Barb woke to the sound of a Harley’s distinctive potato-potato-potato exhaust. She looked out the window of the RV. A leather-clad biker with a swastika filling the back of his jacket was pulling up the driveway to the porch of the Sanchez house. The two skinhead brothers stood and walked down the front steps to meet him.
She’d have liked to hear what the new arrival said to the brothers, but he didn’t bother turning off his bike. She had to settle for watching the action. The biker reached into his saddlebag and pulled out two black wallets, which he handed to Snake. Next, he pulled out a handheld radio, which he offered to Tyler. Snake intercepted this, claiming it for his own.
Once the deliveries were accomplished, the biker revved the throttle and headed back down the driveway. The brothers watched him go. As the Harley doppler-ed into the distance, Snake examined the handheld. He pressed a few buttons before producing a squeal that Barb could hear from inside the RV. He twisted the knob and spoke into the radio.
“Deputy Snake calling HQ,” he said. “Deputy Snake calling HQ. Over.”
“Copy, Snake,” came a static-filled voice over the radio. “Do you understand your orders? Over.”
“Affirmative. We’re ready to execute on command. Over.”
Barb had to stifle a laugh at the ridiculous cosplay, but she well knew there was nothing funny about the danger these overgrown boys represented. She had a sense that this danger was about to materialize in some new and ugly form.
She wasn’t wrong.
As she was finishing her breakfast, a knock came on the RV door. Barb stood, holding herself vertical against the tilt of the floor, the souvenir from the last time the skinhead brothers came to the RV. She opened the door to find Tyler standing there uncomfortably.
“Tyler,” she said. “What’s up? Have you heard back from my brother?” She added this last bit to keep up the fiction, still figuring it would come in handy somehow.
“It’s not that,” he said.
“What is it?”
“You’re going to have to come with us.”
“Why? Where?”
“We’re evacuating everyone.”
“By what authority?” she said.
Tyler reached into his pocket and came out with one of the wallets the biker had handed over. He opened it to reveal a star-shaped badge. “We’re deputies now. You have to do what we say, or we can arrest you.”
“Where are you taking me?” said Barb.
“I’m not supposed to tell you. I’m just supposed to say that you should bring any medicine you need and a sleeping bag if you have one.”
“Tyler, come on. It’s me. I promise I won’t tell your brother.”
He looked over his shoulder. Not seeing Snake, he leaned in and whispered. “The grocery store. Everyone’s going there.”
“For how long?”
He shrugged. “Till they tell us to let you go.”
#
The Park-N-Shop was a scene of barely contained chaos. Baffled townspeople milled in the aisles or sat slumped against the display counters. Barb and Maria found a quiet corner back by the dairy cooler. Barb spread her sleeping bag, and the three of them sat on it, leaning their backs against the bottom of the refrigerated case. A few minutes after they were settled, Barb spotted Danita with two dazed older people who she took to be the girl’s parents.
”Over here!” Barb called out, getting the girl’s attention.
Danita and her parents joined Barb and Maria. Danita spread her sleeping bag, and she and her parents sat. Barb gestured her over. Everybody shuffled to make room beside Barb. Danita took the open spot, bending her head to speak softly to Barb.
“What do you figure’s going on?” she said.
“Jackery’s got the sheriff to deputize all the militia idiots. They’re rounding up the entire county. I haven’t figured out what the purpose is yet.”
“After the van life couple took off, Nazi Carl dropped his mask. He’s been a full-on asshole. As he was forcing us into his truck, he said, ‘Take a good look at your house. You won’t be seeing it again.’ Do you think they plan to kill us?”
“That’s a bridge too far even for Jackery,” said Barb.
“Then what did he mean?”
“All I can think is he plans to start destroying houses.”
“How can he hope to get away with that?”
“He must have a way to cover his ass. Remember, he’s got the sheriff in his pocket, and he isn’t afraid to bribe whoever he needs to.”
“So, what?” said Danita. “We’re going to sit here and let him tear down everyone’s homes?”
“If you’re asking whether I have a countermeasure, the answer is no, not yet. I was anticipating a strong move from him, but I didn’t foresee he’d go nuclear like this.”
“So, we’re fucked?”
“Not at all,” said Barb, patting the girl’s knee. “We’ve got some moves of our own to make. I just need to figure out how to employ them to maximum effect.”
#
Peter Jackery woke after a night that had turned out to be surprisingly enjoyable. The sheets he’d had Marcy bring had gone a long way toward elevating the experience of sleeping in the dumpy motel, but what had truly made the night special was the naked woman sitting beside him with an amused look on her face.
“How long have you been watching me sleep?” he said.
“About half an hour,” she said. “After twenty years of morning shifts, I don’t need an alarm clock.”
He did a quick calculation in his head. Even assuming she’d started her career at the young age of eighteen, that meant she was in her late thirties, closing in on forty. All he could say was, she sure as hell didn’t look it.
The new acting sheriff pulled back the covers and slipped out, making sure Jackery was watching. He definitely was. Naked as the day she was born, she radiated an unaffected confidence in her looks. It was well-deserved. As his eyes roamed over her body, he felt himself stirring.
Susan gave him a knowing smile. She grabbed the sheets and yanked them down, exposing him. “I don’t have time for a full encore of last night,” she said. “But I can still take care of that for you.” In one smooth motion, she pulled his legs off the side of the bed and knelt, taking him in her mouth.
Jackery gasped, and she laughed a throaty laugh. She lifted her head and looked him in the eye.
“This won’t take me long,” she said.
It didn’t.
#
Less than five minutes later, she was dressing in her uniform. He watched her, lightheaded from her expert skills. He couldn’t decide whether he liked the way she’d taken charge or not. Compared to his usual bedmates, she was an Amazon and not shy about showing her strength. It was edgy and exciting. At the same time, he wasn’t comfortable not having the upper hand. He’d definitely need some time to unpack the unexpected turn of events. In the meantime, she was being well paid to execute her portion of his plan. There was no need for that to change. He sensed she saw sex as a game, and if he decided he didn’t feel like playing, she’d smile and shrug it off.
When it came to business, she was as calculating and cold-blooded as he was. She knew a career-making opportunity when she saw one, and she would be ruthless in making sure the county was locked down. That left Jackery free to execute the rest of the plan. If at the end of the day they both felt like playing again, what would be the harm in that?
#
Soon the Park-N-Shop was jammed full of confused and anxious citizens. Scattered among them were strutting, gun-toting examples of the dark side of the American id. As more and more time went by with no news, the mood of the crowd began to turn. Barb could see men whispering to one another, and she began to fear someone was about to do something reckless.
Before her fears could be realized, a crackle came over the store’s PA system.
“Good morning, everyone,” came a firm, no-nonsense voice. “This is Sheriff Susan Powers. The former sheriff has chosen to retire, and I’ve stepped up to fill his shoes.”
There was a wave of muttering at this announcement. The new sheriff waited for it to die down before continuing.
“I’m sure you must be wondering why you’ve been brought here. The short answer is you’ve been removed from your residences for the sake of your own health. A county-wide epidemic of toxic mold has been identified, and agents of the EPA are even now condemning each property.”
The store erupted into a cacophony of shouts and outraged yells as the import of her words sunk in. One of the militia members fired a burst of semi-automatic fire into the ceiling. The voices lowered to a murmur but didn’t quieten altogether.
“That’s bullshit,” Barb heard one man say.
“This is the high desert. We don’t get mold,” said another.
“You will of course be compensated for your properties. At a reduced rate to account for the degraded state and minus the cost of demolition.”
This time the guards were ready when the crowd erupted. They grabbed anyone who dared to speak out and slapped handcuffs on them before leading them to the back of the store through a door marked “Employees Only.”
“I understand you must be upset at this unfortunate news,” said the new sheriff over the PA. “However, my men and I will brook no interference with the carrying out of our lawful duty. We will do whatever is required to maintain order. You will sit, and you will remain quiet. Everything will be over in the next 24 to 48 hours, and then you’ll be free to go on your way.”
The PA cut out with a screech. In the silence that followed, Barb could hear people weeping and moaning in horror. If she’d thought Jackery a monster before, she was now certain he came as close to pure evil as anyone she’d ever known. He needed to be stoppestopped,n a way that ensured he could never harm anyone ever again. This was no longer a hobby for her.
It was a mission.