Free Invasion by G. Allen Mercer Page B

see that?”
    “Yeah, I did,” the words leaving Mary’s lips on a whisper.
    The tower tumbled down the hill, hit what was left of the road, and bounce over the side of the mountain.
    “I’m sure Leah and Grace weren’t taken by that,” Mary offered, hoping she wasn’t lying.
    “Momma B…Leah, come in.  I saw the tank explosion.  Are you okay?  Over,” Ian asked desperately.
    “Bulls-eye, we’re here,” Leah reported back on the radio.  “We’re okay.  That was Joshua’s doing.  He just saved us.  Over.”
    Ian breathed a deep breath.  “I think I want to meet that boy,” Ian said, smiling to himself.  “What’s your location?  I have a helicopter, over,” he told her.
    Leah had figured that he had the helicopter listening to the radio traffic between Ian and Bob.
    “Bulls-eye, I hope you’re bird is armed, because we now have a very angry helicopter over us; with nowhere to hide.  Over.”  Leah said, unclipping the cord from Daisy’s vest and scratching behind her ears.  Other than being knocked down by the blast, the dog seemed unhurt.
    “Mom, we need to find better shelter, and I have like ten shots left,” Grace said, updating her mother, as the enemy helicopter buzzed them with a few rounds shot in their direction.
    “Run deeper up the trail!” she yelled.
     
    “Mary, I’m going to get us right next to the other helicopter, and then I want you to unleash on them.  Understood?” he said, now wishing that she hadn’t used so much ammunition at the pipeline terminal.
    “Got it,” she confirmed, gripping the gun and doing her best to point it at the other helicopter as they closed the distance between the two choppers.
    Ian hoped that he would surprise the second bird.  The enemy helicopter seemed more intent on killing Leah and the kids than it did on anything else. They were closing as fast as he could fly, and he needed to remain unseen for at least another 30 seconds. 
     
    “Is that Dad coming up in the second helicopter?” Grace asked, throwing a look at the second black bird approaching in the sky.
    Leah led them into a grove of tall, thick oak trees and crouched down at the base of the largest one.  “God, I hope so.”
    The enemy helicopter passed again, showering them with bullets.  One of the bullets found a target.
    Daisy yelped loudly and whimpered.
    “Daisy!” Grace said, spinning around to put her hands on the dog.  Daisy yelped a few more times; she didn’t know why she was in pain.  The bullet had struck her back leg.
    “Ian, Daisy’s been hit,” Leah said into her microphone.  “We need you now!  Over.” 
    “Roger that!” came the response.
    The sky above the ridgeline was alive with the sound of two helicopters. 
    Ian pulled the controls hard to match the speed and altitude of the enemy bird.  He was perfectly aligned with the second helicopter.  The enemy pilot looked at them, but didn’t have time to react.  
    “NOW!” Ian yelled to Mary.
    Mary squeezed the trigger and was rewarded with dozens and dozens of bullets striking the target she was aiming for.
    The engine of the enemy helicopter exploded and caught fire.  The black chassis spun around two or three times and nose-dived directly into the side of the mountain creating an even larger explosion.  Mary watched the fireball bounce off of the mountain and tumble down to the road, where it burned like a giant bonfire.
    “Burn you son-of-a-bitches, burn,” she said softly.
    Ian heard her in the headset, but didn’t respond.
     
    “Nice work Bulls-eye,” Leah said into her microphone with considerable relief.  “We’re at the top of the ridge, near a grove of old oaks and a small field.  You should be able to put down there.  Over.”
    “Momma B, roger that!  Over and out.”
     
    One minute later, Ian settled the helicopter on the field, powered down and hopped out.  He could see his family and Joshua emerging out of the grove of oaks once they confirmed it