Kate’s drones hovered over the den and dropped the glass jar of benzene that Jerry had mixed Styrofoam into to yield a poor man’s napalm. Tom was surprised to see sparks flying from the top of the jar when suddenly it exploded about ten feet above the den. Jackie’s drone swooped in and dropped a similar firebomb. The brush and limbs burned ferociously. Only a few wolves escaped the burning brush, but were covered with the sticky napalm still burning as they ran. They were quickly shot down. Tom was happy that Kate didn’t hear the howls and squeals of the trapped wolves as they burned alive.
Tom tapped James on the shoulder. “James, it’s them or us. We’re both apex predators fighting for survival. One day, we might be firebombing the gang. Try to steel yourself for that eventuality.”
“Fubar.”
Rick frowned. “Tom’s right. We either fight or flee one day. I don’t plan to flee to a place that could be more dangerous than this one is now.”
*
Chapter 30
The ranch
Rick tapped on Tom’s bedroom door the next morning before the sun was even close to thinking about rising over the treetops. He heard, “Mmmunnph. Come on in.”
Rick poked his head in and saw Tom stretching. “Tom, the electricity crapped out, and Granny B is on a tirade to get someone up to the pond the check on the turbine. She thinks a stick has jammed the turbine wheel.”
Tom rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “Did it snow any last night?”
“Just a good dusting on top of what’s leftover. Do you want me to go with you?”
Kate yawned and stretched. “No! I’ll go with him. We can ride the horses up if you’ll get someone to saddle them.”
Rick frowned as he withdrew his head. “Are you sure? It’s the end of my guard duty, and I was only going to go back to bed.”
A pillow hit the door just as the door closed.
The trip up to the pond was miserable. The wind howled through the trees blowing the snow from the branches into their faces. Tom loved having his wife with him but said, “You should have stayed in bed. Rick would have come with me.”
Kate had her hood drawn tight around her face and could barely hear Tom. “I’ll keep my mouth shut next time. This is brutal, but then we women have to prove we are equal to men all the time.”
Tom ignored the comment. “There’s the pond. Let’s tie the horses up to the tree and check out the turbine.”
Tom fetched his tool bag from the saddle and walked to the spillway. “Damn, it’s a big branch locking up the wheel.”
Kate said, “Hand your backpack to me, and I’ll throw it over your saddle.”
Tom said, “No. I’ll have this loose, and we’ll be back home in thirty minutes. Come over here and help me keep my balance. I don’t want to fall onto the ice.”
Kate moved behind Tom and wrapped a gloved hand around his belt. She braced herself and held fast. “Don’t lean over too much, or we’ll both go sliding across the ice.”
Tom leaned over the spillway and grabbed the limb as Kate pulled on his belt to keep him from falling forward. A dark figure slinked from the woods stopping behind Kate. Two gloved hands touched Kate’s back and pushed. She tumbled into Tom, throwing them both down to the ice. Kate screamed as her head turned to see the dark figure. Kate couldn’t see the face but saw a wicked toothy smile before they hit the ice.
Both knew they’d end up in the water and took a deep breath just in case the ice didn’t hold their weight. Tom grabbed the branch, but it broke without breaking his fall. He slammed into the ice, and it held for a few seconds before it shattered under his weight. A split second later, Kate’s body hit him in the back. They both wore their backpacks, pistols, extra ammunition, and hand axes that morning as usual. Today was a bad day to be prepared for the apocalypse. The excess weight and now wet clothing drug them down to the bottom of the dam.
Tom stayed calm. He knew the water was only about six feet deep in the summer, but the fall had brought rain. The water was now ten feet deep. He frantically felt around and found Kate losing the battle in her attempt to swim back to the surface. He drew his knife, slit her backpack’s straps, and shoved her to the surface. He knew she was still a few feet below the water level. Tom kicked his toes into the dam's slope and lifted Kate up enough for her to grab the bottom of the concrete spillway and lift her head from the icy water. Tom continued to shove, and Kate struggled out of the water. She lay on the bank shivering.
Kate recovered enough to grab her flashlight and shine it down into the murky water. She yelled. “Tom! Tom. Where are you?”
The icy water had sapped Tom’s strength, and he sank to the bottom. The cold had now given him a calm feeling, and he smiled as he thought that Kate was safe. Thoughts ran through his mind about being in a warm cabin by a fire when suddenly he heard Granny B’s voice. “Tom, get your ass together and get the hell out of the water.”
Tom thought, Granny B, it’s too late. I feel warm.
“Hogwash. Kate is waiting on you up there.”
Tom’s eyes snapped open, and all he saw was pitch black for a second, and then a light shown through the dark water. He still had his knife in his right hand and stabbed it into the dam’s wall above his head. With all the
