It turned out he didn’t have to wait long, and they reacted in a huge way.
The first sign of it came when Chauncey radioed ahead about a half hour later, passing on a message from Colonel Grimes’s people along Highway 6. The scouts there had noticed a detachment of blockheads breaking away from the fighting to head south, and were relaying that warning to everyone in the region in case they showed up somewhere else.
Trev’s dad, the Mayor, and the people with them hardly needed to be told. They’d watched as the missing vehicles rolled in from the north, and throughout the rest of the morning more vehicles rolled in from all directions until the size of the convoy below had almost doubled.
The new soldiers joined the ones already there in the furious work of building defensive fortifications and establishing an even tighter network of patrols and sentry outposts. They also built to account for their enemy having at least one heavy machine gun, and set up more than a few heavy machine gun emplacements of their own.
“We kicked the hornet’s nest,” Jane observed after Trev’s dad finished up with a few more pertinent details. Trev nodded grimly along with the others.
“Apparently while I was sleeping the Mayor radioed in a warning to camp that they needed more defenders out there,” Lewis said. “A lot of the sentries and patrols around the refuge itself have been pulled to guard the slopes. And since we’ve lost that layer of protection she wanted the townspeople to be prepared to flee deeper into the mountains at a moment’s notice.”
Lucas nodded. “It’s not just paranoia, either. If every single blockhead down there decided to charge up the mountain slopes simultaneously, I’m not sure several dozen defenders would be enough to stop them. Or even seriously slow them down, for that matter. Even with the weapons we got from Turner’s raiders, the numerical disadvantage would be overwhelming.”
Trev’s dad sighed heavily in unspoken agreement. He looked pretty ragged, which was no surprise since he’d been up all day and most of the night, and this grim talk had him looking even more tired. “One small silver lining, at least,” he said. “We’ve pulled a bunch of enemy troops into this area, which should ease the pressure on other more vulnerable spots along the mountains. If we can hold them off we’ve already done a lot for this war, without the need to stick our necks out again.”
“That’s a bit defeatist, Uncle George,” Lewis argued. “Just because there are more enemies down there doesn’t mean we can’t keep up our attacks, as long as the blockheads don’t decide to attack first. After all, we were overwhelmingly outnumbered during last night’s raid. That didn’t stop us from succeeding.”
“It’s not just the extra people,” Lucas chided. “They’ll be on high alert now. Any attack we try will be that much more difficult, and we won’t catch them by surprise again.”
Lewis glanced at Trev and grinned. “Sounds like a challenge, Dad. We could try attacking from a different direction, or attacking in a different way. They’ve set up some of their sentry posts pretty close to the foothills, for one thing.”
Lucas gave him an impatient look. “So? They’ve got the canyon locked down tight now. There’s no way we’re getting any more vehicles in or out of there.”
“We don’t need to. They’ve come to us, and while they’ve been doing their best to defend against heavy machine guns there’s not much they can do about missiles.”
Jane frowned. “You want to go with the plan of launching a few their way from a safe distance and then running?”
Lewis looked north as if imagining the view of the valley around Aspen Hill, with enemy soldiers swarming everywhere. “It’s not the worst plan. With so many enemies we’re running out of options, but we still have some. We should use them while we can.”
It was Trev’s dad’s turn to frown his nephew’s way. “Have you considered the consequences for the town if we provoke a response we can’t handle? What if the helicopter that attacked Matt and the other volunteers not a stone’s throw from here heads up to our neck of the woods? All it would take would be a few missiles of their own, launched at the refuge almost before we even know they’re coming, and hundreds of innocents could die.”
That was a good question, unfortunately. Trev was jazzed about his cousin’s successful raid, sure, but he didn’t want his friends and family facing the backlash for it. “Maybe we should suggest they move into the forests, on that slope near the meadow,” he offered. “They’d be more concealed in there, and with a bit of planning they could still evacuate to safety fairly quickly.”
“Conditions in camp are bad enough without making another move,” his dad argued. Then he sighed. “Although it’s probably a good precaution, since that helicopter could decide to swing by even if we don’t do anything else. Better to prepare for it now.”
Lewis nodded reluctantly, followed by Jane and Lucas. Trev glanced over at Rick and the rest of his squad for their opinion and got a few shrugs. “This is over my head,” his friend said. “I don’t know what plans you guys are making.” His eyes narrowed and he spoke to Lewis directly. “But for the sake of my family back home, whatever they are I hope you realize that defending the refuge is your first priority.”
There were general murmurs of agreement at that.
“Without question,” Lewis agreed. He straightened. “Looks like your volunteers finished this set of drills. What do you want them on next?”
Trev glanced at Rick. “Squad drills?” his friend suggested. “Covering fire and organized withdrawals?”
“Yeah, I’d say they’re ready.” Trev looked over at his family. “Want to give me a hand with some of the slower learners? They’re in squads with the better recruits, but they still need a bit of hand holding from time to time.”
There were nods all around, and they headed over to rejoin the volunteers.
Trev pulled Lewis aside for a second as everyone else got organized. “Hey, how are you doing?” he asked quietly. He remembered how his cousin had been after shooting Ferris and Turner, back when the raiders first arrived.
Lewis gave him a crooked smile. “Fine, all things considered.” Trev gave his cousin a doubtful look, and his smile faded. He leaned a bit closer. “It’s getting easier each time. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”
That sounded more like the Lewis he knew. “Being able to do what you need to do without tearing yourself apart over it seems like a good thing.”
His cousin shuddered. “It was pretty bad in there,” he admitted. “I’m not sure I ever want to get to the point where I can do something like that without hangups.”
Trev nodded soberly, resting a hand on Lewis’s shoulder. “Just remember yourself, and remember why you’re doing it.”
“Yeah, you too.” Obviously finished with the subject, his cousin thumped him lightly on the chest with the back of his hand and started past him. “Let’s get going.”
Davis normally gave everyone but those with specific duties the evening off, starting after dinner. True to his word, tonight he shifted schedules around so more people would be able to enjoy that time off to celebrate. Particularly by relieving Matt’s squad after a 12-hour shift rather than their usual 16.
Once the rest of the Aspen Hill volunteers arrived they wanted to hear about the raid again, a suggestion heartily approved of by the Marines and civilian irregulars and volunteers who’d missed the details earlier.
Lewis seemed a bit reluctant to dive into storytelling mode. Maybe he was leery of revealing the shelter’s secret tunnel to so many strangers, although after the raid the blockheads had almost certainly found it and that was now a pointless worry. Or maybe he wasn’t eager to boast about the necessary actions he’d taken.