“I don’t know.”
“Why don’t we just let Colonel Gray and his people take them all out right now?” Rebel asked.
“Because that way, we’d only knock off the tip of the iceberg. They’d rebuild. I want the entire chunk.”
“Colonel Jefferys on the horn, General,” the radio operator said. “He says it’s urgent.”
Ben walked to the communications truck and took the mic. “Go, Gee.”
“One of our scouting parties was ambushed just inside the Chattahoochee National Forest,” Cecil I said. “We took some hard casualties. And Ben? Ike’s missing.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Ben tossed in his sleeping bag that night. He would doze for a few moments, then awaken to toss and turn once more. After several hours of fitful sleep, Ben threw back the sleeping bag cover and said, “Shit!”
Gale was silent. But Ben knew she was not asleep. He looked at her form in the darkness, her back to his eyes.
Gale sighed deeply after a few moments. “Will you quit staring at me?”
“Go ahead,” Ben said. “Say it. Get it over with, Gale.”
“Say what?”
“You’ve been pulling the silent treatment on me all evening. Now either knock it off or say what’s on your mind, will you?”
She turned to face him, fixing her dark eyes on his face. “That was quite a performance you gave this afternoon. And in front of the troops, too. I must admit, I’d never seen anything quite like it.”
Ben grunted. “Yeah. I thought perhaps that was it.”
“You almost scared the pee out of those young troops, Ben. Some of them were actually trembling, listening to you rant and rave and carry on like a madman.”
“I guess so. All right. I’ll apologize to them in the morning.”
“It is morning!”
“Oh. Really? Well … later on in the morning, then. Damn it, Gale, Ike knew better. He and Cec share the responsibility when I’m gone. He had no business taking off like that. This not only puts me in a bad situation, but just think where it leaves Cecil.”
“Oh, Ben! Hell! Ike is just like you. He can’t sit around doing nothing. He’s got to be a part of the action. Just like you. So ease off Ike’s case, buster.” She softened her tone. “You’re really upset about this, aren’t you, Ben?”
“Yeah. But I shouldn’t be, I guess. Ike can take care of himself.” But the whispered reply held a note of concern. “We’ve been together a long time. Really, since the beginning, back in
‘88.”
Gale waited.
“I met him down in Florida. Ike and four or five lovely young ladies. Ike married one of them, Megan. I told you about that.” He laughed softly. “Let’s see. There was Honey-Poo, June-Bug, Tatter, Angel-Face, Bell-Ringer. That was Megan’s nickname. Juno was with me, then. The husky.”
“Did you ever see any of those women again? I don’t mean …”
“I know what you mean. No, I never did. I don’t know what happened to them.”
“You ever wonder?”
“Oh, yes.”
“You two-three, really, counting Cecil-have been through a lot together.”
“Yes. And Ike’s not a young buck any longer. He’s
crowding fifty awfully hard. Goddamn it!”
“Settle down, Ben.” Gale slipped from the sleeping bag and came to him. She slipped slender arms around his neck and blew in his ear, “Watch your BP, old man.”
He smiled and kissed her.
“Really, Ben, you can’t blame Ike. In a sense you’re doing the same thing.”
“Oh?”
“Sure. We’re sitting down here, a hundred miles away from the main group. Nobody wanted you to leave- right?”
“We might head back soon.”
“No, we won’t, Ben. Think about it.”
His smile flashed white in the darkness. “You giving the orders, now, huh?”
“You want to return so you can lead the search for Ike,” she said, pegging his thoughts accurately. “And that is dumb on your part. Very dumb. Think about it, Ben.”
He was silent for a moment. Then he sighed. “You’re right, Gale. Ike knows the policy. We won’t sacrifice a dozen to save one. They were his rules, back in Tri-States. He wouldn’t want them violated any more than I would.”
“Get some sleep, Ben. We’ll talk about it in the light.”
He returned to his side of the big double sleeping bag and to the warmth of the woman.
Her fingers found him; his hands found her.
“Won’t this hurt the baby?” he asked.
Her reply was at first a chuckle. “I really doubt it, Ben.”
CHAPTER FIVE
“You can save yourself a great deal of pain,” the voice came to him. “Tell us where General Raines is hiding.”
“Don’t know, partner,” Ike said. “Ben is his own man. He goes where he damn well pleases. And he don’t always tell us.”
White hot pain tore into Ike’s left arm. He bit back a scream as the electric charge lashed at him with invisible claws.
“You lie.”
“Tellin’ you the truth, partner,” Ike gasped.
The pain left his arm. Ike sighed with relief. Then the pain shifted to his right leg as the wires were attached and activated by a crank. Ike chewed his lips bloody fighting back screams.
“Ben Raines is a false god.” Ike heard the words through waves of hurt. “Only Sister Voleta and the Ninth Order is real. We have learned that to worship both God and Satan is the real way to happiness and contentment on this earth. We all have taken vows to destroy any who worship false gods. Where is Ben Raines?”
Ike looked at his torturers. “Fuck you!”
The pain came in waves.
CHAPTER SIX
Tony looked at the just-budding breasts and thin pubic hair of the young girl lying on his bed. Blood dotted the white sheet.
She had been a virgin. A real, honest-to-God cherry. Tony had begun to believe there weren’t any of them left in the country. He’d wait a few minutes more before taking another whack at the kid. Been a long time since he’d had any pussy that tight. Like to have never got his cock in. Sure felt good once he did, though.
“How old are you, kid?”
“Twelve, I think,” she whispered.
“No shit! You got some fine gash, baby. It got good to you, didn’t it, sweets?”
The child hesitated for only a few seconds. Then survival took precedence over the pain between her legs. She knew all about Tony Silver. Everybody in north Florida and south Georgia knew about Tony Silver. The Man. She was young in years, but wise to the ways of staying alive. She was a survivor. “Yes,” the child said. “I liked it.”
Tony grinned. “Sure, you did, baby. Ol’ Tony’s been pleasin’ the ladies for years. Now you roll over here and give ol’ Tony some head. Get me all hard
again and we’ll have some more fun.”
