fastening it as tightly as they could. It wouldn’t keep a determined individual out, but it would give them warning if anyone tried to get in.
Brad asked the men to unload and get a good inventory of everything in the trailer and onboard the vehicle. Then Brad and Méndez went into the office spaces and tried to search for anything to give them a means of working communication. The phones were dead, and the power was out so all of the computers were also offline. Méndez came back around the corner holding a cell phone he had pulled from the man’s pocket in the upstairs cubicle. The phone had full bars, but every number he dialed gave a busy signal. They had already tried the radios in the MRAP several times with no response; it appeared they were alone and without any comms.
Méndez spotted a ladder well that went up to the roof. After climbing it, they saw they had an immense view of the entire compound and some of the city (most of which was burning). They could see a mass of the crazies moving down a city street far to the east. There wasn’t much to see across the river; the bridge was congested and blocked. It looked like the Uzbeks might have attempted to destroy the bridge. There was a large hole in the concrete on the Uzbek side. There wasn’t much to look at on the far side of the river, and no movement could be detected. They searched the horizon for aircraft but none could be seen; even the streaking of smoke that usually crisscrossed the sky was discouragingly absent.
It was decided that the roof would make the best watch station so they moved one of the machine guns and a sniper rifle up to the top. The roof was surrounded by a three-foot wall that made staying in cover easy. They chose a spot in a corner facing the gate to place the machine gun and sniper rifle.
They moved the body of the man from the cubicle downstairs and laid him under a tarp in a far corner of the warehouse. Covering the body didn’t change anything, but at least the men wouldn’t be distracted by having to look at it. Brad put Henry and Eric on the first watch then instructed Méndez and Cole to start doing maintenance on the MRAP and the rest of the equipment. He didn’t know how long they would have to hide in their new home and he wanted to make sure everything worked if they had to leave in a hurry.
After they were done, the men laid out their gear and bed rolls in the loft. There was a small bathroom attached to the downstairs offices and the water was still running, so they filled every container they could find. Like everything else they had encountered, they had no idea how long it would last so they took advantage of the running water to take much needed sponge baths. Méndez and Cole covered watch while Henry and Eric took their turn cleaning up.
The two nights of running and hiding in the desert had taken a toll on them. It was hard to remember how long they had been on the move. Brad thought it would be best to just let the men rest for the remainder of the day. They locked up tight and settled in.
Brad was sitting on the roof in the small sniper’s position they had put together. As night came, the quiet of the city ceased. Whatever was roaming the streets seemed to get more animated after sunset. Brad wondered if the things worked better in the cooler night air. Whatever it was, they were definitely moving and making a racket.
Through the night vision scope he could see far into the city, and he watched small engagements between local residents and the crazed mobs. He saw a small car speeding through the streets stopping occasionally to pick people up, and then drive off again. Intermittently, the car would skid to a stop and men with AK47s would jump out to spray sporadic fire at the mobs before they would jump back into the car and speed off again. At least someone is fighting them , Brad thought.
He scanned the perimeter of the compound and saw the pedestrian gate where the crazies they had engaged
Brad asked the men to unload and get a good inventory of everything in the trailer and onboard the vehicle. Then Brad and Méndez went into the office spaces and tried to search for anything to give them a means of working communication. The phones were dead, and the power was out so all of the computers were also offline. Méndez came back around the corner holding a cell phone he had pulled from the man’s pocket in the upstairs cubicle. The phone had full bars, but every number he dialed gave a busy signal. They had already tried the radios in the MRAP several times with no response; it appeared they were alone and without any comms.
Méndez spotted a ladder well that went up to the roof. After climbing it, they saw they had an immense view of the entire compound and some of the city (most of which was burning). They could see a mass of the crazies moving down a city street far to the east. There wasn’t much to see across the river; the bridge was congested and blocked. It looked like the Uzbeks might have attempted to destroy the bridge. There was a large hole in the concrete on the Uzbek side. There wasn’t much to look at on the far side of the river, and no movement could be detected. They searched the horizon for aircraft but none could be seen; even the streaking of smoke that usually crisscrossed the sky was discouragingly absent.
It was decided that the roof would make the best watch station so they moved one of the machine guns and a sniper rifle up to the top. The roof was surrounded by a three-foot wall that made staying in cover easy. They chose a spot in a corner facing the gate to place the machine gun and sniper rifle.
They moved the body of the man from the cubicle downstairs and laid him under a tarp in a far corner of the warehouse. Covering the body didn’t change anything, but at least the men wouldn’t be distracted by having to look at it. Brad put Henry and Eric on the first watch then instructed Méndez and Cole to start doing maintenance on the MRAP and the rest of the equipment. He didn’t know how long they would have to hide in their new home and he wanted to make sure everything worked if they had to leave in a hurry.
After they were done, the men laid out their gear and bed rolls in the loft. There was a small bathroom attached to the downstairs offices and the water was still running, so they filled every container they could find. Like everything else they had encountered, they had no idea how long it would last so they took advantage of the running water to take much needed sponge baths. Méndez and Cole covered watch while Henry and Eric took their turn cleaning up.
The two nights of running and hiding in the desert had taken a toll on them. It was hard to remember how long they had been on the move. Brad thought it would be best to just let the men rest for the remainder of the day. They locked up tight and settled in.
Brad was sitting on the roof in the small sniper’s position they had put together. As night came, the quiet of the city ceased. Whatever was roaming the streets seemed to get more animated after sunset. Brad wondered if the things worked better in the cooler night air. Whatever it was, they were definitely moving and making a racket.
Through the night vision scope he could see far into the city, and he watched small engagements between local residents and the crazed mobs. He saw a small car speeding through the streets stopping occasionally to pick people up, and then drive off again. Intermittently, the car would skid to a stop and men with AK47s would jump out to spray sporadic fire at the mobs before they would jump back into the car and speed off again. At least someone is fighting them , Brad thought.
He scanned the perimeter of the compound and saw the pedestrian gate where the crazies they had engaged
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