Free Bug Out! Part 11: Motorhomes on the Dark Road by Robert Boren

said. “I’ve checked that out thoroughly. Nobody is rotting in jail due to these murders.”
    “Aren’t the families going to want the property of the victims?” Trish asked.
    “That bothers me,” Heidi said. “Remember the jewelry and other stuff?”
    “Let’s see, how can I say this without sounding mercenary?” Malcolm asked. “You guys have title to this place, right?”
    “I’d say it’s somewhat questionable now that we know Scotty is still alive,” Kurt said.
    “He hasn’t paid taxes for a long time,” the Sheriff said. “The local government was within their rights to dispose of the property.”
    “Scotty won’t survive unless he drops this place and disappears into the woodwork,” Jake said.
    Heidi looked over at him. “Honestly, even if he attempts to disappear into the woodwork, he won’t survive.”
    “We won’t hunt him down that way, honey,” George said.
    “Yes you will, but I’m okay with it,” she said. “I’m just trying to be honest.”
    Malcolm chuckled. “Anyway, if I were you guys, I’d play this one carefully. You have a good property down there, which will draw crowds. That could make this RV Park very profitable, even being away from Interstate.”
    Jake laughed. “So what you’re saying is we ought to turn the dungeon into a museum? Charge admission?”
    “Exactly,” Malcolm said, grinning. “Why not?”
    “Kinda sick, but I like it,” Kurt said. Mary looked at him and shook her head.
    “What about those victims?” she asked. “What about their stuff?”
    “You should give up anything a relative can prove belonged to their loved ones,” Malcolm said. “And make sure there’s plenty of publicity about it. You can’t buy that kind of advertising.”
    Jane shot Frank a look, and he stood.
    “Okay, we can discuss it later,” he said. “We need to discuss how we can protect ourselves. I agree with the general that attacks will diminish as the country stabilizes, but we can’t relax yet. We’re still in the thick of things.”
    “Frank’s right,” the Sheriff said. “A group of enemy fighters could still sneak in here and kill us all. The nerve gas they had scares me. We need to watch the back end of the park.”
    “Nerve gas?” Terry asked.
    “Yeah, there were nerve gas mortar rounds out there,” the General said.
    “Where are they now?” Jake asked.
    “We put them in the front building,” the Sheriff said.
    “How come they didn’t use those last night?” Trish asked.
    “Remember the wind, honey? Up on the roof of that barn?” Terry asked. “It was blowing in from behind the park. Unless they could have lit them up behind the park, it would have hit them instead of us.”
    “Couldn’t they have shot them past us?” Trish asked. “To the back of the park? Let the wind carry it to us?”
    “No,” General Hogan said. “Not with those Chinese mortars they were using. If they were right up close to the front of the park, no problem, but they were too far out. And by the way, those shells are Chinese too, like the mortars. Somebody in the Chinese government gave them to the enemy. I’ve already notified the Pentagon.”
    “Well, if we get attacked again from the front of the park, we can use it against them,” George said. “Assuming the wind is helping us out.”
    “It almost always blows this way,” Jake said. “Great for me. I open the windows on the far side of my trailer and it blows out the heat right away.”
    “Okay, let’s focus, people,” Frank said. “We need suggestions. How do we keep watch for more attacks?”
    “What about putting an army detail nearby?” Mary asked.
    “They’re still spread too thin,” General Hogan said.
    “Until we come up with a better solution, we should post sentries,” Jerry said.
    “Who else uses the roads leading here?” Jake asked. “I’ve never seen anybody on them until last night. Maybe we can set up mines.”
    “Not a bad idea, I suppose,” General Hogan said.