Jones Guardians of Rockport

1. Auflage 2023
ISBN: 979-8-3509-0607-3
Verlag: BookBaby
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 282 Seiten

Book 3 in the Guardians of Rockport series. It's been six months since the government collapsed and the Wisconsin winter is taking a toll on the citizens of Rockport. But they must face more than the harsh elements as the religious cult south of town has grown in size and threatens their very existence. In addition, the state prison has finally run out of resources and released the last remaining inmates who are seeking refuge in the town. As the public safety team struggles with the ever-increasing challenges, Deputy Doug Chapman is on the hunt to catch the serial killer that has been leaving a trail of bodies across the region.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Jones, David

Leseproben

Chapter 2

Stepping out of the comfort of the warm Dodge Ram, Doug had to remove his sunglasses as they were fogging over from the transition to the thirty-degree temperature outside. The mid-day sun was incredibly bright, especially as it reflected off of the snow-covered ground. The drive from home to the public safety building was slow going, even for the four-wheel drive pickup. The recent snowfall three days earlier was heavy and unexpected. Due to the limited fuel supply, snow plowing was conducted very sparingly and only on the primary route through town. Two days ago, the temperature rose above freezing, causing the top layer of snow to melt. Dropping back below freezing at night, the water refroze, resulting in a sheet of ice covering the surface of the plowed roadway.

Placing his body armor over his thick winter coat, he adjusted the Velcro straps to make it fit properly over the bulky garment. Bringing his rifle with him, he went inside the old fire station to backfill one of the on-duty officers who had been injured earlier that day. Closing the door behind him, he was surprised once again by the strong barn odor inside the building. While he liked the smell, it was a reminder of how much the world had changed over the past six months. The four emergency vehicle bays had been heavily modified. Two bays had been converted to horse stables, one bay housed the Public Safety pickup, and the fourth housed six snowmobiles. Horses now being one of the primary modes of emergency response, their care and feeding had become a large part of the job.

“You didn’t need to come in today”, said the Fire Chief. “Lou and Nick could have finished the rest of the shift by themselves, and I’m here if they need more help.”

Still recovering from having a bullet break his upper arm bone three months earlier, Brad was in no condition to function as a first responder. Trying to be of value, he helped cover the Public Safety administration duties in addition to being the town’s manager. With his cast recently off, he was still suffering from nerve damage that limited the use of his arm, especially the dexterity of his hand. While it was too early to tell if the damage was permanent, for now, he had to use a sling to keep the arm immobile as much as possible.

Doug knew his best friend wasn’t being honest about his physical limitation. Not with the others…and especially not with himself. The tough firefighter and former college football player would never ask for assistance, so Doug came in without being asked.

“I know. It’s just for a few hours and I wanted to conduct a town patrol in my deputy capacity anyway.”

“Do what you want, but I’m sure Penny isn’t happy you are missing family day back at the Alamo again,” replied Brad. Knowing Brad was correct about that, Doug wanted to change the subject.

“What happened to Joe?” asked Doug.

“They were returning from a call and his horse slipped on the ice.”

“How bad is he hurt?”

“I don’t think he broke anything, but he hit the ground hard and he’ll be sore for sure.”

“Did the horse get hurt?”

“I don’t think so. Doc Shelby said he would stop over and check on her when he gets a chance.”

Their conversation was interrupted when Mrs. Wright walked into the station to make an emergency report. She was concerned about the well-being of her next-door neighbors.

“What can we do for you?” asked Brad.

Scared and exhausted from walking through the deep snow to the station, she tried to summarize as best she could in between breaths.

“The Millers that live next door to me have always been a nice couple, but Tom has been acting strange the last few months. His wife confided in me that he suffers from schizophrenia. He had managed the problem for several years with antipsychotic medications, but now that he can’t get them any longer, he has become increasingly paranoid and has hallucinations. His wife told me she was worried because he was arguing with imaginary people. About half an hour ago I heard her screaming from inside their house, then everything went silent. When I walked over to check on her, I saw Tom standing in their front window holding a bloody knife. He was completely naked and had shaved all the hair off his head. He had an eerie blank stare on his face. Please go check on her, I just know she needs help.”

“We will send a team over right now Mrs. Wright. I think it’s best if you wait at the church across the street until we figure everything out,” instructed Brad.

Taking charge of the call, Doug walked over to the kitchen area of the station where Lou and Nick were eating. “We have a welfare check over on Winnipeg Street. Tom Miller is schizophrenic and off his meds. Sounds like he may have killed his wife. The roads over there haven’t been plowed and the snow drifts are pretty deep. We will need to take the horses.”

“Why not the snowmobiles?” asked Nick, apprehensive after watching Joe’s horse slip and fall.

“Too loud. I don’t want him to hear us coming.” But considering they may need to transport Mrs. Miller to the clinic, he changed his orders.

“Nick, you hook up the sled to one of the snowmobiles while Lou and I ride out there on horses. We will call you on the Ham radio once we have an idea of what’s going on.”

“Roger that,” he replied while taking the last bite of his lunch.

Doug and Lou went to the stable and saddled up two of the horses while Brad opened the large vehicle bay door. The cold wind blew into the station as they climbed into their saddles. The horses walked out of the station as the garage door closed behind them.

Riding a horse in the cold weather briefly transported Doug back to the first few weeks of Operation Enduring Freedom. Just days after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, Doug led a team of six Air Force OSI Anti-terrorism specialists, the first to deploy in response to the nation’s War on Terror. They landed at a former Soviet air base in southern Uzbekistan, near the Afghan border. Named Karsh-Khanabad, it was referred to by the Americans simply as “K-2” and later “Camp Stronghold Freedom.” With few vehicles and even fewer roads, many of the special mission teams utilized horses for transportation when working with the Northern Alliance as they brought the battle to the Taliban.

With the horse hooves having a hard time with traction on the icy road, Doug feared they would fall just as Joe had. With both Joe and Brad out of commission, they simply couldn’t afford to have any more officers injured. Moving the animals onto the snow-covered front lawns of the houses as they traveled, they only had to worry about slipping when they crossed the paved roads at intersections. After traveling through the small frozen town, they stopped the horses at the end of the block to avoid being detected by Mr. Miller on their approach. Dismounting, they secured the animals to a stop sign and walked the rest of the way. Moving slowly to minimize the noise as their boots crunched the snow beneath them, they moved to the side of the house first. Doug peered into the windows to see if he could see any movement. Having no luck, he silently moved to the next window and tried from that vantage point.

Looking into the dining room, he saw signs there had been a struggle. A chair had been tipped over and a plate of food was on the floor. As he examined the area further, he saw a woman’s bare foot lying on the ground. The majority of the body was concealed out of view; however, it was a very unusual place for a person to lie down. Watching the foot for any signs of movement, he saw none. Feeling justified in making a warrantless entry, he moved to the front of the house and whispered for Lou to back him up.

“If the door is open, we will slip in silently and search the house in stealth mode. If it’s locked, I will force it open and we go in dynamically. I will search and you will cover. Any questions?”

Lou gave a thumbs up, indicating he understood the assignment.

As the two oldest men of the Public Safety department moved to the front door, Doug took in a deep breath and exhaled in an attempt to steady himself. But the shake in his hands was from the cold temperature, not the anticipation of a fight. Slinging his AR15, he drew his Glock as it would be easier to search with a pistol, allowing him a free hand to open doors and negotiate obstacles. Lou would maintain his rifle for superior penetration in the event they had to shoot through walls or furniture. Reaching down, Doug silently turned the doorknob and the door opened. Slowly entering the house, he scanned the living room and kitchen for threats. Moving to the far corner of the room, he was at an angle with Lou to avoid any accidental crossfire. Now able to visualize the body lying on the floor, he could tell it was Mrs. Miller.

Her body was laying in an unnatural manner and a large amount of blood had pooled around her. Her slippers were next to the tipped-over dining room chair. It appeared she was eating lunch when she was attacked. As Doug moved closer to the body, he could see the assault had been violent, leaving several stab wounds to her torso and head. The blood spatter patterns on the wall indicated repetitive stab wounds while she lay helpless on the floor. It was clear the woman was dead. Looking back at Lou, he motioned with his hand across his neck, indicating the woman was deceased and beyond medical intervention.

Stepping over the body, careful to avoid the evidence, he observed...