down with hot tea. Tim remarked, “You know, I’m starting to like this faggot tea. It’s pretty good. I see why those shithead Brits love it so much now.”
Adrian grinned and said, “We need to maintain our pace from yesterday. Tim, I need you fully operational when we get there. How’re you feeling? Don’t bullshit me, either. I would rather slow down than get there with you of limited use.”
“I’m a little fucking stiff from yesterday and sleeping on the ground last night. Let me get warmed up, and then ask me again in an hour or two. I’ll give you the straight dope. I’m too old to play pussy games about important shit.”
Adrian smiled and said, “I believe you, oh ancient one. Jerry you, doing okay?”
Jerry replied, “Never better, cousin. Let’s get this show on the road.”
Two hours later, Adrian called a break. Each man took off his boots and socks. The boots were placed where the maximum amount of sunlight and wind would enter and dry them. Socks were hung on sticks to get wind and sunlight, as well.
Adrian asked Tim, “Okay, how about it, Mr. Antiquity, how’re you holding up?”
Tim threw a rock at Adrian and replied, “Just fine; I can keep this piddling pace for days. I could go faster in a pinch, too.”
The men examined each other’s feet for blisters and hot spots, then put on fresh socks and hung the used socks on the outsides of their packs to continue airing out.
“We’ll skirt around the south of Hillsboro,” Adrian said. “We have no need to see the town, and we would be too exposed.”
They walked until lunchtime, and then settled down for a cold meal of parched corn and jerky. They took off their boots and followed the foot hygiene drill, as they would at every break for the duration of their journey. They all knew that it would be stupid to hobble themselves with blisters, so every reasonable precaution was taken.
Later that afternoon as they continued their march, Tim spotted two men in the distance. He gave the hand signal and they all hit the ground. Adrian got out his binoculars, a powerful set made by Zeiss, and scoped out the two men.
Adrian said, “I can’t tell much from this distance. Tim, how in the hell did you even see them?”
Tim replied, “It’s an old man’s trick. I was a prepper from way back and had Lasik surgery as part of my preparations long before the grid dropped. I thought glasses would be a bad thing to be reliant on if the shit hit the fan someday. Believe it or not, I have 20/15 in one eye and 20/10 in the other. I can see a gnat at two hundred yards and tell you if it has balls or not.”
Adrian said, “I believe you. They’re a long ways off and I didn’t see them. I bet that vision helps with the long range shooting.”
“Some, but with this scope, I probably wouldn’t need better than 20/20.”
“They’re probably refugees fleeing from the raiders; they don’t act like scouts, but we’ll wait until they’re closer to decide. I wouldn’t want to make a mistake and assume they’re not scouts if they are.” Adrian said.
CHAPTER 11
MARCH 12, EVENING
REX GATHERED HIS TEAM LEADERS for a debriefing of the day’s exercises. “Men, we’re getting closer to Fort Brazos every day. Closer to all that food and all those women. By now, they have an idea that we are heading toward them. I expect them to send out scouts to spy on us and perhaps engage us in some tests. They’ll want to see what our tactics are when attacked. If they do, it’ll be a quick hit and run ambush; they won’t have their full force out this far.
“I want those scouts captured alive at all costs, and I do mean at all costs. I want them alive—be very clear on that point. Kill one of their scouts, and you’re going to have to face me. Bring them to me alive, and your reward will be extraordinary. I want them alive, all of them, for my interrogation. What they can tell me is far more important than you can imagine. If they attack, return fire as you ordinarily would, but do not aim at them, aim near them. I want them to think you are reacting normally and shooting at them. Immediately send runners up and down the line to order the nearby groups to commence encircling them.
“Those of