Barrett took a few steps back without saying a word and sunk into the seat of the buggy.  He let out a sigh and struggled to find the rights words, but nothing came.  The governor turned and slowly walked over.  As he reclaimed his seat, he said, “Let’s go.”

Barrett cranked the engine and spun the wheels for a moment.  Finally, they gained traction.

As they rode down the beach, the governor looked at Barrett and asked, “But why let the six go? I don’t understand.”

“Those men forfeited their lives when they refused to execute those orders, and they knew that.  They could’ve killed us all out there, but they chose a more honorable route. They’ll surely suffer for it.  All those men have left in this world are their families, and we couldn’t keep them from that.  And the men that stayed, all they’ve got is us.”

Baker nodded.  “Fair enough.  Now, take me to the men that may’ve put the Republic back in Texas.”

Cha pter 6

Jake

West Mississippi

Service started at dusk, but the next date would not be set until the end of the meeting.  The church council randomly selected their meeting times; Tuesday morning, Friday night, Wednesday evening.  Sometimes they would just convene at a church member’s house instead.  Wherever they met, they parked their vehicles out of site of the highway.  They were afraid their homes would be targeted while they were gone, so they tried to keep the outsiders guessing.

Church was more important than ever, but it wasn’t just the service they came for.  After song and worship, Reverend Lenton would preach a short sermon.  Then, the after-service meeting would begin.   The after-service meetings usually lasted about an hour, and mostly consisted of local word of mouth news.

Several in the congregations were HAM radio operators, so they were able to bring news from across the country and around the world.  The collection and distribution of information had truly become a vitally important service.  Communication items as basic as a scanner and a CB radio could be used to spread alerts through the community.  Given enough time, neighbors could be rallied, threats could be repelled and lives could be saved.

Jake and Geram had their rifles slung across their backs as they made the final preparations for the short trip.  The evening had brought with it unusually cool winds from the west.  The breeze stirred the oaks and maples in front of the house and whispered of the storm clouds that were gathering on the horizon.  Jake crossed the short distance between his home and Frank’s. Kate cranked the Bronco and Geram hopped in the back seat.

Jake knocked on the door and yelled, “Frank, it’s Jake.  You ready?”

Several moments later, the old man opened the door and asked, “Ready for what?”

“Church is in twenty minutes.  Are you and Mrs. Thames riding with us?”

“Oh, I forgot all about it.  I’m not used to the times always changing yet. I guess I’m getting old.  I’m sorry, son; I already have dinner on the stove.  You go ahead and come back by here after you’re done.  Y’all can eat with us tonight and catch me up on the news.  Besides,” Frank said with a wink, “that’ll give me an excuse to eat twice.”

Jake chuckled and replied, “If the Misses knew of your plans, she’d send you with us and finish dinner herself.”

“That’s why we’re not going to tell the Misses, Jake.”

They laughed.

“Okay, okay; we’ll be back in about two hours.  See y’all then.”

As Jake turned and walked off, Frank leaned outside and said, “Looks like a storm’s coming tonight.”

“Yeah, I think we might get some rain, but the storm’s already here, Frank.”

“I s’pose you’re right.”

Jake stopped for a moment and considered his next words as he had a dozen times over the past few weeks.  He decided now was as good a time as any.

“Frank, I don’t mean to offend you with what I’m trying to say.  You’ve weathered some tough things in your life and I know that, but why don’t you and Mrs. Thames move in with us for a while?  We’ve plenty of room. Geram and I can put up some more fencing and move all the livestock closer in.  Our house is much more defensible, and you know Kate just adores you both.” Jake shrugged and looked down, “I guess what I’m mean to say is we’re worried about you.”

Frank struggled for a moment to maintain his composure, before speaking, “I’d like that, Jake.  Let’s talk about it more tonight.”

Jake smiled and nodded, before turning and walking towards the Bronco.

Frank stepped out on the covered front porch and spoke once again. “Jake, thank you.  You’re more of a son than my own blood. I’m glad you’re here.”

Jake looked back one last time and said, “That’s what we do, Frank; take care of our own.  We’ll see you in a couple hours.”

***

Jake thought Reverend Lenton was in perfect form. His sermon had been on the dangers of idolatry.  The reverend identified idolatry as a good thing that becomes the ultimate thing.  Idolatry causes men to jump out of windows when stock markets crash.  It causes decent people to kick a chair out from underneath them when they lose their job or home.  The symptoms of idolatry were everywhere, and Jake reasoned they were likely the cause of much of the current suffering in the world.

After the service, the ladies prepared coffee while the men talked of community-wide defensives.  It was Geram’s first meeting, and the men were particularly interested in hearing the opinions of the young soldier.  He reared back in his chair as he typically did before speaking his thoughts.

“We’ve several choke points that the community should consider reinforcing so that we can keep ourselves safer.  We’ve got Miller’s Creek that crosses the road to the north and then hooks down to the east.  A few miles out to the west and south we have some bottoms that stay wet year-round.

At the bridges over Miller’s Creek, we could take a tractor with a bucket and dig out the approaches.  A trench several feet deep would cut us off from anyone bent on trouble.

We could do the same to the bottoms.  The more it rains, the more these cuts’ll erode and become even more difficult to cross.  People could still get by on foot of course, but not with vehicles.

The raids by vehicles are getting out of control.  I think we’d be a lot safer if we cut ourselves off and got more organized.  Plus, if we put the determined intruders to walking to get to us, they’ll be tired before they make it to our checkpoints, and that’ll give us one more advantage.”

The ladies appeared with coffee for everyone as Geram finished his proposal.  Mr. Richardson interjected as the cups were being filled.

“I like your thoughts Geram, but that’d completely cut us off from the outside world.  We could construct some timber bridges to cross the ditches if we had to, but they would have to be set in place with a tractor.  There would be no quick way out of here.  I can accept that, but everyone needs to consider what that means for themselves and their families.”

A wiry old man with a long, white beard spoke up as Mr. Richardson trailed off.

“That’s fine by me.  I’ve been talking with some folks on the HAM, and I can say it’s only getting worse out there.  The cities are hopeless. People’ve run out of money and they ain’t got any means of earning more.  The emergency food centers are overwhelmed, and the military can barely keep them running smoothly when they do have food.  We’ve got plenty here to last us longer than most places.  I say we do it.”

A teary-eyed old lady added, “I agree with Ron; things’re only getting worse.  I got a call from my daughter-in-law in Arlington a few days ago.  It was horrible.  She just cried and cried about how they should’ve left when they could.  They haven’t had power or running water for weeks.  Their phones were restored for a few minutes so she was able to call out, but I guess they’ve lost it again.  She’s hearing talk of a dollar devaluation soon.  She said that everyone up there is afraid that the whole thing is going to collapse and then they won’t have any food.  She said the government is worried that some states will try to pull together and leave the union.  She doesn’t think they have the ability to stop something like that at this point.”