Chapter Sixteen.
The smile on Tessa’s face was more genuine than it had been earlier. None of these people knew what the MK21 hand grenade was. And since she hadn’t even twitched a hand at it when removing her weapons, the grenade still hung from the front of her vest. She had removed the defensive sleeve from the explosive core. Without the notched steel wire sleeve around the core, it became an offensive weapon called a concussion grenade. When the sleeve was on, the grenade functioned as a defensive weapon, throwing fragments outward at supersonic speeds.
With the sleeve in place, it could only be deployed from cover, unless you wanted steel fragments in the fleshy and bleedy parts of your body not protected by your body armor. Parts like your face.
In her earpiece, Bottom briefed her on the approaching men. “Be advised, four adult males, two with lever guns, and the white beard has a pistol belt. He’s most likely the leader. Everyone left in the compound is arming up and manning the walls.”
The group of men came closer. Benito started walking backward toward them while keeping Argus in front of him. The four men were all looking in her direction and speaking in low voices. Argus watched as Benito received a light scolding. Argus had seated herself to the right of the farm workers. Facing toward the northwest with her weapons piled up to her left. The four men and Benito moved to face her directly, staying fifteen paces away as per the agreement. The peculiar nature of humans caused the entire group of people to be standing directly in front of ‘The Rifle’ while Argus herself remained out of the line of fire.
The man with the white beard and the pistol belt faced her and examined her and her pile of weapons. He took everything in, then turned to the younger unarmed man and began speaking. Words too low to hear. The two men stepped forward, with the other two flanking them. The younger man had curly brown hair poking out from under his hat.
He spoke, “Señorita, I am told you are asking questions about the Santanna ranch and what happened there last week. Please tell me why.”
“Señor, I am following the criminals who murdered your neighbors across the river from you.”
“Señorita, that sounds pretty risky. Why do you do that?”
“They took someone from me, and I must get them back.”
“How do we know you're not one of them?”
Argus smiled wider and shrugged, “If I was one of them I would be on the other side of the river, not on this side asking questions.”
The man relaxed somewhat.
Argus asked politely, “May I know your name, señor?”
“My name is Eduardo Cantone. Men like those chased by a girl. It’s very strange.”
Truth time. “I am not alone, señor. I have people with me, ready to strike if I find the criminals.”
Eduardo scanned the horizon and shrugged. “I don’t see no one, señorita.”
“I am a scout, señor Cantone. Scouts search for things and map the countryside. My scouting party ensures my safety during travel. Why is there an armed man with your workers?”
Eduardo snorted. “The attack on our neighbors would be one reason.” He shook his head. “The other reason is almost as bad. There is a Puma in the area, and she’s hurt and desperate ‘cause she has attacked one of our kids. Four days ago, young David died from his wounds. The she-cat has also attacked our neighbors. David is not the only child killed because of this cat. All the attacks occurred during broad daylight.”
Argus felt her smile falter. “I am sorry to hear this. Losing a child is a terrible thing.”
“And who did you lose, señorita? Why would chase after these men?” He gestured at the man with the white beard, “Gary here says there was over twenty men. We had a meeting, and all the trackers and hunters agreed with him. We hoped the larger forts up north would catch them, but they moved quickly. They cut through the western bank like a hot knife through fat. By the time the city knew of the attacks, they were gone.”
In her earpiece, Argus heard Bottom curse, “Get as much intel as you can. We need to know if the platoon is going to meet armed opposition. We want to avoid bloodshed if at all possible.”
Argus stared at Eduardo, thinking furiously. “How long did it take them to leave your territory? How much territory do you control? Do you have a council or governor in charge or are you independent”
“Why?”
“Señor, I told you I am a scout. There is a large force of men following me up this side of the river. You are the first people we have talked to. All the others we passed by.”
“Why do we get so lucky to meet you, señorita?”
“Your home is in a place that we would normally travel through. People build farther from the river because of flooding. We could normally move upriver and avoid any contact. We want no trouble. A large group of armed men can be frightening. Frightened people can make mistakes. We want no trouble with anyone but the men we are chasing.”
“So more men will be rampaging through our lands?”
“No, señor, we are not rampaging. I am here to make sure we start no problems with anyone on this side of the river. We carry our own supplies and have goods to trade if we need anything. The men who attacked your neighbors have been killing and stealing up the west bank of the river. All the way from Sierra Blanca in Old Mexico. One hundred miles from here. We have been ordered to catch them.”
“Ordered? Whose orders?”
Argus heard Bottom sigh into her mic. “Tell him.”
WO1 Juarez looked at Eduardo and said, “The Army of the Republic.”
The entire group just stared at her.
***
Gary snorted, “The Army of the Republic? What Army? What Republic?”
Argus answered, “The Republic of the Americas. The Republic includes all of Central America, including most of Old Mexico and the Texas coastline. To the old cities of Chihuahua and Houston.”
Gary scoffed, “A girl is part of an army?”
“Señor, I joined the army when I was twenty years old. It took me five years, but I finally joined the ranks of the scout service. I am learning my trade under the teachings of my teammate who is watching over me right now, making sure that I am safe from any harm.”
Eduardo asked, “How’s that?”
Argus pointed at the young woman who had spoken to her. “Señorita, what is your name?”
"Rosario," said the young woman as the four elders looked at her.
Tessa nodded, then asked, “Señores, I would like Rosario to show you something of mine. I know she has no weapon other than her hoe, and I would feel safe if she approached me.
Argus smiled. “Without her hoe.”
The town elders gathered into a small knot and began muttering amongst themselves. Eduardo looked at her and asked, “What do you want to show us?”
Tessa reached into the long pouch that was attached to her vest and pulled out the scope that would normally sit atop her carbine. She held it up. “I would like her to show you this. It is a telescope. You know what that is. Your man on the wall is watching us right now with one. I want you to look at mine.”
The elders huddled up and muttered amongst themselves. They called Rosario into their little huddle and muttered some more. Rosario walked to where Argus sat and knelt in front of her. Tessa smiled up at her, “Rosario, please listen to me. The soldiers following me do not want harm your people. They want to catch the murderers.”
Argus held up the 3x9 rifle scope, and showed Rosario how to look through it. She then showed her how to change the magnification. She explained how the lines inside the scope worked and how it sat on top of her rifle. Then she explained what all that meant when it sat on top of a rifle in the hands of a marksman.
Argus held up a magazine with 9mm pistol ammunition in it and removed a round.
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She explained how the bullet was used by both the pistol and her small rifle. Argus told Rosario how the “little bullets” could kill a person from a hundred and fifty yards away when fired from the little rifle.
Argus then handed her an M-65 battle rifle round. From the tip of the bullet to the rear of the cartridge, the 6.5 Creedmore round measured 71.8 millimeters long. It had a hefty weight to it. Rosario’s face paled.
Rosario looked at the landscape behind Tessa. She looked for the person who took away a woman’s fear. The person that allowed a woman to sit fearlessly in front of armed men.
Rosario’s mouth went dry. This woman was not alone. She was protected by el espíritu de muerte. Rosario realized that she herself could be a split second away from getting shot. She looked into Tessa’s eyes and her hands started shaking.
Tessa smiled, and clasped Rosario’s hands and once again hammered her point across, “We will not harm you or you family. We are after the men who killed your neighbors.”
Before she sent Rosario back to her town leaders, Argus told her to go over and examine her pile of weapons. Argus asked Rosario to examine the guns, her clothing, and her boots. “The army gave these things to me so that I can do my job. Rosario, please make your elders believe my friends are protecting me.” Argus watched the young woman back away. Rosario then turned and ran to the leaders.
Bottom spoke into her ear-piece, “Argus, stay frosty. I have your range dialed in and if any of them do anything stupid, I’ll waste’em. Answer their questions honestly. Keep them calm. I don’t want to shoot any one of these motherfuckers. It sounds like they are part of a working government made up of city/states. These people are not our enemies.”
“If I have to drop one of these cocksuckers, put your tear gas grenade upwind of them. You will then haul ass back toward my position while staying out of my line of fire. Watch out for that dog. Acknowledge.”
Argus replied under her breath, “Copy that. It is my professional opinion that shooting motherfuckers will be unnecessary. Please acknowledge.”
“Argus, I will defer. I will not service these targets unless they need it. Copy that?”
Argus made a double click with her tongue.
Tessa felt her stomach tighten. She hated this part of the process. If these people proved themselves unreasonable, Tessa was going to get a very up close view of the squishy and bleedy parts inside a human being.
It had never happened right in front of her, but she had seen the results of rifle bullets and human anatomy co-mingling, and it wasn’t pretty. It smelled bad, too. Argus watched as Rosario showed the scope to the town leadership. They pointed it around, spending a lot of time on the landscape behind her. They examined the 9mm bullet, and the 6.5 Creedmore round. Argus glanced at her wristwatch. They were 45 minutes into the meet and greet. It seemed longer.
***
Five minutes later, Eduardo turned away from his advisors . He asked, “Tessa, how do I know you're not a liar? Are you bluffing?”
“What could I gain by fooling you? My platoon is coming up this side of the river. Nothing will stop them. We are a hundred and fifty armed men. Please señor, our orders are not to start a fight unless someone starts a fight with us. We will be respectful of your lands. We do not want to hurt anyone, but we will defend ourselves. I say again, we are after the men that murdered your neighbors.”
Cantone glared at her. His voice rose. "Your hundred and fifty men will not be allowed here!"
Cantone declared. “All along the river we have tilled fields and the dikes and canals that water and protect them. A hundred and fifty men and horses would wreck our shit! These fields feed our people!”
He pointed at the mountain to the east. “Everything between La Sierra de los Órganos and the river is ours, and we have twenty walled forts that support the city. We will not have your men come through here! Not after what happened on the other side of the river.”
In her earpiece, Bottom cursed again. “Argus, we need to de-escalate this situation immediately. We will not start a war with these people. We need to get the fuck out of here and then contact Fastball Two-Three and the platoon.”
Argus made two soft clicks with her mouth, signaling the affirmative. She then addressed the farmers, “Señor, I will leave and talk to my commander. We will find another way up river. Either around the mountain or we will cross to the western bank.”
Cantone shook his head no, “No senorita, before you leave we are going to talk about this ‘Republic’ of yours.”
Bottom heard that through her ear-piece and her stomach dropped.
Ah, fuck.
‘The Rifle’ was pulled tight into her shoulder. She rocked it left and right on the bi-pod. Her thumb moved the selector from safe to semi. She activated the Infra-Red laser for the rifle scope’s built in rangefinder/bullet drop compensator and put it in ‘Stand By’.
She started a breathing exercise intended to calm her down, focus her attention, and lower her heart rate.
She crooned. “Main Vo Hoon. Aham Prema. Ohm Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.”
The words roughly translated to, “I am that. I am Divine Love. Peace of Mind, Body and Speech.”
CWO Bottas had no religious beliefs. The mantra was simply an exercise used to clear her mind and center herself.
Argus heard the mantra in her earpiece, and even though she made no outward reaction, her heart rate sky-rocketed. Her mouth went dry.
Fuck.
The Chief was about to waste one of these cocksuckers. Which one? The men with guns? The dog? She could think of no quicker way to get shwacked than to kill someone’s dog.
In any large group of people, there was always one bastard you could shoot without any real repercussions. Lots of people were bastards. Bastard coated bastards with bastard filling. Everyone agreed on that. But shooting a dog was much worse than shooting a right bastard. You might as well shoot a child.
Think fast, Tessa. She held up her hand and shouted, “HOLD! There is no need for this! Think carefully about what might come of this. The first meeting of our peoples should not be violent!”
Argus stated. “I am going to leave.”
Cantone shook his head no.
“Eduardo, is this a lawless place? Are you going to steal my belongings like a common highway man? Do you have laws about stealing? Are you a common thief? Are you going to prevent me from leaving? Do you have laws about kidnapping? Will you force me into your walled home? What is to stop you from raping me if I am forced to enter your home?”
Argus cocked her head to one side. “Do the women in your town already live with rape and captivity? Is that the real reason you have an armed man standing over them as they work to grow your food?”
She arched an eyebrow. “What will you do if I walk over there and get my stuff?”
The men that had come with Cantone from the town looked angry. Benito looked like someone who was about to get his ass shot. Rosario looked frightened. The dog was looking aggressive.
That dog could be a real fucking problem.
“Do you have laws, Ed? If you have no laws, then there is no reason for me not to kill every man here holding a gun.”
***
Bottom studied the tableau through her rifle scope, relaxed and ready to service targets. The wind had changed. It now blew directly from behind her toward her targets. She could smell grasses and juniper trees. The sun was warming her back. She could hear birds tweeting in the distance. A crow cawed. Shooting motherfuckers didn’t get any easier than this. They weren’t human beings anymore; they were targets.
She crooned, “Main Vo Hoon. Aham Prema. Ohm Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.”
Argus pointed at the walled town, “Hey Eddie, what if I kill one of your people on the wall?”
All semblance of respect was gone.
Bottom changed the field of view on the scope. Now she was looking at the people on the walls.
“Argus, fat man in a brown leather hat with a telescope. Younger man with an eye patch over his right eye standing next to him. Could be his son.”
Argus leaned back on her hands and extended her legs in front of her, crossing her ankles. “What if I killed the fat man in the brown hat, the one with the telescope? Or the young man next to him, the one with the missing eye?”
All the townsfolk were upset now. Argus prepared herself; someone was going to get shot if they didn’t let her leave.
Bottom’s voice in her ear alerted her to another problem.
“Argus, there’s a child with curly brown hair wearing a red shirt and brown pants outside the walls, east side of town. Alone, near what looks like a canal. One meter tall. Range verified, one thousand meters.”
Fucking hell. This situation was spiraling out of control. That was how you described a target! For fuck’s sake, she couldn’t let the Chief waste a sprog.
Argus looked at Gary, “Gary, the child with the curly brown hair and the red shirt, the one outside of your walls right now. What is that child’s name? That one there, look.” Never taking her eyes off of Gary, she waved her right hand that way.
The entire group turned to look. Into her ear, Bottom spoke urgently, “There’s a big cat stalking the child!”
Argus asked quickly, “What if I kill the Puma that is stalking the child?”
Just then, Bottom spoke into her mic, “Shot.”
The entire group jumped at the loud “CRACK” of a supersonic rifle bullet passing over their heads. They all saw the sudden spray of blood and tissue shoot skyward as the large Puma began rolling over and over, yowling at the top of her lungs.
“Shot.”
Another spray of blood leaped skyward as the predator stopped moving. The child stood on tippy toes, searching for what had made all the noise. The terrified child started screaming for his mother.
As soon as the second shot had cracked overhead, Gary turned and wrenched Benito’s rifle out of his hands. He shoved him violently and the young men fell on his arse. Gary held the rifle over his head with both hands and stepped between Argus and Eduardo Cantone.
Argus watched as the dog spun in her direction and Gary screamed “¡Bailey, acostarse!” The dog stopped and then laid down when he screamed the command again.
Gary shouted, "¡NO TE MUEVAS!" as the terrified people looked back at Argus. She remained in the same relaxed pose she had been in. She locked eyes with Gary and raised her left eyebrow. Argus was the picture of calm.
In all actuality, she felt an urgent need to go pee.
Eduardo Cantone yelled, “What’s happening Papa!? Was she talking about Casey?!” He swung his arms about, searching for some sort of contact.
Argus made a note. The man was almost blind. He was the man in charge. He must be more formidable than he looked.
The arms-man behind him yelled “Jefe! Casey is safe! She killed the cat!”
The man on the left stepped forward and put Eduardo’s arm over his shoulder.
Gary yelled again, “¡SILENCIO! ¡NO TE MUEVAS!”
Argus laughed out loud and shouted. “¡NO ERES LA JEFA DE MI! You are not in charge here!”
They all looked at her.
Argus smiled wide and showed all of her teeth, “I AM.”
***
“Put your guns on the ground now or you will die. Please make sure Bailey doesn’t move. Bailey looks like a good dog. I would hate to kill a good dog. Do you doubt me? Gary, I am about to put a bullet in your chest.”
Fucking hell, this had gotten way out of control. This was not how a first contact situation was supposed to happen.
“Hey Eddie, that woman running out to that screaming child in the field. Do you know her?”
She hated the implied threat, but deemed it necessary.
Eduardo squinted at Gary’s back, “Papa?”
Gary lowered the rifle he was holding and set it on the ground, then took his pistol out of its holster and placed it on the ground next to the rifle. He stood up and said, “Everyone, I think we should listen to this woman.”
The man on the right side of Eduardo set his rifle down and moved to the dog. He knelt down and put his arms around her and started talking softly and petting her.
In her ear-piece, Argus heard Bottom crooning. “Main Vo Hoon. Aham Prema. Ohm Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.”
Thank the Gods. The threat from the dog had lowered. Somewhat. Argus kept a watchful eye on that dog. She had a holdout Glok in her vest. It only had five rounds in it, but that should be enough. Should be. Dogs were fucking fast when they attacked. All the armed men had placed their weapons on the ground in front of them.
Good. Now they could have a polite conversation.
“Señor Cantone, please explain to me, do you answer to this city of yours? What is this city called?”
Gary answered,“The city is called ‘Los Gatos’.”