“Come on,” Gilbert said, helping him to his feet. “Let’s get over to my truck.”
They hopped over to the still-standing big rig and climbed into the cab. Eason propped his feet up on the dash, taking a well-needed breather, and Gilbert settled into the driver’s seat.
“Gilbert, you copy?” Herrera asked through the radio. “You two okay?”
Gilbert picked up the radio and raised it to his mouth. “Yeah, we’re good, Corporal,” he replied. “How’s life on the other side of the bridge?”
“We’re alive and kicking, but still have a bit of work to do once the sun comes up,” came the reply.
Gilbert nodded. “Won’t be that difficult to get things squared away,” he replied. “All in all, I’d say we did a pretty good job holding these things off.”
“I think you’re right,” Herrera replied, and then took a deep breath. “And for what it’s worth, you did a good job today.”
Gilbert heard the reluctance in the Corporal’s voice, and he couldn’t help but laugh. “Let me guess… still haven’t made amends?” he asked.
Herrera chuckled. “Hell no, not by a long shot,” he replied.
“That’s fair, I suppose,” Gilbert admitted.
“Keep this up through the rest of the conflict, however, and we can talk,” Herrera said.
Gilbert sat up straighter. “Rest of the conflict?” he asked. “You mean we aren’t done after this?”
“Being a soldier is for life!” the Corporal replied, feigning shock. “Didn’t anybody tell you that?”
Gilbert chuckled. “Pretty sure the only thing the recruitment guy told me was that if I signed that piece of paper, it would get me out of my hometown,” he said.
“I mean…” Herrera drawled, “he wasn’t wrong.”
“No, no he was not,” Gilbert agreed.
“Well, you boys get rested up,” the Corporal said. “When the sun gets finished rising, we’ll figure out all we need to do to secure this bridge.”
“Good with that,” Gilbert replied.
Herrera tossed down the CB and propped his feet up, taking a deep breath. He stared down the bridge to the east, looking over thousands of undead heads all struggling to get to him. A few minutes later, the sun began to peek up over the horizon, creating a beautiful view over an ugly landscape.
He tried to reconcile those two things meeting in the middle, knowing that this was just another day in the apocalypse.
END
Up Next: Corporal Bretz leads a daring mission to block off the interstate to the north of downtown in “Seattle - Part 3”.
SEATTLE - PART 3
DEAD AMERICA - THE NORTHWEST INVASION
BOOK 5
BY DEREK SLATON
© 2020
CHAPTER ONE
Day Zero +23
David walked across the crowded airport, still teeming with life despite the nearly five AM time. The planes from the Mercer Island mission had landed and were being refueled and checked in a few of the hangars.
He stopped on the runway as a large group of heavily armed soldiers walked across, pausing to give them space. Most of the men looked barely awake, still rubbing their eyes as they matched towards the commuter buses.
There were hundreds of soldiers dropping their gear by the side of the bus, stretching and taking a seat on the ground. David shook his head, worrying about what those men were heading in to, and how many more were on the way to join them.
Best trained military in the world. But they’re really up against it this time, he thought bitterly. If I’m going to have faith in anyone to pull this off, it’s them.
The last few soldiers in the formation passed, looking over at him with curious eyes. It was a strange sight to see a civilian in shorts and a t-shirt carrying mugs of coffee casually int he middle of a military zone. He nodded politely, prompting friendly nods in return. He couldn’t expect all of the general soldier base to know who he was, considering most of his work with Captain Kersey was behind the scenes.
He headed for the small office at the base of the control tower. He checked his watch, reading 4:58 A.M. He sighed, knowing he was early. He didn’t want to bother the Captain even a second earlier than he was supposed to, making sure he got the proper recharge time he needed.
He turned around and continued surveying the sights for a little bit, sipping at his fresh coffee. He checked his watch again, and when it clicked over to 5:00, he carefully transferred both mugs into one hand, juggling them to open the door.
The office was dark, with only stray rays of spotlights from the hangar piercing through the cracks in the blinds. He set the mugs down on a desk and gripped the pull cord on the blinds, opening them up fully, flooding the room with light.
He looked around, brow furrowed with confusion, not seeing anyone around. “Captain Kersey?” he called. “It’s David.”
A groan sounded from behind the desk, and the sound of cracking bones and shuffling.
“It’s five A.M. and I have your coffee,” David declared, “like you requested.”
More groaning and a hand emerged from behind the desk, fingers curling over the wood to haul up the rest of its body. Captain Kersey peeled himself off of the floor and immediately flopped into his desk chair, rubbing his forehead.
“Five A.M. already?” he asked hoarsely.
David nodded and picked up the two mugs, approaching the desk. “Afraid so,” he replied. “But I did bring you coffee.” He wiggled the mug back and forth a little, the hot brew sloshing around inside.
Kersey reached out without even opening his eyes, and when the porcelain pressed against his palm, he took it and downed half the mug in a single gulp.
David blinked at him. “Be careful, it’s fresh,” he said, even though it was too late. “Might be hot.”
“Nothing enhances caffeine like second-degree burns,” Kersey replied, finally peeling his eyes open and even managing a small smile.
David cocked his head. “Are you sure you got enough rest?” he asked. “I can keep things rolling. I’m used to being up at this hour anyway.”
“Nah, I got my thirty minutes
