“The if or the how, old friend?”
“Both,” replied Lonnie.
“Sure, but I want to pick who all discuss it. Okay?”
“All right,” Lonnie agreed.
Mike picked most of the core group, including Lonnie, Vlad, Joy, Nancy, Jake and me. He also asked both Aiden and Shane to join. Maybe to size them up, I thought.
“I’ll be joining as well,” said Sheila, not asking permission.
“Mitch, can you and your lady friend give us about 30?” I asked. “But don’t go far; we may have some questions for you.”
“Sure, and thanks for dinner,” he added.
* * * *
Our small group gathered away from the others, all watching our children closely.
“Okay, Lance, you start,” said Mike.
“Me? I’m not sure what to say.” I hadn’t called this meeting, and I had just believed Lonnie or Mike would speak first.
“Yeah, go ahead,” others were telling me.
I wanted to make sure I didn’t say any more about Mike than what was already common knowledge.
“Okay, I guess I’ll start with what I know. We have an injustice here, as best we can tell, assuming Mitch is telling the truth about everything. From what I’ve seen over the past few weeks, his story doesn’t seem so far-fetched as I would have thought, had I read the headline on my newsfeed before the day. So, I, for one, believe he and his girlfriend are telling the truth. For the entirety of our journey this far, we have helped those we could, sometimes easily and without risking our safety, and at other times putting our very lives at significant risk. That brings me to Mike.”
He smiled…well, kind of…and I paused, not wanting to say the wrong thing.
I continued: “We all know Mike in different ways, but I think we can all agree that he is willing to do what most men would not, in order to help someone who is preyed upon by another.”
Most nodded their heads yes.
“He’s not the kind of man who can just turn a blind eye to something bad happening around him, even if we are just passing through. He has been instrumental in the safe return of numerous children, including all three of Joy’s and mine. Does that sound about right?” I asked him.
“So far,” he replied without expression.
“Okay,” I continued. “If we assume the truth as told, we all know what’s going on here is pure evil, and we have two choices. We can ignore it and move on down the road or see if there is a way we can help. The first is easy physically, and we can head out of here tomorrow without a second thought, but it could weigh heavily on our consciousness later. The second is staying put for another day or more to see if we can rewrite this story happening here. And even then, there’s no guarantee of victory. Have I left anything out, Mike?”
“Only one thing I can think of,” he replied
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Your opinion on what we should do.”
“Yep, that’s where I thought you were going,” I responded, pursing my lips together. “I don’t like it, not any of it. My first thought would be to contact the Colonel, with Vlad’s help of course, and see if he wants some more Camp members. I don’t think the brothers are going to fight soldiers trying to pave the way to a FEMA Camp.
“If that didn’t work, then maybe there could be a way to take the power from the bad guys and give it back to the people. That’s a big maybe, though, and could cost us everything we’ve worked for so far. Am I okay with doing nothing? No. No, I’m not.”
“Thank you, Lance,” said Lonnie. “I think that’s a good start unless anyone has questions for him directly.”
Nobody spoke up, so I was off the hot seat.
“We could spend the next day or two discussing this,” said Lonnie. “Who’s in favor of Vlad trying to contact the Colonel, with Jim’s help?”
Most people raised their hands, including Vlad.
“Let’s start with that, and hope it’s that easy,” he added.
Jim kept Vlad close, as well as Mitch and his girlfriend, in case there were specific questions from the Colonel.
At 9 p.m., according to my watch, the drums started across the lake. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
At first, it was one…and then another…and soon it sounded like many.
Torches were lit in a circle around the pit at the far end of the lake.
“What the hell is that?” asked Vlad.
“It’s them!” said Mitch. “The fights are about to start.”
I was sitting with Joy and our boys outside. Our tent was still inside the circle of vehicles.
I stood, steadying myself on one leg while putting more pressure on my other than I had been able to do before. It wasn’t hard to see the fires, maybe two or three miles across the lake.
“Yay, drums and lights,” called out our boys.
I only hoped the screams Mitch had described would not be heard at this distance.
We have to be too far away, I thought. Thankfully we were, and thirty minutes later the flames went out.
* * * *
“He’s on with the Colonel,” said Jake, coming by our tent.
“That’s good. What did he say?” asked Joy.
“I’m not sure, but he’s talking with Vlad and Mitch now. Lonnie and Mike are listening in. I’ll be back when I hear.”
“Nah, I’ll come with you. My leg is feeling better anyway; just have to use the crutches still. Plus, I’m not going to be able to sleep without hearing it,” I said. “I’ll come back as soon as I know something,” I told Joy, kissing her on the forehead.
The conversation part I heard was towards the end, and
