into nothing more than a smoldering heap of twisted aluminum and ashes.
After several moments of silence, Jessie turned to Angela and Leina, and asked, “How? What?” as he tried to figure out how the two of them had joined forces to join him in the pursuit.
Leina spoke up, saying, “I just couldn’t drive away and leave you there to die. It would have haunted me for the rest of my life. I would have rather died right there with you. By the time I got back, chaos had erupted as Angela here and several other townspeople had begun to engage Peronne’s men. She knew who I was. Evidently everyone did. Anyway, we watched your trail of dust as you chased Peronne out of town, so we decided to follow.
Turning back to view the smoldering wreckage, Jessie said, “Thank God you did. Thank God you did...”
Several weeks later...
As Jessie pushed his chair away from the dinner table at Jack’s home, he looked at Angela and said, “That was a damn fine meal. The best I’ve had in, well, years.”
“You’re welcome. It’s nice to have a semblance of normalcy around here again. I can’t believe how fast the town seems to be recovering from the hell Peronne put us through.”
Looking to Jack at the head of the table, Jessie said, “Well, with Mayor McGuigan here in charge of things, I’m sure it’ll all work out just fine. How exactly did you con the rest of the people here into giving you that job, Jack?”
“It’s not something I was aspiring to be, trust me on that,” he replied. “I just want to help get some legitimate local leadership established and get a militia made up of all of the people, the entire population of able-bodied adults, up and running so that we never run into a problem like Peronne again. We will never be disarmed again. We will never let anyone, elected or not, run roughshod over our individual, God-given rights, ever again.”
“Amen to that,” Jessie said as he raised his glass with everyone in the room joining him for a toast.
That evening, after everyone had retired for the night and gone back to their own homes, Jessie sat on the front porch with Jack, quietly taking a sip of home-brewed beer made by one of the locals. Breaking the silence, Jessie said, “I just wish Leina hadn’t slipped away in the middle of the night like she did. I mean... I understand. She’s never going to be able to rest in this world without trying to find her children, but she didn’t have to go on her own.”
“Now, Jessie, you know as well as I do that sometimes people need to set out on their own for a mission that even they know they probably won’t complete. As a matter of fact, that sounds like the story of someone else I know,” Jack replied, taking a sip of beer. “Damn, that’s good stuff, all things considered.”
Noticing that Jessie had suddenly become tongue-tied as he stared blankly at the wooden porch floor, Jack added, “As a matter of fact, it seems to me like you’ve got such a thing stewing in your mind right now. You know you don’t have to leave. As a matter of fact, we just happen to have open the position of sheriff, who will, of course, be our militia leader as well. Do you know anyone around here that has the qualifications to fill such a position? I think I might know someone who does.”
Rocking his chair back and forth, patiently waiting on Jessie’s reply, Jack asked, “So, Sheriff Townsend, do you know anyone who holds such qualifications?”
Looking up at Jack, Jessie replied, “Sheriff Townsend died a long time ago. I’m just Jessie or J. T. now. And you’re right, I know exactly how Leina must have felt when she left, leaving nothing but a goodbye note behind.”
“You’re not gonna leave a note, though, are you?” asked Jack.
“I... I’ve got to...”
Interrupting him before he could finish, Jack said, “I know Jessie. I know. Your soul will never rest either, just like hers. Just promise me if you ever find room in your heart to be a part of a community again, that you’ll consider us here at Fort Sumner. We’d be honored and lucky to have you as one of our fellow citizens.”
“Thanks, Jack. I’ll always keep you good people in mind and in my heart. Take care of Angela, or rather, I guess I should tell her to take care of you.”
With a laugh, Jack replied, “Yeah, that’s a more appropriate statement these days. She’s something else.”
“You did well, my friend. The world needs more parents like you if we’re going to make it through all of this.”
Answering only with a smile, Jack tipped his glass and took another sip of beer, as he and Jessie gazed out at the stars and enjoyed each other’s company for what they both knew was the last time.
~~~ The End ~~~
As I sit here before my keyboard, having completed my eighth book, I reflect upon what an amazing journey it has been. I’ve met a lot of people along the way, both in person and online, who have greatly inspired me to continue down this path. People from within the industry as well as readers have made this a true labor of love for me that I plan to continue for my foreseeable future. I thank you each and every one for that, from the bottom of my heart.
If I have not had the honor of making your acquaintance and if you like my work, please find me on Facebook at
http://facebook.com/stvbird
and at my blog at
http://www.stevencbird.com
. You can also follow me on Twitter at
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. In addition, my Amazon author page can be found at
http://www.amazon.com/Steven-Bird/e/B00LRYYBDU/
where you can see all of my available work.
I look forward to hearing from each and every one of you, and may God bless you and your loved ones in all of your future endeavors.
Just as Jack and Jessie shared a drink in the final chapter, I raise my glass to each and every one of you, and offer you my friendship and thank you for yours in return.
Respectfully,
Steven C. Bird
Steven Bird was born in Harlan, KY in 1973, where he lived until joining the U.S. Navy in 1992. He spent the next thirteen years living in Northwest Washington State, where he served on active duty for eleven of those years. After leaving active duty, he completed twenty years of service in the Navy Reserve retiring as a Navy Chief Petty Officer. While in the reserves, he pursued a civilian flying career, serving as a flight instructor, charter pilot, turboprop first officer, jet first officer, jet airline captain, and he currently flies as the captain of a super-midsized business jet based out of Knoxville, Tennessee. He has served in both military and federal law enforcement capacities and holds CFI, CFII, MEI, and ATP pilot certificates with numerous jet type ratings, as well as a bachelor's degree in eBusiness.
In his spare time, Steven has been involved in off-road motorcycle racing, competitive shooting, hunting, fishing, hiking, and myriad other outdoor activities. He currently focuses his free time on his family as a happily married father of three. He and his wife Monica have a farm in Deer Lodge, Tennessee, where they raise their own fruits and vegetables, in addition to raising chickens, Katahdin sheep, American Blackbelly sheep, and various breeds of cattle.
Steven Bird is a self-sufficiency-minded individual with a passion for independence and individual liberty. He puts this passion into his writing where he conveys the things that he feels are important in life, intertwined with action-packed adventure and the struggles of humanity.