Tom surveyed the situation and motioned for his family and new friends to come to him. “I need Paul and Jackie to help me search the cockpit for anything useable while the rest of you see if you can help the injured survivors. Samantha, please stay here with Lucy and our bags while we go scavenge.”
Paul griped below his breath, but Tom ignored him and took off to find the cockpit. Jackie caught up and leaned her head against his. “Are we looking for the pilot’s guns?”
“Yep, keep it between us. I don’t like the idea of Paul having a gun.”
The cockpit was in the middle of a farmer’s field wedged against a combine and a field service truck. All three were destroyed but hadn’t burned. Several bodies, still strapped into their seats, were strewn across the field. The cockpit had opened up like a cherry bomb blows up a mailbox. Tom climbed into the mess and found the crew’s personal luggage. He performed a quick search before tossing them down to his sister. He saw a familiar shape in a bag by the dead pilot and smiled.
The 9mm pistol was loaded with frangible bullets that would wreak havoc on a person but reduced any potential damage to the plane. He tucked it into his pocket and kept searching. There wasn’t much else to be found after tossing a first aid kit and the pilot’s boxed lunches down to Paul and Jackie. As an afterthought, he frisked the pilot and co-pilot. Tom chuckled to himself when he found the ‘Judge.’ It was a 4510 Super Lite model of the famous Taurus Judge pistol that would shoot a three-inch .410 shotgun shell or a .45 Colt Long. This was a brute of a weapon and not for the meek or limp handed. Tom kept this for himself. Tom thought. Snakes and two-legged snakes had better steer clear of me.
Jackie saw the restroom and entered. A few seconds later, Tom heard a banging noise, and Jackie emerged with a smile on her face. Paul looked at Tom and shrugged his shoulders. Jackie headed to the drink and snack service area and stuffed canned drinks, water bottles, and snacks into her bag. Something caught her eye. “Eureka! Found them!”
Her brother asked, “What did you find?”
Jackie whispered something in his ear. Tom’s face flushed. “TMI, little sister.”
The climb down was safely accomplished. Tom winked at Jackie and said, “Well, it wasn’t much, but anything beats nothing.”
Paul grabbed Tom by the shoulder, turning him. Tom grabbed Paul’s arm in one deft motion, twisted it around, and forced Paul to the ground. “Paul, never do that again. It could be misinterpreted as hostile. Now, what did you want?”
“I saw you tuck something under your shirt. What was it?”
Tom reached back to his pocket and found his phone. “I picked up the pilot’s phone. Mine doesn’t work, and I wanted to try his. That is if it’s okay with you?”
Paul’s face was now flushed, and his arm hurt. “Please let me go.”
“Paul, I was going to catch all of you together, but now’s a good time to set things straight between us. If you follow us, I’m the leader, and you will obey my orders or leave the group.”
Tom released his arm, and Paul rubbed it while glaring back at Tom. Tom glared back. “Do you understand and agree?”
“I understand but won’t take orders from you or anyone else. I’ll also go anywhere I want to when I want to.”
Tom stepped up to Paul and jabbed his index finger into Paul’s chest. “It wouldn’t be healthy for you to follow us when we leave.”
Paul stormed off as Jackie looked shocked. “Tom, that’s not like you to be mean to someone in need.”
“Sorry, but I saw the bastard eating chocolate bars and granola without offering to share. He filled his bag with all of the snacks on the flight attendants’ serving cart.”
“That’s different. I didn’t trust him anyway. What did you tuck into your shirt?”
Tom kept the pistol hidden as Jackie examined it. “I’ve heard about the Taurus Judge. It kicks like a Georgia mule and can rip a man to pieces. You can keep it. I’ll keep my Glock 17. It’s like me, small but packs a wallop. Did you find any ammo for the thing?”
“Yep. Here’s an almost full box of the .410 personal defense rounds and a few .45 Colt Longs. The personal defense rounds have two .32 slugs and five copper disks. They scatter and rip a body apart. I planned to keep it to myself. We’ll need to be careful who we share our weapons with.”
“Big brother, I learned a little bit from Grandpa and Grandma too. The crap hit the fan, and most of these people will die over the next thirty to ninety days. I don’t want us to die with them.”
Tom nodded and then said, “I just hope I can remember what Grandpa taught us.”
“Tom, stop that nonsense. You’ll do great. We depend on you.”
Tom and Jackie found Granny B coaching Bill to strip some wire from the fuselage. At the same time, Betty placed scavenged items and her gear into roller suitcases. Tom heard Granny B speak. “Make sure we all have roller luggage. We’ll try to stick to highways for a few days, and it’ll beat carrying all this stuff. Oh, everyone, make sure you have plenty of socks. Wet feet can make for a miserable
