They ended their stay at the Tactical and Shooting store with the rifles, over five hundred bullets of all types, and the bows, plus more arrows than they could carry. They made camp west of the Sporting Warehouse on the Sacramento River bank and sorted through their new weapons and camping gear.
Granny B and Tom kept the .308 rifles with their new scopes. Tom handed out the other rifles to the team. Lucy received one of the Ruger 10/22s to her mother’s chagrin. Tom interceded before Sam took the gun away. “Sam, I’ll teach Lucy how to handle the rifle responsibly. She can help hunt, and another rifle when needed could make a big difference.”
“My daughter is only twelve years old.” Sam snatched the rifle from her daughter and stormed off.
“Well, as Granny B says - that went over like a turd in a punchbowl,” Tom muttered to himself.
Granny B walked up and patted him on the back. “You might want to take it slow training Lucy. Any mother is going to be protective of her daughters.”
*
Chapter 11
Redding, California – The Sacramento River.
The river was low from the lack of recent rain and was full of floating garbage. The apocalypse hadn’t brought out the best in people. The mosquitoes and biting flies were horrible near the river, but Tom didn’t want to camp in the city. He built a fire and placed some evergreen boughs on the fire, which filled the area with a thick cloud of pine-scented smoke. The smoke was terrible but much better than the mosquitoes. Tom watched several of the group move away from the smoke but quickly return. “Don’t you love the smell of pine trees burning in the evening?”
Granny B shook her head. “You don’t remember the forest fires back in the 20s that leveled several cities north of Ashland. We were fine on up in the hills, but the people down in the valley suffered greatly.”
“Oops, my bad.”
Brenda reluctantly moved closer to the fire and was surprised how the insects disappeared. “Tom, the smoke drove the little boogers away but aren’t you worried about someone coming to see what’s burning?”
Tom’s arm swung from side to side, pointing out the numerous columns of smoke rising around the city. “Normally, I’d be worried, but there are dozens of buildings burning along with hundreds of campfires.”
Gunfire erupted across Highway 5, and Tom hit the ground with his pistol drawn when a stray bullet hit one of the trees a few yards from the camp. “Hit the dirt. There’s a fight going on across the highway, and a stray bullet will kill you just the same as one intended for you.”
The gunfire was non-stop for the better part of a half-hour before tapering off. Tom left camp with Jackie at his side to find out if the gangs had moved on. They stayed in the trees as long as possible but then went between several unoccupied houses that backed up to Highway 5. They were shocked by the number of bodies strewn around a motel’s parking lot and the north lane of Highway 5. The battle had been brief but fiercely fought. The victors were nowhere to be seen around the area.
“Little sister, ya think there might be some weapons or ammo lying around that hasn’t been scooped up?”
“It’s worth a try, but won’t we be exposed on that parking lot?”
“Not if I go out after midnight and use the night vision scope. It won’t be ideal since the scope has a small field of view, but it’s very dark now with only a sliver of a moon.”
“I’ll go with you to help carry any weapons back.”
“I think we’ll bring Brenda with us. I hope we find the people fighting were too busy chasing the others to police up the area.”
“Tom, she’s a bit older than you. I thought you’d sworn off women for a while.”
“Sis, we need someone to pack weapons and ammo. I ain’t looking for romance. Get your mind …”
“Brother, all men think about is sex, and you are a man.”
“We also think about tacos, muscle cars, and big caliber rifles. I’ll let you know when I’m shopping for a girlfriend.”
Granny B woke Tom up at 11:30. “Rise and shine. Time to go scavenging. If this works, we might want to use the scope to search the Sporting Warehouse.”
“I don’t know about that. The field of view is too narrow, and we’d miss more than we find. I’ll give you my thoughts on it after we get back.” Tom walked out into the bushes and returned a while later.
“Ladies, are you ready to see what we can find across the highway? Stay close to me and keep close to the bushes or a house so you won’t stand out. Let’s hit the trail.”
They crossed the highway below the Highway 44 and Highway 5 cloverleaf, dodging wrecks and stalled cars. A bumper car ride at a county fair had fewer crashes than the road. Tom snickered when he saw an F150 sitting on top of one of those not so smart cars. The tiny car was about a foot thick with a gnawed arm sticking out from the squished metal. He watched the motel parking lot from three hundred yards north of the motel and decided it was safe to go on across to the parking lot. They proceeded down Hilltop Drive to come into the motel’s parking lot using a Mexican restaurant to shield them from view. Tom led them behind the restaurant, where they found the first bodies. Tom had been using the
