Ever Onward by Wayne Mee

he knew first
hand he was a damn fine mechanic. He’s worked on Josh’s camper
several times.
    “Good to see you, Bobby.” The boy’s
smile widened. Doc’s expression, however, became serious. “You do
know what’s happened, don’t you Willard?”
    The big farmer looked puzzled, then
his brow uncreased. “You mean the plague? Course I do, Doc! You
know I live alone, and my place is kind of out of the way, but I
met Bobby two days ago and he filled me in. Can’t get nothing but
snow on the tube now. Radio’s the same. Phone still works though.
Got any idea who started it?”
    “Not the slightest.”, Doc said. “See
anyone else out your way?”
    The big farmer shook his head.
“Yesterday Bobby and me went up to the big houses up in the park.
You know my farm’s alongside that wildlife sanctuary up there.” He
took off his grease covered cap and scrubbed his short, graying
hair. “Gave me the creeping bajeezers walking around those rich
fellow’s houses. All dead and dried up like last year’s leaves! The
horses in the stables were fine, though.”
    Bobby spoke up, looking glad to have
something to say. “We came into town after leaving the park and saw
your sign. It is your sign, ain’t it, Mr. Williams?”
    Josh nodded, not wanting to stop the
flow of Bobby’s thoughts.
    “Well, me and ol’ Willard here read it
n’ decided to come back in today at noon.”
    “But my best heifer started acting up
and we’re a might late,” Willard put in. He offered a smile all
round. “Glad you fellows waited.”
    Josh noticed Willard was missing a
front tooth.
    “We did see one guy,” Bobby chuckled.
“On the way in here. He was riding a chopper. Going like a bat out
of hell too!”
    ‘The Dude,’ Josh said to himself,
feeling his stomach knotting at the thought of what might have
happened.
    Doc invited Willard and Bobby back to
his place. “After you meet Mrs. Wang and her granddaughter,
Mai-Ling, I’ll take a little ride back with you to your place.
Can’t let that heifer of yours bust down the barn.”
    Half an hour later they were all
crowded round Doc’s table eating the much discussed biscuits. The
girl, Gloria Ambrose, was very pleased to see the two females. Mrs.
Wang, in turn, seemed delighted to have another chick to tuck under
her flour dusted wing.

 
    Chapter 10 : ‘BE FRUITFUL AND
MUTIPLY’
    June 25, Barstow,
California,
    50 miles south of China
Lake
    Naval Weapons
Center.
    As the armored personnel carrier
pulled into the parking lot of Barstow’s Holiday Inn, its six
tractor tires crunched over the remains of several bodies. A large
Troop Transport and two heavy trucks followed. Swirls of dust
choked the air; not all of it from blown sand.
    The door of the heavy APC swung open
and Jocco climbed down. In the fading light, his first conquest lay
before him: Barstow, located where I-40 continues west to
Bakersfield and I-15 heads south through the San Gabriel Mountains
all the way to LA.
    It had taken Jocco two days to find
and load all the little toys he would need to implement Part B of
his Grand Plan. The trucks, weapons and manpower had been easy; the
APC had not. At first he had wanted a tank, but Bobby-Joe Burlis,
one of several other survivors that had willingly joined Jocco’s
merry little band, had talked him out of it. Bobby-Joe had pointed
out that they needed more speed rather than more
firepower.
    “Sweet Jesus-on-a-stick!”, Bobby-Joe
had drawled in his thick southern accent. “Why, you got enough
ass-kick in them two trucks to start a goddamned war! Besides, a
tank needs a trained crew; radar, gunner, navigation, the works.”
He’d jerked a thumb back in the direction of the motley bunch they
had assembled in the China Base Hanger. “Look, Jocco. I can drive
just about anything with wheels, but I wouldn’t trust one of those
assorted assholes near my daddy’s old tractor, let alone a fucking
tank!”
    So Jocco had settled for the APC. It
had front and back machine