Karl Fairly lay on the ground. The pool of blood growing around him. He quickly rolled over and sat up, taking cover behind a large tree. His head was throbbing and bleeding from where Nunez hit him with the but of the 45. Before he could manage to pull himself to his feet, his hands still bound behind him, he heard the two stroke motor from the dirt bike. It was crisp and loud as it approached the sight. He bent to the side and around to look out from behind the tree. His friends body lying in the dirt. One shot through the head. Tyler Hobbs pulled the Yamaha DT400 up and got off , leaning it against a nearby tree. The 308 caliber rifle he used to kill Nunez slung on his back. Karl saw him and stood up and ran toward him. He was angry, yelling at Tyler Hysterically. Karl's emotions flooded out. He felt conflicted. He was angry at Hobbs for shooting his friend and at the same time grateful to him for saving his life. Tyler Hobbs pulled out the knife from its sheath on his belt and flicked it open with one fluid motion. He grabbed Karl's wrists with his left hand and reached out and cut the plastic tie straps. Karl turned quickly and hauled off and punched Hobbs square in the face. Hobbs stumbled back and threw up his hands to block another blow. “Hold on, Hold on “, he yelled. “I'm on your side, he was going to kill you in case you hadn't noticed constable”. Karl stopped and stood back. He looked down at his friend lying dead in the dirt, then up again at Hobbs. He was in shock for a moment. Then he said, “You shot him”. Then he looked at Tyler for a moment. “Why are you here”, he asked? Tyler told him that he was out hunting and heard the men yelling and came forward to check out what was going on.
The truth was that Tyler or one of his group had been watching the road in and out of town keeping track of the constables movements. Tyler himself happened to be on duty when he saw Karl follow Nunez out of town. This was exactly the opportunity he was waiting for. He was smart and knew that in order to further his agenda of returning control of the region to the people who lived there that he needed Karl on his side. He tried it another way but was failing miserably. He had lost many members of his group and had done things that did not sit well with his conscience. He felt himself losing more control not regaining it. He felt his objective of freedom slipping further away. He was convinced that an alliance with Karl fairly was the key, and now he had just saved his life. Things were coming together. He knew Karl was in shock and decided to give him time to process the whole incident before making his pitch. He rode back to town with Karl with Nunez' body draped over his horse. On the way back Karl asked Hobbs how much of his conversation with Nunez did he hear. Tyler Hobs told Karl that he couldn't hear what they were saying, but when he saw Nunez point the gun at Karl's head while he knelt with hands bound behind him that it was clear he was going to kill him.. Karl was quick at thinking on his feet. He did not want Tyler Hobbs to know that he and Nunez were friends, or that even that they knew each other. He told Hobbs that he suspected Nunez of being a poacher and followed him out in the hopes of catching him. That Nunez must have picked up on the fact that he was being followed and ambushed Karl. What Karl did not know was that Tyler had been following him and saw the entire incident. Tyler saw Nunez push Karl off his horse and then help him back to his feet.
He saw the two men interact and it was clear to him that they did know each other and even seemed friendly until Nunez pulled his 45 and bound Karl. No, Tyler Hobbs thought. Karl's story didn't add up. Nunez was not some poacher that Karl was tracking. Still, though, he would go along with whatever scenario suited Karl. He was after all working to gain his trust. Back at the church Josh and Dalton loaded the truck with crates of fresh vegetables, and a freshly slaughtered and butchered pig. Steve and Richie rode security . They also had ten gallons of raw goats milk which they included in the load. The milk and veggies were going to the trading post. We would sell them there on consignment. The pig was bound for a second Lt. attached to the military detail in town. He was the chief of Major Stillman's staff. Major Stillman and his officers were accustomed to living very well. They lived in the best quarters. They drank the best scotch and ate the very best food available. Because of the success of the pork operation at the church, we were able to barter for enough gas to run the power wagon for essential use and operate the generators we had as needed.
Things were going smoothly for us at the church. We were producing enough food for our entire group with enough surplus to barter for most all we needed. Three young soldiers who attended service every Sunday had recently fulfilled their enlistment obligations and had chosen to stay in the region. They accepted our offer to come live and work as part of our community. They were young and strong and well trained as soldiers. They were a welcome asset to our group. The board of governors was established to aid and steer the transition of power back to a local government from the military which had stepped in during the chaos caused by the EMP attack. The military was paramount in helping the region gain control in the post event scenario. They had provided law and order to the region in a time when there was none. It was clear now that the military leaders were ignoring the direction of the board by not advancing their agenda to reduce and eventually eliminate military presence in the area. Major Stillman had his own contrary agenda. He had managed to convince Leroy McMillan and George Henderson, both board governors members to go along with him. He commanded a large and powerful force and was backed secretly by Congressman Ted Holmes.
This afternoon at the church Pastor Sharps, Ish Patel, and Karl Fairly were scheduled to have a secret meeting to discuss their plan to advance the rightfully ratified agenda of eliminating the military's involvement in local government. This undertaking would not be an easy one. Henderson and McMillan's alliance with Stillman had allowed him to attach himself to the organization much in the same way a cancerous tumor attaches itself to a healthy tissue. It weaves itself into the very fiber of the afflicted organ requiring delicate and decisive surgery to remove it. At today's meeting the surgeons would gather. When the guys returned from the food delivery they had Ish Patel with them who they had picked up for the meeting on their way back. Pastor was waiting and greeted his friend. The two men went up to the pavilion and waited. Pastor instructed the man on tower duty to alert him when Karl fairly arrived. Zeb fairly arrived shortly after and he and Greg joined Pastor and Ish in the pavilion. Steve, Richie, myself as well as the three recently discharged soldiers joined the others as well. A small contingent of locals including several business owners attended also. The man who ran one of the small trading posts on the outlying area as well as a local gunsmith and the diner owner and several small farm owners were also all in attendance. Pastor glanced at his watch. It wasn't like Karl fairly to be late. Pastor Sharps and Ish Patel, the two board of governors members in the group started the meeting by going over some of the preliminary agenda info and outlining the meeting format. They really didn't want to get to deep into the plan without Karl. As constable and life long area resident he was the bridge between the Board and the citizens. Not long after the meeting started Karl fairly rode up the driveway. Tyler Hobbs was with him. He apologized to Pastor and Ish for being late and told them what had happened. Ish suggested postponing the meeting until such a time as Karl has had a chance to process what had happened, but Karl insisted on going forward with the meeting as scheduled. He was anxious to to move their agenda forward. Pastor said, “To anybody here who may not already know him, this is Karl fairly. He is a life long area resident and small farm owner. He also serves the region as constable. Karl, you have the floor”.
“Thank you Pastor Sharps”, Karl responded. “And thanks to all of you for coming out today. Most of you are aware of the situation here with the military presence in the region. They helped us to establish control after the chaos that followed the EMP attack. They came in and brought order back to the region in a time when we needed it most. However now, we are at a point where we need to form a new governing body. An organization of individuals and groups to set protocols and practices in place. This nation is still a free nation and as such”.. He was interrupted by cheers from the group of attendees. One man yelled out “Amen Brother”.Karl paused briefly while the cheering and yelling subsided and then he continued, “As such we reserve the right, We demand the right to govern ourselves as a free and independent people”. Again cheers were heard from the audience. He motioned over to Pastor and Ish. “These two men along with several others are members of the newly appointed Board of Governors. They are charged with guiding and overseeing the transition to a new government. In a recent meeting they voted in favor of ending the military involvement in this region”. Again cheers erupted from the group. It was a clear consensus that the
overwhelming majority wanted the military out of their affairs. Karl began to speak again. “ Hold on, hold on” he shouted. “We are not free of them yet. The officer in charge, Major Stillman is rejecting the Boards vote. There is no evidence that he even moved the Boards decision up the chain. He is embedded in this region and for his own personal reasons he does not want to leave”. A loud uneasy murmur came from the audience.
Karl raised his arm to quiet the crowd as he continued to speak. “The time will soon come for us to make a decision as a community. Technically if the Major refuses to lift the order for marshall law there will be little we can do legally to remove the troops. There is currently a congressman visiting the area. I think the board should request a meeting with him to explain things as we see them and see if he will rescind the order for martial law”. “And what if he refuses”, shouted out one of the group members. “If he refuses we will deal with that then. I will caution everyone that we must all remain calm and carefully plan each and every step. We must all be on the same page and consider every outcome to every possible reaction we make. There is no room for error as we move forward together. We have citizens, farmers and businessmen in this audience here today. And we have many more of each out there in this community. Everyone deserves an opportunity to have their voice heard. We need to reach out to our friends and neighbors and fellow businessmen. We need to elect several representatives from each group to serve as an advisory council to the appointed Board of governors. Again I urge everyone to use caution and proceed circumspectly. We are playing with a potential fire storm here”. One member of the group called out to Karl, “If they don't give us control of this community, we need to take it from them with whatever means necessary”. Again cheers erupted from the crowd. Karl again raised his arm to quiet the group. “The time may come when it will be necessary to use force to take this community back, and trust me when I tell you I will be at the front of the charge if and when that time comes, but I also know the potential cost associated with such an action and want to avoid it with every fiber of my being if possible. In any case we certainly are not there yet, lets move forward one step at a time”. The group applauded Karl as he handed the floor back over to Ish and Pastor. Ish raised his hands and said “Brothers, I agree with and support all that Mr Fairly has said here today”. Ish Patel was a soft spoken man who chose his words carefully and wisely.
Because of this fact people always listened when he spoke. Ish Patel had a quiet might to him. He was soft spoke, that's true. However he was not one to back down or shy away from confrontation when knew he was in the right. He went on, “ The Board of Governors meets again this coming Tuesday evening. Pastor Sharps will make a motion to call a special meeting for next week as well and to invite the congressman to attend , and I will second the motion”. Then he looked directly at Tyler Hobbs and said , “All we need at that point is one more board member to vote in favor of the motion to carry it. I full expect that Mr McMillan and Mr Henderson will vote with Major Stillman. Since the major serves on the Board only in an advisory capacity ,and liaison to the military, he does not have voting rights”. Tyler understood and nodded affirmatively at Ish. “If the vote carries then the following week we will meet again , hopefully with the congressman”, said Ish. “When the vote carries” shouted Tyler Hobbs, emphasizing the word “when”. Ish nodded in approval and turned the floor over to Pastor Sharps asking him if he had anything to add. Pastor addressed the group. “I think that is enough to think about for now, with the addition of only one item. After the transition takes place, we will elect our new civic leaders. Myself and Ish as well as Mr Hobbs and Mr Henderson and McMillan are only appointed to serve during the transition. All of us have the right to throw our hats in the ring when the time comes for a more regular office election if we so choose. I am stating here and now for the record that I will not be seeking and office in the post transition period. Thank you all for coming. God bless you all”.
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