Chapter 3: Deputized

Some when along the way, we had been disconnected from the 911 operator. No surprise there. I dialed again and the same shaky voice answered. I gave my name, and the voice hesitated, then said, "Hold on, I'll get the sheriff."

A gruff voice spoke. "Sheriff Reynolds, speaking. Please restate your name and the nature of your emergency."

I identified myself again and then gave him a summary of the situation up to the present.

He replied, "Mr. James, you may have run into two felons who escaped while being transported to the penitentiary in Sioux Falls, and they are very dangerous. BUT we have a situation here, and I'm afraid I have no one to send. Probably wouldn't get there in time to be much help anyway."

He continued, "This sounds crazy, but an hour ago we had a crash landing of some sort, and every deputy, marshal, and state trooper we have is headed southeast of you to deal with the mess they caused there. We don't know much, but we think they are Sa'arm, and the local marshal, state patrol captain, and I were just leaving to set up a joint command post."

I was shocked they were getting so far, so fast! Then he asked, "Do you have any prior military service?"

I answered in the affirmative, and added that I was still a reserve commissioned officer.

Then he asked if I was armed. When I again responded affirmatively, he replied, "Listen! What I can do is swear you in as a special deputy. That wouldn't help outside my county, but my friend Marshal Pope will also swear you in as his deputy."

This time I was stunned, and my guest's jaw dropped.

Marshal Pope came on. "Okay - I want you to use your cell phone to record this. You may need it. Ready?

"Before I swear you in, we have instructions. One, minimize your risk. Two, if you catch them in the act, forget about Miranda Rights and do what you need to. Three, with all the Swarm activity north of us, I'm thinking you are going to be called to active duty as soon as someone gets off his lead ass and finds you.

"Until then, I want you to consider yourself my deputy-marshal-at-large. You are not to be a vigilante, but you are going to be 'the law' in the 'old west' style. Four, I would continue somewhat further south if I were you, then head east. Rapid City is already crazy congested - take care!"

My head was swimming, and then they each swore me in. Damn! They both gave me their cell phone numbers and hung up.

"We don't have a lot of good choices here," I said. "The routes south and north are uncertain and likely chaotic and dangerous. We just don't know what is going on. I do have enough food and water in the Sienna, for at least a couple of weeks. We could find a place to hole up around here for a while - even this cabin."

Rachel looked me in the eyes and declared, "I want blood, deputy. Lots of blood! You accepted the job, now do your duty."

Okay. The lady was pissed. For that matter, so was I - big time.

We decided to make a quick return to my Sienna and gather all the gear necessary for an extended hike with probable overnight camping. I hated to spend the time, but we decided we would be of little use disabled or dead.

With no probable need for stealth, the return to the road was quicker than the trip to the cabin. At the faster pace, snow squeaked and crunched as we walked. We were able to talk, but were limited somewhat by travel on the narrow trail.

Rachel talked about her life with Jack, how she met him, how he wooed her, and how they loved each other. It spilled from her, and I listened.

They were high school teachers at the same school. He taught English, and she taught physics and advanced mathematics. She giggled, and then choked up when she described blending their salt and pepper approaches to life.

When we reached our vehicles, we (she) continued talking while we chose and packed clothing and our gear. We took the sleeping bags but not the tent. I had two army ponchos with poncho liners, so we took them to use as ground cloths. I packed a set of camp pots and utensils but not the camp stove.

We were roughing it. Well, maybe. There were cabins after all. Then I moved the Sienna further down the road, locked it, and disabled it again.

We checked each other and then were off.

All together, we probably lost something over an hour returning to the cars and packing. It was an early dark, but the filtered light was enough for our adjusted eyes to follow the path.

The snow had stopped for a while, and was now mostly six inches deep. That helped us follow the killers' tracks, but made the going slower and somewhat treacherous. Clumps of snow dropped from trees as we walked.

Our boots still crunched as we walked along, and knowing our prey was probably a good distance ahead, we talked with low voices.