There was no time to waste, but Trev still hesitated. “Are you sure? I don’t like the thought of you on your own when there’s a group around big enough to do something like this. Jane at least should join you.”
“No, you’ll need her in case there’s some danger. Blockhead raiders might be on the back roads, too, using them to get around undetected.” His cousin grimaced. “And you can get on my case about bringing the kids on this trip when I get back. You were right, it was a bad idea.”
After a final hesitation Trev nodded. “Be careful yourself. I’ll see you when you catch up.”
He jammed his bike into a sharp turn and pedaled back the way he’d come. Every instinct told him to go all out and get back to the others fast, but a fifteen minute ride downhill would take even longer going back, and he needed to set a pace that that would let him get there fast without exhausting himself halfway through. Not to mention they’d be doing more traveling once he got there, getting everyone far, far away from any danger the blockheads presented.
Speaking of which, he was glad the road up Aspen Hill Canyon was out and the town was safe. But if the Gold Bloc was back and raiding in this area he’d need to keep his defenders more vigilant just in case.
After an exhausting twenty-five minutes he made it back to the others. It looked as if Deb and Jane were keeping watch for their return while the kids, not seeing any immediate danger, had gone back to collecting brass. They’d actually managed to gather quite a large amount even in the short time they’d been here. Trev was just grateful they hadn’t encountered any threat from the opposite direction while he and Lewis were gone.
Everyone hurried to gather around him as he braked beside the two women. “What’s going on?” Deb demanded.
“Where’s Lewis?” Jane added.
“The group of refugees we passed earlier was attacked, killed or taken,” Trev said tersely. “Blockheads. As far as I can see the raiders left as quickly as they came, but we’re still going to take the back roads home.”
The gathered kids all broke into nervous and excited murmurs, expressing disbelief and asking a barrage of questions on top of each other.
Trev ignored them and turned to Jane. “Did Matt ever tell you where exactly those roads were? We should be able to find them without too much trouble and make our way south, but anything to get us away from here faster would help.”
The redheaded woman shook her head. “He wasn’t exactly open about the cache and where he got it, especially before we joined the shelter group.”
“Then we’ll trailblaze.” Trev gestured curtly. “Come on, get your things and let’s go.”
“I need to join Lewis,” Jane insisted, curtly motioning for him to get off his bike so she could take it. “You take the trailer.”
Trev shook his head. “He wanted you with us, just in case there’s trouble.” Catching her eye, he glanced meaningfully at the kids they had a responsibility to protect.
She wasn’t happy about it, but she got it. “Let’s go.”
Nodding, Trev ushered everyone back to their bikes, piling their half full garbage bags onto the trailer. He ended up having Jane take his bike while he took Lewis’s anyway, since even though the trailer wasn’t too heavy he was best suited to tow it so they could make the best speed.
He was so distracted with the preparations that it took him almost a minute to realize Deb was still standing where she’d first been, stiff with shock and dismay. He made his way over to her and saw that she was breathing hard, eyes wide and unfocused.
“Deb?” he asked gently.
“They were supposed to be gone for good,” she said, voice barely concealing the beginnings of panic. “They were supposed to be gone. Why aren’t they gone?”
Trev gave her a reassuring smile, aware of how the young people had fallen silent, watching them. He wanted to reassure the brown-haired woman, but he also didn’t want her panic to spread. “There’s no way they’ll be able to do something like this twice. This was a surprise, but the military will definitely tighten their defenses to prevent it from happening again. In fact, the blockheads who staged this raid have a long way to go to get away, and Lewis is radioing the military to let them know what’s going on right now. The raiding party might not even make it out at all.”
She nodded blankly, but he could see she barely heard him. Her mind was likely flashing back to the horrors she’d experienced after being taken prisoner by Gold Bloc soldiers. That couldn’t be good for her mental health, but more importantly right now he needed her with him.
He stepped closer to her, dropping his voice. “Look at the kids,” he said firmly. Deb blinked, then glanced over at the pale, frightened teenagers, huddling together for reassurance as this adventure got a lot more scary. Trev continued. “I need your help getting them home safely.”
The brown-haired woman’s eyes gradually cleared, and she nodded resolutely. “Right.” She hurried to her bike and hopped on.
Not long after that Trev led the way west up the highway. As he went he kept his eyes peeled for any sign of roads down the slope to the south, even ones that didn’t connect to the highway itself. There didn’t seem to be any that he could see, and it wasn’t until they’d reached the burned out hulk of his car, still sitting forlornly on the side of the road even after everything that had happened, that he finally caught a glimpse of a wide ATV trail winding through the trees below.
If that wasn’t it, chances were good it led to where they needed to be. Trev hopped off his bicycle, with effort lifted it and the trailer over the guard rail beside the road, and motioned for the kids to begin handing their bikes over to him. While he did that Jane began navigating her bike down the slope towards the trail, eyes searching for any sign of a threat and ears pricked for unusual noises.
So far so good. Trev took rearguard as they followed the redheaded woman down to flatter ground. It still wasn’t ideal for biking, but with a bit of effort they managed to bump their way over to the ATV trail and started along it.
They hid a few minutes later at the sound of truck engines, and Trev watched from cover as two trucks that looked like US military roared past heading east. He wondered if they were in response to Lewis calling in what had happened.
Either way, he hoped his cousin was okay.
Lewis was relieved to find that with a bit of climbing he was able to reach a spot where he could contact someone. No one from the military itself, unfortunately, but the man he got in touch with was able to send along his message. Along with a bit of swearing at the grisly scene Lewis described.
Before too long he got word back that the military was sending a few squads to check out the scene. Lewis assured them he’d stick around and do his best to fill them in on what he knew. It was a long wait, and he spent most of it on lookout for anyone approaching, glad for the excuse to avoid looking at the sad sight below.
It took almost forty minutes before he heard the sound of two trucks roaring down the highway towards him from the west. He had to admit that even if the military had dropped the ball by letting blockhead raiders get all the way through the territory they were guarding to attack the refugees here, at least they were quick to respond once they were aware of a situation.
He made his way down the hill to where Jane’s bike waited, waving as the trucks braked across the road from him.
From the lead truck an officer in his thirties with the decorations of a captain emerged and strode over, extending a hand. “Captain Griggs, US Army,” he growled. Even as he spoke his eyes strayed to the first of the bodies sprawled not far away, and his expression darkened.