Free Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (Book 4): Walking In The Shadow Of Death by W.J. Lundy Page A

porch.
    “You think we should poke some view
ports in these shutters?” Daniel asked.
    Brad looked out at the opposing
tree lines and the far off area where the driveway disappeared into the tall
pines. Even with the vents they’d found in the attic, their view would still be
limited. “Yeah, let’s do it, but make them small, and let’s finish quick. We
need to get back inside and button up before we’re seen.”
    “Understood,” Daniel said as he
unsheathed his Ka-Bar and started working a hole into the wooden shutter.
    Brad left the brothers on the porch
and moved back into the small cabin. Sean was already snoring away on the
bottom bunk. Hahn and Parker were sorting through the various food stores that
were in the cabin. Hahn pulled down a rusty old biscuit tin and smiled when he
heard the metallic rattle. He popped the top off of the tin and poured the
contents onto the table. A little over a half dozen loose rounds and a small
paper box landed on the wooden surface.
    Brad walked over and picked up the
box. “Looks like we’re in the home of a big game hunter. A bit over fifty
rounds of .308.”
    “You think the gun is in here
somewhere?” Hahn asked.
    “Maybe, but I know for a fact Sean
will be happy to add these to his kit.”
    Brad took the box of ammo and piled
the rounds close around it. He saw a flash of light enter the cabin where the
Villegases outside had successfully carved a peek hole into the shutter. Brad
walked across the room to the wood stove. An old mercury thermometer embedded
into an old tin beer sign hung on the wall.  The sign was advocating some
unknown lager, but the thermometer was already twenty-eight degrees Fahrenheit,
or negative two degrees Celsius.
    Brad stood staring at the
thermometer as Parker walked up behind him. “Twenty-eight! Damn, Sergeant, you
sure we can’t build a fire?”
    “Not tonight, we can’t risk
detection again.”
    “How we gonna keep from freezing?”
Hahn asked as he walked from across the room.
    Before Brad could answer, the
Villegases came in and bolted the door shut. “We got small spy holes in the
front and back, we can see the flanks from the attic. I think we should cover
them from the inside so we don’t leak any light after dark,” Joseph said.
    “Sounds good,” Brad replied.
    “So what were ya all talking
about?” Joseph asked.
    Parker turned towards the rest of
them. “I was telling the sergeant we’re gonna need a fire in the stove. It’s
already below freezing with the sun still up; we’re gonna freeze tonight.”
    Joseph smiled. “Damn Parker, you
always belly aching. We’ll be okay, we can just double up in them bunks. The
body heat will keep you cozy, you can rack with me if ya want.”
    “Man, fuck you,” Parker mumbled,
shaking his head.
    “It’s actually a good idea,” Hahn
said. “Four sleeping with two on watch.”
    “You all are stupid,” Parker
protested.
    “Fine with me, you can have first
watch,” Joseph said. “I get top bunk with Danny, you all can fight over who
gets to sleep with the chief,” he said, laughing as he started stripping off
his gear.
     
     

 
    8.
     
     
    The first night in the cabin went
without incident. The men huddled together for warmth as the guards, bundled heavily
with blankets and clothing, took shifts and watched though the peep holes. The
night as predicted grew very cold. Brad was amazed to see the temperature drop
far into the negative numbers. He knew it was cold the previous night, but
actually watching the mercury drop made him realize just how lucky they had
been to survive the arctic temperatures.
    They stuck to the rotation of two
on watch while four rested. It had been decided that they would limit their
activity while they holed up in the cabin. It wasn’t a tough decision. The men
were exhausted from the day and night they had spent on the run through the
forest. Snow fell hard through the day and all night. Soon there was no
evidence of the road or the