“Yes, exactly like that—only bigger.”
James laughed. “Now that is good news. We’ll stay on the radio here, since I don’t have anything better to do until I can get moving around again. I’ll let the Sheriff and Judge know to be on the lookout, should they make it up our way. Anything else?” asked James.
“No, that’s it,” replied David. “Well, except I got married today to a wonderful woman named Tina, who you met up here.”
“Ha!” said James. “That’s great news. I’ll bet Mark is happy for you too.”
“Yes, he is, and he has two new sisters he can help look out for.
“Okay, old friend. I have to go,” said David. “Keep your head down and your ears open. And one last thing. Anything you see in the air over the next few days is friendly.”
“I understand, David. Bye for now, and the wife and I will be praying for you all tonight.”
* * * *
David called the last meeting of the day for the adults to review the itinerary for tomorrow morning.
“They will be at our Raton Pass junction, 10 miles from where we are, sometime tomorrow—late morning or early afternoon.”
“How many?” asked Tom.
“We’re not sure, but we believe the number to be in the hundreds,” I added. “They have split from the other group that is following about a day behind them. Nobody knows for sure if we will face a few of them, all of them, or none of them if they just keep going straight over the Pass.
“My guess is they heard the story from the roadblock we encountered at the base of the Pass,” I added, “and they may have heard we were well armed. That, of course, in itself can be either a help or hindrance to our efforts, depending on how bad they want to work for it. Either way, we should, at the very least, expect scouts looking for their fallen comrades and, at most, a full-on river assault to defend with everything we have.”
“Last thing,” added in Vlad. “Do not…I repeat…do not fire on anything in the air, as it is likely the Colonel’s men.”
“We will commence our night shifts as previously discussed and will meet at 6 a.m. sharp right here tomorrow morning for immediate dispatch. Any questions?” I asked expectantly.
All were quiet.
“Okay, see you all in the morning, and should you see anything off tonight on any of your rounds, a single shot in the air will start an immediate move of the women and children, along with Ringo and Mini, to Beatrice’s house. The rest of us will meet quickly for an update.
“‘Families First’ on three. One, two, three!...”
* * * * * * * *
Chapter Thirteen
Raton Pass, New Mexico
My shift was 12 to 2 a.m., and I was paired with Jake. I hadn’t talked to him much in the past few days, with everything that had happened, and was looking forward to hearing his thoughts on Mike and our odds overall as a group.
Joy and I were asleep by nine p.m., not getting the afternoon rest we had hoped for.
I knew this could be the biggest test of our group thus far, and my childhood predator dream took hold of me, starting back at the beginning each time, like an old skipping record. I awoke, sweating and disoriented. Joy was shaking my arm, and I just now realized she had been asking what was wrong.
“Let’s go back to sleep, Honey,” I said, as I checked my watch.
It read 11:43. “I’ve got my shift in 15,” I told her. “No point in going back to bed now.” I dressed quickly and quietly exited the tent.
Ringo and Mini were curled up outside on their shared four-inch-thick dog bed we brought from McKinney. The boys were adamant in finding a spot on one of the trailers for the bed, citing it was only fair since everyone else had sleeping bags. I sat between them, petting their heads. “What do you think, big guy?” I asked the 150-pound Ringo. “If I don’t make it back, you take good care of Joy and the boys, okay?”
He put his large pink nose to mine and paused, finally giving a quick lick and mussing up my hair before laying back down. “And you’re responsible for this too,” I said, petting Mini’s head. Since the first day Jax had found her, she hadn’t once left Ringo’s side, and she was growing like crazy.
* * * *
“You’re up,” called out Nate. He had been paired with Tom. Jake pulled up on the four-wheeler, helping me into the back.
“Normally, I’m the one driving,” I told him.
“Yeah, and normally my ass is in bed at midnight and not out roaming the woods!” he replied.
“Let’s make a round and then sit at a high point overlooking the camp,” I suggested.
We rode the property perimeter in about 30 minutes, and we would do so again in an hour. Nothing seemed out of sorts, and we stopped on a small hill just above the camp, cutting the engine.
“It’s the calm before the storm,” I said aloud.
“If I’m honest, I’m nervous about how this will all play out,” I continued. “I mean, we know exactly what they do to women and children in front of the husbands. God only knows what they would do if none of us were around anymore.”
“I know what you’re saying, and I’ve been thinking the same thing. I can’t talk to Nancy about it without scaring her to death, or anyone else really. But I saw it firsthand, and men like that must be stopped at all cost.”
“I’m confident at least,” I told him, “after getting to know the Colonel just
