-1The Breakout
By Matthew Stephens
Copyright by Matthew Stephens 2009
Published by Smashwords
Steve was just sitting down to watch the evening ball game. The Cubs were about to finish their three game series with the Brewers when a loud rumbling of engines came from outside. He went to the bay window and peeked through the drawn curtains. A line of army vehicles (tanks, jeeps, etc.) were slowly rolling down the street. The vehicles came to a stop and several soldiers leaped out on to the pavement. They were wearing gas masks and had large tanks strapped to their backs. They held rubber hoses that appeared to be connected to their backpacks.
Steve's neighbor, old man Whitney, was in his front lawn taking out the trash when a soldier approached him. At first they were just conversing, then the soldier held the hose up to his face and released a white cloudy substance. The old man immediately put his hands to his throat, his eyes were wide and his face was as red as a stoplight. He fell to the ground and his body was shaking and convulsing wildly until he finally went motionless.
Steve stepped back from the window, his heart was doing a steady drum roll in his chest and he was breathing like he just got threw running the mile. When he mustered up enough courage, he peeked through the curtain again. Several groups of soldiers were now walking up to the front doors of the neighboring houses. They were knocking and whoever answered got the same treatment old man Whitney received. If they didn't answer, the soldiers would kick the door in and help themselves inside.
Steve watched all this with unbelieving eyes. "What is this?" he whispered to himself. Then he noticed three of those masked soldiers approaching his front door.
"Oh, Shit!" he spat as he ran to the kitchen and slipped on his shoes without bothering to tie them. He tripped over his laces as he was heading for the back door and banged his head on the door knob. He laid there with his back against the door and his temples throbbing. Three loud wraps on the door reminded him why he was running in the first place and he got up and opened the back door. The light from what remained of sunset stung his eyes and made his head hurt worse. Without much thinking, he sprinted through backyards to his best friend Mike's house.
***
Mike Mathis was trying to convince the newly Mrs. Mathis into a little fooling around as she was trying to fold laundry. She would slap his hand away playfully as he tried touching her thighs and breasts. She finally gave in and the heavy petting and face sucking was in full swing. Their little bout of passion came to a quick halt as a thunderous knocking came from the front door. Mike sat up and looked at Angie who didn't seem pleased to be interrupted.
"Mike! God damn it Mike, let me in!" A muffled voice of Steve Bowers said from outside the door. Mike rolled his eyes and gingerly walked to the door.
"What the hell is it St...." Mike was trying to say as he opened the door and the panic stricken Steve shot by him like a scared cat. Steve was running around the house killing lights and closing blinds. Angie sat up abruptly and quickly fixed herself. Mike stood there watching his best friend run around the house like a lunatic, feeling somewhat amused. He knew Steve to blow things out of proportion time to time.
"There's soldiers. Gas. They're killing people, man! Fucking killing them." Steve was ranting through random gasps of air as he locked all the doors and windows. "Something fucked up is happening! Something..." Steve continued until he was interrupted by Mike grabbing his shoulders and staring into his face.
"Steve! You need to calm down and tell me what's going on. You're acting crazy!" Mike was stern and guided him to a chair. Steve sat down without much fight, but his heavy breathing and shaking was still at full speed. Steve told them about what happened to old man Whitney and the rest of his neighbors, then he shook a Marlboro from a pack on the table and struggled to light it with his trembling fingers. Angie lit it for him.
"So what do you think we should do then? What's this all about?" Mike asked through his own cloud of smoke. He didn't want to believe his old buddy, but by the way he was acting, he was forced too. He just couldn't understand why the army would just come blowing into a town and start executing random people, especially a small town like this out in the middle of nowhere with a population of maybe six hundred. Steve suggested maybe it was some kind of secret government depopulation technique. Angie thought maybe it was some terrorists who hijacked military equipment, but none of these made much sense and Mike still struggled to even believe it was happening. Then a jeep with a loud muffler pulled up across the street filled with a handful of those masked soldiers. Any doubts Mike had were quickly erased.
"This is crazy! They're gonna be here any minute. What are we gonna do?" Steve begged as the three of them crowded around a small kitchen window to peek through the blinds. "I say we make a run for it."
Mike was leaning more toward staying and fighting whoever wanted to break into his home, but Steve explained to him that with one spray of that gas, or whatever it was, the only thing he would be fighting for was air. After some consideration they decided to run. They made their way out a side door looking cautiously side to side. When it appeared the coast was clear, they broke for Mike's pickup that was parked behind the house. Mike fired it up, Angie sat in the middle, and Steve was sitting shotgun. Mike put the truck in reverse and started backing out. He was just about out of the driveway when another jeep pulled up and blocked him in.
"Shit, shit, shit!" Mike was screaming as two soldiers got out and started walking toward the truck. Angie began to cry.
"Alright assholes!" Mike said calmly this time. He slammed on the gas and plowed over the approaching soldiers. The truck jerked up and down as they drove over them and smashed into the jeep. They could see a driver bailing out just before the collision. Then Mike put it in drive and drove over the squirming soldiers once more and started driving through backyards dodging picnic tables and fire pits. A man was shaking his fist at them and screaming. All Mike could think was, "You don't know what's coming buddy!"
It was now completely dark and just before making his way back on to the road, he slammed into a small rock garden and punctured the pickup's front tires. He tried backing out with no success. They jumped out and started running full sprint. There didn't appear to be anyone following them at the moment, but in the light of recent events their adrenaline was sky high. They ran down side streets trying their best to stay out of the street lights. When any sign of a car or headlights came, they would hide in bushes or behind buildings. None of them knew exactly where they were going but they ended up on the edge of town with nothing but a wide open cornfield in front of them. Spring was just beginning, so the corn was not up.
After some quick discussion they decided to make their way across the field to a wooded area the town called "The dump". The dump was where the town folk would dump their scrap wood, branches, and leaves. They figured it would be the best place for them to hide out and think about what to do next. It was about three miles from the edge of town. A moment later, they headed out.
***
Ten minutes after Mike, Steve, and Angie made it to the dump, Sergeant Sterling received a call on his radio. He was sitting in a army green hummer parked on the edge of town. The headlights showed several footprints leading out to the middle of nowhere. He lit a cigar and turned on the interior light. He looked in the rear view mirror and noticed more wrinkles on his aging face. He had seen and been through a lot in his days with the reserves, but had never been on a mission like this. It was one thing to take a foreign town under siege, but when it was your own people, it left a kind of disheartening feeling. He blew out a big cloud of smoke and pressed the button on the side of his radio. "Go ahead."
"Sergeant, private Smith here. We're making progress, but we've had a few casualties. Some crazy bastard just unloaded his shotgun on two of our men, but he's been taking care of . Another plowed over private Williams and private Coles in his pickup. Williams had suffered two broken legs and Coles...Well, let's just say he was not so lucky. They're sure not going down easy. Over!" Private Smith's voice cut out with a short static.
"Of course not, would you if your life and family was at stake? It's a sad business were dealing with here, but it's government orders." Sergeant Sterling paused and laid his head back in the seat. Then he began again,
"I want you to make sure the entire perimeter of this town is covered within a ten mile radius. I know a few have taken to the fields. We need a few men sent to a little wooded area a few miles from the north side of town. Anyone whose seen is to be executed on sight. Over." The Sergeant finished with a long sigh.
Private Smith came back with a ten-four and Sergeant Sterling put his radio down. He began to rub his temples. A headache had started to form the day he received a letter in his office. A letter that informed him he would be taking a lovely little trip to a small town in Iowa with a thousand other troops. It seemed a pandemic influenza had started to break out. It's ten victims died within a day of catching the virus and from autopsy reports they found it to be extremely contagious and the most deadly they had ever seen. In 1918, there was a similar outbreak that killed six hundred and seventy five thousand civilians and that was a baby compared to the possibilities of this one. The good news is we caught it early, the report informed him, but due to the magnitude of the virus and no knowledge of how to stop it, they were given orders to wipe out the little town and hope it spreads no further.
The little headache that started back at the office two days ago, now felt like his head was pinched tight in a vice as he sat in his hummer. All of this just seemed too much. He couldn't help but think there had to be another way. Little kids were watching their parents being murdered right in front of them and then being killed themselves before ever really experiencing life. The worst part of it was that some of his soldiers seemed to be enjoying themselves while doing it. All these thoughts ran across his mind as he put a twenty-two against his throbbing temple and pulled the trigger.
***
Mike, Angie, and Steve were sitting on the ground prying the caked mud off their shoes with twigs. The walk wasn't as easy as would be expected. The field was a gooey slop from recent rain, and by the time they reached the dump, it felt like they were walking with cinder blocks strapped to their feet. Angie fell twice and was covered from head to toe. Her once blond hair was now matted black dreadlocks. Mike and Steve managed to stay on their feet, but were by no means clean. They scraped themselves free of the mud in urgency because they noticed two headlights staring at them like evil eyes in the distance.
"They know were here." Steve said as he stood up and looked around. "We can't stay here."
"I don't think we got much choice. I'm pretty sure they got this town surrounded and every road blocked. We're gonna have to make a stand and fight." Mike argued while helping Angie to her feet.
"Are you crazy? Three against an entire army, might as well just kill ourselves right now. Besides, we got no weapons." Steve said and then broke into a coughing fit.
Mike was patting Steve on the back as he hacked up a large amount of flem. "You alright?" Mike asked as Steve wiped his mouth on his sleeve. His face was pale and his eyes were bloodshot.
"Yea, just catching a cold. So what's your plan then?"
"Well, I'm not entirely sure. I'm hoping for a small group to come after us and maybe we can sneak up on them. Either that or we find a good hiding spot until they give up, but I don't think giving up is a option for them." Mike looked at Angie and Steve with hopelessness. "For now, all we can do is sit and wait."
The three of them walked around the dump looking for their hiding spot when time ran out. A truck whipped into the dump's entrance and they dove to the ground to avoid being caught in the headlights. They army crawled to a large oak tree and gathered behind it.
***
Private Smith killed the engine. He rolled down his window and stared into the darkness. The silence made him uneasy. He slowly got out of the truck and three troops gathered around him.
"Alright men, let's spread out and comb the area. Be careful in case their armed. Anyone who moves is to be shot on sight. Questions?" The men shook their heads and started off in different directions.
Private Smith walked along slowly. The plastic shield from his mask was starting to fog up from his heavy breathing. He paused for a moment and tried to wipe the shield clean when a horrific scream echoed off the trees. He looked up just in time to catch a shadow darting behind a tree. He slowly made his way toward the tree holding his gun up, ready to squeeze the trigger at any movement. When he got closer he saw one of his men lying on the ground with a stick protruding from his neck. A good amount of blood was forming a pool around his head. When there didn't appear to be anyone behind the tree he bent down to examine the wounded soldier. He was gargling and coughing and private Smith noticed he was trying to say something.
"They-They got m-my g-g-un." Then he fell silent and his eyes rolled back in his head.
Just as the soldier spit out his dying words, a gun blast rang through the air. Private Smith looked up just in time to see another one of his men be executed. He raised his gun up and was trying to look in every direction at once, then a hand grabbed his shoulder. He spun around in a pure panic and fired his rifle. He sadly realized he shot the last of his men and all the fight went out of him. He hovered over his victim on his hands and knees, not wanting to believe what he had done. The face mask the soldier was wearing was still in tact, but there was no apparent face left inside. The bullet had entered under his chin and anything above that was a mangled mess. Private Smith let out a primal scream and then was silenced by a cool touch on his neck.
***
"Stand up." Mike said calmly, holding a rifle to the private's neck. "Don't dare to pick up that gun or you'll be joining your buddy there." The private did as he was told. Mike backed up a few steps and held the gun shakily at the private's head. A day that started with a little fooling around with his new wife was ending with the murder of a handful of soldiers, his nerves were on the verge of exploding.
"This is what's gonna happen. Your going to drive us out of this little ambush, so start walking." Angie was standing behind Mike clinging to his elbow and Steve was to the side of her having a uncontrollable coughing fit. They walked to the truck. Private Smith involuntarily leading the way.
Once they made it to the truck, Steve and Angie carefully stripped the private of his radio, a knife he had strapped to his ankle, and anything else they could find that could be used as a weapon. Mike handed the gun to Steve and instructed him to never take his eyes off the private. Then Mike walked back to one of the deceased soldiers and began to undress him. The uniform was blood soaked around the collar, but it would go great with his plan. Once he got the uniform off, he dressed himself in it. Then he walked back to the truck and instructed everybody in. Angie and Steve in back. With the private at the controls and Mike sitting shotgun, they drove out of the dump.
"OK, so this is what's gonna happen. I'm sure you got road blocks surrounding us, correct?" The private nodded his head up and down and then Mike continued.
"Well if you try to say one word or do anything funny, my buddy Steve here will scatter your brains across this windshield. Are you with me so far?" The private did another head nod.
"The story is gonna be this. I'm a wounded soldier shot by some crazy civilian and you have been instructed to take me to emergency care. Angie, I want you to get down on the floor board as flat as you can. Steve, You lay across the seat and cover yourself and Angie up with that army blanket. Prop the gun against the side of the seat pointing at our little buddies head, just make sure it's out of view from the driver's side window. Your gonna act as wounded soldier too Steve, so make sure your covered up to the neck and pretend to be unconscious. How's this sound so far private? Not bad for last minute thinking, huh?" The private spoke for the first time since being captured.
"Your all most likely going to die anyways." He said in a amused kind of voice. "Are you not a little curious as to why this was going on in the first place?" He asked keeping his gaze straight ahead.
"Flu epidemic." He said without waiting for a response. "Worst one ever and your buddy Steve back there has a pretty nasty cough. Am I wrong?" Steve's heart sunk at the words the private was saying. Ever since this nightmare started happening, he had been gradually feeling worse and worse and now it all made sense.
"Well, I guess we'll wait and see, but if you don't do as you've been instructed, you'll be first to go." Mike responded and the private just kept staring straight ahead. A moment later they could see a line of army vehicles blocking the road.
"OK, everybody got the plan?" They all shook their heads including the private.
They slowly rolled up to the line of vehicles. Soldiers were pointing their weapons at them and then drew back when they noticed it was a vehicle of their own. A big burly man walked up to the window. Mike began to whimper and scream as if he were in great pain.
"What you got here private?" The man asked and the private told him the story of two injured soldiers pretty convincingly. After a quick glance inside the truck, he told them to go ahead. Once they were past the line, Mike let out a huge sigh of relief.
"That was some pretty good acting. You could be famous if you weren't too busy killing innocent people." Mike told the private and that seemed to be the soldiers last straw. He threw a quick punch that connected with Mike's jaw.
"Shoot him." Mike hollered, but it sounded more like, "Shoosh shim."
Steve did as instructed without any hesitation. The blast scattered fragments of flesh and bone across the ceiling. The truck began to weave toward the ditch as Mike grabbed the wheel and straightened it out. The road block looked like a line of ants in the rear view mirror, but Mike was sure they could still see them swerve. He slammed on the gas and drove at high speed from the passenger side. when they got a good distance away and no one appeared to be following them, Mike kicked the dead private out onto the cold pavement and hopped in the driver's seat. They drove back roads for hours with no apparent direction, trying to get as far away as possible.
***
The sun was rising. Mike and Angie were sitting in front of the army truck. It was parked on the edge of a huge beautiful lake. They sat silent watching the reflection of the sun ripple off the water. Steve was lying across the back seat pale and motionless.
"He's dead, isn't he?" Angie spoke softly and began to silently weep.
"Honey, It's alright." Mike reached over and held her in his arms.
"Do you think we'll get sick like him?" She asked while pulling away and looking into his eyes. He looked back with tired eyes and then hugged her close. They looked out to the beautiful rippling water.
"I don't know, but I love you." Mike whispered and she said she loved him too. Then she coughed.
Author's note* I got this story idea from a dream my wife had. She woke up and told me she had this really freaky dream that these people were running around town with gas masks and killing people. I just took it from there. I have to thank her for really inspiring me sometimes and thank you for reading.
MattStephens2009