Endless Flames (Surviving Ashes, Book Four) (16 page)

Berke had easily switched topics, regardless that the two couldn’t have been further apart on the spectrum. His ability to do so was just another facet of what defined the man’s character. He could adapt, improvise, and survive on the fly, making him a valuable asset to anyone. And yet, Maxie could see beyond that quality to the compassionate soul below. She no longer felt the need to question why this happened or why they were thrown together. Okay, she might have forced the latter, but everything had still occurred as if by design and she wasn’t about to question that now.

“Thank you,” Maxie murmured softly, grateful when Berke turned back to her instead of walking away. “For not leaving us behind when we needed you back in Texas.”

Berke parted his lips to say something, but then shook his head as if he were at a loss for words. He stepped forward and gently rested the hand that hadn’t been sullied against her cheek, leaning in close enough so that their lips were inches apart.

“I’m the lucky one, Maxie. I couldn’t understand then how much I needed you.” Berke pressed his lips tenderly against hers, promising her more than just this brief moment. He gradually pulled away, taking the time to kiss Jacob on top of his head too. “Let’s get ready to go home.”

Home
. Maxie supposed that’s what the lodge had now become…a home that she’d yet to explore. She had no qualms about meeting his team and in fact looked forward to it. They had helped mold Berke into the man he was, so they were truly incredible people to begin with who were just as lucky to have him in their lives. Jacob was a very lucky boy to have the group as his future role models and she was a very fortunate woman to have met a man with all the qualities she’d always searched for…she just hadn’t known he’d been so close all along.

“Book!”

“Berke has to take care of something, sweetie,” Maxie said with a comforting smile, turning to search the side of the docking area where there were a lot of areas for a small animal to hide. She pointed to the corner, figuring they’d start from there. It was a hell of a lot better than watching as Joseph Webb was sutured, all the while being questioned about this rogue group of agents’ attempts to take over the bunker. “Spot, huh? I’m wondering how you managed to curl that big, macho man around your finger in such a short amount of time. I might need some lessons on your methods, mister. He even named your kitty for you.”

Jacob seemed to understand that they were searching for the black and white cat, because his head was swiveling left and right while looking everywhere. He was clapping his hands together, as if instinctually knowing that was how to call for an animal. Maxie walked closer to some machinery for compacting cardboard that might now offer some concealment for their new family member, leaning down to look underneath and behind it. It would have been where she’d gone for cover if she would have fit.

“Here kitty, kitty,” Maxie crooned melodiously. Jacob tried to join her, but it sounded nothing like words from the English language. It wasn’t long before she could hear the murmuring of men’s voices, one of them moaning in pain. Same room, yet completely different scenarios. It was hard to reconcile the two and yet it was something they would all have to get used to. Life had changed as they knew it, but that didn’t mean that all life was without value. Maybe even their half-starved furry feline companion doing what he could to survive was part of the new family plan. “Here kitty, kitty.”

B
erke leaned against
the brush guard on the front of the Mule as he studied Joseph Webb, not pleased that he had to resort to savage methods. It could have been a hell of a lot worse had he not believed this coward only wanted a sanctuary where he could survive for years to come—and to hell with anyone who got in the way of that. He didn’t have the right type of mindset required in a group setting where sharing a shelter in an apocalyptic situation was necessary. He wasn’t loyal, honest, or trustworthy. Therefore, he was a liability and Berke was able to play on that.

“What’s this section chief’s name?” Berke asked, listening carefully for any signs of his team’s arrival. He’d need to give them entrance through the side door, which was where Webb had managed to get inside by breaking off the handle from the outside and popping the lockset out. “And how many others does he have following his lead in this little illegal adventure?”

“You’ll keep your word, just like you said?” Webb asked, shifting his body weight with a painful wince. His knee was damaged beyond anything Berke could mend, but hopefully someone up at the lodge had enough experience so that this man could walk again. “You’ll give me medical attention and a place to stay?”

Berke had been very careful on not promising this man anything, but he did agree to the medical treatment. He’d been vague on whether or not Webb would be given a safe haven for the near term. Everything would depend on Webb’s group and exactly what they had planned for their little upcoming coup. Whomever else they’d sent to scout out their progress most likely had heard the gunshot and had headed out to report back to his or her commander. The fallout had yet to come and that alone would determine what would happen to Webb.

“We’ll get you up to the lodge and provide you with some medical attention, but that all depends on your continued cooperation.” Berke could hear Maxie and Jacob searching for the cat they’d seen earlier, grateful she was keeping the boy occupied. He didn’t need to see something that would inevitably stay with him for the rest of his life. “I want a name and I want a count.”

“Section Chief Steven Allman and we took a hit to our numbers the other day during the first attack,” Webb admitted, wincing even more when he shifted his weight to prevent his hands from going numb. There wasn’t a chance of that happening due to the fact he was still in those zip ties. He’d stay that way too, until they reached the bunker and were able to put him in a holding cell. Tank had thought far enough ahead. That chamber and its location down the security tunnel would finally come in handy, as well as the cold rolled steel bars for the cage and surplus federal prison cell doors he’d found at the Defense Reutilization & Marketing Office in Barstow, California. Berke focused on what Webb had just said, realizing that Jason Wick’s death might have not been the only one if Allman had decided to go for gold. “I’d say they’re left with a little over a dozen trained personnel. Maybe fifteen more unskilled worker bees.”

That was a lot of manpower and Berke would have continued his questioning had he not heard the voices of his teammates approaching. Damn, that was a nice thing to hear after three weeks of grey, cold hell. He stepped forward, lifting himself off the black tubular frame of the Mule’s headlight guards and made his way to the door he’d blocked with a crowbar wedged into the jam. He called out to Maxie as he finally opened the door, stepping back and careful not to breathe in the ash that blew in with two of the four men he’d been expecting.

The sight of Mav and Mason wearing winter gear obscured in grey residue with gasmasks covering their face was just short of a science fiction movie. Their imposing frames were really no less than his own, but the added reinforcements took the glory at the moment. He shoved the door closed, using the crowbar to keep it in place while Mav and Mason removed their masks, causing ash to drop off of them as if they’d been buried in the new fallen snow.

“Damn, it’s good to see you two,” Berke said, stepping up and snatching Mav’s hand in his, bringing him in for a brief hold. Neither one cared about the ash that was now covering the front of Berke’s long-sleeved shirt. He turned toward Mason, doing the same and reiterating his statement. “Damned good, brother. Where are the others off to?”

“Positioned appropriately in order to make sure we have a clear path back home without any surprises,” Mav explained cautiously, shaking his mask out to the side and then tapping out the accumulated ash from the filter while staring at Webb. Mav had already set his backpack on the floor and retrieved another one, making short work of the exchange. He brought his dark gaze up to meet Berke’s, concern shining through. “Everyone all right?”

“Yeah, we’re fine. He pissed off the lady by lying to her,” Berke replied honestly, knowing that his friends were worried about his reaction to what had taken place up at the lodge. He’d spent the night ruminating in guilt and he’d been lucky to get that much time, but it had been Maxie who had talked some sense into him. Right now, they had to deal with the fact that a section chief of an operational department in the NRO wanted the mountain for himself and he would stop at nothing in order to achieve his goal. “Maxie?”

“Right here.”

Maxie stood by the Mule studying the people in front of her while holding Jacob on her cocked hip. Her petite frame was made to look even smaller with the boy in her arms, but the authoritative look in her observation along with the utility belt made it known that she was no lightweight. Her intuitive blue eyes were taking in his friends, who didn’t look anything like they did in a normal setting. Crushed, cloaking soot covered the true color of their hair, camouflaged their clothes, and was now smeared on their sweaty faces from the removal of their masks.

“You left out a detail or two,” Mav pointed out without having to say anything, but it certainly broke the ice. His gaze was zeroed in on Jacob. “Something you want to tell us there, bro? Any congratulations in order?”

“Maxie and Jacob, please meet Mav and Mason.” Berke took the time to introduce everyone even though Mason had already walked to where Webb was still leaning up against the insulated aluminum garage door. He wasn’t known for his pleasantries. “Mason, he comes with us. I can strap him across the front rack of the Mule, if need be.”

“Really?” Mason stood over Webb, not having to make it appear as if he were the one the man needed to be afraid of in the current situation. There was no doubt. “Why have him come with us when we can finish the job right here?”

“Long story short, the tango in front of you goes by the name of Joseph Webb. His NRO section chief wants the lodge to establish his own faction in the new world order he’s envisioned and Paige was their way in.” Berke grimaced at the vile taste left in his mouth after uttering that woman’s name, but he didn’t have any more time to give in to his self-pity. Maxie had already shook hands with Mav and then stepped back, monitoring Mason from a safe distance. “Webb came up with another idea, but that didn’t work out quite so well for him either.”

“Which means he’s got a recon team close by,” Mason predicted, staring down at their subject. “How many?”

Static and a click of a mic indicated a transmission coming through on Mav’s radio. He unclipped it from his belt inside his jacket, disruptive ash once again falling to the floor. He removed the remote mic/earpiece plug that he used when wearing his mask and keyed the radio in response.

“Echo Five Bravo Actual, targets are neutralized.”

Webb closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the garage door, his chances of a rescue diminishing more and more with every passing second. There was no need to even answer Mason’s question. It didn’t help that he’d leaned down to inspect the wound Berke had sutured, thus garnering a little wariness from the owner. He was already shaking his head while trying to barter.

“I told your friend everything. He made a deal,” Webb stated somewhat jadedly, exhaustion and pain settling into his bones. “I have nothing to hide at this point. There was a raid on the government facility where my team and I were supposed to take Paige Olivier and her team. Much of our sustainment supplies were diverted to an ad hoc civilian evacuation station at some Air Force base. We wouldn’t have had the supplies to last beyond the initial few months needed, so we improvised. The deal I made with your buddy over there was shelter and medical care in exchange for information. We agreed.”

“That didn’t stop you or your buddies from resorting to killing to get what you wanted, did it? A young man that never got his chance to experience life as an adult is dead because of your group. We don’t take that lightly around these parts.” Mav informed Webb before responding to Owen. The man had to be part coon dog to have been born with his tracking abilities. “Copy. Proceed to rendezvous point, Charlie Alpha One. You have overwatch.”

“He’ll ride with me,” Mason advised without hesitation before pulling his backpack around and unzipping the contents, pulling out a gasmask. “Put this on before I change my mind and let my brother strap your ass to the rack on his little scooter. You…”

Mav motioned for Berke to close the distance between them so that Webb wouldn’t overhear. This last trek up to the lodge wasn’t going to be one of elation, the way he’d anticipated. There was no safety net. That had been realized early on, but the hope of one had been strong. He’d known better and truly wished he’d been able to provide Maxie and Jacob the sanctuary they’d desired. Instead, it had become nothing but a target for some fucking monster and his ghouls.

“Book.”

“I’m right here, buddy.” Berke held out his hands and positioned Jacob higher up in his right arm. “You did real good taking care of your mom.”