Part 19 (1/2)

It's too easy! That thought jumped into Ben's head.

There is just too much going for us that has come too d.a.m.n quick and too d.a.m.n easy.

For the moment, Ben kept those thoughts to himself.

Georgi had put Pasadena to the torch. Cecil had torched Glendale and pushed south, almost on a parallel with Georgi.

Everything was just coming too easy to suit Ben.

Therm and his short battalion had been on the edge of Beverly Hills, just approaching the now-fading opulence of the homes of famous movie stars and rock singers, when Ben had called for a meeting of all unit commanders. Therm had left Emil Hite behind (but not in charge) with a contingent of the new Rebels just arrived from Base Camp One. He had left him wandering through a huge mansion that had once belonged to a rock singer who had fronted a band called the Sickening Slime.

Ben turned around to face his commanders. ”It's going too d.a.m.n easy, people. I don't know that anything is wrong, but I have a gut feeling that something is.

Let's kick it around. First of all, we know for a rock-solid fact that there are thousands of creepies and street punks in southern California. But we've had more of a fight with a few outlaws and warlords along the way than these people have given us. Why?”

”For a fact, resistance has been extremely light,” the mercenary, West, said. ”And I will admit I have puzzled over the why of it.”

”Yeah” Ike said. ”Now that you bring it up, n.o.body on the other side has thrown jack-c.r.a.p at me. And we all know the creepies can fight.

We don't know that for sure about the punks, though.”

”I think they can fight,” Georgi said. ”They just haven't done so as yet. Like you, Ben, I ampuzzled as to why they haven't.”

”I have encountered virtually no resistance” Cecil observed. ”I think we have deluded ourselves into believing those we face are cowards, fleeing before us in fear, when in fact, they are not cowards at all.”

”Then what are they up to?” Ben asked the group.

”We've got to know before we -- still-make a fatal mistake in planning and get a lot of Rebels killed. Have our people out on Santa Catalina Island been able to pick up anything of value?”

”Not much,” Corrie told him.

The island had been deserted when the Rebels landed to set up a listening post. So far, all they had learned was that they were all bored with the inactivity of it all.

”The enemy has good communications equipment,”

Corrie said. ”But much of their conversation is gibberish to us. They're using a lot of street-punk talk that just doesn't make any sense to our people.”

Ben looked at Dan and smiled.

Dan returned the smile. ”I believe I can certainly take care of that little problem.”

”See to it, Dan,” Ben said. ”Lamar, get the chemicals readied for drug interrogation.”

”They'll be ready.”

Hopefully, there would be prisoners taken this night.

”Is anybody running low on supplies?” Ben asked. After seeing several affirmative nods, he said, ”Stock up, double up on everything. If something heavy is in the works, we stand a good chance of being cut off from each other. And we might be cut off for several days.”

Dan left the room to go head-hunting for prisoners.

”One way or the other,” Ben said, just before dismissing the commanders, ”we are going to find out what is going on. In the meantime, all of you hold your positions and brace for trouble. Just in case.”

Chapter Thirteen.

The Rebels attempted no further advance against the street punks and the creepies. Dan led a team of Scouts into hostile country to grab some prisoners for interrogation. The Rebels a.s.signed to Ben's command post waited while Ben sat for hours, looking at the big wall map.

”Has to be,” he finally muttered. ”There is just no other reasonable explanation. Corrie, call Dan and his people back in. Immediately. Tell Dan that is a direct order from me.”

”Yes, sir.”

Therm was waiting for his trucks to be loaded with fresh supplies and was in Ben's office, drinking coffee and alternately chatting with Cooper and studying Ben comthe latter being one of his favorite pastimes.

Ben waited until Corrie had recalled Dan and his Scouts, and said, ”Corrie, advise all units to be alert for a sneak attack -- possibly a suicide attack, from all sides.

That's got to be their plan.All other patrols that are out, tell them to dig in and stay low. If an attack is coming, it's going to be soon. They can't wait much longer.”

Therm joined Ben by the map. ”If you're correct, we're going to be in trouble.”

Ben nodded. ”Yeah. You are so right, Therm. Get on back to your command; your trucks should be ready by now. Draw plenty of drinking water. We're going to be cut off from each other for no telling how long.”

”See you whenever, Ben.”

”Let's hope.”

Buddy walked in the CP just as Therm was leaving.

Ben brought his son up to date on his hunch.

”I think you're right, Father. They slipped around us and headed north while we were driving south.”

”And before West and Seven and Eight could loosely secure this area,” Ben said, running a finger from the north to the south, along the eastern edges of the combat zone, ”they found a hole and slipped through, out into the zone. Corrie, advise all units we're under a red alert. Get ready. Do it quickly, but not in a panic. Let's don't give ourselves away. Let the punks still think they've got us fooled. We've got to be under observation comall units. It's my belief that if, or when, they hit us, we're going to be hit hard from all sides. That's why there has been no radio traffic of any significance.”

”You believe their plan was already worked out before we hit the outer edges of the territory?” Buddy asked.

”Or maybe while we were hitting it. They probably saw that fighting us alone, in separate gangs, just wouldn't work.”

”We're going to be cut off from each other for sure.”

”Yes. Perhaps for several days. Okay, people, let's get cracking. We've got a lot to do in a very short time.”

The Rebels began quietly and quickly bracing for an attack. Snipers slipped into place, all of them equipped with night scopes.

”West and Seven and Eight will probably have a hard time of it,” Ben said. ”Corrie, tell them to make like this is an Indian attack on a wagon train.

Is his CP still at the airport?”