Daunting Days of Winter by Ray Gorham, Jodi Gorham

had fallen through the ice on the river had been located just over a mile downstream. He only had one bullet wound, but it had done significant damage to his lower abdomen. Carol had commented that the temperature of the water, combined with a significant loss of blood, had sped up his death, and that his chance of surviving more than a couple of hours without extensive surgical repair would have been slim. The second man found by the river was dead. Of his six bullet wounds, three would have proven fatal under most circumstances.
    Two men had been found in the ditch. One was dead, shot in the neck, but the second man was still breathing. He was bandaged and taken to the militia headquarters, where he drifted in and out of consciousness most of the night, mumbling incoherently.
    The four men appeared to be between twenty-five and forty years of age and had been well armed. Among them had been found two Bushmaster assault rifles, two Remington deer rifles, a Lugar 9mm with a silencer, and a laser sited Glock 45 semi-automatic, plus each carried a knife of one description or another. Additionally, one had carried pepper spray, another bolt cutters and a crow bar, and a third was armed with a sledgehammer.
    The Deer Creek militia had not escaped damage. Luther Espinoza, stationed in the upstairs window, had taken a shot to the shoulder, right in the joint, and was in a lot of pain. Carol had examined him, cleaned out the wound, and stitched his shoulder up as best she could, but the damage to the bone and joint was severe, and she worried that he might never regain the full use of his arm.
    The final issue to resolve was what to do with the surviving shooter. A meeting of the militia was called, and the man’s fate debated, with the discussion lasting for close to four hours and ending with a decision that he would be executed. That same afternoon, the man was carried from the militia house, taken out of sight of the town, and shot. Since no blanks were available, all four volunteers on the firing squad had used loaded weapons, and the man was hit four times in the chest.
    The actual decision to execute the man had only taken the militia a little over an hour to decide, but the discussion had then gone to what merited such a sentence, as the only people who had been killed were the assailants themselves, since they had been unsuccessful in taking any lives. Based on the nature of the assault and the weapons they’d carried, all had agreed that the invaders were planning and prepared to kill. Thus the sentence had been passed, along with the agreement that in the future, murder, attempted murder, and anything similar would be handled in like manner.
    The next full militia meeting was scheduled for two days later, and twenty-seven new members attended, which, coupled with the loss of Luther due to his injury, swelled militia membership to seventy-nine individuals, twenty-two of them women. The increased membership allowed for two additional people on the overnight shift, another up in the observer’s post, and a dedicated patrol along the river. During the days, more energy was spent on digging trenches, building fortifications, reinforcing the militia house, and being more prepared in general, should the need to combat hostiles arise again.

CHAPTER 9
     
    Wednesday, January 18 th
    Deer Creek, MT
     
    Just as the sun was dipping below the mountains, a weak knock sounded at the front door. Kyle answered it and was greeted by a frail, elderly woman who he vaguely recognized. She wore a bright red, wool coat that seemed to swallow her up and stood in stark contrast to her white hair. Kyle could see two spindly legs sticking out from the bottom of the coat capped with a pair of well-worn slippers that were wet with snow and ice.
    “Hi,” she said, forcing a smile, her voice shaking and hurried. “Is Dr. Carol here? I think my sister has died.”
    “I’m so sorry, ma’am,” Kyle responded, ushering her in. “Let me get Carol