Ryan hesitated like he had more to say. Andy noticed.
“Anything else, Ry?”
“Yeah, I guess there is definitely one other matter. More of a personal nature.”
Ryan crossed the deck and returned to his brother, whispering in his ear. Andy straightened a bit at the news.
“You sure?”
“Yep. Not too much doubt.”
“Thanks for the heads up, little brother.”
“Just watchin’ out for my own,” said Ryan, disappearing silently into the woods.
“Liam, alert the clan about Mark’s visit.”
Terry promptly turned to Andy.
“What was that about?”
“Umm, not sure just yet. Might be a new player coming in with Mark.”
“And?”
“Let’s just see, okay?”
“Umm…”
“Trust me, T.”
“I do. What suggestions do you have?”
“Well, I must admit, Mark’s been kinda impatient this entire summer. Don’t you think? This’ll be, what, his sixth ‘personal’ visit in two months?”
“Yeah, so?”
“And, I know it must bug his ass that we still don’t need him for any of the neighborly ‘protection’ he’s so fond of providing to everybody sitting here in Fayette county.”
Andy rechecked his weapon, before slipping his Beretta into his belt holster.
“True. But Mark’s building quite an empire right in our backyard, Andy. Right now, I mean, he has what, a hundred fifty soldiers or maybe two hundred covering that resort? Probably another twenty-five he’s added since we last checked… you know, I’m wondering how long he’ll let us just sit here butting up tight against his eastern flank.”
Andy chuckled.
“What?”
“I love it when you talk military terms. Soldier strengths. Eastern flank, listen to you! I know I said it before, but I tell you again, I still don’t think we have to worry about Mark. Whether you and Ry believe it or not, he’s always a straight shooter, and, he’s very keen on this property being Mac’s to begin with. In fact, I’m sure he considers it hallowed ground.”
“Hmm,”
“I’m tellin’ ya, Con and Mark have some serious history, going back a long ways. Given that, that’ll hold him for a few more years, at least.”
“You sure on that?”
“Why do I have to keep reminding you guys of this fact?”
“Okay, but—why you so sure?”
“Well, ’cause he’s Mark, that’s why.”
“What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”
“Means what it is. Mark’s a builder, not a destroyer. That’s why everyone from the border towns in Maryland, West Virginia and the whole damn Fayette County are coming to him for answers. They know they can trust him. Like Connor did. Granted though, Mark does pretty much have a reputation that nothing he does is for free.”
“So why’s he keep pushing by personally? He must have better things to do.”
“Truthfully?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I know one thing.”
Andy hesitated in speaking like he had a secret he would not reveal.
“C’mon! What?”
“Hah. I think he’ll be real disappointed that you became involved with a man below your station, T.”
Terry tucked a stray hair behind her ear, but did grin at the thought. She turned toward the cottage entrance only to discover Kevin’s interest in their conversation. Giving him a quick nod, he reentered the cottage to attend to other important matters.
“Men,” mumbled Terry, frustrated and shaking her head.
“What?” asked Andy.
“Always reducing everything down to a battle over a woman.”
Smoothly, Andy slipped behind her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. Immersing himself in the sweet smell of the hair at the crook of her neck, he took a few seconds before responding.
“But, T, what else is there?”
CHAPTER 5.17-Making Babies
“Amanda, was Mr. Connor Mac mad at me this morning?”
“Nah, he’s just focused, Cody. He’s focused on the Cleveland mission.”
“Yeah?”
“A huh. But, I’ll tell you… you don’t want to ever see him pissed.”
“No.”
“Unless he’s on your side, I guess.”
“Yeah. I saw that when he took out those guys on my momma.”
“No, that was Mac comin’ in careful and methodical and having… um… fun. You’ve never seen him mad.”
“Oh.”
Continuing their steady progress on the small, rarely used deer path, they moved together in tandem. Amanda tread carefully on the soft forest floor a hundred yards to the south of the ribbon of Interstate 80. She took a pleasurable moment to smile at Cody and his innocence. Though at the same time, she subconsciously swept the terrain, keeping an eye for any movement near the abandoned highway vehicles that often served as ambush points for less suspecting travelers. Everywhere, the obligatory brown rats rummaged in and around the vehicles scrounging for that last morsel of greasy processed food left over from the devastation.
“I hate them damn rats,” said Cody. He scanned the Interstate, seeing the large bunch of noisy rats gathered near a blue truck.
“Me, too.”
Confidant that BB, Marty as well as Jason on horseback were in overwatch and covering the position of the unit; and that Connor and Roger were on point, Amanda still found it unacceptable to let her guard down. Burned into her psyche, the hard lessons she’d learned in Kansas remained forever fresh; she knew she would never place herself in such a despicable and vulnerable position again. And, she knew Connor demanded extreme vigilance during any travel into unfamiliar territory; she planned never to disappoint him.
“It’s pretty here,” said Cody.
Studying Cody further, she liked how he moved beside her. Perhaps a bit careless with his feet, at times, and not so quiet when excited, but even so, there was a natural woods craftiness that would blossom into true forest mastery.
“It is. It’s very pretty.”
Amanda considered the rest of their squad, each keeping sensibly close and within the established defensive perimeter as they mirrored I-80 on their easterly trek toward the I-90 corridor and, eventually, Cleveland. The new crewmembers were a good addition, given the limited supply of qualified people and the current survival circumstances. Indeed, Rhonda, walking in the company of McLeod, was a particular surprise, as she moved like a hungry wolf hunting prey, yet still took time to snatch up the occasional wild mushrooms or other edible plants that might make it into the dinner pot that evening. Jackson, she noticed, moved with an enviable covertness well beyond her own skills and she wondered if BB and Jason were better or worse. Jackson would be hard to beat despite bringing along both his and McLeod’s horse on foot. Always, Jackson moved smoothly and she was often surprised to find him ahead of where her ears expected him to be. But, it was too early to tell about BB and Jason. Though, from Marty’s take, BB was the true “ghost” of their outfit, even suggesting he had the ability to run circles around Connor.
“Keep an eye out,” said Amanda.
“I am.”
“Good.”
Though the pace was hard, they’d made good time since they set off August twenty-ninth on the ‘Cleveland Mission’ as everyone now called it. And, today, September fourth, meant they were fast approaching the outskirts of the city with plans to stop this evening for final approach, reconnaissance, and clearly assigned execution tactics.
“Amanda?” whispered Cody, sensing her solitude, yet hesitant to interrupt.
He did so anyway.
“Yeah?”
“The president wants Mr. Mac ’cause he can make babies?”