The Tipping Point (Surviving the Fall 9)

“My legs are still attached and I’ve got a bottle of pain pills to go with these antibiotics.” She held up a couple of plastic medicine bottles and shook them, the contents rattling loudly in the street. “So it’s not all bad.”

“Can you walk?” Dr. Evans crouched in front of her.

“Hurts like the dickens, but yeah, I can keep up with you two.” She glanced down at the crutches sitting next to her. “Don’t judge me for these, either. I can walk without them, but Jackson yelled at me when I tried so I have to keep them for show.”

“Just… do what he says, okay?” Rick put his hand on her shoulder, then gave her a hug. “It’s good to see you’re okay, though. We were worried about you.”

Jane nodded and smiled at him and Dr. Evans. “Yeah, well, you two still suck for getting me stuck like that.” The three sat in silence for a moment before she spoke again. “So these guys really are cops, huh?”

“Remnants of the Capitol Police force, yeah,” Rick replied. “They’re trying to get to Mount Weather to rescue a bunch of people who are trapped in a bunker there.”

“Mount Weather?” Jane raised her eyebrows. “Isn’t that…”

“Yep.”

“Wow. Good thing you chose being thrown in jail for a week instead, huh?”

“In retrospect, yeah.”

“Did you ask them about the NSA site?”

Dr. Evans nodded. “We spoke briefly. They don’t have any information for us, but they’re going to give us a vehicle, a few weapons and some extra food and water to help us out.”

“What about the Russian plane? Did they see it?”

“It was a Russian plane?” Recker replied as he walked up to them sitting on the sidewalk, concern written on his face. “What the hell would Russians be doing here?”

“That’s what we were wondering. We saw it go down on the western edge of the city when we were driving in, but that’s it. Did you happen to see any parachutes?”

Recker shook his head. “All we saw was the aircraft going down. The storm was bad enough that there wasn’t much else to see. All the more reason for you all to be exceptionally cautious while you’re going about your business. I wish I could send some people with you, but we have to get moving and I need everyone with me on this rescue operation.”

Rick stood up and held up his hands. “No need, Captain. We appreciate what you’ve done for us; we’ll be fine out there.”

“I certainly hope so. If the eggheads you described at Mount Weather can’t figure this out, then it seems like it’s all on you three.”

“No pressure, eh?” Rick chuckled and shook Recker’s hand. “Thanks again, Captain. Stay safe out there, okay?”

“You too.” Recker turned away, stopped, and turned back. “One more thing, Rick.”

“Yes?”

&nb

sp; “We’ve been pulling survivors out of the city off and on since this mess started. We were hounded at the start by some members of MS-13.”

“The gang?”

“The very same. They had a strong presence in D.C. and they’re still around. We… eliminated enough of them that they left us alone, but they’re still very much present here. You need to watch your backs. If a situation seems sketchy, get out. You do not want to mess with these types of scumbags, especially when they don’t have anything holding them back anymore.”

Rick nodded in appreciation as he looked at Dr. Evans and Jane. “Thank you for the information. We’ll watch our backs.”

“Make sure you do.” With that, Recker turned and walked towards his men, waving his hand in the air and shouting at them to get ready to go.

***

As the bulldozers started up and the group of Capitol Police began moving out, Rick, Dr. Evans and Jane stood next to the squad car and gave them a final wave. Jane opened the back door and sat down inside the vehicle, sighing in relief as she folded up her crutches and put them on the seat next to her. Rick got into the driver’s seat while Dr. Evans sat next to him in the front.

“Everyone ready to go?” Rick asked as he started the engine. With only murmurs of affirmation as replies, he put the car into gear and headed toward the bridge ahead, continuing on the path they had been on only a short time before. The road ahead was clear thanks to the work of the officers and their bulldozers, and Rick had no trouble navigating along the path.